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The present application claims priority from provisional application No. 60/869,095, filed Dec. 7, 2006, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND
Stage lights are often used for mobile setups in which the state lights are rented for an event and then returned. Once returned, the stage lights should be tested in order to get them ready for the next rental cycle.
The stage lights can be heavy, and can include multiple different parts, all of which need to be inventoried and made ready for their next rental.
SUMMARY
The present application discloses a special technique used for cleaning sorting and checking lights which has special features and functions adapted for operating in this way.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other aspects will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the conventional table including its different parts;
FIG. 2 shows a downdraft portion of the tables;
FIG. 3 shows a different side view of portions of the table and the crate return;
FIG. 4 shows crate storage; and
FIG. 5 shows the way that the different items can be handled; and
FIG. 6 shows the endless loop conveyor.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1 illustrates an overall embodiment showing a table. The table includes a conveying part, and a number of support equipment adjacent to the conveying part. The support equipment is respectively used for different parts of handling the light.
In an embodiment, a central portion defines a moving area 110 with a number of open slats that forms an endless loop for conveying lights and light parts. The two sides of that moving portion respectively define work areas. For example, a first side 122 defines a first work area and a second side 121 defines a second work area.
Any of the non-moving areas along the table define sections that may include a worker, or automatic robot, or other similar structure that can be used for processing the lights. Any of these structures can remove a containerized or non-containerized part, e.g., in a crate or bin, off of the movable area onto one of the non-movable areas 121 122 . This enables workers to work on both sides of the table. Any worker can pull any item off of the conveyor and put it on the non-movable area. Two different workers can work simultaneously on two different sides at the same time.
An overhead tool holding part 130 , such as a truss, may also be used to hold testing tools and equipment. The truss may be directly over the moving area 110 , or there may be two different trusses respectively over either of the non-movable areas.
Lights to be tested can be located on the moving area 110 , and the non-moving area 121 , 122 , and moved from one area to the other. For example, there may be different stations for carrying out different operations. A first of the stations 140 may have a number of parts for carrying out first maintenance operation on the lights. The different parts are described herein for example. The stations may include a lens washer station, with air reels and/or power reels, reels that extend from the sides or from above, paint and air blast stations, and blowoff stations. These different stations may be located at different locations. There may also be sandblast and bead blast boots for more difficult cleaning. These different stations at least some areas are described herein.
In an embodiment, one issue with the lights is that after rental, the lights are very often returned in extremely dirty condition. The lights need cleaning in order to put them in a form where they can be re-rented.
In the embodiment, the conveyor includes openings therein, which may be formed between slats, or may be formed of a belt formed of various parts with different openings. The openings allow the dirt etc to be removed from the lights and pass downward between the slats. In one embodiment, for example, air draft portions may continually be blowing on the lights to blow the debris off the lights.
FIG. 2 illustrates a first area which is a downdraft stage. In this area, very intense and fast-moving air is sucked down across the lights. The downdraft creates a suction of air with a downward pull. This may remove loose dust and dirt. The downdraft section may blow from above, e.g. from a device attached to the overhead truss 130 , and also may suck from below, e.g. using a suction unit 210 . High velocity air, e.g. moving between 50 and 100 mph may be used to pull the dirt off of the light in this way.
FIG. 3 illustrates another section. The lights can be located in tubs such as tub 300 . The lights may be assembled or disassembled when in the tubs. Any of the tubs can be pulled off to one of the sides. A mount for the lights is shown as 305 , and a vice for the lights is shown as 310 . The lights may be attached at mount 305 , for example, and powered for various purposes associated with testing. The lights can be powered at the stations using a power connector at the station, and, once powered, light can be projected light on to a screen adjacent the conveyor which allows displaying light to test a focus of the light. The stations can also have a control connector for the light, which control connector operates to cause the light to project a specified projection.
Many other stations as described herein may also be located along the device.
Once the tubs such as 300 reach their far end, they can be returned as described further herein. The embodiment may use, for example, an endless loop conveyor that allows the empty tubs to be returned to the beginning.
While the top portion includes the two nonmovable portions shown respectively as 121 and 122 , the bottom portion does not include those and hence can be much thinner. The bottom layer of the table is shown in FIG. 3 , with the empties 350 being returned along that bottom layer. Those empties, for example, may be on the much thinner bottom layer that can be returned. Since the bottom portion is much thinner, it includes the ability to provide additional storage areas adjacent the bottom portion. For example, FIG. 4 illustrates plural different parts racks being underneath the device. The parts racks 400 may include parts that can be used at each of the stations. For example, the part rack 400 may be used adjacent the station that is used for holding parts that are associated with the testing and carried out near that station.
FIG. 5 illustrates a top view of the downdraft area, and shows a number of different things that may exist in that area. The downdraft table may also have air reels and power reels such as 510 located close to the draft downdraft area. Tools such as 512 may also be used. For example, tools may be attached to cables to allow the tools to be moved, but which prevent those tools from being removed from the station. Those tools are associated with control and/or other kinds of repair of the lights.
The air reels may be used to blow off any specifically difficult dirt. In addition, one of the mounts such as 514 may be associated with a screen 500 . That screen 500 can be allowed to test the light for focusing.
FIG. 6 illustrates the conveyor from above, and illustrates how once the tubs such as 300 reach the end, they can be removed from the conveyor and placed on the return part of the conveyor 350 .
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A testing table that allows testing lights along its length. The testing table can be used to convey lights along the direction, and to test the lights at different locations along the direction along the conveying. The lights can be cleaned and tested. Empty tubs can be returned.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/344,356, filed on Jun. 1, 2016, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to filtering systems, and in particular, to modular contaminant filtering system for rain water run-off, emergency spills, and isolated regular discharge flows.
2. Prior Art
[0003] Filtering systems capable of filtering contaminants in liquid run-off/discharge are bulky, complicated and expensive. Further, such filtering systems can require a team of maintenance workers for repair or replacement.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] Accordingly, a filter unit for filtering one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge is provided. The filter unit comprising: a first compartment having: a volume capacity, an inlet for the one of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge, an outlet, and an overflow for discharging fluid flowing through the inlet when the volume capacity is full; and a second compartment having: one or more filters in fluid communication with the outlet of the first compartment for filtering the fluid in the first compartment that is not discharged through the overflow, and an outlet for discharging filtered fluid.
[0005] The inlet can be covered by a grate.
[0006] The overflow can be at a top of the volume capacity of the first compartment, the top being in a direction opposite to a direction of gravity.
[0007] The one or more filters can comprise a plurality of filters, each having a different filtering characteristic.
[0008] Also provided is a filter unit for filtering one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge where the filter unit comprising: a plurality of first compartments, each having: a volume capacity, an inlet for the one of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge, an outlet, and an overflow for discharging fluid flowing through the inlet when the volume capacity is full; and a plurality of second compartments, each corresponding to a respective one of the plurality of first compartments, each of the second compartments having: one or more filters in fluid communication with the outlet of the respective one of the plurality of first compartments for filtering the fluid in the respective one of the plurality of first compartments that is not discharged through the overflow, and an outlet for discharging filtered fluid; wherein the overflow for each of the plurality of first compartments except for the last first compartment in the series is in communication with the inlet of a previous first compartment.
[0009] Still further provided is a method for filtering one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge. The method comprising: storing a first portion of the one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge in a first compartment; discharging additional fluid from an overflow in the first compartment when a volume capacity of the first compartment is full; in a second compartment in fluid communication with the first compartment, filtering the one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge stored in the first compartment that is not discharged through the overflow, and discharging filtered fluid from the second compartment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the apparatus of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:
[0011] FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of a rain run-off inlet for a modular contaminant filtering unit.
[0012] FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view as taken along line A-A in FIG. 1 of the modular rain water run-off contaminant filtering system.
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view as taken along line B-B in FIG. 1 of the modular rain water run-off contaminant filtering system.
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates a modular initial run-off water storage and filtering unit construction.
[0015] FIG. 5 illustrates a modular filtering unit construction without overflow passages.
[0016] FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a filtering system for handling regularly discharged contaminated flows.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0017] A modular contaminant filtering system is disclosed herein that is suitable for many applications, in particular for filtering contaminants from rain water run-off in city streets, parks, river banks, coastal areas, and almost any other similar locations. The simple and adaptable design of the system and the modular and readily replaceable nature of its filtering units makes the system highly cost effective in terms of initial, running and maintenance costs. In this system, filtering “cartridge” units are readily replaced by a one-man crew or exchanged to handle fuel or other chemical spills in emergency situations. The basic design of the system lends itself also to use for filtering contaminated discharge from facilities such as small factories, food processing plants, larger cafeterias and restaurants, car washes, and the like that regularly discharge significant amounts of contaminated water into the environment.
[0018] The modular system is first described below for rain run-off filtering applications since it can provide a simple and low-cost method of eliminating most of its contaminants. The system can also be incorporated into the current street and park rain run-off inlets. The quick transformation of the system for emergency collection/filtering of spilled chemicals is then described, followed by its application to filtering nearly regular but relatively small flow of contaminated water discharged from relatively small service and production facilities.
[0019] When rain begins to fall over street or other similar surfaces, depending on its intensity and the level of accumulated contaminants over the surfaces, it would take a relatively short period of time until most contaminants are washed away. After such a period of time, the remaining rain water flows with minimal contaminant content. Thus, by filtering the initial flow of rain water run-off, most contaminants that have been accumulated over the affected surfaces can be removed. The amount of initial rain water flow to be filtered is dependent on the level and type of surface contaminants, the rain fall rate, surface area topology, among others factors.
[0020] In light of this concept, a novel contaminant filtering system for rain water run-off that can be readily implemented in city streets with minimal construction efforts is provided. The system, can include an added advantage of being fully modular, in the sense that the contaminant removing filtering units are readily replaceable and can be adapted to match the type of contaminants present in the run-off.
[0021] An embodiment and operation of a modular filtering system 100 is described below with reference to FIGS. 1-4 . An existing rain water run-off inlet 102 at a curb 104 and at the street level 106 can be modified to adapt the present modular system. FIG. 1 shows a top view of the system. A commonly used rain run-off inlet cover 102 is shown to be used. The cross-sectional views A-A and B-B of the system as seen in the top view of FIG. 1 are shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , respectively. The readily replaceable “Modular initial run-off water storage and Filtering Unit” (MFU) is shown in FIG. 4 . It is noted that when relatively large amounts of initial run-off water have to be filtered from relatively large surface areas, multiple MFUs may be provided to accommodate the filtering load.
[0022] As can be seen in the cross-sectional view A-A of FIG. 2 , the modular filtering unit 100 is placed inside the provided space by removing the inlet cover 102 . Lifting eyelets (not shown) can be provided on the modular filtering unit 100 structure so that it can be quickly attached to a lifting arm of a truck used for its quick replacement. To replace the modular filtering unit 100 , the truck operator would attach the modular filtering unit 100 to the arm, lift it and place it over the truck bed. A clean modular filtering unit 100 would then be lowered in place with the same lifting arm. The process could not take as little as 4-5 minutes for each modular filtering unit 100 . Each rain water run-off inlet 102 may be provided with several modular filtering units 100 depending on the size of the surface area to be serviced. A bottom surface of the space in which the modular filtering unit 100 is disposed can have gravel 108 and may have a pipe or outer conduit 110 to take away run-off processed by the modular filtering unit 100 .
[0023] The cross-sectional view B-B from FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 3 . In this view, the modular filtering unit 100 includes overflow passages 112 provided on a top portion of the modular filtering unit 100 . In operation, as the initial flow of rain water enters the modular filtering unit 100 though the top cover 102 of the inlet, it would first fill the indicated initial run-off storage container 114 and after that overflows through the provided overflow passages 112 at the top of the initial run-off storage container 114 and then into the provided space below (shown at 116 ), which may have been connected to a rain run-off collection system via the provided conduit 110 . The initial run-off storage container 114 should be large enough to handle the required initial flow to achieve the desired level of contaminant removal capability or more than one modular filtering unit 100 may be employed.
[0024] Turning now to FIG. 4 , the initial run-off storage container 114 can include an overflow fill region 114 a corresponding to the overflow passages 112 . The initial run-off storage container 114 can be at least partially filled with sand or other similar layers of different material, which can be used to filter larger solid contaminants. Whether fully filled or empty, the initial run-off storage container 114 can be capped with angled grids or similar means to prevent the run-off rain water from washing away the filling material or dilute the stored initial run-off water. The initial run-off water stored in the initial run-off storage container 114 , which contains most of the washed-away contaminants, is then slowly filtered through one or more layers of filters 118 and discharged into the provided space below (shown at 120 in FIG. 3 ). The one or more layers of filters 118 can be rack mounted, such as on shelves, and individually replaceable so as to be customizable for a particular need.
[0025] The modular filtering unit 100 can be built with a structural frame 122 to accommodate several modular filtering layers 118 that can be packed into the lower compartment of the modular filtering unit 100 (the portion below the initial run-off container 114 ). The modular filtering unit 100 may be packed with different filtering layers 118 depending on the contaminants that are expected to be encountered. For example, with membranes to remove fuel residues, oil, fertilizer and other organic or heavy metals. The composition of the filtering layers 118 may be changed in minutes on-site or at the cleaning and re-stocking stations. The above described lifting eyelets can also be provided to the structural frame 122 to provide for a convenient way of lifting the entire modular filtering unit 100 above the street level 106 for east repair, replacement or reconfiguration of the filtering layers 118 .
[0026] As discussed above, the modular filtering unit 100 disclosed above can be used to control spilled chemical removal. The construction of the modular filtering unit 100 can accommodate several filtering layers 118 as can be seen in the FIG. 4 . The modular filtering unit 100 can be built with a structural frame 122 and shelf-like configuration to accommodate modular filtering layers 118 that are readily selected to adapt to the contaminating agents that are expected to be present in the run-off flow. As a result, the modular filtering unit 100 may be packed with different filtering layers 118 on-site by personnel handling hazardous material spilling conditions, such as fire department personnel. For example, filtering membranes may be quickly inserted into the modular filtering unit 100 to remove fuel residues, oil, fertilizer and other organic or heavy metals in a matter of minutes. In general, appropriate types of filtering layers 118 may also be stored, for example in fire stations, for quick insertion into the modular filtering unit 100 in case of such spills.
[0027] The modular filtering unit 100 disclosed herein can be readily adapted for filtering relatively small but regularly occurring discharges from facilities, such as small factories, food processing plants, larger cafeterias and restaurants, car washes, and other similar entities. In such applications, the modular filtering unit 100 may be installed with several in-series modular filtering units similar to the one shown in FIG. 4 to handle the peak flow, and be provided with filtering layers particularly selected for the contaminants present in the discharge. In these applications, the modular filtering unit 100 may be configured without the overflow passages of the modular filtering unit 100 of FIG. 4 . A schematic of such a modular filtering unit 100 is shown in FIG. 5 . In the configuration of FIG. 5 , the initial run-off container 114 can be configured to have an empty portion 124 and a portion 126 filled with a pre-filtering material, such as large particle filtering sand.
[0028] A cross-sectional view of a modular filtering unit 200 installed to handle relatively small continuous or occasional discharges is shown in FIG. 6 . In this configuration, the required number of modular filtering units 100 are positioned in-series along the path of the discharge flow to handle peak flow. The discharge flow channel may be covered as shown in FIG. 6 or may be open as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 . When closed, the discharge flow can be provided to the modular filtering unit 200 by an inlet conduit 202 . The modular filtering unit 200 can also handle rain run-off water as discussed above and for such conditions, an end overflow discharge 112 can be provided. The overflow 112 would also handle cases of exceptionally high discharge rates that may occur.
[0029] As is shown in the schematic of FIG. 6 , a flow activated sensor 204 , such as a container with a float switch, can be provided to indicate the occurrence of an overflow event or blockage of the filter layers 118 (for example, by particulates being filtered). The container with float switch may be provided with small drainage holes such that once the overflow stops it is slowly emptied and readied to detect the next overflow. The float switch can be configured to output a notification, such as an alarm, to the facility that it is time to change the modular filtering units 100 , unless the sensor 204 has been activated due to a heavy rain run-off flow. It is appreciated, however, that by providing a similar rain run-off detecting sensor 204 at a level above the discharge flow (not shown), the overflow due to rain run-off can be readily differentiated from that caused by the plant discharge flow.
[0030] In general, the modular filtering units 100 discussed above are useful for removal of contaminants collected on the surface of the ground (roadway, lawns, fields, etc), that are washed away by rain and flows into river, runoff collection and passages, etc. With such flow, the first few minutes will wash most of the contaminants, which are collected and slowly filtered by the modular filtering units 100 with a remainder of the flow overflowing from the modular filtering units 100 . In this way, a very high percentage of the contaminants are extracted without the need for a large system.
[0031] Furthermore, with the use of a layered modular filtering system, the filters can be replaced regularly or cleaned and reused. The number of modular filtering units can be selected to match the area to be served and the expected volume of initial runoff to be filtered to achieve the desired level of contaminant removal.
[0032] The filter units 100 may serve as storage tanks for the collected initial runoff rain, etc., or separate tanks for storing the initial runoff rain may be provided. The latter can be provided with flaps that close the passage into the tank and allow the following runoff rain to overflow and run into runoff collection pipes, etc. In the former case, the top layer can be made to allow the initial runoff rain in until it cannot accommodate any more liquid and the remainder is overflown into collection pipes for removal. The top surface layer can be resistant to overflow water at its highest rate.
[0033] In the case of spillage of certain materials (solid or liquid), appropriate filter modules can be used to replace the normally used filters—or empty containers can be used to collect wash-off water, etc., used to clean up the contaminants. The empty modules may be used together with pumps to drain the module continuously or at different intervals and transfer into tankers or the like for removal.
[0034] A special delivery/removal truck can be used to automatically engage the modules and place it onto the truck and replace it with a clean filter.
[0035] The filter units 100 may be layered—with each layer being readily replaceable so that:
[0036] a. Only the contaminated layers may be replaced during the cleaning process; and
[0037] b. A desired combination of filter layers can be used depending on the season, for example to take out sand and salt during the winter months, or in the case of certain hazardous material spillage or the like;
[0038] Certain filter units 100 may be provided with internal pumping means or means of attaching a pumping connection to increase the rate of filtering.
[0039] The output of the filter unit 100 can be discharged into the rain water runoff pipes when present or into the storage volume for permeation into the ground below.
[0040] The filter unit 100 can be accessed directly from the ground surface after removing a top grid 102 or porous block or the like that allows unhindered flow of water into the filter unit 100 . The grid 102 may be an integral part of the module, thereby eliminating the need to remove a first capping member to access the filter unit 100 .
[0041] Alternatively—in particular in a plant yard or banks of a road, a channel may be provided in which provisions are made to drop in the required number of filter units 100 in the path of the flow of the runoff rain (or surface cleaning) water. The filter units 100 would then collect and slowly filter the predetermined amount of initial runoff water that is needed to filter the desired percentage of contaminants that is expected to be present on the surface of the road or lawn, etc.
[0042] When used to filter a continuously discharged contaminated water, for example from a plant, enough filter units 100 can be placed along the passage (e.g., provided channel) to allow the entire discharge to be continuously discharged. The filter units 100 can then be periodically replaced as the filtering rate (throughput) is reduced. The throughput reduction can be readily observed (detected) when the flow moves farther downstream than a threshold distance. At this time the oldest filter units 100 can be replaced until the desired throughput is achieved. The filter unit 100 housings can be provided with locking flaps or the like that prevent from after the filter unit 100 has been pulled out a certain distance. Alternatively, a lever can be provided that is used to close the outlet from the filter unit 100 housing before the filter unit 100 is removed and is opened after its replacement.
[0043] The filter unit 100 can be configured such that the inflow goes through a sediment separation section and then flow into the filter layers 118 .
[0044] The storage portion 114 and filtering layers 118 may be provided in two separate pieces and each replaced as needed.
[0045] Filtering layers 118 can be stored in fire departments or the like for on-site replacement in the case of fuel or other chemical spills.
[0046] For regular discharge from different facilities such as small factories, food processing plants, fish markets, restaurants, etc., more than one can be placed in-series and/or in-parallel to accommodate the discharge (mostly occurring slowly or once in a while). Such units can be provided with end overflow passage, FIG. 6 , for sudden surge that cannot be handled or rain run-off that may overwhelm the system. The end overflow sensor 204 (e.g., bucket with float switch) can be used to alert the user that overflow has occurred or that MFUs have to be replaced. A similar bucket sensor (not shown) can be placed above the inlet level to collect rain run-off to allow the monitoring system to differentiate overflow events occurred due to the rain from those occurring due to the discharge overflow.
[0047] The filter units 100 can be provided with eyelets for attachment to a lifting arm on a truck used to remove and replace or install a filter unit 100 . The rain run-off inlet cover 102 may be integral to the filter unit 100 and may be used in place of the eyelets.
[0048] While there has been shown and described what is considered to be preferred embodiments of the invention, it will, of course, be understood that various modifications and changes in form or detail could readily be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is therefore intended that the invention be not limited to the exact forms described and illustrated, but should be constructed to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.
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A method for filtering one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge, the method including: storing a first portion of the one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge in a first compartment; discharging additional fluid from an overflow in the first compartment when a volume capacity of the first compartment is full; in a second compartment in fluid communication with the first compartment, filtering the one or more of run-off fluid, chemical spills and facility discharge stored in the first compartment that is not discharged through the overflow, and discharging filtered fluid from the second compartment.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention comprises a machine and a process for forming crosswise filaments for non-woven fabric. It also comprises crosswise filaments and fabrics made by the process. It has particular application in making crosswise filaments which are self-supporting, as opposed to crosswise filaments which must be held in place by hooks or the like throughout manufacture of a fabric. Self-supporting crosswise filaments can be created by a stand-alone machine and fed to any one of a variety of coaters or lengthwise filament laying machines. Crosswise filaments which are not self-supporting cannot be made by a stand-alone machine but must be made as part of an integrated machine which also lays lengthwise threads.
2. Related Art
A variety of machines have been used or proposed for making non-woven fabrics, and particularly the crosswise filaments for such fabrics. Rotating arm machines such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,708 of Gregory lay crosswise filaments into the notches of rotating helixes. As the helixes turn, the crosswise filaments are led into contact with lengthwise filaments to form a fabric. Moving chain machines, such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,578,141 of Gidge et al. and 3,345,231 of Gidqe et al., lay crosswise filaments into hooks on chains, which lead those filaments into contact with lengthwise filaments.
The principal problem of these prior art machines and processes has been their complexity. Complexity not only makes them expensive build, but more important, it limits their speed and their ability to make fabric with crosswise filaments of uniform spacing and length. For example, to make a six foot wide fabric in a rotating arm machine, the arm must be over three feet long. In practice, even though these arms rotate at very high velocity, the machines are limited in their lineal output of fabric. Moreover, to double the number of crosswise filaments per inch, one must halve the lineal output of fabric from the machine. In moving chain machines, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,578,141, the complicated movements needed to lay the filaments on the hooks on the moving chains, and the subsequent movement of the chains to pull the filaments to the full width of the fabric may create entanglement and limit both the speed of the machine and the uniformity of the resulting fabric. Some chain machines, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,345,231, are capable of high lineal output of fabric, but their crosswise filaments are not self-supporting and cannot produce a fabric with lengthwise filaments perpendicular to crosswise filaments.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In the process of this invention a plurality of filaments are laid in engageable relationship with two sets of edge spacing pins, which determine the distance between crosswise filaments for each edge of the fabric to be made. A portion of the filaments is also laid in engageable relationship with a set of slider pins which are traversable. The edge spacing pins and the slider pins are engaged with the filaments, and the filaments are gripped adjacent one set of edge spacing pins. The slider pins are then moved to pull the filaments to a length between the edge spacing pins which is substantially equal to the width of the fabric. A portion of the filaments adjacent one set of edge spacing pins is attached to a first edge element, and a portion of the filaments adjacent the other set of edge spacing pins is attached to a second edge element. The filaments are severed from their source, the edge spacing pins and the slider pins are disengaged from the filaments, and the edge elements are separated, drawing the crosswise filaments to the width of the fabric.
"Filaments" as used herein comprises threads, yarns, tapes, ribbons and the like. "Pins" as used herein, includes hooks, needles, mechanical gripping mechanisms and the like. While the edge spacing pins may be movable for distances which are short relative to the width of the fabric or the movement of the slider pins, they do not traverse such large distances.
In preferred embodiments of the invention, the filaments are supported after they are disengaged from the slider at least until the edge elements begin to separate; the filaments are placed in engageable relationship with the pins by means of hollow tubes, each tube carrying a filament within it; or the edge elements comprise belts and selvage filaments which are removed from the belts after the crosswise filaments are adhered to the selvage filaments. We also prefer to make one or both sets of edge spacing pins capable of a short movement after the slider pins have pulled the filaments to substantially their full length; this movement serves to remove any slack from the crosswise filaments and make them all of uniform length. A dancer roll apparatus may preferably be used at the output of the machine to take up intermittent feed from the process or to provide feedback to one or both edge elements to adjust their relative speed.
The invention also comprises machines which embody the above described processes, crosswise filaments made by those processes, and fabrics incorporating crosswise filaments made by those processes.
The present invention is much simpler than prior art devices and therefore not only less expensive to build but also capable of achieving more uniform fabrics and higher production rates. Speeds are expected of 100 lineal feet or more of fabric per minute. In fact, for any specific machine of this invention, the rate of lineal production is independent of the number of crosswise filaments. In the prior art with machines such as the rotary arm machines, as mentioned above, if one wanted to double the number of crosswise filaments per inch, one had to halve the production rate.
The simplicity of the invention follows from its feature of requiring only one major part to traverse a substantial distance. The other major movements are both short and uncomplicated, being for the most part simple back and forth movements. High speed inter-meshing of rotating arms, moving chains with hooks, and toothed wheels, all guided by cams with complexly curved surfaces, are not necessary in the present invention.
A high degree of uniformity in the resulting products can also be achieved with the present invention more easily then could be achieved in the prior art, if such uniformity could be achieved at all. Because the edge spacing pins of the present machine are (a) rigidly fixed relative to each other as a group, and (b) do not traverse substantial distances, such as occurs in machines which use moving chains, one is able to produce more uniformly spaced crosswise filaments than could readily be done in the prior art. In addition, as will be seen in the description below, with the present invention one is able (a) to achieve better uniform length for the crosswise filaments, (b) to adhere the filaments to selvage filaments and thereby preserve that uniform length, and (c) by the use of feedback, to control of the edge elements precisely.
The present invention also requires less wastage of filaments than prior art machines and processes.
These and additional features to be described below make the present inventions a significant advance over the prior art.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The drawings are not to scale. For clarity, only the first five and last five pins, tubes and filaments in each row are shown; repetitive pins, tubes and filaments interposed at regular intervals have been omitted.
FIG. 1 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of the invention at the beginning of the process.
FIG. 2 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 showing the placing of filaments.
FIG. 3 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 after filaments have been placed.
FIG. 4 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 after pins have been engaged with filaments.
FIG. 5 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 after the filaments have been pulled to their full length and cut.
FIG. 6 is a top view of the machine of FIG. 1 at the step shown in FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 showing affixing of selvage filaments to crosswise filaments.
FIG. 8 is a cross section of the machine of FIG. 1 upon disengagement of the edge spacing pins.
FIG. 9 is a three-quarter view drawing of the process as crosswise filaments are spread to the width of the fabric.
FIG. 10 is a side view of apparatus for supporting crosswise filaments after disengagement from the pins.
FIG. 11 is a top view of self supporting crosswise filaments of the invention.
FIG. 12 is an end view of the filaments of FIG. 11.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A preferred embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, comprises filaments 1, which are led through hollow tubes 10; edge spacingpins 2, held on supports 13; slider pins 3, held on a slider 17; a first edge element timing belt 4, and a second edge element timing belt 5, and edge element selvage filaments 11, held by edge element pulleys 18; grippers 14, 15 and 16; a cutter 8; a fuzz belt 20 to support filaments after disengagement from the slider pins, which belt is supported by fuzz belt pulleys 19, held by support 9. While only the first five and last five filaments 1, tubes 10, and pins 2 and 3 are shown, the pin holders 13and slider 17 could be made forty-eight inches (121.92 cms.) long, each with ninety-six pairs of pins, one pair every half inch (1.27 cms.). The pins, preferably made from a tough but not brittle material, for example 4-40 stainless steel heat-treated to 45-50 hardness on the Rockwell Test Cscale, may have a height of about one quarter inch (0.6350 cm.). (These andother materials and dimensions set forth in this specification are only those of preferred embodiments and do not limit the scope of the invention.) The fuzz belt may be made of fabric, one half inch (1.27 cms) wide with a one quarter inch (0.635 cm.) pile. The tubes 10 are preferablyseamless, six inches (15.24 cms.) long, and have an outside diameter of three sixteenths of an inch (0.48 cm) and an inside diameter of three-thirty-seconds of an inch (0.238 cm.). The slider 17 may be about 2 inches (5.08 cms.) wide.
As an example of the simplicity and flexibility of the present invention, the pins 2 and 3 can be made part of removable top pieces for holders 13 and slider 17. If one wishes to change the number of crosswise filaments per inch (2.54 cms.), one need only change to a holder having the desired number of pins per inch (2.54 cms.) and change the number hollow tubes. The other elements of the machine need not be changed. Moreover, as will be made clear hereinafter, changing the number of pins and hence the number of crosswise threads in this manner does not change the lineal rateof production of fabric made using this machine.
FIG. 2 shows the pin holders 13 and slider 17 in their lowered positions sothey do not interfere with the tubes 10 as they move from left to right, placing the end 7 of filament 1 through the one-half inch (1.27 cms.) opening of gripper 16. The slider 17 is held by its support 26, which is traversable on rods 27. The filament 1 is led from filament source 6, which may be a creel or bobbin, around pulley 24. Its end 7 protrudes about one half inch (1.27 cms.) beyond the tube 10. FIG. 2 also shows rigid anvil supports 21 for the edge elements, which in this embodiment are comprised of the selvages 11 and first and second endless timing belts4 and 5. The endless timing belts 4 and 5 are shown in cross section, both as they travel in the direction of manufacture and on their return. They are preferably made of supporting material 4A and 5A, such as a rubber belt or a stainless steel band, with a silicone rubber upper material 4B and 5B, which will not adhere permanently to adhesives that may be used onselvage filaments 11 to adhere crosswise filaments. Preferably the adhesives used on filaments provide some tackiness with respect to the silicone rubber, but are readily and completely strippable from it. Selvage filaments 11 are shown above crosswise filaments 1, but they couldbe led below filaments 1, or two selvage filaments could be used on each side of the machine, one selvage filament above and one below crosswise filaments 1.
FIG. 3 shows the filament end 7 gripped by gripper 16 and the hollow tubes 10 retracted to their original position.
In FIG. 4 the slider 17, with its support 26 and rods 27, and pin holders 13 have been raised so that their pins 2 and 3 engage the filament 1 by moving the pins into the plane of the filament. This movement up and down need be only about one-quarter inch (0.635 cm.). The slider 17 is then traversed on its rods 27 to the position shown in FIG. 6. This pulls the filaments 1 from the source 6 to a length substantially equal to the widthof the fabric ultimately to be produced. Alternately, two sliders could be used with a row of non-traversing pins between then, thus cutting the travel distance of the sliders approximately in half. As shown in FIG. 5, when the filaments have been pulled, the grippers 14 and 15 close.
In one preferred embodiment, the filaments 1 are not cut immediately. Instead, the grippers 14 and 15 engage the filaments 1 only frictionally, permitting the filaments to be pulled through the grippers 14 and 15 if moderate tension is applied, while the gripper 16 holds the filaments moresecurely and does not permit such slippage. In this preferred embodiment the gripper 16 or the pin holder 13 adjacent the filament ends 7 then moves a distance which is short relative to the width of the fabric, for example one-half inch (1.27 cms.), to remove any slack that may be presentin the filaments 1. If there is slack in one or more filaments, it is removed. If there is no slack in one or more filaments, the movement will pull such filaments through the frictionally engaged grippers 14 and 15.
When the filaments 1 are at the desired uniform length, the cutter 8 operates to cut them, as shown in FIG. 5. While the cutter 8 is shown as aknife, it could be a hot wire if the filaments are of an appropriate material, such as a thermoplastic.
As shown in FIG. 7, the slider pins 3 are disengaged from the crosswise filaments by lowering slider 17 about one-quarter inch (0.635 cm.) from the plane of the filaments. The fuzz belts 20, which are held by pulleys 19 and pulley support 9, engage the filaments. In this embodiment, the upper fuzz belt 20 lowers to gently pinch and hold the filaments 1 betweenthe two belts. Alternatively, the lower fuzz belt could rise to remove filaments from slider pins 3.
Also as shown in FIG. 7, in this embodiment a heater bar 22, optionally used with a teflon surface supported by an endless fiber glass belt interposed between the bar 22 and the selvage filaments 11 to reduce any accumulation of adhesive, lowers to apply heat and pressure to the crosswise filaments 1 and the selvage filaments 11. The heat activates a heat activatable adhesive coating on selvage filaments 11 in this preferred embodiment. Preferred heat activatable adhesives are high melt, fast set adhesives such as those made from ethylene copolymers. A suitableadhesive is adhesive No. 9224-2, Uparco Adhesives, Nashua, N.H. Pressure sensitive adhesives and other sealing materials, such as water based adhesives and certain vinyls which can be activated by dielectric induction heating, may also be used. Alternatively, with certain kinds of filaments dielectric induction heating or ultrasonics may melt the filaments themselves and make them self-gluing.
It is also contemplated that the crosswise filaments 1 may be detachably attached to the edge filaments. For example, crosswise filaments 1 may be held by mechanical means, such as a rubber belt with a groove in it and a wire which fits snugly into the groove, pinching the filaments 1 to the edge elements until lengthwise filaments and a coating are applied, at which time one may separate the wire and belt and thereby release the filaments.
In the embodiment shown in the figures, after removal of the heating bar, cooling air from a pneumatic source located in structure 23 fixes the heatactivatable adhesive, firmly affixing the crosswise filaments 1 to the selvage filaments 11. Alternatively, structure 23 may be a cooling bar which lowers and presses against the filaments and sets the adhesive. As afurther alternative, structure 23 may provide a mist to accomplish the samepurpose.
Because the step of adhering crosswise filaments to selvage filaments may be the speed limiting factor in the operation of the machine, two spring mounted bars or other means may be mounted on either side of the heating bar to hold the crosswise filaments. In such an embodiment the additional bars are arranged to press and hold the crosswise filaments tightly against the selvage filaments and to continue to hold the crosswise filaments in place for a brief period after removal of the heating bar. During that period, a blast of cold air or mist may be applied without disturbing the location of the crosswise filaments, thus quickly setting the adhesive and fixing the crosswise filaments to the selvage filaments. These additional bars may be, for example, 1/16 inch (0.0625 cm.) wide andspaced on either side of a heating bar and 1/16 inch (0.0625 cm.) from it.
The edge spacing pins 2 are disengaged from the filaments 1, in this example by lowering supports 13 about one-quarter inch (0.635 cm.), as shown in FIG. 8. The edge elements 4, 5 and 11 and the fuzz belts 20 thereafter move forward the full length of the rows of the edge spacing pins, in this example four feet, and the process of laying the crosswise filaments begins again. If selvage filaments 11 are used, they may be removed from the timing belt just after the belt leaves the area of the edge spacing pins, or alternatively the timing belt and the selvage may bekept together, as shown in these figures, for part or all of the distance during which the crosswise filaments are spread apart.
Referring to FIG. 9, as the crosswise filaments 1 leave the area where theyare laid, they are in the form of a sharp "V". As the edges spread apart, the "V" becomes less sharp. The fuzz belt is made of pile fabric in order to hold the crosswise filaments and prevent entangling. As the belt proceeds, the final portion of it declines, as shown in FIG. 10, to disengage it from the crosswise filaments, which are simultaneously risingas a result of the edge elements being led apart. Pulleys 18 guide the edgeelements. Rolls 25 carry the crosswise filaments. Because this machine has an intermittent operation--in this example pulsing in four foot increments--a dancer roll 12 may be usefully employed to eliminate the pulsation at the output. Such a dancer roll 12 and selvage filaments 11 permit the crosswise filaments of this invention to be fed directly to coaters, which could not be done with some prior art machines and processes.
A dancer roll 12 also permits incorporation of a preferred feed back control. If the distance each end of the dancer roll 12 travels is measured at each operation pulse, and a difference in displacement of its two ends is noted, that difference can be used to adjust the travel of timing belt 4 or 5 on the next pulse. For example, the timing belts may beoperated by two hydraulic pistons, each having precise travel distances. Each piston is arranged to grasp and push a portion of each belt. The travel of each piston may be precisely controlled by stops which halt the piston's movement after an appropriate distance. One of these stops may bemade movable in increments of 0.010 (ten thousandths) of an inch (0.0254 cm.) in response to a signal from the dancer roll 12. Every time a difference in travel distance between the two ends of the dancer roll is detected, indicating that one edge is longer than the other, the feedback control signals the stop to move one increment in the appropriate direction to reduce the difference. Such a self-compensation arrangement is more practical and satisfactory than attempting to make both timing belts move in exact precision, and could not be done with chain and hook mechanisms of the prior art.
FIG. 11 shows a top view of self-supporting crosswise filaments made by themachine and process of FIGS. 1 to 10, and FIG. 12 shows an end view of suchfilaments.
The above describes only one embodiment and some preferred variations of the present invention. Its simplicity, its capabilities and the other disclosures above will no doubt suggest equivalents and various rearrangements and combinations of steps to others skilled in the art, allof which are intended to be covered by the following claims.
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A stand-alone machine and a process for forming crosswise filaments for non-woven fabric comprises two sets of non-traversing edge spacing pins, each set with a gripper, and a traversing set of slider pins. The sets of pins are placed close together. Crosswise filament yarns are engaged by these sets of pins. The slider pins then traverse and pull the filaments to their full length. The crosswise filaments are cut and fixed to edge elements, which preferably may including adhering the crosswise filaments to selvage filaments. The edge elements are then separated to draw the crosswise filaments to their full width. The invention provides increased speed, precision, and flexibility in making crosswise filaments for non-woven fabrics.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air bag system for a passenger seat, and more particularly to an air bag system for a passenger seat for controlling the deployment of an air bag in correspondence with the state of an occupant in the passenger seat.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, vehicles are known which are equipped with an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat for protecting an occupant seated in the passenger seat during an emergency of the vehicle, and one example thereof is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,226.
As shown in FIG. 13, this air bag apparatus for a passenger seat is provided with a displacement sensor 76 mounted in an instrument panel 74 for detecting the distance between the position of accommodation of an air bag 70 and an occupant 72, as well as an infrared sensor 78 mounted on a ceiling portion above the head of the occupant 72 and having a plurality of viewing fields. These sensors provide outputs corresponding to the location of the occupant 72 relative to the position of accommodation of the air bag 70 to a controller 80. When at least one of the signals from these sensors indicates that the occupant 72 is at least a predetermined distance away from the position of accommodation of the air bag 70, the controller 80 sends an enable signal to an occupant restraint system 82 to set the occupant restraint system 82 in an operative state in which the air bag 70 is inflatable. On the other hand, when one of the signals from these sensors indicates that the occupant 72 is not at least the predetermined distance away from the position of accommodation of the air bag 70, the air bag 70 is not inflated.
However, with such an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat, in the event that the vehicle has decelerated due to hard braking or the like, and the occupant 72 has instantaneously put out his or her hands on the instrument panel 74 to protect his or her body, there are cases where the deployment of the air bag 70 is controlled upon determining that the occupant 72 is not at least a predetermined distance away from the position of accommodation of the air bag 70 although the body of the occupant 72 is not very close to the position of accommodation of the air bag 70.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the above-described circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat which is capable of deploying the air bag positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag is desired.
To this end, in accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat, comprising: a first sensor for detecting an occupant seated in a passenger seat; a second sensor for detecting a state in which the occupant is approaching an instrument panel excluding a state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel; and a deployment controller for changing the control of deployment of an air bag when the occupant is detected by the first sensor and the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel is detected by the second sensor.
In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according the first aspect, the first sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at a vehicle compartment-side position in a vicinity of a connecting portion between a roof and a windshield of a vehicle and at a position on a passenger seat side, a detecting region of the first sensor being oriented downward and including a position of leg portions of the occupant in a seated state.
In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the first aspect, the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at the vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of the connecting portion between the roof and the windshield of the vehicle and at the position on the passenger seat side, a detecting region of the second sensor being oriented toward the instrument panel and including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel.
In accordance with a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the second aspect, the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at a vehicle compartment-side position in a vicinity of a connecting portion between a roof and a windshield of a vehicle and at a position on a passenger seat side, a detecting region of the second sensor being oriented toward the instrument panel and including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel. Further, the apparatus comprises a third sensor disposed between the first sensor and the second sensor and constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, a detecting region of the third sensor being oriented toward a space between the instrument panel and a seat cushion and including a position below the instrument panel.
In accordance with a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the first aspect, the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed on the instrument panel such that a detecting region of the second sensor is oriented in a rearward direction of the vehicle, a lower end of the detecting region including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel.
In accordance with a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the first aspect, the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed in the instrument panel such that a detecting region of the second sensor is oriented toward a front windshield and is reflected in a rearward direction of the vehicle by the front windshield, a lower end of the detecting region being spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel.
In accordance with a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the first aspect, the second sensor is a sensor of an infrared beam interruption type which is disposed between a front pillar and the instrument panel such that a line connecting a transmitting sensor element and a receiving sensor element of the second sensor is located at a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel, a threshold time of an interruption time being set to less than or equal to several milliseconds.
In accordance with an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat, comprising: a first sensor for detecting an occupant seated in a passenger seat and for detecting a position of the head of the occupant; and a deployment controller for changing the control of deployment of an air bag when the occupant and the position of the head of the occupant are detected by the first sensor.
In accordance with the first aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, if the second sensor detects the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel excluding the state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
Accordingly, in the first aspect of the present invention, since the apparatus comprises the first sensor for detecting the occupant seated in the passenger seat; the second sensor for detecting the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel excluding the state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel; and the deployment controller for changing the control of deployment of the air bag when the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel is detected by the second sensor, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that the air bag can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag is desired.
In accordance with the second aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant in a seated state is detected by the first sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, if the second sensor detects the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel excluding the state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
Accordingly, in the second aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according the first aspect of the invention, the first sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at a vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of a connecting portion between a roof and a windshield of the vehicle and at a position on a passenger seat side, a detecting region of the first sensor being oriented downward and including a position of leg portions of the occupant in a seated state. Therefore, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that the presence or absence of the occupant can be detected irrespective of the sliding position of the seat.
In accordance with the third aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, if the second sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor detects the occupant at a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
Accordingly, in the third aspect of the present invention, in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat according to the first aspect of the invention, the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at the vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of the connecting portion between the roof and the windshield of the vehicle and at the position on the passenger seat side, a detecting region of the second sensor being oriented toward the instrument panel and including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel. Therefore, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that a child occupant located at a position spaced apart the predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel can be detected.
In accordance with the fourth aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, if the second sensor detects the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel excluding the state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel, and if the third sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor detects an object to be detected which is located between the instrument panel and the seat cushion and at a position below the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
In the fourth aspect of the present invention, the arrangement provided is as follows: In the apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, the first sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at a vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of a connecting portion between the roof and the windshield of the vehicle and at a position on a passenger seat side, a detecting region of the first sensor being oriented downward and including a position of leg portions of the occupant in a seated state; and the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed at a vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of a connecting portion between the roof and the windshield of the vehicle and at a position on a passenger seat side, a detecting region of the second sensor being oriented toward the instrument panel and including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel. Further, the apparatus comprises a third sensor disposed between the first sensor and the second sensor and constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, a detecting region of the third sensor being oriented toward a space between the instrument panel and the seat cushion and including a position below the instrument panel. Therefore, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain outstanding advantages in that it is possible to detect an object to be detected which is located at a position below the instrument panel such as a child seat on the passenger seat, and that it is possible to speedily detect a state in which the occupant is excessively close to the instrument panel.
In accordance with the fifth aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, when ultrasonic waves are oscillated in the rearward direction of the vehicle by the second sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, and if the second sensor detects the occupant at a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
In the fifth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention, the arrangement provided is such that the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed on the instrument panel such that the detecting region of the second sensor is oriented in the rearward direction of the vehicle, a lower end of the detecting region including a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel. Accordingly, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that a distinction can be accurately made between the case where a child occupant is located between the passenger seat and the instrument panel and the case where the occupant stretched his or her hand(s) to the instrument panel.
In accordance with the sixth aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, when ultrasonic waves are oscillated toward the front windshield by the second sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor and are reflected in the rearward direction of the vehicle by the front windshield, and if the second sensor detects the occupant at a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
In the sixth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention, the arrangement provided is such that the second sensor is an ultrasonic sensor which is disposed in the instrument panel such that the detecting region of the second sensor is oriented toward the front windshield and is reflected in the rearward direction of the vehicle by the front windshield, a lower end of the detecting region being spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel. Accordingly, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that the design feature, visibility, and the degree of freedom in designing the mounting position of the sensor improve.
In accordance with the seventh aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, if the threshold time of the interruption time of the infrared beam emitted from the second sensor constituted by a sensor of an infrared beam interruption type is not less than or equal to several milliseconds, a determination is made that the occupant is in the state in which he or she is approaching the instrument panel excluding the state in which the occupant puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel. As a result, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag accordingly.
In the seventh aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention, the second sensor is a sensor of the infrared beam interruption type which is disposed between the front pillar and the instrument panel such that a line connecting a transmitting sensor element and a receiving sensor element of the second sensor in front of the passenger seat is located at a position spaced apart a predetermined distance upwardly from the instrument panel, a threshold time of an interruption time being set to less than or equal to several milliseconds. Accordingly, in addition to the advantage of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that a distinction can be clearly made between the case where the head of a child occupant moved forward and the case where the occupant stretched out his or her hand(s).
In accordance with the eighth aspect of the present invention, even if the occupant seated in the passenger seat is detected by the first sensor, if the state in which the head of the occupant is approaching the instrument panel is detected, the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag.
In the eighth aspect of the present invention, the arrangement provided is such that two distances for determination by the first sensor are set, and on the basis of a result of that determination a distinction is made between the case where the passenger seat has been moved to a forward-end position, and the head of the occupant seated in the passenger seat is located in the detecting region and the case where it is not, and the deployment controller changes the control of deployment of the air bag on the basis of the result of detection. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an outstanding advantage in that the air bag can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag is desired. In addition, it suffices to use only one sensor, so that the configuration can be simplified.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating occupant detection control in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating occupant detection control in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 5 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating occupant detection control in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the third embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a modification of the third embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a front section of a vehicle compartment to which the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention is applied;
FIG. 9 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the fourth embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating occupant detection control in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the fourth embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 11 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating occupant detection control in the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the fifth embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 13 is a schematic side elevational view illustrating a conventional air bag apparatus for a passenger seat.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a description will be given of a first embodiment of an air bag apparatus for a passenger seat. Incidentally, in the drawings an arrow FR indicates a forward direction of the vehicle, while an arrow UP indicates an upward direction of the vehicle.
As shown in FIG. 1, a passenger seat 14 in which an occupant is seated is mounted on a floor surface 12 of a vehicle 10 by means of a pair of left and right rails (not shown) arranged in parallel in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. As a result, the passenger seat 14 can be moved relatively in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle with respect to the floor surface 12. A windshield 16 is provided at a upper forward position of the vehicle as viewed from the passenger seat 14. An upper end of the windshield 16 is connected to a roof 17, while a lower end thereof is connected to a hood (not shown). An instrument panel 18 is disposed between the floor surface 12 and the windshield 16 in front of the passenger seat 14. The instrument panel 18, which is formed of a synthetic resin and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, is disposed with an opening of the substantially U-shaped cross section facing the forward direction of the vehicle.
A slight space is provided between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 such that a child occupant 19 can stand between them.
An air bag apparatus 20 is installed in the instrument panel 18. An air bag case 28 of the air bag apparatus 20 has a substantially U-shaped cross section, and is disposed with an opening of the substantially U-shaped cross section facing the upwardly rearward direction of the vehicle. An inflator 30 is disposed at the bottom of the air bag case 28, and an air bag 31 is accommodated in a folded state in the vicinity of the opening of the air bag case 28. When the inflator 30 generates a gas, the air bag 31 is inflated, and projects through the opening in the instrument panel 18 toward the head 34C of an occupant 34 seated in the passenger seat 14.
The inflator 30 in the air bag case 28 is electrically connected to an air-bag controlling circuit 32 serving as a deployment controlling device and comprised of a microcomputer. A crash sensor 33 for detecting the acceleration acting on the vehicle is electrically connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32.
A sensor box 40 is provided at a vehicle compartment-side position in the vicinity of a connecting portion between the roof 17 and the windshield 16 at a position on the passenger seat side as viewed in the transverse direction of the vehicle. Incidentally, the sensor box 40 may be provided in the vicinity of an upper end of an unillustrated front pillar. The sensor box 40 is provided with an occupant-detecting sensor 42 and an approach-detecting sensor 44. The occupant-detecting sensor 42, which serves as a first sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, is provided on the rear side of the approach-detecting sensor 44 as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and is connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32. The occupant-detecting sensor 42, which is constituted by a transmitting element and a receiving element (not shown), is disposed such that its detecting region A is oriented downward and includes the position of leg portions 34A of the occupant 34 seated in the passenger seat 14. Namely, the occupant-detecting sensor 42 detects the distance to a seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14 as well as the distance to the leg portions 34A of the passenger 34. On the basis of these distances, a determination is made by the air-bag controlling circuit 32 as to whether or not the occupant 34 is seated. The distance for this determination is set to be L1, and if a detected distance X is less than or equal to L1, a determination is made that the occupant 34 is seated.
On the other hand, if a determination is made that the occupant 34 is not present in the seat, even if a crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling circuit 32 does not actuate the inflator 30.
The approach-detecting sensor 44, which serves as a second sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, is disposed on the front side of the occupant-detecting sensor 42 as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. The approach-detecting sensor 44 is electrically connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32. The approach-detecting sensor 44, which is constituted by a transmitting element and a receiving element (not shown), is disposed such that its detecting region B is oriented toward the instrument panel 18 and includes a position spaced apart a predetermined distance L4 upwardly from the instrument panel 18. Namely, the approach-detecting sensor 44 is adapted to detect the distance to an upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19. Further, on the basis of these distances detected, the air-bag controlling circuit 32 determines whether the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) 34B or the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18.
The distance for this determination is set to be L2 which is obtained by subtracting the aforementioned predetermined distance L4 from the distance from the approach-detecting sensor 44 to the instrument panel 18. If a detected distance Y is less than or equal to L2, a determination is made that the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18. Meanwhile, if the detected distance Y is greater than L2, a determination is made that the occupant 34 stretched his or her hand(s) 34B.
Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, a description will be given of the operation of the first embodiment.
In Step 92, the air-bag controlling circuit 32 in the first embodiment reads the output of the occupant-detecting sensor 42. At this time, if the occupant 34 is seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14 as shown by the solid lines in FIG. 1, the occupant-detecting sensor 42 outputs the distance X from the sensor 42 to the leg portions 34A of the occupant 34 to the air-bag controlling sensor 32.
Also, in Step 92, the output of the approach-detecting sensor 44 is read. At this time, if the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 as shown by the reference lines and phantom lines in FIG. 1, the approach-detecting sensor 44 outputs the distance Y from the sensor 44 to the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 to the air-bag controlling sensor 32.
Then, in Step 102, a determination is made as to whether or not the detected distance X is less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination.
If it is determined in Step 102 that the detected distance X is not less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the occupant 34 is not seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14), in Step 104 the inflator 30 is not actuated so as not to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 102 that the detected distance X is less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the occupant 34 is seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14), in Step 106 a determination is made as to whether or not the detected distance Y is less than or equal to the distance L2 for determination.
If it is determined in Step 106 that the detected distance Y is less than or equal to the distance L2 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18), in Step 108 the inflator 30 is not actuated so as not to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 106 that the detected distance Y is not less than or equal to the distance L2 for determination (in a case where the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) 34B to the instrument panel 18), the operation proceeds to Step 110 to provide control for actuating the inflator 30 under a predetermined condition. For instance, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the inflator 30 is actuated to deploy the air bag 31.
Accordingly, in the first embodiment, on the basis of the output from the approach-detecting sensor 44 a distinction is made between the case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 and the case where the occupant 34 stretched his or her hand(s) 34B to the instrument panel 18, and the inflator 30 is controlled on the basis of the detected result. Therefore, the air bag 31 can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag 31 is desired. In addition, the presence or absence of the occupant 34 can be detected irrespective of the sliding position of the passenger seat 14.
Incidentally, an arrangement may be provided such that in a case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, the attention of the driver and the child occupant 19 is called by means of a warning means such as a buzzer, a flash lamp or the like.
Although a description has been given by citing the case where the child occupant 19 is standing as a case in which the air bag apparatus 20 is not operated, the actuation of the inflator 30 can also be prohibited in a case where the occupant 34 seated in the passenger seat 14 has bent forward by a large degree and the head 34C of the occupant 34 has reached the detecting region B.
Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, a description will be given of a second embodiment of the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the present invention. Incidentally, the same members as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 3, in the second embodiment, an approach-detecting sensor 50, which serves as a third sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, is disposed between the occupant-detecting sensor 42 and the approach-detecting sensor 44 in the sensor box 40. This approach-detecting sensor 50 is electrically connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32. The approach-detecting sensor 50, which is constituted by a transmitting element and a receiving element (not shown), is disposed such that its detecting region C is oriented toward a space between the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 and includes a position below an upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. Namely, the approach-detecting sensor 50 is adapted to detect the distance to an object, e.g., a child seat 52, located at a position below the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18 between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18. On the basis of the distance thus detected, the air-bag controlling circuit 32 determines whether the child seat 52 is present between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18. The distance for this determination is set to be L3 (L2≦L3≦L1), and if a detected distance Z is less than or equal to L3, a determination is made that an object to be detected, such as the child seat 52, is present.
Further, if a determination is made that an object to be detected, such as the child seat 52, is present, even if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 does not actuate the inflator 30.
Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, a description will be given of the operation of the second embodiment. Incidentally, the same processing as that of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same step numbers, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 4, in Step 94, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 in this embodiment reads an output Z of the approach-detecting sensor 50 in addition to the outputs X and Y in Step 92 shown in FIG. 2. At this time, if a part 52A of the child seat 52 is projecting between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 as shown by the solid lines in FIG. 3, the approach-detecting sensor 50 outputs the distance from the sensor 50 to the part 52A of the child seat 52 to the air-bag controlling sensor 32.
Further, if it is determined in Step 106 that the detected distance Y is not less than or equal to the distance L2 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the child occupant 19 is not standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18), the operation proceeds to Step 112 to determine whether or not the detected distance Z is less than or equal to L3.
If it is determined in Step 112 that the detected distance Z is less than or equal to the distance L3 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the part 52A of the child seat 52 is projecting between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18), in Step 114 the inflator 30 is not actuated so as not to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 112 that the detected distance Z is not less than or equal to the distance L3 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the part 52A of the child seat 52 is not projecting between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18), the operation proceeds to Step 116 to provide control for actuating the inflator 30 under a predetermined condition. For instance, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the inflator 30 is actuated to deploy the air bag 31.
Accordingly, in the second embodiment, on the basis of the output from the approach-detecting sensor 50 whose distance L3 for determination is set such that L2≦L3≦L1, a determination is made as to whether or not an object to be detected, such as the child seat 52, is present between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, and the inflator 30 is controlled on the basis of the detected result. Therefore, the air bag 31 can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag 31 is desired.
Incidentally, a continuous detecting time t3, for which a determination is made that control is necessary in a case where the object to be detected is present in the detecting region C, is set to be equal to or shorter than a continuous detecting time t1, for which a determination is made that control is necessary in a case where the object to be detected is present in the detecting region A, and is set to be equal to or longer than a continuous detecting time t2, for which a determination is made that control is necessary in a case where the object to be detected is present in the detecting region B. Consequently, in a case where the occupant is located in the vicinity of the air bag apparatus 20, the closer the occupant to the air bag apparatus 20, the shorter the determining time becomes, and in a state in which the occupant is excessively close to the air bag apparatus 20, a determination is speedily made for prohibiting the deployment of the air bag 31.
Incidentally, an arrangement may be provided such that in the case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, the attention of the driver and the child occupant 19 may be called by means of a warning means such as a buzzer, a flash lamp or the like.
Next, referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, a description will be given of a third embodiment of the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the present invention. Incidentally, the same members as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 5, in the third embodiment, a sensor box 54 is disposed in the vicinity of a forward end of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. An approach-detecting sensor 56, which serves as the second sensor constituted by an ultrasonic sensor, is disposed in the sensor box 54. The approach-detecting sensor 56 is electrically connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32. The approach-detecting sensor 56, which is constituted by a transmitting element and a receiving element (not shown), is disposed such that its detecting region D is oriented in the rearward direction of the vehicle. A lower end of the detecting region D includes a position spaced apart the predetermined distance L4 upwardly from the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18.
Namely, the approach-detecting sensor 56 does not detect the hand(s) of the occupant 34 stretched out to the instrument panel 18, but detects the distance from the sensor 56 to the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 located above the hand(s) 34B. On the basis of the distance thus detected, the air-bag controlling circuit 32 determines whether or not the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 is present. The distance for this determination is set to be a predetermined distance L5 from the approach-detecting sensor 56, and if a detected distance M is less than or equal to L5, a determination is made that the upper half body 19A is present. In this case, even if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 does not actuate the inflator 30.
On the other hand, if the head 34C of the occupant 34 is detected in a state in which the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) (i.e., the state indicated by the phantom lines in FIG. 5), the detected distance M becomes greater than L5. As a result, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 actuates the inflator 30.
Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, a description will be given of the operation of the third embodiment. Incidentally, the same processing as that of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same step numbers, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 6, in Step 96, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 in this embodiment reads the output X of the occupant-detecting sensor 42 and the output of the approach-detecting sensor 56. At this time, if the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, the approach-detecting sensor 56 outputs the detected distance to the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 to the air-bag controlling sensor 32.
Further, if a determination is made in Step 102 that the detected distance X is less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the occupant 34 is seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14), a determination is made in Step 120 as to whether or not the detected distance M is less than or equal to the distance L5 for determination.
If it is determined in Step 120 that the detected distance M is less than or equal to the distance L5 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18), in Step 108 the inflator 30 is not actuated so as not to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 120 that the detected distance M is not less than or equal to the distance L5 for determination (i.e., if the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) to the instrument panel 18), the operation proceeds to Step 110 to provide control for actuating the inflator 30 under a predetermined condition. For instance, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the inflator 30 is actuated to deploy the air bag 31.
Accordingly, in the third embodiment, on the basis of the output from the approach-detecting sensor 56 a distinction is made between the case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 and the case where the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) 34B to the instrument panel 18, and the inflator 30 is controlled on the basis of the detected result. Therefore, the air bag 31 can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag 31 is desired.
Incidentally, an arrangement may be provided such that in the case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, the attention of the driver and the child occupant 19 is called by means of a warning means such as a buzzer, a flash lamp or the like.
Although a description has been given of the case where the child occupant 19 is standing as the case in which the air bag apparatus 20 is not actuated, the actuation of the inflator 30 can also be prohibited in a case where the occupant 34 seated in the passenger seat 14 has bent forward by a large degree and has reached the detecting region D of the approach-detecting sensor 56.
In addition, although in the third embodiment the sensor box 54 is disposed in the vicinity of the forward end of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18, and the approach-detecting sensor 56 is disposed in the sensor box 54, the approach-detecting sensor 56 may alternately be disposed in the sensor box 54 embedded in the vicinity of the forward end of the upper surface 19A of the instrument panel 18 in such a manner as to be oriented toward the windshield 16, as shown in FIG. 7. In this case, its detecting region E is reflected by the windshield 16 and is oriented in the rearward direction of the vehicle, and a lower end of the detecting region E is at a position spaced apart the predetermined distance L4 upwardly from the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18.
Accordingly, in this arrangement, since the detecting region E is reflected by the windshield 16, it is unnecessary to dispose the approach-detecting sensor 56 at the position spaced apart upwardly from the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. Hence, the design feature, visibility, and the degree of freedom in designing the mounting position of the sensor improve.
Next, referring to FIGS. 8 to 10, a description will be given of a fourth embodiment of the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the present invention. Incidentally, the same members as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 8, in the fourth embodiment, a transmitting side 60 of an approach-detecting sensor, which serves as the second sensor constituted by a sensor of an infrared beam interruption type, is disposed on a front pillar 58 on the passenger seat side in the vicinity of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. A receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor is disposed on a substantially central portion, as viewed in the transverse direction of the vehicle, of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. The transmitting side 60 and the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor are electrically connected to the air-bag controlling circuit 32.
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, as for a detecting region F connecting the transmitting side 60 and the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor in a straight line, its lower end in front of the occupant 34 seated in the passenger seat 14 is spaced apart the predetermined distance L4 upwardly from the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18.
Namely, the infrared beam emitted from the transmitting side 60 to the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor is adapted to be interrupted by the hand(s) 34B of the occupant 34 stretched out to the instrument panel 18 or by the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 which moved forward. On the basis of the interruption time at that time, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 determines the presence of the hand(s) 34B of the occupant 34 and the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19.
If it is determined that the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 is present, even if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 does not actuate the inflator 30.
On the other hand, if it is determined that the occupant 34 stretched out his or her hand(s) 34B, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 actuates the inflator 30.
Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 10, a description will be given of the operation of the fourth embodiment. Incidentally, the same processing as that of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same step numbers, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 10, in Step 98, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 in the fourth embodiment reads the output X of the occupant-detecting sensor 42, and measures the time T of interruption of the infrared beam at the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor.
In addition, if it is determined in Step 102 that the detected distance X is less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the occupant 34 is seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14), a determination is made in Step 122 as to whether or not the time T of interruption of the infrared beam is greater than or equal to a threshold time T1 (which is set to several milliseconds or less by taking into consideration the state in which the occupant 34 instantaneously puts out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel 18 owing to the deceleration of the vehicle due to braking or the like).
If it is determined in Step 122 that the time T of interruption of the infrared beam is greater than or equal to the threshold time T1 (i.e., the upper half body 19A of the child occupant 19 has moved to the position indicated by the phantom lines in FIG. 9 due to braking or the like), the operation proceeds to Step 108 in which the inflator 30 is not actuated so as not to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 122 that the time T of interruption of the infrared beam is not greater than or equal to the threshold time T1 (i.e., the hand(s) 34B of the occupant 34 passed when moving to the position indicated by the phantom lines in FIG. 9 due to braking or the like), the operation proceeds to Step 110 to provide control for actuating the inflator 30 under a predetermined condition. For instance, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the inflator 30 is actuated to deploy the air bag 31.
Accordingly, in the fourth embodiment, on the basis of the time T of interruption of the infrared beam at the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor, a distinction is made between the case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18 and the case where the occupant 34 stretched his or her hand(s) 34B to the instrument panel 18, and the inflator 30 is controlled on the basis of the detected result. Therefore, the air bag 31 can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag 31 is desired.
Incidentally, an arrangement may be provided such that in a case where the child occupant 19 is standing between the passenger seat 14 and the instrument panel 18, the attention of the driver and the child occupant 19 is called by means of a warning means such as a buzzer, a flash lamp or the like.
As described above, the transmitting side 60 of the approach-detecting sensor is disposed on the front pillar 58 on the passenger seat side in the vicinity of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18, and the receiving side 62 of the approach-detecting sensor is disposed in a substantially central portion, as viewed in the transverse direction of the vehicle, of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18. Alternatively, the receiving side of the approach-detecting sensor may be disposed on the front pillar 58 on the passenger seat side in the vicinity of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18, and the transmitting side of the approach-detecting sensor may be disposed in the substantially central portion, as viewed in the transverse direction of the vehicle, of the upper surface 18A of the instrument panel 18.
Next, referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, a description will be given of a fifth embodiment of the air bag apparatus for a passenger seat in accordance with the present invention. Incidentally, the same members as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 11, in the second embodiment, the approach-detecting sensor 44 as the second sensor is not provided, in addition to the distance L1 for determination by the occupant-detecting sensor 42, a distance L6 for determination, which is shorter than the distance L1 for determination, is set.
The detecting region A1 at the distance L6 for determination includes a position for detecting the head 35A of an occupant 35 seated in the passenger seat 14. Namely, the occupant-detecting sensor 42 detects the distance to the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14 which was moved rearwardly as well as the distance to the leg portions 34A of the passenger 34. On the basis of these distances, a determination is made by the air-bag controlling circuit 32 as to whether or not the occupant 34 is seated. At the same time, when the seat 14 is moved a forward-end position, the distance to the head 35A of the occupant 35 seated in the passenger seat 14 air-bag is also detected, and on the basis of the detected distance, the controlling circuit 32 determines whether or not the head 35A of the occupant 35 is excessively close to the air bag apparatus 20.
Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 12, a description will be given of the operation of the fifth embodiment. Incidentally, the same processing as that of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same step numbers, and a description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 12, in Step 100, the air-bag controlling sensor 32 in the fifth embodiment reads outputs X1 and X2 of the occupant-detecting sensor 42. In addition, if it is determined in Step 102 that the detected distance X1 is less than or equal to the distance L1 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that the occupant 34 is seated on the seat cushion 14B of the passenger seat 14), a determination is made in Step 130 as to whether the detected distance X2 is less than or equal to the distance L6 for determination.
If it is determined in Step 130 that the detected distance X2 is not less than or equal to the distance L6 for determination (i.e., if it is determined that there is no object to be detected in the detecting region A1), the operation proceeds to Step 110 to provide control for actuating the inflator 30 under a predetermined condition. For instance, if the crash signal is inputted from the crash sensor 33, the inflator 30 is actuated to deploy the air bag 31.
Meanwhile, if it is determined in Step 130 that the detected distance X2 is less than or equal to the distance L6 for determination (i.e., if the passenger seat 14 has been moved to the forward-end position, and the head 35A of the occupant 35 seated in the passenger seat 14 is located in the detecting region A1), the operation proceeds to Step 132 to provide control for in the deployment of the air bag by lowering the internal pressure of the air bag 31 and delaying the deploying speed. Specifically, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 293234/1990, two inflators 30 are used, and only one of them is actuated.
Accordingly, in the fifth embodiment, two distances for determination by the occupant-detecting sensor 42 are set, and on the basis of a result of that determination a distinction is made between the case where the passenger seat 14 has been moved to the forward-end position, and the head 35A of the occupant 35 seated in the passenger seat 14 is located in the detecting region A1 and the case where it is not, and the inflator 30 is controlled on the basis of the detected result. Therefore, the air bag 31 can be deployed positively in a condition for which the deployment of the air bag 31 is desired. In addition, it suffices to use only one sensor, so that the configuration can be simplified.
Although in the above-described embodiments an ultrasonic sensor is used as the occupant-detecting sensor for detecting the presence of the occupant seated in the passenger seat 14, as the occupant-detecting sensor it is possible to use instead of the ultrasonic sensor a seating sensor constituted by a buckle switch of a seat belt, a load sensor, a capacitance sensor, or the like. In addition, although in the above-described embodiments an ultrasonic sensor is used as the distance-measuring sensor, it is possible to use instead of the ultrasonic sensor a position sensitive detector (PSD) sensor based on triangulation using a light beam, or a sensor using radio waves, a laser or the like.
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An air bag apparatus for a passenger seat includes: a first sensor for detecting an occupant seated in a passenger seat; a second sensor for detecting a state in which the occupant is approaching an instrument panel excluding a state in which the occupant put out his or her hand(s) on the instrument panel; and a deployment controller for changing the control of deployment of an air bag when the occupant is detected by the first sensor and the state in which the occupant is approaching the instrument panel is detected by the second sensor.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a Continuation-In-Part of application Ser. No. 10/282,083, filed Oct. 29, 2002, which claims the benefit of Taiwanese Application No. 90126697, filed Oct. 29, 2001.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a method of fabricating non-hollow fibers having regular polygonal cross-sections. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of fabricating a non-hollow fibers having a square cross-section with approximately equilateral sides. The present invention also relates to fabrics manufactured by the fibers, which demonstrate superior brightness, and windproof characteristics.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Many efforts have been made to improve the characteristics of synthetic filaments or fibers so as to impart fabrics or textiles with enhanced performance and functions, such as moisture transport, thermal insulation, air permeability, antistatic, sustained release, antibacterial, and windproof properties.
[0006] U.S. Pat. No. 5,057,368 issued to Largman et al, disclosed trilobal or quardrilobal filaments for use in various applications such as filtration, insulation, moisture transport and others.
[0007] U.S. Pat. No. 5,279,879 issued to Goodall et al, disclosed a hollow synthetic filament having a four sided cross-section and four substantially evenly spaced continuous holes. The filament is suitable for making thermal wear and carpets which require extra thermal insulation or bulkiness.
[0008] High density fabrics in which yarns are woven in a compact manner are more desirable for windproof wears. Such clothes are conventionally made of ultra-fine round filaments to reduce interfiber spaces and to achieve high fabric density. The present invention discovers that fibers of square cross section lead to even less interfiber spaces as compared to the conventional fine round filaments.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The primary objective of the present invention is therefore to provide fabrics or textiles that demonstrate superior windproof (i.e., lower air permeability) characteristics and can be made at a lower cost.
[0010] To attain the objective, the invention provides non-hollow fibers having square cross-section where each side has approximately equal length. The square fibers can be arranged in a denser manner, which has reduced interfiber spaces, when woven and finished properly. Therefore, the resultant fabrics or clothes possess superior windproof characteristics.
[0011] Another advantage of this invention is that the dense fabrics made of the square fiber may impart superior thermal insulation due to reduction of air flow and thus heat loss by convection.
[0012] A third unique attribute of this invention is that the fabrics made of the square fibers are more lustrous than conventional fabrics due to the flatter surface, which in turn is the result of the flat surface of the square cross section. The superior luster of the fabrics renders the designer an additional dimension in fashion design.
[0013] The fibers or filaments of the present invention are made by using a spinneret orifice having a contoured quasi-polygonal cross-section.
[0014] Specifically, the fibers or filaments of the invention are made by melting a thermoplastic polymer; extruding the melted polymer through a spinneret orifice having a contoured quasi-square cross-section to form molten filaments; and solidifying the molten filaments. The solidified filaments are subsequently drawn to achieve desired properties.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description in conjunction with the examples and references made to the accompanying drawing, wherein:
[0016] FIG. 1 is a photo showing the cross-section of the square fibers made in Example 1.
[0017] FIG. 2 is a photo showing the cross-section of the triangular fibers made in Example 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0018] The fibers or filaments of the invention are non-hollow fibers and filaments having square cross-section.
[0019] The term “square” indicates that each side of the tetrahedral polygon has approximately equal length. It is noted, however, each side of square may have a variation less than 50%, preferably less than 5%, from the mean value
[0020] The filaments are prepared by spinning molten polymer through spinneret capillaries or orifices designed to provide the desired configuration of the cross-section of the filaments. That is, the orifices are designed and formed in a configuration having a corresponding contoured polygonal cross-section.
[0021] The filaments may be prepared from synthetic thermoplastic polymers. Examples of these polymers include but are not limited to polyester, polyamide and polyolefin.
[0022] Polyesters that are suitable for use in this invention are those derived from the condensation of aromatic and cycloaliphatic dicarboxylic acids and may be cycloaliphatic, aliphatic or aromatic polyesters. Examples or these polyesters are poly(ethylene terephthalate), poly(proylene terephthalate), poly(cyclohexylenedimethylene terephthalate), poly(lactide), poly(butylene terephthalate), poly(glycolic acid) and poly(ethylene adipate). Among these, poly(ethylene terephthalate) is most frequently used. Other examples of suitable polyesters are those mentioned in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,454,196, 4,410,073 and 4,359,557 incorporated herein for references.
[0023] Polyamides of the above description are well known in this art and include, for example nylon 6 (poly(6-aminohexanoic acid)), nylon 66 (poly(hexamethyleneadipamide)), nylon 4 (poly(4-aminobutyric acid)), nylon 11 (poly(11-amino-undecanoic acid) and the like. The preferred polyamides are nylon 6 and nylon 66 . Other examples of suitable polyamides can be seen from “ Textile Fiber Handbook ”, 5th edition, Trowbridge GB (1984), pp 19-20.
[0024] Examples of polyolefin that can be used in this invention as raw material include, but are not limited to polyethylene, polypropylene, polyisobutene, poly(4-methyl-1-pentene), poly(3-methyl-1-butene), and poly(1-hexene). Among these polyolefins, polypropylene is the most commonly used. Other examples of useful polyolefins can be found from U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,137,391, 4,562,869, 4,567,092 and 4,559,862 included herein for reference. Also, a blend of the above-mentioned polymers is also suitable for use according to the present invention.
[0025] The manufacturing method of the fibers or filaments of the invention are substantially the same as conventional melt spinning techniques except that a spinneret orifice having a configuration sufficient to provide a fiber having regular polygonal cross-section is used. The raw material, i.e., the thermoplastic polymer, is melted and is extruded through the spinneret to form molten filaments. The spinning temperature is usually set between 150-300° C., depending on the melting point of the polymer and the type of the spinneret. For example, if polyethylene terephthalate is used as raw material, it is heated to 270-300° C. to melt the polymer. However, if polypropylene is employed, the spinning temperature is preferably set in the range of 200-280° C.
[0026] In the melt spinning process, the molten polymer is extruded into air or other gases, or into a suitable liquid to quench and solidify the molten filaments. The solidification process is conducted by using quenching gas, usually cooling air, at a temperature of about 10-25° C. The setting of the temperature and the velocity of the quenching air blown to the molten filaments depend on the polymer and the filament properties desired. The filaments may be lubricated with oil at about 100-120 cm below the spinneret to facilitate solidification. The amount of oil (OPU, oil per unit) applied is about 0.5-0.8% and may vary depending on the polymer used and spinning conditions. Before being taken up, the filaments may be subjected to further processing such as drawing or texturing to achieve desired properties.
[0027] The fibers or filaments produced by the above process have a regular polygonal cross-section, in which all sides are of approximately equal length. Preferably, variation of each side of the polygonal cross-section of the fabricated fiber is less than 50%, more preferably less than 5% from the mean value. The fibers of the invention can be employed in many applications, and are not limited to the fabrication of woven, non-woven, and knitted fabrics or clothes. The fibers of the invention are particularly suited for use in the fabrication of fabrics or textiles that require superior wind resistance, luster, and thermal insulation.
[0028] The following examples are presented to further illustrate the invention and are not to be construed as limitations thereon.
EXAMPLE 1
The Preparation of PET Fiber Having Square Cross-section (1)
[0029] A melt dope was prepared by melting regular polyester resin (R-PET) of intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 (manufactured by Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Co. Taiwan) at 285° C. The melt was then spun at 42.7 grams/minute through a spinneret having 48 contoured quasi-square orifices. The filaments extruded from the spinneret were then cooled by blowing with a quenching air of 16° C. at a velocity of 0.55 m/sec. After quenching, the filaments were treated with an aqueous liquid containing 10% oil by contacting an applicator located at a distance of 110 cm below the spinneret to facilitate the solidification of the hot filaments. The amount of oil applied onto the fiber was 0.83% of the fiber weight. The cooled and solidified filaments were then passed through a set of driven take-up rolls and winded up at a speed of 3200 meter/minute to obtain a partially oriented yarn (POY). The obtained yarn bundles have 48 filaments and 120 deniers in linear density. The partially oriented yarn is further drawn to become fully oriented yarn (FOY). The FOY bundles have 48 filaments and 75 deniers in linear density. The properties of POY and FOY yarns are summarized in Table 1. The cross-section of the resultant fiber is shown in FIG. 1 .
EXAMPLE 2
The Preparation of PET Fiber Having Square Cross-section (2)
[0030] A melt dope was prepared by melting regular polyester resin (R-PET) of intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 (manufactured by Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Co. Taiwan) at 285° C. The melt was then spun at 28.4 grams/minute through a spinneret having contoured quasi-square orifice. The filaments extruded from the spinneret were then cooled by blowing with a quenching air of 16° C. at a velocity of 0.45 meter/sec. After quenching, the filaments were treated with an aqueous liquid containing 10% oil by contacting an applicator located at a distance of 110 cm below the spinneret to facilitate the solidification of the hot filaments. The amount of oil applied onto the fiber was 0.81% of the fiber weight. The cooled and solidified filaments were then passed through a set of driven take-up rolls and winded up at a speed of 3200 meter/minute to obtain a partially oriented yarn (POY). The obtained yarn bundles have 48 filaments and 80 deniers in linear density. The partially oriented yarn is further drawn to become fully oriented yarn (FOY). The FOY bundles have 48 filaments and 50 deniers in linear density. The properties of POY and FOY yarns are summarized in Table 1 below.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1
The Preparation of PET Fiber Having Round Cross-section (1)
[0031] A melt dope was prepared by melting regular polyester resin (R-PET) of intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 (manufactured by Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Co. Taiwan) at 285° C. The melt was then spun at 42.7 grams/minute through a spinneret with 48 round orifices. The filaments extruded from the spinneret were then cooled by blowing with a quenching air of 16° C. at a velocity of 0.55 meter/sec. After quenching, the filaments were treated with an aqueous liquid containing 10% oil by contacting an applicator located at a distance of 110 cm below the spinneret to facilitate the solidification of the hot filaments. The amount of oil applied onto the fiber was 0.83% of the fiber weight. The cooled and solidified filaments were then passed through a set of driven take-up rolls and winded up at a speed of 3200 meter/minute to obtain a partially oriented yarn (POY). The obtained yarn bundles have 48 filaments and 120 deniers in linear density. The partially oriented yarn is further drawn to become fully oriented yarn (FOY). The FOY bundles have 48 filaments and 75 deniers in linear density. The properties of POY and FOY yarns are summarized in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 2
The Preparation of PET Fiber Having Round Cross-section (2)
[0032] A melt dope was prepared by melting regular polyester resin (R-PET) of intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 (manufactured by Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Co. Taiwan) at 285° C. The melt was then spun at 28.4 grams/minute through a spinneret with 48 round orifices. The filaments extruded from the spinneret were then cooled by blowing with a quenching air of 16° C. at a velocity of 0.45 meter/sec. After quenching, the filaments were treated with an aqueous liquid containing 10% oil by contacting an applicator located at a distance of 110 cm below the spinneret to facilitate the solidification of the hot filaments. The amount of oil applied onto the fiber was 0.81% of the fiber weight. The cooled and solidified filaments were then passed through a set of driven take-up rolls and winded up at a speed of 3200 meter/minute to obtain a partially oriented yarn (POY). The obtained yarn bundles have 48 filaments and 80 deniers in linear density. The partially oriented yarn is further drawn to become fully oriented yarn (FOY). The FOY bundles have 48 filaments and 50 deniers in linear density. The properties of POY and FOY yarns are summarized in Table 1.
TABLE 1 Before drawing After drawing Linear Tenacity Elongation Linear Tenacity Elongation density (g/d) (%) density (g/d) (%) Example (1) 120 d 2.64 123 75 d 4.79 34.5 square Example (2) 80 d 2.53 121 50 d 4.57 32.1 square Comp. Exam. 120 d 2.72 120 75 d 4.86 32.3 (1) round Comp. Exam. 80 d 2.65 118 50 d 4.65 30.2 (2) round Note: d: denier
EXAMPLE 3
The Preparation of PET Fiber with Regular Triangular Cross-section
[0033] A melt dope was prepared by melting regular polyester resin (R-PET) of intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 (manufactured by Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Co. Taiwan) at 285° C. The melt was then spun at 28.4 grams/minute through a spinneret with 48 round orifices. The filaments extruded from the spinneret were then cooled by blowing with a quenching air of 16° C. at a velocity of 0.45 meter/sec. After quenching, the filaments were treated with an aqueous liquid containing 10% oil by contacting an applicator located at a distance of 110 cm below the spinneret to facilitate the solidification of the hot filaments. The amount of oil applied onto the fiber was 0.82% of the fiber weight. The cooled and solidified filaments were then passed through a set of driven take-up rolls and winded up at a speed of 3200 meter/minute to obtain a partially oriented yarn (POY). The obtained yarn bundles have 48 filaments and 80 deniers in linear density. The partially oriented yarn is further drawn to become fully oriented yarn (FOY). The FOY bundles have 48 filaments and 50 deniers in linear density. The cross-section of the resultant fiber is shown in FIG. 2 .
[0034] One of the unique characteristics of the fibers with equilateral polygonal cross section is related to stacking of the fiber. As shown in Table 2, in the case of the equilateral polygonal fiber, the wind resistance of the fabric, in terms of pressure drop at a certain air flux, is significantly higher than the fabrics made of conventional round fibers. Especially, the wind resistance of the fabric of square fiber is much higher than the fabrics made of triangular fibers. At higher air fluxes, the trends are the same with slightly different ratios. In some embodiments, the fabric of square fibers may have a wind resistance of more than 3 times higher than a fabric made of round fibers, and more than 50% higher than that of triangular fibers.
[0035] It is surprising and unexpected that the square fiber results in remarkably higher wind resistance in fabrics as compared to triangular fiber, since it was originally held that the square fiber and triangular fiber would have the same packing behavior due to their flat surfaces.
TABLE 2 Comparison of wind resistance of PET woven fabrics Air flux Square fiber Triangular Round fiber (l/min) (mm H 2 O) fiber (mm H 2 O) (mm H 2 O) 20 37 24 11 40 96 59 23 60 136 88 39 80 148 104 59 100 150 122 93 Remarks□fiber spec: 50 d/48 f; fabric structure□1/1 plain weave, weft 200 threads/inch, warp 110 threads/inch.
[0036] The luster, measured as the percentage of the light reflection from the fabric surface, is also shown in Table 3. Fabrics of both square and triangular fibers show higher luster than that of the round fiber. This is due to the light reflection from the flat surface of either the square or the triangular fiber. The fabric of square surface has the highest luster because of the better fiber stacking on the fabric surface, which results in a flatter and shinier surface. Specially, the fabric of square fibers has a luster of more than 2 times higher than that of round fibers, and surprisingly, more than 50% higher than that of triangular fibers.
TABLE 3 Comparison of air permeability and luster of PET woven fabrics Pressure Square fiber Triangular fiber Round fiber (Pa) Air permeability (cc/cm 2 □ sec) 25 0.132 0.160 0.188 50 0.169 0.224 0.279 75 0.198 0.336 0.474 100 0.240 0.520 0.660 125 0.276 0.575 0.773 150 0.331 0.691 0.850 Luster (%) 5.78 3.24 2.56 Remarks□(1) Fiber spec.: 50 d/48 f; fabric structure□ 1/1 plain weave, weft 200 threads/inch, warp 110 threads/inch. (2) Luster is measured in terms of light reflection from the fabrics. All fabrics are not colored.
[0037] While the invention has been described by way of examples and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. 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.
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Fibers of square cross sections are presented in the invention. The square fiber leads to higher packing density and results in higher wind resistance in fabrics as compared to the conventional round fibers and other polygonal fibers. Therefore, the square fiber is more suitable for manufacture of the windproof clothing. In addition, the square fibers exhibit higher luster than the round fibers and other polygonal fibers due to the flat and shiny fiber surface.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to a reciprocating pump assembly, a noise suppression apparatus for use with a reciprocating pump, and a method of controlling a reciprocating pump assembly.
BACKGROUND
[0002] One of the most common air-operated pumps used in industry is a double-diaphragm, positive displacement type shown in FIG. 1 . This type of pump is self-priming and displaces fluid from one of its two liquid chambers upon each stroke completion. Only several parts contact the fluid, two diaphragms which are connected by a common connecting rod, two inlet valve balls, and two discharge valve balls. The diaphragms act as a separation membrane between the compressed air supply operating the pump (air chamber) and the liquid (fluid chamber). Driving the diaphragms with compressed air instead of the connecting rod balances the load on the diaphragm, which removes mechanical stress and extends diaphragm life. The valve balls open and close on valve seats to direct liquid flow. When each diaphragm has gone through one suction and one discharge stroke, one pumping cycle has taken place. An air distribution system is part of the pump and switches the common air supply for the pump from one air chamber to the second air chamber as each fluid chamber empties at the end of its respective stroke.
[0003] The air distribution system shifts the symmetric pumping action in order to create suction and discharge strokes. When the diaphragms have traveled a maximum excursion in one direction, a mechanical pilot valve is typically actuated, shifting a main valve, and reversing the pneumatic action. The other air chamber is then pressurized to expel its fluid and the device continues this reciprocation until the air supply is stopped. Various pump manufacturers accomplish the air distribution using purely mechanical valve assemblies and/or valve assemblies that are electrically controlled.
[0004] The discharge of a double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump is dependent only on the mechanical characteristics of the air distribution system and the fluid dynamics of the pump itself. Shown in FIG. 2 is a typical discharge pressure versus time plot of a prior art, dual-diaphragm, air-operated pump. FIG. 3 shows the corresponding plot of the air distribution system connecting rod excursion in time, as the rod travels in the direction of one diaphragm pump, arbitrarily denoted as left, then to the other diaphragm pump, arbitrarily denoted as right. As the diaphragms complete their travel in one direction and reverse direction, a large pressure dip occurs when the connecting rod is at the excursion limit. This is due to the inherent pressure change when transitioning between suction and discharge strokes. The output results in a series of pulses or surges corresponding with each diaphragm pump stroke. In the control systems art, these surges manifest in the process piping are referred to as process noise. All pumps operating with some type of reciprocation produce process noise.
[0005] To reduce unwanted fluctuation, passive external pulsation dampeners can be added downstream of the pump. The prior art dampener shown in FIG. 4 contains a pressure regulator and a pressurized diaphragm acting as an accumulator. The diaphragm traps a given volume of liquid on one side and pressurized air on the other. When the fluid pressure falls in the system, the dampener supplies additional pressure to the discharge line between pump strokes by displacing fluid by the diaphragm movement. This movement provides a supplementary pumping action needed to minimize pressure variation and pulsation. Most dampeners set and maintain air pressure to match the variations in the liquid flow or discharge pressure generated by the pump. A shaft attached to the diaphragm and pressure regulator triggers the addition or deletion of the air within the air chamber side of the dampener. The dampener reacts to pressure and/or flow settings of the pump with no need for manual adjustment.
[0006] However, the prior art external pulsation dampeners are large and require additional support, making them costly to purchase and install. By their passive nature, these dampeners are slow to react and process noise is still introduced into the system as shown in FIG. 5 .
[0007] What is needed is a low cost, active suppression device to anticipate and cancel process noise produced by reciprocating pumps thereby reducing water hammer and strain on equipment coupled downstream.
SUMMARY
[0008] The invention provides, in one embodiment, an apparatus for canceling process noise introduced by a reciprocating pump. In one construction, the apparatus includes a controller corresponding with a reciprocating pump connecting rod, the controller adapted to output a signal during each connecting rod excursion. The signal is coupled to a solenoid valve, which opens to admit an air supply to operate a pulse pump having a discharge coupled to the reciprocating pump discharge. The pulse pump ejects a predefined quantity of fluid when the solenoid valve is opened.
[0009] In another embodiment, the invention provides a rate sensor adapted to receive inputs from a reciprocating pump and output a signal representative of device rate to a controller. The controller processes the device rate signal as process noise manifest by the reciprocating pump and outputs an anti-noise signal to a pulse pump whereby the anti-noise signal is an inverted replica of the device noise. The pulse pump output is coupled to the reciprocating pump discharge and outputs a pressure profile corresponding to the anti-noise signal thereby canceling the process noise manifest by the pump.
[0010] Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following detailed description, claims, and drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is a front, section view of a prior art double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a plot of discharge pressure versus time for the pump shown in FIG. 1 .
[0013] FIG. 3 is a plot of connecting rod excursion versus time for the pump shown in FIG. 1 .
[0014] FIG. 4 shows a prior art surge dampener coupled downstream of a double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump.
[0015] FIG. 5 is a plot of discharge pressure versus time with the surge dampener of FIG. 4 .
[0016] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump assembly incorporating the invention.
[0017] FIG. 7 shows the physical application of the pump assembly of FIG. 6 .
[0018] FIG. 8 is a plot of connecting rod excursion versus time for the pump assembly of FIG. 6 .
[0019] FIG. 9 is a plot of pulse pump discharge pressure versus time.
[0020] FIG. 10 is a plot of discharge pressure versus time for the pump assembly of FIG. 6 .
[0021] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of an alternative construction of the double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump assembly incorporating the invention. FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of another alternative construction of the double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump assembly incorporating the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] Before any aspects of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms “mounted,” “connected,” “supported,” and “coupled” and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Further, “connected” and “coupled” are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings.
[0023] Shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are schematic and physical diagrams of one construction of a double-diaphragm, reciprocating pump assembly. Before proceeding further, it should be noted that while a double-diaphragm, air operated pump is shown for FIGS. 6 and 7 , the invention may be used with other types of reciprocating pumps regardless of the motive power.
[0024] By way of background, the examination of process noise is typically performed in the frequency domain. Namely, how the noise energy is distributed as a function of frequency. Turbulent noises distribute their energy evenly across the frequency bands and are referred to as broadband noise. Narrow band noise energy is concentrated at specific frequencies. When the source of noise is a rotating or repetitive machine, the noise frequencies are all multiples, or harmonics, of a basic noise cycle. This type of noise can be classified as periodic, along with a smaller amount of broadband noise and is common in man-made machinery. Examples of sources of narrow band noise include internal combustion engines, compressors, power transformers and pumps.
[0025] Shown in FIG. 6 is an assembly 15 arranged to cancel the noise manifest in process piping by an air-operated, reciprocating pump 17 . The assembly 15 includes a controller 19 and connecting rod position transducer 21 mounted adjacent to a connecting rod 23 of the air-operated, reciprocating pump 17 . The pump 17 receives its motive power from a common air supply 25 .
[0026] The connecting rod position transducer 21 corresponds with the common connecting rod 23 coupling each diaphragm 27 , 29 on the pump 17 . The transducer 21 monitors the excursion of the connecting rod 23 using a sensor. The sensor can be reed, proximity, or other equivalent limit switch types. The sensor can also be a linear displacement device such as a digital gauging probe, a linear variable differential transformer (LVDT), a hybrid micro-electromechanical system (MEMS), or other like equivalents. The linear displacement sensor similarly corresponds with the connecting rod. The rod position transducer 21 output is communicated to the controller 19 .
[0027] As the connecting rod 23 nears its excursion limits at each end of travel, a signal based on the connecting rod 23 location is output from the controller 19 to a solenoid valve 31 . The solenoid valve 31 controls the air supply 25 to a pulse pump 33 . Upon energization, the solenoid valve 31 opens, admitting air to the pulse pump 33 . The pulse pump 33 has a predefined volume on a fluid side of a diaphragm, which is ejected, into the pump 17 discharge.
[0028] Shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is the timing of the solenoid valve 31 openings and the output pressure response of the pulse pump 33 respectively. The pulse pump 33 discharges before the excursion limits are reached by the connecting rod 23 to allow the fluid inertia to produce a positive pressure in the pump discharge and cancel the pump 17 pressure dips as shown in FIG. 10 .
[0029] The assembly 15 allows for either maintaining, advancing, or retarding pulse pump 33 operation depending upon speed of the pump 17 . The controller 19 monitors the connecting rod 23 position via the rod position transducer 21 and, by counting the cycles per unit time, arrives at pump 17 speed and discharge volume. The operation of the pulse pump 33 is timed during the connecting rod 23 excursion to maximize noise suppression. At slow pumping speeds, pulse pump 33 actuation is retarded, occurring later during the connecting rod 23 excursion. At faster speeds, pulse pump 33 actuation is advanced, occurring earlier during the excursion.
[0030] In an alternative construction, the assembly 15 B reduces reciprocating pump 17 process noise by generating a canceling, anti-noise signal, which is an inverted replica (180° out of phase) of the noise manifest in the process line. The anti-noise signal is then introduced into the noise environment via the pulse pump 33 . The two noise signals cancel each other out, effectively removing a significant portion of the noise energy from the process.
[0031] The technique of synchronous feedback is effective on repetitive noise. An input signal is used to provide information on the rate of the noise. Since all of the repetitive noise energy is at harmonics of the pump cyclical rate, a digital signal processor can cancel the known noise frequencies. Digital signal processors (DSPs) perform the calculations involved in noise cancellation. The use of DSPs makes it feasible to apply active noise cancellation to problems in low frequency noise at a reasonable cost. FIG. 11 shows active noise cancellation applied to the assembly 15 B to reduce the process noise attributed to pump discharge pulsing. The active element is the pulse pump 33 . The pulse pump 33 outputs an anti-noise pulse to the pump 17 discharge. The process noise profile and anti-noise provides for global cancellation of the low frequency process noise.
[0032] The connecting rod transducer 21 outputs a signal representative of pumping rate. The signal is coupled to a generator 35 to internally provide frequencies at the harmonics of the pump 17 rate. The rate is modeled by the connecting rod travel 23 (excursion) versus time. The excursion establishes the fundamental frequency of the noise and any acceleration or deceleration the connecting rod 23 may experience during each stroke.
[0033] The generator 35 artificially models the noise estimate. The noise estimate is output and coupled to the input of a programmable filter 37 such as a finite impulse response filter (FIR). Other embodiments may use infinite impulse, Kalman, or equivalent filter structures. The filter 37 builds a mathematical representation of the noise estimate having a gain equal to the noise and a phase shift of 180°. The output is a new signal approximating the expected noise in the process. The new signal is used to cancel the noise and is the basic tenet of feedforward control.
[0034] The cancellation signal is amplified 39 and output to a modulating valve 31 for transducing the cancellation signal to air pressure for operating the pulse pump 33 . The operation of the pulse pump 33 cancels the narrowband noise effects of the mechanical pumping cycle.
[0035] Another alternative construction of the assembly 15 C having a feedforward control system is shown in FIG. 12 . The assembly 15 C further includes an adaptation scheme to adapt the programmable filter 37 to further minimize error. Considering the importance of gain and phase matching in feedforward control, this variant implements adaptive algorithms such as a least mean square (LMS) algorithm to minimize errors in these parameters based on minimizing the mean square of the disturbance response. Other schemes such as a filtered-x least mean square (F×LMS) algorithm may be used. A pressure sensor 43 in the discharge of the pulse pump 33 feeds back noise remaining after cancellation to an adapter 45 . The adapter 45 , using an LMS adaptation algorithm, continuously adjusts the cancellation filter 37 to drive any remaining process noise to zero.
[0036] Accordingly, the invention provides new and useful pump assemblies, suppression apparatus for use with a pump, and methods of controlling a pump assembly. Various other features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims.
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A pump assembly comprising an apparatus for reducing process noise manifest in a piping system. The invention introduces a pump pulse to counteract a negative dip in pressure when the reciprocating pump is at the completion of each pump stroke.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to closable and sealable containers for liquids, and more particularly to a liquid container particularly adapted (but not limited) for use as a beverage container. The present container is preferably configured in the form of a bottle having a relatively narrow neck and openable closure at one end, with a wider base and openable closure at the opposite base end. Means are provided for inverting the bottle with the narrow end down, removing the closure from the now upturned wider end, and locking it onto the narrow end closure to provide a stable support for the inverted bottle.
2. Description of the Related Art
The bottle having a relatively narrow neck and wider base has been proven to be a popular and practical shape for serving as a liquid container. The relatively narrow neck provides a small opening which is easily closed and from which liquids (at least those of low viscosity) may be readily poured. The small mouth of such bottles also makes a convenient drinking dispenser for beverages consumed directly from the bottle, with the mouth of the consumer generally closely fitting the mouth of the bottle to preclude spillage.
However, such bottles with their relatively narrow openings also have certain drawbacks. For example, in many cases it is desirable to drink a beverage from a more conventional glass having a wide opening at its upper end. There may be practical considerations for such a container configuration, e.g., allowing the liquid to “breathe” before or during consumption, as well as esthetic reasons.
Another important practical point is that hot beverages are difficult, and potentially hazardous, to consume from a narrow necked bottle. The development of microwave technology for heating foods and beverages has made it easy to heat a liquid within a bottle without overheating the container itself. However, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to sip a liquid from such a narrow necked opening and to avoid ingesting too large a quantity at any one time, which would result in burning the mouth of the consumer. Traditionally, hot beverages are taken from containers having wide openings (cups, glasses, etc.) which permit the consumer to sip the hot beverage slowly to avoid burning the mouth.
Another characteristic of narrow necked bottles and containers is their reluctance to pour relatively viscous liquids (e.g., ketchup, etc.). While it may be possible to pour the desired quantity from a nearly full bottle, it becomes considerably more difficult as the contents are depleted from the bottle, particularly if the bottle has been-stored in an upright position. A wider opening for the container would greatly facilitate access to the remaining contents of such a viscous liquid.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for a liquid container with opposed openings, with the container having a relatively wide end and an opposite relatively narrow end. Each end includes an openable closure, so the contents of the bottle may be accessed from either the wide or narrow end of the container, as desired. The wider closure may be removed from its corresponding container end and locked to the closure of the narrow end, thus providing a relatively wide support base for the container in its inverted orientation with the narrow neck end positioned downwardly. This allows a consumer to drink from the wider opening of the bottle, while providing good support for the bottle to hold the wider opening upwards as desired.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventor is aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 611,520 issued on Sep. 27, 1898 to Charles S. Smith, titled “Bottle For Holding Spirits Or Other Liquids And Aerated Waters Separated Until Bottle Is Opened,” describes a bottle having opposite interconnected compartments therein. A stopper is placed between the two, from the larger chamber. The larger chamber is then filled with a liquid under pressure (e.g., seltzer water) to hold the internal stopper in place, the larger chamber is sealed, and the smaller chamber is filled with a liquid (distilled liquor, etc.) and sealed. Removal of the stopper from the larger chamber releases the pressure therein, allowing the intermediate stopper to fall free and the two liquids to mix together. From the above, it is clear that the Smith bottle is intended for only a single use, as any remaining mixture of the liquids would not retain the original carbonated character For long after pressure release. While the present double ended bottle may be used as a single serving container, the two opposite closures also provide for resealing the bottle as desired. Moreover, the two opposed closures cannot be connected to one another, to support the bottle in an inverted orientation with the narrow neck disposed downwardly, as in the case of the present invention. In any case, there is no motivation for holding the Smith bottle in an inverted position, as the bottom opening is relatively small and centered in the wider base, thus making it extremely difficult to drink from that opening anyway.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,770,480 issued on Jul. 15, 1930 to Abraham Danciger, titled “Beverage Container,” describes a bottle having an opening at both ends thereof. One opening is configured for a conventional crimped metal cap, while the opposite opening requires a different type of seal due to the need to pass a stopper therethrough and into the bottle interior. The Danciger bottle and closure assembly is intended to capture sediment at one end of the bottle, as may occur during fermentation, and capture the sediment in the smaller neck of the bottle behind the stopper. The elongate wire rod which passes through the larger seal for manipulating the stopper, precludes use of the larger closure as a base for the bottle regardless of which end it is placed upon. This also precludes installation of the larger closure on the smaller closure
U.S. Pat. No. 2,990,080 issued on Jun. 27, 1961 to Melvin A. Harris, titled “Inverted Bottle Support,” describes a device for supporting a conventional bottle, either upright or inverted. The device comprises a relatively wide circular plate with a central socket for receiving a specially configured stopper end. The stopper end fits closely within the plate receptacle, so the bottle may be held in an inverted position resting upon the support plate. However, the bottle is conventional, having a closed larger base end. The Harris components are configured to support a conventional bottle either upright or inverted, and no bottle having opposed open ends is disclosed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,163,517 issued on Aug. 7, 1979 to Hermann Kappler et al., titled “Tubular Container,” describes a container having ends of equal diameter with closures at each end. However, only one of the end closures of the Kappler et al. device is openable after manufacture. One of the ends is provided with a series of circumferential barbs or ribs, which engage the inner wall of the cylinder to secure this end cap permanently to the cylinder; only the opposite end is openable after manufacture. This is expected, as both ends are the same diameter, and thus there is no need to provide a removable cap or cover at each end, as provided by the present invention with its bottle ends of different diameters. Moreover, Kappler et al. do not provide any means for attaching the removable cap or cover to the opposite end of the container, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,066 issued on Oct. 21, 1986 to John G. Vail, titled “Combined Insulated Drinking Mug And Megaphone,” describes a device having a tubular, frustoconical shape with removable closures at, each end thereof. The device may be used to contain a liquid when both closures are installed, or to drink from when the smaller end cap is removed. Removal of both end closures allows the device to be used as a megaphone. However, the larger end cap or closure does not attach to the smaller cap in any way. While Vail notes that the double walled lower cap may be opened for placement of small articles therein, it is noted that the thickness of the larger cap is insufficient to place the smaller cap therein, as is clearly shown in FIG. 4 of the Vail U.S. Patent. In addition, the smaller diameter cap has a rounded, convex outer surface, precluding its use as a resting surface for the assembly. Thus, the only way the device may be stably placed, is upon its larger end.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,762,241 issued on Aug. 9, 1988 to Richard R. Lang, titled “Container with Supplemental Opening For Extracting Contents,” describes a liquid container having a wide base and narrow neck, with a small opening in or near the base. The Lang container allows the last of a liquid substance to be drained therefrom without inverting the container, by means of the base opening. Lang does not disclose any means of locking the two closures together, and he teaches away from the inversion of the bottle or container, which inversion is permitted by the novel configuration of the closures of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,141,136 issued on Aug. 25, 1992 to Jeffrey H. Tignor, titled “Dual Opening Squeeze Bottle,” describes a bottle formed of a flexible plastic material with a relatively small central bottom opening therein. The function of the Tignor bottle is essentially the same as that of the Lang containers discussed immediately above, i.e., to drain the last of a viscous substance from the container without need to invert the container. Tignor accomplishes this by sealing the top of the container and applying pressure to the flexible sides of the bottle, to distend the bottom with its central opening. The cap of the central bottom opening is then removed to drain the material from the bottle. Thus, there is no motivation for Tignor to provide any means for resting his bottle in a stable position upon its normally upper end, as provided by the present invention. Moreover, Tignor does not disclose any means of attaching one closure to the other.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,607 issued on Nov. 3, 1998 to Moheb M. Ibrahim, titled “Double Ended Bottle,” describes a container providing essentially the same function as the devices of the Lang '241 and Tignor '136 U.S. Patents discussed above, i.e., to drain the last of a viscous substance therefrom. The Ibrahim container is longitudinally symmetrical, having identically sized openings at each end. Identical caps are provided at each end, with the caps being substantially the same diameter as the bottle, and as one another. Thus, it is not possible to secure one cap to its identically configured opposite with the Tignor bottle, as is possible with the present double ended container invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,885,332 issued on Mar. 23, 1999 to Yuri Gerner et al., titled “Solvent Receptacle And Degasser For Use In High Pressure Liquid Chromatography,” describes an apparatus utilizing a double ended bottle for the solvent reservoir. The bottle appears to be longitudinally symmetrical, with apparently identically configured openings at each end. The lower end of the bottle threads into a fitting which communicates with the fixed vacuum degassing apparatus, while the upper end provides for the attachment of another fitting for delivering recycled fluids back to the bottle. Neither of the fittings may be secured together, which provision is a part of the present invention. Moreover, the fixed configuration of the lower fitting requires that the open lower end of the bottle be secured thereto, as the bottle cannot be inverted with the lower fitting attached.
U.S. Pat. No. D-410,364 issued on Jun. 1, 1999 to Frankie Ramirez et al., titled “Convertible Travel Cup And Bottle,” illustrates a design for a pair of mating container components, with one selectively nesting within the other for storage. The second component may be removed, inverted, and reattached to the first component to form a container having a closed bottom end. However, the upper end includes a “sip” passage and a vent hole, in the manner of travel cups and the like, with no apparent means for closing the two passages. The Ramirez et al. design thus could not be inverted, as the lack of closure for the first component would spill the contents. Moreover, only the two cap components are shown; no intervening bottle or other container is provided.
German Patent Publication No. 74,261 published on Apr. 5, 1894 illustrates a bottle and cup assembly. The bottle appears to have an externally threaded neck, with the cup having an internally threaded base for securing to the neck of the bottle. The cup thus provides a closure for the bottle, and when removed, provides a container from which a liquid may be consumed. While the cup includes a relatively wide base, and might be used to support the bottle in an inverted position, there is no motivation for such a configuration since there is no opening in the base of the bottle.
German Patent Publication No. 3,921,971 published on Jan. 17, 1991 describes (according to the English abstract and drawings) a bottle for inverted suspension within a refrigerator. The bottle has a relatively larger base and small neck, with the neck disposed downwardly for dispensing a liquid therefrom. The smaller, lower cap is plunger actuated for dispensing the liquid therethrough, rather than being closed, as in the present caps. The larger cap is normally disposed atop the wider end of the bottle, but may be removed therefrom and placed beneath the spout of the smaller lower cap to support the bottle thereon. In this configuration, the upper end of the bottle is open for filling. This device differs from the present invention in that the smaller dispensing cap has a passage therethrough and is adapted for dispensing liquids therefrom in an inverted position, whereas the smaller cap of the present bottle is closed and cannot pass liquid therethrough. This is a critical point, as the smaller cap of the '971 German Patent Publication cannot be positively sealed to the bottle, as can the threaded cap of the present bottle invention. Moreover, the externally threaded neck of the '971 German bottle is adequate for attaching the surrounding collar of the cap thereto, but does not provide a good contact surface for drinking therefrom. There is no motivation for the '971 German bottle to provide an internally threaded neck, as it is not intended that the bottle be drunk from directly, whereas the present bottle is intended for such use. Also, the spout of the smaller cap of the '971 German bottle merely nests in a socket in the larger cap when the larger cap is removed and placed thereunder, rather than being positively locked in place, as in the present double ended bottle. This is an important point, as when the bottle in this configuration is lifted from the underlying surface, the larger cap will remain behind, as it is not positively attached to the smaller cap. The present bottle invention provides positive attachment means for all components.
Finally, German Patent Publication No. 4,109,886 published on Oct. 1, 1992 describes (according to the English abstract and drawings) several embodiments of a truncated conical container with one end being permanently sealed. The drawings show the larger and the smaller diameter ends being either permanently closed or open, in various embodiments. Various means are provided for attaching the larger diameter cap or closure to the smaller diameter end, but there is no means of securing the smaller cap to the larger one, as the two caps are not provided simultaneously in any one embodiment.
None of the above inventions and patents, either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention comprises a liquid container or bottle having opposite ends of unequal diameter, with each end being open. Each end includes a threaded cap or closure therefor, with the bottle ends being internally threaded to provide a smooth contact surface for drinking from the bottle; the mating closures are externally threaded. The larger diameter closure includes a central socket adapted for positively locking to a flange extending from the smaller diameter cap or closure. This configuration allows the smaller cap to be removed from the neck of the bottle and fluid poured or consumed therefrom, as is conventional in bottles having relatively narrow necks. However, the bottle may be inverted with the smaller cap positioned downwardly and the larger diameter disposed upwardly. In this orientation, the larger diameter cap or closure may be removed, with the larger diameter opening allowing a person to drink therefrom as when drinking from a cup, water glass, or the like. The larger diameter closure may be positively locked to the flange of the smaller diameter closure to serve as a wide and stable base for the assembly, if so desired, when the narrow neck of the bottle is positioned downwardly.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a liquid container having a relatively small diameter openable end and an opposite, relatively large diameter openable end, for consuming or dispensing liquid from either end of the container as desired.
It is another object of the invention to provide externally threaded, liquid impervious closures or caps for each end of the container, with each end of the container having corresponding mating internal threads, for providing a smooth external contact surface for drinking directly from the container.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a liquid container having a larger diameter closure which includes a central receptacle therein for securing to the smaller diameter closure as desired, thereby allowing the assembly to be inverted for use as a drinking glass with the smaller diameter neck of the container disposed downwardly, the interlocked closures providing a large diameter, stable base for the assembly.
Still another object of the invention is to provide means for positively locking and securing the larger diameter closure or cap to the smaller diameter closure or cap, thus assuring retention of the larger diameter cap to the remainder of the assembly when the larger diameter cap is secured to the smaller diameter cap and the assembly is lifted.
It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.
These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a liquid container with opposed openings according to the present invention, showing the smaller and larger diameter caps or closures slightly removed from the container.
FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the present container, showing its inversion for positioning the larger diameter at the top, with the support means provided by the larger diameter cap being shown in broken lines.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the two caps or closures with a portion of the larger diameter cap broken away, showing the means for positively locking the two caps together.
FIG. 4 is an exploded top perspective view of the two closures or caps, further illustrating their assembly to one another.
Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The present invention comprises a liquid container (e.g., beverage bottle, etc.) having resealable openings at opposite ends thereof. The two caps or closures for the ends may be secured together, with the larger diameter cap secured to the smaller diameter cap. This permits the larger diameter cap to serve as a base for the assembly, with the smaller diameter portion or neck of the bottle or container oriented below the larger diameter portion for drinking or dispensing a beverage or liquid therefrom.
FIG. 1 provides an exploded perspective view of the present container assembly 10 , comprising a bottle-shaped container 12 with its two opposed end caps 14 and 16 . The bottle 12 has a relatively large diameter first end 18 , with an opposite smaller diameter second end 20 . The larger diameter first end 18 has a correspondingly large diameter opening 22 therethrough, spanning substantially the diameter of the bottle 12 . The smaller diameter second or neck end 20 also includes a correspondingly smaller diameter opening 24 therethrough, substantially the diameter of the smaller end 18 of the bottle 12 . Each of the openings 22 and 24 includes internal threads, respectively 26 and 28 , formed therein to provide a smooth and unbroken external mouth contact surface for the bottle 12 , for drinking a beverage therefrom.
The two caps 14 and 16 are each liquid impervious and devoid of openings therethrough, with each including external threads thereon, respectively 30 and 32 . These threaded cap portions 30 and 32 mate closely with the respective internal threads 26 and 28 of the bottle or container ends 18 and 20 , to provide a liquid proof seal when firmly secured to the bottle 12 . The threaded ends of the bottle 12 and caps 14 , 16 allow the bottle 12 to be resealed, if so desired. While the present double ended container 10 may be provided in individual serving sizes, it will be seen that there are no specific limitations as to the size of the container to which the present invention may be applied, and thus it may be desirable at times to reseal the container after some beverage or other liquid has been dispensed therefrom.
The present double ended opening container invention also includes means for positively locking the two caps 14 and 16 together, as desired. The larger diameter first end cap 14 has a receptacle 34 in the center thereof, with a relatively deep, non-circular opening or lip 36 . The cap receptacle 34 also includes a circular internal slot 38 therein, beneath the non-circular opening or lip 36 , shown most clearly in FIGS. 2 through 4 of the drawings. The smaller diameter second end cap 16 includes a non-circular flange 40 extending therefrom, with the flange 40 being configured to fit closely within the corresponding non-circular opening 36 of the first end cap receptacle 34 . The non-circular shapes of the first end cap receptacle opening 36 and the second end cap flange 40 are illustrated in the drawing Figures as being elliptical with essentially the same major and minor axes, but it will be seen that any substantially congruent non-circular shapes (e.g., square, rectangular, triangular, irregular non-geometric, etc.) may be used to achieve the same result, as described below.
The mating shapes of the first end cap receptacle 38 and the second end cap flange 40 , provides means for positively, yet removably, locking the larger first end cap 14 onto the second end cap 16 , as desired. This allows the present double ended container assembly 10 to be inverted, with the narrower second or neck end 20 oriented at the bottom of the container, while providing secure support for the assembly by means of the larger diameter first end cap 14 being positively secured to the smaller diameter second end cap 16 which is in turn sealingly secured to the container neck 20 .
FIG. 2 illustrates the inversion of the bottle or container assembly 10 , with the larger diameter cap 14 being shown in broken lines for supporting the assembly with the larger diameter first end 18 of the bottle 12 oriented upwardly. FIGS. 3 and 4 respectively provide exploded perspective views of the two end caps or closures 14 and 16 , showing more clearly how these components fit together. (The smaller diameter cap 16 is shown to a smaller scale than the larger diameter cap 14 , in FIG. 3 . It will be understood that the major and minor diameters of the respective elliptical shapes of the receptacle opening 36 of the larger diameter cap 14 and the flange 40 of the smaller diameter cap 16 , are essentially equal, excepting some difference for ease of fit and tolerances.)
The bottle assembly 10 is first inverted, as shown in FIG. 2, with the larger diameter first end oriented upwardly and the smaller diameter second end positioned downwardly. Any liquid within the bottle 12 , will thus drain away from the now uppermost larger diameter first end cap or plug 14 . This first end cap 14 is removed from the bottle 12 , inverted to position the receptacle 34 facing upwardly, and the flange 40 of the second end cap 16 is inserted into the upwardly facing receptacle 34 of the larger diameter second end cap 14 . It will be seen that the flange 40 of the second end cap 16 will only fit into the opening 36 of the first end cap receptacle 34 in one orientation, due to the closely congruent configurations of the opening 36 and flange 40 and their non-circular configurations.
However, once the second cap flange 40 has been inserted completely past the non-circular opening area 36 of the first cap receptacle 34 , it resides within the internal circular slot area 38 of the receptacle 34 . This allows the second cap flange 40 to be rotated essentially ninety degrees to misalign the major and minor axes of the two elliptical shapes 36 and 40 , with the lobes of the flange 40 major axis captured beneath the sides of the receptacle opening 36 minor axis to lock the larger first end cap 14 to the second end cap 16 , and thus to the container 12 as well. Thus, when the container assembly 10 is lifted for drinking or dispensing a beverage or other liquid from the now upwardly oriented larger diameter opening 22 , the lowermost larger diameter cap 14 remains attached to the assembly and cannot be separated therefrom or lost.
Additional security for the first and second cap assembly is provided by a slot 42 formed in the floor of the receptacle slot 38 of the first end cap 14 , with a series of mating protuberances 44 projecting from the flange 40 of the second end cap 16 . These protuberances 44 will be compressed slightly as they bear against the inner surface of the receptacle slot 40 , due to the slightly resilient nature of the plastic material preferably used for the cap components 14 and 16 . However, one of the protuberances 44 of the flange 40 will periodically engage the slot 42 of the receptacle slot 38 , and resist further rotation past that point. While a slight amount of rotational force is sufficient to turn the two caps 14 and 16 relative to one another, this arrangement precludes inadvertent relative rotation of the two components.
It will be seen that other means for precluding relative rotation of the two cap components 14 and 16 may be provided, as desired. For example, the above described slot 42 and protuberances 44 may be reversed, with a single protuberance alternately engaging one of a series of slots. Alternatively, the rotational resistance means could be provided along the periphery of the circular inner slot 38 of the first cap receptacle 34 and corresponding or mating means provided at the ends of the major axis or diameter of the second cap flange 40 , with the two means (resilient teeth, etc.) engaging one another to prevent inadvertent relative rotation of the two components.
The above described assembly, with the narrower second or neck end 20 of the bottle 10 oriented downwardly as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, is provided with stability by means of the flat external surface of the larger diameter first cap 14 . Additional stability may be provided by means of a larger diameter flange 46 extending from the larger first end cap 14 , if so desired. If such a support flange 46 is provided, it may be configured to have the same geometric shape but with a larger diameter or size, i.e., be geometrically similar, but not congruent, to the shape of the flange 40 of the smaller diameter second end cap 16 and the corresponding receptacle opening 36 of the larger diameter first end cap 14 and may have the same orientation as the receptacle opening, in order to remind the user of the orientation of the flange 40 and opening 36 when securing or removing the first end cap 14 from the second end cap 16 .
In conclusion, the present liquid container with its opposed openings of different diameters, provides a versatile means of presenting a beverage from a container having two different configurations, yet achieving this with a single container. Where it is desired to drink or dispense the beverage or liquid from the narrower mouth of the container, the user may simply remove the smaller diameter cap and drink from the smaller mouth of the bottle or dispense the liquid as desired. However, in many circumstances, a wider mouth container is desirable for esthetic or other reasons. For example, it may be hazardous to consume a very hot beverage from a container having a narrow outlet, as it is very difficult to sip very small quantities of the beverage from such a container. A substantial potential hazard exists in such a circumstance, that the consumer may inadvertently ingest a larger quantity of the hot liquid than desired, and burn the interior of his or her mouth.
The present double ended container responds to this need as described above, merely by inverting the bottle with its narrow neck end downward, removing the larger diameter cap from the now upwardly disposed first end, and securing it to the second end cap as described further above. The positive locking means of the two caps, assures that the first cap cannot inadvertently fall from the second cap. Also, the provision of the first cap receptacle to the inside surface of the first cap, assures that the receptacle will not become contaminated before use or by resting upon a soiled surface, and possibly contaminate the remaining beverage within the container if it is reattached to its first open end.
The present container may be made in sizes capable of holding more than a single beverage serving, if so desired, as noted above. However, it is envisioned that the present invention is particularly suitable for individual serving quantities. Accordingly, other means of securing the two caps to the ends of the container may be used as desired, e.g., crimping, etc., rather than the reusable threaded means described herein. It should also be noted that other alternatives are perfectly possible with the present invention, such as differently shaped bottles or containers (square or rectangular cross sections, shorter or longer aspect ratios, etc.), and that the containers may be formed of any practicable transparent, translucent, or opaque material (glass, plastic, thin formed sheet metal, etc.), as desired. Regardless of the materials and geometric shapes used, the present container with its opposed openings will provide an extremely versatile means of serving a beverage, or dispensing other liquids, which means has not been previously available to the consumer.
It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.
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A liquid container with opposed openings has a smaller neck and larger base, with correspondingly sized openings and caps. The base cap includes a receptacle, for installing over the cap of the smaller diameter container end. The smaller diameter cap includes an outwardly extending non-circular flange, which engages the correspondingly shaped receptacle in the larger base end cap. The base cap receptacle also has a circular second, innermost area. The base cap receptacle is aligned with the flange of the smaller diameter cap and rotated ninety degrees, to misalign the two non-circular shapes and lock the smaller diameter cap flange within then innermost portion of the base cap receptacle. This permits the container to be inverted with the smaller diameter end downward, the larger diameter cap to be removed and installed on the now lowermost smaller diameter cap, and the contents dispensed from the uppermost larger diameter end.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for the continuous treatment of a thin band of wares made of paper, textile, synthetic material or metal through pressure produced by a magnetic force exerted by means of pressure bodies perpendicularly to the band, or path of travel of the band, whereby the band of wares is guided over a straight or arcuate supporting surface and the pressure bodies extend over the width of the band of wares.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The German Pat. No. 1,164,122 discloses an apparatus for producing a pressing effect on band-shaped materials, for example, textiles, whereby the material to be treated moves between the operating parts exerting a pressure against one another, which pressure is developed by means of a magnetic field penetrating the material, of which operating parts, at least one is constructed as a rotary roller on which the material is rolled. In this connection, at least one of the operating parts for exerting pressure is magnetic, or contains a magnet, whereby the roller is to exert a uniformly acting pressure on a material along a sleeve line.
The German published application No. 1,813,197 furthermore discloses an apparatus operating with magnetic pressure for applying pressure in the treatment of band-shaped materials in which both of the ferrite magnetic structural parts are disposed in the form of rollers, so that they move mutually in such a direction that the width of the gap therebetween is alterable. In order to be able to vary the magnetic force with which the pressure bodies become effective on the band of wares, over the width of the band, adjacently disposed individual magnets may be used, each of which magnets produces a magnetic field that is different from that of adjacent magnets.
A disadvantage connected with these known apparatus is that upon utilization of rollers as pressure bodies for bands uneven in the transverse direction of the band, uniform pressure treatment is not possible in the transverse direction. There takes place a lifting of the roller shaped pressure body from sections of the band of wares, when unevenness, for example, a reinforcement of the band of wares, such as a knubbing, a bump or swelling, or the like passes through the gap between the roller-shaped pressure body and the support, be the support a roller or a planar support, etc. The reinforcements of adjacent sections of the band of wares remain untreated. In addition, sagging or deflection of the rollers must be taken into account.
It should be understood that hereinbelow the band of wares is simply termed a "web", whether the same is paper, textile, synthetic material, metal or any other band of material and that any irregularity in the surface to be treated, such as knubbing, bumps, swelling, seams and the like are collectively termed as an "unevenness."
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is the object of the invention to provide a method and apparatus of the type generally described above which permits a simple construction of the apparatus and also with an uneven surface of the web, still makes possible over the entire width of the web a pressure treatment which is uniform to a great extent.
Also, a uniform pressure treatment is to be attained over the width of the band independently of the sagging or deflection of a pressure roller, as also of the counter-bearing, for example, the supporting roller of a calender. Advantageously, aids for equalizing sagging or deflection of the support are eliminated. A pressure treatment may hereby be both a surface treatment as well as any other type of treatment, such as, for example, a squeezing of the web.
In order to attain the foregoing objectives, an apparatus of the type generally mentioned above is provided in which a plurality of pressure bodies are utilized. These bodies in the form of a plurality of balls, rings, rollers, pins or the like, having less diameter or length than the width of the web and are held in the transverse direction to the band substantially adjacent each other and independently movable with respect to one another perpendicularly to the surface of the band. The plurality of balls, rings, rollers, pins or the like are held stacked transversely offset consecutively over the web width in the traveling direction of the web in such a manner that the web is acted on over its entire width by the pressure bodies of the pressure body field thus formed.
The German published application No. 1,091,913 discloses a roller arrangement for nap-crushing or squeezing in which several cylindrical short rollers extend, with intermediary spaces, over the width of the web. The ends of each of these short rollers, arranged in pairs and superimposed, are held in a bearing; the rollers are driven by means of drive shafts arranged between the supports of adjacent rollers, in common, and with the same speed. Furthermore, the rollers of two series of rollers arranged following one another are offset mutually on hatches; the pressure of the upper against the lower rollers between which the web is guided takes place by means of hydraulic or pneumatic application of pressure to the support of the upper rollers. In the case of this known machine, the rollers and the intermediary spaces must be relatively long, as the intermediary spaces must receive the roller supports and the drive shafts. The length of the rollers accordingly does not permit the direct surrounding of an unevenness of a web, as also the individual rollers can assume no different circumferential speed for their adjacent rollers, in order to process the web with the same effect as the adjacent rollers at different spacings from the counterroller or the planar support. Beyond this, the expense of construction of the individual roller bearings, as well as the drive shafts and their drive, and the pressure apparatus of the upper rollers, is appreciable.
As mentioned above, unevenness of the web is to be understood as all differences in thickness of the web. In addition to this, however, the apparatus of the present invention is utilizable even with uniform surface quality, if the web is to be treated by means of pressure, for example, a web of paper is to be smoothed.
The balls, rings, rollers, pins or the like which form the pressure members may be held in position by means of cages, strips, struts, rods or the like. Thus, for example, upon the utilization of rings, the rings may be arranged in series, preferably on a rod having less diameter than the interior diameter of the rings, whereby a corresponding free radial mobility is afforded in respect of one another. As the magnetic field holds the pressure bodies in position, it is sufficient upon corresponding construction of the same, to hold only the outer pressure bodies of the field in position by means of cages, rods, strips or the like.
Also, several balls, rings, rollers or the like may be arranged in a superimposed relation.
The rollers may be both cylindrical, as well as drumshaped rollers (barrel shaped) which likewise are again arranged in series on a rod or strip. They may, however, as well as the rings, be held by means of a cage, in which the rollers are again freely movable perpendicularly to the web and accordingly in the direction of the exertion of pressure. Upon utilization of balls, the latter may either rotate freely in a cage, or, however, be arranged in series according to the type of a string of pearls or, however, may be held in other suitable manners, as for example by means of the magnetic field itself, in their position movable freely against the web.
The basic idea of the present invention--in complete contrast to previous utilizations, is to utilize individual pressure members extending over the width of the web, which individual members extend in their entirety over the width of the web and permit of being drawn or pressed independently of one another in the direction normal to the web through the application of magnetic forces. If, in the case of apparatus of the present invention, balls, rollers arcuate at their ends, pins or the like are utilized, then by means of the lateral disposition of the pressure bodies lying consecutively in the direction of travel of the web, uniform pressure may be exerted on the web.
A further development of the invention provides an axial and/or tangential guidance of the pressure bodies without mutual contact and with the elimination of a cage or other guide means. For this purpose, the counter-roller or the planar support which is disposed on the side of the web remote from the pressure body field, consist of magnetizable material and is surrounded by a pole shoe of a magnet concentrically, or such a pole shoe lies opposite to the counter-roller or the support made of magnetizable material. In this connection, the pole shoe is provided on its side adjacent the counter-roller or the support with radial projections and reversals determining the axial and/or tangential spacing of the pressure bodies. The length of the projections or the reversals may, in this connection, correspond or approximately correspond to the length or the diameter, respectively, of the pressure bodies.
The projections are preferably formed of pin-like sections, formed by means of longitudinal and transverse grooves, between which sections the front side is held adjacent to the roller or support and the roller or support of the pressure bodies. In another embodiment, the projections of the pole shoe may be constructed as short ribs which project into the axial and/or tangential intermediary spaces between the pressure bodies. A further advantageous embodiment provides that the pole shoe is adjustable movable and/or movable to and fro in radial and/or axial tangential direction to the roller or in corresponding direction to the support, respectively.
In order to be able to alter the size of the tangential magnetic force acting on the pressure bodies, that is, in the direction of travel of the web, in order, for example, to take into account the friction and the fulling or milling work upon the treatment of different materials, and in order to attain a reduction of the resistance of the magnetic circuit, whereby the pressure exerted by the pressure bodies on the web to be treated is attainable with lower construction expense, for example with a lower number of ampere turnes of the electromagnets, the rotating pressure bodies are held in tangential and/or axial recesses limited by sections of the pole shoe by means of magnetic forces, whereby the air gap between the tangential and/or axial recess walls and the pressure bodies is smaller than the air gap between the radial recess wall and the pressure body.
The recess walls enclose or surround more than half of the circumference of the pressure bodies. In this connection, the recesses widen above the tangential metal plane of the pressure body, that is, in the area of the recesses in the pole shoe facing away from the roller.
The walls of the tangential and/or axial pole shoe sections limiting the recesses surround the pressure bodies at least partially concentrically. For the equalization of the tangentially operating friction and fulling or milling forces, the pole shoe sections limiting the recesses are constructed asymmetrically in the tangential direction, as well as also the two walls of the pole shoe sections tangentially limiting the recesses may be provided with coatings of different strength made of non-magnetizable material.
Furthermore, the pole shoe or parts of the pole shoe may be adjusted on the magnet in the tangential direction, whereby the magnet possesses recesses in tangential adjusting direction of the pole shoe.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the pressure bodies may consist of one or more permanent magnets, which are surrounded or limited by non-magnetizable material parts, whereby magnetizable sections are correlated with the magnets and the nonmagnetizable parts.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention, its organization, construction and operation will be best understood from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, on which:
FIG. 1 illustrates, in elevational section, an embodiment of the invention in which permanent magnets are employed, which magnets are arranged laterally of and above the roller-shaped support constructed of magnetizable material for guiding the web;
FIG. 2 illustrates, also in a partial sectional view, an embodiment of the invention in which the support consists of a roller jacket of magnetizable or non-magnetizable material and the magnet is arranged within the roller jacket;
FIG. 3 illustrates, in sectional elevation, an apparatus in which the web to be treated is carried on a conveyor belt made of magnetizable or non-magnetizable material, which belt slides on a planar support, and in which the pressure bodies are arranged at the height of the planar support, the planar support being a magnet;
FIGS. 4 and 4a illustrate an embodiment of the invention in which the pressure bodies consist of balls which are arranged in rows adjacent one another, the rows disposed consecutively in the direction of travel being offset by half the diameter of the balls and by an amount deviating therefrom from one another;
FIGS. 5 and 5a illustrate an embodiment of the invention in which the spacing of the rows of balls following one another in the direction of travel of the web is less than the case illustrated in the embodiment of FIG. 4, and the balls of a subsequent row project into the ball gap or space of a previous row;
FIGS. 6 and 6a illustrate an arrangement of balls in which some balls are superimposed on other balls, it being understood that suitable support means are provided in a working embodiment;
FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate the utilization or pressure bodies in transverse rows disposed consecutively;
FIG. 9 illustrates, on an enlarged scale, the effect of a ball on a web;
FIG. 10 illustrates, in a cross sectional view, a portion of a treated web;
FIGS. 11-22 illustrate various embodiments of pole shoes on a magnet or their construction on the side thereof facing away from the counter support such as a roller;
FIGS. 23-25 illustrate the constructional detail of rollers which may be employed in practicing the present invention; and
FIGS. 26-28a illustrate the utilization of barrels, needles and pins in the structure of pressure bodies constructed in accordance with the present invention;
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to FIG. 1, a band W is guided about a roller 1 constructed of magnetizable material. Laterally above the roller 1 is arranged, preferably symmetrically to the vertical center plane, a plurality of electromagnets or permanent magnets 2, having a surface 3 facing the roller which is adapted to the curvature of the roller so that a uniform gap 4 is formed between the roller surface 5 and the magnets 2, whereby also a constant magnetic field is produced between the roller and the magnets, hereinafter simply magnet, 2. The magnet 2 may be adjusted radially of the roller 1, for example, by means of set screws 2a which engage on the four corners of the magnet.
Arranged in the gap 4 transversely to the direction of travel of the web (arrow 6) and lying on the web is a plurality of balls 7 disposed adjacent one another and offset in the direction of travel of the web, consecutively, as pressure bodies in transverse rows, whereby the pressure bodies consist of suitable magnetizable material and are drawn under the effect of the magnetic field between the roller 1 and the magnet 2 against the web W perpendicularly to the same independently of one another. As in the discussion below in connection with FIGS. 4-8, the transverse rows of balls 7 following one another in the direction of travel of the web W, are offset to one another, thus for example, the transverse row of balls II of the balls 7 is offset in the transverse direction of the web W by a determined amount. The same holds true for the rows III-IV and V of the balls 7, so that the last end of the intermediary space between the contact point of the balls 7 of the row I is completely covered by the contact point of the rows of balls II-V, and hereby the web W is subjected to pressure over its entire width by means of the balls 7 of the rows I-V.
In the foregoing, only five rows are illustrated for each side of the roller 1, but naturally a greater number of transverse rows of balls may be used, so that finally, for example, approximately 10 to 20 transverse rows of balls are provided, which balls are offset with respect to the balls of a preceding row, in such a manner that, as described above, the entire web is loaded with pressure over its width.
The balls 7 are held in their respective positions by means of a cage 8 in such a manner that the balls remain freely movable with respect to one another perpendicularly to the web W, that is radially of the roller 1. The cage 8 is held and disposed so that it holds the balls in their respective positions in the transverse longitudinal direction of the web; however, also the cage is constructed to be able to raise the balls 7 in their entirety from the web W, if necessary, to draw in a new web. To this end, the magnetic force of the magnet 2 may be removed and the cage 8 with the balls 7 may be moved in the direction of the magnet 2. The cage itself may be held in position on a mounting of the apparatus (not illustrated).
The strength or magnitude of the magnetic field may, for example, through alteration of the coil current of the electromagnet, or through alteration of the air gap 4, be arranged as desired, so that also the pressure of the balls against the web W may be varied.
The surface of the balls may be formed smooth, grooved, rough or in any other desired manner, depending upon the treatment to be performed on the web.
In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 2, the balls 7 are again held in a cage 8. Within the roller jacket 9 is arranged an electromagnet or a permanent magnet 2, through which the balls 7 are drawn against the web W. Also, the transverse row of balls of the embodiment of FIG. 2 are offset to one another in the transverse direction of the web W in such a manner that the balls 7 act over the entire surface of the web. The shifting in the transverse direction of the web may also, in this connection, be different or equally great from one transverse row of balls to the next.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, a planar support 10 is provided over which a conveyor belt 11 is cause to travel, which belt is disposed on guide rollers and/or on the support 10. The support 10 is constructed as a magnet, and the pressure bodies are also, in this case independently of one another, freely movable perpendicularly to the web W, as also the rows discussed above, i.e. the transverse rows of balls I, II, III, IV, V and VI are transversely offset with respect to one another, so that the entire web is pressure loaded. The above discussion in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2 is also applicable to the apparatus illustrated in FIG. 3, the only differences being between arcuate and planar orientation.
FIG. 4 specifically illustrates an arrangement of rows of balls I, II, III as an example of the shifting transversely of the web W. The balls 7a of the transverse row of balls II are offset with respect to one another compared with the balls 7b of the transverse row I by half the ball diameter D/2, while the balls 7c of the row III are transversely offset in respect of the balls 7a of the row II by a slightly less or greater amount than half the diameter, that is D/2 ± X. To a similar degree, the further transverse rows of balls imagined in the direction of travel (arrow 12) of the web W, are offset so that in the last analysis the entire surface of the web is pressure-loaded by means of the balls 7 of the transverse rows I, II, III . . . .
In FIG. 4 it is apparent that the balls 7 are freely movable with respect to each other in the direction of travel of the web W. If, for example, at the level of the balls 7a' in FIG. 4, an unevenness is present in a web of textile, then only the balls 7a' is raised, while the neighboring balls 7a of the same transverse row II exert their pressing function, as well as the others of the balls on the web. This is in clear contrast to a roller or longer roller, in which the adjacent area of a section encountering an unevenness can no longer take effect on the web.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, for spacesaving purpose, the balls of the transverse rows I and II project into the intermediary space 13 between two adjacent balls 7 of the preceding transverse row of balls. In this connection, the balls 7 of the row III are transversely offset by a small degree more or less than D/2 compared with the balls of the row II.
The embodiment according to FIG. 6, is to illustrate that it is also possible to utilize piles of balls, through which, if desired, a still higher pressure may be produced on the web W. The additional balls 14, 15 of the transverse rows VII and VIII are particularly utilizable with apparatus in which a magnet, as illustrated in FIG. 2 is present within the roller jacket. The same holds true, if according to FIG. 3, a planar magnet support is selected.
FIG. 6a further illustrates that the balls of the additional transverse rows of balls VII, VIII may lie at a greater lateral spacing (Row VII) or with less spacing (Row VIII) on the balls of the transverse rows of balls I, II, III lying thereunder.
The balls of the transverse rows I-III and VII-VIII, according to FIGS. 4 to 6a, may be held in their position by corresponding holding means, as for example by means of the cages illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.
Each possibility of arrangement of balls transversely to the longitudinal direction of travel of the web (looking upstream of the web) is illustrated in FIG. 7, whereby the balls of a first transverse row of balls I (center point M) are indicated at 50, while the balls 51 (center point N) form the second transverse row II, the balls 52 (center point O) are of the third transverse row III, the balls 53 (center point P) are of the fourth transverse row IV, etc. This arrangement corresponds to that illustrated in FIG. 4.
A modification is illustrated in FIG. 8, where the balls 60 (center point M) form the first row I, the balls 61 (center point N) the second row II, the balls 62 (center point O) belong to the third row III, and the balls 63 (center point P) are of the fourth row IV, etc. Here the balls of a row, in each case, are transversely offset by a constant amount with respect to the preceding transverse row.
In the foregoing, transverse rows of balls, barrels and needles are discussed; however, these rows may also extend at an angle to the transverse direction of the web, that is inclined to the longitudinal and transverse direction of the web.
FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate the effect of a ball and two adjacent balls arranged offset in the transverse row of balls. The lateral shifting of the two adjacent balls corresponds in this connection to that in FIGS. 4 and 7. In the illustration of FIG. 9, the web W travels out of the sheet; the plane of rotation 70 of the ball 7 lies in the direction of travel of the web W. The drawing notes circumferential or effective surfaces 71 disposed arcuately perpendicularly to this plane 70, the parts 72 of these surfaces producing the cup-shaped or cap-shaped indentation 73 in the web W, which because of the movement of the web introduces a groove of the width of the effective surface 71.
While the section of the ball 7 disposed at the level of the plane of rotation 70 rotates with the circumferential speed V R corresponding to the speed of the web, the sections 75 adjacent to the side limits 74 of the effective surface 71 have a lower circumferential speed, so that from the plane of rotation 70 of the ball 7 to both sides up to the limits 74 of the effective surface 71, an increasing, slight luster effect of the indentation 73 or the longitudinal groove, respectively, results.
FIG. 10 illustrates, in partial cross-section of the web W in the direction of travel, two transverse rows of balls, whereby, as set forth above, the lateral shifting of the second transverse row of balls is as great as half the ball diameter. Through the ball of the first transverse row of balls, the longitudinal groove 80 is plotted which is limited by the longitudinal ribs 84, 85, which again are compressed during formation of further, always smaller grooves and lower ribs. Finally, the remaining ribs have, according to the last transverse row of balls, a height of the order of size of a material particle, or less.
As is to be inferred from the foregoing, the apparatus requires no expensive calender stand or support having expensive roller bearings and means for applying pressure to the necks of the rollers. These structures require no non-sensitive roller coatings or coverings, no adjustment and grinding or polishing of the rollers. The pressure bodies may be balls, barrels, rings or rollers made of steel, as widely available in the market, with a diameter of preferably 5 to 50 mm.
Cages between the pressure bodies may be eliminated if the magnetic field, with corresponding construction, holds the pressure bodies in their respective positions. If need be, only lateral limits of the pressure body field need be utilized, while the maintenance of the spacing of the pressure bodies with respect to one another is ensured by means of the mutual repulsion of the magnetized pressure bodies.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 11, right hand portion, a pole shoe 91 is connected with the magnet 92, while in the left hand portion of FIG. 11, the pole shoe 91a is arranged radially adjustably on the magnet 92a, for which purpose the pole shoe 91a overlaps with symmetrically arranged parts 93 (on the left and right sides of the pole shoe) a projecting attachment 94 of the magnet 92a. The radial adjustability of the pole shoe with respect to the roller 95 has the advantage of being able to widen the permissible finishing tolerances of the apparatus, and to prevent that the web clamps tight upon tearing off between the pressure bodies 96 and the roller 95. Rib-like axially disposed projections 97 may be connected with one another at spacings which correspond approximately to the length or diameter, respectively, of the pressure bodies 96, by means of tangential ribs 98. Viewed against the under side of the pole shoe, there results with the embodiment according to the left-hand portion of FIG. 11, a field of depressions 99 which have rectangular or approximately rectangular shape, and which are limited by the axial projections 97 and the tangential ribs 98.
In the right-hand portion of FIG. 12, the pole shoe 91b is provided with an axial bearing 100, having an axis 101 which is provided with wheels 102 for traveling on the web W. The pole shoe 91b is hereby adjustable in the direction of travel (arrow F) of the web W, that is tangentially. A projection 103 of the magnet 92b may serve as an attachment. Also here, the pole shoe 91b carries axial rib-like projections 104 for the pressure bodies 105.
In the embodiment according to FIG. 12, left-hand portion, the pole shoe 91c is provided with guide rollers 106 which are carried and guided on a strip 107 of the magnet 92c in the axial direction, that is transversely of the direction of travel of the web W. As the pole shoe 91c is guided on both sides of the magnet, it may experience an oscillating movement transversely to the movement of the web W, that is in the axial direction of the roller 108, whereby a changing effect may easily be exerted on the web.
As to the radial and axial movement, there may additionally take place a radial adjustment of the pole shoe, as in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 11 (left hand portion).
In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, the pole shoe 91d has pin-like projections 109, between whose round, rectangular or quadratic front sides 110 and the magnetizable roller 108, the pressure bodies 105 are arranged. The pins are preferably limited by tangential grooves 111 (FIG. 14) as well as by axial grooves 112. In the embodiment of FIGS. 13 and 14, the magnetic induction is decreased in the axial and tangential fields limiting the pressure bodies 105, whereby a guidance of the pressure bodies in a low friction manner is attainable. The grooves diminish, in appreciable measure, the stray flux, that is the portion of the magnetic flux which without penetrating the pressure bodies 105 reaches directly from the pole shoe 91d to the roller 108. The pressure bodies 105 are held in place in both the direction of travel of the web W and transversely of the web (in the axial direction) without a requirement of additional means for holding the bodies, for example, by means of cages or the like.
In FIGS. 15-20, for the sake of simplicity, instead of a roller of magnetizable material, there is selected as a counter-bearing structure, a planar support made of the same material as would be used as a roller.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15, the pole shoe 113 held on a magnet over the support 114 is provided with recesses 115 in the axial direction (transverse to the web W) which recesses are limited in the direction of web travel (arrow P), that is in the tangential direction, and oppositely thereto, by the walls 116, 117. In the radial direction, the recesses 115 are limited by the walls 118. The spacing of the walls 116, 117 of a recess 115 from one another, that is the interior tangential width of the recess is slightly greater than the diameter of the pressure bodies 119 received by the recesses 115, that is the barrels, balls, rollers or the like, and extend only over a portion of the width of the web and in rows axially offset with respect to one another.
The construction of the recesses 115 in reference to the pressure bodies is selected in such a manner that the spacing t between the walls 116 and 117 and the adjacent sections 120, 121 of the pressure body 119, is less than the spacing of the particular section 122 of the pressure body from the upper, that is the limiting wall, wall 118 facing away from the support 114.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16, the walls 116a, 117a of the recess 115a of the pole shoe 113a concentrically surround the pressure body 119a, that is on its section facing away from the support 114a into an enlargement 123, whose wall 124 surrounds the pressure body 119a, again concentrically.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 17, the walls 116b, 117b of the recess 115b of the pole shoe 113b extend in a wedge-shaped manner such that a tapering or constriction of the recess 115b in the direction toward the web W and the magnetizable support is illustrated. Above the pressure body, that is facing away from the support, the recess 115b is likewise widened, while the lower section, that is the section of the recess 115b facing the support 114b is formed into a uniform intermediary space or chamber 125.
In the embodiment according to FIGS. 15-17, it is apparent that the sections 126 to 126b of the pole shoe 113 to 113b forming the recesses 115 to 115b extend at their front sides 127 to 127b close to the web W, whereby the front sides extend either as in FIG. 15 parallel to the support 114, or, however, form a wedge-shaped intermediary space or chamber 128a, 128b, as in FIGS. 16 and 17.
In order to take into account the friction and fulling force of the web, the recesses or the sections of the pole shoe forming the recesses, respectively, may be constructed differently. Thus, for example, in the embodiment according to FIG. 18, left hand portion, the section 126c of the pole shoe 113c may be constructed asymmetrically in such a manner that the wall 117c extends a greater distance from the web, and therewith from the magnetizable support 114c, than the wall 116c, when the web is moved in the direction of the arrow P in FIG. 18.
The same object is served by the embodiment of the sections 126d of the pole shoe 113d illustrated in FIG. 18, right hand portion. Here, the wall 116d of the recess 115d is provided with a coating 129 of non-magnetizable material, and the wall 117d carries, with respect to the same, a greater or larger and thicker coating 130 than the coating 129. As is to be seen, the larger or stronger coating 130 is applied to the wall 117d of the recess 115d, which viewed in the direction of travel of the web W (arrow P), is laid in front of the pressure body 119d.
In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 19, the pole shoe 113e is constructed as an H-shaped member, and is slidable on the magnet M in the direction of the double headed arrow D. Also here, the spacing t are less than the spacing s between the pressure body 119e and the upper wall 118e of the pole shoe. In this embodiment, the magnet may be provided with axial grooves 130 on the side of the magnet M on which the pole shoes 113e are slidable, and which are adjacent to the support 114e. The pressure bodies 119e are in the position to move the slidable pole shoes 113e into a position on the magnet M, in which the pole shoes, under the influence of the field lines issuing from the sections 126e, as well as the friction and the fulling work, assume the central position illustrated in the left-hand pressure body in FIG. 19.
The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 20 is particularly suitable where different speeds of the webs as well as conditions in qualities of webs occur. For this purpose, the sections 126f which limit the recesses 115f tangentially are pivotal in that they are pivotally mounted by suitable springs 131 in the direction of movement of the web (arrow L) or opposite thereto, respectively. If a pressure body, as shown in FIG. 20 at the right hand pressure body, encounters the corresponding section 126f, the latter may swing out and through the magnetic field alteration, as well as through the preferably resilient arrangement, the section 126f may exert a return force on the pressure body in such a manner that the pressure body again reaches its central position, or approximately its central position, between the two sections 126f, as illustrated in the left hand portion of FIG. 20.
In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 21, the pole shoe 113g has sections 126g which carry walls 116g, 117g and 118g. Further, the construction as illustrated in FIGS. 15 to 20 may be selected. FIG. 22 permits noting that the pole shoes are offset with respect to one another with their sections 126g transversely to the direction of travel of the web (arrow G), that a strip like treatment of the web takes place and upon utilization of a pressure body field, the web W is treated over its entire width by means of the pressure bodies.
The cylindrical pressure bodies 140 according to FIG. 23 may consist of a permanent magnet 141, whose North-South pole axis 142 coincides with the longitudinal axis of the pressure body, of a bushing 143 made of non-magnetizable material, and end pieces 144 constructed of magnetizable material.
The pressure body illustrated in FIG. 24 has an annularly-shaped permanent magnet 141a, which again is closed by a bushing 143a made of non-magnetizable material and is limited by end pieces 144a made of magnetizable material.
FIG. 25 illustrates a pressure body constructed of two end-sided ring magnets 145, 146, a non-magnetizable center portion 147, and an axial portion 148 constructed of magnetizable material.
In FIGS. 26 and 26a, the pressure bodies 160 are developed as barrels whose front sides 161 contact slightly or not at all. Through the center longitudinal bores 162, for each row of barrels X, XI, XII a rod 163 is guided transversely to the web, the rod having a smaller diameter than the bore 162 of the barrels, so that the barrels may move freely perpendicularly to the web; however, the rod 163 holds the barrels in position. In a narrower construction of the barrels 160, the latter form rings having a similar constructional arrangement.
In FIGS. 27 and 27a, standing needles 164 having round cross sections are provided. The needles 164 have lower ends 165 which are arcuate and which carry a longitudinal slot 166 through which one of the rods 167, corresponding to the rods 163 of the embodiment of FIGS. 26 and 26a, is guided. The rods 167 hold the needles in position; the rods, together with the slots 166 make possible a free movement toward and away from the web W.
In FIGS. 28 and 28a pins 170, of polygonal cross section, have feet 171 and are held mutually in position to engage the upper surface of the web W.
Although I have described my invention by reference to particular illustrative embodiments thereof, many changes and modifications thereof may become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. I therefore intend to include within the patent warranted hereon all such changes and modifications as may reasonably and properly be included within the scope of my contribution to the art.
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Webs of paper, textile, synthetic material, metal or the like are subjected to a continuous treatment through the application of pressure produced by magnetic forces exerted via pressure bodies perpendicularly to the web. The web is guided over a straight or arcuate supporting surface and the pressure bodies extend over the width of the web. The pressure bodies are constituted by a plurality of freely movable balls, rings, rollers or pins having less diameter, or length, respectively, than the width of the band and are held adjacent one another essentially in the transverse direction of the band. The plurality of balls, rings, rollers or pins are held in a stacked offset relationship transversely and/or in the direction of web travel in such a manner that the web is subjected to pressure by the pressure bodies over its entire width. The pressure bodies may be held in position by means of cages, strips, struts, rods or the like, or may be positioned and maintained by the magnetic field. In a plurality of embodiments of the invention, the mounting of the pressure bodies is achieved through the utilization of a pole shoe which, advantageously, may be adjustable toward and away from and/or transversely of the web.
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RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/655,317, filed Jun. 4, 2012, and entitled, “OUTDOOR HEAT EXCHANGER COIL”, which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] The present invention is generally directed to a heat exchanger coil system for a heat exchanger in a HVAC system. Specifically, the present invention is directed to a heat exchanger coil system for facilitating the exchange of heat between a refrigerant stream and an outdoor air stream.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0003] A conventional HVAC system generally comprises a compressor, an expansion valve and at least two heat exchangers. A refrigerant is sent from the compressor through the first heat exchanger to the expansion valve and sent back to the compressor after passing through the second heat exchanger. One of the heat exchangers is typically positioned to exchange heat with an interior air stream, while the other heat exchanger is positioned to exchange heat with an outdoor air stream. Depending on whether the HVAC system is functioning as a cooling system or a heating system, the exterior heat exchanger can function as either a condenser or an evaporator while the interior heat exchanger operates in the opposite capacity.
[0004] The efficiency of the heat exchangers is typically gauged by determining the “temperature approach” of the heat exchanger. The temperature approach is the difference between the inlet temperature of one stream and the outlet temperature of the second stream and is commonly used as an efficiency measurement of the heat exchanger. An efficient heat exchanger has a low temperature approach while an inefficient heat exchanger has a high temperature approach. In a HVAC system, a low temperature approach occurs when the refrigerant output temperature from the heat exchanger is nearly identical to the temperature of the air stream entering the heat exchanger.
[0005] A typical heat exchanger configuration for HVAC systems is a “fin and tube” configuration in which the refrigerant is fed through an elongated tube and the air stream is passed across the tube to cool or heat the refrigerant. The arrangement is effective at providing maximum contact between the refrigerant and the air stream. A challenge for exterior heat exchangers is that adverse weather conditions, such as extremely low temperatures, can cause frost to form on pipes, rob heat from the refrigerant instead of supplying heat and otherwise reduce the efficiency of the heat exchanger and HVAC system as a whole. As such, HVAC systems having exterior fin and tube heat exchangers installed in less temperate climates are often less efficient when the exterior weather conditions as less than ideal.
[0006] A common feature of fin and tube heat exchangers used in HVAC systems is having a plurality of individual tube coils instead of a single elongated tube coil. The refrigerant input is typically split evenly by a distributor into amongst the coils. The refrigerant must be evenly distributed and constantly supplied to each coil to maximize the heat transfer and efficiency of the heat exchanger. However, in cooler temperatures, evenly distributing the refrigerant between the different coils is often difficult as the increased viscosity of the refrigerant and other factors cause the refrigerant to be unevenly distributed through the heat exchanger.
[0007] The reduced efficiency of exterior heat exchangers in less temperate climates reduces the overall efficiency of HVAC systems installed in those climates. As energy efficiency is a primary concern with HVAC systems, the increased energy required by the HVAC system to overcome the inefficiencies caused by poor performance of the exterior heat exchanger is a significant concern. As such a need exists to improve the efficiency of exterior shell and tube heat exchangers in less temperate climates.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0008] The present invention is directed to a coil system for an outdoor heat exchanger in a HVAC system. The coil system comprises an integrated subcooler coil section positioned between the primary coil section and the expansion valve. A distributor can be positioned between the primary coil section and the subcooler coil section to combine the individual refrigerant streams from the coils of the primary coil section into a single refrigerant stream before separating the stream among the different coils of the subcooler section. The subcooler coil section can be positioned such that the incoming air stream is directed directly at the subcooler coil section to maximize the difference in temperature between the air stream and the refrigerant within the subcooler section.
[0009] In a cooling mode where the coil system acts a condenser, the condensed liquid refrigerant is drawn from the primary coil section as the refrigerant condenses and is fed into the subcooler. Continually removing the condensed liquid refrigerant improves the efficiency of the heat exchanger and overall HVAC system by dropping the condensing temperature in the primary section and lowering the amount of energy required by the compressor supplying the high pressure, gaseous refrigerant to the coil system. Similarly, positioning the subcooler such that the incoming air stream is directed at the subcooler maximizes the temperature difference between the air stream and the refrigerant stream, which facilitates further lowering of the refrigerant stream temperature to nearly the temperature of the incoming air stream. The lower refrigerant temperature leaving the coil system boosts the evaporative capacity of the refrigerant stream thereby improving the efficiency of the evaporator and the overall HVAC system.
[0010] In a heating mode where the coil system acts an evaporator, the subcooler section is operated at an intermediate pressure and an intermediate temperature between the evaporator temperature and the condenser temperature. The operating conditions allow the subcooler section to still draw heat from the air stream. The smaller temperature difference between the subcooler and the air stream can also prevent the subcooler coils from frosting too quickly. This feature is particularly advantageous in wet and cold weather conditions.
[0011] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the coil system can further comprise at least one Venturi distributer for distributing the fluid among coils of the primary section. Each Venturi distributer is oriented in a vertical-up or vertical-down orientation rather than at a non-vertical angle. Surprisingly, orienting the Venturi distributer in a vertical orientation avoids disruptions in the flow of refrigerant to and from the various coils of the primary coil section that can occur when the Venturi distributor is oriented in a non-vertical orientation. Similarly, orienting the Venturi distributer in a vertical orientation prevents uneven distribution of the refrigerant amongst the coils that can occur when the Venturi distributer is oriented in a non-vertical orientation.
[0012] A method for exchanging heat between a liquid refrigerant and an outdoor air stream, according to the present invention, can comprise supplying a refrigerant stream to an outdoor heat exchanger having a primary coil section and subcooler coil section, each having a plurality of coils. The method can further comprise dividing the high temperature stream into a plurality of sub-streams that are each fed into a primary coil of the primary coil section. An outdoor air stream is passed across each of the primary coil sections to exchange a first quantity of heat with the subdivided refrigerant stream. The plurality of sub-streams can then recombined into a single refrigerant before being redistributed among the plurality of subcooler coils of the subcooler coil section. The outdoor air stream is passed across each of the subcooler coil sections to exchange a second quantity of heat with the subdivided refrigerant stream. The subdivided refrigerant stream is than recombined into a single refrigerant stream.
[0013] The above summary of the various representative embodiments of the invention are not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the invention. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art can appreciate and understand the principles and practices of the invention. The figures in the detailed description that follow more particularly exemplify these for embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] FIG. 1 is a representative process flow diagram of a prior art HVAC system.
[0015] FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of a heat exchanger coil according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] FIG. 3 is a partial schematic side view of a heat exchanger coil of FIG. 1 .
[0017] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a heat exchanger coil according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 5 is a side face view of a heat exchanger utilizing a heat exchanger coil according to a representative embodiment of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 6 is a partially hidden side face view of the heat exchanger of FIG. 5 having exterior fins removed.
[0020] FIG. 7 is a partial, perspective side view of the heat exchanger of FIG. 5 .
[0021] FIG. 8 is a partially hidden side view of the heat exchanger of FIG. 5 having distributor assemblies and piping removed.
[0022] FIG. 9 is a side view of the heat exchanger of FIG. 5
[0023] While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] As shown in FIG. 1 , a HVAC system 2 for use with the present invention generally comprises a compressor 4 , a first heat exchanger 6 , an expansion valve 8 and a second heat exchanger 10 . A refrigerant stream is fed through the compressor 4 to the first heat exchanger 6 , where a first air stream is passed across the refrigerant stream to exchange a first quantity of heat with the refrigerant stream. The refrigerant stream is then fed through the expansion valve 8 and into the second heat exchanger 10 where a second air stream is passed across the refrigerant stream to exchange a second quantity of heat with the refrigerant stream. In a cooling mode for cooling the interior of the building, the first air stream is typically an outdoor air stream used to cool the refrigerant stream, while the second air stream is an indoor air stream cooled by the refrigerant stream. In a heating mode, the outdoor air stream is effectively the second air stream that supplies heat to refrigerant stream, while the indoor air stream is effectively the first air stream drawing heat from the refrigerant stream. For the purposes of this disclosure, an outdoor air stream is an air stream originating from and supplied back to the exterior of the building while an indoor air stream is an air stream from and supplied back to the interior of the building.
[0025] As shown in FIG. 2-4 , a heat exchanger 20 for exchanging a quantity of heat with an outdoor air stream, according to an embodiment of the present invention, “in cooling mode,” comprises an inlet 22 , an outlet 25 , a primary coil section 24 having a plurality of primary coils 26 and a subcooler coil section 28 having a plurality of subcooler coils 30 . The heat exchanger 20 further comprises a first header assembly 32 positioned between the inlet 22 and the primary coil section 24 , a second distributor assembly 34 positioned between the primary coil section 24 and the subcooler coil section 28 ; a third distributor assembly 36 positioned between the subcooler coil section 28 and the outlet 25 .
[0026] As shown in FIGS. 2-3 , according to an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of primary coils 26 can be subdivided into a top section 38 and a bottom section 40 . The bottom section 40 can be positioned relative to the subcooler coil section 28 such that an air stream fed through the heat exchanger 20 will pass across the subcooler coils 30 before intersecting the primary coils 26 of the bottom section 40 . In sizing the subcooler coil section 28 , the mode of operation of heat exchanger 20 will determine the relative size of the subcooler coil section 28 relative to the primary coils section 24 . For example, in a cooling mode, subcooler coil section 28 is sized based upon pressure drop and flow rate with the desired goal of having as close an approach temperature as possible relative to the refrigerant stream and outdoor air stream. Generally, an approach temperature of at least 5° F. is desired, more preferably about 3-4° F. and even more preferably, about 2.5° F. In a heating mode, physical size of the subcooler coil section 28 can be a design factor based upon potential condensation on the exterior of the subcooler coils 30 . According to one representative embodiment of the present invention, the primary coil section 24 can comprise twenty three parallel primary coils 26 with eleven primary coils 26 in the top section 38 and twelve primary coils 26 in the bottom section 40 . In this configuration, the primary coils 26 of the top section 38 comprise 4-row coils while the primary coils 26 of the bottom section 40 comprise 3-row coils. According to one representative embodiment of the present invention, four subcooler coils 30 can make up the subcooler section 28 .
[0027] In cooling operation, a refrigerant stream is fed into the inlet 22 and divided into a plurality of sub-streams by the first header assembly 32 . Each refrigerant sub-stream is fed into one of the primary coils 26 and an outdoor air stream is passed across the primary coils 26 . In a cooling configuration, the refrigerant stream is supplied from the compressor 4 as a high pressure, high temperature gaseous stream that is cooled by the outdoor air stream. As the outdoor air stream intersects the primary coils 26 a portion of each refrigerant sub-stream condenses and exits the primary coils 26 into the second distributor assembly 34 where the sub-streams are recombined into a single refrigerant stream. In a heating configuration, the refrigerant stream is supplied from the expansion valve 8 as a cooled refrigerant stream that is heated by the outdoor air stream. The heated refrigerant sub-streams are similarly recovered in the second distributor assembly 34 . In either operating mode, the recombined refrigerant stream is then separated again amongst the subcooler coils 30 for additional heat transfer. The outdoor air stream is passed across the subcooler coils 30 to either further cool the condensed refrigerant or supply additional heat in a heating configuration. In cooling, the subdivided refrigerant stream exiting the subcooler 28 is recombined into a single refrigerant stream in the third distributor assembly 36 before exiting the heat exchanger 20 through the outlet 25 .
[0028] According to an embodiment of the present invention, at least one of the distributor assemblies 32 , 34 , 36 can comprise at least one Venturi distributer 42 . In this configuration, the Venturi distributer 42 is oriented in a vertical orientation to avoid uneven distribution of the refrigerant stream that occurs when the Venturi distributer 42 is oriented in a non-vertical orientation.
[0029] Referring specifically to FIGS. 5-9 , a heat exchanger 50 according to the present invention can comprise a frame 52 to which individual fins 53 and heat exchanger coil 54 is mounted. As seen in FIG. 5 , fins 52 can be so closely spaced so as to provide a face side 56 with a substantially solid looking appearance. With fins 52 removed, heat exchanger coil 54 is readily visible including subcooler coil section 28 and top section 38 .
[0030] While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail. It is understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
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A coil system for an outdoor heat exchanger in a HVAC system. The coil system comprises an integrated subcooler coil section positioned between the primary coil section and the expansion valve. A distributor combines the individual refrigerant streams from the coils of the primary coil section into a single refrigerant stream before separating the stream among the different coils of the subcooler section. The subcooler coil section is positioned such that the incoming air stream is directed directly at the subcooler coil section to maximize the difference in temperature between the air stream and the refrigerant within the subcooler section.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This Application claims the priority of Provisional Application Serial No. 60/433,334, filed Dec. 13, 2002.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] This invention relates to reusable pipe fitting plugs for temporarily sealing an open hub of a non-threaded female pipe fitting.
[0004] 2. Art Relating to the Invention
[0005] Reusable pipe fitting plugs provide an inexpensive means to control the unwanted release of fluids or air from an open pipe connection. Reusable pipe fitting plugs can also be used to isolate various sections of a pipe system during construction or maintenance.
[0006] Conventional reusable pipe fitting plugs are designed with an expandable rubber sealing means that is capable of forming a watertight seal between the pipe fitting plug and the inner surface of the pipe fitting hub.
[0007] In a typical design, the pipe fitting plug is shaped as a cylinder with a diameter of slightly less than the diameter of the pipe fitting hub that is desired to be plugged. The pipe fitting plug therefore covers the majority of the diameter of the inside of the pipe fitting hub. The expandable rubber sealing means is provided along the circumference of the pipe fitting plug and is capable of filling the gap between the outside of the pipe fitting plug and the inside of the pipe fitting hub. Fluid flow is restricted upon the plugging of the gap with the rubber sealing means.
[0008] Conventional pipe fitting plugs have a rubber sealing element located within a recess of the cylinder. A tightening means is designed to exert a force through the body of the pipe fitting plug so as to decrease the recess and expand the rubber sealing element. The rubber sealing element expands under the pressure exerted by the tightening means to form a watertight seal between the pipe fitting plug and the pipe fitting hub.
[0009] One of the drawbacks of conventional pipe fitting plugs is that they can only withstand a limited fluid pressure. When the fluid pressure against the pipe fitting plug passes a threshold value, the rubber sealing element can no longer hold the pipe fitting plug in place and the pipe fitting plug is forced out of the pipe fitting hub. This is known as plug blow out, and results in uncontrolled flooding and damage.
[0010] Further, debris, dirt and solvent may be deposited within the inner surface of the pipe fitting hub causing slippage between the rubber sealing element and the pipe fitting hub resulting in further undesired consequences.
[0011] It is therefore desirable to obtain a reusable pipe fitting plug that is capable of withstanding increased fluid pressures and soiled surfaces without becoming disengaged from the pipe fitting hub and causing flooding.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] The present invention provides a reusable pipe fitting plug for temporarily sealing the open fitting connections of a plumbing system during construction or maintenance which can withstand increased fluid pressure and avoid plug blow out.
[0013] The present invention provides maximum seal and hold out strength by the use of a pipe fitting plug having a dedicated seal and a dedicated retaining means.
[0014] The seal is a conventional, expandable rubber ring or inflatable bladder which provides a watertight seal between the pipe fitting plug and the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub.
[0015] The retaining means is also expandable and provides a means to anchor the pipe fitting plug into the pipe fitting hub. The retaining means enables the pipe fitting plug to withstand increased fluid pressure without failure. The retaining means further prevents slippage caused by debris, dirt and solvent buildup on the inside of the pipe fitting hub.
[0016] Broadly, the present invention is a pipe fitting plug comprising:
[0017] a body which is watertight;
[0018] an expandable sealing means surrounding said body for forming a watertight seal between said body and an interior surface of a pipe fitting hub;
[0019] an expandable retaining means for engaging said interior surface of said pipe fitting hub and retaining said plug in said pipe fitting hub; and
[0020] one or more adjusting means for causing said sealing means and said retaining means to engage and disengage said interior surface of said pipe fitting hub.
[0021] Preferably, the sealing means is an expandable rubber ring which expands to form a watertight seal between the body and the interior surface of the pipe fitting hub. The sealing means can alternatively be in the form of an expandable rubber bladder that inflates to form a watertight seal. The sealing means forms a watertight seal with the pipe fitting hub to prevent fluid from moving through or around the plug because the body itself is solid, i.e., watertight/fluidtight and the seal is watertight/fluidtight thereby blocking the whole interior area of the pipe fitting hub.
[0022] Preferably, the retaining means has a one or more piercing edges or projecting teeth which are movable to engage the interior surface of the pipe fitting and retain the plug in the pipe fitting hub. Alternatively, the retaining means can have one or more expandable pins which are movable to engage the interior surface of the pipe fitting hub and retain the plug in the pipe fitting hub. The retaining means can further have a plurality of grit type particles which serve to retain the plug in the pipe fitting hub. The retaining means provides the increased strength to the plug to allow the plug to withstand increased fluid pressure.
[0023] The retaining means and the sealing means are both movable so as to engage and disengage the interior surface of the pipe fitting hub. This allows the plug to be inserted into the pipe fitting hub, to seal and be retained in the pipe fitting hub, and to be removed from the pipe fitting hub.
[0024] Preferably, there is a single adjusting means which operates on both the retaining means and the sealing means such that both the retaining means and the sealing means expand and retract simultaneously. However, the retaining means and the sealing means can each have their own adjusting means.
[0025] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the adjusting means is composed of an end piece affixed to one end of the body, a housing that slides on the other end of the body, and a controlling force means that extends from the body through the housing, preferably along the axis of the housing. The controlling force means can be a carriage bolt with a threaded fastener or the like. The threaded fastener compresses the housing and the end piece and causes the sealing means and the retaining means to expand and contract.
[0026] According to another embodiment of the present invention, the adjusting means is composed of an inner chamber within the body, an air valve in communication with the inner chamber and one or more air ports in communication with the sealing means and the inner chamber. The air valve increases the air pressure within the inner chamber and the sealing means through the air ports causing the sealing means and the retaining means to expand.
[0027] Preferably, the retaining means and the sealing means are located within a recess of the body of the pipe fitting plug. The recess is created between an end piece of the body and a housing which surrounds the body of the pipe fitting plug. The end piece is fixed to the body while the housing moves on the body of the plug. As a result, the adjusting means can cause the housing to move along the body to or from the end piece in order to expand or contract the recess.
[0028] In one embodiment of the present invention, the adjusting means applies a corresponding force to the retaining means and the sealing means as the recess contracts. As a result, the retaining means and the sealing means are compressed and compelled to outwardly expand.
[0029] In another embodiment of the present invention, the retaining means is further composed of a tapered cone surrounding the controlling force means of the adjusting means. As the housing and the end piece contract, the expandable pins slide along the outer surface of the tapered cone causing the expandable pins to outwardly expand.
[0030] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the sealing means is composed of an inflatable rubber bladder. The retaining means is composed of a plurality of grit type particles. The grit type particles of the retaining means are located within a recess of the sealing means. As the air valve pressurizes the inner chamber of the body, the rubber bladder is forced to inflate and expand outward.
[0031] This outward expansion causes the piercing edges, the expandable pins or the grit type particles of the retaining means to engage with the inside surface of the pipe fitting hub and also causes the sealing means to conform to the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub to provide a fluidtight seal.
[0032] The present invention is primarily designed for use in plumbing systems constructed of non-threaded pipes and fittings such as ABS, PVC, polypropylene and the like. In addition, the present invention can be modified to plug a pipe itself, rather than a pipe fitting hub. The plug must be therefore sized accordingly in order to fit the dimensions of the pipe.
[0033] The present invention is also designed to fit conventional sized piping, namely 1.5, 2, 3, and 4 inch piping, however, any size of piping can be plugged by the present invention.
[0034] Suitably, the housing can extend in an axial direction outward from the body such that the overall shape of the plug is cylindrical and allow the plug to be inserted a depth into the pipe or pipe fitting hub and to extend a distance out from the end of the pipe or pipe fitting hub.
[0035] These and other aspects of the present invention may be more fully understood by reference to the following drawings and description which are intended for illustrative purposes only.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0036] [0036]FIG. 1 is a sectional view of one of the embodiments of the pipe fitting plug of the present invention;
[0037] [0037]FIGS. 2 a - 2 c are an installed view of a pipe fitting plug according to one of the embodiments of the present invention;
[0038] [0038]FIG. 3 a is a pre-installation view of one of the embodiments of the present invention;
[0039] [0039]FIG. 3 b is an installed view of a pipe fitting plug according to one of the embodiments of the present invention; and
[0040] [0040]FIGS. 4 a - 4 b illustrate a top view and a side view, respectively, of the movable piercing edges of the retaining means according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0041] [0041]FIG. 5 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the present invention;
[0042] [0042]FIG. 6 illustrates a sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention;
[0043] [0043]FIG. 7 illustrates a sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention; and
[0044] [0044]FIG. 8 illustrates a top view of the grit type particles of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0045] [0045]FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0046] As shown in FIG. 1, pipe fitting plug 7 is composed of body 15 , end piece 2 and cylindrical housing 8 . End piece 2 is affixed around the outer circumference of body 15 so that the majority of body 15 can be encompassed by housing 8 . Such an arrangement enables housing 8 to horizontally slide along a surface of body 15 and abut end piece 2 .
[0047] Housing 8 is guided by controlling force means 11 as housing 8 moves along a surface of body 15 . Controlling force means 11 protrudes through the center of body 15 , end piece 2 and housing 8 and provides a means by which housing 8 and end piece 2 can be tightened together using hex nut 10 . Rubber washer 1 provides a leak-proof seal around the head of controlling force means 11 as controlling force means 11 passes through end piece 2 . Controlling force means 11 can be any threaded fastener or a carriage bolt as illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0048] [0048]FIG. 1 illustrates the positioning of recess 14 in which the sealing means and retaining means are preferably located. The sealing means and retaining means are preferably sized so as to be substantially the same size as recess 14 .
[0049] The retaining means is comprised of front and rear push rings 4 a and 4 b, retaining ring 5 and O-ring 6 .
[0050] Front push ring 4 a and rear push ring 4 b have inner angled surfaces designed to mate with an angled surface of retaining ring 5 . These angled surfaces work in conjunction to cause retaining means 5 to protrude towards and anchor into the inside wall of a pipe fitting hub that is desired to be plugged.
[0051] [0051]FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a preferred arrangement of retaining ring 5 , front push ring 4 a and rear push ring 4 b . The angled surfaces of front push ring 4 a and rear push ring 4 b serve to wedge beneath or to pinch under retaining ring 5 in order to cause retaining ring 5 to travel away from the center axis of pipe fitting plug 7 and toward pipe fitting hub 12 , see FIG. 2 a. However, it should be understood that any particular arrangement of front push ring 4 a , rear push ring 4 b and retaining ring 5 can be utilized in order to achieve the object of the present invention.
[0052] The sealing means comprises end piece 2 , rubber sealing element 3 and ring 4 a . When end piece 2 and ring 4 a compress element 3 , element 3 expands to provide a watertight seal between pipe fitting plug 7 and the inside of the pipe fitting hub. Preferably, sealing element 3 is composed of a rubber material capable of expansion upon the exercise of a squeezing force in the direction of the axis of the pipe fitting plug. Rubber sealing element 3 is also preferably formed of a material capable of conforming to the inner wall of a pipe fitting hub 12 .
[0053] [0053]FIGS. 2 a, 2 c and 3 a illustrate the operation the pipe fitting plug according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0054] Pipe fitting plug 7 is first inserted into pipe fitting hub 12 at a point of pipe fitting hub 12 that is intended to be plugged.
[0055] Once the pipe fitting plug is in position, a user manually tightens hex nut 10 mounted around controlling force means 11 , while nylon washer 9 serves as a bearing surface for hex nut 10 . This tightening movement causes a force to be exerted upon housing 8 , and housing 8 correspondingly moves along body 15 toward end piece 2 . The recess 14 between housing 8 and end piece 2 therefore decreases, because end piece 2 remains in a fixed position relative to the movement of housing 8 .
[0056] As recess 14 contracts and decreases in width, sealing element 3 , front push ring 4 a , rear push ring 4 b , retaining ring 5 and O-ring 6 are compressed together.
[0057] As shown in FIG. 2 c, the angled surfaces of front push ring 4 a and rear push ring 4 b wedge beneath retaining ring 5 and cause retaining ring 5 to be outwardly extend toward the inner surface of pipe fitting hub 12 . O-ring 6 is provided within retaining ring 5 in order to ensure that retaining ring 5 does not collapse as retaining ring 5 is compressed and allows for expansion of piercing edges of retaining ring 5 to retract from engaged with inside of pipe fitting hub 12 .
[0058] As retaining ring 5 outwardly expands, serrated piercing edges located on the upper surface of retaining ring 5 pierce into pipe fitting hub 12 . Once the piercing edges are firmly engaged into pipe fitting hub 12 , pipe fitting plug 7 is capable of withstanding increased fluid pressures without failure. FIGS. 4 a - 4 b illustrate the configuration of the serrated piercing edges of the retaining means.
[0059] Further, sealing element 3 is also caused to expand due to the force applied from front push ring 4 a and end piece 2 . As depicted in FIG. 2 c, a portion of sealing element 3 protrudes and conforms to the inner surface of pipe fitting hub 12 in order to form a fluidtight seal.
[0060] Preferably, retaining ring 5 of the present invention is designed in a “V” shape with serrated or jagged outer edges as shown in FIGS. 4 a and 4 b . This “V” shape allows for a sliding along the angled edges of the front and rear push rings as the front and rear push rings are contracted. However, it should be understood that any particular shape of the retaining ring, front push ring and rear push ring can be utilized so as to achieve the object of the present invention.
[0061] In order to disengage pipe fitting plug 7 from pipe fitting hub 12 , nut 10 is unscrewed thereby releasing pressure from both sealing element 3 and retaining ring 5 . Sealing element 3 disengages the inside of the pipe fitting hub and returns to its original shape. Retaining ring 5 disengages the inside of the pipe fitting hub and returns to its original shape because of O-ring 6 .
[0062] The pipe fitting plug according to the present invention is also capable of extending to reach and plug a portion of a pipe fitting hub that could not ordinarily be reached through conventional means. Housing 8 and controlling force means 11 can be indefinitely extended in order to easily plug a section of a pipe fitting hub from a distance as shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b.
[0063] [0063]FIG. 5 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention wherein housing 8 forms part of ring 4 b . Extension 20 is attached to housing 8 .
[0064] [0064]FIG. 6 illustrates another preferred embodiment of the present invention where the retaining means contains one or more expandable pins 19 which extend perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the pipe fitting plug.
[0065] As shown in FIG. 6, housing 8 slides along body. 15 and is capable of compressing body 15 against end piece 2 . Controlling force means 11 protrudes through body 15 , end piece 2 and housing 8 and enables body 15 , end piece 2 and housing 8 to be compressed together using wing nut 10 .
[0066] The retaining means is composed of one or more expandable pins 19 , tapered cone 16 , clips 17 and spring 18 . Wing nut 10 and controlling force means 11 are capable of compressing housing 8 thereby pushing body 15 toward end piece 2 . As body 15 is pushed toward end piece 2 , expandable pins 19 slide along the outer surface of tapered cone 16 and thereby extend outward toward the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub. As a result, the pipe fitting plug is securely anchored into the pipe fitting hub.
[0067] The retaining means according to this embodiment also contains clips 17 and springs 18 . Springs 18 help to retract expanding pins 19 when the plug is not compressed. Clips 17 allow for springs 18 and expanding pins 19 to be mounted to the pipe fitting plug in a firm position.
[0068] [0068]FIG. 6 also illustrates the positioning of sealing means 3 . Sealing means 3 is located in a recess formed between end piece 2 and body 15 . As end piece 2 and body 15 are compressed together, the recess formed between end piece 2 and body 15 contracts, and sealing means 3 is compelled to outwardly expand. This outward expansion allows for sealing means 3 to form a fluidtight seal between the pipe fitting plug and the pipe fitting hub. Preferably, the sealing means is composed of a rubber-like material that is durable as well as expandable.
[0069] In order to disengage the pipe fitting plug from the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub, wing nut 10 is rotated in the opposite direction to allow for housing 8 to decompress body 15 and end piece 2 . As wing nut 10 is loosened, sealing means 3 breaks contact with the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub and expandable pins 19 withdraw from the inner surface of the pipe fitting hub. Thus, the pipe fitting plug can be removed from within the pipe fitting hub and can be reused.
[0070] [0070]FIG. 7 illustrates yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention where the pipe fitting plug is secured to the pipe fitting hub using a plurality of grit type particles 24 while a fluidtight seal is formed using expandable rubber bladder 20 .
[0071] As shown in FIG. 7, expandable rubber bladder 20 is located within a recess of body 15 of the pipe fitting plug. Expandable rubber bladder 20 contains raised outer seal area 21 which allows for expandable rubber bladder 20 to form a fluidtight seal between the pipe fitting plug and the pipe fitting hub. Furthermore, a plurality of grit type particles 24 attach to the inner surface of the expandable rubber bladder, within outer seal area 21 . The plurality of grit type particles 24 serve to affix the pipe fitting plug to the pipe fitting hub to provide a secure attachment. The plurality of grit type particles located between outer seal area 21 of expandable rubber bladder 20 are illustrated in FIG. 8.
[0072] [0072]FIG. 7 also illustrates the operation of the adjusting means that allows for the sealing means and the retaining means to expand and contract.
[0073] The adjusting means according to this embodiment is composed of air valve 23 , inner chamber 25 of body 15 and air ports 22 . Air valve 23 is in communication with inner chamber 25 , which is in turn in communication with expandable rubber bladder 20 via air ports 22 .
[0074] Air valve 23 is capable of increasing the air pressure within inner chamber 25 . As the pressure within inner chamber 25 increases, so does the pressure within expandable rubber bladder 20 . Thus, air valve 23 is capable of inflating and deflating expandable rubber bladder 20 through the increase or decrease of air pressure within inner chamber 25 . As expandable rubber bladder 20 inflates, a fluidtight seal is formed between the outer seal area 21 of expandable rubber bladder 20 and the pipe fitting hub.
[0075] As expandable rubber bladder 20 approaches the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub, plurality of grit type particles 24 impregnated within the perimeter outer seal area 21 of expandable rubber bladder 20 affix to the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub. Thus, plurality of grit type particles 24 allow for the pipe fitting plug to be retained in the pipe fitting hub.
[0076] As air pressure is decreased from within inner chamber 25 , expandable rubber bladder 20 deflates, outer seal area 21 and the plurality of grit type particles 24 break contact with the inner wall of the pipe fitting hub and the pipe fitting plug can be disengaged from the pipe fitting hub. The pipe fitting plug can thus be reused.
[0077] It will be understood that the claims are intended to cover all changes and modifications of the preferred embodiments of the invention herein chosen for the purpose of illustration which do not constitute a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.
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A reusable pipe fitting plug for temporarily sealing the open hub on a non-threaded female pipe fitting. The pipe fitting plug has a retainer with piercing edges, expandable pins or grit type particles designed to engage the inner portion of a pipe fitting hub in order to anchor the pipe fitting plug. The pipe fitting plug further has an expandable rubber seal or expandable rubber bladder designed to provide a watertight seal.
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This application is a division of prior application Ser. No. 08/799,667, filed Feb. 11, 1997 and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,861,005.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of surgical instruments and more particularly to devices for installing surgical staples in vessels, arteries, organs, and the like.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many surgical procedures require the insertion of catheters and/or surgical devices into blood vessels and other internal structures. For example, in the treatment of vascular disease, it is often necessary to insert an instrument, i.e., a catheter, into the blood vessel to perform the treatment procedure. Such treatment procedures often involve piercing a wall of the blood vessel, inserting an introducer sheath into the blood vessel via the opening, and maneuvering the procedural catheter through the introducer sheath to a target location within the blood vessel. Of course in order to complete such a procedure, the sides of the opening in the wall of the blood vessel must be sealed to prevent bleeding while facilitating healing of the wound. At present, this sealing is commonly accomplished by application of direct pressure over the puncture site by a physician or other trained medical professional. Due to the dangers of thrombosis, the substantial reduction of blood flow through the blood vessel due to the application of pressure is undesirable and potentially dangerous to the patient. In addition, the procedure is time consuming; often requiring that pressure be applied for forty-five minutes or more to achieve acceptable sealing.
Other sealing techniques include the application of a biogenic sealing material over the opening to seal the wound. However, proper placement of the sealing material is difficult to achieve and, the plug of sealing material left inside the blood vessel may result in serious health risks to the patient.
As a result, devices have been developed which are inserted through the puncture in order to suture openings created in blood vessels. However, these devices suffer from various drawbacks.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,699 to Klein et al. describes a device wherein two needles coupled to a distal end of an insertion shaft are held within an outer shaft during insertion into an internal structure. Once inside the internal structure, the inner shaft is drawn proximally relative to the outer shaft, so that the needles are simultaneously drawn through the walls of the internal structure. The needles are then removed from the device, the device is removed and sutures attached to the needles are tied together to seal the opening. The device of Klein et al., includes no means for ensuring that the device is properly located, is costly to manufacture, and is cumbersome, requiring three hands for operation.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to an arterial stapling device for sealing a hole in a wall of an anatomical structure within a living body which provides a housing extending from a distal end to a proximal portion, the housing including a catheter receiving lumen extending therethrough from a first opening formed in the proximal portion to a second opening formed in the distal end, wherein when the device is in an operative position with a catheter extending through the catheter receiving lumen and into the hole, the distal end is located within the living body adjacent to the hole and the proximal portion remains outside the living body. The housing further defines at least a first staple orifice in the distal end adjacent to the second opening so that, when the device is in the operative position, the first staple orifice extends across a portion of the hole. The device further includes a stapling mechanism mounted within the housing adjacent to the first staple orifice, and an actuating mechanism coupled between the proximal end of the housing and the stapling mechanism for operating the stapling mechanism so that a staple is ejected from the first staple orifice.
The present invention is also directed to a method of sealing a hole in an anatomical structure within a living body including the steps of:
inserting an apparatus for sealing a hole in a wall of an anatomical structure into a desired position within the living body wherein the apparatus includes an inflatable structure which, when the device is in the desired position, extends from a housing of the apparatus into the hole and, wherein the apparatus further includes a stapling mechanism which, when the device is in the desired position, is located adjacent to the opening;
inflating the inflatable member to seal the hole;
operating the stapling mechanism to place at least one staple into the wall of the anatomical structure across a portion of the opening wherein the stapling mechanism operates to form the staple into a sealing configuration that draws the sides of the hole together to seal the hole; and
withdrawing the apparatus from the living body.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the arterial stapling device of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the device shown in FIG. 1 through section A--A.
FIG. 3 is a detail view of the distal end of the device shown in FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is a top view of the device shown in FIG. 1 through section B--B.
FIG. 5 is an end view of the device shown in FIG. 3 through section C--C.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the staple pusher according to the first embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 7 shows an environment of use of the invention.
FIG. 8 shows the environment of use further including a balloon catheter.
FIG. 9 shows the environment of use with the procedure sheath removed.
FIG. 10 shows the first embodiment of the invention in its environment of use.
FIG. 11 shows a distal portion of the first embodiment of the invention in an operative position within a living body.
FIG. 12 shows the first embodiment of the invention with a staple placed in an artery according to the invention.
FIG. 13 shows a puncture site stapled according to the invention.
FIG. 14 shows a side view of a removable hub according to the present invention joined to a balloon catheter.
FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 16 is a top view of the device shown in FIG. 15 through section A--A.
FIG. 17 is a side view of the device shown in FIG. 15 through section B--B.
FIG. 18 is an end view of the device shown in FIG. 17 through section C--C.
FIG. 19 is an end view of the device shown in FIG. 17 through section D--D.
FIG. 20 shows an environment of use of the device.
FIG. 21 shows an embodiment of the device with the inflatable body portion partially inserted into an artery in a living body.
FIG. 22 shows an embodiment of the device with the inflatable body portion fully inserted into the artery so that the device is in position to staple the artery.
FIG. 23 shows the trigger has been activated and the staple is in place in the artery.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the invention designated generally by the numeral 1. Device 1, which comprises a main body 110, works in conjunction with a balloon catheter (not shown in FIG. 1). Main body 110 has, at its proximal end, a handle 111 and trigger 112 and at its distal end, a tubular projection 105. The distal end of tubular projection 105 may, preferably include optional tabs 114 protruding distally therefrom which serve to hold a balloon catheter in an oval shape. For example, if a balloon catheter having a preformed oval shape is employed, then tabs 114 may be omitted. Further, tabs 114 may be releasably attached to the main body 110 so that, when a user feels these tabs might inhibit proper closing of the artery puncture site, they may be removed.
As shown in FIG. 2, a trigger 112 is rotatably attached to handle 111 for rotation about point 109. A trigger spring 113 biases the trigger 112 toward a cocked or ready position in which the trigger 112 is spaced from the handle 111 (as shown in FIG. 2). Activating or squeezing trigger 112 rotates trigger 112 about rotation point 109 toward the handle 111, thereby advancing staple pushers 121. As staple pushers 121 are advanced, they bend the staples 120 into their binding position as is known in the art, and eject the staples from the distal end of main body 110. When released, trigger 112 is moved back to the ready position by trigger spring 113.
A balloon insertion lumen 115 extends through main body 110 from its proximal to its distal end. As shown in FIG. 10 and discussed in more detail in the description thereof, a balloon catheter which has previously been inserted through a puncture into an artery may be received within the balloon insertion lumen 115 so that the device 1 may be advanced over the balloon catheter until the device 1 reaches a desired position relative to the artery. Main body 110 contains a flashback lumen 117, extending from a blood entry port 118 at the distal end of main body 110 (see FIG. 3) to a blood exit port 119 located proximal to blood entry port 118. By observing blood flow (or the lack thereof) through the flashback lumen 117, the user may determine when the device 1 is in the desired position relative to the artery.
As shown in FIG. 3, tabs 114 extend distally from the distal end of the tubular projection 105. The balloon insertion lumen 115 is located between tabs 114. The blood entry port 118 of the flashback lumen 117 is located adjacent to one of the tabs 114. Through the blood entry port 118, blood or fluid from the artery or anatomical structure may enter flashback lumen 117 and traverse therethrough until reaching blood exit port 119. The tab 114 adjacent to the blood entry port 118 may be advantageously shaped to facilitate passage of blood into the blood entry port. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, a groove 114. 1, which leads to the blood entry port 118, is formed in one of the tabs 114.
A substantially U-shaped staple 120 is shown at the distal end of main body 110. Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that staples of any shape may be employed with this device so long as the staple pushers 121 are modified accordingly. The u-shape of staple 120 represents a staple prior to placement. Staple pusher 121 which bends and places staple 120 due to the functionally stylized shape of staple pusher 121, includes lateral grooves 126, longitudinal grooves 127, and ramps 128 at its distal end adjacent staples 120.
Staple pushers 121 are connected to trigger 112 at the proximal end of device 1 and extend longitudinally to the distal end of device 1. As shown in FIG. 4, balloon insertion lumen 115 extends from the proximal to the distal end of main body 110. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, two staple pushers 121 are located substantially symmetrically on each side of balloon insertion lumen 115. Activation of trigger 112 pushes both staple pushers 121 simultaneously, thus, simultaneously placing two staples 120 into the artery. Those skilled in the art will recognize that, for use with different size arteries, devices of various sizes may be employed having any number of staple pushers 121--one staple pusher 121 for very thin arteries with the number of staple pushers increasing as the diameter of the artery increases. Large arteries may advantageously be stapled by a device having 3 or more staple pushers 121 activated simultaneously to place three staples 120. A further embodiment of the invention may include two independent triggers 112 each attached to an independent staple pusher 121 or pair of staple pushers, to thereby allow a user to place one or more staples independently of other staples. This would permit manipulation of the device between placement of the staples 120.
As shown in FIG. 5, tabs 114 may be located above and below balloon insertion lumen 115, with the tabs 114 illustrated extending distally out of the page toward the viewer, while the balloon insertion lumen 115 extends proximally into the page through main body 110. Flashback lumen 117 is adjacent to one of the tabs 114 and the staples 120 are located substantially symmetrically about a center line 125 of the tubular projection 105. A staple bending stop 122 adjacent to the staple lumen 123 is centrally located around the balloon insertion lumen 115. When a staple 120 is pushed (from behind) by staple pusher 121, staple 120 bends (forward) around staple bending stop 122. Continued pushing brings ramps 128 of staple pusher 121 into contact with staple 120 which causes the bent staple 120 to be pushed laterally outward from center line 125 so that the staple 120 is ejected through staple exit lumen 124.
As shown in FIG. 6, the proximal end of staple pusher 121 is connected to trigger 112. The distal end of staple pusher 121 has a stylized shape that allows staple pusher 121 to carry out its stapling function. Lateral grooves 126 initially contact staple 120 when trigger 112 is held in the cocked or ready position. When trigger 112 is activated, lateral grooves 126 apply pressure on staple 120 and begin to bend staple 120 about staple bending stop 122. Continued pushing by staple pusher 121 brings longitudinal grooves 127 into contact with staple 120 to complete the bending process. Staple pusher 121 has ramps 128 which contact a bent staple 120 at the end of the stroke of trigger 112. Ramps 128, by virtue of their wedgelike shape, displace staple 120 around staple bending stop 122 and thereby cause staple 120 to pass through staple exit lumen 124 and ultimately be released from device 1.
Having described the mechanical functionality of arterial stapling device 1, a functional use within a living patient will be discussed. FIG. 7 shows an environment for the use of device 1. It is common for medical procedures to employ a procedure sheath 510, also called an introducer. Procedure sheath 510 penetrates the skin line 501 at skin opening 503 and passes through tissue 504 to enter artery 500 at puncture site 502. Through a longitudinal bore in procedure sheath 510, medical instrumentation may be inserted into artery 500. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a balloon catheter 520 is inserted through procedure sheath 510 to thereby gain a position within artery 500 and tissue 504.
As shown in FIG. 9, procedure sheath 510 may be removed from the procedure site while leaving balloon catheter 520 in place. Device 1 of the invention works in conjunction with a balloon catheter 520 which has been placed in artery 500. An appropriate inflation pressure for balloon catheter 520 for use in veins, arteries, and the like will depend upon the particular application and may range from approximately 1 to 50 PSI.
FIG. 10 shows device 1 positioned by sliding the device 1 over balloon catheter 520 via balloon insertion lumen 115. With device 1 inserted over the balloon catheter, removable hub 150 can be applied to the external end of balloon catheter 520. Removable hub 150 includes a balloon inflation port 151, to which an external supply of saline or other suitable media (not shown) is attached in order to pressurize and inflate balloon catheter 520. One advantageous feature of the invention is that, when inflated, the balloon catheter 520 substantially seals the puncture site, reducing bleeding before the actual stapling process occurs.
Device 1 must be inserted under the skin line 501 and through tissue 504 so that the distal end of the tubular projection 105 is flush with the wall of artery 500. If optional tabs 114, which extend distally from the distal end of the tubular projection 105, are included, they may extend into the artery 500. When device 1 is properly inserted, blood entry port 118 receives blood from artery 500. The blood traverses through flashback lumen 117 to blood exit port 119 and thereby indicates to the user that device 1 is properly positioned for stapling.
FIG. 11 shows the distal end of device 1 positioned appropriately in artery 500. Tabs 114 are in artery 500 so that blood flows into blood entry port 118 through flashback lumen 117, to indicate that the device is properly positioned in artery 500. Staple 120 is shown in its bent position. When staple 120 is bent by staple pusher 121, it penetrates artery 500 and, upon continued bending, it also penetrates and deflates balloon catheter 520. The deflated balloon catheter 520 may then be withdrawn through the now sealed puncture, into the balloon insertion lumen 115 while device 1 remains in place adjacent artery 500. To assist in this puncture and removal, balloon catheter 520 may preferably be made of a material that easily tears axially. Thus, balloon catheter 520 tears around staple 120 and is therefore easily removed from the procedure site.
An alternative procedure would allow balloon catheter 520 to be removed prior to being punctured by staple 120. For example, when staple 120 penetrates artery 500, but before it penetrates balloon catheter 520, balloon catheter 520 may be deflated and removed from the puncture site through balloon insertion lumen 115. Staple 120 may then be inserted the rest of the way into artery 500 to complete the procedure.
FIG. 12 shows device 1 after staple 120 has been fully ejected from device 1 through activation of the staple pusher 121 as discussed above. Tabs 114 are not depicted in this view in order to show an unobstructed view of the stapled puncture site. Staple 120 clamps the puncture site closed with no other foreign matter left within artery 500. When the staple 120 is released from staple exit lumen 124 (FIG. 5), device 1 may be removed from the puncture site 502.
FIG. 13 shows the puncture site 502 after device 1 has been removed. Two staples 120 are arranged across the puncture site 502, thereby holding the puncture in artery 500 closed. Of special importance is the ability of a user to properly orient the device relative to artery 500 in order to properly place staples 120. For example, as shown, staples 120 are aligned longitudinally with respect to the axis of artery 500. Alternatively, a user may place staples 120 at other orientations relative to artery 500 by positioning device 1 as desired before activating trigger 112. The user must be cognizant of both the anatomy of the living body (i.e. the position and orientation of the artery 500 within the living body) and the position and orientation of the stapling device in order to properly orient the staples 120 with respect to the puncture site 502.
FIG. 14 shows a side view of balloon catheter 520 joined with removable hub 150. Hub 150 is initially coupled to the balloon catheter 520 after the balloon catheter 520 has been inserted through the balloon insertion lumen 115 of device 1. In FIG. 14, the balloon catheter 520 and hub 150 are shown, for example, after the balloon catheter 520 has been removed from the puncture. If the balloon catheter 520 is to be removed from the puncture site without being deflated by the staples 120 (as discussed with reference to FIG. 11), the wide portion of balloon catheter 520 will have to decrease in size to fit into balloon insertion lumen 115. This can be accomplished by accumulator 153 of removable hub 150. As balloon catheter 520 is drawn into balloon insertion lumen 115, the fluid in balloon catheter 520 flows out of balloon catheter 520 into accumulator 153 which is pressure expandable, i.e., when a volume of fluid flows into accumulator 153, the volume of accumulator 153 is expanded to maintain a constant pressure. Thus, balloon catheter 520 may be removed through balloon insertion lumen 115 while maintaining a constant system pressure throughout both balloon catheter 520 and removable hub 150.
As shown in FIG. 14, removable hub 150 may be removably joined to balloon catheter 520 by a compression seal 154. Once joined, fluid may be added to the removable hub 150 (and hence to balloon catheter 520) through its balloon inflation port 151 which includes a check valve diaphragm 152.
A preferred arrangement for the use of balloon catheters generally includes a support wire 521 which is connected to the proximal end of balloon catheter 520 at attachment point 522. At the distal end of balloon catheter 520, the support wire 521 tapers to allow flexibility and is inserted into a spring coil or plastic sleeve 523 which is formed into a "J" shaped tip 524 which allows safe and convenient insertion into arteries and such as is known in the art.
A second embodiment of the invention will be discussed in reference to FIG. 15 through 23. FIG. 15 shows a perspective view of the second embodiment of the invention, wherein the device is generally designated by the numeral 2. Device 2 has a main body 210 having, at is proximal end, a handle 211 and a trigger 212. Main body 210 houses staples 220. When device 2 is appropriately positioned for stapling, activation of trigger 212 bends the staples into a desired configuration and ejects the staples 220 from the staple ports 221, in any suitable manner, such as was discussed with reference to the first embodiment of this invention.
An elongated inflatable body 230 extends distally from the distal end of main body 210. Inflatable body 230 is formed of a pliable membrane which includes internal passages. One such passage is guide wire lumen 231, to which access is provided by guide wire inlet 232 which is located at the distal end of the inflatable body 230.
Inflatable body 230 is pressurized by a supply of saline solution or other suitable media (not shown). The solution may be introduced through a supply tube 241 coupled to the supply by port 242 which has a valve 243 to control the flow of the pressurized media. The supply tube 241 may be attached to device 2 by any suitable manner at supply orifice 245.
FIGS. 16 and 17 show device 2 containing internal passages 240, 231, 250 of device 2, which are used for inflating inflatable body 230, providing passage of the guide wire, and other purposes, such as allowing passage of blood to indicate the position of device 2 within artery 500 (shown in FIGS. 20 and 21). Main body 210 contains pressure supply passage 240 to which supply tube 241 connects at the proximal end of main body 210. Pressure supply passage 240 has a supply outlet 244 at the interface between main body 210 and inflatable body 230.
Main body 210 also contains a flashback lumen 250 which has a blood exit port 251 on the exterior of main body 210 and a blood entry port 252 on the proximal end of the inflatable body 230. When blood entry port 252 is located within artery 500, blood will enter the blood entry port 252, pass through flashback lumen 250, and exit the blood exit port 251. When blood exits the blood exit port 251, the attending physician or other user of device 2 will know that the blood entry port 252 is located within artery 500. Knowing the relative position of device 2 within artery 500, the user can determine when to activate trigger 212 to insert staples 220. A portion of flashback lumen 250 is located in main body 210 and a portion is located in inflatable body 230. The portion of flashback lumen 250 in inflatable body 230 is delimited by an adhesive barrier 253 which occludes flashback lumen 250.
As shown in FIG. 17, supply tubing 241 may be attached to the pressure supply passage 240 at the proximal end of main body 210. Pressure supply passage 240 is connected with inflatable body 230 at the interface of main body 210 and is connected to inflatable body 230 at supply outlet 244.
Flashback lumen 250 extends from the proximal end of main body 210 through a portion of inflatable body 230 and to a blood inlet port 252. An adhesive barrier 253 located on the distal side of the port 252, seals the flashback lumen 250. At the distal end of inflatable body 230, guide wire inlet 232 provides access for a guide wire to enter guide wire lumen 231. Guide wire lumen 231 is provided with guide wire exit port 233 proximal to guide wire inlet 232. An adhesive barrier 234 separates guide wire lumen 231 from the other internal passages of inflatable body 230.
As shown in FIG. 18, inflatable body 230 contains guide wire lumen 231 having a guide wire exit port 233, separated from the proximal end of inflatable body 230 by a predetermined distance. According to a still further embodiment of the invention, guide wire exit port 233 may be located on main body 210, wherein the guide wire enters inflatable body 230 via a guide wire inlet 232, located at the proximal end of the inflatable body 230, and remains within the inflatable body 230 for its entire length.
As shown in FIG. 19, the distal end of main body 210 holds staples 220 within the staple openings 221. It is further shown that inflatable body 230 contains flashback lumen 250 and that a blood entry port 252 is located on the side of inflatable body 230.
FIG. 20 shows an environment of use for the arterial stapling device 2. Artery 500 is located within a living body below the surface of the skin 501. A guide wire 540, which may be used for numerous medical procedures, is shown penetrating the skin 501 at skin opening 503, passing through tissue 504, and entering artery 500 at puncture site 502.
FIG. 21 shows the arterial stapling device 2 partially inserted into artery 500. In the position shown, guide wire 540 is inserted into guide wire lumen 231 of inflatable body 230 with the inflatable body 230 penetrating artery opening 502 by being moved along the path as guided by guide wire 540.
FIG. 22 shows device 2 in the position at which staple 220 may be inserted into artery 500. Preferably before activating trigger 212, guide wire 540 should be withdrawn from the artery and thus from guide wire lumen 231 of device 2. As shown in FIG. 22, guide wire 540 has been removed entirely from the environment, having been withdrawn from guide wire lumen 231, from artery opening 502, and from the skin opening 503.
The inflatable body 230 is inserted into artery 500 such that blood entry port 252 is inside artery 500. Such a position allows blood to enter flashback lumen 250 through blood entry port 252, and exit through blood exit port 251. The flow of blood through flashback lumen 250 provides the user of device 2 with information about the position of device 2 relative to artery 500.
An advantageous feature of the invention is that artery 500 is provided with support from inflatable body 230, which thereby facilitates insertion of staples 220 into the wall of artery 500. By selection of an appropriately sized and shaped inflatable body 230, artery 500 may be sufficiently filled by the inflatable body 230 to thereby seal off blood flow during the stapling procedure. It may be desirable to have an inflatable body 230 which has a different, e.g. smaller, diameter where it will resid in the artery, than it does where it will support the artery near the puncture site 502.
FIG. 23 shows device 2 after trigger 212 has been activated and staple 220 is in place in artery 500. Staple 220 penetrates the wall of artery 500 as well as inflatable body 230, thereby deflating it.
Inflatable body 230 is made of such a material that when it is punctured by staple 220, the material rips longitudinally in order to be pulled through staple 220 for removal from artery 500. Thus, no foreign material is left in artery 500 after the deflated inflatable body 230 has been pulled through staple 220.
Those skilled in the art will understand that staple size and dimensions of the device may be determined by the application to which it is applied. For example, in relatively small arteries, relatively small components must be used, whereas, for larger arteries, a device having relatively larger components may be appropriate. The balloon catheter over which a first embodiment of the device is applied, or the inflatable body portion of a second embodiment of the device, can be relatively short or long depending on the specific procedure.
Because the present invention is capable of various modifications and alternate constructions, the specification is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments disclosed herein. Rather, it is intended to be limited only by the claims appended hereto.
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A method and device for efficiently and effectively stapling an opening in an anatomical structure such as veins, arteries, organs, and other body members within a living body is disclosed. The opening may be from a deliberately placed incision, as from an invasive surgical procedure, or caused by other damaging events. The device includes a stapling mechanism having a main body with a handle, a trigger for activating the staples, and a central passage through which a balloon catheter may pass. The balloon catheter supports the artery and helps position the stapling mechanism properly on the artery. Alternatively, the device may have a main body that has an inflatable member attached to it and extending from it. The main body provides a passage through which a pressurized media such as saline can be supplied to the inflatable member. In either case, the main body may advantageously include a flashback lumen through which blood or other fluid may flow as an indication of the position of the device within the anatomical structure.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to latching devices and to nuclear reactors incorporating such latching devices.
In one example of liquid metal cooled nuclear reactor construction, the reactor is submerged in a pool of coolant contained in a primary vessel. The primary vessel is housed in a concrete containment vault and is suspended from the roof of the vault. There is a leak jacket or catchpot surrounding the primary vessel for catching coolant in the event of leakage. The core is carried on a diagrid which depends from the roof of the vault by tie straps and the roof carries control rods which are vertically insertable into the core to control reactivity. The core includes absorber sub-assemblies for controlling or shutting down the reactor.
An absorber sub-assembly comprises two components, an outer housing assembly and an absorber rod assembly and in use the absorber rod assembly moves up and down inside the outer housing assembly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to tend to provide a latching device and a nuclear reactor incorporating such latching devices whereby the absorber rod assembly can move up and down inside the outer housing assembly, without the latter becoming detached from the reactor core, except when detachment is desired.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a latching device comprises a first member carrying a pawl arrangement including a pivotally mounted pawl, a second member having a face for co-acting with the pawl to latch the first member to the second member, the pawl arrangement including a load sensitive element for yielding under a preselected load to alow the first member to be detached from the second member. Preferably, the load sensitive element comprises a shear pin.
Conveniently, the pawl of the pawl arrangement is resiliently biased to interact with the face of the second member. Advantageously, the pawl includes a camming surface for interacting with a cooperating surface on the second member to permit latching of the members.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a nuclear reactor comprises a core including a core support structure and a plurality of absorber sub-assemblies, each sub-assembly comprising an absorber rod assembly and an outer housing assembly, the outer housing assembly carrying a pawl arrangement including a pivotally mounted pawl, the core support structure having a face for co-acting with the pawl to latch the outer housing assembly to the core support structure, the pawl arrangement including a load sensitive element for yielding under a preselected load to allow the sub-assembly to be detached from the core support structure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical section of a nuclear reactor,
FIG. 2 is a vertical section of a latching part of a control rod housing and core support structure,
FIG. 3 is a part section on III--III of FIG. 2,
FIG. 4 is a detached view constituting an incomplete section on IV--IV of FIG. 3, and
FIG. 5 is a detached view constituting an inverted plan of a pawl arrangement as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Reference is made firstly to FIG. 1, wherein there is shown a liquid metal cooled fast breeder nuclear reactor of the pool kind having a core or fuel assembly 1 submerged in a pool 2 of liquid sodium coolant in a primary vessel 3. The primary vessel is open at the top and is suspended from the roof of a containment vault 4 and there are provided a plurality of coolant pumps 5 and heat exchangers 6, only one of each of the pumps and heat exchangers being shown. The fuel assembly 1 is mounted on a diagrid 7 and is supported by a strongback 8. The fuel assembly 1 is housed with the heat exchangers in an inner tank 9 whereas the pumps 5, which deliver coolant to the diagrid, are disposed outside of the inner tank. The fuel assembly 1 comprises a plurality of sub-assemblies which upstand from the diagrid in closely spaced side-by-side array and the fuel assembly is surrounded by a neutron shield 10. Control rods 11 and instrumentation 12 penetrate the roof of the vault. The control rods, that is absorber rod assemblies of one type, move up and down inside respective housing assemblies in the core 1. The attachment of the housing assemblies, which are cylindrical in the vicinity of the core attachment and of generally hexagonal cross-section elsewhere, is by means of respective latching devices to core support structure as described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5. It is clearly important that the housing assemblies do not become detached from the core in operation and can only be detached when it is necessary to change them.
In operation of a nuclear reactor, relatively cool coolant drawn from the region of the pool outside of the core tank by the pump 5, is passed upwardly through the fuel assembly in heat exchange therewith by way of the diagrid 7, thence through the heat exchanger 6 to be discharged back into the outer region of the pool. A secondary coolant is flowed from outside the vault through the heat exchanger in heat exchange with the pool coolant thence to steam generation plant (not shown in the drawings).
The primary vessel 3 incorporates an annular yoke 13 fabricated from arcuate segments, the yoke being suspended from the roof structure of the vault by a first annular series of tie straps 14 disposed outside the vessel. The fuel assembly and strongback and supported from the yoke by a second series of tie straps 15.
Reference is now made to FIG. 2, in which one of the previously mentioned control rod outer housing assemblies is generally indicated by 20. Part of the reactor core support structure is indicated by 21. The control rod outer housing assembly 20 carries pawl arrangements including pawls 23 and 24 on pivot pins 25 and 26, respectively. The pivot pins 25, 26 are secured to the assembly 20 and cannot themselves rotate. Torsion springs (not shown in this figure) are located in annular spaces between the pawl and respective pins. As the outer housing assembly is inserted into the core support structure, camming surfaces 27, 28 on the pawls 23, 24 respectively co-operate with the support structure upper surface and inner walls 29 to cause the pawls 23, 24 to rotate in directions indicated by arrows 30, 31 respectively into cavities 32, 33 respectively in the assembly 20, thereby allowing the assembly 20 to be inserted into the structure 21. The pawls rotate in an opposite sense to that of arrows 30, 31 under the action of the above-mentioned springs, when through the structure 21. The pawls then interact with the lower face of structure 21 to prevent the assembly 20 being pulled upwards through the structure, ie the assembly 20 is latched into the structure 21.
Reference is now made to FIG. 3, wherein like reference numerals to FIG. 2 are used for like parts. In FIG. 3, the previously mentioned spring is indicated by 34. The pivot pin 26 comprises a large diameter shank 35 and a pivot portion 36 upon which the spring 34 is fixed and about which the pawl 24 pivots. The pivot pin is longitudinally located in the housing assembly 20 by a key 38. Rotation of the pawl 24 about the pivot pin is inhibited opposite to arrow 31 by a bearing member 40. The bearing member 40 is located in the cavity 33 on the pivot pin 26 and is secured thereto by a shear pin 41.
Reference is now made to FIGS. 4 and 5, wherein like reference numerals to FIGS. 2 and 3 are used for like parts. The shear pin 41 can be seen more clearly in FIG. 4, wherein it is shown in a blind bore 42 in the bearing member 40. From FIG. 5, co-acting surfaces 45, 46 between the pawl 24 and bearing member 40 can be seen. If the pawls are urged opposite to the arrows 30, 31 then the co-acting surfaces prevent the pawl rotating with respect to the member 40. However, if sufficient force is applied to shear the shear pin 41, then the pawl 24 and bearing member 40 rotate together so that the pawl moves into the cavity 33 to permit the assembly 20 to be detached from the structure 21. It will be appreciated that the pawl 23 is constructed in a pawl arrangement with respect to the housing assembly similar to that pawl 24.
In operation, the control rod outer housing 20 is inserted into the structure 21 and latched therein by the pawls 23 and 24. As a nuclear reactor operates, a control rod (not shown in FIGS. 2 to 5 but see 11 in FIG. 1) moves up and down within the housing 20. The control rod exerts longitudinal compressions and tensions on the housing 20, but the latter cannot be pulled out of the structure 21 because the tensions are not great enough to shear the pin 41. Operational shearing stresses are calculated in advance and only pins of sufficient resistence to shear under the operating tensions are used.
When, however, it is necessary for overhaul, repair and maintenance that the housing assembly 20 be removed from the core, ie detached from the structure 21, then a greater tension is exerted on the housing, which is transmitted via the lower face of the structure 21 to the pawls 23, 24. This tension is great enough to shear the pin 41 between the pivot pin 26 and bearing member 40 so that the pawl 24 rotates with the bearing member opposite to arrow 31 until the pawl is within the profile of the assembly 20. In this way, the assembly 20 can be detached from the structure 21. The operation of the pawl arrangement including pawl 23 is similar to that including pawl 24 and as many arrangements can be used as are necessary. Other control rod housings in the reactor core are attached in the same way. A similar latching arrangement can be used on the core and radial breeder sub-assemblies to prevent inadvertent removal of an adjacent sub-assembly when withdrawing a sub-assembly.
It is to be understood that absorber sub-assemblies is a generic term which includes all absorber sub-assemblies contained in the core. Thus control rods, primary shutdown rods and alternative shutdown rods are included in the term. A control rod, as described above, moves up and down in operation. A primary shutdown rod is similar to the control rod except that the absorber rod assembly is held out of the core region until required for use and does not move up and down as the control rod. When required for use, the absorber rod assembly is released and drops fully into the core. An alternative shutdown rod comprises an outer housing assembly which is outwardly similar to the out housings used for the control and primary shutdown rods. The absorber rod assembly is held out of the core region by hydraulic balance, the sodium circuit for which is separate from the main reactor circuit. The absorber rod assembly will drop into the core region when the sodium supply to the alternative shutdown rod is cut.
From the above description, it can be seen that the present invention provides a latching means which is not detached under normal operational loads on absorber sub-assemblies of a nuclear reactor and yet provides a nuclear reactor wherein detachment of such absorber sub-assemblies for repair or replacement is facilitated.
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A latching device for use in nuclear reactors. The device is used to latch outer housing assemblies to the reactor core. The device contains a shear pin which does not break under normal loading imposed by movement of absorber rod assemblies, but which shears when it is desired to remove the housing from the core.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/942,546, filed on Sep. 16, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,982,544 which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/189,714, filed on Jul. 3, 2002 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,794,852), which claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/303,129, filed on Jul. 5, 2001.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to batteries. More particularly, the present invention relates to reporting of the capacity of a battery.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many mobile computing and communicating devices rely upon standard battery cells for providing power on which to operate. Though disposable battery cells, such as alkaline cells, are a well-known and reliable technology, it is common in such mobile devices to employ rechargeable battery cells. These rechargeable batteries depend on a number of known cell types, including Ni-Cad, Ni-MH, and Li-Ion cells. All these cells are known to those of skill in the art, as are some of their deficiencies. One of the known deficiencies of the above mentioned rechargeable battery cells is related to the fact that each battery has a finite life span that can be measured in terms of recharge cycles. The process of charging and discharging the cell damages the cell's charge storage capabilities, causing the stored potential, which is typically measured in mA-hours, to decrease over the life of the battery. As the ability to store charge decreases, so does the battery's utility. The life of the battery can be drastically curtailed by improperly charging, or over discharging the battery. Another known deficiency of the above cell types is that the batteries are known to discharge while in storage, though some types of battery are more susceptible to the self-discharge phenomenon than others. As a result of these deficiencies, it is crucial that a user be able to determine the capacity of a battery both prior to and during use.
A state of the art technique for battery capacity reporting relies on the coulomb counter. The principle of operation involved in coulomb counting is computing a coulomb count equal to the coulombs injected into a battery minus the coulombs taken out of the battery. The capacity of the battery is then reported by comparing the coulomb count relative to a reference coulomb count value that corresponds to maximum battery capacity. For instance, if the coulomb count of a battery is half of the reference value, the battery capacity is reported to be 50 percent. Although the coulomb counter addresses battery capacity reporting, it may have several problems. First, the reported capacity may not be meaningful if an accurate reference coulomb count value corresponding to maximum battery capacity is not known. Furthermore, with a coulomb counter it may be difficult to keep an accurate reference coulomb count, particularly when battery capacity decreases over the lifetime of the battery. Further still, with a coulomb counter it may be necessary to know the current battery capacity before beginning the coulomb count.
A limitation of the coulomb counting principle is that it may not be applicable to reporting the capacity of a battery of initially unknown battery capacity: if the capacity of a battery is to be reported using the coulomb count system and method, the battery may have to be taken from it's unknown capacity state to either a fully charged 100 percent battery capacity state or to a fully discharged 0 percent capacity state before the coulomb count can be used. Because the state of the battery is unknown at a certain point, the only way to charge the battery to 100% capacity is to constantly provide charge over an extended length of time. This can result in an overcharging of the cell, which is known to damage to the storage capability of the cell. Conversely, to guarantee that the cell is at 0% capacity, the cell must be completely discharged. It is a known phenomenon that rechargeable batteries are damaged by a full discharge to a complete empty state. Thus forcing a battery to either 100% or 0% capacity will likely damage the cell, which only hastens the time at which the coulomb counting becomes inaccurate.
Further practical limitations exist with coulomb counting techniques. In practice, coulomb counting works by applying an integration over time. The presence of an offset in a coulomb counter may result in the inaccuracy of the coulomb count. This applies even to batteries with an assumed initially known battery capacity, and is compounded with every recharge cycle. This may be especially true if the battery needs to be used for a long period of time between opportunities to reset the coulomb counter. For instance, in a battery that needs to be used for 3 weeks between charges, even small offsets with each charge cycle may accumulate to large inaccuracies in reported capacity.
Other known techniques of battery capacity reporting exist, and are primarily based on measuring battery voltage. The interest in such voltage techniques is due to the technical ease involved in voltage measurement. However, voltage measurement techniques also present the greatest challenges since the relationship between battery voltage and battery capacity is plastic, i.e. for any given battery capacity, the measured battery voltage can vary greatly. The presence of such variations prevent the systematic reporting of meaningful battery capacity values. The variations are small if the current draw is fairly constant over the lifetime of the battery, so there are situations where a direct voltage to capacity mapping will suffice.
Many battery capacity reporting solutions assume a fairly constant current draw for the major mode of operation, and only report capacity in this mode. For example, most cell phones only report battery capacity when they are not charging. Once they start charging, their battery gauges stop indicating battery capacity. However, in applications where a battery is recharged while the system is running, such a change in state from discharging to charging, or vice versa, may break any assumptions about constant current draw.
Batteries have known characteristic charge and discharge curves. FIG. 1 illustrates a charge curve 140 and a discharge 130 curve for a battery. These curves relate battery voltage 120 to percent capacity 110 for a rechargeable battery. The curves provide a model 100 for a battery. In the model, percent battery capacity 110 is related to battery voltage 120 in either a discharging state, shown by discharge curve 130 , or the charging state shown by charge curve 140 . Illustrated is a multiplicity of points such as point 132 on the discharging curve 130 and of point 142 on the charging curve. Interpolation can be used to provide capacity values 110 for voltages 120 that lie between points for which values are known.
In reference to FIG. 1 , the details of a charge state capacity model 100 are described. The relationship between battery voltage 110 , battery charge state and capacity 120 is illustrated by two curves 130 , 140 . A first curve 140 corresponds to a positive battery charge current or charging battery charge state, and a second curve 130 corresponds to a negative battery charge current or discharging battery charge state.
Although not expressly shown in the drawings, the charge state capacity model 100 can use more than one pair of curves. Each curve is a function of both the battery charge current and the battery charge state. The charge state is used to select at least one curve from a multiplicity of charge curves. Each curve is a function of the battery charging current, and relates battery voltage to capacity. For example, when the battery is in a first charge state, such as the charging state, a first charge curve corresponding to the charging state is utilised. When the battery is in a second charge state, for instance the discharging state, a second charge curve corresponding to the discharge state is utilised. The charge curves are such that given a battery voltage value and a charge curve, it is possible to obtain a corresponding capacity value from the charge curve.
Though it is possible to determine the capacity of a battery by measuring the voltage of the battery and examining the model, it should be noted that the existence of two distinct curves presents a problem. When a battery is charging and is at 50% capacity, it has a defined voltage level. If the battery charging is terminated when the battery is at 50%, the voltage of the battery does not instantly decrease to the voltage that corresponds to 50% capacity on the discharge curve. Instead the voltage decays to that level over time. The voltage of a 50% battery in a charging state is equivalent to the voltage of a 60-70% battery in the discharging state. As a result, most voltage based battery capacity reporting devices report a capacity jump when charging is ended. Similarly, there is a reported battery capacity drop when charging is started. These abrupt changes in capacity are inaccurate, and cause confusion among users.
There remains a further need for a system and method of battery capacity reporting based on battery voltage that overcomes the limitations present in the plastic relationship between battery voltage and battery capacity.
There remains a further need still for a system and method of battery capacity reporting which systematically reports a meaningful battery capacity value whether the battery is being discharged or charged, and which does so regardless of the presence of transitions between the charging and discharging of the battery.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one disadvantage of previous battery capacity reporters. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system and method for battery capacity reporting based on battery voltage that is robust against inaccuracies in initial battery capacity estimations and which systematically provides a meaningful reported battery capacity value.
In a first aspect, the present invention provides a method of determining the available battery capacity of a battery. In the method, a battery voltage and a current charge state of the battery are determined. These determined values are then used to determine a target battery capacity. The determined battery capacity is compared to a previous battery capacity, and the target battery capacity is adjusted if the comparison is not indicative of the determined charge state. In an embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes either or both of the steps of reporting the target battery capacity and storing the reported capacity as the previous battery capacity.
In a further embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention the two defined charge states are a charging state, and a discharging state. In the charging state, a target battery capacity less than the previous battery capacity is not indicative of the charge state, while a target battery capacity greater than the previous battery capacity is not indicative of the discharging state. In a further embodiment, determining the battery capacity is done by examining a predetermined model of the correlation between voltage, charge state and capacity.
In other embodiments of the present invention adjusting the target capacity can involve changing the target capacity to the value of the previous battery capacity value or changing the target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined fast transition curve that models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined current charge state and battery capacity. In a further embodiment to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided, prior to the step of reporting, an adjustment step for adjusting the target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined slow transition curve. The slow transition curve models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined current charge state and battery capacity, when the target capacity is in a play region around the capacity of the battery when the last change in charge state occurred.
Further aspects of the first aspect of the present invention provide a further adjustment of the target battery capacity based on an effective serial resistance correction factor or to compensate for temperature fluctuations.
A second aspect of the present invention provides a system for determining the capacity of a battery with a memory for storing a previous battery capacity value. The system has voltage reading means, charge state determining means, target capacity determining means, a comparator and target capacity adjusting means. The voltage reading means are operatively connected to the battery to determine the voltage of the battery. The charge state determining means are operatively connected to the battery to determine the charge state of the battery. The target capacity determining means, are operatively connected to the voltage reading means to receive the determined voltage and to the charge state determining means to receive the determined charge state, so that they can compute a target battery capacity based on the determined voltage and the determined charge state. The comparator is operatively connected to the memory to receive the previous battery capacity value and to the target capacity determining means to receive the target battery capacity, it generates a comparison signal representative of the comparison of the previous battery capacity value and the target battery capacity. The target capacity adjusting means are operatively connected to the comparator to receive the comparison signal, to the target capacity determining means to receive the determined target battery capacity and to the charge state determining means to receive the determined charge state. The target capacity adjusting means adjust the determined target battery capacity if the comparison signal is not indicative of the determined charge state, and they also store the adjusted target battery capacity in the memory.
In an embodiment of the second aspect of the present invention there is provided reporting means, operatively connected to the target capacity adjusting means for reporting the adjusted target battery capacity.
In various embodiments, the target capacity adjusting means further includes means for a number of functions. One such function is to adjust the determined target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined fast transition curve that models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined current charge state and battery capacity after a change in charge state. Another such function is to adjust the target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined slow transition curve that models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined current charge state and battery capacity when the target capacity is in a play region around the capacity of the battery when the last change in charge state occurred.
In another embodiment the target capacity adjusting means is also connected to an effective serial resistance tester which is operatively connected to the battery to determine an effective serial resistance correction factor, the target capacity adjusting means further includes means for adjusting the target capacity based on the effective serial resistance correction factor.
In a presently preferred aspect the above described system is integrated into a handheld computing or communicating device.
Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying Figures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the attached Figures, wherein:
FIG. 1 illustrates two curves, a charge and a discharge curve, relating battery voltage to percent capacity for a rechargeable battery, in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a mobile communication device in which the instant invention may be implemented;
FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a preferred embodiment of the method of battery capacity reporting, in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 4 is an enlarged version of a portion of FIG. 1 , the portion bound by a dotted rectangle in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 5 illustrates a transition from the use of the charge curve to the use of the discharge curve of FIG. 4 in a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance to the present invention;
FIG. 6 illustrates a transition from the use of the discharge curve to the use of the charge curve of FIG. 4 in a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance to the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance with FIGS. 5 and 6 ;
FIG. 8 illustrates a transition from the last reported capacity towards the discharge curve of FIG. 4 in a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance to the present invention;
FIG. 9 illustrates a transition from the last reported capacity towards the charge curve of FIG. 4 in a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance with FIGS. 8 and 9 ; and
FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a system of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Generally, the present invention provides a method and system for measuring and reporting battery capacity.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a mobile communication device 10 in which the instant invention may be implemented. The mobile communication device 10 is preferably a two-way communication device having at least voice or data communication capabilities. The device preferably has the capability to communicate with other computer systems on the Internet. Depending on the functionality provided by the device, the device may be referred to as a data messaging device, a two-way pager, a cellular telephone with data messaging capabilities, a wireless Internet appliance or a data communication device (with or without telephony capabilities). It will be apparent to one of skill in the art that batter capacity reporting and measurement has applications that are not limited to the field of mobile communicating and computing devices.
Where the device 10 is enabled for two-way communications, the device will incorporate a communication subsystem 11 , including a receiver 12 , a transmitter 14 , and associated components such as one or more, preferably embedded or internal, antenna elements 16 and 18 , local oscillators (LOs) 13 , and a processing module such as a digital signal processor (DSP) 20 . As will be apparent to those skilled in the field of communications, the particular design of the communication subsystem 11 will be dependent upon the communication network in which the device is intended to operate. For example, a device 10 destined for a North American market may include a communication subsystem 11 designed to operate within the Mobitex™ mobile communication system or DataTAC™ mobile communication system, whereas a device 10 intended for use in Europe may incorporate a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) communication subsystem 11 .
Network access requirements will also vary depending upon the type of network 19 . For example, in the Mobitex™ and DataTAC™ networks, mobile devices such as 10 are registered on the network using a unique personal identification number or PIN associated with each device. In GPRS networks however, network access is associated with a subscriber or user of a device 10 . A GPRS device therefore requires a subscriber identity module (not shown), commonly referred to as a SIM card, in order to operate on a GPRS network. Without a SIM, a GPRS device will not be fully functional. Local or non-network communication functions (if any) may be operable, but the device 10 will be unable to carry out any functions involving communications over network 19 . When required network registration or activation procedures have been completed, a device 10 may send and receive communication signals over the network 19 . Signals received by the antenna 16 through a communication network 19 are input to the receiver 12 , which may perform such common receiver functions as signal amplification, frequency down conversion, filtering, channel selection and analog-digital conversion. Analog to digital conversion of a received signal allows complex communication functions, such as demodulation and decoding, to be performed in the DSP 20 . In a similar manner, signals to be transmitted are processed, including modulation and encoding for example, by the DSP 20 and input to the transmitter 14 for digital to analog conversion, frequency up conversion, filtering, amplification and transmission over the communication network 19 via the antenna 18 .
The DSP 20 not only processes communication signals, but also provides for receiver and transmitter control. For example, the gains applied to communication signals in the receiver 12 and transmitter 14 may be adaptively controlled through automatic gain control algorithms implemented in the DSP 20 .
The device 10 preferably includes a microprocessor 38 which controls the overall operation of the device. Communication functions, including at least one of data and voice communications, are performed through the communication subsystem 11 . The microprocessor 38 also interacts with further device subsystems such as the display 22 , flash memory 24 , random access memory (RAM) 26 , auxiliary input/output (I/O) subsystems 28 , serial port 30 , keyboard 32 , speaker 34 , microphone 36 , a short-range communications subsystem 40 and any other device subsystems generally designated as 42 .
Some of the subsystems shown in FIG. 2 perform communication-related functions, whereas other subsystems may provide “resident” or on-device functions. Notably, some subsystems, such as keyboard 32 and display 22 for example, may be used for both communication-related functions, such as entering a text message for transmission over a communication network, and device-resident functions such as a calculator or task list.
Operating system software used by the microprocessor 38 is preferably stored in a persistent store such as flash memory 24 , which may instead be a read only memory (ROM) or similar storage element (not shown). Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the operating system, specific device applications, or parts thereof, may be temporarily loaded into a volatile store such as RAM 26 . It is contemplated that received communication signals may also be stored to RAM 26 .
The microprocessor 38 , in addition to its operating system functions, preferably enables execution of software applications on the device. A predetermined set of applications which control basic device operations, including at least data and voice communication applications for example, will normally be installed on the device 10 during manufacture. A preferred application that may be loaded onto the device may be a personal information manager (PIM) application having the ability to organise and manage data items relating to the device user such as, but not limited to e-mail, calendar events, voice mails, appointments, and task items. Naturally, one or more memory stores would be available on the device to facilitate storage of PIM data items on the device. Such PIM application would preferably have the ability to send and receive data items, via the wireless network. In a preferred embodiment, the PIM data items are seamlessly integrated, synchronised and updated, via the wireless network, with the device user's corresponding data items stored or associated with a host computer system thereby creating a mirrored host computer on the mobile device with respect to the data items at least. This would be especially advantageous in the case where the host computer system is the mobile device user's office computer system. Further applications may also be loaded onto the device 10 through the network 19 , an auxiliary I/O subsystem 28 , serial port 30 , short-range communications subsystem 40 or any other suitable subsystem 42 , and installed by a user in the RAM 26 or preferably a non-volatile store (not shown) for execution by the microprocessor 38 . Such flexibility in application installation increases the functionality of the device and may provide enhanced on-device functions, communication-related functions, or both. For example, secure communication applications may enable electronic commerce functions and other such financial transactions to be performed using the device 10 .
In a data communication mode, a received signal such as a text message or web page download will be processed by the communication subsystem 11 and input to the microprocessor 38 , which will preferably further process the received signal for output to the display 22 , or alternatively to an auxiliary I/O device 28 . A user of device 10 may also compose data items such as email messages for example, using the keyboard 32 , which is preferably a complete alphanumeric keyboard or telephone-type keypad, in conjunction with the display 22 and possibly an auxiliary I/O device 28 . Such composed items may then be transmitted over a communication network through the communication subsystem 11 .
For voice communications, overall operation of the device 10 is substantially similar, except that received signals would preferably be output to a speaker 34 and signals for transmission would be generated based on an input received through a microphone 36 . Alternative voice or audio I/O subsystems such as a voice message recording subsystem may also be implemented on the device 10 . Although voice or audio signal output is preferably accomplished primarily through the speaker 34 , the display 22 may also be used to provide an indication of the identity of a calling party, the duration of a voice call, or other voice call related information for example.
The serial port 30 in FIG. 2 would normally be implemented in a personal digital assistant (PDA)-type communication device for which synchronisation with a user's desktop computer (not shown) may be desirable, but is an optional device component. Such a port 30 would enable a user to set preferences through an external device or software application and would extend the capabilities of the device by providing for information or software downloads to the device 10 other than through a wireless communication network. The alternate download path may for example be used to load an encryption key onto the device through a direct and thus reliable and trusted connection to thereby enable secure device communication.
A short-range communications subsystem 40 is a further optional component which may provide for communication between the device 10 and different systems or devices, which need not necessarily be similar devices. For example, the subsystem 40 may include an infrared device and associated circuits and components or a Bluetooth™ communication module to provide for communication with similarly-enabled systems and devices.
A charging subsystem 44 is a component that provides power for the device 10 and different subsystems or devices. For example, the charging subsystem 44 may determine the presence of detachable power source device 46 and associated circuits, such as an AC adapter, USB bus, or car adapter to provide power for the device and to charge battery 48 . Additionally, charging subsystem 44 may determine the absence of power source device 46 , and consequently obtain power for the device 10 from battery 48 . When the battery 48 powers device 10 , the battery 48 is said to be in a discharging state. Conversely, when power source device 46 powers device 10 , and charging subsystem charges battery 48 , the battery is said to be in a charging state. The present invention is concerned with reporting the capacity of a battery such as battery 48 .
The battery capacity reported is a function of several factors, including battery voltage, and battery charging current. The relationship between battery voltages, battery charging currents, and battery capacity is modelled using charge curves such as those illustrated in FIG. 1 . Therefore, before describing embodiments of the method and system in detail, several concepts will be defined for greater certainty.
As used in this description and in the appended claims, the battery voltage is defined as the voltage differential between positive and negative terminals of the battery.
As used in this description and in the appended claims, the battery charging current is defined as a current flow into the battery. Battery charging current is capable of taking on a signed value, with a positive value meaning current being delivered into the battery and a negative value meaning current drawn out of the battery.
As used in this description and in the appended claims, charge state, also referred to as charging state, is defined as the sign of the corresponding battery charging current. Therefore reference to a positive charge state is synonymous with charging. Similarly, a negative charge state is synonymous with discharging. The use of either term is clear and unambiguous.
As used in this description and in the appended claims, a capacity model is defined as the relationship between battery voltage, battery charging current, and capacity so that given battery voltage and battery charging current, capacity can be determined by applying the capacity model.
Generally, the method of the present invention adjusts the reported battery capacity to eliminate abrupt discontinuities in the reported battery capacity. The charging state of the battery is determined, and is used to select either the charge or the discharge curve. The voltage of the battery is then read, and using the selected curve a preliminary, or target, capacity is determined. The preliminary capacity is compared to the last reported capacity. The comparison will show an increase in battery capacity while the battery is in a discharge state if the charging has been discontinued, or conversely will show a decrease in capacity while the battery is in the charge state if the charging has been started. Because this is known to be inaccurate, an adjustment is made in the preliminary battery capacity, and the adjusted capacity is reported. The reported capacity is then stored for use in the next cycle. The method of adjustment of the battery capacity can be as simple as reporting the previously reported value until the battery capacity follows the known charge and discharge curves, or it can involve an analysis of the reported voltage and a comparison of the reported voltage to a previously reported voltage to create a new curve through which the battery capacity varies. The methods of the adjustment are described in greater detail below.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , in a preferred embodiment, the method uses a system, such as device 10 of FIG. 2 including a charging subsystem 44 , to assist in determining values for the battery voltage 120 and battery capacity. The charging current can be used to determine the charging state and select either one of the curves 130 , 140 . The charging subsystem 44 is typically capable of performing several operations such as constant current charging operation, constant voltage charging operation, and no charging—or discharging—operation.
Referring now to FIG. 3 , a flowchart illustrating the preferred embodiment of the method of battery capacity reporting, is described in reference to its steps.
At step 210 , the battery voltage 120 is determined. At step 220 , a model 100 is provided, such as for example the model of FIG. 1 . At step 230 , the last reported capacity is provided. At step 240 , a determination is made as to the charging state of the battery. For instance if the battery charging current is determined, the charging state can be derived from the sign of the charging current. Although not expressly shown in the drawings, these first four steps can in any order, or can performed simultaneously.
If at step 240 , it is determined that the battery is charging, step 250 C is taken. Conversely, if at step 240 , it is determined that the battery is discharging, step 250 D is taken. Step 250 C selects the charge curve 140 whereas step 250 D selects the discharge curve 130 . At step 260 , the charge curve model is applied to determine a capacity based on the determined battery voltage of step 210 and other factors.
Two embodiments of a method to carry out step 260 are currently contemplated. FIGS. 5-7 illustrate a first embodiment. FIGS. 8-10 illustrate a second preferred embodiment which is easier to understand in view of the first. Both embodiments will be described in reference to FIG. 4 .
FIG. 4 is an enlarged version of the dotted rectangular region 150 in FIG. 1 . Shown is how the model 100 relates percent capacity 110 to battery voltage 120 for two charge states, the discharge state curve 130 with points 132 and the charge state curve 142 .
In the charge state, the capacity model 100 uses an inherent property of battery charge current, the sign or charge state, to relate battery voltage to capacity as a function of charge state at step 260 .
FIG. 5 illustrates a transition from the use of the charge curve 140 to the use of the discharge curve 130 of FIG. 4 in a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 .
A battery 48 is assumed to be initially charging 140 and at voltage 120 of 3.875 V, corresponding to point 142 . Consequently, a 50% capacity 110 is confidently determined. Next, the battery transitions to the discharging state, for instance if power source 46 of FIG. 2 is disconnected.
A battery that has been charging for a while and has a voltage reading of 3.875V can be confidently gauged to be 50% full by directly mapping off the initial charge curve, corresponding to a charging state. If charging is turned off at this point, then the battery's voltage would have to drop immediately to 3.825V in order for it to map to 50% on the new charge curve, corresponding to a discharging state. However, what is observed is that the battery voltage actually takes some time (for instance tens of minutes, if not more than an hour) to settle to 3.825V from 3.875V after charging has stopped. During that time, mapping the voltage directly off the new charge curve 330 D would yield a capacity value greater than 50%. If that value were reported directly, then the user would see a reported battery capacity jump up to around 60% when the device 10 is disconnected from the charger 46 .
Line D-D defines a discharge region 300 D. Two possible transitions between the charge and discharge curves are shown as transition 320 D and transition 330 D relative to initial charge point 142 . Transitions 330 D and 320 D are illustrative only—several valid transitions such as 320 D and invalid transitions such as 330 D can be defined. They all have in common the fact that valid transitions 320 D only allow the reported capacity to decrease when discharging, whereas invalid transitions 330 D cause the reported capacity to increase while discharging.
FIG. 6 illustrates a transition from the use of the discharge curve 130 to the use of the charge curve 140 of FIG. 4 in a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 .
A battery 48 is assumed to be initially discharging 130 and at voltage 120 of 3.825 V, corresponding to point 132 . Consequently, a 50% capacity 110 is confidently determined. Next, the battery transitions to the charging state, for instance if power source 46 of FIG. 2 is connected.
A battery that has been discharging for a period of time and has a voltage reading of 3.825V can be confidently gauged to be 50% full by directly mapping off the initial charge curve, corresponding to a discharging state. If charging is turned on at this point, then the battery's voltage would have to rise immediately to 3.875V in order for it to map to 50% on the new charge curve, corresponding to a charging state. However, what is observed is that the battery voltage will actually take some time (for instance tens of minutes, if not more than an hour) to settle to 3.875V from 3.825V after charging has started. During that time, mapping the voltage directly off the new charge curve 330 C would yield a capacity value lower than 50%. If that value were reported directly, then the user would see a reported battery capacity jump down to around 30% when the device 10 is connected to the charger 46 .
Line C-C defines a charge region 300 C. Two possible transitions between the charge and discharge curves are shown as transition 320 C and transition 330 C relative to initial discharge point 132 . Transitions 330 C and 320 C are illustrative only—several valid transitions 320 C and invalid transitions 330 C can be defined. They all have in common the fact that valid transitions 320 C only allow the reported capacity to increase when charging, whereas invalid transitions 330 D would cause the reported capacity to decrease while charging.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a first embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance to FIGS. 5 and 6 .
System 10 provides the last reported capacity at step 410 and a candidate capacity at step 420 . At step 430 , a determination is made as to the charging state of battery 48 , similar to step 240 already described in reference to FIG. 3 . If the battery 48 is in the charging state, then steps 440 C, 450 C or 460 are taken. Conversely, if the battery is in the discharging state, then steps 440 D, 450 D or 460 are taken.
If the battery 48 is in the charging state, at step 440 C, the candidate capacity provided in step 420 is compared to the last reported capacity provided in step 410 . If the candidate capacity is greater than the last reported capacity, then at step 450 C the candidate charge capacity provided at step 420 is used. Conversely, if the candidate capacity is less than or equal to the last reported capacity, the last reported capacity is used at step 460 . This ensures that only charge transitions 320 C of FIG. 6 occur, avoiding transitions of the type of 330 C outside the charge region 300 C.
If the battery 48 is in the discharging state, at step 440 D, the candidate capacity provided in step 420 is compared to the last reported capacity provided in step 410 . If the candidate capacity is less than the last reported capacity, then at step 450 D the candidate discharge capacity provided at step 420 is used. Conversely, if the candidate capacity is greater than or equal to the last reported capacity, the last reported capacity is used at step 460 . This ensures that only discharge transitions 320 D of FIG. 5 occur, avoiding transitions of the type of 330 D outside the discharge region 300 D.
According to the method of FIG. 7 , the reported capacity is only allowed to increase when the battery is in a charging state. Similarly, the reported capacity is only allowed to decrease when the battery is in a discharging state.
When a change in charge state occurs, from the first initial charge state to the second new charge state, it may take some time for the battery to reach a new dynamic equilibrium at the second charge state. During this transition period, it is possible that neither the charge curve corresponding to the initial charge state nor the charge curve corresponding to the new charge state provides a sufficiently accurate voltage-to-capacity mapping. For instance, in reference to FIGS. 5-6 , a transition midway along line DD or CC would have a constant 50% last reported capacity but could have a voltage of 3.850 V, a point that is neither on the charge curve nor on the discharge curve. This concept leads to the preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , which will be discussed presently in reference to FIGS. 8-10 .
FIG. 8 illustrates a transition from the last reported capacity 500 towards the discharge curve 130 of FIG. 4 in a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 . As compared to FIG. 5 , discharge area 300 D is still defined by line DD. A “fast” transition 520 D replaces transition 320 D. However, instead of avoiding the reporting of all transitions 330 D that might increase reported capacity, a smaller charge “play” area 510 D is defined by line CC and “slow” transitions 530 D through the charge play area 510 D are allowed. “Fast” and “slow” are relative to one another so that their cumulative long-term effect is to favour the reporting of capacity decreases when in the discharge state. For example, a “fast” transition might take 8.5 minutes to travel 80 percent of the distance to the discharge curve 130 whereas a “slow” transition might take 34.3 minutes. Note that transitions 330 D outside the play area 510 D still do not cause a change in the reported capacity.
FIG. 9 illustrates a transition from the last reported capacity towards the charge curve of FIG. 4 in a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 . As compared to FIG. 6 , charge area 300 C is still defined by line CC. A “fast” transition 520 C replaces transition 320 C. However, instead of “banning” all transitions 330 C that might decrease reported capacity, a smaller discharge “play” area 510 C is defined by line DD and “slow” transitions 530 C through the discharge “play” area 510 C are allowed. “Fast” and “slow” are relative to one another so that their cumulative long-term effect is to favour the reporting of capacity increases when the battery is in the charge state. For example, a “fast” transition might take 1 minute to travel 80 percent of the distance to the discharge curve 130 whereas a “slow” transition might take 17.2 minutes. Note that transitions 330 C outside the play area 510 C still do not cause a change in the reported capacity.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a preferred embodiment of a method to carry out step 260 of FIG. 3 , in accordance to FIGS. 8 and 9 .
At step 610 , “fast” and “slow” transition rates are provided by system 10 . These rates can differ depending on whether the battery is in a charge state or in a discharge state, as was described in reference to FIGS. 8 and 9 .
At step 620 , a target capacity is provided by the system 10 . Preferably, the target capacity lies either on the charge curve 140 or the discharge curve 130 depending on whether the battery is in a charge state or a discharge state, respectively.
At step 640 , a “play” region is provided by the system 10 . Preferably, the “play” region varies with the slope of the charge 140 or discharge 130 curves, and is a function of the charge state. For instance, if the last reported capacity while charging is less than 7%, a 1% wide play region can be used, whereas if the last reported capacity is greater or equal to 7%, a 6% wide play region can be used. Similarly, if the last reported capacity while discharging is greater than 10%, a 6% wide play region can be used, whereas if the last reported capacity is smaller than or equal to 10%, a 1% wide play region can be used.
At step 640 , a determination is made as to the charging state of battery 48 , similar to step 240 already described in reference to FIG. 3 . If the battery 48 is in the charging state, then step 650 C is taken, as well as 660 C or 670 , 680 or 690 . Conversely, if the battery is in the discharging state, then step 650 D is taken, as well as 660 D or 670 , 680 or 690 .
If the battery is in a charging state, at step 650 C, the target capacity provided in step 620 is compared to the last reported capacity. If the target capacity is greater than the last reported capacity, then at step 660 C a “fast” transition towards the charge target capacity ensues. However, if the target capacity is less than or equal to the last reported capacity, then at step 670 , the target capacity is checked with respect to the “play” region. If the target capacity is within the play region, then at step 680 a “slow” transition towards the charge target capacity ensues. However, if the target capacity is outside the “play” region, then at step 690 the last reported capacity is used.
If the battery is in a discharging state, at step 650 D, the target capacity provided in step 620 is compared to the last reported capacity. If the target capacity is less than the last reported capacity, then at step 660 D a “fast” transition towards the discharge target capacity ensues. However, if the target capacity is greater or equal to the last reported capacity, then at step 670 , the target capacity is checked with respect to the “play” region. If the target capacity is within the play region, then at step 680 a “slow” transition towards the discharge target capacity ensues. However, if the target capacity is outside the “play” region, then at step 690 the last reported capacity is used.
Although not expressly shown in the drawings, in another embodiment, a corrected battery voltage is computed before utilising the new charge curve. In order to compute the voltage correction, a measured battery current is taken from the battery. The value of the measured battery current can be positive or negative, depending on the direction of current flow into or out of the battery.
Using an effective serial resistance (ESR) for the battery, a battery voltage correction term is obtained by multiplying the value of the ESR for the battery and an estimated battery current. The corrected battery voltage is obtained by adding the battery voltage correction term to the estimated battery voltage while taking into account the direction of current flow in the addition. The estimated battery current can be determined by several ways, such as by measurement. The corrected battery voltage is utilised with the new charge curve in order to find a corresponding capacity.
As used in this description and in the appended claims, ESR corrected capacity reporting is defined as reporting a new capacity by correcting the battery voltage based on ESR and an estimated battery current prior to determining the capacity based on the corrected battery voltage.
Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, in order to keep the reported capacity from transitioning too abruptly, the reported capacity is affected with the value of the corresponding capacity progressively such that the reported capacity reaches the value of the corresponding capacity at a convergence rate which is selected from a multiplicity of convergence rates comprising a “fast” convergence rate and a “slow” convergence rate. The determination of which convergence rate to use is made as a function of the difference between the last reported capacity and the charge curve capacity, as well as the charge state of the battery. As used in this description and in the appended claims, progressive capacity reporting is defined as reporting a new capacity by a progression from an initial capacity to the new capacity over time.
Although not explicitly shown in the drawings, temperature corrections can be utilised throughout to ensure that the temperature of the battery is also taken into account.
The above method is typically implemented as an embodiment of charging subsystem 44 . The system includes means for determining the voltage of the battery and its present charge state. These means provide the determined values to means for determining the target capacity. The target capacity is determined according to the methods described above and is then provided to a comparator, which compares the target capacity with previous capacity. The result of the comparison is used by target capacity adjusting means to adjust the target capacity value. The adjustment can use any combination of the methods described above to adjust the value of the battery capacity.
As illustrated in FIG. 11 the charging subsystem 44 has voltage reading means 700 , charge state determining means 702 , target capacity determining means 704 , a comparator 706 , whose functionality may be provided by microprocessor 38 , and target capacity adjusting means 708 . The voltage reading means 700 are operatively connected to the battery 48 to determine the voltage of the battery 48 . The charge state determining means 702 are operatively connected to the battery 48 to determine the charging state of the battery 48 . The target capacity determining means 704 , are operatively connected to the voltage reading means 700 to receive the determined voltage and to the charge state determining means 702 to receive the determined charging state, so that they can compute a target battery capacity based on the determined voltage and the determined charging state. The comparator 706 is operatively connected to the memory 710 , which may be flash memory 24 , RAM 26 or another memory system, to receive the previous battery capacity value and to the target capacity determining means 704 to receive the target battery capacity. Comparator 706 generates a comparison signal representative of the comparison of the previous battery capacity value and the target battery capacity. The target capacity adjusting means 708 are operatively connected to the comparator 706 to receive the comparison signal, to the target capacity determining means 704 to receive the determined target battery capacity and to the charge state determining means 702 to receive the determined charging state. The target capacity adjusting means 708 adjust the determined target battery capacity if the comparison signal is not indicative of the determined charging state, and they also store the adjusted target battery capacity in the memory 710 . Optionally, there may also be reporting means 712 , operatively connected to the target capacity adjusting means 708 for reporting the adjusted target battery capacity.
In various embodiments, the target capacity adjusting means 708 further includes means for a number of functions. One such function is to adjust the determined target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined fast transition curve that models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined present charging state and battery capacity after a change in charging state. Another such function is to adjust the target capacity to a capacity determined from a predefined slow transition curve that models the relationship between the determined battery voltage, the determined present charging state and battery capacity when the target capacity is in a play region around the capacity of the battery when the last change in charging state occurred.
In another embodiment the target capacity adjusting means 708 is also connected to an effective serial resistance tester 714 which is operatively connected to the battery 48 to determine an effective serial resistance correction factor, the target capacity adjusting means 708 further includes means for adjusting the target capacity based on the effective serial resistance correction factor. In embodiment of the present invention, the above described system is integrated into a handheld computing or communicating device.
The above-described aspects of the invention provide a system and method that mitigate the uncertainty in battery capacity reporting resulting from the transition between the charge and discharge curves of the battery model that are present in the prior art. Additionally the present invention accounts for the plastic relationship between battery voltage and battery capacity.
The above-described embodiments of the present invention are intended to be examples only. Alterations, modifications and variations may be effected to the particular embodiments by those of skill in the art without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined solely by the claims appended hereto.
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A method and system for accurately reporting battery capacity is disclosed herein. The disclosed method and system prevent the reporting of discontinuous capacity values resulting from starting or stopping recharge cycles. The disclosed method and system prevent over or under reporting of battery capacity due to the transition between charge and discharge curves in a battery model.
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RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part application of allowed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/770,454 filed Jan. 29, 2001.
SCOPE OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to a finishing strip which is adapted to be secured along the cut edges of floor coverings and more particularly, a kit containing one or more finishing strips which permits an individual consumer to finish such a cut edge without the need for special tools.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Floor coverings, such as floor runners and mats are frequently sold and dispensed in roll format. Conventional carpet rolls consist of an elongated carpet runner which is wound about a spool. Conventional carpet runners and mats are typically manufactured with stitching along each of their longitudinal edges to provide a finished and more aesthetically pleasing appearance. In addition, the edge stitching helps prevent the unraveling of carpet fibers as the carpet wears. Consumers purchase carpet runners and mats by the yard or metre, unrolling the desired length of runner from the spool, after which the unraveled length of carpet runner is cut transversely to its longitudinal length to separate it from a remainder of the roll.
[0004] A disadvantage with conventional roll carpet runners exists in that as carpet runners are cut to varying lengths depending upon the needs of the individual consumers, the purchased carpet runner is typically left with ragged cut ends which do not match the stitching of the factory formed longitudinal edges. In addition to being unsightly, the unfinished ends of the carpet tend to fray and separate.
[0005] Heretofore, if a retailer wished to sell variable lengths of carpet from a roll, or even carpet remnants with a finished edge, it has been necessary to send the carpet to a carpet finisher offsite to finish the edges. This increases the inconvenience to the carpet purchaser and may delay delivery of the finished product by several weeks.
[0006] Various individuals have proposed wooden or plastic trim pieces which are adapted to be secured over the cut ends of the carpet runner. In addition to causing discomfort if walked or stepped upon, conventional end trim pieces are typically unsightly and do not provide the purchased length of carpet runner with a factory or handmade appearance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The present invention seeks to overcome at least some of the difficulties associated with prior art devices by providing a finishing strip which is adapted to be secured over the cut edge or end of a carpet runner, mat, or other floor covering.
[0008] Another object of the invention is to provide a kit which permits the attachment of a fabric strip over or along a cut edge of a floor covering without special tools, equipment or skills.
[0009] Another object of the invention is to provide a fabric strip which is adapted to be positioned so as to conceal the cut edge of a floor covering, and which has a fiber configuration and/or colour substantially corresponding to the fiber configuration and/or colour of any factory finished edges.
[0010] A further object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive and easily applied finishing strip which is adapted to be placed over the cut edge of a carpet runner and which prevents the end and/or stitched prefinished edges of the runner from fraying.
[0011] Another object of the invention is to provide for use in combination with a carpet runner roll, an edging strip comprising a fabric ribbon and an adhesive which may be used to permanently secure the ribbon over a cut end of a selected length of carpet runner.
[0012] Another object of the invention is to provide a kit which may be used in combination with a rolled carpet runner and which includes an adhesive backed serging ribbon having a length and width selected to permit its placement over a cut edge or end of the runner, and which has a fiber orientation which mimics the fiber orientation of any preformed factory stitched or formed edges of the runner.
[0013] The present invention provides a kit for use in finishing one or more cut edge of floor coverings such as mats, carpets and carpet runners. Most preferably, the kit is adapted to finish the cut ends of roll runners which are characterized by parallel and longitudinally extending preformed factory stitched or otherwise finished side edges. The kit includes a finishing or edging strip which is elongated in a longitudinal direction and which preferably has a length equal to or exceeding the length of the cut edge to be finished. The lateral width of the edging strip is selected so that when secured in place, the strip substantially covers and conceals the cut edge. Although not essential, more preferably, the lateral width of the finishing strip is selected greater than the maximum thickness of the floor covering along the cut edge, so as to overlap upper and/or lower edge portions of the floor covering immediately adjacent to the cut edge. The edging strip includes a flexible fabric or non-fabric ribbon or other suitable finishing strip. The ribbon may have various configurations, and may include without limitation, fabric ribbons, ribbons made from woven and/or knit fibers, ribbons made from serged fibers, and ribbons made from knotted fibers, with or without tassels. Most preferably the fabric has colour and/or fiber orientation which corresponds or complements the colour and/or fiber orientation of any factory finished edges on the uncut ends or sides of the floor covering. Most preferably, the ribbon comprises a serging ribbon having a medial portion with woven and/or elongated fibers oriented substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal length of the strip. Optionally, the elongated fibers may be tied off to form elongated tassels or the like, which extend laterally from a longitudinal side edge of the ribbon.
[0014] An attachment member is provided to permanently secure the ribbon in position substantially overlapping the cut edge. Suitable attachment members include adhesive tape or a bead of adhesive which permanently bonds the finishing strip to the floor covering. The adhesives may include either heat or non-heat activated glues provided at spaced locations or continuously along the cut edge. More preferably, however, the attachment member comprises a piece of two-sided tape having a length and width generally corresponding to that of the finishing strip. The two-sided tape is secured along a first side to the finishing strip, and a release sheet is carried by and releasably secured to the second other side of the tape. The release sheet is removed to activate the adhesive tape, whereupon the second side of the tape is pressed into contact with the floor covering to secure the finishing strip or ribbon in place.
[0015] Accordingly, in one aspect the present invention resides in a kit for finishing a cut edge of a floor covering comprising,
[0016] a fabric strip, said strip being elongated in a longitudinal direction and having a lateral width selected greater than a maximum thickness of said floor covering along said cut edge,
[0017] and an attachment member for securing said strip to said floor covering in a position substantially overlapping said cut edge, said attachment member including an adhesive for permanently bonding said strip to said floor covering.
[0018] In another aspect a kit for finishing a cut edge of a floor covering comprising,
[0019] a finishing strip selected from fabric, woven fibers, knit fibers, serged fibers, knitted fibers, finishing strips, said strip being elongated in a longitudinal direction and having a lateral width selected greater than a maximum thickness of said floor covering along said cut edge,
[0020] and an attachment member for securing said strip to said floor covering in a position substantially adjacent to said cut edge, said attachment member including an adhesive for permanently bonding said strip to said floor covering.
[0021] In another aspect, the present invention resides in combination a carpet roll and a carpet edging strip,
[0022] the carpet roll having prefinished longitudinally extending side edges, and being adapted to be cut laterally into at least one carpet runner presenting an unfinished cut edge,
[0023] the carpet edging strip including
[0024] a ribbon elongated in a longitudinal direction and having a lateral width selected to substantially overlap said cut ends, and
[0025] an adhesive strip for permanently securing said ribbon in overlying juxtaposition with a first one of said cut ends.
[0026] In a further aspect, the present invention resides in combination a carpet runner and a kit for finishing a cut edge of said carpet runner,
[0027] the carpet runner having prefinished longitudinally extending side edges, and at least one generally laterally extending cut end,
[0028] a kit including an edging strip comprising
[0029] an elongate serge ribbon having a longitudinal length and a lateral width, the ribbon including a longitudinally extending medial portion characterized by at least 80% of said fibers being arranged in an orientation of between about ±60 to 90 degrees (ie. oriented in either direction), and more preferably about ±70 to 90 degrees, from the longitudinal direction of said ribbon,
[0030] an adhesive strip of double-sided tape for securing said ribbon in overlying juxtaposition with said cut end, said double-sided tape having a longitudinal length and width substantially corresponding to that of said ribbon, a first side of said tape being aligned with and secured to a first side of said ribbon, and
[0031] a release sheet being releasably secured to the second other side of tape.
[0032] In yet another aspect, the invention resides in a finishing strip for use in finishing a cut edge of a floor covering having at least one other factory finished edge, the finishing strip being elongated in a longitudinal direction and including an attachment member for securing said strip to said floor covering in a position substantially adjacent to said cut edge, a portion of said strip characterized by elongate fibers being arranged in an orientation of between about ±60 to 90 degrees from the longitudinal direction of said strip, the attachment member including an adhesive for placement generally interposed between said finishing strip and said floor covering to permanently bond said strip over the cut edge of said floor covering.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0033] Reference may now be had to the following detailed description taken together with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0034] [0034]FIG. 1 illustrates schematically the storage and display of rolled carpet runners for use with the present invention;
[0035] [0035]FIG. 2 illustrates schematically a partial cut away perspective view of a carpet edging strip for use in finishing a cut end of a carpet runner in accordance with a preferred embodiment;
[0036] [0036]FIG. 3 shows a partial cross-sectional view of the cut end of a carpet runner with the edge strip of FIG. 2 in position secured thereto;
[0037] [0037]FIG. 4 shows a partial perspective bottom view of the carpet runner and edge strip of FIG. 3;
[0038] [0038]FIG. 5 illustrates a partial perspective top view of the carpet runner and edge strip of FIG. 3; and
[0039] [0039]FIG. 6 illustrates a partial cross sectional view of a carpet with an edge strip in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention positioned thereon.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0040] [0040]FIG. 1 shows a roll runner display and dispensing stand 10 which is used in the display and dispensation of whole length floor runners which have been rolled along their longitudinal length into cylindrical carpet rolls 12 a, 12 b, 12 c. The stand 10 includes a metal frame 14 which is used to mount a series of carpet roll supporting rods 16 a, 16 b, 16 c which are inserted through the middle of each carpet roll 12 a, 12 b, 12 c, respectively.
[0041] Each carpet roll 12 a, 12 b, 12 c typically consists of an elongated continuous piece of carpet having a lateral width selected between about 2 and 6 feet, and an overall longitudinal length of between about 50 to 200 feet, depending upon the thickness of the carpet pile and the size of the display stand 10 used. In the use of the display stand 10 , a desired length of carpet runner is uncoiled from a selected roll 12 in the longitudinal direction. A knife (not shown) is then drawn laterally across the width of the runner to sever the desired length of uncoiled carpet runner 18 (FIG. 3) from a remainder of the carpet roll 12 . It is to be appreciated that each end of the severed carpet runner 18 is characterized by cut unfinished edges or ends, namely, a first cut end 20 (FIG. 1) formed upon the severing of the previous length of carpet runner (not shown) dispensed from the roll 12 , with the second and opposing cut end 22 (FIG. 4) formed when the dispensed length of carpet runner 18 is severed.
[0042] As shown best in FIG. 3, the carpet runner 18 includes a woven rubber, gel foam, plastic or other mesh or synthetic backing 26 onto which the carpet fibers 28 are secured by either gluing or weaving. Each longitudinal edge 30 a, 30 b (FIG. 1) of the carpet runner 18 is prefinished during the manufacture of the roll 12 . Most preferably, the edges 30 a, 30 b are finished by stitching with a wool, nylon or other synthetic thread or fiber. Although not essential, as shown best in FIGS. 4 and 5 typically the stitching of the prefinished edges 30 a, 30 b is done with the majority and preferably at least about 80% of the individual edging fibers 32 arranged in an orientation of between about ±60 to 90 degrees from the longitudinal extent of the edges 30 a, 30 b. Most preferably, the fibers 32 are oriented approximately perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the respective edges 30 a, 30 b.
[0043] As shown best in FIG. 2, to provide the dispensed length of carpet runner 18 with a factory finished or customized look and eliminate the exposure of aesthetically unpleasing cut carpet ends, the present invention further provides for an edge finishing kit 36 to be used in conjunction with the dispensed length of carpet runner 18 . As will be described, the kit 36 is used to provide a factory finished or customized appearance to the carpet ends 20 , 22 which mimics the appearance of the factory prefinished edges 30 a, 30 b.
[0044] The kit 36 most preferably consists of an elongated edging strip 38 for concealing the carpet ends 20 , 22 and instructions (not shown) used to guide the consumer in the application of the edging strip 38 to the carpet runner 18 . Although not essential, edging strip 38 preferably has a longitudinal length greater than one and preferably both of the carpet ends 20 , 22 . The edging strip 38 may be presented in a compact roll, and preferably consists of a fabric ribbon 40 , an elongated strip of double-sided adhesive tape 42 and a release sheet 44 which, for example, may be formed from plastic, waxed or other coated papers.
[0045] [0045]FIG. 2 shows best the fabric ribbon 40 as comprising a serging fabric strip of woven fibers. The ribbon 40 has a lateral width W which is selected to overlap adjacent edge portions of both the carpet fibers 28 and the carpet backing 26 when positioned in overlapping juxtaposition with one of the runner ends 20 , 22 . The ribbon 40 includes a medial portion 46 which is defined by one or more rows of edge stitching 48 which extend longitudinally the length of the ribbon 40 . The medial portion 46 of the ribbon 40 is characterized by elongated wool, olefin, nylon or other synthetic fibers, of which at least 70%, and more preferably at least 80%, are arranged in an orientation of between about ±70 to 90 degrees relative to the direction of the longitudinal extent of the ribbon 40 . It is to be appreciated that the edge stitching 48 provides the necessary strength and integrity to the ribbon 40 and maintains the desired orientation of the fibers which form the medial portion 46 . The lateral width w of the medial portion 46 is also selected greater than the thickness of the cut ends 20 , 22 so that when the ribbon 40 is secured in place, the fibers which comprise the medial portion 46 extend substantially over a respective cut end 20 , 22 and a marginal distance over the carpet fibers 28 which locate immediately adjacent thereto.
[0046] Preferably, the ribbon 40 has a colour which is complementary, and more preferably substantially identical to the colour of the fibers 46 used to form the prefinished side edges 30 a, 30 b of the carpet runner 18 .
[0047] [0047]FIG. 2 shows best the double-sided adhesive tape 42 as comprising an elongated rectangular strip of material having a length and width substantially corresponding to the longitudinal length and lateral width of the serging ribbon 40 . A first side 48 of the double-sided tape 42 is bonded to the back of the ribbon 40 , aligned therewith. The release sheet 44 is positioned over the second other rear side 50 of the double-sided tape 42 so as to prevent the rear side 50 of the tape 42 from accidentally bonding to the ribbon 40 when coiled.
[0048] Optionally, the double-sided tape 42 and/or release sheet 40 may be provided with visual indicia 52 (FIG. 2) to assist a user in the correct positioning of the strip 38 along an end 20 , 22 and/or to determine the desired length of ribbon 40 required to cover a cut end 20 , 22 . Although not essential, the double-sided tape 42 is preferably a clear transparent tape so as to minimize the possibility that the tape 42 may create an unsightly or aesthetically unpleasing appearance when the ribbon 40 is installed. Most preferably, a longitudinally extending thread 52 of contrasting colour is provided between the ribbon 40 and tape 42 to assist the user in aligning the strip 38 in the correct position.
[0049] The tape 42 is selected to comply with five regulations and may, for example, comprise latex based or low volatile adhesives on a synthetic or natural rubber based backing film.
[0050] In use of the invention, the individual purchases a desired length of carpet runner 18 in the manner previously described, together with an edge finishing kit 38 which contains one or more serging ribbons 40 having a complementary or identical colour to that of the prefinished longitudinal side edges 30 a, 30 b of the carpet runner 18 purchased.
[0051] To finish the cut end 22 of the carpet runner 18 , a length of edging strip 38 is either cut or is supplied in pre-cut lengths approximately 3 to 6 inches longer than the length of the cut end 22 (FIG. 3) to be finished. The release sheet 44 is removed from the back side 50 of the cut length of tape 42 by peeling it away, to expose the adhesive on the back side 50 of the tape 42 . As shown best in FIGS. 3 and 4, the double-sided tape 42 is then aligned with and pressed against the carpet end 22 , to secure it together with the ribbon 40 in a position partially overlapping not only the cut edge 22 itself, but an adjacent portion of the carpet backing 26 and the carpet fibers 28 immediately adjacent thereto. The tape 42 and ribbon 40 are secured in place so that the medial portion 46 of the ribbon 40 extends substantially upwardly across the cut end 22 , and over approximately one-quarter to three-quarters of an inch of the carpet fibers 28 immediately adjacent the end 22 . As shown in FIG. 4, at each comer of the carpet runner 18 where the cut end 22 meets the prefinished edges 30 a, 30 b, the ribbon 40 is folded back under the carpet runner 18 at approximately a 30 to 60 degree angle. The adhesive tape 42 of the edging strip 38 is bonded to the carpet backing 20 to secure the folded under portion 56 of the strip 38 against the carpet 18 . The opposite cut end 20 is finished in the identical manner.
[0052] It is to be appreciated that when the ribbon 40 is secured over the ends 20 , 22 , the fibers of the medial portion 46 of the serging ribbon 40 assume an orientation approximately perpendicular to the longitudinal extent of the end 20 , 22 , just as the fibers of the prefinished edges 30 a, 30 b are oriented generally perpendicular to the longitudinal edge of each side. As a result, as shown best in FIG. 5, the carpet runner 18 visually appears to have factory preformed edges, not only along each longitudinal side edge 30 a, 30 b, but also across each cut end 20 , 22 , creating a more visually pleasing appearance. The attachment of the serging ribbon 40 further advantageously prevents the carpet fibers and/or the stitching of the preformed edges 30 a, 30 b adjacent to the cut ends 20 , 22 from fraying.
[0053] The use of double-sided tape 42 has been found to be preferred in that it assists in maintaining the desired fiber orientation of the medial portion 46 of the serging ribbon 40 , minimizing the likelihood that the fibers may be torn or pulled apart with carpet wear or vacuuming. Similarly, the use of a clear transparent double-sided tape 42 , while not essential, advantageously minimizes the likelihood that the tape 42 will leave an unsightly appearance if, for example, the fibers of the serging ribbon 40 pull or separate from each other.
[0054] While the preferred embodiment of the invention describes a finishing strip having a serging ribbon 40 , the invention is not so limited. If desired, other fabric and non-fabric finishing ribbons or strips could equally be used depending on the appearance of the edge to be achieved.
[0055] Although the disclosure describes the placement of the serging ribbon 40 over the cut ends 20 , 22 of a carpet runner 18 , it is to be appreciated that the invention may be used to conceal the unfinished edges of various different types of floor coverings. Reference may be had to FIG. 6 which illustrates an edging strip 38 used to conceal a cut edge 60 of a carpet 62 in accordance with a further embodiment, wherein like reference numerals are used to identify like components. In FIG. 6, the edging strip 38 comprises an elongated woven or knit ribbon 40 which is secured over the cut edge 64 of a carpet 66 by a strip of double sided tape 42 . To better conceal the edge 64 , the knit ribbon 40 includes tassels 70 extending from one longitudinal edge of the strip 38 .
[0056] The knit ribbon 40 is secured in place by first removing a release sheet (not shown) from the back of the tape 42 . The ribbon 40 is then positioned with the double sided tape 42 overlying the carpet fibers 28 immediately adjacent to the cut edge 64 , so that the tassels 70 extend beyond and conceal the edge 64 .
[0057] While the disclosure describes the use of a double sided tape 42 as an attachment member used to secure the ribbon 40 in position, the invention is not so limited. It is to be appreciated that a single-sided adhesive tape which is chemically bonded or physically attached to the ribbon 40 , as for example by stitching, could also be used. Similarly, hot melt adhesives, non-heat activated adhesives and epoxies or even mechanical fasteners could also be used with the edging strip 38 , without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
[0058] It is to be appreciated that the kit 38 of the present invention may be sold to the individual consumers who purchase the length of carpet runner 18 for in home use. Alternately, the kit 38 could be marketed to retailers for use by in-store employees who finish the cut ends of a length of floor runner 38 on behalf of the end purchasers.
[0059] Although the disclosure describes and illustrates various preferred embodiments, the invention is not so limited. Many modifications and variations will now occur to persons skilled in the art. For a definition of the invention, reference may be had to the appended claims.
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A kit for use in finishing a cut edge of floor coverings such as mats, carpets, carpet runners, and roll runners having a cut side edge including an elongated edging strip which has a length equal to or exceeding the length of the cut edge to be finished. The lateral width of the edging strip is selected so that when secured in place, the strip substantially covers and conceals the cut edge. The edging strip includes a flexible ribbon and an attachment member provided to permanently secure the ribbon in position substantially overlapping the cut edge. Preferably, the attachment member comprises a piece of two-sided tape having a length and width generally corresponding to that of the finishing strip. The two-sided tape is secured along a first side to the finishing strip, and a release sheet is carried by and releasably secured to the second other side of the tape. In use, the release sheet is removed to activate the adhesive tape, whereupon the second side of the tape is pressed into contact with the floor covering to secure the finishing strip or ribbon in place.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Dyeing machines are known to comprise a platform onto which more vessels are positioned in a preset order, said vessels being able to contain predetermined amounts of products which contribute to form, suitably metered, dyeing baths within suitable tanks. Inside each tank a basket is manually inserted which contains the material to be dyed, the same basket being taken out, also manually, after a preset time.
[0002] U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,636 describes a machine comprising a horizontal platform upon which the vessels containing the basic products and the means associated with a movable carriage located above said platform, are positioned according to a program to remove the products from said vessels and meter the same products within other containers inside which the solutions to be delivered to the dyeing tanks are formed.
[0003] The existing machines, although able to automate in part the dyeing cycle, require the intervention of an operator for completing the cycle.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0004] The main object of the present invention is to eliminate or at least greatly reduce the above drawback.
[0005] This result has been achieved, according to the invention, by adopting the idea of making a machine having the characteristics disclosed in claim 1 . Further characteristics being set forth in the dependent claims.
[0006] The present invention makes it possible to significantly raise the automation level of the dyeing cycle, thus releasing the operators from exacting operations, such as the loading of material-holding baskets into the dyeing tanks and, respectively, the unloading thereof from the same tanks, so as to reduce the risk related to possible errors in handling the baskets, and increase the safety and reliability of the cycle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] These and other advantages and characteristics of the invention will be best understood by anyone skilled in the art from a reading of the following description in conjunction with the attached drawings given as a practical exemplification of the invention, but not to be considered in a limitative sense, wherein:
[0008] [0008]FIG. 1A is a schematic plan view of a machine according to the invention;
[0009] [0009]FIG. 1B is a schematic side view of the machine of FIG. 1;
[0010] [0010]FIG. 2 shows the carriage with the means for metering the products and the means for grasping the material-holding means;
[0011] [0011]FIG. 3 is a schematic view in diametral section of a material-holding basket;
[0012] FIGS. 4 A- 4 F show schematically a sequence of the operating steps relating to the loading of baskets into the tanks;
[0013] FIGS. 5 A- 5 E show schematically a sequence of the operating steps relating to the metering of baskets within the dyeing tanks;
[0014] [0014]FIG. 6 shows schematically a vessel with a corresponding pipette;
[0015] [0015]FIG. 7 is a schematic view in diametral section of a tank;
[0016] [0016]FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the programmable system for operating the machine;
[0017] [0017]FIG. 9 shows schematically a further embodiment of the carriage ( 5 );
[0018] FIGS. 10 A- 10 D show schematically a sequence of steps relating to the use of the means for the removal and delivery of powdered substances.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0019] Reduced to its basic structure, and reference being made to FIGS. 1 - 5 E of the accompanying drawings, a machine according to the invention comprises a stationary structure ( 1 ) with a platform ( 10 ) on which more vessels ( 2 ) are positioned in correspondence of preset locations, each vessel ( 2 ) being provided for containing a liquid product that contributes to form a dyeing bath, as described later on.
[0020] Associated with the same structured ( 1 ) are more dyeing tanks ( 3 ) also disposed in correspondence of preset locations.
[0021] Moreover, the said structure ( 1 ) exhibits an area ( 11 ) on which, in correspondence of preset locations, more material-holding baskets ( 4 ) are positioned.
[0022] According to the example shown in FIG. 1A, the vessels ( 2 ) and baskets ( 4 ) are on opposite sides with respect to the tanks ( 3 ), and the structure ( 1 ) is made of one body having a development mostly longitudinal.
[0023] Associated with each vessel ( 2 ) is a corresponding pipette ( 20 ), in much the same way as described in the above mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,636 to which reference can be made for further details: each pipette ( 20 ) comprises a needle ( 21 ) which is to result at right angle within the liquid of the respective vessel ( 2 ), a plunger ( 22 ) allowing the liquid drawn therefrom to be delivered through the needle ( 21 ) and exhibiting a hold portion ( 23 ) with peripheral collar-like surface ( 24 ) allowing plugging the vessel when the pipette is inserted therein.
[0024] Each tank ( 3 ) may be, for example, of a type comprising a cylindrical chamber ( 30 ) wherein a material-holding basket ( 4 ) is to be disposed. Mounted inside said chamber ( 30 ) is a blade impeller ( 36 ) driven into rotation about its longitudinal axis (coinciding with the longitudinal axis of the tank) by an electric motor ( 32 ) which is engaged to said impeller via a magnetic transmission ( 33 , 34 ): the rotation of the flange ( 35 ) borne by the motor ( 32 ) and wherein the magnets ( 33 ) are positioned, is cause for the rotation of the impeller ( 36 ) located inside the chamber ( 30 ). Disposed in the base of the impeller ( 36 ) and engaged solid thereto are the magnets ( 34 ) coupled to magnets ( 33 ). The tanks are provided with electric resistors ( 37 ) able to heat the dyeing bath which forms therein, cooling chambers ( 38 ) through which water or other cooling fluid (A) is made to run, and with a section ( 39 ) for discharging the bath. Finally, disposed on each tank ( 3 ) is a lid ( 300 ) able to be moved in closing and respectively opening position by means of corresponding actuators (not shown for the sake of clarity in the figures of the attached drawings). Indicated by ( 31 ) is a bath limiter, that is, a body centrally disposed in the tank to reduce the volume available for the bath, thereby reducing the required amount thereof for use.
[0025] Each material-holding basket ( 4 ) comprises a perforated tubular body ( 40 ) on the outer surface of which the material (M) to be dyed is disposed, and on the base of which a rim ( 41 ) is formed to allow the hold thereof, as will be described later.
[0026] Acting on said structure ( 1 ) is a motor-driven carriage ( 5 ), supported by the same structure via corresponding guides ( 50 , 51 ) developed parallel and across thereto, the said carriage being associated with:
[0027] means ( 6 ) for grasping, handling and activating the pipettes ( 2 );
[0028] means ( 7 ) for grasping and handling the baskets ( 4 ).
[0029] The said means ( 6 ) are of a type described in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,636, that is, they comprise a gripper ( 60 ) able to engage the portion ( 23 ) of the pipettes ( 20 ), an element ( 61 ) associable with the plunger ( 22 ) so as to be driven into translation upwardly (liquid suction step) or downwardly (step of delivering the liquid previously sucked up) under control of a corresponding actuator ( 62 ), and an actuator ( 63 ) with vertical axis with which a shelf ( 64 ) is connected for the support of the actuator ( 62 ), of element ( 61 ) and of gripper ( 60 ).
[0030] The said means ( 7 ) are positioned on the side opposite to carriage ( 5 ), with respect to the means ( 6 ), and comprise an actuator ( 70 ) having vertical axis and a gripper ( 71 ) associated with said actuator. The two jaws of the gripper ( 71 ) have an end portion ( 72 ) suitably shaped so as to present a step ( 73 ) on the side facing upwards to allow hooking the baskets ( 4 ) from the inside thereof, in correspondence of the rim ( 41 ).
[0031] The said carriage ( 5 ), being mounted on the said guides ( 50 , 51 ), can be moved, by the means ( 6 , 7 ) associated therewith, to any useful point of the structure ( 1 ), that is, in correspondence of any vessel ( 2 ), any tank ( 3 ) and any basket ( 4 ).
[0032] Described below with reference to FIGS. 4 A- 5 E of the attached drawings, is a possible operating cycle of the present machine.
[0033] The carriage ( 5 ) is moved as far as to result in correspondence of the region which receives the baskets ( 4 ), so as to dispose the gripper ( 71 ) in line with the selected basket, that is, with the basket which supports the material to be treated, after which the gripper ( 71 ) is lowered and activated to engage the selected basket (FIG. 4A); then the gripper is lifted (FIG. 4B) and the carriage ( 5 ) is moved as far as to result in correspondence of the tank ( 3 ), so as to dispose the basket engaged by the gripper ( 71 ) in line with the selected tank ( 4 ) (FIG. 4C). Thereafter, the gripper ( 71 ) is lowered, so as to dispose the basket within the stand-by tank below, and deactivated, so as to release the basket and thus lifting the same gripper (FIG. 4E) to allow closing the tank inside which, after the closing thereof, the material is subjected to the dyeing operation in the bath previously formed therein. After a preset time has elapsed, a reverse sequence of motions will draw the carriage ( 5 ) again out of the tank, that is, to a preset storage location.
[0034] As far as the formation of the dyeing bath previously formed in the tanks ( 3 ) is concerned—and wherein a corresponding amount of water is also introduced via conduits (not shown in the attached drawings) according to the programmed bath recipes—the procedure is as follows.
[0035] The carriage ( 5 ) is moved as far as to result in correspondence of the region which receives the vessels ( 2 ), so as to dispose the gripper ( 60 ) in line with the pipette ( 20 ) of the selected vessel, that is, of the vessel containing the product for the tank which is to be fed with, after which the gripper ( 60 ) is lowered to engage the body ( 23 ) of the pipette and to allow the element ( 61 ) to be hooked to the pipette's plunger ( 22 ): the lifting of the plunger ( 22 ) for a travel of preset length determining the aspiration of a corresponding amount of liquid from the vessel ( 2 ). The gripper ( 60 ) is lifted so as to draw the pipette fully out of the vessel ( 2 ), as shown in FIG. 5A, and the carriage is moved as far as to result in correspondence of the tanks ( 3 ) so as to dispose the pipette in line with the tank which has to receive the liquid (FIG. 5B). Then the pipette is lowered (FIG. 5C) and the element ( 61 ) causes the pipette's plunger ( 22 ) to be lowered as programmed, so that the tank below will receive the preset batch of the selected liquid. Upon completion of this delivery step, the carriage ( 5 ) moves back as far as to result in correspondence of the vessel, in order to position again the pipette relative thereto (FIGS. 5D, 5E) or, if so programmed, moves as far as to result in correspondence of another tank ( 3 ) to let in a preset batch of the same liquid.
[0036] The carriage ( 5 ), the means ( 6 ) for taking out and metering the products, the means ( 7 ) for handling the baskets ( 4 ), the actuators for opening/closing the lids of the tanks ( 3 ), the motors ( 32 ), the resistors ( 37 and the valves associated with the outlets ( 39 ) of the tanks, are all controlled by a programmable electronic central unit (U) provided with a memory wherein there are stored, besides the positions of each vessel ( 2 ), of each tank ( 3 ) and each basket ( 4 ), also the recipes of the baths to be formed in each of the tanks (the said recipes being in terms of, for example, amount of water, amount or batches of liquids drawn from the vessels ( 2 ) and of tank's operating temperature). Such a programmable unit is of a type known to those skilled in the art and, will not, therefore, be described in greater details.
[0037] With reference to the example of FIG. 9, the said carriage ( 5 ) can also support means ( 8 ) for taking out and delivering powdered substances to be introduced, in preset batches, into the target tanks ( 3 ), according to a predetermined work program. For example, the said means ( 8 ) may be of the type described in the document IT-FI/2000/A/153 to which reference can be made for further details: the means ( 8 ) for the removal and handling of the containers (C) for solid substances are supported by a shelf-like structure ( 80 ) associated with the carriage ( 5 ), on the side opposite to said means ( 6 ). Such means ( 8 ) comprise gripper means with four jaws ( 81 ) (in the figures only two jaws being shown) activated by corresponding pneumatic actuators ( 82 ) by means of a system of levers hinged to each other and to a tubular skirt ( 83 ) borne by the shelf ( 80 ) and acting also as a support for the actuators ( 82 ). The said jaws ( 81 ), when disposed in closing condition (as shown in FIGS. 10C and 10D), clamp the containers (C) selected by the program. The said skirt ( 83 ) ends up with a cylindrical bush ( 84 ) having such diameter and height as to allow the positioning thereof onto the neck of containers (C). Moreover, inside the tubular skirt ( 83 ) a shaft ( 85 ) is disposed in association with a corresponding electric motor ( 850 ) and ending with a power takeoff ( 86 ). The latter is inside the said bush ( 84 ) and allows the actuation of metering means which the containers (C) for solid substances are provided with. The shelf ( 80 ) sustaining the gripper means ( 8 ) is engaged to a corresponding pneumatic actuator with vertical axis ( 87 ). Formed externally to said actuator ( 87 ) are straight vertical guides ( 800 ) for a guided upward and downward slide of the same shelf ( 80 ) relative to the platform of structure ( 1 ) on which the containers (C) are located at corresponding and preset positions.
[0038] The containers (C) exhibit an inner chamber ( 88 ) for containing the solid substances (for example, in the form of powders or crystals) and comprise an inner delivery device. The said delivery device comprises a vertical rod ( 89 ) passing midway across said chamber ( 88 ) and to which a scraper ( 890 ) is engaged. The free, upper end ( 891 ) of the rod ( 89 ) is suitably shaped to fit into the power takeoff ( 86 ) of the unit ( 8 ). In correspondence of the lower base of the chamber ( 88 ), the said containers (C) exhibit an outlet section for the substances held therein.
[0039] When provided by the program, the carriage ( 5 ) transfers the means ( 8 ) as far as to result in correspondence of the selected container (C) (FIG. 10), then the means ( 8 ) are lowered to determine the coupling of the power takeoff ( 86 ) of the unit ( 8 ) with the end ( 891 ) of rod the ( 89 ) located inside the container (C) (FIG. 10B), and the jaws ( 81 ) tighten on the neck of container (C) (FIG. 10C). Afterwards, the unit ( 8 ) is transferred by the carriage ( 5 ) as far as to result in correspondence of the selected tank ( 3 ) (FIG. 10D) and the motor ( 850 ) is started to determine the exit, in a preset amount, of the substances held in the container (C), that is, the introduction of such substances into the stand-by tank ( 3 ) located below. The construction details may vary in any equivalent way as far as the shape, dimensions, elements disposition, nature of the used materials are concerned, without nevertheless departing from the scope of the adopted solution idea and, thereby, remaining within the limits of the protection granted to the present patent.
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A machine for dyeing textiles, includes a structure ( 1 ) able to receive a plurality of containers or vessels ( 2; C) holding substances which contribute to form dyeing baths within suitable dyeing tanks ( 3 ). A plurality of dyeing tanks ( 3 ) and a plurality of material-holding baskets ( 4 ) are located at corresponding and present positions. A motor-driven carriage ( 5 ) is associated with the structure ( 1 ) and a supporting device is provided ( 6; 8 ) for removing and subsequently delivering the substances held within the vessels ( 2; C). The carriage ( 5 ) supports structure ( 7 ) for removing and handling the material-holding baskets ( 4 ).
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/144,782, filed Sep. 1, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,277,459.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) networks and data transmission therein.
2. Description of the Related Art
In SDH data is transferred in information structures known as virtual containers. A virtual container (VC) is an information structure within SDH which consists of an information payload and path overhead (POH). There are two types of VC: low order (LOVC) and high order (HOVC). LOVC's (eg. VC-12, VC-2 and VC-3) are for signals of less than 140 Mb/s and HOVC's (ie. VC-4) are for 140 Mb/s signals.
With the ever increasing demand for higher data rates there is a continuing need to improve the data transfer capability of networks such as those based on SDH. One way of providing higher bandwidth is concatenation.
Concatenation is a method for the transport over SDH networks of a payload of a bandwidth greater than the capacity of the defined information structures. ITU standard G.707 defines concatenation as follows: a procedure whereby a multiplicity of virtual containers is associated one with another with the result that their combined capacity can be used as a single data container across which bit sequence integrity is maintained. Two types of concatenation have been proposed: contiguous and virtual.
Contiguous concatenation is defined in ITU standards such as G.707. Virtual concatenation for VC-2 has also been identified in ITU G.707 but the means for implementing it has not previously been defined and it has therefore not been implemented. Virtual concatenation for VC-4 has been proposed as a concept but no way of implementing has been devised until now. Furthermore, no method of performing conversion between contiguously concatenated signals and virtually concatenated signals has been defined.
Contiguous concatenation uses a concatenation indicator in the pointer associated with each concatenated frame to indicate to the pointer processor in the equipment that the VC's with which the pointers are associated are concatenated. For example, by contiguously concatenating four VC-4's an information structure with a data rate equivalent to a VC-4-4c could be created. The resulting VC-4-4c equivalent signal has only one path overhead (i.e. 9 bytes only). However many installed SDH networks cannot carry out the necessary processing to support contiguous concatenation. In order to implement contiguous concatenation in such SDH networks it would be necessary to modify the hardware of the equipment in order to handle the concatenated signal. Suitable modification of such a network would be prohibitively expensive.
This can cause a problem when the customer wishes to transfer data which requires a bandwidth too high for the installed SDH network to handle, such as some broadband services. For example a customer may wish to transfer data in VC-4-4c format but would be unable to transport it over current SDH networks which do not support concatenation.
The object of the invention is to provide an SDH network with the capability of carrying signals of increased bandwidth. A further object is to provide for the information content of an STM signal carrying data in contiguously concatenated virtual containers to be transmitted over an SDH network not itself capable of carrying contiguously concatenated signals.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a method for the transmission of data in a synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) network comprising the steps of transmitting to a node of the network a form of data signal from outside the network, converting the signal into a virtually concatenated information structure and transporting the signal through the network in the virtually concatenated information structure wherein conversion of the signal comprises processing a path overhead of the signal wherein the integrity of the path overhead information is maintained.
The present invention advantageously provides a method for converting contiguously concatenated signals into virtually concatenated signals for transport in the network.
The present invention provides a means for carrying out either of the above methods.
The present invention also provides a synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) network in which data is carried in a virtually concatenated information structure, the network comprising tributary cards arranged and configured to process signals received in contiguously concatenated form to convert them into virtually concatenated form for transfer across the network.
In a preferred embodiment the data transfer is achieved by means of a virtually concatenated information structure equivalent to VC-4-4c comprising a set of four virtually concatenated VC-4 signals. This virtually concatenated information structure is referred to in the following by the acronym “VC-4-4vc”: this being chosen to reflect the fact that the data rate is the same as that of VC-4-4c, with the “vc” indicating virtual concatenation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which
FIG. 1 shows the information structure of a higher order, VC-4 signal of the prior art;
FIG. 2 , shows part of the structure of a lower order, VC-2 signal of the prior art;
FIG. 3 shows the structure of a lower order, VC-12 signal of the prior art.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to FIG. 1 , this shows synchronous transfer module STM comprising a section overhead SOH, a pointer and a virtual container VC. The VC in turn comprises a path overhead POH, fixed stuff bytes and a container C for the payload.
A network management system manages the transfer of virtually concatenated VC-4's without any modification being required to network equipment. The only hardware modification required is the provision of modified tributary cards capable of identifying the receipt at the network boundary of contiguously concatenated VC-4's and processing them accordingly. Individual VC-4's and virtually concatenated VC-4's are transported in the SDH network in the same way. Hence, four VC-4's, when virtually concatenated, will still have four path overheads.
In the standard configuration a tributary card accepts at its input and delivers at its output an STM-4 signal containing four independent VC-4's (by way of example, each may contain a 140 Mb/s, 3×34 Mb/s or 63×2 Mb/s mapped PDH signals). However, the new tributary card is also capable of accepting at its input and delivering at its output an STM-4 signal containing four contiguously concatenated VC-4 signals: as for example may arise from mapping ATM cells into STM-4 to ITU recommendations I.432 and G.707.
The tributary card will recognise the format of the incoming STM-4 signals: as a contiguously concatenated signal using the concatenation indication in the pointer and act accordingly.
Optionally, the tributary card could also be configured to handle STM-4 signals containing four virtually concatenated VC-4 signals, to meet future demand. The tributary card STM-4 interface meets the requirements of G.957 and G.958. The transport of the ATM/STM-4 signal over the SDH network is transparent and SDH parameters processing and performance monitoring shall apply according to G.826, G.707, G.783 and ETS300 417.
At the ATM/STM-4 input port the pointers of the four concatenated VC-4's are aligned. The resulting, newly generated four VC-4's are processed for transfer across the network as a virtually concatenated information structure (VC-4-4vc) signal by processing their associated path overheads as follows.
Whereas the pointer can indicate delay of the concatenated VC-4's in the VC-4-4vc of up to one frame duration (i.e. 125 μs) higher delays cannot be picked up in this way. Since the differential delay between the VC-4s of a VC-4-4vc as they are transported across the SDH network are unknown, it is necessary to take steps to ensure that the VC-4s so transferred are in the correct sequence. The path trace (J1) value for each of the VC-4's in the VC-4-4vc is given a unique code indicating their order within the VC-4-4vc.
It is also necessary to ensure that the frames of each VC-4 in the VC-4-4vc are correctly ordered. The H4 byte is therefore used for frame sequence indication (FSI) to allow the network to recover the original sequence.
A signal label code is inserted in the C2 byte of each VC-4 of the VC-4-4vc to indicate the payload type, eg an ATM payload, as required. The B3 byte of the received contiguous VC-4-4c signal is processed, as appropriate, to maintain the path integrity.
On the back-plane port of the network node which receives the VC-4-4vc signal the virtually concatenated VC-4's of the VC-4-4vc are aligned using a buffer according to the information provided by the path trace values and the frame sequence values. The size of the buffer is dependent on the maximum differential delay allowed between the VC-4's which constitutes the VC-4-4vc. A value of 8 milliseconds is proposed, by way of example, based on the use of the H4 byte to indicate the frame sequence. However such a buffer size may prove prohibitively large. Therefore it may be necessary to reduce the buffer size by ensuring that the differential delay is kept to the absolute minimum. This may be achieved by ensuring that the four VC-4's in the VC-4-4vc are processed and switched together as well as being transmitted together in the same synchronous transfer module (STM), e.g. STM-4, STM-16, STM-64, and along the same route through the network.
Path trace mismatch on any of the VC-4 in the VC-4-4vc will result in trace mismatch defects on the VC-4-4vc signal. Similarly, signal label mismatch and loss of signal (LOS) of any VC-4 in the VC-4-4vc will result in alarm indication signal (AIS) in the VC-4-4vc.
The contents of the pointers, concatenation indicators and path overhead bytes of the contiguous concatenated VC are transported in other bytes or bits in the virtually concatenated VC. Suitable unused bits include some path overhead bytes of the virtually concatenated VC that are assigned to functions not used during virtual concatenation and the fixed stuff bits of the container four (C4) that forms part of the VC-4.
The pointers, concatenation indicators and path overhead bytes must be restored as appropriate before the signal is transmitted as a contiguous signal outside the network. The path overhead information in the first VC-4 frame in the received virtual concatenated VC-4-4vc signal is inserted in the path overhead of the contiguous concatenated VC-4-4c signal generated by the network for transmission outside the network. Additionally, the B3 value is corrected as appropriate to maintain the path's integrity and is inserted in the contiguous VC-4-4c path overhead. Thus the output port delivers an STM signal identical to that presented at the input port.
In a typical system performance reports and alarms would be passed to the element manager (EM). The EM (and SDH network management system) may be required to configure the VC-4's which constitute the VC-4-4vc in a preferred manner.
The invention is not limited to only VC-4-4c or VC-4-4vc. The invention applies to any number of VC-4s (ie. VC-4-nc or nvc where n may be in the range of 2-64 or higher)
The above embodiment is described by way of example only and does not limit the scope of the invention. In particular the present invention applies equally to signals and information structures other than VC-4, for example to VC-3, VC-2 and VC-1. Virtual container signal structures (including VC-4, AU3/VC-3, TU3/VC-3, VC-2 and VC-12) are defined by the ITU, for example in ITU-T G.707 (Draft) November 1995 published 1995.
The arrangement and method of this invention as described above in relation to VC-4 also applies to VC-3 signals. In particular the path overhead of these two signals is exactly similar, allowing the same method for processing of overhead bytes to be used for both types of signal. This applies equally to administrative unit three (AU3) VC-3 as to tributary unit three (TU3) VC-3 signals.
Referring to FIG. 2 , this shows part of the structure of a lower order virtual container VC-2. In FIG. 2 only the first column of the VC-2 is shown to illustrate the positioning of the path overhead (POH) bytes V5, J2, N2 and K4. Also shown are fixed stuff bits R and data bits D. The fixed stuff bits of the first column make up eight whole bytes and other stuff bits and bytes are included in subsequent columns (not shown). The subsequent columns (not shown) comprise further data bits and bytes, together with overhead bits, justification opportunity bits and justification control bits the precise function of which is not relevant to the present disclosure but is detailed in the above ITU-T publication.
Referring to FIG. 3 , this shows the structure of a lower order virtual container VC-12 with path overhead (POH) bytes V5, J2, N2 and K4. Data is carried in three units of 32 bytes plus one unit of 31 bytes. Other bytes are variously made up of fixed stuff bytes R, overhead bits O, justification opportunity bits S, justification control bits C and data bits D. The fixed stuff bits R make up five whole bytes and parts of three other bytes with a total of 49 bits. The precise functions of the other bits are not relevant to the present disclosure but are also detailed in the above ITU-T publication.
With lower order VCs (ie VC-2s and VC-1s) the conversion of the path overhead bytes will be slightly different. Accordingly to the invention, the contents of the V5, J2, N2 and K4 overhead bytes of the contiguous concatenated VC-2 and VC-1 signals (e.g. VC-2-5c or VC-12-4c), are transported in other bytes or bits in the virtually concatenated VC-2s/VC-1s. Suitable unused bits are the fixed stuff bits R or overhead bits O. These overhead bytes are restored before the signal is re-transmitted as a contiguous signal outside the network.
Thus VC-4, VC-3, VC-2 and VC-1 can all be transmitted as virtually or contiguously concatenated signals over ATM or PDH networks.
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A method for the transmission of data in a synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) network comprising the steps of transmitting to a node of the network a form of data signal from outside the network, converting the signal into a virtually concatenated information structure and transporting the signal through the network in the virtually concatenated information structure; means for carrying out the method and tributary cards arranged and configured to process signals received in contiguously concatenated form to convert them into virtually concatenated form for transfer across the network; thus providing for data transmitted in high-bandwidth, contiguosly concatenated signals (ie VC-4-4c) to be transported across a SDH network, not itself capable of carrying contiguously concatenated signals.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a system for measuring the penetration depth of an elongated object such as a pile, tube, sheet pile or drill into the ground, to be used in combination with an installation for bringing the elongated object into the ground for instance by pressing, hammering, vibrating, drilling or lowering, or for pulling or otherwise removing said elongated object out of the ground, said system comprising means for measuring the displacement of the elongated object.
A system of this type, more specifically destined for driving a pile into the ground by means of a hammer, is described in the laid-open Japanese patent publication JP 58-94525. In this prior art system the displacement of the elongated object is measured by measuring the displacement of a wire or cable of which one end is directly or indirectly connected to the pile. The other end of the wire or cable is wound onto a drum. During operation of the system the amount of wire paid out from said drum is measured. The measured values are recorded and can be used for real time calculations. Thereby especially information is obtained about the speed with which the pile or tube is penetrating into the ground.
A specific problem with measurements of this type resides in the fact that installations for driving piles, tubes, sheet piles or drills into the ground are usually operating in a very dirty, even hostile environment. Therefore, the various components of the measuring system have to be embodied such that they will operate in a reliable manner even under said hostile circumstances. Rotating means such as a drum on which a measuring wire is wound (as described in JP 58-94525) should be avoided. A specific disadvantage related to the use of a drum resides in the fact that the error occurring during the successive revolutions of the drum is cumulating in the final measurement value, resulting in many cases in a relatively large absolute divergence between the measured value and the real penetration depth. Furthermore slip and stretching of the wire could lead to an additional deviation.
The object of the invention is now to indicate in which way accurate information can be obtained about the penetration of the pile or tube etc. with means which are basically insensitive for a dirty or even hostile environment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In agreement with this object the invention provides a system of the above-mentioned type which is according to the invention characterized in that a flexible elongated element the weight of which is uniformly distributed along its length is directly or indirectly connected to said elongated object, said length being at least equal to the maximum displacement of the elongated object, whereby at least part of said elongated element is supported by a supporting surface, and that means are present to determine the total weight of that section of the flexible elongated element which is supported by said supporting surface.
Application of the system according to the invention results in a very easy to use and easy to calibrate measuring facility which is in essence not susceptible to a dirty or hostile environment.
In a first preferred embodiment the elongated element comprises a chain made of a plurality of interconnected links. The advantage of such an embodiment is that chains are readily available in all kinds at reasonably low costs. A chain is very insensitive for dirt, oil etc. and forms therewith an elongated element which is perfectly suited for the job.
Another embodiment of the system according to the invention makes use of a flexible element which is embodied as a wire or cable to which separate weight elements are connected at mutual distances.
It is even possible to use a flexible wire or rope as elongated element as long as its weight per unit length is sufficient to provide an accurate reading in combination with the applied weight determining means even for short displacements of the elongated object.
In a preferred embodiment the weight of the section of the flexible elongated element supported on the supporting surface is measured by means of a weight measuring device installed underneath said supporting surface. An advantage of this embodiment is that the weight measuring sensor can be connected to for instance a distant data processor or data logger by means of a connecting cable which can be installed completely out of reach of the personnel operating the system. A disadvantage of this embodiment could be that any dirt, oil, or other strange materials accumulating during the driving or removing process on the supporting surface may have influence on the weight measurement.
In another embodiment the means for determining the weight of that section of the flexible elongated element carried by the supporting surface comprises a weight measuring device installed between said one end of the flexible elongated element and the connection element or the wire or cable. Thereby in fact the weight of the section of the elongated element hanging above the supporting surface is measured. However, a simple subtraction from the initial weight provides the required weight value. An advantage of this embodiment is that any dirt, oil, or other strange materials present on the supporting plate are not influencing the measurement. A disadvantage, however, is that the measurement device should be embodied such that it is mechanically able to carry the weight of the flexible elongated element hanging from this measurement device. Furthermore the signal communication between the measurement device and the remote data logger/processor could be more complicated.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to the attached drawings.
FIG. 1 illustrates schematically an installation for driving an elongated object such as pile into the-ground combined with a system according to the invention for measuring the penetration depth of said elongated object into the ground.
FIG. 2 illustrates a sample of the signals, derived by the weight sensor in the system according to FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of a system according to the invention.
FIG. 4 illustrates a further embodiment of a system according to the invention.
FIG. 5 illustrates the use of a system according to the invention in combination with an installation for driving a pile non-vertically into the ground.
The FIGS. 6, 7, 8 illustrate various modifications of chains which can be used in the system according to the invention.
FIG. 9 illustrates a sample of a signal derived from the weight sensor in case a vibratory hammer is used in the system.
FIG. 10 illustrates a signal sample obtained from the weight sensor in case the system is used for driving a drill into the ground.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1 illustrates schematically an installation for driving a pile or tube into the ground in which system the invention is embodied. The pile driving frame, comprising a lot of well-known components, is in general indicated by 10 and will not be discussed in detail assuming that the average expert is familiar with such piling rigs. The hammer unit 11 is guided along a leader 12 and is acting upon a foundation pile 13. One end of a wire or cable 14 is in this embodiment attached to a part of the hammer 11.
The installation 10 is equipped with a system according to the invention comprising as essential components the wire 14, the flexible elongated element 18 and the weight sensor 20. The wire or cable 14 runs over a pulley 15 just underneath the crown post 16 of the leader 12. From the pulley 15 the cable 14 runs downwards and ends into a connection device 17. Through this connection device 17 the respective end of the cable 14 is connected to a flexible elongated element embodied in this case as a chain 18. As is illustrated in FIG. 1 a section of the chain 18 is hanging from the wire or cable 14, another section of the cable is laying on a support surface which in this case is embodied as the bottom of a container or reservoir 19 near the lower end of the leader 12. A weight sensor 20 is installed between the container or reservoir 19 and the lower section of the leader 12 to measure the weight of that section of the cable which is still resting on the bottom of the container 19. The weight sensor in this embodiment is connected through a wireless communication link 23a, 23b to a data logger/processor combination 21 which can be installed in the cabin 22 of the system unit 10. It will be clear that for implementing the wireless communication link 23a, 23b the weight sensor 20 should be combined with at least a transmitter and the data logger/processor should be combined with a receiver. Details thereof are considered well known to the average expert.
Before the installation can be used the system according to the invention has to be calibrated. For that purpose the hammer unit 11 is moved to a first height H1, whereby preferably almost the complete weight of the chain rests upon the bottom of the container 19. In this position the weight W1 of the chain in the reservoir 19 is measured and stored in the data logger 21. Thereafter the hammer unit 11 is moved to a second height H2, whereby preferably only a small section of the chain is still resting upon the bottom of the container 19 and the weight W2 of that small section is measured and stored in the data logger 21. If the height difference H1-H2 is accurately known, then it will be clear that a displacement of the pile 13 (=a corresponding displacement of the hammer unit 11) corresponds with a measured weight difference of ΔW according to a weight per unit length of the chain (W1-W2)/(H1-H2).
As an alternative the calibration can be carried out with a non-active piling rig without moving the hammer unit. The end of the wire 14 is moved by hand to a first height H1 and the weight W1 is measured. Thereafter the end of the wire is moved by hand to a second height H2 and the weight W2 is measured. After performing the above mentioned calculation the calibration procedure is finished.
During operation first of all the pile 13 is directed alongside the leader 12 and the hamer unit 11 is brought into position on top of the pile 13. Thereafter, but before the hammer unit is activated, the weight of that section of the chain 18, which is still resting on the bottom of the container 19 is measured by means of the sensor 20 to get a weight value representing the initial situation. Thereafter the hammer unit 11 is brought into operation and with short time intervals the weight of the section, still remaining on the bottom of the reservoir is measured. In this embodiment the measured weight values will show a gradual decrease until the moment that the pile reaches a firm bottom layer. From that moment on the decrease in the series of measurement values will stop or at least slow down significantly indicating to the operating personnel, monitoring the measured values on the display of the processor 21, that the firm ground layer is reached.
As will be explained in more detail with reference to FIG. 2, preferably, the weight measurements are carried out in synchronisation with the moment at which the hammer 11 strikes the pile 13. As is described for instance in the above-mentioned Japanese specification JP 58-94525 a detecting means can be used including a vibration sensor to detect every stroke made by the hammer 11.
In FIG. 2 the signal, derived from the weight sensor 20 and received through the wireless communication link 23a, 23b in the processor 21 is illustrated in FIG. 2 in which the signal amplitude, corresponding with the measured weight and therewith with the penetration depth of the pile 13 is illustrated as a function of the time. It is assumed that in the initial situation the signal starts in rest in the origin with an initial amplitude a. At time T1 the hammer 11 strikes the top of the pile 13 for the first time and the blow results into a strong oscillatory signal at the output of the weight sensor 20. In the following time period the oscillations in the signal of the weight sensor are mainly damped out such that just before the moment T2 the signal has reached approximately a steady state with an average amplitude b. It will be clear the amplitude difference a-b represents the weight of that section of the chain 18 which as result of the first blow is lifted from the supporting surface, i.e. the bottom of the reservoir 19, and represents therewith the penetration of the pile 13 as a result of the first blow.
At time T2 the hammer 11 strikes again, resulting again in a damped oscillatory signal reaching after sometime the steady state with an average amplitude c. Just before the further moment T3 the penetration depth is represented by (a-c).
Preferably the processor 21 comprises a circuit for detecting the first relatively high amplitude pulse directly following each blow. These blows are counted and the number of blows over a certain penetration depth yields the so-called "blow count". The "blow count" is a measure for the soil resistance. Furthermore the computer preferably measures the time interval between two successive blows. From this time measurement the so-called "blow rate" (the number of blows per time unit) can be calculated. In some cases the blow rate forms a measure for the hammer energy. The actual peak value of each high amplitude pulse following a blow forms a measure for the intensity of the hammer blow and the energy delivered by the hammer.
It will be clear from the above description that no additional vibration sensor is necessary for obtaining information about the number of blows, the intensity of each blow and about the number of blows per time interval.
An alternative embodiment of the system according to the invention is illustrated in FIG. 3. The system according to FIG. 3 comprises in fact the same components as the system illustrated in FIG. 1 with the difference that the weight sensor 20 is now combined with the connection element 17. In this embodiment the weight sensor 20 measures in fact the weight of that section of the chain 18 which is actually hanging through the connection element 17 on the cable 14. It will be clear for the expert in this field that the weight sensor 20 can be attached to the connection element 17 or even incorporated therein in various ways. A further difference between this embodiment and the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 is residing in the fact that the weight values, measured by the sensor 20 are transferred through a wire 23 to the processor/data logger 21. The wire 23 runs in a suitable way between the sensor 20 and the processor 21. Various ways of implementing such a connection are considered known to the expert in this field, so that iris considered superfluous to provide details thereof.
It will be clear that the sensor 20 can also be installed on the hammer unit 11 such that the wire 14 is connected to the sensor 20.
To illustrate the various ways in which the invention can be implemented the wire 14 is in FIG. 3 connected to the lower part of the hammer unit 11. It is also possible to connect the wire 14 directly to the pile 13 near the top thereof as is illustrated in FIG. 4. In this figure the elongated flexible measuring element 18 is embodied as a flexible rope having a sufficient weight per length unit to enable the weight sensor 20 underneath the reservoir 19 to measure weight differences with acceptable accuracy. The signals generated by the sensor 20 are transferred through a cable 23 to the data logger/processor 21, which in this embodiment is a handhold device operated by a person 24. In this embodiment the upper end of the flexible rope 18 is connected to a clamp 25 which is fixed around or onto the top section of the pile 13. It will be clear that the upper end of the rope 18 could also be attached to the lower part of the hammer unit 11 with the same results.
In both embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3 a protective tubing is positioned around that section of the cable or wire 14 which runs from the pulley 15 downwards inside the leader 12. This protective tubing is to be considered as an option and is not necessary for bringing the invention into practice. In FIG. 4 for instance such a tubing is not used.
In FIG. 1, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 the leader 12 takes an upright position such that from the pulley 15 the cable 14 extends vertically. Although this situation is ideally suited to make very accurate measurements there are conditions under which piles are driven into the ground under a specified predetermined angle. However, also under these circumstances the invention can be used with very good results. Tests have been carried out with piles which were driven under an angle into the ground and the results of those tests were very satisfying.
FIG. 5 illustrates a practical situation whereby the pile is driven in a non-vertical direction into the ground. Under these circumstances it is possible (although not necessary) to locate the reservoir 19 outside the leader 12. The cable 14 runs from the pulley 15 eventually along a further pulley 15' and extends from there downwards until the connection 17 with the chain 18 which also runs in a vertical direction. The reservoir 19 is installed in a suitable position such that the weight of the whole reservoir can be measured by means of the weight sensor 20. The weight sensor 20 is through a cable 23 connected to the data processor/data logger 21 which in this case is embodied as a hand-held device, operated by a person 24.
Although the container 19 in the illustrated configuration rests upon constructional parts of the drilling rig 10 it will be clear that the container can also be placed on the ground as long as the weight sensor 20 is able to carry out its function.
The elongated element 18 can be embodied as a generally known chain made of a plurality of interconnected links of the type which is very schematically illustrated in FIG. 6. Therein the chain 18a comprises a number of ellipsoidal, round or otherwise suitable shaped interconnected links 22a, 22b, . . . 22n.
Another embodiment of an elongated flexible element is illustrated in FIG. 7. In this embodiment the flexible elongated element comprises a series of weight elements 23a, 23b, . . . 23n which are interconnected by means of small eyes 24a, 24a', 24b, . . . at both sides such that in fact a chain is formed.
Another embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 8 and consists of a wire or rope 25 carrying weight elements 26a, 26b, . . . 26n at mutually equal distances.
Instead of a chain also a wire, cable or rope can be used as elongated flexible element (see embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4) as long as the uniformly distributed weight thereof is sufficient to enable accurate weight measurements by the sensor 20.
All the above-described embodiments were specifically directed to installations for driving a pile into the ground. As is already remarked in the introductory part of this specification the system can also be used in combination with installations for driving a sheet pile, a tube, a drill or other elongated objects into the ground. Furthermore the invention is not restricted to systems, in which impact hammers are used as tool for driving the elongated object into the ground. Instead of an impact hammer also a vibratory hammer can be used or, in case of drilling, a drill rotating head.
In case a vibratory hammer is used the signal derived from the sensor 20 has a somewhat different shape. FIG. 9 illustrates the respective signal consisting of an essentially monotonous descending oscillatory signal, the oscillations corresponding with the vibratory movement of the hammer unit. At successive time intervals the average value over a short time period is taken. If (a) is the reference level, at which the system was initiated, corresponding with ground level of the under surface of the pile, then (a-b), (a-c), etc. represents the penetration of the pile at each successive measurement. Again the penetration increment per time interval yields the penetration rate. The penetration rate is a measure for the resistance of the soil. The amplitude of the oscillating signal forms a measure for the power supplied by the vibratory hammer.
It is remarked that in this embodiment the time moments at which the main value are determined, are not related or synchronized with each blow of the hammer unit. In this case preferably the processor or data logger includes a timer which determines regular intervals at which the main values are determined.
In case the system is used for driving a drill into the ground, for instance for forming a bore hole in which a pile can be casted in situ, or for other purposes, then the signal will be a more or less smoothly decreasing signal as illustrated in FIG. 10. In the areas a, b, c, etc. at successive time intervals the mean value of a short time interval is taken. If (a) is the reference level (for instance ground level) then (a-b), (a-c), etc. represents the penetration of the pile at each successive measurement. The penetration increment per time interval yields then the penetration rate and the penetration rate is a measure for the resistance of the soil.
In the above-described embodiments the elongated object was driven into the ground. However, in most cases the same rigs or other rigs can be used to pull or otherwise remove elongated objects from the ground. Also under these circumstances the measuring system according to the invention can be applied with the same accurate results.
It is remarked that the invention is not restricted to the shown embodiments and that various other embodiments are conceivable without leaving the scope of the invention.
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System for measuring the penetration depth of an elongated object such as a pile, tube, sheet pile or drill into the ground, to be used in combination with an installation for bringing the elongated object into the ground for instance by pressing, hammering, vibrating, drilling or lowering, or for pulling or otherwise removing the elongated object out of the ground. The system comprises a member for measuring the displacement of the elongated object embodied as a flexible elongated element the weight of which is uniformly distributed along its length, the length being at least equal to the maximum displacement of the elongated object. At least part of the elongated element is supported by a supporting surface. Structure is present to determine the total weight of that section of the flexible elongated element which is supported by the supporting surface.
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TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to the field of communication networks. More specifically, the present invention relates to systems and methods for physically locating devices connected to a network.
BACKGROUND
Modern computer networks deployed in large installations (e.g., datacenters, offices, universities, etc.) may be complex and dynamic, with a large number of end-user computers being continually added, removed, and moved between different physical locations (e.g., from one room, floor, or building to another). Such networks are predominantly Ethernet-based, using copper wiring (e.g., category 5 (“Cat5”) cable or category 7 (“Cat7”) cable) or fiber-optic cables running between network elements. Communications cabinets or rooms are often deployed with patch panels in order to facilitate installation and modification of network connections.
In certain situations a network administrator needs to physically locate a particular device that is connected to the network. For example, hundreds or thousands of devices may be located in a large datacenter and, at any given time, one or more of these devices may fail and need to be located by the network administrator so that it can be replaced or fixed. As another example, the network administrator may need to locate a computer that is functioning in a way that negatively impacts network functionality (e.g., by transmitting spurious data across the network). As yet another example, the network administrator may need to locate a computer that is being intentionally or unintentionally misused by a user in a way that may endanger valuable information assets. In such cases, the network administrator will need to quickly determine the physical location of the computer or other device in question. Information sufficient to determine the physical location of the device for this purpose may be the room number in which the offending computer resides, and preferably the identification of a physical receptacle on a wall within that room. For reasons that will be described presently, mere identification of the physical layer address or network layer address (a.k.a., “network address”) of the device in question will generally not convey information sufficient for this purpose.
Conventional network monitoring equipment can determine a device's network address (e.g., an Internet protocol (“IP”) address) and physical layer address (e.g., an Ethernet Media Access Control (“MAC”) address) from protocol data units (“PDU”s) transmitted by the device. As used herein the term protocol data unit means data in a format specified by a protocol, which data includes a header containing protocol control information (e.g., address information for routing the protocol data unit) and possibly a data portion containing application data or another protocol data unit. However, this information does not directly reveal the precise physical location of a device. This lapse can be rectified by manually maintaining a wiring diagram that depicts the network topology (i.e. the physical interconnections between the various network elements), along with the addresses and physical locations of all devices. In order to maintain an accurate wiring diagram, entries must be added to the wiring diagram whenever a new device is added to the network, entries must be deleted when devices are removed from service, and entries must be modified every time a device is moved to a different location. Such manual maintenance of the wiring diagram will of necessity be labor-intensive and error-prone, and updating of the wiring diagram is often postponed or neglected. Furthermore, end users may frequently move computers between physical locations without notifying the network administrator, frustrating an administrator's best efforts to maintain an accurate wiring database.
One proposed solution to these problems is to automatically determine network topology information (e.g., information related to the logical and/or physical interconnections between network elements). Determining network topology information can be achieved using standard software utilities (e.g., the ‘traceroute’ command from the IP suite), special-purpose protocols, management layer functions, software, and possibly additional network hardware. However, the automatically determined network topology information does not completely specify the physical location of a device. For large networks (e.g., hundreds or thousands of devices), mere network topology information will usually be insufficient for determination of physical location.
Other proposed solutions may incorporate new active network elements, such as intelligent patch panels that can be interrogated via the network by the network administrator, or configuring devices to report their physical locations using the Global Positioning System (“GPS”). These solutions add undesirable expense and complexity to the infrastructure of wired networks. Furthermore, because the use of these additional devices is not standardized, implementing these solutions may require extensive software development and integration.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to provide a mechanism to correlate observable address information (e.g., an IP or MAC address) with precise physical location information, without requiring additional hardware or nonstandard communications protocols.
An object of the present invention is to provide a method for determining the physical location of a device connected to a network. In some embodiments, the method includes the following steps: (a) receiving a protocol data unit (“PDU”) emanating from the device in question and observing the physical layer and/or network layer address associated with the device; (b) transmitting to the device a request (e.g., transmitting a simple network management protocol (“SNMP”) protocol PDU) for location information stored in a data store on the device, the location information identifying a declared physical location of the device; (c) receiving from the device the requested location information; and (d) storing the received location information in a wiring database such that the received location information is linked with the device's physical layer and/or network address.
In some embodiments, the method also includes: (e) receiving a PDU containing a unique user identity associated with the end user presently logged onto the device (e.g., part of a login sequence according to the terminal access controller access-control system (“TACACS”) protocol); and (f) storing the received location information in a wiring database such that the user identity information is linked with the declared location and addresses of the device.
In some embodiments, the data store on the device may comprise an Open Systems Interconnection (“OSI”) network management model Management Information Base (“MIB”). In other embodiments, the data store may comprise a NetBIOS Name database. In still other embodiments, the data store may comprise NETCONF configuration data.
In some embodiments, the location information stored in a data store on the device is textual information that describes a declared physical location of the device.
In some embodiments, the data store is not modifiable by an end user of the device.
In some embodiments, the method also includes: (e) determining the topology of the network and from this topology inferring an approximate location of the device. In some embodiments, the method further includes: (f) determining whether the location information obtained in step (c) is consistent with the location determined in step (e); and (g) in response to determining that the location information obtained in step (c) is inconsistent with the location determined in step (e), performing a pre-determined action (e.g., denying the device access to a resource. revoking an Internet protocol (IP) address of the device, revoking a login state of a user logged in through the device, etc.).
In some embodiments the wiring database is stored on a supervisor computer, said supervisor computer including transmit and receive circuitry and a data processing system. In such embodiments, the receive circuitry of the supervisor computer passively observes protocol data units (PDUs) emanating from the device in question and the data processing system records the physical and network addresses associated with the device. The data processing system then initiates a query to the device using the transmit circuitry via the communication network (e.g., an SNMP PDU) requesting location information stored in a data store on the device, the location information identifying a declared physical location of the device, and the receive circuitry then receives from the device the requested location information. The data processing system stores the received addresses and location information in a database such that the received location information is linked with the addresses of the device.
The above and other aspects and embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and farm part of the specification, illustrate various embodiments of the present invention and, together with the description, further serve to explain the principles of the invention and to enable a person skilled in the pertinent art to make and use the invention. In the drawings, like reference numbers indicate identical or functionally similar elements.
FIG. 1 illustrates a communication network.
FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a process for determining a physical location of a device on a network.
FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a process for detecting and addressing inconsistencies in the wiring database using topology information.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a supervisor computer.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a network device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring to FIG. 1 , FIG. 1 illustrates a communication network 100 . As shown in FIG. 1 , the network 100 includes a supervisor computer 101 (e.g., a personal computer, server, or other communications hardware configured according to aspects of the invention) and a plurality of network devices 102 (e.g., servers, terminals, personal computers, or other devices capable of network communication). As illustrated in FIG. 1 , the devices 102 may be located in different physical locations 103 . For example, different locations 103 may be different sections of a datacenter, different rooms of an office, different floors of a building, different buildings, etc.
The supervisor computer 101 and the devices 102 may be connected to the network 100 via network switches 104 (e.g., Ethernet switches or IP routers). As illustrated in FIG. 1 , in some embodiments, each network switch 104 may provide network access for a corresponding physical location 103 .
When a network device 102 is connected to the network (e.g., when the network device 102 is turned on), in some embodiments the network device 102 will perform several protocol transfers that cause a PDU transmitted by device 102 to traverse the network switches 104 . These protocol transfers may include acquiring a network address via dynamic host configuration protocol (“DHCP”), logging onto a server via Terminal Access Controller Access-Control System (“TACACS”), requesting Internet protocol (“IP”) addresses of resources via domain name system (“DNS”) servers, etc.
In some embodiments, the supervisor computer 101 may be configured to passively monitor the traffic across the network switches 104 and detect these protocol transfers (e.g., the PDUs associated with the protocol transfers). In other embodiments, the network switches 104 may be configured to duplicate the PDUs associated with these protocol transfers and transmit those PDUs to the supervisor computer.
Referring now to FIG. 2 , FIG. 2 is a flow chart that illustrates a process 200 for determining a physical location of a device 102 on a network. In some embodiments, process 200 may be performed by the supervisor computer 101 . The process 200 may begin at step 202 when the supervisor computer receives a protocol data unit (“PDU”) including a physical layer address (e.g., a media access control (“MAC”) address) of the device 102 . In some embodiments, the device 102 may be connected to the network 100 using the Ethernet protocol. Each Ethernet frame (i.e., Ethernet PDU) transmitted by the device 102 includes the MAC address of the device 102 . In embodiments wherein the supervisor computer 101 is on the same Ethernet segment as the device 102 , the PDU received in step 202 may be any Ethernet frame transmitted by the device 102 . In embodiments wherein the supervisor computer 101 is on a separate Ethernet segment from the device 102 , a network switch 104 that is on the same Ethernet segment as the device 102 may be configured to forward a PDU (e.g., a DHCP request message) including the MAC address of the device 102 to the supervisor computer 101 . In other embodiments wherein the supervisor computer 101 is on a separate Ethernet segment from the device 102 , the PDU received in step 202 may be a DHCP helper packet.
In some embodiments, the network 100 is an IP network. In these embodiments, the PDU received at step 202 also includes a network address (e.g., an IP address) of the device 102 . For example, the PDU received in step 202 may be any IP packet transmitted by the device 102 . In these embodiments, the device 102 transmits an IP packet encapsulated in an Ethernet frame, so that the IP and Ethernet addresses are both observed.
In response to observing the PDU, the supervisor computer 101 stores the physical layer address included in the received PDU in a wiring database (step 204 ) and may also store the network address so that it associated with the physical layer address.
At step 206 , the supervisor computer 101 may receive a PDU including a user identity associated with the device 102 . In some embodiments, the PDU received in step 206 may be part of a login sequence according to the terminal access controller access-control system (“TACACS”).
In response to receiving the PDU, the supervisor computer 101 stores the user identity included in the PDU in the wiring database so that it associated with the physical layer address of the device 102 (step 208 ).
At step 210 , the supervisor computer 101 transmits a request for location information (a.k.a., “a location string”) that identifies a declared physical location of the device. In some embodiments, the location string may be stored in a data store on the device 102 . In these embodiments, the request for location information may comprise a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) “get” message directed to the device 102 (e.g., by using the network address of the device obtained in step 202 ). In other embodiments, different protocols (e.g., NETCONF) may be used.
The SNMP get message transmitted at step 210 causes the device 102 to retrieve the requested location string from a data store. In some embodiments, the location string may be stored in a Management Information Base (“MIB”) of the device 102 . In other embodiments, other types of data structures may be used to store management information. For example, in some embodiments XML-based management formats may be used to store the location string on the device 102 . In some embodiments, the location string may be stored in the NetBIOS name of the device.
In other embodiments, the data store containing the location string uniquely tied to the device 102 may be on a data storage device remote from the device 102 . For example, the data store may be a location database including one or more location strings, each of which is uniquely associated with a network device 102 . In such embodiments, the request for location information may comprise a query transmitted to the location database.
The location string may contain a port label, a room number, a wall receptacle identifier, a unique datacenter location identifier, or some other indication uniquely defining a physical location for the device 102 . For example, in some embodiments a location string indicating the second connector on connector block 1 in room 753 may be indicated by 753-01-02. In another embodiment the fifth port on the second row of the fourth patch panel in a communication room on a sixth floor may be indicated by the location string “06-402.05”.
In some embodiments, the location string may be initially set by the network administrator while installing the device 102 , or may be remotely set by the network administrator using an SNMP “set” command. In some preferred embodiments, once in the computer's MIB, this location string is nonvolatile, i.e. it remains unchanged until purposely modified. In some preferred embodiments, the location string cannot be modified by the end-users of the device 102 , but may be modified by a network administrator.
At step 212 , the supervisor computer 101 receives the requested location information. In some embodiments, receiving the requested location information may comprise receiving a response from the device 102 to the SNMP query directed at the device 102 . In other embodiments, receiving the requested location information may comprise receiving the result of a query to the location database.
In response to receiving the requested location information, the supervisor computer 101 stores the location information in the wiring database so that it associated with the physical layer address of the device 102 (step 214 ).
As described, the process 200 may be used to create a wiring database for a network 100 . The wiring database stores associations between the physical layer address of a device 102 and the physical location of the device 102 . The wiring database may also store associations between the physical layer address of the device 102 and a network address of the device 102 , topology information, and associations between the physical layer address of the device 102 and a user identity associated with the device 102 .
In some embodiments, portions of process 200 may be omitted. For example, in some embodiments, the supervisor computer 101 may not store a network address of the device 102 . In these embodiments, steps 206 and 208 may be omitted, but the querying of the data store for the location information is preferably carried out by a protocol that does not require a network address (e.g., SNMP over Ethernet). In other embodiments, the supervisor computer may not store a user identity associated with the device 102 . In these embodiments, steps 210 and 212 may be omitted.
In some embodiments, the supervisor computer 101 or another network node may query intermediate network elements, such as the network switches 104 . The network switches 104 may be at known locations, (e.g., in communications cabinets or rooms). The supervisor computer 102 may retrieve connectivity information from these intermediate elements, and can reconstruct topology information of the network 100 using known methods.
Referring now to FIG. 3 , FIG. 3 is a flow chart that illustrates a process 300 for detecting inconsistencies in the wiring database using topology information. Topology may be discovered by any technique well known to those versed in the art. In some embodiments, the process 300 may be carried out by the supervisor computer 101 . The process 300 may begin at step 302 when the supervisor computer 101 receives a PDU including an identifier associated with a device 102 . In some embodiments, the identifier may be the MAC address of the device 102 . In other embodiments, the identifier may be another identifier associated with the device 102 (e.g., the network address of the device 102 or a user identity associated with the device 102 ).
At step 304 , the supervisor computer uses network topology information to determine an approximate physical location of the device. For example, the topology information may indicate that the device is connected to a network switch 104 in a known physical location, or may limit the possible physical locations.
At step 306 , the supervisor computer uses the identifier received in step 302 to retrieve from a data store location information identifying a declared physical location of the device 102 (e.g., a location at which device 102 is expected to be located). In some embodiments, this may comprise performing an SNMP query of the device 102 to retrieve the location string, as described with regard to steps 214 and 216 of the process 200 . In some embodiments, the records in the wiring database may be used to correlate the identifier received in step 302 with another identifier of the device 102 . For example, the identifier received in step 302 may comprise a MAC address of the device 102 , and the supervisor computer 101 may use the wiring database records to determine a network address of the device 102 for performing an SNMP query.
At step 308 , the approximate physical location information determined from the network topology information is compared with the declared physical location information retrieved from the data store in step 306 .
In the case that the location information obtained in step 306 is consistent with that indicated by the discovered topology (i.e., the physical location determined from the network topology information is consistent with the location information set by the network administrator and/or stored in the wiring database), it may be concluded that the device 102 is at an expected location. In response to verifying consistent location information, a predetermined action may be taken (step 310 ). For example, in some embodiments, the supervisor computer 101 may authorize the device 102 to access network resources or may store the verified physical location information in the wiring database so that it is associated with the physical layer address of the device 102 .
In the case where the location information obtained in step 306 is not consistent with a location determined from network topology information (e.g., a retrieved location string indicates that the device 102 is declared to be in a room on a sixth floor, but the location determined from network topology indicates that the device 102 is connected to a network switch 104 on the fourth floor), it may be concluded that the device 102 is not at the expected location. In response to detecting inconsistent location information, various predetermined actions may be taken (step 312 ). For example, in some embodiments, the supervisor computer 101 may deny network access to the device 102 , revoke a network address (e.g., IP address) allocated to the device 102 , or revoke a login state of a user logged in through the device 102 .
In some embodiments, step 312 may also occur if the device 102 returns an invalid location string, or if the device 102 is not configured to provide a location string (e.g., if the SNMP agent of the service 102 is disabled).
When the supervisor computer performs the predetermined action at step 312 , this may encourage a user of the device 102 to contact the network administrator (e.g., in order to gain authorized access to the network). This feature ensures that the wiring database is kept up to date.
In some embodiments, the supervisor computer may compare the identifier received at step 302 against additional information in the data store. For example, if the identifier is a user identity, the supervisor computer may compare this user identity with a a list of users permitted to use device 102 . For example, if a user is logged on to another user's computer, access to network resources accessible to the usual user may be denied.
Referring now to FIG. 4 , FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the supervisor computer 101 according to some embodiments of the invention. As shown, the supervisor computer 104 may comprise a data processing system 402 (e.g., one or more microprocessors), a data storage system 406 (e.g., one or more non-volatile storage devices) and computer software 408 stored on the storage system 406 . Configuration parameters 410 and the wiring database 411 may also be stored in storage system 406 . The supervisor computer 101 also includes transmit/receive (Tx/Rx) circuitry 404 for transmitting data to and receiving data from the network 100 . The software 408 is configured such that when the processor 402 executes the software 408 , the supervisor computer 101 performs steps described above with reference to the flow charts. For example, software 408 may include: (1) computer instructions for receiving a protocol data unit (PDU) comprising an address associated with a device; (2) computer instructions for transmitting to the device a request for location information stored in a data store on the device, the location information identifying a declared physical location of the device; (3) computer instructions for receiving from the device the requested location information; and (4) computer instructions for storing the received location information in a database such that the received location information is linked with the address of the device.
Referring now to FIG. 5 , FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of a device 102 according to some embodiments of the invention. As shown, the device 102 may comprise a data processing system 502 (e.g., one or more microprocessors), a data storage system 506 (e.g., one or more non-volatile storage devices) and computer software 508 stored on the storage system 506 . Configuration parameters 510 (e.g., a management information base) may also be stored in storage system 506 . The device 102 also includes transmit/receive (Tx/Rx) circuitry 504 for transmitting data to and receiving data from the network 100 .
While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments.
Additionally, while the processes described above and illustrated in the drawings are shown as a sequence of steps, this was done solely for the sake of illustration. Accordingly, it is contemplated that some steps may be added, some steps may be omitted, the order of the steps may be re-arranged, and some steps may be performed in parallel.
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The invention provides systems and methods for determining the physical location of a device connected to a network. The location information is stored in a wiring database that correlates the location information with an address present in every protocol data unit (PDU) thus enabling a network administrator to quickly locate an offending device. The invention provides systems and methods for validating reported physical location information using network topology. In another aspect, the invention provides systems and methods for maintaining the integrity of a wiring database storing physical locations of devices by motivating users to report relocation of devices to the network administrator.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/169,753 filed Apr. 16, 2009 and entitled “IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR TEMPORARY WAFER BONDING”, the contents of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to an apparatus for mechanically debonding temporary bonded semiconductor wafers, and more particularly to an industrial-scale mechanical debonder for debonding semiconductor wafers bonded via an adhesive layer combined with a release layer.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Several semiconductor wafer processes include wafer thinning steps. In some applications the wafers are thinned down to a thickness of less than 100 micrometers for the fabrication of integrated circuit (IC) devices. Thin wafers have the advantages of improved heat removal and better electrical operation of the fabricated IC devices. In one example, GaAs wafers are thinned down to 25 micrometers to fabricate power CMOS devices with improved heat removal. Wafer thinning also contributes to a reduction of the device capacitance and to an increase of its impedance, both of which result in an overall size reduction of the fabricated device. In other applications, wafer thinning is used for 3D-Integration bonding and for fabricating through wafer vias.
[0004] Wafer thinning is usually performed via back-grinding and/or chemical mechanical polishing (CMP). CMP involves bringing the wafer surface into contact with a hard and flat rotating horizontal platter in the presence of a liquid slurry. The slurry usually contains abrasive powders, such as diamond or silicon carbide, along with chemical etchants such as ammonia, fluoride, or combinations thereof. The abrasives cause substrate thinning, while the etchants polish the substrate surface at the submicron level. The wafer is maintained in contact with the abrasives until a certain amount of substrate has been removed in order to achieve a targeted thickness.
[0005] For wafer thicknesses of over 200 micrometers, the wafer is usually held in place with a fixture that utilizes a vacuum chuck or some other means of mechanical attachment. However, for wafer thicknesses of less than 200 micrometer and especially for wafers of less than 100 micrometers, it becomes increasingly difficult to mechanically hold the wafers and to maintain control of the planarity and integrity of the wafers during thinning. In these cases, it is actually common for wafers to develop microfractures and to break during CMP.
[0006] An alternative to mechanical holding of the wafers during thinning involves attaching a first surface of the device wafer (i.e., wafer processed into a device) onto a carrier wafer and thinning down the exposed opposite device wafer surface. The bond between the carrier wafer and the device wafer is temporary and is removed upon completion of the thinning and any other processing steps.
[0007] Several temporary bonding techniques have been suggested including using of adhesive compounds or using of adhesive tapes or layers. Thinned device wafers are debonded from the carrier wafers after processing by chemically dissolving the adhesive layer or by applying heat or radiation in order to decompose the adhesive layer or tape. Extreme care is needed during the debonding process in order to avoid fracture, surface damage, or warping of the extremely thin wafers, typically having a thickness of about 2-80 micrometers. It is desirable to provide an industrial-scale apparatus for debonding adhesively bonded semiconductor wafers that protects extremely thinned wafers from fracture, surface damage or warping.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In general, in one aspect, the invention features a debonder apparatus for debonding two via an adhesive layer combined with a release layer temporary bonded wafers including a chuck assembly, a flex plate assembly and a contact roller. The chuck assembly includes a chuck and a first wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with the top surface of the chuck. The flex plate assembly includes a flex plate and a second wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with a first surface of the flex plate. The flex plate comprises a first edge connected to a hinge and a second edge diametrically opposite to the first edge, and the flex plate's first edge is arranged adjacent to a first edge of the chuck and the flex plate is configured to swing around the hinge and to be placed above the top surface of the chuck. The contact roller is arranged adjacent to a second edge of the chuck, the second edge of the chuck being diametrically opposite to its first edge. A debond drive motor is configured to move the contact roller vertical to the plane of the chuck top surface. In operation, a wafer pair, comprising a carrier wafer stacked upon and being bonded to a device wafer via an adhesive layer and a release layer, is placed upon the chuck so that the ubonded surface of the device wafer is in contact with the chuck top surface. Next, the flex plate swings around the hinge and is placed above the bottom chuck so that its first surface is in contact with the unbonded surface of the carrier wafer. Next, the contact roller is driven upward until it contacts and pushes the second edge of the flex plate up while the carrier wafer is held by the flex plate and the device wafer is held by the chuck via the second and first wafer holders, respectively. The contact roller push flexes the second edge of the flex plate and causes delamination of the wafer pair along the release layer.
[0009] Implementations of this aspect of the invention may include one or more of the following features. The debonder may further include a hinge motor that drives the hinge. The first and second holders comprise vacuum pulling through the chuck and the flex plate, respectively. The wafer pair further includes a tape frame and the device wafer is held by the chuck by holding the tape frame via the vacuum pulled through the chuck. The debonder further includes a support plate supporting the chuck assembly, the flex plate assembly and the hinge. The debonder further includes a base plate supporting the support plate, the contact roller, the hinge motor and the debond drive motor. The flex plate assembly further includes a lift pin assembly designed to raise and lower wafers placed on the first surface of the flex plate. The flex plate further includes two independently controlled concentric vacuum zones configured to hold wafers having a diameter of 200 or 300 millimeters, respectively. The vacuum zones are sealed via one of an O-ring or suction cups. The chuck comprises a vacuum chuck made of porous ceramic materials. The debonder further includes an anti-backlash gear drive configured to prevent accidental back swing of the flex plate.
[0010] In general, in another aspect, the invention features a method for debonding two via an adhesive layer combined with a release layer temporary bonded wafers. The method includes the following steps. First, providing a debond apparatus comprising a chuck assembly, a flex plate assembly and a contact roller. The chuck assembly comprises a chuck and a first wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with the top surface of the chuck. The flex plate assembly comprises a flex plate and a second wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with a first surface of the flex plate. The flex plate comprises a first edge connected to a hinge and a second edge diametrically opposite to the first edge, and the flex plate's first edge is arranged adjacent to a first edge of the chuck and the flex plate is configured to swing around the hinge and to be placed above the top surface of the chuck. The contact roller is arranged adjacent to a second edge of the chuck, the second edge of the chuck being diametrically opposite to its first edge. Next, providing a wafer pair comprising a carrier wafer stacked upon and being bonded to a device wafer via an adhesive layer and a release layer. Next, placing the wafer pair upon the chuck so that the ubonded surface of the device wafer is in contact with the chuck top surface. Next, swinging the flex plate around the hinge and placing it above the bottom chuck so that its first surface is in contact with the unbonded surface of the carrier wafer. Next, driving the contact roller upward until it contacts and pushes the second edge of the flex plate up while the carrier wafer is held by the flex plate and the device wafer is held by the chuck via the second and first wafer holders, respectively. Finally, the contact roller push flexes the second edge of the flex plate and causes delamination of the wafer pair along the release layer.
[0011] The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth in the accompanying drawings and description below. Other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments, the drawings and from the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] Referring to the figures, wherein like numerals represent like parts throughout the several views:
[0013] FIG. 1 is an overview schematic diagram of the improved temporary wafer bonder and debonder system according to this invention;
[0014] FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of temporary wafer bonding process A and debonding process A performed in bonder module A and debonder A of FIG. 1 , respectively;
[0015] FIG. 1B depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of the bonder module A of FIG. 1 and a list of the process steps for performing the temporary wafer bonding process A of FIG. 1A ;
[0016] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of temporary wafer bonding process B and debonding process B performed in bonder module B and debonder B of FIG. 1 , respectively;
[0017] FIG. 2B depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of the bonder module B of FIG. 1 and a list of the process steps for performing the temporary wafer bonding process B of FIG. 2A ;
[0018] FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of temporary wafer bonding process C and debonding process C performed in bonder module C and debonder C of FIG. 1 , respectively;
[0019] FIG. 3B depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of the bonder module C of FIG. 1 , and a list of the process steps for performing the temporary wafer bonding process C of FIG. 3A ;
[0020] FIG. 4 depicts a view of a fixture chuck;
[0021] FIG. 5 depicts the temporary wafer bonder cluster of FIG. 1 ;
[0022] FIG. 6 depicts a closer view of the upper structure of the temporary wafer bonder cluster of FIG. 5 ;
[0023] FIG. 7 depicts a cross-sectional view of the upper structure of the temporary wafer bonder cluster of FIG. 5 ;
[0024] FIG. 8 depicts the hot plate module of the temporary wafer bonder cluster of FIG. 7 ;
[0025] FIG. 9 depicts a temporary bond module of the wafer bonder cluster of FIG. 7 ;
[0026] FIG. 10 depicts a schematic cross-sectional diagram of the temporary bonder module of FIG. 9 ;
[0027] FIG. 11 depicts a cross-sectional view of the temporary wafer bonder module of FIG. 9 perpendicular to the load direction;
[0028] FIG. 12 depicts a cross-sectional view of the temporary wafer bonder module of FIG. 9 in line with the load direction;
[0029] FIG. 13 depicts the top chuck leveling adjustment in the temporary wafer bonder module of FIG. 9 ;
[0030] FIG. 14 depicts a cross-sectional view of the top chuck of the temporary wafer bonder module of FIG. 9 ;
[0031] FIG. 15 depicts a detailed cross-sectional view of the temporary wafer bonder module of FIG. 9 ;
[0032] FIG. 16 depicts a wafer centering device with the pre-alignment arms in the open position;
[0033] FIG. 17 depicts wafer centering device of FIG. 16 with the pre-alignment arms in the closed position;
[0034] FIG. 18A depicts the pre-alignment of a 300 mm wafer;
[0035] FIG. 18B depicts the pre-alignment of a 200 mm wafer;
[0036] FIG. 19A depicts another wafer centering device for the pre-alignment of a 300 mm wafer;
[0037] FIG. 19B depicts the wafer centering device of FIG. 19A for the pre-alignment of a 200 mm wafer;
[0038] FIG. 19C depicts another wafer centering device for the pre-alignment of a wafer with the rotating arms in the open position;
[0039] FIG. 19D depicts the wafer centering device of FIG. 19C with the rotating arms in the closed position;
[0040] FIG. 20A , FIG. 20B and FIG. 20C depict the loading of the non-adhesive substrate and its transfer to the upper chuck;
[0041] FIG. 21A , FIG. 21B and FIG. 21C depict the loading of the adhesive substrate and its transfer to the lower chuck;
[0042] FIG. 22A and FIG. 22B depict bringing the adhesive substrate in contact with the non-adhesive substrate and the formation of a temporary bond between the two substrates;
[0043] FIG. 23 depicts an overview diagram of the thermal slide debonder A of FIG. 1 ;
[0044] FIG. 24 depicts a cross-sectional view of the top chuck assembly of the debonder A of FIG. 23 ;
[0045] FIG. 25 depicts a cross-sectional side view of the debonder A of FIG. 23 ;
[0046] FIG. 26A , FIG. 26B and FIG. 26C depict the thermal slide debonder A operational steps;
[0047] FIG. 27 depicts an overview diagram of the mechanical debonder B of FIG. 1 ;
[0048] FIG. 28 depicts a cross-sectional side view of the debonder B of FIG. 27 ; and
[0049] FIG. 29 depicts the debonder B operational steps.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0050] Referring to FIG. 1 , an improved apparatus for temporary wafer bonding and debonding 100 includes a temporary bonder cluster 110 and a debonder cluster 120 . The temporary bonder cluster 110 includes temporary bonder module A, module B, module C, and module D, 210 , 310 , 410 and 510 respectively. Debonder cluster 120 includes a thermal slide debonder A 150 , a mechanical debonder B 250 and a radiation/mechanical debonder C 350 . Bonder cluster 110 facilitates the temporary bonding processes A, B, C, and D, 60 a , 70 a , 80 a and 90 a , shown in FIG. 1A , FIG. 2A , FIG. 3A , and FIG. 4 , respectively, among others. Debonder cluster 120 facilitates the debonding processes A, B and C, 60 b , 70 b , and 80 b , shown in FIG. 1A , FIG. 2A and FIG. 3A , respectively.
[0051] Referring to FIG. 1A , temporary bond process A 60 a includes the following steps. First, device wafer 20 is coated with a protective coating 21 ( 62 ), the coating is then baked and chilled ( 63 ) and then the wafer is flipped ( 64 ). A carrier wafer 30 is coated with an adhesive layer 31 ( 65 ) and then the coating is baked and chilled ( 66 ). In other embodiments, a dry adhesive film is laminated onto the carrier wafer, instead of coating an adhesive layer. Next, the flipped device wafer 20 is aligned with the carrier wafer 30 so that the surface of the device wafer with the protective coating 20 a is opposite to the surface of the carrier wafer with the adhesive layer 30 a ( 67 ) and then the two wafers are bonded ( 68 ) in temporary bonder module A, shown in FIG. 1B . The bond is a temporary bond between the protective layer 21 and the adhesive layer 31 . In other embodiments, no protective coating is applied onto the device wafer surface and the device wafer surface 20 a is directly bonded with the adhesive layer 31 . Examples of device wafers include GaAs wafers, silicon wafers, or any other semiconductor wafer that needs to be thinned down to less than 100 micrometers. These thin wafers are used in military and telecommunication applications for the fabrication of power amplifiers or other power devices where good heat removal and small power factor are desirable. The carrier wafer is usually made of a non-contaminating material that is thermally matched with the device wafer, i.e., has the same coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). Examples of carrier wafer materials include silicon, glass, sapphire, quartz or other semiconductor materials. The diameter of the carrier wafer is usually the same as or slightly larger than the diameter of the device wafer, in order to support the device wafer edge and prevent cracking or chipping of the device wafer edge. In one example, the carrier wafer thickness is about 1000 micrometers and the total thickness variation (TTV) is 2-3 micrometers. Carrier wafers are recycled and reused after they are debonded from the device wafer. In one example, adhesive layer 31 is an organic adhesive WaferBOND™ HT-10.10, manufactured by Brewer Science, Missouri, USA. Adhesive 31 is applied via a spin-on process and has a thickness in the range of 9 to 25 micrometers. The spin speed is in the rage of 1000 to 2500 rpm and the spin time is between 3-60 second. After the spin-on application, the adhesive layer is baked for 2 min at a temperature between 100° C. to 150° C. and then cured for 1-3 minutes at a temperature between 160° C. to 220° C. WaferBOND™ HT-10.10 layer is optically transparent and is stable up to 220° C. After the thinning of the exposed device wafer surface 20 b the carrier wafer 30 is debonded via the debond process A 60 b , shown in FIG. 1A . Debond process A 60 b , includes the following steps. First heating the wafer stack 10 until the adhesive layer 31 softens and the carrier wafer 30 slides off from the thinned wafer ( 69 ). The WaferBOND™ HT-10.10 debonding time is less than 5 minutes. The thinned wafer 20 is then cleaned, any adhesive residue is stripped away ( 52 ) and the thinned wafer is placed in a dicing frame 25 ( 53 ) In some embodiments, a small rotational motion (twisting) of the carrier wafer takes place prior to the sliding translational motion.
[0052] The temporary bonding ( 68 ) of the carrier wafer 30 to the device wafer 20 takes place in temporary bonder module A, 210 . Referring to FIG. 1B , the device wafer 20 is placed in the fixture chuck 202 and the fixture chuck is loaded in the chamber 210 . The carrier wafer 30 is placed with the adhesive layer facing up directly on the bottom chuck 210 a and the two wafers 20 , 30 are stacked and aligned. The top chuck 210 b is lowered down onto the stacked wafers and a low force is applied. The chamber is evacuated and the temperature is raised to 200° C. for the formation of the bond between the protective coating layer 21 and the adhesive layer 31 . Next, the chamber is cooled and the fixture is unloaded.
[0053] The debond process A 60 b is a thermal slide debond process and includes the following steps, shown in FIG. 1A . The bonded wafer stack 10 is heated causing the adhesive layer 31 to become soft. The carrier wafer is then twisted around axis 169 and then slid off the wafer stack under controlled applied force and velocity ( 69 ). The separated device wafer 20 is then cleaned ( 52 ) and mounted onto a dicing frame 25 ( 53 ).
[0054] Referring to FIG. 2A , temporary bond process B 70 a includes the following steps. First, a release layer 22 is formed onto a surface 20 a of the device wafer 20 ( 72 ). The release layer is formed by first spin-coating a precursor compound onto the wafer device surface 20 a and then performing Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor deposition (PECVD) in a commercially available PECVD chamber. In one example, the precursor for the release layer is SemicoSil™, a silicon rubber manufactured by Wacker, Germany. The coated device wafer is then spin coated with an adhesive ( 73 ) and then flipped ( 74 ). Next, a soft layer 32 is spin coated on a surface 30 a of the carrier wafer 30 ( 76 ). In one example, soft layer 32 is a hot temperature cross-linking (HTC) silicone elastomer. Next, the flipped device wafer 20 is aligned with the carrier wafer 30 so that the surface 20 a of the device wafer with the release layer 22 is opposite to the surface 30 a of the carrier wafer with the soft layer 32 ( 77 ) and then the two wafers are bonded ( 78 ) in the temporary bonder module B, shown in FIG. 2B . The temporary bond is formed under vacuum of 0.1 mbar, curing temperature between 150° C. to 200° C. and low applied bond force.
[0055] Referring to FIG. 2B , the device wafer 20 is placed in the fixture chuck 202 (shown in FIG. 4 ) with the adhesive layer facing up. Next, spacers 203 are placed on top of the device wafer 20 and then the carrier wafer 30 is placed on top of the spacers and the assembled fixture chuck 202 is transferred to the bonder module B 310 . The chamber is evacuated, the spacers 203 are removed and the carrier wafer 30 is dropped onto the device wafer 20 . In some embodiments, the carrier wafer 30 is dropped onto the device wafer 20 by purging nitrogen or other inert gas through vacuum grooves formed in the upper chuck 222 . In other embodiments the upper chuck 222 is an electrostatic chuck (ESC) and the carrier wafer 30 is dropped onto the device wafer 20 by reversing the polarity of the ESC. Next, a low force is applied by purging the chamber with a low pressure gas and the temperature is raised to 200° C. for the formation of the bond. Next, the chamber is cooled and the fixture is unloaded. In other embodiments, the Z-axis 239 moves up and the stacked wafers 20 , 30 are brought into contact with the upper chuck 222 . The upper chuck 222 may be semi-compliant or non-compliant, as will be described later.
[0056] The debond process B 70 b is a mechanical lift debond process and includes the following steps, shown in FIG. 2A . The bonded wafer stack 10 is mounted onto a dicing frame 25 ( 54 ) and the carrier wafer 30 is mechanically lifted away from the device wafer 20 ( 55 ). The thinned device wafer 20 remains supported by the dicing frame 25 .
[0057] Referring to FIG. 3A , temporary bond process C, 80 a includes the following steps. First, a surface of the device wafer 20 is coated with an adhesive layer 23 ( 82 ). In one example, adhesive layer 23 is a UV curable adhesive LC3200™, manufactured by 3M Company, MN, USA. The adhesive coated device wafer is then flipped ( 84 ). Next, a light absorbing release layer 33 is spin coated on a surface 30 a of the carrier wafer 30 ( 86 ). In one example, light absorbing release layer 33 is a LC4000, manufactured by 3M Company, MN, USA. Next, the flipped device wafer 20 is aligned with the carrier wafer 30 so that the surface 20 a of the device wafer with the adhesive layer 23 is opposite to the surface 30 a of the carrier wafer 30 with the light absorbing release layer. The two surfaces 20 a and 30 a are brought into contact and the adhesive layer is cured with UV light ( 87 ). The two wafers are bonded ( 88 ) in temporary bonder module C 410 , shown in FIG. 3B . The bond is a temporary bond between the light absorbing release layer 33 and the adhesive layer 23 and is formed under vacuum of 0.1 mbar and low applied bond force. The temporary bonding ( 88 ) of the carrier wafer to the device wafer occurs in temporary module C, shown in FIG. 3B .
[0058] Referring to FIG. 3B , the carrier wafer 30 with the laser absorbing release layer LTHC layer is placed on the top chuck 412 and held in place by holding pins 413 . Next, the device wafer 20 is placed on the bottom chuck 414 with the adhesive layer 23 facing up. Next, the wafers 20 , 30 are aligned, the chamber is evacuated, and the top chuck 412 with the carrier wafer 30 is dropped onto the device wafer 20 . A low force is applied for the formation of the bond between the release layer 33 and the adhesive layer 23 . Next, the bonded wafer stack 10 is unloaded and the adhesive is cured with UV light.
[0059] Referring back to FIG. 3A , the debond process C 80 b includes the following steps. The bonded wafer stack 10 is mounted onto a dicing frame 25 ( 56 ) and the carrier wafer 30 is illuminated with a YAG laser beam. The laser beam causes the separation of the wafer stack along the release layer 33 ( 57 ) and the separated carrier wafer 30 is mechanically lifted away from the device wafer 20 ( 58 ). The adhesive layer is peeled away from the device wafer surface 20 a ( 59 ) and the thinned device wafer 20 remains supported by the dicing frame 25 .
[0060] Referring to FIG. 5 , temporary bonder cluster 110 includes a housing 101 having an upper cabinet structure 102 stacked on top of a lower cabinet 103 . The upper cabinet 102 has a service access side 105 and the lower cabinet has leveling adjustments 104 and transport casters 106 . Within the upper cabinet structure 102 the configurable temporary bond process modules 210 , 310 , 410 , 510 are vertically stacked, as shown in FIG. 6 . Hot plate modules 130 and cold plate modules 140 are also vertically stacked on top, below or in-between the process modules 210 , 310 , as shown in FIG. 7 . Additional process modules may be included in order to provide further processing functionalities. Examples of the bond process modules include low applied force module, high applied force module, high temperature and low temperature modules, illumination (UV light or laser) modules, high pressure (gas) module, low (vacuum) pressure module and combinations thereof.
[0061] Referring to FIG. 9-FIG . 12 , temporary bond module 210 includes a housing 212 having a load door 211 , an upper block assembly 220 and an opposing lower block assembly 230 . The upper and lower block assemblies 220 , 230 are movably connected to four Z-guide posts 242 . In other embodiments, less than four or more than four Z-guide posts are used. A telescoping curtain seal 235 is disposed between the upper and lower block assemblies 220 , 230 . A temporary bonding chamber 202 is formed between the upper and lower assemblies 220 , 230 and the telescoping curtain seal 235 . The curtain seal 235 keeps many of the process components that are outside of the temporary bonding chamber area 202 insulated from the process chamber temperature, pressure, vacuum, and atmosphere. Process components outside of the chamber area 202 include guidance posts 242 , Z-axis drive 243 , illumination sources, mechanical pre-alignment arms 460 a , 460 b and wafer centering jaws 461 a , 461 b , among others. Curtain 235 also provides access to the bond chamber 202 from any radial direction.
[0062] Referring to FIG. 11 , the lower block assembly 230 includes a heater plate 232 supporting the wafer 20 , an insulation layer 236 , a water cooled support flange 237 a transfer pin stage 238 and a Z-axis block 239 . Heater plate 232 is a ceramic plate and includes resistive heater elements 233 and integrated air cooling 234 . Heater elements 233 are arranged so the two different heating zones are formed. A first heating zone 233 B is configured to heat a 200 mm wafer or the center region of a 300 mm wafer and a second heating zone 233 A is configured to heat the periphery of the 300 mm wafer. Heating zone 233 A is controlled independently from heating zone 233 B in order to achieve thermal uniformity throughout the entire bond interface 405 and to mitigate thermal losses at the edges of the wafer stack. Heater plate 232 also includes two different vacuum zones for holding wafers of 200 mm and 300 mm, respectively. The water cooled thermal isolation support flange 237 is separated from the heater plate by the insulation layer 236 . The transfer pin stage 238 is arranged below the lower block assembly 230 and is movable supported by the four posts 242 . Transfer pin stage 238 supports transfer pins 240 arranged so that they can raise or lower different size wafers. In one example, the transfer pins 240 are arranged so that they can raise or lower 200 mm and 300 mm wafers. Transfer pins 240 are straight shafts and, in some embodiments, have a vacuum feed opening extending through their center, as shown in FIG. 15 . Vacuum drawn through the transfer pin openings holds the supported wafers in place onto the transfer pins during movement and prevents misalignment of the wafers. The Z-axis block 239 includes a precision Z-axis drive 243 with ball screw, linear cam design, a linear encoder feedback 244 for submicron position control, and a servomotor 246 with a gearbox, shown in FIG. 12 .
[0063] Referring to FIG. 13 , the upper block assembly 220 includes an upper ceramic chuck 222 , a top static chamber wall 221 against which the curtain 235 seals with seal element 235 a , a 200 mm and a 300 mm membrane layers 224 a , 224 b , and three metal flexure straps 226 arranged circularly at 120 degrees. The membrane layers 224 a , 224 b , are clamped between the upper chuck 222 and the top housing wall 213 with clamps 215 a , 215 b , respectively, and form two separate vacuum zones 223 a , 223 b designed to hold 200 mm and 300 mm wafers, respectively, as shown in FIG. 14 . Membrane layers 224 a , 224 b are made of elastomer material or metal bellows. The upper ceramic chuck 222 is highly flat and thin. It has low mass and is semi-compliant in order to apply uniform pressure upon the wafer stack 10 . The upper chuck 222 is lightly pre-loaded with membrane pressure against three adjustable leveling clamp/drive assemblies 216 . Clamp/drive assemblies 216 are circularly arranged at 120 degrees. The upper chuck 222 is initially leveled while in contact with the lower ceramic heater plate 232 , so that it is parallel to the heater plate 232 . The three metal straps 226 act a flexures and provide X-Y-T (Theta) positioning with minimal Z-constraint for the upper chuck 222 . The clamp/drive assemblies 216 also provide a spherical Wedge Error Compensating (WEC) mechanism that rotates and/or tilts the ceramic chuck 222 around a center point corresponding to the center of the supported wafer without translation. In other embodiments, the upper ceramic chuck 222 positioning is accomplished with fixed leveling/locating pins, against which the chuck 222 is lashed.
[0064] The loading and pre-alignment of the wafers is facilitated with the mechanical centering device 460 , shown in FIG. 16 . Centering device 460 includes two rotatable pre-alignment arms 460 a , 460 b and a linearly moving alignment arm 460 c , shown in the open position in FIG. 16 and in the closed position in FIG. 17 . At the ends of each arm 460 a , 460 b there are mechanical jaws 461 a , 461 b . The mechanical jaws 461 a , 461 b have tapered surfaces 462 and 463 that conform to the curved edge of the 300 mm wafer and 200 mm wafer, respectively, as shown in FIG. 18A and FIG. 18B . The linearly moving arm 460 c has a jaw 461 c with a tapered curved inner surface that also conforms to the curved edge of circular wafers. Rotating arms 460 a , 460 b toward the center 465 of the support chuck 464 and linearly moving arm 460 c toward the center 465 of the support chuck 464 brings the tapered surfaces of the mechanical jaws 461 a , 461 b and the tapered curved inner surface of jaw 461 c in contact with the outer perimeter of the wafer and centers the wafer on the support chuck 464 . The three arms 460 a , 460 b , 460 c are arranged at 120 degrees around the support chuck 464 . In another embodiment, the centering device 460 includes three rotatable pre-alignment arms, and at the ends of each arm there are mechanical jaws, as shown in FIG. 18A and FIG. 18B . Rotating the arms toward the center of the support chuck 464 brings the tapered surfaces of the mechanical jaws in contact with the outer perimeter of the wafer and centers the wafer on the support chuck 464 .
[0065] In another embodiment, the loading and pre-alignment of the wafers is facilitated with wafer centering device 470 , shown in FIG. 19A and FIG. 19B . Wafer centering device 470 includes three centering linkages 471 , 472 , 473 . Centering linkage 471 includes a rectilinear mid-position air bearing or mechanical slide 471 a that moves the wafer 30 in the Y-direction. Centering linkages 472 , 473 , include rotating centering arms 472 a , 473 a , that rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, respectively. The motions of the centering linkages 471 , 472 , 473 , are synchronized by the use of a cam plate 474 with two linear cam profiles 474 a , 474 b . Cam profile 474 a provides rectilinear motion for the mid-position centering arm 471 and cam profile 474 b provides rectilinear motion for left and right centering arm push rods 472 b , 473 b . The rectilinear motion of the push rods 472 b , 473 b , is translated into rotary motion at the cam/cam follower interface at the centering arms 472 a , 473 a , respectively. The cam plate is 474 fixed to a linear slide that is driven in a rectilinear motion (X-axis motion) by an electric motor or pneumatic actuation. A Linear Variable Differential Transformer (LVDT) or another electrical sensor at the mid-position centering arm 471 mechanism provides distance feedback, which indicates that the centering devices are stopped against the wafer edge. There is a spring preload on the centering device 471 a , and when the spring preload is overtaken the LVDT registers a displacement.
[0066] In yet another embodiment, the loading and pre-alignment of the wafer 30 is facilitated with wafer centering device 480 , shown in FIG. 19C and FIG. 19D . Wafer centering device 400 includes three centering linkages 481 , 482 , 483 . Centering linkage 481 includes a rectilinear mid-position air bearing or mechanical slide 481 a that moves the wafer 30 in the Y-direction. Centering linkages 482 , 483 , include rotating centering arms 482 a , 483 a , that rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, respectively. The motions of the centering linkages 481 , 482 , 483 , are synchronized by the use of two plates 484 , 485 that include linear cam profiles 484 a , 484 b , respectively. Cam profiles 484 a , 485 a provide rectilinear motion for left and right centering arm push rods 482 , 483 , respectively. The rectilinear motion of the push rods 482 , 483 , is translated into rotary motion at the cam/cam follower interface at the centering arms 486 a , 486 b , respectively. Plates 484 , 485 are connected to linear slide 481 a via rods 481 a , 481 b , respectively. The linear motion of slide 481 a in the Y direction is translated via the rods 486 a , 486 b , into linear motion of plates 484 , 485 , respectively, along the X-axis, as shown in FIG. 19D .
[0067] Referring to FIG. 20A , FIG. 20B , FIG. 20C , the temporary bonding operation with the bonder module 210 includes the following steps. First, the non-adhesive substrate is loaded onto the transfer pins 240 a by a robot end effector ( 350 ). In this case the substrate is a 300 mm wafer and is supported by the 300 mm pins 240 a , whereas the 200 mm pins 240 b are shown to be slightly lower than the 300 mm pins 240 a . Next, the mechanical taper jaws 461 a , 461 b , move into position around the wafer and the transfer pins 240 a move down ( 352 ). The transfer pins have vacuum and purge functions. The purge function allows the wafer to float during the centering cycle and the vacuum function holds the wafer when the centering is complete. The tapered “funnel” jaws 461 a , 461 b , 461 c , drive the wafer to the center as it is lowered via the transfer pins 240 a . Jaws 461 a , 461 b , 461 c , are designed to accommodate and pre-align any size wafers, including 200 mm and 300 mm, shown in FIGS. 19 and 18 , respectively. Next, the centering jaws 461 a , 461 b , 461 c retract and the transfer pins move up to place the top substrate 20 on the upper vacuum chuck 222 , as shown in FIG. 20C ( 354 ). Next, a second adhesive coated substrate 30 is loaded face up onto the transfer pins 240 a by the robot end effector ( 356 ), shown in FIG. 21A ( 356 ). Next, the mechanical taper jaws 460 move into position around the wafer 30 and the transfer pins 240 a move down and then up ( 358 ), shown in FIG. 21B . The centering jaws 461 a , 461 b retract and the transfer pins 240 a move down to place the substrate 30 on the bottom vacuum chuck 232 ( 359 ), shown in FIG. 21C . Next, the lower heater stage 230 moves up to form a close process gap between the top 20 and bottom 30 substrates and the curtain seal 235 is closed to form the temporary bonding chamber 202 ( 360 ), shown in FIG. 22A . An initial deep vacuum is drawn (10-4 mbar) in the temporary bonding chamber 202 while the top substrate with 20 is held via mechanical fingers. Once the set vacuum level is reached the chamber pressure is raised slightly to about 5 mbar to generate a differential vacuum pressure that holds the top substrate 20 to the upper chuck 222 . The Z-axis stage 239 moves further up to bring the bottom substrate 30 in contact with the top substrate 20 , a shown in FIG. 22B ( 362 ). The top chuck 222 is lifted off from the stops 216 by this motion ( 362 ). Next, force is applied via the top membrane 224 a and bottom top chuck 232 and the wafer stack 10 is heated to the process temperature ( 364 ). In one example, the applied force is in the range between 500 N to 8000N and the process temperature is 200 C. In cases where single sided heating is used, the wafer stack 10 is compressed with the membrane pressure to ensure good thermal transfer. After the end of the treatment, the bonded wafer stack 10 is cooled and unloaded with the help of the transfer pins and the robot end effector ( 366 ).
[0068] In the above described case, the Z-axis moves up to contact the thin, semi-compliant upper chuck 222 /membrane 224 design. In this embodiment, the adhesive layer controls the TTV/tilt by applying pressure only in the direction perpendicular to the bond interface via the membranes/chuck flexures and by using a semi compliant chuck to conform to the adhesive topography. In other embodiments, the Z-axis moves up to contact a non-compliant chuck. In these cases the Z-axis motion controls the final thickness of the adhesive layer and forces the adhesive to conform to the rigid flat chuck 222 . The adhesive layer thickness may be controlled by using a Z-axis position control, pre-measured substrate thicknesses and known adhesive thicknesses. In yet other embodiments, a compliant layer is installed on the bottom chuck 232 and the adhesive is pre-cured or its viscosity is adjusted. In yet other embodiments, heat is applied both through the bottom and top chucks.
[0069] Referring to FIG. 23 , thermal slide debonder 150 includes a top chuck assembly 151 , a bottom chuck assembly 152 , a static gantry 153 supporting the top chuck assembly 151 , an X-axis carriage drive 154 supporting the bottom chuck assembly 152 , a lift pin assembly 155 designed to raise and lower wafers of various diameters including diameters of 200 mm and 300 mm, and a base plate 163 supporting the X-axis carriage drive 154 and gantry 153 .
[0070] Referring to FIG. 24 , the top chuck assembly 151 includes a top support chuck 157 bolted to gantry 153 , a heater support plate 158 in contact with the bottom surface of the top support chuck 157 , a top heater 159 in contact with the bottom surface of the heater plate 158 , a Z-axis drive 160 and a plate leveling system for leveling the upper wafer plate/heater bottom surface 164 . The plate leveling system includes three guide shafts 162 that connect the top heater 159 to the top support chuck 157 and three pneumatically actuated split clamps 161 . The plate leveling system provides a spherical Wedge Error Compensating (WEC) mechanism that rotates and/or tilts the upper wafer plate 164 around a center point corresponding to the center of the supported wafer without translation. The heater 159 is a steady state heater capable to heat the supported wafer stack 10 up to 350° C. Heater 159 includes a first heating zone configured to heat a 200 mm wafer or the center region of a 300 mm wafer and a second heating zone configured to heat the periphery of the 300 mm wafer. The first and second heating zones are controlled independently from each other in order to achieve thermal uniformity throughout the entire bond interface of the wafer stack and to mitigate thermal losses at the edges of the wafer stack. The heater support plate 158 is water cooled in order to provide thermal isolation and to prevent the propagation of any thermal expansion stresses that may be generated by the top heater 159 .
[0071] Referring to FIG. 25 , the bottom chuck 152 is made of a low thermal mass ceramic material and is designed to slide along the X-axis on top of the air bearing carriage drive 154 . The carriage drive 154 is guided in this X-axis motion by two parallel lateral carriage guidance tracks 156 . Bottom chuck 152 is also designed to rotate along its Z-axis 169 . A Z-axis rotation by a small angle (i.e., twisting) is used to initiate the separation of the wafers, as will be described below. The base plate 163 is vibration isolated. In one example, base plate is made of granite. In other examples base plate 156 has a honeycomb structure and is supported by pneumatic vibration isolators (not shown).
[0072] Referring to FIG. 26A , FIG. 26B , FIG. 26C , the debonding operation with the thermal slide debonder 150 of FIG. 23 includes the following steps. First, the temporary bonded wafer stack 10 is loaded on the primary lift pins 155 arranged so that the carrier wafer 30 is on the top and the thinned device wafer 20 is on the bottom ( 171 ). Next, the wafer stack 10 is lowered so that the bottom surface of the thinned device wafer 20 is brought into contact with the bottom chuck 152 ( 172 ). The bottom chuck 152 is then moved along the 165 a direction until it is under the top heater 159 ( 174 ). Next, the Z-axis 160 of the top chuck 151 moves down and the bottom surface 164 of the top heater 159 is brought into contact with the top surface of the carrier wafer 30 and then air is floated on top heater 159 and carrier wafer 30 until the carrier wafer stack 30 reaches a set temperature. When the set temperature is reached, vacuum is pulled on the carrier wafer 30 so that is held by the top chuck assembly 151 and the guide shafts 162 are locked in the split clamps 162 ( 175 ). At this point the top chuck 151 is rigidly held while the bottom chuck 152 is compliant and the thermal slide separation is initiated ( 176 ) by first twisting the bottom chuck 152 and then moving the X-axis carriage 154 toward the 165 b direction away from the rigidly held top chuck assembly 151 ( 177 ). The debonded thinned device wafer 20 is carried by the X-axis carriage 154 to the unload position where it is lifted up by the pins ( 178 ) for removal ( 179 ). Next, the X-axis carriage 154 moves back along direction 165 a ( 180 ). Upon reaching the position under the top chuck assembly 151 , the lift pins 155 are raised to contact the adhesive side of the carrier wafer 30 and air is purged onto the heater plate 159 to release the carrier wafer from it ( 181 ). The lift pins 155 are lowered to a height just above the bottom chuck plane so as to not contaminated the bottom chuck top surface with the adhesive ( 182 ) and the X-axis carriage 154 moves along 165 b back to the unload position. The carrier wafer is cooled and then removed ( 183 ).
[0073] Referring to FIG. 2A , mechanical debonder B 250 debonds the carrier wafer 30 from the thinned device wafer 20 by mechanically lifting an edge 31 of the carrier wafer 30 away from the thinned device wafer 20 . Prior to the debonding process the temporary bonded wafer stack 10 is attached to a frame 25 , and upon separation the thinned wafer remains supported by the frame 25 . Referring to FIG. 27 and FIG. 28 , debonder 250 includes a flex plate 253 with a two zone circular vacuum seal 255 . Seal 255 includes two zones, one for a sealing a 200 mm wafer placed within the area surrounded by the seal and a second for sealing a 300 mm wafer within the area surrounded by the seal. Seal 255 is implemented either with an O-ring or with suction cups. A lift pin assembly 254 is used to raise or lower the separated carrier wafer 30 that is transported by the flex plate 253 . Debonder 250 also includes a vacuum chuck 256 . Both the vacuum chuck 256 and the flex plate 253 are arranged next to each other upon a support plate 252 , which in turn is supported by the base plate 251 . Flex plate 253 has an edge 253 b connected to a hinge 263 that is driven by a hinge motor drive 257 . Vacuum chuck 256 is made of a porous sintered ceramic material and is designed to support the separated thin wafer 20 . Hinge motor drive 257 is used to drive the flex plate 253 upon the wafer stack 10 after the wafer stack 10 has been loaded on the vacuum chuck 256 . An anti-backlash gear drive 258 is used to prevent accidental backing of the flex plate 253 . A debond drive motor 259 is attached at the edge 251 a of the base plate 251 and next to the edge of the chuck support plate 252 a . Debond drive motor 259 moves a contact roller 260 vertical to the plane of the base plate 251 in direction 261 and this motion of the contact roller 260 lifts the edge 253 a of the flex plate 253 after the flex plate has been placed upon the loaded wafer stack 10 , as will be described below.
[0074] Referring to FIG. 29 , the debonding operation 270 with the debonder 250 includes the following steps. First, The tape frame 25 with the wafer stack 10 is loaded upon the vacuum chuck 256 , so that the carrier wafer 30 is on the top and the thinned wafer 20 is on the bottom ( 271 ). The tape frame 25 is indexed against the frame registration pins 262 , shown in FIG. 28 , and the position of the tape frame 25 is locked. Next, vacuum is pulled through the porous vacuum chuck 256 to hold the tape frame adhesive film. Next, the hinge motor 257 is engaged to transport the flex plate 253 onto the loaded wafer stack, so that it is in contact with the back of the carrier wafer 30 ( 272 ). Upon reaching the position upon the carrier wafer 30 , vacuum is pulled on the carrier wafer top via the seal 255 . The torque of the hinge motor 257 is kept constant to maintain the flex plate 253 in this “closed position”. Next, the debond motor 259 is engaged to move the contact roller 260 up in the direction 261 a and to push the edge 253 a of the flex plate 253 up ( 273 ). This upward motion of the flex plate edge 253 a bents (or flexes) slightly the carrier wafer 30 and cause the wafer stack 10 to delaminate along the release layer 32 and thereby to separate the carrier wafer 30 from the thinned wafer 20 . Silicon wafers break or cleave much easier along the (110) crystallographic plane than any other orientation. Therefore, the carrier wafer 30 is fabricated on a (110) plane so that its 110 direction is perpendicular to the push direction 261 a , thereby preventing breaking of the wafer 30 during delamination. The thinned wafer 20 remains attached to the tape frame 25 , which is held by the vacuum chuck 256 . Through this step the debond motor 259 is held constant in position. Next, the hinge motor drive 257 opens the flex plate 253 with the attached separated carrier wafer 30 in the “open position”, in a controlled manner ( 274 ). The flex plate vacuum is released thereby releasing the carrier wafer 30 . Next, the lift pins 254 are moved up to raise the carrier wafer 30 oriented so that the release layer 32 is facing up and then the carrier wafer 30 is removed. Next, the vacuum through the porous vacuum chuck 256 is released and the tape 25 with the attached thinned wafer 20 is removed.
[0075] Several embodiments of the present invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.
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A debonder apparatus for debonding two via an adhesive layer combined with a release layer temporary bonded wafers includes a chuck assembly, a flex plate assembly and a contact roller. The chuck assembly includes a chuck and a first wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with the top surface of the chuck. The flex plate assembly includes a flex plate and a second wafer holder configured to hold wafers in contact with a first surface of the flex plate. The flex plate comprises a first edge connected to a hinge and a second edge diametrically opposite to the first edge, and the flex plate's first edge is arranged adjacent to a first edge of the chuck and the flex plate is configured to swing around the hinge and to be placed above the top surface of the chuck. The contact roller is arranged adjacent to a second edge of the chuck, which is diametrically opposite to its first edge. A debond drive motor is configured to move the contact roller vertical to the plane of the chuck top surface. In operation, a wafer pair, comprising a carrier wafer stacked upon and being bonded to a device wafer via an adhesive layer and a release layer, is placed upon the chuck so that the ubonded surface of the device wafer is in contact with the chuck top surface. Next, the flex plate swings around the hinge and is placed above the bottom chuck so that its first surface is in contact with the unbonded surface of the carrier wafer. Next, the contact roller is driven upward until it contacts and pushes the second edge of the flex plate up while the carrier wafer is held by the flex plate and the device wafer is held by the chuck via the second and first wafer holders, respectively. The contact roller push flexes the second edge of the flex plate and causes delamination of the wafer pair along the release layer.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a self propelled apparatus for digging a shallow trench along one side of an existing roadway, and which is useful as part of a roadway widening operation.
Roadway planing machines are known which are adapted for removing the surface of the roadway and conveying the removed material to the bed of an adjacent truck. Such planing machines typically include a rotatable cutter drum having a plurality of teeth mounted on its surface and which is adapted for removing a thickness of the asphalt paving, note for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,078,540; 4,193,636; and 4,139,318. While these prior planing machines are suitable for their intended purpose, they are not capable of digging a trench along the side of an existing roadway as part of a roadway widening operation, since in most cases the central location of the cutter drum renders it impossible to align the drum along the side of the roadway by reason of inadequate room along the shoulders of the roadway. In addition, most widening trenches are more narrow and deeper than the cutter drums are capable of digging.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a roadway trenching apparatus which is capable of effectively and efficiently digging a trench along the side of an existing roadway, and removing the soil or other material from the trench and delivering the same to the bed of an accompanying truck or placing the material at the side of the newly cut trench.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a roadway trenching apparatus which forms a trench with a square edge along the side of an existing roadway, so as to provide a square joint between the existing roadway and new roadway extension.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a roadway trenching apparatus which is capable of being readily modified to provide a trench of any one of several selected widths.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a roadway trenching apparatus which is capable of providing a selected depth in the trench being formed, and which has provision for elevation and grade control of the trench.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention are achieved in the embodiment illustrated herein by the provision of an apparatus which comprises a chassis which defines a perimeter which includes front and rear ends, and opposite sides. The chassis further defines a longitudinal centerline extending between said front and rear ends. A plurality of wheel assemblies are mounted to the chassis for permitting movement along the ground.
The apparatus also includes a cutter drum which is mounted to the chassis so as to be positioned adjacent one of the opposite sides thereof and at least essentially outside of the perimeter of said chassis. Also, the cutter drum is mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis which extends between the opposite sides of the chassis and so as to be adapted to engage and dig into the ground surface. A prime mover is mounted to the chassis for advancing the apparatus in a forward direction along the ground surface and for rotating the cutter drum about the horizontal axis. Also, a conveyor is mounted along the same side of said chassis and it has an inlet end positioned immediately adjacent the cutter drum and an elevated outlet end positioned beyond the front end of the chassis, and an enclosure encloses the cutter drum so that the soil or other material which is loosened and removed by the rotating cutter drum is deposited onto the inlet end of the conveyor and discharged at the outlet end thereof.
In the preferred embodiment, the cutter drum mounts a plurality of spaced apart cutting teeth, and the drum is rotated so that the teeth move downwardly into the undisturbed ground surface forwardly of the drum, and such that the lowermost portion of the drum moves in a rearward direction. This assists in moving the apparatus in the forward direction, and in addition, the loosened soil or other materials are guided about the cutter drum in its direction of rotation and deposited onto the conveyor, which is preferably positioned forwardly of the drum.
Also, in the preferred embodiment, the cutter drum comprises a cylindrical main body portion which is mounted to the chassis for rotation about the horizontal axis, and a cylindrical extension which has a diameter corresponding to that of the main body portion. The extension is adapted to be releasably mounted to the main body portion so as to be coaxially aligned, and such that the width of the cutter drum may be adjusted by the addition or removal of the extension.
To accommodate the addition of the extension to the main body portion of the cutter drum, the enclosure includes a main housing portion which is fixedly mounted to one of the sides of the chassis, and a housing extension which is releasably mounted to the outer side plate of the main housing portion when the extension of the cutter drum is mounted to the main body portion thereof.
The apparatus of the present invention also preferably includes means mounting the wheel assemblies to the chassis so as to permit vertical adjustment of the height of the chassis above the ground surface, and thus the adjustment of the depth of the trench formed by the cutter drum.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Some of the objects and advantages of the present invention having been stated, others will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a roadway trenching apparatus which embodies the features of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation view of the housing which encloses the cutter drum of the apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a schematic top plan view of the apparatus and particularly illustrating the cutter drum and conveyer in partial cross section;
FIG. 4 is a sectioned and partially schematic side elevation view illustrating the cutter drum of the apparatus and the elevation control therefor;
FIG. 5 is a side elevation view illustrating the forward end portion of the conveyer and the deflector positioned at the forward end thereof;
FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the cutter drum of the apparatus;
FIGS. 7A and 7B are fragmentary and sectioned end views of the cutter drum at elevated and lowered elevations respectively;
FIGS. 8A and 8B are fragmentary end views of the housing of the cutter drum and illustrating the cutter drum and rear mold board in an elevated position in FIGS. 8A, and in a lowered position in FIG. 8B;
FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the main body portion and extension of the cutter drum, as well as the main housing portion and its extension, and which permits the width of the cutter drum and the resulting trench to be changed; and
FIG. 10 is an exploded and sectioned end elevation view of the main body portion and the extension of the cutter drum, as well as the main housing portion and its extension.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring more particularly to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates an apparatus generally at 10 and which embodies the features of the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment, the apparatus comprises a chassis 11 which defines a perimeter 12 in plan view (note FIG. 3), and which includes front and rear ends 14, 15, and opposite sides 16, 17. Also, the perimeter 12 defines a longitudinal centerline 18 which extends between the front end 14 and the rear end 15.
The chassis 11 is supported by three ground engaging wheel assemblies in the illustrated embodiment, which take the form of conventional tracks 20, 21, 22. As is conventional, the three tracks may all be steerable to provide precise directional control. Also, the tracks may be driven by hydraulic motors (not shown) which are in turn powered by a prime mover, such as the internal combustion engine 24 as seen in FIG. 3. The tracks are mounted to the chassis 11 by means of double acting elevation cylinders 25, 26, 27 (FIGS. 3 and 4), which permit the height of the chassis 11 above the ground surface be adjusted, compare for example FIGS. 7A and 7B.
The apparatus of the present invention further includes a cutter drum 30 which is mounted to the side 17 of the chassis, and for rotation about a generally horizontal axis 31 which extends between the sides 16, 17. A housing 32 encloses the cutter drum 30, and the housing 32 includes an inner side plate 34 which is fixed to the side 17 of the chassis 11 so as to be disposed in a generally vertical plane which is parallel to the centerline 18 of the apparatus. The housing 32 further includes a rear plate 35 (FIG. 4) which covers only the upper portion of the rear of the housing, a front plate 36 which covers only the lower portion of the front of the housing, and a number of top plates 37 which are fixed to the inner side plate 34 so as to generally enclose the top portion of the cutter drum. A transition hood 38 extends forwardly from the front of the housing 32 and above the front plate 36 as best seen in FIG. 4, and for the proposes described below.
The housing 32 for the cutter drum 30 further includes an outer side plate 40 (FIG. 9) which is fixed to the outer edges of the plates 35, 36, 37, so as to be parallel with the inner side plate 34. The outer side plate 40 has an inverted U-shaped opening 41 therein which is sized to lie outside the circumference of the cutter drum 30 when viewed in side elevation. Also, an end plate 44 is bolted to the outside of the outer side plate 40 so as to cover the opening 41, and the end plate 44 mounts a sleeve bearing 45.
The lower edge of the inner side plate 34 mounts a ski 46 which is free to float vertically a predetermined distance with respect to the housing, and the lower edge of the end plate 44 mounts a similar ski 47. These skis serve to enclose the lower portion of the cutter drum during movement over uneven terrain, and they are also useful as part of the grade control system as further described below.
The rear side of the housing mounts a vertically moveable mold board 48 (FIGS. 4, 8A, and 8B) so as to be adjacent and parallel to the rear plate 35, and the mold board 48 is movable vertically by means of two hydraulic cylinders 49, 50. Thus the mold board 48 may be elevated to permit access to the cutter drum as seen in FIG. 8A, or it may be biased downwardly into contact with the bottom of the trench being formed, during operation of the apparatus and as seen in FIGS. 4 and 8B.
As best seen in FIGS. 6 and 10, the cutter drum 30 is in the form of a hollow cylindrical sleeve 52, which mounts a planetary speed reduction gear 53 coaxially therein. The reduction gear 53 in turn mounts a mounting flange 54 which is fixed to the inner side plate 34 of the housing by bolts, and the inner side plate of the housing is in turn bolted to the side 17 of the chassis 11. Thus the elevation of the cutter drum 30 is fixed with respect to the elevation of the chassis 11.
The outside end of the sleeve 52 of the cutter drum 30 includes an internal mounting ring 56 having a number of threaded openings 57, and the sleeve 52 is closed by means of a cover plate 58, which is removably attached to the mounting ring 56 by means of bolts which engage the threaded openings 57. Also, the cover plate 58 mounts a coaxial bearing shaft 60 which is rotatably supported in the bearing sleeve 45 which is mounted to the outer end plate 44 of the housing.
The cutter drum 30 further includes a plurality of spaced apart cutting teeth 64 mounted on the exterior of the sleeve, as well as a number of transverse flights 65 which serve to lift and convey the loosened soil as further described below. The drum typically has a diameter of about 56 inches, measured to the tips of the teeth 64.
The cutter drum 30 is operatively connected to the engine 24, via the horizontal drive shaft 66 which is connected to the gear reducer 53, note FIG. 3. A plurality of drive belts 68 extend between the output of the engine 24 and the opposite end of the drive shaft for imparting rotation to the drive shaft and thus the cutter drum 30 via the gear reducer 53.
The apparatus of the present invention further includes a conveyor 70, which is mounted to the side 17 of the chassis 11, and which includes an inlet end 71 positioned immediately forwardly of the cutter drum 30 and below the transition hood 38, and an elevated outlet end 72 positioned beyond the front end 14 of the chassis. A deflector 74 is mounted at the outlet end of the conveyor for deflecting the material being conveyed laterally toward the centerline 18 to thereby facilitate delivery into the bed of a trunk which is moving along the roadway in front of the apparatus 10 as been in FIG. 1. Alternatively, a deflector of opposite hand may be employed which serves to deflect the removed material to form a windrow along one side of the trench. The conveyor 70 is powered by a hydraulic motor 75 (FIG. 1) which is in turn powered by the engine 24.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, one of the skis 46, 47 may be utilized as part of the elevation and slope control systems of the apparatus. A sensing unit as illustrated in FIG. 2 comprises a hydraulic rotary sensor 78 which is mounted to a grade jack 79. The jack 79 is mounted to the chassis and by operation of the jack, the sensor 78 may be raised and lowered. A number of pivotally interconnected rods 80 extend from one of the skis 46, 47 to the rotary sensor 78, such that any elevation change of the ski with respect to the chassis is noted by a rotation of the sensor 78. A similar ski and sensor (not shown) are mounted on the opposite side 16 of the chassis, and signals from the two sensors are delivered to a central control panel, by which the elevation of selected tracks may be adjusted, and so as to permit accurate depth of cut and grade control. On the cutter drum side 17, it is preferred to connect the sensor 78 to the inside ski 46, i.e. the ski attached to the inner side plate 34 of the housing and which normally rides on the pavement as best seen in FIGS. 7B and 8B.
The above described depth of cut and grade control systems are conventional in other roadway processing machines, and are further described for example in the above cited U.S. Pat. No. 4,139,318, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference.
In operation, the apparatus 10 may be transported under its own power to the job site, with the chassis 11 and thus the cutter drum 30 elevated as seen in FIG. 7A. When positioned for operation, the cutter drum 30 is rotated and the chassis 11 is then lowered to a predetermined elevation so that the cutter drum enters into the ground surface as seen in FIG. 7B. The apparatus 10 then advances forwardly in the direction of the arrow F (FIGS. 1 and 4) at a speed of between about 20 to 100 feet per minute, depending on the nature of the ground material being removed. Also, the cutter drum is rotated about its axis at a rotational speed which is typically between about 85-95 rpm, and in a direction such that the teeth 64 move downwardly into the undisturbed ground surface which is forwardly of the drum. Thus the lowermost portion of the drum 30 will be seen to move in a rearward direction. This rotational direction serves to help propel the apparatus in the forward direction F, and in addition, the rotational direction and the inside configuration of the housing 32 serves to guide and convey the loosened soil or other material about the periphery of the drum so that it is thrown through the transition hood 38 and deposited onto the upper run of the conveyor 70, note particularly FIG. 4. The soil or other material is then conveyed forwardly by the conveyor, and at the outlet end 72 it is deflected laterally toward the centerline 18 by the deflector 74. A truck is preferably positioned forwardly of the apparatus as seen in FIG. 1 to receive the discharged soil as the machine slowly advances and forms a continuous shallow trench along the side of the roadway.
Rotation of the drum in the downcutting direction as described above is preferred since it permits the elevation of the inlet end 71 of the conveyor 70 to be relatively high, and thus the maximum depth of the trench may be relatively deep. However, an upcutting direction is possible, where the drum lifts the loosened soil onto the inlet end of the conveyor, but this arrangement requires that the inlet end be lowered as compared to its position as shown in the illustrated embodiment, and thus the maximum depth of the trench would be reduced.
One of the advantageous features of the illustrated embodiment of the apparatus is the fact that the width of the cutter drum 30 may be effectively varied so as to permit the width of the resulting trench to be varied. In this embodiment, and as best seen in FIGS. 9 and 10, the cutter drum comprises a main body portion 30a which corresponds structurally to the drum 30 as described above, and an extension 82. The extension 82 comprises a tubular sleeve 84 which has a diameter which corresponds to that of the main body portion 30a, and the interior of the sleeve 84 of the extension 82 mounts a pair of annular mounting rings 85, 86. The innermost ring 85 includes a plurality of openings 87 which are aligned with the threaded openings 57 of the ring 56 of the main body portion 30a. Also, the outermost ring 86 includes a plurality of threaded openings 88 which conform to the threaded openings 57 of the ring 56 in the main body portion 30a. The peripheral surface of the extension 82 includes a plurality of spaced apart cutting teeth 89 which conform to those mounted on the main body portion, and the extension 82 also includes a number of helically aligned flights 90 on the exterior surface for the purposes described below.
The housing of this embodiment includes main housing portion 32 as seen in FIG. 9, and a housing extension 94 which comprises a pair of laterally spaced apart and parallel side walls 95, 96 and a number of covering plates 97 mounted between the side walls. Each of the side walls 95, 96 includes an inverted U-shaped opening 99 which conforms to the outline of the opening 41 in the side plate 40 of the main housing portion. The housing of this embodiment also includes a mold board 101 which is similar in construction to that described above at 48, but which is wider.
Adjustment of the width of the cutter drum is effected by first removing the end plate 44 of the housing, by removal of the bolts, and so as to provide access to the main body portion 30a of the cutter drum. The cover plate 58 is then removed, and the extension 82 is then releasably mounted to the main body portion 30a so as to be coaxially aligned along the horizontal axis. This releasable mounting is effected by aligning the extension 82 with the main body portion 30a so that the threaded openings 57 in the ring 56 of the main body portion 30a are aligned with the openings 87 in the ring 85 of the extension 82. Bolts may then be positioned so as to extend through the openings 87 in the ring 85 and threaded into the openings 57 of the ring 56. The cover plate 58 then may be attached so as to cover the outer end of the extension, by threading the bolts into the threaded openings 88 in the ring 86.
To complete the conversion to the wider cutter drum, the housing extension 94 is positioned adjacent the outer side plate 40 of the main housing portion, and the end plate 44 is then positioned on the outside of the extension 94 and adjacent the side wall 96 thereof. Elongate bolts are then inserted through the openings in the end plate 44, then through aligned openings in each of the side plates 95, 96 of the extension 94, and finally through the aligned openings in the side plate 40. Suitable nuts may then be joined to the bolts to complete the assembly. When so assembled, the shaft 60 of the cover plate 58 of the cutter drum will again be supportingly received in the bearing sleeve 45 of the end plate 44.
With the additions of the extension 82 to the main body portion 30a and the extension 94 to the main housing portion 92 as described above, it will be apparent that the original mold board 48 will be of insufficient width. Accordingly, in accordance with the present invention, the additional mold board 101 of increased width is provided, and when assembled in place of the original mold board, the back wall of the housing will be completely covered.
During operation of the apparatus 10 with the cutter drum being extended in width by the extension 82, it will be understood that the loosened soil or other material is conveyed toward the main body portion 30a by the helically aligned flights 90 on the exterior surface of the extension 82. The flights 65 of the main body portion 30a then act to lift and convey the loosened material through the transition hood 38 and onto the upper surface of the conveyor 70.
While a single extension 82 for the cutter drum has been illustrated, it will be appreciated that several extensions, each with a different width, may be provided so that the desired width may be readily selected from a relatively large range of available sizes. In addition, two or more of the extensions may be coaxially mounted to the cutter drum and to each other, by the construction described above. The housing may also have a number of extensions to accommodate the use of the various cutter drum extensions.
In the drawings and specification, there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of this invention, and even though specific terms are used, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.
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A self propelled apparatus for digging a shallow trench along one side of a roadway is disclosed, and which is useful as part of a roadway widening operation. The apparatus comprises a cutter drum mounted to one side of the chassis of the apparatus, and a conveyor belt is mounted to the same side of the chassis with an inlet end positioned immediately adjacent the cutter drum and an elevated outlet end positioned beyond the forward end of the chassis. An enclosure surrounds the cutter drum so that the drum may be rotated in a downwardly cutting direction, and the loosened soil or other material may be lifted and guided around the drum and deposited onto the conveyor. The cutter drum includes one or more extensions which may be coaxially mounted thereto, so as to permit the width of the cutter drum and thus the width of the resulting trench to be selectively varied.
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REFERENCE TO EARLIER FILED APPLICATIONS
This application is a 371 national phase of PCT/US2011/031448, filed Apr. 6, 2011, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/321,324, filed Apr. 6, 2010; U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/322,383, filed Apr. 9, 2010; and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/325,682, filed Apr. 19, 2010, the disclosures of which are incorporated, in their entirety, by this reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to screening methods for agents targeting MET receptor signaling and agents and compositions identified using those screening methods as well as their anti-cancer use.
BACKGROUND
Cancer metastasis occurs when individual cancer cells in existing tumors detach from their neighbors, invade local tissues, migrate to distant sites, and establish new tumors at those locations. Epithelial tumors of epithelial origin, which account for 80% of all new cancer diagnoses, are likely to undergo metastasis. Metastasis greatly complicates treatment and increases lethality, particularly since many epithelial primary tumors are not directly life threatening. Significant interest has developed in designing strategies that reduce or prevent metastatic cellular behavior, increasing the effectiveness of existing therapies.
Initiation of metastasis is associated with mutation or expression changes of the MET receptor. MET is activated by its endogenous ligand, scatter factor, or hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). MET is a receptor tyrosine kinase. It has been demonstrated that small molecule inhibitors of MET's kinase activity can prevent the cellular response to MET activation, whether by ligand or by alterations in MET sequence or expression levels. MET inhibitors have been advanced as potential anti-cancer agents. MET signaling is also associated with resistance of cancer cells to radiation treatment. Thus, MET inhibitors can be used to increase cancer susceptibility to radiation therapies that are designed to eliminate tumors.
Signal transduction downstream of MET has not been well defined. The series of events that leads from MET receptor activation to the cellular response remains unclear. Thus, efforts to design inhibitors of MET pathway signaling at points downstream of the MET receptor have been unproductive. Such inhibitors are likely to be more broadly effective than MET inhibitors in treating cancer, as signaling from other receptor systems could converge on the same biological circuits used downstream of MET. Direct MET receptor inhibitors are limited to instances where MET signal transduction is improperly activated at the level of MET itself, while inhibitors that act on MET signaling at points downstream of MET itself will be useful where MET signaling is improperly activated at any level at or above the point of inhibition.
SUMMARY
In one aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula I:
wherein each of R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , and R 5 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, hydroxy, halo, cyano, nitro, or together with another R group form a fused ring, and wherein each of R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , and R 10 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, carboxyalkyl, hydroxy, halo, cyano, or together with another R group form a fused ring, and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula II:
wherein R 1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, and cyano, and wherein each of R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , and R 10 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, carboxyalkyl, hydroxy, halo, cyano, nitro, or together with another R group form a fused ring, and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula A-I:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; R 2 is absent or H; R 3 is H, absent, or together with R 4 forms a carbocyclic ring; R 4 is H, absent or together with R 3 forms a carbocyclic ring; X is N, S, or together with W completes a phenyl ring; W is C, N, or together with X completes a phenyl ring; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula A-II:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; R 3 is H or together with R 4 forms a carbocyclic ring; R 4 is H or together with R 3 forms a carbocyclic ring; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula A-IIa or A-IIb:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula A-III:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; A is absent selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted aryl, and substituted heteroaryl; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula A-IV:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; A is absent selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula B-I:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, alkyl, (C═O)alkyl, and optionally substituted benzyl; R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, and nitro, benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula B-IIa:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, and nitro, benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula B-IIb:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula B-IIc:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 7 is alkyl; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which includes administering a compound of formula B-IId:
wherein X is halogen or absent; R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In another aspect, pharmaceutical compositions disclosed include those with any one or more of the compounds of formula I, II, A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, A-IV, B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.
In another aspect, methods of inhibiting cellular responses to MET receptor signaling are disclosed which include administering any one or more of the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions containing those compounds of formula I, II, A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, A-IV, B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId.
In another aspect, methods of preventing or treating cancer comprising are disclosed which include administering any one or more of the compounds or pharmaceutical composition containing those compounds of formula I, II, A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, A-IV, B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId.
In another aspect, the compounds of formula I, II, A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, A-IV, B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId and pharmaceutical compositions with the those compounds may be used as anticancer agents, particularly by inhibiting cells' response to MET activation or by preventing cell behavior associated with epithelial-mesenchyme transition or cancer progression. Thus, the compounds and pharmaceutical formulations may be used in cancer treatment or as agents that prevent or reduce cancer progression.
In another aspect, an assay for identifying compounds that inhibit cellular responses of eukaryotic cells to c-met activation is disclosed. The method includes the steps of (a) providing a MDCK cell expressing an MET protein; (b) contacting the cell with a test compound; (c) contacting the cell with hepatocyte growth factor; (d) determining activation of the c-met pathway in the cell by measuring epithelial-mesenchymal transition of MDCK cells, wherein no appearance of detached, migratory MDCK cells is indicative of a compound that inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition by c-met activation, and wherein the appearance of detached, migratory MDCK cells is indicative of a compound that does not inhibit c-met induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
While the terminology used in this application is standard within the art, the following definitions of certain terms are provided to assure clarity.
Units, prefixes, and symbols may be denoted in their SI accepted form. Numeric ranges recited herein are inclusive of the numbers defining the range and include and are supportive of each integer within the defined range. Unless otherwise noted, the terms “a” or “an” are to be construed as meaning “at least one of.” The section headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not to be construed as limiting the subject matter described. All documents, or portions of documents, cited in this application, including but not limited to patents, patent applications, articles, books, and treatises, are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety for any purpose.
The term “alkyl” refers to a saturated, branched or straight-chained or cyclic hydrocarbon radical (group) having at least one carbon atom including, but not limited to, saturated C 1 -C 6 such as: methyl, ethyl, 1-propyl and 2-propyl, 1-butyl, 2-butyl, 2-methyl-1-propyl, 1,1-dimethylethyl, 1-pentyl, 2-pentyl, 3-pentyl, 2-methyl-1-butyl, 3-methyl-1-butyl, 2,2-dimethylpropyl, 1-hexyl, 2-hexyl, 3-hexyl, 2-methyl-1-pentyl, 3-methyl-1-pentyl, 4-methyl-1-pentyl, 3,3-dimethyl-1-butyl, 3,3-dimethyl-2-butyl, 2-ethyl-1-butyl and the like. Alkyl groups may be unsubstituted or substituted.
The term “unsaturated alkyl” refers to an alkyl radical (group) having two or more carbons with at least one unit of unsaturation. Unsaturated alkyl groups are also known as alkenyl radicals and alkynyl radicals. Alkenyl groups are analogous to alkyl groups which are saturated, but have at least one double bond (two adjacent sp 2 carbon atoms). Depending on the placement of a double bond and substituents, if any, the geometry of the double bond may be trans (E), or cis (Z). Similarly, alkynyl groups have at least one triple bond (two adjacent sp carbon atoms). Unsaturated alkenyl or alkynyl groups may have one or more double or triple bonds, respectively, or a mixture thereof. Like alkyl groups, unsaturated groups may be straight chain or branched. Unsaturated alkyl groups may be unsubstituted or substituted.
Examples of alkenyl radicals include, but are not limited to, vinyl, allyl, 2-methyl-2-propenyl, cis-2-butenyl, trans-2-butenyl, and acetyl, propene, 1-butene, 2-butene, 2-methylpropene, 1-pentene, 2-petnene, 2-methyl-1-butene, 2-methyl-2-butene, 3-methyl-1-butene, 1-hexene, 2-hexene, 3-hexene, 2,3-dimethyl-1-butene, 2,3-dimethyl-2-butene, 3,3-dimethyl-1-butene, 2-dimethyl-2-butene, 2-ethyl-1-butene, and the like.
Examples of dialkenyl radicals include, but are not limited to, propandiene (allene), 1,3-butadiene, 1,3-pentadiene, 1,4-pentadiene, 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene (isoprene), 3-methyl-1,2-butadiene, 1,3-hexadiene, 1,4-hexadiene, 1,5-hexadiene, 2,4-hexadiene, 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene, 2-methyl-1,3-pentadiene, 2-methyl-1,4-pentadiene, 3-methyl-1,4-pentadiene, 4-methyl-1,3-pentadiene, 3-methyl-1,3-pentadiene, and the like.
Examples of alkynyl radicals include, but are not limited to, 1-butyne, 2-butyne, 1-pentyne, 2-pentyne, 4-methyl-pent-1-yne, 1-hexyne, 2-hexyne, 3-hexyne, 3,3-dimethyl-1-butyne, 1-heptyne, 2-heptyne, 3-heptyne, 5-methyl-1-hexyne, 1-octyne, 2-octyne, 3-octyne, 4-octyne, 1-nonyne, 1-decyne, 5-decyne and 1-dodecyne, 1-pentadecyne and the like. Alkenyl and alkynyl groups may be unsubstituted or substituted.
As used herein, “unsaturated alkyl” may also include mixed alkenyl and alkynl groups. An unsaturated hydrocarbon may thus include subunits of double bonds and subunits of triple bonds. Examples of these mixed alkenyl and alkynl groups include 2-methyl-1-buten-3-yne, 2-methyl-1-hexen-3-yne and the like. Mixed alkenyl and alkynl groups may be unsubstituted or substituted.
As used herein, “alkoxy” refers to an OR group, where R is alkyl or substituted alkyl. The term “lower alkoxy” refers alkoxy groups having two to ten carbon atoms.
As used herein, “cycloalkyl” as a group or as part of another group refers to saturated or partially saturated mono-, bi-, or polycyclic carbocycle of 3-16 or 5-12 carbon atoms, such as a saturated monocyclic ring. Examples of which include cyclopentyl, cyclohexyl, cycloheptyl or cyclooctyl, for instance cyclohexyl, or saturated bicyclic ring, such as a “monocycle” as defined above which is fused with a saturated ring moiety of 5 to 8 ring atoms, e.g. with cyclohexyl moiety. Alternatively, partially saturated “cycloalkyl” is as defined above for saturated cycloalkyl except that it contains one to two double or triple bond(s) in the ring structure thereof, whereby in case of a bicycle also systems wherein a saturated monocycle is fused with an aromatic ring moiety, e.g. benzo moiety, are covered.
As used herein, “aryl” refers to an aromatic group which has at least one ring having a conjugated π electron system and includes carbocyclic aryl, heterocyclic aryl and biaryl groups. The aryl group may be optionally substituted with one or more substituents including halogen, trihalomethyl, hydroxyl, SH, OH, NO 2 , NH 2 , thioether, cyano, alkoxy, alkyl, and amino. Examples of carbocyclic aryl include phenyl, naphthyl, and biphenylenyl.
As used herein, “ester” includes includes both ROCO— (in the case of R=alkyl, alkoxycarbonyl-) and RCOO— (in the case of R=alkyl, alkylcarbonyloxy-).
As used herein, the term “heterocycle” or “heterocyclic ring” refers to a hydrocarbon ring system having a least one heteroatom (such as O, N, or S) as part of the ring in place of one or more carbon atoms. The ring system may or may not be aromatic—that is the ring system may be heteroaryl or heterocyclic. Examples of heteroaryl groups include, but are not limited to furyl, pyrrolyl, pyrazolyl, thiophenyl, thiadiazolyl, tetrazolyl, triazolyl, triazinyl, thienyl, oxazolyl, isoxazolyl, imidazolyl, thiazolyl, isothiazolyl, benzimidazolyl, pyridinyl, pyrimidinyl, quinazolinyl, indolyl, indiazolyl, isoindolyl, benzotriazolyl, purinyl, benzothiazolyl, benzoisothiazolyl, and benzothiadiazolyl. Examples or heterocyclic groups include but are not limited to piperidyl, morpholinyl, pyranyl, dioxanyl, and piperazinyl. The hetrocyclic ring may be substituted or unsubstituted. Examples of substitution groups include alkyl, halogen (F, Cl, Br, I), hydroxy, amino, alkylamino, dialkylamino, thiol, and alkoxy.
The term “acetoxy” refers to the chemical group O(C═O)CH 3 .
The term “cancer” refers to a pathological diseases associated with the growth of transformed cells, and includes the pathological progression of the disease. Thus the term includes cancers of all stages and of all cellular origin. Cancer cells have the capacity for autonomous growth (an abnormal state or condition characterized by rapidly proliferating cell growth). The term is meant to include all types of cancerous growths or oncogenic processes, metastatic tissues or malignantly transformed cells, tissues, or organs, irrespective of histopathologic type, or stage of invasiveness. Examples of cancers include, but are not limited to, carcinoma and sarcoma such as leukemia, sarcomas, osteosarcoma, lymphomas, melanoma, ovarian cancer, skin cancer, testicular cancer, gastric cancer, pancreatic cancer, renal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, cancer of the head and neck, brain cancer, esophageal cancer, bladder cancer, adrenal cortical cancer, lung cancer, bronchus cancer, endometrial cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer, cervical or hepatic cancer, or cancer of unknown primary site. In addition, cancer can be associated with a drug resistance phenotype.
The term “epithelial-mesenchymal transition” (or transformation) (EMT) refers to a biological process where epithelial cells detach from their neighboring cells and become solitary migratory cells. Cancer cells from epithelial tumors undergo EMT when they metastasize.
The terms “hydroxyl” and “hydroxy” both refer to an OH group.
In chemical structures where a carbon-carbon double bond exists (olefins), the double bond may be trans (E), or cis (Z).
Antimetastatic Compounds
The present disclosure addresses a need for effective agents that inhibit MET signaling, such as preventing cellular responses to MET activation at points downstream of the MET receptor itself. By inhibiting MET signaling, compounds could be used to directly treat cancers where MET signaling occurs, to prevent or reduce metastatic cellular behavior, whether by MET activation or other causes, or to improve the efficacy of other cancer treatments.
MDCK cells are a well characterized tissue culture model system. MDCK cells express the MET receptor and respond to treatment with Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) by undergoing epithelial-mesenchyme transition in culture. Briefly, cells flatten, detach from their neighbors, and increase their rates of migration and cell division. Thus, MDCK cells respond to HGF by going from an epithelial state where cells are incorporated into a tissue to a mesenchymal state as individual, highly migratory cells.
Formulas I and II
Compounds that inhibit conversion of MDCK cells responding to HGF include those of formulas I and II, and pharmaceutical salts of them.
Compounds disclosed include those of formula I:
wherein each of R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , and R 5 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, hydroxy, halo, cyano, or together with another R group form a fused ring; wherein each of R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , and R 10 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, carboxyalkyl, hydroxy, halo, cyano, nitro, or together with another R group form a fused ring; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In some embodiments, two of R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , and R 5 together form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 1 and R 2 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 2 and R 3 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 3 and R 4 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments R 4 and R 5 may form a fused ring.
In some embodiments, two of R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , and R 10 together form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 6 and R 7 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 7 and R 8 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments, R 8 and R 9 may form a fused ring. In some embodiments R 9 and R 10 may form a fused ring.
In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkyl and alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkenyl and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from ethyl, allyl, ethoxy, and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkoxy and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkenyl and alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is allyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is ethyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is selected from the group consisting of: alkyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, halo, and H. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is —OCH 2 CHCH 2 . In some embodiments, R 6 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is halo. In some embodiments, R 6 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 6 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 6 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 6 is fluoro. In some embodiments, R 6 is H.
In some embodiments, R 7 is selected from H, alkenyl, alkoxy, halo, and hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is H. In some embodiments, R 7 is alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 7 is allyl. In some embodiments, R 7 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is phenoxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is halo. In some embodiments, R 7 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 7 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 7 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 7 is fluoro. In some embodiments, R 7 is hydroxy.
In some embodiments, R 8 is selected from H, alkyl, hydroxy, halo, and nitro. In some embodiments, R 8 is H. In some embodiments, R 8 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 8 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 8 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 8 is halo. In some embodiments, R 8 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 8 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 8 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 8 is fluoro. In some embodiments, R 8 is nitro.
In some embodiments, R 10 is halo. In some embodiments, R 10 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 10 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 10 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 10 is fluoro.
In some embodiments where an R group (any of R 1 -R 10 ) may be alkoxy, the alkoxy group has 2 to 10 carbon atoms. In some embodiments, the alkoxy group has 2 to 8 carbon atoms. In some embodiments, the alkoxy group has from 2 to 4 carbon atoms.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula II:
wherein R 1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, and cyano; wherein each of R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , and R 10 is selected from the group consisting of: H, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, carboxy, carboxyalkyl, hydroxy, halo, cyano, nitro, or together with another R group form a fused ring; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkyl and alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkenyl and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from ethyl, allyl, ethoxy, and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkoxy and cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkenyl and alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is allyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is cyano. In some embodiments, R 1 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is ethyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is methyl.
In some embodiments, R 6 is selected from the group consisting of: alkyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, halo, and H. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is —OCH 2 CHCH 2 . In some embodiments, R 6 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 6 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is halo. In some embodiments, R 6 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 6 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 6 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 6 is fluoro. In some embodiments, R 6 is H.
In some embodiments, R 7 is selected from H, alkenyl, alkoxy, halo, and hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is H. In some embodiments, R 7 is alkenyl. In some embodiments, R 7 is allyl. In some embodiments, R 7 is alkoxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is phenoxy. In some embodiments, R 7 is halo. In some embodiments, R 7 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 7 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 7 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 7 is fluoro.
In some embodiments, R 8 is selected from H, alkyl, hydroxy, halo, and nitro. In some embodiments, R 8 is H. In some embodiments, R 8 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 8 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 8 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 8 is halo. In some embodiments, R 8 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 8 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 8 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 8 is fluoro. In some embodiments, R 8 is nitro.
In some embodiments, R 10 is halo. In some embodiments, R 10 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 10 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 10 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 10 is fluoro.
In some embodiments where an R group (R 1 , R 5 -R 10 ) may be alkoxy, the alkoxy group has 2 to 10 carbon atoms. In some embodiments, the alkoxy group has 2 to 8 carbon atoms. In some embodiments, the alkoxy group has from 2 to 4 carbon atoms.
The compounds that are capable of inhibiting MET signaling include those of formulas I and II, as further described above.
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula I are provided in Table 1.
TABLE 1
I
Compound
Assay
ID
R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5
R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10
Value
1
R 1 = allyl;
R 6 , R 8 = methyl;
97.0
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
2
R 1 = allyl;
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H;
67.3
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 8 = chloro
3
R 1 = allyl;
R 6 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H;
70.9
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 = phenoxy
4
R 1 = ethoxy;
R 6 , R 8 = hydroxy;
32.3
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
5
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 = hydroxy;
41.1
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
6
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
44.2
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
7
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H;
86.8
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 8 = chloro
8
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 , R 8 = chloro;
55.1
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
9
R 1 = allyl;
R 6 = OCH 2 CHCH 2 ;
49.5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
10
R 1 = allyl;
R 6 = hydroxyl; R 7 = allyl;
44.8
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
11
R 1 = cyano;
R 8 = nitro;
83.7
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
12
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H;
67.7
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 = bromo
13
R 1 = cyano;
R 6 , R 10 = chloro;
86.0
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 = H
14
R 1 = ethyl;
R 8 = bromo;
100
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
15
R 1 = ethoxy;
R 7 , R 8 = OH;
72.8
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 9 , R 10 = H
16
R 2 = methyl;
R 7 = iodo;
<5
R 1 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
17
R 1 , R 3 , R 5 = methyl;
R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
<5
R 2 , R 4 = H
18
R 1 , R 3 , R 5 = methyl;
R 6 = methoxy;
<5
R 2 , R 4 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
19
R1 = methyl;
R 8 = methoxy;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
20
R 3 = methyl;
R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
<5
R 1 , R 2 , R 4 , R 5 = H
21
R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 8 , R 10 = methyl;
<5
R 7 , R 9 = H
22
R 1 , Rb = methyl;
R 8 = carboxy;
<5
R 2 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
23
R 1 , R 2 = methyl;
R 8 = hydroxyl;
<5
R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
24
R 1 = isopropyl;
R 7 = methoxy;
<5
R 4 = methyl; R 2 , R 3 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
25
R 1 , R 2 , R 5 = methyl;
R 8 = carboxymethyl;
<5
R 3 , R 4 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
26
R 1 = methyl;
R 8 = fluoro;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
27
R 1 = methoxy;
R 6 = hydroxy; R 7 = allyl;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
28
R 1 = bromo;
R 7 = bromo;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
29
R 1 = methoxy;
R 6 , R 7 = fused phenyl;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 9 , R 10 = fused phenyl;
R 8 = H
30
R 2 , R 3 = fused phenyl;
R 6 = bromo;
<5
R 1 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
31
R 2 , R 3 = fused phenyl;
R 6 , R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
<5
R 1 , R 4 , R 5 = H
32
R 1 = methoxy;
R 6 = methoxy;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
33
R 1 = methoxy;
R 8 = chloro;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
34
R 1 = bromo;
R 6 , R 8 = methyl;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
35
R 2 = bromo;
R 8 = chloro;
<5
R 1 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
36
R 2 = bromo;
R 6 , R 8 = methyl;
<5
R 1 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
37
R 1 = bromo;
R 6 = bromo;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 7 , R 8 , R 9 , R 10 = H
38
R 3 = bromo;
R 8 = chloro;
<5
R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 = H
R 6 , R 7 , R 9 , R 10 = H
Compounds 1 through 15 are also depicted below:
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula II are provided in Table 2.
TABLE 2
II
Compound
Assay
ID
R 1
R 6
R 7
R 8
R 9
R 10
Value
1
allyl
methyl
H
methyl
H
H
97.0
2
allyl
H
H
chloro
H
H
67.3
3
allyl
H
phenoxy
H
H
H
70.9
4
ethoxy
hydroxy
H
hydroxyl
H
H
32.3
5
cyano
hydroxy
H
H
H
H
41.1
6
cyano
H
H
H
H
H
44.2
7
cyano
H
H
chloro
H
H
86.8
8
cyano
chloro
H
chloro
H
H
55.1
9
allyl
OCH 2 CHCH 2
H
H
H
H
49.5
10
allyl
hydroxy
allyl
H
H
H
44.8
11
cyano
H
H
nitro
H
H
83.7
12
cyano
H
bromo
H
H
H
67.7
13
cyano
chloro
H
H
H
Cl
86.0
14
ethyl
H
H
Br
H
H
100
15
ethoxy
H
OH
OH
H
H
72.8
27
methoxy
hydroxyl
allyl
H
H
H
<5
29
methoxy
fused phenyl
H
fused
<5
phenyl
32
methoxy
methoxy
H
H
H
H
<5
Compounds I-38 are available from Chembridge Corporation, 16981 Via Tazon, Suite G, San Diego, Calif. 92127.
Formulas A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, and A-IV
Compounds that inhibit conversion of MDCK cells responding to HGF include those of formulas A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, and A-IV, and pharmaceutical salts of them.
Compounds disclosed include those of formula A-I:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; R 2 is absent or H; R 3 is H, absent, or together with R 4 forms a carbocyclic ring; R 4 is H, absent or together with R 3 forms a carbocyclic ring; X is N, S, or together with W completes a phenyl ring; W is C, N, or together with X completes a phenyl ring; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In some embodiments, R 1 is H. In some embodiments, R 1 is phenyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is benzyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from phenyl and benzyl.
In some embodiments, R 2 is H. In some embodiments, R 2 is absent.
In some embodiments, R 3 is H. In some embodiments, R 3 is absent. In some embodiments, R 3 forms a carbocyclic ring with R 4 .
In some embodiments, R 4 is H. In some embodiments, R 4 is absent. In some embodiments, R 4 forms a carbocyclic ring with R 3 .
In some embodiments, X is N. In some embodiments, X is S. In some embodiments, X completes a phenyl ring with W.
In some embodiments, W is C. In some embodiments, W is S. In some embodiments, W completes a phenyl ring with X.
In some embodiments, A is absent. In some embodiments, A is S. In some embodiments, A is NH.
In some embodiments, B is absent. In some embodiments, B is alkyl.
In some embodiments, B is CH 2 . In some embodiments, B is CH 2 —CH 2 —CH 2 .
In some embodiments, B is alkenyl. In some embodiments, B is CH 2 —CH═CH.
In some embodiments, n is 0. In some embodiments, n is 1.
In some embodiments, Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, and hydroxy. In some embodiments, Y is alkyl. In some embodiments, Y is methyl. In some embodiments, Y is ethyl. In some embodiments, Y is alkenyl. In some embodiments, Y is —(C═CH 2 )—CH 3 . In some embodiments, Y is alkoxy. In some embodiments, Y is ethoxy. In some embodiments, Y is methoxy. In some embodiments, Y is hydroxy.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula A-II:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; R 3 is H or together with R 4 forms a carbocyclic ring; R 4 is H or together with R 3 forms a carbocyclic ring; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B absent or is selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula A-IIa and A-IIb:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; n is 0 or 1; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B absent or is selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula A-III:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B is absent or selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted aryl, and substituted heteroaryl; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula A-IV:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, phenyl, and benzyl; A is absent or selected from S and NH; B absent or is selected from alkyl and alkenyl; n is 0 or 1; Y is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, unsubstituted aryl, substituted aryl, and heterocycle; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
The compounds that are capable of inhibiting MET signaling include those of formulas A-I, A-II, A-IIa, A-IIb, A-III, and A-IV, as further described above.
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-I are provided in Table 3.
TABLE 3
A-I
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
R 2
R 3
R 4
W
X
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-1
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
CH 2 —CH 2
0
phenyl
96.9
A-2
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
NH—CH 2
0
phenyl
92.2
A-3
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
73.4
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-4
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.8
A-5
H
C
S
S—CH 2
0
phenyl
77.3
A-6
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
55.1
isoxazole
A-7
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
31.3
isoxazole
A-8
phenyl
H
H
N
N
S—CH 2
0
2-methyl-
49.6
thiazol-4-yl
A-9
benzyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
1
pyrrolidin-1-yl
50.0
A-10
phenyl
H
H
N
N
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
63.1
isoxazol-4-yl
A-11
H
H
H
H
phenyl
0
phenyl
88.0
ring
A-12
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
CH 2 —CH 2
1
OH
100
A-13
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.5
A-14
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
0
100
A-15
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
1
—OCH 2 —CH 3
71.3
A-16
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
CH 2 —CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
70.1
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-17
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
1
thiophen-2-yl
<5
A-18
H
C
S
CH 2
0
phenyl
<5
A-19
H
fused 2,2-dimethyl-
C
S
NH
0
phenyl
<5
3,6-dihydro-2H-
pyran
A-20
benzyl
C
S
S—CH 2
1
morpholin-4-yl
<5
A-21
benzyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
1
pyrrolidin-1-yl
<5
A-22
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
1
2-methyl-
<5
piperin-1-yl
A-23
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
0
chromen-4-
<5
one-3-yl
A-24
H
fused 2,2-dimethyl-
C
S
CH 2 CH 2
0
phenyl
<5
3,6-dihydro-2H-
pyran
A-25
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
C
S
S—CH 2
1
4-methyl-
<5
piperdin-1-yl
Compounds A-1 through A-16 are also depicted below:
Thus, in some embodiments, a medicinal agent is selected from any one or more of the aforementioned A-1 through A-16 compounds.
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-II are provided in Table 4.
TABLE 4
A-II
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
R 3
R 4
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-1
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
CH 2 —CH 2
0
phenyl
96.9
A-2
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
NH—CH 2
0
phenyl
92.2
A-3
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
73.4
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-4
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.8
A-5
H
S—CH 2
0
phenyl
77.3
A-6
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
55.1
isoxazole
A-7
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
31.3
isoxazole
A-9
benzyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
1
pyrrolidin-1-yl
50.0
A-12
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
CH 2 —CH 2
1
OH
100
A-13
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.5
A-14
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
0
100
A-15
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
1
—OCH 2 —CH 3
71.3
A-16
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
CH 2 —CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
70.1
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-17
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
1
thiophen-2-yl
<5
A-18
H
CH 2
0
phenyl
<5
A-19
H
fused 2,2-dimethyl-
NH
0
phenyl
<5
3,6-dihydro-2H-
pyran
A-20
benzyl
S—CH 2
1
morpholin-4-yl
<5
A-21
benzyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
1
pyrrolidin-1-yl
<5
A-22
phenyl
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
1
2-methyl-
<5
piperin-1-yl
A-23
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
0
chromen-4-
<5
one-3-yl
A-24
H
fused 2,2-dimethyl-
CH 2 CH 2
0
phenyl
<5
3,6-dihydro-2H-
pyran
A-25
H
—CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 —
S—CH 2
1
4-methyl-
<5
piperdin-1-yl
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-IIa are provided in Table 5.
TABLE 5
A-IIa
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-1
H
CH 2 —CH 2
0
phenyl
96.9
A-2
H
NH—CH 2
0
phenyl
92.2
A-3
H
CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
73.4
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-4
H
CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.8
A-7
phenyl
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
31.3
isoxazole
A-9
benzyl
S—CH 2
1
pyrrolidin-1-yl
50.0
A-12
H
CH 2 —CH 2
1
OH
100
A-13
H
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
0
phenyl
90.5
A-14
H
S—CH 2
0
100
A-15
H
S—CH 2 —CH═CH
1
—OCH 2 —CH 3
71.3
A-16
H
CH 2 —CH 2 —CH 2
0
1H-benzo[de]-
70.1
isoquinoline-
1,3(2H)-dionyl
A-17
phenyl
S—CH 2
1
thiophen-2-yl
<5
A-19
benzyl
S—CH 2
0
pyrrolidin-1-yl
<5
A-21
phenyl
S—CH 2
1
2-methyl-
<5
piperin-1-yl
A-23
H
0
chromen-4-
<5
one-3-yl
A-25
H
S—CH 2
1
4-methyl-
<5
piperdin-1-yl
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-IIb are provided in Table 6.
TABLE 6
A-IIb
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
R 3
R 4
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-6
phenyl
fused
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
55.1
cyclopentene
isoxazole
A-17
phenyl
fused
S—CH 2
1
2-methyl-
<5
cyclopentene
piperin-1-yl
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-III are provided in Table 7.
TABLE 7
A-III
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-8
phenyl
S—CH 2
0
2-methyl-
49.6
thiazol-4-yl
A-10
phenyl
S—CH 2
0
3,5-dimethyl-
63.1
isoxazol-4-yl
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula A-IV are provided in Table 8.
TABLE 8
A-IV
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
A-B
n
Y
Value
A-11
H
0
phenyl
88.0
Compounds A-1 through A-25 are available from Chembridge Corporation, 16981 Via Tazon, Suite G, San Diego, Calif. 92127.
Formulas B-I, B-IIa, and B-IIb
Compounds that inhibit conversion of MDCK cells responding to HGF include those of formulas B-I, B-IIa, and B-IIb and pharmaceutical salts of them.
Compounds disclosed include those of formula B-I:
wherein R 1 is selected from H, alkyl, (C═O)alkyl, and optionally substituted benzyl; R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, and nitro, benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In some embodiments, R 1 is selected from alkyl, (C═O)alkyl, and optionally substituted benzyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is acetyl ((C═O)CH 3 ). In some embodiments, R 1 is (C═O)CH 2 CH 3 . In some embodiments, R 1 is 4-chlorobenzyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is 3-chlorobenzyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is 2-chlorobenzyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is benzyl. In some embodiments with compounds of Formula B-I, R 1 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 1 is ethyl.
In some embodiments, R 1 is H.
In some embodiments, the compound
is excluded.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula B-IIa:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula B-IIb:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula B-IIc:
wherein R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 7 is alkyl; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
Compounds disclosed also include those of formula B-IId:
wherein X is halogen or absent; R 2 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 3 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with one of R 2 and R 4 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 4 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether or with R 3 forms a heterocyclic ring; R 5 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; R 6 is selected form H, alkyl, halogen, hydroxyl, alkoxy, ester, nitro, and benzyl ether; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
In some embodiments, X is chloro. In some embodiments, X is bromo. In some embodiments, X is iodo. In some embodiments, X is fluoro.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 4 is H. In some embodiments, R 4 is methoxy.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 2 is selected from H, ethoxy, methoxy, chloro, and bromo; R 3 is selected from H, methoxy, ethoxy, hydroxyl, acetyl, and chloro.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 2 is selected from H, ethoxy methoxy, chloro, bromo, nitro, and acetoxy; R 3 is selected from methoxy, ethoxy, hydroxyl, acetyl, and chloro.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 2 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 2 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 2 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 2 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 2 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 2 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 2 is H. In some embodiments, R 2 is nitro. In some embodiments, R 2 is acetoxy.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 3 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 3 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 3 is O-carbocycle. In some embodiments, R 3 is O-cyclopentyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is O-benzyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is O(C═O)CH 2 CH 3 . In some embodiments, R 3 is hydroxyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is acetyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is acetoxy. In some embodiments, R 3 is alkyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is methyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is ethyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is propyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is n-propyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is iso-propyl. In some embodiments, R 3 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 3 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 3 is H.
In some embodiments, R 2 and R 3 form a heterocyclic ring. In some embodiments, R 2 and R 3 form a 1,3-dioxole ring. In some embodiments, R 3 and R 4 form a heterocyclic ring. In some embodiments, R 3 and R 4 form a 1,3-dioxole ring.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 4 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 4 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 4 is chloro. In some embodiments, R 4 is bromo. In some embodiments, R 4 is iodo. In some embodiments, R 4 is H. In some embodiments, R 4 is nitro. In some embodiments, R 4 is acetoxy.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 5 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 5 is ethoxy. In some embodiments, R 5 is nitro. In some embodiments, R 5 is acetoxy. In some embodiments, R 5 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 5 is hydroxy. In some embodiments, R 5 is H.
In some embodiments with compounds of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId, R 6 is methoxy. In some embodiments, R 6 is nitro. In some embodiments, R 6 is acetoxy.
The compounds that are capable of inhibiting MET signaling include those of Formulas B-I, B-IIa, B-IIb, B-IIc, and B-IId as further described above.
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula B-1 are provided in Table 9.
TABLE 9
B-I
Compound
Assay
No.
R 1
R 2
R 3
R 4
R 5
R 6
Value
B-1
CH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
96.8
B-2
H
OCH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-3
H
OCH 3
OH
H
H
H
>5
B-4
H
H
OCH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-5
CH 3
OCH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-6
CH 3
Cl
OCH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-7
CH 3
OCH 3
O-acetyl
H
H
H
>5
B-8
H
Cl
Cl
H
H
H
>5
B-9
CH 3
Br
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
>5
B-10
CH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
H
76.1
B-11
CH 3
H
Br
H
H
H
61.4
B-12
CH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
OCH 3
H
50.6
B-13
(C═O)CH 2 CH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
Br
H
H
62.2
B-14
CH 3
H
O(C═O)CH 3
OCH 3
NO 2
H
61.1
B-15
CH 3
H
H
OCH 2 CH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
53.1
B-16
H
H
O-
H
H
H
100
cyclopentyl
B-17
2-Cl-benzyl
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
100
B-18
benzyl
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
H
H
100
B-19
H
H
O-benzyl
H
H
H
91.0
B-20
CH 3
NO 2
H
H
H
H
92.4
B-21
CH 3
I
H
H
O(C═O)CH 3
H
72.5
B-22
CH 3
Cl
H
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
98.1
B-23
CH 3
Br
H
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
72.8
B-24
(C═O)CH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
98.1
B-25
4-Cl-benzyl
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
78.8
B-26
H
H
CH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
81.1
B-27
H
Cl
H
Br
OH
H
100
B-28
H
Cl
H
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
100
B-29
(C═O)CH 3
H
OH
OCH 3
H
H
94.2
B-30
H
H
O—CH 2 —O
H
H
94.4
B-31
H
H
O-iso-
H
H
H
100
propyl
B-32
H
H
O-benzyl
OCH 3
H
H
91.8
B-33
H
CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
H
90.7
B-34
H
OCH 3
H
H
H
H
51.8
B-35
H
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
<5
B-36
H
OCH 3
OH
OCH 3
H
H
<5
The trans isomers of compounds B-1 through B-34 are also depicted below:
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula B-IIa are provided in Table 10.
TABLE 10
B-IIa
Compound
Assay
No.
R 2
R 3
R 4
R 5
R 6
Value
B-2
OCH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-3
OCH 3
OH
H
H
H
>5
B-4
H
OCH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-8
Cl
Cl
H
H
H
>5
B-16
H
O-
H
H
H
100
cyclopentyl
B-19
H
O-benzyl
H
H
H
91.0
B-26
H
CH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
81.1
B-27
H
Cl
H
Br
OH
100
B-28
Cl
H
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
100
B-30
H
O—CH 2 —O
H
H
94.4
B-31
H
O-iso-
H
H
H
100
propyl
B-32
H
O-benzyl
OCH 3
H
H
91.8
B-33
CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
H
90.7
B-34
OCH 3
H
H
H
H
51.8
B-35
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
<5
B-36
OCH 3
OH
OCH 3
H
H
<5
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula B-IIb are provided in Table 11.
TABLE 11
B-IIb
Compound
Assay
No.
R 2
R 3
R 4
R 5
R 6
Value
B-1
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
96.8
B-5
OCH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-6
Cl
OCH 3
H
H
H
>5
B-7
OCH 3
O-acetyl
H
H
H
>5
B-9
Br
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
>5
B-10
OCH 2 CH 3
H
H
H
H
76.1
B-11
H
Br
H
H
H
61.4
B-12
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
OCH 3
H
50.6
B-14
H
O(C═O)CH 3
OCH 3
NO 2
H
61.1
B-15
H
H
OCH 2 CH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
53.1
B-20
NO 2
H
H
H
H
92.4
B-21
I
H
H
O(C═O)CH 3
H
72.5
B-22
Cl
H
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
98.1
B-23
Br
H
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
72.8
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula B-IIc are provided in Table 12.
TABLE 12
B-IIc
Compound
Assay
No.
R 7
R 2
R 3
R 4
R 5
R 6
Value
B-13
CH 2 CH 3
OCH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
Br
H
H
62.2
B-24
CH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 2 CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
98.1
B-29
CH 3
H
OH
OCH 3
H
H
94.2
Illustrative examples of the compounds of Formula B-IId are provided in Table 13.
TABLE 13
B-IId
Compound
Assay
No.
X
R 2
R 3
R 4
R 5
R 6
Value
B-17
2-chloro
OCH 3
OCH 3
OCH 3
H
H
100
B-18
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
H
H
H
100
B-25
4-chloro
OCH 3
O(C═O)CH 3
OCH 3
H
H
78.8
Compounds B-1 through B-36 are available from Chembridge Corporation, 16981 Via Tazon, Suite G, San Diego, Calif. 92127.
The compounds described above include the compounds themselves, as well as their salts and their prodrugs, if applicable. The salts, for example can be formed between a positively charged substituent (such as an amide) on a compound and an anion. Suitable anions include, but are not limited to, chloride, bromide, iodide, sulfate, nitrate, phosphate, citrate, methanesulfonate, tartrate, trifluoracetate, acetate, and the like.
Examples of prodrugs include esters, phosphonates, and other pharmaceutically acceptable derivatives, which, upon administration to a subject, are capable of providing the compounds described above.
In addition to the above-described compounds, salts, and prodrug forms, those forms may also be solvated and unsolvated (such as hydrates).
Formulations and Routes of Administration
The compounds described herein, or pharmaceutically acceptable addition salts or hydrates thereof, can be delivered to a patient using a wide variety of routes or modes of administration. Suitable routes of administration include, but are not limited to, inhalation, transdermal, oral, rectal, transmucosal, intestinal and parenteral administration, including intramuscular, subcutaneous and intravenous injections.
The compounds described herein, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts and/or hydrates thereof, may be administered singly, in combination with other compounds of the invention, and/or in cocktails combined with other therapeutic agents. Of course, the choice of therapeutic agents that can be co-administered with the compounds of the invention will depend, in part, on the condition being treated.
For example, when administered to a patient undergoing cancer treatment, the compounds may be administered in cocktails containing other anti-cancer agents and/or supplementary potentiating agents. The compounds may also be administered in cocktails containing agents that treat the side-effects of radiation therapy, such as anti-emetics, radiation protectants, etc.
Anti-cancer drugs that can be co-administered with the compounds of the invention include, but are not limited to Aminoglutethimide; Asparaginase; Bleomycin; Busulfan; Carboplatin; Carmustine (BCNU); Chlorambucil; Cisplatin (cis-DDP); Cyclophosphamide; Cytarabine HCl; Dacarbazine; Dactinomycin; Daunorubicin HCl; Doxorubicin HCl; Estramustine phosphate sodium; Etoposide (VP-16); Floxuridine; Fluorouracil (5-FU); Flutamide; Hydroxyurea (hydroxycarbamide); Ifosfamide; Interferon α-2a, α-2b, Lueprolide acetate (LHRH-releasing factor analogue); Lomustine (CCNU); Mechlorethamine HCl (nitrogen mustard); Melphalan; Mercaptopurine; Mesna; Methotrexate (MTX); Mitomycin; Mitotane (o.p′-DDD); Mitoxantrone HCl; Octreotide; Plicamycin; Procarbazine HCl; Streptozocin; Tamoxifen citrate; Thioguanine; Thiotepa; Vinblastine sulfate; Vincristine sulfate; Amsacrine (m-AMSA); Azacitidine; Hexamethylmelamine (HMM); Interleukin 2; Mitoguazone (methyl-GAG; methyl glyoxal bis-guanylhydrazone; MGBG); Pentostatin; Semustine (methyl-CCNU); Teniposide (VM-26); paclitaxel and other taxanes; and Vindesine sulfate.
Supplementary potentiating agents that can be co-administered with the compounds of the invention include, but are not limited to, tricyclic anti-depressant drugs (such as imipramine, desipramine, amitriptyline, clomipramine, trimipramine, doxepin, nortriptyline, protriptyline, amoxapine and maprotiline); non-tricyclic and anti-depressant drugs (such as sertraline, trazodone and citalopram); Ca 2+ antagonists (such as verapamil, nifedipine, nitrendipine and caroverine); Amphotericin (such as Tween 80 and perhexyline maleate); triparanol analogues (such as tamoxifen); antiarrhythmic drugs (such as quinidine); antihypertensive drugs (such as reserpine); thiol depleters (such as buthionine and sulfoximine); and calcium leucovorin.
The active compound(s) may be administered per se or in the form of a pharmaceutical composition wherein the active compound(s) is in admixture with one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers, excipients or diluents. Pharmaceutical compositions for use with the compounds described above may be formulated in conventional manner using one or more physiologically acceptable carriers comprising excipients and auxiliaries which facilitate processing of the active compounds into preparations which can be used pharmaceutically. Proper formulation is dependent upon the route of administration chosen.
For injection, the agents of the invention may be formulated in aqueous solutions, preferably in physiologically compatible buffers such as Hanks' solution, Ringer's solution, or physiological saline buffer. For transmucosal administration, penetrants appropriate to the barrier to be permeated are used in the formulation. Such penetrants are generally known in the art.
For oral administration, the compounds can be formulated readily by combining the active compound(s) with pharmaceutically acceptable carriers well known in the art. Such carriers enable the compounds of the invention to be formulated as tablets, pills, dragees, capsules, liquids, gels, syrups, slurries, suspensions and the like, for oral ingestion by a patient to be treated. Pharmaceutical preparations for oral use can be obtained solid excipient, optionally grinding a resulting mixture, and processing the mixture of granules, after adding suitable auxiliaries, if desired, to obtain tablets or dragee cores. Suitable excipients are, in particular, fillers such as sugars, including lactose, sucrose, mannitol, or sorbitol; cellulose preparations such as, for example, maize starch, wheat starch, rice starch, potato starch, gelatin, gum tragacanth, methyl cellulose, hydroxypropylmethyl-cellulose, sodium carboxymethylcellulose, and/or polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). If desired, disintegrating agents may be added, such as the cross-linked polyvinyl pyrrolidone, agar, or alginic acid or a salt thereof such as sodium alginate.
Dragee (tablet) cores are provided with suitable coatings. For this purpose, concentrated sugar solutions may be used, which may optionally contain gum arabic, talc, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, carbopol gel, polyethylene glycol, and/or titanium dioxide, lacquer solutions, and suitable organic solvents or solvent mixtures. Dyestuffs or pigments may be added to the tablets or dragee coatings for identification or to characterize different combinations of active compound doses.
Pharmaceutical preparations which can be used orally include push-fit capsules made of gelatin, as well as soft, sealed capsules made of gelatin and a plasticizer, such as glycerol or sorbitol. The push-fit capsules can contain the active ingredients in admixture with filler such as lactose, binders such as starches, and/or lubricants such as talc or magnesium stearate and, optionally, stabilizers. In soft capsules, the active compounds may be dissolved or suspended in suitable liquids, such as fatty oils, liquid paraffin, or liquid polyethylene glycols. In addition, stabilizers may be added. All formulations for oral administration should be in dosages suitable for such administration.
For buccal administration, the compositions may take the form of tablets or lozenges formulated in conventional manner.
For administration by inhalation, the compounds for use according to the present invention are conveniently delivered in the form of an aerosol spray presentation from pressurized packs or a nebulizer, with the use of a suitable propellant (such as dichlorodifluoromethane, trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorotetrafluoroethane, carbon dioxide or other suitable gas). In the case of a pressurized aerosol the dosage unit may be determined by providing a valve to deliver a metered amount. Capsules and cartridges of gelatin for use in an inhaler or insufflator may be formulated containing a powder mix of the compound and a suitable powder base such as lactose or starch.
The compounds may be formulated for parenteral administration by injection (such as by bolus injection or continuous infusion). Formulations for injection may be presented in unit dosage form (in ampoules or in multi-dose containers) with an added preservative. The compositions may take such forms as suspensions, solutions or emulsions in oily or aqueous vehicles, and may contain formulatory agents such as suspending, stabilizing and/or dispersing agents.
Pharmaceutical formulations for parenteral administration include aqueous solutions of the active compounds in water-soluble form. Additionally, suspensions of the active compounds may be prepared as appropriate oily injection suspensions. Suitable lipophilic solvents or vehicles include fatty oils such as sesame oil, or synthetic fatty acid esters, such as ethyl oleate or triglycerides, or liposomes. Aqueous injection suspensions may contain substances which increase the viscosity of the suspension (such as sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, sorbitol, or dextran). Optionally, the suspension may also contain suitable stabilizers or agents which increase the solubility of the compounds to allow for the preparation of highly concentrated solutions.
Alternatively, the active ingredient may be in powder form for constitution with a suitable vehicle (such as sterile pyrogen-free water) before use.
The compounds may also be formulated in rectal compositions such as suppositories or retention enemas (such as containing conventional suppository bases like cocoa butter or other glycerides).
In addition to the formulations described previously, the compounds may also be formulated as a depot preparation. Such long acting formulations may be administered by implantation or transcutaneous delivery (such as subcutaneously or intramuscularly), intramuscular injection or a transdermal patch. Thus, the compounds may be formulated with suitable polymeric or hydrophobic materials (such as an emulsion in an acceptable oil) or ion exchange resins, or as sparingly soluble derivatives (such as a sparingly soluble salt).
The pharmaceutical compositions also may comprise suitable solid or gel phase carriers or excipients. Examples of such carriers or excipients include but are not limited to calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, various sugars, starches, cellulose derivatives, gelatin, and polymers such as polyethylene glycols.
Effective Dosages
Pharmaceutical compositions suitable for use with the compounds described above include compositions wherein the active ingredient is contained in a therapeutically effective amount (an amount effective to achieve its intended purpose). Of course, the actual amount effective for a particular application will depend on the condition being treated. For example, when administered in methods to inhibit cell proliferation, such compositions will contain an amount of active ingredient effective to achieve this result. When administered to patients suffering from disorders characterized by abnormal cell proliferation, such compositions will contain an amount of active ingredient effective to prevent the development of or alleviate the existing symptoms of, or prolong the survival of, the patient being treated. For use in the treatment of cancer, a therapeutically effective amount further includes that amount of compound which arrests or regresses the growth of a tumor. Determination of an effective amount is well within the capabilities of those skilled in the art.
For any compound described herein the therapeutically effective amount can be initially determined from cell culture arrays. Target plasma concentrations will be those concentrations of active compound(s) that are capable of inducing at least about 25% inhibition of MET receptor signaling and/or at least about 25% inhibition of cell proliferation in cell culture assays, depending, of course, on the particular desired application. Target plasma concentrations of active compound(s) that are capable of inducing at least about 50%, 75%, or even 90% or higher inhibition of MET receptor signaling and/or cell proliferation in cell culture assays are preferred. The percentage of inhibition of MET receptor signaling and/or cell proliferation in the patient can be monitored to assess the appropriateness of the plasma drug concentration achieved, and the dosage can be adjusted upwards or downwards to achieve the desired percentage of inhibition.
Therapeutically effective amounts for use in humans can also be determined from animal models. For example, a dose for humans can be formulated to achieve a circulating concentration that has been found to be effective in animals. Useful animal models for diseases characterized by abnormal cell proliferation are well-known in the art. In particular, the following references provide suitable animal models for cancer xenografts (Corbett et al., 1996, J. Exp. Ther. Oncol. 1:95-108; Dykes et al., 1992, Contrib. Oncol. Basel. Karger 42:1-22), restenosis (Carter et al., 1994, J. Am. Coll. Cardiol: 24(5):1398-1405), atherosclerosis (Zhu et al., 1994, Cardiology 85(6):370-377) and neovascularization (Epstein et al., 1987, Cornea 6(4):250-257). The dosage in humans can be adjusted by monitoring MET receptor signaling inhibition and/or inhibition of cell proliferation and adjusting the dosage upwards or downwards, as described above.
A therapeutically effective dose can also be determined from human data for compounds which are known to exhibit similar pharmacological activities. Adjusting the dose to achieve maximal efficacy in humans based on the methods described above and other methods as are well-known in the art is well within the capabilities of the ordinarily skilled artisan.
In the case of local administration, the systemic circulating concentration of administered compound will not be of particular importance. In such instances, the compound is administered so as to achieve a concentration at the local area effective to achieve the intended result.
When treating disorders characterized by abnormal cell proliferation, including cancer, a circulating concentration of administered compound of about 0.001 μM to 20 μM is considered to be effective, or about 0.1 μM to 5 μM.
Patient doses for oral administration of the compounds described herein for the treatment or prevention of cell proliferative disorders typically range from about 80 mg/day to 16,000 mg/day, more typically from about 800 mg/day to 8000 mg/day, and most typically from about 800 mg/day to 4000 mg/day. Stated in terms of patient body weight, typical dosages range from about 1 to 200 mg/kg/day, more typically from about 10 to 100 mg/kg/day, and most typically from about 10 to 50 mg/kg/day. Stated in terms of patient body surface areas, typical dosages range from about 40 to 8000 mg/m 2 /day, more typically from about 400 to 4000 mg/m 2 /day, and most typically from about 400 to 2000 mg/m 2 /day.
For other modes of administration, dosage amount and interval can be adjusted individually to provide plasma levels of the administered compound effective for the particular clinical indication being treated. For use in the treatment of tumorigenic cancers, the compounds can be administered before, during or after surgical removal of the tumor. For example, the compounds can be administered to the tumor via injection into the tumor mass prior to surgery in a single or several doses. The tumor, or as much as possible of the tumor, may then be removed surgically. Further dosages of the drug at the tumor site can be applied post removal. Alternatively, surgical removal of as much as possible of the tumor can precede administration of the compounds at the tumor site.
Combined with the teachings provided herein, by choosing among the various active compounds and weighing factors such as potency, relative bioavailability, patient body weight, severity of adverse side-effects and preferred mode of administration, an effective prophylactic or therapeutic treatment regimen can be planned which does not cause substantial toxicity and yet is entirely effective to treat the clinical symptoms demonstrated by the particular patient. Of course, many factors are important in determining a therapeutic regimen suitable for a particular indication or patient. Severe indications such as invasive or metastasized cancer may warrant administration of higher dosages as compared with less severe indications such early-detected, non-metastasized cancer.
Toxicity
The ratio between toxicity and therapeutic effect for a particular compound is its therapeutic index and can be expressed as the ratio between LD 50 (the amount of compound lethal in 50% of the population) and ED 50 (the amount of compound effective in 50% of the population). Compounds which exhibit high therapeutic indices are preferred. Therapeutic index data obtained from cell culture assays and/or animal studies can be used in formulating a range of dosages for use in humans. The dosage of such compounds preferably lies within a range of plasma concentrations that include the ED 50 , with little or no toxicity. The dosage may vary within this range depending upon the dosage form employed and the route of administration utilized. The exact formulation, route of administration and dosage can be chosen by the individual physician in view of the patient's condition. (See e.g. Fingl et al., 1975, In: The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, Ch. 1, p 1).
Screening
In another aspect, a method for identifying agents or compounds that inhibit cell proliferation of eukaryotic cells by c-met activation is disclosed. This method includes (a) providing an MDCK cell expressing a METprotein; (b) contacting the cell with a test compound; (c) contacting the cell with hepatocyte growth factor; (d) determining activation of the c-met pathway in the cell by measuring epithelial-mesenchymal transition of MDCK cells, wherein no appearance of detached migratory MDCK cells is indicative of a compound that inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition by c-met activation and wherein the appearance of detached migratory MDCK cells is indicative of a compound that does not inhibit c-met induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition.
The MDCK cell are epithelial cells derived from mammalian tissues.
In one embodiment, MDCK cells are seeded at confluency into the wells of a transwell filter in DMEM (Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium) with culturing medium, 10% fetal bovine serum for example. Cells are cultured for a period to allow for formation of an epithelial tissue in culture, such as for 24 hours. Test compounds, dissolved in a suitable solvent such as DMSO, can be added to each test well to a desired concentration just before stimulation of c-met signaling. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is then added to the culture. The MDCK cells are cultured for a desired time period, for example 24 hours.
Concurrently, controls treated with and without HGF and with no test compounds can also be prepared.
After post-HGF addition culturing, transwell filters are prepared by repeated washing using ice-cold solution, such as phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). The cells are then fixed with paraformaldehyde solution on ice for 15 minutes to the filters. After fixation, the transwell filters are again washed repeatedly with PBS followed by staining with, for example, crystal violet for a period of time, for example, 15 minutes. The transwell filters are again washed, this time with distilled water.
The upper surface of the transwell filters are then swabbed of cells using a cotton-tipped probe until clear, leaving only cells on the lower surface of the filter (those cells that have undergone EMT). Filters are then processed to examine MDCK cell migration.
Various techniques are available to examine MDCK cell migration. In some embodiments, the number of cells migrating can be quantified. This may be done using, for example, various spectroscopic techniques. The number of migrating cells may also be examined by the amount of staining, for example with crystal violet, on the underside of the filter. Densitometry measurements can be used to determine relative light transmission through the transwell filters, which is reduced with increased staining of cells on the underside of the filter. The relative light transmission (the densitometry data) can be normalized on a scale of 1 to 100, with the positive and negative controls setting the 1 and 100 values, respectively. For another example, the filter can be examined by light microscopy and the number of cells counted per area or number of fields examined. Another example is to re-dissolve the stain on each filter in equal volumes of 10% acetic acid and measure the stain concentration in samples derived from each filter.
In some embodiments, the number of cells migrating can be determined using visual assessment. These techniques include visual inspection and assessments, such as using a microscope to identify cells appearing on the underside of the filter.
The appearance of a significant number of detached, migratory MDCK cells using qualitative or quantitative approaches is indicative of a compound that does not treat cancer (does not inhibit c-met induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition). The absence of a quantitatively identifiable or significant number of detached, migratory MDCK cells is indicative of a compound that treats cancer (inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition by c-met activation). The use of controls, including negative controls where cells are not treated with HGF, provide one of ordinary skill with qualitative and quantitative references points to determine qualitatively identifiable and statistically significant experimental variation. In addition, acceptable standards of recognizing statistically significance and qualitative identification are known to one of ordinary skill.
EXAMPLES
MDCK cells were seeded at confluency into the wells of a transwell filter in DMEM with 10% fetal bovine serum. Cells were cultured for 24 hours. Test compounds, dissolved in DMSO, were added to each test well to a 10 μM final concentration, and then hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) was then added. The MDCK cells were cultured for 24 hours. Concurrently, controls treated with and without HGF and with no test compounds were also prepared.
After post-HGF addition culturing, transwell filters were prepared by repeated washing using ice cold PBS. The cells were then fixed with paraformaldehyde (3.7%) on ice for 15 minutes to the filters. After fixation, the transwell filters were washed repeatedly with PBS followed by staining with crystal violet for 15 minutes. The transwell filters were washed again with distilled water.
The upper surface of the transwell filters were swabbed using a cotton-tipped probe. The filters were photographed using a gel documentation system. Densitometry measurements were made on the test samples and compared with control samples. Controls, namely unstimulated cells and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) treated cells that had not received any compound treatment, were used to calibrate a maximal and nil effect, respectively.
Assay values, reported as a percentage value like the untreated controls, for tested compounds are reported in Tables 1-11 above. Compounds listed in the tables as having an assay value greater than 5 indicate compounds that prevent detachment of migratory MDCK cells in response to activation of the c-met pathway (they thus inhibit epithelial-mesenchymal transition). Compounds listed with assay values less than 5 indicate a compound that does not prevent cells from undergoing EMT in response to activation of the c-met pathway (with appearance of detached migratory MDCK cells).
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Screening methods for identifying compounds and compounds and pharmaceutical compositions for treating and preventing cancer are disclosed. The compounds affect signal transduction downstream of the MET receptor.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to article carriers in general and is particularly suited to wrap-around type carriers for transporting beverage bottles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It has been a general practice in the packaging art for some time to utilize wrap-around type article carriers for non-returnable beverage bottles. Such carriers were typically provided with a pair of holes in the top for carrying. These carriers are particularly advantageous to use because they provide strong carriers while being easier to manufacture and using less material than other carriers. Heretofore, however, wrap-around carriers have been limited in use to non-returnable bottles because gaining access to the contents of such carriers typically involves destroying the carrier. Therefore the advantages and economies of wrap-around type carriers have heretofore not been applicable to carriers for returnable bottles.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is summarized in that a wrap-around article carrier includes a bottom panel with two sides, a side panel upstanding from each side of the bottom panel, a top panel joined to each of the side panels, first and second tear-away panels formed in the top panel and adapted to being torn from the carrier to allow the articles to be removed through the top of the carrier, and a handle portion formed between the first and second tear-away panels and extending between the side panels so that the carrier can be carried.
An object of the present invention is to provide a wrap-around type article carrier in which access can be made to the contents of the carrier without completely destroying the carrier.
Another object of the present invention is to construct such a carrier in which a carrying handle is provided that is usable both for taking home the full bottles and for returning the empty bottles to the retailer.
An advantage of the present invention is that it allows the advantages and economies of wrap-around type carriers to be used for a carrier for returnable bottles.
Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent from the foregoing specification when taken together with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a paperboard blank from which the article carrier of the present invention is constructed.
FIG. 2 shows a first step in the erection of the carrier from the blank of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the completed article carrier according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the carrier of FIG. 3 with the tear-away panels removed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Shown in FIG. 1 is a paperboard blank, generally indicated at 10, from which an article carrier according to the present invention can be erected. Centrally located in the blank 10 is a rectangular bottom panel 12. A scoreline 14 connects the bottom panel 12 along one of its long sides to a side panel 16. A scoreline 18 along the other long side of the bottom panel 12 connects it to a side panel 20. A pair of scorelines 22 and 24 lie along the opposite short ends of the bottom panel 12 and attach respective end panels 26 and 28 to the bottom panel 12. A scoreline 30 at the edge of the side panel 16 opposite from the bottom panel 12 connects a top panel 32 to the side panel 16.
The edge of the side panel 20 opposite from the bottom panel 12 is defined by a scoreline 34 which attaches a locking flap 36 to the side panel 20. The locking flap 36 has a pair of die-cut secondary locking recesses 38 and 40 formed in it. Also formed by die-cuts along the edge of the locking flap 36 adjacent the side panel 20 are a pair of primary locking tabs 42 and 44. A scoreline 46 along the edge of the top panel 32 opposite from the side panel 16 attaches a locking flap 48 to the side panel 16. The locking flap 48 has die-cuts in it to define secondary locking tabs 50 and 52 and primary locking surfaces 54 and 56.
A pair of tuck flaps 58 and 60 extend between the side panel 20 and the end panel 26 with a scoreline 62 connecting the tuck flap 58 to the side panel 20, a scoreline 64 connecting the tuck flap 60 to the end panel 26, and a scoreline 66 connecting the tuck flap 58 to the tuck flap 60. Similarly scoreline 68, 70 and 72 connect the end panel 26 to a tuck flap 74, the tuck flap 74 to a tuck flap 76, and the tuck flap 76 to the side panel 16. On the opposite side of the blank 10, tuck flaps 78 and 80 are defined by scorelines 82, 84 and 86 to bridge between the side panel 20 and the end panel 28. Tuck flaps 88 and 90 are defined by scorelines 92, 94 and 96 to extend between the side panel 16 and the end panel 28. Triangular holes 98 are cut into the corners of each of the sets of tuck flaps 58 and 60, 74 and 76, 78 and 80 and 88 and 90 to facilitate in folding them.
In the top panel 32 and the side panel 16, a pair of tear-away section die-cuts are generally indicated by 100 and 102. Each of the die-cuts 100 and 102 includes a respective one of transverse oriented handle die-cuts 104 and 106, which are formed extending traversely across the top panel 32 and each of which terminates at each of its ends in a hook-shaped portion which curves in the direction of the closer end of the top panel 32. The handle die-cuts 104 and 106 define a handle portion 108 therebetween, the handle portion 108 extending between both edges of the top panel 32. Extending from the hooked end portion of each of the handle die-cuts 104 and 106 adjacent the scoreline 46 are rip guide die-cuts 110 and 112 which extend from the hooked ends of the handle die-cuts 104 and 106 straight to the respective ends of the top panel 32 parallel to the scoreline 46. From the hooked end portion of the handle die-cut 104 adjacent the scoreline 30 a rip guide die-cut 114 extends at a diagonal angle toward the edge of the blank 10, crossing the scoreline 30 and extending across a corner of the side panel 16. Similarly a rip guide die-cut 116 extends from the hooked end of the handle die-cut 106 adjacent the scoreline 30 outward to the edge of the blank 10 in a diagonal direction crossing the scoreline 30 and extending across a portion of the side panel 16. The die-cuts 104, 110 and 114 define a first tear-away panel 118, while the die-cuts 106, 112 and 116 define a second tear-away panel 120.
The first step in the sequence of erecting the finished carrier from the blank 10 is shown in FIG. 2. The articles to be carried in the carrier, in this case six beverage bottles, are grouped and placed on the bottom panel 12 of the blank 10. Next the end panels 26 and 28 are folded upward relative to the bottom panel 12 along the scorelines 22 and 24. As the end panels 26 and 28 are folded up, the tuck panels 58, 60, 74, 76, 78, 80, 88 and 90 are also folded up along the scorelines 62, 72, 82 and 92.
The next step in the erection of the carrier is the wrapping of the blank 10 around the articles. This step is initiated by folding the side panels 16 and 20 upward along the scorelines 14 and 18. As the side panels 16 and 20 are folded upward, the pairs of tuck panels 58 and 60, 74 and 76, 78 and 80, and 88 and 90 are folded inward so that they are tucked between the side panels 16 and 20 and the articles in the carrier. The tuck panels can be secured in place by gluing or stapling in this position if it is found to be so desirable. Then the top panel 32 is folded over along the scoreline 30 to a horizontal position to cover the tops of the bottles. The locking flap 48 is then folded downward along the scoreline 46 and locked with the locking flap 36 to complete the carrier. The lock between the locking flaps 36 and 48 is completed by first bending the secondary locking tabs 50 and 52 up out of the way and then inserting the locking flap 48 inside of the locking flap 36. The locking flap 36 is then tilted back along the scoreline 34 so that the primary locking tabs 42 and 44 are inserted inside of the primary locking surface 54 and 56 of the locking flap 48. The secondary locking tabs 50 and 52 can be folded down and their ends inserted into the secondary locking recesses 38 and 40 to lock the blank in a position to form the completed carrier of FIG. 3.
The carrier and its contents will normally be sold to the consumer of the goods in the form of the completed carrier of FIG. 3. In this form, the carrier can be carried by inserting fingers into the tear-away panels 118 and 120 in the area directly adjacent the handle die-cuts 104 and 106 to thereby slightly bend in the edges of the tear-away panels 118 and 120 so that fingers can be inserted under handle portion 108 so the carrier can be lifted.
When access is desired to the contents of the carrier, the tear-away panels 118 and 120 can be removed to allow articles in the carrier to be lifted out. The tear-away panels 118 and 120 first have their edges adjacent the handle die-cuts 104 and 106 lifted up. The tear-away panels 118 and 120 are pulled back tearing along the rip guide die-cuts 110 and 114 and 112 and 116 to remove the tear-away panels 118 and 120 completely from the carrier. The handle portion 108 remains in place linking the sides of the carrier as can be seen best in FIG. 4. Then the articles in the carrier can be removed, used, and replaced with facility. The carrier of FIG. 4 has lost none of its strength or integrity because of the removal of the tear-away panels 118 and 120. The slanted angle of the die-cuts 114 and 116 creates a larger opening so that the articles can be freely removed and replaced through that opening. The rip guide die-cuts 110 and 112 are positioned so that the integrity of the lock between the locking flaps 36 and 48 is in no way impaired.
The carrier of FIGS. 3 and 4 is thus particularly useful for returnable-type beverage bottles. The bottles can be lifted from the open top of the carrier, used, and then replaced in the carrier. When all the bottles are used up, the carrier can be used to return the bottles to the retailer, the carrier being lifted by the handle portion 108. The carrier remains sturdy enough to carry the empties back, the removal of the tear-away panels 118 and 120 not significantly effecting the strength of the carrier. Thus a wrap-around carrier can be constructed for returnable bottles.
Inasmuch as the subject invention is subject to many modifications, variations, and changes in detail, it is intended that all the material in the specification or in the accompanying drawings be interpreted as illustrative, and not in a limiting sense.
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A wrap-around type article carrier has removable tear-away panels formed in its top panel so that access may be had to the carrier contents, while a handle is formed between the tear-away panels so that the carrier can be carried after they are removed. The carrier is particularly adapted for use with returnable beverage type containers in which carrying means are necessary to return the carrier and bottles to the retailer.
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TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a DMD device and more particularly to illumination systems which allow for gray scale operation.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The use of semiconductor light modulators is gaining in popularity as a replacement for the laser polygon scanner in xerographic printing processes. A technology of preference, due to its monolithic, semiconductor fabrication process, is the deformable mirror device (DMD). Copending patent application entitled "Spatial Light Modulator Printer and Method of Operation," Ser. No. 07/454,568, assigned to the common assignee with this patent application, which patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein, discusses one embodiment of a DMD device using a tungsten light focused via optics on a DMD array. While the invention in that application functions very well, several areas of improvement have become apparent.
One such improvement would be to provide gray scale operation. Existing DMD devices are either on or off. That is, the modulated light is either directed (for a particular pixel) onto the imager lens aperture or it is not. This results from the fact that the individual mirrors are either deflected (tilted) by an address signal, or on, or they are entirely off, that is, directed away from the imager lens. Half tones and gray scale then cannot easily be achieved because of the digital nature of the DMD addressing process.
The problem is further compounded by the fact that in an array all of the pixels that are supposed to rotate from a given point in time do so at the same time. Thus, to achieve gray scale operation, several registers must be provided for each DMD pixel and adequate time must be allowed for the pixels to return to their off state between operations. This is a complicated task at best.
Accordingly, it is a problem to provide gray scale, or tonal levels between black and white using DMD devices in existing systems.
A further problem is that when printing on moving media the first part of the media passing under a rotated (on) pixel receives relatively less light than a later part of the media, and thus, uneven exposure results within a single line of exposure, or at the leading and trailing edges of wider areas of exposure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In the current invention, the physical image of the pixel is anamorphically magnified, or is spherically magnified and subsequently is "compressed" in the process direction, resulting in the exposure energy per unit area at the image becoming accordingly higher. The resulting rectangular image of the pixel formed is much sharper in the process direction than that achieved when the spherically magnified square pixel image is presented to the photoreceptor. Resolution across the photoreceptor (scan direction) is unchanged, as determined by the total number of DMD pixels.
Thus, an anamorphic magnification of the DMD pixels, by an imager system with a net differing power in the vertical and horizontal axes of the DMD chip frame of reference, results in a rectangular image of a DMD pixel at the photoreceptor and serves to substantially sharpen the printed line image produced, as hereinafter described.
Finally, with the anamorphically imaged (rectangular image of pixel) DMD pixel, the selective modulation (on-and-off switching) of a DMD element within the line-time nominally associated with typical 300 line-per-inch printer resolution exposure process can give the effect of higher resolution (more lines-per-inch) in the process direction. This cannot be achieved with the presentation of a square pixel image at the photoreceptor.
Using this structure and method, it is possible to break each line time into multiple segments, and during each segment, operate the solid state DMD array in the conventional digital (on, off) mode previously described. Thus, by controlling how long a DMD pixel is rotated, which is the result of controlling exactly when in each line time the pixel is rotated, different amounts of light are passed from the pixel to the media thereby resulting in gray scale operation. The amplitude of the light energy delivered at each pixel is precisely varied by controlling the on-time of each DMD pixel. This process is called pulse-width modulation, PWM.
A further refinement of the concept would be to tune the light intensity of each segment of the light modulator to the particular optical system in accordance with the system's light transmission characteristics, thus using the DMD's PWM feature to correct for optical deficiencies. A further refinement would be for the end user to adjust the uniform exposure characteristics to the light sensitive media type per-se, using the DMD feature of PWM, as, for example, to correct for variations of spectral intensity in a color printing system.
Another technical advantage of this invention is to make the focal character of the DMD image at the photoreceptor narrower in the drum rotation direction than the width of the full-sized projected pixel, forming a rectangular area of illumination. Thus, as the drum is rotated under the presented image, and the modulated image remains active for the same line-time, a "square" full-size printed image of the pixel is achieved, but with substantially sharper leading and trailing edges than in the case of square pixel image presentation.
It is another technical advantage of this invention to provide a controllable light source for use in conjunction with a DMD device such that the light intensity can be controlled to different levels within each line time. The individual pixels could then be controlled to rotate at the proper time within the line to effect the transfer of light at selected levels of intensity thereby yielding gray tones.
It is a further technical advantage of this invention that the light intensities within a time frame can be made variable and end user controllable without the complexity of changing the rotation times within each frame period of each DMD pixel, since the most efficient DMD operation results when all DMD pixels are reset in parallel.
A still further technical advantage of the invention is the adaption of an anamorphic projection of a square xerographic DMD pixel into a rectangular presentation to a rotating xerographic drum and the subsequent division of the pixel within the rotational one dot line into a number of controllable periods, thereby achieving gray scale printing. Merely fabricating a rectangular DMD pixel, and imaging it to the drum with conventional spherical optics, would result in substantially reduced exposure energy, whereas the proposed system benefits from the full energy impinging on the larger mirror area of a DMD pixel that is magnified spherically, and is one or more effective dot lines "wide" in the "process" (drum) direction at the DMD chip per-se.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more complete understanding of the present invention may be acquired by referring to the detailed description and claims when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numbers indicate like features wherein:
FIG. 1 shows a prior art xerographic printing process;
FIGS. 1a-1b show ideal versus actual exposure profile of a particular pixel of FIG. 1;
FIG. 2 shows an anamorphic pixel image printing process of the current invention;
FIGS. 2a-2b show exposure profiles of a particular pixel of FIG. 2;
FIG. 3 shows a conventional ray bundle impacting a photoreceptor drum;
FIG. 4 shows a compressed ray bundle of the current invention impacting a photoreceptor drum;
FIG. 5 shows a profile, in schematic form, of a pixel modulated into four sections; and
FIG. 6 shows a top view of adjacent exposed pixels under exposure conditions of FIG. 5.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a conventional xerographic printing process using a DMD light modulator without the illumination source. It should be noted that the illumination source can be either incandescent, arc or solid-state, with the preferred embodiment being a solid state LED array.
In FIG. 1 DMD 10 presents a modulated image to image lens 11 which diverges as ray bundle 101 to expose a pixel line 102 of width w on rotating photoreceptor 13. The scan direction is referred to as the width of DMD exposure line 102. The process direction is shown by the arrow on both the photoreceptor and underneath on the printed stock and is the direction of interest in this particular disclosure, i.e., the direction that the pixel is compressed. A full discussion of the operation of DMD printers will not be given here, but the reader is referred to the above-mentioned application entitled "Spatial Light Modulator Printer and Method of Operation" for complete details.
The pixel line width, w, refers to FIG. 1a where there is shown a typical light intensity profile which would occur in the process direction forming a dot line of width l. FIG. 1b shows the instantaneous pixel image profile. However, since the drum is moving underneath, the profile of FIG. 1b is broadened and softened so that the transition from zero exposure to full exposure is relatively wide and thus the edges are fuzzy. The full width is w, as shown in FIG. 1a, so w is greater than l due to the rotating drum. The fuzzy edge is a result of the motion of the photoreceptor and is one of the problems eliminated in the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1a, edge 103 indicates the fuzzy edge on the exposed pixel, which is a region where the pixel is going from white to black and is essentially an uncontrolled gray transition region.
FIG. 2 shows the preferred process and system of the invention. Again, DMD 10, the light source (not shown) and imager 11 can remain the same as in FIG. 2. Imager 11 is modified, either by the introduction of cylindrical lens 22 downstream, or possibly by modification of the imager lens per se to accomplish the anamorphic function. As envisioned, however, it is desirable to have a spherical imager lens and use an anamorphic rod lens downstream to eliminate most alignment problems.
Ray bundle 101, the conventional ray bundle, is compressed by lens 22 to ray bundle 201 which then falls on line of exposure 102 of photoreceptor 13 to form a series of pixels along line 102 of width s where s is less than l. These pixels are indicated as 20, 20a and 20b. Printed pixel line 21 is of width l, the result of a sequentially exposed line image on drum 13.
FIG. 2a shows an exposed image pixel with a drum rotating with exposed intensity profile having square edges and a uniform exposure (flat top) and no gray side walls as was the case in FIG. 1a. This, then, essentially forms a true dot line of width l which consists of four (or more if desired) subsegments of width s which is the instantaneous pixel profile image, as shown in FIG. 2b. Light intensity, as shown in FIG. 2b, is brighter or higher than as shown in FIG. 1b because the light energy is compressed into a narrower area s. However, when drum 13 rotates underneath, the effective exposure time of light rays 201 is one-fourth as much. Thus, the integrated light intensity profile in FIG. 2b is comparable to that in FIG. 1b, i.e., the same exposure levels are achieved even though exposure time per unit area is shorter. This results in a sharper, more uniform pixel image on the photoreceptor.
FIG. 3 shows a side view in the direction or area, of interest of the ray bundle in a conventional system. Ray bundle 101 is shown as converging onto photoreceptor drum 13 to form a square pixel image of width l at any instantaneous point in time.
As photoreceptor drum 13 rotates in the process direction underneath that exposure area, it will produce an exposed pixel 12 of width w. Shown on the top of photoreceptor 13 is the discharged region of the previously exposed dot line, 12, while a new dot-line is forming.
FIG. 4 shows the preferred embodiment where ray bundle 101 is compressed in the process direction into ray bundle 201. Imager 11, in conjunction with anamorphic lens 22 (or by itself), performs this compression in the process direction but not in the scan direction. Ray bundle 201 is the compressed image falling onto photoreceptor 13 instantaneously illuminating a compressed width of s (as shown in FIG. 2b).
Subsequently, photoreceptor drum 13 rotates underneath that compressed image and forms an exposed pixel having width l, i.e., the desired pixel, or line, width, 21. In this situation l is narrower than w, but wider than s.
Continuing on, FIGS. 3 and 4, the unexposed areas, are shown as having a positive charge on the surface of photoreceptor 13. When the light hits photoreceptor 13, the exposed regions are discharged to form the latent image of the desired image.
Turning to FIG. 5, there is shown the segmented pixel exposure profile relating back to FIG. 2a. In the process direction there is shown a ray bundle of light coming into region s, arrows 501 indicate light rays falling onto segment 1 which is cross hatched to show that it is exposing segment 1, but not segments 2, 3 and 4. The width s is being exposed at this instant in time.
Segments 2, 3 and 4 of the pixel are waiting to be exposed and they are therefore shown as dotted lines. The width l, which is the combination of all four segments, will be the final exposed pixel profile.
In FIG. 6, there is shown the top view relating back to pixel line 102 of FIG. 2. Thus, looking down on the exposure process from the direction of the incoming light, there can be seen a superposition of adjacent pixels 20, 20a and 20b in the scan direction, which will be proceeding around the photoreceptor drum surface at the point of exposure. As shown, at this point in time segment 1 is being exposed. At the next instant of time segments 2, 3 and 4 will (or will not) be exposed on this particular pixel line.
Thus, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 with the anamorphic compression of the pixel, a given pixel is divided into any number of (for example, four) segments as shown in this particular description. Therefore, the pixel could be compressed into more than one-fourth of the height of the normal pixel or less, and could be segmented as much as desired. The advantage this system gives is that those segments can be exposed or not exposed in a very precisely controlled fashion. Thus, each segment can be thought of as controlled by a binary bit having a condition of 1 or 0 corresponding to black or white.
Therefore, within a given square DMD pixel, the combinations of the bits can be varied and a total of sixteen gray levels achieved. Thus, in the simplest case, 1 can be turned on, 2, 3 and 4 left off or 1 and 3 can be turned on, and the others left off, etc. Using this arrangement of subpixel modulation, one can achieve a very precise and repeatable gray scale result. Thus, by going into a pixel and by submodulating, that is, turning on and off various portions of it, there can be achieved different apparent charge levels to the latent electrostatic image on the drum. This will then result in various different levels of black (gray) to print on the print media after the developer process.
The system then can be controlled by a microprocessor (not shown) so that any pixel can be more charged, or more discharged, depending upon what sequence the processor system chooses to submodulate the individual pixel segments. If more resolution is desired, then the system can be divided into eight segments or perhaps sixteen. Four segments is a selected number because it is compatible with the address structure on the DMD, and also allows a reasonable resolution to achieve gray scales at sixteen levels without excessive memory requirements.
Within a scan line, each pixel can be treated independently to achieve any level of gray at any pixel location, i.e., pixel 20, 20a or 20b. Thus, instead of each pixel just being binary 1 and 0, black and white, each pixel can now become a miniature detailed image. This would be advantageous for everything from the rendering of a gray scale photograph to very high resolution graphics that require fine line detail. At lower bits per pixel levels, this system could perform simple functions like anti-aliasing slanted lines, and detail enhancement on seraph typefaces. Gray scale for pictorial images is possible as is treatment of line images and character images for the appearance of a higher resolution process than typically delivered by a 300 line per inch polygon scanner system.
In generic terms this type of process is now termed resolution enhancement, which is the ability to make the system appear to be a high resolution printer even though it is still running at a lower resolution (e.g. 300 dots per inch). For example, as discussed above, it was shown that this system rendered the 300 dot per inch lines with very sharp edges which was not possible with the prior process. By sub pixel modulation, the system allows a resolution of 300 dots per inch to achieve true pictorial gray scale on a pixel-by-pixel basis, thereby avoiding the complexity and the visual artifacts experienced when resorting to dithering techniques as is in the prior art.
While it has not been shown in detail, the modulation of the light within the segments can be achieved either by controlling the rotation of the pixel to direct the light for longer or shorter periods, or by pulsing the light on and off within a scan line. The pixel rotation method will more easily allow for control of the resolution in the process direction on a pixel-by-pixel basis, while the source modulation technique will be combined for spot modulation along the entire scan line. Such a light source could be, for example, as shown in concurrently filed, copending patent application entitled "System and Method for Solid State Illumination for DMD Devices," Ser. No. 636,651, which application is hereby incorporated by reference herein. Such a light source could cycle among different power levels within a pixel line to achieve enhancement effects perpendicular to the process direction.
Although this description develops the invention with reference to the above specified embodiments, the claims and not this description limited the scope of the invention. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiment, as well as alternative embodiments of the invention, will become apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the above description. Therefore, the appended claims will cover such modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.
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There is disclosed a system for enhancing resolution of a xerographic process by submodulation of each individual pixel. The submodulation is achieved by anamorphically reducing the square pixel presentation of light rays to a rectangle having a number of controllable segments within each square pixel scan line. By controlling the presentation of light rays to selected segments within each pixel gray scale an enhanced resolution can be achieved.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to presses for extracting water from a continuous traveling web and particularly to such a press section for extracting water from a newly formed web of paper in a papermaking machine. More particularly it relates to an extended nip press structure and an endless belt utilized in such press structure.
While the present invention relates to dewatering of a continuously running web of any material, it will be described herein with respect to the specific process of dewatering a web of paper. In the papermaking process, the web is formed by depositing the slurry of pulp fibers on a traveling wire. A large portion of the water is normally extracted from the web in the forming area by gravity or suction. The web then passes through what is known as a press section which normally would involve a series of nips of pairs of roll couples in which a substantial amount of the remaining water is squeezed out. The web will then pass on to a drying section which normally is composed of a series of heated drums to drive water off by vaporization. The web then finally passes to such finishing operations as calendering, coating, slitting, winding, et cetera.
The present invention relates specifically to a particular type of press section wherein the pressing operation in each unit is extended in time and thereby results in the extraction of significantly more water than in the heretofore nip of a roll couple. This extended nip pressing is accomplished by wrapping an endless belt about an arc of a rotating drum. The web is sandwiched between the endless belt and the drum and may have a traveling felt on one or both sides thereof for absorbing the water from the web. Additional pressure is provided to the arc of contact area by means of a pressure shoe located on the side of the belt opposite the drum.
The principles and advantages of extended nip pressing have been discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,798,121 and 3,853,698, both of which are assigned to the assignee of this invention. These principles and advantages, therefore, need not be discussed herein. The present invention, however, is related to an extended nip press of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,853,698 wherein a pressure shoe located on the side of the belt opposite the drum to generate high pressing forces against the web. This is to be distinguished from the type disclosed in aforesaid U.S. Pat. No. 3,798,121 in which the pressure is provided by tension in one or more belts as they pass about the drum.
In the operation of such extended nip press sections having a pressure shoe, a problem has evolved wherein a bulge or bow forms ahead of the nip. The exact phenomenon which causes this bow or bulge is not fully understood. It is clear, however, that center portion of the endless belt in the area of the shoe is compressed, heated by the oil and friction and is otherwise worked differently than the rather wide edges of the belt. The bulge will sometimes be centered on the belt and at other times will be off to one lateral side of the belt. It will sometimes appear on the downstream side of the shoe on the laterally opposite side of the belt relative to a bulge on the upstream side of the belt. Experience thus far shows that the bulge is always confined in lateral directions to the shoe area.
Needless to say, this bulge in the belt is undesirable for many reasons, among which is the fact that it can cause wrinkling or creasing of the web. While the bulge can be eliminated by increasing the tension on the belt, this is not fully satisfactory since it causes increased loading on belts, shafts, bearings and drives. This in turn results in a decrease in the service life of such components and an increase in power consumption and down time.
The complexity of the operating conditions renders a solution to the problem evasive. Presently, pressure shoes having a 10 inch arc of contact and pressures of 600 pounds per square inch are utilized in experimental machines. This means that the belt is subjected to 6,000 pounds of normal force for every inch of width of the belt in the shoe area. Further, it is contemplated that pressures may be increased to 900 pounds per square inch or above and arcs of contact might be increased to as much as 20 inches or more. A 20 inch arc of contact and shoe pressures of 900 psi would result in 18,000 pounds of normal force for each inch of width of the belt in the shoe area.
Further, since the belt is in sliding contact with the shoe and under extremely high pressure, significant heat can be generated due to the sliding friction. The hydraulic fluid in the shoe is maintained at 140 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Centigrade) to maintain the proper viscosity. With the heat caused by the sliding friction and hysteresis losses in the belt added to the heat from the oil, it is believed that belt temperatures may approach 200 degrees Fahrenheit (79 degrees Centigrade).
According to the present invention, an extended nip press section is provided in which a longitudinally extending reinforcing structure of unique design is incorporated in the belt structure. The reinforcing structure comprises a pair of plies of cords with the cords of one ply extending at a small angle with respect to longitudinal directions and the cords in the other ply extending at an equal, but opposite angle with respect to longitudinal directions. The two plies of cords overlap substantially throughout the shoe area and provide a longitudinally inextensible structure in this area.
The lateral edge of one ply extends laterally beyond one edge of the shoe substantially to the edge of the belt while the lateral edge of the other ply extends laterally beyond the other edge of the shoe substantially to the other edge of the belt. This provides support and strength to the lateral portions of the belt which do not pass between the shoe and the belt, but at the same time keeps these areas substantially free of longitudinal tension resisting structures.
Other objects, advantages and features will become more apparent with the disclosure of the principles of the invention and it will be apparent that equivalent structures and methods may be employed within the principles and scope of the invention in connection with the description of the preferred embodiment and the teaching of the principles in the specification, claims and drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a press section of a papermaking machine;
FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 taken substantially along line 2--2 and illustrating the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 taken substantially along line 3--3 of FIG. 2 with portions broken away to illustrate the reinforcing structure;
FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but only showing the belt to illustrate an alternate embodiment of the reinforcing structure; and
FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but taken along line 5--5 of FIG. 4.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
With reference to the drawing, and in particular FIG. 1, there is illustrated a schematic side elevational view of an extended nip press section 10 of a papermaking machine. The press section 10 includes a press roll 12 rotatable about an axis 14 which extends transversely of the press section. For purposes of this invention, lateral or transverse directions shall be directions which extend parallel to the rotational axis 14 of the press roll 12. Also, longitudinal or circumferential directions shall be directions which extend parallel to the direction of motion of the belt or web of paper.
A flexible endless belt 16 is trained about a plurality of pulleys 18 through 22 which are arranged in such a fashion with respect to the press roll 12 that the belt 16 wraps about a portion of the roll 12 to form an arcuate press area 24. One or more of the pulleys 18 through 22 are mounted in a known manner for movement in directions perpendicular to their respective rotational axis to permit installation of the belt 16 and adjustment of the tension in the belt 16.
An arcuate pressure shoe 26 is disposed adjacent the belt 16 on the side thereof opposite the roll 12 and press area 24. A force F is exerted on the pressure shoe by any suitable means to exert a pressure on the belt 18 in the press area. To insure even pressure P across the belt in this area, and minimize sliding friction, hydraulic pressure is supplied through a pipe 28 to a cavity 31. The pressure is regulated by means of a valve 30. The specific mechanical and hydraulic operation of the pressure shoe forms no part of the present invention and, therefore, will not be discussed herein in further detail. Further, although a pressure shoe 26 with a fluid cavity 31 is illustrated, it will be appreciated that a solid pressure shoe with an arcuate surface to mate with the roll 12 could be utilized. For a specific example of a pressure shoe, reference may be had to U.S. Pat. No. 3,853,698.
A felt 32 is trained about the press roll 12 and passes between the press roll 12 and the belt 16. A web of material 34 to be dewatered, is applied to the felt 32 and carried through the press area 24 in the direction of the arrows 36. While only one felt 32 is illustrated, it will be appreciated that a double felt system could be utilized wherein the web of paper or other similar material 34 is sandwiched therebetween.
As best seen in FIG. 2, the pressure shoe 26 is disposed in the transverse center area of the roll 12 and belt 16. The width PW of the pressure shoe is substantially less than the width BW of the belt and, therefore, exerts a pressure only over the center portion of the moving belt. This leaves the laterally outer portions 40,41 free of any normal force or pressure caused by the pressure shoe 26.
As discussed above, during the operation of such an extended nip press, a problem has arisen wherein a bulge or bow appears in the belt 16 on the ingoing side of the nip at various positions across the width PW of the pressure shoe. The bulge or bow can occur in a central location with respect to the shoe or at either lateral side of the shoe. Further, the bulge will sometimes appear at one lateral side of the shoe on the upstream side and at the opposite lateral side of the shoe on the downstream side. Attempts heretofore at eliminating this bulge have generally been directed to increasing the tension in the belt 16. While these attempts have successfully removed the bulge, they also result in undesirably increasing the forces and loads on the belt, bearings and drive.
In co-pending United States patent application U.S. Ser. No. 33,707 filed Apr. 26, 1979, by Dennis C. Cronin (assigned to the same assignee as this invention) it is suggested that longitudinally extending cords be provided only in the area of the belt which passes through the pressure shoe area. It is further noted in said co-pending application that by providing such longitudinal cords in the shoe area only, a substantial reduction in the tension required to eliminate the bulge is realized.
In accordance with the present invention, a reinforcing structure 38 is proposed for the belt 16 which will provide resistance to longitudinal tension throughout the area of the belt adjacent the shoe and at the same time permit equalizing of side to side variations in such forces. More particularly, and with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, there is illustrated a reinforcing structure 38 which comprises a first ply 42 and a second ply 43. The first ply 42 and second ply 43 are each composed of parallel cords arranged at equal but opposite angles Alpha (α) with respect to the longitudinal direction. Further, the first and second plies, 42 and 43, overlap each other substantially throughout the center area which passes beneath the pressure shoe 26.
The first lateral edge 44 of the first ply 42 is located substantially along the first lateral edge 48 of the shoe area. The second lateral edge 45 of the first ply 42 extends laterally beyond the second lateral edge 49 of the shoe area substantially to the second lateral edge 47 of the belt. Thus, the first ply 42 extends substantially across the second laterally outer portion 41 of the belt 16.
The first lateral edge 50 of the second ply 43 extends from the second lateral edge of the shoe area 49 across the shoe area and to the first lateral edge 46 of the belt 16. Thus, the second ply 43 extends across the first laterally outer portion 40 of the belt structure. Thus, it can be seen that the reinforcing structure 38 comprises a cross bias ply structure throughout the shoe area and single plies of fabric throughout the laterally outer portions 40 and 41.
The cord angle, Alpha, is maintained relatively low so that the combination of the low cord angle and the shear forces between the bias ply fabric layers results in a reinforcing structure in the shoe area which is substantially inextensible in longitudinal directions. Further, the cross bias plies serves to equalize longitudinal forces which may vary transversely across the shoe area. At the same time, since there is no cross ply shearing layers in the laterally outer portions 40 and 41, these areas do not have significant resistance to circumferential tension.
In order to obtain the proper modulus and strength in the longitudinal direction, it is necessary that the cord angle Alpha be relatively low in the order of about 15 and 25 degrees. In some instances, this angle could be as low as 10 degrees. The cords should be close together in each ply to resist pantographing and resultant elongation of the belt. It is further necessary that the cords in the reinforcing structure exhibit sufficient strength and modulus of elasticity to resist the tensions in the belt. The cords must also be flexible enough to withstand turning about the pulleys 18 through 22 without degradation of modulus or strength. Such suitable materials would include rayon, fiberglass, steel, aramid, or the like.
In an alternate embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, similar portions of the belt structure to those illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 will have the same numbers, but will be designated as primed numbers. Specifically, a first bias ply of fabric 42' has its first lateral edge 44' disposed along the first lateral edge 48' of the shoe area, and extends laterally across belt 16' such that its second lateral edge 45' is located closely adjacent the second lateral edge 47' of the belt 16'. The second bias ply of fabric 43' has its first lateral edge 50' disposed substantially adjacent the first lateral edge 46' of the belt 16'. The second ply of fabric 43' extends across the belt structure and terminates in lateral edge 51' which lies substantially along the second lateral edge 49' of the shoe area. Both first and second bias plies 42 and 43' have their cords extending at equal, but opposite small angles Alpha (α) with respect to longitudinal directions.
In accordance with this specific embodiment of the present invention, an additional ply of reinforcing cords 60 extends longitudinally about the belt structure and is disposed centrally within the shoe area. The width of the reinforcing structure 60 is within the range 1/4 to 3/4 of the width of the shoe area PW. Preferably, the width of the belt structure 60 is equal to approximately 1/2 the width of the shoe area. Thus, the first and second lateral edges 61 and 62 respectively are disposed substantially inwardly with respect to the laterally outer edges 48' and 49' of the shoe area. The reinforcing structure 60 is comprised of a single layer of cords running substantially circumferentially of the belt 16 and may be provided by helically winding single cord about the belt structure in a plurality of turns. This additional ply of fabric provides added strength in the central area of the shoe where it is believed that the tensile forces are the greatest.
The elastomers used in making the belt should be carefully chosen to provide low hysteresis loss to minimize heat build up. It must be resistant to high temperatures and compatible with whatever hot oil is used in the pressure shoe as well as water and common chemicals used in paper machines. Further, it should have good abrasion resistance and a low coefficient of friction since it will be subjected to sliding friction as it passes over the shoe. Suggested elastomers include acrylonitrile butadienes, ethylene acrylic copolymers, polyurethanes, fluorinated hydrocarbons and epichlorohydrin rubbers.
While a certain representative embodiment and details have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.
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A press section for extracting water from a continuous traveling web such as paper in which the web is sandwiched between a traveling belt and a drum. The belt is wrapped partially about the drum and a pressure shoe exerts pressure on the belt in the wrap area to press the web. The belt includes a reinforcing structure having two plies of cords extending in cross bias layers with one ply extending laterally beyond one side of the shoe area and the other ply extending laterally beyond the other side of the shoe area.
The foregoing abstract is not to be taken as limiting the invention of this application, and in order to understand the full nature and extent of the technical disclosure of this application, reference must be made to the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to dental mirrors and, more particularly, to an improved dental mirror or other medical-surgical instrument which substantially reduces clouding or fogging by moisture condensation, and which additionally aids the dentist in the removal of debris particles from the mouth of the patient.
Dental mirrors are, of course, well known. Equally well known, of course, is the fact that during use of the dental mirror a substantial problem arises in that condensation on the mirror causes a clouding or fogging of the mirror and thus impairs the field of vision for the dentist.
Numerous techniques have been suggested, in the past, for reducing condensation on a dental mirror. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,625,858 to Dreher suggests a dental mirror handle with high thermal conductivity such that heat from the dentist's hand is conducted to the mirror thereby warming the mirror until the mirror temperature is quite close to the temperature of the patient's breath. A second approach, as reflected by numerous patents such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,014,279 to Fosdal, suggests an airstream to be directed onto the face of the mirror. The Fosdal patent also includes a reservoir of detergent in the handle to aid in cleaning the mirror. The use of a wetting agent to keep a mirror clear is suggested, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,151,395 to Moniot.
Prior to the present invention, however, none of the aforementioned techniques have achieved any degree of commercial success or commercial viability. Accordingly, prior to the present invention, there has been no satisfactory approach to the problem of condensation impairing the field of vision for the dentist.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages by providing a new and improved approach to the problem of condensation on the face of a dental mirror. A dental mirror, of course, typically includes an elongated handle or shaft having an oval or circular mirror secured to the handle. The mirror may be set at an obtuse angle to the shaft.
The present invention contemplates a protective covering over the mirror surface with the protective covering which may be in air tight contact with, or hermetically sealed to, the mirror such that air is precluded from entering any space between the mirror and the protective covering. The preferred protective covering or coating is made of a clear plastic and is preferably domed or convex. The preferred protective coating may be sealed to the mirror by a snap fit or by a molding process, or threaded onto the mirror frame. A gas, liquid (such as mineral oil), semi-solid or solid plastic may be interposed between the coating and the mirror to enhance the optical quality of the mirror system.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The various benefits of the present invention, together with numerous other objects, advantages and benefits which may be attained by its use, will become more apparent upon reading the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the drawings.
In the drawings, wherein like reference numerals identify corrresponding components:
FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration of a dental mirror according the principles of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a partial, exploded front elevation view of a dental mirror including the protective covering or coating of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevation view, partly in section, of the protective covering or coating of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a perspective illustration of a second version of the protective covering or coating; and
FIG. 5 is an enlarged elevation view, partly in section, of the protective covering or coating threaded onto the mirror frame.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
With reference to the drawings, the present invention will now be explained. A dental mirror 10 is illustrated generally in FIG. 1 including an elongated handle 12 which may have a knurled portion 14. The knurled portion, of course, is provided to enhance holding, or gripping, and control of the dental mirror. The dental mirror 10 includes, at one end of the handle, a mirror portion 16 which typically includes a frame 18 secured to a stem 20. The stem 20 is provided at an obtuse angle to the plane of the frame such that upon inserting the dental mirror into the mouth of the patient, the obtuse angle provides for a better field of vision. The stem may have a male threaded portion at the end opposite the mirror frame which threaded portion may fit into a threaded socket in the handle. This aspect of a dental mirror is, of course, conventional.
Mounted within the frame 18 is a disc-like mirror 22 which may be either front-surfaced or back-surfaced. Heretofore, the mirror as described would be conventional.
According to the principles of the present invention, the reduction or substantial elimination of moisture condensation on the mirror is accomplished through the provision of a protective covering or coating 24. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the protective covering or coating is formed as a convex shell having a lip or rim 26 and a dome 28. The protective covering may be generally thought of as having the configuration of a portion of the surface of a sphere or ovoid formed by slicing through the sphere (or ovoid) parallel to a diameter and intermediate the diameter and polar region or end of the sphere (or ovoid). The dome portion may be slightly flattened if desired as will be explained further.
In one form of the invention, the protective covering or coating may include a notch 30 within the lip or rim 26 to fit over the stem 20 of the mirror portion of the dental mirror.
It is important to provide an air tight relationship between the mirror surface and the interior of the protective covering. This may be accomplished in one of several ways. First, the protective covering may be force fit or snapped into place with the lip 26 engaging the mirror frame 18. Alternatively, there may be a bezel-type fitting between the protective covering and the frame much that the way a watch crystal is secured to a waterproof wristwatch. FIG. 5 illustrates yet another technique as will be explained later.
There are various important considerations in the selection of a proper material for the protective covering 24. The material is preferably transparent and will preserve the optical properties when an image is reflected back from the mirror through the coating. Hence maintaining if not improving color and clarity are important attributes of the protective coating. The protective covering or coating may include a thin layer of anti-reflective material which is commonly used in the optical fields such as aluminum oxide or magnesium oxide and this may be provided on both sides of the dome 28 of the protective covering itself.
Preferably, the protective coating may be made of a styrene which is easy to mold and has excellent optical properties among the plastics; polycarbonates may be used in that they are stronger but somewhat more difficult to mold and work with. Nitrogen or other gas may be positioned between the mirror facing and the bubble and sealed therein to further reduce mirror fogging. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the dome 28 may be provided with a magnifying section 32 to provide an enhanced or enlarged visual image. If there is a space or region 33 between the covering and the mirror, this space may be evacuated or filled with a gas, liquid (mineral oil), solid or semi-solid to enhance the optical properties of the mirror.
FIG. 5 illustrates another form of the invention where the coating is threaded, as at 34, onto the frame to provide the air tight relationship.
In addition to the use of a styrene material, it has been found that a presently preferred material is polymethylpentene.
It should also be understood and appreciated that it is within the spirit and scope of the present invention to provide a protective coating in the nature of a thin film on the mirror and even by dipping the mirror in a plastic to form a coating. Of course, with such a coating there may not be any space 33 between the coating and the mirror.
The dome is important for several reasons. First, there may always be some condensation on the mirror and to the extent that such condensation does, in fact, occur on the protective covering, the dome configuration provides a convenient and comfortable surface to be wiped on the inside of the mouth, more particularly the check of the patient to thus remove any condensation. The configuration of dental mirrors at present precludes such a technique because the flat mirror surface cannot be conveniently and comfortably wiped on the interior cheek of the patient.
Secondly, when dentists are working on teeth of their patients, whether cleaning, drilling or virtually any other procedure, the combination of saliva from the patient, particles from drilling, water utilized by the dentist to irrigate the area where the dentist is working and/or pressurized air utilized by the dentist to clear the area where the dentist is working all contribute to the movement of particles within the mouth of the patient which particles will, of necessity, come in contact with the face of a dental mirror. The dental mirror of the present invention, by providing a dome configuration (spherical, ovoid, etc.), provides an improvement in that the dome can always be wiped clear more easily, on the interior cheek of the patient, even if there is no condensation problem.
The principals of the present invention may be used in other instruments employed in medical-surgical procedures, whether on humans or animals, where a mirror or reflective surface is employed.
The foregoing is a complete description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The invention, therefore, should be limited only by the following claims.
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An improved dental mirror or instrument of the type including an elongated handle and a disc-like mirror mounted in a frame at one end of the handle. A concave clear plastic shell is sealed relative to the mirror surface to substantially reduce, if not completely eliminate, condensation. The concave exterior surface, which is dome-like in configuration, may be comfortably and conveniently wiped on the inside cheek of the patient to assist in maintaining the surface clear and clean, and to assist in removal of debris from the mouth of the patient.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an improved apparatus for finishing concrete surfaces, particularly in applications involving large surface areas.
If concrete is allowed to cure normally without interference, random accumulations of sand, rock or gravel, the principal components of concrete, will be visible on the top surface. For appearance reasons, it is therefore generally considered desirable to subject the poured concrete to a process commonly known as "floating" which ultimately results in the submersion of the solid particulate matter within the mixture, allowing the smoother liquid cement to appear on the surface. A long handled, bladed device, usually made of magnesium or aluminum and referred to as a "float" will accomplish this purpose when drawn across the wet surface. The cement can then be finished to the desired texture and consistency. In concrete construction of a relatively small scale, the finishing process may be accomplished by hand, using well known troweling methods and tools.
In modern construction practice, however, it is commonplace to encounter situations where concrete is poured over much larger areas. Parking garage surfaces, factory or warehouse floors and even slab foundations in residential building construction all involve the placement of large amounts of concrete. Although perfectly smooth concrete surfaces, such as may be found desirable in sidewalks, patios, etc., may not be required in applications such as those described, a consistent pattern in the surface, completely uniform in spacing and appearance is still highly desirable for aesthetic reasons. Obviously hand troweling and similar concrete finishing methods customarily employed in construction projects of smaller size are entirely impractical in tasks of such magnitude.
At the present time there is generally recognized in the prior art only one basic method of finishing large areas of concrete. Familiar push brooms such as are commonly used in sweeping floors are pulled across the drying concrete surface, leaving a pattern formed by the bristles as they pass across. Such brooms will ordinarily be found to possess threaded apertures into which a handle with perhaps one or more extensions may be fitted. This construction permits the broom to be drug across a concrete surface of area comparable to the length of the handle. For practical purposes, however, such a device becomes increasingly unwieldly as the length of the handle is increased, it being the general experience that a workman is unable to guide the broom and achieve consistent finishing at distances much greater than eighteen feet. If a concrete surface that is to be finished has dimensions greater than eighteen feet, therefore, it is necessary that the workmen actually step upon the surface itself in order to reach all areas. The concrete must be in a relatively advanced state of curing to support the worker's weight as he traverses its surface, and accordingly it is often necessary to have a greater number of persons employed in the finishing process than would be the case on smaller jobs. Since many areas of the concrete surface can not feasibly be reached until curing has progressed to a stage allowing a person to walk on it, in order to finish all areas before the concrete has completely cured or "set up", it is mandatory that an adequate number of workers with finishing brooms be utilized. As the brooms are pulled back across the concrete, the worker's footprints are to some extent eradicated by the textured impressions made by the broom itself, but troweling machines are usually required to completely remove such marks. At the same time some workers are pulling finishing brooms across the concrete surface, another person is required to perform edging work, necessitated by inherent physical limitations of the floating devices. At the edge of the concrete surface a gap or a dip may exist, or rocks or other solid matter may be lying on the surface simply because the workman operating the float may not have been able to manipulate the device along the edge due to spatial constraints. Such areas have to be floated and finished by hand, and since often access to many of these areas can not be permitted until the concrete has already cured somewhat, it is usually required that a worker be specifically assigned to perform the edging work while other workers are finishing the concrete with brooms.
As is well known to those knowledgeable in the industry, existing methods for finishing large concrete surfaces possess many disadvantages, not the least of which is the risk that the concrete will completely "set up" or dry before the entire surface can be finished. The only way to insure that all areas of a large concrete floor can be finished in time, recognizing that the concrete must first be cured to a degree allowing a construction worker to step upon the surface itself, is to employ a sufficiently large number of workers, many more than what would be the case if the finishing work could be commenced sooner in the curing process. With a larger number of different workers and a corresponding number of brooms, it is virtually certain that the finished surface will feature varying degrees of consistency and appearance. Even the work performed by one individual will demonstrate marked variations as he or she progresses, as it is extremely difficult for a worker to draw a broom across one section of concrete surface and then repeat the motion on an adjacent section with any degree of uniformity. As there is no guiding mechanism on the device, it is seldom possible to keep the impressions left by the broom as it passes over the concrete in alignment with those made previously.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The present invention was developed in an effort to circumvent the disadvantages existing in the methods and devices of the prior art. Instead of extended handles, a concrete finishing broom is adapted to a wire, cable, rope or other means for pulling a broom across large areas of concrete. The need for workers to actually tread upon the surface itself is thereby obviated, allowing the finishing process to be initiated well before the concrete has cured to the extent otherwise necessary. As more time is available to complete the finishing process, the risk of having the concrete set up prematurely is substantially less and as a consequence, the number of workers required can be reduced. It is contemplated that in most situations, only two workers will be required to perform concrete finishing work of the type described no matter how large the subject surface area may be.
The broom is also fitted with a second cable or similar pulling means extending from the broom in an opposite direction from that of the first, allowing a tensional force to be imposed on the broom as it is pulled across the concrete, which together with other features of the device insure a straight consistent texture in the finished surface with proper usage. When a broom has been pulled completely across the entire surface of the concrete, its direction may immediately be reversed without difficulty and with very little effort by the workmen.
Accordingly, it is the object of the invention to provide an improved concrete finishing apparatus that can be employed over large areas without requiring its users to actually tread upon the surface itself.
Another object is to provide such a device that reduces the requisite number of workmen required to finish concrete surfaces of large area, with the accompanying economic advantages caused thereby.
Still another object is to provide such an apparatus which will permit concrete finishing of large surface areas with a consistency, uniformity and appearance not possible with the use of the methods and devices found in the prior art.
Other objects and features of the invention are to found in the following description and claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows a standard broom with cables attached at each side.
FIG. 2 is a modified form of FIG. 1 additionally showing support cables attached at the broom ends.
FIG. 3 is an embodiment showing a broom with a modified form of attaching support cables with spacing members.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of FIG. 3 showing the pulling cable attachment.
FIG. 5 shows another embodiment having a removable frame.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to FIG. 1, there is pictorially shown a broom apparatus for concrete finishing generally indicated by the number 10. The broom 11 is of standard construction, with a block 12, usually made of wood and rectangular in shape, and a multiplicity of bristles 13 extending downwardly from the block customarily made of plastic or nylon. A first pulling means 16 for manually drawing the broom across the concrete surface to be finished is attached to the block 12 of the broom 11. The first pulling means 16 may be composed of any type of rope, cord, wire or cable as preferred by the user, so long as very minimal strength constraints are met. Use of cables formed of heavier metals such as steel may be more durable, but are likely to be less economical and the sag occasioned by their weight may limit the size of the areas of concrete surface over which the apparatus may be employed to something less than would be the case with the use of lighter materials. Satisfactory results have been accomplished with the use of an ordinary rope, and in the embodiments shown in the drawings, the first pulling means 16 depicted therein are of that substance.
Securely attached to the block 12 and located opposite the pulling means 16 is a second pulling means 17 made of the same material. A workman positioned alongside but off of the concrete surface, not shown, draws the broom 11 by pulling the rope 16 towards him across the concrete thereby finishing the cement surface. Another workman situated off of the surface at a point directly opposite the first workman imposes an opposing tensional force on the broom 11 by applying sufficient force on the second rope 17 as to keep it taut. The existence of this opposing force serves to guide the broom 11 as it is brought across the concrete, such that the finished impressions it leaves are straight and relatively uniform. As shown by the example depicted in FIG. 2, both the pulling means 16 and the second pulling means 17 can be attached to the block 12 of the broom at more than one location so as to increase the stability of the broom 11 as it is used in the finishing process.
After the broom 11 has been pulled completely across the top of the concrete, the workman simply lifts it up and sets it back down on the surface immediately adjacent to the strip just completed. The workman formerly applying the opposing tensional force now pulls the device back across the surface towards himself, while the person who had been previously pulling the broom now administers the tensional force. Once the broom has again traversed the concrete surface, completing the finishing process of another strip of width the same as that of the broom, the roles of the workmen are again reversed and the process continued until the entire concrete surface has been completely finished. In practice, use of the apparatus results in a series of nearly uniform strips of finished concrete without the variations in angle, texture and consistency commonly found by the use of hand devices.
As the workmen using this device can operate it from locations alongside but off of the concrete surface, there is no need for them to actually step upon it, and accordingly no need to await the concrete to cure to a point sufficient to allow them to do so before the finishing process is commenced. Finishing of the concrete may begin much earlier in the curing process with the use of the invention than is allowed by employment of devices and methods of the prior art. The danger of the concrete becoming completely cured before the entire surface can be finished is virtually eliminated, and it is contemplated that as a result of the much longer time available to complete finishing, two workmen operating the apparatus as described should alone be able to finish all but the largest of concrete surfaces. At the same time, they will be able to complete the edging work as well, sufficient time being available before the concrete has completely dried to allow them to perform this task as they go along. The workman applying the tensional force to the broom 11 with the rope 17 may even be able to do so with one hand, freeing the other hand to perform the edging work while he awaits his turn to resume the pulling activity. It is seen that by fabricating an apparatus capable of finishing concrete surfaces over large areas without requiring that the workman actually step upon the surface itself, the consequent decrease in the waiting period before the finishing process can begin will result in the corresponding reduction of the number of workmen needed from several to just two in most applications.
Although a number of embodiments of the apparatus described above may be envisioned, all of which are within the scope of the invention as defined by the claims, it has been found that in practice the apparatus performs most effectively with certain modifications, as shown in FIG. 3. Depicted in said figure is an embodiment of the invention indicated generally by the numeral 20, having a first spacing member 31 and a second spacing member 41. One end of each spacing member, 32 and 42, respectively, is rigidly affixed to the block 12 of the broom 11. As shown, the end 32 of spacing member 31 is attached to the block 12 at a point midway along one longitudinal edge 24 and the end 42 of the other spacing member 41 is attached to the block opposite, midway along the other longitudinal edge 25. The spacing members protrude upwardly from the plane of the block 12, and may be positioned at any angle relative to the plane, so long as they are symmetric to each other and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 28 of the block 12. The spacing members may even be perpendicular to the plane of the block 12, but more stability is achieved if they extend outwardly from the block, with the angle between the spacing members and the upper surface of the block 12 being between 120 and 135 degrees. The unattached ends of both spacing members are supplied with an eye construction 36 and 46. A guiding cable 51 is attached to the block 12 at a point 55 near one of its lateral edges 26 and routed through the eye 36 on the spacing member 31. The guiding cables 51 and 61 may be of rope, wire or strong nylon cord, however best results in terms of durability and performance appear to occur with the use of a lightweight steel cable. As shown in FIG. 4, the cable 51 is routed through the eye 36 so as to form a loop in the cable 53. The remaining end of the guiding cable 51 is attached to the other end of the block 12 at a point 56 in proximity to the block's other lateral edge 27. A second guiding cable 61 is symmetrically attached to the block 12 at a point 65, routed through the eye 46 of the other spacing member 41, as to form a corresponding loop 63. The remaining end of the second guiding cable is similarly attached to the block 23 at a point 66 near its other lateral edge 27. For ease of construction, a pair of eye-bolts or similar hardware (not shown) may be inserted in the block 12 at either end in proximity to the lateral edges 26 or 27 of the block, and the ends of the guiding cables 51 and 61 attached to the eye-bolts instead of directly to the block itself.
The loop 53 thus formed in the guiding cable 51 through the eye 36 of the spacing member 31 provides a connection point for the rope or other pulling means 16 to attach to the broom assembly. Connection of the pulling means 16 to the guiding cable loop 53 can of course be achieved in any one of a number of ways, e.g. the common snap hook shown in FIG. 4, which permits easy disconnection for purposes of cleaning or replacement. A similar connection is made by the second pulling means 17 with the loop 63 in the second guiding cable 61. In practice, use of the embodiment just described results in a steadier pattern in the finished concrete than is the case in more simplified versions. The force exerted on the broom 11 by the pulling means 16 and 17 is distributed across the entire broom 11, helping to assure a steady, even traverse across the concrete surface.
FIG. 5 shows yet another embodiment of the device wherein a removeable metal frame 70 is secured to the block 12. The spacing members 31 and 41 are in this modification attached to the frame as are the guiding cables 51 and 61. Brooms used in the process of concrete finishing naturally experience a great deal of wear and tear and will upon occasion need to be replaced. Additionally, if a workman fails to clean the broom carefully after use, concrete material picked up by the bristles as the broom is drawn across the concrete surface will dry out, ruining the broom. The modification of the invention shown in FIG. 5 permits the easy replacement of old or ruined brooms. By constructing the apparatus with a frame that can either be slid or clamped over the block 12 in some fashion, only the defective broom need be discarded in such circumstances.
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An apparatus for concrete finishing to be used primarily in application involving large surface areas. A concrete finishing broom is adapted to wire, cable, rope or other means for pulling the broom across the concrete surface. The broom is fitted also with a second cable or similar pulling means, allowing the imposition of an opposing tensional force while it is drawn across the concrete surface for purposes of stability and uniformity in the finishing pattern, as well as to permit the broom to be drawn across the surface in the reverse direction.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention generally relates to a method and apparatus for automatically protecting personnel and patients from direct exposure to the output of a high intensity light source used in medical devices, such as endoscopic imaging systems and the like. The invention also generally relates to a method and apparatus for overcoming problems to control high intensity light sources that have high-frequency noise, slow-response time, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response time, such as Xenon or Xenon-like based light sources.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The imaging of body surfaces through an endoscope is well known within the medical and veterinarian fields. Typically, this involves inserting an endoscope into a body cavity and directing a high intensity light source output through the endoscope to illuminate body tissue. Light reflected by the body tissue then is guided along an optical path to an image sensor to generate both video and still images of the tissue. One such approach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,913 to Chatenever et al., and provides a technique for an automatic adjustment of the exposure of video images detected with a CCD (charge coupled device) image sensor.
The use of high intensity light sources involves potential hazards to medical personnel and patients. For example, when a light guide cable, used to convey the high intensity-light source output, is momentarily disconnected from the endoscope and placed on a sterile drape used to protect the patient, the high intensity of light output can be sufficient to ignite the drape and pose a fire hazard; or, the user can inadvertently hold the disconnected light guide cable in such a way as to temporarily blind another person in the room. In some instances, when the endoscope is removed from (i.e., pulled out of) a patient, there can be a risk of these same hazards. When the light source is used with an endoscopic video camera, which has an automatic exposure system, the light source output intensity may be turned up to a intensity level higher than required for the camera to produce well-exposed images. This increased light intensity level can desiccate body tissue and cause serious injury to the patient. Typically, endoscopic video camera automatic exposure systems can produce well-exposed images with an electronic shutter setting of approximately 1/125 th to 1/500 th of a second. If the distal end of an endoscope is placed within close proximity to tissue being imaged, typically, a relatively lower light intensity level will still enable an endoscopic video camera to produce well-exposed images. An undesirable, and potentially dangerous, scenario can occur if the light source output is set to a high intensity level, and the endoscope distal end is placed within close proximity to tissue being imaged. Typically, in such a case, automatic camera exposure systems will adjust the electronic shutter setting to approximately 1/10,000 th of a second (or faster) to compensate for the high illumination reflections from the tissue. In such a situation, the risk of desiccating delicate tissue is greatly increased.
Thus, it is desirable to solve these problems, specifically to control the output from a high intensity light source so that the light source intensity is automatically reduced to a safe level when the light source output is not directed to a surface and/or the camera/imager or light-guide are disconnected from each other. It is also desirable to protect tissues operated on during a surgical procedure from overheating or burning due to the intensity of the light source being set higher than required to produce well-exposed images. It is also desirable to protect the eyes of the operator of an endoscope or persons in the surgical area from direct exposure to high intensity light used in medical devices such as endoscopes and the like.
Techniques for controlling the output intensity from a light source are known in the art. For example, a technique for automatically controlling the light intensity from a light source, on the basis of an image signal from an imaging unit associated with an endoscope, is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-155689 as mentioned at column 2, lines 1-21 in U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,834 to A. Mochida. As recognized in the Mochida patent, when light intensity control is made dependent upon a signal derived from the image, then upon removal of the endoscope from the body, the control is likely to increase the output intensity level from the light source, when instead it should decrease the output to protect the operator's eyes from inadvertent high intensity light exposure and prevent ignition of combustible material. In the Mochida patent, a switch is added to manually adjust and control the output of the light source when the endoscope is removed from a body.
As further described in the Mochida patent, the output intensity level of the light source is controlled by regulating the position of a diaphragm with respect to the light source. The control signal for doing this is derived from an image sensor in the endoscope.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,552 a photoelectric element generates a signal indicative of the intensity of light reflected from an object illuminated by a light source associated with the endoscope to control the light source output level. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,131,381 a light source associated with an endoscope is controlled by a signal that represents the density value of each line of a camera video image derived through the endoscope. Other patents relevant to light intensity level controls for endoscopes are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,670,722; 4,963,960; 4,561,429; 5,091,779; 5,134,469; 5,159,380; 6,767,320; 7,070,560; 7,585,276; 7,798,959; 7,847,817; and 7,828,726.
Techniques have been proposed to reduce the risks associated with high intensity light sources. One involves a special light guide cable with wires in it that are shorted together when the cable is attached to an endoscope. The short is detected at the light source and light output intensity is reduced when the cable is disconnected and the short is subsequently removed. A retractable mechanical shroud, which covers the light guide cable end when not connected to an endoscope, has also been suggested.
These safety solutions are not necessarily effective against all potential hazardous conditions that may arise; such as when the endoscope with the light guide cable still attached is pulled out of a patient and inadvertently directed at a person or surgical drape, or when the light guide or source initially is directed to treat openly accessible tissue and inadvertently misdirected during or after a procedure, or when a video camera head, attached to the endoscope light guide cable combination, is disconnected from its corresponding control unit.
One such approach to solve this problem is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,511,422 to Chatenever (hereinafter Chatenever '422). Chatenever '422, herein incorporated by reference, describes a method and apparatus where the output from a high intensity light source is controlled so that whenever the output is not directed at tissue (meaning that the endoscope/video camera/light source combination is not currently being used to image body tissue), the light source output intensity is automatically reduced to a safer level. This is done by monitoring the reflected light from tissue and when this reflection indicates that the light source is not directed at tissue, the light intensity is turned down to a safer level. This involves generating a modulation signal and modulating the intensity of the light source output with the modulation signal.
Chatenever '422 involves monitoring the light reflected by a surface, detecting the modulation in the monitored light, and reducing the intensity of the light source output when the detected modulation is below a reference level. However, Chatenever '422, while effective as a safety solution, has problems controlling Xenon lights and other light sources because the amplitude or frequency modulation methods described by Chatenever '422 do not work well with light sources having these problems. Specifically, Chatenever '422 does not work well with lights sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response times, such as Xenon lights. It is thus desirable to provide an improved method and apparatus that works with light sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response times.
It is also desirable to improve upon the methods and apparatus described in the Chatenever '422 patent to overcome problems to control Xenon light sources, as Xenon light sources have increased applicability in endoscope technology. None of the other existing methods and apparatuses described in the prior art work effectively with light sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response times.
It is further desirable to provide a method and apparatus to upgrade existing and future endoscopic imaging systems with a light source control (“LSC”) feature that solves problems associated with light sources, such as Xenon lights. It is also desirable to do so in a cost effective way, and without any hardware change in product lines of light sources and endoscopic imaging systems.
It is also desirable to design a cost-effective single LSC implementation based on the method that is suitable for various existing and yet to be developed product lines of light sources, camera heads, camera control units (“CCUs”), videoscopes, and endoscopes. It is also desirable to provide software that executes upon hardware.
It is also desirable to provide a method and apparatus for LSC that enables adaptive normalization and self-calibration; so as to simplify the adjustment of the LSC feature to new endoscopic imaging systems and light sources and to minimize manual adjustment.
It is also desirable to provide a self-recovery method that involves the adaptive normalization and self-calibration techniques, so as to recover and/or optimize the LSC feature to possible new vs. replacement of light source and/or the type of the scope attached to the camera during surgery, and/or the camera type of CCU during use and/or surgery.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus to overcome known problems when working to control light sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response times.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method for upgrading existing and newly-designed endoscopic imaging systems with a light source control (“LSC”) feature that controls the intensity of the light source output. It is an object of the invention to reduce and/or eliminate costs associated with upgrading of existing and newly-designed endoscopic imaging systems with the LSC feature without any hardware change in product lines of light sources, camera-heads/imagers, CCUs, videoscopes, and endoscopes.
It is an object of the invention to provide a cost-effective single LSC implementation that is suitable for existing and newly-developed or in-development product lines of light sources, camera-heads/imagers, CCUs, videoscopes, and endoscopes.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method and apparatus that enables adaptive normalization and self-calibration, so as to simplify the adjustment of the light control feature to new camera heads/imagers, CCUs, endoscopes, videoscopes, and light sources.
It is an object of the invention to provide a self-recovery method that involves adaptive normalization and self-calibration, so as to recover and/or optimize the LSC feature by adding new or replacement components to the LSC system. Adding such new or replacement components can be added during use and/or surgery.
It is an object of the present invention to control the output from a high intensity light source so that the output intensity is automatically set at a reasonable and safe level while producing well-exposed images.
It is an object of the present invention to protect personnel and patients from direct exposure to high intensity light used in medical devices such as endoscopes and videoscopes by automatically reducing the light source output intensity to a safe level when a safety-failure is detected. It is an object of the invention to provide a failure-detection method that detects when the light source output is not directed to a surface, when the camera/imager and/or light-guide are disconnected, and when no motion is detected in the video image.
It is an object of the present invention to protect tissues from overheating/burning when the distal end of an endoscope is placed within close proximity to tissue by automatically reducing the light source output to a safe level while still producing well-exposed images.
These and other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for viewing a surface comprising: an examining instrument, the examining instrument having an imaging path through which the surface is observed; a light source, the light source illuminating the surface; an imager, the imager detecting light reflected from the surface, and generating image signals; a camera control unit (CCU), the CCU processing the image signals; and a controller associated with the imager and CCU, the controller decrementing or incrementing the intensity of the light source output via at least two steps.
The controller of the apparatus may decrement or increment the intensity of the light source output via a plurality of steps. The intensity of the at least two steps and/or plurality of steps may be incremented or decremented in intervals as small as 1% of the total light source intensity output. The power intervals incremented or decremented may be in steps that are greater than 1% (i.e. 3%, 5%, 15%) or in steps less than 1% (i.e. 0.25%, 0.5%) of the total light source output intensity; depending upon the operational characteristics of the light source, camera head/imager, CCU, and other devices being utilized. The magnitude of the at least two steps may be incremented or decremented by a predetermined percentage of the maximum light source output intensity.
The apparatus may further comprise a communication bus coupled to a plurality of bus interfaces for communication between the light source, CCU, and camera.
The light source of the apparatus may be a Xenon or Xenon-like based light source. The light source may have at least one of a high-frequency noise, slow-response time, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response time.
The examining instrument of the apparatus may be selected from a group consisting of an endoscope, laryngoscope, bronchoscope, fiberscope, duodenoscope, gastroscope, flexible endoscope, arthroscope, cystoscope, laparoscope, anoscope, and sigmoidoscope.
The controller of the apparatus may process the image signals representative of light reflected from the tissue/scene as detected by the imager.
The imager (or image sensor) may be located distally inside the examining instrument, proximally inside the examining instrument, or externally from the examining instrument. The imager may be a CCD, CMOS, or imager types yet to be developed.
The apparatus may further comprise software executing on the controller. The software involves operating the controller such that the software allows for the apparatus to operate. The software may involve various specific parameters that allow for the apparatus and controller to operate.
In one example, the software may operate by including an exposure value EV i (i.e., the shutter speed in seconds), EV i being used to control the output intensity of the light source. The measured EV i is referred to as EV meas , and when EV meas is below a threshold EV tr , the light source output intensity is reduced. EV i is referred to as the shutter speed. It may be determined in seconds or other such units of time for measuring the shutter speed.
The optimal value of EV i is referred to as EV opt , and is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , wherein EV opt depends on EV meas , the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source output.
If EV meas is less than EV opt,min , the output intensity of the light source is incremented, if EV meas is greater than EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is decremented, and if EV meas is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is unchanged.
The criteria to form a well-exposed image requires that EV meas be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max . The software executing on the controller operates such that EV meas is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max so that well-exposed images are taken.
The apparatus of various embodiments of the invention minimizes the number of increments or decrements of light output intensity. It is advantageous to minimize the number of increments or decrements of light output intensity and to do so in a stepwise manner.
The controller of the apparatus may include a scan request method for detecting a potential safety issue when the light source output intensity (“P”) is potentially unsafe. Once a potential safety issue is detected via the scan request method, the apparatus may enable the power scan and the correlation methods, and disable the EV method. The power scan method being able to increment or decrement the output intensity of the light source with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,min to P max , and vice-versa, where P scan,min is less than P max , and P max is the maximum allowed light source output intensity. The output intensity may be incremented via steps from P scan, min to P max . Optionally, the output intensity may be decremented via steps from P max to P scan, min .
The power scan method may be enabled by a scan request method, the scan request method being able to detect a potential safety issue.
Furthermore, the controller may compensate for the prior-art shortcomings and disadvantages of detecting a modulation within the output of a Xenon or a Xenon-like based light source, due to high frequency noise, slow, nonlinear, and non-monotonic response, by using the scan request method that includes a correlation method allowing for detecting when the light source output is not directed at a surface, and for decrementing the output intensity with a specified step ΔP scan until a safe output level is reached. When the scan request method detects a potential safety issue, the correlation method is enabled and the EV method is disabled, and wherein when a potential safety issue is not detected, the correlation method is disabled and the EV method is enabled.
The apparatus may involve having the output intensity of the light source be automatically reduced to a safe level when the light source output is not directed to a surface. The intensity of the light source may be automatically reduced to a safe level when at least one of the camera head, image sensor and light source and/or light guide are disconnected.
The controller may include adaptive normalization and self-calibration. The adaptive normalization may include normalizing EV and recomputing calibration curves based on the type of light source and image sensor. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration may depend upon image sensor integration time T int , and also the value of EV min and EV max .
The controller may also include a self-recovery method that involves adaptive normalization and self-calibration, so as to recover and/or optimize the LSC feature. This involves adaptive normalization and self-calibration when components in the system are changed or replaced during use and/or surgery. Components that are replaced and/or changed are the type of scope attached to the camera, the light source, the camera, any videoscopes, endoscopes and/or CCU devices. Other components in the system may also be replaced.
The self-recovery method may protect from possible failure of the LSC caused by the new and/or replacement components during surgery.
The controller may detect when no motion or the lack of motion is detected in the video images so as to decrease output intensity to a safe level. The controller may compensate the slow response of a Xenon or a Xenon-like light source by inserting optimal delays before and/or after controlling of light source. In certain embodiments, the controller may not be continuously enabled in order to minimize flickering of the images.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for viewing a surface comprising: an examining instrument, the examining instrument having an imaging path through which the surface is observed; a light source, the light source illuminating the surface; an imager, the imager detecting light reflected from the surface, and generating image signals; a camera control unit (CCU), the CCU processing the image signals; and a controller associated with the imager and CCU, the controller decrementing the intensity of the light source output via at least two steps. The controller may also have light source output intensity incrementing ability in certain embodiments.
The examining instrument may be selected from a group consisting of an endoscope, laryngoscope, bronchoscope, fiberscope, duodenoscope, gastroscope, flexible endoscope, arthroscope, cystoscope, laparoscope, anoscope, and sigmoidoscope.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing a method for controlling the light output intensity of a light source comprising: measuring an exposure value EV i , EV i being used to control the output intensity of the light source; and incrementing or decrementing the output intensity of the light source based upon the exposure value EV i .
The method may have software executing, the software being able to execute upon hardware.
The method may have a measured EV i be EV meas , and when EV meas is below the threshold EV tr , the light source output intensity is immediately set to a safe level.
The method may have the optimal value of EV i be EV opt , which is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , wherein EV opt depends on EV meas , and the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source.
If EV i is less than EV opt,min , the output intensity of the light source is incremented, if EV i is greater than EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is decremented, and if EV i is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is unchanged. The criteria to form a well-exposed image requires that EV meas be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max .
The method may further comprise the step of incrementing the output intensity of the light source via a power scanning step, the power scanning step allowing for incrementing the output intensity of the light source a few times with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,min to P max , where P scan,min is less than P max , and P max is the maximum allowed light source output intensity. The method may further comprise the step of decrementing the output intensity of the light source via a power scanning step, the power scanning step allowing for decrementing the output intensity of the light source a few times with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,max to P min , where P scan,max is greater than P min , and P min is the minimum allowed light source output intensity.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for viewing a surface comprising: an examining instrument, the examining instrument having an imaging path through which the surface is observed; a light source, the light source illuminating the surface; an imager, the imager detecting light reflected from the surface, and generating image signals; a camera control unit (CCU), the CCU processing the image signals; and a controller associated with the imager and CCU.
The controller of the apparatus may decrement or increment the intensity of the light source output via a plurality of steps. The intensity of the at least two steps and/or plurality of steps may be incremented or decremented in intervals as small as 1% of the total light source intensity output. The power intervals incremented or decremented may be in steps that are greater than 1% (i.e. 3%, 5%, 15%) or in steps less than 1% (i.e. 0.25%, 0.5%) of the total light source output intensity; depending upon the operational characteristics of the light source, camera head/imager, CCU, and other devices being utilized. The magnitude of the at least two steps may be incremented or decremented by a predetermined percentage of the maximum light source output intensity.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for viewing a surface comprising: an examining instrument, the examining instrument having an imaging path through which the surface is observed; a light source, the light source illuminating the surface; a CMOS imager, the CMOS imager detecting light reflected from the surface, and generating image signals; a camera control unit (CCU), the CCU processing the image signals; and a controller associated with the CMOS imager and CCU, the controller decrementing or incrementing the intensity of the light source output via predetermined steps.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing a method for protection from a high intensity light source output comprising: measuring an exposure value EV meas , EV meas being used to control the intensity of the light source output; and incrementing or decrementing the output intensity of the light source P scan based upon the exposure value EV meas ; determining an optimal value of EV meas , which is EV opt , EV opt being between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , and EV opt being dependent on the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source, wherein if EV meas is less than EV opt,min the output intensity is incremented, wherein if EV meas is greater than EV opt,max , the output intensity is decremented, and wherein if EV meas is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , the output intensity is unchanged.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for protection from a high intensity endoscopic light source output comprising: an endoscope having an imaging path through which the surface at a distal end can be observed; a Xenon light source for illumination of the surface; an imager detecting light reflected from the surface and generating image signals; a camera control unit (CCU) processing the image signals received from the imager, the camera control unit including a controller, the controller being able to increment or decrement the output intensity of the Xenon light source, such that if the controller detects a potential safety issue, the Xenon light source output intensity is adjusted via at least one discrete step ΔP scan , from P min to P max , where P scan,min is less than P max , and P max is the maximum allowed light source output intensity; and a communication bus coupled to a plurality of bus interfaces for communication between the Xenon light source and the camera control unit.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an apparatus for protection from a high intensity endoscopic light source output comprising: an endoscope having an imaging path through which the surface at a distal end can be observed; a light source for illumination of the surface; a camera head including an image sensor aligned to detect light reflected from the surface and for generating image signals; a camera control unit processing the image signals received from the camera head, the camera control unit including a controller associated with the camera head to process image signals representative of images detected by the image sensor, the controller being able to increment or decrement the intensity of the light source output; and a communication bus coupled to a plurality of bus interfaces for communication between the light source and the camera control unit.
The apparatus may have its controller include an exposure value EV i (i.e. the shutter speed), EV i being used to control the output intensity of the light source. The apparatus may measure the value EV i , referred to as EV meas . When EV meas is below a threshold EV tr , the light source output intensity P rec,i may be reduced. This is to prevent the overheating or burning of tissue due to a small distance between the distal end of the endoscope or videoscope apparatus and the observed tissue.
The apparatus may have an optimal value of EV i , EV opt , which may be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , wherein EV opt depends on EV meas , the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source output. The criteria to form well-exposed images requires that EV meas be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max . Thus, it is advantageous to keep EV meas within this range so that well-exposed images are created.
If EV i or EV meas less than EV opt,min , the light source output P rec,i is incremented, if EV i or EV meas is greater than EV opt,max , the light source output P rec,i is decremented, and if EV i is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , the light source output is unchanged. This controls the light source output via increments/decrements and helps keep the light source output intensity at a safe level while minimizing number of changes of output intensity.
The apparatus minimizes the number of increments or decrements of P rec,i , so as to keep the light source output intensity at a safe level. Minimizing the number of increments or decrements P rec,i allows the apparatus to operate more efficiently and accurately.
The apparatus may have a scan request method. The scan request method is able to detect a potential safety issue. The potential safety issue may involve having the light source output intensity exceed P max . Once the potential safety issue is detected by the scan request method, power scan method and correlation method may be enabled, and EV method may be disabled.
The power scan method may be able to increment the output intensity a few times with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,min to P max , where P scan,min is less than P max , and P max is the maximum allowed light source output intensity. The power scan method may be able to decrement the output intensity a few times with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,max to P scan,min .
The scan request method may further involve a correlation method running simultaneously with the scan method and allowing for computation of correlation (i.e., dependence) between the incrementing output intensity and the light intensity reflected from tissue or observed surface. Absence of such dependency, i.e., absence of computed correlation may be used to detect when light source output is not directed to a surface and to lower the output intensity of the light source to a safe level.
The apparatus may have the intensity of its light source output be automatically reduced to a safe level when the light source output is not directed at a surface.
The apparatus may have its controller include a method to detect disconnection of the camera head, image sensor, and light source. The apparatus may have the intensity of its light source be automatically reduced to a safe level when at least one of the camera head, image sensor, and light source output are disconnected.
The apparatus may have its controller include adaptive normalization and self-calibration. Adaptive normalization may include normalizing of exposure value EV. The self-calibration may have the capability to recompute calibration curves based on the type of light source and/or the camera head/imager being used. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration may depend on imager integration time T int , EV min and EV max Moreover, the apparatus may include methods in its controller to detect when the light guide/source is disconnected, when the camera is disconnected, and when no motion is detected in the video images. Such a method (failure-detection method) may be based on a comparison of achromatic image brightness (Luma), Perimeter Black (PB) and Image Motion Metrics (IMM) with their corresponding thresholds, i.e., Luma tr , PB tr , and IMM tr , respectively.
The apparatus may have its controller include the self-recovery method. This involves adaptive normalization and self-calibration when components in the system are changed during use and/or surgery. Components that are replaced and/or changed are the type of scope attached to the camera, the light source, camera, videoscopes, endoscopes and/or CCU. Other components in the system may also be replaced.
The self-recovery method may protect from possible failure of LSC caused by the new and/or replacement components during surgery.
The controller of the apparatus may or may not be continuously enabled, so as to minimize possible flickering of the video images. The apparatus may include a control feature that involves single code-implementation, without having hardware changes. The apparatus may be reconfigured with this single code-implementation, as the apparatus may utilize an existing endoscope.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing a method for protection from the output of high intensity light sources comprising: measuring an exposure value EV i , EV i being used to control the output intensity of the light source; and adjusting the output intensity of the light source based upon the EV i .
The measured EV i may be EV meas , and when EV meas is below the threshold EV tr , the light source output intensity may be reduced. This is known as a step of the detection of the hot distal end of the endoscope, as when EV meas is less than EV tr then the tissue is too close to the distal end of the endoscope and the light source output intensity is lowered to avoid high temperature at the distal end that may cause the tissue to burn.
The method may also have a failure detection method or may have failure detection steps. This may involve decreasing the light source output intensity to a safe level when the light source is disconnected, when the camera and/or light-guide is disconnected from the endoscope, and when there is no motion detected in the video images. The failure detection methods may be based on comparison of achromatic image brightness (Luma), Perimeter Black (PB) and Image Motion Metrics (IMM) with their corresponding thresholds, i.e., Luma tr , PB tr , and IMM tr , respectively. When Luma meas is less than Luma tr , either low or no light is detected by the imager; therefore, the light guide/source is possibly either disconnected from the endoscope or endoscope/camera combination, the distal tip of the endoscope is not within close enough proximity to a subject being imaged to produce well exposed images (i.e., reflected light levels are below the Luma threshold, indicative of the endoscope being too far from the imaged subject to be “in use”), and the power is decreased to a safe level. When PB meas is less than PB tr , the camera may be disconnected from the endoscope and the power is decreased to a safe level. When IMM meas less than IMM tr , motion is not detected within the video images, indicative of the endoscope or endoscope/camera combination being static (i.e., not being actively used for a surgical procedure); therefore, the light source output is decreased to a safe level.
The method may also have an exposure value step and/or method. The goal of the exposure value step and/or method is to minimize the number of power changes (increment or decrement) taking into account known issues with Xenon light sources.
The exposure value step may involve having the optimal value of EV i , EV opt , be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , wherein EV opt depends on the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source. If EV i is less than EV opt,min , the output intensity of the light source is incremented, if EV i is greater than EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is decremented, and if EV i is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , the output intensity of the light source is unchanged. The criteria to produce well-exposed images may require that EV meas be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max . The EV meas may be a continuously measured exposure value EV i .
To compensate for the ineffectiveness of using an output modulation method with Xenon or Xenon-like light sources, the controller may compute a correlation metric between illuminating and reflected light only when EV meas is too high, i.e., when P i is requested to be around P max or higher (where P max is the maximum output intensity of the light source). While computing the correlation-metric, instead of light-modulation, one or a few sets of incrementing output intensity levels are requested: each set produces a ramp of increasing light source output levels. This allows the present method to be effective for light sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, non-monotonic response times, such as with Xenon based light sources.
One goal of the exposure value method minimizes the number of output intensity level changes and avoids loops in output level requests (i.e., avoids instability of the output-control loop when the controller wrongfully requests periodical increment/decrement of output intensity).
Another goal of the exposure value method is to increase the accuracy of computing correlation and minimize the number of such computations, and as a result, minimize the number of changes in light source output intensity.
The method may also involve adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps take into account the type of the imager (i.e., video endoscope or camera head) connected to the CCU, and the type of light source. The method may also involve a delay block to compensate for the slow response of Xenon or Xenon-like light sources by using optimal delays before and/or after controlling of the light source output.
The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps normalize EV to the imager being used in order to reuse the same control-equations, and re-computes calibration curves based on the type of imager and light source being used. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps monitor the imager integration time T int , minimum exposure value EV min and the maximum exposure value EV max values of EV.
The method may also include steps of the self-recovery method. The self-recovery method may work, such that when equipment is changed, the previously used processing coefficients, equations, and/or calibration curves are no longer valid.
The self-recovery method adaptive normalization and self-calibration when components in the system are changed during use and/or surgery. Components that are replaced and/or changed are the type of scope attached to the camera, the light source, the camera, videoscopes, endoscopes and/or the CCU. Other components in the system may also be replaced.
The self-recovery method may protect from possible failure of LSC caused by the new and/or replacement components during surgery.
Other objects of the invention are achieved by providing a method and apparatus that uses an exposure value (EV) to minimize the number of increments or decrements of light intensity output taking into account known issues with Xenon light sources. The exposure value denotes all combinations of a camera's shutter speed and relative optical aperture that result in the same exposure.
Other objects of the invention allow for the controller to be wirelessly controlled. Other objects of the invention allow for the controller to incrementally change the intensity of the light source. Other objects of the invention allow for the intensity of the light source to be changed so as to optimize the image quality while ensuring the light source output intensity remains at a safe level.
Other objects of the invention and its particular features and advantages will become more apparent from consideration of the following drawings and accompanying detailed description. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is schematic block diagram view of an apparatus for controlling a light source in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 1A is schematic block diagram view of the controller of FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 1B is a schematic block diagram view of the methods for controlling the controller of FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 2 is a graph comparing requested output intensity of light source against time that shows incrementing and decrementing the power in a stepwise manner;
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the steps of controlling the controller of FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 3A is a schematic block diagram view of some of the steps of FIG. 3 ;
FIG. 3B is a schematic block diagram view of some of the steps of FIG. 3 ; and
FIG. 4 is a graph showing the high frequency noise, slow-response and nonlinearity of a Xenon or a Xenon-like light source and comparing the output intensity of a Xenon or a light source against time.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
With reference to FIG. 1 , an endoscope 10 is illustrated having a camera head 12 mounted thereto at the proximal end to produce video images in a manner for example as described in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,913 to Chatenever, et al. The distal end of endoscope 10 is directed at tissue 14 to inspect the tissue with light from a high intensity light source 16 and passed to the distal end through a light guide cable 18 . Typically, light guide cable 18 can be disconnected from endoscope 10 at connector 20 , thus, posing a safety hazard as described above.
The light from light guide cable 20 is directed to illuminate tissue 14 as suggested with path 22 and light reflected by tissue 14 is passed along optical path 24 to imager 26 within camera head 12 . Imager 26 detects light reflected off tissue 14 by means of optical path 24 . Imager 26 may be any type commonly used within the art, such as but not limited to CCD, CID or CMOS imagers. Camera head 12 produces image signals 28 , which are received by auto exposure circuitry 30 , within camera control unit (CCU) 32 . Auto exposure circuitry 30 may consist of various types of methods for controlling the electronic shutter of imager 26 , as well as adjusting amplification gain in response to illumination levels received by imager 26 . Typically, within the field of video endoscopy, auto exposure circuitry has high-speed and wide dynamic range capabilities. Various methods may be utilized, that are well known within the art. Video display 36 , receives signals from CCU 32 , where an image of tissue 14 is presented.
As shown in FIG. 1 , light source 16 is controlled by CCU 32 and controller 234 , by means of CCU bus interface 54 , digital communication bus 50 , and light source bus interface 52 . Controller 234 , may be any type of device designed to receive and execute software programs, or which is designed to be modified in functionality by software programs, and preferably is from the group consisting of digital signal processors, microcontrollers, and microprocessors, or the group consisting of field programmable gate arrays, and computer programmable logic devices.
Typically, high intensity light sources utilize an incandescent bulb 38 (being a Xenon bulb, or other type), driven by an amplifier 40 , which in turn is controlled by output control circuitry 42 , to set the light output intensity level of the light source 16 . Other types of light source intensity output control are known within the art; such as mechanical diaphragm or iris, liquid crystal shutter, rotary reed or slot devices, and the like. These various types of light source output intensity control may be utilized within the scope of the present invention. In the present embodiment, output control circuitry 42 varies the intensity of bulb 38 in accordance with controller 234 .
Controller 234 is a modified controller that is used to achieve the various objects of the invention. As shown in FIG. 1 , controller 234 involves various steps A-F that allow the apparatus to control light sources that have slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, non-monotonic response times. Controller 234 may have steps A) Adaptive Normalization of EV and Self Calibration 205 , B) Detection of Hot Distal-End Method 210 , C) Failure-Detection Method 215 , D) Exposure Value Method 220 , E) Power Scan and Correlation Methods 225 and F) Set Delays Method 226 . Such steps are shown in FIG. 1A . FIG. 1B shows steps for the Scan Request 230 , Power Scan 235 , and Correlation 240 . Scan Request 230 , Power Scan 235 , and Correlation 240 are part of the Power Scan and Correlation Method 225 .
FIG. 3 shows a global schematic view of the steps of the controller 234 . FIG. 3A-3B show steps of FIG. 3 .
The step 210 is the Detection of Hot Distal-End Method. Here, the step 210 measures EV 402 and checks to see if EV meas is less than the threshold EV tr 404 . If yes 408 , then the tissue is too close to the hot distal end and the light source intensity is reduced by lowering the output intensity to avoid high temperature at the distal end. The output intensity is decreased to a safe value, as when EV meas is less than EV tr then the tissue is too close to the distal end of the endo cope and the output intensity is lowered to avoid high temperature at the distal end that may cause the tissue to burn.
Next, Failure-Detection Method step 215 is provided. Here, the method checks to see if Luma meas is less than Luma tr 414 . If yes 418 , this indicates that low or no light is detected by the camera; therefore, the light guide/source is possibly either disconnected from the endoscope or endoscope/camera combination, the distal tip of the endoscope is not within close enough proximity to a subject being imaged to produce well exposed images (i.e., reflected light levels are below the Luma threshold, indicative of the endoscope being too far from the imaged subject to be “in use”), Thus, the output intensity is decreased to a safe level. If no 416 , then the method checks whether PB meas is less than PB tr 424 . Perimeter Black (PB) is typical in endoscope images. Endoscopes generally provide a circular image of the tissue being examined in the middle of the overall image, surrounded by a black perimeter extending to the square or rectangular edges of the overall image. The Perimeter Black (PB) being absent in the image (i.e., PB meas is less than PB tr ) is indicative of the camera being disconnected from the endoscope. Therefore, if yes 428 , then the camera is disconnected and the output intensity is decreased to a safe level. If no 426 , then the system checks whether IMM meas is less than IMM tr 434 . If yes 438 , then motion is not detected within the video images and the output is decreased to a safe level. If no, then the Controller checks to see if an output level change is allowed. If no output change is allowed (no), then the light source output level is unchanged. If an output change is allowed (yes), then the Controller checks if Scanning of Power (light output intensity) is complete. If Power Scan is completed, the Exposure Method EV is allowed/enabled. If Power Scan is not completed, EV method is disabled while Power Scan and Correlation methods are enabled. The next step involves the Exposure Value Method 220 if EV method is enabled. The exposure value method involves having the optimal value of EV i , EV opt , be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max , wherein EV opt depends on the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source.
The exposure value method 220 first checks to see if EV i is less than EV opt,min 444 . If yes 448 , then EV is below the optimal range and the output level of the light source is decremented. If no 446 , next the method checks to see if EV i is greater than EV opt,max 454 . If yes 458 , then EV is above the optimal range and the output level of the light source is incremented. If no 456 then, EV is in the optimal range (EV i is between EV opt,min and EV opt,max ) and the output level of the light source is unchanged. The criteria to form a well-exposed image typically requires that EV meas be between EV opt,min and EV opt,max . The EV meas is continuously measured exposure value EV. The EV opt depends on EV meas , the monotonic and linearity characteristics of the light source output.
The absence of intensity is compensated by increasing of EV in the CCU/imager that is measured (EV meas ) for the LSC. The larger the EV meas , the worse quality of the image because the image is under exposed. To improve quality of the image, the intensity is increased. Thus, when EV meas is greater than EV opt,max (where EV opt,max is the upper range of the optimal window for EV meas ), LSC requests increasing the light intensity.
When the end of the scope is touched by the patient tissue/surface, EV will be reduced by CCU to prevent from overexposure (when image is one bright spot). As shown in FIGS. 3, 3A and 3B , LSC helps the CCU/imager by decreasing light intensity when CCU reduces EV.
In other words, the LSC helps the CCU/imager keep EV meas in the optimal range, i.e., EV shall not be too big (by incrementing the intensity) and EV shall not be too small (by decrementing the intensity).
The goal of the exposure value step and/or method is to minimize the number of light source output level changes (increment or decrement) taking into account known issues with Xenon light sources.
The goal of the exposure value method 220 is to minimize the number of output intensity level changes and avoid loops in output intensity requests (i.e., avoids instability of the output intensity control loop when the controller wrongfully requests periodical increment/decrement of output). Another goal of the exposure value method 220 is to increase the accuracy of computing correlation and minimize the number of such computations, and as a result, to minimize the number of changes of light source output intensity.
The next step is power scan step 225 , which involves scan request step 230 , power scan step 235 and if requested, correlation step 240 . These steps allow for the incrementing of the output intensity of the light source. Here, the output intensity of the light source may be incremented via the power scan step 225 , power scan step 225 being able to increment the output intensity a few times with a specified step ΔP scan , from P scan,min to P max , where P scan is less than P max , and P max is the maximum allowed light source output intensity. The above mentioned step is typically not continuously enabled to minimize possible flickering of the video images. The next step is Set Delays method 226 to compensate for the slow response of Xenon or Xenon-like light sources by using optimal delays before and/or after controlling of light source.
The correlation method may compute a correlation metric when EV meas is too small, i.e., when P i is requested to be around P max or higher (where P max is the maximum output level of the operating light source). While computing the correlation metric, instead of light-modulation, one or a few sets of incrementing intensity output levels are requested: each set producing a ramp of increasing light output intensity.
FIG. 2 is a graph of the power scan step 225 . Here, the graph shows regions where the correlation method is enabled or disabled and where there is a safe intensity output level.
As shown in the graph, where the correlation method is enabled and the EV method is disabled, the output intensity can be incremented. The output intensity can be incremented via steps from P scan,min to P max , and vice-versa. Optionally, the output intensity may be decremented via steps from P max P scan,min . When a potentially unsafe condition is detected, the correlation method is enabled and the EV method is disabled. On the right hand side of the graph, upon completion of the correlation method one or more times, if the correlation between Luma meas and incrementing output level is not detected, the output intensity may be set to a safe level.
The method may also involve adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps take into account the type of the imager (i.e., video endoscope or camera head), connected to the CCU, and the type of light source.
The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps may normalize EV to the imager being used in order to utilize a single LSC software implementation, to reuse the same control-equations, and to re-compute calibration curves based on the type of imager and light source. The adaptive normalization and self-calibration method steps may monitor the integration time of the imager, and the minimum and maximum values of EV i .
The adaptive normalization and exposure value methods may take into account the type of imager (i.e., camera and camera head) connected to the CCU, including imager format (i.e. PAL, NTSC, SECAM, etc.) resolution, (i.e. frame size or field size for interlaced imagers), and type of light source. The method may adaptively normalize EV i to the imager being used, in order to re-use the same control equations, the same control-thresholds, and a single LSC software implementation and/or package for all imagers and re-computes calibration curves based on the type of imager and light source.
The adaptive normalization and self-calibration methods may also include steps for the self-recovery method. The self-recovery method involves, such that when components of the system are changed, updating the previously used processing coefficients, equations, and/or calibration curves associated with the previous components. These processing coefficients, equations, and/or calibration curves associated with the previous components are no longer valid or accurate when components of the system are changed. Keeping these old values could lead to a wrong computation of a new safety level.
When components in the system are changed, the self-recovery method automatically fixes the above issue by re-computing the coefficients, equations and calibration curves taking into account new correct equations and/or Look Up-Tables in order to compute the safe power-level correctly. In other words, the self-recovery method works as auto-adaptive method that allows for high-accuracy of computation of a safe power level or output intensity level during the change of components and/or equipment in a system.
Components that are replaced and/or changed are the type of scope attached to the camera, the light source, the camera, any endoscopes, videoscopes and/or CCU.
As an example using the self-recovery method, the LSC implemented from GI-CUU and Image-1 HD CCU can self-recover when a type of the scope/light source is changed (for example, when 10 mm scope is replaced with 5 mm scope; or when Xenon-300 is replaced with Power LED light source during the surgery).
Furthermore, the self-recovery method may be incorporated into other operative methods of the system and/or method of the invention.
The method and apparatus of the present invention has advantages over existing systems. As shown in FIG. 4 , the method overcomes slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response features of Xenon light sources and light sources similar to Xenon sources.
FIG. 4 shows a time versus light source output graph illustrating high-frequency noise, as well as slow-response (more than a second to change light source output intensity from 5% to 100%). On the right, FIG. 4 shows an exposure value EV versus output intensity graph on a semi-log scale demonstrating the nonlinearlity and non-monotonic response of Xenon based light sources. These features (i.e., the slow-response, high-frequency noise, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response features of Xenon light sources) do not allow control methods involving any type of modulation (such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,511,422 to Chatenever) to satisfactorily control Xenon light source outputs.
The present invention may also operate to prevent fire hazard through light guide disconnection and to minimize light source intensity output in-vivo to minimize tissue burn. The present invention may also provide eye safety, and detection of camera and/or light guide disconnection. The invention achieves a single software package that does not impact existing hardware.
The controller of the present apparatus takes into account the exposure value (i.e., the shutter speed in seconds). The invention may also provide a correlator that is a part of the controller.
The invention may also involve providing software packages that do not impact existing algorithms for power control. The invention also supports various imager formats (i.e. NTSC, PAL, SECAM, etc.), as well as varying resolutions, frame and field sizes as in interlaced imagers. The hot distal end method step may involve checking if measured exposure value EV meas is below the threshold EV tr and if so the light source intensity is immediately reduced to prevent overheating/burning of tissue due to the small distance between the distal end of the scope and the observed tissue.
The failure-detection method may include methods to detect the following failures to reduce the light source intensity to a safe level: light guide/source disconnect, camera disconnect, and detection of no movement within the video image. This may be based upon comparison of measured Luma, Perimeter Black (PB), and Image motion metrics (IMM) with corresponding thresholds, i.e., Luma tr , PB tr and IMM tr .
The design style/workflow for the method for LSC may involve an effective and fast-to-market style, such as the style provided in http://www.mil-embedded.com/articles/id/?4881, an article by Joy Lin, entitled “Developing next-gen signal processing and communications systems: Engineering tools and design flow advancements”, which is herein incorporated by reference. As an example the Model-Based design workflow may involve various Matlab tools for design, test and verification of LSC, and for one-button push conversion of the proved Matlab LSC code into the corresponding C/C++/VHDL/Verilog-code for hard/firm-ware implementation. This allows fast-to-market of the reusable LSC design and prospective upgrades, changes, or modification of LSC.
While the invention has been specifically described in connection with certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not of limitation and that various changes and modifications in form and details may be made thereto, and the scope of the appended claims should be construed as broadly as the prior art will permit.
The description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature, and thus, variations that do not depart from the gist of the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.
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A method and apparatus where the output from a high intensity light source is controlled to produce well-exposed images/videos and to reduce automatically the intensity when an unsafe issue is detected in medical devices such as endoscopes and the like. The method and apparatus overcome problems to control light sources that have high-frequency noise, slow-response time, nonlinearity, and non-monotonic response time and to protect the patients' tissues from possible overheating/burning and the eyes of personnel and patients from possible direct exposure to high intensity light used in medical devices such as endoscopes and the like.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 09/683,798 filed on Feb. 15, 2002 which is now U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,767.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
The invention relates generally to the field of aquaculture and, more particularly, to a system and method for producing aquatic species for consumer consumption. Although the invention relates to a method and system for producing many aquatic specie, the preferred embodiments disclose a method and system for producing shrimp.
While seafood has always been a staple in the diets of many people in the United States and elsewhere, it wasn't until the 1980s that a significant increase in seafood consumption occurred. The consumption was largely the result of an increased awareness of the medical evidence that supported the health benefits and longevity accrued from a seafood diet. As a result, seafood distributors provided a greater abundance and selection of seafood products that further increased consumption. This increased domestic demand coupled with increased international demand by an expanding population led to more efficient methods for harvesting naturally occurring fish stocks from the oceans of the world. The increasingly efficient methods resulted in rapid depletion of these native fish stocks, requiring government intervention to impose restrictions on the size of the total harvest to preserve populations of certain native species. The smaller harvests resulted in increasing the price of seafood products, which helped stimulate the search for methods of growing fish stocks in a controlled artificial environment. The production of catfish in catfish farms is a dominant example of the growing, large-scale aquaculture industry. Other species produced by the aquaculture industry include crayfish, oysters, shrimp, Tilapia and Striped Bass.
The United States consumes about one billion of the approximately seven billion pounds of shrimp that are consumed annually by the world population. While seventy-five percent of this annual harvest is provided by ocean trawling, aquaculture in the form of shrimp farms provide the other twenty five percent. However, ocean trawling suffers from a limited season, a declining catch rate and environmental concerns. Shrimp farms may be categorized as open systems and closed systems.
Open system shrimp farms are generally open to the environment, such as open-air ponds constructed near oceans to contain and grow shrimp. These open shrimp farms suffer from vagaries of predators, the weather, diseases and environmental pollution. Saltwater from the ocean must be continually circulated through the ponds and back to the ocean to maintain adequate water chemistry for the shrimp to grow. The shrimp farmers must supply daily additions of dry food pellets to the shrimp as they grow.
Closed shrimp farms are generally self-contained aquaculture systems. While closed shrimp farms have greater control over the artificial environment contained therein, they have not been entirely satisfactory because of limited production rates, water filtration and treatment problems, and manufactured feed. Although some of these shortcomings can be overcome by increased capital expenditures, such as for water treatment facilities, the increased capital, labor and energy costs may be prohibitive.
It is desirable, therefore, to have a method and system for producing aquatic species, and particularly shrimp, that are not limited by a season, declining catch rate, environmental concerns, predators, weather, diseases, low production rates, water treatment problems, or manufactured feed. The system and method should not be limited to a specific location for access to a shipping facility or proximity to the ocean.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The present invention provides a closed aquaculture system and method for producing aquatic specie and other aquatic species that is not limited by the seasons of the year, is not limited by a declining catch rate, does not exhibit environmental concerns and is not affected by predators, weather, or diseases. The present invention provides high production rates, does not exhibit water treatment or manufactured feed problems, and is not limited to a specific location for access to a shipping facility or proximity to the ocean. Use of automation results in reduced labor costs and greater system density.
Unlike existing systems and methods, the present invention replicates a natural biological cycle by combining live algae, live artemia and live aquatic specie in a controlled environment. This combination of algae, artemia and aquatic specie stabilizes key system parameters. In addition, the system can achieve higher algae, artemia and aquatic specie density than existing systems by using automation to continually monitor and modify the saltwater environment.
An embodiment of the present invention is a method for producing adult aquatic specie in an aquaculture system comprising growing algae within an algae subsystem containing saltwater illuminated by a light source, flowing the algae from the algae subsystem into an artemia subsystem containing adult artemia, an aquatic specie nursery subsystem and an aquatic specie growout subsystem, all containing saltwater, consuming the algae by the adult artemia and producing small artemia by the adult artemia within the artemia subsystem, passing the small artemia from the artemia subsystem to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem, consuming the algae and the small artemia by immature aquatic specie contained within the aquatic specie nursery subsystem for producing adolescent aquatic specie, the adolescent aquatic specie being passed to the aquatic specie growout subsystem, consuming the algae and the small artemia by the adolescent aquatic specie contained within the aquatic specie growout subsystem for producing adult aquatic specie, and harvesting the adult aquatic specie. The method may further comprise filtering a waste outflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem by a filtration subsystem for providing a saltwater return to the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem. The method may further comprise controlling the aquaculture system with a data acquisition and control subsystem. The method may further comprising replenishing saltwater lost in the aquaculture system due to evaporation and leakage.
The step of growing algae within an algae subsystem may further comprise seeding a selected strain of algae into one or more containers containing saltwater, illuminating the algae subsystem with a light source for proper algae growth, maintaining a temperature of the algae and saltwater by a heater means, measuring pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, dissolved oxygen and micronutrients, and controlling CO2 inflow for pH control, saltwater replenishment inflow, light source output, saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, and algae outflow to the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem. The selected strain of algae may be selected from the group consisting of isochrysis galbana, nannochloropsis, dunaliella, skeletonema, thalassiosira, phaeodactylum, chaetoceros, cylindrotheca, tetraselmis , and spirulina . The optimum saltwater return inflow value may be selected to maintain an algae density value within a range of from 100 thousand to 10 million cells per milliliter of the preferred strain of algae. The one or more containers may be selected from the group consisting of open containers and sealed containers.
The step of consuming algae by the adult artemia and producing small artemia by the adult artemia within the artemia subsystem may further comprise adding adult artemia to one or more containers containing saltwater, illuminating the artemia subsystem with a light source for proper algae growth, maintaining a temperature of the artemia, algae and saltwater by a heater means, measuring waste, algae density, artemia density, temperature, pH, ammonia, light source output and dissolved oxygen, and controlling oxygen inflow, saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, light source output, saltwater replenishment inflow, algae inflow and artemia outflow to the aquatic specie subsystem. The controlling a saltwater return inflow value may maintain an artemia outflow value to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem to adequately remove waste from the artemia subsystem and provide sufficient artemia to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem for food. The method may further comprise preventing adult artemia from leaving the one or more containers of the artemia subsystem and allowing artemia waste and small artemia to pass from the one or more containers of the artemia subsystem to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem by filtering container outflow through a 400-micron screen. The one or more containers may be selected from the group consisting of open containers and sealed containers.
The step of consuming the algae and the small artemia by an immature aquatic specie contained within the aquatic specie nursery subsystem may further comprise placing the immature aquatic specie in one or more containers in the aquatic specie nursery subsystem for consuming algae and artemia for producing adolescent aquatic specie, illuminating the aquatic specie nursery subsystem with a light source for proper algae growth, maintaining a temperature of the immature aquatic specie, algae, artemia and saltwater by a heater means, measuring waste, algae density, artemia density, aquatic specie size, aquatic specie density, temperature, pH, ammonia, light source output, and dissolved oxygen, controlling oxygen inflow, saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, light source output, saltwater replenishment inflow, artemia inflow from the artemia subsystem, algae inflow from the algae subsystem and waste outflow to the filtration subsystem, gradually increasing the saltwater level in the one or more containers for increasing a volume of the one or more containers as the immature aquatic specie increase from immature size to adolescent size, and enabling the adolescent aquatic specie to be passed through to the aquatic specie growout system. The step of controlling the waste outflow to the filtration subsystem may comprise filtering the waste outflow from the aquatic specie nursery subsystem through a filter screen to prevent immature aquatic specie from leaving the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and allowing waste products to pass to the filtration subsystem. The filter screen may comprise a 400 micron bottom section and a 800 micron top section for enabling disposal of increased waste products from increasing size aquatic specie as the effective volume of the aquatic subsystem is increased by adding increasing a saltwater level to accommodate the larger specie size. The controlling a saltwater return inflow value may maintain a waste outflow value to the filtration subsystem by controlling volume to adequately remove waste from the aquatic specie subsystem. The preferred aquatic specie may be selected from the group consisting of litopenaeus vannamei, monodon, indicus, stylirostis, chinensis, japonicus , and merguiensis . The optimum waste outflow rate from the aquatic specie nursery subsystem may be selected to remove waste products from an aquatic specie density of from 0.25 to 0.5 pounds per gallon of saltwater. The one or more containers may be selected from the group consisting of open containers and sealed containers.
The step of consuming the algae and the small artemia by the adolescent aquatic specie contained within the aquatic specie growout subsystem may further comprise containing the immature aquatic specie in one or more containers in the aquatic specie growout subsystem for consuming algae and artemia, illuminating the aquatic specie growout subsystem with a light source for proper algae growth, maintaining a temperature of the adolescent aquatic specie, algae, artemia and saltwater by a heater means, measuring waste, algae density, artemia density, aquatic specie size, aquatic specie density, temperature, pH, ammonia, light source output, and dissolved oxygen, controlling oxygen inflow, light source output, saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, saltwater replenishment inflow, artemia inflow from the artemia subsystem, algae inflow from the algae subsystem and waste outflow to the filtration subsystem, and gradually increasing the saltwater level in the one or more containers for increasing a volume of the one or more containers as the adolescent aquatic specie increase from adolescent size to adult size. The step of controlling the waste outflow to the filtration subsystem may comprise filtering the waste outflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem through a filter screen to prevent immature aquatic specie from leaving the aquatic specie growout subsystem and allowing waste products to pass to the filtration subsystem. The filter screen may comprise a 2000 micron bottom section and a 5000 micron top section for enabling disposal of increased waste products from increasing size aquatic specie as the effective volume of the aquatic subsystem is increased by adding increasing a saltwater level to accommodate the larger specie size. The controlling a saltwater return inflow value may maintain a waste outflow value to the filtration subsystem by controlling volume to adequately remove waste from the aquatic specie growout subsystem. The optimum waste outflow rate from the aquatic specie growout subsystem may be selected to remove waste products from an aquatic specie density of from 0.25 to 0.5 pounds per gallon of saltwater. The one or more containers may be selected from the group consisting of open containers and sealed containers.
The step of filtering a waste outflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem may comprise pumping the waste outflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem to an input of a first mechanical filter, flowing a first part of an outflow from the first mechanical filter to an inflow of a biofilter, an outflow of the biofilter being connected to a saltwater return inflow of the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and a saltwater return inflow of the aquatic specie growout subsystem, flowing a second part of the outflow from the first mechanical filter to an inflow of a second mechanical filter, an outflow of the second mechanical filter being flowed through an inflow heating passage of a heat exchanger to a pasteurization chamber inflow, pasteurizing the pasteurization chamber inflow from the heat exchanger for destroying living organisms in the inflow and flowing a pasteurization chamber outflow to an outflow cooling passage of the heat exchanger, and flowing a pasteurized and cooled outflow from the heat exchanger outflow cooling passage to a saltwater return inflow of the algae subsystem and a saltwater return inflow of the artemia subsystem. The method may further comprise adding supplemental nutrients to the pasteurization chamber outflow under control of a data acquisition and control subsystem. The method may further comprise sterilizing the flow conduits from the heat exchanger cooling passage to the saltwater return inflow of the algae subsystem and the saltwater return inflow of the artemia subsystem using a steam sterilizer under control of a data acquisition and control subsystem.
The step of controlling the aquaculture system may comprise connecting measurements from the algae subsystem, artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem to an input multiplexer, connecting an output from the input multiplexer to an input of a microprocessor, connecting an output of the microprocessor to a controller output, connecting an output from the output controller to controls for the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, the aquatic specie growout subsystem and the filtration subsystem, and connecting the microprocessor to a video monitor and keyboard for providing a user interface. The aquaculture system may comprise a closed recirculating system. The harvested adult aquatic specie may be shrimp. The method may further comprise positioning habitat structures within the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem for increasing the number of aquatic specie in the subsystem by providing a greater habitat surface area. The method may further comprise maintaining a temperature value in the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem within a range of from 23° C. to 32° C., maintaining a salinity value in the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, term, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem within a range of from 20 to 45 parts per thousand, maintaining a dissolved oxygen value in the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem within a range of from 4.5 to 9.0 parts per million, maintaining a pH value in the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem within a range of from 7.5 to 8.5, and adjusting an illumination level of light sources for the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem for regulating algae growth rates. The step of passing the small artemia may further comprise passing the small artemia and adult artemia from the artemia subsystem to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem.
Another embodiment of the present invention is a method for producing adult aquatic specie in an aquaculture system, comprising growing algae in saltwater, feeding the algae to artemia in saltwater, producing artemia by the artemia in saltwater, feeding the algae and the artemia to an immature aquatic specie in saltwater to produce adult aquatic specie, and harvesting the adult aquatic specie from the saltwater when mature. The step of growing algae may comprise illuminating the algae in the saltwater by a light source, controlling a temperature of the algae in the saltwater by a heat source, regulating a CO2 inflow to control pH of the saltwater, replenishing saltwater lost due to evaporation and leakage, regulating a saltwater return inflow for controlling algae outflow, and measuring pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, dissolved oxygen and micronutrients. The step of feeding the algae to artemia in saltwater may comprise providing an inflow of algae and saltwater into the artemia in saltwater, illuminating the algae in the saltwater by a light source, controlling a temperature of the algae and artemia in saltwater by a heat source, regulating a CO2 inflow to control pH of the saltwater, regulating an oxygen inflow to control dissolved oxygen, regulating a saltwater return inflow for controlling artemia, algae, waste and saltwater outflow, and measuring pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, and artemia density. The step of producing artemia by the artemia in saltwater may comprise consuming algae by the adult artemia to generate small artemia, filtering the algae, adult artemia, small artemia, waste and saltwater through a screen that allows the algae, small artemia, waste and saltwater to pass as an outflow while restraining the adult artemia. The step of feeding the algae and the artemia to an immature aquatic specie in saltwater to produce adult aquatic specie may comprise providing an inflow of algae, artemia, waste and saltwater to the immature aquatic specie in saltwater, illuminating the algae in the saltwater by a light source, controlling a temperature of the algae, artemia, waste and saltwater by a heat source, regulating a CO2 inflow to control pH of the saltwater, regulating an oxygen inflow to control dissolved oxygen, regulating a saltwater return inflow for controlling artemia, algae, waste and saltwater outflow, measuring aquatic specie density, aquatic specie size, pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, volume and artemia density, consuming artemia by the immature aquatic specie to produce adolescent aquatic specie, consuming artemia by the adolescent aquatic specie to produce adult aquatic specie, and filtering the algae, aquatic specie, artemia, waste and saltwater through a graded screen that allows the algae, small artemia, waste and saltwater to pass as an outflow to a filtration means while restraining the aquatic specie. The method may further comprise positioning habitat structures for increasing the number of aquatic specie in the subsystem.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is an aquaculture system for producing adult aquatic specie that comprises an algae subsystem containing saltwater illuminated by a light source for growing algae, means for flowing the algae from the algae subsystem into an artemia subsystem, an aquatic specie nursery subsystem and an aquatic specie growout subsystem, both containing saltwater, the artemia subsystem containing adult artemia for consuming the algae and producing small artemia, means for passing the small artemia from the artemia subsystem to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem containing an immature aquatic specie for consuming the algae and the small artemia and producing an adolescent aquatic specie, means for passing the adolescent aquatic specie from the aquatic specie nursery subsystem to the aquatic specie growout subsystem for consuming the algae and the small artemia and producing an adult aquatic specie, and means for harvesting the adult aquatic specie. The system may further comprise a filtration subsystem for filtering a waste outflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem and for providing a saltwater return to the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem. The system may further comprise a data acquisition and control subsystem for controlling the aquaculture system. The system may further comprise means for replenishing saltwater lost in the aquaculture system due to evaporation and leakage. The algae subsystem containing saltwater illuminated by a light source for growing algae may further comprise a light source for illuminating the algae in the saltwater, a heater for controlling a temperature of the algae subsystem, a CO2 inflow for controlling pH of the algae subsystem, a saltwater replenishment inflow for replacing saltwater lost to evaporation and leakage, a saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, an algae outflow to the artemia subsystem, and measurement means for measuring pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, dissolved oxygen, and micronutrients of the algae subsystem. The artemia subsystem containing adult artemia for consuming the algae and producing small artemia may further comprise a light source for illuminating the algae in the saltwater, a heater for controlling temperature of the artemia subsystem, a CO2 inflow for controlling pH of the algae subsystem, an oxygen inflow for controlling dissolved oxygen of the artemia subsystem, a saltwater replenishment inflow for replacing saltwater lost to evaporation and leakage, a saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, a filter screen for separating the small artemia and waste from the adult artemia, an artemia outflow to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, and measurement means for measuring pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, and artemia density of the algae subsystem. The aquatic specie nursery subsystem containing an immature aquatic specie for consuming the algae and the small artemia and producing an adolescent aquatic specie may further comprise a light source for illuminating the algae in the saltwater, a heater for controlling temperature of the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, a CO2 inflow for controlling pH of the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, an oxygen inflow for controlling dissolved oxygen of the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, a saltwater replenishment inflow for replacing saltwater lost to evaporation and leakage, a saltwater return inflow from a filtration su system, a graded filter screen for separating the immature aquatic specie from the waste algae and small artemia, a waste outflow to the filtration subsystem, and measurement means for measuring aquatic specie density, aquatic specie size, pH, algae density, light source output, temperature, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, and volume of the algae subsystem. The graded filter screen may be selected from the group consisting of a planar filter screen and a cylindrical filter screen. The aquatic specie growout subsystem containing an adolescent aquatic specie for consuming the algae and the small artemia; and producing an adult aquatic specie may further comprise a light source for illuminating the algae in the saltwater, a heater for controlling temperature of the aquatic specie growout subsystem, a CO2 inflow for controlling pH of the aquatic specie growout subsystem, an oxygen inflow for controlling dissolved oxygen of the aquatic specie growout subsystem, a saltwater replenishment inflow for replacing saltwater lost to evaporation and leakage, a saltwater return inflow from a filtration subsystem, a graded filter screen for separating the adolescent and adult aquatic specie from the waste algae and small artemia, a waste outflow to the filtration subsystem; and measurement means for measuring aquatic specie density, aquatic specie size, pH, algae density, light source output, temperature, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, and volume of the algae subsystem. The graded filter screen may be selected from the group consisting of a planar filter screen and a cylindrical filter screen. The filtration subsystem may comprise a waste inflow from the aquatic specie growout subsystem connected to an inlet of a pump, an outlet of the pump connected to an inflow of a first mechanical filter, an outflow of the first mechanical filter connected to an inflow of a biofilter and an inflow of a second mechanical filter, an outflow of the biofilter connected to saltwater return inflows of the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem, an outflow of the second mechanical filter connected through an inflow heating passage of a heat exchanger to a pasteurization chamber inflow, the pasteurization chamber pasteurizing the pasteurization chamber inflow from the heat exchanger for destroying living organisms in the inflow, an outflow from the pasteurization chamber connected through an outflow cooling passage of the heat exchanger, and the pasteurized and cooled outflow from the heat exchanger outflow cooling passage being sent to a saltwater return inflow of the algae subsystem and a saltwater return inflow of the artemia subsystem. The data acquisition and control subsystem for controlling the aquaculture system may comprise an input multiplexer for accepting measurement inputs from the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem and the aquatic specie growout subsystem, a microprocessor connected to an output of the input multiplexer, a monitor and keyboard user interface, and an input to an output controller, and control outputs of the output controller connected to the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem, the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, the aquatic specie growout subsystem, and the filtration subsystem. The measurement inputs may comprise pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, dissolved oxygen and micronutrients from the algae subsystem, pH, algae density, temperature, light source output, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, and artemia density from the artemia subsystem, aquatic specie density, aquatic specie size, pH, algae density, temperature, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, volume, and artemia density from the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, and aquatic specie density, aquatic specie size, pH, algae density, temperature, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, waste, volume, and artemia density from the aquatic specie growout subsystem. The control outputs may comprise heater control, CO2 inflow, saltwater replenishment inflow, light source control, algae outflow, saltwater return inflow, and algae tank flow valves to the algae subsystem, heater control, oxygen inflow, artemia outflow, light source control, saltwater return inflow, algae inflow, and saltwater replenishment inflow to the artemia subsystem, heater control, oxygen inflow, waste outflow, light source control, saltwater return inflow, artemia inflow, and saltwater return inflow to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem, heater control, oxygen inflow, waste outflow, light source control, saltwater return inflow, artemia inflow, and saltwater return inflow to the aquatic specie growout subsystem, and pump speed control to the filtration subsystem. The system may further comprise habitat structures positioned within the aquatic specie subsystem for harvesting increased adult aquatic specie.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 shows a concentric aquaculture system according to the present invention;
FIG. 2 shows an algae subsystem for use in a concentric aquaculture system;
FIG. 3 shows an artemia subsystem for use in a concentric aquaculture system;
FIG. 4 shows an aquatic specie subsystem for use in a concentric aquaculture system;
FIG. 5 A and FIG. 5B show graded filter screens for use in an aquatic specie subsystem of aquaculture systems;
FIG. 6 shows a filtration subsystem for use in aquaculture systems;
FIG. 7 shows a data acquisition and control subsystem for use in aquaculture systems;
FIG. 8 shows a distributed aquaculture system according to the present invention;
FIG. 9 shows an algae subsystem for use in a distributed aquaculture system;
FIG. 10 shows an artemia subsystem for use in a distributed aquaculture system;
FIG. 11 shows an aquatic specie subsystem for use in a distributed aquaculture system; and
FIG. 12 shows a filtration subsystem for use in an aquaculture system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Turning now to FIG. 1 , FIG. 1 shows a concentric aquaculture system 100 according to the present invention. The concentric system 100 comprises an algae subsystem 200 , an artemia subsystem 300 , an aquatic specie subsystem 400 , a filtration subsystem 600 , a data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , and a saltwater replenishment source 808 . The algae subsystem 200 , artemia subsystem 300 , and aquatic specie subsystem 400 may comprise either open or sealed containers. Algae are grown in the algae subsystem 200 , and flow to the artemia subsystem 300 and the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . Adult artemia in the artemia subsystem 300 feed on the algae and produce small artemia (live nauplii ), which flow to the aquatic species subsystem 400 . The aquatic specie to be produced by the system 100 is introduced into the aquatic specie subsystem 400 at an immature stage, to be raised to an adult stage for harvesting. These immature species are contained in aquatic specie subsystem 400 and feed on the algae and artemia in the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . Although the algae reduces the affect of waste products from the artemia and aquatic specie, the system 100 utilizes a unique filtration subsystem 600 that removes additional waste from the system during growth of the aquatic specie being produced. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 is critical for maintaining a suitable environment for the algae, artemia, and aquatic specie being produced by automatically monitoring and regulating a number of critical environmental parameters. A source for saltwater replenishment 808 is provided to the algae subsystem 200 for replacing saltwater lost from evaporation and leakage. As noted above, although the method and system of the present invention may be used to produce a variety of aquatic species, the preferred embodiments disclose the production of shrimp.
Turning now to FIG. 2 , FIG. 2 shows an algae subsystem 200 for use in a concentric aquaculture system 100 . The algae subsystem 200 uses an enclosed tank 210 , preferably of fiberglass construction, that contains saltwater and algae 218 . The tank 210 may be either open or sealed. The saltwater has a salinity of from 30 to 35 parts per thousand. Lighting 214 provides energy for proper algae growth and a heater 216 maintains a temperature of the saltwater and algae 218 within an acceptable range. Sensors within the tank 210 connected to the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 provide continuous monitoring of pH 226 , algae density 228 , temperature 230 , light output 234 , micronutrients 236 and dissolved oxygen 232 . Since algae growth naturally causes the pH of the algae subsystem 200 to increase, controlled amounts of carbon dioxide gas (CO2) 224 is introduced into the system to maintain the pH 226 within acceptable levels. The algae will gravity feed 222 from the algae subsystem 200 to the artemia subsystem 300 , depending on a saltwater return rate 220 from the filtration subsystem 600 for controlling the saltwater level 212 in the tank 210 . Saltwater replenishment 208 having a salinity of from 30 to 35 parts per thousand is provided to replace saltwater losses, such as evaporation and leakage. An optimal saltwater return rate 220 will keep the algae density 228 between approximately 100 thousand to 10 million cells per milliliter for the preferred strain of algae (tajitian strain of isochrysis galbana ).
Turning now to FIG. 3 , FIG. 3 shows an artemia subsystem 300 for use in a concentric aquaculture system 100 . The artemia subsystem 300 utilizes an enclosed round tank 310 , preferably of fiberglass construction, which contains the algae subsystem 200 , saltwater and artemia 360 . The tank 310 may be either open or sealed. Sensors continuously monitor artemia density 334 , temperature 330 , pH 326 , ammonia 338 , algae density 340 , waste 342 and dissolved oxygen 332 within the artemia subsystem 300 . Overlapping lighting from the algae subsystem 200 allows continued growth of the algae 318 fed to the artemia 360 in the artemia subsystem 300 . Although waste from the artemia 360 causes the pH of the artemia subsystem 300 to decrease, the presence of the algae 318 will increase the pH, thereby stabilizing the pH of the artemia subsystem 300 . The algae 318 also serve as food for the artemia 360 . A heater 316 controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 maintains the temperature of the artemia subsystem 300 within an acceptable range. The adult artemia 360 produce small artemia on a continuous basis. A 400-micron screen 314 prevents the adult artemia 360 from leaving the artemia subsystem 300 , but allows the artemia waste and small artemia to pass from the artemia subsystem 300 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 by gravity feed. The flow rate to the aquatic specie subsystem 322 will depend on the return flow rate 320 from the filtration subsystem 600 and the flow rate 222 from the algae subsystem 200 . An optimal flow rate 322 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 adequately removes waste from the artemia subsystem 300 and also provides sufficient artemia 360 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 for food. A flow of oxygen 344 is introduced into the artemia subsystem 300 for controlling the level of dissolved oxygen. The saltwater level 312 in the artemia subsystem 300 is determined by the return flow rate 320 from the filtration subsystem 600 and the algae subsystem 220 . The preferred artemia species 360 originate from the Great Salt Lake in Utah, USA.
Turning now to FIG. 4 , FIG. 4 shows an aquatic specie subsystem 400 for use in a concentric aquaculture system 100 . The aquatic specie subsystem 400 utilizes an enclosed round tank 410 , preferably of fiberglass construction, which contains the algae subsystem 200 and the artemia subsystem 300 within it. The tank 410 may be either open or sealed. The aquatic specie subsystem 400 also contains aquatic specie 468 , preferably shrimp, algae 418 , saltwater, and artemia 462 . Sensors continuously monitor artemia density 434 , aquatic specie size 440 , aquatic specie density 442 , temperature 430 , pH 426 , dissolved oxygen 432 , algae density 444 , waste 446 , volume 448 and ammonia 438 . Habitat structures 414 are positioned in the aquatic species subsystem 400 for providing a greater habitat surface area for increasing the amount of aquatic species within the subsystem. The artemia 462 are food for the aquatic specie 468 . A heater 416 maintains the temperature of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 within an acceptable range. A graded screen 500 , preferably nylon material, provides filtration of aquatic specie waste products and allows waste flow 422 to the filter subsystem 600 . The aquatic specie subsystem 400 is initially stocked with live, commercially available postlarvae shrimp in salt water maintained at a low level. As the shrimp grow from about 0.5 inches in length to about 5 inches in length, the system 100 automatically adds saltwater to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 to gradually increase the saltwater level 412 and effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . As the saltwater level 412 of the aquatic subsystem 400 increases and the shrimp 468 grow in size, larger screen openings of the graded screen 500 allow passage of larger waste particles while preventing the shrimp 468 from passing through the graded screen. The method of slowly increasing the level of the saltwater 412 and the effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 has an additional beneficial feature. When the shrimp 468 are small, the effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 is also small, allowing a higher and more beneficial concentration of food. As the shrimp grow larger, the increase in effective volume maintains an optimum food density and optimum shrimp separation. Waste products pass through the graded screen 500 and on to the filter subsystem 700 . Since the aquaculture system 100 is a closed system, the flow rate 422 to the filtration subsystem 600 will depend on the return flow rate 420 from the filtration subsystem 600 and the flow rate 322 from the artemia subsystem 300 . An optimum flow rate will adequately remove waste products from the aquatic specie subsystem 400 at a density of 0.25 to 0.5 pounds of shrimp per gallon of saltwater. The preferred shrimp species is Litopenaeus Vannamei (Pacific White Shrimp).
Turning now to FIG. 5A , FIG. 5A shows a planar graded filter screen 500 for use in an aquatic specie subsystem 400 of a concentric aquaculture system 100 . FIG. 5A depicts one embodiment of a graded screen 500 having four distinct screens, each having a distinct mesh size. In alternative embodiments of the graded filter screen 500 , there may also be a multitude of distinct screen mesh sizes, or a continuous gradient of mesh sizes. The lowest of the four distinct screens 510 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 400 microns. The height of the lower screen 510 corresponds to a saltwater level 412 for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 400 for between 0 and 2 weeks. The second screen 520 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 800 microns. The height of the second screen 520 corresponds to a saltwater level 412 for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 400 for between 2 and 4 weeks. The third screen 530 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 2000 microns. The height of the third screen 530 corresponds to a saltwater level 412 for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 400 for between 5 and 8 weeks. The fourth or top screen 540 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 5000 microns. The height of the top screen 540 corresponds to a saltwater level 412 for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 400 for between 9 and 13 weeks.
Turning now to FIG. 5B , FIG. 5B shows a cylindrical graded filter screen 550 for use in an aquatic specie subsystem 500 of a distributed aquaculture system 800 . FIG. 5B depicts one embodiment of a graded screen 550 having four distinct screens, each having a distinct mesh size. In alternative embodiments of the graded filter screen 550 , there may also be a multitude of distinct screen mesh sizes, or a continuous gradient of mesh sizes. The lowest of the four distinct screens 560 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 400 microns. The height of the lower screen 560 corresponds to a saltwater level in the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for between 0 and 2 weeks. The second screen 570 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 800 microns. The height of the second screen 570 corresponds to a saltwater level for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for between 2 and 4 weeks. The third screen 580 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 2000 microns. The height of the third screen 580 corresponds to a saltwater level for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for between 5 and 8 weeks. The fourth or top screen 590 comprises a screen having a mesh size of about 5000 microns. The height of the top screen 590 corresponds to a saltwater level for aquatic specie inhabiting the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for between 9 and 13 weeks.
Turning now to FIG. 6 , FIG. 6 shows a filtration subsystem 600 for use in an aquaculture system 100 . The input flow 610 to the filtration subsystem 600 is depicted in FIG. 1 and the output flow 612 to the algae subsystem 200 , the artemia subsystem 300 and the aquatic specie subsystem 400 is explained with regard to FIG. 2 -FIG. 4 . The input flow 610 to the filtration system 600 is connected to the waste flow 422 from the aquatic specie subsystem 400 after passing through the graded filter screen 500 . The output flow 612 from the filtration subsystem 600 is connected to the saltwater return 220 of the algae subsystem 200 , the saltwater return 320 of the artemia subsystem 300 and the saltwater return 420 of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . As noted above, waste enters the input flow 610 filtration subsystem 600 from the aquatic specie subsystem 400 after passing through the graded filter screen 500 . Although the algae in the system 100 will remove micronutrients from the system created by the aquatic specie waste products, additional filtration allow for higher aquatic specie densities. A saltwater pump 620 pumps the waste product stream 610 , which has passed through the graded filter screen 500 , through a mechanical filter 630 to remove particulate material. The mechanical filter 630 has a preferred filter size of about 100 microns, thereby trapping particulate material having a size greater than 100 microns. The waste stream is then passed through a biofilter 640 to convert ammonia into nitrates for use as a nutrient for the algae. After filtration of the waste stream, a plumbing and valve network returns the filtered and cleansed saltwater to the algae subsystem 200 , the artemia subsystem 300 , the aquatic specie subsystem 400 and the filtration subsystem 600 . The return flow rates to each of these subsystems, which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 and respective return valves, determines the flow rate through each subsystem. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 will vary the return flow rate 220 of the algae subsystem 200 to maintain a specific algae density 228 . This flow rate 220 also determines the food supply rate to the artemia. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 also controls the return flow rate 320 of the artemia subsystem 300 to maintain an adequate supply of artemia to the aquatic specie. This flow rate 320 increases as the aquatic specie grow in size, and also determines the filtration rate of the artemia subsystem 300 . The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 also controls the return flow rate 420 of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 to maintain adequate filtration of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . This flow rate 420 increases as the aquatic specie grow in size, and also affects the amount of time that the artemia stay in the aquatic specie subsystem 400 . As the saltwater level 412 in the aquatic specie subsystem 400 increases, the filtration subsystem pump 620 operates at a greater flow rate because of reduced head pressure. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 controls the filtration subsystem return flow rate 612 to maintain optimal flow rates to the other subsystems.
Turning now to FIG. 7 , FIG. 7 shows a data acquisition and control subsystem 700 for use in an aquaculture system 100 , 800 . The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 uses sensors to monitor and devices to control critical parameters of the aquaculture system 100 , 800 , enabling the system to sustain algae and artemia cultures while promoting rapid aquatic specie growth. A microprocessor-based system uses predetermined algorithms to maintain these critical parameters without operator intervention. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 also records and transmits system measurements and control events to a user interface for review and analysis by an operator. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 contains an input multiplexer 710 , a microprocessor 720 , an output controller 750 and a video monitor 730 and keyboard 740 for providing a user interface.
Input signals 712 from the algae subsystem 200 , 900 are connected to the input multiplexer 710 , where they may be sequentially selected, converted to a digital format, and sent to a microprocessor 720 . The input signals 712 from the algae subsystem 200 , 900 include pH 226 , 926 , temperature 230 , 930 , algae density 228 , 928 , light output 234 , 934 , micronutrients 236 , 936 , and dissolved oxygen 232 , 932 . Input signals 714 from the artemia subsystem 300 , 1000 are also connected to the input multiplexer 710 , where they may be sequentially selected, converted to a digital format, and sent to a microprocessor 720 . The input signals 714 from the artemia subsystem 300 , 1000 include pH 326 , 1026 , temperature 330 , 1030 , algae density 340 , 1040 , artemia density 334 , 1034 , waste 342 , 1042 , ammonia 338 , 1038 and dissolved oxygen 332 , 1032 . Input signals 716 from the aquatic specie subsystem 400 , 1100 are also connected to the input multiplexer 710 where they may be sequentially selected, converted to a digital format, and sent to a microprocessor 720 . The input signals 716 from the aquatic specie subsystem 400 , 1100 include pH 426 , 1126 , temperature 430 , 1130 , algae density 444 , 1144 , artemia density 434 , 1134 , aquatic specie density 440 , 1141 , waste 446 , 1146 , ammonia 438 , 1138 , dissolved oxygen 432 , 1132 , aquatic specie size 440 , 1140 , and volume 448 , 1148 .
Output signals 752 to the algae subsystem 200 900 are connected to the output controller 750 of the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , which is controlled by the microprocessor 750 . For the distributed aquaculture system 800 , the output signals 752 to the algae subsystem 900 include selection of one of the plurality of algae tanks. The output signals 752 to the algae subsystem 200 , 900 include CO2 flow control 224 , 924 for controlling pH, heater control 216 , 916 for controlling temperature, and saltwater return flow rate 220 , 920 for controlling algae density. In the distributed aquaculture system 800 , control of CO2 flow 924 involves controlling valve 960 , control of saltwater return rate 920 and algae flow rate 922 involves controlling valves 962 , 964 , and 966 , and control of saltwater replenishment 908 involves control of valve 968 . Output signals 754 to the artemia subsystem 300 , 1000 are also connected to the output controller 750 for control by the microprocessor 750 . The output signals 754 to the artemia subsystem 300 , 1000 include saltwater return flow rate 320 , 1020 for controlling pH, heater control 316 , 1016 for controlling temperature, and oxygen flow control 344 , 1044 for controlling dissolved oxygen. In the distributed aquaculture system 800 , control the saltwater return flow 1020 involves controlling valve 1021 , control of oxygen flow 1044 involves controlling valve 1043 , control of saltwater replenishment 1008 involves controlling valve 1068 , and control of algae flow 1024 involves controlling valve 1023 . Note that artemia feed rate in the artemia subsystem 300 is controlled by the saltwater return flow rate 220 of the algae subsystem 200 and the artemia waste removal is controlled by saltwater return flow rate 320 of the artemia subsystem 300 . Output signals 756 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 , 1100 are also connected to the output controller 750 for control by the microprocessor 720 . The output signals 756 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 , 1100 include heater control 416 , 1116 for controlling temperature, oxygen flow control 450 , 1150 for controlling dissolved oxygen, and saltwater return flow rate 420 , 1120 to the aquatic specie subsystem 400 , 1100 for controlling waste removal and volume. In the distributed aquaculture system 800 , control of the waste flow 1142 from the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 involves controlling valve 1143 , control of saltwater return 1120 involves controlling valve 1121 , control of oxygen flow 1150 involves controlling valve 1151 , and control of saltwater replenishment 1108 involves controlling valve 1168 . Note that the pH of the aquatic specie subsystem 400 is controlled by the saltwater return flow rate 220 of the algae subsystem 200 , and the aquatic specie feed rate is controlled by varying the saltwater return flow rate 320 of the artemia subsystem 300 .
Turning now to FIG. 8 , FIG. 8 shows a distributed aquaculture system 800 according to the present invention using nursery tanks. The distributed aquaculture system 800 includes a filtration subsystem 1200 (see FIG. 12 ), one or more algae subsystems 900 (see FIG. 9 ), one or more artemia subsystems 1000 (see FIG. 10 ), one or more aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 (see FIG. 11 ), one or more aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 (see FIG. 11 ), a data acquisition and control subsystem 700 (see FIG. 7 ), and a saltwater replenishment source 808 . The flow from the one or more aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 to the one or more aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 is preferably by gravity feed. The filtration subsystem 1200 is described below regarding FIG. 12 , and accepts a waste stream from the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 and provides a saltwater return to the algae subsystem 900 , the artemia subsystem 1000 , the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 , and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 . Algae are grown in the algae subsystem 900 and flows to the artemia subsystem 1000 , the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 , and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 . Adult artemia in the artemia subsystem 1000 feed on the algae and produce small artemia, which flow to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic species subsystem 1100 . The aquatic specie to be produced by the system 800 is introduced into the aquatic nursery subsystem 810 at an immature stage, raised for an initial growth period, and then transferred to the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 to be raised to an adult stage for harvesting. These immature species are contained in the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 and feed on the algae and small artemia in the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 . Although the algae reduces the affect of waste products from the artemia and aquatic specie, the system 800 utilizes a unique filtration subsystem 1200 that removes additional waste from the system during growth of the aquatic specie being produced. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 is critical for maintaining a suitable environment for the algae, artemia, and aquatic specie being produced by automatically monitoring and regulating a number of critical environmental parameters. A source for saltwater replenishment 808 is provided to the algae subsystem 900 , the artemia subsystem 1000 , the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 , and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 for replacing saltwater lost from evaporation and leakage. The system 800 may include one or more aquatic specie nursery subsystems 810 . As noted above, although the method and system of the present invention may be used to produce a variety of aquatic species, the preferred embodiments disclose the production of shrimp.
Turning now to FIG. 9 , FIG. 9 shows an algae subsystem 900 for use in a distributed aquaculture system 800 shown in FIG. 8 . The algae subsystem 900 uses one or more sealed or open containers 910 , such as bags or tanks, that contain saltwater and algae 918 . The saltwater typically has a salinity of from 30 to 35 parts per thousand. Lighting 914 provides energy for proper algae growth. The light output 934 is monitored by the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 . Sensors within the algae collection container 980 connected to the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 provide continuous monitoring of pH 926 , algae density 928 , temperature 930 , micronutrients 936 , and dissolved oxygen 932 . Since algae growth naturally causes the pH of the algae subsystem 900 to increase, controlled amounts of carbon dioxide gas (CO2) 924 is introduced into the system to maintain the pH within acceptable levels. The amount of CO2 gas 924 introduced into the sealed or open containers 910 is determined by a control valve 960 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . Each sealed container 910 may receive saltwater return 920 from the filtration subsystem 1200 through a control valve 962 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . Algae flow 922 from each sealed container 910 to the artemia subsystem 1000 and aquatic specie subsystem 1100 is determined by a control valve 964 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . The algae flow 922 will feed from the selected sealed or open containers 910 , in the algae subsystem 900 to the algae collection container 980 . The outflow from the algae collection container 970 feeds the artemia subsystem 1000 and the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 . The algae outflow 970 is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . Saltwater replenishment 908 having a typical salinity of 30 to 35 parts per thousand is provided through a control valve 968 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , to replace saltwater losses, such as by evaporation and leakage. An optimal saltwater return rate 920 to each sealed container 910 will keep the algae density 928 between approximately 100 thousand to 10 million cells per milliliter for the preferred strain of algae (tajitian strain of isochrysis galbana ).
Turning now to FIG. 10 , FIG. 10 shows an artemia subsystem 1000 for use in a distributed aquaculture system 800 . The artemia subsystem 1000 utilizes sealed or open containers 1010 , such as bags or tanks, which contains saltwater, algae 1018 , and artemia 1060 . Sensors within the artemia collection container 1080 continuously monitor artemia density 1034 , temperature 1030 , pH 1026 , ammonia 1038 , algae density 1040 , waste 1042 and dissolved oxygen 1032 . These sensors are connected to the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . Lighting 1014 provides energy for proper algae growth. The light output 1034 is also monitored by the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 . Although waste from the artemia 1060 causes the pH of the artemia subsystem 1000 to decrease, the presence of the algae 1018 will increase the pH, thereby stabilizing the pH of the artemia subsystem 1000 . Each sealed container 1010 may receive saltwater return 1020 from the filtration subsystem 1200 through a control valve 1062 . The algae 1018 also serve as food for the artemia 1060 . The adult artemia 1060 produce small artemia on a continuous basis. A 400-micron screen 1014 in each container 1010 prevents the adult artemia 1060 from leaving the artemia subsystem 1000 in the flow 1022 through a control valve 1064 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 , to the artemia collection container 1080 . This allows the artemia waste and small artemia to pass from the artemia subsystem 1000 to the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 in the flow 1070 . In an alternative embodiment, the 400-micron screen is removed from the artemia subsystem 1000 to allow both small artemia and adult artemia to flow from the artemia subsystem 1000 to the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic specie growout subsystem 1100 . The flow rate to the aquatic specie subsystem 1022 from each sealed container 1010 will depend on the return flow rate 1020 from the filtration subsystem 600 and the flow rate 1024 from the algae subsystem 900 . The algae flow 1024 from the algae subsystem 900 is controlled by a valve 1023 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . The saltwater return from the filtration subsystem 1020 is controlled by a valve 1021 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . An optimal flow rate 1022 to the aquatic specie subsystem from each sealed container 1010 adequately removes waste from the artemia subsystem 1000 and also provides sufficient artemia 1060 to the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 for food. A flow of oxygen 1044 in the form of air is introduced into the artemia subsystem 1000 for controlling the level of dissolved oxygen. The flow of oxygen is controlled by a valve 1043 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . Saltwater replenishment 1008 to the artemia subsystem 1000 is controlled by a valve 1068 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 . The saltwater level in the artemia subsystem 1000 is determined by the return flow rate 1020 from the filtration subsystem 600 and the algae subsystem 1024 . The preferred artemia species 1060 originate from the Great Salt Lake in Utah.
Turning now to FIG. 11 , FIG. 11 shows an aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 for use in a distributed aquaculture system 800 . The configuration shown in FIG. 11 is used for both the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 shown in FIG. 8 . The aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 utilizes one or more sealed or open containers 1110 , such as bags or tanks. Habitat structures 1112 are positioned in the aquatic species subsystem 810 , 1100 for providing a greater habitat surface area for increasing the amount of aquatic species within the subsystem. The aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 also contains aquatic specie 1168 , preferably shrimp, algae 1118 , saltwater, and artemia 1160 . Sensors contained within the waste collection container 1180 connected to the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 continuously monitor artemia density 1134 , aquatic specie size 1140 , aquatic specie density 1141 , temperature 1130 , pH 1126 , dissolved oxygen 1132 , algae density 1144 , waste 1146 , and ammonia 1138 . Lighting 1113 provides energy for proper algae growth. The light output 1134 is monitored by the data acquisition and monitoring subsystem 700 . The algae 1118 and the artemia 1160 are food for the aquatic specie 1168 . A graded screen 550 , preferably nylon material, provides filtration of aquatic specie waste products and allows waste flow 1170 to the filter subsystem 1200 . The aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 is initially stocked with live, commercially available postlarvae shrimp in salt water maintained at a low level. As the shrimp grow from about 0.5 inches in length to about 5 inches in length, the system 800 automatically adds saltwater to the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 to gradually increase the saltwater level and effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 . As the saltwater level of the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 increases and the shrimp 1168 grow in size, larger screen openings of the graded screen 550 allow passage of larger waste particles while preventing the shrimp 1168 from passing through the graded screen. The method of slowly increasing the level of the saltwater and the effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 has an additional beneficial feature. When the shrimp 1168 are small, the effective volume of the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 is also small, allowing a higher and more beneficial concentration of food. As the shrimp 1168 grow larger, the increase in effective volume maintains an optimum food density and optimum shrimp separation. Waste products pass through the graded screen 550 and on to the filter subsystem 1200 . Since the aquaculture system 800 is a closed system, the outflow rate 1170 to the filtration subsystem 1200 will depend on the return flow rate 1120 from the filtration subsystem 1200 , the flow rate 1122 from the artemia subsystem 1000 , and the flow rate 1124 from the algae subsystem 900 . An algae inflow valve 1125 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , controls the flow 1124 from the algae subsystem 900 . An artemia inflow valve 1123 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , controls the flow 1122 from the artemia subsystem 1000 . A saltwater return valve 1121 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , controls the flow 1120 from the filtration subsystem 1200 . Waste flow valves 1143 from each of the sealed or open containers, which are controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , control the flow 1142 from each sealed container 1110 to the filtration subsystem 1200 . An oxygen control valve 1151 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , controls the flow of air 1150 to the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 . A saltwater replenishment valve 1168 , which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 , controls the flow 1108 for replenishing saltwater due to evaporation and leakage. An optimum flow rate will adequately remove waste products from the aquatic specie subsystem 810 , 1100 at a density of from 0.25 to 0.5 pounds of shrimp per gallon of saltwater. The preferred shrimp species is Litopenaeus Vannamei (Pacific White Shrimp).
Turning now to FIG. 12 , FIG. 12 shows a filtration subsystem 1200 for use in an aquaculture system 800 . The input flow 1210 from the aquatic specie final growout subsystem 1100 to the filtration subsystem 1200 is depicted in FIG. 8 and the output flow 1212 to the algae subsystem 900 , the artemia subsystem 1000 , the aquatic specie nursery subsystem 810 and the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 is explained with regard to FIG. 8 -FIG. 11 . The input flow 1210 to the filtration system 1200 is connected to the sealed container waste outflow 1142 from the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 after passing through a graded filter screen 550 . The output flow 1212 from the filtration subsystem 1200 is connected to the saltwater return of the aquatic specie subsystem 1120 . The output flow 1214 from the filtration subsystem 1200 is connected to the saltwater return 920 of the algae subsystem 900 and the saltwater return 1020 of the artemia subsystem 1000 . As noted above, waste enters the input flow 1210 filtration subsystem 1200 from the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 after passing through the graded filter screen 550 . Although the algae in the system 800 will remove micronutrients from the system created by the aquatic specie waste products, additional filtration allows for higher aquatic specie densities. A saltwater pump 1220 pumps the waste product stream 1210 , which has passed through the graded filter screen 550 , through a mechanical filter 1230 to remove particulate material. The mechanical filter 1230 contains various filters ranging in size from 500 microns down to a preferred filter size of about 5 microns, thereby trapping particulate material having a size greater than 5 microns. The waste stream is then divided into two paths. The first path is passed through a biofilter 1240 to convert ammonia into nitrates for use as a nutrient for the algae in the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 . After filtration of the waste stream, a plumbing and valve network returns the filtered and cleansed saltwater to the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 . The return flow rates to this subsystem, which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 and respective return valves, determines the flow rate through to the subsystem. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 also controls the return flow rate 1120 of the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 to maintain adequate filtration of the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 ′. This flow rate 1120 increases as the aquatic specie grow in size, and also affects the amount of time that the artemia stay in the aquatic specie subsystem 1100 . The second path within the filtration subsystem 1200 is passed through another mechanical filter 1250 . The mechanical filter 1250 contains various filters ranging in size from 50 microns down to a preferred filter size of about 5 microns, thereby trapping particulate material having a size greater than 5 microns. The waste stream then passes through a heat exchanger 1260 and pasteurization chamber 1270 that first heats the waste stream to a preferred 180 degrees F. and then cools the waste stream to a preferred 80 degrees F. This method sterilizes the waste stream prior to use in the algae subsystem 900 and the artemia subsystem 1000 that destroys any living organisms that may have entered the waste stream and which might compete and contaminate the preferred algae. After filtration of the waste stream, a plumbing and valve network returns the filtered and cleansed saltwater to the algae subsystem 900 , and the artemia subsystem 1000 . The return flow rates to each of these subsystems, which is controlled by the data acquisition and control subsystem 700 and respective return valves, determines the flow rate through each subsystem. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 will vary the return flow rate 920 of the algae subsystem 900 to maintain a specific range of algae density 928 . This flow rate 920 also determines the food supply rate to the artemia. The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 also controls the return flow rate 1020 of the artemia subsystem 1000 to maintain an adequate supply of artemia to the aquatic specie. The flow rate 1020 increases as the aquatic specie grow in size, and also determines the filtration rate of the artemia subsystem 1000 . The data acquisition and control subsystem 700 will monitor the nutrient level of the waste stream and vary the flow of supplemental nutrients 1280 to the waste stream, if necessary, after it leaves the pasteurization chamber 1270 . Also, periodically, a steam sterilizer 1290 will steam sterilize the plumbing from the heat exchanger 1260 to the algae subsystem 900 and the artemia subsystem 1000 to destroy any living organisms that might develop within the plumbing after pasteurization.
Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments, it should be apparent that modifications and adaptations to those embodiments might occur to persons skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
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The invention provides a method and system for producing aquatic specie for consumer consumption within a closed aquaculture system. It provides for growing algae in artificial saltwater under controlled conditions in an algae subsystem, feeding the algae to adult artemia for producing small artemia in an artemia subsystem, feeding the algae and small artemia to immature aquatic specie for producing adolescent aquatic specie in an aquatic specie nursery subsystem, and feeding the algae and small artemia to the adolescent aquatic specie to for producing adult aquatic specie in an aquatic specie growout subsystem, which are then harvested. The invention also includes a data acquisition and control subsystem for automated control of the aquaculture system. A unique filtration subsystem accepts waste from the aquatic specie subsystem, pumps the waste through a series of filters, and returns the filtered saltwater to the algae subsystem, the artemia subsystem and the aquatic specie subsystem.
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This application claims the benefit of Provisional application No. 60/236,446, filed Sep. 29, 2000.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of mode discrimination means in laser cavities, and in particular, mode discrimination in macroscopic cavities wherein a vast number of modes may otherwise be sustained.
2. Description of the Related Art
The present invention relates generally to the field of lasers and optical resonator design, and in particular, to the fields of disk and spherical lasers. Also, the invention relates to cavity structure designs that utilize multi-layer dielectric (MLD) thin film reflectors that provide a high degree of mode selection.
Laser cavities of the disk and sphericaI geometries have become an increasingly intensive field of research; in particular, for such lasers that are fabricated on a miniature or microscopic scale. In the latter case, the predominant means of cavity reflection is through total internal reflection (TIR), which provides an extremely high cavity Q. Such reflective means normally manifest in “whispering modes,” which propagate at angles below the critical angle for TIR. These microdisk and microsphere lasers are very effective in cases involving evanescent coupling to an adjacent dielectric structure; however, they are known to contain a very large number of competing high-order modes.
In addition, the coupling of these whispering modes for useful work is difficult for applications not utilizing evanescent coupling.
In recent years, theoretical studies have been performed on the development of derivation methods for cylindrical and spherical multilayer structures, which are aimed at providing an accurate description of the reflection coefficients and modal characteristics of these cavities. These studies address circular confinement structures with cavity dimensions on the order of the wavelengths studied. However, none of these studies are found to address the issues of applying similar circular Bragg reflectors for larger cavities of the scale used for gas and larger solid state cavities. Furthermore, these previous studies also entertain only the use of conventional MLD filters, with a large real refractive index difference, n H −n L =Δn>1, for the layer pairs, and with an accordingly small number of layers required for high reflection.
The use of interference structures to enable high spectral resolving power in reflecting coatings has been described by Emmett (U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,259), wherein a very large number of alternating dielectric layers possessing a very small difference in refractive indices is used for application in high power flashlamps. The described coatings are utilized primarily for providing a high damage threshold to the high irradiance experienced in the flashlamp enclosure, as well as for obtaining a well-resolved pump wavelength for use in the described flashlamp.
The control of transverse modes in semiconductor lasers, primarily VCSEL's, has been reported by several research groups in the last decade. These latter reports utilize a circular Bragg grating structure as a complement to the planar Bragg mirrors of a conventional, high Q semiconductor cavity. Such circular Bragg gratings do not form the initial resonant cavity, but rather, aid in controlling relatively low Q, transverse modes of an existing Fabry-Perot structure. In such cases, the resultant control of transverse propagation may allow lowered thresholds, or enhanced stability.
Earlier, large-scale, laser designs of a circular geometry operated on very different principles than the microlasers, utilizing primarily gas laser mediums and metallic reflectors. In these earlier designs, optical power could be coupled for useful work at the center of the cavity, such as for isotope separation, or by using a conical reflector. Since, in these latter cases, laser modes that concentrated energy at the cavity's center were needed, some means for blocking the whispering-type modes was generally required. Such mode suppression was usually accomplished through radial stops; however, these stops only provided the most rudimentary mode control, in addition to hampering the efficient operation of the laser. Because of such issues, disk and spherical lasers have not supplanted standard linear lasers for any applications requiring substantial optical power or a high degree of mode selection.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A novel laser apparatus has been developed for use in such applications as lasers and light amplifiers in general. The laser developed comprises a cavity mirror structure that provides a single surface of revolution. The cavity volume is defined by this surface of revolution, and contains the gain medium. Unlike prior art disk and/or spherical lasers possessing circular cavities, the present invention does not rely on total internal reflection (TIR) or metallic reflectors to provide a high cavity Q-factor (and a broad range of high-order modes). The laser design of the present invention avoids use of these cavity confinement methods. In the optical resonator of the present invention, interference-based multilayer dielectric (MLD) reflectors are constructed that can possess unusually narrow reflection peaks, corresponding to a degree of finesse (finesse designating interference-based resolving power) usually associated with MLD transmission filters of the Fabry-Perot type. The high-finesse MLD reflectors of the present invention conform to the surface of revolution of the cavity mirror structure, allowing a high degree of angle-dependence for selective containment of cavity modes. These filters are disposed in such a way as to allow preferred-low order modes (lower order modes being represented in the present disclosure as those corresponding to near normal incidence radiation) and suppression of parasitic modes while allowing a high cavity Q factor for the modes selected.
For a multi-layer dielectric (MLD) coating consisting of alternating layers, where all layers have an optical thickness equal to a quarter-wave of light at the wavelength of interest, the reflectance may be described according to: R = [ 1 - ( n H / n L ) 2 p ( n H 2 / n L ) 1 + ( n H / n L ) 2 p ( n H 2 / n L ) ] 2 ( 1 )
wherein the index of refraction for the substrate is n s , the two layer indices are n H (high index) and n L (low index), and the number of pairs of alternating layers is p. As is evidenced by equation (1), a higher reflectance may be achieved through the implementation of a greater difference in refractive index Δn=|n 2 −n 1 |. High reflectance is thus normally achieved by maintaining Δn at a relatively high value. However, as equation (1) suggests, high reflectance may also be achieved by depositing many layer pairs possessing a relatively low difference in their refractive indices. As the index difference decreases, many more pairs of alternating layers must be deposited to maintain reasonable reflectance. At the same time, this latter approach will result in a decrease in the bandwidth of light reflected by the resultant coating. The present invention utilizes MLD coatings which obtain high reflectance from an unusually low Δn; this is accomplished by maintaining a high degree of control over the properties of each layer through an unusually high number of iterations, p, of the layer pair. With well-controlled film characteristics, the reflectance of the resulting MLD coating is found to have a quite narrow bandwidth, typically in the order of nanometers.
A characteristic of the MLD coatings utilized in the present invention is the angle-dependence of the reflection peak. As the MLD coating is irradiated at increasingly oblique angles of incidence, the spectrally narrow reflection peak will be shifted toward increasingly shorter wavelengths. While the degree of this latter peak shift will depend on such issues as phase dispersion and the change in optical admittance with increasingly oblique incidence, the fractional shift in the peak transmittance will change generally with the phase thickness shift. As such, the fractional shift in peak transmittance will be slightly less than cos θ,where θ is the angle from normal incidence. As the angle of incidence, θ, increases, the magnitude of the reflectance peak will generally decrease, as well.
The aforementioned characteristics of these high-finesse MLD coatings are utilized in the preferred embodiments of the present invention. In accordance with the illustrated preferred embodiments, a novel laser cavity structure is disclosed herein that effectively utilizes the sensitivity of the aforementioned coatings to angle-of-incidence when these same coatings are irradiated with quasi-monochromatic light. This is normally accomplished through the use of a cavity mirror that conforms to a single surface of revolution. High confinement is achieved through novel use of the highly angle-dependent MLD reflectors. Thus, instead of utilizing TIR or metal films, which both provide wide acceptance angles to high order cavity modes, the present invention utilizes external reflection and narrow acceptance angles to increase the stability of selected, lower order, cavity modes.
Because the present invention does not rely on TIR or metallic films to provide high confinement for various laser modes, it is designed with a fundamentally different set of requirements for the refractive indices of its individual components. In contrast to the disk and spherical lasers of the prior art, the gain medium—or, equivalently, the volume in which it resides—in lasers of the present invention should possess an effective refractive index, n G , lower than that of the immediately surrounding medium. As such, the high index layers of the MLD of the present invention must have a refractive index, n H , greater than that of the gain volume.
In one preferred embodiment, the present invention provides a laser cavity structure that does not require a partially reflective mirror or external optics to efficiently couple laser light to a work piece or various process media. Instead, the laser cavity structure disclosed herein allows photo-absorbing media to be introduced through the center of the cavity, so that energy not absorbed by the photo-absorbing media may contribute back to the energy stored inside the cavity. According to this aspect, the irradiation of photo-absorbing media may also be rendered highly uniform, and is well suited for media of substantially circular symmetry.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a unique configuration for coupling laser radiation from the edge of the spherical and disk lasers described, as the mode selection provided allows efficient coupling of a low-divergence beam from the cavity edge. Other objects of the present invention follow.
One objective of the present invention is to provide a laser cavity structure that allows high thermal stability.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a disk or spherical laser cavity structure that discourages the establishment of whispering modes
Another object of the present invention is to provide a laser cavity structure which allows mode selection through the use of all-dielectric reflectors of unusually high finesse.
Yet another object of the present invention is to increase the stability of conventional laser cavity structures through the suppression of walk-off modes.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a laser cavity structure that allows a low threshold to lasing.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a means for irradiating a photo-absorbing medium from a continuous 360-degree periphery.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a laser cavity structure that allows efficient and reliable mechanical design.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a delimited cross-sectional view of a thin film design for a MLD used in the preferred embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a reflectance curve for an MLD coating fabricated in accordance with the embodiments set forth in FIG. 1., showing normal incidence and tilted reflectance in the region of 300 nm to 400 nm.
FIG. 3 is a sectional top view of the invention in its first preferred embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a sectional side view of the invention constructed as a spherical cavity laser.
FIG. 5 is a sectional side view of the invention constructed as a cylindrical cavity laser.
FIG. 6 is a sectional top view of the invention in one of its embodiments, showing laser emission coupled from the edge of the cavity.
FIG. 7 is a sectional top view of the invention in another of its embodiments, wherein the cavity is pumped by an external light source.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The following description and FIGS. 1 through 7 of the drawings depict various embodiments of the present invention. The embodiments set forth herein are provided to convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. While the invention will be described in conjunction with the preferred embodiments, various alternative embodiments to the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the invention described herein. Like numerals are used for like and corresponding parts of the various drawings.
In FIG. 1 is a repeated scheme for the build-up of a high-reflectance MLD. The MLD contains p quarter-wave pairs, each consisting of a low index layer ( 14 ) and a high index layer ( 15 ). The substrate ( 1 ) provides the surface of revolution onto which the MLD is deposited, thus forming the gas cavity laser referred to in FIGS. 3-7. Each pair of quarter-wave layers ( 14 ) and ( 15 ) share a small refractive index difference, Δn, which is typically less than 0.2. The number of quarter-wave pairs, p, will typically be greater than 50 to maintain high reflectance. The quarter-wave pairs may be deposited sequentially to achieve MLD's containing hundreds of layers. Materials used will depend upon the spectral region desired for lasing action. In many cases the small difference in real refractive index, Δn, may be achieved by making substitutions into the matrix of a parent material. For instance, ZrO 2 may be deposited as the parent material by ion beam sputtering, thereby forming one of the quarter-wave layers. Subsequently, the second layer material may then be formed using the same process, while co-sputtering a second material, such as TiO 2 , from a separate target in the same process chamber, resulting in the second layer being a mixture of the two oxides. As a result, the refractive index of the second layer may be controllably rendered slightly higher than that of the first layer; this, through the well-controlled addition of TiO 2 to a ZrO 2 matrix. The MLD, as shown in FIG. 1, may also be constructed with additional thin film structures incorporated for performing additional functions, such as anti-reflection coatings or secondary reflectors, and so forth. However, to achieve the finesse required in the present invention, the MLD design chosen for the cavity mirror must incorporate a high number of quarter-wave pair iterations, accompanied by an unusually small index difference, Δn.
In FIG. 2 are reflectance curves, in wavelength λ vs. % reflectance, for an MLD reflector fabricated according to the design set forth in FIG. 1, for light incident approximately normal to the substrate. The reflectance peak of the MLD reflector at normal incidence, as given by the solid line ( 2 ), is an example of the narrow full-width-half-max (FWHM) achieved with low Δn. The reflectance peaks of FIG. 2 is obtained from a MLD reflector containing ninety pairs (p=90) of the quarter-wave layers, with the index difference of the pair, Δn=0.04. A topmost high-index layer ( 19 ) would typically be deposited to give maximum reflectance, resulting in an odd number of layers (in this case, 181 layers). The dashed line ( 3 ) in FIG. 2 is the reflectance peak for the same MLD reflector when irradiated with light at an angle of 15° from normal incidence. The spectral shift between the two reflectance peaks of FIG. 2 is found to be approximately λ 0 −λ 1 =Δλ=5 nm, while the magnitude of p-polarization peak reflectance is also found to drop from 95% to 94%. The magnitude of the peak reflectance may be increased through an increase in p; and, as peak reflectance increases, the latter 1% percent drop becomes an increasingly decisive factor in determining cavity Q, and mode selection, within the laser cavity. A more narrow, or broad, FWHM ( 16 ) may be obtained by varying Δn according to the previously described relationships. In addition to the narrow FWHM, another useful characteristic of this MLD design, when incorporated in the present invention, is the pointed shape of the peak, as this pointed shape allows a more narrowly defined peak reflectance. The utility of these characteristics will become apparent when discussed in conjunction with the embodiments of FIGS. 3-7.
In FIG. 3, the present invention is shown in its first preferred embodiment. The substrate ( 1 ) provides the structure by which the surface of revolution, with axis of circular symmetry ( 9 ), is defined. In the embodiments of FIGS. 3-7, this surface of revolution will be identical to the interface between the substrate ( 1 ) and the MLD reflector ( 5 ). The MLD reflector ( 5 ), as described in FIGS. 1-2, conforms to this surface of revolution and modifies its reflective characteristics. The gain medium for the laser is contained within the cavity interior ( 4 ), formed by the substrate and integral MLD reflector. As such, if a fluorescent event occurs within the gain medium, its confinement within the cavity is very much altered through the incorporation of the previously set forth MLD. The MLD limits the bandwidth of the laser emission, first through the interference filtering of the normal incidence emission, as practiced in the prior art. However the circular geometry of the present invention, combined with the high angle-dependence of the MLD reflector, as described in FIGS. 1-2, requires that emission from the fluorescent event also propagate within a narrowly defined solid angle, if it is to be reflected back into the cavity interior ( 4 ). Propagation which occurs outside this solid angle, such as indicated by solid line ( 6 ), will be allowed to transmit outside of the cavity interior ( 4 ), thereby avoiding the establishment of laser modes for such off-angle propagation. In the geometries described, these highly angle-dependent MLD reflectors thereby become a means of mode selection. The zig-zag line ( 7 ) which depicts the direction of mode propagation is only for demonstration, but indicates that the concentration of allowed modes is at or near normal incidence. The precise angle of the dominant mode will be determined by such design considerations as the preferred angle-of-incidence, the fluorescence spectra of the gain medium, the type of coupling desired, etc.
In the laser cavity structure of the present invention, confinement of the laser modes to paths that are at or near to normal incidence allows several unique coupling configurations. One such configuration is shown in FIG. 3, wherein laser radiation is coupled from the laser by introducing the media to be processed into the center of the laser cavity. This may be accomplished through implementation of a tube ( 8 ), which separates the gain medium from the process media passing through the tube interior, thereby providing a process volume within the cavity. The latter embodiment will be particularly effective in the processing of media that possess low absorption cross-sections, such as gases and vapors. Alternatively, the central coupling structure designated by the tube ( 8 ) may instead contain a cone-shaped optical element for extraction of laser light from the center of the cavity as has been described in numerous papers and patents of the prior art.
The cross-sectional figure of the cavity mirror may be designed variously, dependent upon the type of gain medium and lasing action required. In FIG. 4, the surface of revolution possesses a cross-sectional figure with a radius of curvature equivalent to that of the surface of revolution as viewed from the top in FIG. 3, thereby rendering it a spherical section. In this embodiment, laser emission is confined to propagate through a small volume ( 17 ) located at the center of the spherical mirror, intersected by the axis of circular symmetry ( 9 ), thereby allowing an unusually high power density within this small volume.
Another embodiment of the present invention is presented in FIG. 5, in which the cross-sectional figure of the surface of revolution—again, identical to the MLD/substrate interface—is straight, thereby rendering the surface of revolution a cylinder. The cylindrical shape of the laser cavity structure in the latter embodiment serves to demonstrate an added utility that is realized with the incorporation of the described MLD's. Unlike the cavity geometries of the prior art, linear and other, which use relatively low-finesse reflectors, the present invention allows the stability associated with a particular cavity mirror selection to be increased. Whereas flat (or cylindrical) cavity mirrors will typically support parasitic “walk-off” modes which can decrease the overall Q-factor of the laser cavity, these same modes, such as exemplified by propagation direction ( 6 ) in FIG. 5, will be discouraged due to the low reflectivity of the cavity mirrors at these angles.
In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, laser radiation may also be coupled out of the laser cavity through the edge of the cavity, as in FIG. 6 . This latter coupling may be accomplished by selectively removing or preventing the MLD deposition—through etching, masking, etc.—so as to provide an effective aperture ( 10 ) through which radiation may transmit. Benefits of the invention, as set forth in the embodiments of FIG. 6, include the ability to combine a high degree of mode selection with an unusually high cavity Q (and commensurately low threshold).
In FIG. 7 is another embodiment of the present invention that allows for edge pumping of the circular cavity. The laser cavities described in the present invention may comprise gas, solid, or liquid gain media, and may be pumped by any of the compatible methods described in the art, such as by a discharge. Also, the present invention allows for a unique method of optical pumping. Because of the reflectance and, inversely, the transmission characteristics of the high-finesse MLD's of the present invention, lasers of the present invention may easily be pumped with laser radiation which corresponds to the peak absorption region of the gain medium's absorption spectrum. It is possible in the present invention to efficiently couple in the pump radiation through the cavity mirror and MLD. In this manner, diode lasers could be positioned around the periphery of the cavity mirror.
It should be noted that, in embodiments of the present invention where the laser cavity is fabricated with a disk-like aspect, thermal stability is typically more easily obtained than in other laser cavities. This latter advantage is due to the ability to effectively heat-sink the cavity through its planar sides—as indicated by dashed lines ( 18 ) in FIGS. 4 - 5 —as these surfaces need not be transparent. In fact, these surfaces can possess any of a number of reflecting, absorbing, or scattering characteristics, depending on the application. The ability to heat-sink these cavities can be particularly important in the case that the gain medium is solid state. Heat-sinking, in such a case, may also be performed effectively through the cavity mirror, as long as the outer layers of the cavity mirror are specified so as to prevent any possible TIR of unwanted laser wavelengths. If the laser cavity structure of the present invention is to be operated in an ambient medium which possesses a refractive index, n A , substantially lower than n G , then an absorbing and/or scattering layer is preferably utilized externally to the MLD. This latter use of an absorbing and/or scattering layer serves to prevent specular reflection of unwanted cavity emissions back through the MLD to re-enter the gain volume. Such measures could be implemented in the case that the gain medium is solid state.
It is not intended that the MLD reflector be restricted to the embodiments of FIG. 1, as the latter embodiments are presented primarily for the purpose of teaching the invention. The MLD implemented in a particular embodiment will depend on its particular requirements. The MLD may comprise organic or inorganic materials, or a combination of both. The design of the MLD reflector may vary considerably, as well. For instance, certain layer pairs within the MLD may possess a much higher Δn without appreciably increasing the FWHM of FIG. 2 . The thin film materials utilized may possess amorphous or crystalline microstructures; and as such, may be optically isotropic, uniaxial or biaxial, depending upon the precise transmission characteristics of the MLD reflector. The MLD reflector may, in some applications, be designed for peak reflectance at a relatively large angle of incidence. Various other functions may also be incorporated into the MLD design, such as an anti-reflection coating, or the transmission of a particular fluorescence peak.
It should also be noted that the embodiments of FIGS. 3-4 do not require that the described spherical cavity laser be restricted to any particular major spherical section. In fact, the cavity structure sectional view of FIG. 4 may as easily describe operation of a cavity structure that is not truncated at all, so that the cavity is a complete sphere. Also, the MLD described herein may, in many circumstances, be deposited on the external surface of the substrate, therein defining the required surface of revolution. In these latter circumstances, the substrate would reside within the cavity interior, and hence would need to be quite transparent to the desired wavelengths. Such a case might be when the required surface of revolution is the external surface of a sphere, which is composed of a laser glass or crystalline material.
The present invention is seen to have potential applications in several areas. One such application would be in the treatment of optical fibers or optical fiber preforms, where the fiber or preform could be passed through the center of a laser cavity similar to that described in FIG. 3 . Another potential application could arise in the general field of vapor deposition, where various vapors or gases might be ionized, heated, or otherwise altered by passing through the process volume of FIG. 3 .
The preceding description provides an laser cavity structure that may be operated as a laser, optical amplifier, or other, optically resonating, device. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, it is not intended that the invention be restricted to such embodiments. It will be apparent to one practiced in the art that various departures from the foregoing description and drawings may be made without departure from the scope or spirit of the invention.
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A novel laser apparatus is disclosed which pertains to laser resonator geometries possessing circular symmetry, such as in the case of disk or spherical lasers. The disclosed invention utilizes multi-layer dielectric (MLD) thin film reflectors of many layer pairs of very small refractive index difference, the MLD deposited on a surface of revolution, thereby forming an optical cavity. These dielectric reflectors are disposed in such a way as to allow selection of preferred low order modes and suppression of parasitic modes while allowing a high cavity Q factor for preferred modes. The invention disclosed, in its preferred embodiments, is seen as particularly useful in applications requiring high efficiency in the production and coupling of coherent radiation. This is accomplished in a cavity design that is relatively compact and economical.
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CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS
[0001] Various methods, systems and apparatus relating to the present invention are disclosed in the following co-pending granted patents/applications filed by the applicant or assignee of the present invention:
[0002] U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,428,133, 6,526,658, 09/575,108, 09/575,109.
[0003] The disclosures of these co-pending granted patents/applications are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The following invention relates to a printhead assembly having a flexible printed circuit board to provide power and data to individual printhead modules in a printer.
[0005] More particularly, though not exclusively, the invention relates to a printhead assembly having a flexible printed circuit board for providing data and power connections to individual printhead modules in an A4 pagewidth drop on demand printhead capable of printing up to 1600 dpi photographic quality at up to 160 pages per minute. The flexible printed circuit board also has associated therewith a pair of busbars for carrying the power thereto.
[0006] The overall design of a printer in which the assembly can be utilized revolves around the use of replaceable printhead modules in an array approximately 8½ inches (21 cm) long. An advantage of such a system is the ability to easily remove and replace any defective modules in a printhead array. This would eliminate having to scrap an entire printhead if only one chip is defective.
[0007] A printhead module in such a printer can be comprised of a “Memjet” chip, being a chip having mounted thereon a vast number of thermo-actuators in micro-mechanics and micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS). Such actuators might be those as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,646 to the present applicant, however, might be other MEMS print chips.
[0008] In a typical embodiment, eleven “Memjet” tiles can butt together in a metal channel to form a complete 8½ inch printhead assembly.
[0009] The printhead, being the environment within which the assembly of the present invention is to be situated, might typically have six ink chambers and be capable of printing four color process (CMYK) as well as infra-red ink and fixative. An air pump would supply filtered air through a seventh chamber to the printhead, which could be used to keep foreign particles away from its ink nozzles.
[0010] Each printhead module receives ink via an elastomeric extrusion that transfers the ink. Typically, the printhead assembly is suitable for printing A4 paper without the need for scanning movement of the printhead across the paper width.
[0011] The printheads themselves are modular, printhead arrays can be configured to form printheads of arbitrary width.
[0012] Additionally, a second printhead assembly can be mounted on the opposite side of a paper feed path to enable double-sided high speed printing.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0013] It is an object of the present invention to provide a printer assembly having a flexible printed circuit board and busbars for delivering power and data to printhead modules of the assembly.
[0014] It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved printhead assembly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The present invention provides a printhead assembly for a pagewidth drop on demand ink jet printer, comprising:
[0016] an array of printhead modules extending substantially across said pagewidth, a flexible printed circuit board carrying data and power to said modules, the flexible printed circuit board also extending substantially across said pagewidth,
[0017] a pair of busbars electrically connected to the flexible printed circuit board and carrying power thereto, the busbars also extending substantially across said pagewidth.
[0018] Preferably said busbars are soldered to said flexible printed circuit board. Preferably said flexible printed circuit board contacts individual fine pitch flex PCBs on each printhead module.
[0019] Preferably said flexible printed circuit board has a series of gold plated, domed contacts which interface with contact pads on said fine pitch flex PCBs.
[0020] Preferably the flexible printed circuit board extends from one end of the assembly for data connection.
[0021] Preferably said printhead modules are fixed to an elongate channel and an elastomeric ink delivery extrusion is situated between the modules and the channel and the flexible printed circuit board is sandwiched between the elastomeric ink delivery extrusion and the channel and extends around one edge of the extrusion to carry power and data to the printhead modules.
[0022] Preferably the busbars are situated between the flexible printed circuit board and the elastomeric ink delivery extrusion.
[0023] Preferably said gold plated, domed contacts and said contact pads are located alongside said printhead modules and are biased into mutual contact by a resilient force exerted thereon by said channel.
[0024] Preferably said flexible printed circuit board is bonded to the channel.
[0025] As used herein, the term “ink” is intended to mean any fluid which flows through the printhead to be delivered to print media. The fluid may be one of many different colored inks, infra-red ink, a fixative or the like.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0026] A preferred form of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:
[0027] [0027]FIG. 1 is a schematic overall view of a printhead;
[0028] [0028]FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded view of the printhead of FIG. 1;
[0029] [0029]FIG. 3 is a schematic exploded view of an ink jet module;
[0030] [0030]FIG. 3 a is a schematic exploded inverted illustration of the ink jet module of FIG. 3;
[0031] [0031]FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an assembled ink jet module;
[0032] [0032]FIG. 5 is a schematic inverted illustration of the module of FIG. 4;
[0033] [0033]FIG. 6 is a schematic close-up illustration of the module of FIG. 4;
[0034] [0034]FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a chip sub-assembly;
[0035] [0035]FIG. 8 a is a schematic side elevational view of the printhead of FIG. 1;
[0036] [0036]FIG. 8 b is a schematic plan view of the printhead of FIG. 8 a;
[0037] [0037]FIG. 8 c is a schematic side view (other side) of the printhead of FIG. 8 a;
[0038] [0038]FIG. 8 d is a schematic inverted plan view of the printhead of FIG. 8 b;
[0039] [0039]FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional end elevational view of the printhead of FIG. 1;
[0040] [0040]FIG. 10 is a schematic illustration of the printhead of FIG. 1 in an uncapped configuration;
[0041] [0041]FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of the printhead of FIG. 10 in a capped configuration;
[0042] [0042]FIG. 12 a is a schematic illustration of a capping device;
[0043] [0043]FIG. 12 b is a schematic illustration of the capping device of FIG. 12 a , viewed from a different angle;
[0044] [0044]FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration showing the loading of an ink jet module into a printhead;
[0045] [0045]FIG. 14 is a schematic end elevational view of the printhead illustrating the printhead module loading method;
[0046] [0046]FIG. 15 is a schematic cut-away illustration of the printhead assembly of FIG. 1;
[0047] [0047]FIG. 16 is a schematic close-up illustration of a portion of the printhead of FIG. 15 showing greater detail in the area of the “Memjet” chip;
[0048] [0048]FIG. 17 is a schematic illustration of the end portion of a metal channel and a printhead location molding;
[0049] [0049]FIG. 18 a is a schematic illustration of an end portion of an elastomeric ink delivery extrusion and a molded end cap; and
[0050] [0050]FIG. 18 b is a schematic illustration of the end cap of FIG. 18 a in an out-folded configuration.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0051] In FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings there is schematically depicted an overall view of a printhead assembly. FIG. 2 shows the core components of the assembly in an exploded configuration. The printhead assembly 10 of the preferred embodiment comprises eleven printhead modules 11 situated along a metal “Invar” channel 16 . At the heart of each printhead module 11 is a “Memjet” chip 23 (FIG. 3). The particular chip chosen in the preferred embodiment being a six-color configuration.
[0052] The “Memjet” printhead modules 11 are comprised of the “Memjet” chip 23 , a fine pitch flex PCB 26 and two micromoldings 28 and 34 sandwiching a mid-package film 35 . Each module 11 forms a sealed unit with independent ink chambers 63 (FIG. 9) which feed the chip 23 . The modules 11 plug directly onto a flexible elastomeric extrusion 15 which carries air, ink and fixitive. The upper surface of the extrusion 15 has repeated patterns of holes 21 which align with ink inlets 32 (FIG. 3 a ) on the underside of each module 11 . The extrusion 15 is bonded onto a flex PCB (flexible printed circuit board).
[0053] The fine pitch flex PCB 26 wraps down the side of each printhead module 11 and makes contact with the flex PCB 17 (FIG. 9). The flex PCB 17 carries two busbars 19 (positive) and 20 (negative) for powering each module 11 , as well as all data connections. The flex PCB 17 is bonded onto the continuous metal “Invar” channel 16 . The metal channel 16 serves to hold the modules 11 in place and is designed to have a similar coefficient of thermal expansion to that of silicon used in the modules.
[0054] A capping device 12 is used to cover the “Memjet” chips 23 when not in use. The capping device is typically made of spring steel with an onsert molded elastomeric pad 47 (FIG. 12 a ). The pad 47 serves to duct air into the “Memjet” chip 23 when uncapped and cut off air and cover a nozzle guard 24 (FIG. 9) when capped. The capping device 12 is actuated by a camshaft 13 that typically rotates throughout 180°.
[0055] The overall thickness of the “Memjet” chip is typically 0.6 mm which includes a 150 micron inlet backing layer 27 and a nozzle guard 24 of 150 micron thickness. These elements are assembled at the wafer scale.
[0056] The nozzle guard 24 allows filtered air into an 80 micron cavity 64 (FIG. 16) above the “Memjet” ink nozzles 62 . The pressurized air flows through microdroplet holes 45 in the nozzle guard 24 (with the ink during a printing operation) and serves to protect the delicate “Memjet” nozzles 62 by repelling foreign particles.
[0057] A silicon chip backing layer 27 ducts ink from the printhead module packaging directly into the rows of “Memjet” nozzles 62 . The “Memjet” chip 23 is wire bonded 25 from bond pads on the chip at 116 positions to the fine pitch flex PCB 26 . The wire bonds are on a 120 micron pitch and are cut as they are bonded onto the fine pitch flex PCB pads (FIG. 3). The fine pitch flex PCB 26 carries data and power from the flex PCB 17 via a series of gold contact pads 69 along the edge of the flex PCB.
[0058] The wire bonding operation between chip and fine pitch flex PCB 26 may be done remotely, before transporting, placing and adhering the chip assembly into the printhead module assembly. Alternatively, the “Memjet” chips 23 can be adhered into the upper micromolding 28 first and then the fine pitch flex PCB 26 can be adhered into place. The wire bonding operation could then take place in situ, with no danger of distorting the moldings 28 and 34 . The upper micromolding 28 can be made of a Liquid Crystal Polymer (LCP) blend. Since the crystal structure of the upper micromolding 28 is minute, the heat distortion temperature (180° C.-260° C.), the continuous usage temperature (200° C.-240° C.) and soldering heat durability (260° C. for 10 seconds to 310° C. for 10 seconds) are high, regardless of the relatively low melting point.
[0059] Each printhead module 11 includes an upper micromolding 28 and a lower micromolding 34 separated by a mid-package film layer 35 shown in FIG. 3.
[0060] The mid-package film layer 35 can be an inert polymer such as polyimide, which has good chemical resistance and dimensional stability. The mid-package film layer 35 can have laser ablated holes 65 and can comprise a double-sided adhesive (ie. an adhesive layer on both faces) providing adhesion between the upper micromolding, the mid-package film layer and the lower micromolding.
[0061] The upper micromolding 28 has a pair of alignment pins 29 passing through corresponding apertures in the mid-package film layer 35 to be received within corresponding recesses 66 in the lower micromolding 34 . This serves to align the components when they are bonded together. Once bonded together, the upper and lower micromoldings form a tortuous ink and air path in the complete “Memjet” printhead module 11 .
[0062] There are annular ink inlets 32 in the underside of the lower micromolding 34 . In a preferred embodiment, there are six such inlets 32 for various inks (black, yellow, magenta, cyan, fixitive and infrared). There is also provided an air inlet slot 67 . The air inlet slot 67 extends across the lower micromolding 34 to a secondary inlet which expels air through an exhaust hole 33 , through an aligned hole 68 in fine pitch flex PCB 26 . This serves to repel the print media from the printhead during printing. The ink inlets 32 continue in the undersurface of the upper micromolding 28 as does a path from the air inlet slot 67 . The ink inlets lead to 200 micron exit holes also indicated at 32 in FIG. 3. These holes correspond to the inlets on the silicon backing layer 27 of the “Memjet” chip 23 .
[0063] There is a pair of elastomeric pads 36 on an edge of the lower micromolding 34 . These serve to take up tolerance and positively located the printhead modules 11 into the metal channel 16 when the modules are micro-placed during assembly.
[0064] A preferred material for the “Memjet” micromoldings is a LCP. This has suitable flow characteristics for the fine detail in the moldings and has a relatively low coefficient of thermal expansion.
[0065] Robot picker details are included in the upper micromolding 28 to enable accurate placement of the printhead modules 11 during assembly.
[0066] The upper surface of the upper micromolding 28 as shown in FIG. 3 has a series of alternating air inlets and outlets 31 . These act in conjunction with the capping device 12 and are either sealed off or grouped into air inlet/outlet chambers, depending upon the position of the capping device 12 . They connect air diverted from the inlet slot 67 to the chip 23 depending upon whether the unit is capped or uncapped.
[0067] A capper cam detail 40 including a ramp for the capping device is shown at two locations in the upper surface of the upper micromolding 28 . This facilitates a desirable movement of the capping device 12 to cap or uncap the chip and the air chambers. That is, as the capping device is caused to move laterally across the print chip during a capping or uncapping operation, the ramp of the capper cam detail 40 serves to elastically distort and capping device as it is moved by operation of the camshaft 13 so as to prevent scraping of the device against the nozzle guard 24 .
[0068] The “Memjet” chip assembly 23 is picked and bonded into the upper micromolding 28 on the printhead module 11 . The fine pitch flex PCB 26 is bonded and wrapped around the side of the assembled printhead module 11 as shown in FIG. 4. After this initial bonding operation, the chip 23 has more sealant or adhesive 46 applied to its long edges. This serves to “pot” the bond wires 25 (FIG. 6), seal the “Memjet” chip 23 to the molding 28 and form a sealed gallery into which filtered air can flow and exhaust through the nozzle guard 24 .
[0069] The flex PCB 17 carries all data and power connections from the main PCB (not shown) to each “Memjet” printhead module 11 . The flex PCB 17 has a series of gold plated, domed contacts 69 (FIG. 2) which interface with contact pads 41 , 42 and 43 on the fine pitch flex PCB 26 of each “Memjet” printhead module 11 .
[0070] Two copper busbar strips 19 and 20 , typically of 200 micron thickness, are jigged and soldered into place on the flex PCB 17 . The busbars 19 and 20 connect to a flex termination which also carries data.
[0071] The flex PCB 17 is approximately 340 mm in length and is formed from a 14 mm wide strip. It is bonded into the metal channel 16 during assembly and exits from one end of the printhead assembly only.
[0072] The metal U-channel 16 into which the main components are place is of a special alloy called “Invar 36”. It is a 36% nickel iron alloy possessing a coefficient of thermal expansion of {fraction (1/10)} th that of carbon steel at temperatures up to 400° F. The Invar is annealed for optimal dimensional stability.
[0073] Additionally, the Invar is nickel plated to a 0.056% thickness of the wall section. This helps to further match it to the coefficient of thermal expansion of silicon which is 2×10 −6 per ° C.
[0074] The Invar channel 16 functions to capture the “Memjet” printhead modules 11 in a precise alignment relative to each other and to impart enough force on the modules 11 so as to form a seal between the ink inlets 32 on each printhead module and the outlet holes 21 that are laser ablated into the elastomeric ink delivery extrusion 15 .
[0075] The similar coefficient of thermal expansion of the Invar channel to the silicon chips allows similar relative movement during temperature changes. The elastomeric pads 36 on one side of each printhead module 11 serve to “lubricate” them within the channel 16 to take up any further lateral coefficient of thermal expansion tolerances without losing alignment. The Invar channel is a cold rolled, annealed and nickel plated strip. Apart from two bends that are required in its formation, the channel has two square cutouts 80 at each end. These mate with snap fittings 81 on the printhead location moldings 14 (FIG. 17).
[0076] The elastomeric ink delivery extrusion 15 is a non-hydrophobic, precision component. Its function is to transport ink and air to the “Memjet” printhead modules 11 . The extrusion is bonded onto the top of the flex PCB 17 during assembly and it has two types of molded end caps. One of these end caps is shown at 70 in FIG. 18 a.
[0077] A series of patterned holes 21 are present on the upper surface of the extrusion 15 . These are laser ablated into the upper surface. To this end, a mask is made and placed on the surface of the extrusion, which then has focused laser light applied to it. The holes 21 are evaporated from the upper surface, but the laser does not cut into the lower surface of extrusion 15 due to the focal length of the laser light.
[0078] Eleven repeated patterns of the laser ablated holes 21 form the ink and air outlets 21 of the extrusion 15 . These interface with the annular ring inlets 32 on the underside of the “Memjet” printhead module lower micromolding 34 . A different pattern of larger holes (not shown but concealed beneath the upper plate 71 of end cap 70 in FIG. 18 a ) is ablated into one end of the extrusion 15 . These mate with apertures 75 having annular ribs formed in the same way as those on the underside of each lower micromolding 34 described earlier. Ink and air delivery hoses 78 are connected to respective connectors 76 that extend from the upper plate 71 . Due to the inherent flexibility of the extrusion 15 , it can contort into many ink connection mounting configurations without restricting ink and air flow. The molded end cap 70 has a spine 73 from which the upper and lower plates are integrally hinged. The spine 73 includes a row of plugs 74 that are received within the ends of the respective flow passages of the extrusion 15 .
[0079] The other end of the extrusion 15 is capped with simple plugs which block the channels in a similar way as the plugs 74 on spine 17 .
[0080] The end cap 70 clamps onto the ink extrusion 15 by way of snap engagement tabs 77 . Once assembled with the delivery hoses 78 , ink and air can be received from ink reservoirs and an air pump, possibly with filtration means. The end cap 70 can be connected to either end of the extrusion, ie. at either end of the printhead.
[0081] The plugs 74 are pushed into the channels of the extrusion 15 and the plates 71 and 72 are folded over. The snap engagement tabs 77 clamp the molding and prevent it from slipping off the extrusion. As the plates are snapped together, they form a sealed collar arrangement around the end of the extrusion. Instead of providing individual hoses 78 pushed onto the connectors 76 , the molding 70 might interface directly with an ink cartridge. A sealing pin arrangement can also be applied to this molding 70 . For example, a perforated, hollow metal pin with an elastomeric collar can be fitted to the top of the inlet connectors 76 . This would allow the inlets to automatically seal with an ink cartridge when the cartridge is inserted. The air inlet and hose might be smaller than the other inlets in order to avoid accidental charging of the airways with ink.
[0082] The capping device 12 for the “Memjet” printhead would typically be formed of stainless spring steel. An elastomeric seal or onsert molding 47 is attached to the capping device as shown in FIGS. 12 a and 12 b . The metal part from which the capping device is made is punched as a blank and then inserted into an injection molding tool ready for the elastomeric onsert to be shot onto its underside. Small holes 79 (FIG. 13 b ) are present on the upper surface of the metal capping device 12 and can be formed as burst holes. They serve to key the onsert molding 47 to the metal. After the molding 47 is applied, the blank is inserted into a press tool, where additional bending operations and forming of integral springs 48 takes place.
[0083] The elastomeric onsert molding 47 has a series of rectangular recesses or air chambers 56 . These create chambers when uncapped. The chambers 56 are positioned over the air inlet and exhaust holes 30 of the upper micromolding 28 in the “Memjet” printhead module 11 . These allow the air to flow from one inlet to the next outlet. When the capping device 12 is moved forward to the “home” capped position as depicted in FIG. 11, these airways 32 are sealed off with a blank section of the onsert molding 47 cutting off airflow to the “Memjet” chip 23 . This prevents the filtered air from drying out and therefore blocking the delicate “Memjet” nozzles.
[0084] Another function of the onsert molding 47 is to cover and clamp against the nozzle guard 24 on the “Memjet” chip 23 . This protects against drying out, but primarily keeps foreign particles such as paper dust from entering the chip and damaging the nozzles. The chip is only exposed during a printing operation, when filtered air is also exiting along with the ink drops through the nozzle guard 24 . This positive air pressure repels foreign particles during the printing process and the capping device protects the chip in times of inactivity.
[0085] The integral springs 48 bias the capping device 12 away from the side of the metal channel 16 . The capping device 12 applies a compressive force to the top of the printhead module 11 and the underside of the metal channel 16 . The lateral capping motion of the capping device 12 is governed by an eccentric camshaft 13 mounted against the side of the capping device. It pushes the device 12 against the metal channel 16 . During this movement, the bosses 57 beneath the upper surface of the capping device 12 ride over the respective ramps 40 formed in the upper micromolding 28 . This action flexes the capping device and raises its top surface to raise the onsert molding 47 as it is moved laterally into position onto the top of the nozzle guard 24 .
[0086] The camshaft 13 , which is reversible, is held in position by two printhead location moldings 14 . The camshaft 11 can have a flat surface built in one end or be otherwise provided with a spline or keyway to accept gear 22 or another type of motion controller.
[0087] The “Memjet” chip and printhead module are assembled as follows:
[0088] 1. The “Memjet” chip 23 is dry tested in flight by a pick and place robot, which also dices the wafer and transports individual chips to a fine pitch flex PCB bonding area.
[0089] 2. When accepted, the “Memjet” chip 23 is placed 530 microns apart from the fine pitch flex PCB 26 and has wire bonds 25 applied between the bond pads on the chip and the conductive pads on the fine pitch flex PCB. This constitutes the “Memjet” chip assembly.
[0090] 3. An alternative to step 2 is to apply adhesive to the internal walls of the chip cavity in the upper micromolding 28 of the printhead module and bond the chip into place first. The fine pitch flex PCB 26 can then be applied to the upper surface of the micromolding and wrapped over the side. Wire bonds 25 are then applied between the bond pads on the chip and the fine pitch flex PCB.
[0091] 4. The “Memjet” chip assembly is vacuum transported to a bonding area where the printhead modules are stored.
[0092] 5. Adhesive is applied to the lower internal walls of the chip cavity and to the area where the fine pitch flex PCB is going to be located in the upper micromolding of the printhead module.
[0093] 6. The chip assembly (and fine pitch flex PCB) are bonded into place. The fine pitch flex PCB is carefully wrapped around the side of the upper micromolding so as not to strain the wire bonds. This may be considered as a two step gluing operation if it is deemed that the fine pitch flex PCB might stress the wire bonds. A line of adhesive running parallel to the chip can be applied at the same time as the internal chip cavity walls are coated. This allows the chip assembly and fine pitch flex PCB to be seated into the chip cavity and the fine pitch flex PCB allowed to bond to the micromolding without additional stress. After curing, a secondary gluing operation could apply adhesive to the short side wall of the upper micromolding in the fine pitch flex PCB area. This allows the fine pitch flex PCB to be wrapped around the micromolding and secured, while still being firmly bonded in place along on the top edge under the wire bonds.
[0094] 7. In the final bonding operation, the upper part of the nozzle guard is adhered to the upper micromolding, forming a sealed air chamber. Adhesive is also applied to the opposite long edge of the “Memjet” chip, where the bond wires become ‘potted’ during the process.
[0095] 8. The modules are ‘wet’ tested with pure water to ensure reliable performance and then dried out.
[0096] 9. The modules are transported to a clean storage area, prior to inclusion into a printhead assembly, or packaged as individual units. The completes the assembly of the “Memjet” printhead module assembly.
[0097] 10. The metal Invar channel 16 is picked and placed in a jig.
[0098] 11. The flex PCB 17 is picked and primed with adhesive on the busbar side, positioned and bonded into place on the floor and one side of the metal channel.
[0099] 12. The flexible ink extrusion 15 is picked and has adhesive applied to the underside. It is then positioned and bonded into place on top of the flex PCB 17 . One of the printhead location end caps is also fitted to the extrusion exit end. This constitutes the channel assembly.
[0100] The laser ablation process is as follows:
[0101] 13. The channel assembly is transported to an eximir laser ablation area.
[0102] 14. The assembly is put into a jig, the extrusion positioned, masked and laser ablated. This forms the ink holes in the upper surface.
[0103] 15. The ink extrusion 15 has the ink and air connector molding 70 applied. Pressurized air or pure water is flushed through the extrusion to clear any debris.
[0104] 16. The end cap molding 70 is applied to the extrusion 15 . It is then dried with hot air.
[0105] 17. The channel assembly is transported to the printhead module area for immediate module assembly. Alternatively, a thin film can be applied over the ablated holes and the channel assembly can be stored until required.
[0106] The printhead module to channel is assembled as follows:
[0107] 18. The channel assembly is picked, placed and clamped into place in a transverse stage in the printhead assembly area.
[0108] 19. As shown in FIG. 14, a robot tool 58 grips the sides of the metal channel and pivots at pivot point against the underside face to effectively flex the channel apart by 200 to 300 microns. The forces applied are shown generally as force vectors F in FIG. 14. This allows the first “Memjet” printhead module to be robot picked and placed (relative to the first contact pads on the flex PCB 17 and ink extrusion holes) into the channel assembly.
[0109] 20. The tool 58 is relaxed, the printhead module captured by the resilience of the Invar channel and the transverse stage moves the assembly forward by 19.81 mm.
[0110] 21. The tool 58 grips the sides of the channel again and flexes it apart ready for the next printhead module.
[0111] 22. A second printhead module 11 is picked and placed into the channel 50 microns from the previous module.
[0112] 23. An adjustment actuator arm locates the end of the second printhead module. The arm is guided by the optical alignment of fiducials on each strip. As the adjustment arm pushes the printhead module over, the gap between the fiducials is closed until they reach an exact pitch of 19.812 mm.
[0113] 24. The tool 58 is relaxed and the adjustment arm is removed, securing the second printhead module in place.
[0114] 25. This process is repeated until the channel assembly has been fully loaded with printhead modules. The unit is removed from the transverse stage and transported to the capping assembly area. Alternatively, a thin film can be applied over the nozzle guards of the printhead modules to act as a cap and the unit can be stored as required.
[0115] The capping device is assembled as follows:
[0116] 26. The printhead assembly is transported to a capping area. The capping device 12 is picked, flexed apart slightly and pushed over the first module 11 and the metal channel 16 in the printhead assembly. It automatically seats itself into the assembly by virtue of the bosses 57 in the steel locating in the recesses 83 in the upper micromolding in which a respective ramp 40 is located.
[0117] 27. Subsequent capping devices are applied to all the printhead modules.
[0118] 28. When completed, the camshaft 13 is seated into the printhead location molding 14 of the assembly. It has the second printhead location molding seated onto the free end and this molding is snapped over the end of the metal channel, holding the camshaft and capping devices captive.
[0119] 29. A molded gear 22 or other motion control device can be added to either end of the camshaft 13 at this point.
[0120] 30. The capping assembly is mechanically tested.
[0121] Print charging is as follows:
[0122] 31. The printhead assembly 10 is moved to the testing area. Inks are applied through the “Memjet” modular printhead under pressure. Air is expelled through the “Memjet” nozzles during priming. When charged, the printhead can be electrically connected and tested.
[0123] 32. Electrical connections are made and tested as follows:
[0124] 33. Power and data connections are made to the PCB. Final testing can commence, and when passed, the “Memjet” modular printhead is capped and has a plastic sealing film applied over the underside that protects the printhead until product installation.
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A printhead assembly for a drop on demand ink jet printer includes an array of printhead modules. A flexible printed circuit board carries data and power to the modules. A pair of busbars is electrically connected to the flexible printed circuit board to carry power to it.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates generally to the production and purification of acids, such as aromatic dicarboxylic acids. In another aspect, the invention concerns an improved method for purifying a slurry containing solid particles of crude terephthalic acid (CTA).
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Liquid-phase oxidation reactions are employed in a variety of commercial processes. A particularly significant commercial oxidation process is the liquid-phase catalytic partial oxidation of para-xylene to terephthalic acid. Terephthalic acid is an important compound with a variety of applications. The primary use of terephthalic acid is as a feedstock in the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). PET is a well-known plastic used in great quantities around the world to make products such as bottles, fibers, and packaging.
[0003] In a typical liquid-phase oxidation process, a liquid-phase feed stream and a gas-phase oxidant stream are introduced into a reactor and form a multi-phase reaction medium therein. In the production of terephthalic acid, the liquid-phase feed stream typically contains para-xylene and the gas-phase oxidant stream contains molecular oxygen. At least a portion of the molecular oxygen introduced into the reactor as a gas dissolves into the liquid phase of the reaction medium to make oxygen available for the liquid-phase reaction.
[0004] The product withdrawn from the main oxidizer of conventional terephthalic acid production processes is typically a slurry containing particles of crude terephthalic acid (CTA) and a mother liquor. CTA contains relatively high levels of impurities (e.g., 4-carboxybenzaldehyde, para-toluic acid, fluorenones, and other color bodies) that render it unsuitable as a feedstock for the production of PET. Thus, the CTA produced in conventional oxidation processes must be subjected to a purification process that converts the CTA into a purified terephthalic acid (PTA) suitable for making PET.
[0005] One process for converting CTA to PTA involves subjecting the CTA particles to oxidative digestion. Oxidative digestion is typically carried out in a mechanically-agitated reactor. During oxidative digestion, the CTA particles produced in the primary oxidizer are partially or fully dissolved in the liquid phase of the reaction medium in the digestion reactor. This dissolution allows impurities trapped within the CTA particles to be released into the liquid phase where they can be subjected to liquid-phase oxidation. During oxidative digestion, particles containing terephthalic acid are continuously dissolving and reprecipitating. The reprecipitated particles have a reduced impurities content as compared to the CTA particles introduced in to the digestion reactor.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] It has been discovered that the impurity-reducing effectiveness of oxidative digestion can be greatly influenced by the amount of agitation imparted to the reaction medium contained in the digestion reactor. Further, the particle size of the PTA particles withdrawn from of the oxidative digestion reaction can be greatly influenced by the amount of agitation imparted to the reaction medium in the digestion reactor.
[0007] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a process and apparatus for carrying out oxidative digestion under optimized agitation conditions.
[0008] In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method of purifying a crude slurry comprising particles of crude terephthalic acid (CTA). The method comprises: (a) introducing the crude slurry into a digestion reactor containing a multi-phase reaction medium, wherein the digestion reactor employs at least one mechanical stirrer having less than five impellers to agitate the reaction medium; and (b) reacting at least a portion of the multi-phase reaction medium in the digestion reactor, wherein during reacting the ratio of the amount of power consumed by the mechanical stirrer to the volume of the reaction medium is in the range of from about 0.05 to about 1.5 kw/m 3 .
[0009] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method of making terephthalic acid (TPA). The method comprises: (a) oxidizing an aromatic compound in a primary oxidation reactor to thereby produce a crude slurry comprising crude terephthalic acid (CTA) particles; and (b) subjecting at least a portion of the CTA particles to oxidation in a digestion reactor to thereby produce a slurry comprising purer terephthalic acid (PTA) particles, wherein the digestion reactor includes a mechanical stirrer having less than five impellers, wherein during the oxidation in the digestion reactor the ratio of the amount of power consumed by the mechanical stirrer to the internal volume of the digestion reactor is in the range of from about 0.05 to about 1.5 kw/m 3 .
[0010] In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention there is provided an apparatus comprising a primary oxidation vessel, a digestion vessel in fluid communication with the primary oxidation vessel; and a mechanical stirrer at least partly disposed in the digestion vessel and having less than five impellers. The mechanical stirrer is configured to consume power at a rate in the range of from about 0.05 to about 1.5 kilowatts per cubic meter of volume defined within the digestion vessel.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is a sectional side view of an agitated digestion reactor constructed in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a process for producing terephthalic acid employing a digestion reactor constructed and operated in accordance with the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0013] Referring initially to FIG. 1 , a mechanically-agitated oxidative digestion reactor 10 is illustrated as generally comprising a vessel shell 12 and a mechanical agitation system 14 . Vessel shell 12 defines a reaction zone 16 within which a multi-phase reaction medium 18 is contained. Digestion reactor 10 includes one or more slurry inlets 20 a,b,c for receiving an influent slurry into reaction zone 16 . Digestion reactor 10 can optionally be equipped with a separate oxidant inlet 22 for receiving an oxidant stream into reaction zone 16 . Digestion reactor 10 can also be equipped with a heating inlet 23 for receiving a heating medium into reaction zone 16 . A gas outlet 24 is preferably located near the top of digestion reactor 10 , while a slurry outlet 26 is preferably located near the bottom of reactor 10 . An effluent gas is discharged from reaction zone 16 via gas outlet 24 , while an effluent slurry is discharged from reaction zone 16 via slurry outlet 26 .
[0014] Vessel shell 12 preferably has a generally upright orientation so that the height of reaction zone 16 is greater than the width of reaction zone 16 . Vessel shell 12 is preferably configured such that the maximum height (H) of reaction zone 16 is in the range of from about 5 to about 50 meters, more preferably in the range of from about 8 to about 25 meters, and most preferably in the range of from 10 to 15 meters. Preferably, the maximum width (W) of reaction zone 16 is in the range of from about 1 to about 20 meters, more preferably in the range of from about 2 to about 10 meters, and most preferably in the range of from 3 to 6 meters. Preferably, the H/W ratio of reaction zone 16 is at least about 0.5, more preferably at least about 1, and most preferably in the range of from 1.5 to 5. The total volume of reaction zone 16 is preferably at least about 50 cubic meters (m 3 ), more preferably in the range of from about 100 to about 5,000 m 3 , and most preferably in the range of from about 500 to about 2,000 m 3 .
[0015] Mechanical agitation system 14 preferably includes a rotational driver 28 , a shaft 30 , and a plurality of spaced-apart impellers 32 . In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, rotational driver 28 is an electric motor disposed at or near the top of vessel shell 12 and shaft 30 has a generally upright orientation. Most preferably, shaft 30 has a substantially vertical orientation. Driver 28 is coupled to shaft 30 in a manner that permits driver 28 to rotate shaft 30 . Rotation of shaft 30 causes rotation of impellers 32 . During normal operation, impellers 32 are submerged in reaction medium 18 so that rotation of impellers 32 causes agitation of reaction medium 18 . Preferably, reaction medium 18 fills in the range of from about 50 to about 100 percent of the volume of reaction zone 16 , most preferably in the range of from 60 to 80 percent of the volume of reaction zone 16 .
[0016] In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, mechanical agitation system 14 includes more than one driver 28 and/or shaft 30 . In one embodiment of the present invention, it is preferred for mechanical agitation system 14 to include less than 5 impellers per shaft, more preferably 2 to 4 impellers per shaft. In another embodiment, mechanical agitation system includes 2 to 10 impellers per shaft, more preferably 3 to 8 impellers per shaft, and most preferably 4 to 6 impellers per shaft.
[0017] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, mechanical agitation system 14 is configured so that the total power consumed by mechanical agitation system 14 during steady-state operation of digestion reaction 10 is in the range of from about 0.05 to about 1.5 kilowatts per cubic meter of reaction medium 18 or reaction zone 16 (kw/m 3 ), more preferably in the range of from about 0.1 to about 0.9 kw/m 3 , and most preferably in the range of from 0.2 to 0.8 kw/m 3 . Preferably, the total power consumed by mechanical agitation system 14 per impeller is in the range of from about 0.01 to about 0.3 kw/m 3 , more preferably in the range of from about 0.02 to about 0.18 kw/m 3 , and most preferably in the range of from 0.04 to 0.16 kw/m 3 . During steady-state operation of digestion reactor 10 it is preferred for the average rotational speed of impellers 32 to be maintained in the range of from about 20 to about 120 revolutions per minute (rpm), most preferably in the range of from 30 to 90 rpm. The total volume of reaction medium 18 in digestion reactor 10 is preferably at least about 50 m 3 , more preferably in the range of from about 100 to about 5,000 m 3 , and most preferably in the range of from about 500 to about 2,000 m 3 .
[0018] Referring again to FIG. 1 , during normal operation of digestion reactor 10 , an influent slurry is introduced into reaction zone 16 via one or more slurry inlets 20 . The influent slurry comprises solid particles having one or more impurities trapped therein. The influent slurry preferably comprises at least about 10 weight percent solids, more preferably in the range of from about 20 to about 40 weight percent solids, and most preferably in the range of from 25 to 35 weight percent solids.
[0019] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the majority (i.e., >50 wt. %) of the solid particles contained in the influent slurry are solid particles of crude terephthalic acid (CTA) that contain impurities such as 4-carboxybenzaldehyde (4-CBA) and para-toluic acid (P-TAc). These CTA particles preferably contain at least about 400 parts per million by weight (ppmw) of 4-CBA, more preferably at least about 800 ppmw of 4-CBA, and most preferably in the range of from about 1,000 to 15,000 ppmw of 4-CBA.
[0020] In digestion reactor 10 , reaction medium 18 is subjected to liquid phase oxidation so as to oxidize at least a portion of the impurities present in the influent slurry. In order to facilitate oxidation in digestion reactor 10 , an oxidant stream is added upstream of and/or directly into digestion reactor 10 . The oxidant stream can be any stream capable of providing and/or generating a sufficient amount of oxygen in reaction medium 18 to facilitate liquid-phase oxidation of at least a portion of the impurities contained in the influent slurry. Preferably, the oxidant stream comprises in the range of from about 5 to about 40 mole percent molecular oxygen, more preferably in the range of from about 15 to about 30 mole percent molecular oxygen, and most preferably in the range of from 18 to 24 mole percent molecular oxygen. It is preferred for the balance of the oxidant stream to be comprised primarily of a gas or gasses, such as nitrogen, that are inert to oxidation. More preferably, the oxidant stream consists essentially of molecular oxygen and nitrogen. Most preferably, the oxidant stream is dry air that comprises about 21 mole percent molecular oxygen and about 78 to about 81 mole percent nitrogen.
[0021] In order to facilitate oxidation of impurities in digestion reactor 10 , it is preferred for reaction medium 18 to be maintained at a temperature in the range of from about 165 to about 230° C., more preferably in the range of about 175 to about 220° C., most preferably in the range of from 185 to 210° C. and a pressure in the range of from about 1 to about 20 bar, more preferably in the range of from about 2 to about 12 bar, and most preferably in the range of from 4 to 8 bar. The temperature of reaction medium 18 can be controlled by the addition of a heating medium via heating inlet 24 and/or via combination with the influent slurry upstream of slurry inlets 20 . In a preferred embodiment, the heating medium comprises acetic acid. Most preferably, the heating medium is a vapor that contains at least 75 mole percent acetic acid.
[0022] During processing in digestion reactor 10 , the solid particles in reaction medium 18 dissolve and reprecipitate. This dissolution and reprecipitation in reaction medium 18 allows impurities originally trapped in the solid particles of the influent slurry to enter the liquid phase of reaction medium 18 , where the impurities can be subjected to liquid-phase oxidation. Although the solid particles in reaction medium 18 are constantly dissolving and reprecipitating, it is preferred for the average solids content of reaction medium 18 to be at least about 5 weight percent, more preferably in the range of from about 10 to about 60 weight percent, and most preferably in the range of from 15 to 40 weight percent.
[0023] The effluent slurry withdrawn from reaction zone 16 via slurry outlet preferably comprises at least about 5 weight percent solids, more preferably in the range of from about 15 to about 35 weight percent solids, and most preferably in the range of from 20 to 30 weight percent solids. When the influent slurry to reaction zone 16 contains solid particles of CTA, it is preferred for the effluent slurry withdrawn from reaction zone 16 to contain solid particles of purer terephthalic acid (PTA). These PTA particles preferably contain at least about 100 ppmw less 4-CBA than the original CTA particles, more preferably at least about 200 ppmw less 4-CBA, and most preferably at least 400 ppmw less 4-CBA. Preferably, the PTA in the effluent slurry comprises less than about 400 ppmw of 4-CBA, more preferably less than about 250 ppmw of 4-CBA, and most preferably in the range of from 10 to 200 ppmw of 4-CBA.
[0024] FIG. 2 illustrates an improved process for producing PTA employing a primary oxidation reactor 100 , an oxidative digestion reactor 102 , and a solids recovery system 104 . Digestion reactor 102 is preferably configured in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0025] Referring again to FIG. 2 , in a preferred embodiment, one or more streams containing para-xylene, acetic acid, and an oxidant are charged to primary oxidation reactor 100 . A multi-phase reaction medium is formed in primary oxidation reactor 100 , and partial liquid-phase oxidation of para-xylene to terephthalic acid is carried out therein. A catalyst system facilitates the liquid-phase oxidation in reactor 100 . Preferably, the catalyst system comprises at least one multivalent transition metal. More preferably, the multivalent transition metal comprises cobalt. Even more preferably, the catalyst system comprises cobalt and bromine. Most preferably, the catalyst system comprises cobalt, bromine, and manganese.
[0026] During oxidation in primary oxidation reactor 100 , it is preferred for the reaction medium contained therein to be maintained at a temperature in the range of from about 125 to about 200° C., more preferably in the range of from about 140 to about 180° C., and most preferably in the range of from 150 to 170° C. The overhead pressure above reaction medium 36 is preferably maintained in the range of from about 1 to about 20 bar gauge (barg), more preferably in the range of from about 2 to about 12 barg, and most preferably in the range of from 4 to 8 barg.
[0027] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, primary oxidation reactor 100 is configured and operated in a manner that produces a crude slurry containing CTA particles that are particularly well suited for purification by oxidative digestion. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention primary oxidation reactor 100 is a bubble column reactor configured and operated in the manner described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/154,219, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein to the extent that it does not conflict with the description of the present invention.
[0028] Preferably, a substantial portion of the CTA particles produced by primary oxidation reactor 100 are each formed of a plurality of small, agglomerated CTA subparticles, thereby giving the base CTA particles a relatively high surface area, high porosity, low density, and good dissolvability. The base/agglomerated CTA particles preferably have a mean particle size in the range of from about 20 to about 150 microns, more preferably in the range of from about 30 to about 120 microns, and most preferably in the range of from 40 to 90 microns. The CTA subparticles that agglomerate to form the base CTA particles preferably have a mean particle size in the range of from about 0.5 to about 30 microns, more preferably from about 1 to about 15 microns, and most preferably in the range of from 2 to 5 microns.
[0029] The relatively high surface area of the base CTA particles produced in primary oxidation reactor 100 , can be quantified using a Braunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area measurement method. Preferably, the base CTA particles have an average BET surface of at least about 0.6 meters squared per gram (m 2 /g). More preferably, the base CTA particles have an average BET surface area in the range of from about 0.8 to about 4 m 2 /g. Most preferably, the base CTA particles have an average BET surface area in the range of from 0.9 to 2 m 2 /g.
[0030] The crude slurry withdrawn from primary oxidation reactor 100 can be employed directly as the influent slurry to digestion reactor 102 . Alternatively, a portion of the liquid mother liquor exiting primary oxidation reactor 102 can be replaced with clean liquor prior to introduction into digestion reactor 102 . In digestion reactor 102 , the slurry is processed in accordance with the description provided above with respect to FIG. 1 . Preferably, the temperature of oxidative digestion in digestion reactor 102 is at least 20° C. greater than the temperature of oxidation in primary oxidation reactor 100 . More preferably, the temperature of oxidative digestion in digestion reactor 102 is in the range of from 25 to 50° C. greater than the temperature of oxidation in primary oxidation reactor 100 .
[0031] The configuration and operation of digestion reactor 102 is optimized to control the size of the purer terephthalic acid (PTA) particles of the purified slurry produced therefrom. Preferably, the PTA particles exiting digestion reactor 102 have a mean particle size that is at least about 20 percent smaller than the mean particle size of the base CTA particles entering digestion reactor 102 . Most preferably, the PTA particles exiting digestion reactor 102 have a mean particle that is at least 50 percent smaller than the mean particle size of the base CTA particles entering digestion reactor 102 . Preferably, the PTA particles exiting digestion reactor 102 have a mean particle in the range of from about 30 to about 100 microns, most preferably in the range of from 40 to 80 microns.
[0032] The size of the PTA particles exiting digestion reactor 102 make them well suited for recovery in solids recovery system 104 . Solids recovery system 104 comprises one or more items of equipment known in the art for recovering solids from a slurry.
[0033] The inventors note that for all numerical ranges provided herein, the upper and lower ends of the ranges can be independent of one another. For example, a numerical range of 10 to 100 means greater than 10 and/or less than 100. Thus, a range of 10 to 100 provides support for a claim limitation of greater than 10 (without the upper bound), a claim limitation of less than 100 (without the lower bound), as well as the full 10 to 100 range (with both upper and lower bounds).
[0034] The invention has been described in detail with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, but will be understood that variations and modification can be effected within the spirit and scope of the invention.
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An apparatus and process for purifying crude particles of an aromatic dicarboxylic acid (e.g., crude terephthalic acid) via oxidative digestion in an agitated reactor. Purification and particle size of the particles exiting the digestion reactor are optimized by controlling the amount of mechanical agitation imparted to the reaction medium in the digestion reactor.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/329,225, filed Jun. 1, 1999, which claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 60/088,849 filed Jun. 10, 1998.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The invention described in this patent pertains to the polishing and planarization of integrated circuit surfaces, particularly those comprising a metal, a barrier layer, and an insulating layer.
[0004] 2. Discussion of Related Art
[0005] Chemical/Mechanical Planarization (or polishing), or CMP, is an enabling technology used in the semiconductor industry to remove/planarize various thin films from the surface of semiconductor substrates during the production of integrated circuits. While initial applications of this technology focused on the polishing of dielectric films (such as SiO 2 ), polishing of metal films used for circuit interconnects is undergoing rapid growth. Currently, tungsten and aluminum are the most common metals used for interconnect structures. However, copper interconnects, coupled with low-k dielectrics, have the potential (when compared to Al/SiO 2 ) to increase chip speed, reduce the number of metal layers required, minimize power dissipation, and reduce manufacturing costs.
[0006] However, the challenges associated with the successful integration of copper interconnects are not trivial. A typical copper interconnect structure contains a trench formed in silicon dioxide (typically 10,000 angstroms deep and 1-100 microns wide) formed above the silicon substrate. A barrier layer of material (used to improve adhesion of the copper as well as inhibit the diffusion of copper into the dielectric structure) is typically deposited after the trench is formed, and is usually composed of either tantalum, tantalum nitride, titanium, or titanium nitride. This barrier material is also deposited on the horizontal dielectric surface above the trench. The barrier layer is typically <1000 angstroms thick. Copper is then deposited by chemical vapor deposition or electroplating on top of this structure in order to fill the trench structure. To insure complete filling of the trench, an overlayer of copper of 10,000-15,000 angstroms is usually required. CMP is then used to remove the overburden of copper above the trench and the horizontal barrier material above the trench. In order to do this successfully and economically, the copper removal should be as fast as possible, typically above 3000 angstroms/minute. Also, to avoid removal of the copper within the trench (typically referred to as “dishing”), removal of the barrier layer at rates comparable to that of the copper film are necessary. Additionally, to avoid degradation of the SiO 2 film beneath the barrier layer (typically referred to as “erosion”), and to improve global planarization, the removal rate of the underlying dielectric film should be as low as possible. In summary, the selectivity for the removal rate of the barrier film (tantalum, tantalum nitride, titanium, or titanium nitride) should be high with respect to the copper film, while the selectivity for the removal rate of the dielectric film (SiO 2 ) should be low (preferably <100:1).
[0007] To accomplish these requirements, a two-step polishing process using two different slurries has been proposed. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,587, Selective Polish Process for Titanium, Titanium Nitride, Tantalum, and Tantalum Nitride, a two-step process using first (1) a slurry to remove the majority of the metal film (such as tungsten or copper) and second (2) a slurry to remove the barrier film is proposed.
[0008] To suppress the removal rate of silicon dioxide during CMP processes, various additives have been previously suggested that passivate the silicon dioxide surface. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,444, Method of using Additives with Silica-Based slurries to Enhance Selectivity in Metal CMP, an additive comprising at least one polar component and one apolar component is suggested to suppress oxide removal. This patent lists a number of compounds containing both polar and non-polar groups, which are either anionic (potassium butylsulphate), cationic (tetrabutyl ammonium hydroxide), or non-ionic (butanol). However, this patent claims as a necessity both a polar and apolar component (group) to be present.
[0009] In U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,490 polyelectrolytes are used to coat the abrasive particles in a slurry. The polyelectrolytes impart normal stress effects to the slurries. In solution, the polyelectrolytes exhibit normal stress effects and their adsorption on the abrasive particles impart the same behavior to the particles.
[0010] According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,490, in order to achieve planarization, the quantity of polyelectrolyte in the abrasive suspension is such that a fraction of the particles will be coated with the polyelectrolyte, while another fraction of the abrasive particles will remain uncoated. In order to achieve this, the weight percent of the polyelectrolyte should be about 5 to about 50 percent, preferably about 15 to about 30 percent by, weight, and most preferably about 20 percent by weight of the abrasive particles in the slurry. These ratios depend somewhat on the relative size of the abrasive particles and the polyelectrolyte.
[0011] The slurry compositions of U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,490 that contain the polyelectrolyte are preferably prepared by adding the polyelectrolyte to the slurry already containing the abrasive particles, thereby coating a fraction of the abrasive particles “in situ.” In an alternative procedure, a fraction of the abrasive particles can be precoated and then admixed with the slurry containing the remaining abrasive particles which will be uncoated. In addition, it may be desirable to pretreat a portion of the abrasive particles to render them more susceptible to adsorption of the polyelectrolyte from the slurry.
[0012] U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,391,258; 5,476,606; 5,738,800; 5,770,103 describe compounds which in CMP slurries provide attenuation of silicon dioxide removal. These patents are hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this specification.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] The present invention is directed to one or more organic polymers which have surprisingly been found to attenuate the removal of the oxide film during metal CMP and offers an improvement over earlier slurries. This organic polymer is a high molecular weight organic polymer containing a carbon backbone with functional moieties extending from the backbone. The functional moieties interact strongly with the silicon dioxide surface so as to provide a protective layer that inhibits the removal of the silicon dioxide film at appreciable levels. The mechanism of interaction between the functional moieties and the hydroxyl surface is, though not limited to, that observed in the hydrogen bonding of polar species (such as the interaction of hydroxyl groups). The organic polymer is further defined as a high molecular weight organic material, having a degree of polymerization of at least 3 (i.e., 3 monomeric units polymerized into a molecule), more preferably more than 10, and most preferably greater than 50. The organic polymer comprises a plurality of moieties having affinity to surface groups (i.e., silanol and siloxane) contained on silicon dioxide surfaces. These moieties are commonly polar moieties, such as, but not limited to, hydroxy, carboxy, carbonyl, alkoxy, sulphonyl, and phosphonyl. Examples of this type of organic polymer molecule includes poly-vinyl alcohol, poly-vinylpyrrolidone, poly-methyl methacrylate, poly-formaldehyde, poly-ethylene oxide, poly-ethylene glycol, and poly-methacrylic acid.
[0014] Many of these same compounds are mentioned as being useful for coating abrasive particles in U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,490 as discussed above. Their use as a silicon dioxide rate suppressant is not mentioned in '490. Moreover, the polyelectrolytes of the present invention have been found to be effective as a silicon dioxide rate suppressant at concentrations below about 5 percent by weight of the abrasive particles in a slurry. They have also been found to be effective when having a molecular weight of greater than about 10,000.
[0015] Another aspect of the present invention is a method of polishing a substrate comprising a metal and an insulator wherein the substrate is pressed against a polishing pad, the substrate and the pad are moved relative to each other, and a polishing composition is applied to said pad during the polishing operation. The polishing compositions of the present invention are useful for such methods.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0016] The slurries used in this invention were prepared with the following general protocol. In every case, the chemical additives are first dissolved in deionized water. After all the chemical additives are dissolved in the deionized water, the pH is adjusted to the desired level. In a separate vessel, the abrasive package which is comprised of the inorganic oxide abrasive particles in deionized water is mixed. The pH of the abrasive package is also adjusted to the desired level. The final step in the slurry formulation preparation is the combining of the aqueous chemical package with the aqueous abrasive package. Contrary to prior art, a polyelectrolyte additive can be added into this aqueous solution without any special abrasive adsorption requirements.
[0017] Typically, the list of chemical additives includes an oxidizing agent, the organic polymer removal rate suppressant of this invention, and optionally a complexing agent and/or a dispersant. The order of mixing of this chemical package need only be chosen such that there is complete solubilization of all the additives.
[0018] A complex as defined in “Advanced Inorganic Chemistry”, F. A. Cotton and G. Wilkinson, 3 rd ed., Wiley Interscience is: “The terms ‘coordination compound’ and ‘complex’ may be broadly defined to embrace all species, charged or uncharged, in which a central atom is surrounded by a set of outer or ligand atoms, whereby the energy of the system is lowered. (i.e. E>0 and/or G<0). An example of a neutral complex is SF 6 , where the central S atom is surrounded by 6 F atoms in an octahedral arrangement. An example of a positive complex ion is [Cu(NH 3 ) 4 ] 2+ , where the central Cu atom is surrounded by 4 NH 3 molecules in a tetrahedral arrangement. An example of a negative complex ion is [Cu(Cl) 5 ] 3− , where the central Cu atom is surrounded by 5 Cl atoms in a pentagonal bipyramid arrangement.” Examples of common ligands, which in the slurries of this invention are called complexing agents, are acetic acid, citric acid, ethyl acetoacetate, glycolic acid, glyoxylic acid, lactic acid, malic acid, oxalic acid, salicylic acid, sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, succinic acid, tartaric acid, thioglycolic acid, glycine, alanine, aspartic acid, ethylene diamine, trimethylene diamine, 1,2 ethanedithiol, 1,4 dithiothreitol, bis(methylthio)methane, dimethyldithiocarbamate, 5-methyl 3,4 thiadiazole-2-thiol, malonic acid, gluteric acid, 3-hydroxybutyric acid, proprionic acid, pthallic acid, isopthallic acid, 3-hydroxy salicylic acid, 3,5-dihydroxy salicylic acid, and galic acid.
[0019] The slurries of this invention may optionally comprise a dispersant. Aqueous CMP slurries contain submicron abrasive particles. The size of these particles is important to the performance of the slurry as well as to the resultant surface quality. If the abrasive particles agglomerate, the polishing removal rates may change and the surface quality may deteriorate. Dispersants can be included in the slurry formulation to prevent this agglomeration of abrasive particles. Dispersants can be anionic, cationic, or nonionic. The selection of the proper dispersant depends on many factors including the surface characteristics of the abrasive particles and the ionic nature of the slurry formulation. Some examples of ionic surfactants include sodium lauryl sulfate, cetyl-trimethyl ammonium bromide.
[0020] The oxidizing agent in the compositions of the present invention may be comprised of any of the common oxidizing agents such as nitrates, iodates, chlorates, perchlorates, chlorites, sulphates, persulphates, peroxides, ozonated water, and oxygenated water. Oxidizing agents can be used in slurries for CMP at concentrations of about 0.01% to about 7% by weight. Generally they are used at concentrations of about 1% to about 7% by weight. An iodate is a preferred oxidizing agent. Most preferred is potassium iodate at about 2% to about 4% by weight.
[0021] In the examples presented below, silica and titania were predominantly used as the abrasive component in the slurries tested. However, any metal oxide or polishing abrasive (such as alumina, ceria, zirconia, barium carbonate, or diamond) could also be used.
EXAMPLES
[0022] Unless otherwise indicated, all percentages mentioned in the following examples are by weight in the slurries described.
[0023] Example 1: Table 1 shows the results of polishing copper, tantalum, and silicon dioxide (formed from TEOS) wafers containing various amounts of complexing agents and oxidants. These experiments were carried out on an IPEC/Westech 372U polisher using a Rodel IC1400 pad under the conditions of 5 psi down pressure, 60 rpm carrier speed, 50 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 110 ml/min. 6 inch sheet wafers were used. All slurries in this example contain 10% colloidal silica abrasive (Klebosol 1498), were at a pH of 10.5, and were adjusted to that pH with varying amounts of potassium hydroxide.
TABLE 1 % Oxalic % Hydrogen Sample Acid Peroxide RR Cu RR Ta RR SiO 2 1 0 0 202 340 1149 2 0 2 314 495 1261 3 3 0 214 416 1264 4 3 2 2038 1035 1202
[0024] These results show that in order to get high removal rates of both copper and the tantalum, it is necessary to have both a complexing agent that increases the solubility of both metals in aqueous solution, as well as contain a oxidant such as hydrogen peroxide. With this combination of components, it is possible to have satisfactory removal rates of copper while retaining a good selectivity (approximately 2:1) between the removal rates of copper and tantalum. It is also apparent from this example that additional components are needed to inhibit the removal rate of silicon dioxide.
[0025] Example 2: Table 2 shows the results of polishing copper and silicon dioxide (formed from TEOS) wafers containing various amounts of agents that are thought to suppress oxide removal. These experiments were carried out on an IPEC/Westech 372U polisher using a Rodel IC1400 pad under the conditions of 5 psi down pressure, 3 psi back pressure, 60 rpm carrier speed, 50 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 110 ml/min. 6 inch sheet wafers were used. All slurries in this example contain 10% colloidal silica abrasive (Klebosol 1498), 3% oxalic acid, 0.2% ammonium hydroxide, 0.2% hydrogen peroxide, and were adjusted to the pH listed with varying amounts of potassium hydroxide. The poly-vinylpyrrolidone (PVP) used in the experiment below has a molecular weight between 10,000 and 30,000 daltons (i.e. has a degree of polymerization between 90 and 270). Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), a traditional surfactant with a polar functional group and a long-chain hydrocarbon tail, is also tested for comparison.
TABLE 2 Cu:SiO 2 Sample % PVP % SDS pH RR Cu RR SiO 2 Selectivity 1 0 0 6 8566 1070 8 2 0 0 8 8166 1066 7.7 3 1 0 6 6727 133 50 4 1 0 8 7207 129 56 5 0 0.5 6 8591 1093 7.9 6 0 0.5 8 8187 1076 7.6
[0026] These results show that in order to get high removal rates of copper and low removal rates of silicon dioxide (i.e., high selectivities), it is necessary to have an additional component such as PVP to suppress the silicon dioxide removal rate while not suppressing the copper removal rate. Also, traditional surfactants like SDS are observed not to significantly effect the removal rate of oxide or copper films.
[0027] Example 3: Table 3 shows the results of polishing copper and tantalum wafers containing various amounts of complexing agents and oxidants. These experiments were carried out on an IPEC/Westech 372U polisher using a Rodel IC 1400 pad under the conditions of 5 psi down pressure, 3 psi back pressure, 60 rpm carrier speed, 50 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 110 ml/min. 6 inch sheet wafers were used. All slurries in this example contain 10% colloidal silica abrasive (Klebosol 1498), 0.75% of PVP, and were adjusted to that pH with varying amounts of nitric acid or potassium hydroxide.
TABLE 3 % Oxalic % Hydrogen RR Sample Acid Peroxide pH RR Cu Ta 1 0 0 2.5 206 920 2 0 0 6 226 132 3 0 2 2.5 866 372 4 0 2 6 256 312 5 2 0 2.5 115 442 6 2 0 6 75 249 7 2 2 2.5 6237 430 8 2 2 6 1490 489
[0028] These results show that in order to get high removal rates of copper while retaining good tantalum removal rates, it is necessary to have both an oxidant and a complexing slurry.
[0029] Example 4: Table 4 shows the results of polishing copper, tantalum, tantalum nitride, and titanium wafers at two different pH levels. These experiments were carried out on an IPEC/Westech 372U polisher using a Rodel IC1400 pad under the conditions of 5 psi down pressure, 3 psi back pressure, 50 rpm carrier speed, 60 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 120 ml/min. 6 inch sheet wafers were used. All slurries in this example contain 7% titania abrasive (Degussa P-25), 0.7% of PVP, 4% oxalic acid, 1% hydrogen peroxide, and were adjusted to the specified pH by varying the amount of potassium hydroxide.
TABLE 4 RR Cu:Ta Cu: TaN Cu:Ti Cu:SiO 2 Sample pH Cu Selectivity Selectivity Selectivity Selectivity 1 5.0 2950 7 3 — >100 2 6.2 1600 3.9 1.3 2.6 >100
[0030] These results show that, by using an oxide suppressant, such as PVP, very high Cu:SiO 2 selectives (above 100:1) can be achieved.
[0031] Example 5: Table 5 shows the results of polishing patterned wafers. These experiments were carried out on an IPEC/Westech 372U polisher. For Sample 1, a Rodel IC1400/K-XY pad was used with the polishing conditions of 3 psi down pressure, 2 psi back pressure, 40 rpm carrier speed, 65 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 150 ml/min. For sample 2, a Rodel IC1000 pad under the conditions of 4 psi down pressure, 3 psi back pressure, 75 rpm carrier speed, 60 rpm platen speed, and a slurry flowrate of 150 ml/min. All slurries in this example contain 7% titania abrasive (Degussa P-25), 0.7% of PVP, 4% oxalic acid, 1% hydrogen peroxide, and were adjusted to the specified pH by varying the amount of potassium hydroxide.
TABLE 5 Oxide Erosion Dishing Dishing 50% pattern Sample pH 1 micron line 100 micron pad density 1 5.0 1836 1390 49 2 6.2 1120 — 560
[0032] These results show that the oxide erosion experienced with slurries containing compounds such as PVP is much lower than that typically observed.
[0033] Example 6: The use of a polymeric additive has been shown to be effective at a wide range of dosing levels. In this example, PVP was added to a copper polishing slurry at a level of about 4% based on the total abrasive using the slurry preparation method described above. Polishing performance was measured using a Strasbaugh 6EC with a down force of 5 psi and a platten speed of 80 rpm. Slurry flow rate was 150 ml/min.
[0034] In this example, the test slurry comprised KIO3 as an oxidant and lactic acid as a copper complexing agent, and 4% PVP based on the abrasive present. The polishing removal rate results are given in Table 6 below.
TABLE 6 Removal Rate Performance of a PVP containing Copper Slurry Copper RR (A.min) TaN RR (A/min) Oxide RR (A/min) 4465 137 165
[0035] Based on the data in Table 6, it is clear that PVP can be utilized at low concentrations in a metal polishing slurry in order to achieve good selectivity and low oxide removal rates.
[0036] Nothing in the foregoing Examples and discussion should in any way limit the scope of the present invention which is given in the claims to follow.
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A composition is provided in the present invention for polishing a composite semiconductor structure containing a metal layer (such as tungsten, aluminum, or copper), a barrier layer (such as tantalum, tantalum nitride, titanium, or titanium nitride), and an insulating layer (such as SiO 2 ). The composition comprises an aqueous medium, an oxidant, an organic polymer that attenuates removal of the oxide film. The composition may optionally comprise a complexing agent and/or a dispersant.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to improve and complete the safety of operation of manually or electrically operated scaffolding winches disposed on suspended scaffoldings for raising or lowering the latter. This invention is applicable notably to scaffoldings, nacelles or similar structures or a portion thereof, of the type suspended from at least two winches secured either to the stirrups of the scaffolding or to an overhead outrigger or cornice hook.
In this case, the winding or unwinding speed of the cable of one of the winches may be greater than that of the other winch, thus causing the scaffolding or like nacelle to cant with respect to the horizontal.
Under these conditions, it is highly desirable to provide some automatic intervention means capable of stopping this canting movement, more particularly in the case of an operation or an accidental coming down occurence.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A device of this character, capable of stopping electric winches, is already known in the art. It consists of a tube disposed horizontally when the scaffolding is in its normal horizontal position, and contains mercury. Since the mercury contained in the tube preserves a horizontal surface irrespective of the tube inclination, the desired result is obtained by means of contacts properly arranged in the tube and connected to electric circuit means controlling the starting and stopping of the winch motors. Now this device is objectionable in that it is applicable only to motorized winches, and is relatively fragile and may even operate untimely as a consequence of jolts produced on the scaffolding.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide an automatic intervention mechanical device which is at the same time sturdy, reliable and simple to construct and operate: this device is intended:
(1) In the case of manual or motor-driven winches, for controlling a load take-over device, capable of transferring the load to a safety cable disposed adjacent one of the winches when a predetermined minimum angle of tilt of the scaffolding appears between the ends thereof, in relation to the horizontal.
(2) In the case of electric winches, independently and in a manner linked to the above-mentioned intervention, preliminarily, simultaneously or subsequently to this intervention, for controlling means for stopping the motor of one or each of the winches when a predetermined minimal angle of tilt occurs between the scaffolding ends, in relation to the horizontal.
The function of this intervention device is to record, directly or indirectly, the angle from the floor to the vertical direction for actuating either a load take-over device or a motor stopping device, or a combination thereof.
The basic principle of this invention is to use a connecting rod having one end pivoted or rigidly secured to a member of the controlled device, and so arranged that the other end receives a push or pull impulse from a floor element of the scaffolding when the scaffolding pivots about the pivot axis provided between the scaffolding and the stirrup on which the controlled device is mounted.
This connecting rod is adapted to cooperate with a load take-over device, which may be completed by a device for stopping the winch motor proper, this stop-motion device being responsive in turn to a load take-over device. According to an alternate form of embodiment, the two devices are combined and incorporated into a common casing. This invention is also applicable to such cases wherein, for the sake of simplification, the connecting-rod controls directly and solely the motor stopping device without passing through the load take-over device.
According to the specific features described herein, the concept of the load take-over device is such that it can intervane likewise independently of the connecting device constituting the basic element of the present invention, for example in case of fall or (according to certain operating conditions) when a predetermined speed limit is over-stepped, a condition that might occur similarly at both ends of the scaffolding or nacelle, so that in this case the latter would not cant.
Thus, the device of this invention has multivarious principles and intervention modalities, so that the vertical movements accomplished by the scaffolding or nacelle take place with a high degree of safety.
By way of example, the intervention devices of this invention are mounted on a flying scaffolding or similar system comprising two motor-operated hoisting winches located near the ends of a same scaffolding, wherein each winch is assisted by a load take-over device and by a motor stopping device, the first device controlling the second and being responsive to the intervention device.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive illustrate diagrammatically various forms of actuation of the automatic safety device of this invention;
FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view showing on a larger scale a modified and simplified form of embodiment of the safety device of this invention, and
FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate more in detail another modified form of embodiment of the device in two operative positions.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring first to the diagrams of FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, the consequences of the scaffolding tilt on the lever controlling the actuation of the safety device of this invention are illustrated therein. More particularly, in FIG. 1 this control lever is responsive to a vertical thrust exerted by a scaffolding element on the connecting member; in FIG. 2, the control lever is responsive to a vertical pull or tractive force exerted by a scaffolding element on the connecting member; in FIGS. 3 and 4, the same control lever is responsive to a lateral thrust exerted by a scaffolding element on the connecting member.
In FIGS. 1 to 4, the reference numeral 1 designates diagrammatically one end of the scaffolding or nacelle suspended by means of a stirrup 2 from a safety device 3 through which the safety cable 4 is caused to pass. This safety device 3 being adapted to firmly grip this cable by clamping jaws according to a well-known general arrangement. The safety device 3 proper is also suspended by means of a link 5 from a carrier apparatus 6 retained by the main load cable 7. A portion or element 8 rigid with the scaffolding or nacelle is adapted to actuate through the medium of a connecting member the lever 9 controlling the safety device.
In the case illustrated in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, the connecting member consists of a rigid member independent of the scaffolding element by which it is adapted to be actuated by thrust action. This rigid member may consist for example of a rod 10 movable for vertical translation and pivotally connected to the lever 9 (FIG. 1), or of a pivoted lever 11 (FIGS. 3 and 4) rigid with control lever 9. In the case illustrated in FIG. 2, the control action is a pulling one and the connecting member is a flexible element 12 having its lower end positively attached to the scaffolding element 8 so as to be actuated thereby by traction, the upper end of this flexible element being connected to the control lever 9. In all cases, the action exerted on the connecting member of the tilting scaffolding is a one-way action.
All the above mentioned forms of embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 to refer to the case wherein the intervention device actuates the safety device passing in a relatively low position in relation to the one located at the opposite end of the scaffolding or nacelle. A modified version in case it would actuate the safety device passing in a relatively high position is also within the scope of this invention and is obtained by inverting the position of the types of connecting member consisting of the rod 10, lever 11 and flexible element 12.
FIG. 5 illustrates the action exerted by the rod 10 in the simplest case of a load safety device 3, however without the motor stopping function. The type of device illustrated in this FIG. 5 is the one in which a pair of jaws 13,14 adapted to clamp a safety cable 4 are held in their open or inoperative position by the load suspended via a device 3 from a fulcrum pin 15 of a suspension link 5 through which the load is retained, as illustrated by the arrow on top of the Figure. The jaws 13,14 are kept open in the position shown in thick lines by their control links 16,17, and the load release enables the compression spring 18 to expand and thus control the links 16,17 in the direction to close the jaws 13,14.
The present invention is also applicable to those cases in which the hoisting winches are attached to outriggers or to a cornice hook at the top of the building or frame structure, as well as to those wherein the winches are secured to stirrups on the scaffolding or nacelle. In the first case the scaffolding or nacelle is secured to the end of each control cable through the medium of the safety device.
The mounting illustrated diagrammatically in FIG. 5 has an additional advantageous feature in that the stirrup 2 to which the safety device 3 is secured can be folded on the floor of the scaffolding or like structure, notably for storage and transport purposes. To this end, and to permit the necessary rotation of stirrup 2 through an angle of about 90° about its pivot axis 21 with respect to the scaffolding structure, the fixed element of the scaffolding which acts as an abutment member to the connecting rod 10 in the case of a push action must be retractable. For this purpose, the abutment member consists of a spring-loaded push member 19 adapted to slide in a socket 20 fulcrumed to the pin 21 of the supporting stirrup 2 and rigidly attached to the corresponding end portion of the scaffolding 1. The contour of the outer end of this push member 19 comprises a flat face such that the connecting rod 10 can position itself automatically during the unfolding operation. This rod 10 is guided by a slidway 22 rigid with the safety device 3 and acting as a reaction member to a spring 23 constantly urging said rod 10 against the push and abutment member 19.
FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate the action exerted by a pivoting lever 11 on a safety device 3 combining the taking over of the load by means of the safety cable 4 with the stoppage of the hoisting motors and comprising a trigger for releasing the closing action of the jaws according to the provisions of the U.S. Pat. No. 4,106,753.
In the device, the jaws 13,14 through which the safety cable 4 is caused to pass are held in their cable-release or open position against the force of a pre-clamping spring by a trigger 24 engaging one of the jaw control levers 16,17. In case the carrier or load cable becomes slack, for example if the scaffolding 1 is retained by an obstacle during a downward movement thereof, the suspension rod 5 will actuate simultaneously an electric switch 25 for controlling the de-energization and immediate stoppage of the winch motor and engage an extension of trigger 24 for pivoting same and thus control the closing or clamping movement of the jaws on the safety cable. The device further comprises rotary means 26 capable of detecting the linear velocity of the safety cable 4 and connected through a link 27 to the trigger 24 whereby, in case of excessive speed or when a predetermined or threshold cable velocity is reached, the trigger 24 is pivoted to release the jaws 13,14 which will thus tightly clamp the cable 4.
According to this invention, the lever 11 having its lower end adapted to be engaged by the element 8 of the scaffolding or like structure 1 when the latter has been tilted to a predetermined degree, has its upper end rigidly connected to the trigger 24 at the level of the pivot pin 27 thereof. Therefore, when the scaffolding or nacelle 1 is inclined in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 7, the element 8 thereof will move the lever 11 in the direction of the arrow B, thus rotating the trigger 24 about its pivot pin 28 in the direction of the arrow C to release the jaws 13,14 to their cable camping position.
It will be seen that, according to the known practice, an electric switch 29 connected to the electric motor of the winch is carried by the casing of the safety device and adapted to register with a stud 30 rigid with the pivoting frame 31 supporting the jaws 13,14 so that, in case the latter were caused to clamp the safety cable 4, the frame 31 will pivot automatically and thus cause the stud 30 rigid therewith to actuate the switch 29 and stop the winch motor. It is clear that, under these conditions, the device of this invention, by actuating the connecting lever 11 in case of abnormal tilting movement of the scaffolding or like structure, and by actuating likewise the trigger 24 to close the jaws 13,14, will actuate automatically the electric switch 29.
It will be readily understood by those conversant with the art that the above description is given by way of illustration, not of limitation, since constructional additions and/or modifications may be brought thereto without departing from the basic principles of the invention as described in the attached claims. More particularly, it will be understood that any suitable coupling means may be provided between the connecting lever and an electric switch carried by the casing of the safety device for actuating this switch directly (and thus stop the motor or motors of the system) during the movement of this lever as a consequence of an abnormal tilting of the scaffolding or like structure.
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This device is associated with a scaffolding suspended from at least two winches and is adapted to automatically control a safety mechanism when the scaffolding is inclined beyond a predetermined limit angle to the horizontal. The scaffolding is pivoted at each end to a stirrup rigid with the safety device which is suspended to the hoisting cable through a link. A push-member rigid with the scaffolding engages, when the scaffolding is inclined, a connecting rod which actuates a lever for clamping the jaws on a safety cable passing through the safety device.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of any priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/532,609, filed Sep. 9, 2011, which is owned by the assignee of interest an in its entirety incorporated herein.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The subject matter relates generally to a graphical simulation platform, and more particularly, to a graphical simulation platform on a mobile device.
BACKGROUND
[0003] In many modern sports, including team sports such as basketball, football, and hockey, players can run planned “set” plays, in efforts to maximize opportunities to achieve specific strategic goals. In many instances, coaches illustrate these planned, designed plays on chalkboards or clipboards during practice or stoppages in play. Coaches use such illustrations to convey the relative spacing and movement of the players over the course of the play in abstract terms, similar to illustrations of choreographed dance movements.
[0004] While such illustrations of choreographed plays are effective in illustrating relatively simple movements on an athletic playing field, such methods are not as effective when attempting to illustrate complex plays, or plays involving a large amount of movement or dependent steps.
SUMMARY
[0005] A brief summary of various exemplary embodiments is presented. Some simplifications and omissions may be made in the following summary, which is intended to highlight and introduce some aspects of the various exemplary embodiments, but not to limit the scope of the invention. Detailed descriptions of a preferred exemplary embodiment adequate to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the inventive concepts will following the later sections.
[0006] Various embodiments relate to a simulation platform for designing and illustrating plays for athletic competitions. The simulation platform can run on a mobile device, such as an iPad, iPhone, or other tablet device with a touchscreen. The simulation platform can allow a user to illustrate athletic plays using an “electronic” whiteboard. The simulation platform can animate multiple players and/or athletic equipment simultaneously, enabling depictions of complex athletic plays involving a large number of players. In some embodiments, the user can illustrate plays using only a subset of players (“relevant players”) that are actually important to the set athletic play. The user can pause and edit athletic plays on the fly, while the simulation platform can reconfigure the positioning and movement to accommodate the user's changes. The user can share configured plays via a server that can share plays as they are updated in real time. In addition, the simulation platform can animate a user-designed play based on player attributes that calculate the likelihood a play, as designed, would be successful.
[0007] Various embodiments relate to a method executed on a simulation platform to represent an athletic play. The simulation platform produces a simulated athletic play representing the athletic play by receiving an inputted information representing the athletic play created by a user, producing a first stage comprising a first virtual athlete in a virtual playing environment based on the received inputted information, positioning the first virtual athlete within the virtual playing environment during the first stage, producing a second stage comprising the virtual athlete in the virtual playing environment, and creating a first movement vector representing a change in position of the first virtual athlete between the first stage and the second stage.
[0008] In other examples, any of the aspects above can include one or more of the following features. In some embodiments, the method can further include the simulated platform playing the simulated athletic play where the first virtual athlete moves along the first movement vector between the first and second stage. In some embodiments, the simulation platform can also pause the simulated athletic play during the pausing step and changes the first movement vector of the first virtual athlete.
[0009] In some embodiments, the simulated platform saves the athletic play. In some embodiments, the simulated platform uploads a saved athletic play to a server. The server also transmits the saved simulated athletic play to at least one other authorized electronic device. In some embodiments, the simulated platform, when creating the simulated athletic play step, establishes possession of athletic equipment by the first virtual athlete or a second virtual athlete in the first stage and creating a possession vector for the athletic equipment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] In order to better understand various exemplary embodiments, reference is made to accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary simulation platform;
[0012] FIG. 2 illustrates another view of the exemplary simulation platform;
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary flowchart for control of the viewing playing environment;
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates another part of the exemplary flowchart for control of the viewing playing environment;
[0015] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flowchart of editing a loaded athletic play; and
[0016] FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary flowchart of the simulation platform sharing plays.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] FIGS. 1 and 2 show an embodiment of the simulation platform 101 , including a virtual playing environment 103 and a control menu 105 . The virtual playing environment (VPE) 103 can include goals 109 , team players 111 a - 111 b, opponent players 113 a - 113 b, and athletic equipment 115 . The VPE 103 can be configured based on the specific sport played. For example, when illustrating a set play for basketball, the VPE can comprise a half-sized (“half-court”) or full-sized (“full-court”) basketball court. The goals 109 , athletic equipment 115 , and team and opponent players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b can also be configured based on the specific sport and the specific situation. For example, in some embodiments, the team players can 111 a - 111 b be on offense and maintain possession of the athletic equipment 115 , while the opponent players 113 a - 113 b can be on defense.
[0018] In some embodiments, there can be a different quantity of team players 111 a - b than opponent players 113 a - 113 b. This occurs, for example, in set plays that involve different quantities of team players 111 a - 111 b and opponent players 113 a - 113 b, such as during a power play in hockey, or even a give-and-go set play in basketball. The athletic equipment 115 can be based on the type of VPE 103 . For example, the athletic equipment 115 represents a basketball when the VPE 103 represents a basketball court. Similarly, when the VPE 103 represents a hockey rink, the athletic equipment 115 can be a hockey puck.
[0019] The user can directly control components within the VPE 103 , including the team players 111 a - 111 b, the opponent players 113 a - 113 b, and the athletic equipment 115 . In a specific stage, any of the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b can be positioned within the VPE 103 . In some embodiments, the user moves the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b within the VPE 103 . The simulation platform 101 can be implemented on an electronic device with a touchscreen, such as a tablet computer. In such instances, the user can use his or her finger and/or a stylus to directly select a player 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b by touching the applicable area on the touchscreen and dragging the player to a specific location. Similarly, the user can establish a specific player 111 a to have possession of the athletic equipment.
[0020] The user can also establish multiple stages of a set play within the VPE 103 . As shown in FIG. 1 , the user can establish a movement vector for one or more of the players 111 a - 111 b for a particular stage. When going from the initial stage to the next stage, all the players 111 a with an associated movement vector 121 traverse along the movement vector until the player 111 a reaches the end position at the next stage. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1-2 , the user draws the movement vector for the team player 111 a in the initial stage. The user can select the appropriate “move” option in the control panel 105 and drag the team player 111 a along the path. In some embodiments, the user creates the movement vector 121 by creating a movement arrow within the initial stage. Once the movement vector 121 is established, playback of the simulated athletic play includes an animation of the transition between the initial stage and the next stage (illustrated in FIG. 2 ). During the transition, the team player 111 a travels along the established movement vector 121 until the team player 111 a reaches its end position at the end of the movement vector 121 . From this next stage, another movement vector (not shown) can be drawn by the user for the team player 111 a and other players 111 b, 113 a - b. In such instances, a subsequent stage exists, with the players transitioning their position from their placement in the next stage ( FIG. 2 ) to their placement in the subsequent stage.
[0021] Similarly, the user can establish a possession vector 125 for the athletic equipment 115 . In some instances, the user can establish a possession vector 125 by simply selecting the athletic equipment 115 and then selecting the target player 111 b or goal 109 . When the user selects a target player 111 b, as shown in FIG. 1 , the simulation platform 101 creates the possession vector 125 between the team player 111 a and the team player 111 b. In other instances, the user's selection of the goal 109 creates a possession vector 125 and the goal 109 . This possession vector 125 can signify a shot on goal by the team player 111 a. In some instances, the user can select a specific area on the VPE 103 as an endpoint for the possession vector 125 . A user can implement such a possession vector 125 to illustrate plays where the player 111 b has not yet arrived to the area, but will be in that position in the next stage. For example, a user can illustrate a “through” pass by selecting the possession vector 125 of the athletic equipment 125 and the movement vector of the team player 111 b to be in the same position in the next stage. In some embodiments, the possession vector 125 can change to the new position of the team player 111 b when a movement vector of the team player 111 b is added to a particular stage.
[0022] In the illustrative embodiment of FIGS. 1-2 , the user establishes a possession vector 125 for the athletic equipment 115 between the team player 111 a and team player 111 b. The user also establishes a movement vector 121 for the team player 111 a. In some embodiments, both the movement vector 121 and the possession vector 125 occur between the same two stages. In such instances, the team player 111 a traverses the movement vector 121 while the athletic equipment 115 traverses the possession vector. In certain embodiments, the user establishes three stages for the simulated athletic play. In such an instance, the athletic equipment 115 traverses the possession vector 125 between the first and second stages, while the team player 111 a traverses the movement vector between the second and third stages. In some embodiments, the user can pause the playback of transition between the stages and can modify the movement vector 121 of the team player 111 , or can add a movement vector for another player, such as opponent player 113 a. In such instances, the simulation platform 101 can add a new stage that saves the position of the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b and the athletic equipment 115 and the associated movement and possession vectors at the stage where the play is paused.
[0023] Control panel 105 can include one or more controls used by the user to create or modify particular stages in a set play. The control panel 105 can include control buttons or menus that can add new stages to a simulated athletic play, playback the athletic play, and pause the athletic play during playback. The control panel 105 can also include controls for a specific stage in an athletic play. Controls include buttons to add or remove players on the VPE 103 , buttons to add movement and possession vectors, and menus that include specific movement and possession vectors. For example, a control panel for a football VPE can include a multitude of movement vectors that represent different receiving routes (e.g., post pattern, out pattern, curl pattern, etc.) for a receiver. In such instances, the user can select a player 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b, and assign a specific movement vector selected from the control panel 105 .
[0024] FIG. 3 shows an exemplary flowchart for control of the virtual playing environment. A user can enact method 300 , for example, upon startup of the simulation platform 101 on an electronic device, such as a tablet computer, smartphone, browser, or computer program. The simulation platform can begin at step 301 and proceed to step 303 by creating a virtual playing environment (VPE) 103 . After the simulation platform 101 creates the VPE 103 , the simulation platform proceeds to 305 by asking the user whether to create a new play. When the user responds with a “NO,” the simulation platform in step 307 allows the user to load a saved play. Otherwise, the simulation platform proceeds to step 315 by prompting the user to either buy a play from a playbook marketplace or to create a new play.
[0025] Based on the user's choice in step 315 , the simulation platform 101 can create a new play in step 317 . Alternatively, the simulation platform 101 can, in step 325 , display the playbook marketplace for the user to view. In step 327 , the user selects a specific play from those displayed in the playbook marketplace. The simulation platform downloads the user-selected play from the marketplace in step 329 . In some embodiments, a play from the playbook marketplace or a saved play can also have an associated video (e.g., a live-action video) that can be viewed in conjunction with loading the desired play.
[0026] Whether the simulation platform has loaded a play in step 307 , created a new play in step 317 , or downloaded a play in step 329 , the simulation platform proceeds to step 309 , which begins method 400 as illustrated in FIG. 4 . Simulation platform 101 cannot enact method 400 to enable playback and editing of a specific athletic play. Simulation platform 101 may begin method 400 by proceeding from method 300 in step 401 and then proceeding to step 402 , where it prompts the user to either run or edit the play. When the user decides to edit a play, the simulation platform may proceed to step 409 , where it enacts method 500 as illustrated in FIG. 5 , as will be discussed in further detail below.
[0027] When the user decides to run a play, the simulation platform 101 proceeds from step 402 to step 403 and animates the stages included in the loaded play. In step 403 , the simulation platform 101 animates the transitions between the various stages of the loaded play, animating the players and athletic equipment as they traverse along their respective movement and possession vectors 121 , 125 . In some embodiments, the simulation platform 101 uses specific attributes associated with the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b, athletic equipment 115 , and the vectors 121 , 125 when animating the play. For example, a user can associate specific characteristics such as weight, strength, acceleration, agility, and speed to a specific player. These attributes can, for example, alter the speed at which the player 111 a traverses the movement vector and can also affect the probability that the player 111 a traverses the movement vector successfully. Similarly, other attributes assigned to players, such as accuracy, passing skills, offensive and defensive awareness, and stealing ability, can affect the possession vector of the athletic equipment and whether a specific pass or shot is successful. If the no user break, as in step 405 , occurs, the simulation platform 403 can run the entire play by animating all the stages. When the final stage is reached, the simulation platform may end method 400 by proceeding to step 413 . In some embodiments, the simulation platform 101 can playback a video associated with the loaded play. In some embodiments, method 400 can present a step prior to step 403 (not shown) for the user to decide whether to play the associated video or animate the play in step 403 .
[0028] During step 403 , the user can start a user break 405 . The user can select a pause command in the control panel 105 , or the break can occur when the user selects one of the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b, or the athletic equipment and changes the respective positioning or vector. When the user break occurs at 105 , the simulation platform 101 , in step 407 , confirms whether the user wishes to edit the play. If so, the simulation platform proceeds to step 409 to enact method 500 of FIG. 5 . Otherwise, the simulation platform in step 411 prompts the user to resume the play from the point of the user break. In some embodiments, the user at 411 can restart the play from the beginning. In some embodiments, the user can choose to play a video associated with the play. If the user chooses to resume the play, the simulation platform 101 proceeds to step 403 from the point that the user break occurred. Otherwise, the simulation platform 101 ends the method 400 at step 413 .
[0029] FIG. 5 shows the method 500 of editing a loaded athletic play. The simulation platform 101 can enact method 500 when a user decides to edit a play. The user can decide to edit a play before running the play, as illustrated in step 402 , or when the user causes a user break in step 405 and decides to edit the play. In some embodiments, the user can also associate video with the loaded athletic play. In some embodiments, the user can associate locally-saved existing video (e.g., video captured on the touchscreen device), or download existing video. In some embodiments, the simulation platform 101 can enable the user to use third-party video capture hardware and/or software to capture video, which would subsequently be associated with the loaded athletic play. Simulation platform 101 can enact method 500 by beginning at step 501 , which is the same step as step 409 in method 400 . From step 501 , the simulation platform 101 begins the editing by creating a stage. In some embodiments, creating the stage involves resetting the positioning and vectors to the beginning of a particular stage. When creating a new play, as the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b can be positioned in a first stage (stage 1 ) without any movement vectors. In some embodiments, each stage can have an associated video.
[0030] The create stage step of step 503 can involve the simulation platform 101 creating a new stage between two previously-established stages. For example, when the user decides to edit the play by pausing between stages, the players can be in positions between their positioning in the first stage (stage 1 ) and the next stage (stage 2 ). In such an instance, the simulation platform 101 can create an intermediate stage (stage 3 ) between the first and next stages, such that the play, when resumed, runs from stages 1 to 3 to 2 . In such instances, the positioning and movement vectors can be split so that the final positioning in stage 2 remains the same.
[0031] In step 505 , the simulation platform 505 allows the user to configure the specific stage. The user can add, remove, and position players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b in a specific stage, change possession of the athletic equipment 115 , and configure movement and possession vectors 121 , 125 for the respective players and athletic equipment within the stage. For instance, following the previous example, the user changes the components in stage 3 , including the positioning of the players 111 a - 111 b, 113 a - 113 b, possession of the athletic equipment 115 , and the vectors 121 , 125 . The simulation platform can reconfigure the associated positioning and vectors for the previous (stage 1 ) and subsequent (stages 2 ) to reflect the user changes.
[0032] Once the configuration is complete, the simulation platform 101 , in step 507 , prompts the user to capture the stage. If the user chooses “NO,” the simulation platform 101 returns to step 505 . When the user in step 507 chooses to capture the stage, the simulation platform 101 proceeds to step 509 . The stage is recorded as part of a saved play. In some embodiments, the user can opt for the simulation platform 101 to automatically save the play and record the stage whenever the user reconfigures a stage.
[0033] Once the stage is recorded, the simulation platform 101 , in step 511 , asks the user whether to change to a different stage. If the user chooses “NO,” the simulation platform 101 proceeds to step 513 to ask the user whether to continue to edit the current stage. If the user again chooses “NO,” method 500 ends and can proceed, for example to step 411 of method 400 . If the user, in step 513 , instead chooses to edit the current stage, the simulation platform 101 returns to step 505 to allow the user to configure the current stage. Similarly, when the user, in step 511 , chooses to change to a different stage, the simulation platform returns to step 503 to create a stage. In some embodiments, the simulation platform 101 , in step 503 , moves to an already-created stage. For example, the user can choose, in step 511 , to move from stage 3 to (the existing) stage 1 of the play. In this instance, the simulation platform 101 in step 503 transitions to the existing stage 1 of the play.
[0034] FIG. 6 shows method 600 for the simulation platform to share plays via a server. The simulation platform 101 can enact method 600 as soon as a play is saved. For example, in some embodiments, the simulation platform 101 automatically enacts method 600 every time a play is saved, such as in step 509 of method 500 . Simulation platform 101 starts method 600 at step 601 and proceeds to step 603 , where the writing user (i.e., the user configuring the play) uploads a saved play to a server. For example, the server can receive the play as an .xml file that includes the positioning, vector, and attribute data associated with the saved play as text. In some embodiments, the server can also receive video associated with the play. In some embodiments, the server is a secure server that receives the play as a specific configuration file. In some embodiments, the server can be a cloud server that can be controlled by the writing user.
[0035] In step 605 , the server syncs to play uploaded in step 603 with other plays in the writing user's playbook. In some embodiments, the server can add the newly-uploaded play and video to the writing user's playbook, which can act as folder containing a set of saved plays and videos. In some embodiments, the server overwrites a saved play in the playbook with the uploaded play whenever syncing occurs. Thus, when the user allows the play to automatically saved whenever the user reconfigures a stage, the server, in step 605 , can enable real-time syncing of plays as they are edited.
[0036] The server, in step 607 , casts the synced play or playbook to reading users. The reading users can include other users with writing capabilities. The reading users can also include users that do not have writing capabilities, or users on electronic devices that do not have editing tools. The server can send the play synced in step 605 to authorized reading users' devices via casting methods, such as unicast, multicast, and similar methods of transferring the synced play. Once the server casts the synced play, it can proceed to step 609 to end method 600 .
[0037] The above-described techniques can be implemented in digital and/or analog electronic circuitry, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in combinations of them. The implementation can be as a computer program product, i.e., a computer program tangibly embodied in a machine-readable storage device, for execution by, or to control the operation of, a data processing apparatus, e.g., a programmable processor, a computer, and/or multiple computers. A computer program can be written in any form of computer or programming language, including source code, compiled code, interpreted code and/or machine code, and the computer program can be deployed in any form, including as a stand-alone program or as a subroutine, element, or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment. A computer program can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers at one or more sites.
[0038] Method steps can be performed by one or more processors executing a computer program to perform functions of the invention by operating on input data and/or generating output data. Method steps can also be performed by, and an apparatus can be implemented as, special purpose logic circuitry, e.g., a FPGA (field programmable gate array), a FPAA (field-programmable analog array), a CPLD (complex programmable logic device), a PSoC (Programmable System-on-Chip), ASIP (application-specific instruction-set processor), or an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit), or the like. Subroutines can refer to portions of the stored computer program and/or the processor, and/or the special circuitry that implement one or more functions.
[0039] Processors suitable for the execution of a computer program include, by way of example, both general and special purpose microprocessors, and any one or more processors of any kind of digital or analog computer. Generally, a processor receives instructions and data from a read-only memory or a random access memory or both. The essential elements of a computer are a processor for executing instructions and one or more memory devices for storing instructions and/or data. Memory devices, such as a cache, can be used to temporarily store data. Memory devices can also be used for long-term data storage. Generally, a computer also includes, or is operatively coupled to receive data from or transfer data to, or both, one or more mass storage devices for storing data, e.g., magnetic, magneto-optical disks, or optical disks. A computer can also be operatively coupled to a communications network in order to receive instructions and/or data from the network and/or to transfer instructions and/or data to the network. Computer-readable storage mediums suitable for embodying computer program instructions and data include all forms of volatile and non-volatile memory, including by way of example semiconductor memory devices, e.g., DRAM, SRAM, EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, e.g., internal hard disks or removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and optical disks, e.g., CD, DVD, HD-DVD, and Blu-ray disks. The processor and the memory can be supplemented by and/or incorporated in special purpose logic circuitry.
[0040] To provide for interaction with a user, the above described techniques can be implemented on a computer in communication with a display device, e.g., plasma display or LCD (liquid crystal display), for displaying information to the user, and a keyboard and a pointing device, e.g., a mouse, a trackball, a touchpad, or a motion sensor, by which the user can provide input to the computer (e.g., interact with a user interface element). Other kinds of devices can be used to provide for interaction with a user as well; for example, feedback provided to the user can be any form of sensory feedback, e.g., visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from the user can be received in any form, including acoustic, speech, and/or tactile input.
[0041] The above described techniques can be implemented in a distributed computing system that includes a back-end component. The back-end component can, for example, be a data server, a middleware component, and/or an application server. The above described techniques can be implemented in a distributed computing system that includes a front-end component. The front-end component can, for example, be a client computer having a graphical user interface, a Web browser through which a user can interact with an example implementation, and/or other graphical user interfaces for a transmitting device. The above described techniques can be implemented in a distributed computing system that includes any combination of such back-end, middleware, or front-end components.
[0042] The components of the computing system can be interconnected by transmission medium, which can include any form or medium of digital or analog data communication (e.g., a communication network). Transmission medium can include one or more packet-based networks and/or one or more circuit-based networks in any configuration. Packet-based networks can include, for example, the Internet, a carrier internet protocol (IP) network (e.g., local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), campus area network (CAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), home area network (HAN)), a private IP network, an IP private branch exchange (IPBX), a wireless network (e.g., radio access network (RAN), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, WiMAX, general packet radio service (GPRS) network, HiperLAN), and/or other packet-based networks. Circuit-based networks can include, for example, the public switched telephone network (PSTN), a legacy private branch exchange (PBX), a wireless network (e.g., RAN, code-division multiple access (CDMA) network, time division multiple access (TDMA) network, global system for mobile communications (GSM) network), and/or other circuit-based networks.
[0043] Information transfer over transmission medium can be based on one or more communication protocols. Communication protocols can include, for example, Ethernet protocol, Internet Protocol (IP), Voice over IP (VOIP), a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) protocol, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), H.323, Media Gateway Control Protocol (MGCP), Signaling System #7 (SS7), a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular (POC) protocol, and/or other communication protocols.
[0044] Devices of the computing system can include, for example, a computer, a computer with a browser device, a telephone, an IP phone, a mobile device (e.g., cellular phone, personal digital assistant (PDA) device, laptop computer, electronic mail device), and/or other communication devices. The browser device includes, for example, a computer (e.g., desktop computer, laptop computer) with a World Wide Web browser (e.g., Microsoft® Internet Explorer® available from Microsoft Corporation, Mozilla® Firefox available from Mozilla Corporation). Mobile computing device include, for example, a Blackberry®. IP phones include, for example, a Cisco® Unified IP Phone 7985G available from Cisco Systems, Inc, and/or a Cisco® Unified Wireless Phone 7920 available from Cisco Systems, Inc.
[0045] While the technology has been particularly shown and described with reference to specific illustrative embodiments, it should be understood that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the technology.
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Various embodiments relate to a method and related apparatus that simulates planned athletic plays. A device such as a touchscreen tablet or mobile device can use a simulation platform that produces a visualization of one or more athletes in a planned scenario. The platform can then display and/or animate the one or more athletes as they progress through multiple stages of a simulated athletic play. The simulated athletic play can be edited, saved, and sent to other devices, which may also play back the simulated athletic play. In some embodiments, a user can capture video or load saved video clips and associate such videos with the simulated athletic play or steps comprising part of the simulated athletic play. In some embodiments, a user can pause a simulated athletic play during playback to add and edit steps that comprise the play.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/380,816, filed on Aug. 25, 2014, and entitled “Roller Tube”, itself a United States national phase application under 35 U.S.C. §371 of International Application Serial No. PCT/GB2013/050467, filed on Feb. 25, 2013 and entitled “Roller Tube”, which claims priority to Great Britain Application Serial No. 1203153.0, filed on Feb. 23, 2012, the contents of each of which being incorporated herein in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to roller tubes and in particular to roller tubes for use with roller blinds or roller shutters. The roller tubes of the present invention include within the tube a plurality of sound damping elements.
Roller tubes have been used for decades in blinds and shutters as a rotating element around which the operation of a blind or shutter may be based. Roller tubes are typically hollow cylinders and in their basic form work very well. However, as blind and shutter technology has evolved, roller tubes are increasingly being used to house therein further blind or shutter components. For example, spring arrangements to assist with the retracting of the blind or shutter, and electric motors capable of remotely retracting or deploying the blind or shutter are commonly housed within the roller tube. These further components can cause problems, especially in terms of unwanted noise.
As the skilled person appreciates, roller tubes are basically hollow cylinders. As such, noise within the cylinder may be amplified and/or transmitted along the tube as a result of its shape and the materials used in its construction: the sound waves within the tube can be amplified via constructive interference and/or resonances. Such noise is clearly undesirable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a roller tube comprising a tube body which defines on its outwardly facing surface one or more blind substrate or shutter substrate receiving portions, and defines on its inwardly facing surface a plurality of sound damping elements, wherein the sound damping elements are located circumferentially around part or all of the inwardly facing surface of the tube body, extend longitudinally along at least part of the length of the tube body and define a plurality of sound channels within the tube.
The sound damping elements are formed as part of the roller tube body and are therefore integral with it.
The sound channels are externally closed. This means that the sound channels do not include any openings to the exterior of the roller tube in use. On the basis that the sound channels extend longitudinally along at least part of the tube, they do not include an external longitudinal opening (e.g. an axial slot) which would allow sound to escape radially from the tube. Furthermore, in use, the opposed ends of the channels are closed by respective end caps to prevent sound escaping axially from the tube.
The sound channels reduce the extent to which the sound waves can be amplified or focussed by the curved outer wall of the tube. They also reduce the extent to which the sound waves within the tube can be transmitted or cause interference with each other. Moreover, the sound channels guide the sound waves away from the source of the sound (e.g. electric motor) and allow them to diminish via energy loss, for example as a result of internal reflections along the channels.
Suitably, the or each blind substrate or shutter substrate receiving portion is an elongate receiving slot. However, the receiving portion may instead comprise any arrangement adapted to secure a blind substrate or shutter substrate to the roller tube. In an embodiment of the invention, the roller tube is a tube for a window blind. In such an embodiment, the roller tube may include a single fabric receiving slot. Alternatively, it may include two or more fabric receiving slots, such as, for example, three or four fabric receiving slots. Where the roller tube includes two or more fabric receiving slots, the slots may be the same size or they may differ in one or more dimensions.
The sound damping elements suitably extend the entire length of the roller tube and are co-terminus therewith.
In an embodiment of the invention, each sound damping element includes at least one planar portion. Suitably, the planar portion is arranged to minimise sound generated or transmitted within the roller tube from reaching a portion of the curved outer wall of the tube and/or to disrupt reflected sound waves from the curved outer wall of the tube. Thus, the planar portion may be arranged at an angle to a radial reference plane. In other words, the planar portion subtends an angle with reference to a radial plane which is greater than 0° and less than 180°.
In order to significantly reduce noise emissions from the roller tube, the damping elements suitably cover at least 50% of the internal circumference of the roller tube. The damping elements may cover more than 60%, more than 70%, more than 80% or more than 90% of the curved inwardly facing surface of the roller tube. In certain embodiments of the invention, the damping elements cover the entire inwardly facing curved surface of the roller tube. Thus, in such embodiments, the damping elements and the sound channels defined by them continuously cover the entire internal circumference of the roller tube.
In this context, the term “cover” refers to the amount of the internal circumference of the roller tube which is not visible from the central axis of the tube. Thus, where it is stated that more than 90% of the curved inwardly facing surface of the roller blind is covered by the damping elements, it means that less than 10% of the curved inwardly facing surface of the roller blind is visible from the central axis of the tube or is radially directly contactable.
The sound channels defined by the damping elements may be in the form of longitudinal cells, which may in turn be closed cells (i.e. the cells contain no openings) or open cells (i.e. the cells contain one or more openings, but not in the outer peripheral wall of the roller tube).
In an embodiment of the invention, the sound damping elements define a plurality of closed longitudinal cells located at least partially around the internal circumference of the tube body. The cells may extend around the entire internal circumference of the roller tube.
The cells suitably each comprise three or more cell walls which together define a closed cell structure. In an embodiment of the invention, each cell comprises a pair of radially inwardly projecting side walls joined at one end by the curved tube body and joined at the opposite end by a planar end wall. Thus, each cell may be essentially trapezium-shaped in cross-section, albeit with one slightly curved side.
In an embodiment comprising four-sided closed cells around the entire internal circumference of the roller tube, the circumferential cells define a central core of the roller tube, wherein the defined central core has a regular polygonal shape in cross-section. In this embodiment, each side of the polygon is defined by the planar end wall of each cell. Thus, the number of cells around the circumference of the roller tube defines the number of sides that comprise the polygon shape of the core. For example, three closed four-sided cells around the circumference of the roller tube would result in a triangular shaped core, four cells would result in a square shaped core, five cells would result in a pentagonal shaped core, six cells would result in a hexagonal shaped core, seven cells would result in a heptagonal shaped core, eight cells would result in an octagonal shaped core and so on. The central core is still able to receive therein the further blind components, such as electric motors, etc. but the further blind components would then be surrounded by sound channels in the form of closed cells, which minimise the amount of sound audible outside of the roller tube.
The skilled person will appreciate that the greater the number of cells around the circumference of the roller tube, the larger the central core can be made in terms of its cross sectional area. Thus, the number of cells around the internal circumference of the roller tube may be six or more.
The skilled person will also appreciate that the greater the number of cells, the more complex would be the tooling to fabricate the roller tube. Thus, the number of cells may suitably be twelve or less.
As an alternative to closed cells, the damping elements may define sound channels in the form of open cells. As noted above, open cells tend to include openings, such as longitudinal openings, but not through the roller tube wall.
In embodiments where the cells are open cells, the sound damping elements include a plurality of radially inwardly facing members where the members are substantially T-shaped, L-shaped, Y-shaped or V-shaped, and the sound channels include at least one internal longitudinal opening. The longitudinal opening is typically formed between adjacent or neighbouring damping elements. Thus, for example, where the damping elements are T-shaped, the cross bars of adjacent elements may be spaced apart from each other and thereby defined a longitudinal gap in the sound channel defined by the two adjacent damping elements and the portion of the roller tube located between them.
The sound damping elements may include secondary damping elements. These secondary damping elements are suitably configured to disrupt further sound waves and to absorb sound energy. These secondary damping elements may be in the form of ridges formed in one or more portions of the sound damping elements. The ridges may have a sinusoidal form, a sawtooth form or be in the form of a so-called “square wave”. Thus, at one level, the portion of the sound damping element may be considered to be substantially planar and at a closer level, it carries secondary damping elements in the form of ridges. The portion of the sound damping elements which carries the secondary damping element may be an inwardly facing portion of the sound damping elements.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a roller blind or roller shutter including a roller tube as defined anywhere herein.
The term “roller blind” is intended to cover all blind systems based around a rotating tube. These include conventional roller blinds, but also include blinds such as cellular blinds and Roman blinds that operate via a rotating tube. Similarly, “roller shutters” is intended to cover all shutter systems based around rotating tubes. The skilled person will appreciate that the term “roller blind” is used herein to denote an internal blind arrangement to control the light and/or heat allowed to enter a room via an architectural opening, such as a window. In contrast, a roller shutter is either used externally on buildings, in which it may perform a security role in addition to controlling heat and/or light transmission, or is used to function as a door to control entry to or exit from a building or room.
The roller blind or roller shutter typically includes a substrate. For roller blinds, the substrate functions to control light transmission into a room. The substrate may be formed from a woven fabric substrate, a non-woven fabric substrate, a continuous polymeric substrate, a laminated substrate comprising two or more individual sheet elements, a plurality of individual horizontal slats, or a so-called “woven wood” substrate. For roller shutters, the substrate typically comprises a plurality of horizontal slats joined to each other, although polymeric sheets are also known as substrates for roller shutters.
The roller blind or roller shutter may include an electric motor which may in turn be located within the roller tube.
In an embodiment of the second aspect of the invention, the blind or shutter includes a pair of opposed mounting brackets and a vibration damping plate located between the motor and an adjacent mounting bracket, wherein the plate includes one or more portions of a vibration-absorbing material. The vibration absorbing material may be a foamed material, such as a foamed rubber, or it may be a thermoplastic elastomer. One advantage of the thermoplastic elastomer is that they can be injection moulded with the remainder of the vibration damping plate where the vibration damping plate is formed from a thermoplastic polymer.
In a further embodiment of the second aspect of the invention, the blind or shutter further includes a base plate for each mounting bracket, wherein the base plate includes one or more portions of a vibration-absorbing material. As noted above, the vibration-absorbing material may be a foamed material or it may be a thermoplastic elastomer.
Suitable sound reduction may be achieved using components that carry vibration absorbing materials. Accordingly, a third aspect of the invention provides a roller blind or roller shutter including a roller tube, an electric motor adapted for location within the roller tube, a motor mounting plate, an idle end bush and a pair of mounting brackets, wherein the mounting plate and/or the idle end bush carry on at least part thereof a vibration absorbing material.
Optionally, both the mounting plate and the idle end bush carry the vibration absorbing material. The vibration absorbing material may be located at pre-determined positions on the relevant component or it may entirely cover one or more surfaces of the relevant component.
The mounting brackets may include a portion which carries a vibration absorbing material.
In an embodiment of the invention, the vibration absorbing material is a thermoplastic elastomer which may be injection moulded.
Blind and shutter components are typically sold by the manufacturers to installers, who then take the components to build and install the blinds or shutters which are customised for the end user.
Thus, according to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a kit of parts for installing a roller blind or roller shutter, the kit of parts including a roller tube as defined anywhere herein.
In an embodiment of the fourth aspect of the invention, the kit further includes an electric motor adapted to be located in use within the roller tube.
The kit of parts may further include any one or more of the following: a pair of mounting brackets; a vibration damping plate adapted to be located in use between a motor and a respective mounting bracket, wherein the damping plate includes one or more portions of a vibration-absorbing material; and idle end assembly; a blind substrate or a shutter substrate; a base plate adapted to be located between a respective mounting bracket and a base substrate (e.g. a wall or ceiling), wherein the base plate includes at least one portion of a vibration damping material.
By the term “idle end”, it is meant an end of a roller blind or shutter which in use is rotatably coupled to a bracket and which is opposite to the control unit of the blind or shutter. The idle end assembly typically includes an idle end bush adapted to engage one end of the roller tube and forms a bearing/axle arrangement with an idle end bracket which is adapted to allow the idle end of the roller tube to rotate relative to the idle end bracket. Examples of suitable idle end assemblies are defined and described in WO2010/139945, the contents of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
The skilled person will appreciate that the features described and defined in connection with the aspect of the invention and the embodiments thereof may be combined in any combination, regardless of whether the specific combination is expressly mentioned herein. Thus, all such combinations are considered to be made available to the skilled person.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a roller blind according to the invention;
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view through the roller tube shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the vibration damping plate shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a first end cap shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 4B is a perspective view of a second end cap shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the base plate shown in FIG. 1 ; and
FIGS. 6A to 6E show different options for the damping elements in the roller tube.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
For the avoidance of doubt, the skilled person will appreciate that in this specification, the terms “up”, “down”, “front”, “rear”, “upper”, “lower”, “width”, etc. refer to the orientation of the components as found in the example when installed for normal use as shown in the Figures.
A roller blind assembly 2 is shown in FIG. 1 . The assembly 2 comprises a roller tube 4 which is shown in more detail in FIG. 2 . The roller tube 4 includes an outer tube wall 6 within which is defined a pair of opposed fabric receiving slots 8 . In this embodiment, the two slots 8 are substantially identical. However, it will be appreciated that slots 8 having different dimensions may be incorporated.
Projecting radially inwards from the outer tube wall 6 are eight side wall elements 10 which are equally circumferentially spaced from each other. Each pair of adjacent side wall elements 10 are joined at their inwardly facing end by an end wall 12 . The arrangement of end walls 12 provides the roller tube 4 with an octagonally shaped core surrounded by six large closed cells 16 and four small closed cells 18 , where each of the large closed cells 16 is defined by a pair of radial side wall elements 10 , an end wall 12 and a portion of the outer tube wall 6 , and each of the small closed cells 18 is defined by a side wall element 10 , part of a fabric receiving slot 8 , part of an end wall 12 and a portion of the outer tube wall 6 .
Located within the roller tube 4 is an electric motor 20 (Sonesse™ from Somfy Systems Inc., NJ, USA). The motor 20 includes an octagonal drive bush 22 which is sized and configured to engage the end walls 12 of the roller tube 4 .
To the motor 20 is connected a mounting plate 24 which is shown in more detail in FIG. 3 . The mounting plate 24 is largely moulded from a rigid thermoplastic material to define a plate body 26 . On its outwardly facing face (i.e. the face shown in FIG. 3 and which in use contacts a mounting bracket) is provided a central locating lug 28 and a pair of outer locating lugs 30 . The outer face also includes portions 32 of a thermoplastic elastomer which extend beyond the face and which form a contact surface.
A pair of securing holes 34 are provided through the mounting plate which correspond to threaded bores provided in an end face of the motor 20 such that the mounting plate 24 may be secured to the motor 20 via a pair of screws (not shown).
In order to close at each end the longitudinal cells 16 , 18 of the roller tube 4 , a pair of end caps 36 , 38 are provided and these are shown in more detail in FIG. 4 . The end cap 36 is adapted to close the cells 16 , 18 at the control end of the roller tube 4 (i.e. the end that contains the motor 20 ) and comprises a substantially annular shaped body 40 which defines an octagonal-shaped inner core 42 corresponding to the core 14 of the roller tube 4 and a circular outer periphery corresponding to the outer tube wall 6 . With this arrangement, the end cap 36 is adapted to close all of the cells 16 , 18 defined by the roller tube 4 without interfering with motor 20 or its drive bush 22 . In order to secure the end cap 36 to the roller tube 4 , the end cap 36 further includes a number of securing legs 44 which provide a friction fit within the cells 16 .
Turning now to the end cap 38 , this is adapted to close the cells 16 , 18 at the idle end of the roller tube 4 . The end cap comprises a rigid body 46 which carries a thermoplastic elastomeric coating 48 having an octagonal cross-sectional shape sized to form a friction fit within the roller tube 4 . At one end of the cap 38 is a flange 50 having a diameter equal to that of the outer tube wall 6 . The flange is also covered with a thermoplastic elastomeric coating.
Projecting axially from the end of the cap 38 is a conventional idle end bearing assembly 52 such as the one described in WO2010/139945.
At either end of the roller tube 4 is located a respective mounting bracket 54 , 56 , which are known parts (available from Louver-Lite Limited) and which comprise apertures adapted to receive the locating lugs 28 , 30 of the motor mounting plate 24 at one end and a cruciform engagement portion of an end pin forming part of the idle end assembly at the other end.
The mounting brackets 54 , 56 are typically secured to a supporting substrate (e.g. a wall) via respective base plates 58 , which are shown in more detail in FIG. 5 . The base plates 58 each comprise a rigid metal body 60 which is covered with a thermoplastic elastomer to reduce transmission of vibrations and sound energy. The elastomeric coating defines a peripheral ridge 62 around the front face of the base plate 58 . The base plate 58 includes a pair of shaped apertures adapted to receive therethrough fixing elements (not shown), such as screws.
A pair of cover elements 64 push fit onto the respective mounting brackets 54 , 56 to provide an aesthetically pleasing finish.
To assemble the blind assembly 2 , a sheet of blind fabric (not shown) having the desired length is first secured to the roller tube 4 via one of the fabric receiving slots 8 . The electric motor 20 is then inserted into one end of the roller tube and retained in place via the drive bush 22 and the end cap 36 . The motor mounting plate 24 is secured to the end face of the motor 20 via a pair of screws (not shown) passing through the apertures 34 in the mounting plate 24 . At the other end, the cells 16 , 18 are closed by the idle end cap 38 .
The two mounting brackets 54 , 56 are secured to a suitable support substrate, such as a wall, via respective base plates 58 . The mounting plate 24 is then coupled to its respective mounting bracket 54 such that the locating lugs 28 , 30 are located within the respective apertures in the mounting plate 54 and the support pin of the idle end assembly 52 is located in its mounting bracket 56 . Finally, the two cover elements 64 are press-fitted to their respective mounting brackets 54 , 56 and the motor is connected to its power supply and control assembly.
In use, noise and vibration generated by the motor is suppressed by the cells 16 , 18 and by the octagonal shape of the core 14 , which together help to reduce amplification of the sound waves. In addition, the thermoplastic elastomeric portions 32 on the motor mounting plate 24 and the similar coatings on the end cap 38 and base plates 58 help reduce transmission of the vibrations and associated noise from the roller tube 4 .
Although one specific arrangement of the sound damping elements is shown in FIG. 2 , other arrangements are possible and some examples of alternative arrangements of sound damping elements are shown in FIGS. 6 a to 6 e.
The arrangement shown in FIG. 6 a is similar to that shown in FIG. 2 , except that in FIG. 6 a , the roller tube 104 only includes a single fabric receiving slot 108 . This results in seven large cells 116 and only two small cells 118 surrounding the core 114 .
FIG. 6 b shows an arrangement of T-shaped sound damping elements 210 which define a number of sound channels having an open cell configuration, as there are gaps 211 between the crossbars of adjacent elements 210 .
FIG. 6 c shows an alternating arrangement of Y-shaped damping elements 310 and ribs 313 having a rectangular cross section. Again, as there are gaps 311 between the damping elements 310 and the ribs 313 , the sound channels have an open cell configuration.
FIG. 6 d shows a roller tube 404 which is similar to the tube 104 shown in FIG. 6 a , except that in this embodiment, the end walls 412 of the tube 404 include secondary damping elements in the form of ridges 470 having a sinusoidal profile as shown more clearly in the enlarged section A.
FIG. 6 e shows a roller tube 504 which is similar to the tube 404 shown in FIG. 6 d , but in this embodiment, the secondary damping elements 570 are in the form of ridges having a shallow sawtooth profile, as shown more clearly in the enlarged section B.
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A roller tube comprising a tube body which defines on its outwardly facing surface one or more blind substrate or shutter substrate receiving portions, wherein the tube body includes a plurality of sound damping elements located circumferentially around its inwardly facing surface, the sound damping elements extending longitudinally along at least part of the length of the tube body and defining a plurality of sound channels inside the tube.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to enzyme inhibitors, and more particularly to heterocyclic inhibitors of glycogen synthase kinase 3β, GSK-3.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative process characterised by cognitive disorders associated with a progressive deterioration of the cholinergic function, and neuropathological lesions as senile plaques, formed by the fibrillary β-amyloid, and neurofibrillary tangles, bundles of paired helical filaments.
[0003] Generally speaking, AD is restricted to groups aged 60 years or more and is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly population. Today, AD affects 23 million people worldwide. As longevity increases, it is estimated that by the year 2050 the number of cases of AD will more than triplicate [Amaduci, L.; Fratiglioni, L. “Epidemiology of AD: Impact on the treatment”, in Alzheimer Disease: Therapeutic Strategies , E. Giacobini and R. Becker, Eds., Birhäuser, EEUU, 1994, pp. 8].
[0004] Two major histological lesions are observed in AD brains associated with the neuronal loss: neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques at the intracellular and extracellular level respectively [“Alzheimer Disease: From molecular biology to therapy”, E. Giacobini and R. Becker, Eds., Birhäuser, EEUU, 1996].
[0005] Neurofibrillary tangles are structures formed by paired helical filaments (PHFs). They are comprised mainly of the microtubule-associated protein (MAP) tau in an abnormally hyperphosphorylated state [Grundke-Iqbal, I.; Iqbal, K.; Tung, Y. C.; Quinlan, M.; Wisniewski, H. M.; Binder, L. I., “Abnormal phosphorylation of the microtubule-associated protein tau in Alzheimer cytoskeletal pathology”, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1986, 83, 4913-4917; Grundke-Iqbal, I.; Iqbal, K.; Quinlan, M.; Tung, Y. C.; Zaidi, M. S.; Wisniewski, H. M., “Microtubule-associated protein tau. A component of the Alzheimer paired helical filaments”, J. Biol. Chem., 1986, 261, 6084-6089; Greenberg, S. G.; Davies, P.; Schein, J. D.; Binder, L. I., “Hydrofluoric acid-treated tau PHF proteins display the same biochemical properties as normal tau.”, J. Biol. Chem., 1992, 267, 564-569]. Such aberrant phosphorylation of tau, determined by the effects of different protein kinases and phosphatases, appears to compromise on its ability to bind to and stabilise microtubules and this may contributes to AD pathology [Moreno, F. J.; Medina, M.; Perez, M.; Montejo de Garcini, E.; Avila, J., “Glycogen sintase kinase 3 phosphorylation of different residues in the presence of different factors: Analysis on tau protein”, FEBS Lett., 1995, 372, 65-68]. Thus, the blockade of this hyperphosphorylation step may be a prime target at which to interrupt the pathogenic cascade. The selective inhibitors of tau kinases might be new effective drugs for the treatment of AD.
[0006] The search for tau kinases inhibitors is a field of a great interest. Tau can be phosphorylated by several proline-directed protein kinases (PDKs) and non-PDKs. However, in AD the exact role of any of these kinases in the abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau is not yet understood and to date, the activity of these kinases has not been found to be upregulated. It is no doubt that glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK-3β) is an in vivo tau kinase in the brain [Lovestone, S.; Hartley, C. L.; Pearce, J.; Anderton, B. H., “Phosphorylation of tau by glycogen synthase-3 in intact mammalian cells: the effects on the organization and stability of microtubules”, Neuroscience, 1996, 73, 1145-1157; Wagner, U.; Utton, M.; Gallo, J. M.; Miller, C. C., “Cellular phosphorylation of tau by GSK-3β influences tau binding to microtubules and microtubule organisation”, J. Cell. Sci., 1996, 109, 1537-1543; Ledesma, M.; Moreno, F. J.; Perez, M. M.; Avila, J., “Binding of apolipoprotein E3 to tau protein: effects on tau glycation, tau phosphorylation and tau-microtubule binding, in vitro”, Alzheimer Res., 1996, 2, 85-88]. These findings open the gate to the use of GSK-3β inhibitors as therapeutical agents in the treatment of AD. At the moment few compounds are known with this enzymatic inhibitory property.
[0007] Lithium behaves as a specific inhibitor of the GSK-3 family of protein kinases in vitro and in intact cells Muñoz-Montaño, J. R.; Moreno, F. J.; Avila, J.; Diaz-Nido, J., “Lithium inhibits Alzheimer's disease-like tau protein phosphorylation in neurons”, FEBS Lett., 1997, 411, 183-188].
[0008] Finally, it is observed that insulin inactivates GSK-3 and it is shown that the non-dependent insulin diabetes mellitus is developed with the activation of this enzyme. So that, GSK-3 inhibitors would be a new therapy for the non-dependent insulin diabetes mellitus.
[0009] In our work team we have recently discovered a new family of small synthetic heterocyclic molecules with GSK-3β inhibitory properties at micromolar level.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0010] The invention is directed to the compounds represented by the general formula I:
[0011] where:
A is —C(R 1 ) 2 —, —O— or —NR 1 —; E is —NR 1 — or —CR 1 R 2 — and the substituent R 2 is absent if - - - is a second bond between E and G; G is —S—, —NR 1 — or —CR 1 R 2 — and the substituent R 2 is absent if - - - is a second bond between E and G; - - - may be a second bond between E and G where the nature of E and G permits and E with G optionally then forms a fused aryl group; R 1 and R 2 are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, haloalkyl, aryl, -(Z) n -aryl, heteroaryl, —OR 3 , —C(O)R 3 , —C(O)OR 3 , -(Z) n -C(O)OR 3 and —S(O) t — or as indicated R 2 can be such that E with G then form a fused aryl group; Z is independently selected from —C(R 3 )(R 4 )—, —C(O)—, —O—, —C(═NR 3 )—, —S(O) t —, N(R 3 )—; n is zero, one or two; t is zero, one or two; R 3 and R 4 are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, aryl and heterocyclic; and X and Y are independently selected from ═O, ═S, ═N(R 3 ) and ═C(R 1 )(R 2 ).
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0022] As used in this specification and appended claims, unless specified to the contrary, the following terms have the meaning indicated:
“Alkyl” refers to a straight or branched hydrocarbon chain radical consisting of carbon and hydrogen atoms, containing no saturation, having one to eight carbon atoms, and which is attached to the rest of the molecule by a single bond, e.g., methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, i-propyl, n-butyl, t-butyl, n-pentyl, etc. Alkyl radicals may be optionally substituted by one or more substituents independently selected from the group consisting of a halo, hydroxy, alkoxy, carboxy, cyano, carbonyl, acyl, alkoxycarbonyl, amino, nitro, mercapto and alkylthio. “Alkoxy” refers to a radical of the formula —OR a where R a is an alkyl radical as defined above, e.g., methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, etc. “Alkoxycarbonyl” refers to a radical of the formula —C(O)OR a where R a is an alkyl radical as defined above, e.g., methoxycarbonyl, ethoxycarbonyl, propoxycarbonyl, etc. “Alkylthio” refers to a radical of the formula —SR a where R a is an alkyl radical as defined above, e.g., methylthio, ethylthio, propylthio, etc. “Amino” refers to a radical of the formula —NH 2 . “Aryl” refers to a phenyl or naphthyl radical, preferably a phenyl radical. The aryl radical may be optionally substituted by one or more substituents selected from the group consisting of hydroxy, mercapto, halo, alkyl, phenyl, alkoxy, haloalkyl, nitro, cyano, dialkylamino, aminoalkyl, acyl and alkoxycarbonyl, as defined herein. “Aralkyl” refers to an aryl group linked to an alkyl group. Preferred examples include benzyl and phenethyl. “Acyl” refers to a radical of the formula —C(O)—R c and —C(O)—R d where R c is an alkyl radical as defined above and R d is an aryl radical as defined above, e.g., acetyl, propionyl, benzoyl, and the like. “Aroylalkyl” refers to an alkyl group substituted with —C(O)—R d . Preferred examples include benzoylmethyl. “Carboxy” refers to a radical of the formula —C(O)OH. “Cyano” refers to a radical of the formula —CN “Cycloalkyl” refers to a stable 3- to 10-membered monocyclic or bicyclic radical which is saturated or partially saturated, and which consist solely of carbon and hydrogen atoms. Unless otherwise stated specifically in the specification, the term “cycloalkyl” is meant to include cycloalkyl radicals which are optionally substituted by one or more substituents independently selected from the group consisting of alkyl, halo, hydroxy, amino, cyano, nitro, alkoxy, carboxy and alkoxycarbonyl. “Fused aryl” refers to an aryl group, especially a phenyl or heteroaryl group, fused to the five-membered ring. “Halo” refers to bromo, chloro, iodo or fluoro. “Haloalkyl” refers to an alkyl radical, as defined above, that is substituted by one or more halo radicals, as defined above, e.g., trifluoromethyl, trichloromethyl, 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl, 1-fluoromethyl-2-fluoroethyl, and the like. “Heterocycle” refers to a heterocyclyl radical. The heterocycle refers to a stable 3- to 15-membered ring which consists of carbon atoms and from one to five heteroatoms selected from the group consisting of nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur, preferably a 4- to 8-membered ring with one or more heteroatoms, more preferably a 5- or 6-membered ring with one or more heteroatoms. For the purposes of this invention, the heterocycle may be a monocyclic, bicyclic or tricyclic ring system, which may include fused ring systems; and the nitrogen, carbon or sulfur atoms in the heterocyclyl radical may be optionally oxidised; the nitrogen atom may be optionally quaternized; and the heterocyclyl radical may be partially or fully saturated or aromatic. Examples of such heterocycles include, but are not limited to, azepines, benzimidazole, benzothiazole, furan, isothiazole, imidazole, indole, piperidine, piperazine, purine, quinoline, thiadiazole, tetrahydrofuran. The hetrocycle may be optionally substituted by R 3 and R 4 as defined above in the summary of the invention. “Heteroaryl” refers to an aromatic heterocycle “Mercapto” refers to a radical of the formula —SH “Nitro” refers to a radical of the formula —NO 2
[0042] The invention is in particular directed to the enzymatic activity against kinases of the compounds of the general formula I.
[0043] A is preferably selected from —C(R 1 ) 2 — and —NR 1 —.
[0044] Preferably R 1 is selected from hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, aryl (optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy), —C(R 3 )(R 4 )-aryl (the aryl part being optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy), —OR 3 , —C(O)OR 3 and
[0045] —C(R 3 )(R 4 )—C(O)OR 3 , and R 3 and R 4 are independently selected from hydrogen and alkyl.
[0046] The subscript n is preferably zero or one, and n will be chosen having regard to the known chemistry of possible groupings.
[0047] X and Y are preferably oxygen or sulphur, at least one of X and Y is preferably oxygen.
[0048] A particularly preferred class of compounds is of the formula (II).
[0049] where R a and R b are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, haloalkyl, aryl,
[0050] -(Z) n -aryl, heteroaryl, —OR 3 , —C(O)R 3 , —C(O)OR 3 , -(Z) n -C(O)OR 3 and —S(O) t —, and
[0051] Z, n, t, R 3 , R 4 , X and Y are as defined above.
[0052] In the formula (II), X and Y are preferably selected from oxygen, sulphur, and —NR— where R 3 is heterocyclic, especially a 6-membered heterocycle which has one heteroatom which is nitrogen, being optionally aromatic and optionally oxidised or quaternised. More preferably, both X and Y are both oxygen.
[0053] Preferably. R a and R b are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, aryl (optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy), —C(R 3 )(R 4 )-aryl (the aryl part being optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy),
[0054] —OR 3 , —C(O)OR 3 and —C(R 3 )(R 4 )—C(O)OR 3 , and R 3 and R 4 are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl and heterocyclic.
[0055] More preferably R a and R b are independently selected from alkyl, aryl (optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy), —CH 2 -aryl (the aryl part being optionally substituted with a group selected from alkyl, halo and alkoxy), and —CH 2 —C(O)OR 3 where R 3 is hydrogen or alkyl.
[0056] Still more preferably, R a and R b are independently selected from methyl, ethyl, propyl, benzyl, phenyl (optionally substituted with a group selected from methyl, fluoro, chloro, bromo and methoxy) and —CH 2 —C(O)O-ethyl.
[0057] The most preferred compounds of formula (II) are listed in Table 1 below.
TABLE 1 R a R b X Y CH 2 Ph Me O O Et Me O O Ph Me O O CH 2 CO 2 Et Me O O 4-OMePh Me O O 4-MePh Me O O 4-BrPh Me O O 4-FPh Me O O 4-ClPh Me O O CH 2 Ph CH 2 Ph O S Ph Ph O S
[0058] Another preferred class of compounds of the invention are those compounds of formula (III):
[0059] wherein:
[0060] B is —NR 7 — or C(R 7 )(R 8 )— (wherein R 7 and R 8 are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, aryl, —CH 2 —W-aryl, and —W—CO 2 H, and W is a single bond, CH 2 or CO);
[0061] R 5 and R 6 are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, aryl and —CH 2 -aryl; and
[0062] X and Y are independently selected from ═O and ═S.
[0063] In the formula (III), B is preferably —NR—, wherein R 7 is selected from hydrogen, alkyl and —CH 2 -aryl, especially hydrogen, methyl or benzyl.
[0064] R 5 and R 6 are preferably hydrogen.
[0065] X and Y are preferably oxygen.
[0066] The most preferred compounds of formula (III) are listed in Table 2 below.
TABLE 2 B X Y R 5 R 6 NH O O H H N—CH 2 Ph O O H H NMe O O H H CH 2 O O H H
[0067] Examples of further classes of compounds of formula I include those where:
a) A is —CH 2 —; E is —CR 1 R 2 —, preferably —CH 2 —; G is —CR 1 R 2 —, preferably —CH 2 —; b) A is —CH 2 —; E is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; G is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; and - - - is a second bond between G and E; c) A is —O—; E is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; G is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; and - - - is a second bond between G and E; d) A is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen, alkyl or aralkyl; E is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; G is —CR 1 —, preferably —CH—; and - - - is a second bond between G and E; e) A is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen or aralkyl; E is —CR 1 R 2 —, preferably —CH 2 —; G is —CR 1 R 2 —, preferably —CH 2 —; f) A is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen or aralkyl; E is —CR 1 —; G is —CR 1 13 ; - - - is a second bond between E and G; and E with G form a fused aryl group, preferably a phenyl group; g) A is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen, alkyl, carboxyalkyl, aroylalkyl or aralkyl; E is —S; G is —C(R 1 ) 2 —, preferably —CH 2 —; h) A is —NR 1 , where R 1 is preferably aryl; E is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen or alkyl; G is —NR 1 —, where R 1 is preferably hydrogen or alkyl.
[0076] In these classes of compounds, X and Y are preferably both O, though for class (g) X can be O and Y can be S. When E with G form a fused phenyl group, the resultant compounds are phthalimido derivatives.
[0077] Synthesis of the Compounds of the Invention:
[0078] The compounds of the invention can be synthesised by available procedures. For preferred compounds of formula (II) a general procedure is available [Martinez, A.; Castro, A.; Cardelús, I.; Llenas, J.; Palacios, J. M. Bioorg. Med. Chem., 1997, 5, 1275-1283].
[0079] Concretely, the compounds of general formula (II) and collected in Table I, were prepared following the synthetic procedure depicted in scheme 1, and using the reactivity of N-alkyl-S—[N′-chlorocarbamoyl)amino]isothiocarbamoyl chlorides with different alkyl isocyanates. The isothiocyanates chlorination is performed by addition of an equimolecular quantity of chlorine over an hexane solution of the mentioned isothiocyanate at −15° C. The reaction of the iminochloroalkylsulfenyl chloride formed with alkyl or aryl isocyanate under inert atmosphere and subsequent hydrolysis, yielded the thiadiazolidinediones described in table I.
[0080] The typical compounds of this invention selectively inhibit GSK-3β without inhibition of others protein kinases such as PKA, PKC, CK-2 and CdK2, which could eliminate the widespread effects. GSK-3β is involved in the aetiopathogenesis of AD and it is responsible for the abnormal hyperphosphorylation of the tau protein. The selective inhibitors here disclosed can be useful therapeutical agents for the treatment of neurodegeneratives diseases associated to the pathology of tau protein, specially for AD which forms part of this invention. The inhibitory action of these compounds against GSK-3β leads for the design of drugs able to stop the formation of the neurofibrilar tangles, one of the hallmark present in this neurodegenerative process.
[0081] These compounds can be useful for the treatment of other pathologies in which the GSK-3β is involved, such as non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.
[0082] Additionally, these compounds can be useful for the treatment of hyperproliferative diseases such as displasias and metaplasias of different tissues, psoriasis, artherioschlerosis, resthenosis and cancer, due to their inhibition of cellular cycle which forms part of this invention.
[0083] Accordingly, the present invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising a compound of this invention together with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or diluent. Appropriate dosage forms and dosing rates can be devised and adopted in accordance with conventional practice.
EXAMPLES
Example 1
Enzymatic Inhibition of the Compounds of the Invention
[0084] GSK-3β inhibition: The GSK-3 activity was determined by incubation of a mixture of GSK-3 enzyme (Sigma), a phosphate source and a GSK-3 substrate in the presence and in the absence of the corresponding test compound, and by measuring the GSK-3 activity of this mixture.
[0085] Concretely, the GSK-3 activity is determined by incubating the enzyme at 37° C. during 20 minutes in a final volume of 12 μl of buffer (50 mM tris, pH=7.5, 1 mM EDTA, 1 mM EGTA, 1 mM DTT, 10 mM Cl 2 Mg) supplemented with 15 μM (final concentration) of the synthetic peptide GS 1 [Woodgett, J. R. “Use of peptides for affinity purification of protein-serine kinases”, Anal. Biochem., 1989, 180, 237-241] as substrate, 15 μM of ATP, 0.2 μC i of [γ- 32 P]ATP and different concentrations of the test compound. The reaction is quenched by addition of an aliquot of the reaction mixture in phosphocelullose p81 papers. These papers are washed three times with phosphoric acid 1% and the radioactivity incorporated to the GS 1 peptide is measured in a liquid scintillation counter.
[0086] Compounds showed in table 1 are representative of the GSK-3 inhibitory activity object of this invention. The IC 50 (concentration at which a 50% of enzyme inhibition is shown) values are gathered in Table 3 below. The synthesis of the compounds listed in Table 3 is described below.
TABLE 3 (II) Com- pound IC 50 No. R a R b X Y (μM) 1 CH 2 Ph Me O O 1 2 Et Me O O 5 3 Et nPr O O 10 4 Et cyclohexyl O O 10 5 Ph Me O O 2 6 CH 2 CO 2 Et Me O O 5 7 4-OMePh Me O O 5 8 CH 2 Ph Et O O 7 9 Et iPr O O 35 10 CH 2 Ph Et O S 6 11 CH 2 Ph CH 2 Ph O S 10 12 Ph Ph O S 20 13 Et Et O S 20 14 Cyclohexyl Me O O >100 15 4-MePh Me O O 5 16 4-BrPh Me O O 3 17 4-FPh Me O O 4 18 4-ClPh Me O O 4 19 Et Me O >100 20 Et Et O >100 21 Et H O >100 22 Me Me O >100 23 Et Me O >100 24 Et Me O >100 25 Et Me O >100 26 Et Me S 10
[0087] Method for the Synthesis of the Compounds Depicted in Table 3
General Method for the Synthesis of 1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-3,5-diones (Compounds 1-18)
[0088] Chlorine generated by the addition of 35% HCl to KMnO 4 ) was bubbled slowly through a solution of aryl or alkyl isothiocyanate in dry hexane (25 ml), under a nitrogen atmosphere, at −15° C. to −10° C. The temperature of the reaction mixture was carefully controlled during the addition step. At this point, the N-aryl or N-alkyl-S-chloroisothiocarbamoyl chloride (see Scheme 1 above) was formed. Afterwards, alkyl isocyanate was added, and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for between 8 and 10 h. After this time, the resulting product was purified by suction filtration and recrystallization or silica gel column chromatography using the appropriate eluant. Sometimes, the 5-oxo-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3-thione was isolated as a by-product.
[0089] Specific Methods and Data for the Compounds Listed in Table 3
4-Benzyl-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 1) and 2,4-Dibenzyl-5-oxo-thiadiazolidine-3-thione (Compound 11)
[0090] Reagents: Benzyl iso-thiocyanate (0.86 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0091] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0092] Isolation (1): filtration of reaction mixture.
[0093] Purification: recrystallization from hexane.
[0094] Yield: 0.75 g (35%) as white solid; mp 60-61° C.
[0095] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.2 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 4.8 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Bn); 7.31-7.45 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0096] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.4 (CH 3 ); 46.0 (CH 2 -Bn) 128.2; 128.6; 128.8; 135.1 (C arom.); 155.2 (3-C═O); 165.6 (5-C═O)
[0097] Anal. (C 10 H 10 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
[0098] Isolation (11): The filtrate was evaporated.
[0099] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (1:1).
[0100] Yield: 0.08 g (8%) as yellow solid; mp 91-95° C.
[0101] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 4.52 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Bn); 5.10 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Bn); 7.31-7.52 (m, 10H, arom.).
[0102] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 50.1 (CH 2 -Bn); 54.3 (CH 2 -Bn); 128.1; 128.4; 128.9; 135.4 (C arom.); 127.1; 127.4; 128.4; 138.6 ('C arom.); 148.1 (3-C═S); 169.0 (5-C═O)
[0103] Anal. (C 16 H 14 N 2 S 2 O) C, H, N, S.
4-Ethyl-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 2)
[0104] Synthesis of this compound is described in Martinez, A.; Alonso, D.; Castro, A.; Arán, J. V.; Cardelus, I.; Baños, J. E.; Badía, A., Arch. Pharm. Pharm. Med. Chem., 1999, 332, 191-194, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
4-Ethyl-2-n-propyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 3)
[0105] Synthesis of this compound is described in Martinez, A.; Alonso, D.; Castro, A.; Arán, J. V.; Cardelus, I.; Baños, J. E.; Badía, A., Arch. Pharm. Pharm. Med. Chem., 1999, 332, 191-194; the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
2-Cyclohexyl-4-ethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 4) and 2,4-diethyl-5-oxo-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 13)
[0106] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanate (0.56 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), cyclohexyl isocyanate (0.825 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0107] Conditions: Room Temperature, 10 h.
[0108] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:10).
[0109] Yield: The first fraction 0.12 g of compound 4 (2%) as yellow oil.
[0110] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.20 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 1.31 (t, 3H, CH 2 'CH 3 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.33 (c, 2H, 'CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.89 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz). 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 12.2 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 15.7 (CH 2 'CH 3 ); 42.4 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 45.8 ('CH 2 CH 3 ); 146.3 (3-C═S); 168.2 (5-C═O).
[0111] Anal. (C 6 H 10 N 2 OS 2 ) C, H, N, S.
[0112] The second fraction 0.73 mg of compound 13 as white solid (49%); mp=45-48° C.
[0113] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.20 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 1.31-1.92 (m, 5H, chex); 3.72 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz).
[0114] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.0 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 39.8 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 24.7; 25.1; 31.73; 53.71(C chex); 152.2 (3-C═O); 166.2 (5-C═O)
[0115] Anal. (C 10 H 16 N 2 O 2 S) C, H, N, S.
4-Phenyl-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-3,5-dione (Compound 5) and 2,4-diphenyl-5-oxo-thiadiazolidine-3-thione (Compound 12)
[0116] Reagents: Phenyl isothiocyanate (0.78 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0117] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0118] Isolation (5): filtration of reaction mixture.
[0119] Purification: recrystallization from methanol.
[0120] Yield: 0.25 g (30%) as white solid; mp 174-179° C.
[0121] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.21 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 7.31-7.50 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0122] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.7 (CH 3 ); 127.2; 129.2; 129.4; 132.7 (C arom.); 152.7 (3-C═O); 165.3 (5-C═O).
[0123] Anal. (C 8 H 8 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
[0124] Isolation (12): The filtrate was evaporated.
[0125] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using CH 2 Cl 2 .
[0126] Yield: 0.14 g (15%) as yellow solid; mp 105-110° C.
[0127] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 6.70-7.01 (m, 5H, arom); 7.12-7.33 (m, 5H, 'arom.).
[0128] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 127.2; 128.6; 129.4; 132.7 (C arom.); 128.7; 129.2; 129.7; 146.7 ('C arom.); 152.4 (3-C═S); 169.3 (5-C═O).
[0129] Anal. (C 14 H 10 N 2 S 2 O) C, H, N, S.
[0130] The synthesis of compound 5 by a different synthetic route is described in Slomezynska, U.; Barany, G., J. Heterocyclic. Chem., 1984, 21, 241, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
4-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 6)
[0131] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0132] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0133] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0134] Purification: recrystallization from hexane.
[0135] Yield 0.28 g (20%) as white solid; mp 67-69° C.
[0136] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.2 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 4.2 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 )
[0137] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 14.0 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 31.5 (CH 3 ); 42.7 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.1 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 152.6 (3-C═O); 166.4 (5-C═O); 166.4 (CO 2 ).
[0138] Anal. (C 7 H 10 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
4-(4-Methoxyphenyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 7)
[0139] Reagents: 4-methoxyphenyl isothiocyanate (0.89 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0140] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0141] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0142] Purification: recrystallization from CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane.
[0143] Yield: 0.44 g (30%) as white solid; mp 140-144° C.
[0144] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.31 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 3.80 (s, 3 H, p-CH 3 O-Ph); 7.02-7.32 (m, 4H, arom.).
[0145] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.7 (CH 3 ); 55.5 (p-CH 3 O-Ph); 114.7; 125.3; 128.5; 159.9 (C arom.); 152.9 (3-C═O); 165.5 (5-C═O).
[0146] Anal. (C 10 H 10 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Benzyl-2-ethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 8)
[0147] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.86 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0148] Conditions: Room temperature, 10 h. Purification: silica gel column chromatography using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (1:1) and CCTLC using CH 2 Cl 2 .
[0149] Yield: 0.39 g (25%) as yellow oil.
[0150] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.22 (t, 3H, CH 2 'CH 3 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.7 (c, 2H, 'CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.2 Hz); 4.8 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Bn); 7.32-7.44 (m, 5H, arom.)
[0151] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.7 (CH 2 'CH 3 ); 39.9 ('CH 2 CH 3 ); 45.8 (CH 2 -Bn); 128.1; 128.6; 128.8; 135.1 (C arom.); 152.6 (3-C═O); 165.9 (5-C═O).
[0152] Anal. (C 11 H 12 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Ethyl-2-isopropyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-3,5-dione (Compound 9)
[0153] Synthesis of this compound is described in: Martinez, A.; Castro, A.; Cardelús, I.; Llenas, J.; Palacios, J. M., Bioorg. Med. Chem., 1997, 5, 1275-1283, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
4-Benzyl-2-ethyl-5-oxo-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3-thione (Compound 10)
[0154] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.86 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isothiocyanate (0.57 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0155] Conditions: Room temperature, 12 h.
[0156] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0157] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (1:2) first and preparative thin layer chromatography using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (1:10) after.
[0158] Yield: 0.04 g (3%) as yellow oil.
[0159] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.2 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.0 Hz); 4.25 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.0 Hz); 4.5 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Bn); 7.11-7.31 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0160] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 11.2 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 46.1 (CH 2 -Bn); 56.2 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 127.2; 127.3; 128.6; 138.3 (C arom.); 154.3 (3-C═S); 168.7 (5-C═O).
[0161] Anal. (C 11 H 12 N 2 S 2 O) C, H, N, S.
4-(4-Methylphenyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 15)
[0162] Reagents: 4-Methylphenyl isothiocyanate (0.88 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0163] Conditions: Room temperature, 6 h.
[0164] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0165] Purification: recrystallization from CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane.
[0166] Yield: 0.29 g (21%) as white solid; mp 182-184° C.
[0167] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 2.4 (s, 3 H, p-CH 3 -Ph); 3.25 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 7.20-7.34 (m, 4H, arom.).
[0168] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 21.1 (p-CH 3 -Ph); 31.7 (CH 3 ); 126.7; 130.0; 130.3; 139.3 (C arom.); 152.9 (3-C═O); 165.3 (5-C═O).
[0169] Anal. (C 10 H 10 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
4-(4-Bromophenyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 16)
[0170] Reagents: 4-Bromophenyl isothiocyanate (1.4 g, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0171] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0172] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0173] Purification: recrystallization from hexane/CH 2 Cl 2 .
[0174] Yield: 0.32 g (20%) as white solid; mp 182-184° C.
[0175] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.25 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 7.25-7.61 (2 d, 4H, arom., J=8.6 Hz).
[0176] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.6 (CH 3 ); 123.0; 128.6; 131.6; 132.5 (C arom.); 153.4 (3-C═O); 165.7 (5-C═O).
[0177] Anal. (C 9 H 7 N 2 SO 2 Br) C, H, N, S.
4-(4-Fluorophenyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 17)
[0178] Reagents: 4-Fluorophenyl isothiocyanate (1.1 g, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0179] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0180] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0181] Purification: recrystallization from ethanol.
[0182] Yield: 0.37 g (25%) as white solid; mp 178-180° C.
[0183] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.25 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 7.13-7.36 (m, 4H, arom.).
[0184] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.7 (CH 3 ); 116.3; 129.1; 160.9; 164.2 (C arom.); 152.5 (3-C═O); 165.2 (5-C═O).
[0185] Anal. (C 9 H 7 N 2 SO 2 F) C, H, N, S.
4-(4-Chlorophenyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 18)
[0186] Reagents: 4-Chlorophenyl isothiocyanate (1.1 g, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0187] Conditions: Room temperature, 6 h.
[0188] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0189] Purification: recrystallization from ethanol.
[0190] Yield: 0.47 g (30%) as white solid; mp 175-178° C.
[0191] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.25 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 7.32-7.44 (2 d, 4H, arom., J=8.9 Hz).
[0192] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 31.7 (CH 3 ); 128.4; 129.6; 131.2; 135.1 (C arom.); 152.3 (3-C═O); 165.0 (5-C═O).
[0193] Anal. (C 9 H 7 N 2 SO 2 Cl) C, H, N, S.
Synthesis of 5-(2-pyridylimino)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-3-ones (Compounds 19-22 and 26)
[0194] A general method for the synthesis of these compounds is described in Martinez, A.; Castro, A.; Cardelús, I.; Llenas, J.; Palacios, J. M., Bioorg. Med. Chem., 1997, 5, 1275-1283, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
3-(4-Ethyl-3-oxo-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-5-ylidine)aminopyridine-1-oxide (Compound 23)
[0195] A general method for the synthesis of this compound is described in Martinez, A.; Alonso, D.; Castro, A.; Arán, J. V.; Cardelus, I.; Baños, J. E.; Badía, A., Arch. Pharm. Pharm. Med. Chem., 1999, 332, 191-194, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
3-[5-(4-Ethyl-2-methyl-3-oxo)imino-1,2,4-thiadiazolidyl]-1-methyl-pyridinium iodide (Compound 24)
[0196] A general method for the synthesis of this compound is described in Martinez, A.; Alonso, D.; Castro, A.; Gutierrez-Puebla, E.; Baños, J. E.; Badia, A., Eur. J. Org. Chem., 2000, 675-680., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
4-Ethyl-5-[imino-(1-methyl-piperidin-3-yl)]-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidin-3-one (Compound 25)
[0197] A general method for the synthesis of this compound is described in Martinez, A.; Alonso, D.; Castro, A.; Gutierrez-Puebla, E.; Baños, J. E.; Badia, A., Eur. J. Org. Chem., 2000, 675-680, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
[0198] Further compounds of formula (II) have been synthesised and their GSK-3 inhibition tested. These compounds are listed in Table 3a below.
TABLE 3a (II) Com- pound IC 50 No. R a R b X Y (μM) Ref. 27 Et Et O O 25 JMC, JHC 28 Et Et O S 20 JMC 29 Bn Bn O O 10 JMC, JHC 30 CH 2 CO 2 Et Et O O 10 below 31 CH 2 Ph COPh O O 3 below 32 Ph Et O NH 65 JMC 33 CH 2 Ph CH 2 CO 2 Et O O 4 below 34 4-CF 3 Ph Me O O 6 JMC 35 n-Bu Et O O 7 JMC 36 CH 2 Ph Et O N—OH 6 below 37 3-BrPh Me O O 4 JMC 38 2-BrPh Me O O 6 JMC 39 Ph Et O NCONHEt 75 JMC 40 Ph CO 2 Et S NCO 2 Et >10 JMC 41 CH 2 CH 2 Ph Et O O 8 below 42 CH 2 Ph H O O 50 below 43 Ph Et O O 6 ACIE 44 CH 2 CO 2 Et CH 2 CO 2 Et O O 4 below 45 CH 2 CO 2 Et Me O O 2 below 46 CH 2 CO 2 Et iPr O O 7 below 47 CH 2 CO 2 Et Bz O O 4 below 48 Naphthyl Me O O 3 JMC 49 4-NO 2 -Ph Et O O 8.5 below 50 Ph Et O N—OH 100 below 51 CH 2 Ph iPr O O 10 below 52 Ph Ph O O 8 ACIE 53 4-MeOPh Et O O below 54 4-MePh Et O O below 55 4-BrPh Et O O below
[0199] The synthesis of the known compounds depicted in Table 3a is described in the following publications, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto:
[0200] JMC: Martinez, A; Alonso, M.; Castro, A.; Perez, C.; Moreno, F. J. J. Med. Chem. ( 2002) 2-1299.
[0201] JHC: J. Heterocyclic Chem. (1984) 21:241.
[0202] ACIE: Angew Chem. Int. Ed. (1966) 5:672.
[0203] The synthesis of the new compounds depicted in Table 3a is described below.
4-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-2-ethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 30)
[0204] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0205] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0206] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0207] Purification: recrystallization from hexane.
[0208] Yield 0.52 g (34%) as white solid; mp 62-63° C.
[0209] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.7 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.2 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0210] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.7 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 14.0 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 40.1 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 42.6 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.1 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 152.0 (3-C═O); 165.7 (5-C═O); 166.4 CO 2 ).
[0211] Anal. (C 8 H 12 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Benzoyl-4-benzyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 31)
[0212] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.86 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), benzoyl isocyanate (0.81 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0213] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0214] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0215] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:10).
[0216] Yield: 0.2 g (10%) as white solid.
[0217] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 4.8 (s, 2H, CH 2 -Ph); 7.3-7.7 (m, 10H, arom.).
[0218] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 45.9 (CH 2 -Ph); 127.9; 128.5; 128.8; 129.0; 129.2; 132.9; 134.3 (C arom); 149.0 (3-C═O); 164.7 (COPh); 166.5 (5-C═O).
[0219] Anal. (C 16 H 12 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Benzyl-2-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 33)
[0220] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.86 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), Ethyl isocyanatoacetate (0.73 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0221] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0222] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0223] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:6).
[0224] Yield: 0.75 g (39%) as colorless oil.
[0225] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.25 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.21 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.30 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 4.8 (s, CH 2 -Ph; 7.3-7.5 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0226] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.7 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 45.3 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 45.7 (CH 2 -Ph); 127.3; 128.3; 128.4; 134.7 (C arom.); 153.3 (3-C═O); 165.7 (5-C═O); 166.8 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0227] Anal. (C 13 H 14 N 2 SO 4 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Benzyl-2-ethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3-one-5-oxime (Compound 36)
[0228] Reagents: 5-chloro-4-benzyl-2-ethyl-3-oxo-1,2,4-thiadiazolium chloride (1.24 g, 4.5 mmol), hydroxylamine hydrochloride (0.35 g, 5 mmol), pyridine (0.8 ml, 10 mmol).
[0229] Conditions: Room temperature, 12 h.
[0230] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0231] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:6).
[0232] Yield: 0.10 g (9%) as yellow oil.
[0233] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.22 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.60 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.78 (s, 2H, CH 2 Ph); 6.57 (s, 1H, N—OH); 7.24-7.40 (m, 5H, arom).
[0234] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.5 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 40.2 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 46.9 (CH 2 Ph); 127.8; 128.4; 128.5; 135.2 (C arom.); 152.2 (3-C═O); 154.6 (5-C═NOH).
[0235] Anal. (C 11 H 13 N 3 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Ethyl-4-phenethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 41)
[0236] Reagents: phenethyl isothiocyanate (0.97 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0237] Conditions: Room temperature, 10 h.
[0238] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0239] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:6).
[0240] Yield: 0.26 g (16%) as yellow oil.
[0241] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.22 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 2.95 (m, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 3.63 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.89 (m, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 7.20-7.29 (m, 5H, arom).
[0242] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.6 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 33.6 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 39.9 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 43.5 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 126.6; 128.5; 128.8; 137.3 (C arom.); 152.7 (3-C═O); 165.7 (5-C═O)
[0243] Anal. (C 12 H 14 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Benzyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 42)
[0244] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.81 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanatoformate (0.69 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0245] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0246] Isolation: Deprotection in situ of the nitrogen with acid conditions.
[0247] Purification: preparative centrifugal circular thin layer chromatography (CCTLC) using CH 2 Cl 2 .
[0248] Yield: 0.01 g (1%) as colourless oil.
[0249] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 Ph); 6.1 (br, NH); 7.1-7.3 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0250] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 51.1 (CH 2 Ph); 127.1; 128.3; 129.2; 139.6 (C arom.); 152.1 (3-C═O); 165.6 (5-C═O).
[0251] Anal. (C 9 H 8 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
4-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-2-(ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 44)
[0252] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanatoacetate (0.73 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0253] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0254] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0255] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:3).
[0256] Yield: 0.90 g (48%) as white solid; mp. 72-74° C.
[0257] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.25 (t, 3H, 'CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 1.26 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.18 (c, 2H, 'CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.20 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1); 4.3 (s, 2H, 'CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0258] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 14.0 ('CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 14.0 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 42.7 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 45.6 ('CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.1 ('CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.1 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 153.0 (3-C═O); 165.7 (5-C═O); 166.1 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 166.8 ('CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0259] Anal. (C 10 H 14 N 2 SO 6 ) C, H, N, S.
4-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 45)
[0260] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), methyl isocyanate (0.38 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0261] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0262] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0263] Purification: recrystallization from hexane.
[0264] Yield 0.28 g (20%) as white solid; mp 67-69° C.
[0265] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.2 (s, 3H, CH 3 ); 4.2 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0266] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 14.0 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 31.5 (CH 3 ); 42.7 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.1 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 152.6 (3-C═O); 166.4 (5-C═O); 166.4 (CO 2 ).
[0267] Anal. (C 7 H 10 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
4-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-2-isopropyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 46)
[0268] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), isopropyl isocyanate (0.64 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0269] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0270] Isolation: filtration of reaction mixture.
[0271] Purification: recrystallization from hexane.
[0272] Yield: 0.48 g (30%) as white solid; mp 80-82° C.
[0273] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 1.3 (d, 6H, CH(CH 3 ) 2 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.8 (sp, 1H, CH(CH 3 ) 2 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.1 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.4 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ).
[0274] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.6 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 20.1(CHCH 3 CH 3 ); 45.1 (CHCH 3 CH 3 ); 48.2 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 59.2 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 153.0 (3-C═O); 165.6 (5-C═O); 167.3 (CO 2 ).
[0275] Anal. (C 9 H 14 N 2 SO 4 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Benzoyl-4-(ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 47)
[0276] Reagents: Ethyl isothiocyanatoacetate (0.8 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), benzoyl isocyanate (0.81 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0277] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0278] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0279] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:5).
[0280] Yield: 0.07 g (4%) as colorless oil.
[0281] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.26 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.2 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.4 (s, 2 H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 7.4-7.7 (m, 5H, arom).
[0282] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.9 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 42.3 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 62.4 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 127.9; 129.2; 131.7; 133.1 (C arom); 148.6 (3-C═O); 164.4 (5-C═O); 166.4 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 165.7(CO-Ph).
[0283] Anal. (C 13 H 12 N 2 SO 5 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Ethyl-4-(4-nitrophenyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 49)
[0284] Reagents: 4-nitrophenyl isothiocyanate (1.17 g, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol) in THF.
[0285] Conditions: Room temperature, 10 h.
[0286] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0287] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0288] Yield: 0.26 g (11%) as yellow solid; mp. 117-118° C.
[0289] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.34 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.77 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 7.6-8.4 (m, 5H, arom).
[0290] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.6 (CH 2 CH 3 ; 40.3 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 124.3; 127.6; 137.9; 147.1 (C arom.); 150.9 (3-C═O); 164.8 (5-C═O).
[0291] Anal. (C 10 H 9 N 3 SO 4 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Ethyl-4-phenyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3-one-5-oxime (Compound 50)
[0292] Reagents: 5-chloro-4-phenyl-2-ethyl-3-oxo-1,2,4-thiadiazolium chloride (1.24 g, 4.5 mmol), hydroxylamine hydrochloride (0.35 g, 5 mmol), pyridine (0.8 ml, 10 mmol).
[0293] Conditions: Room temperature, 12 h.
[0294] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0295] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4) first, and then preparative centrifugal circular thin layer chromatography (CCTLC) using AcOEt/Hexane (1:3).
[0296] Yield: 0.13 g (12%) as yellow solid; mp. 115-117° C.
[0297] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.28 (t, 3H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 3.64 (c, 2H, CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 6.65 (s, 1H, N—OH); 7.24-7.50 (m, 5H, arom).
[0298] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.4 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 40.2 (CH 2 CH 3 ); 127.0; 128.6; 129.2; 133.8 (C arom.); 152.4 (3-C═O); 153.5 (5-C═NOH).
[0299] Anal. (C 10 H 11 N 3 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
4-Benzyl-2-isopropyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 51)
[0300] Reagents: Benzyl isothiocyanate (0.81 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), isopropyl isocyanate (0.64 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0301] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0302] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0303] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:3).
[0304] Yield: 0.50 g ( 31%) as yellow oil.
[0305] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.2 (d, 6H, CH(CH 3 ) 2 , J=6.6 Hz); 4.7 (sp, 1H, CH(CH 3 ) 2 , J=6.6 Hz); 4.8 (s, 2H, CH 2 Ph); 7.2-7.4 (m, 5H, arom.).
[0306] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 21.2 ((CH 3 ) 2 CH); 45.5 (CH(CH 3 ) 2 ); 47.0 (CH 2 Ph); 127.8; 128.4; 128.5; 135.0 (C arom.); 151.9 (3-C═O); 165.8 (5-C═O).
[0307] Anal. (C 12 H 14 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Ethyl-4-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 53)
[0308] Reagents: 4-Methoxyphenyl isothiocyanate (0.89 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0309] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0310] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0311] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0312] Yield: 0.344 g (21%) as white solid.
[0313] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.2 (t, 3H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.6 (c, 2H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.7 (s, 3 H, p-CH 3 O-Ph); 6.9-7.2 (2d, 4H, arom., J=9.4 Hz).
[0314] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 14.2 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 40.6 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 55.8 (p-CH 3 O-Ph); 114.7; 125.6; 128.7; 159.9 (C arom.); 152.4 (3-C═O); 165.8 (5-C═O).
[0315] Anal. (C 11 H 12 N 2 SO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
2-Ethyl-4-(4-methylphenyl)-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 54)
[0316] Reagents: 4-Methylphenyl isothiocyanate (0.88 ml, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0317] Conditions: Room temperature, 8 h.
[0318] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0319] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0320] Yield: 0.37 g (25%) as white solid.
[0321] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.3 Hz); 2.4 (s, 3 H, p-CH 3 -Ph); 3.7 (c, 2H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.3 Hz); 7.20-7.34 (m, 4H, arom.).
[0322] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.9 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 21.3 (p-CH 3 -Ph); 40.3 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 126.8; 129.8; 129.9; 139.1 (C arom.); 152.0 (3-C═O); 165.4 (5-C═O).
[0323] Anal. (C 11 H 12 N 2 SO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
(4-Bromophenyl)-2-ethyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (Compound 55)
[0324] Reagents: 4-Bromophenyl isothiocyanate (1.4 g, 6.5 mmol), 35% HCl (3.1 ml), KMnO 4 (0.5 g), ethyl isocyanate (0.51 ml, 6.5 mmol).
[0325] Conditions: Room temperature, 9 h.
[0326] Isolation: solvent evaporation.
[0327] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0328] Yield: 0.256 g (13%) as white solid.
[0329] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.3 (t, 3H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.2 Hz); 3.7 (c, 2H, CH 3 CH 2 , J=7.2 Hz); 7.3-7.6 (2 d, 4H, arom., J=8.8 Hz).
[0330] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.8 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 40.4 (CH 3 CH 2 ); 122.9; 128.5; 131.5; 132.3 (C arom.); 151.4 (3-C═O); 164.9 (5-C═O).
[0331] Anal. (C 10 H 9 N 2 SO 2 Br) C, H, N, S.
[0332] GSK-3 inhibition: The experiments of inhibition were also performed at variable concentrations of ATP (up to 50 μM) and in all cases the same value of IC 50 were obtained. Thus could suggest that thiadiazolinediones do not compete with ATP in the binding to GSK-3.
[0333] The first four compounds were assayed for inhibition of other enzymes.
[0334] Protein kinase A (PKA) inhibition: The potential inhibition of this enzyme is evaluated by determining the esthatmine phosphorylation by the protein kinase A (PKA). The esthatmine was purified following the procedure described by Belmont and Mitchinson (Belmont, L. D.; Mitchinson, T. J. “Identification of a protein that interact with tubulin dimers and increases the catastrophe rate of microtubule”, Cell, 1996, 84, 623-631).
[0335] Concretely, it was used purified PKA (Sigma, catalytic subunit from bovine heart (p 2645)) and 10-15 μg of substrate (esthatmine) in a 25 μl total volume of buffer solution containing 20 μM (γ- 32 P)ATP. The cAMP kinase protein (100 ng/reaction) was performed in 50 μl of 25 mM hepes, pH 7.4, 20 mM MgCl 2 , 2 mM EGTA, 2 mM dithiothreitol, 0.5 mM Na 3 VO 4 . After the reaction took place, a quenching buffer was added, the reaction mixture was boiled at 100° C. during 5 minutes and the phosphorylated protein was characterized by gel electrophoresys and quantified by autoradiographia.
[0336] In these conditions none of the compounds assayed showed any inhibition of PKA.
[0337] Protein kinase C (PKC) inhibition: The potential inhibition of this enzyme is evaluated by determining the phosphorylation of the peptide PANKTPPKSPGEPAK (Woodgett, J. R. “Use of peptides for affinity purification of protein-serine kinases”, Anal. Biochem., 1989, 180, 237-241) by the protein kinase C (PKC) using phosphatidyl serine as stimulating agent. The method followed is the same described above for GSK-3.
[0338] Concretely, it was used PKC purified from rat brains following the method described by Walsh (Walsh, M. P.; Valentine, K. A.; Nagi, P. K.; Corruthers, C. A.; Hollenberg, M. D. Biochem. J., 1984, 224, 117-127) and 1-10 mM of substrate in a total volume of 25 μl of adecuated buffer solution containing 10 μM (γ- 32 P)ATP.
[0339] In these conditions none of the compounds assayed showed any inhibition of PKC.
[0340] Casein kinase 2 (CK-2) inhibition: The phosphorylating activity of this enzyme against esthatmine has been measured using CK-2 purified from bovine brains, following the method described by Alcazar (Alcazar, A.; Marín, E.; Lopez-Fando, J.; Salina, M. “An improved purification procedure and properties of casein kinase II from brain”, Neurochem. Res., 1988, 13, 829-836), with 3.6 μM of substrate in a total volume of 25 μl of an adequate buffer solution containing 20 μM (γ- 32 P)ATP. The CK-2 assays were performed with esthatmine as substrate (see PKA determination) in 50 μl of 25 mM Hepes, pH 7.4, 20 mM MgCl 2 , 2 mM EGTA, 2 mM dithiothreitol, 0.5 mM Na 3 VO 4 , and 100 ng of purified CK-2. After the reaction took place, it was followed the same method described for PKA.
[0341] In these conditions none of the compounds assayed showed any inhibition of CK-2.
[0342] Cyclin dependent protein kinase 2 (Cdc2) inhibition: The phosphorylating activity of this enzyme against histone H1 has been measured using Cdc2 (Calbiochem) following the method described by Kobayashi (Kobayashi, H.; Stewart, E.; Poon, R. Y.; Hunt, T. “Cyclin A and cyclin B dissociate from p34cdc2 with half-times of 4 and 15 h, respectively, regardless of the phase of the cell cycle”, J. Biol. Chem., 1994, 269, 29153-29160), with 1 μg/μl of substrate in a total volume of 25 μl of the adequate buffer solution containing 20 μM (γ- 32 P)ATP. The Cdc2 assays were performed with histone H1 as substrate (see PKA determination) in 50 μl of buffer pH 7.5, 50 mM Tris-HCl, 10 mM Cl 2 Mg, 1 mM DTT, 1 mM EGTA, 100 μM ATP, 0.01% BRIJ-35. After the reaction took place, it was followed the same method described for PKA.
[0343] In these conditions none of the compounds assayed showed any inhibition of Cdc2.
Example 2
Analysis of the Neurites Growth After the Drug Treatment
[0344] Cells were maintained in a Dulbecco medium (DEMEM) with a 10% fethal bovine serum, glutamine (2 mM) and antibiotics. For the analysis of the potential GSK-3 inhibition in vivo, mice neuroblastoms N 2 A cultures (Garcia-Perez, J.; Avila, J.; Diaz-Nido, J. “Lithium induces morphological differentiation of mouse neuroblastoma”, J. Neurol. Res., 1999, 57, 261-270) were used. The test compounds were added to these cells cultures. This cell line has the particularity of expressed a certain kind of neuronal phenotype (neuritic extensions) after the addition of lithium chloride (10 mM), a known GSK-3 inhibitor. After 2-3 days of culture, it was check the effect of the tested compounds gathered in table I. It was observed that the generation of neuritic extension in the same extension than when lithium was added. That fact confirms the in vivo GSK-3 inhibition of the compounds of the invention.
Example 3
Cell Cycle Blockade
[0345] In parallel, the potential interference of these compounds with the cell cycle was studied on N 2 A cells. The cell culture was maintained in a Dulbecco medium (DEMEM) with a 10% fethal bovine serum, glutamine (2 mM) and antibiotics.
[0346] The first four compounds of general formula (I) gathered in Table 3 were assayed in the described conditions and shown ability to inhibit the cell cycle at an inhibitor concentration comprised between 100 nM and 1 μM. The cellular blockade was initially observed at concentrations comprised between 100-200 nM and was totally effective at 1 μM.
[0347] The tested compounds was non toxic in stationary fibroblast culture MRC-5 after 10 days of continue exposure to the inhibitors.
Example 4
GSK-3 Inhibition of Further Compounds
GSK-3 Inhibition Data
[0348]
TABLE 4
Family
Compound
IC 50 (μM)
A
1-A
>100
B
1-B
12
C
1-C
>100
D
R = H (1-D) R = CH 2 Ph (2-D) R = Me (3-D)
6 1 5
E
R = H; X, Y = O (1-E) R = CH 2 Ph; X, Y = O (2-E) R = CH 2 Ph; X = O; Y = H (3-E)
>100 >100 >100
F
R = H (1-F) R = CH 2 Ph (2-F)
>100 >100
G
R = H (1-G) R = Me (2-G) R = CH 2 CO 2 H (3-G) R = CH 2 Ph (4-G) R = CH 2 CH 2 Ph (5-G) R = CH 2 COPh (6-G)
>100 >100 >100 25 35 50
H
R = H (1-H) R = Me (2-H)
>100 >100
[0349] Detailed Synthesis of Some of the Compounds Depicted in Table 4 (Families A-H)
[0350] Synthesis of the Compounds of Family D:
[0351] N-Benzylmaleimide (compound 2-D): described in Walker, M. A., Tetrahedron Lett., 1994, 35, 665-668.
[0352] Synthesis of the Compounds of Family G:
[0353] (4-oxo-2-thioxo-thiazolidin-3-yl)-acetic acid (compound 3-G): Girard, M. L.; Dreux, C., Bull. Soc. Chim. Fr, 1968, 3461-3468.
3-Benzyl-2-thioxo-thiazolidin4-one (Compound 4-G)
[0354] Reagents: Rhodanine (53 mg, 0.4 mmol), triethylamine (0.05 ml) and benzyl bromide (68 mg, 0.4 mmol) in 25 ml of acetone.
[0355] Conditions: Refluxed for 6 h.
[0356] Isolation: Add water and extract with ethyl acetate (3×5 ml).
[0357] Purification: preparative centrifugal circular thin layer chromatography (CCTLC) using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (2:1).
[0358] Yield: 10 mg (10%) as yellow oil.
[0359] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.9 (s, 2H); 5.2 (s, 2H, CH 2 Ph); 7.3-7.4 (m, 5H, arom).
[0360] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 35.4 (CH 2 ); 47.6 (CH 2 Ph); 128.2; 128.6; 129.1; 134.7 (C arom); 153.8 (C═O); 173.8 (C═S).
[0361] Anal. (C 10 H 9 NS 2 O) C, H, N, S.
[0362] An alternative method for the synthesis of this compound is described in J. Parkt. Chem., 1910, 81, 456, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
3-Phenethyl-2-thioxo-thiazolidin-4-one (Compound 5-G)
[0363] Reagents: Rhodanine (133 mg, 1 mmol), triethylamine (0.14 ml) and phenethyl bromide (0.14 ml, 1 mmol) in 25 ml of acetone.
[0364] Conditions: Refluxed for 12 h.
[0365] Isolated: Add water and extract with ethyl acetate (3×10 ml).
[0366] Purification: preparative centrifugal circular thin layer chromatography (CCTLC) using CH 2 Cl 2 /Hexane (2:1).
[0367] Yield: 10 mg (4%) as yellow oil.
[0368] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 2.9 (t, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=8.1), 3.9 (s, 2H); 4.2 (s, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=8.1); 7.4-7.9 (m, 5H, arom).
[0369] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 32.6 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 35.3 (CH 2 ); 45.7 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 126.8; 128.6; 128.6; 137.4 (C arom); 173.5 (C═O); 200.9 (C═S).
[0370] Anal. (C 11 H 11 NS 2 O) C, H, N, S.
[0371] An alternative method for the synthesis of this compound is described in: Buck, Leonard, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1931, 53, 2688-2690, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
3-Phenacyl-2-thioxo-thiazolidin-4-one (Compound 6-G)
[0372] Reagents: Rhodanine (133 mg, 1 mmol), K 2 CO 3 (excess) and acetophenone bromide (199 mg, 1 mmol) in 25 ml of acetone.
[0373] Conditions: Stirred at room temperature for 3 h.
[0374] Isolation: Filtration of the carbonate and evaporation of the solvent to dryness in vacuo.
[0375] Purification: preparative centrifugal circular thin layer chromatography (CCTLC) using CH 2 Cl 2 .
[0376] Yield: 38 mg (15%) as brown oil.
[0377] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.9 (s, 2H); 4.2 (s, 2H, CH 2 COPh); 7.4-7.9 (m, 5H, arom).
[0378] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 37.6 (CH 2 ); 45.3 (CH 2 COPh); 128.6; 128,7; 133.5; 135.3 (C arom); 170.5 (C═O); 194.1 (CH 2 COPh); 197.6 (C═S).
[0379] Anal. (C 11 H 9 NS 2 O 2 ) C, H, N, S.
[0380] Further compounds of formula (III) have been synthesised and their GSK-3 inhibition tested. These compounds are listed in Tables 4a and 4b below.
TABLE 4a This lists further compounds of Family D in Table 4 above, ie those compounds of formula: wherein R is as listed in the Table. Compound No. R GSK-3β IC 50 (μM) 4-D (CH 2 ) 2 Ph 2 5-D (CH 2 ) 3 Ph 3 6-D (CH 2 ) 5 Ph 3 7-D p-OCH 3 —Bn 2.5 8-D p-OCH 3 —(CH 2 ) 2 Ph 3 9-D CH 2 CO 2 Et 3
[0381] General Method for the Synthesis of N-alkyl-maleimides
[0382] This method is described in: Walker, M. A., Tetrahedron Lett., 1995, 35, 665-668, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
[0383] A 50 ml round bottom flask was charged with Ph 3 P to which was added 25 ml of dry THF. The resulting clear solution was cooled to −70° C. under a nitrogen atmosphere. DIAD or DEAD, depending on the case, was added over 2-3 min. The yellow reaction mixture was stirred 5 min after which the corresponding alkyl alcohol was added over 1 min and stirred for 5 min. Maleimide was then added to the reaction mixture as solid. The resulting suspension was allowed to remain at −70° C. for 5 min, during which time most of the maleimide dissolved. The cooling bath was then removed, and the reaction was stirred overnight at ambient temperature. The solvent was evaporated to dryness in vacuo and the residue purified by silica gel column chromatography using as eluant mixtures of solvents in the proportions indicated for each particular case.
[0384] N-phenethylmaleimide (compound 4-D): Walker, M. A., Tetrahedron Lett., 1995, 35, 665-668.
N-(3-phenylpropyl)maleimide (Compound 5-D)
[0385] Reagents: Ph 3 P (0.65 g, 2.5 mmol), DIAD (0.5 ml, 2.5 mmol), 3-phenyl-1-propanol (0.48 ml, 3.75 mmol) and maleimide (0.24 g, 2.5 mmol).
[0386] Conditions: Room temperature, overnight.
[0387] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0388] Yield: 0.20 g (37%) as white solid; mp 79-80° C.
[0389] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.92 (q, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=7.1 Hz); 2.60 (t, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=7.1 Hz); 3.55 (t, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=7.1 Hz); 6.27 (d, 2H, CH═CH, J=6.4 Hz); 7.12-7.28 (m, 5H, arom).
[0390] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 29.6 (CH 2− CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 32.8 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 37.4 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 125.8; 128.1; 128.2; 140.7 (C arom); 133.7 (C═C); 170.6 (C═O)
[0391] Anal. (C 13 H 13 NO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
N-(5-phenylpentyl)maleimide (Compound 6-D)
[0392] Reagents: Ph 3 P (0.65 g, 2.5 mmol), DIAD (0.5 ml, 2.5 mmol), 5-phenyl-1-pentanol (0.63 ml, 3.75 mmol) and maleimide (0.24 g, 2.5 mmol).
[0393] Conditions: Room temperature, overnight.
[0394] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:4).
[0395] Yield: 0.32 g (52%) as white-yellow solid; mp 49-51° C.
[0396] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.20-138 (m, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 Ph); 1.52-2.02 (m, 4H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 2.57 (t, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 Ph, J=7.3 Hz); 3.5 (t, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph, J=7.3 Hz); 6.65 (d, 2H, CH═CH, J=6.4 Hz); 7.11-7.28 (m, 5H, arom).
[0397] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 25.9 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 28.0 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 30.6 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 Ph); 35.4 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2− CH 2 Ph); 37.3 (CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 125.4; 127.9; 128.0; 142.0 (C arom); 133.6 (C═C); 170.5 (C═O)
[0398] Anal. (C 15 H 17 NO 2 ) C, H, N, S.
N-(p-methoxybenzyl)maleimide (Compound 7-D)
[0399] Reagents: Ph 3 P (1.31 g, 5 mmol), DEAD (0.8 ml, 5 mmol), p-methoxybenzyl alcohol (0.93 ml, 7.5 mmol) and maleimide (0.48 g, 5 mmol).
[0400] Conditions: Room temperature, overnight.
[0401] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:3).
[0402] Yield: 0.50 g (46%) as white solid; mp. 99-102° C.
[0403] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 3.74 (s, 3H, OCH 3 ); 4.58 (s, 2H, CH 2 Ph); 6.65 (d, 2H, CH═CH, J=6.4 Hz); 6.8-7.2 (m, 4H, arom).
[0404] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 40.4 (CH 2 Ph-OCH 3 ); 54.8 (—OCH3); 113.6; 128.2; 129.5; 158.8 (C arom); 133.8 (C═C); 170.1 (C═O)
[0405] Anal. (C 12 H 11 NO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
N-(p-Methoxyphenethyl)maleimide (Compound 8-D)
[0406] Reagents: Ph 3 P (1.31 g, 5 mmol), DEAD (0.8 ml, 5 mmol), p-methoxyphenethyl alcohol (1.2 g, 7.5 mmol) and maleimide (0.48 g, 5 mmol).
[0407] Conditions: Room temperature, overnight.
[0408] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:5).
[0409] Yield: 0.71 g (60%) as yellow solid; mp. 79-81° C.
[0410] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 2.80 (m, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 3.70 (m, 2H, CH 2 CH 2 Ph); 3.75 (s, 3H, OCH 3 ); 6.63 (d, 2H, CH═CH, J=6.4 Hz); 6.8-7.1 (m, 4H, arom).
[0411] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 33.5 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph-OCH 3 ); 39.2 (CH 2 CH 2 Ph-OCH 3 ); 55.5 (—OCH 3 ); 114.0; 129.7; 129.9; 158.4 (C arom); 133.9 (C═C); 170.5 (C═O).
[0412] Anal. (C 13 H 13 NO 3 ) C, H, N, S.
N-(Ethoxycarbonylmethyl)maleimide (Compound 9-D)
[0413] Reagents: Ph 3 P (1.31 g, 5 mmol), DEAD (0.8 ml, 5 mmol), ethyl glycollate (0.71 ml, 7.5 mmol) and maleimide (0.48 g, 5 mmol).
[0414] Conditions: Room temperature, overnight.
[0415] Purification: silica gel column chromatography using AcOEt/Hexane (1:3).
[0416] Yield: 0.30 g (33%) as colourless oil.
[0417] 1 H-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 1.25 (t, 3H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.20 (c, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 , J=7.1 Hz); 4.24 (s, 2H, CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 6.76 (d, 2H, CH═CH, J=6.4 Hz).
[0418] 13 C-NMR (CDCl 3 ): 13.7 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 38.4 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 61.5 (CH 2 CO 2 CH 2 CH 3 ); 134.3 (C═C); 166.9 (CO 2 ); 169.6 (C═O).
[0419] Anal. (C 8 H 9 NO 4 ) C, H, N, S.
TABLE 4b This lists the activity of further compounds of Family G in Table 4 above, ie those compounds of formula: wherein R is as listed in the table. Compound No. R GSK-3β IC 50 (μM) 7-G NH 2 >100 8-G CH 2 (4-MeO-Ph) 65
[0420] GSK-3 inhibitors: For compounds belonging to family D, the GSK-3 inhibition experiments were also performed at variable concentrations of ATP (up to 50 μM) and in all cases the same value of IC 50 were obtained. Thus could suggest that these compounds do not compete with ATP in the binding to GSK-3.
Example 5
Cell Cycle Blockade
[0421] The IC 50 for some of the compounds tested in N 2 A cell cultures are gathered in Table 5 below.
TABLE 5 (II) R a R b X Y IC 50 (μM) CH 2 Ph Me O O 4-8 Et Me O O 40-100 Et nPr O O 5-10 Et cyclohexyl O O 6-9 Ph Me O O 4-7 CH 2 CO 2 Et Me O O 1-2 4-OMePh Me O O 1-2 CH 2 Ph Et O O 4-7 CH 2 Ph CH 2 Ph O O 2-3 Et Et O O 30-80 CH 2 Ph CH 2 Ph O S 1-2 Ph Ph O S 4-8
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Compounds of general formula (I):
where A, E, G, X, Y and the bond - - - take various meanings are of use in the preparation of a pharmaceutical formulation, for example in the treatment of a disease in which GSK-3 is involved, including Alzheimer's disease or the non-dependent insulin diabetes mellitus, or hyperproliferative disease such as cancer, displasias or metaplasias of tissue, psoriasis, arteriosclerosis or restenosis.
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RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims benefit of provisional application 60/697,895, filed Jul. 8, 2005 and provisional application 60/721,926, filed Sep. 29, 2005.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to batch thermal processing of substrates, especially silicon wafers. In particular, the invention relates to auxiliary rings used in wafer support towers.
BACKGROUND ART
Batch thermal processing, in which multiple wafers are simultaneously processed in a furnace, continues to be widely practiced in the semiconductor industry. Most modern batch thermal processing is based on vertical furnaces in which a vertically arranged support tower holds a large number of wafers in a horizontal orientation. The towers are conventionally composed of quartz, especially for processing temperatures under 1000° C. or of silicon carbide, especially for higher processing temperatures, but silicon towers are entering service in commercial use for all temperature ranges.
One process that utilizes such thermal processing is high temperature oxidation (HTO), in which very thin oxide layers are grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using SiH 4 and N 2 O or NO as precursor gases. Typical CVD temperatures are in the neighborhood of 750° C. The thin oxide may have a thickness in the vicinity of 2.5 nm or less and be used for a tunneling barrier, for example, in flash memories. Other processes are available for growing thin films, such as using O 2 as an oxidizing agent.
Thickness uniformity of the grown film has, however, been a problem. A thickness profile 12 A is schematically illustrated in the graph of FIG. 1 . Two peaks 14 A, 16 A in the thickness have been observed near the wafer periphery. The peaks 14 A, 16 A may represent 16% and 33% variation on opposed sides, and, since tunnel current varies exponentially with thickness, a modest thickness variation can produce a large variation in tunneling current and hence the recording performance of flash memories.
The specific origin of the peaks is not completely understood, but possible causes are believed to include thermal edge effects such as thermal shadowing by the tower legs or proximity to the furnace wall, and by gas flow discontinuities at the wafer periphery. Some have attempted to solve this problem by attaching auxiliary rings to the tower which extend over the edge of the wafer a small distance toward the center. Optimally, the wafer is spaced between the two neighboring edge rings facing its upper and lower faces. Edge rings have been shown to be effective at reducing if not eliminating the peaks.
The typical design includes a quartz tower and quartz edge rings which are fused with the three or four legs of the tower. This design suffers several problems. Although the quartz is relatively inexpensive, the fusing at so many locations is laborious. If one of the edge rings is broken in service, repair is almost impossible. Either the tower and welded edge rings are discarded or the wafer locations around the broken edge ring are not thereafter used for production wafers. Although quartz is generally accepted for use in thermal support fixtures, advancing technology calls into question whether it has an adequate purity level.
Accordingly, a better design is desired for edge rings and their support towers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A ring tower includes fingers or other projections to support in a vertical stack both wafers and generally annular edge rings which are interleaved between the wafers and preferably extend over a radial band extending outwardly from the periphery of the wafers.
Both the tower and the edge rings are preferably composed of silicon. The edge rings are more preferably formed of randomly oriented polycrystalline silicon (ROPSi), which may be grown by the Czocharalski method using a polycrystalline seed. The silicon seed may be composed of virgin polycrystalline silicon (electronic grade silicon) grown by CVD or of Czochralski-grown silicon grown from a seed traceable to a virgin polycrystalline silicon seed.
Advantageously, the rings are passively interlocked with the tower, for example, by gravitational force. The interlocking can be achieved with recesses formed on the inner or outer periphery of the ring or by steps on its lateral sides.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a thickness profile of oxide grown by a high temperature oxidation process.
FIG. 2 is an orthographic view of an embodiment of the invention including a tower and edge rings.
FIG. 3 is an elevational view of the tower and edge rings of FIG. 2 and also of the wafers.
FIG. 4 is an exploded orthographic view of one of the legs of the tower of FIGS. 1 and 2 .
FIG. 5 is a plan view of an edge ring of the invention.
FIG. 6 is a elevational view of the wafers and edge rings in areas away from the legs.
FIG. 7 is an orthographic view of another embodiment of the edge ring.
FIG. 8 is an orthographic view of a tower leg with which the edge ring of FIG. 7 may be used.
FIG. 9 is an exploded view of FIG. 8 .
FIG. 10 is an exploded view of a modification of the tower leg of FIG. 8 .
FIG. 11 is plan view a yet another embodiment of the edge ring configured for a four-leg tower.
FIGS. 12 and 13 are orthographic views taken from the front and back side respectively of the engagement between the edge ring of FIG. 11 and a side leg of the tower of FIG. 12 .
FIG. 14 is an orthographic view of a three-leg tower partially loaded with an edge ring which is variant of the edge ring of FIG. 11 .
FIG. 15 is partially sectioned plan view of the tower and edge ring of FIG. 14 and additionally illustrating a wafer.
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional side view of a furnace including a liner, injector, and tower.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A first embodiment of the invention, illustrated in the orthographic view of FIG. 2 and the elevational view of FIG. 3 , includes a support tower 10 including two side legs 12 , 14 and a back leg 16 fixed at their lower ends to a bottom base 18 and at their top ends to a similar unillustrated top base. The legs 12 , 14 , 16 , also illustrated in the exploded orthographic view of FIG. 4 , may be similarly configured and include fingers 22 projecting generally inwardly from axially extending leg stems 24 . The fingers 22 at corresponding axial positions of the three legs 12 , 14 , 16 support edge rings 26 on radially outward and lower ring support surfaces 28 . The fingers 22 also support wafers 30 on radially inward and upper wafer support surfaces 32 , which are generally planar and horizontal and defined on their inner sides by ridges 34 . The ridges 34 are positioned to be closely outside the circular wafers 30 supported on the wafer support surfaces 32 , to thereby align the wafers 30 on the tower 10 .
One edge ring 26 , illustrated in the plan view of FIG. 5 is a generally annular washer-shaped body generally circularly symmetric about a center 40 , which is intended to coincide with the center of the tower 10 and the centers of the wafers 30 . However, the edge ring 26 is machined to include two side recesses 42 , 44 and a back recess 46 of generally similar shapes to respectively engage the edge ring 26 on the two side legs 12 , 14 and back leg 16 . Thin segments 48 in back of the recesses 42 , 44 , 46 support the edge ring 26 on the legs 12 , 14 , 16 of the tower 10 . The outside of the segments 48 , particularly on the sides, may be flattened with the side flattening being parallel to the insertion direction to allow a larger outer diameter. The recesses 42 , 44 , 46 are disposed at positions extending circumferentially about the center 40 around the back of the ring 26 by an angle sufficiently larger than 180° such that the legs 12 , 14 , 16 at similar angular spacings stably support the edge rings 26 but sufficiently small that the side legs 12 , 14 do not interfere with the insertion of the edge rings 26 (as well as the wafers 30 ) past the side legs 12 , 14 . For example, the centers of the side recesses 42 , 44 are displaced a little forward of the ring center 40 .
The inner diameter of the edge ring 26 may be approximately the diameter of the wafer or a little larger, for example, up to 4 to 10 mm larger, for example, 6 mm larger. It is possible to extend the edge ring 26 somewhat inside the wafer diameter, for example, by less than 10 mm for a 200 or 300 mm wafer. In general, the deviance from congruent diameters should not significantly exceed the pitch between wafers 30 in the tower so that a substantial fraction of the solid angle around the wafer edge views wafers 30 or edge rings 26 of the same temperature. Stated differently, the edge of the wafer 30 should not view the furnace walls or liner except through the gap between the two neighboring edge rings 26 , which presents a relatively small viewing angle of the liner. Similarly, the annular width of the edge rings 26 should be greater than the pitch between wafers 30 . The outer diameter of the edge ring 26 should be significantly greater than the wafer diameter to extend the uniform temperature outwardly. The additional diameter may correspond to the location of the peaks 14 A, 16 A in FIG. 1 from the wafer periphery absent edge rings. As a result, for the most part, the wafer 30 view only other wafers 30 or edge rings 26 , all of which equilibrate to about the same temperature. The largest temperature excursions occur at the outer edges of the edge rings 26 rather than the outer edges of the wafers 30 . The edge rings 26 should move the non-uniform deposition peaks 14 A, 16 A outside of the area of the wafers 30 and onto the edge rings 26 . However, excessively wide edge rings impact the design and use of the oven. Exemplary outer diameters are greater than the wafer diameter by 20 to 40 mm, for example 28 mm. The thickness of the edge ring 26 should be great enough to provide sufficient rigidity to the ring-like structure but thin enough that it not have greatly different thermal capacity than the wafer. Generally, it is preferred that its thickness range from approximately the wafer thickness to about twice the wafer thickness. Present designs utilize thicknesses of 1 to 1.5 mm.
The edge ring 26 is preferably machined from pure silicon, for example, of randomly oriented polycrystalline silicon (ROPSi), for example, Czochralski-grown silicon pulled from the melt using a randomly oriented silicon seed, for example, a seed of virgin silicon or a seed of polycrystalline silicon traceable to a CVD grown seed. This material and its growth and machining are described in U.S. Provisional Application 60/694,334, filed Jun. 27, 2005 and in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/328,438, filed Jan. 9, 2006 and now published as U.S. Patent Application Publication 2006/0211218, incorporated herein by reference. The fabrication process advantageously includes Blanchard grinding of the surfaces after wire or saw cutting from a silicon ingot in order to generate surface damage on the exposed surfaces to increase the bonding of films deposited thereupon. Ceramic machining techniques are used to fabricate the ring shape from wafer-shaped blanks. In order to remove impurities, especially heavy metals, the rings may be cleaned after machining by techniques used to clean silicon wafers, for example, using a combination of acid or alkaline etchants. After fabrication of the edge ring 26 has been completed, it is advantageous to pre-coat it in a CVD process on all surfaces with a layer of the same material CVD deposited in the oven or deposition process with which it will be used, that is, silicon nitride for a silicon nitride furnace and silicon dioxide for a silicon dioxide furnace. The pre-coat layer will be firmly anchored in the cracks and crevices created as part of the surface damage and will bond well to after-deposited layers of the same material.
Other types of silicon may be used for the edge rings, for example, monocrystalline silicon. However, Czochralski-grown (CZ) monocrystalline silicon is generally not available in larger diameters at this time needed for 300 mm towers and is further subject to chipping and fracture. Cast silicon is available, which is typically randomly oriented and of adequate size, but its purity and often its strength are generally less than that of randomly oriented CZ polysilicon. It is understood that a silicon material usable according to some aspects of the invention is composed of at least 99 at % elemental silicon although most of the types of silicon mentioned above are much purer.
It must be emphasized however that many aspects of the inventive edge ring are not limited to silicon rings and towers and may be applied to rings or towers composed of other materials such as quartz, silicon carbide, or silicon-impregnated silicon carbide. Silicon-impregnated silicon carbide can be achieved by either exposing nearly stoichiometric silicon carbide to a silicon melt or by blending controlled amounts of silicon and graphite powder, casting the mixture, and firing the cast to obtain a selected ratio of silicon to carbon.
Referring specifically to FIG. 4 , the leg 12 , 14 , 16 includes a tendon 50 at both its lower end and unillustrated upper end to fit within a corresponding mortise hole in the bottom base 18 or unillustrated top base. The fingers 22 extend radially inwardly in a generally horizontal direction from the leg stem 24 in generally constant thickness and constant width sections 52 , on top of which is formed the ring support surfaces 28 . The fingers 22 then extend farther radially inwardly in a partially upward direction in sloping sections 54 , which may have a constant width but not necessarily so. The fingers 22 then extend farther radially inwardly in a generally horizontal direction but with converging sidewalls 56 in wedge shaped tips, on top of which are formed the wafer support surface 32 bounded on their radially outer sides by the ridges 34 . Sidewalls 58 of the recesses 42 , 44 , 46 in the ring 26 of FIG. 5 , are sloped similarly to the tip sidewalls 56 but are separated by a somewhat greater distance than the separation of the tip sidewalls 56 to allow the edge ring 26 to vertically pass by the tip sidewalls 56 .
As a result, the edge ring 26 can be manually or robotically inserted into the tower 10 for a set of three corresponding fingers 22 at a level above the top of the ridges 34 for all three legs 12 , 14 , 16 . When the edge ring 26 has reached almost the stem 24 of the back leg 16 , the edge ring 26 is lowered, with the recess sidewalls 58 passing the tip sidewall 56 , such that the ring support segments 48 are laid to rest on the ring support surfaces 28 of the legs 12 , 14 , 16 . The sloping sections 54 of the fingers 22 help in centering and aligning the edge rings 26 to the 12 , 14 , 16 . Once the edge ring 26 has been placed on the edge support surfaces 28 , it remains there under the force of gravity. However, if desired, the edge ring 26 can be removed in an inverse procedure.
It is desired that vertical spacing between the wafers 30 and the edge rings 26 be closely controlled. As illustrated in the elevational view of FIG. 6 taken along a radius not passing through a leg, a top surface 62 of any wafer 30 is separated by a distance A from a bottom surface 64 of the edge ring 26 immediately above and by a distance B from a top surface 66 of the edge ring 26 immediately below. On the other hand, a median plane 68 of the wafer 30 is separated from the bottom surface 64 of the upper edge ring 26 by a distance C and from the top surface 66 of the lower edge ring 26 by a distance D. A first design principle sets the spacings according to A=B. A second design principle sets the spacings according to C=D. Probably the former favors uniformity for transient conditions while the latter favors uniformity for equilibrium. Either design principle determines the vertical separation between the wafer support surface 32 and the edge support surface 28 of each finger 22 taking into account the vertical pitch of the fingers 22 and the thicknesses of the edge rings 26 and the wafers 30 . With either arrangement and with equal thicknesses for wafers and edge rings, the thermal loading averaged between the wafers and edge rings remains substantially constant to well outside the periphery of the wafers. This figure also illustrates that any wafer 30 views equal areas of either other wafers 30 or the edge rings 26 , both sets of which are at substantially the same temperature, thereby reducing the edge effects on the wafers 30 . It is also desirable that the bottom of the wedge-shaped finger tip is approximately at a level of the bottom surface of the edge ring 26 supported on the ring support surface 28 , thereby maximizing clearance for wafer transfer after the edge rings 26 have been placed in the tower 10 . It is understood that other design principles including axially varying spacings are possible.
After the edge rings 26 have been loaded into the tower 10 , wafers 30 can be inserted into and removed from the tower 10 without interference from the edge rings 26 already located there. The edge rings 26 may remain on the tower 10 during multiple wafer cycles.
If an edge ring 26 breaks for whatever reason, it can be removed from the tower 10 and replaced by a new one without needing to build a new tower 10 .
Another embodiment provides separate leg fingers for the wafer and the edge ring. As illustrated in the orthographic view of FIG. 7 , an edge ring 70 includes two side recesses 72 , 74 and a back recess 76 . All the recesses 72 , 74 , 76 may be rectangularly cut into the outer periphery of the ring 70 to conform to similarly shaped structure in the legs at angular positions corresponding to the recesses 42 , 44 , 46 of FIG. 5 . A leg 80 illustrated completely in the orthographic view of FIG. 8 and partially in the exploded orthographic view of FIG. 9 may be used for any of the legs of the tower of FIGS. 2 and 3 to support and interlock the ring 70 . The leg 80 includes wafer fingers 82 and ring fingers 84 interleaved with each other and generally extending horizontally radially inwardly from an axially extending stem portion 86 .
The wafer fingers 82 each include a wafer support area 88 , which may be horizontal or, if desired sloping with a flat support tip area. The back or radially outer side of the wafer support area 88 is defined by a wafer ridge 90 , which aligns the wafers on the wafer support areas 82 . Tapered sidewalls 92 on the outer portion of the wafer finger 82 produce a wedge shaped tip. The ring fingers 84 each include a typically flat and horizontally extending ring support area 94 defined on its front by a finger edge 96 and on its back by a ring ridge 98 positioned slightly in back of the intended periphery of the edge ring 80 . The relative radial and axial positions of the wafer and ring support areas 88 , 94 may be designed according to the same constraints discussed for the first embodiment.
Conveniently, the finger edge 96 may be vertically machined at the same radial location as the wafer ridge 90 , which also provides more clearance for the transfer of wafers. A finger step 100 formed in the back of the ring ridge 98 has a width slightly less than the width and a similarly generally rectangular or other shape of the ring recesses 72 , 74 , 76 . A passageway 102 between the top of the finger step 100 and the bottom of the wafer finger 82 above is thicker than the thickness of the edge ring 70 to allow the edge ring 70 to pass through it. Thereby, the edge ring 70 can be inserted into the assembled tower by passing or sliding it along the passageway 102 above its intended finger ridge 96 of at least the side legs. When the edge ring reaches its intended position, the ring recesses 72 , 74 , 76 are positioned around the respective finger step 100 and the edge ring 70 can fall or be lowered with its recesses passing the sides of the finger step 100 until the edge ring 70 rests on the edge support area 94 and is gravitationally interlocked to the finger step 100 . Once the edge rings 70 have been all loaded, they may be left there as sequential sets of wafers are loaded and unloaded from the tower. However, the edge rings 70 are detachable from the legs for maintenance, replacement, or other reasons.
A recess 104 in back of the wafer support area 88 is typically required for at least the front legs, which are positioned in front of the center of the supported wafer, to allow the total diameter of the wafer to be inserted past the front legs and then lowered onto the wafer support surface. However, the depth of the recess 104 may be reduced, as shown for the leg 106 illustrated in the orthographic view of FIG. 10 . As a result, the fingers 82 , 84 are less distinctly separated.
In a variant of the leg 106 of FIG. 10 , the separate wafer and ring fingers 82 , 84 are combined into a single finger by extending the step 90 in back of the wafer support area 88 upwardly to the level of the edge ring support area 94 to merge with the finger ridge 96 and to eliminate the recess 104 in back of the wafer support area 88 . The resultant structure is the inverse of the structure of FIG. 4 for which the fingers 22 extend downwardly and on each finger the wafer support are 32 is below the ring support area 28 . This leg 106 has the advantage of less machining and more mechanical strength but introduces additional leg mass near the edge of the wafer. It is possible for the back leg behind the wafer center to be formed with a two-tier finger with the lower and radially inner tier supporting the wafer and the upper and radially outer tier supporting the edge ring.
Because the side recesses 72 , 74 lock the edge ring 70 of FIG. 7 to the two front legs, there is no need for a locking mechanism on the back leg. That is, it is possible to eliminate the back recess 76 in the edge ring 70 and to extend backwardly the edge step 98 of the back leg 80 , 106 , possibly to the leg stem 86 , to align the circular periphery of the edge ring 70 . The reduced machining is offset by the need to separately design and inventory two types of legs.
Another edge ring 110 , illustrated in the plan view of FIG. 11 , is configured for a tower having four legs 80 . Two back recesses or notches 112 , 114 engage two back legs 80 , which are offset at equal and opposite angles from an insertion axis 116 and face the center 40 . Outer sides 118 of the notches 112 , 114 are cut close to the radius to the center 40 while inner sides 120 are cut parallel to the insertion axis 116 to facilitate loading onto the legs 80 . Inner flats 122 , 124 are cut parallel to the insertion axis 116 but extend only partially toward the back to form ring steps 126 . Preferably the ring steps 126 are disposed forward of the perpendicular diameter passing through the center 40 . Two side legs 80 are disposed at least partially and preferably completely forward of the center 40 and oriented to face perpendicularly toward the insertion axis 116 .
When the edge ring 110 is loaded, as illustrated orthographically in the front view of FIG. 12 , the inner flats 122 , 124 are aligned to the wafer ridges 90 of the respective side legs 80 and, as illustrated orthographically in the back view of FIG. 13 , the ring step 126 falls down and is passively and gravitationally locked to the side of the finger step 100 in opposition to the engagement of the edge ring 110 to the back legs 80 . In this position, the edge ring 110 is stably supported by the back legs far in back of the center 40 and by the front legs 80 slightly but completely in front of the center 40 . As illustrated in FIG. 11 , outer flats 128 may be cut into the lateral sides of the edge ring 110 parallel to the insertion axis 116 to facilitate loading of the edge ring 110 past the side legs 80 and reduce the lateral width of the tower and its legs. A part number and/or serial number 130 may be engraved on a planar surface of the edge ring 110 .
The configuration of the side flats 122 , 124 and ring steps 126 can be substituted for the side notches 72 , 74 in the three-leg ring 70 of FIG. 7 .
As has been discussed previously for edge ring 70 , the back recesses 112 , 114 of the edge ring 110 can be eliminated if the back leg is separately configured to contact the circular periphery of the edge ring 110 .
The edge ring 110 of FIG. 11 is designed for a tower having four legs. On the other hand, a tower 140 illustrated in the partial orthographic view of FIG. 14 and the partially sectioned plan view of FIG. 15 has only three legs, specifically, two side legs 142 , 144 and one back leg 146 fixed on their lower ends to a bottom base 148 and at their top ends to an unillustrated top base. As illustrated, the side legs 142 , 144 are located completely forward of the center 40 of the tower 140 , wafer 30 , and edge rings 152 . Notches 150 are formed in both the back of the back leg 146 and the back of the base 148 to accommodate a thermocouple to measure the temperature close to the wafers. Fingers are formed in the legs 142 , 144 , 146 for supporting edge rings 152 and wafers 30 (not illustrated in FIG. 13 ). The fingers differ between the side legs 142 , 144 and the back legs 146 to allow the side legs 142 , 144 to pass the side step of the edge ring 152 . The inner periphery of the edge ring 152 is mostly circular about the center 40 and spaced slightly outwardly of the outer periphery of the wafer 30 except for an inner flat 154 which slightly overhangs the wafer 30 . The outer periphery of the edge ring 152 is mostly circular about the center but includes two side steps and a back notch to passively interlock the edge ring 152 to the legs 142 , 144 , 146 .
It is anticipated that after extended operation of a deposition process, the film thickness will build up to a sufficient thickness on both the tower 10 and the edge rings 26 , 70 , 110 , 152 that particle flaking may become a problem. It is also probable by this time that deposited film has glued the edge rings to the tower 10 by bridging between them. There are standard procedures for cleaning films from silicon. Accordingly, both the silicon tower 10 and the attached silicon edge rings can be placed in an etching bath that removes the deposited layer without removing the underlying silicon. For example, HF removes both silicon oxide and silicon nitride from silicon. Silicon parts afford greater selectivity in the cleaning than do quartz parts. It is possible in the case of a broken edge ring that a similar tower and ring etch be performed to remove a broken edge ring having fragments glued to the tower before the fragments are removed.
It is understood that the shape of the edge ring is not limited to those described above.
Although a silicon edge ring offers great advantages, other features of the invention including the detachable configuration are also useful even if the tower or the edge rings are composed of other materials, such as quartz, silicon carbide, or silicon impregnated silicon carbide. For all these materials, the simple structure of the rings and towers and the ease of refurbishment can provide significant manufacturing economies.
The invention is not limited to the described HTO process but may be used for other processes, other process gases if any, other wafers such as silicon-on-insulator wafers or glass or ceramic substrates, and other processing temperatures. Although the invention is most useful for high-temperature processes, it may be applied to lower-temperature processes such as chemical vapor deposition.
When the edge ring is made of silicon, an all-silicon hot zone is enabled for a furnace useful for large-scale commercial production. A vertically arranged furnace 160 illustrated in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 16 includes a thermally insulating heater canister 162 supporting a resistive heating coil 164 powered by an unillustrated electrical power supply. A bell jar 166 , typically composed of quartz, includes a roof and fits within the heating coil 164 . A liner 168 , for example, open ended, fits within the bell jar 166 . A support tower 170 , corresponding to the previously described towers, has three or four legs 172 fixed to top and bottom bases 174 , 176 or supporting both wafers and edge rings not illustrated here. The support tower 170 sits on a pedestal 178 . During processing, the pedestal 178 and support tower 170 are generally surrounded by the liner 168 . One or more gas injector 180 having outlet ports at different heights are principally disposed between the liner 168 and the tower 170 and have outlets for injecting processing gas at different heights within the liner 168 . An unillustrated vacuum pump removes the processing gas through the bottom of the bell jar 166 . The heater canister 162 , bell jar 156 , and liner 168 may be raised vertically to allow wafers to be transferred to and from the tower 170 , although in some configurations these elements remain stationary while an elevator raises and lowers the pedestal 178 and loaded tower 170 into and out of the bottom of the furnace 160 .
The bell jar 168 , which is closed on its upper end, tends to cause the furnace 160 to have a generally uniformly hot temperature in the middle and upper portions of the furnace. This is referred to as the hot zone in which the temperature is controlled for the optimized thermal process. However, the open bottom end of the bell jar 168 and the mechanical support of the pedestal 178 causes the lower end of the furnace to have a lower temperature, often low enough that the thermal process such as chemical vapor deposition is not effective. The hot zone may exclude some of the lower slots of the tower 170 .
It is advantageous that not only the edge rings but also the tower, liner, and injectors be composed of silicon so that all materials in the hot zone are of the same silicon material as the silicon wafers being processed and be of nearly equal purity. Silicon baffle wafers are also preferably used, as described in the aforecited provisional application 60/694,334 and its utility application Ser. No. 11/328,438. An all-silicon hot zone provides very low particulate and impurity levels in the processing of silicon wafers. Boyle et al. have described the fabrication of silicon towers in U.S. Pat. No. 6,450,346 and of silicon liners in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/642,013, filed Aug. 15, 2003 and now published as U.S. Patent Application Publication 2004/0129203 A1, both incorporated herein by reference. Zehavi et al. have described the fabrication of silicon injectors in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/177,808, filed Jul. 8, 2005, incorporated herein by reference. Boyle et al. have described a useful adhesive of silicon powder and spin-on glass for assembling silicon structures in US Patent Application Publication 2004/0213955 A1. All these silicon parts are commercially available from Integrated Materials, Inc, of Sunnyvale, Calif.
The invention thus provides greatly improved thermal performance and greatly reduced contamination and particles with a structure that is economical to fabricate and easy to maintain.
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An edge ring for use in batch thermal processing of wafers supported on a vertical tower within a furnace. The edge rings are have a width approximately overlapping the periphery of the wafers and are detachably supported on the towers equally spaced between the wafer to reduce thermal edge effects. The edge rings have may have internal or external recesses to interlock with structures on or adjacent the fingers of the tower legs supporting the wafers or one or more steps formed on the lateral sides of the edge ring may slide over and then fall below a locking ledge associated with the support fingers. Preferably, the tower and edge ring and other parts of the furnace adjacent the hot zone are composed of silicon.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] (1) Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to an acoustic-structural low-pressure compressor (LPC) splitter assembly constructed so as to reduce weight and increase structural support. More specifically, this invention relates to an acoustic-structural LPC splitter assembly providing integral support for a plurality of low-compressor bleed exhaust ports.
[0003] (2) Description of the Prior Art
[0004] A gas turbine splitter is located axially downstream of the engine's fan stage. The fan exit stream air is “split” by the splitter assembly into two flow streams: core flow and bypass flow.
[0005] A standard gas turbine splitter assembly consists of: the splitter nose, acoustic panel cowling, low-compressor bleed exit duct, and low-pressure compressor (LPC) stator case support structure. This configuration consists of a large quantity of parts and is heavy, especially on large thrust engines. The low-compressor bleed is used during engine starting and surge conditions.
[0006] What is needed is a gas turbine splitter assembly that is strong enough to withstand the gas loading of fan exit streams and maneuver loading, covered with acoustic material to attenuate fan noise, and is lightweight.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an acoustic-structural LPC splitter assembly providing integral support for a plurality of low-compressor bleed exhaust ports.
[0008] In accordance with the present invention, an acoustic-structural splitter assembly for use in an engine which comprises a structural acoustic splitter through which are arranged a plurality of bleed exhaust ports, the acoustic splitter having a first and second end, an inner and outer surface, a front joint for securing the first end, and a slip joint formed at an FEGV interface for securing the second end, wherein the structural acoustic splitter provides support sufficient to maintain concentricity of an LPC inner case.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] [0009]FIG. 1 A cross-section illustration of an LPC splitter known in the art.
[0010] [0010]FIG. 2 A cross-section illustration of the acoustic-structural LPC splitter of the present invention.
[0011] [0011]FIG. 3 A diagram of the aft slip joint of the present invention.
[0012] [0012]FIG. 4 A diagram of an alternative embodiment of the acoustic-structural LPC splitter of the present invention.
[0013] [0013]FIG. 5 A cross-section illustration of the acoustic structural splitter of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] The present invention integrates several low-pressure compressor (LPC) static structure part functions into a single part while simultaneously reducing weight and cost and increasing acoustic treatment. The present invention combines the load bearing and hoop stiffness of the LPC bleed cavity structure with the acoustic treatment of the flowpath fairing. The resulting design is a sandwich construction of structural and acoustic materials providing the hoop and flexural stiffness and acoustic treatment needed in LPC fairings.
[0015] With reference to FIG. 1, there is illustrated in cross section a conventional commercial LPC known to the art. The following described elements comprising the LPC are formed from rotating the cross section about a center axis 19 through 360 degrees. The flowpath fairing 1 with attached acoustic treatment bridges the expanse formed between the fairing front bolted joint 6 oriented towards the front of the engine and the fairing slip joint 5 located further aft of the fairing front bolted joint 6 . Fairing slip joint 5 is supported in part by flowpath fairing support and stator case stiffener 3 which extends from the LPC inner case 17 to the fairing slip joint 5 . Between the fairing bolted joint 4 and the fairing slip joint 5 , there may be inserted one or more low compressor bleed exhaust ports 2 .
[0016] With reference to FIG. 2, there is illustrated the acoustic-structural LPC splitter of the present invention. The flowpath fairing, is extended from splitter 22 to the fan exit guide vane (FEGV) interface 9 , whereby there is formed fairing slip joint 21 . By extending the flowpath fairing 1 to the FEGV interface 9 and using structural materials, flowpath fairing 1 becomes structural acoustic splitter 11 . Structural acoustic splitter 11 is a load carrying member of full hoop construction. Structural acoustic splitter 11 is self supporting with regards to any attached acoustic treatment and provides support to the LPC inner case 17 .
[0017] In a preferred embodiment, the acoustic treatment is integral to structural acoustic splitter 11 . As illustrated in FIG. 5, structural acoustic splitter 11 may be formed of an acoustic material 53 with composite backing skin 51 bonded to one or both sides. The acoustic material 53 may be comprised of metallic or composite material. In an alternative embodiment, the acoustic material 53 may be omitted entirely or sprayed or otherwise attached to an existing structural acoustic splitter 11 .
[0018] As a result of these structural alterations, there is eliminated the need for the flowpath fairing support and stator case stiffener 3 . Being of full hoop construction, the structural acoustic splitter 11 improves LPC case concentricity, resulting in longer performance retention. Extending the flowpath fairing 1 to form structural acoustic splitter 11 also improves noise attenuation via an increase in acoustically treated surface area. In a preferred embodiment, low-compressor bleed exhaust ports 2 are periodically cut through the structural acoustic splitter 11 . By doing so, the metallic structure and bolts supporting these ports are eliminated. Low compressor bleed exhaust ports 2 may be glued in from the inner or outer diameter, bolted in, or otherwise fastened to structural acoustic splitter 11 .
[0019] The structural acoustic splitter 11 can still accommodate thermal growth along the engine axis by including an aft slip joint 21 at the FEGV interface 9 . Positive circumferential, radial and axial restraint is still maintained by the conventional bolted joint 10 .
[0020] With reference to FIG. 3, there is illustrated in detail an aft slip joint 21 in accordance with the present invention. Aft slip joint 21 is formed from full hoop slot 31 into which is inserted an end of structural acoustic splitter 11 . Surrounding the end of structural acoustic splitter 11 and in contact with an inner surface 37 of full hoop slot 31 there is dispersed a sacrificial wear material 33 . As structural acoustic splitter 11 undergoes thermal expansion and contraction, it slides forwards and backwards inside of full hoop slot 31 . Sacrificial wear material 33 serves to prevent wear on structural acoustic splitter 11 and can be replaced when a quantity has been compromised sufficient to impede the performance of structural acoustic splitter 11 . In addition, a lap seal 35 may be attached to structural acoustic splitter 11 and extend rearward to cover the interface between structural acoustic splitter 11 and full hoop slot 31 .
[0021] With reference to FIG. 4 there is illustrated an alternative embodiment of the present invention. A radial stiffener 41 is attached between the LPC inner case 17 and structural acoustic splitter 11 . Radial stiffener 41 attaches to an underside of structural acoustic splitter 11 between aft slip joint 21 and bolted joint 10 .
[0022] The structural acoustic splitter 11 of the present invention weighs less than a standard splitter assembly due to reduced part count and a reduction in size of the LPC stator case support structure. The structural acoustic splitter 11 of the present invention is axially longer than a typical flowpath fairing 1 and provides a greater surface area for application of acoustic material, which will result in less fan noise. In addition, low-compressor stage bleed exit ports radially flow core air into the bypass air stream and are positioned at discrete locations circumferentially around the cowl.
[0023] It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the illustrations described and shown herein, which are deemed to be merely illustrative of the best modes of carrying out the invention, and which are susceptible of modification of form, size, arrangement of parts and details of operation. The invention rather is intended to encompass all such modifications which are within its spirit and scope as defined by the claims.
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An acoustic-structural LPC splitter assembly which comprises a structural acoustic splitter through which are arranged a plurality of bleed exhaust ports, the acoustic splitter having a first and second end, an inner and outer surface, a front joint for securing the first end, and a slip joint formed at an FEGV interface for securing the second end, wherein the structural acoustic splitter provides support sufficient to maintain concentricity of an LPC inner case.
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RELATED APPLICATION DATA
[0001] This application is based on and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/505,935 filed on Sep. 24, 2003, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by this reference.
INTRODUCTION
[0002] Financial assistance for this invention was provided by the United States Government, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, Department of Health and Human Services Outstanding Investigator Grant Numbers CA44344-05-12; R01-CA90441-01; and R01 CA090441-03-041; the Arizona Disease Control Research Commission contract Number 9815; and private contributions. Thus, the United States Government has certain rights in this invention.
TITLE OF INVENTION
[0003] Halocombstatins and Methods of Synthesis Thereof.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0004] This invention relates to novel compounds having utility in the treatment of cancer and/or as antimicrobials.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0005] Pharmaceutical agents to treat cancer and/or tumors are widely sought. Antiangiogenesis agents are being pursued as a promising antitwnor therapeutic agents. Combretastatin A-4 is one such antiangiogenesis agent. Studies have demonstrated that combretastatin A-4 disrupts the microtubules of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) in culture. It has also been shown that the tubulin-binding properties shown in cell-free systems are retained when the compound enters cells, and that tubulin binding is a significant component of biological acitivity.
[0006] The African Bush Willow Combretum caffrum has proved to be a very important source of cancer cell growth inhibitory constituents named combretastatins. The most potent of these constituents is combretastatin A-4 (1a, “CA-4”), and its sodium phosphate derivative (1b, “CA-4P”) was advanced to Phase I human cancer clinical trials in 1998. (Remick, S. C., et al., (1999) Phase I Pharmacokitictics Study of Single Dose Intravenous (IV) Combretastatin A-4 Prodrug (CA4P) in Patients (pts) with Advanced Cancer, Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics Discovery Discovery, Development, and Clinical Validation , Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Congress, Washington, D.C., #16, p. 4.) Overall results continue to be promising, and human cancer Phase II and combination Ib trials are currently underway.
[0007] Antivascular, antiangiogenesis and general antimetastatic activities of CA4P as well as its synergistic utility in combination with other anticancer drugs, radioimmunotherapy and hyperthermia are all areas of active research interest. (see Griggs, J., et al, Combretastatin A-4 Disrupts Neovascular Development in Non-Neoplastic Tissue, British J. of Cancer 2001, 84, 832-835; Folkman, J., Angiogenesis-Dependent Diseases, Seminars in Oncology 2001, 28, 536-542; Kruger, E. A. et al., Approaches to Preclinical Screening of Antiangiogenic Agents, Seminars in Oncology 2001, 28, 570-576; Jin, X., et al., Evaluation of Endostatin Antiangiogenesis Gene Therapy in vitro and in vivo, Cancer Gene Therapy 2001, 8, 982-989; Vacca, A., et al., Bone Marrow Angiogenesis in Patients with Active Multiple Myeloma, Seminars in Oncology 2001, 28, 543-550; Rajkumar, S. V., et al., Angiogenesis in Multiple Myeloma, Seminars in Oncology 2001, 28, 560-564, Griggs, J., et al., Potent Anti-metastatic Activity of Combretastatin AX, Int J Oncol. 2001, 821-825; Pedley, R. B. et al., Eradication of Colorectal Xenografts by Combined Radioirnunotherapy and Combretastatin A-4 3-O-Phosphate, Cancer Research 2001, 61, 4716-4722; Eikesdal, H. P., et al., Tumor Vasculature is Targeted by the Combination of Combretastatin A-4 and Hyperthermia, Radiotherapy and Oncology 2001, 61, 313-320.)
[0008] Several of the compounds of the present invention are particularly concerned with treatment of thyroid gland cancer. By 2002, some 20,000 people in the United States were diagnosed with carcinoma of the thyroid gland; of these the distribution was about 80% papillary and 14% follicular differentiated carcinomas derived from follicular epithelial cells producing thyroid hormone. Of the remaining thyroid malignancies, about 4% were medullary carcinoma (neuroendocrine) and 2% of the exceptionally aggrwsive anaplastic carcinoma (median survival 4-5 months and a near 100% lethal outcome). Significantly, the incidence of both follicular and anaplastic carcinomas are elevated in geographic areas of iodine deficiency. Radiation exposure represents the most general risk factor for thyroid cancer. In addition, excess production of the pituitary homone thyroid-stimulating hormone (THS), which is very important m regulating thyroid gland growth and fimction, may be important in the etiology of thyroid cancer. Previously used clinical treatments for thyroid cancer include surgery, suppression of THS, 131 I-radiotherapy, and anticancer dmgs. But in 2002, another 1,300 victims of thyroid cancer in the U.S. died, emphasizing the great need for more routinely effective anticancer drugs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The present invention relates to novel compounds constituting modifications of combretastatin A-3 (3a) and its phosphate prodrug (3b), wherein the 3-hydroxy group or the 3-hydroxy and 5-hydroxy groups are replaced with a halide. Representative halides are fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine. Salts of the novel compounds are also disclosed herein. Also described herein are phosphate ester derivatives of the 3-fluoro, 3-chloro, 3-bromo and 3-iodo-stilbenes.
Compounds of the Invention Comprise:
Wherein X is F, Cl Br or I
Werein X is F, Cl, Br or I, and R is a metal cation such as Na, Li, K, Cs, Rb, Ca, Mg or is morpholine, piperidine, glycine-OCH 3 , tryptophan-OCH 3 or NH(CH 2 OH) 3 .
Wherin X is F, Cl, Br or I, and Z is a metal cation such as Na, Li, K, Cs, Rb, Ca, Mg or is morpholine, piperidine, glycine-OCH 3 , trytophan-OCH 3 or NH(CH 2 OH) 3 .
[0013] Several of the compounds of the invention exhibit greatly enhanced (>10-100x) cancer cell growth ibihbition, as compared to pnor art combretastin compounds such as CA-4 and CA-3, against a panel of human cancer cell lines and the muoine P388 leukemia. The iodo compounds appear to show particular promise in the treatment of thyroid cancers. The compounds of the present invention exhibit inhibiting of tubua polymerization and binding of colchicine to tablulin. In addition, several of the compounds exhibit antimicrobial properties.
DESCRIPION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] FIG. 1 shows the structural formulas of several prior art compounds.
[0015] FIG. 2 shows the reaction scheme for synthesizing some of the compounds of the present invention, including strucbual formulas for the compounds of the invention.
[0016] FIG. 3 shows a continuation of the reaction scheme of FIG. 2 .
[0017] FIG. 4 shows the reaction scheme for synthesizing some of the compounds of the present invention, including structural formulas for the compounds of the invention.
[0018] FIG. 5 shows photographs of results of the cord formation assay.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0019] The concept of antiangiogenesis as a therapeutic approach for the treatment of cancer, particularly tumors, is being actively pursued as a promising strategy. The compound combretastatin A-4 has previously been demonstrated to disrupt the microtubules of hurnan umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) in culture. Those stes confirmed that the tubulin-binding properties shown in cell-free systems are retained when the compound enters cells, and that tubulin binding is a significant component of the biological activity.
[0020] Thus, an object of the present invention is to provide new compounds that may be useful as tubulin binding agents.
[0021] A further object of the invention is to provide compounds that possess antiangiogenesis properties.
[0022] Yet another object of the invention is to provide compounds for use as therapeutic agents for the treatment of mammals, including humans, afflicted with cancer, particularly tumors.
[0023] Still a further object of the invention is to provide compounds for use as antimicrobials.
[0024] Results and Discussion
[0025] Preparation of the stilbenes of the present invention was accomplished as described in detail herein. The reaction sequence was initiated by protection of isovanillin as the tert-butyldiphenylsilyl ether 4. Benzaldehyde 4 was reduced using sodium borohydride to benzyl alcohol 5, followed by conversion to phosphonium bromide 6. Condensation of Wittig intermediate 6 with the respective halo-aldehyde using n-butyllithium in THF led to silyl group protected stilbenes 7-10. Subsequent deprotection (Scheme 2) with tetrabutylammonium fluoride afforded 3-halo-stilbenes 11-14. The Z isomers 11a, 13a and 14a were phosphorylated using dibenzylphosphite, diisopropylethyl-amine, N,N-dimethylamino-pyridine and carbon tetrachloride in acetonitrile to provide bisbenzyl phosphates 15-17. Debenzylation of phosphate esters 15-17 was achieved using trirnethylsilybromide followed by the corresponding base to produce phosphates 18-20. (See Pettit, G. R., et al., Antineoplastic Agents 440. Asymmetric Synthesis and Evaluation of the Combretastatin A-1 SAR Probes (1S,2S) and (1R,2R)-1-2-Dihydroxy-1-(2′,3′-dihydroxy-4′-methoxyphenyl)-2-(3″,4″,5″-timethoxyphenyl)-ethane, J. Nat. Prod . 2000, 63, 969-974; Pettit, G. R., et al., Antineopiastic Agents 460. Synthesis of Combretastatin A-2 Prodrugs, Anticancer Drug Design 2001, 16, 185-194; Pettit, G. R., et al. Antineoplastic Agents 463. Synthesis of Combretastatin A-3 Diphosphates, Anticancer Drug Design 2000, 15, 397404.; Ladd, D. L., et al.; A New Synthesis of 3-Fluoroveratrole and Z-Fluoro-3,4 Dimethoxy Benzaldahyde, Synth. Commun . 1985, 15, 61.)
[0026] Compared to the related combretastatins, the new halo-stilbenes or halocombstatins shown in Table I as compounds 11a through 20a, all exhibited very strong inhibition of cancer cell growth. The three stilbenes (11a, 13a, 14a) converted to phosphate salts all retained strong activity and demonstrated markedly better aqueous solubility than their 3-halo-stilbene precursors. The E geometrical isomers evaluated appeared in vitro to be much less effective as inhibitors of cancer cell growth.
[0027] Because of their potent cytotoxicity, the four halocombstatins (11a, 12a, 13a, and 14a) were compared to combretastain A-4 (1a) for inhibitory effects on tubulin polymerization and on the binding of [ 3 H]colchicine to tubulin. The results of this comparison are shown in Table II. These experiments demonstrate that the five compounds are essentially identical in their apparent interactions with tubulin. The four halocombretastatins inhibited the polymerization reaction with IC 50 values of 1.5-1.6 μM:M, versus an IC 50 value of 1.8 μM:M for CA4 (1a). The minor differences between the compounds were within experimental error as indicated by the standard deviations.
[0028] Similarly, all four cis-stilbenes were highly potent inhibitors of the colchicine binding assay. When present at a concentration one fifth of that of [ 3 ]colchicine but equimolar to the tubulin concentration, binding of the radio labeled ligand was inhibited by 75-89% (note that the lowest and highest inhibitory effects were observed with stilbenes 11a and 13a, which were the two compounds that displayed the greatest inhibitory effects in the polymerization assay). In an earlier study, combretastatin A-3 (3a), with a hydroxyl substituent instead of the methoxy group or a halogen at position C-3 in the A ring, was found to be about half as active as CA4 (1a) as an inhibitor of tubulin assembly, about one fifth as active as an inhibitor of colchicine binding to tubulin, and about one seventh as active as an inhibitor of cell growth. (See Lin, C. M., et al, Interactions of Tubulin with Potent Natural and Synthetic Analogs of the Antimnitotic Agent Combretastatin: A Structure-activity Study, Mol. Pharmacol ., 1988, 34, 200-208). A related finding is that elimination of the C-3 substituent entirely, by replacing it with a hydrogen atom, results in about a 7-fold reduction in inhibitory effect on polymerization and complete loss of cytotoxic activity. (See Cusliman, M., et al., Synthesis and Evaluation of (Z)-1-(4-methoxyphenyl)-2-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)ethane as Potential Cytotoxic and Antimitotic Agents, J. Med. Chem . 1992, 35, 2293-2306.)
[0029] Thus, while not intending to be bound by this theory, it appears the optimal activity observed with CA4 (1a) and the novel halocombstatins of the present invention requires a C-3 substituent of some size, where the fluorine atom may represent a minimum. Therefore, it seems unlikely that the predominant effect of the substituent results from direct enhancement of the interaction of ligand with protein. The A-ring substituents most likely cause the active cis-stilbenes to assume with greater probability a conformation that favors the drug-tubulin interaction. (See Hamel, E.; Evaluation of Antimitotic Agents by Quantitative Comparisons of Their Effects on the Polymerization of Purified Tubulin, Cell Biochem. Biophys ., In Press.)
[0030] Tubulin polymerization was evaluated by turbidimetry at 350 nm using Beckman DU7400/7500 spectrophotometers as described in detail elsewhere. (See National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Reference Method for Broth Dilution Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Yeasts. Approved Standard M27-A. Wayne, P A: NCCLS, 1997.) Varying concentrations of drug were preincubated with 10 μM:M (10 mg/mL) purified tubulin (See Hamel, E., et al., Separation of Active Tubulin and Microtubule-associated Proteins by Ultracentrifiigation and Isolation of a Component Causing the Formation of Microtubule Bundles, Biochemistry 1984, 23, 4173-4184). Samples were chilled on ice, GTP (0.4 mM) was added, and polymerization was followed at 30° C. The parameter measured was extent of the reaction after 20 minutes. Coichicine binding was measured as described in detail previously. Reaction mixtures contained 1.0 μM :M tubulin, 5.0:M, [ 3 H]colchicine (from Dupont), and inhibitor at 1.0 μM:M. Incubation was for 10 minutes at 37° C.
[0031] The inventors have also demonstrated the ability of halocombstatins 11a and 12a to disrupt microtubules in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). HUVECs were isolated according to methods know to one of skill in the art (see Jaffe, E. A. et al., Culture of Human Endothelial Cells Derived From Umbilical Veins. Identification by Morphologic and Immunologic Criteria, J. Clin. Invest . 1973, 52, 2754-2756.)
[0032] In a further detailed series of experiments, compound 11a (flurocombstatin) was further evaluated against HUVECs in vitro. These cells showed significant sensitivity to the fluorocombstatin (11a): ED 50 0.00025 μg/mL. Cords length as well as junction numbers were markedly reduced at both 0.01 and 0.001 μg/mL compared to untreated controls. Such activity against endothelial cells is significant, as endothelial cells are known to play a central role in the angiogenic process.
[0033] The halocombstatins of the present invention appear to also have antimicrobial properties. More specifically, they appear to have antifungal and/or antibacterial properties. Antimicrobial evaluation of the halocombstatins involved susceptibility testing performed by the reference broth microdilution assay. The antimicrobial activities of the halocombstatins were very similar, targeting Gram-positive bacteria and the pathogenic fungi Cryptococcus neoformans , and results are shown in Table III. The sodium phosphate dervative (16a) of fluorocombstatin (11a) did not retain significant antimicrobial activity.
[0034] Similarly, the inventors have previously shown that combretastatin A-3 but not its sodium phosphate prodrug inhibited growth of the pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans . (See Pettit, G. R., et al., Antineoplastic Agents 463. Synthesis of Combretastatin A-3 Diphosphates, Anticancer Drug Design 2000, 15, 397-404.) To determine the antimicrobial activity of the present compounds, susceptibility testing was performed by the reference broth microdilution assay. (See National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Methods for Dilution Antimicrobial Susceptibility Tests for Bacteria that Grow Aerobically. Approved Standard M7-A5. Wayne, P A: NCCLS, 2000. National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Reference Method for Broth Dilution Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Yeasts. Aproved Standard M27-A. Wayne, P A: NCCLS, 1997.) The antimicrobial activities of the halocombretastatins of the present invention were very similar, targeting Gram-positive bacteria and Cryptococcus neoformans . This is illustrated in further detail in Table III. Thus, several of the novel compounds of the present invention appear to have potential as antimicrobial agents, such as antifingals and antibacterials.
Experimental Section
[0035] Materials and Methods. All solvents (ether refers to diethyl ether) and reagents were obtained from commercial sources (Acros Organics, Sigma-Aldrich Co., Alfa Aesar, City Chemicals or Lancaster Synthesis, Inc.). The 3-iodo-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde was purchased from Lancaster Synthesis, Solvents were redistilled. Solvent extracts of aqueous solutions were dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate. Gravity column chromatography was performed using silica gel from VWR Scientific 70-230 mesh) or from Merck (230-400 mesh). Analtech silica gel GHLF plates were employed for TLC.
[0036] All melting points were determined with an electrochemical digital melting point apparatus, Model 9100 or IA-9200, and are uncorrected. NMR spectra were recorded employing Varian Gemini 300 or Varian Unity 400 instruments. Chemical shifts are reported in ppm downfield from tramethylsilane as an internal standard in CDCl 3 or where noted in D 2 O. High resolution mass spectra were obtained with a Kratos Ms-50 instrument (Midwest Center for Mass Spectroscopy, University of Nebraska-Lincoln) or in the Cancer Research Institute at Arizona State University with a Jeol LCmate instrument. Elemental analyses were determined by Galbraith Laboratories, Inc., Knoxville, Tenn.
[0037] General Procedure for Synthesis of Dimethoxyhalobenzaldehydes.
[0038] 3-Fluoro-4,5-ditnethoxybenzaldehyde. To a stirred solution prepared from 100 mL of DMF and 5-fluorovanillin (lit 1.0 g, 5.88 mmol). After 15 minutes, iodomethane was added, and stirring at room temperature continued for 16 hours. The reaction was terminated by the. addition of water, the mixture was extracted with hexane (3×100 ML), and solvents were removed in vacuo. Purification by flash chromatography on a column of silica gel using hexane-ethyl acetate (4:1) as eluent afforded a colorless solid (1 g, 93% yield); mp 51-53° C. (Lit 17 mp 52-53° C.) 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.94 (s, 3H), 4.05 (s, 3H), 7.24 (s, 1H), 7.26 (s, 1H), 9.82 (s, 1H).
[0039] 3-Chloro-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde. The preceding reaction was repeated with 5-chlorovanillin (10 g, 54 mmol) to give this compound, which was isolated as set forth in the preceding experiment to afford a colorless solid (10.4 g, 97% yield); mp 88-90° C. (Lit 17 mp 87-89° C.); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.95 (s, 3H), 3.96 (s, 3H), 7.36 (d, J=1.5 Hz, 1H), 7.50 (d, J=1.5 Hz, 1H), 9.85 (s, 1H).
[0040] 3-Bromo-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde. The experiment was repeated with 5-bromovanillin (10 g, 43.3 mmol) as described for the preceding aldehydes to give compound (6) which was separated by flash chromatography on a column of silica gel using hexane-ethyl acetate (9:1) as eluent to afford a colorless solid (8 g, 75% yield); mp 64-65° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.94 (s, 3H), 3.95 (s, 3H), 7.40 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.65 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 9.85 (s, 1H).
[0041] 3,5-diiodo-4-methoxybenzaldehyde
[0042] 3-Iodo-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde was obtained from Sigma-Aldrich Chemical Company.
[0043] 3-O-tert-Butlydiphenylsiloxy-imethoxybenzytriphenylphosphonium bromide (6). To 400 mL of dry dichloromethane was added benzyl alcohol 5 (84 g, 214 mmol) (Pettit, G. et al., Antineoplastic Agents 463, Synthesis of Combretastatin A-3 Diphosphates. Anticancer Drug Design 2000, 15, 397-404) and phosphorous tribromide (10 mL, 106 mmol, 0.5 eq). The reaction mixture was allowed to stir for 16 hours, and was terminated by the addition of 10% NaRCO 3 , and the product was extracted with dichloromethane. The solvent was removed (in vacuo), the resulting benzyl bromide was dissolved in 500 mL of toluene, and triphenylphosphine (62 g, 236 mmol, 1.1 eq) was added. The mixture was heated at reflux for 1 hour and stirred at RT for 15 hours. The precipitate was collected and triturated with ether to afford 132 g of phosphonium salt, in 86% yield; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz CD 3 OD) δ1.00 (s,9H), 3.51 (s, 3H), 4.69 (d, 2H, J=17.4 Hz), 6.34 (dt, 1H, J=2.4, 8.1 Hz), 6.59 34 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 6.65 34 (t, 1H, J=2.4 Hz); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz CD 3 OD) δ 20.47, 27.07, 55.60, 102.20, 113.15, 118.48, 119.60, 123.43, 126.56, 126.85, 128.17, 128.74, 13107, 131.12, 133.91, 135.10, 135.23, 136.17, 136.55, 146.55, 152.76.
[0044] General Procedure for the Stilbene Syntheses.
[0045] 3-Fluoro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyldiphenylsilyl-Z-stilbene (7a). To a mixture of phosphonium salt 6 (4.7 g, 6.5 mmol) and tetrahydrofuiran (25 ml, cooled to −78° C.) was added n-BuLi (2.6 mL, 2.5 M, 6.5 mmol, over 5 minutes), followed by stirring for one hour. Next, 3-fluoro-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (1 g, 5.4 mmol) in tetrahydrofiiran (10 ml) was added (dropwise) over 30 minutes. The mixture was allowed to warm. to room temperature, and stirring continued for 16 hours. The reaction was terminated by the addition of water (50 mL), the product was extracted with ethyl acetate, solvents were removed in vacuo, and the residue (1:1 F/Z, 75% yield) obtained was subjected to flash chromatography on silica gel using hexanesthyl acetate (9:1) as eluent to afford Z-stilbene 7a (1 g, 34%/o) as a clear oil; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.07 (s, 9H), 3.46 (s, 3H), 3.65 (s, 3H), 3.90 (s, 3H), 6.24 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.33 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.56 (m, 2H), 6.72 (m, 3H), 7.35 (m, 6H), 7.70 (m, 4H); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.75, 26.65, 55.07, 55.99, 61.43, 108,26, 108.28, 109.40, 109.55, 111.74, 120.83, 122.42, 127.36, 127.46, 127.48, 127.70, 129.37, 129.50, 129.63, 130.32, 132.59, 132.66, 133.57, 134.77, 135.27, 135.83, 135.95, 144.74, 149.88, 152.91, 152.95, 154.59, 156.53; HRMS (caled for C 33 H 36 FO 4 Si) [M+H]+ 543.2368, found 543.2372.
[0046] Further elution gave the E-isomer 7b (1.2 g, 41% yield): 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.19 (s, 9H), 3.58 (s, 3H), 3.92 (s, 3H), 3.95 (s, 3H), 6.48 (d, 1H, J=15.9 Hz), 6.76 (d, 1H, J=8.7 Hz), 6.77 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.8 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 6.92 (d, 1H, J=2.1 Hz), 6.97 (dd, 1H, J=1.8, 8.4 Hz), 7.42 (m, 6H), 7.78 (m, 4H). 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 )δ 19.76, 26.62, 55.20, 56.13, 61.39, 105.40, 106.45, 106.75 112.62, 117.62, 120.57, 125.26, 127.48, 128.52, 129.58, 139.68, 133.15, 133.28, 133.59, 135.35, 145.14, 150.52, 153.52. HRMS calcd for. C 33 H 36 FO 4 Si [M+H] + 543.2368, found 543.2392.
[0047] 3Chloro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyl-dipbenylsilyl-Z-stilbene (8a). The experimental procedure noted above for 7a was repeated with 3-Chloro-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (2.8 g, 14 mmol) to yield the Z-isomer 8a (1.6 g, 21%) as a clear oil: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.07 (s, 9H), 3.46 (s, 3H), 3.60 (s, 3H), 3.84 (s, 3H), 6.24 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.34 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.59 (s, 1H, J=7.5 Hz), 6.66 (s, 1H), 6.73 (s, 1H), 6.73 (d, 1H, J=9 Hz) 6.81 (s, 1H), 7.33 (m, 6H), 7.65 (dd, 4H, J=6.67, 1.2 Hz), and 13 C NMR (125 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.76, 26.66, 55.11, 55.82, 60.71, 111.35, 111.75, 120.86, 122.40, 122.46, 127.13, 127.38, 127.85, 129.32, 129.51, 130.27, 133.60, 133.81, 135.27, 144.22, 144.75, 149.91, 153.12; HRMS calcd for. C 33 H 36 ClO 4 SiCl 561.2042 [M+H] + , found 561.2449, Cl 559.2071 [M+H] + ; found 559.1996.
[0048] Continued elution of the chromatographic column led to the isolation of E-stilbene 8b (4.9 g, 62% yield) as a clear oil; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.14 (s, 9H), 3.56 (s, 3H), 3.86 (s, 3H), 3.90 (s, 3H), 6.44 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.74 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.74 (s, 1H), 6.82 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 6.87 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 6.94 (dd, 1H, J=8.1, 2.1 Hz), 6.99 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.40 (m, 6H), 7.75 (m, 4H); and 13 C NMR (75 Mz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.82, 26.67, 55.30, 55.09, 60.78, 108.43, 112.13, 117.71, 119.78, 120.59, 124.97, 127.53, 128.78, 129.61, 129.73, 133.65, 134.31, 135.41, 144.55, 150.61, 153.74.
[0049] 3-Bromo-4,4 ,5-trimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyl-diphenylsilyl-Z-stilbene (9a). To 100 mL of THF was added phosphonium salt 6 (25.7 g, 36 mmol) and the solution cooled to −78° C. Once the temperature reached −78° C., n-BuLi (14.4 mL, 2.5 M, 36 mmol) was added over 5 minutes followed by stirring for one hour. Then the bromo-benzaldehyde (8 g, 33 mmol, in 100 mL THF) was added dropwise over 30 minutes. The mixture was allowed to warm to room temperature and stfiing continued for 16 hours. The reaction was then terminated by the addition of water (50 mL), product was extracted with ethyl acetate, solvents were removed in vacuo, and the residue was separated by column chromatography to yield 4.2 g 9a (Z-stilbene), 2:1, E:Z (65% overall yield); HRMS (M+Na)+625.1364, (M+Na)+2 627.1338; IR 2962, 1730, 1510, 1267, 908, 735, 650 cm −1 ; 1 HNMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.07 (s, 9H), 3.45 (s, 3H), 3.58 (s, 3H), 3.82 (s, 3H), 6.97 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 6.23 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.32 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 6.71 (dd, 1H, J=1.5 Hz, J=8.1 Hz), 7.57 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.32 (m, 6H), 7.65 (dd, 4H); 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 152.87, 149.79, 145.16, 144.66, 135.17, 134.37, 133.52, 130.40, 129.43, 129.24, 127.30, 126.90, 125.16, 122.40, 120.79, 117.18, 112.01, 111.71, 94.38, 60.61, 55.81, 55.15, 21.10.
[0050] Further elution of the chromatogram led to isolation of 8.1 g of the E-isomer 9b: IR 2934, 2859, 1710, 1510, 1275, 908, 732, 650 cms −1 ; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.14 (s, 9H), 3.54 (s, 3H), 3.84 (s, 3H), 3.88 (s, 3H),), 6.46 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.76 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.71 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 6.85 (d, 1H, J=2.1 Hz), 6.87 (d 1H, J=2.1), 6.94 (dd, 1H, J=8.4 Hz, J=2.4 Hz), 7.15 (d, 1H, J=2.4) 7.38 (m, 6H), 7.74 (dd, 4H); and 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.76, 26.65, 55.25, 56.03, 60.59, 109.18, 109.85, 112.13, 117.70, 120.57, 122.59, 124.79, 127.48, 128.80, 129.58, 133.64, 134.91, 135.35, 145.16, 150.57, 153.58.
[0051] 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′O-tert-butyl-diphenyl-Z-stilbene (10a). A gradient column chromatogram from 0-3% ethyl acetate in hexane afforded Z-stilbene 10a (1.4 g) in 21% yield mp 122-124° C.: HRMS, found: [+H] + 651.1474. C 33 H 36 O 4 Si requires [M+H] + , 651.1427; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.07 (s, 9H), 3.45 (s, 3H), 3.55 (s, 3H), 3.79 (s, 3H), 6.21 (d, 1H, J =12 Hz), 6.31 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.59 (d, 1H, J=7.8 Hz), 6.72 (s, 2H), 6.77 (dd, 1H, J=7.8, 1.5 Hz), 7.19 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.32 (m, 6H), 7.64 (d, 4H, J=7.5 Hz); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.68, 26.62, 55.05, 55.56, 60.33, 91.94, 111.72, 113.09, 120.78, 122.43, 126.73, 127.33, 129.32, 130.28, 130.93, 133.54, 135.17, 144.70, 149.82, 151.82.
[0052] General Procedure for Cleavage of the Silyl Ether Protecting Group.
[0053] 3-Fluoro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene(11a, Fluorcombstatin). A solution prepared from Z-isomer 7a (2.4 g, 4.4 mmol), tetrahydrofuran (50 ml) and 1M tetrabutylammonium fluoride (4.5 ml, 4.5 mnmol) was stirred fro 3 hours. The reaction was terminated by the addition of water (50 ml), the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate and the solvents were removed in vacuo. Separation by flash chromatography using: 1:4 ethyl acetate-hexane as eluent provided Z-stilbene (11a) (1.12 g, 83%) as a colorless solid, which was recrystallized from ethyl acetate-hexane: mp 93-94° C.; (300 MHz, CDCI 3 ) δ 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.87 (s, 3H, 3.90 (s, 31), 5.30 (bs, 1H), 6.35 (d, J =12 Hz, 1H), 6.48 (d, J=12 Hz, 1H), 6.61 (d, J=2.4 Hz, 1H), 6.64 (d, J=1.8 Hz, 1H), 6.72 (d, J=8.4 Hz, 1H), 6.75 (dd, J=1.5, 8.4 Hz, 2H), 6.86 (d, J=1.5 Hz, 1H); 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.87, 56.01, 61.39, 108.24, 109.37, 109.57, 110.32, 114.83, 120.88, 127.72, 130.03, 130.14, 132.38, 132.48, 135.81, 135.95, 145.15, 145.78, 152.85, 152.88, 154.22, 156.65; and 19 F NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ −11.32 (d, J=12.8 Hz, 1F). HRMS calcd for C 17 H 18 FO 4 305.1189 [M+H] + .
[0054] 3-Fluoro-4,4′,5-trimethoy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilhene (11b). Cleavage of silyl ester 7b (150 mg, 0.27 mmol) was performed as described for the synthesis of 11a. Separation by flash chromatography on silica using ethyl acetate-hexane (3:7) afforded a colorless solid 11b (75 mg, 88% yield): mp 86-87° C., 1 H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.87 (s, 3H), 3.90 (s, 3H), 3.93 (s, 3H), 5.75 (bs, 1H), 6.77-6.86 (m, 5H), 6.93 (m, 1H), 6.86 (d, J=1.8 Hz, 1H). 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.87, 56.18, 61.39, 100.64, 105.68, 106.51, 106.79, 107.55, 110.63, 111.76, 119.30, 125.80, 127.61, 128.62, 129.53, 130.56, 133.13, 133.23, 134.73, 136.41, 145.78, 146.59, 153.57, 154.40, 157.64.
[0055] 3-Cloro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene (12a). Deprotection of silyl ester 8a (1.5 g, 2.7 mmol) was conducted as summarized for the synthesis of 11a. Separation by flash chromatography on silica using ethyl acetate-hexane (3:7) gave compound 12a (754 mg, 89%). Recrystallization from hexane gave a white solid; mp 105-106° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.65 (s, 3H), 3.86 (s, 3H), 3.88 (s, 3H), 5.52 (s, 1H), 6.36 (d, 1H, J=12.3 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.75 (m, 3H), 6.88 (m, 2H); 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.86, 55.94, 60.76, 110.37, 111.40, 114.86, 114.94, 121.05, 122.51, 127.60, 127.92, 130.15, 130.43, 133.74, 144.36, 145.31, 145.92, 153.21.
[0056] 3-Chloro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene 5 (12b). Column chromatography (elution with 7:3 hexane-ethyl acetate) afforded a colorless solid, E-isomer 12b, mp 138-140° C., in 79% yield: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.87 (s, 3H), 3.88 (s, 3H), 3.90 (s, 3H), 5.69 (bs, 1H), 6.79 (d, 1H, J=15.9 Hz), 6.81 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.90 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 6.90 (d, 1H, J=15.9 Hz), 6.94 (dd, 1H, J=8.1, 1.5 Hz), 7.08 (dd, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.11 (d, 1H, J=2.1 Hz); 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.93, 56.06, 60.74, 100.66, 108.66, 110.65, 111.77, 119.38, 119.79, 125.49, 128.41, 128.85, 130.59, 134.24, 144.65, 145.79, 146.61, 153.78. HRMS calcd for C 17 H 17 ClO 4 321.0894 [M+H] + , found 321.0893. Anal. Calcd for C 17 H 17 ClO 4 C, H.
[0057] 3-Bromo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene (13a). The silyl ester cleavage reaction for 9a (4 g, 6.6 mmol) was completed as described for the synthesis of phenol 11a. Isolation by flash chromatography on silica gel using ethyl acetate-hexane (1:4) gave compound 13a (2.22 g of 92%). Recrystallization from hexane afforded a colorless solid: mp 108-109° C.; HRMS calcd for C 17 H 17 BrO 4 364.0303, found [M +2 ] 366.0287; 1 H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.63 (s, 3H) 3.84 (s, 3H), 3.86 (s, 3H), 6.34 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.73 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.77 (dd, 1H, J=8.7, 1.8 Hz), 6.79 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 6.86 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.04 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz). 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.77, 55.88, 60.56, 110.45, 112.13, 114.98, 117.18, 121.01, 125.28, 127.33, 130.07, 130.43, 134.37, 145.32, 146,02, 153.03. IR 3539, 3441, 3011, 2939, 2839, 1554, 1510, 1273, 1047, 908, 732 cm −1 . HRMS calcd for C 17 H 17 O 4 81 Br. 366.0287.
[0058] 3-Brombo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene (13b). By the same procedure used to obtain phenol 13a, silyl ester 9b was converted to E phenol 13b, and isolated by flash chromatography on silica gel with ethyl acetate-hexane (3:7) to give E-isomer 13b (0.14 g, 81%). Recrystallization from hexane gave colorless solid. mp 152-154° C.; 1 H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.86 (s, 3H), 3.89 (s, 3H), 3.90 (s, 3H), 6.80 (d, 1H, J=15.9 Hz), 7.38(d, 1H, J=15.9 Hz), 6.82 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.96 (dd, 1H, J=8.4, 2.4 Hz), 6.88 (s, 1H), 1H), 7.11 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.25 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 56.00, 56.11, 60.58, 94.36, 109.32, 110.60, 11.72, 117.81, 119.32, 122.58, 125.29, 128.82, 130.53, 134.81, 145.60, 145.70, 146.50, 153.53.
[0059] 3-lodo-4,4′,5trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene (14a). The silyl ester cleavage reaction for 10a was completed as described for the phenol 11a. The crude product was separated by column chromatography using 1:4 ethyl acetate-hexane as eluent to give 1.38 g of Z-isomer 14a in 81% yield: mp 92-94° C: HRMS calc for C 17 H 18 O 4 Si found (M+H) + 413.0250. 1 H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.61 (s, 3H), 3.81 (s, 3H), 3.84 (s, 3H), 6.32 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.34 (s, 1H), 6.56 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.75 (s, 1H), 6.83 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 6.85 (s, 3H), 7.25 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.56, 55.82, 60.33, 91.78, 110.50, 113.11, 115.00, 120.91, 126.96, 129,94, 130.28, 135.93 145.29, 146.10, 147.67, 151.79. IR 3543, 3011, 2937, 2841, 1510, 1273, 1001, 908, 732 cm −1 .
[0060] 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene (14b). Separation by column chromatography (30% ethyl acetate-hexane as eluent) gave 0.29 g of E-isomer 14b in 98% yield: mp 111-113° C.; 1 H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.84 (s, 3H), 3.87 (s, 3H), 3.88 (s, 3H), 5.85 (bs, 1H), 6.77 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.89 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.82 (s, 1H), 6.96 (s, 1H), 6.93 (d, 1H, J =2.4 Hz), 7.11 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.46 (d, 1H, J =1.5 Hz); and 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.85, 60.41, 92.56, 110.40, 110.63, 111.77, 119.28, 124.97, 128.36, 128.70, 130.15, 135.71, 145.71, 146.56, 148.11, 152.44.
[0061] Dibenzyl (Z)-3-fluoro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (15). Z-stilbene 11a (1.1 g, 3.6 mmol) in 20 mL of acetonitrile (20 mL) and 3.5 mL (36 mmol) of carbon tetrachloride was cooled to −10° C., and stirred for 10 minutes. Then DIPEA (1.3 mL, 7.4 mmol), immediately followed by DMAP (44 mg, 0.36 mmol), were added. After 1 minute dibeiizyl phosphite (1.2 mL, 5.4 mmol) was added over 5 minutes, and the mixture was stirred for an additional 3 hours at −10° C. The reaction was terminated by the addition of 0.5 M KH 2 PO 4 , the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate, solvents were removed in vacuo, and the product was isolated by column chromatography (1;1 elution with ethyl acetate-hexane) to yield 1.5 g of phosphate in 74% yield: b.p. dec. 280° C. (0.01 mmHg); 1 H-NMR (500 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.65 (s, 3H), 3.77 (s, 3H), 3.87 (s, 3H), 5.12 (s, 2H), 5.14 (s, 2H), 6.38 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.43 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.57 (s, 1H) 6.62 (dd, 1H, J=1.5, 11.5 Hz), 6.78 (d, 1H, J=8.5 Hz), 7.03 (d, 1H, J=8.5 Hz), 7.12 (s, 1H), 7.82 (m, 10H); 13 C NMR (125 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ; and 31 P NMR (162 MHz CDCl 3 ) δ −7.84 (s).
[0062] Dibenzyl (3-bromo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (16). The preceding reaction (see Compound 15) was repeated with Z-stilbene 13a (1 g, 2.7 mmol) to afford 1.6 g of phosphate 16 in 94% yield: b.p. dec. 271° C. (0.01 mmHg); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.59 (s, 3H), 3.76 (s, 3H), 3.79 (s, 3H), 5.11 (s, 2H), 5.13 (s, 2H), 6.37 (d, 1H, J=12.4 Hz), 6.43 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 6.78 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 7.02 (d, 1H, J=8.2 Hz), 7.03 (d, 1H, J=2.4 Hz), 7.10 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.28 (m, 10H); 13 C NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.77, 55.88, 60.51, 65.59, 69.67, 69.73, 111.83, 112.22, 117.23, 121.96, 121.99, 125.04, 126.32, 126.75, 127.30, 127.69, 127.77, 127.88, 128.31, 128.35, 129.46, 129.47, 133.93, 135.44, 135.51, 139.30, 139.38, 145.30, 149.77, 149.82, 152.99; and 31 P NMR (162 MHz CDCl 3 ) δ −7.84 (s).
[0063] Dibenzyl 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (17). The phosphorylation reaction used to obtain phosphate 15 was repeated with Z-stilbene 14a (2.39 g, 0.95 mmol) to obtain 0.55 g of Z-stilbene 17 in 86% yield as a colorless oil. b.p. dec. 274° C. (0.01 mmHg); HRMS calc for C 31 H 31 PO 7 [M+H] + 673.0852; found [+H] + , 673.0808. 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.51 (s, 3H), 3.65 (s, 3H), 3.72 (s, 3H), 5.04 (s, 2H), 5.06 (s, 2H), 6.36 (d, 1H, J=9 Hz), 6.42 (d, 1H, J=9 Hz), 6.77 (d, 1H, J=1.2 Hz), 6.89 (d, 1H, J=6 Hz), 7.02 (d, 1H, J=6 Hz), 7.01 (s, 1H), 7.19 (d, 1H, J=1.2 Hz), 7.28 (m, 10H); and 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 56.20, 56.50, 60.73, 71.18, 71.24, 92.73, 113.72, 114.23, 122.58, 122.61, 128.10, 128.93, 129.50, 129.56, 130.18, 130.85, 130.86, 131.87, 136.26, 136.66, 136.73, 140.32, 140.3, 149.12, 151.21, 151.25, 153.26.
[0064] General Procedure for Synthesis of Phosphate Cation Deriatives
[0065] Method A. Each of the metal cation containing salts were obtained by the procedure outlined below for preparing sodium salt 19a. The metal counter ions were introduced by treatment of the phosphoric acid with either the corresponding hydroxide (e.g., potassium, lithium) or acetate (e.g. magnesium).
[0066] Sodium 3-bromo-4,4′,-5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19a). To a solution of dibenzyl phosphate 16 (0.28 g, 0.45 mnmol) in dry dichloromethane (10 mL) was added trimethylsilylbromide (125 μL, 0.95 mmol). The reaction mixture was stirred for 30 minutes under argon, and the reaction was terminated by the addition of methanol (20 mL). Following removal of solvents (in vacuo), the free phosphoric acid was dissolved in ethanol (10 mL) and sodium methoxide (49 mg, 0.9 mmol) were added to the residue. After the reaction mixture was stirred for 30 minutes, the precipitate was collected and washed with ether to provide sodium salt 19a (0.17 g) as a colorless solid: m.p. 196-197° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.53 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.75 (s, 1H), 6.77 (s, 1H), 6.79 (s, 1H), 7.01 (s, 1H), 7.15 (s, 1H).
[0067] Sodium 3-fluoro-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (18a). m.p. 200-202° C.; 1 H-NMR, (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.52 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.71 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (s, 1H), 6.78 (s, 1H), 6.79 (s, 1H), 6.79 (s, 1H), 7.03 (s, 1H), 7.16 (s, 1H).
[0068] Lithium 3-bromo-4,4′,5-trbnethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19b). m.p. 265-268° C. (dec); 1 H NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.53 (s, 3H), 3.66 (s, 3H), 3.69 (s, 3H), 6.35 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (s, 2H), 6.81 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.01 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.23 (s, 1H).
[0069] Potassium 3-bromo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19c). m.p. 230-233° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.53 (s, 3H), 3.66 (s, 3H), 3.69 (s, 3H), 6.35 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (s, 2H), 6.81 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.01 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.23 (s, 1H).
[0070] Cesium 3-bromo-4,4′,5-trimethoiy-phenyl-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19d). m.p. 233-235° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.51 (s, 3H), 3.62 (s, 3H), 3.65 (s, 3H), 6.38 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.50 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.71 (s, 1H), 6.83 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.03 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.23 (s, 1H).
[0071] Rubidium 3-bromo-4,4′,5-trimetboxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19e). m.p. 204-206° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.50 (s, 3H), 3.64 (s, 3H), 3.66 (s, 3H), 6.35 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.52 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.68 (s, 2H), 6.80 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.00 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.25 (s, 1H).
[0072] Calcium 3-bromo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19f). m.p. 245-248° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.53 (s, 3H), 3.69 (s, 3H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 6.33 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.50 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.71 (s, 2H), 6.81 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.99 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.23 (s, 1H).
[0073] Magnesium 3-bromg-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (19 g). m.p. 290-285° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.50 (s, 3H) 3.60 (s, 3H), 3.65 (s, 3H), 6.33 (d, 1H, J=12Hz), 6.50 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.68 (s, 2H), 6.79 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.00 (d, 2H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.21 (s, 1H).
[0074] Sodium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-0-phosphate (20a). m.p. 194-195° C., 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.50 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 6.50 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (s, 1H), 6.77 (s, 1H), 6.79 (s, 1H), 7.01 (s, 1H), 7.13 (s, 1H).
[0075] Method B The potassium salt 18c (approximately 30 mg) was dissolved in de-ionized water (1 mL) and applied to a Dowex-50w (HCR-W2) resin column (amine or amino acid) and developed by water. The eluent was concentrated by freeze drying to give the required compound.
[0076] 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3-O-tert-butyldiphenylsilyl-z-stilbene (10a) and 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyldiphenylsilyl-E-stdlbene (10b).
[0077] Method A. Phosphonium bromide 6 (3.67 g, 5.13 mmol) was dissolved in DCM at 0° C. Sodium hydride (60% dispersion in mineral oil, 0.41 g, 10.2 mmol) was added and the mixtture turned orange. Next, 3-iodo-4,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (1 g, 3.42 mmol) was added and stirring was continued for 21 hrs. The reaction was terminated by adding water (50 mL) and extracted with DCM (3×50 mL), which was dried, filtered and concentrated. The oil obtained was subjected to flash chromatography on silica gel with the eluent 0-3% ethyl acetate in hexane to afford z-stilbene 10a (0.86 g, 39%) which crystallized as a colorless solid from hexane: mp 122-124° C.: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.07 (s, 9H, 3.45 (s, 3H), 3.55 (s, 3H), 3.79 (s, 3H), 6.21 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.31 (d, 1H, J 12 Hz), 6.59 (d, 1H, J=7.8 Hz), 6.72 (s, 2H), 6.77 (dd, 1H, J=7.8, 1.5 Hz), 7.19 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 7.40-7.20 (m, 6H), 7.64 (d, 4H, J=7.5 Hz); 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.68, 26.62, 55.05, 55.56, 60.33, 91.94, 111.72, 113.09, 120.78, 122.43, 126.73, 127.33, 129.32, 130.28, 130.93, 133.54, 135.17, 144.70, 149.82, 151.82; HRMS calcd for C 33 H 36 IO 4 Si 651.1428 [M+H] + , found 651.1474; Anal. caled for C 33 H 35 I0 4 Si C, 60.92; H, 5.45. Found, C, 60.79; H, 5.67%.
[0078] Further elution gave E-stiibene 10b (0.96 g, 43%) that crystallized from hexane as a colorless solid; mp 98-99° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.14 (s, 9H), 3.55 (s, 3H), 3.82 (s, 3H), 3.82 (s, 3H), 3.89 (s, 3H), 6.43 (d, 1H, I =15.9 Hz), 6.71-6.76 (m, 2H), 6.86-6.95 (m, 3H), 7.33-7.42 (m, 6H); 13 C-NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.81, 26.67, 55.28, 60.50, 92.65, 110.22, 112.11, 117.70, 120.56, 124.58, 127.52, 128.45, 128.68, 129.60,129.77, 133.64, 135.38, 135.82, 145.18, 148.13, 150.56, 152.49; HRMS calcd for C 33 H 36 IO 4 Si 651.1428 [M+H] + , found 651.1400; Anal. calcd for C 33 H 35 I0 4 Si, C, 60.92; H, 5.42, found C, 60.88; H, 5.63%.
[0079] Method B. Butyllithium (4.5 mL, 11.3 mmol) was added to a stirred and cooled (−70° C.) suspension of phosphoniuin bromide 6 in dry THF (100 mL). The solution was stirred for 30 min at −70° C. then 6 hours at room temperature. Water (50 mL) was added and the reaction mixture was extracted with EtOAc (3×100 mL), the extract dried, filtered and concentrated. The oil obtained was subjected to flash chromatography on silica eluent 0-3% ethyl acetate in hexane to afford Z-stilbene 10a (1.4 g, 21%) as a colorless solid: mp 122-124° C.,
[0080] 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyl-diphenylsilyl-z-stilbene and 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-O-tert-butyl-diphenylsuyl-E-stilbene
[0081] Method A. Phosphonium bromide 6 (2.77 g, 3.87 mmol) (8) was dissolved in DCM at 0° C. When sodium hydride (60% dispersion in mineral oil, 0.31 g, 7.7 mmol) was added, the mixture turned orange. Aldehyde (1.0 g, 2.57 mmol) was added and stirring was continued for 7.5 hrs. The reaction was terminated by adding water (50 mL) and extracted with DCM (3×50 mL). The organic extract was dried, filtered and concentrated. The oily residue was subjected to flash chromatography on silica gel using hexane as eluent to give an isomeric mixture of the title compounds (71% yield, 1.35 g). Further elution gave E-isomer (0.10 g, 5%) as a colorless oil in pure form: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 1.14 (s, 9H), 3.56 (s, 3H), 3.84 (s, 3H), 6.33(d, 1H, J 15.9 Hz), 6.72 (d, 1H, J 8.4 Hz), 6.73 (d, 1H, J 15.9 Hz), 6.72 (d, 1H, J 8.4 Hz, ArH), 6.85 (d, 1H, J 2.1 Hz), 6.92 (dd, 1H, J 1.8 Hz and J 8.4 Hz), 7.34-7.46 (m, 6H) and 7.72-7.75 (m, 6H); 13 C-NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 19.82, 26.69, 55.30, 60.77, 90.59, 112.09, 117.73, 120.83, 122.47, 127.55, 129,38, 129.65, 129.99, 133.58, 135.40, 137.15, 137.73, 145.22, 150.84 and 157.55; and HRMS caled for C 32 H 33 I 2 O 3 Si 747.0289 [M+H] + , found 747.0442.
[0082] Method B. Butyllithium (0.6 mL, 1.47 mmol) was added to a stirred and cooled (−10° C.) suspension of phosphoniurn bromide 6 (1.01 g, 1.4 mmol) in dry THF (80 mL). The orange-red solution was stirred for 10 minutes at room temperature. Aldehyde (0.50 g, 1.33 mmol) was added and the reaction mixture color changed from red to yellow. Stirring was continued at room temperature for 10 minutes, ice water (100 mL) was added and the mixture extracted with EtOAc (3×100 mL). The extract was washed with water (100 mL), dried, filtered and concentrated. The resulting oil was partially separated by flash chromatography on silica gel using hexane-EtOAc (100:1) as eluent to give an isomeric mixture in a ratio approximately 1:1.9, (cis:trans, 0.90 g, 90%).
[0083] 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-z-stilbene (14a). To a solution of silyl ether 7a (1.30 g, 1.99 mmol) in THF was added tetrabutylammomum flouride (2.2 mL, 2.2 mmol). The mixture was stirred under Ar in the dark for 10 min. and the reaction was terminated by the addition of water (5 mL), the product was extracted with EtOAc (3×15 mL), and the extract dried, filtered and concentrated. The crude product was separated by silica gel column chromatography using 1:4 ethyl acetate-hexane as eluent to give stilbene 14a (0.70 g, 85%) as colorless solid: mp 92-94° C., IR 3543, 3011, 2937, 2841, 1510, 1273, 1001, 908, 732 cm −1 ; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.61 (s, 3H), 3.81 (s, 3H), 3.84 (s, 3H), 6.32 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.34 (s, 1H), 6.56 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.75 (s, 1H), 6.83 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 6.85 (s, 3H), 7.25 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz); 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.56, 55.82, 60.33, 91.78, 110.50, 113.11, 115.00, 120.91, 126.96, 129.94, 130.28, 135.93 145.29, 146.10, 147.67, 151.79; HRMS calcd for C 17 H 18 IO 4 413.0259 [M+H] + , found 413.0250. Anal. calcd for C 17 H 17 IO 4 C, 49.53; H, 4.16. Found C, 49.38; H, 4.24%.
[0084] 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene (9b). The trans isomer 14b (0.29 g, 98%) was obtained from silyl ether 10b (0.46 g, 0.7 mmol) as described above for the synthesis of the cis isomer 14a. Separation by column chromatography (7:3 hexane-ethyl acetate as eluent) gave E-isomer 14b (0.29 g, 98%) as colorless solid: mp 111-113° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.84 (s, 3H), 3.87 (s, 3H), 3.88 (s, 3H, 5.85 (bs, 1H), 6.77 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.89 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.82 (s, 1H), 6.96 (s, 1H), 6.93 (d, 1H, J=2.4 Hz), 7.11 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.46 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz); 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.85, 60.41, 92.56, 110.40, 110.63, 111.77, 119.28, 124.97, 128.36, 128.70, 130.15, 135.71, 145.71, 146.56, 148.11, 152.44; HRMS calcd for C 17 H 18 IO 4 413.0257 [M+H] + , found 413.0250. Anal. calcd for C 17 H 17 IO 4 C, 49.53; H, 4.16. Found, C, 49.38; H, 4.24%.
[0085] 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-z-stilbene 22a and 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene 22b
[0086] These stilbenes were obtained from the z and E silyl ether mixture 21ab (1.35 g, 1.81 mmol) as described above for the synthesis of cis-isomer 14a. The oily mixture was separated by column chromatography with 2:1 hexane-EtOAc as eluent to provide cis-isomer 22a as an oil (0.45 g, 49%): 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.85 (s, 3H), 3.89 (s, 3H), 5.54 (s, 1H), 6.26 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.74 (s, 2H), 6.82 (s, 1H) and 7.67 (s, 2H); 13 C-NMR (125 z, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.98, 60.73, 89.98, 110.46, 114.87, 120.98, 125.08, 29.47, 131.57, 137.37, 139.96, 145.42, 146.21, 157.50. HRMS calcd for C 16 H 15 I 2 O 3 508.9113 [M+H] + , found 508.9111. Anal. calcd for C 16 H 14 I 2 O 3 C, 37.82; H, 2.78. Found, C, 37.80; H, 2.83.
[0087] Further elution led to the E-stilbene 22b (0.46 g, 50% yield) as a colorless solid which was crystallized from hexane: mp 127-129° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.86 (s, 3H), 3.91 (s, 3H), 5.62 (s, 1H), 6.71 (d, 1H, J=16.5 Hz), 6.83 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 6.90 (d, 1H, J=17.1 Hz), 6.95 (d, 1H, J=8.4Hz), 7.10 (d, 1H, J=2.4 Hz) and 7.85 (s, 2H, H-2); 13 C-NMR (75 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.51, 60.30, 90.17, 100.17, 100.21, 110.18, 111.35, 119.17, 122.56, 129.63, 129.81, 136.82, 137.19, 146.34 and 157.25; HRMS calcd for C 16 H 15 I 2 O 3 508.9113 [M+H] + , found 508.9119. Anal. calcd for C 16 H 14 I 2 O 3 C, 37,82; H, 2.78. Found, C, 38.01; H, 2.91.
[0088] 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-acetyl-z-stilbene (22c)
[0089] An appropriate phenol 22a (0.45 g) was dissolved in pyridine (3 mL) acetic anhydride (170 μL) and stirred for 2 hrs. The mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure from toluene (3×10 mL). The residue was diluted with EtOAc (30 mL), washed successively with water (10 mL), NaHCO 3 (10% aq. sol., 10 mL), dried, and the solution filtered and concentrated. The acetate was ftirther purified by flash chromatography on silica using 1:24 hexane-EtOAc:hexane as eluent to afford acetate 22c (0.20 g, 41%) as a colorless solid: recrystallized from hexane mp 121-122° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) 3 2.29 (s, 3H), 3.83 (s, 3H), 3.85 (s, 3H), 6.29 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.48 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.85 (d, 1H, J=8.7 Hz), 6.93 (d, 1H, J=2.43), 7.06 (d, 1H, J=1.5), 7.09 (d, 1H, J=2.4 Hz) and 7.67 (s, 2H); 13 C-NMR (125 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 20.66, 55.94, 60.72, 90.11, 112.16, 123.25, 125.41, 127.47, 128.85, 130.64, 137.10, 139.54, 139.89, 150.69, 157.67 and 168.79; HRMS caled for C 19 H 20 I 2 O 5 582.9479 [M+CH 3 OH] + , found 582.9482; Anal. calcd for C 18 H 16 I 2 O 4 C, 39.30; H, 2.93. Found C, 39.30; H, 3.13%.
[0090] 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-acetyl-Z-stilbene
[0091] An appropriate phenol (0.1 g, 0.24 mmol) was dissolved in 3 mL anhydrous pyridine. Acetic anhydride (50 μL, 0.51 mmol) was added with cat DMAP. The mixture was stirred for 90 minutes. The reaction was terminated by the addition of 5 mL CH 3 OH. The mixture was diluted with toluene and concentrated under reduced pressure. It was purified on flash chromatography on silica gel using EtOAc:hexane (1:9) as eluent to give a white solid (0.1 mg, 91%). The solid was crystallized from hexane: mp 103-104° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 2.27 (s, 3H), 3.61 (s, 3H), 3.81 (s, 6H), 6.38 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.48 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.77 (d, 1H, J=1.8 Hz), 6.83 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.96 (d, 1H, J=1.5 Hz), 7.09 (dd, 1H, J=8.4 Hz, J=2.4 Hz), and 7.26 (s, 1H); 13 C-NMR (125 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 20.61, 55.67, 55.93, 60.44, 92.07, 112.07, 112.92, 123.17, 127.63, 127.74, 129.39, 129.65, 103.97, 134.96, 139.49, 147.99, 150.39, 152.05 and 168.81; HRMS calcd for C 19 H 20 IO 5 455.0355 [M+H] + , found 455.0356. Anal. calcd for C 19 H 19 IO 5 C, 50.24; H, 4.22. Found, C, 49,67; H, 4.18%.
[0092] Dibenzyl 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (23)
[0093] An appropriate dibenzyl phosphate (0.38 g, 55% yield) was obtained (0.46 g, 0.91 mmol) as described above for the synthesis of iodide 10a. Colorless oil: bp dec 220° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 3.78 (s, 3H), 3.81 (s, 6H), 5.13 (s, 2H), 5.16 (s, 2H), 6.28 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.42 (d, 1H, J 12 Hz), 6.78 (d, 1H, J 9 Hz), 7.00 (d, 1H, J 8.7 Hz), 7.07 (s, 1H), 7.33 (s, 10H) and 7.64 (s, 2H); 13 C-NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ) δ 55.96, 60.71, 69.83, 69.89, 90.15, 112.40, 122.23, 122.26, 125.60, 126.20, 126.21, 127.93, 128.49, 128.55, 130.66, 137.12, 139.92 and 157.68; HRMS calcd for C 30 H 28 I 2 O 6 P 768.9713 [M+H] + , found 768.9699; 31 P-NMR (162 Mz, CDCl 3 ) δ −5.51.
[0094] General procedures for syntheses of the phosphoric acids and derivatives.
[0095] Method A. Each of the metal cation phosphate salts was obtained by the procedure outlined herein for preparing the potassium salt 20c, except for the metal counterions introduced by treatment of the phosphoric acid using either lithium hydroxide or sodium methoxide.
[0096] Method B. Dowex-50W (2 g) (HCR-W2) was placed in a column and washed successively with CH 3 OH (50 mL), 1 N HCl (until pH 1), water (until pH 7), base/amine/amino acid (until pH 7-14) and water (until pH 7). The column was recycled. The potassium salt or its corresponding diiodo phosphate salt (about 25 mg) was dissolved in de-ionized water (1 mL) and applied to a Dowex-50W (HCR-W2) resin column (bearing the appropriate amine or amino acid methyl ester) and developed with approximately 40 mL of water. The eluent was concentrated by freeze drying to give the required cation derivative.
[0097] Method C. Amino Acid Methyl Esters. The amino acid methyl ester hydrochloride was neutralized in CH 3 OH solution by adding potassium carbonate. Ether was added to precipitate the potassium chloride and the solution was filtered and concentrated. The amino acid methyl ester residue was then applied to the Dowex-50W (HCR-W2) resin column as described in Method B.
[0098] Potassium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (20c).
[0099] Trimethylbromosilane (277 μL, 1.8 mmol) was added to a cooled (0° C.) solution of phosphate 9a in DCM (40 mL). After stirring for 90 minutes, sodium thiosulfate (10% aq., 10 mL) was added and the mixture was stirred for an additional 1 minute. The phases were separated and the aqueous phase extracted with DCM (20 mL), followed by EtOAc (2×20 mL). The combined organic extracts were dried, filtered and concentrated to afford the phosphoric acid intermediate as a clear oil. After drying (high vacuum) for 1 hour, the oil was dissolved in CH 3 OH (10 mL), cooled to 0° C., and KOH (1.8 mL, 1 M sol. in CH 3 OH) was added. The mixture was stirred for 20 minutes, the precipitate was collected and triturated with ether to afford the potassium salt as a colorless solid: mp 197-198° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.51 (s, 3H), 3.64 (s, 3H), 3,71 (s, 3H), 6.33 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.51 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (s, 2H), 6.84 (s, 1H) and 7.22 (s, 2H); and 31 P-NMR (162 MHz, D 2 O) δ 0.94.
[0100] Sodium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (20a).
[0101] Isolated as a colorless solid: mp 194-195° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.50 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 6.50 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (s, 1H), 6.77 (s, 1H), 6.79 (s, 1H), 7.01 (s, 1H) and 7.13 (s, 1H),
[0102] Lithium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate (11c).
[0103] Discovered as a colorless solid: mp 245-275° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (400 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.50 (s, 3H), 3.62 (s, 3H), 3.66 (s, 3H), 6.33 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (s, 2H), 6.83 (s, 1H), 7.20 (s, 1H) and 7.22 (s, 1H).
[0104] Morpholine 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0105] Another colorless oil: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.11-3.15 (m, 8H), 3.50 (s, 3H), 3.63 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 3.77-3.81 (m, 8H), 6.33 (d, 1H, J 12 Hz), 6.50 (d, 1H, J 12 Hz), 6.73 (s, 2H), 6.82 (s, 1H), 7.18 (s, 1H) and 7.20 (s, 1H).
[0106] Piperidene 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0107] Colorless oil: 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 1.51 (m, 4H), 1.62 (m, 8H), 3.00 (t, 8H, J=6 Hz), 3.51 (s, 3H), 3.63 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 6.34 (d, 1H, J=12.6 Hz), 6.51 (d, 1H, J=12.6 Hz), 6.72 (s, 2H), 6.83 (s, 1H) and 7.21 (s, 1H).
[0108] Glycine-OMe 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0109] Obtained as a colorless solid: mp 74-78° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz , D 2 O) δ 3.48 (s, 3H), 3.61 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.68 (s, 3H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 6.30 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.46 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.69-6.77 (m, 3H), 7.10 (s, 1H) and 7.16 (s, 1H).
[0110] Tryptophan-OMe 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0111] Colorless solid: mp 108-112° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.19 (d, 2H, J=6.3 Hz), 3.56 (s, 3H), 3.61 (s, 3H), 3.66 (s, 3H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 4.09 (t, 1H, J=6 Hz), 6.35 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.47 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.81-6.85 (m, 2H), 6.98 (t, 1H, J=7.2 Hz), 7.07 (t, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 7.18 (s, 1H), 7.22 (s, 1H), 7.34 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 7.40 (s, 1H) and 7.46(d, 1H,J=7.2 Hz).
[0112] Tris 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0113] Colorless solid: mp 75-81° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.42 (s, 9 H),3.57 (s, 3H), 3.67 (s, 3H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 6.35 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.48 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.76 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.81 (d, 1H, J=8.7 Hz), 6.92 (s, 1H), 7.22 (s, 1H) and 7.42 (s, 1H).
[0114] Potassium 3,5-dilodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0115] Phosphate (0.20 g, 80%) was obtained from appropriate ester 9c (0.29 g, 0.38 mmol) as described above for the synthesis of 20c, except the phosphoric acid was insoluble in EtOAc and DCM, so the aqueous phase was extracted with butyl alcohol (3×25 mL). The potassium salt was a colorless solid: mp 210-215° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.69 (s, 6H), 6.27 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.64 (s, 2H), 7.20 (s, 1H) and 7.62 (s, 2H); 31 P-NMR (162 MHz, D 2 O) δ 0.973.
[0116] Sodium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate,
[0117] Obtained as a colorless solid: mp 215-234° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.69 (s, 3H), 3.72 (s, 3H), 6.29 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.69 (s, 2H), 7.20 (s, 1H) and 7.64 (s, 2H).
[0118] Lithium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0119] A colorless solid melting at 250-270° C. (dec); 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, D 2 O) δ 3.68 (s, 3H), 3.71 (s, 3H), 6.28 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.68 (s, 2H), 7.19 (s, 1H) and 7.64 (s, 2H). 31 P NMR (162 MHz, D 2 O) δ 0.96.
[0120] Morpholine 3,5diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0121] Colorless waxy solid; mp 75-80° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 2.96-2.99 (m, 8H), 3.74-3.77 (m, 8H), 3.82 (s, 3H), 3.83 (s, 3H), 6.43 (d, 1H, J=12.5 Hz), 6.60 (d, 1H, J=12.5 Hz), 6.86 (d, 1H, J=8.2Hz), 6.93 (d, 1H, J=8.2 Hz), 7.49 (s, 1H) and 7.78 (s, 2H).
[0122] Piperidine 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0123] Isolated as a colorless oil; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 1.51 (br s, 12 H), 2.79-2.81 (m, 8H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 3.72 (s, 3H), 6.31 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.73 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 6.80 (d, 1H, J=8.4 Hz), 7.40 (s, 1H) and 7.61 (s, 1H).
[0124] Glycine-OMe 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0125] Colorless solid; mp 90-97° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.61 (s, 4 H), 3.68 (s, 6H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 3.72 (s, 3H), 6.31 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.49 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.72 (d, 1H, J=9.6 Hz), 6.80 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 7.37 (s, 1H) and 7.67 (s, 1H).
[0126] Tryptophan-OMe 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0127] Collected as a colorless solid; melting at 125-130° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.34 (d, 1H, J=6.5 Hz), 3.36 (d, 1H, J=6.5 Hz), 3.66 (s, 3H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 3.72 (s, 3H), 4.32 (t, 1H, J=6.5 Hz), 6.31 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.48 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.78-6.81 (m, 2H), 7.01 (s, 1H), 7.05 (t, 1H, J=7 Hz), 7.13 (t, 1H, J=7 Hz), 7.39 (d, 1H, J=7.5 Hz), 7.47 (d, 1H, J=8 Hz) and 7.60 (s, 1H).
[0128] Tris 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate.
[0129] Colorless solid; mp 115-120° C.; 1 H-NMR (300 MHz, DMSO) δ 3.34 (s, 18H), 3.69 (s, 3H), 3.71 (s, 3H), 6.30 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.47 (d, 1H, J=12 Hz), 6.70 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 6.78 (d, 1H, J=8.1 Hz), 7.37 (s, 1H) and 7.67 (s, 2H).
[0130] Cancer Cell Line Procedures
[0131] Inhibition of human cancer cell growth was assessed using the National Cancer Institute's standard sulforhodamine B assay. After 48 hours, the plates were fixed with trichloracetic acid, stained with sulforhodamine B and read with an automated microplate reader. A growth inhibition of 50% (GI 50 or the drug concentration causing a 50% reduction in the net protein increase) was calculated from optical density data with Inmunosoft software. Inhibition of the mouse leukemia P388 cells was assessed in a 10% horse serum/Fisher medium soution for 24 hours, followed by a 48 hour incubation with serial dilutions of the compounds. Cell growth inhibition (ED 50 ) was then calculated using a Z1 Becleman/Coulter particle counter.
[0132] Tubulin Evaluations: Tubulin polymerization was evaluated by turbidimetry at 35 nm using Beckman DU7400/7500 spectrophotometers as known to one of skill in the art. Varying concentrations of the compound were preincubated with 10 μM. Incubation was for 10 minutes at 37° C.
[0133] Antiangiogenesis
[0134] HUVEC Procedures
[0135] In vitro Matrigel antiangiogenesis assays were implemented according to the Developmental Therapeutics Program NCI/NIH protocols known to one of skill in the art. Matrigel, a basement membrane matrix, was obtained from BD Biosciences. Growth inhibition and cord formation assays were Conducted using human umbilical vein endothelial cells obtained from GlycoTeCh. HUVEC cells were grown in EGM-2 medium.
[0136] Cord Formation Assay
[0137] An aliquot of sixty microliters was placed in each well of an ice-cold 96-well plate. The plates were then left for 15 minutes at room temperature, then incubated for 30 minutes at 37° C. to permit the matrigel to polymerize. Meanwhile, HUVEC cells were harvested and diluted to a concentration of 2×10 5 cells/ml. A solution of 100 μL containing the compounds to be tested was added next. After 24 hours incubation, pictures were taken for each concentration using an inverted Nikon Diaphot microscope and D100 digital camera. Drug effect was assessed, compared to untreated controls, by measuring the length of cords formed and number ofjunctions.
[0138] The standard sulforhodamine B assay (see Cancer Cell Line Procedures above) was used to evaluate results using HUVEC cells. IC 50 or ED 50 (drug concentration causing 50% inhibition) was calculated from the plotted data.
Administration
[0139] Dosages
[0140] The dosage to be administered to humans and other animals requiring treatment will depend upon the identity of the neoplastic disease or microbial infection; the tpe of host involved, including its age, health and weight; the kind of concurrent treatment, if any; the frequency of treatment and therapeutic ratio. Hereinafter are described various possible dosages and methods of administration, with the understanding that the following are intended to be illustrative only, and that the actual dosages to be administered, and methods of administration or delivery may vary therefrom. The proper dosages and administration forms and methods may be determined by one of skill in the art.
[0141] Illustratively, anticipated dosage levels of the administered active ingredients may be in the following ranges: intravenous, 0.1 to about 200 mg/kg; intramuscular, 1 to about 500 mg/kg; orally, 5 to about 1000 mg/kg; intranasal instillation, 5 to about 1000 mg/kg; and aerosol, 5 to about 1000 mg/k of host body weight.
[0142] Expressed in terms of concentration, an active ingredient can be present in the compositions of the present invention for localized use about the cutis, intranasally, pharyngolaryngeally, bronchially, intravaginally, rectally, or ocularly in concentration of from about 0.01 to about 50% w/w of the composition; preferably about 1 to about 20% w/w of the composition; and for parenteral use in a concentration of from about 0.05 to about 50% w/v of the composition and preferably from about 5 to about 20% w/v.
[0143] The compositions of the present invention are intended to be presented for administration to humans and animals in unit dosage forms, such as tablets, capsules, pills, powders, granules, suppositories, sterile parenteral solutions or suspensions, sterile non-parenteral solutions of suspensions, and oral solutions or suspensions and the like, containing suitable quantities of an active ingredient. Other dosage forms known in the art may be used.
[0144] For oral administration either solid or fluid unit dosage forms may be prepared.
[0145] Powders may be prepared by comminuting the active ingredient to a suitably fine size and mixing with a similarly comminuted diluent. The diluent can be an edible carbohydrate material such as lactose or starch. Advantageously, a sweetening agent or sugar is present as well as a flavoring oil.
[0146] Capsules may be produced by preparing a powder mixture as here inbefore described and filling into formed gelatin sheaths. Advantageously, as an adjuvant to the filling operation, a lubricant such as talc, magnesium stearate, calcium stearate and the like is added to the powder mixture before the filling operation.
[0147] Soft gelatin capsules may be prepared by machine encapsulation of a slurry of active ingredients with an acceptable vegetable oil, light liquid petrolatum or other inert oil or triglyceride or other pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.
[0148] Tablets may be made by preparing a powder mixture, granulating or slugging, adding a lubricant and pressing into tablets. The powder mixture may be prepared by mixing an active ingredient, suitably comminuted, with a diluent or base such as starch, lactose, kaolin, dicalcium phosphate and the like. The powder mixture can be granulated by wetting with a binder such as corn syrup, gelatin solution, methylcellulose solution or acacia mucilage and forcing through a screen. As an alternative to granulating, the powder mixture may be slugged, i.e., run through the tablet machine and the resulting imperfectly formed tablets broken into pieces (slugs). The slugs can be lubricated to prevent sticking to the tablet-forming dies by means of the addition of stearic acid, a stearic salt, talc or mineral oil. The lubricated mixture is then compressed into tablets.
[0149] Advantageously, for protection of the tablet itself and/or to ease swallowing, the tablet can be provided with a pharmaceutically acceptable coating such as a sealing coat or enteric coat of shellac, a coating of sugar and methylcellulose and polish coating of camauba wax.
[0150] Fluid unit dosage forms for oral administration such as in syrups, elixirs and suspensions may be prepared wherein each teaspoonfuil of composition contains a predetermined amount of an active ingredient for administration.
[0151] The water-soluble forms may be dissolved in an aqueous vehicle together with sugar, flavoring agents and preservatives to form a syrup. An elixir is prepared by using a hydroalcoholic vehicle with suitable sweeteners together with a flavoring agent. Suspensions may be prepared of the insoluble forms with a suitable vehicle with the aid of a pharmaceutically acceptable suspending agent such as acacia, tragacanth, methylcellulose and the like.
[0152] For parenteral administration, fluid unit dosage forms may be prepared utilizing an active ingredient and a sterile vehicle, for examples water. The active ingredient, depending on the form and concentration used, can be either suspended or dissolved in the vehicle. In preparing solutions the water-soluble active ingredient can be dissolved in water for injection and filter sterilized before filling into a suitable vial or ampule and sealing. Advantageously, adjuvants such as a local anesthetic, preservative and buffering agents can be dissolved in the vehicle. Parenteral suspensions may be prepared in substantially the same manner except that an active ingredient is suspended in the vehicle instead of being dissolved and sterilization cannot be accomplished by filtration. The active ingredient may be sterilized by exposure to ethylene oxide before suspending in the sterile vehicle. Advantageously, a pharmaceutically acceptable surfactant or wetting agent may be included in the composition to facilitate uniform distribution of the active ingredient.
[0153] In addition to oral and parenteral administration, the rectal and vaginal routes can be utilized. An active ingredient can be administered by means of a suppository. A vehicle which has a melting point at about body temperature or one that is readily soluble can be utilized. For example, cocoa butter and various polyethylene glycols (Carbowaxes) can serve as the vehicle.
[0154] For intranasal installation, a fluid unit dosage form may be prepared utilizing an active ingredient and a suitable pharmaceutical vehicle, such as purified water, a dry powder, can be formulated when insuffilation is the administration of choice.
[0155] For use as aerosols, the active ingredients may be packaged in a pressurized aerosal container together with a gaseous or liquefied propellant, for example, dichlorodifluoromethane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, propane, and the like, with the usual adjuvants such as cosolvents and wetting agents, as may be necessary or desirable.
[0156] The term “unit dosage form” as used in the specification and claims refers to physically discrete units suitable as unitary dosages for human and animal subjects, each unit containing a predetermined quantity of active material calculated to produce the desired therapeutic effect in association with the required pharmaceutical diluent, carrier or vehicle. The specifications for the novel unit dosage forms of this invention are dictated by and are directly dependent on (a) the unique characteristics of the active material and the particular therapeutic effect to be achieved, and (b) the limitation inherent in the art of compounding such an active material for therapeutic use in humans, as disclosed in this specification, these being features of the present invention. Examples of suitable unit dosage forms in accord with this invention are tablets, capsules, troches, suppositories, powder packets, wafers, cachets, teaspoonfuls, tablespoonfuls, dropperfuls, ampules, vials, segregated multiples of any of the foregoing, and other forms as herein described.
[0157] The active ingredients to be employed as antineoplastic agents may be prepared in such unit dosage form with the employment of pharmaceutical materials which themselves are available in the art and can be prepared by established procedures. The following preparations are illustrative of the preparation of the unit dosage forms of the present invention, and not as a limitation thereof. Shown in the following are examples of dosage forms for the compounds of the present invention, in which the notation “active ingredient” signifies the compounds described herein.
Composition “A”
Hard-Gelatin Capsules
[0158] One thousand two-piece hard gelatin capsules for oral use, each capsule containing 200 mg of an active ingredient may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 200 g Corn Starch 20 g Talc 20 g Magnesium stearate 2 g
[0159] The active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air microrizer, is added to the other finely powdered ingredients, mixed thoroughly and then encapsulated in the usual manner.
[0160] Using the procedure above, capsules may be similarly prepared containing an active ingredient in 50, 250 and 500 mg amounts by substituting 50 g, 250 g and 500 g of an active ingredient for the 200 g used above.
Composition “B”
Soft Gelatin Capsules
[0161] One-piece soft gelatin capsules for oral use, each containing 200 mg of an active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air micronizer, may prepared by first suspending the compound in 0.5 ml of corn oil to render the material capsulatable and then encapsulating in the above manner.
Composition “C”
Tablets
[0162] One thousand tablets, each containing 200 mg of an active ingredient, may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 200 g Lactose 300 g Corn starch 50 g Magnesium stearate 4 g Light liquid petrolatum 5 g
[0163] The active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air micronizer, is added to the other ingredients and then thoroughly mixed and slugged. The slugs are broken down by forcing them through a Number Sixteen screen. The resulting granules are then compressed into tablets, each tablet containing 200 mg of the active ingredient.
[0164] Using the procedure above, tablets may similarly prepared containing an active ingredient in 250 mg and 100 mg amounts by substituting 250 g and 100 g of an active ingredient for the 200 g used above.
Composition “D”
Oral Suspension
[0165] One liter of an aqueous suspension for oral use, containing in each teaspoonfuil (5 ml) dose, 50 mg of an active ingredient, may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 10 g Citric acid 2 g Benzoic acid 1 g Sucrose 790 g Tragacanth 5 g Lemon Oil 2 g Deionized water, q.s. 1000 ml
[0166] The citric acid, benzoic acid, sucrose, tragacanth and lemon oil are dispersed in sufficient water to make 850 ml of suspension. The active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air micronizer, is stirred into the syrup unit uniformly distributed. Sufficient water is added to make 1000 ml
Composition “E”
Parenteral Product
[0167] A sterile aqueous suspension for parenteral injection, containing 30 mg of an active ingredient in each milliliter for treating a neoplastic disease, may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 30 g POLYSORBATE 80 5 g Methylparaben 2.5 g Propylparaben 0.17 g Water for injection, q.s. 1000 ml.
[0168] All the ingredients, except the active ingredient, are dissolved in the water and the solution sterilized by filtration. To the sterile solution is added the sterilized active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air micronizer, and the final suspension is filled into sterile vials and the vials sealed.
Composition “F”
Suppository, Rectal and Vaginal
[0169] One thousand suppositories, each weighing 2.5 g and containing 200 mg of an active ingredient may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 15 g Propylene glycol 150 g Polyethylene glycol #4000, q.s. 2,500 g
[0170] The active ingredient is finely divided by means of an air micronizer and added to the propylene glycol and the mixture passed through a colloid mill until uniformly dispersed. The polyethylene glycol is melted and the propylene glycol dispersion is added slowly with stirring. The suspension is poured into unchilled molds at 40° C. The composition is allowed to cool and solidify and then removed from the mold and each suppository foil wrapped.
Composition “G”
Intranasal Suspension
[0171] One liter of a sterile aqueous suspension for intranasal instillation, containing 20 mg of an active ingredient in each milliliter, may be prepared from the following types and amounts of ingredients:
Active ingredient, micronized 15 g POLYSORBATE 80 5 g Methylparaben 2.5 g Propylparaben 0.17 g Deionized water, q.s. 1000 ml.
[0172] All the ingredients, except the active ingredient, are dissolved in the water and the solution sterilized by filtration. To the sterile solution is added the sterilized active ingredient, finely divided by means of an air micronizer, and the final suspension is aseptically filled into sterile containers.
Composition “H”
Powder
[0173] Five grams of active ingredient in bulk form is finely divided by means of an air micronizer. The micronized powder is placed in a shaker-type container.
Composition “I”
Oral Powder
[0174] One hundred grams of an active ingredient in bulk form may be finely divided by means of an air micronizer. The micronized powder is divided into individual doses of 200 mg and packaged.
Composition “J”
Insulation
[0175] One hundred grams of an active ingredient in bulk form is finely divided by means of an air micronizer.
[0176] It is of course understood that such modifications, alterations and adaptations as will readily occur to the artisan confronted with this disclosure are intended within the spirit of the present invention.
TABLE I Human cancer cell line inhibition (GI 50 μg/mL) and murine P388 lymphocytic leukemia inhibitory activity (ED 50 μg/ml) of halocombstatins and other compounds. Leukemia Pancreas- Breast adn CNS Lung-NSC Colon Prostate Compound P388 a BXPC-3 MCF-7 SF268 NCI-H460 KM20L2 DU-145 1a 0.0003 0.39 — <0.001 0.0006 0.061 0.0008 1b 0.0004 — — 0.036 0.029 0.034 — 2a 0.251 4.4 — — 0.74 0.061 0.17 2b <0.01 1.5 0.024 0.036 0.038 0.53 0.034 3a 0.257 2.3 0.49 0.0083 0.19 1.2 0.0043 3b 0.305 2.8 0.92 0.052 0.45 3.5 0.048 11a <0.01 0.016 <0.01 <0.01 <0.01 1.1 <0.01 11b 0.253 2.2 0.051 0.35 0.18 0.53 0.18 12a <0.01 0.043 <0.001 <0.001 <0.001 0.15 <0.001 12b 0.027 0.59 0.041 0.048 0.034 1.4 0.038 13a <0.01 0.16 <0.001 <0.001 <0.001 0.086 <0.001 13b 0.0174 1.6 0.14 0.18 0.15 1.2 0.13 14a <0.01 0.11 0.00022 0.00035 0.00019 0.15 0.00052 14b 0.189 2.7 0.18 0.55 0.21 1.7 0.27 18a 0.0298 0.59 0.0044 0.0051 0.0094 1.5 0.0036 19a <0.01 0.093 0.0041 0.0034 0.0028 0.23 0.0046 19b <0.01 0.13 0.0039 0.0030 0.0026 0.11 0.0066 19c <0.01 0.20 0.0035 0.0032 0.0029 0.24 0.0028 19d <0.01 0.15 0.0044 0.0064 0.0066 0.48 0.0079 19e <0.01 0.56 0.043 0.023 0.041 2.6 0.042 19f 0.288 <0.001 0.0022 0.0022 0.0068 0.37 0.0063 19g <0.01 0.074 0.0045 0.0053 0.0039 0.27 0.0045 19h <0.01 0.17 0.0049 0.0067 0.0047 0.45 0.0049 19i 2.22 >10 3.2 4.1 2.9 >10 2.8 20a <0.01 0.47 0.012 0.0052 0.0031 0.37 0.0078
[0177]
TABLE Ia
Solubilities of some of the synthetic modifications, human
cancer cell line growth inhibition (GI 50 μg/mL) and murine P388
lymphocytic leukemia inhibitory activity (ED 50 μg/ml).
Solubility a
Leukemia
Pancreas
Breast
CNS
Lung-NSC
Colon
Prostate
Compound
(mg/mL)
P388
BXPC-3
MCF-7
SF268
NCI-H460
KM20L2
DU-145
A
—
0.0003
0.39
—
<0.001
0.0006
0.061
0.0048
B
—
0.0004
—
—
0.036
0.029
0.034
—
C
—
0.26
2.3
0.49
0.0083
0.19
1.2
0.0043
D
—
0.0020
0.745
0.0027
0.0016
0.0032
>1
0.019
E
—
0.0020
0.048
0.00022
0.00018
0.00029
0.328
0.00018
F
—
0.189
2.7
0.18
0.55
0.21
1.7
0.27
G
—
0.0028
0.038
0.0027
0.0036
0.0034
0.15
0.0021
H
—
>10
3.0
0.94
3.3
3.4
>10
5.8
I
—
0.0089
0.040
0.00053
0.0023
0.0032
0.075
0.0020
J
—
0.022
0.080
<0.0001
0.0002
0.00031
0.16
0.00026
K
14
0.0021
0.381
0.0064
0.0057
0.0043
>1
0.0038
L
2
0.0020
0.469
0.018
0.018
0.017
>1
0.011
M
≧2.4
0.017
0.490
0.0038
0.0040
0.0039
>1
0.0043
N
—
0.0032
0.21
0.0047
0.0037
0.0036
0.24
0.0026
O
≧4
0.0026
0.32
0.0065
0.0044
0.0036
0.51
0.0029
P
≧2
0.0026
0.16
0.0044
0.0033
0.0031
0.32
0.0021
Q
—
0.0022
0.26
0.035
0.0097
0.0034
0.59
0.0030
R
—
0.0029
0.37
0.0048
0.0043
0.0040
0.40
0.0047
S
22
0.0034
0.44
0.050
0.053
0.046
>1
0.028
T
2
0.030
>1
0.066
0.051
0.327
>1
0.242
U
≧4
0.021
0.37
0.051
0.050
0.050
>1
0.032
V
—
0.014
0.35
0.066
0.054
0.033
>1
0.028
W
—
0.011
0.33
0.070
0.041
0.025
>1
0.025
X
—
0.011
0.36
0.10
0.054
0.030
>1
0.023
Y
—
0.017
0.37
0.22
0.086
0.033
>1
0.026
Z
—
0.026
0.33
0.047
0.040
0.025
0.94
0.021
a Solubility values were obtained using 1 mL D 2 O at 25° C.
Key to Table Ia
A = combretastatin A-4
B = sodium combretastatin A-4 phosphate
C = combretastatin A3
D = fluorocombstatin
E = 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
F = 3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene
G = 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
H = 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-E-stilbene
I = 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-acetyl-Z-stilbene
J = 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′acetyl-Z-stilbene
K = Potassium 3-iodo,4,4′,5 trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
L = Sodium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
M = Lithium 3 iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
N = Morpholine 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
O = Piperidine 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
P = Glycine-O-Me-3-iodo,4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
Q = Tryptophan-O-Me-3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
R = Tris-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
S = Potassium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
T = Sodium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
U = Lithium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
V = Morpholine 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
W = Piperidine 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
X = Glycine-O-Me 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
Y = Tryptophan-OMe-3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
Z = Tris 3,5 diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
[0178]
TABLE II
Inhibition of tubulin polymerization and binding of [ 3 H]
colchicine to tubulin by halocombstatins
Com-
Inhibition of polymerization
Inhibition of colchicine binding
pound
IC 50 (μM) ± S.D.
% inhibition ± S.D.
1a
1.8 ± 0.2
81 ± 3
11a
1.5 ± 0.2
75 ± 6
12a
1.6 ± 0.3
85 ± 4
13a
1.5 ± 0.2
89 ± 2
14a
1.6 ± 0.2
84 ± 7
[0179]
TABLE III
Antimicrobial activities of halocombstatins and other compounds
Range of minimum inhibitory concentration (μg/ml)
Compound
Microorganism
11a
11b
12a
14a
14b
13a
13b
18a
20a
Cryptococcus neoformans
64
64
64
32-64
64
*
*
*
*
Candida albicans
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Staphylococcus aureus
*
32-64
*
*
8-64
*
*
*
*
Streptococcus pneumoniae
64
64
32-64
64
*
*
*
*
*
Enterococcus faecalis
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Micrococcus luteus
32-64
16-32
32
16-32
4-8
32-64
*
*
*
Escherichia coli
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Enterobacter cloacae
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Stenotrophomonas
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
maltophilia
Neisseria gonorrhoeae
32
8-16
16
16-32
4-16
32-64
*
16
16-32
* = no inhibition at 64 μg/ml
[0180]
TABLE IV
Human Anaplastic Thyroid Carcinoma Cell Line Inhibition Values
(GI 50 ) expressed in μg/mL.
Compound
KAT-4
SW1736
3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
0.089-0.14
2.2
3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
0.039-0.063
1.2
Potassium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0.37-0.43
>10
Potassium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0.38-0.44
>10
[0181]
TABLE V
Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cell (HUVEC)
Inhibition Values (GI 50 ) expressed in μg/mL.
Compound
HUVEC
3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′hydroxyl-Z-stilbene
0.000040
3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
0.00028
Potassium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0.00025
Sodium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0.00035
Potassium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-
0.0049
phosphate
Sodium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′dimethoxy-Z-stilbenes 3′-O-phosphate
0.051
[0182]
TABLE VI
Length of Cords Formed, Number of Junctions and Relative Percent Growth
Drug
Lengths of
Number of
Relative %
Concentration
Cords
junctions
Growth
3-Iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
0.01
μg/ml
−
−
14
0.001
μg/ml
+
+
14
0.0001
μg/ml
++(+)
++(+)
18
0.00001
μg/ml
90
3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
0.01
μg/ml
−
−
4
0.001
μg/ml
+
(+)
8
0.0001
μg/ml
+++
+++
84
0.00001
μg/ml
87
Potassium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
0.01
μg/ml
1
0.001
μg/ml
++
++(+)
10
0.0001
μg/ml
+++
+++
77
0.00001
μg/ml
+++
+++
95
Sodium 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
0.1
μg/ml
−
−
7
0.01
μg/ml
−
−
14
0.001
μg/ml
+
+
5
0.0001
μg/ml
104
Potassium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0.1
μg/ml
−
−
15
0.01
μg/ml
++(+)
++(+)
33
0.001
μg/ml
+++
+++
88
0.0001
μg/ml
96
Sodium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
1
μg/ml
−
−
−7
0.1
μg/ml
+
(+)
−2
0.01
μg/ml
++(+)
++(+)
>100
0.0001
μg/ml
>100
Lengths of
Number of
Legend
Cords
junctions
−
No Cords
No
Junctions
+
Small
Few
++
˜50% of
˜50% of
Control
Control
+++
Same as
Same as
Control
Control
[0183]
TABLE VII
Antimicrobial activities of iodocomstatins
Range of MIC (μg/ml)
ATCC
or
(Presque
Compound
Microorganism
Isle) #
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
0
P
Q
R
S
T
U
Cryptococcus
90112
*
64
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
neoformans
Candida
90028
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
albicans
Staphylococcus
29213
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
aureus
Streptococcus
6303
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
pneumoniae
Enterococcus
29212
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
faecalis
Micrococcus
(456)
*
*
4-16
2-4
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
luteus
Escherichia
25922
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
coli
Enterobacter
13047
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
cloacae
Stenotrophomonas
13637
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
maltophilia
Neisseria
49226
64
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
16-32
*
*
4-8
32-64
<0.5-4
32-64
<0.5-2
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5-1
<0.5
<0.5-2
gonorrhoeae
Key for Table VII
B 3-iodo-4,4′5-trimethoxy-3′-hydroxy-Z-stilbene
C 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′ hydroxy-Z-stilbene
D 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′ hydroxy-E-stilbene
E 3,5-diiodo-4,4′-dimethoxy-3′-acetyl-Z-stilbene
F Potassium 3 iodo-4,4′5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
G Sodium 3 iodo-4,4′,5 trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
H Lithium-3-iodo-4,4′5 trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′O-phosphate
I Morpholine 3 iodo-4,4′5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O phosphate
J Piperidene 3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′O phosphate
K Glycine-O-Me-3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
L Tryptophan-O-Me-3′-iodo-4,4′,5 trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
M Tris-3-iodo-4,4′,5-trimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
N Potassium 3,5 diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
0 Sodium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′-O-phosphate
P Lithium 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′O phosphate
Q Morpholine 3,5 diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3-O-phosphate
R Piperdine 3,5 diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene 3′O-phosphate
S Glycine O Me 3,5-diiodo-4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
T Tryptophan-O Me 3,5 diiodo 4,4′ dimethoxy-Z-stilbene-3′-O-phosphate
U Tris 3,5-diodo-4,4′ methoxy-Z-stilbene 3′O-phosphate
|
The invention relates to novel compounds denominated halocombstatins. The halocombstatins are derivatives of combretastatin A-3, and include compounds that exhibit cancer growth cell inhibition against a panel of human cancer cell lines and the murine P388 leukemia, as well as activity as inhibitors of tubulin polymerization and inhibitors of the binding of colchicine to tubulin.
| 2
|
CROSS-REFERENCE
This application is a C-I-P application of U.S. Ser. No. 07/347,026 filed May 4, 1989, now abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an active ingredient system and more particularly to such a system for the transfer of lipophilic and/or amphiphilic components to target structures or from such target structures to the active ingredient system, as well as to the exchange thereof with such target structures, in which, to the desired degree, lipophilic and/or amphiphilic components can be transported, in order to achieve desired alteration in the composition of target structures and thus modify the characteristics thereof in accordance with specific requirements as needed.
2. Definitions
In describing the invention, the term "transfer" below will be used to describe the transport in only one direction, while the term "exchange" will be used for transport in both directions. The target structures referred to herein can be various technical systems, such as emulsions, micella, liposomes, aerosols, single layer, oligolayer, or multilayer on liquids or solid bodies, or biological systems such as lipoproteins, vesicles, organelles, bacteria, fungus, viruses, parasites, as well as pathological structures such as tumor cells, deposits in tissues, age pigments, etc.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Until now, lipid exchange between different structures has been accomplished through vesicular transport, collision, fusion or in monomeric components obtained in a medium. But these processes proceed very slowly with half-life values measured in hours, so that an efficient and targeted modification of lipid structures is generally not possible on this basis. In addition to the slow kinetics, another significant fact is that other measures, such as the one of organic solvents, detergents, high temperatures, etc., often destroy the integrity of the target structure, do not exhibit specificity and often have undesired side effects.
Neither has any technically practicable system for the rapid and targeted modification of lipid structures been made known based on the fusion of larger lipid aggregates.
A fusion system is disclosed in PCT/US85/00621 with the publication number WO 85/04880. Understood as being included within the meaning of the term fusion in the language of the art of membrane biophysics, is the fusing of two membranes. A thorough fusion results in the transfer of numerous molecules in the form of an already present membrane, which does not allow a targeted modification of the target structure at the molecular level. It is not possible with the fusion disclosed in PCT/US85/00621 to transfer molecules that cannot form membranes, such as lipid molecules. Furthermore, the membrane proteins mentioned in this reference fundamentally do not represent transfer proteins, which can be seen immediately from the fact that membrane proteins--as the name itself indicates--are located in a membrane. What is more, membranes of this type, as they are described in this reference, are inherently incapable of fulfilling a lipid transfer function because of their hydrophobic characteristics.
In a fusion system according to this reference, only membranes themselves can be used as lipid components. It is also impossible to extract individual lipid molecules through fusion.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,895,719 discloses different kinds of typical drug-carriers where the drugs are encapsulated or entrapped by liposomes. This encapsulation of drugs may be necessary where the drug is known to be rapidly eliminated (metabolized) by the body. An encapsulated drug is released continuously into the blood stream and thus can be effective over a long period of time. According to this patent these drugs can be apolipo-proteins or lung surfactant proteins. These proteins, however, are not water soluble transfer proteins which possess catalytic properties, as in the case of the present invention. The encapsulation as described in the prior art document would inhibit any catalytic efficiency of the protein and render it useless for the purposes of the present invention.
SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing limitations and shortcomings of the prior art systems, as well as other disadvantages not specifically mentioned above, it is a primary object of the invention to provide systems for the rapidly targeted, specific and efficient lipid exchange with different target structures, in order to alter, by this means, the composition, the characteristics or the functions of the target structures.
Briefly described, the aforementioned object is accomplished according to the invention by providing an active ingredient system in which at least one lipid component, together with at least one transfer protein, form the active ingredient system. With the foregoing and other objects, advantages and features of the invention that will become hereinafter apparent the nature of the invention may be more clearly understood with reference to the following detailed description of the invention and the appended claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In the active ingredient system according to the invention, a transfer is addressed that deals with a fusion based on an entirely different basic process in the area of membrane biophysics. In the active ingredient system according to the invention, a targeted modification of target structures is possible at the molecular level through the transfer of individual single molecules, for example through the lipid transfer of lipid molecules. Lipid molecules of this type, which for example cannot form a membrane themselves, cannot even be transferred by the type of fusion described earlier, but can be so transferred in the active ingredient system according to the invention. The transfer of individual lipid species to the target structures in accordance with the invention does not take place according to the laws of chance, which would result in long transfer time periods and low transfer yields due to the low number of individual lipid molecules in an aqueous medium, but rather accelerates the transfer by means of the lipid transfer system according to the invention through the use of transfer proteins. Because these proteins are components of the transfer system, they are able to act as catalysts to the transfer. The lipid transfer proteins, as found in the aqueous medium and containing the lipid components within them, transport them through the aqueous medium in order to transfer them to a target structure.
In one transfer system the lipid supply accompanying the transfer protein can be present as an emulsion, while in a fusion system, only membranes themselves can be used as lipid components. Furthermore, transfer proteins are unsuitable components for fusion processes. The transfer system according to the invention, which is based on them, is incompatible with fusion systems, both on the lipid side and on the protein side.
The lipid transfer system also allows individual molecules to be extracted.
Lipophilic or amphiphilic components, such as lecithin, sphingomyelin, cholesterin, phosphatidylserin, phosphatidylethanolamin, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylinositol, ganglioside, cerebroside, fat soluble vitamins and their derivatives, triglycerides, etc., which form the active ingredient system with one or more lipid transfer proteins, are used for a transfer or an exchange with the target structures. The lipid components thereby can be present in various configurations, such as liposomes, micella, as aerosols, as emulsions, etc.
For the transfer or the exchange of the lipophilic or amphiphilic components, the active ingredient system is brought into contact with the target structure.
The advantages that can be achieved with the invention lie in the targeted alteration of structure and function of complex associations of lipophilic and amphiphilic components, such as membranes, tissues, micella, emulsions, cells, organelle, bacteria, viruses, parasites, tissue deposits, etc.
Sources for the lipophilic or amphiphilic components intended for the transfer or exchange are known to a person skilled in the art. They are either based on isolation from natural sources, such as plant or animal sources, based on chemical synthesis, or based on biotechnological methods from microbial sources.
Sources for the proteins that support the exchange or transfer of the lipid components are also known to a person skilled in the art. The proteins can be used with different specificity through isolation from natural sources such as animal tissue or through synthesis based on gene technology. The isolation can take place, for example, according to the following methods:
1. tissue disintegration
2. centrifugation
3. extraction of 100,000 g of excess
4. precipitation of accompanying proteins
through acid
through ammonium sulfate
5. dialysis
6. gel filtration
7. ion exchange chromatography
8. chromatofocussing.
Depending on the purpose and place of use, lipid components and protein components are combined into active ingredient systems of various configurations, whereby the specificity results from the lipid and transfer protein employed, as well as from the direction of the lipid transfer.
The following table provides an overview of possible configurations of the lipid associations:
______________________________________Lipid Dependent Place of Effect Purpose of Use______________________________________Aerosols -- Lungs, breath Surfactant passages, skin, replacement to mucous membranes prevent drying of mucous membranesEmulsions -- Skin, blood Drug carrier nourishmentMicella Membrane lipid, Skin, systemic, Drug carrier general lipid small size with appropriate (Fenestrae) hydrophilic and hydrophobic molecular proportionsLiposomes Membrane lipid, Skin, systemic, Drug carrier general lipid mucous membranes, membrane defects, with appropriate such as eyes lipid material hydrophilic and storage, extraction hydrophobic of lipids molecular proportions______________________________________
In order to obtain lipid transfer systems as aerosols, lipids, lipid transfer proteins in an aqueous solution and additive compounds are emulsified and dispersed to form an aerosol. In order to obtain lipid transfer systems as an emulsion, additives are added to the lipid transfer proteins in aqueous solution during the emulsification of the lipids. In order to obtain the lipid transfer system as micella, the lipids are added as a pure substance to an aqueous lipid transfer protein solution.
In order to obtain lipid transfer systems as liposomes, detergent dialysis or extrusion or microemulsification as well as high pressure homogenization or ultrasonic methods are used. In detergent dialysis, the dry mixture of lipid and detergent is absorbed in an aqueous lipid transfer protein solution and the detergent is subsequently removed by dialysis.
In the extrusion method, pure lipid is absorbed in an aqueous lipid transfer protein solution and this mixture is pressed through membranes of decreasing port size.
In the microemulsification method, pure lipid is absorbed in an aqueous lipid transfer protein solution and is recirculated through an interaction chamber under high pressure.
The active ingredient system according to the invention can be obtained as follows:
A lipid transfer protein with a suitable specificity for phospholipides is isolated from tissue, particularly cattle brains. An aqueous solution of the lipid transfer protein is reacted with the suitable lipid component, such as phosphatidyl-cholin, in a quantity that is more than necessary, in terms of moles, by a factor of 5. The mixture is converted into an emulsion by a suitable technique, such as high pressure homogenization, microfluidization, etc. An aliquot part of this emulsion (relative to the protein proportion) is added to an aqueous suspension of unilamellar liposomes and the transfer activity is measured by suitable methods, such as fluorescence techniques or radioactivity. The standardized transfer system thus becomes capable of application.
The function of the lipid transfer system is based on the fact that the lipid transfer protein systems use the lipid components as donors to transfer the lipids to the various target structures. The possibility thereby exists that through a combination of certain lipid transfer proteins with corresponding lipid components, lipids can be extracted from the target structure and transferred to the lipid components. The lipid transfer protein systems in both cases assure a rapid exchange of the lipids between the lipid components and the target structure.
Lipid transfer systems of this type can be used in place of membranes. Accordingly, through a comparative analysis of the lipid proportion exchanged through the lipid transfer protein and the total lipid of a lipid membrane, an asymmetrical distribution of lipids in the bilayer can be determined. In labeling the membrane, lipids that are marked radioactively, with fluorescence and ESR or NMR labels are built into the membrane structures with the aid of the lipid transfer system.
Asymmetrical distributions of lipids can be produced in natural or artificial membrane bilayer structures through the use of lipid transfer systems. A specific composition of lipids (membrane engineering) made from natural or artificial membranes can be obtained through extraction.
In a stabilization process, lipid transfer systems with natural and artificial cells, organelles or membrane structures, such as liposomes, can be stabilized, because it eliminates membrane defects through the addition of lipids.
The active ingredient system can be used in technology to maintain or to build up a monolayer on materials, such as a sliding film, to prevent a direct aqueous wetting, or to improve the biocompatibility of boundary surfaces. In cosmetics, the active ingredient system serves to reorganize membrane structures (skin) that have been functionally damaged or altered, just as it can in dermatology.
In medicine, the active ingredient system can be used as a medication carrier (drug carrier) to stabilize liposomes relative to blood components. An additional application in medicine is that the active ingredient system is used to produce asymmetrical liposomes for a targeted application of medication (drug targeting). Especially significant is the use of the active ingredient system in handling arteriosclerosis, through which the cholesterol is extracted. For this purpose, cholesterol-free liposomes as the lipid component, are employed in connection with lipid transfer proteins.
An additional application of the active ingredient systems lies in the handling of disturbances in the lipid material exchange. Thus, for example, lipid transfer systems can be used to regulate the bile acid synthesis.
The active ingredient system can be contained in various products in technology, medicine or cosmetics. Thus, for example, the active ingredient system can be included in a salve, creme, gel or spray.
With the active ingredient system according to the invention the evaporation barrier of human and animal skin can be built up. This evaporation barrier of the skin is located in the horny stratum by a complex structure of lipid membranes. This complex structure consisting of multilamillar lipid formations can partially or totally be destroyed by different harmful influences for example by mechanical, thermal, chemical, radiological or micro-biological effects which often leads to life threatening conditions. For rebuilding under such conditions, the complex lipid structure of the evaporation barrier of the skin and the ingredient system according to the invention can be used.
An example of a lipid component which is favorably used is a glycolipid which exists in natural skin structures and which normally builds the evaporation barrier. Gluco- and galactocerebrosids are preferred glycolipids which can be isolated out of natural products or are commercially available.
The lipid component per se is not capable of building up the evaporation barrier because the necessary incorporation of the lipid components in the complex structure of the dermal evaporation barrier is too slow. However, with the active ingredient system according to the invention, a catalytic and accelerated incorporation of the lipids and the rebuilding of skin is made possible.
EXAMPLE
For such an active ingredient system the transfer protein is extracted out of cattle brain as follows:
Cattle brain is freshly homogenized and ultra-centrifugated so that 100,000 g of excess is obtained and lyophilized. The lyophilized substance is taken up in a buffer and is chromatographed against phenylsepharose. Between 20 and 30 kd of the protein fraction is recovered and further cleaned by chromatofocussing.
The thus obtained water soluble protein component(s) and the lipid component(s) are combined to create the lipid transfer system. For the synthesis of the dermal evaporation barrier the active ingredient system is used, for example, as a liposomal hydrogel.
The incorporation of the lipid component(s) in the target structure--in this case in the form of a membrane--is enhanced by a factor of 100 to 1000, if the active ingredient system according to the invention is used compared to the use of only the lipid component(s), as a rebuild substance for the evaporation barrier of natural skin.
Although only preferred embodiments are specifically illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings and within the purview of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and intended scope of the invention.
|
Active ingredient system for the lipid exchange with target structures; methods for their manufacture and their use; and products containing active ingredient systems of this type are disclosed. The active ingredient system for the transfer of lipophilic and/or amphiphilic components to target structures or from such back to the active ingredient system, as well as to their exchange with the target structures, is formed from at least one lipid component with at least one transfer protein. In the method for the manufacture of the active ingredient system, lipid and protein components are combined into systems in different configurations depending on the purpose of its use and its place of use, whereby the specificity results from the lipid used and the transfer protein employed, as well as the direction of the lipid transfer. Active ingredient systems of this type are used in technology, such as the material technology, in medicine, pharmaceuticals and in the area of cosmetology. The active ingredient system is present in products such as sprays, gels, creams or salves.
| 8
|
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of the Korean Application No. 2002-0029972 filed on May 29, 2002, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a color flat panel display, and more particularly, to an element for a color flat panel display which provides good image quality with a high contrast property by forming a reflecting layer on the display device, which is applied to the inner surface of a face plate, using a new metal material to remove halation caused by the reentry of scattered electrons from the rear surface of the fluorescent layer in the case of a display device using an electron beam.
[0004] 2. Description of the Background Art
[0005] Generally, a cathode-ray tube (Brown tube) is mainly used as an image display device for color television. However, the cathode-ray tube has a very deep depth compared to the size of the front surface of the screen, caused by the structural characteristic of the cathode-ray tube. Therefore, it is impossible to fabricate a television picture receiver of the thin type.
[0006] Thus, apparatus using display devices such as an EL display element, a plasma display element, and a liquid crystal display element are developing as a flat panel display devices of the thin type. However, these devices have some problems, such as brightness, contrast, and color reproductibility when compared to the cathode-ray tube.
[0007] Japan Patent 3-184247 and Japan Patent 3-205751 disclose image display devices which construct a screen on a color television by dividing the picture on the screen into sections of a matrix and by deflecting irradiating electron beams toward respective sections to emit the fluorescent, with the object of displaying an image of high quality, similar to that of a cathode-ray tube, on a flat panel using an electron beam.
[0008] Hereinafter, an example of the conventional image display device described above will be described with reference to the accompanying Figures.
[0009] [0009]FIG. 1 is a view showing the structure of a conventional image display device.
[0010] As shown in FIG. 1, the image display device comprises: a glass container 1 defining a rear wall; a back electrode 2 of the plane plate type located at the front side of the glass container 1 ; a plurality of cathode filaments 3 of linear shape arranged at the front side of the back electrode 2 for discharging electrons; a control electrode 4 , on which a plurality of penetrating holes are formed with a predetermined intervals therebetween, located at the front side of the cathode filaments 3 ; a plurality of signal modulation electrodes 5 arranged as bands and located at the front side of the control electrode 4 for controlling the electrons which passed through the penetrating holes in the control electrode 4 ; a focusing electrode 6 having a plane plate shape, and in which a plurality of slots are formed at predetermined intervals and located at the front side of the signal modulation electrode 5 ; a horizontal deflection electrode 7 formed by overlapping two plane plates of comb shape in the vertical direction and located at the front side of the focusing electrode 6 ; a vertical deflection electrode 8 formed by overlapping two plane plates of comb shape in horizontal direction and located at the front side of the horizontal deflection electrode 7 ; and a face plate 9 located at the front side of the vertical deflection electrode 8 , including all components thereof, and maintaining the vacuum status therein by suitable coupling with the glass container 1 .
[0011] The cathode filaments 3 are installed in the horizontal direction for generating electron beams distributed evenly in the horizontal direction, and a plurality of cathode filaments ( 4 filaments herein) are installed in the vertical direction while maintaining appropriate intervals therebetween. The cathode filaments 3 are made by applying an oxide cathode material on tungsten lines.
[0012] The back electrode 2 is made of a conductive material of plane plate shape, installed parallel with the cathode filaments 3 .
[0013] The control electrode 4 is located at the front side of the cathode filaments 3 in the direction of the screen, faces the back electrode 2 , and is made of a conductive plate in which rows of penetrating holes 4 a , installed in a horizontal direction with appropriate intervals therebetween, are formed to be located on horizontal lines facing respective cathode filaments 3 .
[0014] The signal modulation electrode 5 is made of a plurality of conductive plate rows which are thin and long in the vertical direction and arranged in positions facing the penetrating holes 4 a of the control electrode 4 , with predetermined intervals therebetween. The respective conductive plates include a plurality of penetrating holes 5 a having the same shape as the penetrating holes 4 a of the control electrode 4 at positions facing the penetrating holes 4 a.
[0015] The focusing electrode 6 includes penetrating holes 6 a at positions facing the respective penetrating holes 5 a of the signal modulation electrode 5 .
[0016] The horizontal deflection electrode 7 consists of two conductive plates of comb shapes which are engaged with each other in the vertical direction with a predetermined interval on the same plane.
[0017] The vertical deflection electrode 8 consists of two conductive plates of comb shapes which are engaged with each other in a horizontal direction with a predetermined interval on a same plane.
[0018] The fluorescent layer emitting light by irradiation of an electron beam is applied to the inner surface of the face plate 9 to form a screen 20 .
[0019] In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the screen 20 is formed by applying a graphite layer 21 and a fluorescent layer 22 on an upper part of the face plate 9 , and by applying an aluminum layer 23 on the upper parts of the graphite layer 21 and the fluorescent layer 22 .
[0020] The control electrode 4 , the signal modulation electrode 5 , the focusing electrode 6 , the horizontal deflection electrode 7 , and the vertical deflection electrode 8 are attached by using insulating adhesives (not shown). The above components are arranged inside the image display device with constant intervals therebetween.
[0021] The operations of the above image display device will be described as follows.
[0022] Referring to FIG. 1, the cathode filaments 3 are heated by flowing electrical current in order to discharge the electrons easily. The electron beam of sheet-phase is discharged from the surface of the cathode filament 3 by applying appropriate voltages to the back electrode 2 , to the cathode filaments 3 , and to the control electrode 4 whereby the cathode filaments 3 are heated.
[0023] The electron beam of sheet-phase is divided into a plurality of bundles by the penetrating holes 4 a of the control electrode 4 to form the plurality of electron beam bundles 11 (an electron beam bundle is represented in FIG. 1).
[0024] The amount of passage of the electron beam bundle 11 is controlled independently by the signal modulation electrode 5 corresponding to the image signal applied to the signal modulation electrode 5 .
[0025] Next, the electron beam 5 , which passes through the signal modulation electrode 5 , is focused and shaped by the electrostatic lens effect of the penetrating holes 6 a on the focusing electrode 6 , and then deflected horizontally and vertically by the potential difference of the adjacent conductive plates of the horizontal deflection electrode 7 and the adjacent conductive plates of the vertical deflection electrode 8 .
[0026] In addition, a high voltage, e.g., 10 kV, is applied to the graphite layer 21 of the screen 20 , and therefore, the electron beam is accelerated with high energy and crashes with the graphite layer 21 to radiate the fluorescent layer formed on the inner surface of the face plate.
[0027] In more detail, when the television screen is divided as a matrix and the screen is set to be an aggregate of 10 divisions, the respective divided electron beam corresponds to respective 10 divisions. Therefore, the entire image to be presented is projected onto the screen 20 by causing the divided electron beam to correspond to respective 10 divisions to deflect and irradiate the electron beam only to the particular respective division.
[0028] Also, image signals of red, green, and blue colors corresponding to respective images are controlled by the signal modulation electrode 5 to reproduce the television moving pictures.
[0029] However, in the conventional image display device of the flat panel type, in the case where the electron beam is irradiated to both poles of the display device, some portion around the position where the electron beam is irradiated, glimmers, that is, generates the halation phenomenon.
[0030] The halation phenomenon is generated because the electron beam collides with the fluorescent layer of the screen 20 causing a portion of the electron beam to reenter into the fluorescent layer.
[0031] Especially, in the case where the voltages at both poles are high, the phenomenon can be prominently seen. Therefore, the contrast of the display device is reduced, a clear image cannot be obtained, and the functions of the display can become a big problem.
[0032] In order to solve the above problem, Japanese Patent Publications 5-314392, 6-231701, and 7-141998 have been suggested.
[0033] In Japanese Patent Publication 5-314932, the electron beam re-entry is restrained to be less than 30% by forming an aluminum layer on the fluorescent layer and controlling the thickness of the aluminum layer. In addition, it discloses that the thickness of the aluminum layer should be 2000 Ř3500 Å in case that the voltage of aluminum layer on the face plate is 10 kV; 1500 Å3000 Åin the case where the voltage is 9 kV, and 1500 Ř2000 Å in the case where the voltage is 8 kV.
[0034] In Japanese Patent Publication 6-231701, the fluorescent layer, the aluminum layer, and the carbon layer or boron containing layer are laminated on inner surface of a glass face, and fine embossing is formed on the surface of the aluminum layer facing the fluorescent layer. The carbon layer or the boron containing layer should be thicker than the aluminum layer; a gas discharge hole is formed in the carbon layer, and a gas discharge hole is formed as corresponding to the graphite in the black matrix.
[0035] Also, the carbon layer is made by laminating graphite particles having diameters of less than 1 μm to be a thickness of less than 1 μm. In addition, the boron layer instead of the carbon layer is formed by evaporating or sputtering.
[0036] In addition, the aluminum layer among the laminated layers is formed on the fluorescent layer using a transcription method which forms the layer on a predetermined film in advance.
[0037] In Japanese Patent Publication 7-141998, the ratio between the thickness and diameter of the carbon layer laminated on the aluminum layer is constructed to be 1:10 or more, and formed by laminating graphite granules having a sphere volume conversion average particle diameter of less than 2 μm.
[0038] In addition, the carbon layer is formed laminating the graphite granules in an amount of 20 μg/cm 2˜220 μg/cm 2 per unit area.
[0039] A representative embodiment of the above patents is shown in FIG. 3.
[0040] However, the above patents are not capable of effectively solving the halation problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0041] Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a color flat panel display which substantially eliminates halation problems caused by the reentry of scattered electrons from the fluorescent layer of a display device involving the use of the electron beam, and which has a high degree of contrast by using a forming material such as iron or nickel instead of the conventional carbon or boron on a fluorescent layer laminated on a glass face plate.
[0042] To achieve the object of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a device for a color flat panel display, as a device for radiating the fluorescent layer by the collision of the electron beam, by providing at least one or more layers among iron, nickel, chrome on an aluminum layer, in a screen which includes a face plate of glass material, a graphite layer formed on the upper part of the face plate, a fluorescent layer formed on upper part of the graphite layer, a resin film layer formed on upper part of the fluorescent layer, and an aluminum layer formed on the resin film layer.
[0043] The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0044] The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:
[0045] [0045]FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of a general color flat panel display device;
[0046] [0046]FIG. 2 shows an exploded section A of a portion of the flat panel display device of FIG. 1;
[0047] [0047]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the cross section of a display element included in a conventional color flat panel display;
[0048] [0048]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a first embodiment of a color flat display element according to the present invention;
[0049] [0049]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a second embodiment of the color flat display element according to the present invention;
[0050] [0050]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a fabrication method for the color flat display element according to the present invention;
[0051] [0051]FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the fabrication method for the color flat display element according to the present invention; and
[0052] [0052]FIG. 8 is a sketch showing the extent of the thickness reduction of the aluminum layer when comparing a conventional screen with a screen applied in the color flat panel display device of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0053] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
[0054] The present invention relates to a screen 20 applied to the inner side surface of the face plate 9 , among the components shown in FIG. 1.
[0055] Embodiments for a screen 200 , that is, a color flat panel display element according to the present invention will now be described.
[0056] As shown in FIG. 4, the screen of a first embodiment according to the present invention comprises: a graphite layer 210 and a fluorescent layer 220 on a face plate 9 of glass material; a resin film layer 230 applied to the fluorescent layer 220 ; an aluminum layer 240 applied on the resin layer 230 ; and an iron 250 applied to the aluminum layer 240 .
[0057] As shown in FIG. 5, the screen of a second embodiment according to the present invention comprises: a graphite layer 210 and a fluorescent layer 220 on a face plate 9 of glass material; a resin film layer 230 applied to the fluorescent layer 220 ; an aluminum layer 240 applied to the resin layer 230 ; and a nickel 260 applied to the aluminum layer 240 .
[0058] The iron layer 250 and the nickel layer 260 can be replaced with a chromium layer.
[0059] Hereinafter, embodiments of the method for fabricating the screen 200 , that is, the color flat panel display element, will be described in detail.
[0060] As a first embodiment of the method for fabricating the screen 200 , the screen 200 shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 is formed by laminating the fluorescent layer 220 on the graphite layer 210 which is laminated on the face plate 9 . The resin film layer 230 is laminated on the fluorescent layer 220 and the aluminum layer 240 is formed on the resin film layers 230 using an evaporating method or a sputtering method. In addition, the iron 250 or the nickel 260 , that is, the material used for restraining secondary radiation of electrons is formed on the aluminum layer 240 by the evaporating method or the sputtering method.
[0061] Next, a second embodiment of the method for fabricating the screen 200 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, a first sub-screen 500 is formed by laminating the fluorescent layer 220 and the resin film layer 230 on the graphite layer 210 which in turn is laminated on the face plate 9 made of glass material.
[0062] After that, a hetero-resin layer 231 is formed on a PET (polyethylene terephthalate) film 300 , that is, a transcriptions film, and the iron 250 or the nickel 260 is formed thereon by the evaporating method or sputtering method. Then, the aluminum layer 240 is formed on the iron 250 or the nickel 260 by the evaporating method or the sputtering method, and then, an adhesive 400 is applied to the aluminum layer 240 to a thickness of 0.5˜5.0 μm to form a second sub-screen 600 .
[0063] Then, the first sub-screen 500 and the second sub-screen 600 are attached to each other using the adhesive 400 which was applied in advance.
[0064] Finally, the PET film 300 formed on the second sub-screen 600 is removed.
[0065] As shown in FIG. 7, in a third embodiment of the method for fabricating the screen 200 , the graphite layer 210 is laminated on the face plate 9 made of a glass material, the fluorescent layer 220 is laminated on the graphite layer 210 , the resin film layer 230 is laminated on the fluorescent layer 220 , and the aluminum layer 240 and the iron 250 or the nickel 260 which will be laminated thereon are successively formed using a pellet 700 which is clad with aluminum and iron, aluminum and nickel, or aluminum and chromium (not shown) by the evaporating method or the sputtering method.
[0066] In the screen 200 , including the layer for preventing electron reentry and fabricated in above matter, the reentry of secondary electron toward the screen plate which is generated when the electron beam becomes incident to the screen 200 , can be prevented by utilizing a metal layer such as iron 250 , nickel 260 , or chromium (not shown). Accordingly, the halation phenomenon can be prevented while utilizing a thinner aluminum layer 240 than that of the conventional art. Therefore, the amount of the aluminum layer 240 which is used can be reduced with a corresponding reduction in fabrication cost. That is, the thickness of the aluminum layer which is capable of restraining the reentry rate of the electron beam to less than 30% can be reduced when compared to that of the conventional art.
[0067] In the case where the voltage of the aluminum layer on the face plate 9 is 11 kV, the thickness of the aluminum layer is 1000 Ř2500 Å, 500 Ř2000 Å in the case of a voltage of 10.0˜0.9 kV, 500 Ř1000 Å in the case of a voltage of 9.0˜9.9 kV; and 300 Ř700 Å in the case of a voltage of 8.0˜8.9 kV.
[0068] [0068]FIG. 8 is a sketch showing a reduction in the thickness of the aluminum layer 240 comparing the screen which is utilized by the device for a color flat panel display as defined by the present invention, and the conventional screen.
[0069] According to the present invention, the halation caused by the reentry of scattered electrons on rear surface of the fluorescent layer in a display device using an electron beam can be considerably reduced and a display device of good image quality having a high degree of contrast can be obtained with an attendant reduction in fabrication costs.
[0070] As the present invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, it should also be understood that the above-described embodiments are not limited by any of the details of the foregoing description, unless otherwise specified, but rather should be construed broadly within its spirit and scope as defined in the appended claims, and therefore all changes and modifications that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalence of such metes and bounds are therefore intended to be embraced by the appended claims.
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A screen composite provided on a face plate of a flat panel display device, said screen composite containing an aluminum layer and a metal layer formed on said aluminum layer for substantially reducing a halation phenomenon.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a multi-layered drainage sieve or fabric formed by splicing the ends together with a binder warp, and to a method of so splicing the ends.
German (OS) No. 2,455,184 discloses endless woven multi-layered drainage forming sieves for use in paper manufacturing. This German application also teaches that such drainage sieves may be woven in flat form and then joined end-to-end, but it does not disclose the method by which the ends of flat, multi-layered drainage sieves can be spliced together.
The problem of end-to-end connection does not arise with drainage sieves that have been woven endless to begin with. However, endless woven sieves have the disadvantage that the sieve length is predetermined and there are generally fewer possibilities for variation of the fabric count and the number of filling threads, so that the drainage capacity is only adjustable to a limited extent. Therefore, endless weaving requires considerable machinery to meet customers specifications. On the other hand, flat woven papermaking sieves can be produced on a single loom in any desired length. By varying the number of filling threads and thread diameters the customers specifications can be met more adequately. In general, these advantages of flat weaving outweigh the disadvantages inherent in connecting the ends of the sieve. There is thus a need for multi-layered, spliced drainage sieves and for a method of joining the ends thereof.
In principle, the ends of a multi-layered drainage sieve can be joined in the same manner as a single-layer drainage sieve, e.g. by simply machine sewing the ends together, either with a fabric connecting seam (German OS No. 2,700,390) or by a pin seam. In principle, it is possible to join the ends of a multi-layered drainage sieve with a woven seam as is commonly known for single-layer drainage sieves. A device for joining the ends of a single-layer drainage sieve is described in German AS No. 1,710,205. In joining the ends of a multi-layered sieve with a woven seam, the binder warp may even be inter-woven in the region of the seam. However, practice has proved that such a multi-layered woven seam is difficult to produce without any defects.
German OS No. 2,429,162 discloses a method for joining the ends of multi-layered sieves in which a plurality of zones are provided where the warp threads are freed from at least one weft layer to increase the flexibility of the seam which, in principle, is a pin seam. Multi-layered sieves which have been joined in this manner have the disadvantage that the drainage capacity in the seam region is substantially less than in the remaining sieve area.
German OS No. 2,707,705 describes a method for joining the ends of a multi-layered sieve in which free fabric ends of different layers are overlapped and joined by sewing, stapling, gluing or interlocking with a (Velcro) tape fastener. However, these modes of connection do not sufficiently ensure the absence of marks on the paper.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of this invention is to provide a multi-layered, spliced drainage sieve in which the drainage capacity in the seam region deviates as little as possible from the drainage capacity of the remaining sieve area, and to a method for joining the ends of a multi-layered flat woven drainage sieve.
This object is realized by disposing the seams of individual layers at offset locations in the sieve to ensure uniform drainage.
Preferably, at least one layer is joined or spliced by a woven seam. Such sieves or fabrics are especially suited for the manufacture of paper because the structure of the woven seam does not differ from that of the remaining sieve area, thus not allowing the seam to leave marks in the paper.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates the production of a woven seam in a single-layer drainage sieve, and
FIGS. 2 and 3 show the splicing of the ends of the first and second layers, respectively, of a two-layered drainage sieve.
FIGS. 4 and 5 show two modified arrangements wherein the ends of one of the layers of a two-layered drainage sieve are not spliced.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The drainage sieve of the invention may be of any type of flat woven drainage fabric. It may be made in plain weave, satin weave or twill, or modifications thereof. The warp and filling threads may consist of any suitable material, e.g. of metal (phosphor bronze) or synthetic resin (polyester, polyamide). The warp and/or filling threads may consist of part synthetic resin and part metal. Furthermore, the drainage belt may be coated.
The drainage sieve or fabric consists of a plurality of layers or plies interconnected by a so-called binder warp. Each layer constitutes a complete fabric per se. The individual layers may differ in weave, size of pattern repetition, and/or material. The drainage belt shown in the drawings comprises two layers, but it may also comprise three or more layers. In general, the top or paper-supporting layer consists of a fabric with a greater number of warp and filling threads per centimeter and of finer threads. The diameter of the warp threads of a specific layer may differ from the diameter of the filling threads of the same layer. The warp threads of a layer need not have equal diameters; in the marginal region they may be thicker, or thick and thin warp threads may alternate. The same applies to the filling threads in a layer.
Hence, for the drainage belt of the invention any drainage fabric may be used which consists of a plurality of layers and which has been woven in flat form.
In the sieve of the invention the individual fabric layers are joined separately. Any method used to join the ends of a single-layer drainage sieve may be used to join the ends of the individual layers of the multi-layered belt. In particular, the individual layers may be spliced together according to the following methods:
1. Joining the ends by weaving (woven seam);
2. Sewing the two overlapping ends of a layer with a sewing machine;
3. Pin seam. Various embodiments of pin seams are known, for example, those in German patent applications (OS) Nos. 2,429,162; 2,542,905; and 2,700,390.
4. Heat sealing or gluing; the sealed seam may optionally also be sewn together with loop stitches;
5. Overlapping of the two ends without firm bonding.
The junctions (seams) of the individual layers may be in superposed relationship, but they are preferably mutually offset along the belt length. This results in an especially uniform drainage capacity.
The seam may extend perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the fabric. If the ends of a layer are joined by sewing machine, heat-sealing, gluing or the like, or if the ends of one layer overlap each other, the seam or junction may also extend obliquely with respect to the longitudinal direction of the fabric.
In general, to join the two ends of a layer it is necessary to remove the binder warp in a certain region of about 10-20 cm width, such as along the abutting edges of the belt ends. After the seaming or joining of the individual layers it is ordinarily not necessary to replace the binder warp in these regions.
When three or more layers are employed in drainage sieves, ordinarily not all the layers need be seamed or firmly joined together. Depending on the end use it may be sufficient to seam only two layers, e.g. the top and bottom layers. The top layer is preferably always seamed because it supports the paper pulp. The ends of the layers not firmly joined together may overlap or abut. If the ends of the bottom layer, i.e. the layer in contact with the rolls, are not firmly joined, they should preferably overlap. The end of the bottom layer pointing in the direction of advance is covered by the other fabric end so that it will not contact the rolls. The two ends may be of any desired length. However, the end pointing in the direction of advance will preferably be selected as short as possible and will be overlapped a few centimeters or more by the other fabric end.
With two-layer belts, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 it is also possible to seam only one layer, and in general this will be the upper layer 20 since it carries the paper pulp. In order to prevent rapid wear of the lower layer an effective measure is to overlap the two unconnected ends 22 and 24 of the lower layer as shown in FIG. 4 such that the end pointing in the direction of advance lies between the upper layer and the end of the lower layer pointing opposite the direction of advance. In FIG. 5 the ends 22' and 24' abut each other.
Certain types of seams allow simultaneous joining of the ends of a plurality of layers with a single seam. Thus, for instance, the ends of two layers may be spliced simultaneously by sewing them together with a sewing machine. Another example is the method described in German patent application (OS) No. 2,429,162, by means of which a plurality of layers may be joined end-to-end by a single seam. The invention further provides spliced multi-layered drainage belts in which the ends of a corresponding number of groups of layers are joined by at least two seams. Each group of layers is joined end-to-end by a single seam.
If the ends of one layer are joined by a woven seam and those of another layer or layers are joined by another type of seam, e.g. a pin seam, it is advantageous to first make the non-woven seam and then to make the woven seam, because the width of a woven seam can be controlled more accurately. However, the production of the woven seam presents considerable difficulties, because the already produced seam obstructs the production of the woven seam. When the seams are offset relative to one another, the production of the woven seam is obstructed by the other fabric layers.
In order to explain the difficulties arising from the woven seam being the last one to be completed, it will now be described with reference to FIG. 1 how a woven seam is made in a single-layer fabric. At the fabric ends 1, 2 to be joined the warp threads are first exposed along a length of about 10 centimeters by removal of filling threads. The thus prepared ends of the fabric are clamped on a tenter table 3 so that the filler threads 7, 8 remaining in the fabric are disposed exactly parallel to each other at a predetermined distance of for example 8 cm. In general, the distance is an integral multiple of the weave pattern and is equal to or less than the length of the fringe-like ends of the warp threads (in this case 10 cm). Next, nearly all of the warp threads are removed from a strip previously cut off the fabric and having a width precisely corresponding to the distance between the fabric ends (in the present case 8 cm). The warp threads at one end of this strip are left in place to hold the filling threads together. The fringe-like warp thread ends 9 of the two fabric ends 1, 2 extending therefrom and the filling threads 5 of the previously cut-off fabric strip with removed warp threads are then interwoven. To this end a device may be used like that described in German patent application (AS) No. 1,710,205. The exposed filling threads are threaded into weaving shafts so that a shed can be formed with the exposed filling threads into which the fringe-like warp thread ends extending from the fabric ends are interwoven. Viewed with regard to their function in said device, the exposed filling threads form the warp and the fringe-like warp thread ends of the fabric form the filling or weft.
In this device a warp beam is not required because the warp threads left in the fabric strip hold the exposed filling threads together. The end of the fabric strip in which the warp threads have been left is secured by suitable clamping means. The already completed part of the woven seam performs the function of the cloth beam. Interweaving and stitching of the fringe-like warp thread ends 9 is done by hand. The two opposing warp thread ends 9 are pulled out of the fabric within the seam area either downwardly or upwardly, or one end downwardly and the other upwardly at a predetermined location, the so-called stitching point 10, and are then cut off. The locations where the warp threads are pulled out are disposed in a predetermined pattern within the woven seam. This pattern is essential to the tensile strength of the woven seam. The basic idea is to achieve wide overlapping of adjacent opposite warp thread ends. The stitching points 10 of adjacent warp thread ends therefore should be offset in the longitudinal direction of the sieve fabric.
In a two-layer sieve, the first layer 11 is joined as shown in FIG. 2, while the ends of the second layer 12 disposed beneath said first layer hang down. The first layer can be spliced together by a woven seam in a manner substantially as described for a single-layer sieve fabric in connection with FIG. 1.
After the first layer 11 has been spliced by a woven seam, the fabric is turned over for better access to the second layer 12, which is then on top. This is shown in FIG. 3. The second layer 12 can no longer be spliced together by a woven seam in the same way as the first layer 11 because the harness cannot be arranged between the fabric ends 13, 14 to be joined. This difficulty can be overcome by arranging the harness beside the fabric rather than in the plane thereof and by lifting it out of the sieve plane so that it is on the side opposite the already seamed first layer 11. The distance of the harness from the sieve plane must be at least sufficient for the exposed filling threads 5 forming the shed to be disposed just in or slightly above the sieve plane when in their lowermost position. This is possible only in case of sieve widths up to about 80 cm. For wider sieves the harness cannot be arranged alongside. In such a case the harness must be arranged an accordingly greater distance away from the sieve plane so that the shaft frames will not contact the already seamed first layer 11 when in their lowermost position.
The procedure is similar when the woven seams are longitudinally offset relative to one another along the sieve length. When both layers are spliced together by woven seams, the procedure described above in connection with FIG. 3 must be followed for the production of both woven seams.
When the ends of two-layer drainage sieves are to be spliced the following seam combinations have proved to be especially advantageous:
1. Top layer: woven seam.
Bottom layer: pin seam with different material interlaced into the fabric. This alien material may be metal, polyester, polyamide and the like.
2. Top layer: woven seam.
Bottom layer: sewn together with a sewing machine.
3. Top layer: woven seam.
Bottom layer: sieve ends are welded together and then sewn with loop stitches of sewing thread.
4. (preferred embodiment)
Top layer: woven seam.
Bottom layer: not seamed at the lower layer a longer sieve end pointing opposite the direction of advance is left at the leading portion of the seam. This fabric portion covers the cut-off sieve end pointing in the direction of advance and extending from the trailing portion of the seam.
In cases 1 through 4 above the seams extend in the filling direction and can be either superposed or longitudinally offset.
5. The drainage sieve is cut diagonally and the ends of the top and bottom layers are sewn together respectively with loop stitches. The seams may either be disposed one above the other or offset.
6. Top layer: woven seam.
Bottom layer: sewn seam as described in German patent application (OS) No. 2,429,162 (pin seam in a plurality of zones where the warp threads have been freed from at least one filling layer) or as described in German patent application (OS) No. 2,700,390 (belt seam similar to spiral seams with hemstitch belt) or as described in German patent application (OS) No. 2,542,950 (back-woven pin seam).
7. One layer is glued or welded together, while the other is spliced with a woven seam.
When three or more layers are used similar combinations of various seams may be selected. The selection of a specific seam for a layer may also be dictated by the material from which said layer is made. Thus, for instance, not all materials are suited to be welded or glued together. Layers of polyamide may be welded together while this is not possible with polyester.
EXAMPLE
It will now be described how the ends of a two-layer sieve fabric can be joined by two superposed woven seams.
The upper layer has a four harness crow foot weave in which the warp threads have a diameter of 0.20 mm and the warp count is 28 per cm. The filling threads have a diameter of 0.24 mm and the filling count is 22 per cm.
The lower layer is made in three harness satin weave and consists of warp threads of 0.35 mm diameter and filling threads of 0.40 mm diameter. The warp is 14 per cm and the filling count is 11 per cm.
The binder warp is in plain weave and has a diameter of 0.17 mm. The binder warp count is 4.7 per cm.
A crosswise strip of 15 cm warp length is cut off one fabric end for an insert piece to be used later. The filling count at the two fabric ends and in the insert piece must be exactly identical. The binder warp between the two fabric layers is cut away and removed along a length of 20 cm leaving no remaining binder warp.
The ends of the lower layer of the sieve fabric are then woven together (woven seam) such that the seam width is about 6 cm in the warp direction. To this end the filling threads are removed from a region of 20 cm at the two ends of the lower layer, leaving warp thread fringes of 20 cm length. The sieve fabric is then mounted in a seaming device similar to that described in German patent application (AS) No. 1,710,205. A strip corresponding to the seam width of 6 cm is selected from the insert piece, said strip containing 65 filling threads and repeating the pattern at the layer ends. These 65 filling threads are now threaded into the harness of the seaming machine in three-harness satin weave. After shedding of the harness of the seaming machine the first warp thread fringes of the two layer ends may be interlaced into the opened shed and the warp thread fringes are stitched at a location near the first layer end, i.e. they are pulled out of the seam. After advancing the harness one step, the second warp thread fringes are inserted and pulled out at a stitching location relatively remote from the first layer end. The further warp thread fringes are inserted and stitched accordingly. After completion of the lower left woven seam the sieve fabric is removed from the seaming device, turned over so that the still unconnected layer is on top, and remounted in the machine.
The upper layer is then spliced together by precisely the same type of weave described in connection with what is now the lower layer, i.e. the filling threads are removed from the ends of the layer to be joined and the warp threads are removed from the insert piece. The filling threads of the insert piece are then threaded in four harness satin weave, with the number of inserted threads now being 128 so that the woven seam of the upper layer will have the same width as the woven seam of the lower layer.
Since the sieve fabric was set before the ends were joined together to thereby fix the crimps in the warp and filling threads, the warp thread fringes and the filling threads of the insert piece engage in the same fashion as those in the sieve fabric so that the weave pattern of the sieve fabric continues within the seam. Therefore, no seam marks are left in the paper produced by means of the drainage sieve belt.
After the warp fringes and filling threads are interlaced the warp thread ends protruding from the fabric are clipped off.
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A multiple-layer spliced drainage sieve belt for use in paper pulp drying, in which the ends of respective layers of sieve fabric are spliced together separately, the seams being staggered along the length of the belt. Various types of seams may be utilized, among them a woven seam which does not differ from the other portions of the sieve belt.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application Number 10-2008-0120113 filed on Nov. 28, 2008, the entire contents of which application is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a control unit of a vehicle, and more particularly to a device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Generally, an electric vehicle is driven by a motor by using electrical energy stored in a battery, and a vehicle using driving torque of the motor as a main power source or an auxiliary power source of the vehicle.
[0006] Commonly, the term “electric vehicle” means a vehicle only using electricity, thus distinguishing it from a hybrid vehicle.
[0007] In this description, an electric vehicle is illustrated to include an electric vehicle operated by only electricity, and a hybrid vehicle, that is, a vehicle that uses electrical energy stored in a battery as a driving force of the vehicle.
[0008] The use of electrical energy generated from a portion of a braking force occurring when braking an electric vehicle has been developed.
[0009] That is, a reduction of kinetic energy (i.e., a decrease of drive speed) and generation of electrical energy are performed simultaneously through using a portion of kinetic energy generated by speed of a vehicle as energy for driving a generator.
[0010] Firstly, the electric vehicle slows with an electrical braking force because the electric vehicle tends to continue in a straight line when a driver intends to change a direction thereof, and then changes the direction of travel of the vehicle.
[0011] The process mentioned above is called plugging, that is, the process transforms electrical energy of the battery to mechanical braking energy so as to brake the electric vehicle.
[0012] Further, the method in which the drive motor generates electricity with the inertial force causing torque to be applied thereto, and then the electricity is charged in the battery, is called regenerative braking.
[0013] The electrical energy can be generated by a separate generator or by driving the drive motor as a generator in the case of the regenerative braking.
[0014] A hydraulic brake system that generates a braking force with hydraulic pressure is also provided to electric vehicles.
[0015] This is because there is insufficient braking force developed by means of the process mentioned above, and it does not realize dynamic control of the vehicle since the regenerative braking force is generated only by the drive wheels connected to the motor.
[0016] Therefore, a hydraulic pressure braking force via operation of a brake pedal by a driver is added to the regenerative braking force.
[0017] Also, as experimental results shown in FIG. 3 according to a prior art in case of shift-control before a vehicle stops, a reverse rotation of the motor occurs in a peripheral portion of “B”.
[0018] At this time, oil leakage from inside the automatic transmission owing to the reverse rotation of the motor results in an incapability of control of the transmission, and thereby the durability of the automatic transmission is deteriorated since a shift-shock is excessive.
[0019] The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0020] Various aspects of the present invention are directed to provide a device for controlling regenerative braking of vehicle having advantages of improving durability of a transmission and shift feel by inducing motor torque to be increased before a shift process, and by preventing the motor from rotating reversely during a shift process.
[0021] In an aspect of the present invention, the device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle provided with a drive wheel and a drive motor driving the drive wheel, may include a vehicle control unit for determining a regenerative amount and distributing a target braking force corresponding to the calculated regenerative amount, and a control unit controlling a transmission so that torque of the motor is increased in case of decelerating regeneration of the drive motor.
[0022] The decelerating regeneration may be performed during downshift of the vehicle.
[0023] The device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle may further include a speed sensor detecting a vehicle speed, wherein the control unit controls the transmission so that a speed reduction ratio is increased when the vehicle speed detected by the speed sensor is decreased to a predetermined speed.
[0024] The device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle may further include a hydraulic pressure brake braking the drive wheel, wherein the control unit increases the force of the hydraulic pressure brake so as to supplement the braking force of the drive wheel while suppressing the regenerative amount during a predetermined period.
[0025] In another aspect of the present invention, a device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle provided with a drive wheel and a drive motor driving the drive wheel, may include a transmission realizing multiple shift speeds, a vehicle control unit for distributing a target braking force corresponding to a calculated regenerative amount, and a control unit controlling a transmission so that torque of the motor is increased in case of decelerating regeneration of the drive motor, wherein the shift control unit performs duty control in case of engagement control.
[0026] In further another aspect of the present invention, a device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle, provided with a drive wheel and a drive motor driving the drive wheel, may include a transmission realizing multiple shift-speeds, a vehicle control unit for distributing a target braking force corresponding to a calculated regenerative amount, and a control unit controlling control hydraulic pressure of an engagement element or a release element according to a regenerative torque.
[0027] The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description of the Invention, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0028] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle according to the present invention.
[0029] FIG. 2 is a graph of exemplary experimental results according to the present invention.
[0030] FIG. 3 is a graph of experimental results according to the prior art.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0031] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that present description is not intended to limit the invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
[0032] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a device for control of regenerative braking of a vehicle according to various embodiments of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a graph of experimental results according to various embodiments of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a graph of experimental results according to a prior art.
[0033] Referring to FIG. 1 , a conventional hybrid vehicle of a parallel type adapted to various embodiments of the present invention will be explained schematically hereinafter.
[0034] Conventionally, the hybrid vehicle system includes a main battery 100 , an inverter 101 , a motor 102 , a vehicle control unit 103 , an engine 104 , a power transmitting portion 105 , a transmission 106 , and a drive wheel 107 .
[0035] The main battery 100 may be a conventional capacitor of a fuel cell.
[0036] The inverter 101 converts DC voltage from the main battery 100 to AC voltage according to a drive signal of a hybrid electronic control unit (ECU), and then the AC voltage is provided to the motor 102 via a three-phase power line so as to drive the motor 102 in a reverse or regenerative mode.
[0037] The motor 102 is operated by the inverter 101 , and then outputs a predetermined torque to the transmission 106 .
[0038] Also, the motor 102 generates an AC voltage with power of the drive wheel 107 , and the generated AC voltage is provided to the inverter 101 through the 3-phase power line.
[0039] The drive wheel 107 may include a shaft (not indicated) and a tire (not indicated).
[0040] The tire is mounted at the shaft so as to be rotated by the power transmitted from the shaft via a power transmitting gear.
[0041] Further, the motor 102 includes a rotation speed sensor that outputs a detected rotation speed signal to the vehicle control unit 103 .
[0042] The vehicle control unit 103 may be a conventional hybrid ECU.
[0043] The vehicle control unit 103 generates a shift signal for controlling the transmission 106 so as to increase a speed reduction ratio of the transmission 106 when a reduction of vehicle speed is detected by a brake pedal position.
[0044] Further, the vehicle control unit 103 calculates a requested braking force based on the brake pedal position.
[0045] The vehicle control unit 103 calculates a regenerative amount of the motor 102 based on rotation speed of the motor 102 received from the requested braking force, state of charge (SOC) of the main battery 100 , and rotation speed signal, and thereby further calculates a distribution of the requested braking force of the regenerative amount.
[0046] In doing so, the vehicle control unit 103 generates a regenerative signal indicating a calculated distribution, and outputs it to a brake ECU.
[0047] The vehicle control unit 103 receives a regenerative admission amount signal from the brake ECU, calculates a potential regenerative amount of the motor 102 based on the regenerative admission amount signal, and further generates a drive signal for driving the inverter 101 so that the motor 102 generates the calculated regenerative amount and outputs it to the inverter 101 .
[0048] Further, the vehicle control unit 103 sends a signal to an engine control unit regarding power required for output of the engine 104 .
[0049] The engine control unit drives the engine 104 so that the engine 104 outputs power ordered by the vehicle control unit 103 .
[0050] More specifically, the engine control unit drives the engine 104 so as to output a predetermined power by controlling a fuel injection amount and engine speed.
[0051] Hereinafter, a device for control of regenerative braking of a vehicle according to various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.
[0052] Firstly, a motor control unit determines whether a reverse rotation of the motor 102 has occurred in a shifting process of vehicle.
[0053] At this time, if the reverse rotation of the motor 102 is determined, an amount of increase of motor torque is controlled to be further increased.
[0054] As shown in FIG. 2 , for example, during a 4-speed 3-speed down-shift process, a motor torque increase (i.e. torque intervention) is realized, and engagement duty of the transmission 106 is increased in order to complete the shifting process.
[0055] Referring to the “A” portion in FIG. 2 , the engine speed is decreased somewhat due to increase of the motor torque, and thereby a reverse rotation of the motor 102 is prevented.
[0056] Therefore, shift feel may be improved by preventing a shift shock caused by the reverse rotation of the motor 102 .
[0057] The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.
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A control unit of vehicle is provided including a device for controlling regenerative braking of a vehicle. The device is provided with a drive wheel and a drive motor driving the drive wheel may include a vehicle control unit for calculating a regenerative amount and distributing a target braking force corresponding to the calculated regenerative amount; and a control unit controlling a transmission so that torque of the motor is increased in case of decelerating regeneration of the drive motor.
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This invention was made with Government support under prime contract DAAE07-84-C-R083 awarded by the Department of Defense. The Government has certain rights in this invention.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to motor controls and, more particularly, to a control system and method of control for a switched reluctance motor operating as a power generator.
Switched reluctance motors conventionally have multiple poles or teeth on both stator and rotor, i.e., they are doubly salient. There are phase windings on the stator but no windings on the rotor. Each pair of diametrically opposite stator poles is connected in series to form one phase of a multi-phase switched reluctance motor. Torque is produced by switching current into each of the phase windings in a predetermined sequence that is synchronized with the angular position of the rotor, so that a magnetic force of attraction results between the rotor and stator poles that are approaching each other. The current is switched off in each phase before the rotor poles nearest the stator poles of the phase rotate past the aligned position. Otherwise, the magnetic force of attraction would produce a negative or braking torque. The torque developed is independent of the direction of current flow so that unidirectional current pulses synchronized with rotor movement can be applied to develop torque in either direction. These pulses are generated by a converter using current switching elements such as thyristors or transistors.
In operation, each time a phase of the switched reluctance motor is switched on by closing a switch in a converter, current flows in the stator winding of that phase providing energy from a direct current (DC) supply to the motor. The energy drawn from the supply is converted partly into mechanical energy by causing the rotor to rotate toward a minimum reluctance configuration and partly in stored energy associated with the magnetic field. After the switch is opened, part of the stored magnetic energy is converted to mechanical output and part of the energy is returned to the DC source.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,650 describes a control system for a switched reluctance motor employing a programmable, closed loop, four quadrant control system incorporating feedback control, angle control and current control. The feedback control incorporates a speed feedback loop and/or a torque feedback loop. The angle control digitally synchronizes stator phase current pulses with rotor position, and the current control acts as a chopping or bang-bang controller to limit the magnitude of the stator phase current pulses. The magnitude and turn-on and turn-off angles of the stator current pulses for each phase, in feedback mode, are controlled so as to provide smooth operation and full torque and speed range with optimum performance in all four quadrants of motor operation, i.e., forward motoring, forward braking, reverse motoring and reverse braking.
The switched reluctance motor can be utilized as a generator in the braking mode. When operated as a generator, the motor produces current rather than voltage. Braking torque is produced when winding current continues to flow after a rotor pole has passed alignment with an associated stator pole. Because the switched reluctance motor has no rotor excitation, it is necessary to first draw electric power from a DC bus in order to cause current to begin flowing in windings of the motor. Current can be initiated in the windings either prior to alignment of a rotor pole and associated stator pole or after alignment has occurred. In general, very little torque will be produced by currents which exist when a corresponding rotor pole is adjacent or close to either side of a stator pole. Once the rotor pole passes alignment or continues into the negative torque region, the winding current will build faster than in the motoring region because the inductive term which establishes the voltage across the motor winding becomes negative. While some DC current will still be drawn from the associated DC bus while generating torque is being produced, DC current will be delivered to the bus when the switches actuated to start current into the winding are turned off and force the winding current to commutate into the associated flyback diodes. The net DC current is the sum of all the current from all of the phases of a multi-phase motor and it is this net DC current which is desired to be regulated when the reluctance motor is operated as a generator.
In some applications, a switched reluctance motor can be operated to function as a motor during start-up of a system and thereafter act as a generator after the system has become started. For example, if the reluctance motor is applied to act as a starter for a gas turbine engine, the motor may be called upon to bring the gas turbine engine up to its self-sustaining speed, and thereafter to act as a generator throughout the gas turbine's power producing speed range. The desired method of control in the generating mode is that of a voltage regulator since electrical loads can be supplied by the DC link voltage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention comprises a method for operating a multi-phase switched reluctance motor in a generator mode. The motor has a first plurality of stator poles wound with phase windings and a second plurality of salient rotor poles. The phase windings are connected by selectably controllable switches to a direct current bus with each phase winding including commutation means for conducting current when the switches are disabled. The inventive method comprises sequentially gating the switches for selected ones of the phase windings into conduction whereby current is caused to flow in the selected winding. The switches are thereafter disabled and current then flows through the commutation means back to the DC bus. In one form, the instant at which the switches are disabled, measured in angular displacement between an associated stator pole and a corresponding rotor pole, is determined by establishing a preselected magnitude of current such tat when the current in the winding reaches that magnitude, the switches are disabled. The method further includes regulating the voltage at the DC bus during generator mode of operation by adjusting the stator pole to rotor pole phase angle at which the switches are gated into conduction. Additionally, the voltage can be regulated at the DC bus by adjusting the stator pole to rotor pole angle at which the switches are disabled if generated current does not reach the preselected magnitude. The inventive system also includes an overcurrent protection system which reduces the stator pole to rotor pole turn-on angle if the current in the DC bus exceeds another predetermined magnitude.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1A is a schematic representation of a typical switched reluctance motor and includes means to provide rotor position and motor velocity signals;
FIG. 1B illustrates a typical power converter for the switched reluctance motor of FIG. 1A;
FIG. 2 is a graph illustrating torque produced for a single phase of the motor of FIG. 1 with constant DC current in the phase;
FIG. 3 is a simplified schematic representation of one phase of a switched reluctance motor illustrating current flow during generator mode of operation;
FIG. 4 profiles inductance with respect to rotor angular position for a stator pole pair of the motor of FIG. 1A;
FIG. 5 illustrates a winding current waveform for a switched reluctance motor operating as a current generator;
FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram illustrating a basic DC bus voltage regulator in accordance with one form of the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a graph illustrating the effects of advancing a turn-on angle with constant current and turn-off level in a switched reluctance motor operating as a generator;
FIG. 8 illustrates the effect of decreasing pulse width with a constant turn-on angle in a switched reluctance motor operating as a current generator;
FIG. 9 is a simplified block diagram of an overcurrent regulator in accordance with one aspect of the present invention; and
FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of the angle program block 170 of the present invention, of FIGS. 6 and 9.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1A illustrates a typical switched reluctance motor 10 including a rotor 12 rotatable in either a forward or a reverse direction within a stator 14. The forward direction F indicates counterclockwise rotation of the rotor while the reverse direction R indicates clockwise rotation. Rotor 12 has three pairs of diametrically opposite poles labeled a-a', b-b' and c-c'. Stator 14 is provided with four pairs of diametrically opposite stator poles labeled A-A', B-B', C-C' and D-D'. For purpose of discussion, the illustrated embodiment is assumed to be constructed such that each rotor pole and each stator pole has an angular extent of 18°. The gap between adjacent rotor poles in this embodiment is 42° while the gap between adjacent stator poles is 27°. These angles are measured with respect to center point O.
The opposite poles of each stator pole pair share a common winding and define a respective stator phase. A representative winding coil 16 for phase A is illustrated in FIG. 1A. Similar windings are provided for each of the other stator pole pairs. Also depicted in FIG. 1A are means to provide signals representing rotor position (θ) and motor velocity (ω r ). A resolver 17 is connected, as depicted by the dashed line, to rotor 12 and provides output signals via lines 18 to a resolver to digital (R/D) converter 19. The outputs of the converter 19 are the position signal θ and the velocity signal ω r .
Rotor rotation is produced by switching current on and off in each stator phase winding in a predetermined sequence synchronized with angular position of the rotor, i.e., at selected turn-on and turn-off angles. These angles are angularly displaced between an associated stator pole and a corresponding rotor pole and may be an advance angle, i.e., an angle before the rotor pole aligns with the stator pole, or a retard angle, i.e., an angle between the stator pole and rotor pole after alignment has been passed, Current in each stator phase is derived from power converter 20 of FIG. 1B, which impresses a DC bus voltage V d across the four parallel stator phase legs PH-A, PH-B, PH-C and PH-D. Bus voltage V d can be obtained from a battery (not shown), or from an AC power supply, e.g., three phase, 220 volt, 60 Hertz line, through a conventional diode rectifier circuit 22 and filtering capacitor 23.
The converter circuitry for each stator phase leg is identical. The PH-A leg, for example, includes a stator winding 24A, first and second flyback diodes 26A and 26A' and first and second current switching devices such as transistors 27A and 27A' interconnected as shown in FIG. 1B. A base of each of the transistors is connected to an output of a current control 48 which control serves to govern the conductive state of the various transistors 27A, 27A', 27B, 27B', etc. Current control 48 responds, variously, to input signals representing the maximum desired current limit (I max ) of a phase current, for example, I a , a turn-on angle signal (θ O ), a turn-off angle signal (θ p ), and the output signal from a comparator 196 all of which will be described hereinafter, particularly with respect to FIG. 10.
When transistors 27A and 27A' are switched on, a phase current I a , derived from link current I d flows through the stator winding for phase A. When the transistors 27A and 27A' are switched off, current in the winding 24A decays by re-circulating to the source or to the filter capacitor 23 through the flyback diodes 26A and 26A'. This recirculating current can be absorbed by a load resistor R connected in series with a controllable switch T db across the rectified AC source. In other applications, the recirculatory current could be coupled to a rechargeable battery. The converter circuitry for each of the other phase legs operates identically and accordingly is not detailed herein. The transistors coupled in series with each of the phase windings are made to conduct in sequence, with the order of conduction depending upon the direction of rotation.
A signal, i a , representative of the phase current, I a , is generated by any suitable means, 25A, such as a shunt or a current transducer such as that produced by Liaisons Eleotroniques Mechaniques S.A. of Geneva, Switzerland. Signals i b , i c and i d are similarly developed.
The switched reluctance motor can operate in both a motoring mode and in a generating mode. Referring briefly to FIG. 2, there is shown a graph of the torque produced for a single phase of the motor of FIG. 1 with constant DC current in the phase. Motoring or positive torque, as illustrated in FIG. 2, is produced in the region prior to the alignment of the rotor pole pair with an associated stator pole pair, and generating or negative torque is produced in the region after alignment. No torque is produced when the rotor pole pair is exactly aligned with the stator pole pair. It can be seen from this figure that for motoring torque production, it is desirable to turn on a phase in the rotor angle region between -24° and alignment and to maintain current in that phase until or just before alignment. In the generating mode, the transistor pair which connects the phase winding across the voltage source can be gated into conduction either just before alignment or after the rotor pole pair passes alignment with the stator pole pair so that current is built up in the phase winding. When the transistor is gated out of conduction, current commutates into the associated diodes and is returned to the DC bus.
The switched reluctance motor produces current, when operating in a generating mode, rather than voltage. Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown one phase of the multi-phase switched reluctance motor of FIG. 1A and the selected power circuit configuration of 1B. One aspect of the power circuit configuration is that it is capable of returning power to the DC bus. This allows generation of usable electric power. When the switches SW1 and SW2 (corresponding to transistors 27A, 27A') are opened, current continues to flow in winding 24A but since the winding is now connected to the DC bus through diodes 26A, 26A' the bus current is now in a direction to return power to the source. As mentioned above, negative or braking torque is produced when the winding current is flowing in the region after the rotor pole has passed alignment with an associated stator pole. This braking torque will generate electrical power, but because the switched reluctance motor has no rotor excitation, it is necessary to first draw electric power from the DC bus in order to establish current in the winding. This requires that there be provided some energy storage medium on the DC bus such as, for example, the capacitor 23 shown in FIG. 1B. The voltage across the motor winding V w is given by the following equation: ##EQU1## where L is winding inductance and R is the winding resistance and I w is the winding current. The winding inductance is not constant but varies with position of a rotor pole with respect to a stator pole. A typical inductance profile is shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 5 shows a typical winding current waveform for a switched reluctance motor operating as a current generator. The phase current begins from zero at turn-on angle θ O both of the transistors such as, for example, transistors 27A and 27A' are gated into conduction. In the general case such conduction may be started in the motoring region shown as region A in FIG. 5. Winding current builds up in this region while drawing DC current from the bus because the bus voltage V d is greater than the sum of ##EQU2## It will be noted that both of these terms are positive in the motoring region or region A. However, since the current is very low and the rotor position is close to alignment, very little motoring torque will be produced. Once the rotor passes alignment and enters into the negative torque area indicated as region B, the winding current builds faster than in the motoring region because dL/dt term becomes negative. In this region, DC current is still being drawn from the although braking torque is being produced. Beginning at the turn-off angle θ p , DC current is finally delivered to the bus when, in the region indicated as C, both of the transistor switches are turned off, allowing the winding current to commutate into the diodes 26A and 26A' (FIG. 1B). In region C, current may continue to increase for some time, but eventually peaks and then decays. The net DC current is the sum of all currents from all of the phases of the multi-phase motor and it is this net DC current which is desired to be regulated and will sustain the voltage on the DC bus, which voltage can also be regulated.
The basic control parameters of the switched reluctance motor drive system can be summarized as follows:
I MAX is the chopping current level:
θ O is the transistor turn-on angle;
θ p is the transistor turn-off angle; and
θ pw is the difference between θ O and θ p .
As earlier indicated, a switched reluctance motor can be operated as a motor during start-up of a system and thereafter as a generator when the system is running. FIG. 1B illustrates a circuit diagram of a multi-phase switched reluctance motor connected in circuit with a power conditioner 22. In a generating mode, a battery may be placed in parallel with a load resistance in parallel with capacitor 23. This will allow the battery or the load resistance to absorb generated energy from the reluctance motor. One consideration in the application of the switched reluctance motor as a generator is that the DC bus voltage, across the battery or parallel resistance, must be controlled for varying loads and motor speeds.
Referring now to FIG. 6, there is shown an illustration of a basic DC bus voltage regulator in accordance with one form of the present invention. A voltage feedback signal V f is subtracted from a voltage reference signal V ref in summing junction 160. The resultant error signal is fed into a controller 162. The controller 162 is preferably an integral plus proportional controller of a type well known in the art. The controller 162 may include output clamps 164 and may be implemented in either hardware or software. The load applied to the switched reluctance motor is modeled by a parallel RC circuit 166. The circuit 166 may represent the DC link capacitor 23 (FIG. 1B) and any load resistance connected in parallel with capacitor 23. The output of the circuit 166 is the DC link voltage V d which, to close the control loop, may be passed through a voltage scaling circuit 168 before application to the summing junction 160 as the signal V f . The motor and power converter are modeled as a low-pass filter 172. The elements thus far recited in FIG. 6 are common elements in a proportional plus integral feedback control loop. Applicant's invention resides primarily in the angle program block 170 which assures that the firing angles or turn-on and turn-off angles that are provided to the power switching circuit for the switched reluctance motor result in a linearized gain.
It has been determined that a linearized DC link current, which is essentially independent of motor velocity, can be obtained by establishing a constant current turn-off level I MAX . (See FIG. 7.) Referring briefly to FIG. 1B, current is turned on by gating transistors 27A, 27A' into conduction and allowing current to build until it reaches the turn-off level, whereupon both transistors are gated out of conduction and the current commutates into diodes 26A, 26A'. Advancing the turn-on angle as shown by waveform B of FIG. 7 produces a larger phase current pulse, which produces more DC bus current. The amount of DC bus current produced has been found to be linear with advancing turn-on angle. Of course there are limitations, since advancing too far will start the current too far into the motoring region and produce decreasing amounts of generated current. Also, retarding the turn-on angle too far will produce net motoring torque, since current will be flowing during the approaching alignment of the next rotor pole. The practical limits for the range of the turn-on angle can be determined by empirical methods for a particular application.
Controlling the DC current as described above yields a very linear transfer function of DC current versus turn-on angle over large variations in DC current and motor speed. System efficiencies remain good for high DC current levels; however, the efficiency falls off quickly at lower DC current levels. This can be expected since the method keeps the winding current at high levels even for low DC bus currents.
In order to maintain high system efficiency for lower DC current levels, it is necessary to introduce another mode of control, illustrated by FIG. 8. In this additional mode, the turn-on angle is held fixed, while the pulse width is decreased. Note, for example, the reduced width of current pulse C with respect to current pulse D. This type of "dual-mode" control lends itself particularly well to a digital microprocessor-based implementation, although analog control could be employed as well. The output of the regulator clamp block 164 of FIG. 6 can be considered to be a turn-on angle command TON -- COM, which is fed into the angle program block 170. The angle program block 170 calculates a TURN -- ON -- BREAK and for TON -- COM greater than TURN -- ON -- BREAK the actual turn-on angle is TON -- COM directly and the control operates in the mode illustrated in FIG. 7, i.e., a constant current turn-off level with advancing turn-on angle. For TON -- COM less than TURN -- ON -- BREAK, the actual turn-on angle is maintained at TURN -- ON -- BREAK and the control operates as shown in FIG. 8, i.e., decreasing pulse width but a constant turn-on angle.
In the preferred embodiment, TURN -- ON -- BREAK is a function of motor velocity (ω r ), given by the equation:
TURN.sub.-- ON.sub.-- BREAK=G1(ω.sub.r -G2).sup.2 -G3
where G1, G2 and G3 are constants selected for a particular motor by empirical curve fitting from graphs of system efficiency and DC link current (I d ) as functions of turn-on angle and motor velocity at constant turn-off current. The TURN -- ON -- BREAK function was found to maintain high system efficiencies over the generating operating speed range. A pulse width, or DWELL, is also calculated in block 170. Pulse width is also a function of ω r and is determined in the following two step method. First, a DWELL -- BREAK or end of pulse is obtained from:
DWELL.sub.-- BREAK=G4(ω.sub.r)+G5
where G4 and G5 are constants selected for the particular motor by empirical curve fitting. Finally, using the quantities TURN -- ON -- BREAK and DWELL -- BREAK, the DWELL is calculated as a function of TURN -- ON -- BREAK in accordance with the relationship:
DWELL=DWELL.sub.-- BREAK-G6(TURN.sub.-- ON.sub.-- BREAK-TON.sub.-- COM)
While these equations illustrate a preferred embodiment, other equations may be employed for differing applications.
FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of the angle program (block 170) of FIGS. 6 and 9. The depiction developing the signals DWELL and TURN -- ON -- BREAK is a direct one-for-one implementation of the above two equations for those terms and needs no further explanation. The generation of the turnoff signal (θ p ) and the turn-on signal (θ O ) from the DWELL and TURN -- ON -- BREAK signals is as follows. The TURN -- ON -- BREAK signal is compared in a comparator 190 with the signal TON -- COM. When the latter exceeds the former, the output of comparator 190 causes the switches 192 and 194 to be in the lower position (opposite to that illustrated) and hence θ O is equal to TON -- COM and θ p is not directly controlled. In this situation, the turn-off function of current control 48 (FIG. 1B) is the result of the output of a comparator 196. Comparator 196 has, as its inputs the I MAX reference signal and a one (i x ) of the phase current signals i.sub. a, i b , i c or i d . (See FIG. 1B.) The output of comparator 196 in this instance serves in the stead of the θ p signal and is present when i x exceeds I MAX . (In actuality, there exists a comparator corresponding to 196 for each phase of the stator.)
When the TURN -- ON -- BREAK signal exceeds the TON -- COM signal, the output of comparator 190 causes the switches 192 and 194 to be in the position indicated. In this situation, the DWELL signal is summed with the TURN 13 ON -- BREAK signal (summer 198) to yield the turn-off signal θ p . The turn-on signal is now equal to the TURN -- ON -- BREAK signal.
Another element of the generating control for the switched reluctance motor is overcurrent protection. Such protection can be implemented using an overcurrent takeover regulator as in FIG. 9. The reference ILOD -- MAX for this regulator, can be either a constant or a function of speed and/or time. DC load current is sensed and subtracted from ILOD -- MAX at summing point 180. If the load current exceeds LOD -- MAX, the overcurrent regulator takes over from the voltage regulator and reduces TON -- COM which reduces the load current by allowing the DC link voltage to fall. The controller 182 can be of any common type, such as the proportional plus integral type described in FIG. 6. The integral function aids in compensating for any remaining variations in the linearity of the power bridge and motor simulation block 172. The clamp block 164, angle program 170 and power bridge and motor block 172 can be identical to the corresponding blocks in FIG. 6. Block 174 again represents the DC link capacitor and load resistance, which differs from FIG. 6 block 166 because current is now the desired output quantity.
Once the overcurrent takeover regulator has taken control of the firing angle, it regulates current at ILOD -- MAX. It can release control after the overcurrent load is removed and the voltage rises to some incremental value above the reference level to provide some hysteresis. While a particular switching arrangement has not been shown for transitioning from a voltage control to a current control for overcurrent protection, such implementation will be immediately apparent from the above description.
While the invention has been described in what is presently considered to be a preferred embodiment, it will be appreciated that other modifications and variations of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the disclosed embodiment but be interpreted within the full spirit and scope of the appended claims.
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A method for operating a multi-phase switched reluctance motor is a generator mode includes gating switches connected in series with selected ones of the phase windings of the motor into conduction to establish current flow in a selected one of the windings. The switches are thereafter disabled and current is forced to commutate into flyback diodes whereby the current is returned to an associated DC bus. The instant at which the conducting switches are gated out of conduction is selected or measured in angular displacement between an associated stator pole and a corresponding rotor pole by establishing a preselected magnitude of current such that when the current in the winding reaches that magnitude, the switches are disabled. The voltage at the DC bus is regulated during generator mode operation by adjusting the phase angle measured between a stator pole and a corresponding rotor pole at which the switches are gated into conduction. The voltage is alternatively regulated at the DC bus by adjusting the phase angle at which the switches are disabled if the generated current does not reach the preselected magnitude. Overcurrent protection is included to reduce the turn-on angle if the current in the DC bus exceeds another preselected magnitude.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application is a continuation of pending International patent application PCT/EP2010/054702 filed on Apr. 9, 2010 which designates the United States and claims priority from European Patent applications EP 09161738.1 filed on Jun. 2, 2009 and EP 09158296.5 filed on Apr. 20, 2009. The content of all prior applications is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns an axial bearing between a first part and a second part that presses with an axial load against the first part and can rotate around a rotation axis relative to the first part comprising a circular or arc-shaped ridge on the first part centered around the rotation axis, a pressure source for providing pressurized hydraulic fluid on a first side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge, an adjustable gap between the circular or arc shaped ridge and a bearing surface on the second part, wherein the pressurized hydraulic fluid flows through the adjustable gap to a second side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Such axial bearings are known for instance from hydraulic devices such as pumps, motors or transformers where they are used as bearing between the rotor and the port plate. Other known uses are hydrostatic bearings in a gearbox with helical gears or hydrostatic bearings in other machinery.
In the axial bearing, the pressure difference between both sides of the circular or arc-shaped ridge causes the oil pressure to fall in the adjustable gap when going from the first side to the second side. How the pressure falls and whether a pressure profile from one side of the ridge to the other side of the ridge is linear, progressive or digressive determines the force that this pressure generates to counteract the axial load and with a given axial load determines the gap-height.
For the pressure profile, the shape of the gap is very important. Especially important is whether the walls of the gap, seen in flow direction, are parallel, diverging, or converging. As the gap-height is small, from 2 to 15 microns, minor changes in temperature distribution in the walls of the gap create changes in the diverging or converging of the walls so that the pressure profile in the gap often is unpredictable. The walls of the gap influence the flow in such narrow gaps considerably and the flow theories using laminar or turbulent flow models do not describe the situation properly. As the walls of the adjustable gap move relative to one another, there is a viscous friction. The viscous friction increases with the speed of the relative movement as the gap gets narrower and/or the speed increases and decreases with increasing gap-height. The viscous friction generates heat in the oil that might influence the gap-height due to change in dimensions of the ridge or the bearing surface.
In the known axial bearings, it is very difficult to optimize the axial bearing. A too small axial load leads to a large height of the adjustable gap due to the oil pressure in the adjustable gap between the circular or arc-shaped ridge and the bearing surface. This can lead to a too large oil flow through the gap. This large oil flow will arise if, for average oil viscosity, the average height of the gap is more than 10-20 micron and the pressure of the pressurized hydraulic fluid is more than 10 MPa.
If the axial load is too large, there is too much friction during rotation of the rotor combined with heating of the oil flow due to viscous losses in the adjustable gap. In addition, in an adjustable gap that is very narrow, local deformations or local disturbances in the flow through the gap may occur which might lead to further local heat generation. Local heat generation leads to deformations of the circular of arc-shaped ridge or the bearing surface and to further narrowing of the gap. These deformations might lead to undesired wear as metallic contact between the rotating and stationary parts may occur.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to reduce the disadvantages the axial bearing, the circular or arc-shaped ridge and the bearing surface comprise a ridge chamber for locally creating a larger adjustable gap between the circular or arc-shaped ridge and the bearing surface. Because of this feature, the pressure profile in the adjustable gap is more stable as the pressure in the ridge chamber is constant. The pressure changes from the one side of the circular of arc-shaped ridge to the other side take place over a considerably reduced distance so that variations in the pressure profile have less influence on the force counteracting the axial load and have less influence on the gap-height. A further result is that over a considerable surface of the adjustable gap the gap-height is higher which strongly reduces the viscous friction in the adjustable gap. In situations where the walls of the adjustable gap have a high relative speed, locally increasing the gap-height strongly reduces the friction and heat generation. This leads to less energy loss and less deformation due to local high temperatures in the walls of the adjustable gap on the circular or arc-shaped ridge and the bearing surface. This reduces the risk of metallic contact and so reduces wear.
In an embodiment, the ridge chamber has a surface that is at least 50% of the surface of the circular or arc shaped ridge. This ensures that for at least half the surface the friction between rotating parts is considerably reduced, which means that there is a considerable reduction or possibly halving of the viscous friction between the two parts.
In an embodiment, the ridge chamber has a depth of more than 10-30 microns. This ensures that in the ridge chamber there is sufficient oil of a constant pressure. In this way oil pressure in the ridge chamber counteracts the axial load with a constant force that is little influenced by the gap-height.
In an embodiment, a first slot connects the ridge chamber with the first side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge. This ensures that always a certain amount of oil flows into the ridge chamber and that the pressure of the oil in the ridge chamber can have a value that is more or less between the pressures on both sides of the circular or arc-shaped ridge. The oil pressure in the ridge chamber is now less dependent on the gap-height of the sides of the ridge chamber and is therefore less dependent on the deformations or shape of the walls of the adjustable gap. This reduces the risk that the axial load might reduce the gap-height too much and cause too much viscous friction or metallic contact and wear.
In an embodiment, a second canal connects the ridge chamber with the second side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge. This ensures that always a certain amount of oil flows out of the ridge chamber and that the pressure of the oil in the ridge chamber can have a value that is more or less between the pressures on both sides of the circular or arc-shaped ridge. The oil pressure in the ridge chamber is now less dependent on the gap-height of the sides of the ridge chamber and so is less dependent on the deformations or shape of the walls of the adjustable gap. This reduces the risk of too much flow of oil of high-pressure through the adjustable gap and with that of unnecessary energy loss.
In an embodiment, a slot from the ridge chamber to the first side or the second side forms the first canal or the second canal respectively and the width of the slot is less than half its height. This ensures that the gap-height has only little influence on the opening of the canal so that changing the cap height does not change the inflow in the ridge chamber or the outflow from the ridge chamber and ensures that the changing gap-height has only little influence on the pressure in the ridge chamber.
In an embodiment, the first or the second canal has valve means to adjust the flow resistance of the canal. This ensures that the height of the adjustable gap is adapted to the actual situation. In situations that the rotation speed is high, it is advantageous to reduce the friction in the adjustable gap. In that situation, reducing the flow resistance in the first canal and/or increasing the flow resistance in the second canal leads to a higher pressure in the ridge chamber and to a higher gap, which gives less friction.
In situations with high pressure of the pressurized fluid and relative low rotation speed, the major source of energy loss is leakage of oil through the adjustable gap. Increasing the flow resistance in the first canal and/or reducing the flow resistance in the second canal leads to a lower pressure in the ridge chamber and to a narrower gap. The narrow gap has less leakage and so reduces the energy loss.
In an embodiment, the rotation speed of the first part or the second part controls the valve means, preferably the valve means are set by a centrifugal force generated by the rotation in the part. This ensures in a simple way that the axial bearing adapts to a large range in the rotation speed.
In an embodiment, the pressure of the hydraulic fluid on the first side controls the valve means, preferably the valve means are set by the pressure of the pressure source on the first side. This ensures in a simple way that the axial bearing adapts to a large range of the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the pressure source.
In an embodiment, the axial load depends on the pressure of the hydraulic fluid on the first side. This ensures that the gap-height is independent of the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the pressure source.
In an embodiment, the pressure source provides hydraulic fluid between two concentric circular or arc-shaped ridges and two radial ridges connecting the circular or arc-shaped ridges. This ensures a small area with the high pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the pressure source. This small area limits the length of the ridges surrounding it so that oil leakage through the gaps between the ridges and the bearing surface is smaller.
The invention also concerns a hydraulic transformer with 4-quadrant operation for use in vehicle drive system. In the known hydraulic transformers, the rotors are in the centre and the barrel plate rests against the port plate, the covers support the inclined port plates. The rotor and the shaft guide the radial forces on the pistons via a bearing to the covers. The radial forces generated by the port plates on the covers counteract in the covers these radial forces. However, the forces on the shaft are considerable and lead to bending and elastic deformations that are a disadvantage as this might lead to oscillations and leakage. In addition, the setting of the hydraulic transformer by rotating both port plates synchronously is complicated.
In order to overcome these disadvantages the hydraulic transformer comprises a housing with covers at opposite sides, in the housing a shaft with a rotation axis, two rotors each in axial direction supported by a first axial bearing, pistons mounted in the rotors, two inclined barrel plates that rotate with the rotors, barrel sleeves supported by the barrel plates, a chamber formed by a barrel sleeve and a piston, wherein the volume of the chamber changes during rotation of the rotor and a swath plate with a second axial bearing between the swath plate and the barrel plate characterized in that the covers each support or are part of a port plate that is part of the first axial bearing, further that the rotors are between the first axial bearings and that both swash plates are located between the rotors and support or are part of a swash block, the hydraulic transformer further comprising an actuator for rotating the swash block. In this way, the swash block leads radial forces from the barrel plate via a short way to the rotor and pistons so that the deformations are minimal. Further, the setting of the hydraulic transformer is easy by rotating the swash block. Rotating the swash block sets the top dead centre angle on both sides of the swash block simultaneously.
In an embodiment, the actuator comprises a rotary cylinder mounted in the swash block. This ensures a direct hydraulic rotation of the swash block that ensures quick setting of the hydraulic transformer.
In an embodiment, the housing comprises a sensor for detecting the rotary position of the swash block. In this way, an accurate setting of the hydraulic transformer is possible.
The invention also concerns a vehicle with a hydraulic drive system. In the known systems the motor/pump unit and the hydraulic transformer are coupled directly. This leads to the situation when the setting of the hydraulic transformer has as result that the motor/pump unit exerts a braking torque on the wheel that after the wheel has stopped rotating the braking torque starts acting as a driving torque in reverse direction if the setting of the hydraulic transformer is not changed immediately. For instance during parking of the vehicle, this could lead to undesirable situations.
In order to overcome this disadvantage the hydraulic drive system comprises a common high-pressure rail with an high-pressure accumulator, a common low-pressure rail with a low-pressure accumulator, an internal combustion engine driving a constant displacement pump connected to the common high-pressure rail and the common low-pressure rail, for each front wheel or for each rear wheel a motor/pump unit and a hydraulic transformer with 4-quadrant operation with connections to the common high-pressure rail and via a first motor line and a second motor line to the motor/pump unit characterized in that the hydraulic transformer comprises a forward propulsion valve or a reverse propulsion valve connecting the common low-pressure rail respectively to the first motor line or to the second motor line, which propulsion valves have a spring to hold the valve in a first position wherein they act as check valve blocking the flow to the common low-pressure rail and an actuator that can switch the propulsion valve to a second position connecting the common low-pressure rail to one of the motor lines. In this way, a wheel can only rotate in one direction unless the control system changes the setting of a valve. This prevents undesired or unexpected rotations of the wheels.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to several exemplary embodiments by means of a drawing, in which:
FIG. 1 schematically shows the components of a hydraulic drive of a car,
FIG. 2 shows a diagram of a drive and brake system of a hydraulic driven wheel of a car driving forward,
FIG. 3 shows a diagram of the drive and brake system of a hydraulic driven wheel of a car driving reverse,
FIG. 4 shows a diagram of the drive and brake system of a hydraulic driven wheel of a car riding forward and braking,
FIG. 5 shows a diagram of the drive and brake system of a hydraulic driven wheel of a car riding reverse and braking,
FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of a hydraulic transformer assembly for use in the hydraulic drive of a car,
FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the hydraulic transformer of FIG. 6 with a cut out and opened housing showing the internal parts,
FIG. 8 shows an exploded view of the main parts of the hydraulic transformer of FIGS. 6 and 7 excluding the housing,
FIG. 9 shows a perspective view with a cut out of the housing of the hydraulic transformer assembly of FIG. 6-8 without the rotating parts and end covers,
FIG. 10 shows a section through the hydraulic transformer of FIGS. 6-9 with an actuator for setting the transformer control angle,
FIG. 11 shows a longitudinal section through the hydraulic transformer of FIGS. 6-10 ,
FIG. 12 shows graphically the pressure quotient of the pressure of the operation pressure and the high pressure in dependence of a transformer control angle,
FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of sealing area on a rotating part, and
FIG. 14 shows a schematic section through a sealing area between a rotating and a stationary part.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a passenger car 12 with the various components of a hydraulic drive system for the car wherein all four wheels of the car 12 are driven. The drive system comprises an internal combustion engine 2 that drives a constant displacement pump 4 that pumps hydraulic fluid from a common low-pressure rail 6 to a common high-pressure rail 5 . The common low-pressure rail 6 is connected to a low-pressure accumulator 8 and the common high-pressure rail 5 is connected to a high-pressure accumulator 9 . A drive control system 1 controls the internal combustion engine 2 and this drive control system 1 maintains by controlling the rotation speed and/or of the starting or stopping of the internal combustion engine 2 that the hydraulic pressure in the common high-pressure rail 5 is between a high and a low value.
The front wheels of the passenger car 12 each have a front wheel motor/pump 3 that is connected to a front axle hydraulic transformer 7 . Document WO97/31185 describes the operation principle of a hydraulic transformer; hereafter the design of the hydraulic transformer is further elucidated. The front axle hydraulic transformer 7 is also connected to the common high-pressure rail 5 and the common low-pressure rail 6 and is controlled by the drive control system 1 . The rear wheels of the passenger car 12 each have a rear wheel motor/pump 11 that is connected to a rear axle hydraulic transformer 10 . The rear axle hydraulic transformer 10 is connected to the common high-pressure rail 5 and the common low-pressure rail 6 and is controlled by the drive control system 1 . In other embodiments of passenger cars 12 , only the front wheels are driven or only the rear wheels are driven. The hydraulic drive systems for these cars are similar and form a simplified version of the described embodiment. Hydraulic drive systems for commercial vehicles are similar with front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, or four-wheel drive as well. The wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 is designed such that it acts as a motor for driving the wheel 22 and that it acts as a pump for braking the wheel 22 .
FIGS. 2-5 schematically show how a wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 drives and brakes an attached wheel 22 with a wheel rotation direction 23 ; the shown design is for all wheels similar. Braking the rotation of the motor/pump 3 , 11 and the wheel 22 by pumping hydraulic fluid back into the common high-pressure rail 5 recuperates the kinetic energy of the speeding vehicle. The wheels 22 have an additional brake system of conventional design used for emergency braking if required and for braking during standstill or parking. An interrupted line in the FIGS. 2-5 indicates the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 as such. The motor/pump 3 , 11 is directly coupled to the wheel 22 . A first motor/pump connection 26 and a second motor/pump connection 25 connect the motor/pump 3 , 11 to the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . The first motor/pump connection 26 connects to a first user connection port 13 of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . The second motor/pump connection 25 connects to a second user connection port 18 of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . The common high-pressure rail 5 connects via a high-pressure connection HP to the high-pressure port 15 of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 .
The first motor/pump connection 26 further connects via a reverse propulsion valve 24 and a low-pressure connection LP to the common low-pressure rail 6 and the second motor/pump connection 25 connects via a forward propulsion valve 20 and the low-pressure connection LP to the common low-pressure rail 6 . The forward propulsion valve 20 and the reverse propulsion valve 24 each have two positions. A spring 19 pushes the valves 20 , 24 in a first position and an actuator 21 controlled by the drive control system 1 can bring the valves 20 , 24 in the second position. In the first position, a check valve in each valve 20 , 24 prevents flow from the first, respective the second motor/pump connection 25 , 26 to the low-pressure connection LP and in the second position the first, and respective the second motor/pump connection 25 , 26 have an open connection to the low-pressure connection LP.
In the first position of the valves 20 , 24 oil flow is only possible from the low-pressure connection to the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 so that the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 can only act as pump and the wheel 22 has to supply energy and brakes independent of the setting of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . This means that with the valves 20 , 24 in the first position inadvertently driving the wheels 22 is not possible.
FIGS. 2-5 show the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 schematically with the three ports 13 , 15 and 18 that are part of a port plate 30 (see FIGS. 8 , 9 , 11 ) and shown as arcs around a circle indicating a rotation group 17 . A top dead centre TDC indicates the setting of a top dead centre of piston movement 14 in the rotation group 17 at varying transformer control angles δ. In the circle, an arrow 16 indicates the direction of rotation of the rotation group 17 . The areas p and m indicate where in the rotation group 17 a volume of a chamber 65 (see FIG. 11 ) above the pistons 42 (see FIGS. 8 , 9 , 11 ) decreases or increases during rotation of the rotation group 17 areas and acts as in a pump or motor respectively.
FIG. 2 shows the transformer control angle δ set so that hydraulic pressure in the high-pressure port 15 drives the rotation of the rotation group 17 of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . The pistons in the area p in the rotation group 17 pump the hydraulic fluid via the first user connection port 13 and the first motor/pump connection 26 to the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 . The setting of the transformer control angle δ determines the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the first motor/pump connection 26 and so determines the driving torque. The reverse propulsion valve 24 is closed so that the hydraulic fluid flows only to the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 and causes the wheel 22 to rotate in the rotation direction 23 and the passenger car 12 starts moving at an increasing speed. The forward propulsion valve 20 is in the second position so that hydraulic fluid flowing at low-pressure from the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 through the second motor/pump connection 25 can flow to the low-pressure connection LP and to the second user connection port 18 of the hydraulic transformer 18 .
FIG. 4 shows the transformer control angle δ set at an opposite angle as compared to the situation shown in FIG. 2 and the forward propulsion valve 20 is closed as well. In this setting, the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 exerts a braking torque on the rotating wheel 22 so that its speed reduces. The wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 now acts as pump and it pumps hydraulic fluid through the second motor/pump connection 25 to the second user connection port 18 . In the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 , the hydraulic fluid expands in the chambers above the pistons of the rotation group 17 in the area m. These pistons drive the rotation group 17 in the direction indicated with the arrow 16 . The chambers above the pistons connect first to the second pump user connection port 18 and after that to the high-pressure port 15 . When the chambers are connected to the high-pressure port 15 , the pistons in the rotation group 17 compress hydraulic fluid to the high-pressure connection HP. The wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 supplies the energy required for this compression by pumping hydraulic fluid at a raised pressure in the second motor/pump connection 25 and this results in a braking torque on the wheel 22 . The setting of the transformer control angle δ determines the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the second motor/pump connection 25 and so determines the braking torque. The first user connection port 13 and the low-pressure connection LP via the check valve in the forward propulsion valve 20 provide the hydraulic fluid that the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 pumps in the second motor/pump connection 25 .
FIGS. 3 and 5 show the settings of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 , the forward propulsion valve 20 and the reverse propulsion valve 24 respectively in the situation that wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 exerts a reverse driving torque on the wheel 22 and the situation that the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 brakes the reverse rotating wheel 22 . The various settings and flows of hydraulic fluid are similar to those described for FIGS. 2 and 4 .
FIG. 4 shows braking of the wheel 22 when the vehicle is driving forward. The setting of the transformer control angle δ is similar to the situation as shown in FIG. 3 wherein the wheel motor 3 , 11 exerts a reverse driving torque on the wheel 22 . The difference is the setting of the reverse propulsion valve 24 . During braking as shown in FIG. 4 , at the moment of standstill of the wheel 22 the rotor in the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 stops rotating. The rotation group 17 cannot start to rotate in the opposite direction (as is possible in the situation shown in FIG. 3 ) due to the settings of the propulsion valves 20 , 24 and the wheel remains stationary. In this way the propulsion valves 20 , 24 act to release a driving torque in the desired direction of rotation of a wheel independent of the setting of the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 . In a situation that the drive control system 1 is switched off the springs 19 will set the propulsion valves 20 , 24 in a position that the wheel motor/pump 3 , 11 can only generate a braking torque so that undesired acceleration of the wheels 22 is prevented under all circumstances.
FIGS. 6 and 7 show external views of a hydraulic transformer assembly 27 , which comprises the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 with the propulsion valves 20 , 24 . FIGS. 8 and 9 show the various components inside the housing 52 of the hydraulic transformer assembly 27 in perspective view. FIGS. 10 and 11 show respectively a cross section and a longitudinal section of the hydraulic transformer assembly 27 .
The hydraulic transformer assembly 27 includes the components as shown in FIGS. 2-5 such as the hydraulic transformer 7 , 10 , the propulsion valves 20 , 24 and an actuators 21 for each propulsion valve 20 , 24 . The first motor/pump connection 26 and the second motor/pump connection 25 each connect the transformer assembly 27 to two front wheel motor/pumps 3 or to two rear wheel motor/pumps 11 . A housing 52 has at both ends covers 28 , a rim aligns the covers 28 inside the housing 52 . Bearings 31 are mounted in the covers 28 , the bearings 31 support a shaft 34 . At both ends of the shaft 34 there is a rotor 32 . The shaft has outer splines 37 that cooperate with the inner splines 39 of the rotor 32 so that both rotors 32 rotate with the shaft 34 . Both rotors 32 have pistons 42 whereby the inner and outer splines 37 , 39 are set in such a way that the rotative positions of the pistons 42 of one rotor 32 are between the rotative positions of the pistons 42 of the other rotor 32 .
A pin 76 synchronizes the rotation of a barrel assembly 33 comprising a barrel plate 56 and cups 40 with the rotation of the rotor 32 . The shaft 34 supports a swivel bearing sphere 64 that supports a spherical swivel bearing 44 of the barrel plate 56 so that the barrel plate 56 can swivel relative to the rotor 32 . A spring 62 pushes at one side against a support ring 61 that is fixed on the inside of the rotor 32 . The spring 62 pushes at its other side against pressure pins 63 that push against the swivel bearing sphere 64 and so push the barrel plate 56 and the rotor 32 in opposite directions. The barrel plate 56 supports cups 40 which are mounted side by side and between cup positioners 55 . A cup holding plate 54 holds the cups 40 and the cup positioners 55 on the barrel plate 56 .
Pistons 42 are mounted on rotor 32 and each forms with the cup 40 a chamber 65 that has a changing volume. The piston 42 has a piston canal 38 that extends through the rotor 32 and forms a canal with a port 43 in a port plate 30 . The port plate 30 has a pin 66 that maintains the port plate 30 in a fixed rotative position in the cover 28 and with that relative to the housing 52 . From the port 43 the canal continues as a canal in the cover 28 and a canal 29 in the housing 52 to the first user connection port 13 , second user connection 18 or the high pressure connection HP (as shown in FIGS. 2-5 ).
Bearings 35 are mounted on the shaft 34 and support a swash block 36 that can rotate a limited angle in the housing 52 . The swash block 36 has at both sides inclined swash plate surfaces 41 that support the barrel plates 56 . The barrel plates 56 swivel around the swivel bearing sphere 64 and rest against the inclined swash plate surfaces 41 so that the pistons 42 move in and out the cup 40 during rotation of the shaft 34 . Due to the swiveling movement the volume of the chamber 65 changes between a minimum and a maximum value. By rotating the swash block 36 in the housing 52 the rotative position of the rotor 32 where the volume of the chamber 65 is minimal, which is the top dead centre TDC indicated with 53 can be set to a desired value.
FIG. 10 shows the top dead centre 53 of the swash plate surfaces 41 . In the shown embodiment the swash plate surfaces 41 at both sides of the swash block 36 intersect in a line perpendicular to the rotation axis of shaft 34 so that the top dead centre 53 for the volume of the chambers 65 at both sides of the swash block 36 is at the same rotative position and as the pistons 42 on the one side of the swash block 36 are between the pistons 42 on the other side of the swash block 36 , the minimum value at both sides of the swash block 36 follow each other.
In the outer circumference of the swash block 36 there is a groove with moving vanes 45 diametrically opposite each other and sealing against the inner surface of the housing 52 . In the housing 52 there are diametrically opposed stationary vanes 47 . The stationary vanes 47 and the moving vanes 45 form in the housing four pressure chambers 46 that have a TDC control connection ports 48 connected to a swash block control valve (not shown). The pressure chambers 46 rotate the swash block 36 in the housing 52 . The swash block 36 has a detector groove 49 that cooperates with a sensor (not shown) for detecting the rotative position of the swash block 36 .
The moving vanes 45 are mounted on the swash block 36 in such a way that the top dead centre of the swash plate 53 can rotate over 97 degrees in one direction and 69 degrees in the opposite direction. This asymmetry makes it possible to set the hydraulic transformer assembly 27 in such a way that the first user connection port 13 has a higher pressure than the high-pressure port 15 . In this way it is possible when the common high-pressure rail 5 has a lower pressure than the maximum pressure on which the hydraulic transformer assembly 27 can operate, which occurs during normal driving in order to be able to recuperate kinetic energy during braking, to bring full the maximum hydraulic pressure on the first motor/pump connection 26 and make maximum acceleration of the vehicle possible.
FIG. 12 shows the quotient of the first user connection port 13 and the high-pressure port HP in dependence of the angle δ of the top dead centre 53 of the swash plate surfaces 41 . A line 51 shows the pressure quotient in dependence of the transformer control angle δ. An operating range 50 of the hydraulic transformer is chosen such that although the transformer can be used for driving and braking in both directions of rotation (four-quadrant use) the settings of the transformer are asymmetrical so that the driving torque can be higher than the braking torque.
The oil pressure in the chambers 65 pushes the barrel plate 56 against the swivel block 36 and the rotor 32 against the port plate 30 . This is the main axial force, except in situations where the oil pressure is very low. In that situation the force of the spring 62 presses the rotor 32 and the barrel plate 56 against respective the port plate 30 and the swivel block 36 in order to prevent oil leakage and facilitate starting. The forces on the rotor 32 in the axial direction of the rotation axis of the shaft 34 created by the oil pressure in the chambers 65 are necessary for creating a seal in the second axial bearing 59 and are in part balanced by forces of oil pressure in the piston canal 38 and the port 43 in the second axial bearing 59 between the rotor 32 and the port plate 30 .
The forces on the barrel plate 56 caused by the oil pressure in the chambers 65 and are necessary for creating a seal in the first axial bearing 57 . These forces are in part balanced by forces of oil pressure in the first axial bearing 57 . For this a barrel plate canal 58 connects the chamber 65 and the first axial bearing 57 . The forces in axial direction on both sides of the swivel block 36 are more or less identical in opposite direction so that this brings no load on the bearings 35 .
The forces in radial direction on the swivel block 36 are guided through the respective bearing 35 and the outer splines 37 via the inner splines 39 to the pistons 42 where they are counteracted by the radial hydraulic forces on the pistons 42 that are caused by the asymmetric surface to which the hydraulic pressure subjects those piston 42 . Due to the slight inclination of the swath plate surface 41 these forces are limited and cause no undesirable loads or deformations.
The hydraulic transformer has two first axial bearings 57 and two second axial bearings 59 . In these bearings 57 , 59 a rotating part, the rotor 32 or the barrel plate 58 , with a number of canals with fluid of high pressure, respectively the piston canal 38 and the barrel plate canal 57 , seals against a stationary part, respectively the port plate 30 and the swivel block 36 . In prior art the sealing comprises a rim that is pressed against a flat surface with a narrow gap in the range from 2to 14micron between them. A narrow gap of limited height reduces the leakage over the sealing. The disadvantage of a too narrow gap is that it brings the risk that local deformation in one of the parts, for instance due to local heat generation, leads to local metallic contacts and so to lack of lubrication and to undesired wear.
FIGS. 13 and 14 show the first and second axial bearing 57 , 59 of the hydraulic transformer assembly 27 . FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of the rotor 32 showing the second axial bearing 59 . An outer ridge 67 , inner ridge 68 and radial ridges 69 surround a recess that forms the end of the piston canal 38 in the rotor 32 . In FIG. 13 the ridges 67 , 68 and 69 are indicated in black and this black surface is the surface that seals against a sealing surface of the port plate 30 . Each recess around a piston canal 38 connects intermittently to one of the three ports 43 in the port plate 30 and during the passage from one port 43 to the next port 43 the radial ridge 69 blocks the oil flow between the ports 43 by sealing on the bridge between the ports 43 . The outer ridge 67 and the inner ridge 68 are provided with ridge chambers 70 that have a surface of approximately 50% of the surface of the ridges 67 , 68 respectively. When the piston canal 38 is connected to a pressure source the ridges 67 , 68 and 69 form an adjustable gap with the sealing surface of the port plate 30 . Where there is a ridge chamber 70 , which has a depth of at least 10-30 micron, the gap is higher and the viscous friction between the parts when rotating is reduced. The radial ridges 69 interrupt the ridge chambers 70 . The depth of the ridge chambers 70 is at least 10-30 micron so that the viscous friction is reduced.
The oil pressure in the chambers 70 will be average between the hydraulic pressure on the both sides of the inner or outer ridge 67 , 68 if the gaps on both sides of the chamber 70 are identical. In practice this is often not the case. If for instance the gap on the side of the piston canal 38 is a smaller than the gap on the other side of the chamber 70 the pressure in the chamber can be very low and the rotor 32 might be pressed towards the port plate 30 and the viscous friction increases. If the situation is the other way round the pressure in the chamber 70 might be high and the gaps get higher so that the leakage increases. The difference in the height of the gaps of a few microns might lead to these situations and also slight deformation in the ridges 67 , 68 and 69 might lead to instability in the height of the gaps. In order to stabilize this, a slot 73 connects the chamber 70 with the high pressure side of the ridge 67 , 68 . The width of the slot 73 must be small and it is relatively deep in order minimize the influence of a changing gap-height. In practice the slot 73 is 30 micron wide and 30 micron deep, preferably its width is half of its depth.
FIG. 14 shows in a schematic section the second axial bearing 59 . The schematic section show for each ridge 67 , 68 a low-pressure side rim 71 and a high-pressure side rim 72 . A canal 76 connects the chamber 70 between the low-pressure side rim 71 and the high-pressure side rim 72 with the piston canal 38 via a connecting line 74 with a restriction 75 . This restriction can be adjusted by the control system, or in the parts are mechanical means that set the restriction in dependence of the circumstances of use. The restriction can for instance depend on the pressure in the piston canal 38 or it can depend on the rotation speed of the rotor 32 .
In addition to the above described embodiment of the axial bearing, wherein the hydraulic pressure is supplied between ridges that form a short arc near each piston canal 38 , other embodiments of axial bearings can have two concentric rings between which an oil flow with hydraulic pressure is supplied. Such embodiments can be used in machinery that has no pistons but where axial loads are generated and where the axial bearing guides these loads to a housing. In this machinery the pressure of the axial load causes a hydraulic pressure in the axial bearing, there will be control means to set the adjustable gap so that oil loss and friction resistance are optimized.
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An axial bearing between a first part and a second part that presses with an axial load against the first part and can rotate around a rotation axis relative to the first part comprising a circular or arc-shaped ridge on the first part centered around the rotation axis, a pressure source for providing pressurized hydraulic fluid on a first side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge, an adjustable gap between the circular or arc shaped ridge and a bearing surface on the second part, wherein the pressurized hydraulic fluid flows through the adjustable gap to a second side of the circular or arc-shaped ridge. In accordance with the invention the circular or arc-shaped ridge or the bearing surface include a ridge chamber for locally creating a larger adjustable gap between the circular or arc-shaped ridge and the bearing surface.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus, method for managing and auditing purchases in progress which are made by a number of individuals belonging to a liable organisation. Employees making purchases in parallel on behalf of a company is a conceivable example in practice. More in detail, the present invention relates to means for administrating purchase of a product or service using a number or a valuable document. The present invention further relates to a computer program for carrying out the method for managing and auditing electronic transactions.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Anybody who has been involved in industrial, administrative or other professional activities has noticed the vast amount of paper work required. Most companies have a large number of employees for carrying out administrative tasks only, and it would be beneficial to be able to improve efficiency and accuracy as well as reduce the number of administrative staff and associated costs.
[0003] In particular in large organisations, it is difficult to get an overview of pending transactions, since there it takes time from the moment when a purchase, irrespective of the size of it, is agreed on and the moment in time for the fiscal transaction. For management, or for the administration and cash flow management, there is a desire to monitor transactions much closer than today. There is thus a need to facilitate a semi or fully automated administration of for example invoices and other valuable documents.
[0004] The US patent application 2003/0079220, published on 24 Apr. 2003, discloses a method for restricting the distribution of negotiable discount coupons to individual consumers via a distributed processing network. Each of the subscribing consumers is allowed to download and print from a server system negotiable discount coupons, each of which reflects and authorised offer, and wherein the consumer is restricted from printing coupons beyond certain imposed restrictions.
[0005] However, the method disclosed in US patent application 2003/0079220 does not simplify or automate administration of a large number of transaction being made for which an organisation is liable. Moreover, the method does not assist management in monitoring or obtaining an overview of pending transactions within the organisation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] An object of the present invention relates to the problem of achieving a cost effective apparatus and method managing and auditing electronic transactions in that valuable documents are administrated.
[0007] This is achieved by an apparatus for managing and auditing purchases in progress which are made by a number of individuals belonging to a liable organisation, such as employees making purchases in parallel on behalf of a company, the apparatus comprising
a managing server connected to an global interconnected network, such as the Internet, the server including a storage means and issuing means, a client terminal connected to the network for providing information to the storage means of the server about purchasing rules for individuals purchasing on behalf of their organisation, the issuing means adapted to generate a unique number, the number being issued and distributed to a purchasing individual, in dependence on the purchasing rules, a first communication terminal operated by a provider is adapted to, in response to a purchase, provide information to the managing server relating to a purchase in progress,
characterised in that
the server is adapted examine whether information provided is in accordance with the purchasing rules, as a result of which a notification indicating the validity of the purchase is sent to the first communication terminal.
[0013] The present invention is advantageous in many ways. One of the major advantages is that a provider of a product or service will be certain that an individual has the required authorisation to make a purchase. Another advantage is that the purchasing organisation, i.e. in most cases the employer, always will be informed about the identity of the individual, i.e. the employee, who has made or is about to make a purchase. In comparison with for example corporate credit cards, the purchasing individual does not have to be employed in a legal sense by the purchasing organisation in order to benefit from using the present invention and its principles. Also consultants or others acting on behalf of a purchasing organisation are thus encompassed leading to mutually increased trust in business between purchasing individuals and providers. Other benefits of the invention will be apparent from the following description and from the dependent claims.
[0014] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention the issuing means is adapted to generate a unique number. This the number is issued and subsequently distributed to a second communication terminal operated by a purchasing individual. The unique number, i.e. a reference number, is referring to the purchasing rules set up by the purchasing organisation for itself as well as for its individuals. Distribution of the unique number to the second communication terminal has the advantage that the generated number can be provided directly to any bearing means of the purchasing individual without having to be printed on a coupon or involve valuable documents of various kinds.
[0015] The second communication terminal which is operated by a purchasing individual could be adapted, in response to a purchase, to provide information to the managing server relating to a purchase in progress. Such a solution would be highly beneficial in that a supplier of goods or a provider of services would not have to use his own cash register or the like for communicating with the managing server, but instead the second communication terminal of the purchasing individual could be used for validating the purchase via the server. This would improve the flexibility of the present invention even further. However, this alternative solution does not prevent the provider from obtaining an advanced validity statement before a purchase is made.
[0016] Another important aspect of the invention is the client terminal is adapted to be operated by the purchasing organisation. This is a necessary feature for information management reasons, since is gives the purchasing organisation an opportunity to keep authorisations and limitations for individuals secret and confidential within in the purchasing organisation. It is quite understandable and obvious that most companies tend to be reluctant to having to fill out forms with sensitive information and send them to a third party handling the transactions. This is avoided by means of the present invention.
[0017] For improved cash management, and up to date information about pending expenses for a company, the managing server is adapted to send a notification also to the purchasing organisation. This is done immediately as a result of the examination and in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, it is to be notified in addition to the notification to the first and/or second communication terminal. The present invention is a way for the provider to acquire a right to invoice on condition that the unique number and the transaction amount is correct, which has already been validated and accepted by the purchasing individual and his organisation. Moreover, since correct transaction amount is a condition for validation, the risk for the purchasing organisation to be over-billed is avoided. In order to send invoices in a suitable and desirable format, taking routines, security levels of transport and content into account, this information could be retrieved from the managing server upon request by any authorised invoicing service. The authorisation is evident in case the correct unique number is used when requesting the managing server for specific invoicing information. The advantage achieved is making electronic invoicing possible for all transactions, which has not yet been possible in practice.
[0018] The unique the number includes a logical part and a random part. The logical part includes structural data, such as organisation, department, name of purchasing individual and serial number of issued unique numbers for validation. Standard formats such as EAN or DUNS are feasible for use. The random part is a number for increased security, preferably any four digit number for sufficient system security.
[0019] According to an alternative embodiment of the invention, the unique number is distributed to the second communication terminal either via a smart card or by printing the unique number on a purchasing coupon, preferably in the form of a bar code. This has the advantage of requiring a minimum of electronic terminals and thereby simplifies the means for distribution. Reading a bar code instead of typing in a number further simplifies and increases the efficiency and usability of the present invention.
[0020] Preferably, information provided from the first and/or second communication terminal to the managing server, which relates to a specific purchase includes the unique number and the cost of the purchase. This has the advantage that an amount can be reserved immediately, either from a predetermined budget or from a corresponding debiting account so as to avoid double charging or overdrawing an account. Above all, this provides for considerable improvements in cash management.
[0021] In addition to the above benefits, the invention makes it possible to reduce administration in another way. For valid purchase, the first and/or second communication terminal connects to an electronic invoicing service, which is adapted to execute invoicing in accordance with the specific requirements for payment of the purchasing organisation. This makes it possible to use electronic invoicing for all purchases, thereby significantly reducing administrative costs in any organisation.
[0022] Moreover, this is achieved by a method for managing and auditing purchases in progress which are made by a number of individuals belonging to a liable organisation, such as employees making purchases in parallel on behalf of a company, the method comprising the steps of:
connecting a managing server to an global interconnected network, such as the Internet, the server including a storage means and issuing means, providing information to the storage means of the server about purchasing rules for individuals purchasing on behalf of their organisation which information is provided by a client terminal connected to the network, generating a unique number by the issuing means, the number being issued and distributed to a purchasing individual in dependence on the purchasing rules, in response to a purchase, providing information to the managing server relating to a purchase in progress, by means of a first communication terminal operated by a provider,
characterised in that
examining by the server whether information provided is in accordance with the purchasing rules, as a result of which a notification is sent to the first communication terminal so as to validate the purchase.
[0028] By the method for managing and auditing purchases, an automation of other known manual processes is achieved, which is a great improvement and has potential for rationalisation of the important, demanding and technically broad field of electronic transactions. Furthermore and not less important is that organisations, particularly large ones, can achieve improved control and overview of available funds using the apparatus and method according to the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0029] The above and further features, advantages and benefits of the present invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description. The detailed description is to be taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference characters and figures refer to the same components or method steps throughout, and in which:
[0030] FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a system including an apparatus for managing and auditing valuable information according to one embodiment of the invention.
[0031] FIG. 2 schematically shows a part of FIG. 1 with an additional feature according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0032] FIG. 3 schematically shows a valuable document according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0033] FIG. 4 illustrates schematically software modules according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0034] FIG. 5 illustrates schematically a method for managing valuable documents according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0035] FIG. 6 illustrates schematically in greater detail a method for managing valuable documents according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0036] FIG. 7 illustrates an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0037] The following description is of the best mode presently contemplated for practising the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of describing the general principles of the invention. The scope of the invention should be ascertained with reference to the issued claims.
[0038] With reference to FIG. 1 , a system including an apparatus for managing valuable documents in disclosed. In particular it relates to a system for managing invoices. A server 100 is adapted for communication with an issuing means 150 , such as for example a printing unit via a link 186 . However, the generated unique number could as well be provided directly to the purchasing individual via a communication terminal, such as a mobile phone. The server 100 is adapted for communication with a network 105 via a communication link 180 . The network is a global interconnecting network, such as the Internet. A communication terminal 102 is adapted for communication with the server 100 via communication link 182 . The communication terminal 102 is managed by an administrator of the server 100 . The communication terminal 102 may also be adapted for communication with the server via the network 105 . The server 100 is adapted for communication with a database 140 via a communication link 186 . The database 140 is adapted for communication with the network 105 via a communication link 191 . Communication terminals referred to herein may be a PC, a cellular phone, a handheld device, a PDA or other.
[0039] A communication terminal 120 is adapted for communication with the network 105 via a communication link 183 . The communication terminal 120 is managed by a vendor. The communication terminal 120 is adapted for communication with a communication terminal 130 . The communication terminal 130 may also be a plurality of communication terminals connected together via an intranet. The communication terminal is managed by an organisation. The communication terminal 130 is adapted for communication with the network 105 via a communication link 184 . An invoice service 175 , such as an electronic invoicing service or other web-based invoice service, is adapted for communication with the network 105 via a communication link 190 . The invoice service 175 also includes a communication terminal.
[0040] A representative of the purchasing organisation provides information about the organisation and specific demands relating to the invoicing or administration and control of the provided information to the server. This is accomplished by means of software installed on at least one clients, i.e. communication terminals 130 , administered by the purchasing organisation, not the least for security reasons.
[0041] The server 100 is adapted to receive and process the provided information. As a result of the processing valuable documents, such as coupons can be generated and printed by means of the printing device 150 . The processed information is stored in the database 140 . The created valuable documents are distributed to the organisation and there provided to respective user. Each user or group of users has unique valuable documents, which each has a unique number associated to it. For example may reference number provided on a valuable document be created in dependence of a certain user or a group of users. A valuable document is described in further detail with reference to FIG. 3 .
[0042] A user then is performing a purchase in a specific store, or the like. The user may fill out certain information fields provided on the valuable document and further identify himself to a vendor. The vendor manages the communication terminal 120 . Instructions how to successfully accomplish the buy is provided on for example the valuable document.
[0043] The unique number or reference number could be created in accordance with the following principle, *1001*-1001-34-6476 specific organisation number, which is a serial number provided to any company or organisation. 1001-*1001*-34-6476 which is a specific four digit number for a certain purchasing employee. This number may be a real employee number or a number created for this purpose. 1001-1001-*34*-6476 which is the serial number of a specific coupon or a batch of coupons provided to the purchasing individual. 1001-1001-34-*6476*, which illustrates a generated random number from 0001 to 9999. Naturally, the digits could be any number, however a larger number of digits yields increased fraud security.
[0044] The vendor can receive a status report referring to the user's credit rating by connecting to the server 100 by means of the communication terminal 120 . A unique reference number provided on the reference carrier, either in electronic form via a communication terminal or possibly as a valuable document in paper form, is used in the validation process performed in the server 100 interacting with the database 140 . If the validation turns out well, the purchase is accomplished. The user get access to the product or service in question. The vendor is in a next step connecting to an invoice service provided by either the server 100 , the organisation managing the communication terminal 130 or a third party managing the communication terminal 175 . The vendor can, by means of the communication terminal 120 , receive specific invoicing information or be referred to any international invoicing standard. This information could be received from a tailored invoice interface, such as a web-based interface. The purchasing organisation can hereby get relevant information referring to the purchase in a desired format, which is easy to administrate. Preferably, the administration is performed automatically. A bank service, not shown, is in the end performing an adequate transaction of money corresponding to the purchase.
[0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative embodiment concerning the validation process of the coupon 300 performed at the vendor at communication terminal 120 . A bar code reader 135 is adapted for communication with the communication terminal 120 via a communication link 193 . The bar code reader 135 is adapted for communication with the server 100 via a communication link 189 . The vendor can by means of the bar code reader 135 fast, accurate and secure read the unique bar code provided on the coupon so as to perform a part of a validation procedure. Information related to the bar code is transmitted to the communication terminal 120 and further sent to the server 100 so as to be processed.
[0046] FIG. 3 schematically shows a valuable document 300 , such as an invoice coupon. The invoice coupon is stored or printed to any bearer of information, and could even be printed on a piece of paper. Alternatively, the coupon may be composed of plastic or other material. The coupon comprises a number of information fields. The information fields may comprise printed information. The information fields may be blank. A blank information field may be filled out by the user of the coupon. Alternatively, a blank information field may be filled out by the vendor.
[0047] A first information field 310 comprises a name of the user. Alternatively, the first information field 310 comprises information related to the user so as to make an identification procedure possible. A second information field 320 comprises a technical address, or the like, where to the vendor is supposed to turn to complete the purchase. In a preferred embodiment, the address is any address, for instance an URL-address, to which the vendor could gain access by using the network 105 in order to receive or provide information for invoicing purposes. A third information field 330 comprises a unique coupon reference number N. This number is unique for the invoice coupon. The number is then issued and stored or printed by the issuing means 150 connected to the server 100 . The reference number can be an invoice reference number, and possibly be printed on a coupon. A fourth information field 340 is a blank field in which information about what product or service the buy is concerning, e.g. a PC. In a fifth information field 350 an amount of money is supposed to be provided. The amount of money is corresponding to the value of the desired product or service.
[0048] In a sixth information field 360 a signature, possibly an electronic signature, of the purchasing individual to be provided, so as to accomplish the buy. In a seventh information field 370 other information may be provided. According to one embodiment a bar code is provided. The bar code can be read by the bar code reader 135 shown in FIG. 2 . Furthermore, on the other side of the coupon, instructions how to handle a selling procedure is given. The purpose of providing the instructions is to facilitate for the vendor. The given instructions may be unique for a certain coupon. In a preferred embodiment the instructions are general.
[0049] FIG. 4 illustrates examples of software modules stored in a memory in the server 115 . The modules can be written in for example Java, C++, HTML or other. A log on module 410 is provided so as to give access of a service provided by the server 100 . The identity of a user may be established by this module. A profile managing module 420 is provided. An administration nodule 425 is provided. A communication managing module 430 is provided. A coupon design module 435 is provided. A reference number generating module 440 is provided. A flow design module 445 is provided. An upgrading module 450 is provided. A currency managing module 455 is provided. A invoice module 460 is provided, possibly in the form of a web-based module. A language managing module 465 is also provided. An import and export module 470 is provided. A transaction managing module 495 is provided. A rules and regulations module 490 is provided. The software modules stored in the memory in the server 100 are not limited to the modules described with reference to FIG. 4 but other modules may of course be provided.
[0050] FIG. 5 illustrates a method for administrating electronic documents according to an aspect of the invention. A step s 501 comprises a method managing at least one valuable document, the method is comprising the steps of: providing information, creating said valuable document, distributing said valuable document, purchasing a product or a service using said valuable document, validating said purchase in dependence of said valuable document, and invoicing said purchase.
[0051] FIG. 6 illustrates a method in further detail according to an aspect of the invention. According to a first method step s 600 a representative for the organisation mentioned above provide the server 100 with relevant information by means of the communication terminal 130 so as to initiate a provided service. The information comprises a demand profile for the purchasing organisation and for each of the users who is intended to be using the system. According to a second method step s 610 coupons are created in dependence of the information provided to the server 100 according to step s 600 . According to a next method step s 620 the created coupons are distributed to the users of the same, i.e. members of the organization, such as employees of a company. According to a next method step s 630 a user is purchasing a product or service of the vendor managing the communication terminal 120 . According to a next method step s 640 a validation process is performed. According to a next method step s 650 an invoicing process is performed.
[0052] With reference to FIG. 7 there is shown a diagram of one way of embodying an apparatus 700 . The above mentioned communication terminal 102 , 120 , 130 and server 115 may include an apparatus 700 . The apparatus 700 comprises a non-volatile memory 720 , a data processing device 730 and a read/write memory 740 . The memory 720 has a first memory portion 750 wherein a computer program, such as an operating system, is stored for controlling the function of the apparatus 700 . Further, the apparatus 700 comprises a bus controller, a serial communication port, I/O-means, an A/D-converter, a time date entry and transmission unit, an event counter and an interrupt controller (not shown).
[0053] The data processing device 730 may be embodied by, for example, a microprocessor. The memory 720 also has a second memory portion 760 , where software modules with reference to FIG. 4 are stored. In particular this concerns the server 100 . In another embodiment the software modules with reference to FIG. 4 are stored on a separate non-volatile recording medium 762 . The program may be stored in an executable manner or in a compressed state. When it is described that the data processing device 730 performs a certain function this is to be understood that the data processing device 730 performs a certain part of the program which is stored in the memory 760 or a certain part of the program which is stored in the recording medium 762 .
[0054] The data processing device 730 may communicate with a data port 799 by means of a data bus 783 . The memory 720 is adapted for communication with the data bus 783 via data bus 785 . The separate non-volatile recording medium 762 is adapted to communicate with the data processing device 730 via data bus 789 . The read/write memory 740 is adapted to communicate with the data bus 783 via a data bus 785 . Parts of the methods described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 , respectively, can be performed by the apparatus 700 by means of the data processing device 730 running the program stored in the memory portion 760 . When the apparatus 700 runs the program parts of the method described with reference to FIG. 5 and/or FIG. 6 is executed. When data is received on the data port 799 said input data is temporarily stored in the read/write memory 740 . When the received input data have been temporarily stored, the data processing device is set up to perform execution of code in a manner described above.
[0055] The foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
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The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for managing and auditing purchases in progress which are made by a number of individuals belonging to a liable organisation, such as employees making purchases in parallel on behalf of a company. The invention comprises a managing server, including a storage means and issuing means, a client terminal connected to a network for providing information to the storage means about purchasing rules for individuals purchasing on behalf of their organisation. The issuing means is adapted to generate a unique number, the number being issued and distributed to a purchasing individual, in dependence on the purchasing rules and a first communication terminal operated by a provider is adapted to, in response to a purchase, provide information to the managing server relating to a purchase in progress. Moreover, the invention is characterised in that the server is adapted examine whether information provided is in accordance with the purchasing rules, as a result of which a notification is sent to the first communication terminal so as to validate the purchase.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for treating aqueous solutions by ion exchange or adsorption by passing the aqueous solution through a regenerable filter bed comprising a flocculated mixture of finely divided active particulate material and filter aid materials having a depth in the range of about 3.0 inches to about 60 inches. The invention is further directed to a method for recovery, separation and purification of solutes on a regenerable basis utilizing finely divided ion exchangers and adsorbents without the normally expected high pressure drops typically associated with beds of fine particles at such depths.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is known to remove impurities from a liquid by passing the liquid through a filter screen that has been precoated with a thin layer of finely divided exchange resin particles. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,250,702 a method is described wherein a mixture of anion and cation exchange resin in the size range 60 to 400 mesh is precoated on a filter screen. The resins are combined in aqueous suspension causing the resins to agglomerate or "clump" with one another to form larger particles. In so doing, a greater void space is provided in the precoat layer of finely divided resin particles so that there is less resistance to flow of liquid through the precoat layer, and therefore a lower pressure drop across the filter.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,190,532 a method is described for removing impurities from a liquid by passing the liquid through a precoat layer which has been deposited on a filter screen. The precoat layer consists of a treated filter aid material mixed with ion exchange resin particles in the size range of 60 to 400 mesh. The filter aid material, characterized by a negative surface charge in aqueous suspension, is treated with an electrolyte-type compound that produces a positive surface charge thereon. The mixture of treated filter aid material and ion exchange resin particles produces a clumping phenomenon similar to that achieved in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 3,250,702.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,334 a method is described for removing impurities from a liquid by passing the liquid through a precoat layer which has been deposited on a screen. The precoat screen consists of a treated fibrous filter aid material and an active particulate material. The treated filter aid material and the active particulate material have opposite surface charges in aqueous suspension, and the mixture produces the aforementioned clumping phenomenon. The filter aid material is treated with an electrolyte-type compound that produces a surface charge opposite to the normal surface charge of the filter aid material.
It has heretofore been known to utilize small quantities of powdered anion exchange resin in the hydroxide form to enhance flocculation of hydrolyzed polyester-based precoats as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,955.
The above discussed liquid treatment methods have been widely commercially utilized in thin precoat layers (typically less than about one inch) for removal of traces of impurities from water and chemical process streams. However, because of pressure drop limitations, the utilization of such precoat materials in thicker layers or beds to remove higher concentrated impurities has heretofore not been deemed commercially viable. Further, it has been the heretofore practice to dispose of the thin precoat layers after each use rather than to regenerate it for subsequent use, as it has heretofore not been considered possible to maintain flocculation characteristics after regeneration.
There are numerous instances of the use of ion exchange and adsorptive processes for recovering and purifying various pharmaceutical, medicinal and biological substances. These processes primarily involve separation and concentration techniques. Since most of the substances being recovered and purified are of high molecular weight, small particles of ion exchangers and adsorbents are preferred because of kinetic considerations. In most instances, the kinetic process involved in the adsorption and elution of high molecular weight species is controlled by particle diffusion which follows the relationship in which the rate is inversely proportional to the square of the particle diameter. Since the relationship between diffusion rate and molecular weight is also an inverse relationship, it is apparent that fine particles are required for the processing of many pharmaceutical products by ion exchange or adsorption.
In small scale operations, there are essentially little problems associated with the use of fine particles of ion exchange resins. For example, 5-10 micron particles of ion exchange resins have been routinely used for a myriad of analytical procedures. On a small scale, the hydraulic problems associated with the columnar performance of fine particles is of little consequence. However, scale-up of these laboratory systems based upon fine particles is quite difficult because of the high pressure drop involved.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It has been discovered that beds of flocculated fine particle formulations having a depth of from about 3.0 inches to about 60 inches may be utilized to remove impurities from a liquid or to recover, separate and purify selected substances from of a liquid at flow rates and pressure differentials that permit commercial scale operations. In accordance with the invention, the bed comprises a mixture of finely divided active particulate material that produces a clumping phenomenon. The flow rate through the bed is preferably greater than about 0.02 gpm/ft 2 and the pressure differential through the bed is preferably less than about 3.0 psi/in at 5 gpm/ft 2 and most preferably less than about 1.0 psi/in at 5 gpm/ft 2 .
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention the filter bed may comprise a mixture of active particulate material in the size range of from about 5.0 to about 100 microns and filter aid particles. The active particulate material and the filter aid particles have opposite surface charges in aqueous suspension so that the mixture produces a clumping phenomenon. In another embodiment of the invention the filter bed may comprise a mixture of an ion exchange resin and resin of the opposite charge that produces a floccing or clumping phenomenon. In a further embodiment of the invention the filter bed may comprise a mixture of an active particulate material, treated filter aid particles and resin of the opposite charge from the active particulate material that produces a floccing or clumping phenomenon.
It has further been discovered that such filter beds may be regenerated by directing an appropriate regenerant therethrough, while substantially maintaining the flocculation characteristics of the bed after regeneration.
The term "active particulate material" as used herein refers to materials such as ion exchange resins, activated carbon, adsorptive clays such as bentonite, molecular sieves such as zeolites, zirconium oxides, zirconium phosphate, iron sulfide, diatomaceous search, synthetic adsorbents and activated alumina. Particularly preferred active particulate materials are ion exchange resins and zeolites.
The term "filter aid materials" as used herein refers to materials that aid the filtration which is produced by the filter. Such materials are well known in the art, and may include cellulose fibers, diatomaceous earth, charcoal, expanded perlite, asbestos fibers, polyacrylonitrile fibers, Teflon fibers, nylon fibers, rayon fibers, polypropylene fibers, polyvinyl chloride fibers, polyester fibers, ion exchange resins and the like. Particularly preferred filter aid particles for use in accordance with the invention are cellulose fibers and polyester fibers.
An even further embodiment of the invention provides a method for removing and recovering specific chemical substances present in a solution by directing the chemical substance containing solution through a filter bed of the above-mentioned type that contains ion exchange or adsorption material for removing the substance in solution. An eluting solution is subsequently directed through the filter bed for recovering the removed substance from the filter bed. The filter bed is regenerated to permit its reuse in subsequent removal and recovery cycles.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a test apparatus used in certain of the Examples.
FIGS. 2-4 are graphs showing the effect of bed depth on differential pressure (psi/inch) through certain filter beds of different formulations at various flow rates.
FIG. 5 are graphs showing the adsorption or loading of Vitamin B 12 in a filter bed in accordance with the invention and in a filter bed of normal bead resins.
FIG. 6 are graphs showing the elution of Vitamin B 12 from a filter bed in accordance with the invention and from a filter bed of normal bead resins.
FIG. 7 is a graph showing the viscous permeability in Darcy units of a bed in accordance with the invention after a number of simulated regeneration cycles.
FIG. 8 is a graph showing the relationships between particle size and pressure drop for relatively coarse particles.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, substances are removed from a liquid by directing the liquid through a filter bed comprising flocculated active particulate material in the average size range of from about 5.0 to about 100 microns, most preferably from about 30 microns to about 100 microns and having a depth in the range of from about 3.0 inches to about 60 inches, most preferably from about 10 inches to about 40 inches. It is unexpected that the pressure drops through beds of finally divided materials of such depths are quite similar to those exhibited by beds of normal size bead resins. The active particulate material may be flocculated by mixing same with a filter aid material having an opposite surface charge. The desired surface charge may be imparted to the filter aid material in the manner as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,334, which patent is assigned to the assignee of the present invention and is incorporated herein by reference. The flow rates through the bed are preferably greater than about 0.02 gm/ft 2 , most preferably greater than about 0.2 gpm/ft 2 and the pressure differential therethrough is generally less than about 3.0 psi/in at 5 gpm/ft 2 , most preferably less than about 1.0 psi/in at 5 gpm/ft 2 .
The filter bed includes an active particulate material that is selected dependent upon the specific application in a well known manner. The active particulate material preferably comprises from about 5.0 percent to about 99 percent by weight. In accordance with presently considered preferred embodiments of the invention the active particulate material may include ion exchange resins or zeolites.
The filter bed may also include a filter aid material that has a surface charge that is opposite the surface charge of the active particulate material. While the particular filter aid material is not critical, it is important that it normally has a surface charge in aqueous suspension. The particular preferred filter aid materials for use in accordance with the present invention are treated cellulose fibers or treated polyester fibers. The cellulose fibers are preferably treated in accordance with the procedures disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,238,334. The polyester fibers are preferably previously treated in accordance with the procedures disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,955.
The filter bed may also comprise an active particulate material of average particle size from about 5.0 to about 100 microns and a small quantity of ballmilled resins of opposite charge resins having a size from about 5.0 to about 30 microns. The active particulate material may include any ion exchanger or absorbent which is charged and may be powdered. The ballmilled resins comprise from about 0.5 percent to about 10 percent by weight (preferably about 1.0 percent) of the mixture.
In accordance with a further preferred embodiment of the invention the filter bed comprises a mixture of an active particulate material, a fibrous filter aid material and a small quantity of ballmilled resins. The active particulate material is selected dependent upon the specific application and may be any exchanger or absorbent which may be powdered. The active particulate material is preferably powdered ion exchange resins having a size from about 5.0 to about 100 microns. Examples of such resins are Amberlite IRP-64 and powdered Amberlite IR-120 produced by Rohm and Haas Company of Philadelphia, Pa. The active particulate material preferably comprises from about 5.0 percent to about 99 percent by weight (most preferably about 74 percent) of the mixture. The fibrous filter aid material may include the filter aid materials discussed above. The filter aid material is preferably cellulose fibers treated in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 3,238,334 or polyester fibers treated in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,955. The ballmilled ion exchange resins comprise from about 0.5 percent to about 10 percent by weight (preferably about 1.0% percent) of the mixture. If the active particulate material is uncharged, the ballmilled resin should be of opposite charge from the charged filter aid material.
It has also been discovered that these filter beds may be regenerated by directing an appropriate regenerant solution therethrough, while surprisingly substantially maintaining the flocculation and hydraulic characteristics of the bed after repeated regeneration cycles. The selection of the particular regenerant is dependent upon the active particulate material utilized and the particular application in a well known manner. A typical regeneration cycle includes the known steps of rinsing the bed, directing the regenerant solution through the bed, and rinsing the bed. As will be described in greater detail in the Examples that are set forth hereinbelow, tests have shown that after some degradation in hydraulic performance after the first few regeneration cycles, the hydraulic performance stabilizes at a level that permits normal limits of performance.
The filter beds in accordance with the present invention are particularly suited for utilization in the recovery, separation and purification of pharmaceutical, medicinal, and biological substances since most of these substances are of high molecular weight, wherein small particles of ion exchangers and absorbents are preferred because of kinetic considerations. In order to permit commercial scale-up it is necessary that the filter beds have pressure drops of under 60 psi and flow rates of from 0.2 gpm/ft 2 to about 5.0 gpm/ft 2 . As will be shown in the discussion of the Examples that hereinbelow follow, the filter beds of the invention surprisingly have pressure drops normally expected only in large bead filter beds of comparable depths.
As is typical in pharmaceutical and biological substance recovery, separation and purification processes, a solution containing the substances is directed through a filter bed selected to remove or load that particular substance onto the active particulate material in the filter bed. The substance is then eluted or separated from the filter bed by directing a selected eluent through the filter bed. The filter bed may then be regenerated for reuse by directing a selected regenerant through the filter bed followed by a rinse step. Amberlite IRP-64 and Amberlite IRC-50 are widely used cation exchange resins throughout the pharmaceutical industry.
The unique hydraulic behavior of the flocculated ion exchange and adsorbent filter beds in accordance with the invention will be illustrated in the Examples that follow. For purpose of comparison the relationship between particle size and pressure drop for relatively coarse particles is shown in FIG. 8.
EXAMPLE I
A test apparatus, as shown in FIG. 1, is utilized to establish the differential pressure through certain filter beds in accordance with the invention. The apparatus comprises a column 10 having an inner diameter of 1.0 inches. A feed container 12 is in communication with the upper end of column 10 through an inlet line 14 having a peristaltic pump 16 (Cole Palmer Instrument Co., Head-Model No. 7016, Drive Model No. 7553-10) associated therewith. A pressure gage 18 (Marshaltown Model 91701, 0-30 psi) is provided-in communication with the upper portion of column 10. An effluent line 20 is in communication with the lower end of column 10 and an effluent collection container 22. A valve 24 is provided in line 20. A line 26, having a valve 28 associated therewith, is provided to drain the column.
A powdered resin formulation is prepared from a mixture of methacrylic acid-based Amberlite IRP-64 (H + ) cation exchange resins (manufactured by Rohm and Haas Company), filter aid material comprising treated fiber particles, and ballmilled anion exchange resins in the hydroxide form such as Dowex I (Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Mich.) and Amberlite IRA-400 (Rohm and Haas Company, Philadelphia Pa.). The median particle size of the Amberlite IRP-64 is about 86 microns. The fiber particles are cellulose fibers and are treated with Betz 1175 polyelectrolyte (0.015 g/g fiber) in accordance with the procedures disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,334. The mixture comprises by weight 25% treated cellulose fibers, 74% IRP-64 resins and 1% ballmilled anion exchange resins.
The above formulation of materials is positioned in column 10 to form a bed as indicated at 30 in FIG. 1. The depth of the bed is measured and recorded. DI (deionized) water is directed through the bed at different flow rates and the pressure differential is recorded. The test results for beds having a depth of 3.0 inches, 7.0 inches, 15.5 inches, 30.0 inches and 40.0 inches are set forth in Table I.
TABLE I______________________________________Depth (in) Flow (gpm/ft.sup.2) PSI (PSI/in)______________________________________3 4.6 max 0 07 4.6 0.8 0.117 4.0 0 015.5 4.8 7.8 0.5015.5 3.8 5.9 0.3815.5 2.8 3.9 0.2515.5 1.8 1.7 0.1115.5 0.94 0 030 4.8 22.0 0.7330 4.0 16.7 0.5630 2.7 10.5 0.3530 1.8 6.7 0.2230 0.8 2.0 0.0730 0.5 0 040 4.7 27.5 0.6940 3.5 20.6 0.5240 2.4 13.8 0.3540 1.7 9.7 0.2440 0.75 3.0 0.0740 0.40 0 0______________________________________
These test results are graphically presented in FIG. 2.
EXAMPLE II
The same tests as discussed in Example I are conducted on beds of a formulation of 50% by weight Amberlite IRP-64 resins and 50% by weight treated cellulose fibers. The cellulose fibers are treated as discussed above in Example I. The results of these tests for beds having a depth of 3.0 inches, 7.0 inches and 15.5 inches are set forth in Table II and graphically presented in FIG. 3.
TABLE II______________________________________Depth (in) Flow (gpm/ft.sup.2) PSI (PSI/in)______________________________________3 4 2.3 0.373 3 1.7 0.173 2 0.7 03 1 0 03 0.5 0 07 3 5.4 0.67 2 3.8 0.377 1 1.3 0.017 0.5 0.3 015.5 2 10.8 0.6215.5 1 5.7 0.2915.5 0.5 2.8 0.1015.5 0.25 1.6 0.03______________________________________
For purpose of comparison, the same tests as discussed above in Example I are conducted on the beds made from the formulations as set forth above in this Example but with the cellulose fibers that have not been treated with the Betz 1175 polyelectrolyte. The results of these tests for beds having a depth of 3.75 inches, 7.0 inches and 11.0 inches is set forth in Table III.
TABLE III______________________________________Depth (in) Flow (gpm/ft.sup.2) PSI (PSI/in)______________________________________3.75 4.8 4.0 1.077 4.7 21.2 3.0311 1.8 30 2.73______________________________________
EXAMPLE III
The same tests as discussed above in Example I are conducted on beds of a formulation of 99% by weight Amberlite IRP-64 resins and 1% by weight of ballmilled Dowex I. The IRP-64 resins and ballmilled Dowex I is prepared as discussed above with respect to Example I. The test results for beds having a depth of 5.0 inches, 8.75 inches, 14.5 inches, 26.0 inches and 30.0 inches are set forth in Table IV and graphically presented in FIG. 4.
TABLE IV______________________________________Depth (in) Flow (gpm/ft.sup.2) PSI (PSI/in)______________________________________5 4.7 15.3 3.065 3.7 12.3 2.465 3.1 9.8 1.965 2.0 6.0 1.205 1.5 3.7 0.745 1.0 2.0 0.405 0.5 0 08.75 4.2 16.8 1.928.75 2.6 13.3 1.528.75 1.7 8.7 1.008.75 1.1 4.8 0.558.75 0.8 2.6 0.3014.5 2.5 19.6 1.3514.5 1.6 12.3 0.8514.5 1.2 8.0 0.5514.5 0.9 5.6 0.3914.5 0.6 3.6 0.2514.5 0.5 2.3 0.1626 1.9 22.8 0.8826 1.4 16.0 0.6226 1.0 12.0 0.4626 0.8 9.2 0.3526 0.6 5.7 0.2226 0.4 3.4 0.1330 1.9 26.0 0.8730 1.6 21.6 0.7230 1.2 16.3 0.5430 0.9 11.6 0.3930 0.7 9.1 0.3030 0.5 5.8 0.19______________________________________
For purpose of reference, the psi/in of a 3.5 inch bed of finely divided IRP-64 resins through the test apparatus at a flow rate of 0.16 gpm/ft 2 is 8.57. The relationship between particle size and pressure drop for resins having a size of 149-297 microns and 297-840 microns is presented in FIG. 8. The hydraulic properties of the flocculated finely divided particle filter beds in Examples I-IV are quite similar to those exhibited by beds of normal resin beads. The hydraulic properties of such beds up to a couple of inches may have been expected, but the hydraulic properties for deeper beds was very unexpected.
EXAMPLE IV
The following Example is a test to establish the adsorption or loading abilities of an exemplary bed in accordance with the invention in comparison to a bed of normal bead resins. The test apparatus shown in FIG. 1, is utilized in this example. A 400 ppm solution of Vitamin B 12 is prepared from Vitamin B 12 obtained from Eastman Kodak, Catalog #B6 8463. A bed having a depth of 24 inches is provided in the column that comprises a mixture of Amerlite IRP-64 cation exchange resins, hydrolyzed polyester fibers, and ballmilled anion exchange resins. The mixture contains 74% IRP-64 resins and 1% ballmilled anion exchange resins as described in Example 1. This mixture also contains 25% polyester fibers which are treated with a 4% caustic solution at 140° F. for one hour and Betz 1175 polyelectrolyte as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,955. The solution is directed downwardly through the bed at the rate of 0.25 gpm/ft 2 (10.3 ml/min). The concentration of the effluent is determined at 100 ml intervals utilizing a Bausch and Lomb Spectronic 20 unit and recorded. These data are reflected in Table V and are graphically presented in FIG. 5.
TABLE V______________________________________Liters Leakage, Liters LeakageTreated ABS* ppm B.sub.12, Treated ABS ppm B.sub.12______________________________________0.1 0 0 2.0 0 00.2 0 0 2.1 0 00.3 0 0 2.2 0 00.4 0 0 2.3 0 00.5 0 0 2.4 0 00.6 0 0 2.5 0 00.7 0 0 2.6 0 00.8 0 0 2.7 0 00.9 0 0 2.8 0 01.0 0 0 2.9 0 01.1 0 0 3.0 0 01.2 0 0 3.1 0 01.3 0 0 3.2 0 01.4 0 0 3.3 0 01.5 0 0 3.4 0 01.6 0 0 3.5 0 01.7 0 0 3.6 0 01.8 0 0 3.7 0 01.9 0 0 3.8 0 0______________________________________ *Absorbance at 550 nanometers
The above test is repeated by directing the solution through a bed of Amberlite IRC-50 cation exchange bead resin (manufactured by Rohm and Haas Company) having a depth of 24 inches at a flow rate of 0.25 gpm/ft 2 (10.3 ml/min). These resins have a median particle size of about 660 microns. The data from this test are reflected in Table VI and are graphically represented in FIG. 5.
TABLE VI______________________________________LOADING OF VITAMIN B.sub.12 ON BEADSLiters Leakage, Liters Leakage,Treated ABS* ppm B.sub.12 Treated ABS ppm B.sub.12______________________________________0.1 0 0 2.0 0.425 380.2 0 0 2.1 0.47 390.3 0 0 2.2 0.54 480.4 0.005 <1 2.3 0.60 530.5 0.018 1 2.4 0.72 650.6 0.040 2 2.5 0.81 650.7 0.070 3 2.6 0.85 760.8 0.097 100.9 0.130 12 2.8 0.85 801.0 0.165 14 2.9 0.85 801.1 0.205 18 3.0 0.85 801.2 0.255 22 3.1 0.86 811.3 0.295 25 3.2 0.85 801.4 0.350 30 3.3 0.83 791.5 0.380 32 3.4 0.82 791.6 0.425 38 3.5 0.80 761.7 0.47 39 3.6 0.74 671.8 0.47 39 3.7 0.74 671.9 0.360 **30 3.8 0.74 67______________________________________ *Absorbance at 550 nanometers **Stopped flow for 3/4 hour
EXAMPLE V
The following Example is to establish the desorption or elution characteristics of an exemplary bed in accordance with the invention in comparison to a bed of normal bead resins. The test apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is utilized in this Example. A bed having a depth of 24 inches is provided in the column comprising a mixture of Amberlite IRP-64 cation exchange resins, hydrolyzed polyester fibers, and ballmilled PAO (OH - ) anion exchange resins as described in Example IV. The bed is loaded by directing 3.8 liters of 400 ppm solution of Vitamin B 12 through the bed in the manner described in Example IV. An eluent comprising 3 parts 1 N HCl and 1 part acetone is directed downwardly through the bed at a flow rate of 0.025 gpm/ft 2 (1.03 ml/min). The effluent is collected at 0.5 volumes (175 ml) intervals. The concentration of each bed volume is measured on a Bausch and Lamb Spechronic 20 and recorded. These data are reflected in Table VI and are graphically presented in FIG. 6.
TABLE VII__________________________________________________________________________ELUTION OF VITAMIN B.sub.12 FROM POWDERBed Vols. ABS* ppm B.sub.12 Concentration Comments__________________________________________________________________________0.5 0 01.0 0 01.5 0.75 70 1 Inch Cell2.0 0.31 × 50 130 1 ml of eluate to 50 mls DI Water2.5 0.45 × 50 2000 1 ml of eluate to 50 mls DI Water3.0 0.34 × 50 1550 1 ml of eluate to 50 mls DI Water3.5 0.23 × 25 1025 1 ml of eluate to 50 mls DI Water4.0 0.28 × 25 625 2 mls of eluate to 50 mls DI Water4.5 0.42 × 10 380 5 mls of eluate to 50 mls DI Water5.0 0.50 × 5 220 10 mls of eluate to 50 mls DI Water5.5 0.75 × 2 140 25 mls of eluate to 50 mls DI Water6.0 0.9 86 25 mls of eluate to 50 mls DI Water6.5 0.73 667.0 0.62 567.5 0.46 40__________________________________________________________________________ *Absorbance at 550 nanometers
The above test is repeated by directed the 400 ppm solution of Vitamin B 12 solution downwardly through a 24 inch bed of Amberlite IRC-50 cation exchange bead resin in the manner as described in Example IV. The effluent is collected at 0.5 bed volume (175 ml) intervals and the concentration thereof is measured as set forth above. These data are reflected in Table VIII and are graphically presented in FIG. 6.
TABLE VIII______________________________________ELUTION OF VITAMIN B.sub.12 FROM BEADS CONCENTRATIONBed Volume ABS* ppm B.sub.12______________________________________0.5 0.138 111.0 0.128 101.5 0.64 582.0 0.92 882.5 0.87 843.0 0.67 623.5 0.70 644.0 0.67 624.5 0.64 585.0 0.83 785.5 1.10 1056.0 1.00 986.5 0.95 967.0 0.87 847.5 0.83 77______________________________________ *Absorbance at 550 nanometers
From the above Examples it has been established that the flocculated finely divided particulate bed in accordance with the invention has the loading and elution characteristics of the fine particles and the hydraulic properties of conventional bead resin beds.
EXAMPLE VI
The ability of the bed to maintain hydraulic performance is of considerable importance if the bed is to be employed in a cyclical process. A series of cycles are performed on the bed to expose the bed repeatedly to the swelling and shrinking conditions experienced during the loading, elution and regeneration steps of each cycle. A bed having a depth of 30 inches is provided in the column of FIG. 1 having the formulation as described in Example IV. During each cycle the bed is subjected to the steps of directing DI water through the bed, directing a pH 7 buffer through the bed, directing 1000 ml of 0.2N NH 4 OH eluent solution through the bed, directing 1680 ml of rinse DI water through the bed, directing 750 ml IN NaOH regenerant solution through the bed and directing 1680 ml of rinse DI water through the bed. At the conclusion of each cycle the depth of the bed is measured and the flow rate and pressure drop is determined. These data are reflected in Table IX.
TABLE IX______________________________________MAINTENANCE OF HYDRAULICSEnd of Bed Depth, Flow,Cycle in gpm/ft.sup.2 P, psi psi/in______________________________________1 20.0 1.4 20 1.02 19.8 1.3 20 1.03 19.3 1.0 20 1.04 19.0 0.9 20 1.05 19.1 1.0 20 1.06 19.0 1.0 20 1.07 18.8 0.9 20 1.18 18.8 0.9 20 1.19 18.6 0.8 20 1.110 18.6 0.8 20 1.111 18.6 0.8 20 1.112 18.6 0.8 20 1.113 18.6 0.8 20 1.114 18.6 0.8 20 1.115 18.6 0.9 20 1.1______________________________________
A common system for experimental measurement of the permeability of a filter medium based on the rate of flow of a fluid under a defined reassure differential is described in the text Solid/Liquid Separation Technology by Derek B. Purchas (1981) at pages 87-89. The system measures viscous permeability in a basic unit the "Darcy" where a material with a permeability of 1 darcy will pass in 1 second, through an area of 1 sq. cm. and a thickness of 1 cm., a volume of 1 ml of fluid with a viscosity of 1 cp, under a pressure differential of 1 atmosphere. Utilizing this system, the viscous permeability in Darcy units of the bed after each cycle is graphically shown in FIG. 7.
It should be observed that some degradation in hydraulic performance is apparent after the first three cycles. However, the performance then stabilizes and the pressure drop of the stabilized bed is such that it can be operated within the normal limits of columnar performance without difficulties.
It should be understood that modifications and changes to the preferred embodiments disclosed herein may be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and without diminishing its attendant advantages. It is therefore intended that all such modifications and changes be covered by the following claims.
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Methods for treating aqueous solutions and for recovering specific chemical products from an aqueous solution by ion exchange or adsorption by passing the aqueous solution through a regenerable filter bed comprising a flocculated mixture of finely divided active particulate material and filter aid materials having a depth of from about 3.0 inches to about 60 inches.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application claims priority from Japanese patent application P2014-40552 filed on Mar. 3, 2014, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference into this application.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to a technique of collecting probe information of a road network.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] There is a known technique to travel vehicles called probe vehicles, collect probe information of each predetermined section (link) that includes travel time information of the predetermined section, and analyze the probe information, so as to inform the user of a traffic event in a road network or to use the probe information for a route search (for example, JP 2007-207083A).
SUMMARY
Technical Problem
[0004] The technique disclosed in JP 2007-207083A uses road network data that represents a road network by nodes representing, for example, intersections and junctions of roads and links interconnecting the nodes, and collects probe information with regard to each link, from the probe information passing through the link.
[0005] A node in the road network data is generally set in the vicinity of the center of an intersection area, so that the travel time between adjacent nodes (link) is the driving time of the probe vehicle that runs from the vicinity of the center of an intersection to the vicinity of the center of a next intersection in the traveling direction.
[0006] When travel time statistics are computed by collecting probe information with regard to each link, however, the technique of collecting probe information including travel time information with regard to each link may fail to accurate express the actual travel time of the vehicle that runs through the link. For example, stop lines such as stop lines and pedestrian crossings may be provided at an intersection or on its peripheral roads. In a place of left-hand traffic, the vehicle may have a waiting time for the oncoming vehicles when turning right at an intersection and have a waiting time for pedestrians walking on a pedestrian crossing. There may thus be a significant difference in time required for passing through an intersection between the vehicles turning right at the intersection and the vehicles going straight through the intersection. When the traffic of a probe vehicle is delayed at an intersection, it is difficult to accurately express the driving time of the probe vehicle that runs through the actual road as the travel time information without determining to which of the links connecting with a node representing the intersection the travel information including the delayed time information is to be connected. For example, it is assumed that the probe vehicle comes from a first link, turns right at a node and goes to a second link. When the traffic of the probe vehicle is delayed at an intersection represented by the node, the time period required for a right turn from the first link may be included in the time period required for running through the second link by map matching. This problem is not limited to the travel time of the vehicle in the place of left-hand traffic but may similarly occur with regard to the travel time of the vehicle in the place of right-hand traffic. Other needs over the prior art include, for example, improvement of the processing efficiency, downsizing of the apparatus, cost reduction, resource saving and improvement of the convenience.
Solution to Problem
[0007] In order to solve the problems described above, the invention may be implemented by aspects or applications described below.
[0008] (1) According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of collecting probe information generated during travel of a vehicle. This method of collecting may comprise (a) receiving probe information including travel time information of a reference area, from a vehicle traveling the reference area that is specified as an area from a road part immediately after exit of an intersection to exit of an adjacent intersection in an exit direction; and (b) storing the received probe information. The method of collecting according to this aspect collects probe information of the reference area of the fixed range. Even when the traffic of vehicles is delayed at an intersection, this configuration allows for collection of probe information with connecting the delayed time with the reference area and thereby ensures generation of statistics of accurate travel time information.
[0009] (2) In the method of collecting according to the above aspect, the reference area may include both the intersection area and the road area that connects with the intersection area. The method of collecting according to this aspect allows for collection of the probe information of the reference area that includes the delayed time when the traffic of vehicles is delayed at the intersection. This enables the reference area to be connected with the location where the traffic is delayed (intersection). This ensures generation of statistics of accurate travel time information.
[0010] (3) In the method of collecting according to the above aspect, the (a) may separately receive the probe information of the intersection area that is the reference area and the probe information of the road area that is the reference area. The method of collecting according to this aspect accurately generates the cost of the road area based on the probe information when the collected probe information is used to search a route from a place of departure to a destination. This configuration accordingly enables a travel time from the place of departure to the destination to be calculated with high accuracy. Especially when the destination is located in the middle of the road area, specifying the intersection area and the road area as different reference areas enables the travel time to the destination to be calculated with high accuracy.
[0011] (4) In the method of collecting according to the above aspect, the probe information may be generated with regard to each approach direction to the reference area. The method of collecting according to this aspect receives the probe information of the reference area with regard to each approach direction and thereby enables the travel time information of the reference area to be generated with regard to each approach direction. Even when there is a difference in travel time between different approach directions to the reference area, this configuration enables statistics of the travel time information to be generated with the higher accuracy with regard to the reference area.
[0012] (5) In the method of collecting according to the above aspect, the probe information may be generated with regard to each exit direction from the reference area. The method of collecting according to this aspect receives the probe information of the reference area with regard to each exit direction and thereby enables the travel time information of the reference area to be generated with regard to each exit direction. Even when there is a difference in travel time between different exit directions from the reference area, this configuration enables statistics of the travel time information to be generated with the higher accuracy with regard to the reference area.
[0013] (6) The method of collecting according to the above aspect may further comprise (c) generating statistical information that indicates a histogram of a travel time in the reference area, based on the stored probe information. The (c) may comprise (c1) dividing an area set including at least three reference areas into (i) a starting point region that includes a starting point of the area set and is comprised of at least one reference area; (ii) an end point region that includes an end point of the area set and is comprised of at least one reference area; and (iii) an intermediate region that is included in the area set; (c2) generating the statistical information of the starting point region, based on the probe information of the starting point region received from a vehicle that passes through the entire reference area constituting the starting point region at a time; (c3) generating the statistical information of the end point region, based on the probe information of the end point region received from a vehicle that passes through the entire reference area constituting the end point region at a time; (c4) generating the statistical information of the intermediate region, based on the probe information of the intermediate region received from a vehicle that passes through the entire reference area constituting the intermediate region at a time; and (c5) generating the statistical information of the area set by a convolution operation of pieces of information regarding the travel time that respectively include the statistical information of the starting point region, the statistical information of the intermediate region and the statistical information of the end point region. The method of collecting according to this aspect enables the statistical information of the area set to be generated with high accuracy.
[0014] The invention may be implemented by various aspects, for example, a collection apparatus of probe information, an apparatus for analyzing collected probe information, an apparatus for generating travel time statistical information using probe information, a system for collecting probe information, a computer program or data configured to implement any of the apparatus, the method or the system, and a non-transitory physical recording medium in which the computer program or data is recorded, in addition to the method of collecting probe information.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0015] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a probe information collecting system according to a first embodiment;
[0016] FIG. 2 is an internal block diagram illustrating an information generation device;
[0017] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating road network data corresponding to a road network in a predetermined area;
[0018] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating one example of polygon data stored in road shape data;
[0019] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the data structure of probe information generated by the information generation device;
[0020] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information;
[0021] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating one example of polygon data stored in road shape data according to a second embodiment;
[0022] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a third embodiment;
[0023] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the data structure of probe information generated by the information generation device;
[0024] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information generated by a server according to the third embodiment;
[0025] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a fourth embodiment;
[0026] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the data structure of probe information according to the fourth embodiment;
[0027] FIG. 13 is a chart showing a method of generating statistical information according to the fourth embodiment;
[0028] FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the method of generating the statistical information according to the fourth embodiment;
[0029] FIG. 15 is a chart showing another method of generating statistical information according to the fourth embodiment;
[0030] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating another method of generating the statistical information;
[0031] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a fifth embodiment;
[0032] FIG. 18 is a chart showing a method of generating statistical information of an area set;
[0033] FIG. 19 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of probe information of a starting point region;
[0034] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the data structure of probe information of an intermediate region and section information included in statistical information;
[0035] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of probe information of an end point region;
[0036] FIG. 22 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information generated at step S 46 shown in FIG. 18 ;
[0037] FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating one example of reference area in polygon data with regard to each traveling direction of a probe vehicle;
[0038] FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating one example of reference area in polygon data with regard to each traveling direction of the probe vehicle;
[0039] FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating one example of reference area in polygon data with regard to each traveling direction of the probe vehicle;
[0040] FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating one example of reference area in polygon data with regard to each traveling direction of the probe vehicle;
[0041] FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of a route search apparatus using map information data as a type of traffic information data according to a sixth embodiment;
[0042] FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between intersection areas and road areas;
[0043] FIG. 29 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of map information data;
[0044] FIG. 30 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of map information data; and
[0045] FIG. 31 is a chart showing a process flow for calculating a travel time.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
A. First Embodiment
[0046] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a probe information collecting system (hereinafter may be simply referred to as “collecting system”) 90 according to a first embodiment of the invention.
[0047] The collecting system 90 includes n probe vehicles 10 a 1 to 10 an and a server 60 configured to receive probe information A 1 sent from these probe vehicles 10 a 1 to 10 an in the form of packets. In the description of the embodiment, when there is no need to discriminate among the respective probe vehicles 10 a 1 to 10 an , these probe vehicles 10 a 1 to 10 an are collectively called probe vehicle 10 . The probe vehicle 10 includes an information generation device 20 configured to generate probe information A 1 and send the generated probe information A 1 to the server 60 via a wireless communication network NE. The details of the information generation device 20 will be described later.
[0048] The server 60 includes a receiver 64 , an information analyzer 69 , a probe information storage part 62 , a statistical information storage part 61 , a road shape database 63 , and a road network database 68 . The receiver 64 receives the probe information A 1 sent from the probe vehicle 10 . The probe information storage part 62 stores the probe information A 1 sent from the probe vehicle 10 . The information analyzer 69 analyzes the probe information A 1 stored in the probe information storage part 62 , generates statistical information including travel time data in a predetermined area, and stores the generated statistical information into the statistical information storage part 61 . The road network database 68 is a database configured to store road network data corresponding to an actual road network. The road network data stores link data, node data and traffic regulation information at each intersection (for example, no U-turn, no right-turn, no left-turn, or no entry). The node data is data indicating a road junction, a fork in a road, or an end point (for example, an intersection or a dead end) on the map. The link data is data indicating each road on the map and is related to nodes representing a starting point and an end point of the road. The traffic regulation information is related to the node data.
[0049] The road shape database 63 stores road shape data including polygon data indicating the shapes of roads and intersections. The road shape database 63 and the road network database 68 are correlated to each other. The details of the road shape data will be described later. The statistical information storage part 61 stores statistical information including travel time data in each predetermined area expressed by polygon data. The server 60 integrates a cost of each route by taking into account the statistical information stored in the statistical information storage part 61 in the process of a route search from the place of departure to the destination.
[0050] FIG. 2 is an internal block diagram illustrating the information generation device 20 mounted on the probe vehicle 10 . The information generation device 20 includes a communicator 22 , a GPS receiver 24 , a vehicle speed sensor 26 , a gyro sensor 28 , a time sensor 29 , a controller 30 and a storage part 40 . The communicator 22 makes data communication including transmission of the probe information A 1 . The GPS receiver 24 receives radio waves from GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites. The vehicle speed sensor 26 detects the speed of the probe vehicle 10 . The gyro sensor 28 detects the angle and the angular velocity of the probe vehicle 10 . The time sensor 29 detects the current time.
[0051] The controller 30 includes a location identifier 31 and a probe information generator 32 . The location identifier 31 identifies the location of the probe vehicle 10 by taking advantage of estimation of the location of the probe vehicle 10 based on the arrival times of the radio waves sent from the GPS satellites and autonomous navigation that accumulates changes of the location according to the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor 26 and the traveling direction detected by the gyro sensor 28 . The storage part 40 includes a data accumulator 42 , road shape data 44 and road network data 46 . The probe information generator 32 generates the probe information A 1 , based on the data 44 and 46 stored in the storage part 40 and various information including the current location of the probe vehicle 10 . The data accumulator 42 accumulates the probe information A 1 generated by the probe information generator 32 . The communicator 22 sends the probe information A 1 accumulated in the data accumulator 42 to the server 30 at predetermined time intervals. The information generation device 20 may be configured not to accumulate the probe information A 1 in the data accumulator 42 but to send the probe information A 1 to the server 60 every time the probe information A 1 is generated by the probe information generator 32 . The road shape data 44 is similar to the road shape database 63 stored in the server 60 and stores polygon data indicating the shapes of roads and intersections. The road network data 46 is similar to the road network data 46 stored in the server 60 and is a database that stores link data, node data and traffic regulation information at each intersection (for example, no U-turn, no right-turn, no left-turn, or no entry). The road shape data 44 and the road network data 46 are correlated to each other.
[0052] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the road network data 46 (or 66 ) corresponding to an actual road network DN in a predetermined area. FIG. 3 illustrates the structure of the corresponding road network data 46 in a box, in addition to the road network DN in the predetermined area. The road network DN includes roads expressed by links L 1 to L 5 and L 10 to L 15 and intersections expressed by nodes N 1 to N 4 . For example, stop lines where the vehicles are to be stopped, for example, stop lines SL and pedestrian crossings TL are provided at an intersection expressed by the node N 3 and its periphery. For example, a vehicle that runs on the link L 3 , turns right at the node N 3 and enters the link L 5 is expected to stop at the stop line SL or before the pedestrian crossing TL. This is likely to cause a congestion of vehicles at the intersection expressed by the node N 3 . In the road network data 46 , it is not definitely determinable whether the occurrence of a traffic congestion at the intersection expressed by the node N 3 is to be connected with travel time information of either of the link L 3 and the link L 5 . If the travel time affected by the occurrence of a traffic congestion is connected with the link L 5 , the travel time affected by the occurrence of a traffic congestion is added even in the case of calculating the travel time of a vehicle that goes straight from the link L 14 and enters the link L 5 . This is likely to cause a problem that fails to accurately estimate the travel time of a vehicle that runs in the actual road network DN.
[0053] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating one example of polygon data PD stored in the road shape data 44 . The polygon data PD of FIG. 4 corresponds to the road network DN shown in FIG. 3 . The polygon data PD includes polygons representing a plurality of reference areas D 1 to D 5 and D 10 to D 15 . The polygons represent the simplified shape of the actual road network DN according to this embodiment but may have shape corresponding to the shape of the actual road network DN. The reference area is a minimum unit for generating probe information. According to this embodiment, the reference area includes one intersection area (area from an approach to an intersection to an exit from the intersection) and one road area connecting with the intersection area (area from an exit of another intersection before this intersection area to the approach of this intersection area). The approach of an intersection area is, for example, a region where a stop line before the intersection in the traveling direction is located. The exit of the intersection area is, for example, a region before a pedestrian crossing in the exit direction of the intersection. An intersection area may be a road region that is surrounded by lines, each connecting a start point S 1 in a region where two or more roads cross each other with a point of contact on a vertical line drawn from the start point S 1 to an edge line on the opposite side across the road. A locus Q 1 in the drawing represents the running path of the vehicle and indicates that the vehicle sequentially runs through the reference areas D 1 , D 2 , D 3 and D 4 . The polygon data PD includes polygons representing the stop lines SL and TL provided on the road. The polygon data PD additionally includes data representing boundary lines P 1 to P 4 (boundary data P) that show the boundaries of the respective reference areas D 1 to D 5 and D 10 to D 15 . The boundary line P 1 between the reference areas D 1 and D 2 , the boundary line P 2 between the reference areas D 2 and D 3 and the boundary line P 3 between the reference areas D 3 and D 4 are illustrated in the drawing. Among the plurality of reference areas D 1 to D 5 and D 10 to D 15 , the reference areas D 1 to D 4 include intersection areas C 1 to C 4 including stop areas where the vehicle is to be stopped in road traffic, and road areas B 1 to B 4 connecting with the intersection areas C 1 to C 4 . In the illustrated example of FIG. 4 , the stop area where the vehicle is to be stopped includes a stop line such as a stop line SL or a pedestrian crossing TL provided at an intersection or on a road adjacent to the intersection. In another example, when a stop line is provided on a road adjacent to an intersection, an area before the stop line may be specified as the stop area where the vehicle is to be stopped. In the description herein, when there is no need to discriminate among the respective reference areas, these reference areas are collectively called “reference area D”. When there is no need to discriminate among the respective intersection areas, these intersection areas are collectively called “intersection area C”. When there is no need to discriminate among the respective road areas, these road areas are collectively called “road area B”.
[0054] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the data structure of the probe information A 1 generated by the information generation device 20 . The upper fields show the data types of the probe information A 1 , and the lower fields show a concrete example of the probe information A 1 . The probe information A 1 includes a header, a vehicle ID, section information Gi, travel time information and approach time information. The header is unique information used to identify the generated probe information A 1 . The vehicle ID is unique information used to identify the probe vehicle 10 equipped with the information generation device 20 . The section information Gi includes an approach ID, a target ID and an exit ID. The target ID indicates a reference area D that is an object for which travel time information is to be generated. The approach ID is information showing from which direction the probe vehicle 10 enters the target ID and is defined by the boundary data P. The travel time information indicates a travel time taken when the probe vehicle 10 runs through the reference area D expressed by the target ID. The approach time information indicates the time when the probe vehicle 10 enters the target ID. The approach time is specified by the time when the probe vehicle 10 passes through a boundary line of an adjacent reference area D. In the example shown in the lower fields of FIG. 5 , the probe information A 1 having a header F 1 is generated by the information generation device 20 mounted on the probe vehicle 10 having the vehicle ID “G 1 ”. In the example shown in the lower fields of FIG. 5 , the travel time in a reference area D 3 of the probe vehicle 10 that runs from a reference area D 2 through the reference area D 3 to a reference area D 4 is 20 minutes, and the time when the probe vehicle 10 enters the reference area D 3 is “A (hour), B (minute), C (month), D (date), 201 X (year)”. The probe information A 1 may include additional information, for example, information regarding the type of the road of the target ID (for example, national road or prefectural road) or climate information at the approach time, in addition to the above information. The probe information A 1 may include information that allows the travel time of the target ID to be calculated by the information analyzer 69 of the server 60 (shown in FIG. 1 ), instead of the travel time information. For example, the probe information A 1 may include exit time information indicating the time when the probe vehicle 10 exits the target ID, in addition to the approach time information.
[0055] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information 67 stored in the statistical information storage part 61 . The statistical information 67 includes section information Gi, travel time statistical information Gp and additional information Gt. The section information Gi is data similar to the section information Gi of the probe information A 1 (shown in FIG. 5 ) and includes an approach ID, a target ID and an exit ID. The travel time statistical information Gp indicates statistics of the travel time with regard to the section information Gi. More specifically, the travel time statistical information Gp includes histogram data showing the probability of each travel time in the target ID and an average cost indicating an average travel time that is calculated from the histogram data by the information analyzer 69 . The travel time statistical information Gp is generated by the information analyzer 69 , based on a multiple pieces of the probe information A 1 accumulated in the probe information storage part 62 . The additional information Gt stores additional information, for example, the road type of the target ID.
[0056] As described above, in the collecting system 90 , the information generation device 20 generates the probe information A 1 with regard to one reference area D including an intersection area C and a road area B as a unit, and the server 60 receives the probe information A 1 and generates the travel time statistical information Gp with regard to one reference area D as a unit. Even when the traffic of vehicles is delayed at an intersection, this configuration allows for collection of probe information with connecting the delayed time with the intersection area and thereby ensures generation of accurate travel time statistical information. The section information Gi includes the approach ID and the exit ID, in addition to the target ID. The travel time in the target ID can thus be generated with regard to each approach ID and each exit ID. This configuration enables data indicating the travel time of the target ID (for example, average cost) to be generated with the higher accuracy.
B. Second Embodiment
[0057] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of polygon data PDa stored in the road shape data 44 , 46 according to a second embodiment. The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is the data structure of the polygon data PDa. Otherwise the configuration of the second embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment, so that like components are expressed by the like signs and are not specifically described. In the polygon data PDa of the second embodiment, each of intersection areas C 1 to C 4 and road areas B 1 to B 5 and B 10 to B 15 connecting with the intersection areas C 1 to 4 is set as one reference area D. The intersection C 3 includes stop areas. The polygon data PDa also includes data representing boundary lines P 1 to P 8 (boundary data P) that show the boundaries of adjacent reference areas D. FIG. 7 illustrates the boundary lines P 1 to P 8 as an example of boundary lines. According to the second embodiment, probe information A 1 is generated by the information generation device 20 with regard to each of the reference areas C 1 to C 4 , B 1 to B 5 and B 10 to B 15 , like the first embodiment. Accordingly the server 60 individually receives the probe information A 1 with regard to each of the intersection areas C 1 to C 4 as the reference areas and with regard to each of the road areas B 1 to B 5 and B 10 to B 15 as the reference areas.
[0058] As described above, the smaller division than that of the first embodiment is employed as the generation unit of the probe information A 1 . This configuration enables the statistical information 67 including the travel time statistical information Gp to be generated with high accuracy, based on the collected probe information and thereby enables the travel time from a place of departure to a destination to be calculated with high accuracy. Especially when the destination is located in the middle of the road area B, the configuration of setting the intersection area C and the road area B as different reference areas D enables the travel time from the place of departure to the destination to be calculated with high accuracy.
C. Third Embodiment
[0059] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a third embodiment. The difference between the first embodiment and the third embodiment is the structure of section information Gi (shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 ). Otherwise the configuration of the third embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment, so that like components are expressed by the like signs and are not specifically described. FIG. 8 shows one example of polygon data PD stored in the road shape data 44 , 46 and is identical with FIG. 4 . According to this embodiment, probe information A 1 b including travel time information on a target ID is generated with regard to each approach direction to the target ID and each exit direction from the target ID. For example, it is assumed that the probe vehicle 10 running through a reference area D 3 enters the reference area D 3 from different reference areas D 2 , D 12 and D 13 . Arrows Q 1 , Q 2 and Q 3 represent the running paths of the probe vehicle 10 with regard to the respective approaches to the reference area D 3 . In all the running paths Q 1 , Q 2 and Q 3 , the exit direction from the reference area D 3 is identical, i.e., the reference area D 4 . The reference area D indicating the approach direction is specified by two boundary data P. For example, when the probe vehicle 10 passes through boundary data P 10 and P 2 , the reference area D 13 is specified as the approach ID.
[0060] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the data structure of the probe information A 1 b generated by the information generation device 20 . The uppermost fields in the drawing show the data type of the probe information A 1 b , and the lower fields in the drawing show concrete examples of the probe information A 1 b . The probe information A 1 b of the third embodiment differs from the probe information A 1 of the first embodiment (shown in FIG. 5 ) by only section information Gib. The following describes the details of the section information Gib. The section information Gib includes a target ID used to identify the reference area D in which the probe vehicle 10 runs, an approach ID used to identify from the reference area D from which the probe vehicle 10 enters the reference area D expressed by the target ID, and an exit ID used to identify the reference area D to which the probe vehicle 10 exits from the reference area D expressed by the target ID. The approach ID is specified by two boundary data P. The two boundary data P consist of a first approach point and a second approach point of the boundary data P. In the probe information A 1 b having a header F 1 b , the first approach point is P 10 and the second approach point is P 2 , so that the reference area D 13 is specified as the approach ID. The probe information A 1 b having the header F 1 b is data generated by the probe vehicle 10 (having a vehicle ID of G 2 ) that draws the running path Q 2 shown in FIG. 8 . The probe information A 1 b having a header F 2 b is data generated by the probe vehicle 10 (having a vehicle ID of G 3 ) that draws the running path Q 1 shown in FIG. 8 . The probe information A 1 b having a header F 3 b is data generated by the probe vehicle 10 (having a vehicle ID of G 4 ) that draws the running path Q 3 shown in FIG. 8 .
[0061] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information 67 b generated by the server 60 according to the third embodiment. The difference between the statistical information 67 b of the third embodiment and the statistical information 67 of the first embodiment (shown in FIG. 6 ) is the details of the section information Gib. Otherwise the data structure is identical with that of the statistical information 67 of the first embodiment, so that like components are expressed by like signs and are not specifically described. The section information Gib has the similar data structure to that of the probe information A 1 b (shown in FIG. 9 ) and includes an approach ID, a target ID and an exit ID. The statistical information 67 b is data generated by extraction from multiple pieces of the probe information A 1 b that are collected from the information generation devices 20 , with regard to each piece of information that matches the advance ID, the target ID and the exits ID.
[0062] As described above, the third embodiment has similar advantageous effects to those of the first embodiment. For example, the section information Gib includes the approach ID and the exit ID, in addition to the target ID. The travel time in the target ID can thus be generated with regard to each approach ID and each exit ID. This configuration enables data indicating the travel time of the target ID (for example, average cost) to be generated with the higher accuracy.
D. Fourth Embodiment
[0063] A fourth embodiment shows another embodiment of the method of determining the target ID used in the probe information A 1 or A 1 b and the statistical information 67 or 67 b of the first to the third embodiments described above. In the first to the third embodiments described above, the target ID is specified by one reference area D of the polygon data PD or PDa. This is, however, not restrictive, and the target ID may be specified by a plurality of reference areas D.
[0064] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the fourth embodiment. Polygon data PD shown in FIG. 11 is identical with the polygon data PD used in the first or the third embodiment. Signs irrelevant to the description are omitted from the polygon data PD shown in FIG. 11 . FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the data structure of the probe information A 1 b according to the fourth embodiment. The probe information A 1 b of the fourth embodiment has the similar data structure to that of the probe information A 1 b of the third embodiment. FIG. 12 shows probe information A 1 b with regard to running paths Q 1 and Q 5 shown in FIG. 11 when a reference area D 3 is the target ID. More specifically, the probe information A 1 b that is generated by the information generation device 20 mounted on the probe vehicle 10 (having a vehicle ID of G 1 c ) drawing the running path Q 1 with setting the reference area D 3 as the target ID is data having a header F 1 c . The probe information A 1 b that is generated by the information generation device 20 mounted on the probe vehicle 10 (having a vehicle ID of G 2 c ) drawing the running path Q 5 with setting the reference area D 3 as the target ID is data having a header F 2 c.
[0065] When statistical information 67 b is generated with setting a certain reference area D as the target ID, the statistical information 67 b is likely to have variability according to the traffic conditions in reference areas D expressed by the approach ID and the exit ID relative to the target ID. For example, when probe information A 1 b is generated with setting a reference area D 2 immediately before the reference area D 3 as the target ID, there may be a significant difference in travel time of the reference area D 2 between the probe vehicle 10 drawing the running path Q 5 that runs through the reference area D 2 and goes straight through the reference area D 3 and the probe vehicle 10 drawing the running path Q 1 that runs through the reference area D 2 , turns right in the reference area D 3 and goes to the reference area D 4 . For example, when there is a traffic congestion for the right turn in the reference area D 3 , the probe vehicle 10 that runs through the reference area D 2 and is planned to turn right in the reference area D 3 is affected by this traffic congestion for the right turn. The probe vehicle 10 that runs through the reference area D 2 and is planned to go straight through the reference area D 3 is, on the other hand, not affected by this traffic congestion for the right turn. In order to generate the probe information A 1 b that accurately indicates the travel time in the reference area D, the server 60 determines the range of the reference area D by the following procedure. In the case where the statistical information 67 b (shown in FIG. 10 ) is generated based on the probe information A 1 b with regard to each approach ID and each exit ID with setting one reference area D as the target ID, the statistical information 67 b can be finely classified by the section information Gib. In this case, on the other hand, there may be an insufficient number of pieces of the probe information A 1 b used to accurately generate the statistical information 67 b with regard to each section information Gib. The following describes a method of generating statistical information with a view to solving this problem. In the description below, it is assumed that a predetermined number of pieces of probe information A 1 b required for analysis with regard to one reference area D set as the target ID are stored in the probe information storage part 62 of the server 60 .
[0066] FIG. 13 is a chart showing a method of generating statistical information according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the method of generating the statistical information according to the fourth embodiment. The method of generating the statistical information according to the fourth embodiment is performed by the information analyzer 69 of the server 60 (shown in FIG. 1 ). The information analyzer 69 first notes one reference area D and generates statistical information 67 b including travel time statistical information Gp with regard to each section information Gib with setting the noted reference area D (reference area of interest D) as a provisional target ID (step S 10 ). In the illustrated example of FIG. 14 , the information analyzer 69 generates the statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area D 3 as the provisional target ID. The information analyzer 69 subsequently compares the respective pieces of travel time statistical information Gp of statistical information 67 b having an identical provisional target ID and an identical approach ID relative to the provisional target ID but different exits IDs relative to the provisional target ID in the section information Gib and determines whether their travel time difference is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (step S 12 ). The predetermined value may be set to a criterion value to determine whether the exit direction provides a significant difference in travel time of an identical target ID by the effect of traffic conditions, for example, a traffic congestion. According to this embodiment, the average costs of the travel time statistical information Gp are subjected to the comparison for calculating the travel time difference. When it is determined that the travel time difference is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, the information analyzer 69 generates the statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area of interest D and a reference area D expressed by the approach ID relative to the provisional target ID as one provisional target ID (step S 14 ). In the illustrated example of FIG. 14 , the reference area D 3 and the reference area D 2 are set as a new provisional target ID. In the case where the respective pieces of travel time statistical information Gp included in two pieces of statistical information 67 b are processed to provide one piece of travel time statistical information Gp, convolution operation of histograms expressed by the respective pieces of travel time statistical information Gp included in the two pieces of statistical information 67 b generates one piece of travel time statistical information Gp. The processing of step S 12 is performed again after step S 14 , and the processing of step S 14 is repeated until the travel time difference becomes less than the predetermined value. When it is determined at step S 12 that the travel time difference is less than the predetermined value, the information analyzer 69 fixes the statistical information 67 b with specifying the provisional target ID as the target ID. The fixed statistical information 67 b with regard to the target ID is updated every time a predetermined number of pieces of the probe information A 1 are collected from the information generation devices 20 of the probe vehicles 10 .
[0067] FIG. 15 is a chart showing another method of generating statistical information according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating another method of generating the statistical information. The method of generating the statistical information shown in FIG. 15 is performed by the information analyzer 69 of the server 60 (shown in FIG. 1 ). FIG. 16 illustrates polygon data PDd in a partial area of a road network DN. Reference areas D 20 , D 22 , D 24 , D 26 and D 28 shown in FIG. 16 represent one identical highway, and reference areas D 30 , D 32 , D 34 , D 36 , D 38 , D 40 , D 42 and D 44 represent different types of roads branching off from the highway.
[0068] As shown in FIG. 15 , the information analyzer 69 first notes one reference area D and generates statistical information 67 b including travel time statistical information Gp with regard to each section information Gib with setting the noted reference area D (reference area of interest D) as a provisional target ID (step S 20 ). In the illustrated example of FIG. 16 , the information analyzer 69 generates the statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area D 22 as the provisional target ID. In this case, the approach ID is the reference area D 24 . The information analyzer 69 subsequently generates statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area D 24 that is the approach ID as a target ID to be compared (comparative target ID) (step S 22 ). For example, the information analyzer 69 generates the statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area D 24 shown in FIG. 16 as the comparative target ID. The information analyzer 69 then compares the respective pieces of travel time statistical information Gp of statistical information 67 b having an exit ID representing the highway and different approach IDs out of the generated statistical information 67 b with regard to the comparative target ID and determines whether their travel time difference is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (step S 24 ). The approach IDs subjected to the comparison at step S 24 are an exit ID representing the same highway as the reference areas D expressed by the comparative target ID and the provisional target ID and an approach ID representing a different reference area D from this highway. In the illustrated example of FIG. 16 , when the comparative target ID is the reference area D 24 and the exit ID is the reference area D 22 , the approach IDs are the reference area D 26 and the reference area D 40 . The predetermined value may be set to a criterion value to determine whether the approach direction provides a significant difference in travel time of an identical comparative target ID by the effect of traffic conditions, for example, a traffic congestion. According to this embodiment, the average costs of the travel time statistical information Gp are subjected to the comparison for calculating the travel time difference. When it is determined at step S 24 that the travel time different is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, the information analyzer 69 generates the statistical information 67 b with setting the reference area of interest D and the comparative target ID as one provisional target ID (step S 26 ). In the illustrated example of FIG. 16 , the reference area D 22 and the reference area D 24 are set as a new provisional target ID. The processing of step S 22 is performed again after step S 26 , and the processing of step S 26 is repeated until the travel time difference becomes less than the predetermined value. When it is determined at step S 24 that the travel time difference is less than the predetermined value, the information analyzer 69 fixes the statistical information 67 b with specifying the provisional target ID as the target ID. The fixed statistical information 67 b with regard to the target ID is updated every time a predetermined number of pieces of the probe information A 1 are collected from the information generation devices 20 of the probe vehicles 10 .
[0069] As described above, the fourth embodiment generates the statistical information 67 b with regard to the target ID by taking into account the traffic conditions in the approach ID and the exit ID relative to the provisional target ID. This configuration enables data on the travel time included in the statistical information 67 b to be generated with high accuracy.
E. Fifth Embodiment
[0070] A method employed to calculate a travel time in an area set that is collection of a plurality of reference areas D or in a link array that is collection of a plurality of links from travel times of individual reference areas D or individual links may be convolution of data representing the travel times of the respective reference areas D or the reference links (histograms). In some cases, however, the method of calculating the travel time in the area set or the link array by convolution is unlikely to accurately estimate the travel time of the vehicle that actually passes through the area set or the link array. For example, calculation of the travel time by convolution is generally on the premise that the respective travel times of a plurality of reference areas D constituting an area set are not correlated to one another. This method accordingly fails to accurately indicate a change in travel time based on whether the vehicle stops or does not stop at a traffic light or the like placed in a reference area D. Especially in roads under systematic control, the frequency when the vehicle running in a certain area set or in a certain link array stops at the traffic light is not correlated to the number of traffic lights. Accordingly the result of calculation of the travel time by convolution may be different from the actual travel time of the vehicle. Generating statistical information 67 , 67 b of the area set or the link array based on the probe information A 1 -A 1 c sent from the information generation device 20 of the probe vehicle 10 that passes through all the reference areas D constituting the area set or all the links constituting the link array at a time can estimate the travel time more accurately than generating the statistical information 67 , 67 b by convolution. The number of probe vehicles 10 passing through the area set or the link array at a time is, however, limited. There may be accordingly an insufficient number of pieces of probe information A 1 , A 1 b , A 1 c used to generate the statistical information 67 , 67 b of the area set or the link array. The following describe a technique for solving this problem.
[0071] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a fifth embodiment. FIG. 17 illustrates polygon data PDe representing a road network DN in a predetermined area. Reference areas D 60 to D 74 represent one identical main road, and the other reference areas D 80 to D 106 represent different roads from this main road. Traffic lights placed in the reference areas D 60 to D 74 are under systematic control. It is assumed that the vehicle passes through the reference areas D 60 to D 74 from the left side to the right side of the sheet surface as shown by arrows Q 10 . The following describes a method of generating statistical information 67 e of an area set Ln consisting of reference areas D 62 to D 72 among the reference areas D 60 to D 74 . The statistical information 67 e is generated by the information analyzer 69 of the server 60 (shown in FIG. 1 ), based on the probe information accumulated in the probe information storage part 62 .
[0072] FIG. 18 is a chart showing a method of generating statistical information of an area set. The information analyzer 69 first divides the area set Ln into three regions as shown in FIG. 17 and generates statistical information with regard to each of the three regions based on probe information (steps S 40 and S 42 ). As shown in FIG. 17 , the three regions are (i) a starting point region Lna that includes a starting point P 60 of the area set Ln and is comprised of at least one reference area D 62 ; (ii) an end point region Lnb that includes an end point P 72 of the area set Lna and is comprised of at least one reference area D 72 ; and (iii) an intermediate region Lnc comprised of the reference areas D 64 to D 70 of the area set Ln. The information analyzer 69 subsequently generates statistical information of the area set Ln by convolution of histogram data of travel time statistical information Gp included in statistical information of the respective regions Lna to Lnc (step S 46 ). The following describes concrete examples of the respective process.
[0073] FIG. 19 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of probe information A 1 b of the starting point region Lna. The information analyzer 69 collects probe information A 1 b of the vehicle that runs through the entire starting point region Lna at a time out of the probe information A 1 b accumulated in the probe information storage part 62 , and generates statistical information 67 b of the starting point region Lna. More specifically, the information analyzer 69 collects probe information A 1 b with regard to each approach ID when the exit ID is a reference area D included in the area set Ln and the target ID is the starting point region Lna, and generates statistical information 67 b with regard to each approach ID of such collection. In the illustrated example of FIG. 19 , probe information A 1 b having a header F 10 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 turns left in the reference area D 80 and runs through the reference area D 62 that is the starting point region Lna. Probe information A 1 b having a header F 11 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 goes straight through the reference area D 60 and runs through the reference area D 62 . Probe information A 1 b having a header F 12 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 turns right in the reference area D 82 and runs through the reference area D 62 .
[0074] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the data structure of probe information A 1 b of the intermediate region Lnc and section information Gib included in statistical information. The information analyzer 69 collects probe information A 1 b of the vehicle that runs through the entire intermediate region Lnc at a time, and generates statistical information 67 b of the intermediate region Lnc. More specifically, the information analyzer 69 collects multiple pieces of probe information A 1 b indicating that the vehicle runs through the entire intermediate region Lnc at a time, and generates statistical information 67 b . In the illustrated example of FIG. 20 , multiple pieces of probe information A 1 b having an identical vehicle ID “G 11 ” and indicating that the vehicle runs through the entire intermediate region Lnc at a time are collected, based on the travel time and the approach time included in the respective pieces of the probe information A 1 b . In FIG. 20 , a set of pieces of probe information A 1 b having headers F 21 to F 24 is data indicating that the vehicle runs (goes straight) through the entire intermediate region Lnc. Collecting a plurality of sets of the probe information A 1 b indicating that the vehicle runs through the entire intermediate region Lnc results in generating statistical information 67 e including section information Gib shown in the lower table of FIG. 20 . The travel time of the intermediate region Lnc expressed by the probe information A 1 b shown in the upper table of FIG. 20 is 33 minutes that is the total of the travel time of the respective pieces of the probe information A 1 b.
[0075] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing one example of the data structure of probe information A 1 b of the end point region Lnb. The information analyzer 69 collects probe information A 1 b of the vehicle that runs through the entire end point region Lnb at a time out of the probe information A 1 b accumulated in the probe information storage part 62 , and generates statistical information 67 b of the end point region Lnb. More specifically, the information analyzer 69 collects probe information A 1 b with regard to each exit ID when the approach ID is a reference area D included in the area set Ln and the target ID is the end point region Lnb, and generates statistical information 67 b with regard to each exit ID of such collection. In the illustrated example of FIG. 21 , probe information A 1 b having a header F 30 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 runs through the end point region Lnb, subsequently turns left in the reference area D 72 and goes through the reference area D 104 . Probe information A 1 b having a header F 31 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 runs through the end point region Lnb, subsequently goes straight through the reference area D 72 and goes through the reference area D 74 . Probe information A 1 b having a header F 32 is data obtained when the probe vehicle 10 runs through the end point region Lhb, subsequently turns right in the reference area D 72 and goes through the reference area D 106 .
[0076] FIG. 22 is a diagram showing the data structure of statistical information 67 f generated at step S 46 shown in FIG. 18 . The difference between the statistical information 67 f of the fifth embodiment and the statistical information 67 c of the third embodiment (shown in FIG. 10 ) is the content of the target ID included in the section information Gif. Otherwise the data structure is identical with that of the statistical information 67 b of the third embodiment, so that like components are expressed by like signs and are not specifically described. The target ID of the section information Gif is unique data indicating a plurality of reference areas D 62 to D 70 .
[0077] As described above, the fifth embodiment divides the area set Ln into the plurality of regions Lna to Lnc and generates statistical information with regard to each of the plurality of divisional regions Lna to Lnc. Statistical information 67 f of the area set Ln consisting of a plurality of reference areas D is generated by convolution of data indicating the travel times of the respective pieces of generated statistical information. Even when there is only a small number of probe vehicles 10 running through all the plurality of reference areas D constituting the area set Ln at a time, this configuration enables the statistical information 67 f of the area set Ln to be generated with high accuracy.
F. Modifications
F-1. First Modification
[0078] In the embodiments described above, the reference areas D are defined by the polygon data PD-Pde. The method of defining the reference area D is, however, not limited to this method. For example, the reference area D may be defined by the latitude and the longitude of map data that represents a road network two-dimensionally.
F-2. Second Modification
[0079] The reference area D including the road area B and the intersection area C (shown in FIG. 4 ) may be specified by a different combination of the road area B and the intersection area C with regard to each traveling direction of the probe vehicle 10 . FIGS. 23 to 26 are diagrams illustrating examples of the reference area D in polygon data with regard to each traveling direction of the probe vehicle 10 . FIG. 23 illustrates a reference area D used when the probe vehicle 10 runs upward on the sheet surface. FIG. 24 illustrates a reference area D used when the probe vehicle 10 runs rightward on the sheet surface. FIG. 25 illustrates a reference area D used when the probe vehicle 10 runs downward on the sheet surface. FIG. 26 illustrates a reference area D used when the probe vehicle 10 runs leftward on the sheet surface. In summary, when the reference area D consists of the road area B and the intersection area C, the reference area D is provided by specifying the back side in the traveling direction as the road area B and the front side in the traveling direction as the intersection area C.
F-3. Third Modification
[0080] Part of the functions implemented by the software configuration in the above embodiments may be implemented by a hardware configuration, and part of the functions implemented by the hardware configuration may be implemented by a software configuration.
G. Sixth Embodiment
[0081] FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of a route search apparatus 101 using map information data as a type of traffic information data according to a sixth embodiment. The route search apparatus 101 includes a display part 102 configured to display map images and the like, a current location acquirer 103 configured to receive signals from a GPS or the like and calculate the current location, an operating part 104 configured to allow an operator of the route search apparatus 101 to perform desired operations, a controller 108 including a CPU 105 , a RAM 106 and a ROM 107 , and a storage device 111 including map database (DB) 109 and route database (DB) 110 .
[0082] The operating part 104 includes a pressure-sensitive touch panel placed on the surface of the display part 102 and allows the operator to input a desired instruction and the operator's request into the route search apparatus 101 by placing a finger at a position on the map or on a button displayed on the display part 102 .
[0083] The controller 108 controls the entire route search apparatus 101 in response to the operator's request via the operating part 104 . The CPU 105 loads and executes a program stored in the ROM 107 , on the RAM 106 , so as to serve as a current location/l destination identifier 112 , a processor (route searcher) 113 and a calculator (arrival time calculator/display) 114 and perform various processes described later. The program may be transferred from storage in a computer readable storage medium to the RAM 106 (or the ROM 107 configured by flash ROM) or may be downloaded from storage in a server or the like via a communication network. The recording device 111 and the calculator 114 constitute a travel time operation device.
[0084] The map DB 109 stores information required for display maps, such as passage information and background information of the entire country, Japan. The route DB 110 stores, for example, information regarding nodes representing intersections of passages and the like and information regarding links representing passages interconnecting the nodes.
[0085] With reference to FIG. 28 , the following describes the data structure of map information data used to calculate a route from a place of departure to a destination and traffic information such as travel time as the results of a route search process and/or a travel time calculation process performed by the route search apparatus 101 as described later.
[0086] FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a plurality of intersection areas (for example, a) and road areas (for example, link a to link g) interconnecting the intersection areas, which constitute a traffic network corresponding to roads on which the vehicle travels.
[0087] FIGS. 29 and 30 are diagrams showing the data structure of map information data that stores information regarding a plurality of intersection areas and a plurality of road areas interconnecting the intersection areas, which constitute a traffic network used in a route search process and/or a travel time calculation process performed by the route search apparatus 101 as described later. FIG. 29 is a diagram showing information regarding a road passing cost required for passing through each of the plurality of road areas with regard to each approach direction to the road area and each exit direction from the road area. FIG. 29 shows information with regard to the link d that is a road area. The other links are similarly provided with information on the road passing cost. The road area herein denotes an area from an exit of an intersection to an approach of an adjacent intersection in the exit direction). FIG. 30 is a diagram showing information regarding an intersection passing cost required for passing through each of the plurality of intersection areas with regard to each exit direction from the intersection area. FIG. 30 shows information with regard to the intersection α. The other intersections are similarly provided with information on the intersection passing cost. The intersection area herein denotes an area from an approach to an intersection to an exit from the intersection. The information regarding the road areas and the intersection areas shown in FIGS. 29 and 30 is part of the route DB 110 . The road passing cost denotes information on the travel time in a reference area (road area) determined by the method described in the second embodiment. The intersection passing cost denotes information on the travel time in a reference area (intersection area) determined by the method described in the second embodiment.
[0088] The link d as a road area is provided with information on nine road passing costs with regard to respective approach directions to the link d and respective exit directions from the link d. For example, in FIG. 29 , setting the link d to a target link ID indicates that the information regards the road passing cost of the link d. Setting the link e to an approach link ID indicates that the information regards approach from the link e to the target link d. Setting the link a to an exit link ID indicates that the information regards exit from the target link d to the link a.
[0089] The intersection α as an intersection area is provided with information on three intersection passing costs with regard to respective exit directions from the intersection α. For example, in FIG. 30 , setting the intersection α to a target intersection ID indicates that the information regards the intersection passing cost of the intersection α. Setting the link d to an approach link ID indicates that the information regards approach from the link d to the intersection α. Setting the link a to an exit link ID indicates that the information regards exit from the intersection α to the link a.
[0090] With reference to FIG. 31 , the following describes application of the map information data described above to a process of route search and calculation of a travel time to a destination. The processing described below is performed by the CPU 105 . The processing of FIG. 31 is triggered by an operator's instruction given to the route search apparatus 101 to start a route search.
[0091] On the start of processing shown in FIG. 31 , the CPU 105 first searches and identifies a node corresponding to a current location from information regarding the nodes stored in the route DB 110 , based on a signal from a GPS or the like input by the location acquirer 103 (step S 110 ). The CPU 105 subsequently searches and identifies a node corresponding to a destination from the information regarding the nodes stored in the route DB 110 , based on the destination entered by the operator (step S 120 ). This series of processes corresponds to the process of identifying the current location and the destination by the current location/destination identifier 112 .
[0092] The CPU 105 subsequently performs a route search for a shortest route from the node corresponding to the place of departure identified at step S 110 to the node corresponding to the destination identified at step S 120 by the known Dijkstra's algorithm or the like, and identifies links and nodes constituting the shortest route (step S 130 ). This process corresponds to the process of searching the route from the place of departure to the destination by the processor 113 . Instead of this route search, the operator may select a shortest route on the display part.
[0093] The CPU 105 subsequently reads the costs of the respective links and intersections constituting the route identified at step S 130 to the RAM 106 (step S 140 ) and sums up the costs of the respective links and intersections to calculate an arrival time to the destination (step S 150 ).
[0094] The CPU 105 then specifies the travel time calculated at step S 150 as a travel time required from the place of departure to the destination and displays an expected arrival time to arrive the destination on the display part. This series of processes corresponds to the process of calculating the travel time from the place of departure to the destination by the calculator 114 . This completes the processing shown in FIG. 31 .
[0095] As described above, according to this embodiment, each intersection area and each road area connecting with the intersection area are respectively provided with the costs with regard to each approach direction and each exit direction. This configuration allows for search for a route having the shortest time to the destination and enables the travel time to the destination to be calculated with high accuracy, compared with a configuration that provides each road area with only one cost irrespective of the approach direction and the exit direction. Additionally, the intersection area and the road area are provided with different costs. This enables the travel time to the destination to be calculated with high accuracy, even when the destination is set between an intersection and another intersection.
[0096] The invention is not limited to any of the embodiments and modifications described above but may be implemented by a diversity of other configurations without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the technical features of any of the embodiments and modifications corresponding to the technical features of each of the aspects described in Summary may be replaced or combined appropriately, in order to solve part or all of the problems described above. Any of the technical features may be omitted appropriately unless the technical feature is described as essential herein.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0000]
10 , 10 a 1 - 10 a 3 probe vehicles
20 information generation device
22 communicator
26 vehicle speed sensor
28 gyro sensor
29 time sensor
30 controller
31 location identifier
32 probe information generator
40 storage part
42 data accumulator
44 road shape data
46 road network data
60 server
61 statistical information storage part
62 probe information storage part
63 road shape database
68 road network database
67 , 67 b , 67 c , 67 e statistical information
69 information analyzer
90 collecting system
D reference area
N 1 node
P 1 boundary line
C 1 intersection area
B 1 road area
Q 1 running path
L 1 link
P 2 boundary line
Q 2 running path
L 3 link
N 3 node
F 3 packet
Q 3 running path
P 3 boundary line
Q 5 running path
L 5 link
PD polygon data
NE wireless communication network
SL stop line
TL pedestrian crossing
DN road network
Gi section information
Ln area set
P 60 starting point
P 70 end point
PDa polygon data
PDd polygon data
PDe polygon data
Lna starting point region
Lnb end point region
Lnc intermediate region
S 1 start point
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There is provided a method of collecting probe information generated during travel of a vehicle, comprising: (a) receiving probe information including travel time information of a reference area, from a vehicle traveling a reference area that includes at least one of an intersection area that is an area from an approach to an intersection to an exit from the intersection and a road area that connects with the intersection area and is an area from the exit of the intersection to an approach of another intersection adjacent to the intersection in an exit direction; and (b) storing the received probe information.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application is a division of copending Application Ser. No. 333,497, filed Feb. 20, 1973, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,214; issued Jan. 27, 1976, and entitled 2- OR 3-KETO-C-PHENYL-1,4-DISUBSTITUTED PIPERAZINES, said application Ser. No. 333,497 in turn being a continuation-in-part application of copending Application Ser. No. 848,395, filed July 23, 1969, and entitled 1,4-DISUBSTITUTED PHENYL PIPERAZINE COMPOUNDS, COMPOSITIONS CONTAINING SAME, AND PROCESS OF MAKING AND USING SAME, now abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to new and valuable phenyl piperazine compounds and more particularly to 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds of noteworthy therapeutic utility and to a process of making and using same.
2. Description of the Prior Art
ARCHER in U.S. Pat. No. 3,062,821 discloses 1,4-disubstituted-2-piperazinones of Formula I ##STR1## In said formula R represents lower alkyl;
X and X' represent hydrogen, lower alkoxy, or hydroxyl; and
Y hydrogen or lower alkyl.
Said 1-[2-(phenyl lower alkyl)]-4-lower alkyl-2-piperazinone compounds are useful intermediates in the preparation of compounds of Formula II ##STR2## in which R, X, X', and Y represent the same substituents as given hereinabove. These 1-[2-(phenyl lower alkyl)]-4-lower alkyl piperazine compounds are useful hypotensive agents.
DE BENNEVILLE in U.S. Pat. No. 3,390,139 discloses N-vinyl-2-piperazinones of Formula III ##STR3## in which R 1 is hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, aralkyl, alkyl substituted aralkyl, diaminoalkyl, or furfuryl;
R 2 is hydrogen or methyl;
R 3 is hydrogen, alkyl, cycloalkyl, phenyl, naphthyl, alkyl, chloro, or alkoxy substituted phenyl or naphthyl, aralkyl, alkyl substituted aralkyl, or 2-furyl;
R 4 is hydrogen or alkyl; and
R 5 is hydrogen or alkyl.
These compounds are polymerizable or copolymerizable compounds, the resulting polymers or copolymers are useful for many purposes. Higher members of the monomeric N-vinyl-2-piperazinones of Formula III show fungistatic and bacteriostatic activity and are useful for other purposes.
DE BENNEVILLE in U.S. Pat. No. 2,653,153 describes 4-N-substituted-2-ketopiperazines of Formula IV ##STR4## in which R is alkyl, tertiary aminoalkyl, or aralkyl; and
R' and R" are hydrogen or lower alkyl. These 4-N-substituted-2-ketopiperazines are valuable activators and synergists for insecticidal agents.
None of these compounds has found any noteworthy application in veterinary and human therapy.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is one object of the present invention to provide valuable 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds which have a surprising and pronounced effect upon blood coagulation and are useful, for instance, in the treatment of thrombotic diseases, especially those of the arterial system.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple and effective process of producing such valuable novel 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds.
A further object of the present invention is to provide pharmaceutical compositions containing, as active pharmaceutical agent, said novel 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method of therapeutically affecting blood coagulation by administering the novel 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds.
Other objects of the present invention and advantageous features thereof will become apparent as the description proceeds.
In principle, the new 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds according to the present invention correspond to the following formula V ##STR5## In said formula X, Y, and Z are the same or different substituents and may be either hydrogen, halogen, trifluoro lower alkyl, preferably trifluoro methyl, hydroxyl, lower alkoxy, preferably methoxy or ethoxy, or phenyl substituted lower alkoxy, such as benzyloxy;
R is di-(lower)alkylamino (lower)alkyl, and preferably dimethylamino ethyl, diethylamino ethyl, dipropylamino ethyl, dimethylamino propyl, diethylamino propyl, di-n-propylamino propyl, or lower alkyl substituted by one or two saturated monocyclic heterocyclic rings such as piperidino, pyrrolidino, piperazino, N-lower alkyl piperazino, 3-ketopiperazino, morpholino, or the like, preferably piperidino ethyl, morpholino ethyl, or dimorpholino propyl;
R 1 is lower alkyl with 1 to 3 carbon atoms; and ##STR6## is the group ##STR7##
The term "lower alkyl" in said substituents indicates alkyl with 1 to 5 carbon atoms. Thus the substituent in N 1 -position of the piperazine ring may be benzyl, phenyl ethyl, or phenyl propyl, or substituted benzyl, phenyl ethyl, phenyl propyl. Preferred substituents in the N 1 -aralkyl group are
One halogen atom in 2-; 3-; or 4-position.
Two halogen atoms in 2,3-; 2,4-; 2,5-; or 3,4- position and, if desired, also in 2,6-position.
Such halogen substituted compounds may also carry hydroxyl or lower alkoxy, preferably methoxy groups.
One lower alkoxy group, preferably one methoxy or ethoxy group in 4-position.
Three lower alkoxy groups, preferably in 3,4,5-position.
One phenyl lower alkoxy group, preferably the benzyloxy group in 2- or 4-position.
Two phenyl lower alkoxy groups, preferably the benzyloxy groups in 3,4-position.
Two hydroxyl groups, preferably in 2,3, and/or 4-position.
One trifluoro lower alkyl group, preferably the trifluoromethyl group in 3-position. addition
The phenyl radical in position 2 or 3 of the piperazine ring is always unsubstituted.
The basic lower alkylamino group in N 4 -position is preferably a group of the Formula VI ##STR8## in which R 2 is lower alkyl;
R 3 is hydrogen or a saturated five- or six-membered heterocyclic ring, preferably the morpholino ring attached by its heterocyclic nitrogen atom to the lower alkyl R 2 ; and
R 4 and R 5 are lower alkyl or, together with the nitrogen atom to which they are attached, form a saturated five- or six-membered heterocyclic ring, such as the pyrrolidino, piperidino, piperazino, or morpholino ring. The piperazino ring may be substituted at its other nitrogen atom by lower alkyl or by hydroxy lower alkyl to represent the N 4 -lower alkyl or N 4 -hydroxy lower alkyl piperazino ring or it may be substituted by a keto group to represent the 3-keto piperazino ring.
It is evident that the compounds according to the present invention represent two groups of compounds, namely
a. The N 1 -phenyl lower alkyl substituted 2- or 3-phenyl substituted N 4 -basically substituted 3- or 2-piperazone compounds of Formulas VII or VIII: ##STR9## and b. the N 1 -phenyl lower alkyl substituted 2- or 3-phenyl substituted N 4 -basically substituted piperazine compounds of Formulas IX and X: ##STR10##
In said Formulas VII to X the symbols R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , R 5 , X, Y, and Z represent the same substituents as indicated hereinabove.
Especially valuable compounds according to the present invention are compounds of the following Formula XI and XII: ##STR11## In said Formulas X 1 is hydrogen or lower alkoxy.
Y 1 and Z 1 are hydrogen, halogen, trifluoromethyl; hydroxyl, lower alkoxy, and phenyl lower alkoxy, whereby X 1 is lower alkoxy only if Y 1 and Z 1 are lower alkoxy;
R 1 is lower alkyl with 1 to 3 carbon atoms;
R 2 is lower alkyl;
R 3 is hydrogen or a saturated five- or six-membered heterocyclic ring, said heterocyclic ring being attached by its heterocyclic nitrogen atom to the lower alkyl R 2 ;
R 4 and R 5 are lower alkyl or, together with the nitrogen atom to which they are attached, form a saturated five- or six-membered heterocyclic ring.
According to the present invention the 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds of the above given Formulas have a pronounced effect upon the blood coagulation system. They act upon all processes which play an essential role in the formation of thromboses, such as their coagulation promoting effect due to their power of releasing the thrombocyte factor 3, their coagulation inhibiting effect, and their trombocytes aggregation and adhesion inhibiting effect. Thus the novel compounds of the present invention or their pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts are highly effective anticoagulants. They prolong the clotting time of blood on oral or parenteral administration of the required dose and have been found to inhibit platelet aggregation, such as induced by the addition of adenosine diphosphate, when added to platelet-rich plasma.
The compounds according to the present invention can be administered for their anticoagulant effect over a wide dosage area. For instance, a dosage of about 0.5 mg./kg. to 100 mg./kg. of body weight orally administered daily or on parenteral administration has proved to be highly effective.
The new compounds according to the present invention may find particular application in the treatment of thrombotic disease, especially of the arterial system, for instance, to inhibit thrombosis of the coronary or cerebral arteries.
The following new piperazine compounds according to the present invention have been found to be useful in therapy:
1-(4-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl)piperazine
1-(3,4-dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl)piperazine;
1-[(4-methoxy phenyl)-ethyl]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylaminoethyl)-piperazine;
1-[3-phenyl propyl-(1)]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl)-piperazine;
1-(4-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(piperidino ethyl) piperazine;
1-(4-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[1,3-dimorpholino propyl-(2)]piperazine;
1-(4-chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine.
The new piperazine compounds of the above given Formulas are obtained according to the present invention, for instance, by reacting a 1-R-substituted phenyl piperazine of Formula XIII. ##STR12## wherein ##STR13## and R represent the above given groups and substituents, with an aralkyl halogenide of Formula XIV ##STR14## wherein X, Y, Z, and R 1 represent the same substituents and numerals as given hereinabove, while
Hal is halogen.
Another method of producing the 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds according to the present invention comprises reacting a 1-aralkyl phenyl piperazine of Formula XV. ##STR15## wherein ##STR16## X, Y, Z, and R 1 represent the above given substituents, with a basically substituted alkyl halogenide of Formula XVI ##STR17## wherein
Hal is halogen and R represents the above given substituent.
A further method of producing the 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds according to the present invention comprises reacting a 1-aralkyl phenyl piperazine, substituted in the ω-position by a reactive group Q, preferably by a halogen atom, and having the general Formula XVII ##STR18## wherein ##STR19## X, Y, Z, and R 1 have the above given meaning, and R 6 is lower alkyl, with a corresponding secondary amine of the group consisting of a di-lower alkyl amine, such as dimethylamine, diethylamine, dipropylamine, or with piperidine, morpholine, pyrrolidine, piperazine, 3-ketopiperazine, or a lower N-alkyl piperazine.
If desired, the keto group in the resulting reaction product of Formula V, wherein ##STR20## is either ##STR21## is reduced to the methylene group, so as to yield compounds of Formula V wherein ##STR22## represents either ##STR23##
The resulting basically substituted phenyl piperazine compounds of Formula V may be converted, if desired, into their substantially non-toxic, pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts by methods well known to the art. Not only physiologically tolerable salt-forming inorganic acids, such hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, hydrobromic acid, and others, but also organic acids, such as acetic acid, propionic acid, benzoic acid, salicyclic acid, succinic acid, malonic acid, citric acid, tartaric acid, fumaric acid, and others can be used in the preparation of therapeutically valuable salts.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The following examples serve to illustrate the present invention without, however, limiting the same thereto.
EXAMPLE 1
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR24## Method A:
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine
44 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine obtained according to Example 1, Method A (a) of Application Ser. No. 333,497, are dissolved in 350 cc. of dioxane. The solution is added drop by drop to a suspension of 15 g. of lithium aluminum hydride LiAlH 4 in 800 cc. of ether while stirring thoroughly. After addition is completed, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for 12 hours. Thereafter, the lithium complex compound is decomposed and excess lithium aluminum hydride is destroyed by successively treating the reaction mixture with 15 cc. of a 15% sodium hydroxide solution, with 15 cc. of water, with 45 cc. of a 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and with 30 cc. of water. The inorganic precipitate is removed by filtration and the filtered solution is evaporated to dryness. The residue is recrystallized from isopropanol. 37 g. of pure white crystals of the melting point 103°-104° C. are obtained.
Method B:
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine
142.4 g. of 1(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared according to Example 1, Method A (a) of Application Ser. No. 333,497, are suspended in 400 cc. of benzene while stirring vigorously. 800 cc. of a 1.5 molar solution of dibutyl aluminum hydride are then allowed to run slowly to said suspension. Thereby the reaction mixture is caused to boil under reflux. Half an hour after the addition is completed, the mixture is cooled to 5° C. Excess dibutyl aluminum hydride is decomposed by careful addition of water. The precipitated aluminum hydroxide is dissolved in 40% sodium hydroxide solution. The separated organic layer is washed with 40% sodium hydroxide solution and then with water and is freed of its organic solvent by evaporation. The residue is recystallized from 1.5 l. of isopropanol.
Pure white crystals of the melting point 103°-104° C. are obtained in a yield corresponding to the theoretical yield. The resulting compound is identical with the compound obtained according to Method A given hereinabove as is proved by chromatography and infrared spectroscopy.
b. 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine
30 g. of the base prepared according to Methods A or B as described hereinabove are dissolved in 100 cc. of toluene. The solution is boiled under reflux with 20 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride and 20 g. of finely pulverized anhydrous potassium carbonate for 8 hours. By treating the reaction mixture with water, separating the toluene layer, extracting the base with hydrochloric acid, setting the base free from its hydrochloride solution by addition of ammonia, and dissolving it in benzene, the base is purified. After distilling off the solvent and repeated distillation in a vacuum, 34 g. of a yellow oil of the boiling point 188°-199° C./0.09 mm. Hg are obtained. Yield: 81% of the theoretical yield.
EXAMPLE 2
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR25##
a. 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine
140 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine are boiled under reflux with 163 g. of 3,4-dichloro benzylchloride in 1,600 cc. of acetone for 6 hours while 330 cc. of triethylamine are added. The hot reaction mixture is filtered to remove precipitated triethyl ammonium chloride and is concentrated by fractional distillation. The resulting crystal fractions are twice recrystallized from 4 l. of 96% ethanol.
162 g. of the above given reaction product of the melting point 195°-208° C. (with decomposition) are obtained. Yield: 52% of the theoretical yield.
b. 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine
132 g. of the keto piperazine prepared as described hereinabove under (a) are dissolved in 200 cc. of dioxane. Said solution is added drop by drop to a suspension of 21 g. of lithium aluminia hydride LiAlH 4 in 900 cc. of absolute ether while the suspension is exposed to vibration. After the addition is completed, the mixture is boiled under reflux for 12 hours. Successively 20 cc. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, 20 cc. of water, 60 cc. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and 40 cc. of water are added to the reaction mixture to cause decomposition of the complex compound formed. The filtrate is freed of solvent, the residue is distilled, and a viscous oil, boiling between 170° C./0.02 Torr. and 178° C./0.02 Torr., is obtained. The oil crystallizes on trituration with heptane. It is twice recrystallized from heptane. Yield: 110 g. corresponding to 87% of the theoretical yield.
c. 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl) piperazine
40 g. of the piperazine compound prepared according to the method described hereinabove under (b), are boiled under reflux with 18.5 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride in 250 cc. of acetone with the addition of 52 cc. of triethylamine for 12 hours. The triethyl ammonium-chloride formed thereby is filtered off. The resulting solution is concentrated by evaporation. Absolute ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added to the residue. The precipitated hydrochloride is washed with ethanol and is dissolved in water. The base is set free from its aqueous solution by the addition of ammonia and is extracted by means of benzene. After drying over anhydrous potassium carbonate and removing the solvent, 34 g. of a light yellow oil of the boiling point 192° C./0.03 mm. Hg are obtained. The yield is 65% of the theoretical yield.
EXAMPLE 3
1-[(4'-Methoxy phenyl) ethyl]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR26##
a. 1-[(4'-Methoxy phenyl)ethyl]-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine
140 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine, 148.5 g. of 4-methoxy phenyl ethylchloride, and 330 cc. of triethylamine in 1.6 l. of acetone are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. The acetone is distilled off. 300 cc. of dimethylformamide are added to the residue and the mixture is heated on the water bath for 36 hours. The major part of the dimethylformamide is distilled off in a vacuum. About 500 cc. of acetone and 150 cc. of triethylamine are added to the residue. The mixture is freed of triethylammoniumchloride by filtration while still boiling, and is cooled. After again distilling off the solvent, the remaining crystals are washed with petroleum ether and are triturated with water. The resulting solution is again filtered. On rendering the solution alkaline, the reaction product is precipitated initially in oily form. It crystallizes very rapidly. After recrystallizing the crystals three times from isopropanol pure white crystals of the melting point 142°-147° C. (with decomposition) are obtained. The yield is 110 g. corresponding to 44.7 % of the theoretical yield.
When carrying out the reaction from the beginning on in a mixture of dimethylformamide and triethylamine, the yield is lower than when proceeding as described hereinabove. This is due to formylation reaction taking place thereby.
b. 1-[(4'-Methoxyphenyl)-ethyl]-2-phenyl piperazine
29 g. of the keto piperazine prepared as described hereinabove under (a), are dissolved in 200 cc. of absolute dioxane. A suspension of 8 g. of lithium aluminum hydride LiAlH 4 in 700 cc. of absolute ether is added drop by drop to said solution while stirring vigorously. Thereafter, the mixture is boiled under reflux for 12 hours. After decomposing the reaction mixture by successive addition of 10 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution, 10 cc. of water, 30 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution, and finally of 20 cc. of water in the order given, the mixture is freed from the precipitated inorganic salts by filtration and the filtrate is concentrated by evaporation. Ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added to the residue and the hydrochloride precipitated thereby is filtered off by suction. The base is set free from the hydrochloride by the addition of sodium hydroxide solution. 23 g. of a viscous oil are obtained. The oil crystallizes after standing for some time. It has a boiling point of 180°-185° C./0.01 mm. Hg. The yield is 83 % of the theoretical yield.
c. 1-[(4'-Methoxy phenyl)-ethyl]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine
18 g. of the base obtained as described hereinabove under (b) are boiled under reflux with 30 g. of triethylamine and 12 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride in 120 cc. of acetone for 15 hours. The reaction solution is cooled, filtered, and freed of the solvent by concentration by evaporation. The residue is dissolved in dilute hydrochloric acid. The base is set free from its hydrochloride solution by the addition of ammonia, is extracted with benzene, and the benzene extract is again freed of its solvent. A mixture of acetone in ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added to the residue. The precipitated hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The base is again set free from its hydrochloride by the addition of ammonia and is distilled in a vacuum. 17 g. of a viscous oil of the boiling point 215° C./0.002 mm. Hg are obtained. The yield is 70 % of the theoretical yield.
EXAMPLE 4
1-[3'-Phenyl propyl-(1)]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR27##
a. 1-[3'-Phenyl propyl-(1)]-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine
140 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto-piperazine and 135 g. of 3-phenyl propylchloride(1) are heated on the water bath in 350 cc. of dimethylformamide with the addition of 330 cc. of triethylamine for 48 hours. The major portion of the dimethylformamide and the triethylamine are distilled off in a vacuum. The residue is dissolved in 2 l. of acetone. 150 cc. of triethylamine are added to said acetone solution. The mixture is boiled under reflux for 10 minutes. The solution is then cooled to 30° C. and is freed from triethyl ammoniumchloride by filtration. The keto-piperazine crystallizes from the resulting filtrate on cooling in a mixture of ice and sodium chloride. The crystals are purified by recrystallization from isopropanol and 50 % ethanol. 110 g. of white crystals of the melting point 114°-116° C. are obtained. The yield is 47 % of the theoretical yield.
b. 1-[3'-Phenyl propyl-(1)]-2-phenyl piperazine
43 g. of the keto-piperazine obtained as described hereinabove under (a) are dissolved in 200 cc. of dioxane and are reduced by the addition of 10 g. of lithium aluminum hydride LiAlH 4 suspended in 800 cc. of ether as described in the preceding examples. After decomposing the reaction mixture and recovering the base by purification via its hydrochloride, 30 g. of a viscous oil of the boiling point 155°-160° C./0.01 mm. Hg are obtained. The yield is 73 % of the theoretical yield.
c. 1-[3'-Phenyl propyl-(1)]-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine
23 g. of the base prepared as described hereinabove under (b) are boiled under reflux with 13.5 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride, 35 cc. of triethylamine, and 150 cc. of acetone for 10 hours. After recovering the base as described in the preceding examples and purifying it via its hydrochloride, 22 g. of a colorless oil of the boiling point 187°-189° C./0.01 mm. Hg are obtained. The yield is 70.5 % of the theoretical yield.
EXAMPLE 5
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(piperidino ethyl) piperazine ##STR28##
31 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example B), 25 g. of piperidino ethylchloride, 20 g. of triethylamine, and 250 cc. of acetone are boiled under reflux for 18 hours. The filtered reaction solution is freed of its solvent by concentration by evaporation. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is washed with water. After drying and distilling off the solvent, the base is obtained in the form of a viscous, yellow oil on distillation at 210° C./0.06 Torr. The oil crystallizes on trituration with isopropanol. After twice recystallizing the crystals from n-heptane (41 g. of yellow crystals of the melting point 85°-87° C.) are obtained. The yield is 95 % of the theoretical yield.
In place of acetone there may also be used other solvents, for instance, benzene, toluene, or xylene and, in place of triethylamine, for instance, pyridine, dimethylaniline, potassium carbonate, sodium amide or sodium hydride.
In a similar manner as described in Example 6 are obtained:
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-pyrrolidino ethyl) piperazine, boiling point 200°-205° C./0.05 mm. Hg; melting point of the hydrochloride 254°-258° C. (decomposition), by reaction of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine and pyrrolidino ethyl chloride.
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[4'-methyl piperazino ethyl-(1)]piperazine, boiling point 215°-217° C./0.005 mm. Hg; melting point of the hydrochloride 252°-270° C. (decomposition), by reaction of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine and 1-(3-chloro ethyl)-4-methyl piperazine.
EXAMPLE 6
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[1",3"-dimorpholino propyl(2")]-piperazine ##STR29##
31 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example B, 52 g. of 1,3-dimorpholino propylchloride-(2), prepared by chlorinating 1,3-dimorpholino propanol-(2), 25 g. of triethylamine, and 250 cc. of acetone are boiled under reflux for 48 hours. The base remaining after filtration and evaporation of the solvent is purified by dissolving it in hydrochloric acid and setting it free from its hydrochloride solution by the addition of ammonia. The base is dissolved in benzene, and the benzene solution dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. After distilling off the solvent, the residue is distilled in a vacuum of 0.1 Torr. The first fraction distilling over at a temperature up to 110° C. consists mainly of unreacted dimorpholino propylchloride. The remaining residue is dissolved in petroleum ether and is separated from undissolved matter by filtration after cooling. The solvent is distilled off and the remaining compound is purified by distillation in a vacuum. 34 g. of an oil of the boiling point 230° C./0.001 mm. Hg are obtained. The oil solidifies on standing.
EXAMPLE 7
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR30##
a. 1-(Diethylamino ethyl)-2-phenyl piperazine
1-(Diethylamino ethyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine is prepared by reacting N 1 -(diethylamino ethyl) ethylenediamine with α-chloro phenyl acetylchloride and isolating the above mentioned reaction product from the resulting mixture of isomers.
89 g. of said keto piperazine dissolved in 200 cc. of dioxane are added drop by drop to a suspension of 20 g. of lithium aluminum hydride LiAlH 4 in 800 cc. of ether. After addition of the keto piperazine, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for 6 hours. It is then decomposed by successively adding 20 cc. of 15% sodium hydroxide, 20 cc. of water, 60 cc. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally 40 cc. of water. The filtered solution is concentrated by evaporation and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. The resulting oil which distills at a temperature between 102° C. and 115° C./0.05 mm. Hg, is dissolved in benzene and is extracted therefrom by shaking in 10 % hydrochloric acid. The base is set free from its hydrochloride solution by the addition of 10 % sodium hydroxide solution and is repeatedly distilled in a vacuum. An almost colorless oil of the boiling point 114°-117° C./0.07 mm. Hg is obtained. The yield corresponds to the theoretical yield. The compound contains a small amount of 3-phenyl-1-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine.
b. 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl) piperazine
26 g. of the base prepared as described hereinabove under (a) are boiled under reflux with 17.7 g. of 4-chloro benzylchloride and 42 cc. of triethylamine in 200 cc. of acetone for 10 hours. After filtration and distilling off the solvent, the base is purified in the manner described hereinabove via its hydrochloride and is set free from said hydrochloride by the addition of ammonia. The residue is freed of the solvent and is dissolved in acetic acid ethyl ester. The hydrochloride is precipitated from said solution by the addition of absolute ethanolic hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloride is recrystallized from acetic acid ethyl ester. The base is set free from said hydrochloride by means of ammonia and is distilled in a vacuum. An almost colorless oil of the boiling point 180° C./0.01 mm. Hg is obtained. The yield is 30 g. corresponding to 78 % of the theoretical yield.
This compound can be distinguished by means of its infrared spectrum from the isomeric 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine by directly comparing both compounds.
EXAMPLE 8
1-(Diethylamino ethyl)-2-phenyl-4-(p-ethoxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR31##
(a) 1-Diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine
144 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine are boiled under reflux with 121 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride, 340 cc. of triethylamine, and 1600 cc. of acetone for 24 hours. The cooled solution is filtered to remove triethylamine hydrochloride and the filtrate is evaporated to dryness. The residue is dissolved in water, 40 % sodium hydroxide solution is added thereto, and the oil which forms as upper layer, is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate, the benzene is removed by distillation, and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. A light yellow, viscous oil of the boiling point 175° C./0.05 mm. Hg is obtained. The oil is twice recrystallized from n-heptane. 145 g. of the above mentioned compound melting at 53°-56° C. are obtained. The yield is 64 % of the theoretical yield.
b. 1-Diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine
89 g. of the keto piperazine prepared as described hereinabove under (a), are dissolved in 200 cc. of absolute dioxane. The solution is added to a suspension of 20 g. of lithium aluminum hydride LiAlH 4 in 800 cc. of absolute ether while exposing the mixture to vibration. After addition of the keto piperazine solution is completed, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for 6 hours. Thereafter it is decomposed by successive treatment with 21 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution, 21 cc. of water, 63 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution, and 42 cc. of water. The decomposed reaction mixture is filtered, the solvent is removed by distillation, and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. 65 g. of a light yellow oil of the boiling point 114°-117° C./0.05 mm. Hg are obtained. This oil corresponds to the above given compound. The yield is 77 % of the theoretical yield.
c. 1-Diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl-4-(p-ethoxy benzyl) piperazine
40 g. of the piperazine derivative prepared as described hereinabove under (b) are boiled under reflux with 27 g. of p-ethoxy benzylchloride in 400 cc. of acetone with the addition of 50 cc. of triethylamine for 12 hours. The triethyl ammonium hydrochloride formed thereby is filtered off. The acetone is removed by distillation. The residue is dissolved in benzene and the base is dissolved therefrom in the form of its hydrochloride by extraction with dilute hydrochloric acid. The base is set free from its hydrochloride solution by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. 39 g. of a light yellow viscous oil of the boiling point 200° C/0.05 mm. Hg are obtained. The yield is 64 % of the theoretical yield.
EXAMPLE 9
1-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl piperazine
1-Diethylamino ethyl-2-keto-3-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 1 B (a) of application Ser. No. 333,497, is reduced by following the procedure described hereinabove in Example 7 (a) whereby, in place of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-keto-2-phenyl piperazine, the equimolecular amount of said 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-keto-3-phenyl piperazine is reduced. The resulting 3-phenyl piperazine compound is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 102° C./0.02 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 10
1-Benzyloxy benzyl-2-phenyl piperazine
1-Benzyloxy benzyl-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared according to Example 12, is reduced by following the procedure described hereinabove in Example 8 (a) whereby, in place of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-keto-2-phenyl piperazine, the equimolecular amount of said 1-benzyloxy benzyl-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine is used. The resulting 2-phenyl piperazine compound is obtained in the form of white crystals melting at 140-141° C.
EXAMPLE 11
1-(3',4',5'-Trimethoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine
1-(3',4',5'-Trimethoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared according to Example 13, is reduced by following the procedure described hereinabove in Example 8 (a) whereby, in place of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-keto-2-phenyl piperazine, the equimolecular amount of said 1-(3',4',5'-trimethoxy benzyl-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine is used. The resulting 2-phenyl piperazine compound is obtained in the form of a yellow oil boiling at 185-195° C./0.08 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 12
1-[3'-(4"-Methoxy phenyl) propyl(1) ]-2-phenyl piperazine
1-[3'-(4"-Methoxy phenyl) propyl(1)]-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared according to Example 14, is reduced by following the procedure described hereinabove in Example 8 (a) whereby, in place of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-keto-2-phenyl piperazine, the equimolecular amount of said 1-[3'-(4"-methoxy phenyl) propyl(1)]-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine is used. The resulting 2-phenyl piperazine is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 176° C./0.05 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 13
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-keto-3-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine prepared according to Example 10, is reduced by following the procedure described hereinabove in Example 8 (a) whereby, in place of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-keto-2-phenyl piperazine, the equimolecular amount of said 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-keto-3-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine is used. The resulting 3-phenyl piperazine compound is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 180° C./0.01 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 14
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-dimethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 3 (b), is alkylated by following the procedure described in Example 3 (c), whereby, in place of the diethylamino ethylchloride, the equimolecular amount of dimethylamino ethylchloride is used. The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 190° C./0.01 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 15
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-morpholino ethyl piperazine
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 3 (b), is akylated by following the procedure described in Example 3 (c) whereby, in place of diethylamino ethylchloride, the equimolecular amount of morpholino ethylchloride is used. The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 230° C./0.04 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 16
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino propyl piperazine
1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 2 (b), is alkylated by following the procedure described in Example 2 (c) whereby, in place of the diethylamino ethylchloride, the equimolecular amount of diethylamino propylchloride is used. The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 210° C./0.04 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 17
1-(4'-Benzyloxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-(4'-Benzyloxy benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 10, is alkylated by means of diethylamino ethylchloride by following the procedure described in Example 2 (c). The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a light yellow oil boiling at 235° C./0.01 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 18
1-(3',4',5'-Trimethoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-(3',4',5'-Trimethoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 11, is alkylated by means of diethylamino ethylchloride by following the procedure described in Example 2 (c). The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of yellow oil boiling at 200° C./0.03 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 19
1-[3'-(4"-Methoxy phenyl) propyl(1)]-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-[3'-(4"-Methoxy phenyl) propyl(1)]-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 12, is alkylated by means of diethylamino ethylchloride by following the procedure described in Example 2 (c). The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a yellow oil boiling at 130°-190° C./0.01 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 20
1-(4'-Ethoxy benzyl)-3-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine
1-Diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine prepared according to Example 7 (a), is reacted with 4-ethoxy benzylchloride by following the procedure described in Example 7 (b) and using, in place of 4-chloro benzylchloride, the equimolecular amount of 4-ethoxy benzylchloride. The resulting reaction product is obtained in the form of a yellow oil boiling at 200° C./0.05 mm. Hg.
EXAMPLE 21
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylamino ethyl) piperazine ##STR32##
A. 1-(4-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-hydroxy ethyl) piperazine ##STR33##
a. 30 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine, prepared according to Example 1 A), 20 g. of ethylene chlorohydrin, 20 g. of triethylamine and 250 cc. of methyl ethyl ketone are boiled under reflux for 24 hours. After cooling, the triethylamine hydrochloride formed thereby is removed by filtration, the filtrate is evaporated in a vacuum, the residue is dissolved in benzene, the benzene solution is washed with water and dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. The benzene is removed by distillation and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. A yellow, viscous oil of the boiling point 195° C./0.01 mm. Hg is obtained. The oil is twice recrystallized from isopropanol and then from n-heptane. Melting point 91-94° C.; yield 22 g.
b. A mixture of 28.6 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine, 6.0 g. of ethylene oxide and 200 cc. of methanol is let standing for 4 days in a closed flank at room temperature. Then the methanol is distilled off and the residue is distilled at 193° C./0.01 mm. Hg. The base is twice recrystallized from n-heptane, whereby a product having a melting point of 91°-94° C. is obtained. Yield 19 g.
c. 50 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine are dissolved in 100 cc. of dioxane. To this solution are added 31 g. of acetylglycolic acid chloride, dissolved in 50 cc. of dioxane. The mixture boiled for 2 hours under reflux. The dioxane is distilled off in a vacuum and the residue is dissolved in benzene; the benzene solution is washed with an aquous 10 % sodium hydroxide solution and is dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is recrystallized three times from isopropanol. Melting point 136°-137° C.; yield 46 g.
44 g. of the piperazine derivative obtained as above are dissolved in 120 cc. of absolute dioxane and added slowly drop to drop to a suspension of 10 g. of LiAlH 4 in 700 cc. of absolute ether. The mixture is boiled under reflux for 2.5 hours. It is then decomposed by adding 10 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution, 10 cc. of water, 30 cc. of 15 % sodium hydroxide solution and 20 cc. of water. The precipitated inorganic material is separated by filtration and the solvent is distilled in a vacuum. The residue is recrystallized three timed from n-heptane. The obtained compound has a melting point of 91°-94° C. Yield 17 g.
B. 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(2-chloro ethyl)pierazine hydrochloride. ##STR34##
24 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-hydroxy ethyl) piperazine are dissolved in 150 cc. of chloroform and added drop by drop to a solution of 15 g. of thionyl chloride in 150 cc. of chloroform. The mixture is boiled under reflux for 5 hours and the solvent is removed in a vacuum by heating the mixture in a water bath. Excess of absolute ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added and the remaining acid is distilled off. The crystalline residue obtained is recrystallized from absolute ethanol. Melting point 178°-195° C. (dec.); yield 30 g.
C. 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(diethylaminoethyl) piperazine.
20 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-chloro ethyl) piperazine hydrochloride, 14 g. of diethylamine and 200 cc. of acetone are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. After cooling, the precipitated diethylamino hydrochloride is filtered off with suction and the solvent of the filtrate is evaporated in a vacuum. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. 15 g. of a light yellow oil having a boiling point of 190° C./0.06 mm. Hg are obtained. This product is identical with the product as obtained according to Example 1 B.
EXAMPLE 22
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[(4"-methyl)-piperazino ethyl-(1)] piperazine. ##STR35##
47 g. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-chloro ethyl) piperazine hydrochloride, 16.5 g. of N-methyl piperazine, 75 cc. of triethylamine and 300 cc. of methyl ethyl ketone are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. After cooling the precipitated triethylamino hydrochloride is filtered off with suction and the solvent is distilled off in a vacuum. The residue is dissolved in benzene, the benzene solution is washed with water and dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is disssolved in absolute ethanol. Absolute ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added to precipitate the hydrochloride salt. After cooling the precipitation is separated by filtration, washed with absolute ethanol and dried. Melting point 250°-269° C. (decomposition). To obtain the free base the hydrochloride is dissolved in water and the base is set free from its hydrochloride solution by the addition of ammonia and extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate, the solvent is distilled off and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point 220-223° C./0.01 mm. Hg. Yield 30 g.
EXAMPLE 23
1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[(3"-keto)piperazino ethyl-(1")] piperazino.
25 g. of 1-(4"-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-chloro ethyl) piperazine hydrochloride, 7.3 g. of mono keto piperazine, 200 cc. of methyl ethyl ketone and 200 cc. of triethylamine are boiled for 24 hours under reflux. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off with suction. Then, the solvent is evaporated, the residue is dissolved in benzene and the benzene solution is washed with water and dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is distilled at 230°-250° C./0.06 mm. Hg (minor decomposition). The distilled product is dissolved in ether, washed with 0.5N hydrochloric acid. The extract obtained with the diluted hydrochloric acid is treated with carbon aand after filtration, the base is set free from said solution by use of ammonia. The base is dissolved in benzene, dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate and after evaporation of the solvent, the residue is distilled at 220°-230° C. (air bath temperature)/0.005 mm. Hg. A very viscous, brownish oil is obtained.
The acid addition salts of the bases according to the present invention are prepared in a manner known per se. For instance, anhydrous ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added to the base whereby the hydrochloride precipitates and is isolated by filtration. Or the base is triturated with the equimolecular amount of the respective acid either as such or in aqueous solution or in solution in an organic solvent and, if required, evaporating the solvent.
Specific procedures to prepare the acid addition salts are the following:
To prepare the hydrochlorides, the bases are dissolved in absolute ethanol and an equimolecular amount of abslute ethanolic hydrochloric acid is added. After cooling, the precipitated hydrochloride is separated by filtration and recrystallised from absolute ethanol or isopropanol.
The succinates or fumarates, respectively, may be obtained using an equimolar amount succinic acid or fumaric acid, respectively, which is added and to the base dissolved in acetone. After boiling under reflux, e.g. for 2 hours, the mixture is cooled and the precipitated salts are separated. The so obtained salts are pure for analysis. In case that the fumarates or succinates, respectively, are not separated from the mixture in crystalline form, the solvent is evaporated and the remaining syrup is triturated to induced crystallization. Recrystallization may be effected by use of ethyl acetate.
To prepare the sulfates, the base is dissolved in absolute ethanol and an equimolecular amount of dilute sulfuric acid is added. The obtained sulfates may be recrystallized from ethanol.
The preparation of the phosphates may be effected by dissolution of the base in absolute ethanol, and addition of an equimolecuar amount of dilute phosphoric acid. The phosphate may be precipitated by use of acetic acid ethyl ester and may be recrystallized by use of isopropanol.
The following acid addition salts have been prepared and isolated:
__________________________________________________________________________Ex- Acid addi-ampleBase tion salt Melting point__________________________________________________________________________24 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl- Dihydro- 255-1270° C. with4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine chloride decomposition25 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2- Dihydro- 220-222° C.phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl chloridepiperazine26 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2- o-Phos- 220-226° C.phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl phatepiperazine27 1-(3',4'-Dichloro benzyl)-2- Sulfate 210-214° C.phenyl-4-diethylamino ethylpiperazine28 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl- Succinate 156-158° C.4-piperidino ethyl piperazine29 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4- Fumar- 190° C. sublimatespiperidino ethyl piperazine ate 250-251° C. with de- composition30 1-[(4'-Methoxy phenyl)ethyl]- Hydro- 190-201° C.2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl chloridepiperazine31 1-[3"-Phenyl propyl(1)]-2- Hydrochloride 185-192° C.piperazine32 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl- Hydrochloride 241-255° C.4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine with decom- position33 1-(4'-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl- Succin- 95-101° C.4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine ate__________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLE 34
4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-o-hydroxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR36##
a. 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-(o-acetoxy benzoyl)piperazine is prepared by boiling under reflux 15 g. of 1-diethylaminoethyl-2-phenyl-piperazine dissolved in 100 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone with 11 g. of acetyl salicyclic acid chloride dissolved in 50 ml. methyl ethyl ketone, for 6 hours. The solvent is removed by distillation. The residue is dissolved in water. The aqueous solution is extracted with benzene. Ammonia is added to the aqueous layer until its reaction is alkaline and the thus precipitated oil is extracted with benzene. The benzene extract is dried by means of potassium carbonate and the benzene is distilled off. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 190° C./0.01 mm. (bath temperature). Light yellow, viscous oil.
b. 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-(o-hydroxy benzoyl) piperazine is obtained by dissolving the reaction product prepared as described hereinabove under (a) in 100 ml. of dilute hydrochloric acid (2 : 100). The solution is heated to 50° C. for one hour an is then rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated viscous product is extracted with benzene, the benzene solution is dried by means of potassium carbonate. The benzene is removed by distillation and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 180° C./0.001 mm. (bath temperature). Light yellow, vitreous product.
c. 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-(o-hydroxy benzyl) piperazine is obtained by dissolving 40 g. of 4-diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-(o-hydroxy benzoyl) piperazine in 150 ml. of dioxane and slowly adding said solution to a suspension of 6 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in 800 ml. of absolute ether. The reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for two hours. The resulting complex compound is decomposed by a treatment with 5 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution followed by 5 ml. of water, 15 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally 10 ml. of water. The resulting precipitate is filtered off and the solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 180° C./0.001 mm. (bath temperature). Yellow oil.
EXAMPLE 35
1-(p-Hydroxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine ##STR37##
a. 1-(4-Benzyloxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine is obtained by boiling under reflux 48 g. of 4-benzyloxybenzyl chloride, 35 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine, 500 ml. of acetone, and 50 ml. of triethylamine for 14 hours. Thereafter, the acetone is distilled off and the residue is treated with water. The precipitated crystals are filtered of and are recrystallized from dioxane and thereafter from a mixture of dimethylformamide and water (1 : 1). Melting point: 207°-211° C. White crystals.
b. 1-(4-Benzyloxybenzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine is obtained by suspending 39 g. of the compound prepared according to (a) hereinabove in 150 ml. of dioxane. The suspension is added to a suspension of 10 g. of lithium aluminum hydride (LiAlH 4 ) in 900 ml. of ether. The resulting mixture is boiled under reflux for two hours. The complex compound formed thereby is decomposed by treatment with 10 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, followed by a treatment with 10 ml. of water, 30 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally with 20 ml. of water. The decomposed mixture is filtered. The filter residue is discarded. The filtrate is evaporated to dryness and the evaporation residue is recrystallized from dioxane. melding point: 140°-141° C., white crystals.
c. 1-(4-Benzyloxybenzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine is obtained by boiling under reflux 25 g. of the compound prepared according to (b) hereinabove with 10.5 g. of diethylaminoethyl chloride, 30 ml. of triethylamine. and 200 ml. of acetone for six hours. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off. The acetone is distilled of and the residue is dissoved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with dilute hydrochloric acid (1 : 10). The acid solution is made alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated oil is extracted with benzene. After distilling off the benzene, the residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 235° C./0.01 mm. Yellow oil.
d. 1-(p-Hydroxybenzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine is obtained by dissolving 15 g. of the compound prepared as described under (c) in 500 ml. of toluene. 5 g. of palladium deposited on asbestos are added thereto. Hydrogen is passed into the solution under a positive pressure of 15 mm. mercury. Progress of the hydrogenating debenzylation is ascertained by thin-layer chromatography. Introduction of hydrogen is discontinued after 20 hours. The catalyst is filtered off. The toluene is distilled off and the residue is triturated with petroleum ether. The precipitated crystals are filtered off by suction. The filter residue is dissolved in warm acetone and is precipitated by the addition of petroleum ether. After filtering off by suction the precipitate and drying it, white crystals of the melting point 108°-112° C. are obtained.
EXAMPLE 36
1-(3,4-Dihydroxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine ##STR38## The compound is prepared in an analogous manner as described in Example 35 by using as starting material 1-(3,4-dibenzyloxybenzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine. Light yellow, very viscous oil. Boiling point: 245° C./0.001 mm.
EXAMPLE 37
4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl-1-(3,4-dibenzyloxy benzyl) piperazine hydrochloride. ##STR39## 30 g. of 3,4-dibenzyloxy benzylchloride, 23 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine, 20 ml. of triethylamine, and 200 ml. of methylethylketone are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with dilute hydrochloric acid (1 : 8). The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene is removed from the benzene extract by distillation. Water-free alcoholic hydrochloric acid is added to the residue, and the hydrochloride of the resulting base is precipitated by the addition of a mixture of petroleum ether and acetone (1 : 1). The hydrochloride is redissolved in alcohol and is again precipitated by the addition of petroleum ether and acetone. Melting point of the hydrochloride: It starts to sublimate at 203° C. and melts at 235°-239° C. with decomposition. White crystals.
EXAMPLE 38
1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-morpholino ethyl-3-keto piperazine ##STR40##
45 g. of 1-(4-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine,
56 g. of morpholino ethylchloride,
50 g. of potassium carbonate, and
500 ml. of toluene
are boiled under reflux for 20 hours. Water is added to the reaction mixture and undissolved matter is filtered off therefrom. The clear toluene solution is extracted with 250 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The extract is rendered strongly alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying the benzene extract, the solvent is distilled off and the residue is recrystallized from isopropanol, yielding a first crystal fraction. The mother lye is concentrated by evaporation to a small volume and is cooled. Precipitated crystals are filtered off by suction. They represent the second crystal fraction. Since both fractions still contain unreacted starting material, they are triturated with 60 ml. of N acetic and undissolved matter is filtered off. The clear acetic acid solution is rendered strongly alkaline by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene is distilled off after drying the extract. The remaining residue is recrystallized from isopropanol. Melting point: 117°-119° C. Yield: 10 g.
EXAMPLE 39
1-(2-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-morpholino ethyl-3-keto piperazine ##STR41## 45 g. of 1-(2-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine obtained as described in Example 46 (a),
56 g. of morpholino ethyl chloride,
50 g. of potassium carbonate, and
500 ml. of toluene
are boiled under reflux for 20 hours. The reaction mixture is poured into water. Undissolved matter is separated. The toluene solution is extracted with 250 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered strongly alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying, the solvent is distilled off from the extract. The residue is dissolved in 100 ml. of N acetic acid. The crystals formed after allowing the solution to stand for a short period of time, are separated. The acetic acid filtrate is rendered strongly alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying the benzene extract and distilling off the solvent, the residue is recrystallized from ispropanol. Melting point: 104°-106° C. Yield: 8.5 g.
EXAMPLE 40
1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-dimethylamino propyl piperazine ##STR42## 28.6 g. of 1-(p-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine, 15.0 g. of dimethylaminopropylchloride,
50 ml. of triethylamine, and
100 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 20 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in 100 cc. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is twice washed with benzene and is then rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The oily base is separated in a separating funnel and is dissolved in 100 ml. of isopropanol. Solid potassium hydroxide is added to the isopropanol solution in order to remove the water present therein. The isopropanol solution is then filtered through a layer of potassium carbonate. After distilling off the solvent, a yellow viscous oil is obtained. The oil is dissolved in 1.5 liters of petroleum ether. Small amounts of impurities are filtered off and the petroleum ether is distilled off. The crude base is dissolved in benzene and is extracted with 25% acetic acid. The base is set free from said extract by the addition of ammonia. The base is again dissolved in benzene and dried by means of potassium carbonate. The solvent is distilled off and the residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 180°-184° C./0.08 mm. Yield: 14 g.
EXAMPLE 41
1-(3,4-Dibenzyloxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine fumarate ##STR43##
a. 23.2 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine,
50.0 g. of 3,4-dibenzyloxy benzylchloride,
30 ml. of triethylamine, and
300 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 3 hours. After cooling, precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is then distilled off. The residue is dissolved in 50 ml. of acetone. The acetone solution is poured into 500 ml. of water. The precipitated crystallized product is filtered off and is twice recrystallized from isopropanol. Melting point: 108°-110° C. Yield 46 g.
b. 44 g. of the compound as described hereinabove under (a) are suspended into
250 ml. of dioxane.
The suspension is added drop by drop to a suspension of
7 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in
500 ml. of ether.
Thereafter the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for one hour. After decomposing the lithium aluminum hydride complex compound, the ethereal solution is separated, the ether is distilled off, and the residue is recrystallized from isopropanol. Melting point: 54°-55° C. Yield: 25 g.
c. 25 g. of the compound obtained as described hereinabove under (b),
9 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride,
15 ml. of triethylamine, and
150 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 10 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The filtrate is evaporated by distillation to dryness and the residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is washed with 20% sodium hydroxide solution. The washed benzene layer is separated and extracted with 150 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The base is set free from said hydrochloric acid extract by the addition of ammonia. It is extracted therefrom with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in 100 ml. of acetone. 5 g. of fumaric acid are added to said solution which is heated to boiling on the water bath. Small amounts of insoluble matter are filtered off and the solution is cooled. The precipitated fumarate is recrystallized from 96% ethanol. Melting point: 152°-154° C. Yield: 22 g.
EXAMPLE 42
1-(o-benzyloxy-benzyl)- 2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine ##STR44##
a. 38 g. of 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine,
52 g. of o-benzyloxy benzylchloride,
50 ml. of triethylamine, and
400 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for four hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The methyl ethyl ketone is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in isopropanol and water is added thereto, while heating, until crystallization sets in. Melting point: 159°-160° C. Yield: 50 g.
b. 39 g. of the compound prepared as described hereinabove under (a) are dissolved in
100 ml. of anhydrous dioxane.
The solution is added drop by drop to a suspension of
10 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in 900 ml. of absolute ether. Thereafter the mixture is boiled under reflux for one and a half hours. The resulting lithium aluminum hydride complex compound is decomposed by a treatment with 10 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution followed by a treatment with 10 ml. of water, 30 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally 20 ml. of water. The solution is filtered. The solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in benzene and the benzene solution is extracted with 300 ml. of N/2 hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered strongly alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the benzene is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 205° C./0.03 mm. The base is then recrystallized twice from n-heptane. Melting point: 82°-85° C. Yield: 35 g.
c. 30 g. of the compound prepared as described hereinabove under (b),
12.5 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride,
30 ml. of triethylamine, and
150 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with 300 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The base is precipitated from the hydrochloric acid extract by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is then extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried by means of potassium carbonate and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 230°-235° C./0.03 mm. Yield: 25 g.
EXAMPLE 43
1-(p-Methoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino propyl piperazine ##STR45##
28 g. of 1-(p-methoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 3 (b),
20 g. of diethylamino propylchloride,
50 ml. of triethylamine, and
200 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. Precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off. The solvent is removed by distillation. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with an acetic acid-water mixture 1 : 7). The acetic acid solution is separated from the benzene solution and is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated oily base is extracted in benzene, dried by means of potassium carbonate, and the benzene is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 200° C./0.01 mm.
The crude base is dissolved in 100 ml. of absolute ethanol and the solution is acidified by the addition of absolute alcoholic hydrochloric acid to a pH of 1.0. The precipitated hydrochloride is filtered off by suction and dried. The salt starts to sublimate at 200° C. and melts at 228°-231° C. with decomposition. The hydrochloride is dissolved in water. The base is set free by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene is distilled off from the benzene solution. The remaining base is again distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 210° C./0.02 mm. Colorless oil. Yield: 21 g.
EXAMPLE 44
1-(3-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine ##STR46##
a. 17.5 g. of 1-(3-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine obtained as described in Example 44 (a) of Application Ser. No. 333,497
are suspended in 50 ml. of absolute dioxane. The suspension is added drop by drop, while stirring, to a suspension of
4.5 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in
400 ml. of absolute ether.
Thereafter, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for one and a half hours. The resulting complex compound is decomposed by a treatment first with
4.5 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide followed by a treatment with 4.5 ml. of water,
14.5 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally 9.0 ml. of water.
The hydroxide precipitate is filtered off and the solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in 20 ml. of N acetic acid. After allowing the solution to stand for 24 hours, the solid precipitate is filtered off. The filtrate is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying the benzene solution, the solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in 30 ml. of absolute ethanol and is adjusted to a pH of 1.0 by the addition of absolute alcoholic hydrochloric acid. The precipitated hydrochloride is filtered off by suction and dried. Melting point: 239°-242° C. The hydrochloride is dissolved in water. The base is set free by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. After drying the benzene solution and distilling off the benzene, the oily residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 145° C./0.05 mm. Colorless oil.
b. 10 g. of the base obtained as described hereinabove under (a),
150 ml. of acetone,
9.0 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride, and
10 ml. of triethylamine
are boiled under reflux for 14 hours. The reaction mixture is cooled and the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The filtrate is evaporated to dryness. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with 100 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is then dried by means of potassium carbonate and the benzene is distilled off. The remaining residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 170° C./0.07 mm. Yellowish, mobile oil. Yield: 12 g.
EXAMPLE 45
1-(2-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine ##STR47##
a. 51 g. of 1-(2-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared as described in Example 46 (a) of Application Serial No. 333,497 are suspended in
100 ml. of dioxane.
The suspension is added to a suspension of
11 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in
700 ml. of absolute ether and
50 ml. of dioxane,
while stirring. Thereafter, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for one and a half hours. The resulting complex compound is decomposed first by a treatment with
11 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution followed by a treatment with
11 ml. of water,
33 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally with
22 ml. of water.
After filtering off by suction the hydroxide precipitate, the solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in 100 ml. of absolute ethanol and 35 ml. of alcoholic hydrochloric acid (about 8 N) are added thereto. The precipitated hydrochloride is filtered off by suction, washed, and dried. Melting point: 276°-277° C. The hydrochloride is dissolved in water. The base is set free therefrom by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 136° C./0.08 mm. Yield: 38 g.
b. 10 g. of the base obtained as described hereinabove under (a),
150 ml. of acetone,
9 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride, and
10 ml. of triethylamine
are boiled under reflux for 14 hours. The reaction mixture is cooled and the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The filtrate is then evaporated to dryness. The residue is dissolved in water and is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is separated from the aqueous phase and is extracted with 50 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the base set free thereby is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried by means of potassium carbonate and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 160° C./0.05 mm. Yield: 11.5 g.
EXAMPLE 46
1-(3-Trifluoromethyl benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine ##STR48##
a. 60 g. of 1-(3-trifluoromethyl benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine prepared as described in Example 51 (a) of Application Serial No. 333,497 are dissolved in
120 ml. of dioxane.
The solution is added drop by drop to a suspension of
14 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in
700 ml. of absolute ether and
50 ml. of dioxane,
while stirring. Thereafter, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for two hours. The resulting complex compound is decomposed first by a treatment with
14 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution followed by a treatment with
14 ml. of water,
42 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally
28 ml. of water.
The hydroxide precipitate is filtered off and the solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in 200 ml. of absolute ethanol and 35 ml. of an absolute alcoholic solution of hydrochloric acid (8 N) added thereto. The precipitated hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. It is washed with a mixture of acetic acid ethyl ester and alcohol (1 : 1) and is dried. The resulting hydrochloride is dissolved in a small amount of water. The base is set free from said solution by the addition of ammonia and is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 120° C./0.05 mm. Yield: 40 g.
b. 10 g. of the base obtained as described hereinabove under (a),
150 ml. of acetone,
9 g. of diethylamino ethylchloride, and
10 ml. of triethylamine
are boiled under reflux for 14 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is washed once with water and is then extracted with 50 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The base set free thereby which forms the upper layer is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 147° C./0.05 mm. Yellowish, mobile oil. Yield: 12.5 g.
EXAMPLE 47
1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-piperazino ethyl piperazine ##STR49##
5 g. of 1-(p-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[(3-keto)piperazino ethyl] piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 23 are dissolved in
100 ml. of absolute dioxane.
The solution is added drop by drop to a suspension of 5 g. of lithium aluminum hydride in 500 ml. of absolute ether. After addition is completed, the reaction mixture is boiled under reflux for two hours. The resulting complex compound is then decomposed first by the addition of
5 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution followed by the addition of
5 ml. of water,
5 ml. of 15% sodium hydroxide solution, and finally
10 ml. of water.
The inorganic hydroxides are filtered off from the reaction mixture and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with dilute acetic acid (1 : 10). Ammonia is added to the acetic acid solution. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the benzene is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 190° C./0.05 mm. Very viscous yellow oil. Yield: 3 g.
EXAMPLE 48
1-(p-Methoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-piperidino ethyl piperazine ##STR50##
13 g. of 1-(p-methoxy benzyl)-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 4 (b),
10 g. of piperidino ethylchloride,
40 cc. of triethylamine, and
100 cc. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled under reflux for 18 hours. Without separating the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride the solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in benzene and water. The aqueous phase is separated and the benzene solution is extracted with dilute acetic acid (1 : 6). The acetic acid solution is then precipitated by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene, dried by means of potassium carbonate, and the benzene is distilled off. The base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 210° C./0.001 mm. Light yellow, viscous oil. Yield: 15 g.
EXAMPLE 49
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-(3,4,5-trimethoxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR51##
20 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine prepared as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
17 g. of 3,4,5-trimethoxy benzylchloride,
250 ml. of acetone, and
20 ml. of triethylamine
are boiled under reflux for 8 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The acetone is distilled off in a vacuum. The residue is dissolved in benzene, and the benzene solution is extracted with 50 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying by means of potassium carbonate, the solvent is distilled off. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 210° C./0.05 mm. Yellowish, viscous oil. Yield: 19 g.
EXAMPLE 50
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(p-chloro phenyl ethyl) piperazine ##STR52##
20 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
17 g. of p-chloro phenyl ethylchloride,
20 ml. of triethylamine, and
100 ml. of dimethylformamide
are heated on the water bath for 12 hours. The dimethylformamide is then distilled off in a vacuum. The residue is dissolved in acetone. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction and the acetone is distilled off from the filtrate. The resulting base is dissolved in benzene and extracted with 50 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is precipitated by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried by means of potassium carbonate and the benzene is distilled off therefrom. The remaining base is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 190° C./0.02 mm. Yield: 13 g.
EXAMPLE 51
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(o-benzyloxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR53##
27 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine prepared as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
27 g. of 2-benzyloxy benzyl chloride,
25 ml. of triethylamine, and
250 ml. of acetone
are boiled under reflux for 4 hours. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The acetone is removed by distillation. The residue is dissolved in benzene and water. The benzene solution is separated from the aqueous phase and is extracted with 100 ml. of 0.5 N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. After drying the benzene extract, the solvent is distilled off. Boiling point: 232° C./0.03 mm. Yellowish oil. Yield: 26 g.
EXAMPLE 52
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(p-benzyloxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR54##
30 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
100 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone,
50 ml. of triethylamine, and
24 g. of p-benzyloxy benzylchloride
are boiled under reflux for 12 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The methyl ethyl ketone is distilled off from the filtrate. The residue is dissolved in benzene and water. The benzene solution is separated from the aqueous phase and is extracted with 250 ml. of 0.1 N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. Boiling point of the remaining base: 245° C./0.005 mm. Yellow, very viscous oil. The base is dissolved in a small amount of ethanol and its hydrochloride is precipitated from the solution by the addition of absolute alcoholic hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloride is filtered off by suction and is dried. The hydrochloride is dissolved in water. The base is set free by the addition of ammonia, extracted with benzene, dried, and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is recrystallized from petroleum ether. Melting point: 58° C. Yield: 33 g.
EXAMPLE 53
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(p-hydroxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR55## 25 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-4-(p-benzyloxy benzyl) piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 52 are dissolved in 500 ml. of toluene. 4 g. of palladium asbestos are added thereto and hydrogen is introduced into the solution at room temperature under a positive pressure of 50 mm. Hg. A white, crystalline compound starts to precipitate on the catalyst after 15 hours. Introduction of hydrogen is discontinued. The catalyst is filtered off by suction and is washed with 500 ml. of 60° C. toluene. The toluene is distilled off and the remaining residue is recrystallized first from n-heptane and subsequently from isopropanol. Melting point: 144° C. Yield: 11 g.
EXAMPLE 54
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-benzyl piperazine ##STR56##
15 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
8 g. of benzylchloride,
150 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone, and
20 ml. of triethylamine
are boiled under reflux for 8 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The acetone is distilled off and the residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with 100 ml. of N-hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is rendered alkaline by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off therefrom. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 160° C./0.01 mm. Yellowish oil. Yield: 10 g.
EXAMPLE 55
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(3,4-dibenzyloxy benzyl) piperazine hydrochloride ##STR57##
23 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
30 g. of 3,4-dibenzyloxy benzylchloride,
20 ml. of triethylamine, and
200 ml. of methyl ethyl ketone
are boiled for 12 hours under reflux. The precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The solvent is distilled off. The residue is dissolved in benzene. The benzene solution is extracted with 100 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. The hydrochloric acid extract is precipitated by the addition of ammonia. The precipitated base is dissolved in benzene, the benzene solution is dried and the solvent is distilled off. Absolute alcoholic hydrochloric acid is added to the residue in an amount to yield a pH of 1.0 and a mixture of petroleum ether and acetone (1:1) is slowly added thereto. The hydrochloride precipitates and is filtered off by suction. It is dissolved in alcohol and is again precipitated by careful addition of a mixture of petroleum ether and acetone (1:1).
The compound obtained after filtering and drying starts to sublimate at 203° C. and has a melting point of 235°-239° C. with decomposition. Yield: 39 g.
EXAMPLE 56
4-Diethylamino ethyl-3-phenyl-1-(p-methoxy benzyl) piperazine ##STR58##
64 g. of 1-diethylamino ethyl-2-phenyl piperazine obtained as described hereinabove in Example 8 (b),
39 g. of p-methoxy benzylchloride,
75 g. of triethylamine, and
500 ml. of acetone
are boiled under reflux for 7 hours. After cooling, the precipitated triethylamine hydrochloride is filtered off by suction. The filtrate is evaporated to dryness. The residue is dissolved in benzene and is extracted with 200 ml. of N hydrochloric acid. Ammonia is added to the hydrochloric acid extract and the precipitated base is extracted with benzene. The benzene solution is dried by means of potassium carbonate and the solvent is distilled off. The residue is distilled in a vacuum. Boiling point: 180°-182° C./0.005 mm. Yellowish oil. Yield: 24 g.
The new 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds to the present invention and their pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts can be administered orally, parenterally, or rectally. Compositions containing said compounds as used in therapy, comprise, for instance, tablets, pills, dragees, lozenges, and the like shaped preparations to be administered orally. Said compounds may also be administered in powder form, preferably enclosed in gelatin or the like capsules. Oral administration in liquid form, such as in the form of solutions, emulsions, suspensions, sirups, and the like is also possible. Such solid or liquid preparations are produced in a manner known to the art of compounding and processing pharmaceutical compositions whereby the conventional diluting, binding, and/or expanding agents, lubricants, and/or other excipients, such as lactose, cane sugar, dextrins, starch, talc, kaolin, magnesium hydroxide, magnesium carbonate, pectin, gelatin, agar, bentonite, stearic acid, magnesium stearate, and others may be employed.
The following examples serve to illustrate the preparation of pharmaceutical compositions as they are used in therapy without, however, limiting the same thereto.
EXAMPLE 57
Tablets:
20 g. of the dihydrochloride of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine, 128 g. of lactose, and 2 g. of magnesium stearate are intimately mixed with each other and are compressed without preceding granulation to tablets weighing 150 mg. Each tablet contains 20 mg. of the anticoagulant agent according to the present invention.
EXAMPLE 58
The mixture of ingredients as given in Example 57 is compressed to biconvex dragee cores of 150 mg. each. These cores are repeatedly sugar-coated by rotating in a coating pan with sugar sirup. Each dragee contains 20 mg.
EXAMPLE 59
Capsules:
500 g. of 1-(3',4'-dichloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine dihydrochloride are intimately mixed with 200 g. of starch and the mixture is sieved. Portions of 700 mg. each of said mixture are filled in gelatin capsules. Each capsule contains 500 mg. of the anticoagulant agent.
EXAMPLE 60
Suppositories:
400 g. of the molten suppository base Adeps solidus and 10 g. of the succinate of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-piperidino ethyl piperazine are thoroughly triturated while maintaining in the molten state. The molten mixture is cast into suppository molds, each of which contains 2.05 g. of the mixture. The molds are then cooled to cause solidification. Each suppository contains 50 mg. of the anticoagulant agent.
EXAMPLE 61
25 mg. of 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-diethylamino ethyl piperazine dihydrochloride are dissolved in 2.2 cc. of bidistilled water. This solution is filled in ampoules which are sterilized in an autoclave at 120° C.
Ampoules containing 5 mg. to 250 mg. of base may be prepared as follows: The base is dissolved in water by the addition of a stoichiometrically equivalent amount of the desired acid. As an acid, there may be used e.g. hydrochloric acid, phosphoric acid, nitric acid, sulfuric acid, succinic acid, fumaric acid, lactic acid, and the like.
The effect which 1,4-disubstituted phenyl piperazine compounds according to the present invention have on blood coagulation, was determined according to standard test methods in vitro with human blood. The results of such tests are given in the following Table. The test mixture was prepared by adding one part of the aqueous solution of the compound to be tested to 9 parts of plasma. The compound to be tested was used in the form of its hydrochloride. Thus 0.1 millimole (mM) as given in the Table indicates 9 ml. of plasma plus 1 ml. of a millimolar (mM) aqueous solution of the compound to be tested.
The effect of the compounds according to the present invention was determined by measuring the recalcification time as well as the stypven time.
The determination of the recalcification time is based on the fact that free calcium + + ions are required to cause coagulation. Because the calcium ions are bound in the blood which has been rendered non-coagulable by the addition of citrate or oxalate, excess calcium chloride solution is added in this test and the period of time calculated from the additon of the calcium chloride to the onset of coagulation is measured. This period of time is the recalcification time.
For determining the stypven time, there is added, in addition to the calcium ions, the viper poison stypven to the citrate or oxalate blood. The stypven test is an especially sensitive test for detecting lipides set free from the thrombocytes.
In order to determine the effect of the compounds according to the present invention upon thrombocytes which are principal features with respect to coagulation of blood, the recalcification time and the stypven time were determined in blood rich in thrombocytes as well as in blood poor in thrombocytes.
It is assumed that the formation of blood clots is initiated by thrombocyte aggregation. Therefore, the compounds according to this invention were also tested for their thrombocyte aggregation, inhibiting effect by the method described by Klaus Breddin in "Schweizerische Medizinische Wochenschrift" vol. 20, p. 655 (1965).
The following Table shows those concentrations of the tested compounds, determined by means of their recalcification time and their stypven time, which indicate a pronounced blood coagulation promoting effect as well as a pronounced blood coagulation inhibiting effect. These concentrations are given in millimoles of the respective compound. The concentrations at which inhibition of the thrombocyte aggregation sets in, are also given for some of the compounds. That one and the same compound can have a blood coagulation promoting as well as a blood coagulation inhibiting effect, is due to the fact that it acts upon various coagulation factors at the same time. Thus a compound is able to set free from the thrombocytes coagulation activating material at a low concentration while at a higher concentration certain coagulation factors have an inhibiting effect.
o in said Table indicates that no effect has been found within the tested concentration range.
The recalcification time was determined according to the method of E. DEUTSCH ET AL. in "Thrombosis et Diathesis Haemorrhagica" vol. XXVI, page 145(1971) and the stypven time according to the method of McKENZIE ET AL. in "Amer. Journ. Clin. Path." vol. 55, pages 551-554.
It has also been found that a number of the compounds according to the present invention possess fibrinolytic activity, i.e. they are capable of dissolving thrombi which have been formed.
TABLE__________________________________________________________________________ Coagulation promoting Coagulation inhibiting Inhibition of effect effect thrombocytes Plasma rich Plasma poor Plasma rich Plasma poor aggregationExam- in in in in according tople Molecular thrombocytes thrombocytes BreddinNo. Compound weight mM mM mM mM mM__________________________________________________________________________ 1-(4-Chloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylamino- ethyl-3-keto-piperazine 399.9 1 1 55 5 0.11 4-Diethylaminoethyl-2- phenyl-1-(4-chloro benzyl) piperazine 386.0 1 1 5 5 12 1-(3,4-Dichloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl- piperazine 420.4 0.1 - 1 1 2.5 2.5 0.13 1-(p-Methoxyphenyl-ethyl)- 2-phenyl-4-Methylamino ethyl piperazine 395.5 1 1 10 5 0.1-0.54 1-(3-Phenylpropyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylamino- ethyl piperazine 379.5 0.1 - 1 1 5 2.5 0.1-0.55 1-(4-Chloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-(2-piperidino ethyl) piperazine 397.9 1 1 5 2.5-5 0.15 1-(p-chloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-[(4-methyl)-pip- erazine ethyl-(1)]piper- azine 413.01 0.1 0.1 2.5 2.5 0.15 1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl- 4-pyrrolidino ethyl pipera- zine 383.97 0.1 1 5 2.5 0.56 1-(4-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl- 4-(1,3-bis-(morpholino propyl) piperazine 499.08 1 1 5 2.5 0.1-17 1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-3-phenyl- 4-diethylamino ethyl piper- azine 386.1 0.1 1 5 2.5 0.01-0.18 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl- 1-(p-ethoxy benzyl)piperazine 395.6 0.1-1 1 5 1-2.5 0.01-0.1 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl- 2-keto-1-(p-chloro benzyl) piperazine 399.95 1 1 5 2.5-5 0.114 4-Dimethylaminoethyl-2-phenyl- 1-(3,4-dichloro benzyl)-pip- erazine 392,38 0.1 1 2.5 2.5 0.1-0.515 4-β-Morpholinoethyl-2-phenyl- (3,4-dichloro benzyl)pipera- zine 434.42 1 1 -- -- 0.116 4-Diethylaminopropyl-2-phen- yl-1-(3,4-dichloro benzyl) piperazine 434,462 0.1 1 2.5 2.5 0.0117 1-(4-Benzyloxy benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine 457,66 0.1 0.1 2.5 2.518 4-Diethylaminoethyl-2-phen- yl-1-(3,4,5-trimethoxy ben- zyl) piperazine 4.41.596. 1 -- -- 5 0.119 1-[(p-Methoxy phenyl propyl)]- 2-phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine 409,626 0.1 1 5 5 0.1-0.520 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phenyl- 1-(p-ethoxy benzyl)pipera- zine 395,6 0.1-1 1 5 1 - 2.5 0.1-0.522 1-(p-Chloro benzyl-2-phen- yl-4-[(4-methyl)piperazino ethyl-(1)]piperazine 413.01 0.1 0.1 5 2.523 1-(p-Chlorobenzyl)-2-phenyl- 4-[3-keto)-piperazinoethyl)- (1)] piperazine 466.99 0.1 0.5 o o5a 1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-pyrrolidino ethyl piperazine 383,97 1 o 5 2.534 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-1-(o-hydroxy benzyl) piperazine 367.5 1 1 5 5 --36 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phen- yl-1-(3,4,5-trimethoxybenz- yl) piperazine 441.5 1 o o 2.5 --37 1-(p-Hydroxy benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine 367.5 1 1 o o -- 1-(p-Ethoxy benzyl)-2-phen- yl-4-pyrrolidinoethyl-3- keto piperazine 407,53 1 1 o 547 1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phen- yl-4-piperazino ethyl piperazine 399.0 0.1 0.1 2.5 548 1-(p-Methoxy benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-piperidinoethyl piperazine 393.55 1 o 5 2.549 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3-phen- yl-1-(3,4,5-trimethoxy)- benzyl piperazine 441,5 1 o o 2.550 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-1-(p-chloro phen- yl)ethyl piperazine 400.00 0.1 o 5 2.5 0.0551 4-Diethylamino ethyl-3- phenyl-1-(o-benzyloxy benzyl) piperazine 457.66 0.1 o 5 0.152 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-1-(p-benzyloxy benzyl) piperazine 457.66 0.1 1 2.5 2.5 153 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-1-(p-hydroxy benzyl)piperazine 367.5 0.1 o 10 5 --54 4-Diethylamino ethyl-3- phenyl-1-benzyl piper- azine 351.54 0.1 0.1 0 o55 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-1-(3,4-dibenzyl- oxy benzyl)piperazine . HC1 563.79 1 0.1 2.5 o 4-Diethylaminoethyl-3- phenyl-2-keto-1-(p-ben- zyloxy benzyl) pipera- zine 471.65 1 1 10 2.540 1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-dimethylamino propyl piperazine 371,94 0.01 0.1 2.5 2.541 1-(3,4-Dibenzyloxy benzyl)- 2-phenyl-diethylaminoethyl piperazine fumarate 563.79 1 1 2.5 2.542 1-(o-Benzyloxy benzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylaminoethyl piperazine 457.66 0.1 1 5 2.543 1-(p-Methoxybenzyl)-2- phenyl-4-diethylamino propyl piperazine 395,57 0.1 o 5 5__________________________________________________________________________
The starting materials are either commercially available or can be synthesized from commercially available compounds by known methods.
For instance, α-chloro phenyl acetic acid ethyl ester used as the one reactant in Example 1 B (a), is prepared from commercially available α-chloro phenyl acetic acid chloride by esterifying with ethanol. Its boiling point is 123°-125° C./8-10 mm.
N 1 -(diethylamino ethyl) ethylene diamine, the other reactant of Example 1 B (a) is obtained according to the method of H. F. McKay "Canad. J. Chem." vol. 34, pp. 1567-1573 (1956).
1-(β-Chloro ethyl)-4-methyl piperazine used as reactant in Example 6, is prepared by reacting 1(β-hydroxy ethyl)-4-methyl piperazine and thionylchloride.
1,3-Dimorpholino propylchloride (Example 7) is obtained by reacting 1,3-dimorpholino propanol with thionylchloride.
p-Ethoxy benzylchloride (Example 9 c) is produced according to Bergmann and Sulzbacher "J. org. Chem." vol. 16, p. 85 (1951).
3,4,5-Trimethoxy benzylchloride (Example 13) is prepared by reacting 3,4,5-trimethoxy benzyl alcohol with thionylchloride and
3-(4'-Methoxy phenyl) propylchloride (1) by reacting 3-(4'-methoxy phenyl) propanol (1) with thionylchloride.
Acetyl glycolic acid chloride (Example 27 A c) is obtained according to Ghosh "J. Indian Chem. Soc." vol. 24, p. 325 (1947) from acetyl glycolic acid synthesized according to Anschuetz et al. "Ber." vol. 30, p. 467.
1-(3,4-Dibenzyloxy benzyl)-2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine (Example 42 ) is obtained by reacting 2-phenyl-3-keto piperazine with 3,4-dibenzyloxy benzylchloride. Its melting point is 108°-110° C.
3,4-Dibenzyloxy benzylchloride (Example 43) is synthesized by first producing 3,4-dibenzyloxy benzaldehyde according to the method described by Bergmann et al. "J. org. Chem." vol. 16, p. 85 (1951), reducing said aldehyde with sodium boron hydride to the corresponding alcohol, and chlorinating the resulting alcohol with thionylchloride in chloroform. Melting point of the chloride: 42°-44° C.
o-Benzyloxy benzylchloride (Example 55) is obtained in an analogous manner. Boiling point: 118° C./0.05 mm.
Diethylamino propylchloride (Example 56) is prepared by reacting diethylamino propanol with thionylchloride.
p-Chloro phenyl ethylchloride (Example 63) is synthesized according to Depuy et al. "J. Am. Chem. Soc."vol. 79, pp. 3710-11 soc." (1957) and Baddeley et al. "J. Am. Chem. Soc." 1935, p. 1820.
p-Methoxy benzylchloride (Example 69) is prepared as described in "Org. Synth." vol. 36, p. 50.
The following example describes the preparation of a compound in which R 4 and R 5 of Formulas VII to XII form an N 4 -hydroxy lower alkyl piperazine group.
EXAMPLE 62
1-(p-Chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-[β-(4'-hydroxy ethyl piperazino) ethyl ] piperazine ##STR59##
The compound is obtained by reacting 1-(4'-chloro benzyl)-2-phenyl-4-(β-chloro ethyl) piperazine hydrochloride as described hereinabove in Example 21 B and C, with N 1 -(2-hydroxy ethyl) piperazine. The resulting reaction product is a yellow oil of the boiling point: 245° C./0.02 mm.
Analogous compounds in which the phenyl ring of the benzyl or phenyl lower alkyl substituent in 1-position is substituted by other substituents than chloro, as well as compounds of the 3-phenyl piperazine type or the 2- or 3-phenyl-3- or -2-keto piperazine type and which have in 4-position a hydroxy lower alkyl piperazino lower alkyl group can, of course, also be produced in a similar manner.
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Novel 1,4-substituted phenyl piperazine compounds have a pronounced effect upon blood coagulation and are useful in the treatment of thrombotic diseases, especially of the arterial system. They are particularly used to inhibit thrombosis of the coronary or cerebral arteries. Examples of such compounds are 1-phenyl (lower) alkyl-2-phenyl-4-di-(lower)alkylamino (lower)alkyl piperazines, 1-phenyl (lower)alkyl-3-phenyl-4-di-(lower)alkylamino (lower)alkyl piperazines and their pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts. The phenyl ring in 1-position may be substituted by halogen, trifluoro (lower)alkyl, lower alkoxy, or phenyl lower alkoxy; the di-(lower)alkylamino (lower)alkyl group in 4-position may be replaced by piperidino (lower)akyl, morpholino (lower)alkyl, pyrrolidino (lower)alkyl, piperazino (lower)alkyl, or the like mononuclear nitrogen-containing heterocyclically substituted (lower)alkyl.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a division of my application Ser. No. 10/753,793, filed Jan. 8, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,929,423 and claims priority from U.S. provisional patent application 60/440,487, filed Jan. 16, 2003.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the recovery of gas from landfills, and more particularly to a process for improving gas recovery in which aqueous foams are utilized, chemical formulations required for foam production, equipment for foam production, and equipment for injection of the foam into the landfill substrate.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the United States and most of the developed world, environmental regulations require sanitary landfills to recover landfill gas (methane) in order to minimize emissions. The recovered landfill gas is generally well purified and transported as pipeline gas, or modestly purified and burned on-site to produce electrical energy via an engine-driven generator or a relatively small gas turbine. The rules and regulations allow the pipeline gas or electricity to enter the appropriate utility distribution channel, thereby providing some compensation to the owners of the landfill and the operators of the landfill gas collection, purification, and generation processes. Even though a useful product, pipeline gas or electrical power, is produced by this recovery process, the concept is regarded as an environmental control, rather than a primary source of energy production.
Landfills are characteristically odorous facilities as the incoming trash is odorous. However, placing the incoming trash in the landfill and covering it with soil does not eliminate the odor; it only minimizes the odor. The real problem with respect to odor is water, which allows aerobic and/or anaerobic decomposition of the landfilled trash, thereby adding to the odor problems. Most importantly, during anaerobic decomposition, sulfate salts such as gypsum from discarded wall board in the landfilled trash, can produce hydrogen sulfide, a particularly odorous material. If more water is present, additional odorous substances are produced. Therefore, general operating procedures encourage minimization of water contact in the trash in order to minimize the overall odor problems at the landfill. Landfills over the past twenty five years have been operated as dry as possible, even though the incoming trash may contain 25 weight percent water.
When a landfill cell is completed (i.e., filled) the contained trash is a large loaf-like mass completely wrapped in a plastic barrier and entombed in many feet of soil. The base of the loaf-like mass includes a leachate collection system used to collect any liquid draining from the contents, while the outer surface prevents entry of moisture from the environment. Despite these measures, the encapsulated trash is still quite wet, perhaps 15 weight percent water on average. Once the cell closure is completed, the internal chemistry starts to operate, producing landfill gas and leading eventually to methane production. Initially the oxygen in the system is consumed via oxidation of the trash, thereby producing carbon dioxide and water, represented approximately as:
2-CH 2 —+3O 2 =2CO 2 +2H 2 O.
The gas that is produced is evacuated by the gas collection system and the liquid water is evacuated via the leachate collection system.
When all the oxygen has been consumed, the internal chemistry becomes anaerobic, thereby producing a chemically reduced gas instead of a chemically oxidized gas, represented approximately as:
3-CH 2 —+H 2 O=2CH 4 +CO.
The important feature is that the hydrogen in the methane gas is derived from the reduction of water, so, as the availability of water decreases, the methane production decreases, eventually reaching a production level so low that recovery is uneconomic. Since the amount of reducible carbon remaining in the landfill, in general, far exceeds the amount of available and usable water, the entire chemical sequence stops before the maximum methane has been produced, or the maximum conversion of carbon has been achieved.
This observation is not revolutionary, as landfill engineers have known of the water availability limitation for many years. In fact, common practice now includes reapplication of leachate to the top surfaces of the loaf-like mass as a procedure for maintaining the water balance, thereby extending the methane production cycle, and, at the same time, consuming leachate. This technique does improve the overall methane yield, but the majority of the added water simply drains through the compacted trash, following the path of least resistance, becoming leachate once again, with a small percentage undergoing reduction to produce methane. A side benefit of leachate recirculation is that the impurities in the leachate are slowly removed, thereby alleviating the final disposal problem.
A process for maintaining proper moisture content throughout the loaf-like mass would allow optimized methane production, a reduction in the volume of the compacted trash as it would be consumed producing methane, consumption of leachate, the likely water source, and recovery of the landfill air space for reuse, perhaps following landfill mining, a technique used to restore landfill air space by excavation and separation of the contents, yielding soil-like material (compost) and non-biodegradable materials which may be recycled (steel, for instance).
Techniques are currently being developed to overcome these liquid water flow property weaknesses. Waste Management, Inc. has designed a landfill cell configuration incorporating an array of horizontal, perforated pipes used for the injection of water and air, and the extraction of the landfill gases. The Waste Management, Inc. landfill is described in Hater et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,283,676. Hater et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,283,676 contains an excellent review of past technology directed at increasing the methane production, and is incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The main objective of this developing technology is air space recovery, and the technique allows degradation to start early in the cell filling process. The initial phase of treatment involves cell hydration using either leachate and/or fresh water, followed by air injection to initiate composting, which generates heat, thereby warming the entire landfill mass. The initial hydration process essentially floods the landfill mass in order to assure maximum hydration. This procedure, of course, requires large volumes of liquid, as the landfill pore volume and other void space must be filled. The excess water remaining at the end of the hydration process drains back into the leachate collection system for either subsequent use or final disposal. After air injection has been completed, the system is chemically deprived of oxygen, allowing anaerobic decomposition to follow. The exit gas then contains methane.
These anaerobic conditions allow the sulfate salts to be reduced, producing small amounts of hydrogen sulfide. The hydrogen sulfide is responsible for at least two problems. First, the hydrogen sulfide must be removed from the extracted gas in order to minimize combustion engine deposits and/or corrosion, and sulfur containing exhaust gas emissions. Second, because hydrogen sulfide is noticeable even at trace levels, even small amounts seeping from the landfill cause odor problems.
Hydrogen sulfide removal from gas and liquid streams is a developed technology, generally involving metal ion catalysis. For more than thirty years, various inventors have patented hydrogen sulfide removal processes. See, for instance, Roberts U.S. Pat. No. 3,622,273, Mancini U.S. Pat. No. 4,011,304, Sibeud U.S. Pat. No. 4,036,942, Lampton U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,076, and Winchester U.S. Pat. No. 6,500,237. There are many others not cited. In general, these removal processes are designed to remove the hydrogen sulfide gas contained in a process stream, for instance, the gas stream exiting from a landfill and being delivered to the gas treatment plant for purification. These process schemes can remove the hydrogen sulfide in the gas streams, thereby reducing or eliminating corrosion problems and combustion exhaust gas emission problems.
Even though these hydrogen sulfide-containing gas streams may contribute to the general landfill odor; they are not responsible for the main sulfide odor problem. The main odor source is fugitive hydrogen sulfide, seeping at very low concentrations from the landfill via an array of pathways. The gas does not just escape from an opening in the landfill's surface. Rather, the concentration is very low but the gas is essentially everywhere. Since the cross sectional area of a landfill is very large, and the hydrogen sulfide concentration is very small, the problem does not lend itself easily to a simple and cost effective control process.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Aqueous foam can provide the application mechanism for maintaining moisture content throughout the loaf-like mass of trash. Unlike a conventional liquid, aqueous foams are thixotropic, meaning that they flow best under shear and, except for gravity, not at all when no shear force is present.
In landfill water addition as currently generally practiced, the fluid being added flows according to the path of least resistance, and since the mass of trash is non-uniform, all the fluid in the same general location flows along the same path, according to the same rules. Moisture addition to the overall mass of trash is limited to transport from the moving water stream, and has little if any effect on the material further than a few inches away from the water stream. The incoming water flows like a natural spring, collecting in larger volumes instead of dispersing throughout the mass.
By contrast, aqueous foam injected into the same region of the mass of trash will flow according to the applied shear forces. Consequently the larger, relatively open, zones will have smaller flows, while the tighter, smaller volume zones will have relatively more flow. This technique is widely practiced in foam-induced enhanced oil recovery (See for example, Schramm, L. L., editor, Foams: Fundamentals and Applications in the Petroleum Industry, Advances in Chemistry Series #242, American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C., 1994).
In accordance with this invention, aqueous foam is used as a water (moisture) transport medium for maintaining the moisture level within compacted trash in a closed landfill cell during the gas recovery process. Preferably, the aqueous foam can be produced from leachate from the landfill being treated.
The aqueous foam should exhibit a drain time (a measure of its rate of decomposition) of suitable duration to allow foam transport and moisture absorption by the compacted trash at an advantageous rate. If the decomposition time is too fast, moisture transport to some portions of the landfill will not occur and the liquid will simply exit the active zone as leachate.
The drain time of the injected foam should be related to the landfill injection pattern, so that all sections of the mass of trash will be contacted, wetted, and potentially converted into methane.
The aqueous foam can contain additives, nutrients, enzymes, and other biologically active materials, which can encourage the rate of production of methane, thereby producing a more time efficient process.
More particularly, in accordance with the invention, gas is recovered from a landfill by introducing water into the landfill, to promote digestion of organic matter in the landfill, and removing the gas produced by digestion from the landfill. The improvement comprises the introduction of water as part of aqueous foam, whereby the water is distributed more uniformly throughout the landfill.
Preferably, aqueous foam is injected into a closed landfill cell, and at least part of the water content of the aqueous foam reacts anaerobically with organic matter in the landfill cell to produce gas, primarily methane, which is removed from the landfill cell for use, either as pipeline gas or for combustion on site to produce energy.
The aqueous foam preferably has a sufficiently long drain time that it carries water to substantially all parts of the landfill cell, or at least to parts thereof that would not be reached by injected water if liquid (non-foamed) water were injected into the landfill cell through the same vertical injection system.
At least part of the water content of the aqueous foam may be derived from leachate from the landfill cell.
The aqueous foam is preferably injected into the landfill cell through a perforated borehole casing, and the aggregate cross-section of the perforations in the borehole casing is substantially equal to the cross-sectional area of the borehole casing.
The aqueous foam is preferably compressed gas foam produced by introducing a compressed gas into a liquid stream comprising water and surfactant, and the step of injecting aqueous foam is carried out by utilizing the pressure of the compressed gas to cause the foam to flow into the landfill cell. The compressed gas can be compressed air from a compressor, but to eliminate oxygen, the gas can be nitrogen obtained from a source of compressed nitrogen. Other non-oxygen containing gases could also be utilized as the foam expansion gas: carbon dioxide, methane, as well as conventional inert gases are examples.
In accordance with the invention, for effective odor reduction, hydrogen sulfide is controlled within the landfill mass prior to its escape into the environment. Control technology based on the currently practiced general metal ion catalysis can control hydrogen sulfide within the landfill mass via chemical elimination. When aqueous foam is formulated with metal ion salts, the hydrogen sulfide level in the produced gas is minimized.
A foam composition can deliver both the water required for hydration, and the metal ion catalyst used for hydrogen sulfide control, in a single application.
The aqueous foam can be formulated incorporating ferrous and/or ferric salts, for example by using ferrous ion stabilized hydrolyzed protein as the foaming agent instead of the more conventional synthetic surfactants. This foam delivery approach can also achieve the desired hydration but, in addition, the foam can add ferrous and ferric ion to the system as a mechanism of reducing or eliminating hydrogen sulfide.
These same process schemes can be adapted to the Hater process, by matching the foam compositions to the flow pattern, and to the time and distribution constraints.
The general process scheme of injecting foam into a landfill mass can be used for transporting other active ingredients besides water, ferrous/ferric salts, and biologically active additives. The foam concentrate can be formulated to include other chemical control agents, for instance, hydrogen sulfide controlling agents in addition to iron salts. Dispersants and/or surfactants can be included in the foam in order to improve gas and liquid flow properties within the landfill mass, especially where gas and liquid flow is potentially restricted or reduced by the presence of sediments or precipitates. Enzymes, nutrients, and other biologically active materials can also be included in the foam to promote the anaerobic reaction.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a foam dilution and injection apparatus suitable for carrying out landfill gas recovery in accordance with the invention; and
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a landfill gas recovery system utilizing foam injection in accordance with the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The physical and chemical characteristics of the foam medium being used for water transport to the decomposing trash in the landfill cell are important. When considering only the issue of water transport, with no other additives included, the active ingredients in the composition must produce a foam with suitable stability to enable the foam to persist long enough to be transported throughout the mass of trash being hydrated.
Referring to FIG. 1 , which depicts a foam system schematic for the in-line dilution configuration, three liquid tanks are shown. Tank 10 holds foam concentrate, tank 20 holds water or leachate, and tank 30 holds the biological and/or other additives. These tanks are equipped with suitable pumps, 11 , 21 , and 31 , respectively, capable of generating the proper diluted composition in a flow line, 22 , leading to a foam block 50 (see Kroll, U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,680, for example). The desired inlet pressure in foam block 50 is 200 to 400 psig. Therefore pump 21 should be a high capacity, high pressure pump. Low pressure outputs from pumps 11 and 31 feed the inlet of pump 21 through lines 12 and 32 , respectively. The compressed gas, if air, comes from a source 40 , which, in the case of air, can be a compressor, or, in the case of nitrogen or other expansion gas, for instance, a suitable pressurized source. The gas passes through line 41 , entering the foam block 50 . The gas pressure is not extremely high, and is suitably in the range from 80 to 120 psig. The foam block 50 mixes the dilute, to-be-foamed, liquid composition with the compressed gas, discharging the liquid and gas mixture through line 51 , which leads to the injection well in the closed landfill cell.
In FIG. 2 , the foam composition, coming from the generation system of FIG. 1 , flows through line 51 into a main borehole injection pipe 55 , which penetrates the surface of the landfill 70 , and extends to a location near the bottom of the landfill mass 71 , but above a leachate system 80 . The foam is discharged into the landfill mass 71 from an array of perforations (not shown) in the main borehole casing, the discharge of foam being depicted by arrows 58 . Gas produced within the landfill cell is collected by the gas collection system 60 , and transferred to a main collection header 61 , for delivery to a gas processing plant.
Consider the following idealized example, where the overall injection depth is 200 feet and the landfill cell is 100 feet in diameter, so that the radial distribution from the central injection point is 50 feet. The contact zone is a right circular cylinder filled with compacted trash and having an enclosed total volume of 1.57 million cubic feet. The trash has a porosity, or void volume, because gas can flow through the trash, and leachate can collect at the bottom of the cell. For sake of the example, assume the void volume is 20%, or 314,000 cubic feet.
In this example, 314,000 cubic feet of foam must be injected, and sufficient time must be allowed for the injected foam to flow throughout the cylindrical volume. Again, considering an ideal model, assume the injected foam exhibits an expansion ratio (volume of foam/volume of liquid used to produce the foam) of 20, therefore requiring 15,700 cubic feet of liquid, or 117,436 gallons of liquid, through the foaming process. It is worth noting that the expansion ratio of the foam can be altered independently of other physical properties, thereby allowing some control over the amount of oxygen injected when using compressed air as the expansion gas.
Now, if the liquid flow rate used to make foam is 100 gallons per minute, the total injection operation will ideally take about 20 hours. Realistically in this ideal example, the foam should not drain significantly during the injection period. Therefore, the required drain time should be such that less than one percent drainage, approximately, occurs in the first 24 hours.
Foams exhibiting these drain time characteristics are known, and have been prepared using both commercial synthetic surfactants as well as ferrous/ferric iron containing hydrolyzed protein systems. The general technique for achieving extended drain time involves increasing the surface viscosity via post-foaming chemistry, protein systems, and/or adding various thickeners to the composition. Examples utilizing acrylic polymers are described in Rand U.S. Pat. No. 4,442,018, Hendrickson U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,939, and Kittle U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,874,641, 5,096,616, and 5,215,786. Examples utilizing protein systems with natural gums are described in DiMaio U.S. Pat. No. 5,225,095. Examples utilizing starches are described in Kittle U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,050. The disclosures of these patents are incorporated by reference.
Any of these general compositions can be used to achieve the hydration results desired, as the decision depends on cost, availability, ease of use, etc. The actual liquid foamed and injected into the landfill cell will contain a good foaming surfactant, generally anionic or protein based as described in the above-mentioned patents. The concentration of the foaming ingredient, i.e., the surfactant, will be in the range of 0.1 weight percent actives to 5.0 weight percent actives in the broadest practical conditions, and preferably between 0.3 and 0.8 weight percent actives in most applications.
The concentration of the viscosity-modifying agent in the foamable liquid will be in the range of 0.1 weight percent actives to about 4.0 weight percent actives, depending on the specific viscosity-modifying agent used, and the physical characteristics of the injection program. Smaller injection volumes will require less stringent drain time requirements, thereby reducing the magnitude of the viscosity modification, but not altering the surfactant level. In the case where modified starches or gums are the viscosity modifiers, the preferred concentration levels are between 0.3 weight percent actives and 0.7 weight percent actives. As the efficiency of the viscosity modifiers increases, the amounts required will decrease. For example, the class of viscosity modifiers known as associative thickeners, which are generally very efficient, will perform well in the range from 0.1 to 0.3 weight percent actives.
In practice, these diluted compositions will be prepared from a concentrate, delivered to the site for use. The composition of the concentrate is completely dependent on the amount of viscosity modifier required in the final, to-be-foamed, dilute liquid. In the case where the viscosity modifier is a modified starch or a natural gum, the maximum level in the concentrate will be 4.0 weight percent to 8.0 weight percent, with this concentrate being diluted with six to ten volumes of dilution water. The viscosity of these concentrates, in general, will be between 10000 cps and 50000 cps, as a function of the level of viscosity modifier. The surfactant level will be coordinated with the viscosity modifier, so that the final diluted material will have the proper composition. For example, if the viscosity modifier is 8.0 weight percent in the concentrate and diluted with nine volumes of water, the viscosity modifier in the dilute composition will be 0.8 weight percent. If the surfactant active level in the dilute composition is 0.4 weight percent, then in the concentrate composition the surfactant actives level needs to be 4.0 weight percent.
The dilution procedure is important, as there are two general procedures for generating to-be-foamed liquid. The dilution water can be either fresh water (pond, other surface water, or potable water) or leachate. The dilution procedure can be in-line dilution followed by immediate, direct foaming, or a pre-dilution step can be used where a larger volume of diluted material is prepared for eventual foam production. Since leachate in general will contain a significant level of minerals and other possible impurities, this dilution liquid is best used in the in-line configuration, thereby allowing the foaming to occur before the minerals or impurities have an opportunity to interact with the foaming surfactant or the viscosity modifiers. When other water is used for dilution, the pre-dilution scheme can be used, although mineral content, specifically hardness, should be evaluated with respect to the actual performance requirements.
The foam production procedure can be the same regardless of the dilution scheme utilized. The foam is preferably produced using compressed air, or, more preferably nitrogen, since minimization of oxygen is desirable. Foams prepared in this manner are referred to as compressed gas foams, or pneumatic foams. The other standard foam-making procedure utilizes a technique called air aspiration, similar to the foam-making procedures used on fire trucks. Since the landfill foam must be injected under modest pressure, compressed gas, or pneumatic, foam production will perform correctly, and is preferred over air aspiration.
Pneumatic foam production is carried out by adding the compressed stream to the dilute, to-be-foamed, liquid stream, followed by a suitable amount of mixing, thereby yielding foam which can be delivered, pneumatically, to the application location. This technology is described in the previously cited Kittle U.S. Pat. No. 4,874,641 and Kroll U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,680.
Injecting the foam into the closed landfill cell requires attaching the foam discharge hose to a perforated casing lining a borehole drilled into the closed landfill cell. There are many combinations of liquid flows, foam flows, discharge line sizes, and borehole casing sizes, which will balance properly, but only one case will be described. Persons skilled in the art can readily convert the following example to other size ranges.
Using the idealized example above, of 100 gallons per minute liquid flow, the system can be generally sized as follows. If the foam generated in this system exhibits an expansion ratio between 15 and 20, the foam discharge hose diameter will be a 4 inch minimum to 6 inch maximum, depending upon the foam transport distance. The casing in the landfill cell borehole should be 6 inch minimum and 8 inch to 10 inch maximum, depending on foam transport depth and pressure drop in the landfill mass. These characteristics will tend to be landfill specific with adjustments and modifications on a case-by-case basis.
The borehole casing serves several functions, mostly mechanical, but it is also a foam distribution manifold. Two general rules-of-thumb for foam manifolds are: (1) the cross-sectional area of the inlet should approximately equal the cross-sectional area of the outlet; and, (2) the exit ports need to be large enough to minimize foam shearing and destruction (see Kittle U.S. Pat. No. 5,011,330, for example, which is incorporated by reference). Therefore, assume for the example, that the discharge hose is 6 inches in diameter, or 28.3 square inches in cross-section. If the discharge holes are 0.5 inch in diameter, i.e., 0.20 square inches in cross section, which is a reasonable size, then, for equivalency, the total number of holes is approximately 144. Since the foam distribution needs to be radially uniform, assume the radial distribution of discharge ports is 60 degrees, and that these radial holes are separated by three vertical feet. Therefore the distance between the uppermost six radial discharge holes and lowermost six radial discharge holes is 69 feet, or a 144 discharge hole pattern is repeated every 72 feet.
These calculations indicate that several injection procedures can be considered. Using the 72 foot manifold distance as a reference, one could consider discharge zones in approximate 75 foot increments: top 75 feet, middle 75 feet, lower 75 feet, etc., as a function of the cell depth. At least three procedures can be used for implementing this injection plan. At each injection location separate boreholes may be drilled and cased with perforated casing appropriate to the injection depth. Alternatively foam can be injected initially only at the upper zone, allowing draining liquid to moisten the lower levels. Then, as methane production declines, the injection point can be lowered. A further alternative is to use a borehole casing which is perforated over its entire length, and insert a non-perforated sleeve to blind the perforation zones not being used for foam injection.
Foaming and injection and recovery configurations differing from those shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can be used. For example, foam can be injected through several boreholes, either simultaneously or sequentially, especially in the case of a landfill cell having a large horizontal cross-section
The benefits of the invention can be estimated using the example outlined above. In the example, the treatment zone volume is 1.57 million cubic feet, or 58,148 cubic yards, and the in-place compacted trash density can be assumed to be one ton per cubic yard. Therefore, the compacted trash in the closed cell weighs 58,148 tons. The assumed moisture content is 15 weight percent water average, or 8722 tons of water, leaving 49,426 tons of solid trash. The solid trash may be 33% non-biodegradable, e.g., glass, tires, metal, etc., leaving 33,115 tons of potential methane-producing material. If we overlook the original water and the oxygen scavenging for simplicity, after theoretically complete anaerobic decomposition, the methane recovered will total 25,230 tons or 1.13 billion cubic feet (STP). In addition, the cell volume will have been decreased from 58,148 cubic yards to 19,200 cubic yards, assuming constant density, thereby regenerating 38,948 cubic yards of landfill airspace before any landfill mining.
As mentioned previously, the foam preferably includes an iron salt. The iron salt, for example ferrous chloride or ferrous sulfate, may be incorporated in a hydrolyzed protein foam as a stabilizer. The iron salt should be present in a sufficient quantity to reduce the amount of hydrogen sulfide gas produced by reduction of the sulfates under anaerobic conditions in the landfill. Preferably, the foam includes a sufficient quantity of iron salt to substantially eliminate emission of olfactorily detectible quantities of hydrogen sulfide gas.
Examples of suitable iron-based hydrogen sulfide control agents include ferric or ferrous ions coordinated with an anionic ligand, which is usually a polyaminocarboxylic acid, like hydrolyzed protein foam components, ehtylenediamintetraacetic acid (EDTA), hydroxyethylethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (HEDTA), diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA), or nitrilotriacetic acid (See Demmink, Mehra and Beenackers, “Absorption of Hydrogen Sulfide into Aqueous Solutions of Ferric Nitrilotriacetic Acid: Local Auto-Catalytic Effects,” Chemical Engineering Science, Volume 57, pages 1723–1734 (2002), and a thorough review of the subject, McManus and Martell, “The Evolution, Chemistry and Applications of Chelated Iron Hydrogen Sulfide Removal and Oxidation Processes,” J. Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical, Volume 117, pages 289–297). Preferably, the systems need to be soluble and with suitable iron salt concentration and also composed into a formulation which can be foamed. Other hydrogen sulfide control agents such as nitrogen bases (amines) can also be used, and the same rules apply. The amount of control agent needed, of course, depends on the amount of sulfide-producing material in the landfill. If the landfill contains large amounts of gypsum wallboard for example, larger amounts of hydrogen sulfide control agent may be needed. However, in general, since excess hydrogen sulfide control agent does no harm, generally, and iron-based materials are inexpensive, in the case of ferrous ion coordinated with protein anions in the liquid from which the foam is generated will provide effective elimination of olfactorily detectable hydrogen sulfide emissions in most landfills.
EXAMPLE ONE
Foam Concentrate for Landfill Moisture Addition
Room temperature water, 25800 grams (56.88 pounds) was placed in a suitable stirred vessel. Potassium tripolyphosphate (FMC Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa.), 300 grams (0.66 pounds) was added and dissolved with stirring. Next, AS-40 α-olefin sulfonate (40 wt % actives, Stepan Company, Northfield, Ill.), 1500 grams (3.31 pounds) was added and stirred for a few minutes to complete the mixing. Acrysol ICS-1 (30 wt % actives, Rohm and Haas Company, Philadelphia, Pa.), 2000 grams (4.41 pounds) was added to the vessel and stirred until homogeneous. The solution was now ready for viscosity increase via the addition of base, thereby raising the pH. Various bases can be used, including sodium, potassium, and ammonium hydroxide, as well as simple amines, like triethanolamine or diethanolamine, or combinations of the two. When triethanolamine (Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Mich.) is used, approximately 400 grams (0.88 pounds) is added very slowly with strong stirring thereby allowing the pH and viscosity to increase. After thorough stirring, the homogeneous, generally clear, solution exhibited a minimum pH of 8.5 and a viscosity in the range of 4000+ centipoise. This concentrate contains approximately 20000 ppm (2.0 wt %) of α-olefin sulfonate actives thereby suggesting a maximum dilution for foaming of 10, meaning that one part of concentrate can be added to nine parts of dilution water, providing to-be-foamed liquid with α-olefin sulfonate actives at 2000 ppm (0.2 wt %) Under these circumstances the thickener (Acrysol ICS-1) actives concentration has been reduced from 20000 ppm (2.0 wt %) in the concentrate to 2000 ppm (0.2 wt %) in the diluted to-be-foamed liquid. Various factors need to be considered when preparing compositions like this for actual foaming. These include the previously mentioned injection pattern on the landfill as well as the dilution procedure, in-line or predilute, and the dilution water source, surface water or possibly leachate. Increasing the surfactant concentration in the diluted to-be-foamed liquid will allow poorer quality dilution water to be used, while increasing the thickener concentration in the diluted to-be-foamed liquid will provide longer drain times, or more foam stability. Those skilled in the art can adjust the base concentrated formulation and/or the dilution ratio to achieve the proper final to-be-foamed liquid composition. Foaming of the final diluted liquid composition can be accomplished via techniques described by Kittle U.S. Pat. No. 4,874,641 and Kroll, U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,680.
EXAMPLE TWO
Foam Concentrate for Landfill Moisture Addition and H 2 S Control
Similar to the previous example composition, this multiple use formulation needs to also have the H 2 S control component optimized/adjusted for the operating conditions. However, an advantage of the hydrolyzed protein systems is that they have much greater tolerance with respect to dilution water composition than the more conventional anionic systems, thereby allowing easier incorporation of leachate as the dilution medium. In a similar manner, the hydrolyzed protein system needs a foaming component, the dry hydrolyzed protein (100 wt % actives, Industria Suma, Brazil), a viscosity modifier, modified starch (100 wt % actives, Cargill Cerestar, Bedrijvenlaan, Belgium or National Starch, Bridgewater, N.J.) to adjust the drain time performance, and a ferrous ion component to stabilize the protein but also provide hydrogen sulfide destruction capability. As in the case with anionic systems, the overall formulation is controlled by the viscosity modifier as that component defines the viscosity of the concentrate and therefore the physical properties. The dry hydrolyzed protein component can vary from about 3 wt % to 5 wt % when the dilution involves approximately five to ten equal volumes of water. If modified starch is utilized as the viscosity modifier, the maximum amount for very long drain time performance is approximately an equal weight percent to that of the hydrolyzed protein. In order to achieve a high concentration formulation the viscosity modifier can be reduced to 33–50% of the weight percent of the hydrolyzed protein and still deliver a suitable drainage rate. For simple primary hydration applications the ferrous sulfate can be equal to a minimum of about 25% of the hydrolyzed protein weight percent, while the maximum ferrous sulfate level is about twice the hydrolyzed protein weight percent. Other ingredients can be added to the formulation for stability and process control. These materials include dispersants, often lignonsulfonates, (Lignotech USA, Greenwich, Conn.), which can be increased or decreased in order to optimize dispersing properties, small amounts of foam boosters, like diethyleneglycol monobutylether (Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Mich.), ammonium hydroxide for pH control and probably a biocide (Rohm and Haas, Philadelphia, Pa., or Nipa Hardwick, Wilmington, Del.) to control bacterial growth. A procedure for producing an 11340 kilograms (25000 pounds) batch of hydrolyzed protein concentrate starts with 9136 kilograms (20140 pounds) warm water into which the foam booster, diethyleneglycol monobutylether, 85 kilograms (188 pounds) and then the modified starch, Cerestar Instant Gelex, 567 kilograms (1250 pounds) are added. Very good mixing is required since the final viscosity is high. When that addition and mixing has been completed the dry hydrolyzed protein from Suma, 363 kilograms (800 pounds) can be added, followed by the dispersant, Norlig TSFL-4 (Lignotech), 454 kilograms (1000 pounds) and finally the ferrous salt, ferrous sulfate, 680 kilograms (1500 pounds) Ammonium hydroxide, approximately 34 kilograms (75 pounds), can adjust the pH to about 7.0 followed by sufficient stirring to generate a homogeneous mixture. A biocide can be added if desired, 23 kilograms (50 pounds) in order to minimize bacteria growth. The final pH of this formulation is between 6.5–7.0 at room temperature. The final viscosity is between 25000 and 30000 centipoise at room temperature.
EXAMPLE THREE
Foam Concentrate for Moisture and Dispersant Addition
A foaming concentrate with added dispersing properties can be formulated in many different ways, but a simple example including both soap-based dispersants (stearate salts) and polymer-based dispersants (polyacrylate salts) along with the foaming surfactant can be a variation of Example One, above. In a suitably sized vessel, place 7007 kilograms (15449 pounds) of water and heat to about 55–60° C. Add 163 kilograms (360 pounds) of potassium tripolyphosphate (FMC Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa.) and stir to dissolve. Follow this with the addition of 572 kilograms (1262 pounds) of triethanolamine (Dow Chemical, Midland, Mich.) and 1633 kilograms (3600 pounds) of AS-40 α-olefin sulfonate (Stepan Company, Northfield, Ill.). Stearic acid, Hystrene 5016 (Witco Chemical, Greenwich, Conn.), 542 kilograms (1195 pounds) can be added slowly with stirring, allowing melting and dissolution. When this operation has been completed 968 kilograms (2134 pounds) of AR-7H (Alco Chemical, Chattanooga, Tenn.) can be added and neutralized with the triethanolamine. This formulation produces about 10886 kilograms (24000 pounds) of finished product which can generally be foamed well when diluted one part composition and 6.5 parts dilution water.
Any of the above diluted compositions can be converted to foam using the generalized procedures outlined in Kittle U.S. Pat. No. 4,874,641 and Kroll, U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,680. When the injection pattern is defined, the void volume estimated and the to-be-foamed liquid flow rate determined, the first approximation for total injection time can be estimated, as outlined above. Since the physical characteristics, other than drain time, of the foam are not crucial for this application, the injection manifold does not require as much design input as, for instance, surface application (see, for instance, Kittle, U.S. Pat. No. 5,011,330 for issues of manifold design for surface applications). The discharge of the pneumatic foam machine is connected to the perforated borehole casing, and the foam injection is started. The foam must displace the air in the borehole and start penetrating the landfill mass through the perforations. Since the landfill mass characteristics will vary from location to location even within the same landfill cell, care must be exercised that the pressure in the discharge location does not overwhelm the compressed air, or gas, injection pressure. If that happens then the air flow will be reduced and the foam characteristic will be altered negatively. This can be monitored via pressure readings at the foam machine or the borehole entry point, or both, depending upon the arrangement of the equipment and discharge location. It may be necessary to stage the injection allowing some pressure increase, followed by no injection while the pressure declines, adding more foam, stopping, etc. Clearly, if the foam flow is too great compared to the acceptance rate of the landfill cell, then an alternative is to reduce the flow rate. Since the injection depth in a landfill is modest compared to oil well drilling, the operation also needs to be observant for surface rupture where the foam has forced a breach in the final cover of a closed cell. Other common leakages should also be considered. When the desired quantity of liquid has been foamed and discharged, the pressure in the system can be allowed to dissipate, then the feed lines can be disconnected and the borehole capped. This can be accomplished via a borehole capping arrangement which allows the pressure in the delivery lines to be vented while maintaining modest pressure in the borehole itself. Many combinations of common plumbing fittings can be assembled to achieve a safe depressurization scheme. The discharge plumbing can then be attached to the next borehole and the injection sequence continued.
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Hydrogen sulfide in a landfill is reduced by dispersing a hydrogen sulfide control agent, such as an iron compound, into the landfill. The hydrogen sulfide control agent may be a component of an injected foam. Gas is also recovered from the landfill by introducing water into the landfill, as part of the foam, to promote digestion of organic matter.
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RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/916,446 filed May 7, 2007, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to pre-treatment of cellulosic biomass feed materials, e.g., wood chips, for a steam explosion pulping. The invention relates particularly to discharging material from a digester and pressurizing a flow of steam and cellulosic material prior to steam explosion.
[0003] Steam explosion pulping typically involves steam used to break apart the cellulosic fibers (explosion pulping) and has been used, for example, for enzyme hydrolysis. Pulp is produced from cellulosic biomass feed material by pressurizing feed material with steam and subsequently rapidly reducing the pressure of the feed material impregnated with the steam. The rapid pressure reduction causes steam in the cells of the feed material to expand and thereby burst the cells. Pulp results from the bursting of cells in the feed material. The pulp with burst cells is further processed, for example, with enzymes to form sugars from the pulp.
[0004] The rapid reduction of the cooked feed material may be performed using a blow-valve. Prior to the blow-valve the cooked feed material and associated steam is pressured, such as to 15 bar. The stream of feed material and steam is preferably a high consistency stream having a solid consistency of 25% or more by weight. The feed material stream typically includes cellulosic biomass feed material, e.g., straws, fuel energy crops, paper pulp and agricultural waste products and other biomass; optionally cooking chemicals (which tend to be corrosive) and a large quantity of steam. In conventional systems, the amount of steam used in a pressurized reactor to cook and pressurize the feed material has been, for example, 500 lbs. (pounds) to 600 lbs. of steam for each ton of solid feed material. Further, the feed material stream is hot, such as at a temperature of 180° C. (Celsius) to 210° C. The feed material stream is primarily steam, chemical vapors and solid cooked cellulosic material. This hot and high consistency stream is pressurized in the reactor vessel to, for example, 15 bar. The stream passes through a blow valve or other pressure release device (collectively referred to as a “blow valve”) wherein steam explosion pulping occurs and the pressure of the feed material stream is reduced to, for example, 1 to 2 bars.
[0005] A conventional approach to pressurizing the feed stream is to add sufficient steam to the reactor vessel to achieve the desired pressure for steam explosion pulping, such as 15 bar. A difficulty with this approach is that it requires a large amount of steam, e.g., 500-800 lbs of steam per ton of solid feed material, to heat the material and to discharge (blow) out of the digester, which is well beyond the steam needed for pretreatment, e.g., cooking and steam impregnation, of the feed material. The required large volume of steam is expensive in terms of energy consumption to produce.
[0006] There is a long felt need for low-energy devices and techniques that pressurize a cellulosic biomass feed material stream to sufficiently high pressures for discharge for steam explosion pulping. The desired low-energy devices and techniques should pressurize the feed material stream to a pressure for steam explosion pulping and to propel the stream from the digester to a blow valve, such as above 15 bar, by using less energy than is conventionally consumed in generating the additional steam added to a reactor vessel to achieve the same pressurization and motive force for the feed material stream.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0007] A steam explosion pulping method has been developed comprising: impregnating a cellulosic biomass feed material in a pressurized reactor vessel; discharging the impregnated feed material from the vessel to a high pressure compressor; elevating a pressure of the feed material in the compressor; discharging the pressurized feed material from the compressor to a conduit coupled to a blow valve; rapidly reducing pressure of the pressurized feed material as the feed material passes through the blow valve, and pulping the feed material by expansion of fluid and steam in the feed material during the rapid pressure reduction.
[0008] A high pressure compressor has been developed comprising: a centrifugal impeller assembly including a disc and at least one removable vane plate attached to the disc, and a high pressure casing for the impeller assembly.
[0009] A method has been developed to convert e.g. a mechanical refiner to a high pressure compressor having an impeller, comprising: replacing a refining plate with a vane plate on a rotor disc, and converting a stator disc to a stator housing for the vane plate and rotor disc.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a steam explosion pulping system for cellulosic biomass feed material, wherein the system has a centrifugal high-pressure compressor. The drawing shows a device with a horizontal shaft. An equivalent device may be configured with a vertical shaft.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a side view, partially in cross-section, of the centrifugal high-pressure steam pump shown in FIG. 1 .
[0012] FIG. 3 is a front view of an exemplary array of vane plate segments mounted on a rotor disc.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0013] A high pressure discharge compressor has been developed to pressurize a cooked cellulosic biomass feed material stream so that the stream may be subjected to steam explosion pulping. The high pressure discharge compressor applies centrifugal force to increase the pressure of a feed material stream from a pressurized reactor vessel. The centrifugal force applied to the stream increases the pressure to, for example, at least 0.5-1 bar above the pressure inside the cooking reactor. The pressurized stream is discharged from the compressor to a conduit that leads to a blow valve, where the steam explosion converts the feed material to pulp.
[0014] The high pressure discharge compressor may have a casing, rotating disc(s), drive motor, transmission and bearing, and maybe a front end screw that are similar to a conventional mechanical refiner, e.g., MDF refiner. The digester may have a scraper or a discharge conveyor (typically a screw) to feed the material to the compressor via a feed screw or by gravity. With a horizontal impeller (with a vertical shaft) the processed material from the reactor may just drop into the impeller. The compressor has compressor vane plate segments attached to the discs, in contrast to the refining plate segments attached to the discs in a conventional mechanical disc refiner. The compressor vane plate segments form an annular centrifugal impeller that accelerates the stream of feed material, without applying substantial refining action to the material (as is done in a conventional refiner).
[0015] In some steam explosion pulping applications, a mechanical refiner, such as a MDF refiner, is suitable as a high pressure compressor. However, the refining processed performed between the rotating and stationary discs is not needed for compression and increasing the pressure, and the additional energy requirements for refining may render the compression process less efficient for steam explosion pulping purposes. The increased pressure through the high pressure discharge compressor may allow to “re-circulate” some of the steam back to the reactor. Piping from the stator may be used to optionally feed some steam to the reactor.
[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a steam explosion pulping system 10 . Cellulosic biomass feed material 12 may be temporarily stored in a storage vessel 14 , such as a buffer bin. Feed material 12 is moved by a feed conveyor 15 , such as a screw conveyor, to a reactor feeding device 16 . The storage vessel 14 may be omitted if the stream of feed material 12 is sufficient by itself to supply the needs of the reactor feeding device 16 . The feed material may flow to the reactor feeding device as a continuous stream of dry material or in batches, depending on whether the reactor vessel 18 is a continuous reactor or a batch reactor.
[0017] An unpressurized stream, such as at 1 bar, of feed material enters the reactor feeding device 16 , which seals against the pressure inside the reactor and the feed material is discharged from the device 16 to a high pressure reactor vessel 18 . The reactor feeding device 16 preferably provides a pressure seal between the reactor vessel 18 and the unpressurized stream of feed material upstream of the reactor feeding device. Suitable reactor feeding devices include, by way of example, a plug feeder and/or rotary valve or a similar device.
[0018] The reactor vessel 18 may be a pressurized continuous digester vessel arranged vertically, inclined, or horizontally. For example, the feed material may enter the top of the vessel as shown in FIG. 1 . The reactor vessel 18 is pressurized, such as to a pressure of 3 to 15 bar (or higher). The feed material mixes in the reactor with steam 20 , 21 and optionally cooking chemicals 22 , e.g., liquor to dissolve and remove the lignin in woody feed material or to enhance the conversion of cellulose to simpler carbo-hydrates like sugars (such as C5 and C6 sugars). The steam and chemicals may be introduced to the reactor vessel 18 from external sources steam and liquor chemicals 21 , 22 .
[0019] The feed material is steam cooked, under pressure, in the reactor vessel to impregnate the cells of the feed material with water, steam and, possibly, cooking chemicals. The cooking process, e.g., steam impregnation of the feed material, may be a two (2) minute to fifteen (15) minute process in the vessel. During a continuous process, the retention period of the feed material in the vessel may be 2 to 15 minutes and this retention period serves as the cooking period. Cooking cellulosic materials at higher pressures is also referred to as autohydrolysis if no chemicals are added, e.g., by way of liquor, to the materials.
[0020] A rotating screw, auger or scraper in the reactor vessel 18 , promotes mixing of the feed material, steam and chemicals and the migration of the feed material through the reactor vessel from inlet to a discharge. The stream 24 of feed material from the reactor is discharged to a conveyor (typically a screw conveyor) that feeds to a high pressure compressor 26 .
[0021] The conveyor feeds the material discharged from the digester vessel to an inlet feed screw 28 of the compressor. The feed screw may be a full flight screw or ribbon feeder. The feed screw 28 may be separately driven or directly driven by a rotating shaft 56 that drives impeller disc 52 (see FIG. 2 ) of the compressor 26 . The feed screw 28 serves as the inlet to impeller disc 52 of the high pressure compressor. The feed screw conveys the feed material towards the center of a rotating impeller disc 52 that propels the feed material towards the periphery of the disc.
[0022] The reactor vessel 18 , reactor feeding device 16 , conveyor 15 and storage bin 14 are conventional pulping devices being used in a novel manner in that they are used in connection with a high pressure compressor 26 .
[0023] The stream 24 of cooked feed material, steam and cooking chemicals is discharged from the reactor vessel 18 , such as through a bottom discharge conduit that may include a discharge screw. Preferably, the stream 24 has a high consistency, such as a solids consistency of at least 25% by weight. In particular, the stream is preferably at least 25% solid feed material and 75% or less steam and chemical vapors.
[0024] The pressure of the discharge stream 24 from the reactor vessel 18 may not be sufficient for steam explosion pulping, and particularly for providing a motive force to propel the steam through a blow valve. The pressure may be elevated to a sufficient pressure, e.g., 10 to 15 bar. Steam 20 from the reactor or digester vessel 18 may be utilized to transport the stream of feed material towards the blow valve 42 , but the amount of steam added to the reactor or digester need not be sufficient to move the stream of feed material through the blow valve. An additional source of steam 21 may be added to the steam extracted from the reactor vessel 18 to transport the feed material stream 24 from the vessel to a high pressure compressor 26 .
[0025] The energy requirements of the reactor vessel 18 , especially with respect to the energy required to produce the steam supply 20 , might be lower as compared to a conventional reactor vessel in which the steam supply elevates the pressure in the reactor to a pressure, e.g., 15 bar and provides enough motive steam for moving the feed material to the blow valve where steam explosion pulping occurs.
[0026] The stream of feed material 24 is fed to the high pressure discharge compressor 26 to elevate the steam pressure of the feed material to that necessary for steam explosion pulping. The compressor may increase the feed material pressure to 15 bar, for example. The high pressure discharge compressor may reduce the amount of motive external steam 21 needed to discharge the feed material through the conduit 40 and blow valve 42 .
[0027] The compressor 26 may be a centrifugal compressor having an inlet feed mechanism 28 , an impeller and impeller housing assembly 30 , a motor or engine 32 to drive the rotating impeller, a transmission and bearing assembly 34 , and a frame 36 . The rotating impeller increases the pressure of the stream 24 by applying centrifugal force to the stream. The stream is discharged to a high pressure annular discharge housing 38 arranged around the periphery of the impeller. The high pressure compressor may have a horizontal shaft with a vertical disc, or may have a vertical shaft with a horizontal impeller.
[0028] From the discharge housing 38 , the high pressure stream flows through conduit 40 and to a blow-valve 42 . The stream enters the blow valve at a high pressure, e.g., above 10 to 15 bar, and expands as it passes through the valve. The expansion through the blow valve 42 rapidly reduces the pressure of the stream, such as to 1 to 2 bar. This rapid expansion causes the water vapor and/or fluid impregnated in the feed material, especially in the cells of the feed material, to expand and results in a steam explosion to burst the cells of the cellulosic biomass feed material. The expansion of the water and/or steam separates the feed material and explodes the cells of the feed material to create pulp from the feed material.
[0029] The conduit 40 may be coupled to a pressurized liquid source 41 that provides a liquid stream to the pressurized pulped feed material downstream of the blow valve. The liquid stream 41 may consist of water, high temperature catalyzing agents, acidic agents including but not limited to sulfuric acid, enzymes, or other agents formulated to enhance pre-digestion of cellulosic biomass feed material.
[0030] The cellulosic biomass material, after flowing through the blow valve 42 , is pulped feed material that flows to a cyclone 44 (or a blow-tank or a centrifuge or similar device) to separate the pulp fibers and other solid materials from the steam and other vapors 47 in the steam. A cyclone separator or blow tank 44 has a lower discharge 46 for pulp and an upper vapor discharge for the steam, non-condensable gases (NCG), compressible gases and other chemical vapors 47 . These gases 47 may be recovered, such as by passing through a heat exchanger to recover the heat energy in the vapor.
[0031] The pulp discharged from the lower discharge port 46 of the cyclone 44 might be cooled in a cooling device 48 , which may be a belt or screw conveyor. The cooling prevents degradation of the enzymes in the pulp. From the cyclone or blow-tank, the cellulose pulp material is fed to a process stage 49 , such as an acid hydrolysis, enzyme hydrolysis or micro-organism treatment and fermentation to, for example, produce the desired sugars and ultimately alcohols like for example ethanol. The process stage 49 may also form cellulose containing fibers for pulp or board products. The blow back valve, reactor or digester, cyclone, cooling device and other reactors may be similar to conventional pulping devices. These components are in novel arrangement that includes a high pressure compressor 26 .
[0032] FIG. 2 is side view, shown in partial cross section and cut-away view to show the impeller, of a high pressure centrifugal compressor 26 having a horizontal drive shaft. An impeller with a vertical drive shaft may be alternatively employed in the compressor. The compressor includes a rotating disc impeller 52 sealed in an annular casing 54 that is included in the impeller housing assembly. The disc impeller is mounted on a rotating shaft 56 that is supported by bearings 58 mounted on the frame 36 of the compressor. Gears in a transmission assembly 34 coupled the shaft 56 to a main drive motor 32 . Alternatively, the shaft of the high pressure compressor may be directly coupled to a main drive motor. The axial position of the shaft 56 and its associated rotor disc 52 may be adjusted with a gap adjustment mechanism 60 that incrementally moves the rotor disc towards or away from an opposition stator disc or housing.
[0033] The housing 54 may be a solid cast metal annular housing that is sealed to provide a pressurized annular hollow space for the impeller and material feed stream flow path. The housing 54 defines a closed, pressurized chamber between the feed screw discharge 62 and diffuser discharge 38 . The housing 54 is preferably rated for high pressures, such as 15 to 20 bar or greater. A seal 61 , e.g., a mechanical seal or special stuffing box, is between the shaft and the high pressure compressor housing. The shaft bearings 58 are preferably installed outside the pressurized housing 54 .
[0034] An inlet, such as a center inlet 62 to the front of the housing 54 provides inlet port for the stream of feed material that is feed to the rotor by a feed screw 28 . The feed screw receives the stream of feed material from the conduit 24 and injects the feed material through the center inlet 62 and into the vanes of the rotor disc 52 . The stream of feed material flows to the rotor disc 52 and passes through vanes on the rotor disc to the periphery 64 of the disc. Centrifugal force due to the rotation of the rotor disc propels the feed material from the center inlet 62 to the circumferential periphery of the rotor disc. If compressor has a vertical drive shaft, gravity may be the force that propels the material toward the rotating disc or impeller. If the compressor has a horizontal drive shaft, pressure is needed to propel the feed material to the rotating disc or impeller.
[0035] A diffuser 66 of the housing 54 forms an annular chamber around the periphery of the rotor disc 52 . The kinetic energy of the fast moving stream of feed material exiting the rotor disc periphery is converted to a pressurized stream in the diffuser 66 . An outlet 38 of the diffuser is coupled to the conduit 40 ( FIG. 1 ) that feeds the high pressure stream of feed material to the blow valve 42 .
[0036] FIG. 3 is a front view of the rotor disc 52 that includes a circular disc 68 , such as a full height or partial height disc, mounted on the shaft 56 . On the face of the disc are mounted an annular array of vanes, preferably in plate segments 70 . The pie-shaped plate segments may be mounted by bolts 72 , e.g., two bolts per segment, to the disc. The vane plate segments are replaceable and can be removed by opening the housing 54 and unscrewing the bolts from the disc 52 . The plate segments include impeller vanes 74 that may extend generally radially towards the periphery 54 of the rotor disc. Instead of plate segments, a solid disc may also be used.
[0037] The arrangement, number and geometry of the vanes on the plate segments 70 are dependent on the stream of feed material, the rotational velocity of the disc and the depth and shape of the housing. In addition, the vanes may have a variable height (along the z-axis in FIG. 3 which is in a direction out of the page). The vane height may be greatest at the inlet and gradually decrease in height along a radially outward direction. Further, the vane may be segmented such that some vane segments are arranged in a radially inward annular section and extend to the periphery of the disc, and other vanes may start at a radial mid-section of the disc and extend to the periphery. Further, the vanes may be straight and radial, or may have a spiral or other curved shape as they extend radially outward on the plate segment. The vanes may be cast or welded to the vane plate segments. Alternatively, the impeller vanes may be releasably attached directly to the rotating disc.
[0038] The rotor disc and associated vane plate segments may be generally planar, conical or a combination of planer and conical stages. A planar disc and vane plate segments is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , wherein the face of the disc and plate segment is generally flat with the vanes having a height dimension extending parallel to the shaft axis and a length dimension vector extending perpendicular to the shaft axis, i.e., radially. A conical disc and plate segments may have a frustoconical shape wherein the vanes have a length dimension vector forming an acute angle, e.g., 87 degrees to 75 degrees, with respect to the shaft 56 . A staged compressor may have a conical disc and plate segment that feeds to and possible merges into a planar disc and plate segment. Further, the feed screw 28 may effectively comprise an axial compression stage of the high pressure compressor.
[0039] The rotor disc with impeller vanes may be opposite to a stationary stator disc or the housing 54 of the disc. A stator disc 53 with a flat side facing the impeller vanes of the rotor disc may be preferable if the compressor is a modified mechanical refiner, which originally included a stator refining disc. The stator disc 53 may also have vanes (see FIG. 2 ) to guide the stream of feed material between the vanes of the rotor and prevent radially inward back flow of the stream.
[0040] An optional refining section, e.g., an annular series of bars or teeth 76 just radially inward of the periphery 64 of the plate segments, may be used to provide a final refining action and ensure that no large clumps of feed material pass into the conduit 40 and block the blow valve 42 .
[0041] The high pressure compressor may be based on a mechanical refiner put to use as a compressor. Mechanical refiners, such as a MDF refiner, include rotating refining discs that refine the pulp and centrifugally accelerate the feed material to a higher pressure. A conventional refiner typically discharges and dissipates the pressure added to the refined feed material stream by the refining discs. The diffuser of a conventional mechanical refiner may be modified to maintain the high pressure at the discharge of the discs as the stream flows to a conduit 40 . Accordingly, a conventional refiner may serve as a high pressure compressor 26 to boost the pressure of a stream of feed material into conduit 40 .
[0042] Conventional mechanical refiners tend to have high energy demands applied to refining the feed material. The demand for high energy increases the cost of pulping and is not necessary for steam explosion pulping. In mechanical refining, the typical refining plates defiberize the material by forces applied to the feed material between a pair of opposing refiner discs and plates, where at least one disc rotates. The rotation of the disc applies centrifugal forces that move the feed material between the refiner discs/plates. In steam explosion pulping, the steam explosion converts the feed material to pulp and, thus, another refining process, such as mechanical refining between rotating plates is not needed.
[0043] While a conventional mechanical refiner may be adapted to discharge a feed stream at high pressure to a conduit having a blow-valve for steam explosion pulping, it is preferable that the rotor disc in the refiner also be converted to an impeller. The impeller has tall vanes and wide channels between the vanes. The feed material passes through the channels and the vanes guide the feed material radially outward under centrifugal force. The vanes preferably do not mechanically refine the feed material, as do the bars and grooves (or rows of teeth) in a conventional mechanical refiner. Accordingly, converting a mechanical refiner to include an impeller in place of the rotor refining disc should reduce the energy requirement of the refiner because the impeller avoids refining the feed material.
[0044] To convert a mechanical refiner to a high pressure compressor with an impeller, the housing is opened to expose the stator and rotor discs. The refining plates on the stator and rotor discs are removed. Impeller vane plate segments are mounted on the rotor disc, in place of the refining plate segments. The rotor disc may be advanced towards the stator disc using gap adjustment mechanism 60 such that the top edges of the impeller disc are adjacent the stator disc. Alternatively, stator plate segments may be mounted on the stator disc. The stator plate segments may be generally flat or otherwise shaped to conform to the top edges of the vanes on the vane plate segments and rotor disc. The stator disc or stator plate segments effectively form a stator housing for the impeller disc. In addition, the housing of the refiner is modified, if needed, to capture as high pressure the energy added to the biomass feed material by the rotor disc.
[0045] While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
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A steam explosion pulping method including: impregnating a cellulosic biomass feed material in a pressurized reactor vessel; discharging the impregnated feed material from the vessel to a high pressure compressor; elevating a pressure of the feed material in the compressor; discharging the pressurized feed material from the compressor to a conduit coupled to a blow valve; rapidly reducing pressure of the pressurized feed material as the feed material passes through the blow valve, and pulping the feed material by expansion of fluid in the feed material during the rapid pressure reduction.
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TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a telecommunication system and more particularly to a method and apparatus for providing one or more priority levels for telephone call originators in order to increase the likelihood of completing a high priority calls when the demand for call completion services exceeds capacity.
PROBLEM
The demand for telecommunication services at times exceeds the capacity that the local exchange company or long distance company can supply. When this occurs, the call originator typically receives some type of busy signal. A busy signal is an indication to the call originator that somewhere between his or her telephone and the destination telephone the capacity of the equipment has been exceeded. If the call receiving the busy signal is like most social calls and some business calls, an immediate time response is not necessary and the call originator will just try again later without any ramifications. On the other hand, if the call is a time sensitive business call for which time is very valuable, such as some calls from investors to their investment brokers, the call originator might try again later, but there could be some loss associated with the delay to either the originating party or called party. This latter scenario occurs because the standard telephone service treats all social calls and all business calls with equal importance, i.e. all calls have equal priority.
If the response to a dialed number is a busy signal because the telephone having the dialed number is presently in use, there is not much that the call originator can do about that short of asking an operator to intervene because of an emergency. If, however, the response to a dialed number is a busy signal because the telecommunication equipment between the call originator and the called party is either operating at its full capacity or is overloaded, there are some known ways that may be followed to increase the call originator's chances of completing a call. The first way of increasing a call originator's chances is to increase the chances of getting a dial tone. Getting priority for a dial tone gives an originating party a slight edge in marginally overloaded call connection equipment, but a considerable edge in heavily overloaded call connection equipment. For this reason emergency related telephone numbers, such as police and fire departments, are often provided with a service that gives them priority for dial tones. Once the calling party gets a dial tone and dials the number of the called party, the call originator is back to the standard equal priority for scarce telecommunication resources with every other dialed number. Aside from operator intervention and dial tone priority, the standard telecommunications equipment sometimes places a mid afternoon social call in competition with an investor's order to trade a large block of shares before the market closes for a telephone connection.
The overload that causes the telephone network to return a busy signal, which the originator receives, may occur for anyone of a number of reasons. One common reason is an overload because of a very popular called number, such as a radio station giving away $1,000 to each of the first 10 callers, or a call-in talk show which has the President as a guest. Very popular called numbers have been known to completely clog up local telephone switches. A common solution to this problem is to limit the number of calls that are allowed to be completed and directing the remainder, i.e. the not allowed calls to a busy indication. This solution is referred to as call gapping control based on the called number. This means that after the initial quota of callers to win the give-away or talk to the President have their calls completed, subsequent calls to the popular called number will be gapped by randomly limiting the number of calls per unit time accepted by the originating or tandem switches providing service to the popular called number. A call gapping rate of one call for every three minutes is reasonable for a radio give-away because it takes a call of at least that length to obtain each winner's name and address.
Call gapping control on the called number may also be performed according to just a portion of the called number. In the aftermath of an earthquake or similar disaster, call gapping control according to an area code or an area code and exchange number may be used at a local exchange to keep non-damaged lines open for emergency telephone calls.
There also exists network controls that can be invoked on calls routed to specified trunk groups. As with call gapping controls, trunk group controls randomly select which calls to that trunk group are controlled. However, trunk group controls are typically based on a percentage of calls to that trunk group whereas call gapping controls are based on a number of calls allowed per unit of time.
Unfortunately, neither call gapping nor trunk group control solves the problem of the time sensitive business call, competing with the non-time sensitive social call or the non-time sensitive business call to the same area code or exchange. Call gapping or trunk group control criterion reduces the chances of completing a time sensitive call just the same as it reduces the chances of completing any non-time sensitive call. After a call gapping or trunk group control is instituted at a node of the telecommunication network, the calls that are allowed are randomly selected. Thus, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for call gapping or trunk group controls that grants priority to call originators who make time sensitive telephone calls, such as emergency and time sensitive business calls.
SOLUTION
Briefly stated, in accordance with one aspect of the invention, the foregoing problem is solved and an advance over the prior art is made by providing a method of managing the completion of calls according to their respective levels of service associated with their respective numbers of the originating parties in addition to the existing call gapping or trunk group control criterion. Each number of an originating party is assigned a level of service from a plurality of levels of service. When a call is made via a telecommunication system which has a call gapping or trunk group control active, each level of service may be controlled in a respective manner. Thus, if network management control is active because of an overload condition, information associated with the number of the originating party is inspected to determine its level of service and the network management control for that particular level of service is respectively applied to the call.
In another aspect of the invention, the foregoing problem is solved and an advance over the prior art is made by providing in a telecommunication system, an apparatus for selectively controlling a telephone call. The apparatus includes a device for determining from information associated with a telephone station from which the telephone call originates if network management controls are active for the present telephone call based upon a level of service of the telephone call, in addition to existing control criterion. The apparatus also includes a device for applying network management controls to the present telephone call if network management controls are active. The device for applying network management controls either controls this telephone call to its completion or terminates this telephone call.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
While the specification concludes with the appended claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which is regarded as the invention, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified telecommunications network in block diagram form.
FIG. 2 illustrates details of a LEC shown in FIG. 1 in block diagram form.
FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of call gapping control based on the called number.
FIGS. 4A and 4B together form a flow diagram of a method of call gapping on a level of service according to the present invention.
FIGS. 5A and 5B together form a flow diagram of a method of trunk group call control based upon a level of service.
FIGS. 6A and 6B together form a flow diagram of method of call gapping on a level of service which gives the call originator an opportunity to upgrade his or her present level of service.
FIGS. 7A and 7B together form a flow diagram of method of trunk group control on a level of service which gives the call originator an opportunity to upgrade his or her present level of service.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 3, the known call gapping control based on the called number will be described. FIG. 1 shows a telecommunication system 10, which may be a portion of a larger telecommunication system (not shown). Telecommunication system 10 includes an inter-exchange carrier system 14. Interexchange carrier system 14 has a number of nodes 16, 18, 20 and 22. Nodes 16-22 are normally interconnected by trunk groups 24, 26, 28, 30 and 32. Trunk group 24 normally connects node 16 to node 18, trunk group 26 connects node 18 to node 20, trunk group 28 connects node 20 to node 22, trunk group 30 connects node 22 to node 16 and trunk group 32 normally connects node 22 to node 18. FIG. 1, for the purposes of example, shows trunk groups 24 and 32 in an abnormal condition, i.e. broken, such as by a natural disaster.
Node 16 is also connected to a local exchange carrier (LEC) system 34 by trunk group 36 and to a user system 38 by trunk group 40. Similarly, Node 18 is also connected to another local exchange carrier system 42 by trunk group 44. Nodes 20-22 may have other connections, but these are not shown for simplification.
With trunk groups 24 and 32 broken, as shown, the number of trunk groups and trunks available for communicating in the interexchange network 14 with node 18 goes down by two-thirds. Calls from LEC 34 destined for LEC 42 and vice-versa must pass through trunk groups 36, 30, 28, 26 and 44. This type of situation is the type for which call gapping and trunk group controls based upon the called number have been used in the past.
Referring now to FIG. 3, the method 100 of call gapping on the called number will be described. Method 100 may be implemented in software in an intelligent telecommunication switching system, such as the 5ESS® Switch manufactured by AT&T Corp. Method 100 begins with action 108 when the switch collects the called number. Action 108 then directs the call to action 110. Action 110 determines if call gapping is active for this called number.
If call gapping for this called number is not active, action 110 directs the call to action 112 which routes the call to its destination. If call gapping for this called number is active, action 110 directs this call to action 114. Since call gapping must be active to arrive at action 114, action 114 determines whether the present call is to be completed to its called number or whether it is to be gapped, i.e., not completed. This determination is made according to the call gapping rate which is set by the system operator of the system or node performing method 100. For example, with a call gapping rate of one call per 5 minutes, only one call is allowed every 5 minutes. If the call gapping rate is one call in infinity, each call has a zero chance of being completed. If action 114 determines that a call is allowed to be completed then the allowed call is directed to action 112 and is routed to its destination. If action 114 determines that the present call is to be gapped, instead, action 114 directs the present call to action 116, which is an announcement such as "I'm sorry all lines are busy now, please try again later."
Trunk group control based on the called number works in very much the same manner. The originator has no control over the success of his or her call completion at action 114 if a call gapping or trunk group control is in effect: successful completion is totally random as far as the originator is concerned.
Tables 1 and 2 illustrate how operator entered information for call gapping and trunk group controls is stored in their respective portions of a telecommunication system, for example the system 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
Referring to Table 1, a call to called number (999)-555-5555 will be gapped greatly at level 9, e.g. one call every 15 minutes. Called number (999)-555-5555 is a popular number, such as a ticket reservation service or a television station that carries a popular talk show, and this popular number is presently very popular as indicated by the level 9 call gapping. The other entry, (999)-999-XXXX illustrates that call gapping may be performed based on only a portion of the called number. The exchange (999)-999 may be over burdened, for example because of an injury to part of the system, and a gapping level of 2 is entered by an operator for the entire (999)-999 exchange. Thus, to keep the overburdened part of the system from jamming up the rest of the telecommunication system calls to the (999)-999 exchange are gapped moderately at a gapping level of 2.
Referring now to Table 2, three types of known trunk group controls will be described. As shown in the first row of Table 2, presently there is an operator entered trunk group control to cancel 50% of the calls routed to trunk group number 47. The second row of Table 2 indicates that there is an operator entered trunk group control to re-route 25% of the calls to trunk group number 52 to out of pattern trunk group 91. The third row of Table 2 indicates that there is an operator entered trunk group control to transfer or skip 75% of the calls to trunk group number 63 to the next trunk group of the standard pattern. These trunk group control levels are typically activated to reduce or redistribute call traffic such that no part of the telecommunication system 10 is overburdened.
TABLE 1______________________________________CALL GAPPING CONTROL INFORMATIONCALLED No. GAPPING LEVEL______________________________________999-555-5555 9999-999-XXXX 2______________________________________
TABLE 2______________________________________TRUNK GROUP CONTROL INFORMATIONTRUNK GROUP No. TYPE OF CTRL CTRL LEVEL______________________________________47 Cancel-to 47 50%52 Re-Route to 91 25%63 Transfer to Next 75%______________________________________
Tables 3, 4 and 5 illustrate the call gapping and trunk group control data according to the present invention. Table 3 illustrates, in a simplified example, how network management levels of service (NM LOSs) may be associated with originating numbers. For entries in the table that refer to the same originating number, the entry with the most number of significant digits specified takes precedence (e.g., (777)-777-5XXX takes precedence over (777)-777-XXXX). According to Table 3, every call originating from exchange (777)-777-XXXX has a medium NM LOS of 3, except for calls originating numbers in the (777)-777-5000 through (777)-777-5999 range which have higher NM LOSs of 2. Thus, financial institutions may request numbers in the higher NM LOS ranges and for a fee be assigned originating numbers in the (777)-777-5000 to (777)-777-5999 range that has an NM LOS of 2. Similarly, a residential customer may be offered a special low rate if a lower NM LOS is acceptable, for example originating number (999)-999-9999 shown in Table 3 below. All of these call processing service variations are made possible by the present invention.
The last two lines of Table 3 illustrate that part of an originating number, for example exchanges (999)-224-XXXX and (999)-223-XXXX, may be used as keys to access (dip into) databases with all or part of an originating number in order to retrieve an NM LOS associated with that originating number. In such a case, the retrieved NM LOS, if any, is used for further call processing.
TABLE 3______________________________________NM LOS ACCORDING TO ORIGINATING NUMBERORIGINATING No. NM LOS______________________________________777-777-5XXX 2777-777-XXXX 3999-999-9999 4999-224-XXXX SCP DIP999-223-XXXX LINE DATA DIP______________________________________
Tables 4 and 5 are similar to Tables 1 and 2 respectively, except that Tables 4 and 5 each has an additional column and at least one additional row. The additional column is for the system operators to enter the network management levels of service (NM LOS)for the active call gapping and trunk group controls.
Table 4, like Table 1 has call gapping active for called number (999)-555-5555 and for all the numbers in the exchange (999)-999-XXXX. However, there are more call gapping possibilities in Table 4 because of the additional NM LOS entries. Thus there may be multiple entries for each active call gapping, as shown in Table 4. According to Table 4, popular called number (999)-555-5555 is gapped greatly for originators having network management levels of service of 3 or 4; however, for originators having network management levels of service of 2 the gapping rate is moderate, so the likelihood of completing a call to the popular number can vary significantly depending upon the originator's NM LOS. Similarly, for the overburdened exchange area call gapping situation, such as exchange (999)-999 shown in Table 4, call originators with NM LOSs of 3, 4 or 5 will experience gapping at a moderate rate, while call originators with NM LOSs of 2 will not experience call gapping at level 0, i.e. not at all. Thus, the network operators have more call gapping possibilities and greater flexibility to provide the services that their customers want and need.
TABLE 4______________________________________CALL GAPPING CONTROL INFORMATIONNM LOS CALLED No. GAPPING LEVEL______________________________________3 or 4 999-555-5555 92 999-555-5555 33, 4 or 5 999-999-XXXX 32 999-999-XXXX 0______________________________________
The impact of the NM LOS on active trunk group controls is less dramatic for the transfer and re-route trunk group controls because even if a call is transferred or re-routed to alternate trunk group either in the normal pattern or outside of the normal pattern, these network management actions are transparent to the call originator. A caller in Chicago, Ill. calling Los Angles, Calif. doesn't care if the call is routed through St. Louis, Mo., Kansas City, Mo. or Fort Worth Tex. as long as the call is completed. The impact of the NM LOS on the cancel-to trunk group control may be very dramatic because the results are dramatic to some of the call originators. For example, trunk group number 47 has an active cancel-to trunk group control that cancels 60% of the calls to trunk group 47 for call originators with NM LOSs of 3,4 or 5. Call originators with a NM LOS of 2 can be provided with a lower control rate, such as the 30% shown in Table 5, which gives them twice the likelihood of not being canceled by the active cancel-to trunk group control.
TABLE 5______________________________________TRUNK GROUP CONTROL INFORMATION TRUNK GROUP CTRLNM LOS No. TYPE OF CTRL LEVEL______________________________________3, 4 or 5 47 Cancel-to 47 60%2 47 Cancel-to 47 30%2, 3, 4 or 5 52 Re-Route to 91 25%2, 3, 4 or 5 63 Transfer to Next 75%______________________________________
The NM LOSs of the call originators provide a way for the telecommunication system to differentiate between non-time sensitive telephone calls and time sensitive originators. To originators who know that they constantly have time sensitive telephone calls to make, an NM LOS of 2, the highest level represented in Tables 3, 4 and 5, would be worth an extra fee. The telecommunications system operators may give the lower NM LOS originators either a few use-or-lose single call upgrades to NM LOS 2 or may offer single call upgrades to a higher NM LOS for a fee which would only be collected if the call is completed.
As can be seen from Tables 3, 4 and 5, the NM LOS for an originating number is essential for determining whether NM controls, such as call gapping and trunk group controls, should be applied to a given call from that number. Although the ubiquity of this service will be decided by the service providers, it is possible that any node in FIGS. 1 and 2 may be required to access the originator's NM LOS data for each call. This is possible since each of these nodes currently have call gapping and trunk group controls. Also, the service providers and standards bodies will determine how each of these nodes in FIGS. 1 and 2 will determine the NM LOS for a given originator's call. Hence, the possible methods will be described herein. The NM LOS data can reside with resident line data in the originating switch. In addition the NM LOS data can be derived from the originating number using tables similar to Table 3 mentioned above, that can reside in any node of FIGS. 1 and 2, including the SCP node. This requires these nodes to have the originating number of the call, which may be passed in the call signaling data from the originating office to the subsequent offices involved in the call. The originating number can either be the automatic number identification (ANI) that usually identifies the calling station for billing purposes, or the calling number which used for custom calling features. As an alternative to requiring the switch (node) to use the originating number to derive the NM LOS, the NM LOS may be passed with the call signaling data from the originating office to the subsequent offices involved in the call.
Referring now to FIGS. 4A and 4B, a method 400 for call gapping according to the NM LOS of the call originator is illustrated. This could be performed by any of the nodes shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The first step of method 400 is step 402, which collects the called number. Next, decision 403 checks if call gapping is active for this called number. If call gapping is not active for this called number, then the method 400 proceeds to action 440 which routes the call. If call gapping is active for this called number, then the method 400 proceeds to action 404 which checks to determine if the originator's NM LOS is contained in the network signaling data associated with this call. Existing inter-office signaling data, which is transmitted in-band or out-of-band with respect to the facility carrying the call, could be used to pass the NM LOS with the call from office to office. If NM LOS for this call is contained in signaling data, the method proceeds to action 406. Action 406 obtains the NM LOS from signaling data and proceeds to decision 434 with NM LOS determined.
If NM LOS is not contained in signaling data the method 400 proceeds to decision 408 determine if an ANI is available with the present call. If ANI is not available, decision 408 directs the method 400 to decision 410 which determines if calling number information is available. If calling number information is not available (and ANI is not available), an NM LOS cannot be determined from stored data, for such a situation decision 410 directs the method 400 to step 412. Step 412 assigns a default NM LOS and directs the method 400 to decision 434 for call gap proceeding based on a default NM LOS. If ANI is available at decision 408 or if the calling number is available at step 410 (one or both is the normal situation) the method 400 progresses to decision 416.
Decision 416 determines if there is a match between the ANI or calling number of the present call and the associated data contained in the NM LOS table, such as Table 3 above. If decision 416 does not find a match to the ANI or the calling number, the method proceeds to action 412 where a default origination NM LOS is assigned, for example the NM LOS of non time sensitive originators. If decision 416 finds a match, the data associated with the originating number of the present call is retrieved from the table or database, and the method proceeds to decision 420. Decision 420 examines the associated data retrieved in decision 416 and determines if line data must be used to determine the NM LOS of the present call. If line data must be used, decision 420 proceeds to action 422 which obtains the originator's NM LOS from line data associated with the call, and subsequently proceeds to decision 434. If use of line data is not required, decision 420 proceeds to decision 424.
Decision 424 examines the associated data retrieved in decision 416 and determines if a query of an SCP database is required. If such a query is required, the method proceeds to decision 426 which determines if the ANI or-the calling number of the present call has a matching entry in the SCP database. If there is a match, decision 426 directs the method to action 428 which retrieves the NM LOS for the present call from the SCP database and proceeds to decision 434. If there is no matching number in the SCP database, decision 426 directs the method to action 430, which assigns a default NM LOS to the present call and the method proceeds to decision 434. If at decision 424 a query of the SCP database is not required, that means that the NM LOS is available in the NM LOS table and the method proceeds to action 432. Action 432 retrieves the NM LOS for the present call from the NM LOS table and proceeds to decision 434.
In order to arrive at decision 434, the present call must have an NM LOS associated with the originating number, either an NM LOS was associated with the present call and retrieved or a default NM LOS was assigned and is now associated with the present call. Decision 434 uses the NM LOS along with the called number to determine if call gapping is active for the present call. If in decision 434 the called number and NM LOS both match an entry in the call gapping table, for example Table 4 above, then call gapping is active for this call. Decision 434 then retrieves a call gapping rate from a stored call gapping table, and proceeds to decision 436. Decision 436 stores call gapping statistics for each call gapping that is active. Decision 436 uses these statistics to apply the call gapping rate of the present call to determine if the present call shall be allowed to be completed. If decision 436 determines that the present call shall not be completed, the method proceeds to action 438 which routes the present call to a call not allowed announcement, such as `We're sorry, all circuits are busy now. Please try again later.` If, on the other hand, decision 436 determines that the present call shall be allowed even with the present call gapping rate, or if decision 434 determines that call gapping is not active for this call, the method proceeds to action 440 which routes the present call to the called number. Under normal circumstances, it is expected that a very high percentage of the calls placed would be routed to their destination.
Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, a method 500 for trunk group control according to the NM LOS of the call originator for use on inter LATA calls is illustrated. This could be performed by any of the nodes shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The first step of method 500 is step 502, which collects the inter exchange called number. Next action 504 determines a trunk group for routing the called number. After a trunk group for routing the present call is determined, decision 505 determines, by searching the trunk group control table such as Table 5 above, if this trunk group has a trunk group control active. If this trunk group does not have a control active, then the method 500 proceeds to action 540 which routes the call. If this trunk group does have a control active, then the method 500 proceeds to decision 506, which checks to determine if originator's NM LOS is contained in signaling data associated with this call. If NM LOS for this call is contained in signaling data, the method proceeds to action 508. Action 508 obtains the NM LOS from signaling data if possible and proceeds to decision 534 with NM LOS determined.
If NM LOS is not contained in signaling data the method 500 proceeds to decision 510 to determine if an ANI is available with the present call. If ANI is not available, decision 510 directs the method 500 to decision 512 which determines if calling number information is available. If calling number information is not available (and ANI is not available), an NM LOS cannot be determined from stored data, for such a situation decision 512 directs the method 500 to action 514. Action 514 assigns a default NM LOS and directs the method 500 to decision 534 for trunk group control proceeding based on a default NM LOS. If ANI is available at decision 510 or if the calling number is available at step 512 (one or both is the normal situation) the method 500 progresses to decision 518.
Decision 518 determines if there is a match between the ANI or calling number of the present call and the associated data contained in the NM LOS table, such as Table 3 above. If decision 518 does not find a match to the ANI or the calling number, the method proceeds to action 514 where a default origination NM LOS is assigned, for example the NM LOS of non time sensitive originators. If decision 518 finds a match, the data associated with the originating number of the present call is retrieved from the table or database and the method proceeds to decision 520. Decision 520 examines the associated data retrieved in decision 518 and determines if line data must be used to determine the NM LOS of the present call. If line data must be used, decision 520 proceeds to action 522 which obtains the originator's NM LOS from line data associated with the call, and subsequently proceeds to decision 534. If use of line data is not required, decision 520 proceeds to decision 524.
Decision 524 examines the associated data retrieved in decision 518 and determines if a query of an SCP database is required. If such a query is required, the method proceeds to decision 526 which determines if the ANI or the calling number of the present call has a matching entry in the SCP or other database. If there is a match, decision 526 directs the method to action 528 which retrieves the NM LOS for the present call from the SCP database and proceeds to decision 534. If there is no matching number in the SCP database, decision 526 directs the method to action 530, which assigns a default NM LOS to the present call and the method proceeds to decision 534. If at decision 524 a query of the SCP database is not required, that means that the NM LOS is available in the NM LOS table and the method proceeds to action 532. Action 532 retrieves the NM LOS for the present call from the NM LOS table and proceeds to decision 534.
In order to arrive at decision 534, the present call must have an NM LOS associated with the originating number, either a stored NM LOS was associated with the present call and retrieved or a default NM LOS was assigned and is now associated with the present call. Decision 534 uses the NM LOS along with the trunk group to determine if trunk group control is active for the present call. If trunk group control is active, decision 534 retrieves a trunk group control type and rate from a stored trunk group control table, for example Table 5 above, and the method proceeds to decision 536. Decision 536 stores trunk group control statistics for each trunk group control that is active. Decision 536 uses these statistics to apply the trunk group control rate of the present call to determine if and how the present call shall be allowed to be completed. If decision 538 determines that the present call shall not be completed, the method proceeds to decision 536 which routes the present call to a call-not-allowed announcement, such as `We're sorry, all circuits are busy now. Please try;again later.` If, on the other hand, decision 538 determines that the present call shall be allowed by the present trunk group control rate, or if decision 534 determines that trunk group control is not active for the present call, the method proceeds to action 540 which routes the present call to the called number. Under normal circumstances, it is expected that a very high percentage of the calls placed would be routed to their destination. Further, if a call is subject to the reroute or transfer-to trunk group control, the change in routing probably will be unnoticeable to the originating and called parties.
Referring now to FIGS. 6A and 65, another method, method 600, according to the invention will be described. Method 600 is essentially the same as method 400, except that if decision 636 (the corresponding decision to decision 436 of method 400) determines that this call is to be gapped, i.e., not completed, the call is directed to decision 638 instead of an announcement. Decision 638 determines if the originator has the highest NM LOS available. If the caller presently has the highest NM LOS available, then decision 638 directs the method 600 to action 642 and the originator receives a `Please try again later announcement.` If, on the other hand, the originator is not presently at the highest NM LOS available, decision 638 directs the method to proceed to action 640 which is an announcement to the originator that a one-time upgrade of his or her NM LOS for this call could be purchased for a fee. The announcement would give the fee and the resulting increase in call completion probability, and then give the originator the option of selecting a higher NM LOS for a fee by some action, such as dialing a digit or not. Subsequently, decision 644 determines if the originator has selected the optional upgrade to his or her NM LOS. If the originator declines the upgrade and stays on the line decision 644 directs the call to action 642 and the caller receives the `Please try again later° announcement. If, on the other hand, the caller elects to upgrade to a higher NM LOS, decision 644 directs the method to proceed back to decision 634 with the newly upgraded NM LOS. Action 634 determines whether call gapping is active for the present call and its upgraded NM LOS. If call gapping is not active for the upgraded NM LOS, the method proceeds to action 640 and the call is routed to its destination. Upon completion with an upgraded NM LOS, the originator is charged the upgrade fee. If decision 634 determines that call gapping is active for the present call even with its upgraded NM LOS, the method 600 proceeds to decision 636 to determine if the present call (with upgraded NM LOS) is to be completed to its destination number or whether it is to be gapped. The upgraded NM LOS and the call gapping rate of the upgraded NM LOS are used to make this determination as in method 400 shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B.
If the result of decision 638 is that this call should be completed, then method 600 proceeds to action 637 and the call is routed to its destination. Upon completion with an upgraded NM LOS, the originator is charged the upgrade fee as above. If, on the other hand, the result of decision 638 is that this call is still not to be completed, the method proceeds again to decision 638 to either upgrade if possible or be routed to a `Please try again later` announcement. The upgrade fee would not be charged unless the upgrade was selected and the call was completed.
Referring now to FIGS. 7A and 7B, another method, method 700, according to the invention will be described. Method 700 is essentially the same as method 500, except that if decision 738 (the corresponding decision to decision 538 of method 500) determines that this call is to be canceled, i.e., not completed, the call is directed to decision 742 instead of an announcement. Decision 742 determines if the originator has the highest NM LOS available. If the originator presently has the highest NM LOS available, then decision 742 directs the method 700 to action 748 and the originator receives a `Please try again later announcement.` If, on the other hand, the originator is not presently at the highest NM LOS available, decision 742 directs the method to proceed to action 744 which is an announcement to the originator that a one-time upgrade of his or her NM LOS for this call could be purchased for a fee. The announcement would give the fee and the resulting increase in call completion probability, and then give the originator the option of selecting a higher NM LOS for a fee by some action, such as dialing a digit or not. Subsequently, decision 750 determines if the originator has selected the optional upgrade to his or her NM LOS. If the originator declines the upgrade and stays on the line decision 750 directs the call to action 748 and the caller receives the `Please try again later` announcement. If, on the other hand, the caller elects to upgrade to a higher NM LOS, decision 750 directs the method to proceed back to decision 734 with the newly upgraded NM LOS. Decision 734 determines whether trunk group control is active for the present call, its upgraded NM LOS and its trunk group. If trunk group control is not active for the upgraded NM LOS, the method proceeds to action 740 and the call is routed to its destination over the present trunk group. Upon completion with an upgraded NM LOS, the originator is charged the upgrade fee. If decision 734 determines that trunk group control is active for the present call even with its upgraded NM LOS, the method 700 proceeds to decision 738 to determine if the present call (with upgraded NM LOS) is to be completed by its present trunk group to its destination number, completed by another trunk group to its destination number or canceled. The upgraded NM LOS and the trunk group control rates for the upgraded NM LOS are used to make this determination as in method 500 shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. If the result of decision 738 is that this call should be completed, then method 700 proceeds to action 740 and the call is routed to its destination. Upon completion with an upgraded NM LOS, the originator is charged the upgrade fee as mentioned above. If, on the other hand, the result of decision 738 is that this call is still not to be completed, the method proceeds again to decision 742 to either upgrade if possible or be routed to a `Please try again later` announcement. The upgrade fee would not be charged unless the upgrade was selected and the call was completed.
These methods 600 and 700 would benefit a business traveler by allowing the traveler during an over-burdened condition to upgrade his or her NM LOS while making a time sensitive call from a pay phone.
Thus, it will now be understood that there has been disclosed a method and apparatus for call gapping calls according to an originating number or a level of service associated therewith. While the invention has been particularly illustrated and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form, details, and applications may be made therein. For example, more than two levels of commercial service might be used, in which case multiple upgrades to higher levels of service could be offered and selected as part of the method according to the invention. It is accordingly intended that the appended claims shall cover all such changes in form, details and applications which do not depart from the true spirit and scope of the invention.
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A method and apparatus that allows different likelihoods of call completion during very heavy call loading conditions to be supplied to different customers. Customers are assigned to different levels of service and these levels of service are used to manage call completion in throughout the telecommunication network during very heavy call loading periods. Thus, a securities broker may have a higher likelihood of completing a call near the close of a trading session than the average telephone customer. However, each caller may be offered an opportunity to immediately increase his or her level of service and thus likelihood of completing a call to the highest available level if a call is not completed at the caller's lower level of service.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to pumps, and in particular rotary vane pumps having a rotor which includes a plurality of outwardly projecting sliding vanes arranged to sweep the inside surface of a pumping chamber, the rotor being rotatably mounted in the chamber for displacement of fluid between an inlet to and an outlet from the pumping chamber.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
FIGS. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings are schematic transverse sectional views of a prior art rotary vane pump and illustrate the arrangement of components in such a pump, and the way in which the pump operates. The rotor includes a rotor member 1 which is in this case cylindrical, and is mounted eccentrically within a cylindrical pumping chamber 2 formed in a pump casing 3. The casing 3 is formed with inlet and outlet ports 4 and 5 which open into the pumping chamber 2 at positions which are approximately diametrically opposed with respect to the axis of the rotor member 1. The rotor further includes a plurality (six in the illustrated arrangement) of circumferentially spaced vanes 6 which can slide inwardly and outwardly relative to the rotor member 1 in corresponding axially extending slots 7 formed in the rotor member 1. The slots in this particular case are non-radial, but are formed so that the vanes project forwardly by a predetermined angle α relative to the normal to the surface of the cylindrical rotor member 1. The slots could however be radial. In use, the vanes 6 are thrown outwardly relative to their slots by centrifugal force so that their outer edges are maintained in sweeping contact with the inner cylindrical surface 2' of the pumping chamber 2. The illustrated arrangement is adapted for clockwise rotation of the rotor.
As is well known, rotation of the rotor causes fluid displacement from the inlet 4 to the outlet 5 so as to create a higher pressure at the outlet than at the inlet. In FIG. 1, the rotor is shown in a position in which it has just trapped a "cell" of fluid A between the wall 2' of the pumping chamber, the outer cylindrical wall 1' of the rotor member 1, and two adjacent vanes 6. It will be seen that as the rotor rotates clockwise from this position, the cell A reduces in volume so as to compress the fluid, the maximum compression being attained when the cell A reaches the position shown in FIG. 2, i.e., when the vane at the leading end of the cell is about to reach the outlet port 5. Thereafter, the fluid is exhausted from the cell A into the outlet port. This process of cell creation, displacement and fluid exhaust occurs continuously at very high speed to produce the required pumping action.
The pump can generally be operated selectively in the compression or vacuum mode. In the compression mode, the equipment to receive the compressed fluid is coupled to the outlet port 5, the fluid being freely supplied to the inlet port. In the vacuum mode, the equipment to which the vacuum is to be applied is coupled to the inlet port, the fluid being freely exhausted from the outlet port.
Rotary vane pumps of this kind are generally reliable, efficient and rugged. However, when operating in the vacuum mode at very low absolute pressures, a large amount of heat is generated, and steps must be taken to remove this heat if overheating is to be avoided. It is known to form the outside of the casing 3 with cooling fins, but in general, cooling by natural convection over these fins is insufficient. In installations where a supply of cooling water is available, a sufficient degree of cooling can be ensured. However, in many applications water-cooling is not possible or at least inconvenient to arrange. As an alternative, it is known to employ air cooling using a fan arranged to blow cooling air over the outside of the casing. However, even this has disadvantages in that the cooling fan is noisy, and since it is normally driven from the pump shaft, imposes an additional load on the drive source.
To avoid these problems, it has been proposed in the past to reduce the effect of heat generation in the vacuum mode due to the compression of the fluid from the intake vacuum to a higher pressure, which is usually atmospheric, over the whole of the arc between the inlet and outlet ports. This has been done by introducing cooling fluid into the chamber through an additional port formed in the pump casing at a circumferential position which is upstream of the outlet port with respect to the direction of rotation of the rotor. With reference to FIG. 3 of the accompanying drawings, this additional port, hereinafter referred to as the ballast port, is indicated by reference numeral 17.
The circumferential spacing between the inlet port 4 and this ballast port 17 is slightly greater than the circumferential extent of an inter-vane cell, so that the inlet and ballast ports are never in communication. This is important, since the ballast port 17 is intended to relieve the vacuum in the cell by introducing ballast fluid at a high pressure relative to the vacuum into the cell. In the position of the rotor shown in FIG. 3, a cell A has just been closed, and the preceding cell B has almost completely swept past the ballast port 17, so that the vacuum in this cell B has been partly relieved by the introduction of ballast fluid.
The ballast port and the outlet will normally be open to the atmosphere, the inlet port being coupled to the equipment to which a vacuum is to be applied. It has been proposed to provide one or two such ballast ports.
Although the cooling effect achieved using existing arrangements for the introduction of ballast air has satisfactorily avoided the need for a cooling fan at low and medium vacuum levels, it has been found necessary to add a cooling fan if operation at high vacuum (in excess of 25 inches Hg gauge, or 635 mm Hg gauge) is required.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to this problem and seeks to enhance the cooling efficiency in a rotary vane pump operating in vacuum mode. To achieve this end, the invention provides a rotary vane pump having ballast fluid port means for the introduction of ballast fluid into the swept cells before they reach the outlet port in operation as a vacuum pump, the arrangement being such as to provide an inward flow of cooling ballast fluid which is significantly greater than in existing pumps, thereby to improve the cooling efficiency.
The improved ballast air flow may be achieved by enlarging the ballast port or ports, or more preferably by increasing the number of such ports.
The improved flow can be quantified by reference to the ratio of the volume flow rate of the inflowing ballast air to the pump displacement at a given working vacuum. As is well known, this latter parameter, normally measured in cubic feet per minute or cubic meters per hour, has a fixed value for any given speed of rotation of the rotor, this value being determined by the geometry of the pump. For example, in the arrangement shown in FIG. 3, the displacement is equal to the maximum cell volume×the 6(number of vanes)×rate of revolution. The flow of ballast air can readily be measured by a flow meter coupled to the ballast port or ports.
Measurements taken during extensive bench tests have shown that in existing pumps a maximum possible value for this ballast fluid/displacement ratio is about 30% at a vacuum of 20 inches Hg gauge, and that in the absence of a cooling fan, overheating occurs at operating vacuums of approximately 25 inches Hg gauge.
In accordance with the invention, we propose to increase this ratio, and extensive and complex experimentation and testing has shown that performance can be improved surprisingly by enlarging the ballast ports or increasing their number so as to increase this ballast air/displacement ratio at 20 inches Hg gauge to 35% or more. At this value, it was found that pumps could be operated for long periods at a vacuum of 25 inches Hg gauge without overheating, even in the absence of a cooling fan.
According to one aspect of the invention, therefore, there is provided a rotary vane pump operable in a vacuum mode, and comprising:
a pump casing defining an internal cylindrical pumping chamber, and circumferentially spaced inlet and outlet ports in communication with said pumping chamber; and
a rotor which is eccentrically mounted within said pumping chamber and which includes a plurality of circumferentially distributed sliding vanes having axially extending outer edges for making sweeping contact with the internal wall of the pumping chamber as the rotor is rotated, so as to define a plurality of swept cells which rotate around the rotor axis, said cells progressively reducing in volume as they move from a position communicating with the inlet port to a position communicating with the outlet port,
the pump casing including ballast port means for the introduction of ballast fluid into the swept cells after they leave the inlet port and before they reach the outlet port in the vacuum mode of operation, the ballast port means being such as to provide an inward flow of cooling ballast fluid which when the pump is operating at a vacuum at the inlet port of 20 inches Hg gauge (508 mm Hg gauge) produces a ballast fluid/displacement ratio of at least 35%.
By increasing the ratio even further, for example to at least 40% at 20 inches Hg gauge, it was found that pumps could be operated with an effectively closed inlet equivalent to a vacuum level in excess of approximately 28 inches Hg gauge for extended periods without overheating, and again without the need for a cooling fan.
It will be appreciated, therefore, that the present invention provides very significant improvement in operation of rotary vane pumps in vacuum mode by increasing the cooling effect due to ballast air so that cooling by use of a cooling fan is no longer (essential) at vacuum levels which hitherto were not possible without the presence of a cooling fan.
The ballast port means may comprise a plurality of openings in said internal wall of the pumping chamber, said openings being spaced apart along said pumping chamber. Alternatively, the ballast port means may comprise an elongate opening in said internal wall, said opening extending along the pumping chamber. In either case, the opening or openings may be formed so that, as a vane edge sweeps said opening or openings, the ballast port means opens progressively in an axial sense into the succeeding swept cell.
In the disclosed embodiments, the opening extends or the openings are aligned, obliquely relative to the axis of the pumping chamber. The shape of the opening, or the distribution of the openings, may form a substantially a V-shape in which the apex is located intermediate the length of the pumping chamber and confronting the approaching vane edges. Alternatively, the shape of the opening or the distribution of the openings may form a single line extending along the pumping chamber and obliquely to its axis, the opposite ends of said line being those parts of the ballast port means nearest corresponding opposite ends of the pumping chamber which are first and last to be encountered by the approaching vane edges and therefore first and last to open into the sweep cells, respectively.
The pump may also be operable in a compression mode, valve means being provided for closing said ballast port means during operation of the pump in said compression mode.
The pump may include ballast fluid manifold means defining a ballast fluid manifold chamber which communicates with said ballast fluid port means in said pump casing, and which has a single ballast fluid intake.
The ballast fluid is preferably air at atmospheric pressure.
According to the invention there is also provided a rotary vane pump having ballast fluid port means for the introduction of ballast fluid into the swept cells before they reach the outlet port in operation as a vacuum pump, the arrangement being such as to provide an inward flow of cooling ballast fluid which, when the pump is operating at a vacuum at the inlet port of 20 inches Hg gauge (508 mm Hg gauge), produces a ballast fluid/displacement ratio of at least 35%.
In another aspect, the invention provides a rotary vane pump having ballast fluid port means for the introduction of ballast fluid into the swept cells before they reach the outlet port in operation as a vacuum pump, wherein said ballast fluid port means comprises one or more openings into the pumping chamber adapted to open progressively into the swept cells when swept by the vane edges.
In a further aspect, the invention provides a rotary vane pump having ballast fluid port means for the introduction of ballast fluid into the swept cells before they reach the outlet port in operation as a vacuum pump, wherein said ballast fluid port means includes an opening in an axially facing end wall of the pumping chamber.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In order that the invention may be more clearly understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein several embodiments are shown for purposes of illustration, and wherein
FIGS. 1 to 3 are schematic transverse sectional views of prior art rotary vane pumps;
FIG. 4 is an end elevational view of a rotary vane pump in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the upper part of the casing of the rotary vane pump of FIG. 4, as viewed from the outlet port side in the direction B, shown with end plates removal, and ballast manifold attached; and
FIG. 6 is a plan view of the upper right hand part of the pump casing of FIG. 5, of the pump of FIG. 4, as viewed in the direction C and shown with a ballast manifold removed.
FIG. 7 is a plan view similar to FIG. 6 but showing a modified ballast port arrangement; and
FIG. 8 is another plan view similar to FIG. 6, showing another modified ballast port arrangement.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Similar reference numerals are used in FIGS. 4 to 8 for parts corresponding to the components illustrated schematically in FIG. 3. Bolted to opposite ends of the casing 3 are respective end plates 11, each formed integrally with cooling fins 12 and a bearing housing 13 accommodating a bearing for the projecting shaft portion 14 of the rotor member.
A lubricating device 24 may be provided for supplying oil into the casing and also into the end plates 11 for lubricating the axial end edges of the vanes as they sweep flat inwardly facing surfaces of the end plates and the cylindrical chamber wall 2'.
The casing 3 is integrally formed with a plurality of axially extending cooling fins 15 and a ballast port block 16. A plurality of axially spaced-apart ballast ports 17 (seven in this case) are drilled through this ballast port block 16 to communicate with the pumping chamber 2 in the manner already described. A ballast inlet manifold 18 having a common air intake port 18' is mounted on the ballast port block 16 by means of bolts 19 screwed into screw-threaded bolt holes 20.
In use, ballast air is drawn into the manifold 18 through the intake 18' whence it is distributed to the ballast inlet ports 17 for introduction into the rotating cells A formed in the pumping chamber 2.
If the pump is to be operable also in a compression mode, a valve 21 should be coupled to the intake 18', this valve being closed for compression operation to avoid loss of operating pressure through the ballast ports 17.
Although it is possible for the ballast ports 17 to be aligned axially, it has been found that such an arrangement causes a phenomenon known as vane bounce in which the vanes vibrate slightly as they sweep the openings 22 of the ballast ports 17 on the cylindrical surface 2' of the pumping chamber. Over an extended period of use this vane bounce tends to damage the surface 2', causing the formation of ripples on this surface and an attendant deterioration in performance. On the supposition that this vane bounce results from the sudden increase in pressure in a swept cell A as the vane tip, or edge, encounters all of the openings 22 at exactly the same time, we proposed and tested an arrangement, as illustrated in FIG. 6, in which the ports 17 are distributed along a shallow V-shape, (see broken line) a port 17' at the apex of this V being located intermediate the length of the pumping chamber and confronting the approaching vane edges. It will be appreciated that in such an arrangement the ballast port means constituted by the seven ballast ports 17 opens progressively, in an axial sense, into a swept cell as a vane edge sweeps past, beginning with the central port 17', and finishing with the two outermost ports 17".
Testing has also shown that vane bounce can be further reduced by the provision of a ballast port 23 in each end plate 11, these ports 23 being formed at an angular position relative to the rotor axis so that they are swept by the axial end edges of the vanes 6 at substantially the same time as, or in a predetermined timed relationship, with, the opening of the circumferential ballast ports 17 into the swept cells. These end ports 23 may replace one or more of the circumferential ports; in an actual tested machine the three axially central ports 17 in FIG. 6 were replaced by the end ports 23, one in each end plate. In general, it will be appreciated that the ballast ports may be provided in the end plates instead of or as well as in the cylindrical wall of the pump casing.
Port configurations other than that of FIG. 6 for producing this progressive opening in use are possible. FIG. 7 illustrates a possible alternative configuration, in which the ports 17 form a single line extending along the pumping chamber and obliquely to its axis. The port 17a at one end of the line is the first, and the port 17b at the other end is the last to be encountered by the vane edges as they sweep the ports.
Furthermore, although the ballast port means in the foregoing embodiments consist of a number of discrete axially spaced ports, these could be replaced by one or more slot-type ports, extending along the pumping chamber. In the arrangement illustrated in FIG. 8, a slot 25 forms a single elongate opening in the surface 2' of the pumping chamber.
It will be noted that the above embodiments include ballast port means extending substantially the whole length of the pumping chamber. This has been found to give the best results, but a shorter spread of ballast ports can give satisfactory performance.
In a particular machine constructed in accordance with the embodiment disclosed with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, the values for various dimensions and parameters were as follows:
______________________________________Diameter of pumping chamber 10" (254 mm)Axial length of pumping chamber 15.625" (397 mm)Diameter of rotor 8.3" (211 mm)Number of vanes 6Diameter of ballast port 0.375" (9.52 mm)Axial spread of ballast ports 13.875" (352 mm)Distance D (see FIG. 6) 3.5" (88.9 mm)______________________________________
It will be clear to those skilled in the art that numerous modifications of the described arrangements are possible within the scope of the invention, as defined earlier.
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Rotary vane pump with ballast ports which introduce air into the swept cells before they reach the pump outlet port. To prevent overheating at very high vacuums, the ballast ports are arranged to provide a ratio of ballast air flow to pump displacement, at a standard working vacuum of 20 inches Hg gauge, of at least 35%. This permits operating at 25 inches Hg gauge without the need for a cooling fan.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is related to and claims the benefit of pending U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/051,241, filed on May 7, 2008, and entitled “Label”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. This application is also related to and claims the benefit of pending U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/052,017, filed on May 9, 2008, and entitled “Label”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
The present invention relates generally to labeling, and in particular to retail shelf labels and methods of making the same.
Printed labels comprise an important form of communication. Labels are commonly used for conveying information in a wide range of applications. In the retail sector, for example, labels are commonly applied to product displays (i.e., “point-of-sale” displays) to identify objects and to convey information about those objects to customers. Retail establishments may employ various types of labels to communicate such product information as pricing, product identification, etc.
In retail establishments, product information tends to be dynamic in that product offerings and pricing undergo frequent changes. Point-of-sale product labeling is often changed by applying new labels to shelves on which the products are displayed. Such shelf labeling is a significant part of the labeling activity in retail commercial establishments.
Labels and manufacturing methods set forth herein include novel improvements to the prior art labels and manufacturing methods, as will be evident from reviewing the description below and the accompanying drawings.
SUMMARY
A sheet having a retail shelf label according to an embodiment includes a liner, a transparent face layer, and a cover layer having graphics printed thereon. Adhesive couples the face layer atop the liner, and adhesive couples the cover layer atop the face layer. Cut lines in the face and cover layers define a perimeter of the label, and a cut line in the cover layer separates the cover layer into two distinct portions respectively separable from the face layer. At least a portion of the adhesive coupled to the face layer inside the label perimeter releases from the liner to removably couple the label to a shelf edge.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a front view of a label according to an embodiment, with graphics on the cover omitted.
FIG. 2 is a side view of the label of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the label of FIG. 1 , the label being coupled to a shelf according to an embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of FIG. 4 .
FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the label of FIG. 1 , the label being coupled to a shelf according to an embodiment.
FIGS. 7A through 7D collectively show a diagram representing a manufacturing process for a sheet of the labels of FIG. 1 , according to an embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a front view of a label according to another embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a side view of the label of FIG. 8 .
FIG. 10 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 8 .
FIG. 11 is a front view of a label according to still another embodiment, with graphics on the cover omitted.
FIG. 12 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 11 .
FIG. 13 is a front view of a label according to yet another embodiment, with graphics on the cover omitted.
FIG. 14 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 13 .
FIG. 15 a front view of a label according to still yet another embodiment, with graphics on the cover omitted.
FIG. 16 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 15 .
FIG. 17 is a side view of the label of FIG. 15 before the face layer is separated from the liner.
FIG. 18 is a front view of a label according to yet still another embodiment, with graphics on the cover omitted.
FIG. 19 is a rear view of the label of FIG. 18 .
FIG. 20 is a side view of the label of FIG. 18 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIGS. 1 through 6 show an embodiment of a new label 100 . The label 100 has front and rear sides 102 a , 102 b and includes a face layer 110 , a liner 130 , and a cover 150 . The face layer 110 has outer and inner sides 112 a , 112 b , upper and lower ends 114 a , 114 b , and opposed sides 116 a , 116 b and may be constructed of vinyl and/or any other suitable material. While the ends and sides 114 a , 114 b , 116 a , 116 b of the presentation face layer 110 are shown to collectively be generally rectangular, non-rectangular configurations may alternately be defined. Material for face layer 110 may be chosen for transparency, printability, durability, and/or other properties that are required or suitable for particular applications.
The face layer inner side 112 b includes an adhesive material 120 which may be used to couple the face layer 110 to the shelf edge 10 and which may couple the face layer 110 to the liner 130 . The adhesive material 120 may comprise any suitable pressure-sensitive, self-adhesive material, such as acrylic adhesive, which is releasable for repositioning purposes and which leaves little or no residue. Acrylic adhesive has a further advantage of not being susceptible to melting during printing operations, such as in laser printers. In FIGS. 4 and 6 , a corner of the face layer 110 is separated from the shelf 10 to show the adhesive material 120 .
An adhesive deadening agent 125 may extend over the adhesive material 120 along the lower end 114 b of the face layer 110 and/or along a portion of each side 116 a , 116 b of the face layer 110 to neutralize the adhesive material 120 in those areas. For example, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 5 , the deadening agent 125 extends between the lower end 114 b of the face layer 110 and the liner 130 , between the side 116 a of the face layer 110 and the liner 130 , and between the side 116 b of the face layer 110 and the liner 130 .
The deadening agent 125 may further extend between the face layer 110 and the liner 130 (i.e., sandwiched between the face layer 110 and the liner 130 ) near the perimeter of the liner 130 so that tolerances for applying the deadening agent 125 may be increased. However, if the adhesive 120 is used to couple the face layer 110 to the liner 130 , it may be preferable for the deadening agent 125 to not extend between the face layer 110 and the liner 130 to an extent that the face layer 110 is not coupled to the liner 130 . It may be undesirable for the deadening agent 125 to extend between the face layer 110 and the liner 130 to an extent that allows the perimeter of the liner 130 to separate from the face layer 110 and allows the liner 130 and the face layer 110 to become visibly curled away from one another.
The cover 150 has outer and inner sides 152 a , 152 b , upper and lower ends 154 a , 154 b , and opposed sides 156 a , 156 b and may be constructed of paper and/or any other suitable material. The cover 150 may be cut (represented by cut line 155 ) to separate the cover 150 into two portions 155 a , 155 b . While the ends and sides 154 a , 154 b , 156 a , 156 b of the cover 150 are shown to collectively be generally rectangular, non-rectangular configurations may alternately be defined. In at least one embodiment, the perimeter of the cover 150 generally corresponds to the perimeter of the face layer 110 . Material for cover 150 may be chosen for printability, durability, and/or other properties that are required or suitable for particular applications.
The cover inner side 152 b includes an adhesive material 170 which may be used to couple the cover 150 to the face layer 110 (i.e., to the face layer outer side 112 a ). The adhesive material 170 may or may not be the same as the adhesive 120 and may comprise any suitable pressure-sensitive, self-adhesive material, such as acrylic adhesive, which is releasable for repositioning purposes and which leaves little or no residue. Acrylic adhesive has a further advantage of not being susceptible to melting during printing operations, such as in laser printers.
The cover 150 may include graphics 140 viewable from the label front side 102 a . The graphics 140 ( FIGS. 4 and 6 ) may be printed on the cover 150 using a laser printer, a dot matrix printer, or any other appropriate method or device. Additionally, the face layer 110 may include graphics. If the cover 150 is transparent, the graphics 140 on the cover 150 and the graphics on the face layer 110 may be viewed when the cover 150 is attached to the face layer 110 . If the cover 150 is not transparent, the graphics on the face layer 110 may be viewed when the cover 150 (or a portion of the cover 150 , e.g., portion 155 b ) is separated from the face layer 110 .
By including the liner 130 , graphics viewable from the label front side 102 a may be at least partially created or accented by the liner 130 if the face layer 110 is transparent and viewable from the label front side 102 a . In other words, if graphics are printed around certain indicia on the face layer 110 , the appearance of the graphics and/or the indicia may be affected by the color of the liner 130 . For example, if the face layer 110 is clear (or substantially clear), and graphics are printed on the face layer 110 , the absence of print at the indicia allows the indicia to substantially be the color of the liner 130 (e.g., white). Further, the liner 130 may enhance the graphics by making the label 100 less transparent from the front side 102 a . Transparency has been a problem experienced in the prior art, in that certain colors have sometimes been difficult to read while prior art labels are in use. In addition, prior art transparent labels have been unable to effectively utilize certain colors (e.g., white). It should also be appreciated that the label 100 may incorporate an extra color than prior art transparent labels without using an extra color of ink, which can provide a substantial cost savings. It should further be understood that, in some embodiments, graphics may be printed on the liner 130 and visible through the face layer 110 .
If a transparent material is used for the face layer 110 and the face layer 110 is viewable from the label front side 102 a , information on the shelf edge 10 (e.g., a previous label having product or price information) may be viewed while the label 100 is coupled to the shelf edge 10 . This may be desirable, for example, to show a product's original price if it is currently on sale, or to avoid having to print a barcode for the product on the label 100 .
In use, the adhesive material 120 may be used to couple the face layer 110 to the shelf 10 . As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the cover 150 may remain attached to the face layer 110 and present the graphics 140 . As shown in FIG. 6 , the portion 155 a of the cover 150 may be removed from the face layer 110 , and a portion of the face layer 110 may be viewable from the label front side 102 a . If the face layer 110 is transparent, a previous label on the shelf 10 may be viewed, allowing a customer to easily make comparisons between information on the label 100 and the previous label. This may also eliminate the need for a product's barcode or other static data to be printed on the label 100 . Though not shown, the entire cover 150 may be removed from the face layer 110 . If the portion 155 a of the cover 150 is removed from the face layer 110 , the portion 155 a may be used independently as a label (e.g., coupled to the shelf 10 ).
One manufacturing process 700 for a sheet 701 of the labels 100 is shown in FIG. 7A through FIG. 7D . At step 710 , the adhesive 120 is applied to the material 702 that forms the face layer 110 , and the adhesive 170 is applied to the material 703 that forms the cover 150 . The adhesive 120 may be applied to the face material 702 in any suitable manner at the same facility where other manufacturing steps described herein are performed, or the face material 702 may be purchased having the adhesive 120 and coupled to the material 704 that forms the liner 130 , and, to add the deadening agent 125 , the face material 702 may be separated from the liner material 704 as set forth in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,579,585 and 6,926,942, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. The process 700 proceeds from step 710 to step 720 .
At step 720 , the deadening agent 125 is applied to areas that correspond to the areas of the individual labels 100 having deadening agent 125 as discussed above. The process 700 proceeds from step 720 to step 730 , where the face material 702 is coupled to the liner material 704 and the cover material 703 is coupled to the face material 702 . The process 700 proceeds from step 730 to step 740 .
At step 740 , the cover material 703 and the face material 702 may be cut through (represented by cut lines 742 ) to define the individual covers 150 and face layers 110 for the individual labels 100 ; the cover material 703 may be cut through (represented by cut lines 743 ) to define the two portions 155 a , 155 b of each individual label 100 ; the liner material 704 may be cut through (represented by cut lines 744 ) to define the individual liners 130 for the individual labels 100 ; and the cover material 703 , the face material 702 , and the liner material 704 may be perforated (represented by perforation line 746 ) to allow the sheet 701 to be separated into multiple portions.
If the face material 702 , the cover material 703 , and/or the liner material 704 are provided in rolls, the material(s) may be cut into the sheet 701 . In at least one embodiment, no cut line 742 intersects or overlaps a cut line 744 . It should be understood that step 740 may actually be accomplished in multiple steps, and that the order of cutting and perforating is generally not critical. The process 700 proceeds from step 740 to step 750 .
At step 750 , graphics 140 are printed on the cover material 703 using a laser printer, a dot matrix printer, or any other appropriate method or device. Step 750 may be performed before the sheet 701 is delivered to the end user, or the end user may place the graphics 140 on the cover material 703 . Because front and rear sides of the sheet 701 are generally planar and are each formed from a respective single sheet of material, the printing process may be more easily completed than when printing on other labels that have various materials that comprise the front side or the rear side. It should be understood that step 750 may be completed at various times in process 700 , such as before step 710 , for example. In addition, if graphics are to be printed on the face material 702 , those graphics may be printed on the face material 702 using a laser printer, a dot matrix printer, or any other appropriate method or device before step 730 , for example.
In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 8 , FIG. 9 , and FIG. 10 , a label 800 is substantially similar to label 100 , and similar elements are referenced by the same reference numbers used in relation to label 100 above. In label 800 , deadening agent 125 is omitted.
In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 , a label 1100 is substantially similar to label 100 , and similar elements are referenced by the same reference numbers used in relation to label 100 above. In label 1100 , the liner 130 extends closer to upper end 114 a of the face layer 110 , and the liner 130 is cut (represented by cut line 1102 ) to separate the liner 130 into two portions 1104 a , 1104 b . Portion 1104 a may be of generally similar size or proportion as the liner 130 of label 100 , and portion 1104 b may generally correspond to the amount the liner 130 is extended when compared to label 100 .
In label 1100 , the adhesive deadening agent 125 further extends over the adhesive material 120 along the upper end 114 a of the face layer 110 , and more particularly, the deadening agent 125 extends between the upper end 114 a of the face layer 110 and the liner 130 . The deadening agent 125 also extends between the side 116 a of the face layer 110 and the portion 1104 b of the liner 130 and between the side 116 b of the face layer 110 and the portion 1104 b of the liner 130 .
In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 , a label 1300 is substantially similar to label 1100 , and similar elements are referenced by the same reference numbers used in relation to label 1100 above. In label 1300 , deadening agent 125 is omitted.
In yet another embodiment, shown in FIG. 15 , FIG. 16 , and FIG. 17 , a label 1500 is substantially similar to label 100 , and similar elements are referenced by the same reference numbers used in relation to label 100 above. In label 1500 , the face layer 110 separates from the liner 130 before use. In other words, no portion of the liner 130 sits adjacent the face layer 110 when the face layer 110 is adhered to a shelf edge (contrast to FIG. 5 , for example). A deadening agent 125 extends from the lower end 114 b such that much of the face layer 110 is not adherent when in use, as shown in FIG. 16 , and the cut lines 744 discussed above may be omitted. FIG. 17 shows the label 1500 while the face layer 110 is still coupled to the liner 130 (i.e., before the face layer 110 is adhered to a shelf edge. While the adhesive 120 between the face layer 110 and the liner 130 is shown separated from the liner 130 in FIG. 17 , one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that, in practice, the adhesive 120 couples the face layer 110 to the liner 130 .
In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 18 , FIG. 19 , and FIG. 20 , a label 1800 is substantially similar to label 1500 , and similar elements are referenced by the same reference numbers used in relation to label 1500 above. In label 1800 , portion 1802 of the liner 130 remains coupled to the face layer 110 until separated immediately before use, when the adhesive 120 is exposed. Like in label 1500 , the liner 130 is entirely separated from the face layer 110 while the label 1800 is coupled to a shelf edge.
Those skilled in the art appreciate that variations from the specified embodiments disclosed above are contemplated herein and that the described embodiments are not limiting. The description should not be restricted to the above embodiments, but should be measured by the following claims.
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The present invention relates generally to labeling, and particularly to retail shelf labels and methods of making the same. A sheet having a retail shelf label according to an embodiment includes a liner, a transparent face layer, and a cover layer having graphics printed thereon. Adhesive couples the face layer atop the liner, and adhesive couples the cover layer atop the face layer. Cut lines in the face and cover layers define a perimeter of the label, and a cut line in the cover layer separates the cover layer into two distinct portions respectively separable from the face layer. At least a portion of the adhesive coupled to the face layer inside the label perimeter releases from the liner to removably couple the label to a shelf edge.
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REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This applicaton is related to U.S. application Ser. No. 42,777, filed May 29, 1979, entitled DRILLING FLUID CIRCULATING AND MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to drilling fluid monitoring systems for well drilling apparatus and more specifically concerns flow conduit apparatus that simplifies detection and monitoring of the rate of flow of drilling fluid exiting the well bore being drilled, and thus promotes rapid detection of drilling fluid losses into the earth formation.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
When rotary drilling for petroleum producing wells, it is well known that drilling fluids provide multipurpose uses, such as to remove drill cuttings from the bottom of the hole to prevent interference with the cutting action of the drill bit, to cool and lubricate the drill bit and drill stem and to transport the cuttings to the surface. The drilling fluid also provides support for the walls of the well bore to prevent sloughing of soft formations and provides sufficient hydrostatic head pressure to prevent entry of formation fluids into the well bore. Further, the drilling fluid provides a filter cake lining for the well bore to prevent loss of drilling fluid into certain types of earth formations.
As explained in the above-identified related application, conventional apparatus used for circulating the drilling fluid, typically referred to in the industry as drilling mud, into the well bore typically includes a pump to force the drilling fluids through a hose and swivel into a kelly, which is a non-circular tube that is rotatated by means of a rotary drive mechanism having a non-circular opening through which the kelly is lowered while being continuously rotated. The drilling fluid then flows downwardly through sections of drill stem connected to the kelly and, after exiting the drill bit at the lower extremity of the drill stem, flows upwardly through the annulus between the drill stem and well bore. The drilling fluid then exits the well bore through a fluid return line connected to the well head and is discharged into a settling tank or pit or a series of tanks from which the pump returns the drilling fluids to the well. To monitor this circulation, the related application describes an improved system to measure the level of drilling fluid stored in the tank, as well as the flow of drilling fluid into and out of the well. The monitoring system described in the related application is incorporated in this application by reference to simplify a complete understanding of this invention.
Although the flow of drilling fluid returning from the well bore through the wellhead and passing through the return line can be measured as explained in the related application, it has been found that it is extremely difficult to determine the flow rate of fluid flowing through a pipe with a circular internal cross-section under circumstances where the pipe is less than completely filled with fluid. This difficulty exists because, as the fluid level changes within the pipe, the arc across the pipe varies and thus the cross-sectional area defined by the fluid within the pipe also varies. Because of the partially circular cross-sectional configuration defined by the fluid within the return line, it is extremely difficult to determine the flow rate of fluid returning from the well bore. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide apparatus that simplifies the measurement of the volume of drilling fluid flowing through the return line.
One of the more important functions provided by the drilling fluid is the maintenance of sufficient hydrostatic head within the well bore to maintain a bottom hole pressure that will exceed the formation pressure of any formation intersected by the well bore. If the hydrostatic head pressure is insufficient due to losses of fluid into the formation, the possibility of a well blowout increases substantially.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to facilitate a simplified determination of the volume of drilling fluid flowing through a drilling fluid return line by including a portion in such line which has an internal cross-section of parallelogram shape and measuring the flow of drilling fluid returning to the surface by measuring the level of fluid flowing through the parallelogram cross-section.
It is also a feature of the present invention to provide novel means for monitoring the drilling fluid system of well drilling apparatus such that a comparison is provided that indicates drilling fluid being pumped into a well bore and drilling fluid flowing from the well bore.
It is another feature of this invention to provide a novel drilling fluid monitoring system wherein electrical signals representing the level of drilling fluid within the holding tanks, the volume of drilling fluid pumped into the well and the volume of drilling fluid flowing from the well are correlated electronically and displayed for visual inspection.
An even further feature of this invention concerns the provision of a drilling fluid monitoring system wherein an electrical signal reflecting the volume of flow of drilling fluid exiting the well bore is displayed graphically to provide a rapid means for detecting loss of drilling fluid to the formation being drilled.
Other and further objects, advantages and features of this invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art upon consideration of the teachings hereof. The form of the invention, which will now be described in detail, illustrates the general principles of the invention, but it is to be understood that this detailed description is not to be taken as limiting the scope of the invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention, a drilling fluid monitoring system comprises a measuring means mounted with a drilling fluid storage tank or tanks and providing an electrical output signal that identifies the level of the drilling fluid contained within the tank or tanks. A pump stroke counter is mounted with a drilling fluid circulation pump and provides an output representative of the volume of drilling fluid being pumped from the tank through the drill stem to the bit at the bottom of the well bore. A volumetric flow sensor is connected to a drilling fluid return line that returns the drilling fluid from the well to the tank and provides an electrical output that identifies the level of fluid flowing through an intermediate section of the return line. To facilitate ease of volumetric flow measurement, the intermediate section of the return line is formed internally to define a flow measurement section or chamber having a parallelogram internal configuration. The flow measurement chamber or section functions to convert the flowing drilling fluid from a partially circular cross-sectional configuration to a parallelogram cross-sectional configuration and thus provides for simplified, efficient volumetric measurement. The liquid level related signal being emitted from the sensor of the flow measurement chamber is readily correlated with the signal reflecting the pump injection volume and these correlated signals are displayed to provide drilling personnel with information from which activities concerning the drilling fluid can be efficiently programmed. Volumetric measurement apparatus is (i) mounted with the measuring means for indicating the amount of drilling fluid contained within the tank, (ii) mounted with a pump stroke counter for indicating the quantity of drilling fluid pumped into the well, and (iii) mounted with the flow sensor for indicating the quantity of fluid flowing from the well into the tank. Electrical signals representing these volumetric measurements are processed and correlated electronically to provide a readout that may be visually inspected.
Further, in accordance with the invention, a method of monitoring changes in fluid circulation of a drilling fluid circulation system comprises recording an output from a measuring device mounted with a drilling fluid storage tank and providing a signal representing the quantity of fluid supported within such tank. The number of strokes of a drilling fluid circulating pump are counted electronically and a signal is provided representing the volume of fluid being pumped into the well from the tank. The volume of drilling fluid returning from the well is determined by a fluid level measuring device that senses the level of fluid within the return line. This measurement is simplified by providing the return line with an intermediate section of parallelogram shaped internal cross-section. The electrical output from the fluid level sensing device, which is mounted in the intermediate section of the drilling fluid return line, is recorded to determine the volume of fluid flowing into the tank from the well.
Further, in accordance with the invention, a drilling fluid circulating system includes a tank for storing a quantity of drilling fluid used during drilling of the well. A drilling fluid pump and conduit system is mounted in fluid communication with the tank for pumping the stored drilling fluid through the drill stem into the well and a drilling fluid return line is mounted in fluid communication with the upper portion of the well for transporting drilling fluid flowing from the well back to the settling tank system. A variable capacitance type flow sensor is mounted within the intermediate section of the drilling fluid return line and provides an electrical output signal proportionate to the level of the drilling fluid flowing through the parallelogram shaped chamber. Apparatus is mounted with the flow sensing means for receiving the electrical output therefrom and converting such output signal to indicate the volume of drilling fluid flowing from the well into the first settling tank.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to drawings, in which like reference characters are used throughout to indicate like parts:
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a preferred embodiment constructed according to the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of the invention shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the portion of the invention shown in FIG. 2; and
FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the portion of the invention shown in FIG. 2.
While the invention will be described in connection with preferred embodiments and procedures, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to those particular embodiments and procedures. On the contrary, it is intended that the invention encompass all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to the drawings and first to FIG. 1, there is schematically shown a drilling fluid circulating system which is disposed near a drilling rig 10 having a platform 12 and a wellhead 14. Extending from the bell nipple of wellhead 14 is a drilling fluid return line 16 which places the well bore (not shown) in fluid communication with a settling tank 18. A second settling tank 20 and suction tank 22 are mounted in fluid communication with settling tank 18 by a pipe 24 extending between settling tank 18 and second tank 20, and by a second pipe 26 extending between the second tank 20 and a suction tank 22.
Fluid circulation is induced by a pump 28 that withdraws drilling fluid from suction tank 22 via suction pipe 30 and forces such drilling fluid through a pipe 32 into a flexible hose 34 and thence to a swivel 36. A kelly 38, which is a generally rectangular tubular drive stem, receives drilling fluid from the swivel 36 and conducts the drilling fluid to the drill stem extending downwardly into the well bore. The drilling fluid exits the drill stem at the drill bit connected at the lower extremity thereof and then flows upwardly through the annulus between the drill stem and well bore carrying with it the drill cuttings that are cut from the formation by the rotating drill bit. The returning drilling fluid then flows from the well through return line 16 into settling tank 18.
Liquid level sensing devices 40 are mounted at the upper portions of tanks 18, 20 and 22 and provide electrical signals indicating the level of fluid in each of the tanks. The settling tanks are of known volume and thus the liquid level signals also indicate the volume of drilling fluid stored in the tanks. Accumulation of the liquid level signals reflects the total volume of drilling fluid stored at the surface. The liquid level sensing devices emit electrical signals which are transmitted by conductors 42 to an amplifier circuit 44. Liquid level sensors 40 may be of any conventional form, however, it is preferred that they be of the parallel plate capacitance type, such as those described in the related application previously identified. The signals of each of the liquid level indicators are processed by the amplifier circuitry and a signal representing the cumulative liquid levels of the tanks is presented as an amplifier output signal. Amplifier 44 is shunted by conductors 46 to an indicator 48 and a recorder 50 which provide visual information from which the status of the drilling fluid system is determined, as explained hereinbelow.
Since pump 28 is a typical reciprocating type mud pump, the volume of the pump is indicated by accumulation of pump stroke signals. A conventional pump stroke counting device 68 is interconnected with pump 28 and provides electrical signals representing each stroke of the pump. The electrical signals of the pump are conducted to indicator circuit 48 by means of conductors 70, thereby providing electrical meter representation at the indicator circuitry of the volume of injected drilling fluid developed by pump 28.
A liquid level gauge 52 is mounted in drilling fluid return line 16 and the electrical output signal thereof is transmitted to indicator 48 and recorder 50 by conductors 54. The return line 16 is open to the atmosphere at its outlet and the drilling fluid flowing therethrough is not under pressure. The flowing returning drilling fluid therefore seeks a level within Measurement of the depth or level of the fluid within return line 16 will provide an accurate indication of the volume of drilling fluid flowing from the well. The volume of fluid flowing through return line 16 is thus displayed by indicator 48 and recorded by recorder 50. In the event there should be no fluid flowing through return line 16 or in the event flow is reduced from an expected or predetermined rate, an audible alarm signal 49 may be activated to alert the drilling personnel of lost or insufficient circulation.
To overcome the difficulty of calculating the volume of drilling fluid flowing through return line 16, which is typically of circular cross-sectional configuration, a flow measurement chamber of section 56 is interconnected into the return line. The flow measurement section 56 functions to convert the flowing fluid to a cross-sectional configuration that is easily and simply measured. The internal configuration of section 56 defines a parallelogram and, by simply measuring the depth or level of fluid within the chamber, the cross-sectional configuration of the flowing fluid is readily determined. By relating the liquid level to known liquid level measurements at known rates of flow, the rate or volume of flow of the returning drilling fluid is clearly apparent.
Liquid level measuring device 52, which is also preferably a parallel plate variable capacitance type device, is mounted in a flow measurement section 56 that is interconnected with drilling fluid return line 16. Flow measurement section 56 incorporates an intermediate section 58 defining an internal chamber of parallelogram cross-sectional configuration. Inlet and outlet connector portions 60 and 62 of flow measurement section 56 are provided for connection of section 56 into the return line 16 and may be provided for connection therewith by any suitable form of connection, such as threaded or welded connection, for example.
An inlet transition portion 64 is mounted between inlet portion 60 and intermediate portion 58 to define a transition from the circular cross-section of the return line 16 to the rectangular cross-section of the intermediate section 58. An outlet transition portion 66 is mounted between intermediate portion 58 and outlet portion 62 to provide a transition from a rectangular cross-section back to circular cross-section for connection with the outlet portion 62. The outlet portion is connected to a conduit arranged to discharge into tank 18. It is preferred that the bottom walls of portions 58, 60, 62, 64 and 66 be essentially coextensive to eliminate variations in head pressures. Also, it is preferred that the side walls of the intermediate section 58 define right angles with the bottom wall and, more preferably, that the parallelogram shape be of rectangular configuration to eliminate variations in head pressures. Further, it is preferred that the circular cross-section of the inlet and outlet portions, 64 and 66, respectively, define substantially the same cross-sectional area as is defined by the intermediate portion 58 to eliminate variations in pressure as the flowing drilling fluid transitions these areas.
The liquid level measuring device 52 extends through the upper wall 57 of the intermediate section 58 and presents a pair of generally parallel plates 59 and 61 that extend to a position near the bottom wall 63 of the intermediate section. Plates 59 and 61 define a variable capacitor, the capacitance variation of which is determined by the level of fluid within the chamber defined by the intermediate section. The electrical signal transmitted by conductors 54 reflects the level and thus the volume of fluid flow through the flow measurement chamber.
From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinabove set forth, together with other advantages which are obvious and inherent to the apparatus.
It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed with reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims.
As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, and it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
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A drilling fluid monitoring system and method includes a pump stroke counter providing an electrical signal representing the volume of drilling fluid pumped into a well, a flow sensing device providing an electrical signal representing the volume of drilling fluid flowing out of the well, fluid level an electrical measuring device providing an electrical signal representing the fluid level changes within a tank, and a device receiving the electrical signals emitted by the pump stroke counter, flow sensor and measuring device to indicate changes in the circulation of the well drilling fluid.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a method for the production of brushes, consisting of a bristle support and bristles of at least two different bristle types which are fastened thereto and combined to at least one group having a defined cross-section by uniting the bristles of one bristle type to form a partial group and the partial groups forming the bristle group are combined in converging guides to form the bristle group, wherein the bristle group is subsequently attached to the bristle support. The invention also concerns a device for carrying out the method.
Conventional brushes consist of a bristle support and bristles fastened thereon which are usually combined to form bristle groups, e.g. bundles. The bristle groups are mounted to the bristle support either mechanically, using the so-called punching method, or, if the bristles and bristle supports are made from plastic, more recently using a thermal process, in optional combination with a mechanical deformation method. Such recent methods include welding of the bristles onto the surface of the bristle support, inserting the bristle bundles into a bristle support surface which is melted to a greater or lesser extent or injection molding the bundle by melting the bristle ends at the bundle foot to form an enlargement and extruding bristle support material around this area. These thermal methods have been used, in particular, for tooth brushes, hygiene brushes etc.
The selection of bristles with regard to material, cross-section and length depends largely on the intended use of the brush. The arrangement and number of bristles in a bundle, the arrangement and shape of the bundles themselves or of the bristles which are combined into groups vary in dependence on the intended use. The term brushes also includes brush-like devices for applying media, wherein the bristles are generally disposed in one group only, i.e. a bundle, a package or the like.
As has been known in the art for some time, tooth brushes having a straight cut brush stock, i.e. with all bristle ends disposed in one plane, do not satisfy dental hygienic requirements, since the curved as well as uneven tooth surfaces and the interdental spaces are not adequately cleaned. For these reasons, tooth brushes were developed having bristle ends lying in envelope surfaces contoured to a greater or lesser degree, by e.g. providing the bristle stock with a wavy cut. There are also conventional brushes which have the ends of bristles of an individual bundle disposed on a conical surface. All these measures are intended to assure that the bristles reach into the interdental spaces.
Dental medical evaluations of such tooth brushes have, however, shown that the tips of individual bundles or the apex of a wavy cut are unacceptably aggressive on the smooth tooth surfaces and leave grinding traces on the enamel. They can also lead to injury of the gum and gingiva which causes discomfort, especially with sensitive gums.
These disadvantageous consequences can be alleviated, but not eliminated, by a conventional tooth brush (WO 96/16571). Its bristle stock consists of individual bundles whose ends lie in a conical surface having the above mentioned aggressive tip. Moreover, each bundle contains individual bristles which are longer than the other bristles in the bundles and whose ends are disposed in one single plane. These individual bristles thereby slightly protrude past the bundled bristles. This configuration is intended to improve cleaning of the interdental spaces, since the individual bristles can more easily access such areas compared to conical bundles. These brushes are difficult to manufacture, since the individual bristles have to be drawn into the bundles in a separate processing step.
Macroscopic studies have shown that the tooth surfaces have fine cracks into which conventional bristles, due to their diameter, cannot enter and which are therefore not cleaned. Thinner, fiber-like bristles (DE 94 08 268 U1) which are wrapped in an enclosed envelope, with only the ends protruding past the wrapping, were proposed for cleaning and gentle treatment of the gums. These thin fibers fold down outside the wrapping envelope and have almost no effect. In addition, the sharp envelope edge increases the danger of injury to the gums and gingiva as well as possible damage to the tooth surface due to grinding traces. This conventional tooth brush is also very difficult to manufacture.
With tooth brushes and also with other brushes, such as paint brushes and the like, the bristle groups must be arranged in defined geometrical shapes and different types of bristles must be inserted into the bristle stock or individual bristle groups forming same to achieve the effects required for the respective application. DE 16 04 673 discloses bundles having differing cross-sectional shapes and DE 35 05 972 discloses combining the bristle stock of differently shaped bundles. These different bundle shapes are generated by rolling endless monofilaments to form a cord, wherein each cord consists of a number of monofilaments corresponding to the number of bristles in a bundle. The monofilament cord is pulled or pushed through a shaping device which forms the cord, of irregular cross-sectional shape, into the desired cross-sectional shape. Downstream of the shaping device, the bundles are cut to the desired length and fastened to the bristle support. This only allows variation of the bundle shape.
DE 196 16 309 suggests the production of bundles of bristles of different types by winding together endless monofilaments of various types to form a cord, from which individual bundles are cut. In this case, different types of bristles are present within the bundle in a static, uniform distribution. The various bristles are not distributed and arranged in dependence on the application. EP-A1-0 716 821 discloses tooth and body care brushes with which the bristles are collected into groups containing different kinds of bristles.
In conventional brushes having injection molded bundles (U.S. Pat. No. 5,728,408) the bristles, cut to bundle length, are removed from a magazine using punching tubes and inserted in bundle channels of an injection molding form and into the mold cavity. Several bundles of circular cross-section can thereby be combined via converging channels, next to one another, into stripe-shaped bristle groups having a width corresponding to the bundle diameter. Neighboring bundles may comprise various bristles disposed next to one another in the stripe-shaped bristle group. The various types of bristles thereby disadvantageously mix in the transition area between neighboring bundles and are not effective in this area. Since bristles of various types are adjacent to one another in the stripe-shaped bristle group and are used in the same manner during brushing, both types of brushes display differing signs of premature wear.
It is the underlying purpose of the invention to further develop the conventional method of U.S. Pat. No. 5,728,408 according to the preamble of claim 1 in such a manner that brushes can be produced in any form and in dependence on the intended use which have bristle groups consisting of partial groups of various cross-sections, with bristles of different types and different numbers in the partial groups.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This object is achieved in accordance with the invention in that the bristles of each partial group are shaped in a surrounding shaping device guide to obtain a cross-section corresponding to their partial cross-section in the bristle group and the partial groups are then combined in the guides to obtain the cross-sectional shape of the bristle group. Preferably, the bristle group is then transferred to a holding means to transport the bristle group for fastening to the bristle support. The finished bristle group can also be attached to the bristle support directly after shaping.
The method according to the invention permits production of a bristle group of defined cross-section from partial groups of various bristle types also having defined partial cross-sections such that the various types of bristles are present within the bristle group in a defined geometrical shape optimally adapted to the respective use of the brush. With this geometrical shape generated by the shaping device, the bristle groups or the partial groups forming same may be subsequently fixed in the holding means and fastened to the bristle support using conventional mechanical or thermal methods while maintaining this geometrical shape. The inventive method can generate bristle groups of arbitrary cross-section within which the partial groups of arbitrary cross-section are arranged to always optimize the respective intended use. The partial groups may thereby be arranged e.g. concentrically, in the form of segments, sectors or stripes. The invention permits different numbers of bristles to be used in each partial group.
Preferably, the bristles of each partial group are compressed during shaping into close proximity to one another and support each other within the partial group. This dense packaging of bristles is particularly advantageous for thermal fastening of the bristle group on the bristle support, since the softened plastic mass of the bristle support cannot enter between the bristles.
With the method in accordance with the invention, all groups of bristles in the bristle stock of the brush can be simultaneously or sequentially formed in the shaping device. In either event, they can be passed on to a holding means accepting all bristle groups for attaching the complete bristle stock to the bristle support.
In a preferred embodiment, the partial groups, after being combined to form a bristle group, are transferred, with different lengths, to the holding means and are cut flat at a location between the shaping device and the holding means.
This allows the useful ends of the partial groups forming the bristle groups to be disposed in different planes such that their different characteristics can be simultaneously effective during brushing.
The bristle groups are preferably clamped in the holding means to fix the geometrical shape generated by the shaping device.
This allows, in particular, the useful ends of the bristles of the bristle groups clamped in the holding means to be mechanically treated, e.g. rounded, and also facilitates preparation of their opposite ends for mounting to the bristle support: e.g. to melt them into a bundle foot, to shape them, or to size them.
In the unclamped state, the holding means also permit axial displacement of the bristles therein relative to one another to bring the useful ends of each partial group into different envelope surfaces. These surfaces may be curved in a smooth or non-smooth manner.
The method according to the invention permits the partial groups to be in close proximity to each other during formation of a bristle group and to be tightly packed together to form a bristle group with defined, bordering surfaces always being located between the partial groups.
In a preferred embodiment, the bristles of the partial groups are made from endless monofilaments by accommodating bristles of the same type, in the form of endless monofilament cords, on separate spools, removing the cords of bristles from the spools and introducing them into the guides to form one partial group each, wherein the bristles of all partial groups forming a bristle group are simultaneously supplied to the guides. The cords forming the partial groups may have different amounts of endless monofilaments.
The partial groups may also be made from short-cut bristles of appropriate length.
The invention further concerns a device for carrying out the method according to the invention. A device of this type forms a bristle group comprising at least two partial groups of different type bristles, by providing at least one spool with a cord of monofilaments having the same type of bristle, for each partial group, and with at least one drawing device, disposed downstream of the spool, with one guiding channel for each cord and, downstream of the drawing device, a stationary shaping device having a corresponding number of shaping channels whose openings facing the drawing devices are aligned with the guiding channels, wherein the opening thereof has a cross-sectional shape that varies into the partial cross-section of the partial group and simultaneously converges towards an envelope cross-section corresponding to the cross-section of the bristle group. A moveable holding means for the bristle group is advantageously disposed downstream of the shaping device having holding channels whose shape and arrangement correspond to those of the guiding channels of the drawing device facing same, wherein the cords can be removed from the spools by the linearly moveable drawing device, and can be pushed through the shaping device and optionally transferred to the downstream holding means, and further comprising a cutting device, disposed between the shaping device and the holding means, for cutting the bristle group, located in the holding means, to a desired length, wherein, the holding means with the bristle group can be moved for mounting the bristle group to the bristle support.
The device according to the invention cyclically produces the bristle groups, or the entire bristle stock, from several bristle groups which are then fastened to the bristle support or transported by the holding means to be fastened thereto.
The shaping channels of the shaping device can simultaneously taper in the direction of their cross-sectional variation such that the bristles of the partial group are simultaneously compressed during shaping.
In a preferred embodiment, at least two separately movable drawing devices are disposed one after the other, which, either individually or collectively, cooperate with the cords forming the partial groups to insert the partial groups into the holding means to the same or differing extents.
In this manner, partial groups of differing lengths can be easily made within one bristle group.
The drawing device and the holding means preferably comprise parallel layered plates, one of which is a clamping plate which can be moved transverse to the guiding or holding channels.
With the inventive device, the holding means with the clamped bristle group can be transported to a processing device and/or a device for treatment of the useful bristle ends and/or of the bristle ends which are to be mounted, before the bristle group or the bristle stock, consisting of several bristle groups, is fastened to the bristle support.
The method and device in accordance with the invention facilitate production of brushes having a bristle stock formed from bristle groups of defined cross-sectional shapes and having at least two partial groups of bristles of various types with complementary cross-sectional shape, wherein flat or curved bordering surfaces are formed between the at least two partial groups of a bristle group. Undefined mixing of the various bristle types is prevented and the partial groups are disposed within each bristle group in defined geometrical shape.
The at least one partial group of a bristle group may thereby surround the other partial group, e.g. two partial groups can be disposed concentric to one another. Several partial groups of a bristle group can also surround a central partial group in a concentric fashion.
The at least two partial groups of a bristle group can consist of bristles of various cross-sections, various cross-sectional shapes, various materials, various material compositions or material characteristics, various surface conditions or various colors.
A preferred embodiment provides that the partial group within a bristle group consists of bristles having a lower flexural strength that that of the bristles in the partial group(s) surrounding this partial group. In this way the inner, softer, e.g. thinner bristles are supported from all sides along at least part of their length.
In each bristle group of this embodiment, the partial group of the bristles having the lower flexural strength can protrude past the ends of the surrounding bristles having the higher flexural strength.
Bach bristle group can have the ends of partial group bristles disposed in flat, optionally differing envelope surfaces or in curved envelope surfaces and, optionally, in envelope surfaces of various curvatures.
The ends of the bristles of all partial groups of a bristle group are preferably disposed in a smoothly curved envelope surface which, in a further advantageous embodiment, is symmetric with respect to an axis extending parallel to the bristles of the bristle group.
The invention is described below with embodiments shown in the drawing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 shows a schematic side view of the device for carrying out the method;
FIG. 2 shows a first section of the device of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 shows a second section of the device of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 shows a third section of the device of FIG. 1;
FIG. 5 shows a fourth section of the device of FIG. 1;
FIG. 6 shows a fifth section of the device of FIG. 1;
FIG. 7 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a first stage of the method;
FIG. 8 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a second stage of the method;
FIG. 9 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a third stage of the method;
FIG. 10 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a fourth stage of the method;
FIG. 11 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a fifth stage of the method;
FIG. 12 shows the device of FIG. 1 in a sixth stage of the method;
FIG. 13 shows a first view of a further embodiment of a device for carrying out the method;
FIG. 14 shows a second view of the further embodiment;
FIG. 15 shows a third view of the further embodiment;
FIG. 16 shows a fourth view of the further embodiment;
FIG. 17 shows a fifth view of the further embodiment;
FIG. 18 shows a schematic side view of a longitudinal section of a first embodiment of a bristle group;
FIG. 19 shows a schematic side view of a longitudinal section of a second embodiment of a bristle group;
FIG. 20 shows a schematic side view of a longitudinal section of a third embodiment of a bristle group;
FIG. 21 shows a schematic side view of a longitudinal section of a fourth embodiment of a bristle group;
FIG. 22 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a first partial group;
FIG. 23 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a second partial group;
FIG. 24 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a third partial group;
FIG. 25 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a fourth partial group;
FIG. 26 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a fifth partial group;
FIG. 27 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a sixth partial group;
FIG. 28 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a seventh partial group;
FIG. 29 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising an eighth partial group;
FIG. 30 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a ninth partial group;
FIG. 31 shows a top view of a bristle group comprising a tenth partial group;
FIG. 32 shows a side view of a bristle group comprising two partial groups;
FIG. 33 shows a top view of the bristle group of FIG. 32;
FIG. 34 shows a side view of a bristle group with two partial groups in a different embodiment;
FIG. 35 shows a top view of the embodiment according to FIG. 34;
FIG. 36 shows a perspective partial view of a tooth brush head;
FIG. 37 shows a perspective partial view of a different embodiment of a tooth brush head;
FIG. 38 shows a side view of FIG. 37;
FIG. 39 shows a top view of FIG. 37;
FIG. 40 shows a perspective partial view of a tooth brush head in a modified embodiment;
FIG. 41 shows a partial longitudinal section through the tooth brush head according to FIG. 40;
FIG. 42 shows a perspective partial view of a tooth brush head for an electric tooth brush;
FIG. 43 shows a perspective view of a replaceable head for an electric tooth brush,;
FIG. 44 a shows a view of a first embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 44 b shows a top view of the first embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 45 a shows a view of a second embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 45 b shows a top view of the second embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 46 a shows a view of a third embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 46 b shows a top view of the third embodiment of an application brush;
FIG. 47 shows a partial view of a brush;
FIG. 48 shows a top view of the brush according to FIG. 43; and
FIG. 49 shows a view of the brushes according to FIG. 47, rotated through 90°.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The device shown in FIG. 1 serves for the production of bristle groups from partial groups of various types of bristles, wherein the bristles of each partial group are combined from endless monofilaments into a cord and e.g. disposed on spools from which they are removed by the device according to FIG. 1 and processed into bristle groups. The device in the embodiment shown comprises two drawing devices 1 , 2 , disposed one after the other, a shaping device 3 disposed downstream of the drawing device 2 and a holding means 4 disposed downstream of the shaping device 3 . The drawing devices 1 and 2 can be linearly displaced in the direction of the double arrows 5 and 6 , respectively, whereas the shaping device 3 is stationary. The holding means 4 can be moved in accordance with the double arrow 7 . The embodiment shown also comprises a cutting device 8 downstream of the shaping device 3 .
The device according to FIG. 1 serves for the production of a bristle group comprising a central partial group and six partial groups enclosing same (see FIG. 5 ). Each drawing device 1 comprises two outer plates 9 with a total of seven guiding channels 10 , each for an external cord 11 , and a central cord 12 . The external cords 11 consist of one single bristle type, e.g. of bristles having a relatively large cross-section, whereas the central cord 12 consists of endless monofilaments of a smaller cross-section. The cords 11 , 12 are guided with play in the guiding channels 10 of the two outer plates 9 . The drawing device 1 comprises a clamping plate 13 between the two plates 9 which can be displaced transversely to the cords 11 , 12 , as shown by the double arrow.
The drawing device 2 likewise comprises external plates 9 , 9 with guiding channels 10 and a central clamping plate 17 . The clamping plate 13 has channels 18 of larger cross-section which are aligned with the guiding channels 10 , and a central guiding channel 19 of smaller cross-section (FIG. 3 ). The clamping plate 17 has channels 20 aligned with the guiding channels 10 , for the cords 11 of identical cross-section, and a central channel 21 of larger cross-section (FIG. 4 ).
The shaping device 3 has a number of shaping channels 15 , 16 which corresponds with the number of guiding channels of the drawing device 1 , 2 . The shaping channel 16 is aligned with the central channel of the drawing devices 1 , 2 , and the openings in the peripheral shaping channels 15 facing the drawing device 2 are aligned with the guiding channels 10 . The shaping channels 15 converge towards the central shaping channel 16 at the opposing side openings. Shaping channel 16 has a constant circular cross-section. The cross-sections of the peripheral shaping channels 15 vary in the direction of their conversion from a circular cross-section at the inlet opening to a circular sector shaped cross-section at the opposing opening.
The holding means 4 is structured as a clamping device. It comprises two external plates 22 , 23 and a central clamping plate 24 which can be displaced in the direction of the double arrow 25 . The holding means 4 comprises a central holding channel 25 which is closely surrounded by peripheral holding channels 26 which are disposed with respect to one another in the same manner as the shaping channels 15 and 16 at the opening facing the holding means 4 . As shown in FIG. 6, narrow braces 14 are disposed between the peripheral holding channels 26 and between these channels and the central holding channel 25 .
FIGS. 7 to 12 describe operation of the device. At the start of operation, the cords 11 and 12 are inserted at the drawing devices 1 and 2 into the shaping device 3 with the clamping plates 13 , 17 open. This shapes the leading ends of the cords 11 , 12 in the shaping device to achieve the corresponding partial cross-sections of the partial groups. During the first operating cycle, the clamping plate 17 is closed, thus clamping the outer cords 11 . The clamping plate 13 remains in its open position. The drawing devices 1 and 2 then move towards the right (FIG. 8) until the cords 11 have been pushed through the holding means 4 , the clamping plate 24 of which is also in the open position, such that the cords 11 protrude past the holding means 4 . The drawing device 2 thereby abuts against shaping device 3 .
The clamping plate 17 of the drawing device 2 is then opened and the clamping plate 13 of the drawing device 1 is closed and drawing device 1 is moved towards drawing device 2 (FIG. 9 ). The drawing device 1 carries only the central cord 12 for the central partial group of the bristle group and pushes it through the shaping device 3 and the holding means 4 until its leading end protrudes past the cords 11 already disposed in the holding means. The clamping plates 13 , 17 are then opened to release the cords in the drawing devices 1 and 2 . The holding means 4 is moved away from the shaping device 3 with the clamping plate 24 closed and thereby pulls the cords 11 , 12 through the shaping device 3 (FIG. 10 ). The cutting device 8 is then lowered in front of the shaping device 3 to cut the cords clamped within the holding means 4 at the shaping device 3 (FIG. 11 ). The holding means 4 fixes a bristle group (FIG. 12) consisting of outer partial groups 27 and a central partial group 28 whose cross-section and correlation with respect to one another is shown in FIG. 5. A new holding means 4 is then disposed in front of the shaping device 3 (FIG. 12 ), the drawing devices 1 and 2 are withdrawn and a new working cycle starts as delineated with reference to FIG. 7 .
The holding means 4 can then be transported to processing stations to e.g. treat the useful ends 29 of the partial group 28 and the useful ends 30 of the partial group 27 (e.g. round them off). The partial groups may also be displaced axially with respect to one another after releasing the clamping plate 24 to dispose the useful ends 29 , 30 in any desired envelope surface. The opposing ends 32 of the entire bristle group 31 may also be processed for mounting to the bristle support. For example, the ends may be melted together, shaped or sized.
The device according to FIGS. 1 to 12 processes endless monofilaments. The device of FIGS. 13 to 17 processes so-called short cuts, wherein the partial groups forming the bristle group are already cut to the required length. This latter device comprises a guiding block 33 having guiding channels 34 followed by a shaping device 35 with converging shaping channels 36 and a central shaping channel 37 . The shaping channels 36 have cross-sectional shapes which change in the direction of conversion. The shaping device 35 is followed by a holding means 38 comprising a central clamping plate 39 . The holding means 38 has peripheral holding channels 40 and a central holding channel 41 which are aligned with the openings of the shaping channels 36 and 37 facing the holding means. The short cuts 42 , each constituting one peripheral partial group within the bristle group, are inserted into the guiding channels 34 of the guiding block 33 and displaced into the shaping channels 36 of the shaping device 35 via punches inserted into the channels 34 until they finally pass through and protrude past the front of the holding means 38 (FIG. 14 ). The guiding block 33 is then removed and a guiding block 44 with a central guiding channel 45 is disposed in front of the shaping device 38 for a short cut 46 forming the central partial group (FIG. 15 ). The short cut 46 is displaced by a punch 47 through the shaping device into the holding means 38 until the short cut 46 forming the central partial group protrudes past the short cuts 42 forming the peripheral partial groups (FIG. 16 ). The holding means 38 is then removed from the shaping device 35 with the clamping plate 39 closed, and the short cuts 42 , 46 are removed from the shaping device 35 (FIG. 17 ).
The devices according to FIGS. 1 to 12 and 13 to 17 , respectively, can produce bristle groups of differing geometrical shapes. Some embodiments are described below.
FIG. 18 shows a side view of a bristle group 47 consisting of partial groups as shown in FIG. 5 or only of one central partial group 48 and one surrounding partial group 49 enclosing the complete circumference thereof as shown e.g. in FIG. 22 . In this embodiment, the partial group 48 consists of small diameter bristles and the surrounding bristle group 49 comprises bristles of a larger diameter. The ends 50 of the central partial group 48 and the ends 51 of the central partial group 48 and the ends 51 of the surrounding partial group 49 lie in one plane. FIG. 19 shows a bristle group 52 of a central partial group 53 and an outer partial group 54 which surrounds same concentrically, wherein the ends 55 of the partial group 53 and also the ends 56 of the partial group 54 lie in flat envelope surfaces disposed at different heights.
The bristle group 56 according to FIG. 20 differs from the one shown in FIG. 19 in that the ends. 59 of the central partial group 60 are disposed on a conical surface while the ends 58 of the surrounding partial group 57 are again disposed in a plane. Finally, FIG. 21 shows a bristle group 61 , wherein the ends 62 of the surrounding bristle group and the ends 63 of the central bristle group are disposed on a common conical surface.
FIG. 22 has already been discussed in connection with FIG. 18 . In the embodiment of FIG. 23, the circumference of a central partial group 64 having bristles of smaller diameter is completely enclosed by a bristle group 65 having bristles of larger diameter, wherein both partial groups have a square cross-section. The embodiment according to FIG. 24 differs in that the central partial group 66 has a triangular cross-section and the partial group 67 surrounding it also has a triangular shape. FIG. 25 shows an embodiment having a central partial group 68 of approximately oval cross-section which can optionally also be formed of several partial groups and comprises bristles of smaller cross-section, whereas the outer partial group 69 surrounding same, which can also consist of several partial groups, comprises bristles of a larger cross-section.
FIG. 26 shows a bristle group comprising a central partial group 70 of only a few bristles of large diameter and a partial group 71 surrounding same, which can also be formed from several partial groups, containing bristles of smaller diameter. The bristle group according to FIG. 27 differs in shape from the circular cross-section of the bristle group according to FIG. 26 in that the central partial group 72 is again approximately circular, whereas the outer partial group 73 is square.
FIG. 28 shows a bristle group 74 consisting of three partial groups 75 , 76 and 77 comprising partial cross-sections having a circular sector shape which are complementary to form a circular cross-section of the bristle group 74 , wherein the groups are separated from one another by planar bordering surfaces 78 . The partial group 75 comprises bristles of smaller diameter than the partial groups 76 and 77 . FIG. 29 shows a bristle group 79 consisting of a central partial group 80 with approximately rhombus-shaped cross-section and four surrounding partial groups 81 of lens-shaped cross-section. The central partial group 80 comprises bristles of smaller diameter and the surrounding lens-shaped partial group 81 contains bristles of the same and larger diameters. Curved bordering surfaces 82 are disposed between the central partial group 80 and the outer partial groups 81 .
FIG. 30 shows a bristle group 83 having a central partial group 84 with circular cross-section and six surrounding partial groups 85 of sector-shaped cross-section. The production of this bristle group 83 has been explained with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 .
The bristle group 86 according to FIG. 31 consists of a central partial group 87 and neighboring partial groups 88 of essentially square cross-section, wherein the central partial group 87 comprises bristles of larger diameter. Partial groups 89 having an essentially semi-circular cross-section and containing e.g. bristles of the same diameter as the central partial group 87 are outwardly adjacent to the two partial groups 88 .
FIGS. 32 and 33 show a bristle group 90 having an inner partial group 91 and a surrounding partial group 92 of circular cross-section, wherein the inner partial group 91 consists of extremely thin bristles and the outer partial group 92 consists of bristles of a larger cross-section which support the bristles of the inner partial group 91 at all sides. The embodiment according to FIGS. 34 and 35 differs from the one shown in FIGS. 32 and 33 in that the outer partial group 93 and the inner partial group 94 each have a square cross-section and the thin bristles of the inner partial group 94 protrude upwardly past the bristles of the outer partial group 93 .
The embodiment of FIG. 36 shows how a bristle stock may be configured, e.g. for a tooth brush. Only the head 100 and part of the neck 101 are shown. A field of bristle stock comprising individual standing bristles 102 is mounted to a relatively large surface of the head 100 , proximate the neck 101 . The front area of the brush head 100 is provided with individual bristle groups 103 having an essentially circular cross-section. Each bristle group 103 consists of an inner partial group 104 and an outer partial group 105 which are arranged concentrically, wherein the ends of the bristles of the two partial groups 104 and 105 are disposed on a conical envelope surface.
FIGS. 37 to 39 show the head 100 and part of the neck 101 of a tooth brush. The head 100 is provided with bristle groups of essentially triangular cross-section, but with differing triangular shapes. The bristle group 106 , disposed at the front end of the brush head, has an equilateral triangular cross-section. The bristle group consists of several partial groups, wherein the bristle ends of the partial groups are disposed on an envelope surface 110 of equilateral pyramid shape. The next two bristle groups 107 differ therefrom in that their cross-section is a triangle with differing side lengths. The next bristle groups 108 again have equilateral triangular cross-sections. The bristle groups 109 proximate the neck 101 have a cross-section corresponding to an extremely acute-angled triangle. The bristle ends of all partial groups are disposed on an envelope surface, as shown in FIG. 38, of equilateral or non-equilateral pyramid shape.
FIG. 40 shows a tooth brush head 100 whose bristle stock proximate the neck 101 , consists of cylindrical bristle groups 111 and whose front area consists of a large volume bristle group 112 . The cylindrical bristle groups 111 can be made from one single type of bristle or from two or more partial groups of different bristles. The bristle group 112 at the front end of the brush head 100 consists of three partial groups 113 , 114 and 115 which are arranged in an essentially concentric manner with respect to one another and which expand in a cupped manner towards the bristle ends. The ends of the individual partial groups 113 , 114 , 115 lie on a convex envelope surface 116 (see FIG. 41 ).
The embodiment according to FIG. 42 shows an exchangeable head for an electric tooth brush. The head 116 comprises a pin 117 for mounting to the driving part of the electric tooth brush. The head 116 has bristle groups 118 to 122 . The bristle group 118 extends in a zigzag shaped manner and has bristle ends protruding past the ends of the bristle groups 119 to 122 . The bristles of the bristle group 118 and those of the groups 119 to 122 preferably consist of various types of bristles. The bristle group 118 can optionally be composed of several partial groups with bristles of the same or differing types.
FIG. 43 also shows an exchangeable head 123 for an electric tooth brush which is mounted to the driving part of the electric tooth brush via a pin 124 . The bristle stock consists of one single bristle group 125 composed of two partial groups 126 and 127 , wherein the partial group 126 protrudes upwardly past the partial group 127 and its bristle ends lie on a spiral. The partial groups 126 and 127 can be composed of several partial groups of the same type of bristles.
FIGS. 44 to 46 show various embodiments of a small application brush. In the embodiment according to FIG. 44, a bristle group 129 is mounted to a brush handle 128 and consists of two concentric partial groups 130 and 131 (FIG. 44 b ), wherein the central partial group 131 comprises shorter bristles to create a storage region 132 for the application means. The embodiment according to FIG. 46 differs from the one of FIG. 44 in that the central partial group 131 is somewhat shorter to create a larger storage region 133 . In the embodiment of FIG. 46, the bristle group 134 consists of concentrically disposed partial groups 135 and 136 , wherein the central partial group 136 consists of wavy bristles 137 (FIG. 46 a ) for additional storage of media which are likewise shorter than the bristles of the surrounding partial group 135 .
FIG. 47 shows a flat brush whose handle 138 supports a bristle group having a central partial group 139 , surrounded in a circular manner by a partial group 140 . The bristles of the central partial group 139 create intermediate, narrow capillaries for receiving paint or lacquer while the bristles of the outer partial group 140 are closely adjacent to one another and prevent lateral escape of the medium to be applied. A flat brush is thereby produced with which the medium can be applied in precise stripes.
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In a method for the production of brushes consisting of a bristle support and bristles mounted thereon and combined to at least one group having a defined cross-section with at least two different types of bristles, the bristles of a bristle type are combined into a partial group and the partial groups forming a bristle group are combined into said bristle group and subsequently, the bristle group is mounted to the bristle support. The bristles of each partial group are formed in a surrounding guide of a shaping device into a cross-section corresponding to their partial cross-sections in the bristle group, and the partial groups are then combined while maintaining their partial cross-section in the guides to form the cross-section of the bristle group. A device for carrying out this method and brushes produced in this fashion are also described.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a method of preparing a transition metal catalyst for use in the synthesis of ammonia and to the novel transition metal catalyst obtained by practice of the invention.
In the Haber-Bosch process, nitrogen and hydrogen gas are reacted in the presence of an iron catalyst to produce ammonia, according to reaction (1).
1/2N.sub.2.sup.(g) + 3/2H.sub.2.sup.(g) ⃡ NH.sub.3 (g) (1)
The forward reaction, which is exothermic, is increasingly favored as the temperature is reduced. The yield is also increased by increasing the pressure. Therefore, it is desirable to perform the reaction at low temperatures and high pressures.
In common practice, the reaction is performed in a high pressure vessel wherein the catalyst is provided in a basket such as to allow the reaction gases to percolate through the catalyst. In order to maintain the reaction temperature constant, the catalyst bed has to be cooled.
The catalyst most commonly used in the industrial production of ammonia is composed predominantly of magnetite (FeO.Fe 2 O 3 ) wherein other oxides may be present in trace amounts. Promotors are usually added to increase the activity of the catalyst. These compounds are oxides, isomorphous with FeO or Fe 2 O 3 , bearing a metal similar in molecular volume to iron; for example, MnO, MgO, ZnO, Cr 2 O 3 , in combination with K 2 O and Al 2 O 3 . Prior to use, the iron catalyst must be activated by reducing it to metallic iron, usually by heating under a stream of hydrogen gas. During this process, cavities are formed in the original oxide lattice resulting in an increase in the surface area. The surface area of such a catalyst is usually in the range of 4-15 m 2 /g of catalyst. The promoters do not undergo reduction in this process. An iron catalyst produces a yield of approximately 12% ammonia under typical reaction conditions of about 525° C. and 150 atmospheres at a space velocity of 20,000 v/v.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a transition metal catalyst suitable for use in the Synthesis Ammonia which preferably is operative both at lower reaction temperatures and lower pressures without a reduction in the yield of ammonia. The provision of such a catalyst can lead to savings in capital equipment. Also, operational difficulties along with energy requirements may be substantially reduced.
Some of the catalysts of the present invention give good yields at temperatures as low as 375° C. and at pressures ranging from 27-67 atmospheres.
In accordance with the invention, an activated carbon support is doped with a series of solutions. These are solutions of an alkaline earth metal compound, of a compound of a transition metal from Group VIII, and of an alkali metal compound. Each doping is performed separately; the preferred sequence chosen for doping effects the specificity and the activity of the catalyst.
Although the activity of the present family of catalysts toward nitrogen fixation drops in the presence of significant amounts of carbon monoxide, for example 1% in the gas stream, the activity is recovered when carbon monoxide is eliminated. Therefore, the presence of carbon monoxide acts to inhibit the catalyst rather than to poison it.
The transition metal in the new family of catalysts can be recovered and reused in doping. This means that after the initial cost of the catalyst, regeneration, if necessary, is relatively inexpensive.
Since the present family of catalysts performs under moderate temperatures and pressures and is less susceptible to poisoning by carbon monoxide or water vapor, it is expected that equipment break-downs would be less frequent than in the case of a prior commercial catalyst which performs under higher pressures and temperatures. Therefore the overall maintenance cost would be expected to drop considerably.
Broadly stated, the invention relates to a method for preparing a transition metal catalyst comprising doping an activated carbon support material with in sequence a solution of an alkaline earth metal compound, a solution of a compound of a transition metal from Group VIII, and a solution of an alkali metal compound. The invention also comprises a transition metal catalyst comprising an activated carbon support material associated with an alkaline earth metal, a transition metal from Group VIII and an alkaline metal.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram outlining the steps of the process.
FIG. 2 is a cross section of a laboratory-scale test reactor used in developing the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The present family of catalysts was prepared by doping the carbonaceous support material with the salt of an alkaline earth metal, preferably barium (1-8% by weight), followed by a salt of a transition metal from Group VIII, preferably ruthenium (0.1-4% by weight), and followed, in turn, by a compound of an alkali metal, preferably potassium (5-20% by weight). In addition to these, the catalyst can be doped with the salt of lanthanide metal, preferably lanthanum (0.5-6% by weight), and/or the salt of a metal from Group IIIA, preferably aluminum (0.5-5% by weight). The catalyst is preferably doped with the lanthanide metal compound before being doped with the transition metal compound.
Potassium is preferably applied as potassium hydroxide or carbonate; the alkaline earth metal is preferably applied as a nitrate. Not all salts are suitable as some anions, such as chloride, have a poisoning effect on the catalyst. A water soluble salt of the transition metal should be selected.
Doping may be performed in accordance with the following preferred technique: sufficient aqueous solution of a compound bearing the desired metal is poured over the degassed support material to cover it completely. The slurry is then heated under vacuum until all the water has evaporated. The doped material is then, preferably, baked, for example at 250° C. for 3-5 hours, and cooled. This process is repeated for each metal required in the catalyst.
The invention is illustrated by the following examples:
EXAMPLE I
Although a commercially available form of activated carbon may be used as the support material, we prepared our own for subsequent doping. The basic materials which were used were hardwood, either maple or birch, polyvinyledene chloride, and cellulose.
In this example, hardwood was cut into small pieces, one-inch squares. The cuts were enclosed in a stainless steel beaker which was, in turn, placed in an oven and flushed with nitrogen for 2 hours. The temperature was slowly raised to a charring temperature of 600° C. at the rate of 1-2° C./min. in order to avoid cracking of the wood. The char was kept at 600° and under a nitrogen atmosphere for three hours, a sufficient time to ensure uniform heat distribution and charring. This process resulted in about 75% loss in weight of the starting material.
The char was then broken to a size of 7-16 mesh and activated in a fluidized bed by a mixture of steam and air, at 850-900° C. for 5 hours. The loss in weight of the char during this step was approximately 50%. The char could alternately be activated in a stream of carbon dioxide.
The activated carbon was then placed in a container and degassed under vacuum (70-100 microns) and at a temperature of 220-250° C. for a minimum of 8 hours. It was then cooled and an aqueous solution of barium nitrate, 2% in barium, by weight of the carbon, was added under vacuum in an amount sufficient to cover the activated carbon. The slurry was then heated under vacuum until all the water had evaporated. The product was then baked under vacuum at 250° C. for four hours and cooled.
An aqueous solution of RuCl 3 .3H 2 O,4% in ruthenium, by weight of the support, was added under vacuum to the above product. It has been previously stated that chlorides exhibit a poisoning effect on the catalyst, however, ruthenium chloride was used due to its greater stability over other ruthenium salts. This is important in obtaining a uniform coating of the carbon support. The doped support was then baked under vacuum at 250° C. for four hours and cooled. The process was repeated a third time by doping and baking as previously described with an aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide, 12% in potassium by weight of the support.
From hereonin, let it be understood that all percentages refer to % by weight of the support unless otherwise specified.
It appears that the activity of the catalyst increases if each salt is added separately and under vacuum, and if the doped material is baked. Baking acts to convert the salts of the doping solution to their respective oxides and apparently produces a better surface covering on the carbon support.
The resulting surface of the catalyst was black and lustrous and gave no indication of any precipitated salts. The catalyst displayed a surface area of about 850-950 m 2 /g. It could be stored under ambient conditions.
Prior to use, the catalyst was degassed under vacuum for 6 hours, and activated with hydrogen at 400° C. and 15 atmospheres for 24 hours.
The catalyst was tested in a stainless steel, double-walled laboratory reactor shown in FIG. 2. The outer wall 1 of the reactor was wrapped in a heating tape 2. An annular space 3 was formed between the outer wall 1 and the inner wall 4. The inner wall 4 defined an inner cavity 5 which was packed with 1 gram of the catalyst 6, this being a representative sample. The inner cavity 5 was then covered with a perforated cap 7 through which a thermocouple 8 could be fitted. Reactant gases, hydrogen and nitrogen in the mole ratio of 3 to 1, were fed in through an inlet 9, near the bottom of the reactor, at a space velocity of 3000, i.e. 3000 volumes of gas feed per volume of catalyst per hour. The gases flowed upwards through the annular space 3, passed into the inner cavity 5 through the perforated cap 7 and percolated downwards through the catalyst 6 where they reacted to form ammonia. The reaction temperature and pressure were kept at 400° C. and 50 atmospheres. The effluent gases were carried out of the reactor through an outlet 10. These effluent gases consisted of unreacted nitrogen and hydrogen, and of ammonia, the reaction product. The ammonia was trapped in a solution of sulfuric acid of known concentration which was then titrated. It was found that 9.6% of the total gas feed was converted to ammonia. This yield is about 61% of the equilibrium yield at these particular reaction conditions.
An absolute yield, Y abs , can be calculated by taking the quotient of the moles of ammonia produced to the sum of the moles of the nitrogen and hydrogen passed through the reactor. ##EQU1## The efficiency of the catalyst is given by the ratio of the actual mole percent ammonia in the effluent to the mole percent of ammonia at equilibrium under the same reaction conditions. The absolute yield is more helpful towards establishing desirable reaction conditions as it relates the amount of ammonia produced to the composition of the reactant gases, while the efficiency compares the actual yield to the equilibrium yield, a quantity which varies with the reaction conditions.
EXAMPLE 2
A one gram sample of a catalyst made in accordance with the method of Example 1 of active carbon charred to 800° C. (7-16 mesh); barium nitrate, 4% in barium; aluminum nitrate - 9 - hydrate, 1% in aluminum; ruthenium chloride tri-hydrate, 4% in ruthenium; and potassium hydroxide, 14% in potassium, was placed in a stainless steel reactor. The catalyst was degassed under vacuum (70-100 microns) at 300° C. for 24 hours. The hydrogen flow was replaced by a gas mixture comprising hydrogen and nitrogen in a mole ratio of 3:1. This mixture was at a feed rate of 3,000 volumes of gas feed per volume of catalyst per hour. A temperature of 400° C. and a pressure of 50 atmospheres was maintained during this run. The products from the reaction were trapped in a solution of sulphuric acid with a known concentration. After a certain period the acidic solution was analyzed. An absolute yield of 10.7% was obtained which represents about 67% of the theoretical equilibrium conversion at the above conditions.
EXAMPLE 3
Table I shows the absolute yields that are possible with the catalysts of the present invention. Each catalyst has been prepared by the method of Example 1 and is described in terms of the metal of the solutions with which it was doped, the numbers indicating the percent, by weight of the support of that component. The support material is activated carbon prepared as in Example 1, the bracketed number indicating the charring temperature. Topsoe, a commercial catalyst composed of at least 85% iron, has been included for comparison. The results of Table I show that the present catalysts can give satisfactory yields in the synthesis of ammonia at moderate pressures and temperatures.
TABLE I__________________________________________________________________________ Mole Ratio N.sub.2 /H.sub.2 of 1/3 Temp. Press Space* % %Catalyst (° C.) (atm) Velocity Y.sub.abs Eff.__________________________________________________________________________Topsoe 400 1 3000 10.sup.-3 0.24 400 27 3000 3.1 32.4 400 50 3000 5.9 37.1 510 150 20000 12 82.7C(800)Ba Ru K 400 1 3000 0.3 722 4 12 400 50 7500 6.9 43 400 68 7500 8.1 40 420 27 7500 7.4 98 420 50 7500 10.3 82 420 68 7500 11.8 73C(600)Ba Al Ru K 375 50 3000 7.4 364 1 4 14 400 27 3000 7.8 81 400 50 3000 10.7 67C(600)Ba La Ru K 400 27 3000 7.3 764 2 4 12 400 50 3000 10.7 67C(600)Ba La Ru K 400 27 3000 8.0 844 1 4 14 400 68 7500 9.6 47 420 68 7500 12.6 78C(800)Ba La Ru K 400 27 3000 9.1 954 1 4 14 400 50 3000 13.7 86 400 68 30000 14.3 71 420 27 3000 7.5 100 420 50 3000 12.5 100 420 68 3000 14.5 90 420 27 6000 7.4 98 420 50 6000 11.9 95 420 68 6000 14.6 92C(800)Ba La Ru K 400 27 3000 7.0 732 2 4 12 400 50 3000 10.9 69C(800)Ba La Ru K 400 27 3000 6.5 684 4 1 14 400 50 3000 8.3 53 420 50 3000 11.7 94 420 68 3000 12.5 78C(600)Ba Mg Ru K 400 50 2000 5.5 354 2 3 15C(800)Ba La Al Ru K 400 27 6000 3.4 354 2 1 4 14 400 50 6000 4.2 26C(800)Ba La Mn Ru Cs 400 27 3000 2.7 284 4 4 0.5 14__________________________________________________________________________ *Volumes of gas feed per volume of catalyst per hour
Most active carbon-based catalysts for nitrogen fixation readily sinter at high temperatures and, subsequently, lose their activity. Without being bound by the same, we believe that the longevity of the catalysts of the present invention is partially due to their resistance to sintering. This resistance is acquired during the doping procedure. The treatment, under vacuum, of sequentially doping the support material with each ion and heating between dopings appears to be beneficial. Catalysts which did not undergo this treatment were inferior in activity and longevity.
At identical reaction conditions, the activity of the commercial iron catalyst dropped with time for no apparent reason while the activity of the catalysts of the present invention remained steady and showed no signs of deterioration.
EXAMPLE 4
Table II displays the variation in yield of ammonia with different support materials. These yields were determined for the synthesis of ammonia at 400° C. and 400 psi at a flow rate of 100 ml./hour.
TABLE II______________________________________ 400° C., 27 atm. Mole Ratio Space YieldCatalyst N.sub.2 /H.sub.2 Velocity (mM nH.sub.3)______________________________________Topsoe 1/3 3000 225PVC char Ru K 7/3 3000 96 4 8Coconut char Ba Ru K 1/3 3000 450 2 4 12Maple char (800) Ba Ru K 1/3 3000 370 2 4 12Cellulose (600) Ba Ru K 1/3 3000 310 2 4 12______________________________________
Both polyvinyledene chloride and cellulose were pelletized prior to charring. The chars were prepared as in Example 1 for the hardwood with the exception that since the polyvinyledene chloride pellets swell in a nitrogen atmosphere these were charred under vacuum.
EXAMPLE 5
This example shows that the charring temperature used, in the preparation of active carbon to be used as a support material, affects the efficiency of the catalyst. This is demonstrated in Table III based on catalysts prepared in accordance with Example 1 except as set forth in the Table:
TABLE III__________________________________________________________________________ Mole Ratio Temp. Press Space % %Catalyst N.sub.2 /H.sub.2 (° C.) (atm) Velocity Y.sub.abs Eff.__________________________________________________________________________C(600)Ba Ru K 1/3 400 27 3000 6.5 682 4 12 1/3 400 50 3000 9.6 60C(800)Ba Ru K 1/3 400 27 3000 7.1 742 4 12 1/3 400 50 3000 11.7 74__________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLE 6
Table IV shows that the sequence of doping affects the yield of ammonia. The preferred sequence of doping for the three components that are shown, is first a barium-containing solution, then one with ruthenium and, lastly, one with potassium. It seems that the barium salt prepares the surface of the support for the adsorption of ruthenium and that the high basicity of the last doping component, potassium, enhances catalytic activity.
The solutions which were used in this example were of barium nitrate, ruthenium chloride trihydrate and potassium hydroxide.
TABLE IV______________________________________ YieldCatalyst Mole Ratio Temp. Press. Space (mM ofC(600) N.sub.2 /H.sub. 2 (° C.) (atm.) Velocity NH.sub.3)______________________________________Ba K Ru 1/3 400 27 3000 2512 2 4K Ba Ru 1/3 400 27 3000 454 2 12Ru Ba K 1/3 400 27 3000 932 12 4Ba Ru K 1/3 400 27 3000 3602 4 12______________________________________
EXAMPLE 7
The efficiency of a given catalyst may be optimized by careful selection of the reaction conditions. Examination of Table I shows that the yield and efficiency of a given catalyst vary with temperature, pressure and gas feed rate at a constant gas feed composition. Table V shows the effect of varying the mole ratio of N 2 /H 2 in the feed gas stream at a given temperature, pressure at gas feed rate.
TABLE V______________________________________ C(600) Ba La Ru K at 400° C. 4 1 4 1468 atm space velocity of______________________________________9000Mole RatioN.sub.2 /H.sub.2 % Y.sub.abs % Eff.______________________________________1/3 8.5 423/2 7.3 671/1 11.1 78______________________________________
EXAMPLE 8
Generally, a catalyst for nitrogen fixation is less prone to carbon monoxide poisoning at high temperatures. However, the equilibrium yields of ammonia decrease as the reaction temperature is increased; the yield may be raised by increasing the reaction pressure, a measure which also causes carbon monoxide poisoning to become more pronounced. For example, a commercial iron catalyst at 450° C. and 100 atmospheres displays a drop of 84% in the yield of ammonia when 0.08% carbon monoxide is introduced into the feed gas stream, and a drop of 65% with 0.04% carbon monoxide. At an increased temperature of 500° C., the yields drop less drastically by 45% and 15%, respectively.
The catalyst of the present invention displayed a 68% decrease in yield at 420° C. and 70 atmospheres when 1.0 % carbon monoxide was added to the feed gas stream, and a 23% decrease in the presence of 0.1% carbon monoxide. Moreover, the catalysts of the present invention regained their activity when carbon monoxide was elminated from the feed gas stream even after prolonged periods of its addition. Carbon monoxide acts as a temporary inhibitor, rather than a poisoning agent, for the catalysts of the present invention, while exposure of the commercial iron catalyst to carbon monoxide results in permanent injury.
The present family of catalysts is suitable for use in ammonia synthesis and is operative at lower reaction temperatures and lower pressures to produce similar yields as the iron catalyst of the existing art.
EXAMPLE 9
The present family of catalysts can also be used in Fischer-Tropsch reactions, as demonstrated by the following example.
Carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the ratio of 1:2 were reacted at a pressure of 300 psi and a temperature of 250° C. over C(600) Ba Ru K, a catalyst of the present invention. The reaction produced methane, 22%; hydrocarbons (C 2 -C 18 ), 5% and carbon dioxide, 18%.
In a similar experiment at 300° C., the reaction products were comprised of methane, 64%; hydrocarbons (C 2 -C 18 ), 7%; carbon dioxide, 19% and alcohols (C 1 -C 4 ), approximately 1%.
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A transition metal catalyst suitable for use in the synthesis of ammonia is produced by doping an activated carbon support material with a solution of an alkaline earth metal compound, a solution of a compound of a transition metal from Group VIII and a solution of an alkali metal compound. Each doping is performed separately; the product of each step is baked to obtain a catalyst having a black and lustrous surface. The doping and the baking operations are preferably conducted under vacuum.
The catalyst is preferably prepared with barium as the alkaline earth metal, ruthenium as the transition metal and potassium as the alkali metal. The activated carbon support material can additionally be doped with a solution of a compound of a lanthanide metal and/or a solution of a compound of a Group IIIA metal.
The present family of catalysts provides good ammonia yields in the fixation of nitrogen at temperatures as low as 375° C. and at pressures ranging from 27 - 67 atmospheres. The activity of these catalysts drops in the presence of carbon monoxide but returns to substantially the initial activity when the carbon monoxide is removed from the reactant stream.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates generally to a sashlock assembly and more particularly to a sashlock assembly which includes a key lock to retain the sashlock in a latched position.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In a double hung window assembly a pair of sashes are mounted in a frame and movable vertically to open or close the window. When the window is closed, usually there is only a small gap, if any, between the top rail of the lower sash and the bottom rail of the top sash.
[0003] A sashlock assembly is commonly used with double hung windows. When the window assembly is closed, the sashlock assembly is shifted from an unlatched position to a latched position to keep the window closed. A sashlock assembly usually includes a sashlock mounted on the top rail of the bottom sash and a keeper mounted on the bottom rail of the top sash. The rails may provide horizontal mounting surfaces on the respective sashes that are flush when the window is closed. In some applications, especially with extruded vinyl or aluminum sash rails, the keeper or the sashlock or both may be secured to vertical surfaces or to specially formed slots or recesses in the rails.
[0004] A sashlock typically comprises a housing and a rotating assembly which includes a rotating member and a lever. The rotating member, usually a cam, is mounted to the housing for rotation between an unlatched position and a latched position. The lever is operably connected to the cam and extends outside of the housing so that the cam may be conveniently moved between the latched and unlatched positions. When the sashlock is in the unlatched position, the cam is retracted and thus disengaged from the keeper, and the sashes may be moved relative to each other. When the sashlock is in the latched position, a portion of the cam engages the keeper to prevent movement of the sashes.
[0005] Unfortunately, sashlocks are sometimes vulnerable to unauthorized tampering from the outside of the building which shifts the sashlock from the latched to the unlatched position. For example, with some prior art sashlocks, it is possible from the outside of the building to insert a blade into the gap between the two sashes, engage the cam with the blade, and force the cam back to its unlatched position. The window may then be opened from the outside of the building to provide access into the building.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention provides a lockable sashlock assembly which eliminates, or at least reduces the chances of, successful unlatching of the sashlock from outside the building. Particularly, the invention provides a lockable sashlock assembly which may be locked in the latched condition. In this specification the terms “latched” and “unlatched” are used with reference to the engagement between the cam of the sashlock and the keeper. The terms “locked” and “unlocked” are used with reference to a safety lock device used to hold the cam in its latched position.
[0007] The lockable sashlock assembly according to the present invention includes a sashlock having a rotating device and a safety lock mechanism. The rotating device (usually a cam) is movable between an unlatched position in which the window assembly is openable and a latched position in which the window assembly is unopenable. The safety lock mechanism has a locked state in which the rotating device is retained in its latched position, thus securing the window assembly against forced entry. The safety lock mechanism may be switched to an unlocked state in which the rotating device is free to turn between its latched and unlatched states. The locking mechanism includes a key slot and is convertible from the locked state to the unlocked state upon insertion of an appropriately shaped key in the key slot.
[0008] Accordingly, the sashlock assembly may be locked so that even if a blade is inserted into the gap between the two sashes to engage the rotating member, it will still not be possible to force the cam back to its unlatched position. Additionally, since in the preferred embodiment a key is necessary to turn the safety lock mechanism to the unlocked state, the lockable sashlock assembly according to the present invention can also be used to control window openings inside the building. For example, if a facility's regulations forbid the opening of windows in certain designated areas, the relevant sashlocks can be placed in the locked state and only authorized personnel provided with the key.
[0009] The invention comprises these and other features hereinafter fully described in the specification and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments of the invention, these being indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be suitably employed.
DRAWINGS
[0010] [0010]FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration, partially cut away, of a sashlock assembly according to the present invention, the sashlock assembly being shown installed on a double hung window assembly.
[0011] [0011]FIG. 2 is a top view of the sashlock assembly of FIG. 1 and which includes a sashlock and a keeper.
[0012] [0012]FIGS. 3A and 3B are bottom views of the sashlock assembly of FIG. 2, the sashlock being shown with its safety lock mechanism unlocked and its cam unlatched from the keeper (FIG. 3A) and with its safety lock mechanism locked and its cam latched with the keeper (FIG. 3B).
[0013] [0013]FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4 C, 4 D and 4 E are top, bottom, inner side, outer side and end views, respectively, of the housing of the sashlock.
[0014] [0014]FIG. 4F is a sectional view taken along line 4 F- 4 F in FIG. 4C.
[0015] [0015]FIG. 4G is a sectional view taken along line 4 G- 4 G in FIG. 4C.
[0016] [0016]FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5 C, and 5 D are top, bottom, inner side and end views, respectively, of the cam of the sashlock.
[0017] [0017]FIGS. 6A, 6B, and 6 C are top, bottom, and side views, respectively, of the lever of the sashlock.
[0018] [0018]FIG. 7 is a perspective illustration of the safety locking mechanism of the sashlock.
[0019] [0019]FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8 C, and 8 D are top, bottom, inner side and outer side views, respectively, of the keeper of the lockable sash assembly.
[0020] [0020]FIG. 8E is a sectional view as seen along line 8 E- 8 E in FIG. 8A.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] [0021]FIG. 1 shows a lockable sashlock assembly 20 according to the present invention mounted on a window assembly 22 . As is explained in more detail below, the lockable sashlock assembly 20 eliminates, or at least reduces the chances of, successful unauthorized opening of the window assembly 22 from outside or inside a building.
[0022] The window assembly 22 includes a lower sash 24 and an upper sash 26 which hold glass panes 28 and 30 , respectively. The lower sash 24 is positioned parallel to the upper sash 26 and adjacent thereto, with only a small gap 32 separating the sashes. The sashes 24 and 26 are mounted for relative linear movement to open and close the window assembly 22 . When the window assembly 22 is closed as shown in FIG. 1, a horizontal surface 34 on a rail of the lower sash 24 is aligned or flush with a horizontal surface 36 on a rail of the upper sash 26 .
[0023] The lockable sashlock assembly 20 according to the present invention includes a sashlock 40 and a keeper 42 . The sashlock 40 and the keeper 42 are permanently mounted on the surfaces 34 and 36 with suitable fasteners such as screws 43 . Specifically, the sashlock 40 is mounted on the lower sash 24 and the keeper 42 is mounted on the upper sash 26 . The sashlock 40 and the keeper 42 are substantially flush with the corresponding faces of the sash rails which define the gap 32 (see FIG. 2). When the window assembly 22 is closed, the lockable sashlock assembly 20 can be moved between latched and unlatched positions to lock the window shut or allow it to be opened, respectively.
[0024] The sashlock 40 comprises a housing 44 (FIGS. 3A and 3B), a rotating device including a cam 46 and a lever 48 , and a locking device 50 . As is explained in more detail below, the cam 46 is a rotating member. It is mounted for rotational movement within the housing 44 between a position corresponding to the openable condition of the sashlock 40 (i.e., unlatched) and a position corresponding to the unopenable condition of the sashlock (i.e., latched). The lever 48 is operably connected to the cam 46 to move it between these positions. The locking device 50 may be locked while the sash assembly 20 is in the closed condition. (See FIGS. 3A and 3B.) In this manner, unintended and/or unwanted tampering with the sashlock 40 which forces it back to the unlatched condition to open the window assembly 22 is impossible or at least more difficult.
[0025] FIGS. 4 A- 4 G show the housing 44 of the sashlock 40 in various views. The housing 44 includes an inner wall 52 , an outer wall 54 , and a top wall 56 . The inner wall 52 is approximately perpendicular to the horizontal surface 34 of the lower sash 24 . The outer wall 54 is roughly C-shaped in plan view and connects opposite ends of the inner wall 52 and the top wall 56 which has a complimentary shape.
[0026] The housing walls 52 , 54 and 56 define an internal chamber 58 (FIGS. 4B, C, F, and G) to receive the cam 46 . See FIGS. 3A and 3B. The inner wall 52 includes an opening 60 from the chamber 58 . (See FIG. 4C.) The top wall 56 includes openings 63 (FIGS. 4A and 4B) which receive fasteners 43 to mount the housing 44 (and thus the sashlock 40 ) to the top surface 34 of the lower sash 24 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
[0027] The sashlock's housing 44 (FIGS. 4B and C) also includes an internal wall 64 within the chamber 58 which defines a central cylindrical passage 68 through an opening in the top wall 56 . (See FIG. 4F.) The cylindrical wall of the passage 68 is generally vertically oriented and forms a vertical bearing surface to support the shaft 102 (FIG. 6C) of the lever 48 which is operably coupled to the cam 46 . Radial lever-set grooves 69 (see FIG. 4A) are formed in the top of the wall 64 . As described below they cooperate with corresponding ridges 108 (FIG. 6B) on the handle to provide a positive feel when the lever is in either of its two extreme positions. The bottom of the wall 64 of the housing 44 also includes radial position-set tabs 70 and 71 (see FIGS. 4B and 4C). The tabs 70 and 71 cooperate with a stop pin 82 (FIG. 5A) on the cam 46 to limit rotation of the cam to about 180°.
[0028] The cam 46 shown in FIGS. 5 A-D is shaped to fit within the chamber 58 of the housing 44 (see FIG. 3A) and to engage the keeper (see FIG. 3B). The cam 46 (FIGS. 5 A-D) includes a central hub 86 which is generally cylindrical. The hub 86 includes a central opening 95 in the shape of a four-pointed star or a four-toothed gear. (See FIG. 5B.) In the assembled sashlock 40 , the opening 95 cooperates with a similarly shaped end portion 114 (see FIG. 6C) of the lever 48 . During assembly of the sashlock 40 , the portion 114 of the lever 48 is deformed or swagged into the opening 95 of the cam 46 so that the cam 46 and the lever 48 will rotate together about the vertical axis defined by the lever shaft passage.
[0029] [0029]FIGS. 6A through 6D show the handle 48 in orthographic views. The handle 48 includes a lever 100 connected to a shaft 102 . The shaft 102 is generally perpendicular to the lever. The shaft 102 is proportioned to fit and rotate within the cylindrical passage 68 through the top of the housing 44 .
[0030] The lever 100 meets the shaft 102 at a hub 104 . The hub 104 includes an annular bottom surface 106 which is the same size as the top of the wall 64 in the housing 44 . The annular bottom surface 106 is interrupted by a pair of raised detents 108 which fit in the lever set grooves 69 in the wall 64 of the housing.
[0031] The detents 108 and grooves 69 provide a positive feel when the lever is in the fully open position (FIG. 3A) or the fully closed position (FIG. 3B). This is accomplished by means of a conventional wave washer (sometimes called a “Belleville” washer) (not shown) which surrounds the shaft 102 between the cam 46 and the inside of the housing 48 . The washer provides a spring bias that forces pushes the detents 108 into the similarly shaped grooves 69 in the housing. Accordingly, once the handle and hub are connected, rotation of the handle 48 causes the cam 46 to rotate similarly and to snap into.
[0032] A web 76 (FIGS. 5 A-D) extends radially outward from the hub 86 of the cam 46 . The web 76 serves to connect the various other components of the cam 46 to the hub 86 . Specifically, a peripheral rim 78 extends around approximately 180° of the hub 86 . The rim 78 is arcuate in plan view, and it has a generally rectangular cross section. The rim 78 extends both above and below the plane of the web 76 . For approximately 90° around web 86 (from about 10:30 o'clock to about 1:30 o'clock in FIG. 5A), the rim 78 has a full rectangular cross section. For the succeeding 90° (proceeding clockwise as viewed in FIG. 5A) the rim 78 tapers downwardly along inclined face 79 to a rounded tip 96 . The bottom surface of the rim 78 tapers upward to the rounded tip 96 , but does so over an extent of only about 100 . The inclined face 79 of the rim 78 serves to engage the keeper 42 and to draw the two sashes into proper alignment as the cam 46 is rotated.
[0033] The cam 46 also includes a stop pin 82 . The stop pin 82 extends upward (as viewed in FIGS. 5C and 5D) from the web 76 . The stop pin 82 cooperates with the tabs 70 and 71 in the housing 44 to limit the rotation of the cam to approximately 180°. In each of the limit positions, one side of stop pin 82 engages one or the other of the tabs 70 and 71 .
[0034] The web 76 is bounded in part by a straight edge 88 which extends approximately tangent to the hub 86 from a 6 o'clock position as viewed in FIG. 5A. The edge 88 is positioned so that when the sashlock 40 is in the open position (FIG. 3A) the edge 88 is even with the inner wall 52 of the housing, as is the tip 96 of the rim 78 .
[0035] The final component of the cam 46 is the lock tab 84 . The lock tab 84 extends radially outwardly from the web 76 , its edge forming a continuation of the straight edge 88 . (See FIGS. 5A and 5B.) The lock tab 82 is thinner than the rim 78 and forms a co-planar surface with the lower edges of the rim 78 . (See FIG. 5C.) The lock tab 84 cooperates with the safety lock 50 to hold the cam 46 in its latched position (see FIG. 3B) as is discussed more fully below.
[0036] The housing 44 (FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 4 G) is configured to support the locking device 50 . To this end an internal wall 66 extends down from the top wall 56 of the housing to form an insert well 72 which is sized and shaped to receive the safety lock mechanism 50 . The insert well 72 is in the form of a cylindrical bore 73 , and two slots 74 extend diametrically from the bore 73 along its entire length.
[0037] [0037]FIG. 7 shows the lock mechanism 50 . The lock mechanism 50 is of a conventional design and includes an outer casing 118 and a tumbler assembly 120 . The outer casing 118 is cylindrical and includes a pair of side wings 124 extending diametrically therefrom. In the assembled sashlock 40 , the casing 118 is positioned within the housing's insert well 72 (defined by the internal wall 66 ). Specifically, the casing 118 is positioned within the bore 73 and the side wings 124 are positioned within the diametric slots 74 . The bore 73 fits closely around the casing 118 and the wings 124 fit closely in the slots 74 . Accordingly, the lock mechanism 50 cannot rotate with respect to the housing 44 .
[0038] The tumbler assembly 120 includes a disk 126 at its upper end. This disk is proportioned to fit at least partially within an annular recess 128 formed in the top of the insert well 72 . See FIGS. 4A and 4G. When the lock assembly 50 is inserted in the insert well 72 , contact between the disk 126 and the recess 128 positions the lock, limiting its movement in one axial direction (to the right as viewed in FIG. 4G).
[0039] The lock casing 118 is also provided with an annular groove 130 which surrounds the lower end of the casing. The groove 130 is proportioned to receive a conventional snap ring (not shown). The groove 130 is positioned so that when the lock mechanism 50 is in the insert well 72 and the disk 126 is seated in the recess 128 , the groove 130 is just clear of the lowermost end of the insert well. The snap ring 131 when installed in the groove 130 , prevents movement of the lock mechanism in the opposite axial direction (to the left as viewed in FIG. 4G). Together the disk 126 and snap ring 131 prevent removal of the lock mechanism 50 .
[0040] The lock mechanism 50 includes a block pin 132 which is rotatable with the tumbler assembly 120 . The block pin 132 extends downward from the tumbler assembly 120 and is eccentric. Therefore, when the tumbler assembly is rotated 180° within its casing 118 , the block pin 132 moves between the positions shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. (One of these is shown in phantom in FIG. 7.)
[0041] As with most conventional lock mechanisms, the tumbler assembly 120 includes a slot 144 which receives a key 146 . The key allows the tumbler assembly 120 to rotate, but when it is removed the tumbler assembly is locked against rotation. However, the particular type of lock mechanism is not significant. A device which uses a hexagonal (Allen) key could be used, or virtually any other that will fit in the space requirements.
[0042] In the assembled sashlock 40 , the lock mechanism device 50 is positioned radially outward from all portions of the cam 46 except for its lock tab 84 . Additionally, all portions of the lock mechanism 50 , except for its block pin 132 , are positioned above the cam's lock tab 84 . When the locking device 50 is in the unlocked state, the block pin 132 is positioned outside the path 62 of the cam 46 in the housing 44 . (See FIG. 3A). When the locking device 50 is in the locked state, the block pin 132 is positioned within the cam path 62 . (See FIG. 3B).
[0043] [0043]FIGS. 8A through 8E show the keeper 42 in various views. The keeper 42 is shaped to be fastened to a rail of a sash and to capture the cam 46 . To this end the keeper has a top wall 144 which forms an arch or bridge. Holes 150 are formed in each end of the bridge to receive fasteners such as the screws 43 shown in FIG. 2. The screws 43 hold the keeper to the sash rail 36 . Between the two openings 150 , the top wall 144 rises upward to form an opening 146 . The opening 146 is proportioned to receive the cam 46 . A dog or tooth 148 projects downward from the top of the arch of the wall 144 . The dog 148 is captured by the inclined portion 79 of the cam 46 as the cam moves from the open to the closed position, eventually being positioned behind the rim 78 when the sashlock is in the locked position shown in FIG. 3B.
[0044] The operation of the lockable sash assembly 20 may be explained in detail by referring back to FIGS. 3A and 3B. When the sash assembly 20 is in its unlatched condition, the cam 46 is positioned entirely within the internal chamber 58 of the sashlock housing 44 and so is clear of the space 32 between the lower and upper sashes 24 and 26 , respectively, as shown in FIG. 2. The cam hub's flat edge 88 , the rim's rounded point 96 , and the lock tab 84 are positioned flush with the inner wall 52 . See FIG. 3A. When the cam 46 is in this window-openable position, the cam's stop pin 82 abuts the corresponding position-set tab 70 of the housing 44 . (See FIG. 4C and FIGS. 5A and 5D.) The lever 48 is positioned in a position corresponding to the window-openable position of the cam 46 .
[0045] In FIG. 3A, the locking device 50 is shown in the unlocked state in which the block pin 132 is clear of the path of the cam 46 . As was explained above, the locking device 50 is positioned radially outward from all portions of the cam 46 when in the unlocked state. Accordingly, when the locking device 50 is in the unlocked state, the cam 46 may freely rotate by and past the locking device 50 .
[0046] To convert the lockable sash assembly from the unlatched position to the latched position, the lever 48 is turned in the appropriate direction (counterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 3A) toward a position corresponding to the latched position of the cam 46 . In the illustrated embodiment, the lever 48 will be moved approximately 180° in this process and the lock tab 84 , will pass under the locking device 50 . Once the lever 48 reaches the window-latched position, the lever's set grooves 116 will coordinate with the housing's set grooves 69 to “click” the lever 48 , and thus the cam 46 , into position. (See FIG. 4A and FIG. 6C.) The cam's position set pin 82 then abuts the position-set tab 71 of the housing 44 . (See FIGS. 4B, 5A, and 5 D.)
[0047] When the sashlock 40 is in the latched position, the flat edge 88 of the cam 46 is within the housing 44 and a portion of the cam 46 extends from within the housing across the space 32 between the sashes 24 and 26 , through the keeper's opening 146 and behind the dog 148 . (See FIGS. 3B, 4D, and 8 C.) In this manner, the cam 46 forms a barrier preventing relative movement between the sashes 24 and 26 .
[0048] When the sash assembly 20 is in the latched position, it may be placed in the locked state by changing the locking device 50 from the unlocked state to the locked state. Specifically, the key 146 may be inserted into the key slot 144 (FIG. 2), and the tumbler assembly 120 then may be rotated approximately 180°. As was explained above, when the locking device 50 is in its locked state, the block pin 132 is positioned within the path of the cam 46 , as shown in FIG. 3B. The pin 132 thus prevents movement of the cam 46 back toward the unlatched position because of the engagement between the pin and the lock tab 84 of the cam. Accordingly, until the key 130 is used to turn the locking device 50 back the unlocked state, the sashlock assembly 20 cannot be converted back to the unlatched position and thus the window assembly 22 cannot be opened.
[0049] One may now appreciate that a lockable sash assembly according to the present invention may be locked so that even if a blade is inserted into the gap between the two sashes to engage the rotating member, it will still not be possible to move the member back to its unlatched, window-openable position. Additionally, since in the preferred embodiment a key is necessary to turn the locking device to the unlocked state, the lockable sash assembly according to the present invention can also be used to control window openings inside the building.
[0050] Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent alternations 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 following claims.
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A lockable sash assembly for installation on a window assembly is provided. The window assembly includes sashes movable relative to each other to open and close the window assembly when the lockable sash assembly is in a window-openable condition and substantially unmovable relative to each other when the lockable sash assembly is in a window-unopenable condition. The sash assembly includes a sashlock having a rotating device (such as a lever-controlled cam) which is movable between a window-openable position and a window-unopenable position. The sash assembly also includes a locking device which is convertible between a locked state whereat the rotating device is blocked from moving from the window-unopenable position to the window-openable position and an unlocked state whereat the rotating device is unblocked from moving from the window-unopenable position to the window-openable position.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application is a 35 U.S.C. §§ 371 national phase conversion of PCT/EP2004/004264, filed 22 Apr. 2004, which claims priority of Austrian Application No. A678/2003, filed 6 May 2003. The PCT International Application was published in the German language.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a two-roll casting installation with two casting rolls which rotate in opposite directions about horizontal axes, with a casting gap for forming and discharging a thin cast metal strip, with a sealed housing which has a base and surrounds the conveying path for the metal strip which leaves the casting gap from a vertical casting direction into an approximately horizontal conveying direction, with diverter devices for diverting the metal strip within this housing, and with a displaceable scrap collection container for removing scrap and scale produced from the two-roll casting installation. The invention also relates to a method for initiating a casting process using the two-roll casting device according to the invention.
Two-roll casting installations are used to produce metal strips, preferably steel strips, with a large strip width and with a strip thickness of less than 10 mm in a continuous casting process. In particular in the case of carbon steels, there is a high likelihood of scaling on contact with oxygen at high temperatures, and consequently the metal melt and the cast metal strip, until the latter has substantially cooled, are passed through a protective gas atmosphere which does not have an oxidizing action.
WO 02/11924 has already disclosed a two-roll casting installation of the generic type. It comprises two casting rolls which rotate in opposite directions about horizontal axes of rotation and, together with side plates which can be placed onto the end sides of the casting rolls, form a melt space and a casting gap, out of which a cast metal strip is discharged vertically downward. The cast metal strip is diverted into the horizontal, so as to form a hanging loop, and then fed to one or more further treatment devices. As it emerges from the casting gap, the hot metal strip passes through a sealed chamber with a protective gas atmosphere, which substantially prevents oxidation processes at the surface of the metal strip. All the openings in this chamber are provided with sealed gates or locks.
The sealed chamber also comprises a space which is open toward the casting rolls for receiving a movable scrap carriage, which, via a lock system which can be flooded with protective gas, can be moved into a receiving position beneath the two casting rolls for the scrap and scale produced and can be removed from this position. To manipulate the scrap carriage, large lock gates have to be opened and large spaces accommodating the scrap carriage have to be flooded with protective gas. Furthermore, complex sealing systems have to be installed for the large lock gates.
Furthermore, WO 02/11924 has disclosed a pivotable guide flap for the cast metal strip, which in an operating position assists with diverting the metal strip into the horizontal and toward a pinch-roll stand and, in a retracted position, allows vertical discharging of a piece of the strand into the scrap bucket. A solution of this type is also known from WO 01/23120.
EP-B 726 112 and WO 01/39914 have disclosed two-roll casting installations of the generic type, in which the cast metal strip is passed through an insulated chamber without integrated base region. The base region is formed by a scrap bucket which can be pressed vertically onto the end sides of the side walls of the insulated chamber and rests on a displaceable scrap carriage such that it can be raised and lowered. A seal is provided between the side walls of the insulated chamber and the edges of the scrap bucket, by means of which seal the insulated chamber is closed off in a substantially gastight manner. When changing the scrap bucket once it has been filled with scrap, the protective gas atmosphere in the insulated chamber through which the metal strip passes is also lost, and it is necessary for the entire chamber to be flooded with protective gas after an empty scrap bucket has been reintroduced; during this operation, it is inevitable that a relatively large quantity of external air and therefore residual oxygen will remain behind. This increases the formation of scale on the metal strip which is subsequently cast for a relatively long period of time, and therefore leads to increased scrap or to adverse consequences for the surface quality of the cast strip. Consequently, the scrap bucket can only be emptied during breaks in production.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to avoid the drawbacks of the known prior art and to propose a two-roll casting installation and a method for initiating a casting process using a two-roll casting installation, by which it is possible to minimize the space which is insulated with protective gas for a hot metal strip to pass through while at the same time allowing continuous collection of scrap and any scale which may be formed without leaks at the housing or at most with only very minor leaks at the housing.
A further object of the invention is to design the two-roll casting installation in such a way that it is possible to remove the collected scrap or scale with very little ingress of air into the insulated housing.
This object which has been set is achieved, according to the invention, by the fact that the base of the housing, at least in a subregion, forms a collection trough for the scrap, which is part of an emptying device, and that a displaceable scrap collection container is arranged in a receiving position below the emptying device.
As a result of a subregion of the housing being configured as a collection trough for scrap which is produced and as a result of the scrap carriage, which takes up a large volume, being arranged outside this housing, it is possible to maintain a small actual collection space for the scrap, with the result that the volume of the housing which has to be flooded with protective gas is also minimized. At the same time, this arrangement offers the possibility of manipulating the scrap carriage independently of the ongoing production process on the two-roll casting installation.
The emptying device comprises at least one collection trough for receiving the scrap, at least one support for this collection trough on a carrying frame or on the housing, which allows actuation of the collection trough between a closed position and an open position, at least one adjustment drive for displacing the collection trough in order to allow it to be emptied, and any seals that may be required in order to prevent external air from entering the housing.
An expedient embodiment consists in the fact that the collection trough for the scrap is designed such that it can be displaced between a closed position and an open position and is coupled to an adjustment drive, and that the housing is assigned a sealing element for sealing a gap between the housing and the collection trough in the closed position. Various embodiments are possible for this purpose. The collection trough may be of single-piece or multipiece design, and the emptying can be effected by a translational movement, preferably of a single-piece design, or by a pivoting movement about one or more pivot axes, preferably of a multipiece design. The collection trough is assigned an adjustment drive, which may be formed by an actuable pressure-medium cylinder or by at least one driven running-mechanism wheel.
The sealing elements which act between the housing and the collection trough are expediently secured to the housing and are designed so that they can be pressed onto the collection trough in the closed position of the latter. This prevents damage to the sealing element during manipulation of the collection trough and in particular during unloading of the scrap.
A preferred configuration of the sealing element consists in the fact that the sealing element comprises a sealing ring, which can move relative to the housing and relative to the collection trough, can be pressed onto the collection trough, is supported by a displacement element acting on the housing and secured to it, and is coupled to a controllable movement device. In this case, the displacement element may be formed, for example, by a bellows or another elastic element which permits longitudinal stretching, and the controllable movement device may be formed, for example, by a pressure-medium cylinder which is articulatedly mounted on the housing.
It is expedient for the collection trough to have a running mechanism, and for this running mechanism to be assigned a running track, in particular rails. By suitably configuring the running track, it is possible, preferably simultaneously with the movement toward the closed position, over the last part of the movement path, to reduce the distance between the collection trough and the housing or the sealing element secured to the housing to such an extent that a closed, sealing position is reached automatically or with a short movement path of the sealing element.
According to an alternative embodiment, the collection trough has sliding elements, and these sliding elements are assigned a stationary slideway. By adopting a suitable configuration of the slideway, it is possible, at the same time as the movement toward the closed position, over the last part of the movement path, to reduce the distance between the collection trough and the housing or the sealing element secured to the housing to such an extent that a closed, sealing position is reached.
If the emptying of the collection trough takes place during a horizontal translational movement of the collection trough, it is advantageous if a clearing board for scraping off the collected scrap in the collection trough is arranged on the housing at a distance from the collection trough. In this case, the distance between the clearing board and the collection trough is selected in such a way that pieces of scrap do not become jammed between the stationary clearing board and the collection trough. The clearing board may in this case rest in a sliding manner on the collection trough. There is provision for it to be possible to retract the clearing board transversely with respect to the translational movement of the collection trough, for emergency situations.
The collection trough comprises a receiving region for receiving the scrap, which may be of various configurations. The receiving region for the scrap may be formed by a planar surface, the associated clearing board having a straight clearing edge which is arranged at a short distance from the surface of the receiving region or slides along it. The receiving region for the scrap may also be shaped as a trough-like recess, this recess preferably being present on three sides of the collection trough, while on the fourth side, at which the emptying of the collection trough takes place, the trough-like recess runs out substantially horizontally.
This also allows emptying with the aid of a clearing board, the clearing edge of which is matched to the cross section of the trough-like recess.
To minimize or substantially avoid the ingress of damaging air into the housing even when the collection trough is in the open position, a sealing element assigned to the housing is designed such that in the open position of the collection trough it can be pressed onto the movable scrap collection container in its receiving position. A further improvement to the sealing can be achieved if, while the operation of moving the collection trough is ongoing, a seal is ensured between the movable scrap collection container and the housing on at least three sides. This is achieved by a multipart sealing element.
To minimize the entry of air, it is in this respect expedient if a sealing element assigned to the housing is designed in such a manner that while the collection trough is opening, it can be pressed continuously or with subsections onto the movable scrap collection container in its receiving position.
According to one possible embodiment, it is possible to minimize the damaging air if the housing is assigned a single encircling sealing element which is designed in such a manner that in the closed position of the collection trough it can be pressed onto the latter and in the open position of the collection trough it can be pressed onto the movable scrap collection container. According to a further highly advantageous embodiment, it is possible to minimize the damaging air if the housing is assigned two sealing elements which are independent of one another, one of these sealing elements being designed such that it can be pressed onto the collection trough in the closed position of the latter, while the second sealing element is designed such that it can be pressed onto the movable scrap collection container. The two sealing elements are preferably secured concentrically with respect to one another on the outer wall of the housing and can be actuated independently of one another.
The remaining introduction of damaging air, which is by now only very slight, can be reduced further if the movable scrap collection container, in its receiving position, is positioned within a closed scrap chamber which adjoins the bottom of the housing in a sealed manner.
Following the conveying path for the cast metal strip, a treatment chamber with a strip conveying device, for example a roller table, and optionally further strip treatment devices for the metal strip, for example a temperature compensation furnace upstream of a rolling stand, adjoin the housing which is flooded with protective gas, in which case the base of this treatment chamber is formed by at least one emptiable collection container for scale and optionally scrap, for example trimming scrap from a strip-trimming installation.
The collection container is preferably designed as a collection trough with a closure device and may be formed, for example, by a funnel-shaped collection hopper with a closure flap.
One or more receiving positions for a movable scrap collection container are provided beneath the collection containers. The movable scrap collection container is equipped with a movement controller which allows it to be moved in a controlled way into all receiving positions below the conveying path for the metal strip. The receiving positions are fixed, for example, by sliding electrical contacts or light barriers.
Using the two-roll casting device according to the invention, the invention proposes an operating method for initiating a casting process, which allows the discharge and removal of a first piece of the cast metal strip from the installation, this piece having been produced in a starting phase without steady-state conditions of the two-roll casting installation and therefore not meeting the quality demands imposed on the product to be produced. In this context, the invention proposes in particular scrap manipulation which as far as possible minimizes the ingress of external air during this starting phase but also allows the subsequent production steps and removal of scrap from the installation with the ingress of air minimized.
In a two-roll casting installation, in which two casting rolls, which rotate in opposite directions about horizontal axes, and side plates which can be pressed onto the casting rolls form a melt space for receiving metal melt and a casting gap for shaping a cast metal strand, metal melt being introduced into the melt space continuously or according to a predetermined start-up curve, and a cast metal strip being discharged from the casting gap continuously or according to a predetermined start-up curve, these advantages are achieved by virtue of the fact that a first piece of the metal strip, which is cast during a starting phase without steady-state conditions, with a diverter device pivoted into a retracted position and with a collection trough displaced into a retracted open position, is passed in a substantially vertical direction directly into the scrap collection container, that when a steady-state operating phase is reached, the first piece of the cast metal strip is cut off, preferably in the casting gap, that the diverter device is then pivoted into the thread-in position, and that the metal strip which is subsequently cast is passed into a substantially horizontal conveying direction and then or at the same time the collection trough is moved into the closed position.
The actual starting procedure can be effected in various ways. In a first step, metal melt is introduced into the melt space up to an operating casting level, and the metal strip starts to be discharged during this filling operation. This operation can begin with the casting rolls stationary or already in rotation. The width of the casting gap may also deviate from an operating casting gap width. Overall, the filling operation in the melt space, the casting rate and the casting gap width can follow a predetermined start-up curve. The first piece, which is produced under casting conditions which are not steady-state conditions, is detached under the force of the weight of this strip section itself. In this case too, the casting rate and the casting gap width can follow a profile curve. A preferred starting method for the casting process in a two-roll casting installation without taking the scrap economics into account has already been described in detail in Austrian patent application AT-A 1367/2002 and should be considered an integral part of the present application.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Further advantages and features of the present invention will emerge from the following description of nonrestricting exemplary embodiments, in which reference is made to the appended figures, in which:
FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal section through a two-roll casting installation with an emptying device according to the invention,
FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a sealing element between the housing and a collection trough or a scrap collection container,
FIG. 3 shows a first operating situation of the two-roll casting installation according to the invention,
FIG. 4 shows a second operating situation of the two-roll casting installation according to the invention,
FIG. 5 shows a third operating situation of the two-roll casting installation according to the invention,
FIG. 6 shows a further embodiment of a sealing element between the housing and a collection trough or a scrap collection container.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 diagrammatically depicts a two-roll casting installation of the type according to the invention for the continuous production of a steel strip. The core part of the two-roll casting installation for forming the metal strip comprises two driven casting rolls 1 , 2 which rotate in opposite directions about horizontal axes and, together with two side plates 3 , only one of which is illustrated in FIG. 1 , form a melt space 4 for receiving metal melt which is fed into the melt space 4 from a tundish 5 via an immersion pipe 6 , where it forms a melt bath. The melt space 4 is closed off in a substantially airtight manner by means of a covering 7 , which allows a protective gas atmosphere to be maintained above the melt bath.
The two cooled casting rolls 1 , 2 and the side plates 3 which bear against the end sides of the casting rolls form a casting gap 8 , from which the metal melt, which has previously solidified in the form of strand shells at the casting-roll surfaces, is discharged in the vertical casting direction as a cast metal strip 9 before being diverted into a horizontal conveying direction and fed by a pinch-roll stand 10 to various further processing devices in the direction indicated by the arrow. A pivotable diverter device 11 in runner form is provided beneath the casting gap 8 to divert the metal strip 9 into the horizontal conveying direction, which diverter device can be pivoted from a thread-in position, which is indicated by solid lines and in which the metal strip 9 is diverted toward the pinch-roll stand 10 , into a substantially vertical retracted position, which is indicated by dot-dashed lines. In this retracted position, strip sections as are produced in particular at the start and end of casting can be disposed of vertically downward as scrap.
The conveying path for the metal strip 9 from the exit from the casting gap 8 to entry into the pinch-roll stand 10 is surrounded by a housing 13 , which is usually formed by sheet-metal walls with a refractory lining on their inner side. In the region where the metal strip enters the housing 13 , seals (not shown), as described in Austrian patent application AT-A 303/2002, are provided between the wall of the housing and the casting rolls 1 , 2 or the side plates 3 . In the region of the pinch-roll stand 10 , a treatment chamber 14 , which is likewise flooded with protective gas and in which the metal strip is conveyed onward on a roller table 15 and fed to further treatment devices (not shown in more detail), adjoins the housing 13 in a sealing manner. These further treatment devices may, for example, comprise heat treatments of the metal strip in a strip edge heating device or in a temperature compensation furnace or mechanical treatments of the metal strip in a strip trimming installation or in rolling stands.
An emptying device 17 forms the base 16 of the housing 13 and in a region below the casting gap 8 is formed by a collection trough 18 , in which short strip sections which drop down having been separated out of the production process and any scale which drops off the cast metal strip are collected. In particular, the first piece of the cast metal strip formed at the start of casting during a starting phase which lacks steady state conditions does not satisfy the product requirements and is therefore at least partially not diverted into the horizontal conveying direction for further processing toward the first pinch-roll stand, but rather is discharged directly vertically downward into the collection trough 18 . The collection trough 18 has a tub-shaped receptacle for the scrap and is equipped with a running mechanism 19 which comprises running wheels 20 which roll along a running track 21 formed by a horizontal longitudinal carrier or a rail. The collection trough 18 can be displaced from a closed position, represented by solid lines, for receiving the scrap into a retracted, open position, indicated by dot-dashed lines, by means of an actuable movement device 22 which is linked to the collection trough and is formed by a pressure-medium cylinder 23 with a long stroke. During the translational movement into the open position, the scrap which has been collected is removed from the collection trough by a clearing board 27 , which is arranged at a short distance above the collection trough 18 , transversely with respect to its direction of displacement, and this scrap is then transferred into a scrap collection container 25 which is provided below. The scrap collection container is placed in a traveling frame 28 and can be manipulated independently of the ongoing production process at the two-roll casting installation.
Alternatively, it is also possible for the running wheels 20 to be equipped with a running drive (not shown in more detail).
To ensure that the seal between the housing 13 and the collection trough 18 or the housing 13 and the movable scrap collection container 25 during the retracting movement of the collection trough is as complete as possible in virtually all operating phases of the two-roll casting installation, an adjustable sealing element 30 is arranged between these components. One possible embodiment is diagrammatically depicted in partial section in FIG. 2 .
FIG. 2 shows a partial region of the lower end of the housing 13 and the collection trough 18 for the scrap positioned at a distance beneath it. An encircling bearing flange 32 for the sealing element 30 to be secured to is welded to the outer wall 31 of the housing or its load-bearing structure. A sealing ring 34 , which is placed and secured in a sealing ring bearing frame 35 , bears against a metal support plate 33 of the collection trough 18 , which forms a sealing surface. Between the bearing flange 32 and the sealing ring bearing frame 35 is arranged a displacement element 37 for the sealing ring bearing frame 35 , which permits a change in length, is formed by a bellows 36 and is secured in a sealing manner on one side to the bearing flange 32 and on the other side to the sealing ring bearing frame 35 . Synchronously controllable movement devices 38 , which are formed by pressure-medium cylinders 39 , are arranged at a plurality of positions, distributed over the circumference of the housing 13 , between the bearing flange 32 and the sealing ring bearing frame 35 , by means of which movement devices 38 the sealing ring 34 can be pressed onto the metal support plate 33 of the collection trough 18 in the closed position of the collection trough or lifted off the latter when the collection trough is to be moved into the open position in order to be emptied. To protect the bellows 36 from thermally and mechanically induced damage, telescopic metal protection sheets 40 are secured both to the bearing flange 32 and to the sealing ring bearing frame 35 between the bellows and the outer wall 31 of the housing 13 .
The sealing ring 34 is made from an elastic material, such as woven fabric, fiber material or the like. However, it may also be replaced by a different type of seal, such as for example a sand seal, in which case the metal support plate on the collection trough is designed as a tub-shaped receptacle for sand and instead of the sealing ring a metal sealing plate is submerged in this bed of sand in the closed position of the collection trough. The height of the metal sealing plate can once again be adjusted by means of a displacement element, such as a pressure-medium cylinder.
The same seal can be used to produce not just a sealing connection between the housing and the collection trough, but also, in the open position of the collection trough, a sealing connection between the housing 13 and the movable scrap collection container 25 , as illustrated in FIGS. 3–5 .
FIG. 6 , like FIG. 2 , illustrates a further embodiment of a seal which is as efficient as possible between the housing 13 and the collection trough 18 arranged beneath it as well as the scrap collection container 25 . Two sealing elements 30 , 30 a , which can be actuated independently of one another, are secured to the outer wall of the collection trough 13 , the sealing element 30 , as has been described with reference to FIG. 2 , producing a sealed connection to the collection trough 18 , and the further sealing element 30 a , which is arranged concentrically with respect to this sealing element 30 , producing a sealed connection to the scrap collection container 25 . The structure of the two sealing elements 30 , 30 a is identical and corresponds to the embodiments shown in FIG. 2 . Any other equivalent sealing element can equally be used. On account of this dual arrangement, a sealing connection is retained during all operating situations, either with respect to the collection trough 18 or, on at least three sides, with respect to the scrap collection container 25 .
FIGS. 3 to 5 illustrate the arrangement according to the invention of the housing 13 , the collection trough 18 and the scrap collection container 25 with respect to one another in three characteristic operating situations. The collection trough 18 is in this case in the shape of a tub, double-walled and of water-cooled design and is filled with sand.
FIG. 3 illustrates an operating situation as occurs in the start-up phase of the casting process. The scrap trough 18 has been moved into the open position, so that the housing 13 is open toward the scrap collection container 25 and pieces of strip which drop down fall directly into the scrap collection container. The sealing element 30 which surrounds the housing 13 on all sides bears, by way of its sealing ring 34 , against the metal support plate 33 of the scrap collection container 25 and is in its lowest position of use, closing off the gap space between the housing and the scrap collection container in a sealing manner.
FIG. 4 illustrates an operating situation in which the collection trough 18 adopts the closed position below the housing 13 and the sealing element 30 bears against the metal support plate 33 of the collection trough 18 by means of its sealing ring 34 . Any scrap and scale which drop down are collected in the collection trough until the scrap collection container 25 has returned to its receiving position below the closed collection trough after it has been emptied. While the collection trough 18 is in this closed position, the scrap collection container 25 can at any time briefly be moved out of the installation to be emptied without impairing the production process running on the two-roll casting installation.
FIG. 5 illustrates the operating situation in which collected scrap is being emptied out of the collection trough 18 into the scrap collection container. After the sealing element 30 , which closes off the gap between the housing 13 and the collection trough 18 in an airtight manner, has been raised into a release position, the collection trough 18 is moved into its open position by means of a transverse movement and at the same time scrap which has collected in the collection trough is pushed into the scrap collection container by means of the clearing board 27 . As soon as the collection trough has reached the open position, the sealing element 30 is placed on the scrap collection container. In the case of a sealing element which is segmented along its circumferential extent, it is possible for individual segments to be placed on the scrap collection container immediately after the collection trough has been moved away.
The treatment chamber 14 which immediately follows the housing 13 on the conveying path of the cast metal strip can likewise be flooded with protective gas. As can be seen from FIG. 1 , the base of this treatment chamber 14 , below the strip conveying device 15 , which is formed by a roller table on which the still-hot metal strip is being conveyed, is equipped with two emptiable, funnel-shaped collection containers 41 with closure flaps 43 , which can be opened and closed by pressure-medium cylinders 42 . A scrap collection container 25 equipped with a movement controller can be moved in sequence both to the emptying position below the closed collection trough 18 and to individual emptying positions below the closure flaps 43 which are opened after the scrap collection container 25 has adopted the respective emptying position. The individual emptying positions are defined by sliding contacts or light barriers.
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A two-roll casting installation with two casting rolls which rotate in opposite directions about horizontal axes and forming a casting gap for forming and discharging a thin cast metal strip. A sealed housing which has a base and surrounds a conveying path for the metal strip which leaves the casting gap and which strip is from a vertical casting direction into an approximately horizontal conveying direction. Diverter devices divert the metal strip within the housing. A displaceable scrap collection container removes scrap and scale produced from the two-roll casting installation. To minimize the penetration of external air into the housing, the base of the housing, at least in a subregion, forms a collection trough for the scrap, which is part of an emptying device, and a displaceable scrap collection container is arranged in a receiving position below the emptying device.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention is directed to an apparatus for facilitating the removal of debris when a canister containing a propellant is ignited in a wellbore during controlled pulse fracturing or high energy gas fracturing.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Stimulation of wells through mechanical fracturing can be accomplished by a method known as controlled pulse fracturing or high energy gas fracturing. A good description of this method appears in an article by Cuderman, J. F., entitled "High Energy Gas Fracturing Development," Sandia National Laboratories, SAND 83-2137, October 1983. Using this method enables the multiple fracturing of a formation or reservoir in a radial manner which increases the possibility of contacting a natural fracture. In the practice of this method, a canister containing a propellant is suspended into a wellbore. This canister is placed downhole next to the oil or hydrocarbonaceous fluid productive interval.
The propellant in the canister can belong to the modified nitrocellulose or the modified and unmodified nitroamine propellant class. Suitable solid propellants capable of being utilized include a double-based propellant known as M-5. It contains nitroglycerine and nitrocellulose. Another suitable propellant is a composite propellant which contains ammonium perchlorate in a rubberized binder. The composite propellant is known as HXP-100 and is purchasable from the Holex Corporation of Hollister, Calif. M-5 and HXP-100 propellants are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,039,030 issued to Godfrey et al. which is hereby incorporated by reference.
After placing the propellant means for creating multiple fractures into a canister and suspending it downhole near the oil or hydrocarbonaceous fluid productive interval, it is ignited. Ignition of the propellant means for creating the multiple fractures causes the generation of heat and gas pressure. To contain the generated propellant energy within the wellbore and formation, an aggregate stem, generally composed of cement, is placed above the canister containing the propellant thereby sealing the wellbore. The canister suspension and ignition means passes through the aggregate stem.
After ignition of the propellant means it is difficult to remove the aggregate stem, which often has to be drilled out. When removing the aggregate stem, the suspension means, generally a cable, and the ignition means, along with remnants of the canister which previously contained the propellant, frequently fall into the wellbore. This debris may interfere with production of hydrocarbonaceous fluids from the formation. Drilling out the aggregate often damages the wellbore and formation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is necessary to have an apparatus to facilitate removing the canister suspension and ignition means from the wellbore. It is also necessary to have a device to prevent damaging the wellbore when removing the stem.
The present invention discloses an apparatus for sealing a wellbore with a pumpable gel mixture capable of solidifying after placing a canister containing a propellant therein into the wellbore. Upon solidifying, the solid gel is able to withstand the energy released from the ignited propellant.
In the practice of this invention, a means for containing the pumpable gel mixture is placed into the wellbore at a predetermined level, generally at the hydrocarbonaceous productive fluid interval. Afterwards, the gel mixture is pumped into the wellbore above the means for containing the pumpable mixture. Subsequently, the gel mixture is caused to become a solid sufficient to withstand the energy released from the ignited propellant.
After ignition, and when conditions in the wellbore and formation have reached the desired level of stability, the solidified gel plug can be removed by either chemical or physical means.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus to facilitate removal of the canister suspension and ignition means, along with any canister remnants, from the wellbore.
It is another object of this invention to provide a device which will facilitate the removal of the gel plug or stem after ignition of the propellant.
Yet another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which will facilitate varying the density of the gel plug or stem to increase its strength.
Still yet another object of the present invention is to minimize damage to a wellbore or formation when removing the gel plug or stem.
A further object of the present invention is to provide for an apparatus which will allow for variations in the stability and rigidity of the gel plug or stems as required.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a graphic representation of the gel plug and canister containing the propellant before ignition.
FIG. 2 is a graphic representation of the gel plug and canister containing the propellant after ignition.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In the practice of this invention, referring to FIG. 1, a canister containing a propellant 16 is placed into a wellbore 12 which penetrates a hydrocarbonaceous fluid producing formation 10. Canister 16 is suspended into the wellbore 12 via a retrieval means, which generally will be a cable 18. In order to ignite the propellant contained in the canister 16, a means for igniting the propellant is connected to the retainer stem 14. The retainer stem 14 forms an integral part of the canister and is positioned on its upwardly directed end. The other end of the means for ignition is connected or affixed to a location at or above ground level above wellbore 12. The means for ignition will generally be a conduit 20 containing an electrical wire which wire can be used to generate an electrical spark within the canister 16 containing the propellant.
After positioning the retainer stem 14 at the desired level in the wellbore, a pumpable gel mixture is placed into the wellbore above the retainer stem 14. After from about 2 hours to about 4 hours, the pumpable gel mixture solidifies. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the composition of the mixture can be varied to obtain the desired rigidity in the gel stem. One method of making a suitable pumpable mixture is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,333,461 issued to Muller on June 8, 1982 which is hereby incorporated by reference. Upon solidification, the pumpable gel mixture forms the gel plug stem 22. The stability and rigidity of the gel plug stem 22 will depend upon the physical and chemical characteristics of the gel plug stem. As is known to those skilled in the art, the gel plug stem should be of a stability and rigidity which will absorb the shock from ignition of the propellant contained in the canister 16. Generally these pressures generated upon ignition will vary from about 10,000 psig to about 80,000 psig. Instantaneous heat generated upon ignition of the propellant may be greater than about 1,000° F. in the vicinity of the deflagration but is quickly dissipated with propagation. The retainer stem which is below the solidified gel plug 22 forms an integral part of the canister when it is suspended into the wellbore from a location at or above the ground level.
Often, depending upon the kind of propellant used, it will be necessary to increase the density of the pumpable gel to obtain the desired stability and rigidity therein. To accomplish this a solid non-reacting material can be added to the pumpable gel mixture. Preferred non-reacting solid materials include solid rock salt, calcium carbonate, and suitably crushed mollusk shells, such as oyster shells.
Other gel mixtures can be used to obtain the desired stability and rigidity. A preferred mixture used to obtain the desired stability and rigidity, for example, is a mixture of hydropropyl guar cross linked with transitional metals and ions thereof. The purpose of the transitional metal ions is to provide increased strength, stability and rigidity for the gel plug stem 22.
Hydropropyl guar is placed into the gel mixture in an amount of from about 0.70 to about 10.0 weight percent of said mixture. As preferred, hydropropyl guar is placed in said mixture in about 7.2 percent by weight of said mixture.
Metallic ions which can be used in the puumpable gel mixture include titanium, zirconium, chromium, antimony and aluminum. The concentration of these transitional metals in the pumpable gel fluid will of course vary depending upon the requirements for the particular propellant being used and the nature of the wellbore and formation into which the canister containing the propellant is placed. Although the exact amounts of the metals required will vary depending on the particular application, it is anticipated that the metals should be included within the pumpable gel fluid in amounts of from about 0.005 weight percent to about 0.50 weight percent, preferably about 0.01 weight percent of said fluid.
When using propellants to generate the desired fracturing pressure, it is often desirable to have a gel stem plug 22 which will withstand a temperature range from about 300° F. to about 450° F. for from about 0.5 of a day to about 4 days. A thermally stable solid gel plug stem 22 can be obtained by mixing into the pumpable gel mixture a chemical known as an oxygen scavenger (such as sodium thiosulfate or short chain alcohols such as methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol), preferably sodium thiosulfate. The concentration of the oxygen scavenger utilized, of course, will depend upon the thermal stability desired to be obtained for the gel plug stem 22. However, as preferred, it is anticipated that the concentration of the oxygen scavenger in the pumpable gel mixture will be from about 0.10 percent by weight to about 0.75 percent by weight, preferably 0.50 percent by weight.
Upon ignition of the propellant, heat and pressure is released within the wellbore and into the formation which expands into the formation 10 causing additional fracturing. As shown in FIG. 2, this heat and pressure produced at a controlled rate causes a fracturing of the hydrocarbonaceous producing formation 10. Fracturing of the formation is indicated by lines 24 in FIG. 2. Upon ignition, the heat and pressure created by the propellant causes a total or partial disintegration of the canister 26 which contained the propellant. However, as shown in FIG. 2, the retrieval cable 18 and ignition line 20 along with the retainer stem plug 14 remain intact. In order to maintain the productive level of the formation and keep this debris from entering into the wellbore, it is desirable to have a means for removing the gel plug stem 22 which would not cause the debris to fall within the wellbore 12.
To accomplish this, several variations are provided for. One variation, which can be utilized to facilitate removal of the gel plug stem 22 from wellbore 12 is to form a solid gel stem plug 22 containing a gel breaker. This gel breaker, included in the gel mixture, is selected from a group of chemical compounds which can break down the solid gel at temperatures of less than from about 60° F. to about 250° F. Generally this breakdown will occur within from about 2 hours to about 24 hours depending upon type and concentration of breaker added. Chemicals satisfactory for use as gel breakers, and which are incorporated into the gel mixture, include enzymes and oxidizing agents, suitable for breaking down the solid gel (such as sodium persulfate). Other gel breakers sufficient for this purpose are discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,265,311 issued to Ely on May 5, 1981, which is hereby incorporated by reference. These chemicals are readily available from chemical suppliers and with the exception of enzyme breakers are sold under their chemical names. Enzyme breakers can be obtained from oil field service companies. The concentration of the gel breaker incorporated into the gel mixture will vary from about 0.01 weight percent to about 0.10 weight percent, preferably about 0.05 weight percent of the gel mixture. Although the temperature upon ignition in the wellbore may generally exceed 150° F., the gel plug stem 22 will remain intact during the generation and dissipation of energy after ignition of the propellant. Upon cooling to a temperature of from about 60° F. to about 150° F., the gel breaker will breakdown the solid gel causing it to liquify which will facilitate removal of adhering debris, retainer stem 14, along with the retrieval cable 18, and the ignition line 20.
Another method for breaking the gel is to contact the solidified gel with a mineral acid after ignition of the propellant and lapse of a suitable or desired time interval. In those instances where it is undesirable to have a gel breaker incorporated into the gel mixture to remove the solid gel plug stem 22, it is preferred to use hydrochloric acid of a strength sufficient to solubilize the solid gel stem 22 without attacking retrieval cable 18, ignition wire 20, or retainer for stem 14. Hydrochloric acid, and acids similar thereto, can be used to breakdown the solid gel on contact. Hydrochloric acid of a concentration of about 10 percent to about 28 percent preferably about 15 percent, by volume of solution, will generally be sufficient for this purpose. Although hydrochloric acid has been mentioned, other similar mineral acids and strong organic acids may be employed depending upon their availability, as is known to those skilled in the art.
In one example of the practice of this invention, a slurry is formed with 1,000 gallons of water. This slurry comprises about 40 pounds of base gel such as hydroxypropyl guar gum which forms a hydrate in the water. To this mixture is added about 600 pounds of chemically treated hydroxypropyl guar gum which has delayed hydration or thickening qualities. Approximately 20 pounds of a buffer or catalyst suitable to obtain the desired pH and reaction time is added to this mixture. Cross-linking agents, such as bromates and chromates, are then added in an amount of about 20 pounds. Forty-two pounds of sodium thiosulfate, an oxygen scavenger, is then added to the mixture. This gel mixture is pumped into the formation above the retainer stem 14. After solidification of the mixture and ignition of the propellant, the cooled gel stem is removed by contacting it with 15 volume percent of hydrochloric acid in an amount sufficient to solubilize the gel stem.
In another example of the practice of this invention, a mixture is made as above. Additional components are placed into the mixture. About 420 pounds of crushed oyster shells are next added to the mixture. Titanium, in an amount of about 4 pounds, is added to the mixture. Approximately 170 pounds of potassium chloride is subsequently added to the mixture. Four pounds of sodium persulfate is added to the mixture and serves as a gel breaker. Upon solidifcation, the formed gel stem is capable of withstanding greater pressures upon ignition of the propellant. Upon cooling, after ignition of the propellant, the gel stem is liquefied by the sodium persulfate gel breaker.
As is understood by those skilled in the art, the composition of a gel stem will depend upon many variables including the propellant used and formation conditions. The above examples are mentioned as two possible variations among many others.
Although the present invention has been described with preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that modifications and variations may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention, as those skilled in the art will readily understand. Such modifications and variations are considered to be within the purview and scope of the appended claims.
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An apparatus for plugging a wellbore with a solid gel plug stem in high impulse or high energy fracturing. This apparatus facilitates the removal of the propellant canister support means, the propellant ignition means, as well as any debris adhering thereto. By this apparatus, damage to the wellbore and formation is minimized.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is related to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/651,653 filed Feb. 11, 2005 and the benefit under 35 USC119(e) of such U.S. Provisional Application is claimed.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method of refining wood pulp; more especially the invention relates to such a method in which pulp consistency in the refiner is adjusted by controlled addition of dilution water to the refiner.
In a preferred embodiment, the present invention relates to a method for controlling TMP (thermomechanical pulp) refiners by adjustment of the refining intensity. Pulp consistencies in the refiner are controlled and adjusted to achieve stable refining intensity and to compensate for disturbances such as the ones associated with changes in production rate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The quality of the pulp in thermomechanical pulp (TMP) refining is very much a function of the applied specific energy defined as the energy per tonne of production. The conventional approach to control pulp quality is therefore to adjust the specific energy either through changes in refiner motor load or through changes in refiner throughput, Owen J. et al “A practical approach to operator acceptance of advanced control with dual functionality. Proceedings Control Systems 98, Porvoo, Finland”.
Pulp quality also depends on the rate at which this energy is applied as expressed by the refining intensity or the specific energy per bar impact, Miles K. “A Simplified Method for calculating the residence time and refining Intensity in a chip refiner” Paperi ja Puu, 73(9):852–857 (1991)”. In practice, at a given specific energy, this refining intensity varies with pulp consistency. Pulp consistency affects the pulp residence time which itself is inversely proportional to the refining intensity. In an increasing number of installations the consistency of the pulp, as measured or estimated in the blow line, is controlled by adjusting the flow rate of dilution water into the refiner. Such consistency control helps to maintain discharge consistency in the appropriate range for the good operation of the refiner.
In large modern TMP refiners such as the Sunds CD 82 or some of the CD 76 refiners operating at very high refining consistency, there are up to three possible dilution flows that can be adjusted to change pulp consistency (as shown in FIG. 1 ): the infeed dilution or water added to the pulp or the chips before the refining zones, dilution water added to the flat zone of the refiner, and in some modern installations, the dilution water added to the conical zone. The purpose of adding dilution water in the conical zone is to reduce the occurrence of very high consistencies at the periphery of the plates and the associated plugging of the plates.
Although pulp consistency varies and normally increases from the refiner inlet to the refiner discharge or blow line, the term refiner pulp consistency conventionally denotes the consistency of the pulp at the refiner discharge. This pulp consistency is either measured on manual samples, estimated using predictive models, or measured on-line using commercially available sensors. In an increasing number of installations the consistency of the pulp is controlled through a single control loop where the three mentioned flow dilutions (in-feed, flat zone and conical zone dilution) are manipulated according to an established ratio (as illustrated in FIG. 2 ). The single loop consistency control scheme of the prior art has many limitations; one of them is its effect on specific energy. Indeed small changes in in-feed dilution or in flat zone dilution required for consistency control have significant impact on refiner motor load and much more so than changes in conical zone dilution. Another limitation of the single loop consistency control scheme is that the same discharge consistency can be obtained with different distributions of dilution water flows among in-feed, flat zone and conical zone dilutions. On the other hand, refining intensity and pulp quality will be different at these different distributions, a source of problems if not properly recognized. This explains why a refining condition that is evaluated only in terms of specific energy and blow line consistency can produce very different pulp properties.
This problem is partly addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,778,936 B2 where consistency profile is estimated using temperature sensors and a refining zone consistency is controlled either by manipulation of a dilution flow or by changing the refiner feed rate. However, in this previous U.S. patent no distinction has been made in the use of dilution water added before or during refining for consistency control. Only one consistency is being controlled. The objective there was to stabilize refining consistency not to adjust the target consistency for quality control. For example, there is no mention of the need to adjust refining consistency as a function of production rate to overcome loss of certain pulp properties. The same issue of quality loss due to production rate change is another limitation of the single loop control scheme.
A very common problem in TMP installations is the loss of pulp quality at high production rate, Murton K. D. et al., “Production rate effect on TMP pulp quality and energy consumption. J. Pulp Paper Sci., 23(8): J411–J416, 1990”. It has been suggested that this loss of pulp strength at high production rate could be attributed to an increase in refining intensity associated with a decrease in pulp residence time. Indeed at high production rate the motor load has to increase to apply a sufficient amount of energy per tonne. At higher motor load, more steam is generated. The higher rate of steam generation results in a higher steam velocity at the same specific energy, and therefore a lower pulp residence time and a higher refining intensity. This problem can be partly offset by proper adjustment of refining consistency but there is no indication in the literature on how to achieve this compensation and how to adjust refining consistencies as a function of production rate.
Although control of discharge consistency is common practice, current methods of control do not recognize the possibility to control independently refiner inlet consistency, which is solely dependant of the in-feed and flat zone dilution, production and consistency of the incoming stock; and the discharge consistency, and this creates severe limitations in the ability to change refining intensity.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
References herein to conical disk refiners are to be understood as references to high consistency conical disk refiners as used in TMP (thermo-mechanical pulp) or CTMP (chemothermo-mechanical pulp) plants as primary, secondary, tertiary or reject refiners and operating at blow line consistencies greater than 30% .
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved method of refining wood chips or pulp in a high consistency conical disc refiner.
It is a particular object of this invention to control the consistency of wood pulp at the discharge outlet of a conical disc refiner to a target consistency.
It is a further object of this invention to establish a pulp consistency for acceptable refining intensity in the refiner.
It is a more specific object of the invention to maintain a target pulp consistency at discharge by a controlled addition of dilution water to the conical refining zone of a conical disc refiner.
It is a further more specific object of the invention to establish a desired refining intensity in a conical disc refiner by controlled addition of dilution water to the refiner, upstream of the conical refining zone.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of refining wood pulp comprising: i) providing a conical pulp refiner comprising a refiner housing having a pulp inlet and a pulp outlet with a refining zone therebetween, said refining zone comprising a flat upstream refining zone and a conical downstream refining zone, ii) feeding pulp through said pulp refiner from said pulp inlet to said pulp outlet and refining the pulp in said refining zone, and iii) adding a controlled amount of dilution water to said pulp upstream of said conical refining zone to establish a pulp consistency in said refining zone effective to maintain an acceptable refining intensity for refined pulp quality.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of refining wood pulp comprising: i) providing a conical pulp refiner comprising a refiner housing having a pulp inlet and a pulp outlet with a refining zone therebetween, said refining zone comprising a flat upstream refining zone and a conical downstream refining zone, ii) feeding pulp through said pulp refiner from said pulp inlet to said pulp outlet at a selected production rate, and refining the pulp in said refining zone with discharge of refined pulp of a target consistency at said pulp outlet, and iii) adding a controlled amount of dilution water to said conical refining zone to maintain said target pulp consistency at said pulp outlet.
In accordance with still another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of refining wood pulp comprising: a) providing a conical pulp refiner comprising a refiner housing having a pulp inlet and a pulp outlet with a refining zone therebetween, said refining zone comprising a flat, upstream refining zone and a conical, downstream refining zone, b) feeding pulp through said pulp refiner from said pulp inlet to said pulp outlet at a selected production rate, and refining the pulp in said refining zone with discharge of refined pulp of a target consistency at said pulp outlet, c) adding a first controlled amount of dilution water to said pulp upstream of said conical refining zone, in response to loss of water in said pulp, to establish a pulp consistency effective to maintain an acceptable refining intensity for refined pulp quality, relative to said production rate in said refining zone, and d) adding a second controlled amount of dilution water to said conical refining zone, to maintain said target pulp consistency at said pulp outlet.
In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of operating a conical disk refiner comprising: monitoring a pulp discharge consistency of the refiner, and controlling the discharge consistency to a desired value by adjustment of the flow rate of dilution water fed to a conical zone of the refiner.
In still another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of operating a conical disk refiner comprising: monitoring pulp consistency at an inlet of a refining zone of the refiner, and controlling the pulp consistency to a desired value by adjustment of at least one of: (i) flow rate of infeed dilution water to the refining zone, and (ii) flow rate of dilution water to a flat zone of the refining zone.
A key element of this invention is adjusting refining intensity through changes in refining consistency profile and thus compensating for the detrimental effect of high production rate on pulp quality.
Pulp consistency is controlled by two control loops in two locations rather than by one single control loop at one location as commonly practiced in the prior art. The two locations are: at the inlet of the refining zone (feed consistency) and at the refiner discharge (blow line consistency). The refiner discharge or blow line consistency is controlled independently of the inlet consistency by manipulation of dilution water flow rate within the refining zone (CD zone in conical disc refiners).
Inlet consistency (or consistency at the beginning of the refining zone) is controlled by adjustment of the feed or flat zone dilution or both.
Target inlet consistency is adjusted to achieve the desired refining intensity. In the prior practice with modern conical disc refiners, the dilution water is added in the conical refining zone thus presenting an additional variable to manipulate for the control of the refiner.
In accordance with the invention, consistency at the inlet of the refiner can be increased while maintaining the discharge consistency (blow line consistency) constant. As a result the average refining consistency becomes higher while the consistency of the pulp at the periphery of the plates remains constant, thus avoiding plugging of the plates. The refiner motor load will also increase but can easily be brought back to its original value through an increase in the plate gaps. The result is an operation at the same motor load and specific energy but higher average refining consistency which means higher pulp residence time, and therefore lower refining intensity. It becomes then possible to adjust refining intensity at constant specific energy and in particular compensate for some of the deterioration of pulp quality associated with an operation at high production rate. Very important also is the fact that the consistency at the periphery of the plate can be maintained in an acceptable range while the average refining consistency is adjusted over a much wider range than was possible previously, and without addition of water in the refining zone.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a simplified schematic diagram showing input variables and the two refining zones of a conical disc refiner.
FIG. 2 is a schematic single control loop for adjusting discharge consistency according to the prior art.
FIG. 3 is a schematic of two control loops to control the discharge consistency and the inlet consistency in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 4 shows an example of two consistency profiles; profile ( 1 ), where all the dilution water is added at the in-feed. This resulted in a low inlet consistency. Profile ( 2 ) corresponds to a certain repartition of the total dilution flow between in-feed and conical zone. As can be seen, in profile ( 2 ), both the inlet consistency and the average refining consistency are higher while maintaining the same discharge consistency. This provides an increase of the residence time while maintaining constant specific energy and blow line consistency.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS WITH REFERENCE TO THE DRAWINGS
With further reference to FIG. 1 , a conical refiner 10 is illustrated schematically. Conical refiner 10 has a gap flat zone 12 , and a gap conical zone 14 .
Conical zone 14 may be considered to comprise a multiplicity of zones of different radii, for example at radii r 1 , r and r 2 in FIG. 1 .
Conical zone 14 has an angle of slope θ.
Refiner 10 has an inlet 16 for chips or pulp to be refined, and dilution infeed line 18 , dilution flat zone line 20 and dilution conical zone line 22 for feed of dilution water to inlet 16 , flat zone 12 and conical zone 14 , respectively. Line 22 may have branch line 24 , 26 and 28 for feeding dilution water in line 22 to different parts of conical zone 14 . Thus, for example, branch line 24 feeds dilution water to an upstream or inlet end of conical zone 14 .
With further reference to FIG. 2 , there is shown schematically a prior art refining system in which a refiner 30 has a dilution unit 32 and a controller 34 .
The dilution unit 32 has a dilution infeed component 36 , a dilution flat zone component 38 and a dilution conical zone component 40 , all of which are activated together by controller 34 in response to information dispatched in line 42 from the refiner 30 , which information is typically an actual measurement of blow line consistency or an actual predicted blow line consistency. The controller 34 comprises the information on blow line consistency in line 42 with an established blow line consistency set point 44 and responds with a change in the dilution water flow rate as required, which change in dilution water is dispatched to all three components 36 , 38 and 40 , respectively in proportions α, β and Φ of the amount i.e. α+β+Φ=1. The proportions α, β, and Φ are typically determined from experience.
In this prior art system, there is no provision for feeding dilution water independently to the different refining and feed zones of the refiner 30 .
FIG. 3 illustrates a refining system of the invention in which a refiner 60 has independent controllers 62 and 64 .
Controller 62 has a dilution conical zone line 66 for feed of dilution water to the conical refining zone of the refiner 60 in response to information dispatched into a line 68 from refiner 60 to controller 62 .
This information is, for example, a measurement of actual blow line consistency, or an actual predicted blow line consistency of the operating refiner 60 .
The controller 62 compares this information with a blow line consistency set point 70 , developed from the production rate 72 in accordance with a relationship equation 74 and responds with dispatch of dilution water, as required, to maintain the target blow line consistency (i.e. the blow line consistency set point 70 ).
Controller 64 has a dilution line 76 having a dilution infeed branch line 78 and a dilution flat zone branch line 80 , for feed of dilution water to the infeed and flat zone of refiner 60 , in response to information dispatched in line 82 from refiner 60 . This information is, for example, the predicted inlet consistency of the operating refiner 60 . The controller 64 compares this information with an established inlet consistency set point 84 developed from the production rate 74 with a relationship equation 88 and responds with dispatch of dilution water, as required, to maintain the target inlet consistency (i.e. the inlet consistency set point 84 ).
The relationship equation 86 is equation (11b) described hereinafter; and the relationship equation 88 is equation (11a) described hereinafter. The total dilution water dispatched by controller 64 is the sum of the in-feed dilution water and flat zone dilution water which are respective proportions α and β of the total dilution i.e. α=β=1. These proportions can be selected arbitrarily as long as individual dilution flow rates are sufficiently large to avoid plugging of the dilution orifices.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
This invention provides a method by which the discharge consistency of a conical disk refiner may be monitored using commercially available blow line consistency sensor or any model based method and is controlled to any desired value purely by adjustments of the dilution water flow to the conical zone of the refiner.
The invention also provides a method by which the pulp consistency at the inlet of the refining zone may be predicted and monitored using conventional material balance equations and may be controlled to any desired value by adjustment of the infeed dilution flow rate, the flat zone dilution flow rate, or any combination of both of these flows.
In these methods, the refiner inlet and discharge consistencies may be maintained to desired values by two independent consistency control loops such as is shown in FIG. 3 .
The refiner inlet consistency target may be adjusted for the purpose of changing refining intensity, and in particular, the pulp residence time and therefore refining intensity may be adjusted without changing the consistency of the pulp at the refiner discharge.
The inlet consistency target may be adjusted as a function of production rate in accordance with equations 11a) and b) hereinafter.
The refining intensity may be adjusted as a function of production rate; and in particular, the refining intensity may be decreased with increasing production rate in order to compensate for losses in pulp quality associated with an operation at high production.
Conical disc refiners (CD refiners) are becoming widely utilized in North American mechanical pulping processes. These refiners are made of two discs, one rotating and the other stationary. They also have two refining zones: the flat zone (FZ) and the conical zone (CZ). The chips or pulp are fed through the centre of the stator towards the centre plate of the rotor to be partially refined in the flat zone and then are driven by centrifugal forces into the conical zone where most of the refining takes place. The variables that can be adjusted in the refining flat zone are the throughput rate, the flat zone plate gap, the in-feed dilution, and the flat zone dilution. The manipulated variables in the refining conical zone at a given throughput rate, are conical zone gap and conical zone dilution. The flow of dilution water to the conical zone may be added at the beginning of the zone, somewhere in the middle of the zone, toward the end of the conical zone, or fed as a certain combination of all the above, FIG. ( 1 ). The variables that can be controlled are the refiner motor load, the specific energy, the refining intensity, the outlet consistency (blow line consistency), and the inlet consistency. With so many manipulated variables and so many interacting control variables, the CD refiner is a very complex system, difficult to operate, and to understand.
The settings of the manipulated variables affects the residence time of the pulp, and therefore affects the quality of the pulp. Among the control variables that have a large impact on the pulp quality are the applied specific energy and the refining intensity. These two variables depend largely on the mentioned input variables but more specifically they depend on the throughput and on the refining consistency.
The effect of the throughput on pulp quality was addressed in many articles, Murton K. D. et al., “Production rate effect on TMP pulp quality and energy consumption. J. Pulp Paper Sci., 23(8): J411–J416, 1990”. The throughput-pulp quality relationship is greatly dependant on whether the refiner is a flat disc or CD disc configuration. It can also depend on plate design and most importantly it depends on the throughput operating range. When the throughput operating range is very large and the objective of the pulp quality control is to meet a given freeness, a high increase of the throughput often results in a decrease in specific energy. This may be attributed to an increase in the generated steam which will increase the velocity of the pulp and therefore will result in a decrease of the pulp residence time. Some pulp properties will then be affected by the associated increase in refining intensity. To overcome this situation, an increase in the throughput should be accompanied by a decrease in the refining intensity in order to overcome the degradation of certain pulp properties that were lost. The easiest way to manipulate the refining intensity is by changing the refining consistency. However a much larger impact is obtained when modifying the refiner's rotational speed as described in the US patent U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,602 (by K. Miles) and also in the article “Refining intensity and pulp quality in high consistency refining”, by K. Miles, Paperi ja Puu 72(5):508–514, 1990. The approach considered here is restricted to changing the refining intensity through changing the refining consistency as will be explained in the following.
Consistency Profile
Refining consistency was recognized in the article “The flow of pulp in chip Refiners” by K. Miles et al., J. Pulp Paper Sci., 16(2): J63–J72, 1990, as one of the very important variables that have a direct effect on pulp strength. Operating within the correct consistency range which is somewhat narrow is very critical, Strand, B. C. et al., “Effect of production rate on specific energy consumption in high consistency chip refining. Proc. Intl. Mechanical Pulp Conf., Oslo, (1993)”. Increasing consistency within acceptable limits yields an operation at wider plate gaps and helps to develop long fibers, maintain high bulk and avoid clashing plates. Operating outside that range tends to lead to less stable refiner operation. Low consistency yields narrow plate gaps and can result in fiber cutting and loss in strength properties. At very high consistency shivy pulp is produced and the so called dry fibre cutting can take place.
Pulp consistency can be adjusted by changing dilution water flow rates. Some recent CD refiners are equipped with in-feed dilution, flat zone dilution and one or more conical zone dilutions. For such refiners, at the same throughput rate and at the same motor load, a discharge consistency target may be obtained with many different combinations of the dilution flows. That can result in a different consistency profile in the refining zones and different pulp strength properties.
The consistency profile, for a flat disc refiner, can be predicted by the following formula developed in the article “Predicting the performance of a chip refiner. A constitutive approach”, by K. Miles et al., J. Pulp Paper Sci., 19(6): J268–J274, 1993.
C o = 1 1 C i - ( r 0 2 - r in 2 ) ( r out 2 - r in 2 ) E 0 L , ( 1 )
where L is the latent heat at the refiner inlet approximated to L≈2258kJ.kg −1 , r in is the inlet radius of the flat zone, r out is outlet radius of the flat zone and r o is the radius at any point in the flat zone at which consistency is being evaluated. E 0 is the specific energy and C i is the inlet consistency to the refiner defined as:
C i = prod prod C p + dilution , ( 2 )
where C p is the consistency of the stock before entering the screw feeder to the refiner, prod is the throughput rate, dilution is the water added at the refiner inlet, and equal distribution of energy in the refining zone is assumed. This is the case for flat disc refiners. However, for CD refiners, it is observed that the two refining zones (flat zone and conical zone) do not distribute energy equally to the pulp. Moreover, most of the energy is being applied to the pulp in the conical zone. This is supported by the fact that, in many installations conical zone plates tend to wear more rapidly than the flat zone plates. Therefore, if the energy applied to the fibres in the flat zone is neglected, then the formula of equation (1) can be modified and used to estimate the consistency profile, C cz , for the CD refiner. The expression of that profile will depend on the location r c in the conical zone where the water is being added. Therefore, at the entrance to the conical zone, the consistency, C i1 , is given by:
C i 1 = prod prod C p + dilution infeed + dilution FZ , ( 3 )
where dilution infeed is the in-feed dilution, and dilution FZ is the flat zone dilution. Then, at any given location, r, prior to r c , the consistency C cz is given by:
C cz = 1 1 C i 1 - ( r 2 - r 1 2 r 2 2 - r 1 2 ) ( E 0 L ) . ( 4 )
where C i1 is as defined in equation (3), r 1 is the outlet radius of the flat zone, r 2 is the outlet radius of the disc at the end of the conical zone, FIG. ( 1 ).
For r=r c , the consistency C cz is given by:
C cz = 1 1 C i 2 - ( r c 2 - r 1 2 r 2 2 - r 1 2 ) ( E 0 L ) , ( 5 )
where C i2 is given by:
C i 2 = prod prod C p + dilution infeed + dilution Fz + dilution CZ , ( 6 )
where dilution CZ is the conical zone dilution and C i2 is the consistency at the point where dilution occurs in the conical refining zone.
And then, for any given r after r c , the consistency C cz is given by:
C
cz
=
1
1
C
i
2
-
(
r
2
-
r
1
2
r
2
2
-
r
1
2
)
(
E
0
L
)
.
(
7
)
The discharge consistency or the blow line consistency, C BL , is obtained when r=r 2 , given by:
C
BL
=
1
1
C
i
2
-
0.0016
E
0
.
(
8
)
This last equation shows that the same blow line consistency, C BL , is obtained by more than one possible way of combining in-feed dilution, flat zone dilution, and conical zone dilution. Each one of these combinations would result in a different consistency profile along the refining zones and therefore, different average refining consistency. To illustrate that, FIG. ( 4 ) shows an example of two consistency profiles; profile ( 1 ), where all the dilution water is added at the in-feed. This resulted in a low inlet consistency. Profile ( 2 ) corresponds to a certain repartition of the total dilution flow between in-feed, flat zone and conical zone. As can be seen, in profile ( 2 ), both the inlet consistency and the average refining consistency are higher while maintaining the same discharge consistency. This provides an increase of the residence time while maintaining constant specific energy and blow line consistency.
For a given consistency profile the changes and the fluctuations of the C i2 , inlet consistency, affect the variations of the blow line consistency, C BL . In fact, taking the derivative of C BL , equation (8), with respect to C i2 leads to:
∂
C
BL
∂
C
i
2
=
(
C
BL
C
i
2
)
2
.
(
9
)
This implies that
∂
C
BL
=
(
C
BL
C
i2
)
2
∂
C
i2
.
(
10
)
Knowing that C BL >C i2 , this equation shows that variations of C i2 are largely amplified and that they contribute tremendously to the variations of the discharge consistency. The higher the discharge consistency, the more important are these variations. This illustrates the need to control and stabilize inlet consistency variations. An independent control of discharge consistency using the dilution flow in the refining zone will also alleviate this problem. With such discharge consistency control, changes in inlet consistency are feasible. This feature can be exploited at high production rate as described in the following section.
High Throughput Rate
As mentioned before, when refining at high production rate, more steam is generated which reduces the pulp residence time, consequently affecting certain pulp strength properties. One way to overcome this problem is by reducing the refining intensity at high production rate. As explained in the article “Refining intensity and pulp quality in high consistency refining”, by K. Miles, Paperi ja Puu 72(5):508–514, 1990, this can be done using one of the two following ways. The most effective but also the most difficult one is by adjustments of the refiner rotational speed. The second method which is more practical for an existing operation, is by increasing refining consistency. For CD refiners, that can be accomplished by increasing C i1 while keeping the discharge consistency to an acceptable level that will be dependent on the production rate. C i1 is indicative of the inlet consistency to the refiner. Therefore the in-feed dilution and the flat zone dilution serve to adjust the consistency of the flow to the refiner while the conical zone dilution adjusts C cz (r=r c ), equation (5), which will result in adjustment of the discharge consistency, C BL and prevents the pulp from drying when C i1 is too high.
To overcome the degradation of certain pulp properties at high production rate, the inlet consistencies, C i1 and the discharge consistency C BL should be adjusted to target values, which are adjusted as a function of production rate, such as:
C i1 =α infeed prod+β infeed (11a)
C BL =α BL prod+β BL (11b)
Note, that C BL is function of C i1 and C cz (r=r c ). Furthermore, C BL can be adjusted by adjusting C cz (r=r c ) without affecting C i1 . Coefficients α infeed , β infeed , α BL , and, β BL are selected to ensure consistency targets within the stable operating range, to provide sufficient response of the motor load to changes in plate gap and a positive response of the motor load to increases in the in-feed and/or flat zone dilution flow rate. A situation where an increase in this dilution water flow rate leads to an increase in the motor load is considered abnormal and undesirable. An on-line estimation of process gains is implemented to detect abnormal or undesirable operating conditions. The production rate influences the specific energy to a given freeness and the pulp properties for conical disc refiners, Strand B. C. et al., “Effect of production rate on specific energy consumption in high consistency chip refining. Proc. Intl. Mechanical Pulp Conf., Oslo, 1993”. The consistency should be adjusted in order to allow increase of the specific energy that will compensate for this effect and maintain a stable pulp quality at various levels of production rate. The relationships, equation (11a) and (11b), between production rate and target inlet and discharge consistencies are determined experimentally. The coefficients in equation (11a) are determined first. Assuming that the operating production rate can change between a low production rate, denoted by Prod low , and a high production rate, denoted by Prod high and, assuming also that the refiner operates around its normal discharge consistency denoted, C BLoperation then, the determination of the coefficients, α infeed and β infeed , is carried out in two steps. First step consists in adjusting the production rate to Prod low , then in gradually increasing and decreasing the in-feed and/or flat zone dilution flow rate, i.e. in decreasing and an increasing the refiner inlet consistency C i1 , in order to cover the range of stable operating conditions. For each change in the dilution flow rate, C BL is adjusted to C BLoperation by adjusting dilution water in the conical zone. For each of these operating conditions, a pulp sample is taken from the blow line, is strength is measured and associated to C i1 . From this set of experiments, an optimal C i1 , denoted C i1optimal — low , that corresponds to the strongest pulp measured is chosen. Similar experiments are then carried out at high production, Prod high , to determine C i1optimal — high . During these two set experiments, at low and high production rate, the flat zone gap and the conical zone gap are maintained constant. The discharge consistency, C BL , is also maintained constant at C BL =C BLoperation , by adjusting C cz . Only inlet consistency through the in-feed and/or flat zone dilution flow rate are varied. The coefficients α infeed and β infeed are determined by:
α infeed = C i 1 optimal_high - C i 1 optimal_low Prod high - Prod low ( 12 a ) β infeed = C i 1 optimal_low Prod high - C i 1 optimal_high Prod low Prod high - Prod low ( 12 b )
Note that the coefficient β infeed is always positive, implying that the inlet consistency has to increase when the production rate increases.
Up to this point, it can be decided to keep the discharge consistency constant, C BL =C BLoperation for the entire production rate which would correspond to α BL =0 and β BL =C BLoperation in equation (11b). This is a sub-optimal solution that guarantees that for the same discharge consistency, C BL =C BLoperation , the inlet consistency would increase when the production rate increases. This would result in a decrease of the refining intensity and therefore an increase of the pulp residence time which is the very desired effect.
In order to determine the optimal values for parameters α BL and β BL , the production rate and the inlet consistency are first adjusted respectively to Prod low and C i1optimal — low . Then the conical zone dilution flow rate is gradually increased and decreased, i.e. the discharge consistency C BL is decreased and increased, in order to cover a wide range of stable operating conditions. For each conical zone dilution change a pulp sample is taken from the blow line and its strength is measured and related to C BL . From these set of experiments, C BL optimal, denoted C BLoptimal — low , that would result in strongest pulp is chosen. Similar experiments are considered at Prod high and C i1 =C i1optimal — high to determine the optimal discharge consistency, C BLoptimal — high . Once the optimal discharge consistencies at high and low production rate are known then the coefficient α BL and β BL are given by:
α BL = C BL optimal_high - C BL optimal_low Prod high - Prod low ( 13 a ) β BL = C BL optimal_low Prod high - C BL optimal_high Prod low Prod high - Prod low ( 13 b )
This approach avoids the current situation where the blow line consistency is the main parameter used in consistency control. Since it can be changed with either the in-feed, the flat zone or the conical zone dilution flows, the same blow line consistency can be achieved with very different refining zone consistency. Since the consistency affects the refining intensity and thus the pulp properties, unknown variations in the refining consistency could be avoided. This approach also allows an increase of the inlet consistency, C i1 , while maintaining the discharge consistency to an acceptable level or constant such that the average refining consistency becomes higher which would imply higher pulp residence time, and therefore lower refining intensity at the same specific energy.
Motor Load Control
When the refining intensity in the main part of the refining zone is maintained at an optimum level by adjusting the inlet consistencies, a stable specific energy can be achieved by controlling the motor load through adjustments of the plate gap. The target motor load is adjusted to obtain the desired specific energy at various production rates, as should normally be done. This is only possible if the consistencies are high enough to ensure a significant response in motor load to a change in plate gap.
The current situation is that both plate gap and consistency are generally used to control motor load. This way, both the refining intensity and the refining energy may be changed at the same time and it is difficult to predict what the consequences will be for the pulp properties in any given situation. The new approach described here gives a better control of the pulp properties based on the current understanding of how the refining intensity and the specific energy affect the pulp properties, Miles K. B. et al. “Wood characteristics and energy consumption in refiner pulps. J. Pulp Paper Sci. 21: J383–J389, 1995”. When each factor is controlled separately, it becomes easier to correct pulp quality problems in a systematic way during the daily operation.
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A method is proposed for improving pulp quality at high production rates on conical disc refiners. It permits a reduction in refining intensity by enabling fibre residence time to increase by increasing consistency, while avoiding the problem of plate plugging normally associated with high discharge consistency. In practice, inlet consistency is increased by the in-feed dilution, flat zone dilution or both, but without allowing the discharge consistency to rise. Instead, the discharge consistency is controlled at a fixed optimum value by the addition of dilution water within the conical zone. The result is that residence time is increased, and refining intensity decreased, by raising the consistency in the inner region of the refining zone, while avoiding the plate plugging caused by excessive consistency in the outer region of the refining zone.
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RELATED APPLICATION
This application is directed to an improvement over the invention forming the subject of my U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,890 dated Aug. 4, 1987 entitled Method and Apparatus for Controlled Breathing Employing Internal and External Electrodes.
INTRODUCTION
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for ventilating patients. When a person's breathing stops due to cardiac arrest or fibrillation, or he suffers respiratory depression from such causes as drug overdose, smoke inhalation, drowning etc., or breathing stops for any other reason, it is imperative to reinstate breathing as a life saving measure as well a to avoid brain damage due to oxygen deficiency.
The normal method of artificially ventilating a patient is to blow air into the lungs in a rhythmic fashion either by mouth to mouth or using an oxygen powered demand valve and mask. Both of these well-known techniques have been used successfully countless times, but they have certain disadvantages. These techniques create positive pressure in the lungs of the patient being ventilated, and the positive pressure can impair blood flow to the lungs and the return of the blood supply to the heart.
One important object of the invention of my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,890 as well of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for ventilating patients which mirrors the normal breathing cycle so as not to inhibit blood flow in the lungs and to the heart.
Another important object of this as well as my earlier invention is to provide a non-invasive technique for electrically stimulating natural ventilation.
My earlier paten teaches that by the proper placement of electrodes on the chest and in the esophagus and by supplying a controlled electrical impulse, the diaphragm muscles may be stimulated to expand the lungs creating negative pressure causing air to fill the lungs. This is the normal breathing process, and it does not inhibit blood flow in the lungs and to the heart. In accordance with the earlier invention an internal electrode is passed down the esophagus. The electrode is a tube or rod having a flexibility similar to a normal commercial gastric tube and has series of circumferential electrical contact rings spaced few centimeters apart but all electrically connected. Two external electrodes electrically connected together, and each a commercially available ECG electrode, are placed one left and one right on the body of the patient in the region of the nipples above the rib cage. Between the internal and two external electrodes is passed a selectable pulsed current up to 100 milliamperes selectively delivered at from 10 to 18 cycles per minute. A typical pulse for a rate of 12 pulses per minute would be a linear rise from zero output to maximum output in 2 seconds followed by a zero output for the next three seconds. The cycle is repeated so long as the stimulation is needed. The electrical circuit is battery operated and the device may be handheld.
The present invention is a further development to more effectively induce normal breathing in a patient whose breathing has stopped. In accordance with this invention, the linearly increasing two second stimulations are replaced with spiked pulses having an on-off duration in the order of 0.1 millisecond "on" and 1.0 milliseconds off and constantly increasing linearly in magnitude over the two second period. As in the earlier invention, the two second "stimulation" period is followed by an "off" period of three seconds. Tests have revealed that the constant application of an increasing voltage can tire the chest muscles and cause muscle degeneration due to absorption, and the present invention avoids or markedly lessens those problems. Also in accordance with the present invention, the polarity of the pulses in each successive two second stimulation may advantageously be reversed When this is not done, continued stimulation causes the accumulation of a charge in the muscles so that the muscle responses are of decreasing magnitude. This can be counteracted by reversing the polarity of pulse stimulations, either successively with each cycle, or at some lesser frequency.
I have also discovered that most effective ventilation may be achieved by placing the external electrodes at the region of the fourth ribs.
These and other object and features of this invention will be better understood and appreciated from the following detailed description of different embodiments thereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF FIGURE DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view, somewhat diagrammatic, of the head and chest of a patient and showing the use of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the invention shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the distal end of the internal electrode forming part of this invention;
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the circuit of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-3;
FIG. 5 is a chart of one pulse pattern that may be impressed upon the patient in accordance with this invention;
FIG. 6 is a chart similar to FIG. 5 but showing another pulse pattern that may be impressed upon a patient in accordance with this invention; and
FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a series of pulses in one stimulation in the patterns of FIGS. 5 and 6.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The action of breathing, which consists of two functions, namely inspiration and exhalation, may be described as follows:
The diaphragm is the principal muscle of inspiration. When in a condition of rest the muscle presents a domed surface, concave toward the abdomen and consists of circumferential muscle and a central tendinous part. When the muscle fibers contract, they become less arched, or nearly straight, and thus cause the central tendon to descend and become a fixed point which enables the circumferential muscles to act from it and so elevate the lower ribs and expand the thoracic cavity. The ordinary action of expiration or exhalation is hardly effected by muscular forces but results from a return of the walls of the thorax to a condition of rest owing to their own elasticity and to that of the lungs. (See Anatomy by Henry S Gray, Bounty Books, published in 1977, page 555.)
The present invention artificially stimulates the diaphragm muscle to duplicate the action which occurs naturally in a healthy person.
FIG. 1 depicts a patient being assisted by the ventilating system of the present invention. A first electrode 10 is shown disposed in the patient's esophagus 11 and a pair of external electrodes 12 and 14 are shown placed on the patient's chest on the left and right sides in the region of the base of the rib cage, and more specifically above the fourth ribs. The electrodes are all connected to an electrical circuit 16 which impresses a pulsed stimulation between the internal electrode 10 and the external electrodes 12 and 14 through the chest muscle of the patient. When the muscle is stimulated, it contracts so as to elevate the lower ribs and expand the thoracic cavity, which effects a reduction in pressure, in turn causing inspiration. When the stimulation is removed, the walls of the thorax return to the rest condition causing exhalation.
In FIGS. 1 and 2 the electrode 10 is shown to include a curved tubular body 18 which is shaped to be inserted directly into the patient s esophagus without the aid of a larger tubular member serving as a guide for that purpose. It is to be understood, however, that the system of the present invention may be used in combination with other apparatus and it is contemplated that the electrode 10 in certain situations may be guided into the esophagus through a previously inserted tube such as a gastric tube. The electrode 10 carries a stop 20 adjacent to its proximal end 22 which may be used to limit the depth of penetration of the electrode 10 into the esophagus. The stop 20 should not cover the mouth or otherwise interfere with the passage of air to and from the lungs. The body 18 of the electrode preferably is somewhat flexible in the nature of a commercially available gastric tube so that it may be inserted in the esophagus and will not injure the esophagus lining. It may or may not call for the use of lubricant. Moreover the electrode may be inserted through the mouth or nose. The electrode may be identical to that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,807 issued Mar. 11, 1986 entitled Heart Pacer, which patent has a common assignee with this application.
In FIG. 3 the distal end of the electrode 10 is shown in detail. It includes four contact rings 24 embedded in its surface. While four rings are shown, a lesser or greater number may be used. The contact rings in the embodiment shown are formed from a continuous length of tinned copper wire 26 which is connected to a post contact 28 shown on the proximal end 22 of the body 18 and which in turn is connected during use to the electrical control system 16. The wire 26 extends inside the body 18 to first ring contact 24A in turn formed by several turns of wire on the surface of the body 18. The wire again enters the body 18 beyond the contact 24A and reemerges at the next ring contact 24B also formed by several additional turns of the wire. The third and fourth ring contacts 24C and 24D are similarly formed and connected to one another by the wire inside the body. Thus, the four electrode contacts are connected in series and formed from a single length of wire. Typically, each of the ring contacts may be 0.2 inch in length and they may be spaced one inch apart. The wire may typically be 24 gauge. The distal end 30 of the body is provided with a smooth rounded tip 31 which will slide smoothly down the esophagus or guide tube (if used).
When the electrode 10 is used to stimulate breathing, the distal end 30 is positioned so that the several ring contacts 24 lie in the lower third of the esophagus. The stop 20 ensures proper positioning of the electrode.
The external electrodes 12 and 14 are identical and may be like those used in electrocardiogram machines. Each includes a flat circular pad 32 with a post contact 34 on its upper surface connected to electrical contact 36 on its lower surface. A conducting gelatin is applied to the contact 36 when in use to make good electrical contact with the patient's skin. The under surface of the pads 32 may also carry an adhesive to secure the electrodes in place on the patient's chest on each side, in the region of the fourth ribs. The post contacts 34 may be engaged- by snaps 38 which connect the electrodes 12 and 14 to the electrical circuit 16.
The control circuit 16 for impressing a pulsed electrical stimulation across the electrodes is shown in FIG. 4. The circuit includes switch 40 and a battery 42 in circuit with a voltage divider 44 which enables the operator to select the desired current to be delivered. For the safety of the patient, a current limiting circuit represented by box 46 is connected across the output of the voltage divider. A pulse generator 47 powered from the main source 42 converts the direct current selected into a pulsing D.C. current. With controls 47A and 47B, the duration or "on" period of each pulse and the "off" period between the pulses ma be selected Typically, the "on" period of each pulse will be between 0.1-0.3 milliseconds and the "off" period will be from 1.0 millisecond to 2.0 milliseconds. This pattern is shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 7. A saw tooth generator in the form of a motor driven continuously rotating potentiometer 48 is connected across the voltage divider to produce the saw tooth signals shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. This signal may be processed through the polarity reverser 62 which is also powered from the main source if it is desired to reverse the polarity of the stimulations as suggested, for example, in FIG. 6. The internal electrode 10 and external electrodes 12 and 14 in turn ar connected to the output of the polarity reverser 62.
Using short 0.1 millisecond pulses, the heart cells are not activated, so heart arrhythmia or other heart malfunctions are not induced. The ramp configuration of the electrical stimulation is composed of a train of voltage pulses, each 0.1 millisecond in duration followed by an "off" or zero voltage period of 1 millisecond, the first voltage pulse is of very low amplitude with each succeeding pulse increasing in amplitude for a total period of time of approximately 2.0 seconds, at which time the voltage, having increased in linear fashion, will be approximately 70 volts. All stimulation then ceases for approximately 3 seconds at which time the stimulation cycle is repeated, preferably in a reversed polarity from the preceeding stimulation as suggested in the diagram of FIG. 6.
The foregoing describes a stimulation rate of twelve ventilations per minute with a voltage of 70 volts. Of course, if other ventillation rates and voltages are required, they are available from the instrument.
The ramp configuration of short duration pulses is efficient for stimulating the nerves and muscles associated with breathing. The patient breathes in a manner duplicating normal breathing; i.e.--the chest smoothly expands creating negative pressure in the lungs, and the ambient pressure air fills the lungs. When the electrical stimulation ceases, the muscles return the chest and lungs to the normal position exhaling the air.
If nerves and muscles are electrically stimulated only with a positive voltage, after a short period of time, their response diminishes, because it appears that they gradually assimilate a little of the charge and do not return to zero. The charge continues to build up so that more voltage is required to maintain control, and within a few minutes control may be lost. The same is true if only negative voltage is used. However, if the polarity is reversed at each cycle the muscles or nerves are forced to discharge the small assimilated charge as part of its acceptance of the new reversed voltage. The muscles and nerves may then be continuously stimulated with maximum effect.
In accordance with the present invention, as the pulses of each stimulation pass between the internal and external electrodes, the thoracic activity expands to create a negative pressure, and inspiration occurs. Between stimulations, the muscles relax to cause exhalation. This normal way of breathing does not inhibit blood flow in the lungs and to the heart.
In accordance with the method of this invention, the electrical stimulation is directed between an internal electrode placed in the esophagus and external electrodes placed on the chest in the region of the fourth ribs, and the charge serves to stimulate the diaphragm muscles so as to cause the lungs to expand. This technique is practiced without requiring any surgical procedure and therefore may be conducted by a paramedic. As the system is portable, the procedure may be carried out at any location. It does not require large, heavy equipment such as oxygen bottles, etc. The person administering the care may very quickly insert the internal electrode in place, affix the external electrodes at the desired locations and activate the pulsing circuit by closing the switch.
Having described this invention in detail, those skilled in the art will appreciate that numerous modifications may be made of this invention without departing from its spirit. Therefore, it is not intended that the scope of this invention be limited to the specific embodiment illustrated and described. Rather, the scope of the invention is to be determined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
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A method of stimulating breathing which comprises the steps of positioning a non-invasive internal electrode in the esophagus and two external electrodes on the chest. A pulsed stimulation of approximately two seconds duration is interposed across the electrodes with a magnitude of the successive pulses in each stimulation increasing linearly. An interval of approximately three seconds is interposed between successive stimulations. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the polarity of successive electrical stimulations is reversed.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/979,689, entitled “Plunger Storage and Transportation Device,” filed Oct. 12, 2007 by the same inventors of the present application, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the field of plumbing plunger storage and transportation devices, and more specifically relates to plunger storage and transportation devices that accept and hold a variety of manufactured plungers of varying sizes and shapes.
BACKGROUND
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Households, stores, and industries usually have a plumbing plunger for use in the event of a blockage in a drain (e.g., in a toilet, sink, etc.) Such plungers are also kept by the plumbing industry, and can be of many varying sizes. A typical plunger generally includes a head in the shape of a cup (usually made of a flexible material, such as rubber or plastic) and an elongate, rigid shaft attached to, and extending from, the plunger head. In use, the plunger head is pushed down against a drain, and either pressed hard into the drain to force air in, or is pushed down until the head is flattened, and then pulled out, causing a vacuum. The intent is to loosen or break up a clog, excessive material, or other blockage. In many households, stores, and other locations, the plunger is stored in open view because of the difficulty of finding a location where a used plunger can be placed without liquid draining from the plunger, thereby causing unsanitary contamination or some other type of damage. Further, many people are reluctant to pick up and transport a plunger to another room after use due to the likelihood of the plunger dripping liquid. In addition, the relatively large size of the typical plunger makes it difficult to store in homes, stores, industries, or other locations that have limited storage space.
Further, when dealing with various drain problems, it is convenient for the plunger to be stored close to the drain. Sometimes drain blockages can result in overflow, causing water damage, odorous contamination, mold formation, bacterial growth, or other types of damage or unsanitary conditions. Because such overflows can happen quickly, storage of the plunger in an easily accessible location is desirous. However, the plunger head is considered unsightly by many, and may be contaminated with materials due to its use. As a result, many homeowners and storeowners do not keep the plunger in an accessible location, but rather keep it out of sight, where it is not easily accessible. Further, when the plunger is kept within reach of a drain, it may be within view of users, customers, etc. and have an unsightly appearance, be malodorous, etc., thereby contributing to the perception of the drain, and perhaps the business itself, as being unsanitary.
Further, plungers are commonly perceived to be unsanitary because it is likely they have come into close contact with unsanitary substances (such as toilet bowl liquids or drain pipe liquids). Consequently, plungers are a habitat for disease germs, and people do not want plungers to be close by or within their view. As a result, the plunger needs to be in an accessible location, but without the unsightly appearance or unsanitary conditions. Further, a problem arises in that plungers may often be needed to be transported from one location to another, but there is no sanitary and rapid manner to store and transport the plunger.
Further, depending on the type, size, and/or location of the drain, different plungers may be employed. These various plungers come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. Thus, a business or industry may need to keep several different plunges on hand. However, storage and transportation devices generally do not accept most or all of the wide variety of plunges. Alternatively, if a single size, shape, or styles of plunger is kept in a house, business, industry, etc., it would be laborious to find a storage and transportation device that specifically matches that plunger. Containers for storing and transporting plumbing plungers and related articles have previously been developed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,951,281 (issued to Jeffery on Oct. 4, 2005), U.S. Pat. No. 7,185,759 (issued to Rich on Mar. 6, 2007), U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,700 (issued to Rudnick on Aug. 5, 2003), and U.S. Pat. No. 6,038,709 (issued to Kent on Mar. 21, 2000) disclose plunger storage devices. However, they include drawbacks in that they do not allow for storage and/or transportation of a multitude of plungers produced by a wide variety of manufactures, having varying sizes, shapes, and styles.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Certain exemplary aspects of the invention are set forth below. It should be understood that these aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief summary of certain forms the invention might take and that these aspects are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Indeed, the invention may encompass a variety of aspects that may not be explicitly set forth below.
One aspect of the present invention includes a plunger storage and transportation device that is adapted to store, hold, and secure, and is capable of storing, holding, and securing, many different sizes, shapes, and styles of plungers. The device can be easily transported from one location to another while securing a plunger in a contained, clean, and easy manner. Accordingly, the plunger storage and transportation device may be used with, and can transport, a multitude of different plungers produced by a wide variety of plunger manufacturers, and therefore not be limited to one type or size of plunger.
In particular, the plunger storage and transportation device includes structure that secures at least the plunger head within a housing. For example, such structure may include multiple indentations in a housing that assist in securing the plunger in place. Thus, a first embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device may include a housing having at least one side wall defining an interior compartment, and a plurality of indentations associated with the at least one side wall and extending inwardly into the interior compartment of the housing. The indentations may provide resistance to hold varying plungers, as well as hold the plunger head in place during transport, but also allow for removal of the plunger as the user, using an upward pulling motion while holding the plunger neck, exerts enough pressure on the indentations to remove the plunger. Further, the at least one side wall may taper inwardly from a first end (being an open end through which the plunger is inserted) toward a second end of the housing, the second end being opposite the first end. The taper of the side wall may also, or alternatively, assist in maintaining the plunger head within the housing during storage and/or transport. For example, in a cylindrical device having a tapered side wall, the diameter of the interior compartment will be larger near the first end and smaller near the second end. Thus, plungers having a plunger head of a smaller diameter will be inserted further into the interior compartment (i.e., closer to the second end) before contacting the side wall, than plungers having a plunger head of a larger diameter. The contact force and friction between the side wall and the plunger head may assist in maintaining the plunger head within the housing.
Alternatively, in a second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device, the plunger head may be placed within an interior compartment defined by a side wall of a housing, and an opening at a first end of the housing may be closed off by a lid. The housing may include structure that complements the lid in order to ensure that the lid is securely fastened thereto. Thus, the device may include (1) a housing having at least one side wall defining an interior compartment, and an outer rim defining an opening at a first end of the housing, wherein the at least one side wall extends from the first end toward a second end of the housing, the second end being opposite the first end; (2) a plurality of lid retaining members on the at least one side wall and extending inwardly into the interior compartment of the housing; and (3) a flexible and removable lid adapted to confront at least two of the plurality of lid retaining members.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the general description of the invention given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the present invention.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a plunger storage and transportation device made in accordance with the principles of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a top view of the first embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the first embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device of FIG. 1 taken along line 3 - 3 of FIG. 2 .
FIG. 4 is a side view of the first embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device of FIG. 1 illustrating a plunger used in combination with the plunger storage and transportation device.
FIG. 5 is a side view in partial cross section of a second embodiment of a plunger storage and transportation device according to the principles of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a top view of a plunger retaining lid used as part of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device of FIG. 5 .
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device of FIG. 5 , taken along line 7 - 7 of FIG. 5 .
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device according to the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device, taken along line 9 - 9 of FIG. 8 , and illustrating a plunger inserted into the device.
FIG. 10 is a side view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device according to the present invention.
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device, illustrating a common plunger inserted into the device.
FIG. 12 is a top view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device.
FIG. 13 is a top view of the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device, illustrating the front half of the device removed and a plunger inserted into the device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
One or more specific embodiments of the present invention will be described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these embodiments, not all features of an actual implementation may be described in the specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.
Referring to FIGS. 1-4 , a first embodiment of a plunger storage and transportation device 10 in accordance with the principles of the present invention is shown. In particular, the plunger storage and transportation device 10 includes a housing 12 having at least one side wall 14 defining an interior compartment 16 , and a plurality of indentations 18 associated with the at least one side wall 14 and extending inwardly into the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 . As will be described in greater detail below, the indentations 18 provide enough resistance to hold varying plungers, as well as hold the plunger head in place during transport, but also allow for removal of the plunger as the user, using an upward pulling motion while holding the plunger neck, exerts enough pressure on the indentations 18 to remove the plunger. Further, the device 10 may include an outer rim 20 defining an opening 22 at a first end 24 of the housing 12 , the opening 22 being adapted to receive a plunger head as it is inserted into the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 . Further, a portion of the at least one side wall 14 that defines the interior compartment 16 may taper inwardly from a point at or proximal to the first end 24 of the housing 12 toward a second end 26 of the housing 12 , the second end 26 being opposite the first end 24 . Thus, cross sections of the interior compartment 16 taken perpendicular to a longitudinal axis 28 of the housing 12 grow progressively smaller in area as one moves in a direction from the first end 24 of the housing 10 toward the second end 26 of the housing 10 . As will be described in greater detail below, the taper of the side wall 14 also contributes to the ability of the device 10 to accept and retain varying sizes, shapes, and styles of plungers.
More specifically, FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 . The plunger storage and transportation device 10 includes an outwardly flared rim at, and defining, the top opening 22 at the first end 24 of the device 10 (see also FIGS. 3 and 4 ). The housing 12 , in the illustrated embodiment, has a generally cylindrical shape which is open at the first end 24 , and closed at the second end 26 , whereby the cylindrical side wall 14 extends from the first end 24 in a direction toward the second end 26 for a distance which is sufficient to accommodate a variety of existing plunger products. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment, the portion of the side wall 14 including the taper defines the interior compartment 16 . Further, the taper of the cylindrical side wall 14 is part of the design of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 that allows for acceptance and retention of a number of different sizes of plunger products. When used in combination with the device of the present invention, the plunger may be held within the device 10 due to a contact and confrontation between the plunger head (and particularly the outer edge, e.g., the circumference, thereof) with the interior surface of the side wall 14 of the device 10 . Thus, plungers having plunger heads of a smaller diameter or size will be positioned within the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 and closer to the second end of the side wall 14 in order to cause a contact between the plunger head and side wall 14 , while plungers of larger diameter or sized plunger heads may be retained nearer the first end of the cylindrical side wall 14 of the device 10 .
Further, and referring to FIGS. 1 , 2 , and 3 , the illustrated embodiment includes a plurality of indentations 18 associated with the side wall 14 of the housing 12 . The plurality of indentations 18 assists in accepting and securing a plunger within the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 . In the illustrated embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 , each indentation 18 of the plurality of indentations 18 includes an arcuate surface 30 . As will be described in greater detail below, as a plunger head is inserted into an interior compartment 16 of the device 10 , the arcuate surface 30 of the indentations 18 may allow for greater ease of moving the plunger head, and particularly an outer edge portion thereof, past the plurality of indentations 18 , in that the curvilinear shape of the arcuate surface 30 results in a protrusion into the interior compartment 16 that does not include any ledge perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the device, which might act as a stop against the plunger head. However, as will be recognized by those of skill in the art, an arcuate surface 30 is not necessary to the present invention, and thus the indentations 18 may have other shapes. Further, as can be seen from the illustrated embodiment and as described above, the plurality of indentations 18 may be molded as a part of the cylindrical side wall 14 of the housing 12 . However, as will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art, the indentations 18 do not need to be molded monolithically with the side wall 14 of the device 10 , but rather may be a separate component that is affixed to the interior surface of the side wall 14 of the device 10 .
In one embodiment, each indentation 18 of the plurality of indentations 18 may be coplanar with each of the other indentations 18 of the plurality of indentations 18 . Thus, a plurality of indentations 18 may be spaced equidistant from one another and in the same plane around the circumference of the cylindrical side wall 14 of the illustrated embodiment. However, as will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, it is not necessary that the indentations 18 that lie in the same plane be equidistant from one another about the interior surface of the side wall 14 .
Additionally or alternatively, and referring particularly to FIGS. 1 and 3 , the plurality of indentations 18 may include at least a first subset 32 of indentations 18 and a second subset 34 of indentations 18 . In such an embodiment, each indentation 18 of the first subset 32 of indentations 18 is coplanar with each of the other indentations 18 of the first subset 32 of indentations 18 along a first plane, and each indentation 18 of the second subset 34 of indentations 18 is coplanar with each of the other indentations 18 of the second subset 34 of indentations 18 along a second plane, with the second plane not being coplanar with the first plane. Although not shown in the figures, there may be additional (i.e., third, fourth, fifth) subsets of indentations that each lie in their own planes, which are separate from the first and second planes. Further, as can be seen in the illustrated embodiment (see FIG. 2 ), there are five such indentations 18 located in one plane around the circumference of the side wall 14 . However, as will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, five is not a required number of indentations 18 to the invention, and there is no particular number of indentations which is necessary to the invention of the present application. Further, while a plurality of indentations is shown, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that an indentation may be a continuous ring about the interior compartment.
Referring now to FIG. 4 , a plunger 36 is shown in combination with the first embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 . As can be seen, the plunger 36 is positioned within the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 , with the plunger head 38 being substantially surrounded by the side wall 14 of the device 10 , and the elongate rigid handle 40 of the plunger 36 extending outwardly from the open first end 24 of the device 10 . As the plunger head 38 is inserted into the device 10 through the open first end 24 thereof, a portion of the outer circumference or edge 42 of the plunger head 38 will eventually come into contact with the side wall 14 and/or at least some of the plurality of indentations 18 of the device 10 . The illustrated embodiment of the device 10 in FIG. 4 includes first and second subsets 32 , 34 of indentations 18 , wherein the indentations 18 of the first subset 32 are coplanar with one another. When the plunger 36 in the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 is inserted into the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 , the portion of the outer circumference or edge 42 of the plunger 36 will eventually come into contact with an upper portion 44 of some of the indentations 18 . With a continued insertion force applied to the plunger 36 (i.e., a downward force in the illustrated embodiment), the flexible plunger head 38 will flex so as to push past those indentations 18 . Once the portion of the circumference or edge 42 of the plunger head 38 has moved past the first subset 32 of indentations 18 in the illustrated embodiment, it will flex back to its substantially original shape, and be disposed beneath a lower portion 46 of the first subset 32 of indentations 18 . In this position, the plunger 36 of the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 is held within the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 with sufficient force such that grasping the handle and lifting the plunger 36 will not be sufficient force to remove the plunger 36 from the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 (i.e., will not be sufficient to move it in an upward direction past the first subset 32 of indentations 18 ). Rather, the device 10 will lift with the plunger 36 such that the plunger 36 may be transported within the device 10 .
While not illustrated, it will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that, alternatively, a plunger having a smaller circumference or sized plunger head than that illustrated in FIG. 4 could be inserted into the device 10 such that it would push past the second subset 34 of indentations 18 to be held within the device 10 (in the same manner as described above). Further, as will be recognized by those skilled in the art, while the plunger head 38 of the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 appears to be insinuated between the first subset 32 and second subset 34 of indentations 18 , it is not necessary for such an insinuation to be present in order for the plunger 36 to be sufficiently held within the device 10 . Finally, it will be recognized by those of skill in the art that while the first and second subset 32 , 34 of indentations 18 in the illustrated embodiment are useful for helping to retain the plunger 36 within the device 10 , the plunger 36 may also be held in the device 10 by a sufficient grip between the tapered side wall 14 and the plunger head 38 itself, or by both the tapered side wall 14 and indentations 18 .
Referring to FIGS. 1 , 3 , and 4 , proximal to the portion of the interior compartment 16 that is opposite the first end 24 of the housing 12 , the side wall 14 curves inwardly in a concave shape 48 (in the illustrated embodiment) towards the longitudinal axis 28 of the housing 10 . This region of the side wall 14 defines a drainage shaft 50 in the housing 12 that allows for drainage of any liquids or other substances introduced into the housing 12 , and prevents pooling of the liquids and other substances in the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 . The drainage shaft 50 is fluidly connected to a base 52 of the device 10 , which has a circular closed bottom surface 54 in the illustrated embodiment. The drainage shaft 50 connects the interior compartment 16 to the base 52 , which allows for liquids, and other substances, to pool in the base 52 . Because the liquids and other substances pool in the base 52 , they can drain off of the plunger 36 , out of the interior compartment 16 , through the drainage shaft 50 , and into the base 52 . Thus, when the plunger 36 is removed from the device 10 for its next use, no liquids or other substances are removed from the device 10 along with the plunger 36 . Further, the base 52 may include a drainage port (not shown in the illustrated embodiment), which can be opened or closed, and in an open position can be used to remove the liquids and other substances from the base 52 .
Further, the side wall 14 , at the area of the drainage shaft 50 (i.e., the concave portion in the illustrated embodiment) includes a plurality of ventilation openings 56 . These ventilation openings 56 allow for airflow between the outside of the device 10 and the inside of the device 10 at or near the drainage shaft 50 to assist drying of the plunger 36 , which further assists in reducing and preventing mildew and other contamination. In alternate embodiments, the ventilation openings 56 may also include filters (not shown in the illustrated embodiment). As an example, each of the ventilation openings 56 may be covered by or may contain an air permeable and water impermeable filter. Such a filter allows airflow between the outside and the inside of the device 10 in order to assist in drying of the plunger 36 and prevention of mildew and other contaminants, while not allowing the passage of water, other liquids, or other substances therethrough. Thus, any water or other substances contained in the base 52 would be prevented from spilling out of the ventilation openings 56 .
Further, the base 52 of the device 10 provides a foot step region 58 that assists in removal of a plunger 36 from the device 10 . In particular, the foot step region 58 provides enough space to allow a user to step on the base 52 of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 (with one or both feet). In particular, the concave shape 48 of the drainage shaft 50 (on the first embodiment) allows room for a user's foot to be placed on the base 52 while removing a plunger 36 from the device 10 . The diameter of the foot step region 58 may be the same as the outwardly flared rim 20 at the top opening 22 of the device 10 . As shown in the illustrated embodiment, the base 52 is circular. However, in alternate embodiments, squared-off edges may be included on the foot step region 58 located on opposing sides at 180 degrees, allowing for the plunger storage and transportation device 10 to be placed on its side in a horizontal position.
Referring now to FIGS. 5-13 (where like numbers are used to designate like components), a second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 is shown. In this second embodiment, the device 10 includes a housing 12 having at least one side wall 14 defining an interior compartment 16 , and an outer rim 20 defining an opening 22 at a first end 24 of the housing 12 , wherein the at least one side wall 14 extends from the first end 24 toward a second end 26 of the housing 12 , the second end 26 being opposite the first end 24 ; a plurality of lid retaining members 60 on the at least one side wall 14 and extending inwardly into the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 ; and a flexible lid 62 adapted to confront at least two of the plurality of lid retaining members 60 .
The housing 12 , in the illustrated embodiment (as seen particularly in FIGS. 8 , 9 , and 12 ), has a side wall 14 that is open at the first end 24 , and closed proximal the second end 26 . Further, a portion of the side wall 14 that defines an interior compartment 16 is generally cylindrical (in the illustrated embodiment) and extends from the first end 24 in a direction toward the second end 26 for a distance which is sufficient to accommodate a variety of existing plunger products. The flexible lid 62 (see FIGS. 6 , 9 , 12 , and 13 ) has a round, planar shape that is slightly smaller in diameter than the interior diameter of the housing 12 . The lid retaining members 60 that position the lid 62 may be embodied as a lip or edge that runs around the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 in a continuous manner. Alternatively, the lid retaining members 60 may be provided around the interior compartment 16 in a noncontinuous manner, such as tabs.
The lid position can be adjusted up or down within the housing 12 , to accommodate the height of a wide variety of plunger devices. The plunger retaining lid 62 has a center opening 64 that is slightly larger than the diameter of a common plunger handle, through which the plunger handle 40 will protrude when the plunger 36 is in the stored position. The plunger retaining lid 62 may have a plurality of segments 66 that may be embodied as separate segments of flexible material, or may be connected along the edges by folds of excess material, which allows for the segments 66 to be urged downward and apart when the plunger 36 is being inserted into the housing 12 , while maintaining a continuous seal that prevents any upward splashing of liquids during use or transport. The flexible lid 62 will have sufficient resistance to the insertion and removal of the plunger 36 so that a user is compelled to step on the foot step base region 52 of the housing 12 to hold the housing 12 in position while removing the plunger 36 . This resistance will allow a user to pick up and carry the plunger 36 and the housing 12 as a single unit, by the plunger handle, without pulling the plunger 36 out of the housing 12 .
Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 11 , the plurality of lid retaining members 60 can be seen in greater detail. In one embodiment of the present invention, each lid retaining member 60 of the plurality of lid retaining members 60 may be coplanar with each of the other lid retaining members 60 of the plurality of lid retaining members 60 . Thus, the plurality of lid retaining members 60 may be spaced equidistant from one another and in the same plane around the circumference of the side wall 14 of the illustrated embodiment. However, as will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, it is not necessary that the lid retaining members 60 that lie in the same plane be equidistant from one another about the interior surface of the side wall 14 . Further, as can be seen from the illustrated embodiment, the plurality of lid retaining members 60 may be molded as a part of the side wall 14 of the housing 12 . However, as will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art, the lid retaining members 60 do not need to be molded monolithically with the side wall 14 of the device 10 , but rather may be a separate component that is affixed to the interior surface of the side wall 14 of the device 10 .
Additionally or alternatively, the plurality of lid retaining members 60 may include at least a first subset 76 of lid retaining members 60 and a second subset 78 of lid retaining members 60 . In such an embodiment, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 11 , each lid retaining member 60 of the first subset 76 is coplanar with each of the other lid retaining members 60 of the first subset 76 along a first plane, and each lid retaining member 60 of the second subset 78 is coplanar with each of the other lid retaining members 60 of the second subset 78 along a second plane, wherein the second plane is not coplanar with the first plane. Thus, with particular reference to FIG. 11 , the first and second subsets 76 , 78 of lid retaining members 60 are positioned such that the outer circumference of the lid 62 can be insinuated between the first subset 76 and second subset 78 of lid retaining members 60 in order to hold the lid 62 at varying heights along the side wall 14 of the device 10 . Further, there may be additional (i.e., third, fourth, fifth, sixth) subsets of lid retaining members 60 that each lie in their own planes, which are separate from the first and second planes.
Thus, and referring now to FIGS. 9 and 11 , a plunger 36 is shown in combination with the second embodiment of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 . As can be seen, the plunger 36 is positioned within the interior compartment 16 of the device 10 , with the plunger head 38 being substantially surrounded by the side wall 14 of the device 10 , and the elongate rigid handle of the plunger 36 extending outwardly from the open first end of the device 10 . As the plunger head 38 is inserted into the device 10 through the open first end thereof, the plunger head 38 may eventually contact the side wall 14 or will eventually contact a lower region of the interior compartment 16 , thereby defining the maximum distance that the plunger head 38 can be inserted into the device 10 . Once in this position, the lid 62 is then positioned relative to the plunger 36 with the elongate and rigid handle of the plunger 36 extending through the central orifice 64 of the lid 62 . The lid 62 is then pressed downwardly into the interior compartment 16 until it engages between first and second subsets 76 , 78 of lid retaining members 60 . In particular, as the lid 62 is pressed down, it is either flexible and/or segmented, and so can move around the top surface of the first subset 76 of lid retaining members 60 in order to insinuate between the first and second subset 76 , 78 of lid retaining members 60 . The lid retaining members 60 are intended to locate and secure the position of the plunger retaining lid 62 , and are disposed at the interior surface of the cylindrical vertical wall 70 of the housing 12 , and may be arrayed in a variety of patterns around the interior 16 of the housing 12 to locate and secure the lid 62 into position.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that alternate methods of attaching, affixing, or securing into position the plunger retaining lid may be used, including, but not limited in use to, screws, bolts, resistive notches, clips, clasps, and other methods of attaching, affixing, or securing well known to those skilled in the art.
Proximal to the portion of the interior compartment 16 that is opposite the first end 24 of the housing 12 , the side wall 14 includes a tapering component 68 that tapers toward the longitudinal axis 28 of the housing 12 for a distance which is less than the radius of the housing 12 , at an angle which, in the illustrated embodiment, is less than 90 degrees, thereby creating a funnel shape at the interior of the housing 12 , which will allow for drainage and prevent pooling of liquids that may be introduced into the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 . Beneath the tapered component 68 (i.e., opposite the interior component 16 ), the side wall 14 then extends downward a distance, in a manner which is parallel to the main cylindrical housing 12 (in the illustrated embodiment), thereby creating a vertical cylindrical wall 70 , which is smaller in diameter than the housing 12 defining the interior compartment 16 . This defines a drainage shaft 50 in the housing 12 that allows for drainage of any liquids or other substances introduced into the housing 12 and prevents pooling of the liquids and other substances in the interior compartment 16 of the housing 12 . The vertical cylindrical wall 70 , and thus the drainage shaft 50 , connects to a base 52 , which, in the illustrated embodiment, has a square planar bottom surface 72 , and four planar side surfaces 74 that extend upward from the bottom surface 72 and inward towards the center of the housing 12 at an angle which is less than 90 degrees. The drainage shaft 50 connects the interior compartment 16 to the base 52 , which allows for liquids, and other substances, to pool in the base 52 . Because the liquids and other substances pool in the base 52 , they can drain off the plunger 36 , out of the interior compartment 16 , through the drainage shaft 50 , and into the base 52 . Thus, when the plunger 36 is removed from the device 10 for its next use, no liquids or other substances are removed from the device 10 along with the plunger 36 . Further, the base 52 may include a drainage port (not shown in the illustrated embodiment), which can be opened or closed, and in an open position, can be used to remove the liquids and other substances from the base 52 .
The housing 12 includes one or a plurality of ventilation openings 56 that allow for air displacement to occur, thereby reducing the collection of unpleasant odors within the housing 12 . First and second ventilation openings 80 , 82 , in the illustrated embodiment, are disposed at the side wall surface of the housing 12 on opposing sides of the housing 12 proximal to the interior compartment 16 . Third and fourth ventilation openings 84 , 86 are disposed at the angled planar side surfaces 74 of the drainage base 52 and foot step region 58 on opposing sides of the unit. In alternate embodiments, the ventilation openings 56 may also include filters (not shown in the illustrated embodiment). As an example, each of the ventilation openings 56 may be covered by or may contain an air permeable and water impermeable filter. Such a filter allows airflow between the outside and the inside of the device 10 in order to assist in drawing plunger 36 and prevention of mildew and other contaminants, while not allowing the passage of water, other liquids, or other substances therethrough. Thus, any water or other substances contained in the base 52 would be prevented from spilling out of the ventilation openings 56 .
It will be understood by those skilled in the art that many of the features of the illustrated first and second embodiments of the plunger storage and transportation device 10 are merely exemplary. For example, while the figures depict the device 10 being used in an upright position, the device 10 may be designed for use in either a vertical upright position, or in a horizontal, or lying-down position. Further, alternate embodiments of the invention may comprise a housing 12 having a variety of different shapes, such as triangular, rectangular, octagonal, oval, semicircular, and other shapes not referred to herein.
Those skilled in the art will further recognize that the sizes, such as overall height and width of the device 10 , may be embodied to suit specific type or styles of plumbing plungers while performing the use and function disclosed herein.
Further, the present invention may be made of a variety of a materials that allow the product to perform the function disclosed herein, including but not limited in use to, metals such as stainless steel, steel, aluminum, as well as synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products or plastics, rubbers, recycled materials, and other materials well known to those skilled in the art.
Additionally, while the figures depict a particular number of ventilation openings 56 in the first and second embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that alternate embodiments of the invention may comprise fewer or more ventilation openings that may be embodied in a variety of sizes and shapes to allow for proper ventilation of the unit during use.
Further, in alternate embodiments, the device 10 may comprise features that will act to alter the odor or bacteria levels in and around the invention during use or nonuse periods, including scented features that may be embodied as a spray, tablet, or scented pad that is placed inside, or affixed to, the interior 16 of the housing 12 or the drainage region 50 of the base 52 and will act to continuously or periodically release a scent or fragrance into the air to alter, mask or cover the odors within and around the plunger container, thereby acting as a deodorizer.
Further, the device may include ultraviolet lights at the interior of the housing 12 which will act to kill bacteria at the interior of the main body housing 12 or drainage region 50 of the invention in a continuous or periodic manner by allowing the user to turn on and off the ultraviolet light feature as desired, or by emitting a burst or quantity of ultraviolet light into the interior environment as directed by the user by means of a variety of switches or buttons that may be hand or foot operated.
While the present invention has been disclosed by reference to the details of preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the disclosure is intended as an illustrative rather than in a limiting sense, as it is contemplated that modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art, within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the amended claims.
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A plunger storage and transportation device that is adapted to store, hold, and secure, and is capable of storing, holding, and securing, many different sizes, shapes, and styles of plungers. The plunger storage and transportation device includes structure that secures at least the plunger head within a housing. The device can be easily transported from one location to another while securing a plunger in a contained, clean, and easy manner. Accordingly, the plunger storage and transportation device may be used with, and can transport, a multitude of different plungers produced by a wide variety of plunger manufacturers, and therefore not be limited to one type or size of plunger.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides a cable system for connecting a rear view camera to the vehicle 12 volt DC system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Rear view camera assemblies for use with vehicles have been disclosed in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,432,446 to Son discloses a monitoring camera assembly which includes a camera portion and a rear housing. The camera portion for sensing image of a object behind a vehicle including a camera body, a camera lens, and two rotational axles. The rear housing is installed on the license plate and supports the camera body, a first mechanical fastening device for fastening the front housing to the license plate is provided.
The camera body and lens is secured to two front housings in a manner such that if the camera fails and needs to be replaced, a time consuming and costly effort is required. Further, the connector diameter is of a size that makes it difficult for a connection to be made from the vehicle rear view mirror to the rear view camera assembly. Further, the prior art typically uses a RCA connector having a diameter size of 12 mm and being adapted to connect only a video signal to the monitor.
What is desired is to provide a vehicle rear view camera assembly wherein a failed camera can be simply replaced without exchanging the entire wire harness and wherein the connector cable is relatively small in diameter.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a connector for connecting both a power source and the vehicle rear view mirror or dashboard monitor to a camera mounted to the rear end of a vehicle and positioned adjacent the vehicle license plate using a metal bracket. The size of the connector is significantly reduced from that available in the prior art which allows installers of the camera to easily form a small hole through the vehicle body and route the wire from the rear view mirror, or monitor, within the vehicle cabin to the camera.
This arrangement provided by the small diameter connector (typically 5 mm in diameter) cable enables a faulty camera to be easily removed and replaced with a cable that combines power and video lines (leads).
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention as well as other objects and further features thereof, reference is made to the following description which is to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing therein:
FIG. 1 is a simplified view of a vehicle wherein the connector system of the present invention is utilized;
FIG. 2 is a simplified schematic illustrating how the rear view mirror is connected to the rear view camera;
FIG. 3 is a view of the connector portions connected together;
FIG. 4 is a view of the connector showing the two connector portions disconnected;
FIG. 5 illustrates the connector assembly of the present invention; and
FIG. 6 ( a ) illustrates connected wire pairs; FIG. 6 ( b ) illustrates disconnected wire pairs; and FIG. 6 ( c ) illustrates a conventional image for a rearview camera.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to FIG. 1 , a simplified representation of a modern vehicle 10 is illustrated. In this figure, a dashboard mounted monitor 13 is shown for illustrative purposes, outside the vehicle 10 . The image shown on the screen on monitor 13 is provided by backup camera 14 , the camera having a lens 15 (note that the vehicle rearview mirror can combine the conventional mirror function with display monitor 13 for use with backup rear view camera 14 ). In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, a smart cable 16 , with combined power and video lines, connects 12 volt DC vehicle battery 18 to monitor portion 13 via lead 20 and connector 22 . Portion 24 of cable 16 is utilized to couple battery 18 to both backup camera 14 and to couple the video images detected thereby to monitor 13 , whether positioned on the dashboard or formed as part of the rearview mirror assembly.
FIG. 2 is a schematic illustrating the electrical connections provided by the cable 16 of the present invention. A connector 30 comprises a 3.3V output portion 32 (shown in more detail in FIG. 3 ) and a 3.3V input portion 34 (shown in more detail in FIG. 4 ). An in-line voltage reducer 36 provides a stabilized 3.3V DC voltage to drive camera 14 by reducing the 12V output from battery 18 . The output cable portion 36 comprises two wire pairs, 38 and 40 . Wire pair 38 provides the video signals to drive rearview mirror monitor 13 (or a monitor mounted on the vehicle dashboard). Pair 38 comprises leads 42 and 44 which are selectably connected together at the time camera 14 is installed. When the leads are disconnected, monitor 13 illustrates a reverse image; when connected together, a standard image is presented on monitor 13 . Pair 40 comprises leads 46 and 48 which are selectably connected or disconnected at the time camera 14 is installed. When leads 46 and 48 are connected together, the standard parking guide image is not shown on monitor 13 ; when disconnected, the parking guide image is viewable on monitor 13 .
FIG. 3 is a view of the connector 30 (a mini DIN connector) with output portion 32 and input portion 34 connected together and FIG. 4 is a view of the camera input plug 34 (a mini DIN connector) spaced apart from output portion 32 . Output portion 34 is connected to cable 50 (the standard DIN connector is an electrical cable that plugs into an interface to connect devices. It comprises multiple pins within a circular protective sheath; the Mini-DIN was developed to avoid possible misconnections to a mating component).
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the connector assembly 60 of the present invention. Assembly 60 comprises an elongated wire harness 62 having lead 64 which connects camera 14 to monitor 13 , a lead 66 connecting power wire 68 to monitor 13 . Clip 70 is coupled to the vehicle battery 18 , battery 18 powering monitor 13 and back-up camera 14 (via leads 16 and 22 as shown in FIG. 1 ).
FIG. 6( a ) illustrates wires 42 and 44 of pair 38 and wires 46 and 48 of pair 36 connected together, the first pair connection enabling a standard image 79 to appear on monitor 13 , the conventional rearview image 80 (shown in FIG. 6( c ) ) not appearing (note this occurs when the vehicle gear is in the reverse position). When the wires in pairs 36 and 38 are not connected as shown in FIG. 6( b ) , the image shown in FIG. 6( c ) appears on the screen of monitor 13 . When the vehicle gear is not in reverse, the monitor shows a blank image.
The camera 14 is preferably mounted either on the bottom side of the vehicle trunk lid or on the face side of the rear trunk lid. The camera can be secured to the lid using a double sided adhesive tape or by drilling into the deck lid with short sheet material screws.
As noted hereinabove, monitor 13 can be part of a rearview mirror system which also incorporates a standard rearview mirror. An example of this is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 8,717,521 issued on May 6, 2014 to Philip Maeda, the teachings thereof necessary for an understanding of the present invention being incorporated herein by reference.
The cable described hereinabove is considered “smart” in that it incorporates power and ground leads (lines) which are activated when the vehicle is in reverse gear (or when the reverse lights are on), a video connector and a trigger line to connect monitor (display unit) 13 . The video and power signals are provided to monitor 13 via a single cable line.
While the invention has been described with reference to its preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from its essential teachings.
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A cable including a connector for connecting a vehicle rearview mirror monitor or a vehicle dashboard monitor to a camera connected to the rear of the vehicle. The cable has a smaller diameter than those currently available and includes wires for controlling a number of vehicle functions. A single cable wire provides both power and video signals to the monitor.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application is a divisional application of application Ser. No. 11/782,234, filed Jul. 24, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,543,383 issued on Jun. 9, 2009.
TECHNICAL FIELD
The application relates generally to gas turbine engine combustors and, more particularly, to a method of manufacturing a fuel nozzle floating collar therefor.
BACKGROUND OF THE ART
Gas turbine combustors are typically provided with floating collar assemblies or seals to permit relative radial or lateral motion between the combustor and the fuel nozzle while minimizing leakage therebetween. Machined floating collars are expensive to manufacture at least partly due to the need for an anti-rotating tang or the like to prevent rotation of the collar about the fuel nozzle tip. This anti-rotation feature usually prevents the part from being simply turned requiring relatively expensive milling operations and results in relatively large amount of scrap material during machining.
There is thus a need for further improvements in the manufacture of fuel nozzle floating collars.
SUMMARY
In one aspect, there is provided a method of manufacturing a floating collar adapted to be slidably engaged on a fuel nozzle for providing a sealing interface between the fuel nozzle and a combustor wall, the method comprising: metal injection moulding a generally cylindrical part having an axis, a collar portion and a sacrificial portion, the sacrificial portion including at least a shoulder projecting radially inwardly from one end of said collar portion along an inner circumferential wall of the collar portion, the shoulder and the circumferential wall defining a corner, and while the cylindrical part is still in a substantially dry green condition, forming a chamfer at said one end of said collar portion on an inside diameter of the collar portion by applying axially opposed shear forces on opposed sides of the corner to shear off the sacrificial portion from said collar portion along a shearing line extending angularly outwardly from said corner.
In a second aspect, there is provided a method for manufacturing a floating collar adapted to provide a sealing interface between a fuel nozzle and a gas turbine engine combustor, comprising: a) metal injection moulding a green part including a floating collar portion and a feed inlet portion, the feed inlet portion bearing injection marks corresponding to the points of injection, b) separating the feed inlet portion from the floating collar portion to obtain a floating collar free of any injection marks, and c) debinding and sintering the floating collar portion
Further details of these and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from the detailed description and figures included below.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Reference is now made to the accompanying figures depicting aspects of the present invention, in which:
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a gas turbine engine having an annular combustor;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a dome portion of the combustor illustrating a floating collar slidably mounted about a fuel nozzle tip and axially trapped between a heat shield and a combustor dome panel;
FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the floating collar shown in FIG. 2 ;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a mould used to form the floating collar;
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the moulded green part obtained from the metal injection moulding operation, the feed inlet material to be discarded being shown in dotted lines;
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional schematic view illustrating how the moulded green part is sheared to separate the collar from the material to be discarded; and
FIG. 7 is a cross-section view of the collar after the shearing operation, the sheared surface forming a chamfer on the inside diameter of the collar.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 illustrates a gas turbine engine 10 of a type preferably provided for use in subsonic flight, generally comprising in serial flow communication a fan 12 through which ambient air is propelled, a multistage compressor 14 for pressurizing the air, a combustor 16 in which the compressed air is mixed with fuel and ignited for generating an annular stream of hot combustion gases, and a turbine section 18 for extracting energy from the combustion gases.
The combustor 16 is housed in a plenum 17 supplied with compressed air from compressor 14 . The combustor 16 has a reverse flow annular combustor shell 20 including a radially inner liner 20 a and a radially outer liner 20 b defining a combustion chamber 21 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the combustor shell 20 has a bulkhead or inlet dome portion 22 including an annular end wall or dome panel 22 a . A plurality of circumferentially distributed dome heat shields (only one being shown at 24 ) are mounted inside the combustor 16 to protect the dome panel 22 a from the high temperatures in the combustion chamber 21 . The heat shields 24 can be provided in the form of high temperature resistant casting-made arcuate segments assembled end-to-end to form a continuous 360° annular band on the inner surface of the dome panel 22 a . Each heat shield 24 has a plurality of threaded studs 25 extending from a back face thereof and through corresponding mounting holes defined in the dome panel 22 a . Fasteners, such as self-locking nuts 27 , are threadably engaged on the studs from outside of the combustor 16 for securely mounting the dome heat shields 24 to the dome panel 22 a . As shown in FIG. 2 , the heat shields 24 are spaced from the dome panel 22 a by a distance of about 0.1 inch so as to define an air gap 29 . In use, cooling air is admitted in the air gap 29 via impingement holes (not shown) defined though the dome panel 22 a in order to cool down the heat shields 24 .
A plurality of circumferentially distributed nozzle openings (only one being shown at 26 ) are defined in the dome panel 22 a for receiving a corresponding plurality of air swirler fuel nozzles (only one being shown at 28 ) adapted to deliver a fuel-air mixture to the combustion chamber 21 . A corresponding central circular hole 30 is defined in each of the heat shields 24 and is aligned with a corresponding fuel nozzle opening 26 for accommodating an associated fuel nozzle 28 therein. The fuel nozzles 28 can be of the type generally described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,289,676 or 6,082,113, for example, and which are incorporated herein by reference.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , each fuel nozzle 28 is associated with a floating collar 32 to facilitate fuel nozzle engagement with minimum air leakage while maintaining relative movement of the combustor 16 and the fuel nozzle 28 . Each floating collar 32 comprises an axially extending cylindrical portion 36 and a radially extending flange portion 34 integrally provided at a front end of the axially extending cylindrical portion 36 . The axially extending cylindrical portion 36 defines a central passage 35 for allowing the collar 32 to be axially slidably engaged on the tip portion of the fuel nozzle 28 . First and second inner diameter chamfers 37 and 39 are provided at opposed ends of the collar 32 to eliminate any sharp edges that could interfere with the sliding movement of the collar 32 on the fuel nozzle 28 . The chamfers 37 and 39 extend all around the inner circumference of the collar 32 . The radially extending flange portion 34 is axially sandwiched in the air gap 29 between the heat shield 24 and the dome panel 22 a . An anti-rotation tang 38 extends radially from flange portion 34 for engagement in a corresponding slot (not shown) defined in a rearwardly projecting surface of the heat shield 24 .
As can be appreciated from FIG. 4 , the floating collar 32 can be produced by metal injection moulding (MIM). The MIM process is preferred as being a cost-effective method of forming precise net-shape metal components. The MIM process eliminates costly secondary machining operations. The manufacturing costs can thus be reduced. The floating collar 32 is made from a high temperature resistant powder injection moulding composition. Such a composition can include powder metal alloys, such as IN625 Nickel alloy, or ceramic powders or mixtures thereof mixed with an appropriate binding agent. Other high temperature resistant compositions could be used as well. Other additives may be present in the composition to enhance the mechanical properties of the floating collar (e.g. coupling and strength enhancing agents).
As shown in FIG. 4 , the molten metal slurry used to form the floating collar 32 is injected in a mould assembly 40 comprising a one-piece male part 42 axially insertable into a two-piece female part 44 . The metal slurry is injected in a mould cavity 46 defined between the male part 42 and the female part 44 . The gap between the male and female parts 42 and 44 corresponds to the desired thickness of the walls of the floating collar 32 . The female part 44 is preferably provided in the form of two separable semi-cylindrical halves 44 a and 44 b to permit easy unmoulding of the moulded green part.
The male part 42 has a disc-shaped portion 48 , an intermediate cylindrical portion 50 projecting axially centrally from the disc-shaped portion 48 and a terminal frusto-conical portion 52 projecting axially centrally from the intermediate cylindrical portion 50 and tapering in a direction away from the intermediate cylindrical portion 50 . An annular chamfer 54 is defined in the male part 42 between the disc-shaped portion 48 and the intermediate cylindrical portion 50 . The annular chamfer 54 is provided to form the inner diameter chamfer 39 of the collar 32 . An annular shoulder 56 is defined between the intermediate cylindrical portion 50 and the bottom frusto-conical portion 52 .
The female part 44 defines a central stepped cavity including a rear shallow disc-like shaped cavity 58 , a cylindrical intermediate cavity 60 and a front or feed inlet cylindrical cavity 62 . The disc-like shaped cavity 58 , the intermediate cavity 60 and the feed cavity 62 are aligned along a central common axis A. The disc-like shaped cavity 58 has a diameter d 1 greater than the diameter d 2 of the intermediate cavity 60 . Diameter d 2 is, in turn, greater than the diameter d 3 of the feed cavity 62 . The disc-like shaped cavity 58 , the intermediate cavity 60 and the feed cavity 62 are respectively circumscribed by concentric cylindrical sidewalls 64 , 66 and 68 . First and second axially spaced-apart annular shoulders 70 and 72 are respectively provided between the disc-like cavity 58 and the intermediate cavity 60 , and the intermediate cavity 60 and the front cavity 62 .
After the male part 42 and the female part 44 have been inserted into one another with a peripheral portion of the disc-like shaped portion 48 of the male part 42 sealingly abutting against a corresponding annular surface 74 of the female part 44 , the mould cavity 46 is filled with the feedstock (i.e. the metal slurry) by injecting the feedstock axially endwise though the feed cavity 62 about the frusto-conical portion 52 , as depicted by arrows 74 .
After a predetermined setting period, the mould assembly 40 is opened to reveal the moulded green part shown in FIG. 5 . The moulded green part comprises a floating collar portion 32 ′ and a sacrificial or “discardeable” feed inlet portion 76 (shown in dotted lines) to be separated from the collar portion 32 ′ and discarded. As can be appreciated from FIG. 5 , the collar portion 32 ′ has a built-in flange 34 ′ and an inner diameter chamfer 39 ′ respectively corresponding to flange 34 and chamfer 39 on the finished collar product shown in FIG. 3 , but still missed the inner diameter chamfer 37 at the opposed end of the floating collar. As will be seen hereinafter, the chamfer 37 is subsequently formed by separating the sacrificial portion 76 from the collar portion 32 ′.
In the illustrated example, the sacrificial feed inlet portion 76 comprises a shoulder 78 extending radially inwardly from one end of the collar portion 32 ′ opposite to flange 34 ′ and an axially projecting hollow cylindrical part 80 . The shoulder 78 extends all around the entire inner circumference of the collar portion 32 ′. The shoulder 78 and the cylindrical wall 81 of the collar portion 32 ′ define a sharp inner corner 82 . The sharp inner corner 82 is a high stress concentration region where the moulded green part will first start to crack if a sufficient load is applied on shoulder 78 . Also can be appreciated from FIG. 5 , the thickness T 1 of the shoulder 78 is less than the wall thickness T 2 of the collar portion 32 ′. The shoulder 78 is thus weaker than the cylindrical wall 81 of the collar 32 ′, thereby providing a suitable “frangible” or “breakable” area for separating the sacrificial feed inlet portion 76 from the collar portion 32 ′.
As schematically shown in FIG. 6 , the sacrificial feed inlet portion 76 can be separated from the collar portion 32 ′ by shearing. The shearing operation is preferably conducted while the part is still in a dry green state. In this state, the part is brittle and can therefore be broken into pieces using relatively small forces. As schematically depicted by arrows 84 and 86 , the moulded green part is uniformly circumferentially supported underneath flange 34 ′ and shoulder 78 . An axially downward load 88 is applied at right angles on the inner shoulder 78 uniformly all along the circumference thereof. A conventional flat headed punch (not shown) can be used to apply load 88 . The load 88 or shearing force is applied next to inner corner 82 and is calibrated to shear off the sacrificial portion 80 from the collar portion 32 ′. As shown in dotted lines in FIG. 6 , the crack initiates from the corner 88 due to high stress concentration and extends angularly outwardly towards the outer support 86 at an angle θ comprised between 40-50 degrees, thereby leaving a sheared chamfer 37 ′ (see FIG. 7 ) on the inner diameter of the separated collar portion 32 ′. The shear angle θ can be adjusted by changing the diameter of the outer support 86 . For instance, if the diameter of the outer support 86 is reduced so as to be closer to the inner corner 82 , the shear angle θ will increase. Accordingly, the location of the intended shear line can be predetermined to consistently and repeatedly obtain the desired inner chamfer at the end of the MIM floating collars. This avoids expensive secondary machining operations to form chamfer 37 . The sheared chamfer 37 has a surface finish which is a rougher than a machined or moulded surface, but is designed to remain within the prescribed tolerances. There is thus no need to smooth out the surface finish of the sheared chamfer 37 . Also, since the sacrificial portion 76 bears the injection marks left in the moulded part at the points of injection, there is no need for secondary machining of the remaining collar portion 32 ′ in order to remove the injection marks.
Once separated from the collar portion 32 ′, the sacrificial feed inlet portion 76 can be recycled by mixing with the next batch of metal slurry. The remaining collar portion 32 ′ obtained from the shearing operation is shown in FIG. 7 and is then subject to conventional debinding and sintering operations in order to obtain the final net shape part shown in FIG. 3 .
The above description is meant to be exemplary only, and one skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made to the embodiments described without departing from the scope of the invention disclosed. For example, a line of weakening could be integrally moulded into the part or cut into the surface of the moulded part to provide a stress concentration region or frangible interconnection between the portion to be discarded and the floating collar portion. Also, it is understood that the part to be discarded could have various configurations and is thus limited to the configuration exemplified in FIGS. 5 and 6 . Still other modifications which fall within the scope of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, in light of a review of this disclosure, and such modifications are intended to fall within the appended claims.
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A floating collar is metal injected molded with an excess portion intended to be separated, such as by shearing, from the reminder of the molded floating collar to leave a chamfer thereon and/or remove injection marks.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to novel fluoro dimethicone copolyol ester compounds in which the fluoro group is attached to the silicon atom through a fatty group by means of an ester linkage, and a water-soluble group is connected to a different silicon atom. This invention also relates a series of such products having differing amounts of water-soluble groups, silicone soluble groups fatty soluble groups and fluoro-soluble groups. By careful selection of the compounds so constructed, very efficient mild conditioning agents may be achieved.
2. Description of the Arts
There have been several fluoro silicone compounds disclosed in the art. They include U.S. Pat. No.5,446,114 to O'Lenick issued August 1995. This patent teaches that “the compounds of the invention are prepared by reacting a silanic hydrogen containing silicone polymer with a vinyl containing fluoro compound and an allyl alcohol alkoxylate.” This results in a molecule with two functional groups water soluble groups and fluoro groups, both independently linked to a different silicon atom.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,038 to O'Lenick issued December 1995 teaches that “compounds of the invention are prepared by reacting a silanic hydrogen containing silicone polymer with a vinyl containing fluoro compound alpha olefin”. This results in a molecule with two functional groups alkyl groups and fluoro groups, both independently linked to a different silicon atom.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,087,517 to O'Lenick issued July 2000, teaches “the invention relates to a series of novel silicone fluorinated dimethicone copolyol phosphates. The compounds of the invention are prepared by reacting a fluoro dimethicone copolyol disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,144 with a suitable phosphating agent.” This invention introduces a phosphate group onto the hydroxyl functional group of the compounds of U.S. 5,446,144. This results in a molecule with two functional groups alkyl groups and fluoro groups, both independently linked to a different silicon atom.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,008,397 to O'Lenick, issued Dec. 28, 1999, “discloses novel fluoro esters made by reacting (a) a carboxy silicone, and (b) the hydroxyl group of fluoro alcohol.” The compounds of the '397 invention contain short linking groups derived from anhydrides and link the fluoro group through the water soluble group to one silicon atom.
We have surprisingly found that products made by the reaction of silicone methyl ester having 11 carbon atoms directly with the fluoro group, having the water soluble group on another silicon atom results in a fluoro-fatty silicone dimethicone copolyol. The compounds give unique emulsification properties with fluoro and fatty compounds or both, and have an outstanding gloss when applied to the skin.
We have also surprisingly found that by having a bulky alkyl group linked to silicone, unique skin feel and conditioning properties result. The compounds of the prior art have the ester moiety linked through a water-soluble polyoxyalkylene group, resulting in a surface-active agent with different properties than the compounds of the present invention. The compounds linked through the polyoxyalkylene group are less efficient emulsifiers and do not provide the same degree of conditioning to the skin.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed toward the providing a series of novel silicone compounds that have a C-11 alkyl group linked through an ester linkage to a fluoro group and a silicon atom on opposite ends of the molecule. One side of the C11 is linked through a carbon silicon bond and on the other end of the C11 group is linked a fluoro group. A water-soluble hydroxyl groups are likewise linked directly to another silicon group.
The compounds of the present invention have the formula:
wherein;
a is an integer ranging from 0 to 2000;
b is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
c is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
d is an integer ranging from 0 to 20;
n is an integer ranging from 10 to 20;
x is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
y is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
z is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
R 1 is
CF 3 —(CF 2 ) m —CH 2 CH 2 —O—;
m is an integer ranging from 3 to 18.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Objective of the Invention
It is the object of the present invention is the provision of a series of novel silicone compounds that have specific hydrophilic ester groups linked through an 11-carbon linkage directly to silicon in a dimethicone backbone
Detailed Description of the Invention
The compounds of the present invention conform to the formula;
wherein;
a is an integer ranging from 0 to 2000;
b is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
c is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
d is an integer ranging from 0 to 20;
n is an integer ranging from 10 to 20;
x is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
y is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
z is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
R 1 is
CF 3 —(CF2) m —CH 2 CH 2 —O—;
m is an integer ranging from 3 to 18.
The products are made by reacting the following compounds with fluoro alcohols to give the compounds of the present invention.
wherein;
a is an integer ranging from 0 to 2000;
b is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
c is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
d is an integer ranging from 0 to 20;
n is an integer ranging from 10 to 20;
x is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
y is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
z is an integer ranging 0 to 20.
The methyl ester is prepared by the hydrosilylation reaction of a silicone polymer and specific alpha vinyl compounds.
wherein;
a is an integer ranging from 0 to 2000;
b is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
c is an integer ranging from 1 to 20;
d is an integer ranging from 0 to 20;
n is an integer ranging from 10 to 20;
x is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
y is an integer ranging 0 to 20;
z is an integer ranging 0 to 20.
The preparation of the intermediate is critical to the synthesis of the compounds of the present invention. If one tries to hydrosilylate a carboxylic acid directly, the reaction fails. The carboxylic acid group reacts with the Si—H and the desired product is not achieved. The hydrosilylation using the methyl ester however is essentially quantitative and proceeds to give the desired product.
Preferred Embodiments
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set d is 0.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set d is an integer ranging from 1 to 20.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set b in an integer ranging from 1 to 5.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set b is an integer ranging from 6 to 20.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set c is an integer ranging from 1 to 5.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set c in an integer ranging from 6 to 20.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set a is an integer ranging from 1 to 5.
In a preferred embodiment of the silicone polymer set a in an integer ranging from 6 to 20.
EXAMPLES
Raw Materials
Polymer Synthesis
Preparation of Silanic Hydrogen Containing Intermediates
Silicone intermediates of t he type used to make the compounds of this invention are well known to those skilled in the art. International Publication (Silicone Alkylene Oxide Copolymers As Foam Control Agents) WO 86/0541 by Paul Austin (Sep. 25, 1986) p. 16 (examples 1 to 6) teaches how to make the following intermediates, and is incorporated herein by reference.
Hydrosilylation
Silanic Hydrogen Containing Compounds (Comb Type)
The polymers used as raw materials are known to those skilled in the art and conform to the following structure:
Compounds of this type are available from Siltech Corporation Toronto Ontario Canada.
Average
Austin
Molecular
Equivalent
Example
Example
a
b
Weight
Molecular
1
1
20
3
1,850
551
2
4
160
5
24,158
4,831
3
6
20
10
2,258
225
Compounds of this type arc also available commercially from Siltech Corporation Toronto Ontario Canada. The structures were determined using silicone nmr and the chemistries were described using experimentally determined structures. Trade names are given merely for reference.
Example
Siltech Name
a
b
4
Siltech D-116
9
4
5
Siltech H-345
22
5
6
Siltech C-106
50
10
7
Siltech ZZ-302
70
20
8
Siltech XX-456
50
60
9
Siltech J-456
10
20
10
Siltech G-456
0
60
2. Methyl Undecylenate
Example 11
Methyl undecylenate is an item of commerce and conforms to the following structure:
CH 2 ═CH(CH 2 ) 8 —C(O)OCH 3
As previously stated, the reaction requires the reaction of an ester, not the acid directly. The reason fur this is that is the reaction is conducted using undecylenic acid the acid group reacts with the Si—H and does not give the desired product. This is a critical unappreciated step in the practice of this technology.
3. Alkoxylated Allyl Alcohols
Alkoxylated allyl alcohol conforms to the following structure:
CH 2 ═CH—CH 2 —(CH 2 CH 2 —O) x —(CH 2 CHCH 3 O)yH
wherein x and y are integers independently ranging from 0 to 20.
Compounds of this type are also available commercially from Siltech Corporation Toronto Ontario Canada. The structures were determine using carbon nmr and wet analysis. The chemistries were described using experimentally determined structures. Trade names are given merely for reference.
Example
x
y
12
0
0
13
8
0
14
20
20
15
16
8
16
5
5
17
25
25
18
12
6
19
9
9
20
0
9
4. Alpha Olefin
Alpha olefins are items of commerce and are available from a variety of sources including Chevron. They conform to the following structure:
CH 2 ═CH (CH 2 ) 5 CH3
s is an integer ranging from 3 to 50 and is equal to n−2.
Example
s
21
8
22
10
23
12
24
14
25
18
Hydrosilylation
The hydrosilylation used to make the compounds of this invention is well known to those skilled in the art. One of many references is International Publication (Silicone Alkylene Oxide Copolymers As Foam Control Agents) WO 86/0541 by Paul Austin (Sep. 25, 1986) p. 19.
General Reaction Process (Hydrosilylation)
To a suitable flask fitted with a mechanical agitator, thermometer with a Therm-o-watch temperature regulator, nitrogen sparge tube vented reflux condenser and heating mantle is added the specified quantity of methyl undecylenate (11), allyl alcohol alkoxylates (examples 12-20), and alpha olefin (examples 21-25) examples. Next is added the specified number of grams of the specified hydrosilylation intermediate (Example # 1-10) and isopropanol. The temperature is increased to 85 C and 3.5 ml of 3% H2PtCl6 in ethanol is added. An exotherm is noted to about 95 C, while the contents are stirred for about 2 hours. During this time silanic hydrogen concentration drops to nil. Cool to 65 C and slowly add 60 g of sodium bicarbonate allow to mix overnight and filter through a 4-micron pad. Distill off any solvent at 100 C and 1 torr.
Example 26
To a suitable flask fitted with a mechanical agitator, thermometer with a Therm-o-watch temperature regulator, nitrogen sparge tube vented reflux condenser and heating mantle is added 200.0 grams of methyl undecylenate (example 11), 915.4 grams of allyl alcohol alkoxylate (example 16), 1687.7 grams of hydrosilylation intermediate (Example # 15) and 750 grams of isopropanol. Heat to 85 C and add 3.5 ml of 3 % H 2 PtCl6 in ethanol. An exotherm is noted to about 95 C, while the contents are stirred for about 2 hours During this time silanic hydrogen concentration drops to nil. Cool to 65 C and slowly add 60 g of sodium bicarbonate allow to mix overnight and filter through a 4-micron pad. Distill off any solvent at 100 C and 1 torr.
Examples 26-55
Silanic Polymer
Example 11
Allyl Alkoxylate
Alpha Olefin
Example
Example
Grams
Grams
Example
Grams
Example
Grams
26
1
2600.8
281.0
12
165.2
21
0
27
2
2617.0
42.0
13
348.1
21
0
28
3
497.1
218.0
14
2321.2
21
0
29
4
703.4
129.5
15
2188.6
21
0
30
5
1522.5
286.4
16
1238.7
21
0
31
6
522.7
46.1
17
2438.9
21
0
32
7
423.0
63.6
18
2524.0
21
0
33
8
387.3
102.1
19
2527.6
21
0
34
9
543.5
254.2
20
2244.7
21
0
35
10
1360.6
710.0
12
1046.6
21
0
36
1
2064.2
222.7
13
463.5
21
286.6
37
2
1942.5
31.1
14
991.7
22
39.9
38
3
691.9
121.3
15
2050.9
23
156.1
39
4
1223.6
225.2
16
1298.7
24
289.8
40
5
607.9
57.2
17
2270.9
25
73.6
41
6
1229.4
108.4
18
1540.8
21
139.4
42
7
886.1
80.0
19
1978.8
22
68.5
43
8
581.7
77.0
20
2255.8
23
98.6
44
9
1589.3
445.5
12
656.4
24
382.5
45
10
429.1
112.1
13
2333.2
25
144.3
46
1
1261.7
136.2
14
1449.7
21
175.2
47
2
2430.1
39.0
15
437.6
22
99.9
48
3
1038.5
182.2
16
1575.3
23
234.4
49
4
478.9
88.2
17
2334.1
24
113.4
50
5
1182.4
111.2
18
1581.8
25
143.1
51
6
1201.7
105.0
19
1573.8
21
136.3
52
7
1209.9
109.8
20
1605.6
22
93.6
53
8
˜1799.5
237.1
12
697.9
23
305.0
54
9
665.1
124.4
13
2071.2
24
160.1
55
10
123.1
64.3
14
2740.5
25
82.8
56
4
1066.0
197.0
13
1228.0
21
0
57
4
534.0
197.0
13
409.0
21
0
58
4
355.0
197.0
13
136.0
21
0
Ester Preparation of Examples 26-58
The compounds made in examples 26-58 are methyl esters as prepared. They are reacted with fatty alcohols to produce the ester of the present invention. The reaction is as follows;
Raw Material Fluoro Alcohols
Fluoro Alcohols
Fluorine containing alcohols are commercially available from a variety of suppliers, most importantly Hoeschst Celanese and DuPonte Performance Products Division. They conform to the following structure;
CF 3 —(CF 2 ) m CH 2 CH 2 OH
Reactant Example
Number
m Value
1
3
2
5
3
7
4
9
5
11
6
13
7
15
8
17
Example 59-91
In a suitable flask equipped with a thermometer, heating mantle, and a condenser to remove methanol is added the specified amount of the specified silicone methyl ester is added the specified number grams of the specified alcohol (Examples Raw Material Example 1-Raw Material Example 8). The reaction mass is heated to 190° C to 200° C. The reaction begins at about 170° C. Allow the methanol to distill off as the reaction proceeds. After the reaction progress is followed by hydroxyl value which meets theoretical within 12 hours.
Raw Material Alcohols
Methyl Ester
Raw
Example
Example
Grams
Material Example Number
Grams
59
26
3047.0
1
264.0
60
27
3007.1
2
364.0
61
28
947.2
3
464.0
62
29
3021.5
4
564.0
63
30
3047.6
5
664.0
64
31
3007.7
6
764.0
65
32
3028.6
7
864.0
66
33
3016.4
8
964.0
67
34
3042.4
1
280.0
68
35
3117.2
2
380.0
69
36
3038.0
3
480.0
70
37
3005.3
4
580.0
71
38
3020.1
5
680.0
72
39
3037.6
6
780.0
73
40
3008.1
7
880.0
74
41
3017.8
8
980.0
75
42
3013.1
7
864.0
76
43
3012.7
6
764.0
77
44
3072.8
5
664.0
78
45
3018.2
4
564.0
79
46
3020.0
3
464.0
80
47
819.0
2
364.0
81
48
3029.7
1
264.0
82
49
3014.0
8
1000.0
83
50
3018.6
7
900.0
84
51
3106.7
6
800.0
85
52
3018.0
5
700.0
86
53
3038.6
4
600.0
87
54
3020.0
3
500.0
88
55
3010.5
6
774.0
89
56
2492.0
5
664.0
90
57
1140.0
4
564.0
91
58
688.0
3
464.0
Applications Examples
The compounds of the present invention are clear liquids when molten. Some are liquid at ambient temperatures, others are waxy solids, depending upon the specific raw materials used for reaction. They make very thin films when applied to substrates including fiber, hair and skin. They are highly lubricious.
The compound of the present invention are very substantive to substrates like hair, skin and fiber. They provide a highly lubricious coating to these substrates. This suggests their use in personal care products like make up and other pigmented products. The compounds will also help disperse pigment and consequently can added to the pigment grind to make uniform particles.
While the invention has been described in terms of various preferred embodiments, the skilled artisan will appreciate that various modifications, substitutions, omissions, and changes may be made without departing from the spirit thereof. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of the present invention be limited solely by the scope of the following claims, equivalents thereof.
|
The present invention relates to novel dimethicone copolyol ester compounds bearing a fluoro group attached through a hydrophobic ester linkage to silicon. This invention also relates a series of such products having differing amounts of water-soluble groups, silicone soluble groups and fatty soluble groups. By careful selection of the compounds so constructed, very efficient mild conditioning agents may be achieved.
| 2
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to a system and a method for generating hydroelectric power. More particularly, it relates to a system and a method of lifting water from a water source from a relatively lower position to a relatively raise position utilizing siphonic action and channeling the water from the relatively raised position down to a turbine driven generator.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Increases in population and technological advancements have created an unprecedented demand for new sources of energy. The use of traditional sources of energy such as coal and oil are resulting in the gradual depletion of natural resources as well as the release of harmful pollutants into the environment. The use of nuclear energy carries multiple risks including those associated with the disposal of nuclear waste byproducts. Alternative sources such as solar power and wind power have not proven to be reliable sources of energy.
Hydroelectric energy is a safer and a more cost effective form of energy. Hydroelectric power generally involves the use of falling water to drive turbines which in turn drive generators to generate electricity. While conventional hydroelectric power generation has typically depended on the availability of running water, many prior art systems have attempted to employ static water as a source to generate hydroelectric power.
One such prior art system, is disclosed in UK Patent Application GB 2 238 832 A. The prior art system disclosed raises water via a plurality of tanks and channels the water down to drive a generator. Each of the water tanks is positioned in increasingly elevated positions on individual base stands. A pipe extends from a box structure submerged below a water source to the first water tank. The pipe includes a descending portion below the water surface and a water lifting portion which rises steeply from below the water source up into the first water tank. A branch pipe extends from the descending portion of the pipe. An air compressor is connected to the free end of the branch pipe. The air compressor is used to initialize the flow velocity of the water through the pipe. In addition, if the flow of water through the pipe slows down, the air compressor is operated to increase the flow velocity of the water to the desired velocity. Similar pipes are provided between the other water tanks to successively raise the water from tank to tank. Each of these pipes includes a descending portion extending from the source water tank and a water lifting portion for lifting the water into the next higher water tank. Air compressors are connected to the branch portions of the pipes and operated to initialize the flow velocity of water through the pipes. The air compressors are then operated on a periodic basis to maintain the flow velocity of the water through the pipes. The water collected in the highest water tank is channeled down to a power generator turbine. A pump can also be provided in each pipe for accelerating the flow of water through the water lifting portion of the pipes.
Another prior art system, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,855,860, consists generally of a number of cascaded water tanks and a plurality of siphon pipes. Each siphon pipe generally consists of an inlet tube, a horizontal pipe section and a lower leg pipe section. The inlet tube of the first siphon pipe has a lower end submerged in a fluid source and an upper end which extends through the first water tank. The inlet tube is in fluid connection with the horizontal pipe extending horizontally above the water tank. The lower level leg pipe has an upper end connected to the end of the horizontal pipe and a lower end connected to a vacuum source. The vacuum source is used to initiate the flow of water through the siphon pipe. In addition, a quantity of air is injected into the siphon pipe so that more water flows into the siphon tube than flows out of the siphon tube. The extra volume of water in the siphon tube is diverted to and captured in the first tank. Similar siphon pipes are used to raise water to successively higher water tanks. At each level, the extra volume of water in the siphon pipe is captured in the water tanks. Pre-designated fluid levels are maintained in each of the water tanks.
Each of these prior art systems include complex valves and compressed air drive fluids to promote or sustain siphoning and siphoning flow rates. Compressed air systems are notoriously difficult to monitor and maintain. Pressurized lines and couplings tend to wear out or to leak and have to replaced often. To overcome the shortcomings of the prior art devices, a new and improved water lifting system based on siphoning which does not require the use of compressed air drive fluids is desired.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved apparatus for lifting water or other fluids based on siphons.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method and system for lifting water which further employs the raised water to generate highly efficient, clean and low cost hydroelectric energy,
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with these and other objects, the present invention provides, in an embodiment, a new and improved apparatus and method for lifting water or other fluid from a first relatively lower position to a second relatively raised position. More particularly, the new and improved method of lifting a fluid from a relatively lower position to a second relatively raised position involves the steps of moving fluid in a generally upward direction stepwise from a lowermost tier to an uppermost tier in a plurality of stacked tiers. The fluid from the fluid source is initially upwardly siphoned to the lowermost tier. The fluid from the lower tier is then upwardly siphoned to a next adjacent higher tier.
The method of lifting water may include siphoning fluid from a fluid source to a receiving vessel in the lowermost tier. The fluid in the receiving vessel may be collected into a staging vessel. The fluid in the staging vessel may then be siphoned into a receiving vessel in an upper tier and then collected from the receiving vessel in the upper tier into a staging vessel in the same tier.
The method of lifting fluid may further include the step of initiating the siphoning of the fluid from the fluid source. The method may also include initiating siphoning of fluid into a receiving vessel in an upper tier from a staging vessel in a lower tier. The pressure in the receiving vessels may be slightly reduced for a selected period of time to initiate the siphoning flow. Alternatively, the receiving vessels and the staging vessels may be filled with fluid to desired starting fill levels.
A transfer conduit extending from a bottom of each receiving vessel to the bottom of each staging vessel in the same tier may be provided. The rate of flow of fluid from the receiving vessel into the staging vessel may be selectively variably controlled.
The method of lifting water may further include submerging the lower source end of the source siphon conduit in the fluid source and discharging the fluid from the fluid source into the receiving vessel in the lowermost tier via the source siphon conduit. The fluid entering the inlet opening of the source siphon conduit may be filtered.
The transfer siphon conduit may include an upper discharge opening and a lower inlet opening. The upper discharge opening may be positioned in fluid communication with the receiving vessel in the next upper tier and the lower inlet opening may be submerged in the fluid present in the staging vessel disposed in the next adjacent lower tier.
The liquid level in the receiving vessel and the liquid level in the staging vessel in the same tier may be maintained at a selected liquid level differential. The liquid level in the receiving vessel and in the staging vessel may be monitored.
The new and improved apparatus for lifting water from a relatively lower position to a second relatively raised position includes a plurality of tiers including a lowermost tier and at least one upper tier, a source siphon conduit and at least one transfer siphon conduit. Each tier includes a receiving vessel and a staging vessel. The receiving vessel is in fluid communication with a staging vessel. The source siphon conduit siphons fluid from a fluid source into the receiving vessel disposed in the lowermost tier. The transfer siphon conduit functions to siphon fluid into a receiving vessel in an upper tier from a staging vessel in the next adjacent lower tier.
The apparatus may include a means for commencing the siphoning flow through the source siphon conduit and the transfer siphon conduit. At least one vacuum or evacuation pump may used to initially slightly reduce the pressure in the receiving vessel for a selected period of time to initiate the flow through the siphon conduits.
A transfer conduit extending from the bottom end of the receiving vessel to the bottom end of the adjacent staging vessel may be used to provide the fluid connection between the vessels. A one-way flow valve may be provided in the transfer conduit to ensure that the fluid flows from the receiving vessel into the staging vessel. A means may be included to selectively variably control the rate of flow of fluid from the receiving vessel into the staging vessel.
The source siphon conduit and the transfer siphon conduit may each include a lifting leg portion and a relatively longer angled arm portion cantilevered from the lifting leg portion. The lifting leg portion may terminate in an inlet opening while the angled arm portion may terminate in a discharge opening. The inlet opening of the source siphon conduit may be submerged in the fluid source which the discharge opening may be placed in fluid communication with the receiving vessel in the lowermost tier. A filter may be used to filter the fluid entering the inlet opening of the source siphon conduit. The upper discharge opening of the transfer siphon conduit may be placed in fluid communication with the receiving vessel in an upper tier while the lower inlet opening may be submerged in the fluid present in the staging vessel in the next adjacent lower tier.
A means may be provided for filling the receiving vessels and the staging vessels to desired starting fill levels. Each of the receiving vessels and each of the staging vessels may be provided with a liquid level sensor for sensing the liquid level in each respective vessel. A controller may be used to maintain a selected liquid level differential between the liquid level in the receiving vessel and the liquid level in the staging vessel in each tier. The receiving vessels used may be airtight vessels.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an elevated side view of the siphon hydroelectric generator of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the siphon hydroelectric generator of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 4 is an elevated cross-sectional side view of the siphon hydroelectric generator of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 5 is an elevated cross-sectional side view of a single tier of the siphon hydroelectric generator of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 6 is a flow chart outlining the operation of a controller for regulating the operation of the siphon hydroelectric generator of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 7 is a front plan view of an alternate embodiment of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator having multiple siphon conduits feeding each adjacent higher tier in accordance with the principles of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a top plan view of an alternate embodiment of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator having multiple discharge conduits for channeling the water collected in the uppermost tier to multiple generators.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 , a preferred embodiment of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator in accordance with the principles of the present invention is generally designated as 10 . Siphon hydroelectric generator 10 generally includes a water lifting unit 12 and a power generation unit 14 . Water lifting unit 12 lifts water from a water source 16 , such as for example a reservoir. The water is then channeled via a discharge conduit 15 from a raised position down to power generation unit 14 which produces electrical power. The water discharged by power generation unit 14 is returned to water source 16 via a return conduit 18 .
Water lifting unit 12 generally includes a plurality of stacked tiers of vessels 20 , support structures 22 for supporting the tiers of vessels 20 and a number of siphon conduits 24 . Stacked tiers 20 include a lowermost tier 30 , an uppermost tier 32 and a number of intermediate tiers 34 . Although three intermediate tiers 34 are shown in FIGS. 1-3, a fewer number of or a greater number of intermediate tiers 34 may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention.
Lowermost tier 30 and each of the intermediate tiers 34 of water lifting unit 12 includes a receiving vessel 40 and a staging vessel 42 . In a preferred embodiment, both receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 are airtight vessels. Receiving vessel 40 in each tier 20 is in one-way fluid communication with adjacent staging vessel 42 in the same tier 20 such that water can only flow from receiving vessel 40 to staging vessel 42 . The water from a lower adjacent tier 20 is collected into receiving vessel 40 . The water collected in receiving vessel 40 is channeled to adjacent staging vessel 42 . The water in staging vessel 42 is then siphoned into receiving vessel 40 disposed in the next adjacent higher tier 20 . Uppermost tier 32 includes only an uppermost receiving vessel 44 .
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the receiving vessels 40 are generally airtight and are generally cube shaped. Receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 having height, width and length dimensions of approximately ten feet each. Receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 are preferably constructed from a reinforced concrete, coated concrete or engineering polymer materials. Receiving vessels and staging vessels having alternative shapes, such as for example circular vessels, or alternative height, width and length dimensions may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention.
Support structures 22 are used to support receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 in each successive tier 20 in increasingly elevated positions. In a preferred embodiment, support structures 22 are constructed from steel, however, support structures constructed from other materials, such as for example wood or engineering polymers, are also considered to be within the scope of the invention.
The siphon conduits 24 include a source siphon conduit 46 and a number of transfer siphon conduits 48 . Source siphon conduit 46 is used to siphon water from water source 16 to receiving vessel 40 in lowermost tier 20 . Transfer siphon conduits 48 are used to siphon water from staging vessel 42 in lower tier 20 to receiving vessel 40 in the next adjacent higher tier 20 stepwise through successive intermediate tiers 34 to uppermost tier 32 .
Source siphon conduit 46 and transfer siphon conduits 48 are similar in construction. Source siphon conduit 46 and each of the transfer siphon conduits 48 include a lifting leg portion 50 and an angled lateral leg portion 52 cantilevered from lifting leg portion 50 . The length of angled lateral leg portion 52 is preferably twice the length of lifting leg portion 50 . In an especially preferred embodiment, the length of lifting leg portion 50 is approximately eighteen feet while the length of angled lateral leg portion 52 is approximately thirty-six feet. In a preferred embodiment, the angle θ between lifting leg portion 50 and angled lateral leg portion 52 is less than 90 degrees. The diameters of source siphon conduit 46 and transfer siphon conduits 48 should be designed such that the total volume of water siphoned by water lifting unit 12 is equal to the total volume of water flowing out of discharge conduit 15 . Source siphon conduit 46 and transfer siphon conduits 48 are preferably constructed from a non-corrosive metal, such as for example stainless steel, however other materials apparent to one skilled in the art, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe or other engineering polymer tubing, may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention.
In a preferred embodiment, each of the receiving vessels 40 include a port 56 for connection to an evacuation pump (not shown). A suction force is typically employed to slightly reduce the pressure within the each of the receiving vessels 40 to initiate the flow of water through source siphon conduit 46 and through transfer siphon conduits 48 . Port 56 can be placed in one of two states, a normally closed state or an open state. During the initialization process, port 56 is placed in an open state and the pump is operated to create a suction force which removes a slightly volume of air from each of the receiving vessels 40 . The removal of the volume of air results in slightly a reduction of pressure within each of the receiving vessels 40 . The reduced pressure condition within each of the receiving vessels 40 initiates the flow of water through source siphon conduit 46 and transfer siphon conduit 48 . Additionally, in the event external factors, such as for example the infiltration of gases into source siphon conduit 46 or transfer siphon conduit 48 , should interrupt the siphonic flow, the vacuum or evacuation pump may be operated to reestablish a stable siphonic flow.
While a vacuum or evacuation pump is used in the preferred embodiments of the present invention, other mechanisms for initiating or maintaining siphonic flow apparent to one skilled the art are also considered to be within the scope of the invention.
Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, an elevated cross-sectional side view of siphon hydroelectric generator 10 and an elevated cross-sectional side view of a single tier 20 of siphon hydroelectric generator 10 are shown. Fluid connection is provided from receiving vessel 40 to adjacent staging vessel 42 in each tier 20 via a transfer conduit 58 . Transfer conduit 58 extends from the bottom end 60 of receiving vessel 40 to the bottom end 62 of staging vessel 42 such that transfer conduit 58 is disposed below the selected liquid levels in each vessel. A one-way variable flow valve 64 is disposed in transfer conduit 58 . The one-way variable flow valve permits the flow of water from receiving vessel 40 to adjacent staging vessel 42 while blocking the back flow of water from staging vessel 42 to receiving vessel 40 . In a preferred embodiment, a controller 100 (FIG. 5) monitors the flow of water through the one-way variable flow valve.
In an alternative embodiment, multiple one-way variable flow valves 64 may be provided between receiving vessel 40 and adjacent staging vessel 42 . In the event the controller detects a malfunction in the operation of one of the one-way variable flow valves 64 , the controller increases the flow of water through alternative one-way variable control flow valves 64 . The use of multiple one-way variable flow valves 64 ensures that the operation of the entire siphon hydroelectric generator 10 need not be shut down in response the failure of a single one-way variable flow valve 64 .
In a preferred embodiment, a shut off valve 65 is provided in each of the source siphon conduits 46 and transfer siphon conduit 48 . Shut off valve 65 is in a normally open state to permit the siphonic flow of water and can be placed in a closed state to interrupt the siphonic flow of water into receiving vessel 40 . The flow through transfer siphon conduit 48 or any of the individual transfer siphon conduits 48 can manipulated via the associated shut off valve 65 . The controller may be used to control the status of each of the individual shut off valves 65 .
A selected liquid level differential is maintained between the liquid level in each receiving vessel 40 and the liquid level in adjacent staging vessel 42 . The differential liquid level causes water to flow from each of the receiving vessels 40 into adjacent staging vessels 42 via one-way variable flow valves 64 within transfer conduits 58 . In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the liquid level height in each receiving vessel 40 is maintained at approximately twice the liquid level height in adjacent staging vessel 42 .
The controller is used to regulate the liquid levels in each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 . Liquid level sensors 66 , 68 are provided in each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 . The controller continuously monitors the liquid levels via input signals provided by liquid level sensors 66 , 68 . In the event the liquid level sensors 66 , 68 detect a discrepancy in the liquid level of one of the receiving vessels 40 or one of the staging vessels 42 , the controller initiates a correction process to adjust the liquid levels back to the pre-designated levels.
In another embodiment of the invention, multiple liquid level sensors 66 , 68 may be provided in each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 . The use of multiple sensors 66 , 68 provides redundancy so that the liquid level sensing function in receiving vessel 40 or staging vessel 42 is not lost as a result of a single liquid level sensor failure.
As mentioned previously, each of the transfer siphon conduits 48 includes a lifting leg portion 50 and a relatively longer arm portion 52 cantilevered from lifting leg portion 50 . Lifting leg portion 50 terminates in an inlet opening 72 . The inlet opening 72 of each of the transfer siphon conduits 48 is submerged in the water contained in each of the staging vessels 42 . Arm portion 52 terminates a discharge opening 76 . Discharge opening 76 is disposed in the air space 78 above the water level in each of the receiving vessels 40 .
Source siphon conduit 46 is similar in form to transfer siphon conduit 48 in that source siphon conduit 46 also includes a lifting leg portion 50 terminating in an inlet opening 72 . Inlet opening 72 is designed to be submerged in water source 16 . In the preferred embodiment, a filter is provided at the inlet opening to filter the water siphoned by source siphon conduit 46 . Arm portion 52 of source siphon conduit 46 also terminates in a discharge opening 76 . Discharge opening 76 is disposed in the air space 78 above the water level in receiving vessel 40 in lowermost tier 20 .
Referring now to FIG. 6, a flow chart outlining the operation of the controller is shown. The controller primarily functions to monitor and maintain pre-designated liquid levels in each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 . In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the controller periodically samples input signals 80 representative of the liquid levels in the each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 . The liquid level readings are generated by liquid level sensors 66 , 68 . The controller compares the liquid level input signals to pre-designated liquid level parameters to determine if there is a discrepancy in the liquid levels 82 . If all of the liquid levels within each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 are within the pre-designated parameters, the controller takes no action and continuous to monitor the liquid levels. If a liquid levels is found to be outside the pre-designated liquid level parameters, the controller samples the flow rate input signals 84 .
The flow rate input signals are representative of the individual flow rates through each of the one-way variable flow valves 64 . The flow rate input signals are based on readings obtained from the flow rate sensors in each of the one-way variable flow valves 64 . The controller compares the flow rate input signals to pre-designated parameters 86 representative of an optimum range of flow rates to maintain the siphonic flow of water. If a flow rate input signal for a particular one-way variable flow valve 64 is found to be outside the pre-designated parameters, the controller increases the flow through the redundant one-way variable flow valve 88 so that the flow rate required to maintained the necessary liquid level differential between receiving vessel 40 and adjacent staging vessel 42 is reestablished.
If the controller determines that all of the flow rates for all of the one-way variable flow valves 64 are within the pre-designated parameters, it is assumed that an external factor, such as for example the infiltration of gas into source siphon conduit 46 or a transfer siphon conduit, has interrupted the siphonic flow of water. The controller initiates the operation of the evacuation pump for a pre-designated time 90 . The operation of the pump slightly reduces the air pressure within each of the receiving vessels 40 . The reduction of air pressure within each of the receiving vessels 40 causes a reduced pressure to be present at discharge openings 76 relative to inlet openings 72 of source siphon conduit 48 and each of the transfer siphon conduits 46 . This facilitates the flow of water through source siphon conduit 48 and transfer siphon conduit 46 until the siphonic flow of water is reestablished.
Prior to operation of siphon hydroelectric generator 10 , receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 are filled with water to starting fill levels. In the preferred embodiment, receiving vessels 40 are filled to a height of approximately eight feet and staging vessels 42 are filled to a height of approximately four feet. The water may be drawn up into receiving vessels 40 and staging vessels 42 from water source 16 via source siphon conduit 46 and transfer siphon conduits 48 by running the evacuation pump at port 56 . The operation of the evacuation pump slightly reduces the air pressure within each of the receiving vessels 40 such that the discharge opening 76 of source siphon conduit 46 and each of the transfer siphon conduits 48 are placed at a lower pressure relative to the corresponding inlet opening 72 .
In an alternative embodiment, the water may be directly channeled into each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 from water source 16 via independent fill conduits (not shown) for each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 using fill pumps (also not shown).
Once the start fill levels have been established within each of the receiving vessels 40 and each of the staging vessels 42 , the or evacuation pump is started to initiate the flow of water through source siphon conduit 46 and through transfer siphon conduits 48 . Once a steady state flow is achieved, the vacuum pump is turned off.
During steady state operation of siphon hydroelectric generator 10 , water is initially siphoned via source siphon conduit 46 from water source 16 into receiving vessel 40 in lowermost tier 30 . The relatively higher water level in receiving vessel 40 causes the water to flow into adjacent staging vessel 42 with a relatively lower water level via the transfer conduit 58 . The water in the staging vessel 42 is siphoned upward via transfer siphon conduit 48 into receiving vessel 40 in the next adjacent higher tier. The water then flows from receiving vessel 40 into adjacent staging vessel 42 in the same tier. This process continues and the water from water source 16 is continuously siphoned upward into receiving vessel 40 in the uppermost tier 32 .
The water flowing into the uppermost tier 32 is directed downward to power generation unit 14 via the discharge conduit 15 . Power generation unit 14 includes a turbine and a generator as is known to one skilled in the art. The flowing water turns the turbine which in turn drives the generator which produces electricity. Water lifted to approximately one hundred feet and then discharged flume or via a discharge conduit having a diameter of approximately one foot may be used to generate electricity.
FIG. 7 is a front plan view of an alternate embodiment of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator 200 in accordance with the principles of the present invention. Siphon hydroelectric generator 200 has multiple source siphon conduits 210 and multiple transfer siphon conduits 212 feeding each adjacent higher tier. The use of multiple source siphon conduits 210 and multiple transfer siphon conduits 212 increases the flow rate of the water siphoned to the uppermost tier 214 . As a result, larger volumes of water can be lifted and channeled via the discharge conduit 216 to the turbine driven generator 218 . Larger volumes of water can be used to drive larger generators thereby increasing the amount of energy produced.
FIG. 8 is a top plan view of an alternate embodiment of a new and improved siphon hydroelectric generator 300 having multiple discharge conduits 310 for channeling the water collected in the uppermost tier 312 to multiple generators 314 . Multiple source siphon conduits 316 are used to siphon a volume of water to the lowermost tier 318 . Multiple transfer siphon conduits 320 are then employed to siphon the water stepwise to the uppermost tier 312 . The use of multiple source siphon conduits 316 and multiple transfer siphon conduits 320 permit large volumes of water to be lifted. The water collected in one or more uppermost tiers 312 may then discharged using multiple discharge conduits to drive a plurality of generators 314 .
While the invention has been described with specific embodiments, other alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to include all such alternatives, modifications and variations set forth within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
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A method and apparatus for generating hydroelectric power from a water source by lifting water from a relatively lower position to a second relatively raised position. The water is moved in a generally upward direction stepwise from a lowermost tier to an uppermost tier in a plurality of stacked tiers. The water from the water source is initially upwardly siphoned to the lowermost tier. The water from the lower tier is then upwardly siphoned to a next adjacent higher tier. The water from the uppermost tier is channeled down to turn a turbine driven generator to produce electrical power.
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This is a division of application Ser. No. 423,789, filed Sept. 27, 1982, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,207.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The mammalian hormones known as prostaglandins are an extremely important, biologically active class of C-20 unsaturated hydroxy acids first discovered in the 1930's. They have been found to have pronounced effects on the cardiovascular, respiratory and renal systems; the gastrointestinal tract; blood platelets and bone; the eye, skin, lungs and the reproductive organs. They appear to have pharmacological potential in the treatment of nasal congestion, stomach ulcers, hypertension, asthma, inflammation and thrombosis, as well as possible use in the induction of labor, termination of pregnancy, and utility in contraception. To date the major drawbacks to clinical application of the prostaglandins have been the very broad range of physiological activity prevalent in these compounds and their brief duration of action due to rapid metabolic deactivation. The desire for longer lasting drugs exhibiting much more specific activity has recently produced a number of very interesting analogs of prostaglandins and many structure-activity studies have resulted.
Tremendous potential also exists in the development of prostaglandin antagonists and reagents which will inhibit prostaglandin biosynthesis and metabolism. For this reason, there has been considerable work of late on the biosynthetic pathways involved in the formation of prostaglandins. This work has resulted in the recent discovery of intermediate prostaglandin endoperoxides and their biosynthetic products prostacyclin and the thromboxanes.
As biologically potent substrates, as well as key intermediates in prostaglandin biosynthesis, the endoperoxides have stimulated considerable recent synthetic effort. Some of these compounds are potent vasoconstrictors, stimulate smooth muscle contraction, induce the aggregation of human blood platelets, and inhibit PGE 1 , PGE 2 and thromboxane biosynthesis.
With the recent discoveries of the highly active but very unstable prostacyclin and thromboxanes, attention has turned towards the synthesis of stable analogs of these compounds. Numerous prostacyclin analogs possessing substantial biological activity are now known. Similarly, the potent blood platelet aggregating and vasoconstrictor properties of thromboxane A 2 (TXA 2 ) have inspired other workers to synthesize each of the following stable analogs: ##STR1## These compounds are inhibitors of PGH 2 -induced aggregation of human blood platelets; have shown very potent vasoconstricting activity as well as behavior as a potent thromboxane A 2 antagonist on platelet aggregation, while selectively inhibiting the biosynthesis of thromboxanes; and selectively inhibit coronary artery constriction, platelet aggregation and thromboxane formation. The compound with W=CH 2 , Z=C(CH 3 ) 2 has been suggested as a suitable antithrombotic agent.
From the above brief review, it should be quite obvious that the natural prostaglandins, the endoperoxides, prostacyclin and the thromboxanes display an extraordinary range of biological activity. The synthesis of stable analogs of these compounds shows tremendous promise of providing new compounds with more specific activity which will prove useful in the treatment of a vast array of human physiological ailments. Most syntheses to data have involved lengthy multi-step sequences or have begun with the natural prostaglandins. See for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,065,472, and 4,258,053, for complex multi-step synthesis of thienylprostaglandin derivatives.
The primary objective of the present work is directed towards the development of entirely new synthetic routes to compounds of the type previously mentioned-routes which greatly shorten the present procedures, as well as provide a large number of new compounds, particularly bicyclic prostaglandin analogs prepared by the addition of thienyl-palladium compounds to strained bicyclic alkenes.
A further object is to prepare certain compounds of the type previously described which show substantial inhibition of arachidonic acid induced blood platelet aggregation and which appear to be very specific inhibitors of thromboxane synthetase.
The method, compounds and manner of performing the reactions and accomplishing the objectives of this invention are illustrated by the detailed description which follows hereinafter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to novel prostaglandin endoperoxide analogs, and to their production and use.
More particularly, this invention relates to novel bicyclic prostaglandin analogs, to pharmaceutical compositions containing at least one of the compounds, and to a process for the preparation of the compounds. The novel compounds of this invention are represented by the following formula: ##STR2## wherein n equals a whole integer of from 0 to 7, X is carboxylic acid, or C 1 -C 8 ester, alcohol, ether, or amide groups, Y is ethylene or cis or trans vinylene; A is methylene, ethylene, oxy, imino, or lower alkyl, phenyl or aryl substituted imino; D is methylene, ethylene, vinylene, methyleneoxy, alkylidenedioxy, iminooxy, dithio, or azo; B is ethylene, cis and trans vinylene and ethynylene; R and R 1 are hydrogen, lower alkyl and lower aryl or (CH 2 ) Z with Z being 2 to 5, and Q is hydroxy, methoxy, acetoxy or hydrogen, or Q and R are both oxa.
In the significance as used above, it is possible for "n" to be from 0 to 12; however, since in the natural prostaglandins "n"=3, it has been found that the more one moves away from 3, the more unlikely that the compounds would have any specific activity. 0 to 7 are preferred with the most preferred being from 1 to 5, since this most nearly brackets, on both sides, the natural biologically active compounds.
The moiety represented by X is the easiest to change in the structure. It is not critical to the process or the products of this invention, and can be changed by conventional, routine chemistry. Most preferred is a carboxylic acid group since once again the natural prostaglandins have a carboxylic acid group at the X position. With other functional groups such as esters, alcohols, ethers and amides, preferably C 1 to C 8 groups are employed, and most preferably C 1 to C 5 . "A" is preferably methylene or ethylene, but can also be oxygen, imino, or lower alkyl, phenyl, or aryl substituted imino groups. The term "lower" refers to having from C 1 to C 8 .
"B" can be ethylene, cis and trans vinylene, and ethynylene. Since the natural prostaglandin compounds are the trans vinylene compounds, it may be more desirable to prepare the trans compounds; however, the cis compounds and ethynylene compounds also have substantial biological activity and can be prepared equally as satisfactorily.
"D" can be methylene, ethylene, vinylene, methyleneoxy, alkylidenedioxy, iminooxy, dithio or azo. D is preferably ethylene or vinylene.
"R" and "R 1 " are hydrogen, lower alkyl and lower aryl, or (CH 2 ) z , with Z being 2 to 5. The term "lower" is used in the same sense as previously defined.
Finally "Q" is selected from the group consisting of hydroxy, methoxy, acetoxy or hydrogen, or Q and R are both oxa. The compounds [I] have been found to possess the property of exhibiting substantial inhibition of arachidonic acid induced platelet aggregation.
The method of synthesis of these prostaglandin analogs can be generally summarized as an addition reaction of a thienylpalladium compound to bicyclic alkenes. More particularly, a thiophene is converted to a thienylmercurial, see Houben-Weyl, Vol. 13/2b, Georg Thieme Verlag, Stuttgart, pages 48-54, which is incorporated herein by reference. The thienylmercurial is reacted with dilithium palladium tetrachloride (Li 2 PdCl 4 ) to give a thienylpalladium compound which is added to a bicyclic olefin to provide an addition compound, from which the palladium moiety is displaced by an acetylene or vinyl moiety, to provide the basic skeletal structure of [I]. Finally, protecting groups, if any, can be removed from the acetylene moiety to provide the desired endoperoxide prostaglandin analogs. The reaction is straightforward. It involves only two significant steps. Moreover, it achieves significant yields in comparison with complex procedures of the prior art. In particular, yields as high as 80% in each of the reactions steps can be obtained, with the resulting overall yield based on the amount of starting thiophene being as high as 30-40%. This is considered quite high in prostaglandin synthesis techniques.
In accordance with the first step, a thiophene starting material such as trans-3-(2)-thienylacrylic acid which is readily commercially available, is esterified by standard procedures to the corresponding methyl ester. Alternatively, the acid can be hydrogenated and acid-catalyzed esterification of it results in the corresponding saturated methyl ester. This is mercurated (for example with two equivalents of mercury chloride, in ten equivalents of sodium acetate with aqueous ethanol at the 5 position) to afford the corresponding organomercurial, that is, the thienylmercurial. These reactions are well known and may be summarized in the following scheme: ##STR3## The hydrogenation step can also be omitted to obtain unsaturated thienylmercurials and the corresponding prostaglandins. Addition of these organomercurials to an acetonitrile solution of norbornene, palladium chloride and lithium chloride (10:1:>2) under nitrogen at 0° C. and warming to room temperature will afford thiophene-containing bicyclic organopalladium compounds in accordance with the following scheme: ##STR4## It thus can be seen that in the second step, and the first major part of this synthesis, the organomercurial is reacted with dilithium palladium tetrachloride and a bicyclic olefin to provide a bicyclic alkylpalladium compound which is represented by the immediately preceding formula.
The reaction is a simple addition reaction allowing for addition of the thienylpalladium compound to the bicyclic olefin.
In this reaction, as earlier stated and as depicted, the thienylpalladium compound is added to the bicyclic olefin, norbornene. Norbornadiene may also be used to form compounds of a nortricyclic structure as discussed later. Equally satisfactory synthesis results are achieved along with the essentially identical synthesis and chemistry. The starting structure is: ##STR5## with X, Y and n as previously defined.
The next step and final major portion of the process involves applicant's most important contribution to the synthesis route of these thienylprostaglandins. That step is the discovery that the palladium moiety of the addition product of a thienylpalladium compound and a bicyclic olefin can be effectively displaced with an acetylene moiety by reacting with any protected lithium acetylide, as depicted below, preferably in the presence of, for example, two equivalents of triphenylphosphine to provide the skeletal structure of the endoperoxide prostaglandin analogs [Formula I]. It is represented by the following equation: ##STR6##
If it is desired that one have only double bond unsaturation in Formula I, the lithium acetylide carbon to carbon triple bond can be reduced to a cis double bond in near quantitative yield by simple hydrogenation. To prepare the trans double bond structure, a lithium divinyl cuprate, or a trialkylvinylstannane, in triphenylphosphine can be used to replace the lithium acetylide. For an alternative to the use of lithium divinyl cuprate, see Tetrahedron Letters, page 715 published 1982, which is incorporated herein by reference. This procedure may equally be used as opposed to the lithium divinyl cuprate, and in some instances, is preferred because it will provide better yields. Trans double bonds can also be introduced by treating the bicyclic organopalladium compound with carbon monoxide and triphenylphosphine followed by a trialkyl tin hydride to provide the corresponding aldehyde which can be converted to the trans allylic alcohol by Wittig olefination to an enone and subsequent metal hydride reduction.
The lithium acetylide preparation is the first thing to accomplish. The procedure is a known procedure for making lithium acetylides and is discussed in The Chemistry of the Carbon-Carbon Triple Bond, ed. S. Patai, J. Wiley and Sons, 1978, New York, which is incorporated herein by reference. For example, 1-octyn-3-ol-tetrahydropyranyl ether (OTHP) in tetrahydrofuran is deprotonated with normal butyl lithium to provide a representative lithium acetylide compound of the following formula: ##STR7## The acetylide displacement reaction is preferably begun at -78° C. and allowed to warm to room temperature. Typically, the temperature for this reaction may be from -20° C. to -78° C. The reaction times do not appear to be important, it merely being necessary that the ingredients are thoroughly mixed at low temperature. The reaction is preferably conducted in the presence of stirring. The reaction is conducted at low temperatures preferably, but it is all right to allow it to slowly warm to ambient conditions.
Pressure is not critical. The reaction is conducted in the presence of a solvent in order to allow intimate admixture of the reacting lithium acetylide and bicyclic olefin palladium addition compound. The precise solvent employed is not critical, but satisfactory results can be obtained with diethyl ether, and other standard aprotic solvents such as tetrahydrofuran and the like.
In the Formula last presented, the "OTHP" group is a representative protecting group of the "Q" moiety of the lithium acetylide.
The reaction is a simple displacement reaction and forms the basic skeleton of the desired thiophene-containing endoperoxide analog. The amount that is obtained is in typical instances about 60-70% of the starting organo-palladium compound, a high yield for a complex prostaglandin synthesis technique.
As a final step, the blocking or protecting group, that is, "Q", is removed by conventional techniques. Specifically for the OTHP group an ether cleavage can be accomplished by use of para-toluenesulfonic acid in methyl alcohol. It is preferred that "Q" be OTHP, although it it not essential. Another protecting group is an ester which can be removed by conventional ester hydrolysis to provide the corresponding alcohol group. This can be accomplished in the presence of a strong base, such as potassium hydroxide in methyl alcohol. These techniques will be further demonstrated in the specific examples.
The following examples are offered to further illustrate but not limit the process and compounds of the present invention.
EXAMPLES
Synthesis of the Organomercurials
Methyl trans-3-(2-thienyl)acrylate was prepared from the commercially available acid, by acid catalyzed esterification, in 88% yield. Methyl 3-(2-thienyl)propanoate was prepared by hydrogenation of the unsaturated acid followed by esterification in 79% overall yield.
These heterocycles were then mercurated using a modification of Volhard's procedure which is incorporated herein by reference, using two equivalents of HgCl 2 and ten equivalents of NaOAc in aqueous ethanol. The yields of the mercurials are given in Table I.
TABLE 1__________________________________________________________________________Synthesis of MercurialsHeterocycle Mercurial % Yield__________________________________________________________________________ ##STR8## ##STR9## 83 ##STR10## ##STR11## 86__________________________________________________________________________
Additions to bicyclic olefins
The next step involves transmetalation of the mercurials with palladium salts and addition to bicyclic olefins. The addition of methyl 3-(5-chloromercuri-2-thienyl)acrylate to norbornene was studied first. An initial attempt using THF as the solvent and an extractive work-up with ether afforded a low yield of product that was difficult to purify. However, addition of the mercurial to 0° C. solution of Li 2 PdCl 4 and norbornene in acetonitrile and warming to room temperature gave the σ-palladium adduct in 67% yield after methylene chloride work-up. Addition of methyl 3-(5-chloromercuri-2-thienyl)propanoate to norbornene following the same procedure afforded the σ-palladium adduct in 78% yield.
The analogous reaction of methyl 3-(5-chloromercuri-2-thienyl)propanoate with norbornadiene-palladium dichloride gave the nortricyclo σ-palladium adduct in 74% yield.
Table II below shows the addition reaction to the bicyclic olefins and the thienylpalladium adduct as well as the yield obtained.
TABLE 2__________________________________________________________________________Addition to Bicyclic OlefinsOrganomercurial Olefin σ-Palladium adduct % Yield__________________________________________________________________________ ##STR12## ##STR13## ##STR14## 78 ##STR15## " ##STR16## 67 ##STR17## ##STR18## ##STR19## 74__________________________________________________________________________
Reactions with 1-lithio-3-(2-tetrahydropyranyloxy)-1-octyne
Previous work has shown that reactions of bicyclic organopalladium compounds with lithium acetylides proceed more cleanly and in higher yield when the chloride anion on palladium is exchanged for hexafluoroacetylacetonate. This was accomplished by treating the palladium complex with 1 equivalent of AgOAc in chloroform followed by 1.5-2.0 equivalents of hexafluoroacetylacetone.
The palladium chloride moiety, or the palladium acetate moiety, may be substituted by the techniques described earlier to obtain the appropriate prostaglandin type side chain. In particular, the unsaturated alcohol side chain of the prostaglandins was most easily introduced by a three step procedure involving (1) conversion of the organopalladium chloride to the corresponding hexafluoroacetylacetonate (Hfacac)(AgOAc followed by the diketone); (2) addition of 2 equivalents of triphenylphosphine in tetrahydrofuran (THF), cooling to -78° C., addition of a -78° C. THF solution of 1 equivalent of 1-lithio-3(2-tetrahydropyranyloxy)-1-octyne followed by slow warming to room temperature overnight and work-up; and (3) removal of the THP protecting group (cat. p-TsOH in methanol, 4-6 hours at room temperature). This approach affords exclusively the exo isomers. In this manner the novel thiophene-containing prostaglandin endoperoxide analogs: X is CO 2 CH 3 , Y is CH═CH, n=0, A is CH 2 , D is CH 2 CH 2 , B is C.tbd.C, Q is OH, R is H, R 1 is C 5 H 11 is obtained (64% overall yield). The corresponding compounds where X=CO 2 H, Y=CH═CH, n=0 (96% yield); X=CO 2 CH 3 , Y=CH 2 CH 2 , n=0, (58% yield) and X=CO 2 H, Y=CH 2 CH 2 , n=0 (82% yield) were also obtained with A, B, D, Q, R and R' as just above defined. The acids are obtained by saponification of the corresponding esters.
Via a similar lithium acetylide substitution reaction, the σ-palladium adduct last listed in Table II was carried on to: ##STR20## wherein R 2 was CH 3 . Saponification converted the methyl group to hydrogen.
The σ Palladium adduct first listed in Table II has also been reacted with a lithium divinyl cuprate, as discussed previously, to give a prostaglandin analog with X=CO 2 CH 3 , Y=CH 2 CH 2 , n=0, A=CH 2 , D=CH 2 CH 2 , B=trans CH═CH, Q=OH, R=H, R 1 =C 5 H 11 .
Incorporation of the thiophene ring into prostaglandin endoperoxide analogs has several very attractive features. First of all, a number of heterocyclic prostaglandin analogs have already shown substantial biological activity. Introduction of a phenyl unit in the acid side chain has also provided a number of compounds of biological interest. The heterocyclic ring also forces the acid side chain to adopt a configuration analogous to the cis-5,6 olefinic side chain found in the naturally occurring prostaglandins. Finally, the thiophene ring provides a site for further chemical elaboration.
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New organopalladium reactions involving the addition of thienylpalladium compounds to strained bicyclic alkenes, and subsequent chain extension reactions employing the chemistry of organopalladium compounds are disclosed. By these techniques a large number of bicyclic prostaglandin analogs are prepared, which are useful as inhibitors of arachidonic acid induced blood platelet aggregation, and are specific inhibitors of thromboxane synthetase.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to static control garments.
Workers in static-sensitive environments, e.g., electronic assembly plants, often are required to wear both electrically conductive garments, e.g, electrically conductive smocks, and electrical grounding devices, e.g., electrically conductive wrist bands with attached grounding cords, in order to drain static charges that are generated by the workers themselves or that are imparted to them by external sources. Such smocks typically have static-conductive material woven into their fabric to help drain away electrical charges that tend to be generated by rubbing of the material against other clothing, the body, and work surfaces.
Wrist bands typically are made of a conductive fabric with tightening means, e.g, a buckle, to hold them snugly around the wrist. One end of a coiled grounding cord attaches to the wrist band by means of mating metal snaps; and the other end attaches to a central grounding point by means of, e.g., a banana plug.
Although workers generally accept the need to wear smocks, they frequently resist the use of wrist bands with grounding cords because they restrict mobility and make workers feel "tethered". This problem is exacerbated by the effort required--small, but repeated many times in the course of a day--to overcome the mechanical resistance built into the coiled grounding cord. In addition, the grounding cord frequently interferes with the work being done, and sweeps small parts off the work surface.
An object of the present invention is to provide a smock and wrist band grounding system that is comfortable to wear and does not interfere with the work to be done.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In general the invention features a static control garment having torso and limb covering portions. A first fastener means is positioned at a limb covering portion of the garment, and is adapted to attach to a conductive band that encircles the limb, e.g., the wrist. A second fastener means is positioned at a torso covering portion, e.g., the waist of the garment, and is adapted to attach to electrical grounding means. Electrically conductive means interconnect the first and second fastener means.
In preferred embodiments, the first fastener means is positioned at an end of an electrically conductive tab, the other end of which is positioned at the distal end of a limb covering portion of the garment, and is in electrical contact with the electrically conductive means.
Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments and from the claims.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
We first briefly describe the drawings.
DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an expanded view of the front of a static control smock, a wrist strap and a grounding cord.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary end view of a sleeve, partly in section, with a wrist strap, taken along line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary isometric view of the eyelet end of a grounding cord, and of a section of a seam at the waist of a static control smock.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary isometric view partly in section of the end of a modified sleeve of a static control smock with a conductive tab.
STRUCTURE
Referring to the drawings, particularly FIGS. 1 and 2, static control smock 10 has sleeve seam 12 in sleeve 14 and side seam 16 in side 18. Sleeve seam 12 and side seam 16 are conventional straight seams sewn with cotton thread 20 in a five-needle overlock with a safety stitch. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, inside the garment portions of fabric at seams 12, 16 overlie each other.
Two continuous electrically conductive threads 22, 24 (for example, carbon thread F906 manufactured by Badische Corporation, Williamsburg, Va.) are sewn side by side into and along the length of the overlying fabric within the garment along sleeve seam 12 and side seam 16, between a conductive metal snap socket 28 and a conductive metal snap stud 44, using a conventional double-needle machine lock stitch. The conductive threads 22, 24 are located completely within the garment. As shown in FIG. 2 metal snap socket 28 (for example, X6-10224 socket manufactured by TRW Inc., United Carr Supply Division) is inserted through sleeve seam 12 at the end of sleeve 14 in electrical contact with electrically conductive threads 22, 24, with socket opening 31 on the inside of sleeve 14. As shown in FIG. 3 metal snap stud 32 (for example, BS12303 stud manufactured by TRW Inc., United Carr Supply Division) is inserted through side seam 16 at the waist in electrical contact with electrically conductive threads 22, 24, with stud tip 32 on the outside of smock 10.
Referring to FIG. 2, conductive wrist band 40 (for example, No. WB-4005-RE, manufactured by Plastic Systems, Inc., Marlboro, Mass.) has adjustable closure clamp 42 with attached metal snap button 44 (for example, X2-12126 manufactured by TRW Inc., United Carr Supply Division), which snaps into socket 31.
Referring to FIG. 1, coiled grounding cord 50 (for example, No. WC-4009-RC, manufactured by Plastic Systems, Inc., Marlboro, Mass.) has metal snap eyelet 52 (for example, B512404 manufactured by TRW Inc., United Carr Supply Division) at one end for connection with mating stud 32, and banana plug 54 for insertion into a conventional grounding receptacle (not shown).
OPERATION
In operation, a worker wearing smock 10 fits wrist band 40 to his wrist and snaps the band button 44 into socket 31. Stud 32 at the garment waist is snapped into grounding cord eyelet 52 and banana plug 54 is inserted into a conventional grounding receptacle (not shown).
Static charges on the body are discharged to ground via wrist band 40, along conductive threads 22, 24 to grounding cord 50.
Workers protected by static control smock 10 thus avoid the build-up on their persons of static charges that otherwise might cause damage to sensitive parts and materials in case of electrostatic discharge events. Most important, the grounding connection at the waist permits both hands to be free of the encumbrance of grounding cords, which are uncomfortable and awkward, and which often interfere with the work and sweep small parts off work surfaces.
OTHER EMBODIMENTS
An alternate embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 4, differs from the embodiment previously described in that a conductive cloth tab 60 (e.g., a piece of nylon fabric coated with a conductive elastomer such as neoprene filled with approximately 38% by weight of carbon black) is stitched at one end 58 into electrical contact with both conductive threads 22', 24' at the cuff of sleeve 14', so as to extend beyond the cuff. Metal snap socket 28' is inserted into the other end 62 of tab 60, and mates with the snap button of a wrist band (not shown). In another embodiment (not illustrated), a conductive cloth tab has metal snaps at both ends, one for attachment to a wrist band, the other for attachment to a mating snap in a cuff of the smock.
These embodiments further enhance worker comfort by providing additional slack in the connection between smock 10 and wrist band 40, particularly useful when workers extend the arm while reaching for parts and tools.
Yet other embodiments of this invention will occur to those skilled in the art, and are within the scope of the following claims.
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A static control garment having torso and limb covering portions with first electrically conductive means in the garment positioned at a limb covering portion adapted to attach to a conductive strap, that encircles a limb of the body, second electrically conductive means in the garment positioned at a torso covering portion adapted to attach to electrical grounding means, and third electrically conductive means interconnecting the first and second electrically conductive means.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to systems and methods for filing and monitoring electronic claim submissions in proceedings involving a large number of claimants, such as securities class action lawsuits, estate dissolutions, arbitrations, and bankruptcies. The systems and methods create an easy-to-use and convenient way for institutions and individual claimants to register their claim relief upon judgment, settlement or other resolution. Although the present disclosure has applicability beyond securities fraud class action lawsuits, the present disclosure will describe the use of the systems and methods in the context of a securities fraud class action lawsuit with the understanding that those skilled in the art having the present disclosure before them can apply the teachings of this invention to other contexts.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Securities litigations are frequently filed as class action lawsuits, a type of lawsuit where one person files a claim or claims in court on behalf of a large group of similarly situated people and entities (the “class”). The proposed class must consist of a group of individuals or entities that have suffered a common injury or injuries. Typically these cases result from an action, generally a disclosure, by a business or a particular product defect or policy that was publicly disclosed and available to the investing public. Securities fraud or other class action lawsuits can also result from a company failing to disclose detrimental information, that resulted in a change in the price of the company's stock to the detriment of a class of shareholders.
The identity of all of the members of the class of plaintiffs is usually unknown at the beginning of a securities lawsuit. Generally, a complaint is filed by one or more plaintiffs on behalf of the class. In order to indicate that class action status is sought, the phrase “and others similarly situated” can be incorporated into court documents. The number of class members may increase (or decrease) over time as additional plaintiffs are identified or the class definition changes. The class members can be identified during discovery proceedings, or after notices are distributed and responded to. The class definition also may be revised by the court, which might alter the size of the class by excluding or including potential class members.
Upon application by the plaintiffs or the parties collectively, the court will certify a class. Thereafter, the defendant(s) may generate a list of potential claimants. This list can be used to contact the potential class members to provide “notice,” i.e., advise them of the pendency or settlement of the action. Notice is then provided to the class by mailing class notices and/or running advertisements in newspapers, via the Internet, on radio or television, or through similar communications outlets.
When a class action lawsuit is decided in court or is settled out of court, each eligible claimant will receive relief according to the judgment or settlement through an administration process. In the past, administration of a securities class action lawsuit has been a cumbersome process, in part because classes are usually very large. These administrations often require claimants to submit through the mail large volumes of forms and documents to submit and support their claims. These submissions may be made via e-mail or regular mail, but in either case, documents and information would need to be scanned and/or inputted into a database system by hand.
The transaction costs associated with processing the tens of thousands of claims, or more, that are received by mail can be significant. Although e-mails are less cumbersome than regular mail and are used in ever growing numbers, receipt of the information through e-mail has presented the same difficulties as receipt through the mail—there has been no uniformity, no way of tracking and no specific method of organization of e-mails or any attachments without significantly increasing transaction costs. With both e-mails and paper files, there has been difficulty in maintaining proper organization of files without the potential of losing or misplacing information relating to claims. Of course, where regular mail is used this cost is further increased. Where e-mails are used, there is the added possibility that malicious code can be imported into a database inadvertently. Even though these e-mails pass through a perimeter firewall and virus protection is used, a significant risk of infection still exists.
The transaction costs arising from the administration frequently are paid from the settlement fund. Therefore, the total distribution in the class action lawsuit, and the amount that each eligible claimant may recover can be significantly diminished by the administration costs associated with this mailing procedure, the costs of other attempts of notifying the class members, and the costs of the claims processing.
Accordingly, there is a need for a simple, easy to use system and method for filing claims relating to a class action lawsuit, validating the claims, tracking the administrative process and communicating the status of the claims processing to claimants, and overseeing disbursement of relief.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a system for filing and monitoring electronic claim submissions via a computer server in a multi-claimant proceeding comprising a graphical user interface hosted by the computer server directed to end user terminals across the Internet for displaying information about a multi-claimant proceeding and facilitating inputting of information regarding institutions, end users and claimants and facilitating uploading of files from the end user terminals; a first database operably connected to the graphical user interface; code for associating pointers with files supporting at least one claim residing on the end user terminals; and anti-virus code for scanning the files for malicious code by following the respective pointers allowing each of the files to be scanned by the anti-virus software for malicious code after being uploaded to the computer server.
The invention also relates to a method for filing and monitoring electronic claim submissions via a computer server in a multi-claimant proceeding comprising providing a graphical user interface on the computer server for access by an end user via the Internet; registering an institution on the computer server to create an institutional database record; registering an end user associated with the registered institution on the computer server to create an end user profile; receiving information regarding a claimant via the graphical user interface and storing the information regarding the claimant on a database associated with the computer server; and storing files supporting a claim directly from a registered end user into the database associated with the computer server. The documentation required to prove eligibility of a claimant can vary. It may include, but is not limited to, a proof of claim form, a signature verification document, a data verification document, and an authorization document. Other documents that may be required are stock certificates, proof of purchase, and proof of sales. The potential claimants can be identified by the defendant, provided to the company administering the litigation by brokers, or generated by mailings and advertisements in newspapers, via the Internet, on radio or television, or through similar communications outlets.
Through the robustness of the present method, the invention has application to an institution filing claims in numerous litigations on behalf of its customers, with each litigation having potentially hundreds of claimants being managed by that one institution. In addition, many claimants may have claims based upon multiple transactions. The present systems and methods support the institution's ability to track all of the claims filed on behalf of all of its customers (the claimants), including the underlying transactions, by presenting a graphical user interface that provides streamlined interaction and access to this information to facilitate the record keeping of each institution in regards to its participation in the administration of the resolution of one or more lawsuits.
In an aspect of the invention, the administrator of the resolution of a lawsuit (“administrator”), an institutional contact, and an end user may each have the ability to view and potentially modify information relating to the administration of claims based upon their authority. The rights to both view and modify information are dependent upon their status and authority. Of course, because of the robustness of the method above, an administrator, an institutional contact, and/or an end user can easily navigate between multiple lawsuits, multiple claimants, multiple claims, and multiple transactions, where they may view input, or modify the records in a single session.
In general, the claim process as described herein may comprise six steps. Step 1 provides for users connecting to a graphical user interface, which may be via a website, through a secure SSL channel or HTTPS. End users will input information to a database and may upload files to a web server after being authenticated or validated against an authentication filter. Step 2 provides for invocation of an anti-virus process that runs on the web server to check whether uploaded files are infected with any viruses. If the files are not infected, step 3 provides for the scanned files to be moved to another location on the web-server, after encryption using an open source encryption scheme. If encryption or copying fails at any point for any file, again the process can be terminated. Step 4 provides for persisting to the database all of the related user inputs for a current upload process. This includes saving control totals and file names to the database. Step 5 provides for a transient, or intermediate, web server to keep polling a cluster of intermediate web servers for any new files in the respective folders. If any new files are found, they are pulled onto a path within itself. Subsequently, this transient, or intermediate, web server decrypts the files and copies them to a file server, thereby completing the upload process. Step 6 provides for a communication mechanism that sends an automatic notification of receipt of a claim.
In another aspect of the invention, the end user can log into the system and monitor the claims that the user had previously filed. The end user can check for claim status and deficiencies, and file additional documents as required to prove eligibility of a particular claimant. However, the end user may only review status and file additional documents relating to claims initially filed by that end user. In addition, during the course of the process, the end user may receive communications from system relating to claims filed by that end user.
If the end users are affiliated with an institution, that institution can be registered with the company administering the lawsuit. The institution could name one or more individuals as specific contacts, should any institutional information be required, or to validate the end users. In one aspect of the invention, only the institutional contact can modify the institution's database record. The institution's database record can comprise administrative information from an institution and the people authorized to act upon the institution's behalf, or for those claimants authorizing the institution to act on their behalf. In contrast to a single end user, the institutional contact(s) may review status and file documents, edit the institutional database record, and will receive communications relating to all claimants whose claims were filed by an end user affiliated with that institution. The institutional contact can also either preauthorize an end user or delete an end user if, e.g., that end user is no longer employed by the institution.
In yet another aspect of the invention, the systems and the methods of the invention allow for end users being able to modify their profiles. In one aspect, the end users can be employees of an institution, which was registered with the company administering the lawsuit. Alternatively, an individual user may access the system of the invention after registration and validation and file his or her own claim.
The invention relates to systems and methods of tracking and monitoring the administration of class action lawsuit resolutions, without the need to coordinate significant amounts of paper mail and documentation and/or electronic mail and documentation each of which would require an extreme amount of effort to scan in and manage. In addition, the system of the invention can be accessed immediately upon end user registration, rather than registering and having to wait until a later date to begin entering and filing claims. The only requirement is that the end user, who is filing the claims, must be associated with a previously registered institution. In the case of an individual investor, they would need to register and be validated as an “institution” prior to filing their claim.
In one aspect of the invention, the end user does not need to be validated immediately. Rather, the end user can register and file one or more claims immediately, and without delay, as these types of proceedings often have deadlines that must be met. By validating the end user after the end user has already filed one or more claims, valuable time can be saved, and court-ordered claims deadlines are less likely to be missed because of system requirements.
In one aspect of the invention, all files inputted by the end user may be initially associated with pointers to those files as they sit on the end user's computer. The use of such pointers thus enables the files to be scanned for malicious code after their being uploaded across the Internet to a web server. The documents may first be uploaded via a transient server to a transient database, after which they may be scanned for malicious code. The malicious code scanning can be performed at predetermined intervals to ensure that no malicious code is uploaded from the transient database through a second firewall onto an internal database via an internal server. The secure server and firewall can be located with the company that administers the litigation or can be located at a remote site. The software used to scan the files for malicious code can be updated at regular intervals, as well as when new computer viruses are uncovered.
These and other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the present drawings, specifications, and claims before them. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features, and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the disclosure, and be protected by the accompanying claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
The invention may be better understood by references to the detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. In the figures, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views.
FIG. 1 depicts the novel system of the invention.
FIG. 2 illustrates a second aspect of the system of the invention.
FIGS. 3A-3D illustrate a flow chart depicting the process of filing a claim by an institutional end user and the transmission of messages between the internal server and the internal network, a registered institution and a registered end user, respectively.
FIG. 4 is an illustrative view of a graphical user interface of exemplary institution registration screen.
FIGS. 5-7 are illustrative views of graphical user interfaces of exemplary user registration screens.
FIG. 8 is an illustrative view of instructions for filing a claim.
FIG. 9 is an illustrative view of how to select a case, where cases are listed by letter.
FIG. 10 is an illustrative view of case information for the selected case.
FIG. 11 is an illustrative view of a graphical user interface for the upload of supporting documentation.
FIG. 12 is an illustrative view of a confirmation page.
FIG. 13 is an illustrative view of how transaction files can be uploaded.
FIG. 14 is an illustrative view relating to formatting specifications.
FIG. 15 is an illustrative view of how control totals can be entered.
FIGS. 16-17 are illustrative views of the history and status of previously filed claims.
FIGS. 18A-18B and 19 A- 19 B are illustrative views depicting how case data is entered into a new database.
FIGS. 20A-20N are illustrative of database architecture for a system as exemplified herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
While the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms, the drawings and discussions are presented with the understanding that the present disclosure is an exemplification of the principles of one or more inventions and is not intended to limit any one of the inventions to the embodiments illustrated.
FIG. 1 illustrates the novel system 100 of the invention. Specifically, institutions 105 a , 105 b , 105 x and individual users 110 can submit claims and supporting documentation to a company overseeing the administration of a class action lawsuit via the Internet 120 from end user, or client, terminals 115 a , 115 b , 115 x . The Internet 120 as used herein is intended to convey the meaning of a generally available network that is not confined to access by a single specific company. This includes a virtual private network between an end user and an administrator, as well as a connection over a private cable TV IP network.
The end user terminals 115 a , 115 b , 115 x may be general purpose computers that may have, among other elements, a microprocessor (such as from the Intel Corporation or AMD); volatile and non-volatile memory; one or more mass storage devices (i.e., a hard drive); various user input devices, such as a mouse, a keyboard, or a microphone; and a video display system. In one aspect, the general-purpose computer may be controlled by the WINDOWS XP operating system. It is contemplated, however, that the present system would work equally well using a MACINTOSH computer or even another operating system such as a WINDOWS VISTA, UNIX, LINUX or a JAVA based operating system, to name a few.
It is contemplated that each of the end user terminals 115 maybe connected via the Internet to the web server of a multi-claimant administration system. FIG. 1 illustrates the web server as having a transient server 150 , an internal server 170 , a transient database 155 , and an internal database 180 . The transient server 150 and the transient database 155 are so named because the files, information documents that are being uploaded are generally only resident for a relatively short and essentially predetermined time. After the files, information, and documentation are ultimately uploaded to the internal database 180 , they may be deleted from the transient web server and the transient database. The transient server 150 may include a first graphical user interface 140 that may be operably connected to the transient database 155 .
In one aspect of the invention, both the transient 150 and internal 170 web servers and transient and internal databases of the system can be remote web servers and databases. Alternatively, the web servers and databases can be onsite at the system's place of business. The web servers can be one of many commercially available web servers including, but not limited to Tomcat web servers, Apache web servers, Microsoft web servers, Google web servers, lighttpd web servers, and nginx web servers. The web servers can be based on one of many operating systems including, but not limited to UNIX, LINUX, MAC OS, or Windows (XP, VISTA, etc.). It is contemplated, however, that any suitable web server may be used for the present invention.
In one aspect of the invention shown in FIG. 2 , the system can be hosted on a cluster of web servers, which may be LINUX based. Each request can be routed to a specific server by a load balancer. The load balancer decides which server should process a request based upon the current request-load of the available server(s). The database(s) can be, but are not limited to, SQL databases (by Microsoft and others), Oracle databases, 4 th Dimension databases, InterBase databases, and Apache databases. It is contemplated, however, that any suitable database may be used for the present invention.
In one aspect of the invention, the uploaded files are initially stored on the web server itself. A LINUX based intermediate server pulls these uploaded files from the web server and places them within a path in itself. A separate process that runs on the intermediate server can copy these files to a LINUX based file server.
Applications of this type can be built and programmed using one of many different types of architecture including, but not limited to J2EE (Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition) and Microsoft .NET platform, UNIX Daemon platform, and CORBA platform. It is contemplated, however, that any suitable platform can be used to build the code of the present system.
Connection to the web server on end user terminals 115 would use one of many available internet browsers including, but not limited to, Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Apple's Safari, and Mozilla's Firefox. Via the Internet 120 , the end users access the first graphical user interface 140 , which may be an http-based website, although other graphical user interfaces can be used with the present system. The first thegraphical user interface 140 is accessed by an end user and is used to input information regarding one or more claims (some specifics of which are discussed below).
The information entered by an end user via the first graphical user interface 140 can be encrypted before transmission over the Internet for additional security. There are several commercially available encryption programs or algorithms available including, but not limited to, PCI Encryption Algorithm, TrueCrypt, a Symantec encryption program, Blowfish, and Guardian Edge. In one aspect of the invention, the encryption algorithm can be a free to use open source 128-bit encryption algorithm. Symmetric algorithms can be used to encrypt the data. These can use key lengths of 40, 56, 64, 80, 128, or 256 bits. In one aspect of the invention, a password of 128 bits can be used (i.e., a password consisting of 16 characters to encrypt/decrypt the file that is being uploaded). It is contemplated, however, that any suitable encryption algorithm or program can be used in the present system. The information can be decrypted by the transient, or intermediate server 150 and moved to the internal server 170 , prior to storage on the internal database 180 .
The graphical user interface 140 also facilitates the uploading of files. When files are identified for upload, they are each tagged with pointers via pointer code 130 , so that, after the files are actually physically uploaded to the web server, the documentation can be scanned for malicious code on the end user terminal 115 by anti-virus code 135 . Anti-virus code 135 can detect and remove or repair malicious code. Alternatively, if malicious code is detected, the entire process can be terminated. In one aspect, the Clam Antivirus code is an open source (GPL) anti-virus toolkit for UNIX, and designed especially for e-mail scanning and document scanning on mail gateways. It provides a number of utilities including a flexible and scalable multi-threaded daemon, a command line scanner and an advanced tool for automatic database uploads. The core of the package is an anti-virus engine, which is available in the form of a shared library. It is contemplated, however, that any suitable antivirus software program can be used by the system of the invention, including, but not limited to, McAfee, Symantec's Norton Antivirus, CA Antivirus, BitDefender Antivirus, and Frisk Software's F-Prot. After determining that the files do not contain malicious code, the documents can be saved to the transient web server 150 and stored on the transient database 155 , through a firewall 125 .
It is contemplated that any suitable firewall can be used in the present system. Firewall 125 may be, but is not limited to, network layer (or packet filter) firewalls, stateless firewalls or firewalls that filter information based on one of many parameters. The firewall may be one of many commercially available firewalls including, but not limited to, a Cisco firewall, a Microsoft firewall, Norton Internet Security, and Comodo Firewall Pro. In one aspect of the invention, the web servers are available behind the first firewall 125 , which adds to the security of the server environment. All information that is transacted through the firewall can be ensured to be reasonably secure.
A second firewall 160 , which may be the same or different type as the first firewall 125 , may be operably placed between the internal web server 170 and the transient web server 150 . Anti-virus code 135 may perform scans of the incoming files on the transient server 150 prior to further transferring the files to an internal web server 170 . The internal web server 170 may be operably connected to an internal database 180 . The internal database 180 may comprise one or more physical databases. The internal database 180 provides storage of information and files relating to the multi-claimant cases, the claimants, and any settlement or judgment that affects the relief afforded to the eligible claimants. In addition, the internal database 180 provides storage for information relating to institutions, and end users.
The company coordinating the claim databases relating to the administration of the class action lawsuit resolution and the disbursement of relief can maintain a second user graphical interface 175 and an internal network 185 , to which internal users' terminals 190 a , 190 b , 190 x may be connected. The internal network can be a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) and can use a wide variety of operating systems, including, but not limited to, UNIX, LINUX, MAC OS, or Windows (XP, VISTA, etc.) The internal network 185 is operably connected to the internal web server 170 , which is in turn, operably connected to the internal database 180 . Information regarding the pending and completed administrations, as well as claimant, end user, and institution information is stored on the internal database 180 .
As shown in FIG. 1 , the pointer code 130 , the anti-virus code 135 , and the first graphical user interface 140 may be located on the transient server 150 . It is contemplated, however, that the pointer code 130 , the anti-virus code 135 , and the first graphical user interface 140 may be located on the internal server 170 instead, on both the transient server 150 and the internal server 170 , or on a remote server (not shown), as long as the system and method are functional in substantially the manner described herein.
The figure also depicts the second graphical user interface 175 as being located on the internal server 170 . As above, however, the second graphical user interface may be located on the transient server 150 , both the transient server 150 and the internal server 170 , or on a remote server (not shown).
The placement of the pointer code 130 , the anti-virus code 135 , the first graphical user interface 140 and the second graphical user interface may be determined by several parameters. There is, however, a greater security risk to the system if these objects are located outside of the firewalls. Conversely, if these objects are all placed within both firewalls, either larger and more costly firewalls would be required, or the system would be slower.
The system may also contain other code 145 , and as before, the other code 145 can be located on the transient server 150 , the internal server 170 , both the transient server 150 and the internal server 170 , or a remote server (not shown). This other code can include, but is not limited to, code for validating a registering institution and institutional contact; code for transmitting information identifying a registering end user to the institutional contact; code to provide links to the institutional contact that indicate acceptance or rejection of the registering end user; code to provide options selected from deleting the claim, holding the claim, or accepting the claim to the institutional contact; code allowing a registered end user to monitor the status of at least one claim; code allowing the institutional contact to monitor the status of at least one claim; code that facilitates sending messages relating to deficient claims; code that facilitates completing a claim; code for transmitting a message to the institutional contact if a claim is not completed within a predetermined time period; code for automatically transmitting a message containing the institutional database record to one or more predesignated individuals for review; code providing links indicating acceptance or rejection of the institution; code for providing notice to the one or more predesignated individuals that the institutional database record has been reviewed; and code for notifying the institution of acceptance or rejection.
FIG. 1 illustrates only one particularized deployment of the invention, without showing all possible permutations of the system. For example, the web server may be implemented as one physical web server or two or more physical web servers that are interconnected via a load balancer to the client, or end user, machines, as shown in FIG. 2 . The load balancer may be, but is not limited to, a Cisco load balancer, a Barracuda load balancer, a Kemp Technologies load balancer, or any other suitable load balancer.
FIG. 3A is a flow chart depicting the process of filing a claim by an institutional end user. When an end user accesses the system of the invention, a website home page (not shown) welcomes the end user to the class action lawsuit claim system of the invention. If the end user has not yet registered, he or she is prompted to select an institution to which the end user is affiliated. The end user will enter the name of the institution and/or select from a list of institution names. These steps are illustrated by FIGS. 5 and 6 . FIG. 7 illustrates the entry of end user information. First, an end user associated with an institution 105 or as an individual investor 110 accesses the graphical user interface 140 , which may be a website 305 , via the Internet 120 using a client terminal 115 . The end user will then be prompted to register 310 or log in 315 . If the end user is a new end user, he or she may register 310 by associating their information with an institution that has been previously registered 320 and validated 325 with the company that is administering the multi-claimant proceeding. As exemplified in FIGS. 5-7 , the end user can then be prompted to enter information for use in user validation at a later time. Here, an end user can create a profile and/or enter user information, and associate with his or her institution. Alternatively, if an end user is already registered, he or she can log into the system directly and begin filing claims or reviewing claim status and history. End users can edit their profiles on website pages (not shown). It is contemplated that an end user may view and modify information related only to that information entered into the database by that end user. In addition, there is an option to edit an institution database record that can be selected (not shown). However, this action can only be performed by a person affiliated with the institution and designated as the institutional contact. It is contemplated that there may be more than one institutional contact designated. The institutional contact may view and modify information entered by end users associated with that institution. However, while the institutional contact may view all information, he or she might not have the right or ability to modify all the information, depending upon the rights of access granted by an administrator.
The administrator will have the ability to view and modify all information relating to the lawsuit resolution. This information includes, but is not limited to, institutional information, lawsuit information, end user information, claimant information, transaction information, and lawsuit resolution information.
Of course, because of the robustness of the method, an administrator, an institutional contact, and/or an end user can easily navigate between multiple lawsuit, multiple claimants, and multiple transactions, where they may view input, or modify the records in a single session, depending upon their authority and the rights granted to them.
The institution information comprises an institutional database record that contains institutional contact information. The institutional contact can log in to the website 330 , monitor claim status 335 , edit the institutional database record 340 , as well as enter and file claims 345 . As shown in FIG. 4 , the institutional database record may include the institution's name and address, institutional contact, and additional information regarding the institution.
When an institution 105 registers (e.g., a bank named Rock Solid Bank), a message 210 containing links to the institutional database record 213 and supporting documents 215 can be automatically transmitted a message to one or more predesignated individuals for review. The supporting documents can include, but are not limited to tax forms, SEC forms, and institutional records relating to the lawsuit. As shown in FIG. 3B , the message may contain links 220 and 225 indicating acceptance or rejection of the institution. After one of the predesignated individuals reviews the institutional database record and accepts or rejects the institution 105 , notice 230 can be provided automatically to the other individuals that the institutional database record has already been reviewed 235 . A message 236 to the institutional contact can also be sent, informing the institutional contact of the status of the registration request 237 .
FIG. 3C illustrates messages that are transmitted to an institutional contact from the system relating to the approval of an end user registration. The internal server 170 , transmits data to an internal database 180 end user data 241 , 242 , 243 is stored. When an end user requests affiliation with an institution (e.g. Rock Solid Bank), the system will automatically send a message 245 to the institutional contact at Rock Solid Bank asking for approval or rejection of the end user, e.g., Joe User 242 . The message 245 can contain links to either accept 250 or reject 255 Joe User 242 as a registered end user, which would send information regarding that acceptance or rejection back to the web server (perhaps via the firewalls and intermediate server). In one aspect, if an end user is rejected, the profile relating to that end user may be deleted, as also illustrated in FIG. 3C . Alternatively, if an end user is not approved, the database will retain the end user information and his or her unapproved status (not shown).
In this aspect, the system and method as described allow an end user to register and immediately access information and file claims. There is no wait period necessary where the end user must be validated. Rather, validation of the end user can be performed after the initial registration. In the event that an institution or the administrating company cannot validate an end user, the administrating company can either delete the files inputted by the non-validated end user, or give an institution options regarding the files. For example, the institution can request that the administrating company hold the information for a specified period of time, or until the end user (the same or a different one) can be validated and the claims processed correctly.
After the user logs in 315 to the website 305 , he or she can be brought to the home page for filing claims 345 . At this stage, if the user needs help with filing claims, he or she can either access a contact page 350 for information on how to contact the lawsuit administrators or access a help page 355 that houses a frequently asked question information source. The end user can also modify their profile 318 . At this point, an end user can be prompted to select between filing a claim or reviewing the history and status of a previously filed claim (not shown). FIG. 8 exemplifies a screen that gives the end user access to FAQs, contact information, and help pages. FIG. 8 also illustrates end user instructions for the filing of a claim or claims.
Prior to filing one or more claims, the end user is prompted to select a case 360 . As shown in FIG. 9 , cases can be selected by entering the name of the case directly or by searching via the alphabet. Once the end user has navigated the graphical user interface 140 to a specific case (see FIG. 10 ), the end user can then file claims by inputting case information 365 relating to that particular lawsuit. This information may include, but is not limited to the case status, case due dates, the defendant and plaintiff information, when the case was filed and in which court, as well as any settlement or judgment amount. It is contemplated that the case information can include any information deemed pertinent to the lawsuit.
After entering the information relating to the claim, as depicted in FIG. 11 , the end user can then attach the supporting documentation files 370 . Here, there are four supporting documents required, although this number may vary by the case. The supporting documents can include, but are not limited to a signed proof of claim form, a signature verification document, a data verification document and an authorization document. Other documents that may be required include, but are not limited to, stock certificates, verification of sales and purchases. It is contemplated that any supporting documents required by the specific lawsuit can be filed. As discussed above, the file paths entered into the system via the end user terminal 115 actually will have pointers associated with them by pointer code 130 , which then may be used to scan the information and documentation for malicious code after uploading to the web server and database. As shown in FIG. 12 , after the end user enters the information and uploads the supporting files, the user can receive confirmation that the claim filing and supporting files were received 380 . The end user can then log out 385 of the system.
By way of example, and not of limitation, it is not unusual for an institution to file claims on behalf of tens or even hundreds of claimants in numerous lawsuit resolutions. In addition, for many claimants, their claims may be based upon multiple transactions, i.e., there is no technical limit to the number of transaction upon which a claim can be based, nor to the number of claimants. Table 1 is a tree showing potential relationships between institutions and claimants and their transactions for class action lawsuits. The present systems and methods support the institution's ability to track all of the claims filed on behalf of all of its customers (the claimants), including the underlying transactions, by presenting a graphical user interface that provides streamlined interaction and access to this information to facilitate the record keeping of each institution in regards to its participation in the administration of the resolution of one or more lawsuits. The institution may file claims in two or more lawsuit resolutions and manage these claims in each lawsuit resolution for multiple claimants.
TABLE 1
As shown in FIGS. 13-15 , the claimant information may be uploaded to the system 100 as batch transaction files. FIG. 13 depicts the screen where file path to the batch file may be indicated for upload as batch transaction files. The batch file to be uploaded can be located by browsing the end user's computer to locate the desired document or file. FIG. 14 depicts one interface for providing the formatting of that batch transaction file so the system can correctly load the files. FIG. 15 depicts how control totals for the batch files are uploaded.
Once the claim files are fully uploaded to the transient database through the first firewall, they can be moved to a folder for scanning and uploading through the second firewall. After the files are copied to the internal database, they can be verified to have migrated through the first and second firewalls safely and completely. Once the verification is performed, the files can then be deleted from the transient database.
Returning to FIG. 3A , after selecting a case 345 , the end user can access previously filed claim information, including the claim history and status 390 , as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 . Each specific submission should contain case information, status details, claim numbers, transaction information, supporting documentation and files, and deficiencies (if any). Here, an end user can provide any information that is missing from a deficient claim to complete the claims 395 . After reviewing the information and updating the same, the end user can then, as above, log out 385 .
After a registered end user has completed at least the initial filing of at least one claim, the system may transmit one or more messages requesting additional information, or impending deadlines relating to the lawsuit. FIG. 3D illustrates two of the potential messages that may be sent. Message 260 informs a registered end user (Joe User 242 ) that certain claims are missing documents. Message 265 informs a registered end user that the deadline for filing and completing claims is approaching. If the claim is not completed within a predetermined time period, a message 270 can be transmitted to the institutional contact. It is contemplated that these messages may include legal disclaimers, as well as other terms and conditions relating to those messages.
If a registered user has forgotten a password during subsequent log-ins, a “forgot password” system can be incorporated into the system. The system of the invention comprises a help section. Information related to the system can be located by using the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section (not shown). If additional help is needed, a section with contact information is also included (not shown). After completing all the necessary procedures, an end user will log out of the system of the invention, which will then note that the user has been logged out (not shown).
As illustrated in FIGS. 18 and 19 , when the company coordinating a multi-claimant proceeding sets up a specific case file relating to a class action lawsuit, an internal user will begin a new project. Information relating to the class action lawsuit is entered into the internal database. This information can include, but is not limited to, the court, the case number, the lead plaintiff, the plaintiff and defense counsels, court documents, the judge, important case dates, and any settlement or judgment information.
FIGS. 20A-20H illustrate a sample database record for the system and method of the invention. Included are data collection records, factsheet data records, staging tables on a scheduler for data collection, initialization tables on a scheduler for data collection, final transfer tables on a scheduler for data collection, and tables used in a web portal.
The foregoing description and drawings merely explain and illustrate the invention and the invention is not limited thereto. While the specification in this invention is described in relation to certain implementation or embodiments, many details are set forth for the purpose of illustration. Thus, the foregoing merely illustrates the principles of the invention. For example, the invention may have other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristic. The described arrangements are illustrative and not restrictive. To those skilled in the art, the invention is susceptible to additional implementations or embodiments and certain of these details described in this application may be varied considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements, which, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the invention and, thus, are within its scope and spirit.
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The invention relates to systems and methods for filing and monitoring electronic claim submissions in proceedings involving a large number of claimants, such as securities class action lawsuits, estate dissolutions, arbitrations, and bankruptcies. The systems and methods create an easy-to-use and convenient way for institutions and individual claimants to register their claim relief upon judgment or settlement.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tool for a street milling, coal-cutting, mining machine or the like which has a chisel with a chisel head and a chisel shaft. The chisel shaft is rotatably mounted in a receiver of a chisel holder. A perforated wear protection element is mounted on the chisel head with the chisel head sitting closely on the chisel holder with the wear protection element interposed.
2. Description of Related Art
A tool is known from European Patent Reference EP 0 413 917 A1, where the wear protection element is formed as a circular steel sheet disk, from which an opening is punched in the center. The opening is extended in the direction of the chisel head. A chamfered part of the chisel head lies in this extension. The wear protection element lies flat on a contact surface of the chisel holder. During use of the tool, waste material can get past the chisel head and the wear protection element and reach the receiver. In this position, this material can block the free rotation of the chisel.
Another tool for mounting a chisel on a chisel holder is known from European Patent Reference EP 0 200 37 B1, where the chisel head is set directly on the chisel holder. The chisel holder is designed to be under spring tension on a base part that can be attached on its side to a milling roller. The chisel can also become fixed due to waste material penetrating into the receiver, and then the chisel can no longer rotate freely.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of this invention is to provide a tool of the above mentioned type, which has good wear behavior.
The wear protection element comprises one or more spring elements that elastically support the chisel head relative to the chisel holder.
Due to the spring-tensioned support of the chisel head, intermittent forces acting on the chisel are damped so that excessive material stresses are prevented. In addition, the spring force provides an axial play for the chisel, wherein the chisel head can then also move axially in the receiver of the chisel holder. With this axial play, there is a type of “pump effect” which can extract waste material that has reached the region of the receiver. Thus, the free rotation of the chisel can be maintained.
In order to keep the cost of parts and assembly to a minimum, according to a preferred embodiment of this invention, spring elements are formed integrally with the wear element.
In one possible embodiment of this invention, the wear protection element comprises a base part with at least one flat contact surface that contacts an opposing surface of the chisel head or the chisel holder. A circumferential section acting as a spring element is bent in the direction of the chisel holder or the chisel head from the base part. The spring element supports the chisel holder or the chisel head on the region of the spring element facing away from the base part.
However, it is also conceivable for several, preferably three, spring elements that are separated from each other to be bent from the base part. With these spring elements, a definite, statically determinate support situation is achieved.
In order to be able to achieve progressive or regressive spring characteristics, according to one embodiment of this invention, each spring element comprises two or more spring sections that exhibit different spring rigidity and/or the same or different spring deflections.
A tool according to this invention has an area around the opening in which the chisel shaft is inserted, with a circumferential centering attachment that projects in the direction of the chisel holder and that interacts with a centering extension of the receiver of the chisel holder. The centering extension of the chisel holder simplifies assembly of the chisel shaft in the receiver. During operation, the region of the contact surface on which the wear protection element is supported and which is arranged around the receiver gradually wears away. This is caused by rotation of the wear protection element on this contact surface. With a centering attachment at the wear protection element, the centering extension is worn away to the same degree as the contact surface. However, this causes the centering extension to remain in place.
A tool with a simple configuration and that is cost-effective to produce is obtained according to this invention when the wear element is produced as a stamped, bent part from a flat material blank, from which the opening for the chisel shaft is punched and whose edge or edges are bent for completely or partially forming the spring elements.
Here, one or more reinforcing ribs can be formed on the edges that form the spring elements. The reinforcing ribs increase the spring rigidity. Thus, a relatively low material strength can be used for the wear protection element yet still provide a high spring rate.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
This invention is explained in more detail in view of the drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a chisel holder with an attached tool in a side view and partial cross section;
FIG. 2 a is a wear protection element in a side view and partial cross section;
FIG. 2 b is the wear protection element from FIG. 2 a in a top view;
FIG. 3 a is another embodiment of a wear protection element in a side view and a partial cross section;
FIG. 3 b is the sear protection element from FIG. 3 a in a top view;
FIG. 4 a is a modification of the wear protection element shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b in a side view and partial cross section; and
FIG. 4 b is the wear protection element of FIG. 4 a in a top view.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 shows a chisel holder 20 with a base part 22 . The base part 22 carries a plug attachment 21 that can fix the chisel holder 20 to a holder part so that it can be removed. The holder part can then be attached to a milling roller or a coal-cutting machine or the like. For the sake of clarity, the holder part and the milling roller are not shown in FIG. 1 . The base part 22 has a receiver 23 . The receiver 23 is bored into the base part 22 starting from a level contact surface 24 . The receiver 23 expands outwards by means of a centering extension 25 at the contact surface 24 . A chisel 10 is fixed to the chisel holder 20 . The chisel 10 comprises a chisel head 11 and a chisel shaft 15 . The chisel head 11 has a receiver on its front side, in which a bit 12 is soldered. In an intermediate region, the chisel head 11 has a circumferential groove 13 that enables the disassembly of the chisel 10 from the chisel holder 20 , with a tool. In the transition region to the chisel shaft 15 , the chisel head 11 is sealed with a flange 14 . As shown in FIG. 1, an adapter sleeve 16 is mounted on the chisel shaft 15 . The adapter sleeve 16 holds the chisel 10 in the axial direction. Furthermore, the adapter sleeve 16 is braced due to radial expansion in the receiver 23 of the chisel holder 20 . In this way, the adapter sleeve 16 holds the chisel 10 in the chisel holder 20 , wherein the chisel 10 can freely rotate in the adapter sleeve 16 . Between the chisel head 11 and the chisel holder 20 there is a wear protection element 30 . The wear protection element 30 supports the chisel head 11 on the contact surface 24 of the chisel holder 20 .
The wear protection element 30 is produced as a stamped, bent part from a circular steel sheet blank and has a centering opening 35 , by which the wear protection element 30 is mounted on the chisel shaft 15 . In a region facing the chisel head 11 , the opening 35 tapers into an expanding, chamfered inlet 37 . The chamfered inlet 37 serves for easier assembly of the wear protection element 30 . The wear protection element 30 is initially loaded onto the end of the adapter sleeve 16 with its chamfered inlet 37 facing away from the chisel head 11 . Thus, the diameter ratio of the opening 35 of the wear protection element 30 relative to the tensioned diameter of the adapter sleeve 16 is selected so that the adapter sleeve can be inserted into the receiver 23 with minimum or no force. For final assembly of the chisel 10 , the wear protection element 30 is shifted by the application of force, for example, by means of hammer blows, along the adapter sleeve 16 until it goes beyond the end of the adapter sleeve 16 on the side of the chisel head. Then the adapter sleeve 16 is snapped in radially and is tensioned in the receiver 23 . In this assembled position, the chisel head 11 contacts the contact surface 36 of the wear protection element 30 . The contact surface 36 extends perpendicularly to the center longitudinal axis of the chisel 10 and connects to the chamfered inlet 37 . In the region of this contact surface 36 , the wear protection element 30 forms a base part, from which a spring element 32 is bent projecting outwards. The spring element 32 is formed from the outer edge of the wear protection element 30 which is placed at an angle to the contact surface 24 of the chisel holder 20 . The spring element 32 is supported at its end facing away from chisel head 11 by means of a support section 31 on the contact surface 24 of the chisel head 20 . As shown in FIG. 1, the wear element 30 has a circumferential centering attachment 33 designed with a geometry that makes a 45° angle with the chisel holder 20 , wherein this angle continues around the receiver 23 as the centering extension 25 . The centering extension 25 simplifies mounting of the chisel 10 in the receiver 23 . As shown in FIG. 1, the centering attachment 33 in its original state, not attached to the tool, is arranged at a distance to the centering extension 25 . This separation creates a spring deflection. If a tool, for example for a road surface, is attached to the tool of this invention, then the impact of the bit on the material to be removed is cushioned by the spring element 32 of the wear protection element. In this way, excessive material stresses on the bit 12 are prevented. During the removal process, the wear protection element 30 is flattened. After the tool is detached, the wear protection element 30 springs back into its output position, wherein the chisel shaft 15 is shifted along its axial direction in the receiver 23 . Due to this “pump effect,” waste material which gets past the chisel head 11 and the wear protection element 30 and reaches the receiver 23 can be extracted. Thus, the free rotation of the chisel 10 in the adapter sleeve 16 is maintained.
In the following, various embodiments of wear protection elements 30 are explained in view of FIGS. 2 a - 4 b.
The wear protection element shown in FIGS. 2 a and 2 b has a spring element 32 that is formed from the outer edge of the wear protection element 30 . The edge of the wear protection element 30 is bent so that it runs parallel to the longitudinal extension of the chisel 10 . This produces a flat, annular support section 31 , by which the wear protection element 30 is supported on the contact surface 24 .
A wear protection element 30 is shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b , having an outer edge not bent 90° as shown in FIGS. 2 a and 2 b , but rather at an angle less than 90°.
In FIGS. 4 a and 4 b , the wear protection element 30 in FIG. 1 is shown in more detail. The outer edge that forms the spring element 32 has reinforcing ribs 34 . The spring rate of the spring element 32 can be increased by these reinforcing ribs 34 .
The production of the wear protection element 30 described above is simple. Here, a circular blank is first punched from a flat steel sheet blank. The opening 35 can be punched from the steel sheet blank. Then the region surrounding the opening 35 is stamped-so that the centering attachment 33 and the chamfered inlet 37 are obtained simultaneously. Then the spring element 32 is bent.
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A tool for a street milling, coal-cutting mining machine or the like which includes a chisel with a chisel head and a chisel stem. The chisel stem is rotatably mounted in a receiver of a chisel holder. A perforated wearing protection element is mounted on the chisel head. The chisel head sits closely on the chisel holder while embracing the interposed wearing protection element. This invention achieves improved wearing protection behavior of such a tool. Thus, the inventive wearing protection element has one or more spring elements that elastically support the chisel head by way of the chisel holder.
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CLAIM OF PRIORITY
The present invention claims priority from Japanese application JP 2004-201608 filed on Jul. 8, 2004, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference into this application.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of measurement of a brain function disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-237194.
2. Description of the Related Art
An example of measurement of a brain function will be described in conjunction with FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B . FIG. 1A shows the configuration of a brain function measurement system and the relationship thereof to a subject. FIG. 1B shows an example of the distribution of positions S at which a light irradiating means for irradiating the subject's head with light is located, and positions D at which a receiving optical fiber for receiving light that has been applied to the subject's head and transmitted thereby is located.
The brain function measurement system includes: a plurality of light sources 102 a to 102 d that generates light waves having difference wavelengths (the light sources 102 a and 102 c generate light having a wavelength of, for example, 780 nm, and the light sources 102 b and 102 d generate light having a wavelength of, for example, 830 nm); oscillators 101 a and 101 b and oscillators 101 c and 101 d that modulate at different frequencies the intensities of light waves emitted from the plurality of light sources 102 a and 102 b or light sources 102 c and 102 d ; a plurality of light irradiating means for irradiating, which a coupler 104 a produces using the intensity-modulated light waves having propagated along optical fibers 103 a and 103 b , and light, which a coupler 104 b produces using the intensity-modulated light waves having propagated along optical fibers 103 c and 103 d , different positions on the head skin of a subject 106 with light over light irradiating optical fibers 105 a and 105 b ; and a plurality of pieces of light receiving means composed of a plurality of receiving optical fibers 107 a to 107 f , which is disposed so that the ends thereof will be located equidistantly from (for example, 30 mm away from) the light-applied positions, that is, the plurality of pieces of light irradiating means, and light receivers 108 a to 108 f disposed at the other ends of the optical fibers 107 a to 107 f.
In the example of FIG. 1A , the three receiving optical fibers (D in the drawing) 107 a to 107 c and three receiving optical fibers 107 d to 107 f are, as shown in FIG. 1B , disposed around the light irradiating optical fibers (S in the drawing) 105 a and 105 b , so that light waves transmitted by a living body will be converged on the optical fibers and detected. The detected light waves transmitted by the living body are photoelectrically converted by the light receivers 108 a to 108 f . The light receiving means detects light, which is transmitted by the subject's intracranial regions while being reflected therefrom, and converts the light into an electrical signal. The light receivers 108 a to 108 f are realized with photoelectric conversion elements such as photoelectric multipliers or photodiodes.
Electrical signals that represent the intensities of light waves transmitted by a living body and that result from photoelectric conversion performed by the light receivers 108 a to 108 f (hereinafter, living body-transmitted light intensity signals) are transferred to lock-in amplifiers 109 a to 109 h . The light receivers 108 c and 108 d detect the intensities of living body-transmitted light waves converged on the receiving optical fibers 107 c and 107 d that are located equidistantly from the light irradiating optical fibers 105 a and 105 b respectively. The signals proportional to the light intensities detected by the light receivers 108 c and 108 d are each separated into two portions and transferred to the lock-in amplifiers 109 c and 109 e or the lock-in amplifiers 109 d and 109 f . Signals that are the outputs of the oscillators 101 a and 10 b as well as 101 c and 101 d modulated in intensity at intensity modulation frequencies are transferred as signals of reference frequencies to the lock-in amplifiers 109 a to 109 d , and 109 e to 109 h respectively. Consequently, the living body-transmitted light intensity signals representing the intensities of light waves emitted from the light sources 102 a and 102 b are separated from each other and transmitted from the lock-in amplifiers 109 a to 109 d . The living body-transmitted light intensity signals representing the intensities of light waves emitted from the light sources 102 c and 102 d are separated from each other and transmitted from the lock-in amplifiers 109 e to 109 h.
The transmitted light intensity signals separated from one another in units of a wavelength and transmitted from the lock-in amplifiers 109 a to 109 h are analog-to-digital converted by an analog-to-digital converter (hereinafter, an A/D converter) 110 , and then transferred to a measurement control computer 111 . The measurement control computer 111 uses each of the transmitted-light intensity signals, that is, detection signals produced at detected positions to thus arithmetically or logically calculate relative changes in an oxyhemoglobin concentration, a deoxy-hemoglobin concentration, and a total hemoglobin concentration. The relative changes are stored as time-sequential information on each of the measured positions in a storage device included in the computer 111 . Herein, the change in the total hemoglobin concentration is calculated as the sum of the changes in the oxyhemoglobin concentration and deoxy-hemoglobin concentration.
On the other hand, in order to measure a brain function of a subject, a predetermined stimulus or task is applied to the subject and the subject's response to the stimulus or task is assessed. A centralized control/data processing/result display computer 114 issues a command to the measurement control computer 111 . The measurement control computer 111 in turn uses a stimulus/task command presentation device 113 to apply a stimulus/task instruction to the subject according to a prepared stimulus/task instruction sequence. A response to the stimulus/task instruction made by the subject's brain is optically measured as described above. The centralized control/data processing/results display computer 114 and the measurement control computer 111 communicate required information to each other.
Conventionally, in order to assess a subject's response to a stimulus or task, the significance of a signal representing an average response obtained as a result of repetitive measurements is tested based on the amplitude of the signal. A significantly active area is then identified (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-237194).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A response period is determined arbitrarily. Moreover, a satisfactory detecting capability may not be provided because of an artifact or the like contained in a signal. Therefore, an effective detection method capable of accurately assessing a subject's response to a stimulus or task and a display method for presenting the results of detection are requested to be developed.
The present invention is based on the principle that activities of the same source are in phase with one another. For assessment of a subject's response, an active area is detected by checking if the phase of a stimulus or task applied to the subject is synchronous with the phase of the subject's response. The synchronousness is analyzed by checking the amplitudes and phases of both the signals. FIG. 2A and FIG. 2 B are schematic explanatory diagrams concerning the synchronousness of a signal with a task. FIG. 2A shows signal examples A and B resulting from application of a task to a subject during a task period that comes cyclically and alternately with a rest period. The signal example A is synchronous with the task in both the amplitude and phase thereof. The signal example B is synchronous with the task in the phase thereof but asynchronous therewith in the amplitude thereof. FIG. 2B is a table listing whether the amplitudes and phases of the signal examples are synchronous with the amplitude and phase of the task.
The present invention takes account of the fact that the synchronousness of the amplitude of a signal with that of a task is unacceptable as a condition under which a subject's response is assessed. Namely, a signal representing a stimulus or task applied to a subject is used as a reference signal, and a phase difference of a measurement signal representing the subject's response from the reference signal is calculated. The synchronousness of the phase of the measurement signal with the reference signal is numerically expressed. The numerical value is statistically processed in order to thus numerically express a degree of reliability. A brain activity or a functional connectivity is visualized based on significant data.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1A shows the configuration of a brain function measurement system and the relationship of the system to a subject;
FIG. 1B shows an example of the distribution of positions S at which a light irradiating means for irradiating a subject's head with light is located, and positions D at which a receiving optical fiber for receiving light applied to the subject's head and transmitted thereby is located;
FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are simple explanatory diagrams concerning the synchronousness of a signal with a task;
FIG. 2A shows signal examples A and B produced responsively to a task applied during a task period that comes cyclically and alternately with a rest period;
FIG. 2B is a table listing whether the amplitudes and phases of the signal examples A and B are synchronous with the task;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a living body measurement system in accordance with the first embodiment;
FIG. 4A to FIG. 4F are explanatory diagrams concerning an example of the results of analysis of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal performed according to the first embodiment;
FIG. 4A shows an example of the structure of a probe;
FIG. 4B graphically shows the results of assessment of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal on the basis of the results of measurement of a change in a total hemoglobin content;
FIG. 4C shows the results shown in FIG. 4B and displayed in a different form;
FIG. 4D shows, for comparison, the results of a test, which is performed as conventionally on the same results of measurement in order to check the synchronousness of the amplitude of a signal produced during stimulation, displayed in the same form as FIG. 4C ;
FIG. 4E shows an example of a display form in which the results shown in FIG. 4B and FIG. 4C are presented to a user in an easier-to-understand manner;
FIG. 4F shows an example of an image displayed in order to present the results shown in FIG. 4D in the same manner as the results shown in FIG. 4C ;
FIG. 5A illustratively shows an example of the structures of probes included in the second embodiment and the arrangement thereof;
FIG. 5B shows the results shown in FIG. 5A in the form of an image expressing the head, which is visualized, seen from above similarly to the display form shown in FIG. 4E ;
FIG. 6 shows measurement channels in which signals which are produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal serving as a standard signal and whose phases are highly synchronous with the phase of the standard signal;
FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B shows the results of assessment of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal, which is produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal, with the phase of the standard signal with a significance level set to 1%;
FIG. 8 shows the quickness levels of responses to signals, which are produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal serving as a standard signal in the measurement channels shown in FIG. 6 and of which phases are highly synchronous with the phase of the signal produced.
FIG. 9 shows information on the quickness levels of responses superposed on the results of assessment, which are shown in FIG. 7A , of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal, which is produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal serving as a standard signal, with the phase of the standard signal with a significance level set to 1%; and
FIG. 10 shows examples of images displayed in order to dynamically visualize the brain activities of a subject.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With consideration taken into the fact that when a signal produced responsively to a stimulus or task is synchronous with a signal representing the stimulus or task, the phase difference between the signals is fixed, how long the phase difference is fixed is discussed using actual data.
For calculation of a phase difference, the Hilbert transformation is used to obtain instantaneous phases of signals. A phase difference observed at each time instant is calculated from the instantaneous phases.
The Hilbert transformation will be described. A Hilbert transform g(t) of a real variable function f(t) and an inverse Hilbert transform thereof are provided as formulae (1) and (2) below.
g ( t ) = f ( t ) ⊗ 1 π t = 1 π ∫ - ∞ ∞ f ( τ ) t - τ ⅆ τ ( 1 ) f ( t ) = g ( t ) ⊗ 1 π t = - 1 π ∫ - ∞ ∞ g ( τ ) t - τ ⅆ τ ( 2 )
where denotes convolution.
A measurement signal is regarded as the real variable function f(t), and an analysis signal Z(t) is defined as follows:
Z ( t )=ƒ( t )+ jg ( t ) (3)
When the formula (3) is defined in the system of polar coordinates, the following formula (4) is drawn out:
Z ( t )= r ( t ) e jθ(t) (4)
By rewriting the formula (4), the following formulae (5) and (6) are drawn out:
r ( t ) = f ( t ) 2 + g ( t ) 2 ( 5 ) θ ( t ) = tan - 1 g ( t ) f ( t ) ( 6 )
where r(t) denotes the instantaneous amplitude of the measurement signal f(t), and θ(t) denotes the instantaneous phase thereof.
According to an exemplary algorithm, the analysis signal Z(t) is obtained as a one-side Fourier transform of the measurement signal f(t). Namely, negative-frequency components of a signal are assigned 0. The measurement signal f(t) is fast-Fourier-transformed in order to approximate the analysis signal to the measurement signal. Coefficients expressing fast-Fourier-transformed negative-frequency components are replaced with zeros. The results are inverse-fast-Fourier-transformed in order to obtain the analysis signal Z(t).
To be more specific, an algorithm having four steps described below is employed. The number of input data items shall be n.
At the first step, input data is fast-Fourier-transformed, and the resultant data is represented with a vector y.
At the second step, a vector h causing h(i) to assume a value described below is produced. Namely, when i assumes 1 or (n/2)+1, h(i) will be 1. When i assumes 2, 3, etc., or (n/2), h(i) will be 2. When i assumes (n/2)+2, etc., or n, h(i) will be 0.
At the third step, the product of the vectors y and h is calculated for each h(i).
At the fourth step, an inverse fast-Fourier transform of a data stream calculated at the third step is worked out. The first n elements of the resultant data are provided as the analysis signal Z(t).
Statistical discussion is made in order to objectively verify how long a phase difference is fixed. The distribution of phase differences is expressed in the form of a histogram having Nb bins and covering a range from −π to π. A synchronization index (SI) is adopted as a statistical index and defined as a formula (7) below.
SI = S random - S S random ( 7 )
By rewriting the formula (7), formulae (8) and (9) are drawn out as follows:
S = - ∑ i = 1 Nb p i log 2 p i ( 8 ) S random = log 2 Nb ( 9 )
where pi denotes a probability density function of a random variable represented by the i-th bin.
In the formula (8), pi denotes the probability of a phase difference represented by the i-th bin.
If the distribution of phase differences is fully uniform, that is, if the phase of a signal is not at all synchronous, S=S random becomes true. SI is therefore 0. If the phase of a signal is fully synchronous, SI is 1. Since actual measurement data contains various kinds of noises, a clear-cut result such as SI=1 or 0 is very rare. If SI assumes an intermediate value, whether the phase of a signal is synchronous is verified statistically.
As a technique of verifying whether the phase of a signal is synchronous, a surrogate data method is employed. The surrogate data method is a framework for performing a test of hypothesis described below.
1. Numerous data items having an accurate statistical property are produced from original data (using random numbers).
2. An index to be assigned to random data is calculated.
3. The index assigned to the original data is tested based on sample values selected from among numerous indices.
As surrogate data, data subjected to the same filtering as a signal concerned during random sampling is adopted. If the distribution of synchronization indices (SI), that is, statistical indices calculated from 50 surrogate data items is a normal distribution (average: 0.2236, standard deviation: 0.0219), a synchronization index larger than 0.2800 may be adopted as a threshold for verification at a significance level of 1%. Furthermore, in order to discuss a time-sequential change in a synchronous state, a short time window (covering several hundreds of data items) may be designated. In this case, a synchronization index serving as a statistical index is calculated during the period, and a synchronization index calculated at a center time instant within the time window is adopted as a representative synchronization index. The time window is shifted in units of a certain time in order to calculate a time-sequential change in the synchronization index.
First Embodiment
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a living body measurement system in accordance with the first embodiment. The living body measurement system 210 corresponds to a measuring facility of the measurement control computer 111 shown in FIG. 1 . The living body measurement system includes an interface 201 that provides the interface with the A/D converter 110 , a CPU 202 that performs a series of actions, a storage unit 203 in which programs and data are stored, an interface 204 that provides the interface with external equipment 205 , and a bus 206 over which these components are interconnected. Moreover, a display means 211 , a keyboard 212 , and a pointing device (for example, a mouse) 213 are connected on the bus, and used to present the results of analysis to an operator of the measurement control computer 111 . Moreover, the operator uses the display means 211 , keyboard 212 , and pointing device to enter data. Herein, the programs stored in the storage unit 203 include a filtering program that performs required filtering on a signal, a phase synchronousness analyzing program for analyzing the synchronousness of the phase of each of a group of filtered signals or of an extraneous signal, an activity detecting program for detecting a neural activity from the results of analysis performed on the synchronousness of a phase, and an imaging program for presenting a user the detected neural activity in an easy-to-understand manner. The results of detection are displayed on the display means 211 . The programs preserved in the storage unit 203 are interpreted and run by a central processing unit 202 .
FIG. 4A to FIG. 4F are explanatory diagrams showing examples of the results of analysis performed on the synchronousness of a phase according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 4A shows an example of the structure of a probe. The probe is placed on a subject's head, and has a light irradiating optical fiber S and a receiving optical fiber D arranged alternately so that measurement channels 1 to 24 will be formed among the light irradiating optical fibers S and receiving optical fibers D. Thus, the probe measures a change in a total hemoglobin content caused by a visual stimulus. The numbers of light irradiating optical fibers S and receiving optical fibers D included in the probe can be determined arbitrarily in consideration of a position at which the probe is placed or the size of the subject's head. The visual stimulus to be applied to the subject is a checkerboard having a size of 16 by 16 and having red and black squares. A frequency at which the red and black squares are switched is set to 8 Hz. A rest period is set to 20 sec, and a stimulus (task) period is set to 18 sec. This test is repeated six times.
FIG. 4B shows the results of assessment on the synchronousness of a phase performed by measuring a change in a total hemoglobin content. The axis of abscissas indicates channel numbers, and the axis of ordinates indicates synchronization indices detected in the respective channels. An average of six synchronization indices obtained by repeating the test six times is indicated with a circle. Moreover, a broken line is drawn in order to indicate a statistical reference value (at a significance level of 1%). Consequently, in this example, a signal that can be assessed to be synchronous with the stimulus of the checkerboard is detected in channels 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 8 , and 10 .
FIG. 4C shows the results shown in FIG. 4B in a different manner. The channel numbers of the channels 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 8 , and 10 in which a signal assessed to be significant at the significance level of 1% is produced are displayed, and squares indicating channels in which an insignificant signal is produced are filled with black dots. The positions of the measuring fibers are indicated with blank squares. FIG. 4C demonstrates that the brain activity is observed at a position on the head associated with the upper part of the probe.
FIG. 4D shows in the same manner as FIG. 4C , for the purpose of comparison, the results of a test of hypothesis performed based on the synchronous of the amplitude of a signal that is assessed during stimulation as conventionally by measuring a change in a total hemoglobin content. In the test of hypothesis based on the synchronousness of the amplitude of a signal, a brain activity cannot be detected with a significance level set to 1%. The significance level is therefore set to 5%. Compared with FIG. 4C , FIG. 4D demonstrates that the brain activity is observed at a position on the head associated with the majority of the probe. This signifies that the present invention exhibits higher sensitivity and detects the localized brain activity.
FIG. 4E shows an example of a display form in which the results of FIG. 4B or FIG. 4C are presented to a user in an easier-to-understand manner. Significance levels at which the results of detection are assessed are varied stepwise, and the results of assessment made at the significance levels are associated with contour lines. Namely, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the significance levels include levels 0.001, 0.005, 0.01, and 0.05. Active areas hypothetically detected at the significance levels are indicated with the contour lines. The results of detection shown in FIG. 4C are expressed with the contour line associated with the significance level of 0.01. If a well-known imaging program is used to display the contour lines with shades of a certain color, the active areas would be presented to a user in a well-visualized manner.
FIG. 4F shows an example of a display form in which the results of FIG. 4D comparative with FIG. 4C are presented in the easier-to-understand manner. As described previously, the conventional test of hypothesis based on the synchronousness of the amplitude of a signal cannot detect an active area at all with a significance level set to 1%. FIG. 4F shows the results of detection performed at significance levels of 2% and 5%. The number of contour lines is only two, and the display is therefore coarse-grained.
Second Embodiment
The second embodiment is concerned with detection of an activity performed by asking an examinee to listen to the played-back commentary on a baseball game as a stimulus/task instruction sequence and to imagine standing on a field as a batter. FIG. 5A illustratively shows an example of the structures of probes employed in the second embodiment and the arrangement of the probes, and also shows the results of assessment of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal. An oval drawing expresses the head seen from above, and a triangle expresses the nose seen from above. Probes 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 are arranged on the frontal region of the head, the right and left temporal regions thereof, and the occipital region thereof. The probes 1 , 2 , and 3 are structured so that twenty-two measurement channels will be formed in each probe. The probe 4 is structured so that twenty-four measurement channels will be formed therein.
FIG. 5A illustratively shows an example of the structures of the probes employed in the second embodiment and the arrangement thereof, and shows the results of assessment of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal.
FIG. 5B shows, similarly to FIG. 4E , the results shown in FIG. 5A in a well-visualized manner together with a drawing expressing the head seen from above. As apparent from FIG. 5B , an activity stemming from hearing of the played-back commentary is observed in the right and left infratemporal regions (auditory fields). An activity stemming from imagination of batting is observed in the supra-occipital region (optical field). An activity stemming from preparation for modeling a motion is observed in the frontal region. An activity stemming from modeling of a motion is observed in the right and left supratemporal regions (motor fields).
In the foregoing example, an active area can be accurately detected, and a subject's brain activity can be assessed further exactly.
Third Embodiment
According to the second embodiment, a subject's brain activity is detected by adopting a played-back signal, which is heard, as a standard signal. The levels of synchronousness of the phases of signals may be assessed, and a signal which is produced in a channel and whose phase is highly synchronous with the phase of the standard signal may be adopted as a new standard signal. In this case, an active brain area can be detected further exactly.
According to the third embodiment, first, a measurement channel in which a signal which is produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal and whose phase is highly synchronous with the phase of the played-back signal serving as a standard signal is produced is detected. FIG. 6 shows detected measurement channels in which a signal which is produced responsively to hearing of the played-back signal and whose phase is highly synchronous with the phase of the standard signal is produced. In this example, a signal that is most highly synchronous with the standard signal is produced in the channel 10 in a probe 2 .
The signal in the channel 10 in the probe 2 is regarded as a new standard signal. The synchronousness of the phase of the signal produced responsively to the hearing of the played-back signal is assessed using the new standard signal. FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B show the results of assessment of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal, which is produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal, with the standard signal, wherein the assessment is made with a significance level set to 1%. Compared with FIG. 5A , although the same results of measurement are used for assessment, since a signal in a measurement channel whose phase is highly synchronous with the standard signal that is the signal produced responsively to hearing of the played-back signal is adopted as a practical standard signal, a localized active area can be detected. When FIG. 7A is compared with FIG. 5A , the phase of a signal in the channel 13 in the probe 1 is assessed to be asynchronous with the standard signal. The phase of a signal in the channel 15 in the probe 2 is assessed to be synchronous therewith, and the phase of a signal in the channel 18 therein is assessed to be a synchronous therewith. The phases of signals in the channels 4 and 14 in the probe 3 are assessed to be asynchronous therewith, and the phase of a signal in the channel 11 therein is assessed to be synchronous therewith. The phases of signals in the channels 13 and 16 in the probe 4 are assessed to be asynchronous therewith. Consequently, visualized information shown in FIG. 7B makes it possible to recognize the activities in more limited areas than the visualized information shown in FIG. 5B .
Fourth Embodiment
A brain activity does not always take place in the whole of the brain. The brain activity in a certain area in the brain triggers a brain activity in any other area. Thus, the brain activity is known to be a time-sequential action. According to the third embodiment, a test of hypothesis was performed in order to detect the time-sequential brain activity by assessing the results of measurement performed according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 8 shows the quickness levels of the responses made by signals, which are produced responsively to a played-back signal serving as a standard signal and of which phases are highly synchronous with that of the standard signal, in the measurement channels shown in FIG. 6 to the hearing of the played-back signal. There is difficulty in plotting the waveform of the played-back signal serving as the standard signal or a stimulus/task instruction sequence as well as the waveforms of responsive signals. The responsive signals are illustratively shown in relation to the stimulus/task instruction sequence described in conjunction with FIG. 2 . The axis of abscissas indicates time, and the axis of ordinates indicates the magnitudes of signals. FIG. 9 shows the information on the quickness levels of the responses superposed on the results of assessment, which are shown in FIG. 7 , of the synchronousness of the phase of a signal, which is produced responsively to hearing of a played-back signal, made with a significance level set to 1%.
Referring to FIG. 8 , the signal in the channel 10 in the probe 2 is the quickest to respond. In FIG. 9 , a square expressing the channel 10 in the probe 2 is filled with dots. The signals in the channel 10 in the probe 2 and in the channel 9 in the probe 3 are the next quickest to respond. Namely, the signals in the areas S 1 in the probes 2 and 3 covering the channels 5 and 9 are the quickest to respond. The signals in the channels 6 and 10 in the probe 1 are the next quickest to respond. Namely, the signals in the area S 2 in the probe 1 are the second quickest to respond. The signals in the channels 4 and 5 in the probe 4 are the next quickest to respond. Namely, the signals in the area S 3 in the probe 4 are the third quickest to respond. Finally, the signals in the channels 5 and 11 in the probe 3 and in the channel 12 in the probe 2 are the fourth quickest to respond. Namely, the signals in the areas S 4 in the probes 2 and 3 are the fourth quickest to respond.
Consequently, the activities in the right and left infratemporal regions (auditory fields) stemming from hearing of a played-back signal are detected in the area S 1 in FIG. 9 . The activity in the frontal region stemming from preparation for modeling a motion is then detected in the area S 2 in FIG. 9 . Thereafter, the activity in the supra-occipital region (optical field) stemming from imagination of batting is detected in the area S 3 in FIG. 9 . Finally, the activities in the right and left supratemporal regions (motor fields) stemming from modeling of a motion are detected in the areas S 4 in FIG. 9 .
As apparent from FIG. 8 , when it says that a signal is quick to respond, it means a matter of comparison. The response time is merely on the order of several seconds. Nevertheless, when signals are divided into groups by quickness of a response, if places where the signals are detected are visibly presented to a user, the brain activities of a subject can be dynamically visualized.
FIG. 10 shows an example of a display form in which the brain activities of a subject are dynamically visualized. An image S 1 shows the areas S 1 in FIG. 9 and contains dotted circles rendering the active areas in the right and left infratemporal regions (auditory fields). The area and shape of the circle are determined with the position of the measurement channel in which a signal whose phase is highly synchronous with a played-back signal is produced, and the number of circles depends on the number of measurement channels. The same applies to the subsequent description. An image S 2 shows the area S 2 in FIG. 9 , and contains a dotted circle rendering the active area in the frontal region of which activity stems from preparation of modeling of a motion. An image S 3 shows the area S 3 in FIG. 9 , and contains a dotted circle rendering an active area in the supra-occipital region (optical field) of which activity stems from imagination of batting. An image S 4 shows the areas S 4 in FIG. 9 , and contains dotted circles rendering the active areas in the right and left supratemporal regions (motor fields) of which activities stem from modeling of a motion. A whole image is produced by integrating the images S 1 to S 4 into one, and is identical to FIG. 7B .
If the images S 1 to S 4 are sequentially and orderly displayed on the display means 211 as a motion picture that makes progress as quickly as a user can see it with ease, the user would feel as if he/she saw the subject's brain active areas being switched in real time. After the images are displayed like a motion picture, the whole image may be displayed so that the overall brain activities can be assessed.
The immediateness of an activity is verified based on an average phase difference observed in each region. Namely, the smaller the phase difference is, the more immediately the activity takes place.
Fifth Embodiment
In order to discuss a time-sequential change in a brain activity using a motion picture, as described previously, a time-sequential change in a synchronous state is checked by defining a short time window (covering several hundreds of data items). A synchronization index serving as a statistical index is calculated during the period, and a synchronization index at the center time instant within the time window is adopted as a representative synchronization index. The time window is then shifted in units of a certain time in order to detect a time-sequential change in the synchronization index. Based on the time-sequential change in the synchronization index, the synchronousness of the phase of a signal, which is produced in a measurement area, with a stimulus is assessed. The results of assessment are displayed as a time-sequential change in the display form shown in, for example, FIG. 7B . According to this technique, a change in a phase difference can be sensitively grasped. The plurality of functions of the brain can be presented by accurately visualizing the time-varying relationships among the activities in the regions of the brain.
The synchronousness of the phase of a signal is independent of the amplitude thereof. Therefore, the brain activities or the functional connectivity can be presented in an appropriate manner irrespective of the human cranial structure.
The present invention will prove helpful in assessing the impairment in a brain function or in assessing the recovering state of a person whose brain function is impaired. Moreover, the present invention can be utilized for helping a patient with rehabilitation.
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A response period is determined arbitrarily. A satisfactory detecting ability may not be provided because of an artifact or the like contained in a signal. Therefore, an effective detection method and an effective display method of presenting results of detection must be developed. A series of tasks (stimuli) or a selected measurement signal is used as a reference signal, and a phase difference of any other measurement signal from the reference signal is calculated. The synchronousness of the phase of the measurement signal with the phase of the reference signal is numerically expressed. The thus obtained numerical value is statistically processed in order to numerically express a degree of reliability. Thus, a brain activity or a functional connectivity is visualized.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/848,527, filed Sep. 29, 2006, entitled “Marketing/Fundraising/Reward System,” the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Charities and brand holders are always looking for new ways to achieve awareness and to generate revenue. An example of this was the Lifestrong(™) bracelets for cancer research. These yellow bracelets generated tremendous awareness and high donation revenue.
[0003] Soon other charities began making their own bracelets, e.g., for breast cancer education and research. These charities sought the same awareness and revenue rewards as achieved by the Lifestrong(™) bracelets. A great variety of bracelets for various charities of various colors and designs were then available to members, who were often overwhelmed and confused by the numerous available choices.
[0004] With multiple bracelets coming out for different charities, it didn't take long for scammers to figure out that they too could benefit by making bracelets. First, the scammers started making bracelets with different names and colors which implied that a legitimate charity was involved although no valid charity was actually involved. The scammers then moved on to directly counterfeiting the charities bracelets themselves. This caused not only reduced revenue for the charities, but also dilution of the charities' brands and thus dilution of the perceived value of the bracelets themselves.
[0005] It is thus desirable for a marketing/fundraising/reward system and method to provide for a product having aesthetic appeal, attractive personalization, anti-counterfeiting measures, and ease of identifying the charity.
[0006] It is also desirable that a marketing/fundraising/reward system and method provide for ease of determining what cause the member is supporting, the level of a member's support to a charity and a means of displaying that level to others.
[0007] It is also desirable that a marketing/fundraising/reward system and method provides for easy accounting of and addition to a member's support to a charity, and for easily accounting for and verifying rewards to the member either immediately, online or by mail.
[0008] It is also desirable that a marketing/fundraising/reward system and method deters theft.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] One aspect of the present invention provides a marketing/fundraising/reward method and system, including a product provided to a member, the product having an incorporated authenticity tag, the authenticity tag including a personalized part, a unique number part, an encoded part, and a system identification section. A unique number is assigned to be displayed in the unique number part. The encoded part is encoded with the unique number. The member is allowed to provide content for the personalized part. System identity information is provided in the system identity section. A donation is provided a charity of the member's choosing, and information regarding the product, the donation, the personalized part, the unique number and the encoded part is recorded.
[0010] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method in which the personalized part includes at least one of a name, a pseudonym, a symbol or an image.
[0011] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method in which the encoded part is one of a barcode, an RFID, or another electronic device.
[0012] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method in which the recording is performed over a computer network.
[0013] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method in which the computer network is the Internet and the recording is done using a website.
[0014] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method further including authenticating the product using the recorded product, donation, personalized part, unique number and encoded part information.
[0015] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method further including providing an additional donation to the member's chosen charity by another person using the personalized part information and the system identification information.
[0016] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method further including generating a web page listing recorded product, donation, personalized part and unique number information, and displaying the web page. The web page may also be printed.
[0017] Another aspect of the invention includes the described system and method, and further allowing the member to add to the amount of their purchased product, and updating the recorded information accordingly.
[0018] Another aspect of the invention further includes providing rewards to the member by another party based on the authenticity tag information.
[0019] In an aspect of the invention the recorded information may be searched for the provision of the product to the member and when the provision cannot be found, indicating so on a display.
[0020] A further aspect of the present invention provides that the product provided to the member is a funeral car flag, and the personalized information includes the decedent's name.
[0021] Another aspect of the invention provides that the charity may be a for profit enterprise.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0022] FIG. 1 is an illustration of a certificate of authenticity tag, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary marketing/fundraising/reward system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and
[0024] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary embodiment of the method of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] “Member” as used herein means any customer or entity which purchases one or more product embodying the present inventive system or method, without limitation.
[0026] The present invention advantageously provides a marketing/fundraising/reward system and method for a product having aesthetic appeal, attractive personalization, anti-counterfeiting measures, and ease of identifying the charity.
[0027] The present invention also advantageously provides for ease of determining what cause a member is supporting, the level of a member's support to a charity and a means of displaying that level to others.
[0028] The present invention also advantageously provides easy accounting of and addition to a member's support to a charity, and for easy accounting and verification of rewards to the member either immediately, online or by mail.
[0029] Reference is made herein and in the accompanying Figures to the Boomerang(™) system and to its associated and registered Internet domain and website, BOOMERANG.ORG. The Boomerang(™) system and its website form an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and references thereto are for illustrative purposes only.
[0030] FIG. 1 is an illustration of a certificate of authenticity tag (hereinafter, “A-Tag”) in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The A-Tag 100 is typically printed on cloth and affixed onto a product. Other means of generating an A-Tag are also envisioned. In an embodiment, the product includes a cause design, charity name, brand name or logo.
[0031] In an exemplary embodiment, an A-Tag 100 includes a personalized portion 102 . As depicted in FIG. 1 , the personalized portion 102 typically includes the name of the charity/donatee 104 for which the member 106 purchased the product to which the A-Tag is affixed (hereinafter, “charity”), as well as the name of the member 106 . Alternatively, the member 106 may choose to use a pseudonym, symbol or other image instead of their name. Use of the term “charity” is intended in a very broad sense, and is not meant to imply that a “charity” must be non-profit. In some embodiments of the invention, it is anticipated that the role of charity will be taken on by a for-profit company or organization, wherein the fundraising aspect of the invention is overcome by the marketing aspect of the invention, and the organization may be interested in promoting a specific brand of merchandise.
[0032] The exemplary A-Tag 100 also includes one or more encoded sections, such as the two bar codes 120 , 140 depicted in FIG. 1 . In alternative embodiments, alternative encoded sections may be used, such as a 2-dimensional barcode, or an electronic device, such as an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), a memory spot, or the like. The encoded section provides a unique identification number, which, as the name implies, may be encoded.
[0033] An exemplary A-Tag 100 also includes a system identification section 130 . The system identification section 130 provides information to any viewer regarding the A-Tag system being used, and preferably includes a reference to a website or domain name at which a viewer may obtain additional information and execute other functions, as further described herein.
[0034] FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a marketing/fundraising/reward system in accordance with the present invention. The Boomerang(™) system 200 includes one or more charities/donatees 202 , one or more members 204 , one or more products 206 to be associated with the charities/donatees 202 and purchased or obtained by the members 204 . It also includes A-Tags 208 , product 210 and other information, and provides functions as further described hereinbelow. The Boomerang(™) system also provides for other persons or entities 212 to access the website 210 to perform various functions, as described herein.
[0035] FIG. 3 is a flowchart depicting a typical series of operations within a system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In the Boomerang(™) system 300 , a customer member joins and submits their information 302 , which is used to create and store customer account information 304 .
[0036] Next, the system updates the customer's information on its remote servers 306 . This update also takes place whenever the customer orders Boomerang(™) products or updates their account information 308 .
[0037] A time convenient for the customer or as appropriate for the system, the remote servers generate A-Tags for the customer as products are ordered 310 . The Boomerang(™) product is then assembled together with it's associated A-Tag and delivered to the customer 312 .
[0038] The customer may then interact with Boomerang(™) directly or through its partners at a partner or other location 314 , and information is gathered through scanning or other methods 316 . The collected information is then verified, and updated customer information is sent or access granted to remote locations 318 .
[0039] At the partner site, the updated information on partner records may generate discounts, rewards or donations 320 , which information is then transmitted to the Boomerang(™) system 322 . In an embodiment, the A-Tags 100 and their barcodes 120 , 140 or RFIDs lets the partner and the Boomerang(™) system 322 know what cause the member was wearing and thus what cause the partner should donate to.
[0040] Various advantages of systems in accordance with the present invention are illustrated in the following scenarios.
[0041] Scenario One—Anti-Counterfeiting:
[0042] Of particular importance are the methods used to limit counterfeiting. An embodiment of the present invention modifies the various products to be sold by adding several methods that will limit counterfeiting. For example, an exemplary product in accordance with the invention includes on its surface a place for a name, a pseudonym or picture, a unique identifying number and a corresponding barcode, RFID or similar device (hereinafter collectively referred to as an “encoded part”) encoding the number to be placed. Additionally, when a member orders a product, the member's name or other self-reference may be placed on a web page listing next to the unique number assigned. A member may also register their purchase on such a website, on which member purchases may be tracked.
[0043] In one embodiment of the invention, members receive A-Tags. These A-Tags may contain RFID's, memory spots or other similar devices with separate codes and numbers on them. Various levels of security may then be assigned and selected involving any of the product, the label, and the A-Tag in order for a member to have additional contributions made to their cause and to be eligible for special rewards, discounts, prizes and acknowledgements or for other uses.
[0044] Various embodiments of the present invention prevent counterfeiting, which robs a brand holder or charity of revenue and diminishes the brand. For example, the present invention increases the time, cost and effort required to attempt to counterfeit products incorporating the invention by reproducing the customized names, numbers and encoded parts used. If a counterfeiter did succeed in generating a counterfeit, the inventive system and method provides for relatively easy locating and shutting down of the counterfeiter by refusing to provide rights by the charity or by an intellectual property action.
[0045] Additionally, embodiments of the invention diminish any interest a purchaser would have in purchasing a counterfeit item. If a purchaser was to purchase a fake item, such as a shirt, the purchaser runs the risk of being found out by a friend, neighbor or co-worker, who may look up the purchaser's displayed unique number on a website and see that the purchaser's item is in fact a counterfeit and that the purchaser did not contribute to a charity at all. The fraudulent purchase may also be discovered if the purchaser wore the shirt to get into a sponsored event, or tried to get a discount, reward or have additional contributions made to the charity. The embarrassment that would befall the purchaser and perhaps even their family for stealing from the charity would certainly not be worth any potential savings they would have received by buying the counterfeit product. The counterfeit product might easily be detected and charges brought against the purchaser and the counterfeiter. In this way, by limiting counterfeiting, all the money that is supposed to go to the charity will go to them, and the meaning and value of their products will remain high and intact.
[0046] Scenario Two—Anti-Theft:
[0047] Another advantage of the invention is to deter theft. In an embodiment, when a product using the inventive system and method is stolen, and the thief or later buyer attempts to use the stolen item, it would quickly become apparent to their friends and family that the item was stolen because the personalized information would not match that of the thief or later buyer. Since a preferred embodiment of the invention includes personalized information on the face of the product, such as a name or picture, the stolen nature of the product becomes quickly apparent. Additionally, because the items all have a unique visible number, it would be potentially worthwhile and easy for a theft to be reported and for police and others to spot the stolen item. A list of stolen items may also be posted on the website. Also, without the corresponding A-Tags or encoded part, such as an RFID, winning anything using the stolen item would not be possible, and in fact would increase the risk of the thief being caught. Any reported theft could be noted on the website listing, showing the whole world that the item is stolen, and in fact the item number could be rendered invalid, thereby depriving the thief of any additional benefits. This also protects the value for the charity.
[0048] Scenario Three—Ongoing Donations:
[0049] Another benefit of the invention would be the potential for ongoing donations to the charity. Most charity products sold provide a one-time donation to the charity generated at the time of purchase. Embodiments of the inventive product are designed so that corporations and individuals have a mechanism in place for ongoing donations to be made. For example, products launched to provide relief from the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina may generate an immediate donation upon purchase. There would also be numerous ways to provide ongoing donations. For instance, a department store may have a day where for every customer coming to the store with one of the inventive products and being scanned therein, the store would make an additional contribution to the customer's cause. The store gets great publicity, is linked to one or more good causes and pulls customers into the store. The customer gets the satisfaction of knowing additional contributions are being made on their behalf just by their showing up, having or wearing the product or making a purchase. The charity, of course, benefits through additional donations.
[0050] Scenario Four—Rewards for the Purchaser:
[0051] Another benefit of the invention would be the potential to win prizes for owning/wearing a product incorporating the invention. They might win prizes such as gift cards, sample products from corporate sponsors, free concert or movie tickets, points redeemable for later merchandise purchases, or free music downloads. In the example above, the department store might even grant customers with the product discounts on purchases.
[0052] Scenario Five—Cause Awareness/Level Playing Field:
[0053] Another benefit of the invention is to promote awareness of various causes. This may be accomplished by use of a website and by various links to other sites or sources of information. Of even more importance, Boomerang(™) becomes a new way to revitalize interest in and show what causes are important to a member. As people see a Boomerang product and logo, they will naturally look to see what design is attached to it. Conversations may start about the causes and this is especially true for designs that are not as easily recognizable. Additionally, the Boomerang(™) structure works equally well for very well known causes as for less well know causes. Boomerang(™) in fact becomes a vehicle for learning about various causes. Boomerang(™) also works very well whether the cause is small or large, and is thus a very democratic system.
[0054] Another benefit of the invention is the collecting and displaying of encoded parts, such as A-Tags or RFIDs. These tags themselves show the taste and charity of the member. These tags might be released in a decorative and collectable form such as in jewels or metallic jewelry and can be proudly displayed on bracelets, necklaces, key chains, etc., and are available in a variety of styles, materials and pricing. Some customers collect as many tags as possible to show their degree of support. Others collect tags that represent each of the different products produced for each of the different causes.
[0055] In an embodiment of the invention, the A-Tags can be used to verify membership and provide access to members having or wearing the A-Tags. As described, these A-Tags would have an RFID, memory spot or similar device and are unique to that member, with the member's information stored by the company operating the system. These A-Tags can then be used for verification purposes or to activate remote access devices to access that member's account and information. Access would be more secure in conjunction with a secondary authorization such as entering a PIN number or fingerprint authorization. The member could access their account for a variety of uses.
[0056] One such use would be creating forward interactive screens. On the system's website, the member could create the type of user interface screen he would like to access remotely. This setup could include the screen color and graphics, any sound clips, audio clips, video clips, welcoming messages, the screen's remote capabilities, etc. This all would be accessed at the system's outside terminals, the member's computer or others, an ATM, other payment systems, etc.
[0057] Another embodiment of the invention rewards and recognizes customers/members based on their level of support. This information will be available on the website and can be displayed right on the labels of the customers/members purchased products or accessed through the barcodes or A-Tags. Various benefits may inure to customers/members based on their level of support. This increase in levels need not be dependant on the customer/member support for any single cause, which allows customers/members to increase in level more easily.
[0058] In embodiments of the present invention, the use of barcodes, RFIDs, memory spots or other similar device allows the system to work with partners in unique ways to encourage additional contributions to the causes and rewards to the member. They also provide an easy way to track members, who they support, contribute to that cause, and provide benefits to the member instantly or through mail or email.
[0059] Another embodiment of the present invention is the production of common products such as car flags, lawn flags and car magnets. An inexpensive way to manufacture personalized, individualized, customized or limited edition flags, etc., is by printing on customizable paper, laminating it and attaching it to a flagpole or to magnets. Various items may be added before the lamination process, such as ribbons, fabric, buttons, stars, hair, blood, etc., to create three dimensional flags.
[0060] Outside its uses for charities, embodiments of the present invention include possible use for licensed celebrity products. For example, if a fan was buying tickets for a Green Day concert at Giants stadium (Green Day is a popular band), they would be given the option of buying a Green Day flag or T-shirt, which may be designed by Green Day. The product would have among other items the date, venue and name, unique identifying number, unique name/picture and barcode/RFID. Fans could proudly show that they are indeed fans, that they're going to that concert or that after the fact that they've gone to that concert. In the days leading up to the concert, as a concert promotion, radio stations might give away prizes to fans whose vehicles are spotted with these flags, who are wearing T-shirts or who are picked by number. On the day of the concert, these fans would all be driving proudly on their way to the concert with their customized flags, etc. and in the parking lot looking for other vehicles that also have the flags. Certain benefits could be awarded, such as discounts on parking, free drinks, etc. For any given concert a local radio station's name or other advertiser could be added to the products.
[0061] Scenario Six—Funeral Car Flags:
[0062] Yet another embodiment of the invention includes making inexpensive car flags for funerals. It is typically very difficult for funeral processions to stay together. Cars that are not part of the procession often cannot tell it's a procession and thus cut into it. Also, people in the procession do not have an easy way to tell which cars are in its procession. In the past, cars in a funeral procession turned on their headlights to at least let other cars know that they were part of the procession. Today, many cars in the procession forget to put their headlights on and, far worse, most new cars are equipped with daytime running lights that are on all the time. This renders the car headlight option somewhat obsolete.
[0063] A substitute for using headlights has been placing bumper sticker sized banners on the front dash or rear window area. If these can be seen it can potentially help the participants in a procession stay together, but it is difficult to see these banners. Additionally, they are almost of no use in helping other vehicles identify that it is a funeral procession.
[0064] The best available option has been flags that are attached to the vehicles in the procession. They are usually made of cloth and are relatively expensive, and usually attached to the vehicles by magnets. Because they are not cheap, they are usually put on by the funeral director at the funeral home and collected by the funeral director at the cemetery. There is some indication that these flags are not in widespread use, and that funeral homes typically do not charge for them and therefore do not profit from using them.
[0065] Flags manufactured in accordance with the present invention are relatively inexpensive and are customizable to that particular funeral. Typically, the same information that goes on the cemetery stone may be displayed on the flags: the name of the deceased, birth and death dates, and something about them. In addition, there may also be a picture of the deceased as well, and optionally the name of the funeral home. Thus, the funeral home would initiate the flag order with basic information. The order may simply be complete at this point or the deceased family will have the ability via a user name and a password to get into a website, where they would be able to choose from a variety of templates as to what goes on the flag, change the text, and even download a picture of the deceased.
[0066] Because the flags are personalized, they will not only identify the procession to outside vehicles, but will also allow cars within the procession to quickly identify their procession even if there is another procession, as is increasingly likely near the cemetery itself. The personalized flags also create an impressive regal look for the deceased family. Everyone in the procession and possibly others will receive a flag. The flags are also designed to be easily removed from the flagpoles, leaving behind a remembrance of the deceased and the service. Thus, the personalized flags perform multiple functions.
[0067] Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
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Provided is a marketing/fundraising/reward method and system including providing a member with product with an incorporated authenticity tag including a personalized part, a unique number part, an encoded part, and a system identification section, assigning a unique number to be displayed in the unique number part, encoding the encoded part with the unique number, allowing the member to provide the personalized part, providing system identity information in the system identity section, providing a donation to a charity of the member's choosing, and recording information regarding the product, the donation, the personalized part, the unique number and the encoded part.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The growing concern for protecting natural resources has prompted various initiatives, one of which is a drive to incorporate renewable resources into gasoline. Adding methanol or ethanol to gasoline to boost the octane number is an example of a response to this need to conserve finite resources. However, a major drawback to this practice is that the alcohol cannot be added prior to the gasoline being transported through a pipeline since the alcohol is water-soluble and will extract out of the gasoline and into any water that might be present in the pipeline system or storage tanks. The present invention provides an alternate method that achieves the conservation goal. Furthermore, the resultant blended gasoline may be transported through a pipeline without the loss of octane number boosters. According to the present invention, ethanol, which is a renewable resource since it may be produced from corn, undergoes etherification with propylene to produce isopropyl ethyl ether (IPEE) which may then be blended into gasoline. An additional benefit of blending ethers into gasoline to boost the octane number is that ethers generally have lower Reid vapor pressures than alcohols, and lowering the Reid vapor pressures of gasoline is another environmentally driven goal.
The octane number of IPEE is less than another commonly used octane number booster, diisopropyl ether (DIPE), which has an octane number of about 105, (R+M)/2. DIPE and IPEE are produced in similar manners, and being able to produce them concurrently satisfies both the desire for high octane number boosters and the need to incorporate a renewable resource into the gasoline. Furthermore, the gasoline after being blended with DIPE and IPEE, may be transported through pipelines since the ethers are not very water soluble.
The art shows various processes for the production of ethers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,787 discloses a process where in a reaction zone at least one light olefin is hydrated to form at least one alcohol which then undergoes etherification with the olefin to produce an ether. Unreacted alcohol is recycled to the reaction zone. It is important to note that in this patent all the alcohol that is reacted with the olefin to form ether is produced within the process. No external source of alcohol is used. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,664 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,935,552 disclose processes for producing ether from starting reactants of a light olefin and water. No external sources of alcohol are used. In contrast, U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,787 discloses producing an ether, methyl isopropyl ether, from methanol and propylene. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,787, all the alcohol used in the process is provided through an external source with no alcohol being generated within the process. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,503,263 discloses a process for producing ethers in the presence of acidic superacid catalysts using either (1) an olefin and water, (2) an alcohol, or (3) an olefin and an alcohol as reactants. In the case where an olefin and water are the reactants, the olefin would be hydrated to form an alcohol which would then undergo etherification with the olefin to produce an ether. Where only alcohol is the reactant, bimolecular dehydration of the alcohol would occur to form the ether. Where an olefin and an alcohol are the reactants, the alcohol undergoes etherification with the olefin to form an ether.
The present invention maintains the goal of producing a high octane number product at a low cost by using propylene, a low cost material, and water to form isopropyl alcohol which is then reacted with propylene to form DIPE. At the same time, the invention achieves a goal of incorporating a renewable resource into gasoline by concurrently using ethanol from an independent source as a reactant to form IPEE.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the invention is to provide a process for concurrently producing diisopropyl ether and isopropyl ethyl ether from water, propylene, and ethanol. The product mixture may be used as a high octane number booster due mainly to the presence of the diisopropyl ether and, to a lesser extent, the isopropyl ethyl ether and, furthermore, the product mixture may be used to incorporate a renewable resource into gasoline since the isopropyl ethyl ether is produced in part from ethanol. Optionally, the product mixture may be passed though an acid removal zone to remove acid, if present. A portion of the product mixture is recycled to the reaction zone to increase the conversion of reactants to products and to maintain a single phase in the reaction zone.
A specific embodiment of the invention is one where propylene and ethylene are separated from the product mixture and recycled to the reaction zone. Another specific embodiment of the invention is one where the propylene to be used in the reactions is contained in a propane and propylene mixture. In this embodiment unreacted propane, propylene, and ethylene are separated from the product mixture and propane is further separated from propylene and ethylene. The propane is collected and the propylene and ethylene are recycled to the reaction zone. Still another specific embodiment of the invention is one where, after the propane, propylene, and ethylene are removed from the product mixture, the mixture is further separated into a water and alcohol-enriched portion which is recycled to the reaction zone and an ether-enriched portion. The ether-enriched portion may be further separated into a diisopropyl ether and isopropyl ethyl ether portion which is collected and a diethyl ether portion which is recycled to the reaction zone to suppress formation of additional diethyl ether.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
The FIGURE is a schematic representation of the preferred embodiment of the invention of concurrent diisopropyl ether and isopropyl ethyl ether production. The drawing has been simplified by the deletion of a large number of pieces of apparatus customarily employed on a process of this nature which are not specifically required to illustrate the performance of the subject invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The process of the invention begins with introducing ethanol from an independent source, water, and a hydrocarbon feedstock containing propylene to a reactor containing an acidic catalyst. Introducing ethanol from an independent source, i.e., not from recycle, to the reactor in addition to propylene and water has several benefits. The ethanol, in addition to being a reactant, also functions as a solvent. Propylene has only limited solubility in water, and the presence of ethanol provides for a single phase system. Furthermore, adding ethanol aids in controlling the temperature in the reactor, a task previously accomplished by adding water in great excess. Therefore, the amount of water introduced to the reactor, and consequently the volume of recycle to the reactor, may be reduced.
The relative amounts of water, ethanol, and propylene that are introduced to the reactor are as follows. Suitable water to olefin mole ratios include from about 0.1:1 to about 0.8:1, preferably from about 0.3:1 to about 0.5:1. Suitable ethanol to olefin mole ratios include from about 0.1:1 to about 1:1 with a preferred range of about 0.3:1 to about 0.6:1, depending upon the desired level of IPEE formation. The propylene-containing hydrocarbon feedstock may be a refinery C 3 hydrocarbon stream and will most likely be a mixture of propylene and propane. The propylene-containing hydrocarbon feedstock contains at least about 50 mass % propylene, and preferably about 70 mass % propylene. Suitable sources for the propylene-containing hydrocarbon feedstock include, but are not limited to, gas plant off-gas containing propylene, naphtha cracker off-gas containing light olefins, propane dehydrogenation processes, and refinery fluidized catalytic cracked (FCC) propane/propylene streams. The reaction conditions of the reactor include pressures of about 689 to about 10,342 kPa (abs) (about 100 to about 1500 psia), preferably from about 4,826 to about 6,894 kPa (abs) (about 700 to about 1000 psia), and temperatures of about 130° C. to about 180° C., preferably about 135° C. to about 160° C. It is common to slowly increase the operating temperature as the catalyst ages.
The solid acidic catalyst may be any of those commonly used in ether production including activated charcoal, clays, resins, and zeolites. These catalysts are common in the art and do not require discussion here. Examples of acidic ion exchange resin catalysts include sulfonated cation exchange resins such as sulfonated polystyrene resins and sulfonated styrene/divinylbenzene co-polymers. For reference, see U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,301, G.B. 1,176,620, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,914. Halogenated strong acid ion exchange resins such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,705,808, U.S. Pat. No. 4,269,943, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,256,250 may also be used. Acidic zeolite catalysts such as those found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,214,107, U.S. Pat. No. 4,499,313, U.S. Pat. No. 5,102,428, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,144,084 may also be used.
As explained below, the following reactions can occur within the reactor: ##STR1##
As the propylene and water contact the catalyst, the hydration reaction (1) takes place and isopropyl alcohol (IPA) is formed. As the IPA, ethanol, and propylene contact the catalyst, the etherification reactions (2) and (4) take place and DIPE and IPEE are formed. Reaction (3) can also take place to form DIPE, but it is less preferred due to the increased consumption of IPA as compared to reaction (2). Similarly, ethanol may react with itself to form diethyl ether (DEE) according to equation (5), but this reaction is undesirable since DEE has an extremely low octane number. Ethanol may also dehydrate to form ethylene and water according to equation (6), and the ethylene formed may react with ethanol to form undesired DEE as in equation (7), as well as with IPA to form IPEE as in equation (8). Therefore, the reactor effluent, i.e., product mixture, is a mixture of at least propylene, ethylene, water, IPA, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE. A portion of the reactor effluent is recycled to the reactor to increase the conversion of propylene, water, IPA, and ethanol to DIPE and IPEE.
The remaining reactor effluent may be collected or passed to downstream processing zones to recover product DIPE and IPEE. A preferred downstream processing flowscheme which has the advantage of recycling the DEE and ethylene to suppress additional DEE and ethylene formation is as follows.
A portion of the reactor effluent is passed to a light ends fractionation zone for removal of light compounds such as ethylene, propylene, and propane. The light ends fractionation zone may be operated at temperatures from about 40° C. to about 180° C. and pressures from about 1,379 to about 1,724 kPa (ga) (about 200 to about 250 psig). The light compounds such as ethylene, propylene, and propane are passed to an ethylene-propylene/propane fractionation column where propane is separated from ethylene and propylene. The propane enriched stream is collected, and the ethylene and propylene enriched stream is recycled to the reactor. The ethylene and propylene enriched stream may contain as little as 70 mass % propylene. Since the ethylene and propylene enriched stream may contain as much as about 30 mass % of other components, typically propane, the need for the expensive equipment required to obtain high purity propylene is eliminated. The ethylene is recycled to suppress the formation of additional ethylene. The heavier compounds such as water, IPA, ethanol, IPEE, DEE, and DIPE are passed to an ether/alcohol fractionation zone.
The ether/alcohol fractionation zone is a fractionation column operated at from about 65° C. to about 150° C. and from about 34 to about 345 kPa (ga) (about 5 to about 50 psig) that separates the heavier compounds into an alcohol and water-enriched stream, and an ether-enriched stream. The alcohol and water-enriched stream contains the IPA, ethanol, and water, and the ether-enriched stream contains the DIPE, IPEE, and DEE. The alcohol and water stream is recycled to the reactor to increase the conversion of IPA and ethanol to DIPE and IPEE and to help maintain a single phase in the reactor.
The ether-enriched stream is passed to an ether fractionation zone which is a fractionation column operated at temperatures from about 40° C. to about 100° C. and pressures of about 138 to about 345 kPa (ga) (about 20 to about 50 psig). In the ether fractionation zone, a DIPE and IPEE-enriched stream is separated from a DEE-enriched stream. The DIPE and IPEE-enriched stream is collected as product and may be blended with gasoline. The DEE-enriched stream is recycled to the reactor to suppress the formation of additional DEE.
An optional variation of the above flowscheme is one where the reactor effluent is passed to an acid removal zone prior to recycling or downstream processing. This variation applies when a :strongly acidic ion exchange resin is used as the catalyst. Strongly acidic ion exchange resin catalysts may undergo hydrolysis of the acid groups causing the transfer of acid into the reactor effluent: If the acid is not removed, the catalyst and downstream process units may be adversely affected.
The acid removal zone may contain any solid particles capable of removing the acid from the reactor effluent. For example, the solid particles may be alkaline metal oxides, base ion exchange resins, basic organically-bridged polysilsesquioxanes particles, activated carbon, or any other strongly basic inorganic compounds with reasonable thermal stability considering the reactor effluent will be at temperatures from about 130° C. to about 180° C. Examples of suitable base ion exchange resins include strong-base quaternary ammonium anion exchangers, amine-type weak base anion exchangers, or pyridine-type anion exchangers. Specific suitable commercial base ion exchange resins include Amberlite® IRA-67, Amberlite® IRA-68, Amberlite® IRA-93, Amberlite® CG-420, Amberlite® IRA-410, Amberlite® IRA-900, Amberlite® IRA-904, Duolite A-7, Duolite A-368, Amberlyst A-21, Amberlyst A-26, Amberlyst A-27, Dowex® 1X2-100, Dowex® 1X2-200, Dowex® 1X2-400, Dowex® 1X8-50, Dowex® 1X8- 100, Dowex® 1X8-200, and Dowex® 1X8-400 which are sold by Rohm and Haas, Diamond Shamrock, or Dow. The more preferred resins are those that are stable at higher temperatures such as Amberlite® IRA-67 and Amberlite® IRA-68. These types of base ion exchange resins are readily commercially available and are very well known in the art and do not require discussion here. See generally, Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, 5th ed.; Elvers, B., Hawkins, S., Ravenscroft, M., Schulz, G., Eds.; Wienham: Cambridge, New York, Vol. A14, pp. 397-398. Examples of acid removal zones may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,914, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,371,301.
As the reactor effluent is introduced to the acid removal zone, the acid carried in the reactor effluent contacts solid particles and is removed from the stream. The acid-depleted stream may then be recycled and/or passed to downstream processing units without adverse effects.
Without intending any limitation of the scope, of the present invention and as merely illustrative, the invention is explained below in specific terms as applied to a specific embodiment of the invention which is based on a design for a commercial scale unit. Referring to the FIGURE, a feed 2 of 45 mass % propylene, 20 mass % propane, 24 mass % ethanol, and 11 mass % water, stream 22 which is enriched in DEE, stream 30 which is enriched in propylene and ethylene, stream 32 which contains water, propane, propylene, ethylene, ethanol, IPA, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE, and stream 34 which is enriched in water, IPA, and ethanol, are combined and introduced to hydration and etherification reactor 4 which contains sulfonated styrene/divinylbenzene co-polymer ion exchange resin catalyst. Reactor 4 is operated at about 150° C. and about 6,895 kPa (ga) (about 1000 psig). In reactor 4 the hydrolysis of propylene is catalyzed and IPA is formed, and IPA and ethanol are catalytically reacted with propylene to form DIPE and IPEE. Some ethanol may react to form the undesired DEE or ethylene. Therefore, the reactor effluent 6 contains water, propane, propylene, ethylene, ethanol, IPA, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE. Reactor effluent 6 is divided into two streams, one portion, stream 32, is recycled to the reactor, and one portion, stream 8, is passed to a light ends fractionation column 10. Fractionation in the light ends fractionation column 10 at 40°-180° C. and 1,379-1,724 kPa (ga) (200-250 psig) results in an ethylene, propylene, and propane enriched stream 12 which is passed to an ethylene-propylene/propane fractionation column 26, and a water, IPA, ethanol, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE enriched stream 14 which is passed to a water-alcohol/ether fractionation column 16. In ethylene-propylene/propane fraction column 26, the ethylene, propylene, and propane enriched stream 12 is separated by fractionation at 40°-60° C. and 1,724-2,413 kPa (ga) (250-350 psig) into a propane enriched stream 28 which is collected and a propylene and ethylene-enriched stream 30 which contains about 80 mass % propylene and is recycled to reactor 4. In water-alcohol/ether fractionation column 16, water, IPA, ethanol, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE enriched stream 14 is separated by fractionation at 40°-100° C. and 34-172 kPa (ga) (5-25 psig) into IPA, ethanol, and water-enriched stream 34 which is recycled to reactor 4, and a DIPE, IPEE, and DEE-enriched stream 18 which is passed to an ether fractionation column 20. In ether fractionation column 20, DIPE, IPEE, and DEE enriched stream 18 is separated by fractionation at 40°-100° C. and 34-345 kPa (ga) (5-50 psig) into a DIPE and IPEE-enriched product stream 24 which is collected, and a DEE enriched stream 22 which is recycled to reactor 4.
It must be emphasized that the above description is merely illustrative of a preferred embodiment and is not intended as an undue limitation on the generally broad scope of the invention. Moreover, while the description is narrow in scope, one skilled in the art will understand how to extrapolate to the broader scope of the invention. For example, the process flowscheme where the reactor effluent is passed through an acid removal zone to remove acid before recycling or downstream processing or where the propylene feedstock contains ethane which may be vented from the process can be readily extrapolated from the foregoing description.
EXAMPLE
Two autoclave liners were each packed with 100 cc of sulfonated styrene/divinylbenzene resin catalyst. A charge of 120 g ethanol was added to each liner and each liner was placed in a stirred autoclave. Each autoclave was charged further with 180 g of propylene and pressurized to about 1,379 kPa (ga) (200 psig) and heated to about 140° C. These conditions were maintained for 8 hours and the resulting normally liquid products contained the compounds as listed in the table as determined by gas chromatography.
TABLE______________________________________COMPOUND RUN 1 RUN 2______________________________________Propylene 2.35 wt % 3.47 wt %Ethanol 0.73 wt % 0.49 wt %Acetone 0.32 wt % 0.39 wt %Isopropyl Alcohol 3.91 wt % 2.42 wt %Diethyl Ether 23.86 wt % 27.48 wt %Isopropyl Ethyl Ether 39.58 wt % 35.72 wt %Hexane 4.84 wt % 4.06 wt %Diisopropyl Ether 20.17 wt % 19.85 wt %n-Propyl Isopropyl Ether 0.58 wt % 1.52 wt %C.sub.9 + 3.56 wt % 4.47 wt %______________________________________
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A process for concurrently producing diisopropyl ether and isopropyl ethyl ether from water, ethanol from an independent source, and propylene, has been developed. The product mixture may be used as a high octane number booster due mainly to the presence of the diisopropyl ether and to a lesser extent, the isopropyl ethyl ether. Furthermore, the product mixture, upon blending with gasoline, incorporates a renewable resource into the gasoline since the isopropyl ethyl ether is produced from ethanol. Optionally, the product mixture may be passed through an acid removal zone to remove acid, if present, before being recycled or further processed. A portion of the product mixture is recycled to the reaction zone to increase the conversion of reactants to products.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present inventions relates to a scanner and in particular to a scanner with a contact image sensor (CIS).
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] FIG. 1 a shows a conventional contact image sensor (CIS) scanner, which includes an upper frame 11 , a lower frame 12 , a platen 13 , a scan head 14 , a track 15 and a driving mechanism 16 . The upper frame 11 has an opening 111 therein in which the platen 13 is disposed. The scan head 14 is disposed between the upper frame 11 and the lower frame 12 . A contact image sensor (not shown) is recessed in the scan head 14 . The contact image sensor scans the object placed on the platen 13 . The track 15 is disposed in the lower frame 12 . The scan head 14 has a connecting portion 141 connected to the track 15 . The driving mechanism 16 moves the scan head 14 along the track 15 to complete a scan of the object.
[0005] FIG. 1 b shows the structure of the scanner shown in FIG. 1 a . In FIG. 1 b , the connecting portion 141 is formed at the bottom of the scan head 14 . Several rollers 142 are installed at the top of the scan head 14 to contact the platen 13 . Meanwhile, the scan head 14 is connected to the driving mechanism 16 by a belt 161 , moving the scan head 14 along the track 15 .
[0006] It may be difficult to maintain a predetermined distance between the object and the contact image sensor. Any fluctuation in mechanical dimension or change in temperature can cause deformation in material and render mass production difficult.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to disclose a scanner that solves the above mentioned problem.
[0008] The scanner for scanning an object comprises a platen, a scanning device, a resilient member and a sliding member. The object is placed on the platen. The scanning device scans the object. The sliding member is pivoted on the scanning device and slidably connects the resilient member pushing the scanning device toward the platen.
[0009] The scanning device may comprise a sensor and a carriage. The sensor is recessed in the carriage to scan the object, and the scanning device is movably disposed under the platen.
[0010] The carriage may comprise a contacting element contacting the platen. The contacting element may comprise a material with low reaction coefficient or a lubricating element.
[0011] The carriage may comprise a pivot and the sliding member may comprise an opening. The pivot passes through the opening to connect the sliding member to the carriage.
[0012] The sliding member may further comprise a recess receiving the resilient member.
[0013] The resilient member may be rectangular and the recess may comprise two flanges. The flanges clip two sides of the resilient member.
[0014] The sensor may be a contact image sensor (CIS).
[0015] The sliding member may comprise a flat body, two protrusions and two flanges. The protrusions extend from two sides of the flat body, and the flanges extend from two sides of the flat body opposite to the protrusions.
[0016] Each protrusion may comprise an opening and the scanning device may comprise a pivot. The pivot passes through the opening to connect the sliding member to the scanning device.
[0017] The scanner may further comprise a driving mechanism connecting the scanning device, driving the scanning device moving along the resilient member to scan the object.
[0018] The resilient member may comprise a resilient belt.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description in conjunction with the examples and references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0020] FIG. 1 a is a schematic diagram of a conventional scanner;
[0021] FIG. 1 b is an enlarged view of the scanner;
[0022] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a scanner of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 3 a is an enlarged view of the scanner of the present invention before assembling the platen;
[0024] FIG. 3 b is an enlarged view of the scanner of the present invention after assembling the platen; and
[0025] FIG. 3 c is a local enlarged view of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0026] FIG. 2 shows a scanner of the present invention. Description of the scanner having devices and elements contained in a shield as in a conventional scanner is omitted. The scanner of the present invention comprises a platen 23 , a scanning device, a resilient member 25 , and a sliding member 27 . In this embodiment, the scanning device comprises a carriage 24 and a sensor (not shown). The sensor can be a contact image sensor (CIS).
[0027] An object such as a document or a picture is placed on the platen 23 , and the platen is transparent. The carriage 24 is disposed under the platen 23 and the sensor is received therein. The sensor scans the object via the platen 23 . The bottom of the carriage 24 has a connecting portion 241 and a pivot 242 . A belt 261 of a driving mechanism 26 is connected to the connecting portion 241 of the carriage 24 so that the driving mechanism 26 moves the carriage 24 . The sliding member 27 has a flat body 271 , two protrusions 272 and two flanges 273 . The protrusions 272 extend from two sides of the flat body 271 , and the flanges 273 also extend from the two sides of the flat body 271 opposite to the protrusions 272 . Each protrusion 272 has an opening 274 with the pivot 242 of the carriage 24 passing there through pivoting the sliding member 27 on the carriage 24 . In this embodiment, the resilient member 25 is rectangular. Namely, the resilient member 25 is a resilient belt. The two flanges 273 of the sliding member 27 clip the side edges of the resilient member 25 .
[0028] After assembling the scanner, the sliding member 27 pushes the carriage 24 toward the platen 23 by virtue of a resilient force of the resilient member 25 . Therefore, a predetermined distance is maintained between the sensor in the carriage 24 and the object so that the object is secured on the focus of the sensor. Meanwhile, the driving mechanism 26 moves the carriage 24 along the resilient member 25 completing the scanning process.
[0029] FIG. 3 a shows a schematic diagram of the carriage 24 connected to the resilient member 25 , here, the platen 23 is not assembled and the resilient member 25 is not yet deformed. The top of the carriage 24 is higher than the predetermined assembled position of the platen 23 . Contacting elements 244 are disposed on the carriage 24 contacting the platen 23 . The contacting element 244 may comprise a material with low reaction coefficient or a lubricating element. FIG. 3 b shows a schematic diagram after the platen 23 is assembled. The carriage 24 is pushed downward by the platen 23 and the resilient member 25 changed from the dotted line to the solid line as shown in FIG. 3 b . Namely, the resilient member 25 deformed by the platen 23 pushes downward so that the resilient member 25 generates a restoring force. The carriage 24 is pushed toward the platen by the restoring force. FIG. 3 c shows a schematic diagram of the present invention after assembly. The platen 23 and the resilient member 25 are not parallel to each other. The pivot 242 of the carriage 24 passes through the opening 274 of the sliding member 27 so that the sliding member 27 is pivoted on the carriage 24 , and the sliding member 27 is then connected to the resilient member 25 . Thus, the carriage 24 makes parallel contact with the platen 23 by the restoring force of the resilient member 25 . Namely, the scanner of the present invention secures the carriage 24 contacting the platen 23 during the scanning process so as to maintain the object in the focus of the sensor to secure the optical quality. Furthermore, the carriage 24 moves along the resilient member 25 by the driving mechanism 26 , completing the scanning process.
[0030] Finally, 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. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements as would be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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A scanner for scanning an object. The scanner comprises a platen, a scanning device, a resilient member and a sliding member. The object is placed on the platen. The scanning device scans the object. The sliding member is pivoted on the scanning device and slidably connects the resilient member pushing the scanning device toward the platen.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a United States National Application under 35 U.S.C. 371 of International Application PCT/US2014/062065, filed Oct. 23, 2014, which claims the benefit of Chinese patent application No. 201310703023.4, filed 19 Dec. 2013. The disclosures of the above applications are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
Oral inflammation is associated with common oral conditions, including periodontitis, for example. Gingivitis is the initial stage of gum disease. A cause of gingivitis is plaque, which is a soft, sticky, colorless film of bacteria that forms on the teeth and gums. Plaque, if left untreated, produces toxins that can inflame or infect the gum tissue to cause gingivitis. Untreated gingivitis can eventually spread from the gums to the ligaments and bone that support the teeth, and can cause periodontitis. Rutin (IUPAC name: 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-5,7-dihydroxy-3-[α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranosyloxy]-4H-chromen-4-one; CAS no: 153-18-4) is a glycoside formed by the flavonol quercetin and the disaccharide rutinose and has the structure below:
Rutin is found in a variety of plants, including rue ( Ruta graveolens ), mulberry leaf, Houttuynia cordata Thunb, Sophora japonica L., certain varieties of buckwheat, citrus, and apple. Rutin inhibits platelet aggregation and is believed to have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, rutin is only poorly soluble in water (solubility ca. 13 mg/100 mL), and this property significantly restricts its delivery and effectiveness in oral care formulations. There is therefore a need in the art for oral care formulations which allow for the more effective delivery of rutin.
UK Patent No. 1,308,483 discloses preparations for the care of the teeth and the mouth. Example 2 of this document discloses a toothpaste comprising the sodium salt of the sulfuric acid ester of rutin in an amount of 0.20 wt % and glycerol (86%) in an amount of 10.00 wt %. It will be appreciated that the sulfuric acid ester of rutin discussed in the document has a different chemical structure to that of rutin itself.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,258,173 discloses a dentifrice composition comprising a stannous compound that releases stannous ions in the composition, such as stannous fluoride or stannous pyrophosphate. Rutin is identified as one of a series of antioxidants which may be included in the composition. No compositions comprising rutin are exemplified. The problem of improving the solubility of rutin in an oral care composition is not addressed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,258,173.
BRIEF SUMMARY
We evaluated rutin for use as an anti-gingivitis agent in toothpaste, e.g., to neutralize free radicals and so protect the oral membrane cells from oxidative damage, as well as to reduce inflammation. However, rutin proved difficult to formulate because it is hydrophobic and poorly soluble. As the oral environment is aqueous, effective delivery to the teeth is restricted. We have found that to be an effective antioxidant, rutin needs to be dissolved in the water phase. The more rutin dissolved in water phase, the stronger the anti-oxidation efficacy.
We experimented with a number of agents in efforts to enhance rutin's solubility, most of which proved ineffective. We surprisingly found, however, that the addition of one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols, at particular ratios and concentrations, greatly increases the water solubility of rutin.
Accordingly, in one aspect the present invention relates to an oral care composition comprising rutin and at least one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols. The polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol reduces the hydrophobicity of the rutin and helps it dissolve in water.
The present invention encompasses Composition 1.0, an oral care composition comprising rutin and at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol wherein the ratio of the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol to rutin by weight is at least 5:1, e.g., at least 10:1, for example 5:1 to 50:1, e.g., about 10:1.
For example, in various aspects the present invention encompasses:
1.1 Composition 1.0 wherein the composition is obtained or obtainable by forming a pre-mix comprising rutin and polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, wherein the rutin is substantially dissolved in the pre-mix, then combining the pre-mix with the other ingredients in the composition.
1.2 Composition 1.1 wherein the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol is selected from the group consisting of propylene glycol, sorbitol, glycerin and mixtures thereof.
1.3 Composition 1.1 or 1.2 wherein the ratio of polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol to rutin in the pre-mix is about 10:1.
1.4 Any foregoing composition, wherein the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol comprises 100% propylene glycol.
1.5 Any of foregoing composition of 1.1 to 1.3 wherein the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol comprises propylene glycol and glycerin wherein the ratio of propylene glycol to glycerin is selected from the ranges consisting of 10:90 to 90:10; 15:85 to 85:15, 15:85 to 25:75, 45:55 to 55:45, 85:15 to 75:25, 80:20, 50:50 and 20:80.
1.6 Any of foregoing composition of 1.1 to 1.3 wherein the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol comprises propylene glycol and sorbitol wherein the ratio of propylene glycol to sorbitol is selected from ranges consisting of 70:30 to 90:10, 75:25 to 85:15 and 80:20.
1.7 Any foregoing composition wherein the amount of rutin in the composition is an amount effective to reduce inflammation and/or oxidative damage to the soft tissues in the mouth.
1.8 Any foregoing composition wherein the amount of rutin in the composition is 0.05-5%, e.g., 0.1 to 1%, e.g., about 0.5%.
1.9 Any foregoing composition, wherein the amount of solubilized rutin in the composition is at least 20% of the total rutin in the composition, e.g., wherein the amount of solubilized rutin is detectable in the composition by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), e.g., wherein the composition is diluted in water in a ratio of about 5:1 water to composition prior to carrying out the HPLC.
1.10 Any foregoing composition wherein the composition further comprises one or more additional botanical extracts, e.g., wherein the botanical extract is from a genus selected from the group consisting of Origanum, Thymus, Lavandula, Salvia, Melissa, Cuminum, Pelroselinum, Calendula, Tageles, Boswellia, Sambucus, Copaifera, Curcuma, Allium, Symphylum, Punica, Eulerpe, Sophora, Rheum, Fagopyrum, Camellia, Coplis, Hydraslis, Mahonia, Phellodendron, Berberis, Xanthorhiza, Lonicera, Vaccinium, Cinnamomum, VlZlS, Terminalia, Pinus, Albizia, Melia, Salvadora, Paullinia, Piper, Syzygium, Commiphora, Juglans, Sculellaria , and Magnolia.
1.11 Any foregoing composition further comprising a compound selected from the group consisting of hesperetin, hesperidin, eriodictyol, quercetin, quercetagetin and quercetagitrin.
1.12 Any foregoing composition comprising an antibacterial agent selected from halogenated diphenyl ethers (e.g. triclosan) and herbal extracts and essential oils (e.g., rosemary extract, tea extract, magnolia extract, thymol, menthol, eucalyptol, geraniol, carvacrol, citral, hinokitol, catechol, methyl salicylate, epigallocatechin gallate, epigallocatechin, gallic acid, miswak extract, sea-buckthorn extract).
1.13 Any foregoing composition wherein the composition is prepared by forming a pre-mix comprising rutin and propylene glycol, wherein the rutin is substantially dissolved in the pre-mix, then combining the pre-mix with the other ingredients in the composition, wherein the pre-mix further comprises one or more poorly soluble agents, e.g., flavorings, antibacterial agents or botanical extracts, e.g., selected from the compounds as set forth in 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.10, 1.11 or 1.12.
1.14 Any of the preceding compositions effective upon application to the oral cavity, e.g., with brushing, to reduce or inhibit gingivitis, to reduce or inhibit damage to the soft tissues in the mouth, and/or promote healing of sores or cuts in the mouth.
1.15 A composition obtained or obtainable by combining the ingredients as set forth in any of the preceding compositions.
1.16 Any of the preceding compositions wherein the composition is toothpaste or a mouthwash.
1.17 Any of the preceding compositions wherein the composition is a toothpaste optionally further comprising one or more of one or more of water, abrasives, surfactants, foaming agents, vitamins, polymers, enzymes, humectants, thickeners, antimicrobial agents, preservatives, flavorings, colorings and/or combinations thereof.
1.18 Any preceding composition wherein the composition is a toothpaste obtained or obtainable by the process of forming a pre-mix comprising rutin and polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, wherein the rutin is substantially dissolved in the pre-mix, then combining the pre-mix with a toothpaste base, e.g., a toothpaste base comprising one or more of water, abrasives, surfactants, foaming agents, vitamins, polymers, enzymes, humectants, thickeners, antimicrobial agents, preservatives, flavorings, colorings and combinations thereof.
1.19 The process of paragraph 1.18, wherein the rutin and propylene glycol are mixed first and then followed by mixing with sorbitol.
The present invention also encompasses Method 2.0, a method to improve oral health in a subject in need thereof, e.g., to treat, reduce or inhibit gingivitis, to treat, reduce or inhibit damage to the soft tissues in the mouth, and/or to promote healing of sores or cuts in the mouth, the method comprising applying an effective amount of rutin in combination with propylene glycol, e.g., applying the oral composition of any of Compositions 1, et seq., to the oral cavity of a subject in need thereof.
In one aspect, the present invention provides the use of at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol to enhance the solubility of rutin in an oral care formation. It has surprisingly been found that polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols may be used in oral care formulations to enhance the solubility of rutin. This allows for the more effective delivery of rutin to the oral cavity of a subject when the oral care composition is administered. The polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol may allow higher concentrations of rutin to be included in the oral care composition. In addition, improving the solubility of rutin may allow the oral care composition to be manufactured more easily, for example by preventing phase separation between the rutin and the remainder of the oral care composition. As used herein, enhancing the solubility of rutin means increasing the solubility of the rutin relative to its solubility in a comparative composition which does not comprise the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, and/or increasing the solubility of rutin relative to its aqueous solubility of 13 mg/100 mL.
Typically, the oral care composition will be a toothpaste, a tooth gel, a mouthwash, or the like. The oral care composition is most preferably a toothpaste. Optionally, the oral care composition is any of compositions 1.0 to 1.19 as defined above. In a further arrangement, the oral care composition is as defined in any one of claims 1 to 10 .
Preferably, the use involves the use of a pre-mix in the manufacture of the oral care formulation. The pre-mix comprises rutin dissolved in at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol. It is believed that forming a pre-mix in this manner helps to improve further the solubility of rutin in the oral care composition. The use of a pre-mix may allow the rutin to be dissolved more easily in the oral care composition, in comparison to adding the rutin directly. This may improve efficiency, e.g. by requiring less stirring.
Preferably, the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol used is selected from propylene glycol, glycerin, and mixtures thereof. Propylene glycol, glycerin and mixtures thereof have been found to be surprisingly effective in improving the solubility of rutin. The use of propylene glycol is particularly advantageous.
When a mixture of propylene glycol and glycerin is used, the mixture preferably comprises at least 20% propylene glycol by weight of the mixture. More preferably, the mixture comprises at least 50% propylene glycol, and most preferably the mixture comprises at least 80% propylene glycol by weight of the mixture.
Alternatively, the polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol used may consist essentially of propylene glycol. In this arrangement, the propylene glycol may comprise water absorbed from the atmosphere and/or impurities arising from its manufacture or storage. In this arrangement, the propylene glycol is typically at least 95% pure, is preferably at least 99% pure, and is most preferably at least 99.8% pure.
In an embodiment, the invention provides the use of propylene glycol to enhance the solubility of rutin in an oral care formulation.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a method of manufacturing an oral care composition, which method comprises:
(a) dissolving rutin in a solvent to form a pre-mix; and (b) combining the pre-mix with one or more further ingredients to form the oral care composition;
wherein the solvent comprises at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol.
Preparing a pre-mix comprising rutin and a polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol allows the rutin to be efficiently incorporated into the oral care composition, and makes use of the surprisingly ability of polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols to solubilize rutin.
In step (a), rutin is dissolved in a solvent. This step typically involves mixing the rutin with the solvent, and stirring the resulting mixture. Suitably, the rutin is substantially fully dissolved in the solvent. In other words, the pre-mix will not be turbid and no undissolved rutin will be observable by visual inspection. The amount of rutin used may be selected such that the rutin substantially fully dissolves, i.e. such that the solubility limit of rutin in the solvent is not exceeded. One of skill in the art will be familiar with conventional methods of measuring solubility. For example, the solubility of rutin in a particular solvent may be measured by shake-flask with quantification by HPLC, UV/vis spectrometry, or any other conventional quantification method.
In step (b), the pre-mix is combined with one or more further ingredients to form the oral care composition. The nature of the further ingredients is not particularly limited and will vary depending on the oral care composition being prepared. The further ingredients will typically comprise an oral care active and an orally acceptable carrier. The oral care active may be any conventional oral care active, such as for example a fluoride source or an arginine source. One of skill in the art will be familiar with the orally acceptable carriers used in oral care compositions. Examples of ingredients which may be included in oral care compositions are provided in the detailed description. Any of the ingredients used in Compositions 1.0 et seq. may be used in the methods described herein.
The solvent comprises at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol. The solvent may be a single polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol or a mixture of two or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols. Minor amounts of further components, such as water absorbed from the atmosphere, may be present in the solvent. Further components are most preferably absent, but may be present in an amount of less than 5%, preferably less than 2%, more preferably less than 1%, and still more preferably less than 0.1% by weight of the solvent. The solvent may consist essentially of a polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol or of a mixture of two or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols.
Preferably, the solvent is selected from propylene glycol, glycerin, and mixtures thereof. These materials have been found to be particularly useful in enhancing the solubility of rutin. Preferably, the solvent comprises at least 20% propylene glycol by weight of the solvent. Most preferably, the solvent consists essentially of propylene glycol.
Optionally, one or more further poorly soluble agents may be dissolved nit eh pre-mix in addition to the rutin. The poorly soluble agent may be, for example, a flavoring, an antibacterial agent, or a botanical extract. The botanical extract may be from a genus selected from Origanum, Thymus, Lavandula, Salvia, Melissa, Cuminum, Pelroselinum, Calendula, Tageles, Boswellia, Sambucus, Copaifera, Curcuma, Allium, Symphylum, Punica, Eulerpe, Sophora, Rheum, Fagopyrum, Camellia, Coplis, Hydraslis, Mahonia, Phellodendron, Berberis, Xanthorhiza, Lonicera, Vaccinium, Cinnamomum, VlZlS, Terminalia, Pinus, Albizia, Melia, Salvadora, Paullinia, Piper, Syzygium, Commiphora, Juglans, Sculellaria , and Magnolia . The antibacterial agent may be selected from halogenated diphenyl ethers (e.g. triclosan) and herbal extracts and essential oils (e.g., rosemary extract, tea extract, magnolia extract, thymol, menthol, eucalyptol, geraniol, carvacrol, citral, hinokitol, catechol, methyl salicylate, epigallocatechin gallate, epigallocatechin, gallic acid, miswak extract, sea-buckthorn extract).
Optionally, the oral care composition which is manufactured is any of compositions 1.0 to 1.19 as defined herein. Alternatively, the oral care composition which is manufactured is a composition as defined in any of claims 1 to 24 .
Rutin may be present in the pre-mix in an amount of at least 5% by weight of the pre-mix. Preferably, the rutin is present in the pre-mix in an amount in the range 6% to 12% by weight of the pre-mix.
Optionally, the further ingredients introduced in step (b) comprise sorbitol. Sorbitol is useful as a humectant and a thickener, and may be used to form transparent gels. The inclusion of sorbitol in an oral care composition such as a toothpaste may improve the stability of the composition.
Optionally, the further ingredients are in the form of a toothpaste base composition. A toothpaste base composition may comprise one or more of water, abrasives, surfactants, foaming agents, vitamins, polymers, enzymes, humectants, thickeners, antimicrobial agents, preservatives, flavorings, colorings, and combinations thereof. In this arrangement, the oral care composition will be in the form of a toothpaste.
The method optionally includes the step of heating the solvent to a temperature in the range 50° C. to 70° C. The solvent may be heated before, during, or after the addition of the rutin to the solvent. Gentle heating accelerates the dissolution of the rutin while avoiding thermal decomposition of the rutin.
Optionally, in the arrangements where the solvent is heated, the pre-mix is allowed to cool before the pre-mix is combined with the further ingredients. For example, the pre-mix may be cooled to a temperature in the range of 16° C. to 32° C. before step (b). The pre-mix is preferably cooled to room temperature (e.g. to about 25° C.). It is not essential to cool the pre-mix before step (b).
Further optionally, the finished oral care composition comprises the pre-mix in an amount in the range 5% to 15% by weight of the composition. The amount of pre-mix is selected to optimize the stability of the oral care composition and the amount of dissolved rutin, and to optimize processing parameters. The use of a very large amount of pre-mix may reduce stability. The use of a very small amount of pre-mix would limit the amount of rutin delivered.
In some arrangements, the solvent is a mixture of a first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol and a second polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol. The use of two different polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols in the same oral care composition may be desirable for providing oral care benefits, or for modifying process parameters, stability, product aesthetics, etc. It has surprisingly been found that the order of addition of the two polyhydroxy alcohols alters the solubility of rutin in the finished composition.
When the solvent is a mixture of a first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol and a second polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, the solubility of rutin in the first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol being greater than in the second polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, step (a) preferably comprises dissolving the rutin in the first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol to form a solution and subsequently mixing the second polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol with the solution to form the pre-mix. By dissolving the rutin in the first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, it has surprisingly been found that the overall solubility of rutin in the final oral care compositions improved in comparison to a method wherein the first and second polyhydroxy alkyl alcohols are mixed before adding the rutin.
In this arrangement, the first polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol is preferably selected from propylene glycol and glycerin, and is most preferably propylene glycol. The second polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol may be sorbitol.
In one aspect the present invention relates in part to methods or processes for producing an oral care composition (e.g., toothpaste), e.g., according to any of Compositions 1.0, et seq., wherein the oral care composition comprises rutin and one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, comprising forming a pre-mix comprising rutin and one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol, wherein the rutin is substantially dissolved in the pre-mix, then combining the pre-mix with the other ingredients in the composition. For example, in one embodiment, the process comprises
combining rutin and one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol; warming the combination comprising rutin and one or more polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol while mixing the combination, e.g. warming in a water bath at about 60° C. and mixing for about 10 minutes (e.g., using an IKA overhead mixer), to form a pre-mix; cooling the pre-mix, e.g., cooling down to approximately room temperature; and mixing the pre-mix with an oral care base, e.g., a toothpaste base.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The following description of the preferred embodiment(s) is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses.
As used throughout, ranges are used as shorthand for describing each and every value that is within the range. Any value within the range can be selected as the terminus of the range.
As used herein, all measurement levels described herein are by weight of the total composition, unless otherwise indicated. Additionally, all references cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. However, in the event of a conflict between any definitions in the present disclosure and those in a cited reference, the present disclosure controls.
“Safe and effective amount” as used herein means a sufficient amount to treat the oral cavity, e.g., reduce plaque, gingivitis, and/or stain without harming the tissues and structures of the oral cavity.
As used herein, “cleaning” generally refers to the removal of contaminants, dirt, impurities, and/or extraneous matter on a target surface. For example, in the context of oral surfaces, where the surface is tooth enamel, the cleaning may remove at least some of a film or stain, such as plaque biofilm, pellicle or tartar.
The term “oral composition” is used herein to designate products which, in the ordinary course of usage, are retained in the oral cavity for a time sufficient to contact substantially all of the dental surfaces but are not intentionally ingested. Such products include, for example, dentifrices such as toothpaste and gels, mouthwashes, chewing gums and lozenges.
Various plant extracts contain the active compound rutin, which is believed to scavenge superoxide radicals, chelate metal ions, modulate bursts of neturophils, inhibit lipid peroxidation, maintain the biological antioxidant reduced glutathione, and reduce Fenton reactions (which generate reactive oxygen species). Thus, rutin has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, antithrombotic, cytoprotective and vasoprotective activities, which are beneficial for oral compositions.
As used herein, all percentages are by weight % of the total composition weight, unless otherwise indicated.
The oral compositions of the present invention (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) may also comprise a tooth whitening or tooth bleaching composition, which are known in the art. Suitable whitening and bleaching composition include peroxides, metal chlorites, persulfates. Peroxides include hydroperoxides, hydrogen peroxide, peroxides of alkali and alkaline earth metals, organic peroxy compounds, peroxy acids, and mixtures thereof. Peroxides of alkali and alkaline earth metals include lithium peroxide, potassium peroxide, sodium peroxide, magnesium peroxide, calcium peroxide, barium peroxide, and mixtures thereof. Other peroxides include perborate, urea peroxide, and mixtures thereof. Suitable metal chlorites may include calcium chlorite, barium chlorite, magnesium chlorite, lithium chlorite, sodium chlorite, and potassium chlorite. Such agents may be added in effective amounts, e.g., from about 1% to about 20% by weight based on the total weight of the composition, depending on the agent chosen.
The oral composition (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) optionally comprises an anti-calculus composition, such as, for example, one or more of the anti-calculus compositions discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,292,526 to Gaffar, et al. In various embodiments, the anti-calculus composition includes one or more polyphosphates. The anti-calculus composition can include at least one wholly or partially neutralized alkali metal or ammonium tripolyphosphate or hexametaphosphate salt present in the oral composition at an effective anti-calculus amount. The anti-calculus active can also include at least one water soluble, linear, molecularly dehydrated polyphosphate salt in an effective anticalculus amount. The anti-calculus active can also include a mixture of potassium and sodium salts, at least one of which is present in an effective anti-calculus amount as a polyphosphate anti-calculus agent. The anti-calculus active agent can also contain an effective anticalculus amount of linear molecularly dehydrated polyphosphate salt anti-calculus agent present in a mixture of sodium and potassium salts. The ratio of potassium to sodium in the composition can be up to less than 3:1. The polyphosphate can be present in the oral composition in various amounts, such as an amount wherein the weight ratio of polyphosphate ion to anti-bacterial agent ranges from in excess of 0.72:1 to less than 4:1, or wherein the weight ratio of the anti-bacterial enhancing agent to the polyphosphate ion ranges from about 1:6 to about 2.7:1, or wherein the weight ratio of the anti-bacterial enhancing agent to the polyphosphate ranges from about 1:6 to about 2.7:1. Other useful anticalculus agents include polycarboxylate polymers and polyvinyl methyl etherimaleic anhydride (PVM/MA) copolymers, such as GANTREZ®.
The oral care compositions of the invention (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) also may optionally comprise one or more chelating agents able to complex calcium found in the cell walls of the bacteria. Binding of this calcium weakens the bacterial cell wall, augments bacterial lysis, and reduces the formation of plaque. These anti-calculus agents may for example comprise a polyphosphate, e.g., pyrophosphate, tripolyphosphate, or hexametaphosphate, e.g., in sodium or potassium salt form. One group of chelating agents which may be useful in the present invention are soluble pyrophosphate salts. Pyrophosphate salts used in the present compositions can be any of the alkali metal pyrophosphate salts. In certain embodiments, salts include tetra alkali metal pyrophosphate, dialkali metal diacid pyrophosphate, trialkali metal monoacid pyrophosphate and mixtures thereof, wherein the alkali metals are sodium or potassium. The salts are useful in both their hydrated and unhydrated forms. An effective amount of pyrophosphate salt useful in the present composition at least 0.1 wt. %, e.g., from about 0.5 wt. % to about 5 wt. %, about 1 wt. % to about 3 wt. %, or about 2%.
The oral care compositions of the invention (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) may also optionally include one or more enzymes. Useful enzymes include any of the available proteases, glucanohydrolases, endoglycosidases, amylases, mutanases, lipases and mucinases or compatible mixtures thereof. In certain embodiments, the enzyme is a protease, dextranase, endoglycosidase and mutanase. In another embodiment, the enzyme is papain, endoglycosidase or a mixture of dextranase and mutanase. An enzyme of a mixture of several compatible enzymes in the current invention constitutes about 0.002% to about 2.0% in one embodiment or about 0.05% to about 1.5% in another embodiment or in yet another embodiment about 0.1% to about 0.5%.
In preparing oral care compositions (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.), it may be necessary to add some thickening material to provide a desirable consistency or to stabilize or enhance the performance of the formulation. In certain embodiments, the thickening agents are carboxyvinyl polymers, carrageenan, hydroxyethyl cellulose and water soluble salts of cellulose ethers such as sodium carboxymethyl cellulose and sodium carboxymethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose. Natural gums such as karaya, gum arabic, and gum tragacanth can also be incorporated. Colloidal magnesium aluminum silicate or finely divided silica can be used as component of the thickening composition to further improve the composition's texture. In certain embodiments, thickening agents in an amount of about 0.05% to about 10% by weight of the total composition are used, e.g., from about 0.1% to about 7%, from about 0.5% to about 5%, or about 1%, 2%, or less than about 2%. Other thickeners for use in oral compositions include natural and synthetic gums and colloids, such as carrageenan (Irish moss), xanthan gum, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, starch, polyvinylpyrrolidone, hydroxyethylpropyl cellulose, hydroxybutyl methyl cellulose, hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose, and hydroxyethyl cellulose. In some embodiments, the polymers may additionally promote delivery of active agents, and the such compositions may include polymers such as polyvinylmethyl ether maleic acid copolymers, e.g., as sold under the trade name Gantrez.
The oral care compositions of the invention (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) may also optionally include one or more surfactants, e.g., non-ionic, cationic or zwitterionic surfactants, or combinations thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the compositions may comprise at least one surfactant selected from sodium lauryl sulfate, cocamidopropyl betaine, and combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the compositions comprise an anionic surfactant, e.g. selected from the group consisting of: fatty acid monoglyceride monosulfates, higher alkyl sulfates (e.g., sodium lauryl sulfate); higher alkyl aryl sulfonates, (e.g., sodium linear dodecyl benzene sulfonate), higher olefin sulfonates (e.g., sodium higher olefin sulfonate), higher alkyl alkali sulfoacetates (e.g., sodium lauryl sulfoacetate); higher fatty acid esters of 1,2-dihydroxypropane sulfonates; the substantially saturated higher aliphatic acyl amides of lower aliphatic aminocarboxylic acid alkali metal salts, (e.g, having 12 to 16 carbon atoms in the fatty acyl radicals), higher alkyl poly-lower alkoxy (of 10 to 100 alkoxies) sodium sulfates, higher fatty acid sodium and potassium soaps of coconut oil and tallow. In some embodiments, the compositions may comprise an anionic surfactant, e.g., selected from sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureth sulfate, and mixtures thereof; e.g., may comprise sodium lauryl sulfate, in an amount from 0.5-3% by weight of the composition.
The compositions of the invention (e.g., any of Compositions 1.0 et seq.) may also include one or more flavoring agents or coloring agents known by those of skill in the art. Flavoring agents which are used in the practice of the present invention include, but are not limited to, essential oils as well as various flavoring aldehydes, esters, alcohols, and similar materials. Examples of the essential oils include oils of spearmint, peppermint, wintergreen, sassafras , clove, sage, eucalyptus , marjoram, cinnamon, lemon, lime, grapefruit, and orange. Also useful are such chemicals as menthol, carvone, and anethole. Certain embodiments employ the oils of peppermint and spearmint. The flavoring agent may be incorporated in the oral composition at a concentration of about 0.1 to about 5% by weight and optionally about 0.5 to about 1.5% by weight.
The present invention is further illustrated through the following non-limiting examples.
EXAMPLES
Example 1—Correlation of Rutin Level in Water Phase and its Anti-Oxidation Efficacy
Rutin is dissolved in water to prepare a range of different levels of rutin solution. The protective efficacy of rutin solutions is measured using a cell staining method. In this method, the morphology of exfoliated human oral mucosal cells contacted with various concentrations of rutin is disclosed with Janus Green B dye. Photographic digital images are obtained using a light microscope with a 40× or 100× objective lenses connected to a digital camera. The color difference between the cell plasma and the area outside the cell, ΔE*a,b, is determined using the CIE L*a*b* system. The larger the ΔE*a,b value, the stronger the protective efficacy. The method includes the following steps:
1. Human mucosal cells are collected and mixed with 1 mL Ringer solution, 0.5 mL Fe 2+ and 0.5 mL HAc—Ac buffer in a 5 mL Eppendorf tube. 2. The cell suspension is then equally divided into two tubes. To the first tube is added 0.2 mL of 20 mM H 2 O 2 . To the second tube is added 0.2 mL Ringer solution. 3. After 10 min, one drop of the above treated samples is placed on a microscope slide and stained with one drop of 0.1% Janus Green B for 1 h or longer. 4. After staining, the cells are observed under the light microscope. Digital images are also acquired and ΔE*a, b is measured.
The results are as follows:
TABLE 1
Protective efficacy of rutin
Rutin concentration (mM)
Protective efficacy (ΔE*a, b)
0.5
5.5
1.0
24.7
2.0
38.9
These results show that the more rutin that is dissolved in water solution, the larger the ΔE*a,b value is, thus the stronger the anti-oxidation efficacy it can provide. Thus, it is not sufficient simply to add rutin to a toothpaste formulation. For the rutin to be effective, the formulation must provide optimal solubility for the rutin.
Initial evaluation of solubilizing agents is carried out by mixing rutin with different agents, and assessing whether the rutin dissolves, as seen by the relative clarity of the solutions. Propylene glycol (PG) is unexpectedly found to be the most effective solvent humectant to dissolve rutin. For example, among the polyol humectant materials evaluated—propylene glycol, PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil, glycerin, PEG 600 and sorbitol—where 0.5% rutin is added to 10 g of each test solubilizer, the solubility capability of the humectants evaluated are ranked in the following order, with propylene glycol being the best and sorbitol being the worst.
propylene glycol>>glycerin>PEG600≈PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil>sorbitol
Experiments are further designed to optimize humectant concentration for rutin solubility. Table 2 lists nine prototypes compounded from a pre-mix and a toothpaste base, where the pre-mix contains rutin and one or more of the propylene glycol, glycerin and sorbitol.
Pre-mixes are prepared by mixing the rutin with various solubilizing agents, as follows:
1) Formula amount of solubilizer(s) is added into container;
2) Formula amount of rutin is added into container with humectant;
3) Using a water bath at 60° C., contents are warmed and mixed for 10 minutes under constant stirring using an IKA overhead mixer;
4) After cooling the Pre-Mix down to room temperature, the contents are transferred to toothpaste mixer and mixed with toothpaste base for 10 minutes with ratios shown in Table 2.
TABLE 2
Formula design of humectants to solubilize rutin in Pre-Mix A
Pre-Mix A
Toothpaste
Sample
Rutin %
PG %
Sorbitol %
Glycerin %
Base %
1
0.5
5
0
0
94.5
2
0.5
4
1
0
94.5
3
0.5
2.5
2.5
0
94.5
4
0.5
1
4
0
94.5
5
0.5
0
5
0
94.5
6
0.5
4
0
1
94.5
7
0.5
2.5
0
2.5
94.5
8
0.5
1
0
4
94.5
9
0.5
0
0
5
94.5
Table 3 illustrates the toothpaste base formulation for the toothpaste comprising a rutin pre-mix as described in Table 2.
TABLE 3
Ingredient
Formula
Base
Glycerin
11.5
Formula
Sorbitol
21.52
CMC 2000S
0.5
(carboxymethylcellulose)
Xanthan Gum
0.3
Sodium Saccharin
0.2
Sodium Fluoride
0.22
Citric Acid Monohydrate
0.6
Trisodium citrate dihydrate
3.0
Zeodent ® 114 (Synthetic
20.0
amorphous silica)
Silica DT267
2.0
Flavor
1.0
SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate)
2.0
PVP (polyvinylpyrrolidone)
2.0
water
29.66
Premix
Rutin Pre-Mix
5.50
Total
100.00
Example 2
Soluble rutin in the final formulations is assessed by high performance liquid chromatography using a) HPLC Equipment with an auto-sampler (Waters 2695): b) Column: Agilent Zorbax SB-CN, C 18, 5 μm, 250×4.6 mm; and c) UV Detector Waters 2489. Test conditions are as follows: a) Mobile phase: Methanol/H 2 O/H 3 PO 4 (550:450:1.8); b) Flow rate: 1 ml/min; c) Detection wavelength: 256 nm d) Run Time: 12 minutes. The procedure is as follows: a) Place 5 g toothpaste sample in glass beaker, add 5 ml water and stir for 30 minutes; b) Transfer the slurry to centrifugal tube and dilute to 25 ml with water, and centrifuge for 5 mins (8000 rpm); c) Filtrate and run through HPLC.
Table 4 demonstrates that toothpaste compositions with propylene glycol (PG) exhibit a higher concentration of soluble rutin in the toothpaste composition. Compositions comprising propylene glycol and glycerin also exhibit a higher concentration of soluble rutin as compared to compositions that comprise only glycerin or sorbitol. The best solubility is seen with for pre-mixes with 5% glycerin or 5% sorbitol, but the detectable soluble rutin is only found to be 0.08% and 0.04% respectively.
In the combination of propylene glycol with glycerin or sorbitol, results show that the higher the propylene glycol content in the formula, the higher the soluble rutin in the toothpaste. The introduction of sorbitol to propylene glycol during pre-mixing substantially decreases the solubility of rutin.
TABLE 4
Soluble rutin testing result in toothpaste (by HPLC method)
Pre-Mix A
Toothpaste
Rutin
Rutin
PG
Sorbitol
Glycerin
Base
detected
Sample
%
%
%
%
%
%
1
0.5
5
0
0
94.5
0.17
2
0.5
4
1
0
94.5
0.08
3
0.5
2.5
2.5
0
94.5
0.04
4
0.5
1
4
0
94.5
0.04
5
0.5
0
5
0
94.5
0.04
6
0.5
4
0
1
94.5
0.16
7
0.5
2.5
0
2.5
94.5
0.14
8
0.5
1
0
4
94.5
0.12
9
0.5
0
0
5
94.5
0.08
Example 3
It has been found that the solubility of rutin in an oral care composition comprising two polyhydroxyalkyl alcohols may be improved by optimizing the manufacture of the pre-mix. The solubility of rutin in an oral care composition comprising propylene glycol and sorbitol may approach the solubility of rutin in a composition without sorbitol if the rutin is dissolved in the propylene glycol before sorbitol is settled.
To illustrate this, a further sample (Sample 10) was prepared as follows:
1) The formula amount of propylene glycol was added into a container;
2) The formula amount of rutin was added into the container with the propylene glycol humectant;
3) The contents of the container were warmed using a water bath at 60° C. and mixed for 10 mins under constant stirring using an IKA overhead mixer;
4) The formula amount of sorbitol was added into container and mixed for an additional 5 minutes;
5) After cooling the pre-mix down to room temperature, the contents were transferred to a toothpaste mixer and mixed with the toothpaste base for 10 minutes.
The amount of soluble rutin present in Sample 10 was then determined using the method described in Example 2.
Table 5 demonstrates that the order of addition with respect to sorbitol results in a 75% increase in the amount of rutin detected (0.14−0.08/0.08×100%=75%).
TABLE 5
Soluble rutin testing result in toothpaste (by
HPLC method) - different addition sequences
Pre-Mix A
Toothpaste
Rutin
Rutin
PG
Sorbitol
Glycerin
Base
detected
Sample
%
%
%
%
%
%
2
0.5
4
1
0
94.5
0.08
10
0.5
4
1
0
94.5
0.14
As those skilled in the art will appreciate, numerous changes and modifications may be made to the embodiments described herein without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is intended that all such variations fall within the scope of the appended claims.
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The present invention generally relates to oral care compositions which enhance the solubility of rutin comprising rutin and at least one polyhydroxyalkyl alcohol. The present invention also relates to methods for use and manufacturing said oral care compositions.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention pertains generally to man-powered weapons. More particularly, the present invention pertains to systems and methods for shooting a plurality of pellets (i.e. projectiles or shot) at a target with a statistically predictable and defined shot group on the target. The present invention is particularly, but not exclusively, useful as a system and method for propelling a multi-pellet-filled launch tube from a man-powered weapon, and for employing the resultant acceleration force on the launch tube to unlatch and release the pellets from the launch tube for impact in a shot group on a target.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Typically, man-powered weapons are designed to launch only one projectile at a time. In particular, this is the case when the weapon is to be operated and fired by a single individual. For example, the arrow of a well-known bow and arrow set is such a projectile, as is the bolt of a crossbow or the dart of a blowgun. There are instances, however (e.g. the extermination of vermin or clay pigeon shooting), when it would be preferable to simultaneously launch several projectiles (e.g. pellets) all at the same time. In this respect, there is a need for a man-powered weapon that is comparable in its on-target effect to the familiar shotgun. To achieve such comparability with a man-powered weapon, like a shotgun, all of the pellets need to be collectively launched as a predictably defined group. The situation for a man-powered weapon is exacerbated, however, due to the fact that they typically employ only a single launching string or, in the case of an air gun, a single launching tube.
[0003] Ideally, when a plurality of projectiles are to be launched simultaneously from a single man-powered weapon, the launching mechanism of the weapon needs to have comparably direct influence upon each projectile (e.g. pellet). Specifically, the influence and control over each projectile in the plurality must be similar, and be effective to the same extent, as if only one projectile was being launched. It happens, however, that with a single string or single barrel launcher (e.g. a bow, a crossbow or an air gun), such influence and control is virtually impossible. A solution for this problem is to, somehow, structurally combine the several projectiles into a cohesive unit for launch. This solution, of course, must be short term. Immediately after launch, the problem then becomes how to effectively separate the projectiles. Specifically, this separation must be accomplished in a manner that causes the projectiles to travel toward a target in a predictably defined group that will have the intended on-target effect.
[0004] With the above in mind, it is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-pellet launcher that will hold a plurality of projectiles together as a single cohesive unit prior to and during launch. Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-pellet launcher that will maintain a group integrity for the pellets (projectiles) while in flight, for the purposes of achieving an intended on-target effect (i.e. have a statistically well defined shot group). Still another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-pellet launcher that is easy to use, is simple to manufacture, and is cost effective.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In accordance with the present invention, a system is provided for propelling pellets (projectiles) from a launch tube. In particular, the propulsion of pellets occurs after the launch tube has been shot from a man-powered weapon (e.g. a bow, a crossbow or an air gun). Prior to being shot (launched), the launch tube holds a plurality of pellets inside the tube. Specifically, this is accomplished by positioning the pellets between a retainer plug that is restrained inside the launch tube, and a compression spring that is fixedly mounted inside the launch tube. In order to restrain the retainer plug, a latch is established relative to the launch tube. The latch then prevents a forward movement of the retainer plug, and the pellets, in response to a bias force that is imposed on the retainer plug and the pellets by the partially compressed spring.
[0006] In overview, while the launch tube is being propelled in a forward direction by a man-powered weapon, the resultant acceleration force on the launch tube moves the retainer plug and pellets in a relatively rearward (proximal) direction with respect to the tube. This proximal movement of the retainer plug and pellets in the launch tube further compresses the spring, and simultaneously releases the latch from the retainer plug. In flight, after the initial acceleration force has subsided, the compressed spring provides a forward propulsion force on the plurality of pellets and the retainer plug. This propulsion force then ejects the pellets and the retainer plug from the launch tube. The pellets then continue on toward an intended target.
[0007] Structurally, the launch tube of the present invention is formed with a lumen, and it defines a longitudinal axis. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it also has an open distal end and a closed or partially closed proximal end. Beginning at the proximal end of the lumen inside the launch tube, the spring is positioned and affixed to its closed proximal end. The plurality of pellets (projectiles) is then positioned in the lumen against the spring. Next, the retainer plug is positioned in the lumen distal to the plurality of pellets (projectiles). In greater structural detail, for one embodiment of the present invention, the retainer plug has a distal ring that is dimensioned to move within the lumen, and it has a proximal ring that is also dimensioned to move within the lumen. Between these rings of the retainer ring is a mid-section that is formed with a decreasing taper in the proximal direction.
[0008] In the vicinity of the retainer plug, the sidewall of the launch tube is formed with one or more lateral vents. Preferably, these vents are located equidistant from the distal end of the tube. One or more latch spheres are provided to interact between the proximal ring of the retainer plug and the vents of the launch tube. Specifically, this interaction is in response to the distally directed force that is generated when the spring is partially compressed. More specifically, each latch sphere is trapped in a respective vent, and it is urged against a distal edge of the vent by the proximal ring of the retainer plug. Thus, prior to a launch, the distal bias of the compressed spring on the retainer plug holds the retainer plug, and the pellets, stationary in the lumen of the launch tube.
[0009] Upon shooting a launch tube from a man-powered weapon, an acceleration force is imposed in a distal direction on the pellets, and on the proximal end of the spring within the lumen of the launch tube. This acceleration causes the retainer plug and pellets to move proximally relative to the launch tube, and the spring is further compressed. In turn, this relative motion of the retainer plug and launch tube causes the proximal ring of the retainer plug to release the latch sphere(s) and causes a tapered or stepped region of the retainer plug to eject the latch sphere(s) from the launch tube through their respective vents. Consequently, the retainer plug and the plurality of pellets are released by the latch and are propelled from the launch tube in response to the distal bias of the spring.
[0010] An additional structure of the launch tube is an inner sleeve that can be affixed inside the lumen of the launch tube, proximal to the spring. Specifically, this inner sleeve is positioned at a distance “d f ” from the distal end of the launch tube to act as an abutment for the spring when it is compressed. The distance “d f ” can, of course, be varied as desired. In any event, it is preferable that the inner sleeve be affixed to place the pellets (projectiles) relatively near the distal end of the launch tube. With this in mind, the present invention envisions that, even though the pellets may extend through a relatively short distance (i.e. a few inches), an inner sleeve will allow the total length of the launch tube to be as long as is required for a conventional bow, compound bow or crossbow.
[0011] For a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there may be as many as forty or more pellets, and they can be made of steel. Also, in order to promote tumbling of the retainer plug after a launch of the launcher, the distal ring of the retainer plug may be formed with a distal recessed surface, and is made of a light-weight material such as Acrilonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS), Polycarbonate or Polysulfone. Also, for the purpose of dispensing the pellets in-flight for a controlled, on-target impact, the pellets inside the launch tube can be combined with a plurality of spacers. If used, individual spacers can be positioned between adjacent pellets in the launch tube. In another embodiment, for the same purpose, a plurality of magnets can be combined with the pellets in a configuration where adjacent magnets straddle two pellets, and pellets on opposed sides of a same magnet are subjected to a different polarity.
[0012] For an alternate embodiment of a latch for the multi-pellet launcher, the launch tube is formed with a pair of axially opposed slots that extend, parallel to each other, in a proximal direction from the distal end of the launch tube. A detent is formed at the proximal end of each slot. For this embodiment, the retainer plug is cylindrical and includes a pair of axially opposed pins that extend outwardly from the retainer plug. For an assembly of the multi-pellet launcher in accordance with this alternate embodiment, the pins on the retainer plug are received in a respective slot of the launch tube and are advanced in a proximal direction. When the pins are at the proximal end of their respective slots, the retainer plug is rotated to engage the pins with a respective detent at the end of the slot. This holds the retainer plug stationary in the launch tube. Upon a subsequent launching of the launch tube, the resultant acceleration force rotates the pins out of their detents. This then frees the retainer plug for axial movement out of the launch tube in a distal direction when the acceleration force subsides. It is an important consideration for this particular embodiment of the latch, that the pins do not extend beyond the outer diameter of the launch tube when the retainer plug is engaged with the launch tube. This is necessary to allow an assembled launcher to be received within the barrel of a weapon (e.g. an air gun) without any interference of the pins on the retainer plug with the bore of the barrel.
[0013] In yet another embodiment of a latch for the present invention, the launch tube is formed with at least one lateral opening. For this embodiment, the retainer plug includes a clip that is mounted on the retainer plug, and the clip is reconfigured to engage with the lateral opening. Importantly, the clip does not extend beyond the lateral opening. When the launch tube is launched, as in the other embodiments of the present invention, the resultant acceleration force moves the retainer plug in a proximal direction relative to the launch tube. Consequently, the clip is released from the lateral opening. The retainer plug is thereby released for free travel through the launch tube.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The novel features of this invention, as well as the invention itself, both as to its structure and its operation, will be best understood from the accompanying drawings, taken in conjunction with the accompanying description, in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts, and in which:
[0015] FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a multi-pellet launcher in accordance with the present invention;
[0016] FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a launcher of the present invention during mid-launch from a crossbow;
[0017] FIG. 2B is a plan/elevation view of the launcher of the present invention prepared for launch from a bow;
[0018] FIG. 3 is a plan/elevation view of an air gun for use with the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 4A is a cross-section view of the multi-pellet launcher as seen along the line 4 - 4 in FIG. 1 prior to launch;
[0020] FIG. 4B is a cross-section view of the multi-pellet launcher as seen in FIG. 4A as the launcher is being accelerated during launch;
[0021] FIG. 4C is a cross-section view of the multi-pellet launcher as seen in FIG. 4B after launch;
[0022] FIG. 5 is a cross-section view of an alternate embodiment of a multi-pellet launcher as would be seen along the line 4 - 4 in FIG. 1 ;
[0023] FIG. 6 is a cross-section view of another embodiment of the multi-pellet launcher as seen along the line 4 - 4 in FIG. 1 ;
[0024] FIG. 7A is an exploded perspective view of an alternate embodiment of a launch tube and retainer plug for use with the present invention, with the retainer plug positioned for engagement with the launch tube;
[0025] FIG. 7B is a view as shown in FIG. 7A with the retainer plug engaged with the launch tube;
[0026] FIG. 8A is a cross-section view of a launcher as seen along the line 8 - 8 in FIG. 7A prior to a launch;
[0027] FIG. 8B is a cross-section view of the launcher shown in FIG. 8A , immediately after a launch;
[0028] FIG. 8C is a front-on view looking into the launch tube of the launcher;
[0029] FIG. 8D is a cross-section view of an alternate embodiment for the inner sleeve shown in FIG. 8A , prior to launch;
[0030] FIG. 8E is a cross-section view of the inner sleeve shown in FIG. 8D , immediately after launch;
[0031] FIG. 9A is a cross-section view of another alternate embodiment of a launch tube and retainer plug prior to a launch;
[0032] FIG. 9B is a cross-section view of the launch tube shown in FIG. 9A immediately after a launch;
[0033] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a spring guide for use with the spring in an alternate embodiment of the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 11A is a cross sectional view of a launcher using a spring guide, as seen along the line 8 - 8 in FIG. 7A , prior to launch; and
[0035] FIG. 11B is a view of the launcher shown in FIG. 11A immediately after launch.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0036] Referring initially to FIG. 1 , a multi-pellet launcher in accordance with the present invention is shown and is generally designated 10 . As shown, the launcher 10 includes a hollow, elongated launch tube 12 that has a distal end 14 and a proximal end 16 . For the launcher 10 , the distal end 14 of launch tube 12 is open, and its proximal end 16 is closed or partially closed. For purposes of disclosure, the launch tube 12 defines a longitudinal axis 18 that extends between the distal end 14 and the proximal end 16 . As intended for the present invention, the launcher 10 can be used as a bolt for a crossbow 20 (see FIG. 2A ), as an arrow for a bow 22 (see FIG. 2B ) or as a launch tube 12 to be used with an air gun 23 and launched from its barrel 25 (see FIG. 3 ). In all important respects, the multi-pellet launcher 10 will be essentially the same regardless of the type of man-powered weapon that is to be used (i.e. crossbow 20 , bow 22 or air gun 23 ).
[0037] Referring now to FIG. 4A , a launcher 10 is shown in greater detail to include a nock 24 at its proximal end 16 and a flight stabilizer 26 that will stabilize the launch tube 12 during its flight. Other structural aspects of the launcher 10 are discussed with reference to the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 , and begin with an inner sleeve 30 that is fixedly attached to the launch tube 12 , inside the lumen 28 . Referring for the moment back to FIG. 1 , it will be seen that the inner sleeve 30 is positioned in the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 at a distance “d f ” from the distal end 14 of the launch tube 12 . FIG. 1 also indicates that the inner sleeve 30 is positioned at a distance “d a ” from the proximal end 16 of the launch tube 12 .
[0038] FIG. 4A also shows that a spring 32 is positioned in the lumen 28 immediately distal the inner sleeve 30 , and between the inner sleeve 30 and a plurality of pellets 34 . As intended for the launcher 10 , there may be six or more pellets 34 . The pellets 34 shown in the drawings are only exemplary. It will be appreciated that the distance “d f ” will depend primarily on the number of pellets 34 that are to be used. On the other hand, the distance “d a ” may vary considerably, depending on the type of man-powered weapon to be used. As envisioned for the present invention, the overall length of the launcher 10 (i.e. d f +d a ) may be as long as twenty nine or thirty inches.
[0039] Positioned distal to the pellets 34 is a retainer plug 36 that is preferably made of a light weight material such as Acrilonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS), Polycarbonate or Polysulfone. Structurally, the retainer plug 36 is formed with a proximal ring 38 and a distal ring 40 , with a mid-section 42 formed therebetween. Importantly, both the proximal ring 38 and the distal ring 40 are dimensioned for movement within the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 . Further, it is important that the mid-section 42 be formed with a decreasing taper in the proximal direction from the distal ring 40 to the proximal ring 38 .
[0040] As perhaps best seen in FIG. 4B , the launch tube 12 is formed with one or more vents 44 . In FIG. 4B , the vents 44 a and 44 b are only exemplary, as there may be more vents 44 if desired. Both FIGS. 4A and 4B , however, show that each vent 44 interacts with a respective latch sphere 46 . Again, like the vents 44 a and 44 b , the latch spheres 46 a and 46 b are only exemplary. Despite the number of vents 44 and latch spheres 46 that may be used, it is to be appreciated that each latch sphere 46 interacts individually with the retainer plug 36 and with its respective vent 44 . Importantly, the purpose of these interactions is to hold the pellets 34 in the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 prior to a launch. Specifically, FIG. 4A shows that prior to a launch, each of the latch spheres 46 is trapped (wedged) between the proximal ring 38 of the retainer plug 36 and the forward (distal) edge of a vent 44 . This structural interaction changes dramatically with a launch of the launch tube 12 .
[0041] As a launch tube 12 is launched from a crossbow 20 , or bow 22 , in the direction of arrow 47 (see FIG. 4B ) an acceleration force is generated that will cause the retainer plug 36 and the plurality of pellets 34 to move in a proximal direction inside the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 . With this movement, several things happen. For one, the spring 32 is further compressed. For another, as the retainer plug 36 moves in the proximal direction, the proximal ring 38 of retainer plug 36 disengages from the latch spheres 46 . As this happens, the tapered mid-section 42 of the retainer plug 36 ejects the latch spheres 46 away from the launch tube 12 , through their respective vents 44 . A consequence of this is that both the retainer plug 36 and the pellets 34 are no longer confined in the lumen 28 of the launch tube 12 .
[0042] Shortly after launch, in accordance with well known principles, the initial acceleration force on the launch tube 12 subsides. With this diminution of the acceleration force, the potential energy in the compressed spring 32 is released to propel the retainer plug 36 and pellets 34 from the launch tube 12 . As shown in FIG. 4C , after being propelled from the launch tube 12 by the spring 32 , the retainer plug 36 separates and tumbles away from the pellets 34 . To assist in this separation and tumbling behavior, the distal face 48 of retainer plug 36 can be formed with a recessed (concave) surface. In any event, the desired result is that the plurality of pellets 34 will then follow a planned trajectory toward a target (not shown), for an intended on-target affect. An important consideration here is that the pellets 34 need to also achieve a degree of separation from each other for the creation of the desired on-target shot group.
[0043] For an alternate embodiment of the launcher 10 , as shown in FIG. 5 , a plurality of spacers 50 can be employed to help with the separation of pellets 34 after launch. The spacers 50 a and 50 b shown in FIG. 5 are exemplary. If used, the spacers 50 will typically be positioned to straddle each pellet 34 in a manner such as is shown for the spacers 50 a and 50 b . Preferably, the spacers 50 will be made of a light weight material such as felt or paper. In another alternate embodiment of the launcher 10 for this same purpose, as shown in FIG. 6 , a plurality of magnets 52 can be employed. In this embodiment, a pair of magnets (e.g. magnets 52 a and 52 b ) will straddle a pair of pellets (e.g. pellets 34 a and 34 b ). For best effect, within this structure, the opposed sides of the magnets 52 a and 52 b will have the same polarity. Thus, the magnets 52 (magnets 52 a and 52 b are exemplary) will add a repelling force on the pellets 34 a and 34 b that will influence their separation in flight.
[0044] An alternate embodiment for the structure of a latch to be used with the present invention is shown in FIGS. 7A & 7B . In FIG. 7A it will be seen that a launch tube 54 has a proximal end 56 and a distal end 58 , with a pair of opposed parallel slots 60 a and 60 b that extends in a proximal direction from the distal end 58 . Further, with reference to the slot 60 a in FIG. 7A , it is seen that the end of the slot 60 a is formed with a detent 62 , and an angled edge 64 extends in a proximal direction therefrom. FIG. 7A also shows a cylindrical shaped retainer plug 66 that includes a pin 68 which extends outwardly from the plug 66 . Actually, there is a pair of opposed pins 68 (one is not shown). With reference to FIG. 7B , it will be appreciated that during an assembly of the retainer plug 66 with the launch tube 54 , the pin(s) 68 is(are) inserted into the respective slots 60 a and 60 b . They are advanced through the slots 60 a and 60 b , and the retainer plug 66 is then rotated to seat the pin(s) 68 against the detent(s) 62 .
[0045] In an operation of the launch tube 54 , the acceleration force that initially results during a launch of the launch tube 54 will cause the retainer plug 66 to move in a rearward (proximal) direction relative to the launch tube 54 . This relative movement of the retainer plug 66 then causes the pin 68 to follow the angled edge 64 . The result here is that the retainer plug 66 is rotated to realign the pin 68 with the slot 60 a , and to thereby allow for a free distal (forward) movement of the retainer plug 66 out of the launch tube 54 when the acceleration force subsides. An important aspect of this particular embodiment of a latching action for the present invention is that the pin(s) 68 do not extend beyond the outer surface 70 of the launch tube 54 . This is so in order to allow for an assembled launch tube 54 to be positioned in a hollow launch tube (not shown), such as in the barrel of an air gun 23 . Additionally, it will be appreciated by the skilled artisan that the inside surface 72 of the barrel 25 of air gun 23 can be rifled to assist in the proper rotation and alignment of the retainer plug 66 during an operation of this embodiment of the present invention.
[0046] FIG. 8A shows an alternate configuration for components inside the launch tube 12 / 54 . One component of interest is the inner sleeve 74 . As shown, the inner sleeve 74 is positioned inside the launch tube 12 / 54 , and is preferably located at or near the proximal end 56 . Further, the inner sleeve 74 includes an abutment 76 that establishes a hollow 78 for the inner sleeve 74 . Within this structure, the spring 32 is positioned between the abutment 76 and a washer 80 . Importantly, when so positioned, a portion of the spring 32 will be inside the hollow 78 . Thus, as shown in FIG. 8B , when the spring 32 is compressed by a force of acceleration (represented by arrow 82 in FIG. 8B ), compression of the spring 32 is controlled. Specifically, during a launch of the launch tube 12 / 54 , the compression of spring 32 will be limited by the constraints imposed on it by dimensions of the hollow 78 inside the inner sleeve 74 . FIGS. 8A and 8B also indicate that the abutment 76 of the inner sleeve 74 can be formed with an opening 84 . Opening 84 , however, is optional. Indeed, when the launch tube 54 is to be used with an air gun (not shown), it is preferable that the opening 84 be closed.
[0047] Still referring to FIGS. 8A and 8B , an arrangement for stacking pellets 34 (e.g. pellets 34 c - f ) within a launch tube 12 / 54 is shown. In detail, by cross referencing FIG. 8B with FIG. 8C , a stacking arrangement for a relatively large number of the pellets 34 (e.g. thirty or more pellets 34 ) is shown. In particular, this stacking arrangement is possible when each of the pellets 34 has a diameter “d r ” that is slightly less than half the inner diameter “d 1 ” of the launch tube 12 / 54 (see FIG. 8C ). For purposes of disclosure, specific reference is made to pellets 34 c , 34 d , 34 e and 34 f (only pellets 34 c , 34 d and 34 f are shown in FIG. 8B ). With FIGS. 8B and 8C , it will be appreciated that the pellets 34 c and 34 e are essentially positioned inside the launch tube 12 / 54 , side-by-side. Likewise, the pellets 34 d and 34 f are also side-by-side. In order to easily achieve this stacking configuration during loading, the pellets 34 c - f can be introduced into the launcher tube 12 / 54 in pairs (e.g. pellets 34 d and 34 f together, and then pellets 34 c and 34 e ).
[0048] FIG. 8D shows a two-part alternative structure for the inner sleeve 74 that was disclosed above and is shown in FIG. 8A . Specifically, for this embodiment, a distal inner sleeve 74 ′ and associated abutment 76 ′ are shown in axial alignment with the inner sleeve 74 and its abutment 76 . For both embodiments, the object is to control compression of the spring 32 (compare FIG. 8E with FIG. 8B ).
[0049] Referring now to FIGS. 9A and 9B , yet another embodiment of a latching mechanism for the launcher 10 of the present invention is shown. In this embodiment, the launch tube 12 / 54 is formed with at least one lateral opening 86 , and a clip 88 is mounted on a cylindrical shaped retainer plug 90 . When the retainer plug 90 and its clip 88 are positioned in the lumen 28 of a launch tube 12 / 54 , and the clip 88 is received in the lateral opening 86 of the launch tube 12 (see FIG. 9A ), the clip 88 will hold the retainer plug 90 stationary in the launch tube 12 / 54 . Specifically, this will be in response to forces imposed on the retainer plug 90 by a spring 32 (not shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B ). Importantly, the clip 88 will not extend beyond the lateral opening 86 . As with the other latching embodiments for the present invention, the retainer plug 90 is acceleration activated. Thus, in response to the acceleration force of a launch, the retainer plug 90 moves in a proximal (rearward) direction. This then frees the clip 88 from the lateral opening 86 for subsequent free travel of the retainer plug 90 through the launch tube 12 / 54 along with the propulsion of pellets 34 a (et. seq.) from the launch tube 12 / 54 .
[0050] In yet another configuration for components inside the launch tube 12 / 54 , a spring guide 92 is employed to control and restrict compression of the spring 32 . As shown in FIG. 10 , the spring guide 92 includes a base 94 and an extension 96 which projects from the base 94 . A through hole 98 is formed in the spring guide 92 , and this through hole 98 extends through both the base 94 and the extension 96 . Preferably, the spring guide 92 is made of a rigid, light-weight material such as polycarbonate.
[0051] FIGS. 11A and 11B show how a spring guide 92 is employed by the present invention. First, in FIG. 11A , it will be seen that a pair of spring guides 92 are used with the spring 32 . Specifically, there is a distal spring guide 92 a and a proximal spring guide 92 b that are respectively engaged with opposite ends of the spring 32 . As shown in FIG. 11A , both of the spring guides 92 a and 92 b are positioned in the launch tube 12 / 54 with their respective extensions 96 inserted into the center space of spring 32 . Further, the base 94 of distal spring guide 92 a is positioned against the pellet(s) 34 , and the base 94 of proximal spring guide 92 b is positioned against the abutment 76 at the proximal end 56 of the launch tube 12 / 54 . As shown in FIG. 11A , the configuration of the spring 32 with the spring guides 92 a and 92 b is prior to a launch. After launch, the spring 32 is compressed substantially as shown in FIG. 11B by the acceleration force of the launch. Importantly, this compression of spring 32 is limited during an acceleration by the contact that occurs between the extension 96 of spring guide 92 a and the extension 96 of spring guide 92 b . A consequence of this is that the spring guides 92 a and 92 b help prevent a fouling of the spring 32 during its operation.
[0052] While the particular Multi-Pellet Launcher as herein shown and disclosed in detail is fully capable of obtaining the objects and providing the advantages herein before stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred embodiments of the invention and that no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown other than as described in the appended claims.
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A system and method for propelling pellets from a launch tube includes a retainer plug for holding the pellets inside the launch tube between the retainer plug and a compressed spring. A latch is established on the launch tube to restrain forward movement of the retainer ring in response to the bias force imposed by the compressed spring. In operation, the launch tube is propelled in a forward direction by a man-powered weapon. This creates an acceleration force on the tube that moves the retainer plug and pellets in a rearward direction relative to the launch tube to further compress the spring and release the latch from the retainer plug. After the initial acceleration has subsided, force from the compressed spring provides a forward propulsion of the retainer plug and the plurality of pellets from the launch tube for travel of the pellets toward an intended target.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/430,753 filed on Jan. 7, 2011, entitled “Movnplay.”
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to playground architecture and methods of construction. More specifically, the present invention pertains to a modular and reconfigurable playground support structure having a plurality of support locations to position various structures and playground modules into a grid format. The associated method entails providing a playground construction grid using predefined and known support locations for contractors or assemblers to plan a playground layout. The method further includes providing a modular and modifiable playground layout using a grid foundation for users to modify, rearrange or replace playground modules for short-term or long-term playground parks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Construction of permanent structures typically involves creation of in-ground foundations that provide footings for each load bearing member of the structure being erected. This involves careful planning and detailed design of the foundation layout, and breaking ground to locate footings at specific points. For playground parks, this generally entails the permanent placement of swing sets, slides and other playground structures in a given location, wherein the footings of these structures are cemented or otherwise secured in a static position within the ground for permanent placement. Once installed, the supports of the structures cannot be moved unless dug up from their foundation and moved through excavation. This type of construction and later excavation involves heavy equipment, labor intensive activities and considerable time and effort in the planning stage and the construction stage of the project. The assemblies are incapable of adapting to changing attitudes and preferences of those users, wherein modification of the playground would consume considerable time and expense.
While this method of construction is effective for one-off and long-term playground structures, there exists a need in the art for a more flexible playground architecture and one that allows playground modules to be replaceable and reconfigurable to meet the changing needs of a user. The present invention pertains to a new type of playground structure and means of construction. Specifically, the present invention provides a grid foundation having a plurality of support locations for playground structural footings, wherein the footings may be aligned with the support locations in any orientation to create a unique layout and one that is modifiable without laborious excavation. Modules can be positioned in neighboring footings to create an entire playground assembly of modules positioned as desired by the user. The support locations are universal, as well as the playground module footings, to allow any such structure to be positioned anywhere on the foundation in a predictable and easily designed architecture. The support locations provide fungible connectivity that allows the modules to be repositioned, reconfigured and modular with respect to the foundation to adapt to a specific user or community need. The foundation is provided in two forms: a short-term and long-term form, wherein the elements of the foundation grid support locations differ between the type of construction desired. Short-term playground parks that are assembled on-demand, as well as permanent playground locations for long-term use are both accommodated by the present invention and method.
Devices have been disclosed in the prior art for modular construction assemblies, but none describe a modular playground architecture or means of construction having the same elements or fulfilling the same need in the art as the present invention provides. The devices in the art provide building systems and playground assemblies that contain modular features. While providing a novel means to fulfill a respective requirement, the disclosed prior art fails to address the need for providing a temporary or long-term playground solution that affords particular modularity and reconfigurability that a community or user may demand, wherein the playground itself can be updated and rearranged to meet a given need.
One such device is U.S. Pat. No. 3,955,328 to Lindsay, which discloses a modular building system comprising connectable modules that provides an expandable internal habitation. Individual rooms and extra space is provided by each added module, which are interconnected with one another, providing a plurality of configurable floor plan arrangements. The Lindsay device, while describing a modular form of architecture, does not disclose a modular playground foundation for which to place structures and playground devices throughout using a removable post and sleeve configuration. The Lindsay device is more adapted to providing a modular living structure by way of interconnected habitats that provide shelter from the environment.
Further disclosed is U.S. Pat. No. 3,561,757 to Schillig, describing a modular playground block system, wherein each block is hingedly connected to another block module. The hinges allow the modules to rotate with respect to one another and reposition according to a user's desire. Through the modules are open spaces that create passageways or ports, which are defined by the position of the blocks with respect to one another in a given configuration. While providing a novel block playground system, the Schillig device is limited to the block module geometry, the number and position of each block. The blocks are repositionable with respect to one another, but fail to provide a means to completely reconfiguration a playground assembly or easily move and replace components.
The cited patents represents the most relevant devices currently disclosed in the prior art. It is submitted that the present invention provides a new and novel means of providing a modular playground assembly, wherein the position of each playground module is repositionable, replaceable and can be configured to a specific community's or user's preferences. A plurality of playground modules may be organized and positioned to create an entire park or playground layout. Playground architectures and methods of constructing similar parks fail to contemplate the disclosed foundation. The present invention is therefore substantially divergent in design elements from the prior art, consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing playground structures, foundations and methods of construction. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of playground structures and methods of construction now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new playground structure, foundation and method of construction wherein the same can be utilized for providing convenience for the user when building and configuring a playground layout to suit a given need in either a short-term or long-term period.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved playground foundation and method of construction that has all of the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a modular playground foundation wherein playground structures are modules that may be positioned in any desired configuration within a grid foundation layout and easily reconfigured or repositioned when desired.
Another object of the present invention is to provide playground foundation that employs a grid layout of playground module support locations for placement therein or thereon in a plurality of positions within the grid without modification to the foundation or the module itself.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a playground foundation that provides easy removal or placement of a playground module within the playground grid foundation, requiring little to no tools, no excavation and little time or expense.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a short-term playground foundation, wherein a playground layout may be setup and ready for use in a short amount of time and without permanent fixturing to allow the playground to be deconstructed after use without changing the environment or leaving any residual effects therein.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a long-term playground foundation, wherein a playground layout is setup in a permanent or semi-permanent grid foundation that allows playground structures to be repositioned and modular within the grid over an extended period of time.
A final object of the present invention is to provide a method of constructing or deploying a playground park using a predefined grid foundation, and one that may be temporarily deployed or permanently erected while still providing modular placement of playground structures thereon over its lifetime.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS
Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.
FIG. 1 shows an overhead perspective view of the grid foundation of the present invention in a long-term embodiment.
FIG. 2 shows an overhead perspective view of a configured and setup playground park utilizing the present grid foundation and method of construction.
FIG. 3 shows an overhead perspective view of the grid foundation of the present invention in a quickly deployable and short-term embodiment.
FIG. 4 shows a cross section view of an embodiment of the grid module securement means, wherein a post and sleeve is provided in a locked position.
FIG. 5 shows an expanded view of the support post inserted of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the playground foundation and method of erecting a playground park. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, the preferred embodiment will be discussed as used for providing a modular playground architecture and method of construction. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.
Referring now to FIG. 1 , there is shown an overhead perspective of an embodiment of the grid foundation of the present invention. In this embodiment, the foundation comprises a plurality of playground structure support locations 12 along a planar surface having a thickness 15 and an upper surface 11 . The grid foundation is a defined pattern or layout of support locations 12 for which to secure the structural supports of playground modules or similar structures that are desired for the given playground design. The grid of supports 12 is provided in an array to allow designers and users to choose a particular layout of playground modules to place along the foundation upper surface 11 . The modules engage the support locations 12 and are supported thereby, preventing movement and promoting a static support during use. The contemplated modules for use include any structure or device that may be found in a typical playground or recreation park, including swing sets, jungle gyms, slides, castle structures, gazebos, benches and other similar structures one may desire in such a setting. The common factor between the modules includes structural support members that are adapted to conform to the disclosed grid foundation, wherein their location along the foundation upper surface 11 is accommodated by a plurality of support locations 12 working in harmony to secure the structure in place. In this way, an infinite combination of modules may be utilized simultaneously on the grid with positions dependent upon user demands and preferences. The support locations comprise uniform construction and are provided in a uniform pattern such that the modules are positionable anywhere on the foundation grid.
In a particular embodiment, wherein permanent or near-permanent positioning of the playground is desired, the foundation comprises a structure having a thickness that accommodates a plurality of support sleeves in a grid pattern. The foundation itself may be buried within the ground or raised thereabove, while its upper surface may take several forms: including a planar surface, a segmented surface or an undulating surface for creating surface contours upon which the modules are placed. The sleeve embodiment of the support locations 12 accepts a post of a playground module, wherein the two are concentrically aligned. A plurality of sleeves is engaged by a single module to affect a static support arrangement. A locking means may further prevent unwanted removal of the posts from the sleeves until desired.
Referring now to FIGS. 2 & 5 there are shown an overhead perspective view of the disclosed grid foundation in a deployed position, wherein a plurality of playground modules 14 is positioned on the grid to form a working playground park. Each module comprises support posts or similar structural members 13 such that they engage and are supported by the grid support locations 12 . The position, orientation and type of module are decided by the user, and may take any form desirable for the occasion, location or interests of the users. If the playground is intended for use by the public, the type of module and design should be designed within ASTM and nationally recognized playground standards and guidelines. The grid provides a predictable palette for a playground designer or user to create a playground park having a plurality of modules and recreational structures. In a particular embodiment, and illustrated in FIG. 2 , the grid comprises a plurality of sleeve support locations 12 which act to secure the supports of each module. This embodiment contemplates utilization of a sleeve 18 for which the post 13 of a module support is positioned into to secure its location without permanent ‘breaking ground’ or utilization of excavation tools and permanent means of securement. The posts 13 slide into posts at a desired position, which place the module 14 in a particular quadrant of the grid and at a given orientation thereon with respect to the grid and the adjacent modules 14 . The sleeves 18 and associated support locations 12 may take any geometric form to create a concentric or aligned fit with the posts 13 , wherein minimal movement between the wall so the sleeves 18 and the post 13 is encountered while still permitting ease of insertion and removal. A locking means may further be provided to prevent unauthorized movement or tampering of the module supports, wherein the posts 13 are securely positioned in the sleeves 18 without fear of having a module repositioned or stolen when not under surveillance.
It is not desired to limit the physical size, shape and layout of the grid to a particular pattern or dimension, but rather to disclose a new means of constructing a playground using a grid layout that promotes modularity, ease of construction and ease of installation or removal. The grids are easy design constraints that allow the modules to be placed thereon with minimal expense, design work and with minimal tools. As shown in FIG. 2 , the grid is provided in a permanent configuration, wherein the foundation is sufficiently large and optionally buried into the soil for configuration of a long-term or permanent playground park. This embodiment allows for a permanent foundation to be established, while still providing a means to update the playground over time as needs change, modules are damaged or rearrangement is desired. The foundation remains the same, while the modules may be replaced or reconfigured as necessary. The support locations may be protected when not in a working position and engaged with a playground module, which allows the support location to be preserved over time for future use. This protection may come in the form of a protective cover over a sleeve 18 or similar covering that prevents dirt and debris from entering the sleeve and prevents the sleeve from creating a trip hazard. The entire foundation may further be covered with mulch or soil after placement of the first playground configuration, in order to conceal the grid foundation presence. The protective covers further prevent excessive moisture or rain from entering the sleeves 18 . This minimizes the possibility sleeve corrosion or the possibility of frozen water within the sleeves causing damage to the grid, which is a particular concern in colder climates. The sleeve covers are designed to accommodate different geographical regions with regard to these environmental concerns.
In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the grid foundation is provided in a temporary configuration for erecting and supporting a short-term playground park. In this embodiment, the grid foundation is deployable and is not permanently affixed to the ground surface, such that it may be utilized over a short time period to suit a desired function or activity wherein a plurality of playground structures and modules may be desired. Referring now to FIG. 3 , there is shown an example of the short-term embodiment of the playground grid foundation, wherein a deployable mat 20 or surface having a plurality of support locations 12 thereon is provided. The mat 20 may be unrolled or otherwise deployed over an area, wherein the playground module support locations 12 are provided and the grid can be temporarily secured to the ground or simply positioned thereon. Once deployed, the chosen modules may be placed thereon as desired for creating a temporary support structure and playground park. This particular embodiment is useful for parties and other events where playground structures and devices may be desired without wanting to permanently affix the structures or travel to a location where a playground park already exists.
In a particular embodiment of the short-term grid, the support locations 12 may comprise strong permanent magnet discs 22 that provide strong securement of the playground module support posts such that they are statically supported while in use. Further embodiments include upstanding sleeves or thickened mats 20 having imbedded sleeves therein. Any structural support deemed adequate by one skilled in the art of playground structure installation may be utilized as a structural support location along the grid, falling within the scope of the present disclosure and spirit thereof.
Referring now to FIG. 4 , there is shown an exemplary embodiment of an engagement between a support location and playground support structure. In this embodiment, the support structure 13 is locked or pinned 16 into a support location, wherein an upstanding post 17 is secured into the support location sleeve 18 . The upstanding post is secured into the sleeve 18 using a securement means, such as a fastener 19 or spring locking mechanism, whereafter the post 17 body protrudes above the grid foundation 21 and engages a playground module support 13 . The module support 13 is then pinned 16 or otherwise secured or locked into position on the post 17 such that the assembly is secured and prevented from unauthorized deconstruction or tampering. The elements of this embodiment are merely an illustrative example of such a connection between the disclosed playground modules and the disclosed grid foundation support locations. The supports of the modules may engage the grid without extra post elements, directly inserted into the sleeve, or a sleeve may be integrated into the grid via an upstanding sleeve adapted to secure the post of a module. It is desired to disclose a new and modular grid foundation for a playground that permits securement of playground modules in a lockable and secure manner, such that the modules can be arranged as desired, but are also securable to prevent theft or vandalism. It is further a desire to disclose the grid foundation in both a short-term and long-term embodiments, wherein the present device may be deployed for permanent use or for temporarily support of playground modules for enjoyment thereof and at the design of a user. The design of the support location may further provide for height adjustment of the individual module supports, wherein the module may be leveled and its height controlled by changing the position of a module post within the support location.
Associated with the disclosed grid foundation device is a new method of deploying and constructing a playground park, wherein the elements of the modular grid foundation are utilized. The method comprises utilizing a predefined foundation having a grid pattern of structural support locations to place a plurality of structures, playground modules or similar devices in a desired pattern to suit a particular need. The structures engage the grid support locations such that they are statically supported during use and optionally locked into position. The deployed foundation may be a short-term configuration or long-term configuration, wherein the structures are temporarily or permanently supported via the foundation. This method provides a new and convenient means of erecting a playground park or similar plurality of structures using predefined support locations. The support locations eliminate the need to excavate or fabricate a permanent or temporary support for the structure positioned on the foundation. This eliminates time, expense and ability with regard to designing and constructing the playground park.
The disclosed foundation method and apparatus is designed to provide several advancements in the art that facilitate the rapid deployment and ease of construction of playground parks or similar parks using the disclosed grid pattern. It is contemplated that a simple computer program may be utilized to aid users choosing specific modules to design an ideal park using the disclosed grid. The location of the modules may be altered, their orientation and the types of modules utilized. Companies and designers can utilize customer feedback by showing mock-ups of a proposed design, while a parent may utilize the program to allow a child to have input on the design process.
The modular nature of the present invention provides a means for a community or individual owner to make annual improvements or changes to the park with minimal expense or need for further construction. The elements of the park are modular and therefore easily replaceable or rearrangeable to lock in a lifetime of possibilities with regard the playground design and keep user's interest with regard to the park's use and design. The design of a park utilizing the permanently secured foundation embodiment may further be adapted for specific occasions or events, wherein the structures may be changed out or adapted to conform to a specific event, holiday or celebration, all without construction costs or breaking any new ground. The entire reconstruction and replacement is conducted within the existing grid foundation, wherein transportation of the modules or assembly at the foundation location is all that is required to erect the new structure and remove any existing structures.
One possible use that is envisioned through use of the present invention is to provide a revolving series of parks, wherein modules may be swapped between neighborhoods to share different modules and playground apparatuses. In this way, a new approach, “frugal newness” is provided, wherein parts are recycled and parks can be rejuvenated using existing materials. The modules may be repaired, cleaned and rotated between sites to provide new additions, capabilities and updated structures without the considerable cost that would otherwise be required for such a venture. The modules are adapted to be easily moved using no heavy machinery, wherein the modules may be separated from the grid with simple hand tools, deconstructed and moved or replaced. If desired, an entire module may be lifted from the grid in its working state using a jack or lift mechanism and repositioned.
Overall, the present invention provides a new and improved means of constructing a playground structure. The present apparatus and method provides for reduced construction costs, allows for a modular setup of a plurality of modules and can accommodate short-term and long-term configurations. It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts and steps of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.
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A modular grid structure and method of construction for a playground, wherein the position of playground modules is easily established and rearranged within a array of securement locations and in relation to surrounding modules. The grid comprises a permanent or temporary foundation having a plurality of playground module support locations aligned in a grid or array, such that the playground may be constructed by placing the support posts of the module in connection with the foundation support locations. The disclosed support locations comprise embodiments that permanently secure the posts of a playground module using a pin-locking support hole, or alternatively a temporarily support means to movement for a shorter period while allowing swift setup and breakdown of the entire assembly, such as for temporary playgrounds.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/788,091 filed on May 26, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,497,534 which claims priority of Provisional U.S. Patent Application Nos. 61/235,146 and 61/235,153, both filed on Aug. 19, 2009, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a chip package, and in particular, to a wafer-level chip package and fabrication method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
A wafer level packaging technique for chip packaging has been developed. A wafer level package is first completed and then a dicing step is performed to form separated chip packages. A redistribution pattern in a chip package is mainly designed to be in direct contact with metal pads. Thus, the process for forming the redistribution pattern must correspond with the design of the metal pads.
It is desired to have a novel chip package and a fabrication method thereof to address the above issues.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the invention, a chip package is provided. An exemplary chip package comprises: a semiconductor substrate having opposite first and second surfaces, at least one bond pad region, and at least one device region; a plurality of conductive pad structures disposed on the bond pad region at the first surface of the semiconductor substrate; a plurality of heavily doped regions isolated from one another, underlying and electrically connected to the conductive pad structures; and a plurality of conductive bumps underlying the heavily doped regions and electrically connected to the conductive pad structures through the heavily doped regions.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method for fabricating a chip package is provided. An exemplary method comprises: providing a semiconductor wafer having opposite first and second surfaces, wherein the semiconductor wafer comprises at least one bond pad region, at least one device region, and a plurality of conductive pad structures on the first surface and disposed on the bond pad region; forming a plurality of heavily doped regions underlying the conductive pad structures, wherein the heavily-doped regions are isolated from one another and electrically connected to the conductive pad structures; and forming a plurality of conductive bumps underlying the heavily-doped regions, wherein the conductive bumps are electrically connected to the conductive pad structures through the heavily doped regions.
A detailed description is given in the following embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIGS. 1-2 are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a semiconductor chip according to an embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 3A-3G are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a carrier wafer according to another embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 4-5 are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a semiconductor chip according to another embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 6A-6B are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a semiconductor chip according to yet another embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 7A-7D are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a semiconductor chip according to a further embodiment of the invention; and
FIGS. 8A-8D are cross sections showing a method for fabricating a semiconductor chip according to a still further embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE 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 of the invention is best determined by reference to the appended claims.
In the drawings or the description, similar or same reference numerals are used to designate similar or same elements. In addition, shapes or thickness of elements shown in the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity or simplicity. Further, each element shown in the drawings will be described. It should be understood that any element not shown or described may be any kind of conventional element as known by those skilled in the art. In addition, the disclosed embodiment is merely a specific example for practicing the invention, without acting as a limitation upon its scope.
A CMOS image sensor device package is used as an example. However, a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) chip package or other semiconductor chips may also be suitable for use. That is, it should be appreciated that the chip package of the embodiments of the invention may be applied to electronic components with active or passive devices, or digital or analog circuits, such as opto electronic devices, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), micro fluidic systems, and physical sensors for detecting heat, light, or pressure. Particularly, a wafer scale package (WSP) process may be applied to package semiconductor chips, such as image sensor devices, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), solar cells, RF circuits, accelerators, gyroscopes, micro actuators, surface acoustic wave devices, pressure sensors, or ink printer heads.
The wafer scale package process mentioned above mainly means that after the package process is accomplished during the wafer stage, the wafer with chips is cut to obtain separate independent packages. However, in a specific embodiment, separate independent chips may be redistributed overlying a supporting wafer and then be packaged, which may also be referred to as a wafer scale package process. In addition, the above mentioned wafer scale package process may also be adapted to form chip packages of multi-layer integrated circuit devices by stacking a plurality of wafers having integrated circuits.
According to a feature of the invention, the electrical connections between conductive pad structures and conductive bumps are achieved by the use of heavily doped regions. As such, it is not necessary for a redistribution pattern to be in direct contact with conductive pad structures. In one embodiment, the heavily doped regions are disposed in the semiconductor substrate underlying the conductive pad structures. In another embodiment, the heavily doped regions are disposed in a carrier substrate bonded to the semiconductor substrate.
Referring to FIGS. 1-2 , cross-sectional views illustrating the steps for forming a chip package on a semiconductor wafer according to an embodiment of the invention are shown. In this embodiment, the heavily doped regions are disposed in the semiconductor substrate underlying the conductive pad structures. As shown in FIGS. 1-2 , a semiconductor wafer 300 is first provided, which is typically a silicon wafer. The semiconductor wafer includes an insulating layer 301 , which may be formed by semiconductor processing steps such as a thermal oxidation or chemical vapor deposition step. In one embodiment, a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate may be used. Alternatively, the semiconductor wafer may be formed by combing two wafers together, using a wafer bonding process, wherein one of the wafers is provided with an insulating layer. The semiconductor wafer are defined with a plurality of device regions 100 A surrounded by peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B. Thereafter, insulating walls 305 connecting to the insulating layer 301 are formed in the semiconductor wafer 300 to isolate a plurality of regions as heavily doped regions 300 B. A semiconductor device 302 such as an image sensor device or MEMS is fabricated in the device region 100 A. Overlying the semiconductor wafer 300 and the semiconductor device 302 is an intermetal dielectric (IMD) layer 303 , which is typically a low-k dielectric such as porous oxide. A plurality of conductive pad structures 304 are fabricated in the IMD layer 303 on the peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B. The insulating walls and the insulating layer may be formed of an insulating material such as silicon oxide, or an insulation space such as air gap or vacuum. The conductive pad structures 304 are preferably made of materials such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), or other suitable metals. It should be noted that the semiconductor wafer comprises a plurality of heavily doped region 300 B in the peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B, wherein the heavily doped regions 300 B are isolated by insulating walls 305 and electrically connected to the conducive pad structures 304 . The heavily doped regions 300 B may be formed by doping ions (e.g., phosphors or arsenic ions) of a high concentration (e.g., 1E14-6E15 atoms/cm 2 ) by, for example, diffusion or ion implantation processes, to form a conductive path. In an embodiment, one heavily doped region corresponds to one conductive pad structure. However, when a plurality of conductive pad structures are used as a common output, one heavily doped region may correspond to a plurality of conductive pad structures at the same time.
In addition, the semiconductor wafer 300 , produced by wafer foundries, may be covered with a chip passivation layer 306 . Meanwhile, in order to electrically connect the devices in the chip to external circuits, the chip passivation layer 306 may be defined in advance by wafer foundries to form a plurality of openings 306 h exposing the conductive pad structures 304 .
Next, as shown in FIG. 3A , a packaging layer 500 is bonded to the semiconductor wafer. For simplicity, only the conductive pad structures 304 , the insulating walls 305 , and the insulating layer 301 are shown in the semiconductor wafer 300 . The packaging layer 500 may be, for example, a transparent substrate such as glass, another blank silicon wafer, or another wafer having integrated circuits. In one embodiment, a spacer layer 310 is used to separate the packaging layer 500 and the semiconductor substrate such that a cavity 316 surrounded by the spacer layer 310 is formed. The spacer layer 310 may be a sealant resin or a photosensitive insulating material, such as epoxy, solder mask, and so on. In addition, the spacer layer 310 may be formed on the semiconductor wafer 300 , and then bonded with the opposing packaging layer 500 using an adhesion layer. On the other hand, the spacer layer 310 may also be formed on the packaging layer 500 , and then bonded with an opposing semiconductor substrate 300 using an adhesion layer.
Referring to FIG. 3B , using the packaging layer 500 as a supporting substrate, the backside 300 a of the semiconductor wafer is etched by, for example, an anisotropic etch process, to remove portions of the semiconductor wafer 300 and the insulating layer 301 to form openings 300 h therethrough to expose the heavily doped regions 300 B. It should be noted that each of the openings 300 h corresponds to the heavily doped regions 300 B in the peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B isolated by the insulating walls 305 .
As shown in FIG. 3C , an insulating layer 320 which exposes the heavily doped regions 300 B is formed in the openings 300 h . The insulating layer 320 may be a silicon oxide layer formed by thermal oxidation or plasma chemical vapor deposition processes. For example, the insulating layer 320 may be formed in the openings 300 h and extend to the backside 300 a of the semiconductor wafer 300 , and then the portion of the insulating layer at the bottom of the openings 300 h would be removed by conventional photolithography and etching processes to expose the heavily doped regions 300 B.
Next, as shown in FIG. 3D , a conductive pattern 330 is formed in the openings 300 h . In this embodiment, the conductive pattern serves as a redistribution pattern and therefore, the conductive pattern is formed on the sidewalls of the openings 300 h and further extended to the bottom surface 300 a of the semiconductor wafer 300 a and the heavily doped regions 300 B. The redistribution pattern 330 may be formed by physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, electroplating, and eletroless plating processes, and so on. The redistribution pattern 330 may be formed of metals such as copper, aluminum, gold, or combinations thereof. Alternatively, the redistribution pattern 330 may be formed of conductive oxides such as indium tin oxide (ITO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, a conductive layer is conformally formed on the entire semiconductor wafer, and then patterned to form the redistribution pattern as shown in FIG. 3D .
Thereafter, referring to FIG. 3E , the formation of a passivation layer 340 is shown. In an embodiment of the invention, the passivation layer 340 may, for example, be a solder mask. A solder mask material may be applied overlying the backside 300 a of the semiconductor wafer to form the passivation layer 340 . Then, the passivation layer 340 is patterned to form a plurality of terminal contact openings, exposing portions of the redistribution pattern 330 . Then, an under bump metallurgy (UBM) and a conductive bump 350 are formed at the terminal contact openings. For example, the UBM may be formed of a conductive material such as a metal or metal alloy, and may be nickel, silver, aluminum, cooper, or alloys thereof. Alternatively, the UBM may be a doped polysilicon, single crystalline silicon, or conducting glass layer. In addition, a refractory metal material such as titanium, molybdenum, chromium, or titanium-tungsten layer may be used alone or in combination with other metal layers. In a specific embodiment, a nickel/gold layer may be partially or entirely formed overlying a surface of the metal layer. Through the redistribution pattern 330 , the conductive bumps 350 may be electrically connected to the heavily doped regions 300 B instead of the conductive pad structures 304 . In an embodiment of the invention, the conductive bump 350 is used to transmit input/output (I/O), ground, or power signals of the device 302 . Subsequently, the semiconductor wafer is diced along the scribe line SC on the peripheral bonding pad region, to thereby form a plurality of chip packages.
The heavily doped regions 300 B in the peripheral bonding pad regions are isolated by the insulating walls 305 . Therefore, the redistribution pattern 330 can electrically connect to the heavily doped regions 300 B, and it is not necessary for the redistribution pattern to be in direct contact with the conductive pad structures 304 . In addition, the heavily doped regions 300 B in the peripheral bonding pad regions may have an area that is wider than that of the conductive pad structures 304 such that the contact openings 300 h have a larger process window for alignment.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3F , the depth of the opening 300 h may penetrate beyond the insulating layer 301 such that the redistribution pattern 330 may extend into the heavily doped regions 300 B, or even reach the conductive pad structures 304 to thereby increase the contact area (as shown in FIG. 3G . In other words, the insulating layer 301 may be at the bottom of the openings 300 h or below the openings.
Referring to FIGS. 4-5 , cross-sectional views illustrating the steps for forming a chip package on a semiconductor wafer according to another embodiment of the invention are shown. In this embodiment, the heavily doped regions are disposed in a carrier substrate. As shown in FIGS. 4-5 , a semiconductor wafer 300 is first provided, which is typically a silicon wafer. The semiconductor wafer includes an upper surface 300 a and a bottom surface 300 b . In addition, a plurality of scribe line regions and substrates corresponding to chips are defined in the semiconductor wafer, wherein each of the chips includes at least one device region 100 A surrounded by a peripheral bonding pad region 100 B. Thereafter, a semiconductor device 302 such as an image sensor device or MEMS is fabricated on the upper surface 300 a in the device region 100 A. Overlying the semiconductor wafer 300 and the semiconductor device 302 is an intermetal dielectric (IMD) layer 303 , which is typically a low-k dielectric such as porous oxide. A plurality of conductive pad structures 304 are fabricated in the IMD layer 303 on the peripheral bonding pad region 100 B. The conductive pad structures 304 are preferably made of materials such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), or other suitable metals.
In addition, the semiconductor wafer 300 , produced by wafer foundries, may be covered with a chip passivation layer 306 . Meanwhile, in order to electrically connect the devices in the chip to external circuits, the chip passivation layer 306 may be defined in advance by wafer foundries to form a plurality of openings 306 h exposing the conductive pad structures 304 .
Next, as shown in FIG. 6A , a semiconductor wafer 600 such as a blank silicon wafer or a silicon wafer with integrated circuits is provided as a carrier substrate, which includes an upper surface 600 a and a bottom surface 600 b . A plurality of openings 600 h are formed by removing portions of the semiconductor wafer 600 from the upper surface 600 a . The openings 600 h are then filled with insulating layers 610 , for example, formed of polymer materials such as polyimide. Alternatively, an insulating layer such as silicon oxide may be formed by semiconductor processing steps. For example, a silicon oxide layer is blanketly formed by thermal oxidation or plasma chemical vapor deposition processes, and thereafter, the oxide layer on the upper surface 600 a and/or bottom surface 600 b of the silicon wafer 600 may be removed. It should be noted that the silicon wafer 600 is a heavily doped substrate, which may be formed by doping ions (e.g., phosphors or arsenic ions) of a high concentration (e.g., 1E14-6E15 atoms/cm2) by, for example, diffusion or ion implantation processes, to form a conductive path. In an embodiment, one heavily doped region corresponds to one conductive pad structure. However, when a plurality of conductive pad structures are used as a common output, one heavily doped region may correspond to a plurality of conductive pad structures at the same time.
Referring to FIG. 7A , the semiconductor substrate 300 with a semiconductor device is bonded to the carrier substrate 600 . For example, the semiconductor substrate 300 is flipped upside down with its upper surface 300 a bonded to the upper surface 600 a of the carrier substrate 600 such that the semiconductor device 302 is away from the carrier substrate 600 , while the conductive pad structures 304 are facing and bonded to the upper surface 600 a of the carrier substrate 600 . For simplicity, only the conductive pad structures 304 , the semiconductor device 302 , and the IMD layer 303 are shown in the semiconductor substrate 300 .
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7B , the semiconductor substrate 300 is thinned from the bottom surface 300 b thereof (as indicated by the dash lines) to a suitable thickness by, for example, etching, milling, grinding, or polishing processes. For example, when the semiconductor device is an image sensor, the thinned silicon substrate 300 should be thin enough to permit a sufficient amount of light to pass therethrough for the image sensor 302 to sense incident light and generate signals. In this embodiment, the bottom surface 300 b of the semiconductor substrate 300 is used as a light incident surface.
After completion of the thinning process, a packaging layer 500 is bonded to the bottom surface 300 b of the semiconductor wafer 300 , as shown in FIG. 7C . The packaging layer may be for example, a transparent substrate such as glass, another blank silicon wafer, or another wafer having integrated circuits. In one embodiment, a spacer layer 310 is used to separate the packaging layer 500 and the semiconductor substrate such that a cavity 316 surrounded by the spacer layer 310 is formed. The spacer layer 310 may be a sealant resin or a photosensitive insulating material, such as epoxy, solder mask, and so on. In addition, the spacer layer 310 may be formed on the bottom surface 300 b of the silicon substrate 300 , and then bonded with the opposing packaging layer 500 using an adhesion layer. On the other hand, the spacer layer 310 may also be formed on the packaging layer 500 , and then bonded with an opposing bottom surface 300 b of the silicon substrate 300 using an adhesion layer.
FIG. 7D illustrates an optional process, wherein the carrier substrate is thinned from the bottom surface 600 b thereof, using the packaging layer 500 as a supporting substrate. For example, the backside 600 b of the carrier substrate is polished by a chemical mechanical polishing process to expose surfaces of the insulating layers 610 such that the insulating layers constitute an insulating wall 610 to isolate the heavily doped regions 600 B in the carrier substrate 600 which correspond to the peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B.
Thereafter, a passivation layer 640 is formed. In an embodiment of the invention, the passivation layer 640 may, for example, be a solder mask. A solder mask material may be applied overlying the bottom surface 600 b of the carrier substrate 600 b to form the passivation layer 640 . Then, the passivation layer 640 is patterned to form a plurality of contact openings, exposing portions of the bottom surface 600 b of the carrier substrate. Then, an under bump metallurgy (UBM) and a conductive bump 350 are formed at the contact openings. For example, the UBM may be formed of a conductive material such as a metal or metal alloy, and may be nickel, silver, aluminum, cooper, or alloys thereof. Alternatively, the UBM may be a doped polysilicon, single crystalline silicon, or conducting glass layer. In addition, a refractory metal material such as titanium, molybdenum, chromium, or titanium-tungsten layer may be used alone or in combination with other metal layers. In a specific embodiment, a redistribution pattern can be used to redistribute the position of the conductive bump 650 .
In an embodiment of the invention, the conductive bump 650 is used to transmit input/output (I/O), ground, or power signals of the device 302 . Subsequently, the semiconductor wafer is diced along the scribe line SC on the peripheral bonding pad region, to thereby form a plurality of chip packages.
In addition, the heavily doped regions 600 B in the carrier substrate 600 which correspond to the peripheral bonding pad region are isolated by the insulating wall 610 . Therefore, the conductive bumps 650 can electrically connect to the heavily doped regions 600 B by direct contact or by the redistribution pattern. It is not necessary for the conductive bumps 650 to be in direct contact with the conductive pad structures 304 . In addition, the heavily doped regions 600 B in the carrier substrate 600 which correspond to the peripheral bonding pad regions may have an area that is wider than that of the conductive pad structures such that the contact openings have a larger process window for alignment.
Referring to FIGS. 8A-8D , cross-sectional views showing the steps for forming a chip package according to another embodiment of the invention are shown, wherein a primary difference with the previous embodiment is that the carrier substrate 600 is a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate which includes an insulating layer 630 . Insulating walls 610 extending to the insulating layer 630 are formed in the carrier substrate 600 to isolate the heavily doped regions 600 B which correspond to the peripheral bonding pad regions 100 B. The insulating walls and the insulating layer may be formed of silicon oxide. The heavily doped regions 600 B may be formed by an ion implantation process, which may be performed before or after the formation of the insulating walls 610 . Next, as shown in FIG. 8B , a portion of thickness of the semiconductor wafer 300 is removed from the backside 300 b thereof. Referring to FIGS. 8C-8D , the carrier substrate 600 is thinned after a packaging layer 500 is disposed thereon, and then a passivation layer 640 and conductive bumps 650 are formed in sequence. However, in another embodiment, the insulating layer 630 is not removed but left intact during the thinning process of the carrier substrate 600 . In other embodiments, the insulating layer 630 is formed by semiconductor processing steps such as a thermal oxidation and chemical vapor deposition step. Alternatively, the insulating layer is formed by combing two wafers together, using a wafer bonding process, wherein one of the wafers is provided with an insulating layer.
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.
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The invention provides a chip package and fabrication method thereof. In one embodiment, the chip package includes: a semiconductor substrate having opposite first and second surfaces, at least one bond pad region and at least one device region; a plurality of conductive pad structures disposed on the bond pad region at the first surface of the semiconductor substrate; a plurality of heavily doped regions isolated from one another, underlying and electrically connected to the conductive pad structures; and a plurality of conductive bumps underlying the heavily doped regions and electrically connected to the conductive pad structures through the heavily-doped regions.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention is directed to an improved fiber opening and blending device.
[0002] In order to speed production of opening blending and cleaning fibers, a trend has developed in which the cording machine is eliminated from the process in lieu of the faster fiber batt forming machines. It has been found with the fiber batt process and especially in the case where fibers of different textures, sizes or colors are blended that complete and even blending does not always occur. Techniques such as lapping can correct this shortcoming yet here again, this method is expensive and time consuming.
[0003] It is therefore an object of this invention to provide opening and blending apparatus and system in which both high production and complete and thorough opening and blending is achieved.
[0004] Another object of the invention is a mixing machine which provides for fiber treatment during opening and mixing with liquid or solid material.
[0005] Another object of the invention is an opening and mixing apparatus which utilizes a zig zag fiber motion through the opening area.
[0006] Another object of the invention is the provision of teeth for use with opening rolls which create air currents which flow in a zig zag pattern through the openings and blending machine.
[0007] Another object of the invention is the provision of an opening and blending arrangement which includes a heavy duty blending section and a fine blending section.
[0008] Another object of the invention is the provision of an array of opening and blending rolls with interacting teeth which both physically engage the fibers to move along an sinusoidal path and also create an air flow which assists the fibers along this path.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The instant invention is directed to a fiber opening and blending arrangement for use in thoroughly mixing fibers for formation of fiber batts. The arrangement includes a plurality of fiber handling stations including a feed station, a blending and opening station and a fine blending and opening station
[0010] The feed station may comprise a silo into which opened fibers are fed. The silo includes feed rolls which act to open, blend and feed the fibers onto an array of opening and blending rolls.
[0011] The feed station may comprise a plurality delivery belts arranged in association with compression rolls, mixing rolls and feed rolls which act to deliver fibers into the cabinet and onto top surfaces of the array of opening and blending rolls.
[0012] The array of opening and blending rolls are preferably arranged within a cabinet and along an incline. Each of the rolls rotates in the same direction. Each roll contains a plurality of parallel rows of teeth which act to both engage, open, blend and move the fibers through the cabinet but also to create an air flow within the cabinet.
[0013] The teeth are arranged in opposing positions between the rows. The positions along with the shape of the teeth cause the fibers and the air flow to move along a sinusoid path over the array of rolls.
[0014] The cabinet includes a chamber arranged over the array of rolls. The cabinet may also include feeds for the delivery of water, dye, and/or chemicals into the chamber for mixing with the fibers during the blending and opening operations.
[0015] The opening process within the cabinet carries the fibers first over and down the inclined array of opening and blending rolls. The fibers are fluffed or caused to tumble when passing through the chamber. As the fibers reach the end of the array of rolls, they are passed about the end opening and blending roll and then moved over the lower surface of each roll of the array of rolls again moving along a sinusoid path. Upon reaching the exit, the fibers are discharged into a fine fiber mixing machine.
[0016] A first fine mixing arrangement may include a receiving belt arranged perpendicular of the opening and blending rolls of the array of rolls. A second receiving belt is arranged above the first receiving belt. The fiber exit includes a compression roll which discharges the fibers for further processing. A mixing roll engages the fibers in progress to the compression area.
[0017] A second fine mixing arrangement includes a pair of opening rolls, a main roll and an inner chamber as described in co-pending application Ser. No. 10/244,185 filed on Sep. 16, 2002, the disclosure of which is incorporated herewith.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] [0018]FIG. 1 is a cutaway side view of an arrangement for opening and blending fibers in accordance with the invention.
[0019] [0019]FIG. 2 is a sectional side view of a portion of the fiber blending and opening arrangement shown in Fib. 1 .
[0020] [0020]FIG. 3 is a cutaway side view of a second arrangement for opening and blending fibers in accordance with the invention.
[0021] [0021]FIG. 4 a is a top view of the opening rolls shown in FIGS. 1 and 3.
[0022] [0022]FIG. 4 b is a side view of the opening rolls shown in FIG. 3.
[0023] [0023]FIG. 5 is an enlarged side sectional view of an opening roll shown in FIG. 4 b.
[0024] [0024]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a tooth used with the opening and blending rolls shown in FIG. 4 a.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] [0025]FIG. 1 shows a fiber opening, blending and cleaning arrangement 10 in accordance with the invention. The arrangement includes a silo 12 which receives opened fibers through delivery 14 . Preferably the fibers delivered to the silo comprise a blend of fibers which may include fibers, different materials, different sizes, and/or different textures.
[0026] The fibers are moved through the lower end of the silo and into an inclined opening and blending unit 18 by feed rolls 16 , 16 1 .
[0027] Unit 18 comprises a cabinet 20 which houses an inclined array of four opening and blending rolls 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 . Rolls 22 - 24 are arranged adjacent and parallel each other and are driven in the same direction as indicated by the arrows. A chamber 26 is formed above rolls 22 - 25 while an under casing 28 is arranged adjacent lower surfaces of rolls 22 - 25 .
[0028] Casing 28 encircles about ¼ the periphery of rolls 23 , 24 slightly more of the periphery of roll 25 and slightly less of the periphery of roll 22 . Casing 28 terminates at exit 30 which connects with a fine blending and opening apparatus.
[0029] Teeth 32 are arranged in parallel and spaced rows about the periphery of each of rolls 22 - 25 as shown in FIGS. 4 a , 4 b and 5 . Preferably there are six rows of teeth although the number could be less or more. Preferably each roll 22 - 25 is formed with a plurality of raised bars 34 . Bars 34 assist in opening and blending the fibers and also in creating air current within the cabinet. Teeth 32 are mounted in spaced positions on top of each bar 34 .
[0030] Each tooth 32 , as best shown in FIG. 6, includes a base 36 and a substantially L-shaped body 38 . Body 38 comprises a pair of planar portions 38 a and 38 b . Each planar portion extends vertically from base 36 and are connected along one edge to extend at about a 60° angle to each other. A tip 40 is formed atop each planar section.
[0031] Teeth 32 are secured along bars 34 with one planar section 38 a , 38 b being perpendicular the axis of the bar and the other planar section 38 a , 38 b being at about 60° to the opposite planar section. The teeth are arranged in like manner along each row 34 and in alternating manner between rows 34 .
[0032] Positioned beneath exit 30 is a fine mixing arrangement 42 which is best shown in FIG. 2. Mixing arrangement 42 includes a feed belt 44 arranged at 90° to the axis of roll 22 . A compression belt 46 is arranged over feed belt 44 and includes a compression roll 48 at its delivery end 50 . A mixing roll 52 is arranged across belt 44 and acts to blend and open the fibers delivered from exit 30 . A mixing roll 54 receives the fibers from delivery 50 and feeds them into a pneumatic carrier 56 .
[0033] Turning again to FIG. 1, there is seen a pair of deliveries 58 and 60 . Delivery 58 may supply a water spray into chamber 26 for mixing with the fibers during opening and cleaning. Delivery 60 is designed to deliver chemicals and/or dye into chamber 26 during the opening and blending process to blend with the fibers. The chemicals and/or dye is compounded and delivered through known means as illustrated at 62 .
[0034] In operation, fibers are delivered into silo 12 which in turn feeds them through feed 17 onto upper roll 22 of the array of opening and blending rolls 22 - 25 . Teeth 32 engage the fibers opening, blending and moving them over to roll 23 , which performs the same action moving the fibers onto roll 24 . Simultaneous with this action fibers are fluffed or tumbled through chamber 26 further opening and blending them.
[0035] Due to the configuration of teeth 32 and their arrangement on rolls 22 - 25 air currents which move in a sinuoid or zig zag path are created as illustrated in FIG. 4 a . The shape and arrangement of the teeth also when engaging the fibers force them to move first in one direction and then the other. These forces create a fiber movement which brings about enhanced opening and blending and also evenly distributes the fibers across the length of the rolls.
[0036] If desired and simultaneously with the operation water, dye and/or chemicals are emitted into chamber 26 to be blended with the fibers during this opening and blending operation.
[0037] Upon reaching roll 25 , the fibers are carried around the roll to its lower surface where they are continued to be acted upon by the teeth and air currents as they are moved between the lower periphery of rolls 22 - 25 and casing 28 to exit 30 .
[0038] The fibers pass through exit 30 into belt 44 of fine opener 42 . Here they are again mixed by roll 52 as they pass through the compression exit 50 and into air transport 56 .
[0039] The opening and blending arrangement is shown in a slightly different context in FIG. 3. Here the opening arrangement 64 includes a feed 66 which comprises a plurality of feed belts 68 which carry fibers from an opening and blending arrangement generally described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,889,319 to mixing and blending arrangement 18 .
[0040] The fibers may pass beneath compression rolls 70 and mixing rolls 72 , 74 . Roll 74 doffs the fibers from belt 68 and tosses them into chamber 26 of cabinet 20 . A feed indicated at x may be provided to deliver water, dye and/or chemicals into chamber 26 as earlier described.
[0041] Again, the fibers are acted upon by rolls 22 - 25 in the manner earlier described. Upon reaching exit 30 the fibers are deposited into inner chamber 78 of fine opening device 30 . Fine opening device 80 includes an opening and blending doffer 82 constructed similarly to rolls 22 - 25 , a doffing roll 83 , a pair of opening rolls 84 , 85 , a main roll 86 , mote knives 89 , waste removal chamber 88 , and doffing and removal duct 90 .
[0042] The fibers delivered from roll 22 are thrown through exit 30 as shown by the arrow engaged by roll 82 or its resulting air currents and tumbled into inner chamber 78 . Here they are continued in a tumbling motion and picked up by opening rolls 84 , 85 or doffer 83 and moved through the various channels with continued opening, blending and cleaning to be finally removed through removal duct 90 for further processing. This arrangement is more fully described, both structurally and operationally, in more detail in co-pending application Ser. No. 10/224,185 filed on Sep. 16, 2002, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein.
[0043] The fibers processed by way of the above arrangements are more thoroughly blended throughout and produce more evenly distributed fibers within fiber batts subsequently formed.
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A fiber blending, opening and cleaning arrangement which includes a feed section for delivering a blend of fibers onto a first opening and blending operation, comprising an array of parallel opening and blending rolls rotating in one direction and arranged along an incline and in adjacent positions. The fibers are passed over the rolls in a first direction and under the rolls in a section direction while being also moved along a sinusoid path. Upon existing the array of rolls, the fibers fall into a fine opening and blending operation which fully mixes the fibers.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to security alarm systems, and more particularly of the type employing sensors for providing an indication of the displacement of components such as doors, windows and so forth.
Various types of security alarm systems have been implemented to detect and signify the unauthorized opening of a window, door, or other entry-exit opening. Often such arrangements include a sensor, such as a reed switch, on one component part of the door or window, and a magnet affixed to another component of the door or window. A pair of wires intercouples the reed switch or contact set with a controller, and the magnet is positioned to hold the reed switch closed when the two relatively displaceable elements are in the closed (secure) position. When the one element is displaced, the magnetic force is removed or substantially weakened in the area of the reed switch, which then opens to provide an indication over the conductor pair to the controller that the window or door has been opened. This conventional arrangement suffers from several drawbacks.
One shortcoming is that from the standpoint of a would-be burglar, such arrangements are not very difficult to circumvent. Intruders have become adept at breaking a window and then shorting the conductors leading to the reed switch, to maintain the secure indication even when the window is thereafter opened.
Another drawback of earlier systems with multiple sensors (including contact pairs) on the same conductor pair is that the controller does not recognize which sensor has gone into alarm. Various attempts to solve this problem have been made, including providing a transponder assembly for one or more sensor points to provide addressability--denoting the location(s) of the sensors in alarm. The transponder has been housed in a separate enclosure, leading to a more costly and complex wiring arrangement to achieve addressability, especially when a plurality of sensors are attached to a single transponder.
Another deficiency is that the described arrangements for addressability have been costly, requiring three separate components: the magnet, the reed switch or other sensor, and a transponder coupled between the reed switch and the controller, for incorporating a specific address denoting the physical location of a given sensor and facilitating communication between the controller and the transponder. Not only is such an arrangement costly, but the components may degrade the aesthetics of the room decor. Frequently architectural specifications militate against placing the units in the most desirable locations, and this is another drawback.
It is therefore a principal consideration of the present invention to provide a security system with an enhanced protective level, by adding new levels of complexity to thwart the would-be intruder.
Another important consideration is to provide addressability in a security system at reduced cost, with simplified installation.
Another important consideration is to provide an effective cost reduction in such security systems.
Still another significant consideration is to provide an improved security system which is more pleasing from an aesthetic standpoint.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is particularly useful with a security alarm system of the type in which the controller communicates over a pair of conductors with various separately addressable transponders. Each transponder includes circuit means for communicating with the controller, and at least one of the transponders includes a sensor.
In accordance with a significant aspect of the present invention, each transponder having a sensor is provided with a housing for substantially enclosing both the circuit means and the sensor in a unitary package. This unitary package is approximately the same size and shape as those presently available enclosures which contain only a sensor.
Another important consideration is that the package is sufficiently small so that the unauthorized intruder can not discern, from the size and location of the package, whether the enclosure contains merely the usual reed switch or, as with the present invention, both the sensor assembly, alarm detection circuitry, tamper sensing circuitry, and the electronic circuit means for communicating between the controller and the sensor assembly.
Another important aspect of the invention is a cost-effective system for electrically intercoupling the separate components when they are assembled into a unitary package, especially in an enclosure where space is at a premium and reliable electrical connections are required.
THE DRAWINGS
In the several figures of the drawings like reference numerals identify like components, and in those drawings:
FIGS. 1-3 are simplified block diagrams useful in understanding known security alarm systems;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a security system in which the present invention is useful;
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view depicting the individual components which, when mated, provide the unitary enclosure which is an important feature of the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a sectional view, on a scale enlarged With respect to the scale of FIG. 5, taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 5, illustrating the housing components in the closed position;
FIG. 7 is sectional view, taken along the line 7--7 of FIG. 6, particularly useful in illustrating an important feature of the present invention; and
FIG. 8 is a sectional showing, taken along the line 8--8 of FIG. 7, which further assists in illustrating this feature.
PRIOR ART ARRANGEMENTS
FIG. 1 depicts a simple arrangement in which a controller 20 is coupled over a pair of conductors 21, 22 to a series-connected sequence of detectors or contact sets 23, 24, 25 and 26. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conductor pair need not comprise a pair of solid electrical conductors of copper wire or like material, but can also be fiber optic paths with a communication of information by light waves, or air or other paths for passing signals. In general then "conductor pair" refers to a path for the transmission of signals between controller 20 and a series of detectors or switches connected to the conductor pair. The detectors or contact sets 23-26 can be simple switches which are opened or closed as an associated component such as window portions or a door-and-jamb arrangement are similarly opened and closed. In addition such contact sets can represent ionization or obscuration detectors for use in life protection systems for detecting particles of combustion and actual combustion, or systems other than contact sets for detecting entry and/or movement within confined spaces in a security system. In the system of FIG. 1, when any one of the contact sets 23-26 opens--if all are initially closed--then the controller only "knows" that there is an interruption somewhere on the conductor line 21, 22. It is frequently necessary to provide more accurate identification of the precise location at which the alarm condition or other occurence signified by a contact set opening occurs, and this led to the arrangement depicted in FIG. 2.
In an attempt to identify the precise location of the switch opening, a transponder 30 was provided and coupled over lines 31, 32 to the conductor pair 21, 22 for communication to the controller 20. The transponder contained circuitry to recognize its own "address" or identifying signal from the controller, and also to receive information over its associated conductors 33, 34 which are coupled to a sensor assembly 35 denoting the position of contact set 36 within the sensor assembly. Sensor assembly 35 is affixed (by screws or other suitable means, not shown) to a first component 37, which can be part of a door or window assembly. Another component 38 represents another part of the door or window assembly, and a magnet 40 is affixed to the second component 38. Thus when the two components are in the side-by-side position as shown, the strength of the field provided by magnet 40 maintains contacts at 36 in the closed position, indicating a secure position. Responsive to relative movement between components 37 and 38, the magnet 40 is displaced away from contact set 36, and the field strength adjacent the contact set is reduced sufficiently so that the contact set opens. This indication is provided over conductors 33, 34 to the transponder, which then communicates (or is communicated to by the controller) to indicate the contact set of the sensor 35 has opened. This is an effective way to identify the location of the contact set opening, but the cost is substantial because the transponder houses the communication and alarm detection system in a housing completely separate and independent of the sensor assembly and the magnet unit. Such a system entails additional installation expense and thus has militated against widespread employment of such an arrangement.
FIG. 3 depicts one effort to reduce the expense attendant upon using transponder 30 to identify the location of the contact set opening. In this arrangement three additional sensor assemblies 41, 42 and 43 are provided, each with their respective magnets 44, 45 and 46 or other auxiliary units positioned to have some condition detected by the contact set in the associated sensor assembly. Each sensor assembly is individually coupled over a pair of conductors to transponder 30. Thus when the contact set in any of the sensor assemblies 35, 41, 42 and 43 opens, an indication is transmitted over the intercoupled wire set to transponder 30, providing either direct transmission of a signal to the controller or a local storing of a contact-open event for subsequent determination by the controller as it polls the transponders in the group. By utilizing the transponder for its addressability and communication capabilities in connection with four separate sensor-magnet arrangements, the cost of the addressability by employing the transponder is reduced by the number of sensor-magnet assemblies added to that transponder. In this case the cost is only 25% per each sensor-magnet arrangement as contrasted to the system depicted in FIG. 2. However the system of FIG. 3 still suffers from the shortcomings that the transponder for monitoring four sensor-magnet arrangements is large, and the transponder may not be capable of monitoring different sensor-magnet pairs spaced at a distance from the transponder. Sometimes only one or two sensor-magnet pairs are within the physical proximity of a transponder capable of sensing four such units, and this less-than-100% usage of the transponder is wasteful. Accordingly there is still substantial room for improvement over these described earlier systems.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 4 depicts in block diagram one arrangement for intercoupling various transponders in accordance with the teaching of the present invention. As there shown a first transponder 50 is coupled to the conductor pair 21, 22, and a magnet 40 is positioned adjacent transponder 50. However the transponder may include different communication and other networks, as shown in FIG. 4. By way of example, tranponder 51 includes a communications circuit 52 coupled to the conductor pair 21, 22, and a monitor circuit coupled over conductors 53, 54 to communications circuit 52. In turn a sensor 56, depicted as a contact set, is coupled to the monitor circuit 55. A magnet 57 is positioned next to transponder 51. Although depicted as a simple contact set, it is evident that sensor 56 can be utilized as any type of detector and/or sensor to provide a signal over the monitor circuit, for communication through circuit 52 with controller 20. More specifically, the term "monitor" as used herein and in the appended claims embraces the following functions, and implies that at least one of these functions is present in the monitor circuit:
(1) The translation of changes, whether large, step-function type changes or minute, incremental changes of the sensor position or conditions adjacent the sensor into an electrical signal;
(2) translation of a change in the sensor itself into an electrical signal, denoting an alarm condition;
(3) translation of a malfunction in the sensor and/or an alarm and trouble detection circuit associated with the sensor into an electrical signal which denotes a trouble condition; and
(4) translation of the relative condition of the sensed transducer (for example, the linear output signal of a Hall effect transducer) into an electrical signal.
Another transponder 60 includes a communication circuit 61 coupled to the conductor pair 21, 22, and an alarm and trouble detection circuit 62 coupled over conductors 63, 64 to the communication circuit. A sensor 65, shown as a simple contact set, is coupled to alarm and trouble detection circuit 62. A magnet 66 is disposed adjacent transponder 60. The alarm and trouble detection circuit 62 operates to send a signal to communication circuit 61 when sensor 65 opens and closes, and additionally operates to provide a trouble signal to communication circuit 61 when there is any malfunction either in the circuit including sensor 65 or in the alarm and trouble detection circuit itself, or in other parts of the transponder. Such circuits and system operation are now known and are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,507,652, entitled "Bidirectional, Interactive Fire Detection System" which issued Mar. 26, 1985 in the name of William R. Vogt and John M. Wynne, and is assigned to the assignee of this application. Accordingly no further description of the system operation and communication protocol will be set out in this application.
While the communication system is shown as operating over a conductor pair 21, 22, generally a pair of separate electrial conductors, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the transmission path can be over a co-axial cable, fiber optic path, air, or other communication medium.
Considering now the structure of a transponder itself, FIG. 5 shows that a typical transponder assembly 70 is actually comprised of four separate components; a base housing 71, on which a base printed circuit (pc) board 82 is located; a sensor assembly unit 72; and a cover housing 73. When assembled the four components fit in the space occupied by cover 73 and this is approximately the physical size of present units which merely include a magnet or a reed switch sensor. Base unit 71 includes a floor portion 74, a pair of side walls 75, 76 and a pair of end walls 77, 78. While the portions are described separately, in a preferred embodiment the unit is formed by injection molding, and thus the various components depicted are integral with one another. A pair of pillars 80, 81 extend upwardly from the floor and these pillars each define a central bore for receiving a mounting screw (not shown) or other fastener used to affix base unit 71 to the window, door or other adjacent component, in an obvious manner. The pc board 82 is attached to floor 74 of the base unit, and a series of six insulation displacement connectors 83-88 are mounted on this board. Such connectors are conventional barrel-shaped connectors with, as better shown in FIG. 7, a tapered throat portion 90 and a central channel 91.
In FIG. 5 a surge supressor 92 is also mounted on pc board 82. Conductors 21a, 21b, 22a and 22b are shown extending through an aperture (not visible in this view) in floor portion 74 for electrical connection to the insulation displacement connectors 84-87 as indicated. The connectors effect the function represented by conductors 21, 22 in FIGS. 2-4, in that two of the conductors extend from the last transponder to the illustrated transponder 70 and the other two conductors extend onward to the next transponder. Connectors 83, 84 and 85 are all electrically connected together through pc board 82, and similarly connectors 86-88 are also connected to each other.
A pair of right-angle pillars or spacers 93, 94 extend upwardly as shown from floor portion 74 and above the top of the side walls 75, 76 of the base unit. These pillars act as spacers to provide an interference fit for the adjacent components when the transponder is assembled as will be explained.
End wall 77 defines a notch 95 at its top, and an extended recess 96 at its base portion. The corners 97 and 98 are squared off as shown. The other end wall 78 also defines a notch 99 at its top portion. In this end wall both corners 100, 101 are chamfered or beveled to define a keyway. This double-chamfer provides a configuration different from that of the other end wall, which has square corners 97 and 98, affording correct mating engagement with the cover portion.
Intermediate unit 72 is comprised of another pc board 103, which will be termed the cover pc board. A custom integrated circuit 104 is affixed under a portion of pc board 103. Circuit 104 provides the "intelligence" and other functions in a manner similar to that of the component IC1 shown in FIG. 8 of the above identified patent. A sensor 105 is affixed to the board 103. This sensor can be a reed switch or other sensing arrangement. An address shunt assembly 106 is affixed to, and extends below, board 103 as shown. This assembly includes the function of setting the address of transponder 70, in a manner similar to that effected by address select switches 66 shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 of the above identified patent. A capacitor 107 is also affixed to pc board 103.
In accordance with a significant aspect of the invention, a pair of spaced apart flag-like connectors 108, 110 are connected to board 103 and extend below this board, toward the two outermost barrel-shaped connectors 83 and 88. The extremities of connectors 108 and 110 below board 103 are tapered to provide ready insertion and guiding into the throat portions of the insulation displacement connectors. This will become apparent in the description of the subsequent drawings.
Cover unit 73 has a top portion 111, a pair of side walls 112 and 113, and a pair of end walls, only of of which (114) is evident in this showing. A wedge or lip portion 115 of end wall 114 extends inwardly toward the hollow center of cover 73. A similar lip (not visible) is provided on the interior of the other end wall of the cover, so that when the cover is mated to the base unit, the wedge-shaped lips are received in the corresponding recesses (such as 96 in the left end of the base) to secure the cover and base units. Notch 95 insures accurate guiding of the wedge 115 during the insertion process. Other details of the cover are better seen in FIG. 6.
As there shown, in certain interior portions the upper side walls of cover 73 include respective shelf portions 116, 117. These shelves act as stops so that when the cover pc board 103 is inserted into cover 73, proper alignment of board 103 is assured. A pair of locking tabs 118, 120 are provided on the side walls in the proper position to secure pc board 103 when it is moved into its desired position.
Also evident in FIG. 6 is the mounting of flag connector 108 in board 103. While a pair of legs 119, 121 extend from the flag connector into the board, it is also possible to provide a single leg or extend the width of leg 121, if additional support is needed. As shown the flag extends into the slit of connector 83, the back portion of which extends downwardly into pc board 82 to establish a good connection and provide mechanical support on this board. The pillars or spacers 93, 94 visible in FIG. 5, but not in FIG. 6, regulate the minimum spacing of pc board 103 relative to the tops of connectors 83-88 when the cover assembly 73, 72 is mated to the base 71; this spacing is evident in FIGS. 6 and 7. The extent to which flag connectors 108 extend below the board and into connector 83 is regulated by the interference fit, and is also visible in FIG. 7.
In the view of FIG. 7 the normal function of an insulation displacement connector such as 84 is evident. When an insulated electrical conductor is inserted into the throat portion 90 of the connector and then pushed downwardly through channel 91, the insulation layer is severed and the interior conductor establishes a good electrical connection with the connector 84. This type of connector has been known and used.
In contradistinction, use of the flag connector 108 in conjunction with a displacement connector has not been known. The slit or channel 91 of each of the barrel-shaped connectors has a width of a reference dimension. The thickness of each flag connector 108 is made to exceed such reference dimension, by an amount less than that which would cause extensive mechanical distortion of the barrel-shaped connectors, so that when inserted into the slit 91 the barrel is significantly spread, and there is a substantial wiping action of the flag connector in the barrel. This provides not only a very good electrical connection but also highly effective mechanical retention of the flags by the barrel-shaped connectors. In addition the tip of each flag is tapered to a dimension less than the reference dimension of the barrel connector, thus affording ready insertion of the flag into the barrel slit. The nominal slit width is usually about 10 mils (a mil is 0.001 inch) in the unsprung condition of the barrel connector. The width of the flag connector was made about 35 mils to insure a good connection, and the point of each flag connector is also tapered down to about 5 mils to afford the ready insertion. This is also evident in FIG. 8, which shows both the insertion of a flag connector 108 into one connector 83, and further illustrates how the insulation portion of an adjacent conventional conductor is severed in the usual employment of a displacement connector.
PC board 82 is installed in base 71 at the factory, and the other board 72 is likewise inserted into the cover portion 73 at the factory. Thus when the transponder is ready for assembly, the address is set in assembly 106 of the center unit 72, and the electrical connections are made from the four conductors through the base 71 to the barrel connectors 84-87. The cover assembly (including pc board 103 and cover 73) is then mated with the base unit by pushing downwardly so that the wedges (such as 115) are aligned by the notches (such as 95), and moved additionally until the lips 115 are seated as already described. The spacers 93, 94 assure that the pc board 103 is not pushed downwardly beyond the desired distance. Insertion of the flag connectors into the barrel connectors provides not only effective electrical connection but also very good structural support for the resultant assembly.
TECHNICAL ADVANTAGES
The present invention has added a new level of complexity to foil lawbreakers. With prior systems the intruder could readily short the reed switch, whereas the invention includes intelligence built into the transponder unit. Removal of the cover of the inventive assembly also removes the board with the reed switch; only the base remains attached to the wall. Cover removal breaks the continuity back to the controller and that break is detectable. The controller recognizes that the cover has in fact been removed, due to the interruption in communication between the transponder and the controller. The system cost and installation complexity have been reduced because the sensor or reed switch has been combined with the electronics, which may include alarm and trouble detection as well as communication, within a single, compact enclosure. The only other component required is the auxiliary unit or magnet on the movable part of the window or door. Previously the electronics were in a separate assembly and package, necessitating the use of three assemblies instead of two.
The use of only two components is less costly to purchase and install, as well as being less intrusive on the decor and thus more pleasing from an aesthetic viewpoint. With previous arrangements an additional box housing the electronics was placed on the wall or ceiling, and architects and designers have found it difficult to accommodate such additional components within an original design framework.
Another important advance is the effective mechanical alignment and electrical interconnection achieved with the flag-type connectors inserted into the barrels of the insulation displacement connectors. There is a very good wiping action as the flag enters the barrel slit, establishing a good connection every time. Both members (flag and barrel) are structurally sound, and not easily distorted by accident prior to mating; the members are tolerant to misalignment during insertion, because the Y-shaped throat of the barrel guides the wedge-shaped flag, making insertion simple. The resultant physical connection is very strong and the components are not easily bent.
In the appended claims the term "connected" (when used in an electrical or electronic sense) means a d-c connection between two components with virtually zero d-c resistance between those components. The term "coupled" indicates there is a functional relationship between two components, with the possible interposition of other elements (or air) between the two components described as "coupled" or "intercoupled".
While only a particular embodiment of the invention has been described and claimed herein, it is apparent that various modifications and alterations of the invention may be made. It is therefore the intention in the appended claims to cover all such modifications and alterations as may fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
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A security alarm system includes a transponder having a housing enclosing both a sensor and associated circuit means in a unitary package. The housing base includes barrel-shaped connectors, and a pc board carrying the communications components is carried by the housing cover. Flag-like connectors mate with the barrel-shaped connectors when the cover is attached to the base, and the connectors give both good mechanical indexing and retention, and effective electrical contact. Removal of the cover from the base breaks the electrical contact and thus breaks continuity back to the system controller, indicating someone has tampered with the system.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Applications for Patent Ser. No. ______, entitled “Poppet Shear Apparatus and System,” filed Apr. 24, 2003, by Steven K. Aderholt, Franklin B. Piehl and Dennis C. Hatfield which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not Applicable
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention relates generally to shear protection devices for tanks containing high-pressure gases. More specifically, the present invention relates to shear protection devices for truck-borne and stand-alone compressed gas cylinders.
BACKGROUND
[0004] Various types of compressed gases are commonly transported in long, narrow cylinders, or “tubes,” mounted directly on a tractor trailer chassis or in a “module,” or a box frame containing the cylinders that is loaded onto a flat bed trailer. These truck-borne compressed gas cylinders are often required by law to be fitted with relief devices designed to relieve pressure from the compressed gas cylinders in the event of cylinder over-pressurization or fire. These relief devices are typically attached to each end of a cylinder and take two major forms: cluster-type relief devices (typically for hazardous gases) and angle-type relief devices (typically for non-hazardous gases). The relief devices typically protrude from the compressed gas cylinders and are subject to shearing forces. These relief devices provide protection for over pressurization, however, due to their physical structure, are prone to inadvertent damage such as having the relief device sheared off of the compressed gas cylinder. When such a shearing of a valve or relief device occurs, the compressed gas escapes through an uncontrolled opening in the compressed gas cylinder to the atmosphere.
[0005] In U.S. Pat. No. 5,832,947, entitled “Gas Shut-Off and Pressure Relief Valve for a High Pressure Gas Vessel,” issued to Andrew Niemczyk, a pressure relief valve is disclosed. The disclosed pressure relief valve has a threaded body that engages the side port in fluid communication with the gas passage. The side port has a radially extending shoulder that seats an annular sealing ring. A rupture disc, made from brass, is pressed by the threaded body against the sealing ring. During operation, the gas shut-off and pressure relief valve extends away from the compressed gas cylinder. The relief valve provides protection from an unintentional over pressurization; however, the protrusion of the relief valve increases the probability of an inadvertent shear of the relief valve.
[0006] In U.S. Pat. No. 4,269,214, entitled “Safety Pressure Relief Device,” issued to Calvin. C. Forsythe, et al., a safety pressure relief device is disclosed. The disclosed safety pressure relief device has a casing with a threaded connection and a concentric axial bore there through. The open end of the casing engages a concave-convex rupture disc which is ruptured with a knife means including a plurality of spaced cutting teeth. An annular outlet ring is connected to the casing by a continuous heli-arc weld. The weld also connects the rupture disc and the knife means to the casing. Again, protection is provided for an over pressurization. However, the probability of an inadvertent shear of the relief device is increased.
[0007] [0007]FIG. 1 illustrates another prior art relief device and its attachment to a compressed gas cylinder. The relief device 20 does not attach directly to the cylinder 10 . Rather, the relief device 20 screws into a “bullplug” 30 , which itself screws into the cylinder 10 . Thus, the bullplug 30 has two sets of threads: a set of male straight threads 32 that engage a reciprocal female set 12 in the cylinder; and a set of female pipe threads 34 that engage a reciprocal set of male pipe threads 24 on the relief device 20 . Moreover, having the relief device 20 screw into the bullplug 30 , which in turn screws into the cylinder 10 , means that the relief device 20 protrudes farther from the cylinder 10 than it would if the relief device 20 screwed directly into the cylinder 10 . This greater protrusion presents a greater opportunity for a shear of the relief device 20 from the cylinder 10 in the event of an accident, resulting in uncontrolled compressed gas leakage.
[0008] Therefore, a need exists for a shear protection device that couples directly to its associated compressed gas tank utilizing a valve or relief device, thereby lessening the likelihood of a valve or relief device shear—and the associated uncontrolled leakage—in the event of an accident.
[0009] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a shear protection device for compressed gas cylinders that attaches directly to its cylinder. It is a further object of this invention to provide a shear protection device that attaches directly to relief devices for compressed gas cylinders that reduces or eliminates the likelihood of the uncontrolled compressed gas leakage due to the valve or relief device shearing away from the main body in the event of an accident.
SUMMARY
[0010] The present invention is a shear protection device including a poppet, a seat plug and a retainer plug. The poppet is substantially a tube with a bore and with downstream and upstream openings where the diameter of the upstream opening in larger than the diameter of the seat plug and the diameter of the downstream opening is smaller than the diameter of the seat plug. The poppet further includes ventilation openings around the circumference of the poppet. The ventilation openings allowing a gas or liquid to pass through the poppet into the bore for passage to a valve.
[0011] A seat plug is inserted through the upstream end of the poppet and moves within the poppet bore. A retainer plug is attached at the upstream end of the poppet, substantially closing off the upstream opening and blocking the exit of the seat plug through the upstream opening. The retainer plug includes an opening to allow for the gas or liquid to forcibly abut the seat plug.
[0012] A valve with a threaded attachment is also shown. The valve includes an inlet. A shear tube is attached within the inlet of the valve. The poppet is attached to the valve inlet so that the upstream opening is inserted into the inlet of the valve. When the poppet is attached, the shear tube forcibly engages the seat plug causing the seat plug to engage the retaining plug. When the seat plug is engaging the retaining plug, the liquid or gas can pass through the ventilation openings of the poppet and pass through the valve inlet.
[0013] If the valve is sheared away, the internal force of the compressed gas or liquid forces the seat plug away from the retainer plug towards the downstream opening. The seat plug then engages the top of the bore of the poppet, blocking the passage of the gas or liquid through the ventilation openings through the valve inlet.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and for further details and advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following Detailed Description taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:
[0015] [0015]FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a prior art angle-type relief device's interaction with its associated compressed gas cylinder;
[0016] [0016]FIG. 2 a is a side view of a valve and a shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0017] [0017]FIG. 2 b is an exploded side view of a valve and a shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0018] [0018]FIG. 2 c is a top view of a retainer plug of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0019] [0019]FIG. 2 d is a bottom view of a retainer plug of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0020] [0020]FIG. 2 e is a top view of a seat plug of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0021] [0021]FIG. 2 f is a bottom view of a seat plug of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0022] [0022]FIG. 2 g is a top view of a poppet of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0023] [0023]FIG. 2 h is a bottom view of a poppet of the shear protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0024] [0024]FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a valve and a shear protection device's interaction with a compressed gas cylinder according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0025] [0025]FIG. 4 is an exploded view of a valve and two shear protection device's interaction with a compressed gas cylinder according to another embodiment of the present invention;
[0026] [0026]FIG. 5 a is a side view of an alternate valve and a shear protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention;
[0027] [0027]FIG. 5 b is an exploded side view of an alternate valve and a shear protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention;
[0028] [0028]FIG. 6 a is a side view of an alternate valve and a shear protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention;
[0029] [0029]FIG. 6 b is an exploded side view of an alternate valve and a shear protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention;
[0030] [0030]FIG. 7 is an exploded view of a valve and a shear protection device's interaction with a compressed gas cylinder according to another embodiment of the present invention; and
[0031] [0031]FIG. 8 is an exploded view of a valve and a shear protection device's interaction with a compressed gas cylinder after shearing according to another embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0032] In the descriptions which follow, like parts are marked throughout the specification and drawings with the same numerals, respectively. The drawing figures are not necessarily drawn to scale and certain figures may be shown in exaggerated or generalized form in the interest of clarity and conciseness.
[0033] The present invention comprises generally a shear protection device, a valve, a threaded connection for coupling the shear protection device and valve to a compressed gas cylinder, and a seat plug that seals the cylinder outlet in the event of shearing of the valve. This disclosure describes numerous specific details that include specific structures, their arrangement, and functions in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. One skilled in the art will appreciate that one may practice the present invention without these specific details.
[0034] An improved valve and shear protection device for high pressure gas cylinders directly engage the cylinder. A bore within the poppet of the shear protection device is in fluid communication with the cylinder contents. When shearing of the valve occurs, a seat plug disposed in the poppet seals the bore preventing the uncontrolled escape and possible ignition of the cylinder contents.
[0035] Referring now to the figures, FIGS. 2 a , 2 b , 2 c , 2 d , 2 e , 2 f , 2 g , 2 h and 3 are exploded, side, top and bottom views of a valve and shear protection device and the interaction of same with a compressed gas cylinder according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 2 a , 2 b and 3 , a bullplug 300 attaches to a cylinder 10 . In one disclosed embodiment, the bullplug 300 includes male straight threads 301 that screw directly into the reciprocal female straight threads 11 of a compressed gas cylinder 10 . An “O” ring (typically made of rubber) and a backup ring (typically made of a synthetic, fluorine-containing resin such as TEFLON) (neither shown) create a seal between the bullplug 300 and the cylinder 10 . The bullplug 300 includes a bore 302 which is in fluid communication with the contents of the cylinder 10 . A valve 103 and a shear protection device 101 attach to form a valve and shear protection device 100 which attaches onto the downstream side of bullplug 300 , allowing the operator to manually control gas or liquid flow from the cylinder 10 . In one disclosed embodiment, the bullplug 300 includes female straight threads 304 on the downstream side that screw directly onto reciprocal male straight threads 130 of the valve and shear protection device 100 . However, a variety of various attachment techniques are available without detracting from the spirit of the invention.
[0036] As is shown in FIGS. 2 a , 2 b , 2 c , 2 d , 2 e , 2 f , 2 g and 2 h , the valve and shear protection device 100 is formed from a valve 103 and a shear protection device 101 . The shear protection device 101 includes a shear tube 109 , a poppet 112 , a seat plug 118 and a retainer plug 124 . The valve 103 allows for the controlled escape of the contents of the cylinder 10 . The valve 103 includes a handle 102 for opening and closing of the valve 103 . When the valve 103 is in the open position, exit bore 104 , which is substantially perpendicular to the main axis of the valve 103 , is in fluid communication with inlet bore 106 , which is concentric with the main axis, allowing a gas or liquid to pass through the valve 103 . When the valve 103 is in the closed position, the fluid communication between the exit bore 104 and the inlet bore 106 is interrupted, preventing the gas or fluid from passing from the inlet bore 104 to the exit bore 106 . The valve 103 includes male straight threads 130 which mate the valve 103 to the bullplug 300 . In another disclosed embodiment, the valve 103 includes male tapered threads 130 . The valve 103 further includes female straight threads 160 tapped to the inlet bore 106 . The female straight threads 160 accept male straight threads 132 of the shear protection device 101 .
[0037] The inlet bore 106 is bored to multiple different diameters: The first inner, smaller diameter portion of the inlet bore 106 is in fluid communication the second inner, larger diameter portion of the inlet bore 106 . The first inner diameter portion and the second inner diameter portion of the inlet bore 106 form a flat annular surface 111 at the transition between the first and second diameter bores. The second inner, larger diameter portion of the inlet bore 106 accepts the shear tube 109 and the shear tube 109 attaches to the flat annular surface 111 .
[0038] The shear tube 109 includes a shear tube bore 108 which is in fluid communication with the inlet bore 106 . The shear tube 109 has a first outer diameter and a second outer diameter. The first outer diameter is substantial equal to the second inner, larger diameter of the inlet bore 106 . The second diameter of the shear tube 109 is smaller than the first diameter. The first diameter of the shear tube 109 forms a continuous flange 133 around the periphery of the shear tube 109 . When the shear tube 109 is installed in the inlet bore 106 , the continuous flange 133 abuts the flat annular surface 111 of the valve 103 . In one disclosed embodiment, the shear tube continuous flange 133 is press fit to the inlet bore 106 , abutting the flat annular surface 111 . When installed, the shear tube 109 extends beyond the body of the valve 103 into the poppet bore 114 providing fluid communication for poppet bore 114 with shear tube bore 108 which remains in fluid communication with inlet bore 106 . Shear tube bore 108 and inlet bore 106 have substantially equal inner diameters. In one disclosed embodiment, the shear tube 109 is formed from brass, however, a wide variety of materials may be used to form the shear tube without detracting from the spirit of the invention, including but not limited to stainless steel.
[0039] The poppet 112 is substantially tubular and includes male straight threads 132 extended from the downstream end of the poppet 112 . The poppet 112 includes a poppet bore 114 through the main axis of the poppet 112 . The male straight threads 132 mate the poppet 112 to the female straight threads 160 of the valve 103 . When the poppet 112 and the valve 103 are mated, the shear tube 109 extends from the inlet bore 106 to within the downstream end of the poppet bore 114 . A seal gasket 110 is positioned between the valve 103 and the poppet 112 and seals the threaded connection to prevent leakage of the gas or liquid.
[0040] The poppet bore 114 is bored to three different diameters. The first inner poppet diameter portion is bored to a diameter larger than the diameter of the shear tube 109 and forms a first inner poppet wall 154 . An intermediate inner poppet diameter portion is bored to a diameter larger than the first inner poppet diameter, but smaller than a third inner poppet diameter and forms an intermediate inner poppet wall 152 . The third inner poppet diameter portion is bored to a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the retainer plug 124 and forms a third inner poppet wall 150 . The width of the shell of the first inner poppet diameter portion, including the male straight threads 132 , corresponds to the width of the female straight threads 160 of the valve 103 . The remaining outer poppet diameter portion is substantially equal to the outer diameter of the upstream end of the valve 103 where the valve 103 and poppet 112 mate.
[0041] The first inner poppet diameter portion and the intermediate inner poppet diameter have a tapered connection. The intermediate inner poppet diameter portion and the third inner poppet diameter portion for an annular surface which is expanded radially to form a groove within the poppet bore 114 with a diameter greater than the third inner poppet diameter and the intermediate inner poppet diameter. The groove accepts an O-ring seal 116 , where the inner diameter of the O-ring seal is smaller than the third inner poppet diameter and the intermediate inner poppet diameter.
[0042] The poppet 112 includes ventilation passages 128 which extend through the main body of the poppet 112 and form a substantial ring around the circumference. In one disclosed embodiment, the ventilation passages 128 exist in pairs on opposed sides of the poppet 112 . In another disclosed embodiment, multiple sets of ventilation passages 128 are provided in the poppet 112 . The ventilation passages 128 are in fluid communication with the poppet bore 114 . The poppet 112 further includes female straight threads 148 at the upstream end. The female straight threads 148 accept male straight threads 125 of the retainer plug 124 . In one disclosed embodiment, the poppet is formed from stainless steel, however, a wide variety of materials may be used to form the poppet without detracting from the spirit of the invention, including but not limited to brass.
[0043] The retainer plug 124 includes a bore 126 and pressure cavities 134 . The bore 126 extends through the main axis of the retainer plug 124 while the pressure cavities 134 extend partially through the retainer plug. The pressure cavities 134 extend from the upstream end of the retainer plug 124 , the end closest to the cylinder 10 , but do not extend through to the downstream end. A tightening tool (not shown) may be inserted into the pressure cavities to assist in inserting the retainer plug 124 into the poppet 112 . The outer shell of the retainer plug 124 is formed by the male straight threads 125 which mate the retainer plug 124 to the poppet 112 . A flange 136 extends across the diameter of the downstream end of the retainer plug 124 and is perpendicular to the axis of the bore 126 which passes through the flange 136 . The flange 136 interacts with notch 138 of the seat plug 118 . In one disclosed embodiment, the retainer plug 124 is formed from brass, however, a wide variety of materials may be used to form the retainer plug 124 without detracting from the spirit of the invention, including but not limited to stainless steel.
[0044] The seat plug 118 includes a base portion 137 and a tube portion 139 . The upstream end of the base portion 137 forms a notch 138 which interacts with the flange 136 . The base portion 137 diameter is smaller than the third inner poppet diameter and the retainer plug 124 diameter. The base portion 137 does not include a bore. The base portion 137 is fixedly attached to, or formed as a single unit with, the tube portion 139 forming a tapered connection.
[0045] The tube portion 139 includes a seat plug bore 120 which is bored to a diameter substantially equal to the shear tube bore 108 diameter. The tube portion 139 includes two outer diameters 146 , 142 respectively, with a tapered connection. At the downstream end of the seat plug 118 , the first outer diameter 146 is substantially equal to the diameter of the shear tube 109 , which is smaller than the first inner poppet diameter. The second outer diameter 142 has a tapered connection to the first outer diameter 146 and is smaller than the intermediate inner poppet diameter and is larger than the first inner poppet diameter. The tapered connection of the tube portion 109 is substantially equal to in length and pitch to the tapered connection between the first inner poppet diameter portion and the intermediate inner poppet diameter portion tapered connection.
[0046] The tube portion 139 includes ventilation passages 122 which extend through the tube portion 139 of the seat plug 118 and form a substantial ring around the circumference. In one disclosed embodiment, the ventilation passages 122 exist in pairs on opposed sides of the seat plug 118 . In another disclosed embodiment, multiple sets of ventilation passages 122 are provided in the seat plug 118 . The ventilation passages 122 are in fluid communication with the seat plug bore 120 , the poppet bore 114 and the shear tube bore 108 . In one disclosed embodiment, the ventilation passages 122 and 128 are correlated such that equivalent pairs of ventilation passages 122 and 128 are aligned on the same axis. In one disclosed embodiment, the diameters of the ventilation passages 122 and 128 are substantially equal.
[0047] When the valve 103 and the shear protection device 101 are attached to form the valve and shear protection device 100 , gas or liquid passes through the valve and shear protection device 100 through manual control. When the valve and shear protection device is assembled, the shear tube 109 is fixedly attached to the valve 103 at annular surface 111 . The shear tube 109 extends beyond the valve 103 into the poppet bore 114 . The seat plug 118 is loosely disposed in the poppet bore 114 and is enclosed at the upstream end by the threaded attachment of the retainer plug 124 to the poppet 112 . The poppet 112 is threadedly attached to the valve 103 at the poppet's 112 downstream end.
[0048] In this configuration, the upstream end of the shear tube 109 abuts the downstream end of the seat plug 118 , forcing the seat plug 118 to abut the retainer plug 124 and inserts flange 136 into notch 138 . The ventilation passages 128 of the poppet 112 and the ventilation passages 122 of the seat plug 118 align and allow fluid communication of the gas or liquid in the cylinder 10 with the seat plug bore 120 and the shear tube bore 108 . In one disclosed embodiment, the ventilation passages of the poppet 112 and the ventilation passages 122 of the seat plug 118 do not align. Fluid communication of the gas or liquid in the cylinder 10 with the seat plug bore 120 and the shear tube bore 108 is accomplished as the poppet bore 114 is intermediate to the seat plug bore 120 and the shear tube bore 108 and is in fluid communication with both.
[0049] The gas or liquid in the cylinder 10 places a force directed downstream on the upstream end of the seat plug 118 . The gas or liquid of the cylinder 10 passes through the retainer plug bore 126 and abuts the upstream end of the seat plug 118 . However, the seat plug 118 remains abutted to the retainer plug 124 as a result of the shear tube 109 abutting the downstream end of the seat plug 118 . The upstream force of the shear tube 109 is greater than the downstream force of the gas or liquid in the cylinder 10 .
[0050] In the event of a shearing of the valve 103 of the valve and shear protection device 100 , the shear tube 109 is removed as an upstream force. The downstream force of the gas or liquid moves the seat plug 118 from abutting the retainer plug 124 to abutting the downstream end of the poppet bore 114 . The base portion 137 engages the O-ring 116 located in the poppet bore 114 and forms a barrier. The gas or liquid entering the poppet bore 114 either through the ventilation passages 128 or through the retainer plug bore 126 abuts the downstream end of the seat plug 118 . The ventilation passages 122 of the seat plug 118 are no longer in fluid communication with the gas or liquid. The internal pressure of the gas or liquid maintains pressure on the seat plug 118 thereby forming a seal between the seat plug 118 and the poppet 112 and the O-ring 116 .
[0051] Referring now to FIGS. 4, 5 a and 5 b , a valve with two shear protection devices is shown. A valve and shear protection device 100 attaches to a relief device 400 . The valve and shear protection device 100 is substantially the same as disclosed above. The male straight (or tapered) threads 130 mate with the female straight (or tapered) threads 402 of the relief device 400 . In one disclosed embodiment, the relief device is an angle-type relief device for truck-borne high pressure gas cylinders. Examples of such an angle-type relief device are shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/141,413 entitled “Method And Apparatus For Orbital And Seal Welded Relief Device On A Compressed Gas Cylinder,” filed on May 8, 2002 by Steven K. Aderholt, Franklin B. Piehl and Dennis C. Hatfield which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes. The valve and shear protection device 100 is inserted into bore 402 at the downstream end of the relief device 400 . A secondary bore 406 is in fluid communication with bore 402 and is perpendicular to bore 402 and the main axis of the relief device 400 . At the upstream end of the relief device, a shear protection device 101 is attached, providing fluid communication of the shear protection device 100 with the inlet bore 408 , the secondary bore 406 and the bore 402 . The relief device 400 and the attached shear protection device 101 are attached to the cylinder 10 . Male straight (or tapered) threads 401 mate with the female straight (or tapered) threads 304 of the bullplug 300 which is attached to the cylinder 10 .
[0052] The relief device 400 includes a valve body 424 and a washer 422 , rupture disc 420 , shear ring 418 , adapter 416 , membrane 414 , and flare nut 412 . The valve body 424 includes a main body coaxial with the cylinder 10 and an integral riser portion 425 having an axis perpendicular to the main axis and the cylinder axis. The operation of the angle-type relief device 400 operate to relieve pressure if an over pressurization occurs.
[0053] The riser portion 425 of the valve body 424 protrudes beyond the outer diameter of the main body 423 . This presents yet another opportunity for shear in the event of an accident, in this case the shear of the riser and the valve body 424 shear from the cylinder 10 . The relief device 400 and the shear protection device 101 function as previously described. If the relief device 400 shears, the shear protection device 101 attached to the upstream end of the relief device 400 blocks the flow of the gas or liquid. If the valve and shear protection device 100 shear, the downstream shear protection device 101 prevent the flow of the gas or liquid.
[0054] Referring now to FIGS. 6 a , 6 b and 7 an alternate valve and shear protection device are shown. A valve 600 is shown attached to the shear protection device 101 . The valve 600 includes two outlet bores 604 and 606 . The outlet bores 604 and 606 are in fluid communication with inlet bore 608 . The shear protection device 101 attaches to the valve 600 through male straight threads 132 and female straight threads 611 . The shear protection device 101 includes the shear tube 109 , the seal gasket 110 , the poppet 112 , the O-ring 116 , the seat plug 118 and the retainer plug 124 . In this embodiment, the larger diameter of the valve 600 male straight (or tapered) threads 610 allow for direct mating with the cylinder 10 without the need of an intermediary bullplug (not shown). The male straight (or tapered) threads 610 mate with the female straight (or tapered) threads 700 located in cylinder bore 702 . The shear protection device's 101 diameter increase is proportional to the increase in the diameter of the valve 600 male straight (or tapered) threads 610 . However, the diameter of the shear protection device 101 may vary without detracting from the spirit of the invention. The shearing protection function occurs as disclosed above if the valve 600 is sheared from the cylinder 10 .
[0055] Referring now to FIG. 8, an exploded view of a sheared valve and shear protection device is shown. The valve 600 is sheared 800 from the cylinder 10 . When the valve 600 is sheared, the upstream force on the seat plug 118 from the shear tube 109 is removed and the seat plug is forced downstream by the internal force of the gas or liquid in the cylinder 10 . The seat plug 118 engages the O-ring 116 and forms a barrier to stop the escape of the gas or liquid. Barrier space 802 is formed between the upstream end of the seat plug 118 and the retainer plug 124 . As the ventilation passages 122 are moved downstream, the cylinder 10 contents are no longer in fluid communication with the seat plug bore 120 .
[0056] Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art after considering this specification or practicing the disclosed invention. The specification and examples above are exemplary only, with the true scope of the invention being indicated by the following claims.
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A shear protection device for use with a valve, the device comprising a poppet, the poppet including a bore. The poppet including first and second openings at distal ends of the poppet. A seat plug is disposed in the poppet bore, the seat plug is moveable within the poppet bore. A shear tube with first and second ends extending through the first opening of the poppet, the first end abutting the seat plug through the first opening of the poppet and the shear tube displacing the seat plug from the top of the poppet bore. The poppet is attachable to the valve and when attached a gas or liquid passes through the poppet into the valve. When the shear tube is removed, the seat plug forcibly engages the top of the poppet bore and the seat plug blocks the flow of the gas or liquid.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a centralizer for the use of maintaining downhole production tubing or the like in a centralized position within the casing and/or hole. The present invention is more specifically designed for use in a blast joint configuration in order to prohibit the blast joint from settling against the casing or any particular side of the hole.
The apparatus of the present invention can be used separate and apart from a blast joint with appropriate retaining ends to prevent slipping. The centralizer would normally be placed over the production tubing of a hydrocarbon well in order to prevent the tubing from settling on one side or the other of the casing. Often wells are drilled in a directional or deviated (nonvertical) manner as opposed to directly vertical and perpendicular to the horizon. In these situations, it has become a concern that the tubing and/or blast joint will rest on the lower end of the casing or at least off center. In light of that concern, the present invention has been developed.
Blast joints are commonly used when an oil or gas well has been drilled which encounters two or more producing formations or zones. In such a situation, each producing formation is produced through a separate string of production tubing extending into the well bore. Typically, a string of production tubing extends to the lowermost producing formation. A packer is set about the production tubing string between the producing formations to isolate the upper producing formation from the lower producing formation. A second string of production tubing extends into the well bore to the upper producing formation. A packer is set above the upper producing formation to close off the annulus about the two strings of production tubing so that the upper production zone is isolated between the two packers. Thus, each string of production tubing is in fluid communication with the production formation adjacent the lower open end of the production tubing. This is commonly referred to as a dual completion well.
Downhole well equipment is exposed to erosive elements in the well bore. This is particularly true in a dual completion well where one string of production tubing extends through an upper producing zone. Flow into the well bore in the upper producing zone, particularly in formations producing high pressure gas, is at high velocities. Abrasive materials, such as unconsolidated sand grains, are often entrained in the fluid stream and impinge on the production tubing. This action is extremely abrasive and erodes the pipe surface, thus requiring replacement of the production tubing. This is a very time consuming process which may be repeated often, particularly of wells having high sand content. Blast joints have been designed and developed in order to protect the tubing.
Many of the blast joints which were used to protect the production tubing utilized tungsten carbide elements. Tungsten carbide is a particularly heavy metal. Even though settling of the production tubing can be a concern without a blast joint, or when a blast joint is utilized which does not include tungsten carbide, the addition of tungsten carbide can cause an even greater concern due to the additional weight which is placed on the tubing.
In a downhole well, particularly when erosive elements are present which require the use of a blast joint, sand and dirt can accumulate around the production tubing and the blast joint if one has been placed on the tubing. Often and dirt cannot be circulated out of the hole because of the sheer amount of the buildup. Eventually, the buildup can become so great the pipe cannot be moved within the casing resulting in stuck pipe. This can be the result of differential wall sticking, the existence of too much sand, dirt and material within a particular confined space, or other similar and related phenomenon.
Normally, in order to alleviate the situation, a wash pipe is run down into the casing to remove the unwanted and undesirable excess dirt, sand and the like. However, if the pipe or blast joint has become so heavy or so off centered, it may be impossible to run the wash pipe through the length of the area which contains the undesirable materials. This is normally due because the pipe or blast joints become stuck or so heavily weighted against one side of the casing, there is simply not enough room for the wash pipe to surround the entire pipe or blast joint in the area where the buildup of undesirable materials has occurred.
The problem with generally accepted and standard centralizers is twofold: they are not normally adapted to be used with a blast joint; and, they may not allow sufficient clearance to be surrounded by a wash pipe. The problem is exacerbated when a blast joint is used because the clearance between the tubing and the casing becomes even more narrow since the circumference of the tubing is surrounded by the protective material of the blast joint. The centralizer must then fit over that material so that the tubing remains protected but still centralized within the casing. In order to overcome this problem, the present invention utilizes a plurality of stress risers which are segmented. This can normally be accomplished by drilling a plurality of stress relief apertures between each vertically segmented portion of each stress relief riser. The segmentation is preferably designed so as to allow sufficient strength to maintain the tubing in a centralized location downhole, but to allow for the stress relief grooves to be sheared when a wash pipe or similar device is utilized to clean out any unwanted buildup of materials or deposits. Once these segments have been sheared off, they can be circulated out of the hole in most situations.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,379,269 discloses a system for protecting the production tubing comprising a plurality of baffle sleeves concentrically mounted about the production tubing in the area of an upper producing formation. Each of the sleeves includes perforations which are staggered in relation to the perforations in the next adjacent sleeve so that the erosive fluid entering the well is forced to follow a tortious flow path before it impinges on the production tubing. The changing flow path causes the erosive fluid to decrease its kinetic energy and reduce its impact velocity before it reaches the production tubing, thereby reducing erosion of the tubing.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,141,368 and 4,028,796 to Bergstrom disclose a blast joint comprising a series of short cylindrical rings composed of cemented tungsten carbide and the method of producing a blast joint for oil well production tubing. The rings are disposed coaxially in contact with each other between end retaining rings mounted upon a supporting steel tube which comprises a single section or joined sections of production tubing.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,211,440, Bergstrom suggests that the successful functioning of the blast joint in a well is dependent upon the handling of the blast joint before it is positioned in the well. To this end, Bergstrom discloses the introduction of a yieldable compression spring encircling the production tubing and disposed between the end of the carbide rings and the ring retaining clamp to allow any freedom of movement of the rings relative to the tubing to permit handling and moving of the assembled blast joint without damage to the carbide rings.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,349,050, also to Bergstrom, merely discloses a particular type of end retainer which can be used in conjunction with the blast joints described in the other Bergstrom patents. This patent also discloses and claims certain types of protective coatings for the elements which make up the end retainers.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,613,165 and 4,635,968 to Kuhne disclose a multi-joint blast joint. The blast joint of Kuhne is formed by suspending a tubular member having a plurality of rings mounted thereon in the well bore. Pipe slips are used to suspend the tubular member in the well bore. Pipe slips engage the tubular member about an area not covered by the protective rings. A subsequent tubular member is coupled to the tubular member suspended in the well bore and the protective rings are thereafter lowered to enclose the coupling connection.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,685,518 and 4,726,423 which are patents assigned to the same assignee as this invention, and which disclosures are incorporated by reference herein, disclose a blast joint which can be easily utilized on downhole tubing which utilizes full strength upset couplings of the tubing joints. This is accomplished by the use of a ring assembly supported in telescoping relation about the erosion resistent rings on one joint said ring assembly being moveable between a first and second position wherein said ring assembly encloses the point of connection between the joints of tubing upon shifting the ring assembly to its second position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,185 discloses a multi-joint blast joint comprising a series of standard length joints production tubing which includes a slip sleeve mounted about the blast joint providing a pipe slip engaging surface for suspending the blast joint in the well bore. Other prior art blast joints include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,925,097 and 3,365,000 to Duesterberg and Arnwine, respectively.
The present invention is generally designed so as to allow for use with virtually any blast joint where possible.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention of the present disclosure is directed to an improved apparatus and method for centralizing oil well production tubing as well as blast joints which might protect such tubing. The centralizer of this invention includes a single cylindrical unit with a plurality of stress risers. The centralizer is mounted about the production tubing and/or the blast joint within the cylindrical casing of the downhole well. The stress risers maintain the tubing and/or blast joint within the general central area of the casing. The stress risers are designed so as to allow their removal when necessary to remove undesirable debris or sediment which might have accumulated about the circumference of the tubing or blast joint. The shearing is normally accomplished when a wash pipe is run downhole within the casing, but outside of the production tubing and/or blast joint which will then shear off the stress risers and allow for continued lowering into the hole past the point the centralizer is located.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The appended drawings are provided in order to illustrate only the typical and/or preferred embodiments of this invention. These drawings should not be considered limitations of the scope of this invention for it may encompass other effective embodiments.
FIG. 1 is an overhead view of the centralizer of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a partially cut away side view of the centralizer of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a prospective view of the centralizer of the present invention as utilized with a blast joint;
FIG. 4 is another prospective view of the centralizer of the present invention as utilized with a blast joint;
FIG. 5 is a prospective view of the present invention with separation of segmented portions of the centralizer of the present invention in progress;
FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of a production string in a well bore showing a blast joint in the interval of a producing zone;
FIGS. 7A-C are partial vertical longitudinal sectional views of a blast joint as described herein;
FIG. 8 is a side elevational view, partially broken away, showing the erosion resistant sleeve assembly of the blast joint described herein positioned above the tubing connector assembly;
FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view of the lower cover ring with an erosion resistant sleeve of the blast joint;
FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the lower cover ring taken along line 5--5 of FIG. 9;
FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along lines 6--6 of FIG. 8;
FIG. 12 is a vertical, longitudinal, sectional view of the blast joint described herein showing the erosion resistant coupling shield assembly enclosing the tubing connector assembly;
FIG. 13 is a similar vertical, longitudinal, sectional view of the blast joint described herein showing the slip sleeve mounted about the erosion resistant rings on the tubular member;
FIG. 14 is a sectional view of the base assembly for supporting a blast joint as described herein for preparatory to lowering in the well bore;
FIG. 15 is a top plan view of the base assembly;
FIGS. 16 and 17 are schematic views showing the installation procedure of the multi-joint blast joint described herein utilizing a slip sleeve.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the present invention 2 incorporates a cylindrical body 10 open at either end with a plurality of outwardly extending stress risers 12. The stress risers are segmented by virtue of vertical spaces 14 and stress relief apertures 16 and 17. These vertical spaces 14 and stress relief apertures 16 and 17 are preferably dimensioned so as to allow for a wash pipe, rotary shoe or similar device to shear the segmented sections 18 of the stress risers 12 thereby separating them from the body 10 of the present invention.
The segmented sections 18 of the stress risers 12 are commonly attached to a base 20 which is in turn fixedly attached to the cylindrical body 10 of the present invention. The outward corners of the stress risers 22 are curved. Additionally, the corners of each segmented section 18 of the stress risers 12 are angled at the outside corner of each vertical space 14.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the outside stress relief apertures 17 are one quarter (1/4) inch in diameter while the internal stress relief apertures 16 are five sixteenths (5/16) of an inch in diameter. Similarly, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the vertical spacing 14 between the segmented sections 18 of the present invention are 0.031 inches wide.
Again in a typical preferred embodiment, the stress risers extend 0.930 inches from the outside of the cylindrical base 10 and the bottom of the stress relief apertures 16 are 0.190 inches from the outside of the cylindrical body 10. Finally, in a typical preferred embodiment, the center of each stress relief aperture 14 can be located 0.6, 1.225, 1.725, 2.226, 2.725 and 3.350 inches, respectively, from either open end of the unitary body 10. The unitary body 10 itself in a typical preferred embodiment would be 3.950 inches at length L. It is also appropriate for each opposing outside corner 28 located at the outer edge of each vertical space 14 to be angled.
In a typical use of the preferred embodiment, the centralizer might be placed along the production tubing as part of a blast joint as disclosed in FIGS. 3-5. Here, the present invention comprises a desirable additional part of the blast joint as shown. In FIG. 3, the blast joint is comprised of a number of erosion resistent rings 30 with a coupling shield 32 within which other rings are enclosed said other rings being of sufficient diameter to surround an upset coupling of two pipe joints 34 and 36. The centralizer 2 incorporates the features and elements described above and shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The centralizer 2 is held in place by oversized erosion resistent rings 38 which are adjacent to either end of the centralizer 2 and prevent the centralizer from slipping up or down along the blast joint or tubing. Under the centralizer 2 are other erosion resistent rings which protect the tubing if any portion of the centralizer were to wear away. FIG. 3 discloses the present invention incorporated with a blast joint as utilized in a production well with the casing of said well identified as 40.
FIG. 4 discloses the present invention as utilized on a blast joint which does not extend beyond a single joint of tubing or alternatively one where the blast joint extends over two pieces of tubing which are connected by a flush joint. If a connection is not located within the blast joint of this figure, then the production tubing identified as 36 would actually be the same tubing as exposed on the opposing end 34. Again in this figure, the casing is identified as 40, the centralizer as 2, the tungsten carbide rings as 30, and the oversized rings as 38. The rings 30 will normally extend the length of the tubing under the centralizer 2 and extending outward on either end thereof.
The present invention can also be utilized where no blast joint has been installed. This will be preferably accomplished by utilizing some type of a locking assembly on both ends of the centralizer 2 to prevent movement up or down the production tubing 34. A locking assembly such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,518 and below would be appropriate to accomplish this purpose.
The general assembly of a blast joint is described in the patents identified above which have been assigned to Rickert Precision Industries. Referring first to FIG. 6, a blast joint to be used with the present invention is generally identified by the reference numeral 110. The blast joint 110 forms a part of a production tubing string 111 which extends in a well bore 114. The well bore 114 is defined by a casing string 116 traversing a producing formation 118. The casing 116 is provided with a plurality of perforations 120 which define an open production interval in the formation 118.
A packer 122 is disposed between the productive formation 118 and a lower productive formation (not shown in the drawings) in order to isolate these formations from one another so that there is no communication between these formations within the well. A production tubing string 111 is disposed in the well as illustrated and extends from the wellhead to below the packer 122 to the lower productive formation. Fluids from the lower productive formation thus are produced through the interior of the production tubing string 111 and carried to the surface of the well for delivery to a storage tank facility. Fluids produced from the productive formation 118 flow to the surface in the annular space between the production tubing string 111 and the casing 116. If desired, a second packer may be disposed above the productive formation 118 and a second tubing string provided in the well bore 114 and terminating adjacent the perforations 120 providing a production passage to the surface of fluids produced from the productive formation 118.
The production equipment thus far described is conventional. Also, it will be understood that the downhole arrangement thus far described is illustrative only and other suitable arrangements may be used. For example, the well bore 114 may be cased or uncased. Alternatively, the well bore 114 may be partially cased and partially uncased. Other well completion practices are also available and are well known to those skilled in the art.
In accordance with the present disclosure, there is disposed within the well bore 114 a production tubing 111 which is in fluid communication with a productive formation below the producing formation 118. The blast joint 110 forms a portion of the production tubing 111 and is disposed in the well bore opposite the producing interval of the productive formation 118 defined by the perforations 120. The blast joint 110 is a protective sheath or shield of erosion resistent material which encloses a portion of the production tubing 111 to protect it from the erosive action of the high velocity fluid and entrailed particles entering the well bore 114 through the perforations 120. The erosion resistant material forming the blast joint of the present disclosure may be made of any suitable material exhibiting erosion resistant properties. In the preferred embodiment, however, described in greater detail hereinafter, the erosion resistant material is tungsten carbide formed in rings which are stacked end to end and carried on the tubular members forming the blast joint 110 between end located retention clamps. Ceramic is also a suitable erosion resistent material which may be used to form the blast joint of the present disclosure.
Referring now to FIGS. 7A through 7C, the blast joint 110 of the present invention will be described from top to bottom. The blast joint of the present disclosure shown in FIGS. 7A through 7C comprises several tubular members joined end to end in a manner to be described. for example, the blast joint 110 of the present disclosure may comprise one or more joints of production tubing joined together and enclosed by an erosion resistant protective assembly of erosion resistant rings 124. The blast joint 110 is incorporated in the production tubing string 111 disposed within the well bore 114 as shown in FIG. 6.
The upper portion of the blast joint 110 comprises a plurality of rings 124 assembled on a tubing member 112 in end face to face contact and are held in compression between end located locking assemblies 126. At the upper end of the blast joint 110, the locking assembly 126 comprises a slip ring 128 and a bowl ring 130 threadedly engaged about the tubing 112. Initially, the locking assembly 126 is slipped over the pin end of the tubing 112 and clamped thereon at a desired location. The slip ring 128 includes a plurality of flexible fingers 32 extending from a threaded portion thereof. The fingers 32 are provided with a serrated surface 136 which coacts with an oppositely tapered surface 138 formed on the internal body of the bowl ring 30 to compress the fingers 132 in locking engagement with the tubing 112.
After the locking ring assembly 126 is clamped to the tubing 112, a spring 140 and a plurality of carbide rings 30 are slid over the pin end of the tubing 112. The carbide rings 124 fit snugly on the tubing 112 and abut against the spring 140. The number of carbide rings 30 mounted on the tubing 112 may vary depending upon the axial length of each ring; however, a sufficient number of carbide rings 30 are used to totally encase the tubing 112 from the spring 140 to a support sleeve 142 located adjacent the pin end of the tubing 112. An internally threaded connector 144, commonly referred to as a cross over sub, is threaded on the pin end of the tubing 112 in abutting engagement with the support sleeve 142 providing a lower stop shoulder for the stack of carbide rings 130. Thus, the carbide rings 130 are compressed between the spring 140 and the support sleeve 142 and maintained in end face to face contact providing a protective shield for the tubing 112.
Referring to FIGS. 8 and 11, a support sleeve 142 is shown in greater detail. The support sleeve 142 comprises a substantially cylindrical, open ended member. The body of the support sleeve 142 includes a pair of oppositely located slots or apertures 146 permitting access to the tubing 112. The slots 146 are sufficiently large to permit a pipe wrench or the like to engage the tubing 112; however, the structural integrity of the support sleeve 142 is not impaired and the support sleeve 142 will not collapse under the load of the stack of rings 124 supported thereon. The support sleeve 142 includes an upper collar or shoulder portion in abutting engagement with the lowermost carbide ring 130. A circumferential groove 148 is formed about the external upper collar portion of the support sleeve 142 and best shown in FIG. 7B. The groove 148 cooperates with a corresponding groove 172 in a lower cover ring 158 of a sleeve assembly 32 for receiving a retaining wire 152 for maintaining the sleeve assembly 32 in a desired position.
Referring to FIG. 8, the movable protective sleeve assembly 32 of carbide rings 154 is shown in the up or open position. When the blast joint 110 of the present disclosure is out of the well bore, the sleeve assembly 32 is located in the position shown in FIG. 8, above the support sleeve 142. In this manner, access is permitted to the tubing 112 through the slots 146 of the support sleeve 142 so that a pipe wrench may be used for threading the cross-over sub 144 to the pin end of the tubing 112, and subsequently to the box end or coupling connecting the next tubing member extending therebelow. A sleeve 151 encases the carbide rings 154 between an upper cover ring 156 and the lower cover ring 158. The carbide rings 154 have an internal diameter slightly greater than the outer diameter of the carbide rings 124 permitting relative telescoping movement therebetween. The upper and lower cover rings 156 and 158 are welded to the ends of the sleeve 151 at 153 and 155, respectively. The rings 154 are compressed between the cover rings 156 and 158 during assembly of the sleeve assembly 132, ensuring end face to face contact between adjacent rings 154.
The lower cover ring 158 is shown in greater detail in FIGS. 9 and 10. The internal diameter of the cover ring 158 is slightly greater than the external diameter of the support sleeve 142 so that it fits snugly about the support sleeve 142 as shown in FIG. 8. The cover ring 158 includes a short tubular body 160 whose outer diameter tapers inwardly at the lower end thereof to a flat planar circumferential surface 162 defining the lower or bottom end of the cover ring 158. The opposite end of the body 160 includes an upstanding cylindrical extension 164 whose outer diameter is slightly less than the inner diameter of the sleeve 151. A circumferential shoulder 166 provides an abutment surface for the sleeve 151 which is retained between the lower cover ring 158 and the upper cover ring 156. The sleeve 151 telescopes about and frictionally engages the extension 164 of the lower cover ring 158 and is welded thereto. Similarly, the opposite end of the sleeve 151 is welded to the upper cover ring 156, thereby completely enclosing the carbide rings 154 and forming a movable assembly of stacked rings 154 slidably along the blast joint 110.
The lower end of the body 160 of the cover ring 158 is slotted at 168 and 170 permitting access to the internal groove 172 formed in the body 160 as best shown in FIG. 9. The internal groove 172 cooperates with the external groove 148 formed on the support sleeve 142 to define a passage therebetween for receiving the retaining wire 152. The slots 168 and 170 permit convenient insertion or removal of the retaining wire 152 for locating the carbide ring assembly along the blast joint 110.
The blast join 110 described thus far comprises the uppermost tubing joint 112 including a cross-over sub 144 threaded on the pin end thereof. In FIG. 7B, a portion of the intermediate tubing joint 113 is shown. The intermediate tubing joint 113 is provided with a conventional buttress or other non-upset threaded coupling 176 for threadable connection to the pin end of the cross-over sub 144. The intermediate tubing joint 113 is enclosed by a series of carbide rings 130 much in the same manner as the tubing joint 112. A spring 178 is disposed about the tubing joint 113 in abutment with a shoulder 180 of the buttress coupling 176. A tungsten carbide guide ring 182 and a plurality of carbide rings 130 are slid about the tubing joint 113 and supported at the lower end thereof by a support sleeve 142 and a cross-over sub 144 in the same manner as described above regarding tubing joint 112. Any desired number of intermediate joints may be serially connected to provide a blast joint 110 of the required length. Each tubing joint is connected by a cross-over sub thereby eliminating flush joint connections and providing a blast joint whose tensile strength equals or exceeds the tensile strength of the complete tubing string.
The lowermost or bottom tubing joint 115, partially shown in FIG. 7C, is substantially identical to the intermediate tubing joint 113. That is, at the upper end thereof, the tubing joint 115 includes a similar buttress or non-upset coupling 176, compression spring 178, and carbide guide ring 182 as shown in FIG. 7B. A series of carbide rings 130 are carried on the bottom tubing joint 115 supported on a lower lock assembly comprising a bowl ring 184 and a slip ring 186 which is substantially identical to the upper lock assembly 126 on the tubing joint 112.
Referring now to FIGS. 12 and 13, a slip sleeve 390 which can be used with the present invention is shown. The slip sleeve 390 defines a tubular body journaled about the encased tubular member 113. The slip sleeve 390 is approximately eighteen inches to thirty-six inches in length and is retained about the tubular member 113 between the guide ring 182 and a running ring 183. The slip sleeve 390 may be located on the tubular members comprising the blast joint of the invention at any desired location where a gripping surface is required. Typically, the slip sleeve 390 is located below the coupling 145 so that when suspended in the well bore, the slip sleeve 190 presents a surface for engagement by the pipe slips 192 to support the blast joint in the well bore 114 so that the coupling 145 extends above the drill rig floor 392 for connection to the next tubing joint to form the multi-joint blast joint. The slip sleeve 390 is very sturdy and includes sufficient wall thickness so that it does not collapse upon application of lateral compressive force by the pipe slips 392. By an alternative embodiment, the slip sleeve 390 may include serrations formed on its exterior. Blast joints, particularly when formed of several joints, are extremely heavy. This tremendous load must be supported by the pipe slips 392 which grip the slip sleeve 390. The serrations aid in maintaining a secure gripping contact between the slip sleeve 390 and the pipe slips 392.
Problems associated with installing blast joints are overcome by using the base assembly 290 shown in FIGS. 14 and 15 during the installation process. The base assembly 290 includes a support base 292. A substantially cylindrical support column 294 extends upwardly from the support base 292 to a cap 296. The support column 294 is braced by a plurality of column braces 298 radially disposed about the support column 294. The column braces 298 extend from the support base 292 to the cap plate 296 forming a rigid radial support structure for the support column 294. The support column 294 is centrally located on the support base 292 and circumscribes a hole 200 formed in the support base 292. The cap plate 296 is substantially rectangular in shape and includes a hole 202 therethrough which is coaxially aligned with the axial passage of the support column 294 and the hole 200. The support column 294 is welded to the support base 292 and the cap plate 296 to form the base assembly 290 as shown in FIG. 14. The base assembly 290 is provided with a lateral slot permitting the blast joint 110 to be laterally received within the support column 294. the lateral slot in the support base 292 is defined by inwardly tapering shoulders 204 and 206 which form a guide for positioning the blast joint 110 in the support column 294.
Supported on the cap plate 296 is a tool support member comprising a pair of tool support plates 208 and 210 supported on the cap plate 296. The tool support plates 208 and 210 are provided with hinge blocks 212 for receiving a pivot rod 214 therethrough. The pivot rod 214 extends through each end of the cap plate 296 and through the hinge blocks 212 permitting the tool support plates 208 and 210 to rotate about the pivot rods 214 toward or away from the cap plate 296. Support handles 216 are provided for manually manipulating the tool support plates 208 and 210.
The tool support plates 208 and 210 are provided with semicircular recess which cooperate to define a tool support opening defined by circumferential wall 218 which terminates at an inwardly tapering shoulder 220. The profile presented by the wall 218 and shoulder 220 substantially matches the profile of the guide ring 282 which includes a tapered shoulder 222 for engagement with the shoulder 220 of the tool support member for suspending the blast joint 110 therefrom.
The base assembly 290 permits the installation of the blast joint 110 without cracking, chipping or otherwise subjecting the carbide rings to high localized compressive stresses. The tubing string 111 is installed in the usual manner. However, when the blast joint 110 is to be installed, the base plate 290 is positioned on the rotary table coaxially aligned with the tubing string 111. The bottom joint 115 of the blast joint 110 is raised from the platform floor and threaded to the tubing string joint suspended from the rotary table. The joint 115 is lowered in the well bore 114 through the base assembly 290. The diameter of the axial passage through the support column 294 is greater than the greatest diameter of the blast joint 110 so that the blast joint passes through the base assembly 290 without contacting the carbide rings 130. The blast joint member 115 and the tubing string 111 therebelow is then suspended from the base assembly 290 upon rotating the tool supports 208 and 210 to the closed positions that the guide ring 282 engages the shoulder 220.
The intermediate blast joint 113 is then raised from the platform floor and the pin end of the cross-over sub 144 is threaded to the coupling 276 of the joint 115 projecting above the base assembly 290. Recall that at this juncture, the carbide ring sleeve assembly 132 is retained above the support sleeve 142 providing adequate room for platform personnel to securely thread the intermediate joint 113 to the joint 115. Upon completion of the connection, the retaining wire 152 is removed and the carbide ring sleeve assembly 132 is lowered to the guide ring 282 and the retaining wire 152 is inserted in the receiving slot defined by the groove 274 on the guide ring 282 and the matching groove 272 on the lower cover ring 258. The intermediate joint 113 is then lifted slightly permitting the tool support plates 208 and 210 to the rotated away from the cap plate 296 so that the intermediate joint 113 may be lowered into the well bore 114. The above process is repeated for each subsequent joint forming the blast joint 110.
Referring to FIGS. 16 and 17, the installation procedure of a blast joint utilizing a slip sleeve is schematically shown. It will be observed that the lowermost joint 115 forming the blast joint 110 is supported in the well bore 114 by the pipe slips 392 which engage the slip sleeve 390 and are supported by the drill rig floor 393 as shown. The upper end of the tubing joint 115 projects above the drill rig floor 393. The pipe coupling 145 is exposed and may be gripped by the power tongs for making up the connection with the next joint forming the blast joint 110. The intermediate tubing joint is suspended above the drill rig floor 393 in the customary fashion for connection to the tubing joint 112 supported in the well bore 114. In this regard, rig personnel make the connection in the usual manner using the customary rig equipment for making a connection between two joints. That is, power tongs are typically used to engage the cross-over sub 144 and couplings 145 to make the connection.
In FIG. 17, the connection between the two joints has been completed. Prior to removing the pipe slips 392, the coupling shield 32 is lowered about the cross-over sub 144 and coupling 145. The coupling shield 32 is locked to the guide ring 182 in the manner described above to provide a protective shield about the cross-over sub 144 and coupling 145. Once the coupling shield 32 is locked in position, the blast joint string is lifted slightly and the pipe slips 392 are removed. The blast joint string is then lowered into the well bore 114 and supported therein again by engagement of the pipe slips 392 about the slip sleeve journaled about the blast joint tubing 113.
The use of the centralizer 2 of the present invention with these blast joint designs is accomplished by placing an oversized ring 38 at the point immediately below the preferred location of the centralizer. The first oversize ring 38 can be placed either abutting other carbide rings 30 or at the lower most end of a blast joint assembly immediately above the lower locking assembly. Once the first oversize ring 38 is placed on the blast joint, a sufficient number of standard blast joint rings 30 will then be placed in direct abutment to the first oversized ring which will allow for the continued enclosure of the tubing 34. The number of rings 30 should be sufficient to surround same area of the production tubing 34 that will be surrounded by the centralizer 2. The centralizer is then placed over these rings and a second oversized ring 38 is placed in direct abutment to the rings 30 which are located within the circumference of the centralizer 2. Additional rings 30 can be placed about the tubing for any extended length desired.
When the present invention is utilized either in a blast joint configuration or alone, it maintains the production tubing in a generally central location in relation to the casing production tubing 34 and 36 in a generally central location with respect to the casing 40. Once the tubing has been run downhole, it normally will remain in the same general position for a significant period of time, possibly years. On occasion, a buildup of undesirable settlement, including sand, dirt or the like, can accumulate around the blast joint or tubing and possibly the centralizer. When this occurs, the buildup can become so great that the tubing cannot be moved from its present location.
When this occurs and the tubing needs to be moved for purposes of making adjustments or alterations with the well or reworking the well when the tubing is completely removed, the sediment must be removed in order to allow freedom of movement before the tubing. This is normally accomplished with what is known as a wash pipe. As in FIG. 5, a wash pipe 51 or rotary shoe generally surrounds the production tubing and any blast joints utilized thereon to remove any buildup of sediment or the like. Obviously, once the wash pipe or shoe comes in contact with the centralizer, the design of the present invention allows for the segmented portions 18 of the stress risers 12 extending outwardly from the centralizer 2 to be sheared off to such an extent so as to allow the wash pipe to continue down the circumference of the production tubing 34. The wash pipe can then be run to any desired length downhole to remove any sediment buildup and removed to allow for adjustment or removal of the production tubing and/or blast joint altogether.
While the present invention, both apparatus and method, have been described with specific embodiments thereof, in light of the foregoing description, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, this patent is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as falls in the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.
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The present invention utilizes a centralizer having a plurality of segmented stress risers. The segmented stress risers are designed to allow sufficient strength to maintain the tubing in a centralized downhole location, while to allow for the stress relief grooves to be sheared off when a wash pipe or similar device is utilized to clean out any unwanted build up of material or deposits in the borehole. Once the segments have been sheared off they can be circulated out of borehole.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a concentration measuring structure, particularly a concentration measuring device capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature and determining fluid concentration by detecting change in optical properties of the fluid.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Conventional fluid measuring devices perform measurement based on the physical characteristics of fluid, such as concentration, density or quantity. General fluid measuring devices are sizable and complex in structure, and hence are more costly. However there is increasingly market demand for small-size and low-cost products. Take the example of fuel cell system, its applications in portable electronic devices are gaining grounds. In a fuel cell system that uses hydrogen-rich fuel (e.g. methanol) and oxygen fuel to undergo electrochemical reaction and output power, it is necessary for users to know when to replenish the fuel when fluid concentration or level becomes low. Thus it is necessary to detect the fluid fuel level and volume in the fuel container. Such detection work is typically achieved through expensive metering sensor, which is rather uneconomical when used extensively in portable electrical products.
[0003] The core of conventional fuel cells lies in the use of hydrogen-rich fluid (e.g. methanol) and oxygen fluid to undergo electrochemical reaction. In the applications of such fuel cells, it is necessary for users to know when to replenish the fuel when fluid concentration or level becomes low. Detection of fluid concentration in the fuel container is typically achieved through expensive metering sensor, which is rather uneconomical when used extensively in portable electrical products. In addition, in the electrochemical reaction of a fuel cell system, variations of fuel temperature along with the progression of the electrochemical reaction might result in measurement errors.
[0004] In light of the drawbacks of conventional concentration measuring devices, the inventor aims to develop a concentration measuring structure that meets the current demands.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The primary object of the invention is to provide a concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature by equaling the fluid temperature in the concentration detector and the fuel cell so as to reduce measurement error caused by temperature difference.
[0006] Another object of the invention is to provide a concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature and featuring a flow channel which helps reduce the generation of fluid bubbles and helps eliminate the aggregation of fluid bubbles.
[0007] A further object of the invention is to provide a concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature and featuring light-condensing element to adjust the light path and thereby cut down light loss.
[0008] To achieve the aforesaid objects, the present invention provides a concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature, comprising a casing in hollow configuration and having an accommodation space, the accommodation space having thereon two opposing bumps; a fluid inlet orifice being configured on a side surface of the casing such that the accommodation space communicates with the exterior; a fluid outlet orifice configured on the other side surface of the casing such that the accommodation space communicates with the exterior and configured at a horizontal level higher than the fluid inlet orifice; a light source device disposed on one of the bumps; and a light sensing device disposed on the other bump and comprising a light sensor capable of converting optical signal into electric signal. The electric signal is an electrical signal output by the light sensor corresponding to the intensity of the optical signal under the illumination of light source. As such, the fluid temperature in concentration detector and in fuel cell reaches an equal state to prevent measurement error caused by temperature difference.
[0009] The objects, features and effects of the invention are described in detail below with embodiments in reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature according to the invention;
[0011] FIG. 2 is an assembly view of the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature according to the invention;
[0012] FIG. 3 is a sectional view along 3 - 3 in FIG. 2 ; and
[0013] FIG. 4 is a sectional view along 404 in FIG. 2 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0014] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature according to the invention. FIG. 2 is an assembly view of the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature according to the invention. As shown, the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature comprises a casing ( 10 ) provided with a fluid inlet orifice ( 12 ), a fluid outlet orifice ( 14 ), a light source device ( 16 ), and a light sensing device ( 18 ) thereon. An embodiment of the invention is described in detail below.
[0015] The casing ( 10 ) consists of a lid body ( 100 ) and a box body ( 101 ). The lid body ( 100 ) and the box body ( 101 ) respectively have a first beveled guide face ( 102 ) and a second beveled guide face ( 103 ), the two beveled guide faces having the same gradient. The casing ( 10 ) has a hollow configuration with an accommodation space ( 104 ) for accommodating fluid. The accommodation space ( 104 ) is provided thereon two opposing bumps, being the first bump ( 105 ) and the second bump ( 106 ) respectively. The interior of the two bumps ( 105 , 106 ) is respectively provided with a groove, being the first groove ( 107 ) and the second groove ( 108 ). The two grooves further communicate with the outer surface at the bottom of the box body ( 101 ) (as shown in FIG. 3 ).
[0016] The fluid inlet orifice ( 12 ) is configured on one side surface of the box body ( 101 ) and allows the accommodation space ( 104 ) to communicate with the exterior.
[0017] The fluid outlet orifice ( 14 ) is configured on the other side surface of the box body ( 101 ) and allows the accommodation space ( 104 ) to communicate with the exterior. The fluid outlet orifice ( 14 ) is positioned at a horizontal level higher than the fluid inlet orifice ( 12 ) (as shown in FIG. 4 ).
[0018] The light source device ( 16 ) is disposed on the first bump ( 105 ), whereas the light sensing device ( 18 ) is disposed on the second bump ( 106 ). The light sensing device ( 18 ) comprises a light sensor ( 180 ) capable of converting optical signal into electric signal. The electric signal is an electrical signal output by the light sensor ( 180 ) corresponding to the intensity of the optical signal under the illumination of light source.
[0019] After the lid body ( 100 ) overlays the box body ( 101 ), fluid can enter the accommodation space ( 104 ) inside the casing ( 10 ) from the fluid inlet orifice ( 12 ) and be discharged from the fluid outlet orifice ( 14 ). Because the horizontal level of the fluid outlet orifice ( 14 ) is higher than that of the fluid inlet orifice ( 12 ), the first bump ( 105 ) and the second bump ( 106 ) are most likely completely immersed in the fluid, which could reduce the effect of environmental temperature. In addition, the first beveled guide face ( 102 ) and the second beveled guide face ( 103 ) allow the smooth flow of fluid to prevent the generation of bubbles.
[0020] The light source device ( 16 ) selects the source of light from infrared light, visible light or single-wavelength light for the production of a light beam. The light source device ( 16 ) can be coupled with a light-condensing element ( 160 ) arranged on the same bump ( 105 ) as the light source device ( 16 ). The light-condensing element ( 160 ) turns the divergent light beam generated by the light source device ( 16 ) into parallel light beam to converge the energy of light beam. The parallel light beam can penetrate the fluid in the accommodation space ( 104 ) of the casing ( 10 ) where part of the light beam energy is absorbed by the fluid while the remaining energy is incident on the light sensor ( 180 ) of the light sensing device ( 18 ), such as a photosensitive element which would convert the optical signal received by the light sensor ( 180 ) into a corresponding electric signal. Finally a computing device (not shown in the figure), such as a microprocessor is used to compute based on the electric signal to obtain the concentration of fluid in the accommodation space ( 104 ).
[0021] The part of the accommodation space ( 104 ) of the casing ( 10 ) corresponding to the light beam emitted by the light source device ( 16 ) and another part where the light sensor ( 180 ) receives the light beam are light transmittable, while the remaining parts of the casing ( 10 ) are non-light transmittable, hence preventing external light from interfering with the optical signals received by the light sensor ( 180 ).
[0022] To sum up, the concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature provided by the invention employs the arrangement of a concentration detector in the fluid communication space to reduce the measurement error caused by the effect of environmental temperature. Thus the invention possesses an inventive step and meets the essential criteria for patent application.
[0023] The present invention has been described in detail. However the description presents only a preferred embodiment of the invention, hence should not be construed as a limitation on the actual applicable scope of the invention, and as such, all modifications and alterations without departing from the spirits of the invention and appended claims shall remain within the protected scope and claims of the invention.
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A concentration measuring structure capable of reducing the effect of environmental temperature features the arrangement of a concentration detector in the fluid communication space of a fluid circulating device in a fuel cell system to let the fluids in the concentration detector and the fuel cell achieve equal temperature, thereby reducing measurement error caused by the effect of environmental temperature.
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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SUPPORTED RESEARCH
This invention was made with government support under Grant No. DK 39721 awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIDDK). The government may have certain rights in the invention.
This application claims priority from provisional application Ser. No. 60/062,335, filed Oct. 15, 1997.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to blockade of the 12(S)-HETE cell surface receptor as a treatment for conditions of the body which result from stimulation or overstimulation of the receptor. 12(S)-HETE, a product of the 12-lipoxygenase pathway, mediates the hyperproliferative and inflammatory responses present in such diseases as atherosclerosis, psoriasis, diabetes, and cancer. 12(S)-HETE also mediates inflammatory responses and cell death in some cell types, particularly pancreatic islet beta cells and nerve cells. Blockade of the 12(S)-HETE receptor ameliorates the symptoms and arrests the mitogenic cellular responses.
2. Background
Lipoxygenases (LO) are metabolic enzymes which catalyze the stereospecific oxygenation of polyunsaturated fatty acids to hydroperoxy fatty acids (Hamberg et al., J. Biol. Chem. 242:5329-5335 (1967)). The physiological function of 12-LO, the mammalian enzyme which catalyzes the oxygenation of arachidonic acid to (S)-12-hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12-HPETE) and (S)-12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12(S)-HETE), is unclear. 12-LO exists as two isoforms which are the products of different genes, leukocyte-type 12-LO and platelet-type 12-LO, which share 65% homology at the amino acid level (Izumi et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA 87:7477-7481 (1990); Funk et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87:5638-5642 (1990)). The products of the 12-LO pathway, such as 12(S)-HETE, have been shown to play important roles in diseases such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, and cancer. 12(S)-HETE has direct mitogenic and hypertrophic effects in vascular cells. It is also a potent chemoattractant for vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) and can activate oncogenes such as c-fos and ras and key growth-related kinases such as mitogen-activated protein kinases (ERK, JNK, PAK, p38) and protein kinase C. New results also indicate that 12(S)-HETE can directly increase monocyte binding. Human aortic endothelial cells incubated with 12(S)-HETE for four hours prior to monocyte adhesion assays resulted in an average increase of 3-fold (range of 1.5-5 fold) in monocyte binding as compared to untreated cells. In addition, glucose-induced monocyte adhesion was abrogated by the inhibition of 12-LO using both phenidone, a non-specific LO inhibitor, and baicalein, a more specific 12-LO inhibitor. The adhesion caused by 12-LO products appears to be monocyte-specific.
The 12-LO pathway is activated in pancreatic islets by cytokines and may participate in islet cell destruction. In inflammatory diseases, this pathway plays crucial roles in transmitting distinctive signals within the cell. Using inhibitors of the 12-LO enzyme pathway, researchers have been able to prevent inflammation and cellular damage. Furthermore, VSMC cultured under high glucose (HG) conditions produce increased amounts of 12(S)-HETE (Natarajan et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90:4947-4951 (1993). Thus, this pathway may be key to the accelerated cardiovascular disease observed in diabetes.
The LO pathway also plays a role in the growth-promoting effects of angiotensin II (AII) and in the chemotactic effects of platelet-derived growth factor: the products of the 12-LO pathway, and 12(S)-HETE in particular, are associated with the hypertrophic, hyperplastic, and mitogenic effects induced by AII. Wen et al., 271 Am. J. Physiol. (40 Cell Physiol.) C1212-C1220 (1996); (Natarajan et al., Hypertension 23:I142-I147 (1994)). The proliferative effects of AII are inhibited by baicalein, a LO inhibitor. The mitogenic effects of 12(S)-HETE are similar to those of AII and are abrogated by pertussis toxin, implicating a G-protein mechanism. The 12-LO enzyme pathway is known to generate proinflammatory mediators in a variety of cells (O. R. Etingin et al., J. Lipid Res. 31:299-305 (1990); V. A. Folcik and M. K. Cathcart J. Lipid Res. 34:69-79 (1993)). Human and rat pancreatic B-cells specifically express active leukocyte type 12-LO (V. P. Shannon et al., Am. J. Physiol. 263:E828-E836 (1992): D. S. Bleich et al., Endocrinol. 136:5736-5744 (1995)). Recent evidence implicates products of the 12-LO pathway in nerve cell death associated with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other inflammatory nerve cell conditions (Neuron 19:453-463 (1997)).
Because 12(S)-HETE has several biological effects linked to cellular growth in vascular smooth muscle and cardiac fibroblasts (Natarajan et al., Hypertension 23:I142-I147 (1994); Wen et al., Am. J. Physiol. 211:C1212-C1220 (1996)), it is implicated in the etiology of cardiovascular disease. Further evidence that 12(S)-HETE is responsible for the cellular responses seen in cardiovascular disease in diabetic patients includes the fact that monocyte binding to cultured human aortic endothelial cells increases in chronic high glucose conditions, and that this is coincident with increased formation of LO products such as 12(S)-HETE. (Kim et al., Diabetes 43:1103-1107 (1994)). Furthermore, treatment of aortic endothelial cells with 12(S)-HETE increases monocyte binding, likely by stimulating JNK activity and inducing CS-1. 12(S)-HETE can also stimulate vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene expression in vascular smooth muscle (Am. J. Physiol. 273: H2224-H2231 (1997)). VEGF has been linked to angiogenesis in diabetic retinopathy, tumor growth and atherosclerotic vascular disease. 12(S)-HETE is also regarded as a mediator of inflammation and hyperproliferation of the skin (Arenberger et al., Skin Pharmacol. 6:148-151 (1993); Gross et al., J. Invest. Dermatol. 94:446-451 (1990)) and is therefore implicated in skin diseases. 12(S)-HETE has been shown to enhance tumor cell adhesion to endothelial cells. (Honn et al., Cancer Metastasis Rev. 13:365-396 (1994)). 12(S)-HETE can directly increase p21 activated kinase (PAK). The effect appears to be through activation of small GTP binding proteins such as RAC and through activation of PI3K.
The precise mechanisms of 12(S)-HETE action are not clear, however recent studies have shown that the LO product, 12(S)-HETE, activates c-jun amino terminal kinase (JNK) (Wen et al., Circ. Res. 81:651-655 (1997)). JNK is a small GTP-binding protein and a member of the MAP kinase family which is involved in cellular growth, inflammation, and apoptosis (Force et al., Circ. Res. 78:947-953 (1994)) and in cell cycle progression through G 1 (Olson et al., Science 269:1270-1272 (1995)). Evidence shows that JNK can serve as a positive or negative modulator of cell growth in different cells. Olson et al., 269 Science 1270-1272 (1995); Yan et al., 372 Nature 798-800 (1994). 12(S)-HETE activation of JNK may also be the mediator of cytokine-induced pancreatic B-cell damage (Bleich et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 230:448-451 (1997)).
Newer evidence indicates that the growth factor and potent vasoconstrictor AII, linked to type-1 receptor activation, can activate JNK and PAK (Wen et al., Circ. Res. 81:651-655 (1997); Schmitz et al., Circ. Res. 82:1272-1278 (1998)). Furthermore, AII can modulate serum deprivation-induced apoptosis by increasing JNK activity in vascular smooth muscle cells, Sueror et al., Circulation, Supp. 1, I-281 (1994), mediated by lipids derived from the 12-LO pathway, such as 12(S)-HETE. This indicates that 12-LO products participate in JNK activation at least in part through G 1 -protein signaling. The ability of pertussis toxin to block the activation of JNK by 12(S)-HETE also supports the theory that 12(S)-HETE is a mediator of AII-induced JNK activation through a G 1 -mediated pathway.
While several studies have demonstrated the potent biological effects of lipoxygenase products, the mechanisms of action of these effects are not known. Some reports have hinted at the presence of 12(S)-HETE receptors on transformed cells. Binding sites for 12(S)-HETE have been detected in carcinoma cells (Herbertsson and Hammarstrom, FEBS 298:249-252 (1992), on melanoma cells (Liu et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92:9323-9327 (1995), and in a human epidermal cell line (Gross et al., J. Invest. Dermatol. 94:446-451 (1990); Suss et al., Exptl. Cell Res. 191(2):204-208 (1990)).
The 12(S)-HETE receptors described in carcinoma cells are cytosolic receptors (Herbertsson and Hammarstrom, Biochem. Biophys. Acta 1244:191-197 (1995)), activation of which may mediate 12(S)-HETE induced mRNA production of genes coding for the integrin α IIb β 3 (Chang et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 176:108-113 (1991)). The localization of this receptor is different from plasma cell membrane receptors coupled to a G-protein and acting through second messengers. 12(S)-HETE receptors on the cell surface of murine melanoma cells have been described. These receptors stimulate the second messengers diacylglycerol and inositol phosphate 3 via a G-protein mechanism, resulting in protein kinase C 2 activation. (Liu et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92:9323-9327 (1995)). The binding of 12(S)-HETE to these receptors was blocked by 13(s)-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid, a LO metabolite of linoleic acid, ablating the 12(S)-HETE increased adhesion of the cells to fibronectin. These authors suggest 12(S)-HETE may act in a "cytokine" fashion to regulate responses of adjacent tumor cells, endothelial cells, and platelets.
Receptors for 15-HETE have been identified in mast/basophil (PT-18) cells and were shown to possess properties of G-protein-coupled receptors (Vonakis and Vanderhoek, J. Biol. Chem. 267:23625-23631 (1992). Specific binding of 15-HETE to these receptors stimulated 5-LO, and while 12(S)-HETE was found to be an effective competitor of [ 3 H]15-HETE binding to PT-18 cells, suggesting that 12(S)-HETE binds to the specific 15-HETE receptor, the binding of 12(S)-HETE did not stimulate the lipoxygenase. Very recent studies have indicated the activation of a cell surface G-protein-coupled 5-HETE receptor in neutrophils (Capadici et al., J. Clin. Invest. 102:165-175 (1998)).
The high affinity 12(S)-HETE-specific receptors in a human epidermal carcinoma cell line were induced by γ-IFN (Gross et al., J. Invest. Dermatol. 94:446-451 (1990)). Saturation binding of 12(S)-HETE to these receptors did not stimulate cell growth, therefore, the function of these receptors in the skin is entirely speculative, and not related to the AII-induced cellular effects mediated by cell surface 12(S)-HETE receptors in fibroblasts overexpressing the AII receptor and potentially in vascular smooth muscle cells. Two recent studies have indicated two additional agents which could reduce 12(S)-HETE binding (Kemeny and Ruzicka, Agents Actions 32:339-342 (1991); Kemeny et al., Arch. Dermatol. Res. 283:333-336 (1991)).
Specific inhibitors of 12-LO have been described. Gorins et al., J. Med. Chem. 39:4871-4878 (1996). In that study, a series of substituted (carboxyalkyl)benzyl ethers were found to be selective inhibitors of leukocyte-type 12-LO. These inhibitors of 12-LO acted by serving as structural analogs for the enzyme. Gorins et al., J. Med. Chem. 39:4871-4878 (1996). The 5-LO inhibitor, 2-phenylmethyl-1-naphthol (DuP654), has also been shown to specifically inhibit binding of 12(S)-HETE to receptors on the human epidermal cell line SCL-II. Arenberger et al., Skin Pharmacol 6:148-151 1993).
In vivo, inhibition of 12-LO has lowered blood pressure in several models of hypertensive animals, including rats (Stern et al., Am. J. Physiol. 257:H434-H443 (1989); Nozawa et al., Am. J. Physiol. 259:H1447-H1780 (1990)). In addition, blockage of 12-LO activity has alleviated the growth-factor induced effects of 12-HETE in vascular cells. This, along with the known increased expression of 12-LO observed in animal models of diabetes (Gu et al., Am. Diabet. Assoc. Meeting (1996); Natarajan et al., Intl. Aldosterone Meeting (1998)) and diabetes induced accelerated atherosclerosis (Gerrity et al., Circulation I175 (1997)) strongly implicate 12-HETE and the 12-LO pathway in the etiology of these diseases. The harmful effects of 12-LO activation are ameliorated by blocking the production of 12(S)-HETE, providing the rationale for a method of treatment which focusses on preventing 12(S)-HETE binding to its receptor.
There is currently no inhibitor of 12(S)-HETE receptor binding in clinical use. Due to the existence of several isoforms of 12-LO, blockage of the 12-HETE receptor is a more specific and direct way to correct a disease state in which there is increased production of 12(S)-HETE or the receptors are up-regulated. This invention therefore, could provide the basis for the development of interventions to reduce cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method of inhibiting the effects of the LO product 12(S)-HETE by blocking 12(S)-HETE receptors comprising the administration of an effective amount of a 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist or an antibody directed against a cell surface 12(S)-HETE receptor. The blockade of 12(S)-HETE receptors provides a means for ameliorating the proliferative and mitogenic effects of glucose, PDGF or AII-induced 12(S)-HETE production, or direct effects of 12(S)-HETE inflammatory actions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 depicts the binding of tritiated 12(S)-HETE and DuP654 to CHO-AT 1a cells at increasing concentrations of unlabeled 12(S).HETE.
FIG. 2 shows a competitive binding curve of tritiated and unlabeled 12(S)-HETE with CHO-AT 1a cells.
FIG. 3 shows the effect of the 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist, DuP654, on AII- and 12(S)-HETE-induced growth in CHO-AT 1a cells.
FIG. 4 shows the effect of three agents which bind to CHO-AT 1a cells, DuP654(a 12(s)HETE receptor antagonist), Losartan (a specific AII 1a receptor antagonist) and pertussis toxin, relative to 12(S)-HETE effects. Inhibition of labeled 12(S)-HETE binding sites on AT 1a Σ and At 1a 27 (2 cloned overexpressing AT 1a ) cells are shown and pSV neo mock transfected cells.
FIG. 5 shows the effect of Losartan on AII and 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenesis in CHO-AT 1a cells.
FIG. 6 shows the mitogenic effects of AII and 12(S)-HETE on Psv neo mock transfected cells, AT 1a expressing cells and AT 1b expressing cells.
FIG. 7 shows the time course of PAK activation by 12(S)-HETE (10 -7 M) in CHO-AT 1a cells.
FIG. 8 shows the inhibitory effect of transient transfection of CHO-AT 1a cells by a PBD plasmid on 12(S)-HETE-induced PAK activation.
FIG. 9 is a representative autoradiogram of phosphorylated MBP bands demonstrating inhibition of 12(S)-HETE induced PAK activity by the PI 3-kinase inhibitor, LY294002.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Angiotensin II (AII) has been shown to stimulate, through the AII AT, receptor, 12-LO activity in murine macrophages, Scheidegger et al., J. Biol. Chem. 272:21609-21615 (1997), and in smooth muscle cells, Natarajan et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA 90:4947-4951 (1993); Kim et al., Atherosclerol. Thromb. Vasc. Biol. 15:942-948 (1995). Stimulation of the 12-LO pathway in murine macrophages resulted in an increase of monocyte chemotaxis (Scheidegger et al., (in press, 1997)), presumably through modification of LDL. This activity links AII activation of 12-LO to atherosclerotic disease.
The potential mechanisms of AII-induced mitogenic effects in a Chinese hamster ovary fibroblast cell line overexpressing the rat vascular type 1a AII (AT 1a ) receptor have recently been examined. See Wen et al Am. J. Physiol. 270 (Cell Physiol. 40): C1212-C1220 (1996). AII had mitogenic effects in these cells, leading to a sustained increase in DNA synthesis as well as cell number. It was also observed in these cells that the 12-lipoxygenase product, 12(S)-HETE, also had direct mitogenic effects in these cells. See Wen et al., Am. J. Physiol. 270 (Cell Physiol. 40): C1212-C1220 (1996). Furthermore, 12(S)-HETE did not have any mitogenic effects in mock transfected cells. The addition of 12(S)-HETE to these CHO-AT 1a cells led to a significant increase in the activity of the key growth-related kinases, mitogen activated protein kinase (Wen et al., Am. J. Physiol. 270 (Cell Physiol. 40): C1212-C1220 (1996)), and c-jun amino terminal kinase (Wen et al., Circ. Res. 81:651-655 (1997)). This work has suggested that over expression of the AT 1a receptor plays a role in inducing a putative 12(S)-HETE receptor, which is supported by the observation that the mitogenic effects of 12(S)-HETE were completely abrogated by pretreatment of the cells with pertussis toxin. Thus, the effects of 12(S)-HETE may be mediated by a Gi protein-coupled receptor. See example 3, below. Application of AII to CHO-AT 1a cells resulted in a 2-fold increase in 12(S)-HETE formation and cell proliferation. These proliferative effects were inhibited by the 12-LO inhibitor, baicalein.
In accordance with the present invention, a 12-HETE receptor has been discovered and characterized. For the first time, a specific high affinity 12(S)-HETE receptor has been identified. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) fibroblasts that stably overexpress the rat vascular angiotensin type la receptor (CHO-AT 1a ) have been found to carry this receptor. This receptor is not present in mock transfected cells. Experiments have been performed which indicate that this receptor has characteristics of a G-protein coupled receptor. Furthermore, there is evidence of crosstalk between this receptor and the AT 1b receptor, since a specific antagonist, Losartan, was able to partially block the binding of 12(S)-HETE to the cells and also blocked the mitogenic effects of 12(S)-HETE. Furthermore, a 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist blocked 12(S)-HETE mitogenic effects and partially blocked AII mitogenic effects. Increased actions of vasoactive and growth promoting agents, such as angiotensin II, under pathologic conditions may up-regulate 12(S)-HETE receptors. Hence, further studies of this receptor in vascular and other cells, as well as the development of specific receptor antagonists, are expected to be therapeutically important.
It has also been found that hyperglycemic conditions result in both increased monocyte binding to human aortic endothelial cells (HAEC) and increased 12(S)-HETE and 15-HETE activity. Neutrophil binding is not increased. In HAEC incubated in vitro with 12-LO products, increased monocyte binding, JNK activation, and induction of CS-1 fibronectin were detected, suggesting that the upregulation of 12-LO activity seen in hyperglycemia may exacerbate atherosclerosis by stimulating adhesion of monocytes through JNK activation and CS-1 production. For example, monocytes inabated with 10 -7 M 12(S)-HETE for 12 minutes at room temperature or at 37° C. prior to monocyte adhesion assay demonstrated increased adhesion over untreated cells. See Example 10.
Blockade of 12(S)-HETE receptor binding therefore is a new method of treating disorders associated with increased 12-lipoxygenase expression and activity. These diseases include atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, glucose and diabetes-induced complications, cytokine-induced inflammatory cellular effects, and tumor cell growth and metastasis.
The kinetics of radioactive [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE binding to these cells at 4° C. have been examined. These studies have revealed the presence of specific high affinity binding sites for 12(S)-HETE on these cells. Specificity was determined by the observation that this binding of tritiated 12(S)-HETE was displaced by unlabeled 12(S)-HETE. A one site fit model yielded a Kd of 38.4 nM. See Example 1. The binding kinetics of [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE have revealed the presence of specific high affinity 12(S)-HETE binding sites on CHO-AT 1 cells, but not in mock transfected cells; these results suggest that AII-induced mitogenic effects involve the production of reactive oxygen species and LO products via activation of G-protein-coupled receptors.
DuP654 could completely inhibit 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenic effects. DuP654 significantly reduced cell growth induced by either AII or 12(S)-HETE at a concentration of 0.1 μM. Tritiated 12(S)-HETE binding was also blocked by pertussis toxin (FIG. 3). Pertussis toxin has been shown to ablate 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenic effects (Wen et al., Am. J. Physiol. 270 (Cell Physiol. 40): C1212-C1220 (1996)), implicating the involvement of a G 1 protein-coupled receptor. Losartan, a specific angiotensin AT 1a receptor antagonist now in clinical use for the treatment of hypertension, partially blocked tritiated 12(S)-HETE binding (FIG. 4). Similarly, it partially blocked 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenic effects in these CHO-AT 1a cells, while fully inhibiting AII-induced proliferative effects (FIG. 5). 12(S)-HETE had mitogenic effects only in CHO-AT 1a cells, but not in mock transfected cells (pSVneo), nor in CHO cells overexpressing the angiotensin AT1b receptor (FIG. 6).
This invention involves a method for inhibiting the effects of 12(S)-HETE by administration of an effective amount of a 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist. The method is useful for the treatment or prophylaxis of conditions in which 12(S)-HETE receptor activation contributes to adverse effects. For example, the method of this invention may be employed for the treatment or prophylaxis of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, glucose-induced complications of diabetes, cytokine-induced inflammatory diseases and tumor cell growth and metastasis.
The 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist may be any agent that blocks or significantly inhibits binding of 12(S)-HETE to its receptor. Such agents include DuP654 (2-phenylmethyl-1-napthol), Losartan (2-N-butyl-4-chloro-5-hydroxymethyl-1-[(2'-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)biphenyl-4-yl)methyl]imidazole, potassium salt), pertussis toxin, 12(S)-HETE analogs, peptides and peptide analogs having affinity for the binding site on the 12(S)-HETE receptor (especially antibodies which can block 12(S)-HETE receptors), antibodies to the 12(S)-HETE receptor, and the like.
The determination of appropriate, well-tolerated dosage forms for administration to humans for use in the present invention is within the ordinary skill in the art. Such dosage forms include tablets, capsules, syrups, suspensions, drops, injectable solutions, lozenges, implants, transdermal patches, and other dosage forms well known in the art for enteral or parenteral administration. Based on in vitro experiments on the effect of 12(S)-HETE blocking drugs on 12(S)-HETE binding, a dose of between about 0.5 and about 30 mg/kg/day would be effective in blocking 12(S)-HETE receptors in humans in vivo, and preferably from about 1 to about 10 mg/kg/day.
The present invention is further illustrated by the following examples, which are not intended to be limiting.
EXAMPLES
Example 1
Kinetics of [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE binding to CHO-AT 1a cells. FIGS. 1 and 2 are a competition curves which examine the specificity of [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE binding. CHO-AT 1a cells were grown to confluence in 24 well tissue culture dishes in HAM's F12 medium containing 10% fetal calf serum. The cells were then rinsed and placed in fresh medium, HAM's F12/HEPES with no other additives (450 u1 per well). Serial dilutions of unlabeled 12(S)-HETE or DuP654 were added to the wells. Commercial unlabeled 12(S)-HETE (BioMol Corp.) was dried and reconstituted in ethanol to obtain a stock solution of 5 mM. DuP654 was dissolved in DMSO to get a stock solution of 5 mM. These were then serially diluted and added in a volume of 1 u1 to the wells to obtain the final concentrations indicated. Then [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE (10,000 cpm in a volume of 50 u1 per well) was added from a stock solution obtained by adding the tracer to the medium. The plates were then incubated at 4° C. with continuous shaking for 2 hr. The cells were then washed 2 times with cold PBS and lysed in 0.3N NaOH (200 u1). Radioactivity in the cell lysates was quantitated in scintillation counter. Affinities and binding constants were obtained using Matlab computer software (Mlab, Civilized Software Inc., Bethesda, Md.).
This experiment revealed the presence of specific high affinity binding sites for 12(S)-HETE on these cells. A one site fit model yielded a Kd of 38.4 nM. Specificity was determined by the observation that this binding of [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE was displaced by unlabeled 12(S)-HETE.
Example 2
Reduction of cell growth induced by AII or 12(S)-HETE.
DuP654 significantly reduced cell growth induced by either AII or 12(S)-HETE at a concentration of 0.1 μM. Complete inhibition of 12(S)-HETE induced mitogenic effects was seen. See FIG. 3.
Example 3
Blockade of the 12(S)-HETE receptor by a specific antagonist.
Tritrated 12(S)-HETE binding is blocked by unlabeled 12(S)-HETE. See FIG. 4. DuP654, a 12(S)-HETE receptor antagonist, was shown also to block 12(S)-HETE at a concentration of 0.1 μM in both AT 1a Σ and AT 1a 27 cell types, two clones of CHO cells which overexpress the AII 1a receptor. See FIG. 4. The cells were grown as described in Example 1.
Example 4
Blockade of 12(S)-HETE binding by pertussis toxin. Cells were grown as described in Example 1. Prior to addition of drug (12(S)-HETE or DuP654) to the cells, the cultures were preincubated in HAM's F12 medium +0.1% BSA for two hours at 37° C. with or without 100 ng/ml pertussis toxin. Serial dilutions of unlabeled 12(S)-HETE or DuP654 were added, followed by [ 3 H]12(S)-HETE as described for Example 1. After incubation and washing, radioactivity in the cell lysates was quantitated. See FIG. 4. As discussed above, pertussis toxin could also ablate 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenic effects. This implicates the involvement of a G i -protein-coupled receptor.
Example 5
Partial blockade of 12(S)-HETE mitogensis by the specific angiotensin AT 1a receptor antagonist, Losartan, in CHO-AT 1a cells. (FIG. 5) CHO-AT 1a cells were plated in 12-well dishes (about 5-10,000 cells per well) for 24 hr. in growth medium consisting of HAM's, F12+10% FCS. They were then serum depleted for 72 hours by replacing the medium with HAM's F12+0.1% BSA. This medium was then freshly replaced along with AII or 12-HETE (0.1 μM each) prior to addition of drug to the cells. Losartan was added as a solution in water to the cells 15 min. prior to the addition of AII or 12-HETE. The final concentration of Losartan was as indicated in FIG. 4. Fresh medium containing the same concentrations of AII or 12(S)-HETE plus Losartan was replaced every 48 hours. At the end of 8 days, the medium was removed, and 1 ml trypsin was added per well followed by 1 ml isoton after 3 min. These trypsinized cells were counted on a Coulter counter. Losartan partially blocked 12(S)-HETE-induced mitogenic effects and fully blocked AII-induced proliferative effects. See FIG. 5). Losartan also partially blocked [ 3 H] 12-HETE binding (FIG. 4).
Example 6
Dependency of 12(S)-HETE mitogenic effects on expression of the AT 1 a receptor.
The three cell lines, CHO-AT 1a , CHO-AT 1b and mock transfected CHO cells were gifts from Dr. Eric Clauser (Inserm Unit, Paris, France). These cells were plated in 12 well dishes in HAM's F12 medium +10% FCS. After 72 hours serum depletion in HAM's F12+0.05% FCS, the cells were treated with AII or 12(S)-HETE (0.1 μM). Cells counts (after trypsinization) were taken at 48 hour intervals and fresh medium along with AII or 12-HETE added at these 48 hour intervals. 12(S)-HETE had mitogenic effects only in CHO-AT 1a cells, but not in mock transfected cells (pSVneo), nor in CHO cells overexpressing the angiotensin AT 1b receptor. See FIG. 6.
Example 7
PAK activation by 12(S)-HETE.
CHO-AT 1a cells were gently washed and placed in depletion medium (HAM's F-12 medium containing 1 mg\ml BSA and 20 mM HEPES, ph 7.4) for 72 hours prior to use. After incubation for 30 minutes, the cells were treated with 10 -7 M 12(S)-HETE or with ethanol. The 12(S)-HETE treatment was terminated by washing twice with PBS and adding 300 μl lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES. pH 7.5, containing 150 mM NaCl, 5 mM MgCl 2 , 1 mM EGTA, 50 mM NaF, 10 mM sodium pyrophosphate, 1% NP-40, 2.5% glycerol and 1 mM Na 3 VO 4 containing the protease inhibitors phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, leupeptin, and aprotonin) followed by sedimentation at 14,000× g at 4° C. for ten minutes. Protein determination was performed by the Bradford method. The top panel shows a representative autoradiogram of phosphonycated myelin basic protein (MBP) bands from a gel. PAK activity was measured as follows. First, 300 μg of lysate protein was incubated with PAK antibody (1:20) in lysis buffer overnight at 4° C., followed by incubation with 60 μl of a 50% slurry of protein A beads for 60 minutes. After washing three times with lysis buffer and twice with kinase buffer (50 mM HEPES, pH 7.4, 10 mM MgCl 2 , 10 mM MnCl 2 , and 0.2 dithiothreitol) containing 2 μl MBP, 20 μM ATP and 5 μCi [γ- 32 P] ATP, the kinase activity was measured in 60 μl kinase buffer. After incubation for 30 minutes at 30° C., the reaction was stopped with 5× Laemmli sample buffer and resolved on a 12% SDS-polyacrylamide gel, followed by autoradiography. The bottom panel shows the densitometric quantitation of PAK activity stimulated with 10 -7 M 12(S)-HETE or ethanol (control) for the time indicated. Each point is an average (mean ± SE) from at least 3 separate experiments. Results are expressed as stimulation over control.
Example 8
Inhibition of 12(S)-HETE induced PAK activation by transient transaction by a PAK binding domain (PDB) plasmid.
The degree of 12(S)-HETE induce PAK activation was compared in CHO-AT 1a cells which had been transiently transfected with a PDB plasmid and cells which had not been transfected.
For the PBD-transfected group, CHO-AT 1a cells were transiently transfected with 15 μg PBD plasmid. For the non-PBD-transfected group, CHO-AT 1a cells were treated with the same transfection reagents as the PBD-transfected group, but lacking plasmid. Plasmids used were endotoxin-free and prepared by EndoFree plasmid kit (Qiagen Co.) with the standard protocol. The DNA transfection method used was a cationic liposome-mediated transfection with DOSPER transfection reagent (Boehringer Manahein Co.) following the manufacturer's instructions. Briefly, the cells were plated the day before the transfection experiment at 3×10 6 cells per 100 mm dish. The next day, cells were washed with Opti-MEMd® reduced serum medium (Gibco BRL) and incubated in 5 ml of HAM's F-12 medium containing 1% FBS. Plasmid mixture (45 pμDUSPER/15 μg) was prepared and added to each dish. After a 5 hour incubation, the transfection medium was replaced and 8 ml fresh depletion medium (described in Example 7) continuing 1% FBS for overnight incubation was added. The cells were washed twice with depletion medium, incubated in the same medium for another 32 hours and harvested. Cells were then treated with 10 -7 M 12(S)-HETE or ethanol for 10 minutes. The top panel of FIG. 8 illustrates a representative autoradiogram of phosphorylated MBP bands from a gel. The bottom panel illustrates the densitometric quantification. Each point is an average (mean±SE) of at least 3 separate experiments. Results are expressed as stimulation over control. The PAK activity was measured as described in Example 7.
Example 9
Inhibition of PI 3-kinase by LY294002.
Cells were pretreated with different concentrations of the PI-3 kinase inhibitor, LY294002 or DMSO (control) for 30 minutes, then treated with 10 -7 M 12(S)-HETE or ethanol (control) for 10 minutes. PAK activity was measured as described in Example 7. FIG. 9 shows a representative autoradiogram of phosphorylated MBP bands from 3 similar experiments.
Example 10
Increased monocyte adhesion to HAEC by treatment of monocytes with 12(S)-HETE.
Monocytes were incubated with 10 -9 M 12(S)-HETE for 12 minutes at room temperature (RT) or 37° C. or left untreated at room temperature and assayed for monocytes adhesion. Eight fields were counted for each experiment. Results are presented in Table 1.
TABLE 1______________________________________effect of 12(S)-HETE on Monocyte Adhesion toHuman Aortic Endothelial Cells 12(S)-HETE 12(S)-HETEExperiment NT (RT) (37° C.)______________________________________1 26.4 ± 12.5 39.6 ± 12.5.sup.1 39.0 ± 9.3.sup.32 28.3 ± 5.0 45.4 ± 7.6.sup.2 ND.sup.4______________________________________ .sup.1 P = 0.016 .sup.2 P = 0.001 .sup.3 P = 0.01 .sup.4 ND = not done
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The 12-lipoxygenase product, 12(S)-HETE, mediates hyperproliferative and hyperplastic responses seen in atherosclerosis, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, stroke-induced nerve damage and cancer. 12-HETE also mediates inflammation and cell death in some cell systems, particularly B-islet cells of the pancreas. The present invention involves amelioration of disease states mediated by 12(S)-HETE by blocking specific 12(S)-HETE receptors.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention has for an object a formwork for the manufacture of a concrete or concrete-like material wall. This formwork is constituted of two metallic formwork walls provided with vertical stiffeners and placed one facing the other. These formwork walls are linked by a connection device separating the walls by creating a space between them to be filled with material such as concrete.
TECHNICAL BACKGROUND
[0002] In order to guarantee the solidity of buildings' walls or of other concrete works, it is foreseen to have at its disposal an additional vertical framework inside the walls. A common technique consists in using this formwork system as a permanent or integrated formwork, that is to say, with a formwork which subsists as an integral part of the wall after having poured concrete on the inside.
[0003] The documents EP0883719 and WO02/38878 describe a formwork comprising an outer wall and a backing wall, these walls, called formwork walls, include vertical stiffeners made up of section bars, generally U-shaped. The formwork walls are linked by connection devices, each of them made up of a slightly zigzagging bent bar which is articulated at the level of the stiffeners. Between the formwork walls, these devices maintain a determined space into which the concrete is poured.
[0004] WO03/010397 describes the formwork of the above-mentioned documents where framework elements are introduced between the lateral sides of the U-shaped sections of two stiffeners placed opposite each other on each wall. Each framework element includes at least one vertical bar and at least two horizontal bars adjusted to slide into the stiffeners section. This framework element is added after opening out the formwork walls by sliding in the stiffeners, which act as guide rails. The U-shaped form of these stiffeners ensures the maintenance and the stability of this framework element and also facilitates its insertion.
[0005] The different elements of the formwork such as the formwork walls, the connection devices and the stiffeners are factory pre-fabricated, then assembled with the aid of appropriate fasteners to form the formwork. Formwork produced in this way leaves the factory in a folded form thanks to articulations of connections elements on the stiffeners, then it is opened out on the building site at the time of its installation to compose a wall.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The formworks of the above-mentioned prior art present an excellent resistance to high stresses in particular due to high intensity earthquake shocks. However, contrary to the rectilinear frameworks usually used, the zigzag form of the connection elements between the walls makes it difficult for the civil engineers to quantify with precision how much they contribute to wall resistance. The aim of this invention is to increase the rigidity of the integrated formworks at the time of their installation, to facilitate the work of the civil engineers in order to determine easily the contribution of the horizontal frameworks and to reduce manufacturing costs.
[0007] This aim is reached by a formwork for concrete wall including two parallel formwork walls placed one facing the other provided with shaped bars forming vertical stiffeners and connected by at least one articulated connection device allowing the maintenance of the formwork walls, either by a distance defining a space to receive a filler such as concrete, or folded for storage and transport, characterized in that the connection device includes a first rectilinear horizontal bar parallel to the first formwork wall and passing through the stiffeners of said first wall, a second rectilinear horizontal bar parallel to the second formwork wall and going through the stiffeners of said second wall, said second bar being situated facing the first bar, and a plurality of connection bars perpendicularly linking the two horizontal bars, said connection bars being articulated around said horizontal bars.
[0008] The notions of vertical and of horizontal are relative because the whole formwork can be turned on the basis of a 90° angle. Thus, the originally vertical elements become horizontal and vice versa. In practice, at the time of the construction of a wall the formwork is set up on a surface more or less horizontal (ground or slab floor) in such a way that the stiffeners are arranged in the vertical direction. According to a preferred embodiment, the stiffeners are made up of U-shaped section bars whose aperture is directed in towards the formwork. These stiffeners, fixed on the formwork walls at approximately regular intervals, are pierced with lateral holes having a diameter sufficient to ensure the free passage of a rectilinear horizontal bar. The connection bars are disposed, preferably, between the lateral sides of the U formed by the stiffeners in order to limit their displacement along horizontal bars and to maintain between them a constant interval corresponding to the one existing between the stiffeners.
[0009] The horizontal bars are also distributed at approximately regular intervals on the height of the formwork walls. This configuration allows the disposition of connection bars at regular intervals in the height direction as well as in the length direction of the formwork. This positioning ensures a uniform space between the formwork walls when the concrete is poured. The articulations of the connections bars around the horizontal bars allow the formwork walls to be folded one on the other during storage and transport from the factory towards the building site.
[0010] The main advantage of the connection device according to the invention in comparison with the zigzag device of the prior art lies in that it allows a more important use of section bars. In fact, given that that the horizontal bars, which are parallel to the formwork walls, are rectilinear, it becomes possible to increase their diameter without any important drawbacks connected with manufacture, unlike the connection device formed by a zigzag bar. In this case, the more the section of a bar becomes important, the more the means used for folding and setting the bar become consequent and reach a high cost. So, by suppressing the folding operations of the connection device bars, a contribution is given for the decrease of the manufacturing costs.
[0011] Setting the bars of the connection device according to the invention is also easier since they are positioned by sliding across holes previously pierced into the stiffeners at a suitable diameter. The section of the connection bars can also be increased in proportion to the section of the horizontal bars.
[0012] Therefore, thanks to the possibilities of using bars with a larger section, the connection device becomes more rigid which allows the easier setting of the formwork on the site, the optimum alignment and consequently the possibility to reduce the thickness of the coating layer. The coating layer consists in a mortar coating applied on the external faces of the formwork walls after having poured the concrete into the formwork. Thanks to the great rigidity, improved flatness of the formwork walls can be obtained, allowing the distribution of a coating having regular thickness on each surface of the latter, without any need to compensate for deformations.
[0013] Another advantage of the formwork structure according to the invention is that the easier introduction of a floating framework is allowed between the two formwork walls and in the intervals separating the connection bars. This framework, composed of at least two vertical bars linked by cross bars, slides into the intervals by the upper part of the formwork when this one is set at the location of the wall to be built before pouring the concrete. According to an alternative, the framework can be hooked onto the upper part of the formwork in order to maintain its own position at the time of the filling of the formwork with concrete.
[0014] Furthermore, filling tests have shown that the formwork according to the invention allows the reduction of concrete segregation risks. The concrete fall is slowed down by the presence of obstacles, which act as filter and reduce segregation risks.
[0015] The obstacles placed in the concrete flow between the two formwork walls are of the same order in the structure according to the invention as in the invention where a zigzag connection device is used. In both cases, the elements of the connection device, which pass through the space between the walls, form many obstacles to the concrete flow.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] The invention will be better understood thanks to the detailed following description with reference to the enclosed drawings, which are given as a non-limitative example, namely:
[0017] FIG. 1 shows a view in perspective of the formwork according to the invention.
[0018] FIG. 2 shows an overview of the formwork of FIG. 1 .
[0019] FIG. 2 a shows a part of the formwork of FIG. 2 when this is folded.
[0020] FIG. 3 shows an overview of a formwork alternative where the stiffeners are placed in staggered rows.
[0021] FIG. 3 a shows a part of the formwork of FIG. 3 when this is folded.
[0022] FIG. 4 shows several alternative frameworks introduced into the formwork intervals.
[0023] FIG. 5 shows a cross section of the formwork of FIG. 4 showing one of the alternatives of the framework.
[0024] FIG. 6 shows an overview of a formwork's alternative including an insulating wall.
[0025] FIG. 7 a shows a different implementation of the connection bars with ends rolling-up around horizontal bars, the stiffeners of a formwork wall are facing those of the other wall.
[0026] FIG. 7 b shows the alternative of the connection bars of FIG. 7 a with the stiffeners in staggered rows.
[0027] FIG. 8 a shows an overview of a first connection alternative between two formwork panels using a vertical bar with U-shaped bars.
[0028] FIG. 8 b shows the alternative of FIG. 8 a viewed according to a section between the formwork walls.
[0029] FIG. 9 a shows an overview of a second connection alternative between two formwork panels using looped flexible bars and two vertical framework bars.
[0030] FIG. 9 b shows the alternative of FIG. 9 a viewed according to a section between the formwork walls.
[0031] FIG. 10 shows a top view of a third connection alternative between two formwork panels using the flexible U-folded bars and a vertical framework bar.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0032] FIG. 1 shows a part of a formwork for a concrete wall including two parallel formwork walls placed one facing the other. Each wall is provided with U-shaped vertical bars whose aperture is directed in towards the formwork. They are spaced preferably at regular intervals on the entire length of the wall. These bars called stiffeners contribute to the stability of the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′), which are generally made up of relatively flexible latticed metallic panels. The stiffeners are fixed to the mesh of the formwork walls by welding, by hooking on the lugs or by tying with metallic wire means.
[0033] The formwork walls include horizontal ribs distributed at more or less regular intervals on the height. These ribs are used to stiffen the walls in order to avoid their deformation under the push of the concrete, above all in the case where the intervals between the vertical stiffeners are large.
[0034] The mesh of the formwork walls has a size adapted to the passage of the finest particles of the filler concrete. This fine concrete coming out of the formwork is used for the final coating of the wall since it facilitates the application of a coating mortar (outside) or of plaster (inside the building).
[0035] The formwork walls are maintained parallel to a determined distance thanks to connection devices distributed on the entire wall height. Each device is made up of a couple of parallel rectilinear horizontal bars placed one facing the other and linked by a plurality of connection perpendicular bars ( 4 ) whose lengths are approximately equal to the distance separating the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′). The horizontal bars are firmly attached to the formwork walls to which they are maintained by the stiffeners ( 2 , 2 ′). These stiffeners are perforated in the lateral sides of the U section having a larger diameter than that of the horizontal bar ( 3 , 3 ′). These holes are positioned one facing the other on each lateral side and facing the holes of the lateral sides of the near stiffeners in such a way that the free sliding of the horizontal bar is allowed when it passes through each stiffener of the formwork wall ( 1 , 1 ′). The connections bars ( 4 ) are perforated at each end allowing the free movement of the horizontal bar ( 3 , 3 ′). This connection bars' fastening ( 4 ) allows them to be articulated around the horizontal bars and thus the formwork walls can be folded one against the other at the time of storage or transport. These connections bars ( 4 ) are preferably positioned between the lateral sides of the U formed by the stiffeners in order to prevent them from moving along the horizontal bars either during the setting of the formwork or during the pouring of the concrete.
[0036] According to a first alternative represented by FIG. 2 , which is an overview of the formwork of FIG. 1 , the stiffeners of the formwork walls facing each other are placed opposite each other. The connections bars ( 4 ) are placed between the U lateral sides of two opposed stiffeners and are articulated around the horizontal bar part being between these sides.
[0037] According to a second alternative represented by FIG. 3 , the stiffeners of a formwork wall are out of line in comparison with the stiffeners of the facing wall. In this configuration, only one of the ends of a connection bar ( 4 ) is articulated between the U lateral sides of a stiffener while the other end is articulated around a part of the opposed horizontal bar situated between two stiffeners ( 4 ). This alternative allows the reduction of the L 1 width of the formwork when it is folded. In fact, as the formwork is folded, two opposed stiffeners stand one next to the other on the horizontal bars ( FIG. 3 a ) instead of superposing one over the other as in the first alternative, see FIG. 2 a . The width difference (L 1 −L 2 ) of the folded formwork is equivalent to the D distance separating a horizontal bar of the edge of the lateral sides of a stiffener as shown in FIG. 3 a . This D distance depends on the stiffeners' size ( 2 , 2 ′), on the section of the horizontal bars as well as on the positioned of the hole for these bars to pass through, in the lateral sides of the stiffeners ( 2 , 2 ′). This gain in width can be advantageous for the storage or the transport of an important quantity of stacked formworks by reducing their bulk.
[0038] FIG. 4 shows several possibilities (a, b, c, d) of metallic frameworks ( 5 ) which stand from the top interior of the formwork in the spaces, which are delimited by the connection bars ( 4 ) and the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′). These frameworks ( 5 ) are installed on the building site when the opened out formwork is positioned in the location of the wall to be constructed before the concrete pouring operation between the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′). They are intended to be completely embedded in the concrete and are used to reinforce the wall.
[0039] The continuous spaces from the top to the bottom of the formwork allow the easy introduction of different frameworks types ( 5 ) having the a height approximately equal to that of the formwork. The examples illustrated on FIG. 4 are not exhaustive, other frameworks structures ( 5 ) including a variable vertical ( 7 ) and/or horizontal ( 6 ) bars number set in different ways are also possible as long as their size is adapted to the spaces between the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′).
[0040] The alternative (a) of the framework ( 5 ) of FIG. 4 includes two vertical bars ( 7 ) linked by a plurality of horizontal bars ( 6 ). This floating type framework ( 5 ) is set in a central zone of the space between the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′). This framework is temporarily maintained by a hooking device at the time of the pouring of the concrete in order to avoid movement. The alternative (b) including four vertical bars ( 7 ) linked by horizontal bars ( 6 ) offers better stability.
[0041] Contrarily to the previous alternatives, the alternatives (c) and (d) can be distinguished by the presence of a fastening device in the form of hooks ( 8 ) which allows them to be maintained in place at the time of the pouring of the concrete without using a temporary hooking device. The hooking is carried out on the upper and accessible part of the formwork either on the connections bars ( 4 ) (alternative c), or on the horizontal bars (alternative d) of the last connection device. The hooks ( 8 ) can be replaced by a fastener or by wire tying.
[0042] FIG. 5 shows a cross section according to the A-A axis of the formwork of FIG. 4 , which shows the alternative (d) of the framework ( 5 ) hooked to the highest horizontal bars and which continues on the whole formwork height.
[0043] FIG. 6 shows another alternative of the formwork, which comprises an insulating panel ( 9 ), for example in expanded polystyrene, between one of the formwork walls and the corresponding stiffeners ( 2 , 2 ′). When the wall is finished, by using this type of formwork no more insulating panels are necessary. This also contributes to the reduction of construction costs.
[0044] This insulating panel ( 9 ), extending on the whole surface of the formwork wall ( 1 , 1 ′), is fixed to the back of the stiffeners by means of screws or of fasteners ( 10 ) which, passing through the panel ( 9 ), maintain the formwork wall against the stiffeners ( 2 , 2 ′). The formwork wall ( 1 , 1 ′), thus being on the external face of the insulating panel ( 9 ), is coated with fine concrete after the space between the insulating panel ( 9 ) and the second formwork wall has been filled. Frameworks ( 5 ) can be inserted into the space between the connection bars ( 4 ) in the same way as in the configuration of the formwork without any insulating panel as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 .
[0045] FIG. 7 a shows an example of the implementation of a connection bar ( 4 ) made up of a steel bar, for example, whose ends ( 12 , 12 ′) are curved in such a way that they can roll-up around horizontal bars ( 3 , 3 ′). This implementation, being an alternative to the bars ( 4 ) which are perforated at each end for the horizontal bars to pass through and which constitute the articulation around the latter, can of course be applied to the examples of formworks described above and illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6 . In order to avoid the connection bar moving ( 4 ) along the horizontal bars, at least one of its ends ( 12 , 12 ′) is rolled-up around the horizontal bar part being between the lateral sides of the U formed by the stiffeners of one or the other of the formwork walls ( 1 , 1 ′). In the frameworks for formwork domain, the curvatures of the steel bars or bending are preferable to drilling. In fact, a bar whose ends are formed as in FIGS. 7 a and 7 b will have a higher and directly proportional resistance to its section than a similar perforated bar.
[0046] The preferred configuration represented by FIG. 7 b can be distinguished by the fact that the stiffeners of a formwork wall are placed in staggered rows with respect to those of the facing wall in a way that allows the perpendicular positioning of the connection bars ( 4 ) to horizontal bars with each of their ends ( 12 , 12 ′) in the corresponding stiffeners section ( 2 , 2 ′). The advantage of this disposition is its capacity to reduce the formwork width, when folded, in a way similar to the alternative shown by FIGS. 3 and 3 a , as well as to ensure a good stability of the formwork when it is opened out on the building site.
[0047] A concrete wall is in general built with a formwork made up of several formwork panels linked one to the other. The FIGS. 8 a (view from the formwork top) and 8 b (section between the formwork walls according to the A-A axis) show a first alternative connection between two formwork panels a and b. The continuity of the horizontal bars between two contiguous panels (a, b) is ensured by the setting on the site, to the junction of the panels (a, b), of a set made up of a vertical bar ( 14 ) on which reversed-U-shaped bars ( 13 )are welded and placed at the same distance as the horizontal bars of the panels (a, b). This set ( 13 , 14 ) is introduced from the top at the level of the junction of the panels (a, b), then swiveled round on itself at 90° so that the U-shaped bars ( 13 ) are supported by the last connection bars ( 4 ) at the junction of each panel (a, b) while maintaining them firmly attached to each other.
[0048] The FIGS. 9 a (view from the formwork top) and 9 b (section between the formwork walls according to the B-B axis) show a second connection alternative between contiguous panels (a, b). It consists in using loop flexible steel bars ( 15 ) which penetrate between the formwork walls at the level of the horizontal bars and set on the last connection bars ( 4 ) towards the junction of the panels (a, b). In order to maintain these looped bars ( 15 ) in place, a vertical framework bar ( 16 , 16 ′) is introduced from the top in the space between a connection bar ( 4 ) next to the junction and the curve ( 15 ′) of the loop formed by the bar ( 15 ) on both panels (a, b). These framework bars ( 16 , 16 ′) pass through the curve ( 15 ′) of the loop ( 15 ) at the level of each connection bar ( 4 ) situated one above the other near the junction of the two formwork panels (a, b) as shown in FIG. 9 b.
[0049] The looped bars ( 15 ) are preferably mounted on the building site after a first formwork panel (a) has been opened out, inserting them between the formwork walls on one of the vertical sides at the level of the connection bars ( 4 ) in such a way that they protrude out of the panel (a). A second panel (B) is then opened out and set in the prolongation of the first one, introducing the parts of the looped bars ( 15 ), which protrude out of the first panel (a) between the formwork walls of the second panel at the level of the connection bars ( 4 ). The vertical framework bars ( 16 , 16 ′) are set from the top of the panels (a, b) to conclude the connection operation of the two panels (a, b).
[0050] FIG. 10 shows a third connection alternative between two formwork panels a and b where they are linked by flexible steel U-shaped folded bars ( 17 ). The curved part ( 17 ′) of the U penetrates between the two formwork walls of the first panel (a) at the level of the connection bars ( 4 ) and the sticks of the U ( 17 ″) penetrate between the formwork walls of the second panel (b).
[0051] These U-shaped bars ( 17 ) are preferably introduced, in the factory, between the formwork walls on a vertical side of the panels and stiffened, by means of wire for example ( 18 ), to the connection bars ( 4 ) in such a way to be maintained when the panel is folded for storage and transport. Generally, the stiffeners ( 18 ) are not carried out on the last connection bars ( 4 ) of the panel, but preferably on the internal connection bars next to the last ones for junction stability reasons.
[0052] At the building site, a first panel (a) is opened out and the U-shaped bars ( 17 ) are supported by the connection bars ( 4 ), the sticks of the U ( 17 ″) are released in such a way that they protrude out of the vertical side of the panel (a). The second panel (b) is positioned in the prolongation of the second in such a way that the sticks of the U ( 17 ″) which protrude out of the first panel (a) penetrate between the formwork walls of this second panel (b). These sticks ( 17 ″) are placed on the last connection bars ( 4 ) next to the vertical side of the second panel (b). As in the previous alternative, a vertical framework bar ( 16 ) is introduced from the top of the first panel (a) in the space between the curved part of the U ( 17 ′) of the flexible bars ( 17 ) and the connection bars ( 4 ).
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The aim of this invention is to increase the rigidity of the integrated formworks at the time of their installation, to facilitate the work of the civil engineers in order to determine easily the contribution of the horizontal frameworks and to reduce manufacturing costs. This aim is reached by a formwork including two parallel formwork walls placed one facing the other provided with shaped bars forming the vertical stiffeners and connected by at least one articulated connection device allowing the maintenance of the formwork walls either at a distance defining a space to receive a filler such as concrete, or folded for storage and transport. The connection device is characterized in that it includes a first rectilinear horizontal bar parallel to the first formwork wall and passing through the stiffeners of said first wall, a second rectilinear horizontal bar parallel to the second formwork wall and going through the stiffeners of said second wall, said second bar being situated facing the first bar, and a plurality of connection bars perpendicularly linking the two horizontal bars, said connection bars being articulated around said horizontal bars.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of ballot paper tracking system and more particularly to a voting system to strengthen an integrity of a voting process when casting and counting the ballot papers.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
They are different methods to maximize the credibility and integrity of the vote counting process when initiating a voting procedure.
Some of them consist of counting ballots manually, mechanically and/or electronically. In each case, there is a balance between integrity, accuracy and speed. A common characteristic of these methods is to minimize opportunities for fraud and manipulation and ensuring that the public perception of the counting of votes is a simple, straightforward and non-partisan process.
A manual method, like the hand counter process, attempts to do the very best to be nonbiased and fair. Such a manual method has a degree of subjectivity that is an extremely important issue in a process where no subjectivity is allowed. Moreover, a manual method is not suitable for counting a large quantity of ballots quickly.
Today's trend of the voting process uses generally a computerized method for counting votes. Electronic and mechanical methods, whether mixed together or not, can provide an accurate and speedy vote count and announcement of results. Whereas such methods seem to offer a robust identification mechanism, numerous external situations can compromise the privacy of the voter as well as the counting process accuracy.
One computerized method consists in using a PC compatible with a touch screen especially packaged for voting, like the “Electrovote 2000” voting machine sold by Fidlar-Doubleday (formerly Fidlar and Chambers). Such a system includes a flat panel display screen on the voting machine that has a very poor off axis viewing, so the privacy is a bit better than the minimal booth suggests.
A more sophisticated system, PC based, incorporates a smartcard interface, like the “Global Election Systems Model 100 Electronic Ballot Station”. In use, the machine is enabled by entering an ID code on the screen corresponding to the polling place and each voter is given a smartcard that is available for one use. Even if using a smartcard avoids over voting in a voting machine similar to the “Electrovote 2000”, the system has a very poor off axis viewing. Furthermore, the smartcard is considered as a voter's token and does not contain any confidential data related to the candidate/party that minimizes considerably the solution interest.
Another system, based on direct recording electronic voting machines, incorporates push buttons with associated light, like the “Microvote Electronic Voting Computer”. The system consists of using push buttons adjacent to each ballot item to cast votes, with a light by each button giving positive feedback that the vote has been registered. Such a system contains only 64 buttons. Many voting processes, like elections, would require significantly more than this if the full ballot were to be displayed at once. The system can be extended for displaying more candidates by using a complex ballot paging. A better displaying on a single scroll, side by side is required to the voter that wants to work through the issues on the ballot that seems to be difficult to handle.
A standardized ballot, punched card based, was first used for vital statistics tabulation before adopted for voting process by using a “Votomatic” technology. The punched card contains a tabulation of pre-printed information representing a matrix of voting positions. Generally, in many systems that use a punched card method, the ballot is pre-scored at each voting position so that punching with a stylus through that position into an appropriate backing will remove a rectangle of chad, leaving a hole that is counted as a vote. Then, the ballot card is held in proper alignment and is inserted into a voting machine. The voting machine checks that a voted ballot paper is legitimate and deposits it in the ballot box for later countering. The counting machine does not recognize circling or underlining ballots and multiple votes are ignored.
Finally, the ballots are stacked for tabulation and processed by using either a computer equipped with a standard punched-card reader or by an electromechanical punched-card tabulating machine. Unfortunately, in some cases the punched card process may compromise the counting method accuracy.
Statistically a punched card may contain a dimple in a position instead of a cleanly punched hole. This is due to either a voter hesitation or a pre punched card failure. In addition, some punch positions on the ballot can be directly over internal braces, inside the voting machine mechanism, that can develop undesirable chad jams. The development of chad jams that are accumulated in areas where ballots are being processed may represent votes added to some candidates by accident. It is also possible to obtain a ballot that has a completely removed chad for one candidate but also has a chad with one corner punctured for another candidate in the same race. This ballot has to be counted as a vote. The presence of dimples and undesirable chads initiates a hand recount process and it is difficult for a human by looking a dimple or an incoherent chad to determine the voter's intent.
Some electronic voting machines allow voters to show their choices and stop them if they try to over vote. These machines allow voters to review their choices and ballots before turning them in. The name of candidates and the text of ballot questions are not printed on ballots that are based on a punch card method. This is a reason why some organizations switch from punch cards to optical scan, in which voters fill in ovals with a pencil. In certain circumstance, it is possible to twist a ballot. Twisting a ballot can produce several “votes” on a punch card ballot that has already been counted by machines three or more times that is considered as over voting. In this case, over voting invalidates the vote.
To summarize, the aforementioned voting systems and methods present several drawbacks. Some of the main drawbacks are as follows.
A manual method, like the hand counter process, has a degree of subjectivity that is unacceptable in such a voting process. Moreover, a hand counter process is not appropriate when counting a large quantity of ballots and is subject to mistakes, such as over voting and/or any ballot rigging, that a skilled person in the art can easily imagine.
A touch screen electronic computerized method compromises the privacy of the voter when using a flat panel display screen on the voting machine that has a very poor off axis viewing.
A system based on push buttons is too difficult to be manipulated easily by a voter.
A computerized method, punched card based, when applying in a large range of ballots, generates undesirable chads. The difficulty to recognize a legitimate ballot when some undesirable chads appear on the card and a necessity to hand recount ballots when a ballot fails in conformity are time consuming in a process that needs to provide results quickly.
As mentioned above, prior art solutions make the existing methods not fully appropriated to achieve an efficient vote counting process while guarantying full integrity, preventing ballot rigging, and allowing full audit.
The present invention offers a solution to solve the aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a voting system, comprising:
a ballot box configured to receive and authenticate a voted ballot paper and to generate a verified ballot paper from the voted ballot paper that has been authenticated by the ballot box, wherein the voted ballot paper comprises a recorded vote and a burnable radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, wherein the recorded vote includes candidate/party information for an election held on a voting day in a jurisdiction, wherein the burnable RFID tag comprises includes an on-tag fuse that is not blown, and wherein the recorded vote is not revealable while the fuse is not blown and is revealable in response to the fuse being subsequently blown; and
a ballot counting and sorting machine configured to receive and authenticate the verified ballot paper, to effectuate a blowing of the fuse to reveal the recorded vote after the verified ballot paper has been authenticated by the ballot counting and sorting machine, and to count the ballot paper and direct the ballot paper to a candidate box after the blowing of the fuse.
The present invention provides a ballot paper, comprising:
a recorded vote comprising candidate/party information for an election held on a voting day in a jurisdiction;
a burnable radio frequency identification (RFID) tag that includes an on-tag fuse that is not blown, said recorded vote not being revealable while the fuse is not blown and being revealable in response to the fuse being subsequently blown; and
a basic RFID tag that differs from the burnable passive RFID tag, wherein a signature of the jurisdiction is stored in a first data field of the basic RFID tag.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above and other items, features and advantages of the invention will be better understood by reading the following more particular description of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 illustrates by schematic block diagram the relationship between the elements for practicing embodiments of the present invention.
FIG. 2 sets out full details of the Ballot Paper as represented in a voting system arrangement, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
FIG. 3 sets out full details of the Ballot Box as represented in the voting system arrangement, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
FIG. 4 shows full details of the Ballot counting and sorting machine as represented in the voting system arrangement.
FIG. 5 is a flow chart of the Ballot Box process when a voter inserts a Ballot Paper to be authenticated by the Ballot Box, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a flow chart of the Ballot Sorting and Counting Machine process when voted ballot papers that were preliminarily checked and validated through the Ballot Box process are loaded into the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
FIGS. 7A to FIG. 7C illustrate commercial manufacturing of the ballot paper, the ballot voting box, and the ballot sorting and counting machine, respectively, of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the invention are described herein after by way of examples with reference to the accompanying figures and drawings.
The present invention provides a system for tracking ballot papers, allowing strengthening of the audit integrity of a voting process by the use of the radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.
The present invention integrates a wireless apparatus, RFID tag wireless capabilities for monitoring a voting process mechanism, ensuring that all parts involved in the action are completely protected against ballot rigging during operation.
The present invention uses an on-tag fuse mechanism embedded in the ballot paper to protect the integrity and confidentiality of the voted ballot paper during operation.
T the present invention uses a jurisdiction's private/public signature and its associated checksum mechanism to control dynamically the validity of the ongoing ballot paper.
The present invention certifies the ongoing ballot paper, in real time, by encoding an assessor's private/public signature key in a field of an RFID tag located in a Ballot Paper.
The present invention interprets the information encrypted in the ballot paper by beaming the RFID tags located in the ballot paper.
The present invention blows the on-tag fuse of a burnable RFID tag to free the confidential candidate information when initiating the sorting and counting process.
The present invention rejects a ballot paper non-compliant with the jurisdiction's expectations loaded in a dedicated RFID tag.
The present invention rejects a ballot paper that is not certified by an assessor's signature key loaded in a dedicated RFID tag to an external compartment.
The present invention rejects a ballot paper that has already been blown, from the voting process, which indicates the non-integrity of the ongoing ballot paper.
The present invention uses a wireless tracking system and method by mixing both reading and writing a RFID tag in real time in concert with the stating of an on-tag fuse RFID tag, all of them implemented either on the surface or embedded in the substrate of a Ballot Support.
A first aspect, the present invention tracks ballots and performs a method allowing strengthening of the audit integrity of a voting process by using the RFID technology.
RFID is suitable for high technology wireless electronic systems based on message identification. The wireless systems allow a readable machine to pick up messages stored on the tag device. The readable machine reads the notification message, identifies the device, and then performs an action which is indicated in the stored message is initiated.
The present invention is suitable for various countries where an election process in a jurisdiction occurs as well as in areas where cast and count is a necessity to legitimatize a vote.
Even if some solutions offer a wide variety of different RFID standards, an implemented embodiment of the present invention is motivated by the need to provide a high-quality voting system at low cost. This is accomplished through a voting system approach using passive RFID tags.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the disclosed RFID system uses RFID technology that is compatible with ISO standards, including but not limited to ISO14443, ISO15693, ISO 18000 series.
FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic block diagram depicting the relationship between the elements for practicing embodiments of the present invention. A voting system ( 100 ) uses the RFID technology and its associated facilities are methodically implemented. The voting system ( 100 ) combines a Ballot Paper ( 102 ) and a Ballot Box ( 104 ) that work in concert with a Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 106 ). A manufacturing representation of each element ( 102 , 104 , 106 ) is shown respectively on FIGS. 7A , 7 B, and 7 C. It is however to be appreciated that this representation is one example of many alternatives and does not limit the invention as the principles herein described apply to any variant in form, size and geometry.
The Ballot Paper ( 102 ) contains confidential authentications that are stored in embedded electronic devices and interact directly with the Ballot Box ( 104 ). The Ballot Box ( 104 ) receives a Ballot Paper ( 102 ) that a voter rolls into for inspection. The Ballot Box ( 104 ) controls the authentication of the inserted Ballot Paper ( 102 ) by screening the electronic content previously encoded and confirms its authentication by generating a conformity electronic key and storing the generated conformity electronic key in an electronic device present in the Ballot Paper ( 102 ). The Ballot Box ( 104 ) rolls out the correct Ballot Papers ( 102 ). A series of Ballot Papers ( 102 ) are inserted into the Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 106 ) to be checked before initiating a vote counting process. The Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 106 ) verifies the authentication of the inserted Ballot Paper ( 102 ) by screening the electronic content previously encoded and initiates a vote sorting and counting process accordingly.
FIG. 2 sets out full details of the Ballot Paper as represented in a voting system arrangement, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
The design layout of the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) is similar to a classic ballot paper. It provides a voter with clear printed instructions for facilitating the choice of candidates in a valid manner as well as symbols or/and candidate pictures and essential information that printed ballot papers should contain.
The difference resides in the inclusion of two electronic devices represented by a basic passive RFID tag ( 202 ) and a burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ). The inclusion of such RFID tags ( 202 , 204 ) allows the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) to be safely authenticated and easily tracked all along the voting process. The RFID tags ( 202 , 204 ) can be implemented either on the surface or embedded in the substrate of a Ballot Support ( 206 ).
The electronic personalization of the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) is defined by its instruction set, which is encoded in the basic passive RFID tag ( 202 ), at a configuration step, when emitted by the jurisdiction. The basic passive RFID tag ( 202 ) works differently from the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ). The basic passive RFID tag ( 202 ) requires two data fields ( 208 , 210 ) both working in write once and read multiple modes.
The first data field ( 208 ) contains a jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) that identifies a genuine versus counterfeited ballot paper. The jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) is encrypted with a private key belonging to an emitting authority to be disclosed on the voting day. The emitting authority is associated with the jurisdiction.
The jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) is generated and stored during the configuration of the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) and cannot be modified. The jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) allows keeping track of the authentication integrity of the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) and thereby warrants that the voting processing operates in a secure protocol.
The second data field ( 210 ) stores an assessor's signature key that is composed of a hashing of the assessors individual secret keys ( 214 ). The assessor's signature key ( 214 ) is generated during the vote processing of the Ballot Paper ( 200 ). Like the first data field ( 208 ), the second data field ( 210 ) is unchangeable.
The assessor's signature key ( 214 ) is put on the second data field ( 210 ) after authenticating the Ballot Paper ( 200 ), once inserted in the Ballot Box. It is noted that the assessor's signature key ( 214 ) can concatenate different information that form a secure encrypted message, like an assessor identification, via a personal key, when validating the voter's act and/or a ballot number. Depending on the voting strategy, the assessor's signature key ( 214 ) can also contain a voter's voting choice, like the name of the candidate if the Ballot Paper has not been personalized yet.
In contrast with the basic passive RFID tag ( 202 ), the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) includes an on-tag fusing facility and its associated electronic circuitry ( 216 ).
Such technique includes developing, implementing and manufacturing on-tag extra circuitry which is capable of handling a predefined action, if needed. An external fuse blowing system is required to set the on-tag fuse in any manner known in the art, (i.e. laser fuse blow, electrical fuse blow and so on). In one embodiment of the present invention, the burnable passive RFID tag is a chipless tag.
Once the on-tag fuse is blown, the internal circuitry of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) works differently than before and is capable to present other data to the RFID reader.
When initiating an election process, it is very important to protect the integrity of a Ballot Paper ( 200 ) and track any potential violation occurring during the voting cycle. To meet these requirements, the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) has a hard-coded ballot paper identification ( 218 ) embedded in its data field ( 220 ).
The burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) operates in twofold.
Firstly, the non-blowing of the on-tag fuse ( 216 ) warrants the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) integrity including the confidentiality of the name of the candidate/party during the voting process until the final counting and sorting are initiated. The embedded hard-coded ballot paper identification ( 218 ) cannot be accessible by a RFID reader, a RFID tag cleaner/eraser, or an eavesdropping mechanism allowing undesirable rigging. The hard-coded ballot paper identification ( 218 ) hosts unchangeable data related to information on candidate/party, at least the party or candidate name or any other information that a skilled person in the art can easily imagine. Non-blowing on-tag fuse ( 216 ) preserves Ballot Paper ( 200 ) authenticity. A masking code ( 222 ) hides the content of the embedded hard-coded ballot paper identification ( 218 ) until the on-tag fuse ( 216 ) is intact.
Secondly, the blowing of the on-tag fuse ( 216 ) frees the hard-coded ballot paper identification ( 218 ) hosted in the RFID tag data field ( 220 ) that reveals the candidate/party information to be identified by the Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 106 ). Blowing on-tag fuse ( 216 ) is irreversible and makes the Ballot Paper ( 200 ) unique and not reusable. An adequate mechanism (not shown here) reads, controls, and validates the hard-coded identification at the counting and sorting step.
FIG. 3 describes details of the Ballot Box, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The Ballot Box ( 300 ) comprises a RFID Reader Module ( 302 ), an Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ), an Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ), a Signature Key Generator ( 308 ), a Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ), a Decision Handler ( 312 ) and a Ballot Paper RFID tag Writer ( 314 ).
The process starts when a voter inserts a Ballot Paper ( 102 ) in the Ballot Box ( 300 ). It is to be noted that, alternatively, the Ballot Paper may be inserted first in an envelope to make the voter's act more confidential.
The RFID Reader Module ( 302 ) beams the inserted ballot paper, reads data from RFID tag registers, and transmits the inserted ballot paper beaming data to the Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ).
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ) receives the inserted ballot paper beaming data from the RFID Reader Module ( 302 ) and initiates an authentication procedure. Typically, the authentication procedure decrypts the jurisdiction's signature with the jurisdiction public key and compares the jurisdiction's decrypted signature to a jurisdiction's specific fixed number which is a jurisdiction code constant. The emitting authority discloses the jurisdiction's specific fixed number on the voting day. Both the jurisdiction's specific fixed number and the jurisdiction's public key are stored during the configuration of the Ballot Box.
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ) is coupled to the Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ) and interfaces with the Decision Handler ( 312 ). The Decision Handler ( 312 ) receives data from the Signature Key Generator ( 308 ) and the Ballot Paper RFID tag Writer ( 314 ) and interacts with the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ).
The Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ) allows an assessor to enter the confidential jurisdiction code constant (i.e., the jurisdiction's specific fixed number) before starting the voting process. The jurisdiction delivers the confidential jurisdiction code constant. It is just valid for a day, like the current voting day, and cannot be modifiable by a third party.
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ) runs the jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) located in the first data field ( 208 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. Then, it compares the jurisdiction's signature with the confidential jurisdiction code constant previously entered by the assessor, starts authentication of a valid ballot paper and sends the authentication result to the Decision Handler ( 312 ).
The Decision Handler ( 312 ) identifies the ballot paper that corresponds to a valid result and rejects the other ones to a bin (Bin) outside the ballot box.
To authenticate a voted ballot paper in regards to the jurisdiction, the identified ballot paper receives an assessor's signature key ( 214 ) from an assessor, via the Signature Key Generator ( 308 ).
The Signature Key Generator ( 308 ) inputs the assessor data entered by the use of the Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ) and generates the assessor's signature key ( 214 ), authenticating the voted ballot paper, accordingly. Then, Ballot Paper RFID tag Writer ( 314 ) writes the signature key into the second data field ( 210 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ).
There exist different possibilities for creating such signature key ( 214 ), including: either a removable keyboard for keying the encrypted key; a memory plug interface, like USB or memory or smartcard, for connecting a personal encrypted key module holding an individual code; or by using other electronic apparatus that a person who is skilled in the art can easily imagine.
Then the Decision Handler ( 312 ) transmits the voted ballot paper to the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ). The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ) checks that a voted ballot paper is still blank, meaning that the fuse is not blown. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ) operates by stating the non-blowing of the on-tag fuse of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) and by reading the information hosted in the RFID tag data field. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ) communicates results to the Decision Handler ( 312 ).
The Decision Handler ( 312 ) identifies the ballot paper that corresponds to a legitimate voted ballot paper and rejects the other ones to a bin (Bin) outside the ballot box. The legitimate voted ballot paper is output from the Ballot Box ( 300 ) to be counted and sorted by using the Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 106 ). As mentioned above, the legitimate voted ballot paper is generally inserted in an envelope to make the voter's act confidential.
Referring now to FIG. 4 , details of the “Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine” is described, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The “Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine” ( 400 ) comprises a RFID Reader Module ( 402 ), an Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ), an Assessor Key Matrix ( 406 ), a Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ), a Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ), a Decision Handler ( 412 ), and a counting-sorting mechanism ( 414 ).
The process starts when ballots to be counted, that were preliminarily checked and validated through the Ballot Box ( 104 ), are loaded into the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ).
The RFID Reader Module ( 402 ) beams the loaded ballot paper (voted_ballot), reads data from RFID tag registers in the ballot paper, and transmits the loaded ballot paper beaming data to the Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ).
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ) receives the loaded ballot paper beaming data from the RFID Reader Module ( 402 ) and initiates an authentication procedure.
The authentication procedure decrypts the jurisdiction's signature with a jurisdiction public key and compares the jurisdiction's signature to a jurisdiction's specific fixed number (i.e., confidential jurisdiction code constant). The emitting authority discloses the jurisdiction's specific fixed number on the voting day.
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ) is coupled to the Assessor Key Matrix ( 406 ) and interfaces with the Decision Handler ( 412 ), the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ), and the Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ).
The Decision Handler ( 412 ) interacts with the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ), receives data from the Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ) and initiates the Counting-Sorting Mechanism ( 414 ). An assessor (assessor) enters both a confidential jurisdiction code constant and a confidential assessor code constant by the use of the Assessor Key Matrix ( 406 ). Both code constants allow the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ) to be initialized, protected and locked during the current voting process.
The jurisdiction delivers the confidential code constants. They are just valid for a day, like the current voting day, and cannot be modified by a third party.
The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ) works in twofold.
Firstly, it runs the jurisdiction's signature ( 212 ) located in the first data field ( 208 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. Then, it compares the jurisdiction's signature with the confidential jurisdiction code constant, starts authentication of voted ballot paper and sends result to the Decision Handler ( 412 ).
Secondly, it runs the assessor's signature key ( 214 ) located in the second data field ( 210 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. Then, it compares the assessor's signature key with the confidential assessor code constant, which starts authentication of voted ballot paper and sends result to the Decision Handler ( 412 ).
It is aforementioned here, that both the confidential jurisdiction code constant and the confidential assessor code constant are inputs that the assessor pre-sets before the process starts.
The Decision Handler ( 412 ) authenticates the voted ballot papers that correspond to a valid result, transmits the valid ballots to the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) and rejects the other ballots to a bin (Bin) outside the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ).
The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) checks that a voted ballot paper is still blank. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) operates by stating the non-blowing of the on-tag fuse of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ) and by reading the information hosted in the RFID tag data field. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) communicates results to the Decision Handler ( 412 ).
The Decision Handler ( 412 ) authenticates the voted ballot papers that are still blank, transmits the blank ballots to the Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ) and rejects the other ballots to a bin outside the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ).
The Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ) receives the authenticated voted ballot paper and starts an on-tag fuse blowing operation of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ).
The on-tag fuse blowing operation is irreversible and frees the hard-coded identification hosted in the RFID tag field that reveals the candidate/party information. Thus the on-tag fuse blowing operation enables the voted ballot paper to be read by the Ballot counting and sorting Machine ( 400 ). Methods and systems to blow such on-tag fuses are well known in the art and will not be further described.
The authentication of the voted ballot papers is complete and the Decision Handler ( 412 ) enables the Counting-Sorting Mechanism ( 414 ) to initiate the counting and sorting process. The Counting-Sorting Mechanism ( 414 ) reads the voted ballot papers, counts the voted ballot papers and directs the envelopes containing a voted ballot paper to the pertinent candidate box.
FIG. 5 is a flow chart of the Ballot Box process when a voter inserts a Ballot Paper to be authenticated by the Ballot Box, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
Before the Ballot Box process starts ( 500 ), a ballot paper configuration is required in which an acquisition of the jurisdiction's parameters belonging to the election are to be entered in step 502 .
After completion of the Ballot Box process in step 520 , the process enters the Ballot Sorting and Counting Machine process described infra with reference to FIG. 6 .
Step 502 (Ballot Paper Configuration): Jurisdiction configures a blank ballot paper. Design layout and RFID tag electronic personalization of the ballot paper is defined. Jurisdiction's signature is hard-coded in the dedicated field of the basic RFID tag. On-tag fuse of the burnable RFID tag is intact. Then, the process goes to step 504 .
Step 504 (Ballot Box initialization): Assessor enters the Jurisdiction's specific fixed number, as well as the jurisdiction's public key by the use of the Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ). Then, the process goes to step 506 .
Step 506 (Ballot Paper Screening): Voter inserts a ballot paper in the ballot box. The RFID Reader Module ( 302 ) beams the inserted ballot paper (ballot_paper), reads the ballot paper beaming data from RFID tag registers and transmits the ballot paper beaming data to the Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ). Then, the process goes to step 508 .
Step 508 (Ballot Paper authentication): The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 304 ) runs the jurisdiction's public/private signature ( 212 ) located in the first data field ( 208 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. Then, it compares the jurisdiction's signature with the confidential jurisdiction code constant previously entered by the assessor at step 504 , starts authentication of a valid ballot paper and sends result to the Decision Handler ( 312 ). Then the process goes to step 510 .
In step 510 , a status is made to check the integrity of the voted ballot paper. The Decision Handler ( 312 ) checks the result delivered by the checker computation at step 508 . If the result is valid then the corresponding ballot paper is valid and the process goes to step 514 ; otherwise the ballot paper is not valid and the process goes to step 512 .
Step 512 (Ballot paper rejection): Ballot paper is not valid and is rejected by the Decision Handler ( 312 ). The rejected ballot paper rolls out to a bin outside the ballot box. Then the process loops back to step 506 .
Step 514 (Assessor voted ballot authentication): Assessor enters the Assessor's signature key by the use of the Assessor Key Matrix ( 306 ) that initiates the Signature Key Generator ( 308 ). A signature key is generated accordingly. Then, the process goes to step 516 .
Step 516 (Writing assessor key to RFID tag): Assessor validates the voted ballot paper that enables the Ballot Paper RFID tag Writer ( 314 ) for writing the computed signature key into the second data field ( 210 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ). Then the process goes to step 518 .
In step 518 , a status is made to check that the voted ballot paper is blank. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ) receives the voted ballot paper and states the on-tag fuse of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ). If the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 310 ) detects a non-blowing of the on-tag fuse then the voted ballot paper is valid and the process goes to step 520 ; otherwise the voted ballot paper is not blank and the process goes to step 512 .
Step 520 (Ballot Box process completion): The success of the jurisdiction's private/public key identification, the non-blowing of the on-tag fuse, and the insertion of the assessor's private/public key certification into the RFID tag authenticate the integrity of the inserted ballot paper. The voted ballot paper is output from the Ballot Box ( 300 ) to be counted and sorted by using the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 106 ). The Ballot Box process is complete then the process loops back to step 506 for authenticating the next ballot paper that a voter inserts in the Ballot Box ( 300 ).
FIG. 6 is a flow chart of the Ballot Sorting and Counting Machine process ( 600 ) when voted ballot papers that were preliminarily checked and validated through the Ballot Box process are loaded into the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
Step 602 (Voted ballot counting-sorting machine initialization): Assessor enters the Jurisdiction's specific fixed number, as well as the jurisdiction's public key by the use of the Assessor Key Matrix ( 406 ). Then, the process goes to step 604 .
Step 604 (Voted Ballot Paper Screening): Ballots to be counted, that were preliminarily checked and validated through the Ballot Box ( 104 ) are loaded into the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ). The RFID Reader Module ( 402 ) beams the loaded ballot paper, reads data from all RFID tag registers and transmits them to the Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ). Then, the process goes to step 606 .
Step 606 (Voted Ballot Paper authentication): The Authentication and Validation Checker ( 404 ) runs the jurisdiction's public/private signature ( 212 ) located in the first data field ( 208 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. In addition, it runs the assessor's signature key ( 214 ) located in the second data field ( 210 ) of the basic RFID tag ( 202 ) through its checker. Then, it compares the jurisdiction's signature and the assessor's signature key with the confidential jurisdiction code constant and the confidential assessor code constant, respectively which starts authentication of voted ballot paper and sends result to the Decision Handler ( 412 ). Then the process goes to step 608 .
In step 608 , a status is made to check the integrity of the voted ballot paper. The Decision Handler ( 412 ) checks the result delivered by the checker computation at step 606 . If the check results are valid then the corresponding ballot paper is valid and the process goes to step 612 ; otherwise the ballot paper is not valid and the process goes to step 610 .
Step 610 (Voted Ballot paper rejection): Voted ballot paper is not valid and is rejected by the Decision Handler ( 412 ). The rejected voted ballot paper rolls out to a bin outside the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ). Then the process loops back to step 604 .
In step 612 , a status is made to check that the voted ballot paper is blank. The Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) receives the voted ballot paper and states the on-tag fuse of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ). If the Fuse Blowing Checker ( 408 ) detects a non-blowing of the on-tag fuse then the voted ballot paper is valid and the process goes to step 614 ; otherwise the voted ballot paper is not blank and the process goes to step 610 .
Step 614 (Unlocking Voted ballot paper): The Fuse Blowing Engine ( 410 ) initiates the on-tag fuse blowing operation of the burnable passive RFID tag ( 204 ). This operation frees the hard-coded identification hosted in the RFID tag field that reveals the candidate/party information, which enables the voted ballot paper to be read by the Ballot Counting and Sorting Machine ( 400 ). Then the process goes to step 616 .
Step 616 (Counting-sorting Enabling): The success of both the jurisdiction's private/public key and the assessor's private/public key certification identification associated with the non-blowing of the on-tag fuse authenticate the integrity of the loaded voted ballot paper. The voted ballot paper meets the jurisdiction requirements in terms of integrity and accuracy that enables the Counting-Sorting Mechanism ( 414 ). Then the process goes to step 618 .
Step 618 (Counting-Sorting running): The Counting-Sorting Mechanism ( 414 ) reads the voted ballot paper that comprises the revealed candidate/party information, counts the voted ballot paper, and directs the envelopes containing a voted ballot paper to the adequate candidate box. In one embodiment, the candidate box is associated with the revealed candidate/party information. Then the process goes to step 620 .
In step 620 , a status is made to detect the last voted ballot paper that was loaded in the machine. If the last voted ballot paper occurs then the running sorting-counting process is complete and the process goes to step 622 ; otherwise the process loops back to step 604 until the last loading of a voted ballot paper occurs.
Step 622 (Counting-Sorting completion): Occurrence of the last voted ballot paper indicates that the sorting-counting process is complete.
FIGS. 7A to FIG. 7C illustrate commercial manufacturing of the ballot paper, the ballot voting box, and the ballot sorting and counting machine, respectively, of the present invention.
It has to be appreciated that while the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to embodiments of the present invention, various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit, and scope of the invention.
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A ballot paper and a voting system. The paper ballot is initially a voted ballot paper including: a recorded vote including candidate/party information for an election on a voting day in a jurisdiction, a burnable radio frequency identification (RFID) tag including a fuse not blown, and a basic RFID tag storing the jurisdiction's signature. The recorded vote is not revealable while the fuse is not blown and is revealable responsive to the fuse being blown. The voting system includes a ballot box and a ballot counting machine. The ballot box is configured to receive and authenticate the voted ballot paper and to generate a verified ballot paper. The ballot counting machine is configured to receive and authenticate the verified ballot paper, to effectuate a blowing of the fuse to reveal the recorded vote and to subsequently count the ballot paper and direct the ballot paper to a candidate box.
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[0001] There are no related patent applications.
[0002] This application did not receive federal research and development funding.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention generally relates to a waste retrieval system and method for pet waste disposal. More particularly, the invention is directed towards a system that includes a sealable disposal device having a cover and that is detachably coupled to a lease. The system includes a scoop and disposable inner liner arranged within the disposal device for storing pet waste.
[0004] Excrement from domestic animals, more specifically dogs, presents itself as a problem for pet owners. There exists a need for a convenient, sanitary, state-of-the-art method for waste retrieval, containment and disposal. While pet owners enjoy the freedom of taking their pets out for regular exercise, proper handling of pet waste should not have to be an arduous task. Many states, cities and local municipalities have enacted ordinances that require pet owners to clean up after their pets. Moreover, people who have lawns adjacent to the streets should not have to be responsible for pet waste from other pet owners. In addition, city, state, or federal park officials can also be faced with the same cleanup dilemma. Additionally, pet owners should have a state of the art retrieval system in order to clean up waste created by their pets in their own yards or dwellings. Such an example would include a pet owner who keeps his pet in a fenced in a yard. While it may not be necessary to store pet waste in such an example, a pet owner can use those selected components that comprise the current invention to retrieve and dispose of the waste. Other examples where personnel benefit from the current invention includes facilities where animals are kept, such as veterinary hospitals, boarding kennels, and police K9 units.
[0005] The prior art has included many methods of dealing with pet waste. A traditional method includes simply picking the waste up with a napkin or such, and placing it in a bag until such time of disposal of the waste laden bag in a garbage container. A health hazard may exist any time pet waste is allowed to decompose openly. At the very least, flies and odor can be a nuisance to others as to the degree of where it exists. Garbage containers do not provide for proper disposal of open waste. Pet owners may be reluctant to take any action since it is a task that entails handling feces. In addition, the fecal material remains on any item it comes in contact with. One example includes when picking up feces with a napkin or paper towel. Another example includes a scoop or shovel. Those items become contaminated and make for the further problem of properly cleaning or disposing of the contaminated item. Traditional scoops and shovels are not designed to efficiently remove excrement in uneven, rocky, or grassy terrain. As will be outlined in upcoming detail, a saw tooth design of the present invention's scoop allows for the most efficient retrieval. Some prior art methods allow contamination of the containers in which the waste is kept. There exists the risk of the waste coming in contact with the pet owner's hands and clothing. Storage of plastic bags and retrieval items, such as napkins and scoops, can be bulky and cumbersome. The owner has to be cognizant of all the necessary items and where to store them before beginning an exercise routine of walking or a day's outing with his or her dog. Some items of the prior art are bulky, complex in design and do not provide for convenient carrying. The pet owner also has to carry the pet waste by awkward means while on an exercise journey. It is conceivable to understand that with all the undesired necessary items of prior art, the chore of carrying them, along with the waste itself, and the subsequent cleaning and restocking of the items, pet owners may not exercise their pets to the extent desired, or simply leave the waste unattended.
[0006] Another problem with prior art methods includes leakage. Some prior art containers are inherently unsuitable when subjected to the rigorous activity during an exercise journey with a pet. For example, some containers may open accidentally causing spillage of the waste from within. Some containers are no more than soft pouches and are not suited for the normal rough handling that may occur. Soft pouches can mash easily and possibly break a storage bag inside thus allowing for leakage. Additionally, prior art examples do not include the benefit of ensuring the prevention of human contact with the excrement during retrieval, storage and disposal. Inefficient sealing of retrieved pet waste can be an issue as well. The waste stored in an improperly sealed container can leak odors. One can imagine on a hot day the unpleasant foul odor from stored pet waste in an improperly designed or direct contact designed container.
[0007] Examples of such prior devices include, but are not limited to, those depicted in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,446,525, 4,014,584, 4,179,145, 4,225,174, 5,350,208, 4,958,871, 6,199,737, 5,503,442, and 7,040,677.
[0008] While there have been several attempts to solving the problem of pet waste handling, none are as efficient as the current invention. The ideal method incorporated by the present invention includes an encapsulated retrieval method, a rugged storage system, combined with the utmost ease of use and cleanliness. There exists no need to clean any scoop or container. Also, the waste material has been sealed beforehand in a plastic bag that can be simply deposited into a garbage container without the concern of any lingering odor or presence of insects such as flies.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The present invention discloses a system for the retrieval and temporary storage of domestic pet waste acquired during outings or walks with one's pet. A method for using the system is also disclosed. The system includes a rigid container having a recess that includes an opening that is sealed by a removable lid that is coupled to the rigid container via a lanyard. A washable cover couples the container to an animal leash, harness, belt, collar or the like.
[0010] The system comprises a molded container having at least one closable opening for providing access to a storage recess within the container. The storage recess includes an open area that is large enough to simultaneously accommodate several clean bags, at least one soiled bag filled with waste matter, and the scoop. The molded container is preferably a plastic cylindrical canister formed from a thermo set or thermoplastic material that may be formed, molded or extruded in a desired particular shape and preferably having a threaded opening which is closable. The various plastics used in creating the molded container may include one or more of polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene or or any other moldable material that may be formed in a unitary shape. Likewise, other components of the invention discussed hereinafter, such as a lid and its associated lanyard and a storable scoop, may be created and molded by using the aforementioned various plastics. The molded container must be lightweight and rigid to prevent a collapsing of the storage recess.
[0011] A removable lid includes complementary threads that seal the threaded opening to maintain contents within the molded container and prevent any escaping odors. A washable, removable cover includes various hook and loop securing straps for surrounding the molded container and coupling it to a leash, belt, animal harness collar or the like. An elastic band leash connecting lanyard may also be included for coupling the molded container to a handle end of a leash.
[0012] A storable scoop comprises plastic material having memory retaining properties and saw-tooth edges. The scoop is stashed within the molded container such that the edges of the scoop not having the saw-teeth are at the top and bottom of the container. The memory retaining properties of the scoop aid in storage and ease in use it by encouraging the radius of the scoop to tend to assume an open position when placed within the container. This allows the scoop to be stored along the interior surface of the storage container without wasting any space. Elastic straps are provided on one face of the scoop for securing it to the hand of the user. Unsoiled plastic bags are also stored within the molded container and are used for encapsulating and capturing waste matter. The size of the unsoiled plastic bag is large enough to accommodate the size of a user's hand, the size of the scoop and the size of any waste matter to be stored. The plastic bag must be of a grade that is durable enough to prevent piercing of the plastic bags by the saw-tooth edges of the scoop.
[0013] The molded container is rugged, compact and of sufficient capacity to permit the storage of the scoop, unused plastic waste storage bags, and retrieved pet excrement which is permanently bagged and sealed.
[0014] The removable lid is either screwed on, snapped on, or attached by similar means in order to close and seal the container, thereby retaining the aforementioned items and preventing any foul odors from escaping. Preferably, the removable lid is attached to the canister by means of a pre-molded flat plastic strip such that the lid will not be separated from the container when the lid is removed from the opening of the container. This strip serves the purpose of preventing loss or lid misplacement when the container is open. A non-corrosive rivet, or like fastener, connects one end of the strip to the center of the container lid. The other end of the strip is ring-shaped and is stretched and slipped over the container's lid fastening threads in the preferred embodiment. The invention incorporates proper attachment design provisions as to permit unscrewing, unsnapping, etc., without twisting or binding the attachment strip that couples the lid to the container.
[0015] The cover is constructed of a launderable, nylon or material similar in texture, water repellency, and durability. The cover is preferably attached to the container by fasteners that may comprise various integral hook and loop fastening strips. The cover can be beneficial in many ways. Aside from esthetic value with the possibility of many color choices, imprinted designs, and labeling, the cover can contain extra pockets for pet items such as medicines, etc. The cover contains a sewn-in elastic loop for connecting the device to the pet leash. The cover also serves as a protective and durable padding for the container which can be easily removed and washed should it become dirty during the pet exercise activity.
[0016] The accompanying scoop is used in conjunction with plastic bags to facilitate the waste retrieval process. The scoop is preferably fabricated from plastic sheet material having memory retaining qualities such as to retain the form of an arcuate or curved cylindrical shape. A diameter of the circular shape, when taken in plan from an end, is slightly less than the internal diameter of the container. This shape allows for efficient placement and storage of the scoop within the container. Moreover, the shape conveniently conforms to the user's hand for a more natural feel when picking up waste products. Elastic bands attached to the convex side of the scoop secure it to one's hand. A user simply slips her thumb between the scoop and one of the elastic bands and slides her fingers under the other elastic band such that the scoop is held in the user's hand. The scooping edges include a saw-tooth type design as to permit the most efficient retrieval of pet waste in grasses and on uneven surfaces. The saw-tooth design allows the scoop to access rocky terrain, grassy or uneven ground more efficiently. The saw-tooth edges act as a rake and get into uneven areas, thereby, retrieving more waste than a flat edge scooping device.
[0017] To facilitate the retrieval process, the container or canister lid is opened and a clean plastic bag is removed along with the scoop. The scoop is secured to the hand via the elastic bands as described above. The user then places his hand, with the attached scoop, inside the plastic bag. The user tucks a bottom of the plastic bag inside the concave section of the scoop. The waste is retrieved by closing the scoop over the excrement pile, with no waste coming into contact with the user's hand or scoop. It is noted that in the majority of cases, the entire retrieval can be accomplished in one scooping action. Once the waste is in the plastic bag lined scoop, the user simply grabs the upper edge of the bag opening and inverts the exterior and interior surfaces of the bag. This manner allows the hand and scoop to be removed, while still maintaining no waste contamination, simultaneously while encapsulating the excrement. The user then removes the scoop from the hand, secures the waste containing plastic bag by a closure device such as a plastic tie, or similar means, places the scoop back into the container, places the sealed waste in the container, and replaces the lid. The waste is now properly contained until such time of proper disposal.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention shown in the closed position.
[0019] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the invention shown in the open position.
[0020] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the canister shown in the closed position. The outer material cover is not shown in this view.
[0021] FIG. 4A is an elevation view of the outer or exterior side of the cover depicting the leash connecting lanyard along with various hook and loop strips for securing the cover to the canister and the leash.
[0022] FIG. 4B is an elevation view of the inner or interior side of the cover depicting the leash connecting lanyard along with various hook and loop strips.
[0023] FIG. 5A is an elevation view of the convex side of the scoop containing the elastic hand retention bands. The scoop is shown in a flattened position for clarity.
[0024] FIG. 5B is an elevation view of the concave side of the scoop. The scoop is shown in a flattened position for clarity.
[0025] FIG. 5C is a perspective end view showing the scoop and its memorized shape.
[0026] FIG. 6 is a plan view of the pre-molded retaining device, preferably comprising a flat plastic strip, used to preserve the lid to the canister when the lid is removed from atop the canister during use of the invention.
[0027] FIG. 7A is a perspective view of the user's hand containing the opened scoop taken from an end of the scoop. After removal of the scope from the canister, this is a step in performing a waste removal operation.
[0028] FIG. 7B is a perspective view of the user's hand containing the opened scoop along with an unused plastic bag that has been slipped over the hand and scoop.
[0029] FIG. 7C is a perspective view of the user's hand containing the scoop, and plastic bag, in progress of the waste retrieval process. The bag covered scoop is inserted over and around the waste.
[0030] FIG. 7D is a perspective view of the user's hand containing the closed scoop, plastic bag, and retrieved waste.
[0031] FIG. 7E is a perspective view of the user performing the inversion process of the plastic bag containing retrieved waste.
[0032] FIG. 7F is a perspective view of the retrieved waste sealed in the plastic bag, ready for storage in the canister.
[0033] FIG. 8 is an elevation, cross sectional, cut-away view of the closed canister containing the scoop and retrieved waste in the sealed plastic bag.
[0034] FIG. 9 is a plan view of the opened canister containing the scoop and retrieved waste in the sealed plastic bag. In addition, FIG. 9 shows an inside view of the attached lid.
[0035] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a typical exercising scenario of a user and pet along with the present invention as attached to the pet's leash.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0036] The embodiments of the invention and the various features and advantageous details thereof are more fully explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments and examples that are described and/or illustrated in the accompanying drawings and set forth in the following description. It should be noted that the features illustrated in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and the features of one embodiment may be employed with the other embodiments as the skilled artisan recognizes, even if not explicitly stated herein. Descriptions of well-known components and techniques may be omitted to avoid obscuring the invention. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the invention may be practiced and to further enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments set forth herein should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims. Moreover, it is noted that like reference numerals represent similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.
[0037] Referring now to the various views of FIGS. 1-3 , the following is a discussion of the best mode of implementing the invention. FIGS. 1 and 2 are shown with cover 12 surrounding an exterior surface of canister 1 . Views of the two sides of the cover 12 are shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B , and discussed herein below. FIG. 3 is shown without cover 12 . The present invention is a system comprising a cylindrical canister 1 with an attached, removable lid 2 . Lid 2 is also cylindrical and designed to mate with canister 1 by means of integral molded right hand internal threads (not shown). Canister 1 comprises a molded plastic sidewall 25 with an opening that includes preformed right hand external threads to mate with the internal threads of lid 2 . External threads 31 are arranged about opening 33 that opens into a storage recess 45 (shown in FIG. 8 ). The material properties for canister 1 include durability and reduced weight. The preferred material properties of lid 2 are identical to canister 1 . The wall of canister 1 and lid 2 are sufficient in thickness to prevent deformity while maintaining the pre-molded shape when subjected to the normal rugged handling that is experienced during use. Lid 2 contains knurling on the outer diameter for ease of gripping and increased friction between the lid and one's fingers to facilitate rotation of the lid 2 when screwing the lid 2 onto canister 1 or unscrewing the lid 2 from the canister 1 .
[0038] Lid 2 is attached to canister 1 by means of a molded, flat, plastic lid lanyard strip 3 , more clearly shown in FIG. 6 . Lid lanyard strip 3 is the preferred embodiment that serves for preventing loss or misplacement of lid 2 when unscrewed from canister 1 . The lid lanyard strip 3 includes a large diameter opening 70 and a small diameter opening 75 connected together via a flexible flat strip 73 . The large diameter opening is substantially equal to an outer diameter of the threads 31 . The small diameter opening is substantially equal to an outer diameter of a fastener 5 arranged in the center of lid 2 . The fastener 5 may be a non-corrosive rivet that connects one end of the lanyard strip 3 to preferably a center of lid 2 . Rivet 5 is compressed in such a manner as to permit free rotation of lid 2 relative to lanyard strip 3 to forestall binding during rotational activity when screwing lid 2 onto canister 1 , or unscrewing lid 2 from canister 1 . The remaining opposite end of the lanyard strip 3 includes opening 70 which is stretched and slipped over fastening threads 31 .
[0039] A cover securing pad 4 is attached to the sidewall 25 on the lower half of canister 1 by the preferred means of an adhesive back that is not shown in the drawings. Cover securing pad 4 is used, in part, to secure a cover 12 to an exterior surface of canister 1 , facilitate alignment, and prevent slippage of the cover 12 about the exterior surface of the canister 1 . The cover securing pad comprises one-half of a strip of hook and loop material. A complementary canister securing pad strip is sewn onto the inner side of the cover 12 in an area to correspond to the location of cover securing pad 4 and as shown in FIG. 4B .
[0040] The cover 12 is of nylon-like, rip-stop, durable material 8 and having various fastening complementary fastening strips denoted as 7 A-C and 17 A-D, which contribute to both the esthetic value and functional value of the invention. The various arranged cover elements allow the canister 1 to be attached to any small diameter or flat material such as a leash, belt, animal harness, collar or the like.
[0041] Connecting lanyard 6 is used to secure the invention to the handle end of the leash of the pet or other desired location. Preferably, the connecting lanyard 6 comprises an elastic material. One end of the connecting lanyard 6 is permanently fastened to the cover 12 , which in turn, is securely fastened to canister 1 during use. An attachment pad 17 D of preferably a hook and loop material is arranged on an opposite, free end of the connecting lanyard 6 and is of a complementary material that mates with strip 7 A to fasten the two together. During use, connecting lanyard 6 is passed through a loop of material, such as the handle of a leash and shaped into a loop as shown in FIGS. 1 , 2 and 10 . A connection point created by overlapping attachment pad 13 to complementary fastening strip 7 A is further reinforced by the placement of a first circumferential fastening strip 9 about the cover as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . The connecting lanyard 6 is comprised of an elastic band material of sufficient strength as to withstand the continued shaking and vibration during the pet exercise journey. Moreover, the lanyard 6 contains a detachable end that utilizes the preferred means of hook and loop fastening for attachment and detachment from a pet's leash.
[0042] The cover 12 is wrapped around canister 1 and secured by an axial fastener created by the overlapping fastening strip 17 A onto a portion of fastening strip 7 A. Dual circumferential fasteners 9 , 10 are arranged near an upper edge and a lower edge of the rectangular material 8 . Each circumferential fastener preferably includes a strip of durable cloth material sewn along the entire length of the upper edge and the lower edge of material 8 . The length of each strip is greater than the length of material 8 . Fastening strips 17 B and 17 C are attached to an inner side of respective free ends of the circumferential fasteners 9 , 10 and are overlapped onto respective fastening strips 7 B and 7 C. Specifically, hook and loop material is used as the preferred fastening means for all detachable couplings of the various parts of the cover 12 .
[0043] Upon wrapping the cover 12 around the canister, each end of the covering containing the sewn in vertical loop material strip 7 A and mating sewn in vertical hook material strip 17 A, respectively, are aligned and subsequently pressed together to create an axial fastener that fastens the cover 12 onto canister 1 . Similarly, the circumferential edges of the cover comprising the circumferential fasteners 9 and 10 are individual aligned, front to back, and pressed together. While vertical and horizontal fastening means have been described for the attachment of cover 12 to canister 1 , there still remains the issue of axial and/or radial slippage. To prevent this undesired slippage, the preferred means of cover securing pad 4 is used in combination with the loop pad 11 . Cover securing pad 4 is attached on the lower half of canister 1 by the preferred means of an adhesive back (not shown). Loop pad 11 , as sewn onto the inner side of the canister's outer covering 12 , mates with cover securing pad 4 during the wrapping process to create an attachment point between the exterior surface of the canister and the interior surface of the cover. In this manner, the free ends of the circumferential fasteners may be used to more securely fasten the system onto a leash or the like by using the axial fastener to initially secure the cover 12 about the canister 1 and thereafter arranging the cover against a strip of material such as a harness or leash and passing the free ends of the circumferential fasteners around the same strip of material and securing the free ends to the cover as discussed above. In this manner, the circumferential fasteners also fasten the cover to the leash or other such material. Preferably, the height of the cover is substantially equal to the height of the sidewall of the canister less any threads.
[0044] As shown in FIGS. 5A-5C , scoop 13 is used in retrieving pet excrement. The scoop is coupled to an interior of a user's hand via straps. The scoop is secured to the back of the user's hand by two elastic retention strips 14 , as shown in FIG. 7A . Scoop 13 is a rectangular shaped plastic sheet of sufficient thickness with the appropriate elastomeric properties as to retain a memorized circular shape. This shape serves to minimize conflicting storage space in canister 1 . When stored, the inherent shape of scoop 13 conforms to inner diameter of canister 1 as shown in FIGS. 5C , 8 and 9 , thereby, allowing the remaining volume of the storage recess 45 to accommodate the retrieved waste as sealed in plastic bag 15 A, extra unused storage bags 15 , and tie-wraps 16 . Saw-tooth edges 18 A, 18 B are provided on opposite ends of scoop 13 . The two elastic retention strips 14 are preferably sewn onto an exterior surface of scoop 13 . Scoop 13 also comprises an upper edge 19 A and a lower edge 19 B. The elastic retention strips are arranged parallel to edges 18 A, 18 B and between upper and lower edges 19 A, 19 B.
[0045] FIGS. 7A-7F show part of the process steps for using the present system. After the pet has deposited waste onto a surface, bag 15 A and scoop 13 are retrieved from canister 1 . During the waste retrieval process, and following attachment of scoop 13 via the elastic retention strips 14 , as shown in FIG. 7A , a clean unused plastic bag 15 A is slipped over the user's hand and “cupped” or preformed to the concave section of scoop 13 as shown in FIG. 7B . The user retrieves the waste by flattening out the hand which simultaneously opens the scoop 13 . The user places the positioned flat extended hand and scoop over the waste, and then closes the hand and scoop as shown in FIG. 7C , and subsequently encompasses the waste as shown in FIG. 7D . The waste is isolated from the scoop by the plastic bag 15 in a manner similar to a glove or mitt. Upon receipt of the waste, the user grabs the plastic bag 15 by the opening edges and removes in a manner as one might remove an elastic medical exam glove, as shown in FIG. 7E . Upon removal, the waste is encapsulated in the plastic bag 15 . The user then removes the scoop and seals the plastic bag by the preferred means of a tie-wrap 16 A, as shown in FIG. 7F . The completion of the waste storage process includes placing the scoop and the sealed waste back into canister 1 to be stored as shown in FIG. 8 . The lid 2 is then screwed back on canister 1 and the invention is returned to the pet leash by means of attachment of the leash connection lanyard 6 . FIG. 9 is an overhead view showing the lid removed and the various parts of the system.
[0046] As shown in FIG. 10 , a user can secure the system at a top end of a leash 100 as discussed previously. The connection lanyard 6 prevents the system from slipping down to the end of the leash attached to the dog. The circumferential fasteners couple the cover and canister onto the leash between the handle 105 and an opposite end coupled to the shown dog.
[0047] Having described the present invention with respect to the preferred embodiments and pursuant to the requirements of patent statues, the preferred embodiments can be modified, substituted or augmented in order to facilitate the ease of manufacture without deviating from the original scope or intent of the present invention. For example, a person skilled in the art may choose to fabricate a pet waste retrieval and storage system with a snap-on lid in lieu of a screw-on lid. Another example would include using metal fasteners such as snaps, as applicable, in lieu of certain hook and loop strip fasteners. Colors and sizes may vary. Such changes or modifications are numerous and may be made while not departing from the scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying figures shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense or use.
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A pet waste retrieval and storage system and associated method ensures sanitary collection, and subsequent storage in accompanying sealed plastic bags, without any waste material coming into direct contact with the user, device components, or other unintended surroundings. A pet waste retrieval and storage system includes a container of sufficient volume, an accompanying lid, lid attachment lanyard, with associated non-corrosive installation hardware, a fabric cover with fastening means for attachment to the container's outer surface diameter, and an elastic leash connecting lanyard.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 10/225,974, filed Aug. 22, 2002, pending, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/407,334, filed Sep. 29, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,515,363, issued Feb. 4, 2003, which is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/023,523, filed Feb. 13, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,136,690, issued Oct. 24, 2000.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to metallization techniques that utilize a plasma to treat a surface to which metal will be applied. Particularly, the present invention relates to plasma treatment of the surface of a semiconductor integrated circuit and the subsequent metallization of that surface. More particularly, the technique of the present invention is useful for placing refractory metals, refractory metal nitrides, and refractory metal silicon nitrides on a semiconductor die. A preferred metal for use in the technique of the present invention is tungsten.
[0004] 2. Background of Related Art
[0005] Thin layers of refractory metals are desired for use in integrated circuits for several purposes, including, without limitation, as low resistance gate interconnections in polysilicon gate regions of field-effect transistors, to form a Schottky-barrier, to form ohmic contacts on silicon, as low resistance vias, and others. As line widths in very large scale integrated circuits (VLSI) decrease, the use of refractory metals in such circuits becomes increasingly desirable.
[0006] Traditionally, refractory metals for VLSI applications have been deposited by sputtering, evaporation, and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) onto the active surface of a wafer or semiconductor substrate, including, without limitation, silicon, gallium arsenide, silicon on sapphire (SOS), silicon on insulator (SOI), silicon on glass (SOG), and other wafers known in the art. Although it is possible to sputter almost any material, including, without limitation, pure refractory metals and refractory metal silicides, sputtering machines tend to be complicated and tend to require considerable maintenance. Sputtering also tends to deposit refractory metals and their silicides in an inconsistent manner, which leaves pinholes and other discontinuities in the deposited layer (i.e., sputtered films are not conformal).
[0007] Evaporation techniques for depositing refractory metals have many of the same deficiencies as sputtering techniques. Specifically, evaporative deposition of refractory metals is often a complex process. Many techniques that deposit refractory metals by evaporation also provide poor refractory metal coverage.
[0008] Relative to sputtering and evaporation techniques, chemical vapor deposition and low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) of refractory metals often provide good coverage with reduced system complexity. However, many CVD techniques are somewhat undesirable in that the layers of refractory metals formed thereby are inadequate for some uses in integrated circuits. Many CVD techniques also deposit inconsistent, discontinuous layers of refractory metal. It is also difficult to reproduce the thickness of the refractory metal films produced by some existing CVD techniques.
[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,607, issued to Tsao (the “'607 patent”), describes a method for treating the surface of a field-effect transistor or a Schottky barrier diode. The technique of the '607 patent utilizes a plasma etch, such as CF 4 +4% O 2 , to shape doped polysilicon regions. According to the method of the '607 patent, the polysilicon surface is then treated with a low power argon plasma to enhance nucleation sites on that surface. A layer of tungsten or molybdenum is then selectively deposited on the treated surface by CVD techniques.
[0010] Although the method of the '607 patent enhances the nucleation sites on a polysilicon or silicon surface, the refractory metal that is subsequently deposited by the reaction of WF 6 with silicon may cause wormholes, which decreases the selectivity of refractory metal deposition. The refractory metal layer may also have an inconsistent thickness (i.e., poor uniformity).
[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 5,618,382, issued to Mintz et al. (the “'382 patent”), describes an apparatus that, among other things, employs a plasma to etch a substrate. The apparatus operates at high frequencies (greater than 13.56 MHz), preferably in the range of 30 to 200 MHz, depending upon the process to be performed on the wafer. The purpose of the apparatus disclosed in that patent is to increase the rate of plasma processing of semiconductor wafers without significant damage thereto. The '382 patent does not disclose use of the apparatus to deposit refractory metals onto a semiconductor die, nor does the '382 patent disclose improved adherence of a refractory metal layer to a semiconductor die following plasma surface etching.
[0012] In integrated circuit manufacturing, blanket deposition of tungsten is typically favored over selective deposition of the same due to difficulties in controlling selectivity loss. Blanket deposition inherently requires that the tungsten be deposited onto both silicon/polysilicon and oxide surfaces. Typically, prior to the blanket deposition of tungsten, multiple layers, including titanium (Ti) and titanium nitride (TiN), are deposited onto the silicon and/or polysilicon surfaces prior to the deposition of more desirable refractory metals, such as tungsten or molybdenum. A first layer, such as a titanium film, which adheres well to silicon, polysilicon, or the like, is deposited directly onto such surfaces. A second layer, such as titanium nitride, which adheres well to both the first layer and to the desired refractory metal, is then deposited onto the first layer. Next, the desired refractory metal, such as titanium or molybdenum, is deposited onto the second layer. The titanium/titanium nitride layers also lower contact resistance and act as a diffusion barrier to prevent fluorine-containing species from attacking the underlying layers during subsequent deposition steps.
[0013] Although the use of such layers improves the adhesion of tungsten or other refractory metals to a die, materials such as titanium nitride oxidize very readily under ambient conditions. As those of ordinary skill in the relevant art are aware, refractory metals do not adhere well to oxides. Thus, an oxidized surface of the second layer hinders the ability of the desirable refractory metal to form a contiguous film that will adequately adhere to the second layer (i.e., causes less uniform nucleation and increases the length of time that is required to form a contiguous film).
[0014] A method is needed in the art for decreasing or eliminating oxidation on a substrate prior to metallization, so as to improve the adhesion of refractory metals, refractory metal nitrides and refractory metal silicon nitrides to the substrate. A method for producing a more contiguous, uniform layer of refractory metal in a reduced period of time is also needed. Further, a method is needed that reduces the incidence of spontaneous fluorine attack of the substrate material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The method of the present invention addresses each of the foregoing needs.
[0016] As used herein, the term “refractory metals” means refractory metals, refractory metal nitrides, refractory metal silicon nitrides, and other molecules and materials that include refractory metal atoms. The terms “wafer” and “semiconductor substrate,” as used herein, refer to semiconductor wafers formed from silicon, polysilicon, gallium arsenide, silicon on glass (SOG), silicon on insulator (SOI), silicon on sapphire (SOS) and others known in the art.
[0017] According to the method of the present invention, one or, preferably, more layers of base material are adhered to a semiconductor substrate material prior to deposition of a refractory metal layer thereover. Each of the layers of base material between the substrate and the refractory metal adhere well to both of the adjacent layers. Preferably, the upper, exposed base layer includes a material to which a desired refractory metal layer adheres well. A plasma is then generated over the upper base layer to reduce the level of oxidation thereon and to facilitate the subsequent deposition of a refractory metal, such as tungsten. Preferably, the plasma gas includes a mixture of argon, hydrogen and nitrogen. The impact of argon against the titanium nitride surface may physically remove oxygen atoms from the surface or it may energize the oxygen atoms, causing them to react with the hydrogen radicals in the plasma. A layer of refractory metal is then applied to the upper base layer. Preferably, the refractory metal is deposited onto the substrate in situ by CVD techniques immediately following the removal of oxygen from the base layer surface over the substrate.
[0018] The present invention includes a method for treating an exposed, upper base layer onto which a refractory metal such as tungsten, molybdenum, or another refractory metal or metal alloy is to be applied. An argon-hydrogen-nitrogen plasma is generated over the base layer. Argon molecules in the plasma collide with the exposed surface of the upper base layer and remove oxygen atoms therefrom. Hydrogen and nitrogen radicals coat or “stuff” the upper base layer surface to prevent further oxidation thereof.
[0019] The present invention also includes a method for reducing oxidation on the layer upon which the refractory metal layer is to be deposited, further improving the adherence of the refractory metal to that layer.
[0020] The method of the present invention is useful for forming conductive structures in semiconductor devices, including, without limitation, electrical contacts, such as bond pads, via fills, gates, and local and global interconnections.
[0021] Advantageously, the present invention provides a method to form a contiguous, consistent layer of refractory metal film on the exposed surface of a substrate. The method of the present invention includes a first chemical vapor deposition (CVD) step that facilitates the generation of nucleation sites, which have the thickness and confluency to form a contiguous layer on the substrate, and provide improved adhesion of the subsequently deposited refractory metal layer thereto. The preferred method also includes a subsequent CVD step, wherein a second chemical reaction facilitates growth of nucleation centers together and consistent thickness of the film in order to increase step coverage and reduce contact resistance. Thus, the method of this invention deposits a contiguous, consistent layer of refractory metal on the substrate. The present invention also reduces the time it takes to deposit a contiguous layer of refractory metal onto the surface of a die relative to refractory metal deposition processes in the prior art.
[0022] The incidence of spontaneous fluorine etching of the substrate is also reduced by the method of the present invention. This is accomplished by excluding fluorine-containing species from the plasma, which are known by those of ordinary skill in the relevant art to etch silicon, polysilicon, silicon dioxide, and other materials, from the deoxidizing plasma. Instead, hydrogen radicals from the plasma create an excess of hydrogen, which adheres to the upper base layer surface following deoxidation of that layer. Thus, the fluorine atoms of the deposition reaction are believed to be more likely to react with the hydrogen than with the substrate.
[0023] Other advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art through a consideration of the appended drawings and the ensuing description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view that illustrates a semiconductor substrate having base layers thereon and a refractory metal layer deposited onto the base layers to form a plug that fills a via hole;
[0025] FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view that illustrates a semiconductor substrate including a via plug that has a different number of base layers than that of FIG. 1 ;
[0026] FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view that illustrates a semiconductor substrate having a bond pad thereon including first and second base layers and a refractory metal layer;
[0027] FIG. 1C is a top plan view of a semiconductor device including a semiconductor substrate, a first base layer disposed thereon, a second base layer disposed on the first base layer, and a refractory metal layer disposed over the second base layer, the first and second base layers and the refractory metal layer forming a bond pad;
[0028] FIGS. 1D and 1E are cross-sectional views that illustrate a wordline gate after the refractory metal deposition and after a dry etch to define the gate;
[0029] FIG. 2 is a contour map of tungsten deposited onto an untreated titanium nitride surface;
[0030] FIG. 3 is a contour map of tungsten deposited onto a titanium nitride surface that has been treated with a deoxidizing plasma in accordance with a preferred method of the present invention;
[0031] FIG. 4 is a graph that illustrates the thickness at different locations on a tungsten layer over deposition time;
[0032] FIG. 5 is a graph that illustrates the amount of fluorine-containing species at various depths of a semiconductor device; and
[0033] FIG. 6 is a graph that illustrates the amount of oxygen atoms at various depths of a semiconductor device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0034] The method of the present invention includes plasma deoxidation of surfaces of a semiconductor integrated circuit upon which refractory metal deposition is desired. Refractory metals are useful for fabricating many of the electrically conductive structures of a semiconductor device. Thus, the method of the present invention is suited for forming structures such as contacts and via fills. A preferred metallization method also includes depositing metal onto the treated layers. Since refractory metals do not adhere to oxidized surfaces and insulating layers, the method of this invention may also include the formation of a silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) or other oxide layer on surfaces of the semiconductor substrate where refractory metal deposition is not desired. The preferred method according to the present invention also includes the formation of one or more base layers on the active surface of the semiconductor substrate to facilitate adhesion of the desired refractory metal thereto.
[0035] As those of ordinary skill in the relevant art are aware, refractory metals such as tungsten and molybdenum do not adhere well to oxides or insulating or passivation materials such as borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG), phosphosilicate glass (PSG) and others. Thus, the method of the present invention may include the formation of an insulating layer of a material such as silicon dioxide, PSG, BPSG, or another insulating material on the areas of the semiconductor substrate where refractory metal deposition is not desired. The formation and configuration of such layers are well known to those of skill in the art.
[0036] Preferably, the refractory metal deposition technique of the present invention includes depositing one or more base layers onto the integrated circuit substrate. With reference to FIG. 1 , a first base layer 110 is blanket deposited onto an oxide layer 102 , such as BPSG, and the exposed semiconductor regions 103 (e.g., silicon or polysilicon) of a semiconductor substrate 100 , which may be formed from a material such as silicon, polysilicon, gallium arsenide, silicon on sapphire (SOS), silicon on insulator (SOI), silicon on glass (SOG) or any other substrate material that is useful in semiconductor integrated circuit applications. First base layer 110 is preferably formed from a material that adheres well to semiconductor substrate 100 and to oxide layer 102 and has better adherence to the subsequently applied layer of refractory metal or another base material than that of the refractory metal to the substrate material. Preferably, first base layer 110 also improves conductivity between the underlying semiconductor regions and the refractory metal to be deposited thereover.
[0037] One or more subsequent base layers 120 may also be adhered to first base layer 110 to achieve a desired level of adhesion of a refractory metal plug 130 to the semiconductor substrate 100 . Preferably, each subsequent base layer 120 adheres well to the underlying first base layer 110 or to another, lower base layer. Preferably, each subsequent base layer 120 also has better adherence to the next applied layer, which is referred to as a plug 130 , than plug 130 has to either the preceding, first base layer 110 to semiconductor substrate 100 , or to oxide layer 102 . The uppermost base layer 120 is also referred to herein as the upper base layer, the exposed base layer, and the deposition layer. Preferably, uppermost base layer 120 also acts as a diffusion barrier in order to prevent fluorine-containing species from attacking the underlying layers during subsequent deposition steps.
[0038] In FIG. 1 , plug 130 is made of refractory metal. However, in applications where more than two base layers are necessary to obtain the desired adhesion of a refractory metal to the semiconductor substrate, as shown in FIG. 1A , a plug 140 ′ must be deposited on another subsequently deposited base layer 130 ′. Methods that are known to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art are useful in the present invention for depositing each of the base layers onto the substrate and on top of one another.
[0039] FIGS. 1 and 1 A illustrate plugs 130 ( FIG. 1 ) and 140 ′ ( FIG. 1A ) fabricated from a refractory metal that fill via holes 105 and 105 ′, respectively. Plugs 130 and 140 ′ are formed over one or more base layers (a first base layer 110 and a second base layer 120 in FIG. 1 and first, second and third base layers 110 ′, 120 ′ and 130 ′, respectively in FIG. 1A ). FIG. 1B depicts a bond pad 150 ″ that has been fabricated on a semiconductor substrate 100 ″. Bond pad 150 ″ includes a first base layer 110 ″, a second base layer 120 ″ disposed on first base layer 110 ″, and an exposed refractory metal layer 130 ″.
[0040] Referring now to FIG. 1C , a semiconductor device 101 that is an intermediate product of the process of the present invention is shown. Semiconductor device 101 includes a semiconductor substrate 100 having a field oxide layer 102 thereon, a first base layer 110 deposited on the field oxide layer, a second base layer 120 disposed over the first base layer, and a plurality of discontinuous refractory metal nucleation centers 130 A′ on the second base layer 120 .
[0041] FIGS. 1D and 1E illustrate the fabrication of a wordline 160 that has been fabricated over a gate oxide layer 159 by the process of the present invention. Wordline 160 includes a polysilicon layer 161 , a titanium nitride layer 162 and a tungsten layer 163 . Following deposition of each of the gate oxide layer 159 , polysilicon layer 161 , titanium nitride layer 162 and tungsten layer 163 , an etch is conducted as known in the art in order to define wordline 160 . Using processes that are known in the art, a gate may then be formed over wordline 160 by fabricating spacers 164 and 165 adjacent to wordline 160 and depositing a cap 166 on the same.
[0042] When improved adhesion of tungsten to a surface of semiconductor substrate 100 is desired, first base layer 110 preferably comprises titanium (Ti), second base layer 120 preferably comprises titanium nitride (TiN), and plug 130 is tungsten. Titanium adheres well to silicon, titanium nitride adheres well to titanium, and tungsten adheres better to titanium nitride than to either silicon or titanium. Thus, the use of a titanium nitride base layer facilitates the successful deposition and longevity of the overlying tungsten layer.
[0043] It is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art that refractory metals do not adhere well to oxidized surfaces. However, materials such as titanium nitride, silicon, polysilicon, and others are known to oxidize readily under ambient conditions. Thus, the method of the present invention includes a technique for reducing oxidation on the surfaces to which refractory metal deposition is desired.
[0044] A treatment, or deoxidation, method according to the present invention includes plasma treatment of the surface to which refractory metal deposition is desired. A plasma is generated over the exposed base layer to remove oxygen molecules from the exposed base layer (e.g., a TiN base layer 120 ) and prevent further oxidation from occurring prior to deposition of the refractory metal layer upon the exposed base layer. The ions, radicals, neutral-active species, molecules and atoms in the plasma treat the exposed base layer and coat the exposed surface of the base layer to prevent further oxidation thereof.
[0045] Plasma gas mixtures that are useful in the present invention include a primary carrier gas or mixture that is capable of removing scavenging oxygen atoms from the exposed base layer and a secondary gas that prevents further oxidation of the exposed base layer. Suitable primary carrier atoms, such as argon (Ar), are massive enough to impart sufficient momentum in a plasma to remove oxygen molecules from the exposed base layer. Other elements that are useful in the plasma gas mixture include, but are not limited to, nitrogen (N 2 ), small amounts of helium (He), and other inert gases. Mixtures of any of the foregoing are also useful in the carrier gas. A preferred carrier gas mixture that is useful as a precursor gas in the formation of the deoxidizing plasma includes two parts by volume argon and one part by volume nitrogen.
[0046] A preferred secondary gas, such as hydrogen (H 2 ), prevents further oxidation of the exposed base layer (i.e., inhibits the ability of oxygen to react with the exposed base layer). Gases that comprise other inert elements that will coat the exposed base layer to prevent further oxidation thereof are also useful as the secondary gas.
[0047] Preferably, plasma deoxidation according to the present invention is conducted in a CVD chamber having plasma capability of the type used in the industry, including, but not limited to, single wafer reactors, horizontal tube reactors, parallel plate reactors, and PECVD reactors. Plasma sources that are useful in the present invention include, without limitation, radio frequency (RF) plasma sources, microwave plasma sources, remote plasma sources, and other plasma sources as known in the art.
[0048] In a preferred embodiment of the plasma deoxidation technique of this invention, oxygen is first evacuated from the deposition chamber. Nitrogen, argon, helium, hydrogen, or a mixture of any of the foregoing may be pumped into the deposition chamber to assist in the evacuation of oxygen therefrom. A carrier gas or gas mixture is then flowed into the plasma chamber at a rate of from about 0 to about 300 standard cubic centimeters per minute (sccm). Continuing with the above example, where the carrier gas includes a mixture of argon and nitrogen, argon enters the chamber at a rate of from about 0 to about 200 sccm and nitrogen enters the chamber at a rate in the range of from about 0 to 100 sccm. The secondary gas preferably flows into the reactor at a rate of from about 250 to about 450 sccm. Preferably, the plasma gases flow into the reactor chamber until the pressure within the reactor chamber is in the range of about 0.45 torr to about 0.90 torr. In RF plasma systems, a preferred power range of about 100 to 300 watts is used to energize the plasma. Spacing between susceptor and showerhead is preferably in the range of about 700 mil to about 900 mil. Preferably, the duration of the plasma deoxidation step is from about 5 to about 15 seconds.
[0049] Energetic species X ( FIG. 1C ), such as the radicals present in the plasma, are adsorbed onto the surface of the exposed base layer. When argon/hydrogen or argon/nitrogen/hydrogen plasma gases are used, the hydrogen radicals of the plasma tend to adsorb to the exposed base layer. It is known to those of ordinary skill in the art that radicals tend to have high sticking coefficients, and also appear to migrate easily along the surface after adsorption thereto. These factors facilitate the formation of a hydrogen coat that has good conformality over the exposed surface of the upper base layer. The presence of a hydrogen coat on the exposed surface of the upper base layer accelerates refractory metal deposition on that surface.
[0050] Following plasma deoxidation of the deposition layer, the refractory metal is applied to the exposed base layer. The preferred method of refractory metal deposition for use in the technique of the present invention is chemical vapor deposition (CVD). However, other metallization techniques that are known to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art are also useful in the present invention, although currently not as preferred. Such metallization techniques include, without limitation, evaporation, sputtering, and others.
[0051] When the desired refractory metal is applied to the integrated circuit by CVD, the refractory metal is first nucleated onto the deposition layer, then blanket deposited thereon. Preferably, nucleation and blanket deposition immediately follow the deoxidation step and occur in the same CVD chamber. Thus, plasma deoxidation and refractory metal deposition preferably occur in situ without physical transfer of the semiconductor substrate to another location or chamber. However, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, deposition of the refractory metal need not be plasma-enhanced.
[0052] As noted above, the presence of hydrogen on the exposed base layer has been found to accelerate nucleation and decrease the reaction incubation time, which is necessary to form a refractory metal film of desired thickness. Hydrogen also reacts with fluorine molecules in the plasma, inhibiting their ability to attack the semiconductor substrate.
[0053] In practicing a preferred embodiment of the refractory metal deposition method of the invention, a carrier gas, such as argon, nitrogen, helium, or another inert gas or mixture of such gases, is flowed into the chamber until a pressure of about 0.3 to 3.0 torr is attained. The presence of such carrier gases facilitates uniform deposition of the refractory metal onto the integrated circuit. The reaction chamber is then heated to an appropriate temperature for CVD of the desired refractory metal. For example, tungsten deposition requires a temperature of approximately 300° C. to greater than 500° C.
[0054] Next, appropriate amounts of reactants necessary for deposition of the desired refractory metal are flowed into the CVD chamber. In a preferred tungsten deposition reaction, for every two molecules of tungsten hexafluoride (WF 6 ) in the chamber, three silane (SiH 4 ) molecules are flowed into the chamber. The preferred chemical reaction for forming tungsten nucleation sites, which consumes tungsten hexafluoride and silane and which is referred to as silicon reduction of tungsten hexafluoride, is:
2WF 6 +3SiH 4 ->2W+3SiF 4 +6H 2 .
The tungsten atoms are deposited on the exposed base layer and form nucleation sites thereon, which are also referred to herein as nucleation centers or as a tungsten nucleation layer 130 A (see FIG. 1 ). The SiF 4 and hydrogen are each gaseous byproducts that are generally nonreactive with semiconductor materials. Tungsten-source gases including, without limitation, tungsten hexachloride (WCl 6 ) and others are also useful in the method of the present invention. Similar chemical reactions are useful for nucleating other refractive metals onto the exposed surface. For example, molybdenum could be nucleated onto the exposed base layer by the following equation:
2MoF 6 +3SiH 4 ->2Mo+3SiF 4 +6H 2 .
At the outset of the deposition, the carrier gas is Ar. After the silane reduces WF 6 , hydrogen gas (H 2 ) is preferably added to the gas flow and Ar flow is stopped to shift the deposition reaction to a hydrogen reduction of WF 6 in accordance with the following chemical reaction:
WF 6 +3H 2 ->W+6HF.
[0057] Hydrogen reduction of WF 6 grows the nucleation centers into larger islands of refractory metal, which coalesce into a continuous film of refractory metal. This step is referred to as refractory metal deposition, or blanket deposition. As in the nucleation step above, other chemical reactions that deposit tungsten or another desired refractory metal may be used in the present step.
[0058] FIG. 2 is a contour map that illustrates the surface of a tungsten layer that was chemical vapor deposited onto a titanium nitride base layer that was not treated in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 3 is a contour map that illustrates the uniformity of a chemical vapor deposited tungsten film on a titanium nitride base layer that was plasma treated in accordance with the method of the present invention. In FIGS. 2 and 3 , “+” denotes areas of the tungsten layer that have a thickness greater than the average thickness of the entire layer; “-” denotes areas of the tungsten layer that have a thickness less than the average thickness of the entire layer. The contour lines correlate to changes in the thickness in the tungsten layer. As FIG. 3 shows, plasma deoxidation of the deposition surface improves the consistency and conformity of the refractory metal layer deposited thereon.
[0059] FIG. 4 is a graph, the data of which was generated by a 4 point probe, which illustrates the sheet resistance, and thereby reflects the uniformity of deposited tungsten refractory metal layers on wafers over the entire surface thereof over various deposition times. The thickness of the edge, center and midway points of the tungsten layer that was deposited onto an untreated titanium nitride surface are represented by a circle, an *, and an X, respectively. The thickness of the edge, center and midway points of the tungsten layer that was deposited onto a plasma-treated titanium nitride surface covering a wafer are represented by a triangle, a diamond, and a square, respectively. The graph shows that the thickness of tungsten deposited onto a plasma-treated surface is much more consistent than that of tungsten deposited onto an untreated surface of the same material. The graph also shows that refractory metals are deposited more quickly onto plasma-treated surfaces than on untreated surfaces. Additional analysis demonstrated that the variation in layer uniformity of tungsten deposited onto an untreated titanium nitride deposition layer was about 3.3%, while the variation in uniformity of the tungsten layer that was deposited on the deoxidized (treated) titanium nitride deposition layer improved to about 1.3%.
[0060] FIG. 5 illustrates the concentration of fluorine-containing species at the various depths of a semiconductor device. As FIG. 5 shows, the concentration of fluorine-containing species (represented by the five graph lines) drops dramatically through the titanium nitride layer and is reduced in the titanium layer (represented as “Ti”) and the oxide layer (represented as “SiO 2 ”) relative to the concentrations in the tungsten layer (represented as “W”) and the titanium nitride layer (represented as “TiN”). Thus, FIG. 5 demonstrates that the titanium nitride layer acts as a diffusion barrier to fluorine-containing species.
[0061] Referring to FIG. 6 , a graph is shown that illustrates the concentration of oxygen atoms at the various depths of a semiconductor device. Two of the graph lines appear below the others in the majority of the graph. These lines represent wafers that include a tungsten layer that has been deposited onto a titanium nitride layer that has been treated with an argon-hydrogen-nitrogen plasma according to an embodiment of the method of the present invention. As these graph lines illustrate, the argon-hydrogen-nitrogen plasma treatment reduces the oxygen atom concentration in the tungsten layer to about one-third that in the tungsten layer of an untreated sample (represented by the solid line).
[0062] Although the foregoing description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention, but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments. Similarly, other embodiments of the invention may be devised that do not depart from the spirit or scope of the present invention. The scope of this invention is, therefore, indicated and limited only by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the foregoing description. All additions, deletions and modifications to the invention as disclosed herein that fall within the meaning and scope of the claims are embraced thereby.
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A method for passivating a substrate, such as a semiconductor substrate, that is to be “metallized,” or on which a metal film or structure is to be formed, includes exposing regions of the substrate that are to be metallized to hydrogen radicals or nitrogen radicals. The regions of the substrate that are treated in this fashion are coated or “stuffed.” Passivation of this type may be effected with a plasma that includes a gas such as argon, nitrogen, helium, or hydrogen, or a mixture of any of the foregoing, which will remove oxygen molecules from the surface to which metal adhesion is desired. The metal may then be formed thereon. Hydrogen radicals may also be used to passivate the surface of a substrate, such as a semiconductor substrate, from spontaneous fluorine etching. Such passivation is, of course, effected in a substantially fluorine free environment.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a control unit for an electric power steering apparatus that provides steering assist force by a motor to the steering system of an automobile or a vehicle. The present invention particularly relates to a control unit for an electric power steering apparatus that gives safe and comfortable steering performance by removing the influence of motor inertia and through the provision of continuous steering feeling in a low-cost structure.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] An electric power steering apparatus that applies auxiliary load to the steering apparatus of an automobile or a vehicle with turning effort of a motor applies the driving force of the motor to a steering shaft or a rack axis based on a transmission mechanism like gears or belts via a reduction gear. Such a conventional electric power steering apparatus carries out a feedback control of a motor current for accurately generating an assist torque(a steering assist torque). The feedback control is for adjusting a motor application voltage so as to minimize a difference between a current control value and a motor current detection value. The motor application voltage is generally adjusted based on a duty ratio of a PWM(Pulse Width Modulation) control.
[0005] A general structure of an electric power steering apparatus will be explained with reference to FIG. 1. A shaft 2 of a steering wheel 1 is connected to a tie rod 6 of running wheels through reduction gears 3 , universal joints 4 a and 4 b and a pinion rack mechanism 5 . The shaft 2 is provided with a torque sensor 10 for detecting a steering torque of the steering wheel 1 . A motor 20 for assisting the steering force of the steering wheel 1 is connected to the shaft 2 through a clutch 21 and the reduction gears 3 . A control unit 30 for controlling the power steering apparatus is supplied with power from a battery 14 through an ignition key 11 . The control unit 30 calculates a steering assist command value I of an assist command based on a steering torque T detected by the torque sensor 10 and a vehicle speed V detected by a vehicle speed sensor 12 . The control unit 30 then controls a current to be supplied to the motor 20 based on the calculated steering assist command value I. The clutch 21 is ON/OFF controlled by the control unit 30 , and is kept ON(connected) in an ordinary operation status. When the control unit 30 has decided that the power steering apparatus is in failure, and also when the power source(voltage Vb) of the battery 14 has been turned OFF with the ignition key 11 , the clutch 21 is turned OFF(disconnected).
[0006] The control unit 30 mainly comprises a CPU. FIG. 2 shows general functions to be executed based on a program inside the CPU. For example, a phase compensator 31 does not show a phase compensator as independent hardware, but shows a phase compensation function to be executed by the CPU.
[0007] Functions and operation of the control unit 30 will be explained below. A steering torque T detected by the torque sensor 10 and then input is phase-compensated by the phase compensator 31 for increasing the stability of the steering system. The phase-compensated steering torque TA is inputted to a steering assist command value calculator 32 . A vehicle speed V detected by the vehicle speed sensor 12 is also inputted to the steering assist command value calculator 32 . The steering assist command value calculator 32 determines a steering assist command value I as a control target value of a current to be supplied to the motor 20 , based on the inputted steering torque TA and the inputted vehicle speed V. The steering assist command value I is inputted to a subtractor 30 A, and is also inputted to a differential compensator 34 of a feedforward system for increasing a response speed. A difference (I−i) calculated by the subtractor 30 A is inputted to a proportional calculator 35 , and is also inputted to an integration calculator 36 for improving the characteristic of a feedback system. Outputs from the differential compensator 34 and the integration calculator 36 are inputted to an adder 30 B and added together there. A result of the addition by the adder 30 B is obtained as a current control value E, and this is inputted to a motor driving circuit 37 as a motor driving signal. A motor current value i of the motor 20 is detected by a motor current detecting circuit 38 , and this motor current value i is inputted to the subtractor 30 A and is fed back.
[0008] An example of a structure of the motor driving circuit 37 will be explained with reference to FIG. 3. The motor driving circuit 37 comprises an FET(field-effect transistor) gate driving circuit 371 for driving each gate of field-effect transistors FET 1 to FET 4 based on the current control value E from the adder 30 B, an H-bridge circuit composed of the FET 1 to the FET 4 , and a step-up power source 372 for driving a high side of the FET 1 and the FET 2 , respectively. The FET 1 and the FET 2 are ON/OFF controlled by a PWM(Pulse Width Modulation) signal of a duty ratio D1 determined based on the current control value E, thereby to control the size of a current Ir that actually flows to the motor 20 . The FET 3 and the FET 4 are driven by a PWM signal of a duty ratio D2 defined by a predetermined linear functional expression (D2=a·D1+b, where “a” and “b” are constants) in an area where the duty ratio D1 is small. When and after the duty ratio D2 has also reached 100%, the FET 3 and the FET 4 are ON/OFF controlled according to a rotation direction of the motor 20 determined by a sign of the PWM signal.
[0009] According to a widely-distributed hydraulic power steering apparatus, the apparatus has a characteristic that the friction of a cylinder section increases in proportion to a cylinder pressure P (a horizontal axis T represents a steering torque), as shown in FIG. 4. The apparatus has hysteresis because of the frictional characteristic. When a vehicle is cornering, for example, the hysteresis prevents the steering wheel from being suddenly returned by a self-aligning torque(SAT). This improves the steering of the driver. FIG. 5 shows this status. When the steering torque T has suddenly changed by ΔT, the cylinder pressure changes by P1 in the absence of the hysteresis. However, in the presence of the hysteresis, the cylinder pressure changes by P2(<P1). Therefore, in the presence of the hysteresis, it is possible to make smooth the change in the cylinder pressure P in relation to a change in the steering torque T. It has been known that the hysteresis width changes according to a size of friction. In the case of a rubber packing of a hydraulic cylinder, the rubber is compressed along an increase in the cylinder pressure. The hysteresis width increases based on an increase in Coulomb friction. It is important for the steering that the driver feels strong self-aligning torque at a neutral point, and does not feel so strong self-aligning torque when the vehicle is cornering. In this sense, it is ideal that, like in the hydraulic power steering apparatus, the friction(hysteresis) becomes small in an area of a small steering angle θ, and the friction(hysteresis) becomes large in an area of a large steering angle θ.
[0010] On the other hand, according to an electric power steering apparatus, the apparatus has constant friction independent of the assist torque T, as shown in FIG. 6. The electric power steering apparatus is characterized in that it has a constant friction characteristic independent of steering force, as the Coulomb friction of the motor mainly rules out. Thus, the hysteresis has a constant width as shown in FIG. 7. However, the hysteresis width is narrower than the hysteresis width of the hydraulic power steering apparatus during its high-torque time. Therefore, in the electric power steering apparatus, the friction is compensated for in the area of a small steering torque T by attaching importance to the friction characteristic in this area. According to this compensation, however, the friction becomes smaller in an area where the steering torque T is large, as shown in FIG. 5. As a result, the stable feeling of steering is lost when the steering torque T is large like when the vehicle is cornering.
[0011] As a control unit that solves the above problems, there is one example disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 9-156526 A. According to this, a vehicle steering control unit has a steering torque detector for detecting a steering torque, and this control unit controls the assist volume of an electric power assisting unit, based on a detection signal outputted from the steering torque detector. In this vehicle steering control unit, there is provided an adjuster for giving the hysteresis to the detection signal of the steering torque detector.
[0012] With the provision of the adjuster, it is possible to give the hysteresis to the detection signal of the steering torque detector. Therefore, it is possible to change the hysteresis characteristic of the operating power assisting unit according to the steering status, based on the detection signal of the steering torque. As a result, it is possible to optimize the torque assist volume. However, according to the above conventional unit, there remains a feeling of intermittence in the steering operation, and the torque control system is unstable. Thus, there has been a problem in that the conventional unit leads to a cost increase because of the need for a provision of new hardware structure.
[0013] Further, the present applicant has disclosed a device in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2000-95131 A. This device applies a negative differential gain when the steering wheel returns, thereby to prevent a sudden reduction in the assist volume. The device applies a positive differential gain when the steering wheel is turned. With this arrangement, a large hysteresis characteristic is given in a high-torque area, and a small hysteresis characteristic is given in a low-torque area near the neutral point. However, according to the above device, there is a risk of generating an unnatural steering feeling, when the negative and positive differential gains are too different in the changeover between the negative and positive differential gains based on the steering wheel return and turn patterns.
[0014] Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.10-291481 A disclosed a device for obtaining a comfortable steering feeling regardless of a running speed and a steering angle of the steering wheel. However, the importance is placed on only the stability of the control system, and therefore, this device has a problem in the responsiveness of the assist torque. Further, it is also important to devise the elimination or minimization of the influence of the motor inertia.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a control unit for an electric power steering apparatus capable of obtaining continuous, stable and comfortable steering feeling to realize improved steering performance of the steering wheel without the influence of the motor inertia, based on a provision of a continuous hysteresis characteristic in an adjustable width to the electric power steering apparatus using a low-cost structure on software.
[0016] The present invention provides a control unit for an electric power steering apparatus that controls a motor for giving a steering assist force to a steering mechanism based on a current control value calculated from a steering assist command value calculated based on the steering torque generated in the steering shaft, and a current value of the motor. The object of the present invention can be achieved based on the provision of a center responsiveness improving section that differentiates the steering torque signal, adds the differentiated value to the steering assist command value, and carries out phase advancement compensation to the differentiation.
[0017] Further, the object of the present invention can be achieved more effectively when the phase advancement compensation is carried out before the differentiation, or when the center responsiveness improving section continuously changes the differential gains according to the steering torque and the size of the vehicle speed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] In the accompanying drawings:
[0019] [0019]FIG. 1 is a block structure diagram showing an example of a conventional electric power steering apparatus;
[0020] [0020]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a general internal structure of a control unit;
[0021] [0021]FIG. 3 is a line-connection diagram showing an example of a motor driving circuit;
[0022] [0022]FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of a hydraulic power steering apparatus;
[0023] [0023]FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the effect of the hysteresis characteristics;
[0024] [0024]FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of an electric power steering apparatus;
[0025] [0025]FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of an electric power steering apparatus
[0026] [0026]FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of a structure of the present invention;
[0027] [0027]FIG. 9 is a block structure diagram showing a center responsiveness improving section;
[0028] [0028]FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a characteristic of a phase advancement compensating section;
[0029] [0029]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a characteristic of an approximate differentiating section;
[0030] [0030]FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a combined characteristic of the phase advancement compensating section and the approximate differentiating section;
[0031] [0031]FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a basic assist characteristic;
[0032] [0032]FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a vehicle speed interpolation calculation;
[0033] [0033]FIG. 15 is a transmission function block diagram showing key elements of the present invention;
[0034] [0034]FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the present invention;
[0035] [0035]FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a characteristic of a steering assist calculating section;
[0036] [0036]FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the present invention;
[0037] [0037]FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a characteristic of differential gain versus steering torque when the vehicle speed is zero according to the present invention;
[0038] [0038]FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a characteristic of differential gain versus steering torque when the vehicle speed is increased according to the present invention; and
[0039] [0039]FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an assist characteristic having the hysteresis when a differential gain is negative.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0040] According to the present invention, with an object of improving the responsiveness of assist torque and improving the stability of a torque control system, a value proportional to a differential of a steering torque signal is added to an assist volume(a steering assist command value), by changing a differential gain according to the steering torque and the size of a vehicle speed, in order to increase the responsiveness of the control system. Further, a phase advancement compensation is inserted into the assist volume(the steering assist command value), thereby to remove or reduce the influence of the motor inertia. As the motor inertia appears in the form of a phase delay as the transmission characteristic, it is possible to remove the influence of the motor inertia by inserting the phase advancement compensation.
[0041] Based on the continuous changing of the differential gain, there occurs no large variation in the differential gain when the steering torque, the vehicle speed and the steering pattern are changed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an unnatural steering feeling and to obtain comfortable steering performance. Further, based on the increasing of a differential gain in an area of a small steering torque, it is possible to obtain a characteristic of a small hysteresis by increasing the responsiveness in an area near the neutral point. As a result, it is possible to obtain comfortable steering performance, and to maintain responsiveness and stability in an area of a large steering torque.
[0042] Further, in an area of a predetermined steering torque, a differential gain is set smaller as the vehicle speed increases, and a negative differential gain is included. With this arrangement, it is possible to prevent a sudden reduction in the assist volume when the steering wheel returns. As a result, it is possible to obtain an equivalent large hysteresis characteristic, thereby achieving the stability in the steering when the vehicle is cornering.
[0043] Embodiments of the present invention will be explained below with reference to the drawings.
[0044] [0044]FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing control functions of the present invention. A steering torque T is inputted to a steering assist command value calculating section 100 and a center responsiveness improving section 101 . Outputs from these sections 100 and 101 are inputted to an adder 102 . A result of an addition by the adder 102 is inputted to a torque control calculating section 103 . An output signal from the torque control calculating section 103 is inputted to a motor loss current compensating section 104 . An output signal of the motor loss current compensating section 104 is inputted to a maximum current limiting section 106 via an adder 105 . A maximum current value limited by the maximum current limiting section 106 is inputted to a current control section 110 . An output of the current control section 110 is inputted to a current driving circuit 112 via an H-bridge characteristic compensating section 111 . Based on this, the current driving circuit 112 drives a motor 113 .
[0045] A motor current i of the motor 113 is inputted to a motor angular velocity estimating section 121 , a current drive switching section 122 and the current control section 110 , via a motor current offset correcting section 120 . A motor terminal voltage Vm is inputted to the motor angular velocity estimating section 121 . An angular velocity ω estimated by the motor angular velocity estimating section 121 is inputted to a motor angular velocity estimating section/inertia compensating section 123 , a motor loss torque compensating section 124 and a yaw rate estimating section 125 . An output of the yaw rate estimating section 125 is inputted to an astringency control section 126 . Outputs of the astringency control section 126 and the motor loss torque compensating section 124 are inputted to an adder 127 , and are added together by the adder 127 . A result of the addition is inputted to the adder 102 . The motor loss torque compensating section 124 assists the torque corresponding to a loss torque of the motor 113 to a direction in which the loss torque is generated. In other words, the motor loss torque compensating section 124 assists the torque to a rotation direction of the motor 113 . The astringency control section 126 applies braking to the oscillation of the steering wheel for improving the astringency of the yaw of the vehicle.
[0046] Further, a current dither signal generating section 130 is provided for generating a dither signal to fine oscillate the motor 113 to a level that the driver does not sense. Outputs of the current dither signal generating section 130 and the motor angular velocity estimating section/inertia compensating section 123 are added by an adder 131 . A result of this addition is inputted to the adder 105 . A result of the addition in the adder 105 is inputted to the maximum current limiting section 106 .
[0047] Based on the above structure, according to the present invention, the center responsiveness improving section 101 comprises a phase advancement compensating section 101 A, an approximate differentiating section 101 B and a gain setting section 101 C, as shown in FIG. 9. Further, the phase advancement compensating section 101 A has a frequency characteristic as shown in FIG. 10, and the approximate differentiating section 101 B has a frequency characteristic as shown in FIG. 11. With this arrangement, a combined characteristic of the phase advancement compensation and the approximate compensation becomes as shown in FIG. 12. As a result, it becomes possible to obtain a phase characteristic with no phase delay.
[0048] The gain setting section 101 C sets a gain by switching the vehicle speed V and the steering torque T. Further, in order to reduce the unstable steering feeling that the steering wheel is suddenly returned, and to stabilize the steering, the steering torque is large, the steering torque change rate is large, and the gain is decreased when the steering torque is in the decreasing direction. In other words, the switching condition is set as follows. |steering torque|(=A) >about 1.37 Nm, and |steering torque−steering torque(one sampling before)|(=B)>about 0.137 Nm, and sign (A)< >sign (B). In the above, sign (A)< >sign (B) means that the signs of (A=steering torque) and (B=steering torque−steering torque(one sampling before)) are different.
[0049] Further, according to the present invention, the steering assist command value calculating section 100 sets the assist characteristic of three representative vehicle speeds(0, 30, 254 Km/h) as a basic characteristic in the calculation of the assist value. The steering assist command value calculating section 100 calculates the assist values at other speeds by interpolating between the basic characteristics for every 2 Km/h of the vehicle speed according to the vehicle interpolation gain. Then, the vehicle speed of the assist characteristic is set to a range from 0 to 254 Km/h, and the resolution is set as 2 Km/h. FIG. 13 shows the basic assist characteristic (torque versus current). The basic assist characteristic is expressed as 0 Km/h=lo characteristic, 30 Km/h=la characteristic and 254 Km/h=lb characteristic. For other vehicle speeds, the assist current is calculated by interpolating between the vehicle speeds for every 2 Km/h using a vehicle(Km/h) versus vehicle speed interpolation coefficient γ shown in FIG. 14. When the vehicle speed is from 0 to 30 Km/h, the assist current I is “I=la(T)+γ(V) (lo(T)−la(T))”. When the vehicle speed is from 32 to 254 Km/h, the assist current I is “I=lb(T)+γ(V)(la(T)−lb(T))”.
[0050] Detailed structures of the steering assist command value calculating section 100 and the center responsiveness improving section 101 will be explained with reference to FIG. 15.
[0051] The steering assist command value calculating section 100 calculates the steering assist command value I and outputs this in a functional characteristic as shown in a block 100 in FIG. 15. For the sake of simplicity, a relationship of K∝T is assumed, based on ΔI/ΔT=K. The transmission function of the approximate differentiating section 101 B is as shown in a block 101 B in FIG. 15, by assuming that the gain is “1”. Gain Kdd of the gain setting section 101 C connected to the latter stage of the approximate differentiator 101 B changes according to the vehicle speed V and the steering torque T. The numeral T1 represents an integration time constant, and “s” represents a Laplace variable. The following expression (1) is established for the current command value Iref from the block diagram shown in FIG. 15 when there is no phase advancement compensating section 101 A.
Iref = K + Kdd · s / ( T1 · s + 1 ) = ( K · T1 · s + K + Kdd · s ) / ( T1 · s + 1 ) = { ( K · T1 + Kdd ) s + K } / ( T1 · s + 1 ) = { K / ( T1 · s + 1 ) } { K · T1 + Kdd ) s / K + 1 } ( 1 )
[0052] Then, the following expression (2) is established.
( K·T 1+ Kdd )/ K >T 1(2)
[0053] Therefore, the frequency characteristic of the expression (1) becomes as shown in FIG. 16.
[0054] In comparing the case when an assist characteristic gain K is small with the case when an assist characteristic gain K is large, a difference between gains Gs is small in an area of a frequency “a” or above when the assist characteristic gain K is large, regardless of the sizes of the assist characteristic gains K, as shown in FIG. 16. In other words, in an area of the frequency “a” or above, it is possible to obtain substantially constant responsiveness independent of the sizes of the assist characteristic gains K. The steering assist command value I as the output of the steering assist command value calculating section 100 has such a characteristic that the assist characteristic gain K is small when the steering torque T is small, and the assist characteristic gain K is large when the steering torque T is large, as shown in FIG. 17. As a result, when the steering torque T is small, the responsiveness is lowered than when the steering torque T is large. Therefore, with the provision of the characteristics as shown in FIG. 16, it is possible to maintain the responsiveness in the high-frequency area, and to compensate for the influence of the friction and inertia of the motor.
[0055] The above explains the case where there is no phase advancement compensating section 101 A. As the phase advancement compensating section 101 A works only in relation to the phase, the operation principle is exactly the same when the phase advancement compensating section 101 A is inserted. However, as the phase advancement compensating section 101 A compensates for only the phase in control, it is possible to securely remove the influence of the motor inertia even when the motor inertia works as a phase delay.
[0056] [0056]FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation according to the present invention.
[0057] Assume that the vehicle speed V has a relationship of V 2 >V 1 ≧0. First, it is decided whether the vehicle speed V is larger than V 1 or not(Step S 1 ). When the vehicle speed V is equal to or smaller than V 1 , the differential gain Kdd is set to f 1 (TA, V 1 ) (Step S 3 ). When the vehicle speed V is larger than V 1 , it is further decided whether the vehicle speed V is larger than V 2 or not(Step S 2 ). When the vehicle speed V is equal to or larger than V 2 , the differential gain Kdd is set to f 2 (TA, V 2 ) (Step S 4 ). When the vehicle speed V is smaller than V 2 , the differential gain Kdd is set as shown in the following expression (3)(Step S 5 ).
Kdd=[f 2 ( TA, V 2 )− f 1 ( TA, V 1 )]× g ( TA )+f 1 ( TA, V 1 ) (3)
[0058] According to the present invention, the differential gain Kdd is changed using the vehicle speed V as a parameter, and at the same time, the differential gain Kdd is changed relative to the steering torque T as shown in FIG. 19. In other words, FIG. 19 shows a relationship between the steering torque T when the vehicle speed V is 0 and the differential gain Kdd. The differential gain Kdd is set larger in an area where the steering torque T is small, and the differential gain Kdd is set gradually smaller when the steering torque T increases. Then, as shown in FIG. 20, the differential gain Kdd is set gradually smaller as the vehicle speed V increases, in a predetermined area of the steering torque T.
[0059] As described above, it is possible to equivalently adjust the hysteresis of the assist characteristic, by setting the differential gain Kdd smaller as the vehicle speed V increases. When the differential gain Kdd has become 0, the hysteresis of the assist characteristic is determined based on the friction of the mechanical system. When the differential gain Kdd has become negative, the hysteresis of the assist characteristic becomes larger than the hysteresis based on the friction of the mechanical system, as shown in FIG. 21.
[0060] According to the present invention, with an object of improving the responsiveness of the assist torque and improving the stability of the torque control system, a value proportional to a differential of a steering torque is added to an assist volume(a steering assist command value), by changing a differential gain according to the steering torque and the size of a vehicle speed, in order to increase the responsiveness of the control system. Further, as the phase advancement compensation is inserted into the steering assist command value, it is possible to compensate for the motor inertia. Further, it is possible to achieve both the stabilized responsiveness near the neutral point and the prevention of a sudden reduction in the assist volume. As a result, there is an effect that it is possible to prevent an unnatural feeling of steering and to obtain comfortable steering feeling.
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There is provided a control unit for an electric power steering apparatus that controls a motor for giving a steering assist force to a steering mechanism based on a current control value calculated from a steering assist command value calculated based on a steering torque generated in a steering shaft, and a current value of the motor. The control unit has a center responsiveness improving section that differentiates a signal of the steering torque, adds the differentiated value to the steering assist command value, and carries out a phase advancement compensation to the differentiation.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a light emitting diode (LED) assembly, and more particularly to the method for manufacturing the LED assembly with an molded LED chip cell directly mounted on a circuit board.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In daily life, for identifying objects and directions in dark environment, it is usually necessary to provide illumination for us via the utilization of a light emitting assembly. Among the light emitting assemblies, LED has become the most popular light emitting assembly gradually due to global energy saving trend and its advantages of long usage life and low power consumption.
[0003] However, besides the usage of wide-field illumination, due to that the LED has the advantages of long usage life and low power consumption, LED is also usually applied to be assembled into the LED assembly to provide for the backlight of the electronic devices or for other utilization. Among numerous LED assemblies, the technology of chip-flipping is to directly mount a packaged LED structure to a carrier without wire-bonging, so that it is widely used by the most people skilled in the arts.
[0004] Based on the background as mentioned, following up, a representative technology for manufacturing an LED assembly via manufacturing a chip-flipped type packaged LED structure in prior art is disclosed for more detail illustration. Please refer to the drawings from FIG. 1A to FIG. 1E , which illustrate a series of steps for manufacturing the LED assembly in the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1A , when manufacturing a chip-flipped type packaged LED structure 100 (shown in FIG. 1E ), firstly, it is necessary to prepare a flipped-type LED structure 1 . At this step, it is necessary to prepare a substrate as a light-transmissible substrate layer 11 .
[0005] Following up, it is necessary to form a buffer layer, 12 an N type electrode cladding sub-layer 13 , a multiple quantum well 14 , a P type electrode cladding sub-layer 15 , a light-transmissible conductive film 16 and a reflection layer 17 .
[0006] The buffer layer 12 covers the light-transmissible substrate layer 11 ; the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 13 covers the buffer layer 12 ; the multiple quantum well 14 covers the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 13 ; the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 15 covers the multiple quantum well 14 ; the light-transmissible conductive film 16 covers the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 15 ; and the reflection layer 17 covers the light-transmissible conductive film 16 . Next, it is necessary to make a P type electrode 18 be extended from the light-transmissible conductive film 16 , and make an N type electrode 19 be extended from the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 13 . Moreover, it is able to plate gold (Au), tin (Sn) or gold-tin (Au—Sn) alloy (not shown) on the P type electrode 18 and the N type electrode 19 , so as to manufacture the flipped-type LED structure 1 .
[0007] As shown in FIG. 1B , next, it is necessary to prepare a carrier 2 comprising a carrier body 21 , a P type electrode layer 22 and an N type electrode layer 23 . The carrier body 21 has a top surface 211 , a bottom surface 212 , a first side 213 and a second side 214 . The P type electrode layer 22 and the N type electrode layer 23 are respectively arranged to wrap the first side 213 and the second side 214 .
[0008] As shown in FIG. 1C , after preparing the carrier 2 , it is necessary to respectively arrange two conductive members 3 and 3 a on the P type electrode 22 and the N type electrode 23 of the carrier 2 . Preferably, the conductive members 3 and 3 a can be soldering contacts on the carrier, and the soldering contacts can be made by plating gold or silver.
[0009] As shown in 1 D, when the conductive members 3 and 3 a are the soldering contacts made by plating gold or silver, it is necessary to flip the flipped-type LED structure 1 to execute an eutectic process under an eutectic temperature, so as to make the gold and silver element particles of the conductive elements 3 and 3 a permeate into the gold, tin or gold-tin alloy plated on the P type electrode 18 and N type electrode 19 . Through the eutectic process, it is able to make the P type electrode 18 and N type electrode 19 of the flipped-type LED structure 1 be electrically connected to the P type electrode layer 22 and N type electrode layer 23 of the carrier 2 respectively via the conductive elements 3 and 3 a . In practice, the conductive members 3 and 3 a also can be gold (Au), tin (Sn) or gold-tin (Au—Sn) alloy deposited on the carrier 2 , and it is also able to form soldering contacts made by plating gold or silver on the P type electrode 18 and the N type electrode 19 , so as to execute the eutectic process as mentioned. Except for above method, when the conductive members 3 and 3 a are tin balls or tin paste, through a reflow soldering process, the P type electrode 18 and N type electrode 19 also can be electrically connected to the P type electrode layer 22 and N type electrode layer 23 respectively via the conductive elements 3 and 3 a.
[0010] As shown in FIG. 1E , after electrically connecting the P type electrode 18 and N type electrode 19 to the P type electrode layer 22 and N type electrode layer 23 respectively, it is necessary to execute a packaging process of packaging the flipped-type LED structure 1 , the conductive members 3 and 3 a by a light-transmissible packaging material 4 , so as to manufacture the flipped-type packaged LED structure 100 after the light-transmissible packaging material 4 is cured. Finally, it is necessary to mount the flipped-type packaged LED structure 100 onto a circuit board (not shown) by soldering, and then an LED assembly (not shown) is manufactured.
[0011] Any person skilled in ordinary art can easily make out that in the prior art as disclosed, it is necessary to electrically connect the P type electrode 18 and N type electrode 19 of the flipped-type LED structure 1 to the P type electrode layer 22 and N type electrode layer 23 firstly, and then fill the light-transmissible packaging material 4 to the flipped-type LED structure 1 , the conductive members 3 and 3 a ; therefore, it is very inconvenient that it is necessary to execute both the eutectic process and the packaging process to manufacture the flipped-type packaged LED structure 100 , and then to mount the flipped-type packaged LED structure 100 on the circuit by soldering.
[0012] Nevertheless, due to that it is necessary to apply a filling pressure to a die when filling the light-transmissible packaging material 4 therein, it would bring the problem that the light-transmissible packaging material 4 overflows to the carrier 2 ; moreover, the defective rate of electrical connection between the conductive members 3 , 3 a and the carrier 2 would be increased due to that the conductive members 3 and 3 a would be pressed when suffering the filling pressure.
[0013] Based on the background, the inventor of the present invention is of the opinion that it is necessary to provide a new method for manufacturing a LED assembly, so as to improve the problems as mentioned above.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] Due to that the method for manufacturing the flipped-type packaged LED structure as provided in the prior art exists the problems of that it brings the inconvenience of executing a series of complex processes including both the eutectic process and the packaging process, causes the light-transmissible packaging material overflowing to the carrier, and increases the defective rate of electrical connection between the conductive members and the carrier. Thus, the primary objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a LED assembly, by which a packaging process of manufacturing a molded LED chip cell is executed to make a P type electrode and an N type electrode exposed thereof, so as to replace the flipped-type packaged LED structure to directly mounted on a circuit board. Though the method, the problems as mentioned can be effectively solved.
[0015] Means of the present invention for solving the problems as mentioned above is to provide a method for manufacturing a light emitting diode (LED) assembly, and the method comprises the steps of: covering a light-reflection layer onto a substrate layer, covering a light-emitting layer onto the light-reflection layer, and forming a P type electrode and an N type electrode extended from the light-emitting layer, perforating through the light-reflection layer, and exposed from the substrate layer to form an LED chip structure; packaging the LED chip structure with a light-transmissible packaging material and keeping the P type electrode and the N type electrode exposed from the light-transmissible packaging material to form a molded LED chip cell; and electrically connecting the P type electrode and the N type electrode of the molded LED chip cell to a circuit board, so as to manufacture the LED assembly.
[0016] In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the LED chip structure comprises a substrate layer, a reflection layer, a light-transmissible conductive sub-layer, a P type electrode cladding sub-layer, a light-transmissible multiple quantum well and an N type electrode cladding sub-layer. The reflection layer covers the substrate layer, the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer covers the reflection layer, the P type electrode cladding sub-layer covers the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer, the light-transmissible multiple quantum well covers the P type electrode cladding sub-layer, and the N type electrode cladding sub-layer covers the light-transmissible multiple quantum well. The light-transmissible conductive sub-layer, the P type electrode cladding sub-layer, the light-transmissible multiple quantum well and the N type electrode cladding sub-layer can be viewed as the light-emitting layer.
[0017] Comparing with the conventional method for manufacturing the LED assembly via manufacturing a chip-flipped type packaged LED structure in prior art, in the present invention, a packaging process of manufacturing a molded LED chip cell is executed to make a P type electrode and an N type electrode exposed thereof, so that the molded LED chip cell can be applied to replace the flipped-type packaged LED structure to directly mounted on a circuit board to manufacture the LED assembly. Obviously, through the method as provided in the present invention, it is more convenient to manufacture the LED assembly.
[0018] In the method for manufacturing the LED assembly as disclosed in the present invention, it is unnecessary to use the carrier; therefore, there is no problem of that the light-transmissible packaging material overflows to the carrier in the whole manufacturing steps. Furthermore, there would be less electrical connection defection of the molded LED chip cell caused by filling the light-transmissible packaging material to the LED chip structure to form the molded LED chip cell. By the way, it is able to make the overall dimension of molded LED chip cell approaching to the overall dimension of the LED chip structure, i.e., it is able to make the overall dimension of the molded LED chip cell be much less than the overall dimension of the flipped type packaged LED structure as provided in the prior art, so as to increase the space utilization rate of that the molded LED chip cells are arranged on the circuit board.
[0019] To make a summary, through the method as provided in the present invention, it not only can make the manufacturing of the LED assembly become more convenient, but also can upgrade the quality of the manufacturing the LED assembly. By the way, through the method as provided in the present invention, it also can effectively increase the space utilization rate of that the molded LED chip cells are arranged on the circuit board.
[0020] The devices, characteristics, and the preferred embodiment of this invention are described with relative figures as follows.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0021] The structure and the technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above and other objectives can be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein
[0022] FIG. 1A to FIG. 1E illustrate a series of steps for manufacturing the LED assembly in the prior art;
[0023] FIG. 2A illustrates the step of manufacturing an LED chip structure in the preferred embodiment of the present invention;
[0024] FIG. 2B , which illustrates the step of packaging the LED chip structure to manufacture the molded LED chip cell in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 2C illustrates the step of preparing a circuit board in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; and
[0026] FIG. 2D illustrates the step of mounting the molded LED chip cell on the circuit board by a soldering process in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0027] The method for manufacturing LED assembly as provided in accordance with the present invention can be widely applied to manufacture many kinds of LED assemblies, and the combined applications of the present invention are too numerous to be enumerated and described, so that only one preferred embodiment is disclosed as follows for representation.
[0028] Please refer to the drawings from FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D , which illustrate a series of steps for manufacturing the LED assembly in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The most important concept, which is disclosed in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, is to manufacture a molded LED chip cell 200 (shown in FIG. 2B ) firstly, and then to manufacture a LED assembly 300 (shown in FIG. 2D ). As shown in FIG. 2A , which illustrates the step of manufacturing an LED chip structure in the preferred embodiment of the present invention. When manufacturing the molded LED chip cell 200 , it is necessary to manufacture an LED chip structure 5 . At this moment, it is necessary to prepare a substrate as a substrate layer 51 .
[0029] Next, following up it is necessary to form the a reflection layer 52 , a light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , a P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , a light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 and an N type electrode cladding sub-layer 56 . The reflection layer 52 covers the substrate layer 51 , the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 covers the reflection layer 52 , the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 covers the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , the light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 covers the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , and the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 56 covers the light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 . The light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , the light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 and the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 56 can be viewed as a light-emitting layer 50 .
[0030] The substrate layer 51 can be a substrate composed of at least one material of silicon carbide (SiC), aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), gallium arsenide (GaAs), silicon (Si), sapphire, copper (Cu), copper-tungsten (Cu—W) alloy and gallium phosphide (GaP). The reflection layer 52 is composed of at least one compound of titanium dioxide and silicon dioxide (TiO 2 /SiO 2 ), aluminum oxide and silicon dioxide (Al 2 O 3 /SiO 2 ), and Silicon Nitride and silicon dioxide (Si 3 N 4 /SiO 2 ). The light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 is formed by an annealing process for a Nickel-Gold (Ni—Au) metal film under the annealing temperature of 500° C. to 550° C.
[0031] Next, it is necessary to bore, via etching or drilling, a P type electrode extension recess (not shown) and an N type electrode extension recess from the substrate layer 51 toward the light-emitting layer 50 , wherein the P type electrode extension recess is bored to contact with the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , and the N type electrode extension recess is bored to contact with the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 56 and isolated by an isolation film 57 . Then, it is necessary to make a P type electrode 58 be extended from the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , perforating the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , the reflection layer 52 and the substrate layer 51 via the P type electrode extension recess, and exposed from the substrate layer 51 . Meanwhile, it is necessary to make an N type electrode 59 be extended from the N type electrode cladding sub-layer 56 , perforating the light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 , the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , the reflection layer 52 and the substrate layer 51 via the P type electrode extension recess, and exposed from the substrate layer 51 . Thus, through the isolation film 57 , the N type electrode 59 can keep electrical isolation with respect to the light-transmissible multiple quantum well 55 , the P type electrode cladding sub-layer 54 , the light-transmissible conductive sub-layer 53 , the reflection layer 52 and the substrate layer 51 . Up to now, the manufacturing of the LED chip structure 5 is finished.
[0032] As shown in FIG. 2B , which illustrates the step of packaging the LED chip structure to manufacture the molded LED chip cell in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. After manufacturing the LED chip structure 5 , a packaging process can be executed. When executing the packaging process, a light-transmissible packaging material 6 , such as light-transmissible packaging gel or rubber, is applied to package the LED chip structure 5 to keep the P type electrode 58 and the N type electrode 59 being exposed of the light-transmissible packaging material 6 , after the light-transmissible packaging material 6 is cured, the manufacturing of the molded LED chip cell 200 is finished.
[0033] As shown in FIG. 2C , which illustrates the step of preparing a circuit board in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. Before manufacturing the LED assembly 300 (shown in FIG. 2D ), it is necessary to prepare a circuit board 7 comprising a substrate layer 71 , a first circuit arrangement layer 72 and a second circuit arrangement layer 73 . The first circuit arrangement layer 72 and the second circuit arrangement layer 73 are deposited on two surfaces, opposite to each other, of the substrate layer 71 , and at least one of the first circuit arrangement layer 72 and the second circuit arrangement layer 73 is arranged with a LED driving/control circuit (not shown). In the preferred embodiment, the LED driving/control circuit is arranged on the first circuit arrangement layer 72 . Preferably, the circuit board 7 can be a printed circuit board, such as an FR4 (an abbreviation for Flame Retardant 4) copper clad laminate, or any other circuit board arranged with the LED driving/control circuit.
[0034] As shown in FIG. 2D , which illustrates the step of mounting the molded LED chip cell on the circuit board by a soldering process in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. After preparing the circuit board 7 , it is able to mount the molded LED chip cell thereon to make the P type electrode 58 and the N type electrode 59 be electrically connected to the LED driving/control circuit arranged on the first circuit arrangement layer 72 respectively. After finishing the soldering process, the manufacturing of the LED assembly is finished. More preferably, when executing the soldering process, a melted or partial-melted soldering ball or soldering paste made of tin can be applied to attach to the P type electrode 58 and the N type electrode 59 , or be applied to attach to the soldering pin, contact or pad of the LED driving/control circuit arranged on the first circuit arrangement layer 72 , and then a reflow soldering and low-temperature solidification process can be executed.
[0035] After reading the technology as disclosed above, it is believable that any person skilled in ordinary art can reasonably make out that in the method for manufacturing the LED assembly 300 in accordance with the present invention, the packaging process of manufacturing the molded LED chip cell 200 is executed to make the P type electrode 58 and the N type electrode exposed thereof, so that the molded LED chip cell 200 can be applied to replace the flipped-type packaged LED structure to directly mounted on a circuit board to manufacture the LED assembly. Obviously, through the method as provided in the present invention, it is more convenient to manufacture the LED assembly.
[0036] In the method for manufacturing the LED assembly 300 as disclosed in the present invention, it is unnecessary to use the carrier 2 as disclosed in the prior art; therefore, there is no problem of that the light-transmissible packaging material 6 overflows to the carrier 2 in the whole manufacturing steps. Furthermore, there would be less electrical connection defection of the molded LED chip cell 200 caused by filling the light-transmissible packaging material 6 to the LED chip structure to form the molded LED chip cell 200 . By the way, it is able to make the overall dimension of molded LED chip cell 200 approaching to the overall dimension of the LED chip structure 5 , i.e., it is able to make the overall dimension of the molded LED chip cell 200 be much less than the overall dimension of the flipped type packaged LED structure 100 as provided in the prior art, so that more molded LED chip cell(s) 200 can be mounted to the circuit board to increase the space utilization rate of that the molded LED chip cell(s) 200 are arranged on the circuit board 7 .
[0037] To make a summary, through the method as provided in the present invention, it not only can make the manufacturing of the LED assembly 300 become more convenient, but also can upgrade the quality of the manufacturing the LED assembly 300 . By the way, through the method as provided in the present invention, it also can effectively increase the space utilization rate of that the molded LED chip cells 200 are arranged on the circuit board 7 .
[0038] Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.
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A method for manufacturing a light emitting diode (LED) assembly comprises the steps of: covering a light-reflection layer onto a substrate layer, covering a light-emitting layer onto the light-reflection layer, and forming a P type electrode and an N type electrode extended from the light-emitting layer, perforating through the light-reflection layer, and exposed from the substrate layer to form an LED chip structure; packaging the LED chip structure with a light-transmissible packaging material and keeping the P type electrode and the N type electrode exposed from the light-transmissible packaging material to form a molded LED chip cell; and electrically connecting the P type electrode and the N type electrode of the molded LED chip cell to a circuit board, so as to manufacture the LED assembly.
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TECHNICAL FIELD
The present application and the resultant patent relate generally to gas turbine engines and more particularly relate to an impingement cooling system for uniformly cooling contoured surfaces in a gas turbine and elsewhere in a simplified design.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Impingement cooling systems have been used with turbine machinery to cool various types of components such as casings, buckets, nozzles, and the like. Impingement cooling systems cool the turbine components via an airflow so as to maintain adequate clearances between the components and to promote adequate component lifetime. One issue with known impingement cooling systems is the ability to maintain a uniform heat transfer coefficient across non-uniform or contoured surfaces. Maintaining constant heat transfer coefficients generally requires that the overall shape of the impingement plate follows the contours of the surface to be cooled. Producing a contoured impingement plate, however, may be costly and may result in uneven cooling flows therein.
There is therefore a desire for an improved impingement cooling system. Such an improved impingement cooling system may provide constant heat transfer coefficients over a contoured surface in a simplified and low cost configuration while maintaining adequate cooling efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present application and the resultant patent thus provide an impingement cooling system for use with a contoured surface. The impingement cooling system may include an impingement plenum and an impingement plate with a linear shape facing the contoured surface. The impingement plate may include a number of projected areas thereon with a number of impingement holes having varying sizes and varying spacings.
The present application and the resultant patent further provide a turbine. The turbine may include a turbine nozzle, an impingement cooling system with a number of impingement holes with a number of sizes and spacings, and a turbine component with a contoured surface positioned about the impingement cooling system.
The present application and the resultant patent further provide a turbine. The turbine may include a turbine nozzle, an impingement cooling system with a linear shape and having a number of impingement holes with a number of sizes and spacings, and a turbine component with a contoured surface positioned about the impingement cooling system such that the impingement cooling system maintains the contoured surface with substantially constant heat transfer coefficients thereacross.
These and other features and improvements of the present application and the resultant patent will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the several drawings and the appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a gas turbine engine showing a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine.
FIG. 2 is a partial side view of a nozzle vane with an impingement cooling system therein.
FIG. 3 is a partial side view of a nozzle vane with an impingement cooling system as may be described herein.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an impingement grid overlaid on the contoured surface of FIG. 3 .
FIG. 5 is a plan view of a portion of the impingement cooling plate of FIG. 3 .
FIG. 6 is a plan view of a portion of the impingement cooling plate of FIG. 3 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring now to the drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of gas turbine engine 10 as may be used herein. The gas turbine engine 10 may include a compressor 15 . The compressor 15 compresses an incoming flow of air 20 . The compressor 15 delivers the compressed flow of air 20 to a combustor 25 . The combustor 25 mixes the compressed flow of air 20 with a pressurized flow of fuel 30 and ignites the mixture to create a flow of combustion gases 35 . Although only a single combustor 25 is shown, the gas turbine engine 10 may include any number of combustors 25 . The flow of combustion gases 35 is in turn delivered to a turbine 40 . The flow of combustion gases 35 drives the turbine 40 so as to produce mechanical work. The mechanical work produced in the turbine 40 drives the compressor 15 via a shaft 45 and an external load 50 such as an electrical generator and the like.
The gas turbine engine 10 may use natural gas, various types of syngas, and/or other types of fuels. The gas turbine engine 10 may be any one of a number of different gas turbine engines offered by General Electric Company of Schenectady, N.Y., including, but not limited to, those such as a 7 or a 9 series heavy duty gas turbine engine and the like. The gas turbine engine 10 may have different configurations and may use other types of components. Other types of gas turbine engines also may be used herein. Multiple gas turbine engines, other types of turbines, and other types of power generation equipment also may be used herein together.
FIG. 2 is an example of a nozzle 55 that may be used with the turbine 40 described above. Generally described, the nozzle 55 may include a nozzle vane 60 that extends between an inner platform 65 and an outer platform 70 . A number of the nozzles 55 may be combined into a circumferential array to form a stage with a number of rotor blades (not shown). The nozzle 55 also may include an impingement cooling system in the form of an impingement plenum 80 . The impingement plenum 80 may have a number of impingement apertures 85 formed therein. The impingement plenum 80 may be in communication with a flow of air 20 from the compressor 15 or another source via a cooling conduit 90 . The flow of air 20 flows through the nozzle vane 60 , into the impingement plenum 80 , and out via the impingement apertures 85 so as to impingement cool a portion of the nozzle 55 or elsewhere. Other types of impingement plenums 80 are known.
Many other types of impingement cooling systems are known. These known impingement cooling systems, however, generally are uniformly sized and shaped as described above. Alternatively, the impingement plate may be contoured so as to follow the contours of the surface to be cooled so as to maintain constant heat transfer coefficients across the surface.
FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show an example of an impingement cooling system 100 as may be described herein. The impingement cooling system 100 may include an impingement plenum 110 . The impingement plenum 110 may include a cavity 120 defined by an impingement plate 130 and a cover plate 140 . The impingement plenum 110 may be in communication with a cooling flow 150 via a cooling conduit 160 . The cooling conduit 160 may be in communication with the compressor 15 or other source of the cooling flow 150 .
The impingement plate 130 of the impingement plenum 110 may have a substantially flat or linear surface 170 . The impingement plate 130 also may have a number of impingement holes 180 therein. The size, shape, configuration and location of the impingement holes 180 may vary as will be described in more detail below. Other components and other configurations may be used herein.
The impingement cooling system 100 may be used with any type of turbine component or any component requiring cooling. In this example, the impingement cooling system 100 may be used with an undulating or a contoured surface 200 . The contoured surface 200 may have any desired shape or configuration. In this example, the contoured surface 200 may include a number of contoured areas of varying distances from the impingement cooling system 100 .
In order to maintain a constant heat transfer coefficient across the contoured surface 200 , the spacing of the holes 180 in the impingement plate 130 of the impingement plenum 110 may be adjusted to compensate for the undulation in the contoured surface 200 in a discretized manner. The contoured surface 200 may be divided into a grid 290 with a number of contoured areas 300 therein. Each of the contoured areas 300 may be projected onto an associated projected area 305 on the impingement plate 130 . Each of the projected areas 305 of the impingement plate 130 may have a number of the impingement holes 180 therein of differing size, shape, and configuration based upon the offset of the opposed areas 300 from the projected areas 305 . The group of impingement holes 180 in each of the projected areas 305 thus may have a size 310 and a spacing 320 , both of which may be adjusted uniformly over that local projected area 305 to maintain an average heat transfer coefficient over that discretized area 300 within the contoured surface 200 . The impingement holes 180 thus each may have the variable size 310 and the variable spacing 320 or a sub-set thereof, with both the size 310 and the spacing 320 being held constant over a given projected area 305 . For example, a first area 330 may have a number of closely spaced small holes 180 while a second area 340 may have a number of widely spaced large holes 180 . Any number of sizes and positions may be used herein in any number of the projected areas 305 depending upon the distance to the opposed surface.
The impingement cooling system 100 thus uses the impingement plenum 110 to provide adequate cooling with a simplified impingement plate design so as to lower costs and increase production. Specifically, the impingement holes 180 may vary with respect to a ratio of the hole diameter to the thickness of the impingement plate 130 , the ratio of the channel height to hole diameter, and the orthogonal spacing of the hole array. Effectiveness may be considered in the context of z/d requirements where d is the hole diameters and z is the average distance from a projected area 305 to a contoured area 300 and/or x/d where x is measured along the length of the impingement plate 130 . Within each projected area 305 of the grid 290 , the size of impingement holes 180 may be adjusted to maintain relative z/d requirements. Within the same area 305 , hole positioning or x/d also may be adjusted to maintain effectiveness. As such, the impingement plate 130 of the impingement plenum 110 may maintain consistent heat transfer coefficients with the use of the linear surface 170 as opposed to a contoured surface.
It should be apparent that the foregoing relates only to certain embodiments of the present application and the resultant patent. Numerous changes and modifications may be made herein by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the general spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims and the equivalents thereof.
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The present application provides an impingement cooling system for use with a contoured surface. The impingement cooling system may include an impingement plenum and an impingement plate with a linear shape facing the contoured surface. The impingement surface may include a number of projected area thereon with a number of impingement holes having varying sizes and varying spacings.
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This application is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 632,417 filed July 19, 1984.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an instrument and method of its use for tubal insufflation of the Fallopian tubes of a female primate.
It is well known that ambient air insufflation may be used to create a pneumoperitoneum in humans. Additionally, the use of gas such as carbon dioxide was first introduced in 1924. However, it was also observed that use of air in the body produces more post operative patient discomfort than carbon dioxide. For a further discussion of the subject, see the article by Diaz, Atwood and Laufe entitled "Laparoscopic Sterilization with Room Air Insufflation: Preliminary Report" appearing in the International Journal of Gynaecol Obstete 18, pages 119-122, 1980.
It has also been observed that carbon dioxide has been used in the Rubin Test and if the tubes are patent, the gas upon leaving the Fallopian tubes, enters the peritoneal cavity. The release of this gas may produce some pain in one or both shoulders of the patient. If the manometer used with the Rubin Test registers less than 100 millimeters Hg, the tubes are patent and if the test shows it to be between 120 and 130 millimeters Hg there may be stenosis or stricture but complete occlusion is not detected. If the test pressure rises to 200 mm. Hg, the fallopian tubes are determined to be completely occluded. A further disclosure of this particular test is found in JAMA, Nov. 4, 1983--Vol. 250 and is a reprint from an article published September, 1920 entitled "The Nonoperative Determination of Patency of Fallopian Tubes" by I. C. Rubin, M.D.
Additionally, there are certain mechanisms and structures disclosed in recent patents which are relevant to the present invention, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,328 by Bolduc and Dickhudt entitled "Dispensing Instrument and Method". This instrument and method dispenses fluids and fluid like materials into the uterus and Fallopian tube canals. The instrument described therein has an elongated probe with a forward end carrying an expandable balloon assembly. A dispensing structure located within the housing of the instrument is used to expand the balloon assembly and discharge drug material into the uterine cavity. The drug material is stored in a container accommodated by the dispensing apparatus.
The teachings of U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,328 are unsuitable for use in determining the patency of the fallopian tubes of a patient. For instance, there is no part of the mechanism adapted to receive a predetermined quantity of gas, nor is there any means visible for detecting the condition of patency of the Fallopian tubes.
It is therefore a general object of this invention to provide an instrument and method of injecting carbon dioxide into the Fallopian tube canals and determining their patency directly from the instrument.
It is still another object to the invention to permit external charging and discharging of the instrument from an external source of gas.
It is a further object of the invention to expand and contract a balloon within the uterine cavity in conducting a patency test upon a female primate.
It is yet another object of the invention to use two separate and distinct supplies of gas in performing the patency test using the invention.
It is still a further object of this invention to permit charging of the instrument with carbon dioxide gas but prevent such charging of the instrument after the gas has been released in the patency test.
It is still a further object of this invention to introduce no more than 55 cubic centimeters of carbon dioxide under a maximum of 200 millimeters of mercury into the uterine cavity and connecting Fallopian tubes.
It is still an object of the invention to provide a patency indicator that has a moving member and an indicia scale to measure the openness of Fallopian tube canals.
It is yet another object of the invention to carry out the steps of injecting the carbon dioxide gas and determining how much gas escapes as a measure of the openness of the Fallopian tubes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is directed to an apparatus and method for injecting carbon dioxide into the Fallopian tube canals of a female. An expandable member, and more particularly a balloon, is attached to the end of a cannula that is inserted through the cervical opening into the uterine cavity where the balloon is expanded. The carbon dioxide is injected into a gas dispensing mechanism having a patency indicator connected therewith for indicating the ratio of gas remaining in the dispensing mechanism as compared with the volume of gas initially introduced therein thus measuring any gas flow from the uterine cavity through the Fallopian tube canals in a given time period.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A detailed description of one preferred embodiment of the INSTRUMENT AND METHOD OF TUBAL INSUFFLATION is hereafter described with specific reference being made to the drawings in shich:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of my invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the embodiment of my invention;
FIG. 3 is a partial side elevation of my invention with the outer housing removed;
FIG. 4 is an end elevation of my invention;
FIG. 5 is a side elevation in cross section of my invention taken across lines 5--5 of FIG. 12. disclosing a curved cannula;
FIG. 6 is a sectional side view of the gas dispensing mechanism in a charged condition;
FIG. 7 is the same sectional side view of the gas dispensing mechanism in a discharged condition;
FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the female reproductive organs prior to the insertion of the cannula into the uterine cavity;
FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 with the expanded balloon and cannula inserted into the uterine cavity;
FIG. 10 is a perspective end view of the piston portion of the gas dispensing mechanism;
FIG. 11 is a side view of the carbon dioxide charging and discharging device;
FIG. 12 is a partial diagramatic end view showing the gas spool valve;
FIG. 13 is a partial top plan section showing the spool valve in a gas charging position; and,
FIG. 14 is a partial top plan section showing the spool valve in a gas discharging position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
Referring to the drawings, there is disclosed in FIG. 1 an instrument 20 for tubal insufflation of the Fallopian tubes of a female which is operable to transmit a gas into both canals of the Fallopian tubes of the reproductive system of a female. Instrument 20 has an outer housing 21 that encloses a pump mechanism which has an external plunger handle 22 emerging from the end thereof, the pump being connected to a balloon 23 disposed adjacent the end of a gas dispensing cannula 24. That is, cannula 24 is an elongated flexible probe and is secured to and extends away from the forward end of housing 20 generally along the longitudinal axis of the housing. The instrument 20 has a check valve 25 secured at the top thereof through which an external gas charging and discharging mechanism 26 may be applied (FIG. 11). To further facilitate operation of the instrument 20, a spool valve 27 is disclosed and is shown in FIG. 13 in a position to receive carbon dioxide under pressure through check valve 25. A compression fitting 30 is used to help hold cannula 24 and balloon 23 in place within instrument 20.
When carbon dioxide has been applied to check valve 25 from the gas charging mechanism 26, a hollow piston 31 is moved to the rear of the instrument and carries with it a pointer of indicator 32 to facilitate an easy determination of the condition and position of piston 31. In other words, upon being charged, piston 31 is moved to the right and indicator 32 will appear above the designation "CHARGED".
As shown particularly, in FIGS. 3 through 5, housing 20 has an inside chamber or cavity 33 that accommodates piston 31 and another internal fitting cylinder assembly 34. Thus, piston 31 slides inside cylinder 33 and cylinder 34 slides insides hollow piston 31. (This is best seen in FIG. 5). The forward end of cylinder 33 bears against a fixed transverse wall 35 adjacent the forward end of housing 20. Piston 31 has a closed forward end 36 that is further defined with a well 37 formed therein. The forward facing end of piston 31 has an annular outwardly open groove 40 formed therein accommodating a sealing or "O" ring 41 under compression. Disposed within piston 31 and secured around well 37 is a coiled compression spring 43 that bears against cylinder 34 at the right end portion thereof (FIG. 5). As seen in FIG. 5, "O" ring 41 creates a gaseous seal against the inner wall of cylinder 33 when a compressed gas is introduced into an interior cavity or chamber 44 created by the compression of spring 43.
FIG. 11 is directed to the carbon dioxide gas charging mechanism 26 and is designed to accept carbon dioxide capsules 45 that are held in place by housing 46. Upon housing 46 being tightened, it presses the smaller end of capsule 45 into a gas discharge mechanism. The 700 to 900 psi pressure in the capsule is reduced to approximately 10 to 20 psi through the use of a gas valve regulator 47 that discharges the gas through a nozzle 48 that includes an internal check valve.
Reference is now made particularly to FIGS. 5, 13 and 14 in which spool valve 27 is disclosed in combination with the other elements through which it works. When the gas charging and discharging mechanism 26 is applied to check valve 25, carbon dioxide passes through check valve 25 into a passage 50 which is directly above the spool valve but is shown rotated 90° schematically in FIGS. 13 and 14. Upon carbon dioxide reaching passage 50, it passes around a reduced diameter concave portion 51 that permits communication with a passageway 52 formed in transverse wall 35. Once the carbon dioxide reaches chamber 44, it reacts against compression spring 43 causing piston 31 to move to the right until it reaches the position shown in FIG. 5 where the instrument is fully charged with carbon dioxide. Upon removal of the gas charging and discharging mechanism 26 from check valve 25, no further activity takes place with respect to the movement of piston 31. A pair of "O" rings 53 and 54 are disposed in annular grooves just outside of the annular chamber created by reduced diameter portion 51.
It will be observed that a return passage 55 formed in transverse wall 35 is blocked to the passage of cargon dioxide gas due to a pair of "O" rings 56 and 57 disposed in annular grooves that appear on opposite sides of passageway 55 on valve 27. That is, "O" rings 56 and 57 form a gas blockage to the movement of any gas through passage 55 in the position shown in FIG. 13.
Turning now to the mechanism for creating a means of expansion within the uterine cavity, reference is made to FIGS. 8 and 9 where there is shown a reproductive system of a primate female indicated generally at 60, for receiving the balloon end 23 of cannula 24. The reproductive system 60 has a uterus 61 joined to a pair of Fallopian tubes 62 and 63, in which the lower part of uterus 61 is integral with a vagina 64. Vagina 64 has a vaginal cavity 66 and an entrance or vestibule 67, with the opposite end of vaginal cavity 66 being in communication with a cervix 68. The cervix 68 has a normally closed opening 69 and has a passage from vaginal cavity 66 to the uterine cavity 71. The Fallopian tubes 62 and 63 have passages which communicate with the uterine cavity 71 and has a top wall or fundus 74 that further includes internal side walls 76 which communicate with cervix 68.
The uterine cavity 71 varies as to size and configuration and is generally flat and somewhat triangular in shape.
By reference to FIG. 9, balloon 23 has been inserted through cervical opening 69 and is located in uterine cavity 71. Balloon 23 and cannula 24 may be rotated about the longitudinal axis of cannula 24 during the insertion procedure. Once cannula 24 is inserted in uterine cavity 71 to touch fundus 74, the cannula 24 is partially withdrawn to the general position shown in FIG. 9 where it forms a gaseous seal against inner walls 76 of the uterine cavity 71. Balloon 23 is constructed such that it is much less resilient and flexible than the balloons of U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,328. The function of the present balloon is to provide a pressure seal which prevents air movement through the cervix. It must withstand pressure greater than 200 mm Hg since such pressure will be applied to the uterine cavity by the device. The flexible balloons of U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,328 were designed to stretch over the cannula tip so as to push a plug of material into the uterine cavity. Such balloons could not withstand 200 mm Hg pressure from the inside of the uterine cavity.
Referring primarily to FIGS. 2, 3, 13 and 14, cannula 24 is shown in communication with a pump mechanism 80 that is manually operated through an elongated arm 81 which communicates with element 22. Elongated arm 81 has an elongated slot 82 formed longitudinally therein that engages a stop member 83 in slot 82, that is anchored to housing 20. In other words, the length of stroke of plunger 81 is controlled through elongated slot 82 and upon push rod 81 being extended internally to its maximum position, a slot 84 formed transversely in the end of push rod 81 may be used to lock the push rod in place. That is, cylinder 80 forming a postion of the pump has a sealing member 85 secured to its end piston member 86 so that upon withdrawal of push rod 81, a vacuum is created in a line 87 leading from cylinder 80 which is in fluid communication with a bore 88 formed in the end of transverse wall 35.
A collar 90 (FIG. 12) is disposed in bore 88 and has a reduced spool diameter 91 formed therein through which a pair of transverse bores 92 and 93 are formed. Also disposed in bore 88 are a pair of "O" rings 94 and 95 that are disposed longitudinally at the innermost end and outermost end of collar 90 where "O" ring 95 is also in communication with a sleeve 96 that also resides in bore 88. Disposed at the outer end of sleeve 96, is a flat circular washer 97 having a central opening therein. Thus when cannula 24 is inserted inwardly within "O" ring 94, collar 90, "O" ring 95, sleeve 96 and washer 97, upon the tightening of nut 30, the "O" rings are compressed against cannula 24 and form seals against the same.
An elongated longitudinal bore 98 lies within cannula 24 and has a side opening 99 that communicates with openings 92 and 93 in spool 90. The unique side opening 99 interaction with the double "O" ring seals provides a cannula which is easily used. The disposable cannulas are merely inserted into compression fittings 30 and collar 90. The fitting 30 is then tightened to create the necessary seals. It will be seen that when plunger 81 is drawn outwardly to the position shown in FIG. 3, a vacuum is created which extends through the longitudinal opening to balloon 23 and thus keeps the balloon in a collapsed state as found in FIG. 8. Upon being inserted into the uterine cavity, plunger 81 is depressed and locked into position through slot 84 engaging the edge of housing 20 and thus balloon 23 is expanded to the condition shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 9. Upon a slight withdrawal of cannula 24 and balloon 22, the end of the device will assume the position which is found in FIG. 9.
Returning now to FIGS. 12 through 14, with the instrument having the balloon 23 and cannula 24 inserted in the uterine cavity and with the instrument charged with carbon dioxide gas as previously described, the next step is to discharge the gas into the uterine cavity so that a determination may be made as to the patency of the Fallopian tube canals. Upon pressing an end cap 100 secured to the end of spool valve 27 by suitable means such as screws, the spool valve is urged until it reaches the condition shown in FIG. 14 wherein an opposite end cap 101 is extended from its position in FIG. 13. Upon spool valve 27 assuming the position of FIG. 14 another spool or reduced diameter portion 102 communicates with passage 55 and 104. Portion 102 is defined through the use of another "O" ring 103 disposed in an annular groove between "O" ring 57 and valve cap 100. In this condition, the carbon dioxide gas in chamber 44 passes through the passageway 55 and communicates with another passageway 104. That is, the carbon dioxide gas is then passed through passageway 104 and further communicates with a central longitudinal passageway 105 formed in cannula 24. The emerging orifice 106 is formed transversely beyond the end of balloon 23 in cannula 24 so that the opening communicates with fallopian tubes 62 and 63 in the uterine cavity 71. In some sitautions it may also be desirable to curve the end of cannula 24. It will be further noted that when spool valve 27 is in the position shown in FIG. 14, that is, when the carbon dioxide gas is released through passageways 55 and passageways 104 through 106, it is impossible for someone to attempt to charge the system. Thus if any gas is applied to check valve 25, it will be blocked from movement through passage 50 upon reaching spool valve 27.
Depending upon the condition of the fallopian tubes, the amount of carbon dioxide escaping into the uterine cavity may be measured and upon measuring the amount of carbon dioxide that escapes into the peritoneal cavity, a determination may then be made as to whether or not the fallopian tube are "Open", partially occluded or completed "Closed."
In operation, the discharged instrument 20 is fitted with a new cannula 24. Gas charge mechanism 26 complete with capsule 45, is fitted to check valve 25 until the device is fully charged. Any attempt to recharge the device will cause the spring to compress until "O" ring 41 no longer seals and overpressure is released. The device automatically works like a pressure relief valve insuring that the pressure of gas applied through the instrument is never greater than the designed pressure. The spring counteracts against gas within chamber 44. Since aging springs only weaken, the construction insures that the pressure delivered by the device will never increase due to a component failure.
After charging, the indicator 32 moves to the position shown as "charged" in FIG. 1. Balloon 23 is evacuated by withdrawing piston 86 and plunger 22 as shown in FIG. 3. The instrument is then inserted toward the uterine cavity as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 until the balloon portion is situated within the cervix. Balloon 23 is then expanded by depressing and locking piston 22. Markings on the shaft of cannula 24 assist in determining proper placement of the balloon. Once inflated, the balloon seals the uterine cavity from the vaginal cavity. The seal is effective up to a pressure of about 250 mm Hg. The relatively thick, rigid balloon deforms the walls of the cervix in forming the seal. The balloon is not capable of expanding toward fundus 74 or over opening 106. It is constructed and arranged to exert a sealing pressure against the cervix rather than to be a deformable balloon which would squeeze into the uterine cavity when filled with sufficient gas. Spool valve 27 is moved to the test position by depressing end cap 100. Approximately 55 cubic centimeters of carbon dioxide are available to be introduced into the uterine cavity at a pressure of about 200 mm Hg. through openings 106. As the gas enters the uterine cavity, the volume within chamber 44 decreases, and spring 43 rebounds in an effort to keep a constant pressure of about 200 mm Hg.
If the fallopian tubes are patent, gas escapes from the fallopian tubes 12 to the peritoneal cavity. Spring 43 continues to rebound as the gas leaves chamber 44 until it is completely empty. Pointer 32 assumes the "open" position shown in FIG. 2. If the tubes are occluded, an initial volume of gas is discharged from chamber 44 to uterine cavity 71 until the pressure in cavity 71 is equal to that in chamber 44. The pointer should be then within the range shown as "closed" in FIGS. 1 and 2. A slow leak is indicated by a volume change, not a pressure change. The volume in chamber 44 decreases and spring 43 maintains the pressure. Movement of pointer 32 shows any gas volume change within the instrument and uterine cavity.
Rather than measuring patency by a change in pressure, the device of the invention measures by a volumetric change. Equal pressure is maintained within the instrument and uterine cavity as long as gas is remaining within chamber 44. This overcomes some of the disadvantages inherent in devices which rely on pressure changes. Those devices may provide misleading results if a slow leak is present. In such cases, the relatively resilient uterine walls contract as volume is lost, with little apparent pressure drop. In contrast, the device of the invention maintains the same pressurized distention of the uterine walls during the test and any change is always seen as loss of gas volume.
Upon the test being completed, plunger handle 22 is withdrawn from the instrument, collapsing balloon 23 and permitting the balloon 23 and cannula 24 to be withdrawn from the uterine cavity. It will also be observed that various steps for carrying out the procedural method of determining the patency of the fallopian tubes is established.
In considering this invention, it should be remembered that the present disclosure is illustrative only and the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims.
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A gaseous dispensing instrument and method for dispensing carbon dioxide gas into the fallopian tube canals of a female is disclosed. The instrument uses a manually operable pump vented to the atmosphere that communicates with a balloon secured to the end of a cannula. Upon insertion of the deflated balloon and cannula through the cervical opening into the uterine cavity, the balloon is expanded and partially withdrawn against the inner walls of the uterine cavity to seal the same. A chamber is charged with carbon dioxide, and upon the balloon being in place in the uterine cavity, gas is released into the uterine cavity and fallopian tube canals through a separate passage in the cannula. After a given period of time, a patency indicator indicating the ratio of carbon dioxide remaining in the chamber compared with the volume introduced therein, indicates and measures any flow of carbon dioxide from the uterine cavity through the fallopian tube canals and informs the operator of the patency of the fallopian tube canals.
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This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/646,273, filed Jan. 28, 1991, now abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a color image forming apparatus and a method of using the same, and more particularly to a color image forming apparatus for forming latent images for a plurality of color images on a latent image bearing body and transferring the color images on a record sheet at a time, and a method of using such a color image forming apparatus.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
An example of printers known as color image forming apparatuses is of the so-called transfer drum type. In this type of printer, a photoreceptor drum rotating plural times is provided. Through the respective rotating cycles of the photoreceptor drum, toner images of the colors respectively corresponding to the rotating cycles are formed on the photoreceptor drum. A transfer drum is also provided, which rotates in contact with the photoreceptor drum and around which a record sheet is wound. The color toner images are transferred from the photoreceptor drum superposedly onto the record sheet, through the rotating cycles of the photoreceptor drum.
The printer of this type can form full-color images. However, even in forming images of two colors (e.g., black and red), which operation is frequently requested by users, it must rotate the photoreceptor drum plural times. Accordingly, it takes much time to form two-color images, like the case of forming full-color images.
There are proposals directed to the problem just mentioned (Japanese Patent Application Unexamined Publication Nos. Sho. 58-57139 and Sho. 60-247650). In the proposals, toner images for plural colors are formed on the photoreceptor drum, and are transferred from the photoreceptor drum onto a record sheet at once.
In the color image forming apparatuses proposed, a two- or three-color image can be formed by only one turn of the photoreceptor drum. The image forming time can indeed be reduced for those images. The apparatus, however, has the following shortcomings. First, it cannot form images of four or more colors. Second, the colors of a reproduced image is limited to the colors of the toners of the developing units. To perfectly satisfy the customer's desire for a particular color of a reproduced image, the toner in the developing unit must be replaced by the new one of the desired color.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances and has an object of providing a color image forming apparatus and a method of using the same which can satisfy the need of reducing the time to form a two-color image with the color image reproduction performance as desired by customers, and further can form a color image of four or more colors.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combination particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
To achieve the objects and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, a color image forming apparatus of the invention, as shown in FIG. 1(a), comprises:
a latent image bearing body 1 for bearing a latent electrostatic image thereon;
monochromatic latent image forming means 2 for forming on the latent image bearing body 1 a negative latent image Zn whose image area potential is lower in absolute value than a background potential or a positive latent image Zp whose image area potential is higher in absolute value than the background potential;
monochromatic developing means 3 for developing the latent image Zn or Zp formed by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2 with a monochromatic toner Ts;
multi-color latent image forming means 4 for forming on the latent image bearing body a latent image Zp or Zn of a different type from that of the latent image formed by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2, the multi-color latent image forming means being located upstream or downstream of the monochromatic latent image forming means 2;
multi-color developing means 5 including a plurality of selectable developing units 5a, 5b, 5c with toners Ta, Tb, Tc of different colors except black, for developing the latent image Zp or Zn formed by the multi-color latent image forming means 4 with one or two color toners of selected one or two of the developing units;
pre-transfer processing means 6 for arranging polarities of a plurality of toner images produced by the monochromatic developing means 3 and the multi-color developing means 5 into the same polarity; and
transfer means 7 for transferring the toner images with the arranged polarity on a record sheet 8 at a time.
In the color image forming apparatus thus arranged, the latent image bearing body may be suitably designed according to the type of the latent image forming means. For example, it may be a photoreceptor when a latent electrostatic image is formed by light, and be a dielectric member when the latent electrostatic image is formed by ions. The latent image bearing body 1 may take the form of a drum or a belt, for example. Further, it may be charged positively or negatively.
The monochromatic latent image forming means 2 and the multi-color latent image forming means 4 are each provided with latent image writing means for forming a latent electrostatic image on the latent image bearing body 1. When the surface of the latent image bearing body 1 must be previously charged in writing a latent electrostatic image, charging means must be provided.
For the latent image writing means of the type using a light beam for writing the latent image, it may be a combination of an exposure lamp and an optical focusing system, a laser, an LED, or a liquid crystal shutter, for example. For the latent image writing means of the type using ions for writing the latent image, it may be a discharge head, for example.
For the monochromatic developing means 3, if the developer mainly containing a monochromatic toner Ts such as black toner is used, the developing system and the kind of the developer may be selected properly. For the multi-color developing means 5, if it includes a plurality of developing units 5a, 5b, and 5c using respective plural color toners (e.g., three kinds) except a black toner, the developing system and the kinds of the developers may be selected properly. In this case, the polarity of the charged toner of the monochromatic developing means 3 must be opposite to that of the charged toner of the multi-color developing means 5. Further, it is preferable to employ the developing bias system using two-component developer when taking the developing efficiency into consideration.
The monochromatic developing means 3 or the multi-color developing means 5 disposed in the post-stage, or the developing units of the second and the subsequent stages in the multi-color developing means disposed in the post-stage, will be considered here. When the developing bias system using the two-component developer is employed, it is preferable to soften the magnetic brush by the developer. This may be realized by using the carrier of low density for the developer, by providing repulsive magnetic poles at the developing location on the developer bearing body, and by reducing the moving speed of the developer bearing body with respect to the latent image bearing body 1 (Japanese Patent Application Unexamined Publication Nos. Sho. 63-142363, Hei. 1-287581 and Hei. 2-19875), or by any other suitable methods. Alternatively, use of the non-contact developing system is preferable.
The multi-color developing means must be designed so as to be able to realize the superposing of two different toners. For example, where a latent image is developed by using two toners, e.g., Ta and Tb, of the developing units, all one has to do is to adjust the degrees of the developments by the toners Ta and Tb under the condition that different developing bias voltages are respectively applied to the selected developing units 5a and 5b.
The toners may be properly selected for the multi-color developing means 5. If it is desired to reproduce a full-color image, three developing units must be provided, which contain toners Ta to Tc of cyan, magenta and yellow. Further, it is preferable to select one or two developing units according to a desired reproduction color.
The pre-transfer processing means 6 may be appropriately designed on condition that the polarities of the toner images on the latent image bearing body 1 can be arranged. In such a case where the latent image bearing body 1 is a photoreceptor, for example, means to reduce potential in the toner image areas on the latent image bearing means 1 is preferably used for achieving good transfer efficiency of the toner images. This is realized by executing the exposure process concurrently with the charging process or after the charging process.
The transfer means 7 may be realized in any way provided that it can transfer the toner image from the latent image bearing body 1 onto the record sheet 8. The electrostatic image transfer method and the thermal image transfer method may be enumerated for the typical examples.
An image forming process for forming two color images by using the color image forming apparatus as mentioned above, as shown in FIG. 1(b), comprises:
a monochromatic toner image forming step A1 performed one time in which in one rotation cycle of the latent image bearing body 1, a latent image of a predetermined type is formed on the latent image bearing body 1 by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2, and the latent image thus formed is developed by the monochromatic developing means 3;
a multi-color toner image forming step A2 performed one time in which in the one rotation cycle of the latent image bearing body 1, a latent image of a different type from that of the latent image formed by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2 is formed on the latent image bearing body 1 by the multi-color latent image forming means 4, and the latent image thus formed is developed with two color toners of the multi-color developing means 5; and
a toner image transfer step A3 in which in the one rotation cycle of the latent image bearing body 1, polarities of monochromatic and multi-color toner images are arranged by the pre-transfer processing means 6 into the same polarity, and the toner images are transferred onto a record sheet 8 at a time by the transfer means 7.
An image forming process for forming a color image of n (n≧3) colors by using the color image forming apparatus, as shown FIG. 1(c), comprises:
a monochromatic toner image forming step B1 performed one time in which in one of (n-1) rotation cycles of the latent image bearing body 1, a latent image of a predetermined type is formed on the latent image bearing body 1 by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2, and the latent image thus formed is developed by the monochromatic developing means 3;
a multi-color toner image forming step B2 performed (n-1) times in which in each of the (n-1) rotation cycles of the latent image bearing body 1, a latent image of a different type from that of the latent image formed by the monochromatic latent image forming means 2, is formed on the latent image bearing body 1 by the multi-color latent image forming means 4, and the latent image thus formed is developed by the multi-color developing means 5; and
a toner image transfer step B3 in which in an (n-1)th rotation cycle of the latent image bearing body 1, polarities of monochromatic and multi-color toner images are arranged by pre-transfer processing means 6 into the same polarity, and the toner images are transferred onto a record sheet 8 at a time by the transfer means 7.
In the image forming process shown in FIG. 1(c), when the latent image forming means 2 and 4 employ a light beam system, and the toner Ts of the monochromatic developing means 3 is opaque, the monochromatic toner image forming step B1 is preferably performed in the (n-1)th cycle of the latent image bearing body 1.
When a two-color image is formed by using the color image forming apparatus, a negative latent image Zn, for example, which corresponds to a monochromatic image on the latent image bearing body 1 is developed by a monochromatic toner Ts, in the monochromatic toner image forming step A1. In the multi-color toner image forming step A2, a positive latent image Zp, for example, which corresponds to a multi-color image on the latent image bearing body 1, is superposedly developed by two color toners Ta and Tb, for example. In the toner image transfer step A3, the monochromatic toner image and the multi-color toner image are transferred on the record sheet 8 at a time.
In the image forming process as mentioned above, the color image of two colors is formed in one cycle where the latent image bearing body 1 rotates one time.
Consider a case where of the toner images formed in the monochromatic toner image forming step A1 and the multi-color toner image forming step A2, the toner image first formed comes in contact with that formed later. In this case, the toners of the images will newer be mixed with each other, because the polarity of the monochromatic toner image is different from that of the multi-color toner image. Further, even if the toner of the first formed toner image enters the housing of the developing means for the process to form the later-formed toner image, the toner of the later-formed toner image which exists within the housing repels the toner of the first-formed toner image because of the different polarities of them. Accordingly, the toner of the first-formed toner image is readily discharged from the housing of the developing means, and hence it is not accumulated within the housing.
It is noted that the multi-color toner image results from the superposed development with different toners. This fact implies that the color of the multi-color toner image can be adjusted to be different from the original colors of the toners.
When a three-color image is formed by using the color image forming apparatus, a negative latent image Zn, for example, which corresponds to the monochromatic image on the latent image bearing body 1 is formed by the monochromatic toner Ts in one of the cycles of the latent image bearing body 1, in the monochromatic toner image forming step B1. In the multi-color toner image forming step B2, each of positive latent images Zp corresponding to a plurality of multi-color images on the latent image bearing body 1 are developed by one or two color toners in each cycle of the latent image bearing body 1. In the toner image transfer step A3, the monochromatic toner image and the plurality of the multi-color toner images are transferred on the record sheet 8 at a time in the final cycle of the latent image bearing body 1.
In the image forming process as mentioned above, a color image of n-color systems can be formed through (n-1) cycles.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification illustrated embodiment of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the object, advantages and principles of the invention. In the drawings,
FIG. 1(a) is an explanatory diagram showing the construction of a color image forming apparatus according to the invention;
FIGS. 1(b) and 1(c) are explanatory diagrams showing methods of using the color image forming apparatus of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing embodiment 1 of the invention which is a color printer incorporating the invention;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a key portion of a multi-color developing unit;
FIG. 4 is a graph showing a variation of magnetic flux density with respect to magnetic poles;
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an image forming process in a two-color regular color image mode;
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an image forming process in a two-color custom color image mode;
FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an image forming process in a three-color image mode;
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing embodiment 2 of the invention which is a digital color copying machine incorporating the invention;
FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an image forming process in a two-color custom color image mode; and
FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an image forming process in a three-color image mode.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
EMBODIMENT 1
Basic Construction
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing embodiment 1 of the invention which is a color printer incorporating the invention.
In the figure, reference numeral 20 designates a photoreceptor of the OPC (organic photoconductor), which is of the negative charge type and takes the form of a drum. A charge scorotron 21 previously charges the photoreceptor 20. A laser for monochrome 22 forms on the photoreceptor 20 a monochromatic negative latent image corresponding to a monochromatic image. A monochromatic developing unit 23 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type inversely develops the monochromatic negative latent image with a black toner T B (negative) as a monochromatic toner. A laser for multi-color 24 forms a multi-color positive latent image corresponding to a multi-color image, on the photoreceptor 20. A multi-color first developing unit 25 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type normally develops a multi-color positive latent image with yellow toner T Y (positive). A multi-color second developing unit 26 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type normally develops a multi-color positive latent image with magenta toner T M (positive). A multi-color third developing unit 27 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type normally develops a multi-color positive latent image with cyan T C (positive). A pre-transfer corotron 28 is for arranging the polarities of the toner images formed on the photoreceptor 20 into the positive polarity, for example. A transfer corotron 29 charges a record sheet 30 and electrostatically transfers the toner images from the photoreceptor 20 onto the record sheet 30 at a time. A detach corotron 31 removes charges from the record sheet 30 on which the toner images have been transferred, and peels the record sheet 30 off the photoreceptor 20. A cleaner 32 removes the residual toner left on the photoreceptor 20. A quenching lamp 33 quenches residual charges on the photoreceptor 20.
In the instant embodiment, each of the multi-color developing units 25 to 27 is constructed as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown, a developing roll 42 is disposed within a housing 41. The developing roll 42 is made up of a rotating sleeve 43 and a magnet roll 44 fixedly installed within the rotating sleeve 43. The magnet roll 44 includes seven poles (N1 to N4, and S1 to S3) that are asymmetrically magnetized. A magnetic flux density of main poles 45 (as repulsive magnetic poles consisting of the poles N2 and N3) is set at approximately 1200 gauss. The difference between its top and bottom of a curve representing a variation of the magnetic flux density is set at approximately 500 gauss. A magnetic flux density of another magnetic pole 46 is set at approximately 800 gauss. A carrier of 4 g/cm 3 or less in density in which magnetic particles are dispersed in resin binder is used for the developer for each of the multi-color developing units 25 to 28.
Operation
The operations of the color printer of the instant embodiment will be described when the printer is in the respective image forming modes.
A process speed of the photoreceptor 20 of the embodiment is 150 mm/sec.
1) 2-Color Regular Color Image Mode (FIG. 5)
In this mode, a monochromatic image is developed by the black toner T B , and a multi-color image is developed with one of the toners already provided, for example, yellow toner T Y .
(1) Uniform Charging Step (step "a"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 20 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(2) Monochromatic Exposure Step (step "b"):
A monochromatic negative latent image Zn, in which the potential in image portions is lower than that in the background, is formed with the laser for monochrome 22 (a pattern generator is used for an experiment to generate an image signal, and it will also be used for the laser for multi-color). In the instant embodiment, the image portion potential is set at -100 V, while the background potential at -600 V.
(3) Monochromatic Developing Step (step "c"):
A developing bias voltage V BB of the monochromatic developing unit 23 is set at -400 V, and the negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the black toner T B (negative).
(4) Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "d"):
A multi-color positive latent image Zp, in which the image portion potential is higher than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 24. In this case, the potential V TB of the monochromatic toner image is set to be smaller than the background potential. In this instance, the background potential is -200 V; the image portion potential, -580 V; and the potential V TB of the monochromatic toner image, about -130 V.
(5) Multi-Color First Developing Step (step "e"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 25 is set at -300 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the yellow toner T Y (positive).
In this case, the monochromatic toner image is retentively held by a well-type potential pattern. Therefore, the monochromatic toner image is hard to be destroyed, and the yellow toner T Y will be little mixed into the monochromatic toner image. Further, the peeled-off toner T B of the monochromatic toner image will little enter the multi-color first developing unit 25.
(6) Pre-Transfer Processing Step (step "f"):
A DC voltage of +1.5 kV on which an AC component of 400 Hz and 8.5 kVp-p is superposed is applied to a discharge wire of the pre-transfer corotron 28, thereby to arrange the polarities of the respective toner images into the positive polarity.
(7) Transfer Step (not shown):
A DC voltage of -1.5 kV on which an AC component of 400 Hz and 8.5 kVp-p is superposed is applied to a discharge wire of the transfer corotron 29. Then, the respective toner images are transferred from the photoreceptor 20 onto the record sheet 30 at a time. A regular color image of two colors, black and yellow, is formed.
2) Two-Color Custom Color Image Mode (FIG. 6)
When this mode is selected, a two-color image can be formed, which includes a color which is different from the colors of the toners used and can be selected arbitrarily, to some extent, from among a variety of colors, according to a customer's wish. The mode is performed in the following sequence of process steps.
Steps (1) to (4):
The following steps (1) to (4) are the same as those of the two-color regular color mode as described above: (1) uniform charging step (step "a"), (2) monochromatic exposure step (step "b"), (3) monochromatic developing step (step "c"), and (4) multi-color exposure step (step "d").
(5) Multi-Color First Developing Step (step "e"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 25 is set at -450 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the yellow toner T BY (positive).
(6) Multi-Color Second Developing Step (step "f"):
A developing bias voltage V BC of the multi-color third developing unit 27 is set at -300 V which is different from the developing bias V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 25, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the cyan toner T C (positive). Under this condition, the latent images are developed such that the cyan toner T C is superposed on the yellow toner T Y . As a consequence, a multi-color image (green toner image) is formed with the cyan toner T C and the yellow toner T Y .
In the multi-color first and second developing steps, the monochromatic toner image is retentively held by a well-type potential pattern. Therefore, the monochromatic toner image is hard to be destroyed, and the yellow toner T Y and the cyan toner T C will little be mixed into the monochromatic toner image. Further, the peeled-off toner T B for the monochromatic toner image will little enter the multi-color first developing unit 25 and the multi-color third developing unit 27.
Steps (7) and (8):
The steps (7) and (8), pre-transfer processing step (step "g") and transfer step (not shown) are the same as those of the two-color regular color image mode. The polarities of the toner images on the photoreceptor 20 are arranged into the positive polarity, and then transferred onto the record sheet 30 at a time. As a result, a two-color image of black and green (resulting from the mixing of cyan and yellow) is formed.
3) Three-Color Image Forming Mode (FIG. 7)
This mode will be described using a case to form a three-color image of cyan, red and black.
Photoreceptor 20: 1st Cycle
(1) Uniform Charging Step (step "a"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 20 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(2) 1st Cycle Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "b"):
A multi-color positive latent image Zp, in which the image portion potential is higher than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 24. In this instance, the image portion potential is set at -600 V, and the background potential at -100 V.
(3) 1st Cycle Multi-Color First Developing Step (step "c"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 25 is set at -450 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the yellow toner T Y (positive).
(4) 1st-Cycle Multi-Color Second Developing Step (step "d"):
A developing bias voltage V BM of the multi-color second developing unit 26 is set at -200 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the magenta toner T M (positive), while being superposed on the yellow toner image already formed.
At this stage, a first multi-color toner image of red resulting from the mixing of the yellow toner T Y and the magenta toner T M has been formed.
In this cycle, the pre-transfer process and the transfer process are placed in an off state. Further, the monochromatic developing unit 23 and the blade of the cleaner 32 are retracted from the photoreceptor 20.
Photoreceptor 20: 2nd Cycle
(5) Uniform Charging Step (step "e"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 20 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(6) Monochromatic Exposure Step (step "f"):
A monochromatic negative latent image Zn, in which the potential in image portions is lower than that in the background, is formed with the laser for monochrome 22. In the instant embodiment, the image portion potential is set at -100 V, the background potential at -600 V, and the multi-color first toner image potential V TYM at -580 V.
(7) Monochromatic Developing Step (step "g"):
A developing bias voltage V BB of the monochromatic developing unit 23 is set at -400 V, and the negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the black toner T B (negative).
(8) 2nd Cycle Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "h"):
A second multi-color positive latent image Zp, in which the image portion potential is higher than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 24. In this instance, the image portion potential is -600 V; the background potential, -250 V; the multi-color first toner image potential V TYM , -350 V; and the monochromatic toner image potential V TB , -150 V.
(9) 2nd Cycle Multi-Color Developing Step (step "i"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color developing unit 27 is set at -450 V, and the second multi-color positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the cyan toner T C (positive).
Steps (10) and (11):
The pre-transfer processing step (step "i") and the transfer step (not shown) are performed in substantially the same manner as the two-color regular color image mode. As a result, the polarities of the toner images on the photoreceptor 20 are arranged into the positive polarity. The toner images are transferred onto the record sheet 30 at once. The resultant is a three-color image of red resulting from the mixing of yellow and magenta, black and cyan.
During the image forming process as just mentioned, even if the black toner T B peeled off the monochromatic toner image enters the housings of the multi-color developing units 25 to 27, the black toner will never be accumulated because of the polarity difference between those toners.
4) "n" (n≧4) Color Image Forming Mode
In this image forming mode, the photoreceptor 20 is turned (n-1) cycles. In every cycle of the photoreceptor, by using one or two color toners of the multi-color developing units 25 to 27, a multi-color positive latent image Zp corresponding to the one or two toners is developed. In the (n-1)th cycle, a monochromatic negative latent image Zn is developed with the black toner of the monochromatic developing unit 23. Finally, the toner images are transferred from the photoreceptor 20 onto the record sheet 30 at once.
The instant image forming mode can form a color image of a maximum of seven colors; yellow, magenta and cyan corresponding to the toner colors, green as the mixture of cyan and yellow, blue as the mixture of cyan and magenta, and red as the mixture of yellow and magenta, and black.
Image Forming Characteristics
Generally, printers print data in black and a form in a suitable color other than black. In one cycle of the invention, a negative latent image is inversely developed with the black toner T B to form a black image. Then, a positive latent image is normally developed with a color toner of a color except black to form a color toner image. Therefore, even if a positive latent image corresponding to a color (except black) image is formed in a black image area, the black image area will never be developed with the color (except black) toner. This fact indicates that the data of the black image is never missed.
EMBODIMENT 2
Basic Construction
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing embodiment 2 of the invention which is a digital color copying machine incorporating the invention.
The color copying machine detects optical information derived from an original document scan system (not shown) by a color sensor, and generates multi-color (colors other than black) image signals and a monochromatic (black) image signal, by an image signal generator, on the basis of the output signals of the color sensor.
In the figure, reference numeral 50 designates a photoreceptor of the OPC, which is of the negative charge type and takes the form of a drum. A charge scorotron 51 previously charges the photoreceptor 50. A laser for multi-color 52 forms on the photoreceptor 50 a multi-color negative latent image corresponding to a multi-color image. A multi-color first developing unit 53 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type inversely develops the multi-color negative latent image with a yellow toner T Y (negative). A multi-color second developing unit 54 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type inversely develops a multi-color negative latent image with magenta toner T M (negative). A multi-color third developing unit 55 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type inversely develops a multi-color positive latent image with cyan T C (negative). A laser for monochrome 56 forms on the photoreceptor 20 a monochromatic positive latent image corresponding to a monochromatic image. A monochromatic developing unit 57 of the two-component magnetic brush developing type normally develops the monochromatic positive latent image with a black toner T B (positive) as a monochromatic toner. A pre-transfer corotron 58 is for arranging the polarities of the toner images formed on the photoreceptor 50 into the positive polarity, for example. A transfer corotron 59 charges a record sheet 60 and electrostatically transfers the toner images from the photoreceptor 50 onto the record sheet 60 at a time. A detach corotron 61 removes charges on the record sheet 60 on which the toner images have been transferred, and peels the record sheet 60 off the photoreceptor 50. A cleaner 62 removes the toner left on the photoreceptor 50. A quenching lamp 63 quenches residual charges on the photoreceptor 50.
Operation
1) Two-Color Custom Color Image Forming Mode (FIG. 9)
This image forming mode will be described using a case to form a two-color image of black and red as the combination of yellow and magenta.
(1) Uniform Charging Step (step "a"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 50 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(2) Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "b"):
A multi-color negative latent image Zp, in which the image portion potential is lower than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 52. In this instance, the image portion potential is -100 V and the background potential -600 V.
(3) Multi-Color First Developing Step (step "c"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 53 is set at -300 V, and the negative latent image Zp is inversely developed with the yellow toner T Y (negative).
(4) Multi-Color Second Developing Step (step "d"):
A developing bias voltage V BM of the multi-color second developing unit 54 is set at -450 V which is different from the developing bias V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 53, and the negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the magenta toner T M (negative). Under this condition, the latent images are developed such that the magenta toner T M is superposed on the yellow toner T Y . As a consequence, a multi-color image (red toner image) consisting of magenta toner T M and the yellow toner T Y is formed.
(5) Monochromatic Exposure Step (step "e"):
A monochromatic positive latent image Zp, in which the image portion potential is higher than the background potential, is formed with the laser for monochrome 56. In the instant embodiment, the image portion potential is set at -580 V; the background potential, -250 V; and the multi-color toner image potential V TMY , -150 V.
(6) Monochromatic Developing Step (step "f"):
A developing bias voltage V BB of the monochromatic developing unit 57 is set at -350 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the black toner T B (positive).
In the monochromatic developing step, the multi-color toner image is retentively held by a well-type potential pattern. Therefore, the multi-color toner image is hard to be destroyed, and the black toner T B will be little mixed into the multi-color toner image. Further, the peeled-off toners T Y and T M of the multi-color toner image will little enter the housing of the monochromatic developing unit 57.
Steps (7) and (8):
The steps (7) and (8), pre-transfer processing step (step "g") and transfer step (not shown), are the same as those of the two-color regular color image mode in embodiment 1. The polarities of the toner images on the photoreceptor 50 are arranged into the positive polarity, and then the toner images are transferred onto the record sheet 60 at a time. A two-color image of black and red (resulting from the mixing of yellow and magenta) is formed.
For the two-color regular color image forming mode, one-time execution of the multi-color developing step suffices. The remaining processes are substantially the same as those in the above two-color custom color image forming mode.
2) Three-Color Image Forming Mode (FIG. 10)
This mode will be described using a case to form a three-color image of red, yellow and black.
Photoreceptor 50: 1st Cycle
(1) Uniform Charging Step (step "a"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 50 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(2) 1st Cycle Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "b"):
A multi-color negative latent image Zn, in which the image portion potential is lower than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 52. In this instance, the image portion potential is -100 V, and the background potential is -600 V.
(3) 1st Cycle Multi-Color First Developing Step (step "c"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 53 is set at -300 V, and the negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the yellow toner T Y (negative).
(4) 1st-Cycle Multi-Color Second Developing Step (step "d"):
A developing bias voltage V BM of the multi-color second developing unit 54 is set at -450 V, and the negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the magenta toner T M (negative), while being superposed on the yellow toner image already formed.
At this stage, a first multi-color image of red resulting from the mixing of the yellow toner T Y and the magenta toner T M is formed on the photoreceptor 50.
In this cycle, the pre-transfer process and the transfer process are placed in an off state. Further, the monochromatic developing unit 57 and the blade of the cleaner 62 are retracted from the photoreceptor 50.
Photoreceptor 50: 2nd Cycle
(5) Uniform Charging Step (step "e"):
The surface of the photoreceptor 50 is uniformly charged at -600 V.
(6) 2nd Cycle Multi-Color Exposure Step (step "f"):
A second multi-color negative latent image Zn, in which the image portion potential is lower than the background potential, is formed with the laser for multi-color 52. In this instance, the image portion potential is -100 V; the background potential, -600 V; and the multi-color first toner image potential V TYM , -550 V.
(7) 2nd Cycle Multi-Color Developing Step (step "g"):
A developing bias voltage V BY of the multi-color first developing unit 53 is set at -450 V, and the second multi-color negative latent image Zn is inversely developed with the yellow toner T Y (positive).
(8) Monochromatic Exposure Step (step "h"):
A monochromatic positive latent image Zp, in which the potential in image portions is higher than the background potential, is formed with the laser for monochrome 56. In the instant embodiment, the image portion potential is set at -580 V, the background potential at -250 V, the multi-color first toner image potential V TYM at -150 V, and the multi-color second toner image potential V TY at -130 V.
(9) Monochromatic Developing Step (step "i"):
A developing bias voltage V BB of the monochromatic developing unit 57 is set at -350 V, and the positive latent image Zp is normally developed with the black toner T B (positive).
Steps (10) and (11):
The steps (10) and (11), the pre-transfer processing step (step "j") and the transfer step (not shown) are performed in substantially the same manner as the two-color normal color image mode. The polarities of the toner images on the photoreceptor 50 are arranged into the positive polarity. The toner images are transferred onto the record sheet 60 at once. The resultant is a three-color image of red resulting from the mixing of yellow and magenta, yellow and black.
During the image forming process as just mentioned, even if the black toner comes in contact with the multi-color toner image, the black toner will never be mixed with the multi- color toner image. Further, even if the multi-color toners T Y and Y M peeled off the multi-color toner image enters the housings of the monochromatic developing units 57, the multi-color toners will never be accumulated therein because of the polarity difference between those toners.
3) "n" (n≧4) Color Image Forming Mode
In this image forming mode, the photoreceptor 50 is turned (n-1) cycles. In every cycle of the photoreceptor, by using one or two color toners of the multi-color developing units 53 to 55, a multi-color negative latent image Zn corresponding to the one or two toners is developed. In the (n-1)th cycle, a monochromatic positive latent image Zp is developed with the black toner of the monochromatic developing unit 57. Finally, the toner images are transferred from the photoreceptor 50 onto the record sheet 60 at once.
The instant image forming mode, as in the first embodiment, can form a color image of a maximum of seven colors; yellow, magenta, cyan, green, blue, red, and black.
Image Forming Characteristics
Since the color copying machine forms the black image in the final process step, the black toner T B will never be mixed into the multi-color toner images. In this respect, embodiment 2 improves over the embodiment 1. The color image formed has a good picture quality.
As seen from the foregoing description, the color image forming apparatus employs a method of transfer ring images of different colors onto the record sheet at a time. Accordingly, color images of two colors can be formed through one cycle where the latent image bearing body is turned one time. Color images of three or more colors can be formed through a plurality of cycles where the latent image bearing body turns plural times. The color image forming apparatus can reduce the time to form the two-color image which is frequently required in practical use, and provides an easy formation of multi-color images. If a plurality of color (except black) toner images are superposed when developed, a custom color image can readily be formed, which includes a color which is different from the colors of the toners used and can be selected arbitrarily, to some extent, from among a variety of colors, according to a customer's wish.
It is noted that the polarities of the toners of the monochromatic developing means and the multi-color developing means are different from each other. Because of the polarity difference, the color image forming apparatus is free from the phenomena of color contamination and toner mixing between the monochromatic and multi-color toners. This feature provides a good picture quality of the formed color image.
In the case of the bias-type developing units, since two toners can surely be superposed one on the other in image portions to form a custom color toner image, a good quality of custom color images can be maintained.
By properly constructing the multi-color developing units, a color image of six colors can be formed by using only three developing units.
The color image forming apparatus can reduce the time to form a color image, while it can readily form a two-color image including a color selected arbitrarily, to some extent, according to a use's preference.
Further, a three-color image including an original color of the color toner and a color selected arbitrarily, to some extent, according to a user's preference can readily be formed.
Even if the latent image forming means are of the light beam type, and if the toner of the monochromatic developing means 3 is opaque, the opaque toner will never interrupt the latent image formation by the latent image forming means, hence providing a good picture quality of the formed color image.
The foregoing description of preferred embodiment of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and its practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto, and their equivalents.
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A first negative or positive latent electrostatic image is formed on a latent image bearing body with a first writing device, and developed with a monochromatic toner. A second latent image of the type different than the first latent image is formed by a second writing device after setting the background voltage of the second image to have an absolute value larger than the first image, and then developed with one or two color toners selected from three color toners of respective multi-color developing units. A plurality of multi-color toner images may be formed in respective rotation cycles of the latent image bearing body. A monochromatic toner image may be formed in the same rotation cycle as one of the multi-color toner images. Finally, a plurality of toner images thus produced are transferred onto a recording sheet at once after polarities of the plurality of toner images have been arranged into the same polarity.
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This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/181,370, filed on Jan. 14, 1994, which was abandoned upon the filing hereof, which is a Rule 62 continuation of application Ser. No. 07/873,429, filed Apr. 24, 1992, which is abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to the production of polyhydroxyalkanoate in plants.
Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a linear polyester of D(-)-3-hydroxybutyrate. It was first discovered in Bacillus megaterium in 1925. Polyhydroxybutyrate accumulates in intracellular granules of a wide variety of bacteria. The granules appear to be membrane bound and can be stained with Sudan Black dye. The polymer is produced under conditions of nutrient limitation and acts as a reserve of carbon and energy. The molecular weight of the polyhydroxybutyrate varies from around 50,000 to greater than 1,000,000, depending on the micro-organisms involved, the conditions of growth, and the method employed for extraction of the polyhydroxybutyrate. Polyhydroxybutyrate is an ideal carbon reserve as it exists in the cell in a highly reduced state, (it is virtually insoluble), and exerts negligible osmotic pressure.
Polyhydroxybutyrate and related polyhydroxyalkanoates, such as poly-3-hydroxyvalerate and poly-3-hydroxyoctanoate, are biodegradable thermoplastics of considerable commercial importance.
The terms "polyhydroxyalkanoate" and "PHA" as used hereinafter include polymers of 3-hydroxybutyrate, polymers of related hydroxyalkanoates such as 3-hydroxyvalerate, 3-hydroxyhexanoate, 3-hydroxyoctanoate, 3-hydroxydecanoate, and also copolymers and mixtures of more than one of these hydroxyalkanoates.
Polyhydroxyalkanoate is biodegradable and is broken down rapidly by soil micro-organisms. It is thermoplastic (it melts at 180° C.) and can readily be moulded into diverse forms using technology well-established for the other thermoplastics materials such as high-density polyethylene which melts at around the same temperature (190° C.). The material is ideal for the production of biodegradable packaging which will degrade in landfill sites and sewage farms. The polymer is biocompatible, as well as biodegradable, and is well tolerated by the mammalian, including human, body; its degradation product, 3-hydroxybutyrate, is a normal mammalian metabolite. Polyhydroxybutyrate degrades only slowly in the body making it suitable for medical applications where long term degradation is required.
Polyhydroxyalkanoate, produced by the micro-organism Alcaligenes eutrophus, is manufactured, as a copolymer of polyhydroxybutyrate and polyhydroxyvalerate, by Imperial Chemical Industries PLC and sold under the Trade Mark BIOPOL. The nature of the polymer, for example the proportions of PHB and PHV is determined by the substrate supplied in the fermentation. It is normally supplied in the form of pellets for thermoprocessing. However, polyhydroxyalkanoate is more expensive to manufacture by existing methods than, say, polyethylene. It is, therefore, desirable that new, more economic production of polyhydroxyalkanoate be provided.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide materials and a method for the efficient production of polyhydroxyalkanoate.
According to the present invention there is provided a plant adapted for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoate comprising a recombinant genome of an oil-producing plant, which genome contains genes encoding enzymes necessary for catalysing the production of polyhydroxy-alkanoate together with gene regulatory sequences directing expression of the said genes to target plant cell components.
These regulatory sequences include promoter sequences directing expression of the biosynthetic pathway specifically to the developing seed, and transit peptide sequences targeting the enzymes to appropriate subcellular compartments.
The genes encoding the enzyme or enzymes necessary for the catalysis of polyhydroxyalkanoate production may be isolated from a micro-organism, such as Alcaligenes eutrophus, which is known to produce polyhydroxybutyrate and other polyhydroxyalkanoates.
It is preferable, for reasons which will later be explained, that the plant be of a species which produces substantial quantities of oil, rather than starch. Such plant species are well known and are simply referred to as "oil-seed" crops and include, oilseed rape, canola, soya and sunflower. Methods for the genetic transformation of many oil crops are known; for example, transformation by Agrobacterium tumefaciens methods are suitable for most. Such methods are well-described in the literature and well-known and extensively practised in the art.
The biosynthesis of polyhydroxybutyrate from the substrate, acetyl-CoA involves three enzyme-catalysed steps, illustrated in FIG. 1 herewith.
The three enzymes involved are β-ketothiolase, NADP linked acetoacetyl-CoA reductase, and polyhydroxybutyrate synthase, the genes for which have been cloned from Alcaligenes eutrophus (Schubert et al, 1988, J Bacteriol, 170). When cloned into Escherichia coli the three genes are known to facilitate production of polyhydroxyalkanoate up to 30% of the cell weight.
Genes specifying the production of alkanoates higher than the butyrate are known to exist in bacteria. Isolation of the appropriate genes allows expression of these higher polyhydroxyalkanoates. For example, genes specifying production of the polyhydroxy-octanoate and the decanoate exist in the bacterial species Pseudomonas oleovorans and Pseudomonas eruginosa. However genes for analogous polymers are widespread in bacterial species.
All the microorganisms required for performance of this invention are publicly available from public culture collections.
An important preferred feature of this invention is the use of an oilseed plant for expression of the polyhydroxyalkanoate. The reason behind our selection of oil-producing crops is that such plants naturally produce large amounts of acetyl-CoA substrate (under aerobic conditions) in the developing seed, which is normally used in fatty acid synthesis. Diversion of this substrate into polyhydroxyalkanoate production will reduce the amount of oil stored by the seed but will have minimal influence on other aspects of the call's metabolism. It is therefore possible to produce commercially viable quantities of polyhydroxyalkanoate such as polyhydroxybutyrate in an oilseed.
It has been previously suggested that Alcaligenes eutrophus genes could be expressed in a starch crop but this has certain problems. In order to optimise polyhydroxyalkanoate production in such a crop, it would probably be necessary to down-regulate starch synthesis. However, even if this down-regulation were to be effected it would not guarantee an increased rate of acetyl-CoA production. Moreover, even if this increased production were actually achieved, it is possible that the acetyl-CoA would be rapidly utilised by respiration in the starch crop.
For expression in higher plants the bacterial (for example Alcaligenes eutrophus) genes require suitable promoter and terminator sequences. Various promoters/terminators are available for use. For constitutive expression the cauliflower mosaic virus CaMV35S promoter and nos terminator may be used. It is however preferred to target synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoate only to the developing oil storage organ of the oilseed such as the embryo of oilseed rape. The promoter of the rape seed storage protein, napin, could be used to obtain embryo specific expression of polyhydroxyalkanoate genes. Expression of the polyhydroxyalkanoate genes during the precise period when lipid is being made will ensure effective competition by the polyhydroxyalkanoate enzymes for available acetyl-CoA. The promoters of fatty acid synthesis genes whose expressions are switched on at this time are thus most appropriate candidates to be used as polyhydroxyalkanoate gene promoters. Examples of such promoters are those of seed specific isoforms of rape acyl carrier protein (ACP) or β-ketoacyl ACP reductase.
In inserting the polyhydroxyalkanoate genes into eukaryotic cells, consideration has to be given to the most appropriate subcellular compartment in which to locate the enzymes. Two factors are important: the site of production of the acetyl-CoA substrate, and the available space for storage of the polyhydroxyalkanoate polymer.
The acetyl-CoA required for fatty acid synthesis in, for example, developing rapeseed embryo is produced by two routes. The first, direct, route involves the activity of a pyruvate dehydrogenase enzyme located in the plastid. The second route involves the initial production of acetyl-CoA by mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase, lysis to free acetate, and diffusion of the acetate into the plastid where it is re-esterified to CoA by acetyl-CoA synthase. Rapeseed also produces acetyl-CoA in the cytosol, though at a lower rate than in the plastid, via the activity of a cytosolic citrate lyase enzyme.
Considering substrate supply, the bacterial (for example, Alcaligenes) β-ketothiolase enzyme may function in the mitochondrion, using acetyl-CoA produced in excess of the requirements of respiration, or in the cytosol. The regulatory sequences of the invention may thus direct expression of the β-ketothiolase gene to the mitochondrion or to the cytosol. It is however preferred to target this enzyme to the plastids, where highest rates of acetyl-CoA generation occur.
The mitochondrion lacks sufficient space for storage of the polyhydroxyalkanoate polymer. Significant storage space exists in the plastids, at least in rape embryo. Highest storage space exists in the cytosol, the compartment normally occupied by the oil bodies.
It is not known whether the acetoacetyl-CoA or hydroxybutyryl-CoA pathway intermediates can be transported from plastid to cytosol. Certainly they would not be able to traverse the plastid envelope membrane as CoA esters. Export would require that the acetoacetate or hydroxybutyrate groups are recognised by the transport systems involved in export of fatty acids from plastids. These have been suggested to involve: lysis of the CoA ester, export of the free acid, and resynthesis of the CoA ester in the cytosol; or transfer of the acyl groups to carnitine, and export of acyl carnitine. If acetoacetyl groups may be exported from the plastid by one of these mechanisms then it would be possible to target β-ketothiolase to the plastid, to utilise acetyl-CoA destined for lipid synthesis, and target acetoacetyl-CoA reductase and polyhydroxybutyrate synthase to the cytosol to achieve polymer synthesis in this more spacious compartment. If neither acetoacetate nor hydroxybutyrate groups may be exported from the plastid, polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesis will require that all three pathway enzymes are targeted to this organelle so that they are expressed in the same cell compartment.
To target the three bacterial (such as Alcaligenes eutrophus) enzymes for polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesis to the plant plastid requires the use of specific targeting regulatory elements called transit peptides. Possible sources of plastid stroma targeting sequences are the genes for:
(a) ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase small subunit (RUBISCO ssu);
(b) acyl carrier protein (ACP);
(c) β-ketoacyl ACP reductase;
(d) enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS);
(e) fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase.
Of these the RUBISCO small subunit transit peptide has been shown to direct polypeptides to plastids in both photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic tissues. ACP and β-ketoacyl ACP reductase transit peptides would also operate effectively in plants such as rape embryo. The advantage of using the same plastid transit peptide for all three polyhydroxyalkanoate genes is to ensure that any variability in the uptake of the genes is not due to the transit peptide which is used.
Although some proteins appear to be efficiently targeted to the plastid stroma by the transit peptide alone, other proteins also require the presence of up to twenty amino acids of the amino terminus of the mature protein. The requirement for the presence of mature sequences appears to depend on the size and charge of the protein to be transported.
To obtain synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoate polymer in plant tissues it is necessary to obtain plants expressing all three genes for the enzymes β-ketothiolase, acetoacetyl-CoA reductase and polyhydroxybutyrate synthase. This may be achieved by using one of the following strategies:
i) Plants may be individually transformed with the three polyhydroxyalkanoate pathway genes. Plants containing individual genes are grown up in the glass-house and cross-pollinated to obtain hybrid plants containing two pathway genes. This procedure is then repeated to produce hybrid plants containing all three genes.
ii) Plants may be sequentially transformed with plasmids containing the individual pathway genes.
iii) Two or three pathway genes may be cotransformed into the same plant by simultaneous infection with Agrobacteria containing the individual genes.
iv) Plants may be transformed with plasmids containing two or three pathway genes.
A combination of these techniques may be used to obtain expression of all three genes in a single plant. Successive round of cross-pollination are carried out until the progeny are homozygous for all three genes. For methods (ii) and (iii) above, it is advantageous to insert each gene into vectors containing different selectable marker genes to facilitate selection of plants containing two or three polyhydroxyalkanoate pathway genes. Examples of selectable markers are genes conferring resistances to kanamycin, hygromycin, sulphonamides and bialaphos or phosphinothricin.
The invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows the pathway for polyhydroxybutyrate production in Alcaligenes eutrophus;
FIG. 2 is a physical map of the 5.2 kb SmaI-EcoRI fragment of Alcaligenes eutrophus DNA;
FIG. 3 is a map of the plant expression vector pJR1i;
FIG. 4 shows the Southern blot analysis of the three PCR products produced during the making of the ssu transit peptide-ketothiolase construct;
FIG. 5 is a graph of β-ketothiolase enzyme activities in tobacco leaves;
FIG. 6 is a graph of NADP acetoacetyl CoA reductase enzyme activities in tobacco leaves.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Example
A 5.2 kb SmaI-EcoRI fragment which codes for all three polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biosynthetic genes had previously been isolated from Alcaligenes eutrophus (Schubert et al, 1988, J Bacteriol, 170). This fragment cloned into the vector pUC9 (New England Biolabs) together with a 2.3 kb PstI sub fragment cloned into Bluescript KS- (Stratagene) were provided by Dr Steinbuchel of the University of Gottingen, Germany. A restriction map of the fragment is shown in FIG. 2. The positions of the restriction sites and the positions of the genes for β-ketothiolase, acetoacetyl CoA reductase, and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) synthase are shown.
The expression vector chosen to gain constitutive expression of PHA biosynthetic genes in tobacco and oilseed rape plants was pJR1i. This vector contains the cauliflower mosaic virus CaMV35S promoter and the nos terminator, separated by a multiple cloning site to allow the insertion of the PHA genes. The vector also contains the kanamycin resistance nptII gene as a selectable marker. FIG. 3 is a map of the plant expression vector pJR1i. Vector pJR1Ri was also utilised; this vector contains the expression cassette in the opposite orientation.
All routine molecular biological techniques were those of Sambrook et al (1989, A laboratory manual, Second edition). Oligonucleotides were all synthesised on an Applied Biosystems 380B DNA Synthesiser. PCR machines used were Techne PHC-1 Programmable Dri-Blocks. Taq polymerase was obtained from Perkin-Elmer/Cetus. Restriction enzymes and other modifying enzymes were obtained from New England Biolabs, Gibco/BRL, Northumbria Biologicals Limited and Pharmacia. Sequencing kits were obtained from Cambridge Biosciences (Sequenase) and Promega (Taqtrack). All radio-isotopes were supplied by Amersham International.
1. Construction of vectors to gain constitutive cytosolic expression of PHA pathway genes
1.1. β-ketothiolase
The β-ketothiolase gene was isolated as a 1.3 kb PstI-PleI fragment from the 2.3 kb PstI fragment of pKS-::2.3 P7. This fragment was blunt-ended with Klenow and was inserted into the dephosphorylated SmaI site of pJRIi. The resulting plasmid was denoted pJR1iT. Recombinant plasmids were identified by colony hybridisation using the 1.3 kb insert fragment as a probe. Restriction mapping of recombinants revealed those containing a single β-ketothiolase insert in the sense orientation. The orientation of the insert was confirmed by sequencing using a primer that hybridised to the 3' end of the CaMV35S promoter.
1.2. Acetyoacetyl-CoA reductase
The acetoacetyl-CoA reductase gene was isolated as a 0.9 kb AvaII-XmnII fragment from pKS::2.3P7. This fragment was inserted into pJRIi as described for pJRIiT. However, the orientation of the insert fragment in recombinant plasmids could not be confirmed by restriction mapping due to the unavailability of suitable restriction enzyme sites. Therefore four recombinants were sequenced using the CaMV35S 3' primer and, of these, one was found to contain a sense insert. This plasmid was denoted pJR1iR.
1.3. PHB synthase
The PHB synthase gene was isolated from pKS::2.3p7 as a BstBi-StuI fragment. This fragment was blunt-ended and inserted into pJRIi as described for pJRIiT and pJRIiR. The identity of recombinant (pJRIiS) plasmids containing a single insert in the sense orientation ws confirmed by restriction mapping and by sequencing with the CaMV35S 3' primer.
2. Construction of vectors for constitutive plastid targeted expression of PHA pathway enzymes.
Transport into plastids of the component polypeptides for each of the PHB pathway enzymes can be achieved by addition of a transit peptide sequence to the 5' end of the gene sequence.
The first gene to be tailored was ketothiolase. A technique involving polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was employed in order to join the pea RUBISCO small subunit transit peptide sequence in frame with the ketothiolase gene.
Linking the transit peptide to the ketothiolase gene involved three experiments. The first experiment added a small portion of the 5' end of the ketothiolase gene onto the 3' end of the transit peptide sequence. The second experiment added a small portion of the 3' end of the transit peptide onto the 5' end of ketothiolase gene. The third experiment utilised the overhangs produced in the preceding experiments to extend across the junction and produce full length transit peptide linked in frame with the ketothiolase gene. Four PCR primers were designed:
1. 5' end of the transit peptide allowing extension toward its 3' end: (see SEQ ID NO: 1) ##STR1## 2. 3' end of transit peptide linked to 5' end of ketothiolase gene allowing extension toward 5' end of transit peptide: (see SEQ ID NO: 2) ##STR2## 3. 3' end of transit peptide linked to 5' end of ketothiolase gene allowing extension toward the 3' end of the ketothiolase gene: (see SEQ ID NO: 3) ##STR3## 4. 3' end of ketothiolase gene: (see SEQ ID NO: 4) ##STR4##
For the first experiment template DNA was pSM64 (transit peptide sequence) and the primers were TP1 and TPKB with an annealing temperature of 65° C. The derived PCR products were run out on an agarose gel and the band corresponding to 199 bp cut out and electroeluted from the gel.
In the second experiment template DNA was pKS::2.3 P7, the primers involved were TPKT and K1 and the annealing temperature 68° C. The products of the PCR reaction were again run out on a gel and the required 1.207 kb band isolated and electroeluted from the gel slice.
The third experiment utilised the DNA isolated from the previous experiment as template and the primers TP1 and K1. The annealing temperature was 65° C. and although this PCR experiment was very inefficient some full length product (1.352 kb) was formed.
A small portion of each of the three PCR products was run out on an agarose gel. Southern blot analysis using three of the oligos as probes (TP1, K1 and TPKT) was carried out. Results are given in FIG. 4 and show that the product of the third reaction contained the 5' end of the transit peptide, the overlap of 3' transit peptide and 5' ketothiolase gene, and the 3' end of the ketothiolase gene.
It was necessary to check the sequence of this product as it is known that PCR can incorporate base mismatches. The PCR product was blunt-ended and cloned into SmaI cut and phosphatased pUC18. Six clones were identified which contained the PCR product. The clones were sequenced using the universal and reverse primers (Sequenase kit and Taqtrack kit). Clones with completely correct sequence through the transit peptide and the 5' end of the ketothiolase gene up to a TthIII1 restriction site within the gene were identified. From one of these clones a TthIII1-Kpn1 fragment was excised. The Kpn1 site was cut back to give a blunt end, and a TthIII1-Sma1 fragment of Alcaligenes eutrophus DNA from pKS-::2.3P7 corresponding to the major portion of the ketothiolase gene was inserted. Positive clones were sequenced across the joins. The transit peptide-ketothiolase fragment was excised and inserted into pJR1Ri.
For the transit peptide-reductase construct PCR was also utilised. This required only one PCR experiment as a Dde I site (unique in the transit peptide and reductase sequences) was present close to the 5' end of the gene. The PCR experiment required two primers:
1. Sequence homologous to the 5' end of the transit peptide which would allow extension toward the 3' end. A Cla I site was incorporated into the sequence 5' to the transit peptide sequence. ##STR5## 2. Sequence homologous to just past the Dde I site in the reductase gene, linked in frame with 3' transit peptide sequence to allow extension toward the 5' transit peptide. ##STR6##
After PCR with these two primers and transit peptide DNA as template the 195 bp product was identified on agarose gels and isolated by electroelution. DdeI XmnI reductase gene was isolated and ligated to DdeI cut PCR product. After agarose gel electrophoresis the 1.063 kb band was isolated, cut with ClaI and ligated into ClaI EcoRV Bluescript SK(-). Positives are being characterised.
3. Transformation of plants with the PHB genes
3.1. Agrobacterium transformations
Cesium-pure pJRIiT, pJRIiR, pJRIiS and pJRIi were individually transformed into Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain LBA4404 by direct uptake as follows. LB (10 mls) was inoculated with A tumefaciens strain LBA4404. The culture was shake-incubated at 28° C. for approximately 16 hours until the optical density (OD) at 660 nm was 0.5. The cells were recovered by centrifugation (3000 rpm Sorvall RT6000B, 6 mins, 4° C.). They were resuspended in 250 μl of ice-cold 20 mM CaCl 2 . The cell suspension was then dispensed into pre-chilled Eppendorf tubes in 0.1 ml aliquots. Approximately 1 μg of caesium-pure plasmid DNA was added to each tube. The cells were then heat-shocked by freezing in liquid nitrogen followed by incubation at 37° C. for 5 minutes. LB medium (1 ml) was added and the cells were allowed to recover by incubation (shaken) at 28° C. for 3-4 hours. The cell pellets were obtained by centrifugation (11,500 g, 30 seconds, 20° C.) and resuspended in 0.1 ml LB. Recombinant cells were selected on LB (agar-solidified) containing kanamycin (50 μg/ml), streptomycin (500 μg/ml) and rifampicin (100 μg/ml) following incubation at 28° C. Mini-prep DNA of the resultant Agrobacterium strains was then isolated and analysed by restriction enzyme digestion to ensure that no re-arrangements had occurred.
3.2. Plant Transformations
Tobacco leaf pieces and oilseed rape petioles were inoculated individually with strains LBA4404/JRIi, LBA4404/pJRIiT, LBA4404/pJRIiR and LBA4404/pJRIiS. Plants were cultured in a growth room with a temperature of 25° C. and a photoperiod of 16 hours.
Brassica napus cv. Westar seedlings were sterilised in 10% sodium hypochlorite and washed in sterile water before germination on MS medium (Imperial)(containing 3% sucrose and 0.7% phytagar (Gibco). The cotyledons were excised from 5 day old seedlings and the petioles of which were placed in MS medium as above but supplemented with 4.5 μg/ml benzylaminopurine (BAP). The cotyledons were cultured in this medium for 24 hours after which their petioles were dipped in an Agrobacterium solution. The Agrobacterium culture had been grown overnight in LB medium containing kanamycin (50 μg/ml) following which the Agrobacterium cells had been pelleted and washed in liquid MS medium and diluted to OD 660 0.1. The inoculated petioles were returned to the MS medium containing 4.5 μg/ml BAP and incubated in the culture room for 2 days. The cotyledons were then transferred to MS medium supplemented with BAP (4.5 μg/ml), carbenicillin (Duchefa) (500 μg/ml) and kanamycin (15 μg/ml). The cotyledons were subcultured on this medium every 2 weeks until the production of green callus and eventually shoots. Shoots were excised and cultured on MS containing carbenicillin (500 μg/ml) and kanamycin (15 μg/ml) until they were transferred to the glasshouse.
Nicotiana tabacum cv SRI seeds were sterilised as described above and germinated on MS medium (containing 3% sucrose and 0.8% bactoagar). The shoot tips from these seedlings were then micropropagated on this media to provide plants for transformation studies. Leaf pieces from these plants were dipped in an Agrobacterium solution (prepared as described above) and were then cultured on MS medium containing 3% sucrose, 0.8% bactoagar, 1 μg/ml BAP and 0.1 μg/ml NAA, for 2 days. The leaf pieces were then cultured on the same media supplemented with carbenicillin (500 μg/ml) and kanamycin (100 μg/ml) for 5 weeks. Regenerated shoots were excised and cultured on MS containing 3% sucrose, 0.8% bactoagar, 200 μg/ml carbenicillin and 100 μg/ml kanamycin for 2 passages of 5 weeks before transfer to the glasshouse.
Kanamycin-resistant tobacco and rape plants were obtained for those transformed individually with JRIi, JRIiT, JRIiR and JRIiS.
3.3. Cotransformations
Rape cotyledons and tobacco leaf pieces were also inoculated with mixtures of Agrobacterium strains. These inoculations were performed as described previously except that 1:1 mixtures of diluted Agrobacterium cultures, of the same optical density, were prepared immediately prior to inoculation.
4. Biochemical assessment of plants
Expression of Alcaligenes eutrophus PHA pathway enzymes in plant tissues was detected by enzyme activity assays. The presence of the enzyme polypeptides was also detected by Western blot analysis.
For the latter analyses rabbit polyclonal antibodies were raised to the purified β-ketothiolase and NADP acetoacetyl CoA reductase enzymes from Alcaligenes eutrophus. Bacteria were pelleted, washed, and crude extracts prepared as described by Haywood and Large (1981, Biochem J, 199, 187-201). β-ketothiolase A was purified by chromatography on hydroxylapatite, followed by anion exchange chromatography on FPLC mono Q, followed by gel filtration on Superdex S-200 (Pharmacia), using modifications of methods described by Haywood et al (1988, FEMS Microbiology Letters, 52, 91-96). NADP acetoacetyl-CoA reductase was purified using the same techniques, with an additional affinity chromatography step on 2',5' ADP sepharose (Pharmacia). Purified proteins were subjected to sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS PAGE) according to the method of Laemmli (1970, Nature, 222, 680-685). The final β-ketothiolase preparation showed a single coomassie blue stained band at 41 kd. The final reductase preparation showed a major band at 26 kd. 3 mg of purified ketothiolase and 2 mg of purified reductase were subjected to preparative SDS PAGE. The bands corresponding to the two enzymes were electroeluted from the gels and injected into rabbits to raise polyclonal antibodies. Sera from primary and secondary bleeds following injection were shown to contain antibodies specific for their target enzymes via Western blot analyses of crude Alcaligenes extracts.
Crude extracts of tobacco leaves were prepared by grinding leaf tissue in 50 mM potassium phosphate buffer pH 7.0 containing 1 mM dithiothreitol. After centrifugation at 30,000 g, enzyme assays for ketothiolase and acetoacetyl CoA reductase were conducted on aliquots of the supernatants by the methods described by Haywood et al (1988, FEMS Microbiology Letters, 52, 91-96; 52, 259-264). PHB synthase assays were conducted on aliquots of the 30,000 g supernatants and aliquots of the pellets, resuspended in extraction buffer, by the method of Haywood et al (1989, FEMS Microbiology Letters, 57, 1-6).
For Western blot analysis, aliquots of the 30,000 g supernatants were subjected to SDS PAGE and electrophoretically transferred to nitrocellulose filters. Filters were then rinsed in TBS (50 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.9, 150 mM NaCl) and incubated in TBS plus 5% bovine serum albumin. Proteins reacting with anti-ketothiolase or anti-reductase serum were detected by incubating the filters in 100 ml TBS containing 2 ml of the relevant serum for 1-2 h. Bound first antibody was subsequently detected using goat anti-rabbit IgG alkaline phosphatase conjugate and nitroblue tetrazolium alkaline phosphatase colour development reagent (BioRad Laboratories).
Initial biochemical analyses were carried out on subcultured tobacco plants growing in tissue culture. Eighteen kanamycin resistant plants transformed with JR1i ketothiolase were subjected to enzyme analysis and results compared with untransformed control plants. Leaves of the same size were extracted.
FIG. 5 shows the β-ketothiolase enzyme activities in the tobacco leaves. The identification numbers of individual plants are shown on the x axis. Plants to the left of the dotted line are untransformed control plants. Plants to the right of the line are transformed with JR1i ketothiolase.
A low level of ketothiolase activity was detected in untransformed control plants. Nearly all of the JR1i ketothiolase transformed plants had ketothiolase activity higher than control. The highest activity was 34 nmol/min/mg protein, 2.8 times higher than the highest control plant. In Western blots the anti-ketothiolase antibody detected a polypeptide at 41 kd in untransformed control tobacco plants--possibly corresponding to the endogenous ketothiolase enzyme activity. While a 41 kd polypeptide was also detected in extracts of JR1i ketothiolase transformed plants, the Western blots could not quantitatively distinguish transformed from untransformed plants.
FIG. 6 shows the NADP acetoacetyl CoA reductase enzyme activities in leaves of the tissue culture grown tobacco plants. The identification numbers of individual plants are shown on the x axis. Plants to the left of the dotted line are untransformed control plants. Plants to the right of the line are transformed with pJR1i reductase.
A low level of acetoacetyl CoA reductase activity was detected in untransformed control plants. Nearly all the 21 JR1i reductase transformed plants had reductase activity higher than control. The highest activity was 30 nmol/min/mg protein, 4 fold higher than the highest control plant. In Western blots the anti-reductase antibody did not detect any polypeptide with a m.w. of 26 kd in extracts of untransformed control plants. A 26 kd polypeptide was however detected in extracts of the JR1i reductase transformed plants. Expression of the bacterial reductase gene in tobacco leaves was therefore demonstrated.
__________________________________________________________________________SEQUENCE LISTING(1) GENERAL INFORMATION:(iii) NUMBER OF SEQUENCES: 6(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:1:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 29 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: single(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic)(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:1:AAATGGCTTCTATGATATCCTCTTCAGCT29(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:2:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 47 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: single(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic) (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:2:ACGATGACAACGTCAGTCATGCACTTTACTCTTCCACCATTGCTTGT47(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:3:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 50 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: single(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii ) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic)(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:3:ATTACAAGCAATGGTGGAAGAGTAAAGTGCATGACTGACGTTGTCATCGT50(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:4:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 25 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: single(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic)(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:4:ACCCCTTCCTTATTTGCGCTCGACT25(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:5:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 38 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic)(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:5:ACCATCGATGGATGGCTTCTATGATATCCTCTTCAGCT38(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:6:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 44 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid( C) STRANDEDNESS: single(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA (genomic)(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:6:ATGCGCTGAGTCATGCACTTTACTCTTCCACCATTGCTTGTAAT44
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A plant which produces polyhydroxyalkanoate polymer has a recombinant genome which contains one or more than one of the genes specifying enzymes critical to the polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway which occurs in certain micro-organisms such as Alcaligenes eutrophus which naturally produce same. The plant species is preferably an oil-producing plant.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an actuator comprising an actuator element movably supported at an actuator housing and a pyrotechnic pressure element to move the actuator element.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
An actuator of this type is generally known and is used, for example, to interrupt electrical connections or to trigger fast switching procedures, e.g. in the motor vehicle safety sector.
The pyrotechnic pressure element, which is also called a pyrotechnic igniter in the case of an electrical activation, has the advantage in addition to a particularly fast power development that the energy required to move the actuator element can be stored without pressure over a long period of time by means of suitable chemical substances and can be released as required by means of a comparatively small electrical or mechanical energy.
An activation of the pressure element triggers a conversion of the chemical substances and results in the generation of a pressure impulse by which the actuator element is moved relative to the actuator housing, e.g. is pushed out of it. Since the action on the actuator element takes place very abruptly, the actuator element is moved in a short time and in an uncontrolled manner from a starting position into an end position.
This fast and uncontrolled movement of the actuator element has proved to be disadvantageous in those applications in which the movement procedure of the actuator element should endure for a specific time and/or a bounce of the actuator element should be avoided, e.g. in locking or unlocking processes.
It is the underlying object of the invention to provide a pyrotechnic actuator, wherein the movement of the actuator takes place in a controlled manner.
An actuator having the features of claim 1 is provided to satisfy this object.
The actuator in accordance with the invention comprises an actuator element movably stored at an actuator housing, a pyrotechnic pressure element for the movement of the actuator element and a control means for the control of a force exerted onto the actuator element by the pressure element to move the actuator element.
The force exerted on the actuator element on a triggering of the pressure element can be set by the control means such that the movement of the actuator element takes place at a desired speed. The control means is in particular adjustable such that the movement of the actuator element takes place over a desired period and/or a bounce of the actuator element is avoided. A defined movement of the actuator element can therefore be pre-set by the control means and a matching of the actuator to its respective area of use is possible.
Advantageous embodiments of the invention can be seen from the dependent claims, from the description and from the drawing.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the control means is arranged between the pressure element and the actuator element. It is thereby achieved that the gas pressure generated by the pyrotechnic pressure element does not build up abruptly, but increasingly in front of a surface of the actuator element which is to be acted on. This contributes to a yet more controlled movement of the actuator element.
The control means advantageously includes a diaphragm. This represents a particularly simple form of a control means. On an activation of the pressure element, a high-pressure system is created in front of the diaphragm, i.e. on the pressure element side of the diaphragm, and a low-pressure system is created behind the diaphragm, i.e. on the actuator element side of the diaphragm. By a suitable selection of the diaphragm cross-section, the pressure build-up in the low-pressure system, i.e. the pressure increase gradient, and thus ultimately the resulting force acting on the actuator element, can be set. In other words, the cross-section of the diaphragm forms a control parameter of the control means.
The diaphragm is preferably integrated into a spacer means for the pressure element. The spacer means serves for the correct positioning of the pressure element in the actuator housing. The spacer means satisfies a dual function by the simultaneous integration of the diaphragm, whereby the number of the components is reduced and the design of the actuator is simplified.
In accordance with a further embodiment, grouting is provided for the pressure element. In the event of an activation of the pressure element, the grouting brings about a more uniform conversion of the chemical substances contained in the pressure element and thus results in a more uniform gas pressure. Ultimately, a more uniform action on the actuator element and consequently an even more controlled movement of the actuator element is thereby achieved.
In accordance with an advantageous embodiment, the actuator element is fixed in a starting position by a grouting element. The grouting element satisfies a dual function in that it forms grouting for the pressure element, on the one hand, and provides a fixing of the actuator element, on the other hand. The design of the actuator is thereby simplified even further.
The grouting element preferably has a shear section which cooperates with the actuator housing such that a substantial movement of the actuator element relative to the actuator housing is only possible after a shearing of the shear section off the grouting element. For example, the shear section can be supported at a shoulder of the actuator housing in a starting position of the actuator element.
Due to the shear section, the actuator element is not set in motion immediately on an activation of the pressure element, but a pressure must first build up at the side of the actuator element to be acted on, said pressure being sufficient to shear off the shear section of the grouting element. A force threshold is created in this manner below which no movement of the actuator element takes place. It is thereby ensured that the force which acts on the actuator element and which the actuator element can in turn apply is not lower than a minimum force.
In accordance with a further advantageous embodiment, a holding device is provided to hold the actuator element in an end position after a movement by the pressure element. The holding device has the effect that the actuator element cannot be simply returned back into its starting position from its end position after a triggering of the actuator. In other words, the movement of the actuator element is irreversible.
The holding device can include a knurling of the actuator element which is pressed into a bore of the actuator housing on a movement of the actuator element. Alternatively or additionally, the holding device can include a friction-retaining slope of the actuator housing in which the actuator element jams on its movement. Both variants represent a particularly simple form of a holding device for the actuator element and thus contribute to a simple design of the actuator.
The actuator element is preferably formed by a piston displaceably supported in the actuator housing. Generally, however, other designs of the actuator element are also conceivable; the actuator element could e.g. be made in the manner of a lever and could be pivoted in the event of a triggering of the pressure element.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be described in the following purely by way of example with reference to advantageous embodiments and to the enclosed drawing. There are shown:
FIG. 1 a cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention in a starting state;
FIG. 2 a cross-sectional view of the actuator of FIG. 1 in a triggered state;
FIG. 3 a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention in a starting state;
FIG. 4 a cross-sectional view of the actuator of FIG. 3 in a triggered state;
FIG. 5 a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention in a starting state;
FIG. 6 a cross-sectional view of the actuator of FIG. 5 in a triggered state;
FIG. 7 a cross-sectional view of a fourth embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention in a starting state; and
FIG. 8 a cross-sectional view of the actuator of FIG. 7 in a triggered state.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A first embodiment of the pyrotechnic actuator in accordance with the invention is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 .
The actuator has an actuator housing 10 in which a pyrotechnic pressure element 12 is arranged. The pressure element 12 is held by a pressure element carrier 14 in a rear region, a lower region in the Figure, of the actuator housing 10 .
For the correct positioning of the pressure element carrier 14 in the actuator housing 10 , a beaker-shaped spacer cup 16 is provided whose open side faces the pressure element carrier 14 and which surrounds the pressure element 12 at least regionally. The pressure element carrier 14 is fixed to the actuator housing 10 by means of a clinching connection 18 .
Ignitable chemical substances are contained in the pyrotechnic pressure element 12 and can be brought to reaction, for example by electrical energy, on a triggering of the pressure element 12 . Pressure elements of this type and suitable ignition mechanisms are sufficiently known.
A gas pressure impulse is created in the pressure element 12 by a fast conversion of the chemical substances and opens a cylindrical sleeve 20 of the pressure element 12 projecting into the spacer cup 16 . Desired break points, e.g. in the form of stampings, are provided at the end face 22 of the sleeve 20 to ensure an opening of the sleeve 20 at the end face.
The pressure element 12 serves for the actuation of an actuator element 24 which is arranged in a front region, an upper region in the Figure, of the actuator housing 10 . The actuator element 24 has the shape of a piston which is supported displaceably in the axial direction in the actuator housing 10 .
The piston 24 includes a cylindrical main section 26 which is guided in a bore 30 provided at a front end face 28 of the actuator housing 10 . As FIG. 1 shows, a front end face 32 of the piston 24 terminates in a flush manner with the front end face 28 of the actuator housing 10 in the starting state of the actuator.
In the region of the rear end of the main section 26 , the piston 24 has a disk-shaped head section 34 which is guided, in a starting position of the piston 24 , by a wall section 36 of the actuator housing 10 and terminates with it in a substantially gas-tight manner ( FIG. 1 ).
When the pressure element 12 is ignited, a gas pressure is built up in the pressure element 12 by the reaction of the chemical substances located in the pressure element 12 which results in an opening of the sleeve 20 of the pressure element 12 . The gas created can flow out of the pressure element 12 through the opening of the sleeve 20 and build up a gas pressure in a space 38 bounded by the spacer cup 16 and the pressure element 12 or the pressure element carrier 14 .
As FIG. 1 shows, the piston head section 34 is disposed at a base 40 of the spacer cup 16 in the starting position of the piston 24 . An opening 42 is provided in the base 40 of the spacer cup 16 through which the gas generated can flow through and can act on the head section 34 of the piston 24 . The piston 24 is thereby moved away from the spacer cap 16 and pushed to the front out of the actuator housing 12 .
The base 40 and the opening 42 of the spacer cup 16 form a diaphragm on whose side facing the pressure element 12 a high-pressure system is formed and on whose side facing the piston 24 a low-pressure system is formed. The pressure build-up in the low-pressure system takes place in dependence on the diaphragm cross-section, i.e. on the diameter of the opening 42 . The diaphragm cross-section therefore represents a control parameter via which the pressure increase gradient in the low-pressure system, and thus ultimately the force acting on the piston 24 , can be set.
The displacement of the piston 24 is bounded by a shoulder 46 of the actuator housing 10 which forms an abutment for the head section 34 of the piston 24 . FIG. 2 shows the piston 24 in an end position in which the piston 24 is maximally pushed out of the actuator housing 10 and the head section 34 abuts the shoulder 46 of the actuator housing 10 .
In FIGS. 3 and 4 , a second embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention is shown which only differs from the first embodiment in that grouting is provided for the regularization of the conversion of the chemical substances of the pressure element 12 and of the gas pressure created in this process.
The grouting is achieved by a grouting element 48 which surrounds the main section 26 of the piston 24 like a sleeve. The grouting element 48 has an outwardly angled section 50 in the region of its front end facing away from the head section 34 . As FIG. 3 shows, the grouting element 48 is dimensioned such that the angled section 50 cooperates with the shoulder 46 of the actuator housing 10 in the starting position of the piston 24 and is in particular supported at said shoulder. The grouting element 48 is therefore arranged between the head section 34 and the shoulder 46 viewed in the axial direction. The piston 24 is thereby fixed in the actuator housing 10 at its starting position and is prevented from a displacement relative to the actuator housing 10 .
The angled section 50 of the grouting element 48 forms a shear section which has to be sheared off to permit a displacement of the piston 24 out of the actuator housing 10 . The force required for the shearing off of the shear section 50 can be set by the selection of a corresponding material and/or of a corresponding geometry of the shear section 50 , e.g. of the thickness of the shear section 50 and/or of the arrangement of desired break notches. An optimum grouting force and a particularly uniform realization of the chemical substances can be achieved in this manner. This permits the setting of a defined gas pressure and thus ultimately of a defined ejection force of the piston 24 .
FIG. 4 shows the actuator in the triggered state, with the piston 24 being in its end position, i.e. being maximally pushed out of the actuator housing 10 . As can be seen from the Figure, the head section 34 of the piston 24 does not directly abut the shoulder 46 of the actuator housing 10 in this case, but only indirectly via the sheared off shear section 50 disposed therebetween.
So that the movement of the piston 24 in the axial direction is not blocked by the part of the grouting element 48 remaining at the piston 24 , the inner diameter of the section 52 of the actuator housing 10 disposed between the front end face 28 and the shoulder 46 has a width which is larger than an outer diameter of the grouting element 48 in the sheared-off state.
In FIGS. 5 and 6 , a third embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention is shown which only differs from the second embodiment in that the main section 26 of the piston 24 is provided with a knurling 54 .
The knurling 54 is positioned in a region of the main section 26 in the center viewed in the axial direction such that it is pressed into the bore 30 of the front end face 28 of the actuator housing 10 on the ejection of the piston 24 . The knurling 54 is furthermore made such that an optimum pressing is present when the piston 24 has reached its end position, i.e. has been maximally pushed out of the actuator housing 10 ( FIG. 6 ).
The knurling 54 pressed into the bore 30 in a slight interference fit and prevents the piston 24 fully pushed out of the actuator housing 10 from being able to be pushed back into the actuator housing 10 . The actuator in accordance with the third embodiment therefore represents an irreversible system in which the piston 24 can admittedly be moved out of the actuator housing 10 , but cannot be pushed back into it.
The term “irreversible” in this connection is to be understood such that the movement of the piston 24 cannot be reversed at least when forces are applied which occur in the normal use of the actuator. Unlike with the actuators in accordance with the first and second embodiments, the piston 24 of the actuator in accordance with the third embodiment can therefore not easily be pushed back into its starting position.
In FIGS. 7 and 8 , a fourth embodiment of the actuator in accordance with the invention is shown which only differs from the third embodiment in that, instead of the knurling 54 , a friction-retaining sloping surface 56 is provided in which the piston 24 jams when moving out. The sloping surface 56 is formed at the inner side of the actuator housing 10 in front of the shoulder 46 , when viewed in the ejection direction of the piston 24 , such that an optimal jamming of the head section 34 is achieved when the piston 24 has reached its end position, i.e. has moved maximally out of the actuator housing 10 ( FIG. 8 ). As in the third embodiment, the completely moved out piston 24 can no longer be moved back into the actuator housing 10 so that it is also an irreversible actuator in the fourth embodiment.
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The invention relates to an actuator comprising an actuator element movably supported at an actuator housing, a pyrotechnic pressure element to move the actuator element and a control means to control a force exerted onto the actuator element by the pressure element to move the actuator element.
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CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Application No. 61/581,865, filed Dec. 30, 2011, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to compositions comprising lignin containing maximum levels of undesirable impurities, such as compounds containing sulfur, nitrogen, or metals.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There are a number of processes for converting lignocellulosic biomass into liquid streams of various sugars. Certain preferred processes are based on supercritical water (SCW) or hot compressed water (HCW) technology, which offer several advantages including high throughputs, use of mixed feedstocks, separation of sugars, and avoidance of concentrated acids, microbial cultures, and enzymes. Processes using hot compressed water may have two distinct operations: pre-treatment and cellulose hydrolysis. The pre-treatment process hydrolyzes the hemicellulose component of the lignocellulosic biomass and cellulose hydrolysis (CH) process hydrolyzes the cellulose fibers. The resultant five carbon (C5) and six carbon (C6) sugar streams are recovered separately. The remaining solids, which consist mostly of lignin, are preferably recovered, such as through filtration, and may be used as a fuel to provide thermal energy to the process itself or for other processes. Lignin has the combustion heat of 26.6 KJ/g, and holds highest energy among all natural polymeric compounds that contain carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. In energy, lignin is equivalent to ethanol, which also contains carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, and has the combustion heat of 30 KJ/g. However, for a given volume, lignin's combustion heat is approximately 1.5 times as much as that of ethanol, because of lignin's higher density. http://www.altenergymag.com/emagazine/2009/06/lignin-as-alternative-renewable-fuel/1384). Thus, lignin serves as a useful renewable energy source.
Lignocellulosic biomass contains cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, along with minor amounts of proteins, lipids (fats, waxes, and oils) and minerals. About two thirds of the dry mass of cellulosic materials is present as cellulose and hemicellulose with lignin making up the bulk of the remaining dry mass. Lignin is a cross-linked racemic macromolecule with a molecular masse in excess of 10,000 Daltons. It is relatively hydrophobic and aromatic in nature. The degree of polymerization in nature is difficult to measure, since it is fragmented during extraction and the molecule consists of various types of substructures that appear to repeat in a haphazard manner. Different types of lignin have been described depending on the means of isolation. “Lignin and its Properties: Glossary of Lignin Nomenclature,” Dialogue/Newsletters Volume 9, Number 1, Lignin Institute, July 2001.
There are three monolignol monomers, methoxylated to various degrees: p-coumaryl alcohol, coniferyl alcohol, and sinapyl alcohol. K. Freudenberg & A. C. Nash (eds) (1968). Constitution and Biosynthesis of Lignin . Berlin: Springer-Verlag. These lignols are incorporated into lignin in the form of the phenylpropanoids p-hydroxyphenyl (H), guaiacyl (G), and syringal (S), respectively. W. Boerjan, J. Ralph, M. Baucher (June 2003). “Lignin bios”. Ann. Rev. Plant Biol. 54 (1): 519-549. Gymnosperms have a lignin that consists almost entirely of G with small quantities of H. That of dicotyledonous angiosperms is more often than not a mixture of G and S (with very little H), and monocotyledonous lignin is a mixture of all three. Id. Many grasses have mostly G, while some palms have mainly S. All lignins contain small amounts of incomplete or modified monolignols, and other monomers are prominent in non-woody plants. J. Ralph, et al. (2001). “Elucidation of new structures in lignins of CAD- and COMT-deficient plants by NMR.” Phytochem. 57 (6): 993-1003.
Impurities may be introduced into lignin via processing of the lignocellulosic biomass. Since lignin compositions may be used as a fuel in the SCW or HCW process or other processes, they preferably have a low level of contaminants or impurities that contribute to health, environmental, and safety concerns. For example, it is highly desirable to have no or only a low level of compounds containing sulfur in the lignin composition, as the presence of sulfur may contribute to SOx emissions, when the lignin is combusted. In other applications, low levels of sulfur may also be desirable if lignin is chemically converted through a catalytic process to a downstream product or a derivative. Low levels of sulfur within the final product may also be desirable from product acceptance criteria, or low levels of sulfur may help prevent premature catalyst deactivation for such chemical conversions.
Accordingly, the invention is directed to lignin compositions having low levels of impurities, as well as other important ends.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In one embodiment, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin; and
less than about 2000 mg in total per kg of said lignin of elements;
wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 700 mg of calcium per kg of said lignin. In other embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 525 mg of iron per kg of said lignin. In yet other embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 150 mg of sulfur per kg of said lignin. In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 20 g of ash per kg of said lignin. In other embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg of nitrogen per kg of said lignin. In yet other embodiments, the compositions further comprise a weight ratio of the total mass of hydrogen and nitrogen to carbon of less than about 0.110.
In other embodiments, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin;
less than about 700 mg of calcium per kg of said lignin;
less than about 525 mg of iron per kg of said lignin; and
less than about 150 mg of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In yet other embodiments, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin; and
less than about 700 mg of calcium per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In yet further embodiments, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin; and
less than about 525 mg of iron per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In yet another embodiment, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin; and
less than about 150 mg of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
As employed above and throughout the disclosure, the following terms, unless otherwise indicated, shall be understood to have the following meanings.
As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include the plural reference unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
While the present invention is capable of being embodied in various forms, the description below of several embodiments is made with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention, and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated. Headings are provided for convenience only and are not to be construed to limit the invention in any manner. Embodiments illustrated under any heading may be combined with embodiments illustrated under any other heading.
The use of numerical values in the various quantitative values specified in this application, unless expressly indicated otherwise, are stated as approximations as though the minimum and maximum values within the stated ranges were both preceded by the word “about.” In this manner, slight variations from a stated value can be used to achieve substantially the same results as the stated value. Also, the disclosure of ranges is intended as a continuous range including every value between the minimum and maximum values recited as well as any ranges that can be formed by such values. Also disclosed herein are any and all ratios (and ranges of any such ratios) that can be formed by dividing a recited numeric value into any other recited numeric value. Accordingly, the skilled person will appreciate that many such ratios, ranges, and ranges of ratios can be unambiguously derived from the numerical values presented herein and in all instances such ratios, ranges, and ranges of ratios represent various embodiments of the present invention.
As used herein, the phrase “substantially free” means have no more than about 1%, preferably less than about 0.5%, more preferably, less than about 0.1%, by weight of a component, based on the total weight of any composition containing the component.
A supercritical fluid is a fluid at a temperature above its critical temperature and at a pressure above its critical pressure. A supercritical fluid exists at or above its “critical point,” the point of highest temperature and pressure at which the liquid and vapor (gas) phases can exist in equilibrium with one another. Above critical pressure and critical temperature, the distinction between liquid and gas phases disappears. A supercritical fluid possesses approximately the penetration properties of a gas simultaneously with the solvent properties of a liquid. Accordingly, supercritical fluid extraction has the benefit of high penetrability and good solvation.
Reported critical temperatures and pressures include: for pure water, a critical temperature of about 374.2° C., and a critical pressure of about 221 bar; for carbon dioxide, a critical temperature of about 31° C. and a critical pressure of about 72.9 atmospheres (about 1072 psig). Near critical water has a temperature at or above about 300° C. and below the critical temperature of water (374.2° C.), and a pressure high enough to ensure that all fluid is in the liquid phase. Sub-critical water has a temperature of less than about 300° C. and a pressure high enough to ensure that all fluid is in the liquid phase. Sub-critical water temperature may be greater than about 250° C. and less than about 300° C., and in many instances sub-critical water has a temperature between about 250° C. and about 280° C. The term “hot compressed water” is used interchangeably herein for water that is at or above its critical state, or defined herein as near-critical or sub-critical, or any other temperature above about 50° C. (preferably, at least about 100° C.) but less than subcritical and at pressures such that water is in a liquid state
As used herein, a fluid which is “supercritical” (e.g. supercritical water, supercritical CO 2 , etc.) indicates a fluid which would be supercritical if present in pure form under a given set of temperature and pressure conditions. For example, “supercritical water” indicates water present at a temperature of at least about 374.2° C. and a pressure of at least about 221 bar, whether the water is pure water, or present as a mixture (e.g. water and ethanol, water and CO 2 , etc.). Thus, for example, “a mixture of sub-critical water and supercritical carbon dioxide” indicates a mixture of water and carbon dioxide at a temperature and pressure above that of the critical point for carbon dioxide but below the critical point for water, regardless of whether the supercritical phase contains water and regardless of whether the water phase contains any carbon dioxide. For example, a mixture of sub-critical water and supercritical CO 2 may have a temperature of about 250° C. to about 280° C. and a pressure of at least about 225 bar.
As used herein, “lignocellulosic biomass or a component part thereof” refers to plant biomass containing cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin from a variety of sources, including, without limitation (1) agricultural residues (including corn stover and sugarcane bagasse), (2) dedicated energy crops, (3) wood residues (including hardwoods, softwoods, sawmill and paper mill discards), and (4) municipal waste, and their constituent parts including without limitation, lignocellulose biomass itself, lignin, C 6 saccharides (including cellulose, cellobiose, C 6 oligosaccharides, C 6 monosaccharides, C 5 saccharides (including hemicellulose, C 5 oligosaccharides, and C 5 monosaccharides), and mixtures thereof.
As used herein, “ash” refers to the non-aqueous residue that remains after a sample is burned, and consists mostly of metal oxides. Ash content may be measured in accordance with ASTM Standard Method No. E1755-01 “Standard Method for the Determination of Ash in Biomass.” This test method covers the determination of ash, expressed as the percentage of residue remaining after dry oxidation at 550 to 600° C. All results are reported relative to the 105° C. oven dry weight of the sample.” See also: http://www.nrel.gov/biomass/pdfs/42622.pdf and http://www.astm.orq/Standards/62630/838168 E1755.htm, which are both incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Accordingly, in one embodiment, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin; and less than about 2000 mg, preferably less than about 1775 mg, in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In other embodiments, the invention is directed to compositions, comprising:
lignin;
less than about 700 mg, preferably less than about 675 mg, of calcium per kg of said lignin;
less than about 525 mg, preferably less than about 505 mg, of iron per kg of said lignin; and
less than about 150 mg, preferably less than about 147 mg, of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise:
lignin; and
less than about 700 mg, preferably less than about 675 mg, of calcium per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise:
lignin; and
less than about 525 mg, preferably less than about 505 mg, of iron per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise:
lignin; and
less than about 150 mg, preferably less than about 147 mg, of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg, preferably less than 1775 mg, in total per kg of said lignin of elements; wherein said elements are Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 700 mg, preferably less than about 675 mg, of calcium per kg of said lignin. In other embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 525 mg of iron per kg of said lignin. In yet other embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 150 mg of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the lignin has a heating value as measured by ASTM-D240 and D5865 of at least about 5,000 BTU/lb, preferably at least about 7,500 BTU/lb, and more preferably, at least about 8,000 BTU/lb.
In some embodiments, the lignin has an average particle size less than about 500 microns. In preferred embodiments, the lignin has an average unaggregated particle size less than about 100 microns. In other preferred embodiments, the lignin has an average unaggregated particle size less than about 60 microns.
In some embodiments, the lignin has a bulk density of less than about 0.35 g/cc, depending upon particle size.
In some embodiments, the lignin is processed from lignocellulosic biomass optionally using supercritical, subcritical, or near critical fluid extraction or combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the composition is substantially free of organic solvent.
In some embodiments, the lignin is in a powdered form. In other embodiments, the lignin is in a pelletized form. In yet other embodiments, the lignin is in a liquid form. In addition, the lignin may be in combination of these forms.
In some embodiments, is present at a level of at least 30% by weight, based on the total weight of the composition, as measured by pyrolysis molecular beam mass spectrometry.
In some embodiments, the weight ratio of syringyl monolignol to guaiacyl monolignol is about 2.0 to about 3.0, as measured by pyrolysis molecular beam mass spectrometry.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 700 mg, preferably less than about 675 mg, of calcium per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 525 mg, preferably less than about 505 mg, of iron per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 150 mg, preferably less than about 147 mg, of sulfur per kg of said lignin.
In some embodiments, the levels of said elements are measured by inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy.
In some embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 20 g of ash per kg of said lignin, preferably less than about 17.5 g of ash per kg of said lignin.
In other embodiments, the compositions comprise less than about 2000 mg of nitrogen per kg of said lignin, preferably less than about 1900 mg of nitrogen per kg of said lignin. Nitrogen may be measured by thermal conductivity detection after combustion and reduction.
In yet other embodiments, the compositions further comprise a weight ratio of the total mass of hydrogen and nitrogen to carbon of less than about 0.110, preferably less than about 0.105. Carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen levels may be measured by thermal conductivity detection after combustion and reduction.
In certain other embodiments, the compositions comprising the lignin further comprise less than a maximum of any of the elements, individually or in combination, in the table listed below:
Level less than about
Element
(mg of element/kg of lignin)
Al
50
As
16
B
3.25
Ba
3.7
Be
0.04
Cd
0.850
Co
1.25
Cr
2.0
Cu
20.0
K
45.0
Li
0.310
Mg
22.5
Mn
7.00
Mo
3.00
Na
61.5
Ni
1.50
P
115
Pb
10.00
Sb
9.50
Se
21.0
Si
65.0
Sn
11.00
Sr
2.25
Ti
6.00
Tl
21.0
V
0.350
Zn
11.5
In further embodiments, the compositions further comprise less than about 0.5% by weight, based on the total weight of said lignin, of organic solvent, such as alcohols, including water miscible lower aliphatic C 1 -C 4 alcohols (e.g., methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, t-butanol). In preferred embodiments, the compositions contain less than about 0.1% by weight, based on the total weight of said lignin of organic solvent. In more preferred embodiments, the compositions contain substantially no organic solvent.
The compositions of the invention are preferably prepared from biomass by processes employing supercritical, subcritical, and/or near critical water, preferably without the addition of acid. The processes may include pretreatment step or steps using supercritical or near critical water to separate the C5 sugars (monomers and/or oligomers) from cellulose and lignin. In the pretreatment step, suitable temperatures are about 130° C. to about 250° C., suitable pressures are about 4 bars to about 100 bars, and suitable residence times are about 0.5 minutes to about 5 hours. The processes may also include a cellulose hydrolysis step or steps using supercritical or near critical water to separate the cellulose (which may processed to form C6 monomeric and/or oligomeric sugars) from the lignin. In the hydrolysis step(s), suitable temperatures are about 250° C. to about 450° C., suitable pressures are about 40 bars to about 260 bars, and suitable residence times are about 0.1 seconds to about 3 minutes.
The compositions of the invention may be prepared in any suitable reactor, including, but not limited to, a tubular reactor, a digester (vertical, horizontal, or inclined), or the like. Suitable digesters include the digester system described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,057,639, which include a digester and a steam explosion unit, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.
The compositions of the invention comprising lignin may be utilized in a variety of applications, including, but not limited to, fuels, tackifiers, phenol formaldehyde resin extenders in the manufacture of particle board and plywood, in the manufacture of molding compounds, urethane and epoxy resins, antioxidants, controlled-release agents, flow control agents, cement/concrete mixing, plasterboard production, oil drilling, general dispersion, tanning leather, road covering, vanillin production, dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl sulfoxide production, phenol substitute in phenolic resins incorporation into polyolefin blends, aromatic (phenol) monomers, additional miscellaneous monomers, carbon fibers, metal sequestration in solutions, basis of gel formation, polyurethane copolymer—as a renewable filler/extender, and the like.
The present invention is further defined in the following Examples, in which all parts and percentages are by weight, unless otherwise stated. It should be understood that these examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only and are not to be construed as limiting in any manner. From the above discussion and these examples, one skilled in the art can ascertain the essential characteristics of this invention, and without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changes and modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages and conditions.
EXAMPLES
Example 1
Preparation of Lignin Compositions
Lignin compositions of the invention were prepared using supercritical, subcritical, and near critical water extraction in a two stage process. Particulate lignocellulosic biomass consisting of mixed hardwood chips of 140 mesh or less was mixed with water to form a slurry (about 20% by weight solids). The slurry was heated to a temperature of about 170-245° C. and then feed into a pretreatment reactor for about 1-120 minutes under sufficient pressure to keep the water in the liquid phase. The pretreated slurry was then cooled to a temperature less than about 100° C. under little (less than about 10 bar) or no pressure. The pretreated solids were then separated from the liquid stream using a filter press. Alternatively, the solids may be separated using a centrifugal filter pressor. The pretreated solids were then mixed with water to form a slurry and the slurry was heated to a temperature of about 150-250° C. The slurry was then subjected to supercritical water at about 374-600° C. in a hydrolysis reactor for about 0.05-10 seconds under a pressure of about 230-300 bar. After exiting the hydrolysis reactor, the hydrolyzed slurry was quenched with water and then flashed to about ambient temperature and pressure to remove water. The lignin solids were then separated from the liquid stream using a centrifugal decanter and air dried.
Example 2
Analysis of Lignin Compositions Using Inductively Coupled Plasma
The dried compositions containing the lignin of Example 1 were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy. The results are shown in the table below:
Sample A
Duplicate
Sample B
Duplicate
Sample C
Duplicate
Reported
Reported
Reported
Reported
Reported
Reported
ICP
Conc.
Conc.
Conc.
Conc.
Conc.
Conc.
element
(mg/kg)
(mg/kg)
(mg/kg)
(mg/kg)
(mg/kg)
(mg/kg)
Average
Al
45.5
47.8
39.1
37.5
43.6
40.4
42.3
As
<
12.6
<
14.6
<
12.1
<
12.5
<
13.6
<
15.6
13.5
B
3.22
0.777
2.88
1.66
0.603
<
0.605
1.6
Ba
3.34
3.62
2.99
2.99
3.02
2.77
3.1
Be
<
0.0300
<
0.0349
<
0.0288
<
0.0299
<
0.0326
<
0.0374
0.0
Ca
618
671
551
535
594
545
585.7
Cd
<
0.667
<
0.777
<
0.640
<
0.665
<
0.724
<
0.830
0.7
Co
<
0.972
<
1.13
<
0.933
<
0.969
<
1.05
<
1.21
1.0
Cr
1.56
1.94
1.60
1.66
1.33
1.38
1.6
Cu
5.89
8.80
7.26
7.87
6.64
19.0
9.2
Fe
465
501
313
298
351
320
374.6
K
39.1
40.4
23.7
31.1
33.1
44.1
35.3
Li
<
0.245
<
0.285
<
0.235
<
0.244
<
0.266
<
0.304
0.3
Mg
21.9
22.1
18.8
19.0
18.6
19.8
20.0
Mn
5.89
6.47
5.02
4.99
4.34
4.01
5.1
Mo
<
2.34
<
2.72
<
2.25
<
2.33
<
2.54
<
2.91
2.5
Na
58.7
52.0
54.6
40.7
50.6
61.0
52.9
Ni
<
1.16
<
1.35
<
1.12
<
1.16
<
1.26
<
1.45
1.3
P
<
89.9
<
105
<
86.2
<
89.6
<
97.5
<
112
96.6
Pb
<
7.95
<
9.25
<
7.63
<
7.92
<
8.63
<
9.89
8.5
S
105
132
146
128
128
103
123.6
Sb
<
7.46
<
8.68
<
7.16
<
7.43
<
8.09
<
9.28
8.0
Se
<
16.5
<
19.2
<
15.9
<
16.5
<
18.0
<
20.6
17.8
Si
54.9
63.9
42.1
57.2
67.6
64.5
58.4
Sn
9.23
9.19
7.04
7.65
10.9
10.1
9.0
Sr
2.11
2.20
1.81
1.77
1.93
1.80
1.9
Ti
3.56
5.57
2.77
5.87
3.26
3.46
4.1
Tl
<
16.7
<
19.5
<
16.1
<
16.7
<
18.2
<
20.8
18.0
V
<
0.260
<
0.303
<
0.250
0.332
<
0.282
<
0.324
0.3
Zn
9.79
11.0
9.28
9.86
7.48
6.37
9.0
Total
1610.3
1762.1
1378.7
1347.2
1496.6
1441.4
1506.0
Elements
Example 3
Analysis of Lignin for Carbon, Hydrogen, and Nitrogen
Dried compositions containing lignin were analyzed to determine the levels of ash, carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen by thermal conductivity detection after combustion and reduction. The results are shown in the table below:
Element/Material
Sample 1
Sample 2
C
56.76%
57.09%
H
5.46%
5.66%
N
0.18%
0.19%
Ash
1.1%
1.1%
Ratio of N + H:C
0.099
0.102
Example 4
Lignin Characterization
The NREL method for lignin (acid hydrolysis followed by gravimetric protocol in accordance with standard NREL procedures found at http://www. nrel.qov/biomass/pdfs/42618.pdf and pyrolysis molecular beam mass spectrometry (py-MBMS) were used to quantify the level of lignin in the solids, using lignin from hardwood as a standard. The results are shown in the table below:
Lignin
Lignin
Syringyl/Guaiacyl
Weight %
Weight %
Weight Ratio
from NREL
from py-MBMS
from py-MBMS
Sample
Method
Method
Method
Hardwood
28
23.3
2.6
standard
Pretreated
40-44
21.6
2.4
solids
Solid residue
>50
33.3
2.5
after supercritical
hydrolysis
When ranges are used herein for physical properties, such as molecular weight, or chemical properties, such as chemical formulae, all combinations, and subcombinations of ranges specific embodiments therein are intended to be included.
The disclosures of each patent, patent application, and publication cited or described in this document are hereby incorporated herein by reference, in their entirety.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that numerous changes and modifications can be made to the preferred embodiments of the invention and that such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is, therefore, intended that the appended claims cover all such equivalent variations as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
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Compositions comprising lignin and low levels of undesirable impurities, such as compounds containing sulfur, nitrogen, or metals, are disclosed.
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[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/319,546.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates in general to wind turbines, and particularly to a dual rotor wind turbine having adjustable relative displacement between the rotors' blades designed for increasing the productivity of the wind turbines.
SUMMARY
[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine in which the relative angular displacement between the front and rear rotor blades is automatically adjusted to prevent the rotors from harvesting any counterproductive wake, and to increase the output power.
[0004] Aspects of the present disclosure provide a dual rotor wind turbine with automatically adjustable relative angular displacement between the respective blades of the two rotors.
[0005] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine with increased power efficiency.
[0006] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine in which the blades of a first rotor are effectively removed from the wake of a second rotor.
[0007] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine that harnesses the Venturi effect for improving the performance of such turbine (i.e., the electrical output).
[0008] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine including a first rotor with a first set of blades, a second rotor with a second set of blades, a first shaft coupled to the first rotor, a second shaft coupled to the second rotor, and a mechanism coupled to the first and second shafts for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors. The mechanism for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors includes at least one clutch disc coupled to the first shaft, and a flywheel coupled to the second shaft. The adjustable dual rotor wind turbine includes an actuation mechanism for engaging and disengaging the clutch disc and the flywheel, wherein the first and second rotors are free to rotate relative to each other when the at least one clutch disc and the flywheel are disengaged, and the first and second rotors are fixed relative to each other When the at least one clutch disc and the flywheel are engaged. The actuation mechanism includes a solenoid coupled to the clutch disc. A controller signals the activation and deactivation of the solenoid according to a value corresponding to the electrical output power produced by the wind turbine, wherein the value may be measured by a power meter.
[0009] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine including a first rotor with a first set of blades, a second rotor with a second set of blades, a first shaft coupled to the first rotor, a second shaft coupled to the second rotor, a gearbox operatively connected to the first shaft and a third shaft, and a mechanism coupled to the first and second shafts for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors. The mechanism for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors includes at least one clutch disc coupled to the first shaft, and a flywheel coupled to the second shaft. The adjustable dual rotor wind turbine includes an actuation mechanism for engaging and disengaging the at least one clutch disc and the flywheel, wherein the first and second rotors are free to rotate relative to each other when the at least one clutch disc and the flywheel are disengaged, and the first and second rotors are fixed relative to each other when the at least one clutch disc and the flywheel are engaged. The actuation mechanism includes a solenoid coupled to the clutch disc. The controller signals the activation and deactivation of the solenoid according to a value corresponding to the electrical output power produced by the wind turbine, wherein the value may be measured by a power meter.
[0010] Aspects of the present disclosure provide a control process for an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine, including signaling the actuation mechanism to engage the mechanism for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors, measuring an output power of the adjustable dual rotor wind turbine, repeating such a measurement if the measured power is greater than a threshold power, signaling the actuation mechanism if the measured power was less than a threshold power to disengage the mechanism for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors, waiting a period of time, and signaling the actuation mechanism to control the mechanism for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the first and second rotors.
[0011] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the threshold power may be predetermined by a user.
[0012] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the period of time may be preselected by a user.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] Aspects of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure without restricting the scope of the invention, and in which:
[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine configured in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0015] 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine taken perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the dual rotors, configured in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure,
[0016] FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine configured in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0017] FIG. 4 illustrates a flow chart of a control process of an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine configured in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] Wind turbines convert wind energy into electrical energy, but they are known for their relatively low efficiency.
[0019] A dual rotor turbine can include a planetary gearbox having two inputs, each connected to a corresponding rotor, and one output connected to a generator, wherein the rotational speed of the one output is determined as a result of the relative rotational speed of the two rotors. The two rotors rotate in opposite direction to each other, and the pitch angle of rotor blades may be altered using a control system.
[0020] An alternative dual rotor turbine for converting wind energy into electrical energy can include in combination a housing, blades at the forward and rearward ends of the housing mounted on shafts for rotation upon a common horizontal axis of rotation, post means supporting a central extent of the housing for rotation in a horizontal plane to face into the wind, an alternator within the housing formed of a power take off member coupled to one shaft and a rotor coupled to another shaft for counter rotating when the blades rotate for thereby generating electricity, centrifugal pitch control mechanisms for varying the pitch of the blades as a function of the propeller speed, transmission mechanisms for varying the speed of rotation of the rotor and power take off member as a function of the wind speed, brake mechanisms for proportionately restraining the blades against rotation, and an aero governor operatively coupled with the brake mechanisms for control thereof in response to the speed of the wind as determined by the aero governor.
[0021] Another alternative wind turbine has first and second rotors mounted on a common horizontal axis on a tower. The rotors rotate in the same direction and drive an electrical generator by a fluid or belt. Alternatively, the electrical generator may be positioned between the rotors, at the top of the tower. Means determines the wind direction and strength to enable a shaft to be rotated about an upright axis so the rotors face the wind. The rotors have blades, the blades of the front rotor being shorter than the rear blades by up to 75%.
[0022] Another alternative dual rotor wind turbine includes a rotatable drive shaft, a first rotor assembly connected to the drive shaft, a second independently-rotating rotor assembly coupled to the drive shaft rearward of the first rotor assembly, a first stage generator coupled to the drive shaft, a second stage generator operatively connected to the second rotor assembly, a housing wherein the generators are situated, a rotary base, and a tail. In use, the rotary base allows the tail to optimally position the rotors for collecting wind. Wind rotates the first rotor assembly, causing the drive shaft to rotate and operate the first stage generator. Wind passing through and directed off the first rotor assembly rotates the second rotor assembly, independent of the first rotor assembly, operating the second stage generator.
[0023] The foregoing wind turbines do not have high efficiencies since the blades of the rear rotor (the rotor positioned downwind from the front rotor) lie in the wake of the blades of the front rotor, and thus adversely affect the operation of the blades of the rear rotor.
[0024] FIGS. 1-4 illustrate an adjustable dual rotor wind turbine configured in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. Such embodiments include a tower 1 ; two similar rotors 11 and 12 with similar sets of blades, in which a plurality of blades 2 are mounted on the first rotor 11 , and a plurality of blades 20 are mounted on the second rotor 12 ; and the first rotor 11 mounted onto a first shaft 3 , with the second rotor 12 mounted onto a second shaft 30 . Embodiments of the present disclosure may also include a gearbox 4 , a third shah 13 operatively connecting the gearbox 4 with a mechanism 7 for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the two rotors, an electrical generator 5 , a swivel joint 6 , a controller 9 , and an electrical power meter 8 . In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the shafts 3 and 30 , the gearbox 4 , the generator 5 , the mechanism 7 for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the two rotors, the third shaft 13 , the controller 9 , and the electrical power meter 8 are housed within an upper housing assembly 10 .
[0025] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, each of the rotors 11 and 12 has a plurality of blades (for example, two, three, four, or more blades), and such rotors may he mounted onto the upper assembly 10 in a substantially collinear configuration pointing towards opposite directions from each other. The gearbox 4 may be operatively connected to the shaft 3 and to the electrical generator 5 such that the gearbox 4 provides speed and torque conversions of the rotors 11 and 12 . The swivel joint 6 enables any suitable adjustment in the rotors' orientation (and correspondingly, the upper assembly 10 ) in order for one of the sets of the blades 2 and 20 to face the wind direction. Any well-known mechanism for performing such a function may be utilized for the swivel joint 6 . The power meter 8 may be operatively connected to the electrical generator 5 , wherein the power meter 8 measures the value of the electrical power produced by the electrical generator 5 .
[0026] Referring to FIG. 2 , in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the mechanism 7 for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the rotors 11 and 12 may include a flywheel 70 coupled to the second shaft 30 and at least one clutch disc 72 coupled to the third shaft 13 , wherein such at least one clutch disc 72 automatically engages and disengages with the flywheel 70 using any suitable actuation mechanism 71 , as further described herein. Engaging and disengaging of the flywheel 70 and at least one clutch disc 72 may be performed by the actuation mechanism for various reasons (for example, when the output power of the turbine (e.g., as measured by the power meter 8 ) is less than a predetermined level, as is further described herein). (The illustration in FIG. 2 shows the flywheel 70 and the at least one clutch disc 72 disengaged; however, one skilled in the art would appreciate how an illustration would show these engaged.) When the at least one clutch disc 72 and the flywheel 70 disengage from each other, the rotors 11 and 12 become free to rotate relative to each other. Because of various factors, such as friction, relative force of the wind currents, etc., the relative angular displacement between the rotors 11 and 12 , and correspondingly the two sets of blades 2 and 20 , will change during the period of time that their two respective rotors 11 and 12 are permitted to freely rotate relative to each other, and before the at least one clutch disc 72 and the flywheel 70 re-engage with each other. As a result, after re-engaging with each other, the angular positioning of the blades 2 will have changed relative to the angular positioning of the blades 20 , which can affect the level of the wake emanating from the upwind set of blades towards the downwind set of blades, and thus affect the power generating efficiency of the combined output of the two sets of blades.
[0027] Embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the specific configuration of the mechanism 7 disclosed herein. Instead, any configuration suitable for engaging and disengaging the two rotors from each other, and for adjusting the relative angular displacement between the two rotors may be utilized. For example, instead of a flywheel and clutch disc, an arrangement of gears and/or a fluidic coupling mechanism (e.g., a torque converter such as used in automatic transmissions) may be utilized. Nevertheless, when the two rotors are engaged, their relative angular displacement relative to each other is substantially zero, meaning that the two rotors (and consequently, their respective blades) rotate substantially in sync with each other.
[0028] In accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, the adjustable wind turbine may be a gearless (e.g., direct drive) wind turbine, wherein the first shaft 3 may be operatively connected to the electrical generator 5 and the flywheel 70 . Any well-known mechanisms for performing the connection function of the first shaft 3 to the electrical generator 5 and the flywheel 70 may be utilized.
[0029] A control process for modifying the relative angular displacement between the rotors 11 and 12 in the adjustable dual rotor wind turbine of the present disclosure is illustrated in FIG. 4 and may be implemented in hardware and/or software in the controller 9 . ne process starts (process block 40 ) with the controller 9 signaling the actuation mechanism 71 to engage the two rotors together (for example, by bringing in physical contact together the at least one clutch disc 72 and the flywheel 70 (process block 41 )). The output power generated by the electrical generator 5 as a result of the combined rotation of the engaged together rotors 11 and 12 of the wind turbine may be measured using the electrical power meter 8 (process block 42 ). Then, if the measured power is greater than a predetermined threshold value (process block 43 ), measurement of the output power is repeated in a loop (process block 42 ). But, if during this process loop, the measured power is less than a threshold power (process block 43 ), the controller 9 signals the actuation mechanism 71 to disengage the two rotors from each other (process block 44 ) (for example, by disengaging the clutch disc 72 from the flywheel 70 ) in order to permit a change to occur in the relative angular displacement between the rotors 11 and 12 , and consequently their respective sets of blades 2 and 20 . After a predetermined time of “t” seconds (process block 45 ), the controller 9 signals the actuation mechanism 71 to re-engage the two rotors to each other (process block 41 ) (for example, by re-engaging the at least one clutch disc 72 and the flywheel 70 to each other), and the process is repeated in a loop.
[0030] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the actuation mechanism 71 for engaging and disengaging the at least one clutch disc 72 and the flywheel 70 may include a solenoid 71 coupled to the at least one clutch disc 72 using any well-known mechanism for performing such a connection. When the solenoid 71 is actuated by a signal received from the controller 9 , the at least one clutch disc 72 is linearly displaced from a default position towards a physical (e.g., frictional) engagement with the flywheel 70 . When the solenoid 71 is deactivated, the at least one clutch disc 72 is disengaged from the flywheel 70 and returns to the default position.
[0031] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the controller 9 may include a microcontroller.
[0032] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the amount of time “t” may be preprogrammed on the microcontroller.
[0033] The swivel joint 6 in aspects of the present disclosure may connect between the tower 1 and the upper assembly 10 , wherein such joint 6 gives the upper assembly 10 two degrees of freedom relative to said tower 1 , Wherein such degrees of freedom enable the blades to face the wind direction in order to increase the efficiency of the dual rotor wind turbine. The two degrees of freedom may include a horizontal rotation of the upper assembly 10 about the tower 1 , and/or a vertical tilt of the upper assembly 10 with respect to the tower 1 .
[0034] Aspects of the present disclosure can harness the Venturi effect caused by the partial blockage of the air stream by the first rotor blades 2 , which reduces the wind pressure and increases the velocity of the wind, thus the power generated by the wind turbine is increased.
[0035] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the threshold power may be preprogrammed on the controller 9 such that the maximum power is greater than the maximum power that could be generated when the second rotor lies in the wake of the first rotor.
[0036] The following example illustrates embodiments of the present disclosure without, however, limiting the same thereto. A small scale model made in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure was positioned in front of a wind tunnel, and the maximum power generated by such model was 210% of the power generated by a single rotor wind turbine of the same scale.
[0037] While the invention has been described in details and with reference to a specific embodiment thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various additions, omissions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.
[0038] Although the above description contains some specificity, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, but is merely representative of the disclosed aspects of the present disclosure.
[0039] As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[0040] As used herein with respect to an identified property or circumstance, “substantially” refers to a degree of deviation that is sufficiently small so as to not measurably detract from the identified property or circumstance. The exact degree of deviation allowable may in some cases depend on the specific context.
[0041] As used herein, the term “about,” when referring to a value or to an amount of mass, weight, time, volume, concentration or percentage is meant to encompass variations of in some embodiments ±20%, in some embodiments ±10%, in some embodiments ±5%, in some embodiments ±1%, in some embodiments ±0.5%, and in some embodiments ±0.1% from the specified amount, as such variations are appropriate to perform the disclosed method.
[0042] As used herein, “significance” or “significant” relates to a statistical analysis of the probability that there is a non-random association between two or more entities. To determine whether or not a relationship is “significant” or has “significance,” statistical manipulations of the data can be performed to calculate a probability, expressed as a “p value.” Those p values that fall below a user-defined cutoff point are regarded as significant. In some embodiments, a p value less than or equal to 0.05, in some embodiments less than 0.01, in some embodiments less than 0.005, and in some embodiments less than 0.001, are regarded as significant. Accordingly, a p value greater than or equal to 0.05 is considered not significant.
[0043] As used herein, the term “and/or” when used in the context of a listing of entities, refers to the entities being present singly or in combination. Thus, for example, the phrase “A, B, C, and/or D” includes A, B, C, and D individually, but also includes any and all combinations and subcombinations of A, B, C, and D.
[0044] As used herein, “adjacent” refers to the proximity of two structures or elements. Particularly, elements that are identified as being “adjacent” may be either abutting or connected. Such elements may also be near or close to each other without necessarily contacting each other. The exact degree of proximity may in some cases depend on the specific context.
[0045] As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositional elements, and/or materials may be presented in a common list for convenience. However, these lists should be construed as though each member of the list is individually identified as a separate and unique member. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as a defacto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based on their presentation in a common group without indications to the contrary.
[0046] Any steps recited in any method or process claims may be executed in any order and are not limited to the order presented in the claims. Means-plus-function or step-plus function limitations will only be employed where for a specific claim limitation all of the following conditions are present in that limitation: a) “means for” or “step for” is expressly recited; and b) a corresponding function is expressly recited. The structure, material, or acts that support the means-plus function are expressly recited in the description herein, Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined solely by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the descriptions and examples given herein.
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A dual rotor axis wind turbine that converts renewable energy into electrical energy. The dual rotor wind turbine addresses the counter productivity problem found in dual rotors wind turbines, which occurs due to adverse effects to the downwind rotor due to lying in the wake of the upwind rotor. The dual rotors lie on an axis with a relative angular displacement between the blades of such rotors, wherein the relative angular displacement is adjustable in order for the downwind rotor to avoid the counterproductive wake of the first rotor.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to the field of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. It concerns a detunable RF reception antenna device for receiving MR signals in a MR imaging system. The invention also relates to a MR device including such a RF reception antenna device.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Image-forming MR methods which utilize the interaction between magnetic fields and nuclear spins in order to form two-dimensional or three-dimensional images are widely used nowadays, notably in the field of medical diagnostics, because for the imaging of soft tissue they are superior to other imaging methods in many respects, do not require ionizing radiation and are usually not invasive.
According to the MR method in general, the body of the patient to be examined is arranged in a strong, uniform magnetic field whose direction at the same time defines an axis (normally the z-axis) of the co-ordinate system on which the measurement is based. The magnetic field produces different energy levels for the individual nuclear spins in dependence on the magnetic field strength which can be excited (spin resonance) by application of a pulsed electromagnetic alternating field (RF pulse) of defined frequency (so-called Larmor frequency, or MR frequency). After termination of the RF pulse, a MR signal can be detected by means of a receiving RF antenna (also referred to as receiving coil) which is arranged and oriented within an examination volume of the MR device in such a manner that a temporal variation of the net magnetization of the body of the patient is measured in the direction perpendicular to the z-axis. In order to realize spatial resolution in the body, linear magnetic field gradients extending along the three main axes are superposed on the uniform magnetic field, leading to a linear spatial dependency of the spin resonance frequency. The MR signal picked up by means of the receiving RF antenna then contains components of different frequencies which can be associated with different locations in the body.
Typically, the level of the electromagnetic alternating field during the RF pulse is orders of magnitude larger than the MR signal generated by the excited nuclear spins and detected by the RF receiving antenna. To obtain a maximum signal to noise ratio (SNR) the receiving RF antenna is typically part of a RF resonant circuit configured to resonate at the MR frequency. To maintain safety and to protect the sensitive RF receiving equipment including the reception antenna and the resonant circuit, the RF resonant circuit is usually detuned while RF pulses are irradiated. Known RF reception hardware therefore comprises a switching circuitry which is configured to switch the RF resonance circuit between a resonant mode and a non-resonant mode. MR signal acquisition takes place in the sensitive resonant mode, i.e. during the receive phase of the imaging procedure, while the RF resonant circuit is switched to the non-resonant mode during the transmit phase. In the non-resonant mode the resonance frequency of the RF resonant circuit is shifted away from the MR frequency. In this way, the dangerous induction of high voltages in the RF resonant circuit during the transmit phase is effectively avoided.
Accordingly, it is known to detune the reception circuitry in a MR system by using semiconductor switches or PIN diodes in connection with appropriate LC circuitry. Two principal variants are commonly used (see for example WO 2008/078270 A1), namely active detuning and passive detuning.
With active detuning, a bias voltage is applied to a PIN diode semiconductor switch in conjunction with an LC circuit to detune the RF reception coil during the transmit phase of the imaging procedure. A disadvantage of the active detuning approach is that an external switching signal is needed for switching the RF resonant circuit between the resonant mode and the non-resonant mode. This increases the complexity of the MR imaging system. A further drawback is that, due to the high power of the RF pulses, a correspondingly high bias voltage needs to be applied to the switching diodes to ensure that the receiving circuitry remains decoupled during RF irradiation. This high bias voltage increases design complexity and heat dissipation in the corresponding DC supply lines. Moreover, the current resulting from the high bias voltage induces field distortions in the main magnetic field, thereby degrading image quality.
With passive detuning, anti parallel diode semiconductor switches are used in conjunction with LC circuitry. In this approach, anti parallel combinations of high speed switching diodes detune the RF resonant circuit in response to the RF pulse itself. In other words, when the anti parallel combination of diodes is exposed to the high power signal of the RF pulse, each diode conducts during its respective half cycle of the RF radiation. A major drawback of the passive detuning is that in the case of low flip-angle RF pulses the self-biasing effect of the anti parallel diodes is too small. Consequently, no reliable detuning of the RF resonant circuit during the transmit phase is achieved.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
From the foregoing it is readily appreciated that there is a need for an improved detuning technique. It is consequently an object of the invention to enable reliable detuning of the RF receiving elements during the transmit phase of an MR imaging procedure, wherein no external detuning signal is needed and wherein a reliable detuning is ensured even in the case of low flip-angle RF pulses.
In accordance with the invention, a RF reception antenna device for receiving MR signals in a MR imaging system is disclosed. The device comprises a RF resonant circuit including a RF reception antenna for picking up the MR signals, a RF amplifier connected at its input to the RF resonant circuit for amplifying the picked up MR signals, a detection circuit configured to derive a switching signal from an output signal of the RF amplifier, and a switching circuit responsive to the switching signal, the switching circuit being configured to switch the RF resonant circuit between a resonant mode and a non-resonant mode.
The insight of the invention is that the output signal of the RF amplifier can be used effectively to derive a switching signal for switching the RF resonant circuit between the resonant mode (during the receive phase) and the non-resonant mode (during the transmit phase). No external detune signal generated by the controlling hardware of the used MR device is needed because the switching signal is generated automatically by detection of the RF pulse during the transmit phase. The RF pulse induces a voltage in the RF resonant circuit (even in the non-resonant mode) which is amplified by the RF amplifier. The level of the output signal of the RF amplifier is sufficient to reliably detect the transmit phase of the imaging procedure, even in the case of low flip-angle RF pulses. The response time of the detection circuit is shorter, e.g. by about an order of magnitude, than the rise time of the RF pulse. Thus the invention achieved that the RF resonant circuit is switched into the non-resonant mode is effected before the RF pulse could cause dangerously high voltages. Additionally, the RF reception antenna device of the invention can be provided with a passive detuning circuit that includes anti parallel diode semiconductor switches in conjunction with LC circuitry. Such a passive detuning is known per se e.g. from the international application WO2008/078270.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the RF reception antenna device further comprises an analog-to-digital converter connected directly or indirectly to the output of the RF amplifier, wherein the detection circuit is configured to derive the switching signal from an output signal of the analog-to-digital converter. The detection circuit monitors the output of the analog-to-digital converter and generates the switching signal for switching the RF resonant circuit to the non-resonant mode when the irradiation of a RF pulse is recognized. According to a particularly practical embodiment, the detection circuit is configured to derive the switching signal from an overflow signal of the analog-to-digital converter. In this case the invention makes use of the fact that the RF pulse coupling into the RF resonant circuit overdrives the analog-to-digital converter of the RF reception antenna device. This applies during the complete transmit phase of the MR imaging system, even with the RF resonant circuit switched to the non-resonant mode. An advantage of this embodiment of the invention is that hardly any additional electronic components are required to modify an existing digital RF reception antenna device for operation according to the invention. In the case of RF pulses of particularly low amplitude that do not necessarily overdrive the analog-to-digital converter, the transmit phase can still be detected, namely by means of appropriate digital signal processing. To this end, the RF reception antenna device of the invention preferably comprises a digital signal processor configured to derive the switching signal from the output signal of the analog-to-digital converter.
However, also existing analog RF reception antenna devices can easily be adapted for operation according to the invention by making provision for a comparator connected directly or indirectly to the output of the RF amplifier. In this embodiment, the detection circuit is configured to derive the switching signal from the output signal of the comparator. The comparator generates the switching signal for detuning the RF resonant circuit when the output signal of the RF amplifier exceeds a given transmit level. The transmit level indicates the irradiation of a RF pulse.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the detection circuit exhibits hysteresis. This means, for example, that the RF resonant circuit is switched back from the off-resonant mode to the resonant mode when the output signal of the RF amplifier falls below a given receive level being lower than the transmit level. The level for switching from the resonant to the off-resonant mode and the level for switching back from the off-resonant mode to the resonant mode should differ because the signal level at the output of the RF amplifier drops as soon as the RF resonant circuit is switched to the off-resonant mode after detection of RF pulse irradiation. This signal drop must not result in untimely switching back to the resonant mode. The hysteresis of the detection circuit thus ensures a reliable operation of the detection circuit. As an alternative solution, the detection circuit may be configured such that the RF resonant circuit is switched back from the off-resonant mode to the resonant mode not before the expiration of a predetermined time interval after switching from the resonant mode to the off-resonant mode. Moreover, according to a further preferred embodiment, the detection circuit may be configured to switch the resonant circuit from the resonant mode to the off-resonant mode after a given time interval from the instant at which the output signal of the RF amplifier exceeds the transmit level. Unintended switching due to random signal spikes is avoided in this way.
The RF reception antenna device described thus far can be used for receiving MR signals from a body of a patient positioned in the examination volume of a MR device during a receive phase, the MR device comprising:
a main magnet for generating a uniform, steady magnetic field within an examination volume, a number of gradient coils for generating switched magnetic field gradients in different spatial directions within the examination volume, a volume RF coil for generating RF pulses within the examination volume during a transmit phase, a control unit for controlling the temporal succession of RF pulses and switched magnetic field gradients, and a reconstruction unit for reconstruction of an MR image from the received MR signals.
The RF reception antenna device according to the invention can advantageously be used with most MR devices in clinical use at present. According to a preferred embodiment, the RF reception antenna device is wirelessly connected to the further components of the MR signal reception and processing chain of the MR device. The automatic detuning capabilities of the RF reception antenna device according to the invention are particularly advantageous in applications in which the detected MR signals are transferred to the signal processing and reconstruction hardware of the MR device by means of wireless digital transfer. This is because wireless communication between the different components of the MR examination system is not reliable enough to provide an external detune signal issued by the system controller of the MR device to the RF reception antenna device. However, a wired electrical or optical connection lies also within the scope of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The enclosed drawings disclose preferred embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood, however, that the drawings are designed for the purpose of illustration only and not as a definition of the limits of the invention. In the drawings:
FIG. 1 shows a MR device according to the invention;
FIG. 2 shows a wireless RF reception antenna device according to the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
With reference to FIG. 1 , a MR device 1 is shown. The device comprises superconducting or resistive main magnet coils 2 such that a substantially uniform, temporally constant main magnetic field is created along a z-axis through an examination volume.
A magnetic resonance generation and manipulation system applies a series of RF pulses and switched magnetic field gradients to invert or excite nuclear magnetic spins, induce magnetic resonance, refocus magnetic resonance, manipulate magnetic resonance, spatially and otherwise encode the magnetic resonance, saturate spins, and the like to perform MR imaging.
Most specifically, a gradient pulse amplifier 3 applies current pulses to selected ones of whole-body gradient coils 4 , 5 and 6 along x, y and z-axes of the examination volume. During a transmit phase of a MR imaging procedure a digital RF frequency transmitter 7 transmits RF pulses or pulse packets to a whole-body volume RF coil 8 to transmit RF pulses into the examination volume. A typical MR imaging sequence is composed of a packet of RF pulse segments of short duration which taken together with each other and any applied magnetic field gradients achieve a selected manipulation of nuclear magnetic resonance. The RF pulses are used to saturate, excite resonance, invert magnetization, refocus resonance, or manipulate resonance and select a portion of a body 9 positioned in the examination volume.
For generation of MR images of limited regions of the body 9 , a local RF reception antenna device 10 is placed contiguous to the region selected for imaging. The device 10 is used to receive MR signals induced by body-coil RF transmissions. The resultant MR signals are picked up, amplified, demodulated and digitized by the RF reception antenna device 10 during a receive phase of the imaging procedure.
A host computer 11 controls the gradient pulse amplifier 3 and the transmitter 7 to generate any of a plurality of MR imaging sequences, such as echo planar imaging (EPI), echo volume imaging, gradient and spin echo imaging, fast spin echo imaging, and the like. For the selected sequence, the RF reception antenna device 10 receives a single or a plurality of MR data lines in rapid succession following each RF excitation pulse. The device 10 is connected via a wireless digital data link to a data acquisition system 12 which converts each MR data line to a digital format suitable for further processing. The data acquisition system 12 is a separate computer which is specialized in acquisition of raw image data.
Ultimately, the digital raw image data is reconstructed into an image representation by a reconstruction processor 13 which applies a Fourier transform or other appropriate reconstruction algorithms. The MR image may represent a planar slice through the patient, an array of parallel planar slices, a three-dimensional volume, or the like. The image is then stored in an image memory where it may be accessed for converting slices, projections, or other portions of the image representation into appropriate format for visualization, for example via a video monitor 14 which provides a man-readable display of the resultant MR image.
With reference to FIG. 2 , the MR reception antenna device 10 is described in more detail. The device 10 comprises a RF resonant circuit including a RF reception antenna 15 in the form of a single closed loop coil. The antenna 15 is connected to a capacitor 16 such that the antenna 15 and the capacitor 16 form a LC circuit. A RF amplifier 17 is connected at its input to the RF resonant circuit formed by the antenna 15 and the capacitor 16 . The RF amplifier 17 amplifies the MR signals picked up by the antenna 15 . The RF reception antenna device 10 further comprises a control logic circuit 18 which provides a switching signal to a switching circuit 19 . The switching circuit 19 comprises an electronic switch 20 and a capacitor 21 which is connected in parallel to the capacitor 16 of the RF resonant circuit. By activating the switch 20 , the RF resonant circuit is switched from a resonant mode, in which the RF resonant circuit resonates at the MR frequency, to a non-resonant (i.e. detuned) mode, in which the resonance frequency of the RF resonant circuit now formed by the coil 15 and the capacitors 16 and 21 , is shifted away from the MR resonance frequency. A RF mixer 22 transforms the MR signal picked up by the RF antenna 15 to a lower frequency by mixing the signals with a RF signal supplied by the control logic circuit 18 . The mixing provides a lower frequency output signal, which is then digitized by an analog-to-digital converter 23 . (A direct analog-to-digital conversion, i.e. without frequency down-conversion, is of course also feasible.) The output signal of the analog-to-digital converter 23 is provided to the control logic circuit 18 constituting a detection circuit within the meaning of the invention. The control logic circuit 18 derives the switching signal provided to the switching circuit 19 from the output signal of the analog-to-digital converter 23 . The control logic circuit 18 switches the RF resonant circuit to the non-resonant mode as soon as the output signal of the analog-to-digital converter exceeds a given transmit level. The switching signal is preferably derived from an overflow signal of the analog-to-digital converter 23 provided to the digital control circuit 18 . The overflow signal indicates a RF pulse coupling into the RF resonant circuit because the analog-to-digital converter is immediately overdriven by the signal resulting at the output of the RF amplifier 17 . A suitable digital data processing algorithm may be implemented in the control logic circuit 18 such that the RF resonant circuit is switched back from the off-resonant mode to the resonant mode when the output signal of the analog-to-digital converter 23 falls below a given receive level indicating the beginning of the receive phase. The control logic circuit 18 is connected to a wireless digital data communication module 24 which transfers the digitized MR signals via antenna 25 to the data acquisition system 12 of the MR device 1 (see FIG. 1 ).
For example, the amplifier 17 may have a bandwidth of 1 GHz and an so that the effective response time of the amplifier 17 is about 10-20 ns. The analog-to-digital converter 23 operates e.g. at a frequency of 50 MHz, and has an inherent delay of about 100 ns. Further, the control logic has a response time of about one clock cycle of the analog-to-digital converter, i.e. about 20 ns. Accordingly, depending on the values of the parameters of the components of the device 10 , an overall response time to switch the RF resonant circuit to a detuned state is about 140 ns-250 ns. Usually, the rise time of the transmit RF pulses is about 2 μs. Hence, the time required to switch to the detuned state is about an order of magnitude less than the rise time of the transmit RF pulse. Hence, the switching circuit of the present invention will effectively detune the RF resonant circuit to avoid detrimental effects due to the transmit RF pulse.
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The invention relates to a RF reception antenna device ( 10 ) for receiving MR signals in a MR imaging system. The device ( 10 ) comprises a RF resonant circuit including a RF reception antenna ( 15 ) for picking up the MR signals, and a RF amplifier ( 17 ) connected at its input to the RF resonant circuit for amplifying the picked up MR signals. The invention proposes to make provision for a detection circuit ( 18 ) configured to derive a switching signal from an output signal of the RF amplifier ( 17 ). A switching circuit ( 19 ) is responsive to the switching signal, wherein the switching circuit ( 19 ) is configured to switch the RF resonant circuit between a resonant mode and a non-resonant (i.e. detuned) mode.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based on a fuel injection pump as generally defined hereinafter. In a known fuel injection pump of this kind (U.S. Pat. No. 2,147,390) the control slide has oblique control edges on its upper and lower end edges; the upper control edge, by the entry of the lower control bore extending in the pump piston determines the supply onset and the upper control edge, by the emergence of the upper control bore extending in the pump piston determines the end of supply. As a result, the control slide becomes relatively long in structure, which is a considerable disadvantage in slide-controlled fuel injection pumps, which are already relatively large. Furthermore, an extra impact plate must be provided opposite the mouth of the upper control bore where it emerges from the control slide. A further disadvantage in terms of filling the pump work chamber during the intake stroke is that a control bore can only be opened near bottom dead center; given the relatively low filling pressures at high rpm, either this can lead to an inadequate filling of the pump work chamber, or it necessitates relatively large control bore cross sections, with the disadvantages of a larger idle volume in the first instance and a dependency of the control quality on the rpm in the second, the latter because the cross section varies over time on account of the relatively large control bore cross section.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The fuel injection pump according to the invention and having the characteristics of the main claim has the advantage over the prior art that the control slide, and the height of the aperture receiving the control slide, can be embodied relatively short, with advantageous results for the overall structural length of the injection pump. Because the sliding surfaces between the control slide and the pump piston remain relatively large, the frictional forces become less, and the masses involved are reduced by the type of construction; this makes it easier to adjust the control slide. Since the diverted fuel flows out through the recess, there is no structural difficulty in providing impact plates opposite the control bores.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the pump piston is rotatable in order to vary the supply quantity and the control slide is axially displaceable in order to shift the supply onset, both in a known manner [ie the rotation and axial displacement are effected in a known manner]. The pump piston can be rotated by conventional rotational means, for instance a governor rod, about the angle which determines the fuel quantity. Solely for adjustment purposes, the control slide is rotated slightly with respect to its rotational position, while contrarily, for the purpose of varying the injection onset, which is determined by the supply onset, the control slide is axially displaceable. As a result, the association of the control variables for the supply quantity and for the supply onset can be accomplished separately and very accurately.
According to a further feature of the invention, the oblique control edge extends obliquely, with an inclination opposite that of the lower control edge, so that the supply onset occurs earlier as the supply quantity increases. By appropriate association of the inclinations, the earlier injection onset (supply onset) conventionally desired with increasing load, or in other words with an increasing injection quantity, can be attained without having to displace the control slide axially to do so. An axial displacement is thus undertaken only if this is required by the performance graph of the injection, which can vary with different engines.
According to a further feature of the invention, the distance between the control bores is greater than the width of the web of the control slide between the upper control edge and the lower end edge, but less than the distance between the lower control edge and the upper end edge. As a result, after the first bore has been opened by the upper control edge the second control bore is open toward the recess, so that as the compression stroke of the pump piston continues the diverted fuel can escape via two bores, which results in a substantial relief of pressure; furthermore, during the ensuing intake stroke two bores are available, at least intermittently, for filling the pump work chamber.
The invention will be better understood and further objects and advantages thereof will become more apparent from the ensuing detailed description of a preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with the drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-section taken through a one-cylinder fuel injection pump according to the invention;
FIGS. 2 and 3 are longitudinal sections taken through a portion of the pump along the line II--II of FIG. 1, showing different stroke positions of the pump piston on a larger scale; and
FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are two longitudinal sections and a plan view, respectively, of the control slide on a larger scale.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The exemplary embodiment shown here in a fuel injection pump of the type shown in FIG. 1 which is externally driven by an engine camshaft and inserted into the engine block. Naturally the invention can also be realized in other suitable fuel injection pumps, such as in-line pumps.
In the exemplary embodiment, a cylinder bushing 11 is inserted into a pump housing 10 which is flanged to a crankshaft housing (not shown), and a pump piston 12 is guided in an axially displaceable and rotable manner in the cylinder bushing 11. In an aperture 13 of the cylinder bushing 11, a control slide 14 is disposed on the pump piston 12 such that it is axially displaceable and rotatable. With its upper end face 15, the pump piston 12 defines a pump work chamber 16 which is closed by a cover plate 17 in which a pressure line 18 leading to a pressure valve (not shown) and pressure lines communicating with the engine cylinders extends.
The pump piston 12 is driven in a known manner via a tappet 20 guided in the pump housing 10 and movable counter to the force of two tappet springs 19. The springs 19 are supported at the top on the pump housing 10 via a spring plate 21 and at the bottom on the tappet 20 via a second spring plate 22. The lower part of the piston 12 which is guided in the tappet 20 has flattened areas 23 intended to be engaged by a rotating device, so that the pump piston 12 can be rotated independently of the tappet 20. The pump housing 10 is closed at the bottom by a flange-like lid 24, in which the tappet 20 is guided.
In the region around the control slide 14, the housing 10 is widened slightly, in order to form a suction chamber 25, which is supplied with fuel under a slight predetermined pressure via a bore 26. A blind bore 27 is disposed in the pump piston 12. At one end the blind bore 27 terminates at the end face 15, discharging into the pump work chamber 16, and has two transverse bores, that is, an upper control bore 28 and a lower control bore 29. By means of the blind bore 27 and the transverse bores 28 and 29, which form a conduit for the inflow and outflow of the fuel, the pump work chamber 16 and the suction chamber 25 can be made of communicate with one another. This communication is controlled by the control slide 14, which has two opposing recesses 30 in its jacket. These recesses 30 each include a lower control edge 31 and an upper control edge 32, these edges defining the recess. The two control edges 31 and 32 have opposite inclinations, with the lower control edge 31 being relatively steep and the upper control edge contrarily extending relatively flat. A further control edge is embodied by the end control edge 34 of the end face 33 of the control slide 14.
To establish the basic position of the control slide 14 in the rotational direction, the control slide 14 is adjusted via an eccentric element 35, which is rotatably guided in the housing 10 and with a pin 36 engages a longitudinal groove 37 in the control slide 14. The axial displacement of the control slide 14 is undertaken via an injection onset adjuster 38, in which an actuating lever 40 is secured with coupler means 41 on a shaft 39 supported in the housing. The coupler means 41 engages a transverse groove 42 on the jacket face of the control slide 14. In order to be able to make the basic adjustment of the control slide 14 inside the aperture 13, the jacket faces 14 of the control slide 14 facing the walls 43 of the aperture are bevelled, as shown in FIG. 6.
As long as both control bores 28 and 29 are closed by the control slide 14, the supply of fuel and hence fuel injection into the engine can take place. As long as at least one of the control bores is open, the pump work chamber 16 communicates with the suction chamber 25, and .[.neither can.]. .Iadd.either .Iaddend.the pump work chamber 16 .Iadd.can .Iaddend.be filled from the suction chamber 25, .[.nor can.]. .Iadd.or .Iaddend.a return flow of the fuel from the pump work chamber 16 back to the suction chamber 25 can take place. In FIGS. 2 and 3, four different stroke positions of the pump piston 12 are shown; for the sake of explanation these positions, only the pump piston 12, the cylinder bushing 11 and the control slide 14 are shown. The stroke positions, from left to right, are as follows: FIG. 2, bottom dead center (UT) and supply onset (FB); and FIG. 3, end of supply (FE) and top dead center (OT). In all four stroke positions of the piston, UT, FB, FE and OT, for the sake of easier comprehension of the ensuing explanation of the function the control slide 14 is shown in this same position. While in the UT position a filling of the pump work chamber 16 takes place from the suction chamber 25 and the aperture 13, that is, the recess 30, and from there via the upper control bore 28 and the blind bore 27, in the FB position both control bores 28 and 29 are blocked. Beyond this FB position, for the rest of the compression stroke of the pump piston 12 fuel is delivered to the engine from the pump work chamber 16. Beyond the FE position, the end of supply is initiated (that is, the injection is interrupted) by means of the lower control bore 29 cooperating with the lower control edge 31; the mouth of the lower control bore 29 enters into the recess 30, so that the fuel can flow from the pump work chamber 16 into the blind bore 27 and the control bore 29 into the recess 30, or back into the suction chamber 25. In the OT position, both control bores 28 and 29 are then opened up, so that the pump work chamber 16 has a connection of the largest possible cross section with the suction chamber 25. This connection also remains open during the first stroke segment of the pump piston.
Depending on the rotational position of the pump piston 12, that is, depending on the association between the control bores 28, 29 with respect to the recess 30, the stroke segment between FB and FE, in which the two control bores 28 and 29 are blocked, varies, and hence the quantity supplied to the engine varies as well. By axially displacing the control slide 14, the upper control bore 28 is closed earlier or later solely in the FB position, and accordingly the lower control bore 29 is opened earlier or later in the same ratio, so that there is no variation in the quantity resulting from this shift in the injection onset.
As shown by the sectional views of the control slide in FIGS. 4 and 5, two recesses 30 are provided axially symmetrically, and they correspond respectively with two mouths of the control bores 28 and 29. As a result, a radial balancing of forces is attained in a known manner between the control slide 14 and the pump piston 12.
The foregoing relates to a preferred exemplary embodiment of the invention, it being understood that other variants and embodiments thereof are possible within the spirit and scope of the invention, the latter being defined by the appended claims.
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A fuel injection pump is proposed for internal combustion engines having a pump piston having a blind bore and two control bores and in which the fuel quantity to be supplied is controlled by means of a control slide having oblique control edges. At least two control edges are provided in a window-like recess of the control slide, of which the lower edge in each case and possibly the upper one as well extend obliquely; the upper control edge provided in the recess determines the supply onset, in cooperation with the first control bore, and the lower control edge of the recess determines the end of supply, in cooperation with the second control bore.
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