Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen
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Patent number: 6293565Abstract: A skate assembly that allows a skater forward/backward motion as well as side-to-side motion is provided. Various aspects of the skate assembly can be adjusted to fit the size and weight of the skater, the skill level of the skater, the skating or playing style of the skater, and the various surfaces to which it might come into contact. In one configuration the skate assembly is comprised of a plurality of linearly aligned roller assemblies. The skate assembly includes at least one friction plate mounted on the inside edge of the skate frame that provides a push-off area used by the skater to initiate motion, accelerate, or stop. In another configuration the skate assembly is comprised of at least one roller assembly interposed between a pair of conventional wheels. The pair of conventional wheels provides stability when the skater is moving in either a forward or backward direction since these two wheels are confined to rotation in a single plane.Type: GrantFiled: June 23, 1999Date of Patent: September 25, 2001Assignee: Netminders, Inc.Inventors: Anthony Bouchard, Richard J. Bouchard, Jr.
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Patent number: 6292499Abstract: A method and apparatus for mounting components to an optical bench is provided. The mount allows the components to be easily detached, realigned, and remounted at will. Components that can use the mount include, but are not limited to, mirrors, output couplers, windows, filters, lenses, optical fibers, nonlinear crystals, active and passive Q-switches, piezoelectric elements, apertures, laser gain media, and detectors. The optical component is mounted to an upright portion of the optical mount, the upright portion being mounted to a base plate. The base plate includes a heater, such as a resistive heater, that is used to solder the base plate to the optical bench. Preferably the heater is electrically coupled to a pair of contacts located on the upright portion of the mount, thus providing an easy method of coupling a power source to the heater.Type: GrantFiled: July 9, 1998Date of Patent: September 18, 2001Assignee: Aculight CorporationInventors: Leonard P. Pearson, David C. Shannon, Diane E. Smith, Larry B. Kulesa
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Patent number: 6291667Abstract: A novel method of treating Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) in patients, by administration of an effective amount of VEGF antagonist/s. VEGF antagonists are capable of inhibiting the growth of KS cells in culture by inhibiting the production of VEGF, or by interfering with the binding of VEGF to its cognate receptors or interfere with the biological effects of VEGF. The VEGF antagonist may be administered to KS patients topically, orally, or parentally. Other VEGF antagonist such as VEGF antibodies, VEGF receptor antibodies, soluble forms of VEGF receptors that bind VEGF away from the cells, or agents that inhibit the signal of VEGF into the cell such as protein kinase inhibitors etc. can also be used The novel antisense oligonucleotides (Veglin-1 and Veglin-3) may also be used to inhibit VEGF and thus new blood vessel formation in diseases such as tumors, proliferative retinopathy, or collagen vascular diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and skin diseases such as pemphigus and psoriasis.Type: GrantFiled: January 30, 1998Date of Patent: September 18, 2001Inventors: Parkash S. Gill, Rizwan Masood
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Patent number: 6284512Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for screening chemically modified mutant enzymes for amidase and/or esterase activity. This method includes providing a chemically modified mutant enzyme with one or more amino acid residues from an enzyme being replaced by cysteine residues, where at least some of the cysteine residues are modified by replacing thiol hydrogen in the cysteine residues with a thiol side chain, contacting the chemically modified mutant enzyme with a substrate for an amidase and/or a substrate for an esterase, and determining whether the chemically modified mutant enzyme exhibits amidase and/or esterase activity. The present invention also relates to chemically modified mutant enzymes and a method of producing them where one or more amino acid residues from an enzyme are replaced by cysteine residues, and the cysteine residues are modified by replacing at least some of the thiol hydrogen in the cysteine residue with a thiol side chain to form the chemically modified mutant enzyme.Type: GrantFiled: January 21, 1999Date of Patent: September 4, 2001Assignees: Genencor International, Inc.Inventors: J. Bryan Jones, Erika Plettner
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Patent number: 6277394Abstract: The current invention is a biomedical implant comprising a biomedical matrix material and a biodegradable porosifying agent. As the porosifying agent degrades in situ, an implant with an inter-connecting network is formed. The resultant mechanically stable implant allows for tissue and fluid influx into the matrix. The invention is also directed to a method for repair of mammalian tissue using the above-described implant.Type: GrantFiled: June 16, 2000Date of Patent: August 21, 2001Assignee: Cohesion Technologies, Inc.Inventor: David H. Sierra
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Patent number: 6274136Abstract: The present invention relates to the application of genetic engineering to provide a treatment of autoimmune disease. This is achieved preferably through the introduction of one or more recombinant genes encoding self antigens which are the target of an autoimmune response. In particular the invention provides a method of designing and constructing a gene encoding an encephalogenic epitope of proteolipid protein, and to the in vivo expression of the gene product by a recombinant retroviral vector. The expression and secretion of the encephalogenic epitope ameliorates the histopathological and clinical characteristics of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in the mouse model for multiple sclerosis (MS).Type: GrantFiled: May 29, 1996Date of Patent: August 14, 2001Assignee: University of Southern CaliforniaInventors: Leslie P. Weiner, Minnie McMillan
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Patent number: 6271972Abstract: A multiple element color-corrected doubly telecentric lens and imaging system useful for imaging multiwell plates is described. The lens contains a biconvex field lens element L1, a positive meniscus lens element L2, concave toward the incident light side, a double-Gauss lens element group, a positive meniscus lens element L10, convex toward the incident light, a positive meniscus lens element L11, convex toward the incident light, and a plano concave field flattener lens element L12, concave toward the incident light side. The lens is very sensitive, and can be used to image scintillation proximity assays in multiwell plates.Type: GrantFiled: September 29, 1999Date of Patent: August 7, 2001Assignee: Glaxo Wellcome, Inc.Inventors: Haim Kedar, Edward Perry Wallerstein, Kerry J. Koller
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Patent number: 6267913Abstract: Compositions capable of simultaneous two-photon absorption and higher order absorptivities are disclosed. Many of these compositions are compounds satisfying the formulae D-Π-D, A-Π-A, D-A-D and A-D-A, wherein D is an electron donor group, A is an electron acceptor group and Π comprises a bridge of &pgr;-conjugated bonds connecting the electron donor groups and electron acceptor groups. In A-D-A and D-A-D compounds, the &pgr; bridge is substituted with electron donor groups and electron acceptor groups, respectively. Also disclosed are methods that generate an electronically excited state of a compound, including those satisfying one of these formulae. The electronically excited state is achieved in a method that includes irradiating the compound with light. Then, the compound is converted to a multi-photon electronically excited state upon simultaneous absorption of at least two photons of light.Type: GrantFiled: November 7, 1997Date of Patent: July 31, 2001Assignee: California Institute of TechnologyInventors: Seth Marder, Joseph Perry
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Patent number: 6261363Abstract: A sublimation technique of growing silicon carbide single crystals, comprising a parallel arrangement, opposite each other, of the evaporating surface of a silicon carbide source (1) and the growing surface of at least one seed crystal (2) of a specified politype, to define a growth zone (4), and generation of a reduced pressure and an operating temperature field with an axial gradient in the direction from the seed crystal (2) towards the source (1), providing evaporation of silicon carbide of the source (1) and vapour-phase crystallization of silicon carbide on the growing surface of the seed crystal (2). The growth zone (4) is here sealed before the operating temperatures are reached therein, and the process is run with a solid solution of tantalum and silicon carbides in tantalum and their chemical compounds present in the growth zone (4). The material of the source (1) employed for implementing the sublimation technique of growing silicon carbide crystals is silison carbide ceramics.Type: GrantFiled: July 20, 1999Date of Patent: July 17, 2001Inventors: Yury Alexandrovich Vodakov, Evgeny Nikolaevich Mokhov, Mark Grigorievich Ramm, Alexandr Dmitrievich Roenkov, Yury Nikolaevich Makarov, Sergei Yurievich Karpov, Mark Spiridonovich Ramm, Leonid Iosifovich Temkin
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Patent number: 6259737Abstract: A computationally efficient method and apparatus for motion estimation by producing accurate motion vectors with minimal computational effort. A preferred embodiment of the present invention first identifies an approximate match between a reference frame and a current frame of video data. Once an approximate match is found, the method performs at least two searches at a finer pixel level, until a motion estimate is reached.Type: GrantFiled: June 5, 1998Date of Patent: July 10, 2001Assignee: InnoMedia Pte LtdInventors: Patrick Fung, Shaun Yu
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Patent number: 6248535Abstract: Methods are disclosed for rapid, reliable and simple isolation of RNA from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue samples. RNA purified in this manner can be used to monitor gene expression levels. The tissue sample can be a tumor or other pathological tissue.Type: GrantFiled: December 20, 1999Date of Patent: June 19, 2001Assignee: University of Southern CaliforniaInventors: Kathleen Danenberg, Peter V. Danenberg, Steven Swenson
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Patent number: 6236456Abstract: A method and apparatus for determining the fluorescence, luminescence, or absorption of a sample is provided. The sample may either be contained within a cuvette or within one or more sample wells within a multi-assay plate. A combination of a broadband source, a monochromator, and a series of optical filters are used to tune the excitation wavelength to a predetermined value within a relatively wide wavelength band. A similar optical configuration is used to tune the detection wavelength. In one aspect, multiple optical fibers are coupled to the excitation source subassembly, thus allowing the system to be quickly converted from one optical configuration to another. For example, the source can be used to illuminate either the top or the bottom of a sample well within a multi-assay plate or to illuminate a single cuvette cell. Similarly, multiple optical fibers are coupled to the detector subassembly.Type: GrantFiled: June 21, 1999Date of Patent: May 22, 2001Assignee: Molecular Devices CorporationInventors: Robert Giebeler, David G. Ogle, Roger Kaye, Dean Hafeman
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Patent number: 6232608Abstract: A method and apparatus for determining the fluorescence, luminescence, or absorption of a sample is provided. The sample may either be contained within a cuvette or within one or more sample wells within a multi-assay plate. A combination of a broadband source, monochromator, and a series of optical filters are used to tune the excitation wavelength to a predetermined value within a relatively wide wavelength band. A similar configuration is used to tune the detection wavelength. In one aspect, multiple optical filters are coupled to the excitation source subassembly, thus allowing the system to be quickly converted from one optical configuration to another. In another aspect, the excitation light and the detected sample emissions pass to and from an optical head assembly via a pair of optical fibers. In another aspect, an optical scanning head assembly is used that includes mirrored optics for coupling the excitation source to the sample and the emitted light to the detector.Type: GrantFiled: March 23, 1999Date of Patent: May 15, 2001Assignee: Molecular Devices CorporationInventors: Robert Giebeler, Thomas J. Smith, Steven McNerney, Dean Hafeman, Gillian Humphries
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Patent number: 6231583Abstract: This invention is a surgical device for producing a circular, interlamellar channel within the corneal stroma. An intracorneal ring can be implanted into this channel at the corneal periphery modifying the corneal curvature while sparing the important central optical zone of the cornea. This channel is formed by the sequential use of two separate instruments. The first instrument, the channel-guide dissector, is a circular dissecting instrument which is a split ring dissector with the dissecting end having a blunt tip and the other end connected to a handle. The important aspect of this channel-guide dissector is that it has a relatively narrow width which results in production of a lamellar corneal channel that is typically too narrow for the insertion of a typical intracorneal ring for myopic adjustment.Type: GrantFiled: July 9, 1998Date of Patent: May 15, 2001Inventor: Joseph Y. Lee
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Patent number: 6228114Abstract: An apparatus for adjusting the corneal curvature of the eye comprising a corneal implant having an elongated, hollow tubular shell which is implantable into the cornea in encircling relation to the central optic zone of the cornea. The implant has hinged portions along its the inner and outer arcs, and the corneal implant is filled with a predetermined amount of a biocompatible material in various forms such as rings or strands. The biocompatible material is strategically located within the flexible shell to alter its dimensions in thickness or diameter and thereby adjust the corneal curvature to correct refractive error.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 1997Date of Patent: May 8, 2001Inventor: Joseph Y. Lee
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Patent number: 6226748Abstract: Protocols and architecture for secure virtual private networks. Intraenterprise data communications are supported in a secure manner over the Internet or other public network space with the implementation of secure virtual private networks. Members of a virtual private network group exchange data that may be compressed, encrypted and authenticated, if the exchange is between members of the group.Type: GrantFiled: June 12, 1997Date of Patent: May 1, 2001Assignee: VPNet Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Henk J. Bots, William E. Hunt, Derek Palma, John Lawler
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Patent number: 6218440Abstract: The present invention relates to a porous crosslinked hydrophilic polymeric material having cavities joined by interconnecting pores wherein at least some of the cavities at the interior of the material communicate with the surface of the material. The present invention also relates to a process for producing the polymeric material. This process involves combining a hydrophilic monomer phase with an oil discontinuous phase to form an emulsion, and polymerizing the emulsion. The emulsion can be a high internal phase emulsion (i.e., a “HIPE”). The polymeric material can be produced in a variety of forms. In one embodiment the emulsion is suspended in an oil suspension medium, and emulsion droplets are polymerized to produce polymeric microbeads.Type: GrantFiled: July 25, 2000Date of Patent: April 17, 2001Assignee: Biopore CorporationInventor: Naotaka Kitagawa
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Patent number: D441248Type: GrantFiled: January 7, 1998Date of Patent: May 1, 2001Inventor: Frank A. Brady
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Patent number: D442178Type: GrantFiled: January 25, 2000Date of Patent: May 15, 2001Assignee: Acco Brands, Inc.Inventors: Mark A. Edwards, Donald Varga, Debra M. Reich
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Patent number: D445795Type: GrantFiled: August 7, 2000Date of Patent: July 31, 2001Assignee: Acco Brands, Inc.Inventors: Alan Ball, Gregg Flender, Carl Betterley, Debra Reich