US07699808B2
An infusion device including a site and a set for delivery of a substance to a patient. The site can include a cannula that is introduced into a subcutaneous layer of skin of the patient. The set can be coupled to the site by, for example, placing the set over the site and moving the set from an unlocked to a locked position. The substance can then be delivered through the set to the site, and from the site into the patient through the cannula. The set can be oriented at multiple rotational orientations with respect to the site, and can be coupled and uncoupled with the site multiple times.
US07699805B2
A surgical apparatus for delivering a conductive fluid to a target site for subsequent formation of a virtual electrode to ablate bodily tissue at the target site by applying a current to the delivered conductive fluid. The surgical apparatus includes an elongated device forming a helical needle. The helical needle is configured to engage bodily tissue and is hollow for delivering conductive fluid from a fluid source. Finally, the helical needle terminates in a needle tip. In one preferred embodiment, an electrode is associated with the helical needle for applying a current to conductive fluid delivered from the helical needle. During use, following delivery of conductive fluid, the electrode applies a current to the delivered conductive fluid for creating a virtual electrode. The virtual electrode ablates bodily tissue contacted by the conductive fluid.
US07699804B2
A fluid ejection system (20) comprising a cartridge (24), an ejector (32, 300) and, optionally, a fill station (28) for filling the cartridge with a fluid, such as a vaccine. In some embodiments (52), the cartridge includes a transfer passageway (96) for receiving fluid from the fill station. In other embodiments (200, 400), the cartridge includes a vented fluid reservoir (208, 408) offset from an ejection chamber (224, 420). In yet other embodiments (500, 600), the cartridge includes a vented fluid reservoir chamber (512, 636) inline with the ejection chamber (508, 644). In still other embodiments (700, 1000, 1100), the cartridge includes first and second chambers (728, 736, 1036, 1048, 1136, 1148) initially fluidly sealed from on another by a valve, e.g., either a traveling valve (704, 800, 900, 1200, 1300) or a temporarily stationary valve (1004, 1104).
US07699801B2
Reagents useful in nucleic acid immunization techniques are described. More particularly, adjuvanted genetic vaccine compositions are described, as are methods of using those compositions for inducing an enhanced immune response against a selected antigen.
US07699800B2
An implantable shunt device having a primary catheter and at least two secondary catheters extending from the primary catheter is provided. The primary catheter includes a connecting end, an open end, and an inner lumen extending therebetween. Each of the secondary catheters extend from the connecting end of the primary catheter and include a fluid passageway formed therein in fluid communication with the inner lumen of the primary catheter. Each secondary catheter also includes at least one fluid entry port in fluid communication with the fluid passageway. In an exemplary embodiment, the fluid entry ports are disposed on an inwardly facing portion of each of the secondary catheters. The shunt device can be used for a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, including for the removal or introduction of fluid to a treatment site.
US07699782B2
An ultrasound imaging probe for real time 3D ultrasound imaging from the tip of the probe that can be inserted into the body. The ultrasound beam is electronically scanned within a 2D azimuth plane with a linear array, and scanning in the elevation direction at right angle to the azimuth plane is obtained by mechanical movement of the array. The mechanical movement is either achieved by rotation of the array through a flexible wire, or through wobbling of the array, for example through hydraulic actuation. The probe can be made both flexible and stiff, where the flexible embodiment is particularly interesting for catheter imaging in the heart and vessels, and the stiff embodiment has applications in minimal invasive surgery and other procedures. The probe design allows for low cost manufacturing which allows factory sterilized probes to be disposed after use.
US07699781B2
A system for ultrasonic imaging utilizing multiple sets of transmit pulses differing in amplitude, frequency, phase, and/or pulse width. One embodiment has phase differences between the k transmit signal as 360 k degrees providing for constructive interference of the kth order harmonic pulse, while an amplitude modulation of each transmit profile is constant between sets. These sets of pulses are transmitted into media of interest and received echoes from these pulses are combined to form an averaged signal. The averaged pulses represent the net common mode signal received from each of the transmit sets. This combined signal set is used to reconstruct an ultrasound image based on broad beam reconstruction methodology.
US07699776B2
A hand held ultrasonic instrument (10) is provided in a portable unit that performs C-Mode imaging and collects 3D image data. In a preferred embodiment a transducer array (60), display unit (20), beamformer (40), power system, and image processor are integrated in one enclosure weighing less than three pounds. In operation, the portable unit is scanned across a target and the displayed image is conveniently presented to the operator whereby the displayed image corresponds exactly to the target, or a scaled fashion if desired.
US07699771B2
A catheter introducer system for endoscopy is disclosed which includes a steering section and a propulsion section located near the end of the catheter that is introduced in a body cavity, and a non-collapsible sheath defining a working channel. The propulsion section is designed to pull the rest of the catheter inside the body cavity, so there is no need to push the catheter along. The propulsion section further includes gripping members, such as inflatable balloons, that are axially movable relative to the catheter. The catheter can thus be made very flexible in bending, and a larger diameter catheter can be used without discomfort to the patient.
US07699767B2
The invention provides a method, apparatus and system for separating blood and other types of cellular components, and can be combined with holographic optical trapping manipulation or other forms of optical tweezing. One of the exemplary methods includes providing a first flow having a plurality of blood components; providing a second flow; contacting the first flow with the second flow to provide a first separation region; and differentially sedimenting a first blood cellular component of the plurality of blood components into the second flow while concurrently maintaining a second blood cellular component of the plurality of blood components in the first flow. The second flow having the first blood cellular component is then differentially removed from the first flow having the second blood cellular component. Holographic optical traps may also be utilized in conjunction with the various flows to move selected components from one flow to another, as part of or in addition to a separation stage.
US07699763B2
Exercise apparatus, comprises a first support means for the user's legs, a platform mounted on the support means to support a user's legs, there being a hinge connecting the platform to the support means and defining a generally horizontal hinge axis to allow pivoting of the user's trunk about a generally horizontal axis as the user relatively bends his body and his legs means, and extending in spaced, a second support means for the back of the user's body, and means for indexing said second support means at selected angularity relative to the hinge axis.
US07699759B1
An aquatic weight assembly includes a handle and at least one resistance panel assembly having at least one aquatic resistance panel carried by the handle.
US07699756B2
An apparatus for removably mounting an exercise apparatus to a supporting structure such as a ladder-like structure. Various types of mounting apparatus with specially designed brackets having multiple interchangeable parts, attachments and accessories, are used to facilitate easy and quick mounting of several types of exercise apparatus to the supporting structure.
US07699753B2
A method for creating a virtual online gym for providing members with a shared workout experience and decreasing the feeling of isolation when members are not all working out at the same physical location. The method including the steps of receiving a request for access to the virtual online gym and receiving a selection for a first exercise program from a plurality of available exercise programs from the first member. The method also includes the steps of determining a program length based on the selection of the first exercise program; presenting updated status information during a length of the program length; and, providing a notification when the program length has been reached. An apparatus and system for implementing the method are also disclosed.
US07699751B2
A method for inhibiting automatic actuation of an electric parking brake (EPB) system of a motor vehicle is disclosed. The vehicle has an ignition switch for receiving an ignition key so as to mobilize or immobilize the vehicle. The EPB system includes an EPB mechanism for applying an actuating force to a park brake of the vehicle, an EPB control module for automatically applying the force when at least the ignition key is detected as removed from the ignition switch and an EPB control switch. The EPB control switch can be moved towards two instable positions from a neutral position respectively a brake release position and a brake apply position so as to apply or release the park brake. To inhibit the automatic actuation of the park brake, the driver has to complete within a specific time period the cycle of turning the ignition from off to on to off, pressing and maintaining the EPB control switch into the brake release position, removing the ignition key and releasing the EPB control switch after at least a predetermined time period. Such cycle of actions will be interpreted by the EPB control module as a wish to not apply the park brake.
US07699750B2
A method for controlling a partially unsynchronized manual transmission, which realizes the increase of a rotational speed of a transmission part to be synchronized during a gear change procedure by connecting one element of the transmission, via a shiftable clutch, to a drive motor and by making available to this drive motor the required rotational speed as well as the necessary torque at its output shaft. It is also provided that when the rotational speed and/or the torque made available by the drive motor is not sufficient to ensure the synchronization of the manual transmission within a fixed time period, a shifting strategy is pursued, which prevents an unintentional holding of the manual transmission in its neutral position or idle position.
US07699749B2
A powertrain control apparatus that controls a powertrain including a lock-up clutch, which connects an engine, in which fuel supply may be cut off, directly to an automatic transmission. The control apparatus includes an output unit, a control unit, and a setting unit. The output unit outputs an instruction to lower engagement pressure for the lock-up clutch from a value at which the lock-up clutch is engaged to a value at which the lock-up clutch is disengaged. The control unit resumes the fuel supply to the engine when a predetermined lag time has elapsed since the instruction is output. The setting unit sets the lag time so that the lag time is shorter when a temperature of a combustion chamber of the engine is a first temperature than when the temperature of the combustion chamber of the engine is a second temperature which is higher than the first temperature.
US07699740B2
A friction coupling assembly includes: a ball ramp assembly (2) with two coaxial discs (6, 7), wherein the faces (8, 9) of the two discs (6, 7) each have ball grooves (12, 13) of increasing depth, wherein pairs of opposed ball grooves hold balls to axially support the two discs (6, 7); a plate package (3) arranged coaxially relative to the discs (6, 7) and having outer plates (24) for fixing to a coupling carrier (40) and inner plates (25) for fixing to a coupling hub (56); and a plate spring (5) for introducing force into the plate package (3), the plate spring (5) is arranged coaxially relative to the discs (6, 7), is axially pretensioned and, functionally, is arranged in series with the plate package (3).
US07699739B2
A sliding block type stepless autoshift speed changer includes a holder sleeve affixed to a main transmission shaft and holding two weights by means of two torsional members, an eccentric block radially movably coupled to the holder sleeve; a driving wheel supported on a ring round the eccentric block and having radial sliding grooves on two sides, two clutch wheels respectively fastened to a wheel hub and a secondary power output shaft, each clutch wheel having an annular sliding groove respectively facing the driving wheel, sliding blocks respectively sliding in the annular sliding grooves of the clutch wheels, each sliding block having a roller respectively coupled to and movable along the radial sliding grooves of the driving wheel, a plurality of beveled guide surface portions, and a plurality of rolling cylinders rotatably supported on and movable along the beveled guide surface portions.
US07699737B2
A drive unit for transmitting power to wheels of a motor vehicle includes an input driveably connectable to a first power source, a final drive gear set driveably connectable to the wheels, a motor/generator including a stator and a rotor arranged about an axis, the rotor being able to rotate about the axis and to move along the axis relative to the stator, a gear unit arranged about the axis and driveably connected to the gear set for driving the gear set at a speed that is less than a speed of the rotor, and a coupler secured to the rotor for alternately coupling the rotor and the gear unit mutually and transmitting power therebetween and decoupling the rotor and the gear unit mutually.
US07699721B2
A golf tee setting device includes a generally cylindrical body having a top portion, a bottom portion, and a passage extending between the top portion and the bottom portion. The passage is sized to allow a golf tee to pass therethrough. The body has at least one opening therein between the top portion and the bottom portion. The opening defines a surface such that a line extending through the passage traverses the surface at two locations. A kit having a plurality of the devices of different lengths is also provided. Additionally, a method of manufacturing the device is also provided.
US07699719B2
A golf club head comprises: a hollow main body provided with an upper opening located in a crown portion of the head; and a crown plate fitted in the upper opening and having a specific gravity less than that of the main body, wherein the main body is provided around the upper opening with a crown plate support supporting a peripheral edge part of the inner surface of the crown plate. The crown plate support has a width of not more than 5 mm. The minimum distance between the upper edge of the club face and the crown plate in the back-and-forth direction of the head is not less than 10 mm. The thickness of the crown plate is not more than 0.7 mm.
US07699718B2
An apparatus for selectively adding weight to the hollow shaft of a hand-held implement. One embodiment includes an upper cylindrical member, a lower member, and an expansion ring that fits between the upper and lower members. These components are sized slightly smaller than the inside diameter of a hollow shaft, such as a golf club shaft. Each component includes an axial bore, through which a screw with an elongated barrel extends. The axial bore of the upper member is enlarged at its upper terminus to receive the cap of the screw, and the axial bore of the lower member is threaded to receive the screw. This assembly is inserted into a hollow shaft, and as the screw is tightened, the lower member is drawn into the upper member, compressing the expander ring axially causing it to expand radially until a friction fit with the inside surface of the hollow shaft is achieved.
US07699717B2
A golf club incorporating an interchangeable shaft system includes a shaft, a shaft sleeve, a club head and a fastener. The shaft sleeve is coupled to an end of the shaft and is received in a hosel included in the club head. The fastener retains the shaft sleeve in the hosel. Hosel and shaft sleeve alignment features are provided that provide discreet orientations between the shaft and club head.
US07699716B2
A set of iron clubs where each club in the set has the same or substantially the same ground roll. The set is produced by adjusting at least two club design characteristics of the clubs based upon measured or assumed player swing data. The design characteristics of the clubs include club length, static clubhead loft, location of the center of gravity, shaft flexibility, and groove volume. Preferably, club length and static clubhead loft are adjusted for coarse adjustments, while the other characteristics are used to fine-tune the design.
US07699709B2
A shaft coupling mechanism includes a coupling base body coupled to a rotating shaft; a coupling base body coupled to a steering shaft; rotation transmitting members which are disposed between the rotating shaft and the steering shaft through the both coupling base bodies and transmit the rotation of the rotating shaft in an R direction to the steering shaft; an intermediate interposed member disposed between the rotation transmitting members; and a coupling means for coupling the rotation transmitting members to each other.
US07699707B2
A method of playing a fantasy sport that relates to forming at least two fantasy teams, in which each team is associated with at least one actual player from an actual sport that is played over a multiple-game schedule, selecting a plurality of scoring statistics based on actual scoring statistics associated with the actual sport to measure the performance of the fantasy team, selecting a series corresponding to a portion of an actual schedule of the sport, and determining and evaluating the scoring statistics accrued by the fantasy team during the course of the selected series. The series includes a number of games that is less than the total games in the schedule of the actual sport over a season. A system and an article of manufacture for playing the fantasy sport are also provided.
US07699705B2
First, the coordinate position on a game screen of each point is calculated (S501). Then, a path which circulates through the coordinate positions (or their vicinities) of all the points is obtained (S502). A line segment is drawn to extend from the barycentric position of the points in a direction corresponding to an input direction, and the coordinate position of the intersection point of the obtained line segment and the path is calculated as a position on the path through which a cursor passes (S503). Finally, the image of the cursor is moved to the calculated intersection point coordinate position and is displayed (S504).
US07699704B2
Game system playable by plurality of players, game apparatus and storage medium storing game program
A game system includes, for example, a game console and a plurality of hand-held game apparatuses functioning as an operating means. In the game system, a game for causing a plurality of player characters simultaneously displayed to find a hidden item in a game field is performed. Then, when a distance between a non-displayed item hidden, which is an object to be found, and the player character comes within the range of the predetermined distance, a notification sound that varies depending on the distance, for example, is output from a speaker of the hand-held game apparatus that operates the player character.
US07699689B2
An electrical discharge produces an acoustic impulse, and a reflection of the impulse from the upper coin in a coin stack is sensed so that the level of the coin stack can be determined from the time taken for the reflection to be received. Alternatively, or additionally, the acoustic impulse can be used to detect coin jams, the presence and/or width of a coin store, the state of a coin routing gate or the quantity of a vendible product.
US07699681B2
An arc tube is composed of an arc tube body that is formed by winding a straight glass tube. Two portions of the straight glass tube are spirally wound around an imaginary conical surface. The spiraled portions of the glass tube are sandwiched between a pair of movable fixed plates. The spiraled portions of the glass tube are heated to a temperature equal to or higher than a point at which the glass tube is deformable and yet lower than the softening point of the glass tube. The spiraled portions are flattened by the movable plate moving downwardly under its own weight.
US07699680B2
Disclosed is a method of manufacturing an organic electroluminescent element comprising a substrate and provided thereon, a light emission layer and at least one layer of a hole injecting layer, a hole transporting layer, an electron injecting layer, and an electron transporting layer, two layers of the light emission layer and the at least one layer being adjacent to each other, the method comprising the steps of (a) providing a first coating solution employing a first organic solvent for one layer of the two layers and a second coating solution employing a second solvent for the other layer of the two layers, the first solvent being immiscible with the second solvent; (b) simultaneously coating the first and second coating solutions on the substrate so that the first coating solution is in contact with the second coating solution; and (c) drying the coated.
US07699675B1
An exhaust system of a marine propulsion device is provided with a bifurcated cooling passage in its elbow structure in order to limit the effect of cold water being disposed in thermal communication with exhaust gas passing through the elbow structure. This thermal communication between a stream of cold water and exhaust gas passing through the elbow structure is minimized in order to reduce the likelihood that water vapor will condense out of the stream of exhaust gas as it passes through the elbow structure. An obstruction, or water dam, is used to bifurcate the coolant chamber within the elbow structure while allowing passage of coolant through the obstruction.
US07699673B2
A controller for a boat propulsion system has an adjusting device arranged to adjust an inclination angle in the vertical direction of the boat propulsion system by a drive unit, the controller arranged to perform drive control of the adjusting device, a storage section provided in the controller and arranged to store a limit value of the inclination angle, and a connector arranged to communicate with a service tool, wherein the controller is arranged to set the limit value from the service tool and stop the drive unit when the inclination angle reaches the limit value.
US07699664B2
A multipurpose accessory having a multipurpose connection mechanism is provided. The multipurpose accessory of the present invention includes a case, a multipurpose connector extruded at one side of the case for electrically connecting a multimedia device to the multipurpose accessory, an audio connector extruded near the multipurpose connector for connecting an audio output of the multimedia device to the multipurpose accessory, a first cord extended at an opposite side of the case and connected to the audio connector, a second cord extended at the opposite side of the case and connected to the audio connector and having a USB connector at a distal end, and a pair of earpieces electrically connected to the first and second cords for outputting audio signals in the form of audible sound waves.
US07699660B2
An adapter assembly is disclosed that enables a memory card having a smaller length than a standard ExpressCard to be compatible with the standard ExpressCard slot. The adapter assembly includes an adapter having side rails configured to disable the ExpressCard slot ejector mechanisms. The adapter assembly further includes a tongue provided for rigidly connecting the adapter to a finger grip, which gets positioned outside of the opening of the ExpressCard slot upon insertion of the adapter assembly into the slot. The adapter allows a memory card having the approximate size, look and feel of a conventional CompactFlash card to be used in a conventional ExpressCard slot.
US07699653B2
A rubber stopper for a waterproof connector includes: a first elastic member including a first contact face, and first wire fitting grooves each having an arc cross-section; and a second elastic member including a second contact face and second wire fitting grooves each having an arc cross-section. When the first contact face contacts the second contact face, circular cross-section is formed by the arc cross-sections of the first and second wire fitting grooves to fit wires into the first and second wire fitting grooves. Arc length of the arc cross-section of the first wire fitting groove is different from arc length of the arc cross-section of the second wire fitting groove so that a center of the circular cross-section is disposed away from the first and second contact faces in a direction perpendicular to an extending direction of the first and the second contact faces.
US07699650B1
An electrical device includes a conductive member and a voltage-resistant connector to be mounted to the metal enclosure. The conductive member such as a metal enclosure, includes a pair of clasping portions separated from each other. Each of the pair of clasping portions includes a pair of fixing arms. The voltage-resistant connector includes a main body to electrically connect a high-voltage output and a load of the electrical device, and an insulated member between the main body and the conductive member to increase a beeline distance between the voltage-resistant connector and the insulated member to avoid arcing therebetween. The insulated member defines a pair of holes corresponding to the clasping portions. The pair of fixing arms of each of the pair of clasping portion extends through a corresponding hole and clasps the insulated member to fix the voltage-resistant connector on the conductive member.
US07699643B1
An electrical cord management device includes an elongate housing having open first and second ends, an open side, and an open interior area extending between the open ends and open side. A first friction fit clip is positioned in the open interior area and coupled to the housing for attachment to a first electrical cord. A second friction fit clip is positioned in the open interior area and coupled to the housing for attachment to a second electrical cord. The first and second clips are sufficiently spaced apart to allow an end of the first electrical cord to be coupled to an end of the second electrical cord while the first electrical cord is coupled to the first friction fit clip and the second electrical cord is coupled to the second friction fit clip. A lanyard is positioned adjacent the housing first end.
US07699628B2
An electrical connector (200) adapted for electrically connecting an electronic package with a circuit substrate, comprises an insulative housing (3), a plurality of terminals (4) and a reinforcement member (5). The housing (3) comprising an upper surface (32) for supporting the electronic package and an opposite bottom surface (31) for being mounted to the circuit substrate. The terminals (4) comprising a soldering portion (42) extending beyond the bottom surface (31) of the insulative housing (3) adapted for electrically connecting the circuit substrate, a spring arm (41) with a mating portion (411) extending beyond the upper surface (32) of the insulative housing (3) adapted for electrically connecting the electronic package at a free end thereof. The reinforcement member (5) is made of material different from that of the insulative housing (3) and attached to the bottom surface (31) of the insulative housing (3). When heated, the reinforcement member (5) will not distort together with the insulative housing (3). Thus, the reinforcement member (5) can reinforce the insulative housing (3) to prevent the distortion of the housing (3).
US07699623B2
An electrical junction box, which is assembled by first inserting a circuit board assembly into a primary housing via an opening of the primary housing, and after that inserting a secondary housing into the primary housing, includes a connector block that has a projection that widens the opening that has been narrowed. A plurality of ribs are formed on front and rear walls of the thin primary housing from the side of the opening in an insertion direction of the circuit board assembly. A concave groove formed between a pair of the projections engages with the rib of the front wall. The ribs on the rear wall are close to a circuit board of the circuit board assembly. The connector block has protuberances that abut against the ribs.
US07699616B2
An apparatus including a substrate having a plurality of through holes and a plurality of cables, including wires and/or coaxial cables, extending through respective ones of the plurality of through holes of the substrate. Each of the cables comprises a conductor and terminates about a surface of the substrate such that the conductors of respective ones of plurality of cables are planarly aligned and available for electrical contact. A system including a cable interface extending through respective ones of a plurality of through holes of a body of the interface; an interconnection component comprising a first plurality of contact points aligned with respective ones of conductors of the plurality of cables and a second plurality of contact points aligned to corresponding contact points of a device to be tested. Also, a method of routing signals through the conductors of the plurality of cables between electronic components.
US07699611B2
A device for fastening an orthesis or prosthesis, having a length-adjustable substantially rod-shaped bar assembly, which is pivotably connectable by two ends on exposed first ends of two implants fastened by a second end at a distance from each other in or onto a bone. With this bar assembly, a three-dimensional angle between the longitudinal axis of the bar assembly and the longitudinal axis of at least one implant can be set, so that, irrespective of the distance between and the relative position of the implants, each time, a fitting, preferably stress-free connection between these implants can be effected.
US07699609B2
A device for the treatment of periodontal disease. The device includes a handle that has a configuration familiar to dental professionals and a cartridge that is locked into the handle when use, typically delivery of a composition to a periodontal pocket, is desired. The cartridge provides for effective delivery of compositions, such as agents, as its tip is deformable, typically from a circular to an oval shape so as to flatten. The deformation may be made either manually, by the dental professional, or upon contact with teeth or other tissues, whereby this flattened tip can penetrate deeply into periodontal pockets for quick and direct application of the composition, for example, therapeutic agents.
US07699606B2
A method and apparatus for generating a orthodontic template that assists in the placement of an orthodontic apparatus includes processing that begins by obtaining a digital model of an orthodontic structure of an orthodontic patient. The processing continues by obtaining a selection of one of a plurality of orthodontic apparatuses for the orthodontic structure to produce a selected orthodontic apparatus. The processing then continues by obtaining a digital model of placement of the selected orthodontic apparatus on the digital model of the orthodontic structure. The processing then continues by retrieving a digital image of a tooth mounting apparatus (e.g., a bracket, a band, a headgear tube, etc.) of the selected apparatus for a given tooth. The processing then continues by generating a orthodontic template for holding a physical embodiment of the tooth mounting apparatus based on the digital image of the tooth mounting apparatus, the digital model of the placement, and at least a portion of the digital model of the orthodontic structure.
US07699605B2
The present invention is directed to dental compositions that can be used as adhesives for bonding a dental material to a dental structure surface and/or as a dental restorative material. The dental composition is preferably applied to a dental structure surface under conditions effective to etch the dental structure surface.
US07699587B2
A centrifugal blower comprising a cooling air path having an inlet communicating with a blower space and an outlet communicating with the inlet of the motor airflow path, the cooling air path having an upstream portion that extends axially in the direction from the opposite end of the motor toward the drive end of the motor, and the cooling air path having a downstream portion that extends axially in the direction from the drive end of the motor toward the opposite end of the motor.
US07699585B2
In a swash plate type compressor, refrigerant in a discharge pressure region is introduced into a crank chamber through a supply passage while the refrigerant in the crank chamber is drawn out to a suction pressure region through a bleed passage for controlling pressure in the crank chamber, whereby inclination angle of a swash plate is changed. A heat-generating sliding portion is provided in the crank chamber. The supply passage includes a communication port that communicates with the crank chamber and a first throttle portion for throttling the refrigerant. At least parts of the supply passage and the bleed passage are formed in a drive shaft. A part of the bleed passage formed in the drive shaft is located between a part of the supply passage formed in the drive shaft and an outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft.
US07699580B2
A stable portable air moving device capable of generating an air stream elevated above a support surface allowing the air stream to be directed as desired by the user is provided. The device includes an air blower assembly located within an elongate housing generating an exhaust air stream that exits the elongate housing at an elevation above the air blower assembly.
US07699579B2
An improved mechanical seal and repair method can be used with mechanical pump seal assemblies. The improved seal utilizes rotating and non-rotating sections of improved configuration, each of which can form a seal using a standard size carbon-face O-ring. The mechanical seal can be in the form of replacement parts that replace the old parts without modifications to the overall seal and assembly.
US07699568B2
A screw attachment (10, 10′, 10″) disposed around a fastening piece (17) secured to a main fastening body (25a), the screw attachment sandwiched between a head (17b) of the fastening piece and a securing object (22) so that the screw attachment bears a securing force of the fastening piece to press the securing object. The screw attachment includes a pair of arms (12, 13) made of a shape restoring material. Each arm has a fore end, and the fore ends are joined to each other with an adhesive material that is softened when heated. The arms expands radially such that the screw attachment is released from the head of the fastening piece when heat or force is applied to the arms.
US07699561B2
A method for improving the recovery efficiency of storing fresh water into an aquifer, the storing includes injecting the fresh water and extracting the injected fresh water by a single water storage system that includes at least one well penetrating into the aquifer, the method includes: providing a plurality of screens, each screen being located alongside a wall of at least one well, and each screen respectively allowing a flow of fresh water between an associated storage zone in contact with the screen and the well on which the screen is located; controlling the flow of fresh water through each one of the plurality of screens according to parameters provided from a storage model of the aquifer, the storage model describing a behavior of each storage zone.
US07699557B2
A concrete structure for replenishing an aquifer and a method for constructing the same is provided. The structure is comprised of a pavement layer with surface drains that extend through the pavement layer and into an aggregate leach field. The leach field includes leach lines spanning the leach field. An aggregate drain extends from the leach field into a sand lens. Precipitation which falls upon the structure thus flows through the surface drain, absorbed into the aggregate leach field, and transported to the aggregate drains by way of aggregate leach lines. The water is then absorbed into the sand lens, ultimately replenishing the aquifer. Existing conventional pavement structures are retrofitted by the removal of a section of the pavement, and filling the same with porous concrete.
US07699554B2
A bonnet assembly for a blowout preventer uses a seal carrier that is removable so as to allow for efficient and easy seal replacement. The seal carrier has: a recess adapted to at least partially embed a seal for sealing the bonnet assembly to a body of the blowout preventer; and a first connecting rod coupled to and extending from an inner surface of the seal carrier, where the first connecting rod has a fastening structure proximal to a distal end of the first connecting rod, where the fastening structure is adapted to engage with a first fastening device, and where the seal carrier is removable from the bonnet assembly when the first fastening device is disengaged from the fastening structure.
US07699550B2
A modular printer having a media take-up assembly, a support block assembly, a printhead assembly, a stepper motor assembly and a display assembly is provided. A support housing having a plurality of recesses formed on an internal wall of the modular printer is also provided. Each of the recesses is configured to receive and align one of the modular printer assemblies with the other modular printer assemblies. Each of the assemblies is configured as a module which can be easily accessed and quickly secured to or detached from the support housing. The support housing is adapted to receive assembly modules for both thermal ink printers and ribbon ink printers such that the modular printer can be easily converted from one to the other.
US07699549B2
An ink ribbon cartridge includes spools each including a ratchet gear in one end portion. A cartridge body includes integrally formed resilient engagement pieces each including a ratchet portion that engages and disengages the ratchet gear of the respective spool and a compressed portion that is compressed by a compressing portion of a thermal transfer printer apparatus. When the ink ribbon cartridge is installed in the thermal transfer printer apparatus, the resilient engagement pieces behave such that the compressed portions are compressed by the compressing portions of the thermal transfer printer apparatus. Thereby, engagement between the ratchet gears of the respective spools and the ratchet portions is released, and the spools become rotatable in the cartridge body.
US07699531B2
A wheel end assembly includes a carrier and a wheel bearing assembly, and an outside inner race is integrally formed with a spindle of the wheel bearing assembly. The wheel end assembly includes: a carrier having a cylindrical member on its one side and a second through pipe on its other side; and a wheel bearing assembly comprising a spindle integrally formed with an outside inner race on its one side and having an insert groove on its other side, a hub having an outer race having ball receiving members receiving balls, an inside inner race provided on the inner side of the outer race by pressurization, and a seal member sealing a gap between the inside inner race and the outer race.
US07699528B2
A dynamic bearing device is provided, which can prevent abrasion powder generated when a sealing member is pushed into an inner circumference of a housing from entering the housing. A sealing member is inserted into an inner circumference of an opening of a housing with an adhesive interposed therebetween The adhesive moving forward in a pushing direction of the sealing member is retained by a capillary action in a lower tapered space between an outer circumference of the sealing member and the inner circumference of the housing. Abrasion powder is captured by the adhesive in the tapered space so as to be confined in the adhesive as a result of the setting of the adhesive.
US07699527B2
Disclosed is a fluid dynamic bearing device in which it is possible to prevent detachment of the shaft member reliably and at low cost without involving any increase in the device size. In a thrust bearing portion T, the lower end surface of the shaft member is held in contact with a thrust plate, and the shaft member is rotatably supported in the thrust direction. Protrusions extending radially inwards are provided on a sealing portion attached to an opening of the housing, and these protrusions are engaged with a small diameter portion formed on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft member, thereby preventing the shaft member from coming off.
US07699513B2
A lamp unit includes a projection lens disposed on an optical axis, a light source disposed on a rear side of a rear focal point of the projection lens, a reflector configured to forwardly reflect light emitted from the light source toward the optical axis, and a shade configured to shield a part of the light reflected by the reflector. The lamp unit is configured to form a light distribution pattern having a cutoff line. An incidence plane of the projection lens includes a vertical diffusing portion which regulates the cutoff line. The vertical diffusing portion includes a plurality of lens elements extending substantially parallel to a horizontal portion of the upper edge of the shade. A vertical section of each of the lens elements is convex or concave with respect to a reference surface of the incidence plane.
US07699509B2
The fixed light for bends for a motor vehicle comprises at least two light sources, means sensitive to the path of the vehicle for supplying a signal dependent on the nature of the road followed by the vehicle, and means for controlling successive switching on the sources according to the signal delivered and providing an effect of light sweeping towards the inside of the bend. Each light source consists of one or more modules with light-emitting diodes.
US07699508B2
A pole-suspended flag illumination system positions a lighting fixture located in close proximity to a flag on a flagpole to provide illumination to the flag. The lighting fixture can slide up and down the flagpole in unison the flag using the same halyard that is used for the flag, or by other means. Further, flags often rotate about the flagpole as the wind shifts. As such, the lighting fixture can rotate about the flagpole in alignment with the flag so as to maintain illumination on the flag at it rotates. The flag and the lighting fixture may be attached to a reinforced electrical cable that acts as a halyard and raises and lowers them both along the flagpole. Further, the electrical cable can be connected to a power source to power directional lights in the lighting fixture and any other electrical devices on the flagpole.
US07699504B2
The present invention relates to a light source package structure, which comprises: an accommodating space for accommodating a light source, a first refraction surface, and at least a second refraction surface. The first refraction surface receives light discharging from the light source while refracting the same to form a first refracting light, the upper part of the first refraction surface further comprising a refracting structure for refracting the light emitted from the light source. The second refraction surface receives and refracts the first refracting light to form a discharging light being emitted out of the light source package structure. Wherein, an included angle is formed between the normal vector of a portion of the second refraction surface and the central axis of the light source package structure. It is noted that the aforesaid package structure can be used in various packaging for improving refraction. In a preferred embodiment, a light source of light emitting diode (LED) is packaged by the light source package structure of the invention for enabling the light emitted from the LED to be discharged out of the package structure by a large angle after being refracted multiple times, so that the LED package structure can be adopted as a flat light source for diverse purpose applied in industry.
US07699502B2
An optical member (3) has an entrance bottom surface (6) opposed to LED chips (1) and the entrance bottom surface (6) is configured to receive light from the LED chips (1), an exit top surface (7) opposite to the entrance bottom surface (6) and the exit top surface (7) is configured to emit the light outside the optical member(3), and an outer peripheral side surface (8) disposed between the entrance bottom surface (6) and the exit top surface (7). The outer peripheral side surface (8) has a plurality of circumferentially extending grooves (9) each having a V-shaped sectional configuration. The grooves (9) are set at an angle at which the entered light can be totally reflected inwardly in the optical member (3).
US07699501B2
An LED illuminating device includes an optical section (10), an electrical section (30), and a heat dissipation section (20) arranged between the optical section (10) and the electrical section (30). The heat dissipation section is provided with a heat dissipation device (200) which includes a heat sink (23), a mounting seat (24), and a heat pipe (22) connecting the mounting seat with the heat sink. The heat sink includes a solid base (231) and a plurality of fins (232) extending radially and outwardly from the base. The base is provided with a through hole (233). Alight source (11) is provided in the optical section and attached to the mounting seat. The heat pipe includes an evaporating portion (222) attached to the mounting seat, and a condensing portion (221) fittingly received in the through hole of the base.
US07699492B2
A lighting device is disclosed. The lighting device can be battery-powered and can include one or more LEDs within a light source housing. The device can also include a base connected to the light source housing, and a clip removably connected to the base. The base can act as a stable support for the lighting device when the lighting device is positioned upright over a flat support surface with the clip disconnected from the base. Similarly, the clip (or the clip in conjunction with a portion of the base) can act as a stable support for the lighting device when the lighting device is positioned upright over a flat support surface with the clip connected to the base. The clip can be configured to releasably connect to the base in a first orientation and a second orientation substantially opposite to the first orientation.
US07699491B2
A flashlight mounting arrangement may comprise a flashlight body having a source of light therein, and a mounting saddle for detachably affixing the flashlight body on an object, the mounting saddle detachably engaging the flashlight body. Optionally, the flashlight may have a rotatable lamp head, and the lamp head may also include a reflector having one or more sources of light, e.g., an incandescent lamp and a light emitting diode, therein. Also optionally, a battery charger may be provided to recharge a battery for the flashlight.
US07699486B1
An illuminated eyeglass assembly includes one or more temple members having an integral lighting assembly structured and disposed to provide an illumination region proximate a user, for example, to illuminate an item within an arm's length of the user. Each integral light assembly includes at least one light source interconnected to a power source via a switch mechanism. Each of the light sources produce a light beam, and the light sources are structured and disposed such that the light beams provide an illumination region immediately proximate the user, thereby permitting the user to perceptively view an item in a low light environment, such as, to permit the user to read menu or a check in a restaurant or nightclub. A system is provided to retrofit an existing eyeglass assembly with one or more temple member having an integral lighting assembly.
US07699485B1
A light adapted to be attached to an article of clothing, comprising a power supply casing, an illuminator casing, having therein an illuminator adapted to emit a beam of light when electrically powered, said power supply casing and illuminator casing being attachable and detachable to the article of clothing means of a clamping force applied by a clamp with at least one extension, said at least one extension providing mechanical interconnection and a clamping force between the light and the article of clothing to retain the article of clothing therebetween.
US07699482B2
The light-emitting element emits light itself. The element includes a light-emitting portion having a higher refractive index than a refractive index of air and a diffraction grating structure provided to a light-emitting side surface of the light-emitting portion. The function that a minimum light-emission value is equal to or less than 50% of a maximum light-emission value when white light is emitted from the light-emitting portion is realized. The function is obtained by further including a color-separation filter provided between the light-emitting portion and the light-emitting side surface and making a minimum value of a spectral product obtained from a light-emission waveform of the white light emitted from the light-emitting portion and a spectral transmittance of said color-separation filter equal to or less than 50% of a maximum value thereof, or by adjusting a light-emission ratio of the light-emitting materials for said at least two primary colors among the light-emitting materials for the three primary colors.
US07699480B2
The present high positioning reproducible mirror-actuator interface disclosed herein overcomes the deficiencies associated with conventional interface systems and offer a number of advantages that are disclosed herein. Generally, the mirror mounts provide a reliable and robust interface between the mirrors and actuators, that serve to move and position the mirrors, as wells as providing an interface between the mirrors and gravity compensator pins. The mirror mount is characterized as having a body that has an outer peripheral wall that includes a plurality of flexible elements around the perimeter of the body, each having a high stiffness in plane and a high flexibility out of plane. The body is open at the first end to allow flexing of the flexible elements. The flexible elements providing a direct coupling interface between the mirror mount and the mirror. The flexible elements of the mirror mount provides a number of advantages and increases the performance capabilities of the first mechanical interface between the mirror mount and the actuator.
US07699475B2
An optical projector system is provided. The optical projector system includes light source device, an optical system, a lens set, and a photoelectric conversion device. The optical system has a light entrance end corresponding to the light source device and a light exit end corresponding to the lens set. The light source device includes a light source and a hood enclosing the light source. The light source device, the optical system, and the lens set together form a light passage. The photoelectric conversion device is disposed on a deviating light zone outside the hood for receiving the light deviating from the light passage.
US07699473B2
An image display apparatus for a viewer to view a two-dimensional image demonstrated on an image display device as an enlarged virtual image by a virtual-image optical system. The image display apparatus includes a prism and a reflective transmitting surface for reflecting or transmitting image light incident from an incident optical surface. The image display apparatus also includes a reflective optical component for reflecting image light reflected from the reflective transmitting surface and radiated from a first planar optical surface towards the reflective transmitting surface as a collimated light beam and a phase difference optical component arranged on a light path between the first planar optical surface and the reflective optical component to the state of polarization of the image light.
US07699469B2
Detecting position information related to a face, and more particularly to an eyeball in a face, using a detection and ranging system, such as a Radio Detection And Ranging (“RADAR”) system, or a Light Detection And Ranging (“LIDAR”) system. The position information may include a location of the eyeball, translational motion information related to the eyeball (e.g., displacement, velocity, acceleration, jerk, etc.), rotational motion information related to the eyeball (e.g., rotational displacement, rotational velocity, rotational acceleration, etc.) as the eyeball rotates within its socket.
US07699462B2
A scuba diving mask with corrective lenses comprising a frame with a plurality of rings joined to one another by a bridge, each of the rings having an internal flange on which the lip of a flexible skirt, a corresponding lens and a lens-retaining collar rest. The collar is attached by snap action to the corresponding ring. A seat is formed in a bridge substantially in the lying plane of, or coplanar with, the lenses and extending laterally to an upper internal portion of the rings. The seat includes a locking plate slidable between opposing end stroke positions - a locking end position and a release end positions respectively. When the locking plate is in the locking position, the lateral sides of the plate extend inside the rings and are engaged with corresponding notches in an upper internal rim of the lens-retaining collars.
US07699461B2
Systems and methods for producing permanent ink-jet images are provided. In one embodiment, a system includes a media substrate coated with a porous media coating, wherein the porous media coating having inorganic porous particulates, and wherein at least a portion of the inorganic porous particulates have a first reactive group covalently attached thereto. The system further includes an ink-jet ink containing a dye, wherein the dye includes a second reactive group, and wherein the first reactive group and the second reactive group are configured to react with one another upon contact to form a covalent bond. In an alternative embodiment, a method of producing permanent ink-jet images can includes the steps of covalently bonding a first reactive group to an inorganic porous particulate; coating the inorganic porous particulate onto a media substrate to form a coated media substrate; ink-jetting a dye-containing ink-jet ink composition onto the coated media substrate, wherein the dye includes a second reactive group. The first reactive group and the second reactive group, upon contact, can interact to form a covalent bond.
US07699460B2
It is an object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus and a printing method which can perform an appropriate printing operation on a print medium while keeping an ink ejection range to a minimum required even when the print medium transported is deviated from a theoretical position, and which can also reduce a running cost and ink mist. Thus, the present invention is characterized by determining the actual position of the print medium transported to the printing position; based on the determined print medium position, setting an area slightly larger than the print medium lying area as a print area; and performing the printing operation on that area.
US07699458B2
A method of providing a surface of a material with an image, includes applying to the surface an image sheet included (i) a flexible layer of a Shape Memory Polymer, and (ii) an image bonded to said layer by means of an image key coat. The image sheet is bonded to the surface by means of an adhesive and a process which involves heating of the Shape Memory Polymer to a temperature above its Glass Transition Temperature.
US07699456B2
The invention relates to a printing method according to which, during the printing process, one or more narrow nozzles eject a printing liquid, and to a printing liquid suitable for such a method. The invention is particularly suitable for forgery-proof printing on papers or articles. According to the invention, the printing liquid contains nanoparticles that can be induced to fluoresce or phosphoresce. Said nanoparticles are small crystalline particles that can be induced to fluoresce or phosphoresce on their own or when mixed with dopants. Individual dots (10, 12) can be printed by means of a printing liquid that contains said nanoparticles. Due to their small size of from 1 to 1000 nanometers, preferably in the range of 300 nanometers or even much smaller depending on nozzle diameter, there is no risk of very narrow ink jet nozzles getting plugged. The induction and fluorescence emission frequency ranges are narrow-band so that for a security control of the print the respective wavelength-specific induction or detection is required, thereby increasing protection against forgery.
US07699455B2
An inkjet recording apparatus comprises a main body, a print head, and a cable. The main body includes an ink container for storing ink, an ink supply pump for supplying the ink, and an operation control section. The print head includes a nozzle for expelling the ink supplied from the main body as ink particles, charging electrodes for charging the ink particles, deflecting electrodes for deflecting the charged ink particles, and a gutter for collecting ink particles that have not been used for printing. The cable includes an ink supply path through which the ink is supplied from the main body to the print head, an ink collecting path through which the ink particles collected in the gutter are returned to the ink container, signal lines interconnecting the operation control section and the print head. An ink collecting pump for transferring the ink particles collected in the gutter to the ink container is disposed in the print head.
US07699451B2
A pressure retaining device for retaining a pressure in a communication passage which are communicated between a supply tank for supplying a first fluid and a nozzle for ejecting the first fluid, comprises a compressing unit provided across an intermediate of the communication passage for compressing the first fluid transferred from the supply tank to the nozzle, and a pump for supplying to the compressing unit a second fluid on which a pressure is loaded thereby. In the construction above, the second fluid is supplied by the pump to the compressing unit to compress the first fluid in the compressing unit, and the first fluid in the nozzle is then compressed by a pressure loaded on the first fluid in the compressing unit.
US07699450B2
An ink supplying container is disclosed. In the ink supplying container, when the internal pressure of an ink container is made a positive pressure which is higher than atmospheric pressure so that nozzles of a recording head are cleaned and recovered by discharging a small amount of ink, a volume control unit restrains a flexible member of the ink container from expanding. When the internal pressure of the ink container is made a negative pressure optimal for printing which is lower than the atmospheric pressure so that a letter and/or an image is printed on a recording medium by the recording head, the volume control unit does not restrain the flexible member from expanding, and the volume of the ink container is maintained at almost the same volume as that at the time when the internal pressure of the ink container is made the positive pressure.
US07699433B2
A method of maintaining a printhead in an operable condition is provided. The method comprises the steps of: (i) providing a chassis having mounted thereon: a maintenance roller having an elastically deformable contact surface and an ink removal system for removing ink from the maintenance roller; (ii) moving the chassis towards the printhead such that the contact surface is sealingly engaged with an ink ejection face thereof; (iii) moving the chassis away from said printhead such that the contact surface is disengaged from the face; and (iv) rotating the maintenance roller such that ink is removed from the contact surface by the ink removal system.
US07699431B2
An ink jet printing apparatus is provided in which ink absorbers, capable of performing their function to the fullest extent to quickly absorb an ink that tends to coagulate, are installed to prevent an interior of the printing apparatus and the back of a print medium from being contaminated. To this end, the printing apparatus has an ink absorber that contains a coagulation inhibitor capable of inhibiting the coagulation of colorant contained in the ink. This arrangement inhibits the coagulation of the colorant on the surface or in the interior of the absorber, allowing the colorant to be absorbed quickly and uniformly into the interior of the absorber. Therefore, problems caused by a deposition of the colorant on the surface of the absorber or by a degraded absorbing capability can be alleviated, thus keeping the image output in good condition.
US07699417B2
A recording unit according to the present invention includes a holding member, a recording element held on the holding member, an ink supply section held on the holding member, and a guiding portion provided in the holding member. The guiding portion guides a recording medium so as to prevent the recording medium from contacting the recording element. An image recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a conveying mechanism having a conveying member on which a recording medium is placed for conveyance, a recording unit, and a fixing member which fixes the recording unit. A guiding portion of the recording unit guides the recording medium to the conveying member so as to prevent the recording medium from contacting the recording element. The guiding portion also maintains a constant gap between the recording medium and the recording element to achieve high-quality image recording.
US07699412B2
A locker is provided. The locker comprises a base defining a storage space, a door coupled to the base and rotatable relative to the base between an open position and a closed position, and a latch bar supported at an interior side of the door by at least one projection that engages at least one guide slot in the latch bar. The latch bar is moveable parallel to the door between an extended position and a retracted position. The latch bar is biased toward the extended position to secure the panel in the closed position. The extended position is horizontally and vertically offset from the retracted position.
US07699411B2
An ABS control apparatus employs a normally-open linear solenoid valve as a pressure-increasing valve, and repeatedly performs ABS control composed of pressure-reducing control and linear pressure-increasing control. This apparatus determines an initial value Pw0 of an estimated wheel cylinder pressure value Pw in consideration of brake operation time before start of ABS control Tstp and vehicle body deceleration at the start of a first-time ABS control, and then determines the estimated wheel cylinder pressure value Pw during the ABS control on the basis of the value Pw0 and the pressure-reducing characteristic of a pressure-reducing valve. This apparatus determines instruction current supplied to the pressure-increasing valve during the linear pressure-increasing control, while using an estimated differential pressure Pdiff (=(Pw0−Pw)+Pup1+Pup2), wherein Pup1 and Pup2 are set in accordance with the time Tstp and additional brake operation during the ABS control, respectively.
US07699405B2
A wheel end assembly for a vehicle includes an axle tube and a housing secured to the end of the axle tube. A hub includes a drive flange located axially outward from the housing and a spindle projecting from the drive flange into the housing. The hub spindle has a substantially solid body with drive splines about an external surface of the spindle. Rolling elements are located between the hub spindle and the housing for enabling the hub to rotate about an axis. The hub includes an inner race defining an inner raceway located around and carried by the hub spindle for engagement with the rolling elements. An axle shaft is positioned within the axle tube and includes splines that are coupled to the external drive splines of the hub. The axle shaft includes a substantially hollow end positioned within the housing having the shaft splines positioned within an inner surface of the hollow end of the axle shaft. The hollow end is configured for receiving a portion of the hub for coupling the shaft splines with the drive splines of the hub for transferring torque from the axle shaft to the hub.
US07699404B2
Various exemplary embodiments are provided of wheel assemblies and tires. In one exemplary embodiment, a wheel assembly generally includes first and second wheel pieces attachable to each other. The first and second wheel pieces may include respective first and second rim portions. Each of the first and second rim portions may include an arced portion that defines only a portion of a circumference of a rim, such that the arced portions collectively define the circumference of the rim when the first and second wheel pieces are attached. The first and second wheel pieces may be slidably engagable in a first axial direction that is substantially parallel to a rotational axis of the wheel assembly. The first and second wheel pieces may be slidably disengagable in a second axial direction that is generally opposite the first axial direction.
US07699397B2
In a seat reclining device, reclining mechanisms that are respectively provided on right and left sides of a seat are constructed such that locking and unlocking motion thereof can be performed in synchronism with each other via a connection member. A connection structure of the connection member and a operation shaft is constructed as a transmission preventing mechanism for preventing transmission of the unlocking motion between the reclining mechanisms when a load is laterally disproportionately applied to the seat back in which the reclining mechanisms are in a locking condition such that a relatively different rotational displacement that permits to release the locking condition is generated between the reclining mechanisms that are arranged in rotationally synchronism with each other.
US07699395B1
The high chair apparatus focuses on safety by providing no sharp edges. External edges and features of the apparatus are rounded to avoid potential injury to a child, whether in or around the apparatus. The seat prevents a child's escape from the chair via the harness and the divider. The built-in vacuum has a substantially selectively hidden hose so that the hose is out of the way except during use. The hose extends sufficiently to clean the apparatus and any area around the apparatus. The removable tray cover and chair back cover further aid in cleanup by providing removable washability. The pedestal housing the vacuum components is insulated to negate excessive noise. Triangularly positioned wheels provide mobility.
US07699394B2
A vehicle seat with an active head restraint system is provided with a seatback frame having a pair of side members. An armature extends transversely between the side members with a pair of lateral ends each pivotally connected to one of the side members. A head restraint rod extends from the armature for supporting a head restraint. An actuator is mounted to the seatback frame for actuating the armature. A bushing is mounted to the frame, the armature or the actuator. A rivet is mounted to the bushing and another of the frame, armature and actuator. The rivet preloads the bushing to minimize inadvertent movement at the connection. A method for assembling a vehicle seat is provided wherein the bushing is preassembled to the rivet. Another method for assembling a vehicle seat is provided wherein the rivet preloads the bushing to minimize inadvertent movement at the connection.
US07699389B2
A lift-recliner chair includes a base portion, a seat portion pivotally connected to the base portion, and a back portion pivotally connected to the seat portion. The chair further includes an actuator assembly for altering the configuration of the chair including a first actuator for moving the seat portion with respect to the base portion and second actuator for moving the back portion with respect to the seat portion. The actuator assembly is substantially enclosed on an underside of the chair, the first actuator is fixed in relation to the base portion, and the second actuator is fixed in relation to the seat portion.
US07699385B2
Provided is an automotive vehicle body structure which is light weight but demonstrates an improved mechanical strength during a frontal collision. A pair of front side frames extend in a fore-and-aft direction in a mutually spaced relationship in a front part of a vehicle body, and a pair of floor frames having forward ends joined to rear ends of the corresponding front side frames, respectively, extend in the fore-and-aft direction. A front cross member is provided with a pair of lateral ends that are joined to inboard sides of the rear end portions of the corresponding front side frames, and is arch shaped. A middle cross member is placed behind the front cross member and extends across the floor frames. Tunnel frames extend in a fore-and-aft direction in a central part of the vehicle body to join a dashboard lower panel, front cross member and middle cross member.
US07699382B2
An aerodynamic cargo container with rounded rear doors is disclosed. The aerodynamic cargo container includes an angled rear area that reduces base drag when the container is transported. The rear sliding door allows for partial opening of the door and allows for operation of the door when the rear of the container is in close proximity to another object. The crash attenuating skirt deflects vehicles away from the cargo container. A pair of cargo doors may define the curved contour of the trailer rear section. These doors may have a plurality of pivoted and segmented sections that assume the curved contour of a stationary edge when the doors are moved to a closed position.
US07699377B2
A vehicle includes a ceiling with a headliner and a cradle is secured within the ceiling of the vehicle such that it is substantially flush with the headliner. The cradle is shaped and dimensioned for selectively receiving and securely holding a video system. A cover for selective attachment to the cradle when the video system is not in use.
US07699358B2
High localized loading, galling, and high torque forces have been generally eliminated or greatly reduced in a two ferrule tube fitting assembly through suitable modification of the rear ferrule so as to redirect the reaction forces acting between the front ferrule and the drive nut. The rear ferrule has a cylindrical interior wall that closely surrounds the tube end and is provided on the interior cylindrical wall with a circumferentially continuous radial recess that is located between the nose and rear wall of the rear ferrule. The rear ferrule also has a radially external wall that is substantially conical and additionally shaped to extend radially outward toward the enlarged diameter portion or flange of the rear ferrule. The rear ferrule further includes a contoured face on the rear driven surface of the ferrule that engages the drive surface of the drive nut.
US07699346B2
A force redistributing system operably attached to a vehicle. The system includes a first cross-car member, a first side load distributor and a second side load distributor. The first and second side load distributors are parallel to and spaced apart from each other and are attached at respective first ends to opposing ends of the first cross-car member. The system includes a second cross-car member having opposing ends, which are attached to second ends of the first and second side load distributors. The system establishes cross vehicle loading of force from a rear impact wherein the force from the rear impact on the vehicle is transferred along an upper path and a lower path.
US07699341B2
A planing boat, particularly of a small size, is provided with an airbag system. The airbag system includes at least one bag-shaped airbag body, a housing which accommodates the airbag body, a detector for detecting a collision of the boat, an expanding unit which inflates the airbag body at the time of collision of the boat, and a controller for controlling the detector and the inflation of the airbag body. In a preferred embodiment, the airbag system includes a first airbag body in the handle cover which is blown up from the handle bar to a rear side of the boat and a second airbag body in the handle cover which is blown up toward a front side of knees of a rider.
US07699338B2
A passenger airbag module removably connectable to an automotive interior component. The passenger airbag module may include a front bracket engageable with an automotive interior component and a rear connector having a detent or an aperture. A rear bracket may be removably connectable with the rear connector by an aperture or detent for respectively receiving or insertion into the detent or aperture of the rear connector. The rear bracket may be further configured to engage the automotive interior component.
US07699336B2
An anti-theft device for a towed trailer vehicle wherein a pivotable cover housing is mounted to the tongue of the trailer in spaced relation to the socket lock mechanism of a conventional ball socket attachment of a trailer hitch bar. The protective housing adapts to all standard ball and socket arrangements, does not require extensive rework of the tongue of the trailer, has adequate securing means, is low cost, and provides anti-theft protection while the trailer is in tow, as well as when the trailer is parked and/or unhitched from the towing vehicle.
US07699331B2
A motorcycle-stance alteration kit is described. The kit includes a handlebar clamp, a fork clamp, and a footpeg extension. The handlebar clamp is formed to connect with a motorcycle's fork clamp and reposition the motorcycle's handlebar to alter a user's riding stance. The fork clamp is configured to be attached with motorcycle forks to the motorcycle's frame. The fork clamp includes a horizontal mounting surface that is formed to offset the fork's rake angle to cause the horizontal mounting surface to rest in a substantially horizontal alignment with respect to a ground surface. Finally, the footpeg extension is formed to connect with and between a motorcycle frame and footpeg. Thus, the footpeg extension effectively repositions the footpeg to alter the user's riding stance.
US07699330B2
A shock-absorbing suspension device includes a mounting rod mounted on a wheeled vehicle frame, a wheel rod mounted on a vehicle wheel axle and forward of the mounting rod, a counteracting member pivotally mounted on the mounting rod and having upper and lower linked ends disposed forward of the wheel rod, upper and lower linking bars coupling the upper and lower linked end to the wheel rod to thereby form a four-bar linkage mechanism, a cantilever arm extending forward from an upper end of the mounting rod to terminate at a bearing end, and a force transmitting member coupled with the four-bar linkage mechanism to thereby minimize the impact of shock to the mounting rod.
US07699329B2
A bicycle transmission assembly that is mountable to a bottom bracket shell of a bicycle frame. The bicycle transmission generally includes an input crank assembly, an output chainring, a planetary gear mechanism, a control system and a mounting system. The output chainring engages a bicycle drive chain that includes a plurality of chain links. The planetary gear mechanism includes a ring gear and provides a plurality of transmission paths. The planetary gear mechanism is mounted coaxially about the shell axis. The control system is operatively connected to the planetary gear mechanism for selecting one of the plurality of transmission paths. The mounting system mounts the planetary gear mechanism and the control system to the bottom bracket shell. At least one chain link overlaps the ring gear as viewed along the shell axis. The at least one chain link engages the output chainring.
US07699328B2
A retractable step assembly (400) for a cab (C) for a mobile machine includes a leg (450) slideably received in a through-hole (408) in a platform (58) of a cab (C). An upper end (452) of the leg (450) is fixed to a lower end (434) of a stretchable spring (430) whose upper end (432) is fixed. A step (470) is mounted to the lower end (454) of the leg (450). The leg (450) is movable between a retracted position and an extended position in which the step (470) is nearer to the ground than in the retracted position. The step (470) can be stepped on by an operator to move the leg (450) to the extended position to thereby allow the operator to exit the cab (C) by stepping on the step (470). The leg (450) can be unlatched by the operator in the cab (C) to return to the retracted position under action of the spring (430).
US07699327B2
The invention relates to a wheel suspension, which has at least one transverse link and one wheel carrier. The wheel carrier has a connecting element, through which a bolt extends, for connecting to the transverse link. The connecting element has a stop on a limb which is assigned to a bolt head, with the bolt head having a counterstop which corresponds to the stop.
US07699325B2
A steerable stroller including a rear frame assembly supporting two rear wheels and a front frame assembly, which may take the form of a boom or other frame work, pivotally coupled with the rear frame assembly and supporting a front wheel. A centering mechanism is provided that elastically couples the front frame assembly with the rear frame assembly so that the boom and front wheel are normally in a straight orientation with respect to the rear wheels, and when a user imparts a turning force the centering mechanism acts to return the boom and front wheel to the straight orientation when the force is reduced or removed. It is also possible to include a pivoting front wheel in conjunction with or separate from the pivoting boom, with pivoting wheel also including a centering mechanism. Finally, the steerable running stroller may include a removable seat assembly.
US07699318B1
A method of wagering for games where there can be more than one player hand dealt and each player hand is compared to a Dealer hand. The method of wagering adds an option to wager that the Dealer hand will beat a particular player hand, a wager that the Dealer hand will push with or tie a particular player hand, or both additional wagers. The method of wagering may be supported by a special layout for wagers on the Dealer hand, and this layout may be able to move around the table or it may be stationary.
US07699308B2
An apparatus for diverting sheet material, in particular bank notes (BN), includes a diverting plate (4) with a first diverting edge (7) disposed on a slant and preferably a second diverting edge (8) disposed on a slant. The sheet material is guided and transported from the rear side (6) of the diverting plate (4) around the first diverting edge (7) to the front side (5) and further around the second diverting edge (8) back to the rear side (6). If the diverting edges (7, 8) are aligned relative to the transport direction (1, 2, 3) of the sheet material e.g. in each case at a slant angle of 45°, this apparatus permits the sheet-material transport direction to be diverted by 180°, whereby the transport path is shifted parallel. Thus, a continuous bank-note stream can be diverted uninterruptedly while retaining the sheet-material orientation relative to the transport direction. By means of a gate (12) the sheet material can be guided to a downstream diverting edge (13) instead of to the second diverting edge (8).
US07699304B2
A paper feed cassette incorporates a storage portion for standard-sized paper and a storage portion for small-sized paper that has an area smaller than the standard-sized paper, further includes paper conveyance paths for guiding the standard-sized paper and small-sized paper from the respective storage portions to an image forming portion, and these paper conveyance paths share a common vertical portion.
US07699297B2
A method of operating a clamp (100) that includes a first clamping jaw (102), a support element (104) to which the first clamping jaw is attached and a trigger handle (118) pivotably mounted to a clamp body (112). The method includes actuating the trigger handle causing the first clamping jaw to experience incremental motion and varying the incremental motion as a function of a load encountered by the support element by varying an effective lever arm of the trigger handle by moving a fulcrum point into contact or out of contact with the trigger handle based on the load.
US07699296B1
A micromachined actuator including a body or platform mounted to a suspension system anchored to a substrate. In one embodiment, the suspension system is comprised of a set of one or more spring flexures connecting the actuator body to the substrate with strain relief provided via connecting torsional elements. In another embodiment, the suspension system includes a first set of one or more spring flexures each with one end anchored to a largely rigid intermediate frame and the other end attached to the body. A second set of one or more flexures is attached between the intermediate frame and the substrate. A third actuator embodiment maximizes force electrode area to minimize voltage required for electrostatic actuation. A fourth embodiment provides electrical interconnect to an actuator or an actuator array using polysilicon with silicon nitride isolation.
US07699283B2
A unitary support bracket facilitates secure and efficient support of an electrical box, and one or more associated conduits. The support bracket includes a central portion, and a plurality of leg portions which extend integrally therefrom. Each of the leg portions includes a downwardly deformable distal portion, which in turn each include at least one resiliently deformable tab engageable with a respective one of the conduits. By this arrangement, the efficient support of an electrical box, and one or more associated conduits, can be provided, with minimal assembly of various components required, thus facilitating convenient and efficient installation of the associated electrical system.
US07699282B2
An article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface and a clip operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall interconnecting the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate. The retaining leg moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet.
US07699279B2
A slide bracket includes a main body having an end plate and at least one hanging block. The end plate is provided with a locating holder and a corresponding opening. The locating holder contains a chamber containing a spring. The hanging block has a first post and a second post, and is disposed into the chamber to hold against the spring to expand in relation to the opening and the chamber so to allow the first and second posts penetrating through the opening of the end plate for securing the bracket to a support without relying upon tools.
US07699275B2
A stand for a display device is provided. The stand prevents a viewer located at a side of the display from experiencing the problems of a narrow viewing angle by allowing the display device to be pivoted in a wide angle without interference from a wall behind the device. The stand includes a base, a swivel hinge, a fixed unit, a telescopic unit, and a movable unit. The swivel hinge is fixed to the base. The fixed unit is rotatably fixed to the swivel hinge. The telescopic unit includes one member fixed to the fixed unit. The movable unit, to which the other member of the telescopic unit is fixed, is capable of being translated in left and right directions of the base and being rotated.
US07699274B2
A temporary attachment for use with pipe hangers is disclosed which includes an elongated angle member which is supported upon the lower end of a pipe hanger and which has a plurality of ball transfer units positioned thereon which support the pipe being hung. The ball transfer units not only permit the longitudinal movement of the associated pipe with respect to the pipe hanger but also permits the pipe to be rotated about its longitudinal axis with respect to the pipe hanger.
US07699273B2
There is provided a removable holding device for accommodating a mobile terminal and/or a screen in the passenger region of a vehicle. The holding device comprises at least one bar with a first end for insertion into fitments of a vehicle and a second end for accommodating the mobile terminal and/or the screen. That holding device has proven to be advantageous insofar as it is easy to remove/insert.
US07699271B2
A railroad crossing gate drive mechanism has an adjustable gate arm support in the form of a split hub mounted on the external portion of a drive shaft. A fixed section of the split hub is keyed to the drive shaft and has threaded bolt holes therein. A moveable section of the split hub mounts a gate arm connector and has arcuate slots cut on the same bolt circle as the fixed section's bolt holes. Cap screws extend through the arcuate slots and into the bolt holes. The horizontal position of the gate arm connector can be adjusted due to the loose fit afforded by the arcuate slots on the cap screws. When the gate arm connector is located in the desired horizontal position, the cap screws are tightened to lock the split hub sections together.
US07699267B2
An aircraft for carrying at least one rigid cargo container includes a beam structure with a forward fuselage attached to the forward end of the beam structure and an empennage attached to the rearward end of the beam structure. Wings and engines are mounted relative to the beam structure and a fairing creates a cargo bay able to receive standard sized intermodal cargo containers. Intermodal cargo containers of light construction and rigid structure are positioned within the cargo bay and securely mounted therein. The beam structure is designed to support flight, takeoffs and landings when the aircraft is empty but requires the added strength of the containers securely mounted to the beam structure when the aircraft is loaded. The aircraft is contemplated to be a drone.
US07699258B2
A device for controlling the feed of a yarn to a textile machine operating intermittently on the yarn, there being provided elements to sense the tension of the yarn and elements for measuring and modifying its feed speed, all connected to control and regulator elements for the tension and speed parameters, which continuously measure the values of both parameters during the feed of the yarn to the textile machine so as to act on a rotary member in order to modify the tension of the yarn when necessary. The rotary member is movable in a controlled manner in the two opposing directions of rotation to feed the yarn to the textile machine or to rewind it in order to prevent its accumulation in correspondence with the machine, the tension of the yarn fed or rewound being maintained at constant values.
US07699249B2
The invention relates to a method for defining the degree of fullness in a mill and the load toe angle (φk), where there are used oscillations directed to the mill electric motor, in order to define the toe of the mill load composed of the mass to be ground. According to the invention, from the obtained measurements (P(n)) related to the mill draw or torque, there is defined the phase (θ) of the mill oscillation by using a frequency domain analysis, and that by means of the mill oscillation phase (θ), there is defined the load toe angle (φk).
US07699248B2
A method for recycling comprises a pulverization step (S1) of pulverizing thermoplastic resin molded articles, each having a different softening point in a resin substrate and having a metal part and a coupling film, a metal-material selection-removal step (S3) of selecting and removing a metal material from pulverized pieces, a pulverized resin-material selection step (S5) of selecting a target pulverized resin material for recycling by allowing the pulverized pieces from which the pulverized metal material has been removed to drop and by ejecting gas towards either one of the target pulverized resin material and a non-target pulverized resin material for changing a drop direction thereof, and a coating-film peeling step (S7) of peeling the coating film from the resin substrate by applying a shearing force to the target pulverized resin material under the softening point of the resin substrate of the target pulverized resin material for recycling.
US07699237B2
A baking oven and a method for controlling the exhaust flow from a cooking chamber of the baking oven, the flow being discharged by a fan. The method includes increasing a speed of the fan during a first time interval after. A first temperature of the baking oven is measured using a first temperature sensor during the first time interval. At the same time a second temperature of the baking oven is measured using a second temperature sensor. An electronic controller is used to determine the temperature difference between the temperatures during the first time interval. At a selected fan speed, the determined temperature difference varies from an initial temperature difference measured at the beginning of the first time interval. The controller sets at least one of the fan speed and a position of a bypass damper as a function of the selected fan speed.
US07699234B2
A method for selecting between a multi-hop transmission route and a single-hop transmission route for transmitting data from a smart item in a network of smart items to a base station includes receiving signals at the smart item from neighboring smart items in a vicinity of the smart item, measuring a density of neighboring smart items around the smart item based on information in the received signals, and parameterizing a loss of energy in a signal transmitted between a neighboring smart item and the smart item as a function of distance between the neighboring smart item and the smart item. The parameterization is based on information in the received signals. Based on the measured density and on the parameterization of the loss of energy, a multi-hop transmission route or a single-hop transmission route is selected for transmitting data from the smart item to the base station.
US07699233B2
A system and method for initializing secure elements for use in mobile devices. A mobile device manufacturer embeds uninitialized secure elements into mobile devices. An issuer-specific seed value is securely passed into an initialization routine in the operating system of the secure element. The initialization routine diversifies the initial root keys on the secure element with the issuer seed and the unique chip serial number to create master and chip keys for use in secure communications between the issuer and the mobile device user.
US07699231B2
A non-contact reader/writer for an IC card includes an antenna substrate provided with a loop antenna and a capacitor on its upper surface, a control substrate provided with a transmitting/receiving circuit and a chip coil on its upper surface, and a magnetic sheet disposed between the antenna substrate and the control substrate. A magnetic flux generated by the chip coil on the control substrate passes through the loop antenna to cause magnetic coupling, so that the loop antenna and the transmitting/receiving circuit need not be connected to each other through a communication cable.
US07699226B2
An electronic plan-o-gram system and method for determining plan-o-gram data are provided. In accordance with the method, identifiers associated with each of more than one product located in at least one storage area in a storage facility are sensed and a product type and product location of each product is determined based upon the sensed identifiers. A configuration of the at least one storage area in the storage facility and a location of each product in the storage facility is determined based upon the configuration and the determined product locations. A plan-o-gram data is stored indicating the location of products in the storage facility.
US07699215B2
A carton includes a bottom receptacle defined in part by the bottom panel, the side panels, and gusseted end panels. The bottom receptacle can be constructed without glue seals so that the receptacle is liquid-tight.
US07699213B2
Cartons have dispensing features that enable containers or other articles to be selectively dispensed from the cartons while preventing inadvertent escape of the articles from the cartons.
US07699205B2
A surgical fastener applying apparatus including an anvil half-section having a distal end and a longitudinal axis; a cartridge receiving half-section having a distal end and operatively couplable with the anvil half-section such that the distal ends of the half-sections are in juxtaposed relation; and a deflection control system operatively engaged with and reinforcing the distal end of the anvil half-section when a force is applied to the distal end of the anvil half-section in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis.
US07699203B2
A surgical staple inserter is disclosed and can include a shaft and a staple engagement arm pivotably engaged with the shaft. Further, the surgical staple inserter can include a spring that can be connected to the shaft and the staple engagement arm. The surgical staple inserter can be moved between a straight position and a bent position. In the straight position, the staple engagement arm can be substantially aligned with the shaft. In the bent position, the staple engagement arm can be rotated with respect to the shaft.
US07699202B2
A continuous cap feed mechanism for use with fastener driving device includes a housing for receiving a coiled strip of interconnected caps removably mounted the fastener driving device. The housing includes a passageway for guiding the strip of caps from the coil to a position beneath a fastener to be driven by the fastener driving device and an advancing mechanism for moving the leading cap on said strip from the passage to the position beneath the fastener to be driven after the fastener driving device drives a prior fastener into a cap and as it is moved away from the previously driven fastener. The advancing mechanism includes a driver movably mounted in the housing for movement between an extended and retracted position adjacent the location on the fastener driving device at which the fastener driving device drives fasteners. The driver is moved from its extended to its retracted position as it engages a work piece to which a cap is to be fastened is biased towards its extended position and includes a pusher mechanism for engaging a cap in the strip in the housing and urging the strip in the passageway towards the fastener driving device as the driver returns to its extended position when the housing is moved away from the work piece.
US07699189B2
A dispensing assembly adapted for dispensing gloves, which includes a dispenser. The dispenser has a housing which forms an inner surface and an internal compartment configured to hold a stack of gloves, and at least one dispensing opening. A stack of gloves disposed in the dispenser on a glove positioner and the glove positioner biases the stack of gloves toward the dispensing opening and a portion of the housing such that the glove positioner controls the stack of gloves and space in the internal compartment of the dispenser to prevent gloves from moving out of the stack and into the space to permit easy and reliable withdrawal of each glove therefrom.
US07699187B2
An end fitting for a cylindrical high pressure vessel made from components all having thin walls, thereby tripling the practical diameter of such pressure vessels. The end fitting includes a toroidal shell defining a hole; centrally disposed piece for closing the hole comprising a pipe and a center end fitting and structural members. In a first embodiment, the structural members comprise slices of an end of the pipe welded to the outer cylindrical wall of the vessel. In a second embodiment, the structural members are plates connecting the pipe to the outer cylindrical walls. In the third embodiment, the plates connect an extension of the outer cylindrical wall beyond the toroidal shell to an extension of the outer cylindrical wall of the pressure vessel. The center end fitting may be hemispheric or ellipsoidal.
US07699183B2
Disclosed herein are bottle-shaped containers having a trunk portion approximating a square. The trunk portion comprises four tabular side walls arrayed about a center axis and four corner walls connected to adjacent side walls in a corner-cutting form. The width of the corner walls expands from the top end and the bottom end toward a position about midway between the top end and the bottom end. By making the widths of the side walls and the corner walls about equal at a location about midway between the top portion and the bottom portion, the distance between the corner walls in mutual opposition with respect to the center axis can be decreased, forming a waist portion.
US07699181B2
A storage apparatus and method involves a wheel storage assembly having adjustable pockets for storage therein of an article. The wheel storage assembly generally includes a pocket assembly and opposite wheel assemblies. The pocket assembly may include a core, at least two dividers installed in an offset relationship on the core, the dividers being configured to project substantially radially outwardly from the core to form a free end of each divider, and a clip mounted at the free end of each divider. A base assembly may be employed to rotatably support the wheel storage assembly. A hub of each wheel assembly may be formed with an outer, substantially rounded surface and with a tension belt installed on a base connector of the base assembly and looped around the rounded surface to control the rotational speed of the wheel storage assembly as mounted on the base assembly.
US07699178B2
The purpose of the invention is to prevent accumulation of particulates on the outside of a net body of a particulate sifter having a cylindrical net body and to extend the lifetime of the net body. To achieve the purpose, in a particulate sifter which is provided with a sieve 21 having a cylindrical net body 26 extending in a horizontal direction and a booster having rotating blades which rotate along the inner surface of the net body 26 and which separates particulates that pass through the net body 26 from particulates and/or foreign substances that do not pass through the net body 26 while agitating the particulates that have flowed inside the sieve 21 with the booster, the sieve 21 is located rotatably around the central axis of the cylindrical net body 26. The sieve 21 may be rotated forcibly by an electric motor as a driving source or may be rotated by kinetic energy of particulate-air mixture agitated by rotating blades without a driving source.
US07699175B2
A puzzle storage and transport system including a puzzle including one or more puzzle pieces and a puzzle board and a container to store and transport one or more puzzle pieces. The container includes a pouch defining a cavity to contain the one or more puzzle pieces and including a closure to provide access to the cavity and one or more straps coupled to the pouch to bind the container to the puzzle board.
US07699171B2
Stackable containers that, in various embodiments, are adapted to be vertically and/or horizontally interlocked with other, like, containers to, for example, increase the stability of stacks of the containers. In one embodiment, a stackable container comprises: (A) a top surface comprising a shoulder portion that extends upwardly from the top surface and that is substantially disposed within a perimeter defined by the top surface; (B) a bottom surface defining a stacking recess; (C) a plurality of substantially vertical side surfaces that extend between the top surface and the bottom surface. In various embodiments, a recessed portion of the bottom surface adjacent the stacking recess is adapted to substantially mate with at least a portion of a shoulder portion of a like container.
US07699169B2
An elongate article holding package for a wiper blade having a pair of package panels with at least one of the panels including a blade beam receiving seat and a support flat upon which part of the blade rests during packaging. When closed, the flats position and can clamp the blade therebetween. In a preferred embodiment, both panels are so configured and preferably include one or more longitudinal stiffeners that oppose bending moments created by force transmitted to the package by the blade beam. The package preferably is of tri-fold construction having a spine that is spaced from and protects the wiper element. The spine preferably includes at least a plurality of spaced apart longitudinally extending stiffeners. One or more stiffening flanges preferably are also provided. When closed, the panels and spine advantageously cooperate with each other to increase package crush and bending resistance.
US07699167B2
A container for goods having an axial dimension is provided, comprising a first end support having four corners and being oriented in a first plane, a second end support having four corners and being oriented in a second plane spaced axially from the first plane, at least two connecting rails having first and second ends, the first ends being removably connected to the first end support and the second ends being removably connected to the second end support, each rail being connected to a different corner of the first end support and a corresponding corner of the second end support, wherein at least one good may be suspended between and supported by the first end support and second end support.
US07699162B2
An ophthalmic lens package that contains an ophthalmic lens and its packaging solution including a frangible pouch and side members which contain the packaging solution when the ophthalmic package is opened and methods of using the package.
US07699161B2
An ophthalmic lens package comprises a shell having an internal cavity accessible through an opening in the shell and a drainage member that divides the internal chamber into an upper chamber and a lower chamber. The drainage member is permeable to aqueous liquids and is arranged to allow drainage of liquid from the upper chamber to the lower chamber. This arrangement of the ophthalmic lens package allows the consumer to retrieve the lens from the upper chamber without handling any significant amount of saline solution.
US07699159B2
A belt unit includes a plurality of rollers including a driving roller and a driven roller; a belt being supported by the plurality of rollers; a specified roller; and a shift restraint member restraining the belt from shifting toward one end side of the specified roller. The specified roller is at least one roller of the plurality of rollers. The specified roller has such a shape that an outer diameter thereof on each of both end sides thereof is continuously enlarged toward a central part thereof in an axial direction thereof, and has such a shape that a region where the outer diameter thereof is the largest is shifted onto one end side thereof with respect to the central part thereof in the axial direction thereof within a belt suspension range.
US07699158B2
A conveying device is provided in systems for safety checking items of luggage or cargo, comprising at least one baggage switch with at least two horizontal conveyors, which are parallelly arranged one above the other at a fixed distance and which can be vertically displaced with the aid of an elevator.
US07699147B2
A regulable dashpot with shock-absorption force controls, especially intended for motor vehicles, with at least one flow-regulating system including one or more shock-absorption components for the compression phase and/or for the decompression phase. The object is to allow the dashpot to shift continuously between the hard and soft phases, whereby the valve-adjustment intervals can be varied at intervals that are not unnecessarily short or even unattainable. At least one valve assembly is accordingly supplied with variable flow impedance by a regulating valve (5 or 6).
US07699145B2
An elevator brake assembly (16) includes a plate (26) having damper assemblies (28) including at least one spring (30) for controlling movement of the plate (26) relative to a magnetic field generator (20). A biasing member (36) forces the plate (26) into engagement with a disk (22) fixed to a rotating shaft (18). A force created by the magnetic field generator (20) overcomes force of the biasing member (32) to draw the plate (26) into contact with the magnetic field generator (20). The impact between the plate (26) and the magnetic field generator (20) is controlled by the damping assembly (28) to substantially reduce impact noise.
US07699138B2
A flangeless mounting system, suitable for in-wall speakers and other objects, includes a panel that replaces a substantial section of wallboard instead of being installed behind the wallboard. In preferred embodiments a rim extends outwardly from a first surface of the panel by a distance of less than ½ inch, and preferably by only ⅛ inch or even 1/16 inch. The face of the object can be quite large, up to 40 in2 or more, and still be relatively small with respect to the panel. Panels are contemplated that have a width at least two, three or more times that of the face of the object, and along with optional wings are wider than the stud separation in the wall.
US07699136B2
A steering device for a vehicle includes a first sun gear connected to a steering member, a second sun gear which is operated according to operation of the steering member and connected to a steering mechanism for turning vehicle wheels, a first planet gear which is meshed with the first sun gear, and a second planet gear which is rotated integrally with the first planet gear and meshed with the second sun gear. The steering device is constructed in such a manner that at least one of the first and second sun gears is a profile shifted gear, and the first and second planet gears are formed as a cylindrical body which has internal teeth of the same number at both end parts thereof.
US07699134B2
A motorcycle has an exhaust system configured to extend below the engine while providing a sufficient length and a sufficient angle of through which the motorcycle can lean. A muffler unit comprises a first muffler connected with the exhaust pipe unit and disposed between the engine and a rear wheel. The muffler unit also comprises a second muffler that is connected with the first muffler and that is disposed near the side of the rear wheel. The first muffler comprises inclined portions that are formed on the left and right sides of the first muffler when viewed from the front of the vehicle. The second muffler has inclined portions that extend at an angle approximately equal to that of the inclined portions of the first muffler.
US07699131B2
An electric wheelchair comprises: a chair assembly and a wheel assembly. The wheel assembly is mounted at the bottom of the chair assembly. The chair assembly includes a seat, a first frame, a second frame, and a third frame, which are pivotally connected to form a four-bar linkage mechanism, so that the seat and the respective frames of the electric wheelchair will be folded synchronously in the same direction when the electric wheelchair is being folded, and the folding direction of the chair assembly is vertical to the axis of the drive wheels of the wheel assembly, thus allowing the disabled user to fold the chair assembly and to disassemble the wheel assembly quickly and effortlessly.
US07699127B2
A hydrogen fill inlet structure for a fuel cell vehicle includes a hydrogen cylinder for filling hydrogen gas from a hydrogen fill inlet. A fuel cell is provided for generating electrical power utilizing hydrogen gas supplied from the hydrogen cylinder. A motor is provided for generating propulsive power for supply to a drive wheel based on electrical power generated from the fuel cell. The hydrogen fill inlet is separate from a source port of the hydrogen cylinder, and is installed in the vicinity of the source port. The hydrogen fill inlet structure may be installed within the diameter of the hydrogen cylinder as viewed axially along the tank. In addition, a cover member is provided for covering the hydrogen cylinder. A lid is installed on a section in proximity to the source port and hydrogen fill inlet of the cover member.
US07699116B2
An anti-skipping sprinkler includes a frame defining a central longitudinal axis, the frame including a base portion defining an orifice, and first and second arms extending away from the base portion and joining at a lower end of the frame; a deflector located at the lower end of the frame; an orifice plug held over the orifice by a trigger element including a heat sensitive element; and an anti-skipping shield extending circumferentially around the heat sensitive element. The anti-skipping shield has an upper end and a lower end. The anti-skipping shield is open at the upper end and at the lower end to permit airflow to the heat sensitive element around the upper end and the lower end of the anti-skipping shield.
US07699115B2
A method is provided of applying an annular seal to a tubular element (7) for use in a wellbore (1). The method comprises the steps of: a) providing at least one flexible seal layer (20) at the wellbore site, each seal layer having a pair of opposite longitudinal edges movable relative to each other between an open position wherein the seal layer can be radially applied to the tubular element, and a closed position wherein the seal layer extends substantially around the tubular element, the seal layer being made material susceptible of swelling upon contact with a selected fluid; b) partially lowering the tubular element (7) into the wellbore (1); c) radially applying the seal layer (20) in the open position thereof to a portion of the tubular element extending above the wellbore; d) moving the seal layer (20) to the closed position thereof; and e) further lowering the tubular element (7) with the seal layer (20) applied thereto into the wellbore (1) until the seal layer is located at a selected location in the wellbore (1).
US07699108B2
Piston bore distortions in a sub-surface safety valve are reduced or eliminated when valve body is subjected to high working pressures. In one embodiment, a piston is disposed in a sleeve that is disposed in a piston bore. The bore can distort but the sleeve within will not distort to the point of losing sealing pressure around the piston. In another approach additional bore or bores are provided adjacent the piston bore to make the pin end of the connection for the valve housing more uniform in the region of the piston bore so that pressure loading does not result in sufficient distortion of the piston bore to lose the piston sealing relation in its bore.
US07699107B2
A device useful for conducting lateral or transverse excavating operations within a wellbore comprising a rotating drill bit with jet nozzles on a flexible arm. The arm can retract within the housing of the device during deployment within the wellbore, and can be extended from within the housing in order to conduct excavation operations. A fluid pressure source for providing ultra high pressure to the jet nozzles can be included with the device within the wellbore. The device includes a launch mechanism that supports the arm during the extended position and a positioning gear to aid during the extension and retraction phases of operation of the device.
US07699098B2
Drilling apparatus for receiving, moving and aligning pipe sections as they are added to a string of pipe on a drilling rig when using an iron roughneck. After the iron roughneck is moved to well centerline and engaged with the box connection of the pipe suspended in the well bore, a hydraulically controlled pipe engagement mechanism is extended radially away from the iron roughneck and in the general direction of the pipe rack. The pipe engaging mechanism receives the lower end of the next stand of pipe to be added and is hydraulically retracted to lock around the pipe stand and bring the pipe stand into alignment with the pipe string suspended in the well bore.
US07699093B2
A tube support device for a tube bundle having a plurality of elongated tubes with a U-shaped bend portion is disclosed. The tube support device includes an elongated longitudinally extending strip having a pair of opposing faces. A plurality of tube engaging members extend from the pair of opposing faces. The tube support device includes an engagement assembly formed on one end of the tube support device. The engagement assembly is adapted to engage the anchor assembly positioned within the tube bundle, whereby the tube support device can be rotated into the desired orientation between the tubes to prevent vibration damage.
US07699085B2
There is provided a laminating apparatus laminating an object to be laminated in a laminating part which has a diaphragm on an upper side and a heater panel on a lower side, by melting a filler in the object to be laminated and pressing the object to be laminated sandwiched between the diaphragm and the heater panel, the apparatus including: a sheet conveying the object to be laminated placed thereon to/out of the laminating part; and a lift mechanism lifting up/down a support part capable of supporting the sheet from the lower side.
US07699081B2
An accumulator arm for a felling head has inner and outer arms which are hydraulically driven open and closed. The inner and outer sides of the outer arm are curved away from an accumulation pocket and toward a harvesting arm, wherein the accumulator arm can be pulled around a newly cut tree to add the tree to the accumulation pocket with a lesser amount of hydraulic force and with lesser damage to the trees.
US07699075B2
A choke valve for use in reverse flow when mounted on a wellhead or manifold. The choke valve includes a valve body forming a T-shaped bore to provide a vertically extending bottom opening and a horizontally extending side opening. Flow trim is positioned in the T-shaped bore, optionally in a tubular sleeve or removable cartridge. The flow trim includes a tubular cage having a side wall forming an internal bore aligned with the body bottom opening, and a single flow port or a plurality of flow ports, each of the single flow port or plurality of flow ports being positioned for alignment with the body side opening. In reverse flow mode in the valve body, fluid from the bottom opening enters the cage and exits through the single flow port or plurality of flow ports directly into the body side opening.
US07699074B2
A double block and bleed valve assembly having a valve body with a bore. The bore has an opened and closed position by two valve arrangements to control fluid flow along a pipeline.
US07699069B2
A valve apparatus has a valve (1), an actuator (2) and a leakage sensor (3). A body (4) of the valve has first and second valve chambers (6, 8) connected to respective valve ports (10 & 12, 14 & 16) and joined by an intermediate passage (18). The valve can be set by the actuator to any one of three valve configurations. In an ‘open’ configuration the intermediate passage is open to interconnect the first and second chambers. In a ‘closed’ configuration, the intermediate passage is closed by first and second seals (24, 26) seated at respective locations in the passage to seal respectively between the first and second chambers and a leakage chamber (28) at the portion of the intermediate passage between the two seals. In a ‘cleaning’ configuration one of the seals is unseated to connect a respective one of the first and second chambers to the leakage chamber, while the other seal remains seated. The leakage sensor is connected to the leakage chamber to provide a signal indicative of a leakage flow from the leakage chamber.
US07699067B2
An exemplary clamping apparatus (10) for optical members (50) includes a base (11) and a positioning frame (13). The base has a plurality of receiving grooves (122) defined therein. Each receiving groove is configured for receiving one optical member therein. The positioning frame is mounted on the base. The positioning frame has a cavity (132) defined therein for receiving the optical members.
US07699055B2
A tracheotomy cannula apparatus with a shield plate is provided for fixedly gripping the cannula with a housing assembly portion of the apparatus. A pair of wing structures form a portion of the apparatus and are attached to the housing assembly, which wing structures assist in holding the cannual apparatus to a patient. The housing assembly includes a housing member through which the cannual is passed. A shield plate is affixed to one side of the housing member, which side is intended to face a patient, and whereby the cannula passing through the housing member also passes through the shield plate. A prestressed spring structure is positioned within a housing member to normally apply pressure against the cannula, thereby holding it in fixed relationship to the housing member. This spring structure has a release actuation member which when operated permits a slide movement of the cannula through the housing member. The wing structures each include an interlocking structural portion, which may be unlocked from each other. This interlocking portion holds the two wing structures in fixed positional relationship to each other when engaged.
US07699047B2
A paintball marker with a barrel that is coupled to a receiver. A valve arrangement is provided to selectively vent gas to propel projectiles through the barrel responsive to actuation of a firing mechanism. The marker may include a tool box that is capable of being coupled with the receiver. In some embodiments, the tool box resembles a magazine that feeds projectiles into the receiver.
US07699033B2
A method and system to distribute high-power laser pulses to create sparks in individual cylinders of a multi-cylinder engine are provided. A laser provides laser output pulses. A distributor includes a linear array of mirrors with a respective mirror associated with one of the laser plugs. Each mirror is operatively controlled to move into a laser beam path to direct individual laser output pulses the associated laser plug for providing spark generation. The system enables correct cylinder firing order for predefined multi-cylinder firing sequences and allows for individual cylinder timing variation.
US07699028B2
The invention relates to a system which is used to cool at least one piece of motor vehicle equipment to a low temperature, comprising a heat transfer fluid circulation loop. According to the invention, a low-temperature heat exchanger (60) and at least one equipment exchanger (102) are mounted to the aforementioned circulation loop. The heat exchange surface of the equipment exchanger (102) is divided into at least first and second heat exchange sections (104, 106). A first flow (Q
US07699026B2
An insulation kit for use with a water heater is provided. The kit includes an insulating cover configured to be wrapped about an exterior surface of the water heater. The insulating cover includes a substantially rectangular body with opposed edges configured to overlap or abut one another when the insulating cover is wrapped about the exterior surface of the water heater and at least one downwardly facing flap configured to provide selective access to the water heater. The kit further includes a fastener packaged with the insulating cover and configured for fixing the opposed edges together, thereby securing the insulating cover adjacent the exterior surface of the water heater.
US07699024B2
A milk temperature monitor helps determine the health or physiological condition of a lactating animal (e.g., cow, goat, sheep, camel, etc.). It does this by comparing the temperature of the animal's milk to an acceptable temperature range that is automatically adjusted to compensate for a varying ambient air temperature. In some embodiments, the acceptable temperature range is adjusted based on the average milk temperature reading of the most recent series of animals that were milked. The average reading is preferably a rolling average of a limited sample size. In calculating the rolling average, the monitor disregards temperature readings that are beyond a reasonable range. The monitor can record and display historical peak temperatures rather than real-time temperatures. In some cases, the monitor's microprocessor and power supply are hermetically encapsulated within a clear permanent cast housing. Proximity switches within the housing provide a means for inputting user-selectable parameters into the microprocessor.
US07699021B2
Embodiments generally provide an apparatus and method for processing substrates using a multi-chamber processing system (e.g., a cluster tool) that has an increased system throughput, increased system reliability, substrates processed in the cluster tool have a more repeatable wafer history. In one embodiment, non-orthogonal robot trajectories are used to assure reliable and high speed substrate transfer. In another embodiment, at least one buffering station is used to avoid collision and improve throughput. In another embodiment, optimal positioning of the robots are used to improve throughput.
US07699017B1
A personal water craft propelled on the water's surface by the user pedaling a pedal crank that in turn rotates a propeller thrusting the craft in a forward or rearward direction. Steering is accomplished by an operator-controlled rudder at the aft of the craft. The craft is of unique design lending to persons who desire to snorkel observing undersea life in a comfortable prone position of appropriate pedal posture while enjoying the ease of navigating by pedal propulsion with less expenditure of effort than swimming.
US07699014B1
The present invention may be used for anchoring a watercraft. A mooring device may have a ground penetrating device attached at a first end of an elongated rod and a slide hammer attached at a second end of the elongated rod. A mooring line may be attached at a first end of the ground penetrating device and may be attachable at a second end to a boat and fixed in length by a rope lock.
US07699011B2
A personal watercraft has a hull and sub-deck (HSD) assembly. The sub-deck defines at least one first opening therein. A deck is disposed above the sub-deck. A suspension member passes through the at least one first opening and is disposed at least in part inside the HSD assembly. The suspension member has a first end pivotally connected to the deck. The suspension member has a second end pivotally connected to the HSD assembly. The suspension member has a fixed length. A suspension element has a first end connected to one of the deck, the HSD assembly, and the suspension member. The suspension element has a second end connected to another one of the deck, the HSD assembly, and the suspension member.
US07699006B2
The invention relates to a carrier (11) and a magnetic levitation railway provided with said carrier. The inventive carrier (11) comprises a sliding surface (14) and the sliding skates of a vehicle travelling along said magnetic levitation railway. According to said invention, the sliding surface (14) is provided with a coating (15, 16, 17) which comprises at least on the external area thereof an additional material which is compatible with the material for skates and reduces friction and ware.
US07699000B2
A cylinder of a printing press is mounted using a bearing block. A radial bearing is movable in spaced linear bearings along an adjustment direction of the cylinder. The bearing is embodied as a modular bearing unit which may be a one piece assembly. The linear bearing is included in the modular assembly which permits movement of the bearing block along with the radial bearings.
US07698987B2
The invention comprises an improved recoil control device comprising a bolt head and an inertia block for use in a variety of firearms. In one embodiment, the bolt head and inertia block are articulated so that the displacement of the bolt head results in a force component outside the firing axis of the barrel of the firearm. The device can be incorporated into firearms of a variety of sizes and configurations to produce recoil reduction and/or weight reduction advantages.
US07698985B2
A modular energy barrier system has at least one energy barrier module. The module has a substantially rigid casing and an energy absorbing filler material. The casing has at least one frangible side. The filler material is disposed inside the casing. The casing is adapted to be connected to a base support so that the module is interposed between the base structure and an energy source and the at least one frangible side of the casing is oriented to face energy released by the energy source.
US07698979B2
A biasing assembly for a punching device that includes a punch support member adapted to support a punch and including a head portion and a main portion extending from the head portion. The main portion has a recessed surface. A retaining member is coupled to the punch support member with the punch support member being slidable with respect to the retaining member. A coupling member is disposed between the main portion of the punch support member and the retaining member. A portion of the coupling member engages the recessed surface. A biasing member is supported between the head portion of the punch support member and the retaining member. The punch support member is movable between at least first and second positions with respect to the coupling member.
US07698974B2
A device and method for pipe replacement is shown. A pipe replacement device is shown that includes at least one scoring wheel to provide a more progressive cut that provides consistency in the split of the pipe. A pulling force is reduced using pipe replacement devices and methods in a splitting operation. A pipe replacement device is shown that includes at least one skid structures with a long and consistent profile. In methods shown, friction between a pipe replacement device and the pipe being split is reduced.
US07698966B2
The control unit includes an arm (21) sliding inside of a sheath (20) the angle of which can be varied and which is supported by three tensed cables (25; 26; 27) arranged in a triangle and unwinding with a certain degree of resistance from force feedback motors (16; 17; 18). The wrist (23) of the control unit can be moved according to at least the three degrees of translational freedom, without having to be afraid of encountering the cables; the control unit is simple, inexpensive and possesses a satisfactory degree of stiffness. A friction-creating means, possibly consisting of another tensed cable and dependant on a motor, is placed between the sheath (20) and the arm (21).This unit can be used for telemanipulation, telesurgery, CAD, games, etc.
US07698963B2
A force-sensing device has a yoke having a location of force introduction for a force to be measured acting in a predetermined direction. A measuring spring has a first end rigidly connected to the yoke and is elastically deformable by the force to be measured. The measuring spring has a second end arranged on a support rigidly connectable to a machine frame. First predetermined measuring locations are provided that detect and evaluate a deformation of the measuring spring caused by the force to be measured. Parallel and spaced apart bending springs are connected to the yoke in such a way that the yoke is always guided in parallel in a transverse direction that is transverse to the predetermined direction of the force to be measured. Second predetermined measuring locations are provided on the bending springs and detect a transverse deformation caused by a force in the transverse direction.
US07698962B2
A sensor interface is disclosed including a flexible substrate in which are embedded sensors for measuring physical parameters such as temperature, displacement, velocity, acceleration, stress, strain, pressure and force present between objects such as a railcar bearing and a truck side frame. The substrate is positioned between the objects of interest Electronic components such as a data processing unit, a data storage device, a communication device and a power source may also be embedded within the substrate. The electronic devices communicate with one another and the sensors to process signals generated by the sensors indicative of the parameters being measured.
US07698947B2
Apparatus, systems, and methods for inspecting a structure are provided which use a sensor holder constructed from rapid prototyping, such as stereolithography, and which is configured to support a plurality of inspection sensors typically arranged in an ordered matrix array and possibly with one or more additional inspection sensors aligned for inspection of difficult to inspect features of a structure such as radius corner or edge features. Rapid prototype integrated matrix array inspection apparatus, systems, and methods provide fast and efficient methods of constructing custom inspection devices.
US07698932B2
The present invention provides a device for measuring uneven wear of starter brushes for a vehicle which can accurately measure and compare the lengths of the starter brushes and easily determine whether or not eccentricity of an armature occurs, the device comprising: a hollow support; a receiving plate formed integrally with the outer circumferential surface of an upper portion of the hollow support to accommodate a plurality of brushes; a lifting body liftably inserted into the inside of the hollow support; a plurality of detection rods slidably connected to the outer circumferential surface of an upper portion of the lifting body and moving forward or backward toward the brushes; a lift driving means for driving the lifting body; a plurality of measuring sensors for measuring the lengths of the brushes by means of the detection rods; and an LCD panel for displaying the measured lengths; and a control unit for controlling the lift driving means, the measuring sensors and the LCD panel.
US07698927B2
Methods and systems for measuring atmospheric water content, are provided. The method includes measuring a first air temperature and a first air pressure at a first location in a compressor, measuring a second air temperature and a second air pressure at a second location in the compressor, computing a ratio of specific heats from the first and second air temperatures and the first and second air pressures, and determining an atmospheric water content from the ratio of specific heats.
US07698922B1
A permanent invisible magnetic marking and positioning system of unfinished ferrous rods, bars, workpieces, and the like. A midpoint, center or other point of the workpiece is automatically located and a high-energy pulse is applied for installing an embedded magnetic marker. The magnetizing heads can also be repositioned to various points on a workpiece for imparting digital manufacturing and product identification in a data strobe pulse, that is analogous to a picket fence, where each picket provides a weighted binary representation in a data array comprised of data cells.
US07698920B2
The portability of a mechanical key and a locking/unlocking key having the mechanical key is improved. The mechanical key is housed in a portable device in such a manner that a key plate is folded into two at a portion formed with an inner groove. Thus, the housing space for housing the mechanical key can be reduced and the portable device can be made smaller. Accordingly, the portability of the locking/unlocking key can be improved.
US07698917B2
An electronically controlled lock with a single throw acting as a passage lock and also as a deadbolt lock is provided by the invention. The lock is equipped with an electronic activation device on its exterior housing and a door lever on its internal housing. A user unlocks the door from outside by touching an electronic key against the electronic activation device. After the door is unlocked, the throw acts as a passage lock. The door can be locked internally by moving the door lever from a horizontal position upwardly to a vertical position.
US07698910B2
A door for a washing appliance is provided. The door includes an inner frame and an outer frame joined with the inner frame where one of the frames couples with a cabinet of the washing appliance. The door also has a glass door between the inner frame and the outer frame and a recess portion disposed in an inner circumferential surface of the outer frame.
US07698906B2
An evaporative chiller cooling water to below ambient wet bulb temperature. Sub-wet bulb chilling is achieved by pre-cooling incoming air upstream of the saturator. The incoming air is ambient air at ambient air temperature that is cooled using the coolness of the lower temperature outgoing air exiting the saturator. The pre-cooling lowers the temperature of the incoming air and lowers its wet bulb temperature below that of ambient air. The saturator water is chilled to below the ambient wet bulb temperature. The air in the saturator flows across the water as it gravity drips or flows from the top to the bottom of the saturator. The pre-cooled air flows across the saturator with the coolest air directed across the bottom of the saturator where the coldest water is flowing and with the hottest air directed across the top where the hottest water is flowing to provide gradient chilling.
US07698902B2
The present invention discloses a defrost operating method for a refrigerator which performs a defrost operation by controlling operations of a compressor and a fan on the basis of a continuous operation time of the compressor and surface temperatures of evaporators to prevent frost from being formed on the evaporators, when cool air is generated in a freezing chamber and a refrigerating chamber by circulating refrigerants through a refrigeration cycle built in a refrigerator main body and forcibly circulated bX rotating the fan. The defrost operating method for the refrigerator can omit a general defrosting heater by performing the defrost operation by using the compressor and the fan. In addition, the defrost operating method for the refrigerator improves heat exchange efficiency and reduces power consumption by efficiently performing the defrost operation.
US07698895B2
The invention relates to an actuator comprising an actuator element movably supported at an actuator housing, a pyrotechnic pressure element to move the actuator element and a control means to control a force exerted onto the actuator element by the pressure element to move the actuator element.
US07698882B1
A harvesting device for nuts and similar small objects having a handle which receives a manually reciprocable push rod having a spreader on its lower end. Tubular collection chambers are secured to the handle. A continuous coil spring extends between the lower, open ends of the collection chambers. The spreader engages the coil spring within the interior area at the end of the handle. In use, downward pressure applied to the handle at the grip will cause the openings between the coils of the coil spring to separate sufficiently to allow objects on the ground to pass into the interior of the spring and into one of the collection chambers. The collection chambers are emptied by holding the device over a receptacle such as a bin with one hand and operating the push rod in a reciprocating or pumping motion causing the openings between the coils to open and close, facilitating rapid emptying of the collection chambers.
US07698877B2
Packaging machine and discharging device for a packaging machine, and a method for filling bags by means of a packaging machine, wherein a bag to be filled is filled by means of a filling element and the filled bags are taken off by means of a bag take-off device and transferred to a discharging device. The discharging device comprises a conveying device for conveying off the bags filled with bulk goods, wherein at least one monitoring device for monitoring the tightness of the filled bags is provided which is associated with the conveying device. Said monitoring device comprises a weight sensor which captures a measure for the bulk material escaping from a bag to determine a parameter for the bag leakiness.
US07698875B2
A method of manufacturing a cake-shaped decorative accessory made of a towel by setting a mount, which becomes a framework for forming a towel cloth in a cake shape, on a towel cloth, and folding the towel cloth together with the mount into a cake shape. More specifically, a cake-shaped decorative accessory made of a towel is obtained by: setting a polygonal shape mount, which has a folding piece extending from each one of sides thereof, on a towel cloth which is larger than the mount; folding the towel cloth together with the folding piece of the mount to form a folded item; and placing the folded item in a cake cup with a top face portion of the mount facing above, thus forming the folded item into a cake shape.
US07698870B2
In a frame consisting of longitudinal and transverse frame members which are used as bearing units, a frame bearing mount for the frame and an aggregate bearing mount are vertically arranged one upon the other and the frame areas between the frame bearing mounts and the aggregate bearing mounts are made of a vibration absorbing material in the form of blocks so as to provide a lightweight frame in a simple and economical manner and ensure an efficient attenuation of vibrations.
US07698869B2
Floor covering, including hard floor panels which, at least at the edges of two opposite sides, are provided with coupling parts, cooperating which each other, substantially in the form of a tongue and a groove, wherein the coupling parts are provided with integrated mechanical locking elements which prevent the drifting apart of two coupled floor panels in a direction (R) perpendicular to the related edges and parallel to the underside of the coupled floor panels, and provide a snap-action coupling.
US07698867B1
A siding trim clip having a substantially N-shaped profile is formed having a first gripping portion and a second biasing portion. The gripping portion includes a curved upper arch having an interior with opposing inwardly and upwardly oriented gripping fingers, arranged for accepting and securing an edge location of a siding member by way of a triangular gripping pattern. The biasing portion includes a lower inverted arch and linear portions for providing an outward biasing of the edge location of a siding member to hold it away from a wall structure and up against an outside edge of a pre-established finishing cavity. This abstract is provided to comply with rules requiring an abstract, and is submitted with the intention that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope and meaning of the claims.
US07698865B2
A building product includes a pultruded part that constitutes exterior siding of a building. In one example, the building product includes a pultruded part that constitutes siding and the structural sheathing of a building. In one example, the building product includes a pultruded part that constitutes siding and the structural sheathing of a building and is configured to be weather-tight.
US07698863B2
A window assembly includes first, second, third, and fourth frame pieces connected together to form a rectangular frame. Each of the frame pieces has an inside face defining a glass-receiving groove and a muntin-engaging face orthogonal to the inside face and defining a muntin-receiving channel. A first muntin is oriented in the first frame piece muntin-receiving channel and the second frame piece muntin-receiving channel, and a second muntin is oriented in the third frame piece muntin-receiving channel and the fourth frame piece muntin-receiving channel. The first and second muntins cross over to engage at a first half lap joint. The frame pieces are connected to each other with rabbet joints. The window assembly can be part of a garage door arrangement. A method of making a window assembly includes connecting together the frame pieces with rabbet joints and orienting first and second muntins to engage at a lap joint. Methods of retrofitting existing windowless garage doors to include windows includes cutting a hole in the garage door and dropping a window assembly into the hole. The window assembly can then be removably secured to the garage door with fasteners.
US07698861B2
A masonry block wall bracing wall anchor having a threaded portion connected to an intermediate portion of the wall anchor with the intermediate portion having a vertical cross-section generally sized to fit between and substantially bridge the vertical thickness of a bed joint between two successive courses of masonry blocks and the threaded portion available for connecting by means of a washer and a nut to a side support that braces a masonry block wall during construction. The preferred embodiment has an upper transverse fracture groove and a lower transverse fracture groove through which after completion of the wall selectively can propagate a fracture line when the masonry block wall is completed. The fracture grooves can facilitate selective fracturing of the wall bracing wall anchor thereby allowing removal of a protruding threaded portion of the anchor that extends beyond the outer face of the masonry wall.
US07698857B2
A frame is constructed to support a roof. A plurality of panels can be slid into position on the frame from the ground. A mating channel joint is formed between adjacent panels that allows one panel to be slid over the adjacent panel into the proper position. The panels engage frame members to properly position the panels on the roof. The roof panels are formed with mounting structures located on the interior or underside thereof. The mounting structures include holes or other receptacles for receiving a rigid connector member. The frame members are also provided with receptacles for receiving the connector member. The connector member is inserted through the first mounting structure, through the receptacle in the frame member and through the mounting structure of the adjacent panel.
US07698852B1
A fishing lure has retractable hooks. A spring has a coiled portion mounted around a pin in the lure body, two energizing leg extending from the coiled portion, and a foot extending laterally from each energizing leg. The feet engage a rearward side of the shank of each hook. A trigger has a rod on a forward end that extends from the body for attachment to a line. The trigger has a trigger body that engages a forward side of each of the shanks. The trigger and the lure body have mating detent surfaces to releasably retain the hooks in a cocked position. A forward pull on the rod releases the trigger to move forward, freeing the coiled portion of the spring to unwind, causing the energizing legs to rotate the hooks to the extended position.
US07698850B2
An ice fishing line protection device, for protecting micro fishing line as light as one or two pound test, comprising an elongated tube with an internal passageway through which a fishing line may pass. The protection device floats in an ice fishing hole protecting the line from abrasions. The protection device opens to release the line or it can be extracted from the ice hole entirely when a fish is caught.
US07698842B2
A plate, e.g., a license plate for motor vehicles, includes a base body which is made of an electrically conductive material, or has an electrically conductive layer applied either directly or via a further layer. Thus, the electrically conductive base body or its electrically conductive coating forms a first electrode of a flat capacitor. A layer having an electroluminescent pigmentation is applied on the base body or the electrically conductive layer. The electroluminescent coating may be applied by various methods, e.g., spray painting, brushing, special screen-printing methods, etc. To create the electrical field, it may be necessary to apply to the electroluminescent layer an electrically conductive layer for forming the second electrode.
US07698838B1
In one embodiment of the invention, a hoe equipped excavator includes a base, a boom pivotally mounted at one end on the base, a stick pivotally coupled at one end to the other end of the boom, a tool pivotally coupled to the other end of the stick, a boom link plate pivotally coupled to the boom, a lift cylinder coupled between the base and the boom link plate and an adjustment cylinder coupled between the boom link plate and the boom. The lift cylinder is operable to pivot the boom through a first circumferential range, and the adjustment cylinder is operable to pivot the boom beyond the first circumferential range.
US07698836B2
A system and method for securing accessories to shoes and other articles of clothing is described. One illustrative embodiment is a system for attaching a decorative accessory to a shoe, the system comprising a shaft having first and second ends; a first shoulder secured to the first end of the shaft, the first shoulder being configured for insertion through an expandable hole in an upper portion of the shoe and configured to engage an inner surface of the upper portion of the shoe; a second shoulder secured to the second end of the shaft, the second shoulder being configured to engage the shoe; and a third shoulder adjacent to the second shoulder, the third shoulder comprising the decorative accessory. Another illustrative embodiment is a system for securing a decorative accessory to a shoe, the system comprising a shoe having an upper portion, the upper portion having an inner surface, an outer surface, and at least one stretchable hole; a shaft having first and second ends; a first shoulder secured to the first end of the shaft, the first shoulder being configured for insertion through the at least one stretchable hole in the upper portion of the shoe and to engage the inner surface of the upper portion of the shoe; a second shoulder secured to the second end of the shaft, the second shoulder being configured to engage the shoe; and a third shoulder adjacent to the second shoulder, the third shoulder comprising the decorative accessory.
US07698831B2
A tile spacer for a plurality of tiles arranged on the surface with spaces in between. The tile spacer has a first set of elongate members, each having a proximal end and a distal end. The proximal ends are connected together and the distal ends are spaced-apart for setting the spaces between the tiles. The spacer has a body having a portion which is spaced-apart above the tiles when the distal ends of the members are fitted within the spaces between the tiles, thereby facilitating removal of the spacer when tile spacing is completed.
US07698829B2
A device for determining a measureable variable on a measurement object has a baseplate mounted on a plurality of machine feet. A measuring head is arranged on a frame structure. The frame structure can be moved on the baseplate. A workpiece table can be placed over the baseplate in order to support the measurement object. The machine feet may project upward from the baseplate in order to hold the workpiece table with a reduced deformation of the baseplate regardless of the workpiece weight.
US07698822B2
A personal care apparatus having a hair trimmer, a main part and a head part. The head part being connected to the main part in a region of the main part that is adjacent to the head part and is pivotable relative to the main part. A personal care tool is provided on the head part and comprising a toothed cutting mechanism that has at least one drivable toothed blade and a spring of a U-shaped configuration has a cross-member connected to the head part and two sides co-operating with at least one position extension connected to the main part in the region of each of its two sides. The spring acts between the head part and the main part, and the head part is pivotable by the spring in synchronization with varying displacing forces that act on the head part in the course of a personal care process.
US07698821B2
The folding knife of the present invention includes a handle having first and second handle members that are maintained in spaced, parallel relation to one another by spacing elements that define a groove therebetween. The blade is pivotally attached to the handle at its tang portion and is movable into and out of the groove between its fully open and fully closed positions. A coil spring, or equivalent, may be interconnected between the tang and handle to provide an assisted opening mechanism. A blade lock includes a user actuated button that passes through an elongated slot formed through one of the handle members and through a circular opening formed through a bias plate that is positioned within the handle, and a plunger element that is spring biased in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis of the blade.
US07698820B2
Disclosed is a high speed link type reciprocating electric shaver in which an outer cutter and an inner cutter reciprocate in the right-to-left direction oppositely to each other so that reciprocating effect can be doubled due to only same vibration speed of a motor. The electric shaver includes an outer cutter to reciprocate, and an inner to reciprocate. The inner cutter is connected to a side of vibrator connected to an eccentric shaft of a motor and reciprocates, and the other side of the reciprocating vibrator is connected to the outer cutter by a connecting linkage such that the outer cutter reciprocates in the direction opposite to that of the inner cutter by fixing a center the connecting linkage to a case.
US07698817B2
A method of manufacturing an article such as vehicle interior trim component including a decoupler layer is disclosed. The method comprises the conveying of materials into an enclosure to form a preform having a shape of the enclosure, heating the preform to a temperature such that adjacent materials may bond to one another upon cooling and forming the heated preform into a predetermined three-dimensional decoupler configuration via a mold. The enclosure has a perforated portion and at least one panel movable relative to the enclosure so as to selectively expose portions of the perforated portion. The density of the preform may be varied as the at least one panel is moved to expose the perforated portion of the enclosure. A system for manufacturing articles such as a vehicle interior trim component including a decoupler layer is also disclosed.
US07698810B2
A connector removal system includes a connector housing (1) forming contacts (10) therein and a contact extraction tool (3) for removing the contact of the connector housing. The connector housing has a mating face (200), a plurality of cavities (22) receiving corresponding contacts and a plurality of cantilevered flexible latches (26) retaining corresponding contacts. The latch forms an external side face of the housing. Each cavity has an open cavity entrance (220) located at a distal end thereof on the mating face and an opening (222) formed adjacent the entrance between the cavity and the external side face. The contact extraction tool includes a pair of registration posts (34) formed from an end edge thereof for positioning inside the entrances and an ejecting member (36) for deflecting said cantilevered flexible latch to disengage from said contact.
US07698806B2
The application discloses processes for fabricating a slider or head for a data storage device. The processes disclosed provide a transducer portion that is separated from a slider body by a gap. In an illustrated embodiment, actuator elements are fabricated in the gap to adjust a position of the transducer portion relative to the slider body.
US07698804B2
A fully transposed composite superconductor of the Roebel bar type is produced. The superconductor is formed from combines superconductors. The process step for forming the subconductors, which are being configured with a lateral projection into a region of a neighbouring subconductor, is separated from the stranding step. Carrier strips, which are coated with the superconductive material, are used as the conductors.
US07698803B2
A method of manufacturing a laminated stator core includes: forming a band-shaped yoke core piece having a shape that a yoke of the laminated stator core is developed in a straight line and having concave connection portions in the inner circumferential edge thereof by punching a metal plate; forming a laminated yoke body by winding and laminating the band-shaped yoke core piece in a spiral shape and coupling the laminated band-shaped yoke core piece in a caulking manner; forming a magnetic core piece having a convex connection portion at the base end thereof by punching a metal plate; forming a laminated magnetic body by laminating and coupling a predetermined number of the magnetic core pieces to each other in a caulking manner; and coupling the laminated yoke body and the laminated magnetic body to each other by winding a coil around the laminated magnetic body and then inserting the convex connection portions into the concave connection portions.
US07698797B2
An apparatus and method for joining adjacent members, wherein the members are placed in an overlapping layered relationship. The members are clamped between a die and a blank holder. Once clamped, a clinching operation is performed on the members to create at least a partial bond between them. In addition to the clinching operation, a level of vibrational energy is imparted to at least one of the members to reduce clamping force requirements, promote material flow and deformation and provide increased joint strength.
US07698794B2
A load control mechanism for use with a pull type tool (also called a riveter), wherein the mechanism includes a telescopic housing and a compressible element, such as a polyurethane compression spring, which works to limit the ultimate load which is applied by the pull type tool during operation, such as during removal of a rivetless nut plate from a hole in parent material. Also provided is a method of removing a rivetless nut plate by using a pulling head which includes a shock absorber and load limiting device, a resetion cup and a mandrel. The load control mechanism provides that a riveter can be used to safely remove a rivetless nut plate without causing damage or undue wear on components of the tool. This load control mechanism also absorbs operating shocks, protecting expensive work parts (ex: aircraft structure) and the operator during operation, resulting in a safe and ergonomic operation.
US07698779B2
A hand-guided portable vacuum/blower device has a blower unit with a blower and a motor unit with a drive motor. The blower unit is rigidly connected to the motor unit. The drive motor is drivingly connected to the blower. A grip part is connected with antivibration elements to the motor unit and the blower unit. The grip part is at least approximately ring-shaped and has a first handle. The grip part is arranged in a plane that is positioned perpendicularly to an axis of rotation of the blower and, when viewed in the direction of the axis of rotation, is located between the motor unit and the blower unit.
US07698776B1
A balanced cleaning apparatus that advantageously contains a carrying handle, a dust pan and a bucket wherein the dustpan and the bucket are carried at the two ends of the carrying handle in a balanced position.
US07698772B1
A toothbrush with a head having at least one pair of twisted wire brushes secured to the head's top surface in a position that creates a narrow and substantially uniform trench between the bristles of opposing brushes. Head construction may be solid, curved, blunt, tapering, or have a forked distal end. When a user's brace hardware and/or orthodontic wires are placed within the trench, bristles adjacent to it reach tooth surfaces behind the orthodontic wires to gently remove plaque without wire or hardware breakage. The twisted wires of opposing conical brushes are not parallel so as to create a uniform trench. The twisted wires in narrow end of conical brushes are also angled toward the distal end of the toothbrush head to facilitate reaching crowded back teeth without orthodontic wire breakage. The toothbrush handle can be laterally angled relative to its head and brushes are optionally replaceable by the user.
US07698757B2
A fitted sheet for a mattress comprises a rectangular panel of knit material having a central rectangular area extending from one end of said panel to the other end thereof. Side margins flank the central area, and folded under said central area and joined thereto by seams extending across each end of the central rectangular area. The sheet is characterized in that the seams at each end of said central rectangular area are arcuate.
US07698754B2
A flat ribbon-shaped waterfall for a portable spa is caused to flow out of the top rim or top side of a spa. A narrow elongated spout forms the output end of a plenum chamber that has a water inlet. The plenum chamber is constructed to baffle surges in the inlet water flow. A light source is placed close to the mouth of the elongated spout to light the ribbon of water flowing from the spout in multi-color, if desired.
US07698752B2
An improved goggle strap is provided. The strap allows for comfortable use through the employment materials such as high density polyester materials that can encase elastic materials. These straps may also contain traceability elements that allow for the easy association of the strap and goggles with user.
US07698748B2
A reversible necktie according to one embodiment includes first and second fabric pieces that have matching necktie shapes. Each of the fabric pieces has a finished face side, a wide end, longitudinal edges and a narrow end. The fabric pieces are superimposed in mating relationship with the finished sides facing outward, wherein each of the first and second fabric pieces is formed of a first section that has a first appearance and a second section that has a second appearance that is visually different from the first appearance. The first and second sections are joined together along a seam. The first section of first fabric piece overlies the second section of the second fabric piece and the second section of the first fabric piece overlies the first section of the first fabric piece.
US07703146B2
A method for copy protection includes receiving data in a recording module representing content to be recorded on a recording medium, the data including an indication that the content is to be protected from unauthorized copying. Responsive to the indication, the recording module signals a protection module to initiate a protection protocol in synchronization with the recording module. The protection module generates control information, so as to prevent the unauthorized copying of the content that is to be protected, and conveys the control information to the recording module, in accordance with the protocol. The recording module combines the control information with the data representing the content in the recording module, for recording on the recording medium.
US07703137B2
A method of facilitating transformation of survey data from being in at least one foreign format used by a survey-tool to being in a desired format may include: receiving instances of foreign data from survey-tools, the foreign data being in foreign format used by the survey-tools, respectively; and appending, to the instances of foreign data, service-keys to identify the service tools which gathered the foreign data, respectively, to produce a data block that includes key-and-foreign-data pairs. Another such method may include: receiving such a data block; culling from the block key-and-foreign-data pairs; and operating upon the pairs to transform respective chunks of foreign data from being in respective foreign formats into being in corresponding desired formats according to corresponding service-keys, respectively.
US07703133B1
A system for preventing a user from interrupting a script launching one or more applications on a computer is provided. The system comprises a script operable to promote launching one or more applications. The system also comprises a security curtain application operable to prevent the user's input from interfering with operation of the script. The system further comprises enabling and disabling the security curtain application based upon one or more triggering events.
US07703131B1
The invention relates to secured distributed impersonation, for use within systems such as batch system and batch message transaction systems. In one embodiment, a method includes sending a request for credentials of a network account from an originating account associated with an unpublished object to a dispatch associated with a published object. In one embodiment, both the unpublished and the published objects can each be a message queue. The dispatch authenticates the originating account. Upon successful authentication, the network account access emblem is sent to the originating account—that is, the originating account receives the requested credentials, which facilitate the ability to impersonate into the network account.
US07703129B2
Disclosed are an authentication system and method thereof for a dial-up networking connection via a terminal. The authentication system includes a terminal for snooping an authentication request packet that includes an authentication ID and password of a computer requesting authentication, and for generating an acknowledge packet of the authentication request packet. The authentication method includes receiving an authentication request packet including an authentication ID and password by a terminal, generating an acknowledge packet by the terminal, and transmitting generated acknowledge packet from the terminal to the computer.
US07703120B2
In one embodiment, a method can include: (i) receiving a contact center interaction request via a device coupled to a display screen; (ii) accessing information about the device or a user of the device from a customer database of a content provider; and (iii) establishing an interaction path between the contact center and a viewer. The method can further include providing information to the user via the interaction path in response to a request by the user for the information. The device can be a set-top box (STB) or a cable card and the display screen can be a television, for example. Also, the content provider can be a cable or satellite television provider, for example.
US07703113B2
In certain embodiments, a method for generating fees using a receiving device, involves distributing censored video from a distributor video to a receiving device; and uncensoring the censored video using the receiving device upon payment of a fee. The receiving device uses overlay data received from the distributor to uncensor the censored video by overlaying the overlay data over the censored video using a video overlay frame to overlay a video frame containing the censored video data in accordance with boundaries determined by an alpha plane within the receiving device. This abstract should not be considered limiting since embodiments consistent with the present invention may involve more, different or fewer elements.
US07703110B2
A first groove, a second groove, and a prepared hole are formed in a traverse chassis. The first groove restricts the downward movement of a printed circuit board as a lower edge portion of the board is slidably pinched in the first groove. The second groove restricts the sliding movement in one direction of the board as an edge portion on one side of both lateral sides of the board whose lower edge portion is nipped in the first groove is fitted in the second groove. The prepared hole vertically penetrates a portion of the traverse chassis defining the first groove and is disposed adjacent to an edge portion on another side of the both lateral sides of the board whose edge portion on the one side is fitted in the second groove.
US07703109B2
An automatic disk reproducing apparatus includes a chassis body, a duplicating device, a disk feeding device, a disk conveying device and a disk holder. The duplicating device is mounted in the chassis body and has a tray. The disk feeding device is mounted on the chassis body to hold a stack of compact disks in position and allows gravity to pull the compact disk at the bottom of the stack of compact disks into the tray for duplication. The disk conveying device includes two conveying members and two arms connected respectively to the conveying members to elevate the recorded compact disk from the tray after the duplication of the compact disk and convey the recorded compact disk to the disk holder.
US07703106B2
Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for monitoring and discovering process executions in a distributed computer system. A central system receives process data items that have been collected by an agent, identifies a process instance with which each process data item is associated, groups the process data items that are associated with a first process instance into a first group, and generates a reconstruction of the first process instance based on the process data items in the first group. The central system can further use the reconstructed first process instance to model a process. Additionally, the central system can further use the reconstructed first process instance to monitor a process instance.
US07703100B2
A system and method for scheduling and managing computer applications is provided. In one embodiment, an event processor dispatches messages to run a job to an agent module residing on a local or remote node. The agent module, upon receiving the messages, spawns processes to run the job, returning status notifications of the running job to the event processor.
US07703098B1
By exploiting an early release facility that may be provided by certain transactional memory designs, we allow for transaction software constructs that wait on removal (or satisfaction) of a condition that would otherwise result in transaction abort. Absent exploitation of such a such a facility, the act of checking the condition would typically introduce a corresponding location into the read set of the transaction, and a subsequent modification of that location that removed (or satisfied) the condition, would result in abortion of the blocked transaction. By exploiting an early release facility such as described herein, a transaction may release the location (or locations) corresponding the condition, retry, and once the transient condition is removed (or satisfied), complete and commit. In this way, computation effort may be conserved while still employing a conceptually simple and convenient coordination facility.
US07703096B1
The present invention provides a method to resolve ambiguities for monitoring and automating UNIX processes by providing a multi-level filter routine and search approach that interrogates the active process table to identify the specific process by matching unique process criteria stored during configuration of the automation product. The filter and search method goes beyond process name, as process names are often not unique in UNIX environments, and includes process parameters and information by which the process was invoked.
US07703095B2
Information processing apparatus, including occurrence number counter counting events that occurred in each of a plurality of CPUs. Apparatus performs functions of; storing accumulated occurrence number of events, which occurred while the thread is being executed by each of the CPUs, in a thread storage area of the thread associating accumulated occurrence number with CPU; storing, in the thread storage area, a value of occurrence number counter of the CPU, the value having been counted before the thread is resumed by the CPU; and adding, to accumulated occurrence number which has been stored in accumulated number storing unit while corresponding to the CPU, a difference value obtained by subtracting a counter value, which has been stored in the start-time number storing unit of the thread, from a counter value of the occurrence number counter of the CPU, in a case where the CPU terminates an execution of the thread.
US07703084B2
An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports programming in an event-driven paradigm while the execution of the resultant programs are executed in a serial execution paradigm. Through shielding the developer from complex scripting segments, the environment provides the developer with the suggestion that that resultant execution model is event-driven.
US07703083B2
A system and method are presented that persist assembly bind information for applications at each stage of execution of the assembly policy. New assembly bind history files are created and persisted to disc when changes in assembly bind policy results in a change in the assemblies with which the application binds. This persisted information is used to reconfigure assembly binds to a prior state when operation of the application conformed to a user's desires. Since this assembly bind reconfiguration is on a per application basis, only the binding of the selected application is affected. Likewise, the assembly bind history files are associated with a particular user to allow personalized execution of applications on a system.
US07703078B2
Apparatus, methods and articles of manufacture for software demonstration are disclosed. Apparatus include a server that provides, via a network, a program or programs to be demonstrated to a user. The user uploads the code that the program will execute. Results are then supplied after execution, and may be made available to the user in a number of ways. Methods and articles of manufacture are also disclosed.
US07703076B1
A graphics rendering engine within a software development tool is used to perform software debug operations by analyzing the status of instructions within various stages of a superscalar processor pipeline. The debug operations are carried out using code breakpoints selected by a user through a graphical user interface. Once a line of code is selected, the processor pipeline can be examined by designating a highlighted color, for example, for certain stages and corresponding instructions that will proceed to the next stage, and not designating stages and corresponding instructions that will not proceed. This allows a user to visually examine the efficiency of the instruction throughput at select regions in the sequence of instruction addresses. Armed with the information, a user can then modify the sequence if desired.
US07703075B2
Techniques and tools relating to annotating program source code facilitate inferring annotations from source code based at least in part on a description (or specification) generated with a programmable tool. Described techniques and tools provide flexibility in annotation inference across different code bases and program states or properties of interest, and can reduce the overhead of adding annotations to “legacy” source code. For example, a specification is generated with a programmable specification tool that is separate from an inference engine. In the inference engine, one or more annotations for a computer program are inferred based at least in part on the specification.
US07703074B2
A method for analyzing a target system that includes obtaining a plurality of characteristics from the target system using a characteristics extractor, wherein the plurality of characteristics is associated with a characteristics model, storing each of the plurality of characteristics in a characteristics store using a tracking mechanism, and analyzing the target system by issuing a query to the characteristics store to obtain an analysis result, wherein the query uses tracking information associated with the tracking mechanism.
US07703072B2
Reliability is evaluated in constructing a component based-on application and an application for realizing reliability required can be constructed efficiently. A run-time history such as an occurrence frequency of errors, a recovery time required at error occurrence, and a processing capacity at preventive maintenance is added per software component to a run-time history list having been recoded per execution environment such as an application ID, combined component IDs, and executed hardware ID. From these pieces of information, an interval of performing preventive maintenance recommended per software component during system construction is calculated. By comparing reliability per software component and reliability required for the system, advisability is determined and conformance is evaluated. An execution schedule for preventive maintenance and a processing capability are calculated about the entire component-based application created by combining the software components. By calculating the reliability and the processing capability in the entire system to be compared to those required for the entire system, advisability is determined and conformance is evaluated.
US07703070B2
A method and system for assessing a software generation environment (SGE). The SGE has a plurality of SGE characteristics. At least one query is generated for each SGE characteristic. Each query has a plurality of response choices and each response choice has a numerical score. A selected response choice is received for each query. A SGE score is computed and displayed for each SGE characteristic. The SGE score for each SGE characteristic is equal to a summation of the numerical scores associated with the selected response choices for the SGE characteristic. A total score is computed and displayed, wherein the total score is equal to a summation of the SGE scores.
US07703069B1
A three-dimensional mask model of the invention provides a more realistic approximation of the three-dimensional effects of a photolithography mask with sub-wavelength features than a thin-mask model. In one embodiment, the three-dimensional mask model includes a set of filtering kernels in the spatial domain that are configured to be convolved with thin-mask transmission functions to produce a near-field image. In another embodiment, the three-dimensional mask model includes a set of correction factors in the frequency domain that are configured to be multiplied by the Fourier transform of thin-mask transmission functions to produce a near-field image.
US07703064B2
A multilayered board data input unit inputs design data of a multilayered circuit board provided with through holes penetrating and mutually connecting solid-layer conductors disposed in a multilayer manner. A limitation rule setting unit sets a limitation rule for limiting the number of solid-layer conductors to be connected to the through holes. A separation processing unit separates connections of the solid-layer conductors to the through holes in the design data based on the limitation rule. At this time, when a solid-layer conductor to be separated from the through holes is selected as a candidate, the separation processing unit determines whether the solid-layer conductor is isolated by separation, when the solid-layer conductor is not isolated, determines isolation, and when the solid-layer conductor is isolated, stops separation.
US07703062B2
A semiconductor integrated circuit includes: a first boundary cell having a first power source wiring, a second power source wiring and a first pseudo power source wiring; a first circuit cell having a third power source wiring connected with the first power source wiring, a second pseudo power source wiring connected with the first pseudo power source wiring, and a first circuit formed of a first circuit transistor; and a first switching transistor having a first electrode connected with the second power source wiring, a second electrode connected with the first pseudo power source wiring, and a gate electrode, wherein the first switching transistor is operated to be turned “ON” and “OFF” according to a control signal inputted to the gate electrode of the first switching transistor and an absolute value of a threshold voltage of the first switching transistor is larger than an absolute value of a threshold voltage of the first circuit transistor.
US07703053B2
A method and system of determining a localized measure of regional pattern density in a fabrication process of a chip are disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes determining pattern density values for each cell of a plurality of cells of interest; averaging the pattern density values for each cell within a first selected region about a target cell to determine the localized measure of regional pattern density for the target cell; storing the localized measure of regional pattern density for the target cell; and repeating the averaging and the storing for each of the plurality of cells. The simplification of data allows for a localized measure of regional pattern density determination in much less time than conventional techniques.
US07703049B2
Photomask patterns are represented using contours defined by mask functions. Given target pattern, contours are optimized such that defined photomask, when used in photolithographic process, prints wafer pattern faithful to target pattern. Optimization utilizes “merit function” for encoding aspects of photolithographic process, preferences relating to resulting pattern (e.g. restriction to rectilinear patterns), robustness against process variations, as well as restrictions imposed relating to practical and economic manufacturability of photomasks. An accurate, slower merit function may be used to determine adjustment parameters for a faster, approximate merit function. The faster merit function may be used for iteration and adjusted based on the adjustment parameters.
US07703041B2
A screen display apparatus for controlling the size each display area to appropriately display content information of each display area into one display screen. The screen display apparatus includes a selection accept block for accepting selection of first content information displayed in a first display area, a content information acquisition block for acquiring the content information associated with the selected first content information, this content information being second content information located on a layer below the first content information, and, in order to allocate a second display area for displaying the second content information to the display screen, a display area control block for controlling either or both of the first display area and the second display area.
US07703039B2
A computer system receives a command to initiate setting a display mode of its corresponding display screen to one in which received input commands (e.g., mouse input, keyboard input, etc.) are directed to multiple display applications running on the computer system instead of only a single display application in a foreground (e.g., a “topmost” window presented to a user) on the computer display screen. For example, based on input from a user, an auxiliary application herein receives an identification of at least a first display application and a second display application that each display information on different respective windows of the display screen. Thereafter, the auxiliary application duplicates received input commands and forwards the received input commands to both the first display application and the second display application, alleviating the user from having to separately apply the same commands to each of the first and second display applications.
US07703034B2
A system and method for viewing timing of one or more loops in a graphical program. A graphical program having one or more loops may be created. In one embodiment the one or more loops may include one or more timed loops, i.e., the loops may be configured to execute according to particular execution periods. The graphical program may be executed, and timing analysis data regarding timing of the one or more loops during execution of the graphical program may be stored. A graphical user interface (GUI) for viewing timing of the one or more loops during execution of the graphical program may be displayed. In various embodiments the GUI may display any of various kinds of information regarding timing of the one or more loops, and any kind of visual presentation may be used in displaying the information.
US07703022B2
A client computer system, method and software tool for displaying portlet content are provided. The system comprises a user interface, a portlet server and a portlet view tool. The user interface allows the display of a page including one or more view window(s), each displaying content provided by a component of the computer system. The portlet server processes requests for portlet content, and has one or more portlet(s) installed thereon. The portlet view tool is associated with a portlet installed on the portlet server, and controls the associated portlet. A web browser is used to display content from the associated portlet in a view window on the display.
US07703021B1
A highly-configurable process control system that uses process records in a database system to track a process. The database system relates process records, users, and projects. User permissions to view the process records include permissions for all process records related to a project to which the user is related, all such records that the user has created, all such records that a group the user belongs to have created, all such records that have been assigned to the user, and all such records that belong to an entity to which the user is related.The process records further include user-configurable fields. User permissions for the fields are provided according to group types which are related to groups to which the users belong. Included are permissions for inserting and deleting values in the user-configurable fields which are separate from the permission to edit the values.
US07703020B2
A medical diagnostic system and method having an application configured to generate a user-interface screen comprising a plurality of interface items. A configuration file is stored on the system and includes identification data of the items and a guarded designation for at least one guarded item. A dynamic link library is configured to receive the identification data and the guarded designation from the configuration file, and a server operative on the system for serving the user-interface screen to a remote client. The guarded item of the user-interface screen served to the remote client may have an altered appearance to the remote client and/or may be inoperable to the remote client.
US07703004B2
A system and method for an automatic conversion of web pages to shared structured web pages. An input web page is augmented with syntactic elements of a server-based software tool to create and customize group-writeable web pages. Sub-regions of the web page that are to be individually-editable items are identified, and syntactic elements are added to show where these editable regions begin and end, and where clickable buttons will appear that trigger the editing of an individual item, the addition of a new item, or other editing features. Also, syntactic elements are added that act as templates for the layout of any item to be added or modified. The conversion process includes parsing the Web page into an intermediate structure, adding information to individual tokens about the structures in which the tokens play a part, and them generating the new page while making one or more final passes through the intermediate structure from beginning to end.
US07702999B1
A system and method for managing information over a network (104, FIG. 1) enables a user, at a client computer (102) to access and modify information accessible to a server (106). A user can create (FIG. 10) a new manageable entity (e.g., a project), which results in storage of entity-specific and non-specific information (FIG. 12) in a database (108, FIG. 1). In addition, a user can create or edit (FIG. 17) various forms, which can be associated with one or more manageable entities. Information describing the form (FIG. 21) is then maintained by the system. The form can then be used to enter or modify data associated with the manageable entity.
US07702995B2
A method and system are disclosed for acquiring and transforming existing content (e.g., Hyper Text Markup Language HTML content) for display and execution on multiple platforms and architectures. In one embodiment, capture templates are created to harvest content from disparate content sources on multiple platforms. Data is extracted from the content from the disparate content sources using the created capture templates that drives extracting process. A standardized data stream is generated from the extracted data. The standardized data stream is provided for display on one or more different type of platforms.
US07702994B2
The present invention relates to a method of determining a corruption indication of a sequence (100) of encoded data frames distributed over a network, said data frames being encoded according to a predictive block-based encoding technique. Said method comprises the steps of: —decoding the sequence of encoded data frames so as to obtain a sequence of decoded data frames (200), —building a reliability map (210) including binary values based on the decoding step, a binary value being associated with a decoded data item in such a way that the binary value is equal to a first value (1) if its associated data item has not been decoded due to corruption or if said associated data item is predicted with reference to a reference data item that has not been decoded due to corruption, and to a second value (0) otherwise, —computing a corruption metric based on the binary values.
US07702991B2
A method and apparatus are disclosed for improving the maximum data rate of reduced-state Viterbi detectors with local feedback in magnetic recording systems. A read channel signal is processed in a magnetic recording device by precomputing branch metrics, intersymbol interference estimates or intersymbol interference-free signal estimates for speculative sequences of one or more channel symbols; selecting one of the precomputed values based on at least one decision from at least one corresponding state; and selecting a path having a best path metric for a given state.
US07702990B2
A method and apparatus for performing Reed-Solomon (R-S) coding in a mobile communication system supporting a broadcast and multicast (BCMC) service are provided, where a determination is made as to whether a change in a broadcast overhead message (BOM) exist including information with parameters used for the BCMC service. A position of data in a new channel encoder buffer is calculated at a time when the BOM is changed. The channel encoder buffer is filled with predetermined data in an interval ranging from a start point of a buffer comprising data in the change point of the BOM to a point preceding a point of data first transmitted according to the changed BOM.
US07702962B2
The present invention detects the occurrence of a bottleneck on the basis of the states of respective elements of the storage system and presents a measure for eliminating the bottleneck before actually changing the constitution of the storage system. The host element N1 is connected to the element N10 in the storage device via the elements N3, N6 and N8 (S1). Element N1 is a device file or the like, for example. Element N10 is a logical volume or the like, for example. When a bottleneck occurs in the intermediate element N8 (S2), the bottleneck is detected (S4) on the basis of collected information on the respective elements of the storage system (S3). A measure that is effective in eliminating the bottleneck is then reviewed and selected (S5, S6). This measure manipulates any of the elements N1 and N2 or N9 and N10 located at the two ends of the path.
US07702959B2
An error management system for managing an error occurring in a client application includes: a client terminal which intercepts an event, and collects error information and a crash dump file when the client application is abnormally terminated, and transmits the collected error information and the crash dump file in a predetermined format via a network; and an error collecting server which receives the error information and the crash dump file from the client terminal, and stores the received error information and the crash dump file for each online service, the error collecting server being independent from an online service server that executes a server application providing a service in correspondence to the client application.
US07702945B2
The present invention relates to a technique capable of establishing communications between cores, which can provide a large degree of freedom of clock frequencies settable in each core, and thus providing deterministic operation, small communication latency, and high reliability. An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor device with high reliability, by analyzing factors affecting the performance of the semiconductor device, based on the communication histories within the semiconductor device, and reflecting the analysis back to the next generation semiconductor devices. The improved semiconductor device includes a core A for transmitting data in sync with the clock signal clkA, a core B for receiving data in sync with the clock signal clkB coincided with the rising or falling of the clock signal clkA in a constant period, and a controller for controlling communications between the core A and the core B. The controller controls in such way that the core B can receive only the data arriving prior to the setup of the clock signal clkB. The controller stores the history on a communication status between cores.
US07702941B2
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a novel apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus includes an analog to digital converter to receive a predefined synchronization signal and a receiver clock; and an interpolation module coupled to the analog to digital converter to receive an output of the analog to digital converter and to continuously estimate and adapt current delay and skew estimates to synchronize a signal.
US07702937B2
A method, apparatus or stored program for adjusting the clock throttle rate of a central processing unit (CPU) included in a computer, in which the usage of the CPU is measured, so that the clock throttle rate of the CPU can be automatically adjusted on the measured usage of the CPU, thereby reducing the consumption of electric power without any influence on the performance of the computer.
US07702932B2
Power management of a network by increasing a number of adjacent flows that share a computing device
A power management technique for a network including a plurality of computing devices. The power management technique includes identifying an order in which one or more devices of the plurality of computing devices can transmit data within the prescribed time period. In one aspect, the number of wakeups are reduced for the computing devices within the network by increasing a number of adjacent channel time allocation periods within a prescribed time period that share a common computing device. In one aspect, the network can be based on Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA).
US07702931B2
A method of adjusting power budgets of multiple servers within a data center comprises various actions. Such actions include, for example, organizing the multiple servers into hierarchical groups, dividing a total power budget among the hierarchical groups, and assigning power consumption levels to individual members of a particular hierarchical group such that the sum total of the assigned power consumption levels does not exceed the total power budget for the particular hierarchical group. The act of dividing is dynamic with respect to time.
US07702919B2
A method, program and system for processing data is disclosed. The method, program and system comprising the steps of: (a) receiving (e.g., during an enrollment process) a first biometric data and a first personal key, (b) processing the first biometric data and the first personal key through an irreversible cryptographic algorithm, sometimes after: (i) generating one or more variants from the first biometric data, (ii) processing the first personal key through a reversible cryptographic algorithm, and (iii) adding salt to the first biometric data or first personal key, (c) receiving (e.g., during an authentication process) a second biometric data and a second personal key, (d) processing the second biometric data and the second personal key through the irreversible cryptographic algorithm, (e) comparing the second processed data to the first processed data, and (f) generating a signal pertaining to the comparison of the second processed data to the first processed data, such as: (i) a confirmation reflecting authentication when the second processed data matches the first processed data (sometimes allowing access to a facility or system) or (ii) a denial reflecting no confirmation when the second processed data does not match the first processed data.
US07702911B2
Protecting the security of an entity by using passcodes is disclosed. A passcode device generates a passcode. In an embodiment, the passcode is generated in response to receipt of user information. The passcode is received by another system, which authenticates the passcode by at least generating a passcode from a passcode generator, and comparing the generated passcode with the received passcode. The passcode is temporary. At a later use a different passcode is generated from a different passcode generator.
US07702907B2
An improved system and method for safe booting an electronic device. In situations such as where a virus is infecting various devices within a network, the present invention provides an authentication centre with the ability to instruct a device on the network to safe boot. During the safe boot, it can be arranged such that no third party applications are run, only backup, restoration, or uninstallation of programs are possible, and/or only programs in the device's read-only memory are loaded. The present invention also provides a user with the ability to go through the boot process in a step-by-step manner.
US07702904B2
In a multicast delivery system, A delivery server enciphers delivery data by using a current use cipher key to generate enciphered data and transmits a multicast packet containing the enciphered data and a current use key identifier indicative of a pair of the current use cipher key and a current use decipher key as current use keys. A key management server holds as a current use key data, a set of the current use decipher key and the current use key identifier, and transmits a set of the current use decipher key and the current use key identifier as a current use decipherment key data in response to a current use key data request.
US07702893B1
Systems and methods are provided for avoiding memory address conflicts in systems containing shared memory. Upon system power up, programmable logic device integrated circuits, microprocessors, and other integrated circuits with processing capabilities are provided with unique initialization data memory addresses. Each unique initialization data memory address corresponds to a respective non-overlapping block of memory in the shared memory. During initialization operations, the integrated circuits retrieve initialization data from the shared memory using the unique initialization data memory addresses. The integrated circuits can be organized using a master-slave architecture. The master can load the initialization data memory addresses into the slave integrated circuits using communications circuitry that is active after the slaves have powered up but before the slaves have been initialized.
US07702885B2
A system and method for expanding the command set of a memory controller is provided. In one implementation, the method includes decoding a first plurality of commands through a command decoding state machine, and in response to the command decoding state machine decoding an extended command, waking the microcontroller to process an additional command other than a command among the first plurality of commands. The extended command is a command that notifies the microcontroller of the additional command to be processed.
US07702880B2
Methods and apparatus for allowing different mapping implementations, including a many-to-one logical to physical block mapping, to be used within a memory system are disclosed. According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for mapping a plurality of logical blocks to a physical block includes identifying a first logical block meets at least one criterion. The method also includes identifying a second logical block which is substantially complementary to the first logical block, and providing contents associated with the first logical block and contents associated with the second logical block to the physical block.
US07702878B2
Processing data samples may comprise partitioning the data samples in a first set of data bits and a second set of data bits and utilizing at least some of the first and second set of data bits while operating under a first condition. Only at least some of the first set of data bits may be utilized while operating under a second condition. The first condition may be a normal operating condition, while the second condition may be a performance restricted condition. The first set of data bits may be more significant bits and the second set of bits may be less significant bits. At least some of the first and second set of data bits may be utilized while bandwidth is available. Under the second condition, other values may be substituted for the data values from the second set that were not read in a read operation.
US07702877B2
A RAID storage system includes an outer stripe size that is an integer multiple J of a product of an inner stripe size and a number of data disks in a RAID disk set, where J is greater than one (1).
US07702875B1
A computing system comprises a processor, a data storage unit, and a block size table (BST). The processor includes at least one cache configured to store data. The data storage unit is configured to store data in a compressed format in fixed size units. The BST is configured to store block size entries corresponding to data blocks stored in the data storage unit. In response to a miss in the cache corresponding to a target data block, the processor is configured to identify an entry in the BST corresponding to the target data block, utilize information stored in the entry to determine the location of the target data block in the data storage unit, and cause the target data block to be retrieved from the data storage unit, decompressed, and stored in the cache.
US07702872B2
The invention provides a smart card chip having a nonvolatile system memory (ROM, flash1), a Java Card Virtual Machine implemented in the nonvolatile system memory (ROM, flash1), a nonvolatile application memory (EEPROM, flash2), a volatile working memory (RAM) and a variables memory area reserved for global variables, wherein the variables memory area is reserved in the volatile working memory (RAM). The variables memory area is preferably reserved statically. The use of the variables can be limited to system packages and optionally additionally to preloaded (ROM/EEPROM) packages.
US07702864B2
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for copying data from a volatile memory device to a plurality of persistent storage devices in response to a loss of primary power. The apparatus includes a section module, a stripe module, and a write module. The section module sections a data image of a write cache into a plurality of data blocks. The stripe module establishes a plurality of data stripes from the plurality of data blocks. The write module writes in parallel each of the plurality of data stripes to a corresponding plurality of unique, persistent data storage devices in response to a loss of line power to the write cache. Advantageously, the apparatus quickly copies the write data from the write cache to a persistent memory device in a relatively short period of time, decreasing the dependence on significant batteries to back up the volatile memory device.
US07702860B2
A memory access apparatus for accessing a first memory and a second memory, includes: an address outputting unit configured to output a read address to at least one of the first and the second memories; an access request outputting unit configured to output a read request to at least one of the first and the second memories; a data information outputting unit configured to output an information on the data size, and an information on the address, of the read data; and a read data outputting unit configured to generate the read data to be output, from the data output from at least one of the first and the second memories in response to the read address and the read request.
US07702855B2
A processing device employs a stack memory in a region of an external memory. The processing device has a stack pointer register to store a current top address for the stack memory. One of several techniques is used to determine which portion or portions of the external memory correspond to the stack region. A more efficient memory policy is implemented, whereby pushes to the stack do not have to read data from the external memory in to a cache, and whereby pops from the stack do not cause stale stack data to be written back from the cache to the external memory.
US07702851B2
The present invention transfers replication logical volumes between and among storage control units in a storage system comprising a plurality of storage control units. To transfer replication logical volumes from a storage control unit to a storage control unit, a virtualization device sets a path to the storage control unit. The storage control unit then prepares a differential bitmap in order to receive access requests. When the preparation is completed, the virtualization device makes access requests to the storage control unit. The storage control unit then hands over the access requests to the storage control unit. Subsequently, the storage control unit performs a process so that the access requests are reflected in a disk device and performs an emergency destage of storing data in a cache memory into disk device. When the emergency destage is ended, the storage control unit connects to an external storage control unit and hands over access requests to the external storage control unit.
US07702850B2
A topology independent storage array. In a preferred embodiment the topology of the array is reconfigurable due to information control packets passed among storage nodes comprising the array. The topology of the array, as determine by the relationship between data sets stored within the array's storage nodes and storage maps of the storage node, can be reconfigured without requiring a complete duplication of the entire array. In especially preferred embodiments, the topology of the storage array follows a Z-10 or a Z-110 configuration where storage devices store one or more mirrored parts of a data set per storage device.
US07702846B2
A nonvolatile storage device is provided with a nonvolatile main storage memory whose erase size is larger than a cluster size, and a buffer, i.e. a nonvolatile auxiliary storage memory. At the time of writing data in the memory, the data is temporarily stored in the buffer, then, a plurality of data in the buffer are collectively taken out to be stored in the main storage memory. Data in an original block is saved in a write block in the main storage memory. Thus, the data can be written in the main storage memory at a high speed.
US07702843B1
Memory assigned to a virtual machine is reclaimed. A resource reservation application running as a guest application on the virtual machine reserves a location in guest virtual memory. The corresponding physical memory can be reclaimed and allocated to another virtual machine. The resource reservation application allows detection of guest virtual memory page-out by the guest operating system. Measuring guest virtual memory page-out is useful for determining memory conditions inside the guest operating system. Given determined memory conditions, memory allocation and reclaiming can be used control memory conditions. Memory conditions in the virtual machine can be controlled with the objective of achieving some target memory conditions.
US07702839B2
Accessing data stored in a memory device through an interface, with addressing data on the memory device through at least one address bus, controlling at least data flow to and from the memory device through at least one command bus, and transferring data to and from the memory through at least one data bus wherein commands on the command bus are adjusted depending on the type of memory connected to the interface.
US07702835B2
A system for tagged interrupt forwarding comprises a multiprocessor including a first and a second processor, an I/O device, and I/O management software. In response to an application I/O request, the I/O management software may be configured to prepare a request descriptor at the first processor, including an identification of the first processor. The I/O management software may then send a hardware or device-level I/O request to the I/O device. When the I/O device completes the requested hardware I/O operation, it may send a response, which may be received at the second processor. I/O management software at the second processor may be configured to transfer control for processing the response back to the first processor at which the I/O request was initiated, using the tag to identify the first processor. Processing of the response may then be completed at the first processor.
US07702833B2
A connector interface system for a communication device is disclosed. The interface includes a docking connector. The docking connector includes first make/last break contacts that minimize internal damage to the internal electronics. The docking connector also includes specific keying arrangement to prevent noncompliant connectors from being plugged in, and thereby minimizes potential damage to the multi-communication device. The connector interface system also includes a remote connector which provides for the ability to output audio, input audio, provides I/O serial protocol, and to provide an output video. Embodiments of the present invention allow for a standard headphone cable to be plugged in but also for special remote control cables, microphone cables, video cables could be utilized in such a system. The connector interface system also includes a serial protocol to control device features. These controls help a user sort and search for data more efficiently within the device.
US07702832B2
A simple clock source synchronous DDR data transfer mechanism may be combined with static bus state signaling to replace a complex bus (e.g. USB) with an easy to implement digital serial interconnect bus. This may eliminate various pull-up/pull-down resistors required in USB, and enable the interconnect bus to operate with little or no leakage current when the bus is in an idle state, or data transmission state. All required functionality may be implemented using only two signal pins. The interconnect bus may also enable silicon solutions for high speed USB that do not require a PLL, since the clock may be provided by the transmission source and may thus not need to be recovered from the serial data stream. The digital serial interconnect bus may provide an easy reuse mechanism for USB silicon by enabling a designer to remove the analog PHY and replace it with a serial digital I/O transfer mechanism, while retaining the IP's USB timers, and other protocol specific features.
US07702831B2
An electronic data flash card is accessible by a host computer, and includes a processing unit connected to a flash memory device that stores a data file, and an input-output interface circuit activated so as to establish a communication with the host computer. In an embodiment, the electronic data flash card uses a USB input/output interface circuit for communication with the host computer. A flash memory controller includes an index for converting logical addresses sent by the host computer into physical addresses associated with sectors of the flash memory device. The index is controlled by arbitration logic referencing to values from various look up tables and valid data stored in the flash memory device. The flash memory controller further includes a first-in-first-out unit (FIFO) for recycling obsolete sectors of the flash memory device in the background process so that they are available for reprogramming.
US07702828B2
An input/output control apparatus includes: a request acceptance unit configured to accept a switch request for requesting to change an operating system occupying any one of the input device and the output device; a control information generator unit configured to generate control information including any one of input destination information and output enable information in response to the switch request; and a control information output unit configured to output any one of the input destination information and the output enable information. The input destination information includes at least information for specifying an input destination operating system to which information inputted from the input device is inputted; and the output enable information includes at least information for specifying whether or not each of the plurality of operating systems can output information to the output device.
US07702825B2
Some embodiments of the invention include apparatus, systems, and methods to perform universal serial bus (USB) suspend and resume operations based on active communication between USB devices to improve power management. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
US07702820B2
A data transmission system for enabling data to be transmitted from one of a host and a storage device to the other includes a bus controller, a command register, a data register, a storage device controller and a hardware accelerator. The bus controller receives a command packet from the host through a bus. The command register and the data register respectively store the command packet and the data received by the bus controller. The storage device controller controls an accessing action of the storage device. The hardware accelerator generates a control command according to the command packet and drives one of the storage device controller and the bus controller to move the data in the data register to the other according to the control command. The hardware accelerator generates a transmission state packet according to a transmission state of the data and outputs the transmission state packet to the host.
US07702818B2
A multi-service network system which forms a wide area network connecting a plurality of metropolitan areas, including a primary network ring including at least one primary node and at least one secondary node; and a secondary network ring connecting the at least one secondary node to business premises equipment, wherein the business premises equipment are associated with respective customer premises equipment.
US07702817B2
Systems, methods, and computer program products for providing wireless network access are disclosed. A wireless network access device comprises at least one local communication network interface and a plurality of wireless network interfaces. Requests for resources are received over the local communication network interface, processed by the processor, and distributed among two or more of the plurality of wireless network interfaces. Algorithms for determining a number of wireless network interfaces and for selecting particular wireless network interfaces are disclosed. Received resources may be stored in a cache memory, and may be used to respond to subsequent requests for the same resource.
US07702810B1
Outages in a label-switched path (LSP) are detected quickly using adjacency information, such as IGP “hello neighbor” queries. Protocols, such as IGP can be instructed to check certain adjacencies more frequently. For example, a node in an LSP can determine a next downstream node in the LSP as an adjacency, check that adjacency much more frequently, and in the event that the adjacency is lost (due to a down link, a down interface, or a down node), switch any LSPs that have the adjacency to a failover path or route. Since these checks need not be performed using hardware signaling, outages of shared media interfaces, such as Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet, can be checked.
US07702808B2
A Multicast-Enabled Address Resolution Protocol (ME-ARP) is disclosed. This ME-ARP allows the building of independent IP based Virtual Private LAN segments (VPLS) over a multicast enabled IP backbone using stateless tunnels and optimal VPLS traffic forwarding. Each VPLS has an associated IP subnet which is completely independent from other VPLS or the underlying IP backbone itself. Each Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) device needs only to be configured with a VPLS identifier and its serving IP subnet per VPLS designated interface.
US07702807B2
Disclosed are a content providing system and a relay apparatus in which an information terminal connected to a multi-function mobile telephone receives a content in the same operational procedure as that for the multi-function mobile telephone. When a video gaming machine connected to the multi-function mobile telephone accesses a content providing apparatus, an DNS server in an NOC converts a telephone number of the multi-function mobile telephone into an ID code unique to the multi-function mobile telephone. The content providing apparatus thus identifies the multi-function mobile telephone in use, and a user can thus enjoy a video game on the video gaming machine in the same operation as that for the multi-function mobile telephone.
US07702803B2
A method of enhancing security in network management for SNMPv2c packet traffic over internet between a (sending) manager location and an (receiving) agent location uses a pluggable security application function. The manager location has a manager side security application (MSA) and may include one or more managers. The agent location has an agent side security application (ASA) and may include one or more agents. Upon a SNMP request from a manager to the MSA, the request is encrypted, appended with authentication digest and sent to a registered agent in ASA. The MSA receives a secured response packet back from the ASA, which after authentication decrypts and forwards it to the intended manager. Thus, an existing protocol implementation is maintained, while reducing additional network overhead. The method obviates the use of IPSec tunnels and migration to SNMPv3.
US07702801B1
A system, computer program product and method for automatically restoring logon connectivity in a broadband network system. Upon establishing a connection between a client and Internet gateway (INTERNET GATEWAY), the status of the connection, i.e., connected or disconnected, may be checked by issuing a request to an INTERNET GATEWAY utilizing a protocol that is normally blocked when the client is disconnected. By issuing a request utilizing a protocol that is normally blocked when the client is disconnected, the status of the connection may be determined by whether the request may be serviced. If the request cannot be serviced, then a subsequent connection may be established automatically by terminating the logon procedure associated with the preceding connection, e.g., initial connection, and executing the logon procedure associated with the subsequent connection.
US07702800B2
A system and method are disclosed, according to which, the responsiveness of client/server-based distributed web applications operating in an object-oriented environment may be improved by detecting and handling affinity breaks between a client and server. Affinity exists when a client's requests are all routed to the same server. This is often the case, for example, during secure online transactions. A problem occurs when the preferred server becomes temporarily unavailable, and the client's requests are directed to a different server. When the original server is restored, it must detect the fact that its affinity with the client was disrupted, and any client-specific data in its cache may be invalid. In an exemplary embodiment of the system and method disclosed herein, an “affinity command” is exchanged between the client and the server during each client request. The affinity command contains a user ID associated with the client and a “generation ID”, which is unique for each request. When a request is received from a client, the server examines the generation ID in the accompanying affinity command and compares it to its internally recorded value. If they match, the server knows it has not missed any requests. In this case, the server updates the generation ID and sends the new value back to the client, along with the requested cache entry. If the generation ID received from the client fails to match the recorded value, an affinity break is detected, and the server updates its cache from the database.
US07702799B2
A method for securing a commercial grid network over non-trusted routes involves receiving, by an administrative node in the commercial grid network, a lease request from a client to lease one of multiple resource nodes in the commercial grid network, wherein the client is separated from the resource node by a non-trusted route. The method further involves transmitting, by the administrative node, a network security key associated with the client to the resource node, storing, by the resource node, the network security key in a network security key repository specific to the resource node, establishing, by the resource node, a secure network tunnel over the non-trusted route using the network security key, transmitting a network packet securely between the client and the resource node over the secure network tunnel, and destroying, by the resource node, the secure network tunnel when a lease term associated with the client and the resource node expires.
US07702791B2
A session replication system provides real-time data replication without unnecessarily slowing down the user experience. A system in accordance with the present invention may utilize a primary server to serve requests from a network client, as well as a secondary server to replicate the session information. When a request is received on the session, an attempt may be made to serve the request on the primary server. If the primary is unable to receive or respond to the request, the request may be served on the secondary server or on a new primary server. If the secondary server receives the request, the secondary server may become the new primary server. If a new primary server is selected, the new primary may request the session information from the secondary server.
US07702789B2
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for reassigning a client. A selection module selects a second computation module that is hardware compatible with a first computation module. A suspension module suspends a software process for a client executing on the first computation module. An execution state module copies a computation module execution state of the first computation module to the second computation module. A memory map module copies a memory map of a software process image associated with the software process and stored in a first storage system from the first computation module to the second computation module. In one embodiment, a resumption module resumes the software process executing on the second computation module.
US07702781B2
A system may include a network, a remote storage facility coupled to the network, and a client coupled to the network. The client may be adapted to receive a store command for a data file, to prompt a user for a file name for the data file, and to receive a parameter selection. The parameter selection may include a transfer time. The client may be adapted to apply the parameter selection to the data file, to queue the data file in a queue for transmission to the remote storage facility, and to transfer the data file to the remote storage facility at the transfer time.
US07702780B2
For monitoring a data processing system, a sequence of critical conditions with increasing severity indexes is defined. Each critical condition is detected when a corresponding state parameter exceeds a threshold value with a predefined persistence over time. The persistence may be specified by a minimum number of repeated occurrences of this event, with a maximum number of consecutive non-occurrences that are allowed between them. Whenever critical conditions are detected, the monitoring application retrieves the severity index of the last detected critical condition with the highest severity index, and calculates an incremental index indicative of how closely the state parameter is approaching the next critical condition. An indicator of the health of the system may be generated by subtracting the severity index of the last critical condition plus the incremental index from an optimal value.
US07702776B2
According to the invention, a server communicates with a client by transmitting to the client pages that the latter requested. The server adds to the pages identification data comprising at least one transmission identifier specific for the transmission of the page in such a manner that said data is transmitted back to the server if and only if the request on the client's end originates from the transmission of the page. The server also stores the identification data transmitted by it. If the transmission identifier transferred back to the server corresponds to a stored transmission identifier, the server, once it receives the additional request, stores the newly transmitted transmission identifier in place of the transferred-back transmission identifier. Otherwise, it stores it in addition to the transferred-back transmission identifier.
US07702770B1
A system and method for accessing a business logic module is provided. The system comprises a client that calls an interface to send a stateful message. The system also comprises a stateless session bean which receives the stateful message from the interface and calls the business logic module to perform a function.
US07702762B1
The invention comprises a system for providing host-to-host connectivity through use of SAN. In the preferred embodiment, the end-to-end host connectivity is accomplished through the FICON protocol, over the Fiber Channel layered stack on a standard Fiber Channel adapter that runs transparently across the SAN infrastructure.
US07702760B2
The present invention relates to a configuration method and system for providing a configuration parameter, such as a server, gateway or proxy server address(es), to a terminal device. A trigger control information defining trigger events and/or conditions is loaded to the terminal device (11, 21) and a discovery procedure for obtaining the configuration parameter(s) is initiated when at least one of the trigger events and/or conditions is detected. Thereby, a user-friendly automatic configuration of services or server addresses can be provided to a moving mobile terminal.
US07702749B2
The joining of Web services is accomplished via a virtual contract through the use of safeties. The joining of Web services heightens the safe interoperability of Web services to create greater functionality than each Web service alone can provide. Web services are joined for interoperability when the type of a port of one Web service is compatible with the type of another port of another Web service.
US07702743B1
In one embodiment, a virtual NUMA system may be formed from multiple computer systems coupled to a network such as InfiniBand, Ethernet, etc. Each computer includes one or more software modules which present the resources of the computers as a virtual NUMA machine. The virtual machine is a non-uniform memory access (NUMA) machine comprising a plurality of nodes, each node having memory that is part of a distributed shared memory. Additionally, the virtual machine is coherent with a weakly ordered memory model. When executed in a current owner node of a first block in response to an ownership transfer request from a requesting node of the plurality of nodes for the first block, the software modules perform a synchronization operation if the first block has been modified in the current owner node.
US07702739B1
Systems and methods are disclosed for reducing the cost of sending messages over an intermittent network of computing devices via multiple communication channels by creating a first message on a first device, the message intended to be sent to a second device over the network multiple communication channels; applying a first policy to reduce the cost of sending messages over the intermittent network of computing devices, the first policy containing one or more rules to determine whether to send the first message to the second device, each rule being a function of one or more messaging attributes of messages, channels or the system environment; and dynamically updating the first policy by sending a second message to the first device, the second message being a system message that results in the addition, deletion or other modification of the rules contained in the policy to reduce the cost of sending messages over the intermittent network of computing devices.
US07702734B2
An improved e-mail communication apparatus, a data processing method and a program are provided. First, an MFP 100 which receives an e-mail decides whether or not the e-mail is one of a plurality of split data generated by dividing image data in data amount units and stores the e-mail. The MFP 100 then decides whether or not all the split data of the image data are stored, and when all the split data are stored, the MFP 100 generates combined data by combining the plurality of split data and performs printing processing on recording paper based on the combined data.
US07702729B2
An efficient and adaptive middleware infrastructure called the Event Heap system dynamically coordinates application interactions and communications in a ubiquitous computing environment, e.g., an interactive workspace, having heterogeneous software applications running on various machines and devices across different platforms. Applications exchange events via the Event Heap. Each event is characterized by a set of unordered, named fields. Events are routed by matching certain attributes in the fields. The source and target versions of each field are automatically set when an event is posted or used as a template. The Event Heap system implements a unique combination of features, both intrinsic to tuplespaces and specific to the Event Heap, including content based addressing, support for routing patterns, standard routing fields, limited data persistence, query persistence/registration, transparent communication, self-description, flexible typing, logical/physical centralization, portable client API, at most once per source first-in-first-out ordering, and modular restartability.
US07702728B2
Techniques for enabling mobile shared group interaction are described. Members of a group may access, through a user interface, group activities that provide a shared, synchronous, interactive experience. An interface may be provided via a mobile device such as a cellular telephone that enables members who are mobile to participate in group activities with other members who are also mobile or who are logged on via a non-mobile device such as a desktop computer system.
US07702710B2
A digital signal processor receives samples of a first digital signal which is to be decimated and samples of a second digital signal which is to be interpolated. A digital signal processing engine performs a decimation function on samples of the first digital signal and an interpolation function on samples of the second digital signal on a time-shared basis. The digital signal processor has a first dual memory space for storing the samples of the first digital signal and a second dual memory space for storing the samples of the second digital signal. Outputs retrieved from a dual memory space are pre-added and applied to a multiplication and accumulation stage which operates on the pre-added outputs and a filter coefficient of a digital filter.
US07702709B2
Systems and methods that optimize approximation functions are provided. In one example, a method that approximates a particular expression over a sample space of input values is provided. The method may include the steps of splitting the sample space of the input values into sub-regions; associating a polynomial function for each of the sub-regions; optimizing each polynomial function over the respective sub-region; and optimizing all polynomial functions over the sample space.
US07702699B2
A method for creating a histogram from a plurality of data elements that includes specifying a plurality of internal buckets, wherein each internal bucket of the plurality of internal buckets represent values between an internal minimum value and an internal maximum value, wherein a plurality of differences of the internal minimum value and the internal maximum value of each internal bucket are heterogeneous, populating the plurality of internal buckets with the plurality of data elements based on the internal minimum value and the internal maximum value of each internal bucket to obtain a plurality of populated internal buckets, and outputting the histogram from the plurality of populated internal buckets.
US07702678B2
When a Web-browser user employs a hyperlink, a Web-information manager makes a log entry that includes the URL of the Web page containing the hyperlink and also lists the URL of the target Web page, to which the hyperlink refers. When the user requests that a Web page be captured for later use, the Web-information manager uses the log to find the page at the root of the hyperlink chain that led to that page. It then determines from the root page's URL whether the root page is a search-result page. If it is, the Web-information manager infers the search specification from that URL and associates it with the page to be captured.
US07702669B2
A unified messaging system, method, apparatus, individual components and the like are disclosed. The unified messaging system comprises a server, a client and a synchronization application for synchronizing voicemail messages and fax messages on both the server and the client is disclosed. The server messages may include received messages and sent messages, each of which is indexed according to their respective indices and read/unread statuses. Similarly, the client messages may include received messages and sent messages, each of which is indexed according to their respective indices and read/unread statuses.
US07702664B2
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for autonomic large file marking. A threshold module sets a file size threshold. An identification module identifies each file that exceeds the file size threshold and that is not marked with a limited backup status. A user interface module may query a user if each identified file is to be marked. In response to a user direction to mark the identified file, the marking module may mark with the limited backup status each identified file. In an embodiment, the marking module selects a limited backup status from an exclusion backup status and a single storage backup status.
US07702660B2
In a multi-node database system, a list of data blocks to perform recovery operations on in the event of failure of a given node is dynamically maintained on another node. List is available when the given node fails, and allows the database to be made available more quickly.
US07702657B2
A portable information processor (10) includes a storage unit (11) that stores information; a connecting unit (12) that connects to one of the device (1 (or 2)); an information acquiring unit (13) that acquires information from the connected device (1 (or 2)); an operation information generating unit (14) supplied with a driving power from a power source of the connected device (1 (or 2)) and generating operation information relating to the predetermined operation executable by the connected device (1 (or 2)) based on device identification information and the acquired information acquired by the information acquiring unit (13), and the information stored in the storage unit (11); and a control unit (15) that controls the connected device (1 (or 2)) based on the operation information generated by the operation information generating unit (14).
US07702654B2
An asset management system for managing media assets in media production. The system includes a database and a database interface. The database stores a plurality of records, each record storing information for a media asset. Each record includes work performance information for the media asset. The database interface is coupled to the database and to a network. The database interface is configured to provide access to the plurality of records, and to collect and manage information for the corresponding media assets.
US07702644B2
A data management system and method to host applications and manage storage, finding and retrieval of typed items with support for tagging, connections, and situated queries are provided.
US07702641B2
The embodiments of the present invention provide a method for comparing file tree descriptions and generating a sequenced log of changes that transform an old file tree to a new file tree. According to one embodiment, the inputs to this comparator are two tree-structured descriptions called file tree indices, and the outputs are a sequence of file tree operations that can transform the old tree to the current tree. According to another embodiment, the comparator has two top level steps, where at step one it recursively goes through the old file tree index and compares each folder along with its children with that of the corresponding file tree generating a raw operation log, and at step two after the recursion is done, the comparator processes the raw operation log and optimizes certain sets of operations by transforming them into single operations.
US07702635B2
The present invention relates to a system and methodology to assist users with data access activities and that includes such activities as routine web browsing and/or data access applications. A coalesced display or montage of aggregated information is provided that is focused from a plurality of sources to achieve substantially one-button access to user's desired web or data source information/destinations in order to mitigate efforts in retrieving and viewing such information. Past web or other type data access patterns can be mined to predict future browsing sites or desired access locations. A system is provided that builds personalized web portals for associated users based on models mined from past data access patterns. The portals can provide links to web resources as well as embed content from distal (remote) pages or sites producing a montage of web or other type data content. Automated topic classification is employed to create multiple topic-centric views that can be invoked by a user.
US07702632B2
An apparatus and a method for information processing that enable effective content management and retrieval are provided. Content attribute information is obtained via a recording medium such as a CD or the like, a network, or as user input data, an artist name is extracted from the obtained content attribute information, initial letter information is determined on a basis of the artist name, and the initial letter information is stored and registered as content management information in a data storage unit. Also, editing of the registered information is made possible. This constitution enables a data search process using the initial letter information as a search key and a sort process. Further, the artist name is automatically determined and registered regardless of a kind of the artist name such as the alphabet, kana, or katakana. Therefore a process is made possible which generates and registers the management data efficiently and quickly and hence reduces a burden on the user.
US07702629B2
Disclosed herein is an improved architecture for regular expression pattern matching. Improvements to pattern matching deterministic finite automatons (DFAs) that are described by the inventors include a pipelining strategy that pushes state-dependent feedback to a final pipeline stage to thereby enhance parallelism and throughput, augmented state transitions that track whether a transition is indicative of a pattern match occurring thereby reducing the number of necessary states for the DFA, augmented state transition that track whether a transition is indicative of a restart to the matching process, compression of the DFA's transition table, alphabet encoding for input symbols to equivalence class identifiers, the use of an indirection table to allow for optimized transition table memory, and enhanced scalability to facilitate the ability of the improved DFA to process multiple input symbols per cycle.
US07702621B2
A method, system, and computer program product are disclosed for automatically matching the profile of unstructured electronic documents to objective sets of criteria. The is accomplished by evaluating text in the documents, comparing it to a set of weighted keyword criteria, generating a rating based on adherence to the criteria, rating and categorizing the results, sorting and viewing the results based on user defined criteria. The rating may be assigned based on the number of keywords present in a document in relation to the average number of keywords present in a group of documents.
US07702617B2
A method, system, business method, and computer program product for retrieving and organizing networked data, wherein fetch rules and extraction rules enable a user to automatically collect and extract information from a remote network site. The fetch rules reproduce the interaction a client executes if interacting directly with the remote site, so a server cannot be shut out. The extraction rules allow the client, preferably via an applet, to glean relevant information from the acquired pages for presentation in a general interface. As an electronic commerce business method, information about remote site responsiveness, fetch rules, and extraction rules may be shared between server and client for a fee. The server accumulates vendor contacts, stores query rules, and provides common interface rules. The invention can gather statistics on vendor responsiveness and can resell information to vendors or others.
US07702611B2
User's interests can be explicitly determined via keywords that the user specifies, and/or are implicitly constructed from user browsing and reading activity. User interests may be expressed as an interest profile. Conceptual keywords related to user interests are selected by combining spreading activation and word co-occurrence, by latent semantic analysis, or other methods.One embodiment automatically highlights sentences and other information that contain conceptual keywords related to user interests. Highlights can be activated when the user directly performs a keyword search or index search, or the invention can generate information reflecting user interests, apply it to the text, and generate and display highlights. One embodiment includes an algorithm for computing a conceptual keyword vector through an iterative spreading activation process also employing word co-occurrence. A conceptual index of the text may be created and then combined with conceptual highlighting.
US07702609B2
Systems and techniques for adapting to inexact user input. In one aspect, a system includes one or more machine-readable media storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations. The operations include receiving input from a user over a data entry field, conducting an attribute-limited search in a transactional data store for a value that matches the user input, the attribute-limited search being limited to one or more, but less than all, attributes in the transactional data store, in response determining that a match between the user input and the value of the one or more searched attributes exists, accessing a transactional data store record having the match, and in response to determining that the match does not exist, automatically identifying a record that includes a match to the user input outside of the one or more searched attributes.
US07702608B1
Generating motion recognizers from example motions, without substantial programming, without limitation to any fixed set of well-known gestures, and without limitation to motions that occur substantially in a plane, or are substantially predefined in scope. From example motions for each class of motion to be recognized, a system automatically generates motion recognizers using machine learning techniques. Those motion recognizers can be incorporated into an end-user application, with the effect that when a user of the application supplies a motion, those motion recognizers will recognize the motion as an example of one of the known classes of motion. Motion recognizers can be incorporated into an end-user application; tuned to improve recognition rates for subsequent motions to allow end-users to add new example motions.
US07702607B2
A Method of operating a dialogue system for serving complex user requests by appropriately controlling a network of devices (D1, . . . , Dn) and/or applications, wherein each device (D1, . . . , Dn) and/or application and its functionality are modeled by a finite state machine (FSM-1, FSM-2, FSM-3), which is using a plan language, wherein a reasoning component (1) is used in order to determine a plan (P) using said plan language for serving a received complex user request, wherein said reasoning component (1) is adapted for determining said plan (P) using said finite state machines (FSM-1, FSM-2, FSM-3), of said devices (D1, . . . , Dn) and/or applications, wherein a plan processing module (2) is used in order to perform a determined plan (P) for serving a received user request, and wherein said plan language is designed in order to enable the determination of conditional plans by said reasoning component (1), in particular by providing conditional planning commands.
US07702593B2
A method and system of providing postage wherein delivery fee discounts are provided based on one or more sorting levels in which mail pieces are run through the system twice. In the first run, postal codes are obtained from the mail pieces, a running tally for each participating sorting level code in each sorting level is kept, and for each code in the highest sorting level that has a tally that reaches a predetermined minimum, an indicium reflecting the highest discount is printed on: (i) the mail piece whose postal code caused the tally to reach the minimum, and (ii) any mail pieces to that postal code that are processed thereafter. In the second run, for each mail piece not having a printed indicium, an indicium is printed which reflects a proper sorting level discount, if any, based on the postal code obtained therefrom and one or more of the tallies.
US07702587B2
The subject application is directed to a system and method for generating gift cards. Image data representing gift card formats is first generated on an associated display. A gift card is then selected and text data is received representing text associated with the selected gift card. Gift amount data is then received representing a fungible value associated with the selected gift card. Charge data associated with a cost associated with the gift amount is then received. Encoded data, corresponding to the gift amount, is then generated. Thereafter, a tangible gift card is generated in accordance with the selected gift card format and the received text. In accordance with one embodiment of the subject application, the encoded data is stored on a tangible medium on the tangible gift card.
US07702586B2
A method and system are provided to resolve financial problems and/or discretionary financial decisions by mortgagors and other borrowers. If a mortgage is current, then any extra money received from the mortgagor is automatically credited to a reserve account, which pays down the mortgage principal. If a mortgage payment is due but has not been paid or is only partially paid, then whatever money is needed for the mortgage payment is automatically deducted from the reserve account and applied toward the mortgage payment, thereby increasing the loan principal. As a limit, if the reserve account is depleted, the lender may commence conventional foreclosure procedures. The method and system can similarly be applied to other types of loans.
US07702575B1
In an embodiment, integrated access to the collections and recovery process, including, for example, real estate loan-related aspects, is provided through a single GUI (graphical user interface) on a single workstation. Data and functions from incompatible legacy systems supported by different parties are integrated, such that collections and recovery representatives can access the systems, including mortgage servicing systems, through a single browser-based GUI that may be provided on a desktop access device. Additions and deletions of prior systems and functions may be facilitated through API's, pre-processors, and other functionality. An automated decision engine also may be utilized. Disclosed embodiments may be useful for the financial industry, including banking institutions and other lenders, as well as for entities that interact with the financial industry.
US07702574B2
Apparatus and methods are described for correlating business relationships and issuing earnings estimates. According to the present invention, an earnings estimate can be generated for a company as it compares to a consensus estimate, or other rating aggregate, along with an indication of an investment banking relationship or other business relationship that the entity providing the estimate has had with the company. In addition to a consensus estimate that may be based upon current and previous analyst earnings estimates, operating actuals, expected reporting dates, footnotes and company-issued guidelines, indications of investment banking relationships and a consensus estimate is provided that excludes input from banks conducting business with the company. The present invention can also include suggested actions that can be taken based upon data relating to an investment banking relationship, an earnings estimate and/or a consensus earnings estimate that excludes input from banks with substantial business relationships with the company.
US07702572B2
Systems and methods for providing trading using an eVWAP price in an illiquid market are provided. In an illiquid market there may be little or no actual trades. During a trading period, the eVWAP price is therefore determined from not only trades, but also unmatched bids and offers. The eVWAP price is determined when new information becomes available or at a specified time interval. The final eVWAP price is determined when the sampling period ends. Once the final eVWAP price is determined, the value of the final eVWAP price is published for use as a price to settle a contract.
US07702568B1
A system and method for visually establishing a trading strategy are described. According to one method, a trader can position a first icon corresponding to a first order and a second icon corresponding to a second order in relation to a first value axis displayed on a graphical interface. A graphical means can also be used in relation to the icons to show that the icons correspond to a trading strategy. The graphical means can include lines, numbers, or any other user-configurable graphical representation illustrating order precedence, for example.
US07702563B2
A computer implemented method for negotiating contracts between a plurality of participants is provided. An order is received from a first participant of the plurality of participants. Position risk of the first participant is calculated by accessing data regarding the first participant and using the data regarding the first participant in a parametric variable equation modified by control values from a simulation model, to calculate the position risk of the first member. The order is blocked, if the position risk of the first participant is in a first condition for the first participant. The order is made available for forming into a contract, if the position risk of the first participant is in a second condition for the first participant.
US07702553B1
The invention comprises a system and method for converting initial financial transactions into final financial transactions entailing lower transaction fees or which are otherwise more advantageous. According to one embodiment of the invention, a card not present (CNP) transaction is conducted for a remote consumer buying goods/services. When the consumer later arrives at a point of authentication (POA), the consumer is presented with an opportunity to have the CNP transaction effectively converted to a card present (CP) transaction using the same card instrument or a different card instrument. The merchant benefits because the transaction fees are much reduced for the CP transaction compared to the CNP transaction. The consumer may benefit from rewards/rebates or other inducements to authorizing the subsequent transaction. One preferred embodiment implements the invention in the airlines environment, wherein tickets ordered over the phone or on-line using a first CNP transaction are converted to a CP transaction when the consumer swipes his/her card at an airport kiosk card reader device.
US07702543B2
Systems and methods are disclosed for providing a consumer shopping experience. The disclosed systems and methods include receiving a user input and providing, in response to the user input, one of a first series of pages, a second series of pages, and a third series of pages. Furthermore, the first series of pages are configured to allow a user to select at least one of products and services from at least one business line before the first series of pages request personal information. In addition, the second series of pages are configured to indicate whether currently received services at a first location are available at a second location. Moreover, the third series of pages are configured to allow the user to select at least one of products and services from the at least one business line.
US07702542B2
A system for sending cards and/or gifts to one or more entity using a computer network is provided. The system can include a computer network with at least one client computer and at least one server connected to the network. The at least one client computer can have a user interface with which a user can input an entity-centric event date. The server can receive a signal from said client computer based on the user input of the event date. The server includes a time-from-event module that determines a non-yearly event date after said event date. The client computer displays the non-yearly event date and provides means for a user to purchase cards or gifts for an entity. In most preferred embodiments, the non-yearly event date is a month-from-birth date of the individual. In some preferred embodiments, the electronic cards include combined advertisements contained within the display regions of the electronic cards.
US07702534B1
The merchandise planning and development system includes a WWW server 33 for informing many and unspecified customers 31 to 3n of merchandise planning and development information about planning and/or development of new merchandise through the Internet 20, and a news server 35 for collecting the opinion information of the customers 31 to 3n looking up the merchandise planning information through the Internet 20. The WWW server 33 informs the customers 31 to 3n of the merchandise information suited to the needs of the customers on the basis of the opinion information by way of the Internet 20.
US07702531B2
Disclosed is a business driven learning solution and related methods for managing the learning and training needs of a sales-oriented organization in a manner that is responsive to dynamic business needs. The invention employs modules of interrelated and interdependent business processes for the identification and prioritization of learning needs, the selection of learning approaches, the development of learning content, the coordination and delivery of learning instruction, and the overall management and administration learning efforts. Embodiments of the inventions disclosed include sales training objects to provide a template for sales training that is focused on a solution, and how to position and sell the solution, rather than on the products that make up the solution. As a result, the sales force is educated, understands the customers' business requirements, and is able to craft specific value propositions to a given customer with respect to that solution. Thus, the training is customer-centric as opposed to product-centric.
US07702525B2
An apparatus and method are disclosed for processing phone-in prescription requests. The apparatus is in the form of a prescription processing network that includes a prescription processing system and a communication device remotely located from the prescription processing system. The communication device is used to establish a communication channel with the prescription processing system and submit a prescription request over the communication channel. A pharmacist, associated with the prescription processing system, prepares a completed prescription form based, at least in part, on the submitted prescription request. The prescription processing network also includes a pharmacy for receiving the completed prescription form, and filling the prescription request based on the completed prescription form.
US07702523B2
A method and apparatus are provided for processing a message from a patient for one of a plurality of physicians through a web site. The method includes the steps of providing one or more web pages to the patient from the web site containing indicia of identity for each physician of the plurality of physicians and detecting selection by the patient of a physician of the plurality of physicians. The method further includes the steps of determining an information content of the message and routing the message based upon the determined information content and a predetermined routing criteria provided by the selected physician.
US07702516B2
A method for monitoring payments, payment authorizations, and payable events in an inventor recognition program for a company. The present invention comprises an Award Reminder Program (ARP), an Award Status Program (ASP), and an Award Monitoring Program (AMP). The ARP monitors the award tracking database associated with the present invention and sends the inventor's manager an email requesting authorization of payment when required. If the manager does not authorize payment, the ARP sends the manager a reminder email. If the manager still does not authorize payment, the ARP proceeds up the company's organizational chart until payment is authorized. The ASP monitors the award tracking database and updates the status of each docket in the award tracking database. The AMP allows a user to view the award tracking database, print a payment report, print a payable events report, or send a reminder email to the inventor's manager.
US07702513B2
Disclosed are an image processing apparatus and an image processing method capable of changing a quality of audio data according to a degree of significance of an image. The image processing apparatus includes an image encoding unit for encoding image data inputted, an audio data encoding unit for encoding audio data inputted together with the image data, a significant scene setting unit for setting to encode a part of region of the image with a high image quality, and an audio data encoding setting unit for setting to process the audio data with a high quality in accordance with the setting by the significant scene setting unit.
US07702509B2
Pronunciation for an input word is modeled by generating a set of candidate phoneme strings having pronunciations close to the input word in an orthographic space. Phoneme sub-strings in the set are selected as the pronunciation. In one aspect, a first closeness measure between phoneme strings for words chosen from a dictionary and contexts within the input word is used to determine the candidate phoneme strings. The words are chosen from the dictionary based on a second closeness measure between a representation of the input word in the orthographic space and orthographic anchors corresponding to the words in the dictionary. In another aspect, the phoneme sub-strings are selected by aligning the candidate phoneme strings on common phoneme sub-strings to produce an occurrence count, which is used to choose the phoneme sub-strings for the pronunciation.
US07702501B2
Techniques for presenting a key to a human across a human-machine interface include receiving key data that indicates a key to be input to a target process. The key is reversibly converted to a first human-language statement. The human language statement is designed so that multiple variations in the human-language statement due to common human errors can be correctly reversed to regenerate the key data. The common human-language statement is presented to a human user for use in the target process. After receiving input data that indicates a second human language statement based on human memory of the first human language statement, the second human language statement is corrected for common human language errors. The corrected second human language statement is then converted to second key data and sent to the target process. Thus multiple human inputs are accepted and correctly converted to the key for the target process.
US07702498B2
A method of tracing data processor activity includes trace data markers indicating initiation and termination of at least one trace function at a specified program counter address and emulation pause related markers indicating initiation and termination of an emulation halt state at a specified program counter. Each emulation pause related marker includes a conflict bit indicating the presence or absence of a simultaneous trace data marker having a different program counter address.
US07702492B2
A system for generating an electronic model having a common coordinate system includes a scanning device; a first plate module; and a second plate module. Each of the plate modules is configured to separately couple to the scanning device. The plate modules also can be moveably coupled together using an articulation device. Each of the plate modules includes alignment structures (e.g., spheres) to facilitate determining a position and orientation of the plate modules within a coordinate system of the scanning device.
US07702477B2
A calibration method and also a calibration device are proposed to enable a spatial position and/or orientation of a surgical referencing unit of a surgical navigation system fitted with at least one inertial sensor to be specified in relation to a spatial coordinate system.
US07702463B2
Systems and methods for enhancing the resolution of a seismic data image displayed on a face of a sampling probe. The enhanced image represents a maximum resolution of at least a portion of the seismic data image. The seismic data image is enhanced by extracting seismic data that are perpendicular to a reflection surface that is closest to a center of the sampling probe and positioning the extracted seismic data in a visible planar face of the sampling probe.
US07702451B1
A programmable engine-start system which includes a controller for mounting on a dashboard and which includes an input device for inputting a start time, a clock for keeping accurate time, a safety circuit for shutting off the engine, a display panel for displaying engine start status, a first wiring between the controller and the ignition switch, and a second wiring between the controller and a battery source.
US07702438B2
The present invention provides an emission monitoring device for a vehicle. The device includes but is not limited to a lightweight housing for operationally encapsulating a processor, memory; a sensor for each vehicle component to be monitored, a display device; and a power supply for power the device. The processor is programmed to monitor each sensor, capture data from each sensor, store the captured data from each sensor in the memory; and display the captured onto the display device. In one embodiment of the present invention the housing is operationally mounted onto the inner gas lid of the vehicle. In an alternative embodiment, the housing is incorporated into the dashboard.
US07702433B2
A method and a device for the computer-assisted calculation of the axle load of a vehicle, in particular a commercial vehicle, in which the axle loads are calculated on the basis of a function f(λ), which describes the dependence of the ratio of the longitudinal force Fx to the vertical force Fz in a wheel on the longitudinal slip λ.
US07702431B2
A marine vessel running controlling apparatus includes a steering angle acquiring unit which acquires the steering angle of a steering mechanism provided in a marine vessel, and a control unit which controls a lift force difference generating unit for generating a lift force difference between a port side and a starboard side of the marine vessel according to the steering angle acquired by the steering angle acquiring unit. The control unit may control the lift force difference generating unit to increase the heel angle of the marine vessel in a direction defined by the steering angle, if the steering angle falls outside a neutral range.
US07702430B2
Provided herein is a crystallized ternary structure of human aldose reductase (AR) bound to NADPH and γ-glutamyl-S-(1,2-dicarboxyethyl)cysteinylglycine (DCEG). Also provided are specific inhibitors of glutathione-aldehyde binding to aldose reductase which are designed via at least computer modeling of the ternary AR:NADPH:DCEG structure and methods of designing and of screening the inhibitors for inhibition of glutathione-aldehyde binding to aldose reductase.
US07702428B2
A device to assist in an independent piloting of an aircraft at least in a descent phase includes a unit to determine a descent axis which assists a pilot in flying from a safe altitude to a decision height, the descent axis being secured relative to the ground being flown over, and a guidance system to assist in the guiding of the aircraft along said descent axis in a descent phase.
US07702426B2
There is provided a boat in which the units and control lines for effecting the switching processing of remote control units at the time of switching steering stations can be easily configured, and the system for effecting the switching processing can be easily simplified. A boat includes a first remote control unit connected to boat propulsion units, and a second remote control unit connected to the first remote control unit, the first and second remote control units including remote control levers for operating the boat propulsion units, and remote control selector switches. The first remote control unit has a switching determination section. The switching determination section performs switching processing between the first and second remote control units when the remote control levers of the first and second remote control units are both in the neutral state and the remote control selector switches are in the ON state.
US07702425B2
A method of classifying objects within a vehicle (12) includes the detection of an object and the generation of an object detection signal in response to the detection. A range signal is generated in response to the object detection signal. An image detection signal is generated having an image representation of the object. The object detection signal is projected on an image plane (122) in response to the image detection signal to generate a fused image reference (120). A search region (144) is generated on the image plane (122) in the vicinity of the fused image reference (120). A vector of feature values is calculated via generation of a sum-array (152) and in response to the range signal and the image detection signal. The search region (144) is classified in response to the vector of feature values.
US07702423B2
An apparatus to control the rate of flow of a stream of pressurized fluid through a conduit. The apparatus comprises a flow measurement device operatively connected to the conduit, a flow control device operatively connected to the conduit, and a controller operatively connected to the flow control device. The flow measurement device generates an output signal proportionate to the rate of flow of fluid therethrough. The flow control device includes an adjustable orifice wherein upon the opening of the orifice a portion of the stream of pressurized fluid is independently released from the conduit by the flow control device. The controller receives the output signal generated by the flow measurement device and causes the adjustable orifice in the flow control device to open or close as necessary to maintain the flow of pressurized fluid as measured by the flow measurement device within pre-determined limits.
US07702422B2
A method, computer program product, and a data processing system for controlling a first climate control device is provided. An operational mode is obtained for each of a plurality of climate control devices. The operational mode of each of the plurality of climate control devices is compared with a desired operational mode of the first climate control device. A determination of whether any of the operational modes of the plurality of climate control devices differs from the desired operational mode. The first climate control device is placed in the desired operational mode dependent on the comparison of the operational modes of the plurality of climate control devices with the desired operational mode.
US07702419B2
A system for automatically filling a reservoir. The system includes a first mechanism that automatically determines one or more parameters associated with the reservoir. A second mechanism fills the reservoir with an appropriate amount and type of filler based on the one or more parameters. In a specific embodiment, the one or more parameters include filler type and current filler level information. The parameters also include an identification number associated with a user of the reservoir. Upon filling of the reservoir, a billing system automatically bills or charges a user based on the identification number and filler level information obtained via the first mechanism. The billing system includes a database that maintains billing information associated with the identification number. The billing system further includes a network connection that facilitates communications with the database. A control panel and accompanying user-interface software enables a user to edit the identification number and/or to edit a charge number associated with the identification number. A reservoir sensor measures the current filler level in the reservoir and provides the filler level information in response thereto. A dispensing container accommodates the reservoir and transfers filler from the dispensing container to the reservoir in response to a signal from the first mechanism. A container level sensor senses current filler levels in the container and provides container filler level information to a remote monitoring system via a network in response thereto. In a more specific embodiment, the reservoir is a printer cartridge, and the filler is printing consumable, such as toner. The first mechanism includes an electronic storage device attached to the printer cartridge that communicates with the reservoir sensor and maintains the parameters describing the reservoir.
US07702414B2
To prevent incorrect recognition of marks on a web, and to lighten a load to memory and arithmetic systems associated with mark recognition, a control apparatus for a printing machine includes a positional relationship acquisition means for previously obtaining a positional relationship between a position in a web traveling direction of each of the marks and a target cutting-off position of the web, and a detection timing control means for controlling mark detection timing so that the detection of each of the marks by a mark detector is performed during a specified period based on the positional relationship.
US07702411B2
A method and system for integrating job shop scheduling with discrete event simulation for manufacturing facilities are provided. In one aspect a simulator simulates discrete events of a facility using a job schedule generated by a scheduler. The simulator simulates the facility based on one or more local rules, one or more resources, and one or more parameters associated with said locals rules and said resources. The simulator further models said one or more parameters as random variables and using said random variables in its simulation of the facility. The scheduler receives feedback based on output from the simulating step. The feedback includes at least an instruction to the scheduler to include at least one of said one or more resource and to change said one or more parameters based on said modeling of said one or more parameters as random variables. The scheduler uses the feedback for generating an updated schedule.
US07702398B2
High reliability electrical connections between a helical strand and flat electrodes, such as strip electrodes found in implantable neurostimulator system, are described. The connection consists of a crimp joint in which an inside diameter mandrel is used to provide the coil with sufficient radial rigidity to ensure structural integrity of the crimp. The mandrel is made of a relatively soft biocompatible material that deforms rather than damages the fine wires of the helical strand during crimping. The crimp is accomplished by radial deformation of an annular or semi-annular crimping member that receives the helical strand/mandrel assembly.
US07702390B1
An exemplary implantable device includes control logic to determine a base state atrio-ventricular delay (e.g., PV base or AV base) based on width of an atrial event (e.g., ΔP or ΔA) as measured during a patient base state and based on a value of a parameter δ that depends on the atrial event and control logic to determine an active state atrio-ventricular delay (e.g., PV active or AV active) based at least in part on a base state interval (e.g., DD base or AD base) measured during a patient base state and an active state interval (e.g., DD active or AD active) measured during a patient active state where such intervals extend from the end of a respective atrial event to the beginning of a respective ventricular QRS complex or a point within a respective ventricular QRS complex. Various other exemplary methods, devices, systems, etc., are also disclosed.
US07702389B2
The invention concerns implantable cardiac stimulation devices in general which have at least one stimulation pulse generator (A-STIM; RV-STIM; LV-STIM) to selectively generate a stimulation pulse for delivery to one of at least two different chambers of a heart, said chambers include right and left atria and right and left ventricles, at least one impedance measuring stage (I, U, IMP) being connected to electrodes or connectors for such electrodes to measure an intracardiac impedance when in use, a control unit (CTRL) connected to the stimulation pulse generator and to the impedance measuring unit and being adapted to process a minimum impedance value for a heart cycle to trigger stimulation pulses for two different chambers of the heart with an adjustable time delay (VVD; AVD) and to adjust said time delay depending upon the measured intracardiac impedance minimum value. According to the invention the control unit is adapted to adjust the time delay such that the minimum value of the intracardiac impedance during one heart cycle is minimized or such that the AVD delay is equal to the time interval between an atrial event and the point of time when the minimum impedance value occurs after said atrial contraction.
US07702386B2
The disclosure provides a description of a tissue modulation device, for treating at least one of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and Type 2 diabetes in a patient. In some embodiments, the device includes a storage module having computer-readable instructions for delivering an electrical stimulation pattern to a splanchnic nerve of the patient. The stimulation pattern includes at least one on-time. The on-time includes at least one of a suprathreshold period and a subthreshold period. The splanchnic nerve is selected from the group consisting of the greater splanchnic nerve, the lesser splanchnic nerve, and the least splanchnic nerve. The pattern is effective to ameliorate at least one attendant condition of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and Type 2 diabetes in the patient. The attendant condition includes dyslipidemia, hypertension, hyperinsulinemia, hyperglycemia, and/or insulin resistance.
US07702377B2
A magnetic resonance imaging method involves detection of a series of trigger events and acquisition of successive segments of magnetic resonance signals from respective segments of k-space. The occurrence of the next trigger event is predicted, e.g. by way of a running average, on the basis of the detected series of trigger events. Acquisition of at least one individual segment of magnetic resonance signals is triggered on the basis of the occurrence of the predicted trigger event. Triggering of the acquisition is based on the predicted trigger event, e.g. in that the instant and duration of the acquisition is adjusted on the basis of the prediction of the trigger event. Finally, a magnetic resonance image is reconstructed from several segments of magnetic resonance signals.
US07702374B2
In a measuring probe, the distal ends of an irradiation optical fiber and a detection optical fiber on the subject side are held by a holder portion which is to be mounted on a subject. The optical fibers are led out from the side surface of the holder portion. Further, the optical fibers are bent in the holder portion so that the distal ends of the optical fibers are directed towards the subject when the holder portion is mounted on the subject.
US07702373B2
A superconducting tape is disclosed, including a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the substrate including a plurality of indicia provided on the first surface spaced apart along a length of the substrate; and a superconductor layer overlying the second surface. Also disclosed are components incorporating superconducting tapes, methods for manufacturing same, and methods for using same.
US07702363B2
A cordless telephone which allows a user to play MP3 digital audio bit stream music, a video game, either alone or with a user of another cordless telephone, using the remote handset of a cordless telephone to control the functions of the MP3 player. The cordless telephone remains usable as a typical cordless telephone with all the features and conveniences of a cordless telephone including, but not limited to, connection of a telephone call between a calling party and a called party, caller ID information, voice messaging features, etc. MP3 digital audio bit stream music may be downloaded from a remote source through, e.g., the Internet and a PC.
US07702362B2
A radio-frequency (RF) receiver includes a receiver analog circuitry and a receiver digital circuitry. The receiver analog circuitry resides within a first integrated circuit and the receiver digital circuitry resides within a second integrated circuit. The second integrated circuit couples to the first integrated circuit via a one-bit digital interface. The receiver analog circuitry receives an RF signal and processes the received RF signal to generate a digital signal. The receiver analog circuitry provides the digital signal to the receiver digital circuitry. The receiver digital circuitry includes a digital down-converter circuitry that mixes the digital signal with an intermediate frequency (IF) local oscillator (LO) signal to generate a digital down-converted signal. The receiver digital circuitry also includes a digital filter circuitry that filters the digital down-converted signal to generate a filtered digital signal.
US07702360B2
A communication system equipped with a shared antenna includes an antenna, a first communication module, a second communication module, and a switch unit. The first communication module processes a first communication signal and transmits the first communication signal to the switch unit. The second communication module processes a second communication signal and transmits the second communication signal to the switch unit. Additionally, the first communication module controls the switch unit to transmit the first communication signal or the second communication signal to the antenna, and the antenna emits the first communication signal or the second communication signal.
US07702357B2
A wireless intelligent switch engine (WISE) is described. The wireless intelligent switch engine provides for automatic switching between different physical wireless interfaces in mobile devices while roaming to maintain a wireless network connection. WISE functions as a bridge between a mobile device and multiple wireless network interfaces to provide automatic and seamless switching among networks while roaming. The mobile device sees WISE as a LAN interface and communicates with WISE using the TCP/IP protocol stack, thus providing a PPP-less configuration that uses the TCP/IP protocol stack regardless of the wireless interface.
US07702349B2
A system [100] includes a target set of communication devices [105] for a group call. An originator communication device [102] transmits a group call initiation for the group call. A communication and processing device [125] sequentially invites the target set of communication devices in response to detecting at least one predetermined characteristic of the group call. The sequentially inviting the communication devices comprises (a) initially inviting a first subset [130] of the target set of communication devices that comprising required communication devices, (b) subsequently invites a second subset [135] of the target set of communication devices in response to determining that the group call will be initiated, and (c) joins targets of the second subset of the target set of communication devices accepting the call initiation message to a communication session involving first targets of the first subset of the target set of communication devices accepting the call initiation message.
US07702346B2
An inter-working network facilitating PTT communications among roaming subscribers spanning a plurality of disparate dispatch networks includes a signaling controller, a media gateway, a system for facilitating the monetization of inter-carrier dispatch communications and a group management server. The signaling controller and media gateway generate dispatch call records for dispatch sessions facilitated through the inter-working network. The system includes a billing accumulator and a settlement entity. The billing accumulator is interfaced with the inter-working network and includes logic to receive and store the dispatch call data records from the inter-working architecture. The settlement entity is interfaced with the billing accumulator, and includes settlement logic for converting each stored dispatch call data record to a billing record for each of at least two of the dispatch networks. The group management server is interfaced with group management servers in each of the dispatch networks.
US07702342B2
Methods for implementing a message service based on IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) are disclosed in embodiments of the invention. One of the methods includes: determining a network domain of a called subscriber according to information in a message service of a calling subscriber; conducting the message service according to a type of the network domain of the called subscriber. Systems for implementing a message service based on IMS, IMS-based Serving-Call Session Control Function (S-CSCF), and IP-Short Message-Gateway are disclosed in the embodiments of the invention. The invention facilitate the network domain of calling side to select different processing procedures for the called subscriber information in different network domains by deciding the network domain of called subscriber, which makes the interworking procedure between an IMS-based message and a non-IMS-based message service clearer and the interworking procedure between an IMS-based message and the traditional short message more perfect.
US07702338B2
A system, method and device are provided which determine the position of a mobile station in connection with consulting signal delay transmission data from an almanac for the purpose of identifying the nearest set of base stations. Thereafter, the position of the mobile station is determined using multilateration.
US07702336B2
Channels are assigned based on co-spatial constraints in wireless network using spatial division multiple access. In one example, the invention includes assigning a co-spatial constraint to each of a plurality of conventional traffic communications channels of a base station, and receiving a request from a user terminal to communicate using a traffic communication channel of the base station. The invention further includes measuring a quality parameter of the request deriving a co-spatial constraint for the user terminal, assigning the user terminal co-spatial constraint to the user terminal, and assigning the user terminal to a traffic communication channels having a channel co-spatial constraint that is no less than the user terminal co-spatial constraint and that has no more assigned radios than permitted by the channel co-spatial constraint.
US07702334B2
A hand-over control method is disclosed to control the change of connections between a radio communication terminal and a plurality of radio communication base stations for radio communication. The received power of a signal from a radio communication base station in a cell that that is subject to the influence of fading is likely to vibrate within a predetermined strength range. Even if a cell satisfies hand-over conditions, there is a greater likelihood that the cell is still subject to the influence of fading, if the received power is not exceeding this predetermined range The current received quality of a signal from a radio communication terminal in the cell is compared with last received quality of the signal from the radio communication base station when the radio communication terminal finished radio communication with radio communication base station. If the former quality is not higher than the latter quality by a predetermined level or more, the radio communication base station is determined to still be subject to the influence of fading, and hand-over is not performed. If, on the other hand, the former quality is higher than the latter quality by the predetermined level or more, the radio communication base station is determined not to be subject to the influence of fading, and hand-over is not performed.
US07702333B2
Embodiments of an authorization server and method for securely reserving resources in a wireless network are generally described herein. Other embodiments may be described and claimed. In some embodiments, access points reserve bandwidth thereon through the verification of reservation tokens received from the mobile station.
US07702330B2
Apparatus and methods enabling the efficient and repeatable measurement of mobility performance of wireless data communications equipment are described. This is particularly useful for testing the impact of roaming of Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) devices, such as clients, between their counterparts, such as access points. The apparatus and methods include controlled emulation of roaming by WLAN devices, using a set of WLAN tester units, by activating and deactivating instances of emulated devices on different tester units to simulate the physical translation of the actual WLAN devices in an environment. Simulation of increasing and decreasing distance during the roaming process is also rendered possible. This enables various mobility performance measurements to be made on WLAN devices in a repeatable manner, free from artifacts due to device manufacturing tolerances.
US07702329B1
Methods and multi-mode devices are provided for temporarily overriding a preferred roaming list (PRL) in a multi-mode device, in favor of a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point. A triggering event is detected. In response to detecting the triggering event: (i) a first connection with a first WLAN access point is established; (ii) the multi-mode device is authenticated with the first access point; (iii) access data corresponding to the first access point is stored; and (iv) the PRL is deactivated for a discrete time period, such that, during the time period, the device does not use the PRL to seek to establish a second connection with any communication system. After the time period, the PRL is automatically reactivated.
US07702324B2
An information terminal controller and an information terminal control method for controlling usually wireless information terminals allows easy registration of these terminals as respective control objects for a plurality of functions of the terminals. List registration part judges whether the information terminal detected by information terminal detecting part has plural functions. When the information terminal has plural functions, the information terminal is registered in the terminal registration list classified for at least two of the functions.
US07702322B1
A method is disclosed. The method includes receiving a message indicating that updates are available for a wireless device. The method further includes assigning a software policy for the wireless device, and based on the software policy, transmitting a notification to the wireless device indicating that the updates are available to download. The method further includes receiving a universal resource locator (URL) indicating a location of the updates, and subsequently downloading the updates from a web-based software server.
US07702321B2
Disclosed are an apparatus for mapping abbreviated numbers in a mobile communication terminal and a method thereof which can map abbreviated numbers so that the abbreviated numbers correspond to the initial characters of preset units that constitute the names of opposite parties. In the mobile communication terminal, if information of an opposite party is input, initial characters are extracted from preset units that constitute a name of the opposite party in the input information of the opposite party, and numerals pre-mapped on the respective extracted characters are detected. The detected numerals are mapped on an abbreviated number of the information of the opposite party, and then the information of the opposite party and the abbreviated number mapped on the information of the opposite party are stored.
US07702316B2
When a communication regulation determining block determines that E-mail communication is regulated when an E-mail processing block prepares for communication or initiates communication, information indicative of alternative communicating section using another communication path in which communication is not regulated is displayed on a user interface section. Therefore, it is possible to easily check which communicating section is effective when communication regulation occurs, and hence the user can easily make a determination such as that alternative communicating section is used, or that communication is aborted.
US07702314B2
A system for limiting access to a mobile communication terminal comprises user interface for providing an option to select an authentication method to lock the mobile communication terminal; and memory for storing a plurality of lock codes, including image lock codes, inputted into the mobile communication terminal for locking the mobile communication terminal.
US07702308B2
A method of communication to at least one wireless unit originating an emergency call. The method includes the step of receiving at least one tag identifier in response to the emergency call originating from the at least one wireless unit. Once the tag identifier is received, a wireless call back number corresponding with the at least one tag identifier may be transmitted. A public service answering point emergency call register (“PSAP-ECR”) may receive the at least one tag identifier and transmits the wireless call back number over a D interface.
US07702287B2
The present invention is characterized in that with the purpose to reduce influences of a calibration circuit on the calibration, a first calibration weight basic amount and a second calibration weight basic amount are calculated based on each of a calibration signal transmitted from a calibration unit (50) to a base station transmit-receive unit (40) via an antenna x unit (10-x) and a calibration signal transmitted from the base station transmit-receive unit (40) to the calibration unit (50) via the antenna x unit (10-x) respectively, and a calibration weight is calculated based on the first calibration weight basic amount and the second calibration weight basic amount.
US07702286B2
A remote diagnostic system (RDS) data security device and method are provided, in which an interface unit receives an RDS command from a host, a storage unit stores a security setting for RDS data, and a control unit performs an operation for the RDS data according to the RDS command and the security setting, wherein the result obtained by the performance is selectively transmitted externally. Accordingly, since the reading and writing operations of RDS data are performed according to an RDS command received from the host and previously stored security setting, and the result obtained by the reading and writing operations is displayed, data collected in the RDS can be prevented from being transmitted to the server without permission, and data allowed to an authorized user can be transmitted to the server.
US07702285B2
The present invention relates to systems for determining mobile communications system carrier propagation characteristics. In an embodiment, a system includes a frequency scanner, signal strength measurement device, digital verification color code logic, a location determining unit, and a memory. The frequency scanner can output a carrier signal corresponding to a carrier signal identifier, where the frequency scanner is located at a geographical location. The signal strength measurement device can be coupled to the frequency scanner and determine a carrier strength indicator of the carrier signal. The digital verification color code logic can be coupled to the frequency scanner and determine the digital verification color code of the carrier signal. The location determining unit can be coupled to the frequency scanner and determine a location identifier corresponding to the geographical location of the frequency scanner. The memory can be coupled to the frequency scanner and store the carrier signal identifier, the carrier strength indicator, the digital verification color code of the carrier signal, and the location identifier.
US07702283B2
A method for reducing electromagnetic emissions in an electronic device having a multiple micro-controllers includes identifying the number of micro-controllers installed in the electronic device. An operating frequency range of the electronic device is determined based on the operating frequency range of each micro-controller. A frequency spacing for each micro-controller within the operating frequency range of the electronic device is then calculated, and an operating frequency is assigned to each micro-controller. The operating frequency of each micro-controller is separated from the operating frequency of each other micro-controller by at least the frequency spacing. Then, the operating frequency of each micro-controller is set at the assigned operating frequency.
US07702279B2
A portable multimedia player is used to wirelessly access and control a media server that is streaming digital media by way of a wireless interface to a media unit such as a stereo/speakers in the case of streaming digital audio. In one embodiment, the portable multimedia player is wirelessly synchronized to a selected one(s) of a number of digital media files stored on the media server in such a way that digital media file metadata (song title, author, etc.) associated with the selected digital media file(s) only is transferred from the media server to be stored in the portable media player.
US07702268B2
An image forming method includes forming toner images on first and second image bearing members; transferring a first toner image on the first image bearing member and a second toner image on the second image bearing member, in mutually superposed manner, onto a recording material; heating the first and second toner image thereby fixing the same to the recording material; detecting alignment marks on the first and second image bearing members in the course of a continuous job for continuously forming images; controlling relative positions of the first toner image and the second toner image, based on a result of detection of the alignment marks; and increasing a frequency of execution of the relative position control in the continuous job, as the recording material to be subjected to image formation in the continuous job has a smaller width in a direction perpendicular to a transport direction of the recording material.
US07702257B2
An image forming apparatus including at least one image bearing member; at least one charging device configured to charge a surface of the at least one image bearing member; and at least one developing device configured to develop an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the at least one image bearing member with a developer including a toner to form a toner image thereon, wherein the surface of the image bearing member has a friction coefficient of from 0.10 to 0.30. The image forming apparatus can include a lubricant applicator configured to apply a lubricant to the image bearing member. Alternatively, the outermost layer of the image bearing member can include a lubricant.
US07702251B2
A cartridge is detachably mountable to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus having a main assembly electrical contact. The cartridge includes: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; a memory; a cartridge electrical contact electrically connectable to the main assembly electrical contact; a contact including the cartridge electrical contact; and a support supporting the contact. The support includes first and second regulators of the contact member in widthwise and thickness directions, respectively, with a gap therebetween. Also provided is an opening permitting insertion of the contact into the support that opens in one direction perpendicular to the widthwise and thickness directions. The main assembly electrical contact includes a spring movable by a stroke in the contact thickness direction, and the gap of the second regulator W1, a length W2 of the contact in the thickness direction, the stroke U satisfy, W2
US07702250B2
A heating system including: a heating device including a first heat generator supplied with electric power by a commercial power source device, and a second heat generator and a third heat generator supplied with electric power by an auxiliary power source device; an electric storage device composed of a capacitor; a discharger for pursuing discharge to raise an input voltage from the electric storage device and supplying an electric power to the second and third heat generators; a detector for detecting an input voltage from the electric storage device to the discharger; and a power supply controller for switching off the electric power supply from the discharger to the third heat generator when the detector detects a reaching of the input voltage to a first threshold value which is set as a value in connection with a permissible limit of an input electric current to the discharger.
US07702249B2
The heating apparatus has a heating member and a pressure member which are mutually pressure-welded to hold and convey and heat a heated member to be heated by a nip portion formed between the heating member and the pressure member, includes a temperature detector, power control means, and a curl reduction mode for setting a paper conveyance interval temperature which is the target temperature of the heating member set in a paper conveyance interval which is a period from end of heating the M-th member to be heated up to start of heating the M+1-th member to be heated in continuous heating of N members to be heated or in a certain period in the paper conveyance interval to a temperature higher than the heating temperature of a member to be heated which is the target temperature of the heating member when heating the M+1-th member to be heated.
US07702240B2
The present invention is an optical multiplex communication system in which an optical wavelength division channel and an optical code division channel can coexist, wherein a WDM channel section 86 has a wavelength demultiplexer 36 and WDM channels W1 to W4. An optical pulse string 83-3 is demultiplexed by the wavelength demultiplexer 36, and for channel W1, an optical pulse 37 with wavelength λ1 is input to an intensity modulator 114 and converted into an optical pulse signal of channel W1, and is output as a wavelength division optical pulse signal 115, where transmission information of channel W1 is reflected. An optical delay unit 116 provides a required time delay to a wavelength division optical pulse signal, so as to not match a position of an optical pulse constituting a wavelength division optical pulse signal 117 on a time base, and a position of a chip pulse constituting an encoded optical pulse signal which comes from an OCDM channel, and has a same wavelength as this optical pulse, on a time base.
US07702239B2
A cross connector for the transparent switching of optical signals is disclosed, comprising a first switching module with one or several switching modules of varying granularity, such as patch panel, wavelength groups or/and wavelengths. A second switching device is connected in series with the first switching device and comprises a polarization multiplex switching granularity.
US07702238B2
A light shielding structure in an optical apparatus includes first and second relatively-movable members, each having an engaging portion engaged with each other and relatively movable to each other so as to change an amount of mutually overlapping area therebetween; and a light shielding member provided between the engaging portions. The light shielding member is elastically deformed into a light shielding shape in which the light shielding member inwardly bends toward an optical axis of the optical apparatus to protrude from the engaging portions due to the mutually overlapping area between the engaging portions decreasing, and the light shielding member is elastically deformed into a retracted shape in which the light shielding member is housed between opposing surfaces of the engaging portions due to the mutually overlapping area between the engaging portions increasing, in accordance with a relative movement between the engaging portions.
US07702237B2
An observation device capable of observing a first image formed by an objective optical system, includes: a display element into which an illumination light emitted from an illumination source is incident and that generates a second image with the illumination light to superimpose the second image over the first image formed by the objective optical system; a detector that receives the second image to detect information of the second image; and a filter that filters out light of the illumination light advancing to the detector.
US07702229B2
A focus detection device includes an image sensor and a plurality of lenslets. Each of the plurality of lenslets has a distinct conjugate length and is associated with a distinct portion of the image sensor.
US07702228B2
A system and method of wirelessly communicating a camera synchronization from a camera body to a remote device with a wireless camera flash synchronizer that prior to detecting a synchronization signal loads transmit frequency information to a transceiver and automatically switches from a wireless receive mode to a wireless transmit mode after detecting a first signal from a camera that is generated after the activation of a camera trigger.
US07702226B1
An apparatus includes a planar member having a first planar surface, a hollow body having first and second end openings, and a window. The planar member is configured to receive a device mounted on the first planar surface and surrounded by at least a track of a first material having a first hardness affixed to the first planar surface. The hollow body has a sharp edge at the second end along a planar section of the hollow body. The hollow body comprises a second material with a second hardness equal to or greater than the first hardness. The window encloses the hollow body first end forming an enclosure interior region configured to surround the device. The window provides the transmission of light into or out of the interior region. The hollow body second end is urged against the first material to form a hermetically sealed enclosure around the device.
US07702223B2
A circuit for controlling rotation speed of a computer fan includes a fan header for connecting to a 4-pin fan or a 3-pin fan, a jumper device, an amplifier, and a controller. The jumper device has a first pin for receiving a controlling signal, and connected to a first power source, a second pin connected to the fan header, and a third pin connected to the first power source. The amplifier has an input terminal connected to the third pin of the jumper device via an integrator. The controller has a first terminal connected to an output terminal of the amplifier, a second terminal connected to a second power source, and a third terminal connected to the fan header and connected to a positive input terminal of the amplifier via a resistor. The first pin of the jumper device is selectively connected to the second or third pin.
US07702220B2
A file recording apparatus receives input from a user in order to edit video data and to record a file based on a result of the edit. The file includes a block including management information, having at least a video track based on management information about the video data and an effect track based on management information about effects to be set for the video data in a hierarchical structure of management information for managing real data. The file also includes a block including real data, having at least real data associated with the effect track. The recording apparatus makes the effect track by setting a null effect having no advantage of the effect and an active effect having an advantage of the effect with regard to the video track, and makes the file by setting a source track as a target for the effect track to the video track.
US07702191B1
An optoelectronic chip assembly including a printed circuit board (PCB) coupled to a substrate, an aperture formed through the printed circuit board and through the substrate, a heat sink, an array of active electro-optical elements mounted in the aperture and connected to a driving chip controlled by the PCB, wherein the driving chip is coupled to the heat sink. Preferably, the assembly further includes a plurality of passive optical elements disposed for optical communication and data transfer with said active electro-optical elements, but thermally isolated therefrom.
US07702186B1
A digital image manager classifies digital images such as digital photographs for efficient retrieval. The digital image manager assigns a when value, a where value, a who value and a why value to digital images. Much of the value assignment process is automated to make digital image management easy for the user. The digital image manager classifies the digital images according to the assigned property values. The user subsequently enter search requests for digital images meeting desired criteria. The digital image manager uses the assigned values to locate and retrieve digital images that satisfy the user's request.
US07702179B2
A method for compensating black cores includes detecting whether an external illumination level of an image device is greater than a predetermined illumination value. The method includes detecting whether an intensity of a first portion of input pixels is greater than a first predetermined threshold, an intensity of a second portion of input pixels is smaller than the first predetermined threshold and greater than a second predetermined threshold and an intensity of a third portion of input pixels is smaller than the second predetermined threshold when detecting a plurality of input pixels of a scan line. The method includes correcting the intensity of the third portion of input pixels that is smaller than the second predetermined threshold.
US07702176B2
A method and device of feature enhancement for digital image processing. A predefined feature in one dimension of the image is searched to obtain several peaks, and each peak is either a local maximum or local minimum. Each peak is enhanced by adding an offset to increase the local maximum or decrease the local minimum. The offset of each peak is computed by calculating the difference between each peak and the preceding peak, then multiplying by a preset ratio.
US07702162B2
A mixed code, and a method and apparatus for encoding the same are provided. The mixed code includes a first code image region storing a first code image obtained by encoding first information using color, shading, or a combination thereof, and a second code image region storing a second code image obtained by encoding second information using color, shading, or a combination thereof. The first code image and/or the second code image includes the results of encoding interpretation information, construction information, error control information, and code direction information. The mixed code is made by adjusting the difference in color and brightness between the first and second code images to a predetermined level and combining these images.
US07702157B2
A pattern evaluation method includes: generating first array data from edge data on a pattern to be evaluated, the edge data on the pattern to be evaluated being shape data including edge points of the pattern to be evaluated; generating second array data from edge data on a reference pattern, the edge data on the reference pattern including edge points of the reference pattern which serves as an inspection standard of the pattern to be evaluated; subjecting each component of the second array data to array conversion processing, the array conversion processing being designed to convert a value of the component of the second array data into a function value of a value of a distance from that component to the edge point closest thereto, thereby generating third array data; executing arithmetic processing between the first array data and the third array data to generate fourth array data; and using a component of the fourth array data to calculate a numerical value representative of an relation between the pattern to be evaluated and the reference pattern.
US07702156B2
A method for the extraction of shadows in noisy images includes capture of an image, subdivision of the image into a plurality of pixels, definition of a square odd matrix for every pixel having said pixel in the center, application of an algorithm to the matrixes of every pixel, and displaying of an error map of the image. The algorithm is a contour algorithm that includes the operations of =computation of the averages for each corner of the matrix, computation of the averages for the top, bottom, left and right sides, computation of the maximum variance between these eight averages, and comparison with a present value (max variance).
US07702151B2
A histogram is generated on the basis of the pixel value of an image. An LUT used for changing the dynamic range of the image is generated on the basis of the histogram value in each pixel value interval of the generated histogram. The dynamic range of the image is changed on the basis of the generated LUT.
US07702148B2
An image processing apparatus executes color balance correction of an image composed of multiple pixels. The image processing apparatus comprises a representative value calculation unit and a correction processor. The representative value calculation unit calculates, based on signal values of the pixels included in a skin tone area that includes pixels indicating human skin within the image, a representative value representing hue and chroma of the pixels included in the skin tone area. The correction processor executes color balance correction of the image using execution correction amount set based on normal correction amount obtained by multiplying a difference between the representative value and an ideal value designated as a value representing ideal hue and chroma of human skin by a reduction coefficient. The value of the reduction coefficient is set such that the value of the reduction coefficient can vary in response to the representative value.
US07702138B2
A first method for processing of a radiological image to be used as a mask image in subtracted angiography wherein processing for reduction of noise present in the mask image adapted to preserve the aspect of the noise in the mask image. A second method for processing of a sequence of subtracted images (Jn) obtained by subtraction of a mask image from each of the images in a sequence of images (In) acquired during angiography of blood vessels in an area of interest (104) of a patient (200), wherein processing for reduction of noise present in the subtracted images (Jn) adapted to preserve the aspect of vessels (80) in the subtracted images. A radiography apparatus for implementing a method according to one and/or the other of the first and second methods.
US07702137B2
A method for determining the degree of twist to be manually introduced into an implant which is to be positioned in the aorta and adjacent iliac branches so as to achieve an effective degree of twist when the implant is positioned in the anatomy, the method comprising: identifying the effective degree of twist desired for the implant; determining the Native Iliac Rotation of a patient; and subtracting the Native Iliac Rotation of a patient from the effective degree of twist desired for the implant so as to determine the degree of twist to be manually introduced into the implant.
US07702133B2
An image pickup device that acquires images is controlled by an image pickup device controller that accepts image acquisition requests from multiple application programs, and an application scheduler selects application programs to be executed. Information indicative of the image data volumes and image data acquisition rates required for each of the multiple application programs is stored and used to select multiple concurrently executable application programs on the basis of the image data volumes and image data acquisition rates. An image acquisition scheduler determines the timing and intervals at which the multiple executable application programs repeat receiving image data from the image pickup device, without overlapping in terms of time. In addition, an operations section, which explicitly presents concurrently executable application programs to a user and commands the startup of these programs, is displayed on a navigation screen menu.
US07702126B2
A method and apparatus for utilizing a machine vision vehicle wheel alignment system to measure an orientation of one or more vehicle supporting surfaces of a vehicle lift system, and to measure and compensate one or more vehicle measurements relative to the vehicle supporting surface of the vehicle lift system.
US07702123B2
A loudspeaker assembly is described which assembly may be moved from a non-exposed to an exposed position by suitable means of which a few are discussed.The inventive assembly may comprise an acoustic lens and a particularly advantageous application is for use in an automotive hi-fi system. A number of other applications are also described.
US07702122B2
A cap for listening to an audio device such as an MP3 player or iPod has a pocket in the back with a spring-loaded double-ended retractor for pulling a stereo jack to the front of the cap for connecting to an audio device, adjusting it and returning the retractor along with the audio device to the pocket. The stereo jack is connected to ear buds via wires leading from a T-shaped anchoring junction secured in the bottom of the pocket. The ear buds hang from opposite sides of the cap and are placed in bud pockets on the cap when not in use.
US07702118B2
Disclosed is an electret condenser microphone which reinforces electrostatic discharge protection and noise isolation by adding a series of components in the electret condenser microphone.According to the present invention, it is possible to block TDMA noise by embodying an RC circuit using series resistors and a varistor having a capacitor component in an electret condenser microphone, and to provide ESD protection effect when testing air or contact ESD by mounting two transient voltage suppressor (TVS) diodes. It is possible to block RF noises in various frequency bands, and to reduce TDMA noise level when making a call with a maximum power level, by applying an electret condenser microphone for ESD protection and noise isolation to a mobile communication terminal.Further, since the electret condenser microphone according to the invention uses an internal analog ground, an artwork of a PCB substrate or isolations from other parts is possible.
US07702116B2
The invention is a microphone bleed simulator which processes the audio signals recorded with one spot microphone and one room mic (or one spot mic alone) and simulates the sound that would be created in a typical studio recording environment wherein multiple spot microphones and multiple room microphones distributed throughout that environment all pick up sounds from any given sound source. Such multiple microphone contributions to the mixed sound are what imbue actual recordings with much of their characteristic sound quality and sense of realism, and what make recordings of ensemble instruments sound as though the players were performing together in one place. The system and method of the invention artificially simulates this natural microphone bleed and provides the means to create scaleable, realistic multi-channel sound mixes in formats such as stereo, 5.1 and 7.1 surround. The invention is particularly well suited to processing sampled or synthesized sound.
US07702115B2
A method and apparatus to reconstruct high-frequency components of an input audio signal. The apparatus includes a frequency inverter to invert the frequency spectrum of the input audio signal, a band pass filter which filters out the higher frequency components of the input audio signal, a converter which shifts the frequency spectrum of the filtered signal to create a correction signal, and an adder which adds the correction signal to the input audio signal to obtain a reconstructed audio signal.
US07702101B2
Secure presentation of media streams includes encoding the media streams into digital content, encrypting a portion of that digital content, the portion being required for presentation, in which the encrypted version is substantially unchanged in formatting parameters from the clear version of the digital content. Selecting those portions for encryption so there is no change in distribution of the media stream: packetization of the digital data, or synchronization of audio with video portions of the media stream. When encoding the media stream into MPEG-2, refraining from encrypting information by which the video block data is described, packet formatting information, and encrypting the video block data using a block-substitution cipher. A block-substitution cipher can be used to encrypt each sequence of 16 bytes of video data in each packet, possibly leaving as many as 15 bytes of video data in each packet in the clear.
US07702099B2
A symmetric encryption/decryption method includes the steps of selecting a diffused mechanism, and the diffused mechanism includes at least one selected from a shift point, a block and a frame; obtaining a plurality of bits required for a cipher by the diffused mechanism and the element number of each dimension of a plaintext; carrying out at least one diffused operation for the plaintext; repeating the foregoing steps to achieve the effect of encrypting the plaintext. Since the sum of the encryption diffused times and the decryption diffused times equals to the diffused cycle, the cipher can be read and at least one dimensional diffused operation of the ciphertext can be carried out, and thus achieving the effect of decrypting the ciphertext.
US07702091B1
PSTN functionality is enhanced by the addition of an external service bridging device (ESBD) between one or more devices, e.g., signal switching points (SSPs), and a service control point (SCP). The ESBD serves as a coupling device to one or more control devices, e.g., other SCPs or IP servers, in addition to the SCP. To support the passing of messages between the SS7 network and the control devices, the ESBD includes message reformatting capabilities. The ESBD monitors for messages directed to SCPs and/or replies to messages directed to an SCP. In response to detecting a message the ESBD checks to determine if the detected message is to be processed or simply forwarded to the SCP. Messages to be processed are intercepted, duplicated, modified, replaced, broadcast, redirected, etc. Replies to broadcast query messages are detected and processed so that a single reply, in the format of an SCP response, is returned.
US07702089B2
A system for selectively blocking and unblocking the sending of outgoing caller ID information from a communication device comprises a communication device, a processor coupled to the communication device and a storage medium coupled to the processor containing a directory of information entries. The information entries include both telephone numbers and associated security levels. When a call is placed to a number using the communication device, the processor seeks the number in the directory of the storage medium. If an entry is found for the number by the processor, caller ID information is prevented from being sent to the number unless a security level associated with the number is at or above a predefined cut-off level.
US07702084B2
The current invention is a system for providing telephone directory assistance service in which a telephone user calls to the system and the system will, based on the requested number or type of service, hear a recorded advertisement. An advertiser may target its own telephone number so that consumer requests for information that return the advertiser's telephone number are controlled, thereby preventing competitors of the advertisers from directing advertisements to those consumers. The advertisements are selected from a databank, which may include any number advertisements categorized within the category associated with the service, according to selection criteria. After the advertising announcement is completed, the directory assistance call is processed as usual. The selection criteria can include the use of SIC codes.
US07702072B2
The invention relates to a monochromator device for selecting at least one wavelength band from incident radiation in a given wavelength range. The monochromator device may include at least one optical layer of a monocrystalline material having a crystallographic line that is adapted to the at least one wavelength band to be selected; and a mechanical substrate. The at least one optical layer and the mechanical substrate are assembled by molecular bonding.
US07702070B2
A device for inspecting contraband in an aviation cargo containers includes: a turntable located at an object inspecting position and configured to carry the object to be inspected and bring the object into rotation; an object conveying system; a scanning system including a radiation source and a detector which can synchronously move in the vertical direction; a turntable drive/control system which drives and controls rotation of said turntable so that the turntable can continuously rotate about its rotation axis or rotate to any predetermined angular position; a scanning drive/control system which drives and controls the radiation source and the detector into synchronous movement in the vertical direction so that the radiation source and the detector can continuously move in the vertical direction or move to any predetermined vertical position. The device of the present invention can scan the object and form images in various scanning modes to meet different needs.
US07702068B2
In one embodiment, the present invention provides a CT scanner system for use in baggage screening at security checkpoints.
US07702059B2
A digital video interface receiver adjusts a transfer function of a phase-locked loop circuit having a programmable charge pump, a programmable phase-locked loop filter, or a programmable gain voltage controlled oscillator. The digital video interface receiver monitors and detects errors in a data stream associated with the phase-locked loop circuit. Moreover, the digital video interface receiver changes the transfer function of the phase-locked loop circuit, in response to the detected errors, by changing parameters associated with the programmable charge pump, the programmable phase-locked loop filter, or the programmable gain voltage controlled oscillator of the phase-locked loop circuit so as to change the transfer function of the phase-locked loop circuit.
US07702057B2
A method of operating a master/slave system includes the step of identifying a master receive data phase value to coordinate the transfer of data from a slave device without phase alignment circuitry to a master device with a universal phase aligner. Data is transferred from the slave device to the master device in accordance with the master receive data phase value. The master device characterizes a master transmit data phase value to coordinate the transfer of data from the master device to the slave device. Subsequently, the master device routes data to the slave device in accordance with the master transmit data phase value.
US07702053B2
Data error such as mean square error may be reduced in a system such as a communication receiver using a dithering algorithm that adjusts one or more parameters in the system. The dithering algorithm may be applied to more than one parameter. The dithering algorithm may include a state machine to alter the rate of change dependent on the state of the dithering algorithm.
US07702010B2
A system is presented that monitors the quality of a communications channel with mirror receivers. A first receiver and a second receiver, coupled in parallel with the first receiver, receive a data signal transmitted over the communications channel. The second receiver generates an output signal. A signal integrity (SI) processor manipulates the output signal in order to determine the quality of the communications channel. The SI processor samples a phase-shifted version of the output signal, which has a phase shifted relative to a zero reference phase, and analyzes the phase-shifted version of the output signal for bit errors. In an embodiment, the SI processor manipulates the output signal to extract an eye diagram indicative of the quality of the communications channel. The SI processor non-intrusively determines the quality of the communications channel using the second receiver.
US07702001B2
In an antenna diversity environment, the timing offset of the receiver's fingers are based on the timing offset of the received peaks of the base station transmit signals. In a system with non-negligible multipath spacing, the timing offset of the received peaks of the base station transmit signals are not necessarily at the same location. In one embodiment, the demodulating elements for the signal from each base station antenna use the same offset for demodulating and determining an error signal based on pilot signal sampling prior to the timing offset and subsequent to the timing offset. The error signals are averaged and used by a time tracking loop to track the incoming signal. In another embodiment, the demodulating elements for the signal from each base station antenna independently time track the signals with different timing offsets for each finger. The preferred embodiment depends on the method used by the base station to multiplex the data onto multiple transmit antennas.
US07701980B1
A communication device having a jitter buffer, the communication device comprising an interface and a processing system. The interface is configured to receive a session setup message for a session between a near end and a far end wherein the session setup message identifies the far end. The processing system is configured to process the session setup message to determine a jitter buffer setting for the communication device based on the far end, and configure the jitter buffer in response to determining the jitter buffer setting.
US07701974B2
The routing information is extracted from a received message at a border between a first network and a second network, and at least one invalid entry is added to first-network entries of the routing information which relate to a routing path of the message within the first network. The at least one invalid entry and the first-network entries are encrypted by using an own token at least for each of the first-network entries. As an alternative, a tokenized second-network entry extracted from the routing information and relating to the routing path of the message within the second network is decrypted, and its content is reversed. In both cases, the routing information is replaced by the processed routing information and the message is forwarded to the second network. This allows to preserve the order of routing entries and to hide the amount of switches that have been traversed in the home network.
US07701973B2
Provided are techniques for processing a data segment by stripping a header from a transport layer segment, performing protocol data unit detection to determine data for a protocol segment that is part of the transport layer segment data, and performing marker validation and stripping.
US07701966B2
A data communications system is disclosed having at least one Legacy cloud coupled to at least one Beta cloud. The system further having at least one BOSS node and at least one border node. A method for ensuring compatibility is disclosed comprising determining when the BOSS node is idle, determining whether the last packet transmitted by any border node was an Alpha format packet if the BOSS node is idle, and unlocking the Legacy cloud if the last packet transmitted by the border node was not an Alpha format packet.
US07701961B2
Provided is a method and apparatus for common packet channel access to transmit data packet from a mobile terminal to a satellite access network in a mobile satellite communication system. The method and apparatus of this invention reduces transmission delay time, enhances the probability of successful access, and controls the currently used common packet channel by using a common control channel broadcast by the satellite access network. The method includes the steps of: receiving an access preamble including an access signature code and a collision-detection preamble including a collision-detection signature code, which are transmitted together from a plurality of mobile terminals, and transmitting an acknowledgement to the access preamble and collision-detection preamble to mobile terminals through a preamble acknowledgement channel.
US07701959B2
Network devices of a digital network for communication between a plurality of devices have a source for transmitting data into the network, and sinks for receiving data from the network. Managers (logical controllers) to which priorities are assigned in a hierarchical order manage connections between sources and sinks. Before setting up a connection, a manager first queries a negotiation administrator to obtain a right to negotiate with other managers and to set up connections. When all other managers having higher priorities also have granted the connection, the manager connects sources and sinks.
US07701957B1
Method and apparatus for switching, merging, and demerging data between data communication locations
A method and apparatus for switching, merging, and demerging data between data communication locations have been disclosed.
US07701943B2
A slave node for use with a Local Interconnect Network (LIN network) receives incoming messages from the LIN network in a manner that reduces operating current, power consumption and/or operating temperature. The slave node generally includes an input circuit, an electronic processing device, associated components such as an Integrated Glass Fog Sensor (IGFS) unit, and a transmitting device all mounted on a single circuit board. The input circuit, which can either be separate from or incorporated within the electronic processing device, pre-filters an incoming message from a LIN bus such that it only wakes the transmitting device out of its low-current sleep mode when required. Stated differently, the transmitting device is removed from an incoming message path so that it is only active when it is transmitting an outgoing message.
US07701941B2
A network switch includes a look-up engine for obtaining associated data in response to a header portion of a packet and an interlinked network processor such as a RISC for performing a processing function on the header portion or the associated data. Both look-up engine and the network processor may modify a destination port bitmask. The network processor may implement additional packet header processing required for replication or server load balancing.
US07701935B2
A first and a second terminal carry out radio communications, the first terminal selects, based on an expectation saved in the concerned first terminal, a relay terminal relaying data to be transmitted to the second terminal and transmits the data, with a first information item indicating the address of the first terminal and a second information item indicating the address of the second terminal, to the relay terminal; and the relay terminal transmits the received first and second information items, and the data, to the second terminal; and if the second terminal receives the first and second information items, and the data, it transmits a completion report to the first terminal, based on expectation values saved by the second terminal concerned, making it capable of checking whether it has been possible to surely send and deliver the data.
US07701934B2
A network management system includes a processor and a memory that is accessible by the processor. A computer program is embedded within the memory. The computer program includes instructions to detect the receipt of one or more modified management messages. Each of the one or more modified management messages includes one or more modified data packets having a unique identifier. The computer program further includes instructions to determine an originating device associated with each of the unique identifiers. In a particular embodiment, the unique identifier is a predetermined device management password. Further, the predetermined device management password is a community string for a simple network management protocol data packet.
US07701932B2
A distributed switching system comprising a call controller, multiple source modules, and multiple destination modules provides circuit switching functionality without using a centralized circuit switch. When a source module of the multiple source modules receives inbound data, the source module broadcasts the data to each destination module of the multiple destination modules via an inbound time slot of multiple inbound time slots. The call controller selects a destination module of the multiple destination modules to process the data and informs the selected destination module of the inbound time slot. The selected destination module then receives the broadcast via the inbound time slot and processes the broadcast data. The distributed switching system further provides for a transfer of data in an outbound direction by allocating an outbound time slot in which the selected destination module embeds tagged data for receipt and forwarding by the source module.
US07701923B2
A method and apparatus for frame synchronization in a communication network is provided. The communication network includes a plurality of base stations. The method includes determining the start time of reception of a downlink frame received from each of at least a second base station. The method also includes determining the radio frequency propagation delay associated with the downlink frame received from the each of at least a second base station. Further, the method includes determining the reference downlink frame transmission time at the first base station, based on the reception start time of the downlink frame and the radio frequency propagation delay associated with one of the at least a second base station.
US07701914B1
A method performed by a first network device may include receiving a request for a resource from an end-point device and acknowledging the request for the resource to the end-point device. The method may also include receiving a resource coordination message from a second network device and transmitting a return resource coordination message to the second network device.
US07701912B2
System and method for providing access to multiple wireless service providers (WSPs) on a shared network infrastructure. The system includes a plurality of access points (APs) coupled to a network which may be distributed in airports, mass-transit stations, businesses, etc. The network may couple to a wide area network, such as the Internet. Each AP may include a plurality of virtual APs (VAPs), each corresponding to a WSP. A portable computing device (PCD) of a user stores identification information indicating a WSP of a plurality of possible WSPs, and which may include an access level of the user. Each AP “listens for” or detects identification information associated with numerous WSPs. When the AP receives the identification information from the PCD, it determines the VAP/WSP for the PCD using the identification information. Network access is then provided to the PCD through the determined WSP at the determined access level.
US07701906B2
There is provided a handover control method that does not produce quality deterioration or other similar problems during handover in a mobile communication system in which a first channel shared by a plurality of mobile stations and second channels exclusively used by respective mobile are used in combination. A handover control method according to the present invention comprises: a step in which a data signal is transmitted from one base station 30A to a mobile station 10 by using a first channel; a step in which a control signal is transmitted from a plurality of base stations 30A, 30B including the base station 30A to the mobile station 10 by using a second channel; a step in which the mobile station 10 receives a plurality of control signals; a step in which, of the plurality of control signals received, information regarding reception quality of the control signal from the base station 30A that transmitted the data signal is transmitted from the mobile station 10 to the base station 30A; and a step in which information relating to reception quality is received by the base station 30A and transmission control is performed of the data signal transmitted by the base station 30A, in accordance with the received information relating to reception quality.
US07701905B2
An improved arrangement is described for maintaining throughput of date packets over a cellular packet network from an Internet server to an end user machine during handoff of a mobile subscriber unit from a first base station to a second base station. The end user machine conventionally generates, in response to successive bytes from the server, acknowledgment signals including here applicable a “zero” acknowledgment signal that advertises a closed receive window at the end user machine and that is effective to pause transmission of data from the server. In response to a handoff start signal from the subscriber unit, a gateway unit associated with the first base station sends to the server a simulated zero acknowledgment signal to pause such transmission. Upon completion of handoff, an actual non-zero acknowledgment signal stored at the gateway unit at the start of handoff is applied to the server to resume transmission from the server to the end user machine.
US07701903B2
Power control protocol for highly variable data rate reverse link of a wireless communication system
A technique for implementing closed loop power control in a wireless system using a modulation that requires synchronization over the radio channel, which dynamically assigns coded channels on a demand basis. The technique maintains a proper power level, even when no traffic channels are allocated, by determining a link quality metric based upon the reverse link power received. This determination is made in response to a heartbeat signal sent at a rate which is only sufficiently fast to maintain code phase lock, for example, depending upon the expected maximum rate at which the subscriber unit will travel.
US07701902B1
A method for scheduling channel usage for an over-the-air (“wireless”) network downlink is described. Information associated with incoming traffic and outgoing traffic to a node as associated with user equipment is obtained. The user equipment is capable of establishing a communication link with the node. The information obtained is placed in respective queues, which are each associated with the user equipment. A count level of the queues is obtained. An interval rate for the incoming traffic is determined. A receive rate for the user equipment is obtained. An incoming average rate for the incoming traffic is determined. An outgoing average rate for the outgoing traffic is determined. A proportion value is generated responsive to the incoming average rate, the outgoing average rate, the receive rate, and the interval rate.
US07701901B2
A User Equipment, UE, of a cellular communication system transmits scheduling assistance data to a base station comprising a base station scheduler which schedules uplink packet data. The scheduling assistance data relates to uplink packet data transmission from the UE. The UE comprises a channel controller which is operable to cause the scheduling assistance data to be transmitted from the UE to the base station in a first physical resource of an uplink air interface. The first physical resource is not managed by the base station based scheduler. The scheduling assistance data may specifically be transmitted in a first transport channel multiplexed with other transport channels on a physical resource. The transport channels may be individually optimized and may have different termination points and transmission reliabilities. Specifically, the transport channel supporting the scheduling assistance data signaling may have a high reliability and be terminated in the base station.
US07701890B2
A mobile terminal can release a point-to-multipoint radio bearer (RB) in an explicit manner or an implicit manner, whereby an explicit RB release mechanism allows the network to explicitly instruct the mobile terminal to release the RB, while an implicit RB release mechanism allows the mobile terminal itself to release the RB without receiving any explicit instructions from the network.
US07701885B2
A point-to-multipoint telecommunication system can be made more flexible by providing upstream units with generators and locators for generating at least two subsequent overhead cells located next to each other and neighbouring a larger number of data cells for supplying system information. Downstream units are provided with detectors for detecting the subsequent overhead cells. This new signal flame structure allows a larger number of data cells to be exchanged without being interrupted by an overhead cell. Each cell consists of at least 53 bytes in accordance with the Asynchronous Transfer Mode or ATM standard. The at least two overhead cells comprise two overhead cells for supporting 54 data cells, or comprise three overhead cells for supporting 103 data cells. The point-to-multipoint telecommunication systems comprise passive optical networks, with upstream units corresponding to line terminators, and with downstream units corresponding to network terminators.
US07701882B2
A collaborative communication system comprises a highly flexible architecture that facilitates connecting communication devices and networks to establish multimedia collaboration sessions in a manner that allows distribution of various services and features throughout the collaborative communication system to provide scalability and selectable combination of cost, resource usage, and performance.
US07701879B2
A method for control of communications from an edge device of an access network, via the provisioning or the non-provisioning of at least one layer 2 destination address of at least one other edge device of the access network to the edge device by a network management module of the access network. The at least one layer 2 destination address is delivered to the edge device on request of the edge device. In an exemplary embodiment, the edge device checks, upon arrival of a packet including at least one layer 2 destination address, whether the at least one layer 2 destination address is stored within a communications restriction filter of the edge device and generates the request including the at least one layer 2 destination address in case the at least one layer 2 destination address is not stored within the communication restriction filter.
US07701875B2
A method of supporting a unidirectional link from a first router to a second router, the first and second routers existing in an area of a communication network, the method comprising: the second router receiving a hello packet from the first router; the second router determining that its topology information for the communication network is incomplete; the second router encapsulating an open shortest path first (OSPF) packet into an Opaque link state advertisement (LSA); and the second router flooding the Opaque LSA over the area.
US07701868B2
A method for carrying multiple services includes: transmitting services to bearer channels at a physical port of an XDSL chipset according to different requirements of the services on service latency; and mapping the services on the bearer channels into different latency paths according to preset relations between the bearer channels and the latency paths. Network apparatus for carrying multiple services are also provided. The embodiments of the present invention enable different services to be transmitted on different latency paths, by which the requirements of different services on both transmission latency and transmission quality are fulfilled. The embodiments of the present invention also remedy the defect in ADSL and VDSL technologies that XDSL chipset does not support multiple latency paths, which improves the application of XDSL technology and further improves user satisfaction.
US07701856B2
A method for managing a network connection includes establishing the network connection between an application and a packet destination, wherein the network connection comprises a plurality of paths, receiving a plurality of packets from the application on the network connection, wherein the plurality of packets is associated with the network connection, and wherein the plurality of packets comprises data from the application, obtaining a distribution of the plurality of packets among the plurality of paths by a master transport protocol module, wherein each of the plurality of paths is associated with one of a plurality of transport protocol modules, and transmitting, based on the distribution, the plurality of packets over the plurality of paths using the plurality of transport protocol modules, wherein each of the plurality of transport protocol modules implements one of a plurality of congestion control algorithms, wherein the plurality of packets are received at the packet destination.
US07701855B2
A communication device (200) has a controller (180) that has a maximum speed information requesting section adapted to transmit a maximum speed information requesting command at the minimum one of the stepwise differentiated transmission speeds, requesting transmission in return of maximum speed information for another communication device, a maximum speed information acquisition section adapted to acquire maximum speed information, a confirmation information transmitting section adapted to transmit confirmation information, switching the transmission speed within a range between the upper limit equal to the maximum transmission speed for the communication device (200) or that for the another communication device, whichever lower, and the lower limit equal to the transmission speed higher than the minimum transmission speed by a step and a transmission speed selecting section adapted to select the maximum transmission speed at which it can acquire the reception information from said another communication device as transmission speed for transmitting data to said another communication device for data communication.
US07701846B2
An apparatus and method for capturing data packets for analysis on a network computing system includes a sending node and a receiving node connected by a bi-directional communication link. The sending node sends a data transmission to the receiving node on the bi-directional communication link, and the receiving node receives the data transmission and verifies the data transmission to determine valid data and invalid data and verify retransmissions of invalid data as corresponding valid data. A memory device communicates with the receiving node for storing the invalid data and the corresponding valid data. A computing node communicates with the memory device and receives and performs an analysis of the invalid data and the corresponding valid data received from the memory device.
US07701843B1
System and methods are provided for automated alarm handling in a communications network by linking network failures to impacted resources. One embodiment includes correlating one or more network failures to a common network resource in a communications network, associating each network component of the communications network one to another, where the network components include one common network resource, attributing fault data originating from one or more of the network components to an associated common network resource, and collecting in a central data structure the attributed fault data with the associated common network resource.
US07701834B2
A movable terminal in a two terminal memory array. A storage medium is disposed between two terminals, one of the terminals being movable relative to the second terminal. Either one of the terminals or both terminals might actually move, resulting in one terminal being moved relative to the other terminal. A memory element disposed between the two terminals has a conductance that is responsive to a write voltage across the electrodes.
US07701829B2
An information storage medium has user data areas and additional data areas, and sync patterns to distinguish the additional data areas from the user data areas. The information storage medium includes a user data area in which user data is recorded and an additional data area located in at least one of areas before and after the user data area. Second sync patterns used in the additional data area are different from first sync patterns used in the user data area.
US07701827B2
A method for determining a recording signal of a recorder to record data onto a disc, the recording signal comprising a top pulse having a first power value Ph includes steps of: generating first test power values based on an initial first power value to record test data onto the disc; detecting concentricity parameters PS corresponding to the first test power values; quadratic curve fitting the concentricity parameters PS and the first test power values; determining an optimum value of the first power value Ph.
US07701816B2
A pit data generation circuit generates a first clock signal synchronized with pit data and a pit synchronization signal from a sum read signal obtained by reading the length of a pit. A division circuit generates a second clock signal by frequency-dividing the first clock signal. The division circuit is reset by the pit synchronization signal, and is capable of adjusting the phase of the second clock signal.
US07701811B2
A highlight of a representative track of each album stored in a recording medium and a highlight of each track of a designated album are pre-set. Highlights of representative tracks of albums are successively reproduced from album 1. As a result, albums are searched for a desired track. When the desired album has been found, highlights of tracks of the album are successively reproduced from track 1. As a result, the album is searched for the desired track.
US07701810B2
A reproduction apparatus includes a storage part which stores a plurality of items of contents data; reproduction means for reproducing contents in any one of reproduction modes including a normal reproduction mode that reads the contents data stored in the storage part in a predetermined order for reproduction, and a recommend mode that selects one part of the contents data stored in the storage part as a recommended piece of music for reproduction; and reproduction mode control means for changing the reproduction mode in the reproduction means to the recommend mode when a predetermined recommend mode changing condition is satisfied.
US07701806B2
An electronic timepiece with wireless information function that is small, has good reception performance, and has a construction that improves the freedom of design. Antennae 5A and 5B are disposed inside a short cylindrically-shaped metal case 1 of which both ends along its cylindrical axis L1 are open with the axes L5A and L5B of the antennae 5A and 5B substantially parallel to the cylindrical axis L1 of the case 1. A magnetic-field-passing part capable of passing the magnetic field of radio waves is disposed in an open side of the case 1 along an extension of the antenna axis. Radio waves entering from the open side of the case 1 can therefore be received by the antenna, and the material of the case 1 does not affect the reception performance of the antennae 5A and 5B. The case 1 can therefore be made from metal, increasing the freedom of design and making it possible to improve the appearance.
US07701805B2
In a time correction apparatus, a summer-time information holding unit holds summer-time information which contains an amount of input time as an amount of time correction for a summer time period. A transition time holding unit holds a plurality of summer time transition times of a plurality of years, which are computed beforehand from the summer-time information. A time determining unit compares the present time with each of the plurality of summer time transition times respectively, and determines whether the present time is within the summer time period based on a result of the comparison. A time correction unit corrects the present time for the summer time period by using the amount of input time, in accordance with a determination result by the time determining unit.
US07701804B2
A method for constructing a model representative of a heterogeneous medium from data expressed in different time scales with application to hydrocarbon characterization. The method first estimates sequentially, from the data expressed in each different time scale, parameters or physical quantities of the model, described for each different time scale. Second, a scale factor allowing conversion of a model described in a time scale into a model described in another time scale is determined. This determination is carried out by minimizing the dissimilarity between a parameter estimated in a time scale and this parameter estimated in the other time scale. Finally, estimation of a single model is performed, by taking simultaneously an account of the data expressed in the various time scales, and using the scale factor found previously for the time scale conversions.
US07701798B2
A power supply circuit for a sense amplifier of a semiconductor memory device includes a first reference voltage supplier configured to output a first reference voltage when a control signal is activated upon a write operation, a second reference voltage supplier configured to output a second reference voltage when the control signal is deactivated upon a read operation, and a core voltage source configured to receive the first reference voltage or the second reference voltage and generate a core voltage.
US07701797B2
Systems and methods involve the use of a flash memory device having multiple flash memory cells. A first interface is adapted to receive power for selectively programming each flash memory cell. A second interface is adapted to receive power supplied to logic level circuitry to perform the selection of flash memory cells to be supplied with power from the first input during a write operation.
US07701779B2
A method for programming one or more reference cells is described. The reference cell is programmed a predetermined amount, its program state is sensed relative to a prescribed cell on the same die (e.g., a memory cell or a golden bit cell), and the programming process continues until the reference cell fails a preselected read operation. In one preferred embodiment, the memory cell used during the reference cell programming process is the cell in the memory array having the highest native threshold value. In another preferred embodiment, the memory cell used during the reference cell programming process is a native cell that is on-board the die containing the memory array, but not a cell within the memory array.
US07701757B2
A method of operating a phase change random access memory (PRAM) device comprises performing a program operation to store data in selected PRAM cells of the device, wherein the program operation comprises a plurality of sequential program loops. The method further comprises suspending the program operation in the middle of the program operation, and after suspending the program operation, resuming the program operation in response to a resume command.
US07701749B2
In a method of controlling resistance drift in a memory cell of a resistance-changeable material memory device, the resistance changeable material in the memory cell is treated so that a drift parameter for the memory cell is less than about 0.18, wherein a change in resistance of a memory cell over the time period is determined according to the relationship: Rdrift=Rinitial×tα; where Rdrift represents a final resistance of the memory cell following the time period, Rinitial represents the initial resistance of the memory cell following the programming operation, t represents the time period; and α represents the drift parameter.
US07701739B2
A portable electronic device having integral programming circuitry for signaling a power converter connected thereto to provide suitable power signals. Integrating the programming circuitry into the portable electronic device reduces the manufacturing cost and size of the power converter cable connector that is directly coupled to the portable electronic device. Many embodiments of the present invention are provided, including integrating the programming circuitry as part of the portable device electronics, or, onto the portable electronic device connector itself. This programming circuitry can comprise of at least one electrical component that may be passive or active.
