US07688842B2
A method for in-place, lightweight Ack packet promotion in a wireless network environment is provided. The method includes receiving a new Ack packet via a wireless network; searching through a transmit queue for an old Ack packet that corresponds to the new Ack packet; and replacing the data in a number field, a checksum field, a window size field, and a timestamp options field of the old Ack packet with data in a number field, a checksum field, a window size field, and a timestamp options field of the new Ack packet.
US07688841B2
In conjunction with a wiring in a house carrying data network signal, a modular outlet comprising of a base module and interface module. The base module connects to the wiring and attached to a wall. The interface module provides a data unit connection. The interface module is mechanically attached to the base module and electrically connected thereto. The wiring may also carry basic service signal such as telephone, electrical power and cable television (CATV). In such a case, the outlet will provide the relevant connectivity either as part of the base module or as part of the interface module. Both proprietary and industry standard interfaces can be used to interconnect the module. Furthermore, a standard computer expansion card (such as PCI, PCMCIA and alike) may be used as interface module.
US07688835B2
A communication system and a method of communicating data. A first backhaul site can be dynamically selected from a plurality of backhaul sites that are each configured to wirelessly communicate with an access point. A controller can dynamically configure a transmission parameter used to communicate a first backhaul data stream between the access point and the first backhaul site. The first backhaul data stream can be derived from a source data stream and can be wirelessly communicated between the access point and the first backhaul site. A second backhaul site also can be selected. A second backhaul data stream also can be derived from the source data stream and wirelessly communicated between the access point and the second backhaul site. The first and second backhaul data streams can be combined.
US07688824B2
A cable modem method, system, and computer program product are provided for payload header suppression in which a limited number of suppression indices is used to map suppression rules to data streams. Network resources are conserved by implementing precise classification algorithms to correctly identify incoming packets at the cable modem as belonging to a particular data stream, which ensures that a minimum number of suppression indices are utilized. Additionally, network resources are conserved by utilizing sophisticated algorithms for reusing suppression indices when new data streams are detected by the cable modem. One such reuse algorithm involves recycling the suppression index that has been least recently used in transmitting a packet with a suppressed payload header.
US07688823B2
An efficient mechanism for wire-tapping network traffic is disclosed. In one embodiment of the invention, a primary forwarding lookup process and a secondary forwarding lookup process are performed in parallel and independently of each other. The primary forwarding lookup process determines the output interface to which the packet is to be routed regardless of whether the packet is to be intercepted. The secondary forwarding lookup process determines whether the packet is to be intercepted and also determines the output interface to which a copy of the packet is to be routed. Because the lookup processes are performed independently and in parallel, normal packet forwarding can be performed at line rate or near line rate while the packets are intercepted.
US07688822B2
The present invention relates to a multiplexer, a multiplexing method, a program, and a recording medium, whereby TS packets encoded with different encoding methods can be multiplexed. In the event of multiplexing each TS packet of a BS audio TS 173 wherein a BS audio ES 171 encoded with a first encoder is subjected to TS packetizing, and each TS packet of an HQ audio TS 183 wherein an HQ audio ES 181 encoded with a second encoder is subjected to TS packetizing, a control unit assumes a first virtual decoder capable of decoding a BS audio ES alone, and a second virtual decoder capable of decoding an HQ audio ES alone, and determines TS packets to be multiplexed based on an elementary buffer of each virtual decoder, a data transfer rate for the elementary buffer, and multiplexing constraints for random access. The present invention can be applied to a multiplexer configured to multiplex TS packets.
US07688820B2
A method in Field Programmable Gate Array for processing packets received at a media gateway is provided. The method includes ascertaining whether a received packet is a UDP (User Datagram Protocol) packet. The method also includes comparing first portion of UDP destination port number from UDP packet header with first portion with UDP port base that has been set up in media gateway. If a match exist, employing second portion of UDP destination port number as a key to UDP port table to ascertain whether packets associated with media stream ID are to be discarded, and discarding received packet if packet associated with media stream ID is to be discarded. If not, obtaining media processing CPU ID associated with media stream ID, formulating destination MAC address, and updating packet with destination MAC address, thereby enabling packet to be switched to media processing CPU associated with media processing CPU ID.
US07688815B2
An interconnect switch stores data messages received from one or more source devices and prioritizes the data messages received from each source device based on the order that the data messages were received from the source device. For each available destination device associated with the interconnect switch, the interconnect switch identifies the data messages with the highest priority that are to be routed to the available destination device and selects one of the identified data messages for the available destination device. The interconnect switch then routes the selected data messages to the available destination devices.
US07688814B2
Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, and also to devices adapted to function as such disaggregated elements, particularly across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity, blind ACKs, NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.
US07688813B2
Disclosed is a monitoring control system and method that can minimize network delay between a local side PC and a phone side PC when monitoring a mobile communication device in real time. By consecutively sending a plurality of monitoring requests for monitoring the mobile communication device via the Internet, monitoring the mobile communication device and consecutively receiving a plurality of monitoring results corresponding to the plurality of monitoring requests via the Internet, real time monitoring of the mobile communication device is facilitated with minimized delay.
US07688811B2
A packet-based, hierarchical communication system, arranged in a spanning tree configuration, is described in which wired and wireless communication networks exhibiting substantially different characteristics are employed in an overall scheme to link portable or mobile computing devices. The network accommodates real time voice transmission both through dedicated, scheduled bandwidth and through a packet-based routing within the confines and constraints of a data network. Conversion and call processing circuitry is also disclosed which enables access devices and personal computers to adapt voice information between analog voice stream and digital voice packet formats as proves necessary. Routing pathways include wireless spanning tree networks, wide area networks, telephone switching networks, internet, etc., in a manner virtually transparent to the user. A voice session and associate call setup simulates that of conventional telephone switching network, providing well-understood functionality common to any mobile, remote or stationary terminal, phone, computer, etc.
US07688793B2
A wireless sensor node can obtain (102) a wireless sensor node group affiliation pursuant to an affiliation formation process and then subsequently transmit (103) information regarding that wireless sensor node group affiliation. By one approach this affiliation formation process can comprise, at least in part, using wireless sensor node group affiliation information as corresponds to other wireless sensor nodes. Such wireless sensor node group affiliation information as corresponds to other wireless sensor nodes might be received, for example, directly from that other wireless sensor node and/or via an intermediary wireless sensor node that acts to forward such information from the other wireless sensor node.
US07688781B2
A system for reducing the bandwidth required to wirelessly transmit a packet via a wireless network is provided. In an embodiment, the system includes a transmitting node configured to generate a packet to be transmitted via the wireless network, to select a suppression rule from a table of suppression rules based on the type of the packet to be transmitted, to apply the suppression rule to the packet to generate a suppressed packet, wherein the transmitter node applies the suppression rule by suppressing at least a portion of the header of the packet and by adding a descriptor associated with the header suppression rule to the packet, and to transmit the suppressed packet via the wireless network. The system also includes a receiving node configured to receive the suppressed packet from the transmitting node via the wireless network, to select an expansion rule from a table of expansion rules based on the descriptor included with the suppressed packet, and to apply an expansion rule to the packet to generate an expanded packet.
US07688779B2
A method, computer program product and system for handling the use of multiple 802.11n channels in a location where there are a small number of available channels. An access point (“access point A”) having a client (“client A”) located solely within its coverage area and another client (“client B”) located within its coverage area and a coverage area of an adjacent access point (“access point B”) may receive a request to hold back 802.11n traffic from client B. Client B sends such a request since it is prevented from communicating with access point B using the 802.11n standard due to the interference from access point A communicating with client A using the 802.11n standard. As a result, access point A switches its standard of operation from using the 802.11n standard to communicate with client A to a standard that uses a bandwidth of 22 MHz (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11g standards).
US07688777B2
Methods and systems in a wireless receiver for enabling the reception of input signals at varied power levels in the presence of co-channel interference utilizing combinations of space-time adaptive processing (STAP), interference cancellation multi-user detection (MUD), and combined STAP/MUD techniques. In MUD, code, timing, and possibly channel information of multiple users are jointly used to better detect each individual user. The novel combination of adaptive signal reconstruction techniques with interference cancellation MUD techniques provides accurate temporal cancellation of interference with minimal interference residuals. Additional methods and systems extend adaptive signal reconstruction techniques to take Doppler spread into account. STAP techniques permit a wireless receiver to exploit multiple antenna elements to form beams in the direction of the desired signal and nulls in the direction of the interfering signals. The combined STAP-MUD methods and systems increase the probability of successful user detection by taking advantage of the benefits of each reception method. An additional method and system utilizes STAP techniques in the case where no pilot signal is available. This method compares the outputs of various hypothesized STAP solutions.
US07688769B2
A method is provided for allocating a transmission period in a wireless network system. An access point (AP) transmits a PSMP frame indicating a downlink period and an uplink period allocated to each station (STA), and at least one sub PSMP frame indicating an allocated downlink period for at least one of a retransmission of downlink data and a transmission of an ACK indicating successful receipt of uplink data. After exchanging data with the AP in the downlink and uplink periods indicated by the PSMP frame, an STA receives the each sub PSMP frame, and performs at least one of a reception of the retransmitted downlink data and a reception of the ACK in the downlink period indicated by the each sub MAP frame.
US07688760B2
A communication system is provided that allows a Hybrid Access Terminal (HAT) that is monitoring, or is engaged in a circuit voice call in, a circuit switched network and has a dormant packet data session anchored on a packet switched network, to send packet data to, and to receive packet data from, a packet data network connected to the packet switched network without having to switch to the packet switched network and even though a packet data session is not established in the circuit switched network.
US07688758B2
Node merging methods and apparatus are disclosed for generating simplified representations of network topology. A first topology representative of a given network is determined, and at least one pair of nodes of the first topology is merged into a single node based on measures associated with respective edges connecting the nodes of the node pair to at least one neighbor node common to that pair. The merging step is repeated for one or more additional pairs of nodes to produce a reduced network topology meeting one or more desired criteria, and a visualization or other representation of the reduced network topology is generated.
US07688752B2
Provided are a scheduling method and apparatus for guaranteeing real-time service quality of Wireless Broadband (WiBro) customer premises equipment (CPE). The scheduling apparatus includes: a real-time protocol (RTP) packet monitoring unit for monitoring an RTP packet passing through a local area network (LAN) section and detecting a bandwidth of real-time service; and a queue managing unit for determining a window size corresponding to the bandwidth of real-time service checked by the RTP packet monitoring unit and generating/changing a real-time service queue. The scheduling method and apparatus monitor an RTP packet and adjust a real-time service queue, thereby ensuring real-time service quality of terminals.
US07688750B2
A method for detecting transmission quality is provided. The method includes following steps. First, the second electronic apparatus receives several data packets through a wireless channel. The data packets are sent by the first electronic apparatus. Next, the second electronic apparatus obtains a received signal strength indication and a bit error rate according to the data packets, Then, the second electronic apparatus determines an effective bandwidth according to the received signal strength indication and bit error rate. Afterwards, the second electronic apparatus determines a signal quality index according to the effective bandwidth and a packet delay rate. Therefore, a user of the second electronic apparatus is able to know a connecting status of a wireless media product.
US07688748B2
PageRank (PR) is used by web search engine Google in ranking individual web pages. However, it is known that this value is also easily manipulated by methods known as spoofing. Further, the calculation of PR will require iterative cycles of computations to achieve a “steady” value. This would mean that huge computation resources are required to obtain reasonably reliable PR values for various web pages. This invention provides relatively accurate and simple methods for ranking the importance of a node in a network. The web graph or the network is first represented by an incidence matrix or a representation matrix W. The matrix W is then self-multiplied to obtain flow matrix. The flow capacity, or the rank of each node, is then obtained from the flow matrix.
US07688744B2
A broadband test line-access board includes at least two broadband test line-access units. Each of the at least two broadband test line-access units includes first, second, and third test terminals, a signal splitter, first, second, and third switches, and first second and third interface terminals. The broadband test line-access board further includes a set of inner test buses, including an internal inner-test bus, an internal outer-test bus and an internal auxiliary-test bus, and fourth, fifth, and sixth switches, and a low-pass filter.
US07688743B2
A routing validation method and system identifies routers that are likely to be the cause of differences in forwarding tables associated with two versions of a network. Each destination sub-network prefix is processed to identify all the routers that exhibit differences in their forwarding table for this prefix. Each router exhibiting a difference is assessed to determine whether the difference may have been propagated to this router from another router. If the difference could not have been propagated from another router, this router is identified as a potential source of the observed difference. By eliminating routers that could have received the effects of the differences from another router, the task of identifying the root cause of the observed differences is substantially reduced in complexity.
US07688741B2
A method for testing of a communication network, using a plurality of traffic agents coupled to communicate via the network. The method includes transmitting a sequence of data packets via the network from a first one of the traffic agents to a second one of the traffic agents and recording arrival characteristics of the packets in the sequence, responsive to receiving the packets at the second traffic agent. The arrival characteristics of different packets in the sequence are compared so as to determine a measure of variability in transmission of the packets via the network.
US07688738B2
A router architecture with one or more network interfaces, processing, switching and forwarding elements, each which has one or more processing units capable of processing network traffic to provide at least a portion of a network service. The switching element is capable of acting as a proxy to the processing elements while each of the forwarding elements are capable of receiving network traffic on the network interface and are capable to delegate processing of network traffic toward processing elements through at least one switching element.
US07688733B1
A communication control system for bandwidth selection in a communication network includes a display device, an input device, a communication interface configured to transfer a bandwidth selection command to the communication network, and a processing system. The processing system is configured to display a graphical bandwidth selection indicium on the display device. The graphical bandwidth selection indicium includes two or more bandwidth indicia. The processing system is further configured to receive a user input from the input device in response to the graphical bandwidth selection indicium. The user input selects a particular bandwidth indicium of the two or more bandwidth indicia. The processing system is further configured to translate the user input into the bandwidth selection command and transfer the bandwidth selection command to the communication interface. The user input generates bandwidth selection command for a communication session in the communication network.
US07688731B2
The invention relates to methods and apparatus for controlling traffic congestion of communication traffic in a communication network. The network includes a first node which is operable to receive communication traffic in the form of data from one of more sending nodes and to pass that data to one or more receiving nodes. The method includes monitoring the possible output data rate of the first node and detecting if the possible output data rate becomes smaller than a maximum data rate value and responsive to that monitoring step performing congestion control whereby the data throughput of a flow of data through the first node is decreased.
US07688730B2
A system and method allocates bandwidth for a plurality of data sources within a communications network. The data sources each generate data and transmit the generated data along communications channels in a shared communications link of the communications network. Each data source includes a data sensor for sensing data generation at each data source indicative of network resource usage. A node is connected to the communications link for receiving the data generated from respective data sources. A controller is associated with at least one of the node and each data sensor and data source for establishing data sensor detection thresholds, reallocating excess data capacity from underused channels to those channels requiring excess data capacity, and setting new data detection thresholds for each data sensor based on reallocated data rates at each data source.
US07688729B2
The present invention is applicable to access networks across which virtual connections have been provisioned to meet traffic and QoS requirements. The present invention improves service integrity by controlling the right for a service instance to use the network resources that have been provisioned for its class of service. Whenever a subscriber requests a service that requires a pre-determined bandwidth with a pre-determined QoS, one checks whether the virtual connection over which the service will be delivered to the subscriber can convey the required bandwidth with the required QoS. According to the check outcome, the service is granted or denied to the subscriber. The present invention may further improve the usage of the network resources. This second object is achieved by adapting the configuration of the access network according to the real traffic demand.
US07688726B2
According to one embodiment, a broadcast reception apparatus includes a reception unit which receives a broadcast signal, and outputs a transport stream, a first determination unit which receives the transport stream as TS packets, and determines whether a PES header exists in each TS packet, a second determination unit which determines whether the PES header is normal, when the first determination unit detects the PES header, a search unit which detects a payload start position by searching the TS packet sequentially from the rear end, when the second determination unit determines the PES header to be abnormal, a separator which separates payloads at and after the payload start position, and a decoder which decodes the separated payloads of the TS packets, and outputs video and audio signals.
US07688721B2
Distributed communication traffic control systems and methods are disclosed. An amount of communication traffic received from a traffic management device and stored in a communication traffic queue at a communication device is monitored. Based on the amount of communication traffic stored in the communication traffic queue, a determination is made, at the communication device, as to whether a traffic management action is to be performed. If a traffic management action is to be performed, the traffic management device is controlled to perform the determined traffic management action. The traffic management device may receive an indication of the determined traffic management action from a distributed traffic controller in the communication device, for example, and perform the traffic management action responsive to the indication.
US07688718B2
A system for enabling data packets of variable size to be used on Bluetooth communication links over Universal Serial Bus (USB) is provided. A host device is configured to identify a target device with Bluetooth capabilities. The host device may determine a USB alternate setting for Bluetooth communication having data packets of variable sizes and establish a Bluetooth connection link with the target device having the determined USB alternate setting. Data packets are provided to the target device with variable sizes up to a maximum size associated with the alternate setting. In one implementation, the USB alternate setting is a new setting that is added to an existing Bluetooth SIG specification.
US07688710B2
An adaptable orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing system (OFDM) that uses a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) to having OFDM signals transmitted either in accordance with time diversity to reducing signal fading or in accordance with spatial diversity to increase the data rate. Sub-carriers are classified for spatial diversity transmission or for time diversity transmission based on the result of a comparison between threshold values and at least one of three criteria. The criteria includes a calculation of a smallest eigen value of a frequency channel response matrix and a smallest element of a diagonal of the matrix and a ratio of the largest and smallest eigen values of the matrix.
US07688708B2
An improved method is provided for reducing inter-carrier interference in the CDMA subchannels of hybrid OFDMA-CDMA systems. The results of decoding OFDMA tones are used to at least partially cancel interference from CDMA tones. Then, the CDMA tones are decoded. In specific embodiments, control information is obtained by an initial step of decoding the CDMA tones. The control information is used in decoding the OFDMA tones. Then, the decoding of the OFDMA tones and the decoding of the CDMA tones are performed iteratively, such that at least one instance of OFDMA decoding is used to cancel interference from the CDMA tones, and at least one instance of CDMA decoding is used to obtain improved control information for decoding the OFDMA tones.
US07688705B2
An information recording medium is provided, which comprises a plurality of recording layers and a first disc information area for storing parameters relating to access to the plurality of recording layers and formats relating to the plurality of recording layers. The first disc information area is provided in a first recording layer which is one of the plurality of recording layers.
US07688694B2
An optical data recording method for a disk drive having a plurality of rotation speeds. First, a plurality of write strategies corresponding to different possible rotation speeds of the disk drive is provided. Next, the practical rotation speed of the disk drive is detected. Next, the write strategy is selected according to the detected rotation speed of the disk drive. Next, optical data is written to an optical disc with the selected write strategy. Finally, the practical rotation speed of the disk drive is continuously detected during writing of optical data, and optical data is written to the optical disc with different write strategy when the practical rotation speed of the disk drive is changed to correspond to different write strategy.
US07688692B2
An optical storage apparatus, a preamplifier and a method of generating a tracking error signal. The optical storage apparatus includes a pickup head, a preamplifier, and a servo control. The pickup head generates radio frequency (RF) signals. The preamplifier includes a signal adjusting apparatus, a phase detector, a charge pump, and a circuit. The signal adjusting apparatus has input terminals for receiving the RF signals. At least two of the input terminals are substantially short-circuited when the optical storage apparatus is in a calibration mode. The phase detector generates control signals based on the phase differences between the radio frequency signals. The circuit generates current control signal based on the tracking error signal when the optical storage apparatus is in the calibration mode. The current magnitude of at least one of the current sources in the charge pump is determined according to the current control signal.
US07688685B1
In an information recording/reproducing method performing a thermo-magnetic recording, a tracking offset value of a recording light spot and/or a tracking offset value of a magnetic flux detecting element is changed in accordance with a radial position at which a tracking is performed at the present time, to make a direction of a magnetic wall of a recording magnetic domain in accord with a longitudinal direction of the magnetic flux detecting element. Alternatively, a shape of a heated area is changed to be in accord with the direction of the magnetic flux detecting means at respective radial position, to make the direction of the magnetic wall of the recording magnetic domain in accord with the longitudinal direction of the magnetic flux detecting element.
US07688683B2
In one embodiment, the present invention provides an event recording system that has an event-capture module, an editing module, and a media recording module. The event capture module captures an event signal, such as an audio signal from a sound event, and transforms the signal into a primary event file that is accessible as it is being formed. The editing module is communicatively connected to the event capture module. It accesses and parses the primary event file into one or more digital track files that can be recorded onto a recording media. Likewise, the media recording module is communicatively linked to the editing module for receiving the one or more digital track files from the editing module. The media recording module has a plurality of media recorders for simultaneously recording the one or more digital track files onto a plurality of recording media. This allows a plurality of recording media, with the entire event recorded upon each media, to be available shortly after the event has ended.
US07688678B2
One embodiment of the invention includes a processing subsystem (30) responsive to the detection of sound coming from a room (26) to establish an acoustic impulse response for the room (26), and determine a number of sound reflections corresponding to the impulse response. This subsystem (30) is further operable to determine volume of the room (26), one or more dimensions of the room (26) and/or at least one absorption coefficient of a room boundary as a function of the sound reflections.
US07688666B2
Example embodiments relate to a memory system and a method of controlling power thereof. The memory system may include a memory device and a memory controller. The memory device may be configured to be set to a specific power characteristic mode in response to a mode register set command so as to provide a power characteristic information corresponding to the specific power characteristic mode. The memory controller may be configured to provide the mode register set command to the memory device, configured to read the power characteristic information corresponding to the specific power characteristic mode from the memory device, configured to generate a power control information based on the power characteristic information, configured generate a command in response to the power control information, and provide the command to the memory device according to the power control information.
US07688664B2
An electrical fuse circuit including: a capacitor composing an electrical fuse; a write circuit breaking an insulating film of the capacitor by applying voltage to between both terminals of the capacitor in accordance with a write signal; and a precharge circuit precharging with respect to the terminal of the capacitor, is provided.
US07688661B2
An internal voltage generator when activated, generates an internal voltage to be supplied to an internal circuit. Operating the internal voltage generator consumes a predetermined amount of the power. In response to a control signal from the exterior, an entry circuit inactivates the internal voltage generator. When the internal voltage generator is inactivated, the internal voltage is not generated, thereby reducing the power consumption. By the control signal from the exterior, therefore, a chip can easily enter a low power consumption mode. The internal voltage generator is exemplified by a booster for generating the boost voltage of a word line connected with memory cells, a substrate voltage generator for generating a substrate voltage, or a precharging voltage generator for generating the precharging voltage of bit lines to be connected with the memory cells.
US07688658B2
According to the present invention, an intra-macro match determining circuit 111 internally determines whether or not n test outputs from each macro all have the same level. The result of the determination is combined with some of the test outputs, and the resultant signal is output to a tester. Thus, the determination result for a match is combined with the test outputs instead of a particular value. Consequently, the same expected value can also be used for individual macro testing, and output bits are assigned to each of the macros. Therefore, in internally performing a comparison with the expected value, the tester can easily detect defective macros.
US07688655B2
Disclosed is a semiconductor memory device, in which the refresh period of a fail cell or cells is set so as to be shorter than that of the normal cells, comprises a control circuit for exercising control in such a manner that, if, when refreshing the cell of a first address, generated responsive to a refresh command, with an input control signal being of a first value, a second address, differing as to the value of a predetermined bit from the first address, is determined to correspond to a fail cell, based on the information ore-programmed in a refresh redundant ROM, the cell of the second address is refreshed, and also in such a manner that, if, with the input control signal of a second value, the second address, differing as to the value of a predetermined bit from the first address, is determined to correspond to a fail cell, based on the predetermined information, only the cell of the second address is refreshed, without refreshing the cell of the first address, generated responsive to the refresh command.
US07688646B2
A nonvolatile latch circuit that exhibits improved the performance of a system is presented. The nonvolatile latch circuit is capable of storing all kinds of the states generated during the operation of the system as non-volatility information. The nonvolatile latch circuit is capable of restoring the previous state where of power is unexpectedly interrupted when the system is re-booting. The present invention includes an input control unit, a data control unit, a storage control unit, a clock control unit, a data transition detecting unit, and a data output unit.
US07688643B2
A memory system includes an array of solidstate memory devices which are in communication with and under the control of a controller module via a device bus with very few lines. This forms an integrated-circuit mass storage system which is contemplated to replace a mass storage system such as a disk drive memory in a computer system. Command, address and data information are serialized into component strings and multiplexed before being transferred between the controller module and the array of memory devices. The serialized information are is accompanied by a control signal to help sort out the multiplexed components. Each memory device in the array is mounted on a multi-bit mount and assigned an array address by it an array mount. An A memory device is selected by an appropriate address broadcast over the device bus, without requiring the usual dedicated select signal. A reserved array particular mount multi-bit configuration is used to unconditionally select the device mounted thereon. A reserved predefined address broadcast over the device bus deselects all previously selected memory devices. Read performance is enhanced by a read streaming technique in which while a current chunk of data is being serialized and shifted out of the memory subsystem devices to the controller module, the controller module is also setting up the address for the next chunk of data to begin to address the memory system.
US07688635B2
A current sensing data read/verify process and sense amplifier is described that senses memory cells of a non-volatile memory array utilizing a current sensing process that places a current source to provide current to the bit line. The voltage level of the bit line is then set by the current provided by the current source and the current sunk from the bit line through the selected memory cell to the source line, which is dependent on the threshold voltage of its programmed or erased state. If the selected memory cell is erased, current flows through the memory cell to the source line and the bit line voltage falls. If the selected memory cell is programmed, little or no current flows through the cell, and the bit line voltage rises and is sensed by the sense amplifier.
US07688632B2
A nonvolatile semiconductor memory of the present invention includes a plurality of bit lines and word lines which are arranged to intersect each other; a memory cell array having a plurality of electrically-programmable memory cells arranged in a region in which the bit lines and the word lines intersect; a trimming circuit configured to obtain a parameter of an initial program voltage for each word line of the plurality of word lines; an initial Vpgm parameter register configured to receive the parameter of the initial program voltage from the trimming circuit and to store the parameter; and a control circuit configured to perform programming of data to the memory cell array based on the parameter of the initial program voltage stored in the initial Vpgm parameter register, the trimming circuit being arranged in a part of the control circuit.
US07688600B2
In a multi-resonance converter for converting a first DC voltage into a second DC voltage, wherein the output of a half-bridge comprising semiconductor switches is connected through a resonance capacitor to the primary winding of a transformer and the secondary winding of the transformer, together with rectifier elements, an output inductor and an output capacitor, forms a current output, it is proposed that a controller, which can be supplied which the voltage across the output capacitor and a reference voltage, should control the semiconductor switches alternately so that one of the semiconductor switches is respectively turned on at a predetermined time after the other semiconductor switch is turned off. Preferably, the frequency is controlled in an upper range of the drawn power while in a lower range of the drawn power, the mark-space ratio is controlled for selected respectively constant frequencies.
US07688598B2
The protection of sensitive components on printed circuit boards by using planar transient protection material in one or more layers of a printed circuit board stackup is disclosed.
US07688595B2
Various cable entry port assemblies are disclosed. One embodiment includes a single boot assembly for supporting one power cable. Another embodiment includes two or more boot assemblies supported along a horizontal axis. Other embodiments include at least two boot assemblies supported along a vertically extending axis to form a column of boot assemblies. Another embodiment includes at least one column of boot assemblies and at least one row of boot assemblies. Methods for reducing an amount of interference traveling on a cable from one component located outside of a structure to another component located within the structure are also disclosed.
US07688589B2
A heat dissipation module for an electronic device includes a base disk, a suction disk, a water guide and a cover. The base has a containing space and a plurality of cooling strips. The suction base is attached to the base disk and further includes a water chamber for receiving sucked water, an inlet and an outlet. The water guide is attached to the suction disk with a guide port at the periphery thereof. The cover closes the suction disk and is movably joined to a guide fan. When the heat dissipation module is full with fluid, the fluid can flow therein rapidly while the guide fan rotating such that the fluid is discharged from and flows into the heat dissipation module more effectively.
US07688584B1
A rack-mount case system for receiving, supporting and storing electronics equipment includes a slide-out frame closely received and shock mounted in a case. The system includes a cooling unit having at least one heat sink in fluid communication with a first blower and a manifold in fluid communication with a second blower. A thermoelectric unit is located between the heat sink and the manifold to provide a compact cooling unit that may be secured to a side of the slide-out frame with a bracket, for example.
US07688583B1
A synthetic jet includes an inner wall configured to surround a heat-generating component, a plurality of walls coupled to the inner wall, the inner wall and the plurality of walls configured to enclose a volume surrounding the inner wall, an actuator coupled to one of the plurality of walls and the inner wall. The inner wall has a plurality of orifices formed therein configured to direct a fluid toward the heat-generating component upon activation of the actuator.
US07688582B2
In a power supply unit disposed below a floor behind a seat, battery modules are disposed in a lower position, and a DC/DC converter and a motor driving inverter are disposed side by side in a vehicle width direction above the battery modules. Thus, cooling air flowing from the front side to the rear side of a vehicle body is divided into upper and lower portions to cool in parallel the DC/DC converter and the motor driving inverter on the upper side and the battery modules on the lower side. Thus, it is possible to simplify a passage of the cooling air to reduce the size of the entire power supply unit, and improve mountability of the power supply unit on the vehicle body. Also, it is possible to apply low temperature cooling air, before heat exchange, to the battery module, the DC/DC converter, and the motor driving inverter.
US07688578B2
A modular high-density computer system has an infrastructure that includes a framework component forming a plurality of bays and has one or more cooling components. The computer system also has one or more computational components that include a rack assembly and a plurality of servers installed in the rack assembly. Each of the one or more computational components is assembled and shipped to an installation site separately from the infrastructure and then installed within one of the plurality of bays after the infrastructure is installed at the site.
US07688573B2
A cover assembly is provided for an enclosure, such as an electrical enclosure. The enclosure includes a panel member and a plurality of sides extending outwardly from the panel member to define an interior. The cover assembly includes an inner cover, at least one fastening mechanism fastening the inner cover to the enclosure, a trim member at least partially overlaying the inner cover, and at least one biasing assembly coupling the trim member to the inner cover. The at least one biasing assembly biases the trim member toward the inner cover, and is structured to bias the trim member toward an exterior surface of a structure, such as a building wall, to which the electrical enclosure is coupled.
US07688566B2
An electric firing device for fireworks comprising a circuit board (7) fixed inside of a mounting clip (8); a firing slot (6) set in the front of the circuit board (7); a resistance wire (5) welded on the circuit board (7) together with a conductive wire pair (9) and straddled on said U shaped firing slot (6); a firework lead wire slot (4) set on the mounting clip (8); and a lead wire propulsion stop plate (2) set on a top cover (1) and engaged with the mounting clip (8). The resistance wire (5) is made of a resistance wire with good electricity to heat conversion capability (such as tungsten wire, nichrome wire, constantan wire, and so on) and spirally-wound.
US07688563B2
A temperature sensing extension cord comprising of an extension cord having an electrical conductor, a male electrical plug in electrical communication with the electrical conductor, and a female socket in electrical communication with the electrical conductor; and a thermochromatic material in contact with the extension cord, the thermochromatic material configured to change from a first color to a second color upon detecting a temperature at or above a threshold temperature.
US07688553B1
A disk drive head-gimbal assembly includes a flexure that is modified to address the effects that the operating temperature of the disk drive may have on fly height. Generally, the flexure tongue is split into a leading edge flexure tongue section and a trailing edge flexure tongue section that are separated by a slider decoupling section. The slider decoupling section structurally interconnects the leading and trailing edge flexure tongue section, and further provides a reduced contact area with the slider. This reduced contact limits the ability of the flexure tongue to induce a positive crown on the air bearing surface of the slider.
US07688550B2
A head suspension for a hard disk drive includes a base to be attached to a carriage of the head disk drive and turned around a spindle. A load beam includes a rigid part and a resilient part separated from the rigid part, to apply load onto a head that is arranged at a front end of the load beam to write and read data to and from a disk arranged in the hard disk drive. A base end of the rigid part is connected to the resilient part that is supported with the base. A flexure has read/write wiring patterns connected to the head, the flexure supporting the head and attached to the load beam. A joint is provided on the rigid part, to be connected to the resilient part. A protrusion formed on each side edge. Reinforcing part each expands and connects between each of the protrusions and the rigid part.
US07688548B2
A method and system for utilizing an interlocking dissimilar metal component in the formation of a hard disk drive is disclosed. The method provides a hard disk drive component having at least one interlocking dissimilar metal component, the at least one interlocking dissimilar metal component having at least two dissimilar metals on a single side. The interlocking dissimilar metal component is utilized to provide a similar materials weld location for coupling two dissimilar metals to a single side surface of the at least one interlocking dissimilar metal hard disk drive component.
US07688546B1
The method and system provide a perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) head having an air bearing surface (ABS). The PMR head includes first and second poles each having front and back gap regions, a first nonmagnetic insertion layer between the back gap regions, a magnetic pole layer with a front terminating at the ABS, a write gap, shield(s), a second nonmagnetic insertion layer between the second pole back gap region and the shield(s), and coil(s) between the shield(s) and the first pole. The magnetic pole layer terminates between the ABS and the second pole back gap region and has pole angle(s) of at least thirty and not more than fifty degrees. At least part of the magnetic pole layer resides on the second pole. Part of the shield(s) are adjacent to the write gap. Another part of the shield(s) is coupled with the second pole back gap region.
US07688537B2
A thin-film magnetic head that the protrusion response of the write head element due to the heat generated from the heating element can be set to the same level as that due to the heat generated from the write coil layer in order to adequately resolve the deficiency in the writing performance during the starting period of writing, is provided. The head comprises: at least one write head element including a magnetic pole layer; and at least one first heating element generating a heat to expand the at least one write head element thermally, the at least one first heating element being contacted with the magnetic pole layer.
US07688527B1
A portable magnification stand includes an upper planar lens unit that holds a lens for magnifying objects. Swingable extensions to the upper planar lens unit shaped as trapezoidal planar materials can be used in lieu of adjustable arms to provide the appropriate magnification in a more compact and lighter weight design. These extensions are longer in the front portion of the stand compared with the back portion of the stand causing the magnification of objects to appear greater near the front portion of the upper planar lens unit compared with objects near the near the back portion of the upper planar lens unit.
US07688524B2
A molded optical filter is provided having effective filtering of energy emissions at an optical density (OD) of greater than 4 in three energy emission bands corresponding to the wavelengths of laser emissions while preserving the wearer's ability to differentiate and recognize colors and having a pleasing overall color. The selective optical filter is a moldable polymer filter that has three dyes therein to produce sharp notch filtering ranges at about 530 nm, 700 nm and 1060 nm and a fourth color balance dye therein to adjust the overall color of the filter making it more pleasing and desirable to the wearer.
US07688518B2
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method of constructing a fluid lens is provided. The method comprises establishing a generalized sidewall profile function and converting the generalized sidewall profile function to a plurality of lens sidewall contact angle functions defined by different combinations of sidewall profile parameters. Thereafter, the method comprises determining respective degrees of operational linearity of the lens sidewall contact angle functions over a range of positions along the x axis by assessing derivative uniformity of each of the lens sidewall contact angle functions within an established slope flatness metric ε. The respective degrees of operational linearity of the lens sidewall contact angle functions are then evaluated to identify an optimized sidewall profile. A fluid lens is then constructed by forming the fluid lens reservoir having at least one sidewall with the optimized sidewall profile.
US07688517B2
An optical system for ultraviolet light includes a plurality of optical elements made of a material transparent to ultraviolet light. At least two of the optical elements are utilized for forming at least one liquid lens group that has a first delimiting optical element, a second delimiting optical element, and a liquid lens, which is arranged in an interspace between the first delimiting optical element and the second delimiting optical element and contains a liquid transparent to ultraviolet light.
US07688516B2
Disclosed is a head-up display device for vehicles. The display device for vehicles includes a panel, on which driving data of a vehicle are displayed; and an aspheric combiner, which magnifies the driving data displayed on the panel and thus creates a virtual image, and has a ratio of DISC to CRC satisfying the below expression (here, 0<|DISC/CRC|<1.0, DISC representing the distance on an optical route between the panel and the combiner, and CRC representing the radius of curvature of the combiner).
US07688515B2
A beam splitting module is disposed on a base plate of a light source system, and includes a supporting wall, a beam splitting lens, and a biasing member. The supporting wall has a first wall surface, and is disposed on the base plate such that the first wall surface extends perpendicularly from the base plate. The beam splitting lens has a first lens surface disposed adjacent to the first wall surface of the supporting wall, and a second lens surface opposite to the first lens surface. The biasing member is secured to the base plate, and is disposed adjacent to the second lens surface of the beam splitting lens for urging the beam splitting lens toward the supporting wall such that the first lens surface of the beam splitting lens abuts against the first wall surface of the supporting wall.
US07688512B2
A transmissive diffraction grating includes a substrate and a plurality of ridges provided in a mutually parallel manner at constant periodicity p on the substrate. The ridges include a first layer, a second layer (refractive index n2: 2.0-2.5), and a third layer with non-continuous refractive indices, arranged in that order from the substrate outward. The first layer adjacent the substrate, in terms of its refractive index, exhibits a difference of 0.1 or less relative to the substrate. The second layer has a higher refractive index than the first layer and third layer and satisfies the following conditions. For a single ridge, the cross-sectional area S of a cross-section of the second layer perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of said ridge is in the range of 0.75p2k1θ2/(n2−1)
US07688505B2
An annular diaphragm and filter used for the simultaneous observation of darkfield images and fluorescence. The diaphragm has a variable diameter controlled by a lever and a removable filter. The diaphragm is used to adjust the amount of unfiltered incident light which produces darkfield images when directed on a sample. The removable filter is used to filter light to a particular frequency for producing fluorescence images. An Acousto-Optical Tunable Filter, or other such tunable filter may be used with the diaphragm. A method of using the diaphragm and filter is also disclosed.
US07688495B2
Electro-optic elements are becoming commonplace in a number of vehicular and architectural applications. Various electro-optic element configurations provide variable transmittance and or variable reflectance for windows and mirrors. The present invention relates to various thin-film coatings, electro-optic elements and assemblies incorporating these elements.
US07688493B2
A pulse-shaper for temporally shaping an optical pulse includes a prism or a grism arranged to disperse the optical pulse into a diverging fan of spectral-component rays. The fan of spectral-component rays is collimated by a lens or another grism. The collimated spectral-component rays are selectively modulated by a spatial-light-modulator (SLM). The modulated rays from the SLM are either recombined to form the temporally shaped pulse by another lens and another prism, another two grisms, or by the same lens and prism or the same two grisms.
US07688485B2
A multi-function peripheral mainly includes a casing, a scanning module and an inkjet printing module. The scanning module is located on the top side of the casing, including a scan platform and a dynamic scanning unit for capturing image data. The inkjet printing module is located below the scan platform and includes a dynamic printing unit for moving an ink cartridge to perform printing operations. The moving path of the ink cartridge is substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of the scan platform. When the ink cartridge is moved to a cartridge replacing position located on a distal end of the dynamic printing unit, it escapes from under the scan platform to facilitate cartridge replacement operations.
US07688483B2
A document reading apparatus including: a first scanning section that moves in a scanning direction along a document surface, for supporting a first mirror to reflect an image of a document in a direction parallel to the scanning direction; an intermediate scanning section that moves synchronous with the first scanning section, for supporting an intermediate mirror to reflect the image of the document reflected by the first mirror in a direction opposite from an incident direction of the image; a reading section including an imaging sensor for reading the image of a scanned document and a focusing lens for focusing the image of the document reflected by the intermediate mirror on the imaging sensor; a driving wire for pulling the first scanning section in the scanning direction; a supporting pulley for supporting the driving wire at a starting side for scanning or at an ending side for scanning; a position adjustment section capable of adjusting a position of the supporting pulley in its axial direction; a control section for performing such control that the image for adjustment is read by the reading section when the first scanning section is located at a first position and at a second position in the scanning direction, and an adjustment amount of the position adjustment section is calculated based on a readout result of the image; and an output section for outputting the calculated adjustment amount.
US07688482B2
A document feeding apparatus in a cover body supported by a document reading table whose upper surface is at least partially constituted by a platen glass. The cover body is openable and closable relative to the table and covers the glass when closed. The apparatus feeds a document sheet along a feed path from at a document setting portion and to a document ejecting portion. The apparatus comprises: an upper and a lower feed roller that are disposed along the path to pinch and feed the sheet; a bearing member supporting a shaft of the lower roller such that the lower roller is movable onto and away from the upper roller; a protrusible member disposed in the cover body and below the lower roller to be movable between an outer position to protrude from a bottom of the cover body and an inner position not to protrude therefrom, the protrusible member being placed at the outer position when the cover body is open, and at the inner position by the document reading table when the cover body is closed; and a biasing member supported by the protrusible member and biasing the lower roller toward the upper roller, such that when the protrusible member is at the outer position, the lower roller is off the upper roller, and when the protrusible member is at the inner position, the lower roller is in pressing contact with the upper roller.
US07688474B2
Method for duplex printing on transparencies to create auto-stereoscopic images. By choosing different halftone structures, differing by having different spatial frequencies for each of the two sides of a transparency, a moiré pattern resulting due to halftone overlapping can be observed. On one side of the transparency is provided a uniform halftone with a selected median spatial frequency as printed. On the other side, the printing consists of two partitions: what is to be perceived as the background is printed using a halftone with spatial frequency equal to the median plus some delta x, while a desired image partition is printed using a halftone with a spatial frequency equal to the median minus the same delta x. The spatial frequency difference creates a corresponding shift-magnification factor M with an amplified total depth of the shift-magnification factor M times the thickness of the transparency.
US07688473B2
Disclosed herein is an image processing method for producing enhanced halftone edges, particularly suited to those edges which only lie upon the background as apposed to those edges which abut other halftone screens. It utilizes a step of defining border pixels and a step of halftoning those border pixels in a different manner than the halftoning applied to the interior region of the tint or image segment. The preferred halftone for the border pixels will be related to the interior halftone by some number of common spatial frequency harmonics. Examples of common-harmonic screening for an edge include, but are not limited to: (a) same screen with different tone reproduction characteristics (boosted edge values); (b) same screen angles and frequencies with a different spot function, possibly phase shifted; (c) a dot screen whose frequency vectors can be generated by the frequency vectors of the interior screen; (d) a line screen whose frequency vectors can be generated by the frequency vectors of the interior screen. This generation process is directed to ensuring that the two screens will be “harmonically matched” where at least one of the fundamental frequency vectors and harmonics of the first screen will equal at least one of the fundamental frequency vectors and harmonics of the second screen.
US07688469B2
A computer object such as text, graphics, mathematical formulas, images, audio, and other data and information handled inside a computer or through a computer in industry or daily life etc. is expressed, recorded, reproduced, and transmitted using color or a color numerical value. Color is used as a medium for expressing data or information taking note of the characteristics of color. This helps counter the ballooning amount of recording. Color can also be used to prepare codes.
US07688461B2
A distributed peripheral device control method for controlling the interaction between an information device and a peripheral device in communication with the information device, comprising requesting the peripheral device to perform a specified task, sending device identification information identifying the peripheral device to a server, selecting a device driver corresponding to the peripheral device in dependence upon the device identification information, establishing a virtual port at the server to form part of a communications link between the server and the information device and associating the virtual port with the selected device driver, employing the server to perform, using the selected device driver, peripheral device-dependent processing operations relating to the performance of the task to produce device-dependent data, and sending the device-dependent data to the virtual port for onward transmission to the peripheral device via the information device to enable the peripheral device to perform the specified task.
US07688456B2
Methods and related program product for assessing and optimizing metrology instruments by determining a total measurement uncertainty (TMU) based on precision and accuracy. The TMU is calculated based on a linear regression analysis and removing a reference measuring system uncertainty (URMS) from a net residual error. The TMU provides an objective and more accurate representation of whether a measurement system under test has an ability to sense true product variation.
US07688448B2
An apparatus, and method of its use, to determine a characteristic of a fluid sample contained inside a closed container. The ratio of intensity for detected radiation (e.g., light), subsequent to its transmission through the container's walls and fluid in the container, at each of a reference wavelength and a measurement wavelength is compared to a predetermined value to make a determination of the fluid's characteristic. Desirably, the wavelengths are applied to the same location on the container to minimize a source of signal error. The reference wavelength is selected for its substantial lack of attenuation when transmitted through a known fluid composition. The measurement wavelength is selected for its predictive interaction (e.g., absorption) with the fluid.
US07688447B2
Devices, systems, and methods for measuring the color of a sample are disclosed. The exemplary device may have one or more light emitting diodes for directing a beam of ultraviolet light onto the sample and may also have one or more light emitting diodes for directing a beam of visible light onto the sample. The exemplary device may have a component for controlling the timing and power of operation of each light emitting diode. The exemplary device may also have at least one light detector for receiving the beam of light reflected from or transmitted through the sample and measuring at least one wavelength band of the received light. The exemplary device may further have a measurement analyzer for determining the color of the sample based on the measured light. The color may be determined for a specified illuminator incorporating effects of fluorescence.
US07688446B2
Light is irradiated onto a glass substrate of an organic EL element, and the characteristics of an organic film are analyzed. In the sample analyzing apparatus, in such a way that the glass substrate is located on the upper side, the organic EL element is placed on a stage. The light is irradiated towards the glass substrate, and an amplitude ratio and a phase difference which are related to the organic EL element are measured. Also, the sample analyzing apparatus selects a model of a structure corresponding to reflected lights K1 to K3 of the irradiated light and calculates the amplitude ratio and the phase difference. The sample analyzing apparatus compares the measured result and the result calculated from the model, and properly executes the fitting, and determines the best model among the several models and then analyzes the characteristics related to the organic EL element.
US07688445B2
A spectroscope of the present invention includes a concave diffraction grating which disperses incident light, an incident light introduction unit which introduces incident light into the concave diffraction grating, and an outgoing light receiving unit which receives outgoing light dispersed for different wavelengths by the concave diffraction grating. The spectroscope further includes an incident aperture which limits an incident angle of light emitted by the incident light introduction unit to the concave diffraction grating, and an outgoing aperture which limits an outgoing angle of outgoing light dispersed for different wavelengths by the concave diffraction grating to the light receiving unit. The spectroscope is constructed so that relatively rotational transfer of at least two out of the concave diffraction grating, the incident aperture and the outgoing apertures can be performed along a Rowland circle which the concave diffraction grating forms.
US07688441B2
An arrangement for measuring characteristic properties of a plasma beam in a thermal spray process, including a device for introducing spray materials into the plasma, a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array including first optical waveguides for receiving the light radiation emitted by the plasma, and other optical waveguides for distributing the light radiation emitted by the plasma. A device is provided for splitting the light guided in the first optical waveguides into the other optical wave guides, one optical waveguide being connected to the opening diaphragm of a particle flow arrangement, and the other optical waveguide being connected to the opening diaphragm of a spectrometer. A device is also provided for determining the current state of the spray process.
US07688438B2
A device includes a housing, illumination means, a reflective plate, and a detector. The housing defines an aperture. The illumination means is for providing illumination (natural or artificial) along an optical axis that passes through the aperture. The reflective plate is movable, relative to the housing, between a retracted and a deployed position. The positions are defined so that during such movement, the optical axis traces a line across the reflective plate. The detector is aligned to detect illumination from the illumination means after light through the aperture is reflected from the reflective plate. A method is also described. The device is particularly suitable for moving the reflective plate temporarily in front of a pushbroom or whisk broom type sensor for calibration because the line traces across a first portion of the diffusing surface that is subject to sunlight degradation and a second portion that is always shielded from sunlight.
US07688435B2
Scratches, pits and particles which are smaller or larger than the beam size may be measured and identified by a single and dual multiple beam techniques. In one embodiment, this the invention uses a pair of orthogonally oriented white light beams, one in the radial and one in the circumferential direction. The scattered light from the radial and circumferential beams allows the detection and classification of particles, pits and scratches. In other embodiments, single beam techniques are used to classify radial and circumferential defects.
US07688434B2
An inspection system (9) includes an idler wheel (61) that is coupled to a fabrication system (8) and is in contact with a backing layer (65) of an applied material (64), A rotation sensor (63) monitors the idler wheel (61) and generates a rotational signal. A controller (24) is coupled to the rotation sensor (63) and determines a characteristic of one or more flaws and FOD (19) on a composite structure (12) in response to the rotation signal.
US07688431B1
The invention relates to an apparatus for comparatively demonstrating the optical properties of eyewear lenses, particularly dispersion. The apparatus includes an illumination source that provides output of shorter wavelength visible light and longer wavelength visible light, a target that creates an image on the light path, a test lens made of eyewear lens material that is illuminated by the light path from the target, and a detector that displays the image acted upon and transmitted through the test lens. The test lens can be interchangeably replaced with another test lens, for comparison of each lens' optical properties. Alternate configurations include multiple light paths, for simultaneous viewing of images through different test lenses.
US07688428B2
Apparatus for detecting the presence of a targeted group of hydrocarbons, such as diesel/fuel oil, lube oil, motor oil, hydraulic oil, jet fuel, mineral oil and crude oil in a highly reliable manner even though present at only extremely low concentration. A high power, pulsed light source is focused into a collimated beam that is reduced by a set of filters to a band of pulsed light within a precise set of wavelengths and directed vertically onto a target surface, such as a body of water. All but a precise band of light wavelengths returning to the apparatus are blocked so that substantially all light which then reaches an internal photodetector is within such precise band of wavelengths; as a result receipt of such light programmed intervals following such pulses is indicative of the presence of a member of the targeted hydrocarbon group.
US07688426B2
A method and apparatus for determining the state of the lens transmittance of an optical projection system are described. A lens or imaging objective transmission is determined as a function of exit pupil transverse direction cosine (nx,ny) at multiple field points thereby providing a more complete analysis and correction of a photolithographic exposure system. The entrance pupil of a projection imaging system is uniformly illuminated and the angular dependence of transmission through the imaging system as a function of exit pupil direction cosines is determined. The illumination source includes a light conditioner with an in-situ illumination structure (ISIS), which is an optical structure that can provide uniform illumination of the system's entrance pupil.
US07688424B2
The present invention provides a measurement apparatus including a first polarization control unit configured to control a polarization state of light which enters an optical system to be measured to at least two different polarization states, a wavefront splitting unit which is inserted between the first polarization control unit and the optical system, a second polarization control unit which is inserted between the optical system and an image sensor, includes a phase plate, and is configured to control the polarization state of the light, and a processing unit configured to calculate the optical characteristics of the optical system, based on a plurality of interference patterns sequentially sensed by the image sensor by rotating the phase plate.
US07688422B2
An imaging optical system is a system of a liquid immersion type permitting a plane-parallel plate in liquid to be replaced with another, without substantial degradation of imaging performance, while ensuring sufficiently high laser resistance of a boundary lens. The imaging optical system is provided with a first optically transparent member located nearest to a second plane, and a second optically transparent member located adjacent to the first optically transparent member. An optical path between the first optically transparent member and the second plane is fillable with a first liquid and an optical path between the first optically transparent member and the second optically transparent member is fillable with a second liquid. The imaging optical system satisfies the condition of 1
US07688412B2
A multi-domain LCD device is disclosed, which includes a plurality of gate and data lines crossing one another on the first substrate, for defining a plurality of pixel regions. A pixel electrode is formed within the pixel region, the pixel electrode having an electric field induction window for dividing the pixel region into a plurality of domains. An auxiliary electrode is formed on the different layer from the pixel electrode, and beneath the edge of the pixel electrode. A common electrode is formed on a second substrate having a black matrix film and a color filter film. A circle type dielectric structure is formed on the common electrode in the plurality of domains, thereby obtaining wide viewing angle and high aperture ratio.
US07688405B2
A reflective-transmissive liquid crystal display (LCD) device with an improved display quality is achieved by forming a reflective area and a transmissive area having a cell gap greater than greater than that of the reflective area. A liquid crystal layer is disposed in a liquid crystal cell between the first and second substrates. The liquid crystal molecules are normally aligned at an angle equal to greater than about 45° with respect to a line parallel to the first substrate. The LCD device operates in a normally black mode.
US07688399B2
An image display apparatus including a light source unit, a liquid crystal display panel, an illumination optical system leading light from the light source unit to the liquid crystal display panel, and a display optical system leading light from the liquid crystal display panel to an observer. The illumination optical system and the display optical system share an optical surface having dielectric multilayer films and being concave toward the liquid crystal display panel on a plane including a center ray corresponding to an angle of view. The optical surface reflects light from the light source unit for leading the light to the liquid crystal display panel while transmitting light reflected from the liquid crystal display panel. On the plane including the center ray, the brightness of the light-emitting surface of the light source unit is reduced toward the optical surface smaller than that in the remote from the optical surface.
US07688386B2
According to one embodiment, a de-interlacing apparatus includes: a motion vector detecting section; a full-screen shift detecting section detecting a full-screen shift; a moving-or-still judging section performing a moving/still judgment for a video signal; a moving judgment correcting section correcting a moving/still judgment result to lean toward a moving judgment when full-screen shift is detected; a first interpolation signal generating section generating a first interpolation signal for interpolating a one-field delay signal based on the motion vector and the full-screen shift; a second interpolation signal generating section generating a second interpolation signal for interpolating the one-field delay signal from a current field signal or a two-field delay signal; and an interpolation signal mixing section mixing the first and second interpolation signals to generate a mixed interpolation signal.
US07688377B2
A solid state image pickup apparatus that can read a signal charge correctly is provided. A peripheral area of a photoelectric conversion area 400 where photoelectric conversion pixels are formed has common output line forming areas 401a and 401b where common output lines for transmitting electric signals from the above described photoelectric conversion area. A plurality of inner lenses are formed in a constant pitch in an inner lens forming area 402 including a photoelectric conversion area 400 and the above described peripheral area. A plurality of inner lenses located in the outer peripheral part of the inner lens forming area 402 are arranged not to overlap with the common output lines.
US07688375B2
A digital image capturing device is includes an LCD and a main body. The LCD has a first fastening element. The main body has a switching device a sliding shaft, a sliding shaft sleeve and a second fastening element. The sliding shaft has the sliding shaft sleeve that is slipped onto it and is connected with the LCD. The LCD can be slid and rotated with the above-described mechanism. The LCD utilizes the first fastening element to engage with the second fastening element of the main body, which allows the LCD to be securely attached. The digital image capturing device utilizes the sliding movement to control the switching device to operate the switching function.
US07688374B2
A CCD sensor device has columns and rows of masked pixels that form a charge storage matrix. A singular column of photosensitive pixels form a photosensitive region and are directly connected to the first column of the charge storage matrix. Photons received in the pixels of the photosensitive region are converted to an electrical charge over an integration period and are then shifted from the photosensitive region to the first column of the charge storage matrix. After a second integration period the integrated charge in the photosensitive region is shifted to the first column and the charges previously stored in the first column are shifted to the second column of the matrix. This process is repeated until all the columns of the storage region are full of charges at which time the charges are read out by a serial shift register.
US07688365B2
There is provided an image pickup apparatus comprising two-dimensionally arrayed pixels, a plurality of read-out channels each including a read-out circuit and an amplifier circuit, a parallel-serial conversion circuit which sequentially selects pixel signals output via the plurality of read-out channels and outputs a series of pixel signals, and a clamp unit which clamps the reset level included in an output signal from the read-out circuit in order to remove an offset generated in each read-out channel.
US07688362B2
A method for generating color video signals representative of color images of a scene includes the following steps: focusing light from the scene on an electronic image sensor via a filter having a tri-color filter pattern; producing, from outputs of the sensor, first and second relatively low resolution luminance signals; producing, from outputs of the sensor, a relatively high resolution luminance signal; producing, from a ratio of the relatively high resolution luminance signal to the first relatively low resolution luminance signal, a high band luminance component signal; producing, from outputs of the sensor, relatively low resolution color component signals; and combining each of the relatively low resolution color component signals with the high band luminance component signal to obtain relatively high resolution color component signals.
US07688351B2
An in-car entertainment (ICE) unit includes a compact disc (CD) player configured to play a CD. A radio receiver is configured to receive a radio broadcast. A docking station is provided in which a digital camera can be docked so that information can be downloaded from the camera. A liquid crystal display (LCD) can display information from the CD, the radio broadcast or the camera. A printer is configured to print the displayed information.
US07688347B2
A light valve such as an active matrix LCD between crossed polarizers, utilizing, for instance, individual transistors to control each “pixel area” of the LCD and storage elements to store video signal data for each pixel, with optically shielded “dead spaces” between pixels to eliminate electric field cross-talk and non-information-bearing light bleed-through, is illuminated with a bright independent light source which creates a video image projected via specialized projection optics onto an internal or external screen without distortions, regardless of the angle of projection onto the screen. Use of heat sinks, IR reflective coatings, heat absorbing optics, optional fluid and a thermistor controlled pixel transistor bias voltage injection servo circuit stabilizes image performance, maintaining accurate color and contrast levels as the LCD changes temperature. In one embodiment of the invention, use of a multi-color LCD with a stepped cavity, producing different thicknesses of LCD for the different wavelengths that pass through it, allows a linear correspondence between the wavelengths passing through the LCD to produce true black, high contrast and CRT-like color rendition. A dichroic mirror arrangement is used to overlap differently colored pixels in the projected image. Use of striped mirrors duplicate pixels, where necessary, eliminating spaces between pixels, creating a continuous image with no apparent stripes or dots. A special venetian-blind type of screen is also disclosed and methods for using the system to view three-dimensional video are also explained.
US07688346B2
The following patent relates to an overall hardware configuration that produces an enhanced spatial television-like viewing experience. Unlike normal television, with this system the viewer is able to control both the viewing direction and relative position of the viewer with respect to the movie action. In addition to a specific hardware configuration, this patent also relates to a new video format which makes possible this virtual reality like experience.
US07688338B2
The invention discloses an apparatus for adjusting the brightness of the ith image of an inputted image sequence in a display system. The image sequence includes a plurality of images which each consists of a plurality of pixels. The apparatus includes a first calculating module for calculating a current brightness ratio, a second calculating module for calculating an averaged brightness ratio, a judging module for outputting one selected from the current brightness ratio or the averaged brightness ratio as an outputted brightness ratio, a determining module for storing a plurality of brightness ratios and the corresponding gains and for determining the gain corresponding to the outputted brightness ratio, and an adjusting module for multiplying the gray scale level of each pixel of the ith image by the gain corresponding to the outputted brightness ratio respectively, so as to adjust the brightness of the ith image.
US07688333B2
An apparatus including a first circuit, a second circuit and a third circuit. The first circuit may be configured to collect color statistics. The second circuit may be configured to sort colors based upon the color statistics collected by the first circuit. The third circuit may be configured to generate a mapping function between the sorted colors and a color space of a receiving standard.
US07688331B2
In a method and system for performing color correction for an image signal, a first set of matrix coefficients for color correction of the image signal in a 3-dimensional RGB color space is transformed to a first set of points of a two-dimensional XY plane. In addition, the first set of points is modified to a second set of points in the XY plane for tuning image quality. Furthermore, the first and second sets of points in the two-dimensional XY plane are displayed such as on a graphical user interface of a computer system.
US07688327B2
The present invention relates to display of visual content on a client device using server-side rasterization of visual content. Visual content is rendered on a server system, transformed into bitmaps compatible with the display attributes of a client device, and transmitted for display on the client device. The invention allows the server to perform, in effect, as a remote browser for displaying Web pages, e-mail, e-mail attachments, electronic document and forms, database queries and results, drawings, presentations, and images at the client device. The approach is “remote” because the server does the rendering and the client provides the interface; “multi-level” because rendered visual content is represented as a multi-level set of raster representations; and constitutes a “browsing system” because the client and server share data about the source visual content element being browsed, and the client performs a specific browsing function assisted by the server.
US07688320B2
According to embodiments of the invention ray-primitive intersection tests in may be executed in an order according to a most recently hit primitive list. Furthermore, by pre-fetching a texture which is applied to the first intersected primitive in the most recently hit primitive list, the amount of time necessary to determine the color of the primitive based on the color of the pre-fetched texture at the point a ray intersects the primitive may be reduced. The color of the primitive due to the pre-fetched texture may be used to determine the color of a pixel through which a ray passed, and the pixel may be used to render a two dimensional image from a three dimensional scene. Therefore, by reducing the amount of time to determine the color of the pixel, the amount of time necessary to render a two dimensional image form a three dimensional scene may be reduced.
US07688306B2
Methods and apparatuses for operating a portable device based on an accelerometer are described. According to one embodiment of the invention, an accelerometer attached to a portable device detects a movement of the portable device. In response, a machine executable code is executed within the portable device to perform one or more predetermined user configurable operations. Other methods and apparatuses are also described.
US07688300B2
A driving method of a pixel array is provided. The driving method is suitable for a pixel array comprising at least one pixel set in each pixel array, wherein at least one pixel set comprises a plurality of pixels. In the driving method, a voltage having substantially same phase is used to drive the pixel electrodes of the pixels in the same pixel set. In addition, voltages with phases substantially opposite to each other are used to drive the pixel electrodes of the pixels in two adjacent pixel sets. Furthermore, a single gate line is used to drive two adjacent pixels in two different pixel sets respectively. In addition, a single gate line is used to drive a first pixel in one of the pixel set and another pixel in an adjacent column of the first pixel, wherein a phase of the voltage of a pixel electrode of the first pixel and a phase of a voltage of a pixel electrode of the other pixel are substantially different.
US07688299B2
In an interpolation device that is used for driving a liquid crystal display (LCD), a memory stores an image signal representing a previously displayed image frame. A look-up table (LUT) stores plural reference data corresponding to differences between values of high order bits of a present image signal and a previous image signal. An arithmetic unit receives low order bits of the present image signal, low order bits of the previous image signal, and the reference data from the LUT to output a corrected image signal. The arithmetic unit applies a first second-order interpolation equation when the high order bits of the present image signal are identical to the high order bits of the previous image signal and applies a second second-order interpolation equation, which is different from the first second-order interpolation equation, when the high order bits of the present image signal are different from the high order bits of the previous image signal.
US07688294B2
A method of driving a liquid crystal display is provided in which the contrast can be selectively emphasized dependent upon the input data. The input data is converted into brightness components and chrominance components. The most-frequent brightness component is extracted from a histogram of the brightness components, and the histogram is divided into regions, which are re-arranged in correspondence with the extracted most-frequent value. The brightness components of each region are then modified using a curve having a slope that is dependent upon the total number of brightness components in the particular region. Data in which the contrast ratio has been selectively emphasized is generated using the modulated brightness components and the chrominance components.
US07688293B2
A display apparatus includes a main body that includes an operating portion at a front surface thereof, and a display portion that includes a display screen visible when the display portion covers the front surface of the main body, and that exposes the operating portion when the display portion is moved from the front surface of the main body, and a thickness from the display screen to a back surface at one side of the display portion, which is brought into proximity to the main body when the operating portion is exposed, is made smaller than that from the display screen to the back surface at another side of the display portion.
US07688281B2
According to one embodiment, an information processing device adapted to use in a first mode and a second mode includes a body, a display unit supported by the body, a display panel disposed at the display unit, a viewing angle control filter disposed at the display unit and arranged facing one face of the display panel, and drive unit configured to drive the control filter when a state of the processing device is in the second mode.
US07688271B2
A dipole antenna comprising a base; first and second pairs of dipoles positioned in front of the base and arranged around a central region; a first feed line which extends from the base towards the dipoles and splits at a first junction positioned in front of the base into a first pair of feed probes each of which is coupled to a respective one of the first pair of dipoles; and a second feed line which extends from the base towards the dipoles and splits at a second junction positioned in front of the base into a second pair of feed probes each of which is coupled to a respective one of the second pair of dipoles. The feed probes are spaced from the dipoles so as to field-couple with the dipoles. In one embodiment, the first pair of feed probes is positioned on a first side of the dipoles and the second pair of feed probes is positioned on a second side of the dipoles opposite to the first side. In another embodiment, the dipoles are printed on a PCB.
US07688270B2
An NFC antenna (“NFC” stands for “near field communication”) includes a ferrite antenna including a primary antenna coil wound on a ferrite core of the ferrite antenna; a loop coil provided in a position where components of a magnetic flux on a non-communication direction side interlink, the magnetic flux being generated by the ferrite antenna; and a loop coil switching unit for switching between a mode for forming a loop of the loop coil and a mode for disconnecting the loop.
US07688267B2
Broadband antennas and handheld electronic devices with broadband antennas are provided. A handheld electronic device may have a housing in which electrical components such as integrated circuits and a broadband antenna are mounted. The broadband antenna may have a ground element and a resonating element. The resonating element may have two arms of unequal length and may have a self-resonant element. The antenna may have a feed terminal connected to the self-resonant element and a ground terminal connected to the ground element. The self-resonant element may be near-field coupled to one of the arms of the resonating element. With one suitable arrangement, the self-resonant element may be formed using a conductive rectangular element that is not electrically shorted to the ground element or the arms of the resonating element. The antenna may operate over first and second frequency ranges of interest.
US07688264B2
The present disclosure provides an RTD that is released from a single primary platform to collect signals from a target emitter and relay data back to a single primary platform, enabling the precise geo-location of the target emitter to be determined in a minimal amount of time. The RTD is released from a single platform and quickly creates a long signal collection baseline between the released RTD and the single platform. Various techniques for determining geo-location may be used with the present disclosure, such as angle of arrival (AOA), time difference of arrival (TDOA), and frequency difference of arrival (FDOA) methods.
US07688262B2
A method for processing weak indoor signals in presence of cross-correlation or continuous wave interference and associated GPS receiver are provided. The method comprises providing a two-dimensional delay-Doppler accumulated power pattern having a plurality of accumulated powers corresponding to frequency bins and code bins; for a predetermined frequency bin, determining partial average value of accumulated powers over specific set of code bins so that the major part of signal energy is intentionally not included in the partial average; and subtracting the partial average value from all accumulated powers for the predetermined frequency bin; repeating the partial average calculation and subtraction for each frequency bin of a pattern to generate a two-dimensional delay-Doppler accumulated power pattern with suppressed interference effect.
US07688256B2
A method of extracting a radial velocity characteristic of a target from coherent pulse bursts comprising the steps of applying to data a ‘best fit’ model of the echo returns from a target in the presence of clutter to obtain a residue (error) value and minimising the error value by a predetermined method to give the best fit value for the target radial velocity. The method enables more information to be retrieved from coherent bursts than conventional methods and therefore greatly enhances performance of radiation pulse echo detection.
US07688254B2
A method implementable in a weather-radar system of an aircraft, the weather-radar system configured to generate to a display device, in response to radar return information indicating reflectivity levels below a predetermined reflectivity threshold, an image in a first presentation format. The method includes determining if the altitude of the aircraft is above a predetermined threshold altitude, and, if the altitude of the aircraft is above the threshold altitude, displaying, in response to radar return information indicating reflectivity levels below the predetermined reflectivity threshold, the image in a second presentation format different from the first presentation format.
US07688240B2
A system and method for calibrating an RDAC to obtain an expected resistance are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of obtaining an expected resistance from an RDAC circuit includes receiving a digital signal comprising a digital code by an on-chip calibration code engine, automatically deriving a calibrated digital code based on resistance versus digital code characteristic curves of an expected RDAC and the RDAC associated with the calibration code engine, and inputting the calibrated digital code into the RDAC associated with the calibration code engine to obtain an expected resistance. The method also includes forming the resistance versus digital code characteristic curves of the expected RDAC and the RDAC, computing a gain error and an offset error using the formed resistance versus digital code characteristic curves of the RDAC and the expected RDAC and storing the gain error and the offset error in a non-volatile/volatile RDAC memory.
US07688238B2
A pipelined analog-to-digital converter includes a plurality of stages, each stage comprising an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). A method for increasing the accuracy of the pipelined ADC includes calibrating the ADC in each stage of the analog-to-digital converter by adjusting trip points of that ADC. Another method for increasing the accuracy of a pipelined ADC includes measuring error in an output of each the DAC; and correcting an output of the pipelined analog-to-digital converter for the measured error. These methods can be used together to further increase the accuracy of the pipelined ADC. Consequently, a pipelined analog-to-digital converter may include a look-up table containing data for correcting errors in output of each of the DACs, where trip points of the ADCs the ADCs in the stages of the pipelined converter have been calibrated to expected values.
US07688237B2
Methods, systems, and apparatuses for calibration of analog to digital converters (ADC) are described herein. In an aspect, an ADC includes a plurality of slices. Each slice includes a digital to analog converter (DAC), a comparator, and a digital processing unit (DPU). The digital processing unit is electrically connected to the comparator and the DAC. In another aspect, an analog-to-digital converter includes an input module and an analog to digital converter core configured to receive an analog input from the input module and generate a digital output. The ADC is configured to adjust a precision of the analog to digital converter core based on a quality of the analog input signal.
US07688233B2
A method and apparatus for compressing data is described. In one embodiment, a processor receives one or more strings of data to be compressed. Duplicate strings are replaced with pointers using a first compression algorithm. An output of the first compression algorithm is processed with a second compression algorithm using a variable context dynamic encoder to generate a tree of non-overlapping bit-sequences where the length of each sequence is being inversely proportional of the likelihood of that symbol needing to be encoded. Unused symbols are not generated on the tree.
US07688228B2
An updated part of map data is delivered while suppressing unwanted communication traffic and preventing contradiction in the updated map. A map delivering server (10) comprises a map data storage section (102) storing link data including the update dates and times and update infection range for each link, a network IF section (101) for receiving from a navigation terminal (20) a map delivery request containing the requested area of map delivery and the previous request data and time of map delivery of the requested area, and a map element search section (103) for searching the map data storage section (102) for the link data associated with the update infection range including the link at least a part of which belongs to the requested area of the map delivery request and associated with the update date and time later than the previous request date and time contained in the map delivery request. The link data found by the map element search section (103) is sent to the navigation terminal (20) through the network IF section (101).
US07688227B1
A graphical mapping system configured to display mapping information on a handheld device is disclosed. The system includes an image map database configured to store map data for a plurality of geographic areas, which is useful for generating graphical maps. The system further includes a vector map database configured to store vector map data, which is useful for generating vector “overlays” that correspond to the graphical maps. In response to a mapping request from a handheld device, a set of image mapping data and a corresponding set of vector mapping data, both associated with a given geographic location, are retrievable.
US07688225B1
A method is disclosed for managing a parking lot. In one disclosed embodiment, the method includes receiving parking lot data. The embodiment of the disclosed method also includes transforming the parking lot data into parking lot information, the parking lot information including information about a moving parking lot object. Further, the embodiment of the disclosed method includes transmitting a map of the parking lot to a mobile interaction device, and transmitting the parking lot information to the mobile interaction device.
US07688222B2
A traffic informational system provides information to traffic moving along a road and may include a plurality of traffic information devices mountable to the road, each having an integral power producing source, at least a first set of illumination sources, and a wireless communications subsystem. The traffic informational system may further include at least a first external control device comprising at least one antenna and a transmitter communication wirelessly with the traffic information devices and/or with one another. The traffic information device may communicate with one another, and may include sensor for sensing ambient conditions. The system employs various approaches to reducing power consumption and improving communications, and is suitable for a wide range of applications, including use in remote environments.
US07688212B2
A method is provided for presenting occupancy information in a fire alarm system. The method includes obtaining event data indicative of an emergency event within a zone of a premises, obtaining count information indicative of a number of individuals within the zone of the premises, and displaying the event data and the count information for the zone simultaneously.
US07688209B2
The invention concerns a radio frequency identification device (RFID) featuring an antenna (12) screen-printed on a fibrous support and a chip (10) connected to the connection terminals (17 and 19) of the antenna. According to the main characteristic of the invention, a thermoplastic layer (22) and a layer of paper (24) are laminated on the antenna support (20) so that the antenna and the chip are trapped in the thermoplastic and so that the device is resistant to water and humid environments.
US07688208B2
A method, radio frequency ID reader, and wireless communication device monitor radio-frequency identification enabled items associated with a group activity. The method includes receiving a set of radio frequency IDs representing a set of radio frequency ID enabled items (110) to be monitored. The set of radio frequency enabled items (110) are associated with at least one group activity. Each radio frequency ID enabled item (110) is determined to be associated with one of an individual and a group of individuals. The method also includes determining if at least one condition associated with the group activity has occurred indicating that the group activity is occurring (1004). The set of radio frequency IDs representing the set of radio frequency ID enabled items (110) is monitored for in response to determining that the at least one condition is occurring.
US07688199B2
A detection system may include at least one sensor located in an enclosable space, each sensor being configured to detect at least one environmental feature and provide a corresponding at least one environmental feature signal. The system may process the at least one environmental feature signal and provide at least one processed feature signal, the at least one processed feature signal corresponding to a transformed at least one environmental feature signal. The system may further provide a hosted function configured to provide instructions for processing, the hosted function comprising a computational algorithm adapted to perform numerical transformation operations based on the at least one environmental feature signal, the hosted function being configured to provide a map image based on the at least one processed feature signal.
US07688198B2
A sensor detects one or more hazardous materials, such as by measuring the concentration of one or more hazardous gasses. The sensor or an external system can also determine a location of the sensor. This location can be associated with the measured data from the sensor at the external system or at the sensor. The location could be determined at the sensor using GPS or RFID. The location could be determined at the external system using RFID. The external system can use the measured data and the location information to perform a wide variety of tasks, such as mapping hazardous materials in a processing or other environment or identifying trends in the concentration of the hazardous materials.
US07688195B2
A bridge system for installing electronic appliance to light source socket and a bridge method are disclosed. The system includes a light source plug, a power line communication module and a connection unit. The light source plug is electrically connected to the light source socket to perform data communication through the power lines. The power line communication module is electrically connected to the light source plug to convert AC power into DC power and perform analog-to-digital data conversion simultaneously through the power lines. The connection unit is electrically connected to the electronic appliance to provide AC or DC power and transmit converted digital data to the electronic appliance. Accordingly, there is no need to add power cables or power adapters.
US07688188B2
An existing-area calculating device of a vehicle surrounding information informing device calculates an existing area where a hidden-area obstacle approaching an own vehicle is likely to exist, based on own-vehicle traveling information detected by an own-vehicle traveling information detecting device and information of a hidden-area obstacle of another-vehicle obstacle information detected by an another-vehicle obstacle detecting device. Then, an informing device informs the exiting area of the hidden-area obstacle. Accordingly, the passenger (driver) can surely recognize the existence of the hidden-area obstacle to take any proper action to avoid a possible collision with the hidden-area obstacle, thereby improving the reliability of the vehicle surrounding information informing device.
US07688186B2
A vehicle speed V is read (step S1), V is compared with a first threshold Vth1 (step S2), and, when V is not less than Vth1, a warning torque is set smaller with increase in V (step S3). When V is less than Vth1, V is further compared with a second threshold Vth2 (step S4), and when V is less than Vth2, the warning torque is set approximately in proportion to the vehicle speed (step S5); when V is not less than Vth2 and is less than Vth1, the warning torque is set at a predetermined constant value (step S6).
US07688185B1
A system and method for generating an alert signal for a trailer. Proper truck/trailer matching is based on a proximity analysis between position reports for a truck and position reports for a trailer. In one embodiment, this proximity analysis is triggered by a detection of movement in a trailer. In the proximity analysis, unexpected deviations in proximity between a truck and a trailer would lead to a generation of an alert signal that is sent to the appropriate management system for investigation.
US07688180B2
In one embodiment, a method for estimating the cardinality of one or more tags in a system that has the one or more tags and one or more readers. The reader issues a command requesting that the tags identify themselves. The command includes timing information defining a total number of timeslots. In response to the command, each of the one or more tags (i) selects a timeslot in which to reply to the command and (ii) issues a reply in the selected timeslot. The method includes: (a) issuing the command; (b) receiving, in one or more timeslots, replies from the one or more tags; and (c) deriving an estimate of the cardinality of the one or more tags in the system based on at least one of: (i) the number of zero slots, wherein a zero slot is a timeslot that has no tags transmitting therein, (ii) the number of singleton slots, wherein a singleton slot is a timeslot that has only one tag transmitting therein, and (iii) the number of collision slots, wherein a collision slot is a timeslot that has more than one tag transmitting therein.
US07688177B2
A varistor comprises a varistor element body, first and second inner electrodes opposing each other, a first outer electrode connected to the first inner electrode physically and electrically, a second outer electrode connected to the second inner electrode physically and electrically, and an electrically insulating layer. The first and second inner electrodes are arranged within the varistor element body so as to have end portions exposed at two outer surfaces of the varistor element body. The first outer electrode is arranged on one of the two outer surfaces so as to cover a portion of the end portion of the first inner electrode exposed at the one outer surface. The second outer electrode is arranged on the one outer surface so as to cover a portion of the end portion of the second inner electrode exposed at the one outer surface. The electrically insulating layer is arranged on the one outer surface so as to cover a portion exposed from the first outer electrode in the end portion of the first inner electrode and a portion exposed from the second outer electrode in the end portion of the second inner electrode.
US07688175B2
A controllable electronic switch for, e.g., controlling power distribution comprises a deformable member such as a bimetal arm that can be deformed to break an electrical path. The deformable member may be anchored at one end and in controllable contact with an electrical conductor at the other end. A heating element, such as a coil, can be used to selectively heat the deformable member. The controllable electronic switch can alternatively comprise a deformable member that is terminated in a wedge-shaped member. When the deformable member bends in response to being heated, the wedge-shaped member forces apart a pair of contacts thus breaking an electrical path. The wedge-shaped member and/or associated structures may be configured as a cam mechanism with multiple latching positions.
US07688172B2
A magnetic device that includes a magnetic core having a surface facing a conductive substrate. The magnetic device also includes a conductive clip facing a surface of the magnetic core with ends of the conductive clip electrically coupled to the conductive substrate to cooperatively form a winding therewith about the magnetic core.
US07688166B2
A micro electromechanical (MEMS) switch suitable for use in medical devices is provided, along with methods of producing and using MEMS switches. In one aspect, a micro electromechanical switch including a moveable member configured to electrically cooperate with a receiving terminal is formed on a substrate. The moveable member and the receiving terminal each include an insulating layer proximate to the substrate and a conducting layer proximate to the insulating layer opposite the substrate. In various embodiments, the conducting layers of the moveable member and/or receiving terminal include a protruding region that extends outward from the substrate to switchably couple the conducting layers of the moveable member and the receiving terminal to thereby form a switch. The switch may be actuated using, for example, electrostatic energy.
US07688156B2
A transmission circuit for outputting transmission signals with a low distortion and a high efficiency over a wide range of output power is provided. A signal generation section (11) generates an amplitude signal and a phase signal. An angle modulation section (12) performs angle modulation on the phase signal and outputs an angle-modulated signal. A regulator (14) receives the amplitude signal via a variable gain amplification section (18) and supplies a voltage controlled based on the magnitude of the amplitude signal to the amplitude modulation section (15). The amplitude modulation section (15) performs amplitude modulation on the angle-modulated signal and outputs a modulated signal to the variable attenuation section (16). When the value of power information is smaller than a predetermined threshold value, the control section (19) increases the gain of the variable gain amplification section (18) and the attenuation of the variable attenuation section (16).
US07688147B1
A method and system to use floating differential output amplifiers wired in series and parallel to achieve arbitrary output drive voltage and current for the applications load. One embodiment includes the use of multiple differential amplifiers wired in series to generate a high voltage differential amplifier, while only partially using no-feedback buffer amplifiers and obtaining performance equivalent to an implementation that uses only buffer amplifiers. This is achieved by forcing the mismatch errors of conventional amplifiers to become power supply ripple. A second embodiment includes the use of a power supply centering technique to implement a floating asymmetrical differential amplifier. A third embodiment includes the use of multiple floating differential amplifiers, sharing a common power supply with individual biasing and isolation of each section of the amplifier, to allow high power amplifiers to be built with an arbitrary number of low power modules.
US07688144B2
A variable-gain wide-dynamic-range amplifier including an amplifier module, a control unit, and an output current regulating circuit is provided. The amplifier module amplifies an input signal. The amplifier module includes several amplifier units coupled to each other in parallel. The gains of the amplifier units are different. The control unit enables at least one of the amplifier units according to a gain control signal. The at least one of the amplifier units which is enabled is for outputting a current signal in response to the input signal. The output regulating circuit is for receiving the current signal and outputting an output signal accordingly by regulating the magnitude of the current signal under the control of the control unit. Each of the amplifier units is coupled to the output current regulating circuit in series. The control unit is for controlling the output current regulating circuit according to the gain control signal.
US07688143B2
Disclosed is a variable gain circuit including a gain change region in which the gain is changed substantially exponentially as a function of a control voltage. The gain is changed in the gain change region substantially exponentially based on a function {(1+x)2+K}/{1−x}2+K}, where x is a control voltage and K is a parameter of K≦1. The parameter K of the function is about equal to 0.21. The denominator and the numerator of the function are proportionate to driving currents of OTAs (operational transconductance amplifiers). Or, the denominator and the numerator of the above function are constituted by output currents of a MOS differential pair and a quadritail cell that includes four transistors driven by a common tail current. Outputs of two of the transistors, receiving a differential input voltage, are connected in common and outputs of the other two of the transistors, receiving the common mode voltage of the differential input voltage, are connected in common.
US07688141B1
A transimpedance amplifier (TIA) includes N cascaded pairs of transconductance amplifiers, where N is an integer greater than 1. Each one of the N cascaded pairs includes a first transconductance amplifier having an input and an output, and a second transconductance amplifier having an input that communicates with the output of the first transconductance amplifier and an output. Each one of the N cascaded pairs includes a first resistance having first and second ends that communicate with the input and the output of the second transconductance amplifier, respectively. The TIA further includes a second resistance having a first end that communicates with the input of the first transconductance amplifier of a first one of the N cascaded pairs, and a second end that communicates with the output of the second transconductance amplifier of a last one of the N cascaded pairs.
US07688140B2
Disclosed is a differential amplifier circuit that comprises: a first differential pair of a first conductivity type having an input pair connected to respective input terminals and an output pair connected to a load-element pair; a second differential pair of a second conductivity type having an input pair connected to the respective input terminals and an output pair connected to a load-element pair; a first output transistor connected between a first power supply and an output terminal and having a control terminal connected to a first output of the first differential pair; and a second output transistor connected between a second power supply and the output terminal and having a control terminal connected to a first output of the second differential pair. A current having a value that is the result of adding a current, which is the result of reflecting a current of the second output of the second differential pair by a current mirror, to a current of the first output of the first differential pair, is passed into the load element connected to the first output of the first differential pair. A current having a value that is the result of adding a current, which is the result of reflecting a current of the second output of the first differential pair by a current mirror, to a current of the first output of the second differential pair, is passed into the load element connected to the first output of the second differential pair.
US07688131B2
A charge pump circuit is provided. The charge pump circuit includes a pump unit, first through sixth switches, a fly capacitor and an output capacitor. In a first period, an input voltage and a first voltage charge at least one internal capacitor of the pump unit via a first terminal and a second terminal of the pump unit. In the second period, the internal capacitor of the pump unit provides charges to the fly capacitor via the second switch and generates a first output voltage. In the third period, the fly capacitor supplies the charges to the output capacitor via the fourth switch to generate a second output voltage.
US07688130B2
A passive mixer includes a transconductance amplifier having a source degeneration capacitance. The transconductance amplifier has an input for receiving an input signal and an output for outputting a current signal. A multiplier is provided for mixing a local oscillator signal with the current signal so as to provide an output signal at an output of the passive mixer. A capacitive load is connected to the output of the passive mixer.
US07688129B2
Delay circuits are used in a manner similar to a synchronized mirror delay circuit to generate a quadrature clock signal from an input clock signal. The input clock signal is coupled through a series of first delay circuit for one-half the period of the input clock signal. A second series of feedback delay circuits mirror respective first delay circuits. After the input signal has been coupled through the first delay circuits, the mirrored signals from the first delay circuits are coupled through the feedback delay circuits. The delay of the feedback delay circuits is one-half the delay of the first delay circuits to provide a signal that is the quadrature of the clock signal.
US07688126B2
A time delay circuit is disclosed and includes a delay line with a first delay circuit and at least a second delay circuit connected downstream. An interpolation circuit is used to generate intermediate signals derived by delayed successive signals in the delay line.
US07688122B2
In particular embodiments, a charge pump includes a first input transistor operable to receive an up signal and in response to receiving the UP signal, transmit a corresponding output current from a positive power supply to an output node. The charge pump further includes a second input transistor operable to receive a down signal and in response to receiving the DN signal, transmit a second corresponding output current from a negative power supply to the output node. Additionally, the charge pump includes a first cascode transistor and a second cascode transistor positioned in a first current path between the first input transistor and the output node, and a third cascode transistor and a fourth cascode transistor positioned in a second current path between the second input transistor and the output node. The charge pump further includes a current mirror coupled to gates of the first, second, third, and fourth cascode transistors.
US07688118B2
There is provided a reduced current input buffer circuit. More specifically, in one embodiment, there is provided an input buffer circuit comprising an input buffer that is adapted to draw an operating current, means for providing a first portion of the operating current to the input buffer, and means for providing a second portion of the operating current to the input buffer if the input buffer is expecting data.
US07688111B1
A level-shifting circuit includes an input node, a first output transistor, a second output transistor, a pull-up transistor, and an output node. The input node receives an input signal. The first output transistor turns on when the input signal is at a first voltage level and couples an output node to a positive supply voltage when turned on. The second output transistor, a bipolar junction transistor (BJT), couples the output node to a negative supply voltage when turned on. The pull-up transistor turns on when the input signal is at a second voltage level and generates a voltage at a base terminal of the second output transistor that turns the second output transistor on. Additionally, the level-shifting circuit generates, at the output node, an output signal with a voltage swing that includes a positive voltage range and a negative voltage range.
US07688110B2
A system for providing a CMOS I/O circuit design that may replace existing bipolar I/O circuitry, and thus behave in substantially the same manner as bipolar I/O circuitry. Thus, an I/O circuit using a standard CMOS process is made that mimics operation of an ECL I/O circuit created using bipolar transistors. The CMOS input circuitry can receive input signals from an ECL output circuit, so as to mimic traditional ECL input circuitry. The CMOS output circuitry can output signals to an ECL input circuit, so as to mimic traditional ECL output circuitry. The CMOS I/O circuitry is designed to mimic the temperature dependent signals level, as present within traditional ECL I/O circuitry.
US07688108B2
A data transition minimization method includes exclusive-NORing inputted nth image data (where n is a natural number) and (n−m)th image data (where m is a natural number smaller than n) expressing the same color as that of the nth image data to generate transition information data; generating inversion data indicative of inversion information by inverting all bits included in the transition information data and adding a unit bit having the logic value ‘1’ to the inverted transition information data when the number of unit bits having a logic value ‘1’ in the transition information data is larger than the number of unit bits having a logic value ‘0’ in the transition information data, and adding a unit bit having the logic value ‘0’ to the transition information data when the number of unit bits having the logic value ‘1’ in the transition information data is equal to or smaller than the number of unit bits having the logic value ‘0’ in the transition information data; exclusive-NORing the transition information data with the inversion data added and corrected image data of (n−1)th image data to generate corrected image data of the nth image data, and supplying the generated corrected image data to a data driver through data transmission lines; and restoring the corrected image data supplied to the data driver to restored image data corresponding to the original nth image data.
US07688101B2
A semiconductor chip test apparatus includes a plurality of power supply units, each supplying power to a semiconductor chip having a power input terminal, and a tester configured to measure an output current of at least one of the plurality of power supply units, and to generate a switching control signal when the measured output current is greater than a predetermined current. The semiconductor chip test apparatus also includes a plurality of relays each arranged between a common ground of the tester and a different ground of the semiconductor chip. Further, the semiconductor chip test apparatus includes a relay controller, such as a control bit generator, configured to selectively close one or more of the plurality of relays in response to the switching control signal from the tester.
US07688091B2
An improved chuck with lift pins within a probe station. The chuck assembly may have an outer periphery and an upper surface. The lift pins may be positioned within the periphery of the chuck assembly and may be capable of relative vertical movement with respect to the upper surface of the chuck assembly.
US07688090B2
Techniques for performing wafer-level burn-in and test of semiconductor devices include a test substrate having active electronic components such as ASICs mounted to an interconnection substrate or incorporated therein, metallic spring contact elements effecting interconnections between the ASICs and a plurality of devices-under-test (DUTs) on a wafer-under-test (WUT), all disposed in a vacuum vessel so that the ASICs can be operated at temperatures independent from and significantly lower than the burn-in temperature of the DUTs. The spring contact elements may be mounted to either the DUTs or to the ASICs, and may fan out to relax tolerance constraints on aligning and interconnecting the ASICs and the DUTs. A significant reduction in interconnect count and consequent simplification of the interconnection substrate is realized because the ASICs are capable of receiving a plurality of signals for testing the DUTs over relatively few signal lines from a host controller and promulgating these signals over the relatively many interconnections between the ASICs and the DUTs. The ASICs can also generate at least a portion of these signals in response to control signals from the host controller. Physical alignment techniques are also described. Micromachined indentations on the front surface of the ASICs ensure capturing free ends of the spring contact elements. Micromachined features on the back surface of the ASICs and the front surface of the interconnection substrate to which they are mounted facilitate precise alignment of a plurality of ASICs on the support substrate.
US07688076B2
An insulation inspection apparatus includes a chamber in which a stator with a winding can be stored, an electrode movable along the outer circumference of a coil end of the stator winding, a voltage application unit applying voltage between the coil end and electrode, a sensor unit sensing leakage current and/or voltage drop between the coil end and electrode, and a pressure reduction unit reducing the pressure in the chamber.
US07688069B2
An ultra-low magnetic field NMR system can non-invasively examine containers. Database matching techniques can then identify hazardous materials within the containers. Ultra-low field NMR systems are ideal for this purpose because they do not require large powerful magnets and because they can examine materials enclosed in conductive shells such as lead shells. The NMR examination technique can be combined with ultra-low field NMR imaging, where an NMR image is obtained and analyzed to identify target volumes. Spatial sensitivity encoding can also be used to identify target volumes. After the target volumes are identified the NMR measurement technique can be used to identify their contents.
US07688066B2
A rotation detector includes: a magnet to form a magnetic field between the magnet and a rotary member; a magnetism detection element positioned in the proximity of the magnet to detect a variation in the magnetic field due to a rotation of the rotary member; and a signal processing circuit 3 to process a signal from the magnetism detection element and which is coated and sealed with a resin 7, recess portions 14a, 14b which are lower than electrode forming regions 15 are formed at adjoining regions adjacent to electrode forming regions 15 on which surface electrodes 4 are installed and resin 7 is filled within recess portions 14a, 14b. Thus, the rotation detector which can suppress the deficiency generated at a part mounted on a circuit forming portion, at junctions between the part and surface electrodes, or so forth due to expansion and shrinkage involved in a temperature variation can be provided.
US07688065B2
The device for counting the strokes of a piston sliding within a cylinder comprises a support housing a magnet which generates a magnetic field. The support also houses a sensor arranged to sense the magnetic field, such that the passage of the piston into a position corresponding with the magnet causes a disturbance in the magnetic field, which is sensed by the sensor, to indicate a stroke of the piston.
US07688063B2
A thermal adjustment apparatus for adjusting one or more thermally induced movements of an electro-mechanical assembly includes: a compensating element expanding at a first rate different from a second rate at which the electro-mechanical assembly expands for generating a counteracting force in response to changes in temperature; and a coupling mechanism coupling the compensating element to the electro-mechanical assembly, and being adjustable to control an amount of the counteracting force applied to the electro-mechanical assembly as temperature changes.
US07688058B2
Spectrum analyzer circuits and methods are provided which implement “zero-IF” (direct conversion) or “near-zero IF” (or very low IF) architectures that enable implementation of integrated (on-chip) spectrum analyzers for measuring the frequency spectrum of internal chip signals. An integrated spectrum analyzer circuit, which comprises a zero IF or near-zero IF framework, enables a low-power compact design with sufficient resolution bandwidth for on-chip implementation and diagnostics of internal chip signals.
US07688051B1
A linear regulator for outputting a regulated voltage with improved rejection of high frequency components in the power supply. The linear regulator includes an op-amp connected in a linear feedback loop to drive first and second current legs based on a voltage reference. An output driver includes a load capacitance across which the regulated voltage is output, and further includes a ratio-driven current mirror having a mirror ratio defined by relative sizes of active devices in the first and second current legs, as compared with relative sizes of active devices in the output driver. Because the output driver and its load capacitance are provided outside the linear feedback loop, large values for the load capacitance can be selected without destabilization of the feedback loop. Thus, the value of the load capacitance can be chosen at any value according to frequency rejection requirements.
US07688046B2
Systems and techniques for performing power conversion operations in a portable device are used to convert an input voltage to a voltage at an output. The conversion operations use a two-stage conversion to convert the input voltage to a first voltage and to convert the first voltage to a second voltage. A switching frequency is altered with changes in the input voltage. The switching frequency is selected based on the input voltage level and/or to maintain a substantially consistent ripple at the output, which can correspond to the first voltage and/or the second voltage.
US07688045B2
A DC power conversion circuit with constant current output includes a DC voltage source, a driving circuit and a control signal generator. The DC voltage source is used for providing DC power. The driving circuit includes a switch, a resistor, a diode, and an inductor. The switch has three ends, one used for receiving a control signal. Furthermore, the switch is used for conducting or cutting off a coupling between the other two ends according to the control signal. The resistor is coupled between the switch and a first grounding end. The diode has a first end and a second end coupled to a second grounding end. The inductor has a first end coupled to the first grounding end, and a second end coupled to a load circuit. The control signal generator generates the control signal for the second end of the switch according to a current of the resistor.
US07688042B2
A power factor correction apparatus is for correcting a power factor of transmission lines. The power factor correction apparatus includes a switch, a compensator, a detecting apparatus, a voltage processing circuit, a voltage comparison unit, and a time-delay unit. The switch is electrically connected to the transmission lines. The compensator is electrically connected to the switch for compensating the power factor. The detecting apparatus is electrically connected to the transmission lines for detecting voltages transmitted in the transmission lines. The voltage processing circuit electrically is connected to the detecting apparatus and the switch. The voltage processing circuit includes a voltage comparison unit and a time-delay unit. The voltage comparison unit is electrically connected to the detecting apparatus for comparing the voltages with each other to generate a voltage. The time-delay unit is electrically connected to the voltage comparison unit and the switch delaying the voltage.
US07688040B2
A control device measures a voltage drop across a conductor in a generator to determine and control the total generator output current. A temperature of the conductor is also measured to improve the accuracy. The control device may further improve on the accuracy by compensating for the electrical current through a field coil that may power the generator. The control device may be used in combination with a generator in a vehicle electrical system. Other system parameters may be monitored to improve on the system monitoring, diagnostics, and control. The generator may include a conductor comprising a process-controlled geometric shape.
US07688037B2
Provided are a charging control apparatus and method of a mobile terminal, capable of charging a battery at different charging current rates according to a charging mode of an input power. The charging control apparatus includes: a battery; an external port connector configured to receive power of an external port or adaptor through a single source power rail; a voltage detector configured to detect a voltage inputted through the external port connector and a voltage of the battery; a microcontroller configured to change a charging current rate using the detected input voltage and the detected battery voltage; and a charging unit configured to control a charging of the battery according to the varied charging current rate.
US07688029B2
A portable battery powered appliance accepts at least first and second batteries. The appliance also includes a load. a first circuit. and a second circuit. The first circuit receives power from the first battery and provides a first power. The second circuit receives power from the second battery and provides a second power. The load receives at least one of the first power and the second power.
US07688022B2
An energy management system and method for a vehicle monitors the state and/or condition of at least one energy storage device. A connection element is included that is adapted to connect to a first terminal of the energy storage device. A terminal body is included having a terminal connection point configured to connect to a second terminal of the energy storage device. At least one electrical shunt is also coupled to the terminal body and the connection element wherein the electrical shunt provides a path for the flow of current from the terminal connection point to the connection element. This system further includes an electrical circuit coupled to the shunt that is configured to determine predetermined parameters of the energy storage device based on the flow of current through the electrical shunt.
US07688019B2
The present invention relates to a method and a system for compensating for a position error of a step motor. A method for compensating for a position error of a step motor includes: sequentially inputting a predetermined number of a pulse as a rotator position command to a step motor driver; driving a step motor in a micro step method based on the rotator position command and a predetermined current command table; detecting an actual position of a rotator of the step motor while the step motor is being driven; calculating a position error by comparing the rotator position command and the detected actual position of the rotator; and compensating for the predetermined current command table based on the calculated position error. According to the present invention, a position error which may occur when the step motor is driven by a micro step method can be removed.
US07688016B2
A system for replicating the behavior of a target robotic manipulator with respect to a payload and worksite, has a real-time simulator capturing the dynamics of the target robot manipulator; a mock-up of the payload and worksite; and an emulating robotic manipulator for interacting with said payload and worksite. The emulating robotic manipulator is controlled by the real-time simulator in a control loop to replicate the dynamical behavior of said target robotic manipulator in its environment by matching the impedance of the emulating robotic manipulator with that of the target robotic manipulator.
US07688008B2
A lighting lamp 1 using LED lamps as a light source can include a delay circuit 5, a power supply control unit 6, and a timer circuit 7. The delay circuit 5 can be configured to cause the luminous intensity of the LED lamps to rise along a predetermined slope upon turning on the lighting lamp. The power supply control unit and the timer circuit can be configured to cause the luminous intensity of the LED lamps to fall along a predetermined slope which has an inflection point P at a predetermined time point along the slope.
US07688001B2
A method and system for providing an output voltage greater than a voltage provided by a voltage supply in a semiconductor device are disclosed. The method and system include providing at least one oscillator and at least one voltage storage/discharge stage coupled with the at least one oscillator. The oscillator has a frequency that increases as the voltage decreases. The frequency of the oscillator determines a discharge frequency for the at least one voltage storage/discharge stage.
US07687981B2
Described is a method for preparation of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with medium to low-site density growth for use in field emission devices (FEDs). The method involves the deposition of a non-catalytic metal layer (interlayer), preferably a metallic conductor, onto the surface of a substrate, prior to the deposition of a catalytic layer (overlayer). The interlayer allows for only partial (sparse) growth of CNTs on the substrate, and helps to prevent resist layer “lift-off” when photolithographic processing is employed.
US07687972B2
Fundamental waveform data transferred through a serial interface is stored in a register. A fundamental waveform generation circuit uses the data to generate a fundamental waveform. A selector is capable of providing fundamental waveform data stored in a fixed memory to the register to replace the fundamental waveform data provided through the serial interface. An initial counter provides a low level signal to an exclusive OR gate until its count value reaches a first predetermined value. A direction control signal M/I is provided to the exclusive OR gate from an external source and the direction control signal M/I at high or low level inverts a direction control signal to be provided to a direction selector.
US07687965B2
A stator for a motor having a rotor includes a plurality of laminations each formed in a first elongated arrangement. Each lamination includes a first leg, a second leg, and an intermediate portion that are configured to be rearranged and stacked in a stackwise direction to define a core having a second U-shaped arrangement. A coil is coupled to the first leg.
US07687963B2
The invention relates to a slot seal for an electric machine (13) comprising at least one slot (4) provided with a slot opening for arranging an electric conductor arrangement (6), wherein said slot sealing comprises, on the face thereof oriented towards the conductor arrangement (6), at least one bulge (1) which is oriented to the electric conductor arrangement (6), extends along at least one part of the slot seal length and is selected in such a way that it is elastic or at least deformable and the ends thereof are fixedly interconnected, at least partially, by a cover (2).
US07687959B1
A brushless a-c motor (BACM) (10) consisting of a non-conductive stator (12) and a rotor (44). The rotor (44) has an outer surface (50), a right surface (34) and a left intermediate surface (16) from where extends a protrusion (20) having a cavity (26) into which is inserted a motor support rod (38). The stator (12) includes a multiplicity of longitudinally extending wiring notches (36) and on the left intermediate surface (16) and the right surface (34) are wire attachment structures (18). Around and between the structures (18) and the notches (36) is wound a multiplicity of insulated wires (32) that terminate at an a-c power source (180). The rotor (44) has an inner surface (48) that has longitudinally attached a multiplicity of magnets (56) and is attached to a bearing (80) that is attached to the central protrusion (20). To operate the BACM (10), one end of a circular belt (98) is placed around the rotor (44) and the opposite end is inserted over a work piece.
US07687958B2
A permanent magnet module to be installed in a rotor includes at least two permanent magnets with the first magnetic pole on the first plane surface and the second magnetic pole on the second plane surface, and a cover at least partially enveloping the permanent magnets. The cover of the module is magnetically conductive and includes a top surface, substantially covering the first plane surface of the permanent magnet, and a bottom surface, substantially covering the second plane surface of the permanent magnet. The cover is at least partially open at the side surfaces of the permanent magnet. Also disclosed is a rotor for an electrical machine, the rotor having permanent magnets fitted into a corresponding module.
US07687956B2
A motor drive system is provided. The system includes a torque converter for receiving a rotational motion from a source and producing a rotational output, the torque converter having a first body rotatable about a first axis, a plurality of first magnets mounted to the first body, a second body rotatable about a second axis, and a plurality of second magnets mounted to the second body. The system also includes a generator system coupled to the rotational output of the torque converter and producing at least one electrical output; at least one motor drive coupled to an electrical output of the generator system; and an output system coupled to the motor drive. The first magnets are magnetically coupled to the second magnets, and the second body rotates as a result of the magnetic coupling and produces the rotational output.
US07687947B2
Electric motor (10), in particular for adjusting moving parts in a motor vehicle, comprising an electronic unit (70) with a sandwich construction, which contains a first electrically conductive substrate (71) and a second electric conductive substrate (72), between which power components are located and electrically connected to both substrates (71, 72), and a side (84) of the second substrate (72) facing away from the first substrate (71) is equipped with additional electronic components (56), wherein the first substrate (71) is embodied as a punched grid (44), which together with the second substrate (72) is extrusion coated with a plastic body (95) in such a way that the extensions (97) of the punched grid (44) protrude from the plastic body (95), forming an electrical and/or mechanical interface (98) for connecting additional motor components (99, 38, 40, 104, 102, 80).
US07687941B2
A system for cordless transfer of power for appliances or electronic devices 30 has a power transferring device 80 with a plurality of magnets 52 driven by a motor 70B powered by commercial electric power devices or lines. The power transferring device 80 is positioned below a table or countertop 20. On the undersurface of each appliance or electronic device 30 are one or more circular rotating magnetic arrangements 52 with opposing (attraction) poles to drive a dynamo 40 or dynamos. When the motor 70B is switched on, the drive axle 72 rotates a support base 82 upon which a plurality of magnets 52 is attached about an axis which correspondingly moves the plurality of magnets 52 in a circular motion creating a rotating magnetic field 50 to turn the dynamo 40 inside the base of the cordless appliance or electronic device 30.
US07687932B2
The invention relates to a wind power current generator comprising a bearing, a tubular stator that carries a race of the bearing, a tubular rotor coaxial with the tubular stator that can rotate in relation to the stator, a hub connected to the rotor, and at least two blades radially extending away from the hub. According to the invention, the stator and the rotor are formed with substantially tubular cross sections and are concentric to one another. The opposing surfaces of the rotor and stator carry permanent magnets and windings. The stator and rotor extend beyond either side of the magnets and the windings in order to accommodate an antifriction bearing on at least one side. The tubular nature of the rotor and stator allows easy passage of workers within the generator for maintenance thereof and of the blades. Additionally, the tubular nature facilitates air flow through the structure and out the blades, cooling equipment within the structure and aiding de-icing of the blades.
US07687930B2
A thermodynamic closed hydraulic electric generating system consisting of pressurized tanks, containing gas and liquid volumes interconnected by pipes. The system has a minimum of two tanks, one for heating and one for cooling. The heating source is solar, thermal or chemical. One tank is heated while the other is cooled, causing a significant pressure difference between the two tanks. Once one tank is heated to its optimum temperature and the other is cooled to its lowest temperature, a pressure valve is activated opening a regulated gate valve allowing the liquid in the higher pressure tank to flow through the connecting pipes and through a generator to the tank with the lower pressure and generating electric power. Liquid flow will occur until the tanks' pressure system equalizes, then the system is reversed. Tanks are heated by solar energy by parabolic mirrors and cooled by liquid/gas. Heat sinks promote heating/cooling.
US07687928B2
An aircraft starting and generating system includes a first starter/main machine assembly that includes a first exciter and a first main machine, and second starter/main machine assembly that includes a second exciter and a second main machine. The system also includes a permanent magnet generator (PMG) that is connected to the first and second starter/main machine assemblies. The system further includes a first inverter/converter/controller (ICC) that is connected to the first starter/main machine assembly and to the PMG, and a second ICC that is connected to the second starter/main machine assembly and to the PMG. The first and second ICCs generate AC power to respective drive the first and second starter/main machine assemblies in a start mode of the starting and generating system for starting a prime mover of the aircraft, and the first and second ICCs convert AC power, respectively obtained from the PMG after the prime mover has been started, to DC power in a generate mode of the starting and generating system.
US07687925B2
Mark and method for integrated circuit fabrication with polarized light lithography. A preferred embodiment comprises a first plurality of elements comprised of a first component type, wherein the first component type has a first polarization, and a second plurality of elements comprised of a second component type, wherein the second component type has a second polarization, wherein the first polarization and the second polarization are orthogonal, wherein adjacent elements are of different component types. The alignment marks can be used in an intensity based or a diffraction based alignment process.
US07687924B2
A multi-port memory device includes a first package ball out region in which a plurality of balls for a serial I/O interface part are arranged; and a second package ball out region in which a plurality of balls for a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) part are arranged.
US07687922B2
An element is mounted on a carrier by removing an oxide film sufficiently. An element mounting method in which electrodes of the element are fusion bonded to electrodes of the carrier so that the element is mounted on the carrier, the method includes the steps of: positioning the electrodes of the element at electrodes of carrier respectively, one of the electrodes of the carrier being a striped electrode in an arc shape formed on a concentric circle centered on one of the electrodes of the element, and another being a center electrode formed near the center location of the concentric circle; and then rubbing the striped electrode of the carrier and an electrode of the element together in a direction of the concentric circle centered the center electrode so as to fusion bond the electrodes.
US07687917B2
In a semiconductor device, an insulating interlayer having a groove is formed on an insulating underlayer. A silicon-diffused metal layer including no metal silicide is buried in the groove. A metal diffusion barrier layer is formed on the silicon-diffused metal layer and the insulating interlayer.
US07687916B2
Methods for forming a via and a conductive path are disclosed. The methods include forming a via within a wafer with cyclic etch/polymer phases, followed by an augmented etch phase. The resulting via may include a first portion having a substantially uniform cross-section and a second portion in the form of a hollow ball, extending laterally further within the wafer than the first portion. Back-grinding the wafer to the second portion of the via may create a vent. A conductive path may be formed by filling the via with a conductive material, such as solder. Flux gases may escape through the vent. The wafer surrounding the second portion of the via may be removed, exposing a conductive element in the shape of a ball, the shape of the second portion of the via. Semiconductor devices including the conductive paths of the present invention are also disclosed.
US07687915B2
Example embodiments relate to semiconductor devices having a single body crack stop structure configured to reduce or prevent crack propagation and/or moisture penetration. A semiconductor substrate according to example embodiments may include an active region and a crack stop region surrounding the active region. Interlayer insulating layers may be sequentially stacked on the semiconductor substrate. The interlayer insulating layers may include first dual damascene patterns and a first opening. The first dual damascene patterns may be formed in the interlayer insulating layers so as to be perpendicular to the surface of the semiconductor substrate while exposing a first portion of the semiconductor substrate. The first opening may be formed in the crack stop region and may extend through the interlayer insulating layers to expose a second portion of the semiconductor substrate. First dual damascene metal wirings may be formed in the first dual damascene patterns and may contact the exposed first portion of the semiconductor substrate. A single body first crack stop structure may be formed in the first opening so as to contact the exposed second portion of the semiconductor substrate.
US07687907B2
Provided is a technology capable of improving a production yield of a semiconductor device having, for example, IGBG as a semiconductor element. After formation of an interconnect on the surface side of a semiconductor substrate, a supporting substrate covering the interconnect is bonded onto the interconnect. Then, a BG tape is overlapped and bonded onto the supporting substrate and the semiconductor substrate is ground from the backside. The BG tape is then peeled off and an impurity is introduced into the backside of the semiconductor substrate by ion implantation. Then, the supporting substrate is peeled off, followed by heat treatment of the semiconductor substrate.
US07687904B2
A method of bonding two elements such as wafers used in microelectronics applications is disclosed. One inventive aspect relates to a method for bonding comprising producing on a first main surface of a first element a first solder ball, producing on a first main surface of a second element a second solder ball, providing contact between the first solder ball and the second solder ball, bonding the first element and the second element by applying a reflow act whereby the solder balls melt and form a joined solder ball structure. Prior to the bonding, the first solder ball is laterally embedded in a nonconductive material, such that the upper part of the first solder ball is not covered by the non-conductive material. Devices related to such methods are also disclosed.
US07687903B2
Provided are a power module including a power package and a control package that are provided separately and can be highly integrated, and method of fabricating the power module. The power module includes: a molded power package including at least one power device on a first lead frame; and a molded control package vertically stacked on the power package, and including at least one control device on a second lead frame. A first part of the first lead frame and a first part of the second lead frame are coupled to each other so that the power package and the control package can be electrically coupled to each other.
US07687899B1
An interconnect structure (i.e., an interposer) which is mounted and electrically connected to a bottom semiconductor package substrate either prior or subsequent to such bottom substrate being populate with one or more electronic components. Subsequently, a top semiconductor package substrate which may also be populated with one or more electronic components is mounted to the interposer, such that all of the electronic components are disposed between the top and bottom interposers. Thereafter, a suitable mold compound is injected between the top and bottom substrates, the mold compound flowing about the electronic components, between the BGA joints, and at least partially about the interposer, thus helping to lock the interposer in place in the completed semiconductor package.
US07687893B2
A semiconductor package including a leadframe which has one or more anchor pads formed on and/or defined by the die pad thereof. Such anchor pad(s) may be provided in any one of a multiplicity of different pad shapes, and are adapted to satisfy the required mechanical anchoring and thermal dissipation thresholds for the package, while still enabling high density circuit routing on the printed circuit board under the package. The leadframe of the semiconductor package further includes a plurality of leads which are segregated into at least two sets, with the leads of each set extending along and in spaced relation to respective ones of the peripheral edge segments defined by the die pad. Connected to the top surface of the die pad is at least one semiconductor die which is electrically connected to at least some of the leads of each set by conductive wires. The semiconductor die, the wires, and portions of the die pad and leads are encapsulated by a package body, the bottom surfaces of the anchor pads of the die pad and the bottom surfaces of the leads being exposed in or on a common exterior surface of the package body.
US07687888B2
Methods of controlling stress in GaN films deposited on silicon and silicon carbide substrates and the films produced therefrom are disclosed. A typical method comprises providing a substrate and depositing a graded gallium nitride layer on the substrate having a varying composition of a substantially continuous grade from an initial composition to a final composition formed from a supply of at least one precursor in a growth chamber without any interruption in the supply. A typical semiconductor film comprises a substrate and a graded gallium nitride layer deposited on the substrate having a varying composition of a substantially continuous grade from an initial composition to a final composition formed from a supply of at least one precursor in a growth chamber without any interruption in the supply.
US07687885B2
The present invention provides a technology for reducing the parasitic inductance of the main circuit of a power source unit. In a non-insulated DC-DC converter having a circuit in which a power MOSFET for high side switch and a power MOSFET for low side switch are connected in series, the power MOSFET for high side switch and the power MOSFET for low side switch are formed of n-channel vertical MOSFETS, and a source electrode of the power MOSFET for high side switch and a drain electrode of the power MOSFET for low side switch are electrically connected via the same die pad.
US07687871B2
A photo-detector comprising: a photo absorbing layer comprising an n-doped semiconductor exhibiting a valence band energy level; a barrier layer, a first side of the barrier layer adjacent a first side of the photo absorbing layer, the barrier layer exhibiting a valence band energy level substantially equal to the valence band energy level of the doped semiconductor of the photo absorbing layer; and a contact area comprising a doped semiconductor, the contact area being adjacent a second side of the barrier layer opposing the first side, the barrier layer exhibiting a thickness and a conductance band gap sufficient to prevent tunneling of majority carriers from the photo absorbing layer to the contact area and block the flow of thermalized majority carriers from the photo absorbing layer to the contact area. Alternatively, a p-doped semiconductor is utilized, and conductance band energy levels of the barrier and photo absorbing layers are equalized.
US07687868B2
A structure for a thin film transistor LCD includes a data line extending in a first direction; a source electrode protruded for a predetermined length from the data line; a gate electrode in a second direction so as to be overlapped with a portion of the source electrode and the data line; and a drain electrode of which a portion is overlapped with the gate electrode. The drain electrode is bent according to the contours of the data line and the source so that wider channel can be obtained even without increasing the width of the gate electrode. A pixel electrode is connected to a region of the drain which is not overlapped with the gate electrode and positioned at the inner side of the region forming the data line and the gate electrode.
US07687866B2
A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor layer formed partially on a semiconductor substrate by epitaxial growth, an embedded oxide film embedded between the semiconductor substrate and the semiconductor layer, first and second gate electrodes disposed on sidewalls of the semiconductor layer, a source layer formed in the semiconductor layer and disposed in the first gate electrode, and a drain layer formed in the semiconductor layer and disposed in the second gate electrode, wherein the sidewalls of the semiconductor layer are film-forming surfaces of the epitaxial growth.
US07687860B2
There are provided a memory transistor having a select transistor with asymmetric gate electrode structure and an inverted T-shaped floating gates and a method for forming the same. A gate electrode of the select transistor adjacent to a memory transistor has substantially an inverted T-shaped figure, whereas the gate electrode of the select transistor opposite to the memory transistor has nearly a box-shaped figure. In order to form the floating gate of the memory transistor in shape of the inverted T, a region for the select transistor is closed when opening a region for the memory transistor.
US07687859B2
An electronic circuit includes at least one field effect transistor that is to be protected against electrostatic discharge events, and at least one protection field effect transistor. The protection field effect transistor has a crystal orientation that is different from a crystal orientation of the field effect transistor to be protected.
US07687857B2
Integrated circuits and methods of forming field effect transistors are disclosed. In one aspect, an integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate comprising bulk semiconductive material. Electrically insulative material is received within the bulk semiconductive material. Semiconductor material is formed on the insulative material. A field effect transistor is included and comprises a gate, a channel region, and a pair of source/drain regions. In one implementation, one of the source/drain regions is formed in the semiconductor material, and the other of the source/drain regions is formed in the bulk semiconductive material. In one implementation, the electrically insulative material extends from beneath one of the source/drain regions to beneath only a portion of the channel region. Other aspects and implementations, including methodical aspects, are disclosed.
US07687856B2
One embodiment of the present invention relates to a method for transistor matching. In this method, a channel is formed within a first transistor by applying a gate-source bias having a first polarity to the first transistor. The magnitude of a potential barrier in a pocket implant region of the first transistor is reduced by applying a body-source bias having the first polarity to the first transistor. Current flow is facilitated across the channel by applying a drain-source bias having the first polarity to the first transistor. Other methods and circuits are also disclosed.
US07687855B2
To provide a semiconductor device that can effectively suppress the short channel effect without deterioration of carrier migration, an impurity ion is added from a direction of the <110> axis with respect to a silicon substrate on forming a punch through stopper under the gate electrode. In this invention, because the addition of the impurity is conducted by utilizing the principal of channeling, the impurity can be added with a small amount of scattering suppressing damage on the surface of the silicon substrate. A channel forming region having an extremely small impurity concentration and substantially no crystallinity disorder is formed.
US07687854B2
The present invention relates to a transistor in a semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same. Trenches are formed in a semiconductor substrate at gate edges. Low-concentration impurity regions are then formed at the sidewalls and the bottoms of the trenches. High-concentration impurity regions are formed at the bottoms of the trenches in a depth shallower than the low-concentration impurity regions. Source/drain consisting of the low-concentration impurity regions and the high-concentration impurity regions are thus formed. Therefore, the size of the transistor can be reduced while securing a stabilized operating characteristic even at high voltage. It is thus possible to improve reliability of the circuit and the degree of integration in the device.
US07687852B2
A semiconductor device having recess gates and a method for fabricating the same. The semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate having inverse triangular recesses formed therein; a gate insulating film having a designated thickness formed on the semiconductor substrate; gate electrodes formed on the gate insulating film so that the gate electrodes fill the inverse triangular recesses and protrude from the surface of the semiconductor substrate; and first and second junction regions formed in the semiconductor substrate and opposed to each other so that the corresponding one of the gate electrodes is interposed therebetween.
US07687851B2
A method for manufacturing a trenched metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) cell includes the steps of opening a gate trench in a semiconductor substrate and implanting ions of a first conductivity type same as a conductivity type of a source region with at least two levels of implanting energies to form a column of drain-to-source resistance reduction regions below the gate trench. The method further includes steps of forming a gate in the gate trench and forming body and source regions in the substrate surrounding the gate trench. Then the MOSFET cell is covered with an insulation layer and proceeds with applying a contact mask for opening a source-body contact trench with sidewalls substantially perpendicular to a top surface of the insulation layer into the source and body regions. The method further includes a step of implanting ions of a second conductivity type opposite the first conductivity type with at least two levels of implanting energies to form a column of electrical field reduction regions below the source-body contact trench next to the column of drain-to-source resistance reduction regions to function as charge balance regions to the drain-to-source resistance reduction regions.
US07687849B2
Disclosed is a technique for reducing the leak current by reducing contamination of metal composing a polymetal gate of a MISFET. Of a polycrystalline silicon film, a WN film, a W film, and a cap insulating film formed on a gate insulating film on a p-type well (semiconductor substrate), the cap insulating film, the W film, and the WN film are etched and the over-etching of the polycrystalline silicon film below them is performed. Then, a sidewall film is formed on sidewalls of these films. Thereafter, after etching the polycrystalline silicon film with using the sidewall film as a mask, a thermal treatment is performed in an oxidation atmosphere, by which a light oxide film is formed on the sidewall of the polycrystalline silicon film. As a result, the contamination on the gate insulating film due to the W and the W oxide can be reduced, and also, the diffusion of these materials into the semiconductor substrate (p-type well) and the resultant increase of the leak current can be prevented.
US07687848B2
Structures, systems and methods for floating gate transistors utilizing oxide-conductor nanolaminates are provided. One floating gate transistor embodiment includes a first source/drain region, a second source/drain region, and a channel region therebetween. A floating gate is separated from the channel region by a first gate oxide. The floating gate includes oxide-conductor nanolaminate layers to trap charge in potential wells formed by different electron affinities of the oxide-conductor nanolaminate layers.
US07687847B2
A method of fabricating a semiconductor device is described. A substrate having a memory cell region and a high voltage circuit region are provided. First and second source/drain regions are formed in the substrate within these two regions. A silicon oxide layer, a first conductive layer and a top layer are sequentially formed over the substrate. A floating gate is defined in the memory cell region and the top layer and the first conductive layer of the high voltage circuit region are removed. The exposed silicon oxide layer is thickened. Thereafter, the top layer is removed and then a barrier layer is formed on the exposed surface of the floating gate. A second conductor layer is formed over the substrate, and then a gate is defined in the high voltage circuit region and a control gate is defined in the memory cell region.
US07687845B2
A charge trapping layer in an element isolation region and that in an isolation region between a memory transistor and a selection transistor are removed so that the charges are not injected or trapped in the regions. Also, in an element isolation region, gate electrodes of each memory transistor are united at a position higher than a gate electrode of the selection transistor from a surface of a silicon substrate in an element isolation region, thereby reducing the capacitance between the memory transistor and the selection transistor.
US07687840B2
A crosspoint structure semiconductor memory device includes a plurality of upper electrode interconnectings extending in the same direction and a plurality of lower electrode interconnectings extending in a direction orthogonal to the extension direction of the upper electrode interconnectings. A storage material member that stores data is formed between the upper electrode interconnectings and the lower electrode interconnectings. At least either the upper electrode interconnectings or the lower electrode interconnectings are formed along sidewall surfaces of projections formed into stripes of an insulation film processed to have the projections.
US07687839B2
In capacitive sensor circuits where physical contact is required and excess pressure may be inadvertently applied to the sensor surface, aluminum is not sufficiently hard to provide “scratch” protection and may delaminate, causing circuit failure, even if passivation integrity remains intact. Because hard passivation layers alone provide insufficient scratch resistance, at least the capacitive electrodes and preferably all metallization levels within the sensor circuit in the region of the capacitive electrodes between the surface and the active regions of the substrate are formed of a conductive material having a hardness greater than that of aluminum. The selected conductive material preferably has a hardness which is at least as great as the lowest hardness for any interlevel dielectric or passivation material employed. The selected conductive material is employed for each metallization level between the surface and the active regions, including contacts and vias, landing pads, interconnects, capacitive electrodes, and electrostatic discharge protection lines. Tungsten is a suitable conductive material, for which existing processes may be substituted in place of aluminum metallization processes.
US07687834B2
This invention describes a method of building complementary logic circuits using junction field effect transistors in silicon. This invention is ideally suited for deep submicron dimensions, preferably below 65 nm. The basis of this invention is a complementary Junction Field Effect Transistor which is operated in the enhancement mode. The speed-power performance of the JFETs becomes comparable with the CMOS devices at sub-70 nanometer dimensions. However, the maximum power supply voltage for the JFETs is still limited to below the built-in potential (a diode drop). To satisfy certain applications which require interface to an external circuit driven to higher voltage levels, this invention includes the structures and methods to build CMOS devices on the same substrate as the JFET devices.
US07687822B2
In order to provide light emitting devices which have simple constructions and thus can be fabricated easily, and can stably provide high light emission efficiencies for a long time period, a light emitting device includes an n-type nitride semiconductor layer at a first main surface side of a nitride semiconductor substrate, a p-type nitride semiconductor layer placed more distantly from the nitride semiconductor substrate than the n-type nitride semiconductor layer at the first main surface side and a light emitting layer placed between the n-type nitride semiconductor layer and the p-type nitride semiconductor layer at the first main surface side. The nitride semiconductor substrate has a resistivity of 0.5 Ω·cm or less and the p-type nitride semiconductor layer side is down-mounted so that light is emitted from the second main surface of the nitride semiconductor substrate at the opposite side from the first main surface.
US07687819B2
An optical semiconductor package includes a support with a passage to receive a ring holding a lens situated facing an optical sensor. The support has, in the passage, at least one local release recess and the ring is equipped peripherally with a locally projecting, elastically deformable element. The local release recess and the elastically deformable element are such that, when the ring occupies an angular mounting position, the locally projecting elastically deformable element is engaged in the local recess of the support and, when the ring is pivoted from the aforementioned angular mounting position, the locally projecting elastically deformable element is moved out of the recess of the support and is compressed against the wall of the passage in order to secure the ring relative to the support.
US07687817B2
To provide a light emitting element that can extract substantially all the light emitted from a luminous layer structure to the outside, a GaN substrate and a luminous layer structure are formed by growing III nitride compound semiconductor on a sapphire substrate that is a growth substrate. Thereafter, the sapphire substrate is lifted off and minute irregularities are formed on the exposed GaN substrate. The pitch of irregularities is shorter than the wavelength of light emitted from the luminous layer structure.
US07687813B2
An (Al, Ga, In)N light emitting diode (LED) in which multi-directional light can be extracted from one or more surfaces of the LED before entering a shaped optical element and subsequently being extracted to air. In particular, the (Al, Ga, In)N and transparent contact layers (such as ITO or ZnO) are embedded in or combined with a shaped optical element comprising an epoxy, glass, silicon or other material molded into an inverted cone shape, wherein most of the light entering the inverted cone shape lies within a critical angle and is extracted. In addition, the present invention stands the LED on end, i.e., rotates the position of the LED within the shaped optical element by approximately 90° as compared to a conventional LED, in order to extract light more effectively from the LED. The present invention also minimizes internal reflections within the LED by eliminating mirrors and/or mirrored surfaces, in order to minimize re-absorption of the LED's light by the emitting layer (or the active layer) of the LED. To assist in minimizing internal reflections, transparent electrodes, such as ITO or ZnO, may be used. Surface roughening by patterning or anisotropically etching (i.e., creating microcones) may also assist in light extraction, as well as minimizing internal reflections.
US07687800B1
A composition and method for fabricating and tuning a dopant based core-shell semiconductor having a quantum dot core with an excitation band-gap are provided. A quantum dot core composed of an alloy of cadmium sulfide (CdS) and zinc sulfide (ZnS) as semi-conductor materials include a dopant of manganese (Mn) added to the core and an outer shell of zinc sulfide (ZnS). The dopant based core/shell quantum dot semiconductor of the present invention allows the fine tuning of an excitation band-gap, covering a wide range (from 2.4 eV to ˜4 eV). When doped with Mn, these alloy Qdots emit bright yellow/orange light. Tuning of the excitation band is accomplished by changing the alloy composition of the core. Based on photophysical studies a new core/shell/shell model is provided, in place of the traditional core/shell model. Due to the interfacial diffusion of the cations from the core and shell an intermediate alloy layer is formed providing an inner shell; this inner shell layer is the real host of the dopant ions.
US07687792B2
The present invention provides a digital x-ray radiographic imaging system. The system is based on a photoconductive detector and an electro-optic light modulator, where the photoconductive detector layer absorbs x-rays that have passed through an object to form an exposure of the object. The absorbed x-rays create a static optical image, which is stored in the electro-optic light modulator, allowing the capture of the optical image to continue over longer time. The optical image is digitized using a scanning system and an external light source. The image is then processed and stored by a computer. After the optical image is recorded, an erasing mechanism is used to reset the system before a new exposure is made.
US07687790B2
An imaging system is provided having an EMI shield configured to shield one or more imaging components. The EMI shield includes a first material having a first plurality of conductive elements integrally formed within a first nonconductive material and also includes a generally nonconductive exterior. A method is provided for shielding EMI in an imaging system. The method includes providing an EMI shielding enclosure that includes a first material having a first plurality of conductive elements disposed in a first non-conductive material, and a second material having a second plurality of conductive elements disposed in a second non-conductive material, wherein the first plurality of conductive elements engages the second plurality of conductive elements to form a conduction path. Another method for shielding EMI in an imaging system is provided, that includes providing an EMI shielding enclosure having a first material that has a non-conductive surface and a second EMI shielding material disposed on the non-conductive surface of the first material.
US07687764B1
A low-cost fiber-optic sensor system for composite pressure tanks detects structural degradation of composite material pressure tanks. Light power attenuation in embedded optical fiber simulates tank volume change and replaces hydrostatic tank testing. Current U.S. Department of Transportation rules require that all pressure tanks be hydrostatically tested to verify structural integrity. Tanks do not have to be removed from service for testing. With the invention, testing can be done in-situ. For composite LNG tanks used on vehicles or emergency inflation devices used on aircraft for escape ramps, in-situ testing offers substantial maintenance cost savings. because of the simplicity of the test procedure, more frequent structural checks can be made economically to improve the safe operation of composite tanks.
US07687763B2
A light-powered data acquisition and control system immune to electromagnetic interference employs smart sensors in a network configuration capable of decentralized communication. A smart sensor with integral transducer encloses a microprocessor, fiber optic transceiver, and photovoltaic converter within a Faraday cage. Optical fibers link plural sensors for duplex communication with a fiber optic splitter, which transmits high intensity light to the converter for powering the sensors. The sensor converts analog input from the transducer into bit packets for fiber optic transmission to the network via the splitter. Firmware in the splitter converts the bit packets to network protocol and vice versa enabling data communication among sensors, splitters, and control receivers. Verification algorithms for testing sensors are run automatically by the microprocessor or through commands issued via the network. Mnemonics stored in the sensors provide automatic updating of system configuration.
US07687762B2
A monitoring device includes a first aperture plate, a second aperture plate, and a photodiode. The first aperture is disposed in a light path of a light beam emitted by a light source and includes a first aperture arranged such that a portion of the light beam having maximum light intensity passes and a reflecting portion that reflects the light beam as a monitoring light beam. The second aperture plate is disposed in a light path of the monitoring light beam and includes a second aperture that shapes a beam diameter of the monitoring light beam. The photodiode receives the monitoring light beam.
US07687759B2
A microchannel plate (MCP) for an image intensifier includes an active portion having an input surface area for receiving electrons and an output surface area for outputting multiplied electrons. The input and output surface areas are oriented horizontally with respect to each other and spaced by a vertical distance. A non-active portion surrounds the active portion of the MCP. The non-active portion includes at least one slot extending vertically into the non-active portion and extending horizontally to form a horizontal slotted area. When the MCP is positioned vertically above an electron sensing device having wires looping vertically above the electron sensing device, the slot is configured to receive a portion of the wires, resulting in a vertical clearance between the MCP and the electron sensing device. The wires loop a vertical looping distance above a surface of the electron sensing device, and a portion of the vertical looping distance is configured to be received within the slot of the MCP. The horizontal slotted area may be a rectangle, and the input and output surface areas may also be rectangles.
US07687756B2
An image sensor power distribution arrangement includes a sensing portion having a first contact at a first edge thereof and a second contact at a second edge thereof, and a control portion. A first power supply supplies power to the sensing portion via the first contact. A second power supply supplies power to the sensing portion via the second contact, and to the control portion.
US07687744B2
A novel apparatus for producing combined presentation of light and aroma to produce a desired overall sensory effect. The includes a fragrance dispenser (31), a light source (42), an audio system (52), and a microprocessor (99). The fragrance dispenser (31) is refillable and controllable, so as to adjust the rate at which the fragrance dispenser dispenses a fragrance. The light source (42) comprises a plurality of LEDs (40a-40c) of at least two different colors and is controllable so as to adjust the operation of the plurality of LEDs (40a-40c). The audio system (52) controls sounds to be emitted from the apparatus. The microprocessor (99) controls the rate at which the fragrance dispenser (31) dispenses fragrance and the operation of the light source (42) and audio system (52).
US07687737B2
In a method for sorting flat mail items, mail items are routed longitudinal direction according to determined destination addresses via a transport and point section into sorting terminals assigned to the destination addresses. Gaps between two mail items are adjusted by a controllable gap adjustment device in front of the transport and point. The average set gap between mail items leaving the separation device is selected to be smaller than the minimum gap between the mail items, which are to be sorted in the sorting terminals with the longest transport distances. The gaps between two mail items are adjusted by means of the controllable gap adjustment device as a function of the mail item with the shorter transport distance to the assigned sorting terminal in each instance. To create necessary space to displace the mail items in the flow of mail items, disruptive mail items are ejected.
US07687736B2
A tensioned touch panel includes a support structure having a substrate with a generally planer conductive surface disposed thereon and an insulating spacer generally about the periphery of the substrate. A pretensioned conductive member overlies the support structure. The spacer separates the conductive membrane and the conductive surface thereby to define an air gap therebetween. A conductive membrane is secured to the support structure under sufficient tension to inhibit slack from developing in the conductive membrane as a result of changes in environmental conditions. A method of assembling a tensioned touch panel is also provided.
US07687733B2
The stored energy device interlock assembly provided is structured to prevent the closing assembly and/or the latch assembly from being actuated in selected configurations. The interlock assembly includes a latch D-shaft link assembly, an on-command paddle assembly, and an on-command paddle actuator. The latch D-shaft link assembly is pivotally coupled to, and structured to rotate, the latch assembly D-shaft. The on-command paddle assembly is structured to move the D-shaft link assembly. The on-command paddle actuator is structured to move the on-command paddle assembly. The interlock assembly is structured to disengage the latch assembly D-shaft from the on-command paddle assembly in selected configurations of the electrical switching apparatus. The interlock assembly provided herein has two pivotal degrees of freedom as opposed to a pivotal degree of freedom and a sliding degree of freedom.
US07687731B2
An illuminated push button unit includes a light-guide lens, a lens holder and a push-down control. The light-guide lens is configured to guide light from a light source to a light emission face disposed at a front end of the light-guide lens and emit the light from the light emission face. The lens holder is attached to the light-guide lens. The lens holder includes a light emission window through which the light emission face of the light-guide lens emits the light. The push-down control is attached to the light emission face in a middle of the light emission face so that the light emission face emits the light in an annular shape.
US07687729B2
A turn signal switch assembly is constructed having a switch stalk and junction box rotatably coupled using a shoulder bolt. The shoulder bolt has a shoulder area useful for allowing the switch stalk to rotate freely relative to the junction box. The threaded end of the shoulder bolt is turned and tightened into at least one corresponding threaded aperture in the junction box, thereby mechanically coupling the switch stalk to the junction box. The threaded end of the shoulder bolt also extends past a surface of the junction box so that the threaded end is exposed. The threaded end is mechanically transformed by an orbital riveting device so as to act as a positive locking feature. The shoulder bolt thereafter secures the switch stalk to the junction box using the mechanical advantages of a threaded connection in combination with the positive locking feature of a riveted connection.
US07687727B2
Methods and apparatus for weighing an article, such as a mail piece, while the article is moving, for example along a transport path (FIG. 2). In one embodiment, a weigh station comprises a servo motor 110 driven by a servo feed back loop (126, 128) to maintain a selected speed setting 130. When an article is introduced, an impulse is applied to the article sufficient to change its state of motion from its initial state to the selected speed setting. That impulse is applied by the servo motor 110, and the system captures data indicative of the applied impulse, by monitoring the motor current (140, 142). A processor 140 or software converts the captured data to determine a weight of the article, based on stored calibration data 148.
US07687724B2
A circuitized substrate which utilizes at least one internal (embedded) resistor as part thereof, the resistor comprised of a material including resin and a quantity of powders of nano-particle and/or micro-particle sizes. The resistor serves to decrease the capacitance in the formed circuit while only slightly increasing the high frequency resistance, thereby improving circuit performance through the substantial elimination of some discontinuities known to exist in structures like these. An electrical assembly (substrate and at least one electrical component) is also provided.
US07687713B2
The present invention is directed towards a metal raceway system. The metal raceway system includes a metal raceway and a coupling fitting. The metal raceway snaps onto the coupling fitting to mount the metal raceway to the fitting. The metal raceway has a channel defined by a top wall, side walls and a bottom wall. The side walls include curved protrusions that extend below the channel. The coupling fitting has a base with at least one retention flange having a curved profile that engages the metal raceway.
US07687712B2
A method and system of decoration that includes selecting a particular wall covering pattern, selecting a particular fixture, and continuing the wall covering pattern substantially over the surface of the fixture. The fixture can be an electrical fixture such as a receptacle and/or receptacle cover or switch and/or switch cover or any other type of plate or receptacle. The final arrangement is such that the pattern on the fixture or receptacle almost perfectly matches the wall pattern causing the fixture to become almost invisible.
US07687707B2
A solar cell including a semiconductor body with a multijunction solar cell and an integral bypass diode, and a pair of vias extending between the upper and lower surfaces, forming determined on the lower surface and electrically coupling the anode of the bypass diode with the conductive grid on the upper surface.
US07687706B2
Systems and methods for disposing and supporting a solar panel array are disclosed. In one embodiment, a system for supporting a solar panel array includes the use of support columns and cables suspended between the support columns, with the solar panels received by solar panel receivers that are adapted to couple to the cables. The solar panel array may then be used to provide power as well as shelter. Cooling, lighting, security, or other devices may be added to the solar panel array.
US07687700B1
An illuminated drumstick having a cavity therein for holding a fluorescent glow stick such that the drumstick has a dramatic visual effect when used to play a drum set.
US07687698B2
Disclosed is an apparatus for adjusting a neck angle of a guitar. The apparatus comprises a support block having a receiving groove into which the neck is inserted. The support block is installed inside a lateral plate. A reinforcing plate is installed at bottom of the receiving groove of the support block. The reinforcing plate includes a central plate, a fixed plate fixed to a front face of the support block, and a guide plate guiding rotating of the neck. An adjustment device includes an adjustment bolt inserted into an adjustment hole and a thread portion formed in the adjustment hole of the central plate of the reinforcing plate so as to be thread-fastened with the adjustment bolt. A fixing device includes a fixing bolt inserted into a fixing hole and a fixing nut fixed inside the neck body and thread-fastened with the fixing bolt.
US07687695B2
A method of assembling an anti-wolf resonator assembly for use with a string instrument is provided. The method includes positioning a first portion of the resonator assembly against a first side of a surface of the instrument, and magnetically coupling a second portion of the resonator assembly to a second side of the instrument surface that is opposite the first side of the surface. The surface is positioned between the first and second portions of the resonator assembly. The resonator assembly is configured to dampen at least one of a musical note and a vibration produced by the string instrument.
US07687694B2
Composite or plastic molded articles used in a grand piano piano action. The articles make up a piano action with less dynamic mass which is, thus, more responsive to the piano player. In addition, the new action provides the extremely valuable collateral benefits of increased efficiency of manufacture and maintenance. Low inertia grand piano piano action comprises a repetition base with one or more of the following: an angled main beam, an angled balancier support beam, an integrated jack button stop, and a means to optionally connect a rest cushion assembly. Low inertia grand piano piano action may also comprise a heel with extremely low mass.
US07687693B2
Composite or plastic molded articles used in a grand piano action. A piano action actuates in response to depression on a piano key to swing a hammer into a piano string. The articles are assembled to form a piano action with significantly less dynamic mass which is much more responsive to the touch. In addition, the new action provides the valuable collateral benefits of increased efficiency of manufacture and maintenance. The invention also provides the capability to achieve true half stroke design in both the sharp and white keys. Additionally, the application discloses a universal composite grand piano action that is capable of being installed into any brand of grand piano.
US07687688B2
An inbred corn line, designated BB38, is disclosed. The invention relates to the seeds of inbred corn line BB38, to the plants and plant parts of inbred corn line BB38 and to methods for producing a corn plant, either inbred or hybrid, by crossing the inbred line BB38 with itself or another corn line. The invention further relates to methods for producing a corn plant containing in its genetic material one or more transgenes and to the transgenic plants produced by that method and to methods for producing other inbred corn lines derived from the inbred BB38.
US07687685B2
The invention relates to the soybean variety designated D5703684. Provided by the invention are the seeds, plants and derivatives of the soybean variety D5703684. Also provided by the invention are tissue cultures of the soybean variety D5703684 and the plants regenerated therefrom. Still further provided by the invention are methods for producing soybean plants by crossing the soybean variety D5703684 with itself or another soybean variety and plants produced by such methods.
US07687684B2
The invention relates to the soybean variety designated D5903654. Provided by the invention are the seeds, plants and derivatives of the soybean variety D5903654. Also provided by the invention are tissue cultures of the soybean variety D5903654 and the plants regenerated therefrom. Still further provided by the invention are methods for producing soybean plants by crossing the soybean variety D5903654 with itself or another soybean variety and plants produced by such methods.
US07687682B2
The present invention provides methods of screening an agent for activity using teleosts. Methods of screening an agent for angiogenesis activity, toxic activity and an effect cell death activity in teleosts are provided. The invention further provides high throughput methods of screening agents in multi-well plates.
US07687672B2
The present invention relates to an in-line method for generating comonomer, such as 1-hexene or 1-octene, from monomer, such as ethylene. The comonomer generated is directly transported, without isolation or storage, to a polyethylene polymerization reactor. The in-line method for generating comonomer includes the steps of providing an in-line comonomer synthesis reactor and a downstream gas/liquid phase separator prior to a polyethylene polymerization reactor; feeding ethylene monomer and a catalyst in a solvent to the comonomer synthesis reactor; reacting the ethylene monomer and the catalyst in solvent under reaction conditions to produce an effluent stream including ethylene monomer and comonomer; passing the effluent stream from the comonomer synthesis reactor to the downstream gas/liquid phase separator to separate a gas stream from a bottom stream, wherein the gas stream is a mixture of ethylene monomer, and comonomer; and passing the gas stream to the polyethylene polymerization reactor to provide the necessary comonomer input. The in-line method is useful in the production of LLDPE, and other branched polyethylene based polymers. Some benefits include process simplification and reduced capital and operating costs.
US07687666B2
Processes for preparing amino alcohols or salts thereof and sulfonamide substituted alcohol compounds are provided. Desirably, the sulfonamide substituted alcohol compounds are heterocyclic sulfonamide trifluoroalkyl-substituted alcohol compounds or phenyl sulfonamide trifluoroalkyl-substituted alcohol compounds.
US07687664B2
The present invention provides novel carboxylic acid derivatives useful as an insulin sensitizer, a salt thereof or a hydrate of them, and a medicament comprising the derivative as the active ingredient. Specifically, it provides a carboxylic acid derivative represented by the following formula (I): (wherein Y, L, X, T, Z, U, M and W are defined in the specification) and a salt thereof, and ester thereof or a hydrate of them.
US07687661B2
A process is disclosed for conversion of salts of β-hydroxy carbonyl compounds forming useful conversion products including, e.g., α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds and/or salts of α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds. Conversion products find use, e.g., as feedstock and/or end-use chemicals.
US07687656B2
The invention encompasses processes for the synthesis of (S)-(+)-3-(aminomethyl)-5-methylhexanoic acid, (S)-Pregabalin, and intermediates of (S)-Pregabalin.
US07687653B2
The invention provides a novel process for the preparation of lercanidipine or a pharmaceutical acceptable salt using novel intermediates. Thus, 2,N-dimethyl-N-(3,3-diphenylpropyl)-1-amino-2-propanol is reacted with trimethylsilyl chloride in presence of triethyl amine in methylene chloride to give 2,N-dimethyl-2-(trimethylsilyloxy)-N-(3,3-diphenylpropyl)-1-propanamine, which is then reacted with 2,6-dimethyl-5-methoxycarbonyl-4-(3-nitrophenyl)-1,4-dihydropyridine-3-carbonyl chloride for 2 hours and crystallized to obtain lercanidipine hydrochloride.
US07687649B2
The present invention relates to a polyglycerol significantly reduced in content of a polyglycerol having a cyclic structure formed by removal of a water molecule from a polyglycerol molecule, and to a fatty acid ester of a polyglycerol having excellent surface activity. 2 mole or more of glycidol and a catalyst are successively added to 1 mole of glycerol for a reaction to obtain a polyglycerol, in which a ratio of [total polyglycerol (1)] to [total polyglycerol (2) having a cyclic structure] is [70% or more]/[30% or less] (the total of both is 100% by weight) in terms of an intensity ratio determined by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry; and an average polymerization degree “n” is 2 or more. A reaction of a polyglycerol with a fatty acid provides the corresponding a fatty acid ester of the polyglycerol.
US07687648B2
Biomass extracts with high protein and nutritional value and methods for making the same are disclosed. Such extracts may include cakes with low residual oil and high levels of desirable constituents and oils that require little to no downstream processing upon extraction from the biomass. Also includes methods of extracting desirable products from an oil bearing biomass.
US07687646B2
The present invention provides a novel polymorphic form of olopatadine hydrochloride ([(Z)-3-(dimethylamino)propylidene]-6,11-dihydrodibenz[b,e]oxepin-2-acetic acid hydrochloride), a selective histamine H1-receptor antagonist that is used for the treatment of ocular symptoms of seasonal allergic conjunctivitis. The present invention also provides novel methods for producing olopatadine on a large scale, and in a manner that is cost effective, provides a low level of impurities and eliminates the need to use the costly and dangerous base, butyllithium, which is used in prior art reactions for making olopatadine. The present invention further provides novel processes for carrying out a large scale production of 3-dimethylaminopropyltriphenylphosphonium bromide and its corresponding hydrobromide salt, which are employed in the production of olopatadine, and pharmaceutically acceptable salts of olopatadine.
US07687643B2
Selected amines are effective for prophylaxis and treatment of diseases, such as angiogenesis mediated diseases. The invention encompasses novel compounds, analogs, prodrugs and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, pharmaceutical compositions and methods for prophylaxis and treatment of diseases and other maladies or conditions involving, cancer and the like. The subject invention also relates to processes for making such compounds as well as to intermediates useful in such processes.
US07687642B2
Provided are crystalline forms of fluvastatin sodium and processes for their preparation.
US07687638B2
Compounds, pharmaceutical compositions, kits and methods are provided for use with DPP-IV and other S9 proteases that comprise a compound of the formula: wherein the substituents are as defined herein.
US07687631B2
This application discloses a novel process for the preparation of phosphonate esters useful as intermediates in the preparation of himbacine analogs, themselves useful as thrombin receptor antagonists. The chemistry taught herein can be exemplified by the following scheme: wherein R9 is selected from alkyl, aryl heteroaryl and arylalkyl groups having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, and R11 is selected independently for each occurrence from alkyl, aryl heteroaryl and arylalkyl groups having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and hydrogen, X2 is Cl, Br, or I; X3 is selected from Cl and Br; and PdLn is a supported palladium metal catalyst or a soluble heterogeneous palladium catalyst. The L-derivatizing reagent is a moiety which converts the alcohol functional group of compound 137D to any leaving group which can be displaced by a triorgano-phosphite phosphonating agent.
US07687628B2
The present invention provides a method of preparing a 4-(arylmethyl)amino-1H-imidazo(4,5-c)quinoline of formula (4) by reacting an arylmethylamine of formula (3) with a 4-chloro-1H-imidazo(4,5-c)quinoline of formula (2). The present invention further provides a method of preparing an acid addition salt of formula (5) comprising the step of hydrolyzing a 4-(arylmethyl)amino-1H-imidazo(4,5-c)quinoline of formula (4) with a strong acid, HX. The present invention further provides a method of preparing a 4-amino-1H-imidazo(4,5-c)quinoline of formula (1) comprising the step of treating an acid addition salt of formula (5) with a base.
US07687622B2
Provided is a novel synthesis of quetiapine, and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, in which an alkali metal halide or siliyl halide is included in the reaction mixture.
US07687614B2
The present invention relates generally to fluorescent proteins and fluorescent protein variants, and more specifically to monomeric and dimeric forms of Anthozoan fluorescent proteins. In one aspect, the present invention provides variants of fluorescent proteins, where the variants have a reduced propensity to tetramerize, and form dimeric or monomeric structures. In a further aspect, the present invention provides variants of fluorescent proteins, the variants being characterized by more efficient maturation than corresponding fluorescent proteins from which they are derived. The invention also relates to methods of making and using such fluorescent proteins and fluorescent protein variants, including fluorescent protein monomers and dimers.
US07687610B2
The invention is directed toward a human glycoprotein hormone having at least one, two, three, four, or five basic amino acids in the α-subunit at positions selected from the group consisting of positions 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, and 20. The invention is also directed to a human glycoprotein where at least one of the amino acids at position 58, 63, and 69 of the β-subunit of the human thyroid stimulating hormone are basic amino acids. The invention is further directed to a modified human glycoprotein hormone having increased activity over a wild-type human glycoprotein hormone, where the modified human glycoprotein comprises a basic amino acid substituted at a position corresponding to the same amino acid position in a non-human glycoprotein hormone having an increased activity over the wild-type human glycoprotein hormone. The invention is also directed to a method of constructing superactive nonchimeric analogs of human hormones comprising comparing the amino acid sequence of a more active homolog from another species to the human hormone, and selecting superactive analogs from the substituted human hormones. The invention is also directed to nucleic acids encoding the modified human glycoprotein hormones, vectors containing those nucleic acids, and host cells containing those vectors.
US07687609B2
A complex consisting of galectin-3 and chondroitin oligosaccharide and methods for seperating and detecting the chondroitin oligosaccharide in a sample using the immobilized complex.
US07687608B2
Methods for reducing the T-cell mitogenicity of lectin compositions are provided. In one aspect this is achieved by chemically modifying mitogenic lectin compositions under optimized conditions. Additionally or alternatively, the reduction in T-cell mitogenicity is achieved by removing unmodified subunits chemically modified mixtures. Modified lectin compositions with reduced T-cell mitogenicity are also provided as are uses of the inventive compositions.
US07687606B2
Embodiments of the invention described herein relate to antibodies directed to the antigen monocyte chemo-attractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and uses of such antibodies. In particular, in accordance with some embodiments, there are provided fully human monoclonal antibodies directed to the antigen MCP-1. Nucleotide sequences encoding, and amino acid sequences comprising, heavy and light chain immunoglobulin molecules, particularly sequences corresponding to contiguous heavy and light chain sequences spanning the framework regions and/or complementarity determining regions (CDRs), specifically from FR1 through FR4 or CDR1 through CDR3, are provided. Hybridomas or other cell lines expressing such immunoglobulin molecules and monoclonal antibodies are also provided.
US07687605B2
The invention provides therapeutic anti-beta7 antibodies, compositions comprising, and methods of using these antibodies.
US07687601B2
Conductive polymers are purified using a solid scavenger. The solid scavengers include metal-scavenging functional groups linked to the surface of a particle support material. To improve the functionalization of the support material, the support materials are first treated with sulfuric acid or nitric acid before attaching the molecules containing the metal-scavenging functional groups. The solid scavengers used in the purification methods are more efficient at removing impurities in conductive polymers than existing scavengers.
US07687600B2
Amphiphilic monomeric compounds and corresponding homopolymers and copolymers capable of assembly and invertible configuration in introduction to and change in fluid medium.
US07687599B2
The invention is directed to novel poly(ether-ester)polyols, processes for their production from monocarboxylic or polycarboxylic acid esters with one or more bound polyether chain(s). This invention also relates to the production of polyurethane materials in which the isocyanate-reactive component comprises these poly(ether-ester)polyols.
US07687598B2
An object of the invention is to provide a novel dendrimer serving as an organic semiconductor material which is isotropic and which exhibits remarkably high carrier conductivity. Another object of the invention is to provide an electronic device employing the dendrimer. These objects are attained by a dendrimer having a branching structure in which repeating units each having a branch portion are repeatedly linked through the divergent method or the convergent method, each of said repeating units having a structure represented by formula (1), and containing a linear portion X formed of an optionally substituted divalent organic group and a branch portion Y formed of an optionally substituted trivalent organic group: characterized in that the linear portion X contains at least one thienylene moiety and is at least partially conjugated with the branch portion Y.
US07687597B2
Provided is a thioether-functional, oligomeric polythiol having pendant hydroxyl functional groups, prepared by reacting together: (a) a compound having at least two thiol functional groups; and (b) a hydroxyl functional compound having triple bond functionality. Also provided are optical articles prepared from the reaction product of: (A) a reactive compound having functional groups that are reactive with active hydrogens; (B) a thioether-functional, oligomeric polythiol; and, optionally, (C) a compound different from (B) containing active hydrogens.
US07687585B2
The invention comprises a method of producing an interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) comprising the steps of I) providing a silicone polymer composition; (ii) providing one or more monomers for a polymer; (iii) providing a solvent for the one or more monomers; iv) exposing said silicone polymer composition to said one or more monomers and said solvent to precipitate monomer within said silicone polymer composition and v) polymerizing said monomer to form an IPN, wherein said solvent has a surface tension at the exposing step of about 15 mNZm or less. It is preferred that the solvent, which is preferably CO2, in the exposing step is in or near its supercritical state. The method is fast and simple, and the dispersion of the monomers may be controlled to thereby control the amount and distribution of the interpenetrating network in the silicone material. Further more the method results in new materials, where silicone polymers are used as the basic materials.
US07687580B2
The present invention relates to a method to produce highly branched polymers with a polyolefin backbone structure of ethylene and precise control of the nature of the branching. In particular, the distribution of branch length and number of branches can be more precisely controlled via the polymerization method of the present invention. The method comprises using anionic chemistry to make unsaturated polydienes with a well-defined, highly-branched structure, and then hydrogenating these polydienes to form highly branched or dendritic saturated hydrocarbon polymers. Highly branched or dendritic polyethylene, ethylene-propylene copolymer and atactic polypropylene are among the saturated hydrocarbon polymers that can be anionically synthesized via the proper selection of diene monomer type, coupling agent, and hydrogenation conditions. These polymers find application in injection molding and extrusion processes as a minor additive for improving processability of linear polyolefins by delaying the onset of melt fracture, and correspondingly increasing melt throughput rates.
US07687572B2
The present invention provides a rubber composition having more improved low heat build-up property and abrasion resistance, especially a rubber composition useful for the rubber composition used for a tread of tire, and the present invention also provides a tire having a tread prepared using the rubber composition. The rubber composition is one comprising 15 to 150 parts by weight of silica on the basis of 100 parts by weight of a rubber component, wherein the rubber component comprises not less than 10% by weight of a butadiene rubber which has a vinyl content of not more than 35% by weight and is modified with an un-substituted aminosilane compound.
US07687570B2
A thermosetting resin material is provided with: (A) a thermosetting resin having a dihydrobenzoxazine ring; and (B) a condensed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon resin is described.
US07687563B2
A silicone rubber emulsion composition comprising (A) 100 parts diorganopolysiloxane having at least two silicon-bonded alkenyl groups, (E) 0 to 60 parts reinforcing silica filler, (B) 10 to 250 parts water containing a smectite clay, (C) 0.1 to 15 parts emulsifier, and (D) a cross-linking agent (e.g., an organohydrogenpolysiloxane) in an amount sufficient for cross-linking component (A) and a catalyst (e.g., a platinum-type catalyst). A method for preparing the aforementioned emulsion composition comprising mixing components (A) and (E) with other components in a high-speed stirrer-equipped mixer. A method of manufacturing a silicone rubber comprising either heating and dehydrating the aforementioned emulsion composition.
US07687554B2
The instant invention pertains to a concentrated aqueous dispersion of organic light stabilizers with a particle size of less than 1000 nm, prepared by heterophase radical polymerization of ethylenically unsaturated monomers in the presence of the light stabilizers, wherein the weight ratio of light stabilizer to polymeric carrier is greater than 50/100. Another aspect of the invention is a process for the preparation of such aqueous dispersions with high light stabilizer content. Aqueous dispersions prepared according to this process are useful ingredients for adhesives, aqueous emulsions of natural or synthetic rubbers, water based inks or a water based coating compositions, which are consequently also subjects of the invention.
US07687551B2
Adhesive compositions useful for laminating cellulosic substrates are formulated using an aqueous emulsion of a vinyl ester polymer such as polyvinyl acetate, one or more monomers or oligomers functionalized with (meth)acrylate groups, and a photoinitiator. The adhesive is cured by drying and exposing the adhesive to UV or visible light and is particularly useful for attaching clear films to cellulosic substrates such as paper and boxboard (e.g., in the manufacture of envelopes or folding cartons having windows).
US07687547B2
The present invention is directed to compounds having the formula: In the formula, A2 represents N or C—X1a—R1 and A4 represents N or C—X2b—R2, provided that A2 and A4 are not both N. R1 and R2 independently represent H or a hydrocarbon group, provided that R1 and R2 are not both H. The hydrocarbon groups of R1 and R2 are preferably alkyl or alkenyl groups. More preferably, the hydrocarbon groups are alkyl groups. A1, A3, A6, and A8 independently represent CH or N. A5 and A9 independently represent CR3 or N, wherein R3 independently represents H, methyl, ethyl, or halo. A7 represents CR4 or N, wherein R4 represents H, methyl, ethyl, halo, nitro, hydroxy, amino, amido, or a methyl or ethyl group substituted independently with halo, nitro, hydroxy, amino, or amido. Not more than three of A5, A6, A7, A8, and A9 are N.
US07687543B2
Psoriasis is a common, chronic, inflammatory skin disorder. This invention provides the use of a compound of formula (I) R—CO—X (Wherein R is a C16-24 unsaturated hydrocarbon group optionally interrupted α, β, γ, or δ to the carbonyl group by a heteroatom or group of heteroatoms selected from S, O, N, SO, SO2 said hydrocarbon group comprising at least 5 non-conjugated double bonds; and X is an electron withdrawing group) in the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of psoriasis.
US07687529B2
The present invention is directed to substituted propylamine derivatives of formula I: or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, compositions containing these derivatives, and methods of their use for the prevention and treatment of conditions ameliorated by monoamine reuptake including, inter alia, vasomotor symptoms (VMS), sexual dysfunction, gastrointestinal and genitourinary disorders, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromylagia syndrome, nervous system disorders, and combinations thereof, particularly those conditions selected from the group consisting of major depressive disorder, vasomotor symptoms, stress and urge urinary incontinence, fibromyalgia, pain, diabetic neuropathy, and combinations thereof.
US07687523B2
Compounds of the class 3,9-diaza-bicyclo [3.3.1]nonane derivatives. The compounds correspond to structural Formula (I): wherein Ra is hydrogen or optionally substituted alkyl and Rb is a monocyclic heteroaryl group. The compounds are useful in the treatment, prevention, or alleviation of diseases or disorders or conditions that are responsive to modulation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, including cognitive disorders, Alzheimer's disease, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Tourette's syndrome, Bipolar Disorder, obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD), narcolepsy, senile dementia, autism, Parkinson'disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, epilepsy, and diabetic neuropathy.
US07687516B2
An aqueous formulation of argatroban and of related compounds is disclosed along with a reconstitutable formulation, each of which is substantially, if not totally alcohol free. The formulations are also substantially free, if not totally free, of mono-, di-, and oligo-saccharides. An especially preferred embodiment is a ready-to-administer 1 mg/ml injectable dosage form having argatroban, lactobionic acid, and methionine.
US07687514B2
The present invention relates to a compound of the formula (I): (wherein A, B, C and D are independently nitrogen or optionally substituted methine; E is nitrogen, methine or hydroxy substituted methine; n is 0 or 1; T, U, V and W are independently nitrogen or optionally substituted methine; X is —N(SO2R4)—, —N(COR5)— or —CO—; Y is —C(R6)(R7)—, —O— or —N(R8)—, provided that the compound (I) when E is nitrogen, n is 0, X is —CO—, and Y is —O— is excluded) and the like, which are useful as an agent for the treatment of various diseases related to NPY.
US07687512B2
The invention relates to the use of an inhibitor of formula I or a N-Oxide or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof having an activity on protein kinases VEGFR-2, Tie-2, c-Src, c-Met, FGFR-1, Flt-1, HER-2, c-Abl, c-Raf, PDGFR-beta, c-Kit, or on a combination of the above enzymes, for the treatment and/or prevention of neurological and vascular disorders related to beta-amyloid generation and/or aggregation such as neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease, Down's Syndrome, memory and cognitive impairment, dementia, amyloid neuropathies, brain inflammation, nerve and brain trauma, vascular amyloidosis, or cerebral hemorrhage with amyloidosis
US07687511B2
The present invention is directed in part towards methods of modulating the function of calcium channels with pyrimidine-based compounds. In addition, the invention describes methods of preventing and treating calcium channel-related abnormal conditions in organisms with a compound identified by the invention. Furthermore, the invention pertains to pyrimidine-based compounds and pharmaceutical compositions comprising these compounds.
US07687505B2
This invention provides cells and methods for stimulating proliferation and migration of endogenous and exogenous mammalian stem cells in vivo and in vitro. The invention provides reagents and methods for efficiently proliferating mammalian stem cells in an animal in need thereof and producing stem cells that can be re-introduced into an animal in need thereof to alleviate neurological and corporal disorders.
US07687503B2
The invention relates to a compound having general formula (I): Wherein m, R1 and R2 are as defined herein. The invention also relates to the use of the compound in therapeutics. More specifically, the compounds of the invention are inhibitors of the FAAH enzyme, and therefore, can be used for the treatment of various disorders associated with FAAH enzyme, which include in a non-limiting manner, pain, eating disorders, neurological and psychiatric pathologies, among other disorders.
US07687498B2
This invention features compounds of formula (I): pharmaceutical compositions of the compounds, and methods of using the compounds for the treatment of, inter alia, IL-12-related diseases and disorders.
US07687494B2
The invention is directed to nonpeptide substituted benzazepines of Formula I, which are useful as vasopressin receptor antagonists for treating conditions associated with vasopressin receptor activity such as those involving increased vascular resistance and cardiac insufficiency, including congestive heart failure, hyponatremia, and hypertension, among others disclosed. Pharmaceutical compositions comprising a compound of Formula I and methods of treating conditions such as hypertension, congestive heart failure, cardiac insufficiency, coronary vasospasm, cardiac ischemia, liver cirrhosis, hyponatremia, renal vasospasm, renal failure, diabetic nephropathy, cerebral edema, cerebral ischemia, stroke, thrombosis, or water retention are also disclosed.
US07687490B2
An objective of the present invention is to provide compounds that are effective against various resistant bacteria which cause current clinical problems, for example, pneumococci including penicillin resistant Streptococcus pneumoneae (PRSP), Haemophilus influenzae including bata-lactamase-nonproducing ampicillin-resistant Haemophilus influenzae (BLNAR), and Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis.The present invention provides 2-ethenylthio-based carbapenem derivatives represented by the formula (I) or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof that are effective, for example, against pneumococci including penicillin resistant Streptococcus pneumoneae (PRSP), Haemophilus influenzae including beta-lactamase-nonproducing ampicillin-resistant Haemophilus influenzae (BLNAR), and Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis:
US07687484B2
Methods and compositions for enhancing the activity and/or duration of action of loteprednol etabonate and other soft anti-inflammatory steroids of the haloalkyl 17α-alkoxycarbonyloxy-11β-hydroxyandrost-4-en-3-one-17β-carboxylate type and the corresponding Δ1,4-compounds are described. The enhancing agents have the formula: wherein Z1 is carbonyl, β-hydroxymethylene or methylene; R2 is H, —OH or —OCOR3 wherein R3 is C1-C5 alkyl; Y is —OH, —SH or —OCOR4 wherein R4 is C1-C5 alkyl, cyclopentylethyl or diethylaminoethyl; and the dotted line in ring A indicates that the 1,2-linkage is saturated or unsaturated.
US07687482B2
The invention provides, inter alia, novel bisphosphonate compounds and methods of making and using. In embodiments, the invention provides compounds and methods in connection with research and therapeutic applications, e.g., for tumor cell growth inhibition, activation of gammadelta T cells, inhibition of farnesyldiphosphate (FPPS) and/or undecaprenyldiphosphate synthase enzymes, bone resorption diseases, cancer, immune disorders, immunotherapy, and infectious diseases. In regards to certain embodiments, a surprising advance has been the recognition that certain structural features can significantly enhance the activity of the compounds. For example, the presence of particular cationic species e.g., phosphonium, sulfonium, and arsonium moieties can contribute to desirable functional activity when positioned near a bisphosphonate moiety. In other embodiments of non-nitrogen containing bisphosphonates, terphenyl and benzyl bisphosphonate compounds and methods are provided. Further variations are also provided.
US07687479B2
The invention relates, in part, to methods and products related to producing low molecular weight heparin.
US07687469B2
Glucopyranosyl-substituted benzene derivatives defined according to claim 1, including the tautomers, the stereoisomers thereof, the mixtures thereof and the salts thereof. The compounds according to the invention are suitable for the treatment of metabolic disorders.
US07687462B2
Provided herein is a composition for cartilage formation or regeneration comprising a NELL gene product and a method of treating cartilage-related conditions using such a composition.
US07687456B2
Peptide-based compounds including heteroatom-containing, three-membered rings efficiently and selectively inhibit specific activities of N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn) hydrolases associated with the proteasome. The peptide-based compounds include an epoxide or aziridine, and functionalization at the N-terminus. Among other therapeutic utilities, the peptide-based compounds are expected to display anti-inflammatory properties and inhibition of cell proliferation. Oral administration of these peptide-based proteasome inhibitors is possible due to their bioavailability profiles.
US07687454B2
A method of identifying a polynucleotide or pattern of polynucleotides regulated by one or more sepsis or inflammatory inducing agents and inhibited by a peptide is described. A method of identifying a pattern of polynucleotide expression for inhibition of an inflammatory or septic response. The method includes contacting cells with LPS, LTA, CpG DNA and/or intact microbe or microbial components in the presence or absence of a cationic peptide; detecting a pattern of polynucleotide expression for the cells in the presence and absence of the peptide, wherein the pattern in the presence of the peptide represents inhibition of an inflammatory or septic response. Also included are compounds and agents identified by the methods of the invention. In another aspect, the invention provides methods and compounds for enhancing innate immunity in a subject.
US07687435B2
The present invention relates to benzoyl-substituted phenylalanineamides of the formula I in which the variables R1 to R15 are as defined in the description, and to their agriculturally useful salts, to processes and intermediates for their preparation and to the use of these compounds or of compositions comprising these compounds for controlling unwanted plants.
US07687410B2
The present invention relates to an inorganic wood-like material, which can be used as a sheet instead of wood, characterized that the said material mainly includes magnesite, magnesium chloride, lime powder, glass fiber, talcum powder and kaolin. The method of preparing the same includes pulverizing, mixing this material in different proportion and molding the mixture to obtain the inorganic wood-like material of the present invention. The material can exhibits a laminated structure comprising wear-resistant surface layer (11), an inorganic material layer (12) and a wear-resistant bottom layer (13). The material can be used for buildings. It is non-toxic, odorless, rustless, non-inflammable and non-oxidable. Its appearance looks like wood and it is easy to be processed. The material is a good environment-protecting material and will be widely accepted by industry and commerce.
US07687407B2
The present invention provides an interconnect structure, a method of manufacture therefore, and a method for manufacturing an integrated circuit including the same. The method for forming the interconnect structure, among other steps, includes subjecting a first portion (510) of a substrate (220) to a first etch process, the first etch process designed to etch at a first entry angle (θ1), and subjecting a second portion (610) of the substrate (220) to a second different etch process, the second different etch process designed to etch at a second lesser entry angle (θ2).
US07687406B2
A stabilizing solution for treating photoresist patterns and methods of preventing profile abnormalities, toppling and resist footing are disclosed. The stabilizing solution comprises a non-volatile component, such as non-volatile particles or polymers, which is applied after the photoresist material has been developed. By treating the photoresist with the solution containing a non-volatile component after developing but before drying, the non-volatile component fills the space between adjacent resist patterns and remains on the substrate during drying. The non-volatile component provides structural and mechanical support for the resist to prevent deformation or collapse by liquid surface tension forces.
US07687397B2
A method involves forming vias in a device-bearing semiconductor wafer, making at least some of the vias in the device-bearing semiconductor wafer electrically conductive, and performing back-end processing the device-bearing semiconductor wafer so as to create electrical connections between an electrically conductive via and a metallization layer. An alternative method involves forming vias in a device-bearing semiconductor wafer, making at least some of the vias in the device-bearing semiconductor wafer electrically conductive, and processing the device-bearing semiconductor wafer so as to create electrical connections between an electrically conductive via and a conductive semiconductor layer.
US07687396B2
A method comprises forming a gate stack comprising a polysilicon layer, a metal layer and a polysilicon layer over a gate dielectric and substrate. The metal layer is buried inside the gate stack to alloy the silicon and metal at the bottom of the gate. The gate stack is then etched to form a gate. A silicidation is then performed to form a silicide at the bottom of the gate. Optionally, a second metal layer may be formed on top of the gate stack. As such, during silicidation, a silicide may be formed at the top of the gate.
US07687392B2
A method for fabricating a semiconductor device having a metal wiring is provided. The method includes: forming an inter-metal dielectric (IMD) layer on the semiconductor substrate having a first metal wiring formed therein, the IMD layer including a first IMD layer and a second IMD layer; forming a via hole in the IMD layer to expose the first metal wiring; forming an ion barrier layer on sidewalls of the via hole; forming a diffusion barrier layer on the semiconductor substrate, on which the ion barrier layer has been formed; forming a metal layer on the semiconductor substrate in the via hole; and forming a second metal wiring on the semiconductor substrate, the second metal wiring contacting the metal layer in the via hole.
US07687369B2
A method of forming fine metal interconnect patterns includes forming an insulating film on a substrate, forming a plurality of mold patterns with first spaces therebetween on the insulating film, such that the mold patterns have a first layout, forming metal hardmask patterns in the first spaces by a damascene process, removing the mold patterns, etching the insulating film through the metal hardmask patterns to form insulating film patterns with second spaces therebetween, the second spaces having the first layout, and forming metal interconnect patterns having the first layout in the second spaces by the damascene process.
US07687365B2
The present invention provides a semiconducting structure including a substrate having an UTSOI region and a bulk-Si region, wherein the UTSOI region and the bulk-Si region have a same crystallographic orientation; an isolation region separating the UTSOI region from the bulk-Si region; and at least one first device located in the UTSOI region and at least one second device located in the bulk-Si region. The UTSOI region has an SOI layer atop an insulating layer, wherein the SOI layer has a thickness of less than about 40 nm. The bulk-Si region further comprises a well region underlying the second device and a contact to the well region, wherein the contact stabilizes floating body effects.
US07687364B2
A multi-component low-k isolation spacer for a conductive region in a semiconductor structure is described. In one embodiment, a replacement isolation spacer process is utilized to enable the formation of a two-component low-k isolation spacer adjacent to a sidewall of a gate electrode in a MOS-FET device.
US07687356B2
A method of forming a silicon germanium conduction channel under a gate stack of a semiconductor device, the gate stack being formed on a silicon layer on an insulating layer, the method including growing a silicon germanium layer over said silicon layer and heating the device such that germanium condenses in the silicon layer such that a silicon germanium channel is formed between the gate stack and the insulating layer.
US07687347B2
Flash memory device structures and methods of manufacture thereof are disclosed. The flash memory devices are manufactured on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates. Shallow trench isolation (STI) regions and the buried oxide layer of the SOI substrate are used to isolate adjacent devices from one another. The methods of manufacture require fewer lithography masks and may be implemented in stand-alone flash memory devices, embedded flash memory devices, and system on a chip (SoC) flash memory devices.
US07687346B2
A semiconductor integrated circuit device includes first, second gate electrodes, first, second diffusion layers, contact electrodes electrically connected to the first diffusion layers, a first insulating film which has concave portions between the first and second gate electrodes and does not contain nitrogen as a main component, a second insulating film which is formed on the first insulating film and does not contain nitrogen as a main component, and a third insulating film formed on the first diffusion layers, first gate electrodes, second diffusion layers and second gate electrodes with the second insulating film disposed therebetween in a partial region. The second insulating film is formed to fill the concave portions and a portion between the first and second gate electrodes has a multi-layered structure containing at least the first and second insulating films.
US07687342B2
A memory device comprises an active area comprising a source and at least two drains defining a first axis. At least two substantially parallel word lines are defined by a first pitch, with one word line located between each drain and the source. Digit lines are defined by a second pitch, one of the digit lines being coupled to the source and forming a second axis. The active areas of the memory array are tilted at 45° to the grid defined by the word lines and digit lines. The word line pitch is about 1.5F, while the digit line pitch is about 3F.
US07687330B2
A thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) pixel structure comprising: a gate line and a gate electrode formed on a substrate; a first insulating layer, a semiconductor layer, and a doped semiconductor layer formed sequentially on the gate electrode and the gate line, wherein an isolating groove is formed above the gate line which disconnects the semiconductor layer on the gate line; a second insulating layer covering the isolating groove and a portion of the substrate where the gate line and the gate are not formed; a pixel electrode formed on the second insulating layer, wherein the pixel electrode is integral with a drain electrode and is connected with the doped semiconductor layer on the gate electrode at a place where the drain electrode is formed; a source electrode, which is a portion of a data line, formed on the doped semiconductor layer; and a channel formed between the source electrode and the drain electrode.
US07687329B2
One aspect of this disclosure relates to a method for creating proximity gettering sites in a silicon on insulator (SOI) wafer. In various embodiments of this method, a relaxed silicon germanium region is formed over an insulator region of the SOI to be proximate to a device region. The relaxed silicon germanium region generates defects to getter impurities from the device region. Other aspects are provided herein.
US07687322B1
Techniques for fabricating metal devices, such as vertical light-emitting diode (VLED) devices, power devices, laser diodes, and vertical cavity surface emitting laser devices, are provided. Devices produced accordingly may benefit from greater yields and enhanced performance over conventional metal devices, such as higher brightness of the light-emitting diode and increased thermal conductivity. Moreover, the invention discloses techniques in the fabrication arts that are applicable to GaN-based electronic devices in cases where there is a high heat dissipation rate of the metal devices that have an original non- (or low) thermally conductive and/or non- (or low) electrically conductive carrier substrate that has been removed.
US07687309B2
Programmable via devices and methods for the fabrication thereof are provided. In one aspect, a programmable via device is provided comprising a substrate; a dielectric layer on the substrate; a heater on at least a portion of a side of the dielectric layer opposite the substrate; a first oxide layer over the side of the dielectric layer opposite the substrate and surrounding at least a portion of the heater; a first capping layer over a side of the first oxide layer opposite the dielectric layer; at least one programmable via extending through the first capping layer and the first oxide layer and in contact with the heater, the programmable via comprising at least one phase change material; a second capping layer over the programmable via; a second oxide layer over a side of the first capping layer opposite the first oxide layer; a pair of first conductive vias, each extending through the first and second oxide layers and the first capping layer, and in contact with the heater; and a second conductive via, located between the pair of first conductive vias, extending through the second oxide layer and in contact with the second capping layer.
US07687305B2
An image sensor include an interlayer dielectric layer formed over a semiconductor substrate; a color filter array formed over the interlayer dielectric layer; a planarization layer formed over the color filter; and a microlens array having a continuous, gapless shape formed over the planarization layer and spatially corresponding to the color filter array. The microlens array is composed of a first dielectric layer and a second dielectric layer formed over the first dielectric layer.
US07687303B1
A method for determining an effect of via/contact pattern density in via/contact etch rate of a wafer includes determining a neutral etchant species number flux intersecting each via/contact mouth as a function of local layout characteristics and determining variations in the neutral etchant species flux number as a function of the via/contact pattern density in a wafer scale. The comparison of these number fluxes provides the capability to discriminate an underetched or an overetched via/contact from normal vias/contacts satisfying an etch tolerance criterion. Chip designers can modify the layout design to minimize via/contact failures. Chip manufacturers can modify the etching process to minimize via/contact failures.
US07687296B2
Circuit elements, such as aluminum interconnects, and a protective film for protecting these circuit elements are formed on a surface of a semiconductor substrate. Resist is formed covering the protective film. The semiconductor substrate on which the resist covering the protective film is formed is dipped into pure water so as to allow the water to filter into a gap between the resist and semiconductor substrate. Then the semiconductor substrate having the resist thereon is dried in high temperature air, and the resist is adhered to the semiconductor substrate by a sticking function due to the surface tension generated when the water is decreasing. The semiconductor substrate to which the resist is adhered is cleaned by a hydrogen fluoride aqueous solution.
US07687294B2
The present invention provides a nitride semiconductor device. The nitride semiconductor device comprises an n-type nitride semiconductor layer formed on a nitride crystal growth substrate. An active layer is formed on the n-type nitride semiconductor layer. A first p-type nitride semiconductor layer is formed on the active layer. A micro-structured current diffusion pattern is formed on the first p-type nitride semiconductor layer. The current diffusion pattern is made of an insulation material. A second p-type nitride semiconductor layer is formed on the first p-type nitride semiconductor layer having the current diffusion pattern formed thereon.
US07687287B2
A light-emissive device is prepared by depositing a polymer layer on a substrate. The deposition process utilizes a formulation comprising a conjugated polymer dissolved in a solvent, the solvent including a trialkyl-substituted aromatic hydrocarbon wherein at least two of the alkyl substituents are ortho to one another. The deposition of the polymer layer on the substrate may be accomplished by an ink-jet method.
US07687270B1
A system for transporting fuel exhibits increased safety. The system includes a fuel leak detector including: a colorimetric chemical monitor configured to change color in response to presence of a fuel or fuel component, an optical reader configured to monitor a color of the chemical monitor, and an alarm system configured to provide an alarm when a color of the chemical monitor changes by a predetermined amount.
US07687264B2
Decalcification can be performed by using acid or other agents. It may be difficult to decalcify large bone block within ours. This invention provides a bone-decalcifying agent including a calcium desolving agent for desolving calcium ions of bones, and a bubble-forming agent for generating microbubbles when the bone-decalcifying agent is exposed to ultrasonic vibration. It is found that bones may be decalcified in a relatively short time using the bone-decalcifying agent of this invention.
US07687260B2
The present invention relates to the field of DNA analysis. In particular, the present invention is directed to a device for the parallel imaging of fluorescence intensities at a plurality of sites as a measure for DNA hybridization. More particular, the present invention is directed to a device to image multiplex real time PCR or to read out DNA microarrays.
US07687258B1
A high sensitive detector detects and determines the presence of a very small amount of biological substances. The high sensitive detector comprises a sensor part, a sense amplifier, and microprocessor. A sensor part of the detector comprises two components; one comprises transistors and the other comprises affinity binding molecules for capturing biological substances. The affinity binding molecules can capture biological substances through specific molecular recognition. The electrical properties of a transistor-based circuit are changed when the affinity binding molecules capture biological substances on the gate of the transistors. The electrical signal is amplified by an amplifier and transferred to a microprocessor. The microprocessor modulates the transferred signal to determine the presence of biological substances.
US07687257B2
The invention relates to a device for separating and/analyzing several molecular targets dissolved in a complex mixture which is characterized in that it comprises a) a matrix of micro-columns, wherein each micro-column (2) comprises an immobilized molecular probe for retaining a specific molecular target contained in the complex mixture by specific probe/target linkage, b) a first capillary network (3) for circulating the complex mixture introduced into the inventive device towards each micro-column of the matrix defined in a), c) a second capillary network (4) for circulating, after elution, the molecular targets retained on the micro-columns towards a sensor (5) for carrying out the recovery and/or analysis thereof, and d) if necessary, a sensor (5), preferably in the form of a mass spectrometer, for carrying out the recovery and/or analysis of different molecular targets.
US07687256B2
The present invention provides substrates having a plurality of micro-locations on its surface. Each micro-location has an effective dose of an ion beam treatment such that the plurality of the micro-locations exhibit an affinity to a compound that is different from the affinity of the remainder of the substrate surface to that compound. The substrates of the invention can be utilized to form microarrays of biological molecules, such as oligonucleotides or peptides. Such microarrays can find a variety of applications. For example, they can be employed in large scale hybridization assays in many genetic applications, such as mapping of genomes, monitoring of gene expression, DNA sequencing, genetic diagnosis, and genotyping of organisms.
US07687255B2
Methods of fixing and processing tissue and samples on a membrane by using ultrasound radiation as a part of the method are presented. Ultrasound of a frequency in the range of 0.1-50 MHz is used and the sample or tissue receives 0.1-200 W/cm2 of ultrasound intensity. The use of ultrasound allows much shorter times in the methods. Also presented are apparati comprising transducers of one or of multiple heads for producing the ultrasound radiation and further comprising a central processing unit and optionally comprising one or more sensors. Sensors can include those to measure and monitor ultrasound and temperature. This monitoring system allows one to achieve accurate and optimum tissue fixation and processing without overfixation and tissue damage. The system also allows the performance of antigen-antibody reactions or nucleic acid hybridizations to be completed in a very short time while being highly specific and with a very low or no background.
US07687247B1
This invention relates to a method of incorporating an exo-sample nucleotide into the amplified product strands resulting from a nucleic acid amplification process. Once the product strands have been obtained and analyzed (e.g., by hybridization, Southern blot, etc.), the exo-sample strands can be selectively destroyed by acting on the incorporated exo-sample nucleotide.Two embodiments are presented. In a first embodiment, the exo-sample nucleotide is incorporated by carrying out the amplification to reaction in the presence of an excess of exo-sample nucleotide tri-phosphate.In a second embodiment, the exo-sample nucleotide is incorporated by carrying out the amplification reaction in the presence of an oligonucleotide which has, as part of its sequence, one or more exo-sample nucleotides.
US07687246B2
The present invention relates to a biological process for producing carotenoids utilizing a microorganism which is capable of producing carotenoids and belonging to the genus Xanthophyllomyces (Phaffia) in the presence of an inhibitor for biosynthesis of sterols from farnesyl pyrophosphate.
US07687243B1
A TUNEL assay method is claimed and described. The method comprises loading slides having mounted tissue samples into a primary stainer and testing tissue samples for apoptosis using a stainer. In one embodiment, the method includes using a stainer having a plurality of reservoirs. A reagent reservoir is loaded with anti-conjugate antibody reporter. A slide tray of the stainer is loaded with a slide having a tissue sample. The stainer adds anti-conjugate antibody reporter to the sample for a duration.
US07687242B2
The invention provides the identification and characterization of disease and cancer-associated antigen, KID31. The invention also provides a family of monoclonal antibodies that bind to antigen KID31, methods of diagnosing and treating various human cancers and diseases that express KID31.
US07687241B2
The present invention relates to novel methods and compositions for detection and isolation of cancer cells with metastatic potential. The invention further relates to assays for measuring the metastatic potential of such cancer cells and drug screening assays for the identification of agents having anti-metastatic potential. The present invention further provides methods and compositions for inhibiting the metastatic potential of cancer cells by modulating the activity of serine integral membrane proteases [(SIMP) consisting of seprase and dipetidyl peptidase IV (DPPIV)] expressed on the surface of metastasizing cancer cells.
US07687239B2
The present invention relates to moving microorganisms to a surface, where they are grown in the presence and absence of antimicrobials, and by monitoring the growth of the microorganisms over time in the two conditions, their susceptibility to the antimicrobials can be determined. The microorganisms can be moved to the surface through electrophoresis, centrifugation or filtration. When the movement involves electrophoresis, the presence of oxidizing and reducing reagents lowers the voltage at which electrophoretic force can be generated and allows a broader range of means by which the target can be detected. Monitoring can comprise optical detection, and most conveniently includes the detection of individual microorganisms. The microorganisms can be stained in order to give information about their response to antimicrobials.
US07687237B2
The present invention relates to a method of identification and quantification of proteins, isoforms of angiotensin I converting enzymes (ACE), 190-kDa, specially of 90kDa in tissues, cells and biological fluids, specially in urine, genetic marker and prognostic agent of hypertension and primary or secondary renal lesion and kit for using in the diagnosis, risk stratification and therapeutical decision in arterial hypertension. One the aims of the present invention is to check the potential of the 90 kDa isoform as a hypertension genetic marker isoform and as a prognostic for hypertension.
US07687233B2
The present invention provides a method of identifying a human subject having increased or decreased sensitivity to warfarin, comprising detecting in the subject the presence of a single nucleotide polymorphism in the VKOR gene, wherein the single nucleotide polymorphism is correlated with increased or decreased sensitivity to warfarin, thereby identifying the subject having increased or decreased sensitivity to warfarin.
US07687232B2
The present invention relates to a method for estimating the risk for development of carcinoma in an individual. More precisely, for estimating the cancer risk in an individual being exposed to human papilloma virus(es) (HPV). The method comprises (i) identification of one or more of said HPV or groups thereof in a sample from said human being; (ii) calculating the amount of HPV of each type or group in the sample and normalising the values to the amount of cells sampled; (iii) estimating the risk for each of the HPV or groups of HPV by comparing each viral titer value from (ii) with type or group specific standard curves for each viral type or group with risk estimation values; and (iv) estimating the combined risk for carcinoma development for the human being from the individual risk estimation curves of the different viral types.
US07687222B2
Novel polymerizable ester compounds having formulae (1) to (4) undergo no acid-induced decomposition by β-elimination wherein A1 is a polymerizable functional group having a carbon-carbon double bond, R1 is H or —C—(R5)3, R2 and R3 are alkyl, R4 is H or alkyl, R5 is a monovalent hydrocarbon group, X is alkylene, Y is methylene, ethylene or isopropylidene, Z is alkylene, and n=1 or 2. Resist compositions comprising polymers derived from the ester compounds have excellent sensitivity and resolution and lend themselves to micropatterning lithography.
US07687220B2
The invention pertain to novel photoacid generator compounds of the formula I, II or III wherein R1 is for example C1-C18alkylsulfonyl or phenylsulfonyl, phenyl-C1-C3alkylsulfonyl, , naphthylsulfonyl, anthracylsulfonyl or phenanthrylsulfonyl, all optionally substituted, or R1 is a group X1, X2 and X3 independently of each other are O or S; R′1, is e.g. phenylenedisulfonyl, naphthylenedisulfonyl, diphenylenedisulfonyl, or oxydiphenylenedisulfonyl, all optionally substituted; R2 is halogen or C1-C10haloalkyl; X is halogen; Ar1 is for example biphenylyl or fluorenyl, or is substituted naphthyl; Ar′1 is heteroarylene, optionally substituted; R8, R9, R10 and R11 for example are C1-C6alkyl which is unsubstituted or substituted by halogen; or R8, R9 and R10 are phenyl which is unsubstituted or substituted by C1-C4alkyl or halogen; or R10 and R11 together are 1,2-phenylene or C2-C6alkylene which is unsubstituted or substituted by C1-C4alkyl or halogen.
US07687214B2
A two-component developer and an image formation method for two-component development type are provided. With this developer and this method, even if toners have a small grain diameter and a high density of pigments for economizing the toner consumption, cracking and toner spent caused by the stress from carriers are suppressed, so that less deteriorated and stabler images can be obtained throughout a long time period. The two-component developer includes toner particles containing at least a binding resin and a pigment. A mean volume particle diameter of the toner particles is between 5.5 μm and 7 μm. A number percent of the toner particles with a mean volume particle diameter of 5 μm or below, and a volume percent of the toner particles with a mean volume particle diameter between 8 μm and 12.7 μm, with respect to the total toner particles, respectively, are set to be within a predetermined range. Density of the pigment in the toner particles is between 8 weight percent and 20 weight percent. The two-component developer also includes carrier particles which are resin-coated carrier particles. A mean volume particle diameter of the carrier particles is between 35 μm and 65 μm. The two-component developer allows the formation of less deteriorated and stabler images throughout a long time period.
US07687212B2
A photoconductor that includes for example, a supporting substrate, a photogenerating layer, and at least one charge transport layer comprised of at least one charge transport component, and where the photogenerating layer contains at least one charge trapping releaser.
US07687201B2
A lithium secondary battery includes an anode mix including a silicon- or tin-based material as an anode active material, a thermosetting agent, and a curing agent and a curing accelerator as a binder. The anode mix is prepared within a short period of time via a simplified manufacturing process by applying the anode mix to a current collector and heating to cure the applied anode mix at a temperature of less than 200° C.
US07687187B2
A polymer electrolyte fuel cell consists of plural units, and the unit has an anode side separator, an anode diffusion layer, an anode catalytic layer, polymer electrolyte membrane, a cathode catalytic layer, a cathode diffusion layer, and a cathode side separator. The cathode catalytic layer further includes a catalyst in which platinum or platinum alloy is supported on a carbon supporting body having an average lattice space d002 of [002] surface of 0.338 to 0.355 nm and specific surface area of the supporting body of 80 to 250 m2/g, electrolyte containing ion exchange resin, and vapor grown carbon fiber. Furthermore, a water holding layer containing ion exchange resin, carbon particles, and vapor grown carbon fiber is arranged at an interface of the cathode diffusion layer and the cathode catalytic layer.
US07687185B2
A fuel cell includes an anode layer, a polymeric ion conductive membrane disposed over the anode layer, a cathode layer disposed over the polymeric ion conductive membrane, and an effective amount of a reactive material that corrodes at a higher rate than support carbon in the cathode layer, anode layer, or both. The reactive material is either proximate to or distributed within the cathode catalyst layer. In a variation, reactive material is also included proximate to the anode layer.
US07687178B2
A liquid fuel is contained in a fuel container, and the liquid fuel is discharged from a fuel outlet. Further, a water is contained in a water containing pipe provided in the fuel container, and the water is discharged from a water outlet to the outside. Air taken into the fuel container through a dustproof filter attached to a rear lid portion of the fuel container is discharged to the outside from an oxygen source outlet through an oxygen source pipe. The fuel outlet, oxygen source outlet and water outlet are provided in a front outer surface of the front lid portion.
US07687171B2
Multi-stage in-line cartridge ejectors for a fuel cell system provided herein comprise: at least one ejector main body for supplying hydrogen, each ejector main body including a plurality of nozzles arranged in line with a predetermined gap, in which the diameters of the respective nozzles become larger from an inlet side of the ejector main body toward an outlet side thereof, and a plurality of sub-inlets formed on an outer surface of the ejector main body to be connected to the gap or gaps between the nozzles; and a housing accommodating the eject main body and including a main inlet for intake of recirculated hydrogen. The multi-stage in-line cartridge ejectors can improve the system performance by increasing the amount of recirculated hydrogen. Moreover, at least one check valve is provided at an intake position of the cartridge ejectors to effectively prevent reverse flow of recirculation hydrogen gas and at least one heater is provided around the cartridge ejectors to improve cold startability.
US07687170B2
A fuel cell system in which fuel cell flooding is eliminated by providing necessary flow speed of fuel gas within a channel while improving system efficiency of the fuel cell by re-circulating unreacted fuel gas, which has been discharged externally from a circulation channel in order to provide the flow speed within the channel. An exhaust gas storage unit which stores exhaust gas is disposed in an exhaust gas recovery channel, to store exhaust gas discharged from the anode channel of the fuel cell. Fuel consumption can be improved by re-supplying the exhaust gas to the fuel cell again. Furthermore, an exhaust storage unit is maintained at a negative pressure. This allows the flow speed of reactant gas flowing through the channel for fuel gas to be increased at the time of opening the control valve connected to the exhaust gas storage unit. Such an arrangement allows water droplets or the like remaining within the anode electrode of the fuel cell to be removed, thereby suppressing flooding. This improves the system efficiency while suppressing fuel consumption.
US07687160B2
A magnetic storage medium is formed of magnetic nanoparticles that are encapsulated within carbon nanotubes, which are arranged in a substrate to facilitate the reading and writing of information by a read/write head. The substrate may be flexible or rigid. Information is stored on the magnetic nanoparticles via the read/write head of a storage device. These magnetic nanoparticles are arranged into data tracks to store information through encapsulation within the carbon nanotubes. As carbon nanotubes are bendable, the carbon nanotubes may be arranged on flexible or rigid substrates, such as a polymer tape or disk for flexible media, or a glass substrate for rigid disk. A polymer may assist holding the nano-particle filled carbon-tubes to the substrate.
US07687156B2
Embodiments of the present invention include methods of producing a composite article. A method comprises introducing a first powdered metal grade from a feed shoe into a first portion of a cavity in a die and a second powdered metal grade from the feed shoe into a second portion of the cavity, wherein the first powder metal grade differs from the second powdered metal grade in chemical composition or particle size. Further methods are also provided. Embodiments of the present invention also comprise composite inserts for material removal operations. The composite inserts may comprise a first region and a second region, wherein the first region comprises a first composite material and the second region comprises a second composite material.
US07687152B2
A molten zinc plated steel sheet superior in plating bondability and provided with both strength and shapeability is provided and a method of producing this molten zinc plating steel sheet by a continuous zinc plating production system which enables production at a low cost without modification of the system or addition of steps is provided, said molten zinc plated steel sheet characterized by comprising, by wt %, a steel sheet including C: 0.05 to 0.40%, Si: 0.2 to 3.0%, and Mn: 0.1 to 2.5%, the balance comprised of Fe and unavoidable impurities, having on its surface a Zn plating layer containing Al: 0.01 to 1% and the balance of Zn and unavoidable impurities and containing inside the steel sheet within 2 μm from the interface of said plating layer and steel sheet oxide particles of at least one type of oxide selected from an Al oxide, Si oxide, Mn oxide, or complex oxide comprised of at least two of Al, Si, and Mn.
US07687148B2
Dual coated glass sheets comprise a photocatalytically active self cleaning coating on one surface and heat reflecting coating on the second surface selected so that its single surface reflectivity is either at least three times or less than one third that of the self cleaning coating. The selection of the heat reflecting coating provides a sheet having an improved appearance. Such dual coated sheets combine self cleaning properties with solar control or low emissivity properties and are useful as building glasses.
US07687146B1
A method is described for building a mechanosynthesis tool intended to be used for the molecularly precise fabrication of physical structures—as for example, diamond structures. An exemplar tool consists of a bulk-synthesized dimer-capped triadamantane tooltip molecule which is initially attached to a deposition surface in tip-down orientation, whereupon CVD or equivalent bulk diamond deposition processes are used to grow a large crystalline handle structure around the tooltip molecule. The large handle with its attached tooltip can then be mechanically separated from the deposition surface, yielding an integral finished tool that can subsequently be used to perform diamond mechanosynthesis in vacuo. The present disclosure is the first description of a complete tool for positional diamond mechanosynthesis, along with its method of manufacture. The same toolbuilding process may be extended to other classes of tooltip molecules, other handle materials, and to mechanosynthetic processes and structures other than those involving diamond.
US07687139B2
A hydrophilic ester polyurethane foam is flame laminated to a substrate using a thin sacrificial layer, preferably a sacrificial foam layer. The sacrificial layer in the resulting laminate structure has a thickness of 1.5 mm or less, and preferably is substantially burnt away. The resulting laminate exhibits good bond strength along its length and width without loss of liquid wicking and absorptive properties.
US07687135B2
The top label is equipped with an inscription in the form of a barcode and a model number. A recess, which continues in two channels also implemented in the bottom label, is provided in the bottom label where the gas exchange opening is located when the label is used as intended. The top label covers the channel system. The channels discharge into the surroundings at the label edge, so that two gas passage openings are defined by the intersection region between label contour and the contours of the channel system. Liquid may drain out of the channel system in many different spatial orientations of the housing which the label is stuck onto as intended. A gas permeable membrane may advantageously be positioned in the region of the recess and extending somewhat over it. The membrane may also extend over the entire bottom of the label. If the membrane is implemented as self-adhesive on the bottom, it must then be largely free of adhesive in the region of the gas exchange opening in order to ensure its gas permeability.
US07687134B2
Tear resistant flexible polymeric film having at least one embossed zone, the at least one embossed zone comprising a plurality of adjacent embossed patterns (8) through the film material, each embossed pattern (8) comprising either at least one spiral embossed rib formation (12) having a plurality of turns spaced from each other by corresponding spiral less-embossed film material (20) or an array of concentric embossed rib formations (12) spaced from each other by corresponding concentric less-embossed film material (20), wherein the embossed rib formation or formations (12) are formed by stretching the film material thereof relative to said less-embossed film material (20). The film may be in the form of a bag, particularly a thin-walled disposable bag, in which the embossed patterns (8) increase the tear resistance of the bag. The embossed patterns may extend across the entire embossed zone.
US07687131B2
A profile gasket has a locking part below a gasket base for mounting the gasket to a target body such as a refrigerator door. The gasket also has a sealing portion and an elastic support for elastically supporting the sealing portion to the gasket base. The gasket is made of a thermoplastic resin having a preferred composition.
US07687130B2
A silver-based alloy thin film is provided for the semi-reflective coating layer of optical discs. Alloy additions to silver include zinc, lithium, germanium, indium, tin, aluminum, and silicon. These alloys have moderate to high reflectivity and reasonable corrosion resistance in the ambient environment.
US07687126B2
The present application is directed to adhesive articles and release liners. Namely, the present application is directed to an article comprising an adhesive layer with a structured surface. The structured surface comprises a first groove and a second groove recessed into the adhesive layer from a reference plane defined by the adhesive surface on either rim of the groove. In some embodiments, the second groove is contained within the first groove, and in other embodiments the grooves are separate. The first groove and the second groove have walls. The wall angle of the first groove with respect to the reference plane is non-zero and is smaller than the wall angle of the second groove with respect to the reference plane. The application is also directed to release liners for the adhesive article, wherein the surface of the release liner is the inverse of the adhesive surface.
US07687125B2
There is described a label comprising a self supporting sheet of a biopolymer (preferably cellulose (e.g. regenerated cellulose), cellulose acetate and/or PLA) said sheet being substantially transparent to visible light when uncoated characterised in that the sheet comprises: (a) a first coating on at least one surface thereof to aid printability thereon; (b) a second coating comprising an adhesive dispersible in an aqueous medium; and (c) optionally a third coating to modify water permeability through the sheet. The labels are to be applied to articles such as glass containers. Preferred labels are wet glue cellulose labels for example where the first coating also comprises a copolymer of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate to aid water permeability and hence rapid drying of the label on an article.
US07687121B2
The invention relates to a high thermal efficiency, insulated glass unit structure sealed with a cured composition containing, inter alia, diorganopolysiloxane(s) and inorganic-organic nanocomposite(s), the cured composition exhibiting low permeability to gas(es).
US07687120B2
Print media which includes at least one ink-receiving layer comprising at least one anionic fluorosurfactant and may be positioned over the substrate and/or be supported by the substrate.
US07687119B2
A radiation-curable desiccant-filled adhesive/sealant composition comprising a radiation-curable resin, one or more desiccant fillers, one or more photoinitiators or photosensitizers, and optionally, one or more inorganic or organic fillers.
US07687105B2
A protective coating for use on a silicon-containing substrate, and deposition methods therefor. The coating has a barium-strontium-aluminosilicate (BSAS) composition that is less susceptible to degradation by volatilization and in corrosive environments as a result of having at least an outer surface region that consists essentially of one or more stoichiometric crystalline phases of BSAS and is substantially free of a nonstoichiometric second crystalline phase of BSAS that contains a substoichiometric amount of silica. The coating can be produced by carrying out deposition and heat treatment steps that result in the entire coating or just the outer surface region of the coating consisting essentially of the stoichiometric celsian phase.
US07687098B1
A method for fabricating a substitute component for bone, including the processes of: provision of a chemical spray including at least three of calcium chloride, hydrogen phosphate, hydrogen carbonate and water to form a combined solution; reaction and precipitation of the combined solution onto a substrate; allowing the precipitated particles to form a porous structure on the substrate; applying substantially isostatic pressure to the porous structure to form a compressed structure; and (optional) providing one or more through-holes in the compressed structure to promote osteoinduction.
US07687094B2
The present invention is directed to formulations premix utilized in pellet structured frozen dessert type product. The pelletized frozen dessert product is manufactured by introducing the premix into a body of a cryogen such that the premix is frozen rapidly. The invention elevates the melting temperature as well as the fusing temperature of the pellets such that the storage and serving temperatures of the pellets are similar to the bulk products. The invention utilizes the basic ingredients and names and flavors of bulk type frozen desserts. The pellet produced utilizing the pre-mix is stable at normal retail and home freezer situations. The formulation and manufacture of the pelletized dessert product is substantially different from bulk frozen desserts. The result is a product that maintains the desired individuality of the pellets while maintaining structure, such that fusing is inhibited at the storage and serving temperature.
US07687092B2
The present invention relates to encapsulated lactic acid, where lactic acid is in a solid, pure, crystalline form. The encapsulation of food acids is common practice. Many companies produce encapsulated citric, tartaric and sorbic acids or GDL. However, lactic acid, a major food acid for its flavour and conservation effect, is not available in a pure solid crystalline encapsulated form. As no substrate is needed for said coated solid lactic acid particles, the lactic acid content of said particles may be very high and the activity of the lactic acid is not impaired by the substrate. Furthermore, the encapsulated solid lactic acid particles according to the invention are easy to handle and are less expensive than encapsulated liquid lactic acid.
US07687076B2
A method for producing a deposition product includes providing a deposition solution having a pH below 7 and comprising an aqueous solution of a silver salt comprised of silver ions and an oxidizing agent. The silver salt is comprised of silver nitrate and has a concentration in the deposition solution between about 1 and 20 grams per liter. The oxidizing agent is comprised of a persulfate and has a concentration in the deposition solution between about 1 and 50 grams per liter. The method further includes producing the deposition product by facilitating a chemical reaction between the silver ions and the oxidizing agent while maintaining the deposition solution at a temperature of between about 2 and 40 degrees Celsius. The deposition product consists essentially of at least one oxidized silver species, and is comprised of a compound having the formula Ag7O8X, where X is an anion.
US07687071B1
Nanoparticulate preparations of pharmaceutical and cosmetic active substances with a core-shell structure, whereby the active substance is present in an X-ray amorphous form, together with a polymer matrix and the shell consists of a stabilizing sheathing matrix.
US07687059B2
Cells present in processed lipoaspirate tissue are used to treat patients. Methods of treating patients include processing adipose tissue to deliver a concentrated amount of stem cells obtained from the adipose tissue to a patient. The methods may be practiced in a closed system so that the stem cells are not exposed to an external environment prior to being administered to a patient. Compositions that are administered to a patient include a mixture of adipose tissue and stem cells so that the composition has a higher concentration of stem cells than when the adipose tissue was removed from the patient.
US07687058B2
The present invention relates to methods and compositions for treatment of cardiovascular and peripheral vascular diseases using ex vivo and in vivo gene delivery technologies. One aspect of the present invention relates to a method for treating a vascular disease by introducing a DNA sequence encoding a TM protein or its variant into a segment of a blood vessel ex vivo using a gutless adenovirus vector. Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a gutless adenovirus vector carrying a transgene, such as a gene encoding TM protein or its variant.
US07687056B2
The present invention relates to therapeutic agents for renal diseases containing a colony-stimulating factor (CSF) as an active ingredient and renal tissue repairing/regenerating agents containing a colony-stimulating factor (CSF) as an active ingredient. The colony-stimulating factor (CSF) is preferably granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF).
US07687050B2
For producing synthesis gas, SG, from a hydrocarbon feed and optionally from recycled compounds, F, a first feed F1 supplemented with steam undergoes steam reforming in a multi-tube reactor-exchanger R comprising a plurality of reaction tubes (38) containing a steam reforming catalyst and a shell containing said tubes, to produce a first synthesis gas SG1; reaction tubes (38) are heated principally by convection by circulating a fluid HF in the shell external to said tubes, in which HF is a staged partial oxidation stream with oxygen of a second feed F2 at a pressure in the range 0.5 to 12 MPa, to produce a second synthesis gas SG2; and the synthesis gas SG is produced by mixing SG1 and SG2.
US07687046B2
A method of preparing a phosphoric acid salt which includes at least one attack on phosphate ore by an aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid, with the formation of an attack liquor, a first separation, in the attack liquor, between an insoluble solid phase and an aqueous phase, a neutralization of the separated aqueous phase by the addition of a calcium compound in order to form, with phosphate ions contained in this aqueous phase, a calcium phosphate insoluble in water, which precipitates, and a second separation, in the neutralized aqueous phase, between a liquid phase and a precipitated solid phase based on the calcium phosphate insoluble in water, wherein the attack on the phosphate ore includes dissolving the phosphate in the ore, the attack liquor containing this phosphate in the form of phosphate ions, and the solid phase separated from the attack liquor contains impurities and the aqueous phase separated from the attack liquor contains the phosphate ions thereof, chloride ions and calcium ions, this aqueous phase being subjected to the neutralization and second-separation steps.
US07687042B2
A reformer of a fuel cell system includes a heat source unit for generating heat, a reforming reaction unit for generating a reforming gas containing hydrogen from a fuel through a fuel reforming reaction using the heat, a carbon monoxide reducing unit connected to a reforming reaction unit to reduce a concentration of carbon monoxide contained in the reforming gas, and a thermal treatment unit disposed outside the reforming reaction unit and the carbon monoxide reducing unit to adjust the thermal energy supplied to the reforming reaction unit and the carbon monoxide reducing unit.
US07687041B2
Apparatus and methods for producing urea are provided. In one or more embodiments, an apparatus for producing urea can include a first zone, which can include a first flow channel in fluid communication with a first tube disposed about a first end of a plurality of trays, a second flow channel in fluid communication with a second tube disposed about the first end of the trays and a second end of the trays, and a third flow channel in fluid communication with a third tube disposed about the first and second ends of the trays. The apparatus can include a second zone, which can include a fixed bed comprising one or more inert packing materials disposed therein to provide additional surface area. The apparatus can include a third zone, which can include a plurality of tubes disposed therein. The second zone can be disposed between the first and third zones.
US07687038B2
An air freshener device includes a scent material interspersed within a polymer body or a polymer gel, and capable of dispersing out of the polymer gel. The polymer body and a polymer gel can be flexible and compressible, and also resilient and returnable to its original configuration. The air freshener can have at least one vent rod configured to engage an air vent, a head pivotally coupled to the at least one vent rod and a polymer body associated with the head and at least one vent rod and containing scent material. The air freshener also may be combined with a packaging system to present the air freshener for purchase, and have a pivotal head pivoted to display the head in the packaging.
US07687037B2
An air freshener device includes a scent material interspersed within a polymer body or a polymer gel, and capable of dispersing out of the polymer gel. The polymer body and a polymer gel can be flexible and compressible, and also resilient and returnable to its original configuration. In addition, the polymer body and the polymer gel can have a freestanding, self-supported, three-dimensional shape. The air freshener can be light transmissive in at least a translucent manner, and can have indicia visible therethrough. In addition, the air freshener can have a light source capable of emitting light visible through the body. A vehicle accessory power plug can be coupled to the light source, and sized and shaped to be inserted into a vehicle accessory power socket.
US07687035B2
A reaction apparatus includes: a chemical reaction unit for causing a reaction of a reactant by being set to a predetermined temperature and by being supplied with the reactant, a heat insulation package for housing the chemical reaction unit therein, an abnormality detector for detecting at least one of a temperature abnormality of the chemical reaction unit and the heat insulation package, and a cooling unit for flowing a cooling fluid to the chemical reaction unit to stop the reaction according to a detection result by the abnormality detector. In the reaction apparatus, the leakage of heat inside the reaction apparatus to outside is prevented when abnormality occurs to the chemical reaction unit and the heat insulation package.
US07687034B2
The valve sealing system for a reagent package includes an annular cylindrical gasket seated in a channel formed in the package. A rocker valve on the package pivots relative to the annular cylindrical gasket which surrounds an opening to the chamber of the reagent package. The annular channel includes a radially inner peripheral channel sidewall, a radially outer peripheral channel sidewall, and a bottom portion. An inclined peripheral wall portion of the channel intersects one of the channel sidewalls at an obtuse angle and the bottom portion of the channel. When the rocker valve is in a valve closed position it engages the annular cylindrical gasket to provide a substantially leak-tight seal.
US07687028B1
A sequential, time-integrated collector having an electronic controller that actuates either of two electrically-actuated valves, each connected to a water reservoir. At a preset time interval (e.g., every 30 minutes), time-integrated water samples are transferred into sample vials in a multi-sample carousel. Evaporation that could change the isotopic composition of a precipitation sample is minimized by sealing the opening of each sample vial by pressing each vial against a flat, low-friction surface, such as a Teflon® sheet, from the time each sample vial is filled until it is removed from the collector.
US07687026B2
Apparatus and methods are disclosed for treating a sample by selectively controlling sonic energy and/or selectively controlling the location of the sample relative to the sonic energy.
US07687020B2
An apparatus for injecting particulate and/or gaseous material into a metallurgical vessel for performing a metallurgical process is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a duct and an annular duct tip at a forward end of the duct. The apparatus also comprises inner and outer cooling water flow passages configured such that out flowing water passing from the duct tip to a rear end of the duct must travel through a longer flow path than inflowing water passing from the rear end of the duct to the duct tip.
US07687017B2
The present invention features a multi-functional pump for pumping molten metal, which includes a base that is submerged in molten metal having at least two impeller chambers. The base includes one or more inlet openings and one or more outlet openings. Each outlet opening leads from one of the impeller chambers. The invention enables the impeller to be moved to a position to rotate in either impeller chamber or while straddling impeller chambers. This enables the pump to have the versatility to operate in a circulation mode; a transfer mode; two or more circulation modes; two or more transfer modes; and a combination of transfer and circulation modes. The impeller chambers can be stacked over each other and the impeller can be moved vertically in and between impeller chambers. Also featured is a method of operating the multifunctional pump of the present invention.
US07687014B2
A method for making a composite magnetic-dielectric disc assembly includes forming a dielectric ceramic cylinder, forming a magnetic ceramic rod, assembling the magnetic ceramic rod coaxially inside the dielectric ceramic cylinder to form a rod-and-cylinder assembly, kilning (firing) the rod-and-cylinder assembly, slicing the rod-and-cylinder assembly to form a plurality of composite magnetic-dielectric disc-shaped assemblies. The magnetic-dielectric disc assemblies can be used in manufacturing, for example, circulators, isolators or similar electronic components. Accordingly, the method for making the disc assemblies can be included as part of a method for making such electronic components.
US07687011B2
A device and a method used to temper preforms in the manufacture of bottles, in which a tempering device is provided to selectively and directly temper the preforms, and is inserted into preforms. The method provides that the preforms are directly tempered from the inside.
US07687007B2
Method for manufacturing a mold tool (1), devised for forming a structured nanoscale pattern on an object (24) and having a layer (16) which is anti-adhesive with regard to the object (24). A stamp blank (2) is provided with a structured pattern (4) on a surface (8). The patterned surface (8) is coated with a layer (6) of a metal, which has a stable oxidation number and can form a mechanically stable oxide film. The metal layer (6) is oxidized for forming of an oxide film (10). The oxide film (10) is exposed to a reagent comprising molecule chains (18), each of which has a linkage group (20) which bonds to the oxide film (10) by chemical bonding, wherein the molecule chains (18) either at the outset comprise at least a group (22) comprising fluorine, or in a subsequent step is provided with at least one such group (22).
US07687002B2
An inventive solid state drawing die has shaping walls that define a shaping channel and that, in the course of solid state drawing, direct polymer composition along a drawing path. Each cross section of the drawing path (and, hence, polymer composition in the drawing path) is non-circular, substantially proportional to one another, contains a centroid that lies on a substantially straight line parallel to the drawing direction and all cross sectional dimensions are 1.5 millimeters or more.
US07686994B2
The invention provides a method for producing a conductive film that generates an electric current via field emission of electrons, which method comprises incorporating an electrically conductive material into a thermoplastic polymer. The invention also provides a conductive film and a method for generating an electric current via field emission of electrons.
US07686984B2
There is provided a manganese oxide material, wherein the material comprises a host material QqMnyMzOx, where Q and M are each any element, y is any number greater than zero, and q and z are each any number greater than or equal to zero, and at least one dopant substituted into the host material, the manganese oxide material having a layered structure in which the ions are arranged in a series of generally planar layers, or sheets, stacked one on top of another. In a particularly preferred material Q is Li and M is either Co, Ni, Al, or Li. Particularly preferred combinations of M and a dopant are Ni,Co; Al,Co; Li,Cu; Li,Al; and Li,Zn. A method of preparing the material is also disclosed.
US07686956B1
The invention is directed to a water purification system to remove pollutants from surface run-off water that has flowed into storm water drainage channels. A tank having an open reservoir region is positioned in the drainage channel or adjacent to the channel so as to permit water to flow through an upstream port of the tank and pool within the open reservoir region. The tank has a downstream port through which water pooled within the reservoir region may flow if the level of the pooled water sufficiently increases as a result of a rise in the flow level of the water in the drainage channel. The open reservoir region contains bioremediation plants having the physical property of removing pollutants from the pooled run-off water contained in the reservoir region.
US07686952B2
There is provided a portable liquid filtering apparatus for filtering liquid used in a container, such as cooking oil in deep fat fryers. The apparatus includes a mounting bracket that attaches to a portion of the container. The mounting bracket supports a liquid pump. A filter assembly including at least one filter element is removably disposed in the container, and is connected to the pump inlet by a suction tube. The pump draws the liquid through the filter element and suction tube and propels it into a discharge tube connected to the pump outlet. The discharge tube discharges the filtered liquid back into the container for reuse. The mounting bracket is adjustable for attachment to various sized containers. The suction tube and the discharge tube are shaped to conform generally to the shape of the container.
US07686941B2
A process for simultaneously hydrocracking multiple feedstocks wherein a first feedstock is hydrotreated in a hydrotreating zone to produce a hydrotreating zone effluent which is separated to provide a first vaporous hydrocarbonaceous stream and a first liquid hydrocarbonaceous stream. The second feedstock and the first vaporous hydrocarbonaceous stream are hydroprocessed in a hydroprocessing zone to produce a hydroprocessing zone effluent. A third feedstock and the first liquid hydrocarbonaceous stream are hydrocracked in a hydrocracking zone to produce a hydrocracking zone effluent. The hydrocracking zone effluent and the hydroprocessing zone effluent are separated to recover hydrocracked hydrocarbons.
US07686938B2
An electrochemical noise method, apparatus and system calculates parameters of interest related to corrosion rates of an electrically conductive article. The method involves placing a test electrode, a reference electrode, and an auxiliary electrode in an environment of interest; placing the test electrode under potentiostatic control regime for a potential scan; measuring the relationship of current v. potential (polarization resistance, Rp) of the test electrode relative to the reference electrode during a first period; switching from potentiostatic control to the open circuit potential (OCP) of the test electrode; monitoring the OCP of the test electrode during a second period; determining ΔI from the relationship Rp=ΔV/ΔI, where ΔV is measured over a second period of time; and calculating the localized corrosion from the measured potential and current data.
US07686932B2
A gas sensor including: a cylindrical metal shell; a detection element having a detection portion provided on a front end side thereof, the detection element being fixed inside the metal shell while the detection portion of the detection element protrudes from a front end side of the metal shell; and an element protection cap having ventholes, the element protection cap being fixed to the metal shell so that the detection portion of the detection element is covered with the element protection cap. A crimping cylindrical portion is provided which extends to a front end side of the metal shell. A protrusion portion of the element protection cap which abuts a metal ring packing is provided with concave and convex portions outward along an outer circumferential direction. As such, the metal ring packing is deformed so as to be interlocked with the concave and convex portions when the crimping cylindrical portion is compressively deformed.
US07686931B2
A insertion electrode device, which is configured for installing a sensor probe in a container for a measuring medium, includes a probe housing that can be attached to the container and has a probe protector tube serving to receive, hold and guide the sensor probe. The sensor probe has a coupling for electrical connections, and the probe housing is equipped with a protective sleeve to protect the coupling from mechanical stress and moisture. The protective sleeve is connectable to the probe protector tube. A safety adapter is coupled to the end of the probe protector tube that is outside the container. The safety adapter engages a recess of the sensor probe or reaches over a step of the sensor probe and thereby secures the latter against moving in the axial direction.
US07686924B2
A support body (7) for an apparatus having an extended nip (N) that is defined by a contact surface (13) of the support body and an opposed surface (4), the support body having two side surfaces (69, 70) facing from each other and connecting to the contact surface, and a bottom surface (71) facing from the contact surface, the support body being arranged to be moved towards the opposite surface by means of a loading system in order to load the nip via the contact surface. According to the invention the support body is elastically deformable and has its contact surface adaptable to the opposite surface in interaction therewith. The invention also relates to a holding device for such a support body and an apparatus, e.g. a press, for the treatment of a fibre web, said apparatus having such a support body. Furthermore, the invention relates to a method of forming the extended nip in said apparatus by loading the support body by means of the loading system, as well as a method of controlling the load in the extended nip by designing the support body with at least two layers with different elasticity providing a corresponding load profile.
US07686917B2
A plasma processing apparatus includes a vacuum vessel with a sample stage having a mounting surface disposed in a process chamber, and a plate having substantially uniform thickness and electric power applied thereto constituting a ceiling of the chamber. The plate is disposed opposite to and substantially parallel with the sample stage so as to cover the whole area of the stage mounting surface and has a through-hole therein. An optical transmitter with a diameter larger than a diameter of the though-hole is disposed inside of the vacuum vessel and has an end face at a position above and spaced a small distance a back surface of the plate so as to receive light from the chamber via the through-hole. The optical transmitter is independently detachable with respect to the back surface of the plate.
US07686913B2
A production layout for an LCD is provided. The production layout for an LCD includes a bonding part operable to bond a pair of substrates for the LCD with a sealant and a hardening part operable to harden the sealant. The hardening part includes an ion provider operable to supply ions to the substrates during a hardening process of the sealant. The production layout further includes a transfer unit that loads and unloads the bonded substrates. Footprint and tact time for manufacturing the LCD may be reduced. Electrostatic removal effect of the bonded substrates may improve.
US07686903B2
A composite membrane comprising a layer of rubberized asphalt having a heavy duty plastic film layer continuously bonded to one side and, optionally, a layer of nonwoven geotextile continuously bonded to the other side. The membrane can be used in vertical or horizontal applications, and is particularly useful for its stress-relief properties that resist crack formation and propagation in concrete walls and slabs in addition to serving as a barrier to moisture, toxic substances and insects. An appropriate composite membrane of the invention can be advantageously utilized in positive side, blindside, underslab or split slab applications. The thickness of the composite membrane preferably ranges from about 30 mils to about 150 mils.
US07686900B2
A method for preventing distortion in a flange of a metal part during heat treatment is provided. A method of preventing distortion includes engaging a bottom surface of the flange with a first boltless ring, engaging a top surface of the flange with a second boltless ring, locking the first and second boltless rings into a fixed position relative to each other and relative to the flange, heat treating the part, unlocking the first and second boltless rings from each other, and removing the first and second boltless rings from engagement with the flange.
US07686883B2
A pigment preparation which is characterized by a content in a) a benzimidazolonedioxazine compound of formula (I) as base pigment and b) a dioxazine compound of the general formula (IV) as pigment dispersant wherein Q represents an m-valent radical of a compound of formula (III), wherein m is a number from 1 to 4.
US07686874B2
An electroless plating composition comprising succinic acid, potassium carbonate, a source of cobalt metal ions, a reducing agent, and water is provided. An optional buffering agent may also be included in the composition. The composition may be used to deposit cobalt metal in or on semiconductor substrate surfaces including vias, trenches, and interconnects.
US07686872B2
The invention relates to a device for and a method of informing replacement time of an air filter, more particularly, to a device for and a method of informing replacement time of an air filter, in which the accumulation amount of the dust accumulated in the air filter is calculated based on the factors such as a contamination degree of the air introduced into the air filter, air introduction time, and air introduction volume, and then when the accumulation amount of the total dust in the air filter exceeds a reference value, a driver is informed of the replacement time of the air filter, so that it is possible to replace the air filter at an optimum instance to thereby maintain the pleasant interior circumstance of a vehicle, to prevent the dissipation of the expense caused by the unnecessary early replacement of the air filter, and to prevent the interior air contamination of the vehicle due to the delay of the replacement of the air filter, and the like.
US07686856B2
A method and apparatus for reacting a hydrocarbon containing feed stream by steam methane reforming reactions to form a synthesis gas. The hydrocarbon containing feed is reacted within a reactor having stages in which the final stage from which a synthesis gas is discharged incorporates expensive high temperature materials such as oxide dispersed strengthened metals while upstream stages operate at a lower temperature allowing the use of more conventional high temperature alloys. Each of the reactor stages incorporate reactor elements having one or more separation zones to separate oxygen from an oxygen containing feed to support combustion of a fuel within adjacent combustion zones, thereby to generate heat to support the endothermic steam methane reforming reactions.
US07686852B2
Compounds of the general formula (I) a process for their preparation and their use for dyeing and/or printing organic substrates.
US07686849B2
An oxidative hair dye system comprises a hair dye, an organometallic compound and an oxidising agent. The organometallic compound is preferably an organotitanate compound, particularly a tetraalkyl titanate or a titanate chelate. Such compounds are also useful for enhancing the substantivity of topical compositions applied to the body, which comprise one or more cosmetic and/or therapeutic benefit agents, a bonding agent having hydrolysable or exchangeable ligands, and a carrier.
US07686848B2
A prosthetic foot device with variable stiffness response includes a variable energy transfer mechanism disposed between first and second foot members to transfer a variable amount of energy between the members during use. A chamber is associated with one of the first and second foot members, and a piston is associated with another of the first and second foot members and is movable in the chamber. At least one aperture is formed between the piston and the chamber. A variable viscosity fluid is disposed in the chamber and displaceable through the at least one aperture between the piston and the chamber to allow fluid to flow within the chamber between opposite sides of the piston. The variable viscosity fluid has a viscosity that is variable to vary an ability of the variable viscosity fluid to flow through the at least one aperture.
US07686846B2
A method of deploying a bifurcation stent at a vascular bifurcation of a main vessel into first and second branch vessels includes: positioning a bifurcation stent at a vascular bifurcation, the bifurcation stent expandable from a reduced diameter to an expanded diameter, the bifurcation stent comprising a first end, a second end, and a marker near the first end, wherein the first end diameter is larger than the second end diameter when the bifurcation stent is expanded, and wherein the bifurcation stent is positioned such that the marker is approximately aligned with a carinal plane at the vascular bifurcation; partially expanding the first end of the bifurcation stent; adjusting the position of the bifurcation stent such that the marker is positioned past the carinal plane and towards the first branch vessel; and deploying the bifurcation stent at the bifurcation. Devices are also disclosed.
US07686845B2
A device and method for treating pathological narrowing of fluid-carrying conduits of the human body (such as blood vessels) in an area of a bifurcation is disclosed. In particular, a stent system carries a self expandable noncylindrical stent, which is particularly suited for treating a widened portion of a blood vessel immediately proximal to a bifurcation. A stent delivery system is also disclosed, for delivering the stent such that a larger expanded diameter end of the stent faces the bifurcation, and a smaller expanded diameter end of the stent faces proximally in the main vessel.
US07686841B2
A catheter assembly comprises a catheter, a rotatable sheath, a guidewire housing and a stent. The rotatable sheath is disposed about at least a portion of the catheter shaft and is rotatable thereabout. The stent is disposed about a stent receiving region of the rotatable sheath and at least a portion of the guidewire housing. The first end of the rotatable sheath extends beyond a proximal end region of the stent and the second end region of the rotatable sheath extends beyond a distal end region of the stent.
US07686836B2
A bone distractor having four bone plate attachment members for affixation to the posterior and anterior maxilla and/or zygomatic buttress and to the posterior and anterior mandible, the attachment members mounted onto a pair of parallel rods, one rod being a threaded drive rod and the other being a releasable guide rod, whereby rotation of the drive rod causes dimensional separation of the anterior attachment members from the posterior attachment members. The guide rod can be quickly removed such the superior attachment members joined to the maxilla and/or zygomatic buttress are physically separated from the inferior attachment members joined to the mandible such that the jaw can be opened.
US07686835B2
A tulip assembly configured to be coupled to a head of a bone fixation device includes at least one inner member configured to fix the tulip assembly to the head of a bone fixation device, and an outer member including at least one engagement surface configured to selectively fix a rod in the tulip assembly via rotation of the outer member, wherein the fixation of the tulip assembly to the head of the bone fixation device is independent of the fixation of a rod in the tulip assembly.
US07686820B2
A surgical clip applier and methods for applying surgical clips to a vessel, duct, shunt, etc., during a surgical procedure are provided. In one exemplary embodiment, a surgical clip applier is provided having a housing with a trigger movably coupled thereto and an elongate shaft extending therefrom with opposed jaws formed on a distal end thereof. The trigger is adapted to advance a clip to position the clip between the jaws, and to move the jaws from an open position to a closed position to crimp the clip positioned therebetween.
US07686819B2
A surgical instrument used in an endoscopic fundoplication is disclosed. The instrument may include an elongated tube having a proximal end and a distal end, a distal member coupled proximate the distal end of the tube and configured to fold a fundus of a stomach toward an esophageal wall, and a grasper configured to grasp at least a portion of the fundus or the esophageal wall. The grasper may be coupled to one of the elongated tube and the distal member.
US07686816B2
The system (2) includes a catheter drive unit (22) and a catheter (24) extending therefrom movably mounted to a catheter drive sled (26). The catheter drive unit rotates and translates the catheter core (34) within the catheter sheath (36). The sled has a serrated, conical drive unit interface (82), with a bag-piercing tip (86) mateable with a translator drive output (92) so that a sterile drape (112) enclosing the catheter drive unit is automatically pierced when the catheter drive unit is mounted to the sled. A control unit (6) is spaced apart from the catheter drive unit and provides power and commands to the catheter drive unit and receives information and data from the catheter drive unit. The rotator and translator drive motors (54, 90) are operated from both the control unit and the catheter drive unit. Both the control unit and catheter drive unit have translation displacement displays (10, 30).
US07686813B2
The invention relates to a hydraulic traction apparatus for surgery, in particular for knee surgery, having at least one pair of working sections which can be adjusted relative to one another and at least one exchangeable piston in cylinder arrangement made of plastic whose piston is releasably coupled to the one working section and whose cylinder is releasably connected to the other working section and which is stiffened by an outer support mount supporting the cylinder from the outside and by at least one inner reinforcement insert which can be inserted into the cylinder together with the piston.
US07686805B2
Apparatus and a method of inserting spinal implants is disclosed in which an intervertebral space is first distracted, a hollow sleeve having teeth at one end is then driven into the vertebrae adjacent that disc space. A drill is then passed through the hollow sleeve removing disc and bone in preparation for receiving the spinal implant which is then inserted through the sleeve. Apparatus and a method of inserting spinal implants is disclosed in which an intervertebral space is first distracted to restore the normal angular relationship of the vertebrae adjacent to that disc space. An extended outer sleeve having extended portions capable of maintaining the vertebrae distracted in their normal angular relationship is then driven into the vertebrae adjacent that disc space. A drill is then passed through the hollow sleeve removing disc and bone in preparation for receiving the spinal implant which is then inserted through the sleeve.
US07686799B2
A catheter-based deployment system for deploying cellular material (22) into the heart muscle (25). The deployment system includes a guiding catheter (19) and a needle assembly (31) capable of sliding within the guiding catheter. The needle assembly (31) terminates in a tip (34) having at least one side with an opening (43) in communication with a lumen (20) disposed within the needle assembly (31). Once the guiding catheter (19) is positioned the needle assembly (31) is advanced until the tip (34) penetrates the muscle wall (25). At a predetermined depth the cellular material (22) may be deployed into the muscle wall (25) via a push rod (46) disposed through the lumen of the needle assembly (31).
US07686796B2
An absorbent garment for wear about a wearer's waist includes a waist belt, a garment shell and an absorbent assembly constructed to take in and retain body exudates released by the wearer. The absorbent assembly is releasably attached generally at front and back waist regions thereof to the waist belt. The garment shell is attached generally at front and back waist regions thereof to the waist belt, with the absorbent assembly generally disposed within the garment shell, whereby the front waist region of the garment shell is in opposed relationship with the front waist region of the absorbent assembly and the back waist region of the garment shell is in opposed relationship with the back waist region of the absorbent assembly.
US07686788B2
A catheter having a drug delivery unit at the distal end thereof. The drug delivery unit includes an actuator capable of assuming an activated and an inactivated configuration. The drug delivery unit also includes a receptacle capable of accepting a therapeutic agent. The actuator and receptacle are in communication with each other such that the actuator transmits force to the receptacle and the receptacle accepts force from the actuator in an activated configuration of the actuator. Also provided is a method of delivering a therapeutic agent to a target site using the catheter of the present invention.
US07686787B2
A delivery device includes a durable housing portion and a separable disposable portion that selectively engage and disengage from each other. The disposable housing portion secures to the patient and may be disposed of after it has been in use for a prescribed period. Components that normally come into contact with a patient or with infusion media are supported by the disposable housing portion for disposal after the prescribed use, while the durable housing portion supports other components such as electronics for controlling delivery of infusion media from the reservoir and a drive device and drive linkage.
US07686784B2
A disposable syringe, which is enhanced for a safer use, is disclosed. The disposable syringe includes a cylinder having both ends open, an adapter tube inserted in one side of the cylinder, an insertion tube inserted in the adapter tube, and allowing the adapter tube to be in airtight contact with an inner circumference of the cylinder, and a piston inserted in the cylinder.
US07686779B1
A preconnected disposable and method for red blood collection is provided wherein the preconnected disposable includes a red blood cell collection assembly comprising a leukoreduction filter and a red blood cell storage bag. Such a red blood cell collection assembly is preferably preconnected to a blood component separation vessel, cassette assembly and a blood removal/return assembly for removing blood from a donor, separating the blood into components for collection and providing for filtration of the separated red blood cell component.
US07686776B2
The invention provides a device for protecting ligaments in a knee joint of a user. The device includes a knee brace positionable about a knee joint of a user and a boot wearable on a foot of a user. Additionally, the device includes a flexible tether member including a first coupling element coupled to the knee brace and a second coupling element coupled to the boot. The boot and knee brace are attachable and detachable via the first and second coupling elements. The flexible tether member is adjustable in length to dispose the flexible tether member in tension at least in a portion of a maximum foot range of rotation, where the maximum foot range of rotation of the user's foot relative to the knee joint causes hyperextension of a knee ligament.
US07686767B2
A catheter, particularly an intra-vascular catheter, has at least one magnetic field-generating element arranged in the catheter envelope in the region of the catheter tip, characterized in that the magnetic field of which is variable while the catheter is inserted into a patient.
US07686764B2
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus includes a transmission unit that transmits at least one ultrasonic pulse from a surface of a skin of a subject toward a blood vessel (21) thereof, a reception unit (3) that receives an ultrasonic echo reflected by the blood vessel and converts the same into an electric signal to obtain a signal of the ultrasonic echo along a depth direction from the surface of the skin, a movement detection unit (5) that analyzes a phase of the ultrasonic echo signal in a direction traversing the blood vessel so as to calculate a movement amount in each of a plurality of parts included in a blood vessel wall constituting the blood vessel and a vicinity of the blood vessel wall, and a boundary detection unit (7) that detects a boundary position between the blood vessel wall and a blood flow region (22) in a lumen of the blood vessel through which blood flows based on a variation in the calculated movement amount in each part. Instability occurring when a brightness signal in image data is used can be eliminated, so that a state of a blood vessel, such as an IMT value, can be measured correctly using ultrasonic waves.
US07686763B2
Ultrasound contrast agents are used to enhance imaging and facilitate HIFU therapy in four different ways. A contrast agent is used: (1) before therapy to locate specific vascular structures for treatment; (2) to determine the focal point of a HIFU therapy transducer while the HIFU therapy transducer is operated at a relatively low power level, so that non-target tissue is not damaged as the HIFU is transducer is properly focused at the target location; (3) to provide a positive feedback mechanism by causing cavitation that generates heat, reducing the level of HIFU energy administered for therapy compared to that required when a contrast agent is not used; and, (4) to shield non-target tissue from damage, by blocking the HIFU energy. Various combinations of these techniques can also be employed in a single therapeutic implementation.
US07686758B2
The present invention provides an inflow cannula tip that is shaped to prevent suction with the ventricular wall and adapted to prevent platelet adhesion. In particular, the inlet portion of the cannula tip comprises two projections extending from the cylindrical body of the cannula tip with gaps between the projections. The projections may have beveled edges. The inlet portion of the cannula tip can accept blood flow from either the gaps in the side or from the bottom of the tip. Even if the edge of the cannula tip is close to or even touching ventricle wall, a suction condition will not result, as blood is allowed to flow through the gaps between the projections.
US07686733B2
The present invention relates to a manual transmission and a shift lug structure thereof where a direct shifting from a first speed to a reverse speed can be is possible. In preferred aspects, a manual transmission of the invention may comprise: a transmission case; a main shaft; a hub coupled to an exterior circumference of the main shaft; a gear assembly disposed on one side of the hub and including a first speed clutch gear and a planetary gear set, the planetary gear set having a ring gear, a pinion gear, a sun gear, and a planetary carrier rotatably supporting the pinion gear; a synchronizer sleeve slidably connected to an exterior circumference of the hub and sliding in an axial direction of the main shaft, the synchronizer sleeve connecting the main shaft with the gear assembly; a synchronizer cone fixed to the first speed clutch gear; and a synchronizer ring applying a frictional force to the synchronizer cone and synchronizing the gear assembly with the main shaft in a shifting process, wherein the ring gear is coupled to the first speed clutch gear, the planetary carrier is fixed to the transmission case, and a reverse speed clutch gear is formed on an exterior circumference of the sun gear.
US07686728B2
The invention relates to the mechanical adapter assembly of the transmission line for a motor vehicle. The mechanical adapter includes shafts rotatably guided by different bearings and couplings for driving said different shafts. The mechanical adapter also includes a differential carrier, which is used in the form of a crankcase containing the oil for lubricating the different bearings and couplings and provided with a front aperture. A front plate integrates a pump and makes it possible to close said front aperture of the differential support. Additionally, an attached pipe section supplies the oil from said front plate to the differential support and interacts with additional fixtures to the front plate and the differential carrier.
US07686726B2
An electric drive transmission for a skid steered vehicle has a central casing housing a pair of propulsion motors comprising respective stators and rotors, each rotor being coupled to drive a respective through shaft via a respective epicyclic gear change mechanism. The through shafts are coupled at their inboard ends to a controlled differential with an input from a steer motor, and are coupled at their outboard ends to respective epicyclic gear reduction mechanisms. The through shafts are supported in the casing by respective bearings and the propulsion motor rotors are supported on the through shafts by respective bearings. By supporting the rotors on the through shafts rather than in separate bearings to the casing the diameter and speed rating of the requisite rotor bearings can be reduced.
US07686721B2
A bicycle chainring is formed from a first member and an second member. The first member includes a center rotational axis, a crank attachment portion with a plurality of chainring attachment openings and an annular tooth portion with a plurality of chain engaging gear teeth. The second member disposed around the center rotational axis and is fixedly attached to overlie at least one of the crank attachment portion and the annular tooth portion to reinforce the first member without obstructing access to the chainring attachment openings.
US07686713B2
An ergonomically-designed racquet stringing machine. In certain embodiments, the stringing machine includes a stringing platform supporting at least one racquet mount for securing the racquet in a stringing plane at an angle of about 1 to about 15 degrees from a horizontal surface. A control unit may be coupled to the stringing platform and operably coupled to a platform tilt assembly for adjusting the position of the stringing platform and the angle of the stringing plane. Additionally, the stringing machine may include a tool storage tray coupled to the stringing platform, with the tool storage tray having a bottom surface that is in a plane non-parallel with the stringing plane.
US07686708B2
A golf club head is formed with a crown having an aperture with an arcuate rear edge and a forward edge that is substantially parallel to the striking face. The aperture is transected by an arcuate rib that extends from a region proximal the heel end of the crown to a region proximal the toe end of the crown and is concave toward the striking face. A pair of linear ribs extend radially outward from the arcuate rib to join the arcuate rib to a perimeter region of the crown. Openings formed in the aperture by the ribs are filled with an organic-composite material such as graphite epoxy.
US07686705B1
An improved design for a golf club shaft and method increases stroke accuracy by significantly reducing stroke take-back distance. A ball traveling at a set initial velocity will travel a different distance on different parts of the course due to the friction of the grass on the ball which varies in response to height and moisture level. An inline weight management system that allows the moment of inertia of the club to be adjusted in a predictable manner. An increase in the moment of inertia translates into an increase in force which is in turn proportional to club velocity and resulting ball velocity. As green speed decreases, moment of inertia can be increased so that a stroke with a uniform take-back distance will deliver a shot that travels as far as the same stroke would deliver on a fast green.
US07686702B2
Apparatus 10 for a golf swing training device comprising a golf club 20 with a shaft 24 with a grip 22 at one end and a club head 26 at the other end of the shaft with a receptacle 12 attached to the face 14 of the club head with the receptacle opening on the front towards the intended target. In use, a ball 28 is placed in the receptacle 12 with the intention of releasing the ball from the receptacle at a desired point during the swing at a target. In practice, if during the back swing the receptacle 12 is incorrectly tilted, due to poor swing mechanics, the ball 28 will fall out. Also, if the bore of the receptacle 12 is not in alignment with the target line at the ball's 28 point of release the ball trajectory will be skewed from the target. As an additional element, the receptacle 12 can have a retainer 92 to impede the ball 28 from easily falling out and the receptacle can be removably attached at 36, 38 to the club face 14.
US07686693B2
A method and system facilitating selection of participants in multiplayer online electronic games. The method provides an efficient procedure for players to host and join new instances of multiplayer online electronic games, as well as providing a scheme that enables players to join multiplayer online electronic games that are already in progress. The method is implemented through a gaming utility that runs on each player's electronic device (e.g. PC) and interacts behind the scenes with an online messaging service. Player hosts are enabled to select players from a list of contacts provided by the online messaging service who they want to invite to join a chat session. A selected multiplayer online electronic game is selectively launched on all of the player's computers through a single command issued by the host. Additionally, the gaming utility provides players with a list of existing chat sessions being hosted by other players so as to enable the players to join multiplayer online electronic games that are already in progress. The system includes a plurality of electronic devices linked in communication across a communications network, such as a LAN or the Internet. Each electronic device is operatively coupled to a headset having a pair of headphones and a microphone. The headset is worn by a player, enabling the players to verbally communicate with others in a verbal chat session.
US07686690B2
The present invention is directed to a game apparatus adapted for executing game performed by plural teams, and is adapted to acquire bio-information of players of the game by biosensors (31), (32), . . . (3n) to allow bio-information to be associated with players of the game. In a control unit (10), bio-information caused to be associated with respective players are analyzed to judge, by the analysis result thus obtained, teams to which respective players belong. The judged team classification result is notified to the players to thereby eliminate troublesomeness of operation such as team designation by players, thus permitting the players to sufficiently enjoy amusement of the fighting game.
US07686689B2
A method of playing a basic wagering game comprises conducting the basic wagering game at a gaming terminal in response to receiving a wager input. The method includes apportioning the wager input among a plurality of winning outcomes for the basic wagering game, such that the apportioning increases a payout amount associated with each of the winning outcomes. The method includes awarding the payout amount associated with one of the plurality of winning outcomes in response to a randomly selected outcome in the basic wagering game being that one of the plurality of winning outcomes. The method is implemented in a gaming system comprising a plurality of gaming terminals and a controller. The controller is coupled to each of the gaming terminals and receives wager-input signals from the gaming terminals. In response to receiving the wager-input signal, the controller allocates a portion of the wager input among the winning outcomes.
US07686687B2
Gaming devices dispense tickets which are unrelated to a player's success on a particular game played on a gaming device or to the player's credits on a credit meter or other “cash out” indicator. The gaming devices provide gaming awards and also provide tickets. Other methods provide tickets during the play of wagering games. Still other embodiments comprise lottery terminals which dispense tickets other than those purchased by a lottery patron or won on a purchased lottery ticket.
US07686680B2
Testing of an aircraft pressure control system may be performed without use of an altitude chamber. Aircraft cabin configuration date may be modeled and used, along with high resolution positional feedback from a simulated valve, to produce a high resolution electrical signal that may represent a simulated cabin pressure. A voltage-to-pressure transducer may convert the electrical signal to a pneumatic signal. The pneumatic signal may be employed to operate a cabin-pressure controller under test. The controller may operate an outflow valve actuator and an attached potentiometer. The potentiometer may produce a feedback signal and closed-loop testing of the aircraft pressure control system may thus be performed. The outflow valve actuator may be operated without being attached to an outflow valve because a simulated aerodynamic load may be applied to the actuator.
US07686675B2
Apparatus, kits, and methods for sharpening electric shavers having rotary and reciprocating-type cutting members are disclosed. A sharpening apparatus in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include an applicator tray or other applicator means, and an abrasive material configured to abrade and sharpen the cutting surfaces of the electric shaver, when actuated.
US07686673B2
The relationship between polishing conditions constituting elements and the worked shape (amount of polishing) obtained by way of these polishing conditions is input beforehand into polishing condition determining mechanism along with the type of the object of polishing, and polishing conditions (invariable polishing conditions) that are used in common for the polishing of this object of polishing. The polishing condition determining mechanism determines the polishing conditions on the basis of these conditions. Specifically, the above-mentioned polishing conditions constituting elements are given in a time series, or combinations of the above-mentioned polishing conditions constituting elements are converted into variations in the swinging velocity of the polishing body, and the swinging velocity corresponding to the swinging position is determined. The polishing apparatus control mechanism input the polishing conditions determined by the polishing condition determining mechanism, and control the polishing apparatus so that these polishing conditions are realized. As a result, working conditions for obtaining a specified worked shape in a working apparatus can be simply and accurately determined.
US07686671B2
A radio control toy vehicle having a two-wheel vehicle body includes a turnably mounted front fork to which a steering section is operatively connected, a front wheel mounted on the front fork through a front wheel shock absorber, a drive case on which a rear wheel mounted on a rear side of the vehicle body is mounted, a wheelie mechanism for shifting the vehicle body to a running state in which the vehicle body runs using the rear wheel while elevating the front wheel above the ground by temporarily pulling up the front wheel against springs provided on the front fork and then, by releasing the pulling up motion and applying a pushing down force to the front wheel by a restoring force of the springs, and a receiver for receiving a control signal from a transmitter and producing a running control signal.
US07686670B2
A doll has a figure of a human or an animal and an outer layer of a flexible gelatinous compound covering the figure so as to provide a skin-like characteristic. The figure may have a part that is made of a soft resilient material and in covering that part the gelatinous compound is bonded to a stretchy elastic textile.
US07686669B2
The present disclosure is directed to an accessory for a toy figure having at least one receptacle and to a play kit. The accessory includes a housing configured to be selectively attached to the at least one receptacle of the toy figure. In some embodiments, the accessory includes an audio input mechanism; an audio processing mechanism; and an audio output mechanism. In some embodiments, the accessory includes a motion detector mechanism and an audio output mechanism. In some embodiments, the accessory includes an optical assembly. In some embodiments, the play kit includes a toy figure having at least one receptacle; a key; a first accessory; and a second accessory.
US07686664B2
An electroluminescent display device contains an electroluminescent phosphor sandwiched between a pair of electrodes and a graphic arts element. The device is fabricated by bonding a generic electroluminescent base laminate containing an electrode and an electroluminescent layer, to a custom graphic arts film containing a graphic element and a corresponding electrode. The generic electroluminescent base laminate is made at a first location or time, and the custom graphic arts film is made at a second location or time.
US07686658B2
A patch panel including a plurality of electrical connector assemblies, each of the electrical connector assemblies including a first jack presented on a first side of a panel frame of the patch panel and a second jack electrically linked to the first jack to form a jack pair and presented on a second side of the panel frame. Both the first jack and the second jack are presented at an angle with respect to the panel frame, and both the first jack and the second jack may be engaged using a patch cord. The first and second jack of each jack pair are at a 90-degree angle relative to one another.
US07686653B2
In conjunction with a wiring in a house carrying data network signal, a modular outlet comprising of a base module and interface module. The base module connects to the wiring and attached to a wall. The interface module provides a data unit connection. The interface module is mechanically attached to the base module and electrically connected thereto. The wiring may also carry basic service signal such as telephone, electrical power and cable television (CATV). In such a case, the outlet will provide the relevant connectivity either as part of the base module or as part of the interface module. Both proprietary and industry standard interfaces can be used to interconnect the module. Furthermore, a standard computer expansion card (such as PCI, PCMCIA and alike) may be used as interface module.
US07686650B2
A jack capable of handling both Category 6 and Category 7 speed communications. The jack includes a shield, a housing disposed in the shield and a contact block disposed in the housing. The contact block includes a base member and a plurality of contacts carried by the base member. Each contact includes a contact portion effective to touch a corresponding contact of a plug when the plug is inserted into the jack, a first end portion effective to be inserted into a circuit board, and a second end portion. A flexible substrate is connected to the second end portion, the substrate including a compensation circuit for the jack.
US07686649B2
An electrical connector includes a housing and a plurality of electrical mating contacts held within the housing. Each of the mating contacts extends from a first end portion to a second end portion. Each of the mating contacts has an intermediate portion extending between the first and second end portions. An electrical compensation component is held within the housing. The electrical compensation component includes a circuit board. The electrical compensation component is electrically connected to at least one of the mating contacts at a location along the intermediate portion that is spaced a distance from the first and second end portions.
US07686622B2
A plug connector is disclosed that has a body portion and a circuit card extending forwardly of a mating face of the connector. The circuit card is protected in place by a protective flanges that extends forwardly from the body portion above the circuit card to protect it from stubbing and to provide a means for aligning the plug connector with a receptacle connector.
US07686620B2
An electrical connector for electrically connecting an integrated circuit package to a circuit substrate includes a first and a second unit sections, and each unit section has a number of terminals received therein. Each unit section includes a mating surface, an opposed mounting surface, a fixing edge, and an engaging edge. The engaging edge of the first unit section has a protruding tongue, and the engaging edge of the second unit section defines a recessed portion for engaging the protruding tongue. An interlocking device is formed between the protruding tongue and the recessed portion, so that the protruding tongue is capable of overlapping and combined with the recessed portion via the interlocking device to make the first and the second unit sections become a unitary structure.
US07686612B1
An improved, heat resistant seal assembly for deformation compensation of rotary kilns having a plurality of integrated seal segments interconnected to form a biased expandable constrictive ring around a rotating drum, the seal segments being attached to a portion of a stationary in-feed or out-feed hopper of a kiln assembly, each seal segment assembly having a plurality of friction wear pads, the seal assembly forming a long lasting expanding and contracting sealing ring that prevents the buildup of material particles and escaping heat and gas from degrading the biasing components or interfering with kiln deformation compensation.
US07686610B2
The invention relates to a mold for the manufacture of holders, comprising at least two mold halves moveable relatively to each other in a first direction of movement and a mold cavity, the mold cavity, the mold being substantially defined by a female part and a matching male part, while at least the female part and/or the male part is arranged so as to be moveable such that within the mold, the male part and/or the female part can be brought into a first position wherein between a forward end, facing, in a first direction of movement, towards the mold cavity, and an opposite bottom part of the female part, there is a relatively large, first distance, and a second position wherein between said forward end and said bottom part there is relatively small second distance.
US07686607B2
An actuator is disclosed, in particular for a locking unit of an injection compression machine, comprising a hydraulic force translator with two piston units moving relative to each other with different effective areas. The foregoing enclose a pressure chamber together with a cylinder or spacer of the force translator. The smaller piston unit is electrically driven, wherein the axial displacement of the smaller piston unit may be transmitted to the cylinder. The cylinder can be fixed relative to a chassis of the injection compression machine by means of a hydraulic clamping device. According to the invention, the pressure necessary for clamping is delivered by a high-pressure reservoir which may be charged during the displacement of the smaller piston unit.
US07686604B2
A screw for injection molding provides a coaxial piston that allows the effective cross-sectional area of the screw to be varied during the injection cycle permitting small shot metering with relatively large diameter injection molding screws. The screw is positioned within the injector barrel of a injection molding assembly and includes a number of threads disposed around its outer surface configured to advance molten plastic to the front of the barrel. The screw further includes a central bore having a piston slidably received within the central bore. The plastic shot to be forced out through the nozzle of the injection molding assembly is controlled by movement of the piston within the screw.
US07686603B2
An actuator for a hot runner has a piston and a valve pin holder threadably connected to the piston. The piston can be translated by fluid pressure and rotated by an electric motor. The valve pin holder is rotationally fixed, and therefore moves along the thread when the piston is rotated. A valve pin connected to the valve pin holder moves in response to fluid pressure and also in response to the electric motor rotating the piston.
US07686596B2
A hydraulic pressure amplifier with a housing which has an end face at a low pressure side and an end face at a high pressure side and a circumferential wall between the two end faces, wherein an outlet valve is arranged adjacent the end face on the high pressure side, and an outlet duct for the hydraulic liquid which is under high pressure. In a pressure amplifier of the above-described type, the outlet duct opens into the circumferential wall or extends through a connection plug which is screwed into the end face on the high pressure side and closes off an assembly duct which receives the outlet valve.
US07686589B2
The present invention provides a pumping system for moving water of a swimming pool, including a water pump and a variable speed motor. In one example, a target volume amount of water and an operational time period is provided, and the operational time period is altered based upon a volume of water moved. In another example, operation of the motor is altered based upon the volume of water moved. In addition or alternatively, a target flow rate of water to be moved by the water pump is determined based upon the target volume amount and a time period. In addition or alternatively, a plurality of operations are performed on the water, and a total volume of water moved by the pump is determined. In addition or alternatively, an optimized flow rate value is determined based upon power consumption.
US07686573B2
An apparatus for elevating a fluid includes: a pumping member rotatable about a vertical axis, the pumping member having at least one ramped path, the ramped path having a lowermost portion insertable below the surface of a fluid to be elevated, and an uppermost portion that is more distant from the vertical axis than the lowermost portion thereof; a catch chamber surrounding a circular trajectory of the uppermost portion as it rotates about the vertical axis and positioned to receive fluid expelled from the uppermost portion; and a motor coupled to the pumping member for imparting rotational motion to the pumping member about the vertical axis, the motor having sufficient power to generate a centrifugal force that will drive the fluid from the lowermost portion of the ramped path to the uppermost portion and into the catch chamber.
US07686568B2
A method for fabricating a turbine bucket and an apparatus facilitate reducing tip shroud creep. The method includes providing a turbine bucket that includes a tip shroud including at least one seal rail. The method also includes coupling at least one cutter tooth to the tip shroud, wherein the at least one cutter tooth is fabricated from an abradable material that enables the at least one cutter tooth to be removed from the tip shroud during operation of the turbine engine.
US07686561B2
A material-handler adapted for locating on top of an open topped railroad car includes a chassis mounted on tracks, and a first and second pair of outriggers extending from the chassis. Wheels and clamps are located at the distal ends of the outriggers to stabilize the material handler on the top of the railroad car. A knuckle boom is rotatably mounted on the chassis for manipulating cargo materials. The material handler of the invention also utilizes the clamps and wheels on the outriggers in conjunction with the boom to self-load and self-unload the material handler to and from the top of a railroad car, and to and from one care to another with possible different height and width. Operator safety is enhanced by allowing the operator to control the self-loading and unloading via remote control.
US07686553B2
A locator/fastener has a first outer member with a precision-machined external body portion, a retention head protruding from a first end, and a multi-diameter throughbore. A fastener, which may take the form of a cap screw, floats in the throughbore of the locator with the threaded portion protruding from a second end of the locator. A receiver has an internal precision-machined surface which contacts the precision-machined body portion of the locator and a threaded bore which receives the protruding fastener. By separating the locating and fastening functions, a quick connect disconnect device is created which does not bind or gall. A hangar system allows a sub-base plate to be attached to a base using the locator-fastener disclosed herein.
US07686552B2
A fixing device is provided for anchoring in an undercut drilled hole in a panel, especially a glass panel, having an anchor bolt. The anchor bolt has fixing means and an anchoring zone having a portion that widens in cross-section in the direction of insertion. In order to provide such a fixing device having increased resilience, the invention proposes that the anchor bolt having a covering of a resilient plastics material in the region of the anchoring zone and that the anchor bolt be anchored by means of a curable composition.
US07686537B2
A road grader comprising an elongated grader blade adapted to be pushed by a vehicle such as a bulldozer and having mutually parallel side members attached to the lateral ends of the blade perpendicularly to the blade's longitudinal axis, each of said side members comprising a pair of spaced apart walls that house a slidable mounting plate on the lower end of which is attached a ground contacting skid. Each slidable mounting plate is separately actuated to move upwardly or downwardly with respect to the side member in which it is housed. Relative upward or downward movement of the side member, with respect to the ground contacting skid, results in lowering or elevating the respective ends of the grader blade with respect to the level of the respective ground contacting skid. Separately adjusting the height of the lateral ends of the grader blade and driving the blade by a pushing vehicle permits the precision depth application of a layer of road material at any desired angle or tilt.
US07686536B2
A pavement degradation machine has a motorized vehicle adapted to traverse a paved surface. At least one piston apparatus has a distal end and a proximal end, the proximal end adapted for attachment to an underside of the motorized vehicle and the distal end extending towards the paved surface and comprising a rotary bit. The piston apparatus has a shaft disposed within a sleeve. The sleeve is adapted for axial motion and the shaft is adapted for rotational motion independent of the sleeve.
US07686535B2
A combined guardrail and cable safety system is disclosed. In one aspect, the present invention teaches a safety barrier including a plurality of cable posts spaced from each other and disposed adjacent to a roadway. At least two cables are releasably engaged with and supported by the cable posts. The cable posts and the two cables cooperate with each other to prevent a vehicle from leaving the roadway. A plurality of guardrail posts are spaced from each other and disposed adjacent to the roadway longitudinally spaced from the plurality of cable post. A guardrail beam is fixedly coupled to the plurality of guardrail posts and including slots. The two cables extend from the cable posts through respective slots formed in the guardrail beam permitting each cable to engage a respective cable anchor bracket securely fastened to a portion of the guardrail beam.
US07686533B2
A universal coupler for coupling multiple orthopedic instruments is disclosed. The universal coupler includes a body having a boss and an internal bore, a locking shaft having a first portion and a second portion, a trigger including a trigger bore, and a connection portion. The trigger is operable between a first position and a second position, where in the first position the first portion and boss are misaligned and in the second position the first portion and the boss are aligned.
US07686529B1
In an embodiment, a two-axis joint that utilizes planar reactions to handle moments applied to the side of the joint thereby allowing the device to remain low profile and compact with minimal intrusion to the mounting surface of the two-axis joint. To handle larger moments, the diameter of the planar member can be increased without increasing the overall height of the joint assembly thereby retaining the low profile thereof. Upper and lower antifriction bearings may be positioned within a housing engage the planar member to reduce rotational friction. The upper and lower bearings and a hub which supports the planar member transfer forces produced by moments applied to the side of the joint so as to spread the forces over the area of the housing.
US07686528B2
A device for packaging and applying a substance may include a receptacle for containing the substance and an applicator. The receptacle may include a first part and a second part, with the second part being turnable by a user relative to the first part. The second part may define at least one surface in contact with the substance inside the receptacle. The applicator and the surface may be arranged in such a manner that turning the surface exerts pressure on the substance, causing the substance to move toward the applicator. The first part may define a backing surface and the surface may be arranged to come at least in part to face the backing surface at an end of turning of the second part.
US07686505B2
The invention concerns a method for the indirect determination of local irradiance in an optical system; wherein the optical system comprises optical elements between which an illuminated beam path is formed and a measurement object which absorbs the radiation in the beam path at least partially is positioned in a partial region of the beam path selected for the locally-resolved determination of the irradiance and the temperature distribution of at least one part of the measurement object is determined by means of a temperature detector.
US07686501B2
A bar tool set assembly for producing mixed beverages. The assembly includes a platform module adapted for housing and transposing a bar tool set. The housing having a form factor and appearance of a replica of a partially disassembled consumer or industrial product, whereas individual bar tools resemble portions of the product. In one embodiment, the bar tool set assembly resembles a fire truck.
US07686497B2
A light guide and module for motor vehicles that directs light generally along a horizontal axis. The module includes an array of light sources, an array of reflectors and a light guide. The light guide defines a body having opposed upper and lower walls. Formed in the lower wall is at least one prismatic structure having a reflecting surface oriented to reflect light based the principle of total internal reflection and to redirect light toward the upper wall. Formed in the upper wall is at least one decoupling prism element. The decoupling prism elements corresponding in number to the prismatic structures and are located in the upper wall so as to receive redirected light from its corresponding prismatic structures. The decoupling prism element includes a second reflecting surface that reflects light redirected from the first reflecting surface. This second reflecting surface reflects light toward an output surface of the decoupling prism element based on the principle of total internal reflection and defines a vertical spread of light. With the present invention, light emitted from the output surface of the decoupling prism element can be directed generally along the horizontal axis when the upper surface is oriented significantly less than 90° relative to the horizontal axis.
US07686495B2
A light source unit capable of obtaining white light with reduced color irregularity includes a plurality of light-emitting diodes (25R, 25G and 25B) having different emission spectrum peak wavelengths, and a light mixing member (21) that receives lights from the light-emitting diodes through an entrance surface (21a) and that allows lights to mix together before exiting through an exit surface (21b). The light mixing member (21) has anisotropic diffusing elements (22) that diffuse incident lights from the light-emitting diodes in a specific plane to effect light mixing.
US07686488B2
Five lamp units with light emitting elements are supported by a common metal made support member. Heat generated by the respective light emitting elements is transferred to the metal made support member having a large heat capacity to restrain a temperature rise thereof. The lamp units including the light emitting elements having a relatively large heat generating amount are arranged on lower sides of the lamp units including the light emitting elements having a relatively small heat generating amount.
US07686479B2
The present invention provides a LED flat-plate type multi-chip high power light source comprising a heat dissipating substrate, a reflecting cover mounted on the heat dissipating substrate, a circuit board embedded in the heat dissipating substrate, LEDs mounted on the circuit board and in the reflecting cover, and the circuit board also connecting to a socket set in the heat dissipating substrate. The heat dissipating substrate is made of high heat conduction metal. In the present invention, the heat dissipating substrate is made of high heat conduction metal, and the heat conducting pole is abolished. Comparing with the conventional art, the present invention decreases the heat dissipating path, increases the sectional area, and eliminates the intermediate link of high thermal resistance.
US07686476B2
A warehouse dock light includes a lamp assembly which is provided with a plurality of LEDs arranged in such a fashion as to collectively provide sufficient light for illumination of an area. The LEDs are arranged in two columns with each column having both LEDs with narrow angle and wide angle lens, and with each column being angled so as to project outwardly from a central axis. Heat from the LEDs is dissipated through bi-metal boards to an extruded aluminum heat sink, and air is blown through the ribs of the heat sink by a fan. A heat sensor is provided with electronic circuitry to responsively turn on the fan and/or turn off the LEDs at predetermined temperature thresholds.
US07686475B2
Light emitting device modules illuminate at a wide angle in the longitudinal direction of a lighting fixture. The lighting fixture can be provided with a light emitting device module having a light emitting device, an installation member for mounting multiple light emitting device modules thereon, and a support for supporting the installation member. The installation member 2 can be bent in multiple stages so that light beams from the multiple light emitting device modules mounted on the installation member are pointed to multiple different directions. The installation member can be bent in multiple stages so that an angle between the main optical axis line of the light emitting device module mounted on the forefront part of the installation member and a horizontal plane is smaller than the angle between the main optical axis line of the light emitting device module mounted on the root part of the installation member and the horizontal plane.
US07686471B2
An apparatus for simulating flames using fabric flame sheets or elements. The apparatus includes a fan or blower for producing a volume of air flow and two or more flame elements positioned in the fan air flow. First and second light sources, such as high powered light emitting diodes (LEDs), are provided to produce light beams having two differing colors such as an amber beam and an orange/red beam. The light beams are directed so as to mix or cross on or near the flame elements when the flame elements extend outward from their mounting location into the fan air flow. Each of the LEDs has a brightness level that can be tuned or adjusted by a controller, which may be manual or may be automated to modify the brightness level of at least one of the LEDs and typically both LEDs during the operation of the flame simulator.
US07686469B2
An LED floodlight fixture including a housing that forms a substantially water/air-tight chamber, electronic LED driver(s) within the chamber, and an LED assembly secured with respect to the housing adjacent thereto in non-water/air-tight condition, the LED assembly having at least one LED-array module mounted on an LED heat sink. In certain preferred embodiments the housing is a perimetrical structure such that the substantially water-tight chamber substantially surrounds the LED assembly.
US07686464B2
A conversation mirror assembly is provided for use in passenger compartments of motor vehicles. The conversation mirror assembly includes a mirror housing having a mirror support surface. A first conversation mirror face biased toward the driver is fitted to the mirror support surface. A second conversation mirror face biased toward the front seat passenger is fitted to the mirror support surface adjacent the first conversation mirror. The first conversation mirror face and the second conversation mirror face may be either spherical or aspherical. The first conversation mirror face may be separate from the second conversation mirror face. Alternatively, the first conversation mirror face and the second conversation mirror face define two facets of a single mirror.
US07686463B2
A view angle control sheet which can suppress a decrease in screen brightness is provided. Lens portions having trapezoidal shapes in cross section are arranged at predetermined intervals, and a wedge-shaped portion between the lens portions adjacent to each other is filled with the same material as the lens portion or with a material different from the lens portion. In the wedge-shaped portion, a bottom surface is provided on a screen image side while a leading edge is provided on an observer side, and at least a slope portion of the wedge-shaped portion is made of a material having a refractive index lower than that of a lens portion material.
US07686457B2
A projection image display apparatus is disclosed which enable users to observe an image in an overlap area well. The apparatus comprises a first projector which projects a first image onto a projection surface, a projection area detector which acquires a projection area onto which a second projector projects a second image in a certain area of the projection surface. Further, the apparatus comprises a projection area controller which controls a projection area onto which the firs projector projects the first image, based on an input signal from the projection area detector.
US07686443B2
This invention relates to inks for use in ink-jet printers that are cured using ultraviolet radiation. Specifically, the present invention relates to an ink-jet ink which is substantially free of water, volatile organic solvents and multifunctional (meth)acrylates comprising at least one monofunctional (meth)acrylate monomer, at least one α,β-unsaturated ether monomer, at least one radical photoinitiator and at least one coloring agent, the ink having a viscosity of less than 50 mPas at 25° C. This provides extra-low viscosity inks, which still meet the requirements for printing onto porous substrates such as paper and board.
