Abstract:
A wheelchair has a seat, a reclining backrest and anti-tip legs movable between a retracted position and an extended ground contacting position in response to movement of the backrest between an upright and a reclining condition. The inclination of the backrest can be conveniently adjusted by a person seated in the wheelchair by latching a pair of detent arms in one of several slots spaced under the chair's armrests. The anti-tip legs extend to support the wheelchair against tipping backwards when the backrest is reclined and retract out of the way when the backrest is brought upright.
Abstract:
A hand-grippable adhesive tape applicator is provided for building construction and other environments. The hand-held device has a frame supporting an applicator roller rotatably mounted at a forward portion of the frame, and tape spool also is rotatably mounted to the frame to support a roll of the transfer adhesive material and unreel transfer adhesive material to the applicator roll as the applicator roll moves against a substrate with the adhesive layer in contact therewith. A release liner take-up spindle is rotatably mounted to the frame between the tape spool and the applicator roll to take-up the release liner. A drive means interconnects the tape spool and release liner take-up spindle for synchronized rotation, and tape spool retaining means and take-up spindle retaining means restrict rotational speeds thereof to reduce slippage thereof.
Abstract:
An improved method and mechanism for recognizing chirographs (handwritten characters) input into a computer system. A primary recognizer is provided for converting chirographs to code points, and secondary recognizers such as binary CART trees are developed and trained to differentiate chirographs which produce certain code points at the primary recognizer. Each such secondary recognizer is associated with each selected code point. When a chirograph is received, the chirograph is provided to the primary recognizer whereby a code point corresponding thereto is received. If the code point corresponds to one of the secondary recognizers, the chirograph is passed to the secondary recognizer, and a code point is returned from the secondary recognizer. If not, the code point provided by the primary recognizer is returned. The invention sets forth an automated process for training the CART trees and for optimizing the recognition mechanism by discarding CART trees which do not improve on the recognition accuracy of the primary recognizer.
Abstract:
The invention performs handwriting recognition using mixtures of Bayesian networks. A mixture of Bayesian networks (MBN) consists of plural hypothesis-specific Bayesian networks (HSBNs) having possibly hidden and observed variables. A common external hidden variable is associated with the MBN, but is not included in any of the HSBNs. Each HSBN models the world under the hypothesis that the common external hidden variable is in a corresponding one of its states. The MBNs encode the probabilities of observing the sets of visual observations corresponding to a handwritten character. Each of the HSBNs encodes the probabilities of observing the sets of visual observations corresponding to a handwritten character and given a hidden common variable being in a particular state.
Abstract:
A rectangular composite wood board includes along each of its long edges an alternating tongue and groove construction, the tongue being insertable into a similarly shaped groove. In one embodiment, each of the short edges of the board is in contact with a groove at one end and a tongue end at the other, and each of the long edges includes an equal number of tongues and grooves. In another embodiment, each of the long edges has a groove at each of its ends and the grooves are equal to or longer than the longitudinal length of a tongue.
Abstract:
The panel includes a water resistant barrier layer secured atop its outward facing surface. The water resistant barrier layer includes a skid resistant surface. The panels are made of lignocellulosic material. The water resistant and skid resistant surface may include indicia for aligning strips of tape or for aligning fasteners. A method for manufacturing the water resistant building panels is also disclosed and includes the steps of feeding paper onto a forming belt, depositing lignocellulosic material and the binding agent onto the forming belt so as to form a lignocellulosic mat, applying heat and pressure so as to impart the skid resistant surface on the paper, and cutting panels to predetermined sizes.
Abstract:
Engine exhaust gas emissions are cleaned up using apparatus comprising an electrical heater, a first catalyst for oxidizing CO and H2, and a hydrocarbon oxidation catalyst (which may be the same as the first catalyst). Engine management initiates electrical heating upon start-up of the engine, and ensures that there is sufficient CO and H2 and sufficient additional air supplied to the exhaust system, to provide chemical energy in the form of exotherm, whereby the hydrocarbon oxidation catalyst is speeded in reaching light-off temperature.
Abstract:
A printed circuit board assembly with improved bypass decoupling for BGA packages. In one embodiment, a capacitor may be interposed between a BGA package and a PCB within a perimeter of the contact pads that form a BGA footprint. The capacitor may have physical dimensions which allow a BGA package to be mounted such that there is no physical contact between the capacitor and the BGA.
Abstract:
A portable commode with spring assisted lifting seat has a lightweight self-supporting stand, a seat hinged to the frame and a pair of pneumatic springs for lifting the seat to an elevated position. The springs yield under the body weight of the user to depress the seat to a lowered position. The springs can be easily set at different positions on the seat to adjust for users of different body weights. A removable waste receptacle on the frame permits the commode to be used by itself, as at a bedside location, or over a conventional toilet bowl installation.
Abstract:
Conductive carbon fibrils are incorporated into energetic compositions to reduce electrostatic discharge susceptibility. The carbon fibrils are grown catalytically from carbon precursors and are substantially free of pyrolytically deposited thermal carbon. The fibrils generally have a length in the range from about 1.mu. to about 10.mu. and a diameter in the range from about 3.5 nanometers to about 75 nanometers. Length to diameter aspect ratios are greater than 5, and typically in the range from about 100:1 to about 1000:1. An effective amount of fibrils is included in the energetic compositions to decrease the resistivity to a level below or on the order of about 10.sup.10 ohm-cm. In most cases, fibril concentration will be in the range from about 0.005 to about 0.1 weight percent.