Document	Document Title
US09883580B1	Printed circuit board that provides a direct thermal path between components and a thermal layer and method for assembly A method of assembling a component to a printed circuit board that includes a thermal layer and a circuit layer separated by a dielectric layer. The circuit layer includes circuit pads that correspond to terminal surfaces on the component. The dielectric layer includes an aperture that exposes a portion of the thermal layer that correspond to a thermal pad on the component. Solder paste is applied to the circuit pads and the exposed thermal layer. Lower surfaces of the solder paste are in contact with the circuit pads and the thermal layer and upper surfaces of the solder paste are substantially coplanar. The component is placed on the solder paste. The printed circuit board and the component are heated to create solder joints between the terminal surfaces on the component and the circuit pads and between the thermal pad on the component and the thermal layer.
US09883577B2	Belt-shaped neutron source A continuous, thin layer of neutron source material, for example solid lithium, is formed into a belt. The belt is continuously advanced in front of a proton source to generate neutrons from the lithium target. Additionally, the belt is continuously cooled, as it passes through a gas cooling section. Through the continuous motion and cooling of the lithium target, the belt can provide an effective neutron source without melting the target neutron source material.
US09883569B2	Lamp control system and control system A lamp control system includes at least one first lamp network, at least one second lamp network and a lamp control gateway. The first lamp network is configured to emit light and to transmit a first message, and includes a first physical layer. The second lamp network is configured to emit light and to transmit a first message, and includes a second physical layer different from the first physical layer. The lamp control gateway includes a processing module that is configured to receive the first message and the second message and to convert the first message and the second message in such a way that a first converted message and a second converted message comply with a predefined protocol.
US09883563B2	Directional lighting system and method The method of spatial lightbulb operation includes determining the position of the lightbulb relative to a physical space, detecting a contextual event, determining a spatial lighting pattern associated with the contextual event, and selectively controlling lightbulb light emitting elements based on the position of the lightbulb and the spatial lighting pattern. A lightbulb including: a plurality of individually controlled light emitting elements mounted in fixed, predetermined positions on the substrate; a light sensor mounted to the substrate; a wireless communication module; and a processor configured to: index each light emitting element; progress each of the plurality of light emitting elements through an orientation pattern; associate a reference point on the lightbulb with an external reference point; and selectively operate individual light emitting elements of the plurality according to lighting instructions, based on a relationship between the reference point on the lightbulb and the external reference point.
US09883562B2	Systems and methods for intelligent dimming control using TRIAC dimmers Systems and methods for dimming control using TRIAC dimmers are provided. An example apparatus for a power conversion system includes: a process-and-drive component configured to receive an input signal and output a drive signal to a switch to affect a current that flows through a primary winding of a power conversion system. The input signal includes a first pulse associated with a first input period and a second pulse associated with a second input period. The drive signal is associated with a first modulation period for the first input period and a second modulation period for the second input period. The process-and-drive component is further configured to: determine the first modulation period for the first input period; change the drive signal between a first logic level and a second logic level at a modulation frequency during the first modulation period; determine the second modulation period for the second input period.
US09883558B2	LED tube lamp compatible with different ballasts providing external driving signal An LED tube lamp is provided. The LED tube lamp includes a lamp tube having a first pin and a second pin at a first end of the lamp tube and a third pin and a fourth pin at a second end of the lamp tube, for receiving an external driving signal; a light strip disposed in the lamp tube, comprising an LED module for emitting light; a rectifying circuit for rectifying the external driving signal to produce a rectified signal; a filtering circuit coupled to the rectifying circuit, for filtering the rectified signal in order to drive the LED module; a current-limiting element for receiving the external driving signal input at one or more of the pins, the current-limiting element coupled to one or more of the pins, and coupled to the rectifying circuit; and a ballast interface circuit coupled to or in the rectifying circuit, and coupled to the current-limiting element, for the LED tube lamp to be compatible with a ballast providing the external driving signal, wherein the ballast interface circuit has a first terminal and a second terminal and is configured to determine whether the external driving signal is output from a ballast, according to a state of a property of the external driving signal, or according to a state of a property of a detection signal transmitted through the first terminal and the second terminal upon the external driving signal being input to the LED tube lamp.
US09883556B2	Systems and methods for current regulation in light-emitting-diode lighting systems Systems and methods are provided herein for current regulation. An example system controller includes: a first controller terminal configured to receive an input voltage, the first controller terminal being further configured to allow a first current flowing into the system controller based at least in part on the input voltage in response to one or more switches being closed; a second controller terminal configured to allow the first current to flow out of the system controller through the second controller terminal in response to the one or more switches being closed; a fourth controller terminal coupled to the third controller terminal through a first capacitor, the first capacitor not being any part of the system controller; and an error amplifier configured to generate a compensation signal based at least in part on the current sensing signal, the error amplifier including a second capacitor.
US09883541B2	Communication switching and establishing method and device Disclosed are a communication switching and establishing method and device. A switching procedure comprises: an access network device determining to switch from a D2N link to a D2D link; sending a switching command to a first terminal and a second terminal; receiving a switching complete response; and saving bearer information of a bearer, which needs to be switched to the D2D link, in the D2N link, or requesting to send a bearer keep request to a core network node. A communication establishing procedure comprises: after the access network device determines that communication needs to be established with the D2D link, determining whether a core network side link needs to be established for communication between the first terminal and the second terminal; if yes, sending a service request to a core network device, so that the core network device establishes a core network side link for the service request; and sending configuration information of the D2D link and establishment instruction information of the D2D link to the first terminal and/or the second terminal. The present application enables a first terminal and a second terminal to perform D2D communication, thereby enhancing network transmission efficiency.
US09883538B2	Avoiding P2P connection failure due to push button configuration overlap Methods, systems, and devices are provided that reduce delay in establishing connectivity between wireless devices when either device detects a session overlap condition during a wireless network setup. In response to detecting the session overlap condition at a first node, the first node made transmit a notification to a second node to switch from the first setup procedure to a second setup procedure using a vendor specific information element.
US09883533B2	Listen-before-talk for discovery signal in license-assisted access LTE A method by a user equipment is disclosed for decoding data from a network node in a telecommunications system. The method includes determining whether a discovery signal was received from the network node by detecting of another signal received from the network node, which may be a Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS) and/or a Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS). Based on detecting that the another signal was received, the method includes determining whether a grant is present based on processing an Evolved Physical Downlink Control CHannel, ePDCCH. Based on determining that a grant is present, the method includes decoding a Physical Downlink Shared Channel, PDSCH, using the ePDCCH and the discovery signal.
US09883522B2	Wireless communications with primary and secondary access categories Systems and techniques relating to wireless communications are described. A described technique includes determining a primary access category for a transmission opportunity (TXOP) to transmit data to a primary wireless communication device based on a first back-off timer associated with the primary access category; determining a secondary access category for the TXOP to transmit data to a secondary wireless communication device; and transmitting, during the TXOP, spatially steered streams that concurrently provide separate data to respective devices comprising the primary and the secondary device. The technique can include controlling a contention window and a second back-off timer associated with the secondary access category, where the second back-off timer is not penalized for a communication failure associated with the primary access category or the secondary access category during the TXOP, and where the contention window is not penalized for the communication failure associated with the secondary access category during the TXOP.
US09883513B2	Scheduling of device-to-device scheduling assignment for mode1 Methods, systems, and devices are described for transmitting or receiving at least one grant to a device. The at least one grant may identify one or more scheduling assignment (SA) resources on which an SA is to be transmitted by the device for device-to-device (D2D) communications. The at least one grant may also identify one or more data resources on which data is to be transmitted by the device for D2D communications.
US09883510B2	User equipment with improved tune-away performance during measurement Operating a user equipment (UE) which comprises a first radio that is configured to operate according to a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second RAT. The UE may receive a request to perform a tune away operation for the second RAT while performing measurement for the first RAT (e.g., intra-cell measurement, inter-cell measurement, and/or inter-RAT measurement). Instead of waiting to complete the measurement of the first RAT, the UE may tune the radio to a frequency of the second RAT to perform the tune away operation (e.g., page decoding) for the second RAT. After completing the tune away operation of the second RAT, the UE may tune the radio back to a frequency corresponding to the first RAT in order to continue the measurement operations of the first RAT.
US09883505B2	HEW packet structure and method for high-efficiency Wi-Fi (HEW) communication Embodiments of a master station and method for communicating in a high-efficiency Wi-Fi (HEW) network are generally described herein. In some embodiments, the master station is arranged to configure an HEW frame for communicating with a plurality of HEW compliant devices. The master station may transmit a master sync transmission that includes synchronization information and may be transmitted at a beginning of an HEW control period. The master station may configure an HEW frame to include an HEW signal field (HEW SIG) as a first field of the frame and may transmit the HEW frame without legacy synchronization information at the beginning of the HEW frame.
US09883501B2	Method and system for signaling transmission layers for single user and multi user MIMO A method and system to signal transmission layers or dedicated reference signal ports to be used in a multiple input multiple output system, the method including providing a downlink control signal containing information for transmission layers or dedicated reference signal ports utilized, the dedicated reference signal ports being associated with the transmission layers; and using the information to demodulate data on each transmission layer.
US09883500B2	Method and base station for transmitting downlink signal and method and equipment for receiving downlink signal A base station of the present invention configures resources in which a downlink signal is to be transmitted with zero power using resource sets defined for a specific number of antenna ports, regardless of the number of antenna ports actually configured in the base station, and transmits resource information indicating the configured resources to a user equipment. The user equipment of the present invention receives a downlink transmission from the base station, assuming that transmission power of resources corresponding to a resource set indicated by the resource information is zero.
US09883498B2	Mobile station apparatus, base station apparatus, communication method and integrated circuit In a wireless communication system in which a base station communicates with a terminal, the base station efficiently notifies of control information for the terminal. A base station apparatus maps an EPDCCH to any of candidates of the EPDCCH included in each of a first EPDCCH set and a second EPDCCH set which are configured by RRC signaling, and a mobile station apparatus monitors the candidate of the EPDCCH. The candidate of EPDCCH is determined at least based on the number of resource elements satisfying a predetermined criterion in one of physical resource block pairs that are configured for EPDCCH transmission in the first EPDCCH set.
US09883496B2	Method and apparatus for transmitting/receiving control information for device to device (D2D) communication in a wireless communications system According to an embodiment of the present invention, a method for a first terminal to receive control information from a second terminal for device to device communication includes the steps of: receiving downlink control information (DCI) format containing a link indicator; and obtaining selectively one of downlink allocation information and uplink permission information contained in the DCI format according to the link indicator, wherein the downlink allocation information indicates a resource region for receiving data from the second terminal, and the uplink permission information indicates a resource region for transmitting data to the second terminal.
US09883495B2	Extending physical downlink control channels Methods and apparatuses for transmitting and receiving at least one Downlink Control Information (DCI) in a communication system supporting Carrier Aggregation (CA) are provided. The method for receiving includes receiving information representative of presence of carrier indicator by higher layer signaling from a Node B; receiving information representative of at least one cell indicator by higher layer signaling from the Node B; defining an UE specific search space based on aggregation level, an UE ID, and at least one carrier indicator value, where the UE specific search space includes a set of Physical Downlink Control CHannel (PDCCH) candidates based on the aggregation level; decoding at least one PDCCH including at least one DCI respectively by the UE ID; and acquiring the at least one DCI, wherein the at least one carrier indicator value is based on the at least one cell indicator.
US09883483B2	Systems and methods for coexistence of MBMS and VoIP services Systems and methods for coexistence of Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Services (MBMS) and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of operation of a network node in a cellular communications network is provided. The method includes determining a number of MBMS subframes for an MBMS allocation period. The method also includes, for each MBMS subframe of the number of MBMS subframes, assigning a frame number and a subframe number for the MBMS subframe such that a probability of a VoIP packet transmission during the MBMS subframe is mitigated. By mitigating the probability that a VoIP packet transmission occurs during a scheduled MBMS subframe, a VoIP user equipment (UE) may miss fewer packets and/or experience reduced battery drain.
US09883478B2	Method for positioning user equipment in full-duplex wireless communication system and apparatus therefor The present invention relates to a method for positioning multiple user equipments (UEs) by a base station in a wireless communication system supporting full-duplex communication and an apparatus therefor. More specifically, the present invention comprises: setting a unit distance on the basis of the magnitude of inter-device interference (IDI) with respect to a first UE; and establishing multiple boundaries around each of the multiple UEs and the base station according to relative distances on the basis of the unit distance and checking whether the boundaries overlap each other. Here, the relative distances indicate with respect to the multiple UEs, measured on the basis of the magnitude of inter-device interference (IDI).
US09883472B1	Methods and apparatus for beaconing within a wireless network based on an indication of distance The present disclosure describes methods and apparatus for beaconing within a wireless network based on an indication of distance. For certain example embodiments, in a wireless network in which a master device is a device configured to transmit a beacon within the wireless network, a first wireless communication device may determine, based on an indication of distance between two wireless communication devices, if the first wireless communication device is to act as a master device. For example, a wireless signal may be received. Based at least partially on the received wireless signal, an indication of distance between two wireless communication devices in a wireless network may be obtained. And based at least partially on the obtained indication of distance between the two wireless communication devices, it may be determined if a first wireless communication device is to act as a master device within the wireless network.
US09883470B2	Communication device and method for performing radio communication A communication device is provided that includes a first transmission circuit configured to transmit radio signals with a first transmission power range up to a first predefined transmission power. The communication device further includes a second transmission circuit configured to transmit the radio signals with a second transmission power range up to a second predefined transmission power. The communication device further includes a baseband circuit configured to select a transmission circuit from the first transmission circuit and the second transmission circuit and to generate a signal based on the predefined transmission power of the selected transmission circuit. The baseband circuit is configured to apply the signal to the selected transmission circuit to be transmitted by the selected transmission circuit.
US09883467B2	Terminal device, base station device, communication system, control method, and integrated circuit In a terminal device that uses a plurality of cells, the plurality of cells are grouped into a cell group for a first base station device and a cell group for a second base station device, and processing for activation/deactivation of the plurality of cells is performed on a cell in the cell group that receive a control element indicating the activation/deactivation, and in a case where the cell group for the second base station is added, a power headroom indicating capacity available for transmit power in the plurality of cells is determined as being triggered, and power headrooms of the plurality of cells that are activated are reported.
US09883458B2	Dynamic RxDiv for idle mode in a user equipment A method of evaluating a reception quality of a receiver includes determining a reception quality of the receiver using a measurement from a single active antenna of the receiver if the receiver is in the idle mode. The method further includes activating receiver diversity by activating at least a second antenna of the receiver in the idle mode if the measurement from the single active antenna of the receiver is below a first predetermined reception quality threshold. A receiver includes receiver chains configured to interface with respective antennas, and a reception quality estimation unit configured to determine a reception quality of a single active receive chain when the receive is in an idle mode. The receiver further includes a diversity controller configured to selectively activate at least a second receive chain in the idle mode based on the determined reception quality from the reception quality estimation unit.
US09883456B2	Application specific internet access Application specific internet access for synchronizing over a tethered network connection is disclosed. When a first device enters a tethering state the first device sends a wakeup message to a second device that is in sleep mode. The second device receives the wake-up message and determines at least one application that is to be synchronized over the tethered network connection provided by the first device. The at least one application is then synchronized and the second device returns to sleep mode. The second device to which the wakeup message is sent may comprise a device that was previously paired with the first device. The at least one application to be synchronized may be determined from a database stored on the second device that indicates a subset of applications of a plurality of applications on the second device to be synchronized on entering wakeup mode in response to the wake-up message.
US09883453B2	Method and apparatus for terminal to camp on cell, and mobile terminal Embodiments of the present disclosure disclose a method for a terminal to camp on a cell. A method for a terminal to camp on a cell includes acquiring, by a mobile terminal, a signal of an available cell, where when the mobile terminal is not camped on a serving cell, the signal of the available cell includes a signal, detected by the mobile terminal, of the cell, or when the mobile terminal camps on the serving cell, the signal of the available cell includes a signal of the serving cell and a signal of a neighboring cell of the serving cell. When a cell signal value of the available cell meets a standard cell access criterion, selecting, by the mobile terminal according to a signal strength and a historical camp-on success rate, an effective cell from the available cell, and camping, by the mobile terminal, on the effective cell.
US09883451B2	Detection techniques for high gain mobile devices In various aspects, the disclosure provides for cell selection including determining a gain of an antenna associated with a user equipment (UE), adding an offset to a threshold to yield a power threshold, wherein the offset is based on the gain of the antenna, selecting a wireless network, obtaining a power measurement associated with a cell within the selected wireless network, and comparing the power measurement with the power threshold to yield a comparison.
US09883450B2	Network access method and mobile communication terminal A network access method and a mobile communication terminal are provided. The method includes the following steps: order information is acquired, the order information is parsed to acquire information of a visited place, a network identifier of a visited public land mobile network (VPLMN) is acquired when it is determined that the network identifier of the VPLMN is not stored in the EHPLMN list, and the network identifier of the VPLMN is added to the EHPLMN list. Network access is then performed according to the EHPLMN list.
US09883446B2	Method and apparatus for mobile media optimization A method and apparatus for optimizing the mobile media received by a mobile device is disclosed. The apparatus operates with a radio access network, a mobile device operating in the radio access network, and a media server providing mobile media data to the mobile device wherein the mobile device connects to the media server using the radio access network. The apparatus includes a optimization application server coupled to the radio access network. The optimization application server includes positioning indexed performance information based on the positioning information and performance of a plurality of mobile devices operating in the radio access network. The optimization application server triggers adjustments to a parameter at least one of the radio access network, the mobile device and the media server by comparing the location of the mobile device in the radio access network to the optimization application server and sending a message to the radio access network to adjust the parameter.
US09883439B2	Offloading method and apparatus The present disclosure relates to the field of mobile communications technologies, and in particular, to an offloading method and an apparatus. In this solution, when a terminal is in a handover process, a destination cellular network node sends, to the terminal, configuration information of a WLAN AP managed by the destination cellular network node; and then the terminal selects a destination WLAN AP from WLAN APs managed by the destination cellular network node, and offloads data of the destination cellular network node to the destination WLAN AP. Therefore, the destination WLAN AP selected by the destination cellular network node can be received before a handover is completed, thereby ensuring service continuity and improving service quality of a terminal.
US09883437B2	Systems and methods for enhanced network handoff to wireless local area networks Embodiments relate to systems and methods for an enhanced network handoff to wireless local area networks. A network element, referred to as a network handoff gateway (WHG), can be introduced between a wireless wide area network (WWAN) and a local wireless area network (WLAN). The WHG can maintain c links with both a set of WiFi™ or similar access points local to a wireless device, as well as a cellular network (or other WWAN) to which the device is registered. The wireless device can be tracked by the WHG using GPS or other data. The WHG can proactively acquire and pre-stage data needed to hand a data link of the wireless device off from the WWAN connection to the WiFi™ access points. The acquired data can include authentication information, IP address, or other information to facilitate a faster, more robust transition between the WWAN and WiFi™ or other WLAN connections.
US09883436B2	Method and apparatus for performing mobile handover based on an indication flag A handover process for enabling a user terminal to transfer a connect to a network from a route by way of a source access node to a route by way of a target access node, where the nodes are controlled by different respective control systems is initiated by establishing a link between the terminal and the target node and a data forwarding tunnel between the access nodes to allow data transmitted over a link from the network to the source node to continue to be transmitted to the terminal. The backhaul connection is then re-routed by co-ordination between the access control systems. The source node transmits a flag to the target node which identifies its respective access control system. This flag is forwarded by the target node to its respective access control system to allow it to set up a data link over which relocation instructions can be coordinated to set up a data link between the network and the target node, and to close the data link between the network and the source node.
US09883434B2	Data transmitting method, handover method, apparatus, equipment, access node, and system A data transmitting method includes receiving from a UE a request to apply for accessing a data file in an external server. If a first part of content of the data file is stored an RAN cache, the first part of the content is transmitted to the UE. When the first part of the content is transmitted to the UE, a second part of the content of the data file is obtained from the external server. After all the first part of the content is transmitted to the UE, the second part of the content is transmitted to the UE.
US09883430B2	Detecting handover failures at an access point The present disclosure describes methods and apparatus for detecting handover failures at an AP when the AP does not have an X2 interface with at least one of its neighbors. For example, methods are provided for detecting handover failures at an AP based on at least on a UE context release command message received from a mobile management entity (MME) and/or determining that a radio resource control (RRC) connection reconfiguration (RCR) message is not delivered to the UE.
US09883426B2	Enhanced reporting for handover in device-to-device communication A method, user equipment and a base station for handover in device-to-device communication are disclosed. To maintain continuity of the ongoing device-to-device communication after the handover, an enhanced reporting mechanism is introduced such that the user equipment with the ongoing device-to-device communication would be handed over to a cell of a neighbor base station that supports the device-to-device communication. In this manner, the device-to-device communication continuity may be maintained.
US09883417B2	Load information exchange for interference coordination This document discloses a solution of interference coordination in wireless communication systems where a base station may request a specified load report from another base station. A first base station may store load information of terminal devices associated with the identifier of strongest interference source for each terminal device. The first base station may receive a load report request from a second base station. The first base station may respond to the second base station with a load report including load information of only terminal devices whose strongest interference source is the second base station. The second base station may receive the load report further and provide communication resources on the basis of the received load report.
US09883414B2	Backhaul communication in wireless networks There is provided improved backhaul communication in a wireless network. The wireless network comprises at least one coordinating network node. The wireless network further comprises at least one cooperative network node. A method performed by the cooperating network node comprises receiving an uplink signal from a wireless device, the uplink signal comprising data. The method further comprises compressively sampling the data so as to obtain compressive measurements of the data. The method further comprises transmitting the compressively sampled data to the coordinating network node. There is also provided a method performed in the coordinating network node. There is further provided a cooperating network node and a coordinating network node arranged to perform the methods and computer programs and computer program products comprising computer program code for implementing the method.
US09883409B2	Communication system A communication system is provided that, if a large number of small cells are installed, is capable of configuring an operation suitable for small cells through simple operation and administration. If a small cell installed in Step ST1401 judges in Step ST1403 that a coverage macro cell, which includes the small cell in the coverage of the coverage macro cell, is present as a result of neighbor cell search in Step ST1402, notifies the coverage macro cell and another neighbor cell of its own capability in Steps ST1404 and 1405. The coverage macro cell selects a configuration parameter suitable for the capability of the small cell in Step ST1406 and notifies the small cell in Step ST1407. The small cell recognizes an operation mode configured by the coverage macro cell from the configuration parameter notified from the coverage macro cell, and then, starts operating in the operation mode.
US09883401B2	Differentiating authorization requests for security requirements A device may receive a request from a mobile device. The device may determine a port identifier for a port of the device. The port may correspond to whether the mobile device used a secure communication path to send the request. The device may determine a mobile device identifier for the mobile device. The device may add the mobile device identifier and the port identifier to the request. The device may send the request to an application device after adding the mobile device identifier and the port identifier to the request. The port identifier may be added to the request to enable the application device to determine whether the request was sent, by the mobile device, over the secure communication path.
US09883399B2	Apparatus and method for accessing wireless networks A method and apparatus are for automatically accessing a social network account that provides member information about each of a plurality of social network members. The member information about at least one of the social network members, denoted as a particular member, includes a network detection portion and a security portion. The network detection portion is retrieved from the social network for at least the particular member. A detection is made that the wireless device is within range of a secure wireless network associated with the particular member. The detection uses the network detection portion of the particular member as an input. The security portion of the member information of the particular member is retrieved from the social network. The security portion is used to derive access credentials for the secure wireless network. The derived access credentials are used to securely access the secure wireless network.
US09883390B2	Method and a device of authentication in the converged wireless network In the existing WLAN network, the authentication method using the pre-shared cipher key has low safety, and is not applicable for large scale deployment; while the authentication method based on 802.1x is very complex and needs to introduce EAP/RADIUS servers. The invention provides an authentication method and device in a converged wireless access network, wherein, the wireless access network and the UE all maintain a cipher key of a UE for accessing the first wireless access network, when the UE accessing the second wireless access network, the wireless access network and the UE implements the authentication based on the cipher key. In the invention, the UE key for accessing the first wireless access network, which has been obtained safely, is used in the authentication for the access of the UE in the second wireless access network. Compared to the traditional solution of the shared cipher key, the proposed solution ensures safety; and compared to the traditional 802.1x solution, it saves the operation of obtaining the cipher key via negotiating, and does not need to involve the network element such as key servers etc.
US09883387B2	Authentication using application authentication element Embodiments of the present invention can be directed to systems, apparatuses, and methods for performing transactions through mobile communication devices using either telecommunications networks or proximity near-field communications systems. Embodiments may be directed to a mobile communication device displaying an application authentication element. The application authentication element may include a pre-selected authentication element and transaction data associated with a transaction conducted by a mobile communication device. The mobile communication device may obtain the pre-selected authentication element by either transmitting a request to a server computer or retrieving the pre-selected authentication element from a secure memory in the mobile communication device. A user authentication token may be received by the mobile communication device from the user. The mobile communication device may generate a secret token that is derived from the user authentication token. If the secret token is correlated to a secret reference token, then a transaction may be conducted.
US09883385B2	Apparatus and method for mobility procedure involving mobility management entity relocation A device that identifies entry into a new service area, transmits a service area update request to a network device associated with a network, receives a control plane message from the network indicating control plane device relocation or a key refresh due to a service area change in response to transmitting the service area update request, and derives a first key based in part on data included in the control plane message and a second key shared between the device and a key management device. Another device that receives a handover command from a network device associated with a network, the handover command indicating a new service area, derives a first key based on data included in the handover command and on a second key shared between the device and a key management device, and sends a handover confirmation message that is secured based on the first key.
US09883381B1	Providing secure access to smart card applications A method is provided for secure access to a smart card application. An alert is received related to a mobile device having the smart card application. Access by the mobile device to the smart card application is restricted responsive to receiving the alert.
US09883366B2	Systems and methods for transmitting information, alerts, and/or comments to participants based on location information The present invention generally relates to systems and methods for sharing information related to a location also referred to herein as a “spot,” such as spot alerts and/or spot comments (e.g., shared information, advertisements, etc.) received, displayed, played, and/or actuated, for example, on recipient mobile electronic devices proximately located to such location (e.g., spot). Users of the system can create spot alerts in which designated recipients can receive messages, such as spot alerts and/or spot comments (e.g., shared information, advertisements, etc.) received, displayed, played, and/or actuated, for example, on respective recipient mobile electronic devices, when located within a proximity of a defined location (e.g., spot).
US09883365B2	Mobile terminal A wearable mobile terminal including a wireless communication processor configured to provide wireless communication; a display; a sensor configured to sense data including at least one of a heart rate, skin temperature, respiration volume and blood pressure of a first user wearing the mobile terminal; and a controller configured to identify an emotional state of the first user based on the data sensed by the sensor, and control the wireless communication processor to transmit a signal for notifying the emotional state of the first user to at least one or more predetermined external devices, in response to the identified emotional state corresponding to a predetermined emotional state.
US09883362B2	Method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving voice call in communication system The present disclosure relates to a communication method and a system for converging a 5th-Generation (5G) communication system for supporting higher data rates beyond a 4th-Generation (4G) system with a technology for Internet of Things (IoT). The present disclosure may be applied to intelligent services based on the 5G communication technology and the IoT-related technology, such as a smart home, a smart building, a smart city, a smart car, a connected car, health care, digital education, a smart retail, and security and safety services. A method and an apparatus for communicating voice calls in a communication system are provided. The apparatus includes a first terminal that is a representative terminal configured to receive a voice call sets up a function for using a call forwarding service with a second terminal that is an auxiliary terminal, when the first terminal detects an occurrence of an event complying with a certain criterion for performing a call forwarding service, to determine whether a call forwarding service with the second terminal is being executed, and to execute, unless the call forwarding service is being executed, the call forwarding service and to transfer a voice call received by the first terminal to the second terminal.
US09883358B2	Electronic device and method of determining suggested responses to text-based communications A method of responding to a text-based communication on a portable electronic device includes receiving the text-based communication at the portable electronic device, performing textual analysis on the text-based communication to determine a set of possible responses, for each possible response of the set of possible responses, ranking the possible responses based at least on auxiliary information at the portable electronic device, and selecting a first possible response as a suggested response based on the ranking of the possible responses.
US09883349B2	Method and device for displaying information which links to related information provided by user's friends at user's location The present disclosure discloses a method and device for displaying information which links to related information provided by user's friends at user's location. The method including the operations of: obtaining first user's information viewing operation performed on information associated with the first user; obtaining position information included in the information; obtaining at least one second user according to the position information, wherein the second user is within a first user's user relationship chain, and wherein the information published in the past by the second user includes the position information; and displaying the at least one second user to the first user. The present disclosure makes the first user team of the friends who published at this position information, and therefore the amount of the information available at this position has increased, thus enriching the first user's knowledge of the need for detailed information.
US09883344B2	Adaptive location branding A method and system for providing location-specific information to users, wherein this information is directly maintained and supplied by the provider of the service. This information is supplied by means of an application running on a personal communication device, where the application is developed and provided by a third-party servicer (e.g., CollegeNET) and the third party servicer makes various program options/APIs of the application available to and selectable by its customers (e.g., various universities). This way, the organization wanting to supply the information, such as a university, does not have to develop their own unique applications to provide a unique user experience tied to the university, and the users don't have to download an application for each school they visit.
US09883336B2	Server device and information processing system A server apparatus includes: a communication unit that communicates with a first communication apparatus and a second communication apparatus; a registration unit that, upon obtaining identification data of a mobile terminal which has been lost from the first communication apparatus, registers the identification data; and an output unit that, upon obtaining position data and the identification data from the second communication apparatus, outputs the position data when the identification data is registered, the position data indicating a position of the second communication apparatus at the time when the second communication apparatus receives the identification data sent from the mobile terminal.
US09883330B2	Device pairing using a secure zone A method and system of secure zone pairing. Using the method, a low-power broadcast message is generated by a pairing device and transmitted within a broadcast zone, where the low-power broadcast message includes pairing information. A host device that is within the broadcast zone receives the low-power broadcast message and transmits a first indication that the host device is within the broadcast zone. A guest device that is within the broadcast zone receives the low-power broadcast message and transmits a second indication that the guest device is within the broadcast zone. The method pairs the host device and the guest device based on the pairing information, the first indication, and the second indication.
US09883324B2	Methods and devices for sending and receiving location information for wireless devices The embodiments herein relate to a method in a first device (101) for informing a second device (105) that an identity associated with the first device (101) is at a certain location. The first device (101) obtains information about the location of the first device (101). The first device (101) broadcasts, by means of device to device, D2D, communication, a message to be received by the second device (105). The message comprises the location information and an identity information associated with a user of the first device (101). The location information is transmitted on a first communications resource and the identity information is transmitted on a second communications resource.
US09883307B2	Method and apparatus for decomposing a stereo recording using frequency-domain processing employing a spectral weights generator An apparatus for generating a stereo side signal having a first side channel and a second side channel from a stereo input signal having a first input channel and a second input channel is provided. The apparatus has a modification information generator for generating modification information based on mid-side information. Furthermore, the apparatus has a signal manipulator being adapted to manipulate the first input channel based on the modification information to obtain the first side channel and being adapted to manipulate the second input channel based on the modification information to obtain the second side channel. The modification information generator has a spectral weights generator for generating the modification information by generating a first spectral weighting factor based on a mono mid signal and on a mono side signal of the stereo input signal.
US09883300B2	Method and apparatus for controlling a hearing instrument to relieve tinitus, hyperacusis, and hearing loss A hearing instrument and a method for operating a hearing instrument for relieving tinnitus, hyperacusis, and/or hearing loss is provided. The hearing instrument and/or the method includes receiving and manipulating an audio signal at a signal processor to create a manipulated audio signal, providing a tinnitus relief sound having an operational level based on a present volume level from an audio signal, and generating an output signal based on the manipulated audio signal and the tinnitus relief sound.
US09883299B2	System for using multiple hearing assistance device programmers This disclosure relates to fitting and adjusting hearing assistance devices, including but not limited to hearing aids, using multiple programmers. A method is provided for using multiple programmers for hearing assistance devices. The method includes automatically detecting the programmers using fitting software on a personal computer. The method also includes communicating with each of the programmers simultaneously using the software to automatically detect hearing assistance devices compatible with the software. In certain variations if hearing assistance devices are detected on more than one programmer, a user is prompted to select a programmer. In certain variations, if hearing assistance devices are detected on one programmer, a fitting session is initiated for the detected hearing assistance devices.
US09883296B2	Filter to suppress harmonics for an antenna Disclosed herein, among other things, are systems and methods for filtering to suppress harmonics for a hearing assistance device antenna. One aspect of the present subject matter includes a hearing assistance system for a wearer including a wireless radio frequency (RF) transceiver, an antenna and a filter connected between the RF transceiver and the antenna. According to various embodiments, the filter is configured to suppress harmonics for the antenna, and configured to maintain impedance and prevent inversion of impedance presented to the RF transceiver from the antenna.
US09883295B2	Hearing aid with an antenna A hearing aid includes: a signal processor; a wireless communications unit, the wireless communications unit being connected to the signal processor; and an antenna for electromagnetic field emission and electromagnetic field reception, the antenna being connected to the wireless communications unit, the antenna having an excitation point; wherein a first branch of the antenna extends from the excitation point and a second branch of the antenna extends from the excitation point; and wherein the antenna has a first resonant frequency and a second resonant frequency.
US09883290B2	Audio driver assembly, headphone including such an audio driver assembly, and related methods An audio driver assembly comprises a driver housing and an audio driver secured within the driver housing. The audio driver comprises a magnet assembly, a flexible diaphragm overlying the magnet assembly, and a spacer between the magnet assembly and the flexible diaphragm. A headphone and a method of forming a headphone are also described.
US09883289B2	Acoustic generator, acoustic generation device, and electronic device An acoustic generator according to an embodiment includes at least a plurality of piezoelectric elements (exciters) and a vibrating portion. The piezoelectric elements vibrate upon reception of input of an electric signal. The piezoelectric elements are attached to the vibrating portion. The piezoelectric elements are attached to the vibrating portion asymmetrically with respect to all the symmetry axes of a figure drawn by a contour of the vibrating portion when seen from the above.
US09883283B2	Acoustic deflector for omni-directional speaker system An omni-directional acoustic deflector includes an acoustically reflective body having a truncated conical shape including a substantially conical outer surface, a top surface and a cone axis, the acoustically reflective body having at least one opening disposed along a circumference of the substantially conical outer surface at a cone radius associated with a pressure maximum of an acoustic resonance mode with an acoustic absorber at each such opening. Speaker systems employing the omni-directional acoustic deflector have an improved high frequency acoustic spectrum response regardless of the location of the listener with respect to the speaker system.
US09883278B1	System and method for detecting ear location of earphone and rechanneling connections accordingly and earphone using same An earphone able to function as a left or as a right earphone and receive sound channels accordingly comprises a processing unit, a capturing unit, and a touch sensor. The capturing unit gets images of ear canal. The touch sensor senses a first and second ear contact points. The processing unit applies sensor readings and captured images to an imaginary circle having a default radius, to determine whether earphone is being worn in the right or in the left ear. The output of sound can be channeled appropriately to an earphone in the left ear or in the right ear or both. A method and a system for detecting wearing state are also provided.
US09883274B2	Earbud case with charging system A case for a pair of earbuds includes a housing having cavities to receive the pair of earbuds and charging circuitry that is configured to initiate charging of the pair of earbuds when an earbud detector detects that the earbuds are inserted within the cavities.
US09883268B2	Loudspeaker module The present disclosure provides a loudspeaker module and relates to the technical field of electroacoustic products. The loudspeaker module composes a housing, a loudspeaker unit being received in the housing, the loudspeaker unit is electrically connected with a module external circuit via a cable, an end of the cable located in the interior of the module is electrically connected with the loudspeaker unit, an end of the cable located external to the module is electrically connected with the module external circuit, a positioning slot is disposed at a position on the housing corresponding to the cable in the interior of the module, the cable is restricted in the positioning slot, a hot melt line is disposed on each of end faces of sidewalls on both sides of the positioning slot, and the hot melt lines, after being hot molten, encapsulate the cable in the positioning slot.
US09883254B2	Adding to a remote playlist Systems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture to facilitate discovery and remote configuration of content for playback via a multimedia playback network are disclosed. An example method includes facilitating identification of multimedia content being played, the identification including at least one of a content identifier associated with the content and the content itself. An example method includes relaying at least one of the content identifier and the content to a playback system located remotely from a location of the multimedia content playback, at least one of the content identifier and the content remotely added for playback at the playback system.
US09883251B2	Method and apparatus for managing connection between broadcast receiving device and another device connected by network An embodiment of the present invention provides a method for managing a connection between a companion device and a broadcasting reception device over a network. The method may include transmitting a request message for obtaining an application identifier list to the broadcasting reception device, the request message comprising discovery information and discovery field information, obtaining the application identifier in response to the request message, the application identifier identifying a specific application matched with the discovery information, and obtaining specific application information based on the application identifier.
US09883246B2	News production system with dynamic character generator output In one aspect, an example method involves: accessing, by a computing device, data associated with an election; using, by a computing device, the accessed data to determine a status associated with a voting option of the election; using, by the computing device, the determined status as a basis to select a content storage-location from among multiple content storage-locations, wherein each of the multiple content storage-locations corresponds with a respective content placeholder of a content template; and storing, by the computing device, in the selected content storage-location, (i) a content item associated with the voting option or (ii) a reference to the content item.
US09883245B2	Systems and methods for enabling a user to generate a plan to access content using multiple content services A system for facilitating access to items of content presents recommendations to a user. Items of content may include movies and television shows. Recommendations may include access plans specifying a plurality of digital media services, where each specified digital media service provides availability to items of content included in a user defined set. Further, recommendations may be based on one or more use defined constraints. User defined constraints may include a user budget for accessing items of content during a specific time period.
US09883239B2	Method for transmitting broadcast service, receiving method thereof, and receiving device thereof A method of a broadcast receiving device to receive broadcast service includes: receiving a broadcast table; receiving service signaling data corresponding to a service object; determining a consumption model of the service object on the basis of the service signaling data; receiving a content item configuring the service object on the basis of the service signaling data when the consumption model is a predetermined consumption model; displaying a guide on content on the basis of the broadcast table or the service signaling data; identifying one of the received content item according to an additional information request on the content; and controlling the guide on the basis of the identified content item.
US09883233B1	Real-time audience measurement system Techniques for real-time audience measurement are provided. The techniques include instant message protocol in a DVR environment to obtain real-time audience measurement data to modify the scheduled recording time of a media content in real-time, to bookmark in real-time, and to gather audience ratings on commercials and viewership in real-time.
US09883227B1	Audiovisual signal processing circuit and associated television signal processing method A television signal processing circuit includes an audio/video (AV) signal generating circuit, an intermediate frequency (IF) mixer, a first filter, a radio-frequency (RF) mixer, a second filter and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). The AV signal generator generates a digital AV signal. The IF mixer converts the digital AV signal to an IF AV signal. The first filter filters the IF AV signal to generate a filtered IF AV signal. The RF mixer converts the filtered IF AV signal to an RF AV signal. The second filter filters the RF AV signal to generate a filtered RF AV signal. The DAC converts the filtered RF AV signal to an analog AV signal and transmits the analog AV signal to an antenna.
US09883226B2	System and method for reconfiguration of an entertainment system controlling device An entertainment device initiates a configuration process of a controlling device in response to a change in an audio visual entertainment system configuration in which at least one of a plurality devices is connected to the entertainment device as an audio and/or visual source and at least one of the plurality of devices is connected to the entertainment device as an audio and/or visual output destination for the entertainment device.
US09883225B2	Portable terminal, information processing apparatus, content display system and content display method A portable terminal includes a receiving unit which receives content information, an external device communication unit which conducts communication with an external information device, a display unit which displays the content information received by the receiving unit, an acquiring unit which acquires identification information identifying the content information displayed by the display unit, an operation unit which receives an operation indication from a user, and a control unit which conducts control such that if a transmission indication of the identification information is received by the operation unit while the content information is being displayed, the identification information acquired by the acquiring unit is transmitted to the external information device and the display of the content information by the display unit is terminated.
US09883224B2	Take it with you premium video content To allow a user to temporarily move access to premium content to another location, e.g. outside the vicinity of the home, while adequately protecting the rights of a broadcast content provider, the various examples implement a transfer of an object for an identified right of content usage between premium content reproduction devices and a mobile device. The mobile device enables such transfer to support viewing of the premium content by a user outside of the user's home.
US09883223B2	Apparatus and methods for multimedia coordination Methods and apparatus for providing coordination between two or more different media distribution channels. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a server and associated client processes disposed of various components of a managed content distribution network (e.g., cable or satellite network). The server process coordinates with the client processes to obtain user interactivity data useful is assessing the efficacy of certain secondary content (e.g., advertisements). In one variant, input is received from, and provided to, other associated media campaigns (e.g., print, online, and/or telephonic) so as to allow rapid and effective coordination between the campaigns. Mechanisms for improving user engagement to the secondary content are also disclosed.
US09883212B2	Video-broadcast system with DVE-related alert feature In one aspect, a method includes: receiving an instruction to apply a particular digital video-effect (DVE) of a particular DVE type to a temporal portion of a video segment based, at least in part, on the temporal portion of the video segment being suitable for having a DVE of the particular DVE type applied thereto, wherein the particular DVE corresponds to a duration; making a determination that no particular temporal portion of the video segment satisfies each condition in a set, the set comprising (i) a first condition that the particular temporal portion of the video segment has been identified as being suitable for having a DVE of the particular DVE type applied thereto, and (ii) a second condition that the particular temporal portion of the video segment is of at least the duration; and based, at least in part, on the received instruction and the determination, outputting an alert.
US09883211B2	Method and apparatus for selection of advertisements to fill a commercial break of an unknown duration In one embodiment, a method includes: receiving a user input requesting an event to be displayed; playing out the requested event; identifying a type of the requested event; estimating a duration of a next commercial break occurring in the requested event according to the type; selecting at least one advertisement having a duration corresponding to the estimated duration of the next commercial break; and playing out the at least one advertisement. Related systems, apparatus and methods are also described.
US09883199B2	Coding method and apparatus with candidate motion vectors Various embodiments for coding a current block of a picture are provided. A first candidate having a first motion vector predictor is derived from a first motion vector that has been used to code a first block. It is determined whether a total number of candidates having the first candidate is less than a predetermined maximum candidate number. A second candidate having a second motion vector predictor is derived when the total number of the candidates having the first candidate is less than the predetermined maximum candidate number. An index corresponding to a candidate having a motion vector predictor is coded. The candidate is one of a plurality of candidates having the first candidate and the second candidate. The predetermined maximum candidate number is fixed for all blocks in the picture.
US09883190B2	Video encoding using variance for selecting an encoding mode Video encoding using variance may include generating a first input variance based on pixel values from a first block from a first frame from an input video stream, generating a first encoded block by encoding the first block, generating a first reconstructed block by reconstructing the first encoded block, generating a first reconstruction variance based on pixel values of the first reconstructed block, comparing the first input variance and the first reconstruction variance to detect a visual artifact in the first reconstructed block, generating a second encoded block by encoding a second block from a second frame from the input video stream, wherein encoding the second block includes selecting an encoding mode based on the detection of the visual artifact in the first reconstructed block, including the second encoded block in an output bitstream, and storing or transmitting the output bitstream.
US09883181B2	Video decoding methods and video encoding methods A system for decoding a video bitstream includes receiving a reference picture set associated with a frame including a set of reference picture identifiers. The reference picture set identifies one or more reference pictures to be used for inter-prediction of the frame based upon its associated least significant bits of a picture order count based upon the reference picture identifiers. The one or more reference pictures is a second or greater previous frame to the frame having the matching reference picture identifier.
US09883169B2	Optical system, apparatus and method for operating an apparatus using helmholtz reciprocity An optical system includes an illumination unit and an imaging unit configured to image a scene including at least one object into a first image and a second image by using Helmholtz reciprocity. The illumination unit is configured to emit light into at least one light emitting solid angle and the imaging unit is configured to receive light from a light receiving solid angle. The light receiving solid angle is at least as large as each of the light emitting solid angles.
US09883167B2	Photometric three-dimensional facial capture and relighting Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a method and apparatus for generating a three-dimensional surface. In one embodiment, there is a method for generating a three-dimensional surface. The method includes capturing a plurality of images of a target object with at least two cameras, the target object illuminated by at least two sets of red-green-blue (RGB) lights positioned in an array about the target object and generating a three-dimensional surface of the target object by iteratively reconstructing a surface estimate of the target object and aligning images of the target object using motion estimation until the images converge, wherein the images are processed in n-frame intervals.
US09883165B2	Method and system for reconstructing 3D trajectory in real time A method is for reconstructing a trajectory at a site by a processing server connected to cameras and having access to recordings from these cameras. The server implements a 3D visualization application based on virtual and augmented reality based on a static model of a 3D representation of the site, and a dynamic 3D representation database. The 3D visualization application is configured to determine, in the 3D visualization at a moment T0, the location of an object considered to have been left unattended by an owner, in response to a first instruction from the user, determine at least one camera which is best-positioned for displaying the object, access a recording from the camera to display the object at a moment corresponding to when the object was left unattended by an owner and activate a method for tracking the owner to determine the owner's current location.
US09883149B2	Imaging sensor and method for color night vision An imaging sensor for low light level color imaging includes an array of pixels. Each pixel has a first pixel portion that has a first photosensitive area and is responsive to light in a panchromatic spectral range and a second pixel portion that has a second photosensitive area and is responsive to light in a sub-band spectral range. The first photosensitive area is greater than the second photosensitive area and the sub-band spectral range is narrower than and contained within the panchromatic spectral range. The first and second pixel portions of each pixel are independently addressable. The imaging sensor is beneficial for applications requiring wide dynamic range, low light sensitivity and color discrimination, and enables improved object discrimination and scene interpretation.
US09883138B2	Telepresence experience The description relates to remote collaboration via a telepresence experience. One example can include an interactive digital display. The example can also include a virtual user presentation component configured to generate a graphical user interface that includes a virtual representation of a remote user on the interactive digital display. The graphical user interface can be configured to present the remote user in a side by side or mirror image relationship to a local user of the interactive digital display.
US09883133B2	Broadcast receiving device and method for operating the same Disclosed is a broadcast receiving device. A terrestrial broadcast receiving unit receives a terrestrial broadcasting service. A mobile receiving unit receives a mobile broadcasting service transmitted via a network for mobile communication. A control unit allows the terrestrial broadcasting service and the mobile broadcasting service to be selectively received.
US09883128B2	Imaging systems with high dynamic range and phase detection pixels An image sensor may include a pixel array with high dynamic range functionality and phase detection pixels. The phase detection pixels may be arranged in phase detection pixel groups. Each phase detection pixel group may include three adjacent pixels arranged consecutively in a line. A single microlens may cover all three pixels in the phase detection pixel group, or two microlenses may combine to cover the three pixels in the phase detection pixel group. The edge pixels in each phase detection pixel group may have the same integration time and the same color. The middle pixel in each phase detection pixel group may have the same or different color as the edge pixels, and the same or different integration time as the edge pixels. Phase detection pixel groups may also be formed from two pixels that each are 1.5 times the size of neighboring pixels.
US09883121B2	Machine vision system for forming a one dimensional digital representation of a low information content scene A machine vision system to form a one dimensional digital representation of a low information content scene, e.g., a scene that is sparsely illuminated by an illumination plane, and the one dimensional digital representation is a projection formed with respect to columns of a rectangular pixel array of the machine vision system.
US09883120B2	Automatic composition of composite images or video with stereo foreground objects A processing device generates composite images from a sequence of images. The composite images may be used as frames of video. A foreground/background segmentation is performed at selected frames to extract a plurality of foreground object images depicting a foreground object at different locations as it moves across a scene. The foreground object images are stored to a foreground object list. The foreground object images in the foreground object list are overlaid onto subsequent video frames that follow the respective frames from which they were extracted, thereby generating a composite video.
US09883119B1	Method and system for hardware-based motion sensitive HDR image processing System and methods for performing motion sensitive high dynamic range (HDR) image processing. A saturation analysis circuit is configured to receive a set of image data corresponding to portions of a set of image frames having different exposures time from a lowest exposure time to a highest exposure time, and select image data from a frame that does not exceed the saturation threshold value. A motion detection circuit may be configured to determine whether the image data is associated with movement, by comparing image data from pairs of frames of adjacent exposure times, and changing the selection to a lower exposure time frame if movement is detected. By selecting which exposure time is used based upon movement in the image frame, ghosting and blurring in HDR images containing movement can be reduced.
US09883117B2	Method and apparatus for creating motion effect for image A method includes maintaining images and associated video streams; detecting a swipe gesture of a user on a touch sensitive display, wherein the swipe gesture comprises direction and speed information; and selecting an image based on the direction information of the swipe gesture. The method includes adjusting a playback of an associated video stream based on the direction and the speed information of the swipe gesture; providing the associated video stream on the display during the swipe gesture, for creating a motion effect relating to the image; and providing the image on the display after the swipe gesture.
US09883113B2	Imaging processing apparatus and method of imaging processing by controlling an imaging period There is provided an imaging processing apparatus comprising: an imaging period controller configured, when driving an imager with an exposure time less than a standard imaging period, to generate a frame of the standard imaging period every certain frames and to control an imaging period so that one of a preceding frame and succeeding frame of the frame of the standard imaging period has an imaging period shorter than the standard imaging period and the other has an imaging period longer than the standard imaging period; a shutter controller configured to control reset timing of electric charges accumulated in the imager in accordance with the imaging period of the imager; a storage configured to store therein taken images by the imager with the reset timing controlled; and a reading controller configured to read and output the taken images stored in the storage with a reproduction speed corresponding to the standard imaging period.
US09883110B2	Toggling between augmented reality view and rendered view modes to provide an enriched user experience The present invention relates to a camera enabled mobile device and method of toggling between an augmented reality image viewing mode and a rendered image viewing mode based, in part, on viewability of an augmented reality target (visible or invisible—markerless) proximate the camera enabled mobile device. The method comprising steps of positioning at least one of an augmented reality target in a physical location, aiming the camera at the augmented reality target, initiating, once, an immersive user software experience, determining which of the augmented reality appliance images and the rendered appliance images are associated with the augmented reality target, then toggling between the augmented reality image viewing mode when the augmented reality target is viewable by the camera else entering the rendered image viewing mode.
US09883088B2	Method of assembling camera for vehicle vision system A method of assembling a camera suitable for vehicular use includes providing a lens accommodated in a lens barrel, a camera front housing, and a printed circuit board with an imager disposed thereat. An adhesive is dispensed to establish a layer of uncured adhesive one of (i) between the lens barrel and a front portion of the camera front housing and (ii) between the printed circuit board and a rear portion of the camera front housing. With the lens in focus with the imager and optically center-aligned therewith, the adhesive is initially cured to an initially-cured state in an initial radiation curing process that includes exposure to UV light for a first period of time. The initially-cured adhesive is further cured to a further-cured state in a secondary curing process. The further-cured state is achieved within a second period of time that is longer than the first period of time.
US09883079B2	Method for noise-robust color changes in digital images A method for applying filters to digital images with minimal amplification of image noise, comprising filtering the digital image with an EPDR edge-preserving detail-reducing filter, determining a matrix from the filtered image as a result of one or more structure adaptive functions, and modifying the digital image using the filter, adjusted by the matrix values, to produce an enhanced digital image. The order of processing may be inverted, by first determining the matrix and then filtering the matrix with the edge-preserving detail-reducing filter.
US09883070B2	Image reading apparatus and method of controlling the same An image reading apparatus and a control method thereof are provided. The image reading apparatus includes a communication device configured to perform communication in a preset communication manner, a scanner configured to generate a scan image by scanning a manuscript, and at least one processor configured to control the communication device to transmit use information of the manuscript to an address corresponding to authorship information in response to a preset security pattern including the authorship information being detected in the generated scan image.
US09883069B2	Image reading device and printing apparatus There are provided an image reading device and a printing apparatus that can reduce an influence of the shadows of suction holes. Suction holes, which are used to suck a sheet, are arranged on the peripheral surface of a drum that transports the sheet. The suction holes are arranged in grooves that are formed along a direction orthogonal to a transport direction. Accordingly, since an influence of the shadows of the suction holes can be reduced even in a case in which density unevenness is inspected on the basis of a read image, the false detection of density unevenness can be prevented.
US09883065B2	Image reading device, image forming apparatus, and image reading method An image reading device includes a reading member and a skew detector. The reading member reads an image of a passing document at a read position preset in a document transport path. The skew detector detects a skew of the document by selecting one of a first skew detection mode and a second skew detection mode based on information that specifies a method for detecting the skew of the document. The first skew detection mode is a mode in which the skew of the document relative to a transport direction is detected based on an image of a leading-edge section, in the transport direction, read by the reading member. The second skew detection mode is a mode in which the skew of the document relative to the transport direction is detected based on an entire image read by the reading member.
US09883062B2	Image reader and image forming apparatus Provided is an image reader including a transparent plate that supports an original document on which an image is recorded, a reading member that is disposed inside a housing and reads an image of the original document supported by the transparent plate while moving, a guide member that extends in a movement direction of the reading member and guides the moving reading member, and an endless belt that is wound around a driving pulley that performs rotational driving and a driven pulley that is driven to rotate, the endless belt being rotated around the driving pulley and the driven pulley to move the reading member guided by the guide member, wherein at least one of the driving pulley and the driven pulley is attached to the guide member.
US09883056B2	Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and image processing system An image processing apparatus includes a storage configured to store a setting of various functions of the image processing apparatus; a first receiver configured to receive operation information for changing the setting stored in the storage via a network; a changer configured to change the setting stored in the storage based on the operation information received by the first receiver; a second receiver configured to receive, through an input unit provided in the image processing apparatus, a display operation of displaying the setting stored in the storage; and a notifier configured to notify, when the second receiver receives the display operation after the setting is changed by the operation information, that the setting has been changed by the operation information.
US09883042B1	Teleforum participant screening Implementations disclosed herein relate to systems and methods for conference screening. According to one implementation, a method includes connecting a participant to a multi-mode conference in a listen-only mode and receiving a request of active participation in the multi-mode conference from the participant. In response to receipt of the request for active participation, the participant is bridged into a private screening subconference, and information relating to the participant's requested active participation to the multi-mode conference is received via the private screening subconference responsive to a prompt. In response to the receipt of the information via the private screening subconference, the participant is placed in a queue to await authorization for active participation in the multi-mode conference, the queue including at least one other participant previously screened in another private screening sub-conference. The method further includes detecting selection of the participant from the queue, and establishing a connection between the participant and the multi-mode conference based on detection of the selection.
US09883038B2	Customer care mobile application A system and method is provided for providing contact center services via a mobile application on a mobile device. Status of a service request that is transmitted to a contact center is monitored. When a change in the status is detected, a notification is automatically transmitted to the mobile application. An interaction request is received from the mobile application in response to the notification. The interaction request identifies the service request. A party handling the service request is identified in response to receipt of the interaction request. The identified party is invited for engaging in interaction with the mobile device.
US09883033B2	Systems and methods for tracking and responding to mobile events in a relationship management system A method and apparatus for tracking and responding to mobile events in a relationship management system is described. The method may include detecting a mobile event associated with a user of a relationship management system. Furthermore, the method may include analyzing the mobile event to determine at least one relationship management process associated with the user for which the mobile event is related. The method may also include generating one or more relationship management system notifications for transmission to the mobile device of the user prior to initiation of the mobile event, and generating one or more relationship management suggestions or relationship management system notifications for transmission to the mobile device of the user after a termination of the mobile event.
US09883026B2	Method and apparatus for facilitating speech application testing A computer-implemented method and an apparatus for facilitating speech application testing generate a plurality of test scripts. A test script is generated by initiating a voice call interaction with a speech application including a network of interaction nodes, and repeatedly performing, until a stopping condition is encountered, the steps of, executing the voice call interaction by traversing through interaction nodes until an interaction node requiring a response is encountered, selecting an utterance generation mode, determining a response to be provided corresponding to the interaction node, and providing the response to the speech application. The test script comprises instructions for traversing interaction nodes and for provisioning one or more responses during the course of the voice call interaction. One or more test scripts from among the plurality of test scripts are identified based on a pre-determined objective and provided to a user for facilitating testing of the speech application.
US09883024B2	Mobile phone To provide a mobile phone which can be used without hampering convenience in a condition where functions of the mobile phone are switched and can improve operability. The mobile phone includes an optical sensor, a display element, a pixel circuit portion where a plurality of pixels having a plurality of transistors are arranged in matrix, an optical sensor control circuit which is connected to an optical sensor driver circuit for driving the optical sensor and reads a signal from the optical sensor, a display portion control circuit which is connected to a display element driver circuit for driving the display element and outputs an image signal for displaying an image on a display portion, a gradient detection portion for outputting a signal in accordance with a gradient of the mobile phone, and an arithmetic circuit for performing display in the pixel circuit portion by switching image signals output to the display portion control circuit with a signal from the gradient detection portion.
US09883020B2	Customized method and apparatus for controlling electric appliance A method and apparatus for controlling an electric appliance in a personalized way are disclosed, which relates to the technical field of communications and is used to solve problem of poor user experience of various appliances in a home or office environment in the existing technology. The method includes: detecting whether a wireless signal carrying SIM card information exists in a preset range; in a case that the wireless signal carrying the SIM card information exists, determining a user identity of an SIM card according to the SIM card information; and correspondingly controlling the electric appliance according to the user identity.
US09883017B2	Categorized handling of electronic communications A recipient communications device associated with a vehicle computing system (VCS) may be configured to receive, over a communications network, an incoming communication from a sender communications device, identify a notification type to provide based on a message directive provided by the sender device, retrieve notification settings associated with the notification type, and perform a notification of receipt of the incoming communication using a VCS user interface according to the notification settings.
US09883011B2	Method and corresponding device for streaming video data A method for streaming data corresponding to a video, each of a plurality of frames of the video being divided into n spatial tiles, the method includes transmitting, a description file to a client device, the description file including data about a spatial position of each of the n spatial tiles and including data about at least n URLs corresponding to the n spatial tiles, determining by the client device one or more URLs according to the data about the spatial position included in the description file, receiving from the client device, by a server, one or more request messages for requesting one or more spatial tiles, each request message comprising one of the URLs determined by the client device, and transmitting to the client device, by the server, video data corresponding to the one or more spatial tiles, in response to one or more the request messages.
US09883009B2	Automatic computer room air conditioning control method Techniques for automatically and efficiently controlling air conditioning units (ACUs) in a data center are provided. In one aspect, a method for controlling ACUs in a data center is provided. The method includes the following steps. It is identified which of the ACUs in the data center comprise base ACUs and which of the ACUs in the data center comprise redundant ACUs. Output from one or more of the redundant ACUs is increased in response to one or more control events. Output from the redundant ACUs is decreased once a predetermined period of time has elapsed without a new control event occurring.
US09883007B2	Downloading an application to an apparatus An apparatus for downloading an application from an application store comprises at least one processor and at least one memory storing program instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to receive user input on a touch sensitive graphical user interface providing a view of applications stored on an apparatus, the user input initiating downloading of an application to the apparatus, recognize at least one application in an application store corresponding to the received user input, and download an application of the at least one application from the application store to a memory of the apparatus.
US09883005B2	Systems and methods for managing communications across multiple identities Electronic communications are managed across multiple identities. A user is able to create an account as well as any desired, required, or appropriate number of profiles under the account. Text messages are exchanged between users using specific profiles. For example, some text messages can be exchanged using a personal profile while other text messages need to be exchanged using a professional profile. In some instances, exchanged text messages are saved to a centralized archive. As such, one or both of the users involved in an exchange can request to retrieve some or all of the exchanged messages at a later time.
US09882997B2	Methods and apparatus to monitor online activity Methods and apparatus are disclosed to monitory online activity. An example method includes collecting first uniform resource locators from a first client device having a meter. The example method also includes collecting second uniform resource locators from a second client device not having a meter. The example method also includes determining that ones of the second uniform resource locators from the second client device correspond to online activity of a user associated with the first client device based on ones of the first uniform resource locators matching at least portions of the ones of the second uniform resource locators. Additionally, the example method includes associating the second client device with the user of the first client device.
US09882989B2	Systems and methods for providing remote assistance for controlling a site A method for providing remote assistance for controlling a site is disclosed. A remote assistance request may be received from a control device. The remote assistance request may be sent from the control device to a remote server. Communication between the remote server and the control device may be established.
US09882987B2	Dynamically switching user equipment categories for adaptive mobile communications Concepts and technologies disclosed herein are directed to dynamically switching user equipment (“UE”) categories for adaptive mobile communications. According to one aspect of the concepts and technologies disclosed herein, a connected car device can determine whether it is operating in an idle mode or a connected mode. Based upon whether the connected car device is operating in the idle mode or the connected mode, the connected car device can determine an active UE category from a set of available UE categories. The connected car device can send the active user equipment category to a base station.
US09882986B2	Apparatus for capturing brushing habits An apparatus that monitors the brushing history of a user is provided. In one embodiment, the apparatus, such as a toothbrush, may capture brushing data when a user is brushing teeth, and store the captured brushing data in a database of the apparatus.
US09882983B2	System and method for optimized content synchronization for mobile devices A mobile device may download preconfigured synchronization settings from a server machine. An application running on the mobile device may have special control logic that works with the server machine to implement a mobile synchronization algorithm. The control logic may collect information on communication system elements including device attributes, static channel attributes, dynamic channel attributes, or a combination thereof. The server machine may determine communication settings based at least on the collected information. The mobile device may, based at least in part on the determined communication settings, perform a synchronization process and obtain one or more synchronization items from the server machine to update content, graphics, and/or behavior of the application. Upon completion of the synchronization process, statistics may be collected and used in a subsequent dynamic synchronization process. To further optimize synchronization performance while minimizing costs, a multi-tier storage solution may be utilized.
US09882981B2	Methods and systems for state synchronization over a non-reliable network using signature processing Systems and methods for facilitating confirmation of completion of a transaction for state synchronization over a non reliable network using signature processing are described. One of the methods includes receiving a read request from a first client, sending a last known signature with a context object to the first client in response to receiving the read request, and receiving an appended signature from the first client with a context object for a transaction at the first client. The appended signature includes the last known signature and an increment by the first client. The operation of receiving the appended signature occurs upon execution of the transaction at the first client. The method further includes updating the last known signature to the appended signature and sending the updated last known signature to the first client to facilitate marking of the transaction as complete resulting in a definitive state synchronization.
US09882979B2	Image file transmission A method transmits an image file to a target electronic device. One or more processors convert an original image file from a first format into a second format to create a converted image file. A locator address metatag is appended to the converted image file. The locator address metatag provides an address of a copy of the original image file in the first format. The converted image file with the locator address metatag is transmitted, from a source electronic device to a target electronic device, such that the locator address metatag enables the target electronic device to locate and retrieve the copy of the original image file.
US09882977B2	Information-processing system, information-processing device, storage medium, and information-processing method An exemplary information-processing system includes: an executing unit that executes an application program; and a posted information sharing unit that receives and stores posted information and/or provides the posted information to users, wherein the posted information sharing unit includes: a posted information generating unit that generates the posted information; and a posted information storing unit that stores a plurality items of the posted information, each item of the posted information being stored along with identification information of an application program corresponding to the posted information, the executing unit includes a requesting unit that identifies identification information of an application program being executed and requests the posted information sharing unit to output the posted information, the posted information sharing unit further includes a posted information outputting unit that extracts at least one item of the posted information corresponding to the identified identification information.
US09882976B1	Supporting heterogeneous environments during code deployment When servers hosting a website are under some form of deployment activity (e.g., a software update being in mid-deployment), the resources requested may not be available from all servers hosting the website. In such mid-deployment edge cases, the server would return an error message in response to the request. According to an application employing redirect instructions via a load balancer, a redirect function (such as a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) status code 302) may be configured to redirect a client request to the same location as an initial request, via a load balancer, in order to provide the client with multiple attempts of reaching an updated host (e.g., a server hosting a resource based on a recent deployment), without having to receive error codes or otherwise fail to receive the requested resource.
US09882973B2	Breadth-first resource allocation system and methods A computing environment adapted with a resource allocation policy, the resource allocation policy being configured to evenly distribute application instances to as many servers as possible.
US09882967B2	Processing incoming transactions based on resource utilization status of backend systems in an appliance cluster A processor-implemented method and/or computer program product negotiates the processing of incoming transactions based on resource utilization status of backend systems in an appliance cluster. An incoming transaction, which is a specialized function for an appliance, is received by a processor. The processor determines whether the incoming transaction can be processed by the appliance cluster based on a current threshold level and a current transaction count, and then identifies a target appliance from the appliance cluster as a negotiation device in response to determining that the incoming transaction cannot be processed.
US09882957B1	Client-side endpoint specification in a network service request Client-side endpoint configuration can be accomplished by allowing a client to include as part of an API request, a desired endpoint for subsequent notifications from a server. The endpoint can be an endpoint identifier, such as a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) or a domain name. When a web service receives the API request from a client device, the web service can generate a response to the request and send the response to the endpoint identified in the request. The API request can asynchronously communicate with the client device whenever the response is completed.
US09882948B2	Uploading and streaming of video and other rich content Methods and systems are used to share data as authorized by a provider for review by a recipient. Rich content, such as video, still images and audio, may be captured and automatically uploaded to a network-accessible location. The uploaded rich content may then be shared with a recipient (e.g., a recipient designated by the provider, etc.). As the recipient reviews the uploaded rich content, the amount of the rich content played by the recipient can be tracked, and the provider may be notified of whether or not the recipient has accessed the shared information and/or the extent to which the shared information was reviewed.
US09882937B2	Communication receiver A communication receiver, comprising a first client being configured for reception according to the dynamic adaptive streaming over the hypertext transfer protocol (DASH), and a second client being configured for reception according to the File Delivery over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) protocol, wherein the first client is configured to provide a retrieve pattern to the second client, and wherein the second client is configured to retrieve a media content according to the retrieve pattern.
US09882929B1	Dynamic selection and generation of a virtual clone for detonation of suspicious content within a honey network Techniques for dynamic selection and generation of detonation location of suspicious content with a honey network are disclosed. In some embodiments, a system for dynamic selection and generation of detonation location of suspicious content with a honey network includes a virtual machine (VM) instance manager that manages a plurality of virtual clones executed in an instrumented VM environment, in which the plurality of virtual clones executed in the instrumented VM environment correspond to the honey network that emulates a plurality of devices in an enterprise network; and an intelligent malware detonator that detonates a malware sample in at least one of the plurality of virtual clones executed in the instrumented VM environment.
US09882923B2	Automatic context-sensitive sanitization An automatic context-sensitive sanitization technique detects errors due to the mismatch of a sanitizer sequence with a browser parsing context. A pre-deployment analyzer automatically detects violating paths that contain a sanitizer sequence that is inconsistent with a browsing context associated with outputting an untrusted input. The pre-deployment analyzer determines a correct sanitizer sequence which is stored in a sanitization cache. During the runtime execution of the web application, a path detector tracks execution of the web application in relation to the violating paths. The correct sanitizer sequence can be applied when the runtime execution follows a violating path.
US09882908B2	Transparent asynchronous network flow information exchange A method for providing a transparent asynchronous network flow exchange is provided. The method may include receiving a query request from a requester, whereby the received query request is associated with a network packet. The method may also include determining if the network packet contains a plurality of defined signatures. The method may further include in response to determining that the network packet contains a plurality of defined signatures, authenticating a plurality of information associated with the network packet. The method may additionally include determining a plurality of flow related security information associated with the network packet based on the authentication of the plurality of information. The method may include sending the determined plurality of flow related security information to the requester.
US09882899B2	Remotely authenticating a device Remotely authenticating a device includes generating authentication data and secret key data in a controlled environment, sending the authentication data to a remote authentication engine, and sending the secret key data to a personalization engine to apply the secret key data to a device after sending the authentication data to the remote authentication engine such that the remote authentication engine has an ability to authenticate the device.
US09882893B2	System and method for secured password management for industrial devices An industrial process/safety control and automation system is provided. The system includes a user interface device and an industrial device/controller. The user interface device is configured to activate a password set function. The user interface device is also configured to receive a password for transmission to the industrial device/controller. The industrial device/controller is configured to receive the password from the user interface device. The industrial device/controller is also configured to detect a performance of a physical password replacement authentication procedure. The industrial device/controller is further configured to replace a current password with the received password in response to performing the physical password replacement authentication procedure.
US09882891B2	Identity verification A method, server processing system and computer readable medium for identity verification is disclosed. In one aspect, the server processing system is configured to: receive digitally signed data including rating data issued by a second server processing system in order for an entity to register for a service associated with the server processing system, the rating data is indicative of an identity verification rating for the entity; verify that the digitally signed data has been issued by the second server processing system; and use the identity verification rating to register the entity in the event that the rating data is successfully verified as being issued by the second server processing system.
US09882880B2	Communication apparatus, method for controlling the same, and storage medium A communication apparatus acquires information about a service provided by another communication apparatus and identifies a service executable between the communication apparatus and the another communication apparatus based on the acquired information and a service executable by the communication apparatus. If a plurality of services is identified, the communication apparatus controls a port corresponding to each of the plurality of the identified services.
US09882879B1	Using steganography to protect cryptographic information on a mobile device Methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture for using steganography to protect cryptographic information on a mobile device are provided herein. A method includes querying a user to select one or more items of data stored on a computing device to be used in connection with one or more cryptographic actions associated with said computing device, and protecting one or more items of cryptographic information within the one or more selected items of data.
US09882873B2	MAC address allocation for virtual machines Systems and methods for MAC address allocation for virtual machines. An example method may include: initializing a virtual machine, determining that a network identifier has not been assigned to the virtual machine, in view of a determination that a network identifier has not been assigned to the virtual machine, transmitting, via a network, a network identifier request, receiving, via the network, one or more data packets, processing, by a processing device, the one or more data packets to identify a network identifier directed to the virtual machine, and assigning the network identifier to the virtual machine.
US09882863B2	Methods and systems for optimizing messages to users of a social network Techniques to optimize messages sent to a user of a social networking system. In one embodiment, information about the user may be collected by the social networking system. The information may be applied to train a model for determining likelihood of a desired action by the user in response to candidate messages that may be provided for the user. The social networking system may provide to the user a message from the candidate messages with a selected likelihood of causing the desired action.
US09882854B2	Email parking lot Ordering a series of messages when there is a possibility that the messages will be received out of order. A method includes receiving a plurality of messages in a series of messages. Each of the messages in the plurality of messages is stored in a temporary storage container; in anticipation of receiving a master message. A master message is received. The master message defines an ordering for the plurality of messages. The messages in the series of message from the temporary storage to a destination container accessible by a user according to the ordering defined in the master message.
US09882850B2	Systems and methods for controlling email access Embodiments of the disclosure relate to proxying at least one email resource from at least one email service to at least one client device, determining whether the email resources are accessible to the client devices via at least one unauthorized application on the client devices, and modifying the email resources to be inaccessible via the unauthorized applications on the client devices in response to a determination that the email resources are accessible via the unauthorized applications on the client devices.
US09882848B2	System and method of delivering notifications A method includes associating an e-mail address with a media device at a server of a television network. The media device is associated with the television network and the e-mail address is associated with a network device outside of the television network. The method includes receiving, at the server, an e-mail message directed to the e-mail address. The method also includes sending an e-mail notification from the server to the media device responsive to receipt of the e-mail message. The e-mail notification indicates whether the e-mail message includes an attachment. The e-mail notification permits the media device to provide notification of the e-mail message and an indication of whether the e-mail message includes an attachment to an output device coupled to the media device.
US09882841B2	Validating workload distribution in a storage area network An information system identifies redundant communication paths between a server and a storage device in a storage area network and classifies the state of the paths according to the distribution of workload amongst them. To make the classification, the information system pairs up active paths. For each pair of active paths, the information system identifies traffic data of the two paths. The information system compares the traffic data of the two paths. Based on the comparison, the information system determines whether workload is balanced or imbalanced between the two paths.
US09882840B2	Scalable crosspoint switch A crosspoint switch matrix may include a plurality of point cells provided at intersections between a plurality of input pathways and a plurality of output pathways. The input pathways may be partitioned into groups, each group defined by a demultiplexer that forwards an input signal to the point cells within the group and/or to a demultiplexer of a succeeding group. The output pathways may be partitioned into groups, each group defined by a multiplexer that forwards a signal from an active point cell to an output of the matrix. Multiplexers of groups in intermediate positions between the point cell and the matrix output may relay the output signal between the multiplexers along a bypass pass. When both the input pathways and output pathways are so partitioned, each point cell may be a member of one input pathway group and one output pathway group.
US09882839B2	Zero-latency network on chip (NoC) Packet format configurability is extended for packets transported on physical links of an Intellectual Property (IP) core interconnect by using at least two independent parameters: one parameter governing data-width and one parameter governing latency penalty. The at least two independent parameters allow creation of transport protocol packets without additional latency insertion, which is useful for low-latency applications. The at least two independent parameters also allow creation of narrow packets with multi-cycle additional latency, which is useful for latency tolerant, area sensitive applications.
US09882838B2	Forwarding inter-switch connection (ISC) frames in a network-to-network interconnect topology Systems, mechanisms, apparatuses, and methods are disclosed for forwarding Inter-Switch Connection (ISC) frames in a Network-to-Network Interconnect (NNI) topology, for example, via a network switch which includes a first physical switch port to receive a physical switch link from a second network switch; logic to implement a first logical ISC and a second logical ISC′ connection to the second network switch via the physical switch link; a second physical switch port to receive an interface connection from a third network switch; and switch forwarding logic to forward frames received at the first network switch to the second network switch via the logical ISC or logical ISC′ based on whether or not the physical switch link is part of an active topology upon which the network switch operates or is not part of the active topology upon which the network switch operates. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US09882834B2	Capturing data parameters in templates in a networked computing environment Embodiments of the present invention provide an approach for allowing a user to capture a set of values for a set of input parameters in a template that may be used for present and/or future provisioning of virtual resources. Under this approach, the template may be managed within a networked computing environment (e.g., cloud computing environment) for future use by the creating user or other authorized users. The next time the user is interacting with the environment, the set of templates available may be accessed, and the user can select/utilize a previously stored template. Once a template is chosen, the user may initiate a provisioning request from the environment's interface(s), which may include graphical user interfaces (GUIs), command lines, application programming interfaces (APIs), etc. In any event, the user may also have the opportunity to update any saved data and/or provide additional data.
US09882831B2	Maximizing bandwidth utilization in networks with high latencies and packet drops using transmission control protocol Disclosed is a method of maximizing the utilization of currently available network path bandwidth by TCP transmissions. Embodiments of the present invention allow to automatically detect and utilize a larger portion of the currently available bandwidth (or even the entire bandwidth) for every specific connection and network path that utilizes the invention. Furthermore, some embodiments of the present invention provide that the software implementing the technology may be running only at the data sender side and may communicate with a standard receiver. According to embodiments of the present invention, the software implementing the invention may be placed between a TCP/IP protocol driver and a Network Interface driver. Such intermediate software may hide the real network state from TCP/IP driver and shift the TCP connection SWND edge by means of Preemptive Spoof Data Acknowledgment and Packet Loss Concealment.
US09882825B2	Method and system for securely transmitting volumes into cloud A first computing device is provided for transmitting one or more volumes via a secured connection. The first computing device includes a volume service that is executable by one or more processors and is configured to instruct a cloud computing device to generate a worker virtual machine. The volume service is also configured to provide, via a connection different from the secured connection, a random number to the worker virtual machine. The volume service is further configured to instruct the cloud computing device to generate one or more target volumes associated with the cloud computing service and to associate the one or more target volumes with the worker virtual machine. The volume service is further instructed to provide, irrespective of the content type of the volumes and the size of the volumes, the one or more volumes to the worker virtual machine via the secured connection.
US09882824B2	Cloud application deployment portability A system (100) includes a portability manager (160) to provide portability instructions to specify a change in deployment of a given application (110) on a cloud infrastructure (130). A deployment manager (120) controls deployment or lifecycle management of the given application (110) on the cloud infrastructure (130) in response to the portability instructions and based on matching cloud infrastructure resources to application requirements for the given application (110).
US09882818B2	Adjusting a jitter buffer based on inter arrival jitter This disclosure relates to adjusting a jitter buffer at a wireless device based on inter-arrival-jitter (IAJ). In one embodiment, an IAJ value may be calculated for each of multiple received packets. An IAJ distribution may be generated for the received packets. A target packet loss rate may be determined. A quality of service value for IAJ distributions corresponding to the target packet loss rate may be determined. A de-jitter delay value may be calculated based on the IAJ distribution and the quality of service value for IAJ distributions. The de-jitter delay value may be used to adjust the jitter buffer at the wireless device.
US09882816B2	Method of mapping CSI-RS ports to resource blocks, base station and user equipment The present disclosure provides a communication method that a base station configures different CSI-RS ports with different periodicity based on UE requirement (e.g. mobility) to reduce CSI-RS overhead. And another method is to transmit partial CSI-RS ports in a cyclic shifted manner to further reduce the overhead. In addition, cyclic shifted transmission of split CSI-RS port groups are proposed to reduce the potential big difference of interference onto different CSI-RS port groups.
US09882810B2	Method and device for data transfer over a plurality of links The disclosure discloses a method and device for data transfer over a plurality of links, the method including: selecting, by a transmitting device, a virtual link over which a data packet needs to be transmitted, from a plurality of virtual links; determining, by the transmitting device, a physical link corresponding to the selected virtual link according to a binding relationship between the virtual link and the physical link; and transmitting, by the transmitting device, the data packet to a receiving device over the determined physical link; wherein the data packet includes an Internet Protocol (IP) address corresponding to the virtual link, and the plurality of virtual links correspond to the same IP address.
US09882807B2	Network traffic classification A computer implemented method and system comprising receiving a data packet from a network source, extracting source and destination data from the received data packet, determining a user from the extracted source and destination data from the received data packet. If a label does not exist for the extracted source and destination data from the received data packet, creating a label for the data packet, the label comprising the extracted source data and historic source data for the determined user, calling a chaotic function with the label for the received data packet. If the chaotic function returns false, calling an alternative function for an output with the label for the received data packet. If the chaotic function returns true, capturing the output of the chaotic function, and updating the label with the output of the chaotic function or with the output of the alternative function.
US09882806B2	Network description mechanisms for anonymity between systems Techniques are disclosed for exchanging anonymized information between autonomous systems. In one example, a method comprises accessing an eigenvalue, wherein the eigenvalue is based on topology data associated with the first autonomous system; encoding the eigenvalue into a message; and transmitting, by a network element located in the first autonomous system, the message to an external edge router located in the second autonomous system. A further method can comprise receiving, by a network component located in a first autonomous system, a message, wherein the message comprises an eigenvalue and the message is received from an external network element located in a second autonomous system; accessing another other eigenvalue, the another eigenvalue corresponding to an autonomous system different from the first autonomous system; analyzing the another eigenvalue and the eigenvalue; and executing, by the network element, an action based on the analyzing.
US09882802B2	Auto management of a virtual device context enabled network infrastructure In some embodiments, a virtual device context (vDC) domain may be advertised to other network devices. If at least a partition of each device is determined to belong to the same vDC domain, the network interface communicating with the at least one device may be activated.
US09882791B2	Reducing received data in a V2X network based on received signal strength A method for filtering a transmission signal transmitted in a vehicular ad hoc network, the signal carrying at least position data of participants in data packets. The method includes the following steps: receiving the transmission signal; filtering the data packets from the transmission signal based on a receive filter having a predetermined receive filter specification for demodulating the data packets from the transmission signal, and an additional predetermined condition; and distributing the filtered data packets to a data processing unit superordinate to the receive filter.
US09882787B2	Service management in appliance-based solutions System, method, and computer program product to perform an operation comprising deploying a first appliance including at least one service to a computing environment including a plurality of appliances, determining, for each service in the first appliance, whether the service is active on at least one other appliance of the plurality of appliances in the computing environment, and activating, on the first appliance, only each service not determined to be active on at least one other appliance of the plurality of appliances, so that each service determined to be active in at least one other appliance of the plurality of appliances is not activated on the first appliance.
US09882786B2	Processing diagnostics of media services A system that incorporates the subject disclosure may include, for example, a device receiving diagnostic information from a plurality of client devices delivering media content, wherein the diagnostic information relates to a media delivery service quality and wherein the diagnostic information is sent automatically by the client devices; performing a data compression procedure for the diagnostic information; transmitting compressed data comprising the diagnostic information to an aggregator device; and sending to the client devices a message to delay or prevent transmission of additional diagnostic information in accordance with an instruction received from the aggregator device. Other embodiments are disclosed.
US09882781B2	Fast linkup arbitration A data processing system comprising: first and second network ports each operable to support a network connection configured according to one or more of a predetermined set of physical layer protocols; and a processor configured to, on a network message being formed for transmission to a network endpoint accessible over either of the first and second network ports: estimate the total time required to, for each of the predetermined set of physical layer protocols, negotiate a respective network connection and transmit the entire network message over that respective network connection; select the physical layer protocol having the lowest estimate of the total time required to negotiate a respective network connection and transmit the network message over that respective network connection; and configure at least one of the first and second network ports to use the selected physical layer protocol.
US09882777B2	Role and proximity-based management of networks Various embodiments manage computing networks. In one embodiment, a set of network management data associated with one or more users is analyzed. The set of network management data includes at least electronic scheduling information associated with the one or more users. A concentration of users is predicted for a given location based on the analyzing. At least one network characteristic associated with the given location is performed based on at least the predicted concentration of users.
US09882755B2	Apparatus for transmitting broadcast signals, apparatus for receiving broadcast signals, method for transmitting broadcast signals and method for receiving broadcast signals The present invention provides a method of transmitting broadcast signals. The method includes encoding service data of Physical Layer Pipes (PLPs); bit interleaving the encoded service data; building at least one signal frame including the bit interleaved service data; and modulating data in the at least one signal frame by Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) method; inserting a preamble at a beginning of each of the at least one signal frame after the modulating step; and transmitting the broadcast signals having the modulated data, wherein the preamble includes two OFDM symbols and each of the two OFDM symbols is generated by a sequence multiplication, and wherein each of the two OFDM symbols in the preamble includes information for an emergency alert.
US09882740B2	Wireless acquisition of digital video images A system can include a first transmitter unit having a first communication engine that controls a first local network, where the first transmitter unit is positioned at a first location. The system can also include a first remote device communicably coupled, using the first local network, to the first transmitter unit. The system can further include a receiver unit having a second communication engine that controls a second local network, where the receiver unit is positioned at a second location. The system can also include a smart device having an application that is communicably coupled, using the second local network, to the receiver unit. The system can further include a bridge network that wirelessly communicably couples the first transmitter unit to the receiver unit. The first local network and the second local network are wireless networks.
US09882739B2	Method for disabling a legacy loop detect circuit in a beta node A method for disabling or removing a Legacy loop detect circuit to eliminate the circuit erroneously detecting a legacy loop during a IEEE-1394 serial bus initialization. The method includes providing a programmable code to the Legacy loop detect circuit for increasing a reset count to a value greater than three (3) to the Legacy loop circuit thus reducing the probability of an erroneous disconnect of a Beta node connection. This method provides for more robust Beta loop node operation during high frequency bus resets.
US09882736B2	Remote sound generation for a home automation system Various arrangements for sound generation based on remotely-enforced rules are presented. A rule definition for a rule may be received that defines a sound event to be remotely output in response to an occurrence of a home automation event. A home automation host system may monitor home automation data received from one or more home automation devices for the home automation event. In response to receiving home automation data indicative of the home automation event, the rule based on the rule definition may be executed. A sound execution message may be transmitted via a low-power wireless network to a sound generator, the message can include an identifier indicative of the sound.
US09882730B2	Channel-occupancy efficient, low power wireless networking An apparatus and method are provided for saving power an independent basic service set (IBSS) comprising a master and a plurality of clients. According to the apparatus and method, a client of the IBSS receives a keyset packet from the master during an interval, the keyset packet including an aggregate of current client data, wherein the interval is a member of the group consisting of: a beacon interval and a coordination transmission interval. The client sends a key packet to the master during the interval, the key packet including new data from the client. The client contends for a shared wireless medium to send the key packet. The client enters an idle state for a duration of the interval after sending the key packet.
US09882723B2	Method and system for authentication A method and system of authenticating communications sessions between two or more parties over one or more simultaneous communications channels using one or more communicating devices is provided including having a first party create a first set of signatures, wherein the first set of signatures includes a signature for each communications channel, communicating with at a second party over at least one communications channel, whereby the second party authenticates the first party's signature associated with the at least one communications channel and accepts communication with the first party.
US09882716B2	Method and apparatus for generating and processing quantum signal in regular frame unit for quantum encryption key distribution A transmitter for generating and processing quantum signals in regular frame units in a quantum key distribution system, includes: a photon pulse stream generator to generate quantum information in numbered frame units and periodically transmit the quantum information through a quantum channel; a public channel transceiver to communicate with a receiver of the quantum key distribution system through a public channel; a frame synchronization information generator to generate frame synchronization information for frame synchronization of the receiver, and transmit the frame synchronization information through the public channel transceiver to the receiver, in every frame or every several frames; and a signal processor to transmit and receive open information on the every frame or every several frames through the public channel transceiver, and process the quantum information in frame units.
US09882709B2	Timing recovery with adaptive channel response estimation System and method of timing recovery for recovering a clock signal by using adaptive channel response estimation. The channel response estimation in the timing recovery loop is dynamically adapted to the current channel response that varies over time. More particularly, the channel estimation coefficients used in a channel estimator can be adapted based on an error signal representing the difference between a received signal at the timing recovery loop and an estimated signal output from a channel estimator. Further, to prevent undesirable interaction between the channel estimator and the overall timing recovery loop with respect to clock phase recovery, the adaptation of channel estimation can be controlled in terms of speed or time so as to reduce or eliminate the channel estimator's effect on clock phase correction.
US09882705B2	Communication apparatus, communication method, and computer readable medium using propagation delay for time synchronization A synchronous frame reception unit receives a synchronous frame describing a reference value for time synchronization with a management apparatus which is transmitted repeatedly from the management apparatus. A propagation delay computation unit computes, each time when the synchronous frame is received, a propagation delay of the synchronous frame. A propagation delay time period computation unit computes, each time when the propagation delay is computed, a propagation delay time period by adding a target value of a synchronous accuracy to the propagation delay. A propagation delays computation unit operates a logical OR operation of M pieces of propagation delay time periods computed for M pieces of synchronous frames which precede a latest synchronous frame. A synchronous determination unit decides, based on the propagation delay of the latest synchronous frame and a logical OR operation result of the M pieces of propagation delay time periods of the M pieces of synchronous frames, whether or not to use the reference value described in the latest synchronous frame for time synchronization with the management apparatus.
US09882695B2	Master station and method for HEW communication using a transmission signaling structure for a HEW signal field Embodiments of a transmission signaling structure for HEW are defined to carry packet information to configure OFDMA receivers for demodulation of a specific portion of the packet and/or to configure receivers for transmission using specific OFDMA and MU-MIMO resources. In some embodiments, the specific portion of the packet comprises one or more minimum bandwidth units of one or more 20 MHz channels. Each 20 MHz bandwidth structure may comprise several minimum bandwidth units to allow each 20 MHz channel to have a have smaller granularity than 20 MHz.
US09882691B2	Method and apparatus for providing antenna configuration information for massive multiple input multiple output in a wireless communication system A method for transmitting a reference signal for supporting a plurality of antennas to a User Equipment (UE) at a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communication system is disclosed. The method includes grouping the plurality of antennas into antenna groups comprising a predetermined number of antenna ports, transmitting resource information about a reference signal for at least one antenna group of the antenna groups, and transmitting the reference signal for the at least one antenna group to the UE based on the resource information.
US09882690B2	Method and apparatus for transmitting information about a channel in a wireless communication system A method and a user equipment (UE) configured with one or more cells for feeding back channel information are discussed. The method according to an embodiment includes receiving information on a maximum number of ranks; transmitting first channel information generated based on rank information; and transmitting second channel information which is generated based on the same rank information as the rank information used for generating the first channel information. The maximum number of ranks is used to determine the rank information.
US09882689B2	Apparatus and method for base station cooperative communication in wireless communication system A Base Station (BS) cooperative communication method in a wireless communication system is provided. The BS cooperative communication method includes measuring signal quality of one or more neighboring BSs, comparing a number of downlink beams available for communication between a serving BS and a Mobile Station (MS) with a reference value, determining not to involve the one or more neighboring BSs in BS cooperative communication for the MS when the number of downlink beams is equal to or larger than the reference value, comparing signal measurements of the one or more neighboring BSs with a first threshold when the number of downlink beams is smaller than the reference value, and determining to involve one or more neighboring BSs having a signal measurement value larger than the first threshold in the BS cooperative communication for the MS.
US09882680B2	Surveillance system including network camera and gateway and method of driving the same A surveillance system in which a network camera communicates with a client device via a gateway is provided. The network camera includes: at least one processor configured to implement a packet generator which generates a plurality of data packets, each including at least one of image data and audio data, and constitute a multi-data packet including the data packets; a memory configured to store at least a portion of the data packets; and an input/output interface through which the packet generator transmits the multi-data packet to a gateway or client device, wherein, in response to receiving an indication that a transmission error has occurred to at least one data packet among the data packets constituting the multi-data packet, the packet generator further generates a target data packet including the data packet from the stored data packets, and transmits the target data packet to the gateway or client device.
US09882679B2	Method and system for improved cross polarization rejection and tolerating coupling between satellite signals Methods and systems for improved cross polarization rejection and tolerating of coupling between satellite signals may comprise receiving radio frequency (RF) signals on a chip, where the RF signals comprising a desired signal and at least one crosstalk signal. The received RF signals may be down-converted to baseband frequencies, and the down-converted signals are converted to digital signals. Crosstalk may be determined by estimating complex coupling coefficients between the received RF signals utilizing a de-correlation algorithm across a frequency bandwidth comprising the desired and crosstalk signals. The down-converted signals may be low-pass filtered and summed with an output signal from a cancellation filter. The complex coupling coefficients may be determined utilizing the de-correlation algorithm on the summed signals, and may be used to configure the cancellation filter. Crosstalk may be canceled in a receiver path from a cancellation filter receiving low-pass filtered down-converted signals from another path.
US09882674B1	System, method, and apparatus for detecting and jamming wireless devices A system provides for radio frequency detection of an offending device within a specific range of a body worn device. Upon detection of the radio frequency signal, the body worn device jams communications by the offending device and optionally communicates to an infrastructure to alert of the presence and optionally the location of the radio frequency signal, and therefore the offending device. In some embodiments, the user and/or location of the body worn device is/are revealed and the source of the radio frequency signal is readily determined for confiscation of the offending device. Other optional features include locating/tracking of the body worn device (and wearer) detection of tampering with the body worn device, and detection of cloaking of the body worn device (e.g. submerging in water or covering with aluminum foil, etc.).
US09882671B2	Optical reception apparatus, optical transmission apparatus, optical communication system, optical communication method, and storage medium storing program An optical signal transmitted by another terminal device that was used for compensation could be received by a device that is not the intended destination of said optical signal, resulting in the problem that confidentiality cannot be guaranteed for the information in said optical signal. This optical reception device is characterized by the provision of the following: a receiving means via which wavelength-multiplexed signal light is inputted; and a transmitting means that, in accordance with an identifier in an optical signal of a prescribed wavelength in the inputted wavelength-multiplexed signal light, forwards said optical signal.
US09882669B1	Activating interference signal rejection filter path based on detection of an interference signal in a wireless distribution system (WDS) Embodiments of the disclosure relate to activating an interference signal rejection filter path based on detection of an interference signal in a wireless distribution system (WDS). In this regard, in one aspect, a filter path selection circuit is configured to activate an interference rejection filter path configured to suppress a predefined interference signal when the predefined interference signal is detected in a received radio frequency (RF) signal. In another aspect, the filter path selection circuit is configured to detect the predefined interference signal by comparing a measured power level of the predefined interference signal against a predefined power threshold. By activating the interference rejection filter path to suppress the predefined interference signal based on detection of the predefined interference signal, it is possible to dynamically respond to the predefined interference signal that may randomly appear in the WDS, thus providing an enhanced overall RF performance in the WDS.
US09882661B1	Closed loop calibration by frequency separation Methods and systems for calibrating a transceiver using frequency separation are disclosed. A method configured to calibrate a transceiver that includes connecting an output of a transmitter to an input of a receiver. A receiver local oscillator signal having a receiver local oscillator frequency (fRXLO) is provided to a receiver mixer. A transmitter local oscillator signal having a transmitter local oscillator frequency (fTXLO) to is provided to a transmitter mixer. The receiver local oscillator frequency is separated from the transmitter local oscillator frequency by a nonzero intermediate frequency (fIF). The method includes upconverting a test signal having a baseband frequency (fBB) using the transmitter mixer and downconverting the output signal of the transmitter mixer with the receiver mixer to generate a calibration signal. The transceiver is calibrated based on the calibration signal.
US09882643B2	Method and device for setting up and operating a modular, highly scalable, very simple, cost-efficient and enduring transparent optically routed network for network capacities of greater than 1 Petabit/s A method for setting up, operating and/or scaling a modular optically routed transport network includes: providing a quasi passive Optical Transport Network (OTN) core network according to ITU-T G.709 with N network nodes at the core network edge; providing at least one active component in each network node for the transmission of data over the core network; and changing at least one of the at least one active component in at least one network node for scaling the network. The at least one active component is an optical transceiver comprising digital signal processors (DSPs).
US09882641B2	Resource allocation in PON networks via wave-front multiplexing and de-multiplexing A data communication system comprises a central office processor which comprises a first input mapping unit, a first wave-front multiplexer, and a first output mapping unit. The first input mapping unit receives and dynamically maps digital data into a plurality of first electronic signals. The first wave-front multiplexer is coupled to the first input mapping unit to receive the first electronic signals, perform a wave-front multiplexing transformation on the first electronic signals, and output wave-front multiplexed signals, each of the wave-front multiplexed signals being a linear combination of the first electronic signals. The first output mapping unit is coupled to the first wave-front multiplexer to receive and dynamically map the wave-front multiplexed signals into second electronic signals.
US09882639B2	System and method for communication with a mobile device via a positioning system including RF communication devices and modulated beacon light sources A light source emits a modulated light, and a radio-frequency transceiver disposed therewith emits a radio-frequency signal. A mobile device may receive either or both signals and determine its position based thereon. The light and radio-frequency sources may be disposed in node in a network of said sources, and the nodes may communicate via the radio-frequency transceivers.
US09882613B2	Determining actual loop gain in a distributed antenna system (DAS) Embodiments of the disclosure relate to determining actual loop gain in a distributed antenna system (DAS). In this regard, a test signal(s) having a first power level is injected into a DAS from a first contact point. The test signal(s) is configured to propagate from the first contact point to a second contact point over a downlink path and an uplink path, thus creating a signal loop(s). A second power level of the test signal(s) is measured at the second contact point, and an actual loop gain of the DAS is determined by subtracting the first power level from the second power level. By determining the actual loop gain of the DAS, it is possible to further determine a gain margin of the DAS. Based on the gain margin, it is possible to determine optimization possibilities for the DAS to maximize capacity and performance of the DAS.
US09882612B2	Multi-sector antenna integrated radio unit Embodiments of a system for a multi-sector base station in a cellular communications network are disclosed. In one embodiment, the system includes an integrated unit, where the integrated unit includes multiple antennas and a radio unit (RU) coupled to the antennas. By integrating the multiple antennas and the radio RU into a single integrated unit, the system can, in some embodiments, reduce installation and operating costs of the multi-sector base station.
US09882602B2	Global navigation satellite system receiver with filter bypass mode for improved sensitivity A global navigation satellite system receiver with filter bypass mode for improved sensitivity is disclosed. In an aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes a non-bypass signal path coupled to a receiver, the non-bypass signal path comprising a filter. The apparatus also includes a bypass signal path coupled to the receiver, the bypass signal path configure to bypass the filter, and a switch to couple an antenna to the non-bypass signal path during time intervals when signals transmitted by an unrelated local transmitter are transmitted with a signal power that exceeds a selected threshold, and to couple the antenna to the bypass signal path during other time intervals.
US09882597B2	Communication system, tuner, and setting method A mobile device includes a signal generating unit that generates a first signal and a transmitting unit that wirelessly transmits the first signal generated by the signal generating unit. The first signal includes frequency information that is used in wireless communication between the mobile device and a tuner. The tuner includes a setting processing unit that sets a receiving frequency of an antenna and a demodulation frequency of a phase synchronization circuit. The setting processing unit sets the receiving frequency and the demodulation frequency on the basis of the frequency information included in the first signal from the mobile device.
US09882594B2	Apparatus and methods for controlled switching of electronic access clients without requiring network access Methods and apparatuses for providing controlled switching of electronic access control clients without requiring network access are set forth herein. In one embodiment, a method for swapping of subscriptions and/or profiles for electronic Subscriber Identity Modules (eSIMs) without network supervision that prevents possibly malicious high frequency switching is disclosed. The disclosed embodiments offer reasonable management capabilities for network operators, without compromising the flexibility of eSIM operation.
US09882588B2	Matching network for load line change An amplifier circuit that includes a first power amplifier configured to drive a load and a second power amplifier configured to drive the load through an impedance step-up network. The impedance step-up network is connected to an output of the second power amplifier. The impedance step-up network is configured to switch into a first mode to present an increased impedance to the first power amplifier, and switch into a second mode in which the impedance step-up network steps-up an impedance seen by the second power amplifier looking into the impedance step-up network.
US09882587B2	Multi-band power amplifier Systems, devices and methods related to multi-band power amplifier. In some embodiments, a power amplifier module includes a power amplifier having an output stage and configured to receive a signal. The power amplifier module also includes a first programmable harmonic termination circuit in electrical communication with the output stage of the power amplifier. The first programmable harmonic termination circuit includes a first plurality of capacitors and a first plurality of switches, with at least one of the first plurality of capacitors being in electrical communication with at least one of the first plurality of switches. The power amplifier module further includes a controller configured to modify a configuration of the first plurality of switches of the first programmable harmonic termination circuit based at least in part on a second harmonic frequency of the signal.
US09882578B1	Comparator, circuit device, physical quantity sensor, electronic device, and vehicle A comparator includes a first voltage-time conversion circuit, a second voltage-time conversion circuit, and a determination circuit. A first delay unit includes a first primary conductivity type transistor of which current is controlled based on a first input signal, a first secondary conductivity type transistor of which current is controlled based on a second input signal, and a first delay buffer provided between the transistors. A second delay unit includes a second primary conductivity type transistor of which current is controlled based on a second input signal, a second secondary conductivity type transistor of which current is controlled based on a first input signal, and a second delay buffer provided between the transistors.
US09882577B2	Circuitry for use in comparators There is disclosed herein charge-mode circuitry for use in a comparator to capture a difference between magnitudes of first and second input signals, the circuitry comprising: a tail node configured during a capture operation to receive a charge packet; first and second nodes conductively connectable to said tail node along respective first and second paths; and control circuitry configured during the capture operation to control such connections between the tail node and the first and second nodes based on the first and second input signals such that said charge packet is divided between said first and second paths in dependence upon the difference between magnitudes of the first and second input signals.
US09882574B2	DA converter, AD converter, and semiconductor device A DA converter includes a first DA conversion section for obtaining an analog output signal in accordance with a digital input signal value, and a second DA conversion section for obtaining an analog gain control output signal in accordance with a digital gain control input signal value. In the DA converter, the gain control of the analog output signal generated by the first DA conversion section is performed on the basis of the gain control output signal generated by the second DA conversion section.
US09882561B2	Input device An input device includes an insulation substrate, a switch element, and a detection portion. The switch element includes a fixed electrode portion that is provided on the substrate, and a movable electrode portion that is provided on a main surface side of the substrate, at least part of the movable electrode portion being elastically displaceable toward a direction approaching and leaving the fixed electrode portion. The movable electrode portion is displaceable toward a direction approaching the fixed electrode portion due to pressure from an object to be detected that is an electric conductor. The detection portion is capable of detecting a capacitance change caused by the object to be detected approaching and leaving the movable electrode portion and a capacitance change between the movable electrode portion and the fixed electrode portion produced by displacement of the movable electrode portion due to pressing.
US09882560B2	Touch panel A touch panel includes a transparent dielectric substrate having a generally rectangular shape, a first conductive film formed on a first surface of the dielectric substrate, a second conductive film formed on a second surface of the dielectric substrate, four electrodes formed at four respective corners of the first conductive film, four current detecting units coupled to the four electrodes, respectively, and an alternating-current power supply configured to apply alternating-current voltage between the first conductive film and the second conductive film, wherein the alternating-current power supply is electrically coupled to the first conductive film through the four current detecting units and the four electrodes.
US09882544B2	Electronic component An electronic component includes first through sixth LC parallel resonators and seventh through ninth capacitors. The first through sixth LC parallel resonators are arranged in this order in a first direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to a stacking direction of a multilayer body of the electronic component, and define a band pass filter. The seventh capacitor is connected between the first and sixth LC parallel resonators. The eighth capacitor is connected between the first and third LC parallel resonators. The ninth capacitor is connected between the fourth and sixth LC parallel resonators.
US09882537B2	Opical coupling circuit including a light-receiving unit provided not to receive optical signal, and signal processing device A light-emitting unit outputs an optical signal corresponding to an input electric signal. A light-receiving unit is electrically insulated from the light-emitting unit and outputs an electric signal according to the received optical signal as an output signal. In the light-receiving unit, a first light-receiving device outputs an optical current according to the optical signal. A second light-receiving device is provided not to receive the optical signal. A current duplication circuit duplicates a current flowing through the second light-receiving device. A current-voltage conversion circuit converts a current, which is generated by subtracting the current duplicated by the current duplication circuit from a current flowing through the first light-receiving device, into a voltage signal. A comparator output a result of a comparison between the voltage signal converted by the current-voltage conversion circuit and a threshold voltage as the output signal.
US09882530B2	Receiver and signal processing method The present disclosure provides a receiver and a signal processing method. The receiver includes: a first frequency mixer, performing frequency mixing on a received signal by using a square wave signal to obtain a first frequency-mixed signal; a first low-pass filter, filtering the first frequency-mixed signal to obtain a first filtered signal; a first analog-to-digital converter, performing analog-to-digital conversion on the first filtered signal to obtain a first sampled signal; and a signal processing unit, estimating, according to the first sampled signal, an information symbol transmitted by a transmit end, where the square wave signal is generated according to a carrier frequency estimation value of the received signal. The receiver according to embodiments of the present disclosure provides better flexibility.
US09882528B2	Distributed energy storage and power quality control in photovoltaic arrays A solar electric system comprises photovoltaic elements having integrated energy storage and control, ideally on each PV-panel. The energy storage media may be primary or secondary cylindrical cells interconnected into a battery and/or an array of capacitors (or super-capacitors) and are accompanied by an electronic control circuit which may perform a variety of functions, including but not limited to power quality control, load following, pulse powering, active line transient suppression, local sensing, remote reporting, wireless or wired communications allowing two way programmable control through local or remote operation. The operation of the system may yield direct current or with the integration of bidirectional micro-inverters create distributed alternating current generation enhanced with energy storage and control two way energy flows between the solar system and the grid.
US09882524B2	Solar panel truss mounting systems and methods An exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a solar panel truss mounting system comprising a base and a truss assembly coupled to the base. The truss assembly comprises a first panel rail mount, second panel rail mount parallel to the first panel rail mount, base rail mount parallel to the first and second panel rail mounts, and a plurality of support members. A first portion of the plurality of support members extends between the first and second panel rail mounts. A second portion of the plurality of support members extends between the first panel rail mount and the base rail mount. A third portion of the plurality of support members extends between the second panel rail mount and the base rail mount. The system can further comprise a plurality of connectors for coupling a plurality of photovoltaic solar panels to the truss assembly.
US09882523B2	Motor drive voltage control device and method for controlling motor drive voltage To suppress a decline in the control accuracy of an applied voltage associated with an increase in quantum noise, and to increase the control accuracy of a motor speed. When generating a driving voltage signal supplied to a motor from a driving command signal, a motor-driving voltage control device reduces the gradation level and performs noise-shaping modulation before performing PWM modulation. Reducing the gradation level allows the degree of gradation of the driving voltage signal to be within the resolution range of the PWM modulation, and thus PWM modulation can be performed even when the driving voltage signal has a high frequency. Noise-shaping modulation reduces the level of quantum noise near the low frequency range by causing the quantum noise due to digitization, included in the driving voltage signal, to be biased toward the high frequency range side. Of modulation signals with the reduced-gradation level, the components near the high frequency band are cut, while the components near the low frequency range are used to suppress quantum noise and control the driving voltage applied to the motor with a high accuracy.
US09882520B2	Method for controlling the movement of a drive axis of a drive unit To be able to activate a smoothing filter for a setpoint, with which the movement of a drive axis (A, Ai) of a drive unit (AE) can also be controlled during the movement without a negative effect on the movement, it is provided that the smoothing filter (10) is initialized with a setpoint profile (Sinit) so that a current movement phase ((S0, {dot over (S)}0, . . . , S0(x))) is continued continuously and the repeated time derivative (S(x+1)) of the highest time derivative (S(x)) of the setpoint (S(t), S(k)) is limited.
US09882512B2	Piezoelectric element for power generation and power generation device using same A piezoelectric element for power generation and a power generation device using the same according to the present invention can maximize an electromotive force generated by the piezoelectric element by converting an external force (a natural force or a load force of a person/vehicle or the like) transferred from the outside into an instantaneous impact force and transferring the impact force to the piezoelectric element.
US09882503B2	Charging of split DC links of a converter system A converter system comprises two phase modules, each phase module comprising a first converter leg and a second converter leg interconnected with a DC link, and a charging transformer for charging the DC link. The DC link comprises two capacitors connected in series between a positive point, a middle point and a negative point, each converter leg adapted for interconnecting an output with the positive point, the middle point or the negative point of the DC link. The phase modules are connected in series via outputs of the converter legs, such that a second converter leg of a lower phase module is connected with a first converter leg of a higher phase module. The charging transformer is connected to the middle point of the DC link of a highest phase module, which provides a phase output of the converter system with an output of a second converter leg. The converter system includes two converter phases, each converter phase comprising at least two series connected phase modules. At a star point of the converter phases the converter phases are star-connected via outputs of first converter legs of lowest converter modules, which are series connected with higher converter modules, whereby a module side start point of the charging transformer is connected or is not connected with the star point of the converter phases.
US09882500B2	Power supply device The present invention relates to a power supply device for voltage converter, which includes a master switch, a first controller for generating a first pulse signal to drive the master switch to be turned on and turned off, a second controller for comparing a detection voltage representing an output voltage and/or load current with a first reference voltage to determine the logic state of a control signal generated by the second controller, and a coupling element connected between the first controller and the second controller for transmitting the logic state of the control signal to the first controller and enabling the first controller to determine the logic state of the first pulse signal according to the logic state of the control signal. The second controller includes a driving module for generating a second control signal to drive a synchronous switch to be turned on and turned off.
US09882497B2	Soft switching synchronous quasi resonant converter A switching circuit including a transformer having a primary and a secondary side; a first MOSFET switch coupled with the primary side; a primary current sensing device; a second MOSFET switch coupled with the secondary side; a secondary current sensing device; and a control circuit for driving the first and second MOSFET switches, wherein first and second switch are complementarily driven and wherein switching of the first and second MOSFET switches is controlled by the primary and secondary current sensing devices.
US09882493B2	Apparatus and method for isolated current mode controller A soft start-up method is provided comprising: producing an initialization signal on a primary winding side of a transformer; using a comparison of the initialization signal with a signal having a value indicative of a current in the primary winding to control a switch operatively disposed between a voltage source and the primary side; transmitting the initialization signal over a galvanically isolating communication medium from the primary side to a secondary winding side of a transformer; at the secondary winding side, comparing a reference voltage signal with a secondary winding output voltage signal; in response to a match between the reference signal and the secondary winding output voltage signal, transmitting a comparison voltage signal over the galvanically isolating communication medium from the secondary side to the primary side; at the primary side, comparing the initialization signal with the transmitted comparison voltage signal; and in response to a match between the initialization signal the and the comparison voltage signal, using the transmitted comparator voltage signal to control the switch.
US09882481B2	Method and apparatus for limiting inrush current during startup of a buck converter A method of regulating an output voltage of a buck converter during a startup period in which the buck converter is first enabled includes regulating the output voltage of the buck converter to a reference voltage under current-mode control during a first part of the startup period, and regulating the output voltage of the buck converter to the reference voltage under voltage-mode control during a second, later part of the startup period. The reference voltage ramps up from an initial voltage at the beginning of the startup period to a target voltage at the end of the startup period. Buck converter embodiments are also described.
US09882467B2	Method for controlling a power stage In a control method for a power converter, an output voltage is generated according to a control law controlling a switched power stage. During ramp up of the power converter, at least one parameter of the power stage is identified, and the control law is adapted to the identified at least one parameter of the power stage for operating the power converter.
US09882463B2	In or relating to chain-link converters A method of identifying a faulty sub-module of a chain-link converter is provided, wherein the chain-link converter includes a plurality of sub-modules with each sub-module including at least one switching element and an energy storage device which together are selectively operable to provide a voltage source. The method comprises the steps of: measuring a switching characteristic of each sub-module of the chain-link converter; establishing a switching characteristic signature of the chain-link converter; and identifying the or each sub-module with a switching characteristic that deviates from the switching characteristic signature as being a faulty sub-module.
US09882458B2	Method for producing a stator winding of an electric machine, in particular an AC generator Method for producing a stator winding (18) of an electric machine (10), in particular an AC generator, wherein the stator winding (18) has at least n phase windings (120, 121, 122, 123, 124), and one phase winding (120, 121, 122, 123, 124) has a plurality of directly successive wound coils (82) with coil sides (88) and coil side connectors (91), wherein the coils (82) are divided into first coils (82.1) and second coils (82.2), with a forming tool (100), in which slots (105, 106; 105′, 106′) are provided which are suitable for accommodating the coils (82), wherein a first coil (82.1) is arranged in a slot (105; 105′), and a second coil (82.2) is arranged in another slot (105; 105′), characterized in that n−1 slots (105, 106; 105′, 106′) are arranged between the first coil (82.1) and the second coil (82.2).
US09882457B2	Method for producing a round stator and rolling device A method for producing a round stator includes: inserting wound pole teeth into an insertion section of a rolling device to form a pole tooth row, pushing the pole tooth row into a ring section of the rolling device, which ring section reproduces a round end shape of the stator to form a round stator structure, removing the round stator structure from the rolling device while holding the stator structure together, and processing the stator structure further to form a finished stator unit.
US09882453B2	Method for providing a frequency response for a combined cycle power plant The disclosure refers to a method for providing a frequency response for a combined cycle power plant connected to an electric grid. The combined cycle power plant includes a gas turbine engine and a steam turbine engine. The steam turbine engine includes a boiler, a steam turbine, a pump, a condenser, a bypass for the steam turbine, a steam admission control valve. The steam turbine engine operates with the bypass closed or at least partly open to supply steam from the boiler to the condenser bypassing the steam turbine, and/or with the steam admission control valve at least partly open. The method comprises regulating the output load of the combined cycle power plant by regulating the steam admission control valve and/or by regulating the steam flow through the bypass in response to a frequency change of the electric grid. The output of the gas turbine can also be adjusted, such that steam generated by the boiler is sufficient to achieve the target load for the steam turbine.
US09882448B2	Drive for an actuating unit The invention relates to a drive for an actuating unit, especially for a power closing mechanism, preferably for a motor vehicle lock, comprising a motor housing part for accommodating an electric motor and a housing cover part for covering the motor housing part, a cable for electrically conducting current being electrically connected to a motor contact of the electric motor in the motor housing part and the cable comprising a diversion zone. The diversion zone of the cable is arranged outside or at least partially outside the housing. In this manner, the cable is not unduly bent during assembly when the housing is closed.
US09882446B2	Motor A motor includes an armature arranged radially outside a rotor magnet, and a casing configured to fix the armature and hold upper and lower bearings configured to rotatably support a shaft at a radial center thereof. The armature includes a stator core, an insulator arranged to cover the stator core, coils each of which is defined by a conducting wire wound around a separate one of magnetic pole teeth with the insulator intervening therebetween, and passage lines each of which is arranged circumferentially between adjacent ones of the magnetic pole teeth to electrically connect one of the coils and another one of the coils with each other. The insulator includes magnetic pole tooth insulating portions arranged to cover a separate one of the magnetic pole teeth; and a core back insulating portion integral with each magnetic pole tooth insulating portion.
US09882445B2	Phase separators for electric machines A phase separator for an electric machine includes a first insulator and a second insulator. The first and second insulators each include a leg portion and an endturn portion connected to the leg portion. The endturn portion is asymmetric with respect to an axis defined by the leg portion such that the second insulator can be inverted and disposed in an overlapping arrangement for electrically insulating endturn portions of adjacent phase windings.
US09882441B2	Motor A motor including a stator, and a rotor adapted to rotate, wherein the stator includes a stator body, a plurality of teeth protruding from the stator body toward the rotor, and at least one stator magnetic barrier provided to each of the teeth to interrupt magnetic flux. A magnetic field produced in a direction parallel to the outer circumferential surface of the rotor is attenuated, and therefore demagnetization of permanent magnets included in the rotor may be prevented.
US09882439B2	Rotor and motor A rotor includes magnetic pole portions and first and second ferric core portions. The first and second ferric core portions are each located between magnetic pole portions in the circumferential direction of a rotor. A first gap is formed between the first or second ferric core portion and a magnetic pole portion at a first circumferential side. A second gap is formed between the first or second ferric core portion and the magnetic pole portion at a second circumferential side. The first gap has a smaller width than the second gap at the first ferric core portion. The first ferric core portion is inclined toward the first circumferential side. The first gap is larger than the second gap at the second ferric core portion. The second ferric core portion is inclined toward the second circumferential side.
US09882438B1	Generators having rotors that provide alternate magnetic circuits A generator includes a stator that has permanent magnets that complete a magnetic circuit across a series of gaps and through a generator coil. The rotor also includes permanent magnets that complete a magnetic circuit across a gap and through a rotor coil. When the rotor poles align with the stator poles, the stator and rotor magnetic circuits are broken, and new magnetic circuits are completed between the stator and rotor permanent magnets that cross the gap between the stator and rotor poles. A rotor coil can be used to boost the attraction/repulsion between the rotor and stator magnets. Alternating between these magnetic circuits as the prime mover rotates the rotor generates electricity.
US09882433B2	Contactless electrical coupling for a rotatable LIDAR device A rotatable LIDAR device including contactless electrical couplings is disclosed. An example rotatable LIDAR device includes a vehicle electrical coupling including (i) a first conductive ring, (ii) a second conductive ring, and (iii) a first coil. The example rotatable LIDAR device further includes a LIDAR electrical coupling including (i) a third conductive ring, (ii) a fourth conductive ring, and (iii) a second coil. The example rotatable LIDAR device still further includes a rotatable LIDAR electrically coupled to the LIDAR electrical coupling. The first conductive ring and the third conductive ring form a first capacitor configured to transmit communications to the rotatable LIDAR, the second conductive ring and the fourth conductive ring form a second capacitor configured to transmit communications from the rotatable LIDAR, and the first coil and the second coil form a transformer configured to provide power to the rotatable LIDAR.
US09882425B1	Multi-circuit switching device A switching device includes multiple switches configured to selectively connect one of two power sources to electrical loads. The switching device may include either single-pole or double-pole, double-throw switches and corresponding single or double circuit breakers. The single and double circuit breakers are each configured to be inserted into openings having the same physical dimensions. At least one of the switches is a double-pole, double-throw switch, allowing two branch circuits to be transferred between power sources via the switch. A double breaker corresponding to the double-pole, double-throw transfer switch permits each of the branch circuits being switched by the double-throw switch to be wired through a separate protective circuit.
US09882419B2	Adaptive control of wireless power transfer A method for wireless power transfer adapts to changing configuration of receivers, including changes in number of, location and/or orientation of, magnetic coupling to, and load of circuits (e.g., battery charging circuits) of one or more receivers. The adaptation can be performed without interrupting optimal or near-optimal power transfer to the receivers, and can provide a measure of fairness among multiple receivers.
US09882416B2	Power receiving body and vehicle equipped with power receiving body A power receiving body and a vehicle including the power receiving body are provided, in which an object detection range, which corresponds to a non-contact charging condition between a power supplying coil and a power receiving coil, is set, together with variably setting the object detection range corresponding to a leakage magnetic field area.
US09882415B2	Wireless charging architecture for mobile communication device with single piece metal housing Systems and methods for providing resonant wireless charging in a portable communications device utilize antenna arms formed from openings in a metal unibody construction. Two of the antenna arms are driven by WiFi, GPS, and cellular drives respectively, while a wireless charging antenna sharing the same mechanical connections provides a differential drive across the antenna ends, forming a primary wireless charging coil. In an embodiment, a smaller multi-turn coil is connected to the primary wireless charging coil, and may overlay a device speaker and may also be shielded by a ferrite material. This structure or a dedicated similar structure on the device is then used for resonance-based wireless charging of the device.
US09882406B2	Charging control method for lithium-ion battery, charging control apparatus for lithium-ion battery and lithium-ion battery system A lithium-ion battery includes a cathode active material of the Olivine-type crystal structure. The lithium-ion battery is charged under control of a charging control apparatus, which performs a charging process for charging up to a target voltage according to a constant-current and constant-voltage charging method, a negative-electrode potential evaluation process for evaluating a potential change quantity at the negative-electrode, and a voltage setting process for setting the target voltage to a lower voltage based on the potential change quantity of the negative-electrode evaluated by the negative-electrode potential evaluation process. The charging voltage is changed from the target voltage to the set voltage even when the negative-electrode potential changes with an increase in the number of charging and aging deterioration. Thus a positive-electrode potential is suppressed from rising because of less susceptibility to the increase in number of charging and aging deterioration.
US09882397B2	Guided surface wave transmission of multiple frequencies in a lossy media Disclosed are various embodiments for transmitting energy at multiple frequencies via a guided surface wave along the surface of a lossy medium such as, e.g., a terrestrial medium by exciting a guided surface waveguide probe.
US09882391B2	Filtering a stream of power control commands There is provided a device for filtering a stream of power control commands including power-up and power-down commands for uplink transmit power control in a wireless communication system. The device (100) includes a sequence tester (102) configured to determine whether a power-up command is immediately preceded by a sequence of consecutive power-up commands. The device also includes a command replacer (104) configured to replace, when it is determined that the power-up command is immediately preceded by a sequence of consecutive power-up commands, the power-up command with a power-down command.
US09882385B2	System for starting large-scale power load in micro-grid A system for staring a large-scale power load in a micro grid comprises a PCC grid connection switch, a micro grid alternating-current bus, an active power filter (APF), an energy storage inverter, an energy storage battery, a current-limiting resistor R, contactors K1-K3, a time relay KT, a power supply relay board, a micro grid maser control system, a frequency converter rectifying circuit, a frequency converter filter circuit, and a frequency converter inverter circuit. There are the advantages: an output torque of a power load can be effectively improved by using a variable frequency starting apparatus, and a starting current is also small; the provided method can effectively reduce a harmonic current when a variable frequency starting apparatus starts a power load, the phenomenon that two power sources supply power on a direct-current side of the variable frequency starting apparatus at the same time is avoided, thereby improving the stability and the economy of a micro grid.
US09882381B2	Photovoltaic inverter This invention relates to a photovoltaic inverter, capable of connecting a plurality of photovoltaic modules to each input port of a multi-string photovoltaic inverter through a single booster. The photovoltaic inverter disclosed herein includes a plurality of input portions connected in series to a plurality of photovoltaic modules, respectively, a plurality of reactors connected in series to the plurality of input portions, respectively, a first capacitor configured to charge DC voltages of the plurality of photovoltaic modules, respectively, transferred through the plurality of input portions, a first resistor connected in parallel to the first capacitor, a booster unit connected in parallel to the first capacitor and the first resistor connected in parallel to each other, and configured to boost the voltages charged in the first capacitor, and an inverter unit configured to convert the voltage boosted by the booster unit into an AC voltage to provide to a grid.
US09882364B2	Cable holding tool Provided is a cable holding tool capable of reducing a size of a gap formed at a portion where soft members are sandwiching a cable to thereby increase air-tightness thereat. First sealing members (26a, 26b) having fluffs are attached to a first opposing surface of a soft member (25). Second sealing members (29a, 29b) having fluffs are attached to second opposing surfaces of soft members (28a, 28b). When a cable (17) is sandwiched between the first sealing members (26a, 26b) and the second sealing members (29a, 29b), the fluffs of the first sealing members (26a, 26b) and the fluffs of the second sealing members (29a, 29b) are in contact with each other.
US09882361B2	Active cover plates An active cover plate is disclosed. The active cover plate may include a face plate, a back plate; an electrical load, at least one clip may extend rearward from the face plate and a wall may extend rearward from the back plate, where the wall may cover at least a part of a rear of the clip, and an electrical connection may connect the electrical load to the clip.
US09882351B2	Laser structure A laser structure comprising a first photonic crystal surface emitting laser (PCSEL), a second PCSEL, and a coupling region that extends between the first PCSEL and the second PCSEL along a longitudinal axis and that is electrically controllable so as to be capable of coherently coupling the first PCSEL to the second PCSEL. Each PCSEL include an active layer, a photonic crystal, and a two-dimensional periodic array distributed in an array plane parallel to the longitudinal axis within the photonic crystal where the two-dimensional periodic array is formed of regions having a refractive index that is different to the surrounding photonic crystal.
US09882347B2	Quantum cascade laser array A quantum cascade laser includes a substrate having first and second substrate regions arranged along a first axis; a laser structure body including a laser body region having laser waveguide structures extending along the first axis, the laser structure body including first and second regions respectively including the first and second substrate regions, the laser body region having an end facet located at a boundary between the first and second regions, the second region including a terrace extending along the first axis from a bottom edge of the end facet; a plurality of first electrodes disposed on the laser waveguide structures; a plurality of pad electrodes disposed on the terrace; and a plurality of wiring metal bodies each of which includes a first portion on the terrace and a second portion on the end facet. The pad electrodes are connected with the first electrodes through the wiring metal bodies, respectively.
US09882346B2	Laser module with simplified alignment The invention describes carrier structure (100, 200) for assembling a semiconductor lighting module, comprising at least two sub carriers (110, 210) and an alignment structure (120, 130, 230, 232) mechanically coupling the sub carriers (110, 210). The alignment structure (120, 130, 230, 232) is adapted such that the mechanical coupling to at least a part of the sub carriers (110, 210) disappears during thermal mating the carrier structure (100, 200) on a carrier (110, 250). The alignment structure (120, 130, 230, 232) is further adapted to compensate a coefficient of thermal expansion of a material of the carrier (110, 250) being higher than a coefficient of thermal expansion of a material of the carrier structure (100, 200). The invention further describes a semiconductor chip comprising such a carrier structure (100, 200) and a semiconductor lighting module comprising the carrier structure (100, 200) or the semiconductor chip. The invention finally describes a corresponding method of manufacturing a semiconductor lighting module. The invention enables assembling of semiconductor lighting modules by thermal mating with reduced alignment effort.
US09882337B2	Method for manufacturing laser module, and laser module package The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a laser module, and a laser module package, and the method for manufacturing a laser module. Rapidity, accuracy and high reliability of the manufactured module can be obtained by aligning precisely using an automated equipment, and fixing components through laser welding.
US09882336B2	Optical module The disclosure provides an optical module, including a laser, the laser including a light emitting region and a modulation region, and light emitted by the light emitting region emitting toward the modulation region; a first driver circuit, the first driver circuit being connected to the light emitting region, so that the light emitting region emits light with adjusted optical power; and a second driver circuit, the second driver circuit being connected to the modulation region, so that the modulation region changes the optical power of the light emitted from the light emitting region.
US09882331B2	Low cost gold wire brushes A slipring brush includes a body of a metal wire or metal band having a contact area for contacting a slipring module. The contact area is selectively coated by a contact material like gold or silver or an alloy thereof. The body preferably includes Copper, Nickel, Iron, or an alloy thereof. Coating may be done by electroplating, physical vapor deposition (PVD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD).
US09882328B1	Cartridge holder assembly configured to hold cartridges in an upright and side-by-side manner A cartridge holder assembly for use in an automotive vehicle is provided. The cartridge holder assembly is configured to hold a pair of cartridges in a generally upright and side-by-side manner. The cartridge holder assembly includes a housing having a pair of first side walls, a bottom wall, a front wall, a back wall so as to define an open top, and a partition generally parallel to and disposed between a pair of first side walls so as to define a first cartridge opening and a second cartridge opening, wherein the first and second cartridge opening are configured to receive a respective cartridge and hold the cartridges in an upright manner and side-by-side arrangement.
US09882324B2	Electrical connector assembly having identical matable connectors An electrical connector is disclosed. The electrical connector has an insulation body formed with a receiving slot and a terminal disposed in the receiving slot. The electrical connector is matable with an identical electrical connector.
US09882318B2	Active cover plates A wall-plate system is disclosed. The wall-plate system may include a face plate, a back plate, electronic circuitry comprising an electrical port, a clip, and a conductor. The face plate may have a front, a back, and at least one outlet aperture. The back plate may abut the back of the face plate and have a wall extending rearward away from the face plate. The clip may connect to the face plate and extend rearward away from the back of the face plate. The clip may be positioned laterally inboard of the wall and resiliently deflect from a neutral position spaced from the wall to a deflected position in contact with the wall. The conductor may be sandwiched between the face plate and the back plate and extend to electrically connect the clip to the electronic circuitry.
US09882315B2	Connection device A connection device for connecting electric components in an electrically conducting manner. The connection device having a first contact element for making contact with a corresponding mating contact element of a first component, a second contact element for making contact with a corresponding mating contact element of a second component, a flexible conductor which connects the first contact element to the second contact element in an electrically conducting manner, and a housing which surrounds the conductor and accommodates the first contact element in a first accommodating part and the second contact element in a second accommodating part. The housing is designed in such a way as to allow a relative movement between the first accommodating part and the second accommodating part.
US09882310B2	Connection structure and apparatus unit The present invention provides a connection structure and an apparatus unit that can avoid damage to connectors when the connectors are caused to be connected to each other. Through rotation of a first option unit towards an inverter body, the connection structure connects a first connector disposed in the inverter body and a second connector disposed in the first option unit, and the first connector and the second connector are floating connectors. The first option unit includes an engaging portion for engaging the engaging support portion in a wall of the inverter body.
US09882299B2	Electrical interconnection system and electrical connectors for the same The present invention provides an electrical interconnection system comprising: a paddle card comprising a plurality of first contact pads positioned on a first surface of the paddle card and a plurality of second contact pads positioned on an opposite second surface of the paddle card; a first wafer comprising a plurality of first conductors each having a first contact portion; and a second wafer comprising a plurality of second conductors each having a second contact portion; wherein the first wafer and the second wafer are assembled together to have the first contact portion and the second contact portion face each other and be able to form a gap therebetween for accommodating at least part of the paddle card; each first contact portion is adapted to be in electrical contact with a corresponding first contact pad and each second contact portion is adapted to be in electrical contact with a corresponding second contact pad when the paddle card is at least partly accommodated in the gap.
US09882298B2	Plug-in connector The present invention discloses a plug-in connector, including housing, fixing terminals that are connected to the first terminal part and the second terminal part detachably inserting into the clamping grooves provided inside the first terminal part and the second terminal part; at least two power supply terminals; a signal terminal mounting part, provided with two separated rows of terminal grooves therein, wherein the terminal groove includes a plurality of terminal inserting grooves and a plurality of spacing walls that are positioned between the terminal inserting grooves to separate the terminal inserting grooves from each other, and wherein a bottom of the signal terminal mounting part between two terminal groups is provided with a strip-type groove in which conductive plastic is mounted; a pair of terminal groups, having a plurality of signal terminals and ground terminals, and wherein all of the ground terminals are electrically connected through the conductive plastic.
US09882293B1	Cable connector with two sets of clamping plates for applying clamping force and reducing impact of impedance discontinuity A cable connector with two sets of clamping plates for applying a clamping force and reducing the impact of impedance discontinuity includes an insulating base, a housing, a signal terminal, and two ground terminals. The insulating base has a top portion concavely provided with a receiving space. The housing is mounted on the insulating base and has a through hole corresponding to the receiving space. The signal terminal and the ground terminals are set separately in a bottom portion of the insulating base, have top portions respectively configured for clamping a coaxial cable extending into the receiving space, and have bottom portions soldered respectively to a signal contact and a ground contact on a circuit board. One of the ground terminals is adjacent to the signal terminal to reduce the impact of impedance discontinuity. The other ground terminal applies an additional clamping force to the coaxial cable.
US09882271B2	Conformal antenna and related methods of manufacture According to some aspects, an antenna is provided comprising a substrate, a first conductive region disposed on a first side of the substrate, a second conductive region disposed on a second side of the substrate, and a coaxial transmission line, an inner conductor of the coaxial transmission line electrically coupled to the first conductive region and an outer conductor of the coaxial transmission line electrically coupled to the second conductive region, wherein the second conductive region includes at least one structural feature that functions as a choke when the first and second conductive regions are operated together as an antenna. According to some aspects, an aerial vehicle comprising a conformal antenna is provided.
US09882265B2	Antenna device for portable terminal A portable terminal includes an antenna device having a circuit board on a surface of which a conductive layer is formed, a slit that removes a portion of the conductive layer and extends in a direction, an auxiliary board positioned on the slit to face a surface of the circuit board, and a radiation pattern formed on the auxiliary board, in which the radiation pattern is disposed to partially enclose the slit. Even when the radiation pattern is disposed on the conductive layer, induced current generated around the slit can be controlled in the same direction as signal power, thereby preventing radiation performance from being degraded by an inverse current phenomenon in spite of disposition of the radiation pattern on the conductive layer.
US09882264B2	Antennas for computers with conductive chassis According to one general aspect, a computing device may include a conductive frame and a slot antenna formed, at least in part, by the conductive frame. The slot antenna defines a cavity that extends into the conductive frame from an opening on the conductive frame to a closed end defined by an internal portion of the conductive frame. The slot antenna includes a feed point disposed at a position along the slot antenna such that the slot antenna forms an open-circuited portion and a short-circuited portion, and the feed point is disposed between the open-circuited portion and the short-circuited portion. The computing device may also include a coupling element configured to be excited by an electrical signal via the feed point.
US09882260B2	Retainer system for a mobile-telephony antenna and a mobile-telephony component The invention relates to an improved retainer system for a mobile-telephony antenna and a mobile-telephony component, which is characterized inter alia, by the following features: —said mobile-telephony component (MK) is secured, on the carrier side, by a retainer system which is separate from the retainer device (11, 7) for said mobile-telephony antenna (MA), —the retainer system also comprises at least one carrier-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (17), —said mobile-telephony component (MK) comprises at least component-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (25), —an interface and/or separating point (X) or a pivoting and/or displacement plane (E) is formed between said carrier-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (17) and the respective component-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (25), and —when the associated fixture means are released, the mounted mobile-telephony component (MK) may be removed, with the component-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (25), in a lateral direction (SR) out of the spacing (A) by means of displacement and/or pivoting and/or rotation, leaving behind the carrier-side mobile-telephony component-retainer device (17) even with said mobile-telephony antenna (MA) remaining mounted.
US09882254B2	Microstrip line filter Disclosed herein is a microstrip line filter including a dielectric substrate, a first hairpin resonator, and a metal ground layer. The first hairpin resonator is disposed on a first layer of the dielectric substrate. The metal ground layer is disposed on a second layer of the dielectric substrate. The metal ground layer includes a first defected ground structure. The first defected ground structure includes a first defected area, a second defected area, and a third defected area. The projection of the first defected area on the first layer is located inside the hairpin structure of the first hairpin resonator. The projection of the second defected area on the first layer is located in a direction opposite to an opening direction of the first hairpin resonator. The third defected area connects the first defected area and the second defected area.
US09882252B2	Controlled battery box A battery container for battery temperature control comprises a housing including an enclosure for receiving a battery, wherein at least a portion of the housing comprises a thermal insulation material for insulating the interior of the enclosure against ambient temperature. The battery container further comprises a temperature control element disposed within the enclosure, wherein the temperature control element reduces the rate of heat transfer between the ambient and the interior of the enclosure. The temperature control element comprises an active temperature control element. The battery container further comprises a controller that in response to a signal indicating battery temperature, controls the active temperature control element for reducing the rate of heat transfer between the ambient and the interior of the enclosure.
US09882246B2	Electrochemical energy storing device An electrochemical energy storing device disclosed herein includes a positive electrode containing a positive-electrode active material, a negative electrode, and a nonaqueous electrolyte solution which is in contact with the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The positive-electrode active material in a discharged state contains at least one selected from the group consisting of an alkali metal chloride, an alkaline-earth metal chloride, and a quaternary alkylammonium chloride. The nonaqueous electrolyte solution contains, as a solvent, an ionic liquid including cations having an alkoxyalkyl group as a component.
US09882245B2	Alkoxide-based magnesium electrolyte compositions for magnesium batteries Alkoxide magnesium halide compounds having the formula: RO—Mg—X (1) wherein R is a saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group that is unsubstituted, or alternatively, substituted with one or more heteroatom linkers and/or one or more heteroatom-containing groups comprising at least one heteroatom selected from fluorine, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and silicon; and X is a halide atom. Also described are electrolyte compositions containing a compound of Formula (1) in a suitable polar aprotic or ionic solvent, as well as magnesium batteries in which such electrolytes are incorporated.
US09882238B2	Lithium-sulfur secondary battery containing gradient electrolyte A rechargeable lithium-sulfur cell comprising a cathode, an anode, a separator electronically separating the two electrodes, a first electrolyte in contact with the cathode, and a second electrolyte in contact with the anode, wherein the first electrolyte contains a first concentration, C1, of a first lithium salt dissolved in a first solvent when the first electrolyte is brought in contact with the cathode, and the second electrolyte contains a second concentration, C2, of a second lithium salt dissolved in a second solvent when the second electrolyte is brought in contact with the anode, wherein C1 is less than C2. The cell exhibits an exceptionally high specific energy and a long cycle life.
US09882226B2	Fuel cell and fuel cell system The compact fuel cell which can efficiently perform heating and can be repeatedly used includes a solid electrolyte, an anode that is formed on one surface of the solid electrolyte, a cathode that is formed on another surface of the solid electrolyte, an anode fuel material, a heating portion for heating and maintaining the solid electrolyte and the anode fuel material at a temperature equal to or higher than a predetermined level, and a sealing portion that is installed in the solid electrolyte, forms a sealed space sealing the anode and the anode fuel material together with the solid electrolyte and the heating portion, and can repeatedly open and close, in which a helium leak rate of the sealed space is maintained at 1×10−2 Pa·m3/sec or a lower rate.
US09882224B2	Method and apparatus for flexible battery In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus includes a single battery ribbon and vacuum packaging. The single battery ribbon includes a first portion, a second portion, and an interconnecting portion between the first portion and the second portion. The first portion includes a first block. The second portion includes a second block. The first portion, the second portion, and the interconnecting portion form a continuous single layer including an anode and a cathode. The vacuum packaging surrounds the single battery ribbon. The vacuum packaging includes a middle connecting portion configured to contact a first side of the interconnecting portion and a second opposite side of the interconnecting portion.
US09882217B2	Negative electrode slurry composition, and negative electrode and lithium battery including the negative electrode slurry composition A negative electrode slurry composition includes a negative active material, a binder, and a dispersant. The dispersant includes a polyacrylic acid (PAA) having a weight average molecular weight (Mw) greater than 10 and less than 10,000. A negative electrode and a lithium battery include the negative electrode slurry composition.
US09882216B2	Binder composition for lithium ion secondary battery electrodes, slurry composition for lithium ion secondary battery electrodes, electrode for lithium ion secondary batteries, and lithium ion secondary battery A binder composition for a lithium ion secondary battery electrode, including a particulate polymer and a water-soluble polymer, wherein the water-soluble polymer includes an ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid monomer unit in an amount of 20% by weight to 85% by weight, a carboxylic acid amide monomer unit in an amount of 0.1% by weight to 10% by weight, and a crosslinkable monomer unit in an amount of 0.1% by weight to 2.0% by weight.
US09882215B2	Electrochemical energy storage devices comprising self-compensating polymers The disclosed technology relates generally to devices comprising conductive polymers and more particularly to electrochemical devices comprising self-compensating conductive polymers. In one aspect, electrochemical energy storage device comprises a negative electrode comprising an active material including a redox-active polymer. The device additionally comprises a positive electrode comprising an active material including a redox-active polymer. The device further comprises an electrolyte material interposed between the negative electrode and positive electrode and configured to conduct mobile counterions therethrough between the negative electrode and positive electrode. At least one of the negative electrode redox-active polymer and the positive electrode redox-active polymer comprises a zwitterionic polymer unit configured to reversibly switch between a zwitterionic state in which the zwitterionic polymer unit has first and second charge centers having opposite charge states that compensate each other, and a non-zwitterionic state in which the zwitterionic polymer unit has one of the first and second charge centers whose charge state is compensated by mobile counterions.
US09882208B2	Particulate active material, power storage device positive electrode, power storage device, and production method for particulate active material A particulate active material for a power storage device positive electrode having a higher energy density is provided, which includes particles of an electrically conductive polymer and a conductive agent, wherein the electrically conductive polymer particles each have a surface coated with the conductive agent.
US09882202B2	Positive electrode for lithium-sulfur secondary battery and method of forming the same Provided are a positive electrode for a lithium-sulfur secondary battery and a method of forming the same, the positive electrode being capable of maintaining battery characteristics such as a specific capacity and a cycling characteristic while achieving a high rate characteristic in particular when being applied to a lithium-sulfur secondary battery. A positive electrode of a lithium-sulfur secondary battery includes a positive electrode current collector and carbon nanotubes grown on a surface of the positive electrode current collector and oriented in a direction orthogonal to the surface. At least the surface of each of the carbon nanotubes is covered with sulfur with a certain interstice left between neighboring ones of the carbon nanotubes.
US09882201B2	Electrochemical device, such as a microbattery or an electrochromic system, and fabrication method thereof An electrochemical device including a stack of solid thin layers formed on a substrate, the stack successively including, a first current collector covering a part of the substrate, first electrode defining a pattern having bottom surface, top surface and side walls, the bottom surface of the pattern covering at least part of the first current collector, electrolyte layer configured to cover at least the top surface and at least part of the side walls of the pattern of the first electrode, a second electrode totally covering the electrolyte layer, the thickness of the electrolyte layer arranged between the walls of the pattern of first electrode and the second electrode being substantially equal around the pattern to within 20%, a second current collector totally covering the second electrode, the second current collector and the second electrode being electrically insulated from the first current collector and from the first electrode.
US09882200B2	High energy and power Li-ion battery having low stress and long-term cycling capacity A battery has an anode, a separator adjacent the anode, and a cathode adjacent the separator opposite the anode, the cathode comprising interdigitated stripes of two different types, one of the types forming pore channels or porous structure and one of the types being more compressible than others type.
US09882198B2	High performance lithium battery electrodes by self-assembly processing Disclosed are methods and processes for producing electrochemical devices having well-organized nanostructures or microstructures. In one aspect, the present invention discloses a simple, cheap, and fast nanotechnology-based manufacturing process for fabricating high performance electrodes. The present processing technique is highly versatile and can be applied to diverse materials systems for anode and cathode electrodes.
US09882196B2	Multi-electrode electrochemical cell and method of making the same A multi-electrode device that includes an anode electrode, a cathode electrode, and a gate electrode situated between the anode and cathode, and having an electrolyte. The multi-electrode device can be a secondary (rechargeable) electrochemical cell. The gate electrode is permeable to at least one mobile species which is redox-active at at least one of the anode and cathode. The gate electrode has a resistance that is lower than that of a conductive non-uniform morphological feature that could be grown on the anode. The gate electrode provides the ability to avoid, recognize, and remove the presence of such non-uniform morphological features, and provides an electrical electrode that can be used to remove such non-uniform morphological features.
US09882191B2	Laminated porous film and non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery The present invention provides a laminated porous film and a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery. The laminated porous film is a laminated porous film in which a heat-resistant layer comprising a binder resin and a filler is laminated on one or both of the surfaces of a porous film substrate mainly comprising a polyolefin, wherein a part occupied by at least one out of the binder resin and the filler is formed in the porous film substrate so as to touch the heat-resistant layer, and the total thickness of the occupied part is not less than 1% and not more than 20% of the overall thickness of the porous film substrate. The non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery comprises the laminated porous film according as a separator.
US09882185B2	Battery cell assembly A battery cell assembly having first, second, and third battery cells and a unitary wrapping sheet is provided. The unitary wrapping sheet is disposed on a top surface and a bottom surface of the first battery cell. The unitary wrapping sheet is further disposed on a top surface and a bottom surface of the second battery cell. The unitary wrapping sheet is further disposed on a top surface and a bottom surface of the third battery cell. The unitary wrapping sheet is further disposed on and encloses a portion of a combined periphery of the first, second, and third battery cells such that the top surface of the first battery cell, the top surface of the second battery cell, and the top surface of the third battery cell are held substantially parallel to one another.
US09882184B2	Rechargeable battery having stacked electrode assembly Disclosed herein is a rechargeable battery capable of maintaining alignment among a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator of an electrode assembly even in the case in which a form thereof is changed or bent. The rechargeable battery includes: an electrode assembly formed by stacking a first electrode, a separator, and a second electrode, and having an alignment groove formed therein; a case having flexibility and accommodating the electrode assembly therein; and an alignment guide protruding from the case and partially coupled to the alignment groove so as to accommodate and guide a change in a length of the electrode assembly depending on bending.
US09882179B2	Secondary battery and electronic device including secondary battery An electronic device having a novel structure is provided. Specifically, an electronic device having a novel structure that can change its form into various appearances is provided. In a secondary battery, a foldable portion from which part of the components is removed by forming openings in a current collector becomes thin and can be more likely to be bent than the other regions. A cylindrical cushioning material overlapping with the foldable position of the secondary battery is provided. The provision of this cushioning material makes it possible to fix the minimum radius of curvature of the secondary battery at the foldable position. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the exterior body from being broken due to bending along a curved surface with a smaller radius of curvature than a diameter of the cushioning material.
US09882177B2	Energy storage module comprising a plurality of prismatic storage cells and method for production thereof The invention relates to an energy storage module for a device for supplying voltage, in particular, of a motor vehicle, comprising a plurality of in particular prismatic storage cells, which are stacked together at least in one row, are arranged one behind the other and are braced between at least two end plates by means of at least one tie rod or a wrapping, wherein at least one of the end plates comprises a layer structure of at least three layers and/or the tie rod consists of a fiber composite material.
US09882173B2	Methods for fabricating an organic electro-luminescence device A method for fabricating an organic electro-luminescence device, comprising: forming a first conductive layer comprising a first electrode and a contact pattern on a substrate; foil ling a first mask on the first conductive layer, the first mask comprising an opening for exposing a portion of the first electrode and a portion of the contact pattern; forming a patterned organic functional layer by shielding of a second mask, the patterned organic functional layer covering the first mask and the first electrode exposed by the first mask, and the second mask being disposed over the first mask to shield the portion of the contact pattern exposed by the opening; forming a second conductive layer and patterning the second conductive layer by removing the first mask and a portion of the second conductive layer on the first mask to form a second electrode electrically connected to the contact pattern.
US09882154B2	Solid-state imaging element, production method thereof, and electronic device A solid-state imaging element including a phase difference detection pixel pair that includes first (2PA) and second (2PB) phase difference detection pixels is provided. In particular, each phase difference detection pixel of the first and second phase difference detection pixels includes a first photoelectric conversion unit (52, 53b, 53c) arranged at an upper side of a semiconductor substrate (12) and a second photoelectric conversion unit (42, 43) arranged within the semiconductor substrate. The first photoelectric conversion film (52) may be an organic film. In addition, phase difference detection pixels may be realized without using a light shielding film.
US09882147B2	Delayed fluorescence material and organic light emitting device having the delayed fluorescence material A delayed fluorescence material in accordance with the present disclosure may comprise a compound having a molecular structure including an electron donor unit and an electron acceptor unit coupled to the electron donor unit, wherein the electron donor unit includes an acridine furan derivative formed by acridine being bonded to dibenzofuran. The delayed fluorescence material may allow high structural and thermal stabilities and improved quantum efficiency.
US09882143B2	Amine-based compound and organic light-emitting diode including the same An amine-based compound and an organic light-emitting diode including the amine-based compound.
US09882137B2	Organic semiconductor composition, organic thin film transistor, electronic paper, and display device The present invention provides an organic semiconductor composition which makes it possible to prepare an organic thin film transistor having excellent insulation reliability while inhibiting the deterioration of mobility, and to provide an organic thin film transistor prepared using the composition. Furthermore, the present invention provides electronic paper and a display device which contain the organic thin film transistor. The organic semiconductor composition according to the present invention contains an organic semiconductor material and at least one kind of migration inhibitor selected from a compound represented by the following Formula (I), a compound represented by the following Formula (II), and a compound represented by the following Formula (III).
US09882136B2	Organic electroluminescent device An organic electroluminescent device having a capping layer composed of material having a high refractive index that involves only small differences in refractive indices measured in the blue, green, and red wavelength regions, excelling in thin film stability and durability and having no absorption in the respective wavelength ranges of blue, green, and red is provided to improve device characteristics of the organic electroluminescent device, particularly to greatly improve the coupling-out efficiency.The organic electroluminescent device includes at least an anode, a hole transport layer, a light emitting layer, an electron transport layer, a cathode, and a capping layer in this order, wherein the capping layer contains a phthalic acid derivative represented by the following general formula
US09882111B2	Thermoelectric devices This disclosure relates to methods for manufacturing devices capable of functioning as thermoelectric generators and related objects by the process of additive manufacturing or by 3-D printing or by casting. This disclosure also particularly relates to the uses of the thermoelectric generators and related objects produced by these methods.
US09882110B2	Thermoelectric device technology A thermoelectric device for use with solar cells or other heat sources. A substrate has a manufactured surface with a plurality of highland features and lowland features. Each highland feature defines a peak adjacent to which there is an interface of two different film regions (formed of two different metals, two different semiconductors, or one metal and one semiconductor). The two film regions diverge away from each other with increasing distance from the interface and terminate at distal end regions. In response to a temperature difference between the interface and the distal end regions, the device produces a voltage.
US09882105B2	LED module An LED module A1 includes an LED chip 1, a lead group 4 including a lead 4A on which the LED chip 1 is mounted and a lead 4B spaced apart from the lead 4A, a resin package 2 covering part of the lead group 4, and mounting terminals 41 and 42 provided by part of the lead group 4 that is exposed from the resin package 2 and spaced apart from each other in direction x. The LED module further includes a mounting terminal 43 spaced apart from the mounting terminal 41 in direction y, and a mounting terminal 44 spaced apart from the mounting terminal 42 in direction y. This arrangement allows the LED module A1 to be mounted at a correct position on a circuit board.
US09882104B2	Light emitting device package having LED disposed in lead frame cavities Disclosed are a light emitting device package and a lighting system. The light emitting device package includes a first cavity in a first region of the body; a second cavity in a second region of the body; first and second lead frames spaced apart from each other in the first cavity; a third lead frame spaced apart from the second lead frame in the second cavity; a first light emitting device on the first and second lead frames in the first cavity; a second light emitting device on the second and third lead frames in the second cavity; and a molding member in the first and second cavities.
US09882102B2	Wafer-level light emitting diode and wafer-level light emitting diode package A light-emitting diode including a semiconductor stack including a first semiconductor layer, a second semiconductor layer, and an active layer disposed between the first and second semiconductor layers, wherein the second semiconductor layer and the active layer provide a contact region exposing the first semiconductor layer, a first bump arranged on a first side of the semiconductor stack and being electrically connected to the first semiconductor layer via the contact region, a second bump arranged on the first side of the semiconductor stack and being electrically connected to the second semiconductor layer, a first insulation layer disposed covering a side surface of the first bump, and a wavelength converter disposed on a second side of the semiconductor stack. The wavelength converter laterally extends beyond the semiconductor stack. The first insulation layer includes a side surface that is flush with a side surface of the wavelength converter.
US09882098B2	Light-emitting device package containing oxynitride-based phosphor and lighting apparatus containing same An embodiment provides a light-emitting device package comprising: a first lead frame; a second lead frame; a light-emitting device electrically connected to the first lead frame and the second lead frame; a molding unit arranged to surround the light-emitting device; and an oxynitride-based phosphor represented by chemical formula LXMYOaNbAcBd:zR (1≦X≦3, 3≦Y≦7, 0.001≦Z≦1.0, 0≦a≦5, 0.1≦b≦9, 0.001≦c≦0.3, 0.001≦d≦0.3), and the light-emitting device package of the present embodiment can implement a white color light having excellent luminance and color rendering index.
US09882094B2	Light source with inner and outer bodies comprising three different encapsulants A light-emitting device having an inner reflective body and an outer non-reflective body is disclosed. The inner reflective body defines a reflector configured to reflect light. In one embodiment, the outer non-reflective body encloses the inner reflective body to minimize reflectivity of the light-emitting device. When assembled into an infotainment display system, the outer non-reflective body may be configured to reduce reflection of ambient light and hence, increase contrast ratio of the display. Reliability performance of the light-emitting device may be improved by using interlocking aperture at the lead frame, interlock structure and interlock geometries defined by the inner reflective body and the outer non-reflective body.
US09882088B2	III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device A long-life III nitride semiconductor light emitting device and a method of producing the same. A III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device includes an n-type semiconductor layer; a light emitting layer containing at least Al; and a p-type semiconductor layer obtained by sequentially stacking an electron blocking layer, a p-type cladding layer, and a p-type contact layer, in this order. The electron blocking layer is made of AlxGa1-xN (0.55≦x≦1.0), the p-type contact layer is made of AlyGa1-yN (0≦y≦0.1), the p-type cladding layer is made of AlzGa1-zN having an Al content z which gradually decreases over the whole thickness of the p-type cladding layer from the electron blocking layer side toward the p-type contact layer side, and the reduction rate of the Al content z of the p-type cladding layer in the thickness direction is 0.01/nm or more and 0.025/nm or less.
US09882085B2	Method for separating epitaxial layers from growth substrates, and semiconductor device using same The present invention relates to a method for separating epitaxial layers and growth substrates, and to a semiconductor device using same. According to the present invention, a semiconductor device is provided which comprises a supporting substrate and a plurality of semiconductor layers provided on the supporting substrate, wherein the uppermost layer of the semiconductor layers has a surface of non-uniform roughness.
US09882079B2	Apparatus and method for collecting and distributing radiation A system and method for collecting and distributing generated and/or solar radiation. A pulsed distribution subsystem combining a generated radiation source with a solar radiation collector is provided. Radiation from the pulsed distribution subsystem is provided to one or more discrete distribution systems; the discrete distributions systems transmit and distribute radiation, such as visible light, to one or more end use points in a facility.
US09882075B2	Light sensor with vertical diode junctions Light sensors are described that include a trench structure integrated therein. In an implementation, the light sensor includes a substrate having a dopant material of a first conductivity type and multiple trenches disposed therein. The light sensor also includes a diffusion region formed proximate to the multiple trenches. The diffusion region includes a dopant material of a second conductivity type. A depletion region is created at the interface of the dopant material of the first conductivity type and the dopant material of the second conductivity type. The depletion region is configured to attract charge carriers to the depletion region, at least substantially a majority of the charge carriers generated due to light incident upon the substrate.
US09882073B2	Structures for bonding a direct-bandgap chip to a silicon photonic device A composite photonic device comprises a platform, a chip, and a contact layer. The platform comprises silicon. The chip is made of a III-V material. The contact layer has indentations to help control a flow of solder during bonding of the platform with the chip. In some embodiments, pedestals are placed under an optical path to prevent solder from flowing between the chip and the platform at the optical path.
US09882072B2	Solar cell and transparent electrode Provided is a solar cell including a pair of electrodes, and a photoelectric conversion layer of chalcopyrite structure sandwiched between the pair of electrodes. At least one of the pair of electrodes, adapted to serve as a transparent electrode, has a nitrogen-containing layer composed with the use of an organic compound containing a nitrogen atom, and an electrode layer containing a metal of the Group 11 of the periodic table, which is provided to be laminated on the nitrogen-containing layer, thereby improving the photoelectric conversion efficiency.
US09882070B2	Photodetector structures and manufacturing the same A photodetector structure comprises a semiconductor substrate extending substantially along a horizontal plane and having a bulk refractive index and a front surface defining a front side of the photodetector structure. The front surface comprises high aspect ratio nanostructures forming an optical conversion layer having an effective refractive index gradually changing towards the bulk refractive index to reduce reflection of light incident on the photodetector structure from the front side thereof. Further, the semiconductor substrate comprises an induced junction.
US09882067B2	Installation system for photovoltaic modules A solar panel array is formed of a plurality of solar panels juxtaposed with one another along an array axis, and has a support element having first and second support terminations disposed substantially orthogonal to the array axis, with an unobstructed spatial region intermediate of the first and second support terminations. A vehicle transports the solar panels and has wheels arranged on opposing sides thereof. First and second track structures extend along the array axis and are coupled to respective ones of the first and second support terminations. The track structures each have an elongated portion for engaging and supporting respective ones of the vehicle wheels, whereby the vehicle travels along the tracks while carrying a solar panel, and at least a portion of the vehicle is disposed within the unobstructed spatial region. One of the tracks accommodates the wiring for the solar panel array.
US09882065B2	Analog floating-gate atmometer An atmometer system based on an analog floating-gate structure and circuit. The floating-gate circuit includes a floating-gate electrode that serves as a gate electrode for a transistor and a plate of a storage capacitor. A conductor element exposed at the surface of the integrated circuit is electrically connected to the floating-gate electrode; reference conductor elements biased to ground are also at the surface of the integrated circuit. In operation, the transistor is biased and moisture is dispensed at the surface. The drain current of the transistor changes as the floating-gate electrode discharges via the surface conductors and a conduction path presented by the moisture. The elapsed time until the drain current stabilizes indicates the evaporation rate.
US09882057B2	Low temperature poly-silicon thin film transistor and manufacturing method thereof, array substrate and display device A low temperature poly-silicon thin film transistor and its manufacturing method, an array substrate and a display device are provided. The method comprises: forming a poly-silicon film on a base substrate (1) and patterning the poly-silicon film to form an active layer (3); forming a gate insulation layer (4) on the active layer (3) and performing hydrogenation process to the gate insulation layer (4) and the active layer (3). By this method, the diffusion distance of hydrogen is largely shortened, the time for the hydrogenation process is reduced, and thus the process cost for the thin film transistor is largely lowered down.
US09882055B2	TFT substrate structure and manufacturing method thereof A manufacturing method of a TFT substrate structure is provided, in which a graphene layer is formed on a semiconductor layer and after the formation of a second metal layer, the second metal layer is used as a shielding mask to conduct injection of fluoride ions into the graphene layer to form a modified area in a portion of the graphene layer that is located on and corresponds to a channel zone of the semiconductor layer. The modified area of the graphene layer shows a property of electrical insulation and a property of blocking moisture/oxygen so as to provide protection to the channel zone. Portions of the graphene layer that are located under source and drain electrodes are not doped with ions and preserve the excellent electrical conduction property of graphene to provide electrical connection between the source and drain electrodes and the semiconductor layer.
US09882051B1	Fin field effect transistors (FETs) (FinFETs) employing dielectric material layers to apply stress to channel regions Fin Field Effect transistors (FETs) (FinFETs) employing dielectric material layers to apply stress to channel regions are disclosed. In one aspect, a FinFET is provided that includes a substrate and a Fin disposed over the substrate. The Fin includes a source, a drain, and a channel region between the source and drain. A gate is disposed around the channel region. To apply stress to the channel region, a first dielectric material layer is disposed over the substrate and adjacent to one side of the Fin. A second dielectric material layer is disposed over the substrate and adjacent to another side of the Fin. The dielectric material layers apply stress along the Fin, including the channel region. The level of stress applied by the dielectric material layers is not dependent on the volume of each layer.
US09882046B2	Ultra high voltage semiconductor device with electrostatic discharge capabilities A method includes forming a drain region in a first layer on a semiconductor substrate. The drain region is formed comprising a drain rectangular portion having a first end and a second end, a first drain end portion contiguous with the drain rectangular portion and extending from the first end of the drain rectangular portion away from a center of the drain region, and a second drain end portion contiguous with the drain rectangular portion and extending from the second end of the drain rectangular portion away from the center of the drain region. The method also comprises forming a source region free from contact with and surrounding the drain region in the first layer. The first drain end portion and the second drain end portion are formed having a same doping type and a different doping concentration than the drain rectangular portion.
US09882044B2	Edge termination for super-junction MOSFETs Edge termination for super-junction MOSFETs. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a super-junction metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) includes a core super-junction region including a plurality of parallel core plates coupled to a source terminal of the super-junction MOSFET. The super-junction MOSFET also includes a termination region surrounding the core super-junction region comprising a plurality of separated floating termination segments configured to force breakdown into the core super-junction region and not in the termination region. Each termination segment has a length dimension less than a length dimension of the core plates.
US09882043B2	Semiconductor device with trench termination structure The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor device in which a trench termination structure is applied. There is disclosed a semiconductor device of which structure is partially improved so that a P body area is not formed in an adjacent area of a gate pad. The semiconductor device includes a gate pad formed on a substrate, an active area formed in the substrate and comprising trenches, an isolation area to isolates the gate pad and the active area, and a section of the active area adjacent to the gate pad where a P-body is not formed. According to such the semiconductor device, it is possible to minimize a drain-source leakage current and to stably secure a drain-source breakdown voltage.
US09882041B1	HEMT having conduction barrier between drain fingertip and source A High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) includes an active layer on a substrate, and a Group IIIA-N barrier layer on the active layer. An isolation region is through the barrier layer to provide at least one isolated active area including the barrier layer on the active layer. A gate is over the barrier layer. A drain includes at least one drain finger including a fingertip having a drain contact extending into the barrier layer to contact to the active layer and a source having a source contact extending into the barrier layer to contact to the active layer. The source forms a loop that encircles the drain. The isolation region includes a portion positioned between the source and drain contact so that there is a conduction barrier in a length direction between the drain contact of the fingertip and the source.
US09882032B2	Structure and method for FinFET device with buried sige oxide A method includes forming isolation features on a substrate, thereby defining an active region on the semiconductor substrate; recessing the active region to form a fin trench; forming a fin feature on the fin trench by growing a first semiconductor layer on the substrate and a second semiconductor layer on the first semiconductor layer; performing a first recessing process; forming a dummy gate stack over the fin feature and the isolation feature; performing a thermal oxidation process to selectively oxidize the first semiconductor layer to form a semiconductor oxide feature on sidewalls of the first semiconductor layer; performing a second recessing process such that a portion of the isolation feature is recessed to below the second semiconductor layer, resulting in a dented void overlying the semiconductor oxide feature and underlying the second semiconductor layer; and forming a gate stack including a gate dielectric layer extending to the dented void.
US09882023B2	Sidewall spacers for self-aligned contacts A semiconductor device and method for fabricating such a device are presented. The semiconductor device includes a first gate electrode of a transistor, a first sidewall spacer along a sidewall of the gate pattern, a first insulating layer in contact with the first sidewall spacer and having a planarized top surface, and a second sidewall spacer formed on the planarized top surface of the first insulating layer. The second sidewall spacer may be formed over the first sidewall spacer. A width of the second sidewall spacer is equal to or greater than a width of the first sidewall spacer.
US09882008B2	Graphene FET with graphitic interface layer at contacts A method for forming a graphene FET includes providing a graphene layer having a surface. A first metal layer having a work function <4.3 eV is deposited on the graphene surface. The first metal layer is oxidized to form a first metal oxide layer. The first metal oxide layer is etched to provide open surface contact regions including a first and a second region of the graphene layer for providing a graphene surface source and drain contact. A second metal layer is deposited including a second metal layer portion providing a source with a source contact over the graphene surface source contact and a second metal layer portion providing a drain with a drain contact over the graphene surface drain contact. A grown-in graphitic interface layer is formed at an interface between the source contact and graphene surface source contact and the drain contact and graphene surface drain contact.
US09882007B2	Handle for semiconductor-on-diamond wafers and method of manufacture Methods for mounting and dismounting thin and/or bowed semiconductor-on-diamond wafers (401) to a carrier (407) are disclosed that flatten said wafers and provide mechanical support to enable efficient semiconductor device processing on said semiconductor-on-diamond wafers.
US09882001B2	Materials and methods for the preparation of nanocomposites Disclosed herein is an isolable colloidal particle comprising a nanoparticle and an inorganic capping agent bound to the surface of the nanoparticle, a method for making the same in a biphasic solvent mixture, and the formation of structures and solids from the isolable colloidal particle. The process can yield photovoltaic cells, piezoelectric crystals, thermoelectric layers, optoelectronic layers, light emitting diodes, ferroelectric layers, thin film transistors, floating gate memory devices, phase change layers, and sensor devices.
US09881997B2	Semiconductor device and manufacturing method of semiconductor device A first parallel pn layer having a first n-type region and a first p-type region junctioned alternately and repeatedly is disposed in an element active portion. The first parallel pn layer has a striped planar layout. A second parallel pn layer having a second n-type region and a second p-type region junctioned alternately and repeatedly is disposed in a high voltage structure. The second parallel pn layer has a striped planar layout in a direction identical to that of the first parallel pn layer. An intermediate region having a third parallel pn layer and a fourth parallel pn layer of a lower impurity quantity than the first parallel pn layer is disposed between the first and second parallel pn layers, and formed by diffusing impurity implanting regions becoming the first and the second parallel pn layers formed separated from each other to a region in which no impurity is ion-implanted.
US09881994B2	Insulated gate bipolar transistor and manufacturing method therefor An insulated gate bipolar transistor (100) is provided. A substrate (10) of the insulated gate bipolar transistor (100) is of an N type. A P-type region (16) is disposed on a back of the N-type substrate. A back metal structure (18) is disposed on a back of the P-type region (16). A terminal protection ring is disposed in a terminal structure. A polysilicon gate (31) is disposed on a front surface of the substrate (10) in an active region. Sidewalls (72) are disposed at two sides of the polysilicon gate (31) on the substrate (10). An interlayer medium (81) covered with the polysilicon gate (31) and the sidewalls (72) is disposed on the substrate (10). The interlayer medium (81) is covered with a metal lead wire layer (91). An N-type carrier enhancement region (41) is disposed in the substrate (10) in the active region. A P-type body region (51) is disposed in the carrier enhancement region (41). An N-type heavily doped region (61) is disposed in the P-type body region (51). A P-type heavily doped region (71) is disposed in the N-type heavily doped region (61). An inward recessed shallow pit (62) with a depth of 0.15 to 0.3 micrometers is formed on a surface of the P-type heavily doped region (71). By disposing the carrier enhancement region (41), the carrier concentration of a channel can be increased and a forward voltage drop can be reduced; in addition, the shallow pit (62) can make a device obtain good impurity distribution and a large metal contact area, thereby improving the performance of the device.
US09881984B2	Organic electro-luminescent display device An organic EL display device includes an inorganic insulating film including a contact part as an opening where a contact electrode made of a conductive film is exposed, a TFT circuit layer provided on the inorganic insulating film and including a circuit including a thin film transistor, an organic EL element layer provided on the TFT circuit layer and including an organic EL element whose light emission is controlled by the circuit, and a sealing layer covering the organic EL element layer and made of an inorganic insulating material.
US09881983B2	Organic light-emitting diode display An OLED display is disclosed. A plurality of signal lines are formed over a substrate, and a plurality of pixels are formed over the substrate in a matrix form and electrically connected to corresponding signal lines. The signal lines include a plurality of scan lines configured to transmit a scan signal, a plurality of initialization lines configured to transmit an initialization signal, and a plurality of data lines configured to transmit a data signal. An n-th row pixel includes a switching thin film transistor (TFT) electrically connected to an n-th row scan line and a corresponding data line among the data lines. A driving TFT is electrically connected to a drain of the switching TFT, an OLED is electrically connected to a drain of the driving TFT, and an initialization TFT is configured to be turned on based on an initialization signal transmitted via an n-th row initialization line.
US09881977B2	Flexible screen and bend identifying method thereof, flexible display apparatus An embodiment of the present invention relates to the technical field of display. Particularly, there is provided a flexible screen and a bend identifying method thereof, as well as a flexible display apparatus. The flexible screen comprises a first flexible substrate and a second flexible substrate which are oppositely disposed; the flexible screen further comprises a first electrode which is disposed on one side close to the second flexible substrate of the first flexible substrate and a second electrode which is disposed on one side close to the first flexible substrate of the second flexible substrate, as well as a detection system connected with the first electrode or the second electrode; wherein the first electrode and the second electrode are configured to be in positional correspondence; in a case where the flexible screen is bent, the first electrode and the second electrode are electrically connected. The present invention is used for fabrication of a display apparatus. The present invention may be used for determining whether the flexible screen is excessively bent or flexed.
US09881976B2	Organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display panel and display device An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display panel and a display device are provided. A pixel unit of the OLED display panel includes a first sub-pixel, a second sub-pixel and a third sub-pixel and further includes an anode layer, a cathode layer and an organic function layer. The organic function layer includes: a first emission layer (EML1) configured to cover at least two adjacent sub-pixels comprising the first sub-pixel; a carrier blocking layer (CBL) configured to cover the second sub-pixel and the third sub-pixel; a second emission layer (EML2) arranged at an area provided with the first sub-pixel and the second sub-pixel and configured to at least cover the second sub-pixel; and a third emission layer (EML3) configured to cover at least two adjacent sub-pixels comprising the third sub-pixel. The OLED display panel can improve the pixel density.
US09881975B2	Image device with improved chrominance quality An image device includes a plurality of red sub-pixels, a plurality of green sub-pixels, a plurality of blue sub-pixels, a plurality of white sub-pixels, and a plurality of yellow sub-pixels. A ratio of the total number of red sub-pixels to the total number of green sub-pixels to the total number of blue sub-pixels to the total number of white sub-pixels and to the total number of yellow sub-pixels is about 3:3:3:1:2.
US09881973B2	Constructions comprising stacked memory arrays Some embodiments include a construction having a first memory array deck and a second memory array deck over the first memory array deck. The second memory array deck differs from the first memory array deck in one or more operating characteristics, in pitch, and/or in one or more structural parameters; with the structural parameters including different materials and/or different thicknesses of materials. Some embodiments include a construction having a first series and a third series of access/sense lines extending along a first direction, and a second series of access/sense lines between the first and third series and extending along a second direction which crosses the first direction. First memory cells are between the first and second series of access/sense lines and arranged in a first memory array deck. Second memory cells are between the second and third series of access/sense lines and arranged in a second memory array deck.
US09881965B2	Back-side image sensor A color back-side illuminated image sensor including, on the side of the thin semiconductor layer opposite to the illuminated surface, periodic thickness unevennesses forming an optic network having characteristics which make it capable of reflecting a given wavelength chosen within the range of the wavelengths of an illuminating incident beam.
US09881957B2	Photoelectric conversion device, image pickup system and method of manufacturing photoelectric conversion device A photoelectric conversion device includes a first semiconductor substrate including a photoelectric conversion unit for generating a signal charge in accordance with an incident light, and a second semiconductor substrate including a signal processing unit for processing an electrical signal on the basis of the signal charge generated in the photoelectric conversion unit. The signal processing unit is situated in an orthogonal projection area from the photoelectric conversion unit to the second semiconductor substrate. A multilayer film including a plurality of insulator layers is provided between the first semiconductor substrate and the second semiconductor substrate. The thickness of the second semiconductor substrate is smaller than 500 micrometers. The thickness of the second semiconductor substrate is greater than the distance from the second semiconductor substrate and a light-receiving surface of the first semiconductor substrate.
US09881953B2	Pixel array, image sensor including the same, and method of driving the same Disclosed are a pixel array, an image sensor including the same, and a method of driving the same. In a WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) pixel employing a storage region (FD node) including a varactor, a reset voltage, which is less than a voltage applied to a reset transistor according to the related art, that is, a partial reset voltage is applied to the reset transistor to read out a reset signal level for a CDS (Correlated Double Sampling) operation, thereby adjusting the operating voltage range of the storage region. The operating voltage range of the storage region is shifted into a range suitable for remarkably varying the capacitance of the varactor, thereby expanding the dynamic range.
US09881951B2	Image sensors with phase detection pixels An image sensor may include an image pixel array with both image pixels to gather image data and phase detection pixels to gather phase information. The phase detection pixels may be arranged in pairs, with two adjacent pixels covered by a single microlens. The phase detection pixel pairs may be arranged in dashed lines, with image pixels interposed between each phase detection pixel pair. There may be only one image pixel interposed between each phase detection pixel pair. The phase detection pixels may all include color filter elements of the same color. The phase detection pixels may all include green color filter elements. The image pixels in the interrupted lines may include color filter elements that match the surrounding color pattern. The image pixels in the interrupted lines may all include color filter elements of the same color.
US09881950B2	Solid-state image sensor and camera with light-shielding portions and amplification transistors The solid-state image sensor includes image sensing pixels, first and second focus detection pixels configured to respectively detect lights passing through different regions of a pupil of an image sensing lens. The sensor includes a semiconductor substrate including photoelectric converters of the image sensing pixels, a photoelectric converter and a first well contact region of the first focus detection pixel, and a photoelectric converter and a second well contact region of the second focus detection pixel, a first contact plug electrically connected to the first well contact region, and a second contact plug electrically connected to the second well contact region. The relative position of the first well contact region in the first focus detection pixel differs from a relative position of the second well contact region in the second focus detection pixel.
US09881948B2	Array substrate and display apparatus containing the same, and method for fabricating the same The present disclosure provides an array substrate. The array substrate includes a substrate; and at least one ultraviolet (UV) detection structure. The UV detection structure includes a photosensitive pattern on the substrate, and a first electrode pattern and a second electrode pattern for providing an operating voltage for the at least one UV detection structure.
US09881947B2	Array substrate and manufacturing method thereof, display device An array substrate and a manufacturing method thereof, comprising a base substrate, and a gate, a gate insulating layer, an active layer and a source/drain arranged on the base substrate, the array substrate further comprising an antenna for receiving and/or transmitting wireless signals, the antenna being arranged on the base substrate. By arranging the antenna on the base substrate of the array substrate, the antenna is integrated directly in the display panel. Thus, not only the area of the PCB circuit board in the display device can be reduced, but also the spare area in the array substrate can be utilized sufficiently, thereby improving the integration level of the display device and reducing the total volume of the display device.
US09881940B2	Array substrate and display device An array substrate and a display device, the array substrate comprises a fan-out area, an edge area and a display area for performing display, the fan-out area and the edge area are connected with the display area and located on two non-adjacent sides of the display area respectively; a plurality of wirings are arranged on the array substrate, and the wirings are routed through the display area and extend into the edge area, the input end of each wiring is located in the fan-out area; pads are configured for the wirings respectively are located on the side far away from the input end of each wiring, and the pads are located in the edge area.
US09881937B2	Preventing strained fin relaxation A semiconductor structure includes a first strained fin portion and a second strained fin portion, a pair of inactive inner gate structures upon respective strained fin portions, and spacers upon outer sidewalls surfaces of the inactive inner gate structures, upon the inner sidewall surfaces of the inactive inner gate structures, and upon the first strained fin portion and the second strained fin portion end surfaces. The first strained fin portion and the second strained fin portion end surfaces are coplanar with respective inner sidewall surfaces of the inactive inner gate structures. The spacer formed upon the end surfaces limits relaxation of the first strained fin portion and the second strained fin portion and limits shorting between the first strained fin portion and the second strained fin portion.
US09881929B1	Multi-tier memory stack structure containing non-overlapping support pillar structures and method of making thereof A first tier structure including a first alternating stack of first insulating layers and first sacrificial material layers is formed over a substrate. First support openings and first memory openings, filled with first support pillar structures and sacrificial pillar structures, respectively, are formed through the first tier structure. A second tier structure including a second alternating stack of second insulating layers and second sacrificial material layers is formed thereabove. Second support openings and second memory openings are formed through the second tier structure such that the second support openings do not overlap with the first support pillar structures and the second memory openings overlie the sacrificial pillar structures. Inter-tier memory openings are formed by removal of the sacrificial pillar structures. Memory stack structures and second support pillar structures are formed in the inter-tier memory openings and the second support openings, respectively.
US09881916B2	Semiconductor device To improve a tradeoff between ON voltage and ON/OFF loss while maintaining short-circuit tolerance, provided is a semiconductor device including an IGBT element; a super junction transistor element connected in parallel with the IGBT element; and a limiting section that limits a voltage applied to a gate terminal of the IGBT element more than a voltage applied to a gate terminal of the super junction transistor element.
US09881914B2	Electrostatic discharge protection device An electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection device is disclosed including at least an NPN transistor and a PNP transistor coupled between a first node and a second node, wherein the ESD protection device may be configured to sink current from the first node to the second node in response to an ESD event. The transistors may be coupled such that a collector of the NPN may be coupled to the first node. A collector of the PNP may be coupled to the second node. A base of the NPN may be coupled to the emitter of the PNP. An emitter of the NPN may be coupled to a base of the PNP.
US09881911B2	Electronic system having increased coupling by using horizontal and vertical communication channels An embodiment of an electronic system may be provided so as to have superior coupling by implementing a communication mechanism that provides at least for horizontal communication for example, on the basis of wired and/or wireless communication channels, in the system. Hence, by enhancing vertical and horizontal communication capabilities in the electronic system, a reduced overall size may be achieved, while nevertheless reducing complexity in PCBs coupled to the electronic system. In this manner, overall manufacturing costs and reliability of complex electronic systems may be enhanced.
US09881909B2	Method for attaching a semiconductor die to a carrier A method for fabricating an electronic device includes providing a first semiconductor chip and a second semiconductor chip. The first semiconductor chip has a first semiconductor die and a first solder interconnect layer applied to a main face of the first semiconductor die. The second semiconductor chip has a second semiconductor die, an insulating layer applied to a main face of the second semiconductor die, and a second solder interconnect layer applied to the insulating layer. The method further includes attaching the first semiconductor chip with the first solder interconnect layer to a first carrier and attaching the second semiconductor chip with the second solder interconnect layer to a second carrier.
US09881908B2	Integrated fan-out package on package structure and methods of forming same An embodiment package includes a first package; a thermal interface material (TIM) contacting a top surface of the first package, and a second package bonded to the first package. The second package includes a first semiconductor die, and the TIM contacts a bottom surface of the first semiconductor die. The package further includes a heat spreader disposed on an opposing surface of the second package as the first package.
US09881901B2	Stacked package device and method for fabricating the same A method for fabricating a stacked package device is provided. A second substrate is adhered onto a first substrate. The first substrate includes a plurality of first bonding pads, and the second substrate includes a plurality of second bonding pads. A three-dimensional (3D) printing is performed to form an encapsulating layer covering the first substrate and the second substrate and to form a plurality of bonding wires in the encapsulating layer. Each bonding wire includes a first portion connected to one of the plurality of first bonding pads. The disclosure also provides a stacked package device formed by such a method.
US09881891B1	Method of forming three-dimensional wire loops and wire loops formed using the method The invention provides a method of bonding wire between first and second bonding points with a bonding tool. It comprises the steps of forming a first bond at the first bonding point with the bonding tool, forming a first kink located over the first bond, and moving the bonding tool to a first position spaced from the first kink by a predetermined distance to release a length of wire from the bonding tool. It further comprises the step of moving the bonding tool in a direction away from the second bonding point to a second position which is outside a plane comprising the first bonding point, the second bonding point, and the first kink. It also comprises the steps of forming a second kink which lies outside the plane, and moving the bonding tool to the second bonding point to form a second bond.
US09881884B2	Semiconductor device structure and method for forming the same A semiconductor device structure is provided. The semiconductor device structure includes a first semiconductor substrate having a first surface, a second surface, and a recess. The second surface is opposite to the first surface. The recess passes through the first semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor device structure includes a first wiring layer over the second surface. The semiconductor device structure includes a first bonding pad in the recess and extending to the first wiring layer so as to be electrically connected to the first wiring layer. The semiconductor device structure includes a nickel layer over the first bonding pad. The semiconductor device structure includes a gold layer over the nickel layer.
US09881878B2	Semiconductor device and method of producing semiconductor device A semiconductor device provided on a semiconductor substrate includes an element region including an element, a moisture-resistant frame surrounding the element region, an insulating layer provided between the moisture-resistant frame and an outer peripheral edge of the semiconductor device and on the semiconductor substrate, a first metal line extending along the outer peripheral edge and provided in the insulating layer, and a groove provided in the insulating layer.
US09881858B2	Solder bond site including an opening with discontinuous profile Apparatuses and methods for formation of a bond site including an opening with a discontinuous profile are disclosed herein. An example apparatus may at least include a substrate, a contact on the substrate, and a mask layer formed on the substrate and at least a portion of the contact. The mask layer may also include an opening formed therein, with the opening having a discontinuous profile from a top surface of the mask layer to the contact.
US09881850B2	Package structures and method of forming the same Package structures and methods of forming package structures are described. A method includes placing a first package within a recess of a first substrate. The first package includes a first die. The method further includes attaching a first sensor to the first package and the first substrate. The first sensor is electrically coupled to the first package and the first substrate.
US09881842B1	Wimpy and nominal semiconductor device structures for vertical finFETs A first and second vertical fin are formed on a substrate structure. A dielectric layer is disposed on the substrate structure and the first and second vertical fins. A work function metal (WFM) layer is disposed on the dielectric layer. A first sidewall spacer and a second sidewall space are formed proximate to the first vertical fin and the second vertical fin, respectively. A lithographic mask is applied to a first area proximate to the first vertical fin including the first vertical fin, and a portion of the WFM layer proximate to the first vertical fin. A portion of the WFM layer proximate to the second sidewall spacer is recessed below an upper surface of the second sidewall spacer. The lithographic mask is removed. A portion of the dielectric layer is removed to produce a wimpy vertical transport device and a nominal vertical transport device on the substrate structure.
US09881840B2	Method of fabricating gate electrode using a treated hard mask A hard mask layer with a limited thickness is formed over a gate electrode layer. A treatment is provided on the hard mask layer to transform the hard mask layer to be more resistant to wet etching solution. A patterning is provided on the treated hard mask layer and the gate electrode to from a gate structure.
US09881838B2	Semiconductor devices having multiple gate structures and methods of manufacturing such devices A semiconductor device includes a substrate having a first region and a second region, a plurality of first gate structures in the first region, the first gate structures being spaced apart from each other by a first distance, a plurality of second gate structures in the second region, the second gate structures being spaced apart from each other by a second distance, a first spacer on sidewalls of the first gate structures, a dielectric layer on the first spacer, a second spacer on sidewalls of the second gate structures, and a third spacer on the second spacer.
US09881834B1	Contact openings and methods forming same A method includes performing an implantation on a portion of a first layer to form an implanted region, and removing un-implanted portions of the first layer. The implanted region remains after the un-implanted portions of the first layer are removed. An etching is then performed on a second layer underlying the first layer, wherein the implanted region is used as a portion of a first etching mask in the etching. The implanted region is removed. A metal mask is etched using the second layer to form a patterned mask. An inter-layer dielectric is then etched to form a contact opening, wherein the patterned mask is used as a second etching mask.
US09881832B2	Handle substrate for use in manufacture of semiconductor-on-insulator structure and method of manufacturing thereof A method is provided for preparing a high resistivity silicon handle substrate for use in semiconductor-on-insulator structure. The handle substrate is prepared to comprise thermally stable charge carrier traps in the region of the substrate that will be at or near the buried oxide layer (BOX) of the final semiconductor-on-insulator structure. The handle substrate comprising the stable carrier traps is manufactured by hydrogen ions implantation occurring using at least two different energies, followed by a 2-step thermal treatment. The thermally stable defect structures prepared thereby is stable to anneal at temperatures of at least 1180° C. The defect structure comprises 3-dimensional network of nano-cavities interconnected by dislocations. This wafer can be used as a handle wafer for fabricating silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers and further fabricating radio frequency (RF) semiconductor devices.
US09881831B2	Method for fabricating semiconductor device including fin shaped structure A semiconductor device and a method of fabricating the same, the semiconductor device includes a silicon substrate, a fin shaped structure and a shallow trench isolation. The fin shaped structure is disposed on the silicon substrate and includes a silicon germanium (SiGe) layer extending from bottom to top in the fin shaped structure. The shallow trench isolation covers a bottom portion of the fin shaped structure.
US09881830B2	Electrically insulated fin structure(s) with alternative channel materials and fabrication methods Semiconductor structures and fabrication methods are provided which includes, for instance, fabricating a semiconductor fin structure by: providing a fin structure extending above a substrate, the fin structure including a first fin portion, a second fin portion disposed over the first fin portion, and an interface between the first and the second fin portions, where the first fin portion and the second fin portion are lattice mismatched within the fin structure; and modifying, in part, the fin structure to obtain a modified fin structure, the modifying including selectively oxidizing the interface to form an isolation region within the modified fin structure, where the isolation region electrically insulates the first fin portion from the second fin portion, while maintaining structural stability of the modified fin structure.
US09881825B2	Reduced capacity carrier and method of use A substrate transport apparatus is provided. The apparatus has a casing and a door. The casing is adapted to form a controlled environment therein. The casing has supports therein for holding at least one substrate in the casing. The casing defines a substrate transfer opening through which a substrate transport system accesses the substrate in the casing. The door is connected to the casing for closing the substrate transfer opening in the casing. The casing has structure forming a fast swap element allowing replacement of the substrate from the apparatus with another substrate without retraction of the substrate transport system and independent of substrate loading in the casing.
US09881820B2	Front opening ring pod A pod for exchanging consumable parts with a process module includes a base plate having a front side, a back side, and first and second lateral sides. A first support column is disposed on the first lateral side proximal to the front side. A second support column is disposed on the second lateral side proximal to the front side. A third support column is disposed on the first lateral side proximal to back side and a fourth support column is disposed on the second lateral side proximal to the back side. Each of the support columns includes a plurality of support fingers distributed lengthwise and directed inward. A first hard stop column is disposed parallel to the third support column and a second hard stop column is disposed parallel to the fourth support column. A shell structure connected to the base plate is configured to enclose the first, second third and fourth support columns, top plate and first and second hard stop columns and includes a front opening disposed on the front side of the base plate. A door is mated to the front opening and includes retention assembly for securing consumable parts in the pod, when received in the pod.
US09881816B2	Cleaning composition and method for semiconductor device fabrication A method of cleaning a substrate such as semiconductor substrate for IC fabrication is described that includes cleaning the semiconductor substrate with a mixture of ozone and one of an acid and a base. Exemplary acids and bases include HCl, HF, and NH4OH. The cleaning mixture may further include de-ionized water. In an embodiment, the mixture is sprayed onto a heated substrate surface.
US09881810B2	Structures, methods and applications for electrical pulse anneal processes Structures and methods are provided for nanosecond electrical pulse anneal processes. The method of forming an electrostatic discharge (ESD) N+/P+ structure includes forming an N+ diffusion on a substrate and a P+ diffusion on the substrate. The P+ diffusion is in electrical contact with the N+ diffusion. The method further includes forming a device between the N+ diffusion and the P+ diffusion. A method of annealing a structure or material includes applying an electrical pulse across an electrostatic discharge (ESD) N+/P+ structure for a plurality of nanoseconds.
US09881803B2	Chemical mechanical polishing method using slurry composition containing N-oxide compound The present disclosure relates to a method of performing a chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) process with a high germanium-to-oxide removal selectivity and a low rate of germanium recess formation. The method is performed by providing a semiconductor substrate having a plurality of germanium compound regions including germanium interspersed between a plurality of oxide regions including an oxide. A slurry is then provided onto the semiconductor substrate. The slurry has an oxidant and an etching inhibitor configured to reduce a removal rate of the germanium relative to the oxide. A CMP process is then performed by bringing a chemical mechanical polishing pad in contact with top surfaces of the plurality of germanium compound regions and the plurality of oxide regions.
US09881800B2	Structure and method for high performance large-grain-poly silicon backplane for OLED applications Large grain polysilicon films can be exfoliated on a handle substrate, such as a glass or glass-ceramic substrate. The large grain polysilicon can have high mobility for device formation, and can be used for backplane of a display or a sensor array for x-ray detection.
US09881799B2	Substrate liquid processing apparatus, substrate liquid processing method, and computer-readable storage medium Disclosed is a substrate liquid processing apparatus including a processing liquid storage unit that stores a processing liquid; a processing liquid supply unit that supplies the processing liquid to the processing liquid storage unit; a processing liquid circulation unit that circulates the processing liquid inside the processing liquid storage unit; a processing liquid discharge unit that discharges the processing liquid; a concentration sensor that measures a concentration in the processing liquid; and a controller that controls the processing liquid supply unit. The controller controls the processing liquid circulation unit to circulate the processing liquid, the processing liquid discharge unit to discharge the circulated processing liquid intermittently at a predetermined timing or continuously for a predetermined period of time, the processing liquid supply unit to newly supply the processing liquid, and the concentration sensor to measure the concentration in the processing liquid at a predetermined timing.
US09881798B1	Metal cap integration by local alloying A middle-of-line interconnect structure including copper interconnects and integral copper alloy caps provides effective electromigration resistance. A metal cap layer is deposited on the top surfaces of the interconnects. A post-deposition anneal causes formation of the copper alloy caps from the interconnects and the metal cap layer. Selective removal of unalloyed metal cap layer material provides an interconnect structure free of metal residue on the dielectric material layer separating the interconnects.
US09881792B2	Processes for shaping nanomaterials Processes for shaping one- and two-dimensional nanomaterials, and thereby inducing local strains therein preferably to control one or more of their material properties. The processes include providing a substrate comprising a three-dimensional surface feature thereon, locating a nanomaterial on the substrate and over the surface feature, and directing a laser beam toward the nanomaterial such that the nanomaterial experiences laser shock pressure sufficient to deform the nanomaterial to conform at least partially to the shape of the surface feature and adhere to the surface feature either directly or via an intermediate layer therebetween.
US09881785B2	Method of preventing charge accumulation in manufacture of semiconductor device A method of preventing a charge accumulation in the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device is provided. The method includes: forming a material layer on a substrate; patterning (or processing) the material layer; and forming a graphene layer before patterning the material layer, wherein the graphene layer is formed on a surface of the material layer or on a surface of the substrate under the material layer. The substrate may be an insulation substrate. In addition, the substrate may have a stacked structure including a plurality of layers.
US09881775B2	Waveform for improved energy control of sputtered species This disclosure describes systems and methods for regulating the density and kinetic energy of ions in a sputtering deposition chamber. A pulsed DC waveform with a modulated RF signal is generated and applied to the sputtering chamber. Upon termination of a cycle of the pulsed DC waveform, a reverse voltage spike is generated. This reverse voltage spike reverses the polarity of the cathode and anode of the sputtering chamber for some period of time. A reverse voltage limiting circuit is provided so as to limit the reverse voltage spike to a selected reverse voltage threshold. A controller may be employed to control the timing and duration of the application of the DC waveform, the timing and duration of the RF waveform, and the engagement of the reverse limiting circuit.
US09881768B2	Charged Particle Beam System With Receptacle Chamber For Cleaning Sample and Sample Stage A charged particle beam system capable of reducing contamination has a sample chamber (15) in which the sample (S) is irradiated with a charged particle beam and a receptacle chamber (21) which is connected into the sample chamber (15) via an isolation valve (25) and is connected to the ambient via a door (26). A transport mechanism (22) conveys the sample (S) from the ambient via the door (26) into the receptacle chamber (21) and via the isolation valve (25) into the sample chamber (15). A cleaning portion supplies active oxygen into the receptacle chamber which can then be evacuated by a vacuum pump.
US09881758B2	Contact device and electromagnetic relay equipped with the contact device A contact device includes: a contact block including a plurality of fixed terminals on which fixed contacts are formed, and a movable contactor on which movable contacts contacting and leaving the fixed contacts are formed; and a driving block that drives the movable contactor. Moreover, it is made possible to extinguish arcs, which are generated in an event where the contacts contact and leave each other, by arranging permanent magnets on a periphery of the contact block. Then, at least one fixed terminal among the plurality of fixed terminals is formed so that the fixed contact and the movable contact can abut against each other in a region other than a side opposite to the other fixed terminal.
US09881755B1	Motorized high voltage in-line disconnect switch with hand-held communication system to prevent unwanted operation A high voltage in-line air break disconnect switch suspended by an electric power line conductor wherein the switch includes a rotating switch blade that is operated by a communication system controlled motor that may include a switch mounted radio which is controlled by another radio located in a hand-held portable controller that is battery powered to provide a secure way to open and close a switch without traditional padlockable manual operators that are vulnerable to terrorist attacks. The communication system controlled motorized in-line air break disconnect switch is battery operated and solar charged.
US09881749B1	Lockout system for energy sources A lockout system includes a hasp assembly and a plurality of tags. The hasp assembly has a back plate defining slots each sized and shaped to receive a tag. The back plate and tags each have openings that align when a tag is received in a slot. A first hasp portion on the back plate defines part of a closed loop. A longitudinal locking bar is slidable along the back plate and has notches shaped to receive ends of the tags. Moving the locking bar between an unlocked position and a locked position operates the second hasp portion between an open position and a closed position. In the closed position, the first and second hasp portions complete and define the closed loop, where one or more tags can be installed in slots with the first end of the tag engaging a notch to lock closed the hasp portion.
US09881744B2	Electronic component termination and assembly by means of transient liquid phase sintering metalurgical bonds An improved method for forming a capacitor is provided as is a capacitor, or electrical component, formed by the method. The method includes providing an aluminum containing anode with an aluminum oxide dielectric thereon; forming a cathode on a first portion of the aluminum oxide dielectric; bonding an anode lead to the aluminum anode on a second portion of the aluminum oxide by a transient liquid phase sintered conductive material thereby metallurgical bonding the aluminum anode to the anode lead; and bonding a cathode lead to said cathode.
US09881740B2	Monolithic ceramic capacitor with varying conductor density A monolithic ceramic capacitor includes an element body having therein a multilayer portion formed of a plurality of conductor layers and a plurality of ceramic dielectric layers alternately stacked in a thickness direction; and a first outer electrode and a second outer electrode provided on an outer portion of the element body. The element body is divided in the thickness direction into a thickness-direction first outer layer portion, a thickness-direction second outer layer portion, and a thickness-direction inner layer portion located between the thickness-direction first outer layer portion and the thickness-direction second outer layer portion and including the multilayer portion. A first conductor layer and a second conductor layer, which are outermost layers among the plurality of conductor layers, have lower conductor densities than any of conductor densities of the other conductor layers.
US09881738B2	Capacitor structures with embedded electrodes and fabrication methods thereof Capacitor structures having first electrodes at least partially embedded within a second electrode, and fabrication methods are presented. The methods include, for instance: providing the first electrodes at least partially within an insulator layer, the first electrodes comprising exposed portions; covering exposed portions of the first electrodes with a dielectric material; and forming the second electrode at least partially around the dielectric covered portions of the first electrodes, the second electrode being physically separated from the first electrodes by the dielectric material. In one embodiment, a method further includes exposing further portions of the first electrodes; and providing a contact structure in electrical contact with the further exposed portions of the first electrodes. In another embodiment, some of the first electrodes are aligned substantially parallel to a first direction and other of the first electrodes are aligned substantially parallel to a second direction, the first and second directions being different directions.
US09881732B2	Dielectric materials for power transfer system A contactless power transfer system is proposed. The power transfer system comprises a field-focusing element comprising a dielectric material. The dielectric material includes an oxide material including (Mg1-xSrx)yTiO(2+y), wherein x can vary between the value of zero and 1 such that 0≦x≦1, and y can be 0, 1, or 2. A power transfer system further including a first coil coupled to a power source and a second coil coupled to a load is disclosed. In this system, the field-focusing element including the dielectric material is disposed between the first coil and the second coil.
US09881725B2	Ethernet magnetics package wire terminations In one implementation, an apparatus is configured to aid in the manufacturing or assembling of electronic surface mount packages. The apparatus includes a common mode choke base configured to support a common mode choke. The apparatus includes terminal contacts coupled to the common mode choke base. The terminal contacts are aligned with wires connected to the common mode choke. The apparatus includes a support member including a wire supporting portion aligned with the wires connected to the common mode choke and a central portion configured to support the common mode choke base.
US09881718B2	Method and apparatus for continuously processing conductor cable for disposal or recycling A continuous processing system and method for the continuous processing of an electrical conductor cable having aluminum strands encasing a steel core directly from a puller or from a puller and reel, simultaneously or on-the-fly during substantially the entirety of a reconductoring or re-stringing of the cable, wherein such cables are used for power lines or for static wires. The system is adapted to cooperate with a pulling machine. The pulling machine may be formed integrally within the system or may be a conventional pulling machine which cooperates with the system. The processing system runs continuously, substantially without interruption, during the pull of all of the cable from the pull zone of the reconductoring or restringing.
US09881716B2	Composite cable and composite harness A composite cable includes a first twisted-pair wire formed by twisting a pair of first electric wires, a second twisted-pair wire formed by twisting a pair of second electric wires, a pair of third electric wires arranged between the first and second twisted-pair wires in a circumferential direction, each third electric wire having a larger outer diameter than the first and second electric wires, and a tape member spirally wound around an assembled article that is formed by twisting the first twisted-pair wire, the second twisted-pair wire and the pair of third electric wires together. The two twisted-pair wires have the same twist direction, the twist direction of the two twisted-pair wires is different from a twist direction of the assembled article, and the twist direction of the assembled article is different from a winding direction of the tape member.
US09881710B2	Achromatic phase-contrast imaging An achromatic phase-contrast imaging apparatus for examining an object of interest is provided which comprises two different phase gratings which have different pitches. Thus, the imaging apparatus yields phase-contrast information for two different energies. Thus, phase-information over a wider energy band can be used.
US09881708B1	Radiation area monitor device and method A radiation area monitor device/method, utilizing: a radiation sensor; a rotating radiation shield disposed about the radiation sensor, wherein the rotating radiation shield defines one or more ports that are transparent to radiation; and a processor operable for analyzing and storing a radiation fingerprint acquired by the radiation sensor as the rotating radiation shield is rotated about the radiation sensor. Optionally, the radiation sensor includes a gamma and/or neutron radiation sensor. The device/method selectively operates in: a first supervised mode during which a baseline radiation fingerprint is acquired by the radiation sensor as the rotating radiation shield is rotated about the radiation sensor; and a second unsupervised mode during which a subsequent radiation fingerprint is acquired by the radiation sensor as the rotating radiation shield is rotated about the radiation sensor, wherein the subsequent radiation fingerprint is compared to the baseline radiation fingerprint and, if a predetermined difference threshold is exceeded, an alert is issued.
US09881705B2	Emergency and back-up cooling of nuclear fuel and reactors and fire-extinguishing, explosion prevention using liquid nitrogen A system for fighting a fire includes a plurality of containers containing liquid nitrogen. Thermally activated release mechanisms are each connected to one of the containers. Each thermally activated release mechanism is configured to release the liquid nitrogen from a connected container when a predetermined safety threshold temperature is reached, so that the released liquid nitrogen produces an expanding volume of cold nitrogen vapor. A central storage container stores liquid nitrogen. The central storage container is connected to each of the plurality of containers. A sensor system activates refilling of a respective container with liquid nitrogen from the central storage container when the amount of liquid nitrogen in the respective container is below a predetermined threshold.
US09881702B2	Hydraulic control unit and method of shutting down a nuclear reactor using the same A method of shutting down a nuclear reactor may include compressing a scram gas that is in fluid communication with a scram accumulator. The scram accumulator defines a chamber therein and contains bellows within the chamber. The bellows are configured to hold a scram liquid in isolation of the scram gas. The scram gas exerts a compressive force on the bellows in a form of stored energy. The method may additionally include releasing the stored energy in response to a scram signal such that the scram gas expands into the chamber of the scram accumulator to compress the bellows and expel the scram liquid from the scram accumulator to insert control rods into a core of the nuclear reactor.
US09881701B2	Spacer grids with springs having improved robustness A spacer grid includes intersecting straps defining cells with springs and dimples arranged to hold fuel rods passing through the cells. The springs are dual cantilevered springs with a bridge section between the distal end of the spring and the base. The distal portion of the spring is less stiff than the bridge section. The bridge section creates a bump which acts as a stop or travel limiter to prevent loss of grip force due to excessive spring deflection.
US09881699B2	Cellular structures with interconnected microchannels A method for fabricating a cellular tritium breeder component includes obtaining a reticulated carbon foam skeleton comprising a network of interconnected ligaments. The foam skeleton is then melt-infiltrated with a tritium breeder material, for example, lithium zirconate or lithium titanate. The foam skeleton is then removed to define a cellular breeder component having a network of interconnected tritium purge channels. In an embodiment the ligaments of the foam skeleton are enlarged by adding carbon using chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) prior to melt-infiltration. In an embodiment the foam skeleton is coated with a refractory material, for example, tungsten, prior to melt infiltration.
US09881693B2	Selectors on interface die for memory device Apparatuses including an interface chip that interfaces with dice through memory channels are described. An example apparatus includes: an interface chip that interfaces with a plurality of dice through a plurality of memory channels, each of the dice comprising a plurality of memory cells, and the interface chip comprising a test circuit. The test circuit includes: first and second terminals corresponding to the first and second memory channels respectively; a test terminal and a built in self test (BIST) circuit common to the first and second memory channels; and a selector coupled to the first and second terminals, the test terminal and the BIST circuit, and couples a first selected one of the first terminal, the test terminal and the BIST circuit to the first channel and a second selected one of the second terminal, the test terminal and the BIST circuit to the second channel.
US09881692B2	Electronic memory device and test method of such a device The electronic memory device comprises a non-volatile memory matrix organized in rows and columns, an address decoder with address input lines for selecting a row according to a particular address given on the address input lines. Additional address mask input lines are provided, each address mask input line being assigned to an address input line, wherein an address mask input line in activated state has the effect of ignoring the assigned address input line. The method for testing said electronic memory device is performed with a significant lower number of read/write operations, since by ignoring a particular address line a plurality of write operations can be performed simultaneously.
US09881690B2	Shift register unit, gate driver circuit and display panel A shift register unit having a pulse width modulation module is provided. The pulse width modulation module includes a first input submodule, a first pull-down submodule, a second input submodule, a second pull-down submodule, a third input submodule, and a third pull-down submodule.
US09881689B2	Emission driver and display device including the same An emission driver and a display device having the same are disclosed. In one aspect, the emission driver includes a plurality of stages each configured to output an emission control signal, wherein each of the stages includes first and second driving blocks and a buffer block. The buffer block is configured to selectively output an emission control signal so as to operate in a sequential emission mode or in a simultaneous emission mode, the stages being configured to sequentially output a plurality of the emission control signals in the sequential emission mode and substantially simultaneously output the emission control signals in the simultaneous emission mode. The buffer block is further configured to determine a duration in which the emission control signal has a first voltage level based on an interval between time points when first and second intermediate signals have low voltage levels.
US09881686B2	Apparatuses and methods to control body potential in 3D non-volatile memory operations Some embodiments include apparatuses and methods having a memory cell string including memory cells located in different levels of the apparatus and a data line coupled to the memory cell string. The memory cell string includes a pillar body associated with the memory cells. At least one of such apparatus can include a module configured to store information in a memory cell among memory cells and/or to determine a value of information stored in a memory cell among memory cells. The module can also be configured to apply a voltage having a positive value to the data line and/or a source to control a potential of the body. Other embodiments are described.
US09881665B2	Semiconductor memory device including output buffer An apparatus includes a first terminal configured to communicate data with an outside of the apparatus, a second terminal configured to receive a first power source potential, a third terminal configured to receive a second power source potential lower than the first power source potential, a fourth terminal configured to be coupled to a calibration resistor, an output buffer including first to third nodes coupled to the first to third terminals respectively, and a replica circuit including fourth and fifth nodes coupled to the second and third terminals respectively, and sixth node coupled to the fourth terminal.
US09881662B2	Method and apparatus for calibrating write timing in a memory system A system that calibrates timing relationships between signals involved in performing write operations is described. This system includes a memory controller which is coupled to a set of memory chips, wherein each memory chip includes a phase detector configured to calibrate a phase relationship between a data-strobe signal and a clock signal received at the memory chip from the memory controller during a write operation. Furthermore, the memory controller is configured to perform one or more write-read-validate operations to calibrate a clock-cycle relationship between the data-strobe signal and the clock signal, wherein the write-read-validate operations involve varying a delay on the data-strobe signal relative to the clock signal by a multiple of a clock period.
US09881660B2	Magnetic memory A magnetic memory according to an embodiment includes: a conductive layer including a first and second terminals; a plurality of magnetoresistive elements separately disposed on the conductive layer between the first and second terminals, each magnetoresistive element including a reference layer, a storage layer between the reference layer and the conductive layer, and a nonmagnetic layer between the storage layer and the reference layer; and a circuit configured to apply a first potential to the reference layers of the magnetoresistive elements and to flow a first write current between the first and second terminals, and configured to apply a second potential to the reference layer or the reference layers of one or more of the magnetoresistive elements to which data is to be written, and to flow a second write current between the first and second terminals in an opposite direction to the first write current.
US09881632B1	System and method for echo suppression for in-car communications A system and method that enhances speech through reinforcement includes capturing an audio signal generated by the audio sources by one or more microphones; decomposing the audio signals into a plurality of virtual audio sources where the number of audio channels delivered by the audio sources is equal to the number of the plurality of virtual audio sources; estimating the echo paths from each of the plurality of virtual audio sources to the one or more microphones; and processing the captured audio signal in response to the estimated echo paths by subtracting the echo contributions of each of the virtual sources to the one or more microphones.
US09881626B2	Vector joint encoding/decoding method and vector joint encoder/decoder A vector joint encoding/decoding method and a vector joint encoder/decoder are provided, more than two vectors are jointly encoded, and an encoding index of at least one vector is split and then combined between different vectors, so that encoding idle spaces of different vectors can be recombined, thereby facilitating saving of encoding bits, and because an encoding index of a vector is split and then shorter split indexes are recombined, thereby facilitating reduction of requirements for the bit width of operating parts in encoding/decoding calculation.
US09881615B2	Speech recognition apparatus and method A speech recognition apparatus and method. The speech recognition apparatus includes a first recognizer configured to generate a first recognition result of an audio signal, in a first linguistic recognition unit, by using an acoustic model, a second recognizer configured to generate a second recognition result of the audio signal, in a second linguistic recognition unit, by using a language model, and a combiner configured to combine the first recognition result and the second recognition result to generate a final recognition result in the second linguistic recognition unit and to reflect the final recognition result in the language model. The first linguistic recognition unit may be a same linguistic unit type as the second linguistic recognition unit. The first recognizer and the second recognizer are configured in a same neural network and simultaneously/collectively trained in the neural network using audio training data provided to the first recognizer.
US09881612B2	Automated portable recording device activation Portable recording devices used by a person, such as a law enforcement officer, may be automatically activated to capture data assets. A dispatch request may be sent from a server to a computing device used by person equipped with a portable recording device. Subsequently, the server may determine whether the portable recording device is activated by the computing device to record a data asset. In response to a determination that there is a lack of activation of the portable recording device by the computing device to record the data asset following the dispatch request, the server may activate the portable recording device of the person to record the data asset.
US09881609B2	Gesture-based cues for an automatic speech recognition system A method of recognizing continuous digits uttered by a speaker using an automatic speech recognition (ASR) system includes receiving continuous digits via a microphone as speech from a user; detecting that recognition of one or more of the continuous digits falls below a predetermined confidence threshold; prompting the user to identify the continuous digits using a body gesture; detecting the body gesture made by the user; and identifying one or more of the continuous digits based on the body gesture.
US09881606B2	Command and control of devices and applications by voice using a communication base system A first communication path for receiving a communication is established. The communication includes speech, which is processed. A speech pattern is identified as including a voice-command. A portion of the speech pattern is determined as including the voice-command. That portion of the speech pattern is separated from the speech pattern and compared with a second speech pattern. If the two speech patterns match or resemble each other, the portion of the speech pattern is accepted as the voice-command. An operation corresponding to the voice-command is determined and performed. The operation may perform an operation on a remote device, forward the voice-command to a remote device, or notify a user. The operation may create a second communication path that may allow a headset to join in a communication between another headset and a communication device, several headsets to communicate with each other, or a headset to communicate with several communication devices.
US09881599B2	Sound absorbing and insulating material with improved heat resistance and moldability and method for manufacturing the same The present invention relates to a sound absorbing and insulating material with improved heat resistance and moldability and a method for manufacturing the same, more particularly to a sound absorbing and insulating material having, as a surface layer, a heat-resistant material prepared by impregnating a binder into a nonwoven fabric formed of a heat-resistant fiber stacked on one side of a base layer formed of a conventional sound absorbing and insulating material, and a method for manufacturing the same.The sound absorbing and insulating material of the present invention is a conventional sound absorbing and insulating material has improved sound-absorbing property, flame retardancy, heat-insulating property and heat resistance as compared to the conventional sound absorbing and insulating material, is applicable to parts maintained at high temperatures of 200° C. or higher due to the surface layer and is moldable into a desired shape during the curing of the binder impregnated into the surface layer. Therefore, the sound absorbing and insulating material of the present invention can be widely used in industrial fields requiring sound absorbing and insulating materials, including electric appliances such as an air conditioner, a refrigerator, a washing machine, a lawn mower and the like, transportation such as an automobile, a ship, an airplane and the like, construction materials such as a wall material, a flooring material and the like, and so forth.
US09881593B2	Modular adjustable fretboard apparatus A modular apparatus and method of varying the playability and tonal characteristics of a stringed instrument such as an acoustic or electric guitar which is commonly provided with a body and a fretboard to the instrument's neck. The modular apparatus includes a longitudinal rail, accessible fasteners, intermediary spacer blocks and a plurality of adjustable and removable frets. The rail is configured to connect with the neck of the stringed instrument and to provide a base for the frets. The frets are configured to move as needed within apertures within the rail. The frets are also configured to receive and support the instrument's strings. The frets are selectively adjustable relative to the rail by the user to change the tonal and playability characteristics of the instrument.
US09881591B2	Apparatus and method for displaying in energy management system Embodiments of a display apparatus of an energy management system are presented. The display apparatus may include: a first screen updating unit including a drawing unit configured to determine a screen to be output based on a screen operation input and update data and an object included in the determined screen to configure an output-scheduled screen and a first temporary storage unit configured to store the configured output-scheduled screen; and a second screen updating unit configured to receive the stored output-scheduled screen and output the received output-scheduled screen through a screen output unit.
US09881589B2	Backlight source driving circuit and display apparatus There are disclosed a backlight source driving circuit and a display apparatus. The backlight source driving circuit comprises a switch field effect transistor (Q1), a freewheeling field effect transistor (Q2), a power supplying module, a control module, a LED group (Z) and a feedback module, the power supplying module is configured to supply power to the LED group (Z), the control module is configured to control turn-on timings of the switch field effect transistor (Q1) and the freewheeling field effect transistor (Q2) to be opposite, and the feedback module is configured to provide a feedback voltage to the control module. The backlight source driving circuit is disposed in the display apparatus. By utilizing the field effect transistor as the freewheeling device in the backlight source driving circuit, the power consumption of the driving circuit is decreased effectively and an efficiency of the driving circuit is enhanced.
US09881582B2	Semiconductor device, and display device and electronic device utilizing the same A semiconductor device having a normal function means is provided, in which the amplitude of an output signal is prevented from being decreased even when a digital circuit using transistors having one conductivity is employed. By turning OFF a diode-connected transistor 101, the gate terminal of a first transistor 102 is brought into a floating state. At this time, the first transistor 102 is ON and its gate-source voltage is stored in a capacitor. Then, when a potential at the source terminal of the first transistor 102 is increased, a potential at the gate terminal of the first transistor 102 is increased as well by bootstrap effect. As a result, the amplitude of an output signal is prevented from being decreased.
US09881581B2	System and method for the distribution of audio and projected visual content A method for the distribution of audio and visual media includes: receiving at least one visual content item to be displayed, and an audio content item and at least one trigger condition for each of the at least one visual content item; storing, in a database, the received at least one visual content item and corresponding audio content item and at least one trigger condition; identifying at least one display condition of a plurality of display conditions; identifying, in the database, a specific visual content item, wherein the at least one trigger condition corresponding to the specific visual content item is met based on the identified at least one display condition; displaying, by a light projection display device, the identified specific visual content item; and wirelessly transmitting the audio content item corresponding to the specific visual content item for audible emission by a mobile communication device.
US09881578B2	Display device A display device includes a plurality of gate lines extended in a first direction, a plurality of common electrodes extended in the first direction, a gate scanning circuit that scans the plurality of the gate lines, and a common scanning circuit that scans the plurality of the common electrodes. The common scanning circuit includes a shift register unit, an interconnection connecting unit, and a switch unit. The gate scanning circuit and the common scanning circuit are configured of single channel thin film transistors. The gate scanning circuit is disposed between the shift register unit and the interconnection connecting unit, and the interconnection connecting unit is disposed between the gate scanning circuit and the switch unit in a planar view.
US09881571B2	3D image display apparatus and driving method thereof An image display control unit in a three-dimensional image display apparatus is configured to drive gate lines and the data lines so as to provide the display panel with a left eye image signal during a first frame in which a right eye image signal is displayed on the display panel, and with the right eye image signal during a second frame in which the left eye image signal is displayed on the display panel. During the first frame, each of the pixels provides a second capacitor with the right eye image signal, and a first capacitor with the left eye image signal. During the second frame, each of the pixels provides the first capacitor with the right eye image signal, and the second capacitor with the left eye image signal. A backlight unit maintains a turn-on state during the first and second frames.
US09881563B2	Light emitting diode driver circuit, display apparatus including the same, and method for driving light emitting diode A light emitting diode driver (LED) circuit and method are provided. The light emitting diode driver circuit includes an LED array; a LED driving circuit configured to supply current to the LED array through switching operations of a plurality of switches; and a driving controller configured to control the plurality of switches to supply current, corresponding to a dimming signal, to the LED array using a clock signal of a preset frequency. The driving controller may be further configured to control the plurality of switches to alternately perform switching operations.
US09881556B2	Shift register circuit, its driving method, array substrate and display device The present disclosure provides a shift register circuit, which includes a first switch unit connecting an input end to a first node when a positive-phase clock signal is at a first level; a second switch unit applying a negative-phase clock signal to an output end when the first node is at the first level; a positive feedback unit enabling the second node to be at a second level when the first node is at the first level and enabling the first node to be at the second level when the second node is at the first level; a third switch unit enabling a third node to be at the first level when the positive-phase clock signal is at the first level; a fourth switch unit connecting the second node to the third node when the negative-phase clock signal is at the first level; and a fifth switch unit.
US09881555B2	Organic light emitting diode display device capable of sensing and correcting a progressive bright point defect Disclosed is an OLED display device capable of sensing and correcting a progressive bright point defect and a method of driving the same. The OLED display device includes a data driver for supplying an off-driving voltage to a driving transistor for driving a light emitting element in each sub-pixel, and sensing a voltage corresponding to a leakage current of the driving transistor, and a bright point estimator for estimating a progressive bright point of a sub-pixel by comparing a voltage value sensed through the data driver with a reference value, and darkening and correcting the sub-pixel estimated to have the progressive bright point.
US09881551B2	Drive circuit, display device, and drive method A drive circuit for a light emitting element which can correct a threshold voltage of a drive transistor between two reference voltages without a reset power supply. The drive circuit includes a light emitting element, a drive transistor for controlling an amount of current, a first switching element that is arranged between the light emitting element and the drive transistor, a second switching element that is arranged between the drive transistor and the second reference voltage, a third switching element that is arranged between a gate, and one of a source and a drain of the drive transistor, a fourth switching element that is connected to the other of the source and the drain of the drive transistor, and controls input of signal voltage, and a first capacitor connected to the gate of the drive transistor.
US09881550B2	Pixel circuit, driving method thereof, and display apparatus Disclosed are a pixel Circuit, a driving method thereof, and a display apparatus. The pixel circuit comprises a driving transistor, a capacitor connected between the source and the gate of the driving transistor, a light-emitting element, a light-emitting control module, a data writing module and a compensating module. By cooperation among the various modules, the drift of the threshold voltage of the driving transistor can be compensated. Accordingly, the driving current which is provided by the driving transistor to drive the light-emitting element to emit light only relates to the voltage of the data signal and the reference signal, while does not relate to the threshold voltage of the driving transistor and the first reference voltage source, and thus the effect on the current flowing through the light-emitting element raised due to the threshold voltage and due to the IR drop can be avoided. The operating current which drives the light-emitting element to emit lights can remain uniform, thereby improving the uniformity of the image luminance of the whole display area of the display apparatus.
US09881548B2	Organic light emitting diode display with shielding portion An organic light emitting diode display includes at least one first data line, at least one second data line, a plurality of driving transistors, and a plurality of light emitters. Each driving transistor has a driving gate electrode connected to the at least one first data line and the at least one second data line, and the light emitters are respectively connected to the driving transistors. Emission regions of the light emitter do not overlap the at least one first data line, the at least one second data line, and the driving transistors. A shielding portion overlaps an end of the at least one first data line and an end of the at least one second data line.
US09881545B2	LED display apparatus and LED pixel error detection method thereof A light emitting diode (LED) display apparatus, including: a plurality of LED lines including a plurality of LEDs; a plurality of switches connected to respective LED lines among the plurality of LED lines; a controller configured to sequentially supply power to the plurality of LED lines by sequentially turning on and off the plurality of switches; and an LED driver configured to detect an error state of an LED from the plurality of LEDs by estimating current flowing through the plurality of LED lines, and to provide the controller with a result of the detection.
US09881543B2	Shift register unit, method for driving the same, shift register, and display device A shift register unit includes a first shift register module and a second shift register module. The first shift register module includes a first input module configured to input a start signal to a first control node, a second input module configured to input a first level to a second control node, a first output control module configured to input a second level to the first control node, a second output control module configured to input a first clock signal to the second control node, a first output module configured to input the first clock signal to a first output end, and a second output module configured to input the first level to the first output end. The second shift register module includes a second output end, third and fourth input modules, third and fourth output control modules, and third and fourth output modules.
US09881540B2	Gate driver and a display apparatus having the same A gate driver includes first and second shift registers and a selector. The first shift register outputs first pulses. The second shift register outputs second pulses different from the first pulses. The selector selects one of the first pulses or the second pulses. When the selector selects the first pulses, the gate driver generates a first gate signal including first and second high periods, and output the first gate signal to a first gate line. The second high period is apart from the first high period by a first interval. When the selector selects the second pulses, the gate driver generates a second gate signal including the first high period and a third high period, and output the second gate signal to the first gate line. The third high period is apart from the first high period by a second interval different from the first interval.
US09881527B1	Flexible tensioned banner A banner is made of a flexible sheet material with a casing. A resilient, flexible rod extends through the casing and has first and second ends anchored at fixed, spaced-apart positions so that the resilient, flexible rod forms an arcuate shape and holds the flexible sheet material in tension to form a flexible, arcuate-shaped, tensioned banner.
US09881526B2	Material to increase traffic sign awareness Material for a sign support structure, such as a signpost, providing greater visibility an added awareness to the sign comprising a film or sheeting on which is printed contrasting colored segments or contrasting colored designs, words, or letters replicated repeatedly on or within and along the length of the material. The material, when attached to the sign support structure or an independent substrate that is subsequently attached to the sign support structure, provides a higher visibility pattern drawing awareness to the sign.
US09881520B2	Virtual tool manipulation system In the field of virtual reality, virtual tool manipulation systems and related methods and software are described in the present disclosure. One implementation of a virtual tool manipulation system, among others, comprises a motion tracking system configured to generate motion information related to the position of a part of a user's body. The virtual tool manipulation system also comprises a haptic feedback system configured to provide a haptic sensation to the user based on the motion information, the position of a virtual tool, and characteristics of the virtual tool.
US09881519B2	Hazardous material detector simulator and training system A system and method for simulating another apparatus provides simulated readings by controlling a simulated display provided to portable simulator clients, such as via a wireless interface. Each simulator client provides detector reading displays for selected environments and allows for two-way interactive response with a master control unit. Simulator clients are configured as modular units comprising a smartphone or similar mass-produced wireless computing device removably integrated with a detector simulator housing and/or keypad interface. The master control unit allows direct control of individual detector displays and scenarios for the simulation.
US09881516B1	System and method for detecting cheating while administering online assessments A server, method and computer program product for identifying online usage of honeypots by test-takers during administration of online assessments is disclosed. The server includes at least one computer processor coupled to a network interface and configured to receive a pool of test questions used for a learning assessment. The server converts each question in the pool into a watermarked question comprising a unique string of characters; creates a corresponding web beacon for each watermarked question in the pool; loads available PHP server header information; propagates each watermarked question onto at least one seed site domain to create a cluster of seed sites; and detects when a test-taker visits at least one of the seed sites during an online assessment.
US09881500B2	Information processing device An information processing device has a display control section and a state detection section. The display control section instructs a display device to display road information regarding a roadway on which a vehicle runs. The display device is arranged inside of the vehicle. The state detection section detects at least one of cases A and B. In the case A, it is detected whether or not the vehicle is in a first state as a roundabout entry motion estimation in which the vehicle will enter a roundabout. In the case B, it is detected whether or not the own vehicle is in a second state in which the own vehicle is running on the roundabout. The display control section reduces information's visibility to the driver displayed on the display device when the state detection section detects at least one of the first state and the second state.
US09881489B2	Instant alert network system An instant alert network system may transform a mobile communication device, such as a smart phone, into a “panic button” whereby a user may instantly broadcast an alert or alarm to users forming a defined group to a threat or emergency situation as opposed to relying on a single person or entity to initiate the alert. An instant alert network system may permit users to become the perimeter defense through activation and distribution of alerts via various forms of electronic communication. This will dramatically reduce the amount of time that may be needed to inform users of an impending threat, and it may allow defensive countermeasures to be deployed in virtually real-time in order to reduce the threat and possibly save lives.
US09881486B2	Wearable device for automatic detection of emergency situations A portion of data is received from each sensor of a plurality of sensors. An emergency level corresponding to each metric of a plurality of metrics is calculated, where the calculated emergency level is determined based on the portion of data received from the sensors. A total emergency level corresponding to the current situation is calculated, where the calculation of the total emergency level is based on the emergency level calculated for each metric. It is determined whether the total emergency level is above a critical threshold, where the critical threshold is selected by the user. If it is determined that the total emergency level is above the critical threshold, an alert is sent to a party such as one or more local authorities.
US09881483B2	Vehicle based system for managing personal items An illustrative example embodiment of a system for assisting a driver with personal items includes a plurality of detectors that detect a signal from a transmitter that has been previously associated with a personal item; and a processor configured to: determine at least one characteristic of a journey, receive an indication from at least one of the detectors regarding a detected signal, identify a personal item and determine its location based on the detected signal, provide an indication if the determined location is different than an expected location based on the at least one characteristic of the vehicle journey, determine whether at least one other personal item is expected to be located based on the at least one characteristic of the vehicle journey, and provide an indication that the other personal item is expected but not detected.
US09881482B2	Method and device for displaying information of a system Systems and methods for displaying information of a system use at least one control unit to detect and communicate system information to a mobile terminal device within a predetermined range of the system. Information about a state of the system may be displayed on a display unit of the system and transmitted to the mobile terminal device via a communication channel established between the control unit and the mobile terminal device. The system may be a vehicle and the system information a status of the automatic driving mode of the vehicle.
US09881481B2	Mobile device loss prevention A method for a mobile device to prevent loss including monitoring environmental parameters by a mobile device; storing the environmental parameters in the mobile device to form a history of the environmental parameters; applying statistical analysis to a current set of environmental parameters as compared to the history of the environmental parameters to determine a probability that the mobile device is lost; and responsive to determining the probability that the mobile device is lost exceeds a threshold, performing an action to prevent loss of the mobile device.
US09881478B1	Web-based, plug and play wireless remote monitoring diagnostic and system health prediction system A diagnostic monitoring system and method is employed for one or more vapor compression systems such as air conditioners and heat pumps having a compressor, an indoor air handler fan coil and an outdoor condensor. Temperature, voltage and current sensors are provided at the outdoor condensor to determine that at least one vapor compression system is operating properly. Data obtained from the sensors is wirelessly transmitted to a receiving-device for use by the systems' custodian or repair service provider and includes information concerning an occurrence of periods when one or more of the vapor compression systems are operating at an abnormal state.
US09881470B2	Automated crowdsourced power outage identification and staggering of HVAC system restarts Various embodiments involving a smart-home device are presented. It may be determined that the power supply interface has ceased receiving power from the structure's wired electrical system. In response to determining that a power supply interface of the smart-home device has ceased receiving power from a structure's wired electrical system, a power loss indication may be stored that comprises a timestamp. A network connection may be determined to be available. A notification may be transmitted of information from the stored power loss indication to a remote server via the available network connection.
US09881467B2	Haptic effects conflict avoidance A method and system for avoiding haptic effects conflict is presented. A haptic enabled device configured to generate haptic effects associated with a first signature is used by a user. The system detects an additional source of haptic effects and determines a second signature associated with the haptic effects produced by the source. The system determines a preferred set of haptic configurations and modifies either the first or second signature based on the preferred set of haptic configurations to achieve a minimal conflict between the first and second signatures.
US09881457B2	Apparatus and methods for playing electronic table card games Electronic card game devices and methods incorporate progressive jackpot operations controlled by a central server computer. If a system game device is selected by the central server computer to win a progressive jackpot award, the system game device is programmed to display secondary game outcome symbols on playing cards being displayed during game play to indicate winning of the award.
US09881454B2	Multifaceted application resource interleaved wagering system A multifaceted application resource interleaved wagering system is disclosed, including an interactive controller configured to: communicate application telemetry; receive application resource instructions; communicate additional application telemetry; receive application resource availability instructions; a wager controller constructed to: receive wager request instructions; determine a wager outcome; and communicate wager outcome data to the application controller; and the application controller operatively connecting the interactive controller and the wager controller, the application controller constructed to: receive the application telemetry; determine whether a wager is triggered; generate wager request instructions; instruct the wager controller by communicating the wager request instructions to the wager controller; receive the wager outcome data; determine application resources to award; generate application resource instructions; communicate the application resource instructions; receive the additional application telemetry; determine whether to make the application resource available to the user; generate application resource availability instructions; and communicate the application resource availability instructions.
US09881448B2	User interface manager for a skill wagering interleaved game An electromechanical gaming machine constructed to receive real credits from a user, and having an entertainment game controller connected to a game world controller, and a real world controller which together communicate game world information; receive a request to aggregate information; aggregate game world information; receive a gambling outcome; display gambling outcome; receive a wager request; determine gambling outcome; communicate gambling outcome; determine whether or not to generate an aggregation request; generate an aggregation request; disaggregate game world information, communicate wager request; receive gambling outcome; and communicate gambling outcome.
US09881439B2	Container and system for processing bank notes A container and a system for the processing of bank notes which are present as separate units. Beginning with a container for the processing of bank notes which are present as separate units, having a housing, open on one side, for the receiving of bank notes standing on their longitudinal edges, the container can be subdivided by means of separator elements, and the separator elements have free gaps toward the interstices formed therebetween.
US09881436B1	Coin escrow apparatus A coin escrow apparatus, which is installed in a machine, and controlled by a processor of the machine, includes a base, on which a plurality of coin barrels, a motor, a coin separator, and a plurality of gate devices are provided. The motor and the coin barrels are connected in series, so that the motor drives all the coin barrels to work. The coin separator is above the coin barrels to guide the coins to different coin barrels according to their sizes. The gate devices are provided under outlets of the coin barrels respectively to be controlled by the processor to open and close the outlets of the coin barrels respectively.
US09881434B2	Intelligent portable object comprising graphical personalization data The invention relates to an intelligent portable personal security object including graphical personalization data visible from a face of the object, wherein the graphical personalization data are presented by electronic display. The invention also relates to a use of the portable object in the carrying out of secure electronic transaction; and/or in the authentication and visual monitoring of at least one person; and/or in logical access control for at least one user; and/or in the displaying of data other than graphical personalization data.
US09881431B2	Security key system An aspect of the disclosure includes a security system and method having a key with nanoscale features. The key includes a body. At least one pattern member disposed on the body, the pattern member formed using a directed self-assembly polymer to define a pattern of random feature structures thereon, the feature structures having a width of less than 100 nanometers.
US09881423B2	Augmented reality-based hand interaction apparatus and method using image information An augmented reality-based hand interaction apparatus and method using image information. The augmented reality-based hand interaction apparatus using image information includes an object recognition module configured to extract feature points from an input color image, recognize an object which is a target of interest based on the extracted feature points, and estimate a three-dimensional (3D) posture of the recognized object, and an interaction module configured to extract 3D mesh information from an input depth image, match 3D coordinates of the extracted 3D mesh information with 3D coordinates of the object recognized by the object recognition module to extract 3D position information of the recognized object in 3D space, and detect whether or not an augmented 3D object and the recognized object collide with each other based on relative positional relationship information between the recognized object and the augmented 3D object.
US09881408B2	Digital signal processing for image filtering field A processor-implemented method and system of this disclosure are configured to correct or resolve artifacts in a received digital image, using a selection of one or more encompassment measures, each encompassing the largest artifact and an optional second smaller artifact. The processor herein is configured to calculate difference in Gaussians using blurred versions of the input digital image and optionally, the input digital image itself; to composite the resulting difference in Gaussians and the input digital image; and to determine pixels with properties of invariant values, also referred to as invariant pixels. The values in the properties of the invariant pixels are then applied to the artifacts regions to correct these artifacts, thereby generating the modified digital image in which the artifact regions are more or less differentiable to a human eye when compared with the digital image.
US09881401B2	Graphics processing system A transaction elimination hardware unit controls the writing to a frame buffer in a memory of tiles generated by a tile-based graphics processor. The transaction elimination hardware unit has a signature generator that generates a signature representative of the content of the tile for each tile. A signature comparator then compares the signature of a new tile received from the graphics processor with the signatures of one or more tiles already stored in the frame buffer to see if the signatures match. If the signatures do not match, then the signature comparator controls a write controller to write the new tile to the frame buffer. On the other hand, if the signatures match, then no data is written to the frame buffer and the existing tile is allowed to remain in the frame buffer. In this way, a tile is only written to the frame buffer if it is found by the signature comparison to differ from the tile or tiles that are already stored in the frame buffer that it is compared with.
US09881393B2	Method, apparatus, and terminal device for determining color of interface control Embodiments of the disclosure provide a method and an apparatus for determining a color of an interface control, which can enhance visual attraction of a user interface and improve user experience. The method includes: acquiring at least one pixel from a desktop wallpaper; acquiring a color value of the at least one pixel; and determining a color value of each pixel in the interface control according to the color value of the at least one pixel. At least one pixel is determined from a desktop wallpaper, and a color of an interface control is determined according to a color value of the at least one pixel, so that color and style matching between the desktop wallpaper and the interface control can be implemented, thereby enhancing visual attraction of a user interface and improving user experience.
US09881388B2	Compression and decompression of a 3D modeled object It is provided a computer-implemented method for compressing a three-dimensional modeled object, wherein the method comprises providing a boundary representation of the modeled object; determining first data, that describe a mapping from the range of a reference function to the range of another function, and second data, that describe a mapping from the domain of the other function to the domain of the reference function which, when composed with the reference function and the mapping from the range of the reference function to the range of the other function, leads to the same result as applying the other function; and replacing in the geometrical data the other function by the first data, the second data and a pointer to the reference function. Such a method improves the compression of a 3D modeled object.
US09881384B2	Method and apparatus for providing one or more road conditions based on aerial imagery An approach is provided for providing one or more road conditions based on aerial imagery. The road condition platform processes and/or facilitates a processing of one or more road segments on an aligned image including an aerial image frame of an area and a reference map of the area to determine one or more non-road elements. The road condition platform also determines one or more characteristics of the one or more non-road elements disposed within the one or more road segments. The road condition platform further determines one or more road conditions based on the one or more characteristics.
US09881382B2	Methods for capturing images of a control object and tracking to control interfacing with video game objects Methods for real time motion capture for controlling an object in a video game are provided. One method includes defining a model of a control object and identifying a marker on the control object. The method also includes capturing movement associated with the control object with a video capture device. Then, interpreting the movement associated with the control object to change a position of the model based on data captured through the video capture device, wherein the data captured includes the marker. The method includes moving the video game object presented on the display screen in substantial real-time according to the change of position of the model.
US09881381B2	Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and computer-readable recording medium An image processing apparatus includes: a region-of-interest setting unit configured to set a region of interest in an image; a linear convex region extracting unit configured to extract, from the region of interest, a linear region having a predetermined number or more of continuously-arranged pixels whose pixel values are higher than pixel values of neighboring pixels; an intra-region curvature feature data computing unit configured to compute curvature feature data based on curvatures of one or more arcs along the linear region; and an abnormality determining unit configured to determine whether there is an abnormal portion in the region of interest, based on a distribution of the curvature feature data.
US09881377B2	Apparatus and method for determining the distinct location of an image-recording camera An apparatus and method for determining the distinct location of an image-recording camera within an environment, using visually detectable structures includes the image-recording camera, a measuring camera permanently mounted thereon, and an evaluation unit configured to ascertain the distinct location of the image-recording camera from the measuring camera image structures. The two cameras are oriented to record a common detail from the environment, containing structures that are visually detectable by the two cameras in their images. The measuring camera is connected to the evaluation unit, which is designed to ascertain the distinct location of the image-recording camera from the environment structures detected by the measuring camera. The evaluation unit is configured to locate these structures in the image-recording camera image and to correct the location of the image-recording camera, ascertained from the measuring camera image, using the position of the structures from the image-recording camera image.
US09881375B2	Markers in 3D data capture A structured light projector includes an optical mask and a light emitter. The light emitter can be capable of illuminating the optical mask, and the optical mask can be capable of transforming the light from the emitter so as to provide structured light bi-dimensional coded light pattern that includes a plurality of feature types formed by a unique combination of feature elements. The projected light pattern includes one or more markers which include pairs of feature elements between which the epipolar distances are modified relative to distances between respective feature elements in non-marker areas of the pattern, and an appearance of feature elements within the marker and across the marker's edges is continuous.
US09881373B2	Image generating apparatus and image generating method An image generating apparatus generates an edge image that is an image for which an edge has been enhanced or extracted from an original image obtained by imaging a subject. The image generating apparatus has a viewpoint image generating unit configured to generate a viewpoint image from the original image; and an edge processing unit configured to generate the edge image by applying edge processing to enhance or extract an edge with respect to the viewpoint image generated by the viewpoint image generating unit.
US09881369B2	Smartphone having a communication subsystem that is operable in CDMA, a digital infrared sensor with ports that provide a digital signal representing a surface temperature, a microprocessor that receives from the ports the digital signal that is representative of the temperature and that generates a body core temperature from the digital signal that is representative of the temperature and a display device that displays the body core temperature A smartphone that includes a microprocessor, a battery operably coupled to the microprocessor, a single button operably coupled to the microprocessor, a communication subsystem that receives messages from and sends messages to wireless networks in accordance with Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), a digital infrared sensor operably coupled to the microprocessor, the digital infrared sensor having ports that provide a digital signal representing a temperature, and a display device operably coupled to the microprocessor, wherein the microprocessor receives from the ports the digital signal that is representative of the temperature and the microprocessor generates a body core temperature from the digital signal that is representative of the temperature and the microprocessor also operably coupled to the display device displays the body core temperature.
US09881362B2	Image processing device, image-capturing device, image processing method, and program An image processing device includes a point-image restoration processing unit 40 which receives a photographic image as input, and subjects the photographic image to a point-image restoration process based on point-image restoration information to generate a restored image, an area information output unit 45 which outputs area information relating to a specific area in the restored image where restoration strength of the point-image restoration process based on the point-image restoration information is equal to or greater than a threshold value, a display control unit 50 which receives the restored image and the area information as input and performs display control to highlight the specific area in the restored image based on the area information, and a display unit 55 which highlights at least the specific area based on the display control by the display control unit 50.
US09881361B2	Image processing method A setting circuit sets a quantization value per input image on the basis of a noise value of the whole input image, and a quantization circuit performs quantization on first image data to generate second image data. Quantization value based on the noise value the whole input image can realize appropriate denoising depending on the noise level of the whole input image.
US09881354B2	Image completion including automatic cropping Described is a technology by which an image such as a stitched panorama is automatically cropped based upon predicted quality data with respect to filling missing pixels. The image may be completed, including by completing only those missing pixels that remain after cropping. Predicting quality data may be based on using restricted search spaces corresponding to the missing pixels. The crop is computed based upon the quality data, in which the crop is biased towards including original pixels and excluding predicted low quality pixels. Missing pixels are completed by using restricted search spaces to find replacement values for the missing pixels, and may use histogram matching for texture synthesis.
US09881351B2	Remote translation, aggregation and distribution of computer program resources in graphics processing unit emulation Resource processing, such as shader translation, during run time of an application on an emulated platform, can be performed asynchronously from emulation of the application. One or more server computers can be configured to perform such processing remotely from the computers executing the emulation. The one or more server computers can receive resources for processing from multiple computers. The one or more server computers aggregate the resources received from the multiple computers for different applications and process those resources. For example, multiple shaders, discovered from multiple different emulations of an application on multiple computers, are translated and organized by the one or more server computers. The translated shaders can be packaged as an update to the application and redistributed to the computers using the application. Such an update can be installed on the computers as a set of translated shaders for use in the emulation of the application.
US09881348B2	Activation system architecture Techniques are described for generating a license for software installed on a device. An entitlement certificate is generated including one or more entitlements describing license characteristics of the software. The one or more entitlements are determined in accordance with first information about the software. The first information includes at least one of a purchase token and package information. A binding certificate in accordance with a binding type for the software is generated. A license in accordance with said binding certificate and said entitlement certificate is generated. The binding certificate identifies an entity to which the license is bound.
US09881346B2	Systems and methods for promotional validation of travel expenses Disclosed is a system to validate promotional offers in the nature of a reduction or rebate of certain travel expenses through a network of local merchants who offer to offset travel costs in exchange for patronage. The system allows verification of the travel and the purchases.
US09881344B2	User characteristics-based sponsored company postings A system may include a network interface, a user interface, and a recommendation engine. The user interface may be configured to receive a company characteristic of a company profile of a company posted to the social network and a company bid from an entity related to company to the social network. The recommendation engine may be configured to determine an aggregate company score for the user based on a relevance of the company characteristic to a user characteristic and the company bid. The network interface may be configured to transmit a message related to the company to the user based, at least in part, on the aggregate company score.
US09881332B2	Systems and methods for customizing search results and recommendations A recommendation system can be configured to customize search results and/or recommendations of content (e.g., customized products, products, advertising, layouts, etc.) using online and/or offline activity captured on a user population. The system can be configured to customize the content returned to users to achieve specific behaviors and/or influence the current user's behavior, responsive to modeling previous users. For example, the system can capture and aggregate user behavior/activity and score content based on the actions taken with respect to the content. In some examples, the scoring can be filtered or augmented by matching current user characteristics to characteristics of the previous users. The scoring can be generated independent of the language in which the activity/user behavior occurred. According to one embodiment, the system is configured to generate language independent models and utilize the language independent modeling to deliver customized content (e.g., recommendations and/or search results) without conventional constraints.
US09881329B1	System and method for facilitating commercial transactions over a data network A method, a computer system and a computer program product to facilitate comparison-price shopping over a data network, such as the Internet, is provided that includes a price availability feature guaranteeing a price of a product associated with product-related information stored on a server. To that end, information that concerns a product is rendered on a display in a browser window. The information rendered typically includes offered price data. A server is provided that includes a plurality of addresses in an address space, and a subportion of the plurality of addresses is associated with an identification code. Acceptance to the offered price data is achieved by storing the information in the subportion, defining agreed price data. The agreed price data is maintained in the absence of a predetermined system event.
US09881322B2	Data transfer between mobile computing devices using short-range communication systems Transferring data between mobile computing device by converting contact information stored in a proprietary format on the first mobile computing device to a nonproprietary graphical format, transferring the contact information in the nonproprietary graphical format from the first mobile computing device to a second mobile computing device and storing the contact information in the nonproprietary graphical format on the second mobile computing device. The contact information stored in the nonproprietary graphical format on the second mobile computing device can be converted to the proprietary format and stored on the second mobile computing device. The transfer of the contact information can be performed in response to an indication that the users of the first and second mobile computing devices have had contact with one another.
US09881317B2	Information processing apparatus, information processing method, information communication system, and computer program An information processing apparatus includes a customer guiding information management unit configured to obtain a content ID used to identify an application introduction source site and an individual identification ID used to identify a user terminal which has accessed the introduction source site and manage the content ID and the individual identification ID as customer guiding information, and a result measurement unit configured to obtain information including an individual identification ID of a user terminal which has downloaded an application, compare the information with the customer guiding information managed by the customer guiding information management unit, and measure a result of the introduction source site identified by the content ID included in the customer guiding information.
US09881312B2	Radio communication systems and radio communication methods According to various embodiments, a radio communication system may be provided. The radio communication system may include: a portable device; a beacon receiving device; and a server. The portable device may include: a transmitter configured to repeatedly transmit signals; and a receiver configured to receive data from the server. The beacon receiving device may include: a receiver configured to receive signals from the portable device; and a transmitter configured to transmit an indication to the server based on the received signal. The server may include: a receiver configured to receive the indication from the beacon receiving device; and a transmitter configured to transmit data to the portable device based on the indication.
US09881311B2	Determining a lowest price for a dynamically priced product In one embodiment, a computer-implemented method includes receiving a request for a product. Two or more fingerprints are selected, where each fingerprint includes digital data describing a corresponding virtual customer. By a computer processor, a first fingerprint is loaded to emulate a first virtual customer. A first price query is submitted to a vendor's web service for the product, where the first price query uses the loaded first fingerprint. A second fingerprint is loaded to emulate a second virtual customer. A second price query is submitted to the vendor's web service for the product, where the second price query uses the loaded second fingerprint. Two or more prices are received from the vendor's web service, including a first price received in response to the first price query and a second price received in response to the second price query. A lowest price is selected from among the prices received.
US09881309B2	Systems and methods for tailoring marketing The systems and methods described herein may be used to recommend an item to a consumer. The methods may comprise determining, based on a collaborative filtering algorithm, a consumer relevance value associated with an item, and transmitting, based on the consumer relevance value, information associated with the item to a consumer. A collaborative filtering algorithm may receive as an input at least one of: a transaction history associated with the consumer, a demographic of the consumer, a consumer profile, a type of transaction account, a transaction account associated with the consumer, a period of time that the consumer has held a transaction account, a size of wallet, a share of wallet, and/or the like.
US09881305B1	Context-based restrictions on payment cards Introduced here is a technology that enables effective fraud detection and protection in financial transactions by use of a communication signal capability associated with payment cards. The technology eliminates the uncertainty inherent in card transactions as to the authenticity of a payment card. In various embodiments, methods and systems are disclosed for placing context-based restrictions on the payment card to assist in eliminating the uncertainty in card transactions. The payment card can include any electronic card having an embedded smart chip (e.g., BLE, WiFi, GPRS, 4G, LTE, etc.). The context-based restrictions can include a geographical restriction, a timing restriction, a purchase amount restriction, a merchant-category-code restriction, a particular merchant restriction, or a proximity restriction. The context-based restrictions can be placed on the payment card through communication with a computing device (e.g., smartphone, computing tablet, laptop, desktop, etc.).
US09881295B1	Face-to-face payments with augmented reality A method for making a payment using a mobile device. The method includes capturing a facial image of a payee using a camera of the mobile device, wherein the payment is due from the user of the mobile device to the payee, retrieving an identifier of the payee based on the facial image, retrieving payment recipient identification information of the payee from a registered payee list based on the identifier, displaying, on the mobile device, a composite image comprising the facial image of the payee and the payment recipient identification information of the payee, receiving an input from the user authorizing the payment from a financial account of the user to the payee, and initiating the payment from the financial account to the payee based on the payment recipient identification information.
US09881285B1	System and method for automated debiting and settling of financial transactions A method and system for automated settlement and on-line debiting of a financial transaction, such as an emergency-cash transaction, is provided. A bank customer enters a foreign-branch bank and indicates a need for emergency cash. The customer is given a telephone by which the customer communicates with an interactive-voice response system in the customer's language. The system bridges the customer with the customer's home bank, which approves the requested emergency cash. A network in communication with the voice response system and with the issuer automatically initiates an on-line debiting of an account of the customer. The network also initiates and carries out settlement between the acquirer and the issuer by way of settlement accounts.
US09881283B2	Service data record system and POS system with the same A service data record system and a POS system with the service data record system are provided. The service data record system transmits a data of an electronic device to a remote monitoring device. The electronic device includes plural electronic units and a power unit. The service data record system includes a power device, a remote monitoring interface and a micro processing unit. The micro processing unit is connected with the electronic device, the remote monitoring interface and the power device. By the micro processing unit, the electronic data set of the electronic unit may be externally transmitted to the remote monitoring device. Moreover, the pre-designate event of the electronic device may be externally transmitted to the remote monitoring device. According to the pre-designate event, it is convenient for a service engineer to make the preparation before repair or maintenance.
US09881270B2	Information processing device, power-demanding object, information processing method, and non-transitory storage medium A time range setting unit (110) sets an operation startable time point at which an operation can be started and a target operation end time point which is the latest time point among time points at which the operation is to be ended, with respect to each of plural power demanding objects (20). A necessary operation time setting unit (120) sets a necessary operation time with respect to each of the plural power demanding objects (20). A shape information acquisition unit (130) acquires shape information from a schedule management device (40). The shape information indicates an assumed shape of a transition line that represents transition in the amount of supplied power in a target period. A demand transition setting unit (140) sets power demand transition information indicating transition in an electric energy demand in the target period so that the necessary operation time is obtained and so that the transition in the electric energy demand generated by the plural power demanding objects (20) being operated accords with the assumed shape.
US09881268B1	Roadside assistance A mobile computerized apparatus configured to provide membership status in a roadside assistance program after occurrence of a roadside event is disclosed. The apparatus executes instructions that cause/allow the apparatus to receive input related to an electronic membership card, retrieve from a data store membership information associated with the vehicle, and dynamically update the electronic membership card for display on the apparatus.
US09881266B2	System for determining personal protective equipment recommendations based on prioritized data A system for computing personal protective equipment (PPE) recommendations, including a plurality of client computers, where each client computer in the plurality of client computers, uses a processor, for receiving and storing corporate information of a corporate organization and PPE needs associated with the corporate organization; and for receiving and storing a plurality of benchmark data describing a current PPE usage for at least one application of the PPE within the corporate organization; and a server, remotely located from the plurality of client computers and connected to the plurality of client computers via a network, for identifying a selected PPE by performing an analysis based on the corporate information and the benchmark data wherein the analysis compares characteristics of a plurality PPE against characteristics of the at least one application and provides a priority ranking of importance for the plurality of characteristics required for the at least one application.
US09881261B2	Systems and methods for remote check-in Systems and methods are provided for facilitating remote check-in and associated proxy shopping operations. A proxy customer of a merchant may be a friend of a remote customer that is making a purchase at the merchant on behalf of the remote customer. A beacon may alert the proxy customer to check-in to the merchant. The proxy customer may forward the alert to the remote customer. The remote customer may request remote check-in responsive to the alert. A payment provider or service provider may perform a remote check-in of the remote customer and a proxy check-in of the proxy customer. When the proxy customer wishes to make a proxy purchase for the remote user, the merchant may verify the proxy customer's identity and charge the payment provider. The payment provider may then transfer funds from remote customer's account to the merchant's account.
US09881258B1	Generating notifications based on formation of memberships Systems and methods for generating notifications are described. One of the methods includes identifying a selection to invite users to become members of a social network and generating prompt data to allow invitations to be sent to the users based on the selection. The method further includes determining whether indications of becoming members of the social network are received from one or more of the users. The method includes transmitting notification data to inform a member that the one or more users have become members of the social network in response to determining that the indications of becoming members are received.
US09881242B2	Printing apparatus and post-processing apparatus The present printing system obtains a transparency of a sheet to be subjected to printing, and based on the obtained transparency of the sheet, restricts execution of post-processing by a discharging portion.
US09881241B2	Image forming apparatus, image forming system and image forming method An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming unit that prints an image on a transfer medium based on image data; a conveyance unit that conveys the transfer medium; a duplex printing mechanism that inverts and conveys the transfer medium on one surface of which an image is formed, and conveys the transfer medium to a conveyance direction upstream side of the image forming unit; and a control unit that controls the image forming unit and the conveyance unit, the control unit has a function of printing a first additional image outside an image forming area of the transfer medium by the image forming unit, and when printing the first additional image, the control unit is capable of control of inhibiting printing of the first additional image on one or both of a leading transfer medium and a final transfer medium in a bundle of piled up transfer media.
US09881240B2	Image processing device, system, and method for correcting a dithering process An image processing device includes a dithering circuit, a gradation correction pattern generating circuit, and a gradation correction pattern correcting circuit. The dithering circuit performs a dithering process on image data to generate dithered image data. The gradation correction pattern generating circuit sets, in multi-valued data, gradation information of each of pixels of the generated dithered image data, and generates a gradation correction pattern imitating the dithered image data. The gradation correction pattern correcting circuit performs pattern matching on the generated gradation correction pattern, and corrects the generated gradation correction pattern in accordance with a result of the pattern matching.
US09881229B2	Apparatus, method and program for image search One or more representative images extracted from an image group comprising a plurality of images is/are displayed. A part or all of the representative image or images, such as a main subject region or a background region including a search target, is/are selected from the representative image or images, and used for setting search conditions. The image group is searched for an image or images agreeing with the search conditions having been set.
US09881227B2	Image processing apparatus and method An image analysis unit of an image processing apparatus acquires a distribution condition of feature points in an entire input image and in each of a plurality of small regions in the input image. A target point number setting unit sets a target point number for each small region based on the distribution condition of feature points in the entire input image. An expected point number setting unit sets an expected point number for each small region based on the distribution condition of feature points in the small region. A comparison unit compares the target point number and the expected point number. A sensitivity setting unit sets detection sensitivity based on the comparison result. A feature point detection unit performs feature point detection according to the detection sensitivity.
US09881218B2	Location calculation system and non-transitory computer-readable medium A location calculation system that includes circuitry that stores vector information regarding a plurality of first vectors each connecting a specific point-relevant location, that is associated with each of a plurality of specific points set along a road, with a location of a predetermined feature, in relation to position information regarding each position of the plurality of specific points; stores predetermined feature location information regarding the location of the predetermined feature; obtains image data ahead of a moving body; calculates a location of the predetermined feature in an image of the image data as obtained by the circuitry; calculates a location of the moving body based on the location of the predetermined feature as calculated by the circuitry and the vector information; and outputs the location of the moving body as calculated by the circuitry.
US09881216B2	Object tracking and alerts An integrated surveillance system combining video surveillance and data from other sensor-based security networks is used to identify activities that may require attention.
US09881214B1	Generating pixel maps from non-image data and difference metrics for pixel maps Systems and methods for scalable comparisons between two pixel maps are provided. In an embodiment, an agricultural intelligence computer system generates pixel maps from non-image data by transforming a plurality of values and location values into pixel values and pixel locations. The non-image data may include data relating to a particular agricultural field, such as nutrient content in the soil, pH values, soil moisture, elevation, temperature, and/or measured crop yields. The agricultural intelligence computer system converts each pixel map into a vector of values. The agricultural intelligence computer system also generates a matrix of metric coefficients where each value in the matrix of metric coefficients is computed using a spatial distance between to pixel locations in one of the pixel maps. Using the vectors of values and the matrix of metric coefficients, the agricultural intelligence computer system generates a difference metric identifying a difference between the two pixel maps. In an embodiment, the difference metric is normalized so that the difference metric is scalable to pixel maps of different sizes. The difference metric may then be used to select particular images that best match a measured yield, identify relationships between field values and measured crop yields, identify and/or select management zones, investigate management practices, and/or strengthen agronomic models of predicted yield.
US09881205B2	Facial identification techniques As the use of facial biometrics expands in the commercial and government sectors, the need to ensure that human facial examiners use proper procedures to compare facial imagery will grow. Human examiners have examined fingerprint images for many years such that fingerprint examination processes and techniques have reached a point of general acceptance for both commercial and governmental use. The growing deployment and acceptance of facial recognition can be enhanced and solidified if new methods can be used to assist in ensuring and recording that proper examination processes were performed during the human examination of facial imagery.
US09881202B2	Providing visual effects for images Implementations relate to providing visual effects for images. In some implementations, a method includes detecting one or more objects in an image. The method identifies one or more important objects of the objects, where the important objects are determined to have an importance measurement satisfying a predetermined threshold indicating their importance to a viewer of the image. The method determines an application of a visual image effect to the image based on the important objects.
US09881201B2	Method and apparatus for collecting an electronic signature on a first device and incorporating the signature into a document on a second device Disclosed embodiments are directed to systems and methods for linking more than one electronic device together to enable collection of an electronic signature or other information on a first device and incorporation of that signature or information into a document on a second device.
US09881200B2	Self-capacitive fingerprint recognition touch screen, manufacturing method thereof, and display device The present invention provides a self-capacitive fingerprint recognition touch screen, a manufacturing method thereof, and a display device comprising the self-capacitive fingerprint recognition touch screen. The self-capacitive fingerprint recognition touch screen comprises a plurality of fingerprint recognition electrodes, and a plurality of connecting lines which are respectively electrically connected to the plurality of fingerprint recognition electrodes directly. The connecting lines are used for transmitting driving signals and detection signals needed by the fingerprint recognition electrodes.
US09881199B2	Fingerprint identification device A fingerprint identification device includes a backlight module and a sensing module. The sensing module is disposed on the backlight module. The sensing module includes a plurality of light sensing units and a plurality of light converting units. Each of the light converting units is disposed on a respective one of the light sensing units. The backlight module emits a first color light, the first color light passes through gaps between the light sensing units and then is reflected to the light converting unit, and the light converting unit converts the first color light into a second color light, such that the light sensing unit senses the second color light.
US09881194B1	Dot peen mark image acquisition A mark reader apparatus has a lens and an autofocus system that manipulates the lens in accordance with control signals. An image acquisition system measures a distance from the lens to a dot peened mark. A processor is programmed to: calculate a focus position for the autofocus system that focuses the lens on the dot peened mark; apply an offset to the calculated focus position to produce an offset focus position; control the autofocus system by positioning the autofocus system to the offset focus position; and via the image acquisition system, acquire an image of the mark with the autofocus system set to the offset focus position.
US09881174B2	Multi-layered metadata management system A metadata layer management system is presented. Layers of metadata objects can be constructed where each metadata layer object comprises a rights policy. As entities interaction with the metadata layer objects, possibly by navigating links among the objects, each entity's access rights to the objects are governed by the rights policy. Further, the disclosed techniques provide for resolving rights conflicts among the rights policies of the metadata layer objects.
US09881168B2	Sanitization of virtual machine images Sanitizing a virtual machine image of sensitive data is provided. Labeling dependencies and sanitization dependencies between a plurality of software components in the virtual machine image are identified based on labeling execution policies located in a labeler module and sanitization execution policies located in a sanitizer module, respectively. The labeler module and the sanitizer module are inserted in the virtual machine image. A sensitivity level label of a plurality of sensitivity labels is attached to identified sensitive data from the sensitive data contained in the virtual machine image based on the identified labeling dependencies. In response to receiving an input to perform a sanitization of the identified sensitive data having attached sensitivity level labels contained in the virtual machine image, the sanitization of the identified sensitive data having the attached sensitivity level labels contained in the virtual machine image is performed based on the identified sanitization dependencies.
US09881164B1	Securing data Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for securing data. One of the methods includes receiving, by the map reduce framework, data for analysis. The method includes identifying, by the map reduce framework, private data in received data. The method includes encrypting the private data. The method includes storing the encrypted private data in a location separate from the received data. The method includes obfuscating the private data by adding a reference to the location of the encrypted private data in the received data.
US09881162B2	System and method for auto-enrolling option ROMS in a UEFI secure boot database A mechanism for automatically enrolling option ROMs into the system security database used for a UEFI Secure Boot is discussed. A request is received by a computing device to auto-enroll one or more option ROMs for one or more respective devices on the next boot of the system. Upon receiving the request, a flag or other type of indicator indicative of an auto-enroll status is changed to an active mode. The indicator is stored in non-volatile memory and may be stored as a UEFI Authenticated Variable. Following the changing of the indicator, the system is either reset or shut down. During the next boot only, after identifying the indicator indicative of an active mode auto-enroll status, the signatures for the option ROMs of all discovered devices whose signatures do not exist in the system security database are calculated (hashed) and added to the UEFI Secure Boot database without user interaction.
US09881159B1	Workload execution systems and methods In one embodiment, a method is executed by a computer system. The method includes receiving information related to a platform-portable workload, the information comprising a data security policy expressed as digitally signed metadata. The data security policy specifies one or more data security features that any platform executing the platform-portable workload should implement. The method further includes validating the digitally signed metadata as originating from an issuer of the platform-portable workload. In addition, the method includes, responsive to successful validation of the digitally signed metadata, automatically determining whether a particular platform can satisfy the data security policy based, at least in part, on a comparison of the digitally signed metadata with data security attributes of the particular platform. Further, the method includes, responsive to a determination that the particular platform cannot satisfy the data security policy, automatically preventing execution of the platform-portable workload on the particular platform.
US09881139B2	Domain spanning applications Managing and accessing media items, including: a plurality of domains configured to provide access to media items; a plurality of clients associated with the plurality domains, and providing a pathway for accessing the media items; and a spanning application configured to track and aggregate accessible media items from the plurality of domains based on authentication and registration information and associated rights of the plurality of clients and the plurality of domains, wherein the spanning application enables accessing of the media items across the plurality of domains.
US09881138B2	Methods and apparatuses for digital content protection A method for digital content protection comprises generating a plurality of frame keys, retrieving a plurality of frames from digital content, and at least one of encrypting and decrypting the digital content with a different frame key that dynamically changes for each frame of the plurality of frames. A storage device comprises a computer-readable medium including encrypted digital content stored thereon, wherein the encrypted digital content is encrypted with a frame key that is different for each frame of the encrypted digital content. A content player comprises a computer-readable medium including instructions stored thereon, that when executed cause a processor to decrypt encrypted digital content by reconstructing a plurality of frame keys that are different from each other that are used to decrypt each frame of the encrypted digital content.
US09881132B2	Method and apparatus for remote workstation synchronization Methods, apparatuses, and computer program products are described herein that are configured to provide remote access to a workstation operating in a medical domain via a zero configuration protocol. In some example embodiments, a method is provided that comprises activating a viewing application that is configured to connect to a remote workstation, via a zero configuration protocol, and enable a view of medical application data. The method of this embodiment may also include receiving an indication of a current patient context. In some example embodiments, the current patient context identifies the medical application data that is currently being viewed at the remote workstation relating a particular patient that is available for viewing in the viewing application. The method of this embodiment may also include accessing the medical application data in the viewing application based on the current patient context.
US09881127B2	Systems and methods for converting and delivering medical images to mobile devices and remote communications systems A system for automated conversion and delivery of medical images, comprising: a communication interface; a data storage system configured to store data relating to the medical images; a server coupled with the data storage system and the communication interface, the server configured to: receive a medical image file via the communications interface, the medical image file comprising medical data and meta data, determine what fields are present in the meta data, correlate the determined fields with a modality in order to determine a modality associated with the medical image file, determine whether the data recorded in the fields has been altered, identify a recipient associated with the medical image file based on the meta data, and transmit a message to the recipient via the communication interface.
US09881123B1	Method and system for timing analysis with adaptive timing window optimization for determining signal integrity impact A method and system are provided for timing analysis of an electronic circuit design. A timing graph defines a plurality of timing paths through different subsections of the electronic circuit design. A timing window is defined for each of the nodes included in a timing path. At least one preliminary round of a predetermined signal integrity analysis is executed on the circuit design based on the timing windows to identify at least one pair of crosstalk-coupled victim and aggressor nodes. Each victim node's timing window is adaptively adjusted according to a predetermined timing property thereof. At least one primary round of the predetermined signal integrity analysis is executed on the electronic circuit design based in part on this adaptively adjusted timing window for each victim node to generate a delay, which is annotated to the timing graph. A predetermined static timing analysis is executed based on the delay-annotated timing graph.
US09881122B2	Overlay sampling reduction Method and apparatus for reducing overlay measurements and predicting overlay in unmeasured regions of a wafer are provided. Embodiments include providing a wafer having sets of four fields sharing a common vertex; measuring overlay values near each corner of each field, except for a corner near the common vertex of a first field and a corner near the common vertex of a second field of each set; decomposing the measured overlay values into measured interfield and intrafield correctable and non-correctable errors; forming a virtual stack of all fields; determining an average intrafield correctable error and intrafield non-correctable error for each corner of the virtual stack based on the measured intrafield correctable and non-correctable errors, respectively; and predicting the overlay values for the unmeasured corners of each set based on combinations of the measured interfield correctable and non-correctable errors and the average intrafield correctable and non-correctable errors.
US09881120B1	Method, system, and computer program product for implementing a multi-fabric mixed-signal design spanning across multiple design fabrics with electrical and thermal analysis awareness Various embodiments implementing a multi-fabric mixed-signal electronic system design spanning across multiple design fabrics with electrical and/or thermal analysis awareness. A schematic design may be extracted from and a power delivery network (PDN) model may be determined from a plurality of layouts in multiple design fabrics in a multi-fabric design environment platform. A PDN-aware, multi-fabric full system schematic may be constructed by assembling the PDN model and the schematic design into the PDN-aware, multi-fabric full system schematic. For a schematic generated for a circuit block of interest, chip power models may be determined for the remaining portion of the multi-fabric mixed-signal electronic system design, and the PDN-aware, multi-fabric full system schematic may be updated by accounting for the chip power models. The circuit block of interest may then be electrically and/or thermally analyzed within the context of the remaining portion.
US09881118B2	IR-aware sneak routing A method for routing a circuit device having an array of bump pads includes identifying a routing direction associated with a bump, generating a power strap and a ground strap based on the routing direction, forming a routing channel in accordance with the routing direction, setting a start point and an endpoint in the routing channel, and connecting the start point and the endpoint using a wire within the routing channel. The method further includes placing the start point to a power or ground strap in response to a target power/ground ratio.
US09881116B2	Restricted region transform method and restricted region transform device A restricted region transform method and a restricted region transform device are disclosed. The method includes following steps: reading out bare board information of a printed circuit board and layout information of a plurality of components, wherein the layout information of the plurality of components corresponds to a plurality of physical restricted regions; setting a first region according to edge information in the bare board information; setting a plurality of second regions according to projections of the plurality of physical restricted regions on a surface of the printed circuit board; selecting every two second regions, which overlap each other, among the plurality of second regions, and the selected second regions constituting a restriction conflict set; and selectively amending the second regions in the restriction conflict set to remove one or more overlaps from the second regions in the restriction conflict set.
US09881115B2	Signal via positioning in a multi-layer circuit board using a genetic via placement solver One aspect includes identifying via groups that each includes a ratio of a plurality of signal vias to one ground via based on a design file defining a layout of a multi-layer circuit board. A genetic via placement solver iteratively evaluates potential placement solutions that adjust a placement of one or more of the signal vias until at least one solution is identified that meets one or more placement criteria of the signal vias. The genetic via placement solver performs a mutation and recombination of one or more solutions that do not meet the one or more placement criteria and re-evaluates the one or more solutions that do not meet the one or more placement criteria. The design file is modified to include at least one shifted signal via position based on identifying the at least one solution that meets the one or more placement criteria.
US09881108B2	Method of evaluation wind flow based on conservation of momentum and variation in terrain A method of modeling the spatial variation in wind resource at a prospective wind farm site. The method involves a simplified analysis of the Navier-Stokes equation and utilizes data from all of the met sites simultaneously to develop site-calibrated models. The model coefficients, mUW and mDW, describe the sensitivity of the wind speed to changes in the upwind and downwind terrain exposure and are defined for downhill and uphill flow. The coefficients are a function of terrain complexity and, since terrain complexity can change across an area, the estimates are performed in a stepwise fashion where a path of nodes with a gradual change in complexity is found between each pair of sites. Also, coefficients are defined for each wind direction sector and estimates are performed on a sectorwise basis. The site-calibrated models are created by cross-predicting between each pair of met sites and, through a self-learning technique, the model coefficients that yield the minimum met cross-prediction error are found.
US09881107B2	Simulation method, simulation program, processing apparatus, simulator, and design method A simulation method includes acquiring a processing condition for performing predetermined processing on a processing target with use of plasma, calculating a solid angle corresponding to a field-of-view region through which plasma space is viewable from a predetermined evaluation point in the predetermined evaluation point on a surface of the processing target based on the processing condition, and calculating an incident radical amount entering the evaluation point by a flux method with use of a function which takes a reaction probability between the solid angle and the evaluation point of a radical entering the evaluation point as an argument.
US09881104B2	Simulating shape of a workpiece based on a flux A simulation method to cause an information processing device to calculate, including: reversely tracing a first flux incident on any position on a surface of a workpiece subject to processing treatment from the position; when the first flux strikes another position on the workpiece surface as a result of the reverse tracing of the first flux, calculating a second flux to be the first flux by scattering at the another position and reversely tracing the second flux from the another position; and, by repeating calculation and reverse tracing of flux, when the reversely traced flux no longer strikes the workpiece surface, carrying out comparison of the flux with an angular distribution of a flux incident on the workpiece, and when the current flux is within the angular distribution, obtaining an amount of flux having contributed to the scattering for a flux group from the first flux to the current flux.
US09881099B2	System, method and computer program product for data transfer management According to one aspect of the present disclosure a method and technique for managing data transfer is disclosed. The method includes comparing, by a processor unit of a data processing system, data to be written to a memory subsystem to a stored data pattern and, responsive to determining that the data matches the stored data pattern, replacing the matching data with a pattern tag corresponding to the matching data pattern. The method also includes transmitting the pattern tag to the memory subsystem.
US09881093B2	Systems and methods for photograph mapping Systems and methods for photograph mapping are disclosed herein. In one embodiment a first digital image and at least one user-generated datum is received from at least one user. The first image is geographically organized according to the at least one datum. The first image is associated with at least one location and at least one direction. The first image is provided from a first person perspective to a user in response to a request.
US09881092B2	Method and apparatus for content-aware role modeling and recommendation An example approach is provided for providing recommendations to a user based on user's role derived from the context information and an advanced user profile. A recommendation platform processes context information to determine one or more roles associated with a user. Next, the recommendation platform calculates at least one level of similarity between the one or more roles and one or more other roles associated with one or more other users. Then, the recommendation platform determines recommendation information associated with the one or more other users based, at least in part, on the at least one level of similarity. Next, the recommendation platform processes the recommendation information to generate one or more recommendations for the user.
US09881089B2	Pop-up search box A user device may: receive a search selection; and display a search box concurrently with application or page from which the search selection was received. The search box may be displayed without the user device navigating to another application or another page. The user device may output a search query based on search terms inputted into the search box; receive search results to the search query; and display or outputting the search results.
US09881084B1	Image match based video search Various embodiments may obtain an image representation of an object for use in image matching and content retrieval. For example, an image matching system processes video content items to determine one or more scenes for one or more video content items. The image matching system can extract, from at least one video frame for a scene, feature descriptors relating to one or more objects represented in the at least one video frame. The image matching system indexes the feature descriptors into a feature index storing information for each of the feature descriptors and respective corresponding video frame. The image matching system correlates the feature descriptors of the feature index to determine one or more groups having similar feature descriptors. The image matching system indexes the one or more groups into a correlation index storing information for each of the one or more groups and respective corresponding feature descriptors.
US09881081B2	Recipe identification method and apparatus Disclosed embodiments include apparatus, method and storage medium associated with recipe identification. In embodiments, an apparatus may include a recipe identification function configured to receive or retrieve a text document, analyze the text document to identify a recipe, and return the identified recipe. Other embodiments may be described and claimed.
US09881080B2	System for enhancing expert-based computerized analysis of a set of digital documents and methods useful in conjunction therewith An electronic document analysis method receiving N electronic documents pertaining to a case encompassing a set of issues including at least one issue and establishing relevance of at least the N documents to at least one individual issue in the set of issues, the method comprising, for at least one individual issue from among the set of issues, receiving an output of a categorization process applied to each document in training and control subsets of the at least N documents, the output including, for each document in the subsets, one of a relevant-to-the-individual issue indication and a non-relevant-to-the-individual issue indication; building a text classifier simulating the categorization process using the output for all documents in the training subset of documents; and running the text classifier on the at least N documents thereby to obtain a ranking of the extent of relevance of each of the at least N documents to the individual issue. The method may also comprise evaluating the text classifier's quality using the output for all documents in the control subset.
US09881077B1	Relevance determination and summary generation for news objects News documents from one or more sources are aggregated. The news documents are grouped into a plurality of news collections. Each of the news collections includes a sub-set of the news documents having related content. Objects described by the news collections are determined. The objects collectively form a set of objects. A relevance of each of the news collections is measured with respect to the objects respectively described by the news collections and one or more news collections are determined from the plurality of news collections to be associated with a first object included in the set of objects based on the relevance of the one or more news collections to the first object.
US09881075B2	Method and apparatus for accurate localization of points of interest using a world shape Geo-referenced and oriented media items may be used to determine a location of one or more points of interest depicted by the media items. A difference between an actual capture location and orientation and a reported location and orientation may be modeled according to one or more distributions, which distribution(s) may be used to assign one or more weights to each location in the world where such weight(s) may be considered to be a likelihood that a point of interest might have been seen by a capturing device. A density map may be acquired by superimposing the derived likelihoods, and a maximum, e.g., local maximum, may be determined to represent a location of a point of interest.
US09881069B2	Information landscape modeling, analysis and validation Managing and validating a project using an information landscape. Embodiments include providing an information landscape including a topology of landscape elements for the project, linking the topology of landscape elements to a plurality of solution artifacts, and validating at least one of the plurality of solution artifacts and semantics of the information landscape.
US09881066B1	Systems, methods, user interfaces and algorithms for performing database analysis and search of information involving structured and/or semi-structured data Implementations for searching and analyzing large, object-oriented data sets in an efficient manner involving innovative user interface features and/or search algorithm functionality are disclosed. In one exemplary embodiment, a system may search for information and/or relationships based on specified search criteria and return results that may be displayed dynamically and further filtered or analyzed. Systems may involve object oriented database(s) and a software layer including a specialized user interface between the user and the database(s). The user interface may comprise various tools as well as predefined and configurable features that enable effective search of the data as well as display of search results that are configurable and readily managed to provide immediate and useful search results. The user interface may display the search results and various associated graphical representations and models, and/or provide tools enabling dynamic manipulation and display of search results or underlying object models, among other things.
US09881065B2	Selecting supplemental content for inclusion in a search results page Disclosed are various embodiments that involve selecting supplemental content to be included with search results in a network page. At least one search result is generated by executing a search based at least in part on relevance to a search query. Supplemental content is selected based at least in part upon relevance to the search query without regard to the at least one search result. A subset of the supplemental content is selected in response to determining that the subset is permitted to be presented together in a search results page as defined by at least one compatibility rule. The search results page is generated to include the subset of the supplemental content and the search results.
US09881057B2	Reducing redundant operations in a streaming environment A stream computing application may permit one or more jobs to connect to a data stream of a different job. As more jobs connect to the data stream, the likelihood that two or more operators are performing redundant operations on a data stream may increase. A stream manager may monitor an operator graph to identify two operators performing a redundant operation. If the stream manager determines that there are redundant operators in the operator graph, the stream manager may modify the operator graph to remove the redundant operators.
US09881052B2	Limiting scans of loosely ordered and/or grouped relations in a database Data within a database object are accessed based on a query with a predicate including a plurality of conditional expressions. Elements of the database object are stored among a plurality of different storage regions along with range values for element values within each storage region. Each conditional expression of the query predicate is applied to the range values for each storage region to produce evaluation results of that conditional expression for each storage region. The evaluation result of each conditional expression for a corresponding storage region is combined to produce aggregated results for each of the storage regions, where the aggregated result for a corresponding storage region indicates results of a tri-state evaluation (e.g., true/false or unknown) of the conditional expressions for that storage region. One or more corresponding individual storage regions are scanned based on the aggregated results for those storage regions when the tri-state evaluation is unknown.
US09881045B2	System and method for processing data Disclosed are a system and method for processing data. The system for processing data according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a determiner configured to receive one or more sets of input data and a set of metadata about a structure of each of the sets of input data and to determine whether the input data is normal data or abnormal data based on the metadata; a first storage configured to store the normal data; a second storage configured to store the abnormal data; and a data processor configured to correct the abnormal data stored in the second storage such that the abnormal data has the same structure as the normal data and store the corrected abnormal data in the first storage.
US09881044B2	Techniques for ensuring consistency of data updates transactions in a distributed storage system A method and system for ensuring consistency in data updates transactions in a distributed storage system (DSS) are provided. The method includes receiving an aggregated transaction request comprising monotonous transaction requests, wherein each monotonous transaction request is initiated by at least one computing node of a plurality of computing of nodes in the DSS, wherein the root computing node and the plurality of computing nodes are arranged in a tree structure; generating a range of transaction indexes based on the aggregated transaction request; and passing the generated range of transaction indexes along the plurality of computing nodes according to their respective level in the tree structure hierarchy, wherein each of the plurality of computing nodes initiating the monotonous transaction request is allocated with a unique portion of the aggregated transaction indexes, thereby ensuring time-order access to at least one storage device in the DSS.

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