Author: claimsbot

1. A handgrip formed in the wall of a plastics container having, a wall defining an interior of the container, an interior surface, an exterior surface and a wall thickness and being suitable for containing a liquid under pressure, comprising an integral structure formed of a central dome having a convex surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface, at least two concentric rings each having an annular concave surface facing the interior, at least two annular troughs, disposed between the concentric rings, each having an annular concave surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface; a frustum interconnecting one of the dome to the innermost trough and the innermost trough to the innermost ring; and further frustum(s) each interconnecting one of the rings to the next outer trough and next outer trough to the next outer ring, the outermost ring joining integrally the container wall surrounding the handgrip, the handgrip having a thickness approximately equal to the wall thickness wherein the handgrip does not extend radially outwardly from the wall.
2. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein additionally frustums may be provided to interconnect domes, rings and troughs not otherwise so provided.
3. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the outer frustums each have a straight longitudinal dimension in a range of from about 0.003 of an inch to about 0.05 of an inch.
4. The handgrip of claim 3 wherein the dimension is at least about 0.005 of an inch.
5. The handgrip of claim 2 wherein the inner frustums each have a straight longitudinal dimension in a range of from about 0.003 of an inch to about 0.05 of an inch.
6. The handgrip of claim 5 wherein the dimension is at least about 0.005 of an inch.
7. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the concave cross-section of each trough defines a cross-sectional surface having a radius of from about 0.005 of an inch to about 0.05 of an inch.
8. The handgrip of claim 7 wherein the radius is about 0.015 of an inch.
9. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the central dome has an inner surface concave to said interior and has a radius of about 0.19 of an inch to about 0.32 of an inch.
10. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the minimum radial spacing between the central dome and the adjacent exterior surface is about 0.013 of an inch.
11. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the concave surface of each connecting ring has a radius in cross-section from about 0.09 of an inch to about 0.13 of an inch.
12. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the thickness of the handgrip structure is about equal to the wall thickness.
13. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the central dome, troughs, outer frustums, connecting rings and the container wall smoothly blend together.
14. The handgrip of claim 2 wherein the central dome, inner frustums, outer frustums, connecting rings and the container wall smoothly blend together.
15. The handgrip of claim 1 wherein the troughs increase in diameter from the dome to the wall of the container and the troughs and frustums increasingly extend further into the container relative to the wall, from the outermost trough and frustum to the dome.
16. The handgrip of claim 2 wherein the troughs increase in diameter from the dome to the wall of the container and the troughs and frustums increasingly extend further into the container relative to the wall, from the outermost trough and frustum to the dome.
17. A plastics container for liquids under pressure having at least one handgrip, formed in a wall of the plastics container, having the wall defining an interior of the container, an interior surface, an exterior surface and a wall thickness, the handgrip comprising an integral structure formed of a central dome having a convex surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface, at least two concentric rings each having an annular concave surface facing the interior, at least two annular troughs, disposed between the concentric rings, each having an annular concave surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface; a frustum interconnecting one of the dome to the innermost trough and the innermost trough to the innermost ring; and further frustum(s) each interconnecting one of the rings to the next outer trough and next outer trough to the next outer ring, the outermost ring joining integrally the container wall surrounding the handgrip, the handgrip having a thickness approximately equal to the wall thickness wherein the handgrip does not extend radially outwardly from the wall.
18. The container of claim 17 wherein the central dome is connected to the innermost trough and each connecting ring is connected to the next outward trough by way of an inner frustum.
19. A blow mold for blow molding a plastics container for liquids under pressure having at least one handgrip formed in a wall defining an interior of the plastics container and having, an interior surface, an exterior surface and a wall thickness, the handgrip comprising an integral structure formed of a central dome having a convex surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface, at least two concentric rings each having an annular concave surface facing the interior, at least two annular troughs, disposed between the concentric rings, each having an annular concave surface facing an adjacent portion of the exterior surface; a frustum interconnecting one of the dome to the innermost trough and the innermost trough to the innermost ring; and further frustum(s) each interconnecting one of the rings to the next outer trough and next outer trough to the next outer ring, the outermost ring joining integrally the container wall surrounding the handgrip, the handgrip having a thickness approximately equal to the wall thickness wherein the handgrip does not extend radially outwardly from the wall.
20. The blow mold of claim 19 wherein the central dome is connected to the innermost trough and each connecting ring is connected to the next outward trough by way of an inner frustum.
21. The blow mold of claim 19 comprising annular projections, each having an outer extremity and an adjacent side surface complimentary to the trough and outer frustum.
22. The blow mold of claim 20 comprising an annular projections, each having an outer extremity and adjacent side surfaces complimentary to the outer and inner frustums.
23. A method of producing a handgrip, in a plastics container for pressurized liquids, which does not, in use, extend outwardly from the outer surface of the container, comprises:
a) providing a blow mold having an axis and handgrip forming features in the form of at least two concentric annular projections, to form a handgrip, extending toward the axis of the mold cavity and container to be formed, each annular projection having an outer extremity and adjacent side surface complimentary to a trough and a frustum;
b) pre-heating a preform to facilitate blow molding to form the container and the handgrip;
c) introducing the preform into the blow mold;
d) applying a gas at a pressure sufficient to inflate and deform the preform into contact with the mold cavity to form the container and into contact with handgrip forming features to produce the handgrip in a wall of the container, the handgrip being formed failing to contact the mold cavity in the region of a central dome and a substantial portion of trough connecting rings of the handgrip;
e) cooling the container; and
f) removing the container with the handgrip(s) formed therein from the blow mold cavity.
24. The handgrip of claim 23 wherein each annular projection includes side faces, one on either side of the extremity whereby each trough is bounded by an inner and an outer frustum.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

What is claimed is:

1. A furniture assembly, comprising:
a desk;
a hutch having a base and a rear panel extending below said base; and
a support comprising a post extending between said desk and said hutch, a platform at an upper end of said post supporting said base, and a bracket extending below said platform and engageable with said rear panel.
2. The furniture assembly of claim 1, wherein said platform comprises a top wall extending forwardly and rearwardly of said upper end of said post, and first and second side walls extending downwardly from said top wall along an outer side surface of said post.
3. The furniture assembly of claim 1, wherein said bracket comprises a first bracket portion extending downwardly from said platform along a front side of said rear panel, a second bracket portion extending rearwardly from said first bracket portion beneath said rear panel, and a third bracket portion extending upwardly from said second bracket portion along a rear side of said rear panel.
4. The furniture assembly of claim 3, wherein said platform and said bracket comprise a unitary structure having bend lines between said platform and said first bracket portion, between said first bracket portion and said second bracket portion, and between said second bracket portion and said third bracket portion.
5. The furniture assembly of claim 1, wherein an opening is provided in a desktop surface of said desk and a lower end of said post extends into said opening, said support further comprising a collar extending outwardly from said post above said lower end thereof, said collar supported on said desktop surface of said desk.
6. A support for supporting a hutch above a desk, said hutch having a base and a rear panel extending below said base, said support comprising:
a post positionable between said desk and said hutch;
a platform at an upper end of said post, said platform positionable beneath said base to support said base; and
a bracket extending downwardly from said platform and engageable with said rear panel.
7. The support of claim 6, wherein said bracket comprises a generally U-shaped portion engageable with a lower end of said rear panel.
8. The support of claim 6, wherein said post is tubular and includes a first opening near said upper end of said post and a second opening near a lower end of said post for passage of electrical cords.
9. The support of claim 6, further comprising an adjustable accessory bracket for adjustably mounting an accessory on said post, said accessory bracket comprising:
a strip having a first end and a second end, said strip extending downwardly and partially around an outer side surface of said post from said first end to said second end;
a gap formed between said first and second ends, said gap being of sufficient size to allow removal and replacement of said strip on said post; and
a clip at said second end, said clip engageable with said accessory to support said accessory at a desired location on said post.
10. The support of claim 8, wherein at least a portion of said post has a circular cross section, and said strip is generally helical in shape.
11. A method of supporting a hutch above a desk, said hutch having a base and a rear panel extending below said base, said method comprising the steps of:
providing a support between said hutch and said desk, said support comprising a post, a platform at an upper end of said post, and a bracket extending downwardly from said platform;
positioning a lower end of said support in an opening formed in a top surface of said desk;
positioning said hutch on said support wherein said base abuts said platform and a lower end of said rear panel is engaged by said bracket; and
adjusting said hutch laterally as desired by sliding said hutch with respect to said support.
12. An adjustable accessory bracket for adjustably mounting an accessory on a post, said accessory bracket comprising:
a strip having a first end and a second end, said strip shaped to extend downwardly and partially around an outer side surface of said post from said first end to said second end;
a gap formed between said first and second ends, said gap being of sufficient size to allow removal and replacement of said strip on said post; and
a clip at said second end, said clip engageable with said accessory to support said accessory at a desired location on said post.
13. The accessory bracket of claim 12, wherein a cushioning material is provided on at least a portion of said strip to prevent damage to said post and to increase friction between said strip and said post.
14. The accessory bracket of claim 12, wherein said clip comprises a first clip portion connected to said strip and extending generally parallel with said post and a second clip portion extending generally perpendicularly to said post from a lower end of said first clip portion, said first and second clip portions serving to support said accessory and to retain said accessory adjacent to said post.
15. The accessory bracket of claim 12, wherein said strip is helical in shape and extends more than 180 degrees around a central longitudinal axis.

1. A lane departure judgment apparatus configured to detect a lane-dividing line based on image information output from an image-capturing device that acquires an image of an area outside a vehicle, and to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle from the lane-dividing line occurs based on a distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line, wherein:
when an angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line thus detected is constant, the distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line to be used to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle occurs is changed according to whether the vehicle is being driven on a road having a lane-dividing width that is greater than a predetermined width or on a road having a lane-dividing width that is smaller than a predetermined width.
2. The lane departure judgment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:
when the angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line thus detected is constant and the vehicle departs from the lane-dividing line, time to judge vehicle departure is early when the vehicle is driven on a road having a lane-dividing width that is greater than a predetermined width as compared with a case in which the vehicle is being driven on a road having a lane-dividing width that is smaller than a predetermined width.
3. A lane departure judgment apparatus configured to detect a lane-dividing line based on image information output from an image-capturing device that acquires an image of an area outside a vehicle, and to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle from the lane-dividing line occurs based on a distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line, wherein:
when an angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line thus detected is constant, the distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line to be used to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle occurs is changed according to whether the vehicle is being driven on a road having a radius of curvature that is greater than a predetermined radius of curvature or on a road having a radius of curvature that is smaller than a predetermined radius of curvature.
4. The lane departure judgment apparatus according to claim 3, wherein:
when the angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line thus detected is constant and the vehicle departs from the lane-dividing line, time to judge vehicle departure is early when the vehicle is driven on a road having a radius of curvature that is greater than a predetermined radius of curvature as compared with a case in which the vehicle is being driven on a road having a radius of curvature that is smaller than a predetermined radius of curvature.
5. A lane departure judgment apparatus comprising:
a lane-dividing line detection unit that detects a lane-dividing line based on image information output from an image-capturing device that acquires an image of an area outside a vehicle;
a distance calculation unit that calculates a distance between the lane-dividing line and an optical axis of the image-capturing device for each of predetermined periods;
a yaw angle calculation unit that calculates a yaw angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line; and
a departure judgment unit that corrects the yaw angle calculated by the yaw angle calculation unit based on a road parameter which represents characteristics of a road on which the vehicle is being driven, and that judges departure of the vehicle from the lane-dividing line based on the corrected yaw angle and the distance between the lane-dividing line and the optical axis calculated by the distance calculation unit.
6. The lane departure judgment apparatus according to claim 5, wherein:
the departure judgment unit corrects the yaw angle based on at least one from among a lane width of the road and a radius of curvature of the road, which are each configured as the road parameter.
7. The lane departure judgment apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:
a fluctuation calculation unit that calculates, in a time-series manner, variance of the distance between the lane-dividing line and the optical axis calculated by the distance calculation unit, wherein:
the departure judgment unit corrects the yaw angle calculated by the yaw angle calculation unit based on the road parameter and the variance calculated by the fluctuation calculation unit, and judges the departure of the vehicle based on the corrected yaw angle and the distance between the lane-dividing line and the optical axis calculated by the distance calculation unit.
8. A lane departure warning apparatus comprising:
a lane departure judgment apparatus according to claim 1; and
a warning output unit that outputs a warning signal which indicates lane departure based on a departure judgment result obtained by the departure judgment apparatus.
9. A vehicle control system comprising:
a lane departure warning apparatus according to claim 8; and
a warning issuing unit that issues a warning based on an output result of a warning signal output from the lane departure warning apparatus.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of attenuating swelling or inflammation within the tissue of a patient, the method comprising applying a composition comprising a hydrophilic foam substrate and a polymeric hydrophilic agent to a portion of the surface of the skin of the patient in an amount and at a location sufficient to attenuate swelling or inflammation within the tissue.
2. The method of claim 1, which attenuates neurogenic inflammation with the tissue.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the neurogenic inflammation is a response to a noxious stimulus.
4. The method of claim 2, wherein the neurogenic inflammation is a symptom of a disease.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the disease is selected from the group of diseases consisting of acne, morphea, and eczema,
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue is traumatized as a result of a surgical procedure.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue is traumatized as a result of an injury.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue is muscle, bone, ligament, or skin.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic foam comprises the in situ reaction product of a isocyanate-capped polyether prepolymer.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the prepolymer is selected from the group consisting of isocyanate-capped polyether polyols having an isocyanate equivalent weight of from about 0.5 meqg to about 3.0 meqg and mixtures thereof.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic agent is capable of absorbing water.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic agent is polymeric.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic agent is selected from the group consisting of starch grafted copolymers of acrylate salts, starch grafted copolymers of acrylamide salts, polyacrylate salts, and mixtures thereof.
14. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic agent comprises an additive selected from the group consisting of methylcellulose, guar gum, pectin, karaya gum, chitosan, agar, acacia powder, carrageenan, gelatin, and mixtures thereof.
15. The method of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic agent is incorporated into the foam substrate.
16. The method of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises an alcohol.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the alcohol is selected from the group consisting of water soluble monols, diols and polyhydric alcohols.
18. The method of claim 16, wherein the alcohol is selected from the group consisting of ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, propylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, glycerin, 1,2,4-butanetriol, trimethylolpropane, sorbitol, pentaerythritol, and mixtures thereof.
19. The method of claim 16, wherein the alcohol is incorporated into the foam substrate.
20. The method of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises a therapeutic agent.
21. The method of claim 20, wherein the therapeutic agent is selected from the group consisting of soluble collagen, hydrolyzed collagen, collagen amino acids salt free, hydrolyzed animal protein and hyaluronic acid, an ointment including methyl salicylate and menthol and hydrocortisone acetate, polymers with medicinal properties, and trans-retinoic acid.
22. The method of claim 20, wherein the therapeutic agent is incorporated into the foam substrate.
23. The method of claim 1, which further comprises a wetting agent.
24. The method of claim 23, wherein the wetting agent is a non-ionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of block copolymers of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide, ethoxylated sorbitan fatty acid esters, glycerol esters, polyglycerol esters, silicone fluids and mixtures thereof.
25. The method of claim 23, wherein the wetting agent is imcporporated into the foam substrate.
26. The method of claim 1, wherein the entirety of the portion of skin is unbroken.
27. The method of claim 1, wherein the swelling or inflammation is associated with a tissue other than skin.
28. The method of claim 1, wherein the swelling or inflammation is associated with skin tissue other than said portion.
29. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient is a human.