Abstract: A vacuum therapy device for treatment of a defect internal of a human or animal body, the device comprising: a suction tube extending from: (i) a proximal portion for coupling to a source of negative pressure outside the body, to (ii) a distal portion for providing suction proximal to the defect when inserted into the body; a porous medium coupled to the distal portion of the suction tube to provide suction to the defect when inserted into the body for treatment thereof; and a constraining sleeve for selective compression of the porous medium, the constraining sleeve having a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the constraining sleeve is movable relative to the porous medium between: an insertion position in which the proximal and distal ends of the sleeve are arranged at the distal portion of the suction tube so that the sleeve at least partially surrounds the porous medium to retain the porous medium in a compressed state during insertion into the body; and a treatment position in which the porous medium

Abstract: Described herein is a fluid circuit device. The device incorporates at least one pressure balancing valve located between at least two fluid volumes that can be in a pressure differential arrangement wherein the at least one pressure balancing valve acts to address a pressure differential by opening a fluid volume or volumes to a third pressure equalising volume. In use, the fluid circuit device may in one embodiment be used in an energy absorbtion apparatus.

Abstract: Described herein is a fluid circuit device. The device incorporates at least one pressure balancing valve located between at least two fluid volumes that can be in a pressure differential arrangement wherein the at least one pressure balancing valve acts to address a pressure differential by opening a fluid volume or volumes to a third pressure equalising volume. In use, the fluid circuit device may in one embodiment be used in an energy absorbtion apparatus.

Abstract: Described herein is a fluid circuit device. The device incorporates at least one pressure balancing valve located between at least two fluid volumes that can be in a pressure differential arrangement wherein the at least one pressure balancing valve acts to address a pressure differential by opening a fluid volume or volumes to a third pressure equalising volume. In use, the fluid circuit device may in one embodiment be used in an energy absorbtion apparatus.

Abstract: Described herein is a fluid circuit device. The device incorporates at least one pressure balancing valve located between at least two fluid volumes that can be in a pressure differential arrangement wherein the at least one pressure balancing valve acts to address a pressure differential by opening a fluid volume or volumes to a third pressure equalising volume. In use, the fluid circuit device may in one embodiment be used in an energy absorption apparatus.

Abstract: Energy transfer apparatus such as a viscous damper or hydraulic cylinder apparatus are described along with their use, the apparatus generating velocity dependent damping force between two spatially separate points. The apparatus may comprise a system with a piston coupled to a rod shaft, the piston and rod shaft moving in a fitted, or sealed cylinder with end caps and fluid sealing elements at either end of the cylinder, the system containing fluid in at least one cavity located between the piston and cylinder and an accumulator fluidly connected to the at least one cavity. The rod shaft and piston move relative to the cylinder in the event of an imposed dynamic force and the accumulator counteracts over or under pressure in the at least one cavity.

Abstract: Described herein is a fluid circuit device. The device incorporates at least one pressure balancing valve located between at least two fluid volumes that can be in a pressure differential arrangement wherein the at least one pressure balancing valve acts to address a pressure differential by opening a fluid volume or volumes to a third pressure equalising volume. In use, the fluid circuit device may in one embodiment be used in an energy absorption apparatus.

Abstract: Described herein is an apparatus for securing a coupled element onto a shaft. More particularly, an apparatus is described that provides a tight fitment of a coupled element such as a piston onto a shaft capable of handling high pressure forces without relative movement of the coupled components and, which may minimise parts needed, provide optimal material utilisation, and avoid the requirement for fasteners.

Abstract: An implant, artificial or semi-artificial at implantation, for repairing an articular cartilage and osteochondral defect site in a mammalian, such as a human. The implant having at least a first surface and a second surface. The first surface shaped for being press-fitted into the defect site to create an interface between the first surface and a bone-cartilage region of the defect site, and the second surface shaped for being press-fitted into the defect site to create an interface between the second surface and an articular cartilage region of the defect site. The implant being seeded, prior to implantation, with chondroprogenitor cells, including superficial zone chondroprogenitor cells.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus for, and methods of assessing cell viability in a biological sample comprising cells or tissue. In particular the present invention provides quality assurance assays for complex biomaterials, especially but not exclusively cells derived from the pancreas, liver, kidney, lung, bone marrow and stem cells, for use in biomedical procedures. The present invention provides inter alia methods of improving assessment of donor cell/tissue viability, methods of improving the success of donor cell/tissue transplant procedures, methods of assessing the functional properties of complex biological materials prior to their use in regenerative therapies and kits therefor.

Abstract: An aircraft communication system includes an aircraft component, an Integrated Modular Avionics (IMA) unit, an Onboard Maintenance System (OMS), and a switch. The switch routes data provided by the aircraft component via a first communications protocol to the IMA unit, and mirrors the routed data to the OMS via a second communications protocol. The OMS processes and stores the received data, part of the received data, or the results of said processing.

Abstract: Speech feature vectors (10) are provided and utilized to develop a corresponding estimated speaker dependent speech feature space model (20) (in one embodiment, it is not necessary that this model (20) have defined correlations with the verbal content of the represented speech itself). A model alignment unit (21) then contrasts this model (20) against the contents of a speaker independent speech feature space model (24) to provide alignment indices to a transformation estimation unit (23). In one embodiment, these alignment indices are based, as least in part, upon a measure of the differences between likelihoods of occurrence for the elements that comprise the constituency of these models. The transformation estimation unit (23) utilizes these alignment indices to provide transformation parameters to a model transformation unit (25) that uses such parameters to transform a speaker independent speech recognition model set (26) and yield a resultant speaker adapted speech recognition model set (27).

Abstract: A truss structure for a panel array includes a plurality of deployed bays. The plurality of deployed bays in a first side and an opposing second side. Each side includes a first upper horizontal support member attached to a first vertical support member and collapsible on a first joint translating on a second vertical support member. A first lower horizontal support member is attached to the second vertical support member and collapsible on a second joint translating on the first vertical support member.

Abstract: A hinge for a boom associated with a spacecraft antenna or other payload. The boom hinge includes two hinge bodies and at least three links, where one of the links is a drive link. The resulting hinge is an N+4 bar linkage. An actuator rotates the drive link so that the other links wrap around it, and the next link in the series of links acts as a drive link as the links get wrapped around the primary drive link. At the end of the deployment, the hinge precisely emulates the classic four-bar over-center latch behavior. This allows any hinge-offset distance between the hinge bodies when stowed in a larger hinge rotation angle without structural compromises.

Abstract: An inductor including a magnetic core (30) including at least one magnetic core element (32), the magnetic core (30) having a first portion (38) spaced from and facing a second portion (42), at least one winding (36) supported by the magnetic core (30), and a thermally conductive element (10) having a thermal conductivity greater than about 100 w/mK in thermal contact with the first and second portions (38, 42), the electrically conductive element (10) defining a plurality of paths (26) from the first portion (38) to the second portion (42), the paths (26) being filled with an electrically insulative material (28). A method of cooling an inductor with a heat transfer device (10) is also disclosed.

Abstract: An encoder (60) and system (1) for processing a sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT) obtained from a speech signal. A filter (2) has both a current slowly evolving filter estimate output (6) and a previous slowly evolving filter estimate output (20). The current slowly evolving filter estimate output (6) provides vectors of current filtered estimate element values of a slowly evolving component of the sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT) and the previous slowly evolving filter estimate output (20) provides vectors of previous filtered estimate element values of the slowly evolving component of said sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT). There is also a parameter estimator (10), smoother module (17) and slowly evolving component encoder (65) that provides a digitized encoded slowly evolving component of the speech signal.

Abstract: An encoder and associated vector estimation method and system (1) for processing a sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT) each comprising a plurality of elements. The vector estimation system (1) has a digital filter (2) with a filter vector input (3) for receiving said sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT) and a predictor gain input (4) for controlling characteristics of the filter (2). The filter (2) is a Kalman filter and has both a current slowly evolving filter estimate output (6) and a previous slowly evolving filter estimate output (20). The current slowly evolving filter estimate output (6) provides a current filtered estimate value of a slowly evolving component of said sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT) and the previous slowly evolving filter estimate output (20) provides a previous filtered estimate value of the slowly evolving component of said sequence of input vectors (y0 to yT).

Abstract: A method (20) and electronic device (1) for signal separation of mixed signals provided by sensors (11,13), the mixed signals resulting from the sensors (11,13) detecting respective mixed waveforms comprising a plurality of source waveforms originating from waveform generating sources mixed in a mixing environment (10). The method (20) and device (1), in use, provide for configuring (22) communication between a processor (3) and a plurality of the sensors (11,13) in the mixing environment (10), the configuring being effected dynamically depending upon variations in the number of sensors (11,13) in the environment. At a receiving step (23) the processor (3) receives respective mixed signals from the sensors (11,13) and a step of determining (24) un-mixing parameters for the environment based on the number of sensors (11,13) is then effected.

Abstract: A wound dressing which comprises a carrier layer having a non-adherent to cell layer on a wound facing surface thereof. The non-adherent layer has bonded thereto a biodegradable cell anchoring layer which anchors mammalian cells. In use, the degradable layer breaks down releasing the cells into the wound site which are discouraged from reattaching to the dressing by the non-adherent layer. Thus the dressing can switch from a cell binding state to a state in which the binding of cells is discouraged. Systems, methods of treatment and methods of manufacturing the dressing are also disclosed.

Abstract: A medicament or device for tissue regeneration, for example bone and/or cartilage tissue, in which the medicament or device comprises a BMP binding protein.