Abstract: A dry and crush treating apparatus using a jet burner, includes: a jet burner drying an oil-containing or/and water-containing raw material; a dry treating tank; and a recovering unit recovering a dried fine particles made of the raw material. In the construction, the recovering unit is installed within the dry treating tank.

Abstract: A retrofittable electric valve operating mechanism is provided which can be attached to an existing manual valve configuration while still allowing the manual feature of the valve to be utilized in two different manners. The configuration includes features which allow for certain misalignment of elements lying along the drive path, and can be installed without disturbing the existing plumbing associated with the valve.

Abstract: Word processing program module having a multi-user editing capability provided for by the utilization of a multi-user control file (MCF) that is created when a document is first accessed. The MCF is comprised of individual record files for the master copy of the document, and each user and includes an assigned name, a date/time number, and a version identifier number. The MCF facilitates the tracking of the version identifier numbers to control the timing and sequence of events when a user opens, saves, and/or closes a document. The MCF also facilitates the control of the reconciliation of documents that may be required when a user attempts to save as well as facilitates the performing of the necessary timing functions when conflict resolving is required before edits are saved. The MCF further facilitates the capability to automatically recover the multi-user editing environment from a system failure as well as to manually remove a user from the multi-user editing environment.

Abstract: A method and system for mapping temperature from image data. The method includes the steps of: receiving an image of tissue comprised of multiple pixels, segregating the image into groups of pixels (104), each group of pixels having a set of descriptors (106), establishing a baseline set of descriptors corresponding to initial conditions of the imaged tissue (108), measuring a differential in the set of descriptors for a group of pixels (114), the differential corresponding to a change in pixel values for the group of pixels, correlating said measured differential to a temperature change for the tissue corresponding to the group of pixels (118-124), and overlaying an indication of temperature over the tissue image in response to said correlated temperature change indicating a change in temperature range for the tissue (130-132).

Abstract: A planar array antenna having radiating elements characterized by dual simultaneous polarization states and having substantially rotationally symmetric radiation patterns. A distribution network, which is connected to each dual polarized radiator, communicates the electromagnetic signals from and to each radiating element. A ground plane is positioned generally parallel to and spaced apart from the radiating elements by a predetermined distance. The conductive surface of the ground plane operates to image the radiating elements over a wide coverage area, thereby enabling a radiation pattern within an azimuth plane of the antenna to be independent of any quantity of radiating elements. Side walls, placed on each side of the array of radiators, can operate in tandem with the ground plane, to reduce the half-power beamwidth in the azimuth plane for a selected radiator design.

Abstract: A method and system for determining the mouth features, i.e., the lip position and mouth opening, of an animated character. Lip position is the shape and position of the lips of the animated character. Mouth opening is the amount of opening between the lips of the animated character. A time-domain signal corresponding to the speech of the animated character may be digitally sampled. The sampled voice signal is separated into a number of frames of a specific time length. A Hamming window is applied to each frame to de-emphasize the boundary conditions of each frame. A linear predictive coding (LPC) technique is applied to each of the frames, resulting in a gain for each of the frames and a number of k coefficients, or reflection coefficients, including a voiced/nonvoiced coefficient and a pitch coefficient. The reflection coefficients for each frame are mapped to the Cepstral domain resulting in a number of Cepstral coefficients for each frame.

Abstract: Applications of photoerasable colorant composition include photoerasable price markings for pricing goods, documents such as gaming tickets for securely communicating concealed information, photoerasable paint for temporary markings on terrain and structures such as signs, roadways, trees, and buildings, marking instruments such as pens, and wick or felt markers, ultraviolet light exposure indicators, and dry printing. The photoerasable or mutable colorant composition comprises a mutable colorant and an ultraviolet radiation transorber which, upon irradiation with ultraviolet radiation, interacts with the colorant to irreversibly mutate the colorant and thereby render the colorant substantially colorless. The mutable colorant composition may also include a molecular includant.

Abstract: The lost pet notification system includes three elements: a pet collar that automatically activates an alarm once the pet becomes lost, a portable hand held unit that continually monitors the location of the pet, and a base station that automatically transmits a signal to the owner once the portable unit determines that the pet is lost. The pet collar continually receives a polling signal from the portable unit while the pet is within transmission range of the portable unit. In response to each polling signal, the pet collar transmits a reply signal to the portable unit. Once the polling signal can no longer be detected by the pet collar, the pet collar automatically activates an alarm. In addition, the portable unit activates an alarm and also transmits a notification signal to the base station. Once the notification signal is received, a the base station automatically places a telephone call to the predetermined telephone number and plays the associated message to alert the pet owner that the pet is lost.

Abstract: A system for creating, displaying, and editing an intermediate data structure (IDS) that maintains a portion of a categorized data set (CDS) based upon an original set of hierarchically-related objects. A property of the objects is selected. The lowest-level objects matching the selected property are incrementally added to the IDS along with objects in a parent/child relationship with each added lowest-level object so long as those objects are not already within the category of the added lowest-level object. Special category objects are added to the IDS representing an object group with one value of the selected property. Objects stored within the IDS with this value are in a parent relationship with the category object. The objects stored within the IDS are displayed in an outline structure to show the functional relationships between the objects in each category.

Abstract: A potted plant protector device comprising a base, arms and fingers extending therefrom in a generally dome-shaped pattern is provided. The circumference of the base can be adapted for a variety of plant container circumferences. The arms are flexibly movable for installation and removal to permit configuration around a variety of plant trunks, branches, stalks, and stems. The fingers selectively engage one another to permit structural integrity when the device is in position on a potted plant.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention is a method and composition comprising a novel pre-dye molecule that is colorless and stable to ordinary light. The pre-dye molecule is capable of forming a color when exposed to certain wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. A second embodiment of the present invention is a method of converting a conventional leuco dye to a colored composition by exposing the leuco dye admixed with a radiation transorber to certain wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation.

Abstract: A dynamic summary view is generated by defining an HTML page that links data binding HTML tables and other HTML controls to predetermined data within a storage of data. For each type of data, a parameter is determined which characterizes the predetermined data from the other data within the storage. A control module related to a specific type of data, searches the storage, determines the predetermined data using the parameter and displays the predetermined data via a data binding HTML table within a section of the dynamic summary view. Upon detecting a manipulation request, such as when a user clicks a button of the mouse, the appropriate control module accesses a subset of the program module that created the predetermined data. This is advantageously done without invoking the entire program module. A subset of the program module can be accessed by executing a script to call defined methods of objects within the program module.

Abstract: A system and a method for generating a find list of target-entries that can be searched based on a received search-entry. The techniques used to generate and search the find list allow meaningful results to be obtained even if the search-entry contains imperfections. Target-entries are selected from the find list based on the initial characters of the search-entry. The target-entries are then compared to the search-entry using a variety of scoring heuristics. Each scoring-heuristic assigns a value based on the results of the comparison. The value proportionately indicates the closeness of the match between the target-entry and the search entry. The value obtained from each scoring-heuristic is summed to identify the score for each target-entry. The selected target-entries are then ordered based on the scores.

Abstract: A method and system for efficiently performing database table aggregation is provided. In a preferred embodiment, an aggregation facility efficiently aggregates a source table using indices on an aggregated column of the source table and a grouping column of the source table. The facility uses the index on the aggregated column to identify the contents of the aggregated column in each row of the source table. The facility further uses information derived from the index on the grouping column to identify the contents of the grouping column in each row of the source table. For each row of the source table, the facility aggregates the identified aggregated column contents into a result value for the identified grouping column contents. In a further preferred embodiment, the facility generates a relation mapping from source table row to grouping column, which the facility uses to identify the contents of the grouping column in each row of the source table.

Abstract: A compositional blend having from about 1 weight percent to about 85 weight percent of a modified polyolefin and from about 99 weight percent to about 15 weight percent of a modified poly(ethylene oxide). The modified polyolefin and modified poly(ethylene oxide) have a total of from about 1 weight percent to about 30 weight percent of a monomer grafted thereto. Included is a method for making the blend comprising using a single pass extruder to perform the steps of melt blending a polyolefin, a poly(ethylene oxide), a monomer and a sufficient amount free radical initiator to graft from about 1 percent to 100 percent of the monomer onto the polyolefin and poly(ethylene oxide).

Abstract: A disclosed embodiment of the invention is a belt-driven printer-cutter machine 10 including a roller-mounted feed/print machine section 14 and a fixed cutting machine section 16. A spline-type separable coupling 30-32 between these machine sections allows the feed/print section to be rolled on a fixed track 18 directly opposite the machine direction to separate the machine sections for maintenance, changing the printing plate 88 and cutting die 108, and to make other adjustments during machine setup. The sections may then be rolled back into engagement at the spline-type coupling to transmit power between the machine sections. The printer-cutter machine includes separate synchronous belts for the drive trains of each machine section. The machine may also include a separate synchronous belt for the fixed and adjustable rolls of each machine section.

Abstract: A pattern recognition scheme using probabilistic models that are capable of reducing a calculation cost for the output probability while improving a recognition performance even when a number of mixture component distributions of respective states is small, by arranging distributions with low calculation cost and high expressive power as the mixture component distribution. In this pattern recognition scheme, a probability of each probabilistic model expressing features of each recognition category with respect to each input feature vector derived from each input signal is calculated, where the probabilistic model represents a feature parameter subspace in which feature vectors of each recognition category exist and the feature parameter subspace is expressed by using mixture distributions of one-dimensional discrete distributions with arbitrary distribution shapes which are arranged in respective dimensions.

Abstract: A data processing form for use with photo-sensing apparatus that detect the presence of indicia at indicia-receiving locations on the form. The form is composed of a sheet of carrier material and plurality of indicia-receiving locations. The indicia-receiving locations are defined by a mutable colored composition including a mutable colorant and an ultraviolet radiation transorber such that the indicia-receiving locations are adapted to become substantially undetectable by photo-sensing apparatus upon irradiating the colored composition with ultraviolet radiation at a dosage level sufficient to irreversibly mutate the colorant. The colored composition may be irradiated with radiation in the ultraviolet region of the ultraviolet spectrum.

Abstract: Applications of photoerasable colorant composition include photoerasable price markings for pricing goods, documents such as gaming tickets for securely communicating concealed information, photoerasable paint for temporary markings on terrain and structures such as signs, roadways, trees, and buildings, marking instruments such as pens, and wick or felt markers, ultraviolet light exposure indicators, and dry printing. The photoerasable or mutable colorant composition comprises a mutable colorant and an ultraviolet radiation transorber which, upon irradiation with ultraviolet radiation, interacts with the colorant to irreversibly mutate the colorant and thereby render the colorant substantially colorless. The mutable colorant composition may also include a molecular includant.

Abstract: Methods for healing bone fractures are provided. The methods as provided herein involve the application of resonant frequency stimulation to promote fracture healing and also to diagnose status of fracture healing. The methods of the present invention are particularly desirable because they are site-specific, non-invasive and require a minimum amount of early healing or callus formation.