Abstract: The invention provides a porous glass ceramic composition manufactured using conventional raw materials and one or more waste materials, wherein the waste materials are capable of producing glass forming oxides, glass modifying oxides and pore forming oxides. The waste materials are selected from a group that includes cullet, pozzolanic waste and fly ash. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing the porous glass ceramic composition.

Abstract: The invention provides a white sintered glass-ceramic tile and a method for preparing the white sintered glass-ceramic tile. The white sintered glass-ceramic tile is a single fired tile with a glazed glass-ceramic layer and a porous glass-ceramic layer, wherein each layer is prepared using same starting raw materials. The method includes milling the starting raw materials to obtain a homogenous mixture. The homogenous mixture is melted and poured in water to obtain glass frits. The glass frits are milled and thereafter, sieved to obtain glass frit powder with particle size of below 100 micron (?m). A mixture of the glass frit powder and one or more foaming agents is cold pressed to form a porous glass-ceramic layer. Thereafter, the glass frit powder is deposited on the porous glass-ceramic layer to obtain a glazed glass-ceramic layer. Finally, both the layers are fired together.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for manufacturing a glass-ceramic composite using natural raw material and waste glasses. The invention provides a method for manufacturing a white glass-ceramic composite using waste glass and a whitening agent. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing a colored glass-ceramic composite using waste glass, the whitening agent and a coloring agent.

Abstract: The invention provides a glass ceramic glaze composition manufactured using conventional raw material and one or more waste materials, wherein the waste materials are capable of producing glass forming oxides and glass modifying oxides. The waste materials are selected from a group that includes cullet, pozzolanic waste and fly ash. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing the glass ceramic glaze composition. Further, the invention provides different methods of glazing a glass ceramic substrate using the glass ceramic glaze composition.

Abstract: The invention provides a porous glass ceramic composition manufactured using conventional raw materials and one or more waste materials, wherein the waste materials are capable of producing glass forming oxides, glass modifying oxides and pore forming oxides. The waste materials are selected from a group that includes cullet, pozzolanic waste and fly ash. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing the porous glass ceramic composition.

Abstract: The invention provides a glass-ceramic composition manufactured using conventional raw material and one or more waste materials, wherein the waste materials are capable of producing glass forming oxides and glass modifying oxides. The waste materials are selected from a group that includes cullet, pozzolanic waste and fly ash. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing the glass-ceramic composition.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for manufacturing a glass-ceramic composite using natural raw material and waste glasses. The invention provides a method for manufacturing a white glass-ceramic composite using waste glass and a whitening agent. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing a colored glass-ceramic composite using waste glass, the whitening agent and a coloring agent.

Abstract: The invention provides a glass ceramic glaze composition manufactured using conventional raw material and one or more waste materials, wherein the waste materials are capable of producing glass forming oxides and glass modifying oxides. The waste materials are selected from a group that includes cullet, pozzolanic waste and fly ash. The invention also provides a method for manufacturing the glass ceramic glaze composition. Further, the invention provides different methods of glazing a glass ceramic substrate using the glass ceramic glaze composition.

Abstract: The invention is related to methods and apparatus that use a visual sensor and dead reckoning sensors to process Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM). These techniques can be used in robot navigation. Advantageously, such visual techniques can be used to autonomously generate and update a map. Unlike with laser rangefinders, the visual techniques are economically practical in a wide range of applications and can be used in relatively dynamic environments, such as environments in which people move. One embodiment further advantageously uses multiple particles to maintain multiple hypotheses with respect to localization and mapping. Further advantageously, one embodiment maintains the particles in a relatively computationally-efficient manner, thereby permitting the SLAM processes to be performed in software using relatively inexpensive microprocessor-based computer systems.

Abstract: The invention is related to methods and apparatus that use a visual sensor and dead reckoning sensors to process Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM). These techniques can be used in robot navigation. Advantageously, such visual techniques can be used to autonomously generate and update a map. Unlike with laser rangefinders, the visual techniques are economically practical in a wide range of applications and can be used in relatively dynamic environments such as environments in which people move. One embodiment further advantageously uses multiple particles to maintain multiple hypotheses with respect to localization and mapping. Further advantageously, one embodiment maintains the particles in a relatively computationally-efficient manner, thereby permitting the SLAM processes to be performed in software using relatively inexpensive microprocessor-based computer systems.

Abstract: A system and method synthesizing images of a locale to generate a composite image that provide a panoramic view of the locale. A video camera moves along a street recording images of objects along the street. A GPS receiver and inertial navigation system provide the position of the camera as the images are being recorded. The images are indexed with the position data provided by the GPS receiver and inertial navigation system. The composite image is created on a column-by-column basis by determining which of the acquired images contains the desired pixel column, extracting the pixels associated with the column, and stacking the columns side by side. The composite images are stored in an image database and associated with a street name and number range of the street being depicted in the image. The image database covers a substantial amount of a geographic area allowing a user to visually navigate the area from a user terminal.