US08161413B2
Method and system for providing graphical user interface for displaying hierarchical charts. According to various embodiments, the present invention provides a graphical user interface where relational data are displayed as one or more hierarchical charts. A hierarchical chart includes a plurality of nodes that are organized according to the hierarchical chart. Each of the nodes is associated with a data record that contains multiple level of information. At different view level, different amount of information for the nodes are displayed. A view control function is provided for the graphical user interface. If none (or all) of the nodes are selected, each nodes display the same level of information based associated with a particular view level. If only few of the nodes are selected, only the selected nodes responds changes in view level when being displayed.
US08161411B2
Improved graphical user interfaces suitable for reviewing, browsing, previewing and/or purchasing media items are also disclosed. The graphical user interfaces are suitable for reviewing or browsing numerous media items. The graphical user interfaces are also suitable for previewing or purchasing media items in an on-line manner. The graphical user interfaces are particularly useful for a system that provides purchase and distribution of media in a client-server environment.
US08161407B2
Multi-sorting of displayed columns representative of a tabular display is carried out by displaying a table of a plurality of columns, selectively displaying a first radial menu having a plurality of sectors, each sector representative of one of the plurality of columns, enabling a user to select one of the sectors, and responsive to a user selection of a sector for displaying a second radial menu of the plurality of sectors wherein the selected one sector is disabled, e.g. eliminated. This is continued through a sequence of subsequent radial menus until the user has selected the intended set of sequential columns for the multiple sorting.
US08161387B1
Disclosed herein are systems and methods for the presentation and marking of media modules. In different aspects, the systems and methods may allow a user to present and consume a media module, particularly a media module containing data that is typically presented in a serial manner such as audio, visual, or video media, and to create a marked media module for quickly and easily returning to a marked point of interest in the media module at a later time or on a different device.
US08161384B2
A candidate layout of frames on a page is ascertained, where the frames define respective size dimensions and positions of respective views of the graphic objects (including at least one block of text) on the page. If the target size dimensions are not accommodated by the size dimensions of the frame of the text block presentation, the candidate layout is modified by changing the size dimensions of the frame of the text block presentation to accommodate the target size dimensions and adjusting the size dimensions of the other frames in the candidate layout based on the changed size dimensions of the frame of the text block presentation. Also, different layouts of the frames on a page are determined from a different respective set of aspect ratios and nominal sizes subject to a set of layout constraints.
US08161380B2
Provided are techniques for pipeline optimization based on polymorphic schema knowledge. A hierarchical document to be processed by a pipeline of transformations is received. It is determined whether a next downstream transformation accesses content of each schema node in an associated input schema, wherein the input schema is a polymorphic schema. In response to determining that the next downstream transformation is not accessing the content of each schema node in the associated input schema, data items corresponding to each schema node that the next downstream transformation is not accessing are collected into a single compressed event. The collected items are passed to the next downstream transformation as the single compressed event.
US08161378B2
The invention relates to a computer system operable to apply a selected editing style to selected paragraphs of a computer-readable document. The system includes a processor configured for generating a 2D matrix of editing styles available for the document, assigning a first shortcut key to a first procedure for selecting an editing style from the 2D matrix, processing a first user input including data indicative of the editing style selected using the first shortcut key, and, based on the first user input, applying the selected editing style to the selected paragraphs to generate modified paragraphs. The system also includes a memory configured for storing the 2D matrix and a display configured for displaying the modified paragraphs. Such a system may provide a quick visualization of a large number of styles, where the user does not have to memorize much information about choosing a particular style.
US08161371B2
A hierarchical structure is provided. The hierarchical structure includes object items for objects located in the hierarchical structure, each object item having a name and a link. The hierarchical structure also includes node items each having a name of a hierarchical path name. A node item is provided for each unique path name in the hierarchical structure and the link of an object item links to a single node item having the hierarchical path name of the object.
US08161368B2
Methods, apparatus, computer program products and systems are provided for editing an image. In one method a selection of an image for editing is received at a server, the image being presented in a browser of a client device. Edit data is received at the server to allow the server to create an edited image. A modified image is transferred from the server having a uniform resource locator (URL) and being modified in accordance with the edit data.
US08161362B2
Processed results are received when processors make compatible computations on data of a common object. A computation command signal is generated and fed to the processors in response to a start signal from any one of the processors so that the processors can make computations with different operation timings. Then, the results of the computations made by the processors are compared with each other. Thus, apparatus capable of small size, high performance and safety at the same time can be achieved by the above construction using the processors.
US08161361B1
Systems and techniques to interpret signals on a noisy channel. In general, in one implementation, the technique includes: interpreting an input signal as discrete values, and in response to an inadequate signal, averaging multiple signals to improve interpretation of the input signal. The input signal can be a read signal from a storage medium, such as those found in disk drives. A read channel can include a buffer and an averaging circuit capable of different signal averaging approaches in a retry mode, including making signal averaging decisions based on a signal quality measure. Buffering read signals can be done in alternative locations in the read channel and can involve buffering of many prior read signals and/or buffering of an averaged read signal.
US08161356B2
Embodiments of the invention are generally directed to systems, methods, and apparatuses to save dynamic random access memory (DRAM) self-refresh power. In some embodiments, the refresh frequency of a DRAM is reduced and errors are allowed to occur. In error check mode, the DRAM stores data and corresponding error check bits. The error check bits may be used to scrub the memory and fix the errors.
US08161353B2
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for validating that correct data is read from a storage device. A read request receiver module receives a read storage request to read a data segment of a file or object stored on a data storage device. The storage request includes one or more source parameters for the data segment. The source parameters include one or more virtual addresses that identify the data segment. A hash generation module generates one or more hash values from the virtual addresses. A read data module reads the requested data segment and returns one or more data packets and corresponding stored hash values stored with the data packets. The stored hash values were generated from a data segment written to the data storage device that contains data of the data packets. A hash check module verifies that the generated hash values match the respective stored hash values.
US08161352B2
The present invention relates to a method for providing an equal error protection to data packets in a burst transmission system. The data packets are grouped based upon respective priority levels and error protection is provided to each group of data packets based upon the respective priority level. The error protection codes for each group of data packets depending on the respective priority level is created using data of data packets of the group which are contained in the data section (20) of two or more bursts (10) forming a first set of bursts (50, 50.B, 50.E, 55) and the created error protection codes are transmitted in the error protection section (30) of one or more bursts (10) forming a second set of bursts (60, 60.B, 60.E, 65). The invention further relates to a burst transmission system for performing said method.
US08161348B2
Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and circuits that provide for LDPC decoding and/or error correcting. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide LDPC decoder circuits that include a soft-input memory, a memory unit, and an arithmetic unit. The arithmetic unit includes a hardware circuit that is selectably operable to perform a row update and a column update. In such cases, a substantial portion of the circuitry of the hardware circuit used to perform the row update is re-used to perform the column update.
US08161345B2
In one embodiment, the present invention is a low-density parity-check (LDPC) decoder that has a plurality of variable node units (VNUs) that generate variable node messages and a plurality of check node units (CNUs) that generate check node messages. The variable node messages and check node messages are distributed between the VNUs and CNUs using a number r of combinations of permutators, wherein each permutator combination includes (i) a cyclic shifter and (ii) a fixed, non-cyclic permutator. The cyclic shifters are capable of supporting a number p of different cyclic LDPC sub-matrices; however, when combined with different fixed permutators, the permutator combinations are capable of supporting up to r×p different LDPC sub-matrices. In other embodiments, the LDPC decoder may have fewer than r fixed permutators such that the LDPC decoder is capable of supporting between p and r×p different LDPC sub-matrices.
US08161344B2
A description is given of a circuit for creating an error coding data block for a first data block, including a first error coding path adapted to create the error coding data block in accordance with a first error coding; and a second error coding path adapted to create the error coding data block in accordance with a second error coding; the error coding data block for the first data block being created optionally by the first or second error coding paths, as a function of a control indicator, and at least the first error coding path comprising a data arrangement alteration device.
US08161342B2
A method and apparatus for combining retransmitted hybrid automatic repeat-request (HARQ) messages at different stages in an OFDM/OFDMA receiver are provided. A combination of different types of HARQ combiners may be designed into the receiver and selected on a per-channel basis. Proper selection of a HARQ combining scheme may reduce the required HARQ buffer size and may provide an increased combining gain when compared to conventional HARQ combining techniques. Furthermore, the HARQ combiner type may be dynamically selected through forward and reverse shifting between the different types of HARQ combining schemes in an effort to decrease the bit error ratio (BER) without saturating the HARQ buffer.
US08161337B1
In a first embodiment a TAP of IEEE standard 1149.1 is allowed to commandeer control from a WSP of IEEE standard P1500 such that the P1500 architecture, normally controlled by the WSP, is rendered controllable by the TAP. In a second embodiment (1) the TAP and WSP based architectures are merged together such that the sharing of the previously described architectural elements are possible, and (2) the TAP and WSP test interfaces are merged into a single optimized test interface that is operable to perform all operations of each separate test interface. One approach provides for the TAP to maintain access and control of the TAP instruction register, but provides for a selected data register to be accessed and controlled by either the TAP+ATC or by the discrete CaptureDR, UpdateDR, TransferDR, ShiftDR, and ClockDR WSP data register control signals.
US08161335B2
A system for testing a circuit. The system comprises a first circuit mounted on an embedded first circuit board and a test circuit mounted on the embedded first circuit board. The system further comprises a second circuit board on the first circuit board, the second circuit board including a second circuit and a test device external to the first and second circuit board. The test circuit is effective to send at least one first test signal from the test circuit to the first circuit, receive a first response of the at least one first test signal from the first circuit, and forward the first response to the test device.
US08161325B2
The disclosure generally relates to knowledge retrieval using a knowledgebase storing general and/or expert knowledge. In particular, the disclosure relates to using complex retrieval techniques to implement an enhanced troubleshooting system that provides relevant information. Aspects of the disclosure retrieve relevant documents to assist in troubleshooting by reasoning with stored representations about the faulty system and its operating environment. After receiving a description of the symptoms and/or other information related to the problem, the system may recommend textual and/or non-textual documents with relevant information for identifying the cause of the problem and restoring operation.
US08161319B2
Integrating content into a storage system with substantially immediate access to that content. Providing high reliability and relatively easy operation with a storage system using redundant information for error correction. Having the storage system perform a “virtual write,” including substantially all steps associated with writing to the media to be integrated, except for the step of actually writing data to that media, including rewriting information relating to used disk blocks, and including rewriting any redundant information maintained by the storage system. Integrating the new physical media into the storage system, including accessing content already present on that media, free space already present on that media, and reading and writing that media. Recovering from errors during integration.
US08161316B1
A method is used in managing loop interface instability. It is determined that a loop has excessive intermittent failures. It is determined, based on whether the intermittent failures are detectable on another loop, whether the cause of the excessive intermittent failures is within a specific category of components. A search procedure is executed that is directed to the specific category of components, to isolate the cause of the excessive intermittent failures.
US08161313B2
Systems and methods for correcting clock duty cycle are provided for application in serial-connected devices operating as slave devices. A master device provides a clock to the first slave device, and each slave device passes the clock to the next slave device in turn, and the last slave device returns the clock to the master device. The master device compares the outgoing clock to the returned clock and determines if a duty cycle correction is needed. If so, the master device generates and outputs commands for the slave devices to perform duty cycle adjustment. Each of the slave devices has a circuit for performing duty cycle adjustment. In some implementations, each slave device is a memory device, and the master device is a memory controller.
US08161300B2
A table information reception unit in an instructing device receives, from processing devices connected to a network, device names of the processing devices, function information indicating functions included in the processing devices, and power information indicating a reliability of power supply to the processing devices, and causes such information to be reflected in a table stored in a storage unit. Upon receiving a processing request from a user, an analysis unit analyzes the content thereof, transmits, to an execution control unit, requested function information indicating functions necessary to execute processing corresponding to the processing request. Based on the requested function information, the execution control unit judges whether cooperation with another processing device is necessary, and if necessary, selects, based on the table stored in the storage unit, a processing device expected to have a stable power supply to be a cooperating processing device.
US08161297B2
An information processing apparatus encrypts data that is to be printed by a printing apparatus and stored in a storage device detachably connected to the information processing apparatus so that the encrypted data can be decrypted by the printing apparatus. Once the data has been encrypted, the information processing apparatus stores the encrypted data in the storage device. After the storage device including the encrypted data has been detached from the information processing apparatus and connected to the printing apparatus, the printing apparatus decrypts the encrypted data stored in the storage device and executes a printing process according to the decrypted data.
US08161285B2
Messages, including messages in conformance with various protocols, can be hashed and the hash values added to an event log and provided to a Trusted Platform Module (TPM), which can extend one or more Platform Configuration Registers (PCRs) with the hash value, much as it would with the hash of a component that was installed or executed on the computing device with the TPM. Subsequently, the TPM can sign one or more of the PCRs and the signed PCRs can be transmitted, together with the event log and a copy of the messages. The recipient can verify the sender based on the signed PCRs, can confirm that the signed PCRs match the event log, and can verify the hash of the message in the event log by independently hashing it. In another embodiment, an intermediate hashing of the message can avoid transmission of potentially malicious executable instructions within a message.
US08161276B2
A demodulator device and a method of operating the demodulator device where the demodulator device runs a loaded operating system and operates a communication protocol enabling a host application to control the demodulator device. The demodulator device is configured to respond to receipt of an abort command of the communication protocol by carrying out an abort process which stops current operations and reinitializes the loaded operating system.
US08161274B2
When selecting one command within a processor from a plurality of command queues vested with order of priority, the order of priority assigned to the plurality of command queues is dynamically changed so as to select a command, on a priority basis, from a command queue vested with a higher priority from among the plurality of command queues in accordance with the post-change order of priority.
US08161270B1
A programmable processor configured to perform one or more packet modifications through execution of one or more commands. A pipelined processor core comprises a first stage configured to selectively shift and mask data in each of a plurality of categories in response to one or more decoded commands, and combine the selectively shifted and masked data in each of the categories. The pipelined processor core further comprises a second stage configured to selectively perform one or more operations on the combined data from the first stage and other data responsive to the one or more decoded commands. In one implementation, the processor is implemented as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).
US08161266B2
An improved superscalar processor. The processor includes multiple lanes, allowing multiple instructions in a bundle to be executed in parallel. In vector mode, the parallel lanes may be used to execute multiple instances of a bundle, representing multiple iterations of the bundle in a vector run. Scheduling logic determines whether, for each bundle, multiple instances can be executed in parallel. If multiple instances can be executed in parallel, coupling circuitry couples an instance of the bundle from one lane into one or more other lanes. In each lane, register addresses are renamed to ensure proper execution of the bundles in the vector run. Additionally, the processor may include a register bank separate from the architectural register file. Renaming logic can generate addresses to this separate register bank that are longer than used to address architectural registers, allowing longer vectors and more efficient processor operation.
US08161264B2
A technique for performing data prefetching using indirect addressing includes determining a first memory address of a pointer associated with a data prefetch instruction. Content, that is included in a first data block (e.g., a first cache line) of a memory, at the first memory address is then fetched. An offset is then added to the content of the memory at the first memory address to provide a first offset memory address. A second memory address is then determined based on the first offset memory address. A second data block (e.g., a second cache line) that includes data at the second memory address is then fetched (e.g., from the memory or another memory). A data prefetch instruction may be indicated by a unique operational code (opcode), a unique extended opcode, or a field (including one or more bits) in an instruction.
US08161260B2
Methods and apparatus allocate and adjust memory of a hardware platform hosting a plurality of guest virtual machines. One of the virtual machines is configured as a management domain that determines whether other virtual machines comply with a performance computing policy. If not, an initial amount of memory for the other virtual machines is adjusted higher or lower. In this manner, the guest machines are each outfitted with sufficient memory to accomplish their respective workloads, and such is adjusted over time as workloads vary per machine. This distributes throughput concerns throughout an entire platform to sufficiently guarantee a quality of service for each machine of the platform, regardless of its individual tasks. Other features contemplate specific computing policies regarding page fault rates and computer program products for assisting in the foregoing, to name a few.
US08161259B2
Provided is a storage system capable of saving actually used physical storage areas and of achieving a high speed in write processing. There is disclosed a computer system including a server and a storage system, in which physical storage areas of a disk drive are managed for each one or more physical blocks of predetermined sizes, and allocation of one or more physical blocks to a plurality of logical blocks of predetermined sizes is managed, and the storage system stores data written in a first logical block in a first physical block allocated to the first logical block and allocates the first physical block to a second logical block where the same data as the data stored in the first physical block is to be written.
US08161239B2
A virtual storage system is equipped with a plurality of storage systems and a virtualization device for virtualizing the plurality of storage systems logically into a single storage resource provided to a host computer. When one of the storage systems receives a command from the host computer, in the event that the storage system itself is not in possession of a function corresponding to the command, the storage system retrieves a storage system in possession of a function corresponding to the command and transfers this command to the storage system in possession of the function corresponding to the command.
US08161237B2
The instant invention broadly contemplates balancing of asymmetric RAID arrays based on application usage patterns. The instantly claimed invention broadly contemplates balancing the type of workload and delivery of the work load in asymmetric RAID arrays by intelligently implementing different types of applications on disks strategically positioned to deliver workload to the RAID channel that is most capable of handling the work load. The invention makes use of the fact that some applications are more large block, sequential transfer dependant while other applications are more small block, high random, high IOP dependent, and places these applications accordingly within the asymmetric RAID array.
US08161229B2
A memory device has a plurality of dedicated data blocks for storing only user data and a plurality of dedicated overhead blocks for storing only overhead data. Current overhead segments of a dedicated overhead block can be consolidated and moved to a new dedicated overhead block.
US08161228B2
An apparatus and method for managing memory in low-end electronic devices is provided. The apparatus includes a memory management unit. The memory management unit configured to allocate a portion of random access memory and a portion of flash memory as swap areas. The memory management unit performs swapping operations by swapping pages of content between the random access memory swap area and one or more blocks of the flash memory swap area. Thereafter, a page of content can be loaded from the flash memory swap area. The memory management unit also allocates a portion of flash memory as a garbage collection area. The memory management unit transfers dirty pages from the flash swap area to the garbage collection unit to free up flash memory swap area blocks.
US08161221B2
It is an object to prevent a processing speed of the storage system provided with a function for detecting a write completion of data from being reduced.A controller module is provided with at least one processor module, at least one storage resource, and at least one transfer control module connected to the processor module and the storage resource. The transfer control module is provided with a receiver and a transmitter. The receiver receives a write packet from the processor module, includes a specific code in the write packet, and then transmits the write packet. In the case in which the transmitter receives a write packet and the received write packet includes the specific code, the transmitter writes targeted data in the write packet to the storage resource to be written, generates a response packet that is a response indicating a completion of a write, and transmits the generated response packet.
US08161218B2
A network adapter for plugging into a host computer is provided. The network adapter may include an internal memory and connection means for connecting the host computer to a communications network. The network adapter may include resident application software stored in the network adapter's internal memory, whereby the resident application software automatically activates when the network adapter is plugged into the host computer.
US08161214B2
An ATA compatible data transfer system includes a system processor having system memory, the system processor configured to issue a Programmable I/O (PIO) type command to effect data transfer between a peripheral device and the system memory through a host controller and an ATA controller. The host controller accesses data to/from the host memory directly. The host controller and the ATA controller complete data transfer between the peripheral device and the system memory by executing the PIO type command without requiring interrupt servicing by the system processor.
US08161208B2
A processing apparatus which is capable of preventing an priority reservation for a particular period from being set for all of a plurality of apparatuses and improving convenience for a general user who does not use an priority reservation service, in a system for which the priority reservation is available. Reservation information about a reservation for priority use of peripherals (MFP-A, B, and C) is stored. The number of peripherals that are not reserved for priority use during a particular period in the peripherals with reference to the reservation information is detected. When the number of peripherals is one, an instruction not to accept a reservation for priority use during the particular period to the single peripheral that are not reserved for priority use during the particular period in the peripheral is issued.
US08161201B2
A method for configuring a peripheral device in communication with an information handling system (IHS) is disclosed, wherein the method includes receiving visual data associated with the peripheral device and mapping configuration data to the peripheral device based on the visual data. The method further includes utilizing the configuration data to configure the peripheral device in communication with the IHS. An information handling system (IHS) in communication with an image capturing device is further disclosed including a storage device operable to store a database, the database configured to store a standard image of a peripheral device, wherein the standard image is associated with configuration data for the peripheral device. The system further includes a memory coupled to the storage device and a processor to receive visual data associated with the peripheral device from the image capturing device. The processor is operable to execute a software application configured to match the visual data with the standard image to configure the peripheral device based on the configuration data.
US08161191B2
A method and system for providing a network and routing protocol for utility services are disclosed. In one embodiment, a computer-implemented method comprises discovering a utility network, wherein a utility device (for example, a constant powered meter) sends network discovery messages to find the utility network. Neighboring meters are discovered and the device listens for advertised routes for one or more networks from the neighbors. The device is then registered with one or more utility networks, receiving a unique address for each network registration. Also illustrated in this invention disclosure is how each device of a class of devices (for example, battery powered meter) finds and associates itself with another device (for example, constant powered meter). The constant powered meter also registers its associate battery powered meter with the utility networks. The constant powered meter registers itself with the access points and the upstream nodes in the path out of each network. Each upstream node can independently make forwarding decisions on both upstream and downstream packets i.e. choose the next hop according to the best information available to it. The constant powered meter can sense transient link problems, outage problems, and traffic characteristics. It uses the information to find the best route out of and within each network. Each network device thus maintains multi-egress, multi-ingress network routing options both for itself and the device(s) associated with it.
US08161187B2
An automatic planning system is provided for stream processing workflow composition. End users provide requests to the automatic planning system. The requests are goal-based problems to be solved by the automatic planning system, which then generates plan graphs to form stream processing applications. A scheduler deploys and schedules the stream processing applications for execution within an operating environment. The operating environment then returns the results to the end users.
US08161183B2
Computer-based methods and systems are described wherein at least one content provider, a portal and a user are coupled to a communications network or content delivery network. The content provider provides means for generating information in a markup language and for sending the information to a portal. The portal comprises means for combining information received from one or more content providers and for sending the combined information to the user.
US08161182B1
A method and apparatus are described for managing congestion in a network. For a receiving node, a congestion status associated with a node in the network is determined. The congestion status is advertised to at least one other node in the network. For a sending node, a congestion status associated with a receiving node in the network is received. The congestion status corresponds to a measured node condition at the receiving node. A call is routed to the receiving node based on the received congestion status.
US08161181B2
A content delivering method for computer network and system are provided. The present invention classifies nodes participating in content transmission into a transmitting group and a receiving group, and uses the groups to manage the nodes dynamically entering or quitting, and the management includes grouping, monitoring and reflecting update of CDS of group controlling information. Real time management for nodes is achieved through CDS, and the nodes in the transmitting group communicate information according to nodes recorded in the CDS. Multiple nodes in the transmitting group cooperate with each other in transmitting content. Firstly, transmission tasks are assigned to nodes in the transmitting group, and then, nodes in the transmitting group divide assigned content into many blocks and package them and transmit to nodes in the receiving group, and nodes in the receiving group which have received content packages exchange the content packages in the group according to the control data set. Therefore, the content is simultaneously transmitted from a plurality of nodes to other a plurality of nodes, and content transmission speed is high.
US08161178B2
Network services systems and methods are provided. A particular system includes an information store including connection information to initiate connections to content sources. The connection information includes an address and a connection rule associated with a video content source. The system includes an access engine to receive a request for an information stream output by the video content source from a user device. The system also includes a services engine to retrieve the connection rule from the information store and to initiate establishment of at least a portion of a point to point protocol communication link between the user device and the video content source in accordance with the connection rule. The system includes a metrics engine to track a metric associated with the point to point protocol communication link and to generate a billing record at least partially based upon the metric.
US08161150B2
A device management system and device management scheduling method thereof, in which a server transmits to a client a scheduling context including a device management command and a schedule for the performing of the device management command, and the client generates a device management tree using the device management scheduling context, performs the command when a specific scheduling condition is satisfied, and, if necessary, reports the command performance result to the server, whereby the server performs a device management such as requesting a command to be performed under a specific condition, dynamically varying the scheduling condition, and the like.
US08161137B2
A method for environmental delivery network prioritizes groups of data for transmission based on a various factors such as synchronization requirements, endpoint configuration, and the fidelity of sensory stimuli reproduction. A device detects data missing from a group of data received from a server and replaces the missing data with replacement data based on a predetermined value. The predetermined value may be based on a default value specific to the sensory stimulus missing data, data received prior to the missing data, or data received prior to and after the missing data.
US08161128B2
Methods and devices are provided for sharing data across two or more different clusters. An operating system (OS) in a cluster checks a metadata record of a file system of a shared device to retrieve path group identifiers (PGIDs). A control unit list of the shared device is checked to retrieve PGIDs that are active on the shared device. An input/output supervisor (IOS) record in a couple dataset is checked to retrieve PGIDs in the cluster. The metadata record, control unit list, and IOS record are compared, and if a PGID is found in the metadata record that is not in the IOS record and if the found PGID is not in the control unit list, the found PGID is not active on the shared device. The found PGID of the different cluster is removed from metadata record, and members of the cluster can R/W to file system.
US08161121B2
A system and method for designing applications for a device in a Bluetooth-based MANET (mobile ad hoc network) is provided. The method includes providing an application having an event module and a plurality of protocol modules. The method includes specifying whether the application will execute in either a high or low priority thread. The method also includes specifying whether high priority threads execute with one of an unblocking status and a best effort status, and specifying whether lower priority threads execute with one of a blocking status, the unblocking status, and the best effort status.
US08161120B2
A method of populating a collaborative workspace based on an electronic message is disclosed herein. An embodiment of the present invention is operative to post-process an outgoing email after being assigned to a workspace. Further, a message identifier is computed to uniquely identify the e-mail and then the method identifies and obtains core elements of workspace, namely, members, discussion, files, events and their relationships before populating these elements into the workspace data stores for subsequent contextual search and navigation. The outgoing e-mail is also annotated to encapsulate additional information. The described embodiment also suggests pre-processing incoming emails to exploit the annotation to append a Context-bar to allow quick and direct access to the contextual workspaces associated with the email. A system for providing a collaborative workspace is also suggested.
US08161119B2
In one embodiment, a system can comprise an interface that receives a portion of a messaging communication associated with a client and a tagging component that incorporates a selectable spam identifier into the messaging communication to enable spam detection, the tagging component is independent of the client and a server related to the messaging communication.
US08161114B1
In a method for transmitting information using a data structure that is defined by the formal language called Abstract Syntax Notation One, the information is transmitted encoded as text. A form of plain-text encoding may generally be used. This enables the use of text-based transmission media, which are in widespread use. Furthermore, it enables fault localization without the use of additional tools.
US08161110B2
The techniques of the present invention provide mechanisms for enabling a new type of interactive online discussion where any number of people can participate in a discussion of a topic and having the impression of following a coherent discussion. By following a novel process described in the present invention, eventually they would collectively generate a set of statements that the majority of the participants have agreed to. Moreover, a participation performance of the participants is being kept so as to potentially regroup those best performers in a future meeting with a similar topic.
US08161108B2
An online collaboration system can access data in one or more skills repositories to search for participants with indicated skills and automatically display participants' skill information during online collaborations. Searching for participants by skill allows individuals most likely to add value to a discussion to be identified and invited to an online collaboration. Displaying skill information can facilitate focused interaction leading to a more productive online collaboration.
US08161101B2
The unattended installation of drivers for devices that are not automatically found and installed during operating system installation is disclosed. A method determines which drivers are needed for devices on client computing systems that are not automatically found and installed during operating system installation. Entries for the drivers are created within a master driver file. The method copies the master driver file to each client computing system, and drivers that are needed for the devices. For each client computing system, references are created within an unattended installation file to the entries for the drivers within the master driver file. Operating systems are remotely installed on the client computing systems in an unattended manner. The drivers are able to be installed in the unattended manner due to the references created within the unattended installation files to the entries for the drivers within the master driver file.
US08161097B2
Methods and/or systems relating to mote networks having one or more mote-addressed content indexes. A part of the one or more mote-addressed content indexes are aggregated from a first set of motes.
US08161096B2
A flow processing apparatus generates second and third documents from a first document that describes a flow for executing services, registers the second document in a first apparatus and registers the third document in a second apparatus on the network on which the services exist. The flow processing apparatus then interprets the second document by the first apparatus and calls the second document by the first apparatus, interprets the third document by the second apparatus, which has been called from the first apparatus, and receives result of execution of a called service by the first apparatus.
US08161095B2
Application programming interface (API) for starting and accessing distributed routing table (DRT) functionality. The API facilitates bootstrapping into the DRT by one or more devices of a group of devices (a mesh) seeking to collaborate over a serverless connection, establishing a node of the DRT, where each node is an instance of an application that is participating in the mesh, and node participation by allowing the application to search for keys published by other nodes in the mesh, or by becoming part of the mesh by publishing a key. The API facilitates optimization of the routing table for quickly finding a root of a specific key in the mesh by finding the key directly in a cache or by asking a root node of the key that is in the local routing table that is closest numerically to the key being searched.
US08161093B2
The present invention relates to a complex multiplier and a twiddle factor generator. The complex multiplier according to an embodiment of the invention includes: a first adder/subtracter that adds the real part of the complex number and a first twiddle factor or subtracts the first twiddle factor from the real part of the complex number according to a first signal; a second adder/subtracter that adds the imaginary part of the complex number and a second twiddle factor or subtracts the second twiddle factor from the imaginary part of the complex number according to a second signal; a first multiplier that multiplies the value obtained by the first adder/subtracter by a third twiddle factor and outputs the resulting value; a second multiplier that multiplies the value obtained by the second adder/subtracter by a fourth twiddle factor and outputs the resulting value; a multiplexer that selectively outputs the values output from the first and second multipliers as a real part output signal and an imaginary part output signal according to a third signal; and a controller that provides the first to third signals. According to the present invention, it is possible to achieve a complex multiplier having a simple hardware design.
US08161092B2
System and method for processing symbols in a communication system are disclosed and may include in a processor that receives symbols to be coded for transmission over a wireless medium, grouping elements of an input matrix across a second dimension of the input matrix to form groups of matrix elements while multiplying the input matrix and an input vector. The input vector may include the symbols to be coded for transmission over the wireless medium. The method may also include pre-computing possible permutations of partial results for each of the groups of matrix elements, and assigning the partial results from each of the groups of matrix elements to each of a corresponding index of a first dimension of the input matrix to form a matrix of assigned partial results.
US08161088B2
The invention relates to a pocket calculator for financial, mathematical calculation routines, comprising a keypad (11) comprising several input keys and function keys for the input of data, a memory which is used to memorise permanent data and volatile data, a processor which is used to carry out the financial, mathematical calculation routines and a display (12) which displays data. The keypad (11) comprises several function keys for a capital payment calculation routine, i.e. at least one first function key (P/YR) for the input and/or determination of periods per year, at least one second function key (N; x P/YR) for the input and/or determination of the total number of periods, a third function key (PV) for the input and/or determination of the start capital, a fourth function key (I/YR) for the input and/or determination of the rate of interest, a fifth function key (PMT) for the input and/or determination of rates per period and a sixth function key (FV) for the input and/or determination of the end capital. After the input of the data corresponding to a few of said function keys, the data of a non-used function key can be determined by the capital payment calculation routine. Also, the keypad (11) comprises additional function keys, that is, for the input and/or determination of data for a dynamised capital payment calculation routine.
US08161083B1
Described are techniques for performing data storage system management of a data storage system. An active element manager component is provided that performs data storage system management operations. Using the active element management component, context information is collected. User relevant information is received by the active element manager component. The user relevant information includes information about a virtual user community relevant to a first user identifier. For an active element management session having the first user identifier, the user relevant information is displayed via a user interface. The user interface provides for display a first portion of the user relevant information about the virtual user community and a first connection to the external environment. Upon selection of the first portion, the active element manager component connects to a target location associated with the virtual user community and provides the context information to the external environment.
US08161073B2
The invention disclosed herein is a context-driven search method comprising three main steps: having a user provide an input phrase that is used to search a collection of language-based information sources; identifying sets of substantially-equivalent expanded phrases that are relevant to the input phrase, wherein these expanded phrases appear in the collection of language-based information sources; and providing the user with set-specific summary information concerning some, or all, of these sets of substantially-equivalent expanded phrases. This innovative context-driven method provides search results that are driven, consolidated, and summarized by phrase context, so that users no longer have to wade through pages of results to pick out those entries that relate to the context in which they are interested.
US08161071B2
Systems and methods for providing audio asset information using an audio asset information storage system are provided. The storage system includes a data store containing video program information associated with a video program that embeds the known audio asset. The storage system receives a number of requests to identify the known audio asset and stores an indication of each request within the data store. The storage system provides at least a portion of audio asset information associated with the known audio asset to user equipment.
US08161069B1
Disclosed are embodiments of systems and methods that allow for the robust, flexible, and efficient sharing of content. In embodiments, content items may be associated with metadata, third parties may be associated with metadata, and sharing with the third party may be based upon comparisons of the metadata associated with the content items and the metadata associated with the third parties.
US08161068B2
An access control system and method is disclosed. The access control system and method includes a terminal and a server. The terminal determines whether to allow access to a requested website and generates a request to the server to download information from the requested website if the terminal determines to allow access. The server determines whether to allow the terminal access to the requested website and provides information from the requested website to the terminal. The server examines the request to determine whether or not the terminal has made a determination whether to allow access to the requested website. The terminal and server work in combination to determine whether to grant access to the requested website. And the server's determination whether to allow the terminal access is dependent on the server's determination of whether or not the terminal has made a determination whether to allow access to the requested website.
US08161056B2
In a music information database, music information where music pieces and impression words representing impressions of the music pieces and usable as search words when any of the music pieces is to be searched for is registered for a plurality of music pieces. Information collection section collects, from among various information being provided by information source sites, information usable as music-piece-related search words. Registration section registers the words usable as music-piece-related search words, collected by the information collection section, into the database in association with particular music pieces. In this way, it is possible to construct a music information database which permits a music information search therethrough using impression words representing impressions of a music piece, at low cost without taking much time and labor.
US08161048B2
A method for mapping relationships in a database results in a cluster graph. A representative sample of records in each of a plurality of tables in the database is analyzed for nearest neighbor join edges instantiated by the record. Records with corresponding nearest neighbor join edges are grouped into clusters. Cluster pairs which share a join relationship between two tables are identified. A weighting may be applied to cluster pairs based on the number of records for the cluster pair. Meaningful cluster pairs above a weighted threshold may be ordered according to table and displayed as a cluster graph. Analyses of the cluster graph may reveal important characteristics of the database.
US08161041B1
One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that automatically generates synonyms for words from documents. During operation, this system determines co-occurrence frequencies for pairs of words in the documents. The system also determines closeness scores for pairs of words in the documents, wherein a closeness score indicates whether a pair of words are located so close to each other that the words are likely to occur in the same sentence or phrase. Finally, the system determines whether pairs of words are synonyms based on the determined co-occurrence frequencies and the determined closeness scores. While making this determination, the system can additionally consider correlations between words in a title or an anchor of a document and words in the document as well as word-form scores for pairs of words in the documents.
US08161036B2
Technologies are described herein for providing a more efficient approach to ranking search results. One method reduces an amount of ranking data analyzed at query time. In the method, a term is selected, at index time, from a master index. The term corresponds to a number of documents greater than a threshold. A set of documents that includes the term is selected based on the master index. A rank is determined for each document in the set of documents that contains the term. Each document in the set of documents that contains the term is assigned to a high ranking index or a low ranking index based on the simple rank.
US08161034B2
Systems and articles of manufacture for query building with selectability of aggregation operations and grouping. Abstract queries are composed on the basis of a data abstraction model abstractly describing data in the database. The abstract queries may include result criterions and aggregation operations to be performed with respect to the result criterions for generating aggregation information. An object is generated containing query entities and allowing a user to selectively (i) generate a first executable query corresponding to the abstract query inclusive of the aggregation operation and aggregation logic; and (ii) generate a second executable query corresponding to the abstract query exclusive of the aggregation operation and aggregation logic.
US08161031B2
A method of sorting and displaying data on a portable electronic device includes: determining geographical coordinates of the portable electronic device, providing search criteria to the portable electronic device, performing a search in a database based on the search criteria resulting in a list of database records, determining a search area of the portable electronic device and displaying selected records from the list of database records on a display screen of the portable electronic device. Each of the selected records is located within a search radius, which originates at the geographical coordinates of the portable electronic device, and within the search area, which is determined based on a pointing direction of the portable electronic device.
US08161024B2
Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for selection of rows and values from indexes with updates. In general, rows of an index may be associated with validity flags that indicate whether a row has been updated with an update inserted in a delta index; one scheme for value identifiers may be used for an index and another scheme for one or more delta indexes where all of the indexes are, to at least some extent, compressed according to dictionary-based compression; and multiple delta indexes may be used in alternation such that one delta index may accept updates while another is being updated. The delta indexes may also have validity flags and all updates, such as modifications of values, deletion of records, and inserting of new records may be handled as updates accepted by one or more delta indexes.
US08161018B2
Under control of a first agent, a resource controlled by a second agent is locked with a first operation identifier. Under control of the second agent: a request is received to lock the resource controlled by the second agent with a second operation identifier for a client request for a client application, wherein the resource is already locked with the first operation identifier; it is determined whether the first operation identifier and the second operation identifier are determined to be a same identifier; if it is determined that the first operation identifier and the second operation identifier are the same identifier, the request is responded to with an indication that the resource is locked with the same operation identifier; and, if it is determined that the first operation identifier and the second operation identifier are not the same identifier, the lock request is denied.
US08161008B2
An information processing apparatus includes a remote copying processing part 214 copying, at predetermined time intervals, difference data of a D-VOL 72 onto a different D-VOL 72 via a communication interface; and a failover processing part 215 acquiring the number of other auxiliary volumes 74 provided to be added to the different D-VOL 72 as a new D-VOL 72 when the copying of the difference data of the D-VOL 72 onto the different D-VOL 72 is complete, comparing the number of other auxiliary volumes 74 with the number of auxiliary volumes 74 included in itself, and performing a failover process of switching a function of a copy source of a data copying process by the data copying processing part to a function of a copy destination thereof when the number of other auxiliary volumes 74 is larger than the number of that in itself by a predetermined value or more.
US08161005B1
A method, article of manufacture, and apparatus for tracking a plurality of objects being stored are disclosed. In an embodiment, this comprises computing the hash value of the name of each object being stored, setting the corresponding bits in a bitmap, and storing the bitmap as a hint in an index. The size of the bitmap is determined by the space available for storing the hint, and the range of hash values is determined by the size of the bitmap. The range may be determined by choosing a prime number smaller than the space available for storing the bitmap. Either the hint or the longest pathname containing the objects can be stored, and this may be selected based on the application.
US08161000B2
A method, apparatus and program product is provided for accessing data in an abstract data store. In response to receiving a key value, an object is created by converting the key value into a key tuple. A value tuple is requested from the abstract data store corresponding to the key tuple. The key tuple and value tuple are converted to the object by a projector, which then stores the object on an object graph. An object is saved to the abstract data store by persisting the object onto the object graph. The object is detected on the object graph by the projector. In response to detecting the object, the object is converted to a key tuple and a value tuple by the projector. The object graph is then synchronized with the abstract data store by pushing the key and value tuples to the abstract data store.
US08160997B1
A system, method and computer program product are provided for managing aging data in a database. In use, data, or a dimension in a dimension table is identified in a database. Further, an attribute is stored in association with the data, or the dimension. To this end, at least a portion of the data or the dimension is removed from the database, utilizing the attribute.
US08160992B2
A system and method of selecting a package model may include maintaining a data structure of a plurality of package models. Each package model may have a plurality of package model attributes including at least a size and a style. A user input may be received that is descriptive of a desired package capability. The user input may be analyzed using a semantic reasoner to determine one or more desired attributes. One or more package models may be automatically selected by accessing the data structure wherein, for each selected package model, each desired attribute satisfies the corresponding package model attribute. The one or more selected package models may be presented.
US08160989B1
A method and apparatus for efficient token matching using complex rules. In one embodiment, the method and apparatus comprises searching a token stream to determine an earliest, narrowest token match range within a token stream.
US08160988B1
A decision making system, method and computer program product are provided. Initially, a plurality of attributes is defined. Thereafter, first information regarding the attributes is received from a receiving business. Second information is then received regarding proposed products or services in terms of the attributes. Such second information is received from a supplying business. In use, a decision process is executed based on the first information and the second information.
US08160987B2
An estimating device includes: a predictive computing unit configured to estimate, based on an evaluation matrix made up of an evaluation value indicating an evaluation as to each of multiple evaluation targets for each of multiple users, and an estimated expression for estimating the evaluation value by computation employing the evaluation matrix, the evaluation value of the evaluation target which has not been subjected to an evaluation by the user, and obtain a predictive evaluation value which is the estimated evaluation value; and a linear combining unit configured to subject a plurality of the predictive evaluations obtained by employing a plurality of the estimated expressions to linear combination by employing a linear combination coefficient, thereby obtaining a final estimation result of an evaluation as to the evaluation target which has not been subjected to the evaluation by the user.
US08160973B2
A technique for producing constructed fares that include an arbitrary added to a published fare is described. The techniques determine interior cities that appear with gateway cities in arbitraries for the airline and searches for gateway cities corresponding to the determined interior cities appearing in the arbitraries. The technique applies an arbitrary corresponding to one of the interior cities to a published fare involving one of the gateway cities to produce the constructed fare.
US08160969B2
A system for ordering consumables includes a peripheral device that utilizes at least one consumable, an entitlement system established between a user of the peripheral device and a supplier of at least one consumable, wherein the user pre-purchases a quantity of at least one consumable from the supplier for subsequent delivery on an as-needed basis and the peripheral device being adapted to communicate with the supplier to request delivery of at least one consumable pursuant to the entitlement system.
US08160966B2
Digital cash token protocols employ two pairs of private and public keys. Each public key is certified separately and the protocols do not use any blind signature schemes. As a result, the digital cash token protocols provide strong protection of user privacy by using two certified public keys instead of a blind signature. One pair of certified keys consists of one master user private key and one master user public key. A second pair of certified keys consists of one pseudonym user private key and one pseudonym user public key. The use of a master key pair and a pseudonym key pair circumvents the need for blind signatures. As a result, the proposed protocols do not require blind signatures and do not add additional overhead and security requirements necessitated by conventional blind signature schemes. The protocols use public key protocols and digital signatures and symmetric key protocols, which may be readily implemented in standard information security based systems based on cryptographic constructs. In addition, the protocols may be deployed in mobile, off-line, and on-line settings.
US08160961B1
To be able to customize subscriber charging in a telecommunications system, at least two different kinds of tariff models (TM) are defined, each model containing a tariff scheme defining how to charge a call. The tariff model to be used with a subscriber is directly or indirectly indicated in subscriber information (SI).
US08160953B2
A method of managing trading orders is provided. The method includes receiving a request to place a first order to trade a first product, the request being made using an account having one or more current balances. The method further includes determining a risk value for the first order based at least in part on the first product. The method further includes determining whether to approve the first order based at least in part on the risk value determined for the first order and one or more of the current balances for the account, and if the first order is approved, placing the first order.
US08160945B2
A system and method for enhancing financial institution revenue through acceleration of debit processing is provided. The method includes modeling the processing of account debit transactions, identifying ways to accelerate the processing of the account debit transactions and accelerating the account debit transactions. In a further embodiment, account debit transaction processing is accelerated from beginning on what has traditionally been referred to as Day 0 to beginning on some day before Day 0.
US08160943B2
Systems and methods to verify and process requests received via social networking websites. In one aspect, a system includes a data storage facility to store data associated with a first phone number; and an interchange coupled with the data storage facility. The interchange includes a common format processor and a plurality of converters to interface with a plurality of controllers of mobile communications. The converters communicate with the controllers in different formats and with the common format processor in a common format. The common format processor receives a request from a first user via a social networking website, identifies a first phone number of the first user and a second phone number of a second user, based on the social networking website, and uses the converters to communicate with at least one of the mobile phones at the first and second phone numbers to confirm and/or approve the request.
US08160940B2
Among other disclosed subject matter, a computer-implemented method for making an availability determination regarding a requested ware includes identifying a first request to provide a quantity of a ware at a first date. The method includes recording, in response to the first request, a second request for a critical part of the ware, the second request to be satisfied at a second date selected using the first date. The method includes determining a confirmation date for the critical part based on the second request. The method includes generating a confirmation for the first request using the confirmation date.
US08160938B2
Embodiments relate to systems and methods for automatic bid solicitation during a transaction process, in which a user's checkout basket is automatically transmitted to a set of vendors for potential bids based on the user's selected items. The user can select products or services for purchase from an original Web site or vendor. Upon receipt of those selections, a transaction server can identify vendors who wish to receive notification of a pending purchase of particular items. The set of selections can be transmitted to participating vendors to determine a bid on the same or related goods or services. A vendor may wish, for example, to bid to offer after-market support or supplies for a printer or other pending hardware purchase. The user can view the additional bid items in a bid dialog, make selections from those options, and incorporate options of their choosing in the finalized transaction.
US08160935B2
A computer-implemented service acts as an intermediary between merchant sites and users thereof, and enables the users to purchase items on the merchant sites without having to create accounts with such sites. A user may invoke the service from a web page of a merchant site, and complete a purchase transaction, without having to browse away from the merchant site. The service may either forward the user's payment information to the merchant's system to enable the merchant to charge the customer, or may charge the user on behalf of the merchant. In some implementations, the service enables users to make single-action purchases from the merchant sites.
US08160925B2
A system is described for generating smart advertisements based on a dynamic file and a configuration file over a network. The smart advertisements may adapt to a specific user profile information and available advertising campaign information. The system may select a deal associated with a smart advertisement campaign based on user profile data and create a dynamic file containing specific information related to the deal. The configuration file may contain advertiser specific graphical information to create a tailored and uniform look and feel for each smart advertisement generated for a particular advertiser. The system may select an appropriate graphical template relating to the smart advertisement campaign and create the smart advertisement by applying the dynamic file and the configuration file to the graphical template to create an advertisement tailored to both the user and the advertiser.
US08160924B2
Embodiments of the invention provide a fraud prevention method for a pay-per-click data processing system. The method can include receiving a click through for a link in a host site which references a marketed site. The method also can include identifying a link address for the link in the click through. The method yet further can include comparing the identified link address to a modified link address recorded for an actual link address for the marketed site. Finally, the method can include quashing the click through if the identified link address is not the modified link address. Conversely, the method can include redirecting the click through to the marketed site if the identified link address is the modified link address.
US08160914B1
A session quality system collects and evaluates data from multiple user world wide web (“web”) product selection sessions and correlates the collected data with actual product purchases. The system assembles the data into a set of session profiles and assigns a score to each profile that represents a relative likelihood of purchasing the product. The system matches session data collected from future product selection sessions with a master profile. A weighted average of scores based on matched master profiles provides useful product demand information. Furthermore, the system can determine product demand with varying ranges of resolution. For example, the system can capture specific features of each product, such as color, audio system selections, and wheel types. Since these features can be common across multiple products, manufactures can expand their use of the high resolution product demand information.
US08160913B2
The present invention discloses methods and tools for managing requirements, solutions, and deployments of a project. The invention provides for the creation of a portfolio of data pertaining to requirements, solutions, and deployments for the project. The relationships and dependencies between the data are mapped, and the portfolio of data and the mapping of the data are displayed in a graphical format. The portfolio of data can be queried to determine the relationships and dependencies between the data.
US08160907B2
Systems and methods for managing a virtual bank of repair facility credits are disclosed. Various operations for adding and subtracting credits from a repair facility virtual bank account are disclosed. Adjustments to credit totals can be based on repair facility performance with regard to an individual vehicle repair or a plurality of vehicle repairs.
US08160905B2
A method for repricing a reimbursement claim under at least one contract is provided herein. The method includes converting each contract into a series of contractual terms, where each contractual terms contains qualification codes, calculation codes and priority notes. The method then converts a claim into a series of claim lines, containing claim codes, unit numbers and corresponding charges for the claim codes. The method then begins to compare comparing each claim code, of the claim, against each qualification code, of each contractual term, of a contract and when a qualification code, of a contractual term, is satisfied by a claim code, of a claim line, the method identifies the contractual term as a matching contractual term associated to the claim line. Upon identifying all matching contractual terms, either to the claim line or the entire claim, the method will determine any priority conditions associated to the matching contractual terms, and eliminate any matching contractual terms that are excluded by the priority conditions. The method then calculates the reimbursement amount for the claim by determining the reimbursement charges for the non-excluded matching contractual terms. The method may then determine and make any adjustments depending upon any discount terms for the entire reimbursement amount.
US08160899B2
The present invention relates to an electronic records management system. More specifically, the present invention is a comprehensive knowledge based clinical records management solution that encompasses the need for accurate records, while reducing the time and effort required to enter complete and accurate information.
US08160897B1
A shared medical savings system and method are provided that allow a patient to participate in the savings generated by selecting to have a medical procedure performed overseas. The system has one or more computing devices, a link that is capable of connecting the one or more computing devices to a medical shared savings unit that is capable of interacting with the computing devices. An employer uses the computing device to elect to participate in a medical savings plan using a Health Reimbursement Account, a patient using the computing device to select an overseas medical procedure that is part of the medical savings plan so that the savings for the overseas medical procedure is divided between the employer and the patient utilizing a medical savings plan.
US08160895B2
User interfaces for proactive and interactive clinical decision support events are provided. When a clinical decision support event is initiated for a patient, relevant stored clinical information associated with the patient is accessed. A user interface is generated using the stored clinical information. A clinician may interact with the user interface by providing user-provided clinical information that may add to and/or modify the stored clinical information in the user interface. Clinical advice is provided via the user interface based on the stored clinical information and the user-provided clinical information.
US08160889B2
A bandwidth extension system extends the bandwidth of an acoustic signal. By shifting a portion of the signal by a frequency value, the system generates an upper bandwidth extension signal. An extended bandwidth acoustic signal may be generated from the acoustic signal, the upper bandwidth extension signal, and/or a lower bandwidth extension signal.
US08160881B2
Pronunciation generation may be provided. First, a pronunciation interface may be provided. The pronunciation interface may be configured to display a word and a plurality of alternatives corresponding to a one of a plurality of parts of the word. The plurality of parts may comprise phonemes or syllables of the word. Next, pronunciation data may be received through the pronunciation interface. The pronunciation data may indicate one of the plurality of alternatives. Then a pronunciation of the word may be generated based upon the received pronunciation data. The pronunciation may correspond to the indicated one of the plurality of alternatives. In addition, the pronunciation data may indicate which one of the plurality of parts of the word is stressed. This stress indication may be received in response to a user sliding a user selectable element to indicate which one of the plurality of parts of the word is stressed.
US08160880B2
Techniques for operating a reading machine are disclosed. The techniques include forming an N-dimensional features vector based on features of an image, the features corresponding to characteristics of at least one object depicted in the image, representing the features vector as a point in n-dimensional space, where n corresponds to N, the number of features in the features vector and comparing the point in n-dimensional space to a centroid that represents a cluster of points in the n-dimensional space corresponding to a class of objects to determine whether the point belongs in the class of objects corresponding to the centroid.
US08160877B1
A method for real-time speaker recognition including obtaining speech data of a speaker, extracting, using a processor of a computer, a coarse feature of the speaker from the speech data, identifying the speaker as belonging to a pre-determined speaker cluster based on the coarse feature of the speaker, extracting, using the processor of the computer, a plurality of Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) and a plurality of Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) components from the speech data, determining a biometric signature of the speaker based on the plurality of MFCC and the plurality of GMM components, and determining in real time, using the processor of the computer, an identity of the speaker by comparing the biometric signature of the speaker to one of a plurality of biometric signature libraries associated with the pre-determined speaker cluster.
US08160868B2
A scalable decoder capable of avoiding deterioration in subjective quality of a listener. The scalable decoder for decoding core layer encoding data and extension layer encoding data including an extension layer gain coefficient, wherein a voice analysis section detects variation in power of a core layer decoding voice signal being obtained from the core layer encoding data, a gain attenuation rate calculating section (140) sets the attenuation intensity variable depending on variation in power, and a gain attenuation section (143) attenuates the extension layer gain coefficient in a second period preceding a first period according to a set attenuation intensity when extension layer encoding data in the first period is missing, thus interpolating the extension layer gain coefficient in the first period.
US08160862B1
Method and apparatus for controlling power in an emulation system is described. In one example, power is controlled in a processor-based emulation system coupled to a host computer. A logic design is processed to identify unused resources in the emulation system during an emulation cycle. Power of the unused resources is controlled during emulation of a design under verification corresponding to the logic design by the emulation system. The resources may be identified as being unused during one or more steps of the emulation cycle. The power of the unused resources may be controlled by at least one of: powering down one or more of the unused resources; disabling one or more of the unused resources; freezing inputs to one or more of the unused resources; or setting inputs to one or more of the unused resources to a constant state. In this manner, power consumption of the emulation system is reduced.
US08160856B2
Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that profiles a serial simulation of a circuit to estimate the performance of a parallel simulation of the circuit. During operation, the system profiles execution of module instances during a serial simulation of the circuit, wherein each module instance includes code which simulates signal propagation through a corresponding circuit module. Next, the system uses execution times for the module instances obtained from the serial simulation to estimate the performance of a parallel simulation of the circuit.
US08160851B2
A spray injection analysis and nozzle configuration system is described having a user input unit that collects spray system input parameters and relays the collected parameters to a fluid performance matching unit and/or problem geometry unit for subsequent processing. The user inputs basic system parameters, including the desired spray fluid characteristics, to obtain suggested system configuration, including spray nozzle types and quantities. Accuracy of suggested spray nozzle type and configuration is increased via approximating the viscosity and/or surface tension parameters of the desired spray fluid with that of collected performance data. When a user already knows the desired spray nozzle type and associated system parameters, the user input unit routes this information to the problem geometry unit for creation of a problem geometry file, including calculation of the drop size distribution and spray velocity, and performance modeling via the fluid modeling unit.
US08160846B2
The method of modeling phase changes due to laser pulse heating utilizes energy equations and a discretizing numerical method to model temperature variation and cavity depth in a substrate material due to laser heating. Both constant and temperature-dependent thermal properties cases are considered.
US08160842B2
A collection of dwelling unit module designs is created from which multi-family dwelling buildings or the multi-family portion of a mixed-use building may be designed. The module designs each fit onto uniform grid intervals defining a structural support system and fitting a parking layout. A module design may include an individual unit or a stack of units. A graphical user interface to a computer system accommodates defining an outline for the building and filling the outline with dwelling unit modules from the collection. The dwelling unit module designs may be designed and perfected in a manner independent of and in advance of any specific project and project schedule.
US08160841B2
Systems, methods, and computer-storage media are provided that allow data from different sources and aspects of bridge design and construction to be merged into a common bridge information model. The bridge information model may include geometric, structural, survey, and construction information associated with a bridge-development project. The bridge information model may be stored as data objects in a relational data structure. Each data object may represent a bridge structure element and include metadata and attributes describing the bridge structure element.
US08160832B2
An apparatus and methods for identifying a defect and/or an operating characteristic of a system being monitored (and/or one or more of the system's components) are described. In an embodiment, orthogonally related data monitored by two or more detectors may be fused to determine whether a component of a system is defective and/or malfunctioning. Additionally or alternatively, data from a first detector may be determined to be accurate using non-orthogonally related data outputted by a second detector. Both types of determinations may be made with minimal or no false indications, which lowers the cost of operating the system being monitored. Embodiments of the invention may also be configured to forecast and/or prevent accidents and/or damage to the system being monitored by predicting whether a defect and/or a malfunction will occur.
US08160831B1
A gyroscope monitoring system operates with an antenna system that has a gyroscope that controls the position of multiple antennas. The monitoring system receives data indicating reference signal strengths and test signal strengths for the antennas. The monitoring system determines differences between the reference signal strengths and the test signal strengths. The monitoring system processes the differences to determine if the gyroscope has lost reference point accuracy, and if so, then the monitoring system generates an indication that the gyroscope has lost reference point accuracy. In some examples, the monitoring system also determines reference point offsets for the gyroscope and provides the offsets to the gyroscope for use in motion measurements.
US08160822B2
An apparatus for measuring optimum water-quality and informing quality of water 100 measures an amount of impurities of water, keeps to renew an optimum value by a lowest amount of the impurities until the present use, compares the optimum value with the present amount of the impurities measured in the water and informs the result.
US08160821B2
A method of supporting a diagnosis of an effect of a treatment by using anthracycline anticancer drugs is disclosed. The method provides a new value for judging an effect, a judgment score, which is calculated based on expression levels and activity values of two cyclin dependent kinases (CDKs). The effect of the treatment by using anthracycline anticancer drugs is judged by comparing the judgment score with a predetermined threshold level.
US08160817B2
A method for automatically determining the resistance of the respiratory system of a spontaneously breathing intubated patient. The method includes measuring flow (V′) and airway pressure (Paw)) as a function of time; determining the airway pressure at the end of the occlusion period as end of occlusion airway pressure Paw(tc)=Poccl; analyzing a time 5 dependence of the flow starting at the end of the occlusion period to determine a transition time td at which the slope of the flow changes from a first high value to a second lower value; determining the flow at the transition time as transition time flow V′(td)=V′peak and determining the airway pressure at the transition time as transition time pressure Paw(td); and calculating the resistance on the basis of the ratio of an estimated driving pressure at the transition time Pdrv(td) and the transition time flow V′peak.
US08160816B2
According to a vehicular behavior determination device (100) of the present invention, an angular velocity vector ω(k) which represents an angular velocity around each of 3 axes of a vehicle (1) can be determined in high accuracy on the basis of a temporal variation mode of a posture vector psti(k) (i=x, y, z) which represents a posture of the vehicle (1) in a global coordinate system in an attempt to curtail a manufacture cost and size of the vehicle (1) by avoiding the usage of a 3-axis gyro sensor which is relatively expensive in price and large in size.
US08160814B2
Map information distribution systems, methods, and programs that update map information based and distribute the update information, send update request information for requesting the update information of the map information, receive the update request information, and obtain the update information corresponding to the received update request information. The systems, methods, and programs obtain updated content corresponding to the obtained update information, assign a score to the updated content based on factor information corresponding to the obtained updated content, assign an order of priority to the respective updated content based on the scores assigned to the respective updated content, distribute the update information and the prioritized updated content, update the map information based on the received update information, and notify a user of the received updated content based on the order of priority assigned to the updated content.
US08160809B2
A method is provided for automatically controlling a first vehicle (follower vehicle) that is to follow a second vehicle (leader vehicle) in a desired manner with respect to movement of the second vehicle. In the follower vehicle, bearing and acceleration control inputs are generated based on data representing bearing and acceleration control inputs made at the leader vehicle and a position of the follower vehicle relative to the leader vehicle so as to mimic in the follower vehicle the bearing and acceleration control inputs made in the leader vehicle. Adjustments may be made to the control inputs applied in the follower vehicle based on deviation between the velocity of the follower vehicle and velocity of the leader velocity, and on deviation between estimated (actual) follow distance and lateral offset and target follow distance and lateral offset between the follower vehicle and the leader vehicle.
US08160807B2
In information processing device or the like is provided to output a suitable form of information from a view point of user's non-feeling of trouble. In the information processing system, whether a user issues an output instruction or not is confirmed only with respect to information that is not extracted out of information stored in a first storing unit (211) and information that is not output out of information stored in a second storing unit (212) and the importance of which is not less than the standard value. Thus, it is avoidable for a user to coerce an output instruction or non-output instruction for information that is less important than the standard value even in the case that the information has been distributed or broadcasted from a distributing information server (100) and has been output or non-output information.
US08160804B2
A system and method for controlling an internal combustion engine of a vehicle during an automatic shutdown process, in particular to cool the engine to a predetermined safe shutdown temperature, includes the steps of determining that vehicle-idle conditions exist and whether an engine-associated temperature exceeds a predetermined first threshold temperature value, for which a cooling fan is operated to cool the engine, or higher second threshold temperature, for which at least one of the cooling fan and a coolant pump is operated above idle levels and the engine speed may be increased above idle to cool the engine. Cooling fan and/or coolant pump operation is reduced when the engine temperature is determined to have decreased to below the first threshold temperature value. Finally, engine shutdown is completed when predetermined shutdown conditions are fulfilled.
US08160800B2
A method to operate a vehicle equipped with an electronic controlled internal combustion engine. The engine fan is used as a dynamic fan brake when the vehicle exceeds a minimum predetermined operating parameter for a predetermined period of time, and is disabled once the vehicle is operating within predetermined operating parameters.
US08160799B2
A turbine bypass control method includes: a high-pressure side pressure controller configured to output a first operation amount signal corresponding to a valve opening; a low-pressure side pressure controller configured to output a second operation amount signal corresponding to a valve opening; a high value selector configured to output as a high value operation amount signal, one of the first operation amount signal and the second operation amount signal which indicates a larger opening; a first signal switching unit configured to receive the high value operation amount signal and the second operation amount signal and output a first bypass valve operation amount signal; a second signal switching unit configured to receive the high value operation amount signal and the first operation amount signal and output a second bypass valve operation amount signal; and a rapid opening controller. Before start of trip of a turbine, the turbine is driven by steam which flows from the high-pressure side header to the low-pressure side header through the turbine.
US08160796B2
An engine control system comprises a driver axle torque request module (DATRM) and a driver axle torque security module (DATSM). The DATRM determines a pedal torque request based on minimum and maximum scaling torques and a torque scalar. The DATRM determines a raw driver torque request. The DATRM selectively shapes raw driver torque request into a final driver torque request. The DATRM converts the final driver torque request into a first axle torque request. The DATSM selectively diagnoses a fault in the first axle torque request based on a minimum engine torque, the minimum scaling torque, a first comparison of the final driver torque request and the redundant final driver torque request, and a second comparison of the first axle torque request and a redundant axle torque request.
US08160783B2
A digging control system for use with a machine having a work implement is disclosed. The digging control system may have a sensing system configured to generate a signal indicative of a loading of the work implement. The digging control system may also have a controller. The controller may be configured to determine the loading of the work implement based on the signal. Additionally, the controller may be configured to initiate tilting of the work implement in response to a determination that the loading of the work implement exceeds a threshold loading. The work implement may not be substantially lifted during this tilting of the work implement. The controller may also be configured to monitor a tilt angle of the work implement. Additionally, the controller may be configured to cease tilting of the work implement when the tilt angle of the work implement substantially equals a threshold tilt angle.
US08160781B2
A vehicular control system which includes a user parameter input module, an external parameter input module, a plurality of objective functions, a policy setting module, and a policy node. The user parameter input module Inputs a user parameter. The external parameter input module inputs an external parameter resulting from an outside environment. The objective functions are set for each control characteristic, respectively, so as to calculate an internal parameter of each control target from the user parameter and the external parameter. The policy setting module sets policies indicating a control index of the user for the objective functions respectively. The policy node weights the objective functions on the basis of the policies, adjusts the internal parameter in accordance with the policy so that the internal parameter is optimized among the objective functions, and issues a command to a control node corresponding to the internal parameter.
US08160774B2
An actuator system for determining a relative height differential between a housing of an actuator assembly and a body of the actuator assembly for a vehicle is provided. The vehicle has a suspension wherein the housing is coupled to a first portion of the suspension, and the body is coupled to a second portion of the suspension. The system comprises a sensor coupled to the inside of the housing, and a target coupled to the outside of the body, the sensor and the target cooperating to form a magnetic field that varies in a manner indicative of the distance therebetween.
US08160770B2
Disclosed is a method of detecting at least one oscillatory fault in at least one positional slaving chain for at least one airfoil of an aircraft. The method involves estimating a reference position of the airfoil in the absence of a fault, and calculating a residual value based on the difference between the estimated reference position and the actual position measured by at least one sensor. The calculated residual value is compared with at least one predetermined threshold value to determine the number of successive and alternating overshoots of the predetermined threshold value by the residual value, and oscillatory fault is determined based on the determined number.
US08160769B1
An analysis tool which extracts all the available parameter identifications (i.e. PIDS) from a vehicle's power train control module for diagnostic decisions. This is done by checking these PIDS and other information (e.g., calculated PIDS, Break Points, charts and algorithms) in three states; key on engine off, key on engine cranking, key on engine running. In all three modes the tool is comparing the live data from PIDS and voltage to the other information (e.g, Break Points). If any of this data are outside the programmed values a flag is assigned to the failure or control problem. The relationship between a particular PID and its associated preprogrammed value(s) may be indicated by a light. The depth of the problem (if any) is conveyed by the color of the light. Also included are tests/charts for fuel trim, engine volumetric efficiency, simulated injector, power, catalyst efficiency, and engine coolant range.
US08160762B2
An autonomous moving apparatus includes a vehicle provided with a drive unit; a cover that is attached to the vehicle such that the cover either entirely or partially covers side, upper, and lower surfaces of the vehicle, and the cover is arranged to be displaced with respect to the vehicle; a detection unit arranged to output detection signals in accordance with relative displacement generated between at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the vehicle and the cover facing at least one of the upper and lower surfaces; and a control unit arranged to control the drive unit in accordance with the detection signals output from the detection unit.
US08160759B2
A computer-implemented system and method for the processing and optimization of flight plans is disclosed. Information regarding a plurality of previous flight plans is received over a digital network and is stored in at least a database. The database preferably includes aviation fuel price information, aircraft performance information, and aviation weather information as well. Upon receiving a request, a server generates at least an optimized portion of a flight plan. In one form, historical flight plan data of others is automatically used to aid in the determination of the optimized route offered to the user for review, with the resulting final flight plan being electronically filed with the FAA upon approval. In a further form, the user may arrange fuel transactions at intermediate destinations with the service provider receiving a fee in exchange for facilitating the transaction.
US08160758B2
A method for radar aided positioning of an air vehicle for approach and landing is described. The method includes integrating global navigation satellite system (GNSS) data and inertial data to calculate a position of the air vehicle, scanning the environment forward of the air vehicle with a radar, and accessing a database of terrain features and their radar signatures. The method further includes matching features in the radar scan data to the radar signatures in the database to determine an actual position of the air vehicle and synthesizing glide slope and localizer signals for the approach and landing based on the determined actual position.
US08160755B2
A method and system is provided for displaying aircraft symbology. The method includes displaying (302, 502, 702, 902, 1002) a symbol (202) for a first aircraft in a predetermined format, processing (304, 504, 704, 904, 1004) data related to flight conditions of the first aircraft and a second aircraft, determining (306, 506, 706, 906, 1006) a format for the display of the second aircraft based on the processed data, and displaying (308, 508, 708, 908, 1008) a symbol (212, 214, 216, 412, 416, 612, 614, 616, 812, 814, 816) for the second aircraft in accordance with the determined format.
US08160754B2
A synthetic air jet cooling system includes a first component. A fan is in fluid communication with the first component. A synthetic air jet is located adjacent the first component. A thermal management engine is coupled to the first component, the fan, and the synthetic air jet. The thermal management engine is operable to receive a first component operating condition, compare the first component operating condition to a target operating condition, and increase a fan fluid flow rate from the fan and a synthetic air jet fluid flow rate from the synthetic air jet in order to reduce the difference between the first component operating condition the target operating condition. The thermal management engine increases the synthetic air jet fluid flow rate from the synthetic air jet to a predetermined synthetic air jet fluid flow rate prior to increasing the fan fluid flow rate from the fan in order to provide improvements in power consumption, airflow, and acoustics.
US08160745B2
A method for controlling a robot having at least one visual sensor. A target for a motion of the robot is defined. A motion control signal adapted for the robot reaching the target is calculated. A collision avoidance control signal based on the closest points of segments of the robot and a virtual object between the visual sensing means and the target is calculated. The motion control signal and the collision avoidance control signal are weighted and combined. The weight of the motion control signal is higher when a calculated collision risk is lower. The motion of the robot is controlled according to the combined signal so that no segment of the robot enters the space defined by the virtual object.
US08160744B2
A contact shape computing apparatus for detecting contact between a plurality of three-dimensional solid models and computing a contact shape between two solid bodies in contact with each other includes the following elements: a collision detector operable to detect a collision or contact between the two solid bodies; a contact plane setting unit operable to define a contact plane that passes through a common region of the two solid bodies; a contact problem solving unit operable to individually solve contact states of the solid bodies with the contact plane as half-contact problems; and a contact shape computing unit operable to compute the contact shape between the two solid bodies by uniting solutions of the half-contact problems for the associated solid bodies, the solutions being obtained by the contact problem solving unit.
US08160729B2
An arrangement for use in a control system within a building includes a plurality of sensor microsystems (12, 406, 407, 408) configured to obtain environmental information regarding a plurality of areas in a building and a processing circuit (18, 318, 412, 416). The processing circuit is operable to obtain data representative of the environmental information regarding the plurality of areas in the building under a first set of operating parameter values. The processing circuit (18, 318, 412, 416) is further operable to change an operating parameter and obtain data representative of the environmental information regarding the plurality of areas under the changed set of operating parameter values. The processing circuit (18, 318, 412, 416) is also operable to store the data representative of the environmental information under the changed operating parameter values in a knowledge base. At a subsequent time, the processing circuit employs (18, 318, 412, 416) the knowledge base to adjust the operating parameter values.
US08160724B2
An information processing apparatus which is capable of executing applications includes first control means for controlling a system of the information processing apparatus and second control means for controlling the execution of the applications, and the second control means has state transition control means for defining states of application not dependent on the system and controlling transitions of the defined states and conversion means for converting a command into a format which can be recognized by the system when the command instructing a state transition to the state transition control means is issued.
US08160723B2
A bipolar electrode (1) that can be implanted is provided with at least two poles at its distal end, namely a cathode (4) and an anode (6) spaced apart therefrom. Further, an anchoring is provided at the distal end of the electrode (1), provided for example as a helical screw (5). The different poles are arranged on different shafts or tubes (3) and (7) displaceable in reference to each other, in which the exterior shaft or tube (7) first can be pushed over the anchor (5) in order to protect it during implantation. In the operational state, the poles are adjusted by a relative motion of the two shafts carrying them with regard to their relative positioning.
US08160721B2
A medical electrical lead comprises a flexible, elongate lead body extending along a longitudinal axis and having a proximal end and a distal end. A protective distal tip structure is disposed on the distal end of the lead body. The tip structure includes a plurality of compliant projections each extending distally from the distal end of the body in the direction of the longitudinal axis. The projections are configured to contact and bear against cardiac tissue when the lead is implanted, and are deformable under the action of an axially or radially directed force. The projections optionally include a coating over a substrate. The coating can include a hydrogel material and/or a pharmaceutical agent such as a steroid for reducing inflammation at the implantation site.
US08160715B2
An implantable fixation structure includes a c-shape bone fixation clip adapted to fit over and attach to a bony bridge element in the middle ear of a patient. A c-shape electrode fixation clip is adapted to fit over and attach to an electrode array element in the middle ear of the patient. A connecting bar has a first end connected to the bone fixation clip and a second end connected to the electrode fixation clip. A coupling clip is connected to the connecting bar between the first end and the second end and adapted to fit over and attach to a cochlear implant element and hold the cochlear implant element in a desired position relative to the middle ear of the patient.
US08160704B2
A telemetry system is presented for enabling radio-frequency (RF) communications between implantable medical devices and an external device in a manner which increases the effective range over which such communications may take place. Devices are configured to relay communications from one device to another.
US08160700B1
An exemplary method includes delivering a cardiac pacing therapy using an electrode configuration for left ventricular, single site pacing or left ventricular, multi-site pacing, measuring a series of interventricular conduction delays using the left ventricular pacing and right ventricular sensing (IVCD-LR), comparing the interventricular conduction delay values to a limit and, based on the comparison, deciding whether to change the electrode configuration for the left ventricular pacing. Other exemplary methods, devices, systems, etc., are also disclosed.
US08160694B2
Electrical medical equipment that includes a user operable primary adjustment mechanism containing two or fewer user-adjustable elements, and a controller adapted to control and alter at least one output parameter of the equipment, the controller connected and responding to input from said primary adjustment mechanism to alter said output parameter, the primary adjustment mechanism having at least four conditions; a first condition which the mechanism returns to without user input, a second condition, following manipulation of one of the elements from a first condition, a third condition, following manipulation of one of the elements from a first condition, and a fourth condition following manipulation of the same element manipulated to achieve the third condition to another position, wherein in each condition, the mechanism provides a distinct output as input to the controller, which responds to the input by: maintaining the output parameter at a previous level while the input indicates the mechanism is in the first condition, incrementing or gradually increasing the prevailing level of the output parameter while the input indicates the mechanism is in the second condition, decrementing or gradually decreasing the prevailing level of the output parameter while the input indicates the mechanism is in the third condition, and setting the level of the output parameter to zero when the input indicates the mechanism is in the fourth condition.
US08160692B2
Systems and methods for monitoring uterus contraction activity and progress of labor. The system of the subject invention can comprises (1) a plurality of sensors; (2) an amplifying/filtering means; (3) a computing means; and (4) a graphical user interface. Accurate clinical data, which can be extracted and provided to the user in real-time using the system of the invention, include without limitation, progress of labor, prediction and monitoring of preterm labor, and intrauterine pressure prediction. In a preferred embodiment, the system of the invention includes an intelligence means, such as a neural network system, to analyze and interpret clinical data for use in clinical diagnosis as well as delivery strategy.
US08160691B2
A method of measuring skin moisture content, the method including: measuring a differential rate of a skin impedance of a predetermined skin area of a user for a predetermined period of time; and determining that the skin area is a moist area when the differential rate of skin impedance is greater than or equal to a predetermined value for a predetermined period of time, and determining that the skin area is a dry area when the differential rate of skin impedance is less than the predetermined value for the predetermined period of time.
US08160690B2
Methods and systems for monitoring contact between a medical probe and tissue are provided. A medical probe is introduced into a patient adjacent the tissue. An electrical parameter, e.g., electrical admittance, is measured between a first electrode located on the medical probe and a second electrode remote from the first electrode. The electrical parameter is amplitude modulated in response to a physiological cycle of the patient. Contact between the medical probe and the tissue is detected based on the amplitude modulation of the measured electrical parameter.
US08160687B2
Methods, systems, and devices for signal analysis in an implanted cardiac monitoring and treatment device such as an implantable cardioverter defibrillator. In some examples, captured data including detected events is analyzed to identify likely overdetection of cardiac events. In some illustrative examples, when overdetection is identified, data may be modified to correct for overdetection, to reduce the impact of overdetection, or to ignore overdetected data. Several examples emphasize the use of morphology analysis using correlation to static templates and/or inter-event correlation analysis.
US08160685B2
The present application discloses an adaptive system and a method for detection of heartbeat peaks. The adaptive detection system for heartbeat peaks includes: means for detecting peaks of ventricular or atrial heartbeat signals; and means for determining heart conditions according to a detected peak interval. Heart beats can be detected at a low supply voltage, diseases can be determined according to the detected cardiogram signals, and treatment can be performed by diagnosis in the event of abnormality.
US08160682B2
One embodiment of the invention is a cardiac monitor having a housing; a plurality of electrodes within and extending from the housing; a state machine within the housing configured to digitialize and store in memory signals from the plurality of electrodes; a sealing surface and an adhesive on the sealing surface configured to form a watertight perimeter around the plurality of electrodes when the housing is affixed to a mammal. Another embodiment of the invention provides a continuous cardiac monitor having a housing; a surface on the housing adapted to be sealably engaged to a mammal; an adhesive on the surface that is adapted to remain affixed to the mammal for at least 7 days; at least two electrodes within the housing positioned to detect a cardiac information of the mammal while the surface is sealably engaged to the mammal; an electronic memory within the housing wherein, the electronic memory is sized to store at least 24 hours of continuous cardiac information; and wiring within the housing connecting the electronic memory to the electrodes.
US08160675B2
A respiratory marker (40, 140, 240, 340, 440) includes an elongated detectable portion (42, 342, 442) that is operatively coupled with respiration of an imaging subject such that the elongated detectable portion moves with the respiration. The elongated detectable portion is arranged to intersect images acquired by an imaging scanner (10) at different times and at different positions along a scanner axis (20), and is detectable as a marker feature in the images. A marker position finder (52, 54) is configured to determine positions of the marker features in the images.
US08160667B2
An optical fiber setting adequacy evaluation unit is disclosed for evaluating a setting adequacy on a body surface in an inspection area of irradiation use optical fibers. The evaluation unit can also be used for setting the accuracy of light receiving use optical fibers at both ends of respective measurement channels in an optical measurement apparatus for living body. The evaluation unit evaluates the setting adequacy on the body surface of a subject of the irradiation use optical fibers or of light receiving use optical fibers for the respective measurement channels. The evaluation is performed based on pulse wave intensities of the respective measurement channels calculated by a pulse wave calculation unit. The pulse wave calculation unit calculates intensities of the pulse wave due to heartbeats of a subject contained in hemoglobin signals of the respective measurement channels calculated by a hemoglobin signal calculation unit.
US08160665B2
A sensor is described for optically determining the concentration of an analyte in a body fluid. This sensor comprises a needle arrangement which has at least one hollow needle having a hollow space extending from the distal end to the proximal end, the distal end of which is suitable for lancing. The proximal end of the needle opens into a chamber in which liquid that enters through the distal end of the needle can be collected. A window which is at least partially permeable to infrared radiation is in direct contact with the chamber.
US08160664B1
An omni-directional antenna supporting simultaneous transmission/reception, from the same AP, on multiple frequencies, allowing each AP to communicate using each possible frequency. Each AP multiplexes its outgoing signals onto its transmitting antenna, and de-multiplexes its incoming signals from its receiving antenna. The transmitting and receiving antennae are each substantially located in each other's NULL zone (or one is in the NULL zone of the other). The AP can transmit/receive on many distinct frequencies without needing more antennae.
US08160646B2
Provided is an apparatus and method for allocating a preamble index of a Self-Configuration or Self-Configurable (SC) Base Station (BS) in a broadband wireless communication system. An SC BS apparatus in a broadband wireless communication system includes a detector, a controller, and a generator. The detector detects at least one preamble signal for preamble index allocation by using a signal received from at least one other BS. The controller requests information used by at least one other SC BS for preamble index allocation and allocates a preamble index for the SC BS by using the detection result of the preamble signal and the information received from the at least one other SC BS. The generator generates a preamble signal corresponding to the preamble index allocated by the controller.
US08160643B2
A radio accessory for a portable electronic device, such as a digital music player, includes a connector that allows the radio to use accessories designed to couple with the portable electronic device. In addition, the radio includes a pass through connector that allows the radio to couple to the portable electronic device and accessory at the same time such that signals are transferred from the accessory to the portable electronic device through the radio. The radio preferably has a power supply and audio output such that it can function as a stand alone device. The radio can be configured to receive AM, FM or satellite broadcasts. The accessory is preferably a speaker dock designed to receive the portable electronic device.
US08160637B2
A mobile terminal device includes an input unit, an input detection unit for detecting input information at a predetermined interval from starting to the end of the input reception, and an application control unit which allows the application to execute the process preliminarily allocated corresponding to the input information upon reception of the input information detected by the input detection unit. The application control unit allows the application to execute the preliminarily allocated process corresponding to the input information indicating the end of the input reception when the input information before elapse of the predetermined time is not received, and generates the signal indicating the end of the input reception for transmission to the input detection unit to finish input information detection.
US08160636B2
A semiconductor device is provided, which comprises a first circuit including a variable resistance element, a second circuit electrically connected to the first circuit, and an antenna circuit configured to supply power to the first circuit. A resistance value of the variable resistance element is changed in accordance with the power supplied from the antenna circuit, and the variable resistance element is electrically connected in series between the second circuit and the antenna circuit.
US08160633B2
A control section 100 measures a DPCH_RSCP and a DPCH-ISCP of every path, and calculates a DPCH_RSCP and a DPCH-ISCP for every wireless link. The control section 100 then calculates a DPCH_SIR for every wireless link, and calculates a difference in the DPCH_SIR between wireless links. In the case where the calculated difference in the DPCH_SIR is smaller than a preset threshold value of the DPCH_SIR difference, received TPC data are discarded, and the control section 100 does not execute transmitted power control based on the TPC data. On the other hand, in the case where the calculated difference in the DPCH_SIR is larger than the preset threshold value of the difference in the DPCH_SIR, the control section 100 carries out the transmitted power control based on the TPC data with the wireless link whose DPCH_SIR is larger.
US08160627B2
Provided are a system for establishing and managing a Push To Talk (PTT) over Cellular (PoC) session between PoC clients supporting various media types, a method thereof, and a User Equipment (UE) therefor. When a PoC client performing an Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) PoC multimedia call service supports a plurality of media types, and media types supported by PoC clients are not common, a PoC session can be established to support only media types set to be transmitted in a first response message after the session is established. In addition, a method of efficiently managing a session by updating the session when a newly supported media type is provided or when a recipient of an existing media type is changed is suggested.
US08160625B1
A method and system for qualifying and transmitting an invitation to a mobile phone number to receive digital communications is disclosed herein. A customer profile stored at a CRM database is analyzed and processed to determine if the data capable phone carrier and data capable communication device is associated with a phone number in the customer profile that has opted-in to receive digital communications such as for a mobile marketing campaign.
US08160624B2
A method for sending Short Message Service (SMS) messages includes receiving a request to generate a senderID, determining senderIDs based on a business name, and receiving a selected senderID from the senderIDs. The method further includes receiving a request to send an SMS message using the selected senderID, and sending a request to an SMS server to send the SMS message using the senderID.
US08160617B2
An apparatus is provided that includes circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus; circuitry configured receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, and wherein the connection point identification data is associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and circuitry configured for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data. This associating may be used to cross-check/validate the geographical location provided by the circuitry configured for location determination.
US08160613B2
A method and system for managing handover where a database that receives location information about a moving object includes information regarding which base station is used in a current radio link connection and which base stations were used from historic radio link connections. Using the base station radio link history of the object and an electronic map, a processor coupled to the memory of the database selects which physical path the moving object is using. Upon matching the object's path with a history of path routes on the list, the processor will apply an optimized handoff sequence to the moving object. The optimized route can be derived from an algorithm that processes previous historical data from moving objects traveling on the same route. Methods of providing the location of moving objects via location sensors may be used to provide the database with higher resolution information about a moving object's location on an electronic map and allow further enhancement of the handoff optimization. Generally, location data is used to quickly determine which route the moving object is using and more quickly assign an optimized handoff sequence. Historical data along known routes can include time and spatial information to be processed by the routing algorithm. The database may reside in a central location or within each moving object or a combination of both.
US08160612B2
An extended triggered location method and device is provided. The device includes the following: a location calculating unit to calculate location of the target terminal and determine the location information, and a third party location reporting unit to send the location information of the target terminal to the third party terminal periodically or only when the area triggered condition is sufficed. With the present invention, the third party terminal can obtain the location information of the target terminal periodically or receive the notice of the target terminal's entry into/exit from a target area, in accordance with the principles of periodical location or area trigger location. Thereby, the invention supplies new location service application and satisfies the subscriber's demand for different location service applications.
US08160609B2
A system and method of determining the location of a mobile station by determining the time of transmission of a signal by a mobile station and determining range rings at a plurality of reference stations receiving the transmitted signal, where the range rings represent the distance f the mobile station from the plurality of reference stations.
US08160595B2
In a base station apparatus for transmitting a L1/L2 control channel to a user apparatus to communicate with the user apparatus, a plurality of combinations of a modulation scheme and a channel coding scheme which include a plurality of types of coding rates are prepared. The user apparatus reports downlink feedback information. The base station apparatus includes: a unit configured to collect the downlink feedback information; a unit configured to calculate a statistic based on the collected feedback information; a unit configured to determine whether a cell covered by the base station apparatus is an isolated cell or a cellular cell based on the statistic; and a unit configured to set a combination of the modulation scheme and the channel coding rate to be applied to the L1/L2 control channel based on the determination result.
US08160594B2
A radio propagation path from a transmitting point to a receiving point is estimated accurately with a relatively small amount of calculation. A predetermined-size receiving area including the receiving point is set, radio propagation paths from the transmitting point to the receiving area is estimated by a ray launching method, object surfaces existing in the paths are extracted, and a radio propagation path from the transmitting point to the receiving point is estimated by an imaging method using only the extracted object surfaces.
US08160590B2
In an embodiment, a method for determining the type of a mobile radio base station is provided. The method may include receiving a synchronization message comprising a mobile radio base station identifier, and determining the type of a mobile radio base station using a previously signaled and stored piece of mobile radio base station type determining information indicating a rule as to how the type of a mobile radio base station out of a plurality of types of a mobile radio base station can be derived from a mobile radio base station identifier and the received mobile radio base station identifier.
US08160589B2
A base station equipment determines, based on a specified condition, whether or not a wireless terminal exists in the vicinity thereof, and then if it exists in the vicinity, the base station equipment transmits information indicating that the base station equipment is ready to communicate with the wireless terminal.
US08160581B2
A system for correcting or updating a mobile identification number in a cellular telephone portion of a telematics unit installed in a vehicle allows service providers to resolve duplicate entries. A wireless service provider stores a triplicate entry in their HLR for cellular telephones associated with a number of telematics unit. The triplicate entry includes a MDN, a MIN, and an ESN. If a telematics unit's triplicate entry is an invalid combination, resulting, e.g., in call failure, the system provides an efficient mechanism whereby the service provider can update the MIN of each cellular telephone in one or more telematics units to eliminate duplicate entries.
US08160578B2
A method of facilitating access to IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, services by non-IMS enabled terminals. The method comprises registering a non-IMS enabled terminal with a Home IMS gateway, and, in response to said registration, performing an IMS registration on behalf of said terminal between the Home IMS gateway and the IMS using information obtained from an ISIM application present at the Home IMS gateway.
US08160576B2
A method for estimating a precise position of a user device from signals from a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite includes receiving at least one carrier signal at a user device, each carrier signal being transmitted a distinct LEO satellite. The user device processes the carrier signals to obtain a first carrier phase information. The user device recalls an inertial position fix derived at an inertial reference unit. The user device derives a position of the user device based on the inertial position fix and the first carrier phase information.
US08160574B1
A wireless communication system for use in a process control environment includes a reference node adapted to determine geographic positions of at least some of the reference node, a base node, and a field node and determine RF power settings of transceivers attached to the reference node, the base node, and the field node based on the position of determined geographic positions. Additionally, the reference node is adapted to determine RF noise level at a plurality of locations within the process control environment at a plurality of times and to adjust the RF power settings based on the determined RF noise levels. The reference node may be implemented on a hand-held device.
US08160560B2
Systems, methods and interfaces are disclosed for managing communications associated with a mobile communication device. Mobile communication devices process environmental inputs and transmit mobile communication device context information to a communication management system. The context information may, for example, reflect the motion and/or geographic location of the mobile device, and may reflect the risk associated with using the device to handle a call or other communications session. The communication management system uses the context information, optionally in combination with communication device profiles, to determine how to manage incoming and/or ongoing calls or other communication sessions. Mobile device users may also be inhibited from initiating communication sessions.
US08160549B2
A method for social interacting, including using a portable messaging device for designating, from time to time, a plurality of friends, selecting a mood, sending one or more representations of the selected mood to each of the plurality of designated friends, further selecting an updated mood, and further sending one or more representations of the updated mood to each of the plurality of designated friends, to supersede the previously sent one or more representations of the mood. A user interface is also described and claimed.
US08160544B2
Methods and pre-paid platforms are provided to detect the occurrence of a refresh triggering event as specified by a refresh trigger rule and to then refresh the pre-paid account in accordance with a refresh completion rule. The refresh triggering event may be one or more of a variety of event types, such as depletion of a remaining usage to a pre-defined level or a target date and/or time for a refresh. The refresh completion rule may be one or more of a variety of actions to take, such as increasing the remaining usage by a default amount to complete the refresh or requesting authorization for a refresh by generating a message to an entity in control of the pre-paid account. The pre-paid platform may charge a monetary account for the amount of the refresh that is applied.
US08160541B2
A terminal apparatus for communicating with an information center via a network includes: a memory for storing current and new connection destination information when the apparatus receives the new connection destination information from the center; a first trial element for trying communication connection to the center based on the new connection destination information after the center switches from the current connection destination information to the new connection destination information; and a second trial element for trying communication connection to the center based on the current connection destination information when the first trial element fails to perform the communication connection. The memory maintains to store the current connection destination information until the first connection trial element succeeds to perform the communication connection.
US08160538B2
One method includes setting up an authenticated communication session between a mobile terminal and a first core data network. The method includes acquiring, at the first core data network, supplementary access data usable by the mobile terminal to set up a non-authenticated communication session with a second data network and then, transmitting the supplementary access data from the first core data network to the mobile terminal. The second data network is accessible to the mobile terminal.
US08160528B2
A device receives a signal and, prior to demodulating the signal determines whether carrier is present in the received signal based on the correlation depth of the received signal. The device determines a plurality of values for the received signal that indicate the amount of correlation in the received signal and detects the presence of the carrier in the received signal as a function of the plurality of values. The plurality of values can include autocorrelation values and prediction coefficients, wherein the autocorrelation values are estimated based on an autocorrelation function derived for the received signal, and the prediction coefficients are generated using a prediction model that is derived as a function of the autocorrelation values. The prediction coefficients can be summed to generate a decision statistic that is compared to a detection threshold to detect the presence of the carrier.
US08160514B2
Exemplary embodiments of the disclosure are directed to down-converting an RF signal of a transmitter to baseband, filtering the down-converted signal, and generating a composite signal based on the filtered down-converted signal and a transmission based-band signal.
US08160512B2
A searching apparatus, especially an avalanche transceiver, including a receiving unit (22) for receiving transmission signals for locating a transmitter and a transmitting unit (20) for transmitting transmission signals, wherein at least a first (10) and a second transmitting antenna (12) are associated with at least the transmitting unit (20), which are disposed in the searching apparatus oriented in different spatial directions, wherein only one of the transmitting antennas (10; 12) is in operation in the transmission mode, wherein the searching apparatus further includes: at least one position sensor (28) adapted to determine a spatial position of the searching apparatus and to provide a position signal on its output, which is correlated with the spatial position; and a switching device (16) coupled to the at least one position sensor (28) for supplying the position signal on the one hand and to the at least one first (10) and second transmitting antenna (12).
US08160509B2
A wireless communication device may be configured to transmit and receive data through a physical device, such as a cable. Relatively higher transmit radio frequency (RF) signals from the wireless communication device may be shifted to a relatively lower frequency, thereby enabling the relatively lower frequency signals to be carried by the physical device. Similarly, relatively lower frequency signals from the physical device may be shifted to relatively higher frequencies, thereby enabling the wireless communication device to receive the signals from the physical device. In one embodiment, the frequency of the RF signals may be between 2.3 and 2.7 GHz and the frequency of the relatively lower frequency shifted signals may be between 900 and 1100 MHz.
US08160503B2
A speed parameter or channel quality parameter are determined in a mobile device based on variation in frequency offset measurement. A higher variation in the frequency offset measurement reflects a poorer channel quality and a higher speed; a lower variation in the frequency offset measurement reflects a better channel quality and a lower speed. The parameter(s) may be fed back to the system and used, for example, to make adaptive modulation and coding decisions.
US08160502B2
The present invention provides a system for wide-range microwave communications over wireline networks. In an exemplary embodiment, a wide-range transceiver is made having pre-calibrated modular units including an IF radio processing card, an RF transmitter module, and an RF receiver module. Calibration factors are loaded into a memory (e.g., EEPROM) in each module during production. Certain additional calibration factors may also be loaded upon installation, such as a one time calibration for the type and length of cable connecting the RF unit to a remote SPU (signal processing unit). A processor in the RF unit is responsive to control signaling indicating a desired transmitter or receiver configuration (e.g., a particular frequency, bandwidth and modulation), to attenuate the signal in the transmitter/receiver path based on the predetermined calibration factors from the applicable modules. A method for calibrating the modules is also disclosed.
US08160495B2
A portable wireless communications subscriber audio and/or video player apparatus and system and method for selecting, requesting, downloading, and playing audio and/or video data content files from an Internet-based database server. The wireless link is preferably implemented in accordance with the WiFi protocol, which allows connectivity to the Internet by being in proximity with a local base station or WiFi hotspot (i.e., publicly available local wireless access hub connected to the Internet). The portable wireless communications subscriber audio and/or video player apparatus and system preferably include a security means for monitoring and blocking unauthorized use of the player apparatus and system. The player apparatus further preferably has the capability to communicate with other neighboring player apparatus for the purpose of exchanging content data files, playlists and personal messages.
US08160491B2
A method and system for GPS (Geographical Positioning System) synchronization of a femtocell, as defined in the application, in a wireless telecommunications network, the system including a Base Transceiver Station (a “sync-BTS”) for transmitting synchronization signals, a module for GPS synchronization coupled to the sync-BTS, at least one femtocell, and a processor in each femtocell for performing time and frequency synchronization on the sync-BTS over an air interface.
US08160490B2
An apparatus and method for controlling a mode transition of a mobile station (MS) in a relay station (RS) in a wireless communication system are provided, in which upon receipt of a mode transition request signal from at least one MS within a service area of the RS, the RS determines whether to approve the mode transition request, sets management information for the mode transition of the MS, if the mode transition request of the MS is approved, and transmits the management information to the MS.
US08160488B2
An image formation processing system is provided with an image formation portion, an adhesive applying portion which receives a plurality of sheets from the image formation portion, gathers the received sheets in the shape of a bundle to form a sheet bundle, and applies an adhesive to an end face of the sheet bundle, and a post-processing portion which receives a plurality of sheets from the image formation portion, gathers the received sheets in the shape of a bundle to form a sheet bundle, and performs predetermined post-processing on the sheet bundle, where the adhesive applying portion is disposed downstream of the image formation portion in the sheet transport, while the post-processing portion is disposed downstream of the adhesive applying portion in sheet transport.
US08160483B2
An image forming apparatus may include: a plurality of image bearing members; an exposure unit; a developing unit; a transfer unit including a plurality of transfer rollers and a plurality of erasers each disposed between the transfer rollers; and a fixing unit. The eraser may be disposed in a zone Z1 satisfying the following formula: D1≦Z1≦D−D3; D1=4.5 mm; D3=4.5 mm; and 9.0 mm
US08160481B2
A storage container includes a container body that stores a supplementary material and is detachably attached to an image forming apparatus; a discharge port that is provided at a bottom of the container body; two protrusions that protrude from the container body toward both sides; and an opening-closing member that is movably supported by a guide frame surrounding the discharge port, wherein a rearward movement of the opening-closing member is restricted by stoppers while the container body is mounted on the mounting unit, the protrusions come in contact with the stoppers and push the stoppers laterally to release the restriction of the opening-closing member while the container body is pulled out of the image forming apparatus, and a width, in an attaching/detaching direction of the container body, of one protrusion of the protrusions is smaller than that of the other protrusion.
US08160475B2
This involves a cart that can be used in changing a marking module in a xerographic color marking system. The cart has a lifting mechanism securely attached to its upper surface. When the marking module is to be changed and a new replacement module installed, the lifting mechanism is used to support the marking module during each of these procedures. Since the marking modules are relatively heavy (30-35 lbs.), to prevent accidental damage to the module, the cart and its attached lifting mechanism are conveniently used by the customer. The lifting mechanism is made up of an upper cradle, a bottom plate attached to the cart and a movable linkage. The module securely rests in the cradle in both removal and installing operations. It is not uncommon for a customer to want to change a color or colors in one or more modules. This cart and its attached lifting mechanism makes it relatively easy to accomplish this change.
US08160472B2
An image forming device having a frame, a door, and a movable image forming unit to be assembled in the frame when the door is open. Positioning of the image forming unit relative to the frame and a closing position of the door are maintainable when the door is closed. When the door is closed, a hook at the door side is engaged with a hook of a lock unit at the frame side. The lock unit is movable in association with the movement of the door to its closed position to move a pressure portion, so that a part of the image forming unit is pressed by the pressure portion for positioning.
US08160471B2
A developer supply container detachably mountable to an image forming apparatus includes a rotatable container body provided with a portion-to-be-engaged on an inner surface thereof; an opening for permitting discharging of the developer; a sealing portion for sealing the opening; an extended portion being displaceable toward a rotational axis of the container body; an engaging portion engageable with the portion-to-be-engaged; and a limiting portion to substantially hold the sealing portion in a sealing position by engagement between the engaging portion and the portion-to-be-engaged, and a non-limiting portion to permit the relative movement of the sealing portion by disengagement between the engaging portion and the portion-to-be-engaged.
US08160468B2
An image forming apparatus includes a storage area used as a work area of programs for implementing functions, the programs including a basic function program configured to implement a basic function and an extension function program configured to implement an extension function, wherein the entire storage area is used in the event that the basic function program is executed to implement a specified maximum function of the basic function; a detecting unit configured to detect a usage state of the storage area; a storage unit configured to store information indicating an allocation mode defining a method of allocating the work area to the programs; and an allocation unit configured to allocate the work area to each of the programs that is to be executed, according to the usage state of the storage area detected by the detecting unit and the allocation mode stored in the storage unit.
US08160459B2
An image forming apparatus includes an accumulating unit to accumulate a correspondence of tray classification information that represents a classification of sheet trays and tray identifiers including information for identifying the sheet trays, a determining unit to determine whether there are overlapping tray identifiers in the accumulating unit, the overlapping tray identifiers being tray identifiers that are common for same-tray classification information or different-tray classification information and a changing unit to, when the determining unit determines that there are overlapping tray identifiers, change the overlapping tray identifiers in the accumulating unit so that there are no overlapping tray identifiers.
US08160453B1
A method of protection switching between first and second transceivers where dispersion compensation is effected electrically in the transmitters. The method includes detecting, at the second transceiver, a signal failure of a signal transmitted from the first transceiver and, upon detecting the signal failure, signalling the first transceiver to change its compensation function. The signalling can be done by encoding overhead bits in a signal transmitted from the second to the first transceiver. Another method of protection switching includes both transceivers toggling alternate reception paths upon detecting a signal failure and changing their dispersion compensation function to that of their respective alternate path.
US08160450B2
The present invention provides a transceiver for optical transmission in which noise can be sufficiently suppressed and a method for the same using a simple configuration. The transceiver includes an optical transmitter module in which a low frequency obtained by boosting and filtering a power-source voltage is superimposed onto and LD drive current.
US08160449B2
A system including a device equipped with a reception section, a reception condition detection section and a control section. A partner device emits laser light and modulates the laser light in accordance with transfer subject information. Relative positions of the partner device and the device are adjusted to a communication-possible position, at which the laser light from the partner device is incident in a light reception region of the device. In this state, the reception section receives the transmission subject information from the partner device by detecting the incident laser light and demodulating the transmission subject information therefrom. The reception condition detection section detects a deterioration in a reception condition. If a deterioration in the reception condition is detected, the control section produces a warning or stops emissions of laser light from the partner device.
US08160448B2
An OLT transmits and receives a CMTS/CM apparatus control signal through an apparatus physical management interface which is physically identical to or different from a main signal interface (NNI) and processes the CMTS apparatus control signal by itself. When connection of a new ONU is detected by an ONU apparatus control signal, an IP address is allocated by using the CM apparatus control signal in a manner similar to the CM. The CM apparatus control signal regarding the ONU is transmitted and received by using the IP address and a mutual conversion is performed between the CM apparatus control signal and the ONU apparatus control signal. The ONU processes the ONU apparatus control signal in a manner similar to the ONU based on an ordinary PON standard.
US08160446B2
The present invention provides methods and systems to stabilize an optical network against nodal gain changes through two nested control loops for controlling node gain and node output power. The present invention includes two nested control-loops running at different update speeds including: an inner, faster, control-loop which sets the gains and losses within a node to achieve a node-gain target, and a node-gain target for the inner loop is set by an outer, slower, control loop that whose target is the node output power. Advantageously, the present invention reduces the problem of concatenated overshoot by minimizing the control-loop response to events that occur at other nodes.
US08160427B2
A program extraction engine 421 of an automatic recording module 42h extracts recommended programs, recording of which is recommended, out of programs scheduled to be broadcasted. A scheduling program 423 of the automatic recording module 42h does not store the recommended programs in the storage medium when a provisional free capacity of the storage medium does not exceed a first threshold or when a provisional total data amount exceeds a second threshold even if the provisional free capacity exceeds the first threshold.
US08160422B2
To effectively reproduce video depending on the performance of a reproducing apparatus. A controller 446 determines whether or not an entry of video is a beginning of a chapter of video or whether or not a scene change of the entry is important. In other words, the controller 446 determines whether or not an entry under evaluation corresponds to a time of a chapter of chapter scene change information 447 or whether or not the entry is an important scene change. If an entry under evaluation corresponds to a time of a chapter, the controller 446 sets priority_flag=3 and stores it to an output server 426. The present invention can be applied to a game device or the like that uses for example a DVD.
US08160421B2
Systems and methods for routing audio for audio-video recordings allow a user to record desired audio with captured video at the time the video is being captured. Audio from one or more sources may be routed to the video capture application and recorded with the video. In one or more examples, audio may be routed from another application, e.g., an audio playback application, running on the same device as the video capture application. In another example, audio may be received from a remote device through a wireless connection. Multiple streams of audio content may be mixed together prior to storing with video. The audio, upon reception, may then be routed to the video capture application for recordation. An audio progression bar may also be provided to indicate duration and elapsed time information associated with the audio being recorded.
US08160420B2
The present invention has an objective of realizing compatibility of an optical disk having a high resolution video signal recorded thereon and a system for reproducing the optical disk, with a conventional system for producing a standard resolution video signal. A high resolution video signal is divided by video division means into a main signal and a sub signal, and the main signal and the sub signal are MPEG-encoded. The stream of the main signal and the stream of the sub signal are divided into 1 GOP or more of frames. First interleave blocks 54 each including 1 GOP or more of the stream of the main signal and second interleave blocks 55 each including 1 GOP or more of the stream of the sub signal are recorded on an optical disk 1. A high resolution reproduction apparatus reproduces both the first and second interleave blocks to obtain a high resolution video output. A non-high quality picture reproduction apparatus reproduces only the first or second interleave blocks to obtain a standard resolution video output.
US08160419B2
An optical disk device includes a read means which reads an image signal from an optical disk, and a conversion means which converts this image signal to one designated resolution. Furthermore, this optical disk device is connected to a display device which displays an image of this converted image signal. Moreover, this optical disk device includes an actuation means which receives input of one resolution among the first plurality of resolutions. And this optical disk device also includes a control means which acquires a second plurality of resolutions from the display device. And, when one resolution is inputted by the actuation means, this control means decides whether or not this input resolution is included in the second plurality of resolutions. Moreover, if it has been decided that the input resolution is included in the second plurality of resolutions, the control means designates that input resolution to the conversion means.
US08160410B2
A Bragg reflector grating comprises a plurality of chirped grating sections (65-72), in which at least a first chirped grating section and a second chirped grating section have differing ranges of grating pitches. The combined range of grating pitches provided by the first and second chirped grating sections includes at least one discontinuity, such that the first and second chirped grating sections have one or more grating pitches in common and/or there are one or more ranges of grating pitches within the combined range of grating pitches that are absent.
US08160404B2
An optoelectronic device includes an input waveguide structure that receives an input optical signal. A GeSi/Si waveguide structure receives from the input waveguide the input optical signal and performs selective optoelectronic operations on the input optical signal. The GeSi/Si waveguide structure outputs an optical or electrical output signal associated with the selective optoelectronic operations performed on the input optical signal. An output waveguide structure receives the output optical signal from the GeSi/Si waveguide structure and provides the optical output signal for further processing.
US08160398B1
A system and method for expansion and reduction of images may apply resizing techniques independently to different regions of an input image to produce a resized version of the image having a specified target size and/or ratio. A content-aware resizing technique may be applied to some regions of the image. Each region may be reduced or expanded by the same amount based on local content, or different regions may be resized by different amounts to meet a resizing target for the input image. The same resizing technique may be applied to each region, or different resizing techniques may be applied to different regions. A given region or unselected portion of the image may not be resized at all. The techniques may be implemented by program instructions of an image editing application, and the definition of the regions and/or the selection of locally applied techniques may be configurable by a user.
US08160393B2
A method for calculating a skew angle of an original image, executed at least in part on a computer system stores image data for the original image in an electronic memory, then forms an energy-normalized image according to the relative contrast amplitude of image features over each of a plurality of local image regions within the stored image data. A partitioned image is formed by partitioning the energy-normalized image into a number of sub-regions. A summed region is formed as a combination of image pixel data from the sub-regions. A Fourier magnitude spectrum is obtained by performing a Fourier transform on the summed region. The skew angle is calculated according to the peak value of a radial line integration function that is formed by integrating the Fourier magnitude spectrum along each of a plurality of lines of constant radial angles. An output signal indicates the calculated skew angle.
US08160387B2
The invention provides a method of image correction processing which comprises altering area image intensity values of an image according to an dynamic range compression image transform. The output image intensity of an area is altered, compared to the input image intensity, according to an area amplification coefficient. The amplification coefficient of an area is varied in dependence upon the amplification coefficient of at least one other neighbouring area. The invention preserves contrast in images that have been processed in order to compress dynamic range.
US08160386B2
A target digital image is received from an image sensor. The image is contaminated by noise of unknown magnitude that is represented by a reference digital image. A process is applied that uses statistical analysis of the target digital image and of the reference digital image to estimate a magnitude of the noise for at least some pixels of the target digital image.
US08160377B2
A symbol generation part serially inputs a data string of quantization data. If quantization data of non-zero coefficient is inputted, respective information on an absolute value, a zero run and a sign of the non-zero coefficient are stored in registers. When quantization data of the next non-zero coefficient is inputted, the respective information on the absolute value, the zero run and the sign stored in the registers are updated. At that time, the contents of the registers which have been stored immediately before the input are outputted as symbol data of the immediately preceding non-zero coefficient.
US08160376B2
An image compression apparatus performs quantization of DC component data, low-pass component data and high-pass component data which are generated by frequency conversion of still image data. An extracting part extracts additional data and coding object data which is to be entropy coded, from quantization data. An entropy coding part performs entropy coding of the coding object data stored in a coding object data memory. An additional data processing part generates a flex bit from the additional data. A pattern information generation part acquires the coding object data directly from the extracting part, to generate pattern information indicating whether the coding object data is zero or not. A bit stream generation part outputs the pattern information, the coding object data and the flex bit in a predetermined order, to output a bit stream.
US08160374B2
A method and apparatus for realizing adaptive quantization in the process of image/video coding, which includes the following steps: acquiring the parameter information of the neighbor blocks of the current block; determining the quantization mode of the current block according to the parameter information of the neighbor blocks; and performing quantization processing on transform coefficients of the current block by using the determined quantization mode. Wherein, block coding type and motion vector of the neighbor blocks are used as the parameter information for determining the quantization mode of the current block. An apparatus for adaptive quantization in process of image/video coding is provided. The invention can use different quantization mode for adaptive quantization in different image content of an image sequence, thereby improving the subjective quality of the compressed images at the same bit rate.
US08160370B2
An image processing apparatus includes: an image pyramid forming section configured to form an image pyramid by hierarchically creating layered image data including differently scaled images from inputted image data; a position calculating section configured to determine an in-image-pyramid position as a height position in the image pyramid to which template image data having an image portion of a target object at a fixed scale corresponds; an upper-layer-side likelihood calculating section configured to determine a likelihood for a target object by matching between upper-side layer image data directly above the in-image-pyramid position, and a state prediction; a lower-layer-side likelihood calculating section configured to determine a likelihood for a target object by matching between lower-side layer image data directly below the in-image-pyramid position, and a state prediction; and a true likelihood calculating section configured to determine a true likelihood from the likelihoods determined by the upper-layer-side and lower-layer-side likelihood calculating sections.
US08160360B2
Image processing apparatus and methods perform effective labeling of objects in an image while advantageously requiring only a small memory. The apparatus and methods practicably and effectively implement various applications, in particular, a detection technique for determination of a detection target. The apparatus comprises a detection unit for detecting values of pixels adjacent to a target pixel within a transformation matrix area of a binary image. The apparatus also includes a labeling unit for assigning a label value to the target pixel. The assigned label value is either a new value or the value existing in the pixels adjacent the target pixel, depending on the value of the adjacent pixels' label.
US08160353B2
In a stereo vision system comprising two cameras shooting the same scene from different positions, a method is performed for determining dense disparity fields between digital images shot by the two cameras, including the steps of capturing a first and a second image of the scene, and determining, for each pixel of the second image, the displacement from a point in the first image to such pixel of the second image minimizing an optical flow objective function, wherein the optical flow objective function includes, for each pixel of the second image, a term depending in a monotonously increasing way on the distance between the epipolar line associated with such pixel and the above point in the first image, such term depending on calibration parameters of the two cameras and being weighed depending on the uncertainty of the calibration data.
US08160349B2
A pattern shape evaluation method comprising detecting an edge of an evaluation target pattern from an image of the evaluation target pattern to output the edge as a first edge, detecting an edge of a reference pattern from an image of the reference pattern to output the edge as a second edge, performing a relative scan of the first edge and the second edge to superpose the first edge onto the second edge, and outputting a resulting edge as a third edge, calculating a characteristic amount indicating characteristics of the third edge from the third edge, and deriving a characteristic amount function which provides the characteristic amount against relative coordinates in the relative scan and comparing the characteristic amount function with a preset value to judge whether or not the evaluation target pattern is good.
US08160348B2
A method and system for automatically evaluating quality of a slide-mounted tissue sample includes receiving a digital image of a magnified portion of the slide-mounted tissue sample. At least one quantitative quality indicator is automatically determined for at least one of the samples, and the digital image of the magnified portion of the sample. Each of the quantitative quality indicators is automatically compared to a respective minimum acceptable quality threshold. The quantitative quality indicators and associated quality thresholds are selected for suitability with an automated quantitative immunoassay. Failure of one or more of the quantitative quality indicators to meet its respective minimum acceptable quality threshold suggests that the sample is unsuitable for subsequent automated pathological evaluation. Results can be examined at a user interface allowing for user inspection of samples determined to be unsuitable, the user interface also having provisions for manual override of the determination.
US08160343B2
A technology for facilitating computer-aided detection (CAD) includes in one implementation, receiving an enhancement pattern (602) generated from image data. The enhancement pattern is pre-processed to produce an alert level (604, 606, 608). Computationally-intensive analysis may be performed on a region of interest if it corresponds to an enhancement pattern with a high alert level.
US08160339B2
A method of analyzing a diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance image is adapted to analyze an orientation distribution function ψ0 of nerve fibers at a vector in space. The method includes the following steps: (A) finding an orientation {circumflex over (μ)}a with the largest probability in the ODF ψ0; (B) maximizing a single fiber ODF ψ′; (C) analyzing the maximized single fiber ODF ψ′ to obtain quantitative information; (D) deducting the maximized single fiber ODF ψ′ obtained in step (B) from the entire ODF ψ0; and (E) stopping computation if the result obtained in step (D) is determined to be smaller than a predetermined value, and repeating steps (A), (B), (C), and (D) if otherwise.
US08160336B2
A computer-implemented method for identifying an object of interest includes providing input data including an image and a candidate for the object of interest in the image, extracting a boundary of the candidate, and extracting a segment of a region of interest containing the candidate. The method further includes determining a plurality of features of an extracted segment of the region of interest containing the candidate, and outputting the object of interest, wherein the object of interest is characterized by the plurality of features, wherein the object of interest and the plurality of features are stored as computer-readable code.
US08160333B2
This invention is directed to appropriately searching for case data similar in the process of a disease. A similar case search apparatus (100) according to this invention includes a disease progress model building function of building a disease progress model by extracting feature amounts from a plurality of medical images obtained by imaging the same object in different periods, a unit configured to read out case data, a unit configured to acquire inspection data, a similar case search function of interpolating, by using the model, feature amounts extracted from the plurality of medical images contained in the inspection data, and calculate a similarity between the inspection data and the case data by using the interpolated feature amounts, and a monitor (111) which displays case data selected based on the calculated similarity.
US08160332B2
The invention relates to a system (100) for registering a vessel model with an image data set based on a joined model comprising a reference object model and the vessel model, the system comprising: a placement unit (110) for placing the joined model in a space of the image data set, thereby creating a placed joined model comprising a placed reference object model and a placed vessel model; a computation unit (120) for computing a deformation field based on a landmark displacement field comprising displacements of landmarks of the placed reference object model relative to corresponding landmarks in the image data set; a transformation unit (130) for transforming the placed joined model using the deformation field, thereby creating a transformed joined model comprising a transformed reference object model and a transformed vessel model; and a registration unit (140) for registering the transformed vessel model with the image data set based on modifying the transformed vessel model and optimizing an objective function of the modified transformed vessel model, wherein the objective function comprises a location-prior term based on a localization of the modified transformed vessel model relative to the transformed joined model. Hence, the system is arranged to model a vessel taking into account the localization of a vessel model relative to a reference anatomical structure described by a reference model.
US08160330B2
A method for texture quantification is provided. Data indicative of a complex-valued local spatial frequency distribution in space-frequency domain are determined by processing a multi-dimensional image data set based on a Stockwell transform with a phase term corresponding to spatial locations of respective frequency components being expressed in terms of radial distance and angle of orientation. The complex-valued local spatial frequency distribution is indicative of a feature of the object. Data indicative of a low frequency energy distribution are determined by filtering the data indicative of a complex-valued local spatial frequency distribution using a band-pass filter having a predetermined low frequency energy bandwidth.
US08160322B2
A method for detecting and localizing multiple anatomical landmarks in medical images, including: receiving an input requesting identification of a plurality of anatomical landmarks in a medical image; applying a multi-landmark detector to the medical image to identify a plurality of candidate locations for each of the anatomical landmarks; for each of the anatomical landmarks, applying a landmark-specific detector to each of its candidate locations, wherein the landmark-specific detector assigns a score to each of the candidate locations, and wherein candidate locations having a score below a predetermined threshold are removed; applying spatial statistics to groups of the remaining candidate locations to determine, for each of the anatomical landmarks, the candidate location that most accurately identifies the anatomical landmark; and for each of the anatomical landmarks, outputting the candidate location that most accurately identifies the anatomical landmark.
US08160320B2
According to the medical image display apparatus of an aspect of the present invention, the display mode to provide multi-screen display of the plurality of slice images including the abnormal shadow region is determined based on the result of acquisition of the abnormal shadow region (three-dimensional information for the abnormal shadow region), which eliminates the necessity for users (doctors) to perform an operation to set a display mode, and enables display of the plurality of slice images including the abnormal shadow region efficiently in a display mode enabling easy image interpretation.
US08160315B2
A three-dimensional ultrasonic image with which the positional relationship between tissues can be surely grasped is generated. Accordingly, an ultrasonic imaging apparatus and a projection image generating method according to the present invention acquire first three-dimensional image data and second three-dimensional image data, generate a first projection image on the basis of at least a part of the first three-dimensional image data and the second three-dimensional image data, and generate a second projection image on the basis of at least a part of the second three-dimensional image data and the first three-dimensional imaged data.
US08160314B2
A system and method for linking volumes of interest (VOIs) across timepoints are provided. The method comprises: loading an image dataset of a first timepoint and an image dataset of a second timepoint; registering the image dataset of the first timepoint and the image dataset of the second timepoint; displaying the image dataset of the first timepoint and the image dataset of the second timepoint; selecting a VOI in the image dataset of the first timepoint and the image dataset of the second timepoint; and linking the VOIs in the image dataset of the first timepoint and the image dataset of the second timepoint.
US08160302B2
Method of estimating orientation of objects disposed on a plane from video images of a scene taken by a video camera. Includes receiving for each object, object tracking data, providing a position of the object on the plane in the image with respect to time, determining from the object tracking data basis vectors associated with an objects, each basis vector corresponding to a factor, which can influence the orientation of the object and each basis vector being related to the movement or location of the one or more objects, and combining the basis vectors in accordance with a blending function to calculate an estimate of the orientation of the object on the plane, the blending function including blending coefficients which determine a relative magnitude of each basis vector used in the blending function.
US08160299B2
An image processing apparatus includes a moving image file storage unit operable to store a moving image file; an area selection receiving unit operable to receive a selection of a predetermined area corresponding to one of a plurality of frames forming the moving image file; a template image generating unit operable to generate as a template image an image of the selected area; an image matching unit operable to obtain the frames from the moving image file storage unit, and to match each of the frames against the template image to search for a matching frame containing an image similar to the template image; and a scene change detecting unit operable to detect a start and an end of a scene containing the matching frame.
US08160294B2
A figure pattern expressing information to be embedded, or a position of an area in which the information to be embedded exists, is embedded in an area other than the background of image data, thereby generating image data embedded with a watermark. Then, the figure pattern is detected from the generated image data embedded with the watermark, and embedded information expressed by the detected figure pattern or embedded information existing in an area at a position expressed by the detected figure pattern is detected.
US08160289B2
A speaker applicable to various electronic devices includes a speaker body including a magnet and a diaphragm having a voice coil interacting with the magnet, the magnet and the diaphragm being sequentially received therein; at least one main hole defined through a rear surface of the speaker where a speaker sound is not output, such that air generated in the speaker according to vibration of the diaphragm is discharged therethrough; and at least one auxiliary air hole defined through a predetermined location of a side surface of the body to communicate with an inside of the body, such that air within the speaker is additionally discharged therethrough.
US08160287B2
A headset includes an element to be held to the head of a wearer and a headband coupled to the element and configured for engaging a head of a wearer to hold the element thereon. The headband includes a plurality of headband arms coupled to pivot with respect to each other. A torsion spring is positioned between the arms and portions of the torsion spring are coupled to the arms for acting on the arms with a torsion force. An adjustment member is coupled between the torsion spring and a headband arm and is operable for adjusting the torsion force of the torsion spring to adjust the torsion force on the arms.
US08160286B2
A loudspeaker device includes an enclosure, a loudspeaker unit and a passive radiator both mounted to the enclosure. The passive radiator includes an edge sandwiched and bonded between a first diaphragm and a second diaphragm. This structure allows increasing the bonding strength between the edge and the first diaphragm as well as between the edge and the second diaphragm, so that the loudspeaker device can withstand greater maximum inputs and reproduce quality bass sound.
US08160281B2
A sound reproducing apparatus and a sound reproducing method. The sound reproducing apparatus includes an actual listening environment feature function database where an actual listening space feature function is stored for correcting the virtual source in response to a feature of an actual listening space provided at the time of listening; and an actual listening space feature correcting unit of reading out the actual listening space feature function stored in the actual listening environment feature function database, and correcting the virtual source based on the reading result. Accordingly, causes of each distortion may be removed to provide sounds having the best quality.
US08160277B2
Method for outputting an audio signal to an audio output, comprising outputting a first audio signal to said audio output; providing a second audio signal; determining a point in time, wherein at said point in time said first audio signal or a derivative of said first audio signal or a derivative of said second audio signal is essentially equal to zero; switching, at said point in time, said audio output from outputting said first audio signal to outputting said second audio signal.
US08160263B2
In a preferred embodiment, the invention is a mobile communication device having a digital signal processor (DSP), a speaker output node, a local audio source, and an analog front-end (AFE), wherein: (1) the DSP receives a first audio signal corresponding to sound captured by a microphone near a user of the device, (2) if the device is operating in a call mode, the DSP derives a background noise signal from the first audio signal, for subtraction from the first audio signal before transmission to the AFE, and (3) if the device is operating in a non-call mode, then the DSP (i) generates a speaker output signal which substantially corresponds to the first audio signal subtracted from a local audio signal provided by the local audio source and (ii) provides the speaker output signal to a speaker via the speaker output node.
US08160261B2
An earphone monitoring system is disclosed that provides for user information and control regarding ambient and monitored sound levels.
US08160256B2
A key calculation method and a shared key generation method, the key calculation method including: generating two keys to perform a key calculation; calculating a first value based on coefficients having an identical coefficient value among coefficients included in each of the two keys; and performing a coordinates operation or an exponentiation operation based on the first value, wherein the calculating of the first value is performed with respect to each of coefficient values included in the two keys, excluding 0.
US08160254B2
The present invention relates to a method for managing a group traffic encryption key (GTEK) in a wireless portable Internet system. In the method, for higher security of a group traffic service such as a multicast service, a broadcast service, and a multicast-broadcast service (MBS), a base station periodically generates and distributes a GTEK to a subscriber station served with the group traffic service. A lifetime of a group key encryption key (GKEK) used for encrypting a GTEK is set greater than that of the GTEK. That is, the GKEK is updated once while the GTEK is updated several times. According to the present invention, security for the group traffic service is increased while reducing radio resource consumption.
US08160249B2
The present invention relates to methods for protecting a data signal using the following techniques: applying a data reduction technique to reduce the data signal into a reduced data signal; subtracting the reduced data signal from the data signal to produce a remainder signal; embedding a first watermark into the reduced data signal to produce a watermarked, reduced data signal; and adding the watermarked, reduced data signal to the remainder signal to produce an output signal. A second watermark may be embedded into the remainder signal before the final addition step. Further, cryptographic techniques may be used to encrypt the reduced data signals and to encrypt the remainder signals before the final addition step. The present invention also relates to a system for securing a data signal including: computer devices for applying a data reduction technique to reduce the data signal into a reduced data signal; means to subtract the reduced data signal from the data signal to produce a remainder signal; means to apply a first cryptographic technique to encrypt the reduced data signal to produce an encrypted, reduced data signal; means to apply a second cryptographic technique to encrypt the remainder signal to produce an encrypted remainder signal; and means to add the encrypted, reduced data signal to the encrypted remainder signal to produce an output signal.
US08160248B2
Methods and systems for authenticated mode control in controlled devices are disclosed. A method for changing a mode in a controlled device from a current mode includes selecting one of several available key derivation functions based on a target mode, generating a target mode specific root key using a global root key and the selected key derivation function, and the use of that root key to affect a change of the controlled device to a target mode. Corresponding devices and systems are also disclosed. In one embodiment, the methods are applicable to a cable television distribution system and the changing of the operating mode of a set top box from one conditional access provider to another.
US08160242B2
An apparatus including an initialization circuit and a hash computation circuit. The initialization circuit may be configured to present a number of initialization values. The hash computation circuit may be configured to generate hash values for the message in response to the padded message blocks and the initialization values. The hash computation circuit generally performs a diagonal cut technique that simultaneously uses values from a plurality of different cycle rounds in a single cycle round analog.
US08160241B2
An uncomfortable feeling due to lack of the speech of a far end speaker and a convergence signal voice (sound) is prevented, and the echo of the far end speaker is removed. A pseudo signal generating circuit has a phase inverter (10) for inverting the phase of a signal, a pseudo hybrid circuit (11) for generating a pseudo echo having the same or substantially the same characteristic as that of the true signal, and a pseudo telephone set (5-2). By generating a pseudo echo having the phase opposite to that of the true signal and having the same or substantially the same characteristics as that of the true signal, the uncomfortable signals (echo, etc.) are cancelled out. When a telephone set is connected to a caller or when an extension transfer occurs, an adaptive filter convergence signal is generated for a predetermined constant time only during “no-voice (sound) (silence)” of the far end speaker's signal.
US08160240B2
A communication system includes transmit and receive paths, a balancing filter, a noise generator, a detector, and an interface. The transmit path is operable to generate data for communication on a communication network. The receive path is operable to receive data from the communication network. The balancing filter is coupled between the transmit path and the receive path. The noise generator is operable to inject a noise signal on the receive path. The detector is operable to measure reflected power in the transmit path associated with the noise signal. The interface is operable to receive a plurality of sets of coefficients for configuring the balancing filter, wherein the detector is operable to measure the reflected power for each of the sets of coefficients.
US08160236B2
An enhanced telecommunication signal insertion system includes a first connection block field including a plurality of switches configured to be coupled to an enhanced signal source and a second connection block field including a plurality of normally closed switches configured to connect respective pairs of tip and ring lines from a central office to corresponding pairs of tip and ring lines to associated subscriber locations and a jumper plug. The jumper plug has a first connector and a second connector with a length of cable extending therebetween. The first connector is configured to be inserted in one of the normally closed switches of the second connection block field to open the one of the normally closed switches. The second connector is configured to be inserted in one of the switches of the first connection block field. When inserted, the jumper plug connects terminals of the one of the switches of the first connection block field to terminals of the one of the normally closed switches of the second connection block field to allow insertion of the enhanced telecommunication signal onto a selected one of the pairs of tip and ring lines to one of the associated subscriber locations associated with the one of the normally closed switches of the second connection block field.
US08160231B1
A communication system is provided which includes a digital communication network having a network endpoint and a signaling server. The network endpoint is coupled with the signaling server via signaling tunnels through the digital communication network. Also included is a telephonic device coupled with the network endpoint and configured to engage in a telephone call via the network endpoint over the digital communication network. The network endpoint is configured to generate signaling related to the telephone call, and to direct the signaling through the digital communication network to the signaling server over a selected one of the signaling tunnels, wherein the selected signaling tunnel is selected based on an identity of the telephonic device.
US08160228B2
A telecommunications system is disclosed that enables a user to pair a desk set that is an extension of a private-branch exchange with a cell phone that is accessible via the Public Switched Telephone Network. One feature of the telecommunications system enables an incoming call that is directed to the user's desk set to be automatically forwarded to the user's cell phone, while in the presence of third-party call control. This is advantageous to the user because it provides the illusion to the caller that the user is physically in his or her office when she is not necessarily there. The third-party call control can be part of a computer-telephony integration (CTI) application—for example, in a telephone telemarketing center, which handles many incoming telephone calls.
US08160223B2
A system, method, and computer program product for initiating a conference call are disclosed. The method includes running a conference call managing application. The method also includes receiving at least one participant-defined condition. The participant-defined condition is associated with at least one conference call defining a status of a participant's communication device to connect the participant to the conference call. At least one alert is sent out to at least all required participants of the conference call, in response to the participant-defined condition being satisfied to start the conference call.
US08160222B2
Enhanced caller ID display functionality is linked to Photo or image and/or address book or other database information elements associated with the caller by the call recipient to provide a richer Caller ID Display experience. The enhanced ID caller information is displayed on the call recipient's television via, for example, a television set-top box. Advantageously, the call recipient selects the information to associate with the caller. This is advantageous because it is the recipient that is in the best position to know which information, including which image or images, is most useful to the recipient in relation to the caller.
US08160218B2
A system, method, and computer readable medium for event driven call generation, comprises, monitoring a database transaction, detecting a suspect pattern in the monitored database transactions, and generating a telephone call based upon the detected suspect pattern.
US08160215B2
Embodiments of the invention provide a system for enhancing user interaction with Interactive Voice Response (IVR) destinations, the system comprising: a processor; and a memory coupled to the processor, the memory comprising: data encoding a database, the database comprising a list of telephone numbers associated with one or more destinations implementing an IVR; instructions executable by the processor for automatically communicating with at least one user; and instructions executable by the processor to pull at least one menu from the database and display the menu to the at least one user, wherein the menu is associated with a telephone number dialed by the at least one user, and wherein the menu comprises at least one icon.
US08160213B2
A method of enabling a user of an instant messaging client to forward an audio recording to another person via his or her instant messaging client is disclosed. The recipient's instant messaging client then inquires whether the recipient would like to hear the audio recording immediately. If the recipient answers yes, then the audio recording is played for the recipient through the instant messaging client. In contrast, if the user answers no, or is “unavailable,” or does not answer at all, the instant messaging client forwards the audio recording a voice mailbox associated with the recipient for later retrieval in well-known fashion via a telephone. This invention is particularly advantageous when the recipient is engaged in a telephone call when the audio recording arrives because it enables the recipient to hear the message immediately and without having to access the voice mail system while engaged in call.
US08160207B2
A radiation imaging apparatus comprising a detection unit for detecting a radiation distribution transmitted through an object, an imaging unit which includes the detection unit, and a grid for suppressing scattered light which is detachably mounted on an outside of the imaging unit, wherein the imaging unit includes a buffer member on a side surface facing a surface side which radiation strikes, the grid includes a grid body placed on the surface side which the radiation strikes, and a fixing unit for fixing the grid body to the imaging unit, and sides constituting the fixing unit include a side which does not protrude from an outer shape of the imaging unit when viewed from the surface side which the radiation strikes.
US08160204B2
The present invention relates to a method and device for verification of the quality of a radiation beam in conformal radiation therapy, and in particular for IMRT (Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy) applications.
US08160196B2
A network system includes integrated radio transceivers and digitizers, integrated baseband processors and device controllers, digital interfaces there between, and architectures and partitions for same. Licensing methodologies are provided for implementing the features described herein, and for other products and services.
US08160192B2
A clock and data recovery (CDR) system and method for recovering timing information and data from a serial data stream. The CDR system includes a sampling circuit that produces a recovered clock/data signal and an interleaving feedback network that provides feedback to the sampling circuit. The feedback network includes a logic circuit that produces control signals based on the recovered clock/data signal, a first multiplexer that selects from four phases of a global clock signal based on a control signal, a first delay-locked loop having a first set of delay cells coupled to a second multiplexer that produces a delayed signal based on the selected global clock signal, and a second delay-locked loop having a second set of delay cells that produces a set of phase-shifted feedback signals that are applied to the sampling circuit to phase-align the sampling circuit with the transitions in the received serial data stream.
US08160187B1
The present disclosure generally pertains to systems and methods for cancelling crosstalk. A multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) system in accordance with one exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure has a plurality of receivers, which are capable of exchanging information with one another. Each receiver is coupled to a respective subscriber line and receives signals from a remote transmitter. In each path of the MIMO system, in domain crosstalk and possibly some combination of noise, alien crosstalk, and/or other interference such as RF interference, is canceled from the signal being processed. In some cases, a cancellation signal for cancelling crosstalk is based on an output of a symbol decision element, such as a slicer or decoder, thereby improving the accuracy of the cancellation signal.
US08160185B2
There are provided an apparatus for synchronizing an OFDM signal using an open-loop frequency synchronization method, which can estimate and compensate for various types of frequency errors generated in a frequency modulation broadcasting/communication system to which the open-loop frequency synchronization method is applied, and a frequency offset estimation scheme using the apparatus. To this end, the apparatus for synchronizing an OFDM signal using the open-loop frequency synchronization method comprises a time offset estimator, a time offset compensator, a fractional frequency offset estimator, an integer frequency offset estimator, a frequency offset controller and a frequency offset compensator. Accordingly, in the OFDM demodulation broadcasting/communication system using the open-loop frequency synchronization method, a frequency offset, which is generated due to the carrier frequency difference between a transmitter and a receiver, a frequency shift generated due to the mobile environment of a receiver, the temperature characteristic of a local oscillator, and the like, can be estimated and compensated.
US08160170B2
The invention relates to methods for transmitting and receiving a data bit stream in a communication system using a 16-QAM constellation. Further, an apparatus for performing the methods is provided. To provide a modulation and coding scheme using a signal space expansion and 16-QAM which improves the bit-error rate in comparison to QPSK modulated signals and still provides the possibility to implement coders and decoders with low complexity the invention suggests the use a 16-QAM constellation with specially selected mapping rules together with repetition coding (signal space expansion) and interleaving of the data stream to be transmitted.
US08160169B1
A system including a magnitude measuring module, an energy normalization module, and a metric generation module. The magnitude measuring module is configured to measure magnitudes of real portions of differentially demodulated signals, wherein the differentially demodulated signals are generated by differential demodulation of signals received from a base station. The energy normalization module is configured to generate a sum of energies of a plurality of subcarriers included in the signals received from the base station. The metric generation module is configured to generate a plurality of metrics for a plurality of symbols included in the signals received from the base station. The metric generation module is further configured to detect, based on the plurality of metrics, a preamble symbol included in the signals received from the base station.
US08160167B2
By assigning a plurality of subcarriers 31 to a data channel 33 and assigning fewer subcarriers 32 than the plurality of subcarriers 31 to a control channel 34 and, in addition, locating the control channel 34 at the center frequency fc of a frequency band used to transmit the data channel 33, on the radio receiving apparatus side, the frequencies of a local signal by which the received signal is multiplied share the same value, thereby speeding up the switching between the control channel and the data channel.
US08160166B2
A communications device includes a demapping and demodulation circuit and processes an OFDM communications signal that includes modulated subcarriers carrying communications data forming a data payload and modulated subcarriers carrying a training sequence forming a preamble. Those OFDM subcarriers carrying the training sequence have a sample for each subcarrier at a frequency bin using evenly spaced, equal amplitude subcarriers that have a set phase of each sinusoid to a specific angle with quadratic phase to form a low peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) preamble with about a PAPR value of 2.6 decibels (dB). A channel estimate circuit is operative for measuring fluctuations within a flat-top spectrum of the received OFDM communications signal corresponding to the preamble to reflect the frequency response of the communications channel.
US08160163B1
Spectrum sensing is one of the most challenging problems in cognitive radio systems. The spectrum of interest needs to be characterized and unused frequencies should be identified for possible exploitation in a simple and fast way, allowing the radio to catch up with the changing transmission parameters. A sensing method is presented where primary users are identified by matching the features extracted from the received signal to the a priori information about primary users' transmission characteristics. For estimation of some signal parameters, the cyclostationarity of the transmission spectrum is explored by using a suboptimal maximum likelihood (ML) estimator. The proposed algorithms can be used in cognitive radio for identifying various transmissions and for electronic surveillance.
US08160158B2
Provided are a scalable video coding method and apparatus, and a scalable video decoding method and apparatus. The coding method generates a base layer bitstream of video by using one of a plurality of codecs, determines whether the used codec supports enhancement layer coding, decodes the base layer bitstream according to the result of the determination in order to extract coded information used for the generation of the base layer bitstream, and generates an enhancement layer bitstream of the original video based on the extracted information. Accordingly, it is possible to provide high-quality video and increase coding efficiency while using the various existing codecs.
US08160156B2
The present invention comprises a system and method for controlling the rate a data encoder generates compressed data. The system and method are preferably implemented as program code stored and executed by a processor or computer that is interfaced to standard variable or constant bit rate encoders known in the art. The system preferably encodes and compresses video signals received from a camera, and controls the rate at which the compressed data is generated by the encoder so that storage capacity reserved for the compressed data will not be exceeded. The device preferably takes advantage of periods when the data generation rate is low to increase the quality of video data generated during periods of high activity.
US08160154B2
Methods and systems enable uncompressed source data, corresponding to previously-compressed data, to be manipulated or otherwise modified, prior to being rendered by a rendering application. For example, audio data can be modified to include additional audio content, and/or video data can be modified to include additional video content. Accordingly, when the modified or manipulated source data is rendered by the rendering application, it can contain additional information that was not part of the previously-compressed data.
US08160152B2
A data storage unit (103) stores an image frame in which an image frame which consists of coded data having a data loss or error received by a receiving unit (100) and complementary coded data which is received by receiving unit at a later time are rearranged into normal sequence. A redecoding unit (105) decodes the image frame stored in the data storage unit (103) with reference to one or more already-decoded image frames required for the decoding, and stores the decoded image frame in a frame additionally-storage unit (104). A decoding unit (101) decodes an image frame with reference to an image frame stored in either a frame storage unit (102) or the frame additionally-storage unit 104 according to a command from a control unit (106).
US08160150B2
Method, video encoders, and digital systems are provide in which motion vector determination includes selecting a plurality of candidate motion vectors for a macroblock using a cost function including both a block distortion measure and a motion vector cost measure for single-partition motion vectors in the plurality of candidate motion vectors and using a cost function including a distortion measure without a motion vector cost measure for multi-partition motion vectors in the plurality of candidate motion vectors, and refining the plurality of candidate motion vectors to obtain a refined plurality of candidate motion vectors, wherein multi-partition motion vectors of the plurality of candidate motion vectors are refined using a cost function including a distortion measure without a motion vector cost measure and single-partition motion vectors of the plurality of candidate motion vectors are refined using a cost function including both a block distortion measure and a motion vector cost measure.
US08160142B2
Coding techniques for a video image compression system involve improving an image quality of a sequence of two or more bi-directionally predicted intermediate frames, where each of the frames includes multiple pixels. One method involves determining a brightness value of at least one pixel of each bi-directionally predicted intermediate frame in the sequence as an equal average of brightness values of pixels in non-bidirectionally predicted frames bracketing the sequence of bi-directionally predicted intermediate frames. The brightness values of the pixels in at least one of the non-bidirectionally predicted frames is converted from a non-linear representation.
US08160129B2
An image pickup apparatus capable of distributing a picked up image through a network is provided. The image pickup apparatus includes an image pickup unit configured to pick up an image of a predetermined monitoring area and output an image signal thereof; a plurality of encoding units configured to simultaneously convert the image signal into video data of different encoding methods; a moving-object detecting unit configured to detect a moving object entered the monitoring area based on the image signal; an unmoving-object detecting unit configured to detect an unmoving object in the monitoring area based on the image signal; and a transmission control unit configured to control distribution of the video data to the network based on a detection result generated by the moving-object detecting unit and the unmoving-object detecting unit.
US08160123B2
Described is a device for receiving radio-navigation signals by satellite, said received signals being transmitted at a carrier frequency. The device includes at least means for generating a local signal at a local frequency and a tracking device including a feedback loop called carrier loop for phase-locking the local frequency on the carrier frequency. The loop includes a hardware portion and a software portion. The software portion performs the functions of discrimination of the phase of the correlated signal and filtering of said phase. The software portion also includes correlation functions mainly dependent on the linear variation coefficients between the local phases φlocal delivered after each basic computation cycle. The device makes it possible to increase the loop band and the dynamic stability without changing the pre-detection band and the workload of the software.
US08160121B2
A system and method are described for dynamically adapting the communication characteristics of a multiple antenna system (MAS) with multi-user (MU) transmissions (“MU-MAS”). For example, a method according to one embodiment of the invention comprises: transmitting a training signal from each antenna of a base station to each of a plurality of wireless client devices, each of the client devices analyzing each training signal to generate channel characterization data, and receiving the channel characterization data at the base station; computing a plurality of MU-MAS precoder weights based on the channel characterization data, the combined MU-MAS precoder weights comprising a MU-MAS channel matrix; determining instantaneous or statistical channel quality (“link quality metric”) for the wireless client devices using mutual information of MU-MAS links or singular values of the MU-MAS composite channel matrix; determining a subset of users and a MU-MAS transmission mode based on the link quality metric; precoding data using the MU-MAS precoder weights to generate precoded data signals for each antenna of the base station; and transmitting the precoded data signals through each antenna of the base station to each respective client device within the selected subset.
US08160119B2
A method of fighting interference in a frequency-hopping communication system is disclosed. The system has at least one main sensor and one or more auxiliary sensors. According to at least one embodiment, frequency-hopping signals are received. The frequency-hopping signals are arranged to include useful bands and one or more guard bands inserted between the useful bands, and a ratio of the useful bands to the guard bands being chosen according to a predetermined value of probability of interference interception. Signals of the inserted guard bands having a signal level greater than a predetermined threshold are selected. A set of spatial-filtering weightings are calculated according to a correlation matrix of noise plus jammers alone on the signals selected. Baseband signals of the received frequency-hopping signals are filtered by the set of the calculated spatial-filtering weightings.
US08160114B2
A single-mode, etched facet distributed Bragg reflector laser includes an AlGaInAs/InP laser cavity, a front mirror stack with multiple Fabry-Perot elements, a rear DBR reflector, and a rear detector. The front mirror stack elements and the rear reflector elements include input and output etched facets, and the laser cavity is an etched ridge cavity, all formed from an epitaxial wafer by a two-step lithography and CAIBE process.
US08160112B2
An apparatus and method of buffering a media stream is provided. The method may comprise receiving a plurality of IP packets of the media stream, each packet providing a fragment of a portion of the media stream. Thereafter, the portion of media stream may be buffered in a jitter buffer using the fragments provided by the received packets. Further, the portion of the media stream may be buffered in a replay buffer using the fragments provided by the received packets. The replay buffer may be larger than the jitter buffer and a first received fragment and a second received fragment may be combined. The second received fragment may have been discarded by the jitter buffer. A media stream may then be played back using media from the replay and/or jitter buffer.
US08160100B2
It is an object to provide a wireless communication base station device that can prevent the decline of a system throughput due to the degradation of a utilization efficiency of a communication resource of a channel for carrying out a frequency diversity transmission when a frequency scheduling transmission and a frequency diversity transmission are concurrently carried out in multiple carrier communication. In the wireless communication base station device, a modulation unit (12) carries out modulation processing for Dch data after coding to generate a Dch data symbol. A modulation unit (22) carries out modulation processing for Lch data after coding to generate an Lch data symbol. An allocation unit (103) allocates the Dch data symbol and Lch data symbol to each sub-carrier composing an OFDM symbol and outputs the allocated sub-carrier to a multiplex unit (104). In this ease, the allocation unit (103) allocates the Dch data symbol to a plurality of resource blocks where one Dch is arranged at an interval equal to integral multiples of the number of resource blocks composing a resource block group.
US08160097B2
A mobile communications device includes one or more antennas and a plurality of wireless transceivers that are each configured to transmit and receive transmissions via the one or more antennas according to at least one of several associated communications protocols. The device includes a control processor operatively coupled to the transceivers and antenna(s), which is configured to select and utilize one or more of the wireless transceivers and associated communications protocols in order to transact particular transmissions, where the selection is based on characteristics of the particular transmissions, and to allocate bandwidth to multiple transmissions within a single communications protocol, where the allocation is based on characteristics of the transmissions. The device also includes a power source coupled to the transceivers and adapted to supply power to the transceivers.
US08160091B2
A data processing system according to the invention comprising a group of at least a first and a second module, wherein each module has a data processing facility, a clock for timing data transmissions from the module to another module, a time-slot counter for counting a number of time slots which are available for transmission of data. The modules have a first operational state wherein the counted number of time slots is less than or equal to a predetermined number, in which operational state data transmission is enabled, and a second operational state wherein the number is in excess of the predetermined number, in which second operational state data transmission is disabled, Each module has a notifying facility for notifying when it is in the second operational state. The data processing system has at least one detecting facility that detects whether the other modules have notified that they are in the second operational state and the modules each have an initialization facility for resetting the time-slot counter when the module is in the second operational state and each of the other modules has notified that it is in the second operational state.
US08160087B2
A receiver apparatus wherein the processing amount for CQI (Channel Quality Indicator) measurements in a communication system having a plurality of system bandwidths can be reduced. In this apparatus, a narrow band CQI measurement part (109) measures, as a narrow band CQI, the CQI in resource blocks the number of which is required for the CQI measurement from the start position of a narrow bandwidth transmitted from a transmitter apparatus; a wide band CQI measurement part (110) extracts, from a system bandwidth transmitted from the transmitter apparatus, resource blocks the number of which is required for the CQI measurement, and then measures, as a wide band CQI representative of the channel quality of the whole system bandwidth, an average CQI in the extracted resource blocks; and a feedback information generating part (111) generates feedback information including both the narrow band CQI and the wide band CQI.
US08160081B2
A method for sharing content using a Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) network is disclosed. The method includes the steps of creating a DLNA VPN (Virtual Private Network) between an inside-home DLNA network and at least one outside-home DLNA device, and delivering content from an inside-home DLNA device connected to the inside-home DLNA network to an outside-home DLNA device contained in the DLNA VPN in response to a request for content from the outside-home DLNA device. The method further allows continuous sharing of content, even if IP addresses of devices connected to the DLNA VPN are changed, by managing dynamic IP addresses of the devices connected to the DLNA VPN using an external network management server. Thus, the method allows outside-home DLNA devices to freely share content using a DLNA network. The method also allows various contents to be processed on a mobile terminal regardless of a storage space and processing capability of the mobile terminal.
US08160069B2
One embodiment provides a system that receives a packet with a hierarchically structured variable-length identifier (HSVLI). An HSVLI indicates a piece or collection of content and may be hierarchically structured, comprising contiguous components ordered from a most general level to a most specific level. The length of a respective identifier is not fixed. During operation, the system converts the HSVLI into a fixed-length key. Subsequently, the system obtains forwarding information based on one or more longest-prefix matches with a longest-prefix-match lookup engine using the fixed-length key. Next, the system forwards the packet to an output port based on the forwarding information.
US08160068B2
A system and method for facilitating communication between a CMTS and a VoIP application server in a cable network. VoIP-enabled customer premises equipment (CPE) generates packets that are sent through a cable modem (CM) to a cable modem termination system (CMTS). A packet is parsed by CMTS and the destination IP address and port number compared to the destination IP address-port tuples received by the CMTS from a datastore. A packet that is directed to an IP address-port tuple on the target list (a “service request packet”) is modified to incorporate CMTS-identifying information and subscriber-identifying information in the packet header. When the VoIP application server communicates with the CMTS to reserve the network resources, the VoIP application server provides the CMTS with the CM MAC and CM IP addresses to facilitate resource allocation, subscriber identification and billing. This Abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this Abstract.
US08160062B2
Network connectivity determination based on passive analysis of connection-oriented path information
Passive analysis connection detection architecture that leverages connection-oriented end-to-end stack protocol information. In a TCP/IP implementation, by passively leveraging TCP information, a given system can determine in a more realtime fashion the connectivity state of a TCP pathway. Additionally, other passive information from the TCP/IP stack such as send/receive packet counts can be considered. Based on analysis of TCP path information and/or send/receive packet counts, loss of certain network connectivity can be inferred, which greatly improves the accuracy and responsiveness of detecting network connectivity losses. The disclosed architecture also facilitates improved performance when using proxy systems for network connectivity so as to reduce unnecessary network traffic and to route network systems to other online systems in a more efficient and effective manner.
US08160046B2
The disclosed embodiments provide for methods and systems for allocating a plurality of users on a control channel in a wireless communication network. In one aspect, a method for allocating a plurality of users on a control channel includes assigning a first number of modulation symbols to a hop region for a control channel, and allocating a second number of users to the first number of modulation symbols.
US08160042B2
In a compressed mode, a spread spectrum communication device interleaves bit units across multiple frames using an interleaver, reduces the spreading factor using a framing/spreading unit, outputs the compressed mode frames at a predetermined compressed mode frame timing, and increases the average transmission power in the compressed mode at a radio frequency transmitter. Furthermore, a handover between different frequencies is carried out by establishing synchronization to another frequency carrier, based on a first search code and a second search code which have been detected, and moreover, a handover between different communication systems is carried out by establishing synchronization to a GSM, based on an FCCH and a SCH which have been detected.
US08160036B2
A wireless access device in a local area network (LAN) having a plurality of transceivers. Each transceiver has a directional antenna positioned in a substantially circular array to communicate signals with a plurality of stations in a corresponding sector. Each sector defines a portion of a coverage area surrounding the wireless access device. The wireless access device has a network interface to a data network, and an array controller to control communication of data between the stations and the transceivers, and between the transceivers and the network interface.
US08160030B2
The present invention provides a data rate controller system for determining the coder used, and hence the data rate, for a plurality of channels in an associated network. Each channel provides statistical information about an associated signal to a central controller (or call/resource manager). The controller considers the information and sends control instructions to each channel for selecting an appropriate coder and/or data rate. The statistical information might include lost-frame rate, jitter, call event discrimination, and system resource utilization. By considering each channel from a centralized standpoint, the network can be optimized according to network capabilities and channel resource capabilities. A profile might also be used where each channel autonomously chooses a coder based upon background noise derived from the source signal.
US08160025B2
In a wireless mobile communications system, a method of transmitting uplink data during a handover of a mobile terminal. When the mobile terminal changes its connection from a source base station to a target base station, either the source base station or the target base station transmits a reordering indication for performing a reordering process by the gateway while transmitting a received data unit from the mobile terminal to the gateway regardless of data unit sequence number, thereby optimizing data unit transmission efficiency.
US08160023B2
An apparatus and method for supporting a handover from a macro Base Station (BS) to a micro BS in a broadband wireless communication system are provided. The apparatus includes a user layer for requesting scanning information on micro BSs among neighbor BSs and an MIH function for obtaining the scanning information on the micro BSs by interoperating with an MIH server according to the request and for transmitting the obtained information to the user layer. Accordingly, the handover from the macro BS to the micro BS can be achieved.
US08160022B2
A wireless access terminal, after handoff, adds channel quality information calculated in the wireless access terminal to a header of transmit data and transmits this data until a wireless base station succeeds in receiving at least one or more packets. The wireless base station, when having succeeded in receiving a packet for the first time after the handoff, extracts the channel quality information from a received header to initialize channel quality information inside the wireless base station. Subsequently, the wireless base station autonomously updates the channel quality information in response to success or failure of packet reception and controls the transmission rate.
US08160016B2
Methods and apparatus are provided for constructing scheduling assignments for transmission, by a User Equipment (UE), of data signals over a single contiguous bandwidth and multiple non-contiguous clusters of contiguous bandwidth. The scheduling assignments for each transmission structure are designed to always result into the same maximum number of decoding operations the UE needs to perform to receive the scheduling assignments. The data signal transmission over the single contiguous bandwidth can be with or without frequency hopping and the data signal transmission over the multiple non-contiguous clusters of contiguous bandwidth may always be without frequency hopping.
US08159989B2
The optimum relay route is selected out of a plurality of relay routes to a server. In order to solve a multirouting problem, introduced is a multi routing system for determining a relay route on the basis of a label corresponding to a terminal of an access source and a server type of an access destination instead of using an IP address as a key to select the relay route. A VPN using L2TP is also introduced. A CE router A (101) maps MAC addresses of terminals (103, 104) that it accommodates on the L2TP-VPN session. The session ID of the L2TP is used as the session ID of VPN, which is used as the key to select a relay route.
US08159987B1
Disclosed herein is a method for data communication between a wireless-communication system and one or more wireless-communication devices. The wireless-communication system broadcasts a standard pilot signal over a pilot channel. The method comprises (a) the wireless-communication system transmitting a first broadcast-mode message in a coverage area of the wireless-communication system, wherein the first broadcast-mode message indicates that the wireless-communication system will be operating in an alternative broadcast mode, and (b) the wireless-communication system operating in the alternative broadcast mode. Operating in the alternative broadcast involves (i) generating a modified pilot signal comprising the standard pilot signal and a data message inserted in the standard pilot signal and (ii) broadcasting the modified pilot signal via the pilot channel, which enables a wireless-communication device receiving the modified pilot signal to extract the data message therefrom.
US08159968B2
A system measures, at a network device, a first frame rate of frame-based transport based on a first frame size, and measures, at the network device, a second frame rate of the frame-based transport based on a second frame size, where the second frame size is different than the first frame size. The system determines per frame encapsulation overhead in the frame-based transport using the first frame rate, the first frame size, the second frame rate, and the second frame size. The system further determines total transport bandwidth associated with the frame-based transport using the first frame rate, the first frame size, the second frame rate, the second frame size, and the determined per frame encapsulation overhead.
US08159966B1
What is disclosed is a method of operating a communication system which includes a plurality of packet processing systems that each comprises one of a plurality of packet payload inspection systems. The method includes receiving a registration request from a wireless communication device, and in response, selecting one of the packet processing systems for the wireless communication device, obtaining a user profile for the wireless communication device, and obtaining a location for the wireless communication device. The method also includes transferring data indicating the wireless communication device, the user profile for the wireless communication device, and the location for the wireless communication device for delivery to the one of the packet payload inspection systems included in the selected one of the packet processing systems. The method also includes receiving the data in the one of the packet payload inspection systems, and in response, inspecting packet payloads associated with the wireless communication device based on the data.
US08159965B2
A method of comparing a state variable or a sequence number, hereinafter called SN, of a packet with modulus arithmetic for a receiving terminal of a wireless communications system includes determining an SN range of a receiving window and using a minimum SN of the receiving window as a modulus base for a duplicate avoidance and reordering, hereinafter called DAR, entity and a reception buffer when a DAR function is configured; determining an SN range of a storage window and using a minimum SN of the storage window as the modulus base when an out of sequence packet delivery function is configured; and using an SN of the latest packet received by the reception buffer plus a first predetermined value as the modulus base when neither the out of sequence packet delivery function nor the DAR function is configured.
US08159963B2
A QoS routing apparatus as a node of a logical network to transmit data communicated between user's terminals comprises a relay unit discriminating whether or not flows of received data are measurement flows and transmitting said received data, a quality measurement unit measuring communication quality of links connected the own apparatus using the measurement flows, a quality accuracy setting unit determining measurement accuracy of the communication qualities of the respective links and a path setting unit prescribing transmission amounts of the measurement flows to the respective links. When the path setting unit prescribes the transmission amounts of the measurement flows, it applies a higher rate to a link which has been determined a lower measurement accuracy.
US08159961B1
A method and a system for processing data requests in a client-server computing environment, such as the Web, are disclosed. A client device initially transmits a data request to a randomly selected first server device. The first server device may reject the data request if its request queue threshold is exceeded. The client device retransmits the data request, including the request queue threshold, to a randomly selected second server device. The second server device may reject the data request if the request queue threshold of the first server device is smaller than a request queue threshold of the second server device. The client device transmits the data request back to the first server device, including the request queue threshold of the second server device. The first server device processes the data request and adjusts its request queue threshold based on the request queue thresholds of the first and the second server devices.
US08159946B2
Provided is a resource management method in a communication system, and more particularly, a resource management method based on priority in a wireless communication system. The resource management method in a wireless management network includes: setting a priority factor value with regard to a link flow for which link establishment is requested; and if a capacity required by the flow for which link establishment is requested exceeds a remaining capacity of a base station, increasing the remaining capacity of the base station by sequentially reducing a minimum reserved rate (MRR) value of flows that receive a service at a lower priority than the flow for which link establishment is requested to a maximum sustained rate (MSR) value, until the remaining capacity required by the flow for which link establishment is requested is generated.
US08159943B2
A source host comprising a processing resource that supports a kernel space and a user space. A socket layer is supported by the kernel space and allows a measurement application residing in the user space to instruct a protocol layer to form a plurality of UDP test packets for transmission, from the source host, to a destination node in a communications network. The plurality of test packets employ source-based routing and an alternative congestion control algorithm is implemented by the protocol layer to that supported by the communications network.
US08159935B1
A failover system includes a plurality of configuration controllers and a plurality of switches. The switches include a site proxy, a failover module and a routing table. A first site proxy of a first switch is designated as the active proxy and controls failover in the event a switch fails or otherwise becomes unavailable. A second site proxy of a second switch is designated as the backup proxy and controls failover in the event the first switch fails or otherwise becomes unavailable. In the event a switch fails or otherwise becomes available, the active proxy interacts with the configuration controller and reassigns the extensions associated with the failed switch to a different switch of the plurality of switches. In the event a configuration controller fails or otherwise becomes unavailable, another configuration controller becomes active and establishes communication with the plurality of switches to maintain the operational status of the IP telephony system.
US08159927B2
Systems and methods are provided herein for interfacing a first digital device with a second digital device. An exemplary method includes the steps of combining one of a plurality of digital content channels and a back channel to form a composite channel, the back channel for transmitting information from the second multi-media digital device to the first multi-media digital device, converting a digital content channel and the composite channel from the first digital device into a plurality of single-ended digital content channels, transporting the plurality of single-ended digital content channels from the first digital device to the second digital device, and converting the single-ended digital content channels back into the digital content channel and the composite channel that are supplied to the second digital device. Cross-talk interference is reduced between the back channel and one of the plurality of digital content channels via a cross-talk cancellation filter.
US08159925B2
Embodiments of methods and systems for controlling access to information stored on memory or data storage devices are disclosed. In various embodiments, methods of retrieving information from a data storage device previously deactivated by modification or degradation of at least a portion of the data storage device are disclosed.
US08159916B2
A pick-up of a format determining apparatus irradiates light to an optical disk to generate a reproduction signal. A signal processing unit decodes the reproduction signal to generate main data. A CD-ROM decoder decodes the main data. A CD-ROM determining unit determines whether or not the main data is in a CD-ROM format, based on the decoded main data. A reproduction signal determining unit determines whether or not the reproduction signal is normal when the main data is not in the CD-ROM format. A system control unit determines that the main data is in a CD-DA format, when the main data is not in the CD-ROM format, and when the reproduction signal is normal.
US08159911B2
An optical disc recording medium is irradiated with laser light having a predetermined laser power to deform an irradiated portion of a substrate into a protruding portion. Since the substrate is deformed so as to have protruding portions, a reflecting layer arranged on the substrate is also deformed so as to have protruding portions. For a pit, the deformed state of a protruding portion allows to obtain a reproduced signal level equivalent to that in each land. For a land, the deformed state of a protruding portion allows to obtain a reproduced signal level equivalent to that in each pit. Since the deformed state of each protruding portion can be controlled on the basis of the power of the laser light for irradiation, pit-to-land deformation and land-to-pit deformation can be performed by setting the laser power. Thus, recorded data can be rewritten on the optical disc recording medium recorded with the data using a combination of pits and lands formed in the substrate.
US08159910B2
A method of controlling a tracking error balance in an optical disc apparatus, and the optical disc apparatus are discussed. In an embodiment of the present invention, when a tracking error balance for writing is controlled, a beam power that is appropriate for the writing characteristics of an optical disc is applied. The beam power can be determined based on the Manufacturer Identifier (MID) of the optical disc and writing power information for different MIDs. The beam power can be determined to be a value of 20 to 50% of the prestored writing power for the MID of the optical disc.
US08159902B2
An apparatus and method for localizing a sound source in a robot are provided. The apparatus includes a microphone unit implemented by one or more microphones, which picks up a sound from a three-dimensional space. The apparatus also includes a sound source localizer for determining a position of the sound source in accordance with Time-Difference of Arrivals (TDOAs) and a highest power of the sound picked up by the microphone unit. Thus, the robot can rapidly and accurately localize the sound source in the three-dimensional space with minimum dead space, using a minimum number of microphones.
US08159899B2
Subject matter disclosed herein relates to accessing memory, and more particularly to a wordline driver of same.
US08159893B2
A system includes a memory controller and a plurality of memory devices connected in-series that communicate with the memory controller. Each of the memory devices has multiple independent serial ports for receiving and transmitting data. The memory controller a device address (DA) or ID number for designating a device that executes a command. Data contained in the command sent by the memory controller is captured by an individual link control circuit, in response to internally generated clock with appropriate latencies. The captured data is written into a corresponding memory bank. The data stored in one of a plurality of memory banks of one memory device is read in accordance with the addresses issued by the memory controller. The read data is propagated from the memory device through the series-connected memory devices to the memory controller.
US08159892B2
A nonvolatile memory device includes a storage unit configured to store pattern data selected based on a test command set, and a control unit configured to consecutively perform a program operation on a number of pages in response to the pattern data to obtain programmed pages, consecutively perform a read operation on the programmed pages, and provide information about a bit line coupled to a fail memory cell and about a number of fail bit lines checked as a result of the read operation.
US08159889B2
A solid state disk controller apparatus comprises a first port; a second port having a plurality of channels; a central processing unit connected to a CPU bus; a buffer memory configured to store data to be transferred from the second port to the first port and from the first port to the second port; a buffer controller/arbiter block connected to the CPU bus and configured to control read and write operations of the buffer memory based on a control of the central processing unit; a first data transfer block connected between the first port and the buffer controller/arbiter block and configured to transfer data to be stored/read in/from the buffer memory bypassing the CPU bus; and a second data transfer block connected between the second port and the buffer controller/arbiter block and configured to transfer data to be stored/read in/from the buffer memory bypassing the CPU bus.
US08159888B2
A memory circuit includes a delay module receiving a strobe signal and producing a delayed strobe signal therefrom. The memory circuit also includes a calibration module that initiates recalibration of the delay module when the calibration module discerns that the delayed strobe signal is within a predetermined proximity of an edge of a reference signal. The memory circuit can be included in a memory interface. Furthermore, in some embodiments, a strobe signal can be used as the reference signal.
US08159886B2
A memory device having a single or a plurality of memory chips includes a memory part (control register, SPD memory unit) inside each memory chip, which memory part stores control data concerning the memory chip. The memory device enables writing-in or readout of the control data stored on the memory part to be able to set any desired control data for each memory chip, and, when the memory device has the plurality of memory chips, enables separate use of each of the memory chips.
US08159871B2
A magnetoresistive memory cell includes an MTJ device and a select transistor. The select transistor includes a first conduction-type semiconductor layer, a gate electrode formed by disposing a gate insulating layer on top of the semiconductor layer, and first and second diffusion regions formed in the semiconductor layer to be spaced apart from each other and to have a second conduction type. A part of the semiconductor layer between the first and second diffusion regions is formed as an electrically floating body region. By using a high-performance select transistor with a floating body effect, high integration of a magnetoresistive memory device may be achieved.
US08159870B2
Spin Transfer Torque Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory (STT-MRAM) bit cells are disclosed. The bit cells include a source line formed in a first plane and a bit line formed in a second plane. The bit line has a longitudinal axis that is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the source line, and the source line overlaps at least a portion of the bit line.
US08159852B2
A semiconductor memory device includes first and second driving transistors; first and second load transistors; and first and second transmission transistors. Their respective drain diffusion layers of the transistors are isolated from one another. The semiconductor memory device also includes a bit cell in which the first and second driving transistors, the first and second load transistors, and the first and second transmission transistors are arranged; a first wiring for connecting their respective drains of the first driving transistor, the first load transistor, and the first transmission transistor; and a second wiring for connecting their respective drains of the second driving transistor, the second load transistor, and the second transmission transistor.
US08159849B2
A power inverter comprises at least a box-shaped housing; and a power module, a smoothing capacitor, a base plate made of a flat plate, and a rotating electric machine control circuit board arranged in order in the housing. The base plate is arranged with the fringes fixed to the inner wall surfaces of the housing, and the smoothing capacitor and rotating electric machine control circuit board are fixed.
US08159846B2
At the starting time and an overload time in which the output voltage of the switching power source apparatus is low, if an overcurrent state, in which the ON period of the switching device becomes short and a current not less than the current limit value of the switching device flows through the switching device, occurs, this overcurrent state is detected. The blanking period of a blanking pulse signal is made shorter than the blanking period that is obtained during steady operation, and the ON period of the switching device is made shorter. Hence, the device current flowing through the switching device can be made small in each pulse for the switching operation, and, at the same time, the device current is suppressed from increasing each time a pulse for the switching operation is generated.
US08159845B2
A current-sharing power supply apparatus is applied to regulate voltage level of an input DC voltage, and the regulated DC voltage is stabilized in a predetermined voltage to be used on rear-end circuits. The current-sharing power supply apparatus includes a square-wave generating circuit, a rectifier circuit, a conversion circuit, a rectifier circuit, a filter circuit, a first output terminal, and a second output terminal. The current-sharing power supply apparatus provides two output voltages with a multiple relation from the first output terminal and the second output terminal, respectively.
US08159841B2
A method, device, and plurality of circuit enhancements for a rectifier system that enable reduction in lower order and higher order harmonics, without substantially reducing the rectifier's direct current output voltage. The rectifier system comprises a phase shifting primary transformer subsystem and a multi-pulse rectifier. At least one series impedance path is coupled to one of three input terminals/leads of the transformer subsystem and conducts one phase of three phase currents from a power supply to the transformer subsystem. The series impedance path provides low impedance to the 1st harmonic and substantially higher, inductive impedance to higher harmonics of the power supply frequency. The impedance of the series impedance path at a selected frequency above a third harmonic of the power supply's fundamental frequency divided by the impedance at the fundamental frequency of the three phase power supply is substantially greater than the selected frequency divided by the fundamental frequency of the power supply.
US08159839B2
A control circuit for use in a power converter with an unregulated dormant mode of operation is disclosed. In one aspect a power converter includes a drive signal generator that is coupled to generate a drive signal to control switching of a power switch coupled to the control circuit to regulate a flow of energy to an output of the power converter in response to an energy requirement of one or more loads coupled to the output of the power converter. A regulator circuit is coupled to charge a capacitor. The capacitor determines a time period. The regulator circuit is coupled to not charge the capacitor if the energy requirement of the one or more loads coupled to the output of the power converter falls below a threshold. The regulator is coupled to again charge the capacitor after the time period has elapsed. An unregulated dormant mode control circuit is coupled to render dormant the drive signal generator and the regulator circuit during the time period thereby causing regulation of the flow of energy to the output of power converter output to cease. The unregulated dormant mode control circuit is further coupled to power up the drive signal generator and the regulator after the time period has elapsed.
US08159838B2
Flyback converter system capable of preventing two side switches from being turned on simultaneously
A flyback converter system prevents a primary side switch and a secondary side switch from being turned on simultaneously through a controller. The controller includes a turning on switch module, a turning off switch module, and an enabling switch module. The turning on switch module is for turning on the secondary side switch. The turning off switch module switches off the secondary side switch according to the impedance of a load and the switch cycle of the secondary side switch. The enabling switch module enables the secondary side switch according to the impedance of the load.
US08159837B2
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for efficiently providing bias voltages. A first switching regulator stage that includes an inductor receives an input voltage and provides as an output an intermediate regulated output voltage. A second switching regulator stage receives as input the intermediate regulated output voltage and outputs a regulated main output voltage. The second switching regulator stage includes at least one switch controller that provides one or more signals to one or more switches in the second switching regulator stage to regulate the main output voltage of the second regulator stage. A secondary bias module utilizes a secondary winding coupled with the inductor of the first regulator stage to provide a secondary bias output voltage to the switch controller of the second switching regulator stage. The secondary bias output voltage is referenced to the main output voltage of the second switching regulator stage.
US08159828B2
A power module is proposed to package an electronic system having flip chip power MOSFET devices. The power module includes a front surface cover board and a multi-layer printed circuit laminate bonded thereto. Notably, the front surface of the printed circuit laminate includes recessed pockets each having printed circuit traces atop its floor. Inside the recessed pockets are power MOSFET and other circuit components bonded to the printed circuit traces. As the circuit components are encased inside the power module, it features a low profile, an increased mechanical robustness and EMI/RFI immunity. Additionally, some circuit components can be provided with a front-side bonding layer that is also bonded to the front surface cover board to realize a double-side bonding to the interior of the power module. Methods for making the low profile power module are also described.
US08159825B1
A method for electrically interconnecting two substrates, each having a corresponding set of preformed electrical contacts, the substrates comprising an electronic circuit, and the resulting module, is provided. A liquid curable adhesive is provided over the set of contacts of a first substrate, and the set of electrical contacts of the second substrate is aligned with the set of electrical contacts of the first substrate. The sets of electrical contacts of the first and second substrate are compressed to displace the liquid curable adhesive from the inter-contact region, and provide electrical communication between the respective sets of electrical contacts. The liquid curable adhesive is then cured to form a solid matrix which maintains a relative compression between the respective sets of electrical contacts. One embodiment of the module comprises a high-speed superconducting circuit which operates at cryogenic temperatures.
US08159821B2
A method for providing a high in-plane and through-plane thermal conductivity path between a heat producing electronic device and a heat sink is described. A vapor chamber, or other type of heat spreader, is provided that has a substantially flat top copper surface and a substantially flat bottom copper surface. A ceramic submount is also provided, where the submount has a top copper metallization layer patterned for connection to electrodes of a heat-producing die, and where the submount has a bottom copper metallization layer. Prior to a working fluid being introduced into the vapor chamber, and prior to a die being mounted on the submount, the top copper surface of the vapor chamber is diffusion bonded to the bottom copper metallization layer of the ceramic submount under heat and pressure. The working fluid is then introduced into the vapor chamber, and the chamber is sealed. Dies are then mounted on the submount. The bottom of the vapor chamber is then affixed over a heat sink.
US08159814B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide a semiconductor device that includes a transistor device having a first, a second, and a third node; and an interconnect structure having at least one wire and the wire having a first and a second end with the first end of the wire being connected to one of the first, the second, and the third node of the transistor device. The wire is conductive and adapted to provide an operating current in a first direction during a normal operating mode, and adapted to provide a repairing current in a second direction opposite to the first direction during a repair mode of the semiconductor device. In one embodiment the transistor device is a bipolar transistor with the first, second, and third nodes being an emitter, a base, and a collector of the bipolar transistor. The wire is connected to one of the emitter and the collector. Method of operating the semiconductor device and current supplying circuit for the semiconductor device are also disclosed.
US08159813B2
There is provided a multilayer chip capacitor including: a capacitor body including first and second capacitor units arranged in a laminated direction; and first to fourth outer electrodes formed on side surfaces of the capacitor body, respectively, wherein the first capacitor unit includes first and second inner electrodes of different polarities alternately arranged in the capacitor body to oppose each other while interposing a corresponding one of dielectric layers, the second capacitor unit includes third and fourth inner electrodes of different polarities alternately arranged in the capacitor body to oppose each other while interposing another corresponding one of the dielectric layers, the first and second capacitor units are electrically insulated from each other, and the first capacitor unit operates in a first frequency range and the second capacitor unit operates in a second frequency range lower than the first frequency range.
US08159810B1
A system for providing selective capacitance with a bundled capacitor is described herein. The bundled capacitor can include a housing a cap, a central common terminal, a plurality of auxiliary terminals, an interrupter, an insulating spider, a plurality of individual rolled sandwich like connected capacitors, a thermal fuse, a frangible electrical connection, an insulating layer, a resin, and an expansion chamber. A single phase motor can be connected to the bundled capacitor.
US08159809B2
A reconfigurable system is described that can optimize the performance of the system. Substrates can be detached, levitated, moved, dropped and reattached as desired by the use of Coulomb forces generate between Coulomb islands. Thus, a system using a first set of substrates for a given frequency range can be exchanged with a second set of substrates operable at a different frequency range by the use of Coulomb forces. Making this exchange in an RF system can improve the selectivity and decrease the power dissipation of the system. One of the exchanges can involve inductor to shift the frequency of oscillation, for example. A control unit can be used to control the movement and replacement of all substrates. The formation of minimal energy potentials of Coulomb forces are determined to move a substrate over an underlying substrate.
US08159803B2
Apparatus for detecting an overheating condition at an electrical power device and automatically breaking the circuit when the temperature exceeds a setpoint value. In various configurations the device is a receptacle adapted to be used in a wall mounted box or a receptacle unit that is plugged into an existing receptacle and supported in place by the existing receptacle. A temperature switch is wired parallel to a normally open test switch on a ground fault circuit interrupter or other circuit interrupting device. The temperature switch is responsive to the temperature local to the receptacle, such as is caused by poor connections to or in the receptacle. The temperature setpoint is less than the melting temperature of the insulation of the electrical wiring. Upon actuation of the temperature switch, the circuit interrupting device is latched in a tripped position until the device is reset for reuse.
US08159797B2
An input terminal is externally input with an input voltage. An output transistor of N-channel MOSFET is arranged between the input terminal and an output terminal. A charge pump circuit steps up the input voltage. An error amplifier receives a voltage stepped up by the charge pump circuit as a power supply, and outputs an error voltage of a feedback voltage corresponding to an output voltage of the output terminal and a predetermined reference voltage to a gate of the output transistor. A controller compares the input voltage with a predetermined threshold voltage, and forcibly turns OFF the output transistor when the input voltage is higher than the threshold voltage.
US08159796B2
The present disclosure relates to an integrated circuit and a package on which such integrated circuit is placed, the latter having a power output stage, at least one first pad, one second pad and one drive circuit for driving said power output stage, wherein the integrated circuit is characterized in that it has at least one additional third pad, other than said at least one first and said at least one second pads, said drive circuit being electrically coupled between said at least one third pad and said power output stage.
US08159793B2
An apparatus for facilitating interruption of current in an electrical circuit is provided and includes a current sensing device in the electrical circuit to service an electrical load, the current sensing device being productive of an output signal representative of a load current passing therethrough, a detection unit, in signal communication with the current sensing device such that the output signal is received by the detection unit, the detection unit being configured and disposed to output a secondary signal based on the output signal, and a microcontroller to receive and to decompose the secondary signal into detailed and approximate coefficients, and to generate a trip signal for use in interrupting an operation of the electrical circuit when a current of the sensed load is above a predetermined threshold and the detailed and approximate coefficients cooperatively indicate that threshold conditions for trip signal generation are satisfied.
US08159787B2
An HDD includes a base, a swing arm, a VCM coil disposed on the rear end portion of the swing arm, a lower yoke and an upper yoke disposed below and above the VCM coil, at least one magnet attached to the yokes, and a latch lever levitated by the at least one magnet. The latch lever includes a hook at one end and a counterbalance at another end. A first magnetic retractor is installed on the counterbalance to apply torque to the latch lever. The first retract member is disposed such that the vertical component of the net magnetic force applied to the first retractor by the magnet(s) is about 0 when the latch lever is located at a position at which a first air gap and a second air gap exist, respectively, immediately below and above the latch lever.
US08159786B2
A head gimbal assembly may comprise a slider, a micro-actuator attached to the slider, a flexure to mount the slider and the micro-actuator, and a suspension comprising a support region, a main portion, and a moving portion, wherein the flexure comprises a plurality of trace sets to electrically couple the micro-actuator and the slider, and wherein the plurality of trace sets are laminated generally parallel to each other.
US08159785B1
A suspension for a disk drive includes a gimbal, a load beam and a constraint layer. The gimbal is configured to receive a head. The load beam has a first end and a second end and defines a longitudinal axis between the first end and the second end. The load beam is coupled to the gimbal proximate the first end and includes a base region proximate the second end, the base region having a first lateral section to one side of the longitudinal axis and a second lateral section to another side of the longitudinal axis. The first and the second lateral sections define a gap therebetween, and the base region has a bridge section extending across the gap between the first lateral section and the second lateral section. The constraint layer overlays at least a portion of the base region.
US08159782B2
A thin film magnetic head is provided, in which the amount of protrusion in the periphery of an element portion can be reduced or a local temperature increase of electrode leads of a heating element can be prevented. The thin film magnetic head includes a playback element disposed between lower and upper shield layers, a recording element laminated on the upper shield layer, a heating element which is disposed below a coil layer and which generates heat to allow the playback element to protrude toward the recording medium side through thermal expansion, and a pair of electrode leads including overlapping regions, which are in contact with rear ends of the heating element and which overlap with the upper shield layer, and heat dissipation regions. Furthermore, connection wiring portions of the pair of electrode leads are disposed in a region sandwiched between the upper shield layer and a magnetic layer.
US08159779B2
A data storage system with a controller that receives shock data from a shock detection sensor and methods utilizing such a controller are provided. The data storage system controller receives information or signals regarding shock events from a shock sensor, enabling the data storage system controller to take remedial action. The particular remedial action taken may be dependent on the severity of the detected shock event. The data storage system controller may receive information regarding shock events from shock sensors provided separately from the data storage system controller, allowing the data storage system controller to take remedial action that is tailored to the locale of a shock event.
US08159778B2
A method and system of controlling contamination within an HDD with a surface modified MCM 41/48 material. The method includes encasing the hard disk drive and a mesoporous material in an enclosure of the hard disk drive, wherein the mesoporous material sorbs contaminants within said enclosure.
US08159775B2
A vibration attenuation method comprising identifying a hard drive disposed on an electronic device and, based on the identity of the hard drive, attenuating an output of at least one operation of the electronic device.
US08159768B1
A method for detecting a servo address mark (SAM) of a servo sector of a disk of a disk drive during a servo field sync-up operation is disclosed. The method includes: detecting a start of a preamble; opening a SAM search window to detect the SAM; and continuing to detect the presence of the preamble during a SAM search time period. Further, the method discloses that: if the preamble is detected, the SAM search window is continued; and if the preamble is not detected, and the SAM is not detected, the SAM search window is closed.
US08159764B2
A lens drive device may include a movable body holding a lens, a fixed body movably holding the movable body, and a drive mechanism for driving the movable body in the optical axis direction. The drive mechanism may include a drive magnet part formed in a substantially triangular prism shape and disposed at least in one of four corners of the lens drive device, a drive coil wound around in a substantially triangular tube shape and attached to the movable body, and a coil protection member attached to at least one of an object side and an opposite-to-object side of the drive coil. The coil protection member may include a first coil protection end part and a second coil protection end part which are superposed on an outer side end of the drive coil or protruded toward an outer side from the outer side end of the drive coil to prevent the drive coil from contacting with the fixed body such as a case body.
US08159751B2
Image display device having an image source generating an image, a beam splitter positioned at forty five degrees to the main optical path, to project and focus the image generated by the image source into the entrance pupil of the human eye, two achromatic standard doublet lenses positioned perpendicularly to the main optical path and placed between the image source and the beam splitter, and configured to amplify, collimate, and correct optical aberrations of said image, wherein the image source, beam splitter and the doublet lenses are in an on-axis configuration and the image display device comprises two mounting brackets parallel to the main optical axis, each having an extremity part holding an edge of the beam splitter and the other extremity pivotally attached to a housing, allowing the brackets and beam splitter to rotate in an axis perpendicular to the main optical path.
US08159750B2
Provided is an illumination structure which includes a light source and an illumination lens. The light source emits light in at least one wavelength band. The illumination lens includes a light receiving portion and a light outgoing portion. The light receiving portion divides the light from the light source in a plurality of different directions and the light outgoing portion emits the divided light.
US08159746B2
The optical apparatus includes an image stabilizing lens shiftable with respect to an optical axis, a movable lens movable in an optical axis direction, first and second actuators shifting the image stabilizing lens, and a third actuator moving the movable lens. The first, second and third actuators include a magnet and a coil. When viewed in the optical axis direction, the first and second actuators are disposed in a first area and the third actuator is disposed in a second area, the first and second areas being opposite to each other with respect to the optical axis. The first and second actuators are respectively disposed in areas in the first area opposite to each other with respect to a straight line passing the optical axis and the third actuator. This arrangement enables reduction of magnetic interference between the first and second actuators and the third actuator.
US08159745B2
A portable screen assembly is small, light and easy to handle and enables easy extension and contraction of a column stretching a screen. The column has at least a first cylindrical body, a second cylindrical body, and a third cylindrical body, wherein the first cylindrical body slides within the second cylindrical body and the second cylindrical body slides within the third cylindrical body. The column also includes a first lock portion locking slide of the first cylindrical body, a second lock portion locking slide of the second cylindrical body, a lock release lever provided at an upper end portion of the first cylindrical body, and a release bar having an upper end portion pivotally connected to the lock release lever so as to be movable vertically within the first cylindrical body.
US08159734B2
An oscillator device includes a supporting member, an oscillation system having plural oscillators and plural torsion springs, a driving device for oscillating the oscillation system, a drive control device for controlling the driving device, an oscillation detecting device for detecting a state of oscillation of an oscillator of the oscillation system, a resonance frequency calculating device for calculating a resonance frequency of the oscillation system based on an output of the oscillation detecting device, and a control parameter adjusting device for adjusting a control parameter of the drive control device, wherein the control parameter adjusting device adjusts a control parameter based on an output of the resonance frequency calculating device.
US08159731B2
An image reading device according to one aspect of the invention comprises: a conveying unit configured to convey a recording medium; a first transmissive portion having a first surface that allows the recording medium to pass through the first surface; a second transmissive portion having a second surface on which a recording medium is allowed to be placed; an image reading unit comprising a line sensor extending in a first direction and movable on a second path, the second path continuously extending below the first transmissive portion and the second transmissive portion; and a driver configured to move the image reading unit on the second path. A relative distance of a third direction perpendicular to the first and second directions between the line sensor and the first surface changes in the second path below the first transmissive portion.
US08159721B2
A scanning apparatus which scans an image of a document to generate an image data, the scanning apparatus includes: a boundary sensing unit to sense a boundary of the image, and a distortion area, a distortion boundary of which is not sensed; a shadow calculating unit to calculate a shadow value of the image data; and a control unit to calculate the distortion boundary of the distortion area according the shadow values of the distortion area so as to correct distortion of an image caused by variations in focal distances between the image and the lenses within the scanning apparatus.
US08159720B2
Halftoning is performed on a source image. The halftoning includes error diffusion processing of one separation based on error diffusion processing of another separation. The error diffusion processing includes determining a rendered pixel value for the one separation by applying a quantization function for a given pixel. The quantization function is based on both a modified input determined as a function of an error value of a pre-rendered pixel for the one separation and an error value determined as a function of rendered pixel values for the another separation. A rendered image is output, which includes the same plural color separations. The output rendered image is populated with, for the one separation, a rendered pixel value based on the application of the quantization function.
US08159714B2
A selection method, in an information processing apparatus connected to a plurality of image reading apparatuses, for making a selection from the plurality of image reading apparatuses, includes the steps of searching for the connected image reading apparatuses, performing a first displaying process to display the image reading apparatuses detected in the searching step, performing pre-scanning to acquire preview images from the respective image reading apparatuses detected in the searching step by controlling the image reading apparatuses, performing a second displaying process to display the preview images acquired in the pre-scanning step in such a manner that the preview images are correlated with the image reading apparatuses displayed in the first displaying process, and selecting an image reading apparatus based on the preview images displayed in the second displaying process.
US08159708B2
A graphic-drawing processing unit performs a rendering process of print data with respect to a band memory or a page memory. When there is a rendering engine that performs a memory access using a memory word width as a minimum unit as a rendering environment, an arbitrary-word-width drawing unit is configured to access an arbitrary-word-width having an arbitrary height, and a one-word width-limited drawing unit is configured to access a limited one-word width having an arbitrary height. The graphic-drawing processing unit performs a drawing process by switching the arbitrary-word-width drawing unit and the one-word-width-limited drawing unit as appropriate.
US08159703B2
An information processing apparatus which makes it possible to improve user operability in selecting a desired one from a plurality of image processing apparatuses by selecting functions of the image processing apparatuses. A virtual printer driver acquires function information on a plurality of printers existing on a network. One printer is selected as a default printer from the printers. Configuration items associated with functions of the default printer, and configuration items associated with functions of the other printers are displayed on a configuration screen in a manner selectable by a user. The configuration items associated with the functions of the printers except the default printer are displayed such that a printer equipped with a function associated with each of the configuration items can be identified by the user. Print data is transmitted to one of the printers, based on a configuration item selected by the user.
US08159701B2
Disclosed are methods of controlling operation of a printer, apparatus and computer-readable medium. The embodiments control operation of a printer by receiving a print command for printing from a user, displaying a print user interface including selectable document settings, receiving an indication from the user of selected ones of the documents settings, receiving an indication from the user to save the selected document settings as an application default setting corresponding to an application, and controlling printing of documents opened in the application to print on the printer using the application default setting and the selected document settings.
US08159682B2
A fragmented lens system for creating an invisible light pattern useful to computer vision systems is disclosed. Random or semi-random dot patterns generated by the present system allow a computer to uniquely identify each patch of a pattern projected by a corresponding illuminator or light source. The computer may determine the position and distance of an object by identifying the illumination pattern on the object.
US08159667B2
A high speed miniature tera- and gigahertz electromagnetic radiation on-chip spectrometer that comprises a tunable solid state 2D charge carrier layer or a quasi 2D charge carrier layer with incorporated single or multiple defects, at least first and second contacts to the charge carrier layer. Also the device includes an apparatus for measuring the device response between the first and second contacts, and an apparatus for a controllable tuning of at least one of the charge carrier layer parameters. The operation principle is based on the fact that radiation of different wavelengths excites distinct sets of plasma modes in the charge carrier layer.
US08159657B2
A method for marking and authenticating a security article, such as a banknote, a document, a ticket, a foil, a thread, a label, a card, or a commercial good, so as to provide for an easy authentication of said article by a machine, such as a currency acceptor, a ticket validator, or a hand-held authentication device. The security article is marked with a user-defined design, wherein said marking comprises dyes or pigments belonging to an extended, or hyperchromic color space which is not reproducible by commercially available, 4-color desktop reproduction equipment. The marking is authenticated by mathematically transforming crude spectral information to statistically independent hyper-color coordinates, and comparing selected hyper-color coordinates with corresponding reference values.
US08159654B2
A pressure body comprises: three or more pressure pins 40 that come into contact with a photomask 70 at downward positions in a pressure direction D; a main body 10 provided with an opening 16, the opening 16 supporting the pressure pins 40 so as to prevent the pins from dropping off downward, the opening 16 being able to change positions within a plane perpendicular to the pressure direction D, the pressure pins 40 being supported at said positions; a cover body 20 fixed to the main body 10 at an upward position in the pressure direction D; and a buffer member 30 located between the pressure pins 40 and the cover body 20 in the pressure direction D. The pressure body further comprises a cap pin 60, the cap pin 60 supported in the opening 16 so as to be prevented from dropping off downward, the cap pin 60 located in alignment with the pressure pins 40 so as to close off the opening 16, thereby preventing the buffer member 30 from being exposed downward.
US08159647B2
A maskless lithography system has a patterning array assembly formed by a plurality of patterning arrays, each patterning array having a substrate. Each patterning array has a plurality of individually controllable elements to endow an incoming radiation beam with a patterned cross-section. To reduce the global unflatness of the patterning array assembly that is oriented in a first plane, the position of at least one substrate of a patterning array is adjusted to a second orientation. Reduction of the global unflatness of the patterning array assembly reduces a telecentricity error without introducing additional error into the maskless lithography system.
US08159646B2
An active device array substrate is provided. The active device array substrate includes an active matrix device, first bonding pads electrically connected to the active matrix device, second bonding pads electrically insulated from the first bonding pads, test bonding pads disposed between the first and the second bonding pads and separated from the second bonding pads, switch devices disposed between the test bonding pads and the first bonding pads and electrically connected to the test bonding pads, a test signal pad, a switch device control pad, and at least one driving chip electrically connected to the first bonding pads, the second bonding pads, and the test bonding pads. Each test bonding pad is corresponding to one of the second bonding pads. Both the test signal pad for inputting/outputting a test signal and the switch device control pad for turning on/off the switch devices are electrically connected to the switch devices.
US08159645B2
A display panel substrate in which parasitic capacitances are provided to data signal lines and any short which occurs between the data signal line and a conductor film can be corrected, and a display panel having the substrate. A plurality of strip conductors 1262 overlap with drawing lines 121 arranged to transmit data signals to data signal lines 111 with an insulating film 132 sandwiched therebetween, and the plurality of strip conductors 1262 are electrically connected by connecting portions 1263, 1264 and 1265 having portions which do not overlap with the drawing lines.
US08159643B2
An electric field driving device, in which a plurality of pixels, each of which is formed of two or more sub-pixels that respectively correspond to different colors from one another, are arranged in a matrix in a pixel region on a substrate, includes pixel electrodes, a common electrode, an insulating layer, and a material. Each of the pixel electrodes is formed in correspondence with the sub-pixel on the substrate. The common electrode is formed above the pixel electrodes on the substrate so that at least part of the common electrode overlaps each of the pixel electrodes in plan view. The insulating layer is formed on the substrate between the pixel electrodes and the common electrode. The material is driven by an electric field that is generated on the basis of a difference in electric potential between each of the pixel electrodes and the common electrode. The common electrode has a plurality of slits that at least partly overlap the pixel electrodes in plan view. At least a portion of the slits are respectively provided continuously over a plurality of the sub-pixels. Each of the sub-pixels corresponding to the same color includes the same numbers of end portions of the plurality of slits.
US08159628B2
The invention relates to a method of fastening a circuit assembly to a light guide in a manufacturing process of a LCD-display. The method comprises: a) providing the circuit assembly, comprising at least one light source; b) providing the light guide, arranged to guide light emitted by the at least one light source; c) positioning the light guide and the circuit assembly with respect to each other; and d) fastening the circuit assembly and the light guide to each other. The action d) is performed by laser welding or ultrasonic welding.
US08159624B2
A projector capable of increasing in the contrast by reducing the amount of leakage of light due to reflection of light on the surface of a retarder is to be provided. A retarder is placed and tilted in a direction so that the following conditional expression is satisfied, denoting a distance between a point A where the normal drawn from the center of a substrate plane of the retarder and a substrate plane of a polarizing beam splitter intersect and a point C where the substrate plane of the polarizing beam splitter and the optical axis of a projection system as AC, and a distance between a point B where the substrate plane of the polarizing beam splitter and the system optical axis intersect and the point C as BC: AC>BC.
US08159611B2
The resent invention provides a television receiver including: a radio frequency section for an electromagnetic wave type remote control, the radio frequency section configured to transmit and receive an electromagnetic wave to and from the electromagnetic wave type remote control; and a retaining section configured to retain said radio frequency section for the electromagnetic wave type remote control; wherein said radio frequency section for the electromagnetic wave type remote control includes a radio frequency circuit board section, an antenna part, and a ground connecting section, said retaining section includes a conductive column support standing on a bezel, a column support standing on said bezel, and a conductive sheet metal parallel with said bezel and fixed to said conductive column support.
US08159600B2
An auto focus image system that includes a pixel array coupled to a focus signal generator. The pixel array captures an image that has at least one edge with a width. The focus signal generator may generate a focus signal that is a function of the edge width and/or statistics of edge widths. A processor receives the focus signal and/or the statistics of edge widths and adjusts a focus position of a focus lens. The edge width can be determined by various techniques including the use of gradients. A histogram of edge widths may be used to determine whether a particular image is focused or unfocused. A histogram with a large population of thin edge widths is indicative of a focused image. The generator may eliminate an edge having an asymmetry of a gradient profile of an image signal. The generator may also eliminate an edge that fails a template for an associated peaking of the gradient.
US08159596B2
An optical element includes: a base material formed of a film-like resin material that has an infrared absorbing effect; and a multilayered film that adjusts spectral characteristics, and is formed on an object-side surface and an image-side surface of the base material. The optical element is disposed on a light path of an imaging optical system, and of such characteristics that its spectral transmittance, and its spectral reflectivities on the object-side surface and the image-side surface satisfy the conditions (1) to (4) 0.75
US08159592B2
A portable terminal, comprises: a terminal body provided with a display unit to output visual information relating to a capturing mode, and having wireless communication functions; a touch input unit provided at the display unit, and configured to input information when at least one of the visual information is touched; a camera body arranged at the terminal body in a longitudinal direction, and rotatably coupled to the terminal body so that a direction of a camera mounted therein rotates in a perpendicular direction to the longitudinal direction of the terminal body; and camera manipulation units disposed on the camera body, and receiving input manipulations relating to an operation of the camera.
US08159589B2
An image sensor for high-speed data readout is provided. The image sensor includes a line memory block temporarily storing a digital signal in unit of lines which is generated based on an analog signal output from a pixel array. The line memory block includes a plurality of line memories, a plurality of data line pairs respectively connecting the line memories to a sense amplifying unit, and a plurality of data line prechargers each including at least two precharge units separately connected with a corresponding one of the data line pairs to precharge the corresponding data line pair with a predetermined precharge voltage. Accordingly, the image sensor performs high-speed digital signal readout based on precharge operation of the data line prechargers.
US08159575B2
A solid-state image pickup apparatus includes: a first major surface on which a light receiving portion is formed; a second major surface opposed to the first major surface, and a hermetic seal portion formed on the first major surface, for sealing the light receiving portion, the hermetic seal portion being formed by a flat plate portion made of a transparent inorganic insulating member and a frame portion made of an inorganic insulating film.
US08159574B2
An imaging array and method for using the same to capture an image are disclosed. The imaging array includes an array of pixel sensors and a controller. Each pixel sensor includes a dual-ported photodiode characterized by ports having first and second gates, and a charge conversion circuit. The charge conversion circuit generates a signal that is a function of a charge on the dual-ported photodiode when the first gate in the dual-ported photodiode is activated to transfer a charge on the dual-ported photodiode to the charge conversion circuit. The controller applies a potential to the second gates and measures a current flowing out of the second gates, each second port passing charge stored in the photodiode connected to the second port when a potential in the photodiode exceeds the applied potential. The controller determines an average light intensity incident on the array of pixel sensors.
US08159571B2
A method of generating a high dynamic range (HDR) image and a digital image pickup device using the same are described. The digital image pickup device is employed to generate an HDR image according to a single digital image. The method includes the steps of obtaining an original image; performing a gray-scale processing to convert the original image into an original gray-scale pattern, in which each pixel in the original gray-scale pattern is assigned with a gray-scale value; performing a conversion procedure according to a gradient and a compensation value of the gray-scale value of each pixel in the original gray-scale pattern, and generating a high dynamic gray-scale pattern by using the gradients and the compensation values; and compensating the original image with the high dynamic gray-scale pattern, so as to generate the HDR image.
US08159569B2
A method for processing an image abnormality caused by power supply is provided, which is used in a digital image-capturing apparatus. The method can be described as follows. First, power of the digital image-capturing apparatus is turned on. Next, a line data of an image being captured is started to be transmitted, wherein the line data has a dummy pixel region and an effective pixel region, and the dummy pixel region is first transmitted, and then a plurality of pixel data of the effective pixel region is transmitted. Next, a horizontal driving current to be input to a horizontal driver is processed, so that the horizontal driving current substantially approaches a stable state before the effective pixel region is output. Finally, the above steps are repeated for continually transmitting a next line data of the image being captured until the image of the digital image-capturing apparatus is completely transmitted.
US08159568B2
An apparatus for performing digital video processing of electromagnetic waves in IR or other electromagnetic waves spectra; derived from adjacent or separate bands (or sub-bands) representing a channel of electromagnetic wave intensities; that is processed for equipment radiometric corrections (calibration), adverse environmental elements or substance calibrations, channel filtering in real time and dynamic pixel to pixel time.
US08159562B2
A storage device generates low frame rate video data by frame thinning high frame rate video data input. The storage device performs image synthesis on the low frame rate video data and the high frame rate video data, for which video data input has been delayed, into two screens.
US08159545B2
An image stabilization control apparatus includes a vibration correction unit configured to correct an image shake occurring due to vibration, a first vibration detection unit configured to detect and output an angular velocity of the vibration, a second vibration detection unit configured to detect and output an acceleration of the vibration, a first extractor configured to extract a signal in a predetermined frequency band based on an output of the first vibration detection unit, a second extractor configured to extract a signal in a predetermined frequency band based on an output of the second vibration detection unit, an output correction unit configured to correct the output of the first vibration detection unit based on the signals extracted by the first and second extractors, and a driving unit configured to drive the vibration correction unit based on the output of the first vibration detection unit as corrected.
US08159540B2
A MCP semiconductor device with an “anti-shake” function includes a driver chip and a logic chip. The logic chip includes a correction signal processing unit which obtains a value for vibration of apparatus based on a vibration detection signal to generate a correction signal and a control signal output unit having a plurality of types of signal output sections which output a vibration control signal in accordance with the correction signal to a vibration correction control unit which executes vibration correction control for an optical component. The logic chip further includes a driver output terminal which outputs the vibration control signal to the driver chip, an external output terminal which outputs the control signal to an external circuit other than the driver chip, and also an output switch unit which connects one of the plurality of signal output sections with the driver output terminal or the external output terminal.
US08159539B2
A smoke detecting method and system are provided. The smoke detecting method and system capture a plurality of images; determine whether a moving object exists in the plurality of images; select the images having the moving object to be analyzed; analyze whether the moving object is moving toward a specific direction and a displacement of a base point of the moving object; and determine the moving object as a smoke when the moving object is moving toward the specific direction and the displacement is less than a threshold value.
US08159538B2
A monitoring apparatus includes a filter setting unit configured to store filter setting information for analyzing the video data, a filtering unit configured to determine whether the video data satisfies a filter condition of a filter stored in the filter setting unit and, when the video data satisfies the filter condition, perform filtering in which the number of detected objects is counted and output, and a filter calibrating unit configured to perform filter calibration in which at least one virtual filter is arranged with respect to a predetermined filter or a newly set filter, filtering is performed using the predetermined filter or the newly set filter and the virtual filter, a mode of values obtained as results of the filtering is calculated, and when the mode is determined to be equal to or approximate to a true value, the virtual filter is stored as a primary filter.
US08159532B2
An electronic image pickup apparatus includes a zoom lens system which is a taking optical system, an electronic image pickup element which is disposed at an image side of the taking optical system (zoom lens system), and which converts an image formed by the taking optical system (zoom lens system) to an electric signal, and an image restoring section which restores electrically a photographed image according to a difference in occurrence of an aberration by the taking optical system (zoom lens system) in an air environment photography and in a underwater environment photography.
US08159528B2
A visual display apparatus suitable for use with a viewing apparatus capable of providing stereoscopic view of an image from 360-degree directions around it, or a display apparatus capable of displaying an observation image that changes depending on what angle it is viewed at or who views it, is described. The visual display apparatus comprises a main optical system that is concentric and rotationally symmetric about a center axis and a plurality of subordinate optical systems of identical construction, which are juxtaposed on a circumference concentric about the center axis. A combined optical system comprising the main optical system and each subordinate optical system has an exit pupil positioned on a side of the main optical system that faces away from each subordinate optical system and on a side of the center axis that faces away from each subordinate optical system on an optical path.
US08159526B2
A stereoscopic image display system includes: an image display unit that displays a parallax image composed of a right eye image and a left eye image; glasses having a transmission portion for a right eye transmitting only the right eye image of the parallax image and a transmission portion for a left eye transmitting only the left eye image of the parallax image; an inclination detection unit that detects an inclination of the glasses; a parallax image generation unit that generates the parallax image in accordance with a detection result from the inclination detection unit; and a display unit that displays the parallax image generated by the parallax image generation unit.
US08159524B2
An oblique photographic image is projected onto a three-dimensional model of terrain. Points are sampled from the projected photographic image at the intersection of the three-dimensional model of terrain and parallel rays extended from a virtual viewport having a nadir perspective. The sampled points are assembled into an orthorectified image. Finally, the orthorectified image or the sampled points are adjusted approximately according to a difference in tilt angle between a camera that captured the oblique photographic image and the viewport having the nadir perspective to generate a foreshortened orthorectified image. Each location in the foreshortened orthorectified image corresponds linearly to a corresponding location in a two-dimensional map.
US08159523B2
Provided is a method for convergent type three-dimensional (3D) multi-viewpoint image acquisition. The method for acquiring a multi-viewpoint image in an image acquisition apparatus comprises the steps of: converting the image acquisition apparatus to a multi-viewpoint image photographing mode; if converted to the multi-viewpoint image photographing mode in the converting step, providing a plurality of geometric shapes to set a position of an object to be photographed within a screen and selecting a desired shape of the geometric shapes in response to an inputted shape selection signal; if the desired geometric shape is selected in the shape providing step, adjusting a position and a size of the selected geometric shape in response to a shape adjustment signal; and photographing a whole image having the object that places within the adjusted geometric shape in the adjusting step.
US08159518B2
A streaming video system may include a video capture terminal configured to communicate with a first communications network and a video receiving terminal configured to communicate with a second network operatively connected to the first network. The video capture terminal may be configured to capture video data and stream the video data to the receiving terminal via the first network and the second network in substantially real-time.
US08159517B2
A mobile terminal with a function for setting an output volume of an audio signal to prevent acoustic shock is disclosed. In the mobile terminal, a receiver is integrated into a speaker. The speaker limits the initial output volume of an audio signal to a predetermined level. The mobile terminal provides a menu for setting an output volume of an audio signal. The menu enables a user to select either to maintain the currently limited volume level or to change to a volume level set for a speaker mode. Since an audio signal received with the connection of an incoming call is output at a predetermined reference volume level, acoustic shock caused by unexpectedly high-level of sound volume can be prevented.
US08159512B2
The present invention relates to a method of driving a display comprising: receiving grey level input data, comprising a subpixel input data consisting of N bits, from an external image data source; mapping the L upper bits of the N-bit subpixel input data to an L-bit first mapped data, where L≦(N−1); generating an additional bit of mapped data; using the lower N-L bits of said N-bit subpixel input data for a control operation; including providing a driver data consisting of L+1 bits, based on the first mapped data and the additional bit of mapped data, to a driver circuit; and controlling the driver circuit to output driving voltages set in relation to the driver data, to a display element, wherein the total number of voltage levels correspond to the maximum value representable by the L bits, plus one. The control operation further comprises, performing frame mixing comprising providing said driver data as either representing said first mapped data or an increment thereof. The additional bit is, inter alia, used to enable representation of said increment.
US08159504B2
A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a user profile, present a user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, detect a change in a developmental growth of the user, adapt a portion of the characteristics of the avatar responsive to the detected change, and present the user the adapted avatar. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US08159498B2
In a first embodiment, a display system comprises a display panel with 4 or more colored subpixels. The display system receives input image data specified in a first color space and outputs image data specified in a second color space. The display system further comprises a gamut mapping module for mapping the input image data specified in the first color space to image data specified in the second color space. The gamut mapping module clamps out-of-gamut colors using at least a first clamping system and a second clamping system. The first and second clamping systems yield first and second clamped values. A weighting module produces a resulting clamped value from the first and second clamped values. A final output image value is derived from the resulting clamped value. Other embodiments of the display system include pre-reduction modules and adjustable GMA modules.
US08159493B2
A system and method of generating a dynamic visualization of a multi-dimensional dataset of data-points are disclosed. The method is an adaptation of the Grand Tour approach, but instead of using all possible projections comprising at least one data point, some of which may not be useful, the method includes generating a set of candidate projections from the space of all possible projections. The set of candidate projections is approximated with a one dimensional smoothed curve and the dynamic visualization is generated, based on a sequence of projections taken along the smoothed curve.
US08159491B2
A data processing apparatus and method are provided for tracing activities of a shader program executed on shader circuitry of a data processing apparatus. The data processing apparatus comprises shader circuitry which is responsive to input data for a pixel to execute a shader program to generate a color value for the pixel. The shader program has multiple execution paths via which the color value may be generated, and which execution path is taken is dependent on the input data. An image buffer having a plurality of storage locations is provided, with each storage location being used to store the color value generated by the shader circuitry for an associated pixel. In a trace mode of operation, execution of the shader program by the shader circuitry causes a trace vector to be generated containing a plurality of items of execution path information indicative of the execution path taken, the trace vector comprising a plurality of fields, each field being used to store one item of execution path information. The trace vector as output is constrained to be of the same size as the color value, and in the trace mode of operation the trace vector is stored in one of the storage locations of the image buffer in place of the color value generated by the shader program. This has been found to provide an efficient mechanism for obtaining execution path data useful when performing a variety of debugging activities in respect of a shader program.
US08159479B2
A pixel circuit able to prevent a spread of the terminal voltages of drive transistors inside a panel and in turn able to reliably prevent deterioration of uniformity, wherein a source of a TFT serving as a drive transistor is connected to an anode of a light emitting element, a drain is connected to a power source potential, a capacitor is connected between a gate and source of the TFT, and a source potential of the TFT is connected to a fixed potential through a TFT serving as a switch transistor and wherein pixel circuit lines are connected by an upper line and bottom line and are arranged in parallel with pixel circuit power source voltage lines so as not to have intersecting parts.
US08159478B2
According to the invention, a compact and inexpensive with low power consumption memory and low access speed can be used for a panel controller and a deterioration compensation circuit of a display device. In a display device of a digital gray scale method, a plurality of pixels of a display panel are divided into first to n-th pixel regions (n is 2 or more) and a format converter portion of a panel controller converts the format of only video data corresponding to one of first to n-th pixel regions and writes the data to one of first and second video memories in each frame period. A display control portion reads out video data that is converted in format and corresponds to one of first to n-th pixel regions in which video data is written to the other of the first and second video memories in the preceding frame period, and transmits the data to the display panel.
US08159468B2
An embedded touch display panel including a first substrate and a second substrate is provided. The first substrate having a displaying region and a sensing region includes a stack structure, a first conductive layer and a first alignment layer. The stack structure disposed on the first substrate within the sensing region includes a protruding structure and a first rough structure disposed on the protruding structure. The first conductive layer conformally disposed on the stack structure has a first rough surface. The first rough surface is exposed from the first alignment layer that covers the first conductive layer. The second substrate includes a second conductive layer and a second alignment layer. The second conductive layer whose position corresponds to the sensing region is disposed on the second structure. A portion of the second conductive layer corresponding to the first rough surface is exposed from the second alignment layer covering thereon.
US08159465B2
A device may include a touch-sensitive display, a memory to store a group of instructions, and a processor. The processor may execute the instructions in the memory to detect that a circular motion is being made on or near a surface of the touch-sensitive screen, detect a location on the touch-sensitive screen at which the circular motion is being made, and zoom in or zoom out on an item, being displayed on the touch-sensitive screen at the detected location, based on detecting that the circular motion is being made on or near the surface of the touch-sensitive screen.
US08159455B2
Methods and apparatus for processing combinations of force and velocity data generated over a given period of time. In one embodiment, an input device comprising one or more force sensors and one or more motion sensors is manipulated relative to a surface. A receiving system is adapted to receive input sequences or “gestures” which are triggered upon the occurrence of one or more conditions detected by the input device. An application executing in the receiving system may be implemented such that the system responds differently to each specific gesture provided by the user.
US08159452B2
An image display device includes at least one light source that emits light; at least one display area that changes, for each pixel, a transmittance or a reflectance of the light emitted from the light source; a panel driving circuit that drives the display area on the basis of an image signal indicating the transmittance or the reflectance for each pixel; and a light source control unit that controls a proportion of a light emission time of the light source in a period that varies within a predetermined range.
US08159449B2
It is an object to provide a display device in which a problem of light leakage from a liquid crystal element in black display is reduced or overcome and the contrast is improved. It is another object to provide a pixel circuit having a function to control a lighting state of a backlight based on each pixel. These objects are achieved by turning off a light-emitting element in display of a black gray scale, and by providing a light-emitting element in each pixel and providing, in a pixel circuit, a function to individually control lighting and non-lighting of the light-emitting element depending on a gray scale to perform display. When a backlight is provided in each pixel, a light-emitting element that is a backlight is turned off when a black gray scale is displayed, whereby reduction in contrast due to light leakage from a liquid crystal element can be prevented.
US08159435B2
An active matrix type display device in which one signal line is provided for every two pixels along a given direction and in which two pixels adjacent in the given direction on respective sides of one signal line share the signal line and are connected to respective different scanning lines, through switching elements. A scanning line driving circuit selects the plurality of scanning lines in turn, and a signal line driving circuit outputs signals according to information to be displayed to the plurality of signal lines. The scanning line driving circuit simultaneously selects two scanning lines corresponding to two pixels connected to different signal lines and adjacently disposed in the given direction and then selects only one scanning line corresponding to a pixel to be selected later out of the two pixels for only a prescribed period.
US08159427B2
An image display is provided with a display area including pixels, each including illuminating means. A control circuit turns the illuminating means of the pixels on and off. A capacitance is provided having a first node connected to an input terminal of the control circuit. A display signal voltage generation circuit generates display signal voltages for the pixels, while a pixel drive voltage generation circuit generates pixel drive voltages for the pixels. In addition, a connector is provided for connecting either one of the display signal voltages or the pixel drive voltages to a second node of the capacitance.
US08159425B2
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for driving an electro-luminescence display panel capable of doing an aging operation upon driving.A method of driving an electro-luminescence display panel according to the present invention includes: a scan period when electro-luminescence cells formed at a cross of both a plurality of scan lines and a plurality of data lines are line-sequentially emitted; and an aging period when an aging is performed in the electro-luminescence cells at the same time by applying a reverse bias, wherein the scan period and the aging period are repeated for each frame.
US08159418B2
A plasma display and a driving method thereof. The plasma display includes a plurality of first electrodes, a first switch, a second switch, a third switch, and a first capacitor. The first switch is connected between a first power source to supply a first voltage and the plurality of first electrodes. The second switch includes a first terminal electrically connected to the plurality of first electrodes, a second terminal connected to a second power source to supply a second voltage that is lower than the first voltage, and a gate connected to a signal input terminal. The third switch includes a first terminal electrically connected to the plurality of first electrodes, and a gate electrically connected to the first signal input terminal. The first capacitor includes a terminal connected to the second power source, and another terminal connected to a node of the first power source and a second terminal of the third switch.
US08159413B2
In a double-stacked electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structure, a first conductive plane and a second conductive plane are spaced apart in parallel. At least two EBG layers are embedded in parallel between the first conductive plane and the second conductive plane. The at least two EBG layers have different stopband characteristics. A plurality of vias connect the at least two EBG layers respectively to one of the first and second conductive planes. At least the vias connecting one of the EBG layers pass through via holes in cells of another EBG layer.
US08159409B2
According to one embodiment, an integrated patch antenna may comprise a radome layer, having an outside surface and an inside surface, and a radiating layer. The radiating layer has a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the radiating layer conforming to the shape of the inside surface of the radome layer. The radiating layer comprises a dielectric layer, a radiating element formed on a first side of the dielectric layer, and a moat formed in the dielectric layer around its perimeter forming an inner perimeter sidewall and an outer perimeter sidewall. The radiating layer also comprises a conductive coating disposed on the inner perimeter sidewall or the outer perimeter sidewall and a feed line disposed on a second side of the dielectric substrate.
US08159408B2
Methods and systems for reducing AM/PM and AM/AM distortion are disclosed and may comprise selectively coupling and impedance matching one of a plurality of tunable antennas to a single programmable output stage comprising a single power amplifier in a transmitter. A programmable matching circuit comprising adjustable inductance and capacitance may be used to impedance match the antenna to the output stage. The selected tunable antenna may be coupled to the output stage utilizing a programmable switch array, which may comprise at least one transistor integrated on an integrated circuit including the output stage, for example. The tunable antennas may be designed to operate in different frequency bands and to be tuned within one or more frequency bands. The programmable matching circuit may be integrated on the chip or external to the chip. The matching circuit capacitance may be integrated on-chip, and the inductance may be located off-chip.
US08159405B2
A magnetic antenna, suitable for use in an RFID tag and an RFID tag reader/writer, which operates stable even if brought close to a metallic object and suitable for mass-production, and a board mounted with the magnetic antenna. The magnetic antenna has a coil with a magnetic layer and a conductive layer provided on the magnetic layer via an insulating layer or has a plurality of coils each with a magnetic layer having a square or rectangular shape and arranged radially.
US08159401B2
An antenna (14, 15) for installation in a subsurface ground enclosure has an F-shaped radiating element (15) having a rectangular strip (15c) disposed on edge and two spaced apart bars (15a, 15b) disposed substantially perpendicular to the rectangular strip (15c) for connection to a first edge of a circuit board (31) and an L-shaped ground plane extension element (14) extending from a second edge (31b) of the circuit board (31) and then turning substantially perpendicular downward to provide a longer ground plane within a confined rectangular space. The antenna (14, 15) is dimensioned so as to be tuned to a resonant frequency in a range from 450 Mhz to 470 Mhz.
US08159393B2
There are situations where GPS signals are received from less than four satellites. In order to improve the GPS location availability, disclosed here are systems and methods for synthesizing GPS measurements, which, together with fewer than four available real GPS signals, can be used to calculate a position fix. In particular, GPS range measurements for lost satellites, which are satellites that were previously tracked but are now not tracked, are synthesized to improve GPS signal availability. The synthesized measurements are used along with real measurements to enable accurate position fix even when GPS satellite availability is poor. Different synthesized measurement generation schemes, depending on whether an INS/DR aiding system is available, are further described herein.
US08159387B1
Systems and methods for obtaining target elevation information are disclosed. The systems and methods use multiple vertical transmitters and one or more receivers to infer changes in the elevation plane and the height of objects. Changes in elevation and heights of objects are inferred from path length differences between the transmitters and a particular backscattering point. Using known geometric information regarding the configuration of the transmitters, propagation time differences can be estimated via time delay estimation methods in either the time or frequency domain. Appropriate modulation schemes are used such that the multiple signals transmitted are separable upon reception.
US08159383B2
A conversion circuit for converting a differential input signal into an output signal includes an amplifier that has an input terminal and an output terminal; a first capacitor in which, in a first period, a difference voltage of the differential input signal is applied across first and second terminals, and in a second period the first terminal is coupled to the output terminal of the amplifier and the second terminal is coupled to the input terminal of the amplifier; and a second capacitor in which, in the second period, a reference voltage in accordance with the differential input signal is applied to a first terminal, and the second terminal of the first capacitor is coupled to a second terminal of the second capacitor.
US08159378B2
An analog-to-digital conversion method using an RC time constant calibrator is provided. The method includes the operations of comparing a crossing time point at which a first reference signal and a second reference signal cross each other with a target time point and calibrating an RC time constant according to a result of the comparison. A length of time until the crossing time point at which a first analog signal and a second analog signal cross each other is counted based on a calibrated RC time constant. The counted value is output.
US08159377B2
A timing skew estimation system is disclosed that includes a plurality of interleaved analog-to-digital converter circuits (ADCs), a timing mismatch estimation unit, and a correction unit. The timing mismatch estimation unit calculates a correlation between each of the plurality of ADCs. Then the timing mismatch estimation unit calculates a cost function for each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC. The timing mismatch estimation unit further calculates a gradient for each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC. The timing mismatch estimation unit also continually calculates the timing skew of each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC, as the sum of an immediately previous estimate of the timing skew of each ADC, except the reference ADC, and a product of a function of the gradient of each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC, and a step size, The correction unit continually corrects the output of each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC, based on the estimates of the timing skew of each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC. Eventually, the timing skew estimation system determines a converged estimate of the timing skew of each of the plurality of ADCs, except the reference ADC. A method of estimating timing skew and timing skew estimation circuitry are also disclosed.
US08159375B2
An encoder encodes data into a series of parallel codewords. Each codeword is expressed two sets of logic values (e.g., a set of logic 0s and a set of logic 1s) on output nodes. The encoder selects a current codeword from a group of codewords in a codespace which does not overlap the other group of codewords, i.e., codewords in a given group of codewords are not included in any other group of codewords in the codespace. This property allows a receiver of the codewords to be simplified. In particular, a mathematical operation performed on symbols in the current codeword uniquely specifies the corresponding group of codewords. This allows a decoder to decode the current codeword using comparisons of symbols received on a subset of all possible combinations of node pairs.
US08159368B2
A method for providing an emergency vehicle alert to an occupant of a second vehicle includes: receiving an alert signal at a receiver device on the second vehicle from the emergency vehicle; and, responsive to the received alert signal, automatically warning the occupant of the second vehicle that the emergency vehicle may be approaching and/or is in a vicinity of the second vehicle.
US08159367B2
A method and apparatus for validating a distance output of a phase ranging RFID location system, based upon the phase readings included in data sets obtained from monitoring reply signals corresponding to interrogation signals at multiple frequencies and a common interrogation signal beam direction; by comparison of measured phase and frequency data sets with theoretical phases calculated with respect to the same frequencies over a range of positions corresponding to a beam extent of the interrogation signal. The distance output validated by comparison with theoretical threshold data processed to generate an extreme values distribution from which a cumulative distribution function is extracted and against which a confidence level is applied.
US08159358B2
A method includes receiving information associated with a level of material in a tank, where the tank has a hatch. The method also includes determining whether the level of material in the tank experiences a specified variation within a critical zone associated with the hatch. The specified variation is indicative of the hatch being open while the tank is being filled. In addition, the method includes generating an alarm when the level of material in the tank experiences the specified variation. Determining whether the level of material in the tank experiences the specified variation could be based on an entrance level speed of the material, which identifies a rate at which the level of material in the tank is increasing when the material level crosses a lower bound of the critical zone. Also, no alarms could be generated when the level of material in the tank is outside the critical zone.
US08159355B2
An animal confinement system including at least one transmitter, a loop antenna associated with each transmitter, a loop monitor associated with each loop antenna, a remote communication device and a communication device. The transmitter sends a signal to the loop antenna. The loop monitor senses at least one attribute of the signal. The communication device is communicatively connected with the loop monitor. The communication device communicates at least one attribute to the remote communication device.
US08159344B2
A method of detecting a moving target within a predefined protected region with a microwave motion detector, by transmitting microwave frequency signals and receiving the microwave frequency signals reflected by a target. A target distance is then determined from the received microwave frequency signals, and a target angle is determined from the received microwave frequency signals. Then, a target location is determined from the target distance and the target angle, and an alarm condition is set if the target location is within the predefined protected region.
US08159337B2
A viewing apparatus provides a user with a view of his or her surroundings and enables the user to select a location from the view of the surroundings for identification. The viewing apparatus transmits location information regarding the selected location to a location identification device. In response to receipt of the location information, the location identification device uses the location information to determine identification information for the location. The location identification device transmits the identification information to the viewing apparatus, which displays the identification information on the view of the surroundings, preferably in association with the selected location. The identification information may include an address, a telephone number, and/or other information.
US08159332B2
A radio frequency identification transponder including a power supply and a dynamic memory array which stores data. When power from the power supply ceases, the data in the dynamic memory array is validly maintained for a predetermined period of time. The dynamic memory array is responsive to an interrogating signal for selectively updating the data. A signal processor extracts an identifier from the interrogation signal and is responsive to the identifier and the stored data to determine whether some or all of the identifier is stored in the dynamic memory array.
US08159327B2
A device used in an authentication process. The device includes a processor, a display coupled to the processor, and a computer readable medium coupled to the processor. The computer readable medium includes (i) code for displaying a first authentication image including a plurality of image elements including a set of image elements, where the image elements in the set of image elements are located at a first set of positions on a display screen, (ii) code for receiving a first glyph having a first configuration corresponding to the set of image elements from a user while the first authentication image is displayed, (iii) code for displaying a second authentication image including the plurality of image elements including the set of image elements, where the image elements in the set of image elements are located at a second set of positions on the display screen, where the second set of positions is different than the first set of positions, and (iv) code for receiving a second glyph having a second configuration corresponding to the set of image elements from a user while the second authentication image is displayed.
US08159324B2
The portable electronic device (1) allows functions and/or data of a vehicle to be controlled and managed. In order to do this, the portable device comprises, in a casing having an upper part (10) fixed, for example, in a removable manner on a lower part (11), means for wirelessly transmitting and receiving signals for short range personalised communication with the vehicle. It further comprises a microprocessor unit for processing functions and/or data of the device and of the vehicle, at least one display screen (3) having a portion which is visible from outside the casing for displaying different menus or data of the device or of the vehicle, and manual control means (5, 6) for controlling the execution of functions of the microprocessor unit. A power source, such as a battery, is provided in the casing for supplying electric power to all the electronic components of the device. The manual control means comprise control keys (5) each having a touch-sensitive pad arranged on an inner face of the upper part (10) of the casing. Each control key may be individually activated by a finger of a user placed on the casing in a specified region of the touch-sensitive pad to be activated. The control means further comprise at least one control button (6) which can be pressed, in particular to make the control keys (5) and the display screen (3) switch from an idle mode to an operating mode.
US08159322B2
A laminated coil includes a laminated body insulating layers and coil patterns are integrally stacked in a desired order, a coil formed by connecting the coil patterns, a pair of external electrodes provided at opposite ends of the laminated body, and an insulating film provided on an outer peripheral surface of the laminated body. At least one of the coil patterns is in contact with an outer peripheral edge of the corresponding insulating layer at least a part of an outer peripheral edge of the coil pattern, but is not in contact with corners of the insulating layer in a manner such that the at least one coil-pattern is absent at portions of the corresponding insulating layer near the corners of the corresponding insulating layer.
US08159316B2
The invention relates to a high-frequency transmission line connection structure, a circuit board having the connection structure, a high-frequency module having the circuit board, and a radar apparatus. A first laminated waveguide sub-line part (21) includes a pair of main conductor layers that oppose each other in a thickness direction with a dielectric layer (31) having the same thickness as a dielectric layer (31) of a microstrip line (1) interposed therebetween. A second laminated waveguide sub-line part (22) includes dielectric layers (31, 32) thicker than the dielectric layer of the first laminated waveguide sub-line part (21). A laminated waveguide main-line part (23) includes dielectric layers (31, 32, 33) thicker than the dielectric layers of the second laminated waveguide sub-line part (22). A conversion part (10) connected to the microstrip line (1) is formed by integrating with an upper main conductor layer constituting the respective line parts.
US08159309B1
The present disclosure relates to using windowing to reduce the bandwidth of an amplitude modulation (AM) power supply input signal (PSIS), which is fed to an AM power supply to provide envelope power to an RF power amplifier stage via an AM power supply output signal. By reducing the bandwidth, noise levels from the AM power supply may be reduced. However, although the bandwidth of the AM PSIS is reduced, the AM power supply output signal may track the AM of the RF power amplifier stage closely enough to meet linearity requirements and to provide high efficiency. The windowing may be based on dividing a stream of AM input samples into a stream of input windows, from which a stream of output windows is created to provide a stream of windowed AM input samples that are used to provide a windowed AM PSIS to the AM power supply.
US08159304B1
A current-feedback amplifier with at least one feed-forward capacitor at the input stage of the current-feedback amplifier is provided. In one embodiment, the current-feedback amplifier and feed-forward capacitor(s) are arranged as follows. The input stage includes two translinear loops, where each translinear loop includes a translinear element that is connected to the non-inverting input of the current-feedback amplifier. One feed-forward capacitor is in parallel with each translinear element that is connected to the non-inverting input of the current-feedback amplifier. In other embodiments, the feed forward capacitor(s) are arranged in a different manner.
US08159303B2
An operational amplifier includes an input stage amplifier that receives an input signal, an output stage amplifier that amplifies a signal output from the input stage amplifier and outputs the signal, a capacitor that is connected between an input node and an output node of the output stage amplifier, and a charge and discharge control circuit that controls a charge and discharge current of the capacitor.
US08159299B2
A circuit and a method are provided for suppressing the pop and click noise during the power on and power off of Class D amplifiers. The technique also suppresses pops and clicks when the Class D amplifier enters or exits standby mode. A duplicate feedback network is used to establish the stable operating points, including offsets in the Class D circuit without turning on the outputs. The technique works by gradually propagating or dissipating the offset through the signal path of a Class D amplifier by swapping the differential outputs using switches to suppress pops and clicks when starting up and shutting down the amplifier.
US08159298B2
Linearization circuits of the invention are used in conjunction with power amplification circuits that comprise a power amplifier core. Exemplary linearization circuits comprise a replica of the power amplifier core. In operation, the linearization produces an envelope signal from an RF signal. The envelope signal is used to control the replica to produce an analog output signal which represents the inverse of the AM to AM distortion of the power amplifier core. The linearization circuit then biases the RF signal with the inverted non-linear signal of the replica to control the power amplifier core. The power amplifier core and the replica thereof can be defined on the same semiconductor die so both respond to process variables similarly.
US08159291B2
An RFID reader device (31), of the type comprising a demodulator (6) for receiving from a RFID tag (11) an AM (Amplitude Modulation) wave (20) having a predetermined frequency (f) and for retrieving, from the AM wave (20), a demodulated output (6a) associated to predetermined positive or negative Amplitudes of said AM wave (20), said demodulated output having a portion with a frequency F. The AM demodulation system comprises at least a second demodulator (26) for receiving the AM wave (20) and retrieving a second demodulated output (26a) associated to Amplitudes opposite to the predetermined positive or negative Amplitudes, said second demodulated output having a portion with said frequency F; the RFID reader includes a block (27) having, in input, the demodulated output (6a) and the second demodulated output (26a) and returning, in output, an enforced demodulated output (30) with a portion with frequency (f1) doubled with respect to said frequency (F).
US08159288B2
A low power BPSK demodulator having a simple architecture, compact design and reliable is provided. The BPSK demodulator includes a first branch (210) having a first mixer (212) and a first low pass filter (214), a second branch (220) coupled to the first branch at the output of the first low pass filter (214) and input of the first mixer (212) and having a second mixer (222), and a third branch (230) coupled to the second branch at the input and output of the second mixer (222) and having a third mixer (232) a second low pass filter (234) and a voltage control oscillator (236), wherein the third branch and the second branch form a charge pumped based phase lock loop that locks onto a carrier frequency of the BPSK demodulator.
US08159284B2
A method and circuit for managing thermal performance of an integrated circuit. In accordance with an embodiment, a thermal limit circuit and a semiconductor device are manufactured from a semiconductor material, wherein the thermal limit circuit is configured to operate at a temperature level that is different from a threshold temperature in response to the thermal sensing element sensing a temperature at least equal to the threshold temperature.
US08159281B2
A delay method for determining an activation moment of an output device in a circuit system is disclosed. The delay method includes determining resistance of an over-current flag pull-high resistor of the circuit system, generating a current according to the resistance of the over-current flag pull-high resistor and a voltage drop across the resistor, duplicating the current to generate a first mirror current, delaying an enable signal of the circuit system according to the first mirror current to generate a charging activation signal, providing a charging current according to the charging activation signal, and determining the activation moment of the output device according to the activation current.
US08159275B2
A phase-locked loop (PLL) having a bias generator capable of reducing noise is provided. In the PLL, a voltage controlled oscillator is driven using a regulator. The bias generator, which applies a bias voltage to the regulator, is configured to have opposite power noise characteristics to the power noise characteristics of the regulator, such that the occurrence of jitter in the PLL is reduced.
US08159264B2
Some embodiments provide a circuit for accessing stored data in a configurable IC that includes several configurable circuits. The IC also includes several storage circuits. Each storage circuit has (1) several storage elements for storing data for the configurable circuits, and (2) output circuitry for outputting data stored in the storage elements. The output circuitry includes a first set of interconnects for receiving at least a first repeating periodic signal and for periodically outputting data from at least two storage elements to the configurable circuits.
US08159258B2
A testing system for testing a conversion efficiency of a power supply unit (PSU) includes a power meter, a plurality of switches, a multimeter, a microcontroller unit, and a data processing device. The power meter is utilized to measure an input power supplied to the power supply unit. The multimeter is utilized to measure an output power of PSU. The microcontroller unit is configured for automatically switching the plurality of switches for enabling the multimeter to measure the output power of power supply. The data processing device is utilized to read data measured from the power meter and the multimeter and calculate a conversion efficiency of the PSU.
US08159245B2
Installed in a probe device is a holding member for inspection which can be mounted on a chuck. The holding member for inspection includes a support plate capable of mounting thereon a chip in which the power device is formed; pins for positioning the chip mounted on the support plate; and a metal film formed on a surface of the support plate in a range from a mounting area on which the chip is mounted to an exposed area on which the chip is not mounted. When inspecting the power device, the chip is fixed onto the mounting area in the holding member for inspection, one probe pin is brought into contact with a terminal on a top surface of the chip; and another probe pin is brought into contact with the metal film in the exposed area.
US08159234B2
A proximity sensor includes an L-C resonator, an oscillator for oscillating the L-C resonator, an oscillation detector, an output circuit, and a burnout detecting means. The L-C resonator has a detection coil for detecting an object, and a resonant capacitor connected across the detection coil. The oscillation detector detects an oscillation of the L-C resonator. The burnout detecting means has a time counter for counting a length of a positive voltage period in which a voltage across the resonant capacitor is kept above a predetermined positive voltage, and a discriminator which determines burnout of the detection coil when the counted length exceeds a half of an oscillation cycle of the L-C resonator. The output circuit outputs a detection signal indicative of whether or not the object exists within a detection range of the detection coil, and provides a burnout signal indicative of the burnout of the detection coil.
US08159230B2
An insulation measurement method in an insulation measurement apparatus of a flying capacitor type, includes a first power supply charge voltage measurement process of applying a voltage of a power supply to a flying capacitor for a first charge time period a first grounding resistor measuring voltage measurement process of applying the voltage of the power supply to the flying capacitor via an insulation resistor on one electrode side of the power supply, a second power supply charge voltage measurement process of applying the voltage of the power supply to the flying capacitor for a second charge time period, a second grounding resistor measuring voltage measurement process of applying the voltage of the power supply to the flying capacitor via an insulation resistor on the other electrode side of the power supply, and an insulation resistor conversion process of obtaining a value of the insulation resistor based on measurement results of the first and second charge voltage measurement processes and the first and second grounding resistor measuring voltage measurement processes and an insulation resistor conversion expression.
US08159223B2
An RF coil is proposed for use as an RF antenna for a MR imaging system, for transmitting RF excitation signals and for receiving MR relaxation signals. The RF coil of the invention includes an array of patches (1) which are capacitively coupled with each other. The array of patches forms a resonant surface on which surface currents can be resonantly excited for generating at least one field modus.
US08159217B2
A method for making eddy current tests on an electrically conducting part (13), in which a sensor moves above this part, uses separate emission/reception functions. The method includes obtaining a first complex voltage curve at the terminals of a reception winding (12), obtaining at least one second complex voltage curve at the terminals of a reception winding, determining at least one given distance that minimizes the modulus of the difference between the first curve and the at least one second curve, calculating the arithmetic mean (d) of the at least one given distance, choosing this arithmetic mean+/−20% as the distance between the two emission and reception windings, and detecting if one or several defects are present in this part.
US08159209B2
A digital signal delay measuring circuit for measuring a delay time of a digital signal of a scan-testable digital circuit inside a device to be tested is provided. The circuit includes: outputting means for outputting a delay time measuring signal as a digital signal; delay means for delaying a timing when a state of the delay time measuring signal is changed; and at least two signal holding means, each receiving the delay time measuring signal and holding the state of the delay time measuring signal at a holding-command input timing.
US08159208B2
A spectrum analyzer is provided that includes components to achieve from below 9 kHz to above 20 GHz operation range while remaining hand-held. Components of the spectrum analyzer include an integrated precision stand-alone step attenuator that does not rely on printed circuit board (PCB) mounted circuit elements within the signal path. Further, a PIN diplexing switch separates signals into different base-band and highband paths. The baseband path includes a pre-amplifier for low frequency signals, while the higher frequency bands may not necessarily include a pre-amplifier. The baseband path further provides improved broadband termination of its 1st mixer IF port by incorporating a new quadrature-coupled directional (QCD) filter that includes a ring resonator. An inexpensive air dielectric multi-cavity baseband filter is also used to suppress 2nd mixer IF images. The highband path incorporates multi-throw MMIC PIN diode switches to selectively filter different bands of input signals. At least three total 1st mixers are used to increase operation bandwidth. A phase locked loop providing a 1st LO to the 1st mixers is created that uses a divide-by-two frequency divider in cascade with a sampler-type frequency downconverter. The output of the 1st LO is frequency doubled and filtered to increase the frequency range of the highband signal path.
US08159205B1
A system includes an averaging module, a high pass filter module, a first estimation module, a sensing module, and a combining module. The averaging module receives an output voltage of a power supply and that generates an average output voltage. The high pass filter module receives an average switching voltage used to control switches in an output stage of the power supply and filters a difference between the average output voltage and the average switching voltage. The estimation module estimates a first filtered current through an inductor in the output stage based on an output of the high pass filter module. The sensing module senses voltage across the inductor and estimates a second current through the inductor. The low pass filter module filters the second current. The combining module combines the first filtered current and the second filtered current to generate an estimated current through the inductor.
US08159204B2
A step-down (buck) switching regulator regulates output current without sensing a current external to a converter integrated circuit. The regulator generates a set current that is indicative of a predetermined current level to which the output current is regulated. The regulator generates a sense current whose magnitude is proportional to an inductor current flowing through a power switch during an on time. During a first time period, the sense current is less than the set current. During a second time period, the sense current is greater than the set current. The output current of the regulator is maintained at the predetermined current level such that the first time period is equal to the second time period when the output current equals the predetermined current level. The set current is compared to the sense current in circuitry inside a bootstrap power generator whose voltage fluctuates with the voltage across the inductor.
US08159203B2
A DC-DC converter is provided with a first estimator unit (RAE, RLPF, RHPF) for performing an accurate control signal estimation and a second estimator unit (FEU, ΔVEU) for performing a fast control signal estimation. In addition, a switching unit (SU) is provided for switching to an output of the first estimator unit (RAE, RLPF, RHPF) during almost constant control signal conditions and for switching to an output of the second estimator unit (FEU, ΔVEU) during changing control signal conditions to provide an estimation on the required control signal.
US08159200B2
Electrical power from an input voltage supply is converted to first and second output voltages of opposite polarities using a single inductor (L) and only four principal switches (S1, S2, S4, S6). In contrast to known circuits, none of the switches is exposed to voltages greater than the input voltage (V1). In a first type of charging cycle (FIG. 5(a)-(c)), the first output voltage (V2+) is obtained from the input voltage supply through the inductor. In a second type of charging cycle (FIG. 5 (d)-(f)), the second output voltage (V2−) is obtained from the first output voltage via the intermediate step of storing energy in the same inductor as is used in the first type of charging cycle. Auxiliary switches (S7a, S7b) can be operated in wait states between cycles of the first and second type.
US08159198B2
An apparatus for efficient power supply operation variable input line voltages. The apparatus includes a detection module that senses the input line voltage to the power supply and determines whether it is high or low voltage. A turn module sets the turns ratio of the transformer to a first turns ratio if the input line voltage is low voltage. The turn module sets the turns ratio to a second turns ratio if the input line voltage is high. In one embodiment of the invention, a high voltage is between 180 and 250 volts, while a low voltage is between 90 and 130 volts. A primary module sets the boost voltage of the power supply's boost stage to a first voltage if the input line voltage is low, while it sets the boost voltage to a second voltage if the input line voltage is high. The first voltage may, for example, be 200 volts, and the second voltage 400 volts.
US08159195B2
The present invention discloses an overvoltage protection (OVP) circuit for use in a charger circuit system, comprising: a power transistor electrically connected between a voltage supply and a battery; an OVP circuit which turns off the transistor when a voltage supply exceeds a threshold value; and a multiplexing circuit electrically connected between an output of the OVP circuit and the gate of the transistor. The present invention also discloses a charger circuit with an OVP function, comprising: a single power transistor electrically connected between a voltage supply and a battery; an OVP control circuit which turns off the power transistor when a voltage supply exceeds a threshold value; and a charger control circuit which controls the gate of the power transistor to determine a charge current to the battery when the voltage supply does not reach the threshold value.
US08159194B2
A charging apparatus includes: a connecting unit; a charging unit; a temperature detecting unit; and an operation inhibiting unit. The connecting unit is electrically connected to a power supply portion installed inside a vehicle. The charging unit supplies at least a part of electric power supplied from the power supply portion via the connecting unit to a battery thereby to charge the battery. The operation inhibiting unit inhibits operation of a battery circuit provided in the battery when an ambient temperature detected by the temperature detecting unit has reached a preassigned designated temperature.
US08159192B2
A method for charging a nickel-metal hydride storage battery comprising a positive electrode containing nickel hydroxide, a negative electrode containing a hydrogen absorbing alloy, an alkaline electrolyte, and an alkali conducting separator provided between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The alkali conducting separator may be a solid alkali metal ion super ion conducting material, wherein the alkali metal is Na, K, or Li.
US08159189B2
A state-of-health monitoring and prognosis method and system for a battery includes a signal preprocessing module for monitoring battery terminal voltage and current and extracting a portion of the battery terminal voltage and current corresponding to an engine cranking event. Battery voltage loss that occurs during said engine cranking event is estimated from the extracted portion of battery terminal voltage and current by a voltage loss estimation module. The estimated battery voltage loss is compared with a predetermined voltage loss threshold to determine battery state-of-health by a state-of-health evaluation module.
US08159184B2
An automotive power supply system comprises a battery module that includes serially connected battery groups each constituted with serially connected battery cells, integrated circuits each disposed in correspondence to one of the battery groups, a control circuit, a transmission path through which the integrated circuits are connected to the control circuit and a relay circuit via which an electrical current is supplied from the battery module. In response to a start signal instructing an operation start and received via the transmission path, each integrated circuit measures terminal voltages at the individual battery cells in the corresponding battery group and executes an abnormality diagnosis. If abnormality diagnosis results provided by the integrated circuits indicate no abnormality, the control circuit closes the relay, enabling supply of electrical current from the battery module and subsequently, the control circuit receives measurement results from the integrated circuits via the transmission path.
US08159183B2
The present invention relates to a contact-less power supply magnetically coupled to a battery device having a receiving coil therein, for contact-less charging the battery device, the contact-less power supply having a sending coil array including a plurality of sending coils for inducing a charging power to the receiving coil; and a driving means for detecting a sending coil magnetically coupled to the receiving coil and selectively driving only the detected sending coil.
US08159179B2
In the battery charging device of the present invention, a U, V, W phase voltage generating circuit detects a voltage signal of a U phase sub-coil of a three-phase alternating current generator, and generates a signal of a triangular wave that is in synchronization with the U phase. Moreover, a first triangular wave is generated in synchronization with a phase from 0° to 180° of the U phase rectangular wave, and a second triangular wave is generated in synchronization with a phase from 180° to 360° of the U phase. In addition, a V phase rectangular wave is generated in which the level is inverted at a voltage point of two thirds the peak voltage of the first triangular wave, and in which the level is inverted at a voltage point of two thirds the peak voltage of the second triangular wave, and a W phase rectangular wave is generated in which the level is inverted at a voltage point of one third the peak voltage of the first triangular wave, and in which the level is inverted at a voltage point of one third the peak voltage of the second triangular wave.
US08159175B2
Apparatus for controlling the voltage supplied to a load, comprising:a multi-phase transformer having a primary and a secondary winding for each phase, each secondary being connected in series between an input line and an output directed to the load; andthe primary is configurable by switches such that the phase of the voltage of the secondary is different from the line to which it is connected by a phase different from 0 and 180 degrees.
US08159171B2
The present invention discloses a controller and a method for adaptively adjusting motor driving current waveforms. According to the present invention, the controller receives multiple different control parameters which may be determined according to the characteristics of a fan to be controlled, and adjusts the delayed ON time and advanced OFF time of a PWM driving signal based on the control parameters and the present rotation speed of the fan motor, so that the fan operates under an optimum driving current waveform.
US08159170B2
When cooling operation or dehumidifying operation is started, a blower fan for an evaporator and an exhaust fan for a condenser are driven at an initial rotational number. A compressor is driven at a fixed rotational number. Due to load variation, an operating current supplied from a power source is changed. When the operating current exceeds a reference value, the rotational number of the blower fan is gradually reduced. When an endothermic quantity by the evaporator decreases, a temperature of a gas refrigerant flowing through the evaporator is lowered. Since the load applied on the compressor is reduced, the operating current decreases. In this way, when the compressor is loaded, the operating current increased, however, by controlling operation of the fans as described above, it is possible to prevent that the power source is shut off due to overcurrent and operation is stopped.
US08159162B2
A motor control apparatus has a start control section. When the motor control apparatus receives a motor start command from a host control unit when a motor is in a stop state or a low-speed rotating state where a sensorless control cannot be applied, the control section starts the motor that rotates a vehicle fan by a forced commutation which supplies a pseudo sinusoidal drive signal caused by a complementary PWM control. Thereafter, the motor control apparatus switches over to a sensorless control using a rectangular wave drive signal at an energization angle of lower than 180°.
US08159157B1
According to certain embodiments, a linear accelerator comprises a nanotube, a particle, and an energy source. The nanotube has a cylindrical shape, and the particle is disposed within the nanotube. The energy source is configured to apply energy to the nanotube to cause the particle to accelerate.
US08159152B1
A high-power light-emitting diode (LED) lamp has a plurality of units. Each unit includes an LED die and a thermo-electric cooling device coupled to the LED die. A power source supplies a fixed current to the thermo-electric cooling device wherein the fixed current is based on heat generated by the LED die in normal operation. Accordingly, the unit operates without a controller.
US08159149B2
A secure light emitting diodes (LEDs) power system controls power to a plurality of LEDs residing in a secure LED fixture coupled to a secure LED fixture mounting. An exemplary embodiment provides power to the plurality of LEDs and senses the power provided to the LEDs. In response to sensing the power, an authorization signal is communicated from a security sensor residing in the secure LED fixture. Power to the plurality of LEDs is maintained only in response to the communicated authorization signal.
US08159148B2
A light emitting diode (LED) light source module includes plural voltage converters to convert an input voltage into plural corresponding different operation voltages. A plurality of sets of different color LEDs are provided in the light source module, where each set receives a corresponding one of the operation voltages.
US08159147B2
The luminous chain includes a plurality of luminous modules, wherein at least two of the luminous modules include at least one set including at least one light source and one driver circuit for driving the at least one light source, and the driver circuits of one set of the respective luminous modules are electrically connected in parallel with one another, and the light sources of the one set of the respective luminous modules are electrically connected in series with one another, and the driver outputs of the driver circuits are combined at a node for jointly supplying current to all of the light sources of the one set.
US08159145B2
A synchronous operating system for operating a plurality of discharge tube lighting apparatuses at the same frequency and same phase includes (1) an oscillator of a triangular wave signal whose inclination for charging a capacitor C2 and inclination for discharging the same are the same, (2) a signal generation part to generate, in a period shorter than a half period of the triangular wave signal, a first drive signal having a pulse width corresponding to a load current, and (3) a signal generation part of a second drive signal having a pulse width substantially equal to that of the first drive signal and a phase difference of about 180 degrees with respect to the same.
US08159141B2
Methods and apparatus for driving discharge lamps are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a method for driving a discharge lamp includes generating a switching signal to drive a discharge lamp, monitoring a working status of the discharge lamp, and determining whether the discharge lamp is operating abnormally based at least in part on the monitored working status. The method also includes decreasing a duty cycle of the switching signal when the discharge lamp is determined to operate abnormally.
US08159140B2
The load driving apparatus according to the present invention includes a load current setting signal generating section, a load current generating section, a reference voltage generating section and a drive voltage generating section. The load current setting signal generating section generates a desired load current setting signal. The load current generating section generates a load current based on the load current setting signal to drive the load. The reference voltage generating section generates a reference voltage based on the load current setting signal. The drive voltage generating section generates a drive voltage, supplies the drive voltage to the load, generates a between-both-terminals voltage between both terminals of the load current generating section based on the drive voltage and controls the drive voltage so that the difference between the between-both-terminals voltage and the reference voltage becomes small.
US08159139B2
A control element for a luminaire constituted of a first and a second manually variable non-momentary impedance and a first and a second time dependent gating circuit, each responsive to a respective manually variable non-momentary impedance and operative to provide a time dependent gating of a respective polarity of an alternating current power signal, the amount of time of the gating reflecting the present value of the respective manually variable non-momentary impedance, wherein the first time dependent gating circuit and the second time dependent gating circuit are restrained to maintain a minimum predetermined power towards the solid state lighting unit.
US08159137B2
To provide a magnetron capable of reducing noises in a low frequency band of 30 MHz or less without deteriorating the stability of a load depending on phases, and also ensuring the precision of assembly dimensions without increasing the number of components, a coiled filament 3 is arranged between an input-side end hat 61 and an output-side end hat 7 which are supported by a cathode supporting rod 8. A larger-diameter boss 61a in the end hat 61 extends to the interior of an interaction space, a smaller-diameter boss 61b and one end 3a of the filament 3 are secured to each other, and the other end 3b is secured to a boss 7a of the end hat 7. Here, the dimension of an axial free length part F which forms an electron emission part which is not secured to the end hats 61 and 7 of the filament 3 is set to 50% or more and 80% or less of the axial dimension H of plate-like vanes 2, and the electron emission part is arranged so as to be displaced to the output side.
US08159135B2
Provided is an electrode for a high pressure discharge lamp, which prevents spring-back of an electrode coil, and which has high productivity and high accuracy in positioning the coil. The electrode for the high pressure discharge lamp includes: an electrode core bar (30); and a coil (35) mounted on the electrode core bar, and is configured as follows. The electrode core bar (30) includes: a small-diameter section (31) on a power supply side; and a large-diameter section (32) on a leading end side. The large-diameter section (32) has: a large-diameter portion (32a) on the small-diameter section side; a small-diameter portion (32b) having a smaller outer diameter than the large-diameter portion, the small-diameter portion forming a step (s) with the large-diameter portion therebetween; and a leading end portion (32c). The coil (35) covers a portion between the step (s) and the leading end portion.
US08159134B2
A preferred embodiment low stress electrode and a preferred array of microcavity plasma devices of the invention include a plurality of thin metal first electrodes and stress reduction structures and/or geometries designed to promote the flatness during and after processing. The first electrodes are buried in a thin metal oxide layer which protects the electrodes from the plasma in the microcavities. In embodiments of the invention, some or all of the electrodes are connected. Patterns of connections in a one- or two-dimensional array of microcavities can be defined. In preferred embodiments, the first electrodes comprise circumferential electrodes that surround individual microcavities. A second thin layer having a buried, second electrode is bonded to the first thin layer. A packaging layer, e.g., a thin glass or plastic layer, seals the discharge medium (a gas or vapor, or a combination of the two) into the microcavities. In a preferred methods of formation of arrays of microcavity plasma devices or electrodes, a thin metal foil or film is symmetrically anodized and formed with a stress reduction geometry and/or structures.
US08159130B2
A foldable display device includes; a plurality of substrates separated from one another by predetermined intervals, a plurality of driving units including at least one driving unit disposed on each of the plurality of substrates, a flexible display unit disposed above the plurality of substrates and including a plurality of pixel electrodes respectively corresponding to the plurality of driving units, and a flexible connection unit disposed between the plurality of substrates and the flexible display unit and which electrically connects the plurality of driving units and the plurality of pixel electrodes.
US08159125B2
A color temperature adjustable lamp is created through mixture of the color temperature of a low color temperature white LED and a high color temperature white LED. A plurality of different color temperatures in between the color temperature of the low color temperature white LED and the color temperature of the high color temperature white LED can be created to emit. The color temperature is also known as Correlated Color Temperature (CCT).
US08159122B2
A light-emitting substrate includes a substrate, a plurality of light-emitting members arranged on the substrate in a matrix pattern, a partition arranged between respective adjacent ones of the plurality of light-emitting members and projecting relative to a surface of the substrate to a position higher than the light-emitting members, a plurality of conductors each covering at least one of the light-emitting members and arranged in a matrix pattern in a mutually spaced relation, and a resistor electrically interconnecting the plurality of conductors. The resistor has a column stripe portion extending in a column direction, and the column stripe portion is positioned on the partition.
US08159120B2
A triode field emission device (100) includes a sealed container (110) having a light permeable portion (120), a phosphor layer (130) formed on the light permeable portion in the sealed container, an anode (140) formed on the phosphor layer, a cathode (150) arranged in the sealed container and facing the light permeable portion, and a grid (160) arranged in the sealed container and between the cathode and the anode. The cathode has a carbon nanotube yarn (151) facing toward the light permeable portion configured for serving as an emission source for electrons.
US08159117B2
There are provided a display apparatus that can display an image having higher resolution feeling while solving the problem of patterning precision for sub pixels which is difficult to obtain in production, and a production method thereof. The display apparatus includes a plurality of pixels disposed in two directions within a display surface and each having a sub pixel for emitting red light, two sub pixels for emitting green light, and a sub pixel for emitting blue light, wherein the sub pixel for emitting red light and the sub pixel for emitting blue light are disposed so as to partially overlap each other in one of the two directions, and the two sub pixels for emitting green light are disposed distant from each other in the one direction, wherein for the pixels adjacent to each other in the one direction, the sub pixels for emitting green light are adjacent to each other, and the sub pixel for emitting red light and the sub pixel for emitting blue light are adjacent to each other, and wherein the pixels adjacent to each other in the other of the two directions have the same sub pixel disposition.
US08159112B2
A polymeric actuator controller includes: a polymeric actuator that has a first electrode and a second electrode for applying electric energy to a polymeric portion and that displaces in accordance with applied electric energy; a potential difference reading unit that reads a potential difference that occurs between terminals of the first electrode and second electrode of the polymeric actuator; and a polymeric actuator driver circuit that applies the electric energy to the first electrode and second electrode of the polymeric actuator to drive the polymeric actuator. The polymeric actuator driver circuit and the potential difference reading unit form a closed loop. The polymeric actuator driver circuit varies the electric energy so that the potential difference read by the potential difference reading unit is maintained at a target potential value.
US08159108B2
A device for converting heat into electrical energy that is an integrated combination of thermionic and thermoelectric energy converters in a single device, or “TITE”. The electron output of thermionic portion of the TITE is the input of the thermoelectric portion of the device. The electron collector is covered by a thin layer of doped or undoped semiconductor material or a combination of doped and undoped semiconductor materials with appropriate doping and thickness to achieve increased operational temperature ranges and efficiency.
US08159103B2
A rotor (11) for an electric machine with low-inertia permanent magnets (13) located between the poles (15) of the electric machine and a rotor hub, where the rotor hub is comprised of an internal ferrule (21) and an intermediate ring (23) between it and said magnets (13), with said intermediate ring (23) being made of an amagnetic material (such as aluminum, a composite material or a plastic material) of minimum thickness which prevents flux losses, and with the internal ferrule (21) being made of a metal material (such as cast iron or steel) with sufficient thickness to resist, together with the intermediate ring (23), the mechanical stresses caused by rotor (11) operation.
US08159099B2
The aim of the invention is to increase the degree of automation in the production of an electrical machine. Particularly, the aim is to be able automate the connection of the coils of an electrical machine. For this purpose, provision is made for the coil ends (17) to be connected using at least one busbar (20, 22). The ends (23) of the respective busbars (20, 22) are hot crimped or welded to the associated end (17) of the coil. Thus, it is possible to eliminate manual drilling and welding of the coil ends. Moreover, the hot-crimped and welded connections have a high degree of electric strength and a high current carrying capability.
US08159095B2
A hiding structure for positioning signal conversion mechanism of a torque motor, which includes a stator having a curvature center line, a rotor coaxially fitted with the stator, a positioning/detecting section disposed on the stator between the stator and the rotor for detecting movements of the motor and outputting corresponding analog signals and a signal conversion section for receiving the analog signals provided by the positioning/detecting section and converting the analog signals into digital signals and outputting the digital signals. The signal conversion section is fixed on an end face of one end of the stator in an insulated state.
US08159093B2
A motor apparatus includes a movable portion including a coil and a tooth-like salient pole and a platen opposed to the movable portion. The movable portion and the platen move relative to each other by using a magnetic field generated by supplying a current to the coil. The platen includes a base material having a surface on which convex portions and first concave portions are periodically arranged, a first thermally sprayed layer formed on the surface of the base material by thermal spraying such that second concave portions are formed inside the first concave portions, and a resin filled in the second concave portions.
US08159088B2
In order to increase the continuous operating time of a display device driven by a battery or the like, and a portable information terminal using the same, the volume and weight of the battery are increased. Thus, there arises a trade-off between the increased capacity of the battery and the portability of the device/terminal. Therefore, the invention provides a display device with portability ensured, which is capable of operating continuously for long periods and a portable information terminal using the same. In the display device, TFTs and an RFID tag are formed over the same insulating substrate. The RFID tag detects signals from a reader/writer, and generates DC power based on the signals. While the RFID tag is detecting signals, the display device is driven by the DC power generated in the RFID tag.
US08159086B2
A method is provided for using a temporary power source to transfer a power bus from a first power source to a second power source. The first power source operates at a first electrical frequency, and the second power source operates at a second electrical frequency that is different from the first electrical frequency. The method includes adjusting the output frequency of the temporary power source to match the first electrical frequency and supplying power to the power bus from the temporary power source. The method also includes disconnecting the first power source from the power bus. The method further includes adjusting the output frequency of the temporary power source to match the second electrical frequency. The method further includes coupling the second power source to the power bus.
US08159077B2
A pad in a semiconductor device and fabricating method thereof are disclosed. The pad includes an uppermost metal layer first to Nth intermediate metal layers, wherein capacitors configured or formed by the uppermost metal layer and the first to Nth intermediate metal layers are serially connected. Accordingly, the pad reduces total parasitic capacitance components by connecting MIM type capacitors in series, and not necessarily overlapping with each other, thereby minimizing design errors attributed to the pad by reducing parasitic factors generated from the integrated circuit design. The pad may also minimize capacitance attributed to resonance at a specific frequency. Moreover, the pad avoids affecting an adjacent pad or circuit without additional processing, despite maintaining the above-mentioned effects, thereby reducing cost.
US08159069B2
A metal line includes a lower metal line formed on a semiconductor substrate. An insulation layer is formed on the semiconductor substrate having the lower metal line, and a metal line forming region exposing at least a portion of the lower metal line is defined in the insulation layer. A diffusion barrier is formed on a surface of the metal line forming region of the insulation layer and includes a WNx layer, a W—N—B ternary layer, and a Ti—N—B ternary layer. A wetting layer is formed on the diffusion barrier and is made of one of a Ti layer or a TiN layer. An upper metal line is formed on the wetting layer to fill the metal line forming region of the insulation layer.
US08159053B2
A flat leadless package includes at least one die mounted onto a leadframe and electrically connected to leads using an electrically conductive polymer or an electrically conductive ink. Also, an assembly includes stacked leadless packages electrically connected to leads using an electrically conductive polymer or an electrically conductive ink. Also, a package module includes an assembly of stacked leadless packages mounted on a support and electrically connected to circuitry in the support using an electrically conductive polymer or an electrically conductive ink.
US08159052B2
A chip assembly includes a chip, a paddle, an interface layer, a frequency extending device, and lands. The chip has contacts. The interface layer is disposed between the chip and the paddle. The frequency extending device has at least a conductive layer and a dielectric layer. The conductive layer has conductive traces. The frequency extending device is disposed adjacent to the side of the chip and overlying the paddle. The lands are disposed adjacent to the side of the paddle. The contacts are connected to the conductive traces. The conductive traces are connected to the lands. The frequency extending device is configured to reduce impedance discontinuity such that the impedance discontinuity produced by the frequency extending device is less than an impedance discontinuity that would be produced by bond wires each having a length greater than or substantially equal to the distance between the contacts and the lands.
US08159045B2
A semiconductor device includes: a first capacitor including an upper electrode, a lower electrode, an intermediate electrode arranged between the upper electrode and the lower electrode, and a shield line arranged in the same layer as the intermediate electrode; and a second capacitor, including an upper electrode, a lower electrode, and an intermediate electrode arranged between the upper electrode and the lower electrode, and arranged adjoining to the first capacitor. In the first capacitor and the second capacitor, the upper electrode, the lower electrode and the shield line are electrically connected to a ground electrode. The shield line lies between the first capacitor and the second capacitor. Accordingly, a MIM capacitor with excellent layout efficiency is provided while noise effects are reduced.
US08159039B2
A superjunction semiconductor device is provided having at least one column of a first conductivity type and at least one column of a second conductivity type extending from a first main surface of a semiconductor substrate toward a second main surface of the semiconductor substrate opposed to the first main surface. The at least one column of the second conductivity type has a first sidewall surface proximate the at least one column of the first conductivity type and a second sidewall surface opposed to the first sidewall surface. A termination structure is proximate the second sidewall surface of the at least one column of the second conductivity type. The termination structure includes a layer of dielectric of an effective thickness and consumes about 0% of the surface area of the first main surface. Methods for manufacturing superjunction semiconductor devices and for preventing surface breakdown are also provided.
US08159031B2
An improved semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) substrate is provided, which contains a patterned buried insulator layer at varying depths. Specifically, the SOI substrate has a substantially planar upper surface and comprises: (1) first regions that do not contain any buried insulator, (2) second regions that contain first portions of the patterned buried insulator layer at a first depth (i.e., measured from the planar upper surface of the SOI substrate), and (3) third regions that contain second portions of the patterned buried insulator layer at a second depth, where the first depth is larger than the second depth. One or more field effect transistors (FETs) can be formed in the SOI substrate. For example, the FETs may comprise: channel regions in the first regions of the SOI substrate, source and drain regions in the second regions of the SOI substrate, and source/drain extension regions in the third regions of the SOI substrate.
