Abstract: Efforts are made to construct a digital index that represents properties or the appearance of portions of an image so as to automatically rediscover in it a sample of the image during a subsequent search, after having set up a sample index in the same way and having compared the indices while searching for similarities. In this invention, the mesh dividing up the image or the sample into portions is founded on points of interest and is not uniform, and the index is made up of information coming, for each portion, from this same portion or from a specified assembly of neighboring portions. Furthermore, a redundant mesh is proposed (FIG. 9A) in order to describe the image several times and to attenuate the consequences of any omissions from the points of interest (E) on the other modeling (FIG. 9B).

Abstract: A pressure sensor according to the present invention comprises a pressure measuring portion which is composed of a resin and contacts fluid, and a sensor element which measures pressure imposed on the pressure measuring portion. Furthermore, a conductive layer having electrical conductivity is provided between the pressure measuring portion and the sensor element, and the conductive layer is connected to a ground. According to this pressure sensor, static electricity accumulated in the pressure measuring portion is released to a ground through the conductive layer without being transmitted to the sensor element.

Abstract: In a superheterodyne receiver, energy can bypass a filter by magnetically coupling to a metallic radio frequency shield. This is especially a problem with small form factor devices in which the metallic radio frequency shield is positioned close to the filter. By using a ferrite-embedded element positioned between the filter and the RF shield, some of the undesired harmonics produced by the mixer can be dissipated into heat.

Abstract: An optical wavelength division multiplexing transmission network system having a star-topology network is disclosed, which comprises an arrayed-waveguide grating type multiplexing/demultiplexing circuit having N input ports and N output ports, and N transmitting/receiving apparatuses, each apparatus including a transmitter, receiver, demultiplexer, multiplexer, and N 2-input and 2-output optical path switching elements corresponding to N wavelengths, so as to cope with a damage to a transmitting or receiving portion corresponding to a specific wavelength. Each switching element is independently switched between first and second connective conditions.

Abstract: The present invention, generally speaking, provides for high-efficiency power control of a high-efficiency (e.g., hard-limiting or switch-mode) power amplifier in such a manner as to achieve a desired control or modulation. Unlike the prior art, feedback is not required. That is, the amplifier may be controlled without continuous or frequent feedback adjustment. In one embodiment, the spread between a maximum frequency of the desired modulation and the operating frequency of a switch-mode DC-DC converter is reduced by following the switch-mode converter with an active linear regulator. The linear regulator is designed so as to control the operating voltage of the power amplifier with sufficient band-width to faithfully reproduce the desired amplitude modulation waveform. The linear regulator is further designed to reject variations on its input voltage even while the output voltage is changed in response to an applied control signal.

Abstract: The open circular section gasket is not deformed under flattening while nevertheless ensuring the leaktightness of the two spaces to seal. Each contact surface (16) is slightly inclined and has a slightly offset projecting part (15) such that the summits of the two projecting parts define an axis that is offset with respect to the center line (A2) of the general circular shape of the gasket (10). When the gasket is flattened, the contact surfaces (16) tend to become parallel, the projecting parts (15) come closer to the center line (A2). Application to cases of static sealing.

Abstract: Process for the formation of at least one concave relief (124, 145) in a substrate comprising forming at least one embossment of material subject to creep (100) on the substrate (120), —heating of the material subject to creep to a temperature sufficiently high to cause creep of the said material, and—etching of the substrate and the crept material to form relief in the substrate. According to the invention, the crept material is solidified in a state in which it has a concave relief.

Abstract: An electrical actuator for a seat with an inclinable back in which irreversibility (or blocking of the mechanism) and efficiency are independent of each other, efficiency being obtained by the use of a reduction gear with straight gear wheels (8), and irreversibility being obtained by a current release blocking device (7) mounted in parallel on an electric motor (5) and energized by the same control device (9) as the motor.

Abstract: High efficiency DC to RF conversion with use of active harmonic insertion is provided for power amplification over a wide dynamic range of input signal level. Specifically, a power amplifier device including at least a final amplification stage is operated to receive an input signal of a fundamental frequency. A drive signal is produced which includes a fundamental signal component of the fundamental frequency and at least one harmonic signal component of a harmonic frequency that is substantially an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency, wherein relative phase shift and relative amplitude of the components are controlled over at least an order of magnitude of dynamic range of the input signal. As the signal level of the input signal decreases (or increases), the desired proportion of signal levels is maintained between the components.

Abstract: In simultaneous reception of overlapping signals sharing a single spreading sequence, packet start times are found by separately demodulating, low pass filtering and despreading in-phase and quadrature components. Despread in-phase and quadrature signals are provided to sychronization filters connected in parallel and arranged in two identical pairs. Outputs from filters in different pairs are added, and the sums are squared. The squared signals are added. An exceeded threshold of the output from the last adder delineates a packet start. Knowing packet start times facilitates separating the overlapping inbound signals.

Abstract: An acoustic panel with several degrees of freedom comprises a resistive layer (14), a compartmentalized structure (16) formed from at least two superposed compartmentalized layers (18) and a back reflector (17), starting from an outside face facing an incident acoustic wave. A porous separator (24) is placed between each pair of adjacent compartmentalized layers. On each of its faces, this separator is fitted with tubular guides (26) that penetrate into at least some of the cells (20) of the compartmentalized layers. This thus aligns the cells over the entire thickness of the compartmentalized structure (24), regardless of the shape of the panel.

Abstract: A process is proposed for the fabrication of parts with large dimensions formed of a skin (10) and stiffeners (12, 16) such as aircraft fuselage segments made of a composite material with a thermoplastic matrix. After stiffeners have been made separately by lay-up, consolidation and shaping, these stiffeners are placed on a tooling (23) and the skin (10) is simultaneously fabricated and assembled to the stiffeners (12, 16) by diffusion welding. More precisely, the skin (10) is laid up and continuously consolidated by the lay-up head (36) such that the required part is obtained directly.

Abstract: The invention is relative to a leaktight chamber (3) in which a liquid having electrical characteristics, preferably a conductive liquid, is introduced into a leaktight volume (33) between the cover (5) and the tank (4), and in that a value of electric quantities is measured which varies with the reduction of the liquid contained in the volume (33). In such a way the leaktightness is continually checked.

Abstract: The bearing structure such as a wing is fitted with toothed platelets (16) at its free edges to break tip vortex produced at these places by fluid pressure distribution. Vortex dissipation is accelerated, vortex remanence is considerably reduced. In the case of a deflector for a line of hydrophones (30) towed by a ship (31) to carry out seismic tests at sea, the noise disturbing the hydrophones (30) is reduced. In the case of marine applications, risks of cavitation are much reduced, particularly with regard to stabilizers or propellers. In the case of aeronautics applications, vortex remanence on take-off and on landing of planes is reduced.

Abstract: A method and device for testing an electronic chip (10) having on the surface a plurality of addressable electrically conductive sensitive elements (12) in which the sensitive elements on the chip are put in contact with a conductive solution (52), one or more sensitive elements (12) are addressed selectively in order to apply to each sensitive element addressed an electrical test signal referred to as an input signal, and a signal, referred to as the output signal, on an electrode (60, 60a) also in contact with the conductive solution, is measured.

Abstract: This device is designed to transmit lateral and vertical forces generated by the engine to the nacelle stub (10), together with the engine torque, and comprises a main attachment structure and an emergency attachment structure (38). The main attachment structure includes two half-fittings (18a, 18b), connecting rods (20a, 20c) connecting the two half-fittings to the engine and attachment devices for the half-fittings on the nacelle stub. The emergency attachment structure transmits forces between one of the two half-fittings and the nacelle stub when the other half-fitting or its devices for attachment to the nacelle stub are defective. For example, it comprises a hinge pin (42) supported by the nacelle stub and passing through a hole (44) formed in the half-fittings with a clearance.

Abstract: Boarding device for aircraft and flying wings equipped with such a device. The boarding device consists of at least one tunnel (20) connected to the outside of the aerodynamic shell (12) of the aircraft. More precisely, the tunnel is attached to the trailing edge of the fairing (12) and it extends aft approximately parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. A door (22) closes off the opening between the passenger cabin (10) and the tunnel (20). The rear part (26) of the tunnel (20) is articulated and/or detachable. In order to evacuate the passengers in an emergency, the front, fixed part of the tunnel (24) can be fitted with an inflatable escape slide or an articulated floor.

Abstract: An optical recording and data processing system for exposing an image on to a flexible, light sensitive medium, which includes a medium holder having an inner cylindrical wall portion against which is held said medium, and a light source having an approximately rectangular emitting aperture, with a short aperture axis and a long aperture axis, operative to emit a beam of light having a rectangular cross section with a long axis corresponding to the long aperture axis and a short axis corresponding to the short aperture axis. An optical modulator is aligned with the light source so as to intercept light from the beam of light and produce a spatial modulation pattern across the long axis of the beam of light. A pattern shifter for shifting the spatial modulation pattern across the length of the long axis at a constant rate is provided as is a pattern rotator for rotating the spatial modulation pattern at a rate equal to the rate of shifting of the spatial modulation pattern.