US09060187B2
Embodiments for changing bit rates in streaming media are provided. As portions of a streaming media file are downloaded for playback, the size of the portion is compared with an expected size determined prior to initiating playback of streaming AV data. The portion of the media file may be padded such that the size of the portion matches the size specified prior to initiating playback of streaming AV data.
US09060180B2
A visual dynamic range (VDR) signal and a standard dynamic range (SDR) signal are received. A first (e.g., MPEG-2) encoder encodes a base layer (BL) signal. A second encoder encodes an enhancement layer (EL). The EL signal represents information with which the VDR signal may be reconstructed, e.g., using the BL and the EL signals. The first encoder encodes the SDR signal with inverse discrete cosine transform (IDCT) coefficients that have a fixed precision, e.g., which represent fixed-point approximations of transform coefficients that may have arbitrary precisions. The BL signal is encoded in a stream that conforms with an Advanced Television Standards Committee (ATSC) standard. The EL is encoded in a stream that conforms with an ATSC enhanced vestigial sideband (E-VSB) standard. The BL and EL signals are combined; e.g., multiplexed, and transmitted together.
US09060177B2
Systems and methods to process motion vectors of video data are disclosed. According to an embodiment, an intra-block in a video frame of the video data is identified. At least a first set and a second set of inter-blocks that neighbor the identified intra-block are identified, where each inter-block in a set of inter-blocks has a motion vector associated therewith. Data of the first and second set of inter-blocks is evaluated to determine an error associated with each of the first and second sets. A motion vector associated with motion vectors of the inter-blocks of the set with the least error is determined. The determined motion vector may be associated with the identified intra-block.
US09060175B2
The present invention relates to systems and methods for motion estimation and mode decision for low-complexity H.264 standard decoders. The present invention includes a method for optimizing the selection of motion vectors and motion compensation block modules in a video encoder in order to decrease the complexity of the video upon decoding. The novel method of the present invention may include novel steps for selecting motion vectors, block modes, and for applying a complexity-control algorithm to encode the received input video data sequence in accordance with the identified target complexity level. The present invention may be implemented in accordance with current and future video decoding standards to optimize decoding by reducing decoding complexity and thereby reducing required resources and power consumption.
US09060159B2
For a mosaic image in a repeated cycle with “I”דJ” (“I” and “J” are integers of 2 or more) pixels, a color mix ratio is stored in a memory unit by being associated with a pixel position in I×J pixels so that a color mix ratio A associated with a pixel position in I×J pixels of an object pixel for mixed color correction is read from the memory unit, and a mixed color component included in the object pixel is removed based on the color mix ratio A and a color signal of the object pixel to calculate a white balance gain based on a color signal of each of pixels in the mosaic image for which the mixed color correction is applied.
US09060154B2
A digital cable broadcast receiver and a method for automatically processing caption data of various standards and types, is disclosed. The digital broadcast receiver includes: a demultiplexer for dividing a received broadcast stream into video data, audio data, supplementary information; a controller for determining whether caption data included in the video data is digital caption data or analog caption data on the basis of caption information included in the supplementary information, and outputting a control signal according to a result of the determining; a digital caption decoder for extracting and decoding digital caption data from the video data according to the control signal; and an analog caption decoder for extracting and decoding analog caption data from the video data according to the control signal.
US09060147B2
An image reading device includes a blank elimination processing portion that performs blank elimination processing for eliminating image data of an original document if a preset blank detection area in the original document is blank and a frame erasure processing portion that performs frame erasure processing for correcting image data of an original document so that any image in an area other than a preset effective image area in the original document does not appear. The blank elimination processing portion performs resetting in which a superimposition area where the preset blank detection area and the preset effective image area are superimposed on each other is set as a new blank detection area.
US09060146B2
A sensor apparatus includes an array of active sensor elements arranged in columns and rows. Each sensor element is associated with a thin film access device disposed in a first current path through which an activation current is provided to activate the sensor element. Each sensor element is read through a respective second current path. The second current paths do not include the thin film access device of the first current path. As such, noise from the thin film access device is isolated from the second current paths.
US09060145B2
Disclosed herein is a solid-state image taking apparatus, includes: a pixel array section including unit pixels laid out two-dimensionally to form a matrix to serve as unit pixels each employing an opto-electric conversion device, a transfer transistor, a first electric-charge accumulation section, a read transistor, a second electric-charge accumulation section, a reset transistor, and an amplification transistor; a driving section; and a correction section.
US09060140B2
A microlens array unit according to an embodiment includes: a substrate; a first group of microlenses including first microlenses having a convex shape and a first focal length, the first group of microlenses being arranged on the substrate; and a second group of microlenses including second microlenses having a convex shape and a second focal length different from the first focal length, the second group of microlenses being arranged on the substrate, a first imaging plane of the first group of microlenses and a second imaging plane of the second group of microlenses being parallel to each other, a distance between the first and second imaging planes in a direction perpendicular to the first imaging plane being 20% or less of the first focal length, and images of the first microlenses projected on the substrate not overlapping images of the second microlenses projected on the substrate.
US09060138B2
An information processing apparatus receives a reception notification of FAX information from a FAX client that receives the FAX information from a FAX server that receives the FAX information via a network. The information processing apparatus monitors the FAX client, reads address information of the FAX server from a storage unit when the information processing apparatus determines from a monitoring result that the FAX client is not operated, and sends address information of the information processing apparatus and address information of the FAX client to the FAX server.
US09060137B2
A storage apparatus, which stores image data, comprises a storage-side transmitting/receiving section transmitting image data to an image processing apparatus and receiving image data from the image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus, which carries out one or a plurality of processes related to image data, comprises a receiving section having reception areas each of which is provided fore each process for receiving an instruction of the processes; a specifying section detecting a relative position between the storage apparatus and the reception areas and specifying one reception area based on the variation of detected relative position; a processing-side transmitting/receiving section transmitting image data to the storage apparatus or receiving image data from the storage apparatus; and a processing section carrying out a process, corresponding to the reception area specified by the specifying section, on image data which the processing-side transmitting/receiving section transmits or receives.
US09060130B2
Display control apparatus and display control method, using a fan to cool an inside of the apparatus
A display control apparatus comprises an internal temperature measurement unit, a fan, a fan controller which controls to rotate the fan when the internal temperature becomes not lower than a start threshold, and to stop the fan when the internal temperature becomes lower than a stop threshold, and a display controller which controls to display first information when the internal temperature becomes not lower than a first threshold, and to display second information in place of the first information when the internal temperature becomes higher than the first threshold and not lower than a second threshold higher than the stop threshold, and control to continue display of the second information even when the internal temperature becomes lower than the second threshold, and to set the second information in a non-display state when the fan is stopped.
US09060129B2
There is provided an imaging device including a control unit that performs subject recognition. The control unit recognizes a first subject, decides a first subject recommendation position for the first subject in a screen from among a plurality of subject recommendation positions, displays a first specific display object at the decided first subject recommendation position, determines whether a distance between a position of the first subject and the first subject recommendation position is within a predetermined value, and decides a second subject recommendation position for a second subject in the screen from among the plurality of subject recommendation positions and displays a second specific display object at the second subject recommendation position when the distance is within the predetermined value.
US09060103B2
Tampering with doorbells can lead to injury and doorbell theft. Methods and systems can discourage doorbell tampering by emitting an alert when a doorbell detects tampering. In some embodiments, a doorbell includes a system to detect movement of the outer housing of the doorbell. In several embodiments, if a doorbell detects movement of the outer housing while the doorbell detects that it is connected to an external power supply, the doorbell can emit an alert to warn against additional tampering.
US09060092B2
An image sensor module includes a light source unit that emits a linear light beam elongate in a primary scanning direction to an object to be read, and a lens unit including an incidence surface and an output surface oriented opposite to each other. The lens unit is configured to receive light from the object through the incidence surface and output the light through the output surface. The module also includes a sensor IC that receives the light outputted from the output surface, a housing that holds the light source unit and the lens unit, and a support member that supports the lens unit such that the incidence surface is located more distant from the sensor IC than the output surface in a secondary scanning direction. The support member includes a reflection surface that reflects the light from the object toward the incidence surface.
US09060089B2
In an image forming apparatus having a power button for shifting the apparatus to either a power shutoff state where power supply is shut off or a power-saving state where power supply is limited, the image forming apparatus is shifted to the power-saving state when the press continuing time of the power button is shorter than a threshold, and shifted to the power shutoff state when it is longer than the threshold. When the press continuing time is shorter than the threshold, information indicating that the shift will occur is displayed on a display unit before the image forming apparatus is shifted to the power-saving state.
US09060084B2
Provided is an image forming apparatus. The apparatus includes: a job input unit inputting a job; a job storage storing the job input by the job input unit; a link setting unit linking a new job input from the job input unit and the stored job stored in the job storage, or linking each independent job stored in the job storage; a storage section storing link information indicating the link of jobs set by the ink setting unit; a control section executing predetermined processes based on the link information stored in the storage section; and a print section printing the job.
US09060081B2
A handheld imaging device includes an image sensor for sensing an image; a multi-core processor for processing the sensed image; and a program memory provided external to the multi-core processor, and communicating therewith via a communication bus. The multi-core processor includes a bus interface for interfacing with the communication bus, and further includes an image sensor interface for interfacing with the image sensor separately from the communication bus and the bus interface. The multi-core processor includes a plurality of parallel processing units connected by a crossbar switch to form the multi-core.
US09060079B2
An image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet includes a determination processing section. The determination processing section determines whether or not the quality of the image, which is formed on the sheet after detaching and attaching a component or a unit, has been improved, at least using read data of an image, which is formed on a sheet before detaching and attaching the component or unit of the image forming apparatus, the read data being read by a read sensor and read data of an image, which is formed on a sheet after detaching and attaching the component or unit of the image forming apparatus, the read data being read by the read sensor.
US09060078B2
Systems, apparatus and methods are provided for objective, quantitative assessment of printer image quality. Quantitative scores are determined for objective analysis and evaluation of the age quality produced by the target printer and determining corrective actions to be performed on the printer.
US09060072B2
A method for limiting the use of a mobile communications device is disclosed. The mobile communications device includes a user interface. The method includes determining the physical speed at which the mobile communications device is travelling. The method includes comparing the physical speed to a preset threshold speed. The method includes limiting the functionality of the mobile communications device if the physical speed thereof is above preset threshold speed.
US09060071B1
Systems and methods for controlling mobile devices are provided. A Bluetooth signal is received at a mobile device. The Bluetooth signal may include a broadcaster request which is configured to convey a set of desired actions to the wireless handheld device. Once the signal is received, the mobile device is able to determine if each action in the set of desired actions conveyed by the broadcaster request would be allowable on the mobile device. Then, the device performs each of the actions which have been determined to be allowable on the receiving device.
US09060070B2
The information terminal device according to the present invention is provided with a memory and a control circuit. The control circuit is provided with means for storing operation pattern information including character string pattern information and operation information in the memory, means for searching, when a document is displayed on the display, character string information that matches the character string pattern information stored in the memory in the document, and means for specifying, when an operation of selecting one piece of character string information is performed, operation pattern information including character string pattern information that matches the character string information selected from the plurality of pieces of operation pattern information stored in the memory and starting an application software program specified by the operation information included in the specified operation pattern information.
US09060056B2
Aspects of notification and troubleshooting of interruptions, failures, and updates are described. In one embodiment, a customer premises equipment (CPE) device determines a status of the CPE device, which may include a status of connectivity with a service provider. When the status indicates an error, a type of the error may be identified and a message selected for audible playback by the CPE device. The CPE device may further ring a telephonic device, to alert a user and playback the message to the user. The message may indicate that a connectivity error exists and, in some cases, assist the user to troubleshoot the error. In other aspects, the CPE device may receive an update from the service provider and ring the telephonic device, to advise the user of upgraded functions or features, for example, or provide a promotional message.
US09060037B2
A method and apparatus for enabling prioritization of signaling messages in a communication network are disclosed. For example, the method receives at least one signaling message, and classifies each of the at least one signaling message. The method schedules each of the at least one signaling message for processing, and discards selectively one or more signaling messages that have been scheduled under an overload condition.
US09060033B2
A method, system and computer program product for sharing the contents of a presentation in a web conference. A web conference server in a web conferencing system extracts a document that is likely to be viewed by the presenter during the web conference prior to the presenter actually viewing the document. The web conference server processes the extracted document into a displayable screen image which is sent to the participant computers in the web conference to be cached. When the presenter computer actually displays the extracted document, the web conference server informs the participant computers to display the cached screen image. Since the screen image of the document has already been cached by the participant computers, the document will be more quickly viewed by the participant computers and will reduce the time lag between when the presenter views the document and when the audience views the same content.
US09060029B2
A profile or dossier of a user is constructed based partly on data culled from a data network that reveals indirect, network-mediated relationships with other individuals and groups. The profile is assembled from information, such as properties of a target individual to build an initial social circle of the target individual. References to the target individual can be derived from the direct and indirect associations in order to compile a dossier on the target individual from the references to the target individual. The initial social circle may be expanded by building respective new social circles having new associations by crawling a plurality of web sites, and deriving additional references to the target individual from the new associations in the new social circles. According to a further aspect of the method, compiling a dossier includes extracting metadata from the references.
US09060024B2
Normalizing security event data from multiple different network agents. The data from the multiple different agents is categorized and tagged with a descriptor that includes information about the nature of the event. Multiple different events from multiple different devices can therefore be evaluated using a common format which is common for the multiple different devices from different vendors.
US09060019B2
A method and system for tracing interne protocol packets is disclosed. One aspect of the method involves generating traceback packets containing information relating to their origin, destination, and encountered devices. The generated traceback packets can differ depending on the network configuration and Internet traffic scenarios. Another aspect involves analyzing incoming Internet traffic and generating traceback packets based on the performed analysis. Another aspect involves discovering a denial-of-service attack. Another aspect involves modifying operational parameters in response to the attack. One aspect of the system involves traceback servers, which can collect and provide traceback information to the public or on a private network. Another aspect involves the dissemination of traceback information to interested and/or authorized parties.
US09060013B2
A history management unit within a discard determination unit manages transmission and reception packets related to a resource to be protected for each of users, and records communication history information for users high in use frequency through stateful measurement. A priority determination unit determines the priority of a communication on a per received packet basis on the basis of communication history information. A load determination unit determines a load level of the resource to be protected, and combines the load level with the priority of the communication determined on the per received packet basis. A discard rate determination unit and a packet discard unit implement forwarding processing, determine the priority of the communication on the per user basis, and discard communications low in the priority at a high ratio.
US09060011B2
The invention relates to systems and methods that enable a mobile device to be approximated with an object in order to enable control of the object. In one possible embodiment of a method of the invention, a mobile device is brought in physical proximity with an object, the identity of the object is determined wirelessly, based on such determination, a remote control user interface is presented by the mobile device, the mobile device receives input relating to a desired control action for the object, and the mobile device wirelessly communicates with a remote computer to facilitate control of the object. Various embodiments of the invention are possible to address a wide range of practical applications.
US09060007B2
Methods and systems for facilitating the synchronization of data on two or more user computers, where the data is maintained in a data structure as objects. The system assigns an index to one or more objects maintained in the data structure, wherein each index provides an address for an object within the data structure. The system detects at least one modification to the data, wherein said modification is initiated on a user computer. The system updates one or more objects in the data structure based on the modification. The system creates a representation of the at least one modification, wherein the representation comprises a reference to one or more indexes assigned to the one or more updated objects. The system transmits the representation, wherein the representation is for use in generating a corresponding modification to the data on other user computers.
US09060006B2
Cross-environment rendering and user interaction support provide a seamless computing experience in a multi-operating system computing environment. Cross-environment rendering provides real-time display of applications running in a mobile operating system to be displayed within an environment of a desktop operating system. The mobile operating system and the desktop operating system may be running concurrently and independently on a shared kernel of a mobile computing device. A graphics server of the mobile operating system tears down and rebuilds the rendering context for each application as it composites the surface information. The rendering context may be established to match the resolution of the associated display, so that graphics will be appropriately rendered for that resolution. The mobile computing device may be a smartphone running the Android mobile operating system and a full desktop Linux distribution on a modified Android kernel.
US09060005B2
It is disclosed a method including accepting, after storage of a registration message including first address information received from a first serving entity capable of access technology-independent service control, a de-registration request message including second address information identical to the first address information from a second serving entity capable of access technology-independent service control.
US09059991B2
A system for unlocking a mobile device including: an input module configured to receive voice information; an output module configured to output an unlock signal; a processor connected to the input module and output module and configured to: receive the voice information from the input module; analyze the voice information; determine if the analyzed voice information matches with a predetermined voice profile; and if there is a match, send an unlock signal to the mobile device via an output module. A method for unlocking a mobile device including: receiving voice information from the mobile device; analyzing the voice information; determining if the analyzed voice information matches with a predetermined voice profile; and if there is a match, sending an unlock signal to the mobile device.
US09059990B2
Disclosed are systems and methods for ensuring confidentiality of information of a user of a service. One example method includes receiving a request to carry out an operation control procedure for the service; identifying the user of the service; selecting a trusted device associated with the identified user of the service; sending, to the selected trusted device, a request for confidential information of the user, wherein the confidential information is used to carry out the operation control procedure; receiving the confidential information from the selected trusted device; and carrying out the operation control procedure using the received confidential information.
US09059981B2
In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for security verification of communications to tenants of an on-demand database service. These mechanisms and methods for security verification of communications to tenants of an on-demand database service can enable embodiments to allow tenants to selectively implement security measures with respect to inbound communications, etc. The ability of embodiments to provide such feature may allow tenants to efficiently and effectively implement security measures for in-bound emails.
US09059974B2
A secure mobile application connection bus is disclosed. First encryption information and an identifier associated with a data storage location on a mobile device are provided from a first application to a second application. Second encryption information associated with the second mobile application is retrieved from the data storage location. The second mobile application is configured to provide data to the data storage location. Data is transferred securely between the first mobile application and the second mobile application via the data storage location.
US09059970B1
Provided is a method for compressing and decompressing I/Q sample data in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) that uses a fixed compression ratio and also determines a bit to be removed according a magnitude of an absolute value of the I/Q sample data when the I/Q sample data transmitted and received between a digital unit (DU) and an radio unit (RU) in the CRAN is compressed and decompressed. A method for compressing I/Q sample data in the CRAN includes: calculating absolute values of all sample data in each unit block, the unit block being a basic unit of compression; determining an SMAX, the SMAX being sample data having a maximum of the absolute values; extracting sample data by a predetermined number of bits; coding information about the number of bits removed from high-order or low-order bits; and adding a sign bit before or after coding the information.
US09059969B2
The disclosure details the implementation of a tunneling client access point (TCAP) that is a highly secure, portable, power efficient storage and data processing device. The TCAP “tunnels” data through an access terminal's (AT) input/output facilities. In one embodiment, the TCAP connects to an AT and a user employs the AT's user input peripherals for input, and views the TCAP's activities on the AT's display. This enables the user to observe data stored on the TCAP without it being resident on the AT, which can be useful to maintain higher levels of data security. Also, the TCAP may tunnel data through an AT across a communications network to access remote servers. The disclosure also teaches a plug-n-play virtual private network (VPN).
US09059966B2
The present application enables the enterprise to configure various policies to address various subsets of the traffic based on various information relating the client, the server, or the details and nature of the interactions between the client and the server. An intermediary deployed between clients and servers may establish an SSL VPN session between a client and a server. The intermediary may receiving a response from a server to a request of a client via the clientless SSL VPN session. The response may comprise one or more cookies. The intermediary may identify an access profile for the clientless SSL VPN session. The access profile may identify one or more policies for proxying cookies. The intermediary may determine, responsive to the one or more policies of the access profile, whether to proxy or bypass proxying for the client the one or more cookies.
US09059964B2
One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates communication between an embedded code in a web page and a stand-alone application. During operation, the system first embeds a code within a web page that is displayed in a browser. Next, the embedded code receives information indicating a communication method provided by a stand-alone application, via a first communication channel. The embedded code subsequently sends the contextual information associated with a user browser session by calling the communication method, via a second communication channel, thereby allowing the stand-alone application to inherit the contextual information from the web browser.
US09059957B2
System, methods, and apparatuses are provided for outputting a notification of a conditional communication (e.g., a message) based on one or more conditions. The output can be controlled by a receiver's device or by a server communicably coupled with the receiver's device, on which a set of applications are loaded. For example, a filter can determine whether a communication has an associated condition. The condition can require specific values of a variable property associated with the receiver's device. A selector module can determine a subset of application(s) that are used to obtain the variable property. When the condition is satisfied, a notification of the communication can be output.
US09059956B2
A data retrieval system includes a gateway server and an access client. The gateway server is communicatively connected to the access client through a network. The gateway server provides a presentation service (PS) and a real-time service (RTS), which cooperate with the access client to retrieve data from a data store and then provide the retrieved data to a user's remote communication device. More particularly, when a user wishes to retrieve data from the data store or to send data to the data store, the user establishes a communication connection between his or her remote communication device and the gateway server, and then requests the desired data from the gateway server. In response, the gateway server sends a command to the access client, instructing it to retrieve the requested data. The access client retrieves the requested data from the data store, and returns the retrieved data to the gateway server. The gateway server then relays the requested information back to the user's remote communication device.
US09059925B2
A method for multicast load balancing in a wireless network having a plurality of access points. The method includes setting a maximum Internet protocol multicast bandwidth for the access points, receiving an admissions control request from a client at one of the access points, and determining whether the admissions control request from the client is for an admitted or unadmitted multicast stream at the access point. The access point is responsive to the admissions control request for the admitted multicast stream by servicing the admitted multicast stream and to the admissions control request for the unadmitted multicast stream by servicing the unadmitted multicast stream where the bandwidth required for the unadmitted multicast stream, plus that portion of the access point bandwidth currently used for all existing downlink multicast streams, does not exceed the maximum internet protocol multicast bandwidth for the access point.
US09059924B2
An information processing apparatus in a network system that includes first network apparatuses that establish logical topologies and second network apparatuses that connect to the first network apparatuses and that establish physical topologies. The information processing apparatus includes a first storage unit that stores traffic amounts of paths between the first network apparatuses; a second storage unit that stores power consumption for connections between the first and second network apparatuses; and a calculation unit that calculates, for logical topologies, sums of power consumption related to a packet forwarding process in the first network apparatuses and power consumption related to the connections between the first and second network apparatuses. The calculation unit selects a logical topology with the smallest sum among the logical topologies.
US09059917B2
A method is provided for processing flows in a wireless communications network. Data packets belonging to different flows are received by a device of a communications network and stored in a queue to enable them to be sent by the device over a radio channel to at least one node. Access to the radio channel is time-shared between a plurality of nodes. The method includes: at least one step of determining a duration associated with a flow, the duration corresponding to a virtual duration needed for sending packets of said flow stored in the queue; and in order to send a data packet, a step of selecting one of the flows amongst a plurality of flows, in which step a flow is selected for which the associated duration is the smallest, and a step of sending a packet of the selected flow as extracted from the queue.
US09059910B1
Various example embodiments are disclosed herein. According to an example embodiment, a method may include receiving by a second computer a customization application, the customization application including a control panel to establish user preferences for a user account of the cloud-based service and/or system settings for the first computer; receiving by the second computer an input to the customization application to establish one or more user preferences for the user account and/or one or more system settings for the first computer; and transmitting from the second computer to a server associated with the cloud-based service the one or more user preferences and a username for the user account and/or the system settings for the first computer.
US09059907B2
Methods and systems are provided for network setting. The network setting method includes determining, by a first router, whether the first router belongs to a top segment of a plurality of segments; generating, by the first router, a multicast packet for integrating the plurality of segments into a single segment, if the first router belongs to the top segment; and transmitting, by the first router, the multicast packet to at least one additional router included in the plurality of segments.
US09059899B2
A method may include determining a first number of events occurring during a first threshold detection duration. The method may further include causing processing of events to cease for a particular throttling duration in response to determining that the first number of events occurring during the threshold detection duration is greater than a predetermined threshold. The method may also include determining a second number of events occurring during a second threshold detection duration. Additionally, the method may include, in response to determining that the first number of events occurring during the first threshold detection duration is greater than the predetermined threshold and that the second number of events occurring during the second threshold detection duration is greater than the predetermined threshold: increasing the time of the particular throttling duration; and causing processing of events to cease for the increased particular throttling duration.
US09059898B2
In one embodiment, an automatic, remote and centralized configuration management system for tracking configuration changes in an enterprise product is provided. The system comprises at least one subsystem forming a part of the enterprise product, an agent coupled to the subsystem, the agent configured for creating one or more configuration snapshots of the subsystem and a configuration manager operably coupled to the agent, the configuration manager configured to communicate with the agent to collect the one or more configuration snapshots so as to track the configuration changes in the enterprise product.
US09059894B2
A data exchange adaptor that synchronizes data between an enterprise system operated by a company and a cloud-based system operated by a third party other than the company. The data exchange adaptor enables exchange of data between the enterprise system and the cloud-based system and controls storage and retrieval of data at the enterprise system and the cloud-based system. The data exchange adaptor also performs transport level security for communications that exchange data between the enterprise system and the cloud-based system and access level security for data stored to the enterprise system and the cloud-based system. The data exchange adaptor further schedules synchronization of data between the enterprise system and the cloud-based system and allows the enterprise system to retain control over the synchronization of data between the enterprise system and the cloud-based system.
US09059889B2
Polar multi-symbol delay detector for carrier phase and frequency recovery for coherent transmission
A method for calculating a reconstructed phase that includes: Calculating a current phase signal and current amplitude signal that represent a phase and amplitude of a current input symbol, respectively. Generating, in response to the current phase signal and an estimate of a phase of a last input symbol that preceded the current input symbol, multiple partial references, some of which are responsive to (i) phase signals representative of phases of a plurality of input symbols that preceded the current input symbol, and (ii) estimates of the phase of the plurality of input symbols. Calculating unwrapped partial references. Estimating a constant carrier frequency offset (CFO) phase rotation in response to the unwrapped partial references. Calculating a reconstructed phase of the current input symbol in response to, at least, the estimate of the constant CFO phase rotation and to the unwrapped partial references.
US09059883B2
A method and apparatus are provided for facilitating content distribution. A method may include receiving, at an edge proxy apparatus, a subscription request indicating content to which a subscriber is to be subscribed. The method may further include creating a flow token including content relation information referencing the indicated content and state information enabling delivery of subscribed content to a subscriber apparatus associated with the subscriber. The method may additionally include causing the flow token to be provided to a lookup service apparatus configured to provide access to flow tokens to one or more content publishers. A corresponding apparatus is also provided.
US09059881B2
Embodiments of the invention provide a method of decoding of hexagonal constellations. The decoding methods exploit the inherent structure of the hexagonal grid to eliminate/minimize the requirements for distance computations. A constellation which has unused constellation points is received. A plurality of lookup tables is used for indicating whether a particular constellation point is used. The lookup tables are indexed using the two integers u and v. An initial estimate ū and v is found. The Euclidean distance to the immediate neighbors resulting in the immediate upper and lower integers for ū and v is computed. From the distance to the nearest neighbor, the log-likelihood ratio value is computed.
US09059877B2
A transmitting device may control digital-to-analog converter (DAC) illumination to optimize signal to noise ratio of a transmission signal. DAC illumination may be adjusted based, at least in part, on analog gain and estimated total transmit power of a particular transmission signal. For each destination, total transmit power may be estimated based on tone map, amplitude map, back-off settings, or other characteristics. The estimated total transmit power is used to determine an appropriate analog gain. Once analog gain and total transmit power are known, fine control of SNR may be achieved by adjusting power level in the digital domain. A digital power control setting is used to scale the amplitude of the digital baseband signal prior to DAC operation. The DAC illumination of the digital baseband signal allows the DAC to operate at an optimized power level within the digital range of the DAC.
US09059876B2
An all outdoor unit communication system, for performing cross polarization interference cancellation, is provided. The system includes a first outdoor unit (ODU) configured to receive a horizontally polarized signal, a first RF module configured to convert the horizontally polarized signal into a first in-phase (I) component and a first quadrature (Q) component, and a first modem configured to up-convert the first I and Q components from baseband into a horizontally polarized intermediate frequency (IF) signal. The system also includes a second ODU configured to receive a vertically polarized signal, a second RF module configured to convert the vertically polarized signal into a second I component and a second Q component, and a second modem configured to up-convert the second I and Q components from baseband into a vertically polarized IF signal. The system is configured to share, via an interconnect, the polarized IF signals between the first and second ODUs.
US09059873B2
A system, method, and apparatus are provided for a source to choose a partner/relay from at least one candidate to transmit at least part of a message from the source to destination. The choice depends on the channel conditions of the source and when the source is experiencing poor channel quality to the destination, the source selects the candidate and the modulation modes of the source and partner/relay such that the frame error rate (FER) of the source is lowered. Otherwise, a modulation mode is selected for each of the source and the partner/relay that most improves the gain in throughput of the source. The present invention applies to modes consisting of binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), and 16-state quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM).
US09059862B2
A first device, provided in an evolved packet core (EPC) network, receives load information associated with a second device provided in the EPC network. The load information includes a load threshold associated with the second device. The first device also receives traffic to be provided to the second device, and determines whether providing the traffic to the second device will cause the second device to exceed the load threshold. The first device provides the traffic to the second device when providing the traffic to the second device will not cause the second device to exceed the load threshold. The first device reduces a quantity associated with the traffic, to create throttled traffic, and provides the throttled traffic to the second device, when providing the traffic to the second device will cause the second device to exceed the load threshold.
US09059861B2
According to one embodiment of the invention, a method comprises identifying that a wireless receiving device is operating in a battery saving mode where a Delivery Traffic Indicator Map (DTIM) Interval supported by the wireless device exceeds a Listening Interval supported by the wireless receiving device. Thereafter, the method further comprises converting a non-unicast message into one or more unicast messages for transmission to the wireless receiving device.
US09059853B1
A system for preventing a computing device from obtaining unauthorized access to a secure network includes a client agent operably connected to the computing device configured to intercept network traffic information from applications running on the computing device and transmit a network request including application information and the network traffic information. A network token broker operably connected to the network client agent contains a database of application information. The network token broker is configured to cooperate with the network client agent for i) verifying whether the network request should be granted access to the secure network, and ii) cryptographically signing the intercepted network traffic information with a network authorization token, to authorize network access for the intercepted network traffic information. A guard system is configured to inspect the network traffic information from the computing device and reject any traffic information not signed with the network authorization token.
US09059851B2
A method for generating an encryption dictionary, the method includes generating a random value for each plaintext symbol of multiple plaintext symbols; and calculating a random token for each plaintext symbol based on a random value of the plaintext symbol and on random values of other plaintext symbols that have a lower lexicographic value than the plaintext symbol; wherein the calculating comprises applying a monotonic function; wherein the encryption dictionary comprises a mapping between the multiple plaintext symbols and random token of the multiple plaintext symbols.
US09059847B2
A mechanism is provided for transmitting a multicast session to a plurality of receivers over a wireless network. A forward error correction (FEC) overhead and a transmission rate are determined for transmission of a next data block of the multicast session based on received channel conditions. The next data block is multicast using the determined FEC overhead and transmission rate. Responsive to an indication of common missing packets from the next data block from more than one receiver in the plurality of receivers, the common missing packets are multicast to the plurality of receivers using the determined FEC overhead and transmission rate. Responsive to an indication of uncommon missing packets from the data block from one or more receivers, for each receiver in the one or more receivers, the uncommon missing packets identified by the receiver are unicast using the determined FEC overhead and transmission rate.
US09059846B2
A retransmission control method, a transmitter and a receiver. The method comprises the steps of receiving, at a MIMO transmitter, a NACK signal indicating an unsuccessful decoding of a coded data packet at a MIMO receiver; receiving a reliability measure associated with one or more transmitted spatial data streams for the unsuccessfully decoded data packet; comparing the reliability measure with at least one predetermined threshold; and selecting a retransmission protocol based on the comparison of the reliability measure with the at least one predetermined threshold.
US09059845B2
The exemplary embodiments of the invention utilize techniques that provide an amount of scheduling flexibility for retransmissions (e.g., downlink HARQ retransmissions) while also limiting the amount of time within which a UE can expect retransmissions. Thus, the network retains scheduling flexibility while the UE can still operate in DRX, for example. In one exemplary embodiment, a method includes: receiving an initial transmission of information; and receiving a retransmission of the information, where the retransmission is received within a window of time having a predetermined duration, where the window of time is arranged to begin at a predetermined time or after a predetermined time interval. In further exemplary embodiments, the predetermined duration of the window of time is measured using a DRX retransmission timer and/or the predetermined time or the predetermined time interval is measured using a HARQ RTT timer.
US09059831B2
In an SC-FDE system, in accordance with FDPMT, a transmitter may be configured to replace data carried by one or more signals, e.g., one or more sub-carriers, with the data included in a pilot frequency sequence. The starting position of the pilot frequency sequence may affect the BER value of the system. The transmitter may then be configured to choose a proper starting position for the pilot frequency sequence so that the BER of the overall system may be minimum.
US09059824B2
This invention concerns multiplexing in Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Long Term Evolution-Advanced (LTE-A) in Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) wireless telephony. Joint processing down link coordinated multi-point reference signaling includes combining resource signal types at a user equipment, determining conflicts between resource signals of plural user equipment, puncturing resource signals of other cell upon determining conflicts between resource signals of plural user equipment and transmitting non-punctured combined resource signals from a user equipment.
US09059820B2
The present invention relates to a wireless communication system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus which indicate, using multiple CQIs, channel quality in the event multiple users are scheduled in the same time/frequency area, and to a method and apparatus which estimate a channel state using said multiple CQIs. According to the embodiments of the present invention, a channel state can be estimated in a more accurate manner in a multi-user MIMO system.
US09059819B2
Systems, methods, devices, and computer program products are described for transmission of downlink channel quality information and acknowledgment information in a multi-carrier wireless communication system. Channel quality information may be estimated for a number of downlink carriers. An uplink control channel may be configured in a flexible manner based on the number of activated carriers and whether those carriers are configured with MIMO. The feedback cycle for the channel quality information may remain constant.
US09059818B2
A wireless communication system, a method, and an apparatus for transmitting a multi-user Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) signal in a wireless communication system for supporting a relay. A method for transmitting a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) for downlink multi-user MIMO transmission, the method including mapping a DMRS for first and second layers on a downlink physical resource block according to first and second DMRS patterns, respectively; and transmitting the downlink physical resource block. In the downlink physical resource block, a resource element corresponding to the second DMRS pattern can be punctured on the first layer and resource element corresponding to the first DMRS pattern can be punctured on the first layer and a resource element corresponding to the first DMRS pattern can be punctured on the second layer.
US09059810B2
A device and method for controlling the operating mode of an application included in service data which is transmitted together with a broadcast program, are disclosed. A digital broadcast system includes a digital broadcasting device which transmits service data together with a broadcast program, wherein the service data includes an application which allows a digital broadcasting receiver to perform a particular operation and information associated with the operating mode of the application. The digital broadcast system also includes a digital broadcasting receiver which receives the service data and executes the application when the operating mode of the application is an initial operating mode, and otherwise, waits until there is a service request by a viewer, and then executes the application. The digital broadcast system for broadcasting additional service data together with broadcast programs can arbitrarily select the point of time at which an application provided to a digital broadcast receiver is executed, during the manufacture of contents, so that various types of interactive services can be provided.
US09059809B2
A computer-implemented method and system allows a remote computer user to listen to teams in a race event. The method includes receiving audio signals from a plurality of audio sources at the race event; transmitting at least some of the audio signals to a remote computer; and filtering the audio signals as a function of the source of at least some of the audio signals so that at least some of the audio signals are not played by the remote computer and heard by the user.
US09059807B2
The invention provides a linear burst mode receiver comprising a first amplifier connected to a photodiode adapted to detect an optical input burst signal, a second amplifier connected to said photodiode; and means for deriving the peak input current of the detected burst signal using said second amplifier. The invention further provides means for using the derived peak input current to adjust the gain of the first amplifier during the preamble of each burst, such that the output voltage swing of the first amplifier equals a given reference, independent of the strength of the optical input burst signal. The usage of the fast feed-forward automatic gain control mechanism solves the problems with gain switching and non-linearity prevalent in today's burst-mode receivers.
US09059804B2
Disclosed herein is a high speed optical transceiver module, which makes it possible to prevent a wavelength shift and thus to achieve low power and high efficiency by forming a hole with a predetermined depth in a stem heat sink for dissipating heat generated in an LD through a lower portion of a stem and putting a micro heater in the hole, thereby compensating for the temperature of the LD in order to prevent wavelength shift caused by the influence of the ambient temperature on an LD chip in a transistor outline (TO) when an un-cooled optical transceiver module is driven at low temperature and to prevent the communication from being impossible when the ambient temperature is lowered during the communication using a CWDM scheme.
US09059794B2
A method for generating interference signals and a device to carry out said method, in which an interference signal (1) is added in a signal combination and separation network (3) with a desired signal (4) that carries a test message, the sum signal being sent to a device being tested (5). The interference signal (1) is generated with a single source connected to a signal divider and conditioner block (7) that attenuates additional interference produced by the source of generation of interference signals (1), while providing as many interference signals (1) as the device (5) under test has antennas (Rx, Rx/Tx), and in which each interference signal (1) is sent to a respective amplification and isolation block (8), which adjusts the power level of the interference signal (1) and attenuates the reverse intermodulation products produced by the transmission of signals by the device (5) under test.
US09059790B2
The present invention provides an ultra-wide band (UWB) system and method. In one embodiment, a transmitter of a low duty cycled ultra wide band (UWB) system includes a differential spreading encoder for encoding a phase of a bit sequence based on a reference bit sequence. The transmitter also includes a pulse generator for generating a number of pulses associated the bit sequence using the encoded phase of the bit sequence, where the number of pulses is equal to a length of the bit sequence. Moreover, the transmitter includes a DMPSK modulator for generating a modulated signal through modulating the number of pulses using a phase of a differential data symbol.
US09059783B2
A device comprising both a box containing an electronic central unit, and power supply module connected to the central unit. The device also includes an external power supply block connected to the module by an electric cable and provided with both a connection member for connection to a power supply network delivering AC power and a data signal superposed thereon. A converter is provided for converting the AC power. The box includes a carrier current data transmission module, the converter being connected to the connection member and to the electric cable via a first diverter member that extracts and diverts the data signal relative to the converter. The module is connected to the electric cable by a second diverter member for separating the converted power supply current and the data signal and for bringing the power supply current to the power supply module and the data signal to the transmission module.
US09059780B1
A nodal division multiple access technique for multiple access to a communications channel such as a satellite transponder. The present invention provides multiple access into a communications channel where each accessing site utilizes one signal from a composite amplitude/phase digital signal constellation, such that demodulators receive the composite signal without changes in the system design related to the multiple access operation.
US09059778B2
A method and apparatus provide signal compression for transfer over serial data links in a base transceiver system (BTS) of a wireless communication network. For the uplink, an RF unit of the BTS applies frequency domain compression of baseband signal samples, resulting from analog to digital conversion of received analog signals followed by digital downconversion, forming compressed coefficients. After transfer over the serial data link, the baseband processor then applies frequency domain decompression to the compressed coefficients prior to normal signal processing. For the downlink, the baseband processor applies frequency domain compression of baseband signal samples and transfers the compressed coefficients to the RF unit. The RF unit applies frequency domain decompression to the compressed coefficients prior to digital upconversion and digital to analog conversion, generating the analog signal for transmission over the antenna. This abstract does not limit the scope of the invention as described in the claims.
US09059775B2
A method for radio frequency device pairing includes: after a pairing instruction is received, sending a discovery request message to a second radio frequency device; receiving a discovery response message returned by the second radio frequency device; sending a first pairing request message to the second radio frequency device; receiving a first pairing response message returned by the second radio frequency device; after a button instruction entered by the user according to interface information displayed by the second radio frequency device is received, sending, to the second radio frequency device, a second pairing request message which contains button information corresponding to the button instruction; receiving a second pairing response message which is returned by the second radio frequency device and contains a confirmation result indicating that the button information and the interface information are successfully matched; exchanging keys with the target second radio frequency device, thereby completing pairing.
US09059774B2
The present invention relates to a tilt correction method and a corresponding apparatus for correcting tilt of RF signals in a wanted channel having a predetermined frequency range, in a signal path of a communication equipment, wherein the RF signals are down-converted to an intermediate frequency of an IF domain. The method comprises the steps of: providing a predetermined RF signal having a particular frequency to the signal path, detecting an output signal in the intermediate frequency (IF) domain and outputting a detection result, repeating the providing step and the detecting step for plural RF signals of different frequencies within the channel frequency range, determining the tilt of the RF signals in the frequency range by comparing the detection results, and correcting the tilt to obtain a minimized tilt of the wanted channel depending upon the determined tilt. The present invention further refers to a computer program including program code means to carry out the method, and to an integrated circuit wherein the apparatus is implemented.
US09059768B1
An interference cancellation system supports a dynamic operating range from maximum interfering signal level to the on-channel noise floor. The system uses a novel combination of analog and digital processing effectively cancelling 1) high-level interfering signal components, 2) low-level interfering noise, and 3) distortion components. The system employs an interrelated combination of cross-domain analog and digital processing techniques to defeat the inherent dynamic range limitations existing in either individual domain.
US09059764B2
A method of performing receive antenna selection is presented. The method executes a determination operation for a set of receive antennas, determines a maximum result of the determination operation for two of the antennas, eliminates one of the two antennas from the set of antennas, and repeats the determination and elimination process until only a predetermined number of antennas remain in the set. The signals from these remaining antennas are then processed. The present invention reduces receiver complexity and cost.
US09059761B2
A data transmission apparatus having a plurality of antennas in a frequency division multiplexing system is provided. The apparatus includes a demultiplexer for splitting first-type data into plural pieces of sub-data, a first precoder for mapping the plural pieces of sub-data to the plurality of antennas by applying a first weight, a second precoder for mapping second-type data with an attribute different from the first-type data to the plurality of antennas by applying a second weight, and a transmit processor for transmitting the first-type data together with the second-type data through the plurality of antennas. Coverage can be expanded, and different types of services can be concurrently provided and system management can be achieved with increased flexibility and reliability.
US09059755B2
The present invention provides methods and apparatus for transmitting and receiving over a MIMO radio link. In particular, a preceding matrix is applied to transmitted signals and constrained in such a way so as to limit the additional peak to average power ratio (PAPR) caused by applying the precoding matrix. For example, each row of the precoding matrix may have at least one zero element and one non-zero element, and each column may have at least one non-zero element.
US09059749B2
A wireless communication device may autonomously transition from a multiple antenna port mode to a single antenna port mode. The wireless communication device may implicitly notify a base station about the autonomous transition from the multiple antenna port mode to the single antenna port mode. The base station may reallocate resources that were previously allocated to the wireless communication device but that are no longer being used by the wireless communication device. In some cases, the base station may configure the wireless communication device's antenna port mode via radio resource control signaling.
US09059745B2
An exemplary method of error checking and correction applied in a multi-channel system, includes: performing error checking and correction encoding upon a first data packet of a first channel and a second data packet of a second channel, and generating a first horizontal error correction code and a second horizontal error correction code; performing error checking and correction encoding upon a first mixed data packet and a second mixed data packet, and generating a first vertical error correction code and a second vertical error correction code; and combining the first data packet, the first horizontal error correction code and the first vertical error correction code into the first encoded data packet of the first channel, and combining the second data packet, the second horizontal error correction code and the second vertical error correction code into the second encoded data packet of the second channel.
US09059744B2
A method for encoding a data word for writing an encoded data word in N cells of a solid state memory. Each of the N cells can be programmed in one of q nominal levels. The method includes encoding the data word as a codeword of a first codeword type having q symbol values or as a codeword of a second codeword type having (q−d) symbol values, dε[1, . . . , q−1], depending on a state of the N cells.
US09059741B2
A method is provided for transmitting a Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) code by a signal transmission apparatus in a multimedia system. The method includes generating the LDPC code based on a resulting parity check matrix, which is generated by performing a scaling down operation on a base parity check matrix; and transmitting the LDPC code. The scaling down operation is performed based on a scaling factor for determining a size of each permutation matrix in the resulting parity check matrix and a size of each zero matrix included in the resulting parity check matrix, and the scaling factor is determined based on a number of column blocks included in the base parity check matrix and a size of each permutation matrix included in the base parity check matrix.
US09059736B2
A data storage device may comprise a flash controller and an array of flash memory devices coupled to the flash controller. The array may comprise a plurality of S-Pages that may each comprise a plurality of F-Pages. In turn, each of the plurality of F-Pages may be configured to store a variable amount of data and a variable amount of error correction code. The flash controller may be configured to generate an error correction code across each F-Page of an S-Page and to store the generated error correction code within one or more F-Pages having the largest amount of data.
US09059729B1
A compression algorithm is disclosed in which compressibility of an input frame is determined. If a frame is found to be compressible, it is input to a compression algorithm, otherwise the frame may bypass the compression algorithm. Literals of length N bits in a frame are sorted into 2^N bins such a counter Bi indicates a number of literals of value i. The maximum and minimum counter values are evaluated to estimate the compressibility of the file. For example, if Bmax is the maximum counter value and Bmin is the minimum counter value, then If Bmax
US09059728B2
Aspects of the invention are provided for decoding a selected span of data within a compressed code stream. A selection of data within the compressed code stream from an arbitrary position is presented for decompression. The arbitrary position is the starting point in the compressed code stream for decompression, and a phrase within the compressed code stream containing the starting point is identified. From the arbitrary starting point, a back pointer may provide direction to the literal. The literal is extracted as a decoding of the compressed data associated with the starting point.
US09059726B2
A data processing apparatus includes processing circuitry for performing a convert-to-integer operation for converting a floating-point value to a rounded two's complement integer value. The convert-to-integer operation uses round-to-nearest, ties away from zero, rounding (RNA rounding). The operation is performed by generating an intermediate value based on the floating-point value, adding a rounding value to the intermediate value to generate a sum value, and outputting the integer-valued bits of the sum value as the rounded two's complement integer value. If the floating-point value is negative, then the intermediate value is generated by inverting the bits without adding a bit value of 1 to a least significant bit of the inverted value.
US09059720B1
A circuit includes a sampler circuit, a filter circuit, a control circuit, and a phase shift circuit. The sampler circuit samples input data in response to a clock signal. The filter circuit is coupled to the sampler circuit. The control circuit is coupled to the filter circuit. The phase shift circuit provides the clock signal to the sampler circuit. The control circuit causes the phase shift circuit to shift a phase of the clock signal by a first phase shift, and by a second phase shift after the phase of the clock signal has shifted by the first phase shift, in response to the filter circuit indicating to shift the phase of the clock signal by more than a predefined phase shift.
US09059718B2
A method for synchronizing an output clock signal with an input clock signal in a delay locked loop. A first count values decreasing the number of bypassed elements in a differential delay line until an edge of the output clock signal is delayed relative to an edge of the input clock signal or the first count value reaches a first count final value if the first count value reaches the first count final value, a second count value is adjusting to decrease the number of bypassed elements in a single-ended delay line until the edge of the output clock signal is delayed relative to the edge of the input clock signal. A third count value is adjusted to decrease the delay of an interpolator until the edge of the output clock signal is no longer delayed with respect to the edge of the input clock signal.
US09059715B2
Methods and systems to implement voltage level shifting with interim-voltage-controlled contention-interruption. A voltage level shifter (VLS) may include voltage level shift circuitry to level shift an input logical state from an input voltage swing to an output voltage swing. The VLS may include contention circuitry, a contention interrupter, and an interrupt controller to generate a contention-interrupt control having an interim voltage swing. A lower limit of the interim voltage swing may correspond to a lower limit of the output voltage swing. An upper limit of the interim voltage swing may correspond to an upper limit of the input voltage swing. The VLS may be implemented to level shift true and complimentary logical states, such as with cascode voltage switch logic (CVSL). The interim-voltage-controlled contention interrupter may help to maintain voltages within process-based voltage reliability limits of the contention interrupter, with relatively little delay, and relatively little power and area consumption.
US09059713B2
A capacitive touch keypad assembly includes a housing, a capacitance sensing substrate disposed within the housing, and a plurality of conducting members. The housing includes a barrier panel and a keypad display disposed on an exterior surface of the barrier panel. The keypad display defines a plurality of key locations each aligned with a corresponding bore in the barrier panel. The capacitance sensing substrate includes a plurality of key sensors in alignment with the corresponding plurality of key locations. Each of the plurality of conducting members has a first end disposed in a corresponding one of the plurality of barrier panel bores and a second end engaging a corresponding one of the plurality of key sensors.
US09059707B2
A quantum information processing system includes a waveguide having an aperture, a non-linear quantum circuit disposed in the waveguide and an electromagnetic control signal source coupled to the aperture.
US09059705B1
A non-volatile field programmable gate array includes a logic component, a transistor device comprising a gate structure, a first impurity region, and a second impurity region, the first impurity region coupled to the reconfigurable logic component, and a resistive switching device comprising a bottom electrode coupled to the first impurity region, a top electrode spatially extending in a first direction, and a resistive switching element coupled to the top electrode and to the bottom electrode at an intersecting region between the bottom electrode and the top electrode, wherein the resistive switching device stores a resistance state from a plurality of resistance states that indicates a configuration code for the reconfigurable logic component.
US09059704B2
An object is to provide a programmable logic device configured to keep a connection state of logic circuits even while power supply voltage is stopped. The programmable logic device includes arithmetic circuits each of whose logic state can be changed; a configuration changing circuit changing the logic states of the arithmetic circuits; a power supply control circuit controlling supply of power supply voltage to the arithmetic circuits; a state memory circuit storing data on the logic states and data on states of the power supply voltage of the arithmetic circuits; and an arithmetic state control circuit controlling the configuration changing circuit and the power supply control circuit in accordance with the data stored in the state memory circuit. A transistor in which a channel formation region is formed in an oxide semiconductor layer is provided between the configuration changing circuit and each of the arithmetic circuits.
US09059702B2
Radio-frequency (RF) switch circuits providing improved switching performance. An RF switch system includes at least one field-effect transistor (FET) disposed between a first node and a second node, each FET having a source, drain, gate, and body. A compensation circuit is connected to the respective source of the at least one FET. The compensation circuit may be configured to compensate a non-linearity effect generated by the at least one FET.
US09059696B1
A multichip package that includes an interposer and integrated circuits mounted on the interposer is provided. The interposer may include interposer routing circuitry and programmable power gating circuitry. At least one of the on-interposer integrated circuits may include power gating control logic that controls the programmable power gating circuitry. Circuitry on the integrated circuit may receive power supply voltage signals from the programmable power gating circuitry via the interposer routing circuitry. The programmable power gating circuitry may be configured to support fine, intermediate, and/or coarse power gating granularities. The programmable power gating circuitry may be used to selectively power down certain portions of the integrated circuit and may be used to provide desired power supply voltage levels to different voltage islands on the integrated circuit.
US09059695B2
Described is a communication system in a first integrated circuit (IC) communicates with a second IC via single-ended communication channels. A bidirectional reference channel extends between the first and second ICs and is terminated on both ends. The termination impedances at each end of the reference channel support different modes for communicating signals in different directions. The termination impedances for the reference channel can be optimized for each signaling direction.
US09059689B2
To provide a semiconductor device capable of adjusting the timing of a clock signal or a high-quality semiconductor device. The semiconductor device includes a first transistor and a circuit including a second transistor. A channel of the first transistor is formed in an oxide semiconductor layer. A first signal is input to one of a source and a drain of the first transistor. The other of the source and the drain of the first transistor is electrically connected to a gate of the second transistor. A first clock signal is input to the circuit. The circuit outputs a second clock signal. The timing of the second clock signal is different from that of the first clock signal.
US09059684B2
An integrated circuit for switching a transistor is disclosed. In some embodiments, an operational amplifier is configured to drive a transistor, and slew rate control circuitry is configured to control the slew rate of the transistor source voltage during turn on. The transistor source voltage is employed as feedback to the operational amplifier to facilitate closed loop control of the transistor source voltage during switching of the transistor.
US09059680B2
An impedance adjustment apparatus of the invention performs impedance matching using characteristic parameters, even where a high frequency power source of variable frequencies is used. The apparatus is applicable to a power supply system using a high frequency power source of variable frequencies. Characteristic parameters obtained by targeting a portion of combinations of position information (C) of a variable capacitor and output frequency information (F) of the power source are stored in a memory. A T-parameter acquisition unit acquires characteristic parameters corresponding to (Cnow, Fnow) at the current time. An output reflection coefficient calculation unit calculates a reflection coefficient of an output end. A target information specifying unit, based on the above information and a target input reflection coefficient, specifies target combination information in which a reflection coefficient of an output end approaches the target input reflection coefficient. Impedance matching is performed based on this information.
US09059677B2
An electromechanical device having a resonator using acoustic waves propagating laterally within a piezoelectric plane resonant structure and electrodes on a face of said structure. The resonant structure comprises: a transduction region having a transduction length and generating acoustic waves; a free propagation region for the acoustic waves, adjacent to the transduction region and defined the plane of the transduction region; the resonant structure length being equal to an integer number of half-wavelengths, the resonance frequency of said resonator equaling the average propagation velocity of the wave within the structure divided by said wavelength, to adjust the quality factor of the resonator fixed by the length of the resonant structure and the coupling coefficient fixed by the ratio of the transduction length over the length of the resonant structure; the resonant structure defined by the assembly of the transduction region and the propagation region being laterally bounded by reflection regions.
US09059670B2
An audio source level control system in which the level of the audio source signal that is to be played over headphones is automatically set to an appropriate level. The system can include circuitry that can be controlled so as to increase or decrease the level of the audio signal that is provided by an audio source to the headphones; the audio source is typically a portable consumer digital device. There is a controller that is responsive to the audio signal from the audio source and that is adapted to control the circuitry so as to automatically establish a level of the audio signal that is provided to the headphones when the audio source is initially available to output an audio signal to the headphones.
US09059668B2
A switching mode amplifier and method. A voltage divider comprising two series connected reactive components produces, on a center line, a fraction of a voltage received on a first line and a second line. The switching structure produce a fraction of the power supply voltage to the first port or the second port by either one of 1) a first configuration that connects the first port to the first input and the second port to the center line, or 2) a second configuration that connects the first port to the center line and the second port to the second input. A controller responds to a sequence of commands to provide the fraction of the voltage by alternating the switching structure between the first configuration and the second configuration.
US09059662B1
An active combiner can have multiple output sections each with a corresponding input section or a single output section with multiple input sections. The output section can switch between mixer and amplifier modes, with or without variable gain, to modify an input signal from the input section. The input section has a sufficiently high impedance to substantially block the RF signal from other input sections from entering any of the other input sections. The output section has a sufficiently low impedance to receive the RF signal from the input sections.
US09059657B2
A motor control device includes a PWM signal generation unit configured to increase/decrease duty in both leading and lagging directions regarding a phase in which the duty becomes maximum among three-phase PWM signals. The unit is also configured to increase/decrease the duty in one of leading and lagging directions regarding a phase in which the duty becomes minimum. Regarding a phase in which duty is intermediate between the phases, the unit is configured to increase/decrease duty in the other of the leading and lagging directions based on the phase, thereby generating a three-phase PWM signal pattern so that a current detection unit is capable of detecting two-phase currents at two time-points fixed within a carrier period of the PWM signal respectively. A duty compensation unit is configured to increase/decrease before and after changing an increasing/decreasing direction of three-phase duties, increasing/decreasing the duties to compensate for the duties.
US09059656B2
Disclosed herein are a switching control apparatus for a two phase switch reluctance motor and a control method using the same. The switching control apparatus includes a rectifier; and an active converter including a pair of common switches, a pair of first phase switches, a pair of serially connected second phase switches, a plurality of current feedback diodes each connected to the switches, and a pair of drivers controlling the switches and operated as operation modes 1 to 3 to provide the commercial power provided from the rectifier to the two phase SRM and drive the two phase SRMs.
US09059653B2
A rotating electrical machine control device that applies a high frequency current to a rotating electrical machine including a rotor having saliency, estimates a magnetic pole direction of the rotor on the basis of a high frequency component contained in a voltage command as a response component to the high frequency current, and controls the rotating electrical machine. A high frequency superimposing section sets an estimated d-q axis rotating coordinate system, and a magnetic pole direction adjusting section sets a high frequency coordinate system having a phase difference of the high frequency current command with respect to the estimated d-q axis rotating coordinate system. A steady estimation error correcting section calculates a magnetic flux interference estimation error as an error of the estimated value of the magnetic pole direction which is caused by the d-q axis magnetic flux interference.
US09059652B2
A motor drive system includes a first interlock mechanism configured to be activated in response to transition to an operable state of an interruption device, to open an open/close device, a second interlock mechanism configured to be activated in response to transition to an openable state of a case containing a power control unit, to open the open/close device, and a control device. The control device is configured to perform, when the first interlock mechanism is activated, a first process of opening the open/close device after shutting down the power control unit, and to perform, when the second interlock mechanism is activated, a second process of opening the open/close device while driving the power control unit, instead of the first process, depending on a counter electromotive voltage generated by a motor.
US09059638B2
Embodiments disclose control methods and control apparatuses for a switched mode power supply. The switched mode power supply comprises a current-controllable device. A driving current is provided to turn ON the current-controllable device. A conduction current passing through the current-controllable device is detected. The driving current is controlled according to the conduction current. The higher the conduction current the higher the driving current.
US09059636B2
The present invention provides a series of DC-DC converter circuit designs, and DC-DC converters based on such circuit design, that provide high input-to-output voltage conversion. The converters include a resonant tank and a means for interrupting the tank current to produce a near zero-loss “hold” state wherein zero current and/or zero voltage switching is provided, while providing control over the amount of power transfer. A resonant DC-DC converter for high voltage step-up ratio in accordance with the circuit design includes: (a) a low voltage DC-AC converter, (b) a resonant tank, (c) a high voltage AC-DC converter, (d) a (i) common ground on an input and an output without use of a transformer and/or (ii) a single high voltage controllable switch within the resonant tank.
US09059631B2
An apparatus and a method for recognizing an electric over-stress of a hybrid supply modulator including a linear regulator and an Switching Mode Power Supplier (SMPS), and protecting a network from the electric over-stress are provided. The hybrid supply modulator includes at least one sensing unit and at least one actuator unit. The at least one sensing unit senses at least one of a current and a voltage at one or more points defined in advance within a supply modulator network. The at least one actuator unit performs a protection action corresponding to at least one electric over-stress situation represented by the sensing result.
US09059627B2
The invention relates to a permanent magnet coupling for the synchronous transmission of torque, comprising a first member (1) having permanent magnets (4a, 4b) and a second member (2), the members being designed as inner rotor and outer rotors and separated by an air gap (3) extending between the members (1, 2), wherein the members (1, 2) are coupled to enable a synchronous movement by forces generated by the permanent magnets (4a, 4b) by the interaction with the second member (2), wherein the first member (1) comprises a first group of permanent magnets (4a) having magnetizing directions parallel to the air gap (3) and a second group of permanent magnets (4b) having magnetizing directions perpendicular to the air gap (3), wherein the permanent magnets (4a, 4b) of the first group and of the second group of the first member (1) are alternately arranged in the circumferential direction, and wherein, as viewed in the circumferential direction, the consecutive permanent magnets (4a) of the first group and the consecutive permanent magnets (4b) of the second group have opposing magnetizing directions, respectively. According to the invention, the permanent magnets (4b) of the second group, starting from the air gap (3), are arranged offset toward the back with respect to the permanent magnet (4a) of the first group such that permanent magnet-free intermediate spaces (5), in particular made of soft iron, remain between the air gap (3) and the permanent magnet (4b) of the second group, said intermediate spaces being delimited laterally by the permanent magnets (4a) of the first group.
US09059625B2
A linear vibration device may comprise a stator assembly including a plate and a case, and a vibrator assembly including a yoke and a spring. The case of the stator assembly and the spring of the vibrator assembly may be coupled to each other. The case may be provided with a protrusion, the spring may be provided with a groove, and the protrusion and the groove may be coupled to each other.
US09059622B2
A wiper motor 10 includes: an armature 20; an armature shaft 21; a core 20a composed of eighteen teeth portions; a commutator 23 having eighteen commutator bars 23a1 to 23a18; and a winding 20b composed of eighteen coil portions 20b1 to 20b18; an equalizer 27 composed of nine connecting conductors 27a1 to 27a9; a first brush 36, a second brush 35 shifted from a first brush 26 by 90 degrees, and a third brush 37 shifted from the first and second brushes by 90 or more degrees, each brush being arranged so as to come in sliding contact with the commutator bars, the first brush being connected to a common electric potential, a current for rotating the armature at low speed is selectively supplied to the second brush, and a current for rotating the armature at high speed is selectively supplied to the third brush.
US09059615B2
A motor of the invention has a rotary body of a rotor, and the rotary body includes an outer core constituting an outer portion of the rotary body, an inner core constituting an inner portion connected to a shaft, and a dielectric layer disposed between the outer core and the inner core. The outer core has a protruding portion that protrudes inward from an inner surface thereof, and the inner core has a protruding portion that protrudes outward from an outer surface thereof, wherein the outer core and the inner core are so disposed that an end face of the protruding portion of the outer core and an end face of the protruding portion of the inner core confront partially with respect to each other.
US09059614B2
In a multi-gap type electric rotating machine, side cores include an outside-side core connected to one end side of an outside core, and an inside-side core connected to one end side of an inside core. The outside-side core includes an outer-side rotor-opposite portion which projects from the inner periphery end of the outside core and is opposite to an end face at the outer periphery side of a rotor. The inside-side core includes an inner-side rotor-opposite portion which projects from the outer periphery end of the inside core and is opposite to an end face at the inner periphery side of the rotor. The outside-side core and the inside-side core are arranged so as to be opposed to each other in the radial direction thereof with a gap being interposed between the inner periphery end of the outer-side rotor-opposite portion and the outer periphery end of the inner-side rotor-opposite portion.
US09059612B2
A spindle motor includes a sleeve fixedly installed on a base member; a shaft rotatably supported by the sleeve; a rotor hub fixedly installed on an upper end portion of the shaft to rotate together therewith; and a thrust plate fixedly coupled to the sleeve so as to be disposed to face a lower surface of the rotor hub and having a ring shape. The thrust plate includes a channel part formed therein in order to reduce a difference in pressure between a bearing clearance on an inner side thereof and a bearing clearance on an outer side thereof. The channel part is configured of grooves formed in a lower surface of the thrust plate and an inner peripheral surface thereof.
US09059611B2
A stator core includes at least one bendable strip-shaped core. Each strip-shaped core is formed by stacking a plurality of laminations. Each lamination includes at least two yoke portions and at least two tooth portions. Every two adjacent yoke portions are connected to each other via a bendable portion and have two opposite end surfaces, one of the end surfaces having a groove and the other having a projecting rib. After the bendable portion is bent the projecting rib is engaged in the groove to form an interlock structure such that relative circumferential movement between the adjacent yoke portions is limited.
US09059607B2
A gear-integrated electric motor is provided with a motor (1) generating a driving force by input of electricity, a gear mechanism (2) converting the driving force of the motor, and a housing (8) containing the motor and the gear mechanism, and used in a horizontal position in which a motor shaft (1s) and a gear output shaft (2s) become substantially horizontal. The gear-integrated electric motor includes at least one heat pipe (3) which has an evaporation portion (3e) disposed in a motor area of the housing, and a condensation portion (3c) disposed in a gear mechanism area of the housing and higher than the evaporation portion with respect to the vertical direction in the horizontal position.
US09059589B2
A lighter rechargeable in nature, and complimenting any other hand held device by means of electronic energy transfer.
US09059576B2
Implementations of the present invention include a cable consolidation box for providing secure access to networks with multiple security classifications. More specifically, the cable consolidation box can allow a network administrator to physically secure network cables originating from multiple networks having distinct security classifications. In one or more implementations, the cable consolidation box can have a plurality of entry points that are segregated from one another. Each of the plurality of entry points can be associated with a corresponding plurality of segregated connection chambers. The cable consolidation box can thus allow for various types of cables, with various levels of security classification, to be associated with a single cable consolidation box.
US09059553B2
Aspects of the invention are directed to an apparatus for cleaning electrical terminals. The apparatus comprises a first arm and a second arm. The first arm includes a first cleaning portion with a first upper face and a first lower face. Each of the first upper face and the first lower face are substantially flat and coated with an abrasive. In a similar manner, the second arm includes a second cleaning portion with a second upper face and a second lower face. Here again, each of the second upper face and the second lower face are substantially flat and coated with an abrasive. The second arm is pivotally coupled to the first arm, making the apparatus manually configurable into an aligned configuration in which the first lower face faces the second upper face.
US09059552B2
Aspects of the present invention relate to land grid array socket cartridge structures. In one embodiment, a land grid array (LGA) cartridge structure includes: a deformable thin film having at least one aperture configured to hold a substantially liquid metal, whereby in a compressed state of the deformable thin film, the substantially liquid metal of the deformable thin film is configured to electro-mechanically couple a carrier and a socket base. Another embodiment includes a method of forming a LGA cartridge structure. The method includes: providing a deformable thin film having a first surface and a second surface, and forming at least one aperture within the deformable thin film through the first surface and the second surface, wherein the aperture is configured to hold a substantially liquid metal.
US09059551B2
A backplane apparatus, including a first backplane structure and a second backplane structure, where the first backplane structure is configured to transmit power and low-speed signals, and the second backplane structure is configured to transmit high-speed signals, low-speed signals, or optical signals. The first backplane structure includes a first backplane, multiple first connectors, and a connected space, where the first connectors are arranged on the first backplane and boards are electrically connected to the first backplane. The second backplane structure includes multiple second backplanes and multiple second connectors, where the second connectors are arranged on the second backplanes, the second backplanes are installed on the first backplane, and the second connectors are electrically connected to boards by crossing the connected space or via the first connectors. The present invention also discloses a communication device.
US09059549B2
A cable connector assembly includes an insulative housing defining a cavity, a number of contacts retained in the insulative housing, a metallic shell enclosing the insulative housing, and a cable electrically connected with the contacts. The contacts comprise a number of first and second contacts, The cable has at least one pair of differential wires, the pair of differential wires comprising a pair of signal wires and a grounding wire. Each signal wire includes a number of inner wires and an insulator enclosing the inner wires. A metallic conductive layer is disposed between the inner wires and the insulator.
US09059547B2
A lead system for electrical devices is disclosed that includes a first lead and a second lead, where the second lead may be in communication with a sliding member and a lead channel. The second lead translates laterally along the lead channel between a plurality of positions so as to vary the spacing between the first lead and the second lead.
US09059544B2
An electrical connector includes a housing, a pair of terminals and two first conductive traces. The housing comprises two fixing grooves that support the terminals. Each terminal comprises a base, an extending piece extending from the base and a resilient arm extending from the base. The extending piece comprises a first contact portion and the resilient arm comprises a second contact portion for electrically connecting an electronic device. The two first conductive traces are connected to the pair of terminals, an end portion of the each first conductive trace is electrically connected to the first contact portion of the corresponding terminal, and the other end portion of the each first conductive trace is configured to electrically connect to a circuit board.
US09059531B2
Frames for plug connectors capable of being a reduced size may include features to support contacts, house circuitry for coupling with the contacts, facilitate the flow of molten material during the molding of the frame, and allow for ease of insertion and removal of the plug connector to and from a corresponding receptacle connector. For example, a frame may include ledges, interlocks, and rounded and tapered openings. Methods for manufacturing the frame are also provided.
US09059530B2
An access-restricted electrical receptacle is configured to permit proper access to energized electrical contacts within the receptacle by a corresponding and properly-aligned plug, and to substantially limit or prevent improper access by foreign objects. The receptacle includes a receptacle body that defines a shutter cavity and a ramped slide surface, a face portion coupled to the receptacle body and defining a plurality of outlet openings to the shutter cavity, and a shutter that is movable in the shutter cavity between an unblocking position and at least one blocking position. The face portion defines a ramped return surface spaced from the ramped slide surface, and the shutter includes contact surfaces that engage the slide surface and the return surface during operation. Optionally, the ramped surfaces may be formed in either or both of a side wall or a base wall of the receptacle body and the face portion.
US09059527B2
A connector comprises a housing, a power contact attached to the housing, and a fixing member fixing the power contact to the housing. The connector is mateable along a front-rear direction with a mating connector located at a mating side. The housing has a rear wall, a contact-holding hole and an abutment portion, wherein the contact-holding hole pierces the rear wall in the front-rear direction, and the abutment portion is located toward the mating side with respect to the contact-holding hole. The power contact has a held portion, a fixed portion and an abutting portion, wherein the held portion is inserted in the contact-holding hole from the mating side to be held by the contact-holding hole, the fixed portion is formed to be located far from the mating side with respect to the held portion, and the abutting portion is formed to be located toward the mating side with respect to the held portion so that the abutting portion is brought into abutment with the abutment portion when the held portion is inserted in the contact-holding hole. The fixing member is attached to the held portion so that a part of the housing is sandwiched between the abutting portion and the fixing member in the front-rear direction.
US09059522B2
A wedge connector assembly for forming an electrical connection with first and second electrical conductors includes a coupling portion, first and second resilient spring sleeve portions located on the coupling portion, a first wedge member and a second wedge member. The first spring sleeve portion defines a first sleeve cavity tapering in a first direction away from the second spring sleeve portion and the second spring sleeve portion defines the second sleeve cavity tapering in a second direction away from the first spring sleeve portion. The first wedge member is configured to be forcibly driven into the first sleeve cavity in the first direction to capture the first conductor and the second wedge member is configured to be forcibly driven into the second sleeve cavity in the second direction to thereby capture the second conductor.
US09059520B2
A communication terminal apparatus and wireless communication device include comprising a first antenna having a first feed point, and a second antenna including a slit antenna and having a second feed point, the second antenna being spaced apart from the first antenna. The slit antenna includes a first conductive plate, a second conductive plate disposed substantially parallel to the first conductive plate, and a short-circuiting structure electrically connected between the first conductive plate and the second conductive plate so as to electrically short the first conductive plate to the second conductive plate.
US09059499B2
According to one embodiment, an antenna apparatus includes a first antenna element, a second antenna element, and a third antenna element. The first antenna element has one end connected to a feed terminal, and other end open. The second antenna element has one end connected to a first position set on an element of the first antenna element, and other end open, with a portion between one end and the other end being disposed parallel to the first antenna element. The third antenna element has one end connected to a second position set between the other end and the first position on the element of the first antenna element, and other end open, with at least part of a portion between one end and the other end being disposed near the second antenna element.
US09059497B2
A variable filter includes, on a dielectric substrate including ground conductor, first resonator including a transmission line connected to input terminal, second resonator including a transmission line connected to output terminal, and coupling portion including a transmission line having one end connected to the first and second resonators and another end being an open end, or structure having one end connected to the first and second resonators, including a serial connection of a transmission line and a variable capacitor, another end of the variable capacitor connected to the ground conductor, and adjusting means capable of changing electric length, in the first and second resonators and the coupling portion, wherein pass band width can be changed by changing ratio of electric transmission length of the coupling portion to electric transmission lengths of transmission line including the coupling portion, and the first and second resonators.
US09059494B2
Aspects of the invention provide for a Marchand balun structure and a related design method. In one embodiment, a marchand balun structure includes: a first trace for an unbalanced port on a first metal layer, the first trace comprising: an unbalanced line including a first width for a first half and a second width for a second half, wherein the second width can be different from the first width; a pair of traces for balanced ports on a second metal layer, the pair of traces comprising: a pair of balanced lines; and a ground plane on a third metal layer, the ground plane comprising: a pair of openings directly under the pair of traces for balanced ports, wherein a center of the unbalanced line of the first trace is offset from a center of the pair of balanced lines of the pair of traces.
US09059491B2
Disclosed are a microstrip transmission line having a common defected ground structure (DGS) and a wireless circuit apparatus having the same. The microstrip transmission line realizes a common defected ground structure (DGS) and a double microstrip structure, and includes: a first dielectric layer; a first signal line pattern formed on a first surface of the first dielectric layer; a common ground conductive layer formed on a second surface of the first dielectric layer and having a defected ground structure, the first surface facing the second surface; a second dielectric layer having a first surface brought into contact with the common ground conductive layer, and facing the first dielectric layer while interposing the common ground conductive layer between the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer; and a second signal line pattern formed on a second surface of the second dielectric layer, the first surface facing the second surface.
US09059488B2
Dispersive properties of a linear dispersive delay line are retained in a spiral configuration by constraining the radius of curvature depending on a desired propagation mode. The compact form factor spiral can be either a continuous spiral or a piecewise linear approximation. The spiral comprises a highly dielectric waveguide such as titanium dioxide or barium tetratitanate. Preferably, a spacer with a low dielectric constant and a microstrip are disposed on the top surface. The microstrip prevents attenuation of low frequencies, thereby increasing the operating frequency range. A second dielectric spacer and a second microstrip can be deposited on the bottom surface of the waveguide. Alternatively, the bottom surface of the waveguide can face a ground plane. The waveguide can be fed by horns or half-horns.
US09059483B2
There is provided a selective oxygen-permeable substrate including: a selective oxygen-permeable membrane having an inorganic framework and a transition metal ion complex and being capable of selectively permeating oxygen, and a porous substrate disposed on one surface of the selective oxygen-permeable membrane. Preferably, the transition metal ion complex is bonded to the inorganic framework. More preferably, a material constituting the inorganic framework is at least one kind selected from the group consisting of silica, titania, alumina, and zirconia. The selective oxygen-permeable substrate can selectively introduce oxygen in the air into the inside and has high durability against an electrolytic solution.
US09059480B2
An object is to provide a method of manufacturing a hexafluorophosphate, that can simply and easily manufacture an inexpensive and high-quality hexafluorophosphate while suppressing the manufacturing cost, an electrolytic solution containing a hexafluorophosphate, and an electricity storage device including the electrolytic solution. The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a hexafluorophosphate, which comprises reacting at least a phosphorus compound with a fluoride represented by MFs.r(HF) (wherein 0≦r≦6, 1≦s≦3, and M is at least one kind selected from the group consisting of Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, NH4, Ag, Mg, Ca, Ba, Zn, Cu, Pb, Al and Fe) to produce a hexafluorophosphate represented by the chemical formula M(PF6)s.
US09059479B2
A rechargeable lithium battery includes a positive electrode including a positive active material being capable of intercalating or deintercalating lithium; a negative electrode including a carbon-based negative active material and a water-soluble binder; and a polymer electrolyte including a polymer, a non-aqueous organic solvent and a lithium salt, wherein the polymer comprises a polymerization product of a first monomer represented by Chemical Formula 1 with a second monomer which is one or more of monomers represented by Chemical Formulae 2 to 7: A-U—B Chemical Formula 1 CH2═CL1-C(═O)—O-M Chemical Formula 2 CH2═CL1-O-M Chemical Formula 3 CH2═CL1-O—C(═O)-M Chemical Formula 4 CH2═CH—CH2—O-M Chemical Formula 5 CH2═CH—S(═O)2-M Chemical Formula 6 CH2═CL1-C(═O)—O—CH2CH2—NH—C(═O)—O-M Chemical Formula 7 wherein, definition of each substituent group is as described in detailed description.
US09059467B2
A method for producing a graphite material for lithium ion batteries, including a step for exothermically graphitizing a carbon material by directly applying an electric current therethrough. The carbon material is obtained by heating at a temperature in the range of 800° C.-1500° C. inclusive and subsequently pulverizing an organic carbon starting material, has a compact powder resistivity of 0.3 Ω cm or less when compressed to a density of 1.4 g/cm3, has an angle of repose in the range of 20° to 50° inclusive, and has a particle size (D90) in the volume-based particle size distribution measured using laser diffraction of 120 μm or less. The average surface interval (d002) of a surface (002) of the carbon material after graphitization, measured using x-ray diffraction, is in the range of 0.3354 nm-0.3450 nm inclusive.
US09059463B2
Disclosed is a positive electrode for a rechargeable lithium battery and a rechargeable lithium battery including the same. The positive electrode includes a current collector; and a positive active material layer disposed on the current collector and including a lithium vanadium oxide-based positive active material represented by the following Chemical Formula 1. LixV2-yMyO5 [Chemical Formula 1] In Chemical Formula 1, M is one or more selected from the group consisting of aluminum (Al), magnesium (Mg), zirconium (Zr), titanium (Ti), strontium (Sr), copper (Cu), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), manganese (Mn), and a combination thereof, 1
US09059456B2
A rechargeable battery and a battery module, the rechargeable battery including an electrode assembly formed by winding a positive electrode and a negative electrode and a separator therebetween; a case accommodating the electrode assembly; a cap plate sealing an opening at one side of the case, the cap plate including a terminal hole therethrough; an electrode terminal in the terminal hole of the cap plate, the electrode terminal extending to an outside from an inside of the case and being connected to the electrode assembly; and a terminal cap including an electrical insulating material, the terminal cap covering the electrode terminal from the outside of the case.
US09059454B2
A battery module includes a plurality of rechargeable unit cells; and a lead tab assembly that electrically connects the unit cells together, wherein the lead tab assembly includes a first lead tab extending in a first direction and that is electrically connected to a first unit cell of the unit cells; a second lead tab that extends in the first direction and that is electrically connected to a second unit cell of the unit cells; a temperature-sensing element that is located between the first lead tab and the second lead tab and is electrically connected to the first lead tab and the second lead tab; and an insulating member that accommodates at least a portion of the first lead tab, the second lead tab, and the temperature-sensing element.
US09059449B2
Methods of heat treating at least one component of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system. The method includes heating the at least one component with a rapid thermal process, wherein the rapid thermal process heats at least a portion of the component at a rate of approximately 50° C./sec or more.
US09059445B1
A holder for consumer batteries and, more particularly, to an open-sided holder from which batteries can easily be accessed. The holder includes a central panel dividing first and second battery sheaths that project from either face thereof. Each sheath defines at least two cylindrical battery receptacles that are open at both ends and have a lumen diameter that closely receives a consumer battery, such as AA or AAA size. The central panel extends longitudinally beyond the sheaths and terminates in thickened end edges that retain the batteries within the receptacles. The thickness of the end edges relative to the rest of the central panel is small enough so that a user can push each battery out of its receptacle and past one of the end edges without much trouble.
US09059441B2
The present invention relates to a device (10) for storing and restoring electrical energy comprising a chamber (100) in which water electrolysis means (110), a fuel cell (120), and monitoring/control means (130) for monitoring the operation of said device (10) in the fuel cell mode or the electrolyzer mode are arranged. Connection means (141) enable said chamber (110) to be connected to storage means (210) for storing dihydrogen (H2), which are outside of said chamber (110).
US09059440B2
Hydrocarbon fuel is sent to a reformer, which produces carbon and hydrogen. The hydrogen is sent to a fuel cell which uses it to generate electricity, and the electricity is used to actuate an electric motor that is coupled to an output shaft of a turbine to impart torque to the shaft. Additionally, hydrocarbon fuel can be provided to the turbine intake directly and/or carbon from the reformer can be mixed with steam from the fuel cell and sent to the turbine intake, in either case to impinge on the turbine blades and impart further torque to the output shaft.
US09059429B2
A simple manufacturing method for an organic electroluminescent panel in which organic electroluminescent elements are arranged and sealed by a sealing adhesive. The electroluminescent panel has excellent sealing properties and excellent durability as a result of the organic electroluminescent elements being adhered to one another by a heat-curable adhesive. The manufacturing method is for an organic electroluminescent panel in which at least a first electrode, an organic functional layer containing a light-emitting layer, an organic electroluminescent element having a second electrode, and a sealing substrate are bonded together on a substrate by the heat-curable adhesive. The method includes forming a heat-curable adhesive layer on the sealing substrate, subjecting the heat-curable adhesive layer formed on the sealing substrate to pre-heating treatment, bonding the pre-heated heat-curable adhesive layer to the organic electroluminescent element, and subjecting the heat-curable adhesive layer to heat curing, in the given order.
US09059425B2
A device includes an organic polymer layer and an electrode positioned against the polymer layer, the electrode being constituted by a transparent stack of thin layers including an alternation of n thin metallic layers and of (n+1) antireflection coatings, with n≧1, where each thin metallic layer is placed between two antireflection coatings. At least one of the two antireflection coatings located at the ends of the constituent stack of the electrode includes a stack that is a barrier to moisture and gases, the layers of the or each barrier stack having alternately lower and higher densities.
US09059424B2
An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display apparatus and a method of manufacturing the OLED display apparatus, the apparatus includes anode electrodes having different thicknesses for different types of sub-pixels.
US09059421B2
A multicolor light-emitting element using fluorescence and phosphorescence, which has a small number of manufacturing steps owing to a relatively small number of layers to be formed and is advantageous for practical application can be provided. In addition, a multicolor light-emitting element using fluorescence and phosphorescence, which has favorable emission efficiency is provided. A light-emitting element which includes a light-emitting layer having a stacked-layer structure of a first light-emitting layer exhibiting light emission from a first exciplex and a second light-emitting layer exhibiting phosphorescence is provided.
US09059408B2
A hexacene derivative is described, being expressed by formula (1): wherein X1-X6 denote the presence or absence of a carbonyl bridge [—C(═O)—], with a proviso that at least one of X1-X6 is a carbonyl bridge while any six-member ring absent of a carbonyl bridge is aromatic. A method for forming hexacene is also described, including: thermally treating the hexacene derivative to expel volatile units of CO from the hexacene derivative.
US09059404B2
A resistive memory device and a method for fabricating the resistive memory device. The memory device includes a first electrode and a resistive memory element in electrical contact. The memory device also includes a non-programmable stabilizer element in electrical and thermal contact with the resistive memory element. The stabilizer element has at least one physical dimension based on a physical characteristic of the resistive memory element such that the maximum resistance of the stabilizer element is substantially less than the maximum resistance of the resistive memory element.
US09059389B2
A mechanism is provided for a spin torque transfer random access memory device. A tunnel barrier is disposed on a reference layer, and a free layer is disposed on the tunnel barrier. The free layer includes an iron layer as a top part of the free layer. A metal oxide layer is disposed on the iron layer, and a cap layer is disposed on the metal oxide layer.
US09059386B2
A light emitting diode (LED) package includes an LED chip, a first lead frame and a second lead frame electrically connected to the LED chip and separated by a space, and a housing disposed on the first lead frame and the second lead frame. The housing includes an external housing surrounding a cavity, the cavity exposing a first portion of the first lead frame and a first portion of the second lead frame, and an internal housing disposed in the space, the internal housing covering a top portion of the first lead frame and a top portion of the second lead frame.
US09059376B2
An illuminating device including a substrate, a light-emitting diode element disposed on the substrate, an electrode element, and a sealing ring. The substrate has a groove, and the electrode element has a retaining slot disposed in the groove. The sealing ring is embedded into the retaining slot and a part of the groove to tightly fix the electrode element on the groove.
US09059369B2
A method for manufacturing a transparent conductive film that can reduce a heating time of crystallizing an amorphous layer containing an indium-based complex oxide is provided. The method for manufacturing a transparent conductive film according to the present invention includes a first step of laminating an amorphous layer formed of an indium-based complex oxide on a first side of a film base material having a thickness of 10 to 50 μm, a second step of forming a transparent conductive layer by heating the film base material on which the amorphous layer is laminated to 160° C. or above to crystallize the amorphous layer during a process of conveying the film base material from a feed roller and taking up the film base material on a take-up roller, and a third step of forming an adhesive layer on a second side of the film base material.
US09059368B2
According to one embodiment, a semiconductor device includes first, second, and third molded bodies. The first molded body covers a first light emitting element, a part of a lead electrically connected to the first light emitting element, a first light receiving element configured to detect a light emitted from the first light emitting element, and a part of a lead electrically connected to the first light receiving element with a first resin. The second molded body covers a second light emitting element, a part of a lead electrically connected to the second light emitting element, a second light receiving element configured to detect a light emitted from the second light emitting element, and a part of a lead electrically connected to the second light receiving element with the first resin. The third molded body molds the first and the second molded bodies as one body using a second resin.
US09059367B2
An image sensor unit includes: sensor substrates on which a plurality of sensor chips are mounted; a plurality of rod-lens arrays that focus light from an original on the sensor substrates; and a frame body that houses the plurality of sensor substrates and the plurality of rod-lens arrays. The frame body is divided into a first frame and a second frame. A side surface of the plurality of rod-lens arrays in a sub-scan direction is fixed only by the first frame, and the plurality of rod-lens arrays are arranged in the main-scan direction. The plurality of rod-lens arrays is fixed to the first frame by applying a first adhesive and a second adhesive, respectively, the viscosity of the first adhesive exceeds the viscosity of the second adhesive, and the adhesive range of the first adhesive is greater than the adhesive range of the second adhesive.
US09059366B2
A solar energy collection system includes a solar cell, a transparent covering, and a eutectic interlayer binding the solar cell and the transparent covering together. At least some of a compound of the eutectic interlayer bonds with the transparent covering, raising the melting temperature of the eutectic interlayer above the melting temperature with the full amount of the compound present.
US09059362B2
A light emitting element includes a semiconductor substrate, and an island structure formed on the semiconductor substrate. The island structure includes a light-emitting-unit thyristor and a current confinement structure. The light-emitting-unit thyristor includes stacked semiconductor layers having a pnpn structure. The current confinement structure includes a high-resistance region and a conductive region, and confines carriers in the conductive region.
US09059341B1
A method for manufacturing an interdigitated back contact solar cell. comprising the steps of: (a) providing a silicon substrate doped with a first dopant; (b) doping the rear surface of the silicon substrate with a second dopant in a first pattern; (c) forming a silicon dioxide layer on the rear surface; (d) depositing a silicon-containing paste comprising silicon-containing particles on the silicon dioxide layer in a second pattern; (e) exposing the substrate to a diffusion ambient, wherein the diffusion ambient comprises a third dopant and wherein the third dopant is a counter dopant to the second dopant; (f) heating the substrate in a drive-in ambient; and (g) removing the silicon dioxide layer and the doped silicate glass layer from the silicon substrate, wherein a region doped with the second dopant and a region doped with the third dopant collectively form an interdigitated pattern on the rear surface of the silicon substrate.
US09059334B2
First chip main surfaces of first semiconductor chips are bonded to a heat spreader, and second chip main surfaces of the first semiconductor chips are bonded to a first electrode. First chip main surfaces of second semiconductor chips are bonded to a heat spreader, and second chip main surfaces of the second semiconductor chips are bonded to a first electrode. A plurality of electrodes are provided by a lead frame. An insulating member is provided on a side opposite to the chips when viewed from the heat spreader. An insulating substrate is provided on a side opposite to the chips when viewed from the first electrodes.
US09059332B2
A varactor includes a field effect transistor (FET) integrated with at least a portion of a bipolar junction transistor (BJT), in which a back gate of the FET shares an electrical connection with a base of the BJT, and in which a reverse voltage applied to the back gate of the FET creates a continuously variable capacitance in a channel of the FET.
US09059327B2
According to an embodiment, a nitride semiconductor Schottky diode includes a first layer including a first nitride semiconductor and a second layer provided on the first layer and including a second nitride semiconductor having a wider band gap than the first nitride semiconductor. The diode also includes an ohmic electrode provided on the second layer and a Schottky electrode provided on the second layer. The second layer includes a region containing an acceptor in the vicinity of the Schottky electrode between the Schottky electrode and the ohmic electrode.
US09059322B2
Aspects of the present invention relate to a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) deep trench capacitor. One embodiment includes a method of forming a deep trench capacitor structure. The method includes: providing a SOI structure including a first and second trench opening in a semiconductor layer of the SOI structure, forming a doped semiconductor layer covering the semiconductor layer, forming a first dielectric layer covering the doped semiconductor layer, forming a node metal layer over the first dielectric layer, forming a second dielectric layer covering the node metal layer, filling a remaining portion of each trench opening with a metal layer to form an inner node in each of the trench openings, the metal layer including a plate coupling each of the inner nodes, and forming a node connection structure to conductively connect the node metal layer in the first trench opening with the node metal layer in the second trench opening.
US09059321B2
Methods for forming a buried-channel field-effect transistor include doping source and drain regions on a substrate with a dopant having a first type; forming a doped shielding layer on the substrate in a channel region having a second doping type opposite the first type to displace a conducting channel away from a gate-interface region; forming a gate dielectric over the doped shielding layer; and forming a gate on the gate dielectric.
US09059313B2
Replacement gate stacks are provided, which increase the work function of the gate electrode of a p-type field effect transistor (PFET). In one embodiment, the work function metal stack includes a titanium-oxide-nitride layer located between a lower titanium nitride layer and an upper titanium nitride layer. The stack of the lower titanium nitride layer, the titanium-oxide-nitride layer, and the upper titanium nitride layer produces the unexpected result of increasing the work function of the work function metal stack significantly. In another embodiment, the work function metal stack includes an aluminum layer deposited at a temperature not greater than 420° C. The aluminum layer deposited at a temperature not greater than 420° C. produces the unexpected result of increasing the work function of the work function metal stack significantly.
US09059311B1
A disposable semiconductor material is deposited to form disposable semiconductor material portions on semiconductor fins. A first dielectric liner is deposited and patterned to form openings above a first set of disposable semiconductor material portions on a first semiconductor fin. The first set of disposable semiconductor material portions is replaced with a first set of active semiconductor regions by a combination of an etch and a selective epitaxy process that deposits a first semiconductor material. A second dielectric liner is deposited and patterned to form openings above the second set of disposable semiconductor material portions. The second set of disposable semiconductor material portions is replaced with a second set of active semiconductor regions employing another epitaxy process that deposits a second semiconductor material. The active semiconductor regions can have the same faceting profile irrespective of the semiconductor materials therein.
US09059299B2
The present invention relates to a method for producing a semi-conductor laminate comprising a first and a second metal oxide layer as well as a dielectric layer, wherein the first metal oxide layer is arranged between the second metal oxide layer and the dielectric layer. The first and second metal oxide layers are formed accordingly from a first and a second liquid phase. The present invention also relates to a semi-conductor laminate that can be obtained from such a method, and to electronic components comprising such a semi-conductor laminate.
US09059297B2
A highly reliable semiconductor device and a method for manufacturing the semiconductor device are provided. In a semiconductor device including a bottom-gate transistor in which an insulating layer functioning as a channel protective film is provided over an oxide semiconductor film, elements contained in an etching gas can be prevented from remaining as impurities on a surface of the oxide semiconductor film by performing impurity-removing process after formation of an insulating layer provided over and in contact with the oxide semiconductor film and/or formation of source and drain electrode layers. The impurity concentration in the surface of the oxide semiconductor film is lower than or equal to 5×1018 atoms/cm3, preferably lower than or equal to 1×1018 atoms/cm3.
US09059285B2
A method and structure are disclosed for increasing strain in a device, specifically an n-type field effect transistor (NFET) complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) device. Embodiments of this invention include an n-type field effect transistor (NFET) complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) device having a source region and a drain region, the NFET CMOS including: an n-type doped layer in at least one of the source region and the drain region, wherein the n-type doped layer includes substitutional carbon and has a memorized tensile stress induced by a stress memorization technique (SMT).
US09059273B2
A method for processing a semiconductor wafer in accordance with various embodiments may include: providing a semiconductor wafer including at least one chip and at least one kerf region adjacent to the at least one chip, the kerf region including at least one auxiliary structure; applying a mask layer to the semiconductor wafer; removing the at least one auxiliary structure in the at least one kerf region; removing the applied mask layer; and separating the semiconductor wafer along the at least one kerf region.
US09059258B2
Aspects of the present invention relate to a controlled metal extrusion opening in a semiconductor structure. Various embodiments include a semiconductor structure. The structure includes an aluminum layer. The aluminum layer includes an aluminum island within the aluminum layer, and a lateral extrusion receiving opening extending through the aluminum layer adjacent the aluminum island. The opening includes a lateral extrusion of the aluminum layer of the semiconductor structure. Additional embodiments include a method of forming a semiconductor structure. The method can include forming an aluminum layer over a titanium layer. The aluminum layer includes an aluminum island within the aluminum layer. The method can also include forming an opening extending through the aluminum layer adjacent the aluminum island within the aluminum layer. The opening includes a lateral extrusion of the aluminum layer of the semiconductor layer.
US09059252B1
Various methods include: forming a first set of trenches in a precursor structure having: a silicon substrate having a crystal direction, the silicon substrate substantially abutted by a first oxide; a silicon germanium (SiGe) layer overlying the silicon substrate; a silicon layer overlying the SiGe layer; a second oxide overlying the silicon layer; and a sacrificial layer overlying the second oxide, wherein the first set of trenches each expose the silicon substrate and internal sidewalls of the first oxide; undercut etching the silicon substrate in a direction perpendicular to the crystal direction of the silicon substrate to form a cavity corresponding with each of the first set of trenches; and partially filling each cavity with a dielectric, leaving an air gap within each cavity connected with an air gap in an adjacent cavity.
US09059250B2
A combination of gases including at least a fluorocarbon gas, oxygen, and an inert sputter gas is employed to etch at least one opening into an organic photoresist. The amount of oxygen is controlled to a level that limits conversion of a metallic nitride material in an underlying hard mask layer to a metal oxide, and causes organic polymers generated from the organic photoresist to cover peripheral regions of each opening formed in the organic photoresist. The hard mask layer is etched with a taper by the oxygen-limited fluorine-based etch chemistry provided by the combination of gases. The taper angle can be controlled such that a shrink ratio of the lateral dimension by the etch can exceed 2.0.
US09059247B2
A method for manufacturing an SOI substrate with favorable adherence without high-temperature heat treatment being performed in bonding, and a semiconductor device using the SOI substrate and a manufacturing method thereof are proposed. An SOI substrate and a semiconductor device can be manufactured by forming a single-crystalline silicon substrate with a thickness of 50 μm or less in which a brittle layer is formed; forming a supporting substrate having an insulating layer over a surface; activating at least one of the surfaces of the single-crystalline silicon substrate and the insulating layer by exposure to a plasma atmosphere or an ion atmosphere; and bonding the single-crystalline silicon substrate and the supporting substrate with the insulating layer interposed therebetween.
US09059236B2
According to one embodiment, a semiconductor device includes: a first electrode; a second electrode; a first semiconductor layer provided between the first electrode and the second electrode; a second semiconductor layer provided between the first semiconductor layer and the second electrode, and the second semiconductor layer having a lower impurity concentration than the first semiconductor layer; a first semiconductor region provided between part of the second semiconductor layer and the second electrode; a second semiconductor region provided between a portion different from the part of the second semiconductor layer and the second electrode, and the second semiconductor region being in contact with the first semiconductor region; and a third semiconductor region provided between at least part of the first semiconductor region and the second electrode.
US09059234B2
Disclosed is a trench formation technique wherein a first etch process forms an opening through a semiconductor layer into a semiconductor substrate and then a second etch process expands the portion of the opening within the substrate to form a trench. However, prior to the second etch, a doped region is formed in the substrate at the bottom surface of the opening. Then, the second etch is performed such that an undoped region of the substrate at the sidewalls of the opening is etched at a faster etch rate than the doped region, thereby ensuring that the trench has a relatively high aspect ratio. Also disclosed is a bipolar semiconductor device formation method. This method incorporates the trench formation technique so that a trench isolation region formed around a collector pedestal has a high aspect ratio and, thereby so that collector-to-base capacitance Ccb and collector resistance Rc are both minimized.
US09059230B1
Device structures, fabrication methods, and design structures for a bipolar junction transistor. A first terminal of the bipolar junction transistor is formed from a section of a device layer of a semiconductor-on-insulator wafer. An intrinsic base of the bipolar junction transistor is formed from an epitaxially-grown section of a first semiconductor layer, which is coextensive with a sidewall of the section of the device layer. A second terminal of the bipolar junction transistor is formed from a second semiconductor layer that is coextensive with the epitaxially-grown section of the first semiconductor layer. The epitaxially-grown section of a first semiconductor layer defines a first junction with the section of the device layer, and the second semiconductor layer defines a second junction with the epitaxially-grown section of the first semiconductor layer.
US09059226B2
The substrate treatment apparatus includes a first substrate transport robot having a hand which holds a substrate, a second substrate transport robot having a hand which holds the substrate, and a hand cleaning unit which cleans the hand of the first substrate transport robot and the hand of the second substrate transport robot. The hand cleaning unit is configured to be accessible by the hand of the first substrate transport robot and the hand of the second substrate transport robot, and is disposed above or below a substrate transfer place at which the substrate is transferred between the first and second substrate transport robots.
US09059225B2
A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device is provided with: a step of preparing a semiconductor wafer (22) in a state where the circumference of the semiconductor wafer, which has been divided into semiconductor device parts, is adhered on a dicing sheet (21) supported by a wafer ring (23); a step of fixing the wafer ring (23) after transferring the wafer ring to a table (14) where laser printing is to be performed; and a step of marking on the main surface where the semiconductor material of the semiconductor device parts which configure the semiconductor wafer (22) is exposed, by radiating laser beams through the dicing sheet and an adhesive layer.
US09059222B2
The present invention relates a washing device and a method for fabricating the same which has good chemical resistance and can prevent a scratch from forming on a substrate. The washing device includes a substrate entry guide for making a substrate to enter in a right direction from an outside of the washing device, a foreign matter removal unit for receiving the substrate from the substrate entry guide unit and removing foreign matters from the substrate, a foreign matter washing unit for receiving the substrate from the foreign matter removal unit and washing remained foreign matters from the substrate, and a position control unit for controlling a position of the substrate moving out of the foreign matter washing unit, wherein the substrate entry guide, the foreign matter removal unit, the foreign matter washing unit, and the position control unit are formed of metallic porous material.
US09059215B2
The N-type poly-silicon is applied in the LTPS productions. The LTPS productions comprise an N-type poly-silicon and a P-type poly-silicon. The N-type poly-silicon, from bottom to top, successively includes a substrate layer, a SiOx layer, a SiNx layer, a metal layer and a photoresist. The substrate layer is an A-type silicon layer. Wherein, the method for controlling the threshold voltage of the N-type poly-silicon specifically comprise the following steps: (a) etching the metal layer and the SiNx layer, and over etching the SiOx layer in a small quantity; (b) over etching the metal layer, and etching a portion of the SiOx layer, and the SiOx layer is not etched through.
US09059212B2
A back end of line device and method for fabricating a transistor device include a substrate having an insulating layer formed thereon and a channel layer formed on the insulating layer. A gate structure is formed on the channel layer. Dopants are implanted into an upper portion of the channel layer on opposite sides of the gate structure to form shallow source and drain regions using a low temperature implantation process. An epitaxial layer is selectively grown on the shallow source and drain regions to form raised regions above the channel layer and against the gate structure using a low temperature plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process, wherein low temperature is less than about 400 degrees Celsius.
US09059210B2
A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes forming a dummy gate structure on a semiconductor substrate, forming sidewall spacers, and forming heavily doped source/drain regions. After removing the spacers, a stress material layer is formed over the dummy gate structure. An annealing process is performed to transfer the stress to the device channel region. After the annealing process, the stress material layer is removed. The dummy gate structure is replaced by a high-k dielectric layer and a metal gate structure. Subsequently, contact holes are formed to expose at least part of the heavily doped source/drain regions, and self-aligned silicide is formed over exposed portions of the heavily doped source/drain regions.
US09059207B2
A planar semiconductor device including a semiconductor on insulator (SOI) substrate with source and drain portions having a thickness of less than 10 nm that are separated by a multi-layered strained channel. The multi-layer strained channel of the SOI layer includes a first layer with a first lattice dimension that is present on the buried dielectric layer of the SOI substrate, and a second layer of a second lattice dimension that is in direct contact with the first layer of the multi-layer strained channel portion. A functional gate structure is present on the multi-layer strained channel portion of the SOI substrate. The semiconductor device having the multi-layered channel may also be a finFET semiconductor device.
US09059197B2
Electronic device structures including semiconductor ledge layers for surface passivation and methods of manufacturing the same are disclosed. In one embodiment, the electronic device includes a number of semiconductor layers of a desired semiconductor material having alternating doping types. The semiconductor layers include a base layer of a first doping type that includes a highly doped well forming a first contact region of the electronic device and one or more contact layers of a second doping type on the base layer that have been etched to form a second contact region of the electronic device. The etching of the one or more contact layers causes substantial crystalline damage, and thus interface charge, on the surface of the base layer. In order to passivate the surface of the base layer, a semiconductor ledge layer of the semiconductor material is epitaxially grown on at least the surface of the base layer.
US09059195B2
A bipolar junction transistor (BJT) and method for fabricating such. The transistor includes an emitter region, a collector region, and an intrinsic-base region. The intrinsic-base region is positioned between the emitter region and the collector region. Furthermore, the physical separation between the emitter region and the collector region is less than the sum of a base-emitter space-charge region width and a base-collector space-charge region width at the transistor's standby mode.
US09059176B2
A structure having a diffusion barrier positioned adjacent to a sidewall and a bottom of an opening being etched in a layer of dielectric material. The structure also having a metal liner positioned directly on top of the diffusion barrier, a seed layer positioned directly on top of the metal liner, wherein the seed layer is made from a material comprising copper, a copper material positioned directly on top of the seed layer, a metallic cap positioned directly on top of and selective to the copper material, and a capping layer positioned directly on top of and adjacent to the metallic cap.
US09059173B2
An electronic fuse structure having an Mx level including an Mx dielectric, a fuse line, an Mx cap dielectric above at least a portion of the Mx dielectric, and a modified portion of the Mx cap dielectric directly above at least a portion of the fuse line, where the modified portion of the Mx cap dielectric is chemically different from the remainder of the Mx cap dielectric, an Mx+1 level including an Mx+1 dielectric, a first Mx+1 metal, an Mx+1 cap dielectric above of the Mx+1 dielectric and the first Mx+1 metal, where the Mx+1 level is above the Mx level, and a first via electrically connecting the fuse line to the first Mx+1 metal.
US09059167B2
The present invention relates to bonded semiconductor integrated circuits, more specifically to a structure to protect against crack propagation into any layer of such integrated circuits. Embodiments of the present invention may include a first semiconductor substrate having a first layer bonded to second layer of a substantially thinner second semiconductor substrate by a bonding layer. The first layer may contain a crack stop. The crack stop may be in contact with a circumferential wall, made up of posts, that extends through the bonding layer, the second layer, and the second substrate.
US09059161B2
A composite wiring circuit with electrical through connections and method of manufacturing the same. The composite wiring circuit includes a glass with first electrically-conducting through vias. The first electrically-conducting through vias pass from a top surface of the glass layer to a bottom surface of the glass layer. The composite wiring circuit further includes an interposer layer with second electrically-conducting through vias. The second electrically-conducting through vias pass from a top surface of the interposer layer to a bottom surface of the interposer layer. The second electrically-conducting through vias are electrically coupled to the first electrically-conducting through vias.
US09059158B2
A semiconductor device comprises a semiconductor substrate, an under-bump metallization (UBM) structure overlying the semiconductor substrate, and a solder bump overlying and electrically connected to the UBM structure. The UBM structure comprises a first metallization layer comprising a first metal, a second metallization layer comprising a second metal different from the first metal, and a first intermetallic compound (IMC) layer between the first metallization layer and the second metallization layer, the first IMC layer comprising the first metal and the second metal.
US09059156B2
Methods to form metal gate transistor devices are disclosed. Erbium silicide layers can be used in CMOS transistors in which the work function of the erbium silicide layers can be tuned for use in PMOS and NMOS devices. A nanolaminate sputtering approach can be used in which silicon and erbium layers are alternatingly deposited to determine optimum layer properties, composition profiles, and erbium to silicon ratios for a particular gate stack.
US09059153B2
A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor chip, a first electrode terminal, a second electrode terminal, and a connector. The semiconductor chip is carried on the first electrode terminal. The second electrode terminal is separated from the first electrode terminal. The connector includes first through third structural parts. The first structural part is connected to an electrode of the semiconductor chip via the first connecting part; the third structural part is connected to a second electrode terminal via the second connecting part; the second structural part connects the first and third structural parts; and holes are formed on at least one of the first through third structural parts. Additionally, laser ablated recesses may be formed in the first electrode terminal to align the semiconductor chip therewith.
US09059152B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide a wiring substrate having a structure where a plurality of projection electrodes are arranged within an electrode formation region on a substrate main surface. At least one among a plurality of the projection electrodes is a variant projection electrode which has a recess portion on an upper surface, an outer diameter at the upper end that is larger than an outer diameter at the lower end, and a reverse trapezoidal cross-section shape. Embodiments of the present invention also provide methods for manufacturing wiring substrates having one or more of said variant projection electrode.
US09059151B2
A method of manufacture of an integrated circuit packaging system includes: providing a leadframe having an upper structure, upper protrusions, and a base side facing away from the upper structure and the upper protrusions; forming tie bars in the leadframe with an opening surrounding the upper structure, the tie bars connected to the upper structure and exposed on the base side; connecting an integrated circuit to the upper protrusions; applying an encapsulant over the integrated circuit, over the upper structure, and in the opening with the base side exposed; removing the tie bars exposing a first surface and a second surface of the encapsulant below the first surface, and forming a die paddle from the upper structure and exposed from the second surface; and removing the leadframe from the base side forming island terminals from the upper protrusions exposed from the second surface and isolated from the die paddle.
US09059144B2
A method for forming a molded die assembly includes attaching a first major surface of a semiconductor die onto a package substrate; attaching a heat spreader to a second major surface of the semiconductor die, wherein the second major surface is opposite the first major surface, and wherein the semiconductor die, package substrate, and heat spreader form a die assembly; conforming a die release film to a transfer mold; closing the transfer mold around the die assembly such that the die release film is compressed against the heat spreader and a cavity is formed around the die assembly; transferring a thermoset material into the cavity; and releasing the die assembly from the die release film and the transfer mold.
US09059137B2
A semiconductor device, includes a semiconductor substrate, a first interconnect layer formed over the semiconductor substrate, a gate electrode formed in the first interconnect layer, a gate insulating film formed over the gate electrode, a second interconnect layer formed over the gate insulating film, an oxide semiconductor layer formed in the second interconnect layer, and a via formed in the second interconnect layer and connected to the oxide semiconductor layer. The gate electrode, the gate insulating film and the oxide semiconductor layer overlap in a plan view.
US09059130B2
A method of forming an on-chip heat sink includes forming a device on a substrate. The method also includes forming a plurality of insulator layers over the device. The method further includes forming a heat sink in at least one of the plurality of insulator layers and proximate to the device. The heat sink includes a reservoir of phase change material having a melting point temperature that is less than an upper limit of a design operating temperature of the chip.
US09059129B2
A cooling system for an integrated circuit die comprises a heat exchanger and a heat transfer device. The heat transfer device is formed of a plurality of stacked foils. The stacked foils are fused at a heat exchanger region abutting the heat exchanger, and are fused at a die region abutting the integrated circuit die, but are flexible between the heat exchanger region and the die region.
US09059117B2
A pixel structure comprises a substantially transparent substrate, a drive transistor formed on the substrate, an organic light emitting device formed on the opposite side of the drive transistor from the substrate, a reflective layer disposed between the light emitting device and the drive transistor and having a reflective surface facing the light emitting device. The reflective layer forms an opening offset from the drive transistor for passing light emitted by the light emitting device to the substrate. At least a portion of the reflective layer is preferably concave in shape to direct reflected light from the light emitting device back onto the light-emitting device.
US09059115B2
Some embodiments include methods of forming memory. A series of photoresist features may be formed over a gate stack, and a placeholder may be formed at an end of said series. The placeholder may be spaced from the end of said series by a gap. A layer may be formed over and between the photoresist features, over the placeholder, and within said gap. The layer may be anisotropically etched into a plurality of first vertical structures along edges of the photoresist features, and into a second vertical structure along an edge of the placeholder. A mask may be formed over the second vertical structure. Subsequently, the first vertical structures may be used to pattern string gates while the mask is used to pattern a select gate. Some embodiments include methods of forming conductive runners, and some embodiments may include semiconductor constructions.
US09059097B2
Aspects of the disclosure provide a method of inhibiting crack propagation in a silicon wafer. In one embodiment, a method of repairing an imperfection on a surface of a semiconductor device is disclosed. The method includes: screening for imperfections on a surface of a silicon wafer of a semiconductor device; and in response to at least one imperfection on the surface of the silicon wafer, depositing a material on the surface of the silicon wafer.
US09059090B2
A method of fabricating a semiconductor device includes forming a first gate pattern and a dummy gate pattern on a first active area and a second active area of a substrate, respectively, the first gate pattern including a first gate insulating layer and a silicon gate electrode, removing the dummy gate pattern to expose a surface of the substrate in the second active area, forming a second gate pattern including a second gate insulating layer and a metal gate electrode on the exposed surface of the substrate, the first gate insulating layer having a thickness larger than a thickness of the second gate insulating layer, and forming a gate silicide on the silicon gate electrode after forming the second gate pattern.
US09059079B1
A method is disclosed for processing an insulator material or a semiconductor material. The method includes pulsing a plasma lamp onto the material to diffuse a doping substance into the material, to activate the doping substance in the material or to metallize a large area region of the material. The method may further include pulsing a laser onto a selected region of the material to diffuse a doping substance into the material, to activate the doping substance in the material or to metallize a selected region of the material.
US09059077B2
Provided is a crystal layered structure having a low dislocation density on the upper surface of a nitride semiconductor layer on a Ga2O3 substrate, and a method for manufacturing the same. In one embodiment, there is provided a crystal layered structure including: a Ga2O3 substrate; a buffer layer comprising an AlxGayInzN (0≦x≦1, 0≦y≦1, 0≦z≦1, x+y+z=1) crystal on the Ga2O3 substrate; and a nitride semiconductor layer comprising an AlxGayInzN (0≦x≦1, 0≦y≦1, 0≦z≦1, x+y +z=1) crystal including oxygen as an impurity on the buffer layer. The oxygen concentration in a region having a thickness of no less than 200 nm on the nitride semiconductor layer on the side towards the Ga2O3 substrate is no less than 1.0×1018/cm3.
US09059075B2
A method for selective formation of a gallium nitride material on a (100) silicon substrate. The method includes forming a blanket layer of dielectric material on a surface of a (100) silicon substrate. The blanket layer of dielectric material is then patterned forming a plurality of patterned dielectric material structures on silicon substrate. An etch is employed that selectively removes exposed portions of the silicon substrate. The etch forms openings within the silicon substrate that expose a surface of the silicon substrate having a (111) crystal plane. A contiguous AlN buffer layer is then formed on exposed surfaces of each patterned dielectric material structure and on exposed surfaces of the silicon substrate. A gallium nitride material is then formed on a portion of the contiguous AlN buffer layer and surrounding each sidewall of each patterned dielectric material structure.
US09059071B2
A semiconductor device provided with a silicon carbide semiconductor substrate, and an ohmic metal layer joined to one surface of the silicon carbide semiconductor substrate in an ohmic contact and composed of a metal material whose silicide formation free energy and carbide formation free energy respectively take negative values. The ohmic metal layer is composed of, for example, a metal material such as molybdenum, titanium, chromium, manganese, zirconium, tantalum, or tungsten.
US09059059B2
A solid state image sensor has a plurality of ranging pixels on the imaging area thereof and each of the ranging pixels has a photoelectric conversion section and an optical waveguide arranged at the light-receiving side of the photoelectric conversion section. The optical waveguide has at least two optical waveguides including a first optical waveguide arranged at the light-receiving side and a second optical waveguide arranged at the side of the photoelectric conversion section in the direction of propagation of light. The core region of the first optical waveguide shows a refractive index lower than the refractive index of the core region of the second optical waveguide and is designed so as to show a high light-receiving sensitivity relative to light entering at a specific angle.
US09059051B2
A through-silicon via (TSV) capacitive test structure and method of determining TSV depth based on capacitance is disclosed. The TSV capacitive test structure is formed from a plurality of TSV bars that are evenly spaced. A first group of bars are electrically connected to form a first capacitor node, and a second group of bars is electrically connected to form a second capacitor node. The capacitance is measured, and a TSV depth is computed, prior to backside thinning. The computed TSV depth may then be fed to downstream grinding and/or polishing tools to control the backside thinning process such that the semiconductor wafer is thinned such that the backside is flush with the TSV.
US09059050B2
A manufacturing method of semiconductor substrate includes following steps: providing a base layer; forming a plurality of traces on the base layer; forming a plurality of studs correspondingly on the traces; forming a molding material layer on the base layer to encapsulate the traces and studs; forming a concave portion on the molding material layer; and, removing the base layer.
US09059047B2
An object is to provide a semiconductor device using an oxide semiconductor having stable electric characteristics and high reliability. A transistor including the oxide semiconductor film in which a top surface portion of the oxide semiconductor film is provided with a metal oxide film containing a constituent similar to that of the oxide semiconductor film and functioning as a channel protective film is provided. In addition, the oxide semiconductor film used for an active layer of the transistor is an oxide semiconductor film highly purified to be electrically i-type (intrinsic) by heat treatment in which impurities such as hydrogen, moisture, a hydroxyl group, or a hydride are removed from the oxide semiconductor and oxygen which is a major constituent of the oxide semiconductor and is reduced concurrently with a step of removing impurities is supplied.
US09059046B2
A thin film transistor array panel according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention includes: a substrate; a gate line positioned on the substrate and including a gate electrode; a gate insulating layer positioned on the gate line; an oxide semiconductor layer positioned on the substrate; a source electrode and a drain electrode positioned on the oxide semiconductor layer; a first insulating layer positioned on the source electrode and the drain electrode and including a first contact hole; a data line positioned on the first insulating layer and intersecting the gate line; and a pixel electrode over the first insulating layer. The source electrode and the drain electrode each comprise a metal oxide. The data line is electrically connected to the source electrode through the first contact hole.
US09059039B2
A bonding layer of the first wafer article is thermally treated and a bonding layer of a second wafer article is thermally treated in accordance with first and second process parameters, respectively prior to bonding the first wafer article with the second wafer article. First and second grid distortion in the first and second wafer articles is measured and a difference is determined between the first and second grid distortions. A prediction is made for maintaining the difference within a prescribed tolerance. At least one of the first process parameters and the second process parameters can be conditionally varied in accordance with the prediction. The thermally treating of the first wafer article and the thermally treating of the second wafer article can then be performed with respect to another pair of the first and second wafer articles prior to bonding the another pair of wafer articles to one another through their respective bonding layers.
US09059038B2
Disclosed is an in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) system and associated method for controlling plasma etching processes during the forming of stepped structures in semiconductor manufacturing. The in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) can be optionally configured for coupling to a surface-wave plasma source (SWP), for example a radial line slotted antenna (RLSA) plasma source. A method is described to correlate the lateral recess of the steps and the etched thickness of a photoresist layer for use with the in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) during control of plasma etching processes in the forming of stepped structures.
US09059029B2
To provide a highly integrated semiconductor memory device. To provide a semiconductor memory device which can hold stored data even when power is not supplied. To provide a semiconductor memory device which has a large number of write cycles. The degree of integration of a memory cell array is increased by forming a memory cell including two transistors and one capacitor which are arranged three-dimensionally. The electric charge accumulated in the capacitor is prevented from being leaking by forming a transistor for controlling the amount of electric charge of the capacitor in the memory cell using a wide-gap semiconductor having a wider band gap than silicon. Accordingly, a semiconductor memory device which can hold stored data even when power is not supplied can be provided.
US09059025B2
A semiconductor chip having a photonics device and a CMOS device which includes a photonics device portion and a CMOS device portion on a semiconductor chip; a metal or polysilicon gate on the CMOS device portion, the metal or polysilicon gate having a gate extension that extends toward the photonics device portion; a germanium gate on the photonics device portion such that the germanium gate is coplanar with the metal or polysilicon gate, the germanium gate having a gate extension that extends toward the CMOS device portion, the germanium gate extension and metal or polysilicon gate extension joined together to form a common gate; spacers formed on the germanium gate and the metal or polysilicon gate; and nitride encapsulation formed on the germanium gate.
US09059003B2
It is an object of the present invention to provide a power semiconductor device, which is capable of being operable regardless of thermal stress generation, reducing a heat generation from wire, securing the reliability of bonding portion when the device is used for dealing with a large amount current and/or under a high temperature atmosphere, a method of manufacturing the device and a bonding wire. In a power semiconductor device in which a metal electrode (die electrode 3) on a power semiconductor die 2 and another metal electrode (connection electrode 4) are connected by metal wire 5 using wedge bonding connection, the metal wire is Ag or Ag alloy wire of which diameter is greater than 50 μm and not greater than 2 mm and the die 3 has thereon one or more metal and/or alloy layers, each of the layer(s) being 50 Å or more in thickness and a metal for the layer is selected from Ni, Cr, Cu, Pd, V, Ti, Pt, Zn, Ag, Au, W and Al.
US09059002B2
Semiconductor devices having non-merged fin extensions and methods for forming the same. Methods for forming semiconductor devices include forming fins on a substrate; forming a dummy gate over the fins, leaving a source and drain region exposed; etching the fins below a surface level of a surrounding insulator layer; and epitaxially growing fin extensions from the etched fins.
US09058997B2
Methods of multiple exposure in the fields of deep ultraviolet photolithography, next generation lithography, and semiconductor fabrication comprise a spin-castable methodology for enabling multiple patterning by completing a standard lithography process for the first exposure, followed by spin casting an etch selective overcoat layer, applying a second photoresist, and subsequent lithography. Utilizing the etch selectivity of each layer, provides a cost-effective, high resolution patterning technique. The invention comprises a number of double or multiple patterning techniques, some aimed at achieving resolution benefits, as well as others that achieve cost savings, or both resolution and cost savings. These techniques include, but are not limited to, pitch splitting techniques, pattern decomposition techniques, and dual damascene structures.
US09058990B1
A spall releasing plane is formed embedded within a Group III nitride material layer. The spall releasing plane includes a material that has a different strain, a different structure and a different composition compared with the Group III nitride material portions that provide the Group III nitride material layer and embed the spall releasing plane. The spall releasing plane provides a weakened material plane region within the Group III nitride material layer which during a subsequently performed spalling process can be used to release one of the portions of Group III nitride material from the original Group III nitride material layer. In particular, during the spalling process crack initiation and propagation occurs within the spall releasing plane embedded within the original Group III nitride material layer.
US09058979B2
A semiconductor integrated circuit including: a circuit block having an internal voltage line; an annular rail line forming a closed annular line around the circuit block and supplied with one of a power supply voltage and a reference voltage; and a plurality of switch blocks arranged around the circuit block along the annular rail line, the plurality of switch blocks each including a voltage line segment forming a part of the annular rail line and a switch for controlling connection and disconnection between the voltage line segment and the internal voltage line.
US09058977B2
A substrate cleaning apparatus performs scrub cleaning of a surface of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer. The substrate cleaning apparatus includes a cleaning member having a lower-end contact surface, and a cleaning liquid supply nozzle configured to supply a cleaning liquid to the surface of the substrate. The cleaning member is configured to scrub-clean the surface of the substrate by moving the cleaning member in one direction while the cleaning member is being rotated about its rotational axis and by rubbing the lower-end contact surface of the cleaning member against the surface of the substrate which is being rotated horizontally in the presence of the cleaning liquid. The cleaning member has an inverted truncated-cone shape wherein the angle α between the lower-end contact surface and a straight line on an outer circumferential surface of the cleaning member is larger than 90° and is not more than 150°.
US09058974B2
Improving wafer-to-wafer bonding alignment. Determining planar distortions of the bonding surface of a host wafer. Mounting a donor wafer on a bonding chuck by a plurality of fixation points, the bonding chuck including multiple zones capable of movement relative to each other. Distorting the bonding surface of the donor wafer by moving the zones of the bonding chuck relative to each other to cause distortions of the bonding surface of the donor wafer such that the distortions of the donor wafer bonding surface correspond to the determined planar distortions of the host wafer bonding surface.
US09058973B2
Passive devices fabricated on glass substrates, methods of manufacture and design structures are provided. The method includes forming an opaque or semi-opaque layer on at least a first side of a glass substrate. The method further includes forming one or more passive devices on the opaque or semi-opaque layer on a second side of the glass substrate.
US09058967B2
A method of interfacing atmospheric pressure ion sources, including electrospray and desorption electrospray ionization sources, to mass spectrometers, for example miniature mass spectrometers, in which the ionized sample is discontinuously introduced into the mass spectrometer. Discontinuous introduction improves the match between the pumping capacity of the instrument and the volume of atmospheric pressure gas that contains the ionized sample. The reduced duty cycle of sample introduction is offset by operation of the mass spectrometer under higher performance conditions and by ion accumulation at atmospheric pressure.
US09058966B2
An ionization device includes: a holding portion configured to hold a sample; a probe configured to arrange a liquid on a surface of the sample to form a liquid bridge between the probe and the sample; an electrode configured to form, at the probe, a Taylor cone for ionizing a substance contained in the sample, and to release the ionized substance from the Taylor cone; a voltage applying unit configured to apply a voltage to the electrode; and a light source configured to emit laser light that irradiates the Taylor cone. A mass spectrometer including the ionization device, and an image display system including the mass spectrometer are also disclosed.
US09058963B2
A system and method of mass spectrometry is provided. Ions from an ion source are stored in a first ion storage device and in a second ion storage device. Ions are ejected from the first ion storage device to a first mass analysis device during a first ejection time period, for analysis during a first analysis time period. Ions are ejected from the second ion storage device to a second mass analysis device during a second ejection time period. The ion storage devices are connected in series such that an ion transport aperture of the first ion storage device is in communication with an ion transport aperture of the second ion storage device. The first analysis time period and the second ejection time period at least partly overlap.
US09058959B2
The present invention is provided to enable a detailed inspection of a specimen and preventing a distortion of an observation image even when a specimen containing an insulating material is partially charged. For a scanning ion microscope utilizing a gas field ionization ion source, a thin film is disposed between an ion optical system and a specimen, and an ion beam is applied to and transmitted through this thin film in order to focus a neutralized beam on the specimen. Furthermore, an electrode for regulating secondary electrons discharged from this thin film is provided in order to eliminate mixing of noises into an observation image.
US09058954B2
Devices and methods are described for a cathode having a plurality of apertures in an insulating layer, pits in a substrate layer, and emitters in the pit. The device can also have gate layer on top of the insulating layer which has an opening that is substantially aligned with the pit and the aperture. The emitter can be an array of substantially aligned carbon nanotubes. The device and method produces cathodes that are designed to avoid shorting of the cathode due to emitter-gate contact and other fabrication challenges.
US09058952B2
This invention discloses a type of intelligent magnetic-hold miniature circuit breaker, comprising a casing, a magnetic-hold relay, and a drive circuit, wherein said drive circuit receives control signal and then drives operation of said magnetic-hold relay; said magnetic-hold relay comprises a dynamic spring assembly, a static spring assembly, a deflector rod, a pushing piece, and a magnetic steel assembly; rotation of said magnetic steel assembly drives said deflector rod and then closing or opening of contacts of said dynamic spring assembly and said static spring assembly via said pushing piece; said miniature circuit breaker also includes a central processor, a communication chip, a mutual inductance module, and a current conditioning circuit. Said mutual inductance module is installed on the extension wire of the dynamic spring assembly. Said current conditioning circuit is connected to said central processor and said mutual inductance module respectively. Said central processor drives the magnetic-hold relay via said drive circuit according to current state signal from said current conditioning circuit, to realize overload protection.
US09058951B2
An electrical switch, in particular an electrical circuit breaker, is disclosed including an overcurrent trip device which cuts off the flow of current through the switch in the event of an overcurrent situation. In at least one embodiment, a partial current of the current flowing through the electrical switch flows through a tripping arrangement of the overcurrent trip device and at least one further partial current of the current flowing through the electrical switch is conducted past the tripping arrangement.
US09058947B2
A puffer-type gas circuit-breaker having improved interruption performance and dielectric performance, comprising: a partition wall provided in a stationary cylinder on the moving side of the circuit-breaker to form an intra-stationary cylinder space, a mechanical puffer chamber provided adjacent to one flange of the partition wall and a hot gas exhaust chamber provided on the same side as another flange of the partition wall, wherein the stationary cylinder has gas inlet holes communicated with the intra-stationary cylinder space and formed on one side relative to a virtual plane that bisects the stationary cylinder in a radial direction, gas outlet holes communicated with the intra-stationary cylinder space, and hot gas exhaust openings communicated with the hot gas exhaust chamber, further communicated with the puffer shaft flow hole after an arc is generated and formed in radial directions of the stationary cylinder and on the other side relative to the virtual plane.
US09058946B2
Electrical switch arrangement and device for controlling an apparatus comprising such an arrangement
An electrical switch arrangement for controlling an electronic apparatus. The arrangement includes a reinforcement member, an electrical switch with tactile effect, a force transmission member which cooperates with the electrical switch with tactile effect, a permanent magnet which acts on a magnetic disc linked to the force transmission member to slow down the displacements of the force transmission member, and an electromagnet with controlled electrical power supply. When powered, the electromagnet produces a magnetic field which cancels the magnetic field of the permanent magnet.
US09058943B2
A device is provided. The device includes a first T-shaped structure defined via a first leg and a first platform. The device further includes a key cap with an interior open chamber. The cap is mounted onto the first structure such that the chamber contains the first platform. The device also includes a second T-shaped structure defined via a second leg and a second platform. The first leg vertically moves within the second leg such that the cap travels between a non-pressed position and a pressed position. The cap is raised above the second platform in the non-pressed position. The cap is in contact with the second platform in the pressed position.
US09058940B2
The present invention relates to an electric switch having a hollow body defining a cavity, an actuator, and a slide mounted in said cavity. Under the action of the actuator, the slide is suitable for passing from a first position, in which at least one conductive portion of the slide is electrically connected via permanent breakable electrical junctions to at least two primary electrically-conductive studs that lead laterally into said cavity to a second position in which at least one of said primary electrically-conductive studs is no longer electrically connected to said conductive portion of the slide.
US09058936B2
A multilayer ceramic capacitor uses internal electrodes which are embedded between the dielectric layers and whose primary constituent is Cu, wherein when the composition of the dielectric layer is expressed by 100CaxZrO3+aMnO2+bLiO1/2+cBO3/2+dSiO2+eAlO3/2, the contents of the respective constituents are 1.5≦a≦4.5 mol, 0.8≦b/(c+d)≦2.0, 0.9≦d/c≦1.5, and 0≦e≦0.3 mol relative to 100 mol of CaxZrO3 (where 1.005≦x≦1.06), and when 10≦(b+c+d)≦14.9, an upper limit of x is defined by a line passing through (10, 1.03) and (14.9, 1.06), and a lower limit of x is defined by a line passing through (10, 1.005) and (14.9, 1.02), wherein the coordinates indicate ((b+c+d), x).
US09058924B2
A magnetic carrier having a resin-containing ferrite particles each containing a porous ferrite core and a resin in pores of the porous ferrite core, wherein the porous ferrite core has a particular pore diameter corresponding to the maximum logarithmic differential pore volume in a pore diameter range from at least 0.10 μm to not more than 3.00 μm, the resistivity of the porous ferrite core is in a particular range, and the porous ferrite core contains an oxide of Mg in a particular amount and contains a particular amount of a oxide of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Mn, Sr, and Ca.
US09058922B2
A method for manufacturing a coaxial cable werein a polymer is irradiated and extruded around a metallic inner conductor and the polymer is then surrounded with a metallic outer conductor. The irradiated polymer may be irradiated, for example, via electron beam, for example, between 0.25 and 4 MRad.
US09058911B2
A shielded electric wire wrapped with metal foil includes coated conductive wires and a drain wire provided along the length of the coated conductive wires and grounded at the ends of the coated conductive wires and a metal foil member wrapped around the coated conductive wires and the drain wire forming a shielding layer covering the periphery of the coated conductive wires and the drain wire, wherein foil electrically connected parts, which are electrically connected to the drain wire, are provided at both ends or positions near both the ends of the coated conductive wires.
US09058898B1
The present invention discloses an efficient way to read data from a memory device by aligning an internal clock of the memory interface circuit with the read data strobe signal from the memory device by delaying the internal clock along with control signals for reading the memory device before transmitting them to the memory device, wherein the internal clock of the memory controller can sample the read data from the memory device directly without using a FIFO device between the internal clock and the read data strobe so as to reduce latency of reading data from the memory device. For example, the memory device can be a double-data-rate (DDR) DRAM device, and the control signals includes command and address signals of the DDR DRAM device.
US09058893B2
The present invention provides a shift register, a driving method, a gate driving apparatus and a display apparatus. Said shift register comprises a pull-up unit, a reset unit, a pull-down unit and a signal output; the pull-up unit is connected to said signal output and pulls up an output signal; the reset unit is connected to a control end of said pull-up unit and said signal output respectively and resets the potential of the control end of said pull-up unit after said output signal is at high level; the pull-down unit is connected to a control end of said pull-up unit and said signal output respectively and pulls down the potential of the control end of said pull-up unit and said output signal after said reset unit has reset the potential of the control end of said pull-up unit, so that said pull-up unit switches off.
US09058892B2
Data can be stored even when the supply of a power source voltage is stopped. A semiconductor device includes a logic circuit to which a data signal is input through an input terminal; a capacitor having a pair of electrodes, one of which is supplied with a high power source potential or a low power source potential and the other of which is supplied with a potential of the input terminal of the logic circuit, so that data of the data signal is written as stored data to the capacitor; and a transistor for controlling conduction between the input terminal of the logic circuit and the other of the pair of electrodes of the capacitor, thereby controlling rewriting, storing, and reading of the stored data. The off-state current per micrometer of channel width of the transistor is lower than or equal to 100 zA.
US09058890B2
A flash memory device and a reading method are provided where memory cells are divided into at least two groups. Memory cells are selected according to a threshold voltage distribution. Data stored in the selected memory cells are detected and the data is latched corresponding to one of the at least two groups according to a first read operation. A second read operation detects and latches data of the memory cells corresponding to another one of the at least two groups. The data is processed through a soft decision algorithm during the second read operation.
US09058888B2
Control circuitry for memory cells is described. In an embodiment, a breakdown detection circuit is described which is arranged to detect abnormally high currents indicative of a defective cell during programming of a memory cell through monitoring the impedance level at a terminal in the breakdown detection circuit. The breakdown detection circuit is connected between the device being programmed and ground and comprises three transistors, at least one of which is capable of withstanding the programming voltage in case of breakdown. Other embodiments describe a flag bit cell design, a memory array and methods of reading and writing from/to that array, and circuitry for biasing a memory word-line for both read and write operations. The embodiments may be used separately or in a combination.
US09058887B2
The present invention provides a reprogrammable electrically blowable fuse and associated design structure. The electrically blowable fuse is programmed using an electro-migration effect and is reprogrammed using a reverse electro-migration effect. The state (i.e., “opened” or “closed”) of the electrically blowable fuse is determined by a sensing system which compares a resistance of the electrically blowable fuse to a reference resistance.
US09058876B2
A resistive random access memory integrated circuit for use as a mass storage media and adapted for bulk erase by substantially simultaneously switching all memory cells to one of at least two possible resistive states. Bulk switching is accomplished by biasing all bottom electrodes within an erase area to a voltage lower than that of the top electrodes, wherein the erase area can comprise the entire memory array of the integrated circuit or else a partial array. Alternatively the erase area may be a single row and, upon receiving the erase command, the row address is advanced automatically and the erase step is repeated until the entire array has been erased.
US09058870B2
Parameters indicative of resistance variance of the memory elements are tracked. The resistance variance affects values of data stored in the resistance-based memory elements. A hash function is performed for each memory element. The hash function returns a reference to one of a plurality of counter elements. A value of each counter element is modified in response to the tracked parameter data of the associated memory element. Read operations affecting the memory elements are adjusted based on the values for the associated counter elements.
US09058864B2
A semiconductor apparatus includes: a command control unit configured to generate a read strobe signal, a write strobe signal, a read command, and a write command; a clock enable signal generation unit configured to generate a read clock enable signal in response to the read strobe signal and generate a write clock enable signal in response to the write strobe signal; a clock control unit configured to generate a first control clock signal and a second control clock signal in response to an internal clock signal, the read clock enable signal, and the write clock enable signal; and a latency shift unit configured to generate a first latency signal in response to a delayed read command and the first control clock signal and generate a second latency signal in response to a delayed write command and the second control clock signal.
US09058857B2
The apparatuses and methods described herein may operate to measure a voltage difference between a selected access line and a selected sense line associated with a selected cell of a plurality of memory cells of a memory array. The voltage difference may be compared with a reference voltage specified for a memory operation. A selection voltage(s) applied to the selected cell for the memory operation may be adjusted responsive to the comparison, such as to dynamically compensate for parasitic voltage drop.
US09058856B2
A memory cell array comprises first wiring lines, second wiring lines, and memory cells disposed at intersections thereof. A control circuit comprises a first power-supply line supplying a first voltage to selected ones of the first or second wiring lines, and first selection circuits connected between the first or second wiring lines and the first power-supply line, each first selection circuit comprising first and second transistors connected in series. The first selection circuits arranged along a first direction are connected to a first selection line. The first selection circuits arranged along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction are commonly connected to a second selection line. The first and second transistors each comprise a columnar semiconductor portion extending in a direction perpendicular to a semiconductor substrate, a gate-insulating film in contact with a side surface of the columnar semiconductor, and a gate electrode in contact with the gate-insulating film.
US09058852B2
A memory cell and method for operating a memory cell including a bidirectional access device and memory element electrically coupled in series. The bidirectional access device includes a tunneling capacitance. The memory element programmable to a first and second state by application of a first and second write voltage opposite in polarity to one another. The memory element has a lower capacitance in the first state than the second state. A read unit senses a transient read current due to a voltage drop upon application of a read voltage. Determining if the memory element is the first or second state is based on whether the read current is greater or less than a sense threshold. The sense threshold is based on a capacitance ratio between the first and second state.
US09058846B2
A method comprising comparing a frame rate of a source video program to a frame rate of a target video program to generate a conversion factor between the two sources; retrieving a target frame and retrieving, responsive to a location of the target video frame within the target video program, and responsive to the conversion factor, a source video frame from within the source video program; determining, by means of an image comparison, equivalence between the target frame and the source frame; generating, responsive to the determining of equivalence, synchronization diagnostic information; and synchronizing, responsive to an analysis of the synchronization diagnostic information, the target frame and the source frame, the synchronizing enabling a set of non-sequential segments of the target video program to be equivalent to a set of non-sequential segments of the source video program.
US09058834B1
A power control device comprising an always-on-domain (AOD) which includes control logic circuitry for controlling power from a power source, load switches, bias current generators. The power control device also includes, outside of the AOD, functional blocks. The control logic circuitry is configured to receive a signal to go into a lower power state, initiate a shut-down sequence of the load switches and the bias current generators of the AOD, to disable circuitry outside of the AOD, including the functional blocks of the power control device and loads controlled by the power control device, and operate in a low power state to detect a wake-up signal. The shut-down sequence may additionally include sequencing off voltage regulators outside of the AOD and a clock control inside the AOD.
US09058831B2
In one embodiment, a perpendicular magnetic recording medium includes an oxide recording layer including an oxide and a non-oxide recording layer which does not contain an oxide positioned above the oxide recording layer. The oxide recording layer includes a region R1 where a grain boundary width in a direction parallel to a plane of formation of R1 increases therealong from a lowermost portion of the oxide recording layer toward a medium surface, a region R3 positioned above R1 wherein a grain boundary width increases therealong toward the medium surface, a region R2 where a grain boundary width of R2 decreases therealong from R1 to R3, with R2 being positioned between R1 and R3, and a region R4 where a grain boundary width of R4 decreases therealong from R3 toward the medium surface, with R4 being positioned above R3 and near an uppermost portion of the oxide recording layer.
US09058827B1
A disk drive is disclosed comprising a servo control system operable to actuate a head over a disk. A sensor signal is filtered with a first filter comprising a frequency response, and the filtered sensor signal is filtered to generate a compensated sensor signal. An error signal is filtered with a second filter comprising the frequency response, and an adaptation control signal is generated based on the compensated sensor signal and the filtered error signal. An adaptive filter is adapted in response to the adaptation control signal, wherein the adaptive filter filters the sensor signal to generate feed-forward compensation values. The feed-forward compensation values are applied to the servo control system to compensate for the disturbance. A disturbance signal that represents the disturbance is generated, and the frequency response of the first and second filters is optimized based on the sensor signal and the disturbance signal.
US09058814B2
Devices, methods, and computer program products are for facilitating enhanced social interactions using a mobile device. A method for facilitating an enhanced social interaction using a mobile device includes receiving an audio input at the mobile device, determining a salient portion of the audio input, receiving relevant information associated with the salient portion, and presenting the relevant information via the mobile device.
US09058808B2
Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and computer-readable storage media for improving speech recognition accuracy using textual context. The method includes retrieving a recorded utterance, capturing text from a device display associated with the spoken dialog and viewed by one party to the recorded utterance, and identifying words in the captured text that are relevant to the recorded utterance. The method further includes adding the identified words to a dynamic language model, and recognizing the recorded utterance using the dynamic language model. The recorded utterance can be a spoken dialog. A time stamp can be assigned to each identified word. The method can include adding identified words to and/or removing identified words from the dynamic language model based on their respective time stamps. A screen scraper can capture text from the device display associated with the recorded utterance. The device display can contain customer service data.
US09058806B2
A method is provided and includes estimating an approximate list of potential speakers in a file from one or more applications. The file (e.g., an audio file, video file, or any suitable combination thereof) includes a recording of a plurality of speakers. The method also includes segmenting the file according to the approximate list of potential speakers such that each segment corresponds to at least one speaker; and recognizing particular speakers in the file based on the approximate list of potential speakers.
US09058805B2
The subject matter of this specification can be embodied in, among other things, a method that includes receiving audio data that corresponds to an utterance, obtaining a first transcription of the utterance that was generated using a limited speech recognizer. The limited speech recognizer includes a speech recognizer that includes a language model that is trained over a limited speech recognition vocabulary that includes one or more terms from a voice command grammar, but that includes fewer than all terms of an expanded grammar. A second transcription of the utterance is obtained that was generated using an expanded speech recognizer. The expanded speech recognizer includes a speech recognizer that includes a language model that is trained over an expanded speech recognition vocabulary that includes all of the terms of the expanded grammar. The utterance is classified based at least on a portion of the first transcription or the second transcription.
US09058797B2
Techniques have been developed to facilitate (1) the capture and pitch correction of vocal performances on handheld or other portable computing devices and (2) the mixing of such pitch-corrected vocal performances with backing tracks for audible rendering on targets that include such portable computing devices and as well as desktops, workstations, gaming stations, even telephony targets. Implementations of the described techniques employ signal processing techniques and allocations of system functionality that are suitable given the generally limited capabilities of such handheld or portable computing devices and that facilitate efficient encoding and communication of the pitch-corrected vocal performances (or precursors or derivatives thereof) via wireless and/or wired bandwidth-limited networks for rendering on portable computing devices or other targets.
US09058787B2
A display device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a pixel including a first subpixel and a second subpixel; a first signal line connected to the first subpixel and transmitting a first signal; a second signal line connected to the second subpixel and transmitting a second signal; a third signal line intersecting the first and the second signal lines, connected to at least one of the first and the second subpixels, and transmitting a third signal; and a fourth signal line intersecting the first and the second signal lines and transmitting a fourth signal, wherein the first subpixel and the second subpixel are supplied with data voltages having different magnitude, and the data voltages applied to the first and the second subpixels are originated from a single image information.
US09058786B2
An active matrix type liquid crystal display is disclosed. The liquid crystal display comprises a plurality of pixel elements arranged in the form of a matrix. Each of the pixel elements comprises a liquid crystal element and a dynamic memory. The dynamic memory performs consecutively, a first, a second, a third, a forth, a fifth, and a sixth refreshes for inversing a digital output status of the dynamic memory, and an interval between the first and the second refreshes is different from an interval between the third and the forth refreshes, and the interval between the third and the forth refreshes is different from an interval between the fifth and the sixth refreshes.
US09058784B2
A liquid crystal display device for carrying out a 3D display by a frame sequential method as well as a 2D display includes: a digital γ correction section for changing an input gray level to a gamma characteristic corresponding to either the 2D display or the 3D display in accordance with a preset analog gamma value; an overdrive circuit for finding, in accordance with a parameter set according to the gamma characteristic thus corrected by the digital γ correction section, an overdrive value corresponding to the input gray level; and an analog γ correction section for finding a voltage value to be applied to liquid crystal by correcting the overdrive value found by the overdrive circuit. In the digital γ correction section, an analog gamma value for the 3D display is set to be larger than an analog gamma value for the 2D display.
US09058778B2
Systems and methods for maintaining DC balance in bi-stable displays using contrast correction are disclosed. The system includes a DC balance module and storage for DC corrective waveforms. The DC balance module generates transitional driving schemes which drive pixels to new color values while simultaneously shifting each pixel's relative impulse potential values to be in line with those of the new speed drive scheme. The transitional driving schemes ensure DC balance by performing contrast and color-depth correction. In particular, the transitional driving schemes lower the contrast and reduce the color depth of pixels when increasing the speed of page flipping and raise the contrast and color depth when reducing the speed of page flipping. The present embodiment of the invention also includes a method for variable-speed page flipping with contrast correction and a method for creating a transitional driving scheme.
US09058772B2
A display device includes a plurality of luminescent pixels arranged in a display. A power supply is connected to the plurality of luminescent pixels and configured to apply a high potential and a low potential to the plurality of luminescent pixels. A voltage measurer is configured to measure, for at least one pixel from among the plurality of luminescent pixels arranged in the display, at least one potential of the high potential and the low potential applied to the at least one pixel. A voltage regulator is configured to regulate the power supply in accordance with the at least one potential measured by the voltage measurer by setting a potential difference between the high potential and the low potential applied to the at least one pixel to a predetermined potential difference.
US09058768B2
A display device including a display panel having first pixels emitting light in a first field and second pixels emitting light in a second field is disclosed. According to one aspect, the display device includes a controller configured to extract first field data transmitted to the first pixels and second field data transmitted to the second pixels from input data, divide the first field data, insert black data between two neighboring first field data to generate first output data, divide the second field data, and insert black data between two neighboring second field data to generate second output data. The display device also includes a data driver configured to transmit a first data signal based on the first output data to the display panel in the first field and transmitting a second data signal based on the second output data to the display panel in the second field.
US09058767B2
An electrooptical device according to the invention includes a plurality of pixels and a driving section that drives the pixel in such a way that the pixel is brought into a bright state or a dark state in each of subfields, and, when a specific gray level is designated, the details of driving of at least one pixel and a pixel adjacent to the one pixel, the details of driving in one frame, are different from each other.
US09058766B2
A device and method for detecting a short circuit in an electrical component during a start-up routine. In an embodiment, a device may have a problematic display having a short circuit that may result in damage to other components of the device if the device were allowed to fully startup during a normal start-up routine. Thus, power supplied to the panel may be initiated in stages so as to monitor any current that may be flowing through the panel, which in turn, may be indicative of a short circuit in the panel. If enough “leakage” current is detected through the panel during this staged startup routine, then a short-circuit detection circuit may interrupt the startup routine and lock out the operation of the device until the detected short circuit in the panel can be addressed.
US09058759B2
A virtual display system, compatible with Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM), facilitates extending a display virtually, to any display target, such as a window on the primary display, a tablet, or another personal computer altogether. The virtual WDDM display system device has a PCI filter driver, a virtual device user mode driver and a virtual device kernel mode driver. The virtual WDDM display system interacts with a physical WDDM display device, which it uses as a surrogate renderer. The PCI filter driver is used to force enumeration of a virtual display device. The virtual device kernel mode driver uses chained callbacks at increasing IRQ levels for simulating an interrupt from a real hardware device. Continuous segments in memory are used to simulate video memory on a physical display device. DirectX extensions are used to facilitate expectations at the hardware level.
US09058754B2
A portable sign having a two axis adjustable mounting requiring no tools for adjustment. The sign may be an electronically programmable flat sign. The mounting may comprise at least one linear slidably adjustable arm configured for varying a position of the arm. The arm may have a suction cup attached thereto by a flexible band wrapping around the arm. The flexible band configured to allow rotation around the arm in a plane perpendicular to the arm. The flexible band having detents molded therein to ensure secure retention of the weight of the sign at any detent stop position. The sign may have a housing with slots running the length of the sign for attaching the arms. The housing may be extruded and may include board mounting and end cap attachment features in the extrusion. The sign may typically include four adjustable arms; however any number may be used.
US09058746B2
Provided are an information processing device and a processing method both of which are capable of executing processing in response to a traveling situation of a vehicle, thereby securing safety at the time of emergency while securing convenience. The aforementioned information processing device includes: an image obtaining section which performs imaging and obtains information associated with an image; an information obtaining section which obtains the information of a traveling state; a first executing section which executes a first application that executes information processing for improving the safety of traveling; a second executing application which executes a second application that executes the information processing associated with an improvement in traveling feeling; and a determining section which, based on the information obtained in the image obtaining section and the information obtained in the information obtaining section, determines with or without a possibility of encountering an emergency event. Based on determination, made by the determining section, that it is likely to encounter the emergency event, the information processing device stops part of or the overall processing executed by the second executing section.
US09058744B2
An image-based detecting system for traffic parameters first sets a range of a vehicle lane for monitoring control, and sets an entry detection window and an exit detection window in the vehicle lane. When the entry detection window detects an event of a vehicle passing by using the image information captured at the entry detection window, a plurality of feature points are detected in the entry detection window, and will be tracked hereafter. Then, the feature points belonging to the same vehicle are grouped to obtain at least a location tracking result of single vehicle. When the tracked single vehicle moves to the exit detection window, according to the location tracking result and the time correlation through estimating the information captured at the entry detection window and the exit detection window, at least a traffic parameter is estimated.
US09058733B2
A tamper indication device has a film attached and connected within the circuit that generates a signal in response to a tamper event. The tamper indication device can be incorporated into a bullet proof vest. The sensor circuit in the bullet proof vest does not only detect a bullet strike but also determines the location of the strike base in the sensor zone where the sensor zone has been struck. This circuitry includes a cell phone module with a built in GPS sensor for supplying GPS coordinates and communicating by dispatcher with the vest wearer's name and other identifying information.
US09058727B2
A point-of-sale system includes a stand that supports a tablet computer. The tablet computer can be connected through a hub to other peripheral components, such as a cash drawer. The cash drawer can include a slidable drawer including a front face, a back face, a first side face, a second side face, and a bottom face and having sliding rails that are hidden from a top view of the drawer. An inner shell is attached to the drawer and two sliding rails, the two sliding rails positioned under the inner shell. Further, a latch is movable between a first position in which the latch holds the drawer in a closed position and a second position in which the latch releases the drawer to an open position. An actuator is used to move the latch between the first and second positions.
US09058726B2
One possible embodiment of the invention could be a method of playing a game comprised of the following steps selecting from the set of gaming symbols one or more winning gaming symbols for the play of the game; providing at least one playing card, the playing card presenting one or more gaming symbols for the play of the game, the card displaying the one or more winning gaming symbols; publishing one or more winning gaming symbols prior to a distribution of at least one playing card, distributing at least one playing card to at least one gaming participant; and comparing the gaming symbols of the distributed playing card with the one or more winning gaming symbols to determine if the distributed playing card has any gaming symbols that match the one or more winning gaming symbols to establish the distributed playing card as a winning play card.
US09058725B2
A gaming machine, at the time of the result of the base game associated with the payout, determines whether at least a competing game condition associated with the payout is satisfied or not. In the case where it is determined that the competing game condition is satisfied, the gaming machine sets the neighboring gaming terminals as opponents. When the opponent participates in the competing game for winning a payout by competing against the opponent, the gaming machine repeatedly runs an auxiliary unit game as a trigger of running a competing game. In the auxiliary unit game, pieces move on a plurality of chained frames scroll-displayed on the common display. In the case where the frame on which the piece is stopped corresponds to the trigger of the competing game, the competing game is run.
US09058723B2
Systems and methods in accordance with embodiments of the invention operate a controlled entity hybrid game. A controlled entity hybrid game includes a real world engine constructed to provide a randomly generated payout of real world credits from at least one wager in a gambling game, an entertainment software engine constructed to execute an entertainment game providing outcomes based upon a player's skillful execution of the entertainment game; and a game world engine constructed to manage the entertainment software engine and communicate, to the gambling game, a gameplay gambling event occurrence based upon a player's instruction of a controlled entity to consume an element of the entertainment game that triggers a wager in the gambling game, and change the element on the basis of the randomly generated payout and an entertainment game variable.
US09058715B2
A gaming system wherein a second game is triggered once a specific event occurs in a first game.
US09058712B2
A dispenser assembly for dispensing cups in a beverage vending machine, the assembly having a dispensing device for releasing one cup at a time from a stack of cups; and a belt conveyor, which defines a store for two parallel, staggered lines of stacks, communicates with the dispensing device via an outlet, and is connected to a wall, for pushing the stacks, by a friction coupling, so as to draw the wall, in use, towards the outlet.
US09058688B2
A method for processing a sequence of a plurality of 2D projection images of an object of interest, acquired with a medical imaging system comprising a source of X-rays adapted to move around the object is provided. The method comprises obtaining 2D projection images of the object of interest according to a plurality of angulations at a first time when the object is without injection of a contrast product; obtaining 2D projection images of the object of interest according to a plurality of angulations at a second time when the object is opacified by injection of a contrast product iteratively treating the projection images by minimizing relative to a sequence of 3D images, wherein the minimizing solution is a set of estimated 3D images.
US09058680B2
The disclosed invention provides a solution for the problem of blending colors in a graphics processing unit. The plurality of blending equations used in various graphics layers is performed with a programmable streaming processor. Multiple simultaneous threads are used to eliminate pipeline latency and memory stalls. Overlays of predefined blending modes are used to minimize the time instruction memory is updated.The processing unit includes: (a) an instruction memory (b) hardware context registers for each executing stream (c) pipelined arithmetic units of predefined precision, including support for floating point (d) units that convert multi-format data to and from floating point precision (e) Look-up tables for quick color space transformations.
US09058667B2
Systems, methods, and computer readable media to approximate edge-preserving transformations with global transfer functions are described. In general, a first transfer function that approximates an edge-preserving operation can be found which, together with an enhancement filter (e.g., dynamic range compression) may be used to generate a global transfer function. Alternatively, a second transfer function may be found that approximates the behavior of the combined first transfer function and enhancement filter. Together the first and second transfer functions may generate a global transfer function. It has been determined that a down-sampled version of an input image may be used to develop the global transfer function. Application of global transfer functions in accordance with this disclosure can generate an output image that exhibits the same overall tonality of the input image without introducing the loss of detail and other artifacts attributable to local processing (e.g., the application of edge-preserving filters).
US09058666B2
Briefly, embodiments of methods and/or apparatuses for processing, at a variety of scale levels, labeled measurements in sub-regions to form a region characterized by a set of labeled measurements is described.
US09058662B2
In one embodiment, a method includes receiving at least one transformation identifier associated with a first image maintained by a social networking system. The transformation identifier includes at least one transformation version. The method further includes determining at least one transformation for application to the first image based on the at least one transformation identifier and the at least one transformation version.
US09058661B2
The invention relates to a method for the real-time-capable, computer-assisted analysis of an image sequence of an object consisting of elements that can be moved relative to each other and are interconnected, said sequence containing a variable pose, wherein the individual images of the image sequence are recorded by way of a time-of-flight (TOF) camera such that said images can be processed by a computer, and contain brightness and distance data as functions of the pixel coordinates of the camera for each image of the sequence, comprising the following steps: a. Capturing the pixels of an individual image forming the object, b. calculating a three-dimensional (3D) point cloud in a virtual space, said point cloud representing the surface of the object that is visible to the camera, by a computational projection of object-depicting pixels in such a space, while taking captured distance data to the object into consideration, c. fitting a model of the object consisting of nodes and edges into the computer-generated 3D point cloud for the individual images, wherein the nodes represent a selection of elements of the object and the edges represent the connections of said elements amount each other, d. iteratively updating all node positions by applying a learning rule for training a self-organizing map having a previously defined number of randomly selected dots of the point cloud, e. repeating steps a. to d. for each subsequent individual image of the sequence, wherein for the fitting in step c. the result of step e. of the preceding image is used in each case, and f. determining the varying pose from the positions of predetermined nodes of the model which have been captured in at least representative images of the image sequence.
US09058660B2
Techniques for searching in an image for a particular block of pixels that represents a feature are described herein. The techniques may include generating feature quality information indicating a quality of the feature with respect to blocks of pixels of the image. The feature quality information may be utilized to locate a block of pixels in a subsequent image that corresponds to the feature. For example, the feature quality information may be utilized to determine whether a block of pixels that has a threshold amount of similarity to the feature actually corresponds to the feature.
US09058647B2
An information processing apparatus includes a region acquisition unit configured to obtain a specific region of a subject, a tomographic image acquisition unit configured to obtain a tomographic image of the subject, and a display control unit configured to cause a display unit to display a region indicating probability of existence of the specific region in the obtained tomographic image.
US09058646B2
Systems, methods, and kits are disclosed for collection, labeling and analyzing biological samples containing nucleic acid in conjunction with collecting at least one ridge and valley signature of an individual. Such devices and methods are used in forensic, human identification, access control and screening technologies to rapidly process an individual's identity or determine the identity of an individual.
US09058642B2
A method of processing a viewport within an image arranged as a matrix of tiles from a container file is provided. The method includes receiving a request to read data of the viewport starting from a point of origin of the viewport, the viewport having a pixel width and a pixel height, the viewport being a portion of an image that is stored in a record within the file container; computing column numbers or row numbers, or both, of the tiles containing the viewport; and reading in parallel or asynchronously each row or each column of tiles containing the viewport.
US09058637B2
Each block of texture data elements is encoded as a block of texture data that includes: data indicating how to generate a set of data values to be used to generate data values for a set of the texture data elements that the block represents; data indicating a set of integer values to be used to generate the set of data values to be used to generate data values for a set of the texture data elements that the block represents; data indicating a set of index values indicating how to use the generated set of data values to generate data values for texture data elements of the set of texture data elements that the generated set of data values is to be used for; and data indicating the indexing scheme that has been used for the block.
US09058631B2
Method and system for e-commerce transaction data accounting are disclosed. A method comprises: a second server receiving transaction data from a first server; the second server analyzing the received transaction data to identify a classification of the received transaction data; the second server obtaining historical transaction data from a second database based on the classification of the received transaction data, wherein the second database obtains transaction data that meet a preset condition from a data warehouse system and compares the transaction data that meet the preset condition with previously obtained transaction data to update inconsistency in the transaction data that meet the preset condition; and the second server combining the received transaction data and the historical transaction data to produce current transaction data.
US09058626B1
An intelligent process is provided for a business to interface with a financial institution. A container is provided that is capable of interfacing with a financial transaction device. The container may have one or more internal compartments sized to accommodate cash, coins, and/or checks. The container may be available in a variety of sizes. The container is capable of being sealed and locked in a tamper proof manner. A tracking device may be included with the container. The container may contain a computing device. The container may then be taken to a designated location having a financial transaction device with which the container can interface. The financial transaction device may be located at a branch of a financial institution or another location, such as at the business itself or at another location.
US09058625B2
A technique for transferring money between a customer and a beneficiary comprises a money-transfer company, and a plurality of selling agents and paying agents. The money-transfer company maintains a server, a database, and a communications interface for communicating, via a telephone network and/or the Internet, with data terminals located at the selling and paying agents' sites. Customer transaction cards are distributed to customers. These cards have a visible card number and a corresponding alphanumeric card code stored in, e.g., a magnetic strip. In response to a customer's request, the money-transfer company activates the customer's transaction card by loading customer and beneficiary information into a corresponding transaction card record stored in the database.
US09058624B1
Disclosed are various embodiments for shopping using a messaging system. A message from a user, such as an email message, is stored in a memory for processing. The email message includes a plurality of line items. At least one item may be identified corresponding to each one of the plurality of line items by searching an electronic catalog associated with an electronic commerce system. At least one item is available for purchase through the electronic commerce system. The at least one item may be included in a list associated with a user account for the user. The user account is managed by the electronic commerce system. Further embodiments include automatically transmitting a reply email message to the user indicating that at least one item has been included in the list if the attempt to identify is successful.
US09058623B2
A scraping mechanism may download a web page from a retailer and extract information for each item being offered for sale. The scraping mechanism may parse the published HTML code to identify items for sale, along with other parameters that may be presented in the web page. From the web page, a data structure may be created that represents the items for sale, and the data structure may be used to generate advertisements for the retailer, add the items to a search engine, or for other uses. In some embodiments, the retailer may include hints, tags, or other annotations in the HTML code to facilitate the data capture. The web page may be a standard public page or may be a private page accessible to the scraping mechanism only.
US09058616B2
Provided is a system and method for providing advertisement information using voice recognition when performing a voice call based on a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). The system for providing advertisement information based on a VoIP may include a voice recognition unit to recognize voice information received via an application of a user terminal, an information converter to convert the voice information to text information, an advertisement selector to select advertisement information corresponding to the text information among a plurality of pieces of advertisement information stored in a database, and a transmitter to transmit the selected advertisement information.
US09058611B2
An advertising system and method are disclosed for generating advertising content based on a user's images. These can be photographs owned by a user of a web page. An advertising template for an advertising sponsor is provided. For a user viewing the web page, a set of the user's images is categorized, based on image content of the images in the set. The categorization is performed with at least one classifier which has been trained on a finite set of image categories. An advertising image is selected for advertising content based on the categorization of the user's images. The template is combined with the selected advertising image to form the advertising content. The advertising content can then be displayed to the user on the web page. A user profile is also disclosed which can be used as the categorized user images.
US09058609B2
A brand engine receives a request from a user device operated by a first user to display user information of a second user. User information of the first user is mapped to at least the user information of the second user by the brand engine. The mapping may map the user information of the first user to user information of further users in a social network. The mapping may map of any combination of spatial, temporal, social, and topical data related to the users. A modified representation of a brand profile of the second user is generated by the brand engine based on the mapping. The modified representation is transmitted to the user device. The user device displays the modified representation for the first user. The modified representation of the brand profile may include any combination of filtered and/or sorted brand objects, recommended brand objects, and/or modified brand objects.
US09058602B1
A handheld transit fare device is provided. The transit fare device includes an NFC interface configured to send and receive data, a memory, and a processor. The processor is configured to receive, via the interface, a list of transactions from a host device using standard smart card protocol commands and reply structures. The list of transactions includes identifiers of fare access media used to gain access to a transit vehicle. The processor is configured to store the list of transactions on the memory and to provide a first indication that the list of transactions has been received. The processor is configured to receive, via the interface, an identifier from a fare access media on the transit vehicle, determine whether the identifier from the fare access media matches one of the identifiers from the list of transactions, and provide a second indication that provides a result of the determination.
US09058601B2
In one embodiment, transferring payment between a first user and a second user of a communication system includes displaying a contact list in a user interface of a client executed at a user terminal of the first user, the contact list including the second user. The client retrieves and displays at least one page from a payment provider responsive to the first user selecting the second user from the contact list. The client transmits, to the payment provider, information related to the payment entered into the page by the first user, which causes the payment provider to transfer the payment from an account of the first user to an account of the second user.
US09058597B2
An embodiment of the invention provides a system and method for displaying the scheduling availability of a user. The system includes an occupancy module for analyzing the schedule of the user to determine the occupancy for a time period in the schedule. The time period includes an available time slot and/or an occupied time slot. A processor connected to the occupancy module determines whether the occupancy for the time period is above a threshold level of occupancy. The threshold level of occupancy includes a maximum number of occupied time slots, a maximum percentage of occupied time slots, a maximum amount of occupied time, and/or a maximum percentage of occupied time. A scheduling module connected to the processor automatically displays the scheduling availability of the user as unavailable for the time slot when the occupancy for the time period is above the threshold level of occupancy.
US09058595B2
Methods and systems for managing an electronic calendar are described. One exemplary method includes displaying a calendar on a display device, the calendar having at least one time range, and displaying an invitation, before it is accepted, on the calendar in the at least one time range with other events which are already accepted. Another exemplary method includes displaying a calendar on a display device and displaying a list of user-selectable calendars comprising an invitation calendar which presents invitations which have not yet been accepted or declined on the invitation calendar. Other methods are described, and machine readable media and systems are also described.
US09058584B2
Exemplary embodiments are directed to a method and apparatus for storage of data for a batch of manufactured items. The method comprises defining, by a lower limit identifier and an upper limit identifier, a range of unique item identifiers for the batch, wherein each manufactured item in the batch is allocated a unique item identifier falling within the range. The number of unique item identifiers allocated to the manufactured items is smaller than the number of unique item identifiers in the range. The unique item identifiers allocated to the manufactured items are defined by the lower limit item identifier of the range, the upper limit item identifier of the range and an indication of those item identifiers in the range which are not allocated to a manufactured item.
US09058581B2
Some embodiments include a system, method, apparatus and means for managing information associated with risk. In some embodiments, information associated with risk is collected, analyzed, stored, and disseminated. According to some embodiments, the information associated with risk is utilized to identify risk.
US09058580B1
A method includes receiving or capturing an image comprising an identity document (ID) using a mobile device; classifying the ID; building an extraction model based on the ID classification; extracting data from the ID based on the extraction model; building an ID profile based on the extracted data; storing the ID profile to a memory of the mobile device; detecting a predetermined stimulus in a workflow; identifying workflow-relevant data in the stored ID profile at least partially in response to detecting the predetermined stimulus; providing the workflow-relevant data from the stored ID profile to the workflow; and driving at least a portion of the workflow using the workflow-relevant data. Related systems and computer program products are also disclosed.
US09058568B2
Systems and methods for failure prediction and maintenance planning are provided. A system for failure prediction and maintenance planning, comprises a statistical modeling module comprising a periodic impact evaluation module capable of identifying periodic effects on the failure risk, a balance equation systems module capable of constructing balance equations with respect to phases of failure times, and an initial phase estimation module capable of estimating an unknown initial phase, wherein one or more of the modules are implemented on a computer system comprising a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory.
US09058566B2
According to an embodiment, a control device includes a detecting unit, a communication unit, and a control unit. The detecting unit detects that a power-supplied device is connected to a power supply line relaying supply of power. The communication unit receives consumer authentication information including consumer identification information for identifying a consumer from a communication device when it is detected that the power-supplied device is connected to the power supply line, transmits the consumer authentication information to a first server, receives power-supply-availability determination information representing whether supply of power to the power-supplied device is possible or not, from the first server, and transmits power measurement information representing power supplied to the power-supplied device through the power supply line and the consumer identification information to a second server. The control unit supplies power to the power-supplied device when the power-supply-availability determination information represents that supply of power is possible.
US09058561B2
A processor based system and method of generating cognitive pattern knowledge of a sensory input is disclosed. The method comprising the steps of receiving sensory input to create at least one concrete pattern, receiving at least one abstract pattern comprising abstract segments and vertically blending the concrete pattern with the abstract pattern by selectively projecting abstract segments to create a vertically blended pattern whereby the vertically blended pattern represents cognitive pattern knowledge of the sensory input. In some embodiments, the systems and methods further comprise creating a measure of a degree of vertical blending and when the measure of the degree of vertical blending exceeds a threshold, horizontally blending at least two abstract patterns to create a horizontally blended abstract pattern.
US09058560B2
Invasive species control plans may be automatically generated using vegetation control information received from a variety of sources. Such invasive species control plans may aid vegetation control personnel and professionals when determining an invasive species control strategy, including treatment and restoration, and then guide the implementation of that strategy. Invasive species control plans may include a variety of recommended vegetation control practices and projected outcomes for the implementation of recommended vegetation control management practices.
US09058558B2
An image processing apparatus includes a reception unit, an intermediate data generation unit, an extraction unit, a conversion unit, an addition unit, a determination unit, and a drawing processing unit. In the case where the determination unit determines that intermediate data for spot color image data have background image data, the drawing processing unit performs a drawing process so as to add a color of spot color image data and a color of the background image data of the spot color image data on the basis of color transparency information added by the addition unit, color information on spot color image data converted by the conversion unit, and color information on the background image data.
US09058556B2
When a recording device dynamically changes the printout using the ability to record based on a template. A printer 3 has a storage unit 33 that stores a template database 35 defining areas that are formed in the recording area of a recording medium in a template, and a recording control unit 32 that records in the areas of the template based on the content of the template database 35 when a control command specifying a template and instructing recording in an area is received from a host computer 2. When a control command instructing recording a specific string in a specific area of a specific template is received, the recording control unit 32 also executes a specific process.
US09058553B2
A contact/non-contact type hybrid IC card is provided which includes a non-contact interface to communicate in a non-contact manner with a non-contact type reader/writer through an antenna, a contact interface to communicate in a contact manner with a contact type reader/writer through a contact terminal, a storage unit to store personal identification information input from the contact type reader/writer through the contact interface during a contact communication mode by the contact interface, and a control unit to remove a limitation of a prescribed function in a non-contact communication mode by the non-contact interface based on the personal identification information stored in the storage unit during the contact communication mode and switch a communication mode from the contact communication mode to the non-contact communication mode with the limitation of the prescribed function being removed.
US09058549B2
The present invention relates to an integrated circuit (30) comprising a logic circuit (42) and reception means (34) for receiving external signals and for transmitting said received external signals to said logic circuit (42), and it relates to a device coupled to such an integrated circuit and to methods for manufacturing and operating such an integrated circuit and for transmitting control data to a device. In order to provide such an integrated circuit (30) for an extended functionality in comparison with conventional transponders, an integrated circuit (30) comprising a logic circuit (42); at least two external contacts (44a, 44b), switching means (46) connecting said logic circuit (42) to said external contacts (44a, 44b) and reception means (34) for receiving external signals and for transmitting said received external signals to said logic circuit (42) is proposed, wherein said integrated circuit (30) is operable in a first operation mode for providing a switching functionality—through said external contacts (44a, 44b) by said switching means (46) for switching an electrical connection between said external contacts (44a, 44b), wherein said switching means (46) are controlled by said logic circuit (42) in response to said received external signals. Further, a corresponding device coupled to such an integrated circuit (30) and corresponding methods for manufacturing and operating such an integrated circuit (30) and for transmitting control data to a device are proposed.
US09058547B2
Provided are a metal payment card and a method of manufacturing the same. The metal payment card of the present disclosure has a main body made from at least one of a liquid metal alloy, aluminum alloy and copper alloy. The main body has a tangible pattern region.
US09058542B2
A method for checking the visibility of a camera for surroundings of an automobile is proposed which includes receiving a camera image and a step of dividing the camera image into a plurality of partial images. A visibility value is determined based on a number of objects detected in the particular partial image. A visibility probability is subsequently determined for each of the partial images based on the blindness values and the visibility values of the particular partial images.
US09058538B1
Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for determining camera parameters and three dimensional locations of features from a plurality of images of a geographic area. These include, determining a correlation between a pose of a first camera and a pose of a second camera, generating one or more constraints incorporating the correlation, and determining at least one of camera parameters and three dimensional locations of features using a plurality of constraints including the generated one or more constraints. The first camera and the second camera have substantially rigid positions and poses relative to each other. A strength of the correlation is based at least upon a time interval between respective image captures by the first camera and the second camera.
US09058523B2
In addition to the clear advantages of video monitoring systems for securing monitoring regions and optionally for following suspicious objects, there is the requirement to secure the private environments of people in the regions being monitored. A masking module (4) for a monitoring system (1) is disclosed for the above, wherein the monitoring system (1) has at least one monitoring camera (2) designed and/or arranged for observing monitoring regions with moving objects (14, 16), comprising a selection device for selecting objects as selected objects (16), wherein the masking module (4) is designed to output the selected objects (16) or partial regions thereof subsequently together called selected objects (16) in a masked form, wherein the masking module (4) is designed to limit the masking of objects (16) to at least one selected physical partial region (15, 18) of the monitoring region.
US09058522B2
A video processing system detects an overlay image, such as a logo, in a picture of a video stream, the overlay for example being a broadcaster's logo. The detection is based on evaluation of blending characteristics of a picture frame. The method of detection of an overlay defines first and second areas within the image, the first and second areas being non-overlapping. Next an alpha-blended value is calculated for the mean color value of the second area with an overlay color value. Then, if the mean color value of the first area is closer to the alpha-blended value than it is to the mean color value of the second area, the overlay can be indicated as detected and defined within the picture. Detection of the overlay can be used to identify an owner of the video, or detect when a scene change such as a commercial occurs.
US09058513B2
An image verification device that checks an input image obtained by photographing an object to be checked against a registered image database, wherein, in the registered image database, an amount of feature of an image obtained by photographing an object is registered as a registered image, and the registered image includes registered images registered with respect to a plurality of objects, has a verification score calculating unit that calculates a verification score serving as a score representing a degree of approximation between the objects indicated by the registered images and the object of the input image by using the amount of feature of the input image and the amounts of feature of the registered images, and a relative evaluation score calculating unit.
US09058509B1
A software-based privacy filter is provided on a computing device. First, a content window is opened and displayed on a display of the computing device. Then a semi-transparent topmost window is created, wherein the semi-transparent topmost window includes a moving privacy pattern designed to obscure first portions of the content window at a first time and obscure second portions of the content window at a second time. The semi-transparent topmost window is then displayed on top of the first content window on the display of the computing device.
US09058505B2
A computer determines, based on a degree of authorization of a user, that a user has authorization to view a type of field. Based on the degree of authorization of the user, the computer generates a modified list of search terms by adding additional search terms to a list of search terms. The computer executes a search using the modified list of search terms. The computer identifies a search result that includes the first type of field which further includes a search term that is included in the modified list of search terms.
US09058501B2
An apparatus for determining media item privacy settings may include a processor. The processor may be configured to receive media item capture data associated with a media item. The media item capture data may include at least a capture location. The processor may also be configured to identify a privacy context that corresponds to the media item capture data. In this regard, the capture location of the media item capture data may be within a geographic zone of the privacy context. The processor may be further configured to determine a privacy setting for the media item based on the corresponding privacy context, and, in some embodiments, control access to the media item in accordance with the determined privacy setting. Associated methods and computer program products may also be provided.
US09058500B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide a method and an apparatus for inputting data. The present invention relates to the communications field and aims to improve security of input information. The method includes: acquiring, by a virtual machine manager, input data; performing, by the virtual machine manager, encryption processing on the input data according to an encryption rule of a security connection to obtain encrypted data, where the security connection refers to a connection that is established between an application interface and a server and used for data transmission; and sending, by the virtual machine manager, the encrypted data to the server. The present invention is applicable to a data input scenario.
US09058498B2
A card computing device may be configured to establish and manage secure channel communications between terminal applications and local applications installed on the card computing device. A runtime component of the card computing device may be configured to generate a registry of applications available as endpoints for secure channel communications, either in response to applications registering as endpoints or based on installation parameters on the card computing device. The runtime component may provide a list of the registered applications to a terminal application. The runtime component may establish a secure channel between a terminal application and a local application and may receive and decrypt secure commands from the terminal application. The runtime component may forward the decrypted commands to the local application and encrypt and forward responses from the local application to the terminal application.
US09058495B2
Rights management services (RMS) integration with mobile device management (MDM) may be provided. A functionality associated with a document may be restricted according to a document management policy. After the document has been transmitted to a receiving device, a request to un-restrict the at least one functionality associated with the document may be received. If it is determined that the receiving device complies with the document management policy, the functionality associated with the document may be un-restricted.
US09058483B2
A system that validates a native code module. During operation, the system receives a native code module comprised of untrusted native program code. The system validates the native code module by: (1) determining that code in the native code module does not include any restricted instructions and/or does not access restricted features of a computing device; and (2) determining that the instructions in the native code module are aligned along byte boundaries such that a specified set of byte boundaries always contain a valid instruction and control flow instructions have valid targets. The system allows successfully-validated native code modules to execute, and rejects native code modules that fail validation. By validating the native code module, the system facilitates safely executing the native code module in the secure runtime environment on the computing device, thereby achieving native code performance for untrusted program binaries without significant risk of unwanted side effects.
US09058476B2
A method and an image forming apparatus authenticate a user by using a smart card. The image forming apparatus includes a card reader to, if a smart card is inserted, extract user information from the smart card, an input unit to input information required for user authentication, a storage unit to store the input information in correspondence with the extracted user information, a user account management unit to request to authenticate the user of the smart card based on the extracted user information and the input information, or the extracted user information and the stored information, and a user authentication unit to authenticate the user according to the authentication request.
US09058469B2
An approach is provided for detecting and monitoring end user license agreement (EULA) compliance is provided. A request to access a executable software code is received from an end user. A EULA version corresponding to the requested executable software code is identified. A determination is made as to whether the end user has accepted the identified EULA. If the end user has not accepted the identified EULA, then an out of date EULA notification is sent to the end user, the EULA is sent to the end user requesting an acceptance to the EULA. A EULA response is received from the end user. If the end user accepts the EULA, then the end user is allowed access to the executable software code.
US09058452B1
A computer executable tool analyzes unknowns (Xs) in gate-level simulation and traces their sources to determine if the Xs are generated due to X-pessimism. For Xs generated due to X-pessimism, fixes are generated to correct simulation results. Corrected simulation results match real hardware behavior and greatly reduce the analysis effort of engineers.
US09058451B2
A global optimization method to synthesize and balance the clock systems in a multimode, multi-corner, and multi-domain design environment is described. The method builds a graph representation for a clock network. The method determines an optimal clock network balancing solution for the clock network by applying linear programming to the graph. To apply linear programming to the graph, the method generates a set of constraints for the graph and determines a proper insertion delay for each edge of the graph by solving for a minimal skew based on the set of constraints. The method implements the optimal clock network balancing solution.
US09058443B2
A system and computer program product for solving a two-stage non-linear stochastic formulation for the economic dispatch problem under renewable-generation uncertainty. Certain generation decisions are made only in the first stage and fixed for the subsequent (second) stage, where the actual renewable generation is realized. The uncertainty in renewable output is captured by a finite number of scenarios. Any resulting supply-demand mis-match must then be alleviated using high marginal-cost power sources that can be tapped in short time frames. The solution implements two outer approximation algorithms to solve this nonconvex optimization problem to optimality. Under certain conditions the sequence of optimal solutions obtained under both alternatives has a limit point that is a globally-optimal solution to the original two-stage nonconvex program. A further decomposition approach derived from the Alternating Direction Method of Multipliers algorithm is implemented.
US09058436B1
Methods, systems and circuits for reducing aging of at least one component of a data path are disclosed. First data transmitted over a data path may be monitored in an active state to allow generation of second data, where the second data may be transmitted in an inactive state over the data path to improve the balance of any imbalance in the static probability of one logical state versus another caused by transmission of the first data. Portions of data to be transmitted over a data path may be compared to previously-transmitted portions of data to determine a respective data bus inversion (DBI) setting each portion of data, where the DBI settings may be used to increase the toggling of bits of the data path and improve the balance of the static probability of one logical state versus another.
US09058433B2
An advanced extensible interface (AXI) bus is disclosed. 2×2 AXI crossbars are used as basic units; each including two slave interfaces and two master interfaces; an N2 full Mesh fabric is built by using the basic units, so that each slave interface on one basic unit is connected to a master interface on another basic unit to form a first path. A data transmission method includes: receiving, through a master interface of a basic unit, a data packet sent by a master device; sending, through a slave interface of the basic unit, the data packet to a destination slave device by using an AXI bus; receiving, through the slave interface of the basic unit, a response packet returned by the destination slave device, where the basic units are 2×2 AXI crossbars and the AXI bus is based on an N2 full mesh fabric built by using the basic units.
US09058422B2
Techniques for polling an input/output (I/O) device are described herein. The techniques include polling a device for data from the I/O device, and receiving the data from the I/O device at the host device as a result of the polling. The techniques include determining whether the data received is the same as data received at a previous polling of the I/O device. Upon determining the data received is the same, the techniques include decreasing the polling rate if the data is the same, and if it is not the same. Upon determining the data is not the same, the techniques include increasing the polling rate if the data is not the same.
US09058420B2
Dynamic program analysis is decoupled from execution in virtual computer environments and is carried out synchronously with program execution. Decoupled dynamic program analysis is enabled by separating execution and analysis into two tasks: (1) recording, where system execution is recorded with minimal interference, and (2) analysis, where the execution is replayed and analyzed. Synchronous decoupled program analysis is enabled by suspending execution or data outputs of the program until a confirmation is received that the analysis is in sync with the program execution.
US09058407B2
Systems, methods, and other embodiments associated with versioned persistent storage of multimedia content in a database object are described. One example method includes controlling a database management system (DBMS) to instantiate a database object that has a binary large object (BLOB) attribute, an XML edits attribute, and a set of metadata attributes. The method includes storing a binary stream associated with a multimedia content (e.g., medical image) in the BLOB attribute and storing an editing history of the set of metadata attributes as a set of edit entries in the XML edits attribute. The method also includes controlling the DBMS to store the database object in a column in a table in a relational database managed by the DBMS.
US09058406B2
In embodiments of the present invention improved capabilities are described for delivery of a sponsored content to a mobile communication facility user. In embodiments, a request may be received for a sponsored content from a publisher, and one or more content inventories may be searched for a content that is relevant to the request. Content may be selected for delivery to the publisher from one or more content inventory. The content may be selected based at least in part on a relevance between the content and the request. The content, and the content inventory from which the relevant content is chosen, may be selected based at least in part on a statistical weight relating to the amount of revenue a wireless operator may realize upon presentation of the content to a mobile communication facility.
US09058401B2
In one embodiment, computer-readable instructions, when executed, cause a client browser to wait for all of the markup language in a document object model to be loaded, and upon loading, parse the document object model for supported tags, create placeholder frames for each supported tag, and bundle all the tags into a single meta-request for a server. Upon receiving each response, the instructions are further operable to cause the client browser to replace the hidden frames with its corresponding response, thereby reducing the number of socket connections from the client to the server.
US09058400B2
A method, computer program product, and computer system for client-server communication based on delta transfer. A server of the computer system receives from a client a HTTP request for transferring a current image page, compares the current image page and a saved image page which is stored on the server for the client. Based on the comparison, the server of the computer system constructs delta contents between the current image page and the saved image page. The server of the computer system updates the saved image page on the server with the current image page and sends a HTTP response comprising the delta contents to the client.
US09058397B1
A business card having a QRC image, and method and system for transferring business card information from a QRC to a mobile communication device is disclosed herein. A SMS message comprising contact data for a business is sent from a QRC server to the mobile communication device, which results in pop-up display on the mobile communication device. The pop-up display includes a V-card for the business.
US09058389B2
A search engine may perform a search for a user search query over a number of possible search categories. For example, the search query may be performed for general web documents, images, and news documents. The search engine ranks categories based on the search query and/or the documents returned for each category and presents the search results to the user by category. Higher ranking categories may be presented more prominently than lower ranking categories.
US09058388B2
The presently claimed invention relates to network searching and handheld devices. One claim recites a method including: from a first wireless device, wirelessly communicating with a second wireless device to determine whether the second wireless device has performed an internet or database search; receiving, at the first wireless device, information from the second wireless device regarding the internet or database search, if the information satisfies predetermined criteria on the first wireless device, requesting from the second wireless device at least a subset of results obtained from the internet or database search. Another claim recites: a method of searching comprising: receiving search criteria in a first, handheld mobile device; upon sensing a second, handheld mobile device by the first, handheld mobile device, automatically and wirelessly querying the second, handheld mobile device to determine whether the second, handheld mobile device has any content stored thereon corresponding to the search criteria; and receiving content corresponding to the search criteria from the second, handheld mobile device. Of course, other claims and combinations are also provided.
US09058364B2
A search engine provides personalized rankings of search results. A user interest profile identifies topics of interest to a user. Each topic is associated with one or more sites, and a boost value, which can be used to augment an information retrieval score of any document from the site. Search results from any search are provided to the user, with a variable control of the ranking of the results. The results can be ranked by their unboosted information retrieval score, thus reflecting no personalization, or by their fully or partially boosted information retrieval scores. This allows the user to selectively control how their interests affect the ranking of the documents.
US09058357B1
Data of a columnar database is organized into extents. Each extent occupies contiguous storage on the disk. An extent stores database blocks of a column of a database table. The database system adds new database blocks of a column to the extents assigned to that column. When a request for adding a block to a table is received, the extent for the table and column combination is obtained and the block added to the extent. Prefetching strategies are used to retrieve database blocks in advance of an actual request. The rate of prefetching is determined per column. The rate of prefetching is adjusted based on the number of faults encountered for the column. Database blocks no longer needed in memory are pushed out. When a scan process is reading blocks, as soon as the block has been processed it is scheduled to be pushed out.
US09058356B2
Approaches, techniques, and mechanisms are disclosed for maintaining a set of baseline query plans for a database command. Except in rare circumstances, a database server may only execute a command according to a baseline plan, even if the database server predicts that a different plan has a lower cost. The set of baseline plans are plans that, for one reason or another, have been determined to provide acceptable actual performance in at least one execution context. When the database server receives a request to execute a particular command, the database server, if possible, always executes the command according to the lowest predicted cost baseline plan. The database server may evolve the plan baseline to include additional plans by generating and testing new plans in response to new requests to execute the database command, or as part of a query optimization or tuning process.
US09058355B1
An architecture for a multimedia search system is described. To perform similarity matching of multimedia query frames against reference content, reference database comprising of a cluster index using cluster keys to perform similarity matching and a multimedia index to perform sequence matching is built. Methods to update and maintain the reference database that enables addition and removal of the multimedia contents, including portions of multimedia content, from the reference database in a running system are described. Hierarchical multi-level partitioning methods to organize the reference database are presented. Smart partitioning of the reference multimedia content according to the nature of the multimedia content, and according to the popularity among the social media, that supports scalable fast multimedia identification is also presented. A caching mechanism for multimedia search queries in a centralized or in a decentralized distributed system and a client based local multimedia search system enabling multimedia tracking are described.
US09058349B2
A first data set is derived from a second data set. The first data set is stored in a database of derived data sets. The second data set is updated without updating the first data set, such that the first data set and the second data are inconsistent. The first data set is deleted or updated during batch processing of the database of the derived data sets.
US09058346B2
Systems and methods for processing an index are described. A postings list of items containing a particular term are ordered in a desired retrieval order, e.g., most recent first. The ordered items are inserted into an inverted index in the desired retrieval order, resulting in an ordered inverted index from which items may be efficiently retrieved in the desired retrieval order. During retrieval, items may first be retrieved from a live index, and the retrieved items from the live and ordered indexes may be merged. The retrieved items may also be filtered in accordance with the items' file grouping parameters.
US09058343B2
A method of accommodating at least one difference between a first database schema and a second database schema is provided. The method includes receiving a response generated by a first application program using a first database schema, identifying a value in the response that is unrecognizable to a second application program using a second database schema and substituting, using a processor, the value that is unrecognizable to the second application program with a reserved element recognizable to the second application program, the reserved element indicating to the second application program that a portion of the response is not recognizable to the second application program. The method further includes communicating the response to the second application program.
US09058329B1
A system and method for deriving associations between assets is disclosed. The system comprises a signature module, a matching module and an association module. These components of the system are communicatively coupled to each other. The signature module generates a first fingerprint for a first asset. The matching module determines a matching fingerprint that matches the first fingerprint from a candidate set. The matching module determines a first asset type for the first asset associated with the first fingerprint and a second asset type for a second asset associated with the matching fingerprint. The matching module determines an association test. The association module associates the first asset with the matching asset based on whether the association test is passed.
US09058325B2
An information providing system includes the following elements. An IC card stores card ID. An information providing terminal reads out the card ID of the IC card, provides information to the IC card, and transmits the card ID and the information provided to the IC card or the ID of the provided information to a management server. The management server receives the card ID and the information provided to the IC card or the provided information ID from the information providing terminal, has a database to manage the card ID and the provided information such that the card ID is associated with the provided information, acquires the information provided to the IC card from the database in response to an information request from a client terminal, and supplies the provided information to the client terminal. The client terminal displays the provided information supplied from the management server.
US09058322B2
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for providing a two-way automatic interpretation and translation service. The apparatus includes a first interpretation and translation unit for interpreting and translating a first language into a second language. A second interpretation and translation unit interprets and translates the second language into the first language. A context information management unit receives conversational context and translation history information, and shares and manages the conversational context and translation history information. Each of the first and second interpretation and translation units provides an interpretation service for receiving an input conversation in the first or second language in speech and outputting results of interpretation in speech in the second or first language, and a translation service for receiving an input conversation in the first or second language in text and outputting results of translation in text in the second or first language.
US09058318B2
A flexible web page template and template building tool which generates templates that grow and shrink according to an amount of user content.
US09058314B2
A method and system for representing data includes providing a data representation according to defined variables and a functional relationship between the defined variables and receiving an assigned weight assigned to a defined variable. The method includes receiving a modification of a selected defined variable, and providing a further data representation according to a recalculation of an unselected defined variable, based upon the functional relationship, the assigned weight and the modified variable. Assigned weights and a plurality of modifications of the weighted variable are received. A further data representation is provided according to a further recalculation of the weighted variable based upon a weight selected from the assigned weights according to a previous modification of the weighted variable. The recalculating is performed according to a number of modifications performed since the previous modification of the weighted variable and according to a period of time since the previous modification of the weighted variable.
US09058311B1
Systems, methods, and software for operating a user communication device are provided herein. In a first example, method of operating a user communication device is provided which includes displaying a HTTP link associated with a media resource and receiving a user selection of the displayed HTTP link. The method also includes displaying a delivery time schedule menu for the media resource responsive to the user selection of the displayed HTTP link, and receiving a delivery time schedule instruction indicating a user-acceptable time frame for receipt of the media resource. The method also includes generating and transferring an HTTP request packet with an HTTP header that indicates the user-acceptable time frame for receipt of the media resource into the user communication device, and receiving the media resource associated with the HTTP link according to the delivery time schedule instruction and responsive to the HTTP header in the transferred HTTP request packet.
US09058305B2
A remote copy system includes: a first storage system having a first logical volume accompanied with a first plurality of disk drives in the first storage system; a second storage system having a second logical volume, which is a virtual volume not accompanied with a second plurality of disk drives in the second storage system, the virtual volume configuring a first remote copy pair with the first logical volume; and a third storage system having a third logical volume accompanied with a third plurality of disk drives in the third storage system, the third logical volume configuring a second remote copy pair with the virtual volume and storing a copied data of data stored in the first logical volume. If the second storage system receives write data sent from the first storage system to the virtual volume, the second storage system transfers the write data to the third logical volume.
US09058302B2
Systems and methods for combined matrix-vector and matrix-transpose vector multiply for block sparse matrices. Exemplary embodiments include a method of updating a simulation of physical objects in an interactive computer, including generating a set of representations of objects in the interactive computer environment, partitioning the set of representations into a plurality of subsets such that objects in any given set interact only with other objects in that set, generating a vector b describing an expected position of each object at the end of a time interval h, applying a biconjugate gradient algorithm to solve A*Δv=b for the vector Δv of position and velocity changes to be applied to each object wherein the q=Ap and qt=AT(pt) calculations are combined so that A only has to be read once, integrating the updated motion vectors to determine a next state of the simulated objects, and converting the simulated objects to a visual.
US09058293B2
A storage controller receives a request to establish a point-in-time copy operation by placing a space efficient source volume in a point-in-time copy relationship with a space efficient target volume, wherein subsequent to being established the point-in-time copy operation is configurable to consistently copy the space efficient source volume to the space efficient target volume at a point in time. A determination is made as to whether any track of an extent is staging into a cache from the space efficient target volume or destaging from the cache to the space efficient target volume. In response to a determination that at least one track of the extent is staging into the cache from the space efficient target volume or destaging from the cache to the space efficient target volume, release of the extent from the space efficient target volume is avoided.
US09058292B2
A system and method including, in some embodiments, receiving a request for a graphics memory address for an input/output (I/O) device assigned to a virtual machine in a system that supports virtualization, and installing, in a graphics memory translation table, a physical guest graphics memory address to host physical memory address translation.
US09058288B2
A method for data storage includes storing two or more data items in a non-volatile memory. Redundancy information is calculated over the data items, and the redundancy information is stored in a volatile memory. Upon a failure to retrieve a data item from the non-volatile memory, the data item is reconstructed from remaining data items stored in the non-volatile memory and from the redundancy information stored in the volatile memory.
US09058287B2
Relocating data in a virtualized environment maintained by a hypervisor administering access to memory with a Cache Page Table (‘CPT’) and a Physical Page Table (‘PPT’), the CPT and PPT including virtual to physical mappings. Relocating data includes converting the virtual to physical mappings of the CPT to virtual to logical mappings; establishing a Logical Memory Block (‘LMB’) relocation tracker that includes logical addresses of an LMB, source physical addresses of the LMB, target physical addresses of the LMB, a translation block indicator for each relocation granule, and a pin count associated with each relocation granule; establishing a PPT entry tracker including PPT entries corresponding to the LMB to be relocated; relocating the LMB in a number of relocation granules including blocking translations to the relocation granules during relocation; and removing the logical addresses from the LMB relocation tracker.
US09058285B2
A computerized system for a digital method for the detection of fraud and/or anomalous transactions is disclosed based on a novel statistical interpretation of Benford's Law and a unique set of computer implementations outlining the development of digital distributions from the low-value region on the left of a given data set to the high-value region on the right. A division into sub-intervals of the entire data set along adjacent integral powers of ten suggested in the method provides the unique manner of visualizing and computer output actualization of the gradual evolution of digital distribution from near digital equality on the left to severe inequality on the right. The method provides a venue for detecting fraud committed by the sophisticated cheater well-aware of Benford's Law but inventing data without regards to development. Experimental results consistently demonstrate the effectiveness of the techniques used in embodiments of the invention.
US09058284B1
Method and apparatus for performing table lookup are disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes providing a lookup table, where the lookup table includes a plurality of translation modes and each translation mode includes a corresponding translation table tree supporting a plurality of page sizes. The method further includes receiving a search request from a requester, determining a translation table tree for conducting the search request, determining a lookup sequence based on the translation table tree, generating a search output using the lookup sequence, and transmitting the search output to the requester. The plurality of translation modes includes a first set of page sizes for 32-bit operating system software and a second set of page sizes for 64-bit operating system software. The plurality of page sizes includes non-global pages, global pages, and both non-global and global pages.
US09058282B2
A system, processor and method to monitor specific cache events and behavior based on established principles of quantized architectural vulnerability factor (AVF) through the use of a dynamic cache write policy controller. The output of the controller is then used to set the write back or write through mode policy for any given cache. This method can be used to change cache modes dynamically and does not require the system to be rebooted. The dynamic nature of the controller provides the capability of intelligently switching from reliability to performance mode and back as needed. This method eliminates the residency time of dirty lines in a cache, which increases soft errors (SER) resiliency of protected caches in the system and reduces detectable unrecoverable errors (DUE), while keeping implementation cost of hardware at a minimum.
US09058276B2
Channel marking is provided in a memory system that includes a memory channel with a plurality of memory devices. The memory devices are arranged into a first group of memory devices and a second group of memory devices. The memory system is configured to perform a method that includes determining that more than a threshold number of memory devices in the first group are failing. An error correction code (ECC) is configured to compensate for errors associated with memory devices in the first group on the memory channel and to perform error correction on errors associated with memory devices in the second group on the memory channel.
US09058273B1
One or more systems, devices, methods, and/or processes described can determine a maximum cache command rate of a processor unit. For example, an interface of the processor unit configured to be coupled to an interconnect of a multiprocessor system and configured such that a first portion of the interface provides a signal to a second portion of the interface, where the first portion of the interface operates utilizing a known frequency and the second portion of the interface operates utilizing a cache frequency of the processor unit; the second portion of the interface circulates the signal; the first portion of the interface receives the signal from the second portion of the interface; the first portion of the interface determines a cache command rate based on the known frequency, the frequency of the cache, and the signal; and the interface provides information indicating the cache command rate to the interconnect.
US09058267B2
A map of storage locations that indicates storage locations associated whose associated I/O transactions are to be processed by firmware running on a storage controller is maintained. The map is communicated to a storage controller driver. The storage controller driver receives a first I/O transaction request. Based on the map, and the storage location to be accessed by the first I/O transaction request, the first I/O transaction request is sent to a storage device without further processing by the firmware running on the storage controller. The storage controller driver receives a second I/O transaction request. Based on the map and the location to be accessed by the second I/O transaction request, the second I/O transaction request is sent for further processing by the firmware running on the storage controller.
US09058261B1
Embodiments of the invention are directed to providing detailed error reporting of data operations performed on a NVM storage device. In one embodiment, a controller interfaces with a NVM storage device including NVM storage coupled with a bridge. In one embodiment, the controller is provided physical, page-level access to the NVM via the bridge, and the bridge provides detailed error reporting of the data operations that the bridge performs on the NVM on behalf of the controller. For example, the bridge may provide page level reporting indicating which page(s) failed during a read operation. Detailed error reporting allows the controller to better understand the failures that occurred in a data access operation in the NVM. It also enables the controller to manage the flash media at the physical page/block level. In one embodiment, detailed error reporting also enables the return of discontinuous ranges of data with the error portions removed.
US09058258B2
The present invention relates to diagnosis of issues of individual mobile electronic devices (e.g., cell phones, portable media players, or tablet or other computers). The issues are addressed by logic and data on the device and/or in a mobile device diagnosis center, possibly in collaboration. The center may contain information relating to such devices generally, as well as particular information relating to a device being diagnosed. The general information might include information about product specifications; statistical information based on data gathered about actual usage of such devices; information about service providers and service plans; and information about possible solutions for various kinds of issues. The device-specific information might include a history of the usage, repairs, and other activities and issues pertaining to the particular device. Diagnosis by the center may result in a recommendation to the device, which may automatically take action, possibly after backing itself up to the center.
US09058253B2
A tree data structure is stored in a flash memory device by storing a leaf node and an index node comprising a pointer to the leaf node in a same page of the flash memory device, which may be read on a per-page basis. A modified version of the leaf node and a modified version of the index node may be stored in a new page of the flash memory device when, for example, a key value is added to or deleted from the leaf node.
US09058252B2
Requests for content can be received from clients and forwarded to servers, and responses to the requests can be received from the servers and forwarded to the clients. A health model can also be maintained. The health model can be based on information in the responses and possibly also on information in the requests, and the health model can indicate the health of the servers in responding to different types of requests. The health model may differentiate between health in responding to requests with different features in URLs of the requests, such as different namespaces and/or different extensions.
US09058248B2
System and method may use assessment information obtained by assessing original content items or creators of the original content items in accordance with a hierarchical talent assessment process, to return search results responsive to a search for talented original content creators. The assessments of the creators and the content items by talent assessors may be monitored to increase the objectivity of the search results returned responsive to a search for talented original content creators.
US09058245B2
An abstraction for storage class memory is provided that hides the details of the implementation of storage class memory from a program, and provides a standard channel programming interface for performing certain actions, such as controlling movement of data between main storage and storage class memory or managing storage class memory.
US09058239B2
A processor-implemented method for a concurrent software service upgrade is provided. The processor implemented method may include receiving a type of service request corresponding to the software service upgrade, determining, by the processor, the type of service request and then generating a plurality of subpartitions corresponding to a hypervisor. The method may further include applying the service request to at least one subpartition within the plurality of subpartitions, wherein the service request is applied to the at least one subpartition based on the type of service request and balancing the system resources among the plurality of subpartitions upon the applying of the service request to the at least one subpartition.
US09058233B1
A service manager component associated with a set of hosts receives an update to be implemented on the set of hosts. The service manager component can then determine a penalty model that approximates the likely impact associated with an error in the update. Based on the penalty model, the service manager component selects a first subset of hosts to receive and implement the update and an observation window to determine whether an error has emerged or has been detected. If no errors are detected during the observation window, the service manager component can select additional subsets and observations windows and repeat the process or, alternatively, implement the update in the remaining set of hosts and monitor the system until it receives the next update.
US09058230B1
An online expert system that can communicate software installation instructions to a remote node through the use of a generic installer executing on the remote node is provided. Embodiments of the online expert system can identify a set of installation instructions configured to install a software product on the remote node, execute the set of installation instructions, record results of the execution of the installation instructions, and, if an error is detected in the results, submit the results for analysis to determine whether a solution to the error is available and execute the solution, if any. Aspects of the online expert system provide for the executing of the installation instructions to include communicating installation-related information to the remote node over a network. Further aspects of the online expert system provide for executing a solution to an error to include communicating solution-related information to the remote node over the network.
US09058227B2
An approach for connecting the inputs and the outputs of multiple services in such a way that the entire transaction can be tracked from beginning to end and from service to service is provided. The pipeline architecture of the present invention passes information through a sequence of nodes, each node providing some processing or filtering before passing information to the next node in the pipe. A transaction's token passes down a pipe of services. The pipe can have forks and branches, so a transaction's token is passed from node to node carrying messages from one node to another. The overall transactional information is not lost from service to service; instead it is carried up and down the length of the pipeline. As the transaction's token is passed up and down the pipeline, its history passes with it. The pipe links a chain of nodes connected end-to-end.
US09058225B2
An example system for transmitting data between applications may include an access module that accesses a data object associated with a first application running on a first node. The access module may access the data object without using a class library. The system also includes a communication module that transmits via a network to a second node, data associated with the data object. The communication module may transmit the data for use by a second application running on the second node, and the data object may be accessible by at most one application at a time.
US09058218B2
A method, apparatus and program product for allocating resources in a logically partitioned multiprocessor environment. Resource usage is monitored in a first logical partition in the logically partitioned multiprocessor environment to predict a future underutilization of a resource in the first logical partition. An application executing in a second logical partition in the logically partitioned multiprocessor environment is configured for execution in the second logical partition with an assumption made that at least a portion of the underutilized resource is allocated to the second logical partition during at least a portion of the predicted future underutilization of the resource.
US09058217B2
A set of like tasks to be performed is organized into a first group. Upon a determined imbalance between dispatch queue depths greater than a predetermined threshold, the set of like tasks is reassigned to an additional group.
US09058216B2
A process controller adapted to provide an estimated prediction of a processing time for a data processing job to be run on one or more of a plurality of data processing devices that operate within a distributed processing system having a range of platforms, the process controller being in communication with a job prediction engine adapted to calculate an estimated processing time associated with the data processing job, wherein the process controller uses the estimated processing time to determine the estimated prediction and is further adapted to control the assignment of the data processing job to the data processing devices upon acceptance of the estimated prediction by a user.
US09058214B2
A computer network for managing session tokens may include a client operable to run a client application; a web server hosting at least one web service; and a session token manager. The session token manager may be operable to receive a check out message along with user credentials from the client application, wherein the user credentials identify a user operating the client application; process the check out message to determine a session token from a pool of session tokens managed for the user; and send a token identifier (token ID) to the client application pointing to the determined session token, wherein the session token can be used by the client application to point to and/or to re-use a previously established session with the web service without re-establishing a new session.
US09058208B2
A method of scheduling a plurality of tasks for a plurality of memories in a memory system is disclosed. The method includes classifying each task among the plurality of tasks to a task type among a plurality of task types, disposing a plurality of task queues according to the plurality of task types wherein each task queue stores tasks to be executed within the plurality of tasks, assigning a priority for each task type among the plurality of task types, disposing at least one execution queue; and converting a first task stored in a first task queue among the plurality of task queues into at least one command to be stored in a first execution queue among the at least one execution queue, wherein the at least one command is executed according to the priority of a first task type corresponding to the first task queue.
US09058198B2
A mechanism for system resource sharing in a multi-tenant PaaS environment in a cloud computing system is disclosed. A method of embodiments includes receiving, by a virtual machine (VM), identification of resource-usage groups that each define resource constraints to apply to applications having a type of the resource-usage group, establishing a resource control policy on the VM for each of the identified resource-usage groups, the resource control policy to enforce the resource constraints of its associated resource-usage group, configuring a plurality of resource control tools of the VM to implement each resource control policy, identifying a resource-usage group of an application to be created on the VM, applying, by the one or more resource control tools to the application, the resource control policy of the identified resource-usage group of the application, and executing the application with the defined resource constraints on the VM.
US09058194B2
In one implementation, a computer-implemented method includes receiving, at a computer system and from a first computing device, a request to access a simulation of an application running a second computing device; identifying, by the computer system, one or more types of input that are available on the second computing device and that are not available on the first computing device; generating one or more controls for each of at least a portion of the identified types of input; instantiating, by the computer system, a virtual machine that simulates the second computing device; and providing information to the first computing device that causes i) an interface for the application as executed by the virtual machine to be presented by the first computing device and ii) the generated controls to be presented by the first computing device in association with the interface.
US09058190B2
A system engram encoding an existing configuration of a target system is received. The existing configuration includes one or more of hardware and software of the target system. The system engram is originally acquired by a first processing device and is received by a second processing device. The second processing device compares the system engram with a product engram encoding a required configuration of the target system for a product to be compatibly installed in relation to the target system. The required configuration includes one or more of required hardware and required software within the target system for the product to be compatibly installed in relation to the target system. The second processing device can output, as compatibility information of the product with the target system, results of comparison of the system engram with the product engram.
US09058182B2
A management device may be connected with first and second devices via a network. The management device may acquire “m” programs that are to be updated in the first device and “n” programs that are to be updated in the second device, from a server. Each of “m” and “n” may be an integer greater than or equal to 2, the “m” programs may include first and second programs, and the “n” programs may include a third and a fourth programs. The management device may transmit the first program to the first device and transmit the third program to the second device. The management device may, after completion of the transmitting the first program and the third program, transmit the second program to the first device and transmit the fourth program to the second device.
US09058179B2
A processor 2 for performing out-of-order execution of a stream of program instructions includes a special register access pipeline for performing status access instructions accessing a status register 20. In order to serialise these status access instructions relative to other instructions within the system access timing control circuitry 32 permits dispatch of other instructions to proceed but controls the commit queue and the result queue such that no program instructions in program order succeeding the status access instruction are permitted to complete until after a trigger state has been detected in which all program instructions preceding in program order the status access instruction have been performed and made any updates to the architectural state. This is followed by the performance of the status access instruction itself.
US09058175B2
A computational device receives, from a user, a selection of a block, a subsystem or multiple blocks from a block diagram modeling environment, and presents, to the user, a set of parameters associated with the block, subsystem, or multiple blocks. The computational device receives, from the user, selection of a first subset of parameters from the set of parameters, and creates a customized dialog box by promoting the selected first subset of parameters to the customized dialog box, wherein the customized dialog box permits editing of values associated only with the first subset of parameters.
US09058169B2
Disclosed are a method and a system for remote wake-up and status check, with a wake-up signal generating unit generating and transmitting a wake-up signal to wake up an electricity supply unit of a remote device to operate normally and provide electricity for the remote device. The wake-up signal has an assigned electric voltage with specific characteristics for detection by the electricity supply unit while in power-off mode and, upon signal detection, the electricity supply unit wakes up to provide normal electric voltage output. The wake-up signal generating unit determines, according to an electric current on a wake-up signal feed line, whether the remote device is in an active mode. A low wake-up energy consumption enables system wake-up and a true powered-off sleep mode.
US09058167B2
A method is provided in one example embodiment and includes determining that a network storage module has resources for buffering data currently being sent to a local storage module; determining if the local storage module should enter into a power saving mode; and buffering the configurable amount of data at the network storage module while the local storage module is in the power saving mode. In more particular embodiments, the method includes communicating the configurable amount of data to the local storage module after it resumes a normal operating mode. In addition, the method may include communicating at least a portion of the configurable amount of data to the local storage module using a unicast protocol or a multicast protocol.
US09058165B2
Technologies and implementations for device power management using compiler inserted device alerts are generally disclosed. In an example, a thin binary including a call to a device subsystem may be compiled at the device to produce an instruction stream including a device power management alert for the device subsystem inserted in the instruction stream before a call to the device subsystem.
US09058159B2
An electronic device includes an enclosure and a first air guiding duct mounted in the enclosure. The first air guiding duct includes a first part and a second part. The first part defines a first air channel and a second air channel. The second part defines a third air channel communicating with the first air channel and a fourth air channel located at a side of the second air channel. A guiding wall is located in the second air channel and extends from the second air channel to the fourth air channel. When air flows from the first part to the second part of the first air guiding duct, air flows from the first air channel to the third channel to cool a first electronic component, and flows from the second air channel to the fourth air channel by the guiding wall to cool a second electronic component.
US09058156B2
A computer-implemented method identifies the path of a first power circuit to a first power supply that is connected to supply power to an electronic device, and identifies the path of a second power circuit to a second power supply that is connected to supply power to the electronic device. The method then compares the path of the first power distribution circuit with the path of the second power distribution circuit to determine a measure of redundancy in the first and second distribution paths. A measure of redundancy may then be output to a user.
US09058155B2
A system and method for controlling power consumption is described herein. A computer system includes an enclosure. The enclosure is configured to contain a plurality of removable compute nodes. The enclosure includes a power controller configured to individually control an amount of power consumed by each of the plurality of removable compute nodes. The power controller provides a plurality of power control signals. Each power control signal is provided to and controls the power consumption of one of the plurality of removable compute nodes.
US09058148B2
A communication apparatus configured to communicate with an external apparatus includes a recording unit configured to record content data on a removable recording medium, a transmission unit configured to transmit the content data to the external apparatus, a selection unit configured to select a mode from among a plurality of modes including a setting mode and a transmission mode, a determination unit configured to determine whether the removable recording medium is in an attachable and detachable state, and a control unit configured to control communication with the external apparatus, wherein, in a case where the selected mode is the setting mode when it is determined by the determination unit that the removable recording medium is in the attachable and detachable state, the control unit does not stop communication with the external apparatus.
US09058143B1
The invention provides an alternative applications programming interface (API) for a software application to interface with and to control the operation of a variety of one or more specialty printing devices. The alternative API provides a superset of control functionality relative to an API that would typically be provided by a specialty printing device driver. In some embodiments, this alternative API is provided via a specialty printing module (SPM) that is remotely accessible to a software application via a computer network. The SPM can provide for interface and control of specialty printing devices that would otherwise be un-accessible to a software application via a specialty printing device driver, and can provide such locally or remotely accessible functionality to the software application, without necessarily requiring employment of a specialty printing device driver.
US09058141B2
A system includes a server having access to least one processor and a data repository, the server including a non-transitory physical medium and software running from the non-transitory physical medium, the software providing for establishing a client-server connection between the server and at least one user-operated computing appliance connected to the network, maintaining an active data session between one or more users involved in working with the image and/or text-based projects through a graphics user interface (GUI), facilitating division of an image into a fractal image components for presentation on editable canvas in the GUI using more than one photo slot to present the fractal image components, coordinating the positions of the fractal views together, and translating the positional data resulting from the movement of a fractal image component in one photo slot to all of the other photo slots hosting the fractal image presentation.
US09058130B2
A wide bandwidth resonant clock distribution comprises a clock grid configured to distribute a clock signal to a plurality of components of an integrated circuit and a tunable sector buffer configured to receive the clock signal and provide an output to the clock grid. The tunable sector buffer is configured to set latency and slew rate of the clock signal based on an identified resonant or non-resonant mode.
US09058122B1
A distributed storage system that includes memory hosts having non-transitory memory storing data chunks of files. Each data chunk is associated with an access control list. Each memory host also includes a network interface controller in communication with the memory for servicing remote direct memory access requests and a computing processor in communication with the memory and the network interface controller. The computing processor executes a host process that registers a set of remote direct memory accessible regions of the memory storing data chunks with the network interface controller. In response to receiving a connection request from a client process of a client to access a data chunk, the host process establishes a remote direct memory access capable connection with the client process when both the client and the data chunk are associated with the same access control list.
US09058116B2
A system and method for intra-device data protection in a RAID array. A computer system comprises client computers and data storage arrays coupled to one another via a network. A data storage array utilizes solid-state drives and Flash memory cells for data storage. A storage controller within a data storage array is configured to identify a unit of data stored in the data storage subsystem, wherein said unit of data is stored across at least a first storage device and a second storage device of the plurality of storage devices, each of the first storage device and the second storage device storing intra-device redundancy data corresponding to the unit of data; and change an amount of intra-device redundancy data corresponding to the unit of data on only the first storage device.
US09058115B1
Systems, methods, devices, circuits for data processing, and more particularly to data processing including operational marginalization capability.
US09058114B2
A mechanism is provided for enabling throttling on average write throughput instead of peak write throughput for solid-state storage devices. The mechanism assures an average write throughput within a range but allows excursions of high throughput with periods of low throughput offsetting against those of heavy usage. The mechanism periodically determines average throughput and determines whether average throughput exceeds a high throughput threshold for a certain amount of time without being offset by periods of low throughput.
US09058103B2
In one embodiment, a method includes displaying a first one of a plurality of touch-screen keyboards on a touch-screen display of a computing device; and, in response to a touch gesture comprising a path comprising two or more points on the touch-screen display, displaying a second one of the keyboards on the touch-screen display in place of the first one of the keyboards.
US09058098B2
An information processing apparatus including an interface that receives a display switching instruction to switch an object displayed on a display, and a processor that controls the display to switch objects displayed on the display based on the display switching instruction, controls the display to stop switching objects for a predetermined period of time when a predetermined object is displayed on the display, and controls the display to resume switching objects displayed on the display upon determining that the predetermined period of time has elapsed.
US09058096B2
Methods and systems for indicating application data use and providing data according to permissions are described. An example method may include providing for display, by a computing device that includes one or more processors, a representation of a first indicator and the first indicator indicates a sensor of the computing device is collecting sensory data from an ambient environment of the computing device. The first indicator is configured to change states so as to further indicate an application running on the computing device is receiving and processing the sensory data. The method further includes providing for display, by the computing device, a representation of a second indicator that identifies the application receiving the sensory data collected by the sensor of the computing device.
US09058092B2
A method and system for providing context dependent pop-up menu icons that activate menu icons in response to a select & drag operation by manipulation of a pointing device. Presented icons may correspond to functions or actions that can be implemented with the particular type of content selected. Icons may be displayed in a consistent manner in terms of position and content with respect to the selected file or object. Icons may appear only during a select & drag operation, thereby leaving the display uncluttered at other times. Presentation of icons may be discontinued when the selected file or object is dragged beyond the area of the presented icons. New applications can register with the operating system to specify icons to be presented when corresponding files are selected or when particular content objects are selected within the application.
US09058085B2
The touch sensor system (1) includes: a touch panel (2) having a two-dimensional region (12) made up of a hand placing region (13) and a remainder region (14); a hand placing region processing section (3) for carrying out a process related to the hand placing region in accordance with a hand placing region touch signal corresponding to a touch to the hand placing region (13); and a plot input processing section (4) for carrying out a plot input process in accordance with a remainder region touch signal corresponding to a touch to the remainder region (14).
US09058084B2
A single-side touch-screen device includes a substrate having a cured layer with a patterned arrangement of micro-channels embossed therein and a cured electrically conductive micro-wire formed in each micro-channel. A patterned dielectric insulator is located over one or more middle portions of at least some of the micro-wires forming insulated micro-wire portions and exposed micro-wire portions. A plurality of patterned transparent conductors are conformally coated in an array over at least a part of the patterned dielectric insulator, at least a part of the insulated micro-wire portions, and at least a part of the exposed micro-wire portions, the at least a part of the exposed micro-wire portions electrically connected to at least a portion of the patterned transparent conductors. The transparent conductors and the micro-wires form an array of electrically connected horizontal electrodes and an array of electrically connected vertical electrodes electrically isolated from the horizontal electrodes.
US09058072B2
A touch sensing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a display device including a plurality of pixels and displaying an image; a touch screen including a plurality of touch sensors and being included in the display device; display panel driving circuits for driving the display device; a touch sensing circuit for applying a driving signal to the touch sensors to sense a voltage or capacitance variation in the touch sensors; a controller for time-dividing a first frame period into a first driving period for displaying an image on the display device and a second driving period for sensing the touch sensors; and a reset control circuit for controlling operations of the display panel driving circuits with a reset enable signal to initialize the pixels of the display device to an equivalent reset voltage at predetermined intervals between the first driving period and the second driving period.
US09058067B2
The described embodiments present a system and method for obtaining a portion of a digital document from a printed version of the document. Locations where a smart pen device interacts with a digital bookclip aligned relative the printed document are identified via coordinate sets. A digital document associated with the printed document and the coordinate sets from the smart pen device and digital bookclip are used to identify locations in the digital documents corresponding to locations in the printed document. Data from the identified locations in the digital documents is retrieved and presented to a user and can then be copied, saved, mailed electronically, and/or printed to a new paper document.
US09058064B2
An interactive image system includes a host generating interactive images; a light source generating at least one light beam; and an interactive control device transmitting data to the host and switching between an operation status and an idle status. The interactive control device includes: an image sensor capturing a first picture in the idle status, wherein the first picture has a reference point image formed by the light beam; and a control circuit selecting a pixel area according to the position of the reference point image in the first picture, controlling the image sensor to obtain a second picture according to the pixel area, and comparing a threshold value with the brightness information of at least one pixel in the pixel area of the second picture to confirm whether the interactive control device is still in the idle status.
US09058062B2
Example systems and methods for facilitating access to stored content using a computer system comprising multiple non-alphanumeric buttons involve converting at least a portion of an identifier associated with the content to a code comprising a combination of one or more of the non-alphanumeric buttons. The code is stored along with access information for accessing the content and the access information is provided in response to receipt of the code.
US09058060B2
A keyboard module includes a base, a plurality of retaining members and a plurality of keycaps. Each of the retaining members includes a bottom portion, a bending portion and an upper portion. The bottom portion is disposed on the base. The bending portion is connected to the bottom portion and extends along a direction away from the bottom portion. The upper portion is connected to the bending portion. The keycaps are respectively disposed on one of the upper portions corresponding thereto. After the keycaps are pressed by an external force, the upper portions are abutted by the keycaps, and the bending portion is deformed.
US09058059B2
A gesture input device that controls a control device on the basis of a gesture action of a user has a gesture detecting unit that detects a gesture from an image picked up by a camera, a first gesture determining unit that determines that the gesture detected by the gesture detecting unit includes a first gesture, a second gesture determining unit that determines that the gesture detected by the gesture detecting unit includes a second gesture, and a control signal generating unit that sets a period in which the first gesture determining unit determines that the gesture includes the first gesture as a second gesture valid period in which recognition of the second gesture is valid and generates a control signal on the basis of the second gesture when the second gesture determining unit determines that the gesture includes the second gesture in the second gesture valid period.
US09058042B2
A pressure relief valve assembly includes a housing, a diaphragm assembly separating the housing into a sensing pressure section and a tank pressure section, the sensing pressure section configured to sense both atmospheric pressure and the pressure in the tank pressure section and the tank pressure section is configured to only sense the pressure in the tank pressure section, an orifice disposed between the sensing pressure section and the tank pressure section allowing fluid to flow in through the orifice when the pressure in the sensing pressure section is less than the pressure in the tank pressure section fluid to flow out through the orifice when the pressure in the sensing pressure section is greater than the pressure in the tank pressure section.
US09058041B2
An assembly provides a proportioned gas flow and includes a device that provides a pressurized flow of said gas, a release unit that releases the proportioned gas flow, and a chamber having an inlet fluidically connected to the device and an outlet fluidically connected to the release unit. The assembly further includes an admission valve inserted between the inlet of the chamber and the device, a metering valve inserted between the outlet of the chamber and the release unit, and a computer programmed to control the admission valve and the metering valve to provide a proportioned gas flow to the release unit. The assembly further comprises a calibrated orifice inserted between the outlet of the chamber and the release unit.
US09058030B2
Provided is a horizontal machine tool which achieves remarkable accuracy improvement by correcting spatial accuracy while stabilizing the swing of a main spindle. To this end, a horizontal machine tool (10) is provided with: a ram tension bar (20) which corrects the deflection of a ram (17); a lifting force correction mechanism (30) which corrects the inclination of a saddle (16) by adjusting lifting force at two positions where the saddle (16) is lifted; a column tension bar (40) which corrects the bend of a column (14); and a control device which controls the ram tension bar (20), the lifting force correction mechanism (30) and the column tension bar (40) and has a spatial accuracy correction function of correcting the spatial accuracy by numerical control. The control device corrects only the swing of the tip of a main spindle (18) using the ram tension bar (20), the lifting force correction mechanism (30) and the column tension bar (40), and corrects the deterioration of the spatial accuracy due to sinking of a bed (11) using the spatial accuracy correction function.
US09058022B2
Disclosed is an electronic timepiece including a rotary switch, a rotation detection unit which detects a rotation of the rotary switch every time the rotary switch rotates for a predetermined rotation angle, a determination unit which determines as a continuous detection when a number of times the rotation detection unit detects the rotation is a predetermined number of times or greater before a preset unit time have elapsed from a detection timing, the predetermined number of times being 2 or more and a control unit which executes a predetermined function when the determination unit determines as the continuous detection.
US09058021B2
The balance spring stud holder has a housing in the form of a groove arranged to longitudinally receive and position the stud. The housing is at least partially laterally closed by an elastic strip which is arranged to return the stud against the bottom of the groove so that the stud can be locked, when the stud is inserted into the housing between the elastic strip and the bottom of the groove.
US09058017B2
An electrophotographic image forming apparatus and development cartridge are provided. The apparatus including a separating member mounted in a development cartridge. The separating member includes a development nip separating portion and a charging nip separating portion respectively separating a development nip and a charging nip when the development cartridge is mounted in a mounting portion of a photoreceptor cartridge mounted in a body.
US09058014B2
A cartridge includes a substrate and an engagement portion. The first surface faces a first direction and has a first surface on which an electrical terminal is disposed. The engagement portion includes a second surface disposed upstream from the substrate in the first direction and a third surface. The second surface faces a second direction, which forms an obtuse angle with the first direction. The third surface faces a third direction, which forms an acute angle with the first direction. The third surface does not overlap with the substrate in the first direction and the third surface is disposed downstream from the second surface in the first direction.
US09058011B2
A cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on a surface of an image bearing member; a cleaning unit frame (or a developing unit frame) for supporting the cleaning blade; and a plurality of projections provided on the cleaning (developing) unit frame. The projections are bent outwardly to secure the cleaning blade to the cleaning unit frame. Alternatively, a projection is provided on the cleaning (developing) unit frame having a recess, where the recess expands outwardly from a base portion of the projection to a free end of the projection to secure the cleaning blade to the cleaning (developing) unit frame.
US09058010B2
An image forming apparatus sequentially transfers toner images formed on a plurality of photosensitive drums onto an intermediate transfer member or a transfer material to form an image. The image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer belt provided with electrical conductivity, and a power supply for applying a voltage to a current supply member contacting the outer circumferential surface of the intermediate transfer belt to pass a current from the current supply member to the plurality of photosensitive drums via the intermediate transfer belt, thus primarily transferring the toner images from the plurality of photosensitive drums onto the intermediate transfer belt.
US09058009B2
A design method of a drive unit includes: deriving a minimum reference contact pressure Fa causing any of the shaft portion among the plurality of the shaft portions to result in damage; and designing the shaft portions or the gears to be of form such that the plurality of shaft portions and the plurality of gears satisfy the relationship F/D×L
US09058007B2
There is provided a torque transmitting member that appropriately maintains conductivity between an image forming apparatus body and a photosensitive drum and can suppress the occurrence of conduction failure. A torque transmitting member, which is disposed at an end portion of a photosensitive drum unit and transmits torque, includes: an cylindrical end member that includes a bearing portion at one end portion thereof and a fitting portion, which is inserted into a photosensitive drum, at the other end portion thereof; and a conductive conducting shaft member that is disposed so as to extend along a cylindrical shaft of the end member and includes a conductive material, which is elastically deformed, on at least a part thereof.
US09058004B2
A management apparatus that enhances efficiency of maintenance work of a plurality of image forming apparatuses. An apparatus management server is connected to a plurality of image forming apparatuses via a network. Each image forming apparatus includes a storage unit for storing information indicative of wear levels of members for outputting a color image, on a color-by-color basis. The management service acquires the information from each image forming apparatus, and selects an image forming apparatus for outputting an image based on the acquired information such that differences between the wear levels of the members become smaller between the image forming apparatuses.
US09057987B2
An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable photoconductor and a developing device that uses a developer that exhibits magnetism, the developing device including a housing having an opening for development at a position facing the photoconductor, and plural developing rollers that are exposed through the opening in the housing, that rotate without contacting a surface of the photoconductor, and that are arranged without contacting each other in a direction in which the surface of the photoconductor rotates, wherein a minimum distance between an inner surface portion extending to the opening of the housing of the developing device and one of the developing rollers arranged close to the inner surface portion and a minimum distance between the housing and the surface of the photoconductor are each equal to or larger than a minimum distance between the developing rollers.
US09057985B2
An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, a development device, a supply developer container, a supply developer supply member, a toner density detecting portion, and a controller. The controller controls an image formation condition based on first information regarding a humidity of the developer accommodated in the developing device, second information regarding a humidity of the developer accommodated in the supply device, and third information regarding a supply amount supplied by the supply device.
US09057981B2
A developer container includes: a container body that has an opening at an upper part and is configured to accommodate therein developer; a conveyance member that is provided in the container body, and includes a rotation member having a rotary shaft and an elastic part, which is supported by the rotation member, is configured to be elastically deformed and is configured to rotate to convey the developer from the opening to an outside of the container body; and a driving member that is connected to one end portion of the rotary shaft and is configured to rotate the rotary shaft. The container body includes a first support part to which the other end portion of the rotary shaft is loosely fitted and a second support part that supports the one end portion of the rotary shaft.
US09057980B2
A toner transport structure has a transport passage that extends in an intersecting direction that intersects a vertical direction. The toner transport structure includes a path member that has an upper end and a lower end, an exit on a lower end side thereof, and an entrance on an upper end side thereof. The exit and the entrance have respective openings, and the path member guides toner downward in the vertical direction. The toner transport structure also includes a transport member disposed in the transport passage that is connected to the exit on the lower end side of the path member. The transport member transports along the transport passage the toner having been guided downward by the path member. In the toner transport structure, an area of the opening at the exit is larger than an area of the opening at the entrance.
US09057978B2
A composite color toner image can be enhanced in a printed receiver material by having a separate fluorescing magenta toner image applied over it to provide a “pinkish” fluorescing effect. This separate fluorescing magenta toner image is obtained using visible fluorescing dry magenta toner particles, each of which has a polymeric binder phase and a visible fluorescing colorant that emits at one or more peak wavelengths of from 510 nm and to and including 590 nm. The covering power of the fused visible fluorescing magenta toner particles in the enhanced composite color toner image is at least 350 cm2/g to and including 1100 cm2/g, and the covering power of each of the non-fluorescing cyan, non-fluorescing yellow, non-fluorescing magenta, and non-fluorescing black toner particles in the enhanced composite color toner image is at least 1500 cm2/g to and including 2300 cm2/g.
US09057977B2
This invention is to provide a technique of always obtaining a stable output image in image formation using toner. A supplier (1217) supplies toner in a decided toner supply amount. A developing device (1206) agitates the supplied toner and supplies the agitated toner to an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive drum (1203), thereby developing a toner image on the photosensitive drum (1203). A correction amount calculation unit (1106) estimates the toner charge amount by calculating a function model that approximates the variation characteristic of the toner charge amount using the toner consumption necessary for printing a print target image, the toner supply amount necessary for printing the print target image, and the toner agitation time. At least one of an image processing condition and a process condition is controlled using the estimated toner charge amount.
US09057975B2
An image forming apparatus includes first and second photosensitive members; first and second light sources; a rotatable polygonal mirror; a first signal output portion; and a second signal output portion. The first light source emits the light at timing on the basis of the first signal, and the second light source emits the light at timing on the basis of the second signal so that latent images are formed on the first and second photosensitive members, respectively, and then are developed with developers to form developer images on the first and second photosensitive members, respectively, and then an image is formed by superposing the developer images. Before output of a second signal from the second signal output portion is started, the first light source emits the light on the basis of a first signal to start formation of the latent image on the first photosensitive member.
US09057972B2
An electrophotographic photoreceptor includes an electroconductive substrate, a photosensitive layer provided on the electroconductive substrate, and an outermost surface layer, wherein the outermost surface layer is a layer constituted with a cured product of a composition including at least one of non-charge transporting compounds represented by formulae (I) and (II), and at least one non-reactive charge transporting material:
US09057967B2
A lithographic projection apparatus includes a support structure configured to hold a patterning device, the patterning device configured to pattern a beam of radiation according to a desired pattern; a projection system configured to project the patterned beam onto a target portion of a substrate; a substrate table configured to hold the substrate, the substrate table including a support surface configured to support an intermediary plate between the projection system and at least one of the substrate and an object positioned on the substrate table and not in contact with the at least one of the substrate and the object; and a liquid supply system configured to provide a liquid, through which the beam is to be projected, in a space between the projection system and the at least one of the substrate and the object.
US09057966B2
An information processing apparatus for processing information generated by an exposure apparatus which exposes a substrate to radiant energy, comprises an information collecting unit configured to collect first apparatus information obtained by the exposure apparatus via an operation thereof with respect to each of a plurality of first regions which form a first array defined on the substrate, a converting unit configured to convert at least a part of the first apparatus information collected with respect to each of the plurality of first regions by the information collecting unit into second apparatus information with respect to each of a plurality of second regions which form a second array, a statistical processing unit configured to statistically process the second apparatus information, and an analyzing unit configured to analyze the statistical processing result obtained by the statistical processing unit.
US09057963B2
An illumination optical system which illuminates a surface to be illuminated on the basis of light from a light source has a first optical path in which a diffractive optical element can be arranged at a first position thereof; a second optical path in which a spatial light modulator with a plurality of optical elements arrayed two-dimensionally and controlled individually can be arranged at a second position thereof; and a third optical path which is an optical path of light having passed via at least one of the first optical path and the second optical path and in which a distribution forming optical system is arranged. The distribution forming optical system forms a predetermined light intensity distribution on an illumination pupil located in the third optical path, based on the light having passed via at least one of the first and second optical paths.
US09057960B2
A process and composition for negative tone development comprises providing a photoresist film that generates acidic sites. Irradiating the photoresist film patternwise provides an irradiated film having exposed and unexposed regions where the exposed regions comprise imaged sites. Baking the irradiated film at elevated temperatures produces a baked-irradiated film comprising the imaged sites which after irradiating, baking, or both irradiating and baking comprise acidic imaged sites. Treating the baked-irradiated film with a liquid, gaseous or vaporous weakly basic compound converts the acidic imaged sites to a base treated film having chemically modified acidic imaged sites. Applying a solvent developer substantially dissolves regions of the film that have not been exposed to the radiant energy, where the solvent developer comprises a substantial non-solvent for the chemically modified acidic imaged sites. One-step simultaneous base treatment and solvent development employs a composition comprising a mix of the basic compound and solvent developer.
US09057957B2
An extreme ultraviolet (EUV) photolithography pellicle with at least 70% transmissivity to EUV can be formed from a layer of semiconductor material applied to a substrate. The bottom surface of the layer can be exposed by forming support structure(s) from the substrate. Semiconductor material between the exposed surfaces can become the pellicle by anodizing until an objective is reached, such as a particular transmissivity, range of size of pores formed, pellicle region thickness, elapse of a period, and/or another objective indicative of 70% transmissivity to EUV for the semiconductor material between the exposed surfaces.
US09057955B2
A functional film which is applied to a surface of a base material includes a film of Ti-doped tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta-C:Ti film).
US09057952B2
A positive resist composition comprising: (A) a resin which comes to have an enhanced solubility in an alkaline developing solution by an action of an acid; (B) a compound which generates an acid upon irradiation with actinic rays or a radiation; (C) a fluorine-containing compound containing at least one group selected from the groups (x) to (z); and (F) a solvent, and a method of pattern formation with the composition: (x) an alkali-soluble group; (y) a group which decomposes by an action of an alkaline developing solution to enhance a solubility in an alkaline developing solution; and (z) a group which decomposes by an action of an acid.
US09057950B2
The invention relates to a photopolymer formulation comprising matrix polymers, writing monomers, and photoinitiators, wherein the writing monomers comprise compounds of formula (I), where at least one of the radicals R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6 is a radical bonded to the aromatic ring via X of formula (II), where, in formula (II), A is a linear or branched hydrocarbon, optionally comprising oxygen or nitrogen, the remaining radicals R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6 are, independent of each other, hydrogen or an organic radical, and R7 is hydrogen or methyl. The invention further relates to the use of the photopolymer formulation for producing holographic media.
US09057944B2
A pair of shutter glasses comprises: a pair of shutter members each of which has the following states switchable from one to the other: an incident light transmitting state and an incident light blocking state; a frame member in which the pair of shutter members are accommodated; and a drive circuit and a drive power supply that drive the shutter members. The frame member includes: a rim to which the shutter members are attached; and a pair of temples each of which has one end connected to the rim. At least one of the drive circuit and the drive power supply is accommodated on the other end side of the temple.
US09057943B2
This disclosure is directed to a sound recording arrangement comprising a sound recording arrangement and a method in the sound recording arrangement for amplifying sounds in a primary gaze direction of the user of the sound recording arrangement. The method comprises the actions of recording sounds arriving at a sound recording unit from objects in the field of view of the user, and recording a first set of images of the head and/or the eyes of the user, and determining a primary gaze direction of the user based on the first set of images, and amplifying sounds arriving in the primary gaze direction compared to sounds arriving from other directions.
US09057941B2
Provided is a front reflection screen for a front projection display apparatus. The front reflection screen includes a reflection layer configured to reflect an incident light including an image light projected from a projector and an external light, and a tint layer disposed before the reflection layer and including light absorbing particles to block a portion of the incident light.
US09057940B2
A projection apparatus has a light source module including a light-emitting element, an optical path switching element, a wavelength conversion element, a first reflection element, and a first beam splitter element. The optical path switching element switches a first color beam between a first optical path and a second optical path. When the first color beam is switched to the first optical path, the first color beam is propagated to the wavelength conversion element to excite a first and second wavelength conversion layers on the wavelength conversion element to produce a second color beam and a third color beam. When the first color beam is switched to the second optical path, the first color beam is propagated to the first reflection element.
US09057926B1
An array of pixel assemblies emitting multiple wavelengths in a direction and a method therefor, the array comprising: a plurality of pixel assemblies, each respective pixel assembly having a respective pixel area, the respective pixel assembly formed by: one or more waveguides made from electro-optically active material; a plurality of different wavelength emitters, the different wavelength emitters disposed at one or more of the ends of the respective one or more waveguides to propagate their respective wavelengths therealong and capable of being switched; and a one switch disposed to cause when activated, a shifting of the wavelengths propagating in the one or more waveguides of the pixel assembly by substantially 90 degrees to be emitted through the respective pixel area; and a backplane with an electronic circuit for switching the plurality of switches and the emitters.
US09057923B2
A wire is provided on an insulating substrate to have a first thickness in a first area and a second thickness smaller than the first thickness in a second area except for the first area. A display apparatus includes the wire. The wire is formed by forming a first conductive layer and a second conductive layer on the insulating substrate and etching the first and second conductive layers using photoresist layer patterns having different thicknesses.
US09057920B2
An object of the present invention is to provide a transflective liquid crystal display device having an excellent visibility obtained by optimizing the arrangement of a color filter, which would become a problem in the process of fabricating transparent and reflective liquid crystal display devices, for the transflective liquid crystal display device. In the present invention, the arrangement of a color filter is optimized for improving the visibility of the transflective liquid crystal display device. In addition, the structure, which allows the formation of color filters without increasing the capacitance that affects on a display, is fabricated. Furthermore, in the process of fabricating the transflective liquid crystal display device, an uneven structure is additionally formed without particularly increasing an additional patterning step for the formation of such an uneven structure.
US09057919B2
An LCD panel transmits the display data to sub-pixels in a zigzag pattern through a data line. The variation of the feed-through voltages of the sub-pixels may be modified by adjusting the ratios of the channel widths and the channel lengths of the TFTs in the sub-pixels to some predetermined ratios, or by adjusting the compensation capacitance to the coupling capacitance of the TFTs of the sub-pixels.
US09057916B2
In a liquid crystal display apparatus, an angle of orientation of a first extension orientation of a first slit is not greater than an angle of orientation of a first director orientation, an angle of orientation of a second extension orientation of a second slit is not smaller than an angle of orientation of a second director orientation, and a difference between the angle of orientation of the second extension orientation and the angle of orientation of the second director orientation is greater than a difference between the angle of orientation of the first extension orientation and the angle of orientation of the first director orientation.
US09057907B2
A mask for forming a black matrix for a display device that includes a data line having a bending structure with respect to a central portion of a pixel region includes a edge frame having a rectangular shape, and a base plate disposed on the edge frame and including a light-transmitting portion and a light-blocking portion, wherein the light-transmitting portion includes first light-transmitting patterns and light-controlling portions between adjacent first light-transmitting patterns, and the light-transmitting portion further includes a bending portion corresponding to the central portion of the pixel region, and wherein the bending portion is disposed with a same distance from the light-transmitting patterns adjacent thereto.
US09057904B2
A liquid crystal display module includes a liquid crystal module and a polarizer stacked with each other. The polarizer includes a polarizing layer, a transparent conductive layer and a number of driving-sensing electrodes. The polarizing layer and the transparent conductive layer stacked with each other. The transparent conductive layer is an anisotropic impedance layer having a relatively low impedance direction. An electrical conductivity of the anisotropic impedance layer on the relatively low impedance direction is greater than electrical conductivities of the anisotropic impedance layer on other directions. The number of driving-sensing electrodes are spaced from each other and arranged in a row along a direction substantially perpendicular to the relatively low impedance direction and electrically connected with the transparent conductive layer.
US09057894B2
A calibration system may be provided for calibrating displays in electronic devices during manufacturing. The calibration system may include calibration computing equipment and a test chamber having a light sensor. The calibration computing equipment may be configured to operate the light sensor and the display to gather display performance data. The calibration computing equipment may extract display performance statistics from the display performance data and adaptively select and perform display calibration sequences using the display performance statistics. The calibration computing equipment may be configured to determine whether or not to perform display calibration and whether or not to gather additional display performance data based on display performance statistics extracted during a preceding display calibration sequence. The calibration computing equipment may be configured to iteratively and adaptively perform display calibration sequences until a display is successfully calibrated.
US09057891B2
A waveguide device for frequency mixing or conversion through birefringent phase matching, having a horizontal waveguide suspended above a substrate. The waveguide is formed of a zinc blend type III-V semiconductor material with a high nonlinear susceptibility.
US09057889B2
A device is comprised of a first portion shaped like an ocular product frame and designed to substantially cover the ocular product frame. The cover has a second portion substantially shaped like an ocular product leg and designed to substantially cover the ocular product leg. The second portion of the cover couples to the first portion of the cover.
US09057886B2
Embodiments of the invention pertain to a method for producing a spectacle lens with optimal correction across the entire lens that take the patient's complete measured wavefront into account. Specific embodiments also consider one or more additional factors such as vertex distance, intermediate power, add power, segmental fitting height, pantoscopic tilt, and use conditions. The lens wavefront can be achieved by optimizing a corrected wavefront, where the corrected wavefront is the effect of the patient's measured wavefront and/or the lens wavefront. The optimization of the corrected wavefront can involve representing the measured wavefront and/or the lens wavefront on a grid. In an exemplary embodiment, the grid can lie in a plane. During the optimization, a subset of the grid can be used for the representation of the measured wavefront at a point on the grid so that the portions of the measured wavefront that contribute to the corrected wavefront at that point on the grid are taken into account. The progressive addition lens can be utilized for distance, intermediate and reading use wherein the power progression is non-linear in any number or all of the near, intermediate, and far zones.
US09057873B2
In order to provide a technique for performing global alignment (detecting position shift and rotation of a wafer) stably and automatically using an optical microscope, as a pattern for global alignment, multiple alignment pattern candidates are calculated (107), multiple data for matching are created for each alignment pattern (108), matching is performed with respect to the data for matching for each alignment pattern in descending order of appropriateness as an alignment pattern with an image (113) based on an image signal from the optical microscope (114), and the amount of position shift and the amount of rotation of the wafer are calculated (116) on the basis of the results of matching (115).
US09057868B1
An optical lens system includes an aperture stop and an optical assembly, the optical assembly includes, in order from an object side to an image side: a first lens element with a positive refractive power; a second lens element with a negative refractive power; a third lens element with a positive refractive power; a fourth lens element with a positive refractive power; a fifth lens element with a negative refractive power; the aperture stop is located between an image-side surface of the first lens element and an object to be photographed. The optical lens system satisfies the following conditions: 0.55
US09057861B2
A cable management apparatus includes a flexible planar body and a plurality of channels aligned along a longitudinal axis on a surface of the flexible planar body. The flexible planar body has a plurality of fasteners aligned along a first edge and a second edge of the flexible planar body, the flexible planar body capable of forming a substantially circular bundle along the longitudinal axis. Each channel of the plurality of channels is configured to secure an individual cable to keep the cable from intersecting with another cable.
US09057856B2
An optical cable comprises a coated optical fiber having an optical fiber which includes a core made of glass and a cladding surrounding the core and a jacket made of a thermoplastic resin. The jacket is directly covering the coated optical fiber while in close contact therewith. In the optical cable, the optical fiber has the highest modulus of elasticity in materials constituting the optical cable, a glass diameter of the optical fiber is at least 30 μm but not more than 200 μm while being 5% or less of a cable diameter of the optical cable, and a distortion occurring in the optical fiber when bending the optical cable by 180° is 6% or less.
US09057853B2
An optoelectronic apparatus is described herein, including a transmitter, a receiver, and an optical waveguide, all of which are embedded in a PCB. The transmitter includes a laser generator and other circuits for generating electrical and optical signals, which are transmitted through the waveguide to the receiver. The receiver includes circuits and detectors for detecting and converting the optical signals to electrical signals. The circuit and optical components of the transmitter and receiver are integrated in 3D hybrid chip sets where the chip components are stacked in a 3D structure. Because all of the circuit and optical components are embedded in the PCB, the apparatus is made very compact and suitable for implementation in portable products.
US09057847B2
A male optical connector includes a connector body, a hollow pusher, a number of lenses, and two elastic shielding plates. The connector body defines a receiving hole with an opening and includes a connection surface in the receiving hole. The connection surface faces the opening. The pusher extends from the connector body and surrounds the receiving hole. The lenses are received in the receiving hole. The two elastic shielding plates have two fixed ends fixed to opposite sides of the pusher, and opposite free ends overlappable to cover the opening.
US09057846B2
Messages on controller area net work (CAN) buses are communicated over subsea optical links. An adaptor couples a CAN bus to an optical link. The adaptor detects a direction of transmission, that is, whether a signal began on the CAN bus coupled to the adaptor or on the optical link coupled to the adaptor. Signals from the CAN bus are conditionally transmitted to the optical link depending on the detected direction of transmission. The adaptor can operate at the physical layer without analyzing contents of the CAN bus communications.
US09057838B2
In some embodiments, a non-transitory processor-readable medium storing code includes code to cause a processor to receive an image signal associated with an image of an end face of a polarization-maintaining optical fiber (PM fiber), determine a center position of the PM fiber, perform a local image equalization on the end face, and define an edge map of the end face. The code can perform a Hough space analysis on the edge map to determine the center position of a first structure and/or a second structure on the end face. The first structure and the second structure can each define at least in part a birefringence of the PM fiber. A birefringence axis of the PM fiber can be calculated based on at least two of the center position of the PM fiber, the center position of the first structure and the center position of the second structure.
US09057834B2
A holder attached mirror for a vehicle is provided, in which a mirror plate is fixed to a plate-shaped mirror holder by an adhesive sheet, including a plurality of first grooves parallel to each other, which are formed on the surface of the mirror holder attached with the adhesive sheet on the surface of the mirror holder side to which the adhesive sheet is attached.
US09057833B2
An exterior vehicle mirror assembly includes a base, a mirror housing and a camera housing. The base has a mounting portion configured to attach to an exterior vehicle panel. The mirror housing is coupled to the base and extends from the base. The camera housing is coupled to the base adjacent to the mirror housing and extends from the base such that the mirror housing and the camera housing extend away from the base in respective directions are substantially parallel to one another with the mirror housing in an in-use orientation. A distal end of the camera housing is spaced apart from the mirror housing.
US09057823B2
A polarizing lens is constituted in succession by a mechanical support layer made of polycarbonate, the intermediate layer made of polyvinyl alcohol, and an outer layer made of cellulose triacetate. The invention also provides a method of fabricating such a lens.
US09057817B2
Small-radius coated optical fibers having large mode field diameter and low bending losses. The coated fiber may have an outer radius of 110 μm or less, while providing a mode field diameter of 9.0 μm or greater and a bending loss when wrapped about a 15 mm mandrel of 0.5 dB/km or less at wavelength of 1550 nm. The coated fiber may have a mode field diameter of 9.2 μm or greater and may have a bending loss at 1550 nm of 0.25 dB/km or less when wrapped about a 20 mm mandrel or a bending loss at 1550 nm of 0.02 dB/km or less when wrapped about a 30 mm mandrel.
US09057815B2
Angular alignment of optical fibers for fiber optic ribbon cables and related methods are disclosed. Employing optical fibers disposed in a ribbon matrix can increase bandwidth between two interconnection points. In one embodiment, optical fibers are angularly aligned during the process of forming a fiber optic ribbon cable. To angularly align the optical fibers, each of the optical fibers include an angular alignment feature to facilitate uniform or substantially uniform angular orientation along a cable when the optical fibers are prepared to be disposed in the ribbon matrix to form a fiber optic ribbon cable. By purposefully aligning the optical fibers during formation of the fiber optic ribbon cable, end portions of the optical fibers are aligned in the ribbon matrix. Thus, end portions of the ribbon matrix are not required to be removed to expose and align the end portions of optical fibers when the ribbon cable is connectorized.
US09057812B2
A lens holder driving device includes a lens holder in which a lens assembly is mounted, a driving coil fixed to the lens holder at outside circumference thereof, a magnet opposite to the driving coil, a yoke including the magnet, an elastic member supporting the lens holder in a direction of an optical axis shiftably, and a base disposed at a lower side of the lens holder. The yoke includes an outer yoke including the magnet at an inner wall surface thereof. The elastic member includes an upper elastic member disposed at an upper side of the lens holder. The upper elastic member is mounted to the inner wall of the outer yoke in a state where the upper elastic member is positioned and fitted to a spacer.
US09057807B2
A display apparatus including: a cover; a display panel which is accommodated in the cover; a plurality of light emitting elements arranged in at least one edge of the cover from a rear surface of the display panel; a lens which extends in parallel with an arrangement direction of the light emitting elements and is arranged in a light emitting direction; a reflection sheet installed in a rear surface of the display panel; and a holder which includes a holder main body that extends along the at least one edge, a light emitting element accommodator formed in a surface of the holder main body to accommodate therein the light emitting elements and a lens supporter that is spaced from the light emitting element accommodator and is formed in the surface of the holder main body to couple and support the lens.
US09057793B2
A fluid analyzer of a downhole tool is provided. The downhole tool is positionable in a wellbore penetrating a subterranean formation. The wellbore has a downhole fluid thereabout. The downhole tool has a housing with a flowline therethrough for receiving the downhole fluid. The fluid analyzer includes at least one optical source to pass a light through an optical window and through the downhole fluid in the flowline, at least one photodetector to measure the light passed through the downhole fluid in the flowline, and at least one optical mirror. An optical path of the light extends from the optical source to the photodetector. An optical path length is defined as a length of a portion of the optical path within the flowline. The optical mirror is positionable about the flowline, and has an optical layer selectively passing the light from the optical mirror to the photodetector whereby the optical path length may be varied.
US09057789B2
A radiation measuring device includes: a detector that detects radiation; a preamplifier that amplifies a signal outputted from the detector; a shaping amplifier that shapes the waveform of the signal outputted from the preamplifier; an A/D converter that converts the analog signal output from the shaping amplifier to a digital signal; and a digital data processing unit that calculates digital signal output from the A/D converter, wherein energy information of the radiation inputted to the detector is obtained from a pulse height of the pulse signal processed by the preamplifier and the shaping amplifier, and the pulse height of the current pulse is corrected in the digital data processing unit by performing an arithmetic operation using the pulse height information of the current pulse digitalized by the A/D converter, the generation time information of the preceding pulse, and the pulse height information of the preceding pulse.
US09057776B1
A hybrid method and system is disclosed for determining a direction finding (DF) to a received radio frequency (RF) signal. The method employs a linear interferometer array to receive and measure electrical phase differences in a received RF signal. A closed form analysis of the phase differences produces a first integer solution to which the method adds a plurality of offset values to produce a corresponding plurality of offset integer solutions. The number of offset values is proportional to the length of the baseline of the antenna array. These offset integer solutions are evaluated based on their deviation from measured phase differences by the array. Of the first integer solution and the offset integer solutions, one solution is selected based on a minimum deviation from the measured phase differences. The selected solution is output to a higher level processor and further displayed to an operator as the correct DF solution.
US09057765B2
A processor-implemented method for determining scan compression ratio based on fault density. The processor-implemented method may include calculating, by a processor, a fault density value for each of a plurality of partitions of an integrated circuit. The fault density is computed by the processor based on a ratio of a total number of faults per partition to a total number of flip-flops per partition. The processor-implemented method further includes the processor determining a compression ratio for each of the plurality of partitions based on the fault density value for each of the plurality of partitions and applying the compression ratio to each of the plurality of the partitions of the integrated circuit.
US09057761B2
An integrated circuit including a plurality of sensors configured to sense variations in supply voltage levels at points within the integrated circuit is disclosed. The plurality of sensors are distributed across the integrated circuit and have transistor devices such that process variations in the transistor devices within the sensors are such that a sensing result will have a random voltage offset that has a predetermined probability of lying within a pre-defined voltage offset range. The integrated circuit is configured to transmit results from multiple ones of the plurality of sensors to processing circuitry such that the variations in the supply voltage levels can be determined with a voltage offset range that is reduced compared to the pre-defined voltage offset range.
US09057759B2
A method for guiding nanoparticles to a target location by a magnetic gradient field and/or holding them at the target location is proposed. The magnetic gradient field is generated by a magnet system with at least one magnet. A focus of the magnet system is registered with an X-ray device. At least one three-dimensional image dataset showing the target location is captured by the X-ray device. The position of the target location is determined manually and/or automatically in the image dataset or in an image dataset determined therefrom and is positioned automatically based on the registration of the focus so that the focus coincides with the position of the target location.
US09057748B2
A method provides testing of an electronic circuit test system that includes a test fixture having headed and headless test probes, a shorting plate and a test probe verification plate with apertures. A probe verification test includes: moving the test probe verification plate and the shorting plate into position, where the shorting plate engages any test probe that extends through an aperture of the verification plate; and transmitting an electrical signal to each of the test probes. The electricity flow associated with each of the test probes is analyzed to determine if any of the headless test probes have an open circuit. In response to detecting an open circuit: one or more of the headless test probes are indicated as (a) defective in the test fixture or (b) missing from the test fixture; and the specific locations in the test fixture of the defective or missing test probes are identified.
US09057741B2
Probes are directly patterned on a test substrate, thereby eliminating a need for an interposer. Probe contact structures are formed as a two-level structure having a greater lateral dimension for a lower level portion than for an upper level portion. First cavities are formed in a masking layer applied to a test substrate, filling the cavities with a conductive material, and planarizing the top surfaces of the conductive material portions to form lower level portions. Another masking layer is applied over the lower level portions and patterned to define second cavities having a smaller lateral dimension that the lower level portions. The second cavities are filled with at least one conductive material to form upper level portions of the probe contact structures. The upper level portion of each probe contact structure can be employed to penetrate a surface oxide of solder balls.
US09057740B1
A system for analyzing a sample is described. The system for analyzing a sample includes a probe and a controller circuit. The controller circuit configured to control a movement of the probe to at least a first position and a second position on the sample based on navigation data. In response to the movement of the probe, the controller circuit is configured to adjust a force of the probe on the sample at the first position from a first force value to a second force value and the force of the probe on the sample from a third force value to a fourth force value at said second position on the sample. And, the controller circuit is configured to acquire sample data with the probe at the first position on the sample.
US09057732B2
Methods are provided for detecting the amount of one or more CAH panel analytes (i.e., pregnenolone, 17-OH pregnenolone, progesterone, 17-OH progesterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), androstenedione, testosterone, deoxycorticosterone, 11-deoxycortisol, and cortisol) in a sample by mass spectrometry. The methods generally involve ionizing one or more CAH panel analytes in a sample and quantifying the generated ions to determine the amount of one or more CAH panel analytes in the sample. In methods where amounts of multiple CAH panel analytes are detected, the amounts of multiple analytes are detected in the same sample injection.
US09057725B2
A composition for diagnosing, treating, and preventing liver disease, more particularly a composition for diagnosing liver disease comprising a material for measuring the grade of TM4SF5 (transmembrane 4 L six family member 5 or four-transmembrane L6 superfamily member 5) protein, a kit for diagnosing liver disease comprising the composition, a method for providing information necessary for diagnosing liver disease composed of the following steps: measuring the level of TM4SF5 protein and the expressions and phosphorylations of TM4SF5 expression related signaling proteins; and comparing the measured levels with those of the normal control, a method for screening a material for treating liver disease, and a composition for treating or preventing liver disease comprising a material inhibiting TM4SF5 protein expression or the expressions and phosphorylations of TM4SF5 expression related signaling proteins.
US09057720B2
The present invention provides a method for determining the gender of an unborn child by assaying the overall reducing/oxidizing or redox activity of the maternal urine or other body fluid. The method can be used to determine fetal gender at any time point during the entire pregnancy, the earliest being the first day of a missed menstruation. The body fluid may be processed before assaying. Processing may involve aging the body fluid, or purification of various fractions. The methods of the present invention also provide for a means for pre-conception baby gender planning by assaying the overall redox activity of a non-pregnant female's urine or other body fluid. The overall redox activity of a urine sample correlates with the gender specific compatibility of the ovum being released during a particular menstrual cycle. Therefore, assaying the overall redox activity of a non-pregnant female's urine will help a couple conceive a baby having a desired gender.
US09057716B2
The disclosure provides compositions, methods and kits for assessing immunogenicity, potency, or both, of meningococcal capsular saccharide vaccines. The assessment is based upon measurement of binding of a bactericidal antibody to a capsular saccharide component in the vaccine.
US09057714B2
A handling device for samples and reagents to be used in testing in a system. Carriers of samples and reagents are loaded on a platform which detects the presence of, and proper loading of, such carriers. The carriers are moved from the platform by a transporter to a bar code reader for identification. A reagent container is rotated during reading to facilitate identification. The transporter further moves identified reagent carriers to a carousel on which the carriers automatically secured for storage awaiting use in testing. The carousel rotates, and selected reagent containers rotate on the rotating carousel, during storage.
US09057707B2
A system for detecting features on a container wall includes an optical assembly comprising a camera, and an illuminating unit having light sources arranged on conductive tracks. Viewed in a vertical direction of the unit, the light sources are in vertical columns to project a strip-shaped beam onto a container-wall region. When viewed axially, the light sources are arranged on the conductive track one above the other without offset. Each column of light sources is actuated to project a light pattern on the container-wall region that can be variably adjusted as a function of surface properties of the container-wall region. The illuminating unit has first and second light source sets in corresponding adjacent vertical columns. Each light source set has one or more light sources. Adjustment is effected by concurrently switching the first and second light source sets between an on-state and an-off state.
US09057706B2
An apparatus for detecting a deflection of a beam, the apparatus comprising a beam having a first side and a second side; and a grating structure positioned adjacent the second side of the beam, the grating structure including an interrogating grating coupler configured to direct light towards the beam; wherein the beam and the interrogating grating coupler form a resonant cavity, and light input to the resonant cavity is modulated according to the deflection of the beam.
