US09735500B2

A magnetic connector for a computing device is disclosed. The magnetic connector can include a housing. The housing includes an asymmetric shape, a connector interface including at least one contact element to carry at least one of data or power, and a magnetic component provided on the connector interface. The housing and the magnetic component are oriented to key the connector interface into proper alignment when mated with an opposing connector that includes at least two magnetic components of opposite polarity.
US09735493B2

A power outlet having safety cover, the power outlet comprises a shell body, a base fixed in the shell body, a sliding element disposed between the shell body and the base; the shell body has at least one first outlet hole and at least one second outlet hole; the base has a first post, a third outlet hole and a fourth outlet hole; one side of the sliding element has a first inclined block, the middle of the sliding element has a through hole, another side of the sliding element has a second inclined block and a second post; an elastic element is disposed between the first post and the second post; wherein the through hole can contain the first post, the second post and the elastic element; a distance between the first inclined block and an inner wall of the base is smaller than the length of the elastic element.
US09735490B2

An electrical connector terminal comprises a resilient contact end) for electrically contacting with an insertion end of a mating electrical connector terminal. At least one side of the resilient contact end contacts with the insertion end at a plurality of electrical contact portions separated from each other in a longitudinal direction.
US09735485B2

An example device in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure includes a unibody socket to receive a memory module that is to interface with a computing system. A portion of the unibody socket extends into a latch extension. The latch extension is to retain the memory module based on a positive locking latch retention force that is to increase in response to an unseating force of the memory module, to prevent removal of the memory module while the latch extension is in a latched position.
US09735471B2

An antenna structure includes a monopole antenna, a short parasitic antenna and an impedance matching circuit. The monopole antenna includes a first radiating body, a second radiating body and a feeding portion coupled to the first radiating body and the second radiating body. The first radiating body configured to excite a low-frequency resonating mode; the second radiating body configured to excite a first high-frequency resonating mode. The short parasitic antenna includes a parasitic body spaced apart from the second radiating body and a grounding portion coupled to the parasitic body. The short parasitic antenna configured to excite a second high-frequency resonating mode, and resonate with the second radiating body to excite a third high-frequency resonating mode. The impedance matching circuit includes a variable capacitor configured to regulate operating frequency band of the low-frequency resonating mode.
US09735466B2

A radome for housing a radar system comprises a plurality of interconnected curved radome thermoplastic composite material panels, each curved radome thermoplastic composite material panel having a plurality of interconnecting edges, a foam core, an inner skin, an outer skin, and a plurality of three-dimensional fiber bundles tying the inner skin and the outer skin to each other through the foam core, inhibiting delamination. The radome includes a hydrophobic exterior surface that is self-cleaning and requires zero maintenance for 25 years.
US09735463B2

A wireless communication device includes a housing and an antenna assembly. The housing including a metallic frame having a first side plate and a second side plate connected to the first side plate, the first side plate defines a first opening, and the second side plate defines a second opening. The antenna assembly includes a first antenna and a second antenna. The first antenna is received in the first opening, secured on the first side plate and grounded by the first side plate. The second antenna is received in the second opening and is secured on the second side plate and grounded by the second side plate.
US09735459B2

A waveguide assembly system includes a fixed port, a sliding port, and a transmission path from the fixed port to the sliding port. The transmission path includes a waveguide assembly that includes a first minor face corresponding to the fixed port, a first major face that includes a recess extending from the first minor surface towards the fixed port. The waveguide assembly system also includes a port assembly with a first major surface disposed opposite to the first major surface of the waveguide assembly. The port assembly includes at least one port having a first opening on the first major surface of the port assembly and a second opening on a second major surface of the port assembly. The port assembly includes one or more stubs positioned to impede electromagnetic energy propagation beyond a specified distance within the port tab assembly.
US09735455B2

A metal-air battery with a high discharge capacity is provided. Discharge capacity can be increased by a metal-air battery that includes an air electrode, a negative electrode and an electrolyte layer, where the electrolyte layer includes a porous separator, and a liquid electrolyte infiltrated in the separator, and a contact angle between the liquid electrolyte and a negative electrode side-face of the separator is smaller than that between the liquid electrolyte and an air electrode side-face of the separator.
US09735453B2

The invention relate to methods of preparing lithium ion cells including cells using Li4Ti5O12 as negative electrode material and layered transition metal oxides as positive electrode material or composite positive electrode wherein one of the components is layered transition metal oxide in which the amount of moisture in the cell is reduced such that the characteristics of the cell such as cycle life and cell impedence are improved.
US09735447B2

A silicone-containing compound is an additive for a lithium secondary battery electrolyte for improving high-temperature lifetime characteristics and/or high-temperature stability of a lithium secondary battery. An electrolyte for a lithium secondary battery includes the silicon-containing compound. A lithium secondary battery includes the electrolyte. A method of preparing the silicon-containing compound is also provided.
US09735431B2

Provided is a current collecting assembly for use in an electrochemical cell. In some embodiments, the current collecting assembly comprises a current collecting substrate having a first side defining a first surface, and a second side defining a second surface. Each of the first and second surfaces defines a surface area. The current collecting assembly further comprises a first assembly of reinforcing structures disposed on and attached to the first side of the current collecting substrate. The current collecting substrate comprises a conductive material. The first assembly of reinforcing structures comprises a first set of reinforcing structures. The first set of reinforcing structures comprises a first polymer material. The first assembly of reinforcing structures mechanically reinforces the current collecting substrate.
US09735423B2

The invention provides a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery having a cathode and an anode arranged so as to be opposite to each other, and an electrolyte layer put therebetween; wherein the cathode comprises: (a) a conductive polymer and (b) at least one selected from the group consisting of a polycarboxylic acid and a metal salt thereof, and wherein the anode comprises a material into which a base metal or ions thereof can be inserted and from which a base metal or ions thereof can be extracted. The invention further provides a cathode sheet for use in the nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery mentioned above.
US09735420B2

A positive electrode for lithium ion secondary batteries includes a collector and a positive electrode active material layer formed on at least one surface of the collector. The positive electrode active material layer contains a lithium-containing metal oxide having a unit cell represented by the following formula and a conductive material and has voids with a volume of 0.82×10−3 cm3/cm2 to 7.87×10−3 cm3/cm2 per unit area of the collector: LiFe1-xZrxP1-ySiyO4  (1) where 0
US09735417B2

According to an embodiment, a method of manufacturing an active material is provided. The active material includes particles of a composite oxide of the general formula Ti1±xNb2±yMzO7−δ and a carbon-including phase. Here, 0≦x≦0.15, 0≦y≦0.3, 0.01
US09735396B2

A white organic light emitting diode including a first electrode; a second electrode facing the first electrode; a charge generation region between the first and second electrodes; a first emitting layer to emit light of a first color, the first emitting layer being between the first electrode and the charge generation region; and a second emitting layer to emit light of a second color, the second emitting layer being between the second electrode and the charge generation region, wherein the charge generation region includes a hole generation region to generate holes, an electron generation region to generate electrons, and a depletion prevention region to prevent a depletion region from being generated by the holes and the electrons, the depletion prevention region being between the hole generation region and the electron generation region.
US09735392B2

A method of preparing a surface for deposition of a thin film thereon, wherein the surface including a plurality of protrusions extending therefrom and having shadowed regions, includes locally treating at least one of the protrusions.
US09735380B2

A transistor manufacturing method includes: forming a first insulator layer of which formation material is a fluorine-containing resin, on a substrate having a source electrode, a drain electrode, and a semiconductor layer so as to cover the semiconductor layer; forming a second insulator layer so as to cover the first insulator layer; forming a base film on at least part of a surface of the second insulator layer; and after depositing a metal which is an electroless plating catalyst on a surface of the base film, forming a gate electrode on the surface of the base film by electroless plating, wherein the forming of the base film is performed by applying a liquid substance which is a formation material of the base film to the surface of the second insulator layer, and the second insulator layer has a higher lyophilic property with respect to the liquid substance than the first insulator layer.
US09735379B2

Provided are a display apparatus and an apparatus and method of manufacturing the display apparatus. The apparatus for manufacturing a display apparatus includes: a dry cleansing unit configured to remove impurities from a surface of a mother substrate; an electrolyte treatment unit connected to the dry cleansing unit and configured to treat the surface of the mother substrate with electrolytes; and an exfoliated layer forming unit connected to the electrolyte treatment unit and configured to form an exfoliated layer on the mother substrate.
US09735377B2

Iridium complexes with ligands containing twisted aryl groups having extended conjugation (i.e., the twisted aryl is substituted with an additional aryl group) and organic light emitting devices including the same are disclosed. The iridium complexes can be used in organic light emitting devices may provide improved stability color, lifetime and manufacturing.
US09735373B2

Aluminum chelate complex compounds with two substituted 8-hydroxyquinoline ligand and one dibenzothiophene, dibenzofuran or dibenzoselenophene ligands or aza-analogs of these molecules, attached directly or through an aromatic spacer to the oxygen atom is provided to improve lifetime, operating voltage and efficiency of an OLED. Additional substitution of dibenzothiophene or dibenzofuran ring may also provide charge delocalization, HOMO modification and higher Tg.
US09735368B2

An organic electroluminescent element that includes a light-emitting layer composed of a light-emitting composition containing at least one type of host material and at least one type of light-emitting material is provided. The host material is a fluorescent anthracene derivative, which fluoresces blue light under DC current with a current density of 25 mA/cm2. If λ (nm) is taken to be the shortest wavelength of all the wavelengths at which the intensity of PL emission of a film composed only of the aforementioned host material is one-half the maximum emission intensity, then the intensity of PL emission at the aforementioned wavelength λ of a film composed of the aforementioned light-emitting composition is no more than 1/10 the maximum emission intensity of PL emission of the film composed of the aforementioned light-emitting composition, and the PL emission of the film composed of the aforementioned light-emitting composition satisfies CIE y≦0.08.
US09735367B2

A light emitting diode includes an insulating substrate, a first MgO layer, a semiconductor carbon nanotube layer, a second MgO layer, a functional dielectric layer, a first electrode, and a second electrode. The semiconductor carbon nanotube layer has a first surface and a second surface. The first MgO layer coats entire the first surface. The second surface is divided into a first region and a second region. The first region is coated with the second MgO layer. The second MgO layer is covered by the functional dielectric layer. The second region is exposed. The first electrode is electrically connected to the first region. The second electrode is electrically connected to the second region.
US09735365B2

The present disclosure relates to a novel polymer compound and a method for preparing the same. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a novel conductive low band gap electron donor polymer compound having high photon absorptivity and improved hole mobility, a method for preparing the same and an organic photovoltaic cell containing the same. Since the conductive polymer compound as a low band gap electron donor exhibits high photon absorptivity and superior hole mobility, it can be usefully used as a material for an organic optoelectronic device such as an organic photodiode (OPD), an organic thin-film transistor (OTFT), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), an organic photovoltaic cell, etc. as well as in the development of a n-type material.
US09735362B2

A tunneling nanotube field effect transistor includes: an insulating layer disposed on a substrate; a gate electrode disposed on the insulating layer; a source electrode and a drain electrode disposed on the insulating layer on respective adjacent sides of the gate electrode; and a carbon nanotube extending through the gate electrode, wherein the carbon nanotube is supported by the source electrode, the gate electrode, and the drain electrode, wherein the carbon nanotube includes a first portion adjacent to the source electrode and a second portion adjacent to the drain electrode, and wherein the source electrode and the gate electrode are spaced apart by an exposed section of the first portion, and the drain electrode and the gate electrode are spaced apart by an exposed section of the second portion.
US09735361B2

A method of making a stack of the type comprising a first electrode, an active layer, and a second electrode, for use in an electronic device, in particular of the organic photodetector type or the organic solar cell type, the method comprising the following steps: a) depositing a first layer (2) of conductive material on a substrate (1) in order to form the first electrode; b) depositing an active layer (3) in the form of a thin organic semiconductor layer, this layer including non-continuous zones (30); c) locally eliminating the first conductive layer (2) through the non-continuous zones (30) of the active layer by chemical attack; and d) depositing a second layer (4) of conductive material on the active layer (3) in order to form the second conductive electrode.
US09735358B2

A method for forming a non-volatile memory device includes disposing a junction layer comprising a doped silicon-bearing material in electrical contact with a first conductive material, forming a switching layer comprising an undoped amorphous silicon-bearing material upon at least a portion of the junction layer, disposing a layer comprising a non-noble metal material upon at least a portion of the switching layer, disposing an active metal layer comprising a noble metal material upon at least a portion of the layer, and forming a second conductive material in electrical contact with the active metal layer.
US09735356B2

The resistive-switching memory element of the present invention comprises a first electrode, a resistive-switching element; and a second electrode wherein the resistive-switching element is arranged between the first electrode and the second electrode and the resistive-switching element comprises, or consists of, a plurality of metal oxide layers and wherein neighboring metal oxide layers of the resistive-switching element comprise, or consist of, different metal oxides.
US09735353B2

A memory cell includes a selection transistor having a control gate and a first conduction terminal connected to a variable-resistance element. The memory cell is formed in a wafer comprising a semiconductor substrate covered with a first insulating layer, the insulating layer being covered with an active layer made of a semiconductor. The gate is formed on the active layer and has a lateral flank covered with a second insulating layer. The variable-resistance element includes a first layer covering a lateral flank of the active layer in a trench formed through the active layer along the lateral flank of the gate and reaching the first insulating layer, and a second layer made of a variable-resistance material.
US09735351B2

Manufacturing a MRAM device may include removing etch residues from a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) pattern in the presence of an atmosphere. The removing may include applying a cleaning solution to one or more surfaces of the MTJ pattern. Manufacturing the MRAM device may include removing an oxide layer based on sputter etching of the MTJ pattern. The etch residues may be removed such that the oxide layer is formed. Removing the etch residues may include applying a cleaning solution to the MTJ pattern. The etch residues may be removed in the presence of an atmosphere. The MTJ pattern may be formed based on patterning an MTJ layer in a vacuum state such that the etch residues are formed on a surface of the MTJ pattern.
US09735346B2

An electronic device may include a semiconductor memory. The semiconductor memory may include a substrate including a first region and a second region; buried gates formed in the first region and the second region, the buried gates in the second region having a different density distribution from the buried gates in the first region; first and second junction regions formed in the first and second regions, respectively, and having a same depth as each other; and a variable resistance element formed over the substrate and electrically connected to the buried gates in the first region. According to the implementations, the characteristics of the variable resistance element can be improved.
US09735345B2

In one aspect, a vertical Hall effect sensor includes a semiconductor wafer having a first conductivity type and a plurality of semiconductive electrodes disposed on the semiconductor wafer. The plurality of semiconductive electrodes have the first conductivity type and include a source electrode, a first sensing electrode and a second sensing electrode, arranged such that the source electrode is between the first sensing electrode and the sensing electrode and a first drain electrode and a second drain electrode, arranged such that the first sensing electrode, second sensing electrode, and source electrode are between the first drain electrode and the second drain electrode. The vertical Hall effect sensor also includes a plurality of semiconductor fingers disposed on the semiconductor wafer and interdigitated with the plurality of semiconductive electrodes, the semiconductor fingers having a second conductivity type.
US09735336B2

In one embodiment, a method for switching an electrical load having at least one capacitive component and one inductive component in a bridge branch of a bridge circuit comprises a charging of the bridge branch to a first voltage (V1) in a forward switching phase (F), a discharging of the capacitive component of the electrical load in a first open switching phase (O1), a charging of the bridge branch to a second voltage (V2) in a reverse switching phase (R), with the second voltage (V2) being polarized inversely from the first voltage (V1), and a negative charging of the capacitive component of the electrical load in a second open switching phase (O2). A bridge circuit is also provided.
US09735331B2

Provided is a bonding wire for a semiconductor package and a semiconductor package including the same. The bonding wire for the semiconductor package may include a core portion including silver (Ag), and a shell layer surrounding the core portion, having a thickness of 2 nm to 23 nm, and including gold (Au). The semiconductor package may include a package body having a first electrode structure and a second electrode structure, a semiconductor light emitting device comprising a first electrode portion and a second electrode portion electrically connected to the first electrode structure and the second electrode structure, and a bonding wire connecting at least one of the first electrode structure and the second electrode structure to the semiconductor light emitting device.
US09735327B2

Disclosed are a light emitting device and a method of manufacturing the same. The light emitting device includes a support substrate, a reflective ohmic contact layer on the support substrate, a functional complex layer including a process assisting region and ohmic contact regions divided by the process assisting region on the reflective ohmic contact layer, and a light emitting semiconductor layer including a second conductive semiconductor layer, an active layer, and a first conductive semiconductor layer on each ohmic contact region.
US09735315B2

A heterostructure for use in fabricating an optoelectronic device is provided. The heterostructure includes a layer, such as an n-type contact or cladding layer, that includes thin sub-layers inserted therein. The thin sub-layers can be spaced throughout the layer and separated by intervening sub-layers fabricated of the material for the layer. The thin sub-layers can have a distinct composition from the intervening sub-layers, which alters stresses present during growth of the heterostructure.
US09735310B2

In accordance with embodiments disclosed herein, there are provided methods and systems for implementing damage-and-resist-free laser patterning of dielectric films on textured silicon. For example, in one embodiment, such means include means for depositing a Silicon nitride (SiNx) or SiOx (silicon oxide) layer onto a crystalline silicon (c-Si) substrate by a Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) processing; depositing an amorphous silicon (a-Si) film on top of the SiNx or SiOx layer; patterning the a-Si film to define an etch mask for the SiNx or SiOx layer; removing the SiNx or SiOx layer via a Buffered Oxide Etch (BOE) chemical etch to expose the c-Si surface; removing the a-Si mask with a hydrogen plasma etch in a PECVD tool to prevent current loss from the mask; and plating the exposed c-Si surface with metal contacts. Other related embodiments are disclosed.
US09735309B2

An integrated thin-film lateral multi-junction solar device and fabrication method are provided. The device includes, for instance, a substrate, and a plurality of stacks extending vertically from the substrate. Each stack may include layers, and be electrically isolated against another stack. Each stack may also include an energy storage device above the substrate, a solar cell above the energy storage device, a transparent medium above the solar cell, and a micro-optic layer of spectrally dispersive and concentrating optical devices above the transparent medium. Furthermore, the device may include a first power converter connected between the energy storage device and a power bus, and a second power converter connected between the solar cell and the power bus. Further, different solar cells of different stacks may have different absorption characteristics.
US09735300B2

A solar energy receiver can include a heat sink configured to cool or otherwise dissipate heat. The heat sink can include a plurality of fin members, each having bases that are generally aligned with each other. The bases of the fin members can be connected to one another with connection devices that are spaced away from the bases, so as to improve thermal conductivity performance characteristics.
US09735291B1

A semiconductor device includes a substrate; a well region of a first-conductivity-type, disposed in the substrate; a first impurity region of a first-conductivity-type disposed in the well region; a second impurity region of the second-conductivity-type disposed in the well region, the second-conductivity-type being opposite to the first-conductivity-type; a third impurity region disposed in the well region, a portion of the first impurity region overlapping a first portion of the third impurity region, a portion of the second impurity region overlapping a second portion of the third impurity region, and a third portion of the third impurity region being disposed between the first impurity region and the second impurity region; and a fourth impurity region and a barrier layer disposed in the substrate, the fourth impurity region and the barrier layer enclosing the well region from around and below, respectively.
US09735285B2

An object is to provide a memory device including a memory element that can be operated without problems by a thin film transistor with a low off-state current. Provided is a memory device in which a memory element including at least one thin film transistor that includes an oxide semiconductor layer is arranged as a matrix. The thin film transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer has a high field effect mobility and low off-state current, and thus can be operated favorably without problems. In addition, the power consumption can be reduced. Such a memory device is particularly effective in the case where the thin film transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer is provided in a pixel of a display device because the memory device and the pixel can be formed over one substrate.
US09735279B2

A gas sensor includes: a channel layer in which a F-terminated GNR, a H-terminated GNR, and a F-terminated GNR whose edge portions are terminated with different modifying groups are bonded to each other; a source electrode formed on one end of the channel layer; and a drain electrode formed on the other end of the channel layer, in which a surface of the H-terminated GNR is exposed, and this exposed portion is a gas sensing part.
US09735275B2

A method includes removing a top portion of a substrate after implantation of a punch through stopper into the substrate; epitaxially growing undoped material on the substrate, thereby forming a channel; filling a top portion of the channel with an intermediate implant forming a vertically bi-modal dopant distribution, with one doping concentration peak in the top portion of the channel and another doping concentration peak in the punch through stopper; and patterning fins into the channel and the punch though stopper to form a finFET structure.
US09735272B2

A method of forming a semiconductor device that includes forming a germanium including material on source and drain region portions of a silicon containing fin structure, and annealing to drive germanium into the source and drain region portions of the fin structure. The alloyed portions of fin structures composed of silicon and germanium are then removed using a selective etch. After the alloyed portions of the fin structures are removed, epitaxial source and drain regions are formed on the remaining portions of the fin structure.
US09735271B2

A semiconductor device includes an isolation feature in a substrate. The semiconductor device further includes a first source/drain feature in the substrate, wherein a first side of the first source/drain feature contacts the isolation feature, and the first source/drain feature exposes a portion of the isolation feature below a top surface of the substrate. The semiconductor device further includes a silicide layer over the first source/drain feature. The semiconductor device further includes a dielectric layer along the exposed portion of the isolation feature below the top surface of the substrate, wherein the dielectric layer contacts the silicide layer. The semiconductor device further includes a second source/drain feature in the substrate on an opposite side of a gate stack from the first source/drain feature, wherein the second source/drain feature has a substantially uniform thickness.
US09735266B2

A trench metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) includes an epitaxial layer over a substrate a first trench in the epitaxial layer and a second trench in the epitaxial layer. A depth of the first trench is different from a depth of the second trench. The trench MOSFET further includes a source region surrounding the self-aligned source contact, wherein the source region is convex-shaped. The trench MOSFET further includes a self-aligned source contact between the first trench and the second trench; wherein the self-aligned source contact is connected to the source region.
US09735255B2

A method includes providing a substrate having a fin extending from a first (e.g., top) surface of the substrate. The fin has first region (a stem region) and a second region (an active region) each having a different composition. The first region of the fin is modified to decrease a width of semiconductor material for example by etching and/or oxidizing the first region of the fin. The method then continues to provide a gate structure on the second region of the fin. FinFET devices having stem regions with decreased widths of semiconductor material are also provided.
US09735246B1

Transistors and method of forming he same include forming a fin on a bottom source/drain region having a channel region and a sacrificial region on the channel region. A gate stack is formed on sidewalls of the channel region. A gate conductor is formed in contact with the gate stack that has a top surface that meets a middle point of sidewalls of the sacrificial region. The sacrificial region is trimmed to create gaps above the gate stack. A top spacer is formed on the gate conductor having airgaps above the gate stack.
US09735240B2

A high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) device with a highly resistive layer co-doped with carbon (C) and a donor-type impurity and a method for making the HEMT device is disclosed. In one embodiment, the HEMT device includes a substrate, the highly resistive layer co-doped with C and the donor-type impurity formed above the substrate, a channel layer formed above the highly resistive layer, and a barrier layer formed above the channel layer. In one embodiment, the highly resistive layer comprises gallium nitride (GaN). In one embodiment, the donor-type impurity is silicon (Si). In another embodiment, the donor-type impurity is oxygen (O).
US09735222B2

A circuit board in which damage to an electrode is reduced or a light-emitting device in which damage to an electrode is reduced is manufactured. A method for manufacturing the circuit board or the light-emitting device includes the following steps: preparing a processing member including a circuit and a terminal electrode over a first substrate, a separation layer over the terminal electrode, a bonding layer over the separation layer, and a second substrate over the bonding layer; forming a groove in the processing member using a blade capable of cutting processing by being rotated; and removing part of the separation layer, part of the bonding layer, and part of the second substrate to expose part of the terminal electrode.
US09735208B2

A transparent display panel including a transparent substrate and a plurality of display units formed on the substrate is provided. Each of the display units includes a color light area and a least one of transparent areas disposed around the color light area. The color light area has a geometric center, a first color pixel structure, a second color pixel structure, and a third color pixel structure. The first, second and third color pixel structures take the geometric center as a center in each display unit and are disposed in a radial way corresponding to the center to form the color light area.
US09735207B2

A display substrate and a driving method thereof, and a display apparatus are provide. The display substrate includes an array of a plurality of sub-pixels having at least two colors, wherein the sub-pixels of each color constitute a plurality of sub-pixel sets, each of the sub-pixel sets includes at least two sub-pixels of the same color and arranged adjacently in a first direction, and sub-pixel sets of different colors are arranged alternately in the first direction. The display substrate may be applied to display devices, particularly to organic light emitting diode display devices using different organic light emitting layer materials for different sub-pixels.
US09735201B2

According to one embodiment, a memory device includes a first layer, a second layers, a third layer provided between the first layer and the second layer, and first electrodes. The first layer includes first interconnections and a first insulating portion provided between the first interconnections. The second layer includes second interconnections and a second insulating portion provided between the second interconnections. The third layer includes first and second portions including silicon oxide. The first portion is provided between the first and the second interconnections. The second portion is provided between the first and the second insulating portions. The first electrodes are provided between the first interconnections and the first portion, and include a first material. The second interconnections include a second material. The first material is easier to ionize than the second material. A density of the first portion is lower than a density of the second portion.
US09735200B2

The present disclosure includes select devices and methods of using select device for memory cell applications. An example select device includes a first electrode having a particular geometry, a semiconductor material formed on the first electrode and a second electrode having the particular geometry with formed on the semiconductor material, wherein the select device is configured to snap between resistive states in response to signals that are applied to the select device.
US09735199B2

A light emitting device includes a substrate, light emitting cells, each of the light emitting cells including a light emitting structure including lower and upper semiconductor layers, an upper electrode, and a lower electrode, a conductive interconnection layer electrically connecting a lower electrode of a first one of the light emitting cells and an upper electrode of a second one of the light emitting cells, and a current blocking layer disposed to extend from between the upper electrode and the upper semiconductor layer, wherein each light emitting cell further includes a conductive layer arranged to electrically connect the upper electrode of the second light emitting cell to the upper semiconductor layer of the second light emitting cell.
US09735195B2

An array substrate and manufacturing method thereof, an X-ray flat panel detector and an image pickup system are provided. The array substrate is divided into a plurality of detection units, and each of the detection units has a first electrode and a photoelectric conversion structure provided therein. The first electrode is disposed on a side of the photoelectric conversion structure opposite to a light incident side, and is electrically connected to the photoelectric conversion structure. A reflective layer that is electrically conductive is further included between the first electrode and the photoelectric conversion structure, and a surface of the reflective layer facing the photoelectric conversion structure is a reflection surface. The utilization rate of light can be enhanced by the array substrate as stated in embodiments of the invention, so that the detection accuracy of the X-ray flat panel detector is enhanced.
US09735191B2

An image sensor package includes an image sensor, a window, and a molding, where the molding includes a lens holder extension portion extending upwards from the window. The lens holder extension portion includes a female threaded aperture extending from the window such that the window is exposed through the aperture. A lens is supported in a threaded lens support. The threaded lens support is threaded into the aperture of the lens holder extension portion. The lens is readily adjusted relative to the image sensor by rotating the lens support.
US09735184B2

A forming method for an array substrate is provided. The method includes: providing a substrate; forming multiple scanning lines and multiple data lines on the substrate, where the scanning lines cross the data lines and are insulated from the data lines, and the first data lines are arranged in the same layer as the scanning lines; forming a first insulating layer on the first data lines and the scanning lines, and forming first via holes in the first insulating layer; and forming second data lines on the first insulating layer, where the second data lines electrically connect to the first data lines via the first via holes, first signal lines are insulated from the second data lines and the first signal lines are in a same layer with the second data lines.
US09735178B2

To provide a display device including a flexible panel that can be handled without seriously damaging a driver circuit or a connecting portion between circuits. The display device includes a bent portion obtained by bending an element substrate. A circuit for driving the display device is provided in the bent portion and a wiring extends from the circuit, whereby the strength of a portion including the circuit for driving the display device is increased and failure of the circuit is reduced. Furthermore, the element substrate is bent in a connecting portion between an external terminal electrode and an external connecting wiring (FPC) so that the element substrate provided with the external terminal electrode fits the external connecting wiring, whereby the strength of the connecting portion is increased.
US09735177B2

The present invention provides an array substrate, a method for manufacturing the same and a display device, and relates to technical field of displays. The method for manufacturing an array substrate comprises forming a metal layer on a substrate and removing superficial metallic oxide on the metal layer by a washing process. The method for manufacturing an array substrate according to the present inversion can remove the superficial metal oxide on the metal layer and improve the performance of a TFT.
US09735168B2

A semiconductor device including a memory cell featuring a first gate insulating film over a semiconductor substrate, a control gate electrode over the first gate insulating film, a second gate insulating film over the substrate and a side wall of the control gate electrode, a memory gate electrode over the second gate insulating film arranged adjacent with the control gate electrode through the second gate insulating film, first and second semiconductor regions in the substrate positioned on a control gate electrode side and a memory gate side, respectively, the second gate insulating film featuring a first film over the substrate, a charge storage film over the first film and a third film over the second film, the first film having a first portion between the substrate and memory gate electrode and a thickness greater than that of a second portion between the control gate electrode and the memory gate electrode.
US09735166B2

A semiconductor device having good characteristics without variation and a method of manufacturing the same are provided. A part of a conductive layer for a floating gate is removed by using a spacer insulating film, a first insulating film, and a second insulating film as a mask. A floating gate having a tip portion is formed from the conductive layer for the floating gate, and a part of an insulating layer for a gate insulating film is exposed from the floating gate. The tip portion of the floating gate is further exposed by selectively removing the second insulating film among the second insulating film, the insulating layer for the gate insulating film, and the spacer insulating film.
US09735165B1

A semiconductor structure including a stacked FinFET fuse is provided in which the stacked FinFET fuse includes a plurality of vertically stacked and spaced apart conductive semiconductor fin portions and a doped epitaxial semiconductor material structure located on exposed surfaces of each conductive semiconductor fin portion of the vertical stack. In the FinFET fuse, a topmost surface of a bottom doped epitaxial semiconductor material structure is merged to a bottommost surface of an overlying doped epitaxial semiconductor material structure.
US09735158B2

A semiconductor device includes a substrate, a first active fin and a second active fin on the substrate, respectively, a plurality of first epitaxial layers on the first active fin and on the second active fin, respectively, a plurality of second epitaxial layers on the plurality of first epitaxial layers, a bridge layer connecting the plurality of second epitaxial layers to each other, and a third epitaxial layer on the bridge layer.
US09735154B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide methods of removing fin portions from a finFET. At a starting point, a high-K dielectric layer is disposed on a substrate. A fin hardmask and lithography stack is deposited on the high-k dielectric. A fin hardmask is exposed, and a first portion of the fin hardmark is removed. The lithography stack is removed. A second portion of the fin hardmask is removed. Fins are formed. A gap fill dielectric is deposited and recessed.
US09735148B2

A monolithic power switch provides a semiconductor layer, a three dimensional FET formed in the semiconductor layer to modulate currents through the semiconductor layer, and a toroidal inductor with a ceramic magnetic core formed on the semiconductor layer around the FET and having a first winding connected to the FET.
US09735147B2

In one general aspect, an apparatus can include a junction-less, gate-controlled voltage clamp device having a gate terminal coupled to a voltage reference device.
US09735137B2

A switch circuit package module includes at least a semiconductor switch unit and at least a first capacitor unit. The semiconductor switch unit includes a first semiconductor switch element and a second semiconductor switch element. The first semiconductor switch element and the second semiconductor switch element include a plurality of sub micro-switch elements. The capacitor unit includes a plurality of capacitors configured to cooperate with the sub micro-switch elements. The capacitors are arranged in a symmetrical distribution surrounded the semiconductor switch unit, such that impedances of any two symmetrical commutation loops each of which mainly consists of one capacitor and two sub micro-switch elements from the first semiconductor switch element and second semiconductor switch element respectively are close to or the same with each other.
US09735135B2

There is provided an optical sensor package including a semiconductor base layer. A first surface of the semiconductor base layer is formed with a pixel array, a plurality of solder balls and an optical component such that when the optical sensor package is assembled with a substrate, the optical component is accommodated in an accommodation throughhole of the substrate so as to reduce the total thickness.
US09735129B2

Embodiments of the present disclosure include semiconductor packages and methods of forming the same. An embodiment is a semiconductor package including a first package including one or more dies, and a redistribution layer coupled to the one or more dies at a first side of the first package with a first set of bonding joints. The redistribution layer including more than one metal layer disposed in more than one passivation layer, the first set of bonding joints being directly coupled to at least one of the one or more metal layers, and a first set of connectors coupled to a second side of the redistribution layer, the second side being opposite the first side.
US09735127B2

An improvement is achieved in the reliability of a semiconductor device. Over a die pad, first and second semiconductor chips are mounted. The first and second semiconductor chips and a part of the die pad are sealed in a sealing portion. The first semiconductor chip includes a power transistor. The second semiconductor chip controls the first semiconductor chip. The thickness of the portion of the die pad over which the first semiconductor chip is mounted is smaller than the thickness of the portion of the die pad over which the second semiconductor chip is mounted.
US09735121B2

A semiconductor chip and/or a semiconductor package including the same are disclosed. The semiconductor chip may include an integrated circuit on a substrate, a center pad electrically connected to the integrated circuit, a lower insulating structure on the center pad and having a contact hole exposing the center pad, the lower insulating structure including a plurality of lower insulating layers sequentially stacked on the substrate, a conductive pattern including a contact portion, a pad portion, a conductive line portion, the contact portion filling the contact hole, the pad portion including a test region and a bonding region, a conductive line portion on the lower insulating structure and connecting the contact portion to the pad portion, and an upper insulating structure on the conductive pattern and having a first opening exposing the pad portion, and the upper insulating structure including an upper insulating layer and a polymer layer.
US09735120B2

In embodiments, a package assembly may include a die coupled with one or more conductive pads. A barrier layer may be directly coupled with and between the die and one or more of the conductive pads. The package assembly may further include a solder resist layer coupled with the die and the conductive pads, and one or more interconnects positioned at least partially within the solder resist layer and directly coupled with one or more of the conductive pads.
US09735118B2

A method includes forming a first metal plate, forming a metal ring aligned to peripheral regions of the first metal plate, and placing a device die level with the metal ring, encapsulating the device die and the metal ring in an encapsulating material. The method further includes filling a dielectric material into a space encircled by the metal ring, and forming a second metal plate covering the dielectric material and the metal ring, with an opening formed in the second metal plate. A plurality of redistribution lines is formed, with one of the redistribution lines overlapping a portion of the opening. The first metal plate, the metal ring, the second metal plate, and the dielectric material in combination form an antenna or a waveguide. The redistribution line forms a signal-coupling line of the passive device.
US09735115B2

An image pickup apparatus includes an optical device, a transparent conductive film, an electrode pad, and a penetrating electrode. In the optical device, an optical element area for receiving light is formed on a first surface side of a substrate, and an external connection terminal is formed on a side of a second surface opposite to the first surface of the substrate. The transparent conductive film is formed to face the first surface of the substrate. The electrode pad is formed on the first surface of the substrate and configured to perform connection with a fixed potential. The penetrating electrode is connected to the electrode pad and formed to penetrate the substrate between the first surface and second surface. The transparent conductive film is connected to the electrode pad, and the penetrating electrode is connected to the external connection terminal on the side of the second surface of the substrate.
US09735108B2

A multi-layer line structure including a substrate, a lower layer Cu line located on the substrate, an upper layer Cu line located on an insulating layer including an inorganic film located on the lower layer Cu line and an organic resin film located on the inorganic film, and a via connection part located in a via connection hole running in an up-down direction through the insulating layer in an area where the lower layer Cu line and the upper layer Cu line overlap each other is provided. The via connection part includes a barrier conductive layer located on a part of the lower layer Cu line exposed to a bottom part of the via connection hole and on an inner wall of the via connection hole.
US09735107B2

A semiconductor device and methods of formation are provided. A semiconductor device includes an annealed cobalt plug over a silicide in a first opening of the semiconductor device, wherein the annealed cobalt plug has a repaired lattice structure. The annealed cobalt plug is formed by annealing a cobalt plug at a first temperature for a first duration, while exposing the cobalt plug to a first gas. The repaired lattice structure of the annealed cobalt plug is more regular or homogenized as compared to a cobalt plug that is not so annealed, such that the annealed cobalt plug has a relatively increased conductivity or reduced resistivity.
US09735104B1

A fuse structure includes a fusing line including a first portion, a second portion, and a central portion between the first portion and the second portion; and a dummy fuse neighboring the fusing line, the dummy fuse may include: a first air dummy fuse including a plurality of first air gaps extending in a first direction parallel to the fusing line; and a second air dummy fuse including a second air gap extending in a second direction crossing the fusing line.
US09735103B1

An antifuse structure including an opening through a dielectric material to a contact surface and an antifuse material layer present within the opening. The antifuse material layer may be a phase change material alloy of tantalum and nitrogen, wherein at least a base surface of the antifuse material layer is present on the contact surface and sidewall surfaces of the antifuse material layer are present on sidewalls of the opening through the dielectric material. An airgap or solid material core may be in the opening atop the base surface of the phase change material alloy. An electrically conductive material may be in direct contact with at least the antifuse material layer.
US09735101B2

The semiconductor device comprises a semiconductor substrate (10) with a metallization (111) having an upper terminal layer (22) located at a front side (20) of the substrate. The metallization forms a through-substrate via (23) from the upper terminal layer to a rear terminal layer (13) located opposite to the front side at a rear side (21) of the substrate. The through-substrate via comprises an annular cavity (18) and a void (101), which may be filled with air or another gas. A solder ball (100) closes the void without completely filling it. A variety of interconnections for three-dimensional integration is offered by this scheme.
US09735093B2

A module can include a module card and first and second microelectronic elements having front surfaces facing a first surface of the module card. The module card can also have a second surface and a plurality of parallel exposed edge contacts adjacent an edge of at least one of the first and second surfaces for mating with corresponding contacts of a socket when the module is inserted in the socket. Each microelectronic element can be electrically connected to the module card. The front surface of the second microelectronic element can partially overlie a rear surface of the first microelectronic element and can be attached thereto.
US09735089B2

Disclosed herein are systems and methods for thermal management of a flexible integrated circuit (IC) package. In some embodiments, a flexible IC package may include a flexible substrate material; a component disposed in the flexible substrate material; a channel disposed in the flexible substrate material forming a closed circuit and having a portion proximate to the component; electrodes disposed in the flexible substrate material and positioned at locations proximate to the channel, wherein the electrodes are coupled to an electrode controller to selectively cause one or more of the electrodes to generate an electric field; and an electrolytic fluid disposed in the channel. In some embodiments, a flexible IC package may be coupled to a wearable support structure. Other embodiments may be disclosed and/or claimed.
US09735085B2

There is provided a bonded body of the invention in which a ceramic member formed of a ceramic containing Al and a Cu member formed of Cu or a Cu alloy are bonded to each other, in which a bonding portion is formed between the ceramic member and the Cu member, an active metal compound region formed of a compound containing active metal is formed on the bonded portion on the ceramic member side, and an Al concentration of the bonding portion having a thickness range of 0.5 μm to 3 μm from one surface of the active metal compound region on the Cu member side towards the Cu member side is in a range of 0.5 at % to 15 at %.
US09735081B2

A semiconductor device capable of carrying out temperature detection appropriately by a temperature sensor is provided. In a semiconductor device disclosed herein, a first width of a first portion within a front surface insulating film (that is, part located in an upper part of an active region among a part extending along a first side of a front surface electrode that is closer to the temperature sensor) is wider than a second width of a second portion within the front surface insulating film (that is, part located in the upper part of the active region among a part extending along a second side of the front surface electrode).
US09735074B1

Disclosed is a semiconductor device that is configured to contain a sealing layer for sealing a semiconductor element supported on a base, the sealing layer being configured to have a nanocomposite structure that comprises a large number of nanometer-sized (1 μm or smaller) insulating nanoparticles composed of SiO2, and an amorphous silica matrix that fills up the space around the insulating nanoparticles without voids and gaps.
US09735073B1

A thin-film transistor (TFT) switch includes a gate, a drain, a source, a semiconductor layer, and a fourth electrode. The drain is connected to a first signal. The gate is connected to a control signal to control the switch on or off. The source outputs the first signal when the switch turns on. The fourth electrode and the gate are respectively located at two sides of the semiconductor layer. The fourth electrode is conductive and is selectively coupled to different voltage levels, thereby reducing leakage current in a channel to improve switch characteristic when the switch turns off.
US09735072B2

A a chip and a method for producing the chip with a plurality of measurement regions which are provided with electrodes for electrically detecting reactions in which, in order to reliably separate the individual measurement regions from one another, a monolayer of a fluorosilane is formed on the chip surface which has strongly hydrophobic properties. Therefore, during spotting with a liquid, the drops of liquid applied by spotting can be reliably prevented from coalescing, and thus, causing mixing of the substances in the drops of liquid which are supposed to be immobilized in the measurement regions.
US09735068B2

A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes receiving film thickness distribution data of a polished first insulating film of a substrate; calculating processing data for reducing a difference between a film thickness at a center side of the substrate and a film thickness at a periphery side of the substrate, based on the film thickness distribution data; loading the substrate into a process chamber; supplying a process gas to the substrate; and correcting a film thickness of the first insulating film based on the processing data by activating the process gas so that a concentration of active species of the process gas generated at the center side of the substrate differs from a concentration of active species of the process gas generated at the periphery side of the substrate.
US09735062B1

After forming a blanket silicon germanium (SiGe) layer over a thinned silicon (Si) layer of a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate, a portion of the SiGe layer located in an n-type FET (nFET) region of the SOI substrate is recessed, while masking another portion of the SiGe layer located in a p-type FET (pFET) region of the SOI substrate. The recessed portion of the SiGe layer in the nFET region is subsequently removed with an in-situ pre-clean etch. An epitaxial Si layer is re-grown in the nFET region over a portion of the thinned Si layer that is exposed by the removal of the recessed portion of the SiGe layer.
US09735040B2

A method of dividing a single-crystal substrate along a plurality of preset division lines, includes a shield tunnel forming step of applying a pulsed laser beam having such a wavelength that permeates through the substrate along the division lines to form shield tunnels, each including a fine hole and an amorphous region shielding the fine hole, a protective member adhering step of adhering a protective member to the substrate before or after the shield tunnel forming step, and a grinding step of holding the protective member on the substrate, to which the shield tunnel forming step and the protective member adhering step are performed, on a chuck table of a grinding apparatus, grinding a reverse surface of the substrate to bring the substrate to a predetermined thickness, and dividing the substrate along the division lines along which the shield tunnels have been formed.
US09735037B2

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide an electrostatic chuck (ESC) having azimuthal temperature control. In one embodiment, the electrostatic chuck includes an insulating base, a dielectric layer disposed on the insulating base, the dielectric layer having a substrate supporting surface, a plurality of heating elements coupled to the insulating base, and a first set of electrodes and a second set of electrodes, wherein the plurality of heating elements are surrounded by the first set of electrodes and the second set of electrodes.
US09735029B1

A technique relates to a method of optimizing self-aligned double patterning. Predefined locations for required metal cuts are provided in order to form metal wires from metal fills that have been cut. Extended locations for extended metal cuts are provided in order to cut adjacent metal fills. The adjacent metal fills are the metal fills that are adjacent to the predefined locations for the required metal cuts, and the extended metal cuts extend beyond the required metal cuts. The required metal cuts into the metal fills are performed and the extended metal cuts into the adjacent metal fills are performed.
US09735027B2

Disclosed is a method for etching an organic film. Plasma of a processing gas containing hydrogen gas and nitrogen gas is generated within a processing container of a plasma processing apparatus that accommodates a workpiece. A partial region of the organic film that is exposed from a hard mask is changed into a denatured region by the generation of the plasma of the processing gas. Subsequently, plasma of a rare gas is generated within the processing container. The denatured region is removed by the plasma of the rare gas, and a substance released from the denatured region is deposited on the surface of the hard mask. In this method, the generation of the plasma of the processing gas and the generation of the plasma of the rare gas are repeated alternately.
US09735024B2

A method of atomic layer etching (ALE) uses a cycle including: continuously providing a noble gas; providing a pulse of an etchant gas to the reaction space to chemisorb the etchant gas in an unexcited state in a self-limiting manner on a surface of a substrate in the reaction space; and providing a pulse of a reactive species of a noble gas in the reaction space to contact the etchant gas-chemisorbed surface of the substrate with the reactive species so that the layer on the substrate is etched. The etchant gas is a fluorocarbon gas containing a functional group with a polarity.
US09735020B2

A method of etching a wafer includes injecting a source gas mixture into a process chamber. The injecting includes injecting the source gas into multiple hollow cathode cavities in a top electrode, generating plasma in each of the cavities, and outputting the plasma from corresponding outlets of the cavities into a wafer processing region in the chamber, where the processing region is located between the outlets and a surface to be etched. An etchant gas mixture is injected into the processing region through injection ports in the top electrode such that the etchant gas mixes with the plasma output from the outlets. The etchant gas is prevented from flowing into the outlets of the cavities by the plasma flowing from the outlets. Mixing the etchant gas and the output from the cavities generates a desired chemical species in the processing region and thereby enables the surface to be etched.
US09735019B2

A beam processing system and method of operating are described. In particular, the beam processing system includes a beam source having a nozzle assembly that is configured to introduce a primary gas through the nozzle assembly to a vacuum vessel in order to produce a gaseous beam, such as a gas cluster beam, and optionally, an ionizer positioned downstream from the nozzle assembly, and configured to ionize the gaseous beam to produce an ionized gaseous beam. The beam processing system further includes a process chamber within which a substrate is positioned for treatment by the gaseous beam, and a secondary gas source, wherein the secondary gas source includes a secondary gas supply system that delivers a secondary gas, and a secondary gas controller that operatively controls the flow of the secondary gas injected into the beam processing system downstream of the nozzle assembly.
US09735014B2

A method of manufacturing a memory device includes: providing a substrate; forming in a cell region a channel extending in a direction perpendicular to an upper surface of the substrate and a plurality of gate electrode layers and a plurality of insulating layers stacked alternatingly on the substrate to be adjacent to the channel; forming a plurality of circuit elements on the substrate at a peripheral circuit region disposed at a periphery of the cell region; and forming an interlayer insulating layer on the substrate in the cell region and the peripheral circuit region, the interlayer insulating layer including a first, bottom interlayer insulating layer covering the plurality of circuit elements and at least a portion of the plurality of gate electrode layers, and a second, top interlayer insulating layer disposed on the first interlayer insulating layer.
US09735000B2

A miniature, low cost mass spectrometer capable of unit resolution over a mass range of 10 to 50 AMU. The mass spectrometer incorporates several features that enhance the performance of the design over comparable instruments. An efficient ion source enables relatively low power consumption without sacrificing measurement resolution. Variable geometry mechanical filters allow for variable resolution. An onboard ion pump removes the need for an external pumping source. A magnet and magnetic yoke produce magnetic field regions with different flux densities to run the ion pump and a magnetic sector mass analyzer. An onboard digital controller and power conversion circuit inside the vacuum chamber allows a large degree of flexibility over the operation of the mass spectrometer while eliminating the need for high-voltage electrical feedthroughs. The miniature mass spectrometer senses fractions of a percentage of inlet gas and returns mass spectra data to a computer.
US09734994B2

Provided are a crystalline alloy having significantly better thermal stability than an amorphous alloy as well as glass-forming ability, and a method of manufacturing the crystalline alloy. The present invention also provides an alloy sputtering target that is manufactured by using the crystalline alloy, and a method of manufacturing the alloy target. According to an aspect of the present invention, provided is a crystalline alloy having glass-forming ability which is formed of three or more elements having glass-forming ability, wherein the average grain size of the alloy is in a range of 0.1 μm to 5 μm and the alloy includes 5 at % to 20 at % of aluminum (Al), 15 at % to 40 at % of any one or more selected from copper (Cu) and nickel (Ni), and the remainder being zirconium (Zr).
US09734987B2

A system for adaptive electron beam scanning may include an inspection sub-system configured to scan an electron beam across the surface of a sample. The inspection sub-system may include an electron beam source, a sample stage, a set of electron-optic elements, a detector assembly and a controller communicatively coupled to one or more portions of the inspection sub-system. The controller may assess one or more characteristics of one or more portions of an area of the sample for inspection and, responsive to the assessed one or more characteristics, adjust one or more scan parameters of the inspection sub-system.
US09734986B2

Mineral definitions each include a list of elements, each of the elements having a corresponding standard spectrum. To determine the composition of an unknown mineral sample, the acquired spectrum of the sample is sequentially decomposed into the standard spectra of the elements from the element list of each of the mineral definitions, and a similarity metric computed for each mineral definition. The unknown mineral is identified as the mineral having the best similarity metric.
US09734985B2

In accordance with an embodiment, an analytical apparatus includes a member, a voltage source connected to the member and a detecting section. The member has an inserting portion into which a sample holder supporting a sample is insertable and whose shape corresponds to a shape of the sample holder. The detecting section is configured to detect a substance to be emitted from the sample by field evaporation. The shape of the inserting portion in a cross section of a direction perpendicular to an inserting direction of the sample holder is a shape excluding a perfect circle.
US09734984B2

A current quantity measuring method of multi-beams irradiates with a charged particle beam, amplifies an electric signal corresponding to multi-beams passed through a plurality of aperture holes of an aperture member having the plurality of aperture holes to form multi-beams by irradiation with the charged particle beam, receives the electric signal amplified in the minute current measurement unit and counting the number of electrons in the multi-beams, calculates a current quantity of the multi-beams passed through the plurality of aperture holes by using a product of the calculated number of electrons in the multi-beams and elementary charge, and corrects irradiation time of the charged particle beam of each of the plurality of aperture holes on the basis of the calculated current quantity.
US09734983B2

To provide a charged particle radiation apparatus including a soundproof cover that highly realizes both suppression of image defects due to a specific frequency and improvement in quake resistance. A charged particle radiation apparatus including a box-shaped soundproof cover having a plurality of wall surfaces, the soundproof cover including a plurality of columnar bodies forming a frame of the box shape body and a box-shaped acoustic energy absorbing structure provided in a connecting part of the plurality of columnar bodies and attached to support at least the two columnar bodies, is proposed.
US09734975B2

An embodiment of an in-line fuse holder has been disclosed. The fuse holder includes a first terminal and a second terminal configured to cooperate with the first terminal in retaining a fuse between the first terminal and the second terminal, wherein each of the first and second terminals has a sidewall that defines a fuse-receiving socket, the sidewall having a plurality of apertures circumferentially spaced about the socket.
US09734971B2

A battery safety device for a vehicle and a method of detecting failure thereof is installed between a high-voltage battery mounted on the vehicle and a power line. The device includes a first main relay connected to a positive terminal of the battery in series, and a second main relay connected to a negative terminal of the battery in series. A capacitor is connected in parallel to the first main relay and connected to the positive terminal of the battery.
US09734966B2

A light-emitting keyboard includes a membrane circuit board including a lower layer, an upper layer and a light-guiding spacer layer arranged between lower layer, an upper layer and defining therein a tapered through hole, a substrate holding membrane circuit board, a key assembly including key cap, a linkage coupled between key cap and substrate and an elastic element supported between key cap and membrane circuit board, and a light source for emitting light into the light-guiding spacer layer. The light-guiding spacer layer uses its thickness to isolate the lower layer and the upper layer and its tapered through hole to provide room for a triggering stroke for enabling the upper layer to electrically contact the lower layer second circuit in producing a corresponding switching signal each time the key assembly is pressed. Thus, the light-emitting keyboard achieves the characteristics of low profile, low manufacturing cost, and simple assembly process.
US09734963B2

An apparatus and system for a side actuator arrangement as well as a substrate, and method of manufacturing, for a side actuator arrangement. The apparatus includes a first part and a second part. The first part is configured to mechanically interlock with an edge of a substrate so as to prevent movement of the apparatus with respect to the substrate in a direction parallel to the edge of the substrate. The second part is configured to receive an actuatable conductive member such that, when the conductive member is actuated, the conductive member is able to be brought into contact with at least a first region of the edge of the substrate.
US09734938B2

Devices and systems for obtaining conductance data and methods of manufacturing and using the same. In at least one embodiment of a device of the present disclosure, the device is an elongated body with at least one groove defined therein, the at least one groove configured to receive one or more conductor wires therein. In another embodiment, the device is an elongated core body having a plurality of conductive elements positioned thereon and a coating to result in a device having an overall round-cross section.
US09734937B2

Provided are a soft dilute-copper alloy wire and soft dilute-copper alloy twisted wire which have high electrical conductivity and high bending life and can limit disconnection during use compared with oxygen-free copper wire, and also provided are an insulated wire, coaxial cable, and composite cable using the soft dilute-copper alloy wire and soft dilute-copper alloy twisted wire. The soft dilute-copper alloy wire is subjected to annealing treatment by elongation processing of soft dilute-copper alloy material comprising copper and an additive element selected from the group consisting of Ti, Mg, Zr, Nb, Ca, V, Ni, Hf, Fe, Mn and Cr, with inevitable impurities as the balance, wherein the soft dilute-copper alloy wire has an average grain size that is 20 μm or less in a surface layer having a depth of 50 μm from the surface, and an elongation value that is at least 1% higher than the average elongation value of oxygen-free copper wire that has been subjected to the aforementioned annealing treatment.
US09734921B2

A memory device (100) includes an extra column (114) of repair memory tiles. These repair memory tiles are accessed at the same time, and in the same manner as the main array of memory tiles. The output of the repair column is substituted for the output of a column of the main array (112). The main array column that is substituted is determined by tags (121) stored externally to the memory device. The external tags are queried with a partial address of the access. If the address of the access corresponds to an address in the external tags, the tag information is supplied to the memory device. The tag information determines which column in the main array is replaced by the output of the repair column. Since each column of the main array supplies one bit during the access, the repair column enables cell-by-cell replacement of main array cells.
US09734919B2

A group of non-volatile, solid state memory cells are transferred from an active list that includes memory cells accessible to a host to a temporary list that includes memory cells temporarily inaccessible to the host. The memory cells included in the temporary list are maintained at a temperature that is substantially the same as or lower than that of memory cells included in the active list. The memory cells are transferred from the temporary list to the active list in response to satisfaction of a trigger condition.
US09734915B2

Apparatuses and methods include an apparatus that includes first and second strings of vertically stacked memory cells, and first and second pluralities of vertically stacked data lines, and the use thereof. A data line of the first plurality of data lines is coupled to the first string through a first select device. A data line of the second plurality of data lines is coupled to the second string through a second select device and is adjacent to the data line coupled to the first string. Such an apparatus can be configured to couple the data line coupled to the first string to a shield potential during at least a portion of a memory operation involving a memory cell of the second string.
US09734909B2

A non-volatile static random access memory has an operating mode, a data backup mode and a data restore mode. The non-volatile static random access memory includes a memory cell and a power saving module. The memory cell includes a latch, a set of latch switch units, a set of backup memory units, a set of backup activation units, a backup setting unit and a driving signal transmission unit. The power saving module includes a control switch unit, a backup determination unit and a restore switch unit. When backup data is different from data stored in the latch, a backup driving signal is generated by a node voltage of the backup memory units and outputted to a backup determination unit, which drives the backup setting unit to turn on according to the backup driving signal, so as to change the backup data in the backup memory units and ensure correct backup.
US09734907B2

Some embodiments include apparatuses and methods having a memory cell, first and second conductive lines configured to access the memory cell, and a switch configured to apply a signal to one of the first and second conductive lines. In at least one of such embodiments. the switch can include a phase change material. Other embodiments including additional apparatuses and methods are described.
US09734894B2

A memory device that, in certain embodiments, includes a memory element coupled to a bit-line and a quantizing circuit coupled to the memory element via the bit-line. In some embodiments, the quantizing circuit includes an analog-to-digital converter having an input and output and a digital filter that includes memory. The input of the analog-to-digital converter may be coupled to the bit-line, and the output of the analog-to-digital converter may be coupled to the digital filter.
US09734888B2

A memory including a plurality of word lines to which one or more memory cells are coupled, an address storage unit suitable for storing an input address corresponding to a first external signal that is inputted at a random time, and a control unit suitable for activating a word line corresponding to the input address of the plurality of word lines in response to an active command and refreshing one or more target word lines selected using an address stored in the address storage unit when performing a refresh operation.
US09734882B2

Memory cells and methods of forming thereof are disclosed. The memory cell includes a substrate and first and second select transistors. The first select transistor serves as a write selector and the second select transistor serves as a read selector. The gate of first select transistor is coupled to a write wordline (WL_w) and the gate of the second select transistor is coupled to a read/write wordline (WL_r/w). The source regions of the first and second select transistors are coupled to a source line (SL). A body well is disposed in the substrate. The body well serves as a body of the first and second select transistors. A back bias is applied to the body of the select transistors. A storage element which includes a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) element is coupled with a bitline (BL) and the first and the second select transistors.
US09734877B2

A method of operating a memory interface circuit involves selectively operating the memory interface in either a synchronous mode or an asynchronous mode, the synchronous mode controlled by a first clock signal; in asynchronous mode, controlling an address latch for latching an address of a memory location in a memory array, the address latch controlled by an asynchronous address control signal synchronized to a second clock signal that is faster than a third clock signal used to operate the memory array.
US09734875B2

A semiconductor memory apparatus includes an effective region which is a portion of the memory region and functions as a data storage space, a residual region which is another portion of the memory region, and a capacity control circuit which restricts supply of power and signals to the residual region.
US09734873B1

A screwless hard disk drive (HDD) drawing box and a HDD swappable module are provided, which includes a HDD cartridge for receiving a hard disk drive. The HDD cartridge has a bottom board, and two sideboards connected to two opposite sides of the bottom board. The two side plates of the hard disk drive are close to the two sideboards. One of the sideboards has a plurality of fixing pins. The other sideboard of the HDD cartridge has a plurality of elastic snapping members opposite to the fixing pins. Each of the elastic snapping members has a snapping bump and an elastic element. Each snapping bump is arranged on the elastic element at the other sideboard of the HDD cartridge opposite to the fixing pins. The fixing pins and the snapping bumps are inserted in the thread holes of the two side plates of the hard disk drive.
US09734868B2

Methods, systems, and products insert markers into recorded media modules. A pair of reference points is received that marks a position and another position in a recorded media module. A copy of the recorded media module is retrieved from memory. Portions of the copy of the recorded media module occurring before the position, and occurring after the another position, are discarded. The copy of the recorded media module occurring between the position and the another position is then presented to a user.
US09734861B1

A computer-implemented method, according to one embodiment, includes, for a particular data read clock value, generating a series of symmetrical square wave signals, each having a frequency that is a different fraction of the data read clock frequency. Anti-aliasing filtering is performed on each of the symmetrical square wave signals using predefined anti-aliasing settings. The filtered symmetrical square wave signals are passed through a band pass filter, the band pass filter being set to pass a single harmonic frequency of each of the symmetrical square wave signals. An amplitude of each of the band pass filtered symmetrical square wave signals is measured. In response to the amplitudes of the symmetrical square wave signals being within a predefined range, the anti-aliasing settings are stored. In response to the amplitudes of the symmetrical square wave signals being outside the predefined range, the anti-aliasing settings are changed, and the method is repeated.
US09734854B2

A unidirectional and bi-directional tape head with sub-ambient pressure cavities. The tape head is adapted for reading and/or writing to a magnetic tape. The tape head includes: a tape-bearing surface; a transducer area, having at least one transducer designed for reading and/or writing to the magnetic tape; and a cavity open on the tape-bearing surface adjacent to the transducer area that extends parallel to the transducer area and transversally to the longitudinal direction of circulation of the tape such that an opening of the cavity faces the tape in operation. The cavity is further dimensioned and arranged with respect to the transducer area to create, upon circulation of the tape in operation, sub-ambient pressure therein. The present invention allows for a very close tape-head spacing.
US09734853B2

An output is generated in response to an indication associated with movement of a moveable part in a storage device. The output is for reducing a noise component associated with the movement of the moveable part.
US09734852B2

A disk drive head suspension or flexure and method of manufacture. Embodiments include a portion such as a terminal pad or flying lead comprising a base layer, a dielectric layer on the base layer, a conductor layer, a seed layer between the dielectric layer and the conductor layer, and a noncorrosive metal layer on the seed layer side of the conductor layer. The seed layer has a strip that extends beyond the edge of the dielectric layer. The noncorrosive metal layer extends over the strip of the seed layer and into contact with the edge of the dielectric layer.
US09734850B1

In one embodiment, a system includes a sensor, the sensor having a free layer, a ferromagnetic spin sink layer spaced from the free layer, the spin sink layer being operative to reduce a spin-induced damping in the free layer during operation of the sensor, and a nonmagnetic spacer layer positioned between the free layer and the spin sink layer, the spacer layer having a long spin-diffusion length.
US09734849B2

A tape appliance that includes two outer write heads and an inner read head arranged along a magnetic tape path in WRW order, each write head tape bearing surface angled downward towards the inner read head. The heads are configured such that for a first direction of tape travel, the tape engages the tape bearing surface of a first write head followed by engaging the tape bearing surface of the read head and flies over the tape bearing surface of the other write head. For the reverse direction of tape travel, the tape engages the tape bearing surface of the other write head followed by engaging the tape bearing surface of the write head and flies over the tape bearing surface of the first write head.
US09734846B2

In case of deleting shingle-recorded data on a recording medium, it enables to completely delete the data with the number of writing times less than the number of writing times in data recording. To do so, a magnetic recording apparatus, which records the data on the recording medium in a first direction with a writing unit, controls movement of a relative position of the recording medium and the writing unit such that a quantity of the movement in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction in the data deletion by overwriting another data is larger than a quantity of the movement in the second direction in the data recording.
US09734844B2

Embodiments of the present invention relate to detecting irregularities in audio, such as music. An input signal corresponding to an audio stream is received. The input signal is transformed from a time domain into a frequency domain to generate a plurality of frames that each comprises frequency information for a portion of the input signal. An irregular event in a portion of the input signal corresponding to a set of frames in the plurality of frames is identified based on a comparison of frequency information of the set of frames to the frequency information of other sets of frames of the plurality of frames. This allows an indication of the irregular event to be provided, or for the input signal to be automatically synchronized to a multimedia event.
US09734840B2

A signal-processing device includes a determination section that compares a frequency spectrum and a floor spectrum of an input audio signal to each other for each frequency bin and determines whether the input audio signal should be subjected to noise reduction processing or not for each of the frequency bins; and a noise reduction-processing section that subtracts a noise frequency spectrum from the frequency spectrum of the input audio signal for each of the frequency bins on the basis of the result determined by the determination section for each of the frequency bins.
US09734837B2

A method, medium, and system scalably encoding/decoding audio/speech. The method includes splitting an input signal into a low frequency band signal that is lower than a predetermined frequency and a high frequency band signal that is higher than the predetermined frequency, scalably encoding the split low frequency band signal into a core layer and one or more extension layers and then decoding the encoded core layer and the encoded extension layers, generating an error signal by using the split low frequency band signal and a decoded signal of the encoded core layer and the encoded extension layers, and encoding the error signal and the high frequency band signal into a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enhancement layer and a bandwidth extension layer.
US09734836B2

A method and an apparatus for decoding a speech/audio bitstream are disclosed, where the method for decoding a speech/audio bitstream includes determining whether a current frame is a normal decoding frame or a redundancy decoding frame, obtaining a decoded parameter of the current frame by means of parsing when the current frame is a normal decoding frame or a redundancy decoding frame, performing post-processing on the decoded parameter of the current frame to obtain a post-processed decoded parameter of the current frame, and using the post-processed decoded parameter of the current frame to reconstruct a speech/audio signal.
US09734834B2

A system for generating comfort noise for a stream of frames carrying an audio signal includes frame characterizing logic configured to generate a set of filter parameters characterising the frequency content of a frame; an analysis filter adapted using the filter parameters and configured to filter the frame so as to generate residual samples; an analysis controller configured to cause the residual samples to be stored in a store responsive to receiving an indication that the frame does not comprise speech; and a synthesis controller operable to select stored residual samples from the store and cause a synthesis filter, inverse to the analysis filter and adapted using filter parameters generated by the frame characterizing logic for one or more frames not comprising speech, to filter the selected residual samples so as to generate a frame of comfort noise.
US09734827B2

An electric equipment including a communication unit to communicate with at least one electric equipment in a predetermined space through a network, a sound collection unit to collect sound in the predetermined space, a voice recognition unit to recognize a voice from the collected sound, and a controller to transmit a noise reduction control signal to the at least one electric equipment when the recognized voice is an operation command. Voice recognition is performed in a state in which surrounding noise is reduced, thereby improving performance of the voice recognition and thus improving operational accuracy of an electric equipment. In addition, a voice recognition rate is increased, thereby improving user satisfaction.
US09734824B2

A system and method for applying a convolutional neural network (CNN) to speech recognition. The CNN may provide input to a hidden Markov model and has at least one pair of a convolution layer and a pooling layer. The CNN operates along the frequency axis. The CNN has units that operate upon one or more local frequency bands of an acoustic signal. The CNN mitigates acoustic variation.
US09734823B2

Systems and methods for spoken term detection are provided. A method for spoken term detection, comprises receiving phone level out-of-vocabulary (OOV) keyword queries, converting the phone level OOV keyword queries to words, generating a confusion network (CN) based keyword searching (KWS) index, and using the CN based KWS index for both in-vocabulary (IV) keyword queries and the OOV keyword queries.
US09734822B1

Features are disclosed for improving the accuracy and stability of beamformed signal selection. The selection may consider processing feedback information to identify when the current beam selection may need to be re-evaluated. The feedback information may further be used to select a beamformed signal for processing. For example, beams which detect wake-words or yield high confidence speech recognition may be favored over beams which fail to detect or recognize at a lower confidence level.
US09734814B2

A noise reducing sound reproduction system comprises a loudspeaker that is connected to a loudspeaker input path and that radiates noise reducing sound. A microphone is connected to a microphone output path and picks up the noise or a residual thereof. An active noise reduction filter is connected between the microphone output path and the loudspeaker input path, and the active noise reduction filter comprises at least one shelving filter.
US09734813B2

A bell with silencing and or sound dampening mechanism is disclosed. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the disclosed bell comprises a bell, a clamp body attaching to the bell, a lever installed on the clamp body and is configured to be slidable on the clamp body, a clapper and a cable connecting the lever at one end and the clapper at other end. When the lever is moved in a direction away from the bell, the clapper is retracted into the head of the bell and becomes stationary, preventing the clapper to contact the body of the bell.
US09734797B2

Controlling a user interface in a computer system, including: displaying a window in a user interface displayed on a display device, wherein the window includes a player section and a non-player section, and the non-player section is displayed according to a display parameter at a standard level, wherein the standard level is a first level as set in a device setting for the display parameter; receiving a play command for content; changing the display parameter for the non-player section of the window to a playback level, wherein the playback level is a second level for the display parameter that is different than the first level; displaying the non-player section of the window according to the playback level of the display parameter; and displaying the content in the player section of the window. Key words include display parameter and playback level.
US09734784B2

The present invention provides a voltage output device, which comprises a direct-current power supply, a reference level input terminal, a predetermined level output terminal, a voltage regulation module and a control signal generation module, the control signal generation module comprises a control signal generation unit, the voltage regulation module comprises a plurality of storage capacitors, wherein the control signal generation unit can send a charging control signal to the voltage regulation module in a charging stage of the voltage output device, and send an operation control signal to the voltage regulation module in an operating stage of the voltage output device. The present invention further provides a gate driving circuit and a display apparatus. With the voltage output device provided by the present invention, a high-level voltage that is high enough and/or a low-level voltage that is low enough can be outputted, thereby satisfying specific application requirements.
US09734781B2

The present disclosure provides a method and a device for adjusting a Gamma curve of TFT-LCD. The method comprises steps of: capturing grayscale images of the TFT-LCD to be tested which are displayed under a series of specific grayscale voltages; calculating grayscale information corresponding to the images according to the captured grayscale images, so as to obtain a Gamma curve; determining an uneven area in the Gamma curve based on the grayscale information corresponding to two adjacent grayscale voltages; calculating depth of the uneven area; and adjusting amplitude of any one or both of the two adjacent grayscale voltages based on the depth so that the Gamma curve between the two adjacent grayscale voltages is even. The present disclosure can improve the Gamma curve, thus eliminating the display color cast or the brightness abnormity.
US09734769B2

In a display apparatus provided with an electrophoresis layer, such a display apparatus as to improve the response performance of a touch detection is provided. A driving unit included in a display apparatus alternately repeats a display driving process for supplying a first driving signal to a driving electrode disposed in a selected partial display region and a detection driving process for supplying a second driving signal to a driving electrode disposed in another selected partial display region while successively cyclically changing the partial display region and successively cyclically changing another partial detection region. Moreover, in the detection driving process, a touch detection unit included in the display apparatus detects an input position at another selected partial detection region based on an electrostatic capacitance of the driving electrode disposed at another selected detection region.
US09734768B1

A coded image display and animation system with an illuminated shutter element device that permits the user, by placing individual coded image members and combinations of coded image members upon it, to create collages, puzzles and fantasy worlds that instantly appear to come to life and move realistically. Coded image members can be chosen and selectively repositioned, overlapped, and combined for varying displays and display effects. Larger, window-sized displays with or without coded image portions can be exploited, potentially to provide moving backgrounds, such as falling snow or moving clouds, upon which the coded image members can be positioned thereby permitting the user to create multi-member displays and animations, including animated stories and animated fantasy worlds. Coded image members and non-coded image members can have open portions for permitting the application of images or image portions by users, such as by erasable marking implements.
US09734767B2

An electronic device includes a first processor, a second processor, and a light source. The first and second processors are configured such that the first processor can be shifted from a control state of controlling the light source to a non-control state of not controlling the light source and such that the second processor can be shifted from the non-control state of not controlling the light source to the control state of controlling the light source, along with a shift of the first processor from an operating state to a non-operating state.
US09734765B2

A display device includes: a plurality of pixels, each being coupled to a corresponding data line among a plurality of data lines and a corresponding scan line among a plurality of scan lines; a scan driver to supply a scan signal to the scan lines; a sensor coupled to the pixels and the data lines and configured to detect a sensing current according to a test signal input to the data lines; and a controller configured to detect a pixel current of a pixel corresponding to a scan line to which the scan signal is supplied, by using a first sensing current corresponding to a first pixel and a second sensing current corresponding to a second pixel, when the scan signal is selectively supplied to a first scan line coupled to the first pixel and a second scan line coupled to the second pixel.
US09734760B2

A sensing circuit for external compensation, a sensing method thereof and a display apparatus, the sensing circuit for external compensation comprises a differential amplifier (9), a first capacitor (4), a second capacitor (8) and an output voltage controlling circuit (10) for the first capacitor; a negative input terminal of the differential amplifier (9) is connected with a display panel (1), a positive input terminal thereof is connected with a reference voltage, and an output terminal thereof is connected with an output terminal of the output voltage controlling circuit (10) for the first capacitor; the output voltage controlling circuit (10) for the first capacitor is used for enabling an output voltage of the first capacitor (4) in a subsequent current integral stage to vary based on the reference voltage. The sensing circuit for external compensation, the sensing method thereof and the display apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure can store by using the capacitor an offset voltage of the amplifier in an initial stage to eliminate the differences in the voltage outputs caused by the offsets of the amplifiers among different channels and enhance the accuracy of the voltage output.
US09734757B2

An image display apparatus includes a display screen on which pixel circuits are disposed in a matrix, each of which includes an EL element, a transistor connected to a first gate signal line, a transistor connected to a second gate signal line, and a driving transistor. A second gate signal line driving unit and a first gate signal line driving unit of a first gate driving circuit apply a control voltage to the first gate signal line and the second gate signal line, respectively. The second gate signal line driving unit of a second gate driving circuit applies a control voltage to the first gate signal line. An ON voltage, a first OFF voltage, and a second OFF voltage are sequentially applied to the first gate signal line. The ON voltage and the first OFF voltage are sequentially applied to the second gate signal line.
US09734755B2

A transparent display panel includes first through (N)-th vertical constant voltage lines (N is a natural number), first through (M)-th horizontal constant voltage line groups (M is a natural number), and a plurality of transparent pixels. The transparent pixels are disposed within a grid defined by the first through (N)-th vertical constant voltage lines and the first through (M)-th horizontal constant voltage line groups. The transparent pixels operate based on constant voltages transferred through the first through (N)-th vertical constant voltage lines and the first through (M)-th horizontal constant voltage line groups. The first through (N)-th vertical constant voltage lines include first vertical constant voltage lines and second vertical constant voltage lines. Each of the first through (M)-th horizontal constant voltage line groups includes a first horizontal constant voltage line and a second horizontal constant voltage line. The constant voltages include a first constant voltage and a second constant voltage.
US09734752B2

A display device including: a display panel displaying an image based on first and second frames; a timing controller outputting a plurality of image signals for each of the first and second frames and outputting a test signal during a reset section; and a source driving chip outputting a plurality of data voltages corresponding to the image signals or a test voltage corresponding to the test signal. The reset section is arranged after the first frame and before the second frame, and the source driving chip blocks the data voltage in the second frame from being output to driving lines having an arrival time period equal to or less than a reference time period during the reset section, the arrival time period representing the amount of time taken to arrive at the test voltage from an initial voltage.
US09734745B2

An apparatus including a display and control logic is provided. In one example, the display includes an array of subpixels having a plurality of zigzag subpixel groups. Each zigzag subpixel group includes at least three zigzag subpixel units arranged adjacently along a horizontal or vertical direction. Each zigzag subpixel unit includes a plurality of subpixels of the same color arranged in a zigzag pattern. In each zigzag subpixel unit, a first plurality of subpixels are arranged along one diagonal direction from a turning subpixel disposed at a turning corner of the zigzag pattern, and a second plurality of subpixels are arranged along another diagonal direction from the turning subpixel. In another example, the display includes an array of subpixels having a novel subpixel repeating group. The control logic is operatively coupled to the display and configured to receive display data and render the display data into control signals for driving the display.
US09734743B2

The invention relates to microphone accessories, methods of using microphones, and a microphone. The accessory has at least one body having at least one display face for displaying at least one communication; an attachment formation for operatively attaching all or part of the accessory to the microphone; and a displacement arrangement controllable to displace all or part of the accessory automatically in a pre-determined or pre-selected manner relative to the microphone such that, in use, the at least one display face is correspondingly automatically displaced rotatably relative to the microphone. The invention also extends to an associates method of using a microphone by providing an accessory on a microphone flag and displacing the same relative to the microphone. Moreover, the invention extends to a microphone operable to displace a microphone accessory relative to a longitudinal axis of a handle thereof.
US09734741B2

A flagpole has a main support with an indicator flag coupled thereto. The flagpole includes first securement means disposed on the main support and configured for anchoring the flagpole to a ground surface. The flagpole also includes a second securement means coupled to the main support and configured for anchoring the flagpole to a tree.
US09734733B2

A modelling assembly 1400 includes a plurality of releasably interconnectable parts, the parts including floor parts 1402 and wall parts 1408. The assembly 1400 includes a plurality of pegs 102, each of which, in an assembled condition, extends from one part to another part to hold the parts together, at least one of the parts defining a peg receiving hole 104 in which one of the pegs 102 is receivable.
US09734729B2

A method for displaying stop bar information to an aircrew member of an aircraft includes the steps of capturing a light signature emitted from an area surrounding the aircraft, processing the captured light signature to detect a lighted stop bar, and providing information to the aircrew member regarding the detection of the lighted stop bar.
US09734727B2

A display system for an aircraft includes a processing unit and a display device. The processing unit is configured to receive data representative of a landing platform on a movable carrier, and the data includes current energy parameters of the movable carrier. The processing unit is further configured to generate display commands associated with the landing platform and the energy parameters of the movable carrier. The display device is coupled the processing unit for receiving the display commands and operable to render first symbology representing the landing platform and second symbology representing the energy parameters of the movable carrier.
US09734715B2

The various examples disclosed herein relate to systems, methods, and equipment that provide location and velocity monitoring of both a user's vehicle and another vehicle to avoid collision. The examples are applicable for using on-board telematics units to process that information and provide additional information based thereon such as the probability of collision. In some examples, if the chances of collision are high based on information received, warnings may be given to the vehicle's user. Based on these warnings, the user may take evasive maneuvers to reduce the probability of collision and prevent it. In other examples, if the chances of collision are high, the vehicle may decelerate without prompting from the user to minimize the impact of the collision. Any emergency reporting by the telematics unit, e.g. if a collision still occurred, may be enhanced with the relative location and velocity data from some interval the prior to emergency.
US09734701B2

A computer-implemented method includes receiving a request. The request is for an alarm. The alarm is emitted from a mobile device. The mobile device is powered by a battery. The battery has a battery level. The method includes receiving a battery level threshold. The method is responsive to the battery level being below the battery level threshold. The method includes identifying an alternative alarm device. The alternative alarm device is enabled with an electronic control channel. The method includes generating an alternative alarm. The method includes sending the alternative alarm to the alternative alarm device via the electronic control channel.
US09734700B2

Some embodiments are directed to a lockdown apparatus for facilitating initiation of lockdown procedures at a facility. The lockdown apparatus can include an actuator configured to transmit a lockdown initiation signal upon being actuated. The actuator can be configured to be recognizably distinguishable from a fire alarm actuator. The lockdown apparatus can also include a lockdown communicator configured to produce a lockdown communication for communicating initiation of lockdown procedures to the facility occupants and individuals not disposed proximate the facility upon transmission of the lockdown initiation signal, the lockdown communication being recognizably distinguishable from the fire alarm communication.
US09734696B1

A medication reminder assembly includes a box that may have medication placed therein. An alarm unit is coupled to the box and the alarm unit may be manipulated. The alarm unit is programmable to emit a selected one of an audible alarm, a vibratory alarm and a visual alarm at selected intervals. Thus, the alarm unit generates a reminder to take the medication within the box.
US09734695B2

A vehicle component moves between a first position exposing a rearward area of a vehicle interior and a second position at least partially concealing the rearward area. A movement detection device senses movement of the vehicle component. A vehicle ignition device within the vehicle body structure is operated by a vehicle operator. A controller is operably connected to the movement detection device, the vehicle ignition device and an alerting device. The controller detects movement of the vehicle component and operation of the vehicle ignition device in predetermined sequences of movement and operation. The controller thereafter determines whether or not the vehicle operator has potentially left an object in the rearward area. In response to determining that the vehicle operator may have left an object in the rearward area of the vehicle interior, the controller provides an alarm signal.
US09734691B2

Embodiments of a system and method for determining a personalized gas level exposure are generally described herein. A method may include receiving, at a wearable device, a plurality of gas level measurements for a gas level, determining, using the plurality of gas level measurements, a five-minute average gas level, in response to determining that the five-minute average gas level exceeds an instantaneous exposure threshold, issuing a dangerous exposure alert at the wearable device, determining, from the plurality of gas level measurements, a rate of change for the gas level, and in response to determining that the rate of change indicates the gas level is decreasing, disabling the dangerous exposure alert.
US09734683B1

Systems (100) and methods (800) for operating a pin tag. The methods comprise: moving a first structure with a flange in a first direction; and sliding a chamfered surface of the flange against a chamfered surface of a second structure so as to move the second structure in a second direction away from the first structure. The second direction is angled relative to (e.g., perpendicular to) the first direction. Thereafter, the second structure is resiliently biased towards the first structure when the first structure has moved a certain distance in the first direction to a first position. The first structure is retained at the first position through an engagement of the second structure with the flange which is resiliently biased towards to the second structure in a third direction opposed from the first direction.
US09734682B2

An asset tag device including a housing, a battery disposed within the housing, a circuit board disposed within the housing and in electrical communication with the battery. The circuit board includes a local memory, a transceiver to detect local signals and transmit a response packet, and a processor. The processor to identify the detected local signals, determine whether the detected local signals include at least one beacon signal, store, to the local memory, the at least one beacon signal, sort, in the local memory, the stored at least one beacon signal by proximity to the asset tag device, parse the sorted at least one beacon signal, and append tag information to the parsed at least one beacon signal to generate the response packet.
US09734681B2

One embodiment of the present invention provides a cloud-based video monitoring system comprising a camera and a network video recorder (NVR). During operation, the camera stores in a buffer last predetermined temporal segment of a video. The camera also stores a first video file in a local storage corresponding to an event detected by the camera. This first video file is non-overlapping with a second video file corresponding to the event and this second video file is stored in the NVR. The camera generates a third video file by pre-pending last predetermined temporal segment of a video prior to the event to the first video file and sends the third video file to the NVR.
US09734676B2

In one embodiment, an apparatus is disclosed that includes one or more device interfaces, a processor coupled to the one or more device interfaces and configured to execute a process, and a memory configured to store the process executable by the processor. The process when executed is operable to receive condition data regarding a measured condition of a zone of a data center. The process when executed is also operable to determine a visual effect for a portion of a light strip based on the condition data. The portion of the light strip is associated with the zone and is located in the zone. The process when executed is further operable to control the portion of the light strip to display the determined visual effect.
US09734675B2

A communication device that may be removably coupled to a USB port, the device having a processor and non-volatile memory and configured to execute code, including code for receiving a wireless transmission including an alert signal from a second device, where the second device is a wireless doorbell, code for sounding an alarm via an audio or visual indicator on the communication device in response to the alert signal, code for receiving input from a user and transmitting a response signal to the second device, and code for allowing two-way audio communication between the communication device and the wireless doorbell.
US09734671B2

A method of allowing a player to play a gaming machine is described herein. The method includes displaying a game including a plurality of reels displayed in a display area. Each reel of includes a reel strip including a plurality of normal symbols positions and a plurality of special symbol positions. The method includes randomly generating an outcome of the game and displays the game outcome on the display device, wherein the game outcome including at least one special symbol position being displayed on at least one reel of the plurality of reels in the display area. The method also includes determining a symbol selection factor as a function of the generated game outcome, randomly selecting at least one special symbol as a function of the symbol selection factor, and displaying the game outcome including the selected special symbol displayed in the special symbol position.
US09734663B2

Various aspects described or referenced herein are directed to different methods, systems, and computer program products for implementing automated money laundering detection, notification, and reporting techniques implemented at casino gaming networks.
US09734662B2

A gaming table device which can determine frauds precisely and human errors is provided. A plurality of antennas for reading medium identification information of the game medium disposed on a game table through a wireless communication are disposed at locations spaced away from each other, and when a first antenna of the plurality of antennas is selected, a second antenna spaced at a predetermined distance from the first antenna of the plurality of antennas is selected.
US09734659B2

A wireless communications system includes a computer system run on a single platform on which different lottery games for different jurisdictions are supported and run from the single platform. The single platform is configured to be in communication with one or more social media sites. Computer executable instructions, when executed by at least one network processor in a workflow server residing in a mobile communications network, implements components that include: a workflow module of sets of workflow instructions for processing different types of lottery game packets from different jurisdictions. A deep packet inspection module inspects a received lottery game packet and provides information about the lottery game packet to the workflow module. The workflow module coordinates processing of the received lottery game packets using selected ones of selectable communication function modules based on the information about the lottery game packet provided by the deep lottery game packet inspection module.
US09734643B2

Systems and methods for using proximity positioning systems to determine a location of a user, identify the user and provide additional services and/or functionality to the user based on the determined location and/or identity are presented. In some examples, a low-power radio signal emitted from a location beacon may be received or detected by a personal computing device. The location of the beacon, and the device detecting the signal, may be determined. The location information, as well as a unique identifier associated with the personal computing device, may be used to identify a user associated with the personal computing device and the location of the user. This information may be used to provide additional services and/or functionality to the user. For instance, the location and identity information may be used to provide the user with access to secure areas within a location.
US09734640B2

A method of dynamically altering a user interface based on safety level is provided. A user interface is provided to a user in a vehicle with the user interface including a selectable option to wirelessly place a bid on an electronic auction. The selectable option is based, at least in part, on an auction parameter. A safety level score is then determined for the vehicle. The auction parameter is then dynamically altered based on the speed of the vehicle, resulting in a change to the selectable option.
US09734637B2

Techniques are described herein that are capable of generating a virtual rig for animation of a virtual 3D representation (e.g., an avatar) of an object. Semantic identifiers are associated with vertices of the virtual 3D representation. Each of the semantic identifiers specifies a respective feature of the object. The virtual rig is generated based on association of the semantic identifiers with the respective vertices. The virtual rig is capable of maneuvering the mesh to multiple configurations to animate the virtual 3D representation. In an example, the semantic identifiers may be used to generate and/or place virtual items in combination with the mesh. In another example, the semantic identifiers may be used to define reference elements. The reference elements serve as references for maneuvering respective portions of the mesh and/or virtual items that are associated with those portions.
US09734629B2

A system is provided for creating a preview embossed mesh for graphical display to a user. The system includes a graphical user interface device and a computer, which includes a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) and a Central Processing Unit (CPU). A memory for use with the computer is configured to (a) determine a 3D volumetric mask, (b) determine a distance map corresponding to the 3D volumetric mask, and (c) render offset geometry. The GPU is used to compute the distance map within the 3D volumetric mask. The distance map and the 3D volumetric mask are accessible by a shader to provide a preview embossed mesh for graphical display. The system also includes a video display to graphically display the preview embossed mesh to the user.
US09734623B2

Operations for caching to display panoramic images include repeatedly receiving an indication of one or both of a current geographic location and a current view direction for a user, receiving from a remote server a first plurality of image tiles of a first panoramic image of a predicted geographic location, caching the received first plurality of image tiles, and processing the cached first plurality of image tiles. The processing includes decompressing the cached first plurality of image tiles and storing the decompressed image tiles. When the current geographic location is at the predicted geographic location, rendering, using the stored decompressed tiles, the first panoramic image to a plurality of three-dimensional surfaces in a memory, wherein each of the plurality of three-dimensional surfaces corresponds to a respective portion of a sphere.
US09734611B2

An around view system includes: a display module; a camera module configured to photograph surrounding images of a vehicle; and a control module configured to output an around view monitoring (AVM) combined image to the display module, in which the control module includes: a generating unit configured to generate the AVM image; a recognizing unit configured to recognize a first parking line and a second parking line positioned at both sides; and a control unit configured to virtually generate a third parking line parallel to the first parking line, and generate the AVM combined image by combining the third parking line and the AVM image.
US09734609B2

Systems and methods for transprojection of geometry data acquired by a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). The CMM acquires geometry data corresponding to 3D coordinate measurements collected by a measuring probe that are transformed into scaled 2D data that is transprojected upon various digital object image views captured by a camera. The transprojection process can utilize stored image and coordinate information or perform live transprojection viewing capabilities in both still image and video modes.
US09734608B2

Adding a new disjoint graph diagram to an existing graph diagram. A set of one or more new nodes from a graph to be added to a first graph diagram are identified. An automatic graph diagram layout of the set of one or more new nodes is performed creating a second graph diagram. The first graph diagram is aligned along a first axis with the second graph diagram Nodes in the first graph diagram that are at least partially between a first point and a second point of boundaries of the second graph diagram are identified. A boundary is created around the nodes in the first graph diagram that are between the first and second points. The second graph diagram is moved along a second axis toward the boundary to create a combined graph diagram.
US09734605B2

A method for processing drawings. The present invention can enhance a child's self-esteem and creativity by enabling them to create unique and imaginative works of art. First, a plurality of randomized markings are generated. A user makes linear connections between the markings, creating a user drawing. Next, a first database is queried to retrieve an outline that matches the user drawing. The outline is matched to the user drawing based on similarities and locations of general shapes used in both. Once the database has found a matching outline, a second database is queried to retrieve an image corresponding to the outline. The image is transmitted to a terminal where the user can then add additional elements, such as color, figures, text, and the like.
US09734598B2

An engine decompresses texture data belonging to a virtual texture stored in processor readable memory so that decompressed texture data may be used to update a selected sub-image of a large texture image used to render a CGI. The updated sub-image may be at any location in the larger texture image. A processor executes an application to provide control information to the engine. The control information may include commands to decode compressed texture data at source addresses and provide a stream of decompressed virtual texture data to selected sub-image destination addresses in a texture buffer used for rendering a CGI. Similarly, the engine may compress texture sub-image information and store the compressed result at a destination address.
US09734597B2

A mechanism is described for facilitating interpolated minimum-maximum compression/decompression for efficient processing of graphics data at computing devices. A method of embodiments, as described herein, includes detecting a tile having pixels representing graphics contents capable of being processed by a graphics processor of a computing device; computing a minimum color value and a maximum color value of the tile. The method may further include splitting the tile into a plurality of interpolation tiles, where each interpolation tile includes a set of pixels of one or more colors. The method may further include computing a plurality of local minimum color values for the plurality of interpolation tiles, computing, based on the plurality of local minimum values, a plurality of residuals for the plurality of interpolation tiles to reduce spreads from the plurality of interpolation tiles, and compressing the reduced plurality of interpolation tiles based on the plurality of residuals.
US09734595B2

Fast near-lossless compression includes four steps: voxelization of the 3D geometry, decomposing the 3D voxel space into consecutive slices, encoding each slice with chain codes, and compressing the chain code with entropy coding. The decompression works by applying the aforementioned steps in inverse order. Smoothing over the voxels' centers is applied afterwards in order to reconstruct the input 3D points. Optionally 3D mesh is reconstructed over the approximate point cloud in order to obtain the original geometric object. The quality of the compression/decompression is controlled by resolution of the 3D voxel grid.
US09734591B2

A method of processing image data of an electronic device is provided. The method includes dividing the image data into at least one segment corresponding to a feature of at least part of the image data, determining a category corresponding to the at least one segment, and displaying the at least one segment in a converted form based on the category.
US09734580B2

Provided is a an image processing apparatus including a candidate detection unit configured to detect each of candidate images serving as candidates for a main subject for a plurality of frames of image data, and a main subject determination unit configured to obtain a degree of stable presence of the candidate images detected by the candidate detection unit within the image data spanning the plurality of frames and to determine a main subject among the candidate images using the degree of stable presence.
US09734578B2

According to one embodiment, a medical image analyzer includes a retriever, a first artery transition information unit, a vessel pixel selector, a blood vessel transition information unit, an image association unit, and a second artery transition information unit. The retriever retrieves a plurality of time-series images. The first artery transition information unit obtains first artery transition information. The vessel pixel selector selects vessel pixels. The blood vessel transition information unit obtains blood vessel transition information. The image association unit obtains a correspondence relationship between one and another of the time-series images. The second artery transition information unit obtains second artery transition information based on time information, the first artery transition information, and the blood vessel transition information, and the correspondence relationship.
US09734576B2

After selecting two or more image series for comparison, images of the image series are interleaved so that they are alternatively displayed in a comparison pane on a display device. In one embodiment, after one or more image series are selected for comparison, an interleaved image series is created containing each of the images of the one or more selected image series, or, alternatively, the interleaved image series comprises links to the images arranged in the interleaved pattern. If differences exist in the images of the multiple image series, these differences may be more easily detectable as the display device cycles between the images. Comparison of images in an interleaved image series may be more advantageous if the images of each selected image series are of a common anatomical area, common image size, and the images are in the same order.
US09734571B2

An image processing method includes a step of acquiring a measured image G1B measured from a semiconductor device S and a first pattern image G2B showing a pattern of the semiconductor device S, a step of acquiring a reference measured image G3B measured from a reference semiconductor device SR being the semiconductor device S or a semiconductor device different from the semiconductor device S and a second pattern image G4B showing a pattern of the reference semiconductor device SR, a step of acquiring matching information indicating a correlation of the first pattern image G2B and the second pattern image G4B, and a step of determining a difference of the measured image G1B and the reference measured image G3B based on the matching information to acquire a comparative image G5B.
US09734567B2

A method for training a neural network to perform assessments of image quality is provided. The method includes: inputting into the neural network at least one set of images, each set including an image and at least one degraded version of the image; performing comparative ranking of each image in the at least one set of images; and training the neural network with the ranking information. A neural network and image signal processing tuning system are disclosed.
US09734556B2

A method for generating a tree map for tree map visualization includes obtaining node information of a plurality of nodes to be processed, the plurality of nodes to be processed being sub-nodes sharing a same parent node and the node information comprising at least sizes of the nodes; determining from the plurality of nodes a plurality of candidate nodes whose sizes are less than a threshold size; determining at least one super node including the plurality of candidate nodes based on the node information of the determined plurality of candidate nodes, a screen size, and the threshold size, such that when displaying in a zooming-in mode the super node on the screen, all candidate nodes in the super node are displayed at display sizes not less than the threshold size; and determining data required for displaying the tree map based on the determined super node.
US09734553B1

Methods and systems generate and project an actual sized image of an object. An object or a representation of an object may be pre-processed. The pre-processing of a representation of the object may include determining pixels that belong to the object and pixels that belong to a background of the image. The pre-processing may include calculating a bounding box for the object. The projection may include determining an area of projection suitable for the bounding box of the object. The projection may further include projecting an image of intermediate dimensions. The projection may further include up-sampling or down-sampling the image to an actual size. The projection of the actual sized image may be made interactive by rendering at least one additional view of the object.
US09734531B2

A technique includes using a processor-based machine to determine a dynamic interaction characteristic of a group of users. The technique further includes, based at least in part on the determined dynamic interaction characteristic, determining a profile of the group for a recommendation engine.
US09734522B2

Embodiments include methods and devices for creating an electronic invoice file using a baseline electronic purchase order file. The methods and devices can receive data representing an electronic purchase order file, comprising a plurality of fields of information. The methods and devices can also confirm that the received electronic purchase order file, was received from a valid retail trading partner, the format of the received electronic purchase order file is consistent with the format of the baseline electronic purchase order file, and the fields of the received electronic purchase order file are consistent with the fields in the baseline electronic purchase order file, in a single step, by applying a hashing function to the data representing the baseline electronic purchase order file and received electronic purchase order file. The methods and devices can also create an electronic invoice file, using a plurality of fields from the electronic purchase order file.
US09734512B2

The present invention discloses a system, method and non-transitory software based computer writeable medium usable with a processor driven device for incentivizing service providers. A first subroutine assembles a best practices model in the form of a database downloadable to the processor device and which presents series of treatment options ranging from desirable to undesirable associated with a given type of service. A second subroutine provides a decision support system interfacing with the best practices database and processor device, the support system providing any of a grading or awarding system for scoring, in real time, performance metrics for each of any number of providers of the service. A third subroutine outputs to each of the providers, real time and continuously updated scoring of their performance metrics based upon the grading/awarding system. A fourth subroutine for incentivizing adherence by the providers to the best practices model by tying desirable performance metrics to financial incentives which are scaled to each treatment option.
US09734506B2

Apparatus, method, and media for controlling utilization of content. An exemplary method comprises associating one or more usage rights with content, wherein the usage rights are based at least in part on a usage rights grammar, and wherein each of the usage rights corresponds to a permitted utilization of the content and one or more conditions which must be satisfied in order for the respective usage right to be exercised, receiving from an external computing device external, a request to access the content, the request corresponding to a utilization of the content, determining whether the requested utilization corresponds to at least one of the usage rights associated with the content, and transmitting to an external a computing device, at least one of the usage rights based at least in part on a determination that the requested utilization corresponds to at least one of the usage rights.
US09734505B2

Authentication systems and related methods are described which enable consumers to conveniently determine whether an article is an authentic or legitimate article, as opposed to a counterfeit or imitation article. The systems and methods utilize electronic tags incorporated into the article and/or its packaging, and appropriately configured mobile devices such as a smart phone.
US09734498B2

A Mobile Image Payment System for mobile commerce, which enables a Consumer to use a mobile device to make payments for online, Electronic Media, Print Media and POS Transactions, involving the presentment of a short code. In an embodiment, the Consumer scans the short code that is displayed by a merchant, to initiate a transaction. The system completes the transaction by processing information between a Mobile Payment Client residing on the Consumer's mobile device, a Mobile Payment interface residing on a Transaction Server, and, in a further embodiment, a Mobile Payment Application residing on a merchant's device or POS terminal. The Consumer's mobile device communicates with a Payment Platform, which communicates with a Merchant Transaction Server in order to process and complete the mobile transaction. The short code of the merchant can be displayed on any product or advertising medium.
US09734492B2

A system and methods expedite and make secure payment data entry, and payment and authorization and authorization, for both in-store and online purchases. A mobile app, or widget or browser extension or installed service, on a mobile communication device, generates a barcode to be scanned at a point-of-sale terminal. Optional confirmation is sent to an app, or browser extension or widget or installed service, on a mobile or fixed communication device, to confirm a purchase. An independent app, or browser extension or widget or installed service, on a mobile or fixed communication device, generates a barcode that is sent directly to an online point-of-sale system. The method allows a purchaser to use the same app, or widget or browser extension or installed service, to purchase from any retailer with installed collaborating software.
US09734478B2

The present invention discloses a system, method and non-transitory software based computer writeable medium usable with a processor driven device for incentivizing service providers. A predictive algorithm which includes a series of protocols including a first protocol or subroutine for establishing a risk profile through stratifying a designated ACO population. A second subroutine operates by training the ACO doctors or other care providers in one or more of a series of medical related diagnosis and treatment programs. A third successive subroutine establishes one or more management pathways which are customizable by the ACO leadership and through establishing a questioning protocol for modifying/customizing the base algorithm for any one or more of a variety of treatment sub-species. A fourth subroutine provides care provider (e.g. doctor) feedback on the desired best practices for the given diagnosis and treatment sub-species resulting from the question and answer protocol achieved in the third subroutine. A fifth subroutine results in the creation (again by the ACO or other provider) of a scorecard for each individual care provider (doctor, therapist, etc.), such based primarily upon patient outcome assessment and accounting for patient complexities.
US09734476B2

Dynamically allocating business workflows, each workflow comprising a reusable component of a business transaction, including: receiving, by a workflow orchestrator, a request for a business transaction; determining, by the workflow orchestrator, a desired result for the business transaction in dependence upon the request; selecting, by the workflow orchestrator, one or more workflows from a set of available workflows in dependence upon the request and the desired result; determining an execution order for the one or more workflows; and executing, by the workflow orchestrator, the one or more selected workflows in the execution order.
US09734472B2

A system, method and computer-readable medium for request routing based on cost information are provided. A client request processing a resource identifier for requested content transmits a first DNS query to a content delivery network service provider. The content delivery network service provider transmits an alternative resource identifier in response to the client computing device DNS query. The alternative resource identifier is selected as a function of cost information. The client computing device then issues a second DNS query to the same content delivery network service provider. The content delivery network service provider can then either resolve the second DNS query with an IP address of a cache component or transmit another alternative resource identifier that will resolve to the content delivery network service provider. The process can repeat with the content delivery network service provider's network until a DNS nameserver resolves a DNS query from the client computing device.
US09734467B2

Systems and methods consistent with the invention may include receiving, by a portal, requests from entities to become members, selectively granting the requests by the portal, receiving information by the portal from a plurality of first members, in response to requests from the first members, creating member files in the database using the received information, the files corresponding to the first members, receiving an information request by the portal from a second member, and selectively supplying by the portal to the second member, information from at least one of the files, the supplied information being selected based on the requests.
US09734457B2

In one embodiment, a learning data processor determines a plurality of machine learning features in a computer network to collect. Upon receiving data corresponding to the plurality of features, the learning data processor may aggregate the data, and pushes the aggregated data for select features to interested learning machines associated with the computer network.
US09734456B1

Determination of a user-specific likelihood of incident occurrence at a geographic location may be performed. User information, historical incident information, contextual information, and/or other information may be obtained. User information may include user demographic information, user behavior information, user social information, and/or other user related information. Historical incident information may include data relating to crime, mortality, injury, morbidity rates and may be obtained from local law enforcement, local Departments of Motor Vehicles, national security agency such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, foreign security agency such as the Central Intelligence Agency, international criminal policy organization such as Interpol, national public health agency such as Center for Disease Control, international public health agency such as World Health Organization and/or other sources. Contextual information may include information about events that have previously occurred at or near user's current geographic location. Determination of a user-specific likelihood of incident occurrence may be performed by analyzing collected sets of user data, historical incident data, and contextual information obtained from various sources to create a single incidence likelihood indicator.
US09734455B2

Systems, methods and apparatus may be configured to implement automatic semantic classification of a detected object(s) disposed in a region of an environment external to an autonomous vehicle. The automatic semantic classification may include analyzing over a time period, patterns in a predicted behavior of the detected object(s) to infer a semantic classification of the detected object(s). Analysis may include processing of sensor data from the autonomous vehicle to generate heat maps indicative of a location of the detected object(s) in the region during the time period. Probabilistic statistical analysis may be applied to the sensor data to determine a confidence level in the inferred semantic classification. The inferred semantic classification may be applied to the detected object(s) when the confidence level exceeds a predetermined threshold value (e.g., greater than 50%).
US09734451B2

Techniques are disclosed for automatically modeling and predicting moderator actions for online content. A model can be generated or updated based on the content received and the action or actions taken by the moderator in response to receiving the content. The model can be used to automatically predict which action, or combination of actions, are likely to be taken by the moderator when new content is received, and suggest those action(s) to the moderator. These suggestions can, among other things, simplify and speed up the decision-making process for the moderator.
US09734447B1

A computer system computes a score for a received data exchange and, in accordance with a neural network and input variables determined by received current exchange and history data, the computed score indicates a condition suitable for a denial. A set of attribution scores are computed using an Alternating Decision Tree model in response to a computed score that is greater than a predetermined score threshold value for the denial. The computed score is provided to an assessment unit and, if the computed score indicates a condition suitable for the denial and if attribution scores are computed, then a predetermined number of input variable categories from a rank-ordered list of input variable categories is also provided to the assessment unit of the computer system.
US09734438B2

An image processing method generates image data of an image made up of a plurality of dots and having resolution in a first direction and resolution in a second direction. The second direction intersects the first direction. The resolution in the first direction is different from the resolution in the second direction. The image processing method includes performing contour portion correction including adding a dot at a correction target pixel, the correction target pixel being a pixel adjacent to a step-like contour portion in the image, and when a dot is arranged at a pixel adjacent to a pixel of interest adjacent to the correction target pixel, deleting the dot at the pixel of interest.
US09734436B2

A method includes receiving, at a neural network, a subset of images of a plurality of images of a training image set. The method includes training the neural network by iteratively adjusting parameters of the neural network based on concurrent application of multiple loss functions to the subset of images. The multiple loss functions include a classification loss function and a hashing loss function. The classification loss function is associated with an image classification function that extracts image features from an image. The hashing loss function is associated with a hashing function that generates a hash code for the image.
US09734420B2

The present invention relates to a device useful for inspecting a sample. The device includes a camera in order to arrange that camera in an image field so that an interface line and a marker of the camera can be imaged as a recorded image. The device also has an evaluation unit which allows an evaluation of the recorded image and the marking in order to provide information to the observer.
US09734417B2

Methods and devices for using a relationship between activities of different traffic signals in a network to improve traffic signal state estimation are disclosed. An example method includes determining that a vehicle is approaching an upcoming traffic signal. The method may further include determining a state of one or more traffic signals other than the upcoming traffic signal. Additionally, the method may also include determining an estimate of a state of the upcoming traffic signal based on a relationship between the state of the one or more traffic signals other than the upcoming traffic signal and the state of the upcoming traffic signal.
US09734416B2

An object detection method includes extracting an object candidate by grouping a plurality of characteristic points from two images acquired at different times by a camera; calculating, for each of characteristic points included in the object candidate, an observation flow amount indicating an amount of positional shift on the two images and a virtual road surface flow amount indicating an amount of positional shift on the two images while assuming that the characteristic point is located on a road surface; generating, for each of the characteristic points, a flow difference distribution of the object candidate by calculating a difference between the observation flow amount and the virtual road surface flow amount; and determining whether the object candidate is an object existing on and protruding from the road surface by comparing the flow difference distribution with a plurality of flow difference distribution models generated for predicted inclined states of the surface.
US09734410B2

Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer readable analyzing facial expressions within an interactive online event to gauge participant level of attentiveness are provided. Facial expressions from a plurality of participants accessing an interactive online event may be analyzed to determine each participant's facial expression. The determined expressions may be analyzed to determine an overall level of attentiveness. The level of attentiveness be relayed to the host of the interactive online event to inform him or her how the participants are reacting to the interactive online event. If there are participants not paying attention or confused, the host may modify their presentation to increase the attentiveness of the students.
US09734409B2

In one embodiment of the present invention, a native resolution analyzer generates a log-magnitude spectrum that elucidates sampling operations that have been performed on a scene. In operation, the native resolution analyzer performs a transform operation of a color component associated with a frame included in the scene to generate a frame spectrum. The native resolution analyzer then normalizes the magnitudes associated with the frame spectrum and logarithmically scales the normalized magnitudes to create a log-magnitude frame spectrum. This two dimensional log-magnitude frame spectrum serves as a frequency signature for the frame. More specifically, patterns in the log-magnitude spectrum reflect re-sampling operations, such as a down-sampling and subsequent up-sampling, that may have been performed on the frame. By analyzing the log-magnitude spectrum, discrepancies between the display resolution of the scene and the lowest resolution with which the scene has been processed may be detected in an automated fashion.
US09734406B2

An information processing device, which includes: a data holding section which holds first time-series data of an operation parameter which varies through a predetermined capturing operation; a data comparing section which compares second time-series data of the operation parameter with the first time-series data, the second time-series data being correlated with a moving image recorded through an actual capturing operation and varying through the actual capturing operation; and a data area specifying section which specifies, among the second time-series data, a data area corresponding to the first time-series data on the basis of the comparison of the first and second time-series data.
US09734405B2

A system uses a camera, a depth sensor, and a processing module to track a moving object in an athletic playing space over time. The processing module receives image frames from the camera and depth data from the depth sensor. The processing module analyzes the depth data to identify which of the pixels are in a plane of a sufficiently large size to indicate that the identified pixels correspond to a playing surface of the athletic playing space. The processing module then determines that gravity is in a direction normal to the identified plane. By finding the direction of gravity within the images, the algorithm for calculating performance parameters based on the trajectory of a moving object within the athletic playing space can be greatly simplified, thereby decreasing the processing burdens associated with calculating the performance parameters and providing more accurate trajectory estimations with fewer measured trajectory points.
US09734402B2

Provided is an eyewear-type terminal including a display unit on which picture information is displayed; a sensing unit that senses a period of time for which a user's gaze has been fixed in a state where a user wears the eyewear-type terminal; and a controller that collects information relating to something that the user gazes toward, in a case where the user's gaze has been fixed for a period of reference time or longer, and controls the display unit in such a manner that, among the pieces of collected information, at least one piece of collected information, is displayed on the display unit.
US09734397B1

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) assessment and reporting system may utilize one or more scanning techniques to provide useful assessments and/or reports for structures and other objects. The scanning techniques may be performed in sequence and optionally used to further fine tune each subsequent scan. The system may include shadow elimination, annotation, and/or reduction for the UAV itself and/or other objects. A UAV may be used to determine a pitch of roof of a structure. The pitch of the roof may be used to fine tune subsequent scanning and data capture.
US09734396B2

Refraction angles in a planet's atmosphere are mapped using a database of known star locations and a field imager onboard a platform above the planet. The field imager is positioned to observe a region that includes a portion of the planet's atmospheric limb. A star field image is captured for the region. The star field image includes stars within the field imager's field-of-view. Using the field imager and the database, a modeled star field image is generated that is matched in size to the field-of-view associated with the star field image. The modeled star field image defines absolute locations of stars corresponding to stars appearing in the field imager's field-of-view. Differences between the absolute locations and locations of the images of stars are indicative of a limb refraction angle field.
US09734392B2

An image processing device includes a processor; and a memory which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to execute: acquiring a first image and a second image which are captured by cameras having optical axes different from each other; calculating a calculation length of a first portion of a user in a world coordinate system based on parallax of a camera coordinate system of a first portion which is included in the first image and the second image; and detecting non-synchronization state of image capturing timings of the first image and the second image based on a change amount of the calculation length.
US09734389B2

Techniques are described for calculating athletic performance during an athletic activity. In one embodiment, a processor of a sensing device comprising one or more sensors measures an activity parameter of a user. The processor analyzes the activity parameter to determine whether the activity parameter meets a predetermined criteria. When the activity parameter meets the predetermined criteria, the processor arms the one or more sensors. The arming comprises activating the one or more sensors to collect exercise data for a known exercise activity performed by the user. In another embodiment, the processor of the sensing device comprising one or more sensors arms the one or more sensors to collect data when the activity parameter of the user meets a predetermined criteria. After arming the one or more sensors, the processor collects exercise data for a known exercise activity performed by the user.
US09734385B2

The invention provides a computing device for processing fingerprint template data, wherein the computing device comprises modules configured for generating transformed fingerprint template data from original fingerprint minutiae template data, in which minutiae are represented at least by Cartesian or polar coordinates and an inherent minutiae direction, the computing device being configured to generate for each minutia of the original fingerprint minutiae data corresponding mega-vicinity data. The computing device may further comprise a comparator module being configured to compare two transformed fingerprint template data that comprises, for each minutia, mega-vicinity data of a first fingerprint and a second fingerprint. The computing device may further comprise a biometrics-secret binding module for protecting.
US09734373B1

A method of reading animal identification marks is described. Starting with a series of image frames of an animal, the location and angle of the animal is determined, then the curvature of the animal tail. Using modified frames with a straightened tail, character areas are identified. For a given output character set of a number encoding method, the probability is computed for each character in the set, of that character in each character area, for each frame. The probabilities for the character set for each character area are summed over the frames. Then, the most probable character is chosen for each character area. The chosen characters are combined into a number and verified as being a currently valid animal ID. If the number is not valid, a next most probable character is chosen. This method may be applied separately for a human-readable marking and a machine-readable marking, both on one animal.
US09734372B2

The described mobile device for optically reading a machine-interpretable code, used for example in an order picking system for consumer and/or consumable goods, includes a head-mountable scanner with a code reader and a control unit controlling the head-mounted scanner to switch the code reader between a detection mode and a reading mode. In the detection mode, the code reader operates in a low power mode sufficient to detect the presence of a machine-interpretable code. The control unit switches the code reader into the higher-powered reading mode when the code is detected to optically read the code. A wireless communication device may also be provided to wirelessly transmit information corresponding to the scanned code to a remote receiving unit for storage and/or data processing.
US09734368B1

Techniques for determining an item location based on multiple RFID parameters from multiple read events are described. In an example, a computer system may access a first read event. A first RFID reader located within a first zone may have generated the first read event at a first time. The first read event may identify an RFID tag and may include first RFID parameters. The computer system may access a second read event. A second RFID reader located within a second zone may have generated the second read event at a second time within a predefined amount of time from the first time. The second read event may identify the RFID tag and include second RFID parameters. The computer system may determine whether the item location falls within the first zone or the second zone based on two or more first RFID parameters and two or more second RFID parameters.
US09734362B2

An electronic device executing an application through communication with a user input apparatus, the electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes: a communication unit that is configured to communicate with the user input apparatus; an information generation unit that generates information about an exclusive controller that controls the application and is executed in the user input apparatus; and a controller that controls the information generation unit to generate the information about the exclusive controller when the electronic device is paired with the user input apparatus, and controls the communication unit to transmit the generated information about the exclusive controller to the user input apparatus.
US09734357B2

A memory controller encrypts contents of a page frame based at least in part on a frame key associated with the page frame. The memory controller generates a first encrypted version of the frame key based at least in part on a first process key associated with a first process, wherein the first encrypted version of the frame key is stored in a first memory table associated with the first process. The memory controller generates a second encrypted version of the frame key based at least in part on a second process key associated with a second process, wherein the second encrypted version of the frame key is stored in a second memory table associated with the second process, the first process and the second process sharing access to the page frame using the first encrypted version of the frame key and the second encrypted version of the frame key, respectively.
US09734338B2

A system on chip is provided. The system on chip includes a first memory to store a plurality of encryption keys, a second memory, a third memory to store an encryption key setting value, and a CPU to decrypt encrypted data which is stored in an external non-volatile memory using an encryption key corresponding to the encryption key setting value from among the plurality of encryption keys, to store the decrypted data in the second memory, and to perform a boot using data stored in the second memory. Accordingly, security of a boot operation can be improved.
US09734333B2

Methods of detecting malicious code injected into memory of a computer system are disclosed. The memory injection detection methods may include enumerating memory regions of an address space in memory of computer system to create memory region address information. The memory region address information may be compared to loaded module address information to facilitate detection of malicious code memory injection.
US09734326B2

A protection unit of an interrupt stack accessible by a CPU controlled by one software program, for storing and removing stack frame(s), the stack protection unit being coupleable to the stack and the CPU, comprising: a processor coupled to a first and a second address register; wherein, when a first stack frame is stored onto the stack and the execution of the software program is suspended by the CPU, responsive to one or more occurring hardware IRQs; the processing unit is adapted to set one access rule based on the first and second address registers, preventing: the occurring ISR to be serviced, from accessing a hardware-protected region of the stack, comprising at least the first stack frame and at least one stack frame associated with one or more suspended IRQs. A processor, a method and a computer program are also claimed.
US09734315B2

There is disclosed a wearable terminal including a main body, a main board provided in the main body, a first touch pad provided in a rear surface of the main body, a flexible board configured to connect the main body and the first touch pad to each other, a band coupled to the main body, wound around a user's wrist to secure the main body to the user's body part, a second touch pad provided in the other surface of one surface contacting with the user's body part when the user wears the band, a flexible board having one end connected to the second touch pad and the other end connected to the main board, and a controller configured to extract an electrocardiogram by measuring a difference of electric potentials of body muscles sensed from the first touch pad and the second touch pad.
US09734298B2

Program optimization systems are provided herein. The program optimization system can include a plurality of data sources that can be mined for information relating to one or several patients. The format and content of the information from the data sources can be evaluated and can be conformed to formats and content types used by the program optimization system. The information retrieved from the data sources can be evaluated for one or several trigger events. If a trigger event is identified in the retrieved data, a treatment protocol can be selected.
US09734293B2

A system and method for collecting, communicating, displaying, and/or analyzing data from multiple medical devices is disclosed. The system includes a local data collection module and a number of medical device adapters. The medical device adapters are coupled to respective medical devices via hardwired connections to receive data from the respective medical devices. The medical device adapters wirelessly transmit the data to the local data collection module. The local data collection module communicates the data received from the medical device adapters to an Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system for automatic entry of at least some of the data in the electronic medical record of a patient associated with the medical devices.
US09734273B2

This application discloses a computing system implementing tools and mechanisms to generate a framework for a system-level design of an electronic system, wherein the system-level design includes multiple electronic designs from different electronic design automation tools. The tools and mechanisms can correlate design components in the electronic designs to different portions of the framework for the system-level design, and determine whether the electronic designs are congruent with the system-level design based, at least in part, on the correlation of the electronic designs to the different portions of the framework for the system-level design.
US09734271B2

In some embodiments, in a method for a semiconductor device having an interconnect structure, a design layout is received. A metal line in the design layout is identified, which has at least one via thereon and does not couple downward with an oxide diffusion region. The area of a gate oxide coupled with the metal line is obtained from the design layout. The method comprises determining whether the area of the gate oxide is greater than a first predetermined value. When the area of the gate oxide is greater than the first predetermined value, a charge release path is coupled with the metal line.
US09734267B1

Model metadata for each of a plurality of models is stored. The model metadata includes a statistical analysis technique identifier and one or more model input data identifiers. A request to execute a model is received. The request includes data identifying one of the plurality of models, and a model execution start date and end date. On the model execution start date, execution of the model associated with the model execution request is commenced. Outputs of the executed model are stored in a database. The outputs are associated with a model instance identifier, information describing a context for execution of the model, and model output type information. The outputs are retrieved, using the model instance identifier, for analysis.
US09734257B2

An overlay generator recognizes specific types of content and metadata present on a web site, and retrieves additional content related to the web site from other sources. The overlay generator makes the additional content available in a web browser as an overlay or as a hyperlink, so that the additional content can be viewed in combination with the original web site content. For example, if a zip code is present on a web site, and the web site includes a static map showing points of specialized interest in that zip code, then the overlay generator recognizes the zip code as a specific type of content related to maps, and retrieves an interactive map of the zip code from a map service, and generates an overlay for superimposing the interactive map on the static map, so that the content of both maps is displayed in a single integrated map.
US09734256B2

A host sends an I/O transaction. The I/O transaction relates to a read or write operation for a first datum. A first listening service which manages I/O transactions for a first set of addresses receives the I/O transaction. The first listening service forwards the I/O transaction to a second listening service. The second listening service manages I/O transactions for a second set of addresses. The second listening service executes the I/O transaction at a selected address of the second set of addresses. The second listening service creates a data packet to respond to the I/O transaction. The header of the data packet includes the selected address. The second listening service transmits the data packet to the host. The host uses the selected address to update a database which includes addresses of data within.
US09734247B2

Methods and systems for a topology service providing an interface for specifying a topology and answering queries regarding the topology. Further, the topology service may create, from a specified topology, a directed acyclic graph and corresponding closure table. The topology service may also provide an interface for receiving metadata regarding the topology. In this way, the topology service, based at least in part on connections between nodes in the entries of the closure table and based at least in part on the metadata regarding the topology, may answer queries in regard to the specified topology.
US09734245B2

Systems and methods are provided to automatically respond to questions on websites. An electronic communication comprising words is received over a network. In some embodiments, the electronic communication could comprise a message posted by a user on a social networking website. The words of the electronic communication are matched to words in prior search queries, where the prior search queries are associated with online content. A reply is then returned in response to the electronic communication. The reply comprises a representation of the online content, for example, a URL linking to the online content.
US09734244B2

Systems and methods are described herein for returning search results that may be rare or surprising to what a user would expect a search performed on a user-input symbol would yield. As an example, if a user were searching for media related to the television show “It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia” by entering the search symbol “It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” the user would typically expect the search results to yield media related to that television show. However, if the user's profile indicates that the user is fascinated by astronomy, for example, the search result may also yield a result corresponding to a documentary discussing the composition of the sun.
US09734239B2

An approach is provided for evaluating a potential post based on historical data. In the approach, historically highly rated attributes that to previously received highly rated posts are identified. The process receives a potential post from an online Subject Matter Expert (SME). The process analyzes the potential post, using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) routine performed by computer processors. The analysis identifies a lack of one or more of the historically highly rated attributes in the potential post. The process then notifies the SME, based on the analysis, regarding the lack of one or more of the historically highly rated attributes in the potential post.
US09734236B2

A method and system for leveraging content is provided. The method includes receiving, data associated with a subscriber and registering the subscriber with an ECM computing system. Devices belonging to the subscriber are connected to the ECM computing system and metadata associated with content retrieved from the devices is generated. The content in the devices are classified into formal content and informal content. Multiple searches for additional content are monitored and multifaceted search results associated with the formal content and the informal content are generated and presented to the subscriber. The subscriber has an option to request informal content on additional end user devices from respective end users based on metadata presented by search results.
US09734229B1

A computer-implemented method for mining data in a data warehouse may include (1) identifying a parent table in a data warehouse, (2) identifying a child table in the data warehouse that depends from the parent table, (3) generating a rule family including rules based on the parent table and the child table, each of the rules in the rule family correlating a potential value of a field of the parent table with a potential value of a field of the child table, (4) determining a level of support for each rule in the rule family, and (5) evaluating quality of incoming data according to a rule in the rule family based on the determined level of support for the rule. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.
US09734225B2

A snapshot of selected objects in a source repository is created in response to the user-initiated replication. The snapshot is designated as a snapshot replication job. Unsynchronized objects in a target destination are detected by comparing a state of the selected objects in the snapshot with a current state of the target destination at the time of execution of the snapshot replication job. One of the selected objects is retrieved in an ordered manner from the snapshot. An object identification (ID) and a state ID are sent to the target destination and used to locate and compare the selected object with a current state of the selected object in the target destination.
US09734224B2

A synchronization infrastructure that synchronizes data stored between components in a cloud infrastructure system is described. A first component in the cloud infrastructure system may store subscription information related to a subscription order which may in turn be utilized by a second component in the cloud infrastructure system to orchestrate the provisioning of services and resources for the order placed by the customer. The synchronization architecture utilizes transactionally consistent checkpoints that describe the state of the data stored in the components to synchronize the data between these components.
US09734219B1

A computer server system and method are disclosed for personalization and customizable filtering of network search results and search result rankings, such as for Internet searching. A representative server system comprises: a network interface to receive a query from a respondent or co-respondent; at least one data storage device storing a plurality of return queries; and one or more processors adapted to access the data storage device and using the query, to select the return queries for transmission; to search the data storage device for corresponding pluralities of responses to the return queries from other co-respondents or respondents; to pair-wise score the responses and generate pair-wise alignment scores for respondent and co-respondent combinations; to sort and rank the combinations according to the alignment scores; and to output a listing of the sorted and ranked respondents or co-respondents to form the personalized network search results and search result rankings.
US09734212B2

A method for a secure search in a computerized system having a storage, comprising searching for objects in the storage of the computerized system according to search criteria provided by a user wherein the criteria comprise at least one attribute of the objects, identifying objects that meet the criteria and displaying representations respective of identified objects that are accessible to the user, and an apparatus for performing the same.
US09734208B1

Features are disclosed for automatically facilitating knowledge sharing using information collected during meetings. Collected information may include both the content and context of a meeting. The meeting content may comprise text collected by automatic speech recognition or entered manually at a user device. The meeting context may comprise information such as the identities of meeting participants and subject matter from a meeting agenda. The content and context information may be used to identify relevant topics for which knowledge is available, and the available knowledge may be presented to one or more of the meeting participants.
US09734204B2

Analyzing a managed runtime cache is provided. A heap associated with a managed runtime environment, where the heap includes an N-generation cache or a plurality of objects associated with a program operating within a managed runtime environment is identified. A snapshot of the heap is produced, wherein the snapshot identifies a memory location for each object of the plurality of objects at which the object is stored. A generation of each of the plurality of objects based, at least in part, on the memory location of the object is determined. One or more suggestions based, at least in part, on the memory location of the plurality of objects is provided.
US09734196B2

According to an aspect, summarizing relevance of a document to a conceptual query includes receiving the conceptual query, accessing concepts extracted from the document, and computing a degree to which the conceptual query is related to each of the extracted concepts. The computing is responsive to a metric that measures a relevance between the concepts in the conceptual query and the extracted concepts. The method also includes creating a summary by selecting a threshold number of the concepts having a greatest degree of relation to the conceptual query, and outputting the summary including the selected threshold number of concepts.
US09734194B1

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for encoding time interval information. In one aspect, a method includes receiving data specifying a time interval in which a provider is available, encoding the time interval in which the provider is available as one or more data structures that each identify (i) an offset value that specifies a time offset between a baseline time and a beginning of a reference time interval, and (ii) one or more respective time sub-interval values that identify one or more time sub-intervals within the reference time interval, and storing one or more of the data structures in association with the provider.
US09734189B2

A method, system, and computer program product for managing data sets of a storage facility is disclosed. The method, system, and computer program product include determining, by analyzing a first data set, that the first data set includes a first record having padded data. To identify the padded data, the method, system, and computer program product include comparing at least a portion of the first record of the first data set with a second record of a second data set. Next, the method, system, and computer program product include removing, from the first record of the first data set, the padded data.
US09734187B2

Systems and methods are provided for atomic transactions in a NoSQL database. A system writes a pending transaction identifier to write claim data for a first data item in a NoSQL database in response to a determination that the write claim data for the first data item includes a first previous transaction identifier included in last commit data for the first data item. The system writes the pending transaction identifier and a pending commit identifier to the last commit data for the first data item. The system writes a first value associated with a pending transaction to the first data item. The system aborts the pending transaction in response to a determination that the write claim data for the first data item does not include the first previous transaction identifier included in the last commit data for the first data item.
US09734175B2

An embodiment of the invention introduces a method for accessing data in cloud storage space, which contains at least the following steps. A file is obtained. File uploads are generated, where each file upload contains partial data of the file. The file uploads are stored in storage servers of the cloud storage space, where the storage servers are governed by different cloud storage providers.
US09734170B2

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a system with a plurality of memories, generates a first filter associated with a first memory, and generates one or more second filters each associated with a corresponding memory. Each second filter is generated with a size at least partially accommodated within the storage capacity of the associated memory. The system determines absence of items from a set by selectively probing the generated filters in an ascending order of data access speed to the associated memories and aborts further probing for an item in response to a probe indicating that the item is absent from the set. Embodiments of the present invention further include a method and computer program product for testing set membership in substantially the same manners described above.
US09734166B2

A first set of contextual dimensions is generated from one or more textual descriptions associated with a given event, which includes one or more examples. A second set of contextual dimensions is generated from one or more visual features associated with the given event, which includes one or more visual example recordings. A similarity structure is constructed from the first set of contextual dimensions and the second set of contextual dimensions. One or more of the textual descriptions is matched with one or more of the visual features based on the similarity structure.
US09734154B2

Implementations relate to storing a data file in data storages. In some implementations, a method for storing a data file in n data storages includes dividing the data file into data file parts such that at least n−1 data file parts are equal in size, and for each n−1 data file part, combining the n−1 data file parts by XOR to obtain a first data file result. The method deranges the first data file result and combines each of n−2 data file parts of the n−1 data file parts and the deranged first data file result by XOR to obtain second data file results. The method combines the first data file result and the second data file results by XOR to obtain a third data file result, and stores each of the first, second and third data file results in one of the n data storages.
US09734152B2

One or more target schedules is generated based on a single master schedule. Replacement media items are inserted into a target schedule instead of the corresponding media items from the master schedule. The replacement media items are selected from a list of potential media replacement items scored using a scoring method used by a music scheduling system, as corresponding media items in the master schedule. The length of the media items in the list is checked to see if the length falls within a duration delta of the length of the media item being replaced in the master schedule, and to identify items that meet a minimum score threshold. The highest ranking item from the list that satisfies both the score threshold and the duration delta is selected for insertion in the target schedule. Music scheduling systems, such as GSelector®, can be leveraged to generate and score the list.
US09734149B2

A processor determines whether a DOM includes a repetitive pattern of a combination, formed by a tag of a leaf node and a tag of a parent node of the leaf node. Determining the repetitive pattern of the combination, the processor identifies a first inner cluster is identified by collapsing multiple instances of the repetitive pattern into a single instance. The processor generates a LSH signature for the single instance of the repetitive pattern. The processor determines an outer cluster, based on grouping one or more inner clusters, as part of a section rooted at a source node of the DOM, in which the source node is a parent node of the one or more inner clusters. Determining that a pair of outer clusters are near repetitive, the processor limits web content exploration to one of the pair of outer clusters.
US09734141B2

A word mapping method is provided, based on a plurality of connections between a plurality of words as generated by an individual or group, the map being formed based on connections between words provided by an individual or individuals. The resultant word map may be used for various purposes including cognitive diagnoses, sentence structure optimization of documents, and the like.
US09734135B2

Systems and methods are disclosed which may provide modules that may be displayed in the context of a website that allow for autoscrolling between the modules upon entering required information in the modules or completing actions required by the modules. The modules may be modules for paying for items via PayPal and may include modules for entering payment information, billing information, a shipping address, creating an account, and accepting terms and conditions. The modules may be displayed within the context of the webpage when selecting a pay with PayPal link without navigating away from the webpage. As a user enters information into a module, the module will automatically scroll to the next module if the module permits automatic scrolling.
US09734132B1

Determination of an underlying grid structure that facilitates layout of East Asian text is disclosed. The underlying grid structure includes both a size of character frames and a size of a text block frame. The East Asian text may be obtained from a scan of printed material that has the text formatted according to layout conventions established by the publisher. The text may be reformatted to appear on a display of an electronic device in a manner similar to the formatting in the original scanned document. Reformatting may include reflowing the text in order to fit a greater or lesser number of characters on a line. The reflowing may maintain character spacing from the original document and follow formatting rules against locating certain characters at the start or end of a line.
US09734123B2

Aspects of the present disclosure include a quick and easy user interface system for allowing a user to format mathematical expression on a math program as they would be formatted in longhand. The user interface is configured to switch between a linear math expression entry scheme and a structured math expression entry scheme based on a user's math expression entries in order to predict the user's desired entry format. The user interface contains additional shortcuts and display features which enable a user to enter mathematical expressions quickly and easily, with less confusion.
US09734119B1

The present application discloses a system and method for accessing vehicle communications bus information outside the bandwidth of a limited CPU without missing critical information. The system and method for accessing vehicle communications bus information outside the bandwidth of a limited CPU generally includes a vehicle interface processor, that processor's interconnect to an application processor and the vehicle interface. The vehicle interface software that vehicle interface processor has running on it and the vehicle interface processor's connection to the vehicle may also be included.
US09734114B2

A field unit with a bus node which is designed for signal conversion between an external bus protocol and an internal bus protocol for communication with at least one function module, in such a way that a sequential transmission of data packets is made along an internal bus system and also including function modules which are designed for processing of data packets and for signal transmission with at least one downstream function component wherein the bus node is so designed for a differentiation of data packets of the higher-level control device that in the bus node a processing of non-safety-related data packets to the internal bus system and onwards transmission of safety-related data packets to the internal bus system is effected, and wherein at least one function module connected to the internal bus system is designed as a safety module for processing of safety-related data packets.
US09734108B2

Circuits, methods, and apparatus that limit the number of types of connectors needed by an electronic device. One example may provide a connector receptacle capable of adapting to multiple types of connector inserts. In this way, connector inserts conveying one of a number of interfaces can be accepted by the same connector receptacle. This may reduce the number and types of connector receptacles needed on an electronic device.
US09734100B2

A mechanism for reducing the cost of providing network-based remote platform management by allowing system firmware to communicate with a remote platform administrator or process by sharing a NIC that is also used for normal network traffic is discussed. The dual use of the NIC reduces the cost of remote platform management by removing the need for a secondary controller or CPU core on the computing device that is dedicated to remote management tasks. Additionally, performance in the computing device improves as a byproduct of a CPU core or thread not being dedicated to the management task and instead being available for handling of other tasks.
US09734099B1

System and method of using a processor driven master Quad-SPI (QSPI) bus or interface to simultaneously and time-synchronously transmit different streams of data from a FIFO buffer to a plurality of different slave SPI interface peripherals. Here the QSPI interface data ports are configured to simultaneously transmit multiple 1 bit wide streams of different binary data and different chip select commands on an SPI clock cycle synchronized basis. Additional SPI slave peripherals may be controlled by use of additional non-SPI clock synchronized GPIO chip select commands and suitable logic gates. These methods are useful for creating a variety of embedded systems with faster response speeds, such as improved microwave frequency synthesizers with faster frequency changing times.
US09734097B2

Apparatuses and methods for variable latency memory operations are disclosed herein. An example apparatus may include a memory configured to receive an activate command indicative of a type of a command during a first addressing phase and to receive the command during a second addressing phase. The memory may further be configured to provide information indicating that the memory is not available to perform a command responsive, at least in part, to receiving the command during a variable latency period and to provide information indicating that the memory is available to perform a command responsive, at least in part, to receiving the command after the variable latency period.
US09734092B2

Methods and systems for securing sensitive data from security risks associated with direct memory access (“DMA”) by input/output (“I/O”) devices are provided. An enhanced software cryptoprocessor system secures sensitive data using various techniques, including (1) protecting sensitive data by preventing DMA by an I/O device to the portion of the cache that stores the sensitive data, (2) protecting device data by preventing cross-device access to device data using DMA isolation, and (3) protecting the cache by preventing the pessimistic eviction of cache lines on DMA writes to main memory.
US09734091B2

Remote load and update card emulation support may include providing emulation support for an emulated card by executing a command set from command sets that include an encrypted read write command set that uses a secure communication read write (SCRW) key, a plain read write command set that uses a plain communication read write (PCRW) key, and an encrypted read command set that uses a secure communication read only (SCR) key.
US09734071B2

A method and apparatus for snooping caches is disclosed. In one embodiment, a system includes a number of processing nodes and a cache shared by each of the processing nodes. The cache is partitioned such that each of the processing nodes utilizes only one assigned partition. If a query by a processing node to its assigned partition of the cache results in a miss, a cache controller may determine whether to snoop other partitions in search of the requested information. The determination may be made based on history of where requested information was obtained from responsive to previous misses in that partition.
US09734056B2

A cache structure for use in implementing reconfigurable system configuration information storage, comprises: layered configuration information cache units: for use in caching configuration information that may be used by a certain or several reconfigurable arrays within a period of time; an off-chip memory interface module: for use in establishing communication; a configuration management unit: for use in managing a reconfiguration process of the reconfigurable arrays, in mapping each subtask in an algorithm application to a certain reconfigurable array, thus the reconfigurable array will, on the basis of the mapped subtask, load the corresponding configuration information to complete a function reconfiguration for the reconfigurable array. This increases the utilization efficiency of configuration information caches. Also provided is a method for managing the reconfigurable system configuration information caches, employing a mixed priority cache update method, and changing a mode for managing the configuration information caches in a conventional reconfigurable system, thus increasing the dynamic reconfiguration efficiency in a complex reconfigurable system.
US09734051B2

Example apparatus and methods provide improved reclamation, garbage collection (GC) and defragmentation (defrag) for data storage devices including solid state drives (SSD) or shingled magnetic recording (SMR) drives. An erasure code (EC) layer that facilitates logically or physically erasing data from the SSD or SMR as a comprehensive GC or defrag is added to the SSD or SMR. Erased data may be selectively recreated from the EC layer as needed. Pre-planned EC write zones may be established to further optimize GC and defrag. Recreated data may be written to selected locations to further optimize SSD and SMR performance. Erasure code data may be distributed to co-operating devices to further improve GC or defrag. Example apparatus and methods may also facilitate writing data to an SMR drive using tape or VTL applications or processes and providing a pseudo virtual tape library on the SMR drive.
US09734049B2

Methods that can facilitate more optimized relocation of data associated with a memory are presented. In addition to a memory controller component, a memory manager component can be employed to increase available processing resources to facilitate more optimal execution of higher level functions. Higher level functions can be delegated to the memory manager component to allow execution of these higher level operations with reduced or no load on the memory controller component resources. A uni-bus or multi-bus architecture can be employed to further optimize data relocation operations. A first bus can be utilized for data access operations including read, write, erase, refresh, or combinations thereof, among others, while a second bus can be designated for higher level operations including data compaction, error code correction, wear leveling, or combinations thereof, among others.
US09734045B2

Systems and techniques are described for generating test cases. A described technique includes monitoring a manual test of a code portion. The monitoring can include identifying one or more performed operations performed during the manual test. A seed file can be generated that includes data describing the one or more performed operations. A mock test can be generated for the code portion using the seed file. The mock test can include one or more mock operations that match the one or more performed operations. The mock test can be performed on the code portion, including performing the one or more mock operations using the code portion.
US09734041B2

A method for user interface (UI) automation area coverage is presented. The method extracts document information from a unit test class, the unit test class being code used to test a user interface (UI). The method searches for a keyword within the extracted document information to find a keyword match. The method receives a weight factor from a user the weight factor giving more importance to certain keywords over the other keywords. The method weights specified keywords based on a weight factor, the weight factor increasing or decreasing an importance to the specified keywords. The method assigns a weight score to each keyword match based on the number of keyword matches and the weight factor. Furthermore, the method generates a user interface report, the UI report comprising the weight score.
US09734034B2

According to one embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method of processing status data relating to elements of a network. The method comprises receiving status data relating to elements of the network, obtaining status data modification data, modifying at least some of the received status data in accordance with the status data modification data, and generating tree map data using the modified data.
US09734012B2

Methods and apparatus 3 are provided for encoding data for storage in multilevel memory cells 2 having q cell-levels. Input data words are encoded into respective codewords, each having N symbols with one of q symbol-values, via an encoding scheme adapted such that the q symbol-values have unequal multiplicities within at least some codewords, and the multiplicity of each of the q symbol-values in every codeword is no less than μ, where μ≧2 and more preferably ≧3. A first type of encoding scheme uses recursive symbol-flipping to enforce the μ-constraint, adding indicator symbols to indicate the flipped symbols. A second type of encoding scheme maps data words to codewords of a union of permutation codes, the initial vectors for these permutation codes being selected to enforce the μ-constraint. The N qary symbols of each codeword are supplied for storage in respective cells of the multilevel memory 2.
US09734000B2

Technologies are described herein for seamless transitions between applications and devices. A network-based or local context service provides functionality for storing and retrieving context data. The context service can expose a create activity method for creating a unique activity identifier (“ID”). The activity ID is associated with an activity, such as the execution of an application on a computing device. The interface exposed by the context service can also expose a method for storing context data, such as data that can be used to return an application to its pre-transition state. The interface exposed by the context service can also expose a method for obtaining context data. The context service can also expose a method for completing an activity. The context data can also be exposed to other services, such as business intelligence network services that analyze the context data to provide recommendations or other types of information to users.
US09733997B2

A first information processing apparatus executes a first process, while a second information processing apparatus executes a second process. The first information processing apparatus obtains a first issuance request produced by the first process. The first information processing apparatus also receives issuance timing information that the second information processing apparatus issues in response to a second issuance request from the second process. Based on this issuance timing information, the first information processing apparatus controls issuance timing of a timer event that is to be issued to the first process in response to the first issuance request.
US09733994B2

A method for communicating information between a mobile device and a computer system includes receiving a request from the mobile device to invoke a process of a legacy API of the computer system. The request specifies one or more input values associated with required input parameters of the process. The input values are provided in a first format that is different from a second format utilized by the legacy API for communicating data. The computer system determines required input parameters of the process, generates an input data structure in the second format that includes an entry for each of the required input parameters, determines parameters that are associated with the one or more input values communicated in the request, and sets values of entries in the input data structure associated with the one or more determined parameters to corresponding one or more input values in the request. A message call to the legacy API that includes the input data structure formatted in the second format is generated.
US09733986B2

A computer system includes plural servers in which virtual machines are arranged; plural power supply apparatuses that supply electric power to the servers; and a control apparatus that controls arrangement of the virtual machines in the servers. The control apparatus solves an integer programming problem whose objective function is total power consumption by the servers and by the power supply apparatuses, the total power consumption being described as a function of the arrangement of the virtual machines; and arranges the virtual machines based on a solution of the integer programming problem.
US09733973B2

A virtualized computing system including software sensors captures network data from one or more traffic flows the sensors. The captured network data from a given sensor indicates one or more traffic flows detected by the given sensor. The received captured network data is analyzed to identify, for each respective sensor, a first group of sensors, a second group of sensors, and a third group of sensors. All traffic flows observed by the first group of sensors are also observed by the second group of sensors. All traffic flows observed by the second group of sensors are also observed by the third group of sensors. A location of each respective sensor relative to other sensors within the virtualized computing system is determined based upon whether the respective sensor belongs to the first group of sensors, the second group of sensors, or the third group of sensors.
US09733943B2

A branch history table cache is a write cache that stores values of branch history counters written to a branch history table. An update to a branch history table counter is reflected in both the branch history table cache and the branch history table. Before a branch history table counter is updated, a check is made to see if the branch history table counter is in the cache. If not, the branch history table counter is updated based on a value of the branch history table counter that was saved during fetch of the branch history table counter. If, however, the branch history table counter value is in the cache, the value in the cache is used to update the branch history table counter. All branches that use the branch history table counter update the correct counter value, improving processor performance by providing more accurate predictions of branches taken.
US09733931B2

A user input initiating delivery of a first change set to a stream maintained by an artifact management application can be detected. A first set of elements and a first set of elements types associated with the first change set can be identified. A second set of element types that pertain to at least one unit of work identified for the first set of elements can be identified. A second set of elements that are involved in the same unit of work can be identified. A second change set modifying the second set of elements can be identified. A third change set modifying at least one element type can be identified. A change set group can be created and the first change set, the second change set and the third change set can be added to the change set group. The change set group can be delivered to the stream.
US09733927B2

In an approach for determining compatibility between a computing device and a software application, a processor receives code of a software application. A processor generates a call graph for the software application using the code, wherein the call graph describes at least a first type of hardware component required to execute the software application. A processor identifies a set of one or more hardware components included within a computing device. A processor determines whether the computing device is compatible with the software application based on, at least, the call graph and the determined set of one or more hardware components included within the computing device.
US09733919B2

Updating web resources includes extracting web resources from an application to local files in response to an initial start-up of the application, downloading updates to the web resources to the local files from an external server; and running the application using contents from the local files.
US09733913B2

Methods and systems to convert a scalar computer program loop having loop-carried dependences into a vector computer program loop are disclosed. One such method includes, replacing the scalar recurrence operation in the scalar computer program loop with a first vector summing operation and a first vector recurrence operation. The first vector summing operation is to generate a first running sum and the first vector recurrence operation is to generate a first vector. In some examples, the first vector recurrence operation is based on the scalar recurrence operation. Disclosed methods also include inserting: 1) a renaming operation to rename the first vector, 2) a second vector summing operation that is to generate a second running sum; and 3) a second vector recurrence operation to generate a second vector based on the renamed first vector.
US09733910B2

An approach for replacing one program code library (or method(s) thereof) with another program code library (or method(s) thereof) during execution is provided. Specifically, an annotation (e.g., comprising a runtime optimization request and associated performance/measurement criteria) within a program code file will be detected, analyzed, and used to monitor/assess the performance of a running set of methods of the program code file or the like (e.g., a set of initial/original methods). As this is occurring, a set of substitute methods will be identified from a program code library (e.g., based on similarities to the original set of methods) and likewise monitored/assessed. Based on the monitored performance, one or more alternate method(s) may be substituted for the original method(s) in the program code file. Such a capability allows for methods to be evaluated during runtime, and for performance to be optimized by utilizing the highest performing methods.
US09733906B2

A method for user interface (UI) automation area coverage is presented. The method extracts document information from a unit test class, the unit test class being code used to test a user interface (UI). The method searches for a keyword within the extracted document information to find a keyword match. The method receives a weight factor from a user the weight factor giving more importance to certain keywords over the other keywords. The method weights specified keywords based on a weight factor, the weight factor increasing or decreasing an importance to the specified keywords. The method assigns a weight score to each keyword match based on the number of keyword matches and the weight factor. Furthermore, the method generates a user interface report, the UI report comprising the weight score.
US09733904B2

Methods, systems, and computer-readable storage media for selecting columns for supporting user interaction with code fragments of source code based on respective content of the code fragments. In some implementations, actions include receiving a first code fragment, the first code fragment including first content, associating a first set of functions with the first code fragment, the first set of functions including one or more functions based on the first content, and displaying one or more functions of the first set of functions for selection by a user.
US09733900B2

The present disclosure discloses a full adder based on resistive-switching devices and an operation method thereof. A multi-bit full adder circuit is constituted by using a cross-bar array of resistive-switching devices, wherein data of standard sums is stored on the principle diagonal of the cross-bar array in a nonvolatile manner, and carry data is stored in adjacent units on both sides of the principle diagonal. The carry data is stored according to whether the storage loop (crosstalk loop) is turned on. With the present disclosure, the multi-bit full adder circuit is significantly simplified. Thereby, additional circuits for generating a carry signal are reduced, the circuit delay and chip area are decreased, and the adder has an ability of nonvolatile storage.
US09733891B2

A system is described for maintaining synchrony of operations among a plurality of devices that have independent clocking arrangements. The system includes a task distribution device that distributes tasks to a synchrony group comprising a plurality of devices that are to perform the tasks distributed by the task distribution device in synchrony. The task distribution device distributes each task to the members of the synchrony group over a network. Each task is associated with a time stamp that indicates a time, relative to a clock maintained by the task distribution device, at which the members of the synchrony group are to execute the task. Each member of the synchrony group periodically obtains from the task distribution device an indication of the current time indicated by its clock, determines a time differential between the task distribution device's clock and its respective clock and determines therefrom a time at which, according to its respective clock, the time stamp indicates that it is to execute the task.
US09733877B2

An information processing apparatus includes: a reception unit that receives a job; a prohibition process unit that performs a prohibition process on the job; a process decision unit that decides a handling process at a time of a prohibition violation based on predetermined process rule data; and a job-process control unit that, when a determination result of the prohibition process indicates the prohibition violation, controls a process of the job according to the decided handling process.
US09733873B2

An image processing apparatus includes a setting unit that accepts setting of a first print mode in which printing is performed while saving developer, a data receiver capable of receiving DICOM data in accordance with DICOM standard using a protocol in accordance with the DICOM standard, a determination unit that determines whether received data is DICOM data or not, and an image processing unit that performs processing to print an image. When the received data is DICOM data and when the first print mode is set in the setting unit, the image processing unit performs processing to print a medical image included in the DICOM data in a mode in which developer is saved in a region outside a diagnostic image region necessary for image diagnosis.
US09733870B2

A memory management system and method of managing output data resulting from a memory device storing raw data and error correction coding (ECC) bits are described. The system includes a controller to receive a read command and control a memory device based on the read command, the memory device to store raw data and error correction coding (ECC) bits and output the raw data and the ECC bits corresponding with memory addresses specified in the read command, and an ECC decoder to output an error vector associated with the memory addresses based on the raw data and the ECC bits corresponding with the memory addresses output by the memory device, the error vector associated with the memory addresses indicating errors in the raw data corresponding with the memory addresses. The system also includes a multiplexer (MUX) to output the error vector based on a selection indicated in the read command.
US09733869B1

A slave storage is provisioned using metadata of a master B-tree and updates to references (e.g., offsets) pertaining to data operations of the master B-tree. Master-slave pairs can be used to provide data redundancy, and a master copy can include the master B-tree with references to corresponding data. When provisioning a slave copy, the master sends a B-tree copy to the slave, which stores the slave B-tree copy, allocates the necessary space on local storage, and updates respective offsets of the slave B-tree copy to point to the local storage. Data from the master can then be transferred to the slave and stored according to a note and commit process that ensures operational sequence of the data. Operations received to the master during the process can be committed to the slave copy until the slave is consistent with the master and able to take over as master in the event of a failure.
US09733868B2

Methods and apparatus for managing exchanges in a network device of a storage area network are disclosed. In a first “host-side” exchange initiated by an initiator and between the initiator and the network device, one or more frames are received from an initiator and/or sent to the initiator. At least one of the frames pertains to access of a virtual storage location of a virtual storage unit representing one or more physical storage locations on one or more physical storage units of the storage area network. One or more “disk-side” exchanges between the network device and one or more targets (i.e., physical storage units) are initiated in response to the first exchange. In the disk-side exchanges, one or more frames are sent from the network device to one of the targets and/or received from the target. Exchange information for the host-side exchange and the associated disk-side exchanges are updated throughout the exchanges.
US09733866B2

In one embodiment, a method includes determining a size of a file associated with each job in a job queue of files to be migrated to one of a plurality of drives that includes at least one of each of the following: a faster drive and a relatively slower drive. The availability of a faster drive is determined. The file associated with the job in the job queue having a file size larger than a threshold is sent to the faster drive.
US09733862B1

A method may include generating a chain of snapshot point-in-time copies (PITCs) for a virtual volume, the chain comprising one or more reverse PITCs and one active PITC, such that: (i) read operations to a snapshot pointing to a reverse PITC traverse a portion of the one or more reverse PITCs in a direction of the chain from the reverse PITC pointed to by the snapshot to the active PITC in order to return data responsive to the read operations to the snapshot; and (ii) read operations to the virtual volume traverse only the active PITC in order to return data responsive to the read operations to the virtual volume.
US09733861B2

Memory systems may include a logical block address (LBA) space divided into a number of zones, a counter associated with each zone, each counter suitable for incrementing a count value when a read is performed on an LBA in the zone with which the counter is associated, and a controller suitable for calculating a temperature of each zone based on the count values of the counters, sorting the zones according to the calculated temperature, combining the zones into a number of superzones based on the sorting, and splitting the number of superzones into the number of zones into which the LBA space was divided.
US09733857B2

A flash memory controller for controlling a flash memory module includes a communication interface for receiving a first data and a second data; and a processing circuit for dynamically controlling a data writing mode of the flash memory module according to an amount of stored data in the flash memory module. If the amount of stored data in the flash memory module is less than a first threshold when the communication interface receives the first data, the processing circuit controls the flash memory module so that the first data is written into the first data block under an one-bit-per-cell mode. If the amount of stored data in the flash memory module is greater than the first threshold when the communication interface receives the second data, the processing circuit controls the flash memory module so that the second data is written into the second data block under a two-bit-per-cell mode.
US09733854B2

Methods, systems, and computer programs are presented for dynamic adaptive compression in a storage device. One method includes operations for setting a percentage factor for utilizing a first and a second compression algorithms, and for receiving incoming blocks in the memory of the storage device. The incoming blocks are compressed before being sent to permanent storage, where a portion of the incoming blocks are compressed with the first compression algorithm based on the percentage factor, and the remainder is compressed with the second compression algorithm. Further, the method includes determining that a processor utilization rate, of a processor in the storage device, is below a first predetermined threshold, and decreasing, in response to the determining, the percentage factor to decrease the portion of the incoming blocks that are compressed with the first compression algorithm, while the remainder of the incoming blocks is compressed with the second compression algorithm.
US09733852B2

A request to store a file to be protected is received. It is detected whether the file to be protected is a file to be synchronized. The encryption key is selected based on the detection of whether the file is a file to be synchronized. The file to be protected is encrypted using the selected encryption key.
US09733839B2

In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a processor and logic integrated with and/or executable by the processor. The logic is configured to position a magnetic tape volume to a position corresponding to an end of a last data set stored to the magnetic tape volume, and read an existing tape volume access block (TVAB) from the magnetic tape volume in response to a determination that the existing TVAB is stored to the magnetic tape volume. The logic is also configured to write one or more data sets to the magnetic tape volume subsequent to reading the existing TVAB in response to the determination that the existing TVAB is stored to the magnetic tape volume, determine metadata corresponding to the one or more written data sets, and update the existing TVAB with the metadata corresponding to the one or more written data sets to produce an updated TVAB.
US09733832B2

A method for accessing a buffer memory in a memory storage device is provided, wherein the buffer memory, which has a plurality of write buffer units, is equipped in the memory storage device having a rewritable non-volatile memory module. The method includes: receiving a write data from a host system and determining whether the number of used write buffer unit is smaller than a predefined value or not. The method also includes: if the number of the used write buffer unit is not smaller than the predefined value, temporarily storing the write data into one of the write buffer unit which is not being used and transmitting a confirmation message corresponding to the write data to the host system after a predefined time interval. Therefore, the method can reduce the latency of write operations of the host system.
US09733829B2

A text input method applied in a set-top box assistant comprises displaying a virtual keyboard on a TV display device, receiving a first input instruction, from a remote controller, decoding the first input instruction and inputting a first character, and performing a text searching operation in a text library according to the first character. Automatically selected and confirmable candidate characters are displayed on the virtual keyboard according to the search result. Movement of the remote controller is tracked, movement speed V1 of a focus point of the remote controller on the virtual keyboard is calculated and whether movement speed is greater than a preset speed affects the recognition of commands by the assistant. Movement speed of the focus point can auto-move the focus point to a second character and the second character can be confirmed as input. A text input device is also disclosed.
US09733821B2

Methods and systems are provided for diagnosing inadvertent activation of user interface settings on an electronic device. The electronic device receives a user input indicating that the user is having difficulty operating the electronic device. The device then determines whether a setting was changed on the device within a predetermined time period prior to receiving the user input. When a first setting was changed within the predetermined time period prior to receiving the user input, the device restores the changed setting to a prior setting.
US09733819B2

In one embodiment, one or more main processors of a device detect an event corresponding to scrolling a structured document presented in a scrollable graphical user interface of an application executed by the main processors. The main processors, in response to the event, determine a first set of elements and a second set of elements of the structured document; render the first set of elements of the structured document for presentation in the graphical user interface; and cause one or more graphic processors of the device to render the second set of elements for presentation in the graphical user interface.
US09733818B2

A commitment-based GUI is provided. In one example embodiment, a system to provide commitment-based GUI comprises a menu activation module, an actions monitor, a commitment detector, and a presentation control module. The menu activation module may be configured to activate a multi-panel media interface on a display device, the multi-panel media interface presenting one or more menu panels. The actions monitor may be configured to monitor activity of a user with respect to the multi-panel media interface. The commitment detector may be configured to determine a commitment level of the user, the commitment level indicating the user's interest level in navigating a menu structure associated with the multi-panel media interface. The presentation control module may be configured to adjust presentation of the multi-panel media interface based on the determined commitment level.
US09733810B2

A system that incorporates the subject disclosure may use, for example, a method for sending a set-top box an identification of the media player, receiving operational instructions from the set-top box according to the emulator executed by the set-top box that emulates a user interface of the media player by presenting a representation of the media player in a graphical user interface, and transmitting media content to the set-top box according to the operational instructions. The emulator can be supplied to the set-top box by way of a multimedia system communicatively coupled to the set-top box. The user interface presented by the set-top box by way of the emulator substantially mimics functions of the media player. Additional embodiments are disclosed.
US09733809B1

Dynamic media players are disclosed. A method for providing the dynamic media players includes presenting, by a processor of an electronic device, a user interface (UI) including a media player portion and a scrollable portion, providing a first playback of a first media item in a first media player in the first media player portion, and scrolling to an area in the scrollable portion that includes a second media player while continuing the first playback of the first media item by the first media player that remains visible in the UI. The method also includes determining that the second media player is configured to start a second playback of a second media item upon scrolling to the area in the scrollable portion and preventing the second media player from providing the second playback of the second media item during the first playback of the first media item.
US09733799B2

A method for displaying medical data includes receiving physiological data from a first medical monitoring device. The physiological data is obtained on a continuous basis. Physiological data is received from a second medical monitoring device. The physiological data from the second medical monitoring device is obtained on a non-continuous basis. The physiological data received from the first medical monitoring device and the physiological data received from the second medical monitoring device are displayed on a central display station. The central display station is located centrally within a care unit of a caregiving facility.
US09733795B2

The disclosure is related to a method for providing an interactive menu data for contents search. At least one query word may be generated based on user inputs at user equipment. A server may generate an interactive menu data based on the received at least one query word. The server may provide the generated interactive menu data to the user equipment.
US09733790B2

The disclosure provides an approach for populating a virtual environment with objects. In one embodiment, an editing application may track a handheld device using sensor data from a camera, by following an image displayed on the handheld device's screen. The editing application then updates the position of an object in the virtual environment according to the tracked position of the handheld device. Initially, the handheld device may be placed at a fixed location for calibration purposes, during which the editing application initializes a mapping between the virtual and physical environments. To add an object to the virtual environment, a user may select the object on the handheld device. The user may then place the object at a desired location and orientation in the virtual environment by moving the handheld device in the physical environment.
US09733784B1

Techniques for previewing portions of the content item using an electronic device include displaying a first portion of the content item, receiving input from a user associated with browsing a second portion of the content item different than the first portion, and displaying a preview window illustrating the second portion of the content item in response to the input. The preview window may enable the user to simultaneously view the second portion illustrated therein as well as at least part of the first portion. In addition, a viewing position of the user may be maintained at a location of the first portion in the content item while the second portion is illustrated in the preview window. Accordingly, the user may not lose context of the first portion of the content item while the viewing the second portion.
US09733762B2

An optical display and control element comprises an at least partially transparent display screen, at least one light source for illuminating a rear side of the display screen, and at least one light sensor for detecting a temporal signal of the light scattered on the display screen. The light source is able to produce a time-variable light pattern while illuminating the rear side of the display screen. A control and processing unit is able to evaluate the temporal signal, detected by the light sensor, in combination with the time-variable light pattern and to determine a position of at least one object located on the display screen from this evaluation. The invention further relates to a method of optically determining the position of an object which is located on an at least partially transparent display screen of an optical display and control element.
US09733752B2

A mobile terminal including a touch screen configured to switch between an inactivated state in which illumination is not applied to the touch screen and an activated state in which illumination is applied to the touch screen, and a controller configured to release a locked state of the mobile terminal and switch the touch screen to the activated state, when a plurality of touch inputs is input in the inactivated state and the plurality of touch inputs matches a predefined pattern. Further, the predetermined pattern is initially set using a quadrant image displayed on the touch screen in the activated state, touch inputs for setting the predetermined pattern are applied to at least one of quadrant I, II, III and IV included in the quadrant image displayed on the touch screen in the activated state of the touch screen, a first touch input included in the plurality of touch inputs in the inactivated state is applied to the touch screen, and quadrant areas on the touch screen for receiving the plurality of touch inputs in the inactivated state change based on a first touch position of the first touch input and a second touch position of a second touch input of the plurality of touch inputs in the inactivated state.
US09733739B1

This application describes, in part, system and methods for reducing unintentional performance of actions, such as orders, on a computing device. In some implementations, ordering may be controlled by identifying an input within an action region and determining that the input is an intentional input before completing an order. For example, to be considered an intentional input, the input may need to remain in an action region for a predetermined time duration, or may need to move across a majority of the action region.
US09733727B2

A surface navigation device for a computer or similar graphical display and methods for implementing its operation. The device moves sensitively and precisely over a surface such as a desktop and operator generated changes in its position relative to targetable objects on that desktop arranged about the circumference of a pseudo-circle are described in terms of a lumped motion vector. The motion vector is decomposed into a translational and rotational part by metrical and topological methods. The device communicates each part of the decomposed motion quickly and accurately to a computer screen or other display where it may implement the motion of a cursor or it may be used to manipulate objects having a 3D character by providing them with translational and rotational motions. The rotational parameter generated by the device may also be used independently to trigger some computer action.
US09733721B2

Systems and methods for rendering graphics using framebuffer nodes. In an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment, an Information Handling System (IHS) may include a processor and a memory coupled to the processor, the memory having program instructions stored thereon that, upon execution by the processor, cause the IHS to: provide a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user via a display coupled to the IHS, where a portion of the display is rendered using a first framebuffer, detect a user' action corresponding to an event handler, retrieve, using a red-black tree, a second framebuffer associated with the event handler, and render the portion of the display using the second framebuffer.
US09733705B2

An apparatus, method, computer program and apparatus wherein the apparatus comprises: at least one processor: and at least one memory including computer program code; wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, enable the apparatus to: provide a user selectable part; and configure the apparatus in either a first active state or a second active state wherein, in the first active state the user selectable part is actuated in response to a first mode of actuation and in the second active state the user selectable part is not actuated in response to the first mode of actuation; and configure the apparatus to provide a tactile indication when the apparatus is in the first active state that the user selectable part is actuated in response to the first mode of actuation.
US09733696B2

An optimal idle state of a processor is selected using dynamically derived parameters. For example, the idle state is selected from a group of possible idle power states. A current detector is arranged to perform power measurements of the processor and to report a total power consumption of the processor for each time value of a range of discrete values for each possible idle power state. A calibration unit is arranged to communicate with the current detector and the processor, and to automatically activate a calibration sequence that is used to produce data from which idle power state is optimal for the processor for an estimated idle period.
US09733694B2

Systems and methods for dynamically adjusting an input parameter, such as power supply level, to a shared power domain in a portable computing device are disclosed. The power domain includes a plurality of processing resources that share the power source. The power supply level is reduced based on a critical core vote pool derived from votes from the plurality of processing resources. The critical core vote pool is narrowed from all the votes by disqualifying votes based on the operating status of the associated processing resources. For example, because inactive processing resources may be unaffected by a change in the voltage level to the shared domain, and because certain active processing resources are in a position to adjust to a power change dictated by another processing resource, such processing resources may be considered noncritical and their votes disqualified from consideration.
US09733684B2

An embodiment includes a system, comprising: a processor; a plurality of memories; and a control circuit coupled to the processor and the memories, and configured to: receive a power limit; measure a power consumption of the processor and the memories; and iteratively change a plurality of operating parameters of the processor and the memories to optimize an objective function associated with the system to operating states where the power consumption is less than or equal to the power limit.
US09733669B1

A case for a portable electronic device, the portable electronic device having a housing that carries a first magnetic element capable of forming a first magnetic circuit through the housing with a magnetic element external to the portable electronic device capable of securing together the housing and the external magnetic element. The case can include a body having a bottom wall and side walls that combine to define a recessed region suitable for retaining the portable electronic device and a second magnetic element located at a position corresponding to the external magnetic element such that when the portable electronic device is carried in the recessed region, the second magnetic element forms a second magnetic circuit through the body with the external magnetic element that is capable of securing together the case and the external magnetic element.
US09733668B2

A wearable smart device including a flexible display unit; a first frame configured to support the flexible display unit and be recoverably deformed to have a first curvature to be worn on a body of a user; and a second frame configured to be recoverably deformed to have a second curvature greater than the first curvature and to be movably coupled with the first frame to relatively move with respect to the first frame while being deformed.
US09733662B2

Various embodiments relate to a bias generator including: a bias generator circuit; a master startup circuit that applies current to a first node in the bias generator circuit; a second startup circuit that applies current to additional nodes in the bias generator circuit; and a power switch that receives a power from a power supply and that provides power to the bias generator circuit, the master startup circuit, and the second startup circuit.
US09733627B2

A system and method for performing management and diagnostic functions in a cloud computing system for advanced process control (APC). A cloud based APC management computer retrieves operating process data from an APC control computer and performs an iterative step test on the APC system. The iterative step test modifies at least one test parameter of the operating process data and identifies changes to a set of remaining parameters of the operating process data resulting from modification of the test parameter. The APC management computer determines at least one process variable from the iterative step test and generates at least one process model based on the process variable. The APC management computer transmits the process model to the APC control computer.
US09733625B2

A system for operating a train having one or more locomotive consists with each locomotive consist comprising one or more locomotives, the system including a locator element to determine a location of the train, a track characterization element to provide information about a track, a sensor for measuring an operating condition of the locomotive consist, a processor operable to receive information from the locator element, the track characterizing element, and the sensor, and an algorithm embodied within the processor having access to the information to create a trip plan that optimizes performance of the locomotive consist in accordance with one or more operational criteria for the train.
US09733624B2

A method for corrective action on the operation of a line for the production of absorbent sanitary articles, comprises capturing at least one image of each article being fed out of the line; using the image to define first parameters indicating the positioning and/or assembly and/or shape of at least one respective component; detecting a production defect if at least one of the first parameters is outside a respective acceptability range; identifying second, line operating parameters which are used to indicate if the first parameter is outside the respective acceptability range; comparing the line operating parameters with respective third, reference parameters indicating optimum line operation; using the comparison to derive a map of abnormal operating parameters; checking if each combination of abnormal operating parameters indicates a respective cause of malfunction of the line; defining a respective corrective action.
US09733605B2

A sensor can sense a weight of items in an area. A sensor can sense a height of items in the area. An available capacity of the area can be determined based on the sensed weight and height.
US09733601B2

A fixing device includes a fixing belt, a pressuring member, an exciting coil and a belt guide. The pressuring member comes into pressure contact with the fixing belt to form a fixing nip. The exciting coil is provided at an outer diameter side of the fixing belt and configured to generate a magnetic flux to inductively heat the fixing belt. The belt guide supports the fixing belt from an inner diameter side. The belt guide includes a contact part which is in contact with an inner circumferential face of the fixing belt and a non-contact part which is not in contact with the inner circumferential face of the fixing belt. The non-contact part is provided with a slit configured to inhibit induction heating of the non-contact part due to the magnetic flux generated by the exciting coil.
US09733591B2

An image forming apparatus includes a first unit including a toner discharge opening; a second unit including a toner receiving opening, wherein at least one of the first unit and the second unit is detachably mountable to the apparatus; and a shutter for permitting toner flow from the first unit into the second unit when the one unit is set in the apparatus, and the toner discharge opening of the first unit is above the toner receiving opening of the second unit, the shutter being effective to close when the one unit is removed from the main assembly. By inserting the first unit or the second unit into the main assembly, the shutter is moved to a position right above the toner receiving opening of the second unit, and thereafter, the shutter is opened by a further insertion of the one unit.
US09733589B2

A developing cartridge includes a casing, a rotating member, and an electrode member. The casing may be configured to accommodate therein developer. The rotating member has a rotational shaft extending in an axial direction. The rotating member is configured to rotate about the rotational shaft and carries the developer thereon. The electrode member is configured to be electrically connected to the rotating member. The electrode member covers at least part of the rotational shaft from an orthogonal direction orthogonal to the axial direction and is arranged to confront the casing in the axial direction. The electrode member is configured to move in the orthogonal direction in accordance with a movement in the axial direction.
US09733585B2

The present invention relates to a toner for electrostatic charge image development containing toner base particles containing a binder resin containing a vinyl resin as a main component and a crystalline resin, and a release agent, comprising a structure body in which the crystalline resin is in contact with the release agent, and the crystalline resin having a lamellar crystal structure that is not in contact with the release agent, in a cross section of the toner base particles. According to the present invention, a toner for electrostatic charge image development having good low-temperature fixability, excellent post-fixing separability, document storability, and high-speed fixability, and small environmental dependence of charge amount can be provided.
US09733580B2

A method aleviating blistering, cracking and chipping in topmost layers of a multilayer system exposed to reactive hydrogen, when producing a reflective optical element (50) having a maximum reflectivity at an operating wavelength of 5 nm to 20 nm. A multilayer system (51) composed of 30-60 stacks (53) is applied to a substrate (52). Each stack has a layer (54) of thickness dMLs composed of a high refractive index material and a layer (55) of thickness dMLa composed of a low refractive index material. The thickness ratio is dMLa/(dMLa+dMLs)=ΓML. Two to five further stacks (56) are applied to the multilayer system. at least one further stack having a layer (54) of thickness ds composed of a high refractive index material and a layer (55) of thickness da composed of a low refractive index material, wherein the thickness ratio is da/(da+ds)=Γ and wherein Γ≠ΓML.
US09733578B2

The present invention provides a measurement apparatus that includes a movable stage and measures a position of a mark on the stage, comprising an imaging device including a plurality of pixels arranged at a pitch and imaging the mark, a driving device changing a relative position between the stage and the imaging device, a measurement device measuring the relative position, and a processor obtaining the position of the mark based on a plurality of images respectively obtained by the imaging device at a plurality of relative positions between the stage and the imaging device that are different from each other and associated with the pitch, wherein the processor is configured to obtain, based on a deviation with respect to one of the plurality of relative positions, a target relative position with respect to another of the plurality of relative positions.
US09733575B2

An immersion lithography apparatus comprises a temperature controller configured to adjust a temperature of a projection system, a substrate and a liquid towards a common target temperature. Controlling the temperature of these elements and reducing temperature gradients may improve imaging consistency and general lithographic performance. Measures to control the temperature may include controlling the immersion liquid flow rate and liquid temperature, for example, via a feedback circuit.
US09733572B2

A lithographic apparatus includes an alignment sensor including a self-referencing interferometer for reading the position of a mark including a periodic structure. An illumination optical system focuses radiation of different colors and polarizations into a spot which scans said structure. Multiple position-dependent signals are detected in a detection optical system and processed to obtain multiple candidate position measurements. Each mark includes sub-structures of a size smaller than a resolution of the optical system. Each mark is formed with a positional offset between the sub-structures and larger structures that is a combination of both known and unknown components. A measured position of at least one mark is calculated using signals from a pair of marks, together with information on differences between the known offsets, in order to correct for said unknown component of said positional offset.
US09733561B2

Provided are a method and apparatus for cleaning organic materials accumulated on a mask used in a process of depositing organic materials. The apparatus includes a plasma generating unit, a cleaning chamber connected to the plasma generating unit and accommodating the mask therein, a gas injection port disposed within the cleaning chamber configured to inject the plasma, and a cooling device disposed on a first surface of the mask opposite to an opposite surface of the mask facing the gas injection port.
US09733556B2

A wavelength conversion device includes a wavelength conversion element, and a cooling device adapted to cool the wavelength conversion element. The cooling device has a first blower device, and the wavelength conversion element is disposed on an intake side of the first blower device.
US09733552B2

An image pickup device includes an image pickup element which captures an image of a projection surface, an optical filter which has higher transmissivity for infrared light than for visible light, a visible light transmitting member whose transmissivity for visible light is higher than the corresponding transmissivity of the optical filter, and a switching unit which switches between a first condition where the optical filter is disposed on an optical path of light entering the image pickup element, and a second condition where the visible light transmitting member is disposed on the optical path.
US09733551B2

A variable-position operation device, provided on an electronic-device body, includes a variable-position operation member which shifts upon an operation thereof; a first electrical contact which shifts in accordance with the operation of the variable-position operation member; a second electrical contact which detects a shifted position of the first electrical contact, which is in sliding contact with the second electrical contact, in accordance with a shifted position of the variable-position operation member; and at least one light-emitting element, wherein a light-emitting state of the light-emitting element changes in accordance with the shifted position of the variable-position operation member. The second electrical contact is provided on a first board. The light-emitting element is provided on a second board, the second board being provided as a separate member from that of the first board.
US09733550B2

A lighting apparatus comprising a light source which emits light with predetermined light distribution in a fixed direction, and an optical element which is arranged in such a manner that at least part of light emitted from the light source inputs to the optical element, and can perform switching to a transmission state in which the light is transmitted, a first reflection state in which the light is reflected in a first direction, and a second reflection state in which the light is reflected in a second direction different from the first direction.
US09733542B2

An optical modulator comprising a waveguide for propagating an optical signal comprising a proximate arm configured to communicate a proximate portion of the optical signal, and a distal arm configured to communicate a distal portion of the optical signal, a proximate diode configured to modulate the proximate portion of the optical signal, a distal diode configured to modulate the distal portion of the optical signal, and an electrical input electrically coupled to opposite signed interfaces of the proximate diode and the distal diode such that an electrical driving signal propagated along the electrical input causes an equal and opposite modulation of the proximate portion of the optical signal in the proximate arm of the waveguide and the distal portion of the optical signal in the distal arm of the waveguide.
US09733538B2

An embodiment of the present invention provides a TFT array substrate, in which TFT elements and pixel electrodes being correspondingly connected with the TFT elements are arrayed in matrix on an insulating substrate, the TFT array substrate including: gate bus lines made from a first metal material; source bus lines made from a second metal material; pixel electrodes made from a third metal material; a clock wiring made from the first metal material; a branch wiring made from the second metal material; and a connection conductor made from the third metal material, the connection conductor connecting the clock wiring and the branch wiring at a connection part in a periphery area, the connection part having a branch-wiring via hole, which exposes the branch wiring which is covered with the connection conductor, and overlaps the clock wiring at least partly in a plane view.
US09733537B2

A first interlayer insulating film is arranged on a gate line and a source line. A first common electrode includes a first sub-common electrode extending in the first direction on the first interlayer insulating film and facing the gate line. A second interlayer insulating film covers the first common electrode. A pixel electrode includes a first main pixel electrode extending in the second direction on the second interlayer insulating film. A second common electrode includes a second sub-common electrode and a second main common electrode and set to the same potential as the first common electrode. The second sub-common electrode extends on the second interlayer insulating film in the first direction so as to face the first sub-common electrode, and is cut out on a straight line along which the first main pixel electrode extends. The second main common electrode extends in the second direction facing the source line.
US09733534B2

A display panel comprises a first substrate, a second substrate and a black matrix disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate. The first substrate includes a plurality of pixel areas arranged in a matrix, and each of the pixel areas has a plurality of sub-pixel areas. The second substrate is disposed on the first substrate. The black matrix comprises a plurality of row shading bars and a plurality of column shading bars. The row shading bars are disposed between the two adjacent pixel areas and extend along a first direction, and have a first thickness. The column shading bars are disposed between the two adjacent sub-pixel areas and extend along a second direction, and have a second thickness. The second thickness is different from the first thickness and the first direction is different from the second direction.
US09733533B2

According to one embodiment, a liquid crystal display device includes a first substrate including a first source line and a second source line, a first main pixel electrode of a strip shape, a second main pixel electrode of a strip shape. The first substrate is configured such that a first distance between the first main pixel electrode and the first source line is less than a second distance between the first main pixel electrode and the second source line, and a third distance between the second main pixel electrode and the first source line is greater than a fourth distance between the second main pixel electrode and the second source line.
US09733527B2

A display device includes a first color pixel, a second color pixel neighboring the first color pixel in a first direction, a third color pixel neighboring the second color pixel in the first direction, a fourth color pixel neighboring the first color pixel in a second direction, a fifth color pixel neighboring the second color pixel in the second direction, and a sixth color pixel neighboring the third color pixel in the second direction, wherein each of the first color pixel, the second color pixel, the fourth color pixel and the fifth color pixel has a first long-side length, the third color pixel has a second long-side length which is greater than the first long-side length, and the sixth color pixel has a third long-side length which is less than the first long-side length.
US09733522B2

The present disclosure provides a liquid crystal display device and a method for manufacturing the same. The device includes: a first substrate; a second substrate spaced apart from and opposite to the first substrate; a first lower alignment layer formed on an upper surface of the first substrate; a first upper alignment layer formed on a lower surface of the second substrate; a second alignment layer formed in an array on either or both of an upper surface of the first lower alignment layer and a lower surface of the first upper alignment layer; a polymer barrier positioned between the first substrate and the second substrate, the polymer barrier formed on the array of the second alignment layer; and a liquid crystal positioned between the polymer barriers.
US09733520B2

A display panel includes a gate line, a first data line crossing the gate line, a first voltage applied to the first data line, a second data line in parallel with the first data line and spaced apart from the first data line, a second voltage different from the first voltage applied to the second data line, a first thin film transistor electrically connected to the first data line, a second thin film transistor electrically connected to the second data line, a first pixel electrode electrically connected to the first thin film transistor, and disposed between the first data line and the second data line, and a second pixel electrode electrically connected to the second thin film transistor, and disposed opposite to the first pixel electrode with reference to the second data line.
US09733519B2

A material from which a cured film exhibiting high solvent resistance, liquid crystal-alignment performance, heat resistance and high transparency can be formed. A composition for forming a thermoset film having photo alignment properties, including: a component (A) that is an acrylic copolymer having a photodimerizing moiety and a thermal cross-linking moiety; and a component (B) that is a cross-linking agent.
US09733517B2

A display device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a cover member and a display panel. The cover member includes a base material and a light-shielding layer provided in a frame-like manner. A double-faced adhesive sheet is provided so as to cover the surface of the base material and an edge portion on an inner circumferential side of the light-shielding layer. A plurality of grooves not deep enough to penetrate the light-shielding layer are provided on the edge portion on the inner circumferential side of the light-shielding layer to which the double-faced adhesive sheet is bonded. The grooves extend from the inner circumference toward an outer circumference of the light-shielding layer. The grooves are arranged side by side along the inner circumference of the light-shielding layer.
US09733513B2

A transflective liquid crystal display panel, a manufacturing method thereof and a display device are disclosed. The transflective liquid crystal display panel includes: a first substrate (1) and a second substrate (2) disposed oppositely and a liquid crystal layer (3) between the first substrate (1) and the second substrate (2). The first substrate (1) and the second substrate (2) include transmissive areas and reflective areas. Transmissive areas of the first substrate (1) are provided with a first homogenous alignment layer (11), transmissive areas of the second substrate (2) are provided with a second homogenous alignment layer (21), and the alignment direction of the first homogenous alignment layer (11) and the alignment direction of the second homogenous alignment layer (21) have a predetermined angle. Reflective areas of the first substrate (1) are provided with a third homogenous alignment layer (12) and reflective areas of the second substrate (2) are provided with a homeotropic alignment layer (22). This can realize a transflective liquid crystal display panel with simple structure.
US09733511B2

Provided are a polarizing plate and a liquid crystal display device. The polarizing plate has lighter weight, a smaller thickness, and excellent physical properties such as water resistance, workability, durability, and light leakage preventing ability. In addition, the polarizing plate prevents curling occurring at the polarizing plate or a polarizer in formation thereof, and has excellent thermal resistance or thermal shock resistance.
US09733509B2

A display panel has an active region, a peripheral region, and includes active device array substrate, color filter substrate, spacers, and display medium. The active device array substrate includes first substrate and active device array layer. The color filter substrate includes second substrate, black matrix layer, overcoat layer, and color filter layer. The color filter layer includes color filter patterns in the active region and dummy color filter patterns in the peripheral region. The color filter patterns and the dummy color filter patterns define blank areas outside areas of the color filter patterns and the dummy color filter patterns arranged in a first direction. The blank areas include first blank areas in the active region and second blank areas in the peripheral region and the first blank area has a width different from at least one of the second blank areas in the first direction.
US09733505B2

A liquid crystal layer is disposed on a second glass substrate side between a first glass substrate and the second glass substrate, a first insulating film and a second insulating film are formed in this order on a surface of the first glass substrate on the liquid crystal layer side, the outer edge portion of the liquid crystal layer is surrounded by a sealing material, and a plurality of TFTs are insulated from each other by the first insulating film and the second insulating film. A gate insulating film included in the second insulating film is so formed as to have a higher barrier property for gas and/or liquid than the first insulating film, and a groove having a bottom formed with the same material as a part of the material for forming the TFT is formed at a part or the whole of a peripheral edge portion of the second insulating film which is located more inside than a position at which the second insulating film overlaps the sealing material.
US09733504B2

A mobile computer with a detachable frame is disclosed. According to one embodiment, a mobile computer system includes a tablet computer comprising a display screen and a frame. The frame is removably attached to the tablet computer. The frame is taller than the tablet computer to provide an opening between a top side of the tablet computer and the frame.
US09733498B2

An optical modulator is described. This optical modulator may be implemented using silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. In particular, the optical modulator may include a carrier-accumulation-type micro-disk resonator fabricated using optical waveguides having a composite structure. Moreover, the composite structure may embed a metal-oxide semiconductor capacitor in the disk resonator. For example, the composite structure may include polysilicon disposed on an oxide layer, which is disposed on a silicon layer in an SOI platform. The optical modulator may have high modulation efficiency and high-speed operation. In addition, the optical modulator may have a compact footprint with low power consumption.
US09733496B2

An eyeglass frame including a center portion configured to hold two lenses, a temple member connected to the center portion with a hinge, and a tab connected to the temple member configured to fit underneath the lip of a bottle cap and remove the bottle cap.
US09733493B2

A lens system for presbyopes utilizes inter-eye disparity limits to improve vision. The system of lens may be utilized to improve binocular vision when viewing distant, intermediate and near objects by requiring a minimal level of disparity in vision between the eyes wherein the level is not objectionable to the patient. This disparity in vision depends on the lens design for each eye and upon how the lenses are fit in each eye relative to the distance refraction of the patient.
US09733490B2

A spectacle lens design system includes a first photographing apparatus having a first distance to the subject to photograph the subject and a second photographing apparatus having a second distance to the subject to photograph a visual target. The second distance is farther than first distance. The system determines a position of a subject's eye based on an image of the first photographing apparatus and tentatively calculates a position of the visual target based on an image photographed by second photographing apparatus. The system designs a shape of spectacle lens based on predetermined prescription information and calculated visual line information, where the visual line information is determined based on a determined position of eye and a position of the visual target moved in pseudo manner.
US09733487B2

A retaining device joins with a frame from a pair of eyeglasses to securely retain the eyeglasses to the ears and head. The device is a unitary piece having no fasteners or moving parts, such that the device easily attaches and detaches to the frame. The device includes an arm portion that joins with an arm from the frame. The arm portion includes a front end disposed towards the glasses, and a rear end disposed towards the ears. The arm portion includes a slot that is configured to receive the arm section of the frame. The arm may slide or frictionally snap into the slot. An extension portion extends from the arm portion to partially wrap around the ears, retaining the frame on the ears during rigorous physical activity and while sweating around the ears.
US09733484B2

An image display apparatus includes a display panel that displays an image and a switching panel operated in a two-dimensional mode or three-dimensional mode such that the image is perceived as a two-dimensional mode or three-dimensional image on the display panel. The switching panel includes a plurality of unit devices. Each of the unit devices includes a first zone disposed at one side of a center axis of the unit device and a second zone disposed at the other side of the center axis. Each of the first zone and the second zone includes a plurality of electrodes, respectively. The plurality of electrodes do not overlap the center axis.
US09733482B2

A wearable display apparatus includes a display for providing viewable images. A display support assembly can support the display. The display support assembly can be self centering and telescoping for adjusting the position of the display for viewing by a user. The display support assembly can include right side and left side arm members spaced apart from each other, and a flexibly resilient support member to which the display is mounted between the arm members. The support member can be telescopically mounted to the arm members. The support member can have flexibly resilient right and left side portions secured to the display. Each side portion can be slidably mounted to a respective arm member for telescoping. The support member can have a material cross section that provides stiffness for supporting the display when in a generally horizontal orientation for viewing while also providing resilient flexibility between the arm members to self center the display between the arm members with changes in distances between the arm members.
US09733478B2

A virtual reality glasses assembly is provided. The assembly includes virtual reality glasses having lenses. The assembly further includes light attenuating filters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that automatically maintain or increase a contrast of a projected virtual reality image and prevent ultraviolet light overexposure by adjusting an amount of light passing through the lenses. Each of the light attenuating filters has one or more respective photochromic filters and one or more respective ultraviolet filters. The assembly also includes light attenuating shutters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that automatically or manually further maintain or increase the contrast of the projected virtual reality image by further adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses.
US09733474B2

A method of determining a reference calibration setting for an adaptive optics system (1) comprising a detecting device (8) for detecting light from an object (5); and at least one controllable wavefront modifying device (9) arranged such that light from the object (5) passes via the wavefront modifying device (9) to the detecting device (8). The method comprises the steps of: arranging (100) a light-source between the object (5) and the wavefront modifying device (9) to provide a reference light beam to the detecting device (8) via the wavefront modifying device; for each of a plurality of orthogonal wavefront modes of the wavefront modifying device: controlling (101) the wavefront modifying device to vary a magnitude of the orthogonal wavefront mode over a predetermined number of magnitude settings; acquiring (102) a series of readings of the detecting device, each reading corresponding to one of the magnitude settings; determining (103) a quality metric value indicative of an information content of the reading for each reading in the series of readings, resulting in a series of quality metric values; and determining (106) a reference parameter set for the wavefront modifying device corresponding to an optimum quality metric value based on the series of quality metric values.
US09733469B2

A color wheel, comprises a hub portion, configured to act as a rotor for coupling to a motor and having a disk-shaped surface; an optically active radial portion, attached to or integrated with the hub portion and configured to optically process incident light; and a balancing adaptation to the disk-shaped surface of the hub portion, comprising one or more of: (a) a recess in the disk-shaped surface extending to an edge of the disk-shaped surface; (b) an annular groove in the disk-shaped surface having a non-uniform width and/or being non-concentric with the disk-shaped surface; (c) an annular groove in the disk-shaped surface, at least a portion of which is filled by a balancing mass part; and (d) a groove and/or a matrix of recesses in the disk-shaped surface arranged to define a portion of an annulus in shape.
US09733468B2

The invention concerns an electrically controllable display element (1) for an optical display device, with a structured layer (2) that has a plurality pixels (3), and with at least one electrode layer (6) directly or indirectly over a structured side (2.1) of the structured layer (2), as well as with an active matrix (7) having thin film transistors, which has selectively controllable electrodes, such that individual or multiple particular pixels (3) can be charged with an electric field, characterized by the fact that the at least one electrode layer (6) extends in one piece over the structured side (2.1) of the structured layer (2), and that the active matrix (7) in the viewing direction is arranged on the display element (1) above the electrode layer (6).
US09733465B2

Evanescently-coupled planar waveguides for enhancing total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy are disclosed. The waveguides include multiple thin layers of one or more materials on a cover slip arranged resonantly enhance the optical field at the surface of the layer stack by evanescently coupling to a leaky guided mode.
US09733464B2

A focus detection unit to adjust a focal point of an image, of an object, formed by an optical system includes a first output section, a second output section, and a projection optical system. The first output section includes a first light modulation element configured to generate a first pattern image based on incident light and is configured to output the generated first pattern image. The second output section includes a second light modulation element configured to generate a second pattern image based on incident light and is configured to output the generated second pattern image. The projection optical system is configured to project the output first pattern image and the output second pattern image such that the output first pattern image and the output second pattern image have a predetermined positional relationship at an in-focus position of the optical system.
US09733458B2

Aspects relate to an array camera exhibiting little or no parallax artifacts in captured images. For example, the planes of the central mirror surfaces of the array camera can be located at a midpoint along, and orthogonally to, a line between the corresponding camera location and the virtual camera location. Accordingly, the cones of all of the cameras in the array appear as if coming from the virtual camera location after folding by the mirrors. Each sensor in the array “sees” a portion of the image scene using a corresponding facet of the central mirror prism, and accordingly each individual sensor/mirror pair represents only a sub-aperture of the total array camera. The complete array camera has a synthetic aperture generated based on the sum of all individual aperture rays.
US09733456B1

A six-piece optical lens for capturing image and a six-piece optical module for capturing image are provided. In order from an object side to an image side, the optical lens along the optical axis includes a first lens with refractive power, a second lens with refractive power, a third lens with refractive power, a fourth lens with refractive power, a fifth lens with refractive power and a sixth lens with refractive power. At least one of the image-side surface and object-side surface of each of the six lens elements is aspheric. The optical lens can increase aperture value and improve the imagining quality for use in compact cameras.
US09733448B1

Techniques and architecture are disclosed for stabilizing optical/imaging componentry over a broad range of environmental conditions and stressors. A flexure-based focus mechanism provided using the disclosed techniques may help to minimize or otherwise reduce the effects of a wide variety of stressors (e.g., vibration, torque, thermal expansion/contraction, etc.), thus assisting with achieving and/or maintaining fine focus with an optical/imaging component. In some cases, such a mechanism can be: (1) operatively coupled with a given optical/imaging system component; and/or (2) integrated therewith. In some instances, an optional drive assembly may be implemented in conjunction with such a mechanism to assist with achieving and/or maintaining fine focus.
US09733447B2

An imaging module (camera module 50) includes a movable portion (holder 4 and coil 5) which fixes a first lens group (1) and is displaced in an optical axis direction thereof, and a non-movable portion (magnet 6, yoke 7, and base 8) which fixes a second lens group (2) and is not displaced in the optical axis direction, and includes a focus adjustment mechanism (actuator 20A) fixed to the substrate.
US09733443B2

A fiber optic cable includes a core and a binder film surrounding the core. The core includes a central strength member and core elements, such as buffer tubes containing optical fibers, where the core elements are stranded around the central strength member in a pattern of stranding including reversals in lay direction of the core elements. The binder film is in radial tension around the core such that the binder film opposes outwardly transverse deflection of the core elements. Further, the binder film loads the core elements normally to the central strength member such that contact between the core elements and central strength member provides coupling there between, limiting axial migration of the core elements relative to the central strength member.
US09733439B2

This optical receptacle comprises the following: an optical-receptacle body that is formed via injection molding; a first optical surface; a second optical surface on a first side; a first concavity that has an angled surface whereby light that has entered via the first optical surface is reflected towards the second optical surface; a gate section on a third side; a first through-hole and a second through-hole that extend in the direction of the axis of light traveling between the second optical surface and a light-transporting body; and a second concavity located between the first concavity and the third side. The part of the second concavity closest to a second side is closer to the abovementioned first side than the part of the gate section closest to the first side is. The first through-hole also opens to a first-side surface and a second-side surface of the second concavity.
US09733432B2

A 3D-MEMS optical switch is disclosed. In an embodiment, the 3D-MEMS optical switch includes a collimator array, a PD array, a wedge prism, a light-splitting triangular prism, a micro-electro-mechanical system MEMS micro-mirror, and a core optical switch controller that is connected to the PD array and the MEMS micro-mirror. In the present invention, the PD array is integrated into a core optical switch, which simplifies an architecture of the optical switch and reduces a volume of the optical switch; the wedge prism and the light-splitting triangular prism are used to perform light splitting, and some optical signals are transmitted to the PD array to detect optical power, so that the core optical switch controller adjusts the MEMS micro-mirror according to the optical power, which is detected by the PD array, of the optical signal, making an insertion loss of the 3D-MEMS optical switch meet a preset attenuation range.
US09733430B2

A method of manufacturing an optical waveguide with a vertical slot including the steps of a) providing a substrate successively including an electric insulator layer and a crystalline semiconductor layer, b) forming a trench on the semiconductor layer to expose the electric insulator layer and defining first and second semiconductor areas on either side, step b) being executed so that the first semiconductor area has a lateral edge extending across the entire thickness of the semiconductor layer, c) forming the dielectric layer having the predetermined width across the entire thickness of the lateral edge, the method being remarkable in that the trench formed at step b) is configured so that the second semiconductor area forms a seed layer.
US09733418B2

A light source module is provided. At least one light-emitting device emits light and is disposed beside the light guide plate. A light guide plate includes a first surface, a second surface being opposite to the first surface and a light-entering surface connecting the first surface with the second surface. At least one first light guide end, which is located in front of the light-emitting device, and at least one second light guide end, which is connected to the first light guide end, are located on a side of the light guide plate where the light-entering surface is located. A first light-transmitting medium at least located at the first light guide end on the first surface has a refractive index which is larger then a refractive index of a medium or space located at the second light guide end on the first surface. A display device is also provided.
US09733409B2

The present invention relates to the technical field of display, and discloses a light guide plate, a backlight source and a display apparatus, for solving the problem of the exit light non-uniformity of the backlight source. The light guide plate comprises a light guide plate main body and at least one boss, the light guide plate main body comprises a first light entrance surface, a first light exit surface intersecting with the first light entrance surface, and a first bottom surface opposed to the first light exit surface; the boss is located on the first light entrance surface and comprises a second bottom surface adjoining the first light entrance surface, a top surface opposed to the second bottom surface, as well as two end faces and two side surfaces respectively intersecting with the top surface and the second bottom surface at two ends, wherein the area of the top surface is less than that of the second bottom surface, the two end faces are respectively flush with the first bottom surface and the first light exit surface, and the two side surfaces are respectively slope surfaces which may be used as a second light entrance surface. The light guide plate mentioned by the present invention is used to improve the exit light uniformity of the backlight source.
US09733408B2

A display device 10 includes a display panel 11, a light source row 170, a light guide plate 16, a chassis 14 and a recess portion 134b that is fitted the chassis 14. The light guide plate 16 includes a positioning projection portion 160 that is fitted to the recess portion 134b. The positioning projection portion 160 projects outwardly from a side edge surface 16e of the light guide plate 16. The positioning projection portion 160 has a projection, and among rays of light emitted from an end light source 17X included in the light source row 170 and entering the light guide plate through a light entrance surface 16b, narrow-angle light L2 directed outward at an angle α (a critical angle θc) with respect to an optical axis L1 enters the projection. The positioning projection portion 160 includes a first edge surface 161 and a second edge surface 162. The first edge surface 161 is parallel to a side edge surface 16e and the narrow-angle light L2 reaches the first edge surface 161. The second edge surface 162 is between the side edge surface 16e and the first end surface 161 and is inclined such that an external angle β between the first edge surface 161 and the second edge surface 162 is equal to or smaller than the critical angle θc.
US09733397B2

An anti-reflection coat includes an intermediate layer and a low refractive index layer sequentially stacked on a substrate, and preventing the reflection of incident light by optical interference effect, wherein the low refractive index layer is a film formed on the surface of the intermediate layer by a wet film formation method using a coating liquid including layer-constituting raw materials which includes hollow silica particles adhering each other with a binder, and the intermediate layer is a layer mainly composed of an organometallic compound which adheres well to the binder and having wettability to the coating liquid; and provides an optical device including the anti-reflection coat.
US09733396B2

A method for manufacturing a touch panel includes the following steps. A touch-sensing unit is provided. A decoration layer is formed on the touch-sensing unit. And, a cover lens is disposed on the decoration layer. A touch panel is also provided. A touch panel includes a cover lens, a touch-sensing unit, and a first decoration layer separating the cover lens from the touch-sensing unit, wherein the first decoration layer and the touch-sensing unit have a first adhesive force per unit area therebetween, the first decoration layer and the cover lens have a second adhesive force per unit area therebetween, and the first adhesive force per unit area is greater than the second adhesive force per unit area.
US09733395B2

The disclosure relates to a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, such as are used for the production of large-scale integrated electrical circuits and other microstructured components. The disclosure relates in particular to coatings of optical elements in order to increase or reduce the reflectivity.
US09733389B2

A downhole sampling tool is operated to obtain formation fluid from a subterranean formation, which then flows through a flowline of the downhole sampling tool. Real-time density and optical density sensors of the downhole sampling tool are co-located proximate the flowline. Contamination of the formation fluid in the flowline is then determined based, at least in part, on the real-time density and optical density measurements obtained utilizing the co-located sensors.
US09733387B2

A set of geological exploration methods of using the non-section methods and rotary networks formed by triangulated irregulars. It aims to directly construct high-precision three-dimensional models, plans and sections for solving the drawbacks of existing geological exploration methods, such as the dispersion of drill holes, the faults tracking, the controlling of structures, minelayers/stratum/ore bodies, the bending correction of drill holes, and the geological map-making methods.
US09733379B2

A line locator system that includes a metal detector is disclosed. In accordance with some embodiments of the invention, the line locator system includes a digital signal processor in a housing; a line locator portion mounted in the housing and coupled to the digital signal processor; and an active metal detector mounted in the housing and coupled to the digital signal processor.
US09733373B2

The invention generally relates to methods of modeling and building models of oil-and-gas deposits. More particularly, the invention relates to a computer-implemented method, a computerized system, and a computer-readable medium designed for automated identification of surfaces for building a geologic-hydrodynamic model of an oil and gas deposit based on seismic data. A technical result is the improvement of the accuracy of building a geological-hydrodynamic model of an oil-and-gas deposit. The objective of embodiments of the invention is to provide a method, device, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium designed for the implementation of stages accounting for a considerable part of the entire problem of building a geological-hydrodynamic model, namely, automated (that is, requiring the user to participate only in the stage of initial data input) building of a set of surfaces based on input seismic data. The output surfaces can be used, without additional processing, to construct a geological-hydrodynamic grid.
US09733372B2

A method and system for prospecting for gas hydrates and gas hydrates over free gas is disclosed. The method includes using well log data to form a rock physics model to generate synthetic seismic representing hydrate and hydrate-over-gas models. Spectral decomposition is applied to the synthetic seismic and to field seismic from the prospecting area, forming low frequency narrow band data sets. From mapped potential sands in the field data, compare positive amplitude dominated event in the narrow band field data to the narrow band synthetics for gas hydrates. Compare negative amplitude dominated event in the narrow band field data to the narrow band synthetics for gas or gas hydrate-over gas. From these comparisons, perform modeling to determine saturation and thickness for hydrates and hydrates-over-gas.
US09733370B2

A seismic streamer includes a sensor comprises an axially oriented body including a plurality of axially oriented channels arranged in opposing pairs; a plurality of hydrophones arranged in opposing pairs in the channels; a pair of orthogonally oriented acoustic particle motion sensors; and a tilt sensor adjacent or associated with the particle motion sensors. The streamer has a plurality of hydrophones, as previously described, aligned with a plurality of accelerometers which detect movement of the streamer in the horizontal and vertical directions, all coupled with a tilt sensor, so that the marine seismic system can detect whether a detected seismic signal is a reflection from a geologic structure beneath the streamer or a downward traveling reflection from the air/seawater interface.
US09733369B2

Provided are a neutron monitor device and a neutron measurement method which make it easier to measure the intensity of the neutrons having the energy region of 10 KeV to several hundreds KeV. A neutron monitor device includes a first detector which includes a hemispherical first body formed of PE and having a radius of 31 mm, a first specimen containing GaN disposed at the center of the first body, a Cd layer provided on an outer surface of the first body, and a B layer provided inside the first body, and a second detector which includes a hemispherical second body formed of PE and having a radius of 27 mm, a second specimen containing GaN disposed at the center of the second body, a B layer provided on the outer surface of the second body, and a Cd layer provided inside the second body.
US09733363B2

Devices and methods are directed to estimating a position of the device/user using a delta range measurement (DRM) module to measure a range difference between first and second range values for first and second time instants based on, e.g., carrier phase measurements. The time period between the first and second time instants may be greater than a periodic interval at which a new phase value is sampled. This architecture of the DRM module provides extended delta ranges values which also overlap in time, enabling a combination of improved dilution of precision and keeping fast generation of delta range values suitable for use in continuous filtering. A filter, e.g., a Kalman filter, may be used compute current estimates of two positions, or a combination of a position and a position difference, of the device based at least on the range difference and a priori estimate(s) of the position(s) of the device.
US09733356B1

A system for monitoring animate presence, including one or more ultrasonic transducers configured to transmit an ultrasonic signal, one or more ultrasonic receivers configured to receive an echo signal in response to the transmitted ultrasonic signal, an electronic circuit for comparing the transmitted signal to the received echo signal and identify a phase shift between the signals; wherein the electronic circuit identifies animate presence based on the identified phase shift.
US09733350B2

Methods and systems are provided for controlling a radar system of a vehicle. One or more transmitters are configured to transmit radar signals. A plurality of receivers are configured to receive return radar signals after the transmitted radar signals are deflected from an object proximate the vehicle. A processor is coupled to the plurality of receivers, and is configured to generate a plurality of feature vectors based on the returned radar signals and generate a three dimensional representation of the object using the plurality of feature vectors.
US09733347B2

A radar transmitter Txs (s=1) generates a baseband transmission signal by modulating a first code sequence having a prescribed code length on the basis of a first transmission timing signal and gives a first transmission phase shift corresponding to each transmission cycle to the transmission signal. A radar receiver Txs (s=2) generates a baseband transmission signal by modulating a second code sequence having the prescribed code length on the basis of a second transmission timing signal and gives, to the transmission signal, a second transmission phase shift that correspond to each transmission cycle and opposite to the first transmission phase.
US09733338B1

A method for locating an interferer is provided. The method includes determining, from one of a time difference of arrival (TDOA) signature and a frequency difference of arrival (FDOA) signature between a first signal received at a satellite at a first location and a second signal received at the same satellite at a second location, a first curve on which the interferer lies, determining, from direction of arrival information generated using signals received from the interferer at a plurality of elements of a linear array on the satellite, a second curve on which the interferer lies, and determining, based on an intersection between the first and second curves, the location of the interferer.
US09733336B2

A system for local metal distortion correction for using an accurate electromagnetic tracking system in a medical environment comprises an electromagnetic field generator monitoring a medical device having a suitable sensor coil. A correction function, derived from an error correction tool, is applied to the position and orientation readings of the sensor coil. The error correction tool comprises a number of electromagnetic sensors arranged in a fixed and known geometric configuration and is placed surrounding the site of the medical procedure. Sensor data is displayed on an imaging system. In addition, a distortion mapping can be done utilizing optical sensors for relative positioning readings along with an electromagnetic tracking system sensor.
US09733332B2

A personnel monitoring system. The personnel monitoring system includes a host node having an optical source for generating optical signals, and an optical receiver. The personnel monitoring system also includes a plurality of fiber optic sensors for converting at least one of vibrational and acoustical energy to optical intensity information, each of the fiber optic sensors having: (1) at least one length of optical fiber configured to sense at least one of vibrational and acoustical energy; (2) a reflector at an end of the at least one length of optical fiber; and (3) a field node for receiving optical signals from the host node, the field node transmitting optical signals along the at least one length of optical fiber, receiving optical signals back from the at least one length of optical fiber, and transmitting optical signals to the optical receiver of the host node.
US09733327B2

In order to provide an NMR imaging device capable of distinguishing substances that cannot be distinguished by T2H, an NMR imaging device (1) according to this invention includes: a probe (3) capable of housing a sample in a static gradient magnetic field; an application portion (5) configured to apply a π pulse having a Larmor frequency corresponding to the static gradient magnetic field at a predetermined position of the sample to the sample in a multiplexed manner at a predetermined time interval; and an image processing portion (7) configured to determine a relaxation time based on a nuclear magnetic resonance signal of the sample, and perform imaging of the relaxation time.
US09733323B2

The invention relates to a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy device adapted for carrying out 1D and nD homo- and heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy measurements of a plurality of nuclei, comprising an RF coil adapted to transmit RF to and/or receive RF from a measuring volume, wherein the RF coil forms part of a non-tuned radiofrequency circuit. The invention further relates to a method of NMR data acquisition, a method of manufacturing a NMR spectroscopy device and a NMR-device holder.
US09733321B2

A magnetic resonance tomography apparatus includes a receiving device having a number of magnetic resonance receive antennas for receiving a magnetic resonance signal in response to a radio frequency signal transmitted at a magnetic resonance frequency. A respective magnetic resonance receive antenna is connected to a parametric mixer. A receive circuit formed hereby is provided inside the cryostat and is coupled via a contactless communication interface to an evaluation circuit provided outside the cryostat. The evaluation circuit includes a local oscillator device for generating an auxiliary signal at an auxiliary frequency. The auxiliary signal is transmitted via the contactless communication interface to the receive circuit. The receive circuit is configured such that a mixed signal having a mixed frequency is generated via the parametric mixer from the auxiliary signal and the magnetic resonance signal and transmitted via the contactless communication interface to the evaluation circuit.
US09733316B2

The present invention discloses a triaxial magnetoresistive sensor. It comprises a substrate integrated with a biaxial magnetic field sensor, a Z-axis sensor that has a sensing direction along Z-axis perpendicular to the two axes of the biaxial magnetic field sensor, and an ASIC. The biaxial magnetic field sensor comprises an X-axis bridge sensor and a Y-axis bridge sensor. The Z-axis sensor and the two-axis sensor are electrically interconnected with the ASIC. A single-chip implementation of the triaxial magnetic field sensor comprises a substrate, onto which a triaxial magnetic field sensor and an ASIC are stacked. The triaxial magnetic field sensor comprises an X-axis bridge sensor, a Y-axis bridge sensor, and a Z-axis bridge sensor. The above design provides a highly integrated sensor with high sensitivity, low power consumption, good linearity, wide dynamic range, excellent thermal stability, and low magnetic noise.
US09733310B2

A battery management unit includes a plurality of monitoring IC chips each configured to detect at least one operating parameter of at least one battery cell or battery module, which has a predetermined number of battery cells and is connected to a first bus. The battery management unit further includes a control unit and a basis monitoring IC chip which is likewise connected to the first bus and is configured to communicate with each of the monitoring IC chips via the first bus. The basis monitoring IC chip and the control unit are connected to a second bus and are configured to communicate with each other via the second bus. The basis monitoring IC chip and the control unit are arranged on a common circuit board.
US09733300B2

A printed circuit arrangement employs a printed circuit board having a corrosion test circuit provided with at least two conductive pads which are located proximate to each other in a measuring area. The arrangement uses a measuring device to identify corrosion on other defects in the circuit board including short circuits and/or line cuts. One pad is an excitation pad, being connected to an excitation signal source, and the other pad is a response pad, whereby the measuring device is connected at least to the response pad.
US09733296B2

A low-side (LS) output pre-driver has a short-circuit-to-battery fault detection scheme for a MOSFET switch having a drain connection to a load connected to a battery voltage and a source connection tied to ground. The LS output pre-driver includes a comparator, a reference voltage selector, a multi-phase blank/filter, a multi-phase control timer. The first signal of the multi-phase control timer instructs the reference voltage selector to select which of the plurality of reference voltage signals is provided to the second input of the comparator. The second signal of the multi-phase control timer instructs the multi-phase blank/filter to change from one of the plurality of time intervals to another of the plurality of time intervals.
US09733295B2

A sensor circuit, including at least a first sensor arranged to selectively receive a first test current; a first digital-to-analog converter, DAC, arranged to receive a first signal from the first sensor and output a first compensation signal in response thereto; a second DAC arranged to receive a second signal from a second sensor and output a second compensation signal in response thereto; and a controller operably coupled to the first and second DACs and operable to determine from at least one of: the first compensation signal and second compensation signal whether a short condition exists between the first sensor and the second sensor.
US09733293B1

Techniques are described for testing a capacitive touch panel for the presence or absence of discontinuities. A pixel matrix is determined for a capacitive touch panel. The pixel matrix comprises pixel values representative of mutual capacitance of respective pixels of the capacitive touch panel. A difference matrix is generated from the pixel matrix. The difference matrix contains differences in pixel values for respective pixels of the capacitive touch panel with respect to pixel values of adjacent pixels. A determination may then be made from the difference matrix whether respective ones of the pixels of the capacitive touch panel contain a discontinuity.
US09733286B2

A method for identifying an electric appliance and an apparatus and a system thereof are provided. The method includes the following steps: respectively collecting a first power event on a first phase power and a second power event on a second phase power; when the first power event and/or the second power event are collected, determining whether the first power event and the second power event substantially occur at the same time; if not, identifying an unknown electric appliance as a first type electric appliance; and if yes, determining whether the first power event and the second power event are substantially the same, wherein if yes, identifying the unknown electric appliance as a second type electric appliance, and if no, identifying the unknown electric appliance as the first type electric appliance.
US09733275B2

A current detection module capable of differentiating and quantifying contribution to a current signal generated by a sensor in response to stimulation by a certain target source from contributions from sources other than the target source (ambient sources) is disclosed. As long as the contribution from the target source comprises a pulsed signal, the module may synchronize itself to the pulse(s) so that there is a predetermined phase relationship between the pulse(s) and functions carried out by various stages of the module. The module may be re-used to also detect and quantify contributions from ambient sources by presenting these contributions to the module as pulses that trigger synchronization of the module. To that end, a detection system disclosed herein is based on the use of such current detection module and allows mode switching where, depending on the selected mode of operation, the module is configured to perform different measurements.
US09733273B2

The time required to test an electronic device mounted in semiconductor manufacturing equipment can be reduced. A first test panel mounted, on a first connector surface thereof, with plural first test-object connectors respectively including plural first terminals electrically coupled to an electronic device and a second test panel mounted, on a second connector surface thereof, with plural second test-object connectors respectively including plural spring probes are provided. The first connector surface of the first test panel and the second connector surface of the second test panel are positioned to face each other, the spring probes included in the second test-object connectors are electrically coupled to the first terminals included in the first test-object connectors, and a functional test concerning an electrical characteristic of the electronic device is performed.
US09733271B2

Systems and methods for providing an enhanced user experience at an event or venue are provided. The systems and methods provided herein provide venue-specific location-based services to the user through the user's mobile device. Such services include allowing a user to order merchandise and concessions from their seat using their mobile device and delivering the ordered items to their seat. Such services also include determining a user's seat location from a scanned code on the user's ticket and providing a map to and from their seat.
US09733267B2

For determining a changing spatial distribution of particles at each of multiple points in time, real two-dimensional images of the particles are recorded with different mapping functions. An estimated spatial distribution of the particles is provided. Virtual two-dimensional images of the estimated spatial distribution are calculated applying the different mapping functions. Differences between the virtual and the real two-dimensional images are determined; and the estimated spatial distribution of the particles are varied for reducing the differences to obtain a spatial distribution approximated to the actual spatial distribution of the particles. The estimated spatial distribution of the particles is provided in that the locations of the individual particles in a spatial distribution approximated for one other point in time are shifted dependently on how the locations of the individual particles have changed between at least two spatial distributions approximated for at least two other points in time.
US09733252B2

Methods and systems for plasmonically enhanced bionanoantennas for tagging, tracking, and locating targets of interest at long distances in both day and nighttime conditions. The nanoantennas are used to tag a target of interest and emit a wavelength to impart a unique biometric signature. The nanoantennas are detectable by selectively harvesting and plasmonically enhancing incident light in the visible region, then upconverting that energy through an activated phosphor.
US09733250B2

The present invention provides devices and methods for capturing rare cells. The devices and methods described herein can be used to facilitate the diagnosis and monitoring of metastatic cancers.
US09733241B2

Provided herein are compositions useful in detecting degradative enzymes and biomolecules in bodily fluid samples.
US09733239B2

Reconfigurable microfluidic systems are based on networks of microfluidic cavities connected by hydrophobic microfluidic channels. Each cavity is classified as either a reservoir or a node, and includes a pressure port via which gas pressure may be applied. Sequences of gas pressures, applied to reservoirs and nodes according to a fluid transfer rule, enable fluid to be moved from any reservoir to any other reservoir in a system. Systems may be configured with multiple switched interaction regions connected in series for scalable, multiplexed immunoassays. Multiple, switched interaction regions may also be implemented with microvalves.
US09733237B2

The present invention provides, inter alia, methods for identifying a candidate agent that may be effective to treat or ameliorate an effect of a neurodegenerative disease in a subject. These methods include: (a) contacting a wildtype neuron and a mutant neuron with a stressor which is effective to accelerate the degeneration of the mutant neuron; (b) further contacting the wildtype neuron and the mutant neuron from step (a) with a candidate agent; and (c) determining whether the candidate agent lowers a wildtype to mutant survival ratio or increases both wildtype and mutant neuron survival.
US09733235B2

The present invention provides methods for designing a filtration systems for capturing viable tumor cells, such as circulating tumor cells at high efficiency and high viability. The methods involve development of a set of “key engineering design parameters” that are crucial to achieve high tumor cell viability. These important design parameters include the filter geometry design, fluid delivery method, transfilter pressure and total filtration time.
US09733234B2

A device is described for generating ionized molecules for analysis in a mass spectrometer. The device includes: a solid substrate having one or more edges and a coated area that is coated with an extraction phase comprising an extraction polymer. The solid substrate may have at least two edges that meet at an angle from about 8° to about 180°. Mass spectrometry systems that include such a device are also described. Methods of analyzing a molecule previously extracted from a sample onto the device are also described.
US09733225B2

A replaceable spectroscopic detector used in volatile organic compounds testing devices, such as a portable breath testing device for roadside drug testing or a testing device for any air handling systems, such as those used for indoor agriculture, which reversibly sorb compounds and prepare a concentrated sample in a single gas cell configured for performing spectroscopy of the contents within the cell.The disclosed invention comprising; one or more check valves, a source of electromagnetic radiation and an electromagnetic receiver that releasably connects to a volatile organic compounds testing device such that it is replaceable and is configured for performing spectroscopy and passing exhaled breath and/or airflow through a disposable and replaceable reversibly engaging cartridge comprising a reversible sorbent and a gas cell configured for spectroscopy. The invention further comprises a heater that preferably is included in the cartridge for heating the cell and desorbing the sorbed compounds preparing a concentrated sample inside the gas cell.
US09733221B2

An injection needle cartridge for a sample injector for injecting a sample fluid into a mobile phase in a fluidic path of a fluid separation system between a mobile phase drive and a separation unit, the injection needle cartridge comprising an injection needle configured for aspirating the sample fluid from a fluid container when the injection needle has been moved to the fluid container, and for injecting aspirated sample fluid into the fluidic path when the injection needle is sealingly accommodated in a needle seat, and a sealing force generator configured for applying a sealing force to the injection needle for sealingly accommodating the injection needle in the needle seat, wherein the injection needle cartridge is configured for being substitutably mountable on a handling robot of the sample injector for handling the injection needle cartridge between the fluid container and the needle seat.
US09733217B2

The invention relates to a method for providing a structural condition of a structure, comprising providing an excitation wave generator; providing an excitation wave sensor; injecting an excitation burst wave into the structure using the excitation wave generator; obtaining a measured propagated excitation burst wave using the excitation wave sensor; correlating the measured propagated excitation burst wave with one of a plurality of theoretical dispersed versions of the excitation burst wave; and providing an indication of the structural condition of the structure corresponding to the correlated measured propagated excitation burst wave. The method may offer a better localization of the reflection points and thus of the potential defects present in a structure under inspection, when compared with a group velocity-based or time-of-flight (ToF) approach. The method may be particularly useful for structural health monitoring (SHM) and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT). The method may also enable determination of the mechanical properties of the structure.
US09733216B2

An inspection apparatus (100) for monitoring the structural integrity of a pipeline (101) comprising a central electromagnetic device (102) suitable for generating a magnetic field (106); a pair of magnetic conveyors (103′, 103″) connected to the central electromagnetic device (102) suitable for conveying the magnetic field (106) to the wall of the pipeline (101); a system of sensors (104) for revealing the magnetic field (106) conveyed on the pipeline (101); electric means (105) for feeding the inspection apparatus (100) and acquiring and storing data relating to the magnetic field (106) revealed; wherein said central electromagnetic device (102) is divided into various ferromagnetic elements (107) held together by a casing (109) made of polymeric material suitable for degrading after prolonged contact with a mixture of hydrocarbons. Method wherein an inspection apparatus according to the present invention is used for monitoring the structural integrity of a pipeline (101).
US09733215B2

Methods and systems for performing mass spectrometry are provided herein. In accordance with various aspects of the applicants' teachings, the methods and systems can utilize an ion mobility spectrometer operating at atmospheric or low-vacuum pressure to remove the major contributors to the contamination and degradation of critical downstream components of a mass spectrometer located within a high-vacuum system (e.g., ion optics, mass filters, detectors), with limited signal loss.
US09733208B2

A gas sensor according to the present invention includes a sensor element made of a solid electrolyte and having at least a cylindrical portion arranged coaxially with an axis of the sensor element and a front end portion closing a front end of the cylindrical portion and a heater formed into either a cylindrical shape or a cylindrical column shape and located inside the sensor element to heat the sensor element by heat generation thereof, wherein a front end portion of the heater is in contact with an inner surface of the front end portion of the sensor element; and wherein a lateral portion of the heater is in contact with an inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion of the sensor element.
US09733203B2

A wireless chemical sensor includes an electrical conductor and a material separated therefrom by an electric insulator. The electrical conductor is an unconnected open-circuit shaped for storage of an electric field and a magnetic field. In the presence of a time-varying magnetic field, the first electrical conductor resonates to generate harmonic electric and magnetic field responses. The material is positioned at a location lying within at least one of the electric and magnetic field responses so-generated. The material changes in electrical conductivity in the presence of a chemical-of-interest.
US09733195B2

A system for inspecting surfaces of rotor blades for a surface characteristic. The system may include an assembly having a movable arm and, mounted on the movable arm, a scanner. A row of rotor blades may be positioned near the assembly for inspection. The row of rotor blades may include a plurality of the rotor blades circumferentially spaced about a center axis. The row of rotor blades and the assembly may be moved relative to the other so as to index the row of rotor blades relative to the assembly.
US09733194B2

A method for reviewing a defect including a light capturing step that illuminates a sample with light under plural optical conditions, while varying only at least one of illumination conditions, sample conditions, or detection conditions, and detects plural lights scattering from the sample; a signal obtaining step that obtains plural signals based on the lights detected; and a processing step that discriminates a defect from noise according to a waveform characteristic quantity, an image characteristic quantity, or a value characteristic quantity created using the signals and derives the coordinates of defect.
US09733191B2

Various embodiments include apparatus and methods to operate a tool downhole in a well, where the tool has an optical computation element to determine different properties of downhole structures. Such an optical computation element can be structured to provide optical analysis of fluid and material composition of the downhole environment associated with a drilling operation. The data measurements from the optical computation element can be used in a geosteering operation. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.
US09733185B2

The present invention relates to a device for interfacing nanofluidic and microfluidic components suitable for use in performing high throughput macromolecular analysis. Diffraction gradient lithography (DGL) is used to form a gradient interface between a microfluidic area and a nanofluidic area. The gradient interface area reduces the local entropic barrier to nanochannels formed in the nanofluidic area. In one embodiment, the gradient interface area is formed of lateral spatial gradient structures for narrowing the cross section of a value from the micron to the nanometer length scale. In another embodiment, the gradient interface area is formed of a vertical sloped gradient structure. Additionally, the gradient structure can provide both a lateral and vertical gradient.
US09733181B2

Incoherent millimeter wave, sub-millimeter wave and terahertz test signals are used to probe metal substrates covered by a protective coating or outer layer, such as paint or thermal insulation, obscuring direct assessment of the substrate. The incoherent test signals, provide signal dispersion and angular variation of the test signals with respect to angular incidence to the substrate. Illumination of the substrate permits differentiation between un-corroded and corroded sections of the sample because reflectivity (and emissivity) from a metal-based substrate is heavily dependent on the surface resistivity which is dependent on the corroded state. A detector/camera is arranged to pick up reflections from the substrate and an associated control system identifies regions of the sample that reflect the test signal illumination differently or otherwise indicate a variation from a reference value. The differences therefore signify the presence or lack of corrosion or other abnormalities within or on the substrate.
US09733180B2

A bolometric detector including an absorption membrane, for converting an incident electromagnetic radiation into heat; and a reflector, for reflecting to the absorption membrane part of the incident electromagnetic radiation having passed there through, is provided. The bolometric detector includes a non-metallic layer, situated between the absorption membrane and the reflector, having a series of index jumps, so as to form a network resonating at a wavelength of interest λ0; the mean pitch of the network is less than λ0; and the optical distance between the absorption membrane and the reflector is substantially equal to a multiple of λ0/2.
US09733175B2

The invention provides a full-automatic erythrocyte sedimentation rate analyzer, which comprises a base as well as a blending device and a detecting device mounted on the base, wherein the blending device comprises a sample rack, a sample rack bracket and a rotating device; the sample rack bracket is arranged on the base, and is connected to the sample rack through a rotating shaft; more than one test tube rack is arranged on the sample rack; the rotating device is connected to the rotating shaft, and drives the rotating shaft to rotationally drive the sample rack to turn over up and down; a plurality of holes are arranged in each test tube rack; a fixing device is arranged in the hole, and used for placing and fixing a closed container containing samples; the detecting device comprises a guide device, a driving device, infrared transmitting and receiving devices having the same quantity as that of the test tube racks, and a mounting rack; the driving device drives the mounting rack to move up and down along the guide device; the mounting rack drives the infrared transmitting and receiving devices to move; the closed containers containing the samples are located on moving paths of the infrared transmitting and receiving devices; and infrared rays penetrate through the closed containers to realize detecting.
US09733170B2

A method of extracting an analyte from a sample is described where the sample includes water. The sample and polymeric drying agent are added to a container. The polymeric drying agent includes a cationic monomer, an anionic monomer, and a crosslinker. The polymeric drying agent is configured to sorb water from the sample.
US09733169B2

A pipette tip device for use in dispersive SPE. The device includes a pipette tip having a lower barrier, loose sorbent that is freely moveable during the extraction process, and a baffle system that is shaped to disrupt the flow of liquid sample that is aspirated into the pipette tip. The baffle system includes an insert that may be separate from or monolithic with the interior of the pipette tip.
US09733163B2

The present invention relates to a holding apparatus (10) for receiving specimen slides (1), having a holder (3, 4, 5) for handling the holding apparatus (10) and having at least two identification units (2a, 2b) that make available different information items to enable characterization of the orientation of the holding apparatus (10) in a stainer or coverslipper.
US09733162B2

Described herein are methods, compositions, kits and systems for fixing biological samples. In one aspect, the method includes contacting the tissue sample with a fixing composition comprising about 20 to about 80% v/v DMSO. The solutions of the dehydration and clearing steps also include DMSO. Tissues fixed according to the methods described herein (and using the compositions herein described) may be fixed at a more rapid rate as compared to conventional procedures, but with comparable results.
US09733152B2

An optical coherence tomography (OCT) measurement system for precision measurement of a translucent sample is provided. The system includes an optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging system comprising a broadband light source, a reference path with reference path length, and sample path with a beam scanning assembly and an imaging lens assembly; a sample positioning assembly including an immersion bath for positioning the translucent sample within an immersion bath; a position assembly for locating the translucent sample within a field of view (FOV) of the OCT imaging system; an immersion lens assembly associated with the imaging lens assembly configured to eliminate an air to bath refractive interface between a distal surface of the OCT imaging lens including an immersion tip and a surface of the bath; a first set of calibration parameters that relate a position of a scanning beam at an imaging plane to drive signals of the scanning assembly; and a second set of calibration parameters for relating an optical path length or optical path length variation of the scanning beam at an imaging plane to the position of the scanning beam or to the drive signals of the scanning assembly.
US09733147B2

A method for testing a leak detector by using a leak detection device having a test leak and which is provided with a cavity that can be filled with gas, including the following steps: a) filling the cavity with ambient air up to an interior pressure in the interior of cavity that corresponds to ambient atmospheric pressure, b) establishing an exterior pressure in the area surrounding the leak detection device that is lower than the interior pressure, c) measuring the leakage rate of the air flowing through the test leak from the interior to the exterior of the leak detection device, and d) establishing an atmosphere consisting of ambient air with ambient atmospheric pressure as exterior pressure in the area surrounding the leak detection device.
US09733146B2

An imbalance measurement machine for determining tire imbalance has a hollow shaft rotatably driven relative to a fixed hollow axle. A tubular air feed for filling the tire with air is centered within and rotates with the shaft to rotate the tire for determining imbalance. An air hose is connected to a rotational coupling disposed at an air feed end that faces away from the tire. Force transducers between the axle and a machine bed measure forces that occur there during operation. The air hose is attached not only to the rotational coupling but also to the axle, at a distance from the rotational coupling. An alternative embodiment omits the rotational coupling and fills the tire in the resting state of the shaft, via the air hose and the non-rotating air feed. Subsequently, the air hose is separated from the air feed, and the tire retains the supplied air.
US09733141B1

A method of measuring a residence time in a gas-turbine engine is disclosed that includes measuring a combustor pressure signal at a combustor entrance and a turbine exit pressure signal at a turbine exit. The method further includes computing a cross-spectrum function between the combustor pressure signal and the turbine exit pressure signal, calculating a slope of the cross-spectrum function, shifting the turbine exit pressure signal an amount corresponding to a time delay between the measurement of the combustor pressure signal and the turbine exit pressure signal, and recalculating the slope of the cross-spectrum function until the slope reaches zero.
US09733128B2

A sensing device includes an array of sensing elements. Each sensing element includes a thermal infrared sensor, configured to output an electric signal in response to an intensity of infrared radiation that is incident on the sensor. An individual reflector is formed integrally with the sensor at a location separated from the sensor by one quarter wave at a selected wavelength of the infrared radiation.
US09733127B2

A system is disclosed for determining the size and location of an object in a monitored area. The system includes a passive infrared sensor (PIR) configured to detect infrared radiation in a monitored area, a lens system including a plurality of lenslets, the plurality of lenslets encoded to create a mask area within the monitored area, a reflective element configured to focus the infrared radiation in the monitored area onto the PIR sensor, and a processor. The processor is configured to detect a moving object in the monitored area, initiate the movement of the reflective element, generating an object signature over time as the reflective element is moved, and the size and location of the object is determined based on the object signature.
US09733126B2

A device for measuring a complexly formed object includes a plurality of light-section measuring devices, a rotator for causing a rotation between the complexly formed object and the plurality of light-section measuring devices around a rotation axis, wherein each of the plurality of light-section measuring devices is configured to generate a respective fan beam in a respective fan plane, wherein the fan planes are arranged such that the rotation axis extends within each of the fan planes, wherein the plurality of light-section measuring devices is configured such that the fan beams are directed to the complexly formed object from different fan directions which, when projected into a common plane through which the rotation axis extends, by rotation around the rotation axis, differ from each other.
US09733121B1

The present disclosure provides an imaging optical system. In one aspect, the imaging optical system includes, among other things, a light bending element configured to substantially separate electromagnetic radiation into at least two portions, and configured to redirect the at least two portions of said electromagnetic radiation into substantially different directions.
US09733116B2

A fill-level measurement apparatus for measuring a fill level of a fluid in a container includes a housing having a first end and a second end and first and second substantially identical thin capacitive sensors mounted on a carrier plate in the housing. The carrier plate includes a circuit board and a microcontroller is mounted on the circuit board. The first sensor is mounted in the housing at a first distance from the first end with a surface portion in contact with a first inner wall portion of the housing, and the second sensor is mounted in the housing between the first sensor and the second end of the housing with a clearance of 0.5 to 10 centimeters from a second inner wall portion of the housing, and the first sensor and the second sensor are configured to communicate with the microcontroller.
US09733094B2

Embodiments of the present invention provide efficient and dynamic systems and methods for building a hybrid road network and grid based spatial temporal index to handle big trajectory data. Embodiments of the present invention can be used to satisfy the issue of low indexing and compression rate of big trajectory data, and to improve the efficiency of index queries, while also providing a mechanism to account for missing road links in a map.
US09733086B2

A mobile platform includes one or more haptic feedback elements that are positioned in regions of the mobile platform that are proximate to a facial region of a user. By way of example, the haptic feedback elements may be electric force elements that overlay a display. The mobile platform is capable of determining a current location and receiving a desired location, which may be, e.g., a location provided by the user, a location with superior signal strength or of another mobile platform. The mobile platform determines directions from the present location to the current location and translates the direction in to control signals. Haptic signals are produced to the facial region of the user by the haptic feedback elements in response to the control signals, thereby providing the directions to the user.
US09733084B2

A ring laser gyroscope is provided. The ring laser gyroscope includes an optical ring resonator, an optical source to provide a pump beam at a pump frequency, a beat detector, and an optical clock detector. The pump beam is coupled to the optical ring resonator in the first direction and stimulates a first optical gain curve at a first stokes wave frequency downshifted by a Brillouin stokes frequency from the pump frequency. A first order stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) beam propagates in the second direction and a second order SBS beam propagates in the first direction. The beat detector produces an optical beat signal that varies as a function of a frequency difference between the first order SBS beam and the second order SBS beam. The optical clock detector generates a reference frequency signal based on two co-propagating beams.
US09733066B2

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a shape measuring device and method, wherein the separation of light from one distance sensor increases measurement precision without increasing the size of the device. The present invention provides “a shape measuring device comprising: a distance sensor that radiates a laser toward a measurement target and detects the reflected light so as to calculate the distance to a measurement point; a separation unit that separates the light from the distance sensor into a plurality of light rays; a rotation unit that rotates the distance sensor and the measurement target relative to each other; and a data processing unit that integrates measurement results obtained from the distance sensor for the distances to a plurality of measurement points.”
US09733063B2

In a method for determining optical properties by measuring intensities at a thin layer, light is directed into the thin layer and passes through a beam splitter, which directs a first part of the light onto the thin layer and a second part of the light onto a reference detector. Interference of the first part of the light in the thin layer is detected via a high-resolution detector and forwarded to an evaluating unit, which determines the reflection and/or transmission coefficients, which are correlated with the optical layer thickness through a comparison using at least one database stored in the evaluating unit. The optical layer thickness is obtained as a gray value modification by way of a gray scale value analysis and a conversion factor stored in the at least one data base. A corresponding device and intended uses of the method and device are also described.
US09733056B2

A method for compensating a measurement error related to a measurement of a desired measuring point at an object to be measured with a coordinate measuring machine is disclosed. Some embodiments include a touch probe. Some embodiments include a method that includes providing a three dimensional reference body of known shape and dimension at a known position in the measuring volume of the coordinate measuring machine, defining multiple reference points to be measured at the reference body, touching the reference body with the touch probe in defined touching directions according to the multiple reference points and thereby determining positions for the multiple reference points, and deriving a lobing error information for the touch probe based on the known shape and dimensions of the reference body and the determined positions of the reference points, the lobing error information providing error values related to respective touching directions for the touch probe.
US09733050B2

The present invention relates to a projectile arresting device (1) comprising a foundation (3) constituting a floor (7) and a rear wall (5) of the projectile arresting device. It further comprises partition walls (9) extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the rear wall (5), wherein the partition walls comprises a rear edge (10a) connected to the foundation (3), and a front edge (10b). Stopping materials (11) is arranged between the partition walls (9). A stopping material retaining layer (S) is arranged between the partition walls, and a pressure resistant wall (19) comprising a number of closely situated hollow sections (15) are connected to the front edges (10b) of the partition walls. The pressure resistant wall (19) further comprises a rear surface connected to the stopping material retaining layer (S) and a front surface. The front edge (10b) of each partition wall comprises a V-shaped profile of ballistic material, wherein a tip (12a) of the profile is adjacent to the pressure resistant wall. The invention also relates to a projectile arresting arrangement.
US09733046B1

An elevation adjustment sight assembly, comprising a windage carrier, a lift dial, and a lift spring. The windage carrier is specially structured to fit within a housing. The lift dial and the lift spring are specially structured to fit within the windage carrier and are movable in relation to the windage carrier to thereby adjust the height of a sight held by the housing.
US09733037B2

The technology disclosed herein can include a motor unit having a motor with a motor gear to rotate a drive shaft and a drive gear. A manual input shaft can also be configured to transmit rotation to the drive shaft. The motor can have a central axis that forms an angle of less than 90 degrees with a plane substantially defined by an outer surface of a gear box coupled to the motor. A mounting bracket is configured to allow mechanical communication between the motor unit and an internal ring gear. The internal ring gear can be mounted to a vehicle and a turret can be pivotably disposed within the internal ring gear. A motor unit is mounted on the turret and a drive gear is rotatably mounted on the motor unit and in direct engagement with the internal ring gear.
US09733035B2

A variety of apparatuses and associated methods are provided for providing a retractable suppressor system for gas generator systems such as a firearm. One embodiment includes a suppressor system that includes a retractable structure and housing, a fixed baffle, floating baffles, and springs to displace the floating baffles within the suppressor as the suppressor is extended from the housing along a gas generator system, e.g. a barrel of a firearm and thereby enclose the barrel within the suppressor. Embodiments of the invention permit full retraction, partial retraction/extension, or full extension of an exemplary suppressor with respect to an emission section of the gas generator e.g., firearm muzzle. Embodiments of the invention include an external latch which enables an operator to latch or unlatch the suppressor as it moves from one position to another and prevents accidental activation. Embodiments of the invention are configured to operate with accessory mounting systems.
US09733032B2

The various embodiments herein provide a fire restraining device for selective target shooting in a weapon with a safety lock comprises an infrared sensor, a central computing unit, and a rack and pinion or a shot pin module. The infrared sensor detects a temperature of a target in front of a nozzle of the weapon. The infrared sensor is connected to the central computing unit. The infrared sensor sends the temperature data of the target to the central computing unit. The rack and pinion module or the shot pin module is connected with the central computing unit at one side and the safety lock on another end. The present fire restraining device allows a gunner to control the firing shots over a human or unwanted targets which reduces false fatalities in close combats.
US09733018B2

The invention relates to a dental furnace, in particular a firing furnace or press furnace, for firing or pressing a dental restoration part which is receivable in the furnace, possibly after pre-heating in a pre-heating furnace, and which is placeable on a base, in particular centrally thereon, wherein the dental furnace comprises a firing chamber whose diameter is larger than, in particular at least twice as large as, the largest dental restoration part to be fired, and which comprises a control device and an operating unit at the or for the dental furnace (10), wherein by means of the operating unit (26) the size and/or the weight and/or the number of the dental restoration part(s) (18) to be fired or pressed is adjustable in units.
US09733011B2

The disclosed technology relates to a furniture cabinet capable of storing a breast pump. The furniture cabinet can include a storage section having a door and a slidable platform. The storage section can further include mounts located on an interior of the door. In use, the slidable platform is capable of holding a breast pump motor and the mounts are capable of holding a horn of the breast pump in a standby position when the door is in a closed position.
US09733010B2

An apparatus that includes a vessel. The vessel is partially filled with a product to be defrosted. The vessel rotates about an inclined axis. The vessel includes means to move the product during defrosting. The apparatus includes a temperature-measurement-means located at partially inside the vessel to determine a surface temperature of the product and a temperature of liquid surrounding the product without contacting the product and without contacting the liquid. The temperature-measurement-means remain stationary while the vessel rotates.
US09733009B2

A refrigerant is provided that may include at least one compressor that compresses a refrigerant, a condenser that condenses the refrigerant compressed in the at least one compressor, a first expansion device that decompresses the refrigerant condensed in the condenser, a gas/liquid separator that separates the refrigerant decompressed in the first expansion device into a liquid refrigerant and a gaseous refrigerant, first and second evaporators, to which the liquid refrigerant separated in the gas/liquid separator may be introduced, and a second expansion device disposed at an inlet-side of the second evaporator to decompress the refrigerant.
US09733005B2

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed toward systems and method for cooling a refrigerant flow of a refrigerant circuit with a cool water flow from a cool water storage to generate a warm water flow and to cool the refrigerant flow by a subcooling temperature difference, flowing the warm water flow to the cool water storage, and thermally isolating the warm water flow from the cool water flow in the cool water storage.
US09733003B2

Disclosed are various embodiments for systems, apparatus, and methods for making ice. According to some embodiments, a refrigerant tube is disposed within an ice formation cell. The ice formation cell receives a water stream, and the portion of the water stream makes direct contact with the refrigerant tube is frozen by the refrigerant tube. Thus, an ice piece is generated.
US09733002B2

An embodiment of method used to control operation of a screw compressor of a refrigeration system may include receiving status signals regarding operation of the screw compressor of the refrigeration system. The method may further include determining an operating point of the screw compressor based upon the received status signals, and selecting a torque profile for the screw compressor based upon the operating point. The method may also include driving the screw compressor per the selected torque profile. Refrigeration systems and compressor systems suitable for implementing the method are also presented.
US09732993B2

The invention relates to a refrigerant circuit for thermally conditioning a vehicle passenger compartment, comprising a plurality of branches containing at least one exchanger, of which branch a first branch is in series with a second branch and a third branch, said second branch being in parallel with said third branch, and a means of placing the third branch m communication with the second branch, said means being installed between a sector of the third branch which sector is situated downstream of an external exchanger and a portion of the second branch which is situated upstream of a first control member.
US09732988B1

A novel thermal storage device is made up of a plurality of thermal storage canisters. The canisters are in thermal contact with one another so as to form a single thermal storage body. Because the thermal storage device can be broken down into a plurality of discrete thermal storage canisters, it is portable and has a high thermal storage capacity. In a particular embodiment, each canister contains a metal phase change material. In a more particular embodiment, the canisters each have a concave region such that when the canisters are assembled the concave regions, together, define a solar receiver.
US09732982B2

A boiler unit (100) housed in an enclosure, the boiler unit (100) configured to receive a solid state combined heat and power generating device (130). The boiler unit (100) comprises a heating device (110) to produce heat; and a control unit (120) to independently control each of the heating device (110) and the solid state combined heat and power generating device (130). The boiler unit (100) is operable without the solid state combined heat and power generating device (130) being present.
US09732979B2

Methods and devices for controlling a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system by a thermostat are provided. Input can be received from a user via a thermostat, the input being indicative of an adjustment of an HVAC-related setting. On a real-time basis, the HVAC-related setting that is being adjusted can be compared against a feedback criterion designed to indicate a circumstance under which feedback is to be presented to the user. The circumstance can be indicative of an achievement of a HVAC-related setting of a predetermined responsibility level with respect to an energy usage of the HVAC system. Upon a real-time determination that the feedback criterion is satisfied, visual feedback can be caused to be presented to the user in real-time. The real-time feedback can include a visual icon having a visual appeal corresponding to a desirability of the satisfaction of the feedback criterion.
US09732971B2

There are provided an air-conditioning device that can easily perform fan setting to obtain a proper air volume in accordance with external static pressure, and a method of controlling the air-conditioning device. There is executed air volume setting processing (S3 to S14) for measuring an actual rotation number (r_MAX) when a fan motor for driving an air blowing fan is set to a maximum output, and setting the rotation number corresponding to a target air volume of the air blowing fan under normal operation of the built-in type air-conditioning device.
US09732970B2

A sleeping space air conditioner including a quiet low powered air conditioner 1, a sleeping space into which conditioned air is delivered, the sleeping space including an upper air pervious section 2 and a lower relatively air impervious section 3 surrounding a bed in the sleeping space, the impervious section 3 extending to a height above the sleeping surface of the bed sufficient to contain the conditioned air as it moves towards and returns from the opposite end or side of the sleeping space, the impervious section 3 extending to a sufficiently increased height above the sleeping surface at the opposite end or side to allow the direction of air flow to reverse towards said one end or side without substantial loss of conditioned air through the pervious section 2.
US09732966B2

A filtration system for a ventilation hood includes a first filter and a second filter, operatively disposed in series. The first filter is configured to be mounted within the ventilation hood, and has an air inlet, an air outlet, and a grease outlet. The second filter includes a filter material with an upstream surface and a downstream surface, an upstream housing element abutting the upstream surface of the filter material, and a downstream housing element abutting the downstream surface of the filter material. The housing elements include openings, and hold the filter material in compression.
US09732965B2

A baking appliance includes a heatable baking chamber and a door that closes the baking chamber. The door includes an inner pane facing the baking chamber when the door is closed and an outer pane facing outward when the door is closed. At least one holding element is configured to arrange the inner pane and outer pane so as to form at least one ventilation channel between the inner pane and outer pane. At least one cooling element is associated with the at least one holding element and extends into the at least one ventilation channel.
US09732964B2

The present invention relates to an electric oven. The electric oven according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a cavity which is provided with an oven chamber, a door for opening and closing alternatively the oven chamber, a carbon heater for providing radiant energy to the inside of a cooking room through the communication opening, a reflector for reflecting the radiant energy from the carbon heater to the inside of the cooking room, and a grate which is fixed to the reflector and is disposed on the communication opening and is provided with a forming section a part of which is formed toward the reflector. Therefore, the grate can be prevented from being damaged according to the electric oven of the present invention.
US09732963B2

A control panel assembly for an appliance with features for securing a backing plate to a control panel frame to maintain a high quality fit, feel, and finish of the control panel assembly is provided. In particular, the backing plate includes a plurality of securing tabs for securing the backing plate against the control panel frame. The backing plate also may include a plurality of spring tabs for securing the backing plate against the control panel frame.
US09732948B1

A light system is provided that can be removably coupled to a layer of material, such as clothing, to provide hands-free illumination for tasks and activities (e.g., while walking, running, reading, writing) at low level light conditions. The light system includes a light module with one or more light sources, a power source and one or more magnetic elements or magnetically responsive modules. The light system also includes a backing plate removably coupleable to the light module so that the layer of material is interposed between the light module and the backing plate. The backing plate has one or more magnetic elements or magnetically responsive modules. When removably coupled to said layer of material, the light module and backing plate remain substantially in place even when the layer of material is under motion.
US09732946B2

Provided is a device including a base configured for attachment to a lighting fixture. The device also includes an engagement mechanism having first and second portions configured for mounting the lighting fixture within a recess of a substantially flat member having first and second ends. The engagement mechanism facilitates movement of the lighting fixture within the recess from the first end towards the second end, the movement (i) being responsive to an applied force and (ii) occurring in only a single direction. The first portion engages a first surface of the member and the second portion engages a second surface of the member when the lighting fixture reaches the second end.
US09732943B2

The lighting device (11) has at least one light generation device (12) for generating a primary light (P), a first luminophore (16) for converting the wavelength of the primary light (P) to a first secondary light (S1), and a second luminophore (20) for converting the wavelength of the primary light (P) to a second secondary light (S2), the first luminophore (16) being located on a movable support (15), which is provided in order to alternatively move the first luminophore into and out of a beam path of the primary light (P), and the second luminophore being located on a stationary support (21). The invention also relates to a method for generating wavelength-converted secondary light from primary light with alternating irradiation of a first luminophore located on a movable support and of a second luminophore located on a stationary support by the primary light. The invention can be used, for example, as a projection device for film and video projection, in endoscopy, for lighting effects in the entertainment industry, for medical irradiations as well as in the automobile industry, in particular as a head light for motor vehicles.
US09732939B2

Provided are an optical member capable of implementing optical images having desired shapes through a pattern design, and a lighting device using the optical member, the optical member including: a base substrate; multiple patterns sequentially arranged on a first surface of the base substrate and having inclined surfaces with an inclination angle with respect to the first surfaces; and a reflective portion on the base substrate or the multiple patterns, wherein the multiple patterns implement a line shaped beam of a first path crossing at right angles to respective pattern extension directions of the multiple patterns by guiding a first incident beam into a first surface direction toward which the first surface looks or a second surface direction toward which a second surface of the base substrate opposite to the first surface looks, through refraction or reflection from the inclined surfaces.
US09732932B2

A lighting assembly includes an assembly body. A first lighting unit is attached to the assembly body. The first lighting unit includes a number of light emitting diodes (LEDs) and optical elements arranged over the LEDs such that each optical element overlies only one associated LED. The first lighting unit is configured to illuminate a substantially rectangular region. A second lighting unit is attached to the assembly body and spaced from the first lighting unit. The second lighting unit includes a number of LEDs and optical elements arranged over the plurality of LEDs such that each optical element overlies only one associated LED. The lighting assembly is configured to illuminate the region so that the region can be illuminated without additional lighting and so that areas beyond edges of the region of the substantially rectangular region receive minimum illumination.
US09732931B2

A light-emitting module that includes a light source and an optical lens is provided. The light source emits an original beam along a direction of a light-emitting axis, and the optical lens is disposed on a transmission path of the original beam. The original beam passes the optical lens and becomes an illumination beam. A light shape of the illumination beam has a first full width at half maximum (FWHM) along a first direction and has a second FWHM along a second direction, and a ratio of the second FWHM to the first FWHM is large than 3. The first direction and the second direction are perpendicular to the direction of the light-emitting axis. A light-emitting device is also provided.
US09732905B2

The invention relates to a lubricating pump which contains screw pistons of which one is in compression operation and the other is in suction operation in alternation. The invention further relates to a method for supplying lubricant, wherein a first screw piston is in a suction operation while a second screw piston is in a compression operation and vice versa, and wherein the two screw pistons are driven by means of a common gear train, which contains one piston gear for each screw piston.
US09732903B2

A clamping bracket comprising, one or more bracket pieces, can be employed to hold an object in a desired position. The bracket can be constructed to make installation of the bracket with respect to the object easy and intuitive to the user, and more cost effective. The clamping bracket can have a top portion and bottom portion of the bracket that extend outward from a base portion of the bracket. Ends of the top and bottom portions can complement a groove formed in a casing of the object, wherein the ends of the top and bottom portions can be inserted into the groove. A fastener can be inserted through holes in the top and bottom portions, wherein, when the fastener is tightened down on the bracket, the fastener can cause the ends of the top and bottom portions to clamp down on and hold the object within the bracket.
US09732896B2

An apparatus comprises an input chamber being configured for accepting a flow of material. An output chamber is configured for flowing the material along a first pathway and a second pathway. A diverter member is disposed within the input chamber. The diverter member comprises a half wing shape pivotally joined at a juncture of the input chamber and the output chamber. The diverter member is operable to be positioned at a first position for diverting the flow to the first pathway and to be positioned at a second position for diverting the flow to the second pathway. A lever mechanism is configured to be operable for moving the diverter member between the first position and the second position in which the flow is uninterrupted.
US09732893B2

A rapid-connect gas coupler is shown and described herein. In an embodiment, the rapid-connect gas coupler includes a spring-loaded probe within a probe cavity, which is defined by a housing and one or more latch segment. The probe can engage with a gas connector, which causes the latch segment to engage and couple with the gas connector.
US09732882B2

A cage-mounted fluid delivery system for delivering a fluid from a water source, such as a fluid bag or an automatic water system, to animals housed in cages in high density caging systems may comprise a fluid delivery valve assembly, wherein the fluid delivery valve assembly is adapted to be coupled to the water source to facilitate the provision of fluid to animals housed in the cages. The cage-mounted fluid delivery valve assembly may further comprise a valve body and end cap, which may be joined together, that define a fluid channel. The cage-mounted fluid delivery valve assembly may further comprise sealing elements, a spring element, and an interior stem disposed at least in part in the fluid channel to open and close the fluid channel.
US09732878B2

An emergency shut-off valve and means for initiating a test on said emergency shut-off valve includes a source of pressurized gas, a main solenoid responsive to a signal from said means for initiating a test and a source of pressurized gas are included. Further, means including a main solenoid responsive to a signal from said means for initiating a test and a main solenoid valve and a quick exhaust valve connected to the source of pressurized gas. Further, a pneumatic actuator for opening and closing the shut-off valve and test means for testing the emergency shut-off valve without fully closing the emergency shut-off valve in response to a signal from the means for initiating a test. The test means includes a second solenoid.
US09732875B2

An electromagnetic valve has: a coil; a casing encircling the coil and having a cylinder portion and nail portions; a movable core moving axially in the wound coil; a fixed core set at an opening end of the casing; a valve body fixed to the opening end of the casing together with the fixed core by bending inwards the nail portions; and a spool valve body moving axially in the valve body. The nail portion is provided with a wide width portion at a root side, a narrow width portion at a top side and a stepped portion between the wide width portion and the narrow width portion. The stepped portion is positioned at a substantially same position as an outer edge of one end portion of the valve body, or positioned at a cylinder portion side with respect to the one end portion outer edge of the valve body.
US09732871B2

A valve assembly is disclosed, and includes an evacuator and a relief valve. The evacuator includes a suction port that selectively applies a vacuum. The relief valve has an open position and a closed position, and includes an inlet, an outlet, a piston that translates within a chamber, and a pressurized chamber. The piston includes a first end and a second end. The pressurized chamber is fluidly connected to the suction port of the evacuator, and is defined in part by the first end of the piston. The piston translates within the pressurized chamber towards the open position if vacuum is applied to the pressurized chamber.
US09732869B2

A check valve comprises a housing, a fluid passage, a seat, a valve member and a stop. The fluid passage extends through the housing. The seat is disposed in the fluid passage. The valve member is positioned in the passage to engage the seat. The stop extends through the housing to engage the valve member. The stop is accessible from outside the housing to adjust a distance the valve member can travel from the seat. In one embodiment, the stop includes a variable stop feature, such as an offset pin or a cam. In another embodiment, the stop includes a pump control valve. In yet another embodiment, the housing includes markings to indicate a position of the stop. The valve member comprises a ball or a poppet in different embodiments.
US09732868B2

A pressure relief valve is disclosed with a first stage valve that is in series with a second stage valve, with an enclosed cavity between the first stage valve and the second stage valve. The first stage valve relieves pressure from an enclosure into the enclosed cavity between the stages, when the pressure is above a cracking pressure of the first stage valve. The second stage relieves pressure from the enclosed cavity when the pressure is above the cracking pressure of the second stage valve.
US09732865B2

The invention relates to a switch (1) for an operating material, comprising an inlet opening (3) for introducing an operating material into an inlet side (2), and several outlet openings (5) for discharging the operating material to an outlet side (4). An actuator (6) comprising a connecting channel (7) is arranged between the inlet side (2) and the outlet side (4), said actuator can be adjusted such that the connecting channel (7) can connect the inlet opening (3) to one of the outlet openings (5). Said actuator (6) consists of at least two parts (9, 10), and the connecting channel (7) is defined, at least in sections, by both parts (9, 10) of the actuator (31, 32, 33, 34).
US09732855B2

An extreme temperature gasket material capable of withstanding temperatures in excess of 850° F. is provided. The extreme temperature gasket generally includes an inorganic filler, an inorganic fiber, and an organic binder. In some embodiments, the inorganic filler is from 75 to 90 wt % of the gasket material and can include submicron-sized talc particles. The inorganic fiber can be from 5 to 20 wt % of the gasket material and can include silicic acid fiber. The binder can be a latex emulsion and can be present in the gasket material in the range of from 1 to 5 wt % of the gasket material. The gasket material also can include additives, such as flocculant and defoamer. In some embodiments, the amount of organic material present in the gasket material is limited to less than 5 wt % of the gasket material.
US09732847B2

A hydraulic control system for an automatic transmission with a torque converter includes two regulator valves controlled by a single variable force solenoid (VFS). A bypass clutch regulator valve increases the pressure to a bypass clutch apply chamber as the VFS pressure increases. A converter charge regulator valve decreases the pressure in a converter charge circuit as the VFS pressure increases. The converter charge circuit is in series with a lubrication circuit. An orifice restricts the flow through these circuits such that they can be supplied from the line pressure circuit rather than a lower priority circuit. In one embodiment, an on/off solenoid opens a flow control valve to bypass the orifice when additional flow is required. In another embodiment, an electric pump supplements the flow in these circuits when required. This later embodiment includes a switch valve such that the electric pump also supports stop/start operation.
US09732842B2

A harmonic drive includes a circular spline, a cup-shaped flex spline meshed with the circular spline, a wave generator including an bearing mounted in the cup-shaped flex spline, an elliptical wheel mounted in the bearing and a coupling connected to the elliptical wheel so that an oil storage chamber is defined between the wave generator and the cup-shaped flex spline, and one or multiple stirrers connected to the coupling of the wave generator and drivable by the coupling to carry the storage lubricating oil out of the oil storage chamber for lubricating the bearing of the wave generator and the meshed tooth surfaces between the circular spline and the cup-shaped flex spline.
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