WO2022130150A1 - Optosonic sanitisation equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

The operation of the optosonic sanitisation equipment is based on the combined use of high-intensity pulses of light in the range of 405 to 460 nanometres, combined with the action of ultrasound pulses modulated in frequency and phase; this technology is basically oriented toward the destruction and control of the coronavirus. The use of this type of mixed radiation in the clinical treatment of infected persons makes the equipment more effective and suited for decontamination and sterilisation applications. The design incorporates an innovative phase modulator, likewise synchronisation and control elements, enabling a better destructive action on the lipid shell that protects the genetic material of the virus.

Description

OPTO-SONIC SANITIZATION EQUIPMENT

The present invention is developed in the fields of optoelectronics, physics, electronics and biochemistry

The use of light as a sterilizing element has been evolving since the beginning of the 20th century, but this has been done basically through the application of ultraviolet light and in particular the so-called ultraviolet C or UVC light, which is the portion of the ultraviolet spectrum basically comprised between wavelengths between 100 and 279 nanometers, however the use of UVC as a bactericidal and sterilizing element is associated with a series of side effects that limit and in some cases limit its efficiency, it is known that UVC can generate cell mutations and cancer in living beings, as well as it can generate the degradation of commonly used materials, especially plastics. UVC has been used mainly to combat fungi and bacteria, but also as a viricide, this last application has become more important in recent years due to the appearance of diseases caused by viruses that have spread throughout the world such as the virus of the influenza and coronaviruses in general.

There are studies that reveal that UVC can eliminate coronaviruses, but the mechanism by which this takes place is based on the destruction of the genetic material of the virus, which has been seen to cause mutations that in turn create new versions of the virus. .

We have developed a technology for the emission of light radiation that is highly effective in combating viruses and bacteria, this technology has been the subject of patent application MX/a/2020/004121 but is mainly focused on the treatment of patients infected with coronavirus, the current patent application is focused on sanitization and a series of novel elements have been incorporated into it that allow optimizing the use of this type of light radiation, not only in patients but also in everyday objects, places, people and animals. with the idea of preventing the spread and contagion of diseases caused by coronavirus.

Brief description of the invention

The technology used by the opto-sonic sanitization equipment consists of the use of high intensity visible light made up of selected pulses of specific wavelengths between the wavelength of 405 to 460 nanometers and generated through a particular and specific process. that makes possible the emission of light pulses of a base frequency together with certain harmonic frequencies of the same fundamental frequency, which we call stratified generation of light, this process is based on the overexcitation of light-emitting diodes through a technique that allows the generation of light lengths with harmonic wavelengths in a safe way that in turn prevents the destruction of the light-emitting diodes when they are taken far above their operating limits, this technology is combined with the emission of ultrasound in form of pulses synchronized with the emission of optical pulse packets, these ultrasonic pulses being in turn modulated in frequency or in phase to exert a mechanical stress effect on the pathogens that are to be eliminated at the same time that the light pulses weaken the lipid cover that protects the genetic material from the viruses located inside, this being lipid cover a fundamental characteristic of the so-called coronaviruses.

The sterilization technology that concerns us, we call it sanitization technology, this last term being a neologism of widespread use although the Castilian language does not yet recognize it, but which nevertheless allows us to identify quite precisely the function that this technology intends to cover and consists in combining pulses of light of a very particular nature, with pulses of ultrasound synchronized with the pulses of light, to attack and destroy the fat or lipid cover that constitutes the protection of the genetic material of coronaviruses.

Other technologies such as ultraviolet light irradiation focus on attacking the genetic material of the virus, and they do so with continuous light in the range of 100 to 279 nanometers (UVC), which often results in variations in said genetic material and consequently the creation of new varieties of the virus.

The technology used by the opto-sonic sanitization equipment object of the present invention, directly attacks the lipid cover, causing light pulses that weaken it and ultrasound pulses that destroy its structural rigidity to affect it. Figure 1 shows an opto-sonic sanitization equipment (1), which has a stratified light pulse emitter (2) and a modulated ultrasound emitter (3), these emit modulated light pulses (4), as well Like two varieties of ultrasound pulses, frequency modulated ultrasonic pulses (5) and phase modulated ultrasonic pulses (6), it is very important to note that ultrasound pulses can be emitted by electromagnetic or resonant piezoelectric type transducers, being that the electromagnetic transducers can be excited with frequencies within a certain bandwidth, the piezoelectric transducers have a fundamental resonance frequency and if they are excited with frequencies different from this resonance value, the sonic energy they produce decays almost completely, that is That is why we use two different techniques for the generation of ultrasonic irradiation, the main idea is to generate on the surface or lipid cover of the virus, interactions between valleys and peaks of energy subjecting said cover to a mechanical stress that destroys the structural rigidity of the lipid cover at the same time that it has previously been weakened by the action of light pulses.

Figure 2 shows how the interaction of both irradiation beams combine to achieve the destruction of the coronavirus (8). The stratified light pulses have the power to attack fatty tissues such as the lipid protective cover that coronaviruses have and on the other hand the ultrasound pulses, by interacting valleys and crests of said pulses, generate a mechanical stress on the surface of fragmenting the lipid cover and exposing the genetic material, achieving a destroyed coronavirus (7), it is necessary to have an adequate synchronization between the light pulses and the ultrasound pulses, as well as an adequate modulation of the latter in order to optimize the destructive effect.

It is also important to keep in mind that the protein structures that are mounted on the lipid cover in the form of a crown, which gives this type of virus its name, constitute a kind of key with which the virus makes its entrance into the interior of the cell. the cells it invades, if this structure is destroyed, the ability of the virus to penetrate the interior of the cells it intends to infect is also destroyed.

The light that we use to attack the lipid cover of the virus is not ordinary light, it consists of a set of radiations whose wavelengths are a nominal wavelength mixed with radiation of harmonic wavelengths with respect to the nominal wavelength, all these in turn, are within the range that goes from 405 nanometers to 460 nanometers, the way we emit these packets of light with harmonic energy content is based on the quantum concept of the structure of matter, the elements The electronics that we use to emit the light pulses are light-emitting diodes or monochromatic LEDs, which are made up of two crystalline structures linked together and emit light at a theoretically invariable predetermined wavelength by passing carriers (electrons or holes) from one crystal to another, but since the allowable energy level for the charge carrier in crystal "a" is greater than the maximum allowable energy given for said carrier in crystal "b", the excess energy must be dissipated by a photon whose energy is equal to the frequency of the emitted light multiplied by the constant "h" or PLANCK constant and heat, if the energy of the charge carriers, becomes extremely high from the beginning, not only one light emission can be generated, but multiple harmonic light emissions as the carriers pass from an unstable energy level, through several intermediate states until reaching the stable level that already exists. it would not allow a new light emission, for which the remaining energy would have to be dissipated in heat. A graphic representation of the stratified light pulses (9) can be seen in Figure 3.

It shows an opto-sonic sanitization or sterilization equipment with the different types of light and ultrasound energy emission.

It shows an opto-sonic sanitization equipment exerting the action of breaking the lipid layer that covers the virus.

It shows the nature of the stratified light pulses of light.

It shows the control circuit and emission of stratified pulses of light.

Shows the generation of phase modulated ultrasound pulses.

Shows a block diagram of the combined emission of light radiation and ultrasonic radiation

Shows the application of sanitizing technology to a comprehensive protective mask.

It shows a mask with integrated opto-sonic sanitization equipment.

Shows the inside of a sterilization or sanitization maze.

Shows two complementary sterilization or sanitization labyrinths for use in active sterilization masks and face masks.

It shows an opto-sonic sanitization equipment for furniture and public spaces of fixed assembly.

It shows an opto-sonic sanitizing equipment for table.

The stratified light pulse generator is illustrated in Figure 4, where we see that a thermal sensor (18) has been inserted, connected to a set of comparators (14, 17) and a central control (15) to determine the condition in which the array or matrix of light-emitting diodes (20) is found, with the matrix of LEDs and the thermal sensor (18), mounted on the same heat sink, so that the circuit can perform an automatic adjustment that minimizes the thermal surplus and maximizes the optical output of modulated light pulses (4). A primary bank of capacitors (10) and a secondary bank of capacitors (11) are combined in parallel to provide a quick release amount of charge to the array of light emitting diodes (20) through a transistor. of power (12), and a micro resistor (13). This micro resistor has a very low value, generally a few thousandths of an Ohm, and a minimum inductance, without which the stratified release of light effect could not be achieved. two different capacitor banks because one of them has a high charge storage capacity, while the other has a maximum charge release capacity, so that when the power transistor (12), which is a transistor with a resistor extremely low conduction (a few milli Ohms), it is put into full conduction, all the voltage that represents the charges stored in the capacitor banks will be applied on the matrix of monochrome leds ex thus yielding by far the nominal value of the leds' operating voltage, initiating the process of stratified light emission, but the flow of charge (by the carriers) through the array of leds is abruptly interrupted before the matrix or array of leds is destroyed to later allow some time to pass so that the excess thermal energy is dissipated to reapply a new charge induction through the leds, this represents an improvement over previous designs because it allows optimization of the stratified optical power generation.

A central control (15) controls the switching of the power transistor (12) and it does this based on the information it receives regarding the temperature in the array of light-emitting diodes, the current flow through through the microresistance (13) and the voltage through the capacitor banks (10 and 11), a potentiometer (19), allows to determine the average energy level of the light modulated pulses (4), while a regulator (16), provides a stable supply to the central control (15). The above described, shown in Figure 4, constitutes the fundamental part of the stratified pulse generator (31), these stratified light pulses are coordinated with the ultrasonic pulses through the synchrony link (21) in such a way that a first level The modulation of the ultrasonic pulses is controlled by the emission and rest times of the optical emission circuit or stratified pulse generator (31). The array or matrix of light-emitting diodes (20), is made up of an assembly of LEDs in a COB-type structure where it is important to establish a relationship of LEDs connected in series, which in turn are connected in parallel with other lines in such a way that the nominal operating voltage of the array is considerably lower than the excitation voltage to which the capacitor banks (10 and 11) are charged, greater than a 2 to 1 ratio, that is, if the nominal operating voltage of the array matrix of leds configured especially for this application, is 35 Volts, the voltage (+V) at which the capacitor banks are charged, will have a value of 70 or more volts and the capacitance or amount of charge storage of the capacitor banks capacitors, it must be such that said voltage does not decrease more than 5% during the entire conduction period, this is necessary to ensure the stratified secondary emission of photons, which is why it is necessary that the condenser banks Capacitors are made up of capacitors with a high charge storage capacity together with others with a high discharge capacity, for example, aluminum electrolytic capacitors, combined with conductive polymer capacitors and low inductance ceramic capacitors.

The central control circuit (15), is in charge of the control and supervision of the optical pulse emissions at the same time that it is in charge of the synchronization of these pulses with the emission of the ultrasonic pulses and their due modulation. To achieve this, the central control (15) receives a synchronization link (21) and emits a synchronization signal (68), which controls the ultrasound modulator circuit (30).

It is important to note that this sanitizing system uses two types of ultrasonic signals: one modulated in phase and the other modulated in frequency. The ultrasonic transducer 67 can be of two types, electromagnetic or resonant piezoelectric. The first type of ultrasonic transducer (67) can be modulated in frequency over a wide range of values, but not the resonant piezoelectric transducers, which must always work at a certain frequency, the circuits for the modulation and emission of frequency modulated high power ultrasonic pulses, is trivial matter and is not a matter of technological novelty, but not the methodology and circuitry to achieve mechanical pressure points using pulse trains generated by a resonant ultrasonic transducer, it is important to note that they can be achieve focused mechanical pressure effects with absolute control if the interaction of pulses and ultrasonic frequency troughs is managed in a synchronized manner. When a wave crest overlaps with another crest of the same direction within a space, the result is an amplified pressure wave, while if we make valleys coincide with crests, the result is zero mechanical pressure.

The ultrasound modulator circuit (30) that can be seen in Figure 5, constitutes a reliable device and has enormous advantages over a modulator circuit made with microcontrollers, since the latter are generally sensitive to high levels of radio frequency interference. (RFI) that are generated inside the sanitizing equipment with the technology object of the present invention, in which pulses of tens of amperes are handled with switching speeds of a few nanoseconds, which usually causes microcontrollers that are corrupt the flash memory and render the programming useless in the short term. A simple and economical solution far superior to RFI shielding consists of the use of an analog-digital circuit, based on logic gates with Schmitt input that uses a highly stable time base or frequency generator, a low frequency oscillator that controls the modulation and a circuit that uses the different state changes at the output of this oscillator, to generate a phase delay in the pulse trains used to generate the mechanical stress on the lipid cover of the viruses.

Figure 5 shows a diagram of the phased ultrasound modulator, in this a high-precision frequency generator (32), equipped with a calibration potentiometer (29), allows establishing a precise and stable reference frequency, this generator (32), it can be a unit based on oscillation crystals or a precision oscillator integrated circuit such as the LTC6907 or similar that have the advantage over crystal controlled devices, of being able to exactly adjust the frequency according to to the characteristics of the device used as ultrasonic transducer. The output signal of this frequency generator is connected on the one hand to a phase delay circuit (37) and on the other hand to one of the two inputs of a NAND gate (23), it should be remembered that all the gates used in In this design, they are gates with Schmitt input, on the other hand, a low frequency oscillator formed by the NAND gate (22), the resistor (34) and the capacitor (33), gives a square wave output that is connected to an inverter (35), formed by a small field effect transistor and a resistor and whose inverse output is connected to the other input of the NAND gate (23) to which the output of the frequency generator (32) also converges, the output without inverting of the oscillator of the NAND gate (22), it is introduced as one of the inputs of the NAND gate (24), to whose other input the output of the phase retarder (37) is connected, formed by a resistor and two capacitors placed as voltage dividers between the power +V ion and ground; the outputs of the NAND gates (23 and 24), are connected to the inputs of the NAND gate (25), the output of this NAND gate (25) constitutes the continuous output (28), which consists of a signal that coincides in frequency that of the frequency generator (32) but with periodic phase shifts synchronized to the frequency of the oscillator of the NAND gate (22); this continuous output (28), is connected as one of the inputs to the NAND gate (26), whose other input is connected to an RC timer circuit (36), the output of the NAND gate (26), is connected to the inverter formed by the NAND gate (27), which will provide at its output, a signal equal to that of the continuous output (28), but only for a time that will be determined by the RC timer circuit (36), this timer circuit RC, can be replaced by a synchronization signal from the central control circuit (15) or from the stratified pulse generator (31), this signal controls when ultrasound pulses should be emitted and when not, in addition to determining the rhythm or cadence with the which these ultrasound pulses will be released. The output of the inverter formed by the NAND gate (27), is amplified in power by the power electronic circuit (38), which, in turn, controls and feeds the ultrasonic transducer (67), in order to generate the pulses phase-modulated ultrasound (6).

Both the stratified pulse generator circuit (31) and the ultrasound modulator circuit (30), work under the action of the central control (15) as can be seen in Figure 6. A general power supply (39) provides the energy opto-sonic sanitizing equipment is required and lower voltage levels are provided by local voltage regulators. The final output elements of both emitters (light and ultrasound) are made up of the ultrasonic transducer (67) and the emission optics (66), which is responsible for directing the beam of the light pulses at a convenient output angle. according to the application of sanitization or sterilization that is required.

The sanitization or sterilization technology that we have described in the previous pages, which uses the opto-sonic sanitization equipment, can have multiple applications, all based on the use of the combined action of modulated and synchronized ultrasonic pulses and visible light pulses. generated through stratification technology and within a wavelength range that goes from 405 to 460 nanometers, one of these applications is the manufacture of protective masks for epidemic or pandemic events, the purpose of this type of device as the one shown in Figure 7, is to prevent the wearer of this mask from becoming infected at the same time that it is possible to prevent the wearer of the mask from infecting other people. This type of mask allows an easy breathing action at the same time as it has a wide field of vision and protection for both the respiratory system and the eyes; This is a mask that operates by means of rechargeable batteries that allow it to operate for several hours at the same time that it is light, comfortable and easy to carry.

As shown in Figure 7, the protection mask is made up of a transparent screen (40) made of anti-fog material and has an optoelectronic sanitizer (41), equipped with a control module and power source (42), the optoelectronic sanitizer it is formed inside by a transparent labyrinth through which the air entering the facial area circulates while it is irradiated by pulses of blue light (405 to 460 nanometers) and ultrasound, a similar device but that works on the air that is expelled towards the environment, it is on the other side of the protection mask and is based on the same operating principles; the mask is fixed to the head by means of fixing straps (43), an elastic seal (44), allows to have an isolated area at the same time that it makes possible a comfortable feeling when wearing the mask.

A simpler version of this type of application is the protective mask shown in Figure 8. This application has many elements in common with the mask in Figure 7, but in Figure 8, both sides of the device are shown. , where all the active and passive elements are mounted on a rigid mouthpiece (69), it is important to note that the incoming air (45) enters from one side, crosses the internal radiation labyrinth, and reaches the bucco-nasal area where it is sucked in and then expelled and this expelled air comes out in the form of an outgoing air current (46) after passing through a second irradiation labyrinth, the structure of these irradiation labyrinths is shown in Figure 9, in this figure an Optoelectronic Sanitizer can be seen (41) inside which there is an irradiation labyrinth (48) made up of transparent plates that alternate in such a way that the air that circulates inside the Sanitizer it travels a relatively long distance while being irradiated by stratified emission light-emitting leds and ultrasonic waves coming from the ultrasonic transducer (67), a mirror (49), allows the light to bounce and re-radiate the labyrinth consecutively.

In Figure 10 there is another view of the labyrinths of the optoelectronic Sanitizer (41) that are used in the active sanitization or sterilization mask and face masks shown in Figures 7 and 8. Here you can see more clearly the transparent plates (55) that give shape to the irradiation labyrinth, let us remember that in this type of application there is a device for sanitizing the air entering the mask or face mask and a device for sanitizing the air leaving them, an external inlet hole (53 ), allows outside air to enter the sanitizing device, this air, when inhaled by the person wearing the active sanitizing mask or face mask, travels through the irradiation labyrinth (48) and during the time it takes to travel it is irradiated by the stratified light pulses emitted by the Light-emitting LEDs (47) and by the ultrasound pulses generated by the ultrasonic transducer (67), both sets of pulses irradiated, go through the transparent plates (55) and bounce off the mirror (49) located at the bottom of the labyrinth, this geometry allows the inhaled air to travel an extremely long distance being continuously irradiated, a device of 10 cms. long and 3 cm thick, it can develop an internal trajectory greater than 2 meters long, the air that has been inhaled, runs through the labyrinth and exits towards the bucco-nasal area through the internal exit hole (51) that is covered with a flexible cover that constitutes the internal outlet valve (70), this valve works as a Check valve that allows flow in one direction, in this way the air that is inhaled by the person wearing the sanitizing mask or face mask active, it is clean of pathogenic elements and when the individual exhales, the internal outlet valve (70) closes while the internal inlet valve (54) opens giving access to the exhaled air to the outlet labyrinth through the inlet hole internal (50), in such a way that said air runs through this labyrinth until it exits through the external outlet (52), once it has been irradiated, this makes it possible that if the holder of the Sanitizer device (coverb geese or active mask), is sick, the air that he exhales will be sterilized before going outside, preventing other people from being contaminated.

Other applications of this sterilization technology include the sterilization, sanitation or sanitization of public or private open or closed areas, it can for example be used to sterilize the furniture of restaurants, cinemas and theaters automatically and safely without the risk of inducing mutations or carcinogenic side effects or degradation of materials.

A ceiling sanitizer (56) like the one shown in Figure 11, allows the sterilization of the furniture and environment of a restaurant automatically and safely without causing any inconvenience to customers, as shown in Figure 11 a sanitizer device ( 56) placed on the ceiling (57) emits a lighting cone (58) on the furniture (59), the sanitization action of this device can take less than a minute and if the sanitization device is equipped with presence sensors, the device sterilizes the furniture associated with a table when clients leave leaving the table and furniture sanitized for the following clients in less than a minute without

Figure 12 shows a design variant of opto-sonic sanitization equipment for restaurants, in this case the device is placed on the table, which has the advantage of portability but requires a reflector to adequately direct the light beams. and ultrasound, in this case the table sanitizer (60) that is equipped with several presence sensors (61) that let you know when there are people nearby and when they are not, so that the device automatically activates only when it can, a support base (62), support a pole (63), at the end of which a reflector (64) is installed, this reflector is made of a material that allows maximum optical and acoustic reflection, in such a way that the radiation coming from of the stratified light pulse emitters (2) and the modulated ultrasound emitter (3), direct their energy towards the furniture to be sanitized, such as the table (65) and the surrounding chairs.

Opto-sonic sanitizing equipment

Stratified light pulse emitter

Modulated ultrasound emitter

Modulated pulses of light

Frequency modulated ultrasonic pulses.

Phase modulated ultrasonic pulses

coronavirus destroyed

Coronavirus

Graphic representation of stratified pulses of light

Primary capacitor bank

Secondary capacitor bank

power transistor

microresistance

comparator

center controller

Regulator

comparator

thermal sensor

Potentiometer

Array or array of light emitting diodes

sync link

NAND gate

NAND gate

NAND gate

NAND gate

NAND gate

NAND gate

continuous output

Calibration potentiometer

Ultrasound modulator circuit

Stratified pulse generator

frequency generator

Condenser

Endurance

Investor

RC timer circuit

phase retarder

ultrasonic power circuit

overall power supply

transparent screen

Optoelectronic Sanitizer

Control module and power supply

fixing straps

elastic seal

incoming air

Outgoing air

light emitting leds

irradiation maze

Mirror

Internal entry hole

Internal outlet hole

External outlet hole

External input hole

Internal inlet valve

transparent plates

ceiling sanitizer

The ceiling

lighting cone

Furniture

table sanitizer

Presence sensor

Base

Post

Reflector

Table

emission optics

ultrasonic transducer

sync signal

Rigid face mask

Internal outlet valve

Claims (4)

An opto-sonic sanitization equipment characterized in that it comprises an emitter or pulse generator of modulated stratified light and an ultrasound modulator circuit that has an emitter of ultrasonic pulses modulated in phase and frequency where the modulated stratified light emitter consists of a electronic device that uses an array of light-emitting diodes powered by a circuit that provides it with voltage pulses higher than the nominal operating level of said array, which is placed on a heatsink connected to a temperature sensor which, at its At the same time, it is connected to a set of level comparators and to a central control unit that manages the switching times of a power transistor in charge of connecting the diode matrix with the voltage boost contained in capacitor banks, which comprise a mixture of high-capacity charge storage capacitors and high-capacity capacitors This discharge capacity is such that the discharge path of the capacitors towards the diode array passes through a micro reference resistance that acts as an energy sensing element together with the central control circuit and the thermal sensor, with the control circuit being central control in turn connected to an ultrasonic pulse generation circuit by means of a synchronization system that controls the optical emission and the simultaneous ultrasonic emission, the ultrasonic emission circuit being characterized in that it has a precision frequency generator connected to a circuit modulation or phase shift, a high power circuit and an ultrasonic transducer where the phase shift circuit is made up of a set of logic gates, one of which works as an oscillator which in turn is connected to the circuit that with logic gates allows the production of pulse trains consisting of l The reference base frequency provided by the precision pulse generator and alternatively these same pulses that by passing them through a phase retarder alternatively provides the power generator and the ultrasonic transducer connected to it with a signal with a base frequency but with movements in phase or frequency. The opto-sonic sanitization equipment in accordance with claim 1 where the stratified light pulse generator is a device that generates light pulses characterized by comprising sets of pulses of preset wavelengths between 405 and 460 nanometers and forming a set containing light corresponding to the nominal wavelength of the monochromatic diode array and a series of secondary emissions of harmonic wavelengths with respect to the nominal wavelength. The opto-sonic sanitization equipment in accordance with claims 1 and 2, structured in such a way that its basic optical and ultrasonic emission elements are placed inside a transparent labyrinth through which the inhaled and exhaled air is circulated towards the inside of a mask or a face mask for health protection where the optical emitters are light-emitting diodes placed at one end of a hollow body in the shape of a rectangular prism inside which a series of transparent plates are placed that allow light to pass through and part of sound and that force the air that enters through one end of said rectangular prism to follow a path that has a length determined by the number of plates that make up said internal labyrinth, with a mirror and an emitter being placed on the opposite side of the light emitters ultrasonic on the same side as the light emitters, each with two sanitizing bodies inside which two separate transparent labyrinths there is an air inlet hole and an outlet hole, one of the two sanitizing elements having an outlet valve and the other with an inlet valve, these Check-type valves being made up of flexible sheets placed on their corresponding holes, each of these labyrinthine devices being equipped with their corresponding control circuits and power supply batteries. The opto-sonic sanitization equipment in accordance with 1 and 2 is equipped and also has a presence sensor, a reflector, and a base for installation.

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