US08914191B2

A method for controlling a motor vehicle electrohydraulic braking system. The method being activatable in a “brake-by-wire” operating mode, having a pressure supply device (2), which can be activated by an electronic control and a regulation unit, can be connected to a hydraulically actuatable wheel brake. Wherein the pressure supply device (2) is formed by a cylinder-piston assembly (43). The piston (45) can be actuated by an electromechanical actuator (44), the control unit carries out the steps of determining a pressure target value (PV,Soll) for the pressure supply device (2), performing a pressure control operation or an actuator position control operation on the pressure supply device (2) in accordance with the magnitude of the pressure target value (PV,Soll).
US08914185B2

An ECU is connected to a multi-system shift sensor detecting a shift lever position in a shift direction associated with detection of the R position, and to a multi-system select sensor detecting a shift lever position in a select direction not associated with detection of the R position. When only one or more, but not all, of sensors in the select sensor are abnormal, the ECU controls the shift range according to the shift position detected based on the remaining proper sensor. When only one or more of sensors in the shift sensor are abnormal, the ECU maintains the current range until an operation of a shift lever is detected, and switches the shift range to the N range at the point of time of detecting an operation of the shift lever.
US08914184B2

Disclosed herein are techniques for implementing vehicle ECU reprogramming, so the ECU programming, which plays a large role in vehicle performance characteristics, is tailored to current operational requirements, which may be different than the operational characteristics selected by the manufacturer when initially programming the vehicle ECU (or ECUs) with specific instruction sets, such as fuel maps. In one embodiment, a controller monitors the current operational characteristics of the vehicle, determines the current ECU programming, and determines if a different programming set would better suited to the current operating conditions. In the event that the current programming set should be replaced, the controller implements the ECU reprogramming. In a related embodiment, users are enabled to specify the ECU programming to change, such as changing speed limiter settings.
US08914183B2

Remote sensor units for a vehicle are described. An apparatus may comprise a satellite housing having an electrical connector interface portion, and an electrical connector disposed within the electrical connector interface portion of the satellite housing. The electrical connector may be arranged to conduct electrical signals for an electronic component having an electronic sensor operative to monitor conditions for a vehicle, the electrical connector comprising a capture portion at a first end and a pin portion at a second end, the capture portion having a pair of opposing mechanical contact elements arranged to receive at least one edge of the electronic component. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
US08914181B2

A system provides active lane-changing assistance for a motor vehicle to facilitate a lane-changing maneuver from an initial position on a first lane to a final position on a second lane. The system contains a localization device for determining the initial position and transmitting the initial position to a controller. The system has an obstacle detection system for determining a relative position of another vehicle relative to the vehicle and transmitting the relative position of the other vehicle to the controller. The controller determines the final position from the initial position and contains a device for generating a virtual clone capable of creating a virtual clone of the vehicle configured to permit localization of the virtual clone in the final position.
US08914176B2

This invention provides a vehicle powered by a surface-mediated cell (SMC)-based power source, comprising a vehicle frame, at least a wheel supporting the frame or a propeller connected to the frame, a drive unit connected to the wheel or propeller, and a power source electrically connected to the drive unit, wherein the power source contains at least a surface-mediated cell. The vehicle can be a micro-EV (using the SMC for the stop-start function), HEV, plug-in HEV, all-electric vehicle, power-assisted bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, tricycle, automobile, wheelchair, fork lift, golf cart, specialty vehicle, bus, truck, train, rapid-transit vehicle, boat, or air vehicle. The ultra-high power density enables the SMC to provide pulsed power or increased current demands when the vehicle is accelerating or hill-climbing. The SMC also enables the power source to recuperate the braking energy when the vehicle decelerates, brakes, or simply moves down-hill.
US08914172B2

A control device for a hybrid motor constituted by an internal combustion engine and an electric motor, which are connected via a clutch, stops the internal combustion engine when a predetermined deceleration condition is established, and prohibits stoppage of the internal combustion engine when the temperature of an exhaust gas purification catalyst interposed in an exhaust system of the internal combustion engine is higher than a first predetermined temperature, which is higher than an activity start temperature of the exhaust gas purification catalyst, even if the predetermined deceleration condition is established.
US08914163B2

A system and method for combining two separate types of human machine interfaces, e.g., a voice signal and a gesture signal, performing voice recognition to a voice signal and gesture recognition to the gesture signal. Based on a confidence determination using the voice recognition result and the gesture recognition result the system can, for example, immediately perform the command/request, request confirmation of the command/request or determine that the command/request was not identified.
US08914157B2

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to the field of power management of computer systems, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for dynamically allocating power to servers in a server rack. The method comprises: measuring power consumption of a computer system having one or more servers; estimating probability distribution of power demand for each of the one or more servers, the estimation based on the measured power consumption; estimating performance loss via the estimated probability distribution; computing power capping limits for each of the one or more servers, the computation based on the estimated probability distribution and the performance loss; and dynamically allocating the power capping limits to each of the one or more servers by modifying previous power capping limits of each of the one or more servers.
US08914152B2

The invention relates to a method for collision-free path planning for an industrial robot (1) which has a control device (9) and a robot arm (2) that is movable with the aid of the control device (9), to which an object (11) is attached, and in whose working space at least one obstacle (12) is situated.
US08914141B2

A method and corresponding system is provided for determining an optimum manufacturing process routing. The method comprises electronically constructing a plurality of manufacturing process routings for a component to be manufactured. The electronically constructing for each manufacturing process routing of the plurality of manufacturing process routings comprises defining a recursive process routing tree for each manufacturing process routing, the recursive process routing tree comprising a plurality of nodes, each node of the plurality of nodes corresponding to a manufacturing process and comprising a branch node when the manufacturing process for a given node may be decomposed into a plurality of sub-processes for the given node. The method further comprises electronically determining an optimum process routing by evaluating each recursive process routing tree with reference to a cost for manufacturing the component to be optimized and determining the optimum process routing that minimizes the cost for manufacturing the component.
US08914134B2

Certain embodiments of the invention may include systems and methods for predicting transient operational characteristics of a power plant. According to an example embodiment of the invention, a method is provided for predicting transient operational characteristics of a power plant. The method can include receiving operating information associated with the power plant; using a power plant dynamics model for determining a current operating state of the power plant based at least in part on the received operating information; and using the power plant dynamics model and a power plant controls model for predicting one or more future operating parameters associated with power plant based at least in part on the determined current operating state and the received operating information.
US08914131B2

A leadless intra-cardiac medical device (LIMD) is configured to be implanted entirely within a heart of a patient. The LIMD comprises a housing configured to be securely attached to an interior wall portion of a chamber of the heart, and a stabilizing intra-cardiac (IC) device extension connected to the housing. The stabilizing IC device extension may include a stabilizer arm, and/or an appendage arm, or an elongated body or a loop member configured to be passively secured within the heart.
US08914125B2

An exemplary method of minimizing an effect of channel interaction among a plurality of channels in a multi-channel cochlear implant system includes empirically generating an electrical spread matrix that is specific to a patient and representative of a channel interaction among a plurality of channels defined by a plurality of electrodes of electrodes of a multi-channel cochlear implant system associated with the patient, generating a model electrical spread matrix that approximates the empirically generated electrical spread matrix and that has a band inverse matrix, and using the band inverse matrix to determine a set of stimulation current levels to be applied by way of a corresponding set of electrodes included in the plurality of electrodes in order to produce desired stimulation current levels at a plurality of stimulation sites within the cochlea in the presence of the channel interaction. Corresponding methods and systems are also disclosed.
US08914115B2

Bioelectrical brain signals may be monitored at one more regions of the brain of a patient by a medical device. The monitored bioelectrical signals may be used to select one or more therapy cycle parameters, e.g., on cycle duration and/or off cycle duration, for therapy delivered to treat a patient disorder. In one example, the off cycle duration of a therapy may be selected based on the washout period determined from sensed brain signals of the patient following delivery of therapy during an on cycle. In another example, the on cycle duration and/or off cycle duration of a therapy may be selected to maintain the value of one or more characteristics of a brain signal (e.g., cortical activity) of patient within a threshold range of a target value defined for the characteristic that is associated with effective treatment of the patient disorder.
US08914114B2

A method of inhibiting the release of a proinflammatory cytokine in a cell is disclosed. The method comprises treating the cell with a cholinergic agonist. The method is useful in patients at risk for, or suffering from, a condition mediated by an inflammatory cytokine cascade, for example endotoxic shock. The cholinergic agonist treatment can be effected by stimulation of an efferent vagus nerve fiber, or the entire vagus nerve.
US08914112B2

Methods and systems of treating a patient with pancreatitis pain include providing a stimulator, configuring one or more stimulation parameters to control sphincter of Oddi function, programming the stimulator with the one or more stimulation parameters, generating a stimulus configured to control sphincter of Oddi function with the stimulator in accordance with the one or more stimulation parameters, and applying the stimulus with the stimulator to one or more stimulation sites in accordance with the one or more stimulation parameters.
US08914106B2

A medical device and method for detecting and classifying cardiac rhythm episodes that includes a sensing module to sense cardiac events; a therapy delivery module, and a detection module configured to determine intervals between the sensed cardiac events, determine a predetermined cardiac episode is occurring in response to the determined intervals, determine whether a ventricular rate is greater than an atrial rate in response to the determined intervals, determine whether oversensing is occurring in response to the ventricular rate being greater than the atrial rate, adjust the determined intervals in response to oversensing occurring to generate an adjusted ventricular rate, determine whether the cardiac episode is occurring in response to the adjusted ventricular rate, perform a supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) discrimination analysis in response to the cardiac episode occurring in response to the adjusted ventricular rate, and control the therapy delivery module to deliver therapy in response to the SVT discrimination analysis.
US08914105B2

A constant current pacing apparatus and method for pacing uses, for example, H-bridge circuitry and a constant current source connected to the H-bridge circuitry. Further, for example, protection is provided from high voltage pulses applied to the patient via one or more other medical devices.
US08914101B2

An implantable medical device and associated methods monitor thoracic fluid status and discriminate thoracic fluid conditions. Intrathoracic impedance is measured along multiple intrathoracic measurement vectors using implanted electrodes. A map of thoracic conductivity is computed using the measured intrathoracic impedances. A thoracic fluid condition is detected in response to the computed map.
US08914099B2

A system for the analysis of ECG signals is disclosed. The system may comprise (i) at least one readout channel, configured to receive an analog ECG signal acquired from at least one electrode attached to a body, and to extract an analog measured ECG signal and analog electrode-skin impedance signals; (ii) at least one ADC, configured to convert those extracted analog signals at the readout channel into digital signals; (iii) a digital adaptive filter unit, configured to calculate a digital motion artifact estimate based on said digital versions of the measured ECG signal and the electrode-skin impedance signals; (iv) at least one DAC, configured to convert said digital motion artifact estimate into an analog signal; and (v) a feedback loop for sending said analog motion artifact estimate signal back to the readout channel configured to deduct said analog motion artifact estimate signal from said analog measured ECG signal.
US08914092B2

A method of manufacturing an implantable medical lead is disclosed herein. The method may include: providing a lead body including a proximal end, a distal end, and an electrode near the distal end; provide a conductor extending between the proximal and distal ends; providing a crimp including a ribbon-like member and extending the ribbon-like member around the conductor; and mechanically and electrically connecting the ribbon-like member to the electrode.
US08914087B1

In a method or joint for joining first and second semiconductor wires, each comprising a number of filaments which each comprise a superconductive core within a respective sheath, the filaments being embedded within a matrix and wherein the superconductive cores comprise magnesium diboride and the sheaths comprise niobium, over a certain length a matrix is removed to expose the filaments. The exposed filaments are immersed in molten tin such that the nobium of the sheaths is converted to niobium-tin throughout a thickness of the sheaths. A superconductive path is provided between the superconductive cores of filaments of the first wire through the niobium-tin sheaths of the filaments to the superconductive cores of the second wire.
US08914083B2

A portable electronic device determines to which processing portion a signal received by a loop antenna is suited and can preferably perform different types of noncontact communication. The portable electronic device includes: an antenna including a first loop portion and a second loop portion; a signal processing portion that processes a signal received at the antenna; a signal detection portion; and in a state in which a single loop antenna formed by the first loop portion and the second loop portion is connected with the signal detection portion, a control portion that delivers a signal received at the single loop antenna to the signal processing portion, and delivers a signal received at the first loop portion to the signal processing portion.
US08914080B2

According to an embodiment, a determining device for determining a transmission parameter for wirelessly transmitting energy (414) from a sending device (402) to a receiving apparatus (401) is provided, comprising: an authorization checking device which is configured to carry out an authorization (403, 404, 405, 406) in order to determine whether the receiving apparatus is authorized to receive energy from the sending device, a sending/receiving apparatus which is configured to send and receive messages (409, 410, 411) during a message exchange with the receiving apparatus in order to determine the transmission parameter (413); and a parameter determining device which is configured to determine the transmission parameter (413) based on the authorization and based on the message exchange, if the receiving apparatus is authorized to receive energy from the sending device.
US08914079B2

Provided are a mobile information terminal, an information management device, and an information management system for mobile information terminals comprising the mobile information terminal and the information management device, with which it is possible to flexibly display also information that is voluntarily provided, for example, by a user, on map information. A navigation system of a vehicle acquires, by wireless communication, location information and post information that has been posted together with the location information, from an information management device of a management center in a state where the location information and the post information are associated. The navigation system controls the display of the acquired post information by a display device to be displayed in superposition in a location that is displayed upon the map information by the acquired location information.
US08914077B2

A control circuit of an the in-vehicle apparatus repeatedly performs a Bluetooth connection operation to connect to both of registered cellular phones and registered portable AV players in such a manner that, if an HFP connection has already been established to a cellular phone prior to an AVP connection to a portable AV player, the control circuit performs one round of AVP connection attempts to all of the registered portable AV players according to a priority order, prior to performing connection attempts to connect other data communication type profile to the cellular phone. By using such a profile connection scheme, the AVP connection attempt will not be delayed until after a connection attempt of the other data communication type profile.
US08914074B2

A method of creating a video sequence. The method comprises setting at least one repetitive reminder in a schedule managed by a handheld device having an image sensor, alarming a user according to the at least one repetitive reminder, capturing a sequence of images using the image sensor, automatically identifying a facial image depicting a face in a preset area in the sequence of images, automatically selecting the facial image, in response to the identification, and adding the facial image to a facial video sequence.
US08914069B2

A method and apparatus for speed dialing in a mobile communication system are provided. In the method, a speed dial code is input and transmitted to a SIM card. A dialing number corresponding to the speed dial code is detected from the SIM card. The detected dialing number is transmitted to a User Equipment (UE) through a mechanism of Call Control by SIM.
US08914066B2

Apparatuses and methods for field programming a private security key into a mobile station are described herein. The methods may include a server initially accepting in a wireless network a connection from a mobile station that is without a factory programmed subscriber identification module (SIM). The server may then collaborate with the mobile station to field program the mobile station with an international mobile subscriber identification (IMSI) and a private security key (Ki).
US08914061B2

A contactless integrated circuit includes modulation and demodulation circuits configured to connect to an HF antenna circuit to emit and receive HF signals by inductive coupling in a reader mode, modulation and demodulation circuits configured to connect to a UHF antenna to emit and receive UHF signals by electric coupling in a reader mode, a data processing circuit connected to the modulation and demodulation circuits, and configured to provide data to be emitted to the modulation circuits, and to process received signals, transmitted by the demodulation circuits, the demodulation circuits including a common demodulation circuit to equally process signals received by the UHF and HF antennas.
US08914053B2

In accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure a method for selecting transceivers to provide wireless communication service for a wireless user endpoint comprises determining at least one characteristic of at least one communication channel between a wireless user endpoint and a first plurality of transceivers. The determination of the at least one characteristic is based on a reference signal generated by the wireless user endpoint for reception by the first plurality of transceivers. The method further comprises analyzing the at least one characteristic of the at least one communication channel. The method additionally comprises selecting at least one transceiver of the first plurality of transceivers to provide wireless communication service for the wireless user endpoint. The selection of the at least one transceiver is based on the at least one characteristic of the at least one communication channel.
US08914048B2

Techniques for paging user equipments (UEs) in a wireless communication system are described. In one aspect, a cell sends a paging indicator to a UE, monitors for an acknowledgement from the UE, and sends a page message to the UE if an acknowledgement is received from the UE. The cell may receive channel quality information from the UE and may send the page message with link adaptation and/or HARQ to improve performance. In another aspect, a cell sends a paging indicator on a shared control channel to a UE and sends a page message on a shared data channel to the UE. The paging indicator and page message may be sent from multiple cells to the UE. Alternatively, the paging indicator may be sent from multiple cells to the UE, and the page message may be sent from a single cell to the UE.
US08914047B1

A communication device determines a load measure representing a measure of traffic currently handled by a communication node. The color of a skin of the communication device is changed from a first color to a second color associated with availability of a communication node, based on the load measure. The communication device comprises a mobile telephone having a display adapted to display text and images. The skin does not include the display, and the skin comprises at least one surface located on at least two sides of the communication device, one of the at least two sides being a side that does not include the display. The communication node may be, for example, a Wi-Fi access point or a cellular base station.
US08914042B2

A handheld wireless device makes a request for service from a server of a business on a global network, the request originating from the wireless device is automatically routed to the closest server of the business that is geographically closest to the location of the wireless device as determined by a GPS function in the device, or by a router server in the wireless network based on the group of cell towers being connected to by the wireless device, or based on the location of the wireless device in a global telephone network database, for faster access to the service and a response there from.
US08914041B2

Methods determine data spots in a network by identifying a transmission resource and its characteristics so as to determine geography of a data spot. Users are then directed to, locate, and/or move to the data spot and retrieve desired content. Users may be directed to the determined data spot, with a map or compass. Transmission resources include ad hoc hotspots for need by sideloading network users in a communicative proximity. Methods may match characteristics of the requesting network user with determined transmission resources to position a data spot. Example methods may be configured based on amounts of network resources consumed, third-party costs to a user, maximizing user experience by providing nearer and faster data spots, and/or any other desired criteria. Different portions of the methods may be performed by the network, the user, and/or third-parties, to reduce network burden while supplying users with desired content through data spots.
US08914040B2

Method and arrangement in a network node 302 for improving conditions for ground-based positioning of mobile terminals 310 in a wireless communication system. The method and arrangement concerns adaptation of an antenna arrangement 308 associated with the network node 302, so that a virtual positioning cell 306 is formed in a positioning radio resource, in which positioning reference signals are transmitted or received.
US08914031B2

Disclosed are a beamforming method and a beamforming apparatus for an adaptive antenna. A mobile terminal equipped with the adaptive antenna is initialized, a base station to transceive a signal with the mobile terminal is searched, beamforming is performed based on the searched base station, a reference position value of the mobile terminal is stored, and the beamforming of the antenna is adjusted if a sensing module in the mobile terminal detects position change of the mobile terminal based on a reference position. A changed position of the mobile terminal is stored as the reference position value, so that the position of the terminal is detected based on the reference position in real time, thereby simply and accurately performing the beamforming.
US08914023B2

The present invention relates to a system for transmitting a multimedia message to a roamed multimedia message receiver, and a method thereof. In the method, when the multimedia message is transmitted from a first mobile communication network to a multimedia message receiver that has roamed from the first mobile communication network to a second mobile communication network, location information of the multimedia message receiver is determined according to a request for transmission of the multimedia message. A roaming state of the multimedia message is determined based on the location information of the multimedia message receiver When it is determined that the multimedia message receiver has roamed, a notification message of a pull method is transmitted to the multimedia message receiver to determine whether the multimedia message receiver accepts receipt of the multimedia message. In addition, when a response of acceptance is received from the multimedia message receiver, the multimedia message is transmitted to the multimedia message receiver.
US08914017B2

A mobile communication device with a wireless module and a controller module is provided for handling random access failures in a multi-carrier system. The wireless module performs wireless transceiving to and from a cellular station. The controller module performs operations of a Media Access Control (MAC) layer. The operations includes: retrying a random access procedure on a carrier frequency with the cellular station via the wireless module, and stopping the retry of the random access procedure in response to the retry of the random access procedure being failed or receiving a message from the cellular station via the wireless module.
US08914015B2

Techniques for supporting MIMO transmission are described. User equipments (UEs) are classified into a first group of UEs to be scheduled individually and a second group of UEs that can be scheduled together. The classification may be based upon the number of transmit and receive antennas, sector loading, data requirements, long-term channel statistics, the number of UEs, etc. Channel quality indicator (CQI) information received from the UEs is interpreted in different manners depending on the groups to which the UEs belong. A single UE may be selected at a time from the first group or multiple UEs may be selected at a time from the second group for MIMO transmission. A MIMO transmission may be sent to a single UE in the first group or multiple UEs in the second group at rates selected based upon the CQI information.
US08914004B2

An apparatus and a method of selecting a resource of an application in a wireless terminal, which can selectively download an optimum resource of the application appropriate for the wireless terminal are provided. The apparatus includes a controller for, when a download of an application is selected, downloading an application having a resource corresponding to screen information of the wireless terminal from applications for respective resources for the application provided by an application provider.
US08913999B1

First party geolocation data is obtained along with data indicating one or more contact parties associated with the first party. A relevant contact party radius from the geolocation of the first party is defined such that any contact parties within the relevant contact party radius are considered relevant contact parties with respect to the first party. Contact party geolocation data indicating the geolocation of at least one of the contact parties is then obtained. The first party geolocation data and the contact party geolocation data is then analyzed to identify any relevant contact parties within the relevant contact party radius. When a relevant contact party is identified, contact data for the identified relevant contact party is obtained and/or accessed and provided to one or more applications associated with the first party computing system.
US08913998B2

A computer-implemented method for managing data traffic comprises connecting at least two telematic devices to a computer system and managing, by the computer system, a connection of the at least two telematic devices to a communication network for receiving data from the communication network by the at least two telematic devices. The method runs at least one telematic application on the computer system or on at least one of the at least two telematic devices based on the data received from the communication network. The computer system controls the at least two telematic devices such that both of the at least two telematic devices receive the data for the at least one telematic application from the communication network at the same time or one of the at least two telematic devices receives the data from the communication network at a first time period whereas the other one of the at least two telematic devices receives the data from the communication network at a second time period different from the first time period.
US08913995B2

Aspects describe spectrum authorization, access control, and configuration parameters validation. Devices in an ad-hoc or peer-to-peer configuration can utilize a licensed spectrum if the devices are authorized to use the spectrum, which can be determined automatically. Aspects relate to distribution of authorization tickets by an authorization server as a result of validating a device's credentials and services to which the device is entitled. An exchange and verification of authorization tickets can be performed by devices as a condition for enabling a validated wireless link using the spectrum.
US08913992B2

Methods and apparatus for recovering access data from a malfunctioning device. In one embodiment, trained service personnel are provided a specialized apparatus for retrieving access data from a malfunctioning device. For example, in the instance the device comprises a cellular device having an unrecoverable hardware failure, trained service personnel can connect to the secure element and retrieve the one or more electronic Subscriber Identity Modules (eSIMs) stored thereon. The eSIMs are then “reclaimed” and reprogrammed/distributed to a new device. In one implementation, security and integrity measures are taken to protect and control distribution of sensitive access data.
US08913982B2

A system for effecting special treatment of emergency calls originating from a temporarily designated region; emergency calls originating from the region ordinarily being routed to a first emergency answering position. The system includes: (a) a geographic mapper; (b) a polygon manager coupled with the geographic mapper; at least one of the geographic mapper and the polygon manager unit being coupled with an emergency network handling the emergency calls; the polygon manager and the geographic mapper cooperating to effect designation of the region; and (c) a call routing unit coupled with the emergency network and coupled with at least one of the geographic mapper and the polygon manager. The call routing unit provides alternate call routing of the emergency calls originating in the region substantially while the region is designated to at least one other emergency answering position than the first emergency answering position.
US08913980B2

A method for indicating an emergency call availability to a Mobile Equipment includes: storing, at a memory device attached to the ME, information regarding the possibility of unauthenticated emergency calls in dependency of availability data, determining that the ME is in a limited service state; and indicating, by the ME, emergency call availability. The availability data indicates, for at least a first mobile telecommunications network and a second mobile telecommunications network, whether: all unauthenticated emergency calls are allowed with or without an identification module inserted in the ME, unauthenticated emergency calls are only allowed if a valid identification module is inserted in the ME, or unauthenticated emergency calls are not allowed.
US08913976B2

Amplifiers with shunt switches to mitigate interference are disclosed. In an exemplary design, an apparatus includes an amplifier and a shunt switch. The amplifier has an input operatively coupled to an input/output (I/O) pad of an integrated circuit (IC) chip. The shunt switch grounds the amplifier when the shunt switch is closed. The shunt switch is isolated from the I/O pad and the amplifier input. The amplifier may be a low noise amplifier (LNA) or some other type of amplifier. In an exemplary design, the shunt switch is isolated from the I/O pad by a series switch. The series switch and the shunt switch may be closed when the amplifier is disabled and may be opened when the amplifier is enabled.
US08913966B2

A method for use in an access point includes managing communication, based on an associated set of communication parameters, between a first client wireless transceiver and the packet switched backbone network, and between a second client wireless transceiver and the packet switched backbone network. A hidden terminal condition is identified, based on at least the attempt to detect transmissions from the second client wireless transceiver circuitry by the first client processing circuitry. At least one parameter of the associated set of communication parameters is altered to address the hidden terminal condition.
US08913958B2

A first access method changer changes an access control method of a base station device to a third access control method in which a control with a first access control method and a control with a second access control method are performed simultaneously. The first access control method is such that a mobile station device subscribing to the group is allowed to access the base station device. The second access method is such that any mobile station device is allowed to access the base station device. A second access method changer changes the access control method of the base station device from the third access control method changed by the first access method changer to the first access control method.
US08913951B2

Methods and systems for 60 GHz distributed communication utilizing a mesh network of repeaters are disclosed and may include configuring antennas in remote RF modules in a wireless communication device, wherein each of the RF modules receive IF signals via coaxial lines. The RF signals may be transmitted via the antennas to a destination device via a mesh network that comprises the RF modules and one or more external repeaters. The IF signals in the coaxial lines may be tapped at the RF modules. The repeaters may be configured via a processor in the wireless communication device, where the control signals may be communicated to the RF modules via the coaxial lines. The RF modules may be configured utilizing a processor in the wireless communication device, where the control signals may be communicated via the coaxial lines. The RF signals may be generated from IF signals from baseband signals.
US08913950B2

A radio relay method for relaying signal transmitted and received between a base station apparatus and a mobile station apparatus, the radio relay method including: selecting a first relay method amplifying and transmitting reception signal, or a second relay method decoding, error correcting, re-encoding, and transmitting the reception signal, based on each reception quality between the relay station apparatus and the base station apparatus and between the relay station apparatus and the mobile station apparatus; and relaying the signal based on the selected first relay method or the selected second relay method.
US08913949B2

A base station is connected to a relay station that relays wireless signals from a mobile station. The base station includes a resource block assigning unit configured to generate first resource block assignment information of a first wireless section based on a first propagation quality of the first wireless section between the base station and the relay station; a ratio determining unit configured to calculate a ratio of a number of first resource blocks assigned to the first wireless section and a number of second resource blocks to be assigned to a second wireless section for transmitting the number of first resource blocks in the second wireless section between the relay station and the mobile station; and a transmitting unit configured to transmit the first resource block assignment information and the ratio to the relay station.
US08913944B2

A cleaning blade including a strip-shaped elastic blade having at least one obtuse-angled edge on a tip portion thereof, and a cover layer, which is located on a surface of the tip portion of the elastic blade including the obtuse-angled edge and which is harder than the elastic blade. The obtuse-angled edge having the cover layer thereon is contacted with a moving surface of a member to be cleaned to remove a powdery material from the moving surface of the member.
US08913941B2

A gloss applicator to apply a gloss to toner by heating and then forcibly cooling a toner image on a recording medium, includes: a plurality of rollers including a heat roller disposed upstream in a conveyance direction of the recording medium bearing the toner image thereon; an endless belt wound around the plurality of rollers and including a taut portion along the conveyance direction of the recording medium; a pressure roller disposed at a position opposite the heat roller sandwiching the endless belt together with the heat roller; a cooling member disposed at an interior surface of the taut portion of the endless belt; and a pair of separating members disposed at both ends of the cooling member and configured to contact and separate the endless belt to and from the cooling member so as to change an area of contact of the cooling member with the endless belt.
US08913939B2

A pressing member for fixing includes a substantially cylindrical substrate; a first layer that is disposed on an outer surface of the substrate, that contains bubbles, and that is elastic; a second layer disposed on an outer surface of the first layer; and an adhesive layer bonding together the first layer and the second layer. The pressing member has an adhesive-free unbonded region between the first layer and the second layer. The unbonded region extends to at least one end of the pressing member in an axial direction.
US08913934B2

A system to combine the transfer and fixing xerographic steps of a xerographic printer into one, as well as to eliminate the need for an electrical field for transfer. The image is transfixed directly from a photoconductor to the paper or other suitable substrate. Appropriate pressure is applied during this step to cold-pressure fix the toner on the paper, taking into account the type of substrate and type of toner. The cold pressure transfix can be done either directly from a photoreceptor, without an intermediate transfer belt (ITB), eliminating all electrostatic transfer subsystems and a fusing operation. Alternatively, for engines with an intermediate transfer belt (ITB), the cold pressure transfix could replace a needed second transfer and fuser system.
US08913930B2

Provided is the following developer carrying member. The member has high charge-providing performance even under a high-temperature, high-humidity environment, and its surface layer hardly peels off its elastic layer even after long-term standing under the high-temperature, high-humidity environment. The developer carrying member comprises a mandrel, an elastic layer including a silicone rubber, and a surface layer covering a surface of the elastic layer, and the surface layer comprises a binder resin, and a copolymer having structural units of formula (1) and formula (2). R1 represents an alkyl group having 10-18 carbon atoms, R2 represents a methyl group or a hydrogen atom, R3 represents an alkylene group having 1-4 carbon atoms, X− represents a chloride ion, a bromide ion, or a p-toluenesulfonic acid ion, R4 represents a methyl group or a hydrogen atom, and R5 represents an alkylene group having 1-4 carbon atoms.
US08913925B2

A developer conveying device includes a housing, a developer conveyance path and a conveying member. The developer conveyance path extends between a pair of wall portions. The conveying member includes a spiral member, an inner wall portion and shaft portions. The spiral member is formed by connecting spiral pieces, each forming one spiral turn, in a conveying direction of the developer and includes a hollow interior formed by the connected spiral pieces. The inner wall portion includes a plurality of planar portions which define the hollow interior of the spiral member and are connected at predetermined angles in a circumferential direction of the rotation of the conveying member. The shaft portions are arranged at opposite end parts of the spiral member, rotatably supported on the wall portions and serve as a rotary shaft for the rotation of the conveying member.
US08913923B2

An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member, a charger, an irradiator, a developing device, a transfer device, a neutralizer, and a varying device is provided. The neutralizer is adapted to neutralize the image bearing member by emitting neutralization light thereto, after a toner image formed on the image bearing member is transferred therefrom. The varying device is adapted to vary an amount of the neutralization light to be emitted to the image bearing member by pulse-width modulation of a voltage to be supplied to the neutralizer. The image forming apparatus satisfies the following formula: f/V>5 wherein f (Hz) represents a frequency of the pulse-width modulation and V (mm/s) represents a linear speed of the image bearing member.
US08913918B2

An image forming device includes a housing; a conveying belt, and a retaining member. The retaining member retains image bearing members that juxtaposed with and spaced apart from one another. The retaining member is slidingly movable relative to the housing in a direction that the image bearing members are juxtaposed. The retaining member retains the image bearing members to confront the conveying belt. The image bearing members and the conveying belt are arranged in a reference direction. The retaining member includes a cleaning member that removes residual developing agent from the conveying belt, and a guide unit that guides the recording medium to the conveying belt. The guide unit is located on the image bearing member side and the cleaning member is located on the conveying belt side. At least part of the guide unit overlaps at least part of the cleaning member when projected in the reference direction.
US08913916B2

A developer contains a toner having an external additive deposited thereon. The developer is used with an image-forming apparatus including an image carrier including a surface layer in which fluoropolymer resin particles are dispersed and a cleaning member disposed in contact with an outer surface of the image carrier. The external additive is a nonspherical external additive whose volume average particle size is smaller than the average particle size of exposed portions of the fluoropolymer resin particles in the surface layer of the image carrier.
US08913915B2

A corona charger conventionally includes a sheet-like shutter and a holding member configured to hold an end of the shutter, and the replacement of a charging electrode is difficult. To solve this problem, the holding member configured to hold the end of the shutter is set to be movable along the longitudinal direction of a shield to a winding member of the shutter more than a supporting member configured to replaceably support the charging electrode.
US08913910B2

A fixing device includes a fixing belt including a metal layer, a pressing member to form a nip between the pressing member and the fixing belt, an induction current generating coil that faces an outer periphery of the fixing belt, and heats the fixing belt located at a nip position through a hollow inside of the fixing belt, and a coil controller supplies a high frequency to the induction current generating coil.
US08913868B2

The present disclosure relates to a structure for holding an optical component on a fiber management tray. The structure includes a plurality of substantially parallel retaining members that cooperate to define elongated pockets for receiving optical components. The elongated pockets are defined between the retaining members. The retaining members have lengths that extend along lengths of the pockets, and have cantilevered configurations with fixed base ends. The retaining members also have heights that project upwardly from the base ends to free ends, and are configured to flex to allow optical components to be inserted into the pockets. Each of the retaining members includes a concave side that faces downwardly and a convex side that faces upwardly. Each of the pockets has a first side defined by the concave side of one retaining member and a second side defined by the convex side of an adjacent retaining member.
US08913867B2

A fiber optic collector and terminal assembly (CTA) can include a multi-fiber optic cable having a tail portion and first and second multi-fiber branches optically coupled to the tail portion. The first and second multi-fiber optic branches each have fewer fibers than the tail portion. The CTA also includes a plurality of single-fiber optic jumpers optically coupled to the first multi-fiber optic branch. Additionally, the CTA includes an adapter for securing a connection between a fiber of one of the plurality of single-fiber optic jumpers and a fiber of a single-fiber optic drop.
US08913862B1

An optical communication cable is provided. The cable includes a plurality of elongate optical transmission elements wrapped around an elongate central strength member such that a portion of the length of the plurality of wrapped elongate optical transmission elements form a spiral portion around the elongate central strength member. The cable includes an elastic sleeve surrounding the plurality of elongate optical transmission elements, and the elastic sleeve is formed from an extruded first material. The cable includes a cable body formed from an extruded second material different from the first material, and the cable body surrounds the film, and the cable body has an inner surface that faces the outer surface of the film.
US08913857B2

An optical backplane assembly (1) includes a backplane (10), a first switch card (21), a second switch card (22) disposed on one side of the first switch card, a plurality of first line cards disposed on the other side of the first switch card, and a first optical assembly (41) including a plurality of first optical channels (411) and a plurality of second optical channels (412) overlapped with the first optical channel. The first optical channels optically interconnecting the first switch card with the first line cards. The second optical channels optically interconnecting the second switch card with the first optical channels.
US08913854B2

An optical polarization rotator includes first and second optical waveguide ribs located along a planar surface of a substrate. The second optical waveguide rib is located farther from the surface than the first optical waveguide rib. First segments of the optical waveguide ribs form a vertical stack over the substrate, and second segments of the optical waveguide ribs are offset laterally in a direction along the planar surface. The first and second optical waveguide ribs are formed of materials with different bulk refractive indexes.
US08913837B2

An image matching device includes: a mixed image generation portion generating a mixed image in an operation satisfying linearity, the mixed image being obtained by multiplying each of two or more recorded images and each of phase components of a complex plane different from each other and adding multiplied recorded images; a complex similarity image generation portion generating a complex similarity image through a similarity operation between one or more input image and the mixed image; and a similarity obtain portion obtaining similarity from a projected component of the complex similarity image toward a vector of the phase component.
US08913818B2

The present invention relates to methods and devices for evaluating bone conditions based on images. In particular, devices, methods and algorithms are provided that allow for the accurate and reliable evaluation of bone structure from x-ray images.
US08913811B2

A magnetic resonance imaging system (1), comprising a plurality of receiving units (4.1-4.4) for receiving magnetic resonance signals from an object (2), and an image reconstruction device (8), said image reconstruction device being adapted to receive magnetic resonance signals of said object (2) from said plurality of receiving units (4.1-4.4) and to perform image reconstruction by combining magnetic resonance signals received by said plurality of receiving units using an image reconstruction algorithm (11), characterized in that said image reconstruction device (8) comprises means (12a) for combining magnetic resonance signal contributions from respective receiving units (4.1-4.4) in such a way that a combined sensitivity of the plurality of receiving units (4.1-4.4) to a predetermined spatial region of the object (2) is reduced.
US08913809B2

Embodiments related to monitoring physical body changes over time are disclosed. One embodiment provides a computing device configured to receive a depth image representing an observed scene comprising a user and detect a representation of the user in the depth image. The computing device is further configured to determine an adjusted body model based on a comparison between an initial body model and the representation of the user, and output to a display device a representation of the adjusted body model.
US08913803B2

A method of determining an internal three-dimensional thermally distinguishable region in the living body is disclosed. The method comprises obtaining a synthesized thermospatial image defined over a three-dimensional spatial representation of the living body and having thermal data arranged gridwise over a surface of the three-dimensional spatial representation in a plurality of picture-elements each represented by a intensity value over the grid. The method further comprises searching over the grid for at least one set of picture-elements represented by generally similar intensity values. For at least a few sets of picture-elements, the method defines a plurality of loci, each locus being associated with at least a pair of picture-elements of the set and defined such that each point of the locus is at equal thermal distances from individual picture-elements of the pair. The plurality of loci is used for determining the internal three-dimensional thermally distinguishable region.
US08913799B2

The invention refers to a device for collecting biometric data, in particular fingerprints, the device having an optically active detector for recording the surfaces of body regions. In the beam path between the surface and the detector a mirror is provided.
US08913796B2

In a biometrics system for a building entrance unlocking or a bank account authentication, reference information registered under administration by the system is transmitted to a room or mobile-phone for private storage, with the original reference information deleted from the system. Biologic information gotten upon authentication is transmitted through wireless system to the room or mobile-phone for comparison with the reference, the result being returned to the system. Or, the reference is tentatively sent back to the system for comparison with the gotten biologic information. The biologic information sent to mobile-phone also includes health control information for storage and display. Mobile-phone also can receive blood pressure information at a waiting lounge of medical institution though wireless local communication even if the main power shut down. The communication between the biometrics system and the mobile-phone is encrypted. The system includes sensor unit and protection unit, the abnormality thereof being separately checked.
US08913795B2

A method for identifying the connectivity of texture types represented in a digital image comprising pixels, each pixel having a texture value which is representative of texture at a respective position, the method comprising: partitioning the texture values into local neighborhoods of texture values; determining a directionality for each neighborhood; using the directionality of the neighborhoods to determine their nearest neighborhood or neighborhoods; connecting the neighborhoods with their nearest neighborhood or neighborhoods; and determining the connectivity of the texture types of the digital image based on the connections formed between neighborhoods.
US08913793B2

The present invention discloses a method for generating elevation maps or images of a tissue layer/boundary with respect to a fitted reference surface, comprising the steps of finding and segmenting a desired tissue layer/boundary; fitting a smooth reference surface to the segmented tissue layer/boundary; calculating elevations of the same or other tissue layer/boundary relative to the fitted reference surface; and generating maps of elevation relative to the fitted surface. The elevation can be displayed in various ways including three-dimensional surface renderings, topographical contour maps, contour maps, en-face color maps, and en-face grayscale maps. The elevation can also be combined and simultaneously displayed with another tissue layer/boundary dependent set of image data to provide additional information for diagnostics.
US08913784B2

A method, in accordance with particular embodiments, includes receiving voxel data for a plurality of voxels. Each voxel is associated with a unique volume of space associated with a geographic area. The voxel data for each respective voxel includes one or more values based on one or more reflections from one or more light pulses from a LIDAR system. The method further includes identifying noise values from among the one or more values for each respective voxel. The method additionally includes determining a baseline threshold comprising a static value that is uniform for each of the voxels. The method additionally includes determining a dynamic threshold that varies between the voxels and is based on the identified noise values. The method further includes applying the baseline and dynamic thresholds to the voxel data to generate filtered voxel data. The method also includes generating a three-dimensional image based on the filtered voxel data.
US08913780B2

The present invention relate generally to digital watermarking and data hiding. One claim recites a method including: obtaining first data and second color data, the first color data and the second color data represent data from a color image signal or color video signal; obtaining a digital watermark pattern, the pattern aiding detection of a watermark message; separating the digital watermark pattern into first frequency components and second frequency components; utilizing a programmed electronic processor or electronic processing circuitry, modifying the first color data by hiding the first frequency components therein; and utilizing a programmed electronic processor or electronic processing circuitry, modifying the second color data by hiding the second frequency components therein. Of course, other combinations and claims are provided too.
US08913767B2

There are provided a vibration film (21) having a piezoelectric element, a magnetic circuit (20) which generates magnetic force on the basis of a first electric signal and vibrates the vibration film (21) by the magnetic force; and an adjustment unit (31) which generates a second electric signal on the basis of the first electric signal and applies a voltage based on the second electric signal between both surfaces of the piezoelectric element. The amplitude of the entire vibration film (21) is expanded by making the vibration by the magnetic force, which is generated from the magnetic circuit (20), and the vibration, which is generated by application of a voltage to the piezoelectric element, synchronize with each other.
US08913766B2

A MEMS device, such as a microphone, uses a fixed perforated plate. The fixed plate comprises an array of holes across the plate area. At least a set of the holes adjacent the outer periphery comprises a plurality of rows of elongate holes, the rows at different distances from the periphery. This design improves the mechanical robustness of the membrane and can additionally allow tuning of the mechanical behavior of the plate.
US08913760B2

A sound reproducing device having: a sound source data storage unit configured to store reference sound source data for reproducing a reference sound having a prescribed frequency band and comparative sound source data for reproducing comparative sounds having frequency bands different from each other; a reproduction processing unit configured to reproduce the reference sound and the comparative sounds on the basis of the reference sound source data and the comparative sound source data stored in the sound source data storage unit; a comparative sound volume adjustment operation unit configured to receive sound volume adjustment operation for the comparative sounds; and an acoustic characteristic information generation unit configured to simultaneously output the reference sound and a comparative sound of a sound volume in accordance with the received sound volume adjustment operation and record a result of the sound volume adjustment operation in association with the comparative sound related to reproduction.
US08913759B2

A method and an apparatus for controlling/adjusting volume, which can set multiple volume modes having different volume intervals and control volume by a volume interval of a corresponding volume mode according to a given circumstance in an electronic device having a volume change function. The method includes detecting a volume change event; when the volume change event is a volume mode change, changing a current volume mode to a volume mode corresponding to the volume change event; and when the volume change event is a volume value change, controlling volume up/down in response to the volume change event.
US08913756B2

A connector with an audio receiving module provided for being electrically coupled to a main board of an electronic device includes an insulating base, an audio receiving module and a jack. The insulating base has a containing space and a containing groove, and the containing space has an opening, and the containing groove has a port. The audio receiving module is contained in the containing space and disposed at a position corresponding to the opening and includes a microphone unit and a plurality of pins, and the microphone unit is electrically coupled to each pin. The jack is contained in the containing groove and disposed at a position corresponding to the port. Therefore, the connector can provide an audio receiving effect.
US08913754B2

The present invention features systems for adjusting audio signals by applying a gain to the signal in a spectrally varying manner to compensate for ambient noise in the environment of the listener. The system allows a listener to hear what ought to be heard, over the ambient noise, by applying a gain to the source that varies according to the spectral composition of the noise, rather than cancelling or filtering the noise. The spectral composition of the source is thus preserved in the listener's awareness without the removal of the noise signal. After application of these corrective gains to the source, the listener's perception of the source sound is as if the noise was not present. Systems may be incorporated into apparatuses including but not limited to mobile phones and music players.
US08913753B2

Certain aspects relate to providing an at least one audio source to at least one user. Certain aspects relate to selectively modifying an at least one first sound source to be provided to the at least one user, wherein the at least one first sound source is combined with an at least one second sound source, and wherein the selectively modifying is performed relative to the at least one audio source based at least in part on at least some specific information of the at least one first sound source. Other aspects relate to selectively modifying the at least one first sound source to be provided to the at least one user relative to the at least one second sound source based at least in part on at least some specific information of the at least one first sound source.
US08913751B2

A key management and node authentication method for a sensor network is disclosed. The method comprises the following steps of: 1) keys pre-distribution: before deploying the network, communication keys for establishing security connection between nodes are pre-distributed to all of nodes by a deployment server. 2) Keys establishment: after deploying the network, a pair key for the security connection is established between nodes, which includes the following steps of: 2.1) establishment of shared keys: the pair key is established between neighbor nodes in which the shared keys are existed; 2.2) path keys establishment: the pair key is established between the nodes in which there is no shared keys but there is a multi-hop security connection. 3) Node identity (ID) authentication: before formally communicating between nodes, the identity is authenticated so as to determine the legality and the validity of the identity of the other. It is possible for effectively resisting attacks such as wiretapping, tampering, and replaying and the like for the network communication, realizing the secret communication between the nodes, effectively saving resources of the nodes of the sensor network, and prolonging the service lift of the sensor network in the method.
US08913739B2

A method and device for transforming data with a secret parameter in an elliptic curve cryptosystem based on an elliptic curve defined over an underlying prime field, includes multiplying a point of the elliptic curve; representing the data to be transformed, by a scalar representing the secret parameter, wherein the multiplying includes performing at least one point addition operation and at least one point doubling operation on points of the elliptic curve; providing a representation in affine coordinates of the elliptic curve point to be multiplied and a representation in projective coordinates of intermediate elliptic curve points obtained during the multiplying; performing both the point addition operation and the point doubling operation by means of a sequence of elementary prime field operation types, the elementary prime field operation types including: a first type of prime field operations including field multiplication and field squaring of coordinates of the elliptic curve points and a second type of prime field operations including field addition, field doubling, and field subtraction of coordinates of the elliptic curve points.
US08913738B2

Apparatus includes a housing, a substrate provided within the housing and including a first surface oppositely disposed to a second surface, an earpiece speaker module provided within the housing and including an air displacement component that is configured to move upon application of an electrical signal, the air displacement component having a front surface and a back surface, an acoustic cavity defined within the housing, and a front volume adjacent the front surface of the air moving component. The housing includes an earpiece aperture which is coupled to the earpiece speaker module by an acoustic channel, wherein the first surface of the substrate faces generally towards the earpiece aperture. The second surface of the substrate faces the back surface of the air displacement component. A rear volume is provided between the second surface of the substrate and the earpiece speaker module. The acoustic cavity is coupled via a coupling channel to the rear volume. The rear volume and the acoustic cavity are isolated from the front volume.
US08913736B2

A method for assigning a contact to undifferentiated agents is provided, comprising: describing substantially each undifferentiated agent using at least one agent attribute to produce a set of agent attribute values; describing a contact using at least one contact attribute to produce a set of contact attribute values; relating the sets of agent and contact attribute values to produce at least one preferred agent; determining an expected wait time for substantially each of the at least one preferred agent to produce a set of expected wait times; determining a wait tolerance for the contact; if the expected wait time for at least one preferred agent is less than the wait tolerance, then assign the contact to the at least one preferred agent; and if the expected wait time for the at least one preferred agent is greater than the wait tolerance, then assign the contact to an undifferentiated agent.
US08913734B2

A telecommunications addressing system/method allowing selection of a telephone instrument device (TID) using arbitrary identifiers is disclosed. The system/method allows a source TID (STD) to select a target TID (TTD) by the use of a Target Telephone Identifier (TTI) data string rather than a traditional numeric telephone identification (NTI). This TTI is then indexed within a TTI/NTI mapping server (TMS) that functions as a hierarchical repository of TTI/NTI mappings. STD/TTD communication is established by first performing a lookup of the STD-selected TTI within the TMS to identify the NTI of the TTD. Once the NTI of the STD has been identified by the TMS, communication between the STD and TTD is established using the NTI via the normal public switched telephone network (PSTN). TMS TTI lookup may be performed via STD TID web application and/or via PSTN infrastructure interface.
US08913714B2

A detector arrangement is disclosed for performing phase-contrast measurements, including at least two transducer layers arranged one behind the other, wherein at least the first transducer layer arranged in the radiation direction includes alternate sensitive areas having a high absorptance for the conversion of incident radiation quanta into signals and less sensitive areas having a lower absorptance in comparison thereto. Further, a corresponding X-ray tomography device and a method for performing phase-contrast measurements are also enclosed.
US08913705B2

A mechanism for dynamic skew correction in a multi-lane communication link includes a receiver unit including, for each of the lanes, a first-in first-out (FIFO). The FIFO may store received symbols to locations pointed to by a write pointer and output to downstream logic, symbols stored at locations pointed to by a read pointer. The receiver may also include a symbol drop unit that disables the write pointer in response to receiving a start alignment symbol, and enables the write pointer in response to receiving an end alignment symbol. The receiver also includes an alignment unit that disables the read pointer in response to detecting that the end symbol has been received at least one lane but not all lanes. In addition, the alignment unit may enable the read pointer in response to a determination that the end symbol has been received on all lanes.
US08913693B2

A method of balancing a quadrature modulator includes exciting an in-phase input of the quadrature module and sweeping a phase of an injection signal through a range of degrees, and determining a plurality of in-phase DC components. The method further includes exciting a quadrature input of the quadrature module and sweeping a phase of the injection signal through the range of degrees, and determining a plurality of quadrature DC components. An in-phase sinusoidal equivalent of the plurality of in-phase DC components and a quadrature sinusoidal equivalent of the plurality of quadrature DC components may be determined. At least one correction factor that balances the quadrature modulator may be determined based on a comparison between the in-phase sinusoidal equivalent and the quadrature sinusoidal equivalent.
US08913670B2

A system and method are provided that can be used for applying a deblocking filter to a video according to processor usage, in particular on a mobile device. To determine which of a plurality of deblocking filters to use, the system determines an environment indicator indicative of current processor usage, compares the environment indicator to a primary threshold, wherein the primary threshold is indicative of a maximum acceptable processor usage. If the primary threshold is met, the system foregoes any deblocking filtering. If however the primary threshold is not met, the environment indicator is compared to one or more secondary thresholds and a respective one of the plurality of deblocking filters is applied to the video according to which one of the secondary thresholds is met. Each of the plurality of deblocking filters has a different complexity and thus can be chosen to suit the current system environment.
US08913655B2

Circuits and methods are provided for efficient feed-forward equalization when sample-and-hold circuitry is employed to generate n time-delayed versions of an input data signal to be equalized. To equalize the input data signal, m data signals are input to m feed-forward equalization (FFE) taps of a current-integrating summer circuit, wherein each of the m data signals corresponds to one of the n time-delayed versions of the input data signal. A capacitance is precharged to a precharge level during a reset period of the current-integrating summer circuit. An output current is generated by each of the m FFE taps during an integration period of the current-integrating summer circuit, wherein the output currents from the m FFE taps collectively charge or discharge the capacitance during the integration period. A gating control signal is applied to an FFE tap during the integration period to disable the FFE tap during a portion of the integration period in which the data signal input to the FFE tap is invalid.
US08913646B2

A wireless product for wireless communication is constructed for spread spectrum operation within a required channel bandwidth where an RF signal for transmission in the channel is divided into sub-channels, each of which is less than the minimum channel bandwidth permitted by FCC regulations in order to realize improved transmission characteristics and greater flexibility in transmission timing and synchronization. The wireless product includes a controller for controlling system operation. During operation, the RF signal portion is less than the minimum channel bandwidth required by said regulations thus dividing the channel bandwidth to form N sub-channels, and setting the bandwidth of the RF signal to be substantially equal to the sub-channel bandwidth. The RF signal portion being transmitted in each of the N sub-channels.
US08913637B1

A highly portable, high-powered infrared laser source is produced by intermittent operation of a quantum cascade laser power regulated to a predetermined operating range that permits passive cooling. The regulation process may boost battery voltage allowing the use of a more compact, low-voltage batteries.
US08913630B2

An apparatus comprising a data framer configured to frame an external protocol extension message for transmission, the external protocol extension message comprising a header that indicates an external protocol extension and at least one type-length-value (TLV) comprising a type field, a length field, and a value field, wherein a format of the TLV is specified by a specific organization, and wherein the value field comprises information related to protocol functions external to the network. Also included is an apparatus comprising at least one component configured to implement a method comprising compiling an external protocol extension message comprising a plurality of TLVs and a header that indicates an external protocol extension, and transmitting the external protocol message.
US08913626B2

Embodiments of methods, apparatuses, and systems for signal processing of multiple input signals to control peak amplitudes of a combined signal are disclosed. One method includes receiving a plurality of input signals, generating a combined signal, the combined signal comprising a plurality of sub-channels, wherein each sub-channel includes a representation of at least a portion of at least one of the plurality of input signals, and processing the representation of the least a portion of the at least one of the plurality of input signals of at least one of the sub-channels, to reduce a peak-to-average-power ratio (PAR) of the combined signal.
US08913625B2

System and method for providing service-agnostic network resources is provided. An embodiment receives an indication that a user is requesting services at a new location, retrieves an access profile, which includes service parameters for services to which the user subscribes, and causes the access network and the programmable network to be reconfigured to provide to the user's services at the new location. The indication may be generated automatically or manually. A network control database that stores network topology information and/or configuration instructions may be used to reconfigure the network resources. In this manner, the access network and the programmable network may be reconfigured to allow the user to move from location to location and from device to device and continue to receive a consistent set of transport services, even involving multiple forms of transport.
US08913623B2

A system and method is provided for managing access communications between the service edge of a communications service provider and a customer. Access communications are carried in the form of carrier-tagged flows, the communications traffic being appended with carrier tags having significance to handling of the traffic through access network elements. A building aggregation system is provided which couples to customer premise equipment and interfaces customer flows to carrier-tagged flows used in the access network.
US08913604B2

A modified end user network access point includes a switching module and a controller to track usage of the end user network access point by wirelessly connected end user devices. The tracked usage information is transmitted from the end user network access point to a remotely coupled data center. The data center collects usage information from a plurality of different end user network access points. The collected usage information is in turn transmitted from the data center to a network carrier. The network carrier uses the received usage information to bill users for accessing the end user network access points and using any services provided by the end user network access points. An owner of each end user network access point is compensated by the network carrier each instance that an end user device utilizes the end user network access point to access the network carrier's communications network.
US08913602B2

A system and method for routing signaling messages in a communication network includes an improved route engine having a plurality of dynamically loadable route trees encoded as standardized data files each provisioned for use according to a corresponding network service and having one or more nodes each encoded with logic to independently carry out processing for the service and return a corresponding route response.
US08913600B2

A wireless communication apparatus, a wireless communication system, and a wireless communication method enabling any plurality of apparatuses to engage in time division multiplex communication for communicating a plurality of data even if not all apparatuses in the network are accurately synchronized, perform a time division multiplex connection method of an autonomous distributed network that performs a continuous receiving (scan) operation over a frame period so as to obtain a grasp of the wireless communication apparatuses located at the neighborhood at predetermined periods, that includes the steps of receiving beacon signals from other wireless communication apparatuses to obtain a grasp of the wireless communication apparatuses that they are communicable with, calculating the reception slot of the wireless communication apparatus from the received beacon information, setting its own reception slot so as not to collide with the set situation thereof, and forming network autonomously engaging in time division multiplex communication with other wireless communication apparatuses located at the neighborhood.
US08913598B2

A communication device arranged to communicate data with another device at a given time instant according to either a first communication protocol or a second communication protocol, the communication device being constrained to transmit data according to the first communication protocol during a transmission window of predetermined duration that commences at a predetermined time instant and being arranged to, in dependence on a data communication according to the second communication protocol to be made by the communication device during that transmission window, select a time instant in that same transmission window for commencing a data transmission according to the first communication protocol.
US08913592B2

A serving base station transmits a message to one or more target base station in response to a handover decision for a wireless device supporting beamforming and multiple carrier configurations. The message includes a plurality of measurement configuration parameters for the wireless device. The serving base station receives a response from at least one of the target base stations. The serving base station transmits a handover command to the wireless device subsequent to receiving the response message.
US08913588B2

The present invention provides a handover method. An access node obtains mobility management entity pool MME pool information which is sent by a donor station of the access node and is used for identifying a mobility management entity MME to which a user equipment UE is attached. The access node initiates handover for the UE according to the MME pool information used for identifying the MME to which the UE is attached. The present invention further provides a communication device and a communication system.
US08913586B2

Embodiments provide components of a communication network that may facilitate efficient optimization of the communication network. In various embodiments, network gateway selection for incoming subscriber stations may be allocated to one or more components that make intelligent allocation determinations. Additionally, in various embodiments, control of the communication network may also be allocated to various components.
US08913585B2

A method and system for providing IP Multi-media Subsystem (IMS) session continuity to a User Equipment (UE) across a plurality of communication networks is provided. The UE traverses from a first communication network to a second communication network. A public user identity associated with a private user identity of the UE is registered with the first communication network by using a first address. The method includes generating (404) a complimentary private user identity associated with the public user identity. The method also includes obtaining (406) a second address from the second communication network when the UE traverses from the first communication network to the second communication network. Moreover, the method includes registering (408) the public user identity associated with the complimentary private user identity with the first communication network by using the second address.
US08913581B2

In a system having a plurality of cells participating in a Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) operation, a method for transmitting Reference Signals (RSs) to User Equipment (UE) includes generating, by Base Station (BS) included in each of the plurality of cells, a subframe including RSs for a UE located in the each of the plurality of cells, and transmitting the generated subframe to the UE by the BS. The RSs include RSs for channel measurement, and RSs for data demodulation, the plurality of cells are grouped according to frequency shift values applied to the RSs for channel measurement and RS allocation patterns are determined for two cells among the plurality of cells according to a predetermined rule.
US08913580B2

The disclosure discloses a method for transmitting uplink control information. The method includes: receiving, by a user equipment, a carrier activation command or a carrier deactivation command in a downlink subframe n; updating a first downlink activated carrier set according to the received carrier activation command or the carrier deactivation command into a second downlink activated carrier set; taking the second downlink activated carrier set as a current downlink activated carrier set corresponding to a first uplink subframe which belongs to a subframe set of an uplink subframe n+k and uplink subframe(s) after the uplink subframe n+k; sorting X piece(s) of Uplink Control Information (UCI) corresponding to X downlink carrier(s) according to a sorting rule, and transmitting the sorted X pieces of UCI to a base station in the first uplink subframe.
US08913558B2

Since user data from a mobile station always passes a gateway, even in communication between mobile stations in a cell of the same base station in the same mobile station system, user data is transferred to the gateway and the trombone phenomenon occurs. Traffic is concentrated in the gateway and networks near the gateway. A local routing node includes a unit for passing signaling of communication between a base station and the gateway according to a protocol of the mobile communication system, for extracting and decapsulating bearer data transferred between the base station and the gateway, and for thereby obtaining and transferring user data and a unit for encapsulating and transferring user data. The local routing node extracts bearer data, which is conventionally transferred up to the gateway, and transfers the data to the network.
US08913556B2

A breakout system initiates RLC resets to resynchronize data communication to improve quality of experience for the user. Synchronization of radio traffic is monitored and maintained by the breakout system. When data is broken out, the RLC function is split into two different flows, between the UE and the breakout system and between the breakout system and the RNC. When the sequence numbers of the two flows become out of sync the ciphering context will become out of synchronization resulting in errors. The breakout system can initiate an RLC reset into both of these flows to resynchronize the data communication to improve user's quality of experience.
US08913553B2

A method of handling CSG list synchronization for a network in a wireless communication system is disclosed. The method comprises associating a version number with a user subscribed CSG identities (IDs) list, wherein the user subscribed CSG IDs list is stored in the network; and sending the version number in a OTA (over-the-air) message or in a NAS (non-access stratum) message when the version number is currently used by the network, wherein the OTA message is intended to update an operator CSG list which is stored in a mobile device.
US08913549B2

There are disclosed systems and methods for detecting and controlling congestion in an Optical Line Terminal (OLT). The OLT has a plurality of ports. Each port of the plurality of ports communicates with at least one Optical Network Unit (ONU), and each port of the plurality of ports has a respective enforced maximum upstream bandwidth. For example, the maximum upstream bandwidth may be enforced by a Dynamic Bandwidth Allocation (DBA) algorithm. The OLT further includes an uplink port through which data received from each of the plurality of ports are transmitted. In one embodiment, if there is congestion of the data at the uplink port, then the enforced maximum upstream bandwidth for at least one port of the plurality of ports is modified.
US08913530B2

Systems and methods are disclosed for selecting resources for direct device to device (D2D) communications in a cellular communication network. Preferably, resources for the direct D2D communications are selected to minimize, or at least substantially reduce, interference that results from the direct D2D communications in the cellular communication network. In general, either an uplink resource or a downlink resource of the cellular communication network is selected for a direct D2D communication link between a first wireless device and a second wireless device in order to minimize, or at least substantially reduce, interference caused to a third wireless device that uses the same uplink and downlink resources in the same and/or a neighboring cell of the cellular communication network.
US08913529B2

A multiple-access MIMO WLAN system that employs MIMO, OFDM, and TDD. The system (1) uses a channel structure with a number of configurable transport channels, (2) supports multiple rates and transmission modes, which are configurable based on channel conditions and user terminal capabilities, (3) employs a pilot structure with several types of pilot (e.g., beacon, MIMO, steered reference, and carrier pilots) for different functions, (4) implements rate, timing, and power control loops for proper system operation, and (5) employs random access for system access by the user terminals, fast acknowledgment, and quick resource assignments. Calibration may be performed to account for differences in the frequency responses of transmit/receive chains at the access point and user terminals. The spatial processing may then be simplified by taking advantage of the reciprocal nature of the downlink and uplink and the calibration.
US08913513B2

Methods and devices for removing cross coupling effects between elements of an antenna array (110) are provided. Cross coupling coefficients between all pairs of antenna elements of the antenna array are predetermined to minimize a total power in theoretical null points calculated without considering the cross element effects. A transceiver (100) includes a multiplexing block (105) configured to receive data signals to be transmitted via the antenna elements and to output to at least one of the antenna elements, a sum signal including (i) a data signal, which data signal is designated for the at least one antenna element, and (ii) a linear combination of data signals designated for other antenna elements of the antenna array, each of the data signals in the linear combination being weighted by a respective cross coupling coefficient between the at least one antenna element and an antenna element emitting the each of the data signals.
US08913507B2

A method for enabling virtual data loopback in a computing system may include forwarding a data packet from a first device to a second device; the second device identifying from the data packet egress interface information indicating a first interface for forwarding the data packet out of the computing system; based on the first interface identified from the egress interface information, automatically determining a second interface to the first interface; inserting into the data packet ingress interface information that indicates the second interface; forwarding the data packet, including the ingress interface information, back to the first device; and the first device identifying the ingress interface information indicating the second interface; such that the data packet is looped back to the first device without being communicated via the first or second interface, and such that from the perspective of the first device the data packet was received via the second interface.
US08913506B2

A method of monitoring quality of a telephone call transmitted over a network includes obtaining a metric associated with the telephone call, where the metric is based on data packets that are transmitted during the telephone call, and determining whether the metric exceeds a threshold. Plural metrics may be obtained and the method may determine whether the plural metrics exceed corresponding thresholds.
US08913503B2

Systems, methods, and computer-readable storage media that may be used to encode and multiplex video are provided. One method includes receiving uncompressed three-dimensional (3D) video including a left view video and a right view video. The method further includes encoding the left view video and the right view video into a base view video and an enhancement view video. One or more pictures in the base view video that are not used to predict corresponding pictures in the enhancement view video are dropped based on available memory resources. The method further includes generating residual view video by subtracting base view pictures from corresponding enhancement view pictures, and multiplexing the base view video and the generated residual view video into a single transport stream.
US08913502B2

Aspects of a method and system for network communications via a configurable multi-use Ethernet PHY are provided. In this regard, an Ethernet PHY may be configured based on characteristics of a network link over which the Ethernet PHY communicates, and a rate at which data is conveyed from a MAC to the Ethernet PHY may be controlled via a carrier sense signal of the MII. The carrier sense signal may be controlled based on a rate at which the Ethernet PHY transmits data over the network link. The Ethernet PHY may be configured based on a length of the network link and/or on a grade of the network link, where exemplary grades may comprise Cat-1 through Cat-7a cable. The Ethernet PHY may be configured into one of a plurality of modes comprising an Ethernet over digital subscriber line (DSL) mode, an extended reach mode, and a standard Ethernet mode.
US08913496B2

A system and method for dynamically policing network traffic based on egress queue status and a network node incorporating the system or the method. In one embodiment, the system includes: (1) a policing engine configured to receive egress queue status information and (2) a pushback calculator associated with the policing engine and configured to produce a reduction calculation based on the egress queue status information, the policing engine further configured to produce a throttle signal to reduce a traffic policing rate of an ingress queue.
US08913495B2

A method of powerline communications in a powerline communications (PLC) network including a first node and at least a second node. The first node transmits a data frame to the second node over a PLC channel. The second node has a data buffer for storing received information. The second node runs a flow control algorithm which determines a current congestion condition or a projected congestion condition of the data buffer based on at least one congestion parameter. The current congestion condition and projected congestion condition include nearly congested and fully congested. When the current or projected congestion condition is either nearly congested or fully congested, the second node transmits a BUSY including frame over the PLC channel to at least the first node. The first node defers transmitting of any frames to the second node for a congestion clearing wait time.
US08913492B2

Each peer node in a plurality has a different corresponding key value. Each of the nodes can broadcast one or more items to a plurality of recipient nodes. The recipient nodes are arranged into a list according to a key value order. The list is divided into two or more parts of approximately equal size, and each part of the list and the one or more items is forwarded to a recipient peer node corresponding to a first key value in that part of the list. It is emphasized that this abstract is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract that will allow a searcher or other reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the technical disclosure. This abstract is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.
US08913491B2

Mobile network services are performed in an appliance in a mobile data network in a way that is transparent to most of the existing equipment in the mobile data network. The mobile data network includes a radio access network and a core network. The appliance in the radio access network breaks out data coming from a basestation, and performs one or more mobile network services at the edge of the mobile data network based on the broken out data. The appliance has defined interfaces and defined commands on each interface that allow performing all needed functions on the appliance without revealing details regarding the hardware and software used to implement the appliance. The appliance includes overload detection and handling within the appliance. This appliance architecture allows performing new mobile network services at the edge of a mobile data network within the infrastructure of an existing mobile data network.
US08913476B2

An optical information recording medium has a first information recording layer (20) and a second information recording layer (40) each of which includes (i) a group of pre-pits (31, 51) constituting marks (32, 52) and spaces (33, 53) and (ii) a super-resolution film (23, 43), the marks (32, 52) and the spaces (33, 53) having different lengths, an average length of a smallest mark that is smallest in length and a smallest space that is smallest in length being less than or equal to a resolution limit of a reproduction optical system for reproducing information recorded on the first information recording layer (20) and the second information recording layer (40), the group of pre-pits (31, 51) being formed so that a push-pull signal for the reproduction optical system to reproduce the information recorded by the group of pre-pits is negative in polarity. This provides an inexpensive and high-capacity multilayer optical information recording medium based on a super-resolution technology.
US08913473B2

The present invention provides an information recording configuration that achieves both difficulty in reading and highly accurate reading. Highly confidential additional information such as encryption key is recorded in a groove signal. During recording of the additional information, a groove signal is recorded that has an amplitude offset setting commensurate with the bit value. During reading of the additional information, a signal R0 with no offset is estimated from a signal R1 read from the groove signal for a predetermined period, after which a difference signal C=R1−R0 is calculated and integrated for each of the predetermined periods so as to determine the direction of the amplitude offset for each period. This process achieves recording and reproduction of additional information that offers enhanced difficulty in reading and highly accurate reading at the same time.
US08913467B2

A timepiece is equipped with a novel type of entertainment, that is a mechanical card game. The timepiece includes: a dial (10) provided with a plurality of windows (12); systems (14) for opening and closing at least some of the windows (12), actuated by control bodies; a plurality of display disks (16) carrying representations of cards to be played, to be visible via the windows (12), the disks being pivoted on axes that are perpendicular to the plane of the dial (10); and a system (18) for rotating the disks and stopping them at random.
US08913463B2

A passive listening acoustic system and method of use may include source means for providing continuous, pulsed, or pulse coded acoustic signals at two or more frequencies and at least two acoustic sensors or hydrophones which detect and record a signal for use within a Seabed Logging system to determine the position and/or orientation of instruments in the system.
US08913455B1

A multi-port memory cell is disclosed that includes first and second cross-coupled inverter circuits. The input node of each inverter circuit is coupled to the output node of the other inverter circuit to receive the inverted output of the other inverter circuit. The multi-port memory cell includes a first pair of access transistors of a first type, each coupled to the input node of a respective one of the first and second inverter circuits. The multi-port memory cell also includes a second pair of access transistors of the second type, each coupled to the input of a respective one of the first and second inverter circuits. The multi-port cell exhibits advantages in layout compactness and SEU tolerance.
US08913454B2

A reprogrammable memory, which can be, programmed a limited number of times. A plurality of one-time programmable elements are combined by a logic arrangement such that the output of that logic arrangement may be reprogrammed a limited number of times.
US08913452B2

A semiconductor device includes: a data transmission unit configured to transmit differential data between a first data line pair and a second data line pair; and first and second power supply voltage generation units configured to generate precharging voltages to be applied to the first and second data line pairs, respectively.
US08913451B2

A method for testing a memory device includes entering a test mode in which multiple memory banks operate in a same manner, allowing a row corresponding to a row address in the multiple memory banks to be activated, latching a bank address and the row address corresponding to the multiple memory banks, writing same data in a column selected by a column address in the multiple memory banks, reading the data written in the writing of the data from the multiple memory banks, checking whether the data read from the multiple memory banks in the reading of the data are equal to each other, and programming the row address to locations designated by the bank address latched in the latching in a nonvolatile memory when the data read from the multiple memory banks are different from each other.
US08913449B2

In-system repairing or configuring faulty memories after being used in a system. In one embodiment, a memory chip can include at least one OTP memory to store defective addresses that are to be repaired. The OTP memory can operate without requiring additional I/O pins or high voltage supplies for reading or programming. The memory chip can also include control logic to control reading or programming of the OTP memory as needed.
US08913443B2

Structures and related processes for effectively regulating power among slave chips in a 3D memory multichip package that employs TSVs for interlevel chip connections. Individual voltage regulators are employed on one or more of the slave chips for accurate level control of internal voltages, for example, word line driver voltage (VPP), back bias voltage (VBB), data line voltage (VDL), and bit line pre-charge voltage/cell plate voltage (VBLP/VPL). Employing regulators on one or more of the slave chips not only allows for precise regulation of power levels during typical memory stack operation, but also provides tolerance in small variations in power levels caused, for example, by manufacturing process variations. Moreover, less chip real estate is used as compared to techniques that provide complete power generators on each chip of a multichip stack.
US08913437B2

A method includes selecting a first memory cell located along a first bit line and a first word line of a memory array. The method further includes selecting a second memory cell located along (i) the first word line, (ii) a second word line that is adjacent to the first word line, or (iii) a second bit line that is adjacent to the first bit line. A location of the second memory cell is selected based on a predetermined sequence of programming the memory cells. The method further includes writing data in the first memory cell, subsequently writing data in the second memory cell, and reading the first memory cell and the second memory cell. The method further includes detecting one or more states of the second memory causing interference to the first memory cell.
US08913435B2

A device includes a non-volatile memory and a control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to change over programming of data of the non-volatile memory from a first programming mode to a second, different programming mode based on the occurrence of a control signal.
US08913427B2

A semiconductor memory device of the present invention includes a memory cell array with cell strings having word lines stacked on a substrate and a vertical channel layer formed through the word lines, a peripheral circuit configured to select one of the word lines and perform a program operation on the selected word line, and a control circuit configured to control the peripheral circuit to perform the program operation by applying a program voltage to a word line selected for the program operation, applying a ground voltage to a word line of which a program operation has been completed and applying a pass voltage to the other word lines.
US08913425B2

Technology for writing data to a phase change memory array is disclosed. In an example, a method may include identifying mask logic for masking cells in the phase change memory array and routing the mask logic to the cells. The method may further include routing input data to the cells. Set and reset pulses for the cells may be selectively prevented or inhibited based on the mask logic.
US08913423B2

An apparatus includes a memory cell including a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) structure coupled between a bit line and a source line. The MTJ structure includes a free layer coupled to the bit line and a pinned layer. A magnetic moment of the free layer is substantially parallel to a magnetic moment of the pinned layer in a first state and substantially antiparallel to the magnetic moment of the pinned layer in a second state. A physical dimension of the pinned layer produces an unbalanced offset magnetic field which corresponds to a first switching current of the MTJ structure that enables switching from the first state to the second state when a first voltage is applied to the bit line and corresponds to a second switching current that enables switching from the second state to the first state when the first voltage is applied to the source line.
US08913422B2

Switching current in Spin-Transfer Torque Memory (STTM) can be decreased. A magnetic memory cell is driven with a first pulse on a write line of the memory cell to heat the cell. The cell is then driven with a second pulse on the write line to set the state of the cell.
US08913421B2

In a method, various operations are performed based on a voltage line coupled with a plurality of memory cells. Storage nodes of the plurality of memory cells are caused to change to a first logical value. Another first logical value is applied to a plurality of data lines. Each data line of the plurality of data lines carries data for each memory cell of the plurality of memory cells. A control line of the plurality of memory cells is activated. A first voltage value is applied to the voltage line. The first voltage value causes the another first logical value on the plurality of data lines to be transferred to the storage nodes of the plurality of memory cells.
US08913420B2

Systems and methods are provided for a random access memory controller. A random access memory controller includes a column multiplexer and sense amplifier pair, where the column multiplexer and sense amplifier pair includes a column multiplexer and a sense amplifier that are configured to utilize common circuitry. The common circuitry is shared between the column multiplexer and the sense amplifier so that the memory controller includes a single instance of the common circuitry for the column multiplexer and sense amplifier pair. The common circuitry includes a common pre-charge circuit, a common equalizer, or a common keeper circuit.
US08913416B2

Disclosed herein is a variable-resistance memory device including a first common line; a second common line; a storage element connected between the first common line and the second common line to serve as a storage element whose resistance changes in accordance with a voltage applied to the storage element; and a driving control circuit.
US08913415B2

Junction diodes fabricated in standard CMOS logic processes can be used as program selectors for One-Time Programmable (OTP) devices, such as electrical fuse, contact/via fuse, contact/via anti-fuse, or gate-oxide breakdown anti-fuse, etc. The OTP device has at least one OTP element coupled to at least one diode in a memory cell. The diode can be constructed by P+ and N+ active regions in a CMOS N well, or on an isolated active region as the P and N terminals of the diode. The isolation between P+ and the N+ active regions of the diode in a cell or between cells can be provided by dummy MOS gate, SBL, or STI/LOCOS isolations. The OTP element can be polysilicon, silicided polysilicon, silicide, metal, metal alloy, local interconnect, thermally isolated active region, CMOS gate, or combination thereof.
US08913411B2

A method and apparatus for marking a block of multi-level memory cells for performance of a block management function by programming at least one bit in a lower page of the memory cell block such that a first logic state is stored in the at least one bit in the lower page; programming at least one bit in an upper page of the memory cell block such that the first logic state is stored in the at least one bit in the upper page; reprogramming the at least one bit in the upper page such that the at least one bit transitions from the first logic state to a second logic state; identifying the first logic state in the at least one bit of a lower page and the transition of at least one corresponding bit in the upper page from the first logic state to the second logic state; and in response, marking the corresponding memory cell block for performance of a block management function.
US08913410B2

A converter device for an uninterruptible power supply, the device having first and second main switching units connected to first and second voltage lines of a first type and each equipped with a first main switch; a main switching point connected to a voltage line of a second type and connected to the first and second main switching units; and a third main switch common to the first and second main switching units, and connected between the main switching point and a third voltage line of the first type; first, second and third capacitors connected between the main switching point and each of the first, second and third voltage lines of the first type; a first auxiliary switching unit connected by individual auxiliary switches between the first and second voltage lines of the first type, and a first auxiliary switching point; a second auxiliary switching unit connected between the first, second and third voltage lines of the first type, and a second auxiliary switching point; and a transformer having windings each having one free end and one end connected to the main switching point, with the free ends respectively connected to the first and second auxiliary switching points.
US08913390B2

An electronic device may have electrical components that generate heat. The components may be mounted on a printed circuit board having a peripheral edge with an edge surface. The edge surface may be coated with a layer of metal. Metal traces in the printed circuit board such as ground plane traces may be used to conduct heat from the electrical components to the layer of metal on the edge surface. The edge surface may be separated from an adjacent thermally conductive electronic device housing structure by an air gap. Thermally conductive elastomeric bumper structures may bridge the air gap between the edge surface of the printed circuit and the housing structure. The thermally conductive elastomeric bumper structures may conduct heat from the layer of metal on the edge surface to the housing structure and may serve as a cushioning interface between the printed circuit and the housing structure.
US08913383B1

An apparatus includes an electrically-powered component, a hermetically-sealed, liquid-impermeable, high thermal-conductivity, container encapsulating the electrically-powered component, and a liquid bath surrounding the hermetically-sealed container. The electrically-powered component can include a computer motherboard, a central processing unit of a computer, or an electrical power transformer. The container can include a substance in direct contact with the electrically-powered component and can include a silicone compound, an epoxy compound, or a polyurethane compound.
US08913380B2

According to one embodiment, a docking station includes: a first support; a second support; a second connector; a cover; and a second mark. The first support supports a second face of an electronic device so that a display screen of the electronic device is positioned in an inclined manner. The second support supports a side portion of the electronic device in the state. The second connector is exposed outward from an area positioned in the second support, and to be connectable to a first connector of the electronic device in the state. The cover covers at least a part of the first face in the state. The second mark is capable of being a guide corresponding to the first mark. The second mark guidably indicates to the operator to move the electronic device to a position at which the electronic device is connected while the display screen is inclined.
US08913371B2

A fuse and relay block assembly (10) for an automotive vehicle includes a lower cover (12) and an upper cover (60) mounted in substantially opposed relationship to one another. A relay block (70) is mounted between the lower cover (12) and the upper cover (60) and can receive electrical devices (R, F) mounted along a mounting direction (MD). A relay module assembly (80) is mounted between the lower cover (12) and the upper cover (60) and can receive electrical devices (R, F) mounted along a transverse direction (TD) substantially perpendicular to the mounting direction (MD). Thus, a greater density of electrical devices (R, F) can be mounted within a smaller footprint.
US08913370B2

A spout assembly is provided. The spout assembly includes a spout and a spout base. The spout base has a cross-sectional area that is smaller than a spout sized to enclose an electrical switching apparatus electrical coupling. That is, the spout base includes a CT support surface with a cross-sectional area that is smaller than the spout cross-sectional area. Current transformers are disposed upon the spout base CT support surface.
US08913367B2

There is provided a multilayered ceramic capacitor including: a ceramic body; a plurality of first and second internal electrodes having first and second lead-out portions overlapped with each other, respectively, and exposed to one surface of the ceramic body; first and second external electrodes formed on one surface of the ceramic body and electrically connected to the first and second lead-out portions, respectively; and an insulating layer formed on one surface of the ceramic body to cover exposed portions of the first and second lead-out portions, wherein the first lead-out portion has a first overlap increase part of which a forward edge has an inclined surface, and the second lead-out portion has a second overlap increase part of which a forward edge has an inclined surface.
US08913358B2

An ESD module is presented. The ESD module includes an ESD circuit and a latch-up (LU) control circuit. The ESD circuit has a pad terminal and a low power source terminal. The LU control circuit includes a first LU terminal coupled to a high power source and an LU output terminal coupled to the ESD circuit. The ESD module has first and second operating modes. In the first operating mode, the LU control circuit is deactivated and the ESD circuit has a first triggering current It1 which is less than 100 mA. In the second operating mode, the LU control circuit is activated and the ESD circuit has a second triggering current It2 which is greater than 100 mA.
US08913356B2

A composite electronic circuit assembly comprises two MOS or CMOS circuit dice (100, 200) superimposed inside a package. Different modules of the circuit assembly are distributed between the two dice based on the digital, analog, or hybrid nature of said modules. Such a distribution makes it possible to group together the digital modules of the circuit assembly in one of the die and the analog or hybrid modules in the other die. The production cost, development time, and electrical energy consumption of the circuit assembly may thus be reduced.
US08913350B2

A method and system for providing a magnetic element and a magnetic memory utilizing the magnetic element are described. The magnetic element is used in a magnetic device that includes a contact electrically coupled to the magnetic element. The method and system include providing pinned, nonmagnetic spacer, and free layers. The free layer has an out-of-plane demagnetization energy and a perpendicular magnetic anisotropy corresponding to a perpendicular anisotropy energy that is less than the out-of-plane demagnetization energy. The nonmagnetic spacer layer is between the pinned and free layers. The method and system also include providing a perpendicular capping layer adjoining the free layer and the contact. The perpendicular capping layer induces at least part of the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in the free layer. The magnetic element is configured to allow the free layer to be switched between magnetic states when a write current is passed through the magnetic element.
US08913347B2

A gimbal portion of a flexure is provided with first supporting portions to which first end portions of microactuator elements are secured and second supporting portions to which second end portions are secured. A first tongue portion is formed between the pair of first supporting portions. A leading-side portion of a slider is movably disposed on the first tongue portion. A second tongue portion is formed between the pair of second supporting portions. A trailing-side portion of the slider is secured to the second tongue portion. A narrow hinge portion is formed between the first and second tongue portions. The tongue portions are pivotably connected by the hinge portion. The distal end of a dimple contacts the hinge portion at a point of contact.
US08913341B1

Multiple signals are read, respectively, from multiple different cross-track positions of a track of a magnetic medium. Weighting coefficients for each of the multiple signals are determined. The weighting coefficients are applied to the respective signals to form weighted signals. The weighted signals are combined and the combined signal is used to recover data stored in the track.
US08913340B2

A method for writing a servo track according to one embodiment comprises monitoring a lateral position of a magnetic tape passing over a servo writing head during a servo track writing operation; and writing servo marks to the magnetic tape, a timing of the writing of each mark being based on the monitored position of the magnetic tape. A system for writing a servo track according to one embodiment comprises a servo writing head for writing servo marks onto a magnetic tape; a device for optically monitoring a position of the magnetic tape during a servo track writing operation; and a controller for controlling a timing of the writing of the servo marks to the magnetic tape based on the monitored position of the magnetic tape. Additional systems and methods are also presented.
US08913334B2

A processing unit performs a method including controlling a reading-out of data from a first storage medium at a predetermined read-out data rate to produce inputted data, and controlling a compression of the inputted data to produce first compressed data of a first compressed format. The method includes controlling a storage of the first compressed data in a second storage medium at a faster writing data rate than the predetermined read-out data rate, controlling a reading-out of second compressed data of a second compressed format from the second storage medium, and controlling a decompression of the second compressed data to produce decompressed data. The method also includes controlling simultaneously the storage of the first compressed data in the second storage medium, the reading-out of the second compressed data from the second storage medium, and audibly reproducing the decompressed data. The first compressed format is different from the second compressed format.
US08913332B2

A lens optical system including first, second, third, fourth, and fifth lenses that are sequentially arranged between an object and an image sensor on which an image of the object is formed. The first lens may have a positive refractive power and may be biconvex. The second lens may have a negative refractive power and may have a meniscus shape that is convex toward the object. The third lens may have a positive refractive power. The fourth lens may have a positive refractive power and may have a meniscus shape that is convex toward the image sensor. The fifth lens may have a negative refractive power, and at least one of an incident surface and an exit surface of the fifth lens may be an aspherical surface.
US08913328B2

A zoom lens system includes a positive first lens group, a negative second lens group, and positive third and fourth lens groups. Upon zooming from the short to long focal length extremities, the distance between the first and second lens groups increases and the distance between the second and third lens groups decreases. The first lens group includes a positive first sub-lens group which remains at a stationary position during focusing and a positive second sub-lens group which moves during focusing. Condition (1) is satisfied: 0.35
US08913324B2

A near-eye display device has a multi-color light source, a micro display, an optical system and a light guide. The optical system collimates and redirects light from the micro display to an optical axis of the device. The light guide comprises multiple color-specific layers, an in-coupling diffraction grating through which light from the source enters the light guide, and an out-coupling diffraction grating through which light from the light guide exits towards the micro display. Two distinct embodiments are detailed: each different color-specific layer of the light guide is defined by a different refractive index; or by a different color-specific filter. In one example there is one in-coupling diffraction grating through which all light from the source enters the light guide; in another there are at least first and second in-coupling diffraction gratings on opposed light guide surfaces through which different colors enter the light guide.
US08913322B2

Electrically tunable Fabry-Perot interferometers produced with micro-optical electromechanical (MOEMS) technology. Micromechanical interferometers of the prior art require high control voltage, their production includes complicated production phases, and the forms of the movable mirrors are restricted to circular geometries. In the inventive solution, there is a gap in the movable mirror, whereby mirror layers opposite to the gap are connected with anchoring. The anchoring is such that the stiffness of the mirror is higher at the optical area than at the surrounding area. This way it is possible keep the optical area of the mirror flat even if the control electrodes extend to the optical area. Due to large electrodes, lower control voltages are required.
US08913311B1

Disclosed is a processor-implemented method for limiting ink output of marked image data using a target printer. A processor determines a constrained output (CMYK) LUT node data set for outputting the image data using the target printer to thereby mark the image data using a limited amount of ink. The constrained set is determined by re-encoding an encoded emulation output data, i.e., constraining an initial LUT node data set for the target printer based on a second. ICC profile with a smaller gamut. This allows the printer to inherit the smaller gamut. By constraining the initial LUT as disclosed herein, the final, constrained set emulates the smaller gamut in the target printer without suffering from pathological outcomes. The method enables the printer to inherit a natural ink limit methodology for the output colors that is more relatively proportional, and in a single destination profile.
US08913308B2

A light collecting member includes a lens to make incident light be collected on a light receiving member, a lens barrel to house the lens, an end portion into which a light enters of the lens barrel being arranged near the light receiving member and a fence member to cover the end portion into which a light enters of the lens barrel and the light receiving member, the fence member having an exhaust port formed in a manner extending in a vertical direction.
US08913303B2

An image reading apparatus includes a stacking unit on which a document to be fed is stacked, a sensor configured to output a signal indicating that the document has been stacked on the stacking unit, a discharging unit to which the document is to be discharged, wherein the discharging unit includes a lamp, and a control unit configured to turn on the lamp in response to the signal indicating that the document has been stacked on the stacking unit output from the sensor.
US08913296B2

A dither matrix creating device acquires a basic dither matrix and modifies the basic dither matrix to provide a modified dither matrix including a plurality of sets of threshold value. Each threshold value set includes N threshold values (N≧2. An image processing device can perform both dither method and error diffusion method for converting an input image into an output image. Each pixel of the output image has an (N+1)-level output value. The modifying unit modifies the basic dither matrix by adjusting at least one of N threshold values such that the image processing device can produce a first output image by using the modified dither matrix according to the dither method. The first output image is more similar to an output image produced based on the input image according to the error diffusion method than an output image to be produced by using the basic dither matrix.
US08913294B2

An image processing apparatus receives print data including text attribute information, and performs specific image processing defined in the print data in advance. The image processing apparatus includes a specific level detection unit for detecting a specific level defined in advance from the text attribute information; and an image processing unit for performing image processing defined in advance on the print data in the specific level detected by the specific level detection unit.
US08913290B2

Disclosed embodiments relate to a method implementable on a computing device for determining color characteristics of an image. The method includes identifying one or more regions in the image based on a luminance value associated with pixels in the image. Each region comprises a set of pixels having a predefined range of luminance values. The set of pixels associated with the one or more regions are categorized into one or more predefined color categories corresponding to each of the one or more regions, based on a chroma value associated with each pixel in the set of pixels. The color characteristics of the image are determined based on a count of the categorized pixels in each of the one or more predefined color categories.
US08913289B2

A control device according to the present invention is a control device that controls a print device that forms an image on a recording medium based on image data in which density values of multiple colors are defined every pixel, including: a stored color setting unit that sets a stored color indicating a color of which a toner amount is not restricted in each object indicating an area in which a predetermined type of image in the image data is drawn, in response to designation from a user; and a determination unit that determines density values of each of colors, in the each object, other than the stored color, such that a total sum of the density values of the colors is within a value subtracting a density value of the stored color from a reference value.
US08913285B1

Some embodiments produce an image capture application that implements a novel auto scan feature. The auto scan feature directs a scanner to perform an initial scan and then decomposes the scanned document into component regions. Some embodiments then identify a set of attributes of each region from the initial scan, select a set of optimal scanning parameters for each region based on the identified set of attributes, and then direct the scanner to perform a detailed secondary scan of each region with the identified set of scanning parameters. Following the secondary scan, some embodiments perform post-scan operations on the image of the scanned region.
US08913283B2

A method for displaying events in printing material processing machines, includes capturing the events with at least one camera and storing the captured events on a computer. Sensors for detecting machine states are provided in the printing material processing machine. Records of the events recorded by the camera as a video sequence are electronically marked in dependence on the detected machine states. A printing machine for carrying out the method is also provided.
US08913279B2

An apparatus comprises a construction unit which constructs a setting value tree expressed in a tree structure by defining a parent-child relationship between plural job setting values; a generation unit which generates plural hot folders corresponding to job setting value combinations respectively constructing plural setting value trees; and a display unit which displays plural hot folders, of the plural hot folders generated, which correspond to job setting value combinations which are selectable at levels designated by the plural setting value trees, wherein job setting values of the plural hot folder are respectively inherit the job setting values superordinate to combined job setting values on the plural setting value trees corresponding to the plural hot folders, and the display unit displays job setting values corresponding to hot folders in accordance with a hierarchical structure of each of the plural setting value trees.
US08913272B2

A virtual printer interface node enables a non-cloud-ready printer to communicate with a cloud-based service, residing on an internet. The virtual printer interface node includes a housing; a communication interface to provide communication directly to the network router; and a microcontroller operatively connected to the communication interface. The microcontroller converts commands, received through the communication interface, from the cloud-based service, residing on the internet, to native protocols of the non-cloud-ready networked printer and communicates the converted native protocols to the non-cloud-ready networked printer.
US08913265B2

The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving data to and from an external apparatus via a network.
US08913261B2

An image forming apparatus includes following components. A printing device prints on a recording medium. A reading device reads an image from an original document. An advertisement storage unit stores an advertisement. An advertisement-printed medium holding unit holds an advertisement-printed medium. An advertisement-printable medium holding unit holds an advertisement-printable medium. A copy control unit controls copying and enables the printing device to print the image on the recording medium. The copy control unit performs, in response to an instruction for advertisement-attached copying, one of the following: i) advertisement-printable medium copying in which the stored advertisement is printed on the advertisement-printable medium, and ii) advertisement-printed medium copying in which the advertisement-printed medium is used if a specific condition is satisfied.
US08913260B2

An image processing device includes a display control unit that displays any one of plural processing screen data including screen data provided by a server device on a display unit and executes an instructed process according to a display screen data, a receiving unit that receives, on the screen data provided by the server device, displayed on the display unit, a read instruction of causing an image reading unit to read a document image and a transmission instruction for storing image data corresponding to the read document image in the server device, an instruction maintaining unit that maintains the transmission instruction received by the receiving unit, and a reading and transmission executing unit that executes reading of the document image based on the read instruction and executes the transmission instruction maintained in the instruction maintaining unit with respect to the image data obtained by the reading after the reading is completed.
US08913249B2

An interferometric system for measuring surfaces of a measured object using an optical system. The optical system has a beam splitter, which directs measuring beams in a first beam path and measuring beams in a second beam path onto the surfaces of the measured object with the aid of two mirrors. The beam paths which are formed by the light beams which are reflected on the surfaces at least partially overlap in an area having identical beam direction. In this manner, measured surfaces of the measured object are at least partially imaged on an identically irradiated surface of a detector, such as an image recorder.
US08913247B2

A device for interferometric vibration measurement, having a radiation source for generating an original beam, a first beam splitter for dividing it into measuring and reference beams, a detector and a focusing device. The measuring beam at least partly reflected by the object and the reference beam are superimposed on a detection area of the detector, and the focusing device in the beam path of the measuring beam between the image unit and object focuses it onto a measuring point. Here, a measuring beam having a wavelength greater than 1100 nm is generated and the device has an image unit for two-dimensional imaging of the object surrounding the measuring point. The measuring beam focus lies in the focal plane of the image unit and, by use of the focusing device, the focal point of the measuring beam and the focal plane of the imaging unit are displaceable simultaneously.
US08913240B2

A fluorescence spectrophotometer according to the present invention includes: a light source 1; a sample cell 3; an excitation-side light-dispersing system 2 for dispersing a light from the light source 1 and for casting a desired wavelength of light into the sample cell 3; an emission-side light-dispersing system 4 for dispersing a light emitted from the sample cell 3, the emission-side light-dispersing system 4 being located off an optical path of a transmitted light exiting from the sample cell 3 after being cast from the excitation-side light-dispersing system 2 into the sample cell 3; and a photodetector 5 capable of detecting, among the light from the emission-side light-dispersing system 4, an emission light having the same wavelength as the light cast from the excitation-side light-dispersing system 2 into the sample cell 3.
US08913232B2

Two or more spatial filters are used in determining velocity based on speckle translation. A light source may be turned on, turned off, or both for a variable amount of time during operation. The velocity may then be determined with trend identification, correlation, recursive frequency estimation, or measurement bandwidth variation. A confidence level may also be calculated for the measured velocity, and the measured velocity reported or used only when the calculated confidence level meets or exceeds a given value.
US08913227B2

According to one embodiment, an illumination optical system configured to illuminate an illumination target surface on the basis of light from a light source comprises a distribution forming optical system and a correction unit. The distribution forming optical system forms a pupil intensity distribution on an illumination pupil of the illumination optical system. The correction unit changes an emission direction of a beam according to an incidence position of the beam, in order to correct the pupil intensity distribution. The correction unit is arranged at or near a position of the illumination pupil, or, arranged at or near a position optically conjugate with the illumination pupil.
US08913226B2

Methods and apparatuses for performing the same, where the methods include obtaining, from an interferometer, a time-varying interference signal S(t) based on a combination of a first beam and a second beam, the first beam being diffracted from an encoder scale, in which at least one of the encoder scale and the interferometer is moveable with respect to the other, obtaining one or more error correction signals based on one or more errors that modify the time-varying interference signal S(t), and outputting information about a change in a position of the encoder scale relative to the interferometer based on the time-varying interference signal S(t) and the one or more error correction signals.
US08913222B2

A liquid crystal display (LCD) device is disclosed. In one embodiment, the LCD device includes a first substrate including a plurality of interconnections and a protection layer covering the interconnections, a second substrate disposed opposite the first substrate, a liquid crystal (LC) layer interposed between the first and second substrates, and a sealant configured to contact the protection layer and interposed between the first and second substrates to surround and seal the LC layer. Convex portions are formed at positions between the interconnections of the protection layer and protrude convexly toward the sealant. In the above-described structure, even if light irradiated to cure the sealant is blocked by the plurality of interconnections, the light can be diffused into the entire sealant at an interface between the sealant and the protection layer.
US08913205B2

Disclosed is a segmented liquid crystal modulator panel apparatus and method for driving the same that overcomes electrical cross-talk associated with capacitive coupling to a common electrode. Each modulator segment may be divided into subsegments and driven substantially synchronously and out-of-phase. The field-polarity insensitive LC materials yield a substantially identical optical response for each subsegment, while allowing current on the common electrode to flow between the subsegments, thereby reducing power consumption and decreasing response times.
US08913203B2

A display module includes a transparent substrate, a black matrix layer, several light-shielding elements and a phase retardation film. The transparent substrate includes left-eye pixel regions and right-eye pixel regions for respectively displaying left-eye images and right-eye images. Each left-eye pixel region is adjacent to each right-eye pixel region. The black matrix layer is disposed on one side of the transparent substrate and corresponds to each boundary between the left-eye and right-eye pixel regions. The light-shielding elements are disposed on the other side of the transparent substrate and respectively correspond to the boundaries between the left-eye and right-eye pixel regions. The phase retardation film is disposed on the other side of the transparent substrate, and has first-phase retardation regions and second-phase retardation regions with difference phases. Positions of the first-phase and second-phase retardation regions respectively correspond to those of the left-eye and right-eye pixel regions.
US08913201B2

A hybrid touch device includes a direct touch unit and an indirect touch unit disposed at two sides respectively. The direct touch unit includes a base layer, a sensing line layer, a driving line layer, a bonding layer, and a covering layer. The indirect touch unit includes a first conducting layer, a second conducting layer, and a plurality of spacers between the first conducting layer and the second conducting layer. An optically clear adhesive (OCA) layer is disposed between the direct touch unit and the indirect touch unit. The base layer of the direct touch unit is a conductive film. A shielding layer is disposed between the conductive film and the OCA layer. The second conducting layer of the indirect touch unit is a thin conductive glass.
US08913197B2

Digital broadcast receiving apparatus including: a receiver receiving at least three different video programs in one transport stream, including a plurality of different video signal formats having different combination of scan lines and scan method; an isolator to isolate a video signal; a decoder to decode the video signal; a processor to execute a plurality of video processing sub software programs, providing video processing according to a different combination of the number of scan lines and a scan method; a controller using information obtained from the digital multiplexed signal to determine a combination of the number of scan lines and a scan method, and selecting one video processing of the video processing sub software programs to perform video processing according to the determined combination of the number of scan lines and the scan method; and a display to display the video signal processed by the processor.
US08913193B2

The present invention is an electronic device having a function of switching a language to be displayed on a screen, and is provided with an input unit through which a command for language switching can be inputted, and a switching processing unit which, on the basis of the command from the input unit, performs processing of switching between a first state in which the language to be displayed on the screen is displayed while being switched to a different language in a predetermined order, and a second state in which a specified language is displayed without switching the language to be displayed on the screen.
US08913181B2

In a method for assembling a camera module, a sensor module, a lens holder, and a lens assembly are first provided. The sensor module includes a substrate and a sensor positioned on the substrate. The lens holder is positioned on the substrate and accommodates the sensor. The lens assembly is held in the lens holder. At least one of the lens holder and the lens assembly has a chamfer at an end thereof opposite to the substrate and located between the lens holder and the lens assembly. Then, curable adhesive is applied to the chamfer. The tilt of the lens is adjusted until the lens assembly is optically aligned with the sensor. The curable adhesive is cured.
US08913176B2

The present invention provides a mobile terminal and a method of capturing an image using the same. The mobile terminal controls a camera conveniently and efficiently to capture an image and performs focusing in various manners to capture an image. Accordingly, a user can obtain a desired image easily and conveniently.
US08913171B2

Exemplary methods and systems for dynamically presenting enhanced content during a presentation of a media content instance are disclosed herein. An exemplary method includes an enhanced content presentation system detecting, within a view acquired by a camera, a display device presenting a media content instance, displaying the view acquired by the camera on a display screen of a mobile device associated with the camera, and dynamically presenting, within the displayed view, one or more display elements representative of one or more enhanced content instances associated with the media content. Corresponding methods and systems are also disclosed.
US08913163B2

Provided is a method for correcting a bad pixel in an image sensor. The method includes a first step of creating and storing a plurality of image frames of an object; a second step of scanning pixels in the image frames; a third step of storing, when a bad pixel is detected in the image frames, the location of the bad pixel as a bad block location in a memory; and a fourth step of correcting the luminance value of the bad block by calling the bad block location stored in the memory in an image capture operation.
US08913162B2

An image processing method, an image processing apparatus and an image capturing apparatus are provided, which are capable of obtaining an output image exhibiting high visual recognizability while reducing the processing time with a circuit on a comparatively small scale. Datum plane system coordinates xdydzd with a datum plane DP serving as a basis and having a fixed positional relationship with a virtual projection plane VP are set, and there is provided a two-dimensional LUT stored with zd coordinates in a direction perpendicular to the datum plane with respect to xd- and yd-coordinates on the datum plane DP and based on a shape of the virtual projection plane VP, and image data is calculated, by calculating the coordinates of the pixels on the virtual projection plane VP in the world coordinate system on the basis of the two-dimensional LUT and converting the calculated coordinates of the pixels on the virtual projection plane in the world coordinate system into a camera coordinate system by using a distortion correction coefficient of an optical system.
US08913157B2

A mechanical noise suppression apparatus includes: a framing section adapted to divide an input signal into frames of a predetermined time length; a Fourier transform section adapted to transform framed signals obtained by the framing section into a frequency spectrum of a frequency domain; a mechanical noise reduction section adapted to correct the frequency spectrum of the input signal obtained by the Fourier transform section based on frequency spectrum information of mechanical noise to suppress the mechanical noise; an inverse Fourier transform section adapted to return the frequency spectrum corrected by the mechanical noise reduction section into framed signals of a time domain; and a frame synthesis section adapted to carry out frame synthesis of the framed signals of frames obtained by the inverse Fourier transform section to obtain an output signal in which the mechanical noise is suppressed.
US08913154B2

An image processing apparatus comprises an estimation unit which estimates, from color distribution information of an image obtained by capturing an object, a depth of water at which the captured object is positioned, and a white balance control unit which performs white balance control along an axis different from a black body radiation axis in accordance with the depth of water estimated by the estimation unit.
US08913148B2

The information supplying apparatus (11, 131) is configured to supply first information to an image processing apparatus performing image processing for reducing an image component which is included in an image obtained by image pickup through an optical system and is generated due to aberration of the optical system. The first information is used in the image processing. The information supplying apparatus includes an information acquiring part (11) configured to acquire second information showing a state of at least one of an optical adjusting element (15) included in the optical system and an operation part operated for actuating the optical adjusting element, and an information generating part (131) configured to generate, based on the second information, the first information used in the image processing performed at a point in time after acquisition of the second information.
US08913145B2

A dual sensor camera that uses two aligned sensors each having a separate lens of different focal length but the same f-number. The wider FOV image from one sensor is combined with the narrower FOV image from the other sensor to form a combined image. Up-sampling of the wide FOV image and down-sampling of the narrow FOV image is performed. The longer focal length lens may have certain aberrations introduced so that Extended Depth of Field (EDoF) processing can be used to give the narrow FOV image approximately the same depth of field as the wide FOV image so that a noticeable difference in depth of field is not see in the combined image.
US08913142B2

The invention is directed to systems, methods and computer program products for controlling a focus operation for an image-capturing device. An exemplary method includes receiving a focus instruction, wherein the focus instruction describes an object of focus; sending first context data to an external system; in response to sending first context data to the external system, receiving second context data from the external system, wherein the second context data comprises data associated with the object of focus; and identifying the object of focus based on the received second context data; and determining a focus distance based on the identified object.
US08913141B2

An image stabilization system applies a “pinned-edge” or “soft pinned edge” image stabilization technique to digital video to compensate for unwanted camera motion in a captured video. In these stabilization techniques, a warping function is applied to an image frame to achieve a non-uniform shifting of depicted points in the image frame such that a reference point is stabilized with respect to a reference frame. In pinned-edge image stabilization, the final stabilized output video has the same dimensions as the pre-stabilized input video captured by the image sensor. In soft pinned-edge image stabilization, the pre-stabilized input video has slightly larger dimensions than the stabilized output video but these larger dimensions are still reduced compared to traditional electronic image stabilization.
US08913135B2

The present disclosure discloses a method and an apparatus for measuring response curve of an image sensor. The method comprises: taking at least one photograph of a Grey Scale card with an image sensor to be measured, wherein the photograph comprises a plurality of greyscale image blocks; calculating relative exposure values for each greyscale image block respectively corresponding to the greyscale blocks of the Grey Scale card; plotting a plurality of reference points based on pixel values of pixel points within each greyscale image block and the relative exposure values, and executing an interpolation calculation based on the reference points to obtain a response curve of the image sensor.
US08913123B2

A system for mounting a needle shield to a syringe. The system includes a syringe nest and a gripper having a gripping position and a release position. The gripper is movable between an aligned position and a spaced position. A shaker has a shaker axis that is generally coaxial with the syringe axis. The shaker is movable along the shaker axis. An inspection camera is positioned proximate the syringe axis and defines a line of sight. The syringe nest, gripper, shaker and cap plunger are generally aligned along the syringe axis in a placing configuration wherein the gripper is in the gripping position holding the needle shield. The gripper is in the spaced position and the distal end of the cap plunger is in engagement with the needle shield in a final cap mounting configuration.
US08913110B2

An endoscope apparatus, includes: an imaging unit that captures a subject to acquire an image of the subject; a base point setting section that sets a first base point and a second base point on the image based on an instruction input via an input device; a base line setting section that sets a base line on the image based on the first base point and the second base point; a point setting section that sets at least three points on the image based on the base line; a base plane setting section that sets a base plane in a space based on the at least three points; a distance calculation section that calculates a distance between the base plane and a point corresponding to the first base point; and a display that displays the image.
US08913103B1

Disclosed are methods for automatically generating commands to transform a video sequence based on information regarding speaking participants derived from the audio and video signals. The audio stream is analyzed to detect individual speakers and the video is optionally analyzed to detect lip movement to determine a probability that a detected participant is speaking. Commands are then generated to transform the video stream consistent with the identified speaker.
US08913098B2

An optical scanning device includes a pre-deflection optical system including a first optical element that adjusts the shape of beams emitted from the light source; and a second and third optical elements arranged such that the second optical element is arranged closer to the light source than the third optical element is. Both of the second and third optical elements have no refracting power in the deflection scanning direction and have positive refracting power only in a direction perpendicular to the deflection scanning direction. An interval between scanning lines formed on the scanned area and a deviation of the scanning-line interval between scanning positions are adjusted by displacement of the second and third optical elements in a direction of an optical axis of the pre-deflection optical system and displacement of at least one of the second and third optical elements in the direction perpendicular to the deflection scanning direction.
US08913092B2

A compensation table generating system includes a test signal applying part which applies a test signal corresponding to reference gray scales to a display panel, an image obtaining part which obtains a test image of each of the reference gray scales displayed on the display panel based on the test signal, a position information extractor which measures a brightness distribution of each of the reference gray scales of the display panel based on the test image of each of the reference gray scales and extracts a representative position information of an stain area, in which a stain appears, based on the brightness distribution of each of the reference gray scales, a compensation data calculator which calculates a compensation data corresponding to a position of the stain area, and a brightness compensation table which stores the representative position information and the compensation data.
US08913090B2

A pixel circuit includes a light emitting device, an N-type driving transistor for outputting a driving current according to a voltage applied to the gate electrode, a first capacitor coupled to a gate electrode of the driving transistor, a second capacitor including a first terminal coupled to the gate electrode of the driving transistor and a second terminal coupled to the first electrode of the light emitting device, and second through sixth N-type transistors. An initialization period is reduced for a driving operation and the threshold voltage compensation time of a driving transistor is controlled.
US08913081B2

The method of displaying the preceding value of a parameter displayed in a first interactive graphic object by means of a display device defining a display window, a computer making it possible to interpret the actions of a graphic pointer, the pointer comprising means of selecting the first graphic object, the pointer being able to be overlaid on the first graphic object on the display device, comprises: a step for positioning the pointer at at least one point of the frame of the first graphic object; a step for activation of the means of selecting the first graphic object and of displacing the pointer within a determined area engaging the displacement of the first graphic object, a second graphic object appearing under the first graphic object, the second graphic object including the preceding value of the current parameter.
US08913075B2

An adder adds, to a luminance value indicated by the image signal of the nth frame, a correction value corresponding to a combination of a luminance value indicated by the image signal of the nth frame and one indicated by the image signal of the (n+1)th frame. The adder outputs an image signal having the luminance value after addition as the image signal of the nth frame.
US08913067B1

A method for an accelerated rendering of graphics on a webpage. The method comprises providing a layer tree, wherein the layer tree includes a plurality of layers and is in a sandbox environment. The method further comprises identifying a dirty layer within the layer tree, and generating rendering data and the plurality of rendering instructions for processing the dirty layer. The method further comprises storing the rendering data and the plurality of rendering instructions in a storage region outside of the sandbox environment for processing using a graphics processing unit.
US08913063B2

Techniques are described for detecting script-controlled avatars in a virtual environment engaging in certain pattern formation behaviors. In particular, a virtual environment server may select a group of avatars and determine a pattern formed by the selected group. The virtual environment system may further search for a match of the pattern from a library of prohibited words or symbols. In the event the pattern formed by the selected avatars matches one of the prohibited patterns, some form of remedial action may be performed to disrupt the pattern.
US08913058B2

Displaying information associated with an object is described herein. One method includes determining attributes associated with an object, visualizing the object using a mobile device, detecting, by the mobile device, the attributes from the visualization, and receiving, by the mobile device, information associated with the object in response to the detection of attributes.
US08913045B2

A gate drive circuit for a display device is disclosed, by which output states of scan pulses are identically maintained in a manner of minimizing load deviation between connecting units. The present disclosure includes at least two clock transmission lines transmitting at least two clock pulses having a phase difference in-between, a shift register outputting scan pulses sequentially based on the clock pulses transmitted from the clock transmission lines, and a plurality of connecting units connecting the clock transmission lines to the shift register, respectively, wherein at least one of the connecting units is zigzagged in part, the at least one connecting unit comprising: a pad connected to the corresponding clock transmission line via a pad connecting unit; a zigzagged line connected to one side of the pad; and a connecting line that has one side connected to the zigzagged line and the other side connected to the shift register.
US08913033B2

A method for measuring a mutual capacitance between electrodes of a touch sensitive device includes generating a periodic pulse, communicating the pulse to a drive electrode, and measuring a mutual capacitance between the drive electrode and a sense electrode at a point of intersection between the drive electrode and the sense electrode. Measuring further includes continuously integrating a sense signal from the sense electrode to thereby generate an integrated sense signal, periodically sampling the integrated sense signal at a first time that is prior to a falling edge of the pulse, and at a second time that is prior to a rising edge of the pulse to thereby sample a maximum value and a minimum value of the integrated sense signal, digitizing the maximum value and the minimum value, and determining a difference between the maximum value and the minimum value to thereby determine a mutual capacitance between the drive electrode and the sense electrode.
US08913032B2

There is provided a position information correction device including an input point acquisition section which acquires position information of an input point specified by an operating object, a direction detection section which detects a movement direction of the operating object based on displacement of the position information acquired by the input point acquisition section for each input point, a determination section which takes a majority vote of the movement directions of past input points acquired by the input point acquisition section in the past, and determines the movement direction of the operating object with respect to a current input point acquired by the input point acquisition section at a current time point, and a position information correction section which, when the movement direction detected by the direction detection section differs from the movement direction determined by the determination section, corrects position information of the current input point.
US08913029B2

There is provided an electronic device that enables sufficient prevention of user's unintended manipulation during hover manipulation which enables performance of manipulation at a position distant from a touch panel. The electronic device a planar display section and a touch panel that is placed while being superimposed on the display section and that enables detection of two dimensional coordinates (x, y) of a finger, which serves as an indicator, on a surface of the display section and a vertical distance (z) from the finger. A valid zone that makes the two dimensional coordinates (x, y) valid is made narrower as the vertical distance (z) between the finger and the touch panel becomes greater. By adoption of such a configuration, it becomes possible to sufficiently prevent performance of user's unintended manipulation during hover manipulation that enables performance of manipulation at a position distant from the touch panel.
US08913028B2

A method, system, and apparatus of a touch-based authentication of a mobile device through user generated pattern creation are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of a mobile device includes recognizing a tactile force on a touch screen without a visual aid as an unlocking gesture, storing the unlocking gesture to a memory of the mobile device, associating another tactile force on the touch screen with the unlocking gesture, and transforming the mobile device from an initial state to an unlocked state based on the association between the another tactile force and the unlocking gesture. The method may include transforming the mobile device to operate as a telephonic communication device in the unlocked state.
US08913024B2

A contact detecting device including: a contact responding section configured to produce an electric change in response to an object to be detected coming into contact with or proximity to a detecting surface; and a contact driving scanning section configured to scan application of driving voltage to the contact responding section in one direction within the detecting surface, and control output of the electric change in time series, wherein the contact driving scanning section performs a plurality of scans of different regions of the contact responding section in parallel with each other, and outputs a plurality of the electric changes in parallel with each other.
US08913014B2

An information processing apparatus for data input in which input and editing can be performed through a simple operation is disclosed. The apparatus includes first determination means for determining whether drawing has been completed following input of coordinate data in the drawing mode; second determination means which, if completion of drawing has been determined, is for adopting drawing data, which has been drawn from input of coordinate data until completion of drawing, as a drawing object to be edited, and determining whether this drawing object has a portion that overlaps another object; and control means which, if it has been determined that the drawing object to be edited has a portion that overlaps another object, is for applying control to the drawing object to be edited in such a manner that this drawing object will no longer have a portion that overlaps another object.
US08913011B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide a unique play experience carried out utilizing an interactive “wand” and/or other seemingly magical actuation/tracking device. The wand or other actuation device allows play participants to electronically and “magically” interact with their surrounding play environment(s), thereby giving play participants the realistic illusion of practicing, performing and mastering “real” magic. Optionally, multiple play participants, each provided with a suitable “wand” and/or other actuation/tracking device, may play and interact together, either within or outside one or more compatible play environments, to achieve desired goals, master certain magical spells and/or produce desired seemingly magical effects within the play environment.
US08913008B2

The present disclosure provides improved generation of images using a handheld electronic device. Motion of the handheld electronic device is detected using a sensor of the handheld electronic device and data, dependent upon the sensed motion, is transmitted from the device to a remote electronic device. An image, representative of the sensed motion of the handheld electronic device and generated from the transmitted data, is rendered on a display of the remote electronic device and provides a user with visual feedback of the motion of the handheld electronic device. The image data may be generated by the handheld electronic device or by the remote electronic device.
US08912997B2

For displaying useful information (25) on a display element (21) of a terminal device (20), display data comprising useful information (25) are displayed (S2) on the display element (21), and light signals (18) are emitted (S3) to the display element (21) by a light signal unit (12) of a portable data carrier (10), wherein the display data are so displayed (S2) on the display element (21), and the light signals (18) so emitted (S3) to the terminal device (20), that a viewer of the display element (21) can recognize (S5) the useful information (25).
US08912991B2

A liquid crystal display includes: a first gate line; a first data line crossing the first gate line; a first switching element connected with the first gate line and the first data line; a second switching element connected with the first gate line and the first data line; a first liquid crystal capacitor connected with the first switching element; a second liquid crystal capacitor connected with the second switching element; a boost switching element which is turned on during a time period not overlapping a time period during which the first switching element is turned on; and a boost capacitor including a first terminal connected with the boost switching element and a second terminal connected with the first liquid crystal capacitor.
US08912985B2

In a display device using a light-emitting element or the like, the power consumption is reduced without reducing the display quality. A first operation and a second operation are carried out. In the first operation, a threshold voltage of a transistor is held in a capacitor. In the second operation, a signal potential corresponding to an image signal and the threshold voltage are added with the use of a capacitive coupling by the capacitor and are input to a gate of the transistor, so that a drain current of the transistor flows into a load element. The first operation is carried out once in a plurality of frames. A switch that determines whether the capacitor is electrically connected to a wiring to which a power supply potential is input is provided. A transistor in which a channel is formed in an oxide semiconductor layer is used as the switch.
US08912983B2

An organic light emitting diode display includes a substrate including a display area and a non-display area, a display unit that is formed in the display area and includes a plurality of subpixels arranged in a matrix form, a main ground line that is positioned at a first side of the non-display area and is formed using the same material as source and drain electrodes included in each subpixel, and an auxiliary ground line that is formed to surround the non-display area, overlaps at least a portion of the main ground line at the first side of the non-display area, is electrically connected to the main ground line, and is formed using the same material as a lower electrode included in each subpixel.
US08912977B2

A projector that can solve a problem in which a projection image is disturbed due to deviation of incident positions of projection light to a screen is provided. Projection section 11 includes LD light emission section 111 and scanning section 112 that scans light emitted by LD light emission section 111 and projects the scanned light to the rear plane side of the screen. Control section 12 controls an amount of light emission of the light and a scanning angle of scanning section 112 based on an image signal so as to cause projection section 11 to project an image corresponding to the image signal to the screen. Control section 12 corrects an orientation of projection light corresponding to each pixel of the image projected from projection section 11 based on a refractive index of the light transmission member and a scanning angle of scanning section 112 so as to correct an incident position of the projection light on the screen.
US08912975B1

A method and apparatus for reworking an antenna aperture. A plurality of antenna cells comprise walls and antenna elements on the walls. Replacement antenna cells are placed adjacent to the plurality of antenna cells. The replacement antenna cells comprise a replacement wall and a replacement antenna element on the replacement wall. A conductive splice is attached to the replacement antenna element and to a one of the antenna elements on a one of the walls.
US08912958B2

A radio communication device according to the present invention which is inserted into an expansion slot of an electronic device, includes: a printed circuit board having a rectangular shape, and provided with a connection terminal on one short side that connects to the expansion slot; an antenna element provided on the printed circuit board extending in a direction orthogonal thereto in the vicinity of an other short side of the printed circuit board, and having a substantially ¼λ electrical length; and a radial line extending on the printed circuit board with a position where the antenna element is arranged as an end point.
US08912957B2

A reconfigurable millimeter wave multibeam antenna array is disclosed. In an exemplary embodiment, an apparatus is provided that includes a first millimeter (MM) wave antenna, a second MM wave antenna, and a hybrid coupler coupled to the first and second MM wave antennas, the hybrid coupler configured to receive a MM wave transmit signal and a phase shifted version of the MM wave transmit signal, and to direct power to the first and second MM wave antennas based on a phase difference between the MM wave transmit signal and the phase shifted version of the MM wave transmit signal.
US08912952B2

A global positioning system device and an ionosphere error estimation method thereof are provided. The global positioning system device is connected to a plurality of dual-band base stations, and receives a plurality of ionosphere pierce point coordinates and a plurality of ionosphere errors from the dual-band base stations. The global positioning system device calculates a user ionosphere error by an interpolation method based on the ionosphere pierce point coordinates and the ionosphere errors of the dual-band base stations and a user ionosphere pierce point coordinate of the global positioning system device.
US08912950B2

This invention relates to sense through the wall radar. A main channel of a radar system (12) is operated at a frequency capable of penetrating opaque barriers such as the wall (24) of a building (22) to sense targets (16) therein. The main channel performance may be impaired by multipath interference, i.e., radar returns resulting from targets (20) outside the building (22) illuminated by reflection from the wall (24). A guard channel of the radar, operating at a higher frequency which does not penetrate the wall (24), is used to identify targets (20) outside the building (22) and suppress the multipath interference they produce in the main channel.
US08912947B1

A method for searching a radar acquisition volume after rotating the radar acquisition volume is disclosed. The method may comprise identifying an acquisition face of the acquisition volume and partitioning the acquisition face so that each partitioned portion of the acquisition face can be searched within a predetermined time period. The partitioning step may comprise determining the maximum number of beams that can be searched in a predetermined period of time and iteratively repositioning an elevation line on the acquisition face to identify the highest elevation line for which the number of radar beams is less than or equal to the maximum number of beams. The partitioning step may also comprise defining a beam lattice for the acquisition face and determining a maximum elevation line based on the beam lattice. The area of the acquisition face bounded by the highest or maximum elevation line defines the partitioned portion.
US08912946B2

A submillimeter wavelength radar system has a receiver (20, 27, 90) for receiving and downconverting signals from content in a field of view of the system and a signal processor (30) arranged to determine information about the content from the downconverted signals, the radar system being arranged to obtain signals of the same points in the field of view from different illumination or receiving angles by having multiple illumination or receive positions, and the signal processor being arranged to use the determined information from the signals from the two or more angles to determine location or orientation of the content. By using information from different angles, it becomes possible to address or overcome the drawback of submillimeter wavelengths that most of the reflection is specular and so only surfaces of an object facing the radar system are detectable, meaning that many objects are unrecognisable.
US08912944B2

A presence detector unit (PDU) of the type relying on microwave radiation provides a signal indicating movement within a defined space when such movement occurs. A source of microwave radiation within a housing projects a beam of microwave radiation directed through a side of the housing to suffuse at least a portion of the defined space. A detector within the housing senses changes in microwave radiation reflected back toward the detector. An adjustable beam occlusion structure is supported by the housing and blocks a portion of the microwave radiation emanating from the source and through the side of the housing.
US08912937B2

Highly power efficient transmitter output stage designs are provided. In an embodiment, the probability density function (PDF) of an input signal is divided into a plurality of regions, and samples of the input signal are processed depending on the region of the PDF within which they fall. The PDF can be divided between an inner region corresponding to samples of the input signal that are within a predetermined amplitude range, and outer regions corresponding to samples of the input signal that are outside of the predetermined amplitude range. Samples of the input signal that fall in the inner region are processed by a class A biased amplifier and samples of the input signal that fall in the outer regions are processed by a class B biased amplifier. Output stage designs according to embodiments can be implemented as power amplifiers or power digital-to-analog converters (DACs).
US08912935B1

A digital input includes a galvanically isolated section having an integrating capacitor coupled to a high voltage signal input by at least one current-limiting resistor, a relaxation oscillator coupled across the integrating capacitor, and an electronic switch controlled by the relaxation oscillator. An optical isolator has an input side and an output side, wherein the input side is coupled across the integrating capacitor by the switch, and a low voltage section includes a decoder having an input coupled to the output side of the optical isolator and having a low voltage signal output.
US08912923B2

The invention relates to a method and a device for assisting a parking process of a vehicle (1) into a parking space (P) which is arranged transversely with respect to a carriageway (F) and which is bounded on at least one side by a lateral boundary (10, 11), wherein the parking space (P) is measured by means of a measuring device, a parked position (G) of the vehicle (1) inside the parking space (P) is defined by means of an evaluation device, and a parking path (B) of the vehicle (1) into the parked position (G) is determined by means of the evaluation device.In order to assist the parking process in very wide parking spaces (P), the parked position (G) is defined at a lateral distance (d) from the center longitudinal axis (L) of the parking space (P) by the evaluation device at least when a predefined minimum width (b-min) of the parking space (P) is exceeded.
US08912917B2

A method for operating a monitoring module in a monitoring system. A monitoring module is configured with means for detecting impulse signals from sensors of the monitoring module and from other monitoring modules of the monitoring system, and with one or more groups of functions. A function defines a relation between an impulse signal detected by a monitoring module and a monitoring response of the monitoring module, and each group of functions corresponds with one level of hierarchy of monitoring modules of the monitoring system. One or more impulse signals from a sensor of the monitoring module and/or from another monitoring module of the monitoring system are detected; and a prevailing set of functions in a group of functions is determined. One or more monitoring responses are then determined with the prevailing set of functions.
US08912914B2

An apparatus for the treatment of containers may include a conveying device which conveys the containers along a pre-set conveying path and a size part which is arranged in an interchangeable manner on the apparatus. The size part may include a first identification element based upon RFID technology in order to identify the size part. The size part may in turn include a position detection device which detects a position of at least one element of the apparatus with respect to the size part and emits a signal characteristic of this position.
US08912911B2

A device including a first energy storage device configured to be charged by a machine when the device is coupled to the machine and a wireless transceiver configured to receive input commands from an input device and transmit the input commands to the machine, where the first energy storage device is configured to transfer electrical energy to the input device when the device is operatively coupled to the input device.
US08912909B2

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a handheld multi-parameter patient monitor capable of determining multiple physiological parameters from the output of a light sensitive detector capable of detecting light attenuated by body tissue. For example, in an embodiment, the monitor is capable of advantageously and accurately displaying one or more of pulse rate, plethysmograph data, perfusion quality, signal confidence, and values of blood constituents in body tissue, including for example, arterial carbon monoxide saturation (“HbCO”), methemoglobin saturation (“HbMet”), total hemoglobin (“Hbt”), arterial oxygen saturation (“SpO2”), fractional arterial oxygen saturation (“SpaO2”), or the like. In an embodiment, the monitor displays a line associated with a patient wellness level.
US08912902B1

An intrusion detector comprises a housing including a cover and baseplate mounting a circuit board. The cover and baseplate are removably mountable to a base. A motion sensor and bracket are mounted to the circuit board. The cover has a lower lookdown window. A lookdown enable/disable actuator extends from a rear side of the circuit board and is accessible through the baseplate. The actuator is operable to move a door pivotally mounted to the bracket between an on position to enable a lookdown function and an off position to disable the lookdown function. The detector is normally mounted on a wall by securing the base to the wall. The cover and baseplate can be removed from the base. A screwdriver can be used to turn the actuator. The cover and baseplate can then be remounted to the base.
US08912887B2

An RFID tag comprising a coil and an RFID chip having two inputs/outputs, each input/output being connected to the coil. The tag further comprises an electrical circuit connected to the inputs/outputs, the circuit being adapted to operate in one of two modes, one mode outputting substantially no signal whereby the RFID chip is allowed to operate and a second mode being a mode wherein a signal is output so that the operation of the RFID-chip is interrupted. Alternatively, the circuit may have a lower operating voltage than the RFID-chip and may thus starve the RFID-chip and prevent its operation when desired.
US08912882B2

Enhanced biometric authentication is achieved by combining a user's inherent biometric data with the user's knowledge of a secret glyph. In one embodiment, a touchpad is provided on which the user may use a finger to indicate a plurality of strokes that form a distinct glyph. Image stabilization may be used to extract a readable fingerprint from the strokes, and the glyph and finger print are matched to a stored profile. The glyph may be one or more alphanumeric characters that represent a password. The user can then enter the password on the touch pad with his finger. If the fingerprint and password both match, the user is authenticated.
US08912881B2

Methods and apparatus for visually authenticating an entity which displays a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag are disclosed. In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a locator that determines when a radio frequency (RF) receiver is present within a vicinity. The apparatus also includes a server configured to identify a security element and configured to obtain an information element associated with the RF receiver when the RF receiver is present within the vicinity, as well as a transmitter. The transmitter transmits a first representation of the security element to a display arrangement, a second representation of the security element to the RF receiver, and the information element to the RF receiver. The second representation of the security element is arranged to overlay the information element when the second representation of the security element and the information element are displayed.
US08912880B2

In order to check the authorization of passengers, the following steps are performed: storing of authorization data, for example of tickets, in an electronic storage area of a portable personal identification module (40) of the user, for example in a chip-card, storing of identification data that are specific to the user's outer appearance in an electronic storage area of the personal identification module (40), contactless transmission of said identification and authorization data in a portable authorization-checking device (90), visual reproduction of said identification and authorization data with a VRD (Virtual Retina Display).
US08912875B1

A transformer winding includes a flexible metal plate having an outer periphery defining opposite first and second sides and opposite third and fourth sides. The flexible metal plate has a trunk region that extends from the second side toward the first side and that terminates at a terminating line between the first and second sides, and is formed with a cutting line that extends from the first side toward the second side and that terminates at the terminating line. The cutting line configures the flexible metal plate with first and second branch regions, each having a winding part covered with an electrical insulation layer.
US08912871B2

An electromagnetic actuator comprising a core moving between a latched position and an open position, a permanent magnet, a coil designed to generate a first magnetic control flux to move the core from an open position to a latched position, and a second magnetic control flux designed to facilitate movement of the moving core from the latched position to the open position. The permanent magnet is positioned on the moving core so as to be at least partly outside the fixed magnetic circuit in which the first magnetic control flux flows in the open position, and to be at least partly inside the fixed magnetic circuit used for flow of a magnetic polarization flux of the magnet in the latched position.
US08912870B2

According to an embodiment, when a switchgear operating state is shifted from a close state to a cutoff state, a solenoid lever is pushed and rotated by a plunger of an electromagnetic solenoid for cutoff so that the solenoid lever rotates in a direction opposite from the direction of the urging of a solenoid-lever return spring. A trigger roller pin and the solenoid lever become disengaged from each other, an eccentric pin and a trigger lever are rotated by the urging force from a latch leading end become disengaged from each other, whereby a latch lever is rotated by the released energy of a cutoff spring.
US08912863B2

A face plate for cable-TV networks, the face plate adapted to operate in frequencies as high as 1.8 GHz. The face plate comprising terminals, electronic circuitry, impedance matching units and a disturbances suppressor. The disturbances suppressor is designed to suppress the parasitic resonance of the transmission line that appears inside the extended operational frequency band of 1000 to 1800 MHz. The impedance matching units are adapted to match the impedance of the terminal with that of electronic circuitry.
US08912848B2

According to the present invention, a digital pre-distortion device and method for use in a dynamic spectrum allocation system, which uses a breadband frequency range, such as a cognitive radio (CR) system, are implemented. Also, while as conventional pre-distortion device only enable the linearization of a signal of a fundamental frequency band, the digital pre-distortion device and method according to the present invention enable not only the linearization of a basic signal on frequency fc, but also simultaneously enable the elimination of harmonic signals on the high frequencies of 2fc, 3fc, 4fc, etc. The digital pre-distortion device for a broadband power amplifier according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises: a nonlinear power amplifier; an equivalent amplifier model estimator; N pre-distorters; and a coefficient extractor for extracting the coefficients of the N pre-distorters.
US08912846B2

A Doherty amplifier (1) is described which comprises an input terminal (102) for receiving an input signal (101) and an output terminal (103) for providing an amplified signal (104) of the input signal (101). The Doherty amplifier (1) comprises a carrier amplifier stage (300) with a first signal input (311) and a second signal input (312) and a peak amplifier stage (400) with a third signal input (411) and a fourth signal input (421). A signal splitter (200) splits and delays the input signal (101) so that the signal at the first signal input (311) and the signal at the second signal input (321) are 180° apart in phase and that the signal at the third signal input (421) and the fourth signal input (431) are also 180° apart in phase.
US08912843B2

An ultra low cut-off frequency filter. A filter circuit includes a control circuit responsive to an input signal and a feedback signal to generate a control signal. The filter circuit includes a controllable resistor coupled to the control circuit. The controllable resistor is responsive to a reference signal and the control signal to generate the feedback signal. The filter circuit includes a feedback path coupled to the control circuit and the controllable resistor to couple the feedback signal from the controllable resistor to the control circuit, thereby removing noise from at least one of the input signal and the reference signal, and preventing voltage error in the filter circuit.
US08912842B2

The invention provides a device for stabilizing an effective value of an output current of a converter. The device comprises the following: an input to receive an input voltage x of the converter, a memory in which a first set of polynomial coefficients a, b, c; kj is stored, a processor that is coupled to the input and the memory and is set up so as to determine a current correction y as a polynomial function with the stored first set of polynomial coefficients a, b, c; kj as a function of the received input voltage x, and a power stage that is coupled to the processor to receive the current correction y and set up to modify the effective value of the output current as a function of the current correction y.
US08912841B1

Semiconductor systems are provided. The semiconductor system includes a controller and a semiconductor device. The controller generates a power voltage signal. The semiconductor device generates a power-up signal in response to the power voltage signal, generates a first selection pulse, a second selection pulse and an initialization pulse signal, generates a first fuse signal for controlling an internal operation according to a cut state of a first fuse, and generates a second fuse signal for controlling the internal operation according to a cut state of a second fuse.
US08912838B1

A zero-crossing detector with effective offset cancellation includes a set of series connected capacitors and an amplifier having an input terminal. An offset capacitor is operatively connected between the amplifier and the set of series connected capacitors. A switch is operatively connected to the input terminal, and an offset sampling capacitor is operatively connected to the switch. The switch connects the offset sampling capacitor to the input terminal of the amplifier during a charge transfer phase.
US08912835B2

A method for controlling pulsed power that includes measuring a first pulse of power from a power amplifier to obtain data. The method also includes generating a first signal to adjust a second pulse of delivered power, the first signal correlated to the data to minimize a power difference between a power set point and a substantially stable portion of the second pulse. The method also includes generating a second signal to adjust the second pulse of delivered power, the second signal correlated to the data to minimize an amplitude difference between a peak of the second pulse and the substantially stable portion of the second pulse.
US08912834B2

Integrated circuits that support dual-edge clocking are provided. Integrated circuits may include phase-locked loops that generate square-wave clock signals. The clock signals may be provided from off-chip equipment through input-output pins. The clock signals may be routed through a clock distribution network to provide local clock signals to pulse generators that generate clock pulses on rising and falling clock edges. The pulse generators may generate clock pulses that are triggered by the rising and falling clock edges with a common pulse width for optimum performance. Duty cycle distortion introduced by the clock network may be minimized for optimum performance. Adaptive duty cycle distortion circuitry may be used to control the pull-up/pull-down drive strengths of the clock buffer so that the high clock phase of the local clock signals is approximately a half clock cycle.
US08912832B2

A signal transmission/reception system includes a transmission line, a signal transmission circuit configured to generate a transfer signal and transfer the transfer signal through the transmission line, wherein a logic value of the transfer signal is changed whenever a pulse signal is input to the signal transmission circuit, and a signal reception circuit configured to receive the transfer signal through the transmission line and generate a restoration signal using the transfer signal and a delayed transfer signal obtained by delaying the transfer signal.
US08912826B2

A voltage change detection device, which reduces a deviation of a detection potential and detects a voltage change within a predetermined detection potential even when the threshold voltage of a field effect transistor is deviated. The voltage change detection device includes a first field effect transistor, a second field effect transistor, and a detection signal generator. The first field effect transistor has a drain connected to a power supply potential, a source connected to a first constant current source or a first resistor at a first node, and a gate connected to a fixed voltage. The second field effect transistor has a drain and a gate connected to the power supply potential and a source connected to a second constant current source or a second resistor at a second node. The detection signal generator generates a detection signal indicating that the power supply potential has crossed a predetermined detection potential.
US08912822B2

One embodiment provides a semiconductor integrated circuit, including: a first input wire; a second input wire; a first look-up table (LUT) comprising: a plurality of first memories; a first number of first switches connected to the first input wire; and a second number of second switches connected to the second input wire, the second number being less than the first number, the first LUT being configured to output information which is stored in one of the first memories; and a second LUT including: a plurality of second memories; a third number of third switches connected to the second input wire; and a fourth number of fourth switches connected to the first input wire, the fourth number being less than the third number, the second LUT being configured to output information which is stored in one of the second memories.
US08912818B2

A calibration circuit includes an amplifier, a current steering digital-to-analog converter (DAC), a comparator, a slew calibration network, and an on-die termination (ODT) network. The amplifier generally has a first input, a second input, and an output. The first input generally receives a reference signal. The current steering digital-to-analog converter (DAC) generally has a first input coupled to the output of the amplifier, a first output coupled to the second input of the amplifier, and a second output coupled to a circuit node. The comparator generally has a first input receiving the reference signal, a second input coupled to the circuit node, and an output at which an output of the calibration circuit may be presented. The slew calibration network is generally coupled to the circuit node and configured to adjust a slew rate of the calibration circuit. The on-die termination (ODT) network is generally coupled to the circuit node.
US08912809B2

A test system for testing an antenna tuning element is provided. The test system may include a tester, a test fixture, and a probing structure. The probing structure may include probe tips configured to mate with corresponding solder bumps formed on a device under test (DUT) containing an antenna tuning element. The DUT may be tested in a shunt or series configuration. The tester may be electrically coupled to the test probe via first and second connectors on the test fixture. An adjustable load circuit that is coupled to the second connector may be configured in a selected state so that a desired amount of electrical stress may be presented to the DUT during testing. The tester may be used to obtain measurement results on the DUT. Systematic effects associated with the test structures may be de-embedded from the measured results to obtain calibrated results.
US08912806B2

Disclosed is a method to determine whether a pipeline has been cut, the method including (a) transmitting an electromagnetic signal through the pipeline; (b) monitoring any reflected signal(s); and (c) interpreting the reflected signal to determine whether the pipeline has been cut.
US08912803B2

A DC high potential testing meter comprises first and second probes. The first probe comprises an insulated shield supporting an electrode extending from a distal end of the shield. A high voltage resistor and a high voltage diode in the shield are connected in series with the electrode. A capacitance formed by a metallic collar across the high voltage diode provides uniform voltage distribution along the high voltage diode. The second probe comprises an insulated shield supporting an electrode. A high voltage resistor in the shield is connected in series with the electrode. A meter comprises a housing enclosing an electrical circuit for measuring voltage across the electrodes and provides an output representing measured voltage.
US08912802B2

In a component-embedded circuit substrate having a plurality of capacitors embedded therein, the capacitors are connected in parallel, inspection electrodes are formed, and the inspection electrodes connect to respective terminal electrodes of the capacitor through via conductors. At the terminal electrodes of the capacitor, the connection position of the via conductors for connecting the inspection electrodes differs from the connection position of via conductors for connecting respective terminal electrodes of the capacitor.
US08912800B2

The present document describes an assembly for interfacing an existing harness connector of an installed wiring harness to a test module, the assembly comprising: a harness-specific connector for connecting to the existing harness connector; a test box connector module connected to the harness-specific connector and for connecting to a test module, the test box connector module comprising a key which is unique to the test box connector module and which is used to identify the test box connector module when connected to the test module. There is described a method for identifying a test box connector module used in testing an installed wiring harness comprising an existing harness connector, the method comprising: connecting the test box connector module to a test module; detecting a key which is unique to the test box connector module thereby determining the identity of the test box connector module; sending the identity of the test box connector module to a user interface.
US08912799B2

A method is described for accurate measuring of the excess carrier lifetime on a semiconductor sample from the carrier decay after termination of the excitation pulse imposed on the steady-state carrier excitation. The method includes determining a quality of decay parameter using progressing segments in each carrier decay; establishing an accurate lifetime measurement multiparameter domain for experimental variables whereby the quality of decay parameter falls within prescribed limits from the ideal exponential decay value of QD=1; and determining an excess carrier lifetime for the semiconductor sample based on experimental measurement conditions within the domain and the quality of decay value within the predetermined range indicative of an accurate excess carrier lifetime measurement.
US08912797B2

A printed circuit board (PCB) is flat, providing a top side and a bottom side. A plurality of terminations is disposed on the top side in proximity to one end face of the PCB. Each termination has at least one contact that is connected to a respective conductor track of the PCB. The respective conductor track is connected to a respective local coil or to a contact disposed on the top side or the bottom side of a respective further termination. The local coil and/or at least one of the further terminations are disposed in proximity to the other end face. A basic shield impervious to frequencies in a magnetic resonance range is disposed on the top side and/or the bottom side, and an auxiliary shield electrically connected to the basic shield and impervious to frequencies in the magnetic resonance range is disposed on narrow sides of the PCB.
US08912790B2

A measuring device for measuring a film thickness of a silicon wafer (1) comprises: position and velocity sensors (4) linearly arranged along a longitudinal direction into first and second position and velocity sensor arrays spaced apart from each other in a lateral direction, in which the position and velocity sensors (4) in the first position and velocity sensor array are in one-to-one correspondence with the position and velocity sensors (4) in the second position and velocity sensor array in the lateral direction; an eddy current sensor (2) disposed in a symmetrical plane between the first position and velocity sensor array and the second position and velocity sensor array and perpendicular to the lateral direction; and a controller connected to the position and velocity sensors (4) and the eddy current sensor (2) respectively for controlling measurement of the thickness of the film according to detection signals from the position and velocity sensors (4) and the eddy current sensor (2).
US08912768B1

An apparatus provides a soft-switched voltage clamp tapped-inductor step-up boost converter that is capable of reducing voltage stress on a switch and a diode of the boost converter without using a dissipative snubber and that is capable of reducing a switching loss while maintaining a high input-to-output boost ratio.
US08912760B2

A method of activating a battery is applied to an electronic device having a controller that keeps counting system time to acquire a system date. The method includes: (1) acquiring data of the battery, including states, an activation number and a last activation date; (2) performing an activation process and setting the battery in an activation state when determining, based on the data, that the battery is in an inactivation state, the activation number is smaller than a predetermined activation number, and an interval between the last activation date and the system date is greater than a predetermined activation interval; (3) discharging the battery, and charging the battery when determining that a battery power level is less than a predetermined power level; and (4) setting the battery in the inactivation state after the activation process is finished. Therefore, a curing problem of the battery is overcome.
US08912759B2

A power supply system with a variable supply voltage is provided. The power supply system includes a power adaptor, a battery unit, a switching circuit, and a main equipment. The power adaptor is suitable for producing a power voltage. The switching circuit selects the power adaptor or the battery unit for powering the main equipment. Wherein, the power adaptor adjusts the power voltage according to whether the battery unit performs a charge operation.
US08912757B2

The invention relates to a traction battery having at least two serially connected battery modules, each of which has a first battery module pole, a second battery module pole, and at least one inserted series circuit and/or parallel circuit of battery cells. A first terminal of the series circuit of battery modules is connected to a first battery pole, while a second terminal of the series circuit of battery modules is connected to a second battery pole. According to the invention, at least one battery module of the at least two serially connected battery modules is a first battery module which has at least one disconnecting device and a bridging device. When triggered accordingly, the at least one disconnecting device interrupts the connection between the series circuit and/or parallel circuit of battery cells and the first battery module pole and/or the second battery module pole and/or interrupts the series circuit and/or parallel circuit of battery cells. Furthermore, the first battery module pole and the second battery module pole are short-circuited via the bridging device inserted between the first battery module pole and the second battery module pole when the bridging device is triggered accordingly. Additionally or alternatively, at least one battery module of the at least two serially connected battery modules is a second battery module that has at least one charging and disconnecting device and a bridging device. When triggered accordingly, the at least one charging and disconnecting device interrupts the connection between the series circuit and/or parallel circuit of battery cells and the first battery module pole and/or the second battery module pole and/or interrupts the series circuit and/or parallel circuit of battery cells and limits charging or compensating currents occurring when the battery module or the battery comprising the battery module is connected. Furthermore, the first battery module pole and the second battery module pole are short-circuited via the bridging device inserted between the first battery module pole and the second battery module pole when the bridging device is triggered accordingly.
US08912755B2

A charging device used in a handheld device comprises a main body, a coupling portion connected to an end of the main body and the coupling portion has a connector, and a battery unit connected to another end of the main body. When the charging device is in a first status, the battery unit and the connector are coupled together; when it is in a second status, the battery unit is detached from the connector so that the connector is electrically connected with the handheld device in order to have the handheld device charged.
US08912746B2

A latch mechanism selectively retains a first assembly to a second assembly. The first and second assemblies are configured for sliding engagement along an engagement axis. The latch mechanism includes a latch shaft mounted to the first assembly to rotate about a latch shaft axis, a torsion spring to bias the latch shaft relative to the first assembly, and a transverse latch member coupled with the second assembly. The latch mechanism is configured to automatically latch in response to the first assembly being pushed toward the second assembly. The transverse latch member interacts with the latch shaft to rotate the latch shaft in a first direction in response to movement of the first assembly toward the second assembly. Further motion of the first assembly toward the second assembly results in rotation of the latch shaft opposite to the first direction into a retention configuration that retains the transverse latch member.
US08912735B2

The present disclosure relates to lighting fixtures for use in a lighting network where the lighting fixtures and other elements are able to communicate with each other via wired or wireless communication techniques. When the lighting network is being formed or modified, a lighting fixture is selected to act as a coordinator for forming the lighting network. For example, a user may employ a commissioning tool to select a particular lighting fixture as the coordinator. The coordinator will send out one or more ‘join my network’ messages toward the other elements of the lighting network. The elements that receive the ‘join my network’ message may respond in order to make the coordinator aware of their presence and join them to a lighting network.
US08912730B2

A wireless power supply system for lighting includes: a power transmission unit including a power transmission coil; and a power reception unit including a power reception coil. The power transmission coil generates an AC magnetic field in response to a supplied AC power. The power reception coil receives an electric power from the power transmission unit through an electromagnetic induction due to the AC magnetic field generated by the power transmission coil. The power reception unit further includes a power circuit and a receive-side control section. The power circuit receives an output power from the power reception coil and to perform Buck-Boost operation so as to output a predetermined electric power to a lighting load. The receive-side control section controls the Buck-Boost operation of the power circuit. The power circuit is configured to be capable of boosting and stepping-down of the output power from said power reception coil.
US08912725B2

A photoswitch includes a DC power supply, a luminance controlling circuit and a lightening apparatus. The luminance controlling circuit includes a relay RL1, a trigger circuit module, a delay discharge circuit module, a photosensitive element and an adjusting circuit module. The trigger circuit module includes a NPN triode Q1, a NPN triode Q2, NPN triode Q3, a resistor R3 and a resistor R6; the adjusting circuit module includes a resistor R4 and a resistor R5 and a resistor R7, one end of which is in connection with the current output end of the resistor R4 and the other of is in connection with the current input end of the relay RL1; a current value of a subcircuit with the resistor R7 and the relay RL1 is smaller than a pull-in current value or a release current value of the relay RL1.
US08912721B2

A lamp and lamp driver are disclosed, in which single intensity marker lamps that are desired to be flashed can be connected to a lamp driver employing an exclusive OR (XOR) logic circuit. In one application, this lamp driver is coupled to a vehicle turn function wire and marker function wire, and a plurality of marker lamps in a row can be of the same style, but one lamp can be flashed in the row of marker lamps. In some embodiments, if all of the marker lamps are on, the lamp being driven by the XOR driver circuit will flash out of sequence with the turn signal flash. If all of the marker lamps are off, the lamp being driven by the XOR driver circuit will flash in sequence with the turn signal flash. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US08912715B2

A spark plug having a center electrode, a ground electrode, and a ground electrode side tip. The tip partially projects from a front end face and an inner circumference-side side surface of the ground electrode. The ground electrode has a center of the front end face, which center is located at a front end side in a direction of the axis with respect to a front end of the center electrode.
US08912714B2

A spark plug including: a center electrode which extends in an axial direction; a cylindrical insulator which is disposed around an outer circumference of the center electrode; a cylindrical metal shell which is disposed around an outer circumference of the insulator; and a ground electrode having one end connected to the metal shell, and an end surface of the other end being positioned between the one end and the center electrode or on the center electrode, when viewed in the axial direction of the center electrode, wherein the end surface has a maximum width portion which is formed only at a position where a distance from a center position of the end surface is 12% to 88% of a distance from the center position to an outer side surface of the ground electrode.
US08912713B2

A method of producing an electrode support for a spark plug is provided. The method includes providing the electrode support. The method includes brazing a chip to the electrode support.
US08912709B2

An ultrasound transducer patch (100) comprises an array of ultrasound transducers (20) mounted to a flexi-PCB (10) containing multiple tracks (12). Each transducer (20), or a sub-group of the transducers is electrically connected to first and second of the multiple tracks. The flexi-PCB (10) is configured, such as by virtue of cut-out portions (114, 414) or by inherent elasticity, to be bendable a out non-parallel axes. The enables the patch (100) to readily conform to a complex 3D surface such as a portion of a patient's face to ensure efficient transmission of ultrasound energy to a desired area of treatment.
US08912699B2

A field gradient motor with a stator housing and first and second stator disks fixed to the stator housing for turning B-field flux lines 90 degrees toward a motor air gap of the field gradient motor. A shaft is rotatably retained by the housing, and a rotor has a hole and keyway for producing a nonferrous hole through the shaft. A plurality of tangentially magnetized triangular magnets are fixed to the rotor. In operation, the stator housing, the stator disks, the rotor, the permanent magnets, and the shaft cooperate with the coil produce an electromagnetic action of the motor. The stator housing can be an iron ring, and the first and second stator disks and the rotor can be steel.
US08912696B2

In a motor driven by a drive circuit such as an inverter, there is a problem that electric current flowing through a bearing causes electric corrosion, which impairs the durability of the bearing. A motor of the invention includes: a stator in which a winding is applied through an insulating part to a stator core formed by laminating a predetermined number of electromagnetic steel plates which have been punched into a predetermined shape; a rotor assembly in which a rotor and bearings and formed by rolling bearings are fitted to a shaft; a printed wiring board which is arranged at an end part of the stator in an axial direction and to which a drive circuit is mounted; a bracket imposed to at least the end part of the stator in the axial direction to which the printed wiring board is arranged; and a conductive sheet provided between the printed wiring board and the bracket.
US08912690B2

Disclosed is a voice coil motor, the motor including a rotor having a cylindrical bobbin that has a support block protruding from an upper end of an outer circumference thereof and a coil block that is coupled to the outer circumference of the bobbin in a direction from a lower surface to an upper surface of the bobbin and is supported by the support block, a stator having a magnet facing the coil block and a yoke holding the magnet, elastic members coupled to upper and lower surfaces of the bobbin, respectively, a base supporting the stator and the elastic members, and a foreign substance inflow-prevention portion formed on an upper surface of the base in such a way as to protrude around an opening formed in a central portion of the base in a shape of a closed loop.
US08912684B2

A compressed-air energy storage system according to embodiments of the present invention comprises a reversible mechanism to compress and expand air, one or more compressed air storage tanks, a control system, one or more heat exchangers, and, in certain embodiments of the invention, a motor-generator. The reversible air compressor-expander uses mechanical power to compress air (when it is acting as a compressor) and converts the energy stored in compressed air to mechanical power (when it is acting as an expander). In certain embodiments, the compressor-expander comprises one or more stages, each stage consisting of pressure vessel (the “pressure cell”) partially filled with water or other liquid. In some embodiments, the pressure vessel communicates with one or more cylinder devices to exchange air and liquid with the cylinder chamber(s) thereof. Suitable valving allows air to enter and leave the pressure cell and cylinder device, if present, under electronic control.
US08912681B1

A staged cluster wind generator system generates electrical power from wind. The system includes a base and a housing coupled to a top end of the base. A primary generator is coupled to and positioned in the housing. A drive shaft is mechanically coupled to and extends from the primary generator through the housing. A propeller is coupled to the drive shaft and configured for being rotated by wind wherein the drive shaft drives the primary generator. An annular main gear is coupled to the drive shaft and rotated by rotation of the drive shaft. Each of a plurality of secondary generators is coupled to the housing. Each secondary generator has a drive gear operationally coupled to the annular main gear wherein rotation of the drive shaft drives each secondary generator.
US08912677B2

A power-generating device located in or on the surface of the ocean for generating power utilizing the energy in ocean wave motion. The device is moored to the bow and stern at ˜45° to incoming ocean waves, and with a yawing capability to adjust to change in wave direction. The device delivers power to a shore grid via a submarine cable from a generator. A rotational driving torque to the generator is produced by two long counter-rotating drive tubes, which are held by bearings in the bow hull and the stern hull of the device. As an alternative, hydraulics may be employed for energy capture and power smoothing and used to provide the rotational torque through a hydraulic motor to drive a generator. The main body is partially submerged and has multiple pod floats connected to the structure by rocker arms with bearings through which the drive tubes pass or double-acting hydraulic rams between the arms and the main body, which capture energy through pod displacement and store it in accumulators. Rotary torque of the drive tubes is produced when the pods move up and down according to motion of the waves and is transmitted to the generator to generate power. In the hydraulic case, energy is stored in accumulators as pressure due to the double-acting hydraulic pistons pumping when the pods move up and down according to the motion of the waves. Hydraulic pressure drives a pump, which provides torque to the generator.
US08912669B2

Provided are a sealing resin sheet, wherein a clean, smooth and flat ground surface is obtained by grinding after resin sealing, a method for producing an electronic component package using the same, and an electronic component package obtained by the production method. The present invention provides a sealing resin sheet, wherein a ground surface has a mean surface roughness Ra of 1 μm or less when grinding is performed under conditions of a grind bite peripheral velocity of 1000 m/minute, a feed pitch of 100 μm and a cut depth of 10 μm after a heat curing treatment is performed at 180° C. for 1 hour; and a Shore D hardness at 100° C. after the heat curing treatment is 70 or more.
US08912667B2

A semiconductor device includes an integrated circuit die on a substrate. A first subset of wire bonds is between the substrate and the die. A second subset of wire bonds is between the substrate and the die. A dielectric material coats the first subset of the wire bonds along a majority of length of the first subset of the wire bonds. A medium is in contact with the second subset of the wire bonds along a majority of length of the second subset of the wire bonds.
US08912659B2

A stacked semiconductor package includes a first semiconductor chip having a first surface and a second surface which faces away from the first surface and including first bonding pads which are formed on the first surface and first through electrodes which pass through the first surface and the second surface; a second semiconductor chip stacked over the second surface of the first semiconductor chip, and including second bonding pads which are formed on a third surface facing the first semiconductor chip and second through electrodes which pass through the third surface and a fourth surface facing away from the third surface and are electrically connected with the first through electrodes; and a molding part formed to substantially cover the stacked first and second semiconductor chips and having openings which expose one end of the first through electrodes disposed on the first surface of the first semiconductor chip.
US08912653B2

A semiconductor wafer has integrated circuits formed thereon and a top passivation layer applied. The passivation layer is patterned and selectively etched to expose contact pads on each semiconductor die. The wafer is exposed to ionized gas causing the upper surface of passivation layer to roughen and to slightly roughen the upper surface of the contact pads. The wafer is cut to form a plurality of semiconductor dies each with a roughened passivation layer. The plurality of semiconductor dies are placed on an adhesive layer and a reconstituted wafer formed. Redistribution layers are formed to complete the semiconductor package having electrical contacts for establishing electrical connections external to the semiconductor package, after which the wafer is singulated to separate the dice.
US08912645B2

A semiconductor element cooling structure includes a side wall provided on a downstream side of flow of cooling air in a cooling air passage, a plurality of cooling fins forming cooling air branch passages, and a plurality of cooling fins forming cooling air branch passages. The cooling fins each have an end portion at a tip extending toward the cooling air passage. A virtual line obtained by connecting the end portions of the plurality of cooling fins and a virtual line obtained by connecting the end portions of the plurality of cooling fins each have a gradient with respect to a direction of the flow of the cooling air in the cooling air passage which is greater on an upstream side of the flow of the cooling air in the cooling air passage than on the downstream side thereof.
US08912643B2

An integrated circuit device including a die with a substrate with a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface is provided. The die includes at least one circuit element positioned on the first surface. Formed on the second surface, is a wetting feature that includes an array of spaced-apart nanoscale structures and/or an array of spaced-apart microscale structures. The wetting feature also includes a wettability coating applied to at least a portion of the second surface. The integrated circuit device includes a spacer coupled to the die adjacent to the second surface. In addition, an injector plate is coupled to the spacer. The injector plate includes at least one microjet and at least one exit hole defined through the injector plate. The at least one exit hole is positioned adjacent to the at least one microjet.
US08912638B2

A device comprising a chip, which is held in casting compound and on which a hollow structure is arranged is disclosed.
US08912637B1

A method and apparatus for enhancing the thermal performance of semiconductor packages effectively. The concept of this invention is to provide silicon nanowires on the backside of an integrated circuit die to directly attach the die to the substrate, thereby improving the interface between die and substrate, and thus enhancing thermal performance and enhancing reliability by improving adhesion.
US08912636B2

A lead frame includes an inner lead area overlapping with a chip mounting area, an outer lead portion having outer leads disposed outside the inner lead area, and an inner lead portion having inner leads disposed in the inner lead area. A semiconductor chip is mounted on the chip mounting area of the lead frame. Electrode pads of the semiconductor chip are electrically connected to inner leads via metal wires. Portions of the inner leads located on an area in the inner lead area except the chip mounting area are depressed.
US08912622B2

A semiconductor device includes a first-conductivity-type semiconductor substrate, a first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer, a second first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer, a second-conductivity-type bottom layer, a Schottky metal, and a cathode electrode. The first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer is provided on the semiconductor substrate and has a lower first-conductivity-type impurity concentration than the semiconductor substrate. The second first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer is provided on the first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer and has a higher first-conductivity-type impurity concentration than the first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer. The Schottky metal is provided on the second first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer. The Schottky metal contacts with partly the first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer. The second-conductivity-type bottom layer is provided in the first first-conductivity-type semiconductor layer and is connected to the Schottky metal. The cathode electrode is connected to the semiconductor substrate.
US08912619B2

The present invention provides an ultra-violet light sensing device. The ultra-violet light sensing device includes a first conductivity type substrate, a second conductivity type region, and a first conductivity type high density region. The first conductivity type substrate includes a light incident surface. The second conductivity type region is disposed in the first conductivity type substrate and adjacent to the light incident surface. The first conductivity type high density region is disposed under the second conductivity type region. The present invention also provides another ultra-violet light sensing device, which further includes a first conductivity type high density shallow region which is sandwiched between the light incident surface and the second conductivity type region. Manufacturing methods for these ultra-violet light sensing devices are also disclosed in the present invention.
US08912615B2

The present invention is a photodiode or photodiode array having improved ruggedness for a shallow junction photodiode which is typically used in the detection of short wavelengths of light. In one embodiment, the photodiode has a relatively deep, lightly-doped P zone underneath a P+ layer. By moving the shallow junction to a deeper junction in a range of 2-5 μm below the photodiode surface, the improved device has improved ruggedness, is less prone to degradation, and has an improved linear current.
US08912604B2

A semiconductor device includes body lines, formed substantially perpendicular to a substrate, and having recessed sidewalls, buried bit lines, buried in the recessed sidewalls, and including a metal silicide, and a barrier layer interposed between each of the buried bit lines and the body lines corresponding thereto, and containing germanium.
US08912600B2

Methods of making, structures, devices, and/or applications for lateral double-diffused metal oxide semiconductor (LDMOS) transistors are disclosed. In one embodiment, an LDMOS transistor can include: (i) an n-doped deep n-well (DNW) region on a substrate; (ii) a gate oxide and a drain oxide between a source region and a drain region of the LDMOS transistor, the gate oxide being adjacent to the source region, the drain oxide being adjacent to the drain region; (iii) a conductive gate over the gate oxide and a portion of the drain oxide; (iv) a p-doped p-body region in the source region; (v) an n-doped drain region in the drain region; (vi) a first n-doped n+ region and a p-doped p+ region adjacent thereto in the p-doped p-body region of the source region; and (vii) a second n-doped n+ region in the drain region.
US08912597B2

A semiconductor device is disclosed. The semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate including a first source drain region, a second source drain region, and an intrinsic region therebetween; an asymmetric lightly doped drain (LDD) region within the substrate, wherein the asymmetric LDD region extends from the first source drain region into the intrinsic region between the first source drain region and the second source drain region; and a gate positioned atop the semiconductor substrate, wherein an outer edge of the gate overlaps the second source drain region. A related method and design structure are also disclosed.
US08912590B2

A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate having a main surface, a MONOS-type memory cell formed over the main surface and having a channel, an n-channel transistor formed over the main surface, and a p-channel transistor formed over the man surface. Nitride films are formed in a manner to contact the top surfaces of the MONOS-type memory cell, the n-channel transistor, and the p-channel transistor. The nitride films apply stress to the channels of the MONOS-type memory cell, the n-channel transistor, and the p-channel transistor.
US08912589B2

Various embodiments include methods and apparatuses including strings of memory cells formed along levels of semiconductor material. One such apparatus includes a stack comprised of a number of levels of single crystal silicon and a number of levels of dielectric material. Each of the levels of silicon is separated from an adjacent level of silicon by a level of the dielectric material. Strings of memory cells are formed along the levels of silicon. Additional apparatuses and methods are disclosed.
US08912588B2

A semiconductor memory device includes a bit line, an active region formed in a semiconductor substrate, a plug formed on the active region and connecting the bit line to the active region, a memory cell which includes a first gate insulating film on the active region, a charge storage layer on the first gate insulating film, a first insulating film on the charge storage layer, and a control gate electrode on the first insulating film, a select transistor formed between the plug and the memory cell on the active region and including a second gate insulating film on the active region, a first electrode layer on the second gate insulating film, a second insulating film on the first electrode layer, and a second electrode layer on the second insulating film, and a wiring formed above the active region between the plug and the second electrode layer of the select transistor.
US08912587B2

A memory cell including a tunnel insulator comprising a plurality of materials, a control gate, a charge blocking material between the tunnel insulator and the control gate, and a discrete trapping material embedded in one of the tunnel insulator or the charge blocking layer.
US08912580B2

Methods and apparatus relating to FET arrays for monitoring chemical and/or biological reactions such as nucleic acid sequencing-by-synthesis reactions. Some methods provided herein relate to improving signal (and also signal to noise ratio) from released hydrogen ions during nucleic acid sequencing reactions.
US08912579B2

A solid-state image pickup device includes: a photoelectric conversion portion formed on a substrate and composed of a photodiode; an image pickup area in which plural pixels each including a reading-out electrode for reading out signal electric charges generated and accumulated in the photoelectric conversion portion are formed; and a light blocking film having an opening portion right above the photoelectric conversion portion in an effective pixel area of the image pickup area, and light-blocking said photoelectric conversion portion in an OB pixel area of the image pickup area, in which a film deposited between the light blocking film and the substrate right above the photoelectric conversion portion in the OB pixel area is composed of only a silicon oxide film.
US08912575B2

The semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate having a first active area defined by a first isolation layer; a gate insulating layer formed on the semiconductor substrate; a first conductive layer formed on the gate insulating layer; a dielectric layer formed on the first conductive layer; at least one first contact hole passing through the dielectric layer; a second conductive layer, formed on the dielectric layer, the second conductive layer filling the at least one first contact hole to contact the first conductive layer; and at least one first contact plug connected to the second conductive layer in the first active area, wherein the at least one first contact plug is offset from the at least one first contact hole to overlap the dielectric layer.
US08912574B2

A method of making a semiconductor structure includes forming a trench through a shallow trench isolation (STI) structure and into a substrate, and forming a liner including an electrical insulator material on sidewalls of the trench. The method also includes forming a core including a high thermal conductivity material in the trench and on the liner, and forming a cap in the trench and on the core.
US08912572B2

According to example embodiments, a high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) includes a first semiconductor layer on a substrate and a second semiconductor layer on the first semiconductor layer. The first and second semiconductor layers define a recessed region. A semiconductor doped layer is in the recessed region of first and second semiconductor layers. A 2-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) region is at a portion of the first semiconductor layer adjacent to both sides of the semiconductor doped layer.
US08912563B2

A nitride semiconductor light-emitting device includes: a semiconductor light-emitting chip held on a mounting surface of a mounting substrate, having a growth surface that is a nonpolar or semipolar plane, and emitting polarized light; a reflector surrounding the semiconductor light-emitting chip when viewed in plan and having a reflective surface off which the polarized light is reflected; and a coupler held on the mounting surface of the mounting substrate and holding the reflector such that the reflector is rotatable around the semiconductor light-emitting chip.
US08912556B2

A light emitting device and a method of manufacturing the same are disclosed. The light emitting device includes a buffer layer formed on a substrate, a nitride semiconductor layer including a first semiconductor layer, an active layer, and a second semiconductor layer, which are sequentially stacked on the buffer layer, a portion of the first semiconductor layer being exposed to the outside by performing mesa etching from the second semiconductor layer to the portion of the first semiconductor layer, and at least one nanocone formed on the second semiconductor layer.
US08912555B2

A semiconductor light-emitting device includes a circuit board with a layout layer and a die bonding area. At least one positive endpoint, negative endpoint and function endpoint are disposed on the layout layer. At least one semiconductor light-emitting chip is disposed within the die bonding area, and is electrically coupled to the positive endpoint, the negative endpoint and the function endpoint to facilitate various connection configurations.
US08912554B2

Various embodiments of light emitting devices with high quantum efficiencies are described herein. In one embodiment, a light emitting device includes a first contact, a second contact spaced apart from the first contact, and a first active region between the first and second contacts. The first active region is configured to produce a first emission via electroluminescence when a voltage is applied between the first and second contacts, and the first emission having a first center wavelength. The light emitting device also includes a second active region spaced apart from the first active region. The second active region is configured to absorb at least a portion of the first emission and produce a second emission via photoluminescence, and the second emission having a second center wavelength longer than the first center wavelength.
US08912525B2

A process comprises combining a Ce (IV) salt with a carbon material comprising CNT or graphene wherein the Ce (IV) salt is selected from a Ce (IV) ammonium salt of a nitrogen oxide acid and is dissolved in a solvent comprising water. The process is conducted under conditions to substantially oxidize the carbon material to produce an oxidized material that is substantially non-conducting. After the oxidation, the Ce (IV) is substantially removed from the oxidized material. This produces a product made by the process. An article of manufacture comprises the product on a substrate. The oxidized material can be formed as a pattern on the substrate. In another embodiment the substrate comprises an electronic device with the oxidized material patterning non-conductive areas separate from conductive areas of the non-oxidized carbon material, where the conductive areas are operatively associated with the device.
US08912521B2

First conductive layers extend in a first direction horizontal to a substrate as a longitudinal direction, and are stacked in a direction perpendicular to a substrate. An interlayer insulating layer is provided between the first conductive layers. The variable resistance layers functioning as a variable resistance element are formed continuously on the side surfaces of the first conductive layers and the interlayer insulating layer. A columnar conductive layer is provided on the side surfaces of the first conductive layers and the interlayer insulating layer via the variable resistance layers. First side surfaces of the first conductive layers are recessed from a second side surface of the interlayer insulating layer in the direction away from the columnar conductive layers.
US08912519B2

Provided are a variable resistive memory device and a method of fabricating the same. The variable resistive memory device includes an interlayer insulating film having an opening therein, the opening exposing a surface of a first electrode which is disposed at a bottom of the opening. A variable resistive layer is formed in the opening and a second electrode is formed on the variable resistive layer. The variable resistive layer has a sidewall that is separated from an inner side surface of the opening to define a gap between the sidewall of the variable resistive layer and the inner side surface of the opening.
US08912518B2

Provided are semiconductor devices, such as resistive random access memory (ReRAM) cells, that include current limiting layers formed from doped metal oxides and/or nitrides. These current limiting layers may have resistivities of at least about 1 Ohm-cm. This resistivity level is maintained even when the layers are subjected to strong electrical fields and/or high temperature annealing. In some embodiments, the breakdown voltage of a current limiting layer may be at least about 8V. Some examples of such current limiting layers include titanium oxide doped with niobium, tin oxide doped with antimony, and zinc oxide doped with aluminum. Dopants and base materials may be deposited as separate sub-layers and then redistributed by annealing or may be co-deposited using reactive sputtering or co-sputtering. The high resistivity of the layers allows scaling down the size of the semiconductor devices including these layer while maintaining their performance.
US08912514B2

Techniques for forming a target and for producing extreme ultraviolet light include releasing an initial target material toward a target location, the target material including a material that emits extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light when converted to plasma; directing a first amplified light beam toward the initial target material, the first amplified light beam having an energy sufficient to form a collection of pieces of target material from the initial target material, each of the pieces being smaller than the initial target material and being spatially distributed throughout a hemisphere shaped volume; and directing a second amplified light beam toward the collection of pieces to convert the pieces of target material to plasma that emits EUV light.
US08912508B2

A multiphoton-excited measuring device measuring a sample with the use of a multiphoton absorption phenomenon by optical pulses having high intensity, comprising a short pulse light source 2 emitting optical pulses; an irradiation optical system 17, 18, 19 irradiating a sample 20 with optical pulses emitted from the short pulse light source 2; a detector 24 detecting signal light generated, in association with multiphoton excitation, from the sample 20 by the irradiation with optical pulses; and an optical pulse compression means 4, 13 compressing a pulse width, with the use of intensity-dependent nonlinear effects of the optical fiber 4, so that a pulse width of optical pulses with which the sample 20 is to be irradiated is shorten to equal to or narrower than that of optical pulses emitted from the short pulse light source 2 and so that a spectral width of optical pulses with which the sample 20 is to be irradiated is wider than that of optical pulses emitted from the short pulse light source 2, which makes it possible to stably irradiate, with the use of easy-to-use short pulse light source, a sample with optical pulses having higher peak intensity and a shorter temporal width and measure the sample easily with high accuracy without requiring sophisticated laser techniques and skills.
US08912495B2

Multi-spectral defect inspection for 3D wafers is provided. One system configured to detect defects in one or more structures formed on a wafer includes an illumination subsystem configured to direct light in discrete spectral bands to the one or more structures formed on the wafer. At least some of the discrete spectral bands are in the near infrared (NIR) wavelength range. Each of the discrete spectral bands has a bandpass that is less than 100 nm. The system also includes a detection subsystem configured to generate output responsive to light in the discrete spectral bands reflected from the one or more structures. In addition, the system includes a computer subsystem configured to detect defects in the one or more structures on the wafer using the output.
US08912492B2

A target marking system includes a light source configured to emit a beam of thermal radiation and to impinge the beam onto a target. The system also includes a detector configured to collect radiation passing from the target to the detector along a path. The radiation passing from the target in response to impingement of the beam onto the target. The system further includes an optics assembly disposed optically upstream of the detector along the path. The optics assembly includes at least one of an afocal power changer, a camera objective, a catadioptric lens, and a zoom system configured to condition the radiation passing from the target to the detector.
US08912481B2

Disclosed is a motion detection switch, and more particularly a motion detection switch which can recognize motion of a reflector moved at an upper side of a display part of a mobile phone, and can control the mobile phone without any touching operation. The motion detection switch recognizes motion of a reflection body moved at an upper side of a display part of a portable terminal and controls the portable terminal, including a base which is disposed at an upper side of a main body of the portable terminal having the display part, which is outside the display part; a light receiving device which is disposed at the base; a plurality of light emitting devices which are disposed at the base so as to be symmetric with respect to the light receiving device; and a control device which operates the light emitting devices.
US08912479B2

A media presenter is described that includes a carriage moveable forwards and backwards along a linear presenter track between a first purge position, a stacking position, and a present position. The media presenter includes a sensing system that comprises: an inductive sensor; a resonant target mounted on the moveable carriage for co-operating with the inductive sensor to provide positioning information about the target relative to the inductive sensor; and an optical sensor mounted on the moveable carriage in the vicinity of the presenter track. The sensing system further comprises: a first purge target having a first optical property and mounted on the presenter track in the vicinity of the first purge position; and a present target having a second optical property and mounted on the presenter track in the vicinity of the present position.
US08912464B2

A laser processed hole is formed in a workpiece. The workpiece has a first member formed of a first material bonded to a second member formed of a second material. A value is set representing the minimum number of shots of a pulsed laser beam when the spectral wavelength of plasma has changed from the spectral wavelength inherent in the first material to that of the second material. A maximum shot number is set representing a maximum value of the number of beam shots when the spectral wavelength of the plasma has completely changed. The beam is stopped if the number of shots has reached the minimum value and the spectral wavelength of the plasma has changed whereas the beam is continued until the number of shots reaches the maximum value if the spectral wavelength of the plasma has not changed even after the number of shots has reached the minimum value.
US08912463B2

The present invention relates to an apparatus for adjusting a position of a plasma arc torch. The apparatus includes an elevation apparatus configured to raise and lower the plasma arc torch with respect to molten silicon, a rotary apparatus configured to circumferentially rotate the plasma arc torch with respect to the molten silicon, and an angle adjustment apparatus configured to adjust an angle of the plasma arc torch with respect to the molten silicon. In addition, a plurality of plasma arc torches is provided and radially disposed at predetermined intervals. Therefore, time consumed to melt solid silicon to form the initial molten silicon is reduced, and casting speed is increased. In addition, fusibility of a source material can be improved, the source material can be stably melted, and economic continuous casting and a high quality silicon ingot for a solar cell can be manufactured.
US08912447B2

A method includes patterning one or more electrical layers on a substrate; shaping the patterned substrate into a 3-dimensional contour, wherein the contour including a significant change in gradient in or adjacent to one or more sensing areas of the electrical layer, and over-molding the shaped substrate. Degradation of a trace in the electrical layer at or adjacent to the one or more sensing areas during shaping and/or over-molding is substantially minimized based on the width of the trace, the thickness or number of layers of the trace, the bending radius of the trace, the material of the trace, and/or a primer over layer on the trace.
US08912446B2

A termination structure for a superconducting cable is described. The termination structure for a superconducting cable includes a first tube including a conductive rod therein to form a room temperature section, a second tube including a conductive rod therein to form a temperature gradient section, and a spacer provided between the first and second tubes, the spacer including a conductive connector configured to connect the conductive rods inside the first and second tubes to each other. The first and second tubes are joined to be separable from each other.
US08912438B2

This invention is directed to mechanical and electromagnetic shielding features of an electronic device case. An electronic device case is formed of two housings, each housing having integrated snaps, channels, or other retaining features used to secure the housings together. The housings additionally include integrated retaining features used to secure electronic components within the device case. The housings and retaining features are formed of amorphous metals or other materials with high elasticities. Because the retaining features necessary to assemble the case and secure the electronic components to the case form integral parts of the housings, no external retaining features are required to assemble the electronic device in the case.
US08912437B2

The present disclosure discloses a suspension insulator and a suspension insulator group. The suspension insulator comprises a silicone rubber umbrella string and a fiber-reinforced resin-based composite rod, wherein the silicone rubber umbrella string is arranged on the fiber-reinforced resin-based composite rod. Since the umbrella string is made of silicone rubber and is arranged on the fiber-reinforced resin-based composite rod, as compared with porcelain suspension insulator or glass suspension insulator, it has a low density and a light weight, and may reduce the load of the tower and is convenient to install and remove. The suspension insulator provided by the present disclosure is especially applicable to the field of power transmission.
US08912432B2

Methods and apparatus are provided for converting electromagnetic radiation, such as solar energy, into electric energy with increased efficiency when compared to conventional solar cells. In one embodiment of a photovoltaic (PV) device, the PV device generally includes an n-doped layer and a p+-doped layer adjacent to the n-doped layer to form a p-n layer such that electric energy is created when electromagnetic radiation is absorbed by the p-n layer. The n-doped layer and the p+-doped layer may compose an absorber layer having a thickness less than 500 nm. Such a thin absorber layer may allow for greater efficiency and flexibility in PV devices when compared to conventional solar cells.
US08912429B2

An interconnect assembly. The interconnect assembly includes a trace that includes a plurality of electrically conductive portions. The plurality of electrically conductive portions is configured both to collect current from a first solar cell and to interconnect electrically to a second solar cell. In addition, the plurality of electrically conductive portions is configured such that solar-cell efficiency is substantially undiminished in an event that any one of the plurality of electrically conductive portions is conductively impaired.
US08912425B2

The inventors demonstrate herein that homogeneous Ag-doped PbTe/Ag2Te composites exhibit high thermoelectric performance (˜50% over La-doped composites) associated with an inherent temperature induced gradient in the doping concentration caused by the temperature-dependent solubility of Ag in the PbTe matrix. This method provides a new mechanism to achieve a higher thermoelectric efficiency afforded by a given material system, and is generally applicable to other thermoelectric materials.
US08912421B2

A chord-information storage stores chord-type information and information on relationship between constituent notes including a tonic of the chord as chord information. Upon specification of a tonic, a first instruction display reads out chord information, and then causes a display to show relationship information for a constituent note other than the tonic, chord-type information, and an indicator indicating positional relationship between the tonic and each constituent note on music-playing operators. Every time another note is specified after the tonic, a second instruction display extracts chord information including relationship information that matches with relationship between the specified tonic and all notes specified after the tonic, and causes the display to show relationship information of a constituent note other than the specified notes, chord-type information, and an indicator indicating positional relationship between the tonic and each constituent note on music-playing operators.
US08912420B2

Embodiments generally relate to enhancing music. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a sound input, extracting a primary melody from the sound input, and converting the primary melody into a graphical representation. The method also includes generating a plurality of derivative melodies, where each derivative melody is derived from the primary melody. The method also includes enabling a user to select one or more of the derivative melodies to be played with the primary melody.
US08912417B2

Systems, methods, and apparatuses that allow for a high-hat mounted tambourine musical instrument to be muted are disclosed. In an aspect, the present disclosure provides a mutable tambourine jingle assembly that can be permanently engaged with the press of a button or otherwise. As such, the need for a user to physically hold the tambourine or an attached lever (e.g., a foot pedal) to mute the jingle assembly is obviated. In another aspect of the present disclosure, apparatuses are provided that facilitate a user simultaneously muting all of the jingles of a hi-hat mounted tambourine.
US08912413B1

A novel maize variety designated PH1DDG and seed, plants and plant parts thereof. Methods for producing a maize plant that comprise crossing maize variety PH1DDG with another maize plant. Methods for producing a maize plant containing in its genetic material one or more traits introgressed into PH through backcross conversion and/or transformation, and to the maize seed, plant and plant part produced thereby. Hybrid maize seed, plant or plant part produced by crossing the variety PH1DDG or a locus conversion of PH1DDG with another maize variety.
US08912407B2

According to the invention, there is provided seed and plants of the hybrid corn variety designated CH722527. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of the variety CH722527, and to methods for producing a corn plant produced by crossing a corn plant of variety CH722527 with itself or with another corn plant, such as a plant of another variety. The invention further relates to genetic complements of plants of variety CH722527.
US08912406B2

According to the invention, there is provided seed and plants of the hybrid corn variety designated CH353362. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of the variety CH353362, and to methods for producing a corn plant produced by crossing a corn plant of variety CH353362 with itself or with another corn plant, such as a plant of another variety. The invention further relates to genetic complements of plants of variety CH353362.
US08912405B2

According to the invention, there is provided seed and plants of the hybrid corn variety designated CH868887. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of the variety CH868887, and to methods for producing a corn plant produced by crossing a corn plant of variety CH868887 with itself or with another corn plant, such as a plant of another variety. The invention further relates to genetic complements of plants of variety CH868887.
US08912404B2

The invention provides seed and plants of pepper hybrid PX 09939610 and the parent lines thereof. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of pepper hybrid PX 09939610 and the parent lines thereof, and to methods for producing a pepper plant produced by crossing such plants with themselves or with another pepper plant, such as a plant of another genotype. The invention further relates to seeds and plants produced by such crossing. The invention further relates to parts of such plants, including the fruit and gametes of such plants.
US08912403B2

The cotton variety FM 9160B2F is disclosed. The invention relates to seeds, plants, plant cells, plant tissue, harvested products and cotton lint as well as to hybrid cotton plants and seeds obtained by repeatedly crossing plants of variety FM 9160B2F with other plants. The invention also relates to plants and varieties produced by the method of essential derivation from plants of FM 9160B2F and to plants of FM 9160B2F reproduced by vegetative methods, including but not limited to tissue culture of regenerable cells or tissue from FM 9160B2F.
US08912398B2

The invention relates to the soybean variety designated A1036175. Provided by the invention are the seeds, plants and derivatives of the soybean variety A1036175. Also provided by the invention are tissue cultures of the soybean variety A1036175 and the plants regenerated therefrom. Still further provided by the invention are methods for producing soybean plants by crossing the soybean variety A1036175 with itself or another soybean variety and plants produced by such methods.
US08912391B1

A novel maize variety designated PH1KD2 and seed, plants and plant parts thereof. Methods for producing a maize plant that comprise crossing maize variety PH1KD2 with another maize plant. Methods for producing a maize plant containing in its genetic material one or more traits introgressed into PH1KD2 through backcross conversion and/or transformation, and to the maize seed, plant and plant part produced thereby. Hybrid maize seed, plant or plant part produced by crossing the variety PH1KD2 or a locus conversion of PH1KD2 with another maize variety.
US08912382B2

One exemplary embodiment can be a method of modifying an alkylation unit to increase capacity. The method may include combining a first alkylation zone with a second alkylation zone. Generally, the first alkylation zone includes a first settler having a height and a width. Typically, the width is greater than the height. In addition, the second alkylation zone may have a second settler having a height and a width. Usually, the height is greater than the width.
US08912379B2

Disclosed is a method of preparing an alkene compound including introducing an acidic catalyst and a solvent into a reactor, increasing a temperature the reactor, and continuously removing water from the reactor while continuously supplying an alcohol into the reactor and continuously collecting an alkene compound.
US08912372B2

Methods for the manufacture of 1,1,1,2,3-pentachloropropane from 1,1,1,3-tetrachloropropane and chlorine are disclosed. Improved methods are provided for the manufacture of 1,1,2,3-tetrachloropropene from 1,1,1,2,3-pentachloropropane. Methods are also disclosed for the manufacture of 1,1,2,3-tetrachloropropene from 1,1,1,3-tetrachloropropane and chlorine and for the manufacture of 1,1,2,3-tetrachloropropene from carbon tetrachloride, ethylene, and chlorine.
US08912371B2

A method of producing a chlorinated hydrocarbon having 3 carbon atoms, comprising a conversion step for converting a chloropropane represented by the following formula (1) into a chloropropane represented by the following formula (2) by reacting it with chlorine in the presence of anhydrous aluminum chloride. CCl3—CCl(2-m)Hm—CCl(3-n)Hn  (1) (In the above formula (1), m is 1 or 2, and n is an integer of 0 to 3.) CCl3—CCl(3-m)H(m-1)—CCl(3-n)Hn  (2) (In the above formula (2), m and n are the same integers as in the formula (1), respectively.)
US08912367B2

A method of reacting one or more components in a liquid phase to form an organic product, the method including feeding a carbon-based gas to a high shear device; feeding a hydrogen-based liquid medium to the high shear device; using the high shear device to form a dispersion comprising the carbon-based gas and the hydrogen-based liquid medium, wherein the dispersion comprises gas bubbles with a mean diameter of less than about 5 μm; introducing the dispersion into a reactor; and reacting the dispersion to produce the organic product.
US08912355B2

Described herein are compositions of an linoleic phospholipid for inhibiting inflammatory pathways or neurodegenerative processes. Also provided are uses of such compositions and methods of inhibiting inflammatory or neurodegenerative processes by administering a composition that includes an linoleic phospholipid and optionally a carrier to a cell, cell culture or subject in need of such treatment.
US08912353B2

Described herein are precursors and methods of forming dielectric films. In one aspect, there is provided a silicon precursor having the following formula I: wherein R1 is independently selected from hydrogen, a linear or branched C1 to C6 alkyl, a linear or branched C2 to C6 alkenyl, a linear or branched C2 to C6 alkynyl, a C1 to C6 alkoxy, a C1 to C6 dialkylamino and an electron withdrawing group and n is a number selected from 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5; and R2 is independently selected from hydrogen, a linear or branched C1 to C6 alkyl, a linear or branched C2 to C6 alkenyl, a linear or branched C2 to C6 alkynyl, a C1 to C6 alkoxy, a C1 to C6 dialkylamino, a C6 to C10 aryl, a linear or branched C1 to C6 fluorinated alkyl, and a C4 to C10 cyclic alkyl group.
US08912347B2

Compounds represented by Formula I are provided that include synthetic transtaganolide and basiliolide products. Derivatives of these compounds and methods of synthesis are also provided.
US08912337B2

The present invention provides dexrabeprazole magnesium hydrate and a process for its preparation. The present invention also provides a magnesium, calcium or potassium salt of dexrabeprazole, optionally in amorphous form, and processes for its preparation.
US08912335B2

The present invention relates to novel salts of thiazolidinediones and other pharmaceutical agents that are useful for treating and/or preventing metabolic diseases (e.g., diabetes, or neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., Alzheimer's Disease).
US08912334B2

This invention provides compounds of formula I: wherein a, b, c, d, m, n, p, s, t, W, Ar1, R1, R2, R3, R4, R6, R7, and R8 are as defined in the specification. The compounds of formula I are muscarinic receptor antagonists. The invention also provides pharmaceutical compositions containing such compounds, processes and intermediates for preparing such compounds and methods of using such compounds to treat pulmonary disorders.
US08912333B2

The present invention provides a solid of pitavastatin tert-butyl ester and process for its preparation. The present invention also provides a novel crystalline form of pitavastatin calcium, process for its preparation and pharmaceutical compositions comprising it.
US08912326B2

The present application is directed to compounds, intermediates and methods for preparing compounds of formula (I) or a pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, wherein R is H or F, and each of R3, R4, and R5 are as defined herein. The compounds of formula (I) and pharmaceutical compositions comprising said compounds and salts inhibit bacterial gyrase and/or Topo IV and are useful in treating bacterial infections.
US08912323B2

The present invention relates to dendrimer synthesis. Specifically, the present invention relates to triazine scaffolds capable of click chemistry for one-step synthesis of functionalized dendrimers, and methods of making and using the same.
US08912315B2

The present invention relates to a Purkinje cell-tropic viral vector in which a modified L7 promoter and a therapeutic gene are operably linked to a virus-based plasmid vector.
US08912307B2

There is provided a method for preparing a low-molecular weight poly(alkylene carbonate) of which the molecular weight and chain shape are precisely controlled, by introducing a phosphorous compound having a hydroxyl group as a chain transfer agent in order to regulate the molecular weight, in alternating copolymerizing an epoxide compound and carbon dioxide by using trivalent metal complex prepared from a Salen type ligand containing a quaternary ammonium salt, and a polymer prepared by the method.Since poly(alkylene carbonate) prepared according to the present invention includes a phosphate or phosphonate group in the polymer chain, it has flame-retarding property.
US08912300B2

There are provided a radical polymerizable composition having a low viscosity suitable for coating and a cured product and a plastic lens each obtained by curing the composition, the cured product having a high refractive index, good adhesiveness to a plastic film substrate, and good adhesiveness kept even under high-temperature and high-humidity conditions. The radical polymerizable composition includes phenylbenzyl (meth)acrylate (A), an epoxy (meth)acrylate (X) having an aromatic ring in its molecular structure, and a radical polymerization initiator (Y) as essential components.
US08912299B2

This invention relates to a method for preparing a star-shaped polycarboxylate superplasticizer by the first esterification step with polyol and (meth)acrylic acid as main reactants and the second polymerization step. In the first step, the star-shaped polymerizable active ends were synthesized by esterification between polyol and (meth)acrylic acid in the presence of catalyst. In the second step, the final star-shaped polycarboxylate superplasticizer was prepared by radical polymerization among the product obtained in first step, unsaturated polyoxyethylene ethers, molecular weight regulator and unsaturated carboxylic acid in the presence of initiator. The production process of this invention exhibits some characteristics including simple, easily controllable, high polymerization degree, low cost and pollution free. The star-shaped molecular structure of polycarboxylate superplasticizer can be achieved through synthesizing active “core” by esterification and “arm” by radical polymerization. It showed better cement paste fluidity and fluidity retention, which manifested as better adaptability to cement and application performance in concrete, than both traditional linear and comb-shaped polycarboxylate superplasticizer at common or lower dosage.
US08912288B2

The present invention discloses a new type of polyimide membrane with high permeances and high selectivities for gas separations and particularly for CO2/CH4 and H2/CH4 separations. The polyimide membranes have CO2 permeability of 50 Barrers or higher and single-gas selectivity for CO2/CH4 of 15 or higher at 50° C. under 791 kPa for CO2/CH4 separation. The polyimide membranes have UV cross-linkable functional groups and can be used for the preparation of UV cross-linked polyimide membranes having CO2 permeability of 20 Barrers or higher and single-gas selectivity for CO2/CH4 of 35 or higher at 50° C. under 791 kPa for CO2/CH4 separation.
US08912279B2

Resin compositions which contain an epoxy resin, an alkoxy oligomer, and an inorganic filler provide insulating layers that have a surface with not only low arithmetic mean roughness but also low root mean square roughness in a wet roughening step and that are capable of forming thereon a plated conductive layer having a sufficient peel strength that can be formed while maintaining the glass transition temperature and thermal expansion coefficient.
US08912276B2

Coating composition comprising an ethylene copolymer containing not more than 5 mole-% comonomer, whereby the fraction of the ethylene copolymer having a molecular weight of 300 000 g/mol-600 000 g/mol has a methyl branching of more than 4.0 Methyl per 1000 C as determined by SEC/FT-IR analysis.
US08912262B2

There is provided a silicone rubber composition whose compression set in a higher temperature range, particularly at 200° C. or higher, in a silicone rubber to be obtained is sufficiently suppressed. A heat curable silicone rubber composition contains: (A) 100 parts by mass of a polyorganosiloxane having an average degree of polymerization of 500 to 20,000 and having two or more alkenyl groups in a molecule; (B) 5 to 100 parts by mass of a filler; (C) an effective amount of an organic peroxide; and (D) 0.06 to 15 parts by mass of a hydrous cerium oxide and/or a hydrous zirconium oxide each having one absorption band in 3300 to 3500 cm−1 and two or more absorption bands in 1300 to 1700 cm−1 in infrared absorption spectrum measurement.
US08912257B2

The present invention provides derivatives of native lignin having certain aliphatic hydroxyl content. Surprisingly, it has been found that consistent and predictable antioxidant activity may be provided by selecting for derivatives of native lignin having certain aliphatic hydroxyl content.
US08912250B2

The present invention provides a bicomponent fiber for three-dimensional reinforcement of a cement product characterized in that it represents a coaxial core-coat fiber wherein the core comprises a thermoplastic polymer and the coat either comprises thermoplastic polymer resistant to environment having pH>11 and one or more hydrophilic and/or surface active substance(s) in an amount of 3 to 30% of the total weight of the coat, or the coat comprises thermoplastic polymer resistant to environment having pH>11 grafted with active or unsaturated monomers of one or different kinds constituting 3 to 25% of total weight of the coat, wherein the surface tension of the coat is at least 45 mN/m. The invention also provides a method for production of said fiber, a cement product comprising such fiber and a method of production of said cement product.
US08912237B2

The present invention relates to novel compositions containing finely dispersed carotenoids. The novel compositions of this invention can be used as colorants or additives for food, beverages, animal feeds, cosmetics or drugs. The colorant composition may be a liquid or a solid composition. The solid composition comprises at least one carotenoid which is dispersed in a matrix, wherein the matrix contains at least one carbohydrate and/or one modified carbohydrate and optionally, a protein, a modified protein or mixtures thereof, wherein the at least one carbohydrate and/or one modified carbohydrate is starch or modified starch, wherein the amount of starch or modified starch is from about 10 wt-% to 60 wt-% of based on the total weight of the matrix, and wherein the concentration of the at least one carotenoid is at least 2% based on the total weight of the composition. Preferably β-carotene is used as a solid water-dispersible colorant composition.
US08912232B2

The invention relates to an oligomeric lactic acid composition comprising one or more oligomers of lactic acid or a pharmaceutical composition comprising an oligomeric lactic acid composition for the prophylaxis and/or treatment of a disease or condition that benefits from an acidic environment.
US08912225B2

The present invention provides methods for inhibiting VEGF production or secretion in a subject comprising administering to the subject an effective amount of a compound of Formula I. The invention also provides methods for the treatment or prevention of conditions associated with abnormal levels of VEGF production or secretion.
US08912224B2

The present invention relates to substituted 2-(chroman-6-yloxy)-thiazoles of the formula I, in which Ar, R2, R3 and R4 are as defined in the claims. The compounds of the formula I are inhibitors of the sodium-calcium exchanger (NCX), especially of the sodium-calcium exchanger of subtype 1 (NCX1), and are suitable for the treatment of diverse disorders in which intracellular calcium homeostasis is disturbed, such as arrhythmias, heart failure and stroke. The invention furthermore relates to processes for the preparation of the compounds of the formula I, their use as pharmaceuticals, and pharmaceutical compositions comprising them.
US08912220B2

Indole compounds are disclosed. Also disclosed are methods for using the compounds to treat human and animal disease, pharmaceutical compositions of the compounds, and kits including the compounds.
US08912209B2

The present invention relates to new kinase inhibitors, more specifically ROCK inhibitors, compositions, in particular pharmaceuticals, comprising such inhibitors, and to uses of such inhibitors in the treatment and prophylaxis of disease. In particular, the present invention relates to new ROCK inhibitors, compositions, in particular pharmaceuticals, comprising such inhibitors, and to uses of such inhibitors in the treatment and prophylaxis of disease. In addition, the invention relates to methods of treatment and use of said compounds in the manufacture of a medicament for the application to a number of therapeutic indications including sexual dysfunction, inflammatory diseases, ophthalmic diseases and Respiratory diseases.
US08912208B2

The present invention provides (4-{4-[5-(Benzooxazol-2-ylamino)-pyridin-2-yl]-phenyl}-cyclohexyl)-acetic acid which is useful for treating or preventing conditions or disorders associated with DGAT1 activity in animals, particularly humans.
US08912185B2

The invention relates to the use of glutaric acid derivatives of general formula (I), which are disclosed in the invention description, as anti-arrhythmic agents.
US08912184B1

The invention relates to methods of treating diseases, particularly cancers, that respond favorably to the inhibition of Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (Nampt); it also relates to therapeutic methods that utilize Nampt inhibitors in combination with NAD biosynthesis precursors to intentionally kill cancer cells while limiting or minimizing toxicity to normal host cells; and it relates to methods of identifying cancers that will be most responsive to treatment with Nampt inhibitors, particularly when administered in combination with nicotinic acid.
US08912181B2

A novel bicyclic compound having an HSP90 inhibitory effect and a carcinostatic effect. A pharmaceutical agent based on the HSP90 inhibitory effect and useful in the prevention and/or treatment of a disease involving HSP90, particularly cancer. The compound has a general formula (I) or is a salt thereof wherein at least one of X1, X2, X3, and X4 represents N or N-oxide and the rest thereof are each independently C—R2; any one or two of Y1, Y2, Y3, and Y4 represent C—R4 and the rest thereof are each independently CH or N; R1 represents an optionally substituted monocyclic or bicyclic unsaturated heterocyclic group having 1 to 4 heteroatoms selected from N, S, and O; R2 represents a hydrogen atom, an optionally substituted alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms etc.; R3 represents a hydrogen atom, —CO—R5 etc.
US08912175B1

The invention provides a topical formulation adapted for treatment of a skin condition comprising (i) at least one retinoid; and (ii) salicylic acid or an ester, amide, salt, or solvate thereof. The invention also includes a kit for treatment of skin conditions comprising a retinoid and salicylic acid, as well as a method of treating skin conditions utilizing the inventive formulation and kit.
US08912167B2

The invention provides the use in combination of a heparin containing composition that has anticoagulant activity when used alone, such as an unfractionated heparin or low molecular weight heparin, in combination with an inhibitor of the anticoagulation activity/effect or effect of heparin, for the inhibition of metastasis.
US08912159B2

Methods, assays, and kits for determining a cancer's (e.g., breast cancer) metastatic potential and tumor aggressiveness in a subject (e.g., a human patient) and for measuring a subject's response to cancer therapy involve analyzing expression of Sema7A in a biological sample from the subject, and correlating increased expression of Sema7A in the biological sample compared to a control sample with metastatic potential of the cancer, wherein the expression of Sema7A is linearly proportional to the metastatic potential of the cancer in the subject. These methods, kits and assays provide for individualized diagnosis and treatment options for cancer (e.g., breast cancer) patients. They can be used independently, or can be combined with additional diagnostic tests and/or prognostic methods. Compositions, kits and methods for treating a subject having cancer (e.g., breast cancer) include administering a composition for inhibiting Sema7A expression or activity to the subject.
US08912156B1

The invention provides methods of targeting tumor stem cells that comprise inhibiting the level and/or activity of HDAC1, HDAC7 and phosphorylated HDAC7. The invention further provides methods for identifying tumor stem cells comprising detecting increased levels and/or activity of HDAC1, HDAC7 and phosphorylated HDAC7. Further provided are kits and articles of manufacture comprising inhibitors of the level and/or activity of HDAC1, HDAC7 and phosphorylated HDAC7. Methods for screening for inhibitors of the level and/or activity of HDAC1, HDAC7 and phosphorylated HDAC7 are also provided.
US08912151B2

A method of treating hemorrhoids is disclosed. The method includes locally administering a composition including an effective amount of one or more macrocyclic lactone compounds, including avermectin compounds, milbemycin compounds, or mixture thereof and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier to the affected anorectal region of an individual suffering from hemorrhoid.
US08912150B2

The invention provides methods for producing high resolution crystals of ribosomes and ribosomal subunits as well as crystals produced by such methods. The invention also provides high resolution structures of ribosomal subunits either alone or in combination with protein synthesis inhibitors. The invention provides methods for identifying ribosome-related ligands and methods for designing ligands with specific ribosome-binding properties as well as ligands that may act as protein synthesis inhibitors. Thus, the methods and compositions of the invention may be used to produce ligands that are designed to specifically kill or inhibit the growth of any target organism.
US08912148B2

The present invention provides methods of treating (including preventing) a disease or condition associated with abnormal angiogenesis in a subject include administering a therapeutically effective amount of an AA targeting compound of the invention to the subject. The AA targeting compounds comprise AA targeting agent-linker conjugates which are linked to a combining site of an antibody.
US08912138B2

Disclosed herein are polypeptides, polynucleotides encoding, cells and organisms comprising novel DNA-binding domains, including TALE DNA-binding domains. Also disclosed are methods of using these novel DNA-binding domains for modulation of gene expression and/or genomic editing of endogenous cellular sequences.
US08912134B2

A method of cleaning copper material surfaces in ultra large scale integrated circuits after polishing, the method including: a) mixing and stirring between 1 and 4 wt. % of a surfactant, between 0.5 and 3 wt. % of a chelating agent, between 0.1 and 5 wt. % of a corrosion inhibitor, and deionized water, to yield a water soluble cleaning solution with pH value of between 7.4 and 8.2; and b) washing the copper material surfaces using the cleaning solution after alkaline chemical-mechanical polishing under following conditions: between 2000 and 3000 Pa of pressure; between 1000 and 5000 mL/min of flow rate; and at least between 0.5 and 2 min of washing time.
US08912131B2

A method for drilling formations below the bottom of a body of water include mixing a selected amount of hagfish slime with water and drilling the formations using the slime-water mixture as a circulating drilling fluid.
US08912126B2

A substrate of the present invention includes a copper layer, an alloy layer containing copper and nickel, formed on the copper layer, a nickel layer formed on the alloy layer, and an intermediate layer formed on the nickel layer. The concentration of nickel in the alloy layer at the interface between the alloy layer and the nickel layer is greater than the concentration of nickel in the alloy layer at the interface between the alloy layer and the copper layer. According to the present invention, there can be provided a substrate that allows the AC loss of a superconducting wire to be reduced, a method of producing a substrate, a superconducting wire, and a method of producing a superconducting wire.
US08912122B1

The present invention is directed to a method for increasing the wetting rate of a plant growth medium utilizing a wetting agent composition. The composition is comprised of at least one modified block copolymer. The modified block copolymer is comprised of an ester of an ethylene oxide-propylene oxide block copolymer and a fatty acid. The composition of the present invention also enhances plant growth and productivity by increasing the water uptake and the nutrient uptake by the plant roots.
US08912114B2

A platinum alloy catalyst is made by a microemulsion method. The resulting catalyst has superior properties for use in low and medium temperature fuel cells.
US08912113B2

Described herein are metal amidine complexes in combination with a second compound useful as catalysts in a number of polymerization reactions, including polyurethane and epoxy polymerization reactions. Also described herein are various coating compositions and methods of using same for coating substrates using the metal amidine complexes in combination with a second compound.
US08912109B2

An alkylation catalyst having a zeolite catalyst component and a binder component providing mechanical support for the zeolite catalyst component is disclosed. The binder component is an ion-modified binder that can include metal ions selected from the group consisting of Co, Mn, Ti, Zr, V, Nb, K, Cs, Ga, B, P, Rb, Ag, Na, Cu, Mg, Fe, Mo, Ce, and combinations thereof. The metal ions reduce the number of acid sites on the zeolite catalyst component. The metal ions can range from 0.1 to 50 wt % based on the total weight of the ion-modified binder. Optionally, the ion-modified binder is present in amounts ranging from 1 to 80 wt % based on the total weight of the catalyst.
US08912107B2

A composition for preparing high-performance glass fiber by tank furnace production comprising in preferred percentage by weight: 57.5˜62.5% of SiO2, 14.5˜17.5% of Al2O3, 13.5˜17.5% of CaO, 6.5˜8.5% of MgO, 0.05˜0.6% of Li2O, 0.1˜2% of B2O3, 0.1˜2% of TiO2, 0.1˜2% of Na2O, 0.1˜1% of K2O and 0.1˜1% of Fe2O3 and (CaO+MgO)/MgO>3, with the content of at least one of the three components, A2O, B2O3 and TlO2 higher than 0.5%, with the composition yielding glass fiber having improved mechanical property, causing the melting and clarification of glass and forming performance of fiber close to those of boron-free E glass, and facilitating industrial mass production by tank furnace processes with manufacturing costs close to those of conventional E glass.
US08912096B2

Methods for precleaning native oxides or other contaminants from a surface of a substrate prior to forming a metal silicide layer on the substrate. In one embodiment, a method for removing native oxides from a substrate includes transferring a substrate having an oxide layer disposed thereon into a processing chamber, performing a pretreatment process on the substrate by supplying a pretreatment gas mixture into the processing chamber, performing an oxide removal process on the substrate by supplying a cleaning gas mixture into the processing chamber, wherein the cleaning gas mixture includes at least an ammonium gas and a nitrogen trifluoride, and performing a post treatment process on the cleaned substrate by supplying a post treatment gas mixture into the processing chamber.
US08912095B2

A polishing method and a polishing apparatus finish a surface of a substrate of a compound semiconductor containing an element such as Ga or the like to a desired level of flatness, so that the surface can be flattened with high surface accuracy within a practical processing time. In the presence of water, such as weak acid water, water with air dissolved therein, or electrolytic ion water, the surface of the substrate made of a compound semiconductor containing either one of Ga, Al, and In and a surface of a polishing pad having an electrically conductive member in an area of the surface which is held in contact with the substrate) are relatively moved while being held in contact with each other, thereby polishing the surface of the substrate.
US08912088B2

The present invention provides a transfer substrate for transferring a metal wiring material to a transfer-receiving object, the transfer substrate comprising a substrate, at least one metal wiring material formed on the substrate and an underlying metal film formed between the substrate and the metal wiring material, wherein the metal wiring material is a molded article prepared by sintering, e.g., gold powder having a purity of 99.9% by weight or more and an average particle size of 0.01 μm to 1.0 μm and the underlying metal film is composed of a metal such as gold or an alloy. The transfer substrate is capable of transferring a metal wiring material to the transfer-receiving object even at a temperature for heating the transfer-receiving object of 80 to 300° C.
US08912078B1

Approaches for hybrid laser scribe and plasma etch dicing process for a wafer having backside solder bumps are described. For example, a method of dicing a semiconductor wafer having integrated circuits on a front side thereof and corresponding arrays of metal bumps on a backside thereof involves applying a dicing tape to the backside of the semiconductor wafer, the dicing tape covering the arrays of metal bumps. The method also involves, subsequently, forming a mask on the front side of the semiconductor wafer, the mask covering the integrated circuits. The method also involves forming scribe lines on the front side of the semiconductor wafer with a laser scribing process, the scribe lines formed in the mask and between the integrated circuits. The method also involves plasma etching the semiconductor wafer through the scribe lines to singulate the integrated circuits, the mask protecting the integrated circuits during the plasma etching.
US08912075B1

Methods of and apparatuses for dicing semiconductor wafers, each wafer having a plurality of integrated circuits, are described. In an example, a method of reducing edge warping in a supported semiconductor wafer involves adhering a backside of a semiconductor wafer to an inner portion of a carrier tape of a substrate carrier comprising a tape frame mounted above the carrier tape. The method also involves adhering an adhesive tape to a front side of the semiconductor wafer and to at least a portion of the substrate carrier. The adhesive tape includes an opening exposing an inner region of the front side of the semiconductor wafer.
US08912073B2

A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device is disclosed, which can completely remove hard mask residues left along boundaries between a high-voltage device region and STI structures after a dry etch process, by partially reducing a thickness of each of the exposed portion of the respective STI structures adjacent to the high-voltage device region so as to sufficiently expose the residues. As a result, after a portion of an underlying pad oxide corresponding to the high-voltage device region is removed in a subsequent process, the exposed surface of the substrate is uniform with a smooth and clear border. Therefore, no sharp corners will emerge at a border of a gate oxide subsequently grown on the exposed surface of the substrate, and the gate oxide is thus morphologically improved, thereby resulting in an improvement of the reliability of the high-voltage semiconductor device being fabricated.
US08912059B2

Various embodiments disclosed include semiconductor structures and methods of forming such structures. In one embodiment, a method includes: providing a semiconductor structure including: a substrate; at least one gate structure overlying the substrate; and an interlayer dielectric overlying the substrate and the at least one gate structure; removing the ILD overlying the substrate to expose the substrate; forming a silicide layer over the substrate; forming a conductor over the silicide layer and the at least one gate structure; forming an opening in the conductor to expose a portion of a gate region of the at least one gate structure; and forming a dielectric in the opening in the conductor.
US08912052B2

A semiconductor device, including: a first layer including monocrystalline material and first transistors, the first transistors overlaid by a first isolation layer; a second layer including second transistors and overlaying the first isolation layer, the second transistors including a monocrystalline material; at least one contact to the second transistors, where the at least one contact is aligned to the first transistors with less than about 40 nm alignment error, a first set of external connections underlying the first layer to connect the device to external devices; and a second set of external connections overlying the second layer to connect the device to external devices.
US08912041B2

A method for forming an interconnect structure includes forming a dielectric material layer on a semiconductor substrate. An oxygen-rich layer is formed over the dielectric material layer. The dielectric material layer and the oxygen-rich layer are patterned to form a plurality of vias in the semiconductor substrate. A barrier layer is formed in the plurality of vias and on the dielectric material layer leaving a portion of the oxygen-rich layer exposed. A metal layer is formed on the barrier layer and on the exposed portion of the oxygen-rich layer, wherein the metal layer fills the plurality of vias. The semiconductor substrate is annealed at a predetermined temperature range and at a predetermined pressure to transform the exposed portion of the oxygen-rich layer into a metal-oxide stop layer.
US08912037B2

A method for making a photovoltaic device is presented. The method includes steps of disposing a window layer on a substrate and disposing an absorber layer on the window layer. Disposing the window layer, the absorber layer, or both layers includes introducing a source material into a deposition zone, wherein the source material comprises oxygen and a constituent of the window layer, of the absorber layer or of both layers. The method further includes step of depositing a film that comprises the constituent and oxygen.
US08912031B2

An electronic device includes: a vibrator disposed within a cavity on a substrate and electrically driven; an enclosure wall which has electric conductivity and sections the cavity from an insulation layer surrounding the circumference of the cavity; a first wiring and a second wiring which connect with the vibrator and penetrate the enclosure wall; and a liquid flow preventing portion disposed at the position where the first wiring and the second wiring penetrate the enclosure wall to prevent flow of etchant dissolving the insulation layer from the cavity toward the insulation layer and insulate the first wiring and the second wiring from the enclosure wall.
US08912028B2

A semiconductor light emitting device, which includes a light transmissive electrode layer formed using a conductive thin film and an insulating thin film to substitute for a transparent electrode layer, comprises a substrate; a first semiconductor layer formed on the substrate; an active layer formed on the first semiconductor layer; a second semiconductor layer formed on the active layer; a light transmissive electrode layer formed on the second semiconductor layer, the light transmissive electrode layer having a structure in which at least one conductive thin film and at least one insulating thin film are deposited; and a first electrode formed on the light transmissive electrode layer, wherein the light transmissve electrode layer includes at least one contact portion for contacting the at least one conductive thin film with the first electrode.
US08912026B2

Provided is a liquid crystal display including: a first substrate; a thin film transistor disposed on the first substrate; a passivation layer disposed on the thin film transistor and comprising a contact hole exposing an electrode of the thin film transistor; a pixel electrode disposed on the passivation layer and connected to the electrode of the thin film transistor through the contact hole; a lower buffer layer disposed on the pixel electrode; a lower alignment layer disposed on the lower buffer layer; a second substrate facing the first substrate; a common electrode disposed on the second substrate; an upper buffer layer disposed on the common electrode; and an upper alignment layer disposed on the upper buffer layer, in which the lower buffer layer comprises parylene, the upper buffer layer comprises parylene, or both the lower and the upper buffer layers comprise parylene.
US08912020B2

A method of forming an active matrix, light emitting diode (LED) array includes removing, from a base substrate, a layer of inorganic LED material originally grown thereupon; and bonding the removed layer of inorganic LED material to an active matrix, thin film transistor (TFT) backplane array.
US08912019B2

An ink containing an electroluminescent light emitting material is discharged onto a buffer layer. The discharge amount of the ink is larger than a maximum volume where the ink is retained by the surface tension thereof on the top surface of the buffer layer.
US08912018B2

A method of making a flexible organic electronic device includes forming a first portion including a first flexible substrate, wherein the first portion is formed under a first set of conditions to provide a barrier system, separately forming a second portion comprising at least one organic electronic device region deposited upon a second flexible substrate, wherein the second portion is formed under a second set of conditions, different from the first set of conditions, and placing the first portion over the second portion (although not necessarily in contact therewith) to cover the organic electronic device region. The organic electronic device region is not placed in physical contact with another solid material before placing the first portion over the second portion.
US08912017B2

Methods for bonding semiconductor wafers requiring the transfer of electrical and optical signals between the bonded wafers and across the bonding interface. The methods incorporate the formation of both electrical and optical interconnect vias within the wafer bonding interface to transfer electrical and optical signals between the bonded wafers. The electrical vias are formed using multiplicity of metal posts each comprised of multiple layers of metal that are interfused across the bonding surface. The optical vias are formed using multiplicity of optical waveguides each comprised of a dielectric material that interfuses across the bonding interface and having an index of refraction that is higher than the index of refraction of the dielectric intermediary bonding layer between the bonded wafers. The electrical and optical vias are interspersed across the bonding surface between the bonded wafers to enable uniform transfer of both electrical and optical signals between the bonded wafers.
US08912013B2

A magnetic tunneling junction (MTJ) device and fabrication method is disclosed. In a particular embodiment, an apparatus is disclosed that includes an MTJ device. The MTJ device includes a free layer and a spin torque enhancing layer. The spin torque enhancing layer includes a nano-oxide layer.
US08912011B2

The present invention relates to antibodies and antigen-binding portions thereof that specifically bind to chondroitin sulfate, particularly CS-A, CS-C and CS-E tetrasaccharides. The present invention also relates to methods of making anti-CS antibodies, pharmaceutical compositions comprising these antibodies and methods of using the antibodies and compositions thereof for diagnosis and treatment.
US08912008B2

An automatic analyzer analyzes a measurement item by making a sample and reagent react with each other and measuring the reaction result. This apparatus allows parameters associated with reagent dispensing executed by a reagent dispensing mechanism to be set as a dispensing condition for each measurement item or each type of reagent, and controls the reagent dispensing mechanism on the basis of the dispensing condition.
US08912003B2

Methods for quantitative determination of the presence of isothiazolone compounds in a solution include controlling pH of the solution in a range from about 3 to about 10, combining a known quantity of the pH-adjusted solution with a known quantity of an aromatic thiolate anion, quantitatively determining color intensity of the resultant combined solution; and correlating the color intensity with amount of isothiazolone compounds. The methods may be used in automated systems, including systems utilizing optical sensor devices.
US08911984B2

Disclosed is a thermostable tannase derived from a microorganism. Specifically disclosed is a thermostable tannase derived from Aspergillus awamori or Aspergillus niger. A preferred embodiment of the tannase has the following chemoenzymatic properties: (1) activity: to act on a depside bond to thereby cause hydrolysis; (2) molecular weight: about 230,000 Da (as measured by gel filtration); and (3) thermal stability: stable at a temperature up to 65° C. (pH 5.0, 30 min.).
US08911981B2

Methods for the evolution of NADPH specific ketol-add reductoisomerase enzymes to acquire NADH specificity are provided. Specific mutant ketol-acid reductoisomerase enzymes isolated from Pseudomonas that have undergone co-factor switching to utilize NADH are described.
US08911964B2

The invention describes improved methods and compositions for producing a recombinant protein, e.g., an antibody, in mammalian cell culture. In addition, the invention provides improved cell culture media, including improved production media, feed solutions, and combination feeds, which may be used to improve protein productivity in mammalian cell culture.
US08911951B2

Disclosed herein are diagnostic markers for lung cancer, isolated from serum glycoproteins. The disclosed diagnostic markers for lung cancer are specifically expressed only in the sera of lung cancer patients at high levels, and thus will be very useful for diagnosing lung cancer and estimating disease progression and treatment.
US08911944B2

The present invention provides a method for identifying polymorphism of nucleic acids in a sample solution in which the concentration or number density of the observed nucleic acids is lower than that of conventional photometric analysis technologies. Namely, the present invention relates to a method for identifying polymorphism of nucleic acid molecules, in which is compared the result of hybridization between a target nucleic acid molecule and a first nucleic acid probe labeled with a fluorescent substance; and the result of hybridization between the target nucleic acid molecule and a second nucleic acid probe having a sequence different from the sequence of the first nucleic acid probe, and being labeled with a fluorescent substance. Each of the hybridization is conducted in a separate sample solution and the detection of the conjugate is done by counting the molecule of the conjugate using a scanning molecule counting method.
US08911943B2

The present invention is a method to identify unknown DNA sequences which flank known DNA sequences. The invention improves the accuracy, sensitivity, and reproducibility for determining unknown DNA sequences which flank a known DNA sequence. This claimed method can be deployed as a high throughput method to quickly and efficiently identify plant genomic chromosomal sequences which flank a transgene. Further analysis of these unknown sequences can be used to characterize the transgene insertion site for the identification of rearrangements, insertions and deletions which result from the integration of the transgene. In addition, analysis of the chromosomal flanking sequences can be used to identify the location of the transgene on the chromosome.
US08911935B2

Methods described herein relate to mitochondria and their role in Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection and cell-to-cell HIV-1 transmission and compositions and methods for modulating mitochondrial mediated cell-to-cell transmission of HIV-1. Methods for screening to identify inhibitors of mitochondrial mediated cell-to-cell transmission of HIV-1 are also envisioned herein.
US08911930B2

According to one embodiment, a method of forming a pattern includes the step of applying an actinic-ray- or radiation-sensitive resin composition on a substrate so as to form a film, the step of selectively exposing the film through a mask and the step of developing the exposed film with the use of a developer containing an organic solvent, wherein the actinic-ray- or radiation-sensitive resin composition contains a resin (A) whose polarity is increased by the action of an acid so that the solubility of the resin in the developer containing an organic solvent is decreased, a photoacid generator (B) that when exposed to actinic rays or radiation, generates an acid containing a fluorine atom and a solvent (C), and wherein the photoacid generator (B) is contained in the composition in a ratio of 8 to 20 mass % based on the total solids of the composition.
US08911928B2

A resist composition including a base component (A) that exhibits changed solubility in a developing solution under action of acid and an acid generator component (B) that generates acid upon exposure, wherein the base component (A) contains a resin component (A1) including a structural unit (a0) represented by general formula (a0-1) shown below and a structural unit (a1)) containing an acid decomposable group that exhibits increased polarity under action of acid, and the amount of the structural unit (a0) is less than 50 mol %, wherein R represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group of 1 to 5 carbon atoms or a halogenated alkyl group of 1 to 5 carbon atoms; R1 represents a divalent linking group; R2 represents a —SO2— containing cyclic group; and v represents 0 or 1.
US08911927B2

The present invention relates to barrier layer compositions that are applied above a photoresist composition for immersion lithography processing. In a further aspect, new methods are provided for immersion lithography processing.
US08911926B2

A method of forming a metal pattern is disclosed. In the method, a metal layer is formed on a base substrate. A photoresist composition is coated on the metal layer to form a coating layer. The photoresist composition includes a binder resin, a photo-sensitizer, a mercaptopropionic acid compound and a solvent. The coating layer is exposed to a light. The coating layer is partially removed to form a photoresist pattern. The metal layer is patterned by using the photoresist pattern as a mask.
US08911923B2

The toner for developing an electrostatic charge image includes toner particles containing a colorant, a binder resin, and a release agent, and an external additive, wherein the external additive contains inorganic particles having fluorine atom-containing oil on the hydrophobization-treated surfaces.
US08911922B2

A coating liquid for an undercoat layer of an electrophotographic photoreceptor which is formed by sequentially stacking the undercoat layer and a photosensitive layer on an electrically conductive support, wherein the coating liquid comprises titanium oxide microparticles and silicon nitride microparticles as an inorganic compound, a binder resin and an organic solvent.
US08911919B2

The present invention provides a local hydrophilic gas diffusion layer configured to enhance the water removal performance of a fuel cell For this purpose, the present invention provides a gas diffusion layer in which a region under each of a pair of lands, which receives a clamping pressure of the fuel cell stack, is subjected to local hydrophilic treatment by a simple process, thereby enhancing the water removal performance of the fuel cell stack. In particular, the local hydrophilic gas diffusion layer has a first region under each land of the separator which receives the clamping pressure; and a second region under the gas channel of the separator, wherein the first region is subjected to hydrophilic treatment.
US08911918B2

A method for creating a formed-in-place seal on a fuel cell plate is disclosed. The method includes first dispensing a flowable seal material along a first sealing area of a fuel cell plate requiring the seal material. Next, a preformed template is located adjacent to at least a portion of the fuel cell plate, the template including predetermined apertures corresponding with a second sealing area of the plate, such that the apertures are coextensive with at least a portion of the first sealing area. Flowable seal material is applied into the apertures, and is then cured to a non-flowable state.
US08911903B2

A cathode active material is provided. The cathode active material includes: a composite oxide particle including at least lithium and cobalt; a coating layer which is provided in at least a part of the composite oxide particle and includes an oxide including lithium and a coating element of at least one of nickel and manganese; and a surface layer which is provided in at least a part of the coating layer and includes at least one element selected from the group consisting of silicon, tin, phosphorus, magnesium, boron, zinc, tungsten, aluminum, titanium, and zirconium.
US08911899B2

Provided is an technique for protecting a battery pack, in which an insulating film member and a support member are installed in a housing surrounding the battery pack, and the insulating film member is wound around and unwound from the support member fixedly installed in the housing. The technique prevents a short circuit from being caused by a conductive object penetrating into a high-capacity battery used in an HEV, PHEV or EV, so that it can prevent ignition and smoke from being generated by the battery as a result. The technique is configured to mount a battery of an HEV, PHEV or EV within a spatial margin and increase safety in the event of a collision. The technique can be applied to all vehicles using electricity in addition to the HEV, PHEV or EV.
US08911897B2

A lithium microbattery comprises a packaging thin layer formed by a matrix of polymer material in which metallic particles are dispersed. The packaging thin layer constitutes at least a part of the anodic current collector of the lithium microbattery. The polymer material is advantageously obtained from at least a photopolymerizable precursor material chosen from bisphenol A diglycidylether, bisphenol F butanediol diglycidil ether, 7-oxabicylco[4.1.0]heptane-3-carboxylate of 7-oxabicylco[4.1.0]hept-3-ylmethyl and a mixture of bisphenol A and epichloridine. It can also be a copolymer obtained from a homogenous mixture of at least two photopolymerizable precursor materials, respectively acrylate-base, such as diacrylate 1,6-hexanediol and methacrylate, and epoxide-base, for example chosen from bisphenol A diglycidylether, 7-oxabicylco[4.1.0]heptane-3-carboxylate of 7-oxabicylco[4.1.0]hept-3-ylmethyl and a mixture of bisphenol A and epichloridine.
US08911896B2

A battery pack includes a battery module having at least one battery cell, and at least one heat dissipation plate in contact with the battery cell, the heat dissipation plate having at least one channel configured to include a refrigerant, a rib arranged to define a frame of the heat dissipation plate, and a through-hole between the channel and the rib.
US08911890B2

Disclosed herein is a system for controlling the cooling or heating of a battery. The system includes a battery having a hermetic sealing structure to prevent passage of air from an exterior, a pressure sensor provided on the battery to measure internal pressure of the battery, an climate control system cooling or heating the battery, and a controller determining cooling or heating of the climate control system depending on whether the internal pressure of the battery is positive pressure or negative pressure based on a measured result of the pressure sensor, the controller controlling cooling or heating strength depending on a level of the positive pressure or negative pressure.
US08911887B2

Composite materials useful for devices such as photoelectrochemical solar cells include a substrate, a metal oxide film on the substrate, nanocrystalline quantum dots (NQDs) of lead sulfide, lead selenide, and lead telluride, and linkers that attach the NQDs to the metal oxide film. Suitable linkers preserve the 1s absorption peak of the NQDs. A suitable linker has a general structure A-B-C where A is a chemical group adapted for binding to a MOx and C is a chemical group adapted for binding to a NQD and B is a divalent, rigid, or semi-rigid organic spacer moiety. Other linkers that preserve the 1s absorption peak may also be used.
US08911884B2

An organic light emitting device includes a substrate; a first electrode; a second electrode; and an organic layer including an emission layer between the first electrode and the second electrode. The organic layer includes a first intermediate layer including a first host and a first dopant, a second intermediate layer including the first dopant, and a third intermediate layer including a second host and the first dopant interposed between the first electrode and the emission layer. The organic light emitting device has a long lifetime.
US08911862B2

Getter systems are provided including one or more deposits of getter materials, wherein at least one of the deposits is in contact with a layer of a material having H2O transport properties.
US08911859B1

A nanoporous network includes carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with the network having a pore size in a range from about 15 nm to about 35 nm. The nanoporous network can be coated, compressed, or any combination of these operations in the manufacture of various articles. A method of making a nanoporous network includes disposing a concentrated aqueous CNT solution in a mold, freezing the concentrated aqueous CNT solution, and subliming the frozen concentrated CNT solution in a vacuum chamber.
US08911854B2

The present invention provides an optical film and s retardation film characterized in that each of them includes: an acrylic resin; and 20-65 parts by weight of at least two graft copolymers containing a conjugated diene-based rubber, based on 100 parts by weight of the acrylic resin, wherein at least two of the graft copolymers have different particle sizes. The present invention also provides a production method therefore.
US08911852B2

The present invention relates to a structured monolayer that is composed of low-molecular aromatics and fully cross-linked in the lateral direction, the monolayer having a pattern of functional groups on one of the two surfaces, and to a method for preparing such a structured monolayer, as well as to the use thereof.
US08911839B2

Disclosed is a heat shrinkable polyester multilayer film having excellent transparency, gloss and workability, which can be produced easily. Specifically disclosed is a heat shrinkable polyester film having a haze value of not more than 2%, a glossiness at a measurement angle of 45° of not less than 200% in at least one side of the film, and a dynamic coefficient friction between one side of the film and the other side of the film of not more than 1.5. The heat shrinkable polyester film also has a shrinkage in the main shrinking direction of not less than 50% when immersed in hot water of 95° C. for 10 seconds and a surface resistivity of not more than 13 log Ω at a relative humidity of 65%.
US08911837B2

The retardation film of the present invention contains a thermoplastic polymer having at least a side chain component (A) oriented in a direction substantially orthogonal to a slow axis, and the absorption edge wavelength (λcut-off) of the side chain component (A) is 330 nm or more, and an in-plane retardation value (Re[450]) at a wavelength of 450 nm is smaller than that (Re[650]) at a wavelength of 650 nm. In the above-mentioned retardation film, the difference (ΔRe650-450=Re[650]−Re[450]) between the in-plane retardation value (Re[650]) at a wavelength of 650 nm and the in-plane retardation value (Re[450]) at a wavelength of 450 nm is preferably 10 nm or more. The retardation film of the present invention exhibits optical characteristics in which the in-plane birefringence is large and the difference between a retardation value on the short wavelength side and a retardation value on the long wavelength side is large.
US08911835B2

The present invention relates to a method for injecting a liquid in a porous material or a material including discontinuity interfaces, wherein said method includes the steps of: attaching an injection part to said material, the injection part defining a compression chamber with at least one surface of said material; injecting said liquid into said compression chamber under a low pressure; and applying a high-power acoustic wave to said liquid using a drawing element, wherein said drawing element extends into said compression chamber.
US08911834B2

The invention relates to a coating composition consisting of an oxide compound. The invention also relates to a method for producing a coating composition consisting of an oxide compound and to a method for coating substrates composed of metal, semiconductor, alloy, ceramic, quartz, glass or glass-type materials with coating compositions of this type. The invention further relates to the use of a coating composition according to the invention for coating metal, semiconductor, alloy, ceramic, quartz, glass and/or glass-type substrates.
US08911831B2

The invention provides surface treatments that reduce or eliminate marine biofouling of various surfaces. A surface that is to be subjected to a marine environment can be treated with a mPEG-DOPA. The treated surface is thus rendered less susceptible to fouling of the surface.
US08911830B2

A method for forming a surface topcoat can include mixing a plurality of carbon nanotubes (CNT) with a thermally decomposable polymer binder to form a thermally decomposable polymer composite. The thermally decomposable polymer composite is mixed with a plurality of fluoroplastic particles, a fluorinated surfactant, and a solvent media to form a coating dispersion. Next, the coating dispersion is applied to a substrate such as a printer fuser member substrate to form a coated substrate. The coated substrate is heated to cure the coating dispersion to form a final coating film on the substrate.
US08911829B2

It has now been determined that an internal optical defect can be eliminated by controlling the relative speed mismatch between the resilient roll and the casting roll in a film extrusion coating process. In particular, slowing down the surface speed of the resilient roll relative to the casting roll when coating a biaxially orientated film was found to remove the optical defect. Conversely, speeding up the surface speed of the resilient roll relative to the casting roll when coating a uniaxially orientated film was found to remove the optical defect.
US08911825B2

A production process which comprises a preform formation step of forming a fiber preform made of silicon carbide short fibers having heat resistance of 1000° C. or greater; a sol-gel preparation step of preparing a sol-gel solution containing a heat resistant compound having heat resistance of 1000° C. or greater; an impregnation-drying-calcination step of impregnating the fiber preform with the sol-gel solution, followed by drying and calcining; and a crystallization step of crystallizing the fiber preform after impregnation, drying and calcination.
US08911821B2

A method for forming nanometer scale dot-shaped materials is provided. The method includes providing a sub-micrometer scale material and a metallo-organic compound. The sub-micrometer scale material and the metallo-organic compound are mixed in a solvent. Then, the metallo-organic compound is decomposed by thermal decomposition process and reduced to form a plurality of nanometer scale dot-shaped materials on the sub-micrometer scale material, wherein the sub-micrometer scale material and the nanometer-scale dot-shaped materials are heterologous materials. Then, the plurality of nanometer scale dot-shaped materials is melted, such that a plurality of the adjacent sub-micrometer scale materials is connected to each other to form a continuous interface between the sub-micrometer scale materials.
US08911813B2

Lipid compositions are provided exhibiting the functionality of a typical shortening or filler fat, but are achieved with reduced and essentially zero trans-unsaturated fatty acids and that deliver reduced caloric content. By one approach, the functional lipid compositions include a blend of a matrix building ingredient, which is preferably a structured glycerol ester, and an edible liquid oil diluent in ratios such that the lipid composition exhibits the functionality of the traditional shortening or filler fat.
US08911808B2

A method for degumming and/or refining crude oil containing impurities involving mixing the crude oil with degumming agents, i.e., water or acid, and subjecting the mixture to flow-through, hydrodynamic cavitation processing. The cavitational processing transfers impurities in the crude oil to a water phase for easier separation. The water phase may be separated from the oil phase by commonly available separation methods.
US08911805B2

A stable Ca preparation in solution form even at high concentration is provided. The aqueous preparation of Ca includes water, Ca, compounds of Formula I and Formula II. Most of Ca is in non-ionic form and forms a complex. In the complex, Ca binds to the compound(s) of Formula I and/or Formula II in a state that basic structures of them are kept. At least partially, the complex forms colloidal particles. The aqueous preparation is transparent. pH is equal to or higher than that of slightly acid; [A1, A2, A3, A4, A5 and A6 are independently O− or OX. X represents a monovalent or polyvalent cation].
US08911789B2

Blood-derived plastic articles prepared from compositions including blood and, in some embodiments, at least one crosslinking agent and/or at least one biological response modifier, that can be useful for biological applications such as wound repair and tissue grafts; methods of making and using the same; methods for assessing the concentration of a biological response modifier in an article; and systems for preparing blood-derived plastic articles are provided.
US08911773B2

A peelable pouch comprises a substantially flat enclosure formed by first and second opposing flexible plies. A seat extends along at least a portion of a perimeter of the opposing plies. A flat, flexible transdermal patch is disposed in the enclosure and includes a bioactive agent dissolved in a layer of adhesive. A release liner is removably attached over the layer of adhesive, with the patch and the release liner together being sufficiently resilient so as to generate a spring force when displaced out of the flat configuration. The first and the second plies each being separable along the seal and displaceable out of the flat configuration. The spring force generated by the patch and the release liner being sufficient to overcome an adhesive force created by the adhesive between the patch and one of the plies.
US08911762B2

The invention relates to a method of preparing a composite or porous composite used as a biodegradable scaffold, the composite prepared therefrom and the use of the composite. In particular, the composite is a calcium sulfate-polylactic acid composite or porous composite and the composite can be especially used as an in situ pore forming scaffold.
US08911760B2

The present invention pertains to copolymers having one or more polyisobutylene segments and one or more biodegradable polymer segments, to methods of making such copolymers, to medical articles that contain such copolymers, and to methods of making such medical articles. According to certain aspects of the invention, copolymers are provided, which comprise a plurality of polyisobutylene segments and a plurality of biodegradable polymer segments. According to certain aspects of the invention, copolymers are provided, which comprise urethane linkages, urea linkages, amide linkages, ester linkages, anhydride linkages, carbonate linkages, linkages commonly described as “click” chemistry linkages, and combinations of two or more types of such linkages.
US08911753B2

A skin-covering sheet for impregnation with a cosmetic preparation according to the present invention includes a non-woven fabric in which a splittable conjugate fiber containing at least two components as viewed in fiber cross-section, namely a polyethylene component and another polymer component, and a hydrophilic fiber are blended, and hydroentangled. The conjugate fiber is partially split and includes a polyethylene ultrafine fiber having a fineness of 0.6 dtex or less. A face mask according to the present invention includes the skin-covering sheet for impregnation with a cosmetic preparation impregnated with 500 to 2000 mass % of a liquid containing a cosmetic preparation. It is therefore possible to obtain a skin-covering sheet for impregnation with a cosmetic preparation and a face mask that have good impregnating ability of a cosmetic liquid into the sheet layer, cause very little irritation to the skin, and are soft in texture.
US08911751B2

The present invention concerns a method of administering at least one active pharmaceutical agent to a patient in need thereof, which method comprises the intranasal administration of a composition comprising a therapeutically effective amount of this agent, phospholipids, one or more C2-C4 alcohols and water, wherein the concentrations of the phospholipids and the one or more alcohols in the composition are in the ranges of 0.2 to 10% and 12 to 30% by weight, respectively, with the water content of said composition being not less than 30% by weight, the phospholipids forming vesicles in said composition. Further are disclosed pharmaceutical compositions and combinations suitable for intranasal delivery.
US08911742B2

Transcutaneous immunization can deliver antigen to the immune system through the stratum corneum without physical or chemical penetration to the dermis layer of the skin. This delivery system induces an antigen-specific immune response without the use of a heterologous adjuvant. This system can induce antigen-specific immune effectors after epicutaneous application of a formulation containing one or more antigensImmune responses that provide prophylactic and/or therapeutic treatments are preferred. Antigenic activities in the formulation may be found in the same molecule, two or more different molecules dissociated from each other, or multiple molecules in a complex formed by covalent or non-covalent bonds. For antigens which are proteinaceous, they may be provided in the formulation as a polynucleotide for transcutaneous genetic immunization. Besides simple application of a dry or liquid formulation to the skin, patches and other medical devices may be used to deliver antigen for immunization.
US08911739B2

A method is provided for preventing rejection by an immune system of a recipient subject of a tissue transplanted from a donor subject into the recipient subject without the need for long-term administration of non-specific immunosuppressive drugs.
US08911728B2

The invention provides engineered antibody domains (eAds), a polypeptide comprising a single domain CD4, as well as a fusion protein comprising the same. Nucleic acids encoding eAd and/or polypeptide or the fusion protein thereof, as well as compositions or cells comprising the eAd, polypeptide, fusion protein, or nucleic acid also are provided.
US08911718B2

The present invention provides among other things methods for preparing polymeric reagents, wherein the method comprises (a) providing an aromatic moiety bearing a hydroxy group, a first amino group and a second amino group; (b) reacting a functional group reagent with the hydroxy group to result in a hydroxy group bearing a functional group capable of reacting with an amino group of an active agent and resulting in a hydrolyzable carbamate; and (c) reacting a plurality of poly(alkylene glycol) water-soluble polymers bearing a reactive group with the first amino group and second amino group to result in (i) a first amino group bearing a water-soluble polymer through a spacer moiety, and (ii) a second amino group bearing a second water-soluble polymer through a spacer moiety.
US08911702B2

An optical component of the present invention is composed of a ZnSe polycrystal body, and the ZnSe polycrystal body is constituted by crystal grains with an average grain size larger than or equal to 50 μm and smaller than or equal to 1 mm and has a relative density higher than or equal to 99%.
US08911695B2

Microporous glutaraldehyde-crosslinked chitosan sorbents, methods of making and using them, and a generator for the radioisotope 99Mo containing the sorbents.
US08911683B2

A microfluidic device is provided including at least one chamber accessible by microfluidic channels characterized in that the surface of the channels and the chambers are patterned and comprise hydrophilic and hydrophobic areas. The surface energy in correspondence of the areas, i.e., the capillary force, being such that a liquid can be guided along the hydrophilic path, enter the chamber from one side, wet part of one surface of the chamber as a thin layer without touching the opposite surface of the chamber, thus avoiding to fill the volume inside the chamber in correspondence of the hydrophilic pattern until a second liquid, either sequentially or in parallel, comes to wet part of the opposite surface of the chamber and eventually touches the first liquid layer, resulting in a sudden coalescence and efficient mixing between the liquids.
US08911681B2

A wetness indicator material may be used on a substrate to form a wetness sensor. The sensor may show either the presence or absence of an aqueous-based fluid or water-containing medium, such as vaginal fluid or urine in a personal hygiene article. The wetness sensor may be incorporated into the article. The wetness indicator material includes a standard colorant that does not change color when wetted. The standard colorant increases the range of hues exhibited by the wetness indicator material.
US08911677B2

A medical tool kit is provided for packaging, storing, and transporting medical instruments and tools of various types. The medical tool kit is capable of providing continuing sterilization to the medical instruments and tools kept inside the medical tool kit after the tool case is opened during its normal use in a medical procedure.
US08911676B2

Systems and methods for treating a fluid by passing fluid through a treatment structure, the fluid containing undesirable living things, the treatment structure containing electrically conductive nanomaterial with silver, flowing an electric current in the fluid in the treatment structure via the electrically conductive nanomaterial with silver or silver material to kill undesirable living things in the treatment structure, and killing undesirable things in the treatment structure.
US08911671B2

An electronic burner includes a burner base and an electronic incense. The burner base includes a burner body and a light emitting source mounted in the burner body. Then electronic incense includes a light guiding body and an incense head. The light guiding body is detachably mounted with the burner body. The incense head includes a first chamber, a second chamber, first reaction solution, and second solution. The first chamber is connected with the light guiding body away from the burner body. The second chamber is received in the first chamber. The first reaction solution received in the first chamber, and the second solution is received in the second chamber. When the second chamber is cracked, the first reaction solution and the second reaction solution would be mixed together in the first chamber to make a chemistry reaction happen, and at the same time, produce light.
US08911668B2

A Lab On a Chip (LOC) has a Sample Preparation Module (SPM) coupled to a sample inlet, a microchannel coupled to the SPM, and an optic module optically proximate to the microchannel. The optic module holds multiple lenses, each of which has a different effective focal length, such that all fields of focus within the microchannel are covered as objects suspended within the liquid sample pass through the microchannel.
US08911667B2

A device for preparing and/or treating a biological sample including an assembly of storage chambers and/or reaction chambers intended for receiving a fluid, the chambers being separated by walls so as to form an assembly of adjacent chambers. The device includes a base and a drawer including the assembly of adjacent chambers, the drawer being movable in relation to the base, the drawer including a contact surface connected to first means for establishing fluid communication connected to the inside of at least one chamber, the contact surface of the drawer being intended to be positioned facing a contact surface of the base including at least one position at which second means for fluid communication connected to detection means are placed.
US08911662B2

A powder for use in the powder metallurgical manufacture of components is provided. Particularly the subject matter concerns an iron or iron based powder intended for the powder metallurgical manufacturing of components. It is especially suitable for manufacturing of components wherein self-lubricating properties are desired. The subject matter further relates to a method of manufacturing a component from said powder and an accordingly produced component. A diffusion-bonded powder comprising iron or iron-based particles, and particles diffusion-bonded to the iron or iron-based particles is provided. The said particles diffusion-bonded to the iron or iron-based particles may comprise an alloy of Cu and 5% to 15% by weight of Sn. A component is provided which is at least partly formed from such a diffusion-bonded powder.
US08911658B2

A system and method for efficiently laser marking a polymer target material, and more particularly a transparent polymer target material, is presented. The system includes a visually transparent polymer target material comprising a surface and a near 2 μm fiber laser, the fiber laser having a peak power equal to or greater than 10 kW, a pulse repetition rate equal to or greater than 1 kHz, and an average power equal to or less than 20 W. In certain embodiments, the fiber laser may be a Q-switched fiber laser having a pulse width equal to or less than 200 ns or a mode-locked fiber laser having a pulse width equal to or less than 100 ps. The method includes producing, using the fiber laser, a mark that is not transparent to visible wavelengths on the surface of the polymer target material without damaging it.
US08911655B2

A method for producing a film having a fine irregular pattern intermittently includes feeding a film to be processed intermittently from upstream side to the vicinity of the surface of a die having a fine irregular pattern, transferring the pattern to the surface of the film by pressing the film against the surface of a die, stripping the processed film on which a pattern is formed from the surface of a die, and then feeding a new film to be processed to the die, wherein the processed film is stripped from the surface of a die by gripping and moving the processed film to the upstream side, and then the processed film is fed by a length of intermittent feed to the surface of a die while preventing the processed film from creasing.
US08911651B2

A leaf spring for a motor vehicle is made from a fiber composite component including individual fibers in form of at least two textile layers stacked on top of each other and a matrix made of a duroplastic or thermoplastic resin surrounding the fibers. The resin is hardened in a mold tool by applying pressure and heat. The stacked textile layers are formed inside a mold tool and fixed by a dry binder applied to at least one of the textile layers to form a dry preform. A fiber composite blank is stamped from the preform and subsequently infiltrated with the resin in a RTM cavity and hardened. The binder applied in dry form may only be arranged in certain areas of the textile layers.
US08911648B2

A reactive polymer-supported porous film for separator, that has sufficient adhesiveness between electrodes and separator and can suitably be used to produce a battery having low internal resistance and high rate performance, a method for producing the porous film, a method for producing a battery using the porous film, and an electrode/porous film assembly are disclosed. The reactive polymer-supported porous film for battery separator includes a porous film substrate having supported thereon a reactive polymer obtained by reacting a crosslinkable polymer having at least one reactive group selected from the group consisting of 3-oxetanyl group and epoxy group in the molecule, with an acid anhydride, thereby partially crosslinking the polymer.
US08911644B2

A liquid crystal medium having stability to heat, light and so forth, a wide temperature range of a liquid crystal phase, a large refractive index anisotropy and a large dielectric anisotropy and an optically isotropic liquid crystal phase is described. A liquid crystal composition is characterized by exhibiting the optically isotropic liquid crystal phase and containing achiral component T containing at least one compound selected from the group of compounds represented by formula (1) as a first component, and a chiral agent: wherein, for example, R1 is alkyl having 1 to 20 carbons, L1, L2, L3, L4, L5 and L6 are independently hydrogen or fluorine, and X1 is halogen.
US08911643B2

A polishing liquid which is used for chemical mechanical polishing of a body to be polished in a planarization process for manufacturing of a semiconductor integrated circuit, the body to be polished including at least a first layer containing polysilicon or modified polysilicon and a second layer containing at least one selected from the group consisting of silicon oxide, silicon nitride, silicon carbide, silicon carbonitride, silicon oxycarbide, and silicon oxynitride, the polishing liquid having a pH of 1.5 to 7.0, including (1) colloidal silica particles, (2) an organic acid, and (3) an anionic surfactant, and being capable of selectively polishing the second layer with respect to the first layer.
US08911640B2

The present invention relates to fluoroolefin compositions. The fluoroolefin compositions of the present invention are useful as refrigerants or heat transfer fluids and in processes for producing cooling or heat. Additionally, the fluoroolefin compositions of the present invention may be used to replace currently used refrigerant or heat transfer fluid compositions that have higher global warming potential.
US08911623B2

A filter cartridge for operatively engaging a manifold having an ejection cam and an insertion cam. The filter cartridge includes a filter element and inlet/outlet portion in fluid communication with the filter element.
US08911622B1

An apparatus and method for skimming oil and other liquid hydrocarbons and contaminates floating at the surface of a body of water or other suspending liquid. A rigid skimming surface such as a drum or disc is floatably supported on pontoons. The skimming surface is rotatable about an axis substantially parallel to the water surface. The skimming surface is covered with removably attached sorbent material which improves the efficiency of the oil recovery operation and which, when worn or soggy, can be removed and discarded without discarding the skimming surface.
US08911610B2

Provided is a safe and efficient method for producing lithium metal which facilitates efficient production of anhydrous lithium chloride without corrosion of the system materials by chlorine gas or molten lithium carbonate, and which allows production of lithium metal by molten salt electrolysis of the produced anhydrous lithium chloride as a raw material. The method includes the steps of (A) contacting and reacting lithium carbonate and chlorine gas in a dry process to produce anhydrous lithium chloride, and (B) subjecting the raw material for electrolysis containing the anhydrous lithium chloride to molten salt electrolysis under such conditions as to produce lithium metal, wherein the chlorine gas generated by the molten salt electrolysis in step (B) is used as the chlorine gas in step (A) to continuously perform steps (A) and (B).
US08911600B2

A method of storing a sputtering target made of lanthanum oxide, wherein a lanthanum oxide target to which a lanthanum fluoride film was formed and lanthanum oxide powder are charged in a vacuum pack with an oxygen transmission rate of 0.1 cm3/m2 per 24 h at 1 atm or less and a moisture vapor transmission rate of 0.1 g/m2 per 24 h or less, and, after charging the target and the powder, the vacuum pack is subject to vacuum suction and sealing for storage. This invention aims to provide technology for enabling the long-term storage of a sputtering target in a usable state by devising the method of storing a target made of an oxide of lanthanum as a rare earth metal, and thereby inhibiting the pulverization phenomenon of the target caused by the hydration (hydroxylation) of such target due to residual air or the inclusion of air, and the pulverization phenomenon caused by the formation of carbonate.
US08911596B2

This invention relates to a process and an apparatus for generating hydrogen and synthetic carbon-free gas by plasma reforming-decomposing of Methane and other hydrocarbons for producing hydrogen and synthetic carbon-free gas through plasma discharge in hydrogen medium. The process involves applying an electrical potential between the electrodes while immersed in hydrogen medium. The plasma ionizes the medium, thereby generating hydrogen and synthetic gas by decomposing of hydrogen medium. The process further involves controlling the process by relocating the generated plasma between two or more further electrodes.
US08911590B2

Broadly speaking, the embodiments of the present invention provide an improved chamber cleaning mechanism. The present invention can also be used to provide additional knobs to tune the etch processes. In one embodiment, a plasma processing chamber configured to generate a plasma includes a bottom electrode assembly with an bottom electrode, wherein the bottom electrode is configured to receive a substrate. The plasma processing chamber includes a top electrode assembly with a top electrode and an inductive coil surrounding the top electrode. The inductive coil is configured to convert a gas into a plasma within a region defined within the chamber, wherein the region is outside an area defined above a top surface of the bottom electrode.
US08911582B2

An apparatus to facilitate the application of a micro-contact printing stamp to a roll. The apparatus preferentially constrains some of the stamp's six degrees of freedom, and then drives the stamp (or the assembly of the stamp and the master against which it was formed) into controlled contact with the printing roll so as to attach the stamp onto the outer surface of the roll.
US08911581B2

A composite light guide plate manufacturing method includes the steps of providing a light guide substrate; providing a transfer membrane, which sequentially includes a substrate, a reflective layer and a diffusion microstructure; attaching the transfer membrane to the light guide substrate with a side of the transfer membrane, which has the diffusion microstructure thereon; and removing the substrate to expose the reflective layer.
US08911578B2

A supply group of a packing band from reels, with an automatic change of the reel for an object-packing machine, includes a supply conveyor along which the packing band runs, a device for transversally cutting the band located at a start of the supply conveyor, a device for supporting one reel of the band of slim packing material and a device for supporting a second reel of band of slim packing material. The group includes a first entry conveyor of the first band from the first reel to the supply conveyor, a second entrance conveyor of the second band from the second reel to the supply conveyor, a device for advancing for introducing or extracting the front end of the first band to or from the supply conveyor, and a device for advancing for introducing or extracting a front end of the second band into or from the supply conveyor.
US08911576B2

A fluororesin coating layer fusion-bonded directly to a base member or to a rubber layer on a base member can be formed by conducting heating for a significantly short time. A fluororesin-coated roller or belt that has a fluororesin coating layer with few defects and a rubber layer underneath whose thermal deterioration is suppressed is provided. The production method therefor include a step of inserting a base member or a rubber-coated base member including a base member and at least a rubber layer on the outer peripheral surface of the base member into an empty space of a thermally shrinkable fluororesin tube; a preliminary shrinking step conducted according to need; a pressure fusion-bonding step of bringing the base member or rubber-coated base member into contact with a hot plate surface heated to a temperature in a range of 250° C. to 400° C. under pressure while rotating the base member or rubber-coated base member so as to fusion-bond the thermally shrinkable fluororesin tube onto the outer peripheral surface of the base member or the rubber-coated base member; and a reheating step and a rapid cooling step that are conducted according to need.
US08911574B2

A method for manufacturing high-Si cold rolled steel sheets includes heating a cold rolled steel sheet with a direct flame burner (A) having an air ratio of not more than 0.89 when the temperature of the cold rolled steel sheet that is being increased is in the temperature range of not less than 300° C. and less than Ta° C., subsequently heating the cold rolled steel sheet with a direct flame burner (B) having an air ratio of not less than 0.95 when the temperature of the cold rolled steel sheet is in the temperature range of not less than Ta° C. and less than Tb° C., and subsequently soak-annealing the cold rolled steel sheet in a furnace having an atmospheric gas composition which has a dew point of not more than −25° C. and contains 1 to 10 volume % of H2 and the balance of N2.
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