International Business Machines Corporation

Other

Gary Allen Thompson

Roger F Dimmick

Vernon J Kleve

Patrick Kevin Egan

Ronald James Thompson

Matthew Allen Butterbaugh

Michael Scott Good

Raymond Floyd Babcock

Brian A Larkins

Stephen E Wheeler

James R Thorpe

Kevin R Qualters

Steven Dennis Keidl

Steven William Steele

William Michael Monson

William D Corfits

James M Thompson

Max John Christopher Koschmeder

Brian Joseph Stanczyk

Wayne J Casanova

Gordon W Westphal

Wesley H Bachman

Charles Vernon Zenz, Sr

Todd Douglas Green

Timothy L Meyer

Willard J Olson

A composition and method are disclosed for optimizing sperm survival and function for couples suffering from male infertility by stimulating and increasing the female sexual partner's vaginal lubrication. An increased amount of vaginal transudate is produced in the female by the topical vulval application of a composition containing menthol or a related cooling compound. The resulting increased amount of vaginal transudate can support the function and viability of the spermatozoa in the hostile vaginal environment and ultimately in the cervical mucus to both capacitate sperm in vivo and to provide a medium for gradient sperm differentiation in the vagina and cervix. The inventive composition and method provides a means to compensate for male infertility caused by abnormal semen quality in order for a couple to successfully achieve conception.

In vivo sperm selection for treating male infertility

A method and a combination of a hot plug sliding connector and a circuit card are provided for implementing hot plugging protection regulator cards, power supply cards, system cards and the like. A respective isolation circuit is coupled to each voltage input and voltage output of the circuit card to be connected to the hot plug sliding connector. The hot plug sliding connector has an elongated slot for slidingly receiving the circuit card along the length of the elongated slot. A plurality of cooperating electrically connecting portions of the connector and circuit card are provided in mating engagement with the circuit card inserted into a final position in the connector. The plurality of cooperating electrically connecting portions are spaced apart by a respective predefined null, non-electrically connecting portion arranged to avoid shorting between cooperating electrically connecting portions during the sliding insertion of the circuit card into the hot plug sliding connector.

Method and sliding connector and circuit card combination for implementing hot plugging protection for regulator, power supplies and system cards

An enclosure arrangement includes a chassis, and a central electronics complex. The central electronics complex has a cage removably positioned within the chassis. The cage has an open top providing access into the interior of the cage. The central electronics complex also includes a backplane arranged in a horizontal position, and forming a floor of the cage. The backplane has at least one card slot on a surface thereof. The central electronics complex further includes at least one circuit board disposed in the interior of the cage and being removably received by the card slot. The circuit board is arranged in a vertical position so that a gravitational force helps retain the circuit board in the card slot. The cage is removably positioned within the chassis. At least one rail connects the cage to the chassis. The cage is disposed on the rail, and is guidable into the chassis using the rail.

Enhanced enclosure arrangement for a computer

An apparatus for electrically interconnecting circuit boards and providing controlled low impedance current paths. A first conductive member has a first surface, a second surface and a third planar surface, the first surface attaches to a first circuit board or CIM and the second surface attaches to a second circuit board or CIM. An insulative sheet having dielectric properties is aligned parallel to the third surface of the first conductive member. A second conductive member has a fourth surface, a fifth surface and a sixth planar surface, the fourth surface connects to the first circuit board and the fifth surface is for attaching to the second CIM. The sixth planar surface is aligned parallel to the insulative sheet, such that a controlled low impedance high current interconnect can be achieved between the first CIM and the second circuit board responsive to the dielectric properties of the insulative sheet.

Controlled low impedance high current circuit board interconnect

Disclosed is a backplane assembly that includes stiffeners to provide both mechanical stiffening and electrical power distribution. In particular, the present invention provides a power distribution system that comprises a backplane, a power stiffener having alternate layers of dielectrics and conductors proximately located to the backplane, and removable connection to electrically connect the conductors in the stiffener to the backplane. Because power can be transferred directly to the backplane from the stiffener via the connection, the need for power cables and bus bars on the backplane is eliminated. In addition, noise suppressing capacitors may be located on the power stiffener, close to the load source.

Power distribution/stiffener for active back plane technologies

A back-up power supply includes a fixed charger fixably mounted in an enclosure of a computer system and having a charging circuit electrically coupled to the computer system. The charger is mounted in a case which houses the charging circuit and provides EMC shielding. A removable battery pack is docked with the charger through cooperative blind docking connectors to electrically couple a pair of batteries with the charging circuit. The batteries are enclosed within a case to substantially restrict external access to the batteries. Preferably, the batteries together form an 'L' shape, and the charging circuit is disposed on a circuit board having low and high profile areas. The batteries in the battery pack are disposed adjacent the low profile areas of the circuit board, such that the overall space required for the power supply is reduced.

Back-up power supply with replaceable battery pack

The present invention features a suction wand for use in cleaning lint from the lint-screen cavity of clothes dryers. This lint-catching tool is uniquely designed to provide a lint-loosening action in combination with a vacuum action. This dual action eliminates most of the drudgery associated with this particular task. The tool itself has four snap-together portions. The first portion of the tool consists of a collar that attaches to the corrugated conduit or hose of a vacuuming device. The collar has a flared, rounded end that receives a substantially flat, rounded, hollow, flexible, elongated cleaning tube. The peripheral edges of the cleaning tube are designed to be rounded so as to provide for ease of bending, which is a necessary flexibility for accessing hard-to-reach areas within the clothes-dryer cabinet. The third portion of the wand has an intermediate collar that links the elongated cleaning tube with its unique scraping-and-suction nozzle. This scraping-and-suction nozzle has novel inlet windows that are designed to capture the lint as the wand is thrust against lint-laden surfaces within the clothes cabinet. The inlet windows have scraping edges that form narrow inlet areas for the purpose of drawing strong vacuum through the nozzle.

Cleaning tool for removing lint from clothes dryers

A gene construct comprising SEQ ID NO:3, a phloem-specific promoter, and protein encoding nucleotide sequence not natively associated with SEQ ID NO:3 is disclosed. A gene construct comprising a protein encoding nucleotide sequence not natively associated with SEQ ID NO:3 and a sufficient portion of SEQ ID NO:3 such that the portion promotes the preferential expression of the protein-encoding nucleotide sequence in phloem tissue is also disclosed. A gene construct comprising a promoter sequence from a PP2-type gene isolated from a Cucurbita and a protein encoding sequence not natively associated with the promoter is disclosed.

Phloem-specific promoter

An enclosure for different subsystem variations of a data processing system has a box with front and rear regions separated by an interconnection carrier. The front is divided into standard-size bays for functional modules, while support modules slide into rear bays. A vertical central carrier contains electrical interconnections between the functional and support modules. An environmental module provides cooling air through the enclosure.

Enclosure for electronic subsystems in a data processing system

A double-sided central electronics complex (CEC) is provided for increasing the logic card density in a logic cage or CEC. Specifically, two logic cages or sub-enclosures are integrated, sharing one backplane card so that logic elements may be plugged into the CEC from both sides. The CEC is formed by unitary sheet metal side plates, top and bottom cast or guides and a single double-sided backplane assembly.

Growing community of inventors

Pine Island, MN, United States of America

Gary Allen Thompson