US08543265B2
Systems and methods for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) navigation are presented. In a preferred embodiment, a UAV is configured with at least one flight corridor and flight path, and a first UAV flight plan is calculated. During operation of the first UAV flight plan, the UAV visually detects an obstacle, and calculates a second UAV flight plan to avoid the obstacle. Furthermore, during operation of either the first or the second UAV flight plan, the UAV acoustically detects an unknown aircraft, and calculates a third UAV flight plan to avoid the unknown aircraft. Additionally, the UAV may calculate a new flight plan based on other input, such as information received from a ground control station.
US08543261B2
A method predicts and quantifies the threat posed to a human-operated device based on an optimal device trajectory through a constraint-bounded corridor. A model of the device together with a model of anticipated hazards and the current state of both the device and the hazards are used to iteratively generate an optimal device trajectory through a constraint-bounded corridor or region within state space. Device dynamics are forward-simulated over a time horizon. A method generates a threat assessment metric from the resulting sequence of optimal vehicle states. This threat assessment may be used to devise various types and levels of operator assistance. The human operator can control the device within a safe corridor or region. Threat assessment is based on the nearness of successive optimal trajectory predictions to limits of safe device handling rather than on deviation from a predefined path.
US08543260B2
A method for correlating, in time, selected events that are memorialized as data within messages transmitted across disparate communications busses is described. The method includes receiving, with a referencing unit, the messages that are transmitted across the disparate communications busses, referencing, with the referencing unit, the content of a first selected received message to a master clock within the referencing unit, referencing, with the referencing unit, the content of a second selected received message to the master clock within the referencing unit, the second selected received message related to the first selected message, the second selected received message occurring on a communications bus disparate from the communications bus upon which the first received message occurred, and providing, based on operation of the master clock, a common time reference for the content of both the first selected received message and the second selected received message.
US08543248B2
According to one embodiment, an energy management system is provided, which has the DSM function of controlling energy loads. The system has a database and a load adjustment range prediction unit. The unit predicts a load adjustment range by using the history data stored in the database and outputs the load adjustment range thus predicted.
US08543246B2
The present disclosure is concerned with controlling distributing of electrical power in a power distribution region. To effectively control the distribution of power in the distribution region, the substation of the region is provided with a distribution controller or Intelligent Substation Control System (ISCS). The distribution controller is connected to various process devices, which in turn are connected to primary devices of the region. The process devices send data corresponding to the primary devices to the distribution controller, and the distribution controller includes a processor which proposes a set of actions based on the received data. Further, the distribution controller includes a coordinating device which selects the final action from the set of proposed actions. The final action is implemented on the primary devices of the distribution region.
US08543241B2
A method, medium, and system reducing the computational complexity of a Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM) algorithm that can be applied to mobile robots. A system estimating the pose of a mobile robot with the aid of a particle filter using a plurality of particles includes a sensor which detects a variation in the pose of a mobile robot, a particle filter unit which determines the poses and weights of current particles by applying the detected pose variation to previous particles, and an evolution unit which updates the poses and weights of the current particles by applying an evolution algorithm to the poses and weights of the current particles.
US08543226B2
Feedback is received from a plurality of devices. External data is also received. Statistical patterns of the plurality of devices are determined based on the feedback. A policy is determined based on the statistical patterns, the feedback, and the external data. The policy may include a set of rules dictating the operation of each of the plurality of devices and reducing energy consumption at the plurality of devices. Control data based on the policy is transmitted to the plurality of devices. The control data may be operative to transform the operation of the plurality of devices according to the set of rules.
US08543224B2
An implantable lead may have a distal assembly including a coupler and a fixation helix secured to the coupler. The coupler may include a helical groove that is configured to accommodate the fixation helix. The helical groove may facilitate attaching the fixation helix to the coupler by threading the fixation helix into the helical groove. A weld may provide a secondary attachment between the fixation helix and the coupler.
US08543206B2
Testing lead conditions in an implantable medical device includes continuously sampling the impedance values of a lead associated with the implantable medical device. The sampling is conducted over a predetermined period of time. An impedance histogram is then generated using the sampled impedance values by separating each measured impedance value into a specific bin assigned to contain a particular range of impedance levels. The lead condition of the tested lead can then be determined based on one or more characteristics of the impedance histogram.
US08543205B2
A leadless cardiac pacemaker comprises a housing, a plurality of electrodes coupled to an outer surface of the housing, and a pulse delivery system hermetically contained within the housing and electrically coupled to the electrode plurality, the pulse delivery system configured for sourcing energy internal to the housing, generating and delivering electrical pulses to the electrode plurality. The pacemaker further comprises a temperature sensor hermetically contained within the housing and adapted to sense temperature information, wherein the pacemaker can control electrical pulse delivery at least partly based on the temperature information.
US08543195B1
Various embodiments are directed to signal processing. In accordance with example embodiments, methods and apparatuses involve using at least two electrodes that sense an ECG signal. A denoising module is communicatively coupled to the at least two electrodes, and receives the ECG signal sensed by the sensing electrodes. The denoising module includes circuitry that conditions and digitizes the ECG signal, and a computing circuit that processes the digitized ECG signal to denoise the ECG signal. A communications circuit generates a communication including the denoised ECG signal for access by a remote device.
US08543191B2
A method for the acquisition of measurement data of a breathing examination subject by magnetic resonance includes the following steps: (a) detect the physiological breathing signal of the examination subject with a breathing signal detection unit, (b) evaluate the detected breathing signal in an evaluation unit, (c) based on the evaluated breathing signal, calculate in a computer at least one parameter affecting the type of acquisition of measurement data by means of magnetic resonance, (d) detect a current physiological breathing signal with the breathing signal detection unit, (e) compare the last detected breathing signals with at least one trigger condition, (f) initiate the acquisition of measurement data using the calculated parameter from step (c) upon satisfaction of the trigger conditions from step (e), (g) repeat the steps (d) through (f) until all desired measurement data have been acquired, and (h) store and/or process the acquired measurement data in a memory and/or processing unit. After the evaluation of the detected breathing signal, at least one parameter of a following acquisition of measurement data is thus determined automatically without an input by an operator of the MR apparatus in use being required.
US08543187B2
A first plurality of MR signals from a patient's tissue at respectively corresponding successive first time increments extending over a first time interval including a substantial majority of a subject's cardiac cycle is acquired and analyzed to define a second time interval, shorter than the first time interval, during the cardiac cycle whereat there is a relatively steep rise in signal magnitudes as a function of time (e.g., corresponding with systole and diastole events of the cardiac cycle). A second plurality of MR signals is then acquired from tissue of the patient at respectively corresponding successive second time increments during the second time interval, the second time increments being substantially shorter than said first time increments. Image data representing at least one contrast-free image of flowing fluid vessels is generated based on the second plurality of MR signals.
US08543184B2
Membrane systems incorporating silicone polymers are described for use in implantable analyte sensors. Some layers of the membrane system may comprise a blend of a silicone polymer with a hydrophilic polymer, for example, a triblock poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide)-poly(ethylene oxide) polymer. Such polymeric blends provide for both high oxygen solubility and aqueous analyte solubility.
US08543182B2
Provided herein is a stabilized oxygen transport matrix that includes a reversible oxygen binding protein, such as hemoglobin, immobilized throughout the stabilized oxygen transport matrix. The stabilized oxygen transport matrix is used to transport oxygen and can be used as an oxygen transport region and a reaction region of an analyte sensor, such as an implantable glucose sensor. The reversible binding protein can also function as an oxygen probe within the analyte sensor.
US08543174B2
A mobile device sends to a message a wireless network. The message indicates a plurality of different protocol types of broadcast messages to be processed as broadcast-to-unicast messages during a low power mode of operation of the mobile device. The protocol type of a given broadcast message is identifiable in a protocol identifier field of the broadcast message. The mobile device maintains its wireless receiver in a powered down state during the low power mode of operation while broadcast messages are broadcasted from the wireless network. For each broadcast message of each said indicated protocol type provided in the message sent to the wireless network, the mobile device monitors to receive via the wireless receiver a unicast message from the wireless network. The mobile device identifies broadcast message information of the broadcast message within the unicast message.
US08543154B2
Methods of reverse link power control are provided. A first example method includes first adjusting OFDMA transmission power based on first feedback signals during an OFDMA transmission and second adjusting OFDMA transmission power based on second feedback signals during periods between OFDMA transmissions. A second example method includes sending first power adjustment indicators based on measured OFDMA SINRs when receiving OFDMA transmissions from a mobile station and sending second power adjustment indicators based on estimated OFDMA SINRs when not receiving OFDMA transmissions from the mobile station. A third example method includes receiving a plurality of interference indicating signals from different base stations and determining whether to adjust a maximum transmit power threshold based on the plurality of interference indicating signals, the maximum transmit power threshold indicating the maximum permitted transmission power level below which transmissions are constrained.
US08543153B2
According to the proposed method, the frequency of power control commands transmitted on a power control channel is changed according to the traffic. When the traffic becomes slower in at least one direction due to a DTX state, a slower transfer rate, asymmetric data transfer or for any other reason, the frequency of power control commands is lowered. Both the base station and the personal station may lower the frequency of the commands which they send. An alternative to changing the frequency of power control commands is to change the energy of power control bits. The duration of power control bits must hereby be extended, if a standard bit error ration is desired. If the system is frequency-divided and/or time-divided and uses frequency control command of several bits, the length of the command word may be shortened in addition to or as an alternative to the change in frequency. The power control algorithm may be changed several times during a traffic connection.
US08543152B2
Techniques for adjusting transmit power to mitigate both intra-sector interference to a serving base station and inter-sector interference to neighbor base stations are described. The amount of inter-sector interference that a terminal may cause may be roughly estimated based on the total interference observed by each neighbor base station, channel gains for the serving and neighbor base stations, and the current transmit power level. The transmit power may be decreased if high interference is observed by a neighbor base station and increased otherwise. The transmit power may be adjusted by a larger amount and/or more frequently if the terminal is located closer to the neighbor base station observing high interference and/or if the current transmit power level is higher, and vice versa. The intra-sector interference is maintained within an acceptable level by limiting a received SNR for the terminal to be within a range of allowable SNRs.
US08543150B2
A communication system performing a coordinated multipoint transmission is provided. A mobile station may measure expected channel quality information when an interference of a serving base station does not exist. The serving base station may determine whether a neighbor base station and the serving base station are eligible to perform the coordinated multipoint transmission. The serving base station may determine whether the neighbor base station and the serving base station are eligible to perform the coordinated multipoint transmission using a criterion associated with an evaluation of an increase in a transmission rate of the mobile station.
US08543135B2
A method for determining if a mobile device is in a vehicle includes monitoring an acceleration of the mobile device for a time interval during a period of time. The method also includes calculating one or more characteristics of the acceleration of the mobile device during the time interval and comparing the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to a set of threshold values. The method further includes determining the state of the mobile device based on the comparison of the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to the set of threshold values, wherein the state of the mobile device includes an in-vehicle state, a non-vehicle state.
US08543122B2
A method and apparatus are provided for creating a pilot channel in an opportunistic radio communication system whose frequency spectrum comprises a set of frequency bands and for which system the successive frames of a radio communication channel are divided into time intervals. The method includes the steps of: opportunistically selecting a free frequency band from the frequency spectrum, so as to support the pilot channel; sending a beacon signal over at least one time interval of the successive frames of the pilot channel and probing the free frequency band over at least one time interval distinct from the previous one.
US08543119B2
The invention provides for a dynamic trancoder placement in case that transcoding functionality for codecs is offered in a TRAU associated to a Base Station Controller and/or a MGW selected for a call.
US08543116B2
The present invention relates to the technical field of wireless communications, is used for optimizing an energy saving mechanism, and provides a method for energy saving compensation, which method comprises: expanding, by a base station, a signal coverage area to form a new cell, when the energy saving activation requirements are met, so as to allow an energy-saving cell managed by the base station to switch users to the new cell and to activate the energy saving state; and when energy saving deactivation requirements are met, and if the energy-saving cell managed by the base station deactivates the energy saving state, then switching, by the base station, the users to the energy-saving cell and reducing the signal coverage area. The present invention optimizes currently available energy saving mechanisms and provides a solution capable of compensating the service loss of energy-saving cells.
US08543112B2
A system and method for restricting public access to a mobile telecommunications network in order to prevent congestion. The system and method are particularly useful in situations where the number of end users exceeds, or is likely to exceed, network capacity, for example in emergency situations or for large public gatherings, such as sporting events or New Years Eve celebrations. The system and method disclosed uses filtering by network elements, such as the base stations and MSCs. In particular the system and method can filter low data messages, such as SMS, from more demanding services, such as voice calls, so that all low data messages are transmitted, while the more demanding services are terminated, unless special conditions are met.
US08543108B2
A method is provided for activation of Idle-mode Signaling Reduction (ISR) for a given mobile terminal based on behavior of the given mobile terminal, in a manner to minimize signaling load between the mobile terminals and the wireless network. The methodology operates to dynamically enable or disable ISR on a per-terminal basis, using the session arrival rate and timeout data for the mobile terminal. Based on these mobile-terminal behavioral criteria, and preferably using an iterative process at long time scales, the methodology operates to optimize the decision thresholds used to turn ISR on or off.
US08543104B2
A radio device in a first base transceiver station for communicating with a mobile station located in a radio propagation area of the first base transceiver station, the radio device includes a test target selection processing unit for identifying a mobile station located in an area covered with both the radio propagation area of the first base transceiver station and a radio propagation area of a second base transceiver station established adjacent to the first base transceiver station, and a test request processing unit for transmitting a test request signal having information concerned with the second base transceiver station to the mobile station identified by the test target selection processing unit so that the mobile station executes a connection test on the second base transceiver station, and for processing a test result signal responded by the mobile station.
US08543102B2
A wireless base station apparatus performing wireless communication with a mobile station apparatus includes: a transmission unit to transmit data to the mobile station apparatus; a reception unit to receive a delivery result for the data from the mobile station apparatus; and a control unit to determine whether reception processing through a first channel is performed or parallel reception processing through the first channel and a second channel is performed on the basis of a radio line quality between the wireless base station apparatus and the mobile station apparatus or an amount of processing in the reception unit if the transmission unit transmits a permission notification permitting the transmission through the first channel to the mobile station apparatus, where the reception unit performs the reception processing in accordance with the result of the determination to receive the delivery result transmitted through the first channel or the second channel.
US08543094B2
A system and method for configuring devices for wireless communication are disclosed. A method may include transmitting an activation key from an activation broker to a wireless agent. The method may also include transmitting the activation key from the activation broker to a wireless registrar. At least one of the transmission of the activation key to the wireless agent and the transmission of the activation key to the wireless registrar may include transmitting the activation key via a short-range wireless communication technology. In addition, the activation key may include information for authenticating wireless communication between the wireless agent and a wireless access point.
US08543090B2
A mobile terminal includes a processor shifting a state between a first restricted state for restricting a key operation except for at least a code inputting operation, a second restricted state for restricting a key operation including at least said code inputting operation, and a unrestricted state for making a key operation unrestricted. The processor selects the unrestricted state when a code input by the code inputting operation in the first restricted state is a preset code. Furthermore, whether or not the number of executions of the code inputting operation in the first restricted state is above a threshold value is repetitively determined, and if the determination result is negative, the first restricted state is selected while if the determination result is affirmative, the second restricted state is selected. Then, a possibility of a key operator being a qualified person is repetitively determined, and as the possibility is high, the threshold value is made large.
US08543077B2
In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for receiving a radio frequency (RF) signal and mixing the RF signal with a master clock to obtain a mixed signal, cyclically rotating the mixed signal to each of N gain stages for at least one cycle of the master clock, and summing the outputs of the N gain stages to provide an output signal.
US08543073B2
Methods and systems for loop-through for multi-band TV tuners and set-top box and/or TV set applications are disclosed and may include generating master and slave output signals from one or more low-noise amplifiers including master and slave stages. The master and slave stages may include parallel-coupled gain paths. Gate terminals and source terminals of input transistors for the master and slave stages may be directly coupled. The input transistors for the master and slave stages may share an inductor coupled to the source terminals and to ground. The master and slave stages may include cascode stages. VHF and UHF signals may be amplified in the multi-band receiver. The generated master output signal may be processed in the multi-band receiver, and may be utilized to generate I and Q output signals. A plurality of the slave output signals may be summed and communicated to a receiver external to the multi-band receiver.
US08543059B2
A combo wireless system comprises a Bluetooth module, a wireless fidelity (WiFi) module, a single pole triple throw (SP3T) switch and an antenna. The antenna is utilized to transmit/receive Bluetooth signals for the Bluetooth module and to transmit/receive WiFi signals for the WiFi module. The SP3T switch is coupled between the antenna, the Bluetooth module and the WiFi module. The SP3T switch is controlled to select a path for the Bluetooth module to transmit/receive Bluetooth signals through the antenna, to select another path for the WiFi module to transmit WiFi signals through the antenna or to select another path for the WiFi module to receive the WiFi signals through the antenna.
US08543043B2
Flexible members for use in imaging devices which may include a non-ionic surfactant; a fluorinated surfactant; or both.
US08543038B2
An image forming apparatus includes a first image supporting member for forming a first image; a second image supporting member arranged adjacent to the first image supporting member for forming a second image; a first drive unit for driving the first image supporting member through a first driving force having a first phase; a second drive unit for driving the second image supporting member through a second driving force having a second phase shifted from the first phase; and a transfer unit for transferring the first image and the second image to a printing medium.
US08543037B2
The image forming apparatus includes a photoreceptor bearing an electrostatic image; a developing device developing the electrostatic image with a developer including a toner to form a toner image on the photoreceptor; a transferring device transferring the toner image onto a receiving material; and a cleaning device having a cleaning blade cleaning the surface of the photoreceptor. The photoreceptor includes an electroconductive substrate, a photosensitive layer and an outermost layer having projected portions thereon. The outermost layer and projected portions include the same crosslinked charge transport material. The outermost layer has a surface roughness property such that the number of projected portions having height greater than Rz/2 is from 40 to 90 in a length of 12 mm, wherein Rz represents ten-point mean roughness of the outermost layer. The tip of the cleaning blade is contacted with the photoreceptor at a linear pressure of from 80 g/cm to 150 g/cm.
US08543032B2
There is provided a device and method for remanufacturing a printer cartridge. The printer cartridge has an organic photoconductor (OPC) drum having a drum axle and a hub assembly attached to the drum axle, and the hub assembly is in a locked position in the printer cartridge. The device has a first portion having an end configured to engage the hub assembly and unlock and lock the hub assembly. The device further has a second portion connected to the first portion, the second portion having an end configured to extract the hub assembly from the printer cartridge when the hub assembly is in an unlocked position.
US08543029B2
An image forming apparatus includes multiple image bearing members provided in tandem, multiple developing devices configured to develop the respective electrostatic latent images, an intermediate transfer member onto which the multiple toner images are transferred to form a composite toner image, multiple first lubricant applicators configured to apply a lubricant to the respective image bearing members, and a second lubricant applicator configured to apply a lubricant to the intermediate transfer member. The second lubricant applicator is provided upstream from the extreme upstream image bearing member. The amount of the first lubricant applied from the extreme upstream first lubricant applicator to the extreme upstream image bearing member is based on at least one of an amount of the second lubricant applied from the second lubricant applicator to the intermediate transfer member and an amount of first lubricant applied from each of the other lubricant applicators to the respective image bearing members.
US08543028B2
A maintenance system includes a maintenance device and a control device that controls the operation of the maintenance device. The control device is configured to activate the maintenance device automatically when a numerical value associated with the operation of a maintenance target device reaches a predetermined threshold value and to activate the maintenance device when it receives an instruction from a user. When the control device is instructed to activate the maintenance device by an instruction from the user, the control device changes the preset threshold value such that the operation interval of the maintenance device becomes smaller.
US08543021B2
The image forming apparatus calculates a surface voltage of an image bearing member based on a first charge start voltage, which is obtained when a first voltage application section applies a first DC voltage to a charge section, and a second charge start voltage, which is obtained when a second voltage application section applies a second DC voltage to the charge section. This allows a high-quality image to be formed irrespective of a change in circumstance or drum layer thickness.
US08543020B2
An image forming apparatus includes a transport member, image forming units (used as pattern forming unit), a pattern detector, and an image misalignment detector. The image forming units form correction-use patterns for each color on the transport member. The pattern detector directs a light beam onto the transport member having the correction-use patterns and detect reflected light reflecting from the transport member. The image misalignment detector detects image misalignment of the correction-use patterns. The pattern forming unit forms a reference color pattern and a first color pattern. The pattern detector uses an irradiation light having a first wavelength matched to a spectral sensitivity peak of the first color pattern to detect an intensity of reflected light reflected from the transport member. The image misalignment detector computes an image misalignment value between the reference and first color patterns based on the intensity of reflected light reflected from the transport member.
US08543010B2
An apparatus and method for controlling bias in an optical modulator is disclosed. The method is particularly applicable to controlling multi-wavelength modulators and wavelength-tunable transmitters. At a calibration stage, a desired optical performance of the modulator is achieved, and an amplitude of a peak-to-peak variation of the output optical signal at a pre-determined amount of dither is stored in a memory as a reference. At operating stage, a controller of the optical modulator adjusts a bias voltage of the modulator until the measured peak-to-peak optical signal variation matches the reference value stored at the calibration stage. For multi-wavelength modulators and tunable transmitters, the calibration is repeated at each wavelength, and corresponding peak-to-peak optical signal variations are stored in the memory.
US08543008B2
A system for powering a network element of a fiber optic wide area network is disclosed. When communication data is transferred between a central office (CO) and a subscriber terminal using a network element to convert optical to electrical (O-E) and electrical to optical (E-O) signals between a fiber from the central office and twisted wire pair, coaxial cable or Ethernet cable transmission lines from the subscriber terminal, techniques related to local powering of a network element or drop site by the subscriber terminal or subscriber premise remote powering device are provided. Certain advantages and/or benefits are achieved using the present invention, such as freedom from any requirement for additional meter installations or meter connection charges and does not require a separate power network.
US08543006B2
A method is provided for reducing polarization dependent loss experienced by an optical signal comprises monitoring a power level of a polarization multiplexed optical signal. The method further comprises detecting a power spike based on the monitored power. The power spike is induced by misalignment of a polarization component axis of the optical signal with a polarization dependent loss (PDL) axis of one or more network elements. The method further comprises rotating the polarization orientation of the optical signal such that the power spike is reduced.
US08543003B2
Cable communication systems and methods to provide voice and/or data services to subscriber premises in one or more neighborhood nodes via an ingress-mitigated cable plant that conveys upstream information over an upstream path bandwidth. One or more upstream radio frequency (RF) signals have a carrier frequency of between approximately 5 MHz and 19.6 MHz and are modulated using quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) with voice and/or data information constituting at least some of the upstream information. An example RF signal defines a channel having an average channel power, and a highest value for an average noise power between 5 MHz and 19.6 MHz in the upstream path bandwidth of a given neighborhood node, as measured over at least a 24 hour period, is at least 25 decibels (dB) below the average channel power and/or less than 20 decibels (dB) above a noise floor associated with the neighborhood node.
US08543002B1
An infrared LED of an IrDA transceiver module is usable to transmit IrDA signals as well as RC control signals. When making an IrDA transmission, the IrDA LED is driven with a lower amount of current. When making an RC transmission, the IrDA LED is driven with an increased amount of current such that infrared emissions received by an RC receiver are of adequate power to be received as RC control signals. A current-limiting circuit allows more LED current to flow the longer current is allowed to flow through the IrDA LED. By controlling the durations of infrared bursts in the RC transmission, the average LED current during infrared bursts of RC transmissions is controlled. Using this technique allows the IrDA module to be used to transmit RC signals at different transmission power settings. To reduce power consumption, the minimum transmission power necessary to engage in RC communications is used.
US08542997B2
The invention relates to a passive optical network comprising an optical exchange linked by at least one optical fiber to at least one line termination device of said network, able to transmit a downlink optical signal phase-modulated in NRZ-DPSK format and to receive an uplink optical signal.According to the invention, said line termination device comprises means of converting the transmitted downlink optical signal phase-modulated in NRZ-DPSK format into an optical data signal amplitude-modulated in duobinary modulation format and means of generating an uplink optical signal phase-modulated in NRZ-DPSK format from the downlink optical signal phase-modulated in NRZ-DPSK format. The optical exchange is able to convert the uplink optical signal phase-modulated in NRZ-DPSK format into an optical data signal amplitude-modulated in duobinary modulation format.
US08542993B2
An apparatus comprising an individual optical power level calculation (IOPLC) module and a transceiver coupled to the IOPLC module and configured to communicate with a plurality of optical network units (ONUs). Also disclosed is an apparatus comprising a control and management (CM) module, an average power level measurement (APLM) module coupled to the CM module, a first transceiver coupled to the CM module and configured to communicate with an optical line terminal (OLT), and a second transceiver coupled to the CM module and the APLM module, and configured to communicate with a plurality of ONUs.
US08542980B2
An apparatus and method for applying anti-copy protection to a raster-scanned video signal are described. A square waveform 52 is added to the vertical synchronization pulses 50 of the video signal. The effect of the waveform is not apparent until it has been recorded by a video cassette recorder. The anti-copy protected video signal can therefore be viewed normally on a display device at or near to the picture quality intended by the originator of the video signal, but once recorded, exhibits a reduction in picture quality which makes the video signal quite unattractive to view.
US08542978B2
With this invention, at least one of a video file containing video information, a still picture file containing still picture information, and an audio file containing audio information and a management file having management information on a control method of reproducing the information in the file are recorded on an information storage medium. This realizes a data structure that causes the recording and deleting places on the information storage medium to correspond spuriously to places on a single tape, such as a VTR tape. Use of the data structure provides users with an easy-to-use interface.
US08542976B2
A method and system is disclosed for time-shifted access to media content. The time-shifted access may be facilitate with a time-shift buffer and the use of time-shift buffers to mark periods in time from which time-shifted access is to be begin according to triggering events registered at output devices being used to facilitate the time-shifted access.
US08542973B2
A fiber optic distribution device for handling fiber optic distribution points is disclosed. The device comprises a housing mountable below floor level; a drawer carrying fiber optic modules to which fiber optic cables can be connected thereby providing fiber optic distribution points. Guide rails are attached to the drawer and act together with guide rails attached to the housing allowing a linear movement of the drawer relative to the housing between a first position in which the drawer is positioned inside the housing below floor level and a second position in which the drawer is positioned at least partly outside the housing above floor level. A locking mechanism is pivotably attached to the drawer. The center of gravity of the locking mechanism is positioned offset from a pivoting axis of the locking mechanism so that the locking mechanism automatically locks the drawer in the second position when said drawer is moved from said first position into said second position.
US08542969B2
An optical fiber having both low macrobend loss and low microbend loss. The fiber has a first inner cladding region having an outer radius r2>8 microns and refractive index Δ2 and a second outer cladding region surrounding the inner cladding region having refractive index Δ3, wherein Δ1>Δ3>Δ2. The difference between Δ3 and Δ2 is greater than 0.01. The fiber exhibits a 22 m cable cutoff less than or equal to 1260 nm, and r1/r2 is greater or equal to 0.25.
US08542966B2
Disclosed are fiber optic assemblies having at least one optical fiber disposed within a tube and/or cavity along with a powder or powder blend that is at least partially mechanically attached thereto. In one embodiment, the powder or powder blend includes a water-swellable component that is mechanically attached to about 30 percent or less of the surface area of the tube wall while still effectively blocking the migration of water along the tube. Other embodiments may have the powder or power blend mechanically attached to the tube, cavity, or the like at relatively high percentage levels of the total powder or powder blend within the assembly, thereby inhibiting unintentional migration along the tube, cavity, or the like. Other embodiments may use powder or powder blends that may or may not include a water-swellable powder to provide other desired characteristics.
US08542964B2
In one aspect, an illumination structure includes a substantially non-fiber waveguide, which itself includes a discrete in-coupling region for receiving light, a discrete propagation region for propagating light, and a discrete out-coupling region for emitting light.
US08542962B2
Embodiments of endo-illuminators and related methods are disclosed. One embodiment of an illuminator can comprise a cannula defining a passage, an optical element disposed at an end of the cannula, and an optical fiber running through the passage with the distal end of the optical fiber in contact with the optical element. The optical fiber includes at least a heat preconditioned distal portion that terminates in the distal end that is in contact with the optical element. One embodiment of a method can comprise inserting an optical fiber through a proximal portion of a cannula and optical element assembly until the distal end of the optical fiber contacts the optical element, heating a distal portion of the optical fiber to between a softening temperature and a melting temperature for a period of time to cause the distal portion to axially shrink and moving the optical element so that the optical element is in contact with the distal end of the optical fiber when the distal portion of the optical fiber has axially shrunk. Moving the optical element so that the optical element is in contact with the distal end of the optical fiber when the distal portion of the optical fiber has axially shrunk can comprise applying a force to the cannula and optical element assembly to maintain the optical element in continuous contact with the distal end of the optical fiber while the optical fiber axially shrinks.
US08542957B2
An optical waveguide sensor includes a substrate and an optical waveguide. The optical waveguide includes a core and a lateral clad. The core extends in a spiral shape above a surface of the substrate. The lateral clad is disposed in a same layer as the core above the surface of the substrate and is in contact with either side surfaces of the core. At least a part of a surface of the core located opposite from the substrate is a transmission surface from which light leaks and is absorbed by a detected object.
US08542955B2
A gas detection system is provided for identifying a gas. The gas detection system includes a sensing module with a hollow chamber enclosed by a chamber housing. Additionally, the sensing module includes an optical sensing fiber positioned within the hollow chamber. The optical sensing fiber includes a gas sensor including a fiber Bragg grating positioned at a grating location along the optical sensing fiber, and a sensing layer affixed to an exterior surface of the optical sensing fiber at the grating location. After the gas is directed into the hollow chamber, the sensing layer and the gas exchange heat energy, based in part on a heat transfer coefficient of the gas. The exchange of the heat energy induces a shift in a Bragg resonant wavelength of the fiber Bragg grating which exceeds a threshold shift required for detection, where the shift is used to identify the gas.
US08542951B2
An image retrieval device that retrieves an image in response to an input image by comparing feature amounts based on an attribute of search target images and a feature amount based on an attribute of an input image. Each of the feature amounts comprises a first feature amount expressing a global relative positional relation of each pixel constituting an image with respect to pixels of the entire image, and a second feature amount expressing a local relative positional relation of each pixel constituting each of the images with respect to its adjacent pixels. Component images and at least one combination image formed therefrom are linked to a search target image and feature amounts about these respective images are compared with a feature amount about an input image and a search target image linked to a component/combination image that is similar to the input image is displayed.
US08542950B2
Iconic images for a given object or object category may be identified in a set of candidate images by using a learned probabilistic composition model to divide each candidate image into a most probable rectangular object region and a background region, ranking the candidate images according to the maximal composition score of each image, removing non-discriminative images from the candidate images, clustering highest-ranked candidate images to form clusters, wherein each cluster includes images having similar object regions according to a feature match score, selecting a representative image from each cluster as an iconic image of the object category, and causing display of the iconic image. The composition model may be a Naïve Bayes model that computes composition scores based on appearance cues such as hue, saturation, focus, and texture. Iconic images depict an object or category as a relatively large object centered on a clean or uncluttered contrasting background.
US08542944B2
An input image is decomposed into a residual image and a set of detail images in different levels of a hierarchy. The set of detail images are enhanced after which noise reduction filtering is directly applied to the enhanced set of detail images without the need to apply noise estimation to a local area of the enhanced set of detail image in advance. The residual image and the set of detail images with reduced noise are recomposed so as to obtain resultant image.
US08542935B2
Provided are a hybrid prediction apparatus and method for entropy encoding that may enhance an existing image compression scheme and prediction scheme by including and selectively using a plurality of predictors configured to perform a per-pixel prediction of an image frame, and may also supplement a performance of a prediction scheme, excessively occurring in a particular pixel.
US08542934B2
An invention is disclosed for performing differencing of graphical data in post-transform space for a remote presentation session. Graphical data is transformed from a first representation to a second representation (e.g. with a DWT), and then a difference is taken of the post-transform data and the post-transform data of the frame that preceded the current frame. This difference is then encoded and transmitted to a client, which decodes it, and creates a representation of the graphical data using the delta, and a previously determined representation of the previous frame. By performing differencing in post-transform space, fidelity of the remote presentation session is retained while it may decrease bandwidth. This may occur because the entropy of the delta representation is usually lower than a non-delta representation while the scheme retains the identical data of the final decoded image of the non-delta version of the same compression scheme.
US08542921B1
An image of a negotiable instrument may be taken by an imaging device and provided from a user to a financial institution. The image may be processed using operations such as deskewing the image, dewarping the image, and detecting corners or edges of the check in the image. Brightness correction may then be performed on the image. The brightness correction may be performed on the image using a histogram of the image with an overlaid reference mark. The negotiable instrument may be deposited in a user's account using the brightness corrected image.
US08542916B2
A system and method of analyzing at least one dataset having temporal and spatial content is provided. A method includes the steps of applying a colorimetric mapping to the dataset based on the spatial content (500), segmenting the dataset (618) into one of a plurality of patterns based on a spatio-temporal analysis of the dataset (604, 606), and analyzing characteristics of each of the plurality of patterns (612-622).
US08542911B1
A system and methods for accessing 2D digital images and 3D geometric models over a network (preferably the Internet) and transforming and composing that media along with 2D digital image and 3D geometric model media, acquired by other means, into enhanced 2D image and 3D model representations for virtual reality visualization and simulation is disclosed. Digital images and models from a network and other sources are incorporated and manipulated through an interactive graphical user interface. A photogrammetric media processing engine automatically extracts virtual sensor (camera) and geometric models from imagery. Extracted information is used by a reconstruction processor to automatically and realistically compose images and models. A rendering system provides real-time visualization and simulation of the constructed media. A client-server processing model for deployment of the media processing engine system over a network is disclosed.
US08542909B2
There is provided a method of measuring 3D depth of a stereoscopic image, comprising providing left and right eye input images, applying an edge extraction filter to each of the left and right eye input images, and determining 3D depth of the stereoscopic image using the edge extracted left and right eye images. There is also provided an apparatus for carrying out the method of measuring 3D depth of a stereoscopic image.
US08542904B1
A method of using a document processing system includes receiving a target serial number via an input device communicatively connected to a document processing system and determining if the target serial number exactly matches one of a plurality of stored serial numbers residing in a memory. Each stored serial number is associated with a record. Each record includes customer account identification information that can be used to identify a customer account previously credited for a deposit of a currency bill having the stored serial number. In response to the target serial number not exactly matching any of the stored serial numbers, the method further includes displaying a wildcard search element on a display of the document processing system.
US08542887B2
An object identification apparatus which identifies an object included in an input image includes a unit which calculates correlation values of feature amounts in standard partial feature regions respectively extracted from the input images and processing targets, and correlation values of feature amounts in adaptive partial feature regions respectively extracted from the input image and processing targets, a unit which calculates similarities based on the calculated correlation values, and a unit which integrates the plurality of calculated similarities, and outputs them as an integrated similarity between the input image and registered image as the processing targets. According to the object identification apparatus, an identification performance between two specific categories, which are similarity to each other, is improved while maintain an overall identification performance.
US08542885B2
With a digital still camera, a user freely detects a smiling face on a touchpanel displaying a through image and selects a subject having that smiling face. The digital still camera displays the smiling face as a smiling face detection target and a non-target detected face on the through image in a distinctly different manner to discriminate the smiling face detection target from the non-target detected face. For example, when persons in an event such as a party are photographed in a relatively large viewing angle, an auto photographing operation may be performed in response to smiling face detections on condition that at least two members in the party are smiling.
US08542875B2
A system for complexity reduction in images involving concepts of visual attention based most probable region detection for object presence and perspective-view based reduced scale-search approaches. Visual attention concept in context uses gradient and contrast of an image. A pixel meeting certain criteria for gradient or contrast values may be further processed for object presence. Limiting image processing to such regions may reduce the complexity of digitized images. Post processing the outcome using morphological operations like dilation and erosion appropriately may help retain some of the missed object pixels in the resultant image. Typically image blocks at different scales are searched for object presence. Reduced-scale search involves removing certain scales during search. As object size in image varies with its location scales within a given scale-range if searched, may lead to higher chances of object presence. This is implemented using relative heights and widths estimation using the perspective view concept.
US08542869B2
Multiple candidate feature components of media content or projection matrices (or other hash functions, e.g., non-linear projections) are identified. Each of the candidate projection matrices (or other hash functions) includes an array of coefficients that relate to the candidate features. A subgroup of the candidate features or the projection matrices (or other hash functions) are selected based at least partially on an optimized combination of at least two characteristics of the candidate features or projection matrices (or other hash functions). Media fingerprints that uniquely identify the media content are derived from the selected optimized subgroup. Optimal projection matrices (or other hash functions) may be designed. Performance or sensitivity (e.g., search time) characteristics of the fingerprints are thus balanced with robustness characteristics thereof.
US08542868B2
A method for referencing and interconnecting contents, applications and metadata to an audiovisual content is described, especially for iTV of for distribution on DVD, which comprises the step of inserting a digital watermark into the audiovisual content during an audiovisual content encoding step, the digital watermark being possibly used for allowing a user to reproduce or exploit additional contents supplementing those provided by the audiovisual content, wherein the digital watermark is inserted into the audiovisual content as data frame with header and body by subdividing it into a plurality of consecutive ‘I’ frames and forcing the parity of LSBs of mid-frequency providing an auxiliary watermark channel, e.g. in an MPEG2 transport stream.
US08542862B2
A flat acoustic transducer (100) includes a permanent magnet (10) and a magnetic member (20), which are arranged adjacent to each other with a predetermined interval, a flat vibrating membrane (30), provided facing the permanent magnet (10) and the magnetic member (20), and at least one coil (40), fixed to the vibrating membrane (30). In the flat acoustic transducer (100), an electrical signal is applied to the coil (40), to obtain vibration force (F) on the vibrating membrane (30) by way of a magnetic flux Φ generated between a magnetic pole face (12) of the permanent magnet (10) and the magnetic member (20), a step (50) is provided between the magnetic pole face (12) and the upper face (22) of the magnetic member (20), while at least part of a winding (42) of the coil (40) at the time of no application of an electrical signal is arranged inside the step (50).
US08542858B2
A behind-the-ear hearing device has a hearing device housing and a user-operable switch. At least two microphones are disposed below the switch in the hearing device housing, and the housing is formed with first sound openings that are arranged directly below the switch. The switch is preferably a rocker switch. The microphones can be positioned below a switch in a space-saving fashion and the installation space of the hearing device housing can thus be used optimally.
US08542849B2
A device for audio mixing includes a cascade input port and a first cascade input component that includes a first cascade input level detector component that detects an audio level of an upstream sum audio signal. The first cascade input port also includes an attenuator component that attenuates the first upstream mix audio signal by a gain corresponding to difference between the upstream sum audio signal value and a detected audio level of an input sum audio signal. The device also includes a summer component where the signals summed include at least the first upstream sum audio signal. The device also includes an input sum level detector component that detects the audio level of the input sum audio signal. The device also includes a mixer component that is configured to provide a mix output signal by summing, where the signals summed include at least the first attenuated upstream mix signal.
US08542840B2
A signal-processing circuit for the generation of a loudspeaker signal may include an input for the feeding of a digital input signal and a digital equalizer filter that is coupled with the input and has at least one first recursive filter that is defined by a first adjustable set of coefficients, an amplification device, a current measurement device, a digital filter block that may be configured to generate, through filtering, an estimate signal as a function of the measurement signal, and a matching block that may be configured to determine a new set of coefficients as a function of the measurement signal, the estimate signal, and the filtered input signal.
US08542837B2
A key selection vector for a revocation list in an HDCP system as well as a mobile device and a method for processing a key selection vector, a digital content output device using a key selection vector and a revocation list for use in an HDCP system comprising a key selection vector are described. It is desired to improve handling of key selection vectors of revocation lists. A structured key selection vector for a revocation list is provided. The key selection vector is structured to contain at least one bit field with a predetermined number of bits and at a predetermined location in the key selection vector. The bit field contains information relating to a group property of a device, which group property allows to process as a group a plurality of key selection vectors storing the same or similar group property information in said at least one bit field.
US08542836B2
In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a first access point within a wireless network. The first access point is configured to identify a communication device within a radio frequency (RF) range of the first access point. The first access point is also configured to request a session key associated with the communication device from a first network controller associated with the first access point in response to the communication device being identified. The first access point is further configured to receive the session key associated with the communication device from a second network controller associated with a second access point having an RF range partially overlapping the RF range of the first access point.
US08542830B2
A cable television system provides conditional access to services. The cable television system includes a headend from which service “instances,” or programs, are broadcast and a plurality of set top units for receiving the instances and selectively decrypting the instances for display to system subscribers. The service instances are partially-encrypted using public and/or private keys provided by service providers or central authorization agents. Keys used by the set tops for selective decryption may also be public or private in nature, and such keys may be reassigned at different times to provide a cable television system in which piracy concerns are minimized.
US08542824B2
A system and method for processing messages with encryptable message parts. When constructing an encoded message, an encryption key of a plurality of identified encryption keys is used to encrypt message data of a message part. A key identifier is associated with the message part and identifies the encryption key used for the encryption of the message data of the message part. In at least one exemplary embodiment, encryption keys that are used to encrypt message data of message parts are provided in a separate message part, arranged by key identifier. In particular, the encryption keys, arranged by key identifier, may be provided in exactly one message part separate from the message parts containing message data. This allows for a compact message encoding.
US08542821B2
A method of masking a cryptographic operation using a secret value, comprising the steps of dividing the secret value into a plurality of parts; combining with each part a random value to derive a new part such that the new parts when combined are equivalent to the original secret value; and utilizing each of the individual parts in the operation.
US08542820B2
An apparatus for calculating a result of a scalar multiplication of a reference number with a reference point on an elliptic curve comprises a point selector and a processor. The point selector is configured to select randomly or pseudo-randomly an auxiliary point on the elliptic curve. The processor is configured to calculate the result of the scalar multiplication with a double-and-always-add process using the auxiliary point.
US08542817B1
A system and method for adjusting the volume level of a communications device in response to ambient noise. In one embodiment, ambient noise is sampled once and the volume of a speaker associated with the communications device is increased to, and maintained at, a level sufficient to overcome the ambient noise such that a user can easily carry on a conversation or hear what is being transmitted. In another embodiment, ambient noise is periodically sampled and the volume of the speaker is adjusted in response to the sampled ambient noise. The system and method provides enhanced user convenience and power saving advantages.
US08542816B2
Aspects of systems and methods for maintaining and operating agent nodes are provided. In some embodiments, calls, contacts, and other work units may be routed to individual customer service agents via a centralized queue based on a variety of factors. Some embodiments may provide market-based call pricing and customer service agent compensation.
US08542813B2
According to one embodiment of the invention a method for facilitating communication includes receiving an indication that a caller desires to camp-on a telephone associated with a campee and in response to the indication assigning the caller to a camper queue that stores a prioritized list of a plurality of campers camping on the telephone associated with the campee.
US08542812B2
In one embodiment, a telecommunication device for Internet-based conference calling with one or more similar telecommunication devices. The telecommunication device is used by a plurality of co-located participants, each participant having an individually identifiable microphone. The telecommunication device accesses a database correlating each individually identifiable microphone to participant ID and information. During the conference-call setup, the similar telecommunication devices exchange participant IDs and corresponding information. The conference-call audio content is then exchanged using RTP packets, where the telecommunication devices generate RTP packets containing the participant IDs of participants contributing to the content of each RTP packet. Receiving telecommunication devices then display corresponding participant information when playing the audio content of received RTP packets to identify current speakers. Individual, identifiable microphones improve the audio quality received by remote participants and permit the automatic exchange and display of the current participants and the current speakers.
US08542810B2
Users are enabled to re-join a conference after an intentional or unintentional disconnect based on detecting the user's identifier. An identifier associated with a user such as a caller id number is determined or a cookie installed in the user's computing device facilitating communications when the user first joins a conference. If the user's connection to the conference is severed intentionally or unintentionally, and the user attempts to connect again, the system may prompt the user whether they want to join the same conference or another conference. If the user confirms their desire to join the same conference, the system may connect them without the user having to enter conference identifier, password, or similar information.
US08542807B2
In a communications system, after parties form a dial up voice telephone connection, the parties respective communications devices automatically create or leverage machine readable features or content of the telephone connection to identify the parties to each other or to a rendezvous server, and thereafter the communications devices and/or the rendezvous server automatically establishes a data link between the parties.
US08542803B2
A system and a method are provided. A textual transcript of a recorded voice communication is received. Text from a non-voice communication is received. Information about the textual transcript of the recorded voice communication and the text from the non-voice communication is provided such that a user can manage a group of communications, based at least in part on the textual transcript of the recorded voice communication and the text from the non-voice communication.
US08542798B2
The present invention relates to an X-ray imaging apparatus, and more particularly, to an X-ray imaging apparatus in which a condenser is charged with low battery voltage, and the charged voltage of the condenser, or the sum voltage of the output voltage of the battery serially connected to the condenser and the charged voltage of the condenser is used as X-ray generating power. The X-ray imaging apparatus according to the present invention is configured such that the battery power and the condenser power are serially connected to provide power for operating the X-ray imaging apparatus, thus generating power for operating the X-ray imaging apparatus from the low battery power, and obtaining a lightweight and less bulky X-ray imaging apparatus. Further, the X-ray imaging apparatus according to the present invention senses the charged voltage of the condenser unit, and cuts off power being applied to the condenser charging unit from the battery when it is determined that the charging of the condenser unit is completed, thus reducing the power consumption of the battery.
US08542797B2
The present invention provides a radiotherapy apparatus for applying therapeutic radiation to a target region of a patient, comprising a patient support, a source of radiation, a collimator comprising a plurality of leaves, a sensing system and control circuitry. The position of a target region is determined and resolved into two components orthogonal to the radiation beam axis. One component is assigned to the patient support, and the other to the collimator leaves, such that movement of the target region is compensated for and the radiation beam intersects is correctly targeted.
US08542793B1
The present invention relates to a system for measuring a sample pore using a computed tomography (CT) and a standard sample and to a method thereof, more particularly to a system for measuring a sample pore using a computed tomography (CT) and a standard sample and to a method thereof, wherein the number of pixels in the count range of a cross-sectional image of the measurement sample and the number of pixels corresponding to the gray level range of the pore are calculated with reference to the count range utilized in the cross-sectional image of the standard sample and the gray level range of the pore so as to accurately measure the porosity of the measurement sample after performing a CT scan of the standard sample and the measurement sample together using a CT scanner.
US08542792B1
A power module includes a reactor vessel containing a coolant and a reactor core located near a bottom end of the reactor vessel. A riser section is located above the reactor core, wherein the coolant circulates past the reactor core and up through the riser section. In one embodiment, a coolant deflector shield includes flow-optimized surfaces, wherein the flow-optimized surfaces direct the coolant towards the bottom end of the reactor vessel. In another embodiment, the reactor housing includes an inward facing portion that varies a flow pressure of the coolant and promotes a circulation of the coolant past a baffle assembly and towards the bottom end of the reactor vessel.
US08542782B2
A circuit for detecting a digital data stream includes a first detecting circuit, a second detecting circuit and a decision unit. The digital data stream includes a predetermined symbol having a first data and a second data. The first detecting circuit detects a correlation between the second data and a first frequency-shifted data to generate a first correlated data; and the second detecting circuit detects a correlation between the second data and a second frequency-shifted data to generate a first correlated data, where the first frequency-shifted data and the second frequency-shifted data are generated by performing first frequency-shifting and second frequency-shifting upon the first data, respectively. The decision unit determines a signal status of the digital data stream according to the first and second correlated data.
US08542775B2
A radio system comprises a front-end receiver for receiving a RF signal and converting the RF signal into a digital payload signal. The system further comprises a base-band processor for processing the digital payload signal, and a serial data interface over which the front-end communicates the digital payload signal and meta data to the base-band processor. The meta data may comprise information indicating whether a corresponding digital payload signal communicated over the serial data interface is valid and additional information of the front-end status, e.g. gain or state of tuning.
US08542763B2
Systems and methods are described for coordinating transmissions in distributed wireless systems via user clustering. For example, a method according to one embodiment of the invention comprises: measuring link quality between a target user and a plurality of distributed-input distributed-output (DIDO) distributed antennas of base transceiver stations (BTSs); using the link quality measurements to define a user cluster; measuring channel state information (CSI) between each user and each DIDO antenna within a defined user cluster; and precoding data transmissions between each DIDO antenna and each user within the user cluster based on the measured CSI.
US08542759B2
A method for transmitting a signal from a transmitter over a channel to a receiver on a Power Line Network, wherein said signal is OFDM-modulated on a set of sub-carriers, is proposed, wherein an OFDM tonemap and an eigenbeamforming encoding matrix are determined based on a channel estimation for each sub-carrier, a tonemap feedback signal and an eigenbeamforming feedback signal are generated, which are descriptive of said OFDM tonemap and said eigenbeamforming encoding matrix, respectively, and transmitted to the transmitter. A corresponding receiver, a transmitter, a power line communication and a power line communication system are described as well.
US08542757B2
The present invention relates to the signaling of channel quality information in a multi-beam transmission system, wherein a plurality of sets of channel quality information are transmitted for controlling the transmission rate on one of the beams, wherein each set of channel quality information is derived dependent on an assumed parameter of at least one other beam which could be transmitted, comprising selecting a parameter of the transmission of each of the sets of channel quality information dependent on the assumed parameter of the at least one other beam.
US08542755B2
A communication system includes a RF subsystem that communicates with a BB subsystem through a digital RF-BB interface multiplexing I/Q data and control signals in both TX and RX directions. The RF subsystem includes a FIFO buffer in each respective TX and RX chain and a timer that assigns a timestamp to the continuous stream in both TX and RX chains whenever it is equal to a time event from the BB subsystem. The BB subsystem includes a sample counter that counts the number (k) of data samples at the FIFO buffer and a controller that defines the time event. Precise alignment at the air interface between a data burst from the RF subsystem and a data burst from the BB subsystem can be achieved using the timer, based on the relation between the timer value (n) and the sample count (k).
US08542754B2
The method transmits a long packet of digital data over a poly-phase power line affected by impulsive noise synchronous with phase voltages. Instead of using very complicated coding schemes, starting from the knowledge of the typical power line scenario, useful information is transmitted where noise synchronous with the main signal is absent. Time-intervals of a known or estimated duration during which the poly-phase power line is affected by impulsive noise are determined, and dummy data during the time-intervals, and useful data during other time-intervals free from impulsive noise, are transmitted.
US08542753B1
Techniques are provided for detecting a coded signal in the presence of interference. In an embodiment, a primary transmitter corresponds to a desired transmitter, and one or more secondary transmitters correspond to interfering transmitters. Received symbols, which include interference and additive noise, are filtered to recover a set of original message bits. An estimate of the set of original message bits may be determined using an ordered successive interference cancellation (SIC) decoder that uses either a SIC detector or an AWGN-based detector, depending on the signal-to-interference ratio at a primary receiver.
US08542750B2
A deblocking filter used in a video encoder/decoder based on a multilayer is disclosed. The deblocking filtering method includes choosing a present block and its neighboring block on which a deblocking filtering will be performed, judging whether the present block and the neighboring block have been coded by the intra BL mode, choosing a deblocking filter strength according to the result of the judgment, and performing the deblocking filtering with respect to a boundary between the present block and the neighboring block and according to the deblocking filter strength.
US08542742B2
A motion compensation method includes performing a motion compensation of a decoded image signal including a luma signal and a chroma signal in a format in which the number of chroma pixels is vertically different from the number of luma pixels. The method further includes detecting a condition that a reference field has a different parity from a current field for a motion compensation. The method further includes controlling, in the detected condition, the motion compensation so as to vertically shift a phase of the chroma signal in the reference field so that the reference field will coincide in phase of the chroma signal with a current field.
US08542741B2
An image processing device for detecting a motion between two different screens, includes: a high resolution template frame buffer; a high resolution reference frame buffer; a low resolution template frame buffer; a low resolution reference frame buffer; a low resolution motion vector calculation section; a high resolution motion vector calculation section; and a high resolution layer calculation determination section.
US08542729B2
A media codec device includes an input port that receives media signals from service providers and also receives power for the media codec device, and a decoder that stores decoder keys associated with the service providers. The decoder applies the decoder keys to decode the media signals. The media codec device operates to direct at a first time a decoded first media signal to a first output device and a decoded second media signal to a second output device, and to direct at a second time the decoded first media signal to the second output device and the decoded second media signal to the first output device.
US08542726B2
Systems and methods provide directional discrete cosine transformation (DCT) and motion compensated DCT. In one implementation, an exemplary system finds a directional property of an image, such as a visual trend, factorizes a DCT operation into primal operations, and applies the primal operations along a corresponding direction to perform the DCT. Motion compensated DCT applies the primal operations along a motion trajectory of a video sequence. When the directional DCT is applied blockwise, the directional coding modes for adjacent blocks can be optimized in view of each other using a weighted graph to represent the related coding mode decisions.
US08542713B2
An optically pumped laser oscillator or amplifier including a laser head including a gain medium exhibiting polarization-dependent absorption along two crystallographic axes and a pump source producing a pump beam. The medium's absorption coefficients along both of the crystallographic axes are equal or the difference between the absorption coefficients relative to the lowest absorption coefficients is reduced at least by a factor of two compared to the same relative difference between the two absorption coefficients at the medium's absorption peaks. In some embodiments, the gain medium is a crystal, e.g., a Neodymium-doped Vanadate (Nd:YVO4) crystal, greater than 15 mm. In various embodiments, the optically pumped laser oscillator or amplifier includes two pump sources producing two pump beams.
US08542712B2
An optical system (31) with an input optical source (33) for projecting an input beam along an optical axis and an optical element (37, 43) which creates a cone refracted beam (41) from the input beam (35) then reconstructs the input beam (49). The optical element may comprise a first cone refractive element (37) which creates a cone refracted beam and reconstructs the beam using a reconstructing optical element (43) to apply a phase shift to the cone refracted beam. The optical system may be used to form a laser or a gain medium for a laser.
US08542710B2
An optical fiber amplifier (2) includes: a first pumping source (10); a second pumping source (20); an amplification optical fiber (3) in which an active element is doped; a first optical filter (15) coupled to the first pumping source (10) and one end of the amplification optical fiber (30), the first optical filter (15) transmitting a light at a wavelength the same as the wavelength of a first pumping light and reflecting a light at a wavelength the same as the wavelength of a second pumping light; and a second optical filter (25) coupled to the second pumping source (20) and the other end of the amplification optical fiber (3), the second optical filter (25) transmitting a light at a wavelength the same as the wavelength of the second pumping light and reflecting a light at a wavelength the same as the wavelength of the first pumping light.
US08542708B1
A method and apparatus are described for signaling the phase and frequency of constant bit rate (CBR) clients over a network or fabric. An incoming CBR client stream is segmented into variable sized segments, such as packets or general framing protocol (GFP) frames, and is regenerated on the other side of a fabric or network phase-locked to the incoming stream. Regeneration of the CBR client clock is based solely on segment sizes, and in the case of GFP frames, the rate of the SONET Path or OTN ODUk stream carrying the GFP frames. No overhead bytes are inserted into the GFP frames to convey phase and frequency information. The method disclosed is important for reducing the cost and complexity of communications networks by allowing CBR clients to be transported with low jitter and wander without requiring the source and sink network elements to be phase-locked to a common stratum reference.
US08542705B2
Mechanisms are provided for allowing a streaming server to efficiently provide frames associated with a media stream to a client device. A streaming server receives multiple media streams and determines which frames in the multiple media streams are key frames. When a connection request is received from a client device, a key frame is selected and provided to the client device. A client device receiving a key frame does not have to drop any predictive frames prior to playing a media stream.
US08542698B1
Methods and apparatus for switching transmission channels that include monitoring a number of packets within a transmitter buffer of a transmitter, determining that the number of packets within the transmitter buffer exceeds a pre-determined threshold, and changing a transmission channel used by the transmitter for transmission based at least upon the number of packets within the transmitter buffer exceeding a pre-determined threshold.
US08542696B2
Some demonstrative embodiments include devices, systems and/or methods of simultaneously communicating with a group of wireless communication devices. For example, a wireless communication unit may assign a plurality of wireless communication devices to at least one Space-Division Multiple Access (SDMA) group based on traffic-specification (TSPEC) information corresponding to the plurality of wireless communication devices, wherein the wireless communication unit is to simultaneously transmit a plurality of different wireless communication transmissions to the plurality of wireless communication devices of the group, respectively. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
US08542692B2
Systems and methods are disclosed for providing service management across different technology networks. A centralized telecom serving system (TSS) includes a plurality of interface gateways, a central adapter, and a common interface. When in operation, a first interface gateway receives a first service request from a first network, and converts the first service request from a signaling interface used in the first network to the common interface. The central adapter receives the first service request over the common interface, and processes service management logic to identify multiple services that trigger on the first service request and determine a sequence for providing the multiple services. For each service, the central adapter generates a second service request in the common interface, and transmits the second service request to a second interface gateway that is coupled to a second network.
US08542686B2
A technique is described for retrieving data from a hash table in an Ethernet bridge. The table has a plurality of columns, each of which has a hash function, thereby creating respective different hash key values.
US08542678B2
In one embodiment, a scheme is disclosed for managing call continuity in a network environment including a circuit-switched (CS) network and an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) network wherein unique identity (ID) information supplied by a user equipment (UE) device is utilized. A pool of dynamically allocable IP multimedia routing numbers (IMRNs) maintained at an IMS network node are used for associating an IMRN with call information received from the UE device, which can include at least one of a GRUU, Instance ID, and the called party number relating to a call. When the dynamically allocated IMRN is returned by the UE device, the network node utilizes the IMRN mapping to effectuate call continuity with respect to the called party.
US08542676B2
The advances disclosed herewith delimit an improved method and system for smoothly rating and billing Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS). Implemented as part of a computer program product, the solution seeking the protection of Letters Patent, represents a comprehensive real-time solution for rating incoming and outgoing MMS messages which, with a view towards simplicity and efficacy of purpose, enables wireless/mobile subscribers to maintain a single account for both voice and messaging (MMS) services.
US08542673B2
In a multimedia interactive telephony system, a voice service server generates dynamic content intended for consumption by a communication device. The dynamic content is sent to a gateway where it is transformed from to an intermediate content format appropriate for rendering at the communication device. The user may interact with the transformed dynamic content rendered on the communication device, causing the arguments to be sent to the voice server, thus allowing user interactivity with the voice service. The voice services server may also generate dynamic content for simultaneous consumption by multiple communication devices, each of which may independently render an intermediate content format appropriate to it. The voice services server may also generate the dynamic content for the communication device while the communication device is not currently engaged in an active call.
US08542670B2
The present invention provides for routing calls between disparate domains, such as a circuit-switched subsystem and a multimedia subsystem. When a user element is homed in a first domain and roaming in a second domain, an incoming call will arrive at a gateway node in the first domain. As a result, a message identifying the user element and indicating that an incoming call has been received at first gateway node for the first domain is sent to a continuity control function (CCF) residing in the multimedia subsystem. The CCF will create and effect delivery of an inter-domain routing number to the first gateway node. The inter-domain routing number is used by the first gateway node to route the call to the second domain. The inter-domain routing number may be associated with a second gateway node of the second domain.
US08542643B2
An approach for selecting sets of communications channels involves determining the performance of communications channels. A set of channels is selected based on the results of performance testing and specified criteria. The participant generates data that identifies the selected set of channels and provides that data to other participants of the communications network. The participants communicate over the set of channels, such as by using a frequency hopping protocol. When a specified time expires or monitoring of the performance of the channel set identifies poor performance of the set of channels, the participant selects another set of channels for use in communications based on additional performance testing. By selecting channels based on the initial performance testing and performance monitoring, the communications network adaptively avoids channels with poor performance.
US08542633B2
The present invention relates to a network node and a method in a network node for admission control of broadcast transmission sessions. The method comprises receiving a broadcast transmission session start request for a first broadcast transmission session, obtaining at least a first traffic statistics parameter related to said first broadcast transmission session, obtaining the available bit rate for the broadcast transmission area, and obtaining a re-synchronization parameter indicating the time between re-synchronization of transmissions for said broadcast transmission session. The method also calculates a first expected bit error rate based on said at least first traffic statistics parameter, said available bit rate and said re-synchronization parameter, and admits said first broadcast transmission session if said first expected bit error rate is less than a first bit error rate threshold.
US08542631B2
A base station unit of a communication device generates control information identical with those generated by other communication devices. The control information includes information defining regions in a radio frame that are used by the communication device and the other communication devices to transmit data. A terminal unit receives data in accordance with the control information. A switching unit changes the connection among the base station unit, the terminal unit and an antenna. When the control information is output from the base station unit, a switch controller operates the switching unit so that the base station unit may be connected to the terminal unit to output the control information to the terminal unit.
US08542622B2
A method and apparatus are provided for delivering multicast media in a network in which at least some nodes do not support delivery of multicast packets. A RTSP SETUP request is sent to a streaming server to send multicast packets, encapsulated within unicast wrappers, to a gateway node in the network. The RTSP SETUP request includes details both of the multicast destination address, and of the unicast destination address of the gateway node, requiring an extension to the RTSP protocol as currently defined and enabling the media server to send multicast packets in a unicast tunnel dynamically.
US08542621B2
Methods and apparatuses for providing and receiving a video service in digital audio broadcasting (DAB) are provided. The method includes inserting a profile ID (identifier) indicating an encoding method used for a provided video service stream and program type information indicating the type of the provided video service stream into a fast information channel (FIC) that is different from a service data channel and multiplexing service data channel including the video service stream and the FIC into a transmission frame for transmission.
US08542613B2
High throughput channel operation in a mesh wireless local area network (WLAN) is disclosed. A mesh network comprises a plurality of mesh points and a network management entity (NME). The NME is configured to retrieve capability and configuration data from the mesh points. The NME configures at least one mesh point with respect to IEEE 802.11n channelization and legacy protection mode based on the capability and configuration data.
US08542610B2
A method and apparatus for adaptive power saving for a mobile subscriber unit in a wireless communication network includes receiving beacons from an access point, measuring timing periods between received beacons, determining a delay in timing periods, and associating the delay in timing periods to a change in a quality of a communication link. The link quality can be quantified and used for reconfiguring power-save parameters in response to a change in link quality.
US08542607B2
A method and apparatus is provided for performing normal reordering or timer based stall avoidance or window based stall avoidance, for instance for a 3GPP HSPDA compliant user entity; the method furthermore comprising the steps of deriving an accumulated quality measure pertaining to the packet data being communicated from the transmitter entity to the receiver entity; comparing the accumulated quality measure with a predetermined threshold value; if the accumulated quality measure meets predefined criteria, moving the window corresponding to the highest received value forward to a position corresponding to the received sequence number; and setting the next expected value in the receiver window forward to a position corresponding to a rear position of the window determined by the window size.
US08542594B2
A throughput detector 101 detects a throughput R0. A threshold value Rref of the throughput R0 at which a network side can be presumed to be congested is stored in a threshold value storage unit 102. A comparator 103 compares the current throughput R0 with the threshold value Rref. A release request unit 104 requests release of a wireless resource when the throughput R0 falls below the threshold value Rref. In response to the release request, a controller 100 suitably disconnects a physical layer or a logical layer of a wireless section to release the wireless resource. A release term determining unit 105 determines a release term of the wireless resource. A resource request unit 106 makes the released wireless resource be acquired anew after the elapse of the release term to reconnect the wireless communication.
US08542589B2
Techniques for quickly sending feedback information for beamforming are described. A transmitter/initiator sends a first frame comprising training symbols. A receiver/responder receives the first frame, determines the amount of time to generate feedback information, and determines the amount of time to send the feedback information. The receiver then determines the length of a second frame carrying the feedback information based on the amounts of time to generate and send the feedback information. The receiver sends the second frame after waiting a short interframe space (SIFS) period from the end of the first frame, without performing channel access. The receiver generates the feedback information based on the training symbols and sends the information in the second frame when ready. The transmitter receives the second frame, derives at least one steering matrix based on the feedback information, and sends a third frame with the at least one steering matrix.
US08542579B2
User cooperation in wireless networks implemented on the Network Protocol layer level attains a higher stable throughput and improved transmission delay. The cooperation is designed between a set of source user nodes transmitting to a common destination, where users with channels providing a higher successful delivery probability, in addition to their own traffic, relay packets of other source users whose transmissions to the destination fails. Each source user node is provided with an ample queue buffer having capacity to accumulate packets inadvertently received from other users in the system in addition to its own packets. Ranking mechanism facilitates in determining the “quality” of wireless channels, and the Acknowledgement mechanism facilitates in coordination of the transmissions in the system. The nodes exchange information on the queues status, and decision is made by a scheduling controller on the priority of transmission.
US08542578B1
An example method is provided and includes advertising information to network elements in a network environment. The information advertises a reachability characteristic of a first Internet protocol (IP) address associated with a first network element, and a second IP address associated with a second network element to which packets are to be sent instead of the first network element. The method also includes receiving the packets at the first network element, the packets being delivered from the second network element based on the information. In specific implementations, a preferred adjacency characteristic is identified in the information by a sub-TLV for routing the packets from the second network element to the first network element. If a failure occurs and a loop free alternate (LFA) protection mechanism is provisioned, the packets are sent via a label distribution protocol (LDP) label switched path (LSP) toward a designated interface of a network element.
US08542575B2
In a multiple-input multiple-output transmission system (MIMO system), a receive station detects whether or not there is an error in each data stream, estimates the state of the propagation path of each transmit antenna and reports, to the transmitting side, re-transmission necessary/unnecessary information, for every data stream, created based upon whether or not there is an error, and the state of the propagation path of each transmit antenna. A transmit station decides a transmit antenna that transmits a data stream requiring re-transmission, based upon the reported state of the propagation path of each transmit antenna, and re-transmits the data stream requiring re-transmission from the transmit antenna decided.
US08542573B2
Embodiments of the present invention disclose an RRU, which performs IDFT on a PUSCH signal that is obtained after resource block demapping, where due to a characteristic of an extremely low peak to average power ratio of SC-FDMA modulation, a signal after IDFT has an extremely low peak to average power ratio at this time, and an amplitude range of the signal changes slightly; amplitude/phase conversion is performed on the signal after the IDFT, where the signal after the IDFT is represented by using amplitude and phase, and then amplitude quantization and phase quantization are performed respectively to obtain a quantized amplitude signal and a quantized phase signal respectively.
US08542571B2
Provided are a cell search method, a forward link frame transmission method, an apparatus using the methods, and a forward link frame structure. The cell search apparatus includes a sync acquirer acquiring synchronization of sync channel symbols using a sync channel of a forward link, and a group detector detecting at least one hopping codeword element belonging to a hopping codeword of a target cell from a forward link signal containing sync channel symbols sequence-hopped using a hopping codeword corresponding to a code group to which a scrambling code of each cell belongs based on the acquired synchronization, and detecting a code group of the target cell based on the detected hopping codeword element, wherein the hopping codewords are orthogonal to a cyclic shift operation. Accordingly, a cell search time and the complexity of the cell search can be reduced.
US08542568B2
According to one embodiment, an information storage medium includes an organic dye material which records information with a light beam having a wavelength equal to or smaller than 620 nm.
US08542564B2
A method of designating a disk recording capacity and an optical disk recording apparatus using the method, where a maximum recording capacity is designated by measuring an external disturbance for disk regions. The method of designating a disk recording capacity includes: partitioning a disk into a plurality of disk regions, and measuring external disturbance at the disk regions; setting a disk speed based on the measured external disturbance, and designating disk regions excluding the disk regions where the external disturbance is measured as recordable disk regions; and calculating a maximum disk recording capacity based on the designated recordable disk regions.
US08542563B2
There is proposed an optical disk recording method that can prevent degradation of recording quality due to occurrence of thermal interference, and an optical disk recording reproduction device used in this recording method. The recording method has a step of executing a test record on an output proofing area of the optical disk 150 while a spot diameter of the recording laser beam is varied, and deriving the relationship between the spot diameter and a characteristic value representing recording quality, a step of deriving a permissible range of a variation amount of the spot diameter on the basis of the derived relationship between the spot diameter and the characteristic value representing the recording quality; a step of irradiating a record region of the optical disk with the recording laser beam to detect spherical aberration while executing recording; and a step of executing aberration correction, in case the spherical aberration occurs, such that a variation amount of the spot diameter falls into the derived permissible range.
US08542562B2
An optical disc drive includes a memory stored a write strategy, a converting unit which converts a recording data into a recording pulse based on the write strategy stored in the memory, an inspection unit which inspects a state of the recording data from a reproducing signal, a recording controller which executes a recording operation to record the recording data by applying a laser beam corresponding to the recording pulse to an optical disc, suspends the recording operation, judges whether correction of the write strategy according to an inspection result of the inspection unit is necessary, and restarts the recording operation after the write strategy saved in the memory is collected, and a correction unit which corrects the write strategy saved in the memory when the correction of the write strategy according to an inspection result of the inspection unit is necessary.
US08542561B1
Aspects of the disclosure provide a method. The method includes receiving regional quality information of a region on a storage medium, and adjusting a fill level threshold of a buffer based on the regional quality information. The fill level threshold is used to trigger filling the buffer with data read from the region.
US08542554B2
Method for velocity model building and analysis using wavefield-coordinates reflection operators in wave-equation migration or reverse-time migration.
US08542544B2
A semiconductor device may include, but is not limited to, first and second memory regions, and first to fifth control circuits. The first and second memory regions are mutually exclusive at the same time. The first control circuit performs a first access to the first memory region. The second control circuit performs a second access to the second memory region. The third control circuit controls activation and deactivation of the first and second control circuits based on a first logic received from a plurality of first external terminals. The fourth control circuit switches between the first and second accesses based on at least a second logic received from a second external terminal. The fifth control circuit controls validation and invalidation of the fourth control circuit.
US08542535B2
A technique for erasing a non-volatile memory applies a p-well voltage to a substrate and drives select gate voltages to accurately control the select gate voltage to improve write-erase endurance. Source and drain side select gates of a NAND string are driven at levels to optimize endurance. In one approach, the select gates are driven at specific levels throughout an erase operation, in concert with the p-well voltage.
US08542532B2
A memory access method is applied in a memory controller for accessing an NAND memory array, including a number of respective select switches globally controlled with a string select signal. The memory access method includes the following steps. A stream bias signal and a selected word line signal are respectively provided on a selected stream and on a selected cell of the selected stream, and the rest of memory cells are turned on as pass transistors, in the setup phase. A discharge path is provided to eliminate coupling charge presented on unselected streams, in the setup phase. Then, the string select signal is enabled to have the selected stream connected to a sense unit via a metal bit line and according read the selected cell in a voltage sensing scheme, in a read phase, which does not overlap with the setup phase.
US08542526B2
A method of making a magnetic random access memory cell includes forming a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) on top of a wafer, depositing oxide on top of the MTJ, depositing a photo-resist layer on top of the oxide layer, forming a trench in the photo-resist layer and oxide layer where the trench has a width that is substantially the same as that of the MTJ. Then, the photo-resist layer is removed and a hard mask layer is deposited on top of the oxide layer in the trench and the wafer is planarized to remove the portion of the hard mask layer that is not in the trench to substantially level the top of oxide layer and the hard layer on the wafer. The remaining oxide layer is etched and the MTJ is etched to remove the portion of the MTJ which is not covered by the hard mask layer.
US08542515B2
A multi-plane circuit structure has at least a first circuit plane and a second circuit plane, and each circuit plane has a plurality of row wire segments, a plurality of column wire segments, and a plurality of crosspoint devices formed at intersections of the row wire segments and the column wire segments. The row and column wire segments have a segment length for forming a preselected number of crosspoint devices thereon. Each row wire segment in the second circuit plane is connected to a row wire segment in the first circuit plane with no offset in a row direction and in a column direction, and each column wire segment in the second circuit plane is connected to a column wire segment in the first circuit plane with an offset length in both the row direction and the column direction. The offset length corresponds to half of the preselected number of crosspoint devices.
US08542514B1
A memory structure and method to fabricate the same is described. The memory structure includes a first memory cell having a first pair of non-volatile portions. The memory structure also includes a second memory cell having a second pair of non-volatile portions. The first and second pairs of non-volatile portions are disposed in an inter-locking arrangement.
US08542511B2
A single-phase voltage source AC/DC converter according to the present invention generates a second axis voltage command from difference between a DC voltage detection value at a DC terminal and a DC voltage command value and controls a DC voltage by increasing and decreasing active power with the second axis voltage command. For example, the voltage at the DC terminal is increased by decreasing active power when the DC voltage detection value at the DC terminal is lower than the DC voltage command, while the DC voltage detection value at the DC terminal is decreased by increasing the active power when the DC voltage detection value at the DC terminal is higher than the DC voltage command.
US08542505B2
A voltage source converter station including a multilevel voltage source converter, for conversion of electrical power between AC and DC, and a control system. The voltage source converter includes a plurality of switching cells including switchable semiconductors, and the control system includes at least one main control unit for providing a voltage reference signal and a plurality of cell control units. Each cell control unit uses carrier based pulse width modulation for controlling the switching of a respective cell, where the main control unit is communicatively connected to the cell control units and provides the reference voltage signal to each cell control unit and each cell control unit creates a switching signal to each respective switching cell using the reference voltage signal and a carrier signal to effectuate the conversion.
US08542501B2
A switching power-supply apparatus includes a first converter 3, a second converter 4, an output smoothing capacitor Co1, a series resonance circuit 1 and a control circuit 11. The first converter 3, in which switching elements Q11 and Q12 are connected to both ends of a direct-current power-supply Vin in series, and a capacitor Ci1 and a primary winding Np1 of a transformer T1 including an auxiliary winding Na1 are connected to both ends of the switching element Q12 in series, includes diodes D11 and D12 that rectify voltages generated in secondary windings Ns11 and Ns12 of the transformer T1. The second converter 4, in which switching elements Q21 and Q22 are connected to the both ends of the direct-current power-supply Vin in series, and a capacitor Ci12 and a primary winding Np2 of a transformer T2 are connected to both ends of the switching element Q22 in series, includes diodes D21 and D22 that rectify voltages generated in secondary windings Ns21 and Ns22 of the transformer T2. The output smoothing capacitor Co1 smoothes currents output from the diodes D11, D12, D21 and D22. The series resonance circuit 1 includes a resonance reactor L1 and a resonance capacitor C1 connected to the auxiliary winding Na1 in series. The control circuit 11 turns on/off the switching elements Q21 and Q22 according to a current flowing in the series resonance circuit 1.
US08542493B2
A flat display apparatus has a flat display panel; a frame that is installed on a rear face side of the display panel; a cover that covers at least a rear face side of the frame; and a high-voltage power supply that applies high voltage to the display panel. The high-voltage power supply has a plurality of cases, each of which encloses one or more transformers and rectifier circuits, and obtains high voltage by connecting the plurality of cases in series, and the plurality of cases are arranged in a space created between the frame and the cover so as to be disposed on a plane in parallel with a screen of the display panel.
US08542484B2
An electronic apparatus includes a circuit board; a housing which incorporates the circuit board and includes, on the bottom surface of the housing, an opening, through which a portion of one surface of the circuit board is visible, and a fastening hole; an electronic component mounted in the opening and accommodated in the housing; and a fastening member inserted into the fastening hole and fixing the housing. The housing has a rib formed along the entire circumference of the opening, and the rib extends from the circumferential edge of the opening toward the circuit board and prevents the fastening member that has fallen into the opening from entering the housing.
US08542483B2
A memory stick having a metal housing, a PC board, a tray carrying the PC board, a lock body, and a locking mechanism. The lock body includes a positioning block press-fitted into a top opening of the metal housing and a locating block engaged into a top notch of the metal housing and adapted for accommodating an upper part of the tray and a part of an IC package circuit of the PC board for enabling the USB interface circuit to be suspending in a bottom opening of the metal housing. The locking mechanism enabling the memory stick to be locked to an external object.
US08542482B2
A key assembly includes a key member, the key member includes a main body and a securing portion extending from each end of the main body; and a pressing member for operating the key, the pressing member defines a receiving groove for receiving the main body.
US08542481B2
A Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) module for use in a portable terminal is provided. The LCD module includes a reinforcement plate of a metal material having a bottom surface, and a side surface bent and extended at a substantially constant height along an edge from the bottom surface, a backlight unit laminated onto an upper part of the reinforcement plate, and having a frame of a synthetic resin material that is formed along an edge to insert-mold the reinforcement plate, and an LCD panel fixed by a double sided tape at an upper part of the backlight unit. A portion of the side surface of the reinforcement plate is sequentially twice bent back onto itself on the outside of the reinforcement plate such that its end has a substantially constant width in contact with the bottom surface of the reinforcement plate.
US08542468B2
A switched mode power supply includes a transformer and an integrated circuit regulator. The integrated circuit regulator is coupled to the transformer and includes switching regulator logic, a counter, and a switching transistor. The regulator logic generates a switching signal in response to the feedback signal. The counter receives the feedback signal, where the feedback signal periodically cycles between a first state and a second state when the switched mode power supply operates normally. An output of the counter indicates an auto-restart mode of the regulator in response to the feedback signal remaining in the first state for a predetermined count due to a fault condition. The switching transistor is coupled to be turned on and off in response to the switching signal when the output of the counter does not indicate the auto-restart mode and is disabled when the output of the counter indicates the auto-restart mode.
US08542463B2
A PMR writer is disclosed that includes at least one of a recessed center section in the write pole trailing edge and a center recessed trailing shield to improve the field gradient at track edge. In all embodiments, there is a non-uniform write gap between the trailing edge and the trailing shield. The recessed portion of the write pole trailing edge and/or center recess of the trailing shield has a thickness from 10 to 40 nm in a down-track direction and a width in a cross-track direction of 20 to 200 nm. The distance between the center recess and a corner of the trailing edge is from 20 to 80 nm. A sequence of steps is provided to fabricate the two embodiments of the present invention.
US08542458B2
According to one embodiment, a magnetic disk drive includes a disk, a first microactuator, a second microactuator and a servo controller. The disk comprises a first surface and a second surface. The first and second microactuators allow first and second heads associated with the first and second surfaces to make micromotion based on first and second operation amounts, respectively. The servo controller provides a third operation amount to the first microactuator as the first operation amount and provides an operation amount obtained by inverting a polarity of a frequency component with a particular frequency contained in the third operation amount, to the second microactuator as the second operation amount, if the third operation amount is generated as an operation amount to be provided to the first microactuator in a particular mode in which the first surface is used as a tracking surface.
US08542451B2
Low cost constructions of vehicular cameras employ various means for aligning and mounting the camera lens with respect to the imager. Such means include adhesive mounting using a UV curable adhesive, wherein the lens may be focused prior to cure of the adhesive. Other means include directly attaching the lens to the imager by adhesive; integrating the lens barrel and camera lens holder; dropping the lens barrel onto the surface of the imager; focusing the lens utilizing PCB mounting and focusing Screws; and focusing the lens by the relative positioning of camera front and back housings. Costs can also be contained by utilizing matching the resolution of the lens in conformance to human contrast sensitivity function, and by replacing optical chromatic aberration with digital chromatic aberration.
US08542445B2
An optical device with a deformable membrane including an anchoring area on a support helping to contain a constant volume of liquid in contact with one of its faces, a substantially central area, configured to be deformed reversibly from a rest position, and an actuation mechanism displacing the liquid in the central area stressing the membrane in at least one area situated strictly between the central area and the anchoring area. The actuation mechanism is electrostatic and includes at least one pair of opposing electrodes, one of the electrodes of the pair being at the level of the membrane, the other being at the level of the support, the electrodes being separated by dielectric, the dielectric being formed at least by the liquid.
US08542443B2
A light reflector of which the bidirectional reflectance R1 is from 90 to 120% when the light entrance angle is 15° and the light acceptance angle is 0°, and the bidirectional reflectance R2 is from 85 to 110% when the light entrance angle is 75° and the light acceptance angle is 0°. The light reflector has high reflectivity, and attains brightness improvement even in underlight-type backlights.
US08542439B2
A method and a device for scanning-microscopy imaging of a specimen (28) are described. Provision is made that a plurality of specimen points are scanned by means of a scanning beam (14) in successive scanning time intervals, the intensity of the radiation emitted from the respectively scanned specimen point is repeatedly sensed within the associated scanning time interval, an intensity mean value is determined, as a mean value image point signal, from the intensities sensed in the respectively scanned specimen point, and the mean value image point signals are assembled into a mean value raster image. Provision is further made for additionally determining an intensity variance value, as a variance image point signal, from the intensities sensed in the respectively scanning specimen points, and for assembling the variance image point signals into a variance raster image signal.
US08542434B2
An optical waveguide device includes a ferroelectric layer having a thickness of 4 μm-7 μm; a supporting body; and an adhesive layer adhering a bottom face of the ferroelectric layer and supporting body. The ferroelectric layer includes a ridge comprising a channel optical waveguide, first and second protuberances on opposite sides of the ridge, inner grooves between the ridge and protuberances, respectively, and outer grooves outside of the protuberances, respectively. The outer groove is deeper than the inner groove. The ridge portion has a width of 6.6 μm-8.5 μm, a distance of an outer edge of the first protuberance and an outer edge of the second protuberance is 8.6 μm-20 μm, the inner groove has a depth of 2.0 μm-2.9 μm, and the outer groove has a depth of 2.5 μm-3.5 μm.
US08542430B2
An electrophoretic device includes: an electrophoretic particle; a porous layer formed of a fibrous structure containing a non-electrophoretic particle having optical reflection characteristics different from those of the electrophoretic particle; and a dividing wall adjacent to the porous layer. The electrophoretic particle, the porous layer, and the dividing wall are in an insulating liquid. Volume resistivity of the fibrous structure is larger than volume resistivity of the insulating liquid, and volume resistivity of the dividing wall is larger than the volume resistivity of the insulating liquid.
US08542429B1
Techniques for protecting imaging access of electronic paper are described herein. For example, an electronic paper device with protected imaging access includes a substrate, an e-paper surface disposed on the substrate, a removable cover to prevent alteration of the e-paper surface when the cover is disposed over the e-paper surface, and a reversible locking mechanism engaging with the cover to secure the cover in place over the e-paper surface. A method for secure writing to e-paper is also provided.
US08542415B2
An image processing apparatus capable of reading an image recorded on a first surface and a second surface of a sheet, the image processing apparatus comprising a conveying path comprising a first conveying path formed in a substantially plate shape, a second conveying path disposed below the first conveying path and a curved conveying path disposed between the first conveying path and the second conveying path, a conveying mechanism configured to convey the sheet along a conveying direction from the first conveying path to the second conveying path through the curved conveying path, a first image reading section disposed below the first conveying path and comprising a first image sensor which reads the image recorded on the first surface of the sheet conveyed along the first conveying path at a first image reading position, a second image reading section comprising a second image sensor which reads the image recorded on the second surface of the sheet conveyed along the second conveying path from below the second conveying path at a second image reading position, and an upper cover configured to rotate between a closed position where the first conveying path is partly covered and an open position where the first conveying path is exposed, wherein at least the first conveying path is exposed when the upper cover is in the open position.
US08542406B2
An ink reduction rate is set in accordance with the type of image and the type of recording medium. For example, when a photograph is to be printed on a glossy paper with low resolution, the ink reduction rate is set to 10%. When a photograph is to be printed on a plain paper with low resolution, the ink reduction rate is set to 25%. When a document is to be printed with low resolution, the ink reduction rate is set to 50%, irrespective of the type of recording paper.
US08542404B2
An image forming apparatus acquires information indicating each of a plurality of profiles, selects one profile based on the pieces of information, and transmits, to an information processing apparatus, identification information for identifying the selected profile. The image forming apparatus receives, from the information processing apparatus, an image reading instruction complying with a setting for reading an image, included in the profile identified based on the identification information. The image forming apparatus determines whether a setting indicated by the received instruction and a setting for reading the image, included in one selected profile correspond to each other. When it is determined that the settings do not correspond to each other, the image forming apparatus reads the image to generate image data in accordance with the setting for reading the image, included in one selected profile.
US08542402B2
Determining a spectral gamut of a device by designating a spanning set of samples which span the spectral gamut. A first crude spanning set of samples is established by specifying one or more corresponding device values in a device color space. The first crude spanning set is refined by processing a plurality of new samples in a predetermined order. The processing includes, for each new sample, determining if the new sample differs in an objective function value by more than a predetermined threshold from all samples in the first crude spanning set and adding the new sample to the first crude spanning set if the new sample differs in the objective function value by more than the predetermined threshold. The resulting first crude spanning set is designated as the spanning set of samples.
US08542400B2
A printing system includes a printing unit and a print controlling unit. The printing unit is configured to print a primary image and a secondary image on a recording medium and that is capable of switching between a multicolor printing mode and a monochrome printing mode. The print controlling unit includes a determining unit and a color restricting unit. The determining unit determines whether the secondary image has an attribute indicating the monochrome printing mode. The color restricting unit controls the printing unit to print the primary image and the secondary image in the monochrome printing mode if the determining unit determines that the secondary image has the attribute indicating the monochrome printing mode.
US08542398B2
In one embodiment, a digitized document, formatted as an image file and representing a scanned original page with a page boundary, is received. An image resolution for the digitized document is identified. A height and width of the page boundary, measured in pixels, is identified. A desired trim size for the digitized document is determined based on a function of the identified page boundary height and width and the image resolution. An available trim size that is closest to the desired trim size is selected for printing of the digitized document, via data indicative of available trim sizes stored in a computer-readable medium.
US08542396B2
A personalized photo album preparing system edits digital photos according to the page format of a photo album and allows people to browse or print on a network after saving them. The system includes a processing unit, a displaying unit, a human-machine interface, and an outputting unit. The processing unit is built in with design software. One can manipulate the design software via the human-machine interface to selectively edit the page format and digital photos in the album. The user can further output the digital photos that are edited and saved. Therefore, the invention enables its user to create a desired page format and digital photos.
US08542393B1
A print control apparatus includes an accepting unit, a generating unit, a transmission unit, a display, a determination unit, and a display controller. The accepting unit accepts a print request. The generating unit generates, on the basis of the print request, print data for outputting an image onto printing paper. The transmission unit transmits the print data to a printing apparatus. The display displays a display screen of a list of print requests accepted by the accepting unit, together with process states of the print requests. The determination unit determines whether a progress speed with which processes based on the print requests are to be completed is not lower than a value. When the progress speed is lower than the set value, the display controller updates the display screen at first time intervals, and, otherwise, updates the display screen at second time intervals longer than the first time intervals.
US08542385B2
An image processing apparatus is disclosed, including: a managing part, a use amount storing part, a setting part, and a determining part. The managing part manages a group threshold of a group including multiple members allowed to use the function for a use amount of the function. The use amount storing part stores a value of the use amount for each member. The setting part allocates the group threshold to the multiple members based on a value of a priority for each member in the group, and sets a member threshold for each member. The determining part determines whether a restriction concerning a use of the function is applied to a process of a use request, based on a result from comparing the value of the use amount with the member threshold for the request originator in response to the use request of the function.
US08542377B2
When new image data is received by a communication I/F portion, a determination portion determines whether or not a password set to image data stored in the storage portion coincides with a password set to new image data received by the reception portion. A second image forming control portion does not execute image formation based on the new image data with a first image forming control portion when the determination portion determines that a password set to image data stored in the storage portion coincides with a password set to new image data received by the communication I/F portion.
US08542376B2
Document processing devices and methods are presented, in which the device stores a remaining print unit value in its memory that represents the amount of print units currently available to enable the device to perform the document processing operations, and a programmable computer of the device selectively performs document processing jobs for users and decrements the remaining print unit value until the value reaches zero and the device provides for expenditure of print units according to color content and/or coverage levels determined for a given job.
US08542369B2
A printer having multiple stages of nozzles is controlled to avoid or minimize blank space between print portions when printing on roll paper. A controller in communication with the printer is configured to determine if last partial print data to be printed contains blank raster data. If so, the controller calculates the difference between a total number of rasters in the first through the last partial print data and the number of blank rasters in the last partial print data, prints the last partial print data, and controls the paper transportation mechanism to advance the roll paper only the calculated distance to eliminate excess blank space between print portions. The functionality of the controller is also embodied in a method for controlling a printer as described above.
US08542359B2
A spectrum sensing method includes (a) receiving an incident radiation simultaneously through a filter array composed of multiple bandpass filters, (b) digitizing spectral responses of the filter array, and (c) generating an estimate of spectral profile of the incident radiation based on digitized spectral responses of the filter array.
US08542357B2
It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems by using an optical arrangement that is totally different from the conventional CD spectra measuring method, and to provide a method and device for measuring circular dichroism spectra, which can measure the CD spectrum in much shorter time even with the use of a small light source. The method for measuring circular dichroism spectra according to the present invention comprising the steps of irradiating a white light projected from a white light source to a sample without dispersing the light into a monochromatic light, dispersing the light output from the sample, detecting a light intensity of the dispersed light by a detector having a sensor consisting of a charge-coupled device, and then measuring a circular dichroism spectrum of the sample on the basis of a result of the detection by the detector (FIG. 1).
US08542348B2
A system for calibrating a color sensing pixel based upon the distance between the color sensing pixel and an object. The distance is determined by measuring the phase shift of electromagnetic radiation as reflected from the surface of the object compared with the wave profile of the electromagnetic radiation incident on the object surface. The color sensing pixel is associated with a Time-of-Flight (ToF) pixel which is employed to determine the distance of the color sensing pixel. The electromagnetic radiation can be from any part of the electromagnetic spectrum, in particular the infrared and visible light portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. The color sensing pixel and the ToF pixel can reside on the same semiconductor or on disparate semiconductors.
US08542340B2
A method of optimizing an illumination pupil shape for a lithographic process comprises identifying a target pattern to be imaged by said lithographic process. It further comprises identifying at least one optimization point in said target pattern and identifying at least one design for manufacturing metric per optimization point. Additionally, it comprises selecting a set of illumination source points based on the identified at least one design for manufacturing metric and determining the illumination pupil shape based on the selected set of illumination source points.
US08542337B2
An embodiment of the invention provides a pixel structure of an active matrix organic light emitting display comprising a gate line, a common electrode line, a signal line, a power line, a first thin film transistor which is used as an addressing element, and a second thin film transistor which controls the organic light emitting display. A short-circuit-ring structure is connected between the common electrode line and the signal line and the short-circuit-ring structure communicates the signal line and the common electrode line in the case where a large current flows.
US08542334B2
A new concept of the LCD light-switching optical filter allowing for very high, electrically controlled, continuously variable light attenuation (up to ≧100,000) optimized/symmetrized for the light incidence along the normal to the LCD plane is proposed. The new LCD light-switching optical filter also exhibits very low light attenuation dependence for the oblique incidence of light within a limited cone of angles off the normal incidence direction in compliance with the international safety and quality regulation EN 379 for personal protection equipment. According to the invention the problem is solved by specific, novel modification of the general principle of highly twisted nematic LCDs, allowing for the adaptation of the light transmission/driving voltage characteristics to specific requirements of the driving electronics as well as “symmetrizing” the overall optical birefringent properties, which in turn results in a high degree of their angular compensation.
US08542332B2
A liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal panel; a main frame surrounding sides of the liquid crystal panel; a backlight unit disposed under the liquid crystal panel and surrounded by the main frame, the backlight unit including a light guide plate, a lamp at a side of the light guide plate, a reflector under the light guide plate and an optical sheet on the light guide plate, wherein a rear surface of the reflector is exposed through an opening of the main frame; and a protection sheet attached to the rear surface of the reflector to protect the rear surface of the reflector and including a protruding part at a side of the protection sheet, the protection sheet has a rectangular shape.
US08542330B2
The present invention has a pixel which includes a first switch, a second switch, a third switch, a first resistor, a second resistor, a first liquid crystal element, and a second liquid crystal element. A pixel electrode of the first liquid crystal element is electrically connected to a signal line through the first switch. The pixel electrode of the first liquid crystal element is electrically connected to a pixel electrode of the second liquid crystal element through the second switch and the first resistor. The pixel electrode of the second liquid crystal element is electrically connected to a Cs line through the third switch and the second resistor. A common electrode of the first liquid crystal element is electrically connected to a common electrode of the second liquid crystal element.
US08542327B2
A liquid crystal display device, which is configured such that a liquid crystal layer is held between a pair of substrates, includes scanning lines extending in a row direction of matrix-arrayed pixels; and signal lines extending in a column direction of the pixels, wherein a pixel between a pair of ones of the signal lines, which neighbor in the row direction, includes, on an identical one of the pair of substrates, a first electrode which is connected to one of the pair of ones of the signal lines, and a second electrode which is opposed to the first electrode via an interlayer insulation film and is connected to the other of the pair of ones of the signal lines.
US08542326B2
A viewing system for viewing video displays having the appearance of a three dimensional image.
US08542322B2
In one embodiment of the present invention, motion compensated interpolation is performed by locating full frame conceal and reveal areas, determining intermediate frame occlusion areas of an interpolated frame of the displayable output by locating intermediate frame conceal areas based on projected locations of pixels within the full frame conceal areas using primary forward motion vectors and information about a time slot for the interpolated frame, and by locating intermediate frame reveal areas based on projected locations of pixels within the full frame reveal areas using primary backward motion vectors and information about the time slot for the interpolated frame. The intermediate frame conceal areas are then modified by projecting locations of pixels using secondary forward motion vectors and the intermediate frame reveal areas are modified by projecting locations of pixels using secondary backward motion vectors.
US08542319B1
Methods and systems for pre-processing a progressive scan signal comprise: receiving by a processor thea progressive scan signal; detecting an amount of vertical motion present in the progressive scan signal; low pass filtering the progressive scan signal in a vertical domain as a function of the amount of vertical motion present to generate a pre-filtered progressive signal; and interlacing the pre-filtered progressive signal to generate an interlaced signal having a minimal amount of artifacts.
US08542312B2
A reconstructed image with less noise is reconstructed from a lens array image. An image reconstructing device acquires the lens array image formed by a lens array comprising an array of multiple sub-lenses for an optical image of an object formed by a main lens. The image reconstructing device comprises an interpolation part interpolating a third sub-image formed by a third sub-lens based on the first sub-image and the second sub-image constituting the acquired lens array image, wherein the third sub-lens is positioned between the first sub-lens forming the first sub-image and the second sub-lens forming the second sub-image. The image reconstructing device comprises a reconstructing part reconstructing an image of the object formed by the main lens focused on a point at a given distance from the interpolated third sub-image, the first sub-image and the second sub-image.
US08542309B2
Wafer-level lens array, method of manufacturing wafer-level lens array, lens module and imaging unit
Disclosed are a wafer-level lens array, a method of manufacturing a wafer-level lens array, a lens module, and an imaging unit that can prevent the influence of, for example, the shrinkage of a forming material, prevent the positional deviation between lenses when the wafer-level lens arrays overlap each other or when the wafer-level lens array overlaps an imaging element array, and be easily designed.A method of manufacturing a wafer-level lens array including a substrate unit and a plurality of lens units that is arranged on the substrate unit includes: forming the substrate unit; and integrally forming the lens units that are made of a resin having substantially the same optical characteristics as a material forming the substrate unit with the substrate unit.
US08542297B2
A process for pre-calibrating illumination sources permits illumination light intensities to be set to a near optimal level during training of an optical inspection system. Applicants have found that the illumination source intensities for a category of illuminators are sufficiently constant from machine to machine that the data collected during calibration of an illumination source on a machine using a particular type of source may be used on other machines of the same type using the same type of illumination source when combined with the reticle light intensity data for different zoom magnification's of the particular machine being used. That is, using known data for particular machine and the illumination source light intensity data for the same type of machine and illumination source permits accurate presetting of an illumination source.
US08542296B2
When a user selects digital zooming in a camera such as might be included in a wireless telephone or PDA, a series of images are automatically obtained and superimposed using super-resolution techniques to produce an improved digital zoom image transparently to the user.
US08542292B2
An average value calculation section 100 calculates an average value of each line during the validity period of an input image signal. A three-field average value calculation section 104 calculates a 50 Hz flicker signal from which the light and shade of a subject is removed. A difference value calculation section 105 subtracts an n-field preceding field line average value from the line average value of the present frame. Then, a 60 Hz flicker signal, from which the light and shade of the subject is removed, is calculated by dividing the difference value by the line average value of the present frame. A flicker determination section 112 determines whether flicker exists or not, and whether the flicker frequency is 50 Hz or 60 Hz, on the basis of the extraction results of the 50 Hz flicker component extraction section 108, and of the 60 Hz flicker component extraction section 109.
US08542276B2
An object tracking method for a non-overlapping-sensor network works in a sensor network. The method may comprise a training phase and a detection phase. In the training phase, a plurality of sensor information measured by the sensors in the sensor network is used as training samples. At least an entrance/exit is marked out within the measurement range of each sensor. At least three characteristic functions including sensor spatial relation among the sensors in the sensor network, difference of movement time and similarity in appearance, are estimated by an automatically learning method. The at least three characteristic functions are used as the principles for object tracking and relationship linking in the detection phase.
US08542275B2
A cross-section processing and observation method includes: forming a first cross section in a sample by etching processing using a focused ion beam; obtaining image information of the first cross section by irradiating the focused ion beam to the first cross section; forming a second cross section by performing etching processing on the first cross section; obtaining image information of the second cross section by irradiating the focused ion beam to an irradiation region including the second cross section; displaying image information of a part of a display region of the irradiation region from the image information of the second cross section; displaying the image information of the first cross section by superimposing it on the image information being displayed; and moving the display region within the irradiation region. Observation images in which display regions are aligned can be obtained while reducing damage to the sample.
US08542269B2
The present invention relates to a charge coupled device, which is improved to obtain a distinct and clear 3-dimensional image without requiring separate equipment. The charge coupled device for obtaining a 3-dimensional image according to the present invention includes a main body (101), having an open top and a cavity formed therein, and having a chip pin formed on an outer surface thereof to transfer information to an electronic element of a digital image recording device. A light receiving element (102) is mounted on a bottom surface of interior of the main body and consists of a set of a plurality of optical sensors, which are sensitive to light. A slit plate (110) is configured to cover an opening of the cavity of the main body, and is formed such that transparent parts and opaque parts are arranged to alternate.
US08542261B2
According to an embodiment, a method for color erasing process includes the steps of: supplying a power to a heat source configured to heat a sheet having an image formed thereon using a color erasable material so as to cause heat generation as warming-up control; stopping the power supply to the heat source for a predetermined period of time in the warming-up control if the temperature of the heat source is increased starting from a temperature lower than a predetermined reference value that is lower than a color erasing temperature of the color erasable material and exceeds the predetermined reference value; performing maintenance control that is power supply control to maintain the temperature of the heat source at the target temperature; and performing, after the passage of the predetermined period of time, a color erasing process by the heat source.
US08542259B2
The present invention provides a printing medium, a printing method, and a printing apparatus using a photonic crystal characteristic. According to the present invention, the printing medium using the photonic crystal characteristic comprises a medium in which a plurality of particles having electric charges are dispersed, wherein the inter-particle distances of the particles are controlled as a result of at least one of electric fields and magnetic fields are applied to the medium, and the inter-particle distances of the particles are fixed as the energy is applied to the medium.
US08542256B2
A digital gamma correction system for detecting a brightness of a liquid crystal panel, and correcting a gamma voltage, based on the detected brightness, includes an offset setter for setting the number of detection gray levels and a first detection area, for the detection of the brightness of the liquid crystal panel, a plurality of brightness detectors for detecting brightness values output from the first detection area for the detection gray levels, a controller for processing the brightness values detected by the brightness detectors, a non-linear interpolation data processor for processing a brightness value supplied from the controller, thereby generating non-linear interpolation data as a brightness variation rate according to the gray levels, a brightness corrector for generating gamma correction data for brightness values obtained by interpolating brightness values detected in a second detection area of another liquid crystal panel for a second number of detection gray levels, based on the non-linear interpolation data, and a memory for storing the gamma correction data generated from the brightness corrector.
US08542253B2
An improved graphics processing system and method are described for magnifying visual output information for printing, display, or other output. A graphics engine transforms display information so as to magnify one or more components or areas of an output image for display via output hardware such as a screen or printer. Magnification parameters are supplied to the graphics engine by one or more magnification applications. In an embodiment of the invention, the graphics engine performs compositing of magnified and unmagnified content for display. In an alternative embodiment, the graphics engine outputs corresponding scaled image material to the appropriate magnification application for rendering. In a further embodiment, the graphics engine may operate in both modes. The magnified output according to various embodiments of the invention enhances the accessibility of the computer system for visually handicapped or impaired users by providing high quality magnification and increased system and application stability.
US08542240B2
An electronic device comprises at least two graphics processors, referred to herein as an integrated graphics processor and a discrete graphics processor. In some circumstances, the device may be switched between the integrated graphics processor and the discrete graphics processor. In some embodiments, techniques are implemented to lock temporarily the screen display on the output of a controller while the device executes a switch between graphics processors, thereby eliminating, or at least reducing, the presence of a blank output display on the electronic device. Other embodiments may be described.
US08542236B2
A computer-implemented method includes transferring motion information from one or more motion meshes to an animation mesh. The motion mesh represents the motion of surface features of an object. A shape mesh provides a portion of the shape of the object to the animation mesh.
US08542235B2
A system and method for displaying complex scripts with a cloud computing architecture may include a client device and a cloud computing server. The client device accesses a web application via the internet and transmits a request containing complex scripts to the cloud computing server. The cloud computing server parses the text and breaks the text down to a sequence of characters of a particular script, and maps the Unicode of each character to a particular glyph to obtain a glyph ID for each character making a one to one relationship. The cloud computing server analyzes each character, assigns, and applies specific font related operations to each glyph. The cloud computing server optimizes and compresses the glyph ID and positioning data, and transmit the compressed data back to the client device to be rendered on the display of the client device.
US08542225B2
An emission control line driver includes even-numbered stages that are connected to even-numbered emission control lines, respectively, and are driven by a first clock signal, and odd-numbered stages that are connected to odd-numbered emission control lines, respectively, and are driven by a second clock signal, wherein each of the stages includes an input unit adapted to receive a control signal and an inverted control signal output from a previous one of the even and odd numbered stages or from an external source, the input unit being adapted to control voltages of a first node and a second node, a first output unit adapted to generate an emission control signal based on the voltages of the first node and the second node, and a second output unit adapted to generate an inverted emission control signal based on the voltages of the first node and the second node.
US08542215B2
Systems and methods for determining multiple touch events in a multi-touch sensor system are provided. The system may include a capacitance measurement unit, a pulse drive unit, and a touch sensor having a plurality of nodes and a plurality of electrodes comprising at least two sets of electrodes. The method may include connecting a first electrode in a first set to the capacitance measurement unit, the pulse drive unit driving a voltage or current pulse onto a second electrode in a second set of electrodes. The method may further include the capacitance measurement unit measuring the mutual capacitance at a node corresponding to the first and second electrodes. The method may include comparing the measured mutual capacitance at the node with a previously measured mutual capacitance for the node, and reporting that the node has been touched if there has been a deviation from the previously measured mutual capacitance.
US08542208B2
A system and method for autonomously scanning a sensor panel device is disclosed. A sensor panel processor can be disabled after a first predetermined amount of time has elapsed without the sensor panel device sensing any events. One or more system clocks can also be disabled to conserve power. While the processor and one or more system clocks are disabled, the sensor panel device can periodically autonomously scan the sensor panel for touch activity. If one or more results from the autonomous scans exceed a threshold, the sensor panel device re-enables the processor and one or more clocks to actively scan the sensor panel. If the threshold is not exceeded, the sensor panel device continues to periodically autonomously scan the sensor panel without intervention from the processor. The sensor panel device can periodically perform calibration functions to account for any drift that may be present in the system.
US08542203B2
A touchpad with an input area having a straight or curved main line of extension comprises a support element, a cover having a first surface facing away from the support element and a second surface facing towards the support element and one or more spacers arranged at a periphery of the input area. The one or more spacers mount the cover on the support element in such a way that the cover spans over the support plate in the input area while it is depressible towards the support element by a force acting on the input area of the touchpad. A resistive trace is so arranged on the support element that it extends along the main line of extension of the input area. At least one terminal contacts the resistive trace at a particular point of the main line of extension of the input area and a set of detection electrodes is arranged on the second surface of the cover in facing relationship with the resistive trace. The detection electrodes are configured and arranged for capacitively detecting a position of a user's finger or stylus when the user's finger or stylus is in proximity of or in light touch with the first surface of the cover, and for resistively detecting a position of a user's finger or stylus when the user's finger or stylus depresses the cover and so brings at least one of the detection electrodes into electrical contact with the resistive trace.
US08542199B2
The image processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided with an image processing unit for performing the image processing function by changing its execution parameter for the image processing function, which is associated with a processing result display area for displaying an image processing result acquired from applying a predetermined image processing function to specified image data, based on at least one of a surface area size of an operator contacting the processing result display area or contact duration in which the operator contacts the processing result display area.
US08542195B2
A method, and program product for optimizing soft keyboards with multiple languages is disclosed. The text of multiple languages may be analyzed for optimization. Constraints may be chosen for key positions on the keyboard. A mean time of inputting a character in each of the multiple languages may be calculated, which may result in mean times for inputting the character in the languages. The average of the mean times may be determined and minimized. The keys on a soft keyboard may be arranged in a manner for optimal input on the soft keyboard for the multiple languages.
US08542185B2
A method for operating a mobile terminal is disclosed. The mobile terminal includes a pressure sensor and an orientation sensor. While a pressure event is detected by the pressure sensor, functions related to content classification, content storage, content display, and menu navigation can be executed in response to a direction event detected by the orientation sensor. Hence, the mobile terminal is capable of operating in a dynamic and a flexible manner.
US08542180B2
A method of driving a display panel includes generating a gate on voltage, a first gate off voltage and a second gate off voltage. A clock signal is generated based upon the gate on voltage and the second gate off voltage. A first panel gate off voltage substantially the same as the first gate off voltage and a second panel gate off voltage substantially the same as the second gate off voltage are generated in a first operating mode. A first panel gate off voltage greater than the first gate off voltage and a second panel gate off voltage greater than the second gate off voltage are generated in a second operating mode. A gate signal is generated based upon the clock signal and the first and second panel gate off voltages to a gate line of the display panel.
US08542177B2
A data driving apparatus includes a horizontal synchronization start signal generation circuit and data driving circuit. The horizontal synchronization start signal generation circuit generates a horizontal synchronization start signal using image data signals. The data driving circuit samples the image data signals in response to the horizontal synchronization start signal and supplies a plurality of data signals using the sampled image data signals in response to a load signal. The horizontal synchronization start signal generation circuit is disabled in response to the load signal.
US08542161B2
A display device includes a substrate, gate lines, data lines, gate tracking lines, and dummy gate tracking lines. The gate lines and the data lines are arranged perpendicularly. Each gate tracking line is disposed between one parts of two adjacent data lines, and substantially parallel to the data lines. Each dummy gate tracking line is electrically disconnected to the gate lines, disposed between other parts of two adjacent data lines, and substantially parallel to the data lines.
US08542156B2
A pedestal for tracking antenna includes a horizontal isolation assembly dimensioned and configured to isolate the support plate from horizontal vibration and shock of the base ring, a hub assembly including a support mounted on the horizontal isolation assembly rotatably supporting a rotating frame about a first azimuth axis, a vertical isolation assembly including an upright frame and a cross-level axis support slidably interconnected with a linear bearing assembly, the linear bearing assembly having a profiled rail slidably received within a complementary shaped bearing block, wherein the profiled rail can not twist axially relative to the bearing block, a cross-level frame pivotally mounted on the cross-level axis support about a second cross-level axis, and/or an elevation frame assembly supporting the tracking antenna and pivotally mounted on the cross-level frame about a third elevation axis.
US08542150B2
A planar antenna comprising a planarly configured inner radiation element that is surrounded by an outer radiation element, wherein the inner and outer radiation elements each have a feed point. A continuous or discontinuous modification of the distance, which is equal in relation to a symmetrical axis of the inner radiation element, exists between the inner radiation element and the outer radiation element. The distance between the outer and the inner radiation element is different in the area of the two feed points from that in the area facing away from the feed points.
US08542148B1
A base station for use in a wireless communications system is disclosed, including transceiver circuitry for transmitting and receiving with at least one mobile device over at least one communications channel. Polarization control logic is included for controlling a polarization of signals transmitted over the at least one communications channel. The polarization control logic adjusts a polarization of the signal transmitted on the at least one communications channel responsive to at least one parameter received from the mobile device relating to a quality of signal received on the at least one communications channel.
US08542139B2
Provided are a current switch driving circuit generating a signal for driving a current switch, and a digital-to-analog converter using the same. The current switch driving circuit includes a first PMOS transistor in which a source terminal is connected to a power supply terminal, a gate terminal receives an input signal, and a drain terminal outputs a driving signal, an NMOS transistor in which a drain terminal is connected to the drain terminal of the first PMOS transistor, and a gate terminal receives the input signal, a second PMOS transistor in which a source terminal is connected to a source terminal of the NMOS transistor, a gate terminal is connected to a bias voltage terminal, and a drain terminal is connected to a ground terminal, and a control current source allowing the second PMOS transistor to be maintained constantly in an ON state.
US08542135B2
A system and method of selecting a predefined Huffman dictionary from a bank of dictionaries. The dictionary selection mechanism of the present invention effectively breaks the built-in tradeoff between compression ratio and compression rate for both hardware and software compression implementations. A mechanism is provided for automatically creating a predefined Huffman dictionary for a set of input files. The dictionary selection mechanism achieves high compression rate and ratio leveraging predefined Huffman dictionaries and provides a mechanism for dynamically speculating which predefined dictionary to select per input data block, thereby achieving close to a dynamic Huffman ratio at a static Huffman rate. In addition, a feedback loop is used to monitor the ongoing performance of the preset currently selected for use by the hardware accelerator. If the current preset is not optimal it is replaced with an optimal preset.
US08542125B2
A system is provided for verifying the performance of an electrical union. The electrical union provides electrical connectivity across an interface between first and second elements which rotate relative to each other. The system includes a signal source associated with the first element. The signal source is adapted to send an electrical signal over the union to the second element using a first signal frequency. The system further includes a frequency modulator associated with the second element. The frequency modulator is adapted to return the electrical signal over the union to the first element using a different second signal frequency. The system further includes a comparator which compares the signal sent by the data source to the signal returned by the frequency modulator. The comparator provides an output which identifies whether a discrepancy exists between the contents of the sent and returned signals.
US08542123B2
Aspects of the invention include multi-mode communication ingestible event marker devices. Ingestible event marker devices of the invention include an ingestible component comprising a conductive communication module and at least one additional non-conductive communication module. The non-conductive communication module may be integrated with the ingestible component or at least a portion or all of the non-conductive communication module may be associated with a packaging component of the ingestible event marker device. Additional aspects of the invention include systems that include the devices and one or more receivers, as well as methods of using the same.
US08542119B2
A combination non-programmable and programmable key for a security device of the type used to display items of merchandise includes a non-programmable portion for cooperating with a mechanical lock of the security device and a programmable portion for cooperating with a sensor of the security device that is operatively coupled to an alarm for indicating a security threat to the security device or to an item of merchandise displayed on the security device. The non-programmable portion includes a side assembly having a magnet that cooperates with a magnetically attractable locking pin to unlock the mechanical lock of the security device. The programmable portion emits an energy signal that cooperates with the sensor of the security device to disarm the alarm and thereby permit the security device to be removed or an item of merchandise to be removed without the alarm indicating a security threat.
US08542117B1
A system and a method are disclosed for predicting potential reach of an alert to a targeted audience, targeted personal delivery devices and targeted non-personal notification delivery devices in an emergency mass notification system. The method includes receiving recipients and alert delivery devices data which define a targeted audience and devices of an emergency alert. The method further comprises evaluating contact and configuration data targeting quality rating, tracking data targeting quality rating and real-time data targeting quality rating based on the received recipients and devices data and a data sources repository. Responsive to the targeting quality ratings and prediction weighting data (e.g., numeric weights and descriptive thresholds), the method generating one or more predictions of the potential reach of the alert based on the targeting quality ratings.
US08542114B2
An underground radio communications and personnel tracking system uses a cap-lamp worn by a miner when underground in a mine. A cap-lamp transceiver provides voice and text communication on ultra-low frequency (ULF) to ultra-high frequency (UHF) carrier frequencies and modulation adapted by programming of a software defined radio to making selective and agile radio contacts via through-the-earth, conductor/lifeline, coal seam, tunnel, and ionosphere/earth-surface waveguides for transmission of electromagnetic waves. These waveguides comprise layered earth coal and mineral deposits, and manmade mining complex infrastructures which serendipitously form efficient waveguides. Ultra-Low Frequency F1/F1 repeaters are placed underground in the mine, and providing for extended range of communication of the cap-lamp transceiver with radios and tracking devices above ground of the mine.
US08542113B2
A device and method to monitor location coordinates of an electronic tracking device are disclosed here. The device includes circuitry to receive at least one portion of a receive communication signal comprising location coordinates information; accelerometer circuitry to measure differential positioning of the portable electronic tracking device; and a battery power monitor configured to selectively activate and deactivate at least one portion of the transceiver circuitry and location tracking circuitry. The method includes receiving at a portable electronic tracking device at least one portion of a receive communication signal comprising location coordinates information; measuring differential positioning of the portable electronic tracking device; and activating and deactivating at least one portion of the transceiver circuitry and location tracking circuitry.
US08542112B2
A method of operation of a navigation system includes: monitoring a participant's movement, the participant's movement is movement to a sequence of locations; identifying a movement area based on the participant's movement in a physical activity; generating a safety zone encompassing the movement area; monitoring an intrusion into the safety zone; and generating a notification of a dangerous situation based on the intrusion for displaying on a device.
US08542111B2
A programmable communicator device is disclosed having a wireless communications circuit, including an antenna, configured to receive a transmission, and an identity module having a unique identifier. The programmable communicator further includes a processing module including program code configured to determine if the transmission is from an authenticated caller by determining whether a received transmission contains the unique identifier, and memory configured to store telephone numbers or IP addresses received in transmissions from an authenticated caller.
US08542108B1
A dashboard for use in a vehicle is provided. The dashboard comprises a dashboard display screen and a processor. The dashboard display presents a plurality of information components to a vehicle occupant and the processor determines a condition. The condition is comprised of at least one of a fuel condition, a brake fluid condition, a speed condition, a tire pressure condition, an oil condition, an engine condition, an instrument condition, a washer fluid condition, an anti-lock brake system condition, a traction control system condition, a windshield wiper motor condition, a safety restraint system condition, and a weather condition. The processor adapts a first display signal based on the condition and sends the first display signal to the dashboard display screen to command presentation by the dashboard display screen of the information components. Adapting the first display signal comprises at least one of changing size, changing location, and changing the scale of at least one information component presented on the dashboard display screen.
US08542107B2
An apparatus includes an alarm device, enclosed in a water tight container adapted to buoyantly support the alarm device and a wireless receiver, the water tight container adapted to couple with a key ring, including hardware logic and-or logic embodied in machine readable memory to receive information from a remote vapor sensor and to activate the alarm if the information indicates a hazardous vapor condition.
US08542104B2
An RFID edge server is adapted to receive RFID data from RFID readers. The RFID edge server can have a PLC API to allow the RFID edge server to control and receive data from devices.
US08542103B2
A method and a system are described for improved reading of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags using correcting codes on sets of electronic tags. A reading device requests information from each of a set of electronic tags. The information includes an identification code and a portion of a codeword, the codeword contains a coded message with identification codes of all tags in the set. The information is received from a subset of the set of tags. Portions of the codeword from the received tag information of the subset of tags are assembled. A decoding component to decode the assembled portions and to construct the coded message from the assembled portions of the codeword. Information is individually received from a remaining set of the tags in the set of tags. An enterprise system processes the received information from all tags in the set.
US08542093B2
A network operator radio module (NORM) configured to be removably attached to a barrier operator comprises a transmitting antenna, a receiving antenna, a transceiver antenna, and a microcontroller. The module communicates with a communication network that comprises various nodes configured by a network controller module and a network communication module. Each node may be associated with a network appliance, and may be remotely controlled by sending a suitable function code to the module via local command signals. Furthermore, various local remote transmitters and keyless entry transmitters are configured to transmit function codes to control the module and the associated various network appliances.
US08542091B2
When supplying a power from a base station to a terminal station on radio and a distance from a base station to a terminal station is long, it becomes impossible for the terminal station to rectify the power. The feature of the present invention is found in a wireless communication system in which the peak value and duty ratio of a transmission power are controlled simultaneously, keeping the transmission power of a base station below a fixed value, thereby allowing a voltage to be applied to a diode, which is a component of a rectifier circuit possessed by a terminal station, always in excess of a threshold voltage of the diode, and energy is exchanged between the base station and the terminal station below a limit power.
US08542086B2
Surface-mountable conductive polymer electronic devices include at least one conductive polymer active layer laminated between upper and lower electrodes. Upper and lower insulation layers, respectively, sandwich the upper and lower electrodes. First and second planar conductive terminals are formed on the lower insulation layer. First and second cross-conductors are provided by plated through-hole vias, whereby the cross-conductors connect each of the electrodes to one of the terminals. Certain embodiments include two or more active layers, arranged in a vertically-stacked configuration and electrically connected by the cross-conductors and electrodes in parallel. Several embodiments include at least one cross-conductor having a chamfered or beveled entry hole through the upper insulation layer to provide enhanced adhesion between the cross-conductor and the insulation layer. Several methods for manufacturing the present surface-mountable conductive polymer electronic devices are also provided.
US08542085B2
A high frequency rotary transformer for an electrical machine includes a primary transformer component having a primary transformer winding, and a secondary transformer component having a secondary transformer winding. The primary transformer winding is configured to be coupled to a DC power source via a DC to AC converter. The secondary transformer winding is configured to be coupled to a winding of the rotor. Each of the primary and secondary transformer components are mechanically coupled to either the stator or the rotor. The secondary transformer component is configured to rotate with respect to the primary transformer component to produce a magnetic flux via the primary transformer winding and the secondary transformer winding.
US08542083B2
A device can be installed inside a circuit breaker assembly to reduce friction between an armature and a cradle, which in turn, allows the circuit breaker to trip without requiring significant force. Such device can be a collapsible mechanism configured to swivel about its hinged connection to the armature.
US08542073B2
A variable-capacitance device includes a first capacitance element coupled between a first power supply terminal and an output terminal, a capacitance selection switch that is turned on and off in accordance with a capacitance switching signal, a second capacitance element coupled in parallel to the first capacitance element and in series to the capacitance selection switch, and an error correction circuit configured to operate such that in a state in which the capacitance selection switch is in an OFF state, in response to a charge reset signal that causes a voltage at the output terminal to be reset to a reset voltage, the error correction circuit substantially eliminates a difference between the voltage at the output terminal and a voltage at a capacitance switching node at which the second capacitance element is coupled to the capacitance selection switch.
US08542063B2
An adaptive amplification circuit is disclosed, which includes an operational amplifier including a variable bias current source for providing a variable bias current for the operational amplifier, a simulation unit for simulating operational characteristics of the operational amplifier and transforming a simulation input voltage to a simulation output voltage, and a bias control unit for generating a bias control signal to the variable bias current source according to the simulation output voltage so as to adjust the variable bias current.
US08542062B2
The present invention concerns the field of power amplifiers and in particular the enhancement of the performance of the amplifier by a feedback loop acting on the input signal. It describes a method for linearizing a power amplifier circuit having a digital base-band input signal, a power output signal, a power amplifier and a linearizer module (LM), this method comprising the steps of: extracting a feedback signal from the power amplifier (PA) output signal, down-converting the feedback RF-signal to feedback IF-signal, filtering the feedback IF-signal with a band-pass filter, A/D converting the filtered feedback IF-signal into a feedback digital signal, converting the feedback digital signal into frequency-domain using fast-Fourier transform FFT on a block of n-samples to obtain a feedback FB-FFT block, converting the input base-band digital signal into frequency-domain using fast-Fourier transform FFT on a block of n-samples to obtain a input FF-FFT block, dividing the input FF-FFT block with the feedback FB-FFT block to obtain FFT correction samples blocks, averaging at least two blocks of FFT correction samples to obtain FFT correction coefficient values, applying the FFT correction coefficient values to a digital complex multiplier, converting the output of the multiplier from frequency domain into time domain with an inverse FFT module to obtain a corrected digital input signal, converting the corrected digital input signal to analog IF signal with a digital to analog converter to obtain a corrected IF input signal, applying the band-pass filter to the corrected IF input signal, up-converting the filtered corrected IF input signal to obtain a corrected RF input signal, applying the corrected RF input signal to the power amplifier.
US08542059B2
Embodiments of the present invention may provide a power supply system that uses a capacitive voltage divider to selectively monitor various power supplies on an IC chip. The power supply system may sample a monitored power supply to a capacitor and select certain capacitors from a set of switched capacitors to divide down the sampled voltage. The resulting voltage may be compared to a voltage reference. Using different selections of switched capacitors, the monitored power supply may be compared for different voltage levels. The ratio of the sampling capacitor to the selected capacitors may determine a voltage level the comparator will trigger. Further, based on the monitored power supply level, the power supply system may turn on a switch between an external power supply and a regulated digital power supply to charge the regulated digital power supply while a main LDO is turned off.
US08542058B2
A semiconductor device includes: a first field-effect transistor (FET); and a second FET of similar polarity to the first FET, wherein a body of the first FET is electrically coupled to a body of the second FET, and a source of the first FET is electrically coupled to a source of the second FET, such that a body voltage of the second FET controls a body voltage of the first FET.
US08542048B2
A dual edge triggered flip flop circuit uses clock signals that are delayed from a first clock signal and from one another by respective intervals. A first set of the plurality of clock signals are used to operate a first latch circuit to allow first data to be conducted to a storage element for a period of time after a rising edge of a first clock signal. The clock signals are further used to operate a second latch circuit to allow second data to be conducted to the storage element for a period of time after a falling edge of the first clock signal.
US08542043B2
In an embodiment, a primary charge pump and replica charge pump may be coupled to matching control mechanisms and loads. In an embodiment, the replica charge pump may produce an error current originating from charge pump timing mismatches in a steady locked loop state. The error current produced by the replica charge pump may be measured by a difference amplifier to adjust at least one current source to compensate for the error current originating from the timing mismatches. To adjust the current sources, the amplifier may cause the current source to produce an equal but opposite current to cancel the effects of the error current, resulting in a constant output voltage.
US08542041B2
A first transistor has one end and a gate coupled to a first power supply line and other end coupled to a first node. A second transistor has a gate coupled to a second node, one end coupled to the first node, and other end coupled to a third node. A third transistor has one end coupled to a second power supply line, a gate coupled to a fourth node, and other end coupled to the third node. A first bias voltage generation circuit supplies a first bias voltage to the second node. A second bias voltage generation circuit supplies a second bias voltage to the fourth node. Accordingly, the power supply voltage at which the third node is changed from a certain level to another level is set high, and an internal node in a semiconductor device is securely initialized when the power supply voltage is decreased.
US08542016B2
A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus for imaging a plurality of different slice planes having pre-pulse applying means configured to apply a pre-pulse for affecting in-plane magnetization of all slices of a measurement target, measuring means configured to make a measurement for applying one phase encode amount for one slice plane to obtain an echo signal and dispose the echo signal in a k space, and control means configured to control operations of the pre-pulse applying means and the measuring means. The control means has first control means configured to control to repeat an operation of executing the measurement once according to a predetermined order for all slice planes of the measurement target after a first pre-pulse is applied while a phase encode amount is varied in a predetermined order until all k spaces of all slices are filled, and second control means configured to control the pre-pulse applying means so that the pre-pulse is applied every time the measurement is executed at a frequency which is different from the number of the slices of the measurement target and a multiple number of the number of the slices, and the first control means sets an initial phase encode amount of each slice so as to measure a low spatial frequency area of the k space at a timing having a large effect of the pre-pulse.
US08542004B2
An object is to provide a semiconductor device with a novel structure in which stored data can be held even when power is not supplied, and the number of times of writing is not limited. The semiconductor device is formed using a wide gap semiconductor and includes a potential change circuit which selectively applies a potential either equal to or different from a potential of a bit line to a source line. Thus, power consumption of the semiconductor device can be sufficiently reduced.
US08542003B2
A first timing comparator TCP1 latches a data signal at a timing that corresponds to each edge of a first strobe signal. A first delay element delays a first strobe signal so as to output a first delayed strobe signal. A first clock recovery unit makes a comparison between the phase of the first delayed strobe signal and a clock signal, and outputs a first reference strobe signal which is used to perform phase adjustment such that the phases of these signals match each other. A third delay element delays a first reference strobe signal, and outputs the signal thus delayed as the first strobe signal. A delay amount that corresponds to the amount of skew that occurs between the data signal and the clock signal is set for the third delay element.
US08541997B2
Provided is a current sensing signal comparing device and current sensing signal comparing method. The current sensing signal comparing device includes a current sensing circuit for detecting a current signal of a switching circuit and thereby generating a current sensing signal, a control unit for outputting a control signal, and a compensating circuit for compensating the current sensing signal according to the control signal. The compensated current sensing signal is compared with a constant current reference signal in order to issue a constant current control signal. The device can also be provided to configure the compensating circuit to compensate the constant current reference signal, such that the current sensing signal is compared with the compensated constant current reference signal in order to issue a constant current control signal.
US08541996B2
A power control device for performing switching control for an output voltage of a power supply device includes a signal generation circuit for comparing a difference between a value of the output voltage and a value of a first reference voltage with a value of a second reference voltage, and for stopping the switching control when a value of the difference is less than or equal to the value of the second reference voltage, and an adjuster circuit for adjusting the second reference voltage based on a ratio between a value of an input voltage and the value of the output voltage.
US08541986B2
In a charging method for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery which includes a positive electrode including a lithium-containing composite oxide as an active material, a negative electrode including an alloy-formable negative electrode active material, and a non-aqueous electrolyte, a voltage of the secondary battery is detected. When the detected value is smaller than a predetermined voltage x, charging is performed at a comparatively small current value B. When the detected value is equal to or greater than the predetermined voltage x and smaller than a predetermined voltage z, charging is performed at a comparatively great current value A. When the detected value is equal to or greater than the predetermined voltage z and smaller than a predetermined voltage y, charging is performed at a comparatively small current value C. When the detected value is greater than the predetermined voltage y, constant-voltage charging is performed or charging is terminated. Here, x
US08541976B2
Vehicle mounted personal device battery charging station and operating methods to avoid interference
A method and apparatus are presented for inductive charging of battery operated devices in a motor vehicle, in which a passive vehicle entry and/or starting system selectively disables or reduces provision of power to a primary coil of an inductive charging station while the passive system communicates with an external user device such as a key fob controller to avoid or mitigate electromagnetic interference.
US08541975B2
Disclosed is a method and apparatus for efficient wireless charging of a mobile terminal. The method includes detecting the mobile terminal by a charging apparatus, receiving a unique identifier of the mobile terminal from the mobile terminal and determining if the mobile terminal is a rechargeable device, when the mobile terminal is a rechargeable device, applying a direct voltage to a first coil of the charging apparatus and arranging the charging apparatus and the mobile terminal, and terminating an application of the direct voltage and then applying an alternating voltage, to supply charging power required for the mobile terminal.
US08541974B2
Exemplary embodiments are directed to wireless power. A method may include reorienting at least one transmit antenna to reduce orthogonality with a receive antenna of at least one chargeable electronic device in response to receiving the at least one electronic device in a holder. The method may further include wirelessly transferring power from the at least one transmit antenna to the receive antenna.
US08541973B2
A single stage low boost/buck ratio stand-alone solar energy power generating circuit with a system thereof is a simplification of a two-stage type circuit. The two-stage circuit, which has a storage unit, a charging converter circuit for charging the storage unit, and a discharging converter circuit for discharging the stored power to a load, is analyzed and categorized such that a circuit structure is selected via a suitable simplified combination to commonly use the elements constituting the charging and the discharging converter circuits so as to form the single stage circuit with less elements, volume and weight for reducing the production cost of the circuit.
US08541967B2
A steering control apparatus includes a direct current power source, a three-phase alternating current motor, and a motor driving circuit. An emergency switching element is provided on at least two phases of a three-phase power supply line connected to the three-phase alternating current motor within the motor driving circuit, and the emergency switching element is turned off when an abnormality occurs such that the motor driving circuit is disconnected from the three-phase alternating current motor. The emergency switching element is a MOSFET, and the MOSFETs are provided in pairs in each of the two phases of the three-phase power supply line. Further, parasitic diodes of the pairs of MOSFETs are disposed in opposite orientations to each other.
US08541954B2
A first energy ratio A/B of a first alternating current of a steady frequency supplied to a lamp is set to a value C, when the lamp is horizontally placed. A second alternating current of a lower frequency, whose second energy ratio A/B is set to the value C, is inserted. When the lamp is vertically placed, a first energy ratio A′/B′ is set to the value C or a value D, which is smaller than the value C. A second ratio A′/B′ is set to the value D or a value E, which is lower than the value C. A and A′ each represents an energy that flows from a first electrode of a pair of electrodes of the lamp to a second electrode of the pair. B and B′ each represents an energy that flows from the second electrode to the first electrode.
US08541945B2
Embodiment of the invention include a lighting device having a tubular current-conductive housing, a lamp assembly, an insulator sleeve, and a diffuser globe. The lamp assembly can include one or more lamps such as one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs). The diffuser globe is preferably a fumed blown glass diffuser globe having a concentrated region for refracting and diffusing light. The diffuser globe can include an internal diffuser for further refraction and control of the light. Embodiments also include a solar powered hook-shaped luminaire having a solar panel, a body member, and a diffuser globe. Embodiments further include a shatter resistant, portable, remote controllable, programmable, rechargeable, and floatable lighting device and/or globe luminaire, which can be automatically, manually, remotely, and/or locally controlled.
US08541941B2
A light emitting element includes a resonator structure which has a first reflecting member, a second reflecting member, and a light emission layer placed between the first reflecting member and the second reflecting member, and part of light resonated between the first reflecting member and the second reflecting member is transmitted through the first reflecting member or the second reflecting member in the resonator structure. A wavelength at which a resonator output spectrum from the resonator structure has a maximum value is located between a wavelength at which an inner light emission spectrum of the light emission layer has a maximum value and a wavelength at which relative luminous efficiency has a maximum value.
US08541938B2
There are provided an electronic paper display device and a method of manufacturing the same. The electronic paper display device includes: a lower substrate having lower barrier ribs formed thereon, the lower barrier ribs forming cells for receiving electronic paper display elements; electronic paper display elements mounted in the cells of the lower substrate and having optical and electrical anisotropy; and an upper substrate formed to cover the lower substrate and including upper patterns bonded to the lower barrier ribs so as to secure a fluid moving path of the cell.
US08541932B2
A lamp includes a heat dissipater having a base and an engaging member. The base includes a first air guiding portion and a fixing portion. The engaging member is mounted to an outer periphery of the base. A second air guiding portion is formed between the engaging member and the base. A lighting element is mounted to the base of the heat dissipater. A housing is engaged with the engaging member of the heat dissipater. The housing and the heat dissipater together define a compartment in communication with the first and second air guiding portions. A cooling fan is mounted to the fixing portion of the base. A circuit board is mounted in the compartment and electrically connected to the lighting element and the cooling fan. The circuit board is electrically connected to an electrically conductive member having an end extending out from the housing.
US08541929B2
Piezoelectric devices and method for making them are disclosed. An exemplary piezoelectric device has a package base defining a cavity on a first surface thereof. An opposing second surface of the package base has at least one through-hole, a mounting electrode on which a piezoelectric vibrating piece is attached, and a respective sealing electrode sealing each through-hole. At least one external electrode is on the second surface, and a lid is bonded to the package base to enclose the piezoelectric vibrating piece. The mounting electrode, sealing electrodes, and external electrodes are formed integrally.
US08541919B2
A rotor structure for an interior permanent magnet (IPM) electromotive machine is provided. The rotor structure may include at least one rotor lamination, which in turn may include at least one slot arranged to receive at least one permanent magnet. The slot divides the rotor lamination into a pole region and a yoke region. At least one bridge is arranged to connect the pole region to the yoke region at an outer edge of the lamination. The outer edge of the lamination is profiled along a segment of the bridge to define a concave curved profile for the bridge. The concave curved profile for the bridge allows to selectively size a thickness of the bridge to affect at least some electromagnetic and/or mechanical characteristic of the machine.
US08541916B2
A system for securing a nut (24) used to compress a compliant seal (23) surrounding a radial conductor lead (21) of an electric generator (10). The generator has a rotor (11) with the radial conductor lead arranged in a radial lead bore (20) of the rotor and the seal coaxially arranged surrounding the radial lead. A receiving pocket (15) is arranged in a body of the rotor adjacent to the radial lead bore. The nut is arranged coaxially with the radial conductor lead, the nut including a seal contacting surface (35) and a ligament (26) arranged opposite the seal contacting surface, wherein a portion of the ligament is deformed into the receiving pocket to lock the nut against rotation, thereby maintaining a desired degree of compression on the seal.
US08541908B2
An exemplary powered device (PD) connected to a local power source and a power sourcing equipment (PSE) includes a constant current source drawing at least 10 mA direct current from the PSE when the local power source is in operation. The PD includes a first conversion circuit, a first diode, and a second diode. The first conversion circuit comprises a first input and is configured for converting a voltage input to the first input into the rated working voltage of the PD. The positive terminal of the first diode is connected to the local power source and the negative terminal thereof is connected to the first input. The voltage of the local power source is higher than that of the PSE.
US08541906B2
A polyphase power distribution and monitoring apparatus having sets of outputs for each phase of power and monitors for each phase of power disposed in the housing. Each monitor provides a visible display of current for an associated phase of power and an audible alarm for each phase of power if the current exceeds a predetermined value or falls below a predetermined value. In three-phase wye power systems, the apparatus preferably includes a neutral line monitor, including a neutral line current display and audio alarm, for the neutral line of the wye power circuit. The apparatus preferably is lightweight, elongated, portable, and mountable to the side of an electronic equipment rack. It may also include additional power monitoring systems such as network power monitoring tools for remotely monitoring the apparatus.
US08541905B2
A method of balancing current in a vehicle electric system having a system bus, a first battery, a first bi-directional battery voltage converter selectively transferring a first current between the first battery and the system bus, a second battery, a second bi-directional battery voltage converter selectively transferring a second current between the second battery and the system bus, and a controller controlling the first bi-directional battery voltage converter and the second bi-directional battery voltage converter. The method includes sensing the first current and sensing the second current. The first bi-directional battery voltage converter and the second bi-directional battery voltage converter are controlled so that the first current and the second current are equal portions of a load current supplied to an electrical load connected to the system bus.
US08541897B2
An electric energy generation system may include a plurality of windmills, a windmill support system, an electric generator, and a coupling system. The windmills may each be configured to transform wind energy into rotational energy. The windmill support system may support the windmills in positions that are spaced apart from one another. The electric generator may be configured to transform rotational energy into electric energy. The coupling system may be configured to couple the rotational energy generated by each of the windmills to the electric generator in a manner that permits the windmills to rotate at different speeds during operation of the electric energy generation system. Other configurations are also disclosed.
US08541896B2
A system for generation of power using an apparatus in deep water is disclosed. The system includes a ballast buoy configured to achieve a desired depth in the deep water, a substantially vertical hollow tube attached to the ballast buoy that is submerged under water when the ballast buoy achieves the desired depth in the deep water, and a converter for converting the physical environment created in the substantially vertical hollow tube by placement of the ballast buoy at the desired depth in the deep water.
US08541895B2
An energy-regenerating damper including a piston provided with a housing fitted inside a cylinder so as to be able to slide against the inner surface of the cylinder, a stator contained in/fixed to the inside of the housing, a rotor supported so as to be able to rotate inside the stator, and damping valves provided at the top and bottom ends of the housing. The housing includes an upper half and a lower half fastened together by bolts, and a damper rod is fixed to the top end of the upper half. The upper half and the lower half each contain a bearing for supporting the rotor. A plurality of orifices through which a hydraulic oil circulates are drilled towards the outsides of the upper half and lower half, and circulation holes through which the hydraulic oil circulates are drilled towards the insides of the upper half and lower half.
US08541887B2
A layered chip package includes a main body, and wiring that includes a plurality of wires disposed on a side surface of the main body. The main body includes: a main part including first and second layer portions; and a plurality of first and second terminals that are disposed on the top and bottom surfaces of the main part, respectively, and are electrically connected to the plurality of wires. Each layer portion includes a semiconductor chip having a first surface and a second surface opposite thereto, and includes a plurality of electrodes. The electrodes are disposed on a side of the semiconductor chip opposite to the second surface. The first and second layer portions are bonded to each other such that the respective second surfaces face each other. The first terminals are formed by using the electrodes of the first layer portion, and the second terminals are formed by using the electrodes of the second layer portion.
US08541881B2
A manufacturing method of a package structure is provided. A seed layer is formed on a upper surface of a metal substrate. A patterned dry film layer is formed on a lower surface of the metal substrate and the seed layer. A portion of the seed layer is exposed by the patterned dry film layer. The patterned dry film layer is used as an electroplating mask to electroplate a circuit layer on the portion of the seed layer exposed by the patterned dry film layer. A chip is bonded to and electrically connected to the circuit layer. A molding compound is formed on the metal substrate. The molding compound encapsulates the chip, the circuit layer and the portion of the seed layer. A portion of the metal substrate and a portion of the seed layer are removed so as to expose a portion of the molding compound.
US08541876B2
A method of fabricating a microelectronic package having a direct contact heat spreader, a package formed according to the method, a die-heat spreader combination formed according to the method, and a system incorporating the package. The method comprises metallizing a backside of a microelectronic die to form a heat spreader body directly contacting and fixed to the backside of the die thus yielding a die-heat spreader combination. The package includes the die-heat spreader combination and a substrate bonded to the die.
US08541875B2
Embodiments discussed herein are directed to a power semiconductor packaging that removes heat from a semiconductor package through one or more cooling zones that are located in a laterally oriented position with respect to the semiconductor package. Additional embodiments are directed to circuit elements that are constructed from one or more modular power semiconductor packages.
US08541874B2
The semiconductor device 100 comprises a first semiconductor element 113 provided on a face on one side of a flat plate shaped interconnect component 101, an insulating resin 119 covering a face of a side where the first semiconductor element 113 of the interconnect component 101 is provided and a side face of the first semiconductor element 113, and a second semiconductor element 111 provided on a face on the other side of the interconnect component 101. The interconnect component 101 has a constitution where an interconnect layer 103, a silicon layer 105 and an insulating film 107 are sequentially formed. The interconnect layer 103 has a constitution where the interconnect layer 103 has a flat plate shaped insulating component and a conductive component extending through the insulating component. The first semiconductor element 113 is electrically connected with the second semiconductor element 111 through the conductive component.
US08541869B2
A III-nitride edge-emitting laser diode is formed on a surface of a III-nitride substrate having a semipolar orientation, wherein the III-nitride substrate is cleaved by creating a cleavage line along a direction substantially perpendicular to a nonpolar orientation of the III-nitride substrate, and then applying force along the cleavage line to create one or more cleaved facets of the III-nitride substrate, wherein the cleaved facets have an m-plane or a-plane orientation.
US08541864B2
A method of forming a semiconductor structure includes forming a resistor on an insulator layer over a substrate, and forming at least one dielectric layer over the resistor. The method also includes forming a substrate contact through the at least one dielectric layer, through the resistor, through the insulator layer, and into the substrate. The substrate contact comprises a high thermal conductivity material.
US08541863B2
An electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM) BIT cell structure formed on a semiconductor substrate comprises an N-type epitaxial layer formed on the semiconductor substrate, an N-type well region formed in the epitaxial layer, LOCOS field oxide formed at the periphery of the well region to define an active device region in the well region, a field oxide ring formed in the active region and space-apart from the LOCOS field oxide to define an EPROM BIT cell region, and an EPROM BIT cell formed in the EPROM BIT cell region.
US08541860B2
Device and method for an antireflective coating to improve image quality in an image display system. A preferred embodiment comprises a first high refractive index layer overlying a reflective surface of an integrated circuit, a first low refractive index layer overlying the first high refractive index layer, a second high refractive index layer overlying the first low refractive index layer, and a second low refractive index layer overlying the second high refractive index layer. The alternating layers of high refractive index material and low refractive index material form an optical trap, allowing light to readily pass through in one direction, but not so easily in a reverse direction. The dual alternating layer topology improves the antireflective properties of the antireflective layer and permits a wide range of adjustments for manipulating reflectivity and color point.
US08541857B2
Backside illumination CMOS image sensors having convex light-receiving faces and methods of manufacturing the same. A backside illumination CMOS image sensor includes a metal layer, an insulating layer and a photodiode. The insulating layer is on the metal layer. The photodiode is on the insulating layer, and a top face of the photodiode, which receives light, is curved. A method of manufacturing a backside illumination CMOS image sensor including a photodiode having a convex surface includes forming an island smaller than the photodiode on a portion of a light-receiving face of the photodiode, and annealing the island to form the photodiode having the convex light-receiving face.
US08541853B1
A high-frequency capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) has a silicon membrane and an overlying metal silicide layer that together form a conductive structure which can vibrate over a cavity. The CMUT also has a metal structure that touches a group of conductive structures. The metal structure has an opening that extends completely through the metal structure to expose the conductive structure.
US08541851B2
An apparatus and method for manufacturing a micro-electrical mechanical system (MEMS) package comprising a first molded body having a first acoustic port, a second molded body connected to the first molded body, a leadframe at least partially integral with at least one of the first and second molded bodies, a die cavity provided on at least one of the first and second molded bodies and having a second acoustic port, a MEMS die provided on the die cavity, a channel connecting the first and second acoustic ports, the first molded body sealing at least a portion of the channel, and a lid attached to the second molded body and sealing at least a portion of the die cavity.
US08541848B2
To limit or prevent current crowding, various HV-MOSFET embodiments include a current diversion region disposed near a drain region of an HV-MOSFET and near an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate. In some embodiments, the current diversion region is disposed near a field plate of the HV-MOSFET, wherein the field plate can also help to reduce or “smooth” electric fields near the drain to help limit current crowding. In some embodiments, the current diversion region is a p-doped, n-doped, or intrinsic region that is at a floating voltage potential. This current diversion region can push current deeper into the substrate of the HV-MOSFET (relative to conventional HV-MOSFETs), thereby reducing current crowding during ESD events. By reducing current crowding, the current diversion region makes the HV-MOSFETs disclosed herein more impervious to ESD events and, therefore, more reliable in real-world applications.
US08541843B2
Field programmable device (FPD) chips with large logic capacity and field programmability that are in-circuit programmable are described. FPDs use small versatile nonvolatile nanotube switches that enable efficient architectures for dense low power and high performance chip implementations and are compatible with low cost CMOS technologies and simple to integrate.
US08541836B2
Semiconductor memory devices having recessed access devices are disclosed. In some embodiments, a method of forming the recessed access device includes forming a device recess in a substrate material that extends to a first depth in the substrate that includes a gate oxide layer in the recess. The device recess may be extended to a second depth that is greater that the first depth to form an extended portion of the device recess. A field oxide layer may be provided within an interior of the device recess that extends inwardly into the interior of the device recess and into the substrate. Active regions may be formed in the substrate that abut the field oxide layer, and a gate material may be deposited into the device recess.
US08541823B2
A transistor. The transistor including: a well region in a substrate; a gate dielectric layer on a top surface of the well region; a polysilicon gate electrode on a top surface of the gate dielectric layer; spacers formed on opposite sidewalls of the polysilicon gate electrode; source/drain regions formed on opposite sides of the polysilicon gate electrode in the well region; a first doped region in the polysilicon gate electrode, the first doped region extending into the polysilicon gate electrode from a top surface of the polysilicon gate electrode; and a buried second doped region in the polysilicon gate electrode.
US08541818B2
Planar Schottky diodes for which the semiconductor material includes a heterojunction which induces a 2 DEG in at least one of the semiconductor layers. A metal anode contact is on top of the upper semiconductor layer and forms a Schottky contact with that layer. A metal cathode contact is connected to the 2 DEG, forming an ohmic contact with the layer containing the 2 DEG.
US08541807B2
A semiconductor light emitting device and a light emitting apparatus having the semiconductor light emitting device are provided. The semiconductor light emitting device comprises a substrate, a light emitting structure disposed on the substrate and comprising a first conductive type semiconductor layer, an active layer on the first conductive type semiconductor layer, and a second conductive type semiconductor layer on the active layer, a second electrode electrically connected to the second conductive type semiconductor layer, a plurality of first electrodes disposed on a plurality of sidewalls of the first conductive type semiconductor layer, and wherein the plurality of first electrodes are spaced apart from each other.
US08541801B2
A light emitting device package includes: a substrate with a mounting surface; a light emitting device bonded to the mounting surface of the substrate; a light reflecting resin part containing a high reflective material, filled on the substrate around the light emitting device so as to extend in a space between the light emitting device and the substrate; and a packing resin part hermetically sealed to cover the light emitting device and the light reflection resin part.
US08541796B2
There is provided a nitride semiconductor light emitting device having a light emitting portion coated with a coating film, the light emitting portion being formed of a nitride semiconductor, the coating film in contact with the light emitting portion being formed of an oxynitride film deposited adjacent to the light emitting portion and an oxide film deposited on the oxynitride film. There is also provided a method of fabricating a nitride semiconductor laser device having a cavity with a facet coated with a coating film, including the steps of: providing cleavage to form the facet of the cavity; and coating the facet of the cavity with a coating film formed of an oxynitride film deposited adjacent to the facet of the cavity and an oxide film deposited on the oxynitride film.
US08541793B2
A light emitting diode device includes: at least one light emitting diode chip, which includes a semiconductor unit, two electrodes that are disposed on an electrode-mounting surface of the semiconductor unit, a light-transmissive insulating layer that is disposed on the electrode-mounting surface and that has two via holes, a reflective metal layer disposed on a portion of the light-transmissive insulating layer, a protective insulating layer that is disposed on the reflective metal layer, a conductor-receiving insulating layer that has two conductor-receiving holes respectively in communication with the via holes, and two conductor units that are formed respectively in the conductor-receiving holes; and a light-transmissive envelope layer that covers a surface of the light emitting diode chip opposite to the electrode-mounting surface, that extends to cover outer lateral surfaces of the light emitting diode chip, and that is doped with a fluorescence powder.
US08541785B2
An object is to reduce an occupied area of a protection circuit. Another object is to increase the reliability of a display device including the protection circuit. The protection circuit includes a first wiring over a substrate, an insulating film over the first wiring, and a second wiring over the insulating film.
US08541782B2
Many of the principles of an oxide semiconductor are still unclear and therefore there is no established method for evaluating an oxide semiconductor. Thus, an object is to provide a novel method for evaluating an oxide semiconductor. Carrier density is evaluated, and hydrogen concentration is also evaluated. Specifically, a MOS capacitor (a diode or a triode) is manufactured, and the C-V characteristics of the MOS capacitor are obtained. Then, the carrier density is estimated from the C-V characteristics obtained.
US08541777B2
A color conversion film is disclosed that absorbs light from an organic electroluminescent part emitting blue-green light and converts the light to visible light at a longer wavelength. The color conversion film includes two different dyes. A first dye is a polymer dye with an average molecular weight of 1000 to 1,000,000 that absorbs light incident on the color conversion film and transfers the energy of the light to a second dye. The second dye is a dye that receives the energy from the first dye and emits light. With a multicolor-emitting, organic electroluminescent device including the color conversion film, it is possible to achieve excellent conversion efficiency without increasing the thickness of the color conversion film as in a conventional device using a binder resin.
US08541763B2
A shield for absorbing radiation emitted by a target during operation of a cyclotron. The shield includes an inner box structure having a recess for receiving the target. In addition, the shield includes a first plurality of shield elements arranged in a layered configuration about the inner box structure. The shield also includes an outer box structure for receiving the inner box structure and the first plurality of shield elements. Further, a second plurality of shield elements is arranged in a layered configuration about the outer box structure. The shield elements are arranged in both horizontal and vertical orientations and are removable.
US08541761B2
A radiation dosimeter including one or more optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) sensors.
US08541758B1
An ultraviolet reactor for irradiating a flow of fluid includes a set of UV lamps and baffles spaced along the ramps. The baffles generate helical flow of the fluid flowing along the lamps to enhance exposure of microorganisms carried in the fluid to UV radiation.
US08541753B2
A method for detecting contamination on a moving object moving in a longitudinal direction past a plurality of detectors, wherein a count rate is captured repeatedly by each of the detectors during the movement of the object past the detectors, the captured count rates are weighted in that the count rates of the detector(s) that have a greater separation distance from the object to be measures are weighted lower than the count rates of the detector(s) that have a smaller separation distance from the object to be measured.
US08541749B2
Described is a dosimeter reader for reading a plurality of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) sensors of a dosimeter sled and for reading an RFID tag on the dosimeter sled.
US08541747B2
A solid-state image sensor, comprises: a photoelectric conversion layer on which photoelectric conversion elements are arranged; and an wiring layer including at least one layer of a metal film, and an interlayer insulating film which fills a surrounding portion of the metal film, wherein the wiring layer is arranged at a position deeper than the photoelectric conversion layer on a side opposite to a light incidence side with respect to the photoelectric conversion layer, and at least a first metal film arranged at a position closest to the photoelectric conversion layer of the metal film of the wiring layer is arranged on a region which is not irradiated with light rays in a predetermined wavelength range, which light has passed through the photoelectric conversion layer.
US08541741B2
A photonic measurement system, such as an atomic absorption spectrometer, includes source, sample and detection modules that are interconnected by fiber optic cables. A first set of fiber optic cables guides light from one or more light sources in the source module to each of at least two analysis chambers in the sample module. A second set of fiber optic cables guides light from the analysis chambers to a detector in the detection module. The detector provides to a processing sub-system signals that correspond to intensities of the guided light. One analysis chamber is selected to perform a sample analysis at a given time, and the processing sub-system processes the signals associated with the selected analysis chamber as measurement signals. The processing sub-system may further process the signals associated with a given non-selected analysis chamber as reference signals.
US08541740B2
The present invention is directed to a device and system for verifying the electron beam kinetic energy spectrum and determining changes in kinetic electron beam energy spectrum that comprises a radiation-absorbing mass defined by a top surface, a bottom surface, and side walls, said mass having at least four separate slots containing one or more of dosimeter strips, wherein said slots are located at different depths within the mass as measured from the top surface of the mass, and said slots are positioned substantially parallel to the top surface of the mass. The present invention also relates to a method of determining and comparing changes in a kinetic electron energy spectrum.
US08541739B2
A charged particle beam system for performing precession diffraction includes a lens 11 for focusing a beam 5 in an object plane 9, and an objective lens 13 having a diffraction plane 27. A doublet 53 of lenses 35, 63 images the diffraction plane 27 into an intermediate diffraction plane 69 where a multipole 55 is located. A doublet 57 of lenses 65, 93 images the intermediate diffraction plane 69 into an intermediate diffraction plane 71 where a multipole 59 is located. A first deflection system 15 upstream of the object plane 9 can tilt to change an angle of incidence of the beam on the object plane. A second deflection system 37 between lenses 35 and 63 tilts the beam such that the change of the angle of incidence of the charged particle beam on the object plane is compensated.
US08541737B2
A collision cell is disclosed that provides ion activation in various selective modes. Ion activation is performed inside selected segments of a segmented quadrupole that provides maximum optimum capture and collection of fragmentation products. The invention provides collisional cooling of precursor ions as well as product fragments and further allows effective transmission of ions through a high pressure interface into a coupled mass analysis instrument.
US08541730B2
A solid-state imaging device is provided and includes: a substrate; a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements arranged in a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array above the substrate, the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements being divided into a plurality of photoelectric conversion element groups; a plurality of semiconductor substrates between the substrate and the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements, each of the plurality of semiconductor substrates corresponding to each of the plurality of photoelectric conversion element groups; and a signal output section in the plurality of semiconductor substrates. The signal output section outputs a signal corresponding to an electric charge generated in each photoelectric conversion elements of a photoelectric conversion element group corresponding to a semiconductor substrate.
US08541719B2
According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a system for reducing peak power consumption in an electromechanically controlled cooking appliance is provided. The system comprises a surface heating unit comprising at least one duty cycle controlled surface heating element, a temperature controlled oven heating element, a controller configured to receive and process utility state signals indicative of the operating state of an associated utility, and a switch responsive to the controller, switchable between a first state and a second state for selectively coupling the oven heating element to a first relatively high voltage power supply and a second relatively low voltage power supply respectively. The controller is configured to switch the switch to the first and second states as a function of the utility state signal.
US08541716B2
A multiple heater control system includes cables, connectors, and junction boxes for user-friendly daisy chain connections of heater controllers and heaters in various configurations or combinations of individually controlled heater series and/or master and slave heater series. The heater controllers include process control of AC power to the heaters and upper-limit safety shutoff that is substantially independent from the process control. The heater controllers also have variable levels of control, adjustment, display, and communications functionality in a base module that is expandable to various levels with expansion modules that are attachable to and detachable from the base module. Connector, cable, and junction configurations, adapters, and latch features enhance user friendliness.
US08541712B2
An electrode for a contact start plasma arc torch includes an elongated electrode body formed of an electrically conductive material. The electrode body is movable relative to the torch. The electrode and torch can include a contact element having a first surface in electrical communication with the power contact and a second surface characterized by (i) physical contact with the electrode body during transferred arc mode and (ii) absence of physical contact with the electrode body during initiation of a pilot arc.
US08541708B2
A button switch includes a main body. The main body includes a switch member therein. The switch member has a start portion and a stop portion to connect with a start button and a stop button, respectively. The stop button has a first position and a second position. In a normal state, the stop button is located at the first position and doesn't drive the stop portion. When the stop button is at the second position, the stop button will drive the stop portion. Thus, the operator is enforced to press the stop button again and the stop button is returned to the first position to start the switch member, preventing the operator to press the start button unexpectedly to start the switch member.
US08541707B2
A keypad includes at least one push-button switch and a key to operate the switch along a translational axis. The geometric dispersions of the keypad are accounted for, to the lengthening of the travel of the key and to the enhancement of the tactile sensation when the key is pressed to operate the switch. The keypad includes a plunger, interposed between the key and the switch, of which a stiffness along the translational axis increases continuously with an increase in the compression of the plunger. A slight stiffness at the beginning of compression allows a long travel of the key, while a greater stiffness at the end of compression gives a good tactile sensation with an assured contact even when there are off-center pressures on the key.
US08541701B2
A switch for detecting a tilting operation is constructed easy to assemble. A tilt detecting section A is provided on an upper surface of an intermediate wall portion 12B of an upper case 12, a depression detecting section B is provided in a central position of an upper surface of a bottom wall portion 13B of a lower case 13, and a rotation detecting section C is provided around the depression detecting section. A top cover 11 is provided to cover an upper end of the upper case 12 to which the upper case 12 is engageably connected. The lower case 13 is engageably connected to the upper case 12.
US08541693B2
A wiring board includes a core substrate, a first laminated structure formed on a surface of the substrate and including conductive and insulation layers, and a second laminated structure formed on the opposite surface of the substrate and including conductive and insulation layers. The substrate has a connection conductor made of a plating. The insulation layers of the first laminated structure have connection conductors stacked one over another and made of platings. The insulation layers of the second laminated structure have connection conductors stacked one over another and made of platings. The connection conductors of the laminated structures are stacked on the connection conductor of the substrate. The connection conductors of the laminated structures include outer-layer connection conductors which have positions shifted in a substantially same direction from the position of the connection conductor of the substrate.
US08541685B2
There is provided a flexible harness adapted to be detachably connected to electrode pads of an electric/electronic component. The flexible harness according to the present invention comprises: a flexible insulator film; a conductor pattern formed on the flexible insulator film; a terminal plane which is an end region of the conductor pattern; and ball-like contact bumps formed on the terminal plane. Each contact bump includes a core made of an elastically deformable resin and an electrical conductor layer surrounding the core.
US08541681B2
A cable fixing member formed of one belt-like metal plate bent to fix three cables to a structure includes two flanges formed at both ends of the metal plate, two C-shaped holding portions formed to be bent into C-shapes in cross section on both sides respectively of a reference portion of the metal plate to hold two of the three cables in the C-shaped holding portions respectively, and two semicircular arc portions formed to be bent into semicircular arc shapes in cross section between the C-shaped holding portions and the flanges on both the sides respectively of the reference portion of the metal plate so that the two semicircular arc portions face each other to hold one of the three cables therebetween. The three cables are held so that the three cables are arranged to form a triangular shape in transverse cross sectional view.
US08541680B2
Photovoltaic module and methods for the manufacture of photovoltaic modules are described. Operative layers of the photovoltaic cell are deposited onto a superstrate having one or more of at least one peak allowing for electrical isolation of a portion of a photovoltaic module and at least one ramp creating a series connection between individual photovoltaic cells with minimal loss of the efficiency due to dead space between the cells.
US08541676B1
A method and computer based program which performs a series of steps for automatically and accurately determining each note played in a song for each instrument and vocal. The method and program can transcribe or create sheet music for each individual instrument, as well as provide the ability to remove any combination of or individual instruments or vocal track basically from nearly any existing song, or future songs.
US08541669B1
An inbred corn line, designated MXD03, the plants and seeds of the inbred corn line MXD03, methods for producing a corn plant, either inbred or hybrid, produced by crossing the inbred corn line MXD03 with itself or with another corn plant, and hybrid corn seeds and plants produced by crossing the inbred line MXD03 with another corn line or plant and to methods for producing a corn plant containing in its genetic material one or more transgenes and to the transgenic corn plants produced by that method. This invention also relates to inbred corn lines derived from inbred corn line MXD03, to methods for producing other inbred corn lines derived from inbred corn line MXD03 and to the inbred corn lines derived by the use of those methods.
US08541668B1
A novel maize variety designated PH1828 and seed, plants and plant parts thereof. Methods for producing a maize plant that comprise crossing maize variety PH1828 with another maize plant. Methods for producing a maize plant containing in its genetic material one or more traits introgressed into PH1828 through backcross conversion and/or transformation, and to the maize seed, plant and plant part produced thereby. Hybrid maize seed, plant or plant part produced by crossing the variety PH1828 or a locus conversion of PH1828 with another maize variety.
US08541667B1
A novel maize variety designated PH1C98 and seed, plants and plant parts thereof. Methods for producing a maize plant that comprise crossing maize variety PH1C98 with another maize plant. Methods for producing a maize plant containing in its genetic material one or more traits introgressed into PH1C98 through backcross conversion and/or transformation, and to the maize seed, plant and plant part produced thereby. Hybrid maize seed, plant or plant part produced by crossing the variety PH1C98 or a locus conversion of PH1C98 with another maize variety.
US08541663B1
A soybean cultivar designated S110146 is disclosed. The invention relates to the seeds of soybean cultivar S110146, to the plants of soybean cultivar S110146, to the plant parts of soybean cultivar S110146, and to methods for producing progeny of soybean cultivar S110146. The invention also relates to methods for producing a soybean plant containing in its genetic material one or more transgenes and to the transgenic soybean plants and plant parts produced by those methods. The invention also relates to soybean cultivars or breeding cultivars, and plant parts derived from soybean cultivar S110146. The invention also relates to methods for producing other soybean cultivars, lines, or plant parts derived from soybean cultivar S110146, and to the soybean plants, varieties, and their parts derived from use of those methods. The invention further relates to hybrid soybean seeds, plants, and plant parts produced by crossing cultivar S110146 with another soybean cultivar.
US08541661B2
A novel soybean variety, designated XB17M11 is provided. Also provided are the seeds of soybean variety XB17M11, cells from soybean variety XB17M11, plants of soybean XB17M11, and plant parts of soybean variety XB17M11. Methods provided include producing a soybean plant by crossing soybean variety XB17M11 with another soybean plant, methods for introgressing a transgenic trait, a mutant trait, and/or a native trait into soybean variety XB17M11, methods for producing other soybean varieties or plant parts derived from soybean variety XB17M11, and methods of characterizing soybean variety XB17M11. Soybean seed, cells, plants, germplasm, breeding lines, varieties, and plant parts produced by these methods and/or derived from soybean variety XB17M11 are further provided.
US08541653B2
The present invention relates to improved methods for the incorporation of DNA into the genome of a soybean (Glycine max) plant utilizing meristematic cells of primary or higher leaf nodes as target tissue by means of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation and subsequent regeneration of the transformed cells into a whole plant.
US08541639B2
A process for producing a PX-rich product, the process comprising: (a) providing a PX-depleted stream; (b) isomerizing at least a portion of the PX-depleted stream to produce an isomerized stream having a PX concentration greater than the PX-depleted stream and a benzene concentration of less than 1,000 ppm and a C9+ hydrocarbons concentration of less than 5,000 ppm; and (c) separating the isomerized stream by selective adsorption.
US08541638B2
Disclosed herein are processes in which precipitation permits removal of metal halides (e.g. AlCl3) from ionic liquids. After precipitation, the precipitated metal halides can be physically separated from the bulk ionic liquid. More effective precipitation can be achieved through cooling or the combination of cooling and the provision of metal halide seed crystals. The ionic liquids can be regenerated ionic liquid catalysts, which contain excess metal halides after regeneration. Upon removal of the excess metal halides, they can be reused in processes using ionic liquid catalysts, such as alkylation processes.
US08541637B2
A system and method for converting biomass into fluid hydrocarbon products to minimize the use of fossil fuels, provide energy and chemical feedstock security, and sustainable and/or carbon neutral electric power, are disclosed. For example, fast pyrolysis can be performed on biomass to produce pygas and char using a maximum processing temperature of about 650° C. The pygas is provided to an independent reactor without the addition of an oxidizing agent for catalytically converting the pygas to hydrocarbons using a maximum processing temperature of about 650° C. A system comprising fast pyrolysis means producing a pygas and char, independent catalytic conversion means downstream of the fast pyrolysis for converting the pygas to hydrocarbons, and a hydrogen source, external to the system and/or produced by a steam reformer by steam reformation of at least a portion of the hydrocarbons, coupled to catalytic conversion means, also are described.
US08541635B2
Fuel compositions containing a hydrocarbon blend having a cetane number of at least 62, a kinematic viscosity at 40° C. of greater than 3.0 cSt and a density at 15° C. of greater than 830 kg/m3 is disclosed. The Wear Scar value of the fuel composition is below 350 microns as determined by CEC-F-06-A-96 and/or contains (b) a paraffinic fuel boiling in the gas oil range comprising more than 90 wt % paraffins and having a cetane number of between 70 and 85 in combination with (a) a mineral derived gas oil having a density at 15° C. of between 800 and 860 kg/m3 and a kinematic viscosity at 40° C. of between 1.5 and 15 cSt (mm2/s) and/or (c) a naphthenic rich blending component boiling in the gas oil range having a density at 15° C. of greater than 860 kg/m3 and having a pour point of below −30° C.
US08541634B2
Disclosed are azeotropic and azeotrope-like mixtures of (Z)-1-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoropropene (1233zd(Z)) and hydrogen fluoride. Such compositions are useful as an intermediate in the production of 1233zd(Z). The latter compound is useful as a nontoxic, zero ozone depleting fluorocarbon useful as a solvent, blowing agent, refrigerant, cleaning agent, aerosol propellant, heat transfer medium, dielectric, fire extinguishing composition and power cycle working fluid.
US08541632B2
A process and apparatus for producing chlorohydrin comprising reacting a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon-containing stream with a stream of a first effluent exiting from a hydrochlorination reactor in at least one vessel wherein the vessel exhibits a plug flow residence time characteristic, under conditions such that at least a portion of any unreacted HCl component present in the first effluent is reacted with the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon present in the multihydroxylated aliphatic hydrogen-containing stream to from an amount of monochlorohydrin in a stream of a second effluent exiting from the plug flow vessel; recovering said second effluent; and then optionally using the second effluent from the plug flow reactor in a subsequent processing operation.
US08541631B2
A solid material is subjected to surface treatment by chemically bonding onto a surface of the solid material a stabilized monofunctional silanol represented by R1R2R3SiOH. R1, R2 and R3 may be the same or different, and each represent a substituent group independently selected from a substituted or unsubstituted, monovalent hydrocarbon group having from 1 to 40 carbon atoms or a substituted or unsubstituted, monovalent heterocyclic group having from 1 to 100 carbon atoms. The monofunctional silanol has a dehydrative self-condensation rate lower than triethylsilanol.
US08541625B2
Cyclic alkynes (e.g., cyclooctynes such as dibenzocyclooctynes) can be photochemically generated from cyclopropenones as disclosed herein. The cyclic alkynes can be reacted (e.g., in situ) with materials having alkyne-reactive groups (e.g., azide groups in a “click” reaction). In preferred embodiments, the generation and reaction of the cyclic alkyne can proceed in the absence of a catalyst (e.g., Cu(I)). These reactions can be useful, for example, for the selective labeling of living cells that are metabolically modified with azido-containing surface monosaccharides, or for light-directed surface patterning.
US08541618B2
This invention relates to novel indane acetic acid derivatives which are useful in the treatment of diseases such as diabetes, obesity, hyperlipidemia, and atherosclerotic diseases. The invention also relates to intermediates useful in preparation of indane acetic derivatives and to methods of preparation.
US08541614B2
The present invention is directed to a novel process for the preparation of (4-chloro-phenyl)-(3-trifluoromethyl-phenoxy)-acetic acid 2-acetylamino-ethyl ester, useful in the treatment of metabolic disorders and further to a process for the preparation of (4-chloro-phenyl)-(3-trifluoromethyl-phenoxy)-acetic acid, a synthesis intermediate.
US08541610B2
This invention relates to the preparation of a partially quaternized ammonium organosilane composition, and a self-stabilizing aqueous solution of said composition, which serves to yield an antimicrobial polysilsesquioxane coating upon thermal curing. By way of this invention, an aqueous solution is prepared, comprised in part by a partially quaternized ammonium organosilane hydrolysate, characterized in that no further manipulation or addition of potentially costly ingredients are required to yield a stable and hence marketable product.
US08541603B2
Therapeutic compounds, methods, and compositions are disclosed herein for treating glaucoma and baldness in mammals. The specific compounds are described herein and are modified prostaglandin derivates.
US08541599B2
Universal linkers, their facile processes of manufacture and methods of using the same are provided.
US08541585B2
The present invention provides compounds which show high effectiveness against positive symptoms, negative symptoms and cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia and reduce conventional side-effect risks as well as have remarkable effects for central neurological diseases associated with cognitive dysfunction other than schizophrenia. N-Acyl cyclic amine derivatives of formula (1): wherein Ar1 and Ar2 are aryl or heteroaryl; V is nitrogen, or CR3; W1 is a single bond, —C(O)—, etc.; W2 is C1-alkylene; W3 is a single bond, methylene, —NH—, —CR4═CR5—, etc.; Ring Q is a group of formula (a) in which n is 0 or 1; m is 0 to 2; k is 1 to 3; Z is a single bond, methylene, oxygen, etc.; R1a, R1b and R1c are each, same or different, hydrogen, hydroxyl, halogen, cyano, C1-6 alkyl, etc.; or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof are provided.
US08541583B2
The invention relates to novel perylenetetracarboxylic acid bisimide derivatives with improved performance properties.
US08541569B2
The present invention provides building blocks and methods for synthesizing very pure RNA in a form that can efficiently be modified at the 3′ end. Reverse RNA monomer phosphoramidites have been developed for RNA synthesis in 5′→3′ direction, leading to very clean oligo synthesis that allows for the introduction of various modifications at the 3′-end cleanly and efficiently. Higher coupling efficiency per step have been observed during automated oligo synthesis with the reverse RNA amidites disclosed herein, resulting in a greater ability to achieve higher purity and produce very long oligonucleotides. The use of the reverse RNA phosphoramidites in the synthetic process of this invention leads to oligonucleotides free of N+1 species.
US08541566B2
The invention provides promoters inducible by reactive oxygen species (ROS), capable of driving the expression of a gene of interest, particularly in a tumor cell. More particularly, it refers to promoters inducible by reactive oxygen species, that may be used to drive the expression of a gene of interest, such as a therapeutic gene, or a reporter gene for use in image diagnosis. The promoters comprise at least a fragment of a promoter sequence responsive to said reactive oxygen species, and corresponding to a gene highly expressed in cancer cells, wherein the fragment of the promoter sequence responsive to reactive oxygen species (ROS) is selected from the group of: the VE element of the VEGF promoter, the E6 element of the promoter of the EGR-1 gene, the MMP-1 element and a chimeric promoter containing an E6 element and a VE element. It also provides vectors carrying a human therapeutic or non therapeutic gene of interest, operably linked to said promoter sequence and compositions comprising the same.
US08541564B2
This application is directed to chemokine-immunoglobulin fusion polypeptides and chemokine-polymer conjugates. The fusion polypeptides and conjugates can be used for treating chemokine receptor-mediated disorders and modulating inflammation, inflammatory cell motility, cancer cell motility, or cancer cell survival.
US08541553B2
The present invention provides antibodies, or fragments thereof, for isolating and/or identifying epitopes of an endogenous retrovirus, preferably of a melanoma associated endogenous retrovirus, and hybridoma cells producing said antibodies. The antibodies are useful especially for the treatment and diagnosis of cancer. Further, the present application covers diagnostic kits for the detection of cancer cells, especially of melanoma cells and methods for cancer diagnosis using said antibodies.
US08541550B2
Methods and compositions for delivering polynucleotides are provided. One embodiment provides a non-viral vector comprising a recombinant polynucleotide-binding protein comprising a protein transduction domain operably linked to a targeting signal. Methods for modifying the genome of non-nuclear organelles are also provided.
US08541548B2
The present invention is directed compounds for reversibly modification of biologically active molecules. Described are polyconjugates systems that incorporate targeting, anti-opsonization, anti-aggregation, and transfection activities into small biocompatible in vivo delivery conjugates. The use of reversible modification provides for physiologically responsive activity modulation.
US08541545B2
Compositions and methods are disclosed for a non-naturally occurring melanocortin ligand comprised of a melanocortin analog coupled to a degradation-resistant C-terminal extension and, optionally, an N-terminal extension, to produce a stable melanocortin ligand having diminished or abolished cardiovascular activity while retaining desired melanocortin regulatory activity.
US08541542B2
The present invention relates to a process for reducing residuals content in a vinyl aromatic polymer, said residuals comprising essentially unpolymerized vinyl aromatic monomer, wherein the vinyl aromatic polymer in the molten state is brought in contact with a solid in powder capable to catalyze the alkylation of said residual vinyl aromatic monomer on the vinyl aromatic polymer. Advantage of the present invention is a sharp reduction of the unpolymerized vinyl aromatic monomer in the vinyl aromatic polymer without generating a new residual and without inducing a colored vinyl aromatic polymer. The present invention also relates to said vinyl aromatic polymer having a low residuals content.
US08541541B2
The invention relates to the synthesis of polythiophene (PAT) copolymers, and their use as conductive polymers in final applications. Specifically, copolymers of PAT with (meth)acrylates, or amides are useful as additives in blends of different polymer matrices in many commercial applications.
US08541539B2
A method for preparing a water-soluble polyamide, includes copolymerizing reactive monomers including caprolactam; ethylene glycol bis(2-aminoethyl)ether or ethylene glycol bis(3-aminopropyl)ether; and 5-sulfoisophthalic acid monosodium salt, wherein a molar ratio of caprolactam:ethylene glycol bis(2-aminoethyl)ether or ethylene glycol bis(3 -aminopropyl)ether:5-sulfoisophthalic acid monosodium salt is about 0:1:1 to about 5:1:1, advantageously about 1.85:1:1. Copolymerizing takes place at a copolymerization temperature of about 222-250° C. and a copolymerization pressure of about 3 Bar. The method further includes maintaining a temperature of about 222-250° C. for about 2-3 hours under normal pressure after the copolymerization step. The water-soluble polyamide has a solubility in water of about 10-70%.
US08541538B2
An adsorbent for the removal of blood cells, which is formed from a hydrophobic polymer resin and has a surface center line average roughness of 5 to 100 nm. The hydrophobic polymer resin is preferably a polyarylate resin (PAR), polyethersulfone resin (PES), polysulfone resin (PSF), or a polymer alloy consisting of two or more of these resins. The adsorbent for the removal of blood cells can take the form of beads, hollow fibers, or solid fibers.
US08541532B2
A siloxane compound comprising a structure unit formed by connecting at least one organic skeleton having an imido bond to a silicon atom forming a siloxane bond, wherein the silane compound is defined by the following average formula: XaYbZcSiOd. X denotes groups including an organic skeleton having an imido bond, represented by formula (1) in the specification; Z denotes an organic groups having no imido bond; Y denotes at least one of hydrogen, hydroxyl, halogen, and OR; R denotes at least one of alkyl, acyl, aryl, and unsaturated aliphatic residual groups and may have a substituent; a is ≦3 and >0; b is 0≦3; c is 0≦3; d is ≦2 and >0; and a+b+c+2d=4, R1 denotes at least one from aromatic, heterocyclic, and alicyclic rings; x and z independently ≧0 and ≦5; and y is 0 or 1.
US08541516B2
Phosphorus-containing compounds useful for flame retardant epoxy resins are disclosed. The flame retardant epoxy resins may be used to make electrical laminates. This invention is particularly useful in end use applications in which a low bromine or low halogen content is required or desired.
US08541507B2
The present invention relates to a high flow polypropylene composition comprising (A) a low molecular weight propylene homopolymer fraction and (B) a high molecular weight propylene copolymer fraction, having a comonomer content of not higher than 8 wt %, wherein the ratio between the MFR2 of fraction (A) and the MFR2 of fraction (B) is at least 3 and wherein the MFR2 of the entire composition is at least 5 g/10 min, the values of MFR2 being measured according to ISO 1133 (230° C., 2.16 kg load), and to processes for producing such compositions and to articles made there from.
US08541504B2
Provided in this invention is an impact absorber composition comprising a copolymer containing an aromatic vinyl compound, wherein the peak of tan δ of the copolymer obtained from the measurement of the dynamic viscoelasticity is in the range of more than 0° C. to 20° C. or less, the value of tan δ is 0.4 or more in the whole temperature range of 5° C. to 15° C., and the value of tan δ at 15° C. is 0.5 or more.
US08541502B2
A polyolefin compound including: A) at least one thermoplastic olefin copolymer including the reaction product of olefin 1 and olefin 2, wherein: olefin 1 is a C2 based olefin and olefin 2 is a C3 to C8 α-olefin or olefin 1 is a C3 based olefin and olefin 2 is a C4 to C8 α-olefin; B) at least one functional polymer, the functional polymer content in the polyolefin compound being between 1 and 75 weight percent of the combined components A and B; wherein the thermoplastic olefin copolymer and the functional polymer form a co-continuous phase; wherein: a) an 12 melt index of the polyolefin compound is from about 1 to about 15 as measured using ASTM D 1238; b) a Shore A hardness of the polyolefin compound is from about 55 to about 100 as measured using ASTM D2240; c) a flexural modulus of the polyolefin compound is from about 0.8 to about 30 kpsi as measured using ASTM D790.
US08541498B2
Substrates may be coated with copolymers of N-vinyl pyrrolidinone and aryl ketones. Processes are described for making the copolymers at high molecular weight with the ketones randomly dispersed on the copolymer.
US08541494B2
The present invention relates to composites comprising inorganic micro pigments and/or fillers in the form of surface-phosphated microparticles, whose surface is at least partially coated with finely divided with alkaline earth carbonate nanoparticles by means of binders based on copolymers comprising as the monomers one or more dicarboxylic acids and one or more monomers from the group of diamines, triamines, dialkanolamines or trialkanolamines and epichlorohydrin, a method for producing such composites, aqueous slurries thereof and the use thereof in papermaking or in the field of production of paints and plastics as well as the use of the binders for the coating of microparticles with nano alkaline earth carbonate.
US08541490B2
A process for producing an aliphatic polyester resin composition, wherein an aliphatic polyester resin is melt-kneaded with a phosphoric acid ester having a reduced moisture content of 1.5 wt. % or less. As a result, an aliphatic polyester resin composition having an improved moisture resistance is provided.
US08541487B2
A solid composite material is suitable for construction and industrial uses. The solid composite material consists of at least an effective amount of assorted agricultural remnants with additives of calcium carbonate and antimony trioxide bound in an effective volume of cured resin. The cured material tolerates wet environments, is fire resistant, resistant to caustic substances and can be finished to provide a product having a desired appearance.
US08541481B2
Electron beam and gamma radiation crosslinked, silicone gel adhesives are described. Both nonfunctional and functional poly diorganosiloxanes are used. Methods of forming the adhesives, and medical articles incorporating such adhesives are also described.
US08541471B2
Compounds and pharmaceutical compositions for use in the treatment and/or prophylaxis of cartilage and/or bone conditions and for methods of treating such condition. The compounds are salts of strontium that have a water-solubility of from about 1 g/l to about 100 g/l at room temperature, especially amino acid salts of strontium or dicarboxylic acid salts of strontium. Examples of novel water-soluble strontium salts are e.g. strontium glutamate and strontium alpha-ketoglutarate. The present invention also relates to an improved method for preparing the strontium salt of glutamic acid.
US08541461B2
The invention provides a combination comprising an ancillary compound (e.g. one, two or more ancillary compounds) and a compound of the formula (I) having protein kinase B inhibiting activity: wherein A is a saturated hydrocarbon linker group containing from 1 to 7 carbon atoms, the linker group having a maximum chain length of 5 atoms extending between R1 and NR2R3 and a maximum chain length of 4 atoms extending between E and NR2R3, wherein one of the carbon atoms in the linker group may optionally be replaced by an oxygen or nitrogen atom; and wherein the carbon atoms of the linker group A may optionally bear one or more substituents selected from oxo, fluorine and hydroxy, provided that the hydroxy group when present is not located at a carbon atom α with respect to the NR2R3 group and provided that the oxo group when present is located at a carbon atom α with respect to the NR2R3 group; E is a monocyclic or bicyclic carbocyclic or heterocyclic group; R1 is an aryl or heteroaryl group; and R2, R3, R4 and R5 are as defined in the claims. Also provided are patient packs, pharmaceutical kits and packs and compositions containing the combinations, methods for preparing the combinations and their use in combination therapy as anticancer agents.
US08541458B2
This invention provides compounds having the structure which may be used for the treatment of tumors.
US08541448B2
The present disclosure is directed to compounds and methods for the treatment of disorders associated with fluid retention or salt overload, such as heart failure (in particular, congestive heart failure), chronic kidney disease, end-stage renal disease, liver disease, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma agonist-induced fluid retention. The present disclosure is also directed to compounds and methods for the treatment of hypertension. The present disclosure is also directed to compounds and methods for the treatment of gastrointestinal tract disorders, including the treatment or reduction of pain associated with gastrointestinal tract disorders.
US08541446B2
The present invention relates to (2S,3R)—N-(2-((3-pyridinyl)methyl)-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]oct-3-yl)benzofuran-2-carboxamide, novel salt forms thereof, methods for its preparation, novel intermediates, and methods for treating a wide variety of conditions and disorders, including those associated with dysfunction of the central and autonomic nervous systems.
US08541444B2
Novel compounds are provided which are 11-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type I inhibitors. 11-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type I inhibitors are useful in treating, preventing, or slowing the progression of diseases requiring 11-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type I inhibitor therapy. These novel compounds of formula I: or stereoisomers or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, wherein G, Q, X, Y, R3, R3a, and R3b are defined herein.
US08541437B2
The invention relates to antagonists of serotonin 5-HT6 receptors simultaneously regulating homeostasis of Ca+2 ions in cells, representing substituted 2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-pyrido[4,3-b]indoles of the general formula 1, pharmaceutically acceptable salts and/or hydrate thereof. In the general formula 1: R1 represents amino group substituent selected from optionally substituted C1-C5 alkyl; R2i is one or more substituents selected from hydrogen, halogen, C1-C3 alkyl, CF3, OCF3; Ar is phenyl optionally substituted with halogen, C1-C6 alkyl, C1-C6 alkoxy, substituted amino group, or CF3; or optionally substituted aromatic 6-membered heterocycle comprising 1-2 nitrogen atoms in the cycle; W represents ethylene group —CH2—CH2—, ethenyl group —CH═CH—, or ethynyl group —C≡C—. The invention also relates to the novel compounds selected from the compounds of the general formula 1, methods for their preparation, pharmaceutical compositions and methods of their use.
US08541428B2
The present invention relates to novel quinoxaline, quinazoline and phthalazine derivatives as well as multimeric derivatives, methods for their preparation, pharmaceutical compositions including such compounds, and methods of using these compounds for the treatment and prevention of brain damage resulting from brain injury, especially secondary brain damage due to traumatic brain injury (TBI). The compounds of the invention are also useful in treating and preventing neurodegenerative diseases.
US08541413B2
This invention provides for biocompatible, biodegradable eye drop pharmaceutical formulations useful for the treatment of ocular indications. In particular, tocopherols and their esters of low water solubility, notably α-tocopheryl acetate, are exceptional vehicles for biocompatible, nonirritating topical eye drop formulations that provide sustained release of active agents.
US08541410B2
The present invention relates to compounds of the formula I wherein A1, A2, R1, R2, R3, X and n are as defined in the claims, which are valuable pharmaceutically active compounds for the therapy and prophylaxis of diseases, for example of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, angina pectoris, cardiac insufficiency, thromboses or atherosclerosis. The compounds of the formula I are capable of modulating the body's production of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) and are generally suitable for the therapy and prophylaxis of diseases which are associated with a disturbed cGMP balance. The invention furthermore relates to processes for preparing compounds of the formula I, to their use for the therapy and prophylaxis of the abovementioned diseases and for preparing pharmaceuticals for this purpose, and to pharmaceutical preparations which comprise compounds of the formula I.
US08541408B2
This invention provides a compound of the formula (I): wherein the ring A is an optionally substituted carbocyclic group or an optionally substituted heterocyclic group; R1 is optionally substituted lower alkyl, optionally substituted lower alkenyl, optionally substituted lower alkynyl; R2a and R2b are each independently hydrogen, optionally substituted lower alkyl or optionally substituted acyl; R3a, R3b, R3c and R3d are each independently hydrogen, halogen, hydroxy or optionally substituted lower alkyl etc.; a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or solvate thereof, which is useful for treating diseases induced by production, secretion and/or deposition of amyloid β protein.
US08541406B2
This invention provides specifically substituted 1,2,4-thiadiazole derivatives for use in the treatment of an α-synucleopathy such as Parkinson's disease, diffuse Lewy body disease, traumatic brain injury, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Niemann-Pick disease, Hallervorden-Spatz syndrome, Down syndrome, neuroaxonal dystrophy, multiple system atrophy and Alzheimer's disease. This invention also provides various methods for producing such substituted 1,2,4-thiadiazole derivatives.
US08541404B2
The invention provides compounds of the general formula (I) which are inhibitors of the human aldosterone synthase, and also pharmaceutical compositions containing these compounds, and a method of treating of hyperaldosteronism and/or disorders or diseases that are mediated by 11β-hydroxylase (CYP11B1) with these compounds.
US08541370B2
The present invention relates to the use of matrix metalloproteinase MMP-10 in the preparation of a pharmaceutical composition useful for thrombolytic therapy, it also being possible for said composition to contain a plasminogen activator. Additionally, the present invention relates to said pharmaceutical composition for the treatment of thrombotic disorders.
US08541369B2
This present invention relates to pharmacologically potent and/or stable variants of human fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), pharmaceutical compositions comprising FGF21 variants, and methods for treating type 2 diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, or metabolic syndrome, or any combination thereof, using such variants.
US08541368B2
The present invention relates to novel glucagon peptides, to the use of said glucagon peptides in therapy, to methods of treatment comprising administration of said glucagon peptides to patients in need thereof, and to the use of said glucagon peptides in the manufacture of medicaments. The glucagon peptides of the present invention are of particular interest in relation to the treatment of hyperglycemia, diabetes and obesity, as well as a variety of diseases or conditions associated with hyperglycemia, diabetes and obesity.
US08541366B2
Compositions and methods for conferring pesticidal activity to bacteria, plants, plant cells, tissues and seeds are provided. Compositions comprising a coding sequence for a delta-endotoxin polypeptide are provided, particularly synthetically-derived coding sequences. The coding sequences can be used in DNA constructs or expression cassettes for transformation and expression in plants and bacteria. Compositions also comprise transformed bacteria, plants, plant cells, tissues, and seeds. In particular, isolated delta-endotoxin nucleic acid molecules are provided. Additionally, amino acid sequences corresponding to the polynucleotides are encompassed, and antibodies specifically binding to those amino acid sequences. In particular, the present invention provides for isolated nucleic acid molecules comprising nucleotide sequences encoding the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:9, 11, 13, 15, or 18, or the nucleotide sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO:1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, or 17, as well as variants and fragments thereof.
US08541354B2
A solid laundry detergent composition having multiple catalysts and water-soluble electrolyte, wherein the ratio of (i) the total reduction in activation energy in kilojoules per mole achieved by the catalysts to (ii) the electrolytic strength of the laundry detergent composition at a concentration of 1 g/l in de-ionized water and at a temperature of 25° C. in mScm−1 laundry detergent composition is at least 300.
US08541345B2
The invention includes compositions comprising a S. cerevisiae yeast library, and methods of identifying an epigenetic marker for the diagnosis of infertility or a disorder associated with gametogenesis in an individual.
US08541339B2
A reversible thermosensitive recording medium including: reversible thermosensitive recording layer; first sheet-shaped base; second sheet-shaped base; first resin layer; second resin layer; and electronic information recording module containing module substrate, and electronic information recording element and antenna circuit disposed on the substrate, wherein the recording layer is provided adjacent to the first sheet-shaped base; the first or second sheet-shaped base has concave portion in which the element is disposed in depth direction thereof; the module is provided between the first and second sheet-shaped bases, where the first resin layer is provided between the module and the sheet-shaped base having the concave portion and the second resin layer is provided between the module and the sheet-shaped base having no concave portion; and inner side surface of the concave portion is tapered surface where maximum opening diameter of the concave portion decreases from opening edge thereof towards bottom surface thereof.
US08541336B2
A tin-carbon compound that is a reaction product of tin and carbon, wherein the tin and the carbon form a single phase material that is meltable. The compound is one in which the carbon does not phase separate from the tin when the single phase material is heated to a melting temperature.
US08541330B2
The method of making a transparent ceramic includes making a molded body from a powder mixture of starting materials, which include one or more sintering aids. The sintering aids can include SiO2, TiO2, ZrO2, HfO2, Al2O3 and/or fluorides. The transparent ceramic is made by pre-sintering the molded body at temperatures between 500° C. to 900° C., subsequently sintering in vacuum at temperatures between 1400° C. and 1900° C. and then pressurizing the sintered molded body at a pressure of from 10 to 198 MPa followed by annealing. The optoceramic material contains crystals with a stoichiometry of A2+XBYBYDZE7, wherein −1.15≦x≦+1.1, 0≦y≦3, 0≦z≦1.6 and 3x+4y+5z=8; and wherein A is a trivalent rare earth cation, B is a tetravalent cation, D is a pentavalent cation and E is a divalent anion.
US08541325B2
In one embodiment the present disclosure is directed to a silica-titania glass with an internal transmission of >90%/cm at wavelengths from 340 nm to 840 nm. In another embodiment the internal transmission is >93%/cm at wavelengths from 340 nm to 840 nm. In a further embodiment the internal transmission is >95%/cm at wavelengths from 340 nm to 840 nm. In another embodiment the disclosure is directed to a silica-titania glass with an overall transmission through an optic made of the glass is >84% at wavelengths from 340 nm to 840 nm. In another embodiment overall transmission through an optic made of the glass is >86% at wavelengths from 340 nm to 840 nm. In a further embodiment the overall transmission through an optic made of the glass is >88% at wavelengths from 330 nm to 840 nm. In a further embodiment the silica-titania glass has a Ti+3 concentration level [Ti3+] less than 3 ppm by weight.
US08541324B2
IR-transmitting alkaline earth selenogallo- and/or selenoindo-germanate glasses that are capable of hosting luminescent rare earth dopants. The relatively high Ga and/or In content of most compositions serves to eliminate the typical clustering tendency of rare earth dopants in chalcogenide glasses, resulting in improved luminescence.
US08541323B2
A splittable conjugate fiber comprising a polyester segment and a polyolefin segment, wherein the splittable conjugate fiber comprises two or more parts of the polyester segment extending from a center of the fiber toward an outer edge of the fiber in a cross-sectional configuration perpendicular to its longitudinal direction, in which at least one of the two or more parts of the polyester segment extending from the center of the fiber toward the outer edge of the fiber is exposed at the outer edge of the fiber and at least one of the two or more parts of the polyester segment extending from the center of the fiber toward the outer edge of the fiber is unexposed at the outer edge of the fiber.
US08541308B2
A polishing method and a method for forming a gate are provided. The method includes forming a dummy gate on a semiconductor substrate including a sacrificial oxide layer and a polysilicon layer which covers the sacrificial oxide layer, forming spacers around the dummy gate, and successively forming a silicon nitride layer and a dielectric layer covering the silicon nitride layer. The method further includes polishing the dielectric layer until the silicon nitride layer is exposed, polishing the silicon nitride layer on a fixed abrasive pad until the polysilicon layer is exposed by using a polishing slurry with a PH value ranging from 10.5 to 11 and comprising an anionic surfactant or a zwitterionic surfactant. Additionally, the method includes forming an opening after removing the dummy gate, and forming a gate in the opening. The method eliminates potential erosion and dishing caused in the polishing of the silicon nitride layer.
US08541305B2
The present invention provides a 3D integrated circuit and a manufacturing method thereof. The circuit structure comprises: a semiconductor substrate; at least one semiconductor device formed on the upper surface of the semiconductor substrate; a through-Si-via through the semiconductor substrate and comprising an insulating layer covering sidewalls of the through-Si-via and conductive material filled in the insulating layer; an interconnection structure connecting the at least one semiconductor device and the through-Si-via; and a diffusion trapping region formed on the lower surface of the semiconductor substrate. The present invention is applicable in manufacture of the 3D integrated circuit.
US08541295B2
A non-planar semiconductor device is provided including at least one semiconductor nanowire suspended above a semiconductor oxide layer present within a portion of a bulk semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor oxide layer has a topmost surface that is coplanar with a topmost surface of the bulk semiconductor substrate. A gate surrounds a portion of the at least one suspended semiconductor nanowire, a source region located on a first side of the gate, and a drain region located on a second side of the gate. The source region is in direct contact with an exposed end portion of the at least one suspended semiconductor nanowire, and the drain region is in direct contact with another exposed end portion of the at least one suspended semiconductor nanowire. The source and drain regions have an epitaxial relationship with the exposed end portions of the suspended semiconductor nanowire.
US08541293B2
A method of controlled lateral etching is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method may comprise: forming on a first material layer, which comprises a protruding structure, a second material layer; forming spacers on outer surfaces of the second material layer opposite to vertical surfaces of the protruding structure; forming a third material layer on surfaces of the second material layer and the spacers; forming on the third material layer a mask layer which extends in a direction lateral to a surface of the first material layer; and laterally etching portions of the respective layers arranged on the vertical surfaces of the protruding structure.
US08541290B2
A method of fabricating a device by providing an auxiliary substrate having a metal nitride layer disposed thereon where the nitride layer has a nitrogen face and an opposite face and a dislocation density that is less than about 106, with the nitrogen face of the nitride layer facing the auxiliary substrate; depositing at least one epitaxial nitride layer on the exposed opposite face of the nitride layer of the structure; depositing a further metal layer over at least a portion of the epitaxial nitride layer(s); bonding a final substrate on the deposited metal layer; and removing the auxiliary substrate to form the device from the final substrate and deposited layers. Preferably, the device that is formed includes a LED or laser.
US08541285B2
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a semiconductor memory device including: a semiconductor substrate having: first device regions divided by first isolation films and second device regions divided by second isolation films a gate insulating film formed on the semiconductor substrate; a first element including: a first gate formed on the gate insulating film in the first device regions, a first inter-electrode insulating film formed on the first gate and on the first isolation films, and a second gate formed on the first inter-electrode insulating film; and a second element including: a third gate formed on the gate insulating film in the second device regions, and a fourth gate formed on the third gate and on the second isolation films; wherein a thickness of the third gate is larger than a thickness of the first gate.
US08541281B1
A method disclosed herein includes forming sacrificial gate structures for a PFET and NFET transistor, removing the sacrificial gate structures and forming a replacement P-type gate structure for the PFET transistor and a replacement N-type gate structure for the NFET transistor, forming P-contact openings and N-contact openings in at least one layer of insulating material, wherein the P-contact openings expose portions of a P-active region and the N-contact openings expose portions of an N-active region, forming a masking layer that covers the exposed portions of the N-active region, performing an etching process though the P-contact openings in the layer of insulating material to define source/drain cavities in the P-active region proximate the replacement gate structure of the PFET transistor, and performing an epitaxial deposition process through the P-contact openings to form source/drain regions comprised of a semiconducting material in at least the source/drain cavities of the PFET transistor.
US08541279B2
By covering ends of a field insulating film in a region where a MOS transistor having a relatively thin gate insulating film is formed with a relatively thick gate insulating film, a channel region of the MOS transistor having the relatively thin gate insulating film is set apart from an inversion-preventing diffusion layer formed under the field insulating film so as not to be influenced by film thickness fluctuation of the field insulating film, etching fluctuation of the relatively thick gate insulating film, and impurity concentration fluctuation at both sides of the channel due to the inversion-preventing diffusion layer.
US08541275B2
A method for forming a complementary metal oxide semiconductor device includes forming a first capping layer on a dielectric layer, blocking portions in the capping layer in regions where the capping layer is to be preserved using a block mask. Exposed portions of the first capping layer are intermixed with the dielectric layer to form a first intermixed layer. The block mask is removed. The first capping layer and the first intermixed layer are etched such that the first capping layer is removed to re-expose the dielectric layer in regions without removing the first intermixed layer.
US08541274B1
In one example, the method disclosed herein includes forming a fin comprised of a semiconducting material, wherein the fin has a first, as-formed cross-sectional configuration, forming a sacrificial gate structure above the fin, forming sidewall spacers adjacent at least a portion of the sacrificial gate structure and removing the sacrificial gate structure to thereby define a gate cavity that exposes a portion of the fin. The method also includes the steps of performing a fin reflow process on the exposed portions of the fin to define a nanowire structure having a cross-sectional configuration that is different from the first cross-sectional configuration and forming a replacement gate structure in the gate cavity and at least partially around the nanowire structure.
US08541272B2
A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device with NMOS and PMOS transistors is provided. The semiconductor device can lessen a short channel effect, can reduce gate-drain current leakage, and can reduce parasitic capacitance due to gate overlaps, thereby inhibiting a reduction in the operating speed of circuits. An N-type impurity such as arsenic is ion implanted to a relatively low concentration in the surface of a silicon substrate (1) in a low-voltage NMOS region (LNR) thereby to form extension layers (61). Then, a silicon oxide film (OX2) is formed to cover the whole surface of the silicon substrate (1). The silicon oxide film (OX2) on the side surfaces of gate electrodes (51-54) is used as an offset sidewall. Then, boron is ion implanted to a relatively low concentration in the surface of the silicon substrate (1) in a low-voltage PMOS region (LPR) thereby to form P-type impurity layers (621) later to be extension layers (62).
US08541271B1
Various aspects of the technology provide a dual semiconductor power and/or switching FET device to replace two or more discrete FET devices. Portions of the current may be distributed in parallel to sections of the source and drain fingers to maintain a low current density and reduce the size while increasing the overall current handling capabilities of the dual FET. Application of the gate signal to both ends of gate fingers, for example, using a serpentine arrangement of the gate fingers and gate pads, simplifies layout of the dual FET device. A single integral ohmic metal finger including both source functions and drain functions reduces conductors and contacts for connecting the two devices at a source-drain node. Heat developed in the source, drain, and gate fingers may be conducted through the vias to the electrodes and out of the device.
US08541269B2
A method for fabricating a native device is presented. The method includes forming a gate structure over a substrate starting at an outer edge of an inner marker region, where the gate structure extends in a longitudinal direction, and performing MDD implants, where each implant is performed using a different orientation with respect to the gate structure, performing pocket implants, where each implant is performed using a different orientation with respect to the gate structure, and concentrations of the pocket implants vary based upon the orientations. A transistor fabricated as a native device, is presented, which includes an inner marker region, an active outer region which surrounds the inner marker region, a gate structure coupled to the inner marker region, and first and second source/drain implants located within the active outer region and interposed between the first source/drain implant and the second source/drain implant.
US08541268B2
A thin film transistor and a method for manufacturing the same are provided. A top-gate thin film transistor is fabricated by a process using two gray-tone photomasks and a lift-off method. Therefore, the method can save cost of photomasks and processes comparing to a conventional fabrication method.
US08541267B2
The present invention relates to a method for fabricating a FinFET on a substrate. The method comprises providing a substrate with an active semiconductor layer on an insulator layer, and concurrently fabricating trench isolation regions in the active semiconductor layer for electrically isolating different active regions in the active semiconductor layer from each other, and trench gate-isolation regions in the active semiconductor layer for electrically isolating at least one gate region of the FinFET in the active semiconductor layer from a fin-shaped channel region of the FinFET in the active semiconductor layer.
US08541266B2
In a method for manufacturing a transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer, a gate electrode is formed and then an aluminum oxide film, a silicon oxide film, and the oxide semiconductor film are successively formed in an in-line apparatus without being exposed to the air and are subjected to heating and oxygen adding treatment in the in-line apparatus. Then, the transistor is covered with another aluminum oxide film and is subjected to heat treatment, so that the oxide semiconductor film from which impurities including hydrogen atoms are removed and including a region containing oxygen at an amount exceeding that in the stoichiometric composition ratio. The transistor including the oxide semiconductor film is a transistor having high reliability in which the amount of change in threshold voltage of the transistor by the bias-temperature stress (BT test) can be reduced.
US08541264B2
A method for forming a semiconductor structure is provided to prevent energy that is used to blow at least one fuse formed on a metal layer above a semiconductor substrate from causing damage on the structure. The semiconductor structure includes a device, guard ring, protection ring, and at least one protection layer. The device is constructed on the semiconductor substrate underneath the fuse. A seal ring, which surrounds the fuse, is constructed on at least one metal layer between the device and the fuse for confining the energy therein. The protection layer is formed within the seal ring, on at least one metal layer between the device and the fuse for shielding the device from being directly exposed to the energy.
US08541259B2
A disclosed semiconductor device includes a wiring board, a semiconductor element mounted on a principal surface of the wiring board with flip chip mounting, a first conductive pattern formed on the principal surface along at least an edge portion of the semiconductor element, a second conductive pattern formed on the principal surface along the first conductive pattern and away from the first conductive pattern, a passive element bridging between the first conductive pattern and the second conductive pattern on the principal surface of the wiring board, and a resin layer filling a space between the wiring board and the semiconductor chip, wherein the resin layer extends between the semiconductor element and the first conductive pattern on the principal surface of the wiring board.
US08541253B2
A method of fabricating a III-nitride semiconductor laser device includes: preparing a substrate with a semipolar primary surface, the semipolar primary surface including a hexagonal III-nitride semiconductor; forming a substrate product having a laser structure, an anode electrode, and a cathode electrode, the laser structure including a substrate and a semiconductor region, and the semiconductor region being formed on the semipolar primary surface; after forming the substrate product, forming first and second end faces; and forming first and second dielectric multilayer films for an optical cavity of the nitride semiconductor laser device on the first and second end faces, respectively.
US08541249B2
A method for manufacturing a light emitting device package includes: preparing a base frame including an annular base part, at least a pair of lead parts extending to an inner side of the base part, and at least one support part extending to the inner side of the base part in a direction different from that of the lead parts and having a step structure formed on at least one surface of an end thereof; forming a package main body such that the package main body is combined to the step structure of the support part; separating the lead parts from the base part; disposing a light emitting device on at least one of the lead parts; and separating the package main body from the support part.
US08541248B2
Methods and apparatus teach a substrate wafer having a plurality of plugs configured there within. The method also includes depositing and patterning a layer of a second metallic material over the substrate wafer, providing a layer of a dielectric material of a predetermined thickness over the patterned layer of the second metallic material, and conducting chemical mechanical polishing of the layer of the dielectric material to form a planarized top surface while exposing the patterned layer of the second metallic material. The method further includes cleaning the planarized top surface, depositing and patterning a resistor film over the planarized top surface, depositing one or more blanket films over the patterned resistor film, and patterning and etching the one or more blanket films. Further disclosed are planar heater structures and additional methods for fabricating the planar heater structures.
US08541245B2
The present invention provides methods and kits for assessing the state of oocyte maturation in a female mammal based on the level of PAPP-A found in the female's bodily fluid sample.
US08541235B2
A modified reconstituted extracellular matrix composition is provided herein. The composition includes an extracellular matrix and at least one exogenous component selected from heparin, fibronectin and laminin. The composition may have a basic pH. Additionally, provided herein is a cell culturing system including a substrate and a coating thereon of the composition to assess potential stimulators and/or inhibitors for their effects on various cell cultures while increasing the signal dynamic range.
US08541223B2
Various types of lactic acid bacteria were cultured in the presence of a purine, the amount of the purine consumed and the amount of purine degradation products produced were measured, and several lactic acid bacteria showing remarkable purine-decomposing ability were selected. Lactic acid bacteria that were assessed to have high purine-decomposing ability according to the above-mentioned selection were orally administered to rats reared on purine-containing feed, the general status and serum uric acid level of the rats were measured, and the effect of lactic acid bacteria administration on serum uric acid levels was examined. As a result, lactic acid bacteria that significantly suppress the increase of serum uric acid levels, Lactobacillus gasseri OLL2959 and Lactobacillus oris OLL2779, were found.
US08541212B2
A method of increasing 3-HP production efficiency by inhibiting expression of a lactate dehydrogenase, a phosphotransacetylase, and an alcohol dehydrogenase in production of 3-HP using a malonic semialdehyde reduction pathway to prevent metabolite leak and increase a malonyl-CoA pool is disclosed.
US08541208B1
The present invention relates to a process for the production of fine chemicals in a microorganism, a plant cell, a plant, a plant tissue or in one or more parts thereof. The present invention relates further to a process for the control of the production of fine chemicals in a microorganism, a plant cell, a plant, a plant tissue or in one or more parts thereof. The invention furthermore relates to nucleic acid molecules, polypeptides, nucleic acid constructs, vectors, antisense molecules, antibodies, host cells, plant tissue, propagation material, harvested material, plants, microorganisms as well as agricultural compositions and to their use.
US08541204B2
The current invention describes a nucleic acid comprising in a 5′ to 3′ direction a) a first nucleic acid encoding a heterologous polypeptide without an in frame stop codon, b) a second nucleic acid beginning with a 5′ splice donor site and terminated by a 3′ splice acceptor site comprising an in frame translational stop codon and a polyadenylation signal, and c) a nucleic acid encoding i) at least a fragment of a transmembrane domain, or ii) a signal peptide for a GPI-anchor.
US08541202B2
The invention relates to peptides which bind to MHC Class I and to MHC Class II molecules. These peptides are useful in different therapeutic and diagnostic contexts.
US08541199B2
The present invention relates to a mutant prokaryotic penicillin G acylase derived from a wild-type penicillin G acylase characterized in that the mutant is having an amino acid substitution at one or more amino acid positions selected from the group consisting of amino acid positions A3, A77, A90, A144 A192, B24, B109, B148, B313, B460 and B488 according to the amino acid numbering of the Escherichia coli penicillin G acylase having the amino acid sequence depicted in SEQ ID No: 1.
US08541197B2
The present invention is based on the discovery of a two organism model system that can be used to identify virulence factors. The system is also useful in the process of drug delivery. More specifically, we have established valid fungal infection in caenorhabditis elegans with an invading pathogen, the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Because both species are genetic model organisms, the assay can be used to identify host and virulence factors involved in such interactions.
US08541194B2
Use of a micro-organism detection device to rapidly evaluate the presence of microorganisms in an electrocoating process.
US08541193B2
Described herein are methods of detecting a wound infection and for detecting the presence or absence of microorganisms, for example, wound pathogens in a sample, by contacting a sample with a cationic anti-microbial peptide that is degradable by an enzyme produced and/or secreted by a microorganism, and detecting degradation or the absence of degradation of the peptide, as an indicator of the presence or absence of the enzyme in the sample, and thus indicative of the presence or absence of a microorganism in the sample. The present invention also features a biosensor for detecting the presence or absence of a microorganism in a sample.
US08541192B2
The invention provides methods used to identify new inhibitors of USP1 deubiquitinase. The inhibitors can be identified by contacting isolated USP1 with a test compound in the presence of monoubiquitinated proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), monoubiquitinated human Fanconi anemia group D2 (FANCD2), or ubiquitin-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin, and detecting the deubiquitination of said PCNA, FANCD2, or ubiquitin-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin using an antibody or fluorescence, wherein a decrease in the deubiquitination of said PCNA, FANCD2, or ubiquitin-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin in the presence of the test compound relative to the absence of the test compound identifies said test compound as an inhibitor of USP1 deubiquitinase.
US08541186B2
A method is provided for detecting and/or measuring the occurrence of an enzyme in the form of CYP1B1 in a patient for the detection of cancer in said patient. The method includes the steps of administering a reporter substrate to a patient; taking a bodily fluid and/or tissue sample from the patient after one or more pre-determined periods of time; and analyzing the bodily fluid and/or tissue sample in vitro for the occurrence and/or measurement of a metabolite of the reporter substrate caused as a result of metabolism of the reporter substrate by said enzyme in said patient during said pre-determined period of time.
US08541177B2
Compositions and methods of treatment for abnormal bone density are disclosed based upon the finding that sclerostin must be bound to glypican in order to inhibit bone deposition. Methods for identifying agents that inhibit the glypican-sclerostin interaction are disclosed for treatment of bone deposition disorders. Diagnostic methods are also disclosed.
US08541174B2
Materials and methods are provided for producing patterned multi-array, multi-specific surfaces for use in diagnostics. The invention provides for electrochemiluminescence methods for detecting or measuring an analyte of interest. It also provides for novel electrodes for ECL assays. Materials and methods are provided for the chemical and/or physical control of conducting domains and reagent deposition for use multiply specific testing procedures.
US08541169B2
The disclosure describes alterations in ERG gene expression. ERG isoforms and promoter sequence of the ERG gene that are involved in, or associated with, prostate cancer are provided. The disclosure further provides therapeutic compositions and methods of detecting, diagnosing, prognosing, and treating prostate cancer, including biomarkers for detecting the expression of two or more of the following genes: PSA/KLK3, PMEPA1, NKX3.1, ODC1, AMD1, and ERG.
US08541168B1
Materials and methods are provided for producing patterned multi-array, multi-specific surfaces which are electronically excited for use in electrochemiluminescence based tests. Materials and methods are provided for the chemical and/or physical control of conducting domains and reagent deposition for use in flat panel displays and multiply specific testing procedures.
US08541158B2
A positive resist composition is provided comprising an acid generator, a resin component which generates resin-solubilizing groups under the action of acid so that the resin component becomes soluble in an alkaline developer, at least some resin-solubilizing groups being carboxyl groups, and a compound for activating or condensing a carboxyl group. When processed by the lithography, the resist composition forms a resist pattern having a very high resolution and good mask fidelity.
US08541155B2
There are provided a resin-coated carrier for an electrophotographic developer, in which a magnetic particle is coated with a resin on its surface, and the coating resin contains a carbon nanotube having a carbon content of 75% by weight or more, and an electrophotographic developer using the resin-coated carrier.
US08541153B2
A toner for developing an electrostatic image contains at least one of an oxidation polymerizable monomer and a polymer having an ethylenically unsaturated group, and an oxidation polymerization catalyst in a form of a composite with inorganic particles, wherein a temperature T(10 Mpa) and a temperature T(1 Mpa) satisfies the following expression (1): 20° C.≦T(1 MPa)−T(10 MPa) (1) wherein, the temperature T(10 Mpa) is a temperature at which a viscosity of the toner under a pressure of 10 Mpa applied with a flow tester becomes 104 Pa·s, and the temperature T(1 Mpa) is a temperature at which a viscosity of the toner under a pressure of 1 Mpa applied with a flow tester becomes 104 Pa·s.
US08541134B2
In an electrode according to the present invention including a three-dimensional network aluminum porous body as a base material, the electrode is a sheet-shaped electrode, and a cell of the three-dimensional network aluminum porous body has an elliptic shape having a minor axis in the thickness direction of the electrode in a cross section parallel to the longitudinal direction and thickness direction of the electrode, and a cell of the three-dimensional network aluminum porous body has an elliptic shape having a minor axis in the thickness direction of the electrode in a cross section parallel to the width direction and thickness direction of the electrode. The electrode is preferably obtained by subjecting the three-dimensional network aluminum porous body to at least a current collecting lead welding step, an active material filling step and a compressing step.
US08541125B2
A battery pack that prevents a circuit module from being bent and improves durability against an external impact. The battery pack includes a bare cell on which an electrode terminal protrudes from a surface thereof, a circuit module disposed on the surface of the bare cell, a first lead plate coupled to a side of the circuit module, the first lead plate being connected to the surface of the bare cell, and a first holder disposed between the circuit module and the surface of the bare cell, the first holder being coupled to the first lead plate.
US08541118B2
This invention provides a lithium-ion battery in which a coating film forming agent degradation reaction is prevented. A lithium-ion battery 100 in which electrodes 1 and 2 and an electrolyte are accommodated in a battery container 13 , and which has a means of for adding a coating film forming agent 20 for adding a coating film forming agent 21 that forms a coating film on the surface of each of electrodes 1 and 2 to an electrolyte in a battery container 13 is provided. With the use of such means of adding a coating film forming agent 20, a reaction of electrochemical degradation of a coating film forming agent 21 is prevented, allowing long-term preservation. Also, with the addition of a coating film forming agent 21 to an electrolyte, a deteriorated coating film on the surface of each of electrodes 1 and 2 is repaired such that a lithium-ion battery 100 can be regenerated, resulting in extension of battery life.
US08541117B2
A battery has an electrode assembly that includes a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a layer of electrolyte between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. An electric current flow in the positive electrode is unmatched to an electric current flow in the negative electrode, thereby producing a first magnetic field. A magnetic compensation structure is adjacent to the electrode assembly and has body of electrically conductive material connected to one of the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The electric current flowing through the electrode assembly also flows through the body in a pattern that matches the pattern of unmatched electric current in the electrode assembly. As a result a second magnetic field is produced by the magnetic compensation structure that opposes the first magnetic field thereby mitigating magnetic noise from the battery.
US08541104B2
There is described an intermediate transfer member including a substrate layer comprising a polyimide and a surface layer. The surface layer includes a functionalized polyfluoropolyether and functionalized polybutadiene in a weight ratio of functionalized polyfluoropolyether/functionalized polybutadiene of from about 20/80 to about 80/20 and conductive particles. The method of manufacturing the intermediate transfer member is also described.
US08541103B2
The present invention provides silicone polymer particles having excellent tensile properties and excellent transparency and also provides a silicone composition. The present invention relates to silicone polymer particles having a silicone core-alkoxysilane condensate shell structure in which silicone particles with a volume-average particle diameter of 0.001 μm to 1.0 μm are coated with an alkoxysilane condensate, and also relates to a silicone composition containing (A) the silicone polymer particles, (B) a polyorganosiloxane having at least one alkenyl group in its molecule, and (C) a curing agent. The present invention further relates to respective manufacturing methods of the silicone polymer particles and the silicone composition.
US08541102B2
Piezoelectric materials having improved electrical properties, and manufacturing methods of the same, are provided. In (Li, Na, K, Bi)(Nb, Ta)O3 based piezoelectric materials, the surface microstructures of sintered bodies include microscopic grains having grain diameters of less than 5 μm, intermediate grains having grain diameters of 5 μm or more and less than 15 μm, and coarse grains having grain diameters of 15 μm or more and 100 μm or less.
US08541097B2
A polyester laminated film includes at least a polyester layer, and a highly crystalline polyester layer including a highly crystalline polyester having a crystallinity parameter ΔTcg of 35° C. or lower, wherein both the polyester layer and the highly crystalline polyester layer have a planar orientation coefficient of 0.00 to 0.03.
US08541093B2
A method for high resolution ink-jet print using a pre-patterned substrate employs an ink-jet printing device including an ink-jet head for discharging conductive ink droplets and a driving stage for supporting a substrate to which the conductive ink droplets are hit, to draw a fine line width pattern on the substrate. The method includes (A) forming a stripe pattern with repeated stripes on a substrate surface on which a fine line width pattern will be formed, thereby preparing a pre-patterned substrate; (B) loading the substrate to the ink-jet printing device; and (C) injecting conductive ink droplets to a substrate region where the stripe pattern is formed. An equivalent interval (d) of the stripe pattern and a fine line width (D) of the drawn fine line width pattern satisfy a relation of d<
US08541074B2
A packaging material including a paper-based substrate having a first surface and a second surface and a thermal-insulating composition on the first surface of the substrate, wherein the thermal-insulating composition includes, based on the total weight of the composition, filler in an amount of 20% to 70% by weight, organic binder in an amount of 15% to 70% by weight, and plasticizer in an amount of 0.5% to 10% by weight.
US08541073B2
Disclosed are compositions of ethylene/(meth)acrylate copolymers, polyolefins (e.g., polyethylene and polypropylene), optional tackifier resins and optional fillers that provide very strong, tight hermetic heat seals yet are easily peelable. These compositions are useful as an adhesive layer in multilayer structures that are useful as packaging lidding films. Also disclosed are packages that comprise these multilayer structures.
US08541064B2
A method for producing a coated optical fiber may include drawing an optical fiber from a draw furnace along a first vertical pathway. The optical fiber may then be routed through at least one fluid bearing thereby redirecting the optical fiber along a second vertical pathway. Thereafter, a thermoplastic coating may be applied to the optical fiber with a thermoplastic coating system. The optical fiber may then be wound onto a fiber storage spool with a fiber take-up system. The fiber take-up system may be space apart from the thermoplastic coating system such that the thermoplastic coating may be cooled before the optical fiber is wound onto the fiber storage spool.
US08541044B1
The invention generally provides novel no-bake grain products and methods of preparation of the same. Specifically a no-bake food product with a toasted appearance and flavor and a method of providing a toasted appearance and flavor to a no-bake food product. The no-bake food product includes granola bars, clusters, cereal, instant hot cereal and snacks.
US08541040B2
The present invention relates to a process for producing protein microparticles in dilute organic acid solutions and in the absence of an alcohol such as ethanol. The microparticles are formed by dissolving a cereal prolamin protein in a concentrated organic acid solution with agitation and then diluting the solution with an aqueous solution. Protein microparticles having vacuoles are thus formed. The protein microparticles may be used to form powders, films, coatings, matrices, scaffolds and the like. Complete films can be formed from the protein microparticles of the invention.
US08541037B2
A packaged bottle beverage has a base component of the beverage in a container wider vacuum separate from an additive in a sealed compartment of an ingredient release closure. Upon opening the sealed compartment, suction is created forcing the additive to quickly and thoroughly exit the ingredient release closure, a region of relatively higher pressure, and flow into the base component in the container, a region of relatively lower pressure.
US08541033B2
The present invention provides an immunodeficient mouse (NOG mouse) suitable for engraftment, differentiation and proliferation of heterologous cells, and a method of producing such a mouse. This mouse is obtained by backcrossing a C.B-17-scid mouse with an NOD/Shi mouse, and further backcrossing an interleukin 2-receptor γ-chain gene-knockout mouse with the thus backcrossed mouse. It is usable for producing a human antibody and establishing a stem cell assay system, a tumor model and a virus-infection model.
US08541030B2
Disclosed is a method for preparing a longer sustained-release formulation containing bioactive substances. More particularly, the present invention provides a method for preparing longer sustained-release microcapsules comprising: adding an emulsion including bioactive substances, biocompatible polymer and polyvinylpyrrolidone to an aqueous solution.
US08541029B2
A microfiber extrudate and delivery process includes a bio-compatible polymer matrix forming a body of the microfiber extrudate, an exogenously excitable material arranged within the body, and an active load arranged within the body.
US08541025B2
An immediate release formulation of an active ingredient.
US08541022B2
A method of treating a superficial or partial thickness burn caused by heat, or by UV or laser radiation is disclosed. The method includes topically applying a topical composition containing an avermectin compound to an affected area immediately after a burn occurs. The method further includes cooling the affected area with ice or water prior to application of the topical composition. Additionally, the method includes topically applying a second topical composition containing fluocinonide and salicylic acid on the affected area to further enhance anti-inflammatory effect of the avermectin compound on the damaged skin.
US08541015B1
A three-dimensional biological scaffold. The scaffold includes at least three sets of polymer waveguides extending along at least three respective directions. The at least three sets of polymer waveguides interpenetrate each other at a plurality of nodes to form a self-supporting structure. In some embodiments, the polymer waveguides may be bio-degradable. In still some embodiments, the three-dimensional biological scaffold may include one or more coating layers for covering surfaces of the polymer waveguides.
US08541013B2
The invention is directed to a copolymer comprising at least three types of monomeric units, said three types of monomeric units comprising: a temperature-sensitive unit, a hydrophilic unit, and a hydrophobic unit comprising at least one pH-sensitive moiety; wherein said hydrophobic monomeric unit is derived from a copolymerizable unsaturated fatty acid.
US08541010B2
Disclosed is a cosmetic composition having a double-shell type nano-structure. More particularly, the nano-structure of the cosmetic composition includes: a water-soluble bioactive ingredient core; a core shell containing poly(ethyleneglycol)-poly(caprolactone)-poly(ethyleneglycol) (PE-PCL-PEG) triblock copolymer in order to include the bioactive ingredient core therein; and an outer shell containing phospholipids or derivatives thereof in order to enclose the core shell therein. Such a cosmetic composition improves stability of active components which are prone to oxidation, light degradation, heat degradation, etc., is formed in a nanoparticle size which in turn shows high transdermal absorption and is very useful to prepare a cosmetic composition stably encapsulating various bioactive ingredients with anti-wrinkle effects, whitening effects, and so forth.
US08541009B2
A cosmetic composition contains the following components (A), (B) and (C): (A) from 0.1 to 30 wt. % of a vinyl-based polymer having a carbosiloxane dendrimer structure in a side chain thereof, (B) from 0.1 to 30 wt. % of a nonvolatile cosmetic oil, which is in a liquid form at 25° C. and has a solubility parameter of 16.5 or greater, and (C) from 0.1 to 30 wt. % of a hydrophobic powder, and a weight ratio of the component (A) to the component (B), (A)/(B), is from 0.3 to 5.
US08541001B2
‘Green’ composites are fabricated using resins, such as soy-based resins, and reinforced with crystalline high strength bacterial cellulose (BC) fibers. Bacterial cellulose is produced by providing a bacterial cellulose-producing bacterium such as Acetobacter xylinum; providing an inexpensive bacteria nutritional medium; culturing the bacterium in the bacteria nutritional medium under conditions to produce bacterial cellulose; and isolating bacterial cellulose produced by cultured bacteria from the bacteria nutritional medium. The bacteria nutritional medium comprises an inexpensive carbon source that is a plant-based seed extract. The seed extract is derived from a plant-based seed comprising soluble sugars.
US08540997B2
Modulation of the complement system represents a therapeutic modality for numerous pathologic conditions associated with complement activation. In a strategy to prepare complement inhibitors that are targeted to sites of complement activation and disease, compositions comprising a complement inhibitor linked to complement receptor (CR) 2 are disclosed. The disclosed are compositions can be used in methods of treating pathogenic diseases and inflammatory conditions by modulating the complement system.
US08540993B2
Provided herein are IL-18 receptor antigen binding proteins and polynucleotides encoding the same. Expression vectors and host cells comprising the same for production of the antigen binding proteins are also provided. In addition, provided are compositions and methods for diagnosing and treating diseases mediated by IL-18 receptor.
US08540991B2
The present invention provides and includes monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs or mAbs) specific or preferentially selective for PCBP-1 antigens, hybridoma lines that secrete these PCBP-1 antibodies or antibody fragments, and the use of such antibodies and antibody fragments to detect PCBP-1 antigens, particularly those expressed by cancer cells. The present invention also includes antibodies that are specific for or show preferential binding to a soluble form of PCBP-1. The present invention further includes chimeric and humanized antibodies, processes for producing monoclonal, chimeric, and humanized antibodies using recombinant DNA technology, and their therapeutic uses, particularly in the treatment of cancer. The present invention further includes methods and kits for the immunodetection and immunotherapy of cells for samples which express PCBP-1 antigens.
US08540987B2
Provided herein is a means which is effective for botulism diseases and the prevention of the botulism diseases. Specifically provided is a plurality of human anti-botulinum toxin type-A antibodies having different epitopes from one another. Also specifically provided is a composition for neutralizing botulinum toxin type-A, which comprises a combination of two or more of the antibodies and which has a high neutralizing activity.
US08540978B2
A medical implant comprising in components from a tooth and stem cells harvested from at least one tooth. Tooth stem cells may be harvested from the dental pulp of mammalian teeth, such as unerupted third molars in humans. After the stem cells are removed and isolated from the other teeth tissue, the hard tooth may be ground into a base material for the manufacture of a porous matrix into which the tooth stem cells can be added. Additionally, soft tissue from the harvested tooth may be used as a carrier scaffold for soft tissue applications such as meniscal or cartilage repair.
US08540974B2
Aqueous dispersions of water-soluble and/or water-swellable anionic polymers which are obtainable by free radical polymerization of ethylenically unsaturated, anionic monomers in an aqueous medium in the presence of at leas one stabilizer, the polymerization being carried out in the presence of at least one water-soluble polymer of the groups consisting of (a) graft polymers of vinyl acetate and/or vinyl propionate on (i) polyethylene glycols or (ii) polyethylene glycols or polypropylene glycols blocked at one or both terminal groups with alkyd carboxyl or amino groups, polyalkylene glycols, polyalkylene glycols blocked at one or both terminal groups with alkyl carboxy or amino groups and (b) water-soluble copolymers of (b1) nonionic monoethylenically unsaturated monomers, (b2) cationic monoethylenically unsaturated monomers and if appropriate (b3) anionic monoethylenically unsaturated monomers, the fraction of the interpolymerized cationic monomers being greater than that of the anionic monomers, as a stabilizer, said aqueous dispersions are prepared by free radical polymerization of the anionic monomers in an aqueous medium in the presence of the abovementioned water-soluble polymers (a) and (b) and said aqueous dispersions are used as thickeners for aqueous systems.
US08540971B2
Oral care compositions comprising: (a) a peroxide complex comprising a peroxide component and an N-vinyl heterocyclic polymer (e.g., poly-N-vinyl polylactam, or poly-N-vinyl-polyimide); (b) a whitening agent (e.g., hydrogen peroxide); and (c) an orally acceptable carrier. In one embodiment, the carrier comprises a film forming material. Methods are also provided for making an oral care composition comprising: (a) mixing a whitening agent, silicone adhesive and carrier fluid to form a homogenous mixture; (b) adding a peroxide complex to said homogenous mixture, wherein said complex comprises hydrogen peroxide and an N-vinyl heterocyclic polymer; and (c) mixing under vacuum.
US08540968B2
The present invention provides methods for treating, detecting and locating recurrence of cancer, radiation and chemo insensitive cancer or metastasis of cancer selected from the group consisting of Lung cancer, Adrenal cancer, Melanoma, Colon cancer, Colorectal cancer, Ovarian cancer, Prostate cancer, Liver cancer, Subcutaneous cancer, Squamous cell cancer, Intestinal cancer, Hepatocellular carcinoma, Retinoblastoma, Cervical cancer, Glioma, Breast cancer and Pancreatic cancer in subject using phospholipid ether analogs.
US08540962B2
The disclosed method for producing hydrogen by means of thermochemical water-splitting can efficiently use solar energy obtained by means of a beam-down typed light collecting system. Further disclosed is a device for producing hydrogen. While circulating within a reactor (1) a fluidized bed (2) made of metal oxide particles, two reactions are simultaneously caused to proceed: a thermal reduction reaction, which is an oxygen evolution reaction wherein a portion of the fluidized bed (2) is heated by solar light (S) in a nitrogen atmosphere, which is a low oxygen partial pressure gas, releasing oxygen from the metal oxide; and a thermochemical water-splitting reaction, which is a hydrogen evolution reaction wherein water vapor is brought into contact with the metal oxide after oxygen has been released, generating hydrogen.
US08540959B2
According to some embodiments, the present invention provides a method for attaining short carbon nanotubes utilizing electron beam irradiation, for example, of a carbon nanotube sample. The sample may be pretreated, for example by oxonation. The pretreatment may introduce defects to the sidewalls of the nanotubes. The method is shown to produces nanotubes with a distribution of lengths, with the majority of lengths shorter than 100 tun. Further, the median length of the nanotubes is between about 20 nm and about 100 nm.
US08540956B2
The present invention provides a method for preparing large particles of titanium-silicalite molecular sieves. The method of the present invention includes the steps of preparing a dispersion solution of a primary crystalline molecular sieve; forming an aggregated particle solution by adding a flocculating agent and a coagulating agent into the dispersion solution; mixing the aggregated particle solution with a synthesis gel to form a mixture; and heat-treating the mixture. The average diameter of the titanium-silicalite molecular sieves in the present invention is more than 5 μm. In the preparation of cyclohexanone oxime using the molecular sieve of the present invention as the catalyst, the selectivity and conversion rate of cyclohexanone oxime are high, the usage of hydrogen peroxide is enhanced, and the catalyst is easy to be recovered.
US08540949B2
An apparatus and process is disclosed for hydroprocessing hydrocarbon feed in a hydroprocessing unit and hydrotreating a second hydrocarbon. A warm separator sends vaporous hydrotreating effluent to be flashed with liquid hydroprocessing effluent to produce a vapor flash overhead that can be recycled to the hydrotreating unit to provide hydrogen requirements.
US08540948B2
A lidded container having a tubular container which at the bottom has a container base, at the top a container opening and below the container opening a sealing region on the internal wall, a lid which comprises a lid base and a plug protruding from the inside of the lid base, and which may be inserted through the container opening into a sealing position in the sealing region, and locking means for releasably locking the lid to the container comprising at least one latching projection projecting radially outward at the top edge of the container, at least one flexible and elastic connecting link projecting from the bottom side of the lid base on which a latching edge is arranged at a distance from the lid base vertically below the connection of the connecting link to the lid base.
US08540944B2
A vascular access device for communicating with the vascular system of a patient may include a status indicator. The status indicator may detect and signal that a period of time has elapsed in relation to the use of the vascular access device.
US08540937B2
A system and/or method formulates a chemical solution using both volumetric and weight based measurements of components of the chemical solution. The components of the chemical solution include water and at least one other component, which may take any form, such as, without limitation, liquid, solid, powder or gaseous form. Formulation of the chemical solution is administered by combining water with the one or more other components at an output port, from which this combination is dispensed to a solution storage tank. In response to a user's request to formulate a specified amount of the chemical solution, the volume of water provided to the output port is monitored by a flow meter and the weight of the other component(s) provided to the output port is monitored by one or more load cells. Based on such monitoring, appropriate amounts of water and the other component(s) are combined together to formulate the specified amount of the chemical solution in the solution storage tank.
US08540936B2
An erosion sensor that can separately monitor erosion and corrosion of a substrate, such as a wind turbine blade or a turbine blade used in devices such as gas turbines, aircraft engines, microturbines, steam turbines, and the like is disclosed. The sensor can include a first element or “erosion part” that is made of a corrosion resistant material. The first element of the sensor has similar erosion properties to the substrate being monitored. The sensor can further include a second element or a “corrosion part” that is made of a material having similar erosion and corrosion properties to the substrate. The sensor can provide an erosion indicator based on the erosion of the first element and a corrosion indicator based on the erosion and corrosion of the second element.
US08540935B2
The present invention provides a test strip for measuring a concentration of an analyte of interest in a biological fluid, wherein the test strip may be encoded with information that can be read by a test meter into which the test strip is inserted. In one embodiment, a first test strip comprises: a first measurement electrode connectable to a test meter; a first trace loop with a first associated resistance, where the first trace loop is connectable to the test meter; and a second trace loop with a second associated resistance, where the second trace loop is connectable to the test meter. The test meter is adapted to: receive the first test strip; connect to the first measurement electrode, the first trace loop, and the second trace loop; and obtain a first resistance ratio by comparing the first and second associated resistances.
US08540924B2
The invention relates to a method for preheating a pressed material mat (14) spread on an endlessly and continuously circulating molding band (6) during manufacture of wood material boards, wherein microwaves from one or both press surface sides are beamed into the pressed material mat (14) to preheat the pressed material mat (14) and the pressed material mat (14) is compacted and hardened by application of pressure and heat after transfer to a continuously operating press (1). The invention consists of microwaves in a frequency range of 2400-2500 MHz being used to heat the pressed material mat (14), wherein the microwaves for each press surface side are generated from 20 to 300 microwave generators (26) with magnetrons (20) of a respective output of 3 to 50 kW. A device for preheating pressed material mats (14) is also provided, in which 20 to 300 microwave generators (26) with magnetrons (20) with an output of 3 to 50 kW and with a frequency range of 2400-2500 MHz are arranged in a conveyor furnace (4) per area side.
US08540918B2
The wire of the interdental treatment part is inserted into a shaft opening of the injection molding tool, preferably into a strip of the injecting molding tool such that said treatment part projects with a mounting section thereof into a cavity connected to the shaft opening. Preferably, a first cavity section is configured is configured on the strip, and a second cavity section is configured on a cavity body, to with the strip abuts at least during the injection molding process. After injection of plastic into the cavity, and after the at least partial curing thereof, the handle part thus formed is moved by a distance in the direction against the cavity along with the interdental treatment part, and the handle part is removed from the opened injection molding tool.
US08540916B2
A process for manufacturing a curved structural part includes fabricating a mold of the curved structural part having at least two faces that form a male mold section between a minimum radius of curvature of the curved structural part and another radius of curvature belonging to one of the two faces, preparing a stack of multidirectional fibers of one or more fiber plies oriented ±α or 90° in relation to a longitudinal direction of the curved structural part, cutting a first multidirectional strip in the stack extending longitudinally and having a width at least equal to a maximum width of the curved structural part, applying the first multidirectional strip over the mold to gradually conform the first multidirectional strip to the mold, applying the first multidirectional strip on the face having the minimum radius of curvature, and pressing and tightening the first multidirectional strip over the other faces.
US08540915B2
Molds and processes that permit high-speed, mass production of retaining wall blocks having patterned or other processed front faces, as well as retaining wall blocks formed by such processes. The invention permits the front face of the block to be impressed with a pattern or otherwise directly processed, to allow the formation of pre-determined block front faces, while at the same time facilitating high-speed, high-volume production of blocks. A mirror image of the desired pattern can be created on a stripper shoe by selecting a desired three-dimensional surface from a naturally occurring or man made object and digitally scanning the selected three-dimensional pattern to create scanned data. The scanned data can then be used to machine a face of the stripper shoe that is the mirror image of the selected pattern.
US08540911B2
A method of generating a plurality of pipettes. The method comprises providing a tubular element, cutting the tubular element to form a plurality of two pipettes length components each having a length of about two target pipettes, simultaneously rotating the plurality of two pipettes length components, heating a central portion of each one of the rotated two pipettes length components, stretching each two pipettes length component to extend the respective central portion, and dividing each two pipettes length component at the extended central portion to form the two target pipettes.
US08540910B2
Disclosed is a method for making a refractory material from aluminum residues of aluminum recycling. At first, the aluminum residues is mixed with adhesive solution so that the percentage by weight of the adhesive solution is 5 wt % to 10 wt %. The mixture is granulated into grains. The grains are filled in a mold, pressed and then removed from the mold so that the grains are turned into a green body. The green body is heated in a furnace at a range of temperature from 1100° C. to 1400° C. so that the grains are sintered and become a refractory material.
US08540909B2
A patch for reworking an inconsistent area in a composite structure includes a composite laminate patch adapted to cover the inconsistent area and bonded to the structure by a layer of adhesive. The patch includes a plurality of composite plies having a tapered cross section, and at least first and second regions respectively having differing fracture toughnesses.
US08540903B2
Disclosed is an electrically conductive paste which enables to reduce the level of void growth in a conducting pathway formed in a joint part produced after curing the electrically conductive paste in the implementation of an electronic component on a circuit board by using the electrically conductive paste, and which contains a reduced amount of a viscosity-adjusting/thixotropy-imparting additive. Two Sn-containing low-melting-point alloy particles having different melting points and different average particle diameters are selected as electrically conductive filler components to be used in an electrically conductive paste, and the two alloy particles are mixed at a predetermined ratio for use.
US08540902B2
Carbon-nanotube based pastes and methods for making and using the same are disclosed. Carbon nanotubes are dispersed via milling; resultant paste has Hegman scale of greater than 7. The pastes can be used as electro-conductivity enhancement in electronic devices such as batteries, capacitors, electrodes or other devices needing high conductivity paste.
US08540901B2
The present invention provides an aqueous fluororesin dispersion comprising a melt-processable fluororesin which is low in fluorinated surfactant concentration and excellent in dispersion stability even when the concentration of the melt-processable fluororesin is high. The present invention is related to an aqueous fluororesin dispersion comprising a melt-processable fluororesin particle dispersed in an aqueous medium, wherein a concentration of the melt-processable fluororesin is 55 to 75% by mass relative to the aqueous fluororesin dispersion, and a fluorinated surfactant content in the aqueous fluororesin dispersion is not higher than a level corresponding to 100 ppm of the melt-processable fluororesin.
US08540887B2
The invention provides several improvements in feedwells, one of which being a feedwell (100) comprising a mixing zone (49) for dissipating the kinetic energy of a fluid comprising pulp, a settling zone (50) for promoting flocculation of the pulp and at least one inclined deflecting element (101) for at least partially separating the mixing zone from the settling zone. Other improvements include a shelf (3) at least partially defining an inclined path (4) for removing material from the shelf into a feedwell chamber; at least two outlets (111, 112) arranged in a substantially concentric relationship with respect to each other; a portion (123) of a second conduit (121) varies in its cross-sectional size and/or shape so as to connect a feed inlet (110) to a first conduit (120); and a partition (133) for partially separating an outer mixing zone (131) and an inner settling zone (132).
US08540881B1
Process and steps for the production of biodiesel and/or glycerin from feedstock are provided.
US08540877B2
A ballasted sequencing batch reactor system for treating wastewater including one or more sequencing batch reactors. A weighting agent impregnation subsystem is configured to mix biological flocs and weighting agent to form weighted biological flocs. A weighting agent recovery subsystem is configured to recover weighting agent from the weighted biological flocs and reintroduce the recovered weighting agent to the weighting agent impregnation subsystem.
US08540876B2
A permeate adapter is provided. The permeate adapter may be used within a pressure vessel. The permeate adapter includes a front portion and an oppositely disposed back portion. The front portion includes a permeate opening for receiving an end of a permeate passage tube of a membrane cartridge and for being in fluid communication with a permeate reservoir. The front portion and the back portion each include one or more fluid openings. Fluid passageways are connected between the one or more front portion fluid openings and the back portion fluid openings. The fluid passageways receive an end of a membrane cartridge at the front portion. At the back portion, the fluid passageways are in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir adjacent the back portion of the permeate adapter.
US08540869B2
A method for forming a finished lubricant comprises selecting a target high temperature viscosity for the finished lubricant. A target high temperature viscosity for a base oil blend is selected. The target high temperature viscosity for the base oil blend is less than the target high temperature viscosity for the finished lubricant. At least two base oils from at least three viscosity grades of base oils are selected and mixed to form a base oil blend that meets the target high temperature viscosity for the base oil blend. The base oil blend is mixed with performance additive package and viscosity modifier to provide a finished lubricant that meets the target high temperature viscosity for the finished lubricant. The at least two base oils for the base oil blend having the target high temperature viscosity are selected such that less viscosity modifier is needed to meet the target high temperature viscosity of the finished lubricant.
US08540868B2
Methods and apparatuses relating to large scale FET arrays for analyte detection and measurement are provided. ChemFET (e.g., ISFET) arrays may be fabricated using conventional CMOS processing techniques based on improved FET pixel and array designs that increase measurement sensitivity and accuracy, and at the same time facilitate significantly small pixel sizes and dense arrays. Improved array control techniques provide for rapid data acquisition from large and dense arrays. Such arrays may be employed to detect a presence and/or concentration changes of various analyte types in a wide variety of chemical and/or biological processes.
US08540866B2
Methods and apparatuses relating to large scale FET arrays for analyte detection and measurement are provided. ChemFET (e.g., ISFET) arrays may be fabricated using conventional CMOS processing techniques based on improved FET pixel and array designs that increase measurement sensitivity and accuracy, and at the same time facilitate significantly small pixel sizes and dense arrays. Improved array control techniques provide for rapid data acquisition from large and dense arrays. Such arrays may be employed to detect a presence and/or concentration changes of various analyte types in a wide variety of chemical and/or biological processes.
US08540865B2
Methods and apparatuses relating to large scale FET arrays for analyte detection and measurement are provided. ChemFET (e.g., ISFET) arrays may be fabricated using conventional CMOS processing techniques based on improved FET pixel and array designs that increase measurement sensitivity and accuracy, and at the same time facilitate significantly small pixel sizes and dense arrays. Improved array control techniques provide for rapid data acquisition from large and dense arrays. Such arrays may be employed to detect a presence and/or concentration changes of various analyte types in a wide variety of chemical and/or biological processes.
US08540861B2
A method for manufacturing gear wheels, specifically transmission gear wheels, is disclosed. An embodiment of the method includes the following steps: a) preparation of a base body for a gear wheel, b) electrochemical processing of the base body by a precise electrochemical machining process (PECM process), where several recesses running between the teeth of the gear wheel are made simultaneously electrochemically to manufacture the teeth of the gear wheel.
US08540854B2
Provided are a substrate plating apparatus and a substrate plating method. In the substrate plating apparatus, a substrate support member supports a substrate to allow a plating surface to look up. A plating solution containing positive ions dissolved from a positive electrode is supplied from a plating solution supply member onto the substrate at an upper side of the substrate support member. A plating bath surrounds the substrate support member. The substrate support member is rotated in a state where it is immersed into the plating solution and an additive. The substrate can be supported by the substrate support member without reversing the substrate. Also, a pattern defect due to bubbles generated during a plating process can be prevented.
US08540851B2
A method of physical vapor deposition includes applying a radio frequency signal to a cathode in a physical vapor deposition apparatus, wherein the cathode includes a sputtering target, electrically connecting a chuck in the physical vapor deposition apparatus to an impedance matching network, wherein the chuck supports a substrate, and wherein the impedance matching network includes at least one capacitor, and depositing material from the sputtering target onto the substrate.
US08540850B2
So as to provide a target arrangement with improved mounting and dismounting ability, the target arrangement comprises a plate along a plane (E) which has a border (7) defined by a first wedge surface (5u) angled to the addressed general plane (E) and a second wedge surface (5l) which is substantially planar as well and angled with respect to the generic plane (E). The two wedge surfaces mutually convert in a direction along the addressed plane (E) and from a more central area of the plate outwardly.
US08540848B2
For decades books and other paper documents have been deteriorating in archives and libraries around the world because the acidity of the paper is increasing so much (wherein the pH decreases) that the paper cellulose is decomposing so that the paper loses its cohesion and thereby degenerates in terms of quality. The invention relates to an improved method for de-acidifying paper. The invention also relates to a device for applying such a method.
US08540847B2
Embodiments of the present invention are directed to apparatus and methods for the substantially continuous processing of cellulosic biomasses with a supercritical, critical or near critical fluid to produce ethanol, bio-fuels and high value end products.
US08540845B2
A method and system for stabilizing dry-based density of wood chips from several sources feeding a chip processing stage upstream of a chip refining process, perform on-line estimation of a set of wood chip properties characterizing the wood chips, including light reflection-related property, moisture content and dry-based density, which are used by a reference model capable of comparing the estimated dry-based density with a predetermined target to produce error data, and selectively modifying discharge rate set points of one or more of the wood chip sources to minimize the error data within fluctuation limits around the target. The discharge rate of the wood chip sources is controlled in accordance with the set points to substantially stabilize the dry-based density of the wood chips.
US08540842B2
The present invention relates to light weight composite materials which comprise a metallic layer and a polymeric layer, the polymeric layer containing a filled thermoplastic polymer which includes a thermoplastic polymer and a metallic fiber. The composite materials of the present invention may be formed using conventional stamping equipment at ambient temperatures. Composite materials of the present invention may also be capable of being welded to other metal materials using a resistance welding process such as resistance spot welding.
US08540838B2
The present invention is a method for manufacturing inflatable articles, or bladders for inflatable articles, that is time-efficient, simple, inexpensive and permits the uninterrupted manufacture of numerous and even customized article or bladder configurations and sizes, without expensive configuration-specific, metal tooling. The method includes the steps of applying a barrier material to a side of a first film, providing a second film with the first film so that the barrier material is disposed between the first and second films, adhering the first film to the second film so that the films are sealed together in areas except where the barrier material has been applied to form at least one inflatable compartment and sealed peripheral edge, and cutting along the sealed peripheral edge to form an inflatable article or bladder for use in an article of manufacture. The barrier material may be a paint, ink, paper or surface treatment that effectively prevents the first film from adhering to the second. The inflatable article or bladder of the present invention may be used as or in athletic equipment, for example, including footwear.
US08540836B1
Flexible indicia bearing labels are placed on armored electrical cable at spaced apart intervals while the cable is being moving continuously from an armoring station to a takeup reel or accumulator. A label dispenser places labels in a U shaped recess of a body which is moveable toward engagement with the cable. Opposed rollers fold one edge of the label over into engagement with the surface of the cable and the other edge of the label over onto itself in overlapping relationship. The cable is passed through a heat tunnel to shrink the labels into tight engagement with the cable. A controller monitors movement of the cable and controls actuators for applying and folding labels onto the cable at spaced apart intervals.
US08540832B2
Changes in states giving rise to electrode breakage and ball formation are made less likely during firing step for sintering the laminated body, and the improvement in DC bias characteristics is achieved in laminated ceramic electronic components with a laminated body which has internal electrodes, even when ceramic layers and the internal electrodes are reduced in thickness. The laminated body is divided into a large grain region in which the ceramic has a relatively large grain diameter and a small grain region in which the ceramic has a relatively small grain diameter. The large grain region is located outside the small grain region, and a boundary surface between the large grain region and the small grain region is located inside the outer surface of the laminated body while surrounding a section in which the internal electrodes are present in the laminated body. In order to obtain the laminated body, a heat treatment is carried out in the firing step with a temperature profile in which the average rate of temperature increase from room temperature to the maximum temperature is 40° C./second or more.
US08540831B1
A method of manufacturing a cell tag incorporating a call sign visible under low light and dark conditions, includes steps of providing a first sheet having peripheral edge portions defining at least one aperture comprising all or part of one or more symbols or characters of the call sign, providing a second sheet having a photoluminescence material or a thermal reflective material, and fixedly attaching the first sheet to the second sheet using a non-heat activated adhesive closely about the peripheral edge portions. The second sheet can have peripheral edge portions defining the at least one aperture therethrough marginally smaller than the aperture or apertures through the first sheet, to be visible through the aperture or apertures of the first sheet, and a third sheet can be attached to be visible through the aperture or apertures of the second sheet, and can include a photoluminescence or thermal reflective material.
US08540829B2
An electrically initiated security device includes a first energetic sheet, a second energetic sheet, and a corrugated energetic sheet disposed between the first energetic sheet and the second energetic sheet. A first surface of the corrugated energetic sheet defines at least one channel and a second surface of the corrugated energetic sheet defines at least one channel. The electrically initiated security device further includes a first constituent portion disposed in the at least one channel defined by the first surface and a second constituent portion disposed in the at least one channel defined by the second surface. The first constituent portion and the second constituent portion, when mixed, comprise an energetic material.
US08540821B2
A teat cup cleaning device comprises a heating chamber provided with a discharge outlet that is closable by a valve and arranged for connection to a teat cup. A filling device is arranged for filling the heating chamber with an amount of cleaning liquid and retaining a given quantity of gas. The chamber is provided with a heating arrangement arranged to heat the contents of the heating chamber to a temperature T higher than the boiling point Tk of the cleaning liquid at ambient pressure. On operation of the valve superheated cleaning liquid is discharged to clean a teat cup.
US08540800B2
The present invention discloses microporous UZM-5 zeolite membranes, methods for making the same, and methods of separating gases, vapors, and liquids using the same. The small-pore microporous UZM-5 zeolite membrane is prepared by two different methods, including in-situ crystallization of one or more layers of UZM-5 zeolite crystals on a porous membrane support, and a seeding method by in-situ crystallization of a continuous second layer of UZM-5 zeolite crystals on a seed layer of UZM-5 zeolite crystals supported on a porous membrane support. The membranes in the form of disks, tubes, or hollow fibers have superior thermal and chemical stability, good erosion resistance, high CO2 plasticization resistance, and significantly improved selectivity over polymer membranes for gas, vapor, and liquid separations.
US08540799B2
A method is provided for degassing a transport chamber (1) of a metering pump. The method is based on performing impulse generation, wherein gas bubbles arising from the gas-forming fluid and adhering to the inner surfaces in the transport chamber (1) are released from the surfaces, wherein the gas bubbles (4.4′, 8.8′) present in the transport chamber (1) accumulate, perform a motion (c) in the direction of the pressure valve (6), and form an accumulated gas bubble (7) on the transport chamber side of the pressure valve (6). An increase in pressure causes the accumulated gas bubble present at the pressure valve (6) to escape from the transport chamber (1) as discharged gas bubbles (7′) into the pressure line. A metering pump having a device present in the transport chamber for performing the impulse generation is also provided.
US08540798B2
Systems and methods for processing sludge from a fume scrubbing system that scrubs fumes from a steelmaking converter in a manner that separates/isolates a significant portion of the metallic iron particles in the sludge and prepares these particles for convenient handling. In an exemplary system, the system includes separating equipment that isolates metallic iron particles in the sludge and forming equipment that forms the isolated particles into briquettes that have relatively high mechanical resistance that allow the briquettes to maintain their integrity during handling and storage. The high-metallic-iron-content briquettes can be recycled in the steelmaking process, for example, as charging material for a basic oxygen converter or an electric arc furnace. Water used in the system can be recycled and reused within the system, thereby making the system environmentally friendly.
