All The Claims

1. A multifunctional Escherichia coli-Streptomyces sp. conjugative shuttle vector designated as pGTR760 containing multiple cloning sites.
2. A recombinant Escherichia coli-Streptomyces conjugative shuttle vector pCAB218 cloned with a nucleic acid sequence coding for genes responsible for polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesis.
3. A biologically pure culture of recombinant Streptomyces lividans TK64 bearing ATCC No. PTA 1578, said bacterium harbouring pCAB218 plasmid and capable of producing polyhydroxyoctanoate (PHO) in substantial amounts.
4. A process for the production of polyhydroxyoctanoate, said method comprising the steps of:
a) constructing a multifunctional Escherichia coli-Streptomyces sp. conjugative shuttle vector designated as pGTR760,
b) cloning of the polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthesis operon phaCABRe from Ralstonia eutropha in pUC18 plasmid vector and recloning of the phaCABRe operon from pUC18 into the pGTR760 vector resulting in the formation of a new conjugative shuttle vector designated as pCAB218,
c) transforming Escherichia coli S17-1 with the plasmid pCAB218 to develop recombinant Escherichia coli S17-1,
d) transforming Escherichia coli S17-1 with Streptomyces lividans TK64 to obtain genetically modified bacterium Streptomyces lividans TK64, and
e) culturing the genetically modified Streptomyces lividans TK64 in a conventional medium and recovering polyhydroxyoctanoate (PHO).
5. A process as claimed in claim 4 wherein the multifunctional conjugative shuttle vector pGTR760 is developed by ligating a 760 bp Ori T PstI restriction fragment from plasmid pPM801 with plasmid pUWL218 at a temperature in the range of 14-16 C. in the presence of T4 DNA ligase enzyme for a period ranging between 16 to 18 hours.
6. A process as claimed in claim 4 wherein the multifunctional Escherichia coli-Streptomyces species conjugative shuttle vector pCAB218 is developed by cloning the polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesis operon phaCABRe obtained from Ralstonia eutropha into the EcoRI-BamHI restriction sites of the vector pGTR760.
7. A process as claimed in claim 4 wherein the medium comprises glycerol, asparagine and salts.
8. A process as claimed in claim 4 wherein the medium comprises glycerol, L-aspargine, distilled water and salts selected from anhydrous K2HPO4, FeSO4.7H2O, MnCl2.4H2O and ZrSO4.7H2O.

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 scanner system comprising a radiation generator arranged to generate radiation to irradiate an object, a detector structure arranged to detect the radiation after it has interacted with the object and generate a sequence of detector data sets as the object is moved relative to the generator, and a processor arranged to process each of the detector data sets thereby to generate a control output arranged to control the radiation generator to vary its radiation output as the object is scanned.
2. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to define a parameter of the detector data, to determine a value of the parameter for each data set, and generate a control output arranged to vary the radiation output if the value of the parameter does not meet a predetermined condition.
3. A scanner according to claim 1 wherein the detector structure comprises a plurality of detectors and the detector data comprises a set of intensity values indicative of the intensity of radiation at each of the detectors.
4. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the control output is arranged to control the energy of the radiation.
5. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the control output is arranged to control a dimension of the radiation beam.
6. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the radiation generator is arranged to generate the radiation in pulses and the control output is arranged to control at least one of the duration and the frequency of the pulses.
7. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the radiation generator comprises an adjustable collimator and the control input is arranged to adjust the collimator in response to the control input.
8. A scanner system according to claim 7 wherein the collimator has a varying thickness so that adjustment of the collimator can adjust the energy of the radiation beam.
9. A scanner system according to claim 7 wherein the collimator comprises a plurality of collimator elements each of which can be adjusted independently so as to vary different respective parts of the radiation beam.
10. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the radiation generator comprises a collimator and the control input is arranged to generate the radiation as a beam and to vary the position of the beam in response to the control input thereby to vary the proportion of the beam that is blocked by the collimator.
11. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the radiation generator comprises an electron source arranged to direct a beam of electrons towards a target, and is arranged to adjust the electron beam in response to the control input.
12. A scanner system according to claim 11 wherein the radiation generator includes a scraper arranged to block a variable proportion of the electrons in the beam.
13. A scanner system according to claim 12 wherein the radiation generator is arranged to generate a magnetic field and to direct the electron beam through the magnetic field so that it turns, and wherein the magnetic field is variable to vary the proportion of the electrons which are blocked.
14. A scanner system according to claim 11 wherein the radiation generator is arranged to generate a variable magnetic field and to vary the magnetic field so as to vary focusing of the electron beam.
15. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to adjust the detector data to compensate at least partially for the controlled variation of the radiation output.
16. A scanner system according to claim 1 wherein the radiation generator and the detection structure are supported on a rotatable gantry which is arranged to rotate as each data set is collected.

1. A method of preparing a cellulose acylate having a substitution degree represented by formulas (1) to (3), comprising the steps of:
adding at least one selected from the group consisting of water and a carboxylic acid having 2 to 7 carbon atoms, as an activating agent, to a cellulose; and
applying at least one treatment selected from (a) maintaining the cellulose at a temperature of 40\xb0 C. or more, for one hour or more, (b) irradiating microwaves to the cellulose, and (c) placing the cellulose under a pressure in the range of from 1.5 atm (0.15 MPa) to 100 atm (10.13 MPa):
2.5\u2266A+B\u22663\u2003\u2003formula (1)

0\u2266A\u22662.5\u2003\u2003formula (2)

0.3\u2266B\u22663\u2003\u2003formula (3)

wherein \u201cA\u201d represents a substitution degree of an acetyl group, and \u201cB\u201d represents the sum total of substitution degrees of acyl groups having 3 to 7 carbon atoms.
2. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:
adding a carboxylic acid anhydride having 2 to 7 carbon atoms to the cellulose to be acylated, and acylating a hydroxyl group of the cellulose in the presence of a Br\u03c6nested acid.
3. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of:
cooling the cellulose to a temperature of from \u221230\xb0 C. to less than 30\xb0 C., before acylation; and
adding a carboxylic acid anhydride having 2 to 7 carbon atoms to the cellulose to be acylated, to which said treatment is applied, and acylating a hydroxyl group of the cellulose in the presence of a Br\u03c6nested acid.
4. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein said activating agent is water, at least one kind of carboxylic acid having 2 to 6 carbon atoms, or a mixture of water with at least one kind of carboxylic acid having 2 to 6 carbon atoms.
5. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein \u201cB\u201d in formula (1) or (3) represents the sum total of substitution degrees of a propionyl group, a butyryl group, a pentanoyl group, and a hexanoyl group.
6. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein a frequency of the microwaves irradiated in the (b) is 433.920\xb10.87 MHz, 915\xb150 MHz, 2450\xb150 MHz, 5800\xb175 MHz, or 24.125\xb10.125 GHz.
7. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein the activating agent to be added to the cellulose is a carboxylic acid having 2 to 7 carbon atoms.
8. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein the activating agent to be added to the cellulose is selected from the group consisting of acetic acid, propionic acid, and butyric acid.
9. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein the activating agent to be added to the cellulose is acetic acid.
10. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein a period of time for maintaining the cellulose with the activating agent at a temperatures of 40\xb0 C. or above is in the range of from one hour to 100 hours.
11. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 1, wherein the cellulose is maintained at a temperature in the range of from 60\xb0 C. to 90\xb0 C. in the presence of the activating agent.
12. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 2, wherein said Br\u03c6nested acid is sulfuric acid or perchloric acid.
13. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 2, wherein the maximum temperature in the step of acylation is 50\xb0 C. or below.
14. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 2, wherein a reaction terminator is added over a period of time from three minutes to three hours, after the step of acylation.
15. The method of preparing the cellulose acylate according to claim 14, wherein the reaction terminator is acetic acid containing 5 wt % to 80 wt % of water.
16. A cellulose acylate film prepared by means of a solution-casting film formation method or melt-casting film formation method, using the cellulose acylate which is prepared by the preparation method according to claim 1.
17. The cellulose acylate film according to claim 16, wherein a retardation in a plane (Re) and a retardation in a thickness direction (Rth) satisfy the following formulas.
Rthnm\u2267Renm

300\u2267Renm\u22670

500\u2267Rthnm\u22670
18. A polarizing plate, comprising at least one sheet of the cellulose acylate film according to claim 16, as a protection film on a polarizing film (layer).
19. A liquid crystal display device, comprising the cellulose acylate film according to claim 16.

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 device configured to process a signal comprising symbol sequences transmitted over a channel, said device comprising:
a first filtering circuit having an input receiving said signal; and
a feedback loop comprising a subtractor, a decision unit, and a second filter, wherein said subtractor is connected to subtract the output of said second filter from the output of said first filter, wherein said decision unit has an input connected to the output of said subtractor and an output connected to the input of said second filter, and wherein said second filter has coefficients weighted by a scalar value comprising a measure of decision reliability.
2. The device of claim 1, further comprising a circuit generating a value for said scalar value.
3. The device of claim 2, wherein said transmitted symbol sequence comprises at least a known symbol sequence and the value of the scalar value is generated based at least in part on accuracy of the decision result of the known symbol sequence.
4. The device of claim 2, wherein said circuit is configured to compare previous symbol sequences produced at the output of the decision unit and regenerated symbol sequences from the decoder.
5. A device configured to process a signal comprising symbol sequences transmitted over a channel, said device comprising:
a first filter having an input receiving said signal;
a delay unit having its input coupled to the output of said first filter;
a second filter having its input coupled to the output of said delay unit;
an adder connected to sum the output of said first filter and the output of said second filter; and
a decision feedback loop comprising a subtractor, a decision unit, and a third filter having substantially the same filter coefficients as said second filter, wherein said subtractor is connected to subtract the output of said third filter from the output of said adder and said decision unit has an input connected to the output of said subtractor and an output connected to the input of said third filter.
6. The device of claim 5, wherein the outputs of the second and third filters are weighted by substantially equivalent scalar values ranging from 0 to 1.
7. The device of claim 5, wherein the outputs of the second and third filters are weighted by scalar values which are related to each other through a pre-defined mapping relation.
8. The device of claim 6, wherein said scalar value represents a reliability factor of the decision feedback input signal.
9. The device of claim 7, wherein said scalar value represents a reliability factor of the decision feedback input signal.
10. The device of claim 6, wherein said first filter comprises a linear equalizer.
11. The device of claim 6, wherein said first filter comprises a linear MMSE equalizer.
12. The device of claim 6, wherein said first filter comprises a linear ZF equalizer.
13. The device of claim 9, further comprising a circuit generating a value for said reliability factor.
14. The device of claim 13, wherein said transmitted symbol sequence comprises at least one known symbol sequence and the value of the reliability factor is generated based at least in part on the known symbol sequence.
15. The device of claim 13, wherein said circuit generates a value for said reliability factor by comparing previous symbol sequences at the output of the decision unit and regenerated symbol sequences from a decoder.
16. The device of claim 6, wherein said transmitted symbol sequence comprises at least a known symbol sequence and said first filter coefficients are selected at least in part by using said known symbol sequence.
17. The device of claim 16, wherein said transmitted symbol sequence comprises a second known symbol sequence and the filter coefficients of the second and third filters are set using the difference between the output symbol sequence of the first filter and said second known symbol sequence.
18. A method of processing a received signal, said method comprising soft-switching between linear equalization and decision feedback equalization.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein said soft-switching comprises changing a reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 to control to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization.
20. The method of claim 18, wherein soft-switching comprises:
performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
increasing said reliability factor;
performing the decision feedback equalization using said symbol estimates from previous constructions;
repeating steps of constructing, increasing and performing decision feedback equalization until the factor is no less than a pre-determined maximum value; and
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are used with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
21. The method of claim 18, wherein soft-switching comprises:
performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
updating said reliability factor;
performing the decision feedback equalization using said symbol estimates from previous constructions;
repeating steps of constructing, updating and performing decision feedback equalization until the increment of the factor is less than a predetermined threshold value or the maximum number of iterations is reached; and
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are used with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
22. The method of claim 21, further comprising performing decoding, wherein said updating comprises comparing previous symbol estimates and regenerated symbol sequences from decoding.
23. The method of claim 21, wherein the received signal is a symbol sequence transmitted over a channel comprising at least a known symbol sequence, and wherein said updating is based at least in part on the known symbol sequence.
24. The method of claim 18, wherein soft-switching comprises:
performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
performing the decision feedback equalization using said symbol estimates from previous decisions;
performing decoding and CRC check;
updating said reliability factor if CRC check is passed;
repeating steps of constructing, performing decision feedback equalization, performing decoding and CRC check, and updating to process transmitted symbol sequences; and
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is relied on for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are applied with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
25. The method of claim 24, wherein said updating comprises comparing previous symbol estimates and regenerated symbol sequences from decoding.
26. A method of processing a received signal, said method comprising:
receiving a signal;
filtering said signal with a first filter;
filtering the output of said first filter with a second filter;
adding the output of said first filter to the output of the second filter;
subtracting a decision feedback signal from the result of said step of adding to provide a signal for decision;
constructing an estimate of the result symbol of said step of subtracting such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols; and
filtering a sequence of said symbol estimates to provide said decision feedback signal with a third filter having substantially the same filter coefficients as said second filter.
27. A device for processing a received signal, said device comprising:
means for receiving said signal; and
means for soft-switching between linear equalization and decision feedback equalization.
28. The device of claim 27, wherein said means for soft-switching comprises means for changing a reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 to control to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization.
29. The device of claim 27, wherein said means for soft-switching comprises:
means for performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
means for constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
means for increasing said reliability factor;
means for performing the decision feedback equalization using said symbol estimates from previous constructions; and
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are used with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
30. The device of claim 27, wherein said means for soft-switching comprises:
means for performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
means for constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
means for updating said reliability factor; and
means for performing the decision feedback equalization using said symbol estimates from previous constructions,
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is used for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are used with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
31. The device of claim 30, furthering comprising means for performing decoding, wherein said means for updating comprises means for comparing previous symbol estimates and regenerated symbol sequences from decoding.
32. The device of claim 30, wherein the received signal is a symbol sequence transmitted over a channel comprising at least a known symbol sequence, and wherein said updating is based at least in part on the known symbol sequence.
33. The device of claim 27, wherein said means for soft-switching comprises:
means for performing linear equalization alone by setting a reliability factor to 0;
means for constructing an estimate of the equalized symbol such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols;
means for performing the decision feedback equalization using symbol estimates from previous constructions;
means for performing decoding and CRC check; and
means for updating said reliability factor if CRC check is passed;
wherein the reliability factor having a value ranging from 0 to 1 controls to what extent a decision feedback signal is relied on for equalization, where no feedback and full feedback are applied with the reliability factor set to 0 and 1 respectively.
34. The device of claim 33, wherein said means for updating comprises means for comparing previous symbol estimates and regenerated symbol sequences from decoding.
35. A device configured to process a received signal, the device comprising:
means for filtering said signal with a first filter;
means for filtering the output of said first filter with a second filter;
means for adding the output of said first filter to the output of the second filter;
means for subtracting a decision feedback signal from the result of adding to provide a signal for constructing;
means for constructing an estimate of the result of subtracting such that the estimate is one of a set of predetermined symbols; and
means for filtering a sequence of said symbol estimates to provide said decision feedback signal with a third filter having substantially the same filter coefficients as said second filter.