US07892879B2
This invention relates to the manufacture of Cadmium Mercury Telluride (CMT) on patterned silicon, especially to growth of CMT on silicon substrates bearing integrated circuitry. The method of the invention involves growing CMT in selected growth windows on the silicon substrate by first growing one or more buffer layers by MBE and then growing the CMT by MOVPE. The growth windows may be defined by masking the area outside of the growth windows. Growth within the growth windows is crystalline whereas any growth outside the growth windows is polycrystalline and can be removed by etching. The invention offers a method of growing CMT structures directly on integrated circuits removing the need for hybridisation.
US07892876B2
Disclosed are MEMS accelerometers and methods for fabricating same. An exemplary accelerometer comprises a substrate, and a proof mass that is a portion of the substrate and which is separated from the substrate surrounding it by a gap. An electrically-conductive anchor is coupled to the proof mass, and a plurality of electrically-conductive suspension anus that are separated from the proof mass extend from the anchor and are coupled to the substrate surrounding the proof mass. A plurality of sense and actuation electrodes are separated from the proof mass by gaps and are coupled to processing electronics. Capacitive sensing is used to derive electrical signals caused by forces exerted on the proof mass, and the electrical signals are processed by the processing electronics to produce x-, y- and z-direction acceleration data. Electrostatic actuation is used to induce movements of the mass for force balance operation, or self-test and self-calibration. The fabrication methods use deep reactive ion etch bulk micromachining and surface micromachining to form the proof mass, suspension arms and electrodes. The anchor, suspension arms and electrodes are made in the same process steps from the same electrically conductive material, which is different from the substrate material.
US07892871B2
The method of manufacturing the semiconductor device comprises the step of forming quantum dots 16 on a base layer 10 by self-assembled growth; the step of irradiating Sb or GaSb to the surface of the base layer 10 before or in the step of forming quantum dots 16; the step of etching the surfaces of the quantum dots 16 with an As raw material gas to thereby remove an InSb layer 18 containing Sb deposited on the surfaces of the quantum dots 16; and growing a capping layer 22 on the quantum dots 16 with the InSb layer 18 removed.
US07892870B2
A method and system for removing heat from an LED facilitates the fabrication of LEDs having enhanced brightness. A thermally conductive interposer can be attached to the top of the LED. Heat can flow through the top of the LED and into the interposer. The interposer can carry the heat away from the LED. Light can exit the LED though an at least partially transparent substrate of the LED. By removing heat from an LED, the use of more current through the LED is facilitated, thus resulting in a brighter LED.
US07892854B2
The present invention provides methods and apparatus for the application of a particle array in bioassay format to perform qualitative and/or quantitative molecular interaction analysis between two classes of molecules (an analyte and a binding agent). The methods and apparatus disclosed herein permit the determination of the presence or absence of association, the strength of association, and/or the rate of association and dissociation governing the binding interactions between the binding agents and the analyte molecules. The present invention is especially useful for performing multiplexed (parallel) assays for qualitative and/or quantitative analysis of binding interactions of a number of analyte molecules in a sample.
US07892849B2
A test strip having a small sample-receiving chamber on the order of less than 1 microliter. The inventive test strip includes a reagent layer that extends across the width of the test strip and also extends to the sample-receiving end, such that the edges of the reagent layer are aligned with the side and dose receiving edges of the test strip. The hydrophilic reagent extending to the dosing edge of the strip promotes wicking of the sample into the test strip. The end and side edges of the reagent layer are preferably formed as part of a cutting process that forms individual test strips from a larger web, which results in a smooth and thin reagent layer with a uniform thickness, substantially covering the entire floor of the sample-receiving chamber. The inventive mass production process helps improve the reproducibility of the quantity, location, thickness and other properties of the reagent layer, which in turn improves the accuracy of the test result.
US07892846B2
According to the present invention, a matrix reagent prepared by adding methylenediphosphonic acid (MDPNA) having two phosphonic acid groups as an additive to a matrix of 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (DHBA) is used for the preparation of a sample. By using the sample according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve a higher peak intensity of phosphopeptide as compared with a sample in which DHBA is solely used as a matrix without using an additive, or a sample in which phosphoric acid (PA) is used as an additive in addition to DHBA. Further, use of the sample according to the present invention enables the detection of peptides that cannot be detected in a case of the phosphoric acid-added sample.
US07892845B2
The present invention relates to methods of diagnosing, monitoring, and assessing treatment effects for neurological and neurodegenerative diseases and disorders, such as Alzheimer's Disease, early in the course of clinical disease or prior to the onset of brain damage and clinical symptoms. Methods of measuring the in vivo metabolism of biomolecules produced in the CNS in a subject are provided.
US07892842B2
The present application relates to procedures for the determination of the activity of the protease which activates factor VII, also known as factor VII activating protease or FSAP. The application also relates to a method of detecting whether an individual has increased or lowered activity in the protease which activates factor VII compared to at least one standard sample, wherein the increased or lowered activity indicates an increased risk for disease or cardiovascular complications.
US07892840B2
Embodiments of the invention provide to apparatuses and media used in drug elution studies and methods for making and using them. One embodiment of the invention is a drug elution method that can be used for in-vitro studies of a matrix impregnated with a compound such as a drug blended polymer matrix. Such methods and materials can be used for example to assess and control the manufacturing process variability of drug eluting implantable devices such as cardiac leads.
US07892838B2
The invention relates to a method for altering a protein X such as to modify the characteristics thereof by a) obtaining the mutants X* of the sequence coding for protein X, by means of aleatory mutagenesis, b) transformation of cells with a phenotype [P-] with vectors comprising the mutated nucleic acids obtained in step (a) which code for proteins X*, where P-signifies that said cells are auxotrophic for substance P, P begin the product of the action of X on the natural substrate thereof S, c) culturing said cells in a medium comprising a substrate S*, S* being an analogue of the natural substrate S of the protein X, d) selection of the cells [P-:: X*] which have survived step c) in which the proteins X* can biosynthesise the product P from the substrate S*. The invention further relates to mutated proteins X, nucleic acids, expression vectors, host cells comprising a vector, use of N-dideoxyribosyl transferases for the transfer of a dideoxyribose (ddR) from a dideoxyribonucleoside to another nucleoside, a method for production of compounds comprising a step using a mutated protein and a strain of E. coli.
US07892834B2
A gene complex-forming material which comprises a water-soluble polymer having a peptide containing an amino acid sequence serving as the substrate of an intracellular signal-responsive enzyme and basic amino acids imparting cationic nature; a gene complex composed of this gene complex-forming material with a gene; and a gene transfer method and a gene transfer agent with the use of the same. Namely, a novel material and a method wherein the cationic moiety of the peptide and the gene form a rigid ion complex to give a stable gene complex, and, upon a cellular signal response, the positive charge of the cationic moiety of the peptide is neutralized or disappears and the gene complex is broken in the cell to thereby release the gene, thus activating the gene transferred into specific cells. The neutralization or disappearance of the positive charge can be achieved by, for example, phosphorylation with protein kinase A or cleavage by caspase.
US07892822B1
Recombinant vectors containing infectious viral genomic sequences as well as sequences of a cloning vehicle, a cell comprising the vector, a method for producing the vectors, a method of mutagenizing an infectious viral genomic sequence in the vector, and a vector obtained by the method.
US07892817B2
A method and a device are provided for distinguishing a specific binding from a less specific binding between at least one magnetic nanoparticle and a surface of another entity by applying a magnetic field and detecting a physical parameter relating to magnetic nanoparticle rotational or motional freedom while the magnetic nanoparticle is attached to the surface. The method and device may be applied to in-vivo and in-vitro biomolecular diagnostics. The sensor combines in one sensor the detection of magnetic particles or labels and determination of the binding quality and the properties of magnetic particles or labels which are bound to the surface of another entity.
US07892812B2
A computer-based method and apparatus for the analysis specification and support of work processes. The system is designed to support multiple interdependent decisions, at least some of which require collaboration among multiple participants (116). Work processes are modeled using an application framework (99) used to develop abstract, decision (100) process models. The decision (100) process models are used as a pattern to instantiate concrete process models that incorporate the work defined by the abstract process. The process model is then used to instantiate project models that incorporate the required work from the process. The project models are used to direct and guide the behavior of the participants (116) in the work process.
US07892807B2
The present invention provides a novel cellulase nucleic acid sequence, designated BagCel, and the corresponding BagCel amino acid sequence. The invention also provides expression vectors and host cells comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding BagCel, recombinant BagCel proteins and methods for producing the same.
US07892800B2
The present invention relates to a composite material made of non-metallic inorganic grains and plastics particles. The composite material is particularly suitable as a carrier material for bacteria for use in sewage treatment plants. It is characterized by a large surface suitable for the colonization of bacteria and also by a density which allows the composite material to be suspended in the medium present in the sewage treatment plant. A further advantage of the composite material according to the invention is the property that due to the surface structure of the composite material adhering sludge and saturated bacteria can fall off its surface, and this thus allows regeneration of the material.
US07892799B2
A method for in vivo, ex vivo and in vitro regeneration of cartilage, collagen and bone remodeling by intermittently applied hydrostatic pressure consisting of repeated periods of applied hydrostatic pressure followed and interrupted by periods of recovery. The intermittent hydrostatic pressure is applied at physiological levels 5-10 MPA for an interval of 4 hours followed by a recovery period up to about 20 hours. The interval loading results in the selective inhibition of matrix degrading enzymes, pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines that attract inflammatory cells into the joint cavity and in selective decrease of gene expression of growth factors that are inhibitory to type II collagen expression.
US07892798B2
Isolated nucleic acid molecules, which encode novel metabolic regulatory proteins from Corynebacterium glutamicum are described. These nucleic acid molecules are involved in the biosynthesis of a fine chemical, e.g., methionine biosynthesis. The invention also provides antisense nucleic acid molecules, recombinant expression vectors containing metabolic regulatory nucleic acid molecules, and host cells into which the expression vectors have been introduced. The invention still further provides methods of producing methionine from microorganisms, e.g., C. glutamicum, which involve culturing recombinant microorganisms which overexpress or underexpress at least one metabolic regulatory molecule of the invention under conditions such that methionine is produced. Also featured are methods of producing a fine chemical, e.g., methionine, which involve culturing recombinant microorganisms having selected metabolic regulatory genes deleted or mutated under conditions such that the fine chemical, e.g., methionine, is produced.
US07892794B2
The present invention relates to a method, a chip, a device, and a system for detection of biological particles. The method of the invention typically comprises collecting the biological particles from a gaseous sample, contacting the biological particles with a first liquid reagent, extracting biological material from the collected biological particles, and analyzing the biological material for the presence of a target nucleic acid sequence.
US07892792B2
Described herein are recombinant yeast cells that express a cytochrome C gene the expression of which causes the recombinant yeast cells to (i) grow faster than wild type yeast cells of the same species when cultured on glucose medium, and (ii) accumulate high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acid precursor molecules or target gene expression products when grown on oleic acid.
US07892789B2
There are provided trehalose transporter gene and a method of introducing trehalose into cells by using the gene. Candidates for the trehalose transporter genes were searched in P. vanderplanki EST, resulting in being obtained cDNA designated as Tret1. Tret1 encodes a 504 amino acid protein with 12 trans-membrane structures. Tret1 expression was induced by desiccation stress and predominant in the fat body. Functional expression of TRET1 in Xenopus oocytes showed that transport activity was specific for trehalose and independent of extracellular pH and electrochemical membrane potential. The direction of transport of TRET1 was reversible depending on the concentration gradient of trehalose. Apparent Km and Vmax of TRET1 for trehalose were extraordinarily high values. These results indicate that TRET1 is a facilitated, high-capacity trehalose-specific transporter. Tret1 is widespread in insects. Furthermore, TRET1 conferred trehalose permeability upon cells including those of vertebrates as well as insects.
US07892783B2
The present invention relates to a reaction medium for cholerae-group Vibrio (cholerae/vulnificus and mimicus) and Vibrio parahaemolyticus bacteria, comprising a substrate for detecting a β-galactosidase enzymatic activity, a sugar, a coloured indicator. The invention also relates to the use of this medium for isolating and identifying cholerae-group Vibrio (cholerae/vulnificus and mimicus) and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Finally, the invention relates to a method for identifying Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio parahaemolyticus bacteria, according to which beta-galactosidase activity is detected for identifying Vibrio cholerae and the acidification of a sugar is detected for revealing Vibrio parahaemolyticus.
US07892776B2
Methods for screening compounds for their activity as a protein kinase A modulators are provided. The methods are based on fluorescence polarization of peptide probes to identify drug candidates that act by activating or inhibiting the catalytic function of PKA. In certain embodiments, the methods are adapted for high throughput screening.
US07892773B2
The present invention relates to a novel member of the NK family of homeobox genes. In particular, isolated nucleic acid molecules are provided encoding the human NK-3 prostate specific gene 1 (NKX3.1) protein. NKX3.1 polypeptides are also provided as are vectors, host cells and recombinant methods for producing the same. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of NKX3.1 activity. Also provided are diagnostic methods for detecting prostate cancer and other cancers and therapeutic methods for prostate cancer and other cancers.
US07892767B2
The present invention provides chemokine receptor antibodies that selectively bind to an activated form of the receptor but not to a non activated form of the receptor. In particular, the current invention provides phosphospecific chemokine receptor antibodies. The antibodies can be used in several diagnostic, screening and purification methods.
US07892765B2
Newly identified mammalian taste-cell-specific G protein-coupled receptors which function as hetero-oligomeric complexes in the sweet taste transduction pathway, and the genes and cDNA encoding said receptors are described. Specifically, T1R G protein-coupled receptors active in sweet taste signaling as hetero-oligomeric complexes, and the genes and cDNA encoding the same, are described, along with methods for isolating such genes and for isolating and expressing such receptors. Methods for identifying putative taste modulating compounds using such hetero-oligomeric complexes also described, as is a novel surface expression facilitating peptide useful for targeting integral plasma membrane proteins to the surface of a cell.
US07892757B2
An immunochemical method for the accurate measurement of the quantity of cytochrome c in a body fluid, in particular, blood, and a kit for the measurement. The quantity of cytochrome c can be measured accurately without being affected by any interfering substrate by reacting an antibody with cytochrome c in a buffer solution in an acidic range.
US07892726B2
The invention provides a method for the sterilization of a biological preparation comprising desired viable biological entities. The method comprises irradiating a dried (e.g. freeze-dried) biological preparation with ionizing or UV radiation at an intensity and for a duration sufficient to reduce the amount or activity of living-matter contaminants in the biological preparation, the intensity and duration selected such that at least part of the desired biological entities in the sample remains viable. The method of the invention is particularly suitable for the reduction of the amount or activity of contaminants such as bacteria or viruses from biological preparations comprising red blood cells or platelets.
US07892719B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide EUV (extreme ultraviolet) photoresists comprising photonic crystals, as well as other components. Photonic crystals in general provide the ability not only to block light transmission, but also to create resonant pockets in which light can propagate. The photonic crystals are based on bio-related polymers that are capable of self-assembly into crystalline form.
US07892716B2
A method of preparing a toner, includes: preparing a core by mixing a polyester resin and a colorant with at least one material selected from the group consisting of a macromonomer having hydrophilic group, hydrophobic group, and at least one reactive functional group and a reactive emulsifying agent. A shell is formed on the core by polymerizing the exterior surface of the core with one or more polymerizable monomers and an initiator, wherein at least one material selected from the group consisting of the macromonomer and the reactive emulsifying agent participate in the polymerization reaction. Also, provided are a toner prepared using the method, an image forming method using the toner, and an image forming apparatus employing the toner. According to the method, a polyester resin, having superior fixability at low temperature and image properties, is used as a core composition and styrene, having superior maintenance and charging properties, is used as a shell composition in the process of manufacturing a core/shell structure to prepare the toner for the image forming apparatus having fast speed and fixability of high quality images at low temperature. In addition, by not using the reactive emulsifying agent, the cleaning process is minimized, and the amounts of polluted water and waste water are decreased, which is very advantageous environmentally.
US07892713B2
The present invention is an electrophotographic photoconductor having a photosensitive layer on a conductive substrate. The photosensitive layer contains terephthalate esters additives.
US07892707B2
A method of forming a mask having optical proximity correction features, which includes the steps of obtaining a target pattern of features to be imaged, expanding—the width of the features to be imaged, modifying the mask to include assist features which are placed adjacent the edges of the features to be imaged, where the assist features have a length corresponding to the expanded width of the features to be imaged, and returning the features to be imaged from the expanded width to a width corresponding to the target pattern.
US07892704B2
Mask for silicon crystallization, method for crystallizing silicon using the same and display device
A mask for silicon crystallization capable of minimizing the number of grain boundaries in crystallized silicon, a method for crystallizing silicon using the mask, and a display device are presented. The mask includes a group of slits that are inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to a scan direction and a group of slits including slits inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the former group of slits. The groups of slits are separated by an interval along the scan direction, and the substrate and/or mask is moved by the interval between irradiation by laser through the slits. Further, there are provided a method for crystallizing silicon using the mask and a display device. By reducing the number of grain boundaries that extend horizontally or vertically on the substrate, the invention obviates a design limitation associated with the directional anisotropy in sequential lateral solidification (SLS) technique.
US07892701B2
According to one embodiment, fuel cell includes an anode, into which an aqueous methanol solution is introduced as fuel, includes a current collector and a catalyst layer formed on the current collector, a cathode, into which an oxidizing agent is introduced, includes a current collector and a catalyst layer formed on the current collector, and an electrolyte membrane interposed between the catalyst layer of the anode and the catalyst layer of the cathode. The catalyst layer of at least one of the anode and the cathode contains carbon particles having pores on the surface thereof, catalyst microparticles which are supported by these carbon particles and are finer than the carbon particles, a perfluoroalkylsulfonic acid polymer and a high-molecular compound having a repeating unit of a high-molecular chain fixed to the surface of the carbon particles.
US07892700B2
An electrode catalyst including two or more metal components used in an anode and/or a cathode of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) or a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), a method of preparing the same, and a fuel cell including the electrode catalyst. The electrode catalyst includes an active Pt-based metal and an inactive La-based metal. By including the inactive metal component in the electrode catalyst, in addition to the active Pt-based metal component, higher catalyst activity can be obtained, and the amount of the expensive Pt-based metal can be decreased so that the fuel cell can be produced at relatively low costs. In addition, the active Pt-based metal and the inactive La-based metal are uniformly distributed so that agglomeration of the active Pt-based metal can be blocked (or prevented) and thus the catalyst activity can be maintained constant for a relatively long period of time.
US07892699B2
This invention provides a type of cathode flow field plate for fuel cells. The cathode flow field plate comprises a cooling flow field and a reacting flow field, gas entrances, gas exits and plate ribs. Here, an end of said flow field is connected to the gas entrances. The other end is connected to the gas exits. Said cooling flow field comprises of a distributing rib. Said distributing rib is located between the gas entrances and the gas exits. There are connecting pores between said gas entrances and the distributing rib. The cathode flow field plate for fuel cells provided in this invention uses the distributing rib and the connecting pores to divide the gas into cooling gas and reacting gas. Since a single gas source is used, the only parameter subject to adjustment is the total amount of gas flow. Thus the control of the gases is relatively simple. The devices controlling the sources of the cooling gas and the reacting gas can be minimized. Therefore, the fuel cells using the flow field plate provided in this invention can be low in cost.
US07892693B2
A fuel cell is entirely fabricated on a single monocrystalline silicon substrate, and substantially overcomes leak proofing and wafer bonding difficulties and criticalities while ensuring an intrinsic sturdiness of the planarly integrated functional structure of the fuel cell. The integrated fuel cell is formed in an oxidized porous silicon region on a monocrystalline silicon substrate that is pervious to fluid flow and is electrically nonconductive with the monocrystalline silicon substrate.
US07892690B2
Micro fuel cell systems whose performance is enhanced by an accurate fluid delivery system. The fluid delivery system improves reactant fluid provision to meet electrical output, while maintaining correct stoichiometries for chemical processing in a downstream reactor. The fluid delivery system includes a pressure source and a differential flow meter. The differential flow meter uses a flow restrictor and a sensor. The pressure source moves a fluid through the flow restrictor; the sensor detects differential pressure in the flow restrictor and outputs a signal that permits dynamic control of fluid flow, e.g., by controlling a pump.
US07892676B2
A cathode material composition includes a composite compound having a formula of A3xM12y(PO4)3, and a conductive metal oxide having a formula of M2aOb, wherein A represents a metal element selected from Groups IA, IIA and IIIA; each of M1 and M2 independently represents a metal element selected from Groups IIA and IIIA, and transition elements; and 0≦x≦1.2, 1.2≦y≦1.8, 0
US07892668B2
An electronic device includes a main body, and a battery locking apparatus. The battery locking apparatus includes a locking unit, provided between a battery cover and the main body, which locks the battery cover to the main body; and an unlocking unit, provided between the locking unit and a battery, which provides a pushing force against the battery to unlock it from the main body.
US07892665B2
A direct methanol fuel cell liquid fuel including methanol and water to be supplied to an anode of a direct methanol fuel cell, in which an electrical resistance of the liquid fuel is 5×105 Ω·cm or more and 1×107 Ω·cm or less at 25° C. A direct methanol fuel cell cartridge storing the direct methanol fuel cell liquid fuel, and a direct methanol fuel cell system. Such structures can provide a direct methanol fuel cell liquid fuel, a direct methanol fuel cell cartridge, and a direct methanol fuel cell system all appropriately used for stable electricity generation over a long period of time.
US07892663B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide a perpendicular magnetic recording media having excellent resolution, signal to noise ratio (S/N), and a small adjacent track erasure. According to one embodiment, underlayers for controlling the orientation and segregation of a magnetic layer, a magnetic layer including an oxide and an alloy of magnetic materials mainly composed of Co, Cr, and Pt, and a ferromagnetic-metal layer which does not contain oxygen, are formed over a substrate. The magnetic layer has at least two layers including ferromagnetic grains and oxides, a first magnetic layer, which is the part of the magnetic layer closer to the substrate, has grain boundaries mainly composed of Cr oxide and at least one oxide selected from Si, Ti, Nb, and Ta, and grain boundaries of a second magnetic layer at the ferromagnetic-metal layer side includes at least one oxide selected from Si, Ti, Nb, and Ta in which Cr oxide is less than the first magnetic layer.
US07892656B2
A sliding device 1 is constituted of a swash plate 3 including a first sliding surface 3A and a semispherical shoe 4 sliding with the swash plate 3. The swash plate 3 is constituted of a base material 3B of high strength brass containing Mn and Si, and very small granular Mn—Si compounds 6 are exposed on an inside of the base material 3B and on the first sliding surface 3A (surface of the base material 3B). The above described swash plate 3 increases in exposure amount of the Mn—Si compounds 6 exposed on the first sliding surface 3A by applying etching to the base material 3B after cutting the base material 3B. The sliding device 1 is favorable in seizure resistance and has a low manufacturing cost as compared with conventional sliding devices.
US07892644B2
The present invention relates to a microcapsular powder having a latent heat storage material as a capsule core and a capsule wall constructed of from 10% to 100% by weight of one or more C1-C24-alkyl esters of acrylic and/or methacrylic acid (monomers I), from 0% to 80% by weight of a water-insoluble or substantially water-insoluble bi- or polyfunctional monomer (monomers II), and from 0% to 90% by weight of other monomers (monomer III) all based on the total weight of the monomers, having an average particle size in the range of 150-400 μm and having 80% by weight of particles ≧90 μm in diameter, to a process for its production and to its use in bindered building materials, textiles and dumped beds.
US07892639B2
Multi-layer, edge ingress, tamper- and solvent-indicating labels comprise a top film layer coated over a solvent, e.g., water, hydrocarbon, etc., and dye absorbing layer. The solvent and dye absorbing layer can be on top of a porous layer comprising a binder, pigment and particles of a solvent-soluble dye. The porous layer can be on top of an edge-wicking layer which itself is on top of a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) layer. The edge-wicking layer both absorbs and transports solvent thus serving as a means for transporting solvent to the solvent-soluble dye.
US07892627B2
A system for measuring 3D deformation and strain on the skin of a living person. A non contact optical 3D deformation measuring system is provided having a plurality of high resolution digital cameras for measuring 3D coordinates and 3D deformations operatively connected to a computer. A removable tattoo is also provided including a substrate and a pattern having a plurality of indicia distributed to form a pattern density of between about 40% and about 60%. The removable tattoo provides a reference marking for the non contact optical 3D deformation measuring system.
US07892625B2
A method of manufacturing an electrical connecting element with a predetermined breaking point is provided, the method comprising the steps of providing a core which comprises fiber reinforced material, of cutting the core at a cutting location where the predetermined breaking point is to be, and thereby creating a cut in the core, of adding at least one layer of material including a dielectric in a non-hardened state, the at least one layer at least partially covering the cut, and thereby at least partially filling the cut with dielectric material, of hardening the dielectric material, and of cutting through the layer of material at the cutting location.
US07892620B2
There is provided a dielectric material containing no sulfur (S), and there is provided an information recording medium that affords high signal quality and excellent recording sensitivity and repeated rewrite characteristics, even though no interface layer is provided between a reflective layer and a dielectric layer. To this end, the present invention is an information recording medium that is equipped with at least a recording layer and undergoes phase change when the recording layer is irradiated with a laser beam or when current is applied, comprising an oxide-fluoride dielectric layer that includes indium (In), an element M1 (where M1 is at least one element selected from among Zr, Hf, Y, Ti, Nb, Ta, Cr, Ga, and Si), oxygen (O), an element M2 (where M2 is at least one element selected from among La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb, Mg, Ca, and Sr), and fluorine (F).
US07892615B2
The present invention provides a coating material composition with a gas-barrier property which comprises, as essential components, an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (A) obtained by saponifying an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, an inorganic layered compound (B) and a solvent, wherein the total amount of (A) and (B) is 1 to 30% by mass and the mass ratio (A)/(B) is (30/70) to (50/50). The coating material provides gas-barrier properties to packaging materials.
US07892604B2
In certain example embodiments, a coated article includes respective layers including diamond-like carbon (DLC) and zirconium nitride before heat treatment (HT). During HT, the hydrogenated DLC acts as a fuel which upon combustion with oxygen produces carbon dioxide and/or water. The high temperature developed during this combustion heats the zirconium nitride to a temperature(s) well above the heat treating temperature, thereby causing the zirconium nitride to be transformed into a new post-HT layer including zirconium oxide that is scratch resistant and durable.
US07892600B2
The present invention relates to (a) the rotolining of the interior surface of a hollow article with tetrafluoroethylene/perfluoro(alkyl vinyl ether copolymer in a multicoat system, in which the undercoat also contains a powder additive, and the overcoat is preferably stabilized copolymer to form a bubble-free coating thicker than the undercoat, (b) embodiments in which the undercoat is stabilized or unstabilized copolymer, (c) use of the undercoat as a single coat system, (d) the composition for forming a bubble-free coating that adheres to the surface, arising from the presence of adhesion-promoting, non-bubble promoting metal powder being present in the composition.
US07892598B1
A multi-use labeling support structure having a support structure that includes an embossed resin film made without using a coated release substance (e.g., release coatings such as silicone coatings, added waxes or release agents). The embossed resin film thereof has a sufficiently high Ra factor and reduced contact surface area so that it will allow release of an adhesive affixed element without leaving any substantial adhesive residue on the embossed surface when removed.
US07892593B2
A method to coat a substrate for the formation of coatings having a desired surface morphology is provided, wherein the roughness and the total surface area of the coating can be varied during the coating process. The method of the present invention comprises the steps of generating droplets from a coating composition, transporting the droplets to the substrate and depositing a majority of the droplets on the substrate.
US07892590B2
Carbon dioxide is dissolved in perishable liquids loaded into pressure vessels that are provided with low carbon dioxide head pressure so as to improve product shelf life, thereby providing options for more economical shipment, as by rail and ocean vessels and for extended transport by truck and to facilitate extended storage of perishable products and to avoid the necessity of multiple treatments for pathogen reduction.
US07892589B2
Described are dough products that contain a hydrogel coating, wherein the hydrogel coating contains a hydrophilic colloid, oil, plasticizer, and water, and functions as a moisture barrier.
US07892576B2
Tablet comprising at least one biologically active substance and an excipient, in which the excipient contains calcium carbonate and at least one additive selected from fatty acids, their salts, their esters, lipid materials, polysaccharides, polyvinylpyrrolidone and polyvinylpyrrolidone derivatives, acrylic compounds, mono-, di- or triglyceride esters, animal proteins, and mixtures of at least two of these. Method for producing these tablets. Use of calcium carbonate in tablets containing at least one biologically active substance, for the prolonged release of this substance.
US07892573B2
A keratin hydrogel matrix serves as an effective acellular scaffold for axonal regeneration and facilitates functional nerve recovery.
US07892569B2
It is disclosed herein that agents that affect the activity and/or expression of CXCL16 can be used to alter the uptake of D-type CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (D ODNs). Methods of inducing an immune response are disclosed that include administering agents that increase the activity and/or expression of CXCL16 and a D ODN. Methods of decreasing an immune response to a CpG ODN are also disclosed. These methods include administering an agent that decreases the activity and/or expression of CXCL16. Compositions including one or more D-type ODNs and an agent that modulates that activity and/or expression of CXCL16 are provided.
US07892568B2
The invention provides methods and compositions for the detection of Ehrlichia chaffeensis.
US07892561B2
The invention provides new, specific antigenic peptides from the protein GDF8. The invention also provides fusion proteins comprising the new peptides, immunogens and vaccines based on the new peptides and/or fusion proteins, antibodies that specifically bind to the new peptides of GDF8, and methods of treating animals in order to modulate the activity of GDF8, employing vaccines or antibodies according to the invention.
US07892560B2
This invention describes a novel agent for the targeted control of a mammalian cell activity, in particular the agent is used to control the interaction of particular cell types with their external environment. The agent has applications as a pharmaceutical for the treatment of a variety of disorders. An agent according to the invention comprises three Domains B, T and E linked together in the following manner: Domain B-Domain T-Domain E where Domain B is the Binding Domain which binds the agent to a Binding Site on the cell which undergoes endocytosis to produce an endosome, Domain T is the Translocation Domain which translocates the agent (with or without the Binding Site) from within the endosome across the endosomal membrane into the cytosol of the cell, Domain E is the Effector Domain which inhibits the ability of the Recyclable Membrane Vesicles to transport the Integral Membrane Proteins to the surface of the cell.
US07892546B2
The present invention provides antibodies that bind human CXCR4 and are characterized as having high affinity and strong neutralizing properties. The antibodies of the invention are useful in the treatment of tumorigenesis, including tumor growth, invasion, angiogenesis, or metastasis.
US07892545B2
A method to treat conditions characterized by formation of amyloid plaques both prophylactically and therapeutically is described. The method employs humanized antibodies which sequester soluble Aβ peptide from human biological fluids or which preferably specifically bind an epitope contained within position 13-28 of the amyloid beta peptide Aβ.
US07892533B2
The invention relates inter alia to a method for inducing a long-term protection in an animal against foreign antigens and tumor antigens comprising the step of administering to the animal at least one factor selected from type I interferons and Flt-3, and to a method for inducing a long-term increase of the number of dendritic cells in an animal comprising the step of administering to the animal a factor selected from type I interferon and Flt-3 and to a method of inducing or enhancing the maturation and/or for the activation of the immune system of an animal comprising the step of administering to the animal a factor selected from type I interferon and Flt-3.
US07892530B2
Tumor metastases in cancer patients are inhibited by administration of a combination therapy including effective amounts of Interleukin-2 and a methylol transfer agent such as taurolidine, taurultam or mixtures thereof.
US07892529B2
Peptide of a size comprised between 5 and 40 amino acids, originating from a cytokine, in which at least one of its amino acids comprises at least one of its atoms separated by a distance d of less than 5 angströms from an atom of the receptor corresponding to said cytokine, the spacing d being evaluated on the basis of structural data, derivatives, immunogenic compounds comprising them, use of a peptide or peptide derivative or immunogenic compound for the preparation of a curative or preventative medicament intended for the treatment or prevention of diseases linked to an excess or to the presence of cytokines or for the treatment of an auto-immune disease and pharmaceutical compositions which contain at least one abovementioned peptide or peptide derivative or immunogenic compound as active ingredient.
US07892524B2
Composite particles for providing UV photo protection in cosmetic compositions are reported which include an organic sunscreen agent dispersed within a condensation polymerized resin having carboxylic acid groups and a dielectric constant ranging from 6.5 to 18.
US07892519B2
CuInS2 nanoparticles have been prepared from single source precursors via microwave irradiation. Also, CuInGaS2 alloy nanoparticles have been prepared. Microwave irradiation methods have allowed an increase in the efficiency of preparation of these materials by providing increased uniformity of heating and shorter reaction times. Nanoparticle growth has been controlled in the about 1 to 5 nm size range by variation of thiolated capping ligand concentrations as well as reaction temperatures and times. Investigation of the photophysical properties of the colloidal nanoparticles has been performed using electronic absorption and luminescence emission spectroscopy. Qualitative nanoparticles sizes have been determined from the photoluminescence (PL) data and compared to TEM images.
US07892518B2
A method of fluorination comprising reacting monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, polysaccharides, composite saccharides formed by bonding of these saccharides with proteins and lipids and saccharides having polyalcohols, aldehydes, ketones and acids of the polyalcohols, and derivatives and condensates of these compounds with a fluorinating agent represented by general formula (I) thermally or under irradiation with microwave or an electromagnetic wave having a wavelength around the microwave region. In accordance with the method, the fluorination at a selected position can be conducted safely at a temperature in the range of 150 to 200° C. where the reaction is difficult in accordance with conventional methods. The above method comprising the irradiation with microwave or an electromagnetic wave having a wavelength around the microwave region can be applied to substrates other than saccharides. When a complex compound comprising HF and a base is reacted under irradiation with microwave, fluorination at a specific position which is difficult in accordance with conventional methods proceeds highly selectively, efficiently in a short time and safely.
US07892511B2
Systems and processes for producing one or more products from syngas are provided. A feedstock can be gasified in the presence of an oxidant to provide a syngas comprising carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen. At least a portion of the syngas can be combusted to provide an exhaust gas. At least a portion of the exhaust gas can be introduced to a channel having one or more reaction zones at least partially disposed therein, wherein the one or more reaction zones are in indirect heat exchange with the exhaust gas, wherein the one or more reaction zones comprises one or more catalyst-containing tubes. A reactant can be reacted in at least one of the one or more reaction zones to provide one or more reactor products.
US07892502B2
An improved system and method for controlling ozone concentration in connection with a multi-chamber tool. The system and method involve a first and a second concentration controller in combination with an ozone generator. The first concentration controller detects an EVENT (i.e., one of the chambers in the multi-chamber tool coming on-line or off-line) and in response provides a power instruction to the ozone generator in accordance with a predictive control algorithm. The first concentration controller has a fast (i.e, about 1 second) response time. The second concentration controller is masked from the ozone generator during the EVENT, but otherwise controls the generator after an interval of time has lapsed after the EVENT. The second concentration controller has a slower response time than the first concentration controller, however the second concentration controller provides the system with long-term stability and can be used to provide updated data to the predictive control algorithm.
US07892500B2
A system and method for recycling plastics. The system and method recover materials such as hydrocarbon gases, liquid hydrocarbon distillates, various polymers and/or monomers used to produce the original plastics. The system and method allow about one unit of input of energy input to the plastic recycler to be used to create one or more gaseous components and one or more liquid distillate components from a plastic that is being recycled. The one or more gaseous components and one or more liquid distillate components produce about one corresponding unit of useable output energy recovered from the recycling of the plastic.
US07892486B2
A harmless sterilization method and sterilization apparatus which provide adequate sterilization effects without residual gas. The method includes a sterilization step in which a chamber containing an object to be sterilized is depressurized; a hydrogen peroxide supply step in which hydrogen peroxide is supplied into the chamber; an ozone supply step in which ozone is supplied into the chamber; a sterilization step in which the hydrogen peroxide and ozone supplied inside the chamber are dispersed to sterilize the object to be sterilized; an exhaust step in which gas inside the chamber is exhausted; and a plasma generation step in which plasma is generated inside the chamber to break down hydrogen peroxide and ozone remaining near the object to be sterilized, and radicals which promote sterilization are generated.
US07892485B1
A device for cleaning and deodorizing a sponge and a method of using the device. The device includes a carrier assembly that travels along a guide-track system and is lowered into a base unit large enough to hold a bath of cleaning solution that would engulf the sponge. The carrier assembly is used to compress, decompress, and recompress the sponge, which in turn absorbs a cleaning solution and expels the cleaning solution along with foreign matter.
US07892478B2
An immersion mold for a medical device balloon. The mold has a cavity adapted to receive a hollow parison expandable therein to form the balloon. The cavity has a length, a first end, a second end, and a cavity wall with inner and outer surfaces. The mold form cavity wall is provided with one or a plurality of through-holes along the length thereof to facilitate entrance and egress of a heated fluid.
US07892477B2
A process and a device for the manufacture of a hollow body, particularly of a heat-resistant hollow body, which is molded out of a heated preform of thermoplastic plastic in a contoured blow mold through the introduction of a first medium into the preform, which medium is stored in a first medium storage unit and is under a pressure (p1) (preblowing phase), and the more or less simultaneous stretching of the hollow body through a stretching rod and the introduction of a second medium in the hollow body, which medium is stored in a second medium storage unit and the pressure of which (p2) is higher than the pressure of the first medium (p1) (final blowing phase), and which is cooled by a third medium, which is medium stored in a third medium storage unit (rinsing phase), whereby the preblowing medium is under a pressure of approximately 2-20 bar, the final blowing medium is under a pressure of approximately 15-45 bar, and the cooling medium is under a pressure of approximately 30-45 bar.
US07892466B2
Methods of tailoring polyethylenes are contemplated utilizing 0.5 to 70 volume percent oxygen containing gases. The tailoring occurs in a melt-conveying zone of a mixer/extruder, and not in the feed or melting zones of a mixer/extruder. The effect of tailoring is to decrease the haze and/or increase the gloss of blown films made from the tailored polyethylenes compared to similar polyethylenes that are extruded/mixed in the substantial absence of oxygen or oxygen containing gases.
US07892462B2
Method and apparatus for controlling the delivery of polymer material in a sequential injection molding process. In one embodiment, the method provides: delivering a first shot of a first material simultaneously to a plurality of mold cavities; independently sensing for each cavity a property that is indicative of a volume or flow of material that is delivered to the corresponding cavity during the step of delivering the first shot; independently stopping the step of delivering the first shot to one or more cavities according to a program that uses as a variable a signal indicative of the property sensed for the corresponding cavity during delivery of the first shot; and delivering a second shot of a second material simultaneously to the cavities subsequent to the step of stopping the step of delivering the first shot.
US07892459B2
Photochromic matrix compositions and tie layer compositions useful for the preparation of photochromic polycarbonate lenses are disclosed. The tie layer compositions facilitate adhesion of the photochromic matrix composition to the polycarbonate lens. The photochromic matrix compositions can contain a flexible hydrophilic dimethacrylate monomer, one or more hydrophobic monomers, a flexible hydrophobic multi(meth)acrylate monomer, one or more urethane methacrylate oligomers, and one or more photochromic dyes. The tie layer compositions can contain one or more methacrylate monomers, a (meth)acrylated oligomer with a polycarbonate backbone, one or more urethane methacrylate oligomers, and a solvent or solvent mixture. Methods of preparing photochromic polycarbonate lenses are also disclosed, involving the serial application of the tie layer composition, then the photochromic matrix composition to the lens.
US07892455B2
The invention relates to a composition based on a polyamide matrix comprising electrically-conductive charges. Said composition can be prepared in order to produce plastic articles such as, for example, body parts in the automobile industry, having a good capacity for being painted using an electrostatic paint application method.
US07892453B2
A light-emitting device is produced using a phosphor composition containing a phosphor host having as a main component a composition represented by a composition formula: aM3N2.bAlN.cSi3N4, where “M” is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, and Zn, and “a”, “b”, and “c” are numerical values satisfying 0.2≦a/(a+b)≦0.95, 0.05≦b/(b+c)≦0.8, and 0.4≦c/(c+a)≦0.95. This enables a light-emitting device emitting white light and satisfying both a high color rendering property and a high luminous flux to be provided.
US07892452B2
Provided is a nanocrystalline phosphor having a core/shell structure formed by a core of a group 13 nitride semiconductor and a shell layer, covering the core, including a shell film of a group 13 nitride mixed crystal semiconductor. This nanocrystalline phosphor has high luminous efficiency, and is excellent in reliability. Also provided is a coated nanocrystalline phosphor prepared by bonding modified organic molecules to the nanocrystalline phosphor and/or coating the nanocrystalline phosphor with the modified organic molecules. This coated nanocrystalline phosphor has high dispersibility. Further provided is a method of preparing a coated nanocrystalline phosphor by heating a mixed solution containing a core of a group 13 nitride semiconductor, a nitrogen-containing compound, a group 13 element-containing compound and modified organic molecules.
US07892442B2
A method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head works a part to be worked to a target length by carrying out an etching process on an object to be worked using an etching apparatus. The method carries out a measuring process that measures a length before working of a part to be worked using a measuring apparatus and a calculation process that calculates the processing time of the etching process required to work the part to be worked from the length before working to the target length based on a first calculation result correcting parameter obtained in advance corresponding to the measuring apparatus, a second calculation result correcting parameter obtained in advance corresponding to a position of the part to be worked, a third calculation result correcting parameter obtained in advance corresponding to a value of a current supplied to an electrode of the etching apparatus during the etching process, a fourth calculation result correcting parameter obtained in advance corresponding to a total usage time of the electrode, the length before working, and the target length. The etching process is carried out on the object to be worked for the calculated processing time.
US07892435B2
Systems and methods are disclosed that promote the remediation of contaminated materials that are produced during industrial processes. These systems and methods include heating a material, transferring heat from the material to an industrial process. During this transfer, contaminants may be introduced into the material. These methods may remove the contaminant by treating the material with a surface modified nanoceramic through nanofiltration and/or active sites adsorption/reaction. The surface modified nanoceramic may remove at least part of the contaminant in the material. No cooling required prior to removing the contaminant from the material, which can lead to great energy saving and pollution reduction.
US07892426B2
A reducing water purification material having a reducing iron-based precipitate selected from green rust, iron ferrite, reducing iron hydroxide, and a mixture thereof. A wastewater treatment process having steps of adding a reducing iron compound to wastewater, leading the wastewater to which the reducing iron compound is added to a reaction tank and forming a precipitate, separating the formed precipitate by a solid-liquid separation to obtain a sludge, and alkalinizing all or a portion of the separated sludge to form an alkaline sludge followed by returning to the reaction tank, wherein in the precipitation step, the wastewater to which the reducing iron compound is added and the alkaline sludge are mixed and are allowed to react in a non-oxidizing atmosphere under alkaline condition to form a reducing iron compound precipitate as the precipitate, thereby incorporating contaminants in the precipitate to remove the contaminants from the wastewater.
US07892418B2
The present invention relates to a process for reducing sulfur content in petroleum fuel, such as diesel fuel, and raising the Cetane Number to a value above 50.
US07892416B2
The present invention provides a thermodynamic cracking process wherein the cracking takes place in a cyclone reactor and in a riser of varying areas under the influence of a rotating and turbulent fluidised energy carrier which is put in motion in a fluidised regenerator by injection of combustion gases or air. A cracking unit is also described.
US07892413B2
Electroplating methods and chemistries for deposition of copper-indium-gallium containing thin films
Described is an electrodeposition solution for deposition of a Group IB-IIIA thin film on a conductive surface. In a preferred embodiment, the electrodeposition solution comprises a solvent; a Group IB material source that dissolves in the solvent and provides a Group IB material; a Group IIIA material source that dissolves in the solvent and provides a Group IIIA material; and a blend of at least two complexing agents, one of the at least two complexing agent forming a complex with the Group IB material and the other one of the at least two complexing agent forming a complex with the Group IIIA material; wherein the pH of the solution is at least 7.
US07892412B2
A manufacturing process of an embedded type flexible or rigid printed circuit board includes multiple steps. First, a layer of dry film is applied to a layer of copper foil. Then a circuit pattern is formed on the copper foil through photolithography processes. An etching stop layer is electroplated on the copper foil according to the circuit pattern. The etching stop layer is then electroplated with copper. The copper foil is softened by a high temperature process after removing the dry film. Then the layer of the copper foil is etched after coating with an organic layer and the organic layer is solidified.
US07892410B2
To form a thick coating by a discharge surface treatment, a voltage between an electrode and a workpiece during a discharge is detected, and it is determined that a discharge surface treatment state is abnormal if it is detected that the voltage is reduced. With this arrangement, it is possible to accurately detect an unstable phenomenon in the discharge surface treatment, and take appropriate measures before a state of the coating and a state of the electrode are worsened due to the unstable phenomenon. By discriminating a stability of the discharge surface treatment, the coating and the electrode are prevented from being damaged.
US07892401B2
A fabric for use in a papermaking machine, the fabric including a first end portion of the fabric having a first flexibility, and a second end portion of the fabric having a second flexibility. At least one of the first end portion and the second end portion is treated with an agent to reduce the flexibility associated therewith. The first end portion and the second end portion are coupled together. The agent is substantially removed from the first end portion and the second end portion. The reduced flexibility of the first end portion and/or the said second end portion define a stiffness that is substantially unaffected by a humid environment.
US07892400B2
A chip pretreatment process which comprises conveying the feed material through a compression screw device having an atmosphere of saturated steam at a pressure above about 5 psig, decompressing and discharging the compressed material from the screw device into a decompression region, feeding the decompressed material from the decompression region into a fiberizing device, such as a low intensity disc refiner, where at least about 30 percent of the fiber bundles and fibers are axially separated, without substantial fibrillation of the fibers. In a more specific form the invention is directed to a process for producing mechanical pulp, including the steps of fiberizing wood chip feed material in a low intensity disc refiner until at least about 30 percent of the fibers are axially separated with less than about 5 percent fibrillation, and subsequently refining the fiberized material in a high intensity disc refiner until at least about 90 percent of the fibers are fibrillated. In another form the invention combines chip fiberizing with chemical treatments, for improving the pulp property versus energy relationships.
US07892397B2
A process for producing dissolving pulp includes a degumming step using a degumming liquor which includes hydrogen peroxide and ammonia.
US07892390B2
A multilayered flexible laminate comprising: a first lamina having a inlet channel; a second lamina having a outlet channel; the first and second laminas joined to one another about an unbonded valve region having open and closed orientations; wherein the first and outlet channels are in gaseous communication when the valve region is in the open orientation.
US07892386B2
The invention provides fluorescing compositions which cure by exposure to ultraviolet radiation and contain a europium compound which fluoresces at visible wavelengths. More particularly, the invention pertains to liquid, radiation-curable compositions comprising a substantially homogeneous fluid comprising, a fluorescing europium compound in an admixture of a polymerizable component and a polymerization initiator. Such find use as adhesives, coatings, and the like.
US07892385B2
An adhesive member for a display device is provided. The adhesive member includes first and second adhesive layers, and coating layers. The first and second adhesive layers have different adherence characteristics. Each of the coating layers covers the first and second adhesive layer, respectively. The adherence of the second adhesive layer is stronger than that of the first adhesive layer.
US07892381B2
A fiber optic faceplate fabricated using a series of stacked ribbon structures. Each ribbon structure comprises optical fiber segments that run from an input edge to an output edge with fixed input and output fiber-to-fiber spacing. Input and output edge spacers may be used to provide spacing between stacked ribbon structures. Ribbon structures may be provided individually or as one or more sheets of ribbon structures.
US07892354B2
A process for the detection of polymorphic or pseudopolymorphic forms of solid, molecular and crystallizing compounds, or of molecular, cocrystalline compounds or of solid solutions which consist of at least two solid, molecular and crystallizing compounds, in a series investigation using an apparatus for parallel investigations in vessels of an array under different conditions in each vessel, in which substantially only the amorphous form of the crystallizing compound, a solvate of the crystallizing compound or substantially only the amorphous form or a solvate of a compound in a mixture of at least two compounds is used as a suspension or solution, the solutions of amorphous compound having, at the same temperature, a higher content of crystallizable compounds than is achievable with a corresponding crystalline compound.
US07892350B2
A method of producing cementitious mixtures containing fly ash as one of the cementitious components, under air entrainment conditions. The method involves forming a mixture comprising water, cement, fly ash, optionally other cementitious materials, aggregate, conventional chemical admixtures, and an air entrainment agent and agitating the mixture to entrain air therein. Additionally, at least one sacrificial agent is also included in the mixture. The sacrificial agent is a material or mixture of materials that is not required to act as an air entrainment agent but interacts preferentially with components of the fly ash that otherwise neutralize, repress or depress the activity of the air entrainment agent. The invention includes cementitious mixtures and hardened concretes resulting from the method and fly ash treated with sacrificial agent, or air entrainment agent/sacrificial agent combinations, and processes for selecting suitable sacrificial agents.
US07892348B2
The present invention relates to a formulation of a high-performance foamed cement material, comprising: at least one hydraulic binder, microparticles whose grain size ranges between 0.1 and 30 μm, whose proportion ranges between 15% and 50% by mass in relation to the mass of hydraulic binder, mineral particles whose grain size ranges between 1 and 500 μm, whose proportion ranges between 10% and 35% by mass in relation to the mass of hydraulic binder, the proportion of particles being lower than the proportion of microparticles, a hydrosoluble polymer thinning agent whose proportion ranges between 0.1% and 8% by mass in relation to the mass of hydraulic binder, water whose proportion is at most 40% by mass in relation to the mass of hydraulic binder, a foaming agent whose proportion ranges between 0.1% and 10% by mass in relation to the mass of hydraulic binder.
US07892343B2
A manufacturing method for a slurry for the production of a precision casting mold that includes a zirconia sol and a refractory powder, and a manufacturing method for a precision casting mold that uses the slurry is provided. The present invention relates to a manufacturing method for a slurry for the production of a precision casting mold for a metal that includes a step in which an alkaline zirconia sol (A1) and a refractory powder (D) are mixed, the alkaline zirconia sol (A1) being obtained by a manufacturing method that includes a step (i), in which a zirconium salt (B1) is heated at 60 to 110° C. in an aqueous medium that includes a carbonate of quaternary ammonium, and a step (ii), in which a hydrothermal treatment is carried out at 100 to 250° C. In addition, the present invention relates to a manufacturing method for a slurry for the production of a precision casting mold for a metal that includes a step in which an acidic zirconia sol (C3) and a refractory powder (D) are mixed, the acidic zirconia sol (C3) being obtained by a manufacturing method that includes a step (I), in which an alkaline zirconia sol (A3) and a zirconium salt (B3) are mixed, and a step II, in which the obtained liquid mixture is caused to react at 80 to 250° C.
US07892340B2
An ink-jet recording ink including water, a water-soluble organic solvent, a pigment (P1) as a colorant (B), and at least one fluorochemical surfactant selected from compounds represented by Structural Formula (1) below, where R1 denotes any one of a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group and a fluorine-containing group, Rf denotes a fluorine-containing group, and each of x, y and z denotes an integer of 1 or greater.
US07892332B2
A dialysis fluid cassette includes a rigid portion defining first and second valve chambers, the rigid portion further defining an air separation chamber in fluid communication with the first and second valve chambers, the air separation chamber including a baffle and structured such that when the cassette is placed in a dialysis instrument, (i) the baffle extends upwardly from a bottom of the air separation chamber and (ii) first and second openings to the air separation chamber, communicating fluidly and respectively with the first and second valve chambers, are located near the bottom of the air separation chamber, such that the dialysis fluid is forced up one side of the baffle and down the other side of the baffle when flowing through the air separation chamber.
US07892331B2
A dialysis fluid cassette includes a rigid portion defining at least one valve chamber, the rigid portion further defining an air separation chamber, the air separation chamber when in an operating position including a first sidewall and a second sidewall, a first fluid opening, a second fluid opening, and a separation wall extending from the first sidewall to the second sidewall, the separation wall having a free edge residing within the air separation chamber, the separation wall forcing the dialysis fluid to flow from one of the fluid openings around the free edge of the separation wall to the other of the openings.
US07892312B2
A nitrification inhibitor and a soil improver and a fertilizer containing the same are offered which can be utilized in a wide area from a tropical to a temperate zone, and can be easily obtained from natural origin materials. It is a nitrification inhibitor to inhibit soil nitrification, containing as a main component either one of linoleic acid, α-linolenic acid, γ-linolenic acid, and methyl linoleate, or their mixture of two or more. By incorporating this nitrification inhibitor into a soil improver or a fertilizer, nitrification of soil can be effectively inhibited.
US07892302B2
A process and system is provided for briquetting particulate matter such as moisture-containing bituminous and sub-bituminous coal. This process includes partially drying the particulate matter and feeding, the partially dried particulate matter to a briquetting apparatus under conditions such that water vapor is released from the particulate matter during feeding. The particulate matter is passed through briquette forming rollers to form briquettes. The released water vapor substantially displaces or prevents the ingress of a large proportion of other gaseous components from the atmosphere surrounding and/or intermixed with the particulate matter. The particulate matter that is fed to the briquetting apparatus is surrounded by and intermixed with a gaseous component containing 70 to 100% by volume of water vapor at the point where it enters the briquette-forming part of the briquetting apparatus.
US07892300B2
A process for upgrading a diesel fuel, includes the steps of providing a diesel fuel feedstock; hydrogenating the feedstock at a pressure of less than about 600 psig so as to provide a hydrogenated product wherein a portion of the feedstock is converted to alkyl-naphthene-aromatic compounds; and selectively oxidizing the hydrogenated product in the presence of a catalyst so as to convert the alkyl-naphthene-aromatic compounds to alkyl ketones. A catalyst and oxygen-containing Diesel fuel are also provided.
US07892294B2
Provided herein is a method for dyeing keratin fibers, comprising applying to the keratin fibers, at least one composition comprising at least one compound chosen from compounds of leuco type of formula (I), dyes of azomethine type containing a pyrazolopyridine unit of formula (II) corresponding to the compounds of formula (I), mesomeric forms, isomers and tautomers thereof, and also acid-addition salts thereof and solvates thereof:
US07892288B2
A femoral augment, or set of augments, for use with a knee joint prosthesis, where the femoral augment includes a main body portion, an aperture formed within the main body portion and extending in a generally distal/proximal direction, and a pair of legs extending outwardly from said main body portion in a generally posterior direction. In the preferred embodiment, the aperture is configured to receive a stem extension implant, and to allow it to pass through. Additionally, the legs of the femoral augment are preferably configured to be seated proximal of a proximal side of a pair of condylar portions of a femoral component of a knee joint prosthesis. The present invention is intended for situations in which the distal portion of the femur is defective, and it provides a method and devices that allow for preservation of healthy peripheral bone, while still providing the necessary augmentation to the distal portion of the femur.
US07892282B2
Apparatus and methodology for inserting an intraocular lens (IOL) into an eye. The apparatus includes a cartridge for holding an IOL and a handpiece with a body member for receiving the cartridge, an injector rod that is receivable by the body member, and a drive mechanism that longitudinally oscillates the injector rod in the body member when a rotational force is applied about a longitudinal axis in a single direction. In other words, a constant rotation in a single direction of the drive mechanism causes the injector rod to move distally and proximally in discrete increments, with the distal increments being larger than the proximal increments. Accordingly, the injector rod urges an IOL out of the handpiece in a two-steps-forward, one-step-back manner, thereby minimizing or eliminating the chance of the injector rod engaging with the IOL.
US07892281B2
A prosthetic valve assembly for use in replacing a deficient native valve comprises a replacement valve supported on an expandable valve support. If desired, one or more anchor may be used. The valve support, which entirely supports the valve annulus, valve leaflets, and valve commissure points, is configured to be collapsible for transluminal delivery and expandable to contact the anatomical annulus of the native valve when the assembly is properly positioned. The anchor engages the lumen wall when expanded and prevents substantial migration of the valve assembly when positioned in place. The prosthetic valve assembly is compressible about a catheter, and restrained from expanding by an outer sheath. The catheter may be inserted inside a lumen within the body, such as the femoral artery, and delivered to a desired location, such as the heart. When the outer sheath is retracted, the prosthetic valve assembly expands to an expanded position such that the valve and valve support expand within the deficient native valve, and the anchor engages the lumen wall.
US07892280B2
An implantable medical device including an expandable stent with an amorphous fluoropolymer coating, and methods of coating the stent. The amorphous fluoropolymer coating may be optically transparent and resistant to chemical corrosion.
US07892279B2
The present invention concerns novel stent apparatuses for use in treating lesions at or near the bifurcation point in bifurcated cardiac, coronary, renal, peripheral vascular, gastrointestinal, pulmonary, urinary and neurovascular vessels and brain vessels. More particularly, the invention concerns a stent apparatus with at least one side opening which may further comprise an extendable stent portion laterally extending from the side opening and at least partly in registry with the wall of the side opening. Devices constructed in accordance with the invention include, singularly or in combination, a main expandable stent comprising at least one substantially circular side opening located between its proximal and distal end openings, which side opening may further comprise an expandable portion extending radially outward from the edges of the side opening; and a branch stent comprising proximal and distal end openings and which may further comprise a contacting portion at its proximal end, and which may optionally be constructed to form either a perpendicular branch or a non-perpendicular branch when inserted through a side opening of the main stent. The stents of the invention are marked with, or at least partially constructed of, a material which is imagable during intraluminal catheterization techniques, most preferably but not limited to ultrasound and x-ray.
US07892278B2
As described herein, vascular anchoring systems are used to position an implant in a vascular area such as a bifurcated vasculature with relatively high fluid flow, for instance, in an area of a pulmonary artery with associated left and right pulmonary arteries. Implementations include an anchoring trunk member having a first anchoring trunk section and a second anchoring trunk section. Further implementations include a first anchoring branch member extending from the anchoring trunk member. Still further implementations include a second anchoring branch member extending from the anchoring trunk member.
US07892270B2
Intravascular closed loop heat exchange catheters are used to manage temperature in burn patients.
US07892268B2
An apparatus for directing light to an eye for exciting a photosensitizer includes a high output or super bright LED and an optic that receives light from the LED and concentrates the light so that it is nearly collimated. The LED is a single light source that is used for both therapy and for diagnostics or aiming.
US07892264B2
A fixation device for reduction and fixation of fractures of the talus bone of the foot includes a thin titanium alloy plate having a lower wing configured for attachment to the lateral aspect of the talus and an upper wing configured for attachment to the dorsal aspect of the talus. The plate includes a substantially perpendicular or right angle bend between the lower and upper wings. In one embodiment, each wing includes three screw holes arranged in a generally triangular pattern. Two holes on each plate are situated in tabs and the center of the plate has a reduced width so that the plate presents a minimal profile. One of the tabs on the upper wing is bent away from the lower wing at a pre-determined angle so that the wing conforms to the shape of the talus. In an alternative embodiment, the upper wing includes a step portion between the lower wing and the bent tab and carrying one screw hole. In this embodiment, the bent tab is generally elongated with one or two screw holes disposed along its length.
US07892253B2
A tourniquet for restricting a flow of blood in a body part comprises a first elongated member, and a second elongated member in slidable engagement with the first elongated member. In addition, the tourniquet includes a tensioning mechanism connected to the second elongated member, wherein a compressive force is applied to the body part upon applying a tensile force to the second elongated member using the tensioning mechanism. At least one embodiment of the present invention comprises a buckle having one or more of a raised intermediate bar and one or more teeth for contacting a portion of the first elongated member. The tourniquet is suited for emergency use, and may be applied by using only one hand. Thus, the tourniquet may be applied, manipulated and tightened by the wearer, even if the wearer is limited to the use of a single hand.
US07892251B1
A locking component delivers and locks an attached medical device along a pre-deployed guide wire. The locking component can lock onto a flexible body member disposed on the guide wire, such as the distal helical tip coil of a conventional guide or a specially-designed guide wire. The locking component includes a tapered opening which temporarily compresses a portion of the helical coil and a locking recess in communication with the tapered opening for receiving the compressed coil. Compressed coils which enter the locking recess will spring back to their original shape (diameter) within the locking recess, locking the component to the coil.
US07892243B2
The present invention provides a surgical manipulator which is capable of manipulating a surgical or medical tool in up to six degrees of freedom. The manipulator has a haptic interface and an associated position sensing system. A controller is provided that can be used to adjust movement information from the haptic interface based on the relative orientations of the manipulator and the haptic interface.
US07892231B2
A system for treating tissue includes a probe assembly having a cannula, a shaft, and one or more needle electrodes. The shaft has a distal end, a proximal end, and a lumen extending between the distal and proximal ends of the shaft, and is slidable within the lumen of the cannula. Each needle electrode has a lumen that may be placed in communication with a port at a proximal end of the probe assembly, and is configured to deliver an occlusive element to a site. The system may further include an embolization actuator for delivering the occlusive element. A method of treating tissue includes placing an electrode at a site of a treatment region, occluding at least a part of a vessel located adjacent the site by delivering an occlusion element from an electrode, and delivering ablation energy to the site while the vessel is at least partially occluded.
US07892230B2
Electrosurgical methods and apparatus for the controlled ablation of tissue from a target site of a patient. The instrument includes a shaft having proximal and distal end portion and a planar active electrode on the distal end portion; a return electrode arranged on the shaft spaced from the active electrode; at least one electrical connector extending through the shaft that connects the active electrode with a high frequency power supply; and an aspiration lumen within the shaft having a distal opening. The active electrode is arranged vertically or perpendicular to the tissue treatment surface. The planar electrode may include one or more apertures.
US07892226B2
A method of corneal laser surgery is disclosed. A first periphery is defined at an anterior surface of the cornea. This first periphery bounds a first planar area. A second periphery is defined within stromal tissue of the cornea. This second periphery bounds a second planar area. The second planar area is sized differently than the first planar area. A layer of stromal tissue which is bounded by the second periphery is subsequently incised. Stromal tissue between substantial portions of the first periphery and the second periphery is also incised, such that at least some corneal tissue disposed between the first and second peripheries remains connected to corneal tissue outside of the first and second peripheries.
US07892223B2
A surgical instrument has a gas-delivery device to supply a noble gas or other inert gas to a tissue-treatment region and a rinsing device for rinsing a target region, in particular a tissue-treatment region. In the instrument the rinsing pressure is generated by the inert gas supplied by the gas-delivery device.
US07892219B2
A disposable wearing article has a first surface and a second surface. The second surface is provided with a tape fastener attached thereto. The tape fastener may be folded so as to be unfoldable in a longitudinal direction and includes a first tape strip and a second tape strip underlying the first tape strip. The first tape strip has a free end zone and a first end zone and is adhesively attached to the second tape strip. The second tape strip has a fixed end zone secured to the second surface and a second end zone. The first end zone of the first tape strip has an extension that extends beyond the second end zone of the second tape strip and is adhesively attached to the second surface either directly or via a third tape strip of the tape fastener.
US07892217B2
A liquid measurement device having a containment structure, a sensor, and an interface device, having particular applicability to the collection and administration of electrically conductive fluids. The device is configured to house and monitor the height of a fluid. The containment structure has at least one variable cross-section portion. The sensor has two cooperating variable resistance sections that account for the variable cross-section of the containment structure. The electrical resistance of the sensor changes as the fluid height changes and shorts out a portion of the sensor. The sensor may include an electrically conductive ink that is printed on the interior of the containment structure. The sensor receives an electrical measurement signal and modifies the signal in a predetermined manner to reflect the amount of fluid within the containment structure. The device is useful in measuring the amount of fluid in urine collection bags and intravenous bags.
US07892213B2
A fluid flow rate control system and method comprises a capillary tube having a proximal end that projects into a chamber with a cross-sectional area that is larger than or equal to the fluid supply tube's cross-sectional area. The inner cross-sectional area of the capillary tube is configured less than the inner cross-sectional area of the chamber. The chamber has a volume large enough to slow the fluid conducted to it by the upstream fluid line to permit contaminants to fall out of solution. In another aspect, a sleeve is used to mount the capillary tube into the chamber. The sleeve provides a mounting surface for tube segments from the pump and downstream of the capillary restrictor.
US07892205B2
The present invention provides a catheter and catheter assembly for delivering micronized therapeutic agents to a target site in the body and, in particular, to a target site in the heart. The micronized therapeutic agents are delivered in aerosol form or dry powder form. The present invention also provides a method of delivering micronized therapeutic agents to a target site in the body by placing the therapeutic agents in a catheter, positioning the catheter in the target site, and exposing the therapeutic agents to an energizing mechanism sufficient to create supersonic flow to carry the therapeutic agents from a stationary state in the catheter to a mobile state towards the target site.
US07892199B2
Some embodiments of an infusion pump system may include an occlusion sensor that can be used to detect when an occlusion exists in the fluid path between the medicine reservoir and the infusion site on the user's skin. Such an occlusion may occur, for example, when the fluid flow line (e.g., a cannula, infusion set tubing, or the like) is kinked. If the medicine dispensation path to the user is occluded, the user may receive no dosage or a lower dosage of the medicine. As such, the occlusion sensor can be used to indicate when the fluid is flowing or not flowing, thereby permitting the infusion pump system to communicate an alarm to the user if an occlusion exists.
US07892189B2
A movement analysis display apparatus includes a analyzing unit for analyzing waveform data of a time series which is acquired from a movement sensor, and a display unit for displaying an analysis result that is analyzed by the analyzing unit. The analyzing unit includes a movement waveform generating section for generating a movement waveform from the waveform data, an energy balance value calculating means for calculating a movement energy ratio in opposed movement directions in a velocity waveform, an envelope curve generating section for generating an envelope curve at a given time width in a distance waveform, and a time integration curve analyzing section for integrating a movement waveform with respect to time.
US07892187B2
A method of making a guide wire involves butting a connection end face at a proximal end of a first wire against a connection end face at a distal end of a second wire while applying voltage and a pressing force to weld together the first and second wires at a welded portion. The welded portion forms a projection that projects outwardly in an outer peripheral direction relative to portions of the first and second wire adjacent the projection. The outer dimension of the projection at the welded portion is adjusted so that upon completing adjusting the outer dimension of the projection the projection still projects outwardly in the outer peripheral direction relative to the portions of the first and second wire adjacent the projection.
US07892186B2
The invention includes an assembly having a handle for articulating an articulator in an ergonomically improved manner. The handle can be adapted to articulate a distal portion of the articulator when squeezed. The handle can have at least one accessible attachment mechanism useful for reattachably attaching the articulator and the handle during a medical procedure. The invention also includes methods of making and using such a handle.
US07892176B2
An ultrasonic monitoring system is formed with a probe unit. In one example an array of transducer cells is arranged in rows and columns formed along a first plane with a first pitch along a first direction. An integrated circuit including an array of circuit cells is formed along a second plane parallel to the first plane. The circuit cells are spaced apart along the first direction at a second pitch smaller than the first pitch. A first of the transducer cells is vertically aligned, along a direction normal to one of the planes, with a first of the circuit cells and having a connection thereto. A second of the transducer cells is offset from vertical alignment with respect to the position of a second circuit cell so as to not overlie the second circuit cell. A connection subsystem is positioned between the array of transducer cells and the array of circuit cells, configured to form connection of the first transducer cell to the first circuit cell and connection of the second transducer cell with the second circuit cell.
US07892148B1
A treadmill assembly comprising a substantially horizontal tread assembly including oppositely extending front and rear ends, a tread and a controller for controlling movement of the tread, a support structure extending proximate the rear end of the tread assembly to a distal top end substantially above the rear end of the tread assembly, a table top member mounted to the distal top end of the support structure, the top member including a substantially flat work surface and a front edge, the work surface having dimensions suitable to support a computer keyboard and a control assembly including at least one input button for providing command signals for controlling the controller, the control assembly supported by the table top member adjacent the front edge of the table top member.
US07892136B2
The present invention provides gear train of an automatic transmission for a vehicle having a first planetary gear set being a double pinion planetary gear set, a second planetary gear set being a single pinion planetary gear set, a third planetary gear set being a Ravigneaux planetary gear set, with five clutches and two brakes, which realizes ten forward speeds and three reverse speeds.
US07892123B2
The present invention relates to a mounting structure for mounting firmly onto a rotating shaft a rotational force transmission member such as a chain sprocket, a gear, a belt pulley and the like. A drive sprocket as a rotational force transmission member is fitted into an end of the rotating shaft in a splined manner. A coned disc spring and a washer are positioned in sequence onto an outer face of the rotational force transmission member. The coned disc spring and the washer are supported and sandwiched by the screw fastening member to be screwed to an end of the rotating shaft and the rotational force transmission member.
US07892116B2
A baseball training aid is provided which includes an audio or visual pitch indicator for simulating a baseball pitcher's pitch. The training aid further includes an impact sensor, preferably in the form of a microphone, for detecting whether a practicing batter's swing is timely, premature or late. The audio signals produced by the microphone are processed by a processor to determine the timeliness of the batter's swing. The results are then communicated to the batter using an audio or visual feedback indicator.
US07892115B2
A method of practicing athletic skills is disclosed along with systems associated therewith. The method may include providing a ball drop system and an athlete in a first position. The ball drop system may drop a ball and may prompt the athlete to leave the first position and move their entire body at least one step length to a second position. The second position may be in contact with or proximate to the ball drop system or dropped ball.
US07892103B2
A method for golf swing training. In one embodiment, the method comprises a weighted club with directional mountings attached to a resistance means. The resistance means applies force from behind forcing the squaring up of the club face. The disclosed technology comprises a pulley system that allows for the variable resistance associated with the various exercises. By not using a traditional golf head and using directional mountings, the device is no longer dependent on the club face orientation but rather, the golf plane.
US07892102B1
A club shaft that can be installed in a club head permanently or can be installed in clubs with interchangeable shaft features is disclosed herein. The invention is a measurement system that enables the capturing of the speed and motion of the golfer's swing. The invention uses magnetic material positioned on a face of a golf club head and an array of magnetic sensors.
US07892098B2
Apparatuses and systems including a gaming machine having one or more major components that are removable and interchangeable with other similar major components for a gaming machine are disclosed. Such a gaming machine has at least a master gaming controller, one or more major components, and a universal gaming engine. At least one major component, such as a top box or main cabinet, contains a plurality of peripheral devices and a universal communication interface, is adapted to be removable from the gaming machine, and is interchangeable with other similar major components. The universal gaming engine contains at least one dedicated processing unit, such as a CPU, at least one associated storage device, and its own universal communication interface. This universal gaming engine is also adapted to control a substantial portion of the plurality of peripheral devices on the removable and interchangeable major component of the gaming machine.
US07892093B2
A gaming system including a central server linked to a plurality of gaming machines and a plurality of bonus awards. The central server monitors wagers on the gaming machines. Based at least in part on the wagers the central server determines when bonus events will occur and which gaming machine(s) will provide the bonus awards. In one embodiment, the central server determines which gaming machine will provide a primary bonus award and any secondary bonus awards, wherein at least one gaming machine may be provided a plurality of bonus awards.
US07892089B2
A entrance-exchange structure and method of execution thereof, comprising a house and an activity of uncertain outcome (e.g., game of chance, game of skill, etc.) that is entered by a participant (e.g., a participant such as a player). The house pays the participant a takehome in relevant scrip, or cash and relevant scrip, for an activity entered into by the participant, based on betting by the participant. An existing outside vendor may exchange the participant's scrip at a scrip-to-items exchange rate for at least one item provided by the outside vendor. The outside vendor may exchange the relevant scrip with the house for cash at an outside-vendor scrip-to-cash exchange rate. The house may also function as a vendor with whom the participant may exchange relevant scrip for cash at a house-vendor scrip-to-cash exchange rate. The relevant scrip is a virtual currency that may be generated by the entrance-exchange structure.
US07892088B2
A gaming system wherein a second game is triggered once a specific event occurs in a first game.
US07892085B2
An electronic bingo game and method for playing the same is disclosed. A bingo card having a plurality of numbered spaces is presented to a player, in which at least one of the numbered spaces is hidden to the player's view, thereby forming covered and uncovered portions of the bingo card. A random number generator draws bingo numbers until the occurrence of a game ending event, which numbers are compared to the numbered spaces on both the covered and uncovered portions of the bingo card. If the pattern of numbers formed on the uncovered portion of the bingo card forms one or more of a set of designated winning bingo patterns, a first award is paid to the player. The player is then presented with the opportunity to reveal one or more of the covered spaces on the bingo card whereupon a second prize is paid if the pattern of numbers formed on the uncovered spaces forms one or more of a set of designated winning bingo patterns.
US07892064B2
A portable backpack which doubles as a play activity center is disclosed. It is a portable entertainment center with numerous features for engaging young children in imaginative play. The front of the backpack is hinged to open an interior area where play toys and accessories can be located to simulate a dollhouse, space vehicle, barn or like play themes. The backpack is made of shape retaining materials that are nevertheless soft to the touch but crushable, and collapsible to minimize injury to the user and wear-and-tear during playful use by children. Various features such as a swing, ladder, escape hatch, windows, operable doors, promote imaginative play. Some embodiments of the backpack include colorful replicas of butterflies, beetles, etc. on the front to attract attention of peers to the backpack and its owner.
US07892059B2
A manufacturing method of a display device the method comprising a step of etching a surface of a partitioning wall formed on a substrate around region where a display pixel is formed.
US07892050B2
A female terminal receptor for an automotive fuse or a terminal includes three or more pairs of opposing beams and at least one U-shaped clamping member. The U-shaped clamping member has a first base portion laterally disposed between two pairs of opposing beams and at least one pair of first end portions disposed over at least one pair of opposing beams for applying a predetermined compression force. The opposing beams have a first metallic composition and the U-shaped clamping member has a second metallic composition, wherein the first metallic composition has a higher conductivity than the second metallic composition, and wherein the second metallic composition has a higher relaxation temperature than the first metallic composition.
US07892044B2
A terminal module includes at least two terminals (2, 3) for transmitting electrical power, each terminal having a retention portion (21) defining two positioning cavities therein, a mating portion (25) extending forward from the retention portion and a tail portion (23) extending rearward from the retention portion; and an insulative main portion (1) including a base portion (11) and two retaining portions (12) laterally extending outward from the base portion, each retaining portion having two locking arm portions (121) spaced apart from one another and locked into the two positioning cavities of the retention portion of the corresponding terminal.
US07892041B2
A constraint mechanism for receiving an audio plug in an electronic device is provided. The constraint mechanism may include a conductive tube operative to receive the audio plug. In addition, the constraint mechanism may include several features operative to engage corresponding features of the electronic device to prevent the constraint mechanism from moving in any direction (e.g., which could cause damage in the electronic device if the audio jack was forced to move by an impact on the audio plug). For example, the constraint mechanism may include a center wall to prevent yawing, and rear tabs to prevent pitching. As another example, the constraint mechanism may include a side plate operative to be coupled to the electronic device to prevent rolling. In some embodiments, the constraint mechanism may include an asymmetrical tube entrance for ensuring the proper alignment of the constraint mechanism with an electronic device opening. The tube may include a conductive dimple extending through an aperture of the tube, where the aperture is substantially the same size and shape as the conductive dimple.
US07892038B1
A connector has a first connector portion having a first housing with first connecting terminals aligned and accommodated therein, and a second connector portion having a second housing with second connecting terminals aligned and accommodated therein. When the first connector portion and the second connector portion are mated with each other, one side of the first connecting terminals and one side of the second connecting terminals faces each other to form pairs, respectively, so that a stacked structure of the pairs of the first connecting terminals and the second connecting terminals are alternately interleaved. Isolating members are aligned and accommodated in the first housing of the first connector portion and fixed to other side of the first connecting terminals, respectively. A connecting member presses the adjacent isolating member to collectively fix the first connecting terminals and the second connecting terminals at the contacts therebetween.
US07892035B2
An electrical card connector includes a first insulative housing (1), a number of first contacts (2) mounted in the first housing and having a first soldering portion (22), a second insulative housing (4) located behind the first housing, a number of second contacts (5) mounted in the second housing and having a second soldering portion (51), and a shell (6) covering the first housing and the second housing. The first housing and the second housing is separated each other. A gap (9) is formed between the shell and the second housing. The second housing with the second contacts moves around the gap, corresponding to the first housing, and then the second soldering portion is adjusted, the first soldering portion and the second soldering portion are in coplanar, and soldered on the PCB without missing.
US07892029B2
An electrical connector includes: an insulating housing defining a mounting face for being mounted on a PCB and a pair of engaging portions at two opposite ends of the insulating housing; a number of contacts retained in the insulating housing; a metal shell assembled on the insulating housing along an assembly direction slanting to the mounting face, the metal shell having a locking portion with a gap through which the engaging portion is inserted in the locking portion and a stopper portion. The stopper portion exceeds the mounting face when the metal shell assembled on the insulating housing along the assembly direction before the electrical connector is mounted on the PCB, while the stopper portion is pressed by the PCB to offset the assembly direction when the electrical connector is mounted on the PCB so as to prevent the engaging portion from deflecting from the locking portion through the gap.
US07892028B2
A cable connector (100) includes an insulative housing (30), at least one terminal (70) received in the insulative housing, a metal cover (10) shielding the insulative housing and at least one cable (50) connecting with the at least one terminal. The cable includes a central conductor (507) and a braiding layer (503) coaxially surrounding the central conductor. The braiding layer of the cable and the metal cover are connected with each other by conductive adhesive (90).
US07892016B1
An electrical wire connector. In a housing is disposed metal bushings in which wires are inserted. The bushings are embedded in the insulation cap for permanent placement. The bushings are connected via a bridge to carry current from bushing to bushing. The insulation cap top openings are shaped with bell mouths for easy insertion of electrical wires. Each metal bushing has cutting lances to strip the wires as they are inserted into the connector. Pressure lances secure each wire in position. A spring loaded tab is provided for additional contact.
US07892012B1
Embodiments of the present invention relate to a connector locking device for network cables and methods of utilizing the same. In one embodiment of the present invention, a self-releasing connector locking device comprises a locking tongue support for supporting a locking tongue of a connector, a first retaining mechanism for engaging a portion of a body of a terminal, and a first release arm for releasing the retaining mechanism from the portion of the body of the terminal.
US07892010B2
An electric device has a plug connection provided with a plug that has at least one contact pin and further provided with a mating plug receptacle that has at least one contact tube. A closure device is arranged on the plug receptacle and has a closed position for protecting the at least one contact tube. The closure device is moved by the plug into an open position when the plug is inserted into the plug receptacle, wherein in the open position the at least one contact tube is released.
US07892000B1
A connector locking base structure of an LED lamp includes a connector locking base having a conventional lamp connector and a locking base coupled together such that a threaded end of a cap of the LED lamp can be screwed to the locking base of the connector locking base. The conventional lamp connector of the connector locking base can be inserted into a socket for use with a conventional lamp, thereby allowing power to be supplied to the LED lamp for emission of light. Grooves formed in a casing of the conventional lamp connector are engaged with hooks of the locking base. A screw hole is centrally formed in the locking base. The hooks are provided on the inner side of the locking base and engaged with the grooves of the conventional lamp connector, respectively, to thereby form the connector locking base.
US07891997B2
A card connector (1) includes an insulative housing and a plurality of conductive terminals mounted on the housing. A card guiding mechanism has a slide member for guiding the electronic card as it moves within the card connector. The slide member is moveable along a path between an initial card insertion position and a fully inserted position. An urging member urges the slide member in a direction opposite to the card insertion direction to thereby ejecting a card by moving the slide member. A shell is mounted on the housing and covers at least the slide member and a part of the electronic card upon insertion of the card into the card connector. One of the housing and the shell has a guide surface with a bulge projecting into the path of the slide member and upon movement of the slide member from the fully inserted position to the initial card insertion position, the slide member engages the bulge (62; 11j) to slow the movement of the slide member.
US07891988B2
System and method for connecting flat flex cable with an integrated circuit, such as a camera module
A Flat Flex Connector (FFC) has connector flanges embedded in its insulated electrical traces. The flanges engage electrical circuits in a camera module such as a CMOS or CCD and are clamped into electrical engagement. The opposite end of the FFC makes electrical contact with another electrical device such as a semiconductor circuit. The assembly allows electrical connection of two or more devices in a confined space in which the electrical device are not easily aligned for electrical contact.
US07891987B2
The electric junction box includes a box body, cassette block, relay, terminal fitting and rib. The box body includes a mounting hole. A groove is formed hollow from a surface of the cassette block. The relay is mounted on the surface of the cassette block. The terminal fitting is received in the cassette block. The rib extends from one inner wall surface to an opposite inner wall surface of the mounting hole. The cassette block is received in the mounting hole of the box body. The rib enters into the groove.
US07891979B2
A RF coaxial connector has an insulative housing, an internal terminal and an external terminal. The insulative housing has a cavity. The internal terminal is mounted in the cavity and has a mounting section, two resilient arms protruding from the mounting section, a free section formed between the resilient arms and a contacting section protruding from the free section. The external terminal is mounted on the insulative housing. The internal terminal provides sufficient resistance force against a pin conductor of a corresponding connector engaged with the RF coaxial connector for stable signal transmission.
US07891973B2
An appliance for providing air and gas to a gas burner includes a gas tube and an air tube. The gas tube comprises an aperture for providing gas inwards to the air tube. The air tube comprises a first aperture for receiving a back tube of the gas burner. The gas tube is provided with a first part of a detachable connection device, for receiving a second part of the detachable connection device provided on the back tube for allowing gas from the gas tube to enter the back tube. The back tube has an orifice for allowing air from the air tube to enter inside the back tube.
US07891969B2
A nozzle for an injection molding apparatus is provided. The injection molding apparatus has a mold component that defines a mold cavity and a gate into the mold cavity. The nozzle includes a nozzle body, a heater, a tip, a tip surrounding piece and a mold component contacting piece. The nozzle body defines a nozzle body melt passage therethrough, that is adapted to receive melt from a melt source. The heater is thermally connected to the nozzle body for heating melt in the nozzle body. The tip defines a tip melt passage therethrough, that is downstream from the nozzle body melt passage, and that is adapted to be upstream from the gate. The tip surrounding piece is removably connected with respect to said nozzle body. The mold component contacting piece is connected with respect to the nozzle body. The material of the mold component contacting piece has a thermal conductivity that is less than at least one of the thermal conductivity of the material of the tip and the thermal conductivity of the material of the tip surrounding piece.
US07891967B2
A lifting apparatus includes at least one carrying means that is mounted on a compensation bearing unit and that is for receiving and/or delivering a polymer melt, and in particular a tacky polymer melt.
US07891953B2
An apparatus and method for mounting underwater turbines that includes a mechanism for correcting tilt error, including both the amount and direction of error, associated with the installation of underwater turbines onto anchoring or mounting structures so that the yaw axis of the mounted turbines will be as close as possible to a desired angle, preferably vertical.
US07891951B2
A fan includes a rotatable center member that is centered relative to an axis of rotation of the fan. The fan includes a number of blades radially extending from the rotatable center member. Each blade may have one or more ribs extending therefrom non-parallel to the axis of rotation of the fan. Each blade may be may be flat in shape, except for the ribs extending therefrom, or it may have a cycloidal curvature that curves away from the direction in which the rotatable center member rotates. In addition to or in lieu of the ribs, each blade may have a side profile that is non-linear. The side profile may be a zigzag or a curvy shape. The side profile may have one or more notches pointed in a direction opposite that in which the rotatable center member rotates, or may have one or more holes extending through the blade.
US07891950B2
A lightweight wind turbine blade formed with a truss support structure assembly of composite truss joints including composite spar and cross members attached to and supporting in spaced relation a spine of lightweight rib panels. The rib panels are oriented in parallel spaced relation from one another and individually molded with perimeters defining individual areas of curvature for the finished blade assembly. The truss support structure is covered with a lightweight fiberglass or hardened fabric skin attached to and fitted on respective rib panel edges forming an airfoil structure.
US07891949B2
A lightweight wind turbine blade formed with a truss support structure assembly of composite truss joints including composite spar and cross members attached to and supporting in spaced relation a spine of lightweight rib panels. The rib panels are oriented in parallel spaced relation from one another and individually molded with perimeters defining individual areas of curvature for the finished blade assembly. The truss support structure is covered with a lightweight fiberglass or hardened fabric skin attached to and fitted on respective rib panel edges forming an airfoil structure.
US07891944B2
A method of controlling at least one wind turbine blade during the stopping process of the rotor in a wind turbine system is disclosed. The method optimizes the control velocity of the process in response to one or more feedback values of the system and/or one or more feedback values from the surroundings of the system by altering the angular pitch velocity from 10°/sec during the initial stage of the stopping process to 5°/sec at the final stage of the stopping process. A control system and a wind turbine as well as use hereof are also disclosed.
US07891943B2
In the invention, stator blades are arranged in such a manner that respective intervals between the adjacent stator blades (SV) become unequal at least partly. If the stator blades are arranged as mentioned above, there are formed wave fronts having different moving directions and phases, and these wave fronts are interfered with each other so as to be attenuated. Accordingly, an interference noise is reduced. Therefore, in accordance with the invention, it is possible to reduce an interference noise without enlarging a rotor stator blade interval as well as reducing a used amount of a sound absorption material.
US07891942B2
A centrifugal blower includes a casing, a motor fixed in the casing, a fan structure, and an anti-leakage element. The casing has a top portion having an inlet, a bottom portion, and a side wall respectively connecting the top and bottom portions and having an outlet. The fan structure disposed in the casing and driven by the motor has a body connected to the motor and blades surrounding the body and being connected to the body, and rotates about an axis in a first rotation direction. The anti-leakage element extends from at least part of an edge of the inlet to an interior of the casing, partially covers parts of the blades, and extends from neighborhood of the outlet in a second rotation direction against the first rotation direction. A range of the anti-leakage element extending to the interior of the casing is gradually reduced along the second rotation direction.
US07891940B2
A system for generating energy using water waves includes a unit having two rotors connected by a ramp. The unit is positioned at or near the surface of a body of water and oriented so that the waves break on the ramp and travel along the length of the ramp. Each rotor is provided with a plurality of buckets having an open top and a bottom having a opening. The opening is sealed by a flap when water enters through the top of the bucket, but is open when water enters or attempts to enter the bucket through the opening. As the water travels along the ramp, the water is fed into the buckets on the rotors to turn the rotors and drive generators positioned at both ends of the rotors. The energy is transmitted to an external collection point for use or distribution.
US07891935B2
A dual arm robot assembly has two arms each having a set of joint/link pairs that, in conjunction with an actuator assembly, define at least three degrees of freedom to provide independent horizontal translation and rotation of a distalmost link. A vertical motion mechanism is also provided.
US07891934B2
Disclosed is a robot which is compact in structure and may be movable in a large working range, wherein move members 1, 1 may be moved by drive devices 4, 4 respectively along a straight line and in parallel with each other, the drive devices 4, 4 including motors 40, 40 respectively which are individually controlled by a control device 9, so that the move members 1, 1 may be moved at a different speed and may be stopped at different relative positions. The move members 1, 1 are connected to a work holder 3 by means of arms 2, 2, the arms having one end pivotally connected to the move members 1, 1 at the pivots 10, 10 thereof respectively, the arms 2, 2 having the opposite end pivotally connected to the work holder 3 at the pivots 30, 30 thereof respectively. The work holder 3 may hold an optional jig and may be moved in a horizontal plane and in a vertical plane enabling the jig to work in the working plane.
US07891916B2
An insert for a drill in which one of the cutting edges respectively formed at four side ridge portions of a rake face of a square flat plate-shaped insert body is made to protrude toward the tip of the drill body of the indexable insert drill while being detachably attached is provided. Each of the cutting edges has a corner cutting edge located at a corner of the rake face, and a major cutting edge and a wiper edge which extend substantially toward one peripheral direction of the rake face from a corner cutting edge. The major cutting edge has a first major cutting edge portion which has a convexly curved shape and extends from the corner cutting edge, and a second major cutting edge portion which smoothly touches the first major cutting edge portion and extends linearly, as seen from a direction facing the rake face. The wiper edge has a straight shape intersecting the second major cutting edge portion at an obtuse angle.
US07891915B2
A rasp hub for use in tire retreading machines includes two side plates with mounting pins extending between the plates. Rasp blades arranged in stacks are mounted on the mounting pins. The stacks extend end-to-end circumferentially about the hub. The center portion of the mounting pins is curved so that the cut profile of the blades is convex. The blades are inclined relative to a plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation to define a cut angle. The center planes of the mounting pins intersect, preferably close to the axis of rotation of the hub, to reduce deviation of the blades from the concentricity.
US07891912B2
A system for securing a facing comprising a wire grid that is positionally fixed relative to an earthen formation in a substantially vertical position, a formation anchor that is positionally fixed between the wire grid and the earthen formation, a facing that is laterally offset a distance from the wire grid and having a facing anchor, and a turnbuckle that is rotatably coupled between a first connector and a second connector, wherein the first connector is coupled to the facing anchor and the second connector is coupled to the formation anchor, such that rotation of the turnbuckle relative to the first and second connectors adjusts the distance between the wire grid and the facing.
US07891911B2
A friction tube anchor has a tube (1) which can be expanded under the action of a pressurized medium and which is attached to a casing (6). The casing (6) is screwed into a section (13) of a casing-like sleeve (7) which is provided with a thread and is sealed by ring packing (11) relative to the inside of the section (13). The casing-like sleeve (7) has another section (14) which is provided with a thread and in which selectively either another expandable tube (1), or an adapter for feeding the pressurized medium for expanding the tube (1), or a fastening bolt, for example an eye bolt, can be screwed.
US07891908B2
A pipe extracting tool for use with first and second pipes mated together and having a gasket disposed therebetween includes an arcuate blade and a driving member portion extending radially outwardly from the arcuate blade. The arcuate blade is sized and shaped to surround an outer circumference of the first pipe and slide between the outer circumference of the first pipe and an inner circumference of the second pipe to disengage the gasket from one of the first and second pipes.
US07891907B2
Drainage device having an inlet having at least three substantially straight sides with rounded corners linking the at least three substantially straight sides. The sides and corners taper to form a circular outlet. The rounded corners are upper edges of channels of the device, and the channels are depressions in the sides.
US07891886B2
The invention relates to a device for a motor vehicle, comprising a rotatably mounted camera unit (10) which can be brought into an inactive position and into an active position by means of a motor, and a protective element (20) that can be rotatably guided about a first axis (21) into a closed position and into an open position, the camera unit (10), in the closed position, being in its inactive position behind the protective element (20) and inaccessible from the exterior, and, in the open position of the protective element (20), the camera unit (10) assuming the active position for recording images. The invention is characterized in that the camera unit (10) can be displaced from the inactive position into the active position about a second axis (11), arranged at a distance to the first axis (21), the protective element (20) is connected to the first axis (21) via a swivel arm (22), and the motor drives a mechanism (30), mounted on the motor vehicle, which is mechanically connected both to the protective element (20) and to the camera unit (10). The mechanism (30) is configured in such a manner that the camera unit (10) is decoupled from the mechanism when it is in the operating state and that the protective element (20) can be displaced from the closed position to the open position, the camera unit (10) remaining in the inactive position.
US07891885B2
An optical module 10 has a laser light source 20, optical branching means 24 for receiving laser light from the laser light source 20, making a part of the laser light pass through the optical branching means and branching a remaining part of the laser light; a photodetecting portion 30P receiving the remaining part of the laser light branched from the optical branching means 24 and a package 11 holding therein the laser light source 20, the optical branching means 24 and the photodetecting portion 30P, the package 11 having stray light reducing means 200, 201 and 202 provided therein to reduce stray light generated inside the package.
US07891884B2
An optical receptacle including a cylindrical sleeve formed using a material having higher elasticity than that of the optical receptacle main body. The sleeve is held within the sleeve holding section by being press-fitted and a sum of a press-fitted sleeve thickness and a press-fitted holding sleeve thickness in a radial direction is a predetermined value.
US07891875B1
A container is configured to store and dispense a material. More specifically, the container includes a top portion that is configured to be partially torn from a body portion of the container to dispense the material. The container includes a reinforced side portion that resists tearing. The tear-resistive portion may incorporate a strand (or thread) that is significantly more difficult to tear, as compared to the container, itself. In an implementation, the container may includes two hollow portions—a first portion for storing material and a second portion for securing the resistive thread. The two hollow portions may be separated by a crimped portion of the container. In other implementations, front and rear portions of the container may be glued together to create the two hollow portions. Alternately, the lateral edges of the front and rear surfaces of the container may be fused to create the tear-resistive portion.
US07891868B2
A temperature sensor comprises a pulse signal generating unit for generating a first pulse signal having an enable section, a width of which is adjusted according to a reference voltage having a temperature characteristic, an oscillator for generating a second pulse signal of a predetermined period in the enable section of the first pulse signal, and a counter for performing a counting operation in response to the second pulse signal and generating at least one temperature signal.
US07891867B2
A method is provided for measuring a parameter of a molten metal bath by an optical fiber surrounded by a cover. The optical fiber is immersed in the molten bath, and the radiation absorbed by the optical fiber in the molten bath is fed to a detector, wherein the optical fiber is heated when immersed in the molten bath. The heating curve of the optical fiber has at least one point P(t0, T0), wherein the increase ΔT1 in the temperature T of the optical fiber over the time Δt in a first time interval t0−Δt up to the temperature T0 is smaller than the increase ΔT2 in the temperature of the optical fiber over the time Δt in an immediately following second time interval t0+Δt.
US07891866B2
A system and method for determining the temperature of an object without physically contacting the object. The method involves reading a spectral radiation of the object over a plurality of wavelengths to obtain a set of radiation data related to a temperature of the object. A known characteristic of a black body is determined at a plurality of predetermined, different test temperatures. The spectral data and the characteristic of the black body at the various test temperatures are used to calculate a temperature of the object.
US07891862B2
The electromechanical escapement device is associated with an electronic circuit having a quartz oscillator and calculation means suitable for calculating the difference between the period of the quartz oscillator and the period of a mechanical oscillator and releasing an escape wheel, normally controlled by said mechanical oscillator, when the difference between said periods is greater than a threshold value.
US07891853B2
Provided are an apparatus and method for controlling an operation of an LED in a light unit. The apparatus includes: a micom for sequentially outputting red, green and blue signals delayed by a predetermined interval through n (n>1) number of channels for each color; a plurality of light emitting diode (LED) drivers for outputting PWM dimming pulses according to the red, green and blue signals inputted through the n number of the channels; a plurality of switching elements for outputting driving currents according to the PWM dimming pulses; and n number of light subunits including a plurality of red, green and blue LED chips sequentially driven by the driving currents outputted from the switching elements.
US07891851B2
A headlamp, developed especially for motor vehicle illumination, wherein the light source and reflector surfaces are fully concealed from the oncoming traffic users, having a light plane with fully adjusted height, operating according to the half-lens illumination principle, providing a long-distance illumination without glaring effect by preventing the all of the light rays generated at the light source from reaching to the eye level (EE) of oncoming traffic users. The preferred embodiment of the system (40, 50) consists of three independent reflector units (2, 3), (12, 13), (22, 23) with triple light pathway, designed similar to clover leaf, having a standard light source (1) located at their common first focal point (f1) mounted in a headlamp enclosure (20). The system consists of a lighting assembly that can be used not only in motor vehicle headlamp system but also in general lighting systems and in all optical devices. The system may be applied as an in-bulb structure.
US07891841B2
A lighting device is disclosed. The lighting device can be compact and can have a major surface configured to be attached to a substantially flat mounting surface. Within the lighting device, a light bar frame can be rotatable relative to a mounting plate around an axis substantially perpendicular to the major surface. Three or more rotatable light bars can be positioned within the light bar frame. The light bars can include lighting elements (e.g., light-emitting diodes) and can be positioned within the light bar frame such that their rotational axes are coplanar. The rotational axes of the light bars also can be substantially perpendicular to the axis around which the light bar frame rotates relative to the mounting plate. Furthermore, the rotational axes of the light bars can form three or more sides of a polygon (e.g. a triangle).
US07891840B1
A polygonal radiation module having radiating members without a light guiding board for a backlight module or a lighting device includes a polygonal optical plate with a rising area having a rising surface defined at a center thereof, a plurality of radiating members, and a diffusion plate. The radiating members surrounding a periphery of the optical plate possess radiant half-intensity angles of the radiation below 15 degrees for respectively forming optic axial directions thereof. Whereby, the optic axial directions of the radiating members face to the rising surface, and radiation fields are individually generated as pivoted by the optic axial directions to cast at the rising surface. Thus, an even radiating surface caused by a diffusion of light source from the diffusion plate could be preferably obtained even if no light guiding board is applied.
US07891838B2
Embodiments of the current invention seek to increase heat dissipation by affixing a separate or integrated heat sink to the solid state light, thus accomplishing increased heat dissipation via a device different from the light, alleviating need for altering the solid state light itself. In this manner, embodiments of the invention increase the amount of heat dissipated from solid state lights without requiring any redesign of the solid state lights themselves.
US07891832B2
A solar powered lighting system provides a lighting element assembly having a lighting element and a diffuser that secures near the upper end of a support. A collector unit contains a solar cell and a coupler such as a clip-on clamp which allows the collector unit to be selectively attached to a desired support. The lighting system includes a battery electrically coupled to the solar cell of the collector unit and to the lighting element assembly using a wire such that the portion of the wire that extends from the collector unit to the lighting element assembly is of sufficient length to allow the collector unit to be selectively positioned on or remotely from the support.
US07891829B2
A keyboard apparatus. The apparatus has a housing including a plurality of key pads, including at least twenty six key pads spatially disposed within the housing. Each of the key pads is depressible upon touch by a user. An optically transparent circuit board is coupled to a backside of each of the key pads. The apparatus has a light guide characterized by a planar optically transparent material having a surface region, a width, a length, and a backside region, and a thickness provided between the surface region and the backside region. The apparatus has a plurality of patterns disposed on the surface region and optically coupled respectively to each of the twenty six key members. In a specific embodiment, the apparatus has a light emitting diode provided within a center region of the surface region to emit electromagnetic radiation. The electromagnetic radiation propagates from the light emitting diode through a portion of the thickness of the light guide to one or more of the plurality of patterns to direct one or more portions of the electromagnetic radiation to respective key pads for lighting the respective key pads.
US07891823B2
There is provided a light source device which emits a bundle of rays with less diffused light and which is suitable for a projector, the light source device including a reflector whose inner surface is made to constitute a reflection surface, a lamp made up of a spherical light emitting portion and a sealing portion which is formed in such a manner as to pass through a center of the light emitting portion to project from the light emitting portion, and a conical mirror whose outer surface is made to constitute a reflection surface, which is formed into a cone shape and which covers a front sealing portion of the sealing portion of the lamp, wherein the light emitting portion of the lamp is disposed in a position where a focal point of the reflector resides.
US07891820B2
The invention discloses a method for igniting a lamp of a projector. The method includes steps of: (a) sensing a first temperature difference in response to power-off of the projector; (b) in response to power-on of the projector, detecting an aftercooling time and judging whether it is smaller than a predetermined cooling time, if YES, perform step (c); otherwise, perform step (g); (c) sensing a second temperature difference; (d) judging whether a ratio of the second temperature difference to the first temperature difference is larger than a threshold, if YES, perform step (e); otherwise, perform step (g); (e) calculating a re-cooling time; (f) controlling a fan to operate for the re-cooling time to cool the lamp down; and (g) igniting the lamp.
US07891813B2
Tools and techniques for vision testing alter refractive characteristics of rendered digital imagery and use feedback from a test subject to calculate information about errors in the subject's vision. Some embodiments produce a rendered digital image with vision-realistic rendering, present the test subject with the rendered digital image, accept input from the test subject and change the refractive sharpness of the rendered digital image in response to the input. Then they calculate refractive errors or other information about the test subject's vision based at least on: input from the test subject leading to a refractive sharpness change made during the changing step, and a refraction model which relates visual acuity to changes in the refractive sharpness of rendered digital imagery.
US07891809B2
An optical component comprises a transparent network of cells juxtaposed and separated by walls parallel to a surface of the component, each cell being hermetically sealed and comprising at least one substance with an optical property, and all or part of the surface of said component comprises walls less than 100 nm thick. The optical component is thus pixelized by a cell network, the cells being separated by walls which may themselves be pixelized. Such an optical component is particularly useful for making optical elements such as ophthalmic lenses.
US07891808B2
A loupe mounting assembly includes: a bridge swivel including a base coupling for attaching the assembly to a base device, the swivel also including a loupe bar coupled to a loupe bar coupling proximate the base coupling; wherein each of the base coupling and the loupe bar coupling provide for rotation of the assembly about a first axis (S1) and a second axis (S2) respectively; wherein the loupe bar includes horizontally outward extensions in a location that is inferior to a line of sight when worn by a user; and a loupe adjustment mechanism mounted on each of the extensions of the loupe bar. Embodiments of a magnification viewer are also provided.
US07891807B2
Eyeglasses having temples with detachable decorative pieces. The decorative pieces generally comprise an inner piece and outer piece which connect to one another through and/or around the eyeglass temples. When attached together, the outer decorative piece and the inner decorative piece are supported by and attached to the eyeglass temples.
US07891806B2
Eyeglasses configured in such a way that parameter (h) is 20 mm or greater and (l/h) is 6 or smaller, the parameters (h) and (l) being defined as follows: the length of a straight line (L) connecting portions (C) to which left and right temples are attached is (l) mm, and the length of a normal (H) to the straight line (L) drawing from the forefront surface (E) of a front portion (B) located on the central line (D) of the eyeglasses is (h) mm.
US07891804B2
A recording apparatus includes a recording portion for recording an image on a recording sheet; feeding means for feeding the recording sheet through the recording portion, wherein in a both-side recording operation, a sheet inclination rectifying operation in a recording sheet feeding direction is carried out when the recording is effected on a first side of the recording sheet, and the sheet inclination rectifying operation is not carried out when the recording is effected on a second side of the recording sheet.
US07891802B2
An ink pinning assembly comprises a source of UV radiation suitable for pinning ink on a record medium. A radiation guide device has an inlet facing the source and an outlet through which radiation is emitted towards a record medium, in use, the length of the inlet being greater that the length of the radiation source. The radiation guide device has a substantially rectangular or square wall in plan surrounding a cavity extending between the inlet and outlet, the internal surface of the wall being reflective to the pinning radiation so that pinning radiation with a substantial uniform intensity is emitted from the outlet.
US07891793B2
A machine, such as a phase change or solid ink printing apparatus, includes at least one ink stick and a coupler external to the ink stick. The ink stick has an electronically-readable memory device attached thereto, with the memory device having stored therein electronic data associated with the ink stick. The coupler is configured to read the electronic data from the memory device. The data in the memory device may include identification data, anti-arbitrage variables, usage data, maximum use values, and performance data related to the ink stick, and the coupler and memory device may employ various means for communicating this data. Also, communication between the coupler and memory device facilitates a method for determining a quantity of marking material in the machine.
US07891774B2
A printhead is provided having a plurality of chambers on a substrate which each have a nozzle, a heater arranged in each chamber so as to heat fluid within the chamber to form a gas bubble therein and thereby cause ejection of a drop from the corresponding nozzle, and a plurality of passages formed in the substrate so that each passage supplies the fluid to an associated one of the chambers. Each chamber is configured so that the transient rise in pressure therein when the gas bubble is formed is less than 20 MPa.
US07891771B2
A connector holder unit that is formed separately from a carriage capable of housing an ink cartridge and can be attached to the inside of the carriage includes a connector holder, a connector having a plurality of contact arms that is installed to the connector holder, and a circuit substrate having a plurality of conductive connection portions that is installed to the connector holder, wherein contact terminals of the plurality of contact arms of the connector are configured to elastically contact the conductive connection portions of the circuit substrate and conductive connection portions of the ink cartridge so as to electrically conduct between the circuit substrate and the ink cartridge when the connector holder unit is attached to the carriage.
US07891758B2
A printhead tile is provided having a printhead integrated circuit and adjacent channel, upper, middle and lower layers. Each integrated circuit incorporates ink ejection nozzles which each have an ink chamber and a thermal bend actuator beam which thermally expands to cause ejection of ink from the chamber. The channel layer is adjacent the integrated circuit and has channel layer slots. The upper layer has upper layer holes on one side in communication with the channel layer slots and upper layer channels on an opposite side. The middle layer has middle layer holes in communication with the upper layer channels. The lower layer has lower layer channels on one side in communication with the middle layer holes and inlet holes on an opposite side. The inlet holes receive ink for supply to the chambers via the layers.
US07891751B2
A liquid discharge apparatus that is capable of setting a proper deflection amount for deflecting an ink discharge direction even when the distance between the ink discharge surface and the ink landing surface of print paper varies and method of using same. The liquid discharge apparatus includes a head in which a plurality of nozzle-incorporated ink discharge sections are arrayed, discharge direction deflection means for deflecting the discharge direction of an ink discharged from a nozzle of each ink discharge section in the direction of ink discharge section arrangement, distance detection means for detecting the distance between the ink discharge surface of the head and the ink landing surface of print paper, and discharge deflection amount determination means for determining the ink discharge deflection amount (discharge angle) to be provided by the discharge direction deflection means in accordance with the results of detection by the distance detection means.
US07891749B2
A printhead IC for receiving print data from a print engine controller (PEC) which may be one of a plurality of different types of PEC. The printhead IC has an array of nozzles for ejecting drops of printing fluid onto a media substrate and drive circuitry for driving the array of nozzles. The drive circuitry is configured for connection to a power source in the printer. The drive circuitry is configured to reset itself to a known initial state in response to receiving power from the power source after a period of not receiving power from the power source.
US07891745B2
A wheel includes a hub, a rim, and spokes. The hub includes inner attachment portions and is configured to support the wheel about a rotational axis. The spokes are attached to the hub and the rim and are together configured to radially support the rim with respect to the hub. In one embodiment, the spokes are attached to the hub with fasteners extending into threaded apertures in the hub, and the spokes are attached to the rim with fasteners extending in a direction parallel with the rotational axis. In another embodiment, respective ones of the spokes, which are attached to a common inner attachment portion of the hub, are not attached to adjacent outer attachment portions of the rim. Vehicles and methods of manufacturing a wheel are also provided.
US07891744B2
A method for producing a vehicle wheel comprises the steps of: (a) providing a wheel including an outboard face; (b) providing a wheel cover including an inner surface; (c) providing an external surface feature on at least one of the outboard face of the wheel and the inner surface of the cover; (d) positioning the wheel and the cover relative to one another to form a first gap between at least selected portions of the wheel outboard face of the cover inner surface and to form at least a second gap in the area of the external surface feature between adjacent surfaces of the wheel and the wheel cover, the first gap to the second gap defining an indirect flow path; and (e) securing the cover to the wheel by using an expandable foam adhesive material, wherein the adhesive material initially fills selected portions of the first gap and then follows the indirect flow path to then flow into the second gap whereby the adhesive material cures and stops expanding before completely filling the second gap.
US07891743B2
The present disclosure provides a locking hub cap having at least one locking feature that engages at least one locking feature on a vehicle hub assembly to prevent a spin-on nut from being removed while the locking hub cap is in place.
US07891736B2
An infant seat rocker includes a base member, a motor, the motor being positioned on the base member and a tray member, the tray member being positioned on the base member. Means for attaching the motor to the tray member are also included as well as at least one spring secured to the base member, the spring having a first end proximate a front wall of the tray member and a second end proximate a rear wall of the tray member; and a shaft, the shaft positioned to secure the tray member to the base member. An infant seat is positioned in the tray and the motor is engaged to produce and maintain a rocking motion in the infant seat.
US07891735B2
A hook member is provided and includes a pinching portion that pinches a plate body of a seat frame, a fixing portion that can fix an upholstery material, and an introduction portion defining an opening into the fixing portion, wherein the fixing portion faces an outer side of the plate body and is pinched by the pinching portion, and includes the introduction portion having a curved shape and defining an opening for the upholstery material to enter and be fixed therein.
US07891731B2
A debris collection system includes a collection device configured to be coupled to legs of a chair. The collection device has an open top end and a bottom end and a plurality segments coupled to one another. Each segment includes a fastening mechanism, wherein the fastening mechanisms of adjacent segments are coupled to one another such that one of the legs of the chair extends between the fastening mechanisms of the adjacent segments. Optionally, the collection device may have a frusto-conical shape. The bottom end may be open and debris collected by the collection device may be channeled by the collection device through the open bottom end. Optionally, a container may be positioned below the open bottom end to collect debris directed through the open bottom end. The collection device may have a funnel shape with walls that taper inward from the top end to the bottom end. Each of the segments may be substantially identically formed to define the collection device.
US07891725B2
A passenger service vehicle having a driver's area including a driver's seat and driving controls and a passenger area including at least one passenger entrance and a plurality of passenger seats, the driver's area being defined by the front of the vehicle, and the foremost portion of each side of the vehicle, and a partitions extending partially, substantially or wholly across a front portion of the passenger service vehicle to separate the driver's area from the passenger area.
US07891720B2
A double folding seat for a vehicle may include a stationary bracket, coupled to the seatback frame and to the cushion frame, wherein the recliner bracket is coupled to the one end of the stationary bracket, a link unit elastically installed on the stationary bracket and configured to be selectively coupled to the recliner bracket and transmit a rotating force of the recliner bracket to a latch cam installed to the cushion frame, a stopper fixedly installed on the leg assembly which is connected to a vehicle body, a hinge member rotatably mounted on the cushion frame and rotated by the stopper, and an actuating wire connecting the hinge member and the link unit and displacing the link unit by a rotation force of the hinge member to a position where the link unit cooperates with the recliner bracket when the cushion frame moves backwards to the final position thereof.
US07891718B2
Provided as a hoist system for installing a plurality of panels of a panel set onto a building structure at a jobsite. The hoist system comprises a beam assembly configured to hoist the panels and sequentially offload the panels from the beam assembly onto the building structure. The beam assembly comprises an elongate hoist beam, a lifting lug, a plurality of trolleys mounted on one of the opposing ends of hoist beam, and a drive mechanism operative to reposition the lifting lug along the hoist beam such that the hoist beams maintain a substantially horizontal or level orientation.
US07891716B2
An installation tool may include an extension member, a body portion disposed on the extension member, and a plurality of fingers flexibly protruding from the body portion. The plurality of fingers are adapted to releasably engage a cover assembly. The plurality of fingers and the body portion cooperate to retain the cover assembly in a first direction and allow disengagement of the cover assembly in a second direction.
US07891714B2
An object of the invention is to provide a structure of a rear bumper cover capable of improving appearance and rigidity of the rear bumper cover. A rear bumper cover made from a resin disposed in the backward part of the vehicle forms an opening portion at the position of attachment of a tow hook. In the opening portion, a cover attaching member made from a resin which has a member opening hole capable of leaving the tow hook open is disposed with the state of covering whole the outer edge of the opening portion. On the cover attaching member, a hook cover capable of covering whole a member opening hole is detachably attached.
US07891712B2
The sealing connector ensures sealing between a gas cartridge having an outlet fitting and a transmission member for filling a combustion chamber of a gas fastening device having an inlet fitting with gas and includes two internal sealing sleeves for receiving the two fittings, at least one of which is made of flexible material, with, at the bottom of this sleeve, a flexible transverse annular partition for dimensional adjustment, and an external slide. A rigid transverse annular partition is provided at the bottom of the other of the two sleeves to serve as a support for a fitting.
US07891711B2
A rotary compensating device used in a pipe under high pressure comprises an inner pipe (1), a sealing gland (3), a sealing seat (5) and a connecting pipe (7). One end of the inner pipe (1) is inserted into the connecting pipe (7), and the connecting pipe (7) is fixedly connected with one end of the sealing seat (5) and is installed on the outer surface of the inner pipe (1). The inner pipe (1) is provided with an annular outer flange (8), and the sealing seat (5) is provided with an annular inner flange (9). The sealing gland (3) is installed on the outer surface of the inner pipe (1) and inserted into the other end of the sealing seat (5) to abut against a torus sealing member (4). The sealing gland (3) connects with the sealing seat (5) via a connecting member (2). A sealing cavity is formed between the sealing seat (5) and the inner pipe (1), and an end face sealing member (6) is installed in the sealing cavity.
US07891710B2
A connector for use in a system for flowing fluid, having at least one cup-shaped female part, in which an adapted male part on another connector is intended to be sealingly and securely mounted, wherein the female part has integral longitudinal locking tangs which have their free ends pointing in the direction of insertion of a male part into the female part, the free ends of the locking tangs projecting into the space in the female part for engaging with a male part, and wherein the locking tangs have at least one recess which can be used by a tool to urge the locking tangs apart so that the male part and the female part can be disengaged from one another.
US07891704B2
A side airbag device provided at a seat back of a seat, comprises an airbag including a chest-abdomen protection portion to protect a chest and abdomen of an occupant seated and a waist protection portion to protect a waist of the occupant, and an inflator to supply gas to the airbag for an inflation at a vehicle side crash or a vehicle turnover, wherein the portions are partitioned by a partition portion that at least extends substantially rearward from an front edge of the airbag, and a recess is provided at an upper portion of the chest-abdomen protection portion. Accordingly, a whole part of side body including the chest, abdomen and waist can be properly protected regardless of the body size of the occupant, even for the occupant having the relatively small body size.
US07891693B2
A hitch apparatus includes a hitch member defining a substantially vertical drawpin hole. A spacer member is movably mounted to the hitch member such that the spacer member is movable laterally from a working position, where the spacer extends forward to block a rear portion of the drawpin hole, to an idle position where the spacer is removed from the drawpin hole and the front end of the spacer is located lateral to the drawpin. A lock mechanism is operative to selectively maintain the spacer member in the working position and the idle position.
US07891690B2
A trailer hitch for a vehicle includes an attachment bar and post for attaching the hitch to a vehicle and a base suspended from the attachment post to allow limited lateral movement of the base with respect to the attachment. A universal pivot connector, such as a hitch ball, is mounted on the base to move with the base for mating connection to a tongue of a trailer to be connected to the vehicle. The trailer tongue is biased against rotational movement with respect to the pivot connector whereby the allowed lateral movement of the suspended base and the pivot connector and the resistance to rotational movement of the trailer tongue with respect to the pivot connector combine to move the effective pivot point of the tongue on the universal pivot connector approximately to the center of the rear axle of the towing vehicle to simulate the towing movement of a fifth wheel trailer hitch.
US07891688B2
A bicycle frame assembly includes an articulating linkage mounting arrangement that fixedly couples one or more lever arms to a rotatable axle. A preferred embodiment includes at least one lever arm, and preferably a pair of lever arms. The lever arm or arms are fixedly coupled to an axle by a fastener having a fastener axis that is eccentric to, or offset from, the axis of rotation of the axle. Accordingly, relative rotation of the lever arm and axle is prevented such that the axle and lever arm rotate together as a unit.
US07891685B2
A scooter driving structure includes a step member pivotally coupled to a scooter platform and swingable up and down, a first driving module installed at a position corresponding to the step member and comprising a driving rod, a guide wheel, a first driving wheel, a first driving belt and a position restoring element, and at least one second driving module installed between a pivotal axle of the first driving wheel and an axle center of a rear wheel and comprising a second driving wheel, a second driven wheel and a second driving belt. The step member is pedaled to move the driving rod of the first driving module and drive the first driving belt to rotate the first driving wheel, and the coaxial second driving wheel of the second driving module drives the second driven wheel and the rear wheel to rotate through the second driving belt, so as to achieve a dual drive effect of driving a scooter to move.
US07891679B2
An adjustment arrangement in a suspension hanger assembly that can be used to square the orientation of an axle with the travel direction of the incorporating vehicle. The adjustment arrangement includes a hanger bracket that has a pair of substantially parallel, spaced apart hanger legs projecting generally away from the vehicle and each of the hanger legs has an elongate aperture or slot that is mutually aligned, one with the other. A bushing pin is inserted through both elongate apertures with opposite end portions of the pin being similarly positioned in each of the apertures. A substantially squared orientation is established between the hanger bracket and the bushing pin. A pair of adjustment devices are provided, one each, in association with a respective end portion of the bushing pin. The devices are configured to synchronously move both end portions of the bushing pin to similar positions in the elongate apertures thereby maintaining the substantially squared orientation between the hanger bracket and the bushing pin. Each of the adjustment devices are arranged to be rotated about a floating axis relative to the hanger bracket and to have a tool-receiving aperture eccentrically located relative to that floating axis. The tool-receiving apertures are configured to simultaneously receive a common actuating tool for affecting synchronous rotation of the adjustment devices.
US07891669B2
The invention relates to a piston ring for internal combustion engines, the piston ring comprises a steel or cast iron base material with a coating of chromium nitride deposited by a physical vapor deposition process on a sliding surface of the piston ring, wherein the coating is composed of a columnar crystal structure of CrN with the following features: (a) an oxygen content in solid solution of 0.5 to 2.5 wt %; (b) a content of uniformly dispersed micro-pores of less than 10% in volume of the coating; and (c) an X-ray diffraction intensity ratio of (111) planes to (200) planes parallel to the surface in the range of 0.80 to 1.20.
US07891668B2
An archery target configured to absorb an impact of an associated arrow. The target having a stand having a top side and a bottom side and the bottom side including a support structure for supporting the archery target on an associated surface. The top side including a target rest shaped to receive a portion of an outer perimeter of a cylindrical target portion in shaped engagement. The target portion having a front side and a back side which extend between the outer perimeter and define a target depth and including a central core extending between front and back sides of the target. The core defining a target axis coaxial with the outer perimeter and the target portion further including at least one general planar sheet having side edges defining a sheet width that is generally equal to the target depth and a sheet surface between the side edges.
US07891652B2
A compiling unit includes a collection tray and a variable-speed compiling system adapted to operate at at least two speeds to thereby receive a sheet of media at a higher speed and register the sheet of media within the collection tray at a lower speed. A control system is adapted to selectively operate the variable-speed compiling system at the at least two speeds. A printing system having a sheet media source, at least one marking engine, such a compiling unit and such a control system is included. A method of compiling sheet media is also included.
US07891649B2
A sheet feeder for supplying a conveying device with folded signatures from a stack of folded signatures, the sheet feeder including a gripper drum. The gripper drum includes at least one gripper to individually remove respective signatures and a stopping device. The stopping device including a stop element to stop and align the signatures with the fold of the signatures in a forward direction. The sheet feeder includes an opening device to open the individual signatures, to deposit the signatures on the conveying device, and to reverse the forward direction of the signatures. The sheet feeder includes a delay element moving in the same direction as the gripper drum and at a conveying speed less than the gripper drum speed. A press-on device to press the signatures released by the gripper against the delay element and to slow down the individual signatures prior to the signatures hitting the stop element.
US07891644B2
A air spring 10 is provided, where flex deformation of a shoulder portion in a dustcover due to the restorative force of a bellows portion during compression thereof is prevented, whereby deterioration of the life of the dustcover due to such deformation is prevented. With the air spring 10, a stopper 82 of a deformation-preventing cap 70 is arranged at the outer peripheral side of a shoulder portion 54 in a dustcover 50. At the time of compression deformation of a bellows portion 56, the stopper 82 comes into contact with the shoulder portion 54, and flex deformation of the shoulder portion 54 towards a linking tube 52 side is restricted. Due to this, the restorative force from the compression deformed bellows portion 56 via the shoulder portion 54 can be supported by the stopper 82 of the deformation-preventing cap 70. Even in a case where the rigidity of the shoulder portion 54 relative to the restorative force of the compression deformed bellows portion 56 cannot be sufficiently increased, the amount of flex deformation towards the linking tube side of the shoulder portion 54 that received the restorative force of the bellows portion 56 can be decreased.
US07891643B2
A gas compression spring is mounted with an exterior element configured to allow a user to adjust the extension of the spring by rotating or sliding the exterior element. The user can line up an internal mechanism which is configured to limit the extension of the gas spring, and therefore stop the extension of the gas spring at a predetermined height. Additionally, an override mechanism is included where a user requires full extension of the gas spring. For example, the user can override the internal mechanism by applying a force in the direction of the extension, which disengages the mechanism allowing full extension. When the spring is compressed again, the mechanism resets and opens to the predetermined height. The gas spring can be utilized in a vehicle liftgate system, allowing the liftgate to open at one or more heights based upon the internal mechanism settings of the gas spring.
US07891638B2
The present invention provides a water control valve core with a segmented locking function. The invention includes a valve casing, a brake unit, and a water control element. A bottom plate under the tube portion of the seat of the brake unit is placed within the hold tank of the valve casing. A driven portion penetrates the bottom plate. The fixed valve, free valve and driving seat of the water control element are arranged within the hold tank of the valve casing. An upper locking portion is assembled under the bottom plate of the seat of the brake unit; and a collapsible lower locking unit is individually manufactured and then assembled onto the locating portion at top of the driving seat of the water control element. The lower locking unit could be interlocked with the upper locking portion.
US07891633B2
An adjustable rotation base includes a base housing and a transportation arrangement. The base housing has a bottom side, an upper side for coupling with the supporting post to support the outer umbrella in an upright manner, and a receiving cavity indently formed on the bottom side of the base housing, wherein the base housing includes a stationary unit provided at the bottom side for sitting on the ground surface in a stationary manner, and a plurality of transferring wheels rotatably supported at the bottom side of the base housing. The transportation arrangement is provided at the base housing to operate the base housing between an idle mode and a transportation mode in which the stationary unit is upwardly lifted to allow the transferring wheels being sitting on the ground surface, such that the base housing is adapted to be transported on the ground surface via the transferring wheels.
US07891632B2
A book holder stand has two shallow box like parts hinged together along one side to be openable to extend the parts from each other in opposite directions and define a generally planar support. A pivoted shelf is mounted at the bottom of each part able to be flipped down to provide a support for an opened book placed on edge thereon. An elongated retainer element is pivoted to each shelf by having a first segment received in a hole in an outer face of the associated shelf, with an angled down segment extending from the end of the first segment and able to be swept over an opened book with the shelf flipped down. A locking rod is slidable across the hinged sides to lock the parts in their spaced apart position. A prop rod is pivotally mounted to the hinged side of one part which can be pivoted out to extend at an angle thereto to support the book holder stand at an inclined position for convenient reading of an opened book resting on the shelves.
US07891630B2
An electronic equipment console for a vehicle includes an equipment shelf supported by a bracket and defining a plane. A laptop rack is supported by the equipment shelf and is oriented relative to the defined plane thereof to be elevated, pitched upwardly and rearwardly, rotated, and tilted.
US07891616B2
An assembly for securing an article with a support member affixed or integral thereto to a mounting surface. The assembly includes first and second members having means for detachably coupling together the first and second members through magnetic field interaction therebetween. The ffirst member includes means for detachably coupling to the support member of the article. The second member includes means for securing to the mounting surface, and a hook portion that receives the support member of the article. During use, the first member is coupled to the support member of the article, and the second member is secured to the mounting surface at a desired position. The first and second members are guided and coupled together by magnetic field interaction therebetween. The support member is then decoupled from the first member and moved such that it engages and is supported by the hook portion of the second member.
US07891608B2
An aircraft for carrying cargo in one or more containers. The aircraft includes a fuselage structure having a plurality of nodes and a plurality of elements connecting the nodes to form a space frame in which to carry cargo. At least some of the nodes are positioned in the space frame based on dimensions of the one or more containers. The fuselage structure is more compact, lighter and less expensive compared to conventional semi-monocoque fuselages.
US07891602B2
A retractable hose guide includes a shell assembly that is structured to be embedded into the ground. The shell assembly defines an enclosed space that is open at the top. A guide rod assembly is movably disposed within the shell assembly and structured to move between a first, retracted position, wherein the guide rod assembly is substantially disposed within the shell assembly enclosed space, and a second, extended position, wherein the guide rod assembly extends substantially above the shell assembly enclosed space. A pop-up device includes components on both the shell assembly and the guide rod assembly that act in concert to lock the guide rod assembly in either the first or second position. The pop-up device preferably includes a biasing device structured to bias the guide rod assembly toward the second, extended position. The pop-up device is structured to be actuated by a generally linear movement of the guide rod assembly.
US07891601B2
The tape reel of the present invention includes: a cylindrical hub for winding recording tape; and a pair of upper and lower flanges respectively projecting circumferentially from upper and lower portions of the hub. The tape reel further comprises: a lower piece including the lower flange and a first cylinder wall formed integrally with the lower flange; and an upper piece including the upper flange and a second cylinder wall formed integrally with the upper flange. The hub is formed in a double cylinder form by a fit engagement between the first cylinder wall of the lower piece and the second cylinder wall of the upper piece.
US07891600B1
A toilet paper holder removal system includes a toilet paper holder configured for holding a toilet paper roll and dispensing toilet paper from the toilet paper roll. The toilet paper holder includes a pair of brackets each having a well extending therein. A cylinder has a first end and a second end and includes a first portion slidably extendable into a second portion. The first end is biased away from the second end. Each of a pair of nubs is attached to and extends outwardly away from one of the first and second ends. Each of the nubs is removably extended into one of the wells. A grip is provided and is configured to be removably positioned on one of the nubs. The grip may be used to provide leverage when the first end of the cylinder is urged toward the second end of the cylinder.
US07891598B2
The rewinding machine includes a path for insertion of tubular cores; a winding cradle; a first moving member designed to be in contact with the web material to be wound; a rolling surface forming, with the first moving member, a channel for passage of the tubular cores; and an insertion device to insert the cores in the channel. At the inlet of the insertion channel there is a second moving member, opposed to the first moving member, the core insertion path passing between the first and the second moving members. The two moving members are arranged at a distance such that a core inserted between them is in contact with the second moving member and with the web material entrained around the first moving member.
US07891596B2
A belt retractor for a safety belt system has a belt spool and a belt webbing withdrawal measurement arrangement, which has a control disk, a magnetic sensor element and a magnetic cogwheel driven by the control disk and constructed as a separate part. In addition, a method is described to determine the belt webbing withdrawal in a belt retractor.
US07891595B2
A cone crusher includes a stationary main shaft and an eccentric that rotates about the main shaft to cause gyrational movement of a head assembly to crush rock within a crushing gap. The cone crusher includes a lower head bushing in contact with an outer surface of the eccentric. The eccentric is formed with a contact pad to enhance the contact between the eccentric and the lower head bushing during a no-load condition. The contact pad includes a contact surface that is recessed from the outer surface of the eccentric to enhance contact during no-load conditions while maintaining full contact between the lower head bushing and the eccentric outer surface during full load, crushing conditions.
US07891591B1
An apparatus that crushes and crumbles crackers or similar foodstuffs in preparation for use with various food recipes, is herein disclosed. The apparatus is comprised of a plastic tower approximately two and one-half (2½) inches on a side by eight (8) inches in height. A top cover is removable to load whole crackers thereinto. When the cover is replaced, a switch is activated that energizes a variable speed motor that rotates a plurality of crumbling blades. The blades have serrated or straight edges which crush the crackers. As the crackers are crumbled, the pieces fall into a drawer-like lower compartment. Once the motor is turned off, the base compartment is slid out manually and the cracker pieces are then dispensed into the food dish. Crumbling crackers with such a method allows for cracker crumb consistency for recipes and reduced mess.
US07891589B2
An electrical separating unit is disclosed for a fluid conveying line, in particular a paint conveying line, which has an elongated separating pipe that can be freed or closed at its ends by separating valves. The interior of the separating pipe can be brought by a compressor to a pressure that is significantly above atmospheric pressure or can be evacuated by a suction pump to a pressure that is significantly below atmospheric pressure. In both cases the electrical resistance of the separating unit has a significantly higher value than if a pipeline over a corresponding length was only freed from paint, solvent, or cleaning agent, and was filled with air.
US07891587B2
The invention relates to an intermediate plate for a fuel injector, comprising a high-pressure through-hole which connects a high-pressure passage in a valve body and is connected to a high-pressure fuel reservoir, to a high-pressure space in a nozzle body, wherein the intermediate plate is arranged between the valve body and the nozzle body. In order to improve the injection behaviour of a fuel injector provided with the intermediate plate, in particular during multiple injection of small injection quantities, the high-pressure through-hole has a cross-sectional profile which improves the flow through the high-pressure through-hole from the valve body towards the nozzle body and impairs the flow in the opposite direction from the nozzle body towards the valve body.
US07891567B2
Disclosed is an object (200) such as a credit card, bank note, document, label, etc which carries an identification layer (103) which contains readable information. The identification layer can include randomly distributed conductive/magnetizable particles (303), semiconductive particle, optically active particles and the like. The identification layer is sandwiched between an upper layer (105) and lower layer (104) to form the object. At least some of the particles are exposed along one edge (102) of the object and can be read by a read head (201) which moves along the edge.
US07891564B2
A roll sheet type stored in an apparatus/medium type table, the roll sheet wound on a roll sheet holder of each of label creating apparatuses, and a medium type selected by the user are compared to each other. If both values are equal, one of the label creating apparatuses which accommodates the roll sheet holder holding the roll sheet of the medium type is set to be the label creating apparatus to which a PC sends a print request. As a result, the label creating apparatus can be automatically selected by the PC on the basis of label data created by the PC.
US07891562B1
Techniques are described for facilitating transactions involving items and users in various ways. In some situations, item transactions are coordinated by an automated Item Transaction (or “IT”) system provided via one or more computing systems, such that users of the IT system who have available items are matched with other users of the IT system who desire those items. The types of items being involved in transactions via the IT system may vary, and in some situations may include items such as music CDs, video DVDs, computer games, computer software, etc. The operation of the IT system may be enhanced in various ways via interactions with one or more external item marketplaces, such as by automatically obtaining and using information related to users of the IT system from those marketplaces, and/or by acquiring additional items from those marketplaces for use by the IT system.
US07891559B2
A function for processing electronic money is installed in a mobile phone 7 provided with a contactless IC chip. At this time, an electronic money member number is written to the contactless IC chip. The user accesses a point site on a point server 10 through a user terminal, and logs in thereto. The user enters the electronic money member number in the point site. The point server 10 transmits a combination of the electronic money member number and the user's point member number to an electronic money server 2. The electronic money server 2 receives the electronic money member number and the point member number from the point server 10, and memorizes them after establishing a linkage therebetween.
US07891555B2
An automated banking machine operates responsive to data read from data bearing records, such as user cards, to cause machine user authorization and financial transfers. Account data read from a user card is associated in a data store with a server address, where a document is located. The document includes machine instructions for displaying a customer interface uniquely associated with the particular banking institution where the user holds the account. The customer interface includes user-selectable transaction options. The arrangement enables the customer interface of the user's home bank, with which the user is familiar, to also be automatically displayed to the user when the user operates automated banking machines of other banks.
US07891552B2
An automated banking machine (10) includes a lockable first fascia portion (20) which when unlocked enables access to a chest lock input device (104), inputs to which enable opening a chest door (18) of the machine. Opening the first fascia portion also enables access to an actuator (116) which enables moving a second fascia portion (22) for conducting service activities. A controller (72) in the machine selectively illuminates light emitting devices (118, 126) for purposes of facilitating user operation of the machine. Sensing devices (128) adjacent a card reader slot (28) on the machine enables the controller to detect the presence of unauthorized card reading devices. Servicing the machine is facilitated through use of a portable diagnostic article (98) which enables the controller to access diagnostic data stored in memory and which provides data indicative of the significance of the diagnostic data.
US07891543B2
A reclosable carton having a tuck flap that slides between a first gable panel and side gussets is provided. The tuck flap is coupled to a second gable panel along a line that is in alignment with a non-continuous free edge. The tuck flap includes a tuck flap width that is less than widths of the first and second gable panels. The tuck flap also includes a tuck flap score that is spaced apart from the line. The side gussets forming the gable angle include two perforated score lines intersecting a top of the carton at the non-continuous free edge. The perforated scores are connected to a first intersecting score by two die cuts, which are angled substantially 45 degrees from the first intersecting score.
US07891541B2
Featured is a storage container having a rectangular base with a front wall folded upwardly along a front edge of the rectangular base, a back wall folded upwardly along a back edge of the rectangular base, a outer cover panel extension to the front wall having a pair of widths and having a cover tuck flap, wherein each edge along the pair of widths in the outer cover panel extension has cutouts in a smooth shape, an inner cover panel extension to the back wall having a pair of widths folded along a top edge of the back wall, each edge along the pair of widths of the inner cover panel extension has cutouts in a smooth shape and a pair of end walls extending upwardly along a side edge of the rectangular base with a pair of grab areas allowing fingers extending towards outer cover panel passing over cutouts having the smooth shape.
US07891535B2
A method of making a tailored blank comprising the following steps: (a) friction welding first and second structural members together at a substantially right angle with respect to each other to form an intersection comprising a first joining surface formed by adjoining bottom faces of the first and second structural members, and a second joining surface formed by an angled face of the first structural member that is disposed at a first oblique angle relative to the bottom face of the first structural member; (b) friction welding the first joining surface of the intersection to a first portion of a surface of a base member; and (c) concurrently linear friction welding first and second joining surfaces of a third structural member to the second joining surface of the intersection and to a second portion of the surface of the base member respectively.
US07891533B2
An endoscopic surgical apparatus is provided for placing lateral lines of surgical fasteners into body tissue. The apparatus includes a frame portion, an elongated portion extending from the frame portion, and an articulating fastener applying assembly associated with a distal end of the elongated portion. The fastener applying assembly includes a base portion, a staple cartridge housing, and an anvil member which has a forming surface thereon against which surgical fasteners are driven as they are ejected from the cartridge housing. A first mechanism is provided for effectuating the rotation of the fastener applying assembly about an axis defined by the body portion, a second mechanism is provided for effectuating the articulation of the fastener applying assembly, and a third mechanism is provided for independently rotating the cartridge housing and anvil member relative to a longitudinal axis defined by the base position to increase the range of operability of the apparatus.
US07891531B1
A sub-miniature surgical staple cartridge includes an elongated housing having longitudinally extending strips forming walls with a wall thickness preferably less than 0.015 inch. The walls define a plurality of longitudinally spaced pockets which receive a corresponding plurality of U-shaped surgical staples above generally flat corresponding drivers. The thin walls are formed of sheet metal or extruded plastics material or heat-formed sheet plastics material with the outer side walls having opposite end walls welded together or integrally connected. The outer side walls may be sheet metal enclosing sheet metal or plastic extruded internal walls, or the entire cartridge may be extruded of a plastics material or formed of sheet plastics material and have a plastic bottom wall.
US07891522B2
An airless dispenser pump assembly includes a pump mechanism with an inlet valve that is configured to efficiently pump viscous fluids and that is able to be pre-primed when the pump mechanism is attached to a container. In one form, the inlet valve includes a seal member that seals an inlet port of the pump and an outer support member that secures the inlet valve to the rest of the pump mechanism. Two or more legs generally extend in a circumferential direction between the support member and the seal member in order to create a large flow opening for fluid flow through the inlet valve when opened and to rapidly close the inlet valve. The pump mechanism further includes an outlet valve that is configured to draw fluid back from a nozzle of the pump after dispensing in order to minimize build up around the nozzle.
US07891521B2
A container for gifts or the like, of the type that is used for association with a food package, in particular, to be inserted in a chocolate egg, comprises two half-shells which can be coupled mouth to mouth and with which are associated connection means that can be mutually engaged in order to keep the two half-shells connected to one another; the connection means are preferably of the buckle type with a male element integral with one half-shell and a female element integral with the other half-shell, the male and female elements being mutually engageable.
US07891520B2
A vessel comprises a basin component and a base component, the base component having at least three support elements of substantially equal size and joined together by at least three connector elements of substantially equal length; at one end, each connector element is attached to one of the support elements, and the connector elements are joined to one another at their respective opposite ends. When the support elements of the base component are placed on a table or counter or other flat surface, and are positioned at equidistant points about the periphery of an imaginary circle having a radius that is substantially the same as the length of each connector element, and a basin component having a radius of curvature that is within certain limits is positioned on the base component, thereby placing the base component in tension, the formation of a stable support for the basin component is enabled.
US07891515B2
A water-soluble container comprising a first compartment containing a first composition, a second compartment containing a second composition and a rigid spacer located in the first compartment and/or the second compartment, such that a wall or wall section of the first and/or second compartment is prevented from contacting a wall or wall section of the other compartment.
US07891512B2
A linerless closure mounted on a container, the closure comprising a closure top having a depending sidewall which terminates at a bottom end, the sidewall having an exterior face from which depends a circumferential skirt which extends outwardly from the sidewall having an interior skirt sidewall and an interior top surface which defines a junction space between the exterior face and the skirt, the junction space includes a tapered circumferential sidewall, wherein said closure excludes any flexible or elastomeric intermediate element which is not an integrally molded or formed as a part of the closure, said closure top mounted on a container, the container having a neck, the neck having an outer surface, a top surface and an edge defined by the intersection of the outer surface and the top surface, wherein the neck is in a direct, seal-tight contact with the tapered circumferential sidewall of the cap.
US07891511B2
The present invention is directed to a closure for a container. In one of the embodiments provided herein, the closure is provided with a roof portion, a shoulder portion that merges with the roof portion, and a skirt portion depending from the shoulder portion. Provided on the shoulder portion are recessed regions and full-depth regions. The recessed regions and full-depth regions alternate around the shoulder portion and are provided for improving a number of manufacturing, costs, and structural factors. In another embodiment provided herein, the closure is provided with a cylindrical skirt depending substantially from a roof portion, the cylindrical skirt having an inner wall with a plurality of narrow, elongated, vertical stand-off ribs thereon, the ribs having an upper edge below a tension ring and a lower edge below the upper edge and an elongated length causing the lower edge to be positioned about 50% to 25% above a bottom edge defined by the cylindrical skirt and measured against the entire length of the cylindrical skirt.
US07891506B2
A jewelry holder and display includes an upstanding elongated stem or post the lower end of which is secured to a circular base which, in turn, is rotatably supported on a larger diameter primary base such that the upstanding stem can readily rotate about its longitudinal axis. The stem supports radially located extending pegs and also supports at its upper end a generally cylindrical cup-shaped receptacle member having a plurality of radially located extending pegs selectively secured to its outer circumference for supporting jewelry items such as necklaces, bracelets, watches and the like. The receptacle member has an internal chamber to receive small items of jewelry, such as rings and cuff links. A cover is provided to releasably cover an upper opening in the receptacle chamber which may be lined with a soft felt and can receive a ring support cushion.
US07891504B2
A cradle unit for supporting metal coils, and other cylindrical objects, consists of two, parallel and separate saddles preferably made of polyurethane having an approximate range of between 50 Shore A and 90 Shore D, which saddles are connected together via a pair of parallel steel angle-brackets that provide inherent structural integrity to the cradle unit itself, while still allowing the unit to conform to the shape or level of the underlying support structure. The single cradle unit may be as a mobile support-device, or may be bolted or otherwise attached to a surface for a specific location of the stored product. The cradle unit of the invention may, also, be attached to the bed of a transportation vehicle, such as a truck trailer or rail car, in order to provide secure, protective storage and location of the items. In this case, the nature of the resilient or soft material from which the cradle unit is made provides shock-absorption qualities for the transported coil. The cradle unit is generally concave-shaped and has a first main or central lower concave curvature of a first radius, and a middle or secondary transitional curvature that connects the first main lower curvature to an upper, tertiary concave curvature of a second radius greater than the first radius, so that coils or rolls of different diameter may be safely and firmly supported.
US07891495B2
A battery bag assembly including an elongated watertight bag (WTB), a sealable access port (SAP), a battery tray (BT), a power feed-through (PFT), and an electric power conduit (EPC). SAP (402) has an elongated configuration extending along an elongated length of the WTB. BT (600) is disposed within the WTB so that its elongated configuration is aligned with the elongated length of the WTB. BT has electrical connector sockets (EPSs) mounted thereon for mating with oppositely sexed connectors provided on batteries. PFT (352) is disposed on a wall of the watertight bag. PFT is configured to provide a watertight seal for an electrical conductor passing from an interior of the watertight bag to an exterior of the watertight bag. EPC (360) is electrically connected for coupling electric power from the EPSs on the BT to a remote device.
US07891490B2
A system for providing a shipping label and a packing list on a container is provided which enables rapid and automated sequential application of a packing list and a shipping label to the container. The shipping label is configured complemental to the packing list whereby the packing list may first be adhered directly to the container and then the shipping label may be placed thereover. The shipping label may be applied over the packing list while the container moves continuously down a conveyor. The invention further includes an apparatus for sequentially applying the packing list and then the shipping label, and a method for applying the packing list and shipping label in registry.
US07891483B2
A device for treating foodstuffs, in which the foodstuffs are conveyed by a conveyor belt through a treatment zone, such as tunnel freezers for freezing foodstuffs. The conveyor belt is supported by a frame on which sliding rails are mounted to reduce friction. The conveyor belt is guided over these sliding rails. To prevent hygiene problems such as those occurring due to gaps formed when the sliding rails are mounted on the carrier, the sliding rails are designed as self-supporting elements. The sliding rails here are preferably simply placed on the transverse bars of the supporting frame.
US07891476B2
Each of first and second multi-plate clutches comprises a clutch outer cylinder portion provided to be coaxial with the input shaft and connected with a first or second rotational element, a clutch inner cylinder portion provided to be coaxial with an input shaft, plural clutch plates provided between these cylinder portions to slide in an axial direction of the input shaft within the clutch outer or inner cylinder portion, and a clutch piston provided to slide in the axial direction and press the clutch plates for connecting the clutch outer cylinder portion with the clutch inner cylinder portion. The clutch outer and inner cylinder portions of each of the first and second multi-plate clutches are provided in the axial direction, and there is provided a support wall portion that is connected with the input shaft and supports the clutch inner cylinder portion of each of the multi-plate clutches.
US07891471B2
The present invention adds a stabilizing force member to prior art Railway brake systems and greatly improves the control of the spatial orientation of a modified brake beam within a Railway vehicle and provides lateral support to a truck lever connection and levers, which in turn, properly locate actuating bars of the brake system. As a result, service life of brake beam support components and brake shoes are extended, brake lever friction is reduced and brake system efficiency is increased.
US07891458B2
A priority valve 7 is disposed between a hydraulic pump 2 and a steering valve 4 and is used to supply priority steering cylinders 103a and 103b with pressurized oil discharged from the hydraulic pump 2 by controlling the differential pressure across a meter-in hydraulic line of the steering valve 4 such that the differential pressure is kept at a target value. A pressure sensor 31 for detecting the load pressures of the steering cylinders 103a and 103b is provided. On the basis of the detected load pressures, the target value set for the priority valve 7 is modified by devices including a controller 32, a solenoid valve 33, a pilot hydraulic line 29, and a pressure receiving unit 24c of the priority valve 7. The above configuration enables suppression of a shock occurring at the start of turning of the steering wheel.
US07891454B2
A snowmobile rear suspension is shown comprised of a linear force element (LFE) positioned outside the envelope of the snowmobile endless track. The snowmobile frame includes a chassis mounted to a tunnel, where the chassis includes a central mounting bracket. The LFE is attached at one end to the bracket and at the other end to a bell crank. The bell crank is operatively connected to the slide rails. When the slide rails collapse in normal operation, the bell crank strokes the LFE, and the suspension is progressive throughout the range.
US07891453B2
In one aspect of the present invention, an energy storage system has an elastic hydraulic fluid vessel with an internal variable volume and being coupled to a hydraulic rotary mechanism. The elastic hydraulic fluid vessel has an elastic material adapted to store a potential energy within its fibers when the internal volume is increased by a hydraulic fluid. The hydraulic rotary mechanism is adapted to be accelerated by the release of the potential energy of the fibers of the elastic vessel by ejecting the hydraulic fluid from the internal variable volume into the rotary mechanism.
US07891448B2
Control circuits for a riding lawn mower providing an override condition for selectively allowing the cutting blades of the lawn mower to operate when the vehicle is traveling in reverse. The circuits incorporate a multi-position ignition switch, an override switch, a vehicle reverse switch, a PTO switch and a park brake switch. In one aspect of the invention, the control circuits disable the engine when the vehicle is placed in reverse with the PTO engaged and without the override condition having been established. In another aspect of the invention, an electric PTO clutch is disabled when the vehicle is placed in reverse with the PTO engaged and without the override condition having been established. The override condition is terminated when the ignition switch is moved away from the override position, or when the operator activates the park brake switch.
US07891441B2
An expandable downhole tool such as an under-reamer or a stabiliser includes a mandrel mounted for linear slidable movement relative to a main body. The mandrel, together with one or more travel blocks, cause movement of a working component in an axial direction. One or more outwardly extending guide paths slidably interact with the working component to cause the working component to move between a withdrawn inoperative position and an outwardly deployed operative position. Upon increase of hydraulic pressure from below the tool, the mandrel is urged against a spring biasing the deactivated position to move axially and cause the working component to take its operative position. Upon decrease of hydraulic pressure, the spring moves the mandrel axially to cause the working component to take its withdrawn inoperative position.
US07891440B2
There is provided a method for drilling a cased hole and installing a geothermal transfer apparatus. A sonic drilling apparatus is positioned at a desired location. The sonic drilling apparatus includes a rotating and vibrating apparatus for rotating and vibrating a drill string into the ground. A retrievable drill bit is operatively connected to the drill string. The cased hole is drilled to a desired depth by rotating and vibrating the drill string into the ground. The retrievable drill bit is retrieved from the cased hole following the drilling of the cased hole to the desired depth. A geothermal transfer apparatus is lowered into the cased hole following the retrieval of the retrievable drill bit. Grouting material may be discharged into the cased hole before or after the drill string is removed from the ground.
US07891426B2
A bearing cooling system comprises a bearing assembly, a heat exchanger, a coolant flow circuit apparatus and a lubricant flow circuit apparatus. The bearing assembly is configured for being removably seated within a well drilling head housing and for having a stripper rubber assembly attached thereto. The bearing assembly includes bearings and a lubricant flow path configured for allowing lubricant to be circulated through the bearings. The heat exchanger has a lubricant core portion and a coolant core portion, which are jointly configured for allowing heat transfer between respective fluids of the core portions. The coolant flow circuit apparatus is coupled to the coolant core portion and is configured for circulating coolant through the coolant core portion. The lubricant flow circuit apparatus is coupled to the lubricant core portion and lubricant flow path, and is configured for circulating lubricant through the coolant core portion and the lubricant flow path.
US07891418B2
Method and apparatus to make-up or break-out a threaded tubular connection using an integrated power tong and back-up tong (10). The power tong (20) may be disabled upon sensing a predetermined threshold amount of displacement of at least a portion of a back-up tong (14). The sensed displacement indicates that the back-up tong (14) is slipping, and power tong (20) rotation may be disabled to prevent damage to the pipe string (16) or surrounding equipment. A slippage sensor (40) may be disposed to sense displacement of at least a portion of the back-up tong (14) relative to a supporting frame (12). In one embodiment, the slippage sensor (40) may be operatively coupled to a valve (50) disposed in communication with a fluid line (46) supplying power fluid to the power tong (20). The power tong (20) may be disabled by impairing flow to the power tong (20) upon sensing a predetermined displacement of the back-up tong (14).
US07891409B2
Noise occurring in an upright air-conditioning unit is greatly reduced. An upright air-conditioning unit 1 is disposed under a steering member support part 23, a vent opening 15 and a vent outlet port 20 are made to communicate with each other via a vent duct 25, a defrost opening 16 and a defrost outlet port 21 are made to communicate with each other via a defrost duct 26. The vent opening 15 assumes a position further frontward than the steering member support part 23 along the frontward/rearward direction relative to the vehicle body whereas the defrost opening 16 assumes a position further rearward than the steering member support part 23 along the frontward/rearward direction relative to the vehicle body.
US07891402B2
A mold assembly device and method for assembling a semi-permanent mold assembly is disclosed, the mold assembly device includes a base die and a transfer frame, wherein the transfer frame is capable of transferring a core package to the base die and facilitates assembly of the transfer frame and the core package with the base die.
US07891399B2
Two neighboring roller blinds on the same drive shaft may be adjusted with respect to each other by letting one end plug comprise an un-coupling device. This un-coupling device may advantageously be made by means of an unwrap spring that is actuated by means of a ring that surrounds one end plug.
US07891389B2
An improved portable work bench includes a beam, legs for supporting the beam, and at least one bracket having first and second surfaces for contacting respective first and second sides of the beam, wherein the second surface is movable between a first position contacting the second side of the beam, and a second position not contacting the second side of the beam. A spring biases the second surface towards the first position.
US07891387B2
A robot system includes a supply station. The system further includes: a robot, a robot tank adapted to store a liquid and disposed at the robot; and a supply station configured to supply additional liquid to the tank.
US07891385B2
To reliably supply a predetermined amount of sealing agent into a pneumatic tire even if the device is inclined and after the predetermined amount of sealing agent is supplied, to automatically start feeding compressed air into the pneumatic tire. In pumping device 30, when compressed air is supplied to air chamber 54, internal pressure of air chamber 54 increases, and as the internal pressure of air chamber 54 rises, a contained volume of air chamber 54 increases while a contained volume of liquid container 52 decreases. Thus, sealing agent 100 in an amount corresponding to the amount corresponding to the reduction in the contained volume of liquid container 52, is forcibly discharged from discharge outlet 64 and the discharged sealing agent 100 is injected into tire 90. In pumping device 30, when the air chamber 54 expands enough to have a predetermined amount of sealing agent to be discharged from the liquid container 52, the air discharge opening 92 opens toward the air chamber 54 to allow the air chamber 54 to communicate with the inside of tire 90. Thus, compressed air in the air chamber 54 can be supplied into tire 90 via the air discharge outlet 92, bypass hose 96 and joint hose 68.
US07891380B2
A fluid coupling assembly is disclosed comprising a connector body defining a bore extending axially forward from an entrance opening, a tubular male member with an upset, a seal member, and a retainer. The retainer is received within the bore and includes locking members to releaseably retain the tube. The retainer includes a forward extension to support the seal against fluid pressure. The retainer and seal are configured to be applied to the male member before insertion of the male member into the bore of the connector body. Two of the locking members include ramps extending radially outwardly to contact the body portion defining the entrance opening sequentially prior to contact by the locking arms of the other locking members. A removable protective cap attaches the retainer and seal onto a tube end and covers these components prior to assembly. The retainer, seal member and protective cap cannot be assembled onto the tube end unless the seal is present within the protective cap.
US07891379B2
A stack or assembly of fluid, mechanical, and/or electrical components permits removal of some components for maintenance, without compromising the fluid integrity of the remainder of the assembly. A fastening bolt, attached to at least one fluid component, is screwed into a stacking bolt, attached to another fluid component, the bolts being screwed together inside the bore of an adapter plate. A resilient insert sits between the head of the stacking bolt and the bore. At least a portion of the bore has a continuous taper, such that the diameter of the bore decreases in the vicinity of the insert. The taper creates a reduced diameter hole on one surface of the adapter plate, thus preventing interference between fluid ports on an adjacent fluid component. The taper also prevents loss of the insert during transportation and storage, and prevents undesired extrusion of material of the insert when the components are fastened together.
US07891374B2
A suction valve seat and guide assembly has an outer ring and a peripheral flange projecting outwardly from the bottom of the outer ring, and an inner surface with a top part sloping downwardly and inwardly toward the center of the outer ring. The outer ring has an outer surface that slopes upwardly and inwardly from the flange. The guide has an inner ring positioned within the outer ring and a number of spaced-apart fins connecting the inner ring to the outer ring. A retainer has an internal passageway, an externally threaded, upper segment within the top of which is fitted the peripheral flange of the seat; a middle segment that is affixed to the bottom of the upper segment and has a polygonal cross section for easy gripping by a wrench; and, a bottom segment that is affixed to the bottom of the middle segment.
US07891360B2
An earplug that includes a piezoelectric element that converts electrical signals into oscillations; and a deformable material of which at least one segment is insertable into an external auditory canal of a person to ensure an acoustic seal by deformation, the piezoelectric element being disposed inside the deformable material and in fixed contact therewith, the deformable material being able to transmit the oscillations at a periphery and ensure conduction of the oscillations through cartilage and soft tissue of the auditory canal.
US07891352B2
The invention describes an aerosol generator for inhalation therapy devices, in which an oscillatable assembly, consisting of at least a membrane and an oscillation generator, is mounted in an encapsulating means such that at least the membrane is exposed for the supply of liquid and the generation of an aerosol, whereas the remaining parts of the oscillatable assembly are protected. Mounting occurs by means of a flexible passage such that the oscillatory motions of the oscillatable assembly are not negatively affected.
US07891348B2
A “cross-over” compound crossbow includes a stock and barrel assembly attached to a horizontally mounted compound bow. The compound bow component is similar to that of U.S. Pat. No. 7,047,958 and includes an alternative arrow support system to achieve higher arrow velocity at a reduced draw weight. The crossover compound bow also provides draw weight adjustability and positive cam synchronization.
US07891332B2
A method of generating a crankshaft synchronized sine wave signal for an internal combustion engine is provided. The method includes the steps of: A) sensing an observed crankshaft angle of the crankshaft; B) using a dynamic observer to generate an estimated crankshaft angle from said observed crankshaft angle; and C) generating the crankshaft synchronized sine wave signal as a function of the estimated crankshaft angle. The crankshaft synchronized sine wave signal is preferable output to at least one of an active vibration control system and an active noise control system. An apparatus for generating a crankshaft synchronized sine wave for an internal combustion engine according to the method of the present invention is also disclosed.
US07891325B2
A cleaning apparatus for a smelt spout of a recovery boiler, which apparatus comprises a motorized cleaning member (7) for cleaning the smelt spout (1). The cleaning apparatus further comprises a path (5) and a cleaning unit, which comprises motorized transfer means for transferring the cleaning unit to the location of the smelt spout (1) along the path.
US07891321B2
An animal muzzle has a retention strap, an interlock member attached to a first end portion of the retention strap, and a muzzle body attached to a second end portion of the retention strap. The muzzle body includes two longitudinally extending edge portions and an interlock structure adjacent each of the edge portions. The interlock structures are configured for having the interlock member simultaneously engaged therewith. The interlock structures are longitudinally offset from each other such that they are longitudinally adjacent to each other in a manner allowing the interlock member to be slideable engaged therewith when the muzzle body is in a snout-encompassing configuration. The muzzle body is maintained in the snout-encompassing configuration when the interlock member is engaged with the interlock structures. The muzzle body automatically transitions to a non-constraining configuration when the interlock member is disengaged from the interlock structures.
US07891316B1
A rear milking cluster hose support arm for supporting a milking cluster hose in an existing milking system where milking is done from a rear of a cow includes a rubber bumper for supporting an existing cluster hose and a rectilinear rod. The apparatus further includes a rod holder and a selectively adjusting mechanism with a coupling nut, an air hose, a tee union adapter, and a flattened lever. A predetermined oscillating air pressure level is introduced into the cylinder from the existing air supply source to thereby raise and lower the coupling nut and articulate the lever about the rod to thereby adjust the position of the rod and the rubber bumper respectively during non-operating conditions.
US07891308B2
A prefabricated panel assembly for use in constructing a marine vessel comprises a plurality of elongated, roll-formed metal panels fixed sided to side by longitudinal weld seams. The panels include a plate portion and an angle portion adjoining the plate portion along a longitudinal primary bend, the plate portion having a generally flat panel segment, the angle portion having a web generally orthogonal to the panel segment and a flange generally parallel to the panel segment and adjoining the web along a secondary bend. The panel assembly provides a more efficient and cost-effective alternative to using individual structural steel angles welded to individual steel plate in constructing a marine vessel.
US07891304B2
A railcar with discharge control system is disclosed. In one embodiment, a railway car includes an underframe and at least one hopper for transporting lading. The railway car further including the underframe including a center sill which defines in part a longitudinal axis of the railway car. A discharge opening formed proximate to a lower portion of the hopper. A respective door assembly pivotally mounted adjacent to the discharge opening to control the flow of lading from the hopper. The door assembly operable for movement between a first, closed position and a second, open position relative to the discharge opening. A discharge control system operable to move the door assembly between the first position and the second position. The discharge control system operably moves generally longitudinally along the axis of the railway car to move the door assemblies between the first, closed position and the second, open position.
US07891291B2
A wine making apparatus includes an engaging mechanism for engaging a fermentation tank, and a press mechanism for pressing the wine making ingredients in the tank against an inner surface of the tank. In a described embodiment a tank has a pair of forklift attachment points and a movable platform on a wine press mechanism is adapted for receiving the forklift attachment points. A lifting apparatus raises the platform and tank such that the contents of the tank are crushed by a relatively fixed plate above the tank. A pair of hydraulic rams are connected in series such that fluid output from one raises the other, thereby assuring that the platform and tank are evenly raised.
US07891285B2
In a swash plate hydraulic pump or motor structured so that a convex arc surface on the back surface of a swash plate is supported on a concave arc surface of a swash plate support via a bearing in a manner enabling the arc surface to swing in the circumferential direction that follows the arc path. A restricting pin is included for restricting movements of the bearing. The assembly structure prevents the restricting pin from coming out of the swash plate and the swash plate support. One end of the restricting pin is supported rotatably on a side surface of the swash plate. An intermediate portion of the restricting pin is engaged in an engagement hole formed in a holder of the bearing in a loosely fitting manner. Finally, the other end of the restricting pin is inserted into a support rod supported rotatably around its axis on the swash plate support to permit movement of the restricting pin in a pin axial direction.
US07891279B2
A saw chain rivet is provided including a flange, and a hub extending from a side of the flange. A shoulder defined by a junction between the hub and the flange has properties optimized to resist shear forces. The hub may be optimized for ease of rivet head formation.
US07891278B2
An eye-protection cover quick-release structure includes a spreader, which has a notch and a locating hole at the top side and a contracted passage connected between the notch and the locating hole, a bracket, which has a locating groove for accommodating a part of the spreader and an axle hole, an axle pin, which is insertable through the axle hole of the bracket and the locating hole of the spreader and has a shank and a shoulder, and a handle fastened to the shank of the axle pin and biasable between a pressed position where the shoulder of the axle pin is forced into the locating hole of the spreader to lock the bracket to the spreader and a lifted position where the shank of the axle pin is forced into the locating hole of the spreader and movable through the contracted passage for allowing the bracket to be separated from the spreader.
US07891276B2
In a system and method for controlling the length of a discrete segment of an elastic web, a wound off tension of the web is determined during unwinding from a wound roll. The unwound web is delivered to a processing station while being maintained in tension. A discrete segment of the web is transported away from the processing station for at least a time t wherein the discrete segment decreases in length to a recovered length. The recovered length is predicted based at least in part on the wound off tension and in response to the predicted recovered length, at least one of the following is controlled: 1) the speed at which the web is delivered to the processing station, 2) the tension in the continuous web as it is delivered to the processing station, and 3) the length of the discrete segment at the processing station.
US07891269B2
A vehicle includes a handlebar and a handlebar cover. The handlebar cover includes a front cover for covering a front side of the handlebar and a rear cover for covering a rear side of the handlebar. The front and rear covers are fastened to each other by a fastener member. The fastener member is covered by a cover attached to the handlebar cover.
US07891262B2
A shift position changing drive member for a transmission includes an arm member capable of turning around the axis of a shift spindle for drivingly turning a shift drum in response to the turning of the shift spindle wherein the shift drum is prevented from coming into a neutral position even if the shifting speed is stopped in midstream. A lost motion spring includes gripping portions gripping a pressing portion from both sides of a coil portion surrounding the shift spindle. An arm member of shift position changing drive member is provided with a pressure-receiving member which is gripped by both gripping portions in such a manner that when the turning member is turned, if, in response to the turning direction, the pressing portion abuts against one of the gripping portions for turning, the other of the gripping portions abuts against the pressure-receiving member.
US07891261B2
A clutch actuation system for engaging and disengaging a clutch includes a hydraulically-actuated piston movable in response to hydraulic pressure to an apply position in which the piston is operable to engage the clutch. An electro mechanical actuator is movable in response to electric power to contact the piston at the apply position such that the clutch is maintained in an engaged state by the actuator, thereby permitting hydraulic pressure to be released. A method of controlling engagement of the clutch is also provided.
US07891260B2
An occupant presence sensor apparatus disposed in a seat includes first and second substantially non-compliant force translation plates generally parallel to the seating surface of the seat, an elastomeric mat disposed between the first and second force translation plates, and a switch mechanism disposed between the first and second force translation plates within an opening formed in the elastomeric mat. The elastomeric mat includes a distributed array of hollow protuberances that extend toward and contact the force translation plates, and the mat has a stiffness that normally provides a clearance between the switch mechanism and one of the force translation plates. When an occupant of specified or higher weight sits on the seating surface, the protuberances collapse and the force translation plates activate the switch mechanism.
US07891257B2
A monitoring device including first detector means of a flow rate of operative fluid in an electric household appliance towards a tank of the electric household appliance and second detector means of the level of such a fluid in the tank; wherein the first and second detector means are operatively and reciprocally associated to issue a single signal (S) characterised by at least two different parameters, a first parameter (F) correlated to the flow rate of the fluid and a second parameter (A) correlated to the level of fluid in the tank. Typically, the first and the second detector means consist of a turbine mounted so as to be crossed in use by the flow of operative fluid and thereby turned at a speed proportional to the flow rate of fluid; in a membrane mounted within a casing to fluid-tightly divide the same into a first and second chamber connected respectively to atmospheric pressure and to siphon means arranged within the tank; in sensor means mounted on the membrane integral with the same and in interaction means with the sensor means, angularly and integrally mounted on the turbine and in a position so as to periodically transit in use in front of the sensor means in consequence of the rotation of the turbine.
US07891252B2
A method includes forming multiple trenches in a first wafer, forming a sensor structure on a first surface of a second wafer, and bonding the first wafer and the second wafer. The method also includes etching a second surface of the second wafer to form a sensor diaphragm in the second wafer. The method further includes removing a portion of the first wafer by cutting the first wafer in multiple areas of the first wafer associated with the trenches. A sensor includes a substrate and a surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonator on a first surface of the substrate. The sensor also includes a bonding pad electrically coupled to the SAW resonator and a notch formed in a second surface of the substrate. The sensor further includes a cover separated from the first surface of the substrate by a spacer. The SAW resonator is located between the cover and the substrate.
US07891250B2
This invention uses a flexible gauge to digitize an analogue signal from a mechanical gauge. In particular, this invention uses a flexible gauge to digitize an analogue signal from a mechanical pressure gauge. More particularly, this invention uses a flexible gauge to digitize an a analogue signal from a mechanical pressure gauge that uses a Bourdon tube.
US07891247B2
A method for detecting an anomaly and measuring its size may include generating a wave signal into a structure being evaluated and collecting at least one of any front and back scattered wave data and any side scattered wave data caused by the wave signal impacting an anomaly. The method may also include processing the at least one front and back scattered wave data and side scattered wave data to measure a size, location, and shape of the anomaly.
US07891241B2
An apparatus for remote inspection of fire extinguishers at one or a system of fire extinguisher stations includes, e.g., at each fire extinguisher station: a detector for lack of presence of a fire extinguisher in its installed position at the fire extinguisher station; a detector for out-of-range pressure of contents of the fire extinguisher at the fire extinguisher station; a detector for an obstruction to viewing of or access to the fire extinguisher at the fire extinguisher station; and a device for transmission of inspection report information from the fire extinguisher station to a remote central station.
US07891239B2
To provide a flow meter, and a flow volume controlling device equipped therewith, capable of reducing pressure loss while obtaining a flow rectifying effect in a measurement fluid. A flow meter for measuring the flow volume of a measurement fluid, equipped with a flow path wherein the measuring fluid flows, and a flow rectifier that is disposed within the flow path, where the flow rectifier has holes for rectifying the flow of a measurement fluid, and has an area that is wider than the flow path cross-sectional area in a direction that is perpendicular to the direction in which the flow path extends. The flow volume controlling device is provided with the flow meter, a controlling valve, and controlling means for adjusting the flow volume of a fluid that flows through the flow path of the flow meter through controlling the controlling valves based on information regarding the flow volume detected by the flow meter.
US07891236B2
A pressure differential valve apparatus that includes a valve, the valve having a valve head and a valve stem connected perpendicular to the valve head, the valve head having a valve face with an opening that continues inside an interior of the valve head to an intersection with the valve stem and along a length of the valve stem to a top of the valve stem, wherein the apparatus allows unobstructed pressure readings when the valve face is rotated in a radial direction within an area of flow of a cylinder head.
US07891234B2
A multi-sensing device is provided which includes a first sensor for sensing a temperature of the fluid flowing through the filter element, a second sensor for sensing a pressure generated by the fluid flowing through the filter element; and an indicator for indicating a condition of the filter system, and a microcontroller operatively coupled to the first and second sensors. The microcontroller executes instructions for receiving temperature data from the first sensor and pressure data from the second sensor; if the temperature data does not exceed a first temperature threshold, monitoring subsequent temperature data received from the first sensor until it exceeds the first temperature threshold; and if the temperature data exceeds the first temperature threshold: determining whether the temperature data exceeds a second temperature threshold and whether the pressure data exceeds a pressure threshold; if the temperature data exceeds the second temperature threshold, activating the indicator to indicate that the fluid is in an abnormal condition; and if the pressure data exceeds the pressure threshold, activating the indicator to indicate that the filter element is in a condemned condition.
US07891233B2
A blast movement monitor for measuring the movement of material within a body of material as a result of a blasting operation, the monitor including: a housing having an interior chamber defining an inner surface; and an internal communication device that is received immediately within the interior chamber of the housing, the internal communication device including: a body portion; an electric coil wound around the body portion; a circuit board electrically connected to the coil; a battery electrically connected to the circuit board; an end portion associated with one end of the body portion; and a cap associated with an opposing end of the body portion that encapsulates the body portion and sealingly houses the body portion; wherein the internal communication device is biased to facilitate self-righting of the internal communication device to a desired orientation within the interior chamber independent of the orientation of the monitor.
US07891232B2
A sensor to detect particulate matter. The sensor includes a first rigid tube, a second rigid tube, a detection surface electrode, and a bias surface electrode. The second rigid tube is mounted substantially parallel to the first rigid tube. The detection surface electrode is disposed on an outer surface of the first rigid tube. The detection surface electrode is disposed to face the second rigid tube. The bias surface electrode is disposed on an outer surface of the second rigid tube. The bias surface electrode is disposed to face the detection surface electrode on the first rigid tube. An air gap exists between the detection surface electrode and the bias surface electrode to allow particulate matter within an exhaust stream to flow between the detection and bias surface electrodes.
US07891227B2
Gripping apparatus for gripping and holding elongated workpieces, in particular for bending machines
A gripping apparatus for gripping elongated workpieces comprises a housing, carrying two pivotable gripping jaws which are movable between opened and closed positions, as well as a guiding body, in which the housing is displaceably supported.A rod having a control element which is located between both gripping jaws and is displaceable between a position retracted into the gripping jaws and so as to spread them apart, and an opposite position, where the gripping jaws are converged.The control element engages the housing and, during a further movement in the retraction direction moves the housing.
US07891220B2
A lockable container comprising a lock portion and a container is provided. The lock portion has a first part and a second part, wherein the first part has an opening component and at least a lock mechanism, the second part has at least a latch driven by the opening component. The container fits the second part. The container has at least an inner space and a wedge corresponding to the latch. The lock mechanism restricts a displacement of the opening component when the lock mechanism is locked. The lock mechanism releases the opening component when the lock mechanism is unlocked.
US07891211B2
A cold storage tank unit for a refrigeration cycle apparatus includes a cold storage heat exchanger having plural tubes and a pair of first and second tanks connected to longitudinal ends of the tubes, a cold storage material tank which accommodates at least the tubes of the cold storage heat exchanger, and a cold storage material filled in the cold storage material tank. The cold storage material is cold-stored by the refrigerant or is cold-released to cool gas refrigerant evaporated in the evaporator. Furthermore, the second tank has a lower end portion that is positioned lower than a lower end portion of the first tank, and the second tank has a tank capacity capable of storing a predetermined liquid refrigerant condensed by cold storage heat of the cold storage material. The cold storage tank unit can be located between an evaporator and a compressor in the refrigeration cycle apparatus.
US07891199B2
Self-cooling food and beverage containers and processes for manufacturing such containers with cryogenic high-pressure refrigerant cooling apparatus are disclosed. A self-cooling beverage container apparatus containing a beverage or other food product, a method of storing cryogenic gases which then cool said food products, and to methods of assembling and operating the apparatus. A self-cooling beverage container includes a container body having an openable portion, a pressure vessel substantially housed within said container body, the pressure vessel having a first chamber for containing a refrigerant, an actuation valve configurable from a closed configuration wherein the refrigerant is maintained within the pressure vessel to an open configuration wherein said refrigerant is allowed to expand and exit the pressure vessel upon opening of said container whereby refrigerant expansion and flow through said outlet conduit cools the contents of said container.
US07891195B2
A device for attenuating acoustical noise from an exhaust nozzle of a turbojet is disclosed. The turbojet exhaust nozzle includes a central body defining the inner surface of the primary gas flow path. The central body includes an outer wall defining one, and only one, resonator cavity. The single resonator cavity is in fluid communication with the primary gas flow path via orifices through at least one upstream portion of the outer wall. The single resonator cavity and plurality of orifices compose a Helmholtz resonator.
US07891192B2
A combustor assembly for a gas turbine engine includes a combustor endcover having at least one fuel circuit and mounted thereto a plurality of pre-mixers and at least one control valve. The at least one control valve is fluidly connected to the at least one fuel circuit and operatively connected to a controller. The controller selectively operates the at least one control valve to deliver fuel through the at least one fuel circuit to the plurality of pre-mixers in order to achieve an enhanced level of operational flexibility by providing individual combustion chamber control.
US07891190B2
A combustion chamber of a turbomachine is disclosed. The combustion chamber includes at least one bowl with a substantially frustoconical wall that is formed with an annular row of air injection orifices and a fuel injector arranged upstream of the bowl. The annular row of air injection orifices includes smaller-diameter orifices and larger-diameter orifices which are arranged in alternating fashion and with a uniform distribution around the axis of the bowl to produce two annular air/fuel mixture layers.
US07891188B2
The present inventive subject matter is drawn to an apparatus for producing power using geothermal liquid comprising: a geothermal power plant for producing power using heat contained in geothermal liquid supplied thereto; and heating means apparatus for heating a solution and producing a heated solution for use in an electrolysis unit with heat from heat depleted geothermal liquid exiting a vaporizer of the geothermal power plant, wherein the electrolysis unit produces hydrogen for use in producing power.
US07891186B1
A waste heat recovery system is provided for an internal combustion engine having a piston, a cylinder and an intake manifold, significantly improving gas mileage efficiency without reliance on alternative fuels. The system includes a heat loop having a heat transfer fluid, a compressor in fluid communication with the intake manifold to supply compressed air thereto, a Stirling engine operated and optimized via thermal communication with the heat loop, and operatively coupled to the compressor. The system includes a chiller in thermal communication with the heat loop, and with the intake manifold to cool the compressed air communicate to the cylinder. The system may include additional Stirling engines operating other devices, or being operated by a device, such as a propeller. A vehicle can incorporate the system and route fluid to and from a radiator. The system can be used in both portable and stationary applications.
US07891182B2
A method for controlling an engine in a work machine includes determining a base engine operating limit; determining a hydraulic system load on the engine; calculating a modification value for the base engine operating limit; generating a modified engine operating limit based on the modification value and the base engine operating limit; generating an engine control signal based on the modified engine operating limit; and transmitting the engine control signal to operate the engine at the modified engine operating limit to thereby supply additional power from the engine to the drive train to at least partially compensate for the hydraulic system load.
US07891174B2
Described herein is a method for managing regeneration of a diesel-particulate filter for a gas-exhaust system of the internal-combustion engine of a vehicle, comprising a first step of regeneration of the diesel-particulate filter during which the diesel-particulate filter is regenerated at a first regeneration rate, and a second step of regeneration of the diesel-particulate filter, during which the diesel-particulate filter is regenerated at a second regeneration rate higher than the first regeneration rate.
US07891173B2
An exhaust gas cleaning apparatus is provided that has a main exhaust passage, a main catalytic converter disposed in the main exhaust passage, a bypass exhaust passage, a bypass catalytic converter disposed in the bypass exhaust passage, a selector valve and a controller. The controller controls the internal combustion engine to a rich combustion state with a rich air fuel ratio while the controller controls the selector valve to block the flow of the exhaust gas through the main exhaust passage, and then, afterwards, controls the selector valve to direct the flow of the exhaust gas through the main exhaust passage such that residual air remaining in the main exhaust passage mixes with rich exhaust gas from the bypass exhaust passage.
US07891172B2
When a fuel as a reducing agent is supplied to a NOx catalyst on which a NOx or a SOx is reduced, a flow rate of exhaust gas that flows through an exhaust passage is changed, and the fuel is supplied to the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust passage at a plurality of timings (ΔT1, ΔT2) when the exhaust gas flows at different flow rates.
US07891169B2
A procedure is introduced to diagnose a catalytic converter system with at least two catalytic converters, through which separate exhaust gas flows flow, with the steps: test if oxygen storage capacities of the catalytic converters, which are at least two in number, exceed a predetermined threshold value. The procedure characterizes itself, in that the oxygen storage capacity of the first of two catalytic converters is compared with at least one first threshold value, in that an additional threshold value is ascertained as a function of a result of the comparison and in that the oxygen storage capacity of the second of two catalytic converters is compared with the additional threshold value. Additionally a control device is introduced, which executes the procedure.
US07891168B2
A monitoring system for a catalytic converter is provided. The system includes: a fuel determination module that determines a fuel composition based on a sensed composition of fuel in a fuel system; a fuel/air (F/A) determination module that selectively determines a stoichiometric F/A ratio based on the fuel composition; and an oxygen storage capacity (OSC) diagnostic module that computes a target OSC based on the stoichiometric F/A ratio, that compares the target OSC to a reference value and diagnosis the catalytic converter based on the comparison.
US07891166B2
The water rocket engine with a two-phase nozzle includes a water rocket propulsion system having a reservoir, and a nozzle assembly disposed along a central longitudinal axis therein, the nozzle assembly comprising an inverted cup shaped fluid capture vessel having a substantially concave sidewall and extending away from an elongated tube. Open lower portion of the fluid capture vessel forms a fluid inlet. The elongated tube has a concave shaped side wall that forms a nozzle gas inlet at an upper portion of the tube, a nozzle outlet at a lower portion of the tube, and a passageway disposed between the tube upper portion and the tube lower portion. Within the confines of the capture vessel, fluid injection holes are disposed in the tube sidewall to provide fluid intake into the nozzle passageway where fluid and gas combine to form a two phase propellant.
US07891162B2
A quick connect tool assembly including a tool head having a socket therein, and an elongated pole for insertion into the socket tool head to lock the tool head and the pole together. The assembly includes a detent fixed to an end of the pole and teeth projecting into the interior of the socket on the tool head, such that the teeth engage the tool head detent to lock the pole to the tool head.
US07891151B2
Two-clip tubular fasteners are used to clamp a sheet-like member between flanges of the clips. An apparatus and method for attaching an undercover to the underside of a vehicle floor panel having a plurality of studs comprises a plurality of the tubular fasteners that are inserted into respective mounting holes of the undercover and that are engaged with the studs. At least some of the mounting holes provide diametral clearance with respect to corresponding tubular fasteners. The flanges of those fasteners exert a predetermined clamping force on the undercover while permitting planar movement of the undercover. One of the flanges has a configuration that engages a cooperable configuration on the undercover to prevent undesired turning of a first clip relative to a second clip.
US07891148B2
A partition system for office spaces generally includes a framework and a plurality of different types of decorative and/or functional tiles mountable to the framework. The framework includes I- and C-shaped vertical frame members which are adjustably joined by upper and lower horizontal spanners such that the distance between the vertical frame members is adjustable. Also, the framework may include other types of vertical frame members for forming L-, T-, or X-junctions within the partition system framework. A variety of decorative and functional tiles are mountable to the framework, including retractable workspace tiles, several types of storage tiles, display tiles, window tiles, and electrical and data services tiles.
US07891146B1
Devices, apparatus, systems and methods of attaching storm panels over window and door openings with end fastenable H tracks. Each of the tracks can have H cross-sectional shapes with elongated opposite facing C shaped channels back to back along the elongated tracks. At the upper and lower ends of the tracks can be outwardly protruding tabs having through-holes for allowing the tracks to mounted into frame edges about the window and door openings. Rectangular shutter panels such as plywood, metal and plastic sheeting can have side edges that slidably fit into the C channel openings of the H tracks so that the only fasteners to attach the panels over the building openings are through the track tabs. Stop flanges can prevent the panels from sliding out of the channels. The track, brackets can be mounted horizontal and parallel to one another as well as be mounted vertically and parallel to one another.
US07891139B2
In controlling, with recognition of their installation positions, the opening/closing driving of plural doors that are driven by respective linear motors, each door is driven closed by switching the door opening/closing drive torque to high torque if the drive speed of the door has become less than or equal to a prescribed speed. In doing so, operation instruction computing sections set high torque application periods for respective doors so that the periods of high-torque closure driving of respective doors or predetermined door groups do not overlap with each other, and issue instructions to drive the doors closed with high torque only during the high torque application periods.
US07891125B1
Therapeutic methods and apparatuses for processing emotions and cognitions relating to an event of substantial significance to a person, including but not limited to: death of another person or animal; loss of another person, an animal, or an object; separation from another person, an animal, or an object; relocation, graduation, adoption, incarceration, retirement, transitioning between employers, caregivers, etc., and other significant events. Some of the methods and apparatuses allow a person who experiences an emotion triggering event to impart a personalized message to a token, to transfer the token to another person, an animal, or an object, and to affix a memento to a frame, thereby assisting the person to let go or to hold on. Other methods and apparatuses allow a person—such as a professional therapist, friend, relative, caregiver, neighbor, co-worker, pastor, or acquaintance—to provide therapy to another person by assisting the other person to let go or to hold on. The methods and apparatuses may include assistance in selecting the personalized message or the memento, display or preservation of the memento, instructions for use of the methods or apparatus, terms suggesting a personalized message, identifiers, decorations including common cultural images and symbolic connections, inscriptions, symbolic shapes, means to display, means to attach, means to affix, means to preserve, means to protect, mounts, and other features.
US07891121B2
A blade assembly for an earthworking implement has a set of teeth that are independently slideable within guides. The teeth slide to conform to an undulating surface and permit scraping of the surface.
US07891111B2
A goniometer including an arcuate rotor plate rotatable about an axis of motion spaced apart from the rotor plate for supporting a device and a base having an arcuate base plate The rotor is rotationally coupled to the base by shaft and a resilient shaft bearing mounting exerting a resilient force on the shaft to maintain a positive engagement between the roller and rotor body.
US07891103B2
A parameter related to the Earth's magnetic field can be used to determine accuracy of a magnetometer of a mobile device. In one aspect, a first instance of a parameter related to Earth's magnetic field is determined using data generated by the magnetometer. The magnetometer data can be based in part on a position of the mobile device with respect to the Earth. A second instance of the parameter can be determined using data generated by a model of Earth's magnetic field. The model data can also be based in part on the position of the mobile device with respect to the Earth. The first instance of the parameter can be compared with the second instance of the parameter. An accuracy metric for the magnetometer can be determined based on a result of the comparison. An indication of the accuracy metric can be presented by the mobile device.
US07891102B2
A nanowire magnetic sensor and position sensor for determining the position of a magnetic object and direction of magnetic field is disclosed herein. The magnetic compass includes a number of magnetic nanosensor printed on a flexible substrate, which covers 360-degree angle at equal intervals. Each magnetic nanosensor generally includes magneto-resistive nanowires with high magnetic sensitivity printed in sets e.g. of ten on the flexible substrate. The flexible substrate can also be bent to form a circular configuration to detect the azimuth direction of the magnetic field. The individual nanosensors can be connected into resistive Wheatstone bridge configurations by metalization. The magnetic nanosensors can be utilized as a position sensor of a magnetic object for position determination. Additional electronics can also be mounted or printed on the flexible substrate from other type of nanowires.
US07891097B2
A cutting tool for cutting the armor includes a cutter body having first and bottom entry walls defining a channel for receiving an armored cable. There is a slot in the first wall that affords reciprocating entry into the channel of a movable cutting blade from the outside of the wall. The direction of translation into the channel defines a blade insertion direction. The slot defines a slot segment of the first wall which in turn defines a base line. A stopper is mounted on the cutter body opposite the slot on the inside of the first wall. The stopper moves toward and away from the first wall to engage an armored cable placed in the channel and releasably press the armored cable against the slot segment of the first wall. The distance in the blade insertion direction of the bottom entry wall from the base line increases as the longitudinal distance from the slot segment increases to impart a curved configuration to the channel.
US07891091B2
A method of enabling selective area plating on a substrate (201) includes forming a first electrically conductive layer (310) on the substrate, covering the electrically conductive layer with an anti-electroless plating layer (410), patterning the substrate in order to form therein a feature (510, 520) extending through the anti-electroless plating layer and the first electrically conductive layer, forming a second electrically conductive layer (610) adjoining and electrically connected to the first electrically conductive layer, forming a third electrically conductive layer (710) over the second electrically conductive layer, and removing the anti-electroless plating layer and the first electrically conductive layer.
US07891090B2
A method for manufacturing an interposer including a body and a plurality of probes connected to said body is disclosed. The method includes a step of manufacturing said body including the sub-steps of preparing a first substrate having one surface side and the other surface side and being capable of being processed by dry etching, forming a plurality of through holes in said first substrate by dry etching, and making said through holes into conductive holes capable of conducting electricity through a bottom-up fill process. The method also includes a step of manufacturing said plurality of probes and connecting the ends of said plurality of conductive holes on one surface side of said first substrate and a plurality of first probes on said second substrate.
US07891088B2
Embodiments provide a method of running cables from an already-installed cable duct to devices. According to the method, a portion of a duct from which it is desirable for cable to be dropped is selected upon consideration of a first location of a first device to which a connection is desired. The method also includes punching a first aperture in the duct proximate the first portion, snaking a first cable from the duct through the first aperture, and connecting the first cable to the first device.
US07891086B2
A method for stringing a first elongate element through a second elongate element is provided by placing the first elongate element in a channel and injecting compressed gas into the channel to propel the first elongate element therethrough. The channel has a first open end, and the second elongate element is sealed around the first open end. Compressed gas is injected into the channel towards the second elongate element, propelling the first elongate element through the second elongate element. Also disclosed is a system for performing such a method, including a source of compressed gas and a housing having a channel with a first end and a second open end. The first end is in fluid communication with the source of compressed gas. The channel has a tapered portion adjacent the open end of the channel, and the channel defines a straight longitudinal axis between the first end and the second open end.
US07891084B1
A device for extracting a tool holder from a base block mounting has a front plate and a pair of rearwardly extending arms contacting the base block mounting. An extraction nut has at least two parallel threaded holes therein. A threaded stud is threaded into one of the threaded holes and the length extends through a hole in the front plate and through the tool holder and is retained by a nut. An extraction bolt is threaded through the second threaded hole of the extraction nut with the distal end engaging the front plate.
US07891082B2
A method of manufacturing a coil assembly unit comprises steps of coil forming, weaving, compressing steps. In the forming step, each coil wire is formed which provides linear portions and turn portions each connecting linear portions, during which bent portions are formed at both ends of each linear portion, the bent portions being bent so that mutually adjacent linear portions are deviated from each other. In the weaving step, the coil wires are mutually woven in turn, in which the turn portions intersect in turn. All the coil wires are subjected to the weaving step in turn to produce a woven coil assembly. In the compressing step, the woven coil assembly is compressed by compressing the woven coil so that each bent portion is deformed to be linear to allow the mutually adjacent linear portions to come closer to each other, thus producing the coil assembly unit.
US07891081B2
A process is described for the fabrication of a magnetic read head in which contact between the pinned layer and the AFM is limited to their edges. The principal steps are to deposit an antiferromagnetic layer and to then pattern it into a pair of antiferromagnetic layers separated by no more than about 2 microns. A layer of magnetic material that lies between, and is in contact with, said antiferromagnetic layers is then deposited, following which the layer of magnetic material is magnetized.
US07891052B2
A carriage which serves to hold a panel, has at least one running element such as a magnet, a wheel and/or a sliding element which is held by at least one corresponding magnetic element or supported on a running surface of an at least approximately U-profile or L-profile-shaped rail. The carriage comprises one or two carriage parts which can be anchored to the panel by mounting elements, such that the two carriage parts can be anchored on the opposing sides (4a, 4b) of the panel. One carriage part is further contemplated, which can be introduced into a groove arranged on the upper side of the panel between the sides and anchored there by the mounting elements. Further provided is a carriage and a mounting device which can be coupled to the carriage and to the glass panel with two assembly parts which are each formed or mounted on one side on the upper side or within a groove of the panel.
US07891051B2
A wheel assembly has a housing, a wheel, a rotating device and a controlling device. The housing has a sleeve, an extending portion extending laterally from the sleeve, and brackets extending from opposite sides of the housing. The wheel is rotatablely mounted between the brackets of the housing via a shaft. A rotating device includes a lower pole for engaging with the sleeve of the housing, and a fixing element at bottom of the lower pole for fixing the lower pole on the sleeve in assembly. The controlling device includes a limiting element and a pressing element cooperating with each other to limit direction of the housing and rotation of the wheel simultaneously. The limiting element is mounted in the extending portion and adjacent to the wheel in assembly. The pressing element is mounted on an end of the extending portion for driving the limiting element.
US07891048B2
A scraper truck includes a main scraper mounted to a wheeled vehicle and side scrapers pivoted to the main scraper at its ends. The side scrapers are pivotally movable between extended lateral positions where the side scrapers extend outboard of the opposite ends for collecting debris located outboard of the vehicle's width, and a retracted position where the side scrapers are in overlapped juxtaposed storage positions close to and in front of the main scraper. The main scraper has a front face that is concavely shaped. The scraper mount defines a vertical pivot axis and the scraper assembly is rotatable about the vertical pivot axis upon striking an object toward an end of the scraper. A biasing mechanism is provided for biasing the scraper toward a centered forwardly-facing position, and a shear pin is configured to break prior to damage to the scraper or vehicle frame.
US07891042B2
An automatic debris removal apparatus for a wiper system that removes soluble and insoluble debris trapped between the wiper blade and the glass surface by lifting the wiper blade off the glass surface and then causing the wiper blade to drop onto the glass surface as a shake under urge of the biasing spring of the wiper arm, so as to thereby provide a shaking action which frees any trapped debris. An actuator selectively interacts with the pivotal portion of the wiper arm to effect shaking of the wiper arm to thereby free the wiper blade of the debris.
US07891041B2
A device that can be used to spread a thin, even coating of liquid material on a surface is provided. In one embodiment the device is adapted to be used to apply floor coating on a floor surface. The device is configured such that the applicator portion of the device applies a generally constant contact force on the surface, even when the force applied by the user on the tool varies.
US07891039B2
A cleaning apparatus comprises a main rod, a wringing tube, a bearing, a lock, and a cleaning rag assembly. The wringing tube is coaxially put over the main rod and is glidingly movable along the main rod. The fastening device is mounted on the lower end of the main rod. The cleaning rag assembly surrounds a periphery of the main rod at a lower end thereof, having an upper end held by a connecting ring, which is mounted on the wringing tube, and a lower end mounted on the fastening device, allowing easily to replace the cleaning rag assembly.
US07891033B2
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a seat cushion assembly is provided that includes a base cushion and a plurality of inserts. A recess is defined within the base cushion which is adapted to house the inserts. Each of the inserts can be selectively removed from the recess to provide for obliquity adjustment of the cushion assembly. In addition, the inserts may be selectively located on one side of the base cushion or the other to further adjust the inclined orientation of the base cushion. According to another embodiment, a seat cushion assembly is provided that includes a base cushion and a pair of inserts. A recess is defined within the base cushion which is adapted to house the inserts that includes a projection that has a plurality of surfaces that abut a surface of each of the inserts when the inserts are housed within the recess.
US07891031B2
A deck construction includes a movable, rigid, unitary platform with wheels mounted to its bottom and supporting tracks arranged on opposite sides of an open space below the platform. The wheels roll along the tracks, allowing horizontal movement of the platform. At least one drive mechanism is mounted on a side of the open space to engage a rack on the platform. One or more stationary sources of rotary power, such as electric motors, operate the drive mechanism to cause the platform to move horizontally in either direction along the tracks. The deck construction is particularly useful as a swimming pool cover or an extensible balcony or canopy.
US07891027B2
A seal assembly for a drain vent is provided to direct the pressure exerted by a plunger to the face of a drain clog rather than escaping through the drain vent. The seal assembly of the invention comprises a tubular body having a first closed end and a second open end to define a substantially rigid a cup-like structure or cavity. A sealing member concentric with a longitudinal axis of the tubular body is attached to the second open end of the tubular body to form a seal against a surface containing the drain vent. A handle is attached to the closed end of the cup-like structure and extends away from the closed first end of the tubular body to provide a mechanism for the user to hold the sealing member against the surface containing the drain vent during the plunging process.
US07891023B1
A suspender set and peace officer's shirt are described wherein the suspenders for the duty belt are located beneath the officer's shirt with only a portion of the suspender set extending outwardly through the front and rear of the shirt for connection to the duty belt worn by the officer.
US07891018B2
A knee protective device for garments comprising of at least one pocket in the vicinity of the knees having an opening for receiving an insert for protecting the wearer's knees.
US07895641B2
A probe attached to a customer's network collects status data and other audit information from monitored components of the network, looking for footprints or evidence of unauthorized intrusions or attacks. The probe filters and analyzes the collected data to identify potentially security-related events happening on the network. Identified events are transmitted to a human analyst for problem resolution. The analyst has access to a variety of databases (including security intelligence databases containing information about known vulnerabilities of particular network products and characteristics of various hacker tools, and problem resolution databases containing information relevant to possible approaches or solutions) to aid in problem resolution. The analyst may follow a predetermined escalation procedure in the event he or she is unable to resolve the problem without assistance from others. Various customer personnel can be alerted in a variety of ways depending on the nature of the problem and the status of its resolution. Feedback from problem resolution efforts can be used to update the knowledge base available to analysts for future attacks and to update the filtering and analysis capabilities of the probe and other systems.
US07895639B2
Methods and systems for controlling access to objects of a distributed computing environment are described. In one configuration, a computing device receives a request from a principal to access a protected object and evaluating the transitive closure of the list of group identifiers. The protected object is associated with an access control list and has a time-invariant list of group identifiers. The list of group identifiers includes the access list is associated with the protected object to identify at least one principal authorized to access the protected object.
US07895636B2
In a content output apparatus which is connected to at least one content playback apparatus, lists of content which are respectively reproducible by the connected content playback apparatuses are acquired. When the acquired lists of the content are output in order for a user to select any of the listed content, the content playback apparatus capable of playing back the selected content is specified, and a playback instruction signal for instructing the specified content playback apparatus to play back the selected content is output so as to output a signal which is pertinent to the content played back by the content playback apparatus. As a result, the content output apparatus is more convenient to use.
US07895635B2
Systems and methods of assembling an elementary stream from an encapsulated multimedia transport stream are disclosed. An exemplary method includes: receiving a command from a user mode video playback component; in response, processing layer-2 packets received through a network interface driver binding to assemble, into an MPEG elementary stream, multimedia transport packets encapsulated within; and supplying the stream to a decoder. The receiving and processing steps are performed in kernel mode. Also disclosed is an exemplary digital home communication terminal that includes a network interface, memory, and a processor. The processor executes code to: receive a command from a user mode video playback component; process layer-2 packets received through a network interface driver binding, in order to assemble into an MPEG elementary stream multimedia transport packets encapsulated within the received layer-2 packets; and supply the elementary stream to a decoder. The receive and process operations are performed in kernel mode.
US07895633B2
A method and apparatus for secure transfer and playback of multimedia content enables the secure transfer of multimedia content from a digital video recorder (DVR) to a personal computer (PC) and further to a handheld device. A DVR determines which devices on a Local Area Network (LAN) are authorized to share and/or retrieve content from the DVR. The DVR receives a connection request from a PC on the LAN, authorizes the connection request and establishes a secure connection between the DVR and the PC. Once the secure connection is established, the DVR receives a request for multimedia content from the PC, prepares the multimedia content for transfer and transfers the multimedia content to the PC.
US07895632B2
A cable television diagnostic method for a cable television network consistent with certain embodiments involves sending a polling message to a plurality of modems forming a part of a plurality of television set top boxes from a cable television headend via a cable television cable connection to the set top boxes; wherein the polling message instructs the cable television set top boxes to obtain at least one operational parameter of each of the television set top boxes; receiving a plurality of response messages from the cable television set top boxes, each containing the at least one operational parameter of the television set top boxes; determining that one of the operational parameters from one of the television set top boxes is outside of a specified range of values; and aggregating the operational parameters of the plurality of set top boxes received in the response messages to determine if the same operational parameter is outside the range of specified values for more than the one of the television set top boxes. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.
US07895614B2
A method for controlling access to content, the method comprising: receiving content in an area in which access to the content is blacked out, the content corresponding to a blacked out event; preventing display of the content at the time of receipt; recording the received content; and allowing access to the recorded content after a time criterion is met, wherein the time criterion comprises an elapse of a predetermined period of time measured from a specified one of the following: commencement of the blacked out event and termination of the blacked out event.
US07895608B1
One embodiment of the invention is an architecture for improving the performance of a computer system containing a plurality of hardware input/output devices. The architecture implements an operating system configured to perform all related input/output operations within the operating system kernel. Thus, the operating system enables a first device driver that produces data to pass data directly to a second device driver that consumes data, without a context switch. One advantage of this approach is that computer system performance may be substantially increased due to a reduction in context switching.
US07895603B1
A mechanism is disclosed for enabling virtual method dispatch structures (vstructures) to be created on an as-needed basis. When an object class is loaded, a vstructure specific to that object class is not created. Rather, the vstructure for that object class is created only if and when a virtual method of that object class is invoked. By creating vstructures on an as-needed basis, the number of vstructures created during the execution of a program is minimized. This in turn reduces the number of vstructures that need to be updated whenever a reference to a method is changed (for example, as a result of a garbage collection operation). To further optimize the efficiency of the vstructure update process, vstructure entries that point to the same method may be linked. That way, when the reference to a method is changed, all vstructures affected by that change can be quickly identified.
US07895600B2
A method of optimizing propagation of non-persistent messages from a source database management system (DBMS) to a destination database management system (DBMS) is described and provided. The method comprises receiving one or more nonpersistent messages from a source non-persistent message queue of the source DBMS at a destination non-persistent message queue of the destination DBMS. The nonpersistent messages are consumed from the destination non-persistent message queue such that consumed non-persistent messages are removed from the destination non-persistent message queue. Further, at least a portion of the non-persistent messages are spilled from the destination non-persistent message queue to a destination persistent message queue of the destination DBMS based on at least one parameter selected from a group consisting of a sparseness factor, number of nonpersistent messages in the destination non-persistent message queue, and amount of memory resources utilized by the destination non-persistent message queue. Moreover, to the source DBMS is sent an acknowledgment including a watermark indication of consumed non-persistent messages from the destination non-persistent message queue. Spilled non-persistent messages are characterized as consumed.
US07895596B2
To assign a plurality of processes to a plurality of processors in a multi-processor computer system, a plurality of processes are attached to a memory segment shared between a plurality of processors. A spin cycle is initiated in the plurality of processes, where initiating the spin cycle causes a processor-intensive operation to be performed by each of the processes, and wherein performing the processor-intensive operation by the processes induces rescheduling to be performed. As part of the rescheduling, one or more of the processes are reassigned among the processors during the spin cycle.
US07895574B2
A method and a computer product executing the method are provide for automatically verifying management packs by an operations manager. The method includes receiving a management pack containing configuration information enabling an operations manager to remotely manage computer systems and computer software, and automatically verifying the management pack by determining whether the management pack satisfies a set of requirements.
US07895567B2
A method, apparatus and computer-readable medium for assembling objects in an IDE is presented. The method includes the steps of creating a pre-drop assembly area in an Integrated Development Environment (IDE); combining multiple component descriptors in the pre-drop assembly area, wherein the multiple component descriptors are interpreted through an extensible language mechanism that contains a plurality of extensible solutions; and upon a determination that combined multiple component descriptors have met a pre-defined condition, committing the combined multiple component descriptors to execution. In one embodiment, only one solution from the plurality of extensible solutions is used to interpret the multiple component descriptors, wherein the one solution is selected according to a user role of a user who is utilizing the IDE. The multiple component descriptors may be combined in the pre-drop assembly area by dragging the multiple component descriptors individually and sequentially to the pre-drop assembly area.
US07895566B2
A system and method for assembling an application bundle representing an application including a first component having definitions expressed in a structured definition language and optionally a second component having a series of instructions, such that the application bundle is for provisioning on a device for assisting in message communication over a network between the device and a datasource. The system and method comprises a build service interface for receiving a series of elements of the application, the elements including mapping and interface information of the datasource and a description of the first component. The system and method also have a build engine coupled to the build service interface for assembling the received elements as the application bundle, wherein the application bundle is subsequently deployable to an application bundle storage.
US07895565B1
The system and method presented provides a multi-phase, end-to-end integrated process for testing application software using a standard software testing tool. The system and method involve integrating the functional, automated regression and performance phases of software application testing by leveraging deliverables at each phase so that the deliverables may be efficiently reused in subsequent test phases. Deliverables such as functional and technical test conditions and manual test scripts are used as inputs for each phase of the integrated tests. The use of leveraged requirements-based deliverables between test phases significantly reduces much of the repetitive testing typically associated with functionality and performance testing and minimizes repetition of testing errors discovered in earlier test phases. This integrated system and method for validating the functionality and performance of software applications by leveraging deliverables provides enhanced efficiencies, test procedure consistency throughout multiple test phases, consistent test results and high quality software applications.
US07895561B2
A system and method that uses a text-based script file to capture a circuit design and allows a circuit designer to manipulate the script file. The circuit designer can add, delete, or move components using various tags and commands that are stored in the script file. When the design is complete, or ready to be tested, the script file is processed creating a layout representation file that is readable by a graphics-based circuit design tool.
US07895560B2
A processing space contains an array of operational transistors interconnected by circuit and signal pass transistors that when supplied with selected enable bits will structure a variety of circuits that will carry out any desired information processing. The Babbage/von Neumann Paradigm in which data are provided to circuitry that would operate on those data is reversed by structuring the desired circuits at the site(s) of the data, thereby to eliminate the von Neumann bottleneck and substantially increase the computing power of the device, with the apparatus conducting only non-stop Information Processing on a steady stream of data and code, with no repetitious Instruction and data transfers as in the normal computer being required. A code is defined that will identify the physical locations of every transistor in the processing space, which code will then enable only selected ones of the pass transistors therein so as to structure the circuits needed for any algorithm sought to be executed. The circuits so structured, operating independently of and in parallel with every other circuit so structured, are then restructured after each step into another group of circuits, so that almost no transistor will ever “sit idle,” but all of the processing space can be devoted entirely to information processing, thereby again to increase enormously the computing power of the device. The apparatus is also super-scalable, meaning that an Instant Logic Apparatus built around that processing space could be built to have any size, speed, and level of computer power desired.
US07895557B2
A method and system for concurrent buffering and layer assignment in integrated current layout. Buffers are inserted and metal interconnects or “wires” are sized for every net, which consists of one driver and one or more receivers, such that timing skew constraints can be met. Long nets are promoted to a higher level if the slew violation can be fixed only by a promotion of the net or if the “slack” gain available by this promotion is equal to or greater than a predesignated layer of promotion threshold. In response to determining these layer assignments, the method and system then systematically demotes nets that are not critical and which do not impact the circuit and electrical constraints in order to minimize the use of high layer wire resources.
US07895555B1
Systems and methods provide improved techniques directed to simultaneous switching output (SSO) noise, which for example may be applied during the programmable logic device design process. For example in accordance with an embodiment, a method of structuring simultaneous switching output (SSO) noise data for an electronic device includes collecting hardware data on SSO noise conditions; generating additional data on SSO noise conditions based on the hardware data; and structuring the hardware data and the additional data to form data tables for SSO noise calculations.
US07895552B1
In the field of functional verification of digital designs in systems that use an abstraction for portions of a circuit design to perform the verification proof, a tool is described for resolving inconsistencies between the design and abstractions for the design. The tool provides information to a user about intermediate steps in the verification process. In response, the user may provide insight about the design to allow the tool to adjust the verification analysis of the design. The information provided to the user, including possible conflicts between the design and its abstractions, may include visualization techniques to facilitate the user's understating of any inconsistencies.
US07895549B1
An electric design automation (EDA) tool for generating a design of a system on a field programmable gate array (FPGA) includes a library that includes a processor interface block selectable by a designer to represent a component in the design that is accessible to a processor. The EDA tool also includes a processor interface circuitry generation unit to automatically generate circuitry in the design to support the processor interface block without input from the designer.
US07895548B2
A system and method are provided for laying out an integrated circuit design into a plurality of circuit layout cells having gaps therebetween, and inserting into each given one of at least a subset of the gaps, a corresponding filler cell selected from a predefined database in dependence upon a desired effect on a performance parameter of at least one circuit cell adjacent to the given gap. The circuit layout cells may be arranged in rows, and in some embodiments the selection of an appropriate filler cell for a given gap depends upon effects desired on a performance parameter of both circuit cells adjacent to the given gap. The predefined filler cells can include, for example, dummy diffusion regions, dummy poly lines, N-well boundary shifts and etch stop layer boundary shifts. In an embodiment, circuit layout cells can be moved in order to accommodate a selected filler cell.
US07895547B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide a method for performing lumped-process model calibration. The method includes creating a plurality of sub-process models for a set of sub-processes; creating a lumped-process-model incorporating said set of sub-processes; calculating a first set of output patterns from a set of test patterns by using said plurality of sub-process models; calculating a second set of output patterns from said set of test patterns by using said lumped-process-model; and adjusting process parameters used in said lumped-process-model to calculate said second set of output patterns to match said first set of output patterns. A computer system for performing the lumped-process model calibration is also provided.
US07895544B2
A method for identifying latches in physical designs with unbalanced slack, comprising: creating a netlist describing a logical design, the logical design having a plurality of latches therein; performing a placement of the logical design to obtain a physical design; measuring a slack difference of each of the plurality of latches; selecting a color for each of the plurality of latches based on the slack difference correspondingly measured for each of the plurality of latches; and generating a graphical image identifying each one of the plurality of latches with slack difference in color, the color selected for each one of the plurality of latches with slack difference being indicative of the severity of the slack difference.
US07895531B2
A floating command object is provided for offering a set of commonly or frequently used commands in close proximity to a selected text, data or other object in a document. When a given object is selected for editing, the floating object automatically displays near the object to allow easy selection of relevant commands such as formatting property commands. The object remains displayed to allow multiple command selections until it is closed by user action. If a mouse or touchpad pointer is moved away from the displayed object, the displayed object becomes increasingly translucent to visually deemphasize the relevance of the object to the new position of the pointer.
US07895529B1
A system and method for retrieving, storing and displaying featured content. In one embodiment, featured content is queried from a database storing a list of featured content items. The featured content items stored in the database may include any type of data, such as text data, hyperlink text data, markup document data, computer code, or other types or combinations of data related to a particular topic. Responsive to the query, a set of featured content items is stored in a cache file. A predetermined number of featured content items stored in the cache file are selected and stored in a system registry. Upon receipt of a display command, featured content items are read from the system registry and displayed on an interface. The displayed featured content items can be used to display hyperlinks, announcements, or other information, without inhibiting the efficiency of the boot process of a software application.
US07895527B2
Illustrative embodiments comprise systems, user interfaces, machine-readable media, and/or methods for automatically acquiring data representing a plurality of different types of medical parameters of a patient, processing the data for presentation to a user via a display device, and initiating display of one or more different image windows, which present processed data representing and corresponding to the plurality of different types of medical parameters of the patient on the display device. Each of the plurality of different image windows is referenced to a single variable scale timeline and is arranged on the display device to permit the user to view values for each of the plurality of different types of medical parameters corresponding to a substantially common time from the single variable scale timeline. A plurality of user interface elements are implemented using object oriented executable code. Each of the plurality of user interface elements are adapted to provide a user with selectable single setting of image display format characteristics shared by the plurality of image windows.
US07895512B2
A source markup language document and a modification to the source markup language document can be identified. One or more delta documents specifying the modification to the source markup language document can be created. The delta document can be independent of the source markup language document and can be coded in a different language than the source markup language document. The source markup language document and the delta document can be stored within a data storage device.
US07895508B2
A network scanning method and device are provided that allow an image scanning device to scan documents and transmit the scan data to a server. The image scanning device checks a connection between the image scanning device and a server, generates scan data by scanning documents, stores the generated scan data in a storage unit if a connection error exists between the image scanning device and the server, and checks whether the connection error between the image scanning device and the server is corrected. The image scanning device transmits the scan data stored in the storage unit to the server when the connection error has been corrected. Transmission of scan data is delayed until the connection error to the server is corrected, thereby reducing inconvenience in having to reset network settings after waiting until the connection error to the server has been corrected.
US07895504B2
According to one embodiment, a system is provided that allows a receiver to determine that an initial error message (such as a NAK message) was not correctly received by a transmitter, and to cause the transmitter to continue transmitting information corresponding to data that has not yet been successfully decoded by the receiver. In accordance with another embodiment, the receiver can generate a message (e.g., a continue previous packet message) to correct the transmitter and initiate full recovery at the physical layer.
US07895499B2
A method and an apparatus for checking a pipelined parallel cyclic redundancy is disclosed. In accordance with the method and the apparatus of the present invention, after an entire CRC (cyclic redundancy check) logic is divided into a feedback portion and an input data portion, the input data portion is divided using a pipelined structure such that the input data portion is designed to have the pipelined structure based on an algorithm that maintains a logic level of each stage to be lower than that of the feedback portion and an algorithm that optimizes a size of a register inserted during the division to improve a speed thereof and to detect an error of a received data in a high speed data communication apparatus.
US07895494B2
A method and system for implementing hybrid automatic repeat request (H-ARQ)-assisted automatic repeat request (ARQ) in a wireless communication system are disclosed. When an H-ARQ negative acknowledgement (NACK)-to-positive acknowledgement (ACK) error occurs, the H-ARQ receiver sends an H-ARQ NACK-to-ACK error indicator to the H-ARQ transmitter unless a maximum retransmission limit has reached, a maximum time for delivery has expired or a lifespan of the failed packet has expired. The H-ARQ transmitter sends a local NACK to the ARQ transmitter so that the failed packet is recovered at an ARQ level. The H-ARQ receiver sends a local NACK to the ARQ receiver if the H-ARQ receiver does not receive the failed packet before certain conditions occur. The ARQ receiver may send a status report to the ARQ transmitter for recovery of the failed packet.
US07895490B2
A method for testing an electronic circuit comprises selecting a plurality of test patterns arranged in an order. The method tests an electronic circuit by applying to the electronic circuit a first subset range of the plurality of test patterns sequentially in the order, from a first test pattern to a first log interval after the first test pattern, thereby generating a first associated output. The method compares the first associated output with a first known output of the plurality of known outputs. In the event the first associated output does not match the first known output, the method stores indicia of the first mismatch; causes the electronic circuit to appear to assume the first known output state; and proceeds with additional test procedures.
US07895489B2
An aspect of the present invention is drawn to a system that includes an automatic test engine, a decompressor, a first scan chain, a second scan chain, a compactor and a debug output. The automatic test engine is operable to output a test output, to receive a resultant input, to receive a debug input, to monitor the debug input and to compare the test output with the resultant input. The decompressor is arranged to receive a decompressor input based on the test output, to output a decompressor output. The scan chains are arranged to receive input based on the decompressor output, and each scan chain includes at least one flip-flop. The compactor is arranged to receive input based output from the flip-flops, and to output a compactor output. The debug output line is arranged to receive the flip-flop output.
US07895488B1
A system and method for detecting transition delay faults decouples the test enable pins of the clock gating cells from other elements in the circuitry. The test enable pins are controlled during test mode by a unique signal, allowing the tester to independently control the clock gating logic of the circuitry. By being able to ungate the clock, the tester can ensure that the two clock pulses needed to check for transition delay faults will always be present.
US07895483B2
A computerized method, program product, and a service that allocates and isolates leaky memory during the execution of an application in a data processing system. A memory controller having several components first identifies a leaky section of memory and delegates to an allocation component to allocate more memory if possible. If, however, the problematic memory section should not be allocated more memory, an isolator component can isolate the memory section and further divide the memory section into subsections and so on. Each section and each subsection may then be tested to determine if more memory can be allocated, tested to determine if memory resources are strained so as to identify the application or its component causing the strain and then binding the memory. Each section and subsection and further divided and isolated until the leaky portion of memory is identified, and as a result, the software component causing the leak can also be identified. The software component associated with the leaky memory section or subsection can also be taken out-of-service.
US07895482B2
A memory repair circuit for repairing one or more failures in an embedded memory includes at least one fuse register and state machine circuitry coupled to the fuse register. The state machine circuitry implements a first state machine operative: (i) to receive status information regarding the one or more failures in the embedded memory; (ii) to determine whether the memory is repairable based on the status information; (iii) when the memory is deemed repairable, to store an address corresponding to a failed memory cell of the memory; (iv) to burn the address corresponding to the failed memory cell into the fuse register using a voltage source supplied to the memory repair circuit; and (v) to verify that the address corresponding to the failed memory cell was burned into the fuse register. The state machine circuitry further implements a second state machine operative: (i) to download information stored in the at least one fuse register into at least one repair register associated with the embedded memory; and (ii) when an address is received in the circuit corresponding to a failed memory instance in the embedded memory, to reroute access to the failed memory instance to the at least one repair register.
US07895481B1
A system and method are provided for non-causal channel equalization in a communications system. The method comprises: establishing three thresholds; receiving a binary serial data stream; comparing the first bit estimate in the data stream to a second bit value received prior to the first bit; comparing the first bit estimate to a third bit value received subsequent to the first bit; data stream inputs below the first threshold and above the third threshold are a “0” if both the second and third bits are “1” values, and as a “1” if either of the second and third values is a “1”; data stream inputs above the second threshold and below the third threshold are a “1” if both the second and third bits are a “0” value, and as a “0” if either of the second and third values is a “0”.
US07895479B2
Systems, controllers and methods are disclosed, such as an initialization system including a controller that receives patterns of read data coupled from a memory device through a plurality of read data lanes. The controller is operable to detect any lane-to-lane skew in the patterns of read data received through the read data lanes. The controller then adjusts the manner in which the read data received through the read data lanes during normal operation are divided into frames. The controller can also couple patterns of command/address bits to the memory device through a plurality of command/address lanes. The memory device can send the received command/address bits back to the controller through the read data lanes. The controller is operable to detect any lane-to-lane skew in the patterns of command/address bits received through the read data lanes to adjust the manner in which the command/address bits coupled through the command/address lanes during normal operation are divided into frames.
US07895465B2
A method, system and computer program product for preserving data in a storage subsystem having dual cache and dual nonvolatile storage (NVS) through a failover from a failed cluster to a surviving cluster, the surviving cluster undergoing a rebooting process, is provided. A memory preserved indicator associated with a cache of the surviving cluster is detected. The memory preserved indicator designates marked tracks having an image in an NVS of the failed cluster to be preserved through the rebooting process. A counter in a data structure of the surviving cache is incremented. If a value of the counter exceeds a predetermined value, a cache memory is initialized, and the marked tracks are removed from the cache to prevent an instance of repetitive reboots caused by a corrupted structure in the cache memory.
US07895464B2
A RAID system includes a pair of RAID controllers adapted to operate in active-active mode, each controller including a cache memory and at least one SAS/SATA I/O chip connected to a plurality of hard disk drives. Each SAS/SATA I/O chip includes more SAS/SATA ports than required to carry data to the hard drives. The caches in the respective controllers are synchronized via the extra SAS/SATA ports in each controller.
US07895463B2
Redundant application network appliances using a low latency lossless interconnect link are described herein. According to one embodiment, in response to receiving at a first network element a packet of a network transaction from a client over a first network for accessing a server of a datacenter, a layer 2 network process is performed on the packet and a data stream is generated. The data stream is then replicated to a second network element via a layer 2 interconnect link to enable the second network element to perform higher layer processes on the data stream to obtain connection states of the network transaction. In response to a failure of the first network element, the second network element is configured to take over processes of the network transaction from the first network element using the obtained connection states without user interaction of the client. Other methods and apparatuses are also described.
US07895459B2
A design structure for a system and method of predicting power events in intermittent power environments and dispatching computational operations of an integrated circuit accordingly. A power management prediction system includes a controller executing a prediction algorithm, an arrangement of computation circuitry, a non-volatile storage device containing a power requirements log and a power history log, a clock generator, an intermittent power source, and a power monitor circuit. A method of predicting intermittent power events and dispatching computational operations includes: storing power requirements of each computational operation, monitoring the intermittent power source to generate a history log, predicting a subsequent power event based on the history log, retrieving actual power requirements of one or more computational operations, comparing the predicted power event with actual power requirements, determining whether actual power requirements are satisfied, dispatching one or more computational operations that correspond to one or more actual power events, or performing an error recovery operation.
US07895457B2
A memory system includes power saving arbitrator responsive to a clock oscillator and having a first clock rate. The power saving arbitrator includes an active enable circuit responsive to a host clock and a host command and operative to generate an active enable signal for causing the power saving arbitrator to generate a core logic/memories signal having a second clock rate that is adjustably lower in rate than the first clock rate, said active enable circuit operative to detect the absence of a host command for a predetermined period of time and when the predetermined period of time exceeds a threshold value, the power saving arbitrator operative to reduce the second clock rate.
US07895456B2
A method of controlling a power over Ethernet system, the method comprising: sequentially powering a plurality of powered devices over communication cabling; determining a first total power consumption responsive to the powering of the plurality of powered devices; in the event that the determined first total power consumption exceeds a predetermined maximum power level, disabling power from at least one of the powered plurality of powered devices thereby reducing power consumption to less than the predetermined maximum power level; responsive to the disabling power, defining a connection power limit lower than the maximum power level by a guard band; monitoring a second total power consumption subsequent to the disabling power; and enabling power to a powered device only in the event the monitored second total power consumption is less than the connection power limit.
US07895454B2
A method for compensating for dynamic IR (voltage) drop for instruction execution. In a data processing system having a memory, and a central processing unit (CPU), where the CPU includes an adaptive power supply, a method is provided for determining the power required for instruction execution, adjusting power supplied by the adaptive power supply to the CPU to execute the instruction, and dispatching the instruction from the memory to the CPU for execution.
US07895445B1
Data transfer between remote and home locations over a network is effected using an electronic token to facilitate access to the data. According to an example embodiment of the present invention, a network-based server facilitates the generation of a token specifying conditions upon which data access to a registered user's data can be made. When a request for data transfer is received in connection with a token, information in the token is used together with the request to selectively authenticate and serve the request.
US07895444B2
A method and an apparatus for preventing illegal access by using a prohibit key in an electronic device, is provided. The method includes determining a variable prohibit key which is dynamically varied according to a predetermined variable factor, if a password is input to access a system, determining the existence of the determined variable prohibit key in the input password, and rejecting an access of a user to the system, if the variable prohibit key exists in the input password.
US07895443B2
A method and apparatus for secure authentication of a hardware token is disclosed. In one embodiment, a host computer fingerprint is used to generate a partial seed for a challenge-response authentication which is performed on the hardware token. In another embodiment, the host computer fingerprint is used as a personal identification number for the hardware token.
US07895438B2
Disclosed are a method and apparatus capable of reducing the number of computations required to generate a digital signature by a digital signature generator. A digital signature generator generates a code word for a received message by a function F for generating a code word having a set weight value and generates a digital signature based on the generated code word and an inverse of a public parity check matrix H, the parity check matrix H is one way function. A digital signature receiver converts the received message using the function F for generating a code word, and multiplies a public parity check matrix H by a received digital signal, the public parity check matrix H is a one way function, and comparing the converted value with the multiplication result.
US07895434B2
The present invention provides a method of integrating existing strong encryption methods into the processing of a .ZIP file to provide a highly secure data container which provides flexibility in the use of symmetric and asymmetric encryption technology. The present invention adapts the well established .ZIP file format to support higher levels of security and multiple methods of data encryption and key management, thereby producing a highly secure and flexible digital container for electronically storing and transferring confidential data.
US07895433B2
A method, for use in a processor context, wherein instructions in a program executable are encoded with plural instruction set encodings. A method wherein a control instruction encoded with an instruction set encoding contains information about decoding of an instruction that is encoded with another instruction set encoding scheme. A method wherein instruction set encodings are randomly generated at compile time. A processor framework wherein an instruction is decoded during execution with the help of information provided by a previously decoded control instruction.
US07895420B2
A method for reducing operations in a processing environment is provided that includes generating one or more binary representations, one or more of the binary representations being included in one or more linear equations that include one or more operations. The method also includes converting one or more of the linear equations to one or more polynomials and then performing kernel extraction and optimization on one or more of the polynomials. One or more common subexpressions associated with the polynomials are identified in order to reduce one or more of the operations.
US07895418B1
There is disclosed an operand queue for use in a floating point unit. The floating point unit comprises floating point processing units for executing floating point instructions that write operands to an external memory and for executing floating point instructions that read operands from the external memory. The floating point also comprises an operand queue for storing a plurality of operands associated with one or more operations being processed in the floating point unit. The operand queue stores a first operand being written to an external memory by a floating point write instruction executed by a first one of the plurality of floating point processing units and supplies the first operand to a floating point read instruction executed by a second one of the plurality of floating point processing units subsequent to the execution of the floating point write instruction.
US07895415B2
Apparatus and computing systems associated with cache sharing based thread control are described. One embodiment includes a memory to store a thread control instruction and a processor to execute the thread control instruction. The processor is coupled to the memory. The processor includes a first unit to dynamically determine a cache sharing behavior between threads in a multi-threaded computing system and a second unit to dynamically control the composition of a set of threads in the multi-threaded computing system. The composition of the set of threads is based, at least in part, on thread affinity as exhibited by cache-sharing behavior. The thread control instruction controls the operation of the first unit and the second unit.
US07895411B2
One embodiment of the invention sets forth a hardware-based physics processing unit (PPU) having unique architecture designed to efficiently generate physics data. The PPU includes a PPU control engine (PCE), a data movement engine and a floating point engine (FPE). The PCE manages the overall operation of the PPU by allocating memory resources and transmitting graphics processing commands to the FPE and data movement commands to the DME. The FPE includes multiple vector processors that operate in parallel and perform floating point operations on data received from a host unit to generate physics simulation data. The DME facilitates the transmission of data between the host unit and the FPE by performs data movement operations between memories internal and external to the PPU.
US07895408B2
A method and apparatus for managing a memory are provided. It is possible to rapidly recover the area allocated or desired to be returned by easily recognizing a range of the area allocated or desired to be returned over the entire area of the memory by recognizing an original area of a predetermined memory chunk interrupted by a neighboring memory chunk among a series of memory chunks that make up the memory by considering an original area of the neighboring memory chunk and by recovering the predetermined memory chunk and the recognized area to their original areas, when the area allocated to or returned by an application program is interrupted.
US07895404B2
A microcontroller system, such as a system-on-a-chip integrated circuit, including a processor (e.g., a Von Neumann processor), memory, and a memory protection unit (MPU), where the MPU provides execute-only access rights for one or more protected areas of the memory. The MPU can allow instructions fetched from within a protected area to access data in the protected area while preventing instructions fetched from outside the protected area from accessing data in the protected area.
US07895403B1
A method of securely deleting data from a storage medium includes generating a bitmap that corresponds to unused locations on the storage medium; initiating a wiping process that wipes the unused locations, where the wiping process runs asynchronously with a application; wiping the unused locations; and updating the bitmap to reflect that the unused locations have been wiped. The wiping replaces data at the unused locations with random sequences, with pseudo-random sequences, with data generated by a secure deletion algorithm, with application data from the application, or with all zeros. The wiping includes repeated writing of predetermined sequences to the unused locations. The wiping replaces data at unused locations that represent portions of any of blocks, clusters and sectors, and can wipe any metadata associated with files previously stored at any of the unused locations. Upon a request for access of data from a wiped location, data that does not correspond to data originally stored at the wiped location can be returned.
US07895399B2
A processor reads a program including a prefetch command and a load command and data from a main memory, and executes the program. The processor includes: a processor core that executes the program; a L2 cache that stores data on the main memory for each predetermined unit of data storage; and a prefetch unit that pre-reads the data into the L2 cache from the main memory on the basis of a request for prefetch from the processor core. The prefetch unit includes: a L2 cache management table including an area in which a storage state is held for each position in the unit of data storage of the L2 cache and an area in which a request for prefetch is reserved; and a prefetch control unit that instructs, the L2 cache to perform the request for prefetch reserved or the request for prefetch from the processor core.
US07895398B2
A system and method is disclosed for the adaptive and dynamic adjustment of the characteristics of a cache on a basis that is specific the operation of each logical unit. A storage controller may include a cache. The cache is subdivided so that a portion of the cache is associated with each logical unit that is coupled to the storage controller. A cache management utility monitors the data access commands transmitted to each logical unit of the storage array. The size of the portion of the cache dedicated to each logical unit may be adjusted on the basis of the data access commands directed to the logical unit. The size of the read cache subportion and the size of the write cache subportion of a cache portion associated with a single logical unit may be adjusted on the basis of the read and write commands directed to the logical unit.
US07895396B2
Provided is a storage system having improved access performance. The storage system includes: a hard disk drive, and a storage controller for reading/writing data from/to the hard disk drive, the storage controller including: at least one interface connected to a host computer through a network; and a plurality of processors connected to the interface through an internal network. The storage system is characterized in that: the processor provides at least one logical access port to the host computer; and the interface stores routing information including a processor which processes an access request addressed to the logical access port, extracts an address from the received access request upon reception of the access request from the host computer, specifies the processor which processes the received access request based on the routing information and the extracted address, and transfers the received access request to the specified processor.
US07895381B2
A data accessing system bridges a first master device and a second master device to a first slave device and a second slave device. The data accessing system includes a register, a first multiplexer, a second multiplexer and a control unit. The amount of data that the first master device can process each cycle is less than which of the second slave device. The data accessing system can solve the problem when the first master device writes data to the second slave device via merging two different data. Also, the data accessing system can solve the problem when the first master device reads data to the second slave device via extracting part of the data.
US07895376B2
A method for determining configuration information to be reported comprises accessing a table corresponding to a configuration resource associated with the configuration information, wherein the table comprises an entry for each hardware configuration definition to be built for the configuration resource, identifying a seed value in the table corresponding to the configuration resource, and modifying the seed value based on a result of processing each entry indicated by the table.
US07895372B2
A system and method for universal serial bus mass storage device asynchronous file and file system update while connected to a PC or other device employs setting error flags and timestamp change flags when a file is changed, and returning the error conditions in reply to a REQUEST_SENSE command.
US07895368B2
Wireless communication equipment which associates with a plurality of sets of peripheral equipment present in a prescribed range through wireless communication stores identification code information regarding the associated peripheral equipment, acquires identification code information from the peripheral equipment present in the prescribed range, and determines whether or not the peripheral equipment has already associated on the basis of the identification code information. If the peripheral equipment has not been associated, the wireless communication equipment stores the identification code information by associating them with an image. If the peripheral equipment has been associated, the wireless communication equipment displays the associated image stored by associating them with the acquired identification code information, and connects to the corresponding peripheral equipment in response to the selection of the displayed and associated image.
US07895359B2
A message routing system that allows applications at either end of the system to run as-is without modification. The system functions in a multithreaded environment and is capable of handling complex routing rules and message transformation. It is also capable of learning and executing new routing rules and message transformations in formats previously unrecognized by the system. The system enables precise and reliable logging of messages throughout processing and supports publication of enterprise-wide broadcast messages. The system further preferably employs cooperating inbound and outbound transport processes for consuming, routing, processing, safely storing and publishing messages in batches of logical units of work to ensure that the logical units of work are not lost in system transactions. The system also preferably utilizes a replay server for preserving and replaying messages that might otherwise fail to reach their intended destinations.
US07895351B2
An information recording/reproducing system has a data storage device that stores a data stream with a predetermined data format and an information recording/reproducing apparatus, which is connected with the data storage device, for recording and reproducing the data stream. The apparatus includes information recording/reproducing portion and memory portion that stores plural species of empty data file bodies each in which additional information corresponding to a species of data format and data are assigned to loading regions. The apparatus also has selection portion that selects an empty data file body with a specified data format from the plural species of empty data file bodies. The apparatus further has information-loading portion that loads the additional information and the data into predetermined loading regions assigned in the empty data file body that has been selected by the selection portion.
US07895331B1
A method for providing network services includes the ability to dynamically and flexibly configure resources in a network server platform to service classes and sets of network traffic. According to one aspect, a programmable network server platform can be configured to bind multiple traffic classes in a mixture of inline and tap modes to a group of CPUs. Traffic having the associated classes can be configured to pass directly through while sending a copy down to one or more CPUs, as well as load balanced to a group or sub group of CPUs. According to another aspect, different applications or configurations can be run on different groups or sub groups of CPUs allowing complete flexibility.
US07895329B2
In a flow control method, operation flow is controlled on a per connection basis. The method comprises managing a sending peer to prevent overflow of a receiving peer's receiver credits and allocating a number of send buffers at the sending peer greater than or equal to the maximum number of receiver credits that can be indicated by the receiving peer. The technique prevents the sending peer from overflowing its set of send buffers, arising due to re-use, without taking completions on operations queued to a Send Queue.
US07895325B2
An event history server system stores event data descriptive of user-specific events that occur in browsing sessions of users. A query interface of the event history server system enables applications to selectively retrieve the event data based on various event parameters such as event type, event time of occurrence, and user identifier. The applications may, for example, include one or more personalization applications that generate personalized content for users.
US07895323B2
A system for predicting an occurrence of a critical even in a computer cluster includes: a control system that includes an event log, a system parameter log, a memory for storing information related to occurrences of critical events, and a processor. The processor implements a hybrid prediction system; loads the information from the event log and the system performance log into a Bayesian network model; uses the Bayesian network model to predict a future critical event; makes future scheduling and current data migration selections; and adapts the Bayesian network model by feeding the scheduling and data migration selections.
US07895319B2
An address resolver such as a DNS service may use the identity of a requesting client device to determine a response of a network address for a hostname in a request. A requesting client device may transmit a hardware or user identifier to an address resolving server in order to authenticate the client. The server may determine if the requesting client is authorized to have access to the requested hostname, and respond with the network address when the client is authorized. The address resolver may be used to limit access for users to various devices or hosts across a network and in some cases may track which users are accessing which hosts.
US07895314B1
Instant messages are sent to and from a device. For example, one embodiment of a method involves detecting an instant message on a port associated with a device and performing an action corresponding to an administrative command, where the instant message includes information indicative of the administrative command. Another embodiment of a method involves detecting a trigger condition during operation of a device and sending an instant message to an administrator, where the instant message includes information indicative of the trigger condition.
US07895306B2
A Message Storage and Deliver System (MSDS) is connected to the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and receives incoming calls with these calls being facsimile, voice, or data transmissions. The MSDS detects the type of call and stores the message signal in a database. The MSDS is also connected to the Internet and has a hyper-text transfer protocol deamon (HTTPD) for receiving requests from users. The HTTPD forwards requests for certain files or messages to a network server which transmits at least part of the message to the HTTPD and then to the user. In addition to requests for certain documents, the HTTPD may also receive a request in the form of a search query. The search query is forwarded from the HTTPD to an application program for conducting the search of the database. The results of the search are forwarded through the HTTPD to the user. The user may then select one or more files or messages from the search results and may save the search for later reference.
US07895301B1
A hypertext document containing a selection criterion for a desired codeset is transmitted from a web server to a web client on the computer of a user of an electronic consumer device. The user selects a desired codeset and sends a designation of the selection criterion from the web client on his computer back to the web server. The designation of the selection criterion is used to select the desired codeset from a central database of codesets. The desired codeset is then transmitted from the web server to the web client on the user's computer. A pin of an integrated circuit in the user's remote control device is coupled to a single-wire communication bus. The user's remote control device is coupled to the user's computer via the single-wire communication bus. The desired codeset is then transmitted from the user's computer over the single-wire communication bus to the remote control device.
US07895289B2
Device and method for storing / retrieving objects with multidimensionally addressed electronic data
The invention provides for devices and methods for storing/retrieving objects comprising multidimensionally addressed electronic data in a system of several data processing units, in particular as regards the economy of time, even if individual units of the data processing units are unreliable.
US07895284B2
Devices, systems, and methods are directed towards ranking of messages based on a hop distance a forwarded message travels through a social network. As a message is forwarded by a member of the social network the hop distance increases. As the message is forwarded, recipients and/or senders may view the hop distance in real-time. The hop distance may reflect a number of times the message is forwarded to reach a recipient, or the maximum number of times the message is forwarded. The message may be displayed to a member in a rank ordering based on the hop distance, and messages with hop distances below a defined value may be deleted from a displayed list after a period of time. In one embodiment, a message may be forwarded anonymously to, for example, encourage members to forward the message.
US07895276B2
A method and system for removing metadata from email attachments sent from mobile devices includes receiving an email with an attached document. The attached document has metadata removed to create a cleansed version of the attached document. The attached document is replaced by the cleansed version of the attached document, and the email is sent according to the address or addresses included in the email.
US07895271B1
A system and method for managing and compacting electronic mail messages to preserve storage space on a computer and to enhance the efficiency of an electronic mail application. A user or electronic mail system administrator may define a screening criteria to identify messages to be compacted according to compacting procedures. Compacting procedures may include compressing the message and attachments, detaching the attachments from the message and inserting references or pointers in place of the attachments in the message.
US07895262B2
Described is a Web Services Application Protocol (WSAP) comprising a SOAP-based protocol that defines a web service application model based on a set of common message operations. WSAP provides a foundation for defining web services in terms of how they interact with each other. In WSAP, the behaviors of a service are each provided with an individual port, (e.g., URI), whereby the service's behaviors may be interacted with directly. WSAP also defines shared semantics for operations that identify what a message is, what the processing of message is, and how it affects the state/behavior of the receiver. The ordering of messages also provides context to what is occurring. As a result of the known characteristics of the operations and the ordering, an intermediary can process exchanged messages to add value to communications. A SOAP processing model defines composing multiple web services to run in parallel or sequentially.
US07895260B2
Methods, apparatus, and products are disclosed for processing data access requests among a plurality of compute nodes. One compute node operates as a processing node, and one compute nodes operates as a requesting node. The processing node receives, from the requesting node, a data access request to access data currently being processed by the processing node. The processing node also receives, from the requesting node, a processing directive. The processing directive specifies data processing operations to be performed on the data specified by the data access request. The processing node performs, on behalf of the requesting node, the data processing operations specified by the processing directive on the data specified by the data access request. The processing node transmits, to the requesting node, results of the data processing operations performed on the data by the processing node on behalf of the requesting node.
US07895256B2
A messaging system, method, and computer program product includes a client device having stored therein a client application, which is adapted to be executed by the client device, a server having stored therein a server application, which is adapted to be executed by the server, a plurality of wireless networks, each of which is adapted to: communicate messages between the client device and the server; and support one or more wireless network protocols, and a protocol gateway encapsulating a fundamental network protocol. The fundamental network protocol underlies each of the one or more wireless network protocols and includes a protocol stack that corresponds substantially to an Open System Interconnection (OSI) model and incorporates a simple network transport layer (SNTL). In such a manner, the invention further includes means for communicating a message between the client application and the server application, over a selected wireless network protocol through the protocol gateway, independent of the selected wireless network protocol. Moreover, the present invention features methods of communicating such messages over wireless networks efficiently, without requiring significant bandwidth, a valuable resource in wireless networks.
US07895248B2
A clip without UMID is transmitted to a disc drive from an editing device. The disc drive generates the UMID and NRT with respect to the transmitted clip, and stores the UMID in association with the NRT. The editing device edits the NRT, and transmits the NRT that is edition results to the disc drive. The disc drive overwrites the NRT that has been transmitted from the editing device on the generated NRT, and stores the NRT in association with the clip with the UMID. The present invention can be applied to a disc recording and reproducing device.
US07895245B2
Methods, systems and machine readable medium storing a machine readable program for managing data stored on a contactless flash memory device are disclosed. A compiled version of a hierarchical data model defined using a high level data structure definition language is provided at a host unit. The host unit is operable to run on a host platform. The compiled version of the hierarchical data model is compiled for the host platform. A first representation of a first hierarchical data structure is received from a contactless flash memory device at the host unit via a contactless communication channel. The first hierarchical data structure is a first instantiation of the hierarchical data model. A second representation of the first hierarchical data structure is generated in accordance with the compiled hierarchical data model at the host unit.
US07895242B2
In accordance with one or more aspects, compressed storage management in a system includes determining which of multiple data units stored in an uncompressed portion of the storage resource are to be compressed and stored in a compressed portion of the storage resource. The management can further include returning one or more regions of the compressed portion for use in the uncompressed portion in response to storage resource pressure in the system, as well as compacting regions in the compressed portion to fill empty gaps in the compressed portion.
US07895239B2
A queue descriptor including a head pointer pointing to the first element in a queue and a tail pointer pointing to the last element in the queue is stored in memory. In response to a command to perform an enqueue or dequeue operation with respect to the queue, fetching from the memory to a cache only one of either the head pointer or tail pointer and returning to the memory from the cache portions of the queue descriptor modified by the operation.
US07895238B2
A method, computer system, computer program product and graphical interface for generating and displaying an information catalog relating to a business model. The method includes accessing technical metadata from a data warehouse, accessing business metadata from a first source outside of the data warehouse, accessing presentation metadata from a second source outside of the data warehouse, and applying the presentation metadata to the technical metadata and the business metadata to generate the information catalog. The information catalog comprises the technical metadata and the business metadata in accordance with the presentation format specified by the presentation metadata. The technical metadata is associated with data used by computer applications. The computer applications support business processes of the business model.
US07895237B2
Files can be reassembled from fragments by (a) accepting adjacency scores for each pair of fragments from the set of fragments, (b) identifying header fragments from among the fragments of the set of fragments, and (c) for each of the header fragments identified, reconstructing a corresponding one of the two or more files from the fragments of the set of fragments such that the sum of the adjacency scores are optimized, wherein each of the fragments is permitted to belong to only one of the at least two files, and wherein at least two files are reconstructed such that the results are independent of the order in which the files are reconstructed.
US07895230B2
A server find process by which a user enters a search term for a document attachment into his/her mobile communication device. If no occurrences of the term are found on the device, the device then prompts the user to initiate a server side search. If the user accepts, then the server searches the document attachment and returns the first section of text that contains the search term to the device for viewing by the user. This process can then be repeated until the server find feature reports that no further instances of the search string have been found on the server.
US07895229B1
Exemplary systems and methods for conducting cross-checks on legal matters across an enterprise system are provided. In exemplary embodiments, search parameters are received from a user to search for custodians across the plurality of legal matters that are affected. A cross-check module then accesses legal matter information. An analysis of whether a custodian is common to more than one legal matter based on the search parameters, tracked relationships, and the legal matter information is performed. Results are then provided to the user. In further embodiments, the cross-check module may also provide a listing of collected data based on the cross-check analysis.
US07895213B2
A method for providing cascaded trie-based network packet search engines is provided. A search command is received at one of the network packet search engines. The search command comprises a specific search key. A determination of a longest prefix match based on the specific search key is made at the network packet search engine. A determination is made at the network packet search engine regarding whether the longest prefix match comprises an overall longest prefix match among the cascaded network packet search engines such that any of the cascaded network packet search engines may comprise the overall longest matching prefix independently of position relative to the other cascaded network packet search engines.
US07895208B2
Device, system, and method of creating virtual social networks based on web-extracted features. For example, a method for creating virtual social networks based on web-extracted data includes: accessing through a global communication network a first content item and a second content item, wherein each one of the first and second content items is selected from the group consisting of: an image, a video, text, and metadata; extracting data corresponding to a first feature from the first content item; extracting data corresponding to a second feature from the second content item; and based on a common attribute of the first and second features, clustering into a cluster a first identifier of a first user associated with the first content item and a second identifier of a second user associated with the second content item.
US07895207B2
Even when the number of apparatuses and GUI terminals increase, the load of data retrieval processing does not increase in the group administration apparatus, and hence data retrieval and display onto the GUI terminals are to be performed rapidly. Data pieces transmitted from apparatuses are classified for each group by a group administration apparatus. Thus, for example, when temperature information is to be displayed on a GUI terminal, a temperature information group is set into a retrieval condition for each display item, while a temperature setting value and a temperature monitor value are set into types. Then, these data pieces are transferred to the group administration apparatus. Then, with reference to the retrieval conditions of a plurality of display items acquired from the GUI terminal, the group administration apparatus merges display items of the same condition into one retrieval item. By virtue of this, data acquisition for the data stored in the group administration apparatus is achieved by a request on a group basis. This reduces the number of times of retrieval for the apparatus data.
US07895197B2
A computer-implemented method of locating information in a database of electronic documents includes defining fragments of the documents, associating the fragments with the document from which the fragments originated, and associating metadata with the fragments, where the metadata associated with a fragment includes metadata related to one or more topics of the fragment. A query for one or more documents containing information about a topic is received, and a document is located from the database based on a comparison of the query with the metadata associated with a fragment of the document.
US07895192B2
In a method for estimating a loaded execution runtime of database query, a database query for a database is received for a loaded database. Load information for the database is received. A prediction of query runtime tree is accessed. The prediction of query runtime tree is built from historical query information regarding historical database queries previously executed on the database. The prediction of query runtime tree includes a classifier function adjusted for an historical impact of loading of the database. The database query is processed through the prediction of query runtime tree, such that a loaded execution runtime of the database query is estimated based upon information pertaining to historical database queries similar to the database query.
US07895190B2
A method is disclosed for indexing and querying XML documents stored in a relational database. A user is allowed to choose columns of a database table for storing XML data of a known structure. The user has to input one or more XML paths for indexed data. Each path is stored in a static index table. In response to the input of the user defined paths, at least one dynamic index table is created for each static index table. The dynamic index table is updated upon data being entered into the database table. When a user's query is intercepted, any XML expression part of the query is processed and converted into one or more rows in the static index table. A new query is generated against the dynamic indexing tables, using the values obtained from the static index table, and executed. The user's query is then rewritten by transforming the XML path part of the user's query expression into a format understood by the database query engine. Finally, after the rewritten query is executed, the result is returned to the user, together with any non-XML part of the user's query, executed by the database query engine.
US07895184B2
A method and system for customizing a search of a data source linked to a computer in response to a search request from a user. A search tool application (STA) is executed on a client computer in response to the search request received from the user. The STA determines the context of a software application active when the STA is executed. The STA determines a scope of data to search based on the determined context. A user-interface is responsive to a search term received from a user to initiates a search the determined scope of data for content that matches the received search term. The results of the search are displayed in the UI.
US07895183B2
This invention relates to an advertisement machine which provides advertisements to a user searching for desired information within a data network. The machine receives, from a user, a search request including a search argument corresponding to the desired information and searches, based upon the received search argument, a first database having data network related information to generate search results. It also correlating the received search argument to a particular advertisement in a second database having advertisement related information. The search results together with the particular advertisement are provided by the machine to the user.
US07895182B2
The present invention is related to methods and systems for processing search requests and for performing searches over a network. In an embodiment, a recipient designation is received from a user over a network. The designation indicates that future searches performed by the user are to be associated with the recipient (even if the subject matter of the search is not related to the recipient). A search request is received from the user; causing a search to be performed in response to the search request. An identifier corresponding to the recipient is stored in association with an indication regarding the occurrence of the first search request.
US07895175B2
A method and apparatus for client-side federated search is provided. The user subscribes to a number of information providers, wherein a list of the information providers for the user is stored at a search engine. When the user at a client device submits a search query to the search engine, the search engine responds by sending general search results to the client device, along with search instructions that instruct the client device how to automatically initiate a search at information providers in which the user is interested. Without any further input from the user, the client device uses the search instructions to initiate searches at information providers in which the user is interested. When the client receives search results from the information providers, the client device displays the general search results concurrently with the information provider search results.
US07895174B2
Embodiments are provided to define relationships for merging template or database part tables with one or more database tables in a computer system. A database application may utilize a schema to receive metadata associated with a target database part table in one or more markup language elements. The database application may then receive metadata associated with a source database table to be joined with the target table in the schema elements. The database application may then receive join type metadata in the schema elements. The join type metadata may specify whether fields from the source table are to be merged into the target table or whether fields from the target table are to be merged into the source table. In response to receiving the target table metadata and the source table metadata, the database application may then merge the target and source tables utilizing the join type metadata.
US07895171B2
A method, information processing system, and computer readable storage product estimate a compression factor. A set of key values within an index are analyzed. Each key value is associated with a record identifier (“RID”) list comprising a set of RIDs. The index is in an uncompressed format and includes a total byte length. A number of RIDs associated with each key value is estimated for each key value in the set of key values. A total byte length for all RID deltas between each at least two consecutive RIDs within a RID list is estimated for each RID list based on the number of RIDs that have been determined. The total byte length estimated for each RID list is accumulated. A compression factor associated with the index is determined by dividing the total byte length that has been accumulated by the byte length of the index.
US07895166B2
The exchange of documents for execution can be performed efficiently using an automated system that routes and archives documents. The system may facilitate the exchange of drafts between parties by highlighting changes of the current draft with respect to the previous draft. Documents may be conveniently archived for efficient document storage and access by providing one or more central archive databases accessible through a shared network to a plurality of organizations. The operating system of the database may provide systematic access to individuals associated with an organization with the privilege to access documents according to a specific organizational hierarchy. Routing and archiving documents may be accomplished through a central exchange server.
US07895161B2
The storage system includes a file server connected to a host apparatus and configured to provide a directory in a file system having a directory structure to the host apparatus, a storage subsystem connected to the file server and configured to provide a volume for storing the file system, and a management apparatus connected respectively to the file server and the storage subsystem and configured to manage backup/restoration of an arbitrary directory contained in the file system. The storage system selects one of backup methods of a directory designated as a backup target by the management apparatus, and executes backup processing to the designated directory. The storage system also includes a restoration controller configured to control execution of restoration processing to backup data based on the backup processing.
US07895155B2
Embodiments of the invention provide a method for managing and updating documents containing specialized content in a content management system (CMS) by chaining plug-ins. Rather than create a unique rule for each specialized scenario, a CMS may be configured to apply a plug-in chain in an order based upon a type of document encountered and/or configured criteria.
US07895153B2
An embodiment of the invention allows a software developer or administrator to use their knowledge and/or development of a particular application, to optimize the performance of data access and updates to the database. In order to do this, an embodiment of the invention makes use of the developers knowledge of particular transaction and transaction operations that can be performed in a commutative manner. The overall effect is to perform the operations in a parallel fashion so that one operation does not block or restrict the processing of a second operation. The result is an increase in database access or performance, without any resulting decrease in database reliability.
US07895148B2
A classification system trains a classifier to classify blocks of the web page into various classifications of the function of the block. The classification system trains a classifier using training web pages. To train a classifier, the classification system identifies the blocks of the training web pages, generates feature vectors for the blocks that include a linguistic feature, and inputs classification labels for each block. The classification system learns the coefficients of the classifier using any of a variety of machine learning techniques. The classification system can then use the classifier to classify blocks of web pages.
US07895143B2
A risk assessment method and system. The method includes receiving by an inference engine, first sensor cohort data associated with a first cohort located within a security perimeter area surrounding an airport. The inference engine receives first group technology inferences associated with the first cohort. The inference engine generates first risk cohort inferences based on the first group technology inferences and the first sensor cohort data. The inference engine receives first inference data comprising a first plurality of inferences associated with the first cohort. The inference engine generates second inference data comprising a second plurality of inferences associated with the first cohort. The second inference data is based on the first inference data and the first risk cohort inferences. The inference engine generates a first associated risk level score for the first cohort. The computing system stores the second inference data and the first associated risk level score.
US07895139B2
Data spiders, provide an automated system that can take a file or file store of historic transaction data and create the best set of variables from that data, where “best” means highly predictive. Genetic algorithms are used to parameterized transactions to form groups, which are subjected naïve Bayes score ranking. Variable groups are generated and ranked accord to the score. Data spiders span the full information available, are uncorrelated with previous methods, and are easily interpretable.
US07895123B1
A method and system for receiving digital content and metadata associated with the digital content. In an embodiment, the method and system inputs publication information associated with the digital content, produces protected digital content, stores the protected digital content, and sends a message including the metadata and the publication information.
US07895119B2
A method and system are disclosed for pushing credit payments as buyer initiated transactions. The buyer communicates payment instructions to initiate payment of accounts payable items so that the existing credit card infrastructure can be used to make payments to merchants without a credit card transaction being initiated by the merchants. In this way, a buyer can push credit payments into the system without having to communicate with the merchant, and these transactions can be processed as credit transactions with respect to standard settlement procedures, for example, as used by credit card receipt acquirers. This ability to push credit payments provides an advantageous, efficient and powerful solution to handling accounts payable operations, particularly in a corporate environment. And a purchasing management system can be used to manage and control these activities and to allow selection, or automatic selection based upon merchant profiles, of whether to make payments as pushed credit payments or cash/debit transactions.
US07895116B2
An improved seller automated engine architecture methodology particularly (though not exclusively) for use in automated real-time iterative reverse auctions over the Internet and the like for the purchase and sale of goods and services, providing a choice of architectural implementations while enabling price optimization on market share-directed considerations, specific sales target-directed implementations, seller utility derivative-following implementations, model optimizer implementations and explorations, mathematical optimization-oriented and rules-based implementations.
US07895110B1
An investment index is generated by selecting a predetermined number of geographic regions having the highest ranked projected population growth and selecting a predetermined number of companies that have at least a predetermined percentage of the company's revenue derived from at least one or a combination of the selected number of geographic regions. The stock prices of the selected companies are then weighted.
US07895109B2
One embodiment of the invention is a method for providing a financial instrument including determining a current account balance for a financial account, calculating a liability ratio for the financial account, and determining whether to transfer at least a portion of the account balance from a variable sub-account to a low-risk sub-account based on the liability ratio.
US07895099B2
Methods and systems for facilitating transactions (200) between commercial banks and pooled depositor groups are disclosed. Employees of a control center determine interest rate return needs of pooled depositor groups (210), such as trust departments at commercial banks. The control center employees aggregate (204) the funds to produce a stable funds source and communicate the availability of the stable funds source to commercial banks for core deposits (210). The commercial banks communicate cash needs to the control center (202). The control center sets an interest rate (206) to be paid to the pooled depositor groups for use of the funds to at least the depositor groups'expected rate of return and below and the rate that commercial banks are willing to pay for the funds. The banks post master NOW accounts and the pooled depositor groups deposit funds in the master NOW accounts (212).
US07895098B2
A system and method for quantifying the working capital benefit of pooling a number of separate cash accounts. The average (mean) cash balance of the pooled account is determined to be the sum of the means of each of the individual accounts. Similarly, the standard deviation of the pooled account is determined to be the square root of the sum of the squares of the standard deviations of the individual accounts. Accordingly, the minimum cash level of the pooled account is 2.3 times the square root of the sum of the squares of the standard deviations of the individual accounts. In order to determine the benefit of pooling, the present invention determines the difference between the minimum aggregate cash required by the separate companies and the minimum cash required in the pooled account. If pooling is to be beneficial, from a working capital perspective, the minimum cash required in the pooled account will be significantly less than the aggregate cash required by the separate companies.
US07895095B2
A hybird Notes/DB2 environment provides a requisition catalog on the Web. Client browsers are connected to a GWA infrastructure including a first network dispatcher and a virtual cluster of Domino.Go servers. The network dispatcher sprays out browser requests among configured .nsf servers in virtual server cluster. Communications from this virtual server cluster are, in turn, dispatched by a second network dispatcher servers in a Domino cluster. External objects, primarily for a GUI, are served in a .dfs and include graphic files, Java files, HTML images and net.data macros. The catalog is built from supplier provided flat files. A front end is provided for business logic and validation, as also is a relation database backend. HTML forms are populated using relational database agents. A role table is used for controlling access both to Notes code and DB2 data. Large amounts of data is quickly transferred using an intermediate agent and window.
US07895088B2
Commercial advertisers, such as consumer product companies and the advertising agents that represent them, directly access a network of thousands of large, high resolution electronic displays located in high traffic areas and directly send their own advertisements electronically to the network to be displayed at locations and times selected by the advertisers. In another application, operators of digital movie theaters have ongoing, continuous access to tens of thousands of movies that can be ordered in digital form for display on selected screens at their theaters at selected times.
US07895084B2
A method and system for processing purchases from a wireless device. The method includes, responsive to a search command received from the wireless device, executing a search in a retailer database. The method includes transmitting a search result to the wireless device for display. The method includes, responsive to a purchase command received from the wireless device, processing a sales transaction with a selected retailer.
US07895082B2
According to the present invention, there is provided a method to facilitate propagating a plurality of transaction listings to a network-based transaction facility. An input interface is presented at a seller application to receive from a user, a plurality of transaction listings, each transaction listing including an associated start time. Also, a data file is composed at the seller application to include the plurality of transaction listings. Moreover, the data file is propagated, using the seller application, from the client computer to the network-based transaction facility.
US07895074B2
A method that provides a motion picture promotional item using digital data at an exhibition site. The method includes receiving motion picture digital data at the exhibition site; and receiving supplemental data transmitted along with the motion picture digital data, the supplemental data to be used for forming the promotional item. Additionally the method stores the supplemental data in a memory accessible from the exhibition site, and forms the promotional item according to the supplemental data in response to a user command.
US07895071B2
Described is a system for multi-mission scheduling. The system is configured to compile a list of missions, where each mission includes at least one task. Additionally, each mission has a mission value associated with it such that the mission value reflects an ordering priority of the mission. The system also compiles a list of available resources that can be utilized to complete the tasks. The resources have, varying capabilities of completing tasks. Based on the lists, the system allocates and schedules the resources to complete tasks within the missions to maximize a total mission value of completed missions. Thus, the system schedules multiple missions to maximize the value of completed missions given available resources, whereby a mission is scheduled when the totality of its tasks have been allocated a sufficient amount of resources.
US07895070B2
In one embodiment, a method for providing multiple views of a business process definition includes storing a model of a business process, and providing different view points of the model to different classes of users.
US07895069B2
A system, computer-implementable method, and computer-readable medium for processing a collection of work items in a data processing system. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an agent monitor assembles a work items list that includes a collection of work items, wherein at least one work item among the collection of work items is a work item that is unassigned to at least one agent among a collection of agents. The agent monitor assigns the at least one work item to the at least one agent. In response to determining that the at least one agent has entered into a hang state, the agent monitor releases the at least one work item from the at least one agent.
US07895068B2
Methods, data structures, and systems by which entities can efficiently discover, extend, validate and establish business relationships over a digital network are disclosed. A transitive trust system can be utilized by any number of interconnected entities in which at least two of the entities are capable of sharing information. One or more entity trust lists contain, for at least two of the entities, at least one characteristic. Each characteristic can, for example, describe or pertain to the actual or perceived dependability, reliability and/or credibility of an entity. The system also includes at least one transactional trust list that contains at least one parameter relative to an exchange between at least two of the entities through at least one degree of separation between the entities. The transactional trust list can, for example, be a listing of any type of parameters that define or describe business exchanges within a particular industry segment. The transactional trust list can also list information about the types of transactional activities that can take place and proxy actions available to cooperating entities. The system retrieves information from the entity trust list and the transactional trust list in order to provide a framework for at least two of the entities to establish relationships with one another.
US07895067B2
In one such aspect, the invention provides a method for optimizing merchandise profitability that includes the step of modeling gross margin as a function of product breadth and depth for each of at least one class of goods retailed by each of at least one retail site in a group of sites of the retail enterprise, and as a function of the expected discount price for each such class of goods at each such retail site. The method further includes maximizing the gross margin so modeled to the enterprise and, from that maximization, determining for at least one such retail site an optimal breadth, depth, and/or discount price, for at least one such class of goods retailed by it.
US07895064B2
A graphical display in an insurance processing system is disclosed. The graphical display may include a representation of a human body. The representation of the human body may provide information to a user that is helpful in specifying insurance claim information. For example, the representation may provide information regarding body parts, information regarding injury codes, information regarding common injuries, information regarding common treatments and/or information regarding treatment codes. The representation may also be used to provide input into the insurance processing system.
US07895063B2
Computer-implemented methods and systems for creating pre-configured claim reports including estimated liability for a vehicle accident are provided. In an embodiment, claim information on a computer system required by a pre-configured claim report for an accident may be accessed from a database. In some embodiments, the claim information may be accessed if a user-specified condition is met. In other embodiments, the claim information may be accessed periodically following a user-specified time period. A pre-configured claim report may be created from the accessed claim information. In certain embodiments, the pre-configured claim report may be sent to a user-specified location.
US07895054B2
A method for providing insurance coverage to a subscriber comprises offering an insurance policy to said subscriber wherein said insurance policy comprises providing allowances to pay for one or more expenses covered by said insurance policy and providing monetary credits to said subscriber for any unused portion of a given allowance where said monetary credits can be used to cover the cost of a subsequent allowed expense. The insurance policy may be a pharmacy benefits plan. The covered expenses may be pharmacy expenses. The allowed expenses may be medical expenses which qualify under section 213 of the US Internal Revenue code for payment by an employer without said subscriber having to declare said payment as taxable income.
US07895049B2
Embodiments are directed towards managing an adaptive media object to dynamically represent a persona reflecting a group's (or individual's) online and/or offline activities and behaviors. The group selects the adaptive media object to represent their persona digitally. The group may indicate which activities, actions, and/or behaviors are to be used to adapt the persona, and may further specify at least one mapping of a selected activity, action, and/or behavior to a change in the configuration of the adaptive media object. In one embodiment, the various activities, actions, and/or behaviors may be input to a machine learning algorithm that dynamically determines the changes to the adaptive media object. The adaptive media object may serve as a single point of contact for the group or individual for communications. The adaptive media object configuration may also change based upon the client device used to access the adaptive media object.
US07895040B2
According to an embodiment, voice recognition apparatus includes units of: acoustic processing, voice interval detecting, dictionary, collating, search target selecting, storing and determining, and voice recognition method includes processes of: selecting a search range on basis of a beam search, setting and storing a standard frame, storing an output probability of a certain transition path, determining whether or not the output probability of a certain path is stored. Number of times of calculation of the output probability is reduced by selecting the search range on basis of the beam search, calculating the output probability of the certain transition path only once in an interval from when the standard frame is set to when the standard frame is renewed, and storing and using thus calculated value as an approximate value of the output probability in subsequent frames.
US07895032B2
A system and method to modify entry of text is provided. The system includes an input device, a display device, and a processor configured to store a correlation between at least one word with at least one candidate phrase; receive at least one word into the input device; identify the at least one candidate phrase correlated to the at least one word; replace the at least one word with a selected phrase from the at least one candidate phrase; and store the selected phrase in a computer readable storage medium.
