Abstract: A polyol monomer comprising the formula: R1 and R3 are —H, aliphatic, aromatic, or ether; R2 is aliphatic, aromatic, ester, ether, or acrylic, and R1 contains a hydroxyl group, R3 contains a hydroxyl group, R2 contains —O—CH2—CH(OH)—, or any combination thereof. The polyol monomer may be made by reacting an epoxy and an amine. Either the epoxy contains more than one epoxide groups, the amine contains a hydroxyl group, or both. A thermoset made by reacting the polyol monomer with a polyisocyanate.

Abstract: This invention pertains to product and process. The product is a transparent product of a density in excess 99.5% comprising spinel and having uniform mechanical properties. The process pertains to fabrication of a transparent spinel product comprising the steps of dissolving a sintering aid in water to form a neutral sintering aid solution, adding a suitable additive to the sintering aid solution, applying the sintering aid solution to spinel particles to form a spinel dispersion, sub-dividing or atomizing the spinel dispersion to form droplets comprising one or more spinel particles coated with the final spinel solution, drying the droplets to form dried coated particles comprising one or more spinel particles coated with a dried layer of the sintering aid, and densifying the dried coated particles to form a transparent spinel product having, uniform optical and mechanical properties in absence of grains of exaggerated size.

Abstract: A carborane-siloxane compound is provided having the repeat unit Q contains any of —SiR2—, —SiR2—O—, —C?C—C?C—, carboranyl, and U?. Each R and R? is alkyl, aryl, alkylaryl, haloalkyl, haloaryl, or mixtures thereof. Each U? is derivable from hydrosilation of an alkenyl or alkynyl group. Each T is alkyl, aryl, alkylaryl, haloalkyl, haloaryl mixtures thereof, —(O—SiR?2)xH, or the repeat unit. Each x and x? is a positive integer. The compounds may be made be reacting a carborane-siloxane precursor having unsaturated end groups with a siloxane crosslinker in the presence of a hydrosilation catalyst.

Abstract: A system and method for determining vector acoustic intensity fields using a spherical array of acoustic sensors, and a regularization technique. A mobile spherical array of a number of microphones that image the acoustic intensity vector throughout a large volume internal and external to the spherical array.

Abstract: A tri-axial vibration isolation device having: a passive isolation assembly including a first frame, a plurality of passive lateral isolators supporting the support frame on the base, and a plurality of passive vertical isolators; and an actuator assembly including a second frame, a vertical actuator arranged between the load and the second frame, and a plurality of lateral actuators arranged between the second frame and the passive vertical isolators. The actuators can be piezoelectric elements that change their thickness in response to an electrical signal. The lateral actuators are arranged in oppositely poled pairs. An accelerometer or other sensor provides information to a controller that controls the actuators.

Abstract: A ceramic made by providing a composition and pyrolyzing the composition. The composition has siloxane polymer, metallic polymer, siloxane thermoset, and/or metallic thermoset having a backbone having: an acetylenic repeat unit; and —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n— and/or —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n-[Cb-SiR2—(O—SiR2)n]m—. R is an organic group, Cb is a carborane, and n and m are integers greater than or equal to zero. Any crosslinking is a crosslink between acetylene groups and/or a polycarbosiloxane crosslink. The composition also has free metal atoms, metal clusters, or metal nanoparticles dispersed homogeneously throughout the composition; (MLx)y-acetylene complex in the backbone; and/or a metallic compound for forming a (MLx)y-acetylene complex. M is a metal, L is a ligand, x and y are positive integers.

Abstract: A metallized polymer having a backbone having an acetylenic repeat unit and —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n— and/or —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n-[Cb-SiR2—(O—SiR2)n]m—. At least one of the acetylenic repeat units contains a (MLx)y-acetylene complex. M is a metal, L is a ligand, x and y are positive integers, R is an organic group, Cb is a carborane, and n and m are greater than or equal to zero. A composition containing a siloxane polymer and a metallic compound. The siloxane polymer has a backbone having one or more acetylene groups and —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n— and/or —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n-[Cb-SiR2—(O—SiR2)n]m—. The metallic compound is capable of reacting with the acetylene group to form a (MLx)y-acetylene complex.

Abstract: A metallized thermoset containing a crosslinked metallized polymer having a backbone having an acetylenic repeat unit and —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n— and/or —SiR2—(O—SiR2)n-[Cb-SiR2—(O—SiR2)n]m—. At least one of the acetylenic repeat units contains a (MLx)y-acetylene complex. The metallized thermoset contains a crosslink between acetylene groups and/or a polycarbosiloxane crosslink. M is a metal, L is a ligand, x and y are positive integers, R is an organic group, Cb is a carborane, and n and m are greater than or equal to zero. A method of making a metallized thermoset by providing a metallized polymer and heating the metallized polymer. The metallized polymer contains the above backbone. Heating the metallized polymer forms crosslinks between acetylene groups and/or polycarbosiloxane crosslinks.

Abstract: A shipboard communications system for providing RF communications between a ship and a communications satellite includes a modem, an antenna selector switch coupled to the modem and to a pair of directional antennas, a programmable controller for each antenna, and an antenna selector logic (ASL) circuit coupled to each antenna's programmable controller responsive to the programmable controller whereby an antenna handoff occurs when an on-service antenna is moving into a blockage zone and does not occur only when an off-service antenna is coming out of blockage.

Abstract: A method, system, computer-readable medium, and apparatus for identifying a boundary of a cluster in a bitmap, the bitmap having at least one initially set bit, for applying an expansion shape to each of the initially set bits in the bitmap and identifying vertex bits on the boundary of the cluster formed by at least one expansion shape. A method system, computer-readable medium, and apparatus for identifying vertex bits in a bitmap having at least two adjacent bits with non-zero values forming a boundary of a cluster, the interior bits of the cluster having a zero value, including starting from a current non-zero bit, evaluating at least a first adjacent bit and a second adjacent bit, setting an adjacent non-zero bit as the new current bit, and identifying the current bit as a vertex bit if a direction of motion from the current bit to the new current bit changes.

Abstract: A particle having a magnesium aluminate core and a fluoride salt coating on the core. The particle has been heated in an oxidizing atmosphere to a temperature in the range of about 400° C. to about 750° C. A method of making a particle by mixing a magnesium aluminate core with a solution of a fluoride salt in a solvent to form a slurry and spraying the slurry into a drying column. The slurry enters the column as an aerosol under thermal conditions that avoid boiling the solvent. The thermal conditions in the column evaporate the solvent as the aerosol moves through the column to form a coating of the fluoride salt on the core while substantially avoiding spalling.

Abstract: A microelectro-mechanical chemical sensor includes an active cantilever beam having a chemically selective material layer disposed thereon and at least one, preferably two, resistors with the resistance corresponding to the cantilever beam deflection. The sensor also has at least two, and preferably four, auxiliary cantilever beams adjacent to the active cantilever and attached to the same substrate, each having a piezoresistor disposed thereon. The piezoresistors are elements of a Wheatstone bridge, and the Wheatstone bridge output indicates the amount of a predetermined target chemical sorbed by the chemically selective material layer. The sensor is electrostatically actuated in order to monitor the resonant frequency.

Abstract: The present invention is phthalocyanine compounds with peripheral siloxane substitution, as well as methods for making these compounds and various uses thereof, having the basic structure: wherein —W—X—Y—Z are peripheral groups comprising individual W, X, Y, and Z subgroups; W is a linkage represented by the formula: —D—(R1)0.1—, where D?S or O; X is: —(CH2)n—, n=2 to 8; Y is a siloxane chain; Z is an aryl or alkyl terminal cap; M is two protons or a metal ion; and forms a transparent film of high optical quality with large nonlinear absorption and thermal refraction, free of scattering from solid or liquid crystalline domains making them highly suitable for use as the active component in thin films protective eye wear, and optical data storage applications.

Abstract: An apparatus having a metallic manganese anode; a cathode capable of reducing at least one species found in marine water; and a rig coupled to the anode and the cathode capable of maintaining the anode below a marine sediment surface and maintaining the cathode above marine the sediment surface. A method of generating power by: positioning in marine sediment a metallic manganese anode; positioning in marine water a cathode capable of reducing at least one species found in marine water; and connecting electrical leads between the anode, the cathode, and an electrical load.

Abstract: A method for making monodispersed magnetic nanoparticles of nickel zinc ferrite (NZFO) at room temperature by mixing together two micelle solutions. The first micelle solution comprises zinc, nickel, and iron metal salts; a surfactant; and a hydrocarbon. The second micelle solution comprises an aqueous hydroxide, a surfactant, and a hydrocarbon. After mixing the two micelle solutions, the ferrite precipitates.

Abstract: This invention pertains to particulate thermally reflective phase change material that includes an encapsulated phase change material coated with a thermally reflective layer.

Abstract: According to the invention, an apparatus for classifying and sorting input data in a data stream includes a processor having a classifier input control with a first input and second input, an adaptive classifier, a ground truth data input, a ground truth resampling buffer, a source data re-sampling buffer, and an output.

Abstract: An apparatus for interfacing 3D movements of a user to control the locomotion of an avatar in a virtual environment includes a position tracker for tracking the position of a user's feet, with the foot motions including swinging and stroking; a computer programmed for (i) computing a direction and extent of motion of a reference in the virtual environment based on the foot positions and (ii) providing an avatar corresponding to the computed direction and extent of motion; and a display for displaying the avatar in the virtual environment. The apparatus accordingly uses the gestural motion of the user's feet while seated to simulate natural human locomotion. The gestural motions of stroking and swinging include translational and rotating movements, and are chosen to correspond to the actions of the feet and legs during natural human locomotion, providing natural control of virtual locomotion. The apparatus is also designed for controlling the locomotion of a remote vehicle.

Abstract: The present invention describes an apparatus for nanolithography and a process for thermally controlling the deposition of a solid organic “ink” from the tip of an atomic force microscope to a substrate. The invention may be used to turn deposition of the ink to the substrate on or off by either raising its temperature above or lowing its temperature below the ink's melting temperature. This process may be useful as it allows ink deposition to be turned on and off and the deposition rate to change without the tip breaking contact with the substrate. The same tip can then be used for imaging purposes without fear of contamination. This invention can allow ink to be deposited in a vacuum enclosure, and can also allow for greater spatial resolution as the inks used have lower surface mobilities once cooled than those used in other nanolithography methods.

Abstract: A high-speed tensile test device is disclosed, which measures the stress-strain behavior, up to failure, of polymeric materials, at high strains (as much as 1000%), and high strain rates (up to 104/s). A weight, when dropped down a vertical track, impacts two L-levers positioned below and on each side of the weight, pushing the horizontal arms of the L-levers. The L-levers have cable connected to the vertical arms of the L-levers and are looped around pulleys, then connected to shuttles located on a horizontal track. The shuttles are attached to load cells, which are connected to grips that hold a sample to be tested. When the horizontal arms of the L-levers are pushed by the weight, they pivot, causing the cables to pull on the shuttles, load cell, and grip, which move in an outward direction, stretching the sample.