Abstract: A sunset prediction system performs the steps of determining a location of interest, and collecting weather forecast data at or around the time of either sunrise or sunset, at the location and a surrounding area adjacent the location. The collected weather forecast data includes cloud density and cloud altitude. The sun prediction system then determines from the collected weather forecast data whether there will be clouds at the location that are advantageous for photography at or around the time of sunrise or sunset, and whether the sunlight will be obstructed by obstructing clouds in the surrounding area. A forecast rating is then reported so that the user can determine whether to plan photography at the location.

Abstract: A sunset prediction system performs the steps of determining a location of interest, and collecting weather forecast data at or around the time of either sunrise or sunset, at the location and a surrounding area adjacent the location. The collected weather forecast data includes cloud density and cloud altitude. The sun prediction system then determines from the collected weather forecast data whether there will be clouds at the location that are advantageous for photography at or around the time of sunrise or sunset, and whether the sunlight will be obstructed by obstructing clouds in the surrounding area. A forecast rating is then reported so that the user can determine whether to plan photography at the location.

Abstract: An additively manufactured non-uniform porous material in-situ with dense material for the in situ additive manufacturing of both porous and dense material in the same part so that no secondary process is required. The additively manufactured non-uniform porous material in-situ with dense material generally includes additively manufactured porous material which can be tuned for porosity and density, has the ability to be built in situ with dense material, and can also be tuned for response to pressure waves. Also included are computer program products, methods and components and systems manufactured using the methods.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to systems, devices and methods for trans-septally delivering carbon dioxide through a minimally invasive catheter to create a gaseous pocket or emphysema between the posterior wall of the left atrium and the esophagus during cardiac ablation of the left atrium. This pocket of gas expanded tissue serves to thermally insulate and separate the esophagus from the left atrium during ablation to prevent esophageal damage and the formation of an atrial-esophageal fistula. The system comprises a control system to precisely deliver the gas to a desired location through a needle-based catheter assembly.

Abstract: An end effector for a surgical clip applier includes an elongate body, a clip revolver rotatably positioned within the body and providing an inner bore that defines a plurality of clip slots angularly spaced from each other about an inner surface of the inner bore, wherein a plurality of surgical clips are receivable within the plurality of clip slots in a nested helical array. First and second jaw members extend past a distal end of the body and aligned to receive a distal-most surgical clip of the plurality of surgical clips, wherein the clip revolver is rotatable to sequentially align each surgical clip with the first and second jaw members.

Abstract: A surgical clip applier includes a drive housing, an elongate shaft that extends distally from the drive housing, an end effector arranged at a distal end of the elongate shaft and including first and second jaw members, and an articulation joint interposing the end effector and the elongate shaft. The articulation joint includes a flexible shaft length articulable in a plane of motion and having a first end and a second end, a lumen defined within the flexible shaft length and extending between the first and second ends, and a clip track provided within the lumen and extending at least partially between the first and second ends to guide surgical clips through the articulation joint.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to systems, devices and methods for trans-septally delivering carbon dioxide through a minimally invasive catheter to create a gaseous pocket or emphysema between the posterior wall of the left atrium and the esophagus during cardiac ablation of the left atrium. This pocket of gas expanded tissue serves to thermally insulate and separate the esophagus from the left atrium during ablation to prevent the formation of an atrial-esophageal fistula. The system comprises a control system to precisely deliver the gas to a desired location through a needle-based catheter assembly.

Abstract: An end effector for a surgical clip applier includes an elongate body, a clip forming system positioned within the body and arranged to receive an unformed surgical clip, and an actuation mechanism operatively coupled to the clip forming system to actuate the clip forming system and thereby bend the unformed surgical clip into a tissue-ready surgical clip. First and second jaw members are positioned at a distal end of the body and arranged to receive the tissue-ready surgical clip for crimping.

Abstract: A sunset prediction system performs the steps of determining a location of interest, and collecting weather forecast data at or around the time of either sunrise or sunset, at the location and a surrounding area adjacent the location. The collected weather forecast data includes cloud density and cloud altitude. The sun prediction system then determines from the collected weather forecast data whether there will be clouds at the location that are advantageous for photography at or around the time of sunrise or sunset, and whether the sunlight will be obstructed by obstructing clouds in the surrounding area. A forecast rating is then reported so that the user can determine whether to plan photography at the location.

Abstract: Systems and methods pertaining to a digital signal isolator device are described. In one embodiment, the device includes an isolation barrier and two metal support paddles. The isolation barrier contains an organic and/or a semi-organic insulating material with at least one capacitor embedded inside. One of the two metal support paddles is located below a first portion of a bottom surface of the isolation barrier to provide support to the isolation barrier, while the other metal support paddle is located below a second portion of a bottom surface of the isolation barrier to provide support to the isolation barrier.

Abstract: A received RF signal is down-converted to a baseband or low-IF digitized signal in order to search for a pilot signal that indicates a presence of a DTV signal such as an ATSC DTV signal. The pilot signal characteristically resides in a fixed frequency range for all valid DTV signals and is extracted by processing the baseband or low-IF signal in multiple stages. The first stage reduces signal information to that pertaining to the frequency band covering all valid pilot frequencies, thereby reducing the sampling rate and computational complexity of subsequent operations. A second stage operates on this reduced rate signal to focus on a series of particular pilot frequencies for interrogation. For each such candidate frequency, the cyclostationarity of the signal is measured and tested for statistical significance relative to the background energy to yield an effective test that is invariant with respect to background noise level.

Abstract: Systems and methods pertaining to a digital signal isolator device are described. In one embodiment, the device includes an isolation barrier and two metal support paddles. The isolation barrier contains an organic and/or a semi-organic insulating material with at least one capacitor embedded inside. One of the two metal support paddles is located below a first portion of a bottom surface of the isolation barrier to provide support to the isolation barrier, while the other metal support paddle is located below a second portion of a bottom surface of the isolation barrier to provide support to the isolation barrier.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention may provide systems and methods for detecting the presence a DTV signal such as an ATSC DTV signal. The system and methods may be applied to a received RF signal that has been down-converted to a baseband or low-IF digitized signal. The systems and methods may detect a presence of a DTV signal by searching for its characteristic pilot signal, known to reside in a fixed frequency range for all valid DTV signals. This pilot signal may be extracted by processing the baseband or low-IF signal in multiple stages. The first stage may reduce the signal information to that pertaining to the frequency band covering all valid pilot frequencies and commensurately reduces the sampling rate, and hence computational complexity of subsequent operations. A second stage may then efficiently operate on this reduced rate signal to focus on a series of particular pilot frequencies for interrogation.

Abstract: Disclosed is a bonding and packaging scheme for semiconductor device chips with particular application to semiconductor monolithic display chips. The display chip is bonded face down in a recess formed in a transparent substrate. In one embodiment, the metallization on the chip is aligned and made coplanar with the auxiliary metallization on the substrate, and the gap between the metallizations is bridged by a conductive material. This can be accomplished, for example, by solder reflow or epoxy bonding techniques. In an alternative embodiment, the metallization is formed after the chip is bonded to the substrate utilizing a coating which fills the gap between the chip and the substrate. The substrate may be dyed to act as a contrast filter, and a magnifying lens may be molded thereon in further processing.