Abstract: A medical lead system including an elongated lead body configured to extend through vasculature of a patient. The lead body mechanically supports a fixation member extending distal to a distal end of the lead body. A balloon is affixed to a distal portion of the lead body. The balloon is configured to inflate to extend distal to the distal end of the lead body. The fixation member is configured to extend within a distal cavity defined by the inflated balloon. The medical lead system is configured such that an electrode mechanically supported by the fixation member may electrically communicate with tissue of the patient when the balloon is in the inflated configuration.

Abstract: An object holder with quick-release anchoring capability includes an object carrier having an object carrier base. A vacuum release actuator on the object carrier base is displaceable to separate from the object. An anchor member carried by vacuum release actuator includes outer and inner seal members and an interconnecting vent port. The outer seal member is arranged to form a substantially airtight seal with the reference surface that defines an outer controlled pressure zone. The inner seal member is arranged to form a substantially airtight seal with the object that defines an inner controlled pressure zone. The vent port extends between the outer and inner controlled pressure zones. During operation, the controlled pressure zones can be vented by manipulating the object carrier away from the reference surface to separate the object and the vacuum release actuator until the inner seal member breaks its substantially airtight seal with the object.

Abstract: An object holder with quick-release anchoring capability includes an object carrier having an object carrier base. A vacuum release actuator on the object carrier base is displaceable to separate from the object. An anchor member carried by vacuum release actuator includes outer and inner seal members and an interconnecting vent port. The outer and inner seal members are arranged to form substantially airtight seals with the reference surface and the object, respectively, that define controlled pressure zones. The vent port extends between the outer and inner controlled pressure zones. The inner seal member has a substantially non-folding configuration that prevents excessive seal elongation prior to separation from the object. During operation, the controlled pressure zones can be vented by manipulating the object carrier away from the reference surface to separate the object and the vacuum release actuator until the inner seal member breaks its substantially airtight seal with the object.

Abstract: A method of rendering an image includes generating a virtual scene comprising a set of virtual resources, the virtual resources being virtual objects and/or virtual light sources; pre-processing the virtual scene by ray-tracing with respect to a virtual camera position to detect one or more virtual resources not required for ray-tracing rendering of at least an aspect of rendering the image; and rendering the image by a ray-tracing process from the virtual camera position, the ray-tracing process being configured to omit ray-tracing for at least a given aspect of the image, with respect to the one or more virtual resources not required for ray-tracing rendering of at least the given aspect of the image.

Abstract: An object holder with quick-release anchoring capability includes an object carrier having an object carrier base. A vacuum release actuator on the object carrier base is displaceable to separate from the object. An anchor member carried by vacuum release actuator includes outer and inner seal members and an interconnecting vent port. The outer and inner seal members are arranged to form substantially airtight seals with the reference surface and the object, respectively, that define controlled pressure zones. The vent port extends between the outer and inner controlled pressure zones. The inner seal member has a substantially non-folding configuration that prevents excessive seal elongation prior to separation from the object. During operation, the controlled pressure zones can be vented by manipulating the object carrier away from the reference surface to separate the object and the vacuum release actuator until the inner seal member breaks its substantially airtight seal with the object.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a composition for reducing the growth of fouling organisms through release of biocidal metal therefrom into the environment, the composition comprising: mollusc, brachiopod, and/or crustacean shell fragments comprising chitin; a biocidal metal; and a degradable material, wherein the shell fragments and biocidal metal are admixed with, and dispersed throughout, the degradable material.

Abstract: A data processing apparatus includes rendering circuitry to render an image frame by plural successive rendering stages, each rendering stage having a respective initial rendering stage time allocation, prediction circuitry to predict, in dependence upon rendering of at least one rendering stage of the plural successive rendering stages of a given image frame by the rendering circuitry, whether a total time period for rendering the given image frame by the rendering circuitry will exceed an associated image frame rendering time allocation for the given image frame, and allocation circuitry to vary the respective initial rendering stage time allocation for one or more rendering stages which are not yet completed in respect of the given image frame responsive to the prediction circuitry, so as to shorten the total time period for rendering the given image frame by the rendering circuitry.

Abstract: An object holder with quick-release anchoring capability includes an object carrier having an object carrier base. A vacuum release actuator on the object carrier base is displaceable to separate from the object. An anchor member carried by vacuum release actuator includes outer and inner seal members and an interconnecting vent port. The outer seal member is arranged to form a substantially airtight seal with the reference surface that defines an outer controlled pressure zone. The inner seal member is arranged to form a substantially airtight seal with the object that defines an inner controlled pressure zone. The vent port extends between the outer and inner controlled pressure zones. During operation, the controlled pressure zones can be vented by manipulating the object carrier away from the reference surface to separate the object and the vacuum release actuator until the inner seal member breaks its substantially airtight seal with the object.

Abstract: A system for rasterizing an image of a virtual environment, the system comprising a bounding volume hierarchy, BVH, obtaining unit operable to obtain a BVH representing one or more objects in the virtual environment, wherein each node of the BVH is associated with geometry information for the one or more objects at least partially contained within a bounding volume represented by that node, a frustum identification unit operable to identify a viewing frustum associated with a virtual camera defining a viewpoint within the virtual environment, a BVH identification unit operable to identify a BVH node associated with at least one bounding volume that is intersected by the frustum and a rasterization unit operable to rasterize an image of the virtual environment using the geometry information associated with the identified BVH node.

Abstract: An image generation system comprising a bounding volume hierarchy, BVH, storage unit operable to store a BVH comprising a hierarchical structure of a plurality of triangles describing a virtual scene, a BVH position buffer operable to store data for identifying the location of one or more triangles within the BVH, and a fetch shader operable to identify vertex indices for use in rendering images, to obtain one or more triangles within the BVH corresponding to those vertex indices, and to provide vertex data corresponding to those triangles to a vertex shader operable to perform a vertex shading process.

Abstract: Embodiments relate to an adaptive glycemia monitoring and forecasting system that includes an event monitor configured to receive blood glucose levels of an individual or information about an activity performed by the individual, and generate an event output. The system includes a control module configured to pull observation data, predictor variables, and population estimated vector of covariate weightings coefficients from a database, and generate updated estimated vector of covariate weightings coefficients for the individual user based on the event output. The updated estimated vector of covariate weightings coefficients are determined by a cross-entropy loss objective function. The updated estimated vector of covariate weightings coefficients are used to predict at least one or more of a predicted hypoglycemia state, a predicted normal glycemia state, or a predicted hyperglycemia state for the individual user.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a needle including a wall structure, a cutting edge and a blunt contour. The needle advantageously can be used to deliver a sensor (such as a glucose or other analyte sensor) through an outer skin layer and into a sensor depth in a less invasive way than prior art needles. The size of the cutting edge is balanced against a portion of the distal wall structure that has blunt contours. Thus, the needle is capable of cutting the more durable outer skin layer (first phase) and then progressively stretching open the cut for further advancement into the subcutaneous layer (second phase). When the needle is sufficiently advanced, it is retracted leaving the sensor in a desired position. Early testing has shown a reduction of “dip and recover” from glucose sensors delivered using the needle.

Abstract: Adhesive pad systems that provide longer lasting adherence of the mounting unit to the host's skin are provided. Some systems include a reinforcing overlay that at least partially covers the adhesive pad. The reinforcing overlay may be removable without disturbing the sensor so that the overlay may be replaceable.

Abstract: A head-mountable display device includes: a display element observable by a user; an image generator operable to generate an image for display by the display element; a plurality of ultrasound transducers, the ultrasound transducers being operable and arranged to emit ultrasound signals towards at least a first eye of the user when the head-mountable display is being worn by the user; one or more sensors operable and arranged to detect reflections of the emitted ultrasound signals; an eye imaging unit operable to generate a representation of the user's eye based on the ultrasound signals received at the one or more sensors; and an eye position detector configured to detect the position of the eye relative to the position of the head-mountable display device based on the representation, the eye position detector being configured to detect whether the position of the eye is offset from a desired position.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a needle including a wall structure, a cutting edge and a blunt contour. The needle advantageously can be used to deliver a sensor (such as a glucose or other analyte sensor) through an outer skin layer and into a sensor depth in a less invasive way than prior art needles. The size of the cutting edge is balanced against a portion of the distal wall structure that has blunt contours. Thus, the needle is capable of cutting the more durable outer skin layer (first phase) and then progressively stretching open the cut for further advancement into the subcutaneous layer (second phase). When the needle is sufficiently advanced, it is retracted leaving the sensor in a desired position. Early testing has shown a reduction of “dip and recover” from glucose sensors delivered using the needle.

Abstract: An epoxy resin composition is provided which includes a poly-naphthalene-based epoxy resin having two or more epoxy groups per molecule combined with a non-linear multi-phenyl epoxy resin and an additional epoxy resin having an epoxy functionality of 3 or more, as well as a prepreg, and a fiber-reinforced composite material prepared using the epoxy resin composition. More specifically, an epoxy resin composition is provided which contains a combination of particular types of epoxy resins and curatives that, when cured, provides high flexural modulus and that is suitable for preparing a fiber-reinforced composite material capable of withstanding extreme use environments such as low-temperature environments and high-temperature moisture-absorbing environments. In addition, epoxy resin systems are provided which are capable of achieving a high Tg along with good thermal stability for long periods of time at elevated temperatures (e.g., 180° C. or more) when cured at 210° C. for 2 hours.

Abstract: Adhesive pad systems that provide longer lasting adherence of the mounting unit to the host's skin are provided. Some systems include a reinforcing overlay that at least partially covers the adhesive pad. The reinforcing overlay may be removable without disturbing the sensor so that the overlay may be replaceable.

Abstract: A method of rendering an image includes generating a virtual scene comprising a set of virtual resources, the virtual resources being virtual objects and/or virtual light sources; pre-processing the virtual scene by ray-tracing with respect to a virtual camera position to detect one or more virtual resources not required for ray-tracing rendering of at least an aspect of rendering the image; and rendering the image by a ray-tracing process from the virtual camera position, the ray-tracing process being configured to omit ray-tracing for at least a given aspect of the image, with respect to the one or more virtual resources not required for ray-tracing rendering of at least the given aspect of the image.

Abstract: A connector block for an implantable controller. The connector block includes a first pair of side-by-side bores extending distally from a proximal end of the connector block and defining a major longitudinal axis. A second pair of side-by-side bores extends distally from a distal end of the first pair of side-by-side bores, each of the first pair of side-by-side bores defining a first diameter and each of the second pair of side-by-side bores defining a second diameter less than the first diameter, each pair of the second pair of side-by-side lead bores include a setscrew bore sized to receive a setscrew and being transverse to the major longitudinal axis.

Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed which provide for a “factory-calibrated” sensor. In doing so, the systems and methods include predictive prospective modeling of sensor behavior, and also include predictive modeling of physiology. With these two correction factors, a consistent determination of sensitivity can be achieved, thus achieving factory calibration.