1-21. (canceled)
22. A method for use in steering user equipment to a steered wireless communication network by network equipment of a wireless communication network which is a home communication network of the user equipment, the method comprising the acts of:
identifying that the user equipment is operating in one region of a plurality of roaming regions through a visited wireless communication network of the roaming region; and
causing a steered network identification corresponding to a steered wireless communication network of the roaming region to be sent through the visited wireless communication network to the user equipment, so that the steered wireless communication network is selected in an automatic network selection procedure of the user equipment.
23. The method of claim 22, wherein the automatic network selection procedure of the user equipment attempts to select the wireless communication network with use of the steered network identification in lieu of attempting to select a wireless communication network with use of the list of prioritized roaming network identifications.
24. The method of claim 22, wherein the steered network identification comprises a mobile network code and a mobile country code corresponding to the steered wireless communication network.
25. The method of claim 22, wherein the act of causing the steered network identification to be sent comprises the further act of causing a short message service (SMS) message containing the steered network identification to be sent.
26. The method of claim 22, wherein the steered network identification is in addition to a list of prioritized roaming network identifications stored in the user equipment.
27. The method of claim 22, which is embodied as a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium and computer program instructions stored in the computer readable medium which are executable by one or more processors of the network equipment.
28. Network equipment for a wireless communication network, the wireless communication network being a home communication network for a user equipment, the network equipment being configured to:
identify that the user equipment is operating in one region of a plurality of roaming regions through a visited wireless communication network of the roaming region; and
cause a steered network identification corresponding to a steered wireless communication network of the roaming region to be sent through the visited wireless communication network to the user equipment, so that the steered wireless communication network is selected in an automatic network selection procedure of the user equipment.
29. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the automatic network selection procedure attempts to select the wireless communication network with use of the steered network identification in lieu of attempting to select a wireless communication network with use of the list of prioritized roaming network identifications.
30. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the steered network identification comprises a mobile network code and a mobile country code corresponding to the steered wireless communication network.
31. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the act of causing the steered network identification to be sent comprises the further act of causing a short message service (SMS) message containing the steered network identification to be sent.
32. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the act of causing the steered network identification to be sent comprises the further act of causing an over-the-air download message containing the steered network identification to be sent.
33. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the steered network identification is in addition to a list of prioritized roaming network identifications stored in the user equipment.
34. The network equipment of claim 28, wherein the steered network identification is for use in an automatic network selection procedure for the user equipment which includes the acts of:
in lieu of attempting to select a wireless communication network with use of a list of prioritized roaming network identifications, attempting to select the steered wireless communication network with use of the steered network identification by:
performing a scanning operation to receive one or more network identifications corresponding to one or more available wireless communication networks in a coverage area of the user equipment;
comparing the one or more received network identifications from the scanning operation with the steered network identification; and
if a match between a received network identification and the steered network identification is identified from the act of comparing, selecting and registering with a wireless communication network corresponding to the received network identification that matches the steered network identification.
35. The network equipment of claim 28, further comprising:
a database which stores a plurality of different steered network identifications respectively associated with a plurality of different roaming regions.
35. A method for use in steering user equipment to a steered wireless communication network by network equipment of a wireless communication network which is a home communication network of the user equipment, the method comprising the acts of:
identifying that the user equipment is operating in one region of a plurality of regions through a wireless communication network of the region; and
causing a steered network identification corresponding to a steered wireless communication network of the identified region to be sent through the wireless communication network to the user equipment, so that the steered wireless communication network is selected in an automatic network selection procedure of the user equipment.
36. The method of claim 35, wherein the wireless communication network comprises a visited wireless communication network and the region comprises a roaming region of the user equipment.
37. The method of claim 35, wherein the wireless communication network comprises a home wireless communication network and the region comprises a home region of the user equipment.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method for producing a biodegradable molded article, comprising the steps of:
directly heating a molding material by dielectric heating to form a biodegradable expanded molded article, the biodegradable expanded molded article being molded in a specified shape with an irregular surface by steam expansion molding of the molding material, and
simultaneously thermally softening a coating film and attaching the thermally softened coating film to the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article so as to maintain the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article.
wherein the coating film is mainly made of a biodegradable plastic and having at least hydrophobicity, the molding material is a slurry or dough molding material mainly made of a starch or a starch derivative and prepared by adding water to the starch or the starch derivative, and the starch or the starch derivative contains high-amylose starch or high-amylose starch derivative.
2. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the molding material is a slurry or dough molding material mainly made of a starch, and wherein the starch contains not less than 50 weight % high-amylose starch.
3. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the molding material is a slurry or dough molding material mainly made of a starch derivative, and wherein the starch derivative contains not less than 50 weight % high-amylose starch derivative.
4. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the coating film is mainly made of a modified polyester.
5. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the coating film is biaxially stretched.
6. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the molding material further contains a water-insoluble fiber.
7. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the expanded molded article accounts for not less than 60 weight % of the biodegradable molded article.
8. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the molding material contains water, and wherein the water in the molding material accounts for 20 weight % to 70 weight % of the molding material.
9. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the biodegradable expanded molded article, upon being formed, has a water content between 3 weight % and 20 weight %.
10. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein heating of the molding material by dielectric heating is performed while simultaneously heating with an electric heater a metal mold that holds the molding material.
11. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article includes bumps and dips.
12. A method for producing a biodegradable molded article comprising the steps of:
directly heating a molding material by dielectric heating to form a biodegradable expanded molded article, the biodegradable expanded molded article being molded in a specified shape with an irregular surface by steam expansion molding of the molding material, and
simultaneously thermally softening a coating film and attaching the thermally softened coating film to the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article so as to maintain the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article,
wherein the coating film is mainly made of a biodegradable plastic and having at least hydrophobicity, the molding material is a slurry or dough molding material mainly made of a starch or a starch derivative and prepared by adding water and polyvinyl alcohol to the starch or the starch derivative.
13. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the polyvinyl alcohol has a polymerization degree of not less than 1500.
14. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the polyvinyl alcohol has a saponification degree of not less than 75%.
15. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the coating film is mainly made of a modified polyester.
16. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the coating film is biaxially stretched.
17. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the molding material further contains a water-insoluble fiber.
18. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the expanded molded article accounts for not less than 60 weight % of the biodegradable molded article.
19. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the molding material contains water, and wherein the water in the molding material accounts for 20 weight % to 70 weight % of the molding material.
20. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the biodegradable expanded molded article, upon being formed, has a water content between 3 weight % and 20 weight %.
21. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein heating of the molding material by dielectric heating is performed while simultaneously heating with an electric heater a metal mold that holds the molding material.
22. The method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the irregular surface of the biodegradable expanded molded article includes bumps and dips.