Abstract: An apparatus, and method, for providing continence to a gastrointestinal ostomy of a patient, the apparatus having a sealing device for retaining discharge of effluents or waste products from an ostomy, at least one pair of electrodes capable of delivering electrical stimulation to affect the smooth muscles of the patient's intestine and a stimulation generator in electrical communication with at least one pair of electrodes and capable of generating said electrical stimulation, wherein the electrical stimulation is selected to induce muscle contraction, relaxation, a tonic state or a flaccid state in the smooth muscles of the patient's intestine.

Abstract: A fluid dispenser includes a container having a body portion and an upwardly extending cylindrical wall. The body portion is suitable for containing a fluid. A pump dispenser is connected to the container at the upwardly extending cylindrical wall and includes an actuator head with a spout, a stem connected to the actuator head, and a handle connected to the stem. The handle has at least one first depression member and at least one other depression member. The handle is depressed to withdraw at least a portion of the fluid from the container and dispense at least a portion of the fluid at the spout.

Abstract: A cup carrier for holding beverage cups within a range of shapes and sizes is provided. The carrier has a cup-holding socket that has stabilizing shoulders and stabilizing walls extending inwardly and downwardly therefrom. The stabilizing walls include an upper portion having a relatively shallow angle and lower portions having a steeper angle. This extends the stabilizing wall further into an upper region of the socket, thereby enabling the stabilizing wall to contact smaller diameter cups at a higher point in order to increase stability. The upper portion contacts larger cups inserted into the socket. Because the upper portion initially has a relatively shallow angle, it exerts a desirable gripping force on the cups when it is deflected outwardly by the cup's sidewall. The carrier also includes a stepped center cavity for increased strength and rigidity.

Abstract: An apparatus, and method, for providing continence to a gastrointestinal ostomy of a patient, the apparatus having a sealing device for retaining discharge of intestinal effluents and waste products from the ostomy, at least one pair of electrodes capable of delivering electrical stimulation to affect the smooth muscles of the patient's intestine and a stimulation generator in electrical communication with at least one pair of electrodes and capable of generating said electrical stimulation, wherein the electrical stimulation is selected to induce muscle contraction, relaxation, a tonic state or a flaccid state in the smooth muscles of the patient's intestine.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a system or method involves accessing a database having a macromolecular structure of a protein, the molecular structure being represented as a set of spheres, retrieving the molecular structure of the protein from the database, and mathematically computing a Euclidean Voronoi diagram representing atoms of the protein from the set of spheres.

Abstract: The present invention is intended to stabilize a luminance and prevent a degradation during use in a display device of an active matrix driving system that arranges TFTs in matrix, by completely repairing a defective portion through application of a reverse voltage and repairing a short-circuit or leak area of a light emitting device. A light emitting device with a pixel structure of an active matrix driving system having TFTs arranged at each pixel has a feature that a reverse voltage is applied to the light emitting element without passing through the TFT is disclosed. The present invention provides a pixel structure capable of attaining the feature and a method of manufacturing the same.

Abstract: In a laser irradiation apparatus having low running costs as compared with a conventional apparatus and a laser beam irradiation method using the same, a crystalline semiconductor film having a crystal grain of a grain size equivalent to or larger than a conventional one is formed, and a TFT is manufactured by using the crystalline semiconductor film, so that the TFT enabling a high speed operation is realized. In a case where a laser beam of a short output time from a solid laser as a light source is irradiated to a semiconductor film, another laser beam is delayed from one laser beam, and the laser beams are synthesized to be irradiated to the semiconductor film, so that a cooling speed of the semiconductor film is made gentle, and it becomes possible to form the crystalline semiconductor film having the crystal grain of the grain size equivalent to or larger than that in a case where a laser beam having a long output time is irradiated to the semiconductor film.

Abstract: An associative memory 4 for primary searching operation of an associative memory 23 supplies a valid state to a primary match line 13 corresponding to storage data coincident with search data 10 taking mask information into account, and supplies a value obtained from a result of a logical sum operation (an OR operation), with a valid state for the storage data as true, of all said coincident storage data to a counting means 25 as intermediate data 15. The counting means 25 supplies a result of an operation to the intermediate data 15 for counting the number of bits in an invalid state for the storage data to an associative memory 3 for secondary searching operations as secondary search data 19. Among secondary storage data obtained by carrying out said operation to said storage data, the associative memory 3 for secondary searching operation supplies a result of carrying out the searching operation of the secondary search data 19 to a secondary match line 21.

Abstract: An object is to provide a novel substance which exhibits blue light emission with excellent color purity, and to provide a light emitting element and a light emitting device using the novel substance. A stilbene derivative represented by the general formula (G1) is provided. Note that in the general formula (G1), each of A1 and B1 represents any one of structures represented by the following general formulae (G1-1) to (G1-4). In addition, in each of the general formulae (G1-1) to (G1-4), each of R1 to R24 represents any one of hydrogen and an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms. Such a stilbene derivative can exhibit blue light emission with excellent color purity.

Abstract: The present invention provides nonvolatile semiconductor memory devices which operate with low power consumption. In a nonvolatile semiconductor memory device, a plurality of nonvolatile memory elements are connected in series. The plurality of nonvolatile memory elements include a semiconductor layer including a channel forming region and a control gate provided to overlap with the channel forming region. Operations of write, erase, a first read, and a second read in a verify operation of data to the nonvolatile memory elements, are conducted by changing voltage to the control gates of the nonvolatile memory elements. The second read in the verify operation after erase operation is conducted by changing only one of a potential of the control gate of a nonvolatile memory element which are selected from the plurality of nonvolatile memory elements, and as the potential, a potential different from a potential of the first read is used.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device of the present invention is provided including the steps of forming a first conductive layer over a substrate; forming a second conductive layer containing a conductive particle and resin over the first conductive layer; and increasing an area where the first conductive layer and the second conductive layer are in contact with each other by irradiating the second conductive layer with a laser beam. By including the step of laser beam irradiation, the portion where the first conductive layer and the second conductive layer are in contact with each other can be increased and defective electrical connection between the first conductive layer and the second conductive layer can be improved.

Abstract: A method for accessing a desired point in time-synchronized data within a stream, the stream being associated with time information, the method including providing a desired presentation time associated with a desired point within a time-synchronized data stream, determining a stream access point, decoding the stream beginning at the stream access point, and assigning a time associated with the stream access point as a utilization time. Related apparatus and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: A method of subjecting a silicon wafer doped with boron to a heat treatment in an argon atmosphere, wherein the argon atmosphere is replaced with a hydrogen atmosphere or a mixed gas of an argon gas and a hydrogen gas in a proper fashion, to thereby uniformize a boron concentration in the thickness direction of the surface layer of the silicon wafer doped with boron.

Abstract: A cooling device is provided, where an LED backlight can be efficiently cooled in order to suppress display unevenness caused by heat generated from the LED backlight. In addition, a display device including the cooling device is also provided. A display device is provided, where the LED backlight can be cooled by arranging a coolant pipe on a back surface side of the LED backlight and supplying a coolant to a coolant pipe. Further, a display device is provided, where cooling efficiency of the LED backlight can be more improved by arranging a thermal conductor between the LED backlight and the cooling device.

Abstract: A filter assembly for use with compressor assemblies such as oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other breathing apparatus including a compartmented housing member having at least one inlet opening, an outlet opening, a filter member, and an adjustment member associated with the at least one outlet opening for varying the size of the at least one outlet opening for adjusting the amount of ambient air entering the filter assembly.

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a capacitor-less memory which can prevent a change of a threshold voltage due to flowing out of carriers and improve the memory retention property without a complicated structure. In the capacitor-less memory which uses a transistor, the transistor includes a source region, a drain region, an active layer region which is provided between the source region and the drain region, and a gate electrode which is adjacent to the active layer region with an insulating film interposed therebetween. The source region is formed of a semiconductor having a larger band gap than a band gap of a semiconductor of the active layer region and a band gap of a semiconductor of the drain region, and a heterojunction is formed at the interface between the source region and the active layer region.

Abstract: In the case of forming fine wires and the like by a droplet discharging apparatus to manufacture electric circuits, discharging controls including controls of a discharging position, a discharging timing, and the like are required to have very high accuracy. After forming design diagram data of an electric circuit by a CAD tool, the design diagram data is converted into first raster data, which is then converted into second raster data. The first raster data is a square grid regarding a dot pitch Xdp in a horizontal direction and a dot pitch Ydp in a perpendicular direction as one unit. The second raster data is a rectangular grid regarding the dot pitch Xdp in the horizontal direction and a dot pitch Ydp/V (V>1) as one unit. It is to be noted that arbitrary discharging number is the same before and after the conversion from the first raster data to the second raster data.

Abstract: Systems and methods provide a self-learning knowledgebase in which the ranking and/or order of topic and thread items may be dynamically and automatically adjusted based on self-learning by the knowledgebase. The knowledgebase includes threaded conversations comprising thread topics and thread items within the thread topics. Lists of thread topics and lists of thread items are ordered lists. The order of a thread topic or thread item in an ordered list may be modified based on self-learning activities performed by an information server maintaining the knowledge base. A thread topic or thread item may be moved higher in the list based on requests to view the thread topic or thread item. Further, the order that a thread item appears in an order list may be modified based on a number of responses posted for the thread item.