US08484759B2

An approach for the thermomechanical characterization of phase transitions in polymeric materials (polyethyleneterephthalate) by band excitation acoustic force microscopy is developed. This methodology allows the independent measurement of resonance frequency, Q factor, and oscillation amplitude of a tip-surface contact area as a function of tip temperature, from which the thermal evolution of tip-surface spring constant and mechanical dissipation can be extracted. A heating protocol maintained a constant tip-surface contact area and constant contact force, thereby allowing for reproducible measurements and quantitative extraction of material properties including temperature dependence of indentation-based elastic and loss moduli.
US08484758B2

The present invention includes an apparatus that holds the probes to a solid support throughout the passages of the functionalization process, thus avoiding user-dependent breakage or damage of the fragile AFM cantilevers. The apparatus allows the tips of the AFM probes to be placed face-down, which avoids the deposition of contaminants on their functional side. The device also allows functionalizing the tips with small liquid volumes and cleaning. The present invention includes a functionalization process preventing non-specific adsorption of molecules on the tip.
US08484756B2

A scanning probe microscopy instrument includes a cantilevered tip that has a nanowire light emitting diode (LED).
US08484755B2

A microprobe, measurement system and method are disclosed. The microprobe includes a probe tip mounted at a meeting point of a plurality of flexures. The probe tip is moveable upon flexing of one or more of the flexures, each flexure further comprising one or more actuators controllable to flex the flexure and one or more sensors arranged to sense flexing of the flexure.
US08484745B2

Meeting originators grant permission to update (i.e., add, change, and/or delete) a field or fields of a meeting invitation that corresponds to a calendar entry on an electronic calendar, enabling a meeting invitee to update a meeting invitation and to thereby communicate updates that can be reflected in the corresponding electronic calendar entries of other people who are invited to the meeting. Update permission may be granted to one meeting invitee, to all meeting invitees, or to a selected subset of the meeting invitees. Update permissions are associated with the particular meeting invitation, and preferably expire once the meeting time and date have passed. For recurring meetings, a particular update permission may be granted for a single instance of the meeting, or to all instances, and this permission preferably expires after the last instance of the recurring meeting has ended.
US08484739B1

Techniques for securely performing reputation based analysis using virtualization are disclosed. In one particular exemplary embodiment, the techniques may be realized as a computer implemented method for performing reputation based analysis comprising detecting a specified activity associated with a virtual client, determining a reputation associated with the specified activity, and performing an action associated with the determined reputation.
US08484738B2

A system and method provide application penetration testing. The system contains logic configured to find at least one vulnerability in the application so as to gain access to data associated with the application, logic configured to confirm the vulnerability and determine if the application can be compromised, and logic configured to compromise and analyze the application by extracting or manipulating data from a database associated with the application. In addition, the method provides for penetration testing of a target by: receiving at least one confirmed vulnerability of the target; receiving a method for compromising the confirmed vulnerability of the target; installing a network agent on the target in accordance with the method, wherein the network agent allows a penetration tester to execute arbitrary operating system commands on the target; and executing the arbitrary operating system commands on the target to analyze risk to which the target may be exposed.
US08484733B2

In one embodiment, a system can comprise an interface that receives data related to a communication session and a messaging security device component that evaluates the data and enables a security measure for preventative monitoring of a threat based on the evaluation, the security measure can be universally applied to two or more messaging formats.
US08484732B1

Computers are protected against virtual machine exploits. A computer includes an exploit monitor for a virtual machine running in the computer. Loading of a virtual machine program in the virtual machine triggers the exploit monitor to modify the virtual machine program after the virtual machine program is loaded in the virtual machine but before the virtual machine program is executed in the virtual machine. The modification includes adding monitoring code, such as one or more checkpoints, in the virtual machine program. When the monitoring code is reached during execution of the virtual machine program in the virtual machine, the virtual machine program is evaluated to determine whether or not the virtual machine program is a virtual machine exploit.
US08484728B2

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods and systems for managing securely installed applications. After installation, an installation framework performs a bind process to correlate the randomly assigned identifier with the unique identifier of the application. The installation framework also manages the execution of the application. When an application is launched, the application framework performs a search for that application's randomly assigned identifier and locates the application's container. The application is then allowed to execute within its container. During execution, the software application may also be restricted in various ways by the installation framework to its dynamic containers. The installer may also work with a trusted operating system component, such as the kernel, to help enforce the container restrictions. In addition, if desired, the use of random identifiers for containers may be used in conjunction with other security mechanisms, such as the use of code signing.
US08484725B1

A threat scanning system, method and computer program product are provided. Initially, data is received or identified (e.g. by way of an update, initial installation, etc.). Such data may include first data for use in performing a first threat-related function, and second data for use in performing a second non-threat-related function. In use, the first threat-related function and the second non-threat-related function are both performed with a threat scanner, utilizing the first data and the second data.
US08484721B2

Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that presents an alternate computing environment on a host computing device. During operation, this system detects the presence of a removable storage device which is in communication with an interface of the host computing device. The system also locates code which implements the alternate computing environment on the removable storage device. Finally, the system runs the code which presents the alternate computing environment through an environment player on the host device, wherein the environment player prevents a user of the alternate computing environment from interacting directly with a native computing environment of the host computing device.
US08484718B2

Methods for enabling assured records using fine grained auditing of virtual private network traffic include establishing, by an appliance, a transport layer virtual private network connection with a client operated by a user; receiving, by the appliance via the connection, a request from the client identifying a resource; determining, by the appliance, the request meets at least one security condition; transmitting, by the appliance to an audit log, a record of the request; receiving, by the appliance from the audit log, a confirmation that the record was logged; and granting, responsive to the received confirmation, access to the identified resource. Security conditions may identify at least one user, at least one application, a network or group of networks, and one or more resources. Corresponding systems are also described.
US08484714B2

A method for generating a system specific security-definition for a heterogeneous subsystem of a computing system is provided. A natural-language security-definition is stored in a rule-repository. A machine-readable security-definition is stored and a first mapping of a natural-language security-definition onto a machine-readable security-definition is stored in the rule-repository. A system-specific security-definition is generated from a machine-readable security-definition by a rule-converter that corresponds to a heterogeneous subsystem. The generation is based on a second mapping of each machine-readable security definition onto indications of system-specific security-definitions.
US08484713B1

A system and method is provided to facilitate secure communications for a server-application executing on a resource-constrained device. A request, from a client application executing on a client device to access a server application executing on the resource-constrained device is received on an application-specific secure port of a resource-constrained device. The request is authenticated using a security token stored in an application context of the server application. The authentication is performed by a transport security layer protocol executing within the application context of the server application. The security token is specific for the server application. A secure connection is established directly between the secure port and the client application upon the authentication being successful.
US08484711B1

System and method configured to provide an access management system configuration that provides the benefits of single sign-on while reducing internal hardware and administration maintenance costs. The system is reconfigured to provide an access control module that directs authentication network traffic such that access management agents are not required to be installed on the application server for each protected application. The system provides a redirection of a login request from the application server to an external security gateway that authenticates the user via policy and sends authenticated user credentials on a back channel to the access control module to obtain a session cookie which is redirected back to the user so the user can establish a session with the application. The solution reduces the plethora of agents to be maintained and upgraded in order to remain compatible with the evolving hosting software, reducing both hardware and administration maintenance costs.
US08484696B2

A method for gaming terminals, gaming kiosks and lottery terminals to ensure that the code-signing verification process of downloaded game software can be trusted. Drivers independently developed from the operating system supplier are embedded within the operating system kernel to verify that the micro-coded hardware components, the BIOS (808), the operating system components and the downloaded game software can be trusted.
US08484695B2

A control device may be configured to monitor a network connection. An application running on a client device may send a first network communication destined for a network communicatively connected to the control device. Depending upon whether the client device is authorized to access the network, different global rules may be applied. The first application or a second application running on the client device may send a second network communication. The control device may process the second network communication according to a plurality of stages. Specifically, the control device may extract information associated with the client device from the second network communication and associate user specific rules at a client discrimination stage. The control device may, at a user specific rule stage, access these rules and apply accordingly to the second network communication as governed by user specific provisioning rules.
US08484693B2

A method and computer program product for detecting a policy conflict in a managed system includes examining a plurality of policy rules for overlapping policy targets, in response to finding no overlapping policy targets, reporting that the policy rules do not conflict, and in response to finding overlapping policy targets, examining the plurality of policy rules for at least two rules having a same condition and a same event, and, in response to not finding at least two rules having a same condition and a same event, reporting that the policy rules do not conflict.
US08484686B2

An entertainment system comprising a media server networked with a plurality of docking stations is presented. The media server and docking stations can be networked together into a looped daisy-chained network to provide for content distribution to docked media players. The looped daisy-chained network retains connectivity or continuity when media players are undocked or when a connection is broken. In preferred embodiments, the entertainment system can be deployed within an aircraft as an in-flight entertainment system.
US08484685B2

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a communication device having a controller element to receive a tout message associated with a media content item, and present the tout message with a selectable Internet link having one or more instructions for directing a set-top box (STB) receiver of a subscriber of the communication device. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US08484672B2

A method performed by a digital television receiver associated with a television includes storing in a memory a first rating configuration, including a region identification of the first rating configuration and a version identification of the first rating configuration, for rating a television program in accordance with a rating scheme, and storing in the memory an identification of a first television channel as a default channel for the rating scheme. The method further includes receiving a subset of a group of transport packets via a receiving channel, comparing the region identification and the version identification of the first and the second rating configurations, and if the region identifications are the same, and the version identifications of the first and the second rating configurations indicate that the second configuration is not newer than the first rating configuration, not storing the second configuration.
US08484666B2

Architecture that includes optimizations for “Bump-in-the-API” (BIA) as employed for multi-stack hosts. These optimizations reduce the limitations imposed by the existing translation technologies by simplifying the implementation and addressing possible compatibility issues. More specifically, the architecture discloses optimizations that use a preconfigured NAT64 prefix for mapping of NAT64 IPv6 addresses in the prefix subnet to IPv4 addresses, without a mapping table (stateless), use configuration information for enabling API translation per application (resolves possible compatibility issues), and use a local IPv4 socket and a data pump to reduce the number of translated API calls.
US08484664B2

A system and method for creating a proxy object capable of communication with an external entity, comprising specifying a proxy object definition for the proxy object wherein the proxy object definition defines a first function for communicating with the external entity, specifying at least one implementation class for the proxy object definition, wherein the at least one implementation class does not implement the first function, and wherein the at least one implementation class includes functionality to support one of: proxy object design, software compilation and software execution.
US08484663B2

A system and method of deriving web service interfaces from form and table metadata is disclosed. The method uses a discovery subsystem to discover services that are available on an application server, retrieves the metadata descriptions of the services on the application server and uses the services discovered and the metadata descriptions to create web services interfaces such that the service is available using web services description language.
US08484661B2

The disclosed subject matter provides system(s) and method(s) for facilitating an execution environment in which services can be made available for use by one or more devices independently of such devices' hardware, operating systems, or run-time environments. The services can be abstracted and accessed by way of a Service Programming Interface (SPI). Execution environment devices can be members of one or more execution clusters and can interoperate by way of a logical bus, for example by contemporaneously signaling among member devices on an electronic signaling logical bus (ESLB). Signaling can be by way of event messages which can facilitate distributed computing and/or agnostic execution behavior.
US08484659B2

A system and method for distributing processing utilizing message queues as a method of distributing binary objects as “messages” and invoking the embedded logic of the received message to perform a portion of a distributed application is disclosed. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, a system and method for the integrated distribution and execution of objects as they are retrieved or extracted from a message queue on a remote system to provide executable functionality portions of a distributed application. In one embodiment a failed processing step results in the message being retained in the message queue to allow for subsequent retry processing.
US08484653B2

A mechanism for delayed hardware upgrades in virtualization systems is disclosed. A method of the invention includes maintaining a delayed hardware upgrade mode that is applicable to one or more virtual machines (VMs) managed by a hypervisor of a host machine, receiving a command to change VM hardware presented to a VM of the one or more VMs, placing the command in a delayed command queue associated with the VM per the delayed hardware upgrade mode maintained by the hypervisor, and executing the command in the delayed command queue when it is determined that the VM has been rebooted, wherein the reboot of the VM is not directly associated with the command.
US08484646B1

Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that manages process flows based on user behavior. During operation, at least one available user input selection in a first process flow is designated as being associated with an optional process flow segment. Next, at least one input that has been designated as an available user input selection is received from a user, and information associated with that input is stored in a data set. The data set is then analyzed to determine whether local criteria associated with the optional process flow segment has been satisfied. If so, the optional process flow segment is scheduled to be performed.
US08484644B2

A transfer of control to a batch application is intercepted, wherein a batch front-end routine receives control in place of the batch application and performs initialization processing. This initialization processing comprises issuing a DLI restart call and issuing a DLI checkpoint call. If the DLI restart call returns a checkpoint ID, then one or more databases associated with the batch application are repositioned. The transfer of control to the batch application is then resumed, whereby the batch application restarts from the checkpoint ID, if the checkpoint ID was returned by the DLI restart call, in a manner transparent to the batch application.
US08484643B2

A method of counting an actual usage time of each CPU in a computer system using a plurality of computers for distributed processing of jobs comprising first counting a CPU usage time used for each job, then counting a processing wait time in memory access of each CPU whenever executing each job, subtracting the processing wait time of each CPU from the CPU usage time for every job, and setting the thus calculated corrected CPU usage time as the actual CPU usage time. A job control system has a means for realizing this method and uses the CPU usage time and the corrected CPU usage time obtained by this means to control the jobs and charge the users.
US08484642B2

An embodiment may include at least one first process to be executed, at least in part, by circuitry. The at least one first process may select, at least in part, from a plurality of processor cores, one or more processor cores to execute, at least in part, at least one second process. The at least one first process may select, at least in part, the one or more processor cores based at least in part upon whether at least one inter-dependency exists, at least in part, between the at least one second process and at least one third process also to be executed by the one or more processor cores. Many alternatives, variations, and modifications are possible.
US08484633B2

Provided are a method, and a portable device having a program upgrade function. A method of upgrading a program of a portable device upgrades a program, such as a navigation program or firmware of the portable device, using another portable device within a predetermined range. Program upgrade can be performed between portable devices in movement, that is, it is possible to upgrade a program of a portable device regardless of a place in which the portable devices are located.
US08484629B2

Various technologies and techniques are disclosed for providing a programming model for modular development. A definition feature is provided that allows a definition to be specified for a particular method that is part of an application. A production feature allows a functionality implementation to be specified for the particular method separately from the definition. A consumption feature allows a method call to be made indirectly to the functionality implementation of the particular method by referencing the definition of the particular method from a consuming method. The consuming method has no awareness of the functionality implementation for the particular method. An analysis process inspects components containing indirect associations between these consumers and producers of application functionality to generate a graph of direct associations between the consumers and producers without having to actually load the components. A loader process uses the graph of direct associations to run the application.
US08484628B2

A system and method are provided for stacking global variables associated with a plurality of tools. The method includes loading a first tool global variable into a memory and executing a first tool of a computer application, the computer application configured to automate human resource processes. The method includes responsive to a call to execute a second tool of the computer application, pushing the first tool global variable onto a stack. The method includes loading a second tool global variable into the memory and executing the second tool. The method includes responsive to completing execution of the second tool, popping the first tool global variable off the stack and loading the first tool global variable back into the memory.
US08484625B2

A network infrastructure element (300) can be configured to, upon determining (101) that an end-user platform (305) seeks to download an executable program, execute (103) the program to develop a corresponding model that represents corresponding operating system call-based behavior. The network infrastructure element can then use (104) this model to vet the operating system call-based behavior of the program with respect to end-user platform policies. When the operating system call-based behavior vets acceptably with respect to these policies, the end-user platform can then be permitted to download (106) the executable program. If desired, the network infrastructure element can provide (107) the model to the end-user platform to permit vetting of the modeled behavior with respect to locally-maintained policies. The model provided to the end-user platform can comprise a size-reduced sliced model.
US08484621B2

A method and system for data centric heap profiling is disclosed. In one embodiment, a method, implemented in a computing device, for data centric heap profiling includes generating a type table for data structure types in source code using a compiler of the computing device. The method also includes identifying each heap allocation site and a corresponding data structure type in the source code using the compiler. The method further includes generating a data centric view of a heap o fan application compiled from the source code based on the each heap allocation site and the corresponding data structure type using a debugger of the computing device when a snapshot of the heap is requested during an execution of the application.
US08484612B2

Methods and systems are provided for generating source code from XML formatted device data sheets. Information is accepted from a user regarding whether data definitions, string tables and/or link tables are needed in a software project. Files are created corresponding to the data definitions, string tables and/or link tables. The files are then collected and compiled into resultant source code. An application generator performs the compilation of the input files into source code. The resultant source code may be incorporated into a software development project and may be updated when needed.
US08484607B1

An approach for decomposing a layout for triple patterning lithography is described. In one embodiment, a triple patterning conflict graph is built from a layout having pattern features specified as shapes. The triple patterning conflict graph represents the shapes in the layout and coloring constraints associated with the shapes. The shapes represented by the triple patterning conflict graph are decomposed into three colors to avoid color conflict, while balancing the color density among the three colors and minimizing a number of stitches used to represent the shapes in the layout. Color conflicts in the decomposition are resolved by selectively segmenting the shapes in the decomposition that are associated with the color conflict.
US08484599B2

Systems and techniques for performing parasitic extraction on a via array are described. If the via array is a single row or column via array, the system identifies a first via and a last via in the via array, and merges a set of vias between the first via and the last via into a center via. If the via array is a M×N (M≧2, N≧2) via array, the system merges the vias as follows: the first row and the last row of vias in the via array into a first row via and a last row via, respectively; the first column and the last column of vias in the via array into a first column via and a last column via, respectively; and a set of vias between the first and last rows and the first and last columns into a center via.
US08484597B2

An integrated circuit manufacturing method comprising: calculating a threshold value from a value of a parameter which characterizes at least a part of a design pattern shape of a transistor on the target path; calculating a difference between the calculated threshold value and a target threshold value; calculating a change quantity of a gate length corresponding to the difference between the threshold value and the target threshold value according to the functional relation between the threshold value of the transistor and the gate length, which is determined based on the empirical value or the experimental value; reducing, by the change quantity, the gate length of the transistor on the target path; and manufacturing an integrated circuit on the basis of design information of the circuit including the transistor of which the gate length is changed.
US08484591B2

A mechanism is provided for simplifying a netlist before computational resources are exceeded. For each of a set of suspected equivalences in a proof graph of a netlist, a determination is made as to whether equivalence holds for at least one of an equivalence or an equivalence class by identifying whether the equivalence or equivalence class is either affecting or non-affecting. Responsive to the equivalence or equivalence class being affecting, a proof dependency is recorded as an edge in a proof graph. For each node in the proof graph, a determination is made as to whether the node has a falsified dependency. Responsive to the node failing to have a falsified dependency, identification is made that all dependencies are satisfied and that the equivalences represented by the node in the proof graph are sequential equivalences. The netlist is then simplified by consuming the sequential equivalences.
US08484587B2

Photolithographic process simulation is described in which fast computation of resultant intensity for a large number of process variations and/or target depths (var,zt) is achieved by computation of a set of partial intensity functions independent of (var,zt) using a mask transmittance function, a plurality of illumination system modes, and a plurality of preselected basis spatial functions independent of (var,zt). Subsequently, for each of many different (var,zt) combinations, expansion coefficients are computed for which the preselected basis spatial functions, when weighted by those expansion coefficients, characterize a point response of a projection-processing system determined for that (var, zt) combination. The resultant intensity for that (var,zt) combination is then computed as a sum of the partial intensity functions weighted according to corresponding products of those expansion coefficients. Prediction of a mask transmittance function as a function of illumination incidence angle for a regional cluster of source emitters is also described.
US08484586B2

A system and method is provided which predicts problematic areas for lithography in a circuit design, and more specifically, which uses modeling data from a modeling tool to accurately predict problematic lithographic areas. The method includes identifying surface heights of plurality of tiles of a modeled wafer, and mathematically mimicking a lithographic tool to determine best planes of focus for exposure for the plurality of tiles.
US08484582B2

A method, device, and computer program product for locating a desired entry in a list containing multiple list entries for use with a limited text display is described. A list of entries is partitioned into a number of sub-parts such that the desired entry is contained in one of the list sub-parts. At least one of the sub-parts is characterized within a limited text display to prompt a user for feedback regarding the location of the desired entry in the sub-parts. The user feedback is received from a view input element. In response to the user feedback, the sub-part containing the desired entry is selected. The partitioning, characterizing, receiving, and selecting steps are re-performed one or more times until a final sub-part is generated that contains a limited number of entries including the desired entry.
US08484575B2

Navigation between a plurality of property sheets on a display of a mobile electronic device, each of the property sheets having a tab index and a layout defining a plurality of elements. One of the property sheets is a displayed property sheet and one of the elements is a current active element. Navigation includes (i) storing the tab index of the displayed property sheet as a current tab index; (ii) detecting a soft key event; regardless of which of the elements is a current active element, (iii) modifying the current tab index based on a soft key identifier of the soft key event to create an updated tab index; and (iv) displaying another property sheet of the plurality of property sheets on the display, the another property sheet having a tab index equal to the updated tab index.
US08484574B2

A determination of when to change a toolbar pane of a toolbar being displayed in a Web browser window is automatically made. A set of rules identifying which of multiple toolbar panes are to be displayed under different conditions is accessed, and one of the multiple toolbar panes is automatically determined based at least in part on the set of rules. This toolbar pane that was automatically determined is displayed in the toolbar of the web browser window.
US08484573B1

In general, aspects of this disclosure are directed to techniques for predictive text correction and completion for text entry using virtual keyboards on touch-sensitive displays. A user may be able to type on a representation of a virtual keyboard displayed on touch-sensitive displays by contacting representations of virtual keys included in the virtual keyboard, and the word the user intended to type on the virtual keyboard may be predicted and displayed in place of characters associated with the virtual keys actually contacted by the user. In some examples of the present disclosure, a virtual spacebar key included in the virtual keyboard may be treated in a probabilistic fashion to determine whether a contact received by the touch-sensitive display is intended to select the virtual spacebar key to perform an autocorrect or autocomplete function.
US08484571B2

An appliance includes one or more control boards having control software to control a cycle of operation of the appliance, a graphical user interface in communication with the control boards for allowing a user to observe and interact with the appliance regarding the cycle of operation, and a software framework configured to run in a processor having memory in communication with the graphical user interface. The software framework has theme definitions and access to builder content containing information with which it associates a theme definition with one or more resources. The software framework dynamically renders the graphical user interface at runtime based on the resources in response to selection of a theme so that a user can cause the control board to control the cycle of operation via the selected theme in the graphical user interface.
US08484568B2

A user device associates a data session with a particular application, of the user device, that initiated the data session. The user device monitors network data usage for the data session and/or receives network data usage from a monitoring device associated with the network. The device stores and/or retrieves statistics for the network data usage associated with the particular application. The device further retrieves subscription plan information associated with the user device and presents, on a display, the statistics for the network data usage associated with the particular application and in relation to the subscription plan information associated with the user device.
US08484566B2

Among other disclosure, a computer-implemented method of analyzing a form page for indexing includes identifying a form page that is configured for use in requesting any of multiple target pages. The form page includes multiple input controls. The method includes identifying at least one of the multiple input controls as being informative with regard to requesting the multiple target pages. The method includes updating an indexing record associated with the form page to reflect the identification.
US08484564B1

A method, system, and graphical user interface for personalized online sports team charts are disclosed. One aspect of the invention involves a graphical user interface on a computer that includes a graphic of an athletic playing field or a portion thereof, and a plurality of player positions on the athletic field. At least some of the player positions contain thumbnail images selected by a first user. The thumbnail images provide links to corresponding profiles in an online social network.
US08484561B1

A first instruction specifying a first change to an object instance associated with a document is received from a first device, and a second instruction specifying a second change to the object instance is received from a second device. A transformed operation is determined based on the first change and the second change, and the object instance is updated based on the transformed operation. For example, a visual representation of the object instance may be updated based on the transformed operation.
US08484555B2

An electronic document control apparatus verifies that content to which a digital signature has been applied has not been altered; verifies that a referential target of a new page is a signature area to which a digital signature has been applied; if the electronic document has been imparted with a policy for permitting page layout, verifies that the referential target of a new page does not include anything other than the content to which the digital signature has been applied, and if the electronic document has been imparted with a policy for permitting page layout and background rendering of content, verifies that the referential target does not include anything other than the content and a background object of the content; and determines by using at least one of the first, second and third verification means, whether or not the edited electronic document has been altered.
US08484548B1

Provided is a method and system for indexing documents in a collection of linked documents. A link log, including one or more pairings of source documents and target documents is accessed. A sorted anchor map, containing one or more target document to source document pairings, is generated. The pairings in the sorted anchor map are ordered based on target document identifiers.
US08484542B2

A method in a data storage device receiving data including a data block and main error correction coding (ECC) data for the data block. The data block includes a first sub-block of data and a second sub-block of data. The method also includes initiating an ECC operation to process the data block using the main ECC data. In response to the ECC operation indicating uncorrectable errors in the data block, first additional ECC data that is external to the data block is retrieved and a second ECC operation is initiated to process the first sub-block of data using the first additional ECC data.
US08484541B1

Apparatus for encoding includes a first processing stage, which is configured to filter input data with a first set of coefficients belonging to a first generator polynomial representing a first ECC, to produce a first output. A second processing stage is configured to filter the first output using a second set of coefficients belonging to a quotient polynomial, which is defined as a quotient of a second generator polynomial, representing a second ECC, divided by the first generator polynomial, to produce a second output. Ancillary circuitry has first and second operational modes and is coupled to the first and second processing stages so as to generate a first redundancy output corresponding to the first ECC based on the first output when operating in the first mode, and to generate a second redundancy output corresponding to the second ECC based on the second output when operating in the second mode.
US08484528B2

Disclosed herein is a receiving apparatus, including: a decoding section configured to receive and decode a low density parity check code; and a decoding control section configured to control a frequency of the decoding on the basis of conditional information that is an index indicative of a communication condition that influences power consumption in the decoding section.
US08484525B2

A medium access control-high speed (MAC-hs) comprises a hybrid automatic repeat request (H-ARQ) device configured to receive data blocks over a wideband-code division multiple access (W-CDMA) high speed-downlink shared channel (HS-DSCH). The H-ARQ device generates an acknowledgement (ACK) or negative acknowledgement (NACK) for each said data block received. Each received data block having a transmission sequence number. The H-ARQ device receives a new transmission instead of a pending retransmission at any time. At least one reordering device has an input configured to receive an output of the H-ARQ device and the at least one reordering device configured to reorder the received data blocks based on each received data block's transmission sequence number (TSN). Received data blocks are immediately forwarded for processing for higher layers when the received data blocks are received in sequence.
US08484511B2

Methods and apparatus for collection, validation, analysis, and automated error correction of data regarding user interaction with content. In one embodiment, statistical methods are used to arrive at expected values for the collected data. The data is compared to the expected value and must meet one or more acceptance criteria (e.g., be within a prescribed range) to be considered valid. The prescribed range is determined by the network operator, or a computer program adapted to generate this value. The invention enables a network operator to assess a large volume of data without requiring significant amounts of manual monitoring and/or error correction. The ability to collect, validate and analyze data across multiple platforms is also provided. Still further, an automated system capable of learning evaluation and error correction patterns is disclosed.
US08484509B2

A processing system including an FPGA having a dual port RAM and for use in hostile environments. The FPGA includes three portions: a C&DH portion; a first scratch pad portion receiving a first set of data, processing the first set of data, and outputting a first set of processed data to a first location of the RAM; and a second scratch pad portion receiving a second set of data identical to the first set of data, processing the second set of data in the same way that the first set of data is processed, and outputting a second set of processed data to a second location of the RAM. The C&DH portion compares the first set of processed data to the second set of processed data and, if the first set of processed data is the same as the second set of processed data, outputs one set of processed data.
US08484506B2

A redundant array of independent disks level 5 (RAID 5) with a mirroring functionality is disclosed. In one embodiment, a method for adding a mirroring functionality to a RAID 5 includes forming an array using at least three drives for storing data, creating multiple data blocks and a parity for the multiple data blocks based on the data for every (2N−1)th stripe of the array, and generating a mirror image of the multiple data blocks and the parity for the multiple data blocks for every (2N−1)th stripe to its respective 2Nth stripe of the array, where the N is an integer starting from 1.
US08484503B2

Communication is arrested between a source data entity and a replicated data entity at a location declared in a DR mode. The DR mode is negotiated to a central replication management component as a DR mode entry event. The DR mode entry event is distributed, by the central replication management component, to each member in a shared group. The DR mode is enforced using at least one replication policy.
US08484483B2

A method that protects computer data from untrusted programs. Each computer's object and process is assigned with trust attributes, which define the way it can interact with other objects within the system. When an object is classified as untrusted, it can interact with other object within the system on a limited basis. A virtualized system is provided on the computer so that when the untrusted object attempts to perform an operation that is outside its scope of authorization, the virtualized system intercepts the operation but present the untrusted program with an indication that the requested operation has been performed. The method further includes processes to securely move a program from an untrusted group to a trusted group.
US08484476B2

A computer-implemented system and method for embedding and authenticating ancillary information in digitally signed content are disclosed. The method and system include loading digital content containing a digitally signed executable into memory for execution, while checking for the integrity of a digital signature and the contents of the executable; and erasing any non-authenticated regions of the digital content by zeroing out or value-filling memory locations corresponding to the non-authenticated regions.
US08484472B2

A secure correlation identifier (SCID) for authentically correlating notifications received from event sources with subscriptions, a SCID authentication system and method of filtering unsolicited messages are provided. The SCID comprises a correlation identifier for making the SCID unique, a sequence of bits concatenated with the correlation identifier and a secure tag concatenated with the concatenation of the correlation identifier and the sequence of bits. The system comprises a SCID generator for generating a SCID to be used in a message and a SCID authenticator for authenticating the SCID. The method comprises the steps of receiving a notification message having a SCID, verifying that that SCID is authentic, accepting the message if the SCID is authentic and rejecting the message if the SCID is not authentic.
US08484471B2

A multi-party variance multiplication device includes: an initial setting device which generates a first public key by using an inputted system parameter; a commitment generation device which generates a commitment of a first input value based on the system parameter and a random number; an encryption device which generates an encrypted text of the first input value based on the system parameter, the random number, and the first public key; an authentication device which generates a certificate that authenticates a range of the first input value based on the system parameter, the random number, the first public key, and the second public key already public; a decryption device which generates a decrypted text by decrypting a noisy encrypted text based on the system parameter, the first public key, and a private key; and a noise removal device which generates a product variance by removing a noise from the decrypted text.
US08484456B2

An electronic messaging system, including: a first message transfer server for receiving a message for a party, mapping the destination address of the message to a trusted address for the party, and substituting the trusted address for the destination address; and a second message transfer server for establishing an authenticated transport session with the first message transfer server to receive the message and transfer the message to a location corresponding to the trusted address.
US08484454B2

A method for the secure offline relocation of portable software licenses. The portable software license has an associated time limit. A license relocation record can be generated including the portable software license and limit information for the time limit for relocation to a second computing device operating in an offline state. The license relocation record is temporarily securely stored on a removable security device attached to a first computing device that is connected to a licensing network. The removable security device can be disconnected from the first computing device and subsequently connected to the second computing device. Provided the time limit is not exceeded, the portable software license can then be installed upon the second computing device. Upon successful installation of the portable software licenses, the license relocation record can be removed from the removable security device.
US08484451B2

A composite customer ID (CCID) is stored in the OTP memory of integrated circuit chipsets used by a number of different customers. The CCID includes individual customer IDs (CIDs) at defined index positions, each corresponding to a different customer. Each chipset allows or disallows software booting, based reading a certificate index value from a given customer's certificate, reading an OTP CID from OTP, as pointed to the by certificate index value, and evaluating the OTP CID with a certificate CID read from the certificate. Thus, while CCID carries information for a plurality of customers, each customer's certificate points only to that customer's OTP CID, which can be changed to revoke that customer's certificate without revoking the other customers' certificates. The CCID also may include a version number, where the chipsets allow or disallow software booting based on evaluating the certificate version number in view of the CCID version number.
US08484446B2

A microprocessor which realizes fast register saving and restoring which are involved in subroutine calls, and is capable of reducing the scale of a program. A register file is provided with at least one register for storing data to be used for computational processing. A saving memory stores therein data saved from the registers. A saving control unit saves data from a writing destination register to the saving memory when an instruction to write to the register is executed in a subroutine. Then the saving control unit restores data saved in the saving memory back to the original registers when an instruction to return from the subroutine is executed.
US08484439B1

A data read/write system receives a key associated with a data read request. The data read/write system hashes the key to obtain a first hash value and hashes the key to obtain a second hash value, where the second hash value is different than the first hash value. The data read/write system obtains a pointer from a pointer array using the first and second hash values, and uses one or more bits of the pointer and the first hash value to retrieve data from a data look-up array.
US08484434B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide a system that generates an index for a cache memory. The system starts by receiving a request to access the cache memory, wherein the request includes address information. The system then obtains non-address information associated with the request. Next, the system generates the index using the address information and the non-address information. The system then uses the index to fulfill access the cache memory.
US08484433B2

Detection and reduction of unaligned input/output (“I/O”) requests is implemented by a storage server determining an alignment value for data stored by the server within a storage system on behalf of a first client, writing the alignment value to a portion of the volume that stores the data for the first client, but not to a portion of the volume that stores data for a second client, and changing a location of data within the portion of the volume that stores the data for the first client, but not a location of data in the portion of the volume that stores data for the second client, to an alignment corresponding to the alignment value. The alignment value is applied to I/O requests directed to the portion of the volume that stores the data blocks for the first client after the location of the data blocks has been changed.
US08484431B1

A method for synchronizing, using at least one processor, a physical machine with a virtual machine while the virtual machine is operational in memory is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes monitoring a physical machine that utilizes a physical disk for storing computer data, consolidating a virtual disk with modifications to the physical disk, wherein the modifications to the physical disk are replicated on the virtual disk in response to unavailability of the physical machine, operating a virtual machine that utilizes the virtual disk for storing the computer data and migrating the virtual machine, using the virtual disk, to a computer.
US08484412B2

A magnetic tape drive having a tape drive system for moving magnetic tape, tape read/write and servo system, tape cartridge load/unload systems, I/O communications, memory; and a control system, operates in three modes to conserve energy consumption. A first low power mode powers the I/O communications, the memory, and the control system. If a magnetic tape cartridge is in loaded position in the magnetic tape drive, the second low power mode powers the same as the first low power mode, and additionally powers the tape drive system to apply tension to a magnetic tape of the magnetic tape cartridge. In the first and the second low power modes, the control system operates the I/O communications, the memory and the control system to respond to and execute commands received at the I/O communications if the commands are executable without magnetic tape access. The third, full power mode, is entered if a command received at the I/O communications requires magnetic tape access.
US08484408B2

Embodiments of the invention relate to a storage system cache with flash memory units organized in a RAID configuration. An aspect of the invention includes a storage system with a storage cache that includes flash memory units organized in an array configuration. The storage system further includes an array controller that manages data access and data operations for the flash memory units and organizes data as full array stripes. The storage system also includes a storage cache controller, that includes a block line manager that buffers write data to be cached for a write operation until the storage cache controller has accumulated an array band, and commits write data to the array controller as full array stripes. The storage cache controller determines whether to store write data for a write in the storage cache and/or in the primary storage device and whether to access read data from the storage cache or from the primary storage device.
US08484400B2

Embodiments of the invention relate to a (e.g., hybrid) redundant array of independent disks (RAID)-based storage control board. Specifically, the present invention relates to a storage control board having a RAID controller with a peripheral component interconnect express (PCI-e) interface. In one embodiment, the RAID controller is coupled to an input/output (I/O) hub and a set (at least one) of PCI-e slots, which themselves can receive cards such as a fiber channel (FC) add-on card, a serial attached small component system interface (SAS) add-on card, or a PCI-e bridge add-on card. The I/O hub can be coupled to a set (at least one) of processors, each of which can be coupled to a main memory module or the like.
US08484399B2

A system and method for configuring expansion bus links to generate a double-bandwidth link slot are disclosed. An information handling system includes a central processing unit (CPU) and memory operable to store program instructions executable by the CPU. A chip set operably couples the CPU and the memory to a first slot and a second slot. The chipset includes a root port that generates a first link coupled to the first slot and a second link coupled to the second slot. An adapter card is inserted into either of the first or second slots such that the adapter card routes either the first or second link to the slot not populated by the adapter card.
US08484397B1

Various methods and apparatus are described for a memory scheduler. The memory scheduler has a pipelined arbiter to determine which request will access the target memory core. Pipelining occurs in stages within the arbiter over a period of more than one clock cycle. The pipelined arbiter uses two or more weighting factors affecting an arbitration decision that are processed in parallel. A predictive scheduler in the memory scheduler uses data from a previous cycle to make the arbitration decision about a request during a current clock cycle in which the arbitration decision is made in order to increase overall system efficiency of requests being serviced in the integrated circuit.
US08484388B2

A data transmission method is provided, which includes: obtaining a current queue length of a queue corresponding to an output port; when the current queue length meets a back-pressure requirement, determining a back-pressure priority corresponding to the current queue length according to the current queue length and a mapping relationship between a preset queue length and the back-pressure priority, and generating back-pressure information, where the back-pressure information inhibits a line card from sending data with a data priority less than or equal to the back-pressure priority to the output port; and sending the back-pressure information to a line card.
US08484387B2

Embodiments of the invention are generally directed to detection of cable connections for electronic devices. An embodiment of an apparatus includes a port for the connection of a cable, the port being compatible with a first protocol and a second protocol, the port including multiple pins including a first pin for a first line and a second pin for a second line. The apparatus further includes a processor to determine a type of source device connected to the cable, where determination of the type of source device includes the apparatus detecting a low signal on the first line and a high signal on the second line, and, upon detecting the low signal on first line and the high signal on the second line, the apparatus initiates a discovery sequence, the discovery sequence including transmitting a signal sequence on the second line and attempting to receive the signal sequence on the second line. If the signal sequence is successfully received on the second line, the apparatus determines that a source device compatible with the first protocol is connected to the cable.
US08484386B2

A wireless sensor node may be wirelessly registered with a first central node and may be automatically configured based at least in part on wireless communications with the first central node. The same wireless sensor node may subsequently be wirelessly registered with a second central node and may be automatically reconfigured based at least in part on wireless communications with the second central node. Environmental characteristics are detected using the wireless sensor node.
US08484384B2

An ACARS message communications system including at least one on-board piece of equipment harbouring an application adapted for transmitting and/or receiving ACARS messages, and a router adapted for routing, via a plurality of subnetworks, ACARS messages from and/or to the application. The piece of equipment and the router are connected to an AFDX network and the application is adapted for dynamic registration at the router, via the network, the router only routing the messages if the application is actually registered thereat.
US08484383B2

FlexRay communication controller for connecting FlexRay communication lines to a FlexRay network member assigned to the FlexRay communication controller, whereby said FlexRay communication controller encloses some parts as there are at least a message handler, a message memory, a first buffer memory structure for connecting said message memory to said FlexRay network member and a second buffer memory structure for connecting said message memory to said FlexRay communication lines, whereby all the parts are functioning together to connect said FlexRay communication lines to said FlexRay network member and said FlexRay communication controller is constructed in such a way that said functioning is controlled by the contents of a variety of registers located onto said FlexRay communication controller.
US08484373B2

Disclosed are systems and methods for redirecting a request for a non-canonical web page. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a request, from a client, for an alias Uniform Resource Locator (“URL”) at a web server, where an address for the alias URL is different than an address for a canonical URL, where the alias URL and the canonical URL are associated with the same web resources. The method further includes sending a redirect to the client to request the canonical URL, and sending one or more instructions to the client to request the canonical URL for a subsequent request for the alias URL.
US08484358B2

A request to retrieve data from a client device is intercepted by a video detector. The video detector determines if the request is for retrieving a video file. If the request is for a video file, and the video file is deemed to be transcoded to be displayed on the client device, the video detector forwards the request to a video optimizer along with encoding parameters. Encoding parameters are selected by the video detector based on properties of the client device, networks accessible by the client device, conditions of those networks, properties of the requested video and the type of video requested. The encoding parameters also include a file format type to which the requested video is to be transcoded.
US08484351B1

A method of accessing data includes storing a table that includes a plurality of tablets corresponding to distinct non-overlapping table portions. Respective pluralities of tablet access objects and application objects are stored in a plurality of servers. A distinct application object and distinct tablet are associated with each tablet access object. Each application object corresponds to a distinct instantiation of an application associated with the table. The tablet access objects and associated application objects are redistributed among the servers in accordance with a first load-balancing criterion. A first request directed to a respective tablet is received from a client. In response, the tablet access object associated with the respective tablet is used to perform a data access operation on the respective tablet, and the application object associated with the respective tablet is used to perform an additional computational operation to produce a result to be returned to the client.
US08484336B2

Root cause analysis in a communication network may be provided in a network management system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The system receives a set of events the network. One such received event may indicate a network problem. The system, through time windowing and/or filtering, identifies a sub-set of events, in the first set, as candidate events for a root cause of the problem. The system generates a score value for each candidate event in the sub-set, indicating how likely each such candidate event is the root cause of the problem. The score value is based in part on a hop distance between an entity that generated the event indicating the problem and another entity that generated the candidate event. The system then selects one of the candidate events, which has a minimum score value, as the root cause event for the problem reported.
US08484332B2

A tool for managing a computer network includes a gateway service module that identifies a gateway for a network and a network information service module. The network information service module identifies devices in the network, determines at least one property for each of the identified devices, and creates a network information data structure for storing device properties. A communication agent service module transmits at least one determined device property to other agent service modules associated with the network, receives at least one device property from another agent service module associated with the network, and provides the received at least one property device to the network information service module. A method of monitoring a computer network is also provided. The method includes identifying devices in a network, determining at least one property for each of the identified devices, receiving at least one determined device property from another device the network, and creating a network information data structure for storing the determined device properties.
US08484331B2

In one embodiment a method and apparatus are provided that automatically establish an real time protocol (RTP) tunnel between an originator node or router and a terminator node or router, wherein the terminator node is close to a remote RTP peer. A method includes detecting a new flow of RTP packets wherein the RTP packets are encoded with a destination Internet Protocol (IP) address. Responsive to detecting the new flow, a probe is sent towards a same IP address as the destination IP address of the RTP packets. A response to the probe is received, the response including an identifier of a node that generated the response. Then, using the identifier, a tunnel is established with the node that generated the response, and thereafter compressed packets (compressed headers, compressed payloads, or both) are passed via the tunnel.
US08484323B2

A network system connected with one or more master devices and a method for operating the same. The system and method enable a new master device to be automatically connected to a network, when the network system is newly constructed or when the new master device is additionally connected to the network with which at least one master device has already been connected. A plurality of slave devices are connected to the network constructed within a building to transmit and receive data through the network. At least one master device controls the slave devices. A network manager automatically assigns a network address to the master device to appropriately connect the master device to the network when the master device is newly connected to the network or additionally connected to the network with which an existing master device is connected. Therefore, a network connection and a setting task associated with the master device are automatically performed, thereby easily and conveniently managing the network and hence reducing costs for managing the network.
US08484319B2

To serve content through a content delivery network (CDN), the CDN must have some information about the identity, characteristics and state of its target objects. Such additional information is provided in the form of object metadata, which according to the invention can be located in the request string itself, in the response headers from the origin server, in a metadata configuration file distributed to CDN servers, or in a per-customer metadata configuration file. CDN content servers execute a request identification and parsing process to locate object metadata and to handle the request in accordance therewith. Where different types of metadata exist for a particular object, metadata in a configuration file is overridden by metadata in a response header or request string, with metadata in the request string taking precedence.
US08484316B2

Methods and apparatus are provided for providing access to content via messaging services, such as email, voicemail, instant messaging, text messaging, or other similar messaging services. A content server is provided that includes a user interface, a web server and a file. The web server includes a web page for accessing the file. A user provides user information associated with a messaging address via the user interface, and the content server then sends a message including the web address of the web page to the messaging address. The user may then retrieve the message at a client computer, and may then download the file to the client computer by entering the web address into a web browser on the client computer.
US08484311B2

Systems and methods are provided for aggregating a local media collection of a user with one or more shared media collections shared with the user to provide an aggregate media collection for the user. In general, one or more shared media collections shared with the user are first discovered. Optionally, the user may select one or more of the shared media collections for aggregation with the local media collection of the user. The shared media collections selected by the user, or alternatively all of the shared media collections, are then aggregated with the local media collection of the user to provide an aggregate media collection for the user. The aggregate media collection of the user may then be pruned or filtered based on user preferences of the user.
US08484306B2

A system and method for curtailing objectionable behavior in a web-based social network is disclosed. The method includes monitoring various actions of users of a web-based social network for objectionable behavior. The monitored actions are those that affect other users of the social network. A policy is determined based on behaviors of users. The policy may be violated by a user if the user exceeds a policy threshold. Some monitored actions include the poking, friend requesting, and wall posting. A policy may be violated by multiple occurrences of a single type of action or by a combination of different types of actions. Upon a policy violation, a warning may be issued to the user or the user's account may be suspended.
US08484298B2

A method and system for dynamic advertisement of presence information using SIP is disclosed. In one embodiment, a method for dynamic advertisement of presence information includes initiation of the presence invitation message by presence inviter which can be of XML format, distribution of presence invitation message by presence invitation distributor from presence inviter to presence invitee and acceptance of the presence invitation message by presence invitee including subscribing as per the invitation, which provides information to the presence invitees about newly available parts of presence information, through SIP REFER or SIP MESSAGE methods. In another embodiment of the present invention includes a method for sending the presence invitation message directly to a single presence invitee. In yet another embodiment of the present invention includes a method for sending the presence invitation message to multiple presence invitees in a URI-list through RLS and XDMS.
US08484296B2

Systems and methods for displaying an e-mail message are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method includes the act of classifying at least one recipient as trusted or suspect. The recipient is specified by the e-mail message. The method also includes the act of displaying the at least one recipient using a first visual cue if the classification is suspect. The method also includes the act of displaying the at least one recipient using a second visual cue if the classification is trusted. In one embodiment, a system includes a means for classifying at least one recipient as trusted or suspect, and an e-mail message display window. The recipient is specified by the e-mail message. The window is configured to display the at least one recipient using a first visual cue if the classification is suspect. The window is configured to display the recipient using a second visual cue if the classification is trusted.
US08484295B2

Systems and methods are provided for allowing subscriber message sending profiles to be maintained and used in conjunction with behavior-based anomaly detection techniques and traditional content-based spam signature filtering to enable application of appropriate message disposition policies to outbound subscriber message traffic. According to one embodiment, subscriber profiles are constructed for multiple subscriber accounts associated with a service provider based on outbound message flow originated from the subscriber accounts. Then, possible subscriber account misuse may be discovered by performing behavior-based anomaly detection, including a comparison of a subscriber profile associated with the subscriber account with recent subscriber account usage information, to identify one or more behavioral anomalies in outbound message flow originated from a subscriber account, the behavior-based anomaly detection.
US08484289B2

Methods, systems, and computer-readable media for providing network-based audience measurement are provided. Data packets are intercepted between a client computer and a content server. Unique subscribers and content names are identified based on the data packets. One or more audience measurement metrics are computed based on the unique subscribers and the content names.
US08484287B2

The present solution is directed towards systems and methods for managing cookies by a multi-core device. The device is intermediary to a client and one or more servers. A first core of a multi-core device receives a response from a server to a request of the client through a user session. The response comprises a cookie. The first core removes the cookie from the response and stores the cookie in a corresponding storage for the session. The first core forwards the response without the cookie to the client. A second core then receives via a session, a second request from the client. The second core determines the identification of the first core as owner of the session from the second request. The second core then communicates to the first core a third request for cookie information for the session.
US08484278B2

Embodiments of the present invention can provide circuits and systems for computing a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) or an inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT). An embodiment includes an input circuit, an intermediate circuit, an output circuit, and an accumulator circuit. The input circuit can receive a set of input values, and can use a first set of degenerate rotators to generate a first set of intermediate values. The intermediate circuit can receive the first set of intermediate values, and can use a set of CORDICs (coordinate rotation digital computers) to generate a second set of intermediate values. The output circuit can receive the second set of intermediate values, and can use a second set of degenerate rotators to generate a third set of intermediate values. The accumulator circuit can receive the third set of intermediate values, and can use a set of accumulators to generate a set of output values.
US08484271B1

A system for correcting infrared (IR) radiances includes an imager for receiving IR radiances and outputting intensity data corresponding to pixels in the imager. Also included is a stray light estimator for receiving the intensity data and estimating stray light in the intensity data. The stray light estimator includes a Bessel filter for low pass filtering the estimated stray light and providing corrected intensity data as an output to a user. The Bessel filter is an n-pole recursive digital filter, which is expressed as a ratio between (a) an (n−1) order polynomial of a complex number and (b) an n order polynomial of a complex number, where n is a positive integer. The Bessel filter includes an infinite response curve, in which the response curve monotonically decreases in amplitude as a function of frequency per pixels.
US08484259B1

A network storage server system includes a distributed object store and a metadata subsystem. The metadata subsystem stores metadata relating to the stored data objects and allows data objects to be located and retrieved easily via user-specified search queries. It manages and allows searches on at least three categories of metadata via the same user interface and technique. These categories include user-specified metadata, inferred metadata and system-defined metadata. Search queries for the metadata can include multi-predicate queries.
US08484255B2

In various embodiments, a system receives a multidimensional schema entity of a first type and converts the multidimensional schema entity to a second type. The system receives user input and converts the multidimensional schema entity to the second type based on the input received from the user. In various embodiments, the system creates multidimensional schema entities automatically. In various embodiments, a method for converting multidimensional schema entities from one or more types to one or more other types is described. In various embodiments, a first multidimensional schema entity is analyzed and converted to a different type based on the analysis. In various embodiments, a multidimensional schema entity is created automatically based on input from two other multidimensional schema entities. In various embodiments, two multidimensional schema entities are merged in one multidimensional schema entity.
US08484248B2

The method and system of the present invention provides an improved technique for replacing, implementing and managing computer-related assets. A technician accesses the World Wide Web through a user's computer. The information resident on the computer, including information regarding the computer and the user's preferences, are downloaded to a remote storage medium through the World Wide Web. Once downloaded, all information may be removed from the user's computer. Subsequently, the technician accesses another computer such as, for example, a new computer that has been assigned to the same user. The technician accesses the World Wide Web through the new computer and downloads the information previously stored on the remote storage medium. This information can then be used to install the user's prior applications, settings and preferences on the new computer.
US08484247B2

In one embodiment the present invention includes a system for securing and authorizing access to multidimensional transactional data. The system includes online analytical processing (OLAP) system and a database system. The OLAP system accesses a selection of multidimensional transactional data from the database system according to a multidimensional request. The OLAP system aggregates the selection to form aggregated information. The OLAP system filters the selection according to the authorization for the user, to form a filtered selection. In this manner the user can see accurate aggregations yet not see unauthorized data.
US08484243B2

In a system and method for order-independent stream query processing, one or more input streams of data are received, and the one or more input streams are analyzed to determine data which is older than an already emitted progress indicator. The data which is older than the already emitted progress indicator is partitioned into one or more partitions, and each of the one or more partitions are independently processed using out-of-order processing techniques. A query is received, rewritten and decomposed into one or more sub-queries that produce partial results for each of the one or more partitions, where each of the one or more sub-queries correspond to a partition. A view is also produced that consolidates the partial results for each partition. The partial results are consolidated at a consolidation time specified by the query to produce final results, and the final results are provided.
US08484239B2

A method and a telecommunication database system for facilitating modifications in the database and the handling of data queries. The database comprises an original dataset with data entries containing original data for different objects, and at least one auxiliary dataset with data entries containing updated data for at least some of the objects. A dataset tag is included in the data entries in either dataset indicating which dataset each entry belongs to. When a querying logic makes a query for data in a wanted data entry, the wanted data entry is obtained from a dataset determined based on the dataset tag in the data entry.
US08484237B2

A terminal stores in a storage section content distributed from a server and a data access power for deleting a service that differ from a service to which the content belongs in association with each other. The terminal determines, when the stored content requests the deletion of the differing service that is indicated by the statement contained in the content, whether or not the content and the data access power are stored in the storage section in association with each other. When the terminal has determined that the content that requested the deletion of the differing service and the data access power are stored in the storage section in association with each other, the terminal deletes content that belongs to the differing service from the storage section.
US08484223B2

An image searching apparatus has a search target decision unit which decides a search target image out of images stored in an image storing unit; a search content selection unit which obtains a search condition to indicate search content specified by a user operation; a search execution unit which executes content search processing for the search target image using the search condition; and a search result display control unit which displays the search result. If a bracketed image group is included in the image storing unit, the search target decision unit sets a representative image selected from the image group to a search target image, and excludes images other than the representative image in the image group from search targets.
US08484212B2

In an embodiment, a method comprises dividing collected data into data clusters based on proximity of the data and adjusting the clusters based on density of data in individual clusters. Based on first data points in a first cluster, a first average point in the first cluster is determined. Based on second data points in a second cluster, a second average point in the second cluster is determined. Aggregate data, comprising the first average point and the second average point, are stored in storage. Upon receiving a request to provide data for a particular coordinate, the reconstructed data point is determined by interpolating between the first average point and the second average point at the particular coordinate. Accordingly, aggregated data may be stored and when a request specifies data that was not actually stored, a reconstructed data point with an approximated data value may be provided as a substitute.
US08484211B2

Techniques may be used to match records of a batch file to an entity representation in a universal database. Inputs may include, but are not limited to, a batch file and a universal (or other) database. The technique may compare the records of the batch file to the records of the universal database, and may attempt to create matches between the records in the batch file and the entity representations or records in the universal database. One possible output may include one or more tables that include foreign record IDs of the batch file records, each in association with an entity representation of the universal database. The techniques may include a batch style processing of records.
US08484191B2

Example methods, apparatuses, or articles of manufacture are disclosed that may be implemented using one or more computing devices to facilitate or otherwise support one or more processes or operations in connection with performing information searches, such as, for example, domain-specific on-line searches using social survey-type queries.
US08484181B2

Methods, systems, apparatus, and machine-readable media for matching a question with an expert are provided herein. Information regarding a plurality of experts may be received. The received information may be analyzed and processed and an expertise cloud may be generated for each expert of the plurality of experts using the received information and results of the analysis and processing. In some cases feedback regarding an expert may be received and associated with the expert. Also disclosed herein is a system, method, apparatus, and machine-readable media for matching an expert with a requested area of expertise.
US08484179B2

Search results and associated search-result details are provided in response to user queries. Embodiments include identifying a number of search-result details for different indexed search results, identifying one or more detail-attributes for each search-result detail, and identifying one or more user-attributes for a particular user. These search results, associated search-result details, and associated detail-attributes may be stored in a database. Upon receiving a search query from the user, search results may be generated. Search-result details specific to each search result and specific to the end-user may also be generated by identifying the detail-attributes associated with each search-result detail and the user-attributes associated with the end-user. These search results may then be presented to the end-user. Upon receiving an indication of interest in a particular search result, the search result details may then be presented to the end user.
US08484174B2

A computing environment may be represented as a deployable object hierarchy, which may be organized according to an object hierarchy schema that is commonly shared among the computing environment host and the devices that are configured to render the computing environment. A particular object hierarchy schema is presented in detail for representing a computing environment, wherein many objects of the computing environment are modeled as resources that may be distinctly addressable (e.g., in a RESTful object hierarchy.) Many types of objects and properties thereof are presented in order to elucidate an exemplary object hierarchy schema and to illustrate exemplary objects and object hierarchies organized according thereto. Additional properties of various object hierarchy schemas include extensibility, deployability, and object addressing models with various advantages.
US08484173B1

Embodiments of a computer system that compares documents are described. During operation, the computer system identifies a set of matching elements and associated locations in a first document and a second document. Next, the computer system repeatedly identifies additional sets of matching elements and associated locations in the first document and the second document until there are no further matches. Note that a given additional set of matching elements may be different than the set of matching elements and other additional sets of matching elements.
US08484165B2

A system and method for determining media to be exported out of a media library is described. In some examples, the system determines a media component to be exported, determines the media component is in the media library for a specific process, and exports the media component after the process is completed.
US08484158B2

Techniques are disclosed for managing relationship information across virtual worlds. In one embodiment, information about avatars in virtual worlds is received. A correlation is derived between two avatars based on the received information. The derived correlation between the two avatars is stored and queried by one or more applications.
US08484157B2

Systems, methods and articles of manufacture are disclosed for generating an online analytical processing (OLAP) query against a cube. The cube may have dimensions, each dimension having a hierarchy of members. A report specification may be received against a hierarchy of the cube. An OLAP query may be generated from the report specification. The OLAP query may include projected members not having any descendant at the detail level of the hierarchy, thus producing more accurate results.
US08484156B2

A method and system for exchanging at least one data value between a first device and at least one second device, including providing at least one data structure at the first device, the data structure including at least one descriptive field and an associated at least one data value field, the at least one data value field including the least one data value, the at least one descriptive field including a usage type field having usage type data to associate the at least one data value field with a data type, transmitting the at least one data structure from the first device to the at least one second device, and, based on at least the usage type data, at the at least one second device, extracting the at least one data value from the at least one data value field.
US08484149B1

An interface facilitates user input of quantitatively weighted recommendations, including weighted factors in support of decision choices. A user input mechanism allows a user to specify a factor in support of a choice, and to specify values for quantitative parameters associated with the factor along two or more axes. An overall quantitative weight for the factor is generated based on the specified quantitative parameters.In one embodiment, a graphical user interface is presented, wherein the user specifies the values for the weighting parameters by dragging a movable indicator within an N-dimensional space. Each axis of the N-dimensional space corresponds to a weighting parameter. An overall quantitative weight for the factor is calculated, for example, as the product of the specified values along each of the axes. A visual indication of this calculation is presented, so as to provide an intuitive sense of the overall weight assigned to the factor.
US08484147B2

A method and apparatus to perform pattern matching is provided. The apparatus includes a first storage to store data representing a first set of pattern components, and a second storage to store data representing a second set of pattern components each corresponding to one or more components of the first set of pattern components. A first pattern matcher is configured to detect in an input stream a first component of one or more patterns and to generate a signal indicative of the detection of the first component. A second pattern matcher is configured to receive the signal from the first pattern matcher and to detect if a second component of the one or more patterns of the set of patterns immediately follows the first component in the input stream.
US08484136B2

A system includes a receiving module to receive a purchase inquiry for a cloud computing service from a consumer in a first currency. A pricing module is used to price-out the cloud computing service from a provider where the cloud computing service is provided in a second currency. A reconciliation module reconciles the purchase of the cloud computing service in the consumer's geographical location and currency with the provider's location and currency.
US08484134B2

An online card-present transaction system facilitates card-present type transactions with a merchant over a public network. A host system is configured to accept authentication data from a user via an authentication device. The host system, after authenticating a user is configured to retrieve the user's account information from a user database system and translate a user account number into a temporary transaction number. The temporary transaction number is then transmitted directly from the host system to the merchant, thereby eliminating the need for the user to send to the merchant over the internet, the user's transaction account number.
US08484133B1

Embodiments described herein include a buying and selling method including receiving a request from a user to book a ticket for an event, determining a time for the event and a venue for the event, detecting when the user is at the venue for the event, and in response, electronically funding a user account with an amount sufficient to buy a ticket for the event. The user is notified that funds are available for the ticket. Embodiments further include, after the end of the event, detecting whether the funds were redeemed and determining whether there is a balance remaining over the funded amount. If the funds were redeemed by the user before the event, event data is collected, including a time of the event, a type of the event, a name of the event, and a location of the venue. The event data is associated with user data.
US08484132B1

Certain embodiments of the invention may include systems, methods, and apparatus for determining fraud risk associated with a credit application. According to an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method is provided for receiving applicant information associated with the application; searching one or more consumer identity repositories for prior usage of the applicant information; generating a plurality of identity characteristics corresponding to the prior usage of the applicant information; assigning the application to one of a plurality of segments based at least in part on the searching; scoring the application with a predictive scoring model to determine a risk score based at least in part on the identity characteristics; determining identity fraud risk types associated with the application; and outputting the risk score and one or more indicators of the determined identity fraud risk types.
US08484127B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide a system and method for managing allocation of funds between a plurality of entities. In example embodiments, details of a remuneration to the plurality of entities are received. The remuneration relates to at least one transaction. Funds associated with the remuneration are allocated among the plurality of entities to be remunerated based on at least a portion the details of the remuneration.
US08484123B2

A system and method for determining a margin requirement associated with a plurality of financial instruments within a portfolio is disclosed. The system and method include receiving a plurality of data associated with the plurality of financial instruments within the portfolio, determining a systematic risk margin based on at least a portion of the received plurality of data, determining a curve risk margin based on at least a second portion of the received plurality of data, determining a convergence and divergence risk margin based on at least a third portion of the received plurality of data, determining a sector risk margin based on at least a fourth portion of the received plurality of data, determining an idiosyncratic risk margin based on at least a fifth portion of the received plurality of data, determining a liquidity risk margin based on at least a sixth portion of the received plurality of data, determining a basis risk margin based on at least a seventh portion of the received plurality of data, and calculating a multi-factor risk margin based on one more of the determined risk factors.
US08484121B2

A method and system for trading financial instruments with an execution delay. According to one embodiment, a trading system receives from a first party an order to trade a financial instrument, the order specifying timing information for delaying completion of the order, determines a current market value of the financial instrument upon matching the order with a contra order of a second party, and completes the order only if the determined market value of the financial instrument remains unchanged for an amount of time based on the timing information specified in the order.
US08484119B2

Described is a system including a memory arrangement and a processor for graphically representing in a space data representing at least one portfolio. The memory arrangement stores a Multi-Criteria Financial Optimization (“MCFO”). The processor solves the MCFO to generate data corresponding to a set of portfolios. The processor selects vertex points corresponding to a set of components of the portfolios. The processor defines coordinates of the vertices on a chart and plots the vertices as points on the chart. The processor defining a projection vector-function using coordinates of the vertices and selecting a subset of the portfolios on the chart. The processor computing coordinates for the portfolios in the subset using the projection vector-function and a weighting corresponding to the portfolios. The processor plotting points corresponding to the portfolios in the subset on the chart using the computed coordinates.
US08484117B2

A common index fund system and method enables investment in entities that is indexed to a common index, rather than individual company performance. For small business entities, the creation, issuance, trading and management of fund shares as a liquid investment may be accomplished with, for example, a relatively stable industry-based risk. The entities receive value from a pool and in return make payments into the pool in an amount that varies according to the index, which causes a corresponding change in the value of the shares.
US08484114B2

An example graphical interface and method for displaying risk related data are described. One example graphical interface includes a data structure comprising a plurality of data nodes and at least one risk data point associated with each node, and further comprises a display grid. The display grid includes one or more cells that are used for displaying selected data nodes and risk data points. Each cell may be associated with a single data node, and may include one or more identifiers corresponding to risk data points of the data node. In one example embodiment, the identifiers are aligned along a single axis, and risk related data corresponding to each identifier is aligned with respect to each corresponding identifier.
US08484108B2

A method of tracking entities for identity resolution in database systems comprises assigning each account of a plurality of accounts a unique entity belonging only to the account and in which the account is contained; keeping track of the age of each account of the plurality of accounts; and assigning an identifier to any entity as the identifier of the unique entity of the oldest account contained in the entity. This simple method of assigning identifiers to accounts and entities solves a number of identity resolution problems known in the art including: lost entity identifier problem, lost entity version problem, entity switched warm bodies/accounts problem, and account drift problem.
US08484103B2

A computer network and method for electronically trading derivatives. The system includes networks and methods where a control or network managing station in the network acts as a facilitator for the market makers and subscribers to make a trade at an Exchange. In another embodiment the network managing station consummates the trade between a market maker and a subscriber by matching binding quotes and orders and clears the trade at an Exchange. The computer network for electronically trading derivative comprises: (a) network managing station; (b) one or more market maker stations; (c) one or more subscriber stations; (d) one or more Exchanges. The network managing station connects market makers and subscribers for making real time indicative quotes, issuing requests for quotes, obtaining binding quotes and wherein the market maker and subscriber are in communication with an Exchange for sending binding quotes and orders to the Exchange for clearing and confirming transactions.
US08484101B2

A system determines the cost of a transaction. The system receives a transaction for an item. The transaction is in terms of a first unit of measure. The system then determines the quantity in terms of a second unit of measure and calculates the cost of the transaction based on the second unit of measure.
US08484100B2

Methods, systems and machine readable tangible storage media that integrate an application store in a user device. In one embodiment, a selected document that cannot be used as selected triggers a request to an application store server to determine an availability of applications to use the document as selected. The user device enhances the display of the document selection interface to allow the user to display an application store interface to purchase the application. The purchased application is downloaded and installed on the user device, and the user is optionally apprised of the progress of the purchase with an animated icon representing the application “flying” from the application store interface and “landing” in a dock area within the display on the user device when ready for subsequent launch. Other embodiments are also described.
US08484097B1

Disclosed are various embodiments for selecting catalog items for display on a network page. The catalog items have corresponding catalog item identifiers and catalog item representations. In response to a network request, a response is received. The response includes catalog item object identifiers but excludes the corresponding catalog item object representations. At least one of the catalog item object representations is requested using the corresponding catalog object identifier. At least one of the catalog items is selected for inclusion on a network page. The selection is based on an attribute in the catalog item object representation. The network page is displayed to a user.
US08484094B2

Apparatuses, methods, and systems directed to deriving optimal parameters of a learning algorithm to maximize an objective function of online keyword auctions for bidded terms. Some embodiments of the invention simulate online keyword auctions based on historical data for the bidded terms, wherein the parameters of the simulated auctions such as market reserve prices of the bidded terms are determined by an adaptive learning algorithm. The values of the parameters of the learning algorithm are optimized by a stochastic optimization method to maximize an objective function for the auctions of the bidded terms.
US08484090B2

A list-based coupon system that enables users to create a list of items to obtain, purchase or locate within a store or other geographic area, and provides users with coupons under a variety of different conditions.
US08484081B2

Central nervous system, autonomic nervous system, and effector data is measured and analyzed to determine the effectiveness of marketing and entertainment stimuli. A data collection mechanism including multiple modalities such as Electroencephalography (EEG), Electrooculography (EOG), Galvanic Skin Response (GSR), etc., collects response data from subjects exposed to marketing and entertainment stimuli. A data cleanser mechanism filters the response data. The response data is enhanced using intra-modality response synthesis and/or a cross-modality response synthesis.
US08484073B2

A method of distributing Internet advertisements at the websites of a number of different publishers operating web sites. An advertising entity collects lists of user identifiers from each of several advertisers. In response to a user visiting one of the websites, the user identifier associated with the user is determined. It is determined if the user identifier is on one of the list. If the user identifier is on a list, an unembedded advertisement associated with the advertiser whose list contains the user's identifier is served to the user. The advertisement may be a pop-up, pop-under, or dynamic html advertisement, and if the user is not on the list, no such an ad may not be served.
US08484072B1

A method of selecting potential hires for progression through a hiring process is provided. The method comprises selecting at least one performance indicator for a position, obtaining the at least one performance indicator for a plurality of incumbents in the position, and placing each incumbent in the plurality of incumbents along a performance continuum according to their performance indicator. The method also comprises surveying incumbents from at least both halves of the performance continuum, generating an ideal profile for the position based upon the incumbent survey and the at least one performance indicator of the incumbents, using a survey to generate a candidate profile of a potential hire, comparing the candidate profile of the potential hire with the ideal profile to determine a result for the potential hire, and determining whether to progress the potential hire to a next stage in the hiring process based upon the result.
US08484069B2

The discovery cost forecasting system uses incomplete information to generate forecasts of discovery expenses. Models are generated with different levels of granularity depending upon the available facts and user preferences. An expert provides real-time information to improve the accuracy of the predictions. A scenario analysis is generated that evaluates how changes to the parameters of the matter could affect the forecasted cost. An estimate is generated of the degree of advancement of the matter in its lifecycle as part of the cost forecast. The cost associated with each data source and custodian is tracked and reported. A configurable and extensible cost equation is defined. A dashboard user interface is generated to monitor the entire portfolio to extract easy to understand facts, trends, and early warning signs related to discovery cost management.
US08484068B2

A method and system are provided for estimating consumer demand at remotely located equipment and establishing dispatch schedules for servicing the remotely located equipment. Data from the remotely located equipment may be classified into a hierarchy or various levels of reliability for use in calculating a consumer demand estimate for each product and/or each service available at the remotely located equipment. A full set of sales data for each product or service over multiple time intervals with no equipment problems, no out of stock conditions and no other operating problems may be classified as the highest level of reliability and predictability possible for calculating a consumer demand estimate. The lowest level of data used to calculate a consumer demand estimate may be a historical average of daily sales for all products or services sold over a long period of time at the remotely located equipment.
US08484064B2

Disclosed are systems, methods and computer program products for online marketing, scheduling and booking of service appointments as well as financing of promotional services. In one example, the system enables a service promoter and a service provider to execute a secured financing transaction pursuant to which a service promoter provides an agreed upon amount of monetary funds to a service provider in exchange for the right to promote to users a plurality of service offers from the service provider. The system then promotes service offers from the service provider and facilitates booking of service appointments for users with a service provider based on promoted service offers.
US08484050B2

A computer system and method for evaluating underwriting requirements, and for evaluating expected changes in mortality of an insurable class in response to changes in such requirements. In certain embodiments, the method and system involves storing data relating to the requirements, determining expected mortality using a first set of requirements, changing one or more of the requirements and predetermining expected mortality using the changed set of requirements and the stored data. In addition to evaluating proposed changes in underwriting requirements, the system and method may be used in the design and pricing of insurance products.
US08484047B2

A method is disclosed for scheduling travel on a charter transport. The method can include obtaining from a traveler a passenger accommodation request identifying an origin-destination-pair. The method can also include automatically identifying one or more charter transports having an available passenger accommodation. Moreover, the method can include notifying the traveler of the available passenger accommodation.
US08484035B2

A method of altering a social signaling characteristic of a speech signal. A statistically large number of speech samples created by different speakers in different tones of voice are evaluated to determine one or more relationships that exist between a selected social signaling characteristic and one or more measurable parameters of the speech samples. An input audio voice signal is then processed in accordance with these relationships to modify one or more of controllable parameters of input audio voice signal to produce a modified output audio voice signal in which said selected social signaling characteristic is modified. In a specific illustrative embodiment, a two-level hidden Markov model is used to identify voiced and unvoiced speech segments and selected controllable characteristics of these speech segments are modified to alter the desired social signaling characteristic.
US08484033B2

A speech recognizer control system, a speech recognizer control method, and a speech recognizer control program make it possible to properly identify a device on the basis of a speech utterance of a user and to control the identified device. The speech recognizer control system includes a speech input unit to which a speech utterance is input from a user, a speech recognizer which recognizes the content of the input speech utterance, a device controller which identifies a device to be controlled among a plurality of devices on the basis of at least the recognized speech utterance content and which controls an operation of the identified device, and a state change storage which stores, as first auxiliary information for identifying a device to be controlled, a state change other than at least a state change caused by a speech utterance from the user among the state changes of operations in the individual devices of the plurality of devices. The device controller carries out first device identification processing for identifying the device to be controlled on the basis of the recognized speech utterance content, and if the device cannot be identified by the first device identification processing, then the device controller uses at least the first auxiliary information to identify the device.
US08484028B2

A system for visually navigating a document in conjunction with a text-to-speech (“TTS) engine presents a visual display of a region of interest that is related to the text of the document that is being audibly presented as speech to a user. When the TTS engine converts the text to speech and presents the speech to the user, the system presents the corresponding section of text on a display. During the presentation, if the system encounters a linked section of text, the visual display changes to display a linked region of interest that corresponds to the linked section of text.
US08484022B1

A method and system for adaptive auto-encoders is disclosed. An input audio training signal may be transformed into a sequence of feature vectors, each bearing quantitative measures of acoustic properties of the input audio training signal. An auto-encoder may process the feature vectors to generate an encoded form of the quantitative measures, and a recovered form of the quantitative measures based on an inverse operation by the auto-encoder on the encoded form of the quantitative measures. A duplicate copy of the sequence of feature vectors may be normalized to form a normalized signal in which supra-phonetic acoustic properties are reduced in comparison with phonetic acoustic properties of the input audio training signal. The auto-encoder may then be trained to compensate for supra-phonetic features by reducing the magnitude of an error signal corresponding to a difference between the normalized signal and the recovered form of the quantitative measures.
US08484021B2

Provided is an encoding/decoding apparatus and method of multi-channel signals. The encoding apparatus and method of multi-channel signals may encode phase information of the multi-channel signals using a quantization scheme and a lossless encoding scheme, and the decoding apparatus and method of multi-channel signals may decode the phase information using an inverse-quantization scheme and a lossless decoding scheme.
US08484020B2

A method for determining an upperband speech signal from a narrowband speech signal is disclosed. A list of narrowband line spectral frequencies (LSFs) is determined from the narrowband speech signal. A first pair of adjacent narrowband LSFs that have a lower difference between them than every other pair of adjacent narrowband LSFs in the list is determined. A first feature that is a mean of the first pair of adjacent narrowband LSFs is determined. Upperband LSFs are determined based on at least the first feature using codebook mapping.
US08484019B2

The present invention teaches a new audio coding system that can code both general audio and speech signals well at low bit rates. A proposed audio coding system comprises linear prediction unit for filtering an input signal based on an adaptive filter; a transformation unit for transforming a frame of the filtered input signal into a transform domain; and a quantization unit for quantizing the transform domain signal. The quantization unit decides, based on input signal characteristics, to encode the transform domain signal with a model-based quantizer or a non-model-based quantizer. Preferably, the decision is based on the frame size applied by the transformation unit.
US08484004B2

Systems and methods for the automated positioning of pads and orienting of slot templates for the pads. The systems and methods also include automated adjustment of well path plans from a pad to selected well targets.
US08484001B2

Method and apparatus for pre-operative planning of orthopedic surgical procedures. The pre operative planning includes the steps of image acquisition, calibration scaling and registration, fracture reduction or matching of prosthesis, application of fixation elements and creating of planning reports.
US08483982B2

An automated emergency power supply system (EPSS) and testing solution that records generator load values and engine exhaust temperature values to evaluate whether an EPSS test satisfies legislated test criteria. The EPSS test is carried out under software control, which initiates a test by instructing an automatic transfer switch (ATS) to change its status to a test status, causing the essential loads to be powered by a generator instead of a main utility power source. Power monitors record the ATS and generator status during the test as well as electrical parameter data from the ATS and generator and exhaust temperature data and other engine parameter data from the generator. When the test is concluded, the ATS is instructed to return the status to normal so that power delivery is resumed from the main power source. The electrical and engine parameter data is analyzed and compared against legislated test criteria to determine a pass/fail result of the EPSS test.
US08483978B2

The damage length measurement system has an object being measured that comprises a plurality of members is vibrated by an oscillator, and the vibration that propagates through the object being measured is detected by three sensors. A measurement apparatus analyzes that vibration wave, and measures the arrival time of the maximum peak. Using the fact that the time for a wave to propagate between two vibration detection sensors separated by a set interval is fixed, the measurement apparatus determines whether the difference in arrival time between two sensors is within a set reference range that includes the vibration propagation time between two vibration sensors. When the measurement apparatus determines that the difference is not within the set reference range, uses the fact that that wave is delayed compared to the wave that was to be detected.
US08483975B2

In one embodiment, a method implemented by a processor that receives a first set of inputs comprising values associated with wall thickness, the values ascertained through an inspection method for a first zone of a heat exchanger, the first zone comprising a plurality of inspected and uninspected tubes; computes a respective estimate of a likelihood of a leak occurring at the plurality of inspected and uninspected tubes over a time continuum based on the first set of inputs, an age of the inspected tubes, and an accuracy of the inspection method; and provides a visualization of an estimate for a total likelihood of a leak for the heat exchanger based on the estimate for the first zone.
US08483974B2

A system for transferring data includes an analyte test instrument (ATI) adapted to store data, a wirelessly enabled data management device (DMD) for comprehensively analyzing data, and an adaptor removably connected to the ATI for transferring data stored on the ATI to the DMD. The adaptor includes a data communication device capable of removable connection with the ATI, a microprocessor electrically connected to the data communication device, a wireless controller electrically connected to the microprocessor and a wireless transceiver electrically connected to the wireless controller. In use, data transfer is executed between the ATI and the DMD by electrically and mechanically connecting the adaptor to the ATI. Data stored on the ATI is then automatically downloaded into adaptor memory. Upon completion of the download, the user activates an externally accessible input device on the adaptor which, in turn, wirelessly transmits data from the adaptor memory to the DMD.
US08483968B2

The invention relates to the identification and selection of novel biomarkers and the identification and selection of novel biomarker combinations which are differentially expressed in individuals with mild osteoarthritis as compared with individuals without osteoarthritis. Polynucleotides and proteins which specifically and/or selectively hybridize to the products of the biomarkers of the invention are also encompassed within the scope of the invention as are kits containing said polynucleotides and proteins for use in diagnosing mild osteoarthritis. Further encompassed by the invention is the use of the polynucleotides and proteins which specifically and/or selectively hybridize to the product of the biomarkers of the invention to monitor disease regression in an individual and to monitor the efficacy of therapeutic regimens. The invention also provides for methods of using the products of the biomarkers of the invention in the identification of novel therapeutic targets for osteoarthritis.
US08483967B2

Provided are methods and apparatus for receiving sensor data from an analyte sensor of a sensor monitoring system, processing the received sensor data with time corresponding calibration data, outputting the processed sensor data, detecting one or more adverse conditions associated with the sensor monitoring system, disabling the output of the sensor data during the adverse condition time period, determining that the one or more detected adverse conditions is no longer present in the sensor monitoring system, retrieving the sensor data during the adverse condition time period, processing the retrieved sensor data during the adverse condition time period, and outputting the processed retrieved sensor data.
US08483965B2

A method and apparatus is provided for detecting and categorizing subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs. Air samples are collected and analyzed by counting hydrocarbon ions, such as methane ions and counting at least one higher order hydrocarbon ions, such as propane, pentane or hexane. The methane ions and at least one higher order hydrocarbon ions are associated with location co-ordinates to form a first raw data set and second raw data set. The first and second raw data sets are analyzed and processed to produce hydrocarbon footprints. The hydrocarbon footprints are superpositioned with other available geological information and subsurface formations of interest are identified.
US08483962B2

A method for providing route information and the system thereof are provided. The method includes receiving a route acquisition command including a GPS coordinate of a client device, searching for at least one service unit in a predefined range of the GPS coordinate, determining a suitable service unit from the at least one service unit for the client device, and sending matching route information to the client device and the suitable service unit.
US08483954B2

An apparatus for providing instructions to a destination that is revealed upon arrival may include a processor. The processor may be configured to receive indications of context associated with a user, determine a destination for the user based on the context and user information, provide for a presentation of guidance instructions to guide the user to the destination, and reveal the destination to the user only when the user is proximate to the destination.
US08483951B2

An image processing method and a system are provided. The image processing method of moving camera comprises the following steps. An image of a road is captured by a first camera unit. A coordinate of the image of an object shown in the image of the road is captured when the image of the object shown in the image of the road is selected. At least an aiming angle of a second camera unit is adjusted according to the coordinate to make the field-of-view of the second camera unit aligned with the object. The image of the object is captured by the second camera unit. The image of the object is enlarged.
US08483939B2

A vehicle-dispatching system includes a service center and a plurality of hosts disposed in respective vehicles, and one of the vehicles is selected for dispatching when the service center receives a vehicle request from a passenger. For facilitating drivers to decide whether to accept the task, a message including location information of the passenger is sent to dispatching units of the hosts by the service center to trigger navigating units of the hosts to reveal respective route information for the drivers' reference. Once one or more drivers decide to accept the task, they may trigger the dispatching units to issue respective task-accepting signals to the service center. The service driver then selects one of the vehicles for dispatching by sending a dispatching signal to the dispatching unit of the selected vehicle. The dispatching signal then triggers the navigating unit of the selected vehicle to automatically reveal navigating information.
US08483938B2

In an engine having a variable valve timing mechanism to which an intermittent operation control is applied, appropriate execution of a foreign object removal process for the variable valve timing mechanism is enabled. An engine control device (16) which can execute intermittent operation control for an engine (12) having a variable valve timing mechanism (80) comprises a judging part which judges an abnormality in the variable valve timing mechanism (80) (step S10), a foreign object removal process executing part which causes a foreign object removal process to be executed for the variable valve timing mechanism (80) when the judging part judges that there is an abnormality in the variable valve timing mechanism (80) during an engine operation (step S12), and an intermittent operation control prohibiting part which prohibits the intermittent operation control of the engine (12) during execution of the foreign object removal process of the variable valve timing mechanism (80) (step S16).
US08483932B2

A method for a fuel delivery system coupled to an engine is disclosed, the fuel delivery system including a lower pressure pump (LPP) fluidly coupled upstream of a higher pressure pump (HPP). The method may include during operation of both the HPP and LPP, adjusting operation of the LPP in response to pressure fluctuations at an inlet of the HPP.
US08483928B2

A follow-up run control device controlling a running state of a vehicle in a state where peripheral vehicles running before or behind the vehicle exist includes: deviation acquiring means for acquiring information regarding a deviation between a relative positional relation and a target relative positional relation of the vehicle and the peripheral vehicles with respect to preceding vehicles running just before; and follow-up control amount calculating means for calculating a follow-up control amount of the vehicle to control the running state of the vehicle on the basis of the information regarding the deviations of a plurality of vehicles acquired by the deviation acquiring means.
US08483909B2

A method of controlling a driver-operated vehicle; the method including the steps of:recording the values of a number of psychophysical parameters of the driver over a first measuring interval; making a first evaluation of the driver's psychophysical condition on the basis of the driver's psychophysical parameter values over the first measuring interval; recording the values of the driver's psychophysical parameters over a second measuring interval following the first measuring interval; making a second evaluation of the driver's psychophysical condition on the basis of the driver's psychophysical parameter values over the second measuring interval; comparing the first and second evaluation of the driver's psychophysical condition to determine a change in the driver's psychophysical condition; and modifying the dynamic performance of the vehicle as a function of the driver's psychophysical condition, to adapt dynamic performance of the vehicle to the change in the driver's psychophysical condition.
US08483905B2

An energization control apparatus (30) includes an FET (32), a thermistor (34) and anomaly detection means (36). The anomaly detection means (36) includes temperature-difference calculation means (45) and sensitivity anomaly determination means (41). The temperature-difference calculation means (45) acquires a first temperature measured by the thermistor (34) before startup of a vehicle or within a fixed period after the startup, acquires a second temperature measured by the thermistor (34) at the time when a predetermined wait time has elapsed from the time of acquisition of the first temperature, and calculates the difference therebetween. The sensitivity anomaly determination means (41) determines, from the difference, an anomaly of the thermistor (34) associated with its sensitivity to a temperature to be measured.
US08483899B2

A vehicle guidance system is provided with a controller configured to receive input indicative of a relative position between a charging port and a charging pad, and to provide output indicative of a distance vector therebetween in response to the input. An interface communicates with the controller and is configured to display a base element representing the charging port and target element representing the charging pad positioned relative to each other according to the distance vector.
US08483898B2

A vehicle includes a clutch set, a tank with fluid, an auxiliary battery, an electric fuel pump, and a controller. The electric fluid pump delivers some of the fluid from the tank to a designated oncoming clutch of the clutch set. The controller calculates a predicted flow value for the oncoming clutch during the shift event, and selectively controls the speed of the pump using the predicted flow value during the shift event. The controller controls the pump using an actual flow value when the vehicle is not executing a shift event, i.e., when holding torque. The speed of the electric fluid pump is increased to a first calculated speed determined using the predicted flow value when the shift event is initiated and before filling of the oncoming clutch commences, and is reduced to a second calculated speed determined using the actual flow value when the shift event is complete.
US08483893B2

A system for determining number of cars within a train consist includes one or more cars, at least one automatic train controller (ATC) for the one or more cars, and a train line spanning the consist. Each car comprises a frequency generator and a frequency modifier. Each frequency modifier in each of the one or more cars is adapted to receive an input signal at an input frequency and generate an output signal at an output frequency different from the input frequency. A frequency generator in at least one of the cars provides a predetermined input signal at a predetermined input frequency to the frequency modifier in the at least one car when the at least one car is designated as a lead car and at least one frequency modifier in at least one of the one or more cars provides its output signal to the train line.
US08483889B2

Systems and methods for selectively altering a ground proximity warning message. In an embodiment, a ground proximity warning system for a flight vehicle includes a processor that is configured to generate a look-ahead envelope that defines a region extending outwardly from the flight vehicle and to generate a terrain proximity message when the defined region intersects a terrain feature. An interface device is coupled to the processor that is operable to configure the system in a first operating mode wherein the generated terrain proximity message is selectively suppressed, and a second operating mode wherein the terrain proximity message is not suppressed.
US08483888B2

Systems and methods for commanding a satellite are provided. A system for commanding a satellite includes a data bus and a payload coupled to the data bus, the payload including a payload receiver. The system further includes a primary receiver coupled to the data bus and a processor coupled to the data bus. The processor configured to receive a first command from the primary receiver via the data bus, and to receive telemetry data from the payload via the data bus. The processor is further configured to detect a second command by processing the telemetry data received from the payload, and to execute the detected second command.
US08483881B2

A multi-function robotic device may have utility in various applications. In accordance with one aspect, a multi-function robotic device may be selectively configurable to perform a desired function in accordance with the capabilities of a selectively removable functional cartridge operably coupled with a robot body. Localization and mapping techniques may employ partial maps associated with portions of an operating environment, data compression, or both.
US08483880B2

A robotic hand assembly comprising: a hand section comprising: at least one digit provided with at least one actuatable joint; and a control section comprising: at least one actuation device, the at least one actuation device comprising: a sensing module configured to sense a force applied to a tendon coupled at a first end to the at least one actuatable joint; and an actuation module configured to actuate the at least one actuatable joint.
US08483878B2

A method and an apparatus for predicting interference, at practical accuracy and calculation time, between a target section of a robot and a peripheral object installed around the robot, when the target section, such as a tool or a sensor attached to a robot hand, is moved along a movement path thereof due to the motion of the robot. A convex hull, defined by areas occupied by the tool at adjacent time points, is calculated. It is judged whether a common area exists between the convex hull and a polyhedron area. When the common area exists, it is judged that the tool interferes with the container box on the movement path, and the procedure is terminated. When the common area does not exist, it is judged whether j
US08483867B2

A system, method and corresponding apparatus are provided for storing, retrieving and delivering unit dose blisters in their natural, raw state (i.e., without over-wrapping or repackaging). In particular, a plurality of unit dose blister mounts are configured to position a corresponding plurality of different types of unit dose blisters in a predetermined, repeatable orientation, so that they can be retrieved and delivered using, for example, an automated retrieval system. The storage apparatus (or unit dose blister mount) may include a cavity that is configured to receive a unit dose medication or medication cavity of the unit dose blister in such a way that the unit dose blister lies substantially flat in the horizontal plane, enabling any identification information displayed on the underside of the unit dose blister (i.e., the side opposite the unit dose medication, or medication cavity) to be viewed.
US08483859B2

An image processing device is provided with a designating operation accepting unit which displays a setting screen on which an image indicating the entire shape of an object appears. The designating operation accepting unit accepts first, second, and third designating operations on the setting screen, and which allows selection of a process item. The first designating operation sets a common process sequence. The second designating operation sets a section-specific process sequence. The third designating operation designates a target section of a section-specific process. The common process sequence includes a process item by which the section-specific process is performed, and through this process item the common process sequence and each section-specific process sequence are associated with each other. Information indicating data in model data, and corresponding to the designated target section is associated with the section-specific process, and is then entered as section specifying information.
US08483854B2

Configurations disclosed herein include systems, methods, and apparatus that may be applied in a voice communications and/or storage application to remove, enhance, and/or replace the existing context. In one aspect, a method of processing a digital audio signal that includes a first audio context is disclosed. The method comprises based on a first audio signal that is produced by a first microphone, suppressing the first audio context from the digital audio signal to obtain a context-suppressed signal. The method may further comprise selecting a second context based on the first audio context, and mixing the second audio context with a signal that is based on the context-suppressed signal to obtain a context-enhanced signal.
US08483852B2

A method can include providing a geological time data structure configured to link objects of a reservoir model to geological times; linking one of the objects of the reservoir model to one of the geological times; generating simulation results for the reservoir model; and, based at least in part on the geological time data structure, outputting at least some of the simulation results along a geological time axis. Various other apparatuses, systems, methods, etc., are also disclosed.
US08483849B2

A method for digital data transmission from a sensor to a control unit is described, the sensor values of the sensor being divided for data transmission at different resolutions. The sensor values form a first range of values including successive sensor values. The first range of values for data transmission is divided as a function of a variable relevant for the control unit.
US08483843B2

Methods, implantable medical devices and systems configured to perform analysis of captured signals from implanted electrodes to identify cardiac arrhythmias. In an illustrative embodiment, signals captured from two or more sensing vectors are analyzed, where the signals are captured with a patient in at least first and second body positions. Analysis is performed to identify primary or default sensing vectors and/or templates for event detection.
US08483842B2

An implantable medical device that includes a body that includes a proximal end portion configured to be at least partially received by an apparatus, and a distal end portion; a stimulating electrical element at the distal end portion of the body; a stimulating contact at the proximal end portion of the body, wherein the stimulating contact is positioned such that, when received by the apparatus, at least a portion of the apparatus is capable of electrically coupling to the stimulating contact; a stimulating conductor that electrically couples the stimulating electrical element to the stimulating contact; a conductive body, wherein the conductive body is not utilized for application of stimulation; a conductive body contact, wherein the conductive body is electrically connected to the conductive body contact. Systems that include devices are also disclosed.
US08483841B2

Methods and implantable cardiac stimulus devices that include leads designed to avoid post-shock afterpotentials. Some examples are directed toward lead-electrode designs that reduce the impact of an applied stimulus on sensing attributes. These examples may find particular use in systems that provide both sensing and therapy delivery from subcutaneous location.
US08483840B2

Decoupling circuits are provided which transfer energy induced from an MRI pulsed RF field to the housing for an active implantable medical device (AIMD) which serves as an energy dissipating surface. A novel L-C input trap filter is provided which has a dual function. The L-C trap acts as a broadband low pass EMI filter while at the same time also acts as an L-C trap in order to divert induced RF energy from the lead to the housing of the AIMD.
US08483839B2

The disclosure describes a system that measures the distance between one or more electrodes and tissue of a patient, and controls one or more parameters of the stimulation delivered to the tissue by the electrodes based on the measured distance. The system controls the measurement of the distance between the electrodes and the tissue as a function of activity of the patient. The system uses, for example, a piezoelectric transducer to sense activity of the patient, and may determine whether or how frequently to measure the distance between electrodes and tissue based on the sensed physical activity. A piezoelectric transducer may be used both to sense activity and to measure the distance between the electrodes and the tissue.
US08483838B2

Embodiments of an implantable medical device includes a loop antenna wound about an inner housing. The loop antenna may form a partial winding, a complete winding, or multiple windings about the inner housing. One or more additional antennae may be capacitively coupled to the loop antenna external to the inner housing to increase efficiency and decrease Return Loss Response of the implantable device. The additional antenna may be balanced or unbalanced antennae.
US08483831B1

An implantable signal generator can be configured to generate a blocking signal to be delivered to at least a portion of a bronchus. The blocking signal can be configured to inhibit nerve traffic both to and from the lungs, to relieve bronchial smooth muscle contraction, and to inhibit cough. The implantable signal generator can be communicatively coupled to a processor configured to control delivery of the blocking signal, using received information about an indication of cough, to inhibit cough.
US08483829B2

An external programming system for programming an implantable medical device includes a user display and a memory storing multiple intracardiac lead images. The intracardiac lead images correspond to lead types and includes electrodes spaced according to the spacing of electrodes of a particular lead type. The programmer selects one of the lead images for display based on an indication of which type of lead has been implanted in a patient. The selected image is displayed to a user as part of a graphical user interface for programming cardiac pacing therapy for the patient.
US08483821B2

A first fluid status indicator of a pulmonary fluid status associated with pulmonary edema and a second fluid status indicator of a non-pulmonary fluid status can be used to provide an alert or to control a therapy for pulmonary edema. Additionally, intermittent cardiac blood volume redistribution therapy can be used to provide cardiac conditioning in heart failure patients.
US08483820B2

An apparatus includes a percutaneous connection port configured to convey an electrical signal between an electrical device disposed outside of a body and an electrical member disposed within the body. The percutaneous connection port has a distal portion and a proximal portion. The proximal portion includes a surface configured to be accessible from a region of the body. The distal portion includes an anchor configured to be disposed within the body. The anchor has a curved shape about an axis substantially parallel to a skin of the body.
US08483816B1

Systems, methods, and apparatus for neuro-robotic tracking point selection are disclosed. A described example method to control a robot arm includes presenting one or more potential trackable features of a target object, emphasizing at least one of the potential trackable features, determining a selection of one of the emphasized features as a tracking point by monitoring a first mental response to emphasizing the feature, and effectuating an end goal via a robot by tracking the selected feature and effectuating a position based on the selected feature.
US08483813B2

A medical device and associated method sense a cardiac signal and initiate an arrhythmia episode detection process in response to the cardiac signal by enabling an arrhythmia detection counter to be adjusted during the detection process. Data is accumulated relating to cardiac events during the detection process. An arrhythmia episode profile is established using the accumulated data. The accumulated data includes a pattern of the adjustment of the detection counter during the detection process.
US08483810B2

An apparatus for monitoring fetal positions and fetal movements is provided. The apparatus includes a plurality of sensors, a signal pre-processor, a signal post-processor, and a fetal position judging processor. The sensors are attached on the abdomen of a maternal body to provide at least three measuring leads. The signal pre-processor receives a plurality of sensing signals from the sensors, and the signal pre-processor reduces noises in the sensing signals and amplifies the sensing signals to output a plurality of characteristic sensing signals. The signal post-processor receives the characteristic sensing signals from the signal pre-processor and separates out a plurality of fetal electrocardiograms (FECGs) corresponding to the leads. The fetal position judging processor analyzes the FECGs to obtain a characteristic waveform for each of the FECGs or directly calculates a fetal heart axis vector with respect to a front-side coordinate of the maternal body according to the FECGs.
US08483804B2

A method for reconstructing images of structures undergoing physiological motion comprises acquiring a first volume of data over a first motion cycle. The first volume comprises a first overlap volume. A second volume of data is acquired over a second motion cycle and comprises a second overlap volume. The first and second overlap volumes comprise like anatomical regions with respect to each other. A reconstructed volume of data is formed based on temporal data within the first and second overlap volumes.
US08483802B2

A system can include an implantable device, an instrument, a display device and a processor. The implantable device can include a port and a localizer for generating a navigation field. The instrument can include a tracking device for sensing the navigation field. The processor can be operably coupled to the tracking and display devices and operable to determine a real-time location of the instrument relative to the port and a trajectory of the instrument relative to an insertion axis of the port. The processor system can be operable to cause the display device to graphically render the instrument as a plurality of two or three-dimensional rings positioned around an axis coincident with the determined trajectory and in spaced relation to each other along the axis. A first ring of the plurality of rings can be positioned at the determined instrument location relative to a graphical representation of the port location.
US08483800B2

A system for integrating radiolucent tracking sensors in a medical table, table mat, or surgical drape of a surgical navigation system, allowing the surgical navigation system to be less obtrusive in a surgery environment. A plurality of radiolucent magnetoresistance sensors are integrated into a table, table mat, or surgical draping of a surgical navigation system for improving surgical navigation workflow and eliminating image artifacts from intraoperative images. The plurality of radiolucent magnetoresistance sensors may be located within a table or adjacent to a table surface.
US08483798B2

A system and method for metabolic MR imaging of a hyperpolarized agent includes exciting a single metabolic species of a hyperpolarized agent injected into a subject of interest. MR signals are acquired from the excited single metabolic species and an image is reconstructed from the acquired MR signals.
US08483797B2

To improve patient comfort and reduce claustrophobia experienced by patients in a medical diagnosis or therapy apparatus, in particular a CT apparatus or an MR apparatus, with an examination region demarcated by said inner wall, in which examination region a patient can be positioned, a display is arranged in a region forming at least a portion of the inner wall.
US08483787B2

A physiological sensor includes an electrical grid to activate one or more light emitters by addressing at least one row conductor and at least one column conductor. Each light emitter includes a positive terminal and a negative terminal. The physiological sensor includes a first light emitter and a second light emitter. A first contact is communicatively coupled with the positive terminal of the first light emitter, the negative terminal of the second light emitter, a first row conductor, and a first column conductor. A second contact is communicatively coupled with the negative terminal of the first light emitter, the positive terminal of the second light emitter, a second row conductor, and a second column conductor. The first light emitter is activated by addressing the first row conductor and the second column conductor. The second light emitter is activated by addressing the second row conductor and the first column conductor.
US08483786B2

An apparatus comprises a case and additional protective materials within the case for handheld devices. The additional protective materials are metals, plastics, and/or composites. The additional protective materials may be molded into a single case to form a second layer of protection on one side of the device's case. Part of the protective housing is an internal rigid tool that, when exposed, is able to be used for opening a bottle.
US08483783B2

A folding type portable radio machine, includes a chassis part formed by a first chassis and a second chassis, the second chassis being foldably connected to the first chassis. The chassis part includes a conductive part having conductivity whose full length is an approximately half wave length (λ/2) of a using frequency of the radio machine, and an electric notch.
US08483775B2

A vehicle communication system detects the presence of a passenger wearable communication device. The system receives audio signals from multiple sources inside or outside of a vehicle. The system processes the signals before routing the signals to multiple destinations. The destinations may include wearable personal communication devices, front and/or rear speakers, and/or a remote mobile device.
US08483772B2

A communication device is configured to switch from a normal mode of operation to an inconspicuous mode of operation in which a reduced set of information is presented on a home screen of a display of the device in comparison to a set of information presented on the home screen in the normal mode of operation. In addition, other display properties such as contrast and brightness may be adjusted to make them less conspicuous. The home screen in the inconspicuous mode of operation is less obtrusive or conspicuous to individuals than in the normal mode of operation. The device may enter the inconspicuous mode upon user request or by detecting at least one environmental condition using a sensor available to the mobile communication device. The environmental condition may be anything that the device can detect or sense in its surrounding environment such as ambient light or sound. The device may return to the normal mode of operation by user request or when the environmental condition is no longer present.
US08483767B2

A touch sensor detects contact input by a finger or the like, and includes two sensor modules. Each of the sensor modules has many sensors arrayed linearly. The operation state of each sensor module is set under the control of a control unit. When a user touches a sensor of the sensor module, the control unit energizes only the sensor which the user has touched and neighboring sensors to detect an input from the user, and does not energize the remaining sensors on the same sensor module.
US08483755B2

A display unit having at least one docking port for receiving and retaining a complementary hands-free headset therein. The docking port comprises a recessed slot formed in the display unit housing. The headset preferably is frictionally retained within the docking port. The docking port is provided with a power jack connector that matingly engages a complementary power jack on the headset when docked, thereby recharging the rechargeable power supply in the headset.
US08483751B2

A wireless communication device or a split band diversity antenna arrangement (10, 20, 30 or 41) has a first multi-band antenna (22 or 14) located at a bottom portion (11) of the wireless communication device and selectively coupled to a diversity receiver (26), a second multi-band antenna (24 or 12) located at a top portion (13) of the wireless communication device and selectively coupled to a dual band transceiver (28), a band splitter (25) splitting an input from the first antenna into a first output and a second output where the first output serves as an input to the diversity receiver, and a band combiner (27) that combines the second output of the band splitter with a signal from the second antenna to provide an input signal to the dual band transceiver.
US08483737B2

A method and arrangement in a node for allocating transmission resources is presented. The present method and arrangement for scheduling, allocates frequency resources based on the received signal power of user equipment. Thus in particular uplink power can be better utilized. According to the present method and arrangement the resource blocks are distributed so that the SINR of all scheduled user equipments reach a selected SINR target. The selection of SINR targets may be static or dynamic. Further, according to the present method and arrangement, optimization of system and user performance may be combined.
US08483736B2

A radio channel control method for controlling, in a radio communication system having a transmitter and a receiver, a radio channel from the transmitter toward the receiver. The method includes receiving a signal transmitted from the transmitter by the receiver, measuring reception quality of the signal, generating information which indicates increment or decrement of the reception quality, and controlling a modulation or coding for the radio channel based on the information.
US08483728B2

A device and a method for processing a short message service are capable of high-reliably processing a short message service. The device for processing a short message service includes a plurality of access units and a plurality of service processing units, where each of the access units is connected to the plurality of service processing units. The access unit is configured to receive the short message service and send it to one of the service processing units, and send out the processed short message service from the service processing unit. The service processing unit is configured to process the short message service, and send out the processed short message service through one of the access units.
US08483718B2

Networks and methods are disclosed for accurately determining the location of a mobile device for a UMA network. When placing a special number call, such as a 9-1-1 call, the mobile device transmits access point identifiers (AP-ID) for a plurality of the access points accessible to the mobile device. A UNC in the UMA network receives the plurality of AP-ID's from the mobile device. The UNC is connected to a location system and transmits the AP-ID's to the location system over the connection. The location system receives the AP-ID's over the connection and queries an access point database that stores a location for each access point registered in the database. The location system then identifies a plurality of locations for the plurality of access points from the access point database, and estimates the location of the mobile device based on the plurality of locations identified for the plurality of access points.
US08483715B2

In the field of mobile computing, a user of a mobile device takes a picture of a nearby landmark or building or street and transmits that picture via his device's wireless link to a remote server. The server has the capability of identifying the location from the photo by matching it against publicly available online collections of images, such as Flickr. The server executes a location identification algorithm to match the received photo to those in the collection to determine the actual location of the photo. Typically the images in the collections have metadata, such as textual tags. Upon identifying the most likely location of the received photo from the user, the server transmits back to the user's mobile computing device an indication of the location, such as a textual location description from the tag, a map or directions to a particular location. This is especially useful in a city or dense urban environment and where the mobile computing device does not have GPS capability or its GPS is inoperative.
US08483713B2

When a call is placed within a femtocell area of coverage, the location of the femtocell is used as the location of the mobile device. The location of the femtocell is stored in the network, and if the call is placed through the femtocell, the location of the femtocell is used to determine the location of the mobile device.
US08483710B2

The present invention provides systems and methods for providing mobile users with requested resources. In one such method, first and second location indicators for the mobile user are received, with each of the location indicators having a time associated therewith. The method includes calculating a mobile vector of the mobile user using the first and second location indicators, and associating the mobile vector with a first network region and a second network region. A first portion of the requested resource is sent to a first storage device in the first network region, and a second portion of the requested resource is sent to a second storage device in the second network region. The first and second resource portions are sent to the user when the user is in the first and second network regions, respectively.
US08483706B2

Methods and apparatuses are provided that may be implemented in a wireless signaling environment to provide certain location services. The location services may, for example, be based at least in part on positioning information associated with positioned wireless signaling measurements associated with wireless terminals. The location services may comprise location using signal pattern matching, location using observed timing differences, location using fine time assistance, location of significant network events and location distribution of terminals over a certain coverage area.
US08483703B2

A radio system for locating a radio transceiver configured to exchange voice or data with a plurality of base stations on a narrowband channel is described. The system includes the radio transceiver that exchanges voice or data on the narrowband channel with a base station of the plurality of base stations and also to periodically transmit a chirp signal to the plurality of base stations. The radio system also includes the plurality of base stations each with a matched filter configured to receive the periodically transmitted chirp signal and to triangulate a location of the radio transceiver using the received chirp signal.
US08483698B2

A Method and apparatus for selectively applying, by a User Equipment (UE), Frequency Hopping (FH) for a transmission of Uplink Control Information (UCI) signals in a Physical Uplink Control CHannel (PUCCH). The UE applies FH when the UCI is of a first type and does not apply FH when the UCI is of a second type. The UE applies FH when transmission diversity is not applied to the UCI transmission and does not apply FH when transmission diversity is applied to the UCI transmission. UEs operating in a legacy mode do not apply FH to the UCI transmission while UEs operating with additional functionalities may apply FH to the UCI transmission according to the UCI type and the use of transmission diversity.
US08483692B2

A communication system includes at least a large service area (LSA) base station having a LSA geographical service area and a small service area (SSA) base station having a SSA geographical service area that is smaller than the LSA geographical service area and at least partially overlaps the LSA geographical service area in an overlap region. A first logical control channel, assigned to the LSA base station, and a second logical control channel, assigned to the SSA base station, have common control information that is the same. A controller in the system allocates transmission of the common control information from at least one of the base stations over a physical channel having a defined transmission time and transmission frequency. If transmission of the common control information is allocated from both base stations, the common control information is allocated for transmission by both base stations over the physical channel.
US08483684B2

Provided are a method and an apparatus for processing changes in a closed subscriber group (CSG) subscription in a wireless communication system. A non-access stratum (NAS) of a user equipment receives, from a network, an NAS message indicating that the CSG service to a CSG cell has expired. The NAS notifies the expiration of the CSG service to access stratum (AS), and the AS transmits the expiration of the CSG service to the CSG cell.
US08483683B2

A method and an apparatus for connecting a network in a portable terminal. The method for connecting a network in a portable terminal includes searching a network from which a signal is received, receiving network identifying information from the searched network, retrieving connection information corresponding to the network identifying information, from network connection information stored in the portable terminal in advance, and setting the retrieved network connection information as the network connection information of the portable terminal.
US08483680B2

Receipt of a failure response message in response to a domain transfer attempt is cached at a mobile device. The mobile device retains information related to the domain to indicate that the domain does not support anchoring and, thus, does not support voice call continuity. The mobile device might not attempt domain transfer for subsequent calls in the same area. In an aspect, after expiration of a configurable interval, the mobile device can re-attempt domain transfer to determine if anchoring is now supported by the domain. If the domain now supports anchoring, the identification of the domain can be removed from the domain listing.
US08483666B2

After the input of a subscriber (TLN1) of the first terminal (EG1), a connection to a temporarily available voice memory (SPS) is signalized by the same, and subsequently a voice message (spn) and at least one piece of retrieval information (ai) identifying the second terminal (EG2) is transmitted and stored at that location. Subsequently, the connection is terminated and the second terminal (EG2) is informed of the presence of a retrievable voice message (spn) in the voice memory (SPS) via the voice memory (SPS) by means of the at least one piece of retrieval information (ai), and the voice message (spn) can be retrieved from the second terminal (EG2) by means of the transmitted retrieval information (ai), or is transmitted to the second terminal (EG2) by the voice memory (SPS). In this manner voice messages (spn) can be stored for terminals (EG2) and retrieved by the same, regardless of whether one or no voice memories—such as an answering machine—is associated with these terminals (EG2).
US08483657B2

A messaging system for a wireless network may be constructed using a gateway architecture in which a number of messaging servers are connected to external networks through the gateway. In one implementation, a method implemented in the system may include receiving a message that is communicated as part of a messaging protocol for delivering text or multimedia messages to user devices and altering the message to include a billing identifier describing how the message should be billed. The message may be altered by the gateway and may be transmitted to a messaging server for extraction of the billing information.
US08483651B1

Methods and systems for providing proximate-and-active-emergency-vehicle notifications to mobile-device users are provided. The emergency vehicle may become active, and its location and status may be received by a network element. A mobile-device user's location may also be received by a network element. It may be determined based on analyzing the location of the emergency vehicle and the location of the mobile-device user to provide the mobile-device user with a proximate-and-active-emergency-vehicle notification.
US08483650B2

Efficient utilization and management of integrated mobile base station carrier trees is provided herein. Such trees provide an organizational structure for allocating calls in a code division, tone division, time division and/or like mobile infrastructure. Calls can be allocated to portions of the carrier tree as a function of characteristic(s) associated with the call. Accordingly, like calls are grouped within the carrier tree with like calls. In addition, portions of the carrier tree can be re-allocated to different types of traffic to meet fluctuations in traffic demand. Further, calls can be re-packed from existing segments of the carrier tree to other segments to maintain calls having common characteristics in contiguous groups, and to maintain idle segments another contiguous group(s). Accordingly, the wireless carrier tree can be packed and managed more efficiently, providing greater throughput and reduced contention for resources.
US08483644B2

The component, fully integrated onto a monolithic substrate, includes a tuner, a demodulator, and a channel decoder. The overall filtering is carried out in two parts, a baseband analog filtering and a digital Nyquist filtering removing the information of adjacent channels. It outputs a stream of MPEG data.
US08483642B2

A SAW-less receiver includes a front end module (FEM) interface module, an RF to IF section, and an IF to baseband section. The RF to IF section includes a frequency translated bandpass filter (FTBPF), an LNA, and a mixing section. The FTBPF includes a switching network and a complex baseband filter having an offset baseband filter response. The switching network is operable to frequency translate the offset baseband filter response to an RF frequency response such that the FTBPF filters the inbound RF signal by passing, substantially unattenuated, a desired RF signal component and by attenuating an image signal component and/or an undesired signal component. The LNA amplifies the filtered inbound RF signal and the mixing section mixes the amplified inbound RF signal with a local oscillation to produce an inbound IF signal. The IF to baseband section converts the inbound IF signal into an inbound symbol stream(s).
US08483635B2

A broadcast receiving apparatus includes a first tuner configured to receive a broadcast wave from a specified broadcasting station, a second tuner configured to perform a frequency search for receivable broadcasting stations, a power supply unit configured to supply power to the first tuner and the second tuner, a traveling state detection unit configured to determine if a vehicle is moving or is stopped, a reception state detection unit configured to detect a reception state of a currently-received broadcast wave, and a control unit configured to control the first tuner, the second tuner, the power supply unit, the traveling state detection unit, and the reception state detection unit. The control unit causes power to be supplied to the second tuner and causes the second tuner to perform a frequency search while the vehicle is traveling, and when it is determined that the vehicle has stopped, the control unit turns the power supplied to the second tuner on and off in accordance with the reception state of the broadcast wave.
US08483634B1

A wireless networking receiver with digital antenna switching selects an antenna with an 802.11b signal based on a signal metric, such as the highest signal quality or highest peak amplitude. In one embodiment, the receiver comprises a plurality of antennas that may each receive one of a plurality of RF signals conforming to the IEEE 802.11b standard. The receiver may have multiple antennas for use with the IEEE 802.11n standard, but may receive signals conforming to the 802.11b standard. The receiver also comprises a carrier sense circuit configured to calculate a signal metric for each of the signals and further configured to generate a selection signal signifying one of the signals, based on the signal metric. The receiver further comprises a multiplexer configured to output one of the signals, based on the selection signal.
US08483622B2

A power consumption control method applied to a communication system adjusts the power consumption of a portion of circuit in the communication system according to a transmission distance between the communication system and another communication system. Another power consumption control method applied to a communication system adjusts the power consumption of a portion of circuit in the communication system according to a signal index of the communication system.
US08483619B2

A method, an apparatus and a system for estimating channels are disclosed. A method for estimating channels includes: receiving, by a User Equipment (UE), downlink signals sent by two or more Access Points (APs), wherein no common reference signal is comprised in any data channel symbol domain except a preset symbol domain in the downlink signals; and performing, by the UE, channel estimation according to the downlink signals. The technical solution disclosed herein eliminates the interference between the reference signal and the data signal, enables the UE to estimate the channel value between the UE and the cooperative APs accurately, and improves the UE performance.
US08483611B2

A portable apparatus, a counterpart apparatus and communication method are disclosed. The communication method comprises: communicating wirelessly an identifier from a portable apparatus to a counterpart apparatus by an induction-based magnetic field; executing a pairing protocol utilizing the identifier between the radio transceiver of the portable apparatus and a radio transceiver of the counterpart apparatus by electric radiation; and communicating information between the radio transceiver of the portable apparatus and the radio transceiver of the counterpart apparatus by electric radiation.
US08483607B2

A wireless communication method executed by a wireless communication system including a relay apparatus, a first wireless communication apparatus, and a second wireless communication apparatus includes the following operations. Upon receiving a wireless signal from the first wireless communication apparatus, the relay apparatus adds advice information, which indicates that the wireless signal has been relayed, to the received wireless signal. The relay apparatus transmits the wireless signal added the advice information thereto to the second wireless communication apparatus. The second wireless communication apparatus detects the advice information to determine whether the wireless signal has been relayed.
US08483606B2

Various implementations for automatically determining user alignments and recommendations for electronic resources are described. One example implementation includes an assessment module, an alignment module, and a recommender. The assessment module determines performance levels of two or more users of an educational platform. The alignment module determines an alignment between the two or more users of the educational platform based on the performance levels of the two or more users. The recommender generates a recommendation for a social graph connection between the two or more users in a social graph based on the alignment.
US08483604B2

A fixing device includes a laser source that irradiates an image with laser light, the image being formed on a moving recording material with a thermoplastic image-forming material; and a support member arranged to face the laser source and having a curved portion, the curved portion being curved to extend in a recording-material moving direction and to protrude toward the laser source, the curved portion having a supporting portion of the recording material corresponding to at least an irradiation area of the laser light in a curved manner.
US08483594B2

An image forming apparatus is provided for forming an image on a recording material. The apparatus includes a plurality of cartridges, and a cartridge supporting member including a plurality of mounting portions in which the plurality of cartridges is detachably mountable. A plurality of preventing members are each provided movably in an associated cartridge, corresponding to the plurality of mounting portions. Each preventing member is movable between a first position in which each preventing member prevents movement of the cartridge supporting member from an outside position to an inside position by contacting the main assembly, and a second position, retracted from the first position, in which each preventing member permits the movement of the cartridge supporting member.
US08483591B2

There is described a bias charging member that includes a conductive core and an outer surface layer on the conductive core. The outer surface layer includes a resin of aminoplast and one of polyol or nylon, a conductive additive and p-toluene sulfonic acid. There is also described a method of refurbishing bias charging members.
US08483588B2

An image forming apparatus has a body frame and a slide frame. The slide frame is configured to be pulled out from the body frame along a sliding direction. A plurality of image forming cartridges is detachably mounted on the slide frame. A plurality of electrode members is mounted on the slide frame and aligned along the sliding direction so as to correspond to the image forming cartridges. A body-side contact portion of each of the electrode members is electrically connected to the body frame. A cartridge-side contact portion of the electrode member is electrically connected to the image forming cartridge. The image forming cartridge is connected to the body via the corresponding electrode member when the slide frame mounting the image forming cartridges is inserted to the body frame.
US08483587B2

An apparatus includes an image formation unit including a photosensitive drum and a motor for driving the image formation unit. The apparatus acquires a frequency generator signal, which is phase information output from the motor as the motor rotates. In addition, the apparatus corrects unevenness of the density that may occur due to the rotation of the motor according to the acquired phase information.
US08483582B2

An image forming apparatus includes a controller on the apparatus body to control supply of developers from developer containers to the development devices. The controller includes a storage that reads and stores identification information pieces of all the development devices attached to the apparatus body. When any of the development devices is removed from the apparatus body, and thereafter attached at a position where the removal took place, the controller reads an identification information piece of the development device attached at the position, and when the read identification information piece disagrees with an identification information piece of the development device at the position stored, and agrees with an identification information piece of another one of the development devices at another position, the controller determines that the development device is mistakenly attached and prohibits the supply of the corresponding developers.
US08483578B2

A photonic generator is provided. The photonic generator uses ultra-wide band millimeter wave (MMW) for generating a high-power ultra-broad band white noise. Thus, the present disclosure can be used for failure detection of instantaneous all-band device, noise detection of instantaneous all-band amplifier and mixer, wide-band cipher transmission, pseudo-random bit generation, ADC dithering of analog-digital converter, saturation power test of wide-band optical communicator, system noise detection of MMW receiver, and gain and phase detection of MMW interferometer.
US08483576B2

A driving apparatus supplies a drive signal to an optical modulator corresponding to a phase modulation format, and also, divides a part of an output light from the optical modulator; extracts some optical component of the divided light, which is distant from a carrier frequency by integral multiple of a modulation frequency, to detect a power of the optical component; and feedback controls a duty ratio of the drive signal or a cross-point level thereof so that the detected power approaches a minimum value. Thus, it is possible to stably perform phase modulation with high precision.
US08483575B2

Frequency-locked optical comb sources are provided that utilize recirculating frequency shifting based on frequency conversion in a modulator, together with a filter. The filter may be a wavelength notch filter and include a plurality of notches. An example apparatus includes a coupler, an I/Q modulator, and a filter. A first input of the coupler receives a first input optical carrier having a first frequency, and a second input of the coupler re receives a set of frequency-shifted carriers from the filter. The input optical carrier may have a plurality of frequencies. The I/Q modulator shifts the frequency of a first output of the coupler. The filter filters modulated output from the I/Q modulator thereby limiting the frequency-shifted carriers to be within an optical bandwidth. A second output of the coupler provides a plurality of frequency-locked carriers containing the first input optical carrier and the set of frequency-shifted carriers.
US08483573B2

An optical signal of an optical transmission part is brought into a high-speed polarization scrambling state by a polarization scrambling part, and transmitted to en optical fiber transmission line as the optical signal from the optical transmitter. The optical signal passing through the optical fiber transmission line is inputted to an optical receiver. The optical signal inputted to the optical receiver is converted into an electric signal by a polarization dependent photoelectric detection part. The converted electric signal is inputted to a digital signal processing part having a polarization scrambling cancel part of canceling the polarization scrambling state by a digital signal processing operation. At the digital signal processing part, the polarization scrambling state of the electric signal is canceled, and a data signal is outputted.
US08483563B2

An apparatus comprising an optical line terminal (OLT) configured to couple to a plurality of optical network units (ONUs) and transmit a plurality of downstream frames to the ONUs, wherein each of the downstream frames comprises a plurality of forward error correction (FEC) codewords and a plurality of additional non-FEC encoded bytes that comprise synchronization information that is protected by Header Error Control (HEC) code. An apparatus comprising a processing unit configured to arrange control data, user data, or both into a plurality of FEC codewords in a downstream frame and arrange a physical synchronization sequence (PSync), a superframe structure, and a Passive Optical Network-identifier (PON-ID) structure in a plurality of additional non-FEC encoded bytes in the downstream frame, and a transmission unit configured to transmit the FEC codewords and the additional non-FEC encoded bytes in the downstream frame within a 125 microsecond window.
US08483561B2

The present invention relates to a powering method, a powering system, a cabinet and a central office for powering a copper-centric fiber to the x (FTTX) architecture. The architecture comprises at least one point to point or point to multipoint optical distribution network (ODN) between an optical line termination (OLT) or first Ethernet Switch positioned at a central office (CO) and an optical network unit or second Ethernet switch positioned at a cabinet (CAB) or building closer to a network terminal (CPE). The ODN is an active or passive network. The architecture further comprises at least one signalling coaxial or twisted wire pair line between the ONU or second Ethernet switch (ES) and one network terminal (CPE). What particularly characterizes the present invention is that the ONU or the second ES is powered remotely from the central office (CO) via at least one powering twisted wire pair line extending between the central office (CO) and the cabinet (CAB) or building.
US08483557B1

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a camera flash filter. In one embodiment, a processor determines an intensity of light to filter through areas of the flash filter based on the lighting of a scene. The processor may determine a color of light to filter though the areas of the flash filter based on the determined intensity of light to filter through the areas of the flash filter.
US08483550B2

This application discloses a system for recording medical image data for production on a portable digital recording medium such as CDs and DVDs. This system includes a receiving module, a processing module and an output module, with viewing program for viewing medical image data stored on the portable digital recording medium. It also discloses a method of storing medical image data on a portable digital recording medium, including the steps of receiving the medical image data, processing the data and storing the data on the portable digital recording medium, with a viewing program for viewing medical image data stored on the portable digital recording medium. It further discloses a method of selecting medical image data for recording on a portable digital recording medium, including the steps of connecting a browsing terminal to a computer database that stores the medical image data, selecting a first set of the medical image data from the computer database, and recording the selected first set of medical image data on the portable digital medium, with a viewing program for viewing the medical image data stored on the portable digital recording medium. It also discloses the method and system of retrieving medical image data that are related to the received/selected original medical image data, and recording the original and related medical image data on a portable digital recording medium.
US08483549B2

A method and system are presented for use in real-time insertion of visual effects in a video stream. At least one reference image is used that contains a region of interest, which is to be involved in the video stream. the reference image is processed by defining a set of at least a few reference features therein, and inserting the visual effects into the reference image with a desired orientation of the visual effects with respect to the region of interest in the reference image. Successive video frames are grabbed in a sequence of a few video frames, and at least one of video frames is used as at least one snapshot image. The snapshot image(s) is/are process by selecting therein at least two from the reference features and determining a reference transformation between the snapshot image and the reference image. Independently of this processing of the snapshot image, the snapshot image and other video frames are processed to determine a sequence of transformations between them. These data are utilized to determine an operative transformation between the reference image and either one of the video frames, thereby enabling real-time management of the appearance of the visual effects in the video stream by using the operative transformation for the insertion of the visual effects in other video frames.
US08483541B2

The present invention comprises an input part for inputting image data, a receiving part for receiving production information relating to production transmitted from another apparatus, a recording part for recording the production information received by the receiving part and image data input by the input part, a detection part for detecting a recording position on a recording medium at an editing point of image data recorded by the recording part, and a transmission part for transmitting information of the recording position detected by the detection part, whereby identification information for identifying image data and voice data is recorded in a recording medium or a recording device, this relieving a burden on a photographer and an editor and facilitating extraction of image data and voice data.
US08483540B2

A method, apparatus and system for synchronizing between two recording modes includes identifying a common event in the two recording modes. The event in time is recognized for a higher accuracy mode of the two modes. The event is predicted in a lower accuracy mode of the two modes by determining a time when the event occurred between frames in the lower accuracy mode. The event in the higher accuracy mode is synchronized to the lower accuracy mode to provide sub-frame accuracy alignment between the two modes. In one embodiment of the invention, the common event includes the closing of a clap slate, and the two modes include audio and video recording modes.
US08483539B2

A device serving as a fiber optic cable dummy connector is provided. The device may have connection ports to accept the connectors terminating a fiber optic cable, such as LC-type connectors, or other configurations. The device may be used instead of an actual SFP module for connection of the fiber optic cable to a port on a piece of equipment. The device may be made opaque so that no transmission or receipt of data or light (laser) from the fiber optic cable may pass through the device. The device may be manufactured to be one-half the length of an actual SFP module. The device may be manufactured from any suitable material. The device may be used in place of using an actual SFP module. The dummy connector may be used in place of coiling fiber optic cables and leaving them unconnected until they are needed.
US08483531B2

The present invention relates to an optical fiber, wherein PMD will not significantly increase even when an external factor, such as a lateral pressure, a bending and the like, is applied to the optical fiber. The optical fiber is imparted with a twist that is an elastic torsion with stress. In the condition that a twist rate, being the number of rotations per unit length by the twist, is represented by f(z) as a function of a position z in a longitudinal direction of the optical fiber, which has a predetermined twist cycle and is defined such that, in one twist cycle, a twist rotation angle in one direction and a twist rotation angle in the opposite direction are equal to each other, when a proportionality coefficient representing circular birefringence per twist rate is denoted by g, an angular frequency is denoted by ω, and external linear birefringence due to a bending and a lateral pressure is denoted by βe, then an average twist cycle L and an average twist rate γav in the optical fiber satisfy predetermined relational expressions.
US08483522B2

The invention relates to an optical modulator, comprising a first waveguide for a signal to be modulated, a second waveguide for a control signal, and an auxiliary waveguide, wherein the auxiliary waveguide is supported by a carrier which can be deflected to change a distance between the first waveguide and the auxiliary waveguide, wherein the carrier also comprises two layers with different coefficients of thermal expansion and the second waveguide is guided in such a way that a temperature of the carrier at least in a section can be manipulated by light transported by the second waveguide. The invention further relates to an integrated optical circuit comprising such an optical modulator, and to a modulation method which can be performed with such a modulator.
US08483521B2

Disclosed are resonant optical modulators, and methods of use thereof, that achieve constant photon populations in the resonator by simultaneously modulating at least two variable modulation parameters.
US08483518B2

Techniques for an image-based CAPTCHA for object recognition are described. The disclosure describes adding images to a database by collecting images by querying descriptive keywords to an image search engine or crawling images from the Internet.The disclosure describes generating the image-based CAPTCHA. The image is retrieved from the database, along with objects having significant values. An object is cropped from its image. The portion on the image where the object has been cropped is filled with image inpainting. The process obtains other objects from the database. The object is mixed among the other objects to form a set of candidate objects. A user is asked to select “the object” from the set of candidate objects that fits or matches the image. The image-based CAPTCHA evaluates whether a response, the selection, is from a human or a bot.
US08483515B2

An image processor generates an output image of a resolution higher than a resolution of an input image, using the input image. The image processor includes: an obtaining unit configured to obtain an edge strength of one of the input image and an image corresponding to the input image; a calculating unit configured to calculate, based on the edge strength, J that is a count of data items to be used for generating a synthesized image to be used in generating the output image, where J is an integer equal to or larger than 2; and a generating unit configured to generate the synthesized image by synthesizing J data items, and generate the output image using the synthesized image.
US08483509B2

This invention can perform a developing process or editing process, with a high response, for raw image obtained by image sensing by a digital camera or the like. When, therefore, raw image data is input, an extraction area in the raw image data is determined on the basis of the size of an image display area in which a processed image is displayed and a magnification set at this time. A developing process is then performed for partial raw image data in the determined area, and the resultant data is displayed in the image display area.
US08483502B2

An image processing apparatus including an input unit which inputs a pixel value of a multi-level notice pixel, a first add unit which acids an error value to the input value, a second add unit which adds a green noise value to the input value, a threshold processing unit which outputs an binarized output values a green noise calculation unit which calculates the green noise value, a subtract unit which calculates an error value due to binarization, an error diffusion unit which diffuses the calculated error value to an untreated pixel which is not yet binarized and a correction processing unit which adds a positive first offset to the error value to perform a correction and outputs the corrected error value to the first add unit.
US08483501B2

Provided are methods and apparatuses for transforming and inverse-transforming an image. The method of transforming an image includes: generating a substituted N×N transformation matrix by substituting elements of an N×N transformation matrix used for a 1-dimensional (1D) discrete cosine transform (DCT) of a N×N block of the image with values based on N variables, where N is an integer; obtaining a multiplication matrix of the substituted N×N transformation matrix and a transposed matrix of the substituted N×N transformation matrix; obtaining the N variables that enable a sum of squares of elements excluding diagonal components of the obtained multiplication matrix to be a minimum; and transforming the N×N block by using the substituted N×N transformation matrix, which is substituted with the values based on the obtained N variables.
US08483500B2

Apparatus and methods for coding images geometric vector quantization (GVQ) having an over-complete dictionary which produces a sparse vector of coefficients as it contains large runs of zeros. The sparse encoding is particularly well suited for use with run-length entropy coding techniques. Image blocks are sparse coded using GVQ, with the vector of coefficients converted to RUN-LENGTH symbols, and binarized into a set of binary symbols. At least a portion of the binary symbols are used as contexts which can be selected when performing binary arithmetic coding of the binary coded RUN and LENGTH data to generate a bit stream containing the encoded image that provides enhanced compression.
US08483487B2

The disclosure provides a process whereby an image processing device may isolate an outline of an object from an image, and a method adapted for the image processing device. When the image processing device 1 defines a pixel point as a boundary point of an object, the image processing device 1 continues to search for an adjacent boundary point. When the image processing device 1 defines a pixel point as a non-boundary point of the image, the image processing device 1 continues to search for a boundary point from predetermined pixel points until all boundary points have been found unless it is determined that the image does not include an object.
US08483484B2

Search terms are derived automatically from images captured by a camera equipped cell phone, PDA, or other image capturing device, submitted to a search engine to obtain information of interest, and at least a portion of the resulting information is transmitted back locally to, or nearby, the device that captured the image.
US08483482B2

An image-processing device comprises an acquisition section that acquires a binary image; a figure part identifying section that identifies a figure part in the binary image; a line segment identifying section that identifies line segments included in the figure part; a specific line segment extracting section that determines whether each line segment has an end portion having a specific shape, and extracts a line segment with an end portion having the specific shape as a specific line segment; and a table region determining section that determines whether the figure part is a table region based on the line segments identified by the line segment identifying section excluding the specific line segment.
US08483475B2

An inspection apparatus inspects a package group including a plurality of discrete packages that are successively connected in a chain. The inspection apparatus includes an irradiating component, a light receiving component, a generating component, an identifying component, an estimating component and a weight diagnosing component. The irradiating component is configured and arranged to irradiate inspection waves to the package group with the inspection waves being X-rays or terahertz waves. The identifying component is configured to identify a plurality of discrete package regions corresponding to the discrete packages from an inspection image generated by the generating component. The estimating component is configured to estimate one or more weight values respectively corresponding to one or more of the discrete package regions. The weight diagnosing component is configured to diagnose the package group as being abnormal in weight when any of the weight values falls outside a predetermined range.
US08483472B2

A paper sheet identification apparatus capable of identifying an authenticity of a watermark area formed on a paper sheet is provided without increasing the cost. The paper sheet identification apparatus includes: a light receiving part receiving reflected light from a watermarked image formed on a paper sheet to be conveyed, a converter converting the reflected light from the watermarked image received by the light receiving part for each pixel as a unit of a predetermined size including color information having brightness; and an identification processing part identifying the authenticity of the watermarked image based on a correlation coefficient, which is calculated from a density value for each pixel converted by the converter and a density value for each pixel by the transmitted light from the watermarked image of the bill serving as a reference.
US08483448B2

Methods are presented for facilitating sales transactions by electronic media. A temporary barcode or other design is affixed to the person or personal object during the period of time for which a financial transaction might occur. Before the sales transaction can be consummated, the barcode information is scanned and characteristics about the scanned code are compared to characteristics about other codes stored in a database for the specific time period in question in order to verify the identity of the buyer for a given time period. Once the information is verified, the seller may be authorized to debit the buyer's electronic bank account or charge their charge card account to consummate the transaction or transactions during a period of time. The seller may transmit the buyer's barcode and the buyer transmit the seller's barcode to a clearance center, where the buyer has a smartphone capable of scanning the seller's code.
US08483444B2

An apparatus for inspecting and measuring an object to be measured includes: a distance measurement device having a light projector that projects a two-dimensional optical pattern onto a measurement target of the measurement object, imaging devices disposed in a stereoscopic arrangement that image the measurement object, and a driving device that rotates a posture of at least one of the imaging devices to control a parallax angle between the imaging devices; a working distance control device that controls the driving device and adjusts a position at which optical axes of the imaging devices intersect; and a distance calculation device having a correspondence position calculation device that determines a correspondence position at which the same region is imaged among images of the imaging devices, and a distance calculation devices that calculates a distance to the measurement target of the measurement object based on a calculation result of the calculation device.
US08483432B2

In one embodiment, a method of detecting centerline of a vessel is provided. The method comprises steps of acquiring a 3D image volume, initializing a centerline, initializing a Kalman filter, predicting a next center point using the Kalman filter, checking validity of the prediction made using the Kalman filter, performing template matching, updating the Kalman filter based on the template matching and repeating the steps of predicting, checking, performing and updating for a predetermined number of times. Methods of automatic vessel segmentation and temporal tracking of the segmented vessel is further described with reference to the method of detecting centerline.
US08483423B2

A fingerprinting apparatus, comprising: a plurality of receiving units to receive a plurality of input datasets, each of the plurality of input datasets divided into a plurality of input segments, at least one of the plurality of input datasets uniquely marked; a selector to select at least one input segment from one of at least two different input datasets of the plurality of input datasets; and at least one combiner to arrange the selected at least one input segment to produce an output dataset having a plurality of output segments, such that the number of output segments is equal to the number of input segments in each input dataset.
US08483419B1

The present invention relates to a system for improving a user's hearing and more particularly to a receiver system used in the system. In one embodiment, the receiver system has a housing and a plurality of arms extending from the housing for positioning and suspending the receiver within the ear canal of a user. Each of the arms may be formed from a flexible, plastic material or a bendable wire. In a second embodiment, the receiver system is surrounded by a disc formed from a sound filtering material. When installed in a combination instrument, the receiver is separated from the microphone.
US08483414B2

An image display device for displaying images includes an image display unit for displaying images, an audio output unit for outputting audio from multiple positions corresponding to the images displayed by the image display unit, and an audio output position control unit for analyzing the images, controlling the audio output unit according to content of the images, and selecting the position from which to output audio.
US08483413B2

An audio system for a vehicle having a plurality of seat positions includes, at each seat position, first and second directional loudspeaker arrays. Each array is driven by audio signals to radiate greater acoustic energy corresponding to the audio signals to the expected position of the head of a listener at a first seat position than to an expected position of the head of the listener at a second seat position. The first and second directional loudspeaker arrays comprise different numbers of acoustic drivers.
US08483389B1

Systems and methods for providing compressed video with layered graphics to at least one screen are described herein. An On Screen Display (OSD) system receives a command from a remote set top box coupled to a screen. The command instructs the OSD system to process the input video stream according to various processing functions including layering at least one graphics plane on top of the video stream. The OSD system processes the input video stream to generate an output video stream with the layered graphics planes and outputs, in a compressed format, the output video stream to the screen. The system advantageously provides a central OSD processing unit that can output video with layered graphics in a compressed format to multiple displays.
US08483379B2

There is provided an telephone control apparatus including storing unit for storing ringtone patterns for each incoming call group relative to one or more telephone terminals; and controlling unit for performing a ring operation of the telephone terminal belonging to the incoming call group which is to receive a call based on the ringtone pattern specified from the storing unit, wherein when a certain incoming call group among the plural incoming call groups becomes in a call receiving condition, the controlling unit specifies the ringtone pattern corresponding to the incoming call group in a call receiving condition by referring to the storing unit and controls the telephone terminals belonging to the incoming call group in the call receiving condition to perform a ring operation based on the ringtone pattern.
US08483374B1

An Internet Protocol (IP) phone transmits on a network, an IP packet comprising a dynamically-assigned IP address. A computer associated with the network uses the dynamically-assigned IP address in the packet to identify a specific site to which the IP phone belongs and/or a specific local area network (LAN) to which the IP phone is connected. Then, data to be used to provide telephony service to the phone is recorded in a memory. In some embodiments, the computer associates the IP phone with a dialing plan unique to the specific site, wherein the dialing plan includes an area code to be used by the IP phone.
US08483371B2

A system and method for managing incoming and outgoing communications may include a definition of if, when, and who may communicate with a recipient. The identification of the communication may be concealed in that no actual addresses, phone numbers, or other addressing identifications are required to be exchanged by the communication initiator and recipient. In an example, if the database contains call management settings for a call recipient, the application logic may evaluate the rules to determine if a particular caller is authorized to connect with the call recipient at the current time and date. The application logic may connect the call utilizing the public telephone switch. The caller and call recipient phone numbers may be stored in a database.
US08483370B2

Embodiments of the present invention include a method for processing a non-normalized local exchange routing guide (LERG) table to produce a normalized LERG table. The LERG tables have an NPA field, an NXX field, a Block_Id field, and a Switch_Id field. The method includes joining all distinct combinations of NPA and NXX in the non-normalized LERG table to all valid Block_Ids to produce a NormLERG table. The method further includes populating a Switch_Id field, in each NormLERG record having a distinct NPA-NXX value. The populating of the Switch_Id field is based on a number of corresponding non-normalized LERG records and on the Switch_Id field in one of the corresponding non-normalized LERG records and on a number of distinct Switch_ID values in the corresponding non-normalized LERG records. Each of the corresponding non-normalized LERG records has a same one of the NPA-NXX values.
US08483368B2

Aspects of the present invention are directed at obtaining contextual information with a voicemail message. In accordance with one embodiment, a method is provided that obtains additional contextual information that is not obtained automatically when a voicemail message is received. More specifically, the method includes automatically obtaining a first set of contextual information from a client associated with the caller when the caller is transferred to a voicemail system. Then a determination is made regarding whether the callee requests that additional contextual information be obtained. If the callee requests that additional contextual information be obtained, the requested information is obtained from a third-party service or by prompting the caller.
US08483362B2

A collimator module is disclosed for the modular assembly of a collimator for a radiation detector with a multiplicity of absorber elements, which are arranged one behind the other in a collimation direction and held by a carrier. In at least one embodiment, the carrier has at least one alignment device for aligning the collimator module in the collimation direction, which alignment device(s) interact with positioning device(s) in a detector mechanism of the radiation detector when they are integrated into the radiation detector. This provides the preconditions for integrating the collimator module in a fashion that is decoupled from a radiation convertor, and so this allows easy assembly of a collimator and adjustment to a position assumed between a radiation convertor and the collimator. Moreover, a radiation detector with such a collimator module is disclosed.
US08483353B2

An x-ray detector assembly includes a first curvilinear detector assembly comprising a first plurality of detector modules, a second curvilinear detector assembly comprising a second plurality of detector modules, and a first flat panel digital projection detector arranged between the first and second curvilinear detector assemblies such that a first end of the first flat panel digital projection detector is coupled to an inner end of the first curvilinear detector assembly and a second end of the first flat panel projection detector is coupled to an inner end of the second curvilinear detector assembly.
US08483349B2

A spacer grid for dual-cooling nuclear fuel rods arranged at a narrow interval. The spacer grid solves the problem in which, since the dual-cooling nuclear fuel rods are used to improve the cooling performance and stability of nuclear fuel and obtain high burnup and output, the outer diameter of each dual-cooling nuclear fuel rod is increased, and thus the gap between each dual-cooling nuclear fuel rod and the grid strap is decreased. The spacer grid includes first grid straps and second grid straps, which are crossed and arranged in transverse and longitudinal directions at regular intervals and have the shape of a flat strip, and support structures, which are fitted into the first and second grid straps around intersections of the first and second grid straps so as to support the dual-cooling nuclear fuel rods.
US08483346B2

A control rod spider assembly connection between a connecting finger and a rodlet. An upper end plug of the rodlet is secured to the inner bore of the hollow connecting finger with a mating one of a right hand or left hand thread interfacing between the interior of the bore and the circumference of the rodlet. The upper end of the rodlet is captured by a second fastener mechanism having the other of the right hand or the left hand thread. The second fastener mechanism is anchored to one or both of the connecting finger or the upper end plug to secure the connection.
US08483344B2

A serializer-deserializer (SERDES) includes a clock-data recovery block, a control block, and a low-pass filter. The control block contains a state machine that includes a fast convergence mode utilizing an unstable operating point and a slow tracking mode utilizing a stable operating point. The control block is configured to start in the fast convergence mode to allow quickly locking the recovered clock to the incoming data stream by replicating movement commands resulting in multiple phase adjustments for each transition. To facilitate proper operation of the SERDES, the fast convergence mode is exited after N-bits and a slow tracking mode is entered to provide stable operation. The control block accepts filtered transition-data and data-transition phase state signals and converges to a phase aligned state in less than 2N-bits where N represents the number of phases in one data bit.
US08483339B2

Provided is a communication apparatus and a communication process method that improve reception quality when receiving a signal using a plurality of antennas. The communication apparatus includes an RF tuner that receives a wireless signal by the plurality of antennas, a noise amount detection unit that measures the amount of noise of each antenna according to the wireless signal received by the RF tuner, and a time-division timing generation unit that switches a selection of the plurality of antennas by time-division. The time-division timing generation unit periodically switches the plurality of antennas. Further, the time-division timing generation unit makes a selection so that the antenna with the best reception quality has a relatively longer selected period than the other antennas.
US08483333B2

A method for adjusting a system clock in terms of an operational status of at least one non-baseband module includes: getting first information corresponding to the system clock required by at least one baseband module, wherein the first information comprises a frequency characteristic of the system clock; getting second information corresponding to the at least one non-baseband module, wherein the second information comprises a frequency characteristic of a radio frequency (RF) signal to be received by the non-baseband module; and selectively adjusting a frequency of the system clock by referring to the first information and the second information.
US08483330B2

A received signal comprises a continuous sequence of symbols φ1, φ2, . . . φn, each represented by a sequence of samples X0, X2, . . . Xn−1, and wherein the symbols have a guard period GP of duration Tgp at the beginning thereof. Each guard period contains a cyclic prefix with the same subsequence of samples as a tail end portion of the associated symbol. The symbols are identified by delaying the received signal by a fixed number of samples, computing the correlation of the received signal with the delayed signal, computing the summation of said correlation over a window of duration Ti, wherein Ti>Tgp, and sliding the window over the correlation to find a characteristic point or region. The start of each symbol for further processing is selected from the characteristic point or region. By increasing the duration of the window, more robust performance can be achieved, especially in multipath conditions.
US08483327B2

A convolutionally encoded frame to be decoded includes a first portion of bits having additional error protection and another portion without additional error protection. The decoding of the frame involves reverse Viterbi decoding or Viterbi decoding on a reversed bit sequence followed by applying a serial list Viterbi algorithm to the first portion. The result is that the list of probable sequences have unique sets of bits in the first portion.
US08483309B2

The invention relates to a method, an arrangement and a device for transmitting information between a central unit (DSLAM) and at least one decentralised unit (TN1, TN2, TN3) in a communication network. During, for example, the training phase in a decentralised unit (TN1, TN2, TN3), a distance between the at least one decentralised unit (TN1, TN2, TN3) and the central transmission unit (DSLAM) is estimated and a value (kl0) representing said distance is transmitted to the central unit (DSLAM). In the central unit (DSLAM), a value (kl0′) representing a fictional distance is calculated using the transmitted value (kl0) and said value (kl0′) is transmitted to the decentralised unit (TN1, TN2, TN3). Subsequently, information is transmitted in accordance with the value (kl0′) representing the fictional distance.
US08483308B2

An approach for reliably communicating over a satellite in support of a communication service including, for example, as direct broadcast satellite and data service, is disclosed. An input message is encoded, yielding a structured Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) coded message. The coded message is modulated according to a high order modulation scheme that has a signal constellation representing more than two symbols per signaling point—e.g., 8-PSK (Phase Shift Keying) and 16-QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation). The system includes a transmitter configured to propagate the modulated signal over the satellite. The above approach is particularly applicable to bandwidth constrained communication systems requiring high data rates.
US08483307B2

Provided is a constellation rotation relay system and constellation rotation relay method which can acquire full diversity gain by performing constellation rotation for a channel matrix in a relay network when configuring a virtual MIMO channel. The constellation rotation system includes a matrix creator for creating a symbol matrix by configuring a symbol transmitted in parallel from a source of a relay network; and a constellation rotation unit constellation rotating the symbol in the symbol matrix by adding a constellation rotation matrix to the created symbol matrix.
US08483300B2

The various embodiments herein provide a method and system for reducing Out of Band Radiation in Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). The method includes transmitting a plurality of signals with a plurality of modulated symbols on each subcarrier. The method includes introducing a controlled amount of correlation among the consecutive modulated symbols across time. Further the method includes removing the controlled amount of correlation among the plurality of modulated symbols. The method also includes reducing an out of band radiation in OFDM. The system for reducing Out of Band Radiation in Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) includes a transmitter to transmit one or more signals with a plurality of modulated symbols on each subcarrier. The system includes a transmitter with digital filters and a receiver. The receiver includes a Maximum Likelihood Sequence Detector (MLSD) to remove the controlled amount of correlation among the plurality of modulated symbols.
US08483299B2

A channel estimation unit 18 estimates characteristics of a channel (channel estimation) based on signals received by a plurality of antennas. An SVD unit 19 performs singular value decomposition on each channel estimation value. An orthogonality determination unit 20 determines (recognizes) whether orthogonality of a plurality of eigenpaths is maintained or collapsed based on information indicating quality of a channel between a transmission apparatus and a reception apparatus. A reception scheme estimation unit 22 estimates a reception scheme to separate eigenpaths of a reception unit 2 based on information indicating quality of a channel in each eigenpath. A transmission adaptive control unit 23 performs predetermined control of a transmission apparatus 1 at transmission based on the reception scheme of the reception apparatus estimated by the reception scheme estimation unit 22 and a result of determination (recognition) by the orthogonality determination unit 20.
US08483297B2

A technique involves using a fast Fourier transform (FFT) module to transform multiple different types of signals. This may be accomplished using one or more of three techniques: logic within the FFT module can enable different processing depending upon a processing state, the FFT module can be called iteratively to transform a signal that is larger than the FFT implemented in the FFT module, the FFT module can be used for parallel transformation of multiple signals that are smaller than the FFT implemented in the FFT module. Thus, a single FFT module can be used to transform a first type of signal (e.g., WIFI) and a second type of signal (e.g., GPS) if configured according to the technique.
US08483292B2

The communication apparatus includes: a channel estimating unit for acquiring a channel estimation value of a channel between the communication apparatus and a cell base station of a cell in which the communication apparatus is located; a transmitter transmitting the channel estimation value or information based on the channel estimation value to the cell base station; a receiver receiving coordinated multipoint (CoMP) message from the cell base station, the CoMP message indicates the CoMP transmission mode, the codebook or precoding matrix used by the cell base station, and the codebook or precoding matrix used by a coordinated base station that coordinates with the cell base station; a channel matrix forming unit for acquiring a channel matrix according to the CoMP message; and a decoder decoding received signals according to the channel matrix and the CoMP message.
US08483282B2

This disclosure describes techniques for entropy coding of video blocks, and proposes a syntax element that may promote coding efficiency. The syntax element may identify a number of non-zero value sub-blocks within a video block, wherein the non-zero value sub-blocks comprise sub-blocks within the video block that include at least one non-zero coefficient. A method of coding a video block may comprise coding the syntax element, generating the non-zero value sub-blocks of the video block, and entropy coding the non-zero value sub-blocks.
US08483270B2

A method for adapting use of a wireless link, such as a radio link, between a remotely controlled device and an operator control unit, and a remotely controlled device configured to perform the method, the method aimed at providing for more advantageous use of the wireless link in providing video to the operator control unit. In case of a radio link, a video-transmitting radio unit of the remotely controlled device provides a digital video feed over the radio link to a video-receiving radio unit of the operator control unit, and in so doing the remotely controlled device adapts the resolution and/or frames per unit time of the video feed based solely on measurements made by the remotely controlled device, measurements indicative of the quality of the radio link.
US08483269B2

Provided is a system and method for transmitting and receiving 3D video based on digital broadcasting. The system includes: an encoder for generating 2D ES and 3D supplementary ES by encoding 2D video and 3D supplementary data; a packetizer for generating 2D video PES and 3D supplementary PES by packetizing the 2D video ES and the 3D supplementary ES; a PSI generator for generating a PSI; a TS generator for generating 2D video TS and 3D supplementary TS for the 2D video PES and the 3D supplementary PES; a multiplexer for multiplexing the transport streams to transmit the 2D video TS as a normal stream and transmit the 3D supplementary TS, the PSI TS and 3D video synch data TS as robust stream; and a modulator for modulating the multiplexed TS according to a DTV specification and transmitting the modulated TS.
US08483264B2

An apparatus and a method for improving performance of an equalizer in a wireless communication system are provided. The apparatus of a reception end includes a search unit and an estimator. The search unit determines power values of respective taps inside a window based on a signal received via a pilot channel, and classifies the taps into one or more meaningful taps and one or more noise taps. The estimator allocates one or more 1-tap channel estimators to the one or more meaningful taps, and determines a channel estimation vector based on a channel estimation value of the one or more meaningful taps determined by the one or more 1-tap channel estimators.
US08483251B2

Provided is a Group III nitride semiconductor laser diode with a cladding layer capable of providing high optical confinement and carrier confinement. An n-type Al0.08Ga0.92N cladding layer is grown so as to be lattice-relaxed on a (20-21)-plane GaN substrate. A GaN optical guiding layer is grown so as to be lattice-relaxed on the n-type cladding layer. An active layer, a GaN optical guiding layer, an Al0.12Ga0.88N electron blocking layer, and a GaN optical guiding layer are grown so as not to be lattice-relaxed on the optical guiding layer. A p-type Al0.08Ga0.92N cladding layer is grown so as to be lattice-relaxed on the optical guiding layer. A p-type GaN contact layer is grown so as not to be lattice-relaxed on the p-type cladding layer, to produce a semiconductor laser. Dislocation densities at junctions are larger than those at the other junctions.
US08483244B2

In a method of recovering timing information over packet networks, raw network delays are measured using timing packets sent between a transmitter and receiver. The expected delay is predicted using a minimum statistics adaptive filter to track local minima of measured time delays over a smoothing window. Only those incoming timing packets which meet a particular criterion relative to the expected delay within a smoothing window are selected, and a local clock is adjusted based on the measured timing delays from the selected timing packets.
US08483235B2

Provided are a preamble structure and a channel estimation algorithm thereof. A communication method for a transmitter for channel estimation in a Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) wireless communication system having N receiving antennas, includes generating a preamble interval having a short training field that includes a predetermined pattern iterated N times on a time domain and is used for compensating for a carrier frequency offset, and transmitting a packet having the preamble interval.
US08483230B1

A packet schedule timestamp is provided. A schedule information packet includes a packet schedule timestamp that represents the relative timing of data packets in a particular bitstream of a multiplexed transport stream. The schedule information packet further provides information about the timing of packets within a bitstream or multiple bitstreams before actual packet arrivals. Look-ahead processing techniques are provided to improve the efficiency of compressed bitstream storage and delivery, such as program stream to transport stream conversion and statistical multiplexing. The packet schedule information can be inserted into the bitstream it describes for transmission or storage with it. Other features, such as timing reconstruction, are also provided. The packet schedule information can be used to reconstruct the timing of the transport packets to their original state.
US08483225B2

An intelligent policy server provides multiple service features and controls bandwidth usage in an ATM network. Signaling messages generated at an edge switch prior to establishing an end-to-end switched virtual circuit are intercepted by a signaling intercept processor for effectuating policy features or permissions by executing appropriate service logic at the policy server associated with the edge switch. A return message from the policy server determines whether a call connection can be made through the network. Profile arrays are provided which define feature authorizations and provisioning for subscribers and Customer Logical Ports served by the edge switches. Depending on the triggers associated with a signaling message received in the edge switch, a particular feature is invoked and executed by the policy server, such as source address validation, address screening, burst-size limit, class-of-service provisioning, maximum concurrent call connections in progress, bandwidth control, and call frequency rate limit.
US08483223B2

Techniques for generating and transmitting packets on multiple links in a wireless communication system are described. In one aspect, a transmitter generates new packets for the multiple links based on the likelihood of each link being available. The transmitter determines the likelihood of each carrier being available based on whether or not there is a pending packet on that carrier and, if yes, the number of subpackets sent for the pending packet. The transmitter generates new packets such that packets for links progressively less likely to be available contain data units with progressively higher sequence numbers. The transmitter determines whether each link is available and sends a packet on each link that is available. In another aspect, the transmitter generates and sends new packets in a manner to ensure in-order transmission. In one design, the transmitter generates new packets for each possible combination of links that might be available.
US08483219B2

An arithmetic operation portion including a swap arithmetic operation portion which performs an arithmetic operation of swap information concerned with a path route of a packet, and a label processing portion which sets adjustment of a first label based on a result of the arithmetic operation executed by the swap arithmetic operation portion is provided in a control apparatus to thereby attain compatibility between dispersion of packet transfer load and reduction of an error rate in each link.
US08483211B2

A user equipment (UE) attaches to a first access network, intending to access a packet data network (PDN) via a telecommunications system, and is assigned a PDN System Architecture Evolution (SAE) Gateway (GW). The identity of the PDN SAE GW is registered so that, if the UE attaches to another access network, triggering a new attach procedure, the identity is retrieved. A determination is then made whether the previously-assigned PDN SAE GW may be used for the present communications and, if so, it is reassigned. The identity of the PDN SAE GW is registered in an anchor node, which is in a preferred embodiment a Home Subscriber Server (HSS). If the previously-assigned PDN SAE GW cannot be used, or if the PDN SAE GW must be changed, then the communication is reassigned to a new PDN SAE GW.
US08483208B1

A special rendering mode for the first few seconds of play out of multimedia data minimizes the delay caused by pre-buffering of data packets in multimedia streaming applications. Instead of pre-buffering all incoming data packets until a certain threshold is reached, the streaming application starts playing out some of the data packets immediately after the arrival of the first data packet. Immediate play out of the first data packet, for example, results in minimum delay between channel selection and perception, thereby allowing a user to quickly scan through all available channels to quickly get a notion of the content. The immediate play out is done at a reduced speed.
US08483206B2

A multimedia call model is provided to handle, maintain and control multimedia calls and their interactions in a network entity (100) for an end-user in the network. The call model provides a first Call Control Process (CCP) (102) having a first media service type and associated with a first group of agents (104, 106), and a second CCP (112) having a second media service type and associated with a second group of agents (114, 116, 118, 124, 126, 128). The call model also provides a Multimedia Call Process (MMCP) (150) for facilitating the arrangement and/or communication between the two CCPs.
US08483200B2

A method and apparatus for selecting an antenna mapping in multiple-in/multiple-out (MIMO) enabled wireless communication networks. A candidate set of currently available antenna mappings is determined based upon measured long term channel conditions. An antenna mapping is selected from the candidate set, and the mapping is calibrated with a selected antenna mapping of a receiving wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU). When the selected mappings are calibrated, packet data transmission begins. In an alternative embodiment, a calibration training frame (CTF) is used to calibrate multiple antenna mappings simultaneously or sequentially. Also disclosed are physical layer and medium access control layer frame formats for implementing antenna mapping selection according to the invention.
US08483196B2

Methods and apparatus related to supporting rapid synchronization between groups of wireless communications devices are described. Described methods and apparatus are well suited for use in peer to peer wireless communications systems in which a plurality of ad hoc peer to peer networks may be formed, each ad hoc network operating with its own notion of time. As two groups of devices, having different notions of time, come within proximity of one another, a wireless communications device of a first group detects the presence of a member of a second group. The wireless device determines that network timing re-synchronization is to be performed by one of the first and second groups and transmits a re-synchronization alert signal on a dedicated resource. Subsequently, the wireless device transmits a timing synchronization signal in accordance with new timing. Intended devices, which detect the alert signal and timing synchronization signal, adjust their internal timing.
US08483184B2

In handover control, a data collection unit collects measurement data that indicates communication quality of uplink and downlink paths between a mobile station and base stations. A candidate evaluation unit evaluates which base station is optimal for uplink, as well as which base station is optimal for downlink, based on the measurement data. A station selection unit determines which link has priority, either uplink or downlink, according to the class of data services that the mobile station uses in radio communication, and selects as a target base station for handover the base station that has been determined as being optimal for the link having priority.
US08483182B1

A method is provided of performing a handover with Single Radio Voice Call Continuity, SRVCC, of a telecommunications session from a User Equipment, UE accessing an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, network via a Circuit Switched, CS, access network to a target Packet Switched, PS, access network. The method includes receiving a handover request from the CS access network to transfer the session and determining that the telecommunications session comprises data media in addition to, or without, any audio media. The ability to perform the handover with SRVCC for the data media is determined. Bearer resources for the session when handed over to the PS access network are allocated, including a data media bearer and, if there is any audio media in the session an audio media bearer. The session is transferred from the CS to the target PS access network.
US08483173B2

A media gateway comprising a plurality of network interface cards, at least one switch matrix, and a server module including at least one unlicensed mobile access module is provided. A method and computer-readable medium for activating an unlicensed mobile access channel for a mobile station in a network is provided. A media gateway receives a request to allocate an unlicensed mobile access termination. The request is received in response to at least one of a discovery registration by the mobile station and a handover request by the mobile station. The mobile station is serviced by at least one of a wireline network and a wireless network interfaced by the media gateway. The media gateway allocates the unlicensed mobile access termination. The termination has an identifier associated therewith. The media gateway receives at least one transmit parameter associated with the mobile station, and completes bearer set-up of the unlicensed mobile access channel according to the at least one transmit parameter.
US08483170B2

A user equipment terminal for reporting channel quality information to a base station includes a channel quality information measuring unit configured to measure channel quality information; and a channel quality information generating unit configured to generate, as the channel quality information, a difference value between a first absolute value of the measured channel quality information and a second absolute value of previously measured channel quality information. The present invention also relates to a base station and a channel quality information report method.
US08483168B2

Techniques for selecting a serving base station for a terminal in a wireless communication network are described. In one design, multiple candidate base stations for the terminal may be identified, with each candidate base station being a candidate for selection as the serving base station for the terminal. The multiple candidate base stations may include base stations with different transmit power levels and/or may support interference mitigation. One of the multiple candidate base stations may be selected as the serving base station. In one design, the serving base station may be selected based on at least one metric for each candidate base station. The at least one metrics may be for pathloss, effective transmit power, effective geometry, projected data rate, control channel reliability, network utility, etc. The selected candidate base station may have a lower SINR than a highest SINR among the multiple candidate base stations.
US08483159B2

Frequency offset compensating methods and apparatus are provided. A frequency offset of a terminal according to the pilots is estimated, and terminals are grouped according to the frequency offset of the terminals. The terminals in different frequency offset groups are dispatched and are scheduled to occupy the time frequency resources in different time slices. Frequency offset compensation is carried on for each group of terminals by using a corresponding frequency offset compensation value.
US08483155B1

A client station includes a transceiver module and an association module. The transceiver module is configured to receive a beacon from an access point. The beacon includes information of a first available channel that is not assigned for licensed use in a regulated frequency spectrum and that is available for use at a location of the access point. The association module is configured to associate the client station with the access point via the first available channel in response to the client station being within range of the location of the access point.
US08483151B2

A method for performing emergency communication between a mobile station and a base station in a wireless communication system is disclosed. The method includes receiving allocation of a contention-free-based control channel from a base station, and transmitting an emergency service request message through the contention-free-based control channel. The contention-free-based control channel may be one of a channel quality indicator (CQI) channel and an acknowledgement/negative-acknowledgement (ACK/NACK) channel. Since the emergency service request message can be transmitted through a contention-free dedicated code and a dedicated region, a procedure is simplified and power resources of the mobile station can be saved.
US08483146B2

The present invention relates to a wireless communication system and a terminal providing a wireless communication service and to a method by which a base station and a terminal transmit and receive data in an evolved universal mobile telecommunications system (E-UMTS) evolved from universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) or a long term evolution (LTE) system, and more particularly, to a method whereby, in requesting allocation of radio resources by a user equipment (UE), which has been allocated continuous allocation radio resources, from a base station, the UE compares an allocation time point of continuous allocation radio resources and a start time point of a radio resource request procedure and effectively transmit a radio resource allocation request.
US08483144B2

A method for enhancing efficiency of RRC (Radio Resource Control) procedure re-initiation for a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system is provided. The UE includes a plurality of RRC procedures, which are started with a random access preamble procedure. The method includes initiating an RRC procedure of the plurality of RRC procedures, initiating the random access preamble procedure corresponding to the initiated RRC procedure, transmitting an RRC request message corresponding to the initiated RRC procedure after completion of the random access preamble procedure e, and re-initiating the random access preamble procedure when receiving a contention resolution message which corresponds to the random access preamble procedure, but does not belong to the initiated RRC procedure.
US08483134B2

A radio transmission apparatus and a radio transmission method suppress lowering of the throughput caused by switching between the single carrier communication method and the multi-carrier communication method while suppressing increase in the signaling amount. A PHR threshold value setter sets a threshold value at a position greater by a predetermined value than the PHR at which the throughput performance of the SC-FDMA coincides with that of the OFDMA. A trigger signal transmission judger judges that a mobile station transmits a trigger signal for switching from the OFDMA to the SC-FDMA if the PHR in the OFDMA communication method is lower than the threshold value.
US08483128B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide an apparatus, comprising a base station operable in a wireless network, the base station including a scheduler, and wherein the scheduler schedules variable length packets for transmission based on transmission times to transmit on each of M spatial channels to mobile stations operable in the wireless network by filling the M spatial channels using data packets buffered for the mobile stations.
US08483121B2

The present invention relates to a method for energy saving in a telecommunication system with at least one first base station 24 for enabling communication within a first cell. A signal having a frame structure is transmitted in the first cell by the first base station 24. The structure of at least some frames comprises an overhead part with at least synchronization or system information. The first base station 24 is in a normal mode operated to transmit at least the overhead part so that it substantially reaches all user terminals within the first cell covering a first area 27. The method is particularly characterized in that the first base station 24 in a power saving mode is operated to transmit at least the overhead part so that it substantially reaches all user terminals within the first cell covering a second area 23 being larger than the first area 27.
US08483113B2

An apparatus and method for providing a Multicast and Broadcast Service (MBS) in a Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) system are provided. The apparatus includes a fragmentation unit, a Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) packet generator, and a communication unit. The fragmentation unit fragmentizes MBS traffic received from a network for synchronization. The GRE packet generator generates a GRE packet with each of segments from the fragmentation unit. The communication unit transmits the GRE packet from the GRE packet generator to a Base Station (BS) in consideration of a packet period.
US08483110B2

An uplink transmission method includes acquiring, by a user equipment, a maximum number of hybrid automatic repeat request transmission (M-Tmax). The M-Tmax is an integral multiple of a transmission time interval bundle size. The user equipment performs uplink transmission according to the M-Tmax after a TTI bundle activation time.
US08483104B1

Provided is a high-frequency module that can prevent a transmission signal from reaching a reception circuit and that can achieve high mounting density. A first duplexer 110 for a first frequency band is mounted on a circuit substrate 200, and a second transmission filter 122 and a second reception filter 124 that constitute a second duplexer 120 for a second frequency band are embedded in the circuit substrate 200. The second transmission filter 122 and the second reception filter 124 are embedded in the circuit substrate in locations that overlap at least a part of a projection region that is formed by projecting the first duplexer 110 in a thickness direction of the circuit substrate. The first frequency band and the second frequency band are separated from each other by at least a prescribed frequency range.
US08483100B2

A voice communication device, supporting both Internet and public switched telephone network telephony, performs call session hand off between Internet and public switched telephone networks. Hand off, with or without user confirmation, may be half or full duplex, yielding common and differing incoming and outgoing call session pathways. In addition to mid-call hand offs, hand off may also be performed as part of the call session setup. Information regarding the destination network is exchanged on the network from which the hand off will occur. Voice communication devices are each configured with a plurality of communication interfaces including a public switched telephone network interface and an Internet interface. Basic full-duplex operations include immediate and mid-call hand offs between the public switched telephone network and Internet. Mixed pathway communication and handoffs using partly Internet and partly public switched telephone network are also contemplated.
US08483084B2

A deployed communications network, providing voice, video and data, has millions of devices on the network including customer premises equipment (CPE), such as set top boxes and residential gateways. The present invention relates to the use of scaling techniques for minimizing the cost of hardware yet provide a monitoring solution for large networks. CPE's are grouped into groups according to geographical location and/or quality of operation, and the frequency and order of data collection is based on a hierarchical, round-robin structure of the CPE groups and the status of each CPE.
US08483083B2

A computer-readable medium stores a program causing a computer to execute acquiring a transmission interval for packets transmitted from a first-source to a first-destination; judging whether a given packet, among the packets whose destination has been changed to a second-destination are transmitted from a second-source, is a designated-packet requiring acknowledgment for the preceding packet; transmitting the given packet after acknowledgment is received, if acknowledgment is required; correcting an interval between the designated-packet and the subsequent packet, to be shorter than intervals for 2 packets transmitted from the first-source to the first-destination and corresponding to the designated-packet and the subsequent packet, if an interval between transmission of the preceding packet and transmission of the designated-packet exceeds intervals for 2 packets transmitted from the first-source to the first-destination and corresponding to the preceding packet and the designated-packet; and transmitting the subsequent packet from the second-source to the second-destination, at the corrected interval.
US08483077B2

A path configuration message is sent to nodes in a multi-hop network along a path between a source node and destination nodes. The path configuration message includes path information and one or more special channel access parameters associated with the path information. The path configuration message temporarily changes the channel access priority for packets matching the path information in the special message. The nodes along the path therefore have higher channel access priority relative to other nearby nodes and other traffic flows. At the end of the a length of a time determined by a time to live parameter in the special message, the nodes resume using default channel access parameters in place of the special channel access parameters for packets matching the path information.
US08483075B2

A communication method including receiving a common channel signal, transmitting information indicating a reception state based on data included in the received signal, determining whether or not the data included in the received signal is acquirable, measuring fading speed based on the received signal in the case where the data is determined not to be acquirable, estimating whether or not the data is determined to be acquirable by re-determination based on the measurement result, and adding specified signals before and after the information indicating the reception state when the estimating results in a determination that the data is acquirable by re-determination.
US08483071B2

A method for verifying the integrity of a communication link is disclosed herein. In selected embodiments, such a method may include detecting, during normal operation of a communication link, a condition indicative of a high failure rate (HFR) on the communication link. The method may further include placing the communication link in an HFR state as a result of the condition. While in HFR state, the method may repeatedly transmit test I/Os over the communication link. The method may then automatically exit HFR state and resume normal operation on the communication link when one or more of the following has occurred: a selected number of test I/Os have been successfully transmitted over the communication link, and a number of test I/Os have been successfully transmitted over the communication link for a selected period of time. A corresponding system, apparatus, and computer program product are also disclosed and claimed herein.
US08483065B2

Particular embodiments provide an access gateway that facilitates communication between a plurality of access technologies. The access gateway facilitates data communication with an access terminal through a bearer path. A radio resource manager is configured to provide radio resource management functions for the communications. The radio resource manager is decoupled from the bearer path and provides control of radio transmission characteristics for the bearer path to the gateway. Because the radio resource manager is not in the bearer path, the access gateway may be access technology agnostic. Thus, the access gateway does not need to have access-specific modules based on the radio technology for each bearer path.
US08483059B2

This invention aims to avoid and resolve congestions in wireless 4G networks. The method is based on a central self-organizing network (SON) server, which dynamically changes neighbor lists on congested base station and on all base stations in vicinity. The procedure is triggered by measuring relative committed traffic rate and air interface utilization of the base station. When base station enters into congested state, it notifies the SON server. The SON server creates new neighbor lists for all base stations in the vicinity and removes the congested base station from these lists. With new neighbor lists propagated to mobile stations, the latter won't scan and initiate handovers to the congested base station. The SON server additionally creates a new dense neighbor list and changes handover triggers settings of the congested base station. The mobile stations consequently find other handover opportunities and connect to different base stations. As the air interface resources are released, the base station leaves the congested state.
US08483051B2

The network relay apparatus is provided. The network relay apparatus includes: multiple ports, each being provided to send and receive a frame to and from one of multiple external devices; and a frame processor configured to perform flooding, in order to relay a received frame that is received via one of the multiple ports as a receiving port, with a preset flooding target according to an attribute of a transmit port that sends the received frame.
US08483047B2

A method, a terminal, and a system structure for transmitting and receiving services, which relate to the field of communication technology, so as to realize coordinated operation between Adaptive Code and Modulation and Hitless Switch Mode functions in a microwave communication system, thus improving system transmission efficiency and transmission reliability. The method for transmitting services includes the following steps. A transmitting end of an active link receives an ACM switching indication fed back by a receiving end of the active link, and a transmitting end of a standby link receives an ACM switching indication fed back by a receiving end of the standby link; the transmitting end of the active link performs ACM switching on the services transmitted through the active link and transmits the services; and the transmitting end of the standby link performs ACM switching on the services transmitted through the standby link and transmits the services.
US08483040B2

Methods, systems, and apparatuses, including computer programs encoded on computer-readable media, for determining if a super short mode is enabled. Transmitting a first packet that includes a synchronization pattern, and a payload if the super short mode is enabled, and transmitting a second packet that includes a preamble, a header, the synchronization pattern and the payload if the super short mode is not enabled.
US08483039B2

A transmitting device for transmitting data and pilot symbols in an OFDM transmission system having transmission antennas. The device includes symbol generating means for generating data said pilot symbols, means for transmitting the data and pilot symbols using subcarriers of the OFDM system. The symbol generating means generates a first and second type pilot symbol, the second having an inverted value of the first so that a first pilot symbol pattern to be transmitted by using one of said plurality of transmission antennas has a different pattern in the frequency and time dimension from a second pilot symbol pattern to be transmitted by using another transmission antenna. First and second pilot symbols are comprised in respective first and second pilot symbol patterns, where at least some of the first and second pilot symbols have the same time allocation and being alternately identical and inverted to each other.
US08483036B2

The present invention relates to a method of searching a code sequence in a cell based mobile communication system, by which a receiving side is able to code sequence detection efficiently. In a code sequence transmitting method for an efficient code sequence search in a mobile communication system, the code sequence transmitting method includes a step of boosting at least one tone for a code sequence and a step of transmitting the code sequence having the boosted at least one tone to a receiving side.
US08483035B2

In a method and an apparatus for inspecting a thermally assisted magnetic recording head element, a specimen is mounted on a table movable in a plane of a scanning probe microscope device, evanescent light is generated from a portion of light emission of evanescent light of the specimen, scattered light of the evanescent light is detected by moving the table in the plane while a cantilever of the scanning probe microscope having a probe is vertically vibrated in the vicinity of a surface of the specimen, and an intensity distribution of the evanescent light emitted from the portion of light emission of evanescent light or a surface profile of the portion of light emission of evanescent light of the specimen is inspected using position information of generation of the evanescent light based on the detected scattered light.
US08483033B2

An objective optical system for an optical information recording/reproducing apparatus, at least one surface of the objective optical system being configured to be a phase shift surface having a phase shift structure, wherein: the phase shift surface has a first area contributing to converging first, second and third light beams onto recording surfaces of first, second and third optical discs, respectively; in the first area, the phase shift surface has at least two types of phase shift structures including a first phase shift structure having first steps and a second phase shift structure having second steps; the phase shift surface has a plurality of combinations of annular zones which satisfy a condition: 0.95
US08483030B2

A multilayer optical disc which has three or more recording layers and enables easy positioning of a focused beam spot onto a particular recording layer in which a BCA is disposed. An inter-layer distance between a particular recording layer and a recording layer adjacent to the particular recording layer is larger than the other inter-layer distances in which, at the focused beam spot positioning, the focused beam spot traverses the said adjacent recording layer earlier than the other recording layer adjacent to the particular recording layer.
US08483029B2

A media player may occasionally be unable to play or continue to play a particular item of media. When that occurs, the media player outputs an error indication that is related to the type of media that the problem media item is representative of. For example, if the problem item is a movie, then the media player may display an error indication having the appearance of broken movie film. If the problem media item is music, then the media player may display an error indication having the appearance of a broken compact disc (“CD”). Thus whatever the type of media that is not playing, the media player outputs an error indication that is appropriate for that type of media. The error indications output by the player are therefore context-based or media-appropriate.
US08483023B2

An object of the present invention is to reduce the influence of a stray light incident on a light receiving device by reflection of an unnecessary diffraction light not contributing to write or read on a disc surface at write or read of an optical disc having a large surface reflectivity with respect to an information recording surface. A position in which a diffraction light with an n-order in an advancing path and the n-order in a returning path, reflected on the information recording surface of a first information recording medium, is focused by a condensing lens is different from a position in which a diffraction light different from the n-order diffraction light in at least one of the advancing path and the returning path, reflected on a surface of the first information recording medium, is focused by the condensing lens.
US08483014B2

A capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) includes a structured membrane which possesses improved frequency response characteristics. Some embodiments provide CMUTs which include a substrate, a first electrode, a second movable electrode, and a structured membrane. The movable second electrode is spaced apart from the first electrode and is coupled to the structured membrane. The structured membrane is shaped to possess a selected resonant frequency or an optimized frequency response. The structured membrane can include a plate and a beam coupled to the plate such that the resonant frequency of the structured membrane is greater than the resonant frequency of the plate. Furthermore, the ratio of the resonant frequency of the structured membrane over the mass of the structured membrane can be greater than the ratio of the resonant frequency of the plate over the mass of the plate. In some embodiments, the CMUT is an embedded spring ESCMUT.
US08483012B2

A controlling method for ultra-sound sensor is provided. The method includes the steps of measuring a distance of an obstacle, determining whether the distance is smaller than a distance threshold, and adjusting a driving voltage if the distance is smaller than the distance threshold.
US08483009B2

Embodiments use seismic processing methods that account for the spatial variability of surface wave velocities. Embodiments analyze surface wave properties by rapidly characterizing spatial variability of the surface waves in the seismic survey data (302). Filtering criteria are formed using the spatial variability of the surface waves (204). The filtering criteria can then be used to remove at least a portion of the surface waves from the seismic data (206, 319). The rapid characterization involves estimating a local group velocity of the surface waves by cross-correlation of the analytic signals (302).
US08483002B2

Disclosed are a unit cell capable of improving a reliability by enhancing a data sensing margin in a read operation, and a nonvolatile memory device with the same. The unit cell of a nonvolatile memory device includes: an antifuse having a first terminal between an input terminal and an output terminal; and a first switching unit coupled between a second terminal of the antifuse and a ground voltage terminal.
US08482996B2

Various embodiments of a nonvolatile memory apparatus configured to operate in a first operation mode and a second operation mode are disclosed. In one exemplary embodiment, the apparatus may include: a controller configured to enable complementary signal input/output buffers in response to a command for entry into the first operation mode and disable the complementary signal input/output buffers in response to a command for transition to the second operation mode while operating under the first operation mode.
US08482987B2

Various aspects of a nonvolatile memory have an improved erase suspend procedure. A bias arrangement is applied to word lines of an erase sector undergoing an erase procedure interrupted by an erase suspend procedure. As a result, another operation performed during erase suspend, such as a read operation or program operation, has more accurate results due to decreased leakage current from any over-erased nonvolatile memory cells of the erase sector.
US08482984B2

A nonvolatile semiconductor memory device having a plurality of electrically rewritable nonvolatile memory cells connected in series together includes a select gate transistor connected in series to the serial combination of memory cells. A certain one of the memory cells which is located adjacent to the select gets transistor is for use as a dummy cell. This dummy cell is not used for data storage. During data erasing, the dummy cell is applied with the same bias voltage as that for the other memory cells.
US08482969B2

A memory according to an embodiment includes bit lines, word lines, source lines, magnetic tunnel junction elements and transistors that are serially connected between the bit lines and the source lines, respectively, and a sense amplifier that detects data stored in the magnetic tunnel junction elements. The semiconductor storage device includes multiplexers between the bit lines and the sense amplifier in order to select one of the bit lines to be connected to the sense amplifier, and write amplifiers that are located corresponding to memory cell blocks each of which includes memory cells each including the magnetic tunnel junction element and the transistor and are connected to the bit lines or connected via the multiplexers to the bit lines. To write data, the sense amplifier applies a write voltage to the bit lines and then the write amplifiers hold the write voltage.
US08482959B2

A method of repairing a memory device is provided. If an erase process is unsuccessful, a repair process is performed. A programmed state of the memory device is determined, A subsequent erase process dependent on the programmed state is performed. Also, a method of programming and erasing a memory device is provided. The memory device includes first and second electrodes and a switching layer therebetween. A first on-state resistance characteristic of the memory device is provided in programming the memory device by application of a first voltage to the gate of a transistor in series with the memory device. Other on-state resistance characteristics of the memory device, different from the first on-state resistance characteristic, may be provided by application of other voltages, different from the first voltage, to the gate of the transistor.
US08482958B2

Provided is a current steering element that can prevent write didturb even when an electrical pulse with different polarities is applied and that can cause a large current to flow through a variable resistance element. The current steering element includes a first electrode (32), a second electrode (31), and a current steering layer (33). The current steering layer (33) comprises SiNx (where 0
US08482957B2

A memory unit including a first transistor spanning a first transistor region in a first layer of the memory unit; a second transistor spanning a second transistor region in a second layer of the memory unit; a first resistive sense memory (RSM) cell spanning a first memory region in a third layer of the memory unit; and a second RSM cell spanning a second memory region in the third layer of the memory unit, wherein the first transistor is electrically coupled to the first RSM cell, and the second transistor is electrically coupled to the second RSM cell, wherein the second layer is between the first and third layers, wherein the first and second transistor have an transistor overlap region, and wherein the first memory region and the second memory region do not extend beyond the first transistor region and the second transistor region.
US08482953B2

A composite resistance variable element includes a first resistance variable element in which a resistance value varies corresponding to a direction of inner magnetization, and a second resistance variable element connected in series to the first resistance variable element. A resistance value of the second resistance variable element varies corresponding to a magnitude of at least one of a voltage applied to the second resistance variable element and a current flowing through the second resistance variable element, irrespective of whether the voltage and the current are positive or negative.
US08482947B2

An apparatus and method for controlling the delivery of power from a DC source to an AC grid includes an inverter configured to deliver power from the unipolar input source to the AC grid and an inverter controller. The inverter includes an input converter, an active filter, and an output converter. The inverter controller includes an input converter controller, an active filter controller and an output converter controller. The input converter controller is configured to control a current delivered by the input converter to a galvanically isolated unipolar bus of the inverter. The output converter is configured to control the output converter to deliver power to the AC grid. Additionally, the active filter controller is configured to control the active filter to supply substantially all the power that is deliver by the output controller to the AC grid at a grid frequency.
US08482946B2

System and method for protecting a power converter. A system includes a threshold generator configured to generate a threshold signal, and a first comparator configured to receive the threshold signal and a first signal and to generate a comparison signal. The first signal is associated with an input current for a power converter. Additionally, the system includes a pulse-width-modulation generator configured to receive the comparison signal and generate a modulation signal in response to the comparison signal, and a switch configured to receive the modulation signal and adjust the input current for the power converter. The threshold signal is associated with a threshold magnitude as a function of time. The threshold magnitude increases with time at a first slope during a first period, and the threshold magnitude increases with time at a second slope during a second period. The first slope and the second slope are different.
US08482935B2

Exemplary systems and methods provide a transformer-isolated current-fed quadratic full-bridge converter topology. The optimal interfacing of a current source, such as a solar panel, can be implemented by using current-fed converters. The current-fed converter can operate within the whole range of a UI curve from short-circuit to open-circuit condition and its input voltage can be readily controlled. The quadratic behaviour between input and output in regard of a duty cycle allows large conversion ratios.
US08482934B2

A method and structure are provided for implementing surface mount components with symmetric reference balance. A first reference and an incoming signal are received in a surface mounted device (SMD) package and a second reference and the outgoing signal are output from the SMD package. A capacitor structure is defined within the SMD package between the first reference and the second reference. The capacitor structure includes a balanced impedance structure between the first reference and the second reference. A component connected between the received incoming signal and output signal is generally centrally located within the capacitor structure.
US08482924B2

The invention provides an apparatus for dissipating heat produced by a laser for lighting projection to enable a passive encapsulated enclosure. The laser is mounted into a collar system which integrates to the internal enclosure body with a single or plurality of bonded extending facet planes. The facet planes can conduct and radiate heat to the internal enclosure body planes which dissipate heat to the outside environment of the closed enclosure as a heat sink.
US08482920B2

In a device for cooling an electronic circuit board comprising at least one component covered with an exchanger cover, the device includes a heat sink covering all or some of the electronic circuit board, and at least one heat pipe per component, each heat pipe being capable of carrying away the heat from the component with which it is associated to at least one end of the electronic circuit board via a zone of the heat pipe called the condensing zone. The device further includes at least one heat-exchange part located on the end of the electronic circuit board and mounted freely on the heat sink, each heat pipe being attached to the heat-exchange part by means of its condensing zone.
US08482907B2

A wall hanging structure of an electronic device according to the present invention includes: a wall hanging bracket disposed on a rear surface of a chassis; a main body fastening screw screwed from the rear surface of the chassis into a rear surface of a main body unit; a bracket fastening screw screwed from a rear surface of the wall hanging bracket into the rear surface of the chassis; and a coupling member which extends inside the chassis between the main body fastening screw and the bracket fastening screw and which couples both fastening screws to each other.
US08482905B2

A mounting module for a DC distribution assembly is provided. The module includes a base portion that holds at least first and second electrically conductive straps thereon. The straps are disposed on and coupled to the electrically non-conductive base portion. The module further includes a first breaker pole assembly having a first line side electrically coupled to the first electrically conductive strap. The mounting module further includes a second breaker pole assembly having a second line side electrically coupled to the second electrically conductive strap.
US08482903B2

A front accessible metal clad switchgear assembly comprising multiple compartments defined within an electrical enclosure is provided. The compartments interchangeably accommodate electrical components, for example, current transformers, a circuit breaker, a control power transformer, an epoxy encapsulated potential transformer, etc., and bus bars in predetermined positions for allowing front access to the electrical components and bus bars. The front accessible switchgear assembly further comprises a plenum chamber rearwardly positioned in the electrical enclosure and in communication with the compartments to provide an exit path for releasing pressure and gases. A mounting block assembly is positioned in one or more of the compartments for mounting, enclosing, and providing front access to the electrical components. The mounting block assembly is configured to reduce temperature rise in the compartments. Fuse sleeve assemblies operably connected to the control power transformer and the potential transformer allow high voltage primary connections in the electrical enclosure.
US08482892B2

A circuit and method protect switching devices from alternating current overload. By protecting the switching devices from AC overload, the reliability of the equipment using the switching devices is improved, cost for repair is decreased and information regarding the cause of the AC overload is available.
US08482885B2

A hybrid switch circuit includes a hybrid switch that couples an input conductor connected to an AC power supply to an output conductor connected to a load. The hybrid switch includes a power semiconductor in parallel with an electromagnetic relay. A control circuit turns on the hybrid switch by turning on the power semiconductor at a zero-voltage crossing of the AC voltage to provide a conductive path and then closing the relay to provide a conductive bypass path that bypasses the power semiconductor. The control circuit turns off the hybrid switch by opening the relay and subsequently turning off the power semiconductor at a zero crossing of the load current. The control circuit operates in response to a hybrid switch control signal that indicates whether an operating fault condition exists.
US08482872B1

Approaches for a distributed temperature detector architecture in a head disk interface system of a hard-disk drive (HDD). A HDD may include a read/write head comprising a read element and a write element and a read/write integrated circuit (IC). The read/write head may comprise (a) a first temperature sensor that is located relatively near an air bearing surface (ABS) of the read/write head and (b) a second temperature sensor that is offset from the ABS. The read/write IC is configured to detect when the read/write head makes physical contact with a disk based on a difference in temperature measured by the first and second temperature sensor. The first and second temperature sensors form a bridge circuit, such as a Wheatstone bridge, with a first IC resistor and a second IC resistor that both reside in the read/write IC, allowing the temperature of the read/write head to be accurately measured.
US08482871B2

Provided is a lens barrel including a subject-side lens guided by guide bars, comprising a first guide shaft that is disposed within a cylindrical fixed cylinder and oriented along an axial direction of the fixed cylinder; a second guide shaft that is disposed outside the fixed cylinder and oriented along the axial direction, and arranged such that at least a portion thereof overlaps with the first guide shaft in a longitudinal direction of the first guide shaft; a first holding member that holds a first lens, includes a first engaging member that engages with the first guide shaft, and moves along the first guide shaft; and a second holding member that holds a second lens positioned on a subject side of the first lens, includes a second engaging member that engages with the second guide shaft, and moves along the second guide shaft, wherein at least a portion of movement range of the first engaging member on the first guide shaft overlaps in the axial direction with at least a portion of movement range of the second engaging member on the second guide shaft.
US08482869B2

Disclosed are a lens actuator and a camera module having the lens actuator. The lens actuator, which includes: a housing; a magnet installed in the housing; a lens holder supporting a lens and installed to ascend and descend in the housing; a spring coupled to the lens holder and supported by the housing to elastically support the lens holder; and a coil coupled to the lens holder in such a way that the coil faces the magnet, a lead line of the coil being interposed between the lens holder and the spring, forms an electric connection structure between the coil and the spring that durable against shocks and humidity, improving the reliability of electric connection, and simplifies the connection structure between the spring and the coil, making it easier to manufacture the lens actuator.
US08482868B2

Adjustable mounts for optical elements or the like that may include absolute position information feedback. For some embodiments, position data may be generated independent of displacement measurement. Position data feedback may be provided to driver embodiments, such as piezoelectric inertia drivers, by a controller and used to achieve a desired position setting for an adjustable mount.
US08482862B2

An optical system including, in order from an object: a first lens group having positive refractive power; a second lens group having negative refractive power; a third lens group having positive refractive power; and a fourth lens group having negative refractive power. The second lens group has, in order from the object, a front group having negative refractive power and a rear group. In various embodiments, the following conditional expressions are satisfied, 0.4
US08482856B2

An optical element array sheet is provided with: a first area in which an optical element array is arranged that is composed of a plurality of optical elements arranged at a prescribed period, a second area formed at the end of the first area with a surface shape that differs from the first area, and a trough formed at the border of the first area and the second area. The side-wall on the second-area side of the trough is formed inclined with respect to a reference line that extends in the thickness direction of the optical element array with the bottom of the trough as the point of origin.
US08482852B2

The focusing operation of a microscope, control rotary knobs which receive the motion of fingers or hand of an operator to change the focus position relative to a sample under observation. Two of the control rotary knobs are on a common shaft and coaxial with one another and rotationally fixed with respect to one another, and are connected to a position encoder. A toggle switch which is connected to the control circuit and can be actuated by touching or moving one or both rotary control knobs. Whereby the drive circuit is configured such that it generates, as a function of the rotation of the two rotary knobs and as a function of the actuation or position of the toggle switch, a rough or fine adjustment of the focus position relative to the sample under observation.
US08482849B2

A Raman amplifier, at the time of start up or the like, drives a predetermined number of pump light sources among a plurality of pump light sources, in a stable region, and judges a Raman gain in the transmission line, and based on the judgment result, specifies a pump light source to switch on and a pump light source to switch off, among the plurality of pump light sources, and controls the drive state of the pump light sources that are switched on. As a result, the plurality of pump light sources are appropriately driven corresponding to the system requirements so that stable behavior is possible, and constant control of Raman gain can be realized at a high accuracy.
US08482841B1

A photonic/plasmonic device is disclosed that uses a ferroelectric material and its magnetization state in order to affect the physical properties of electromagnetic waves. The magnetization state of the ferromagnetic material may either be zero or nonzero. When the magnetization state of the ferromagnetic material is non-zero physical properties of the electromagnetic waves are altered. This effect can be used to make switches and the like.
US08482840B2

A display device of this embodiment includes a first insulating substrate having a display surface; a first resistive layer disposed on a surface of the first insulating substrate, the surface being opposite the display surface; a first electrochromic layer disposed on a surface of the first resistive layer; an electrolyte layer disposed on a surface of the first electrochromic layer; and a plurality of first electrodes connected to the first resistive layer. In the display device, a voltage is applied to the plurality of first electrodes so that a voltage gradient is generated in an in-plane direction of the first resistive layer.
US08482839B2

The invention relates to an electrochromic optical lens and a method for the preparation thereof. The lens includes an electrode and a counter-electrode bearing an electrochromic material separated by a solid polymer electrolyte. The method consists of preparing the electrode and the counter-electrode and the assembly thereof by the surfaces thereof bearing the electrochromic material by interleaving an electrolyte membrane between said surfaces. The electrolyte membrane is interleaved in the form of a composition free of volatile liquid solvent, including a precursor of the polymer and a salt, which is liquid or which has a dynamic viscosity [mu] between 100 and 106 Pa·s.
US08482826B2

A dither pattern is formed in such a manner that threshold values 1 to 16 are dispersed in regard to the order of magnitudes of the threshold values. First, there is made a calculation of multiplying each value of the image data by a ratio of 1/2. Thereby, there is produced the divided 17-valued data where every value of all pixels is “2”. Next, binarization is carried out for the divided data by using the dither pattern. As a result, binary data at the first pass is obtained. Next, there is obtained the data by a product of a ratio (1/2+1/2) obtained by adding 1/2 to the above ratio and each value of the image data. Binarization is carried out for the image data by using the dither pattern. This produces binary data. Finally, dot data for the second pass is obtained by subtracting data from the binary data.
US08482820B2

An image-capturing system includes: a stage that has mounted and fixed thereon a glass slide on which at least one sample is placed and that circulates in an endless-track shape; a line sensor that scans only a part of the sample; an imaging driving mechanism that moves a relative position of the line sensor and the stage in a direction perpendicular to a scanning direction of the line sensor; and an optical system that focuses an image of the sample on the line sensor.
US08482817B2

An image reading apparatus capable of reading documents includes a reading unit including a light emitting element, a mechanism configured to move the reading unit, and a control unit configured to control the reading unit and the mechanism both to carry out reading by turning on the light emitting element and moving the reading unit and to temporarily stop moving the reading unit upon occurrence of a predetermined factor. The control unit sets a first current value which is caused to flow through the light emitting element when reading is carried out and sets a second current value which is less than the first current value and which is caused to flow through the light emitting element when the reading unit is temporarily stopped.
US08482813B2

An image-scanning device wherein plural images of an object are picked up inverted and reduced in size by image-forming optical systems arranged to be adjacent to each other, and then restored by an image processing system. Each optical system includes a first optical element having a first focal length; an aperture member located at a focus position in a rear side of the first optical element; and a second optical element provided in a rear side of the aperture member and having a second focal length shorter than the first focal length, respectively disposed from a side of the object being picked up to a side of the image pickup device. In between optical systems, corresponding image pick up devices thereof are arranged to be adjacent to each other, the image pickup devices including a region in which the images picked up by the image pickup devices are overlapped.
US08482811B2

A recording apparatus according to the present invention includes: a recording portion for recording image data on a random-access recording medium; a reproducing portion for reproducing image data recorded on the recording medium and recording stop position information indicating a recording stop position of the image data on the recording medium; and a control portion for controlling the reproducing portion to reproduce the image data from a position a predetermined time before the recording stop position in response to a preview instruction and stop the reproduction at the recording stop position.
US08482806B2

An object of the present invention is for a user originally having authority to be capable of performing a copy operation without damaging convenience. In order to achieve the above object, a device according to the present invention comprises connecting unit for connecting data of a first document into which first certification information to be inputted for permitting a copy of the document is embedded to data of a second document into which second certification information to be inputted for permitting a copy of the document is embedded.
US08482796B2

A color processing apparatus according to the present invention is a color processing apparatus that calculates spectral reflectance including a fluorescent component in a sample under a target illuminant. The color processing apparatus includes first means for inputting, for each of a plurality of waveform types, spectral radiance including an excitation wavelength region and the amount of fluorescence in the sample corresponding to the spectral radiance; second means for determining, from spectral radiance of the target illuminant including the excitation wavelength region and the input spectral radiance and amount of fluorescence, the amount of fluorescence in the sample under the target illuminant; third means for inputting spectral reflectance excluding the fluorescent component in the sample; and fourth means for determining, by using the determined amount of fluorescence in the sample under the target illuminant and the input spectral reflectance excluding the fluorescent component in the sample, spectral reflectance including the fluorescent component in the sample under the target illuminant.
US08482794B2

An image processing apparatus regardless of usage environment, at any time, for any occasion, without requiring a dedicated chart or device, spatial frequency conversion method and program for the apparatus that can calculate spatial frequency response characteristics necessary for calibration. The apparatus includes first and second image reading units reading a print-out image of a patch image stored in a storage section, and first and second spatial frequency conversion units performing spatial frequency conversion on images read by first and second reading units. Based on the amounts of change, caused through processing by first spatial frequency conversion unit, in spatial frequency response, the apparatus determines a patch image used for spatial frequency conversion, and calculates correction amounts for conversion by first and second spatial frequency conversion units, according to a result of spatial frequency conversion, using the patch image, by first and second spatial frequency conversion units.
US08482792B2

An image forming apparatus having a recording head with a plurality of printing elements comprising: a first quantization unit that performs a first quantization process on input image data to calculate N-level data by using a screen parameter corresponding to a screen condition of a target device; a conversion unit that converts the N-level data to M-level data (M>N); a configuring unit that configures printing density for each of the printing elements for each scan, using the M-level data; a second quantization unit that performs a second quantization process on the printing density for the scan of interest, using constraining information for the scan of interest; and a generating unit that generates the constraining information for the scan of interest, from the printing density configured for the preceding scan and the result of the second quantization process for the preceding scan.
US08482775B2

A control method of an information processing apparatus in which a plurality of printer drivers for setting set values in setting items of print data to be output by a printing apparatus are installed, the method comprises: under the control of an operating system having a function of controlling the plurality of printer drivers to share set values set using the plurality of printer drivers, a setting item determination step of determining, upon switching of output target printing apparatuses between a plurality of printing apparatuses corresponding to the plurality of printer drivers, whether or not setting items according to a printing apparatus before switching and setting items according to a printing apparatus after switching include common setting items.
US08482773B2

The invention relates to an image reading apparatus and to a method of controlling this apparatus. The image reading apparatus acquires a profile capable of being set as processing applied to image data in an information processing device, re-classifies, for the purpose of display on the image reading apparatus, the name of the acquired profile and the settings of the profile, converts this profile name and the settings to items displayed on a display unit of the image reading apparatus, and displays the items on the display unit. The information of a profile selected based upon an item displayed on the display unit is transmitted to the information processing device, and the image data generated by the image reading apparatus is transmitted to the information processing device in response to a request from the information processing device.
US08482769B2

This invention provides a first communication apparatus, which makes a facsimile communication via a packet communication network and can describe different contents image header information each including a date, time, source information, destination information, and the like in image data having a predetermined number of pixels upon sending the image data to a plurality of destinations, and a communication method. This invention also provides a second communication apparatus which makes a facsimile communication via a packet communication network and has a first mode in which image header information such as a date, time, source information, destination information, and the like can be described in image data having a predetermined number of pixels and can send the image data, and a second mode in which image data having one of various resolutions and an indefinite number of pixels can be sent.
US08482759B2

A CPU of a printing apparatus selects one of a plurality of setting permission information items based on sheet property information in a case in which printing processing is performed employing a specific sheet type. Subsequently, the CPU of the printing apparatus performs a setting regarding each of a plurality of printing setting items so as to obtain a setting permitted in the selected setting permission information item in a case in which printing processing is performed employing a specific sheet type. Thus, a printing apparatus capable of executing the printing settings of a plurality of printing setting items appropriately is provided.
US08482755B2

A print controller and associated methods are disclosed. Some print jobs received in the print controller are stored in a rasterized or ripped job spool. The release of these jobs is coordinated by a control system in the print controller. The control system processes an algorithm to determine a sequence of releasing one or more print jobs stored in the rasterized job spool. The control system generates a job despool token and transmits the job despool token to a rasterized job handling system through the data stream of the raw print jobs (such as through the interpreter). The job despool token follows the normal data stream of print jobs through the print controller to the rasterized job handling system. Responsive to receiving and processing the job despool token, the rasterized job handling system releases the print job from the rasterized job spool to a print queue.
US08482753B2

A multifunction printer is capable of performing a plurality of functions. Each function is performed by a corresponding device incorporated in the multifunction printer. The multifunction printer includes a display unit, a malfunction detecting section, and a display controller. The malfunction detecting section is configured to detect a malfunction that has occurred within the multifunction printer. When one of the plurality of functions is selected, if the malfunction detecting section has detected the malfunction, the display controller causes the display unit to display a malfunction message indicative of the malfunction.
US08482741B2

Correction factors for the ALR and PTR parameters of magnetic-head sliders are determined by calculating an effective reflectivity and a corresponding PCOR at each pixel of the air-bearing surface. The absolute value of reflectivity at each pixel of the AlTiC air-bearing surface is obtained from an empirical equation relating it to modulation. The ratio of Al2O3 and TiC in the AlTiC surface is then calculated at every pixel assuming a linear relationship between the absolute value of AlTiC reflectivity and the theoretical reflectivity of each constituent. The linear relationship is then also used to calculate the effective (complex) reflectivity for the AlTiC material from the relative concentrations of Al2O3 and TiC at each pixel.
US08482739B1

A heterodyne photomixer spectrometer comprises a receiver photomixer that is driven at a different frequency than the source photomixer, thereby maintaining the coherent nature of the detection, eliminating etalon effects, and providing not only the amplitude but also the phase of the received signal. The heterodyne technique can be applied where the source and receiver elements are components of a waveguide thereby forming an on-chip heterodyne spectrometer.
US08482735B2

A laser gas analyzer which can include a light source unit including a diode laser that irradiates a gas to be measured with laser light while scanning a wavelength thereof; a detection unit including a light receiving element, a gain-variable amplifier into which an output signal of the light receiving element is input, an A/D converter into which the output signal of the amplifier is input, and an arithmetic processing unit that performs a concentration analysis of the gas to be measured; a peak-to-peak detector that detects a peak-to-peak value of the output data of the A/D converter in each scan of the wavelength of the laser light irradiated from the diode laser; and a gain adjustment unit that, when the output signal of the peak-to-peak detector deviates from a preset threshold, adjusts the gain of the amplifier in a direction of bringing the output signal back to within the threshold.
US08482732B2

A method and system for alignment of a tool to a workpiece in a continuous or discontinuous material flow are disclosed. The workpiece may be a portion of a web of material. An imaging system captures first and second images of the workpiece at first and second occasions respectively. Microscopic native features of the workpiece are selected, detected, tracked and/or compared in the first and second images. Based on the correspondence between, tracking or relative displacement of features as captured in the first and second images, an alignment to the workpiece is controlled. In embodiments, the workpiece and a tool, a projected image or a pattern to be imparted to the workpiece by a lithography or photolithography apparatus are aligned based upon positioning information determined from an analysis of correlated features or texture in the images. Positioning information may include a positioning error or a distortion indication.
US08482724B2

Brightness factors associated with shade fabric may be utilized when shading a building. A brightness factor may incorporate an openness factor, a visible light reflectance, a diffusion factor, a color, or other characteristics of the shade fabric. The brightness factor may be utilized when selecting a particular shade fabric for a room, building or other location. Additionally, the brightness factor may be utilized by an automated shade control system. The shade fabric selection may affect the building envelope by facilitating the optimization of daylighting, reduction of artificial electric lighting needs, minimization of glare conditions, and reduction of thermal load.
US08482722B2

A distance measurement method includes measuring a plurality of integrated signals at a plurality of modulation phase offsets; estimating at least one integrated signal for at least one of the plurality of modulation phase offsets, respectively, to adjust its reception time relative to an integrated signal for another of the plurality of modulation phase offsets; and determining a distance between the target and receiver in accordance with the estimated at least one signal.
US08482716B2

Exposure apparatus exposes a substrate by irradiating the substrate with exposure light via a projection optical system and a liquid. The exposure apparatus is provided with a liquid immersion mechanism for supplying the liquid and recovering the liquid. The liquid immersion mechanism has an inclined surface, which is opposite to a surface of the substrate and is inclined with respect to the surface of the substrate, and a liquid recovering port of the liquid immersion mechanism is formed in the inclined surface. A flat portion is provided between the substrate and the projection optical system. A liquid immersion area can be maintained to be small.
US08482714B1

A stroboscopic animation system with a handheld stroboscopic light with a light source that emits stroboscopic flashes, a manually rotatable top, and images to be animated retained on the upper surface of the top, such as on an animation disk. The frequency of the stroboscopic flashes can be varied, such as by a rotatable dial, with the “on” portions remaining constant and the “off” portions being adjusted. The flashes can have a lower limit of 10 to 20 flashes per second and an upper limit of 100 to 110 flashes per second, the “on” portions of the flashing sequence can be between one-900th and one-1100th of a second, and the luminous intensity of the light source can be between 65 and 130 foot candles. An orientation switch can automatically induce an “off” condition when the light is disposed outside a predetermined angular range of orientation.
US08482700B2

A panel for a liquid crystal display device includes: a first mother substrate for cutting out color filter substrates including a first cell area corresponding to a first cell and a second cell area corresponding to a second cell therefrom; a first colored layer arranged in the first cell area of the first mother substrate; a second colored layer arranged in the second cell area of the first mother substrate; a second mother substrate for cutting out array substrates therefrom; and liquid crystal sandwiched between the first mother substrate and the second mother substrate. The first colored layer and the second colored layer are made of the same material and have portions which have the same thickness. A hole is formed in the second colored layer so as to make color reproducibility of the second colored layer lower than color reproducibility of the first colored layer.
US08482688B2

An array substrate includes a base substrate, a plurality of storage voltage lines, a plurality of connecting lines, and a common voltage applying section. Pixels are formed in regions defined by a plurality of gate lines extending along a first direction and data lines extending along a second direction. The connecting lines are connected to the storage voltage lines that are formed on adjacent pixels of pixels arranged in the second direction. The common voltage applying section applies a common voltage to the storage voltage lines that are formed in a portion of the pixels arranged in the first direction. Thus, a substantially uniform current may be applied to the display area to decrease the distortion of the common voltage, thereby increasing a liquid crystal display device's display quality.
US08482675B2

A multi-chip antenna diversity architecture and method includes a first receiver chip that receives a first input signal from a first antenna. The first receiver chip includes a first tuner that amplifies the first input signal, a crystal operatively connected to a first crystal oscillator circuit, and a first crystal oscillator clock buffer that receives a clock signal from the first crystal oscillator circuit. A first demodulator demodulates the input signal received from the first tuner. A second receiver chip receives a second input signal from a second antenna. The second receiver chip includes a second crystal oscillator circuit, a second crystal oscillator clock buffer, a second tuner, and a second demodulator that receives diversity data from the first demodulator. The first crystal oscillator clock buffer drives the clock signal to the second crystal oscillator clock buffer, the second tuner, and the second demodulator of the second receiver chip.
US08482669B2

A computer includes a switch, a power supply, a TV module, a computer module and a control module. The switch creates a trigger signal. The TV module plays TV programs. The control module controls the power supply to power on the TV module after receiving the trigger signal when the control module determines the TV module and the computer module are powered off.
US08482666B1

A monitor device adapter includes first and second conversion circuits, a switch unit, and a monitor interface. The first conversion circuit includes a digital to analog (D/A) converter and a coupler. The second conversion circuit includes an analog to digital (A/D) converter and a decoupler. When the switch unit connects the first conversion circuit to the monitor interface, the D/A converter converts a digital signals representing data into a first analog form data for coupling with a first alternating current (AC) voltage. When the switch unit connects the second conversion circuit to the monitor interface, the decoupler decouples and separates a second analog form data into the second analog form data. The A/D converter converts the second analog form data into digital signals representing data, and outputs the digital signals representing data to the monitor interface.
US08482664B2

In one aspect, the invention is directed to a camera for mounting on a vehicle, wherein the camera housing made up of two housing members, with a conductive coating on the interior of each of the housing members. The two housing members mate together using an interference fit, to provide a greater assurance that they are electrically connected to each other. One of the housing members is connected to ground. In another aspect, the invention provides a camera module that has a housing and a wire harness or wire or lead that is electrically connected to circuitry of the camera and that extends through the camera housing for electrical connection to a vehicle wire harness or the like. The wire or lead extends through a portion of the housing with the housing disposed at the wire prior to connection of the wire to the circuitry of the camera. The electrical connection of the wire to the camera circuitry is made as the housing is assembled. The joint at where the wire extends outward from the housing portion is sealed, such as via shrink wrapping or the like.
US08482663B2

A light-emitting diode array is disclosed which has two light-emitting diodes which are connected in antiparallel with one another, and a power supply which is suitable for energizing the light-emitting diodes independently of one another in the forward direction. In addition, an optical recording apparatus and a method for the pulsed operation of a light-emitting diode are disclosed.
US08482660B2

An apparatus for detecting intensity saturation of a light sensor includes a saturation detector for detecting and measuring an intensity saturation condition of at least one pixel of a light sensor, the intensity saturation condition of the pixel being at saturation upon receiving light with an intensity above a predetermined level, the saturation detector emitting a digital signal with a reserved bit combination indicating the intensity saturation condition of the pixel, and a processor receiving and processing the digital signal from the saturation detector and transmitting a control signal in response to the digital signal to compensate for the intensity saturation condition of the pixel.
US08482659B2

An image processor inputs image data from an image capturing device, and acquires blur-correction coefficients corresponding to the state of an imaging optical system which forms an image represented by light coming from an object on the image capturing device. Then, the image processor generates a target component and non-target components of blur correction from the image data, applies blur correction to the target component based on the blur-correction coefficients, and generates image data by synthesizing the target component after the blur correction and the non-target components.
US08482658B2

A camera with a focusing function is provided. The camera includes a first imaging unit configured to generate a first image by a photoelectric conversion from an image of a subject obtained via a first lens, a second imaging unit configured to generate a second image by a photoelectric conversion from an image of the subject obtained via a second lens, where the second imaging unit being different from the first imaging unit, an focusing amount acquiring unit configured to acquire amount of focusing, a composite image generating unit configured to set a cutout position on the second image, to cut out an partial image at the cutout position, on the basis of the operation amount and a predetermined cutout rule, and to generate a composite image by superimposing the partial image on the first image, and an image display unit configured to display the composite image.
US08482651B2

Among pickup image data items of multiple frames picked up at different time instants, an image of a certain frame is regarded as a synthesizing base image. The synthesizing base image and an image of another frame are used to perform synthesizing processing. Specifically, an object-of-synthesis area is designated in the frame image regarded as the synthesizing base image, and processing of replacing pixel data in the object-of-synthesis area with pixel data in another frame is carried out. For example, if a person having his/her eyes closed appears in the synthesizing base image that is a group-photograph image, the part of the person's face is regarded as the object-of-synthesis area. As another frame, an image in which the person has his/her eyes left open is searched. Pixel data in the facial image part showing the open eyes is fetched and synthesized with the synthesizing base image. Thus, a group photograph in which all people have their eyes left open is produced.
US08482650B2

An apparatus includes an image switching unit configured to switch an image displayed on a display unit such that if an image switching button is operated, the image displayed on the display unit is switched to a next image. The apparatus also includes a jump menu display unit configured such that if the image switching button is operated to continuously switch the displayed image, the jump menu display unit displays an image jump menu for jumping from the image currently displayed on the display unit to a desired image.
US08482647B2

A CMOS image sensor includes: a plurality of CDS/PGAs (correlating double sampling/programmable gain amplifiers) for processing output signals of pixels corresponding to same colors on different paths; and an offset difference removing part for removing offset difference that occurs when the same color signals are processed on the different paths, wherein the offset difference removing part includes: a dummy pixel array where light is shielded; a unit for reading signals of the dummy pixel array through the CDS/PGAs and storing average offset values for each path; and a signal synthesizing unit for synthesizing the average offset values and signals of an effective pixel array, which are read through the respective CDS/PGAs, and outputting signals of which offset difference is removed.
US08482636B2

A method and apparatus for performing a digital zoom operation on an input Bayer format image is provided, the output of the digital zoom operation being a second Bayer format image corresponding to the input Bayer format imaged enlarged by a zoom factor.
US08482630B2

An automatic white balance adjusting apparatus and method based on detection of an effective area. The automatic white balance adjusting apparatus may detect the effective area by using a color temperature, a luminance, and a correlation, and may adjust a white balance with respect to the detected effective area.
US08482629B2

A method and an associated system, for digital image-processing, intervening for any relative illumination phenomenon, including that of a colored relative illumination. To this end, it is provided to take account of an illuminant of a photographed scene in order to provide the appropriate modifications to any digital image to be processed.
US08482627B2

An image processing method, for correcting a blur a due to an optical system of an image capturing apparatus, the image processing method including, storing a plurality of representative filters in a memory, selecting a subset of representative filters from the plurality of representative filters based on a pixel position of a pixel of interest in an image, applying each of the selected representative filter to a pixel value of the pixel of interest, and correcting the pixel value of the pixel of interest based on (a) a result of the application of filters, and (b) the pixel position of the pixel of interest.
US08482617B2

In a digital camera having a wireless communicator with a server, a storage controller treats full size image data and display size image data unequally if the full size image data has been already sent to the server. For example, the display size image data is not allowed to be replaced by new digital image data unless the digital camera is not in use over a prescribed time. Own image data and other's image data are treated equally. Image data received from outside and retrieved from inside memory are treated equally. Search key for own image data and related search keys existing in the outside are indicated in a comparable manner. The digital camera receives search key from neighboring advertiser to send it for Internet search of advertisement. Search key received from neighboring notable site is sent for Internet search of photographs of the notable site taken by others.
US08482609B1

Camera based surveillance system planning methods and apparatus are discussed. A surveillance system integration tool, which may be downloaded into a user's computer system, allows for the insertion and orientation of surveillance cameras onto a map, e.g., a downloaded satellite based map. The integration tool presents the user with various surveillance system planning options. A user selects between various available camera types, e.g., visible vs IR spectrum, and between various camera configuration settings, with the user's selections being received and processed by the integration tool. The integration tool allows a user, e.g., a potential customer, to manipulate camera positioning, orientation, and/or settings, thus changing coverage areas for surveillance. The integration tool outputs for display and/or hardcopy a generated output plan including a map with an overlay including at least one inserted camera indication and a corresponding camera surveillance coverage area indication. A corresponding purchase order/quotation is also generated.
US08482603B2

A representative Device and Method for 3-D Display Control is disclosed. The method for controlling stereo image display is disclosed. That is, to receive an image input signal wherein the image input signal includes a first refresh rate; to convert a frame rate of the image input signal to generate an image output signal, wherein the image output signal includes a second refresh rate which is higher than the first refresh rate, and includes a first image signal, a first VBI (Vertical Blanking Interval), a second image signal, a second VBI, a third image signal and a third VBI; to output a control signal for a left eye shutter of shutter glasses during a duration between the first VBI and a part of the second image signal; and to output a control signal for a right eye shutter of the shutter glasses during a duration between a part of the third image signal and the third VBI.
US08482599B2

A 3D modeling apparatus includes: a generator configured to generate 3D models of a subject based on pairs of images; a selector configured to select a first 3D model and a second 3D model from the 3D models, wherein the second 3D model is to be superimposed on the first 3D model; an extracting unit configured to extract first feature points from the first 3D model and extract second feature points from the second 3D model; an acquiring unit configured to acquire coordinate transformation parameters based on the first and second feature points; a transformation unit configured to transform coordinates of the second 3D model into coordinates in a coordinate system of the first 3D model, based on the coordinate transformation parameters; and a combining unit configured to superimpose the second 3D model having the transformed coordinates on the first 3D model.
US08482594B2

A multi-resolution lens system includes a relay lens configured to be directed toward a field-of-view (FOV) and receive a first plurality of image photons emanating from the FOV, a high-resolution lens positioned to receive a second plurality of image photons from the FOV and to pass the second plurality of image photons toward the relay lens, and a shutter device positioned to receive over an area thereof the image photons of the FOV that pass through the relay lens, and simultaneously receive overlaid on a portion of the area thereof the image photons from the portion of the FOV that pass through the high-resolution lens and toward the relay lens.
US08482593B2

A new approach is proposed that contemplates systems and methods to support the operation of a Virtual Media Room or Virtual Meeting Room (VMR), wherein each VMR can accept from a plurality of participants at different geographic locations a variety of video conferencing feeds from video conference endpoints that can be either proprietary or standards-based and enable a multi-party video conferencing session among the plurality of participants by composing one composite audio and video stream for each of the participants. Each single VMR can be implemented across an infrastructure of globally distributed set of servers/media processing nodes co-located in Points of Presence (POPs) for Internet access. Each VMR also gives its users a rich set of conferencing and collaboration interaction hitherto not experienced by video conferencing users.
US08482592B2

A display device which performs a video telephony is provided. The display device includes a photographing unit which photographs an image, a video telephony unit which performs a video telephony using an image photographed by the photographing unit, and a control unit which controls at least one of an operation of the photographing unit and an operation of the video telephony unit if a status of the photographed image meets a preset condition. Accordingly, power efficiency of a display device may be improved.
US08482586B1

An entire block of print data for a message is subdivided into sub-blocks of print data. During printing of sub-blocks, an earlier received sub-block of data is used to print one portion of a substrate moving in the downstream direction. The substrate is moved upstream for a back distance and then moved downstream with the next sub-block of data being printed on the substrate as it is moved downstream. As a back distance section of the substrate again travels in the downstream direction, data from the subsequent sub-block of data that corresponds to data printed on the back distance section of the substrate during printing of the immediately preceding sub-block of data, is printed on the back distance section of the substrate. The sub-blocks of data are in effect stitched together by the dual printed back distance to minimize transition artifacts.
US08482582B2

A system and method for label placement is disclosed that achieves the twin goals of practical efficiency and high labeling quality by employing cartographic heuristics. A caller defines map and label properties. Then labels are pulled within a map boundary. Labels are next ordered by priority in descending importance. The order of testing labels is determined. Attempts are made to move overlapping labels. This is an iterative process; therefore there must be criteria that halt the procedure. Upon reaching an acceptable solution, the label properties are adjusted to reflect the new label placements.
US08482575B2

A method and system for determining highlighting colors for topic elements in a chart. The method includes acquiring contrast elements and topic elements which need to be highlighted, acquiring colors of the contrast elements and layout information of the topic elements and the contrast elements in the chart, determining a plurality of combinatorial contrast policies for the colors of the contrast elements according to a color contrast standard, calculating weights of the combinatorial contrast policies using the layout information, and determining highlighting colors of the topic elements according to the combinatorial contrast policies and their weights. A highlighting color can be selected automatically for the information that needs attention, so that the user can determine information that should be specially noted without having professional knowledge about color, saving time and energy.
US08482567B1

A line rasterization technique in accordance with one embodiment includes conditioning a line by pulling in the ending vertex of the line or pushing out the starting vertex of the line. Thereafter, if the line exits a diamond test area of each pixel that it touches, the pixel may be lit.
US08482566B2

In an electronic paper terminal device, a drawing order determination unit analyzes an image to be displayed, and determines priority of each line. A priority storage unit stores the priority of each line determined by the drawing order determination unit. A drawing unit selects lines in descending order of the priority stored in the priority storage unit, acquires image data on the selected lines from the image to be displayed, and draws on the selected lines of a display device on the basis of the acquired image data.
US08482561B2

Aspects include API interfaces for interfacing shaders with other components and/or code modules that provide ray tracing functionality. For example, API calls may allow direct contribution of light energy to a buffer for an identified pixel, and allow emission of new rays for intersection testing alone or in bundles. The API also can provide a mechanism for associating arbitrary data with ray definition data defining a ray to be tested through a shader using the emit ray call. The arbitrary data is provided to a shader associated with an object that is identified subsequently as having been intersected by the ray. The data can include code, or a pointer to code, that can be used by or run after the shader. The data also can be propagated through a series of shaders, and associated with rays instantiated in each shader.
US08482551B2

A display system includes a display device, a driving circuit, a flexible printed circuit (FPC), a charge pump circuit and a control circuit. The driving circuit is disposed on the display device, for driving the display device. The FPC is externally coupled to the display device. The charge pump circuit is disposed on the FPC, for generating at least an output voltage to the driving circuit. The control circuit is disposed on the display device and coupled to the driving circuit, for generating a plurality of control signals to control the charge pump circuit. The charge pump circuit has a plurality of control ports coupled to the control circuit for receiving the control signals generated from the control circuit, respectively.
US08482545B2

A combination touch and transducer input system is provided, which facilitates user input into an electronic system with a finger and/or a transducer (e.g., a stylus). The system includes a transducer configured to generate an electric field, and a sensor including an array of electrodes and a controller. The transducer is configured to transmit digital data, such as pen pressure data and switch status data, to the sensor. For example, the transducer comprises electronic circuitry configured to encode the digital data in a signal for transmission to the sensor. The sensor controller is configured to operate both in a touch sensing mode and in a transducer sensing mode. During the touch sensing mode, the controller determines a position of a proximate object (e.g., a finger) by capacitively sensing the object with the array of electrodes. During the transducer sensing mode, the controller determines a position of the transducer based on a signal received by the array of electrodes from the transducer, and also receives and decodes the digital data encoded in the received signal. Digital data can be encoded in a signal using any suitable digital modulation techniques, such as a Frequency-Shift Keying (FSK) technique.
US08482542B2

A transparent capacitive touch panel comprising a transparent substrate, a transparent cover lens and a transparent adhesive layer is provided, wherein a first transparent electrode layer and a second transparent electrode layer are disposed on the transparent cover lens and the transparent substrate respectively. The transparent adhesive layer is used to bind the first transparent electrode layer and second transparent electrode layer in order to combine the transparent cover lens and the transparent substrate disposed in parallel. Thereby, the manufacturing process of the transparent capacitive touch panel is simplified, and the manufacturing cost of the same is lowered.
US08482537B2

A protection panel having a touch input function of the analog resistance film method for detecting an X-Y coordinate representing an operated position by a potential gradient based on a touch operation relative to the front substrate 6, in which the back substrate 5 and the front substrate 6 include contacts 5G and 6G, respectively, connected to each other in series on the resistance films 5A and 6A through the routing circuits 5C and 6C to have potential difference, in which the contacts 5G and 6G face each other at a predetermined distance when the back substrate 5 and the front substrate 6 are connected to each other, and in which a switch 12 is provided for detecting, when voltage is applied by the contacts 5G and 6G between the electrodes 5D or 6D of either one of the front substrate 6 and the back substrate 5, whether or not the contacts 5G and 6G are brought into contact with each other based on voltage detected by the electrodes 5D or 6D of the other of the front substrate 6 and the back substrate 5.
US08482527B1

An apparatus and method of providing a user interface (UI) on head mounted display and the head mounted display (HMD) thereof are discussed. The apparatus comprises a sensor unit detecting whether an object exists in the proximity of the HMD and if the object is detected, the sensor unit senses a distance between the object and the HMD. The apparatus further comprises a processor controlling a User Interface (UI) of the HMD based on a result of the sensor unit. A physical User Interface (UI) mode is applied if the detected object is within a predetermined distance from the HMD and a non-physical User Interface (UI) mode is applied if the object is not detected or is not within the predetermined distance from the HMD.
US08482521B2

The present invention provides an apparatus, a controlling method, and a controlling program for appropriately moving a pointer to a selection position regardless of alignment and size of function selection area, and improving operability and certainty of function selection in a GUI. The apparatus includes (1) means for determining whether or not the pointer has crossed over a boundary of a predetermined area from outside to inside based on position information of the pointer; (2) means for determining a speed of the pointer or whether or not an event has occurred, and setting two types of operating modes; (3) means for moving the pointer to a predetermined position within the area when the pointer has crossed over the boundary from outside to inside; and (4) means for changing a moving distance of the pointer, if the pointer moves at a speed less than a predetermined moving speed or the event has not occurred and when it is determined that the pointer exists within the area, based on the speed determined when the pointer existed outside the area.
US08482517B1

A control devices includes a key having a top surface configured to be pressed by a user, and a resistance device coupled to the key and configured to provide a resistance force to the key that opposes a user force applied to the top surface. A force sensor is coupled to the resistance device and is configured to detect the user force applied to top surface. A control circuit is coupled to the resistance device and is configured to change the resistance force of the resistance device according to a force profile.
US08482514B2

An ink substrate, an electrophoretic display device including the ink substrate and methods of fabricating the display, where in ink substrate includes a first substrate, an electrode adjacent the first substrate, and an ink layer adjacent the electrode, the ink layer including a plurality of microcapsules. At least one protective member is disposed on at least a side surface of the ink layer and a protective film disposed on a rear surface of the first substrate opposite the ink layer. The protective member is formed by one of spaying an ink protection liquid on at least the side surfaces of the ink layer or dipping at least the side surfaces of the ink layer into an ink protection liquid and curing the ink protection liquid to form a solid film. The protective member is an impact resistant, heat resistant, and moisture resistant material.
US08482510B2

A light source apparatus includes a light source module, a local dimming control part and a light source driving part. The light source module includes a plurality of light-emitting blocks. Each of the light-emitting blocks includes a first color light source, a second color light source and a third color light source, respectively. The local dimming control part drives the light-emitting blocks by blocks. The local dimming control part sets a reference duty signal for first, second and third color driving signals in accordance with a driving mode of the light source module. The light source driving part generates the first color driving signal, the second color driving signal and the third color driving signal by using the reference duty ratio set in accordance with the driving mode and a driving current having a same peak current level in accordance with the driving mode.
US08482506B2

Methods and systems for displaying videos with high contrast using fast transient response of liquid crystal materials are disclosed. The system comprises a liquid crystal material treated with a chiral dopant, which is aligned between two substrates with conductive layer on each substrate. The system can be operated in an active or passive matrix mode display. The active matrix display can be a thin film transistor (TFT) or MOS transistor, whereas no transistors are used for the passive matrix mode display. A full color display, with high contrast, can be achieved by illuminating the transient liquid crystal material with a pulsed backlight.
US08482503B2

A liquid crystal display and a method of driving the same are disclosed. The liquid crystal display includes a liquid crystal display panel including data lines and gate lines crossing each other and liquid crystal cells, a timing control signal generating unit, a data drive circuit supplying a data voltage to the data lines, and a gate drive circuit. The timing control signal generating unit generates a first gate timing control signal for controlling a scan direction of the liquid crystal display panel in a sequential direction and a second gate timing control signal for controlling the scan direction in a reverse sequential direction. The gate drive circuit supplies a gate pulse to the gate lines while a shift direction of the gate pulse changes in response to the first and second gate timing control signals.
US08482499B2

To provide a liquid crystal display device and the like, which can improve the contrast ratio. The liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal display unit and an image processing unit which supplies video signals inputted from a video source section to the liquid crystal display unit. The liquid crystal display unit is formed by stacking a single first liquid crystal display element and a single or a plurality of second liquid crystal display element(s). For each pixel unit of the second liquid crystal display element, the image processing unit generates, by having each dot of the video signal as a reference point, a drive signal for displaying an image according to processing for extracting a maximum value of relative gradations or relative transmittances among a region of a pixel unit (dot) group including the reference pixel units and the pixel units (dots) neighboring to the reference pixel units.
US08482498B2

A liquid crystal display panel includes a display region, a periphery circuit region, a joint obligate region, a plurality of first test thin-film transistors (TFTs), a plurality of second TFTs, a plurality of first lines, a plurality of second lines, a blank region, and at least one first adjustment TFT. The first and second test TFTs are disposed on the joint obligate region according to a regular distance. Each of the first and second test TFTs has a transistor width. The first adjustment TFT is disposed on the blank region. The width of the blank region is not smaller than the sum of the twice regular distance and the transistor width. Thereby, the present invention can prevent the band mura of the liquid crystal display panel effectively when the liquid crystal display panel is in testing.
US08482496B2

The invention relates to methods and apparatus for forming images on a display utilizing a control matrix to control the movement of MEMs-based light modulators.
US08482495B2

A pixel at an ith pixel row (i is a natural number) includes an organic light emitting diode (OLED); a driving transistor for supplying a current to the OLED and a storage capacitor between a gate electrode of the driving transistor and an (i−1)th emission control line; and a compensating unit for controlling a voltage of the gate electrode of the driving transistor to compensate for deterioration of the OLED. The compensating unit includes: a first compensating unit transistor and a second compensating unit transistor between the OLED and a first power source; first and second feedback capacitors between a second node between the first and second compensating unit transistors and a first node between the gate electrode of the driving transistor and the storage capacitor; and a third compensating unit transistor coupled between a third node between the first and second feedback capacitors and a reference voltage source.
US08482491B2

A display device capable of obtaining a constant luminance without being influenced by temperature change is provided as well as a method of driving the display device. A current mirror circuit composed of a first transistor and a second transistor is provided in each pixel. The first transistor and second transistor of the current mirror circuit are connected such that their drain currents are kept almost equal irrespective of the level of load resistance. By controlling the OLED drive current using the current mirror circuit, a change in OLED drive current due to fluctuation in characteristics between transistors is avoided and a constant luminance is obtained without being influenced by temperature change.
US08482484B2

A display device and an electronic device in which more sophistication and a high added value are realized by obtaining a read function by incorporating an imaging device, and by using a panel with small volume can be provided. A display device and an electronic device according to the invention has a first display surface and a plurality of pixels arranged in matrix over one surface of a light transmitting substrate and a second display surface over the other surface of the substrate. The plurality of pixels are each provided with a transistor, an imaging device, and a light-emitting element which emits light to the first display surface and the second display surface. The light-emitting element has two functions of serving as a light source when information of a subject is read and displaying an image. Thus, a display device according to the invention has two functions of an image sensor function to read information of a subject by using an imaging device and a display function to display an image by using the imaging device and the light-emitting element.
US08482477B2

A transmission line structure for propagating electromagnetic energy includes a transmission line conductor trace, a first dielectric foam layer and a second dielectric foam layer. The conductor trace is sandwiched between the first foam layer and the second foam layer. A first ground plane layer and a second ground plane layer sandwich the first foam layer, the conductor pattern and the second foam layer.
US08482474B2

An antenna apparatus that can be miniaturized without causing inference caused by antenna currents to be occurred if the high band of a dual band wireless system is close to the band of another wireless system in a wireless communication apparatus incorporating the dual band wireless system and another wireless system is provided. A first switch 5 blocks passage of a signal of a high band (first frequency) and allows passage of a signal of a low band (second frequency). A second switch 6 blocks passage of a signal of the low band (second frequency) and allows passage of a signal of the high band (first frequency). Accordingly, the antenna apparatus operates as a dipole antenna with no antenna current flowing into a feeder line at the first frequency and operates as a monopole antenna wherein a radiation element and a feeder line making up the dipole antenna becomes a radiation element at the second frequency lower than the first frequency.
US08482471B2

The hybrid multiple-input multiple-output antenna module includes a grounding unit, a plurality of radiating units, loop units and filter units. The radiating units and the loop units are arranged around a geometric center of the grounding unit and are alternately and symmetrically arranged on the grounding unit. The loop units are arranged along the outer peripheral side of the grounding unit. The filter units are respectively electrically connected to the loop units. The present invention not only has some advantages such as small size, low profile, good isolation, high antenna gain and good radiation properties, but also can replace the external dual-band access-point antenna of the prior art for 2.4/5 GHz operation with no need of an extra diplexer. In addition, the hybrid multiple-input multiple-output antenna module can be hidden in the wireless communication device in order to enhance the appearance of the product.
US08482449B1

An analog-to-digital converter comprises a switched capacitor array configured to receive an analog input signal, a comparator having inputs coupled to respective outputs of the switched capacitor array, register circuitry having inputs coupled to respective outputs of the comparator, and a metastability detector associated with the register circuitry. The register circuitry is configured to generate control signals for application to respective control inputs of the switched capacitor array and to provide a digital output signal corresponding to the analog input signal. The metastability detector is configured to detect a metastability condition relating to signals at the respective outputs of the comparator. The register circuitry responsive to detection of the metastability condition forces bits of the digital output signal to particular logic levels. The register circuitry may comprise, for example, a successive approximation register, and the metastability detector may be at least partially incorporated within the successive approximation register.
US08482448B2

Provided is an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter that may be used in an image sensor and a ramp signal generator that is used in an A/D converter. The ramp signal generator may generate a ramp signal and a reference voltage signal that include noise that has same noise characteristics that are input into the ramp signal, such that the signal to noise ratio (SNR) is improved and the image quality is also improved.
US08482445B1

A two-channel time-interleaved analog-to-digital converter (TI-ADC) for communication signals offers a significant increase in the available sample rate of ADCs. Its performance is degraded by timing and gain mismatches. Both timing and gain mismatches are corrected in the digital data section of a two-channel TI-ADC for band-pass input signals. This is a realistic communications system scenario as modern system designs lean towards having the ADC interface with intermediate frequency (IF) signal in the analog section of a digital receiver rather than in the DC centered, analog down converted, in-phase and quadrature pair.
US08482443B2

Provided is a clock timing adjustment device for adjusting a time difference of clocks and a delta-sigma modulator. The clock timing adjustment device includes a power detection unit and a timing adjustment unit. The power detection unit receives input signals which are generated using pairs of first and second clocks having a plurality of clock time differences and respectively correspond to the clock time differences, detects powers of the input signals, and outputs a control signal corresponding to a clock time difference where the power is minimized. The timing adjustment unit receives a reference clock and the control signal and outputs the first and second clocks having the clock time difference where the power is minimized from the reference clock according to the control signal.
US08482441B2

A functional compression scheme involves determining a minimal entropy coloring of a characteristic graph of a random variable. Various scenarios are disclosed where the determination of the minimal entropy coloring of a characteristic graph is easy and tractable.
US08482436B2

Drag experienced by a vehicle traveling through an environmental media, such as air or water, may be modified by one or more energy beams which may increase or decrease drag. Environmental media may be adjusted by microwave, chemical, ultrasonic, acoustic (including subsonic, sonic, or ultrasonic), or electromagnetic energy. One or more energy beams may be directed toward a transition region between turbulent and laminar flow, at the leading edge of a laminar flow, or in the direction of a crosswind.
US08482425B2

An apparatus is disclosed comprising: a clothes washing machine (30); a detector (33, 44) attached to the washing machine in a location that receives radio frequency (RF) signals that emanate from an interior (48) of the washing machine; and a warning device (35) that receives a signal from the detector to provide an alert when the detector has detected a RF signal from the interior of the washing machine, wherein the radio frequency signals have a frequency in a band designated for mobile phone (40) signals.
US08482423B2

An electrical ground terminal block assembly and arrangement to make ground fault situation accessible comprise a ground terminal housing to hold the wire linking elements and a characterized ground fault indicating device. The ground terminal block based on the invention is comprised with signalling means to indicate ground fault. Fault current is detected by the ground fault indicating device through upper linking element detection device of said ground terminal block.
US08482421B2

Systems and methods for detecting a patch cord connection are presented. The insertion of a patch cord into a device jack physically closes a circuit, thereby permitting determination of the patch cord connection. The connection of only one side of a patch cord to a jack is able to be determined. In addition, a particular jack with which a patch cord is connected is able to be determined.
US08482420B2

A method of monitoring oil in a vehicle having an internal combustion engine is provided. The method includes measuring a sump temperature of the engine and measuring a power output of the engine. Oil consumption is calculated as a function of the measured sump temperature and the measured power output. Remaining oil life is calculated as a function of the calculated consumption. The method may include alerting a receiver of the calculated remaining oil life.
US08482407B2

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a gateway comprising a controller to transmit a first RF signal to a remote control device, wherein the first radio-frequency signal is received by a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag associated with the remote control device, receive at each of a plurality of receivers operably coupled to the gateway a second RF signal from the RFID tag of the remote control device in response to the first RF signal, determine an approximate location of the remote control device based on at least a portion of the second RF signals received by the plurality of receivers, and transmit a signal to a set-top-box, wherein the signal comprises the approximate location of the remote control device, and wherein the set-top-box displays the approximate location of the remote control device. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US08482404B2

Systems and methods for providing alerts to end users of networked enabled portable devices are provided so that the end users are made aware when broadcast emergency alerts are issued. The systems and methods provide a way for a portable device to receive information about an emergency alert broadcast of which the user should be aware, e.g., from the EAS, and to notify the user of the emergency alert. A flag provides an indication the EAS should be on and the systems and method override the settings made by a user to a portable device to enable EAS reception. The user may then be automatically taken to the emergency alert information by having the portable device automatically tune to the emergency broadcast information, or the user may optionally retrieve the emergency information by tuning to the emergency broadcast channel, or the user may otherwise be presented with a reference to the emergency data (e.g., a link to the information).
US08482399B2

Asset including an arrangement for monitoring objects in an interior of the asset includes a sensor system arranged on or in the asset to obtain data about the asset or an object in the asset and a communication system arranged on the asset and coupled to the sensor system. The communication system transmits the data obtained by the sensor system to a remote facility via the Internet. A data reception system is arranged on the asset arranged to obtain data to enable the position of the asset to be determined, i.e., at the remote facility, and is coupled to the communication system which transmits the data to enable the remote facility to determine the location of the asset. The sensor system may be integrated with a cell phone or PDA.
US08482389B2

An RFID reader control system and method is provided. A protocol for controlling an RFID reader and an RFID reader control unit of a mobile phone is defined. Messages, information, commands, responses, and notification are constructed and transmitted between the RFID reader and the RFID reader control unit.
US08482380B2

According to one embodiment, an input aiding apparatus comprises an aiding module, wherein in the case where the selection of an input column in the direction toward the head or tail end is requested with the head or tail end input column, respectively, already selected, the tail end or the head input column, respectively, is selected, and at the same time, a predetermined number, character or code is displayed in all vacant input columns automatically and collectively.
US08482379B2

A method of using an electronic key for access to one or more mechatronic locks when the key moves from place to place, including the key periodically transmitting its geographical location to an access management server so as to allow said server to identify location coordinates for the key, and receiving an access profile from the server where the access profile includes a set of one or more cylinders accessible to the key and is based at least in part on the key's location. If the key's new location causes a change in access profile information associated with the key, the key's previous access profile is preferably replaced with the key's new access profile in an irreversible manner. The key preferably self-supervises its communications with the server by deactivating its access profile if it no longer receives information from the server for a predetermined period of time.
US08482377B2

An apparatus includes an energy store for supplying an actuator, an antenna device for receiving, by contactless communication, energy for charging the energy store and one or more control signals comprising a command for triggering the actuator, and a control unit for controlling the supply of energy to the actuator on the basis of the control signals. After the triggering command has been received, the state of charge of the energy store is determined. When this state is less than a state of charge threshold value that is sufficient for triggering the actuator, a response signal to continue contactless communication is transmitted to the transmitting device via the antenna device. When this state is greater than or equal to the state of charge threshold value, the control unit controls the supply of energy from the energy store to the actuator so that it is possible to trigger the actuator.
US08482373B1

An over-current protection device comprises a PTC material layer, first and second conductive layers, first and second electrodes, and four conductive vias. The first and second conductive layers are in physical contact with first and second surfaces of the PTC material layer, respectively. The first electrode contains a pair of first metal foils, and the second electrode contains a pair of second metal foils. The four conductive vias are formed at the corners each defined by two adjacent planar lateral surfaces. Two conductive vias connect the pair of the first metal foils and the first conductive layer, and the other two conductive vias connect the pair of the second metal foils and the second conductive layer. The ratio of the sum of the cross-sectional areas of the conductive vias to a form factor area of the device is in the range of 7% to 20%.
US08482369B2

A superconducting magnet assembly is provided that includes a magnet protection system electrically coupled to a plurality of magnet coils to form a closed loop circuit. The magnet protection system includes a single superconducting switch to selectively connect a power supply to the plurality of magnet coils and also includes a plurality of dump resistors arranged to form a resistor ladder circuit, with each of the plurality of dump resistors being connected between magnet coils forming a respective symmetric coil pair. The magnet protection system also includes a heater network connected between ends of the closed loop circuit and to the plurality of magnet coils, with the heater network configured to perform a quench-back operation to protect the plurality of magnet coils during quench and being driven by a partial-magnet coil voltage generated in a magnet coil upon initiation of a quench condition in the magnet coil.
US08482364B2

A differential cross-coupled power combiner in one aspect comprises a plurality of inputs, an output, a plurality of differential transmission lines each coupled between a corresponding one of the inputs and the output, and at least one set of additional differential transmission lines arranged in series between any two of the inputs. First and second ones of the additional differential transmission lines in the set are coupled to one another using a cross-coupling arrangement. Other aspects of the invention provide a differential cross-coupled power divider, communication system receivers and transmitters incorporating respective power combiners and dividers, and integrated circuit implementations of power combiners and dividers.
US08482360B2

Provided is a RF switch for switching a path of a RF signal using a semiconductor transistor such as a field effect transistor (FET). The RF switch includes a plurality of resonators connected to a RF transmission line, and at least one of switching elements connected in shunt or in series between the plural of resonators. The plurality of resonators resonate by interacting with the switching elements when the switching elements are shorted or open.
US08482354B2

A power amplifying device includes earth parts which are connected with via holes for grounding, source electrode earth conductors which connect the earth parts, source electrodes which are coupled to the source electrode earth conductors, an inner source electrode which is not in contact with the source electrode earth conductors, a drain electrode, a gate electrode and an air bridge which directly connects the inner source electrode and earth parts.
US08482335B2

A high linearity up-conversion mixer is disclosed, which includes a voltage-to-current conversion circuit and an up-conversion mixer core circuit, the voltage-to-current conversion circuit has a differential signal positive input end for receiving an I/Q-channel positive baseband voltage signal and a differential signal negative input end for receiving an I/Q-channel negative baseband voltage signal, wherein the received positive and negative baseband voltage signals are low pass filtered by the voltage-to-current conversion circuit and are respectively converted to a first and a second current signal; the first and the second current signals are inputted to the up-conversion mixer core circuit to mix with local oscillator signals so as to output high linearity frequency-mixed signals. By embedding low-pass filters into the voltage-to-current conversion circuit of the up-conversion mixer, the present invention can ensure the high linearity of the up-conversion mixer while reduce the chip area and the current.
US08482329B2

A high voltage input receiver with hysteresis using low voltage transistors is disclosed. In one embodiment, an input receiver circuit includes a hysteresis comparator circuit, based on a plurality of low voltage transistors, for generating a first output voltage by comparing an external voltage and a reference voltage and a stress protection circuit for preventing the plurality of low voltage transistors of the hysteresis comparator circuit from exceeding their reliability limits. In addition, the reference voltage is used to set a positive trip point and a negative trip point. Moreover, the input receiver circuit includes a source follower circuit for transferring the first output voltage to an output node of the source follower circuit from a voltage level of a VDDIO to a voltage level of a VDD.
US08482325B2

A disclosed image forming apparatus includes a recording unit which records image data on a recording medium; a first spread spectrum clock generator receiving a first clock signal, providing the first clock signal with frequency diffusion to have a first predetermined frequency diffusion width, and outputting a second clock signal; a PLL circuit outputting a third clock signal synchronously oscillating at a frequency obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first clock signal; an image processing unit receiving the third clock signal, and outputting the processed image data in synchronism with the third clock signal; a speed conversion unit receiving the second and third clock signals, and receiving and outputting the image data in synchronism with the second clock signal; and an input and output control unit outputting the image data to the recording unit in synchronism with the second clock signal.
US08482323B2

A decoupling circuit includes an inverter. The inverter includes i (i is an integer of 1 or more) PMOS transistors each having a first gate electrode, and j (j is an integer of 0 or more) PMOS transistors each having a second gate electrode. The inverter includes m (m is an integer of 1 or more) NMOS transistors each having a third gate electrode, and n (n is an integer of 0 or more) NMOS transistors each having a fourth gate electrode. The first to fourth gate electrodes are coupled to an input end of the inverter. A total area of the first and second gate electrodes is different from a total area of the third and fourth gate electrodes.
US08482321B2

An input circuit includes a first differential amplification circuit receiving input from a first power source and an output of a first buffer circuit to output to an input of the first buffer circuit, a second differential amplification circuit receiving input from a second external power source and an output of a second buffer circuit to output to an input of the second buffer circuit, a first resistance coupled between the output of the first differential amplification circuit and the input of the first buffer circuit, and a second resistance coupled between the output of the second differential amplification circuit and the input of the first buffer circuit. The first resistance and the second resistance are arranged at symmetric positions to a node on a signal line from the input signal terminal to the output signal terminal.
US08482312B1

A logic circuit has a first logic element (“LE”) including a first lookup table (“LUT”), where the first LUT is operable to produce a carry from a first set of bits of at least two numbers. The logic circuit also has a second LE including a second LUT, where the second LUT is operable to produce a sum from a second set of bits of the at least two numbers. The second LE also includes an adder coupled directly to the first LUT and coupled to the second LUT, where the adder is operable to add the carry and the sum. The at least two numbers may be three numbers, but the logic circuit includes a set of connections operable to programmably interconnect selected inputs so that the logic circuit is operable to add only two numbers. The logic circuit may be incorporated in a programmable logic device.
US08482306B2

A system to measure thickness of a shroud is provided. The system includes at least one resistive element embedded within the shroud. A reduction in a cross-sectional area of the at least one resistive due to wearing out of the shroud results in a change in a resistance of the at least one resistive. The system also includes an impedance measurement device that measures a total resistance associated with the at least one resistive element.
US08482289B2

In a method for operating a power tool with a diagnostic device, wherein the power tool has an internal combustion engine, a generator as an energy supply, and an electronic control unit, wherein a diagnostic device is connectable to the electronic control unit, and wherein the electronic control unit has an operating mode and a diagnostic mode, a non-uniform voltage signal is supplied by the generator as an energy supply and a uniform voltage signal is supplied by the diagnostic device as an energy supply. The electronic control unit evaluates the voltage signal that is being supplied as an energy supply and switches to diagnostic mode when the voltage signal is the uniform voltage signal supplied by the diagnostic device.
US08482281B2

A method, system, and apparatus including a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus that includes an MRI system having a plurality of gradient coils, a radio-frequency (RF) transceiver system, an RF switch controlled by a pulse module to transmit RF signals to an RF coil assembly, and a computer. The computer is programmed to implement a spin echo sequence to acquire magnetic resonance (MR) data, where the spin echo sequence includes an excitation RF pulse and at least one refocusing pulse per repetition time (TR) of the excitation pulse. The computer is also programmed to transmit at least two component RF pulses in parallel channels during implementation of the spin echo sequence to produce a first refocusing RF pulse and programmed to reconstruct an image from spin echo sequence image data.
US08482257B2

Provided are a battery state monitoring circuit with a small number of terminals and a battery device including the battery state monitoring circuit. An output of an overcharge detection circuit (12) is an open-drain output to a charge control terminal (18), and an input terminal of a voltage detection circuit (11) is connected to the charge control terminal (18), to thereby share a charger detection terminal and a charge control terminal.
US08482256B2

A portable power system which contains a battery, which is intended for use as a power source for charging the batteries of portable electronics devices or for powering other electrical systems. It contains a USB connection for power input and a myriad of adapters for connecting the power system with the proprietary connectors of portable devices, as well as a screen to output system information to the user. The power system also contains a microcontroller which controls internal systems, input and output current and voltage, such that the power system may operate with any portable device as well as any type of USB port.
US08482248B2

A method and apparatus for powering a handheld data capture device. The apparatus includes a cradle configured to accommodate a handheld data capture device detachably settled therein. The apparatus also includes an energy reservoir installed in the cradle, a charging interface, and a port operative to charge at least the energy reservoir with a current-limited host. The charging interface on the cradle is operative to charge the handheld data capture device with at least the energy reservoir.
US08482239B2

In an adder circuit, a sine wave is added to a compensation signal which is generated based on a position detection signal of a member to be driven and for compensating a position of a lens which is the member to be driven. An absolute value integrating circuit integrates absolute values of signals before and after the adder circuit adds the sine wave. The two obtained integrated values are compared by a comparator circuit, and a gain adjusting circuit adjusts a gain of an amplifier which amplifies the compensation signal so that the two integrated values are equal to each other.
US08482235B2

A fan arrangement (20) has a fan (24) driven by an electric motor (22). It further has an apparatus for continuously detecting an actual electrical value associated with the electric motor (22) during operation, an input apparatus for inputting a desired electrical value for the operation of said electric motor,a comparison apparatus (26) for comparing said electrical value with the actual electrical value, and a controller which regulates said electrical value by pulse width modulation (36).
US08482228B2

A lamp includes an arc tube and a lighting unit for lighting the arc tube. The lighting unit includes a rectifier circuit, a smoothing circuit for partial smoothing, and an inverter circuit having a pair of switching elements. The smoothing circuit smoothes portions of the output voltage of the rectifier circuit below the first voltage value and outputs a voltage that falls between the first voltage value and the second voltage value. The discharge sustaining voltage of the arc tube is set to fall between the first and second values of the voltage Vdc output from the smoothing circuit.
US08482227B2

A hot cathode preheating start discharge lamp comprises a lamp tube, a first electrode, a second electrode, a first heating element and a second heating element. The lamp tube has a sealed housing chamber. The first and second electrodes have respectively one end held in the housing chamber and another end connected to a power source. The first and second heating elements are spaced from the first and second electrodes without connecting therewith and have respectively another end connected to a discharge preheating controller or an electronic ballast. Thereby the invention does not need tungsten filaments or electronic powder coated on the tungsten filaments to generate a great amount of electrons like the conventional techniques do. Thus the problems of burnout and fracture of the tungsten filaments or exhaustion of electronic powder can be eliminated, and the lifespan of the lamp tube can be enhanced.
US08482225B2

A circuit for driving an LED load with a controllable converter includes a control circuit configured to turn off the converter in response to a PWM signal having a first level and to turn on the converter in response to the PWM signal having a second level. A load disconnect switch coupled in series with the LED load is also controlled by the PWM signal so that the load disconnect switch is opened when the PWM signal turns off the converter to thereby open the load current path.
US08482223B2

In at least one embodiment, a lamp includes a controller configured to generate power control signals for a lamp is also configured to receive lamp calibration data received via one or more power terminals of the lamp. The controller is configured to process the calibration data to calibrate the lamp. In at least one embodiment, the lamp includes one or more light emitting diodes.
US08482207B2

A temperature controlling system for a LED module includes at least one LED unit, at least one fan, at least one temperature sensor and a controlling device. The controlling device generates a driving signal for controlling the rotating speed of the fan based on a temperature detection signal transmitted from the temperature sensor, so that the fan can generate a compulsive airflow for dissipating the heat generated by the LED unit. According to the present invention, the working temperatures of the respective LED units can be kept the same, and a uniform heat-dissipating effect can be achieved.
US08482201B2

The invention relates to a gas discharge lamp with a gas discharge tube having a cylindrical discharge region and having two electrodes which are arranged at an outer side of the gas discharge tube. To achieve an improved gas discharge tube having external electrodes with an increased lifetime it is proposed that each electrode has a planar disc shaped holding section which each have a respective opening and in that the cylindrical discharge region is received in the openings in a shape matched manner, wherein the cylinder axis of the cylindrical discharge region lies perpendicular to the planar holding sections.
Patent Agency Ranking