Abstract: Method of manufacturing a micromechanical component intended to cooperate with another micromechanical component, the method comprising the steps of providing a substrate, forming a mould on said substrate, said mould defining sidewalls arranged to delimit said micromechanical component, providing particles on at least said sidewalls, depositing a metal in said mould so as to form said micromechanical component, and liberating said micromechanical component from said mould and removing said particles.

Abstract: A security feature has a plurality of luminescent surface elements, wherein luminescence lifetime varies between the surface elements. In order to verify the security feature, a lock-in imager is used. The security feature is illuminated with excitation light, which is intensity-modulated with a modulation frequency. The luminescent light emitted by the security feature is detected synchronously with the modulation frequency in a plurality of pixels. This is used to determine a measure of a phase shift between the excitation light and the luminescent light in different pixels. The security feature is verified taking account of the measure of the phase shift in different pixels.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method for liquid measurements including: —providing a sensor including a surface arranged to receive a liquid thereupon, an electrical heating element arranged to heat the surface, and an arrangement for measuring a temperature of the surface; —receiving liquid on the sensor surface; —heating the surface by means of the electrical heating element at a known rate while taking a plurality of temperature measurements thereof in function of time, the heating being at an absolute temperature of at least 90% of the boiling point of the liquid under ambient pressure; and—deriving a volume or a flow rate measurement related to the liquid from the electrical heating rate and the temperature measurements.

Abstract: Method for manufacturing a 3D electromechanical component, having at least one embedded electrical conductor, comprising the steps consisting in: implementing an additive manufacturing operation for building an electrically conductive skeleton of the 3D electromechanical component including a structural hull and at least one conductive wire at least partially located inside the structural hull and having first and second ends, at least one of which is mechanically linked to the structural hull; filling the structural hull with an insulating material provided in a state in which it exhibits liquid-like behaviour; implementing a solidification step to provide a solid-like behaviour of the insulating material, the latter thus embedding at least partially an electrical conductor.

Abstract: A method for estimating blood pressure (BP) values comprises: measuring at a first PTT value, a second PTT value, and further PTTref values using a method comprising measuring a first arterial pressure pulse arrival time (PAT) and measuring a second PAT value; calculating a PTT value from the difference between the first PAT value and the second PAT value; processing a sequence of electrical impedance tomography (EIT) images to identify at least one region of interest (ROI); and estimating at least one of the first and second PAT value from the variation of impedance value determined from the at least one ROI. The method allows for the non-invasive and continuous determination of the PB values by using a calibration factor.

Abstract: An optical combiner including an array of pairs of resonating waveguide gratings. The waveguiding layer of the array, which includes the resonating waveguide gratings, is configured to guide at most ten guided light modes in the visible wavelength range. At least a portion of the resonating waveguide grating array is configured to incouple a portion of incident light on the array and to outcouple a fraction of that incident light. The outcoupled fraction has a predetermined wavelength ? in the visible and near-infrared wavelength range and has a predetermined spectral width ??. The optical combiner is preferably configured to be used in a near-eye display apparatus. The invention is also achieved by a near-eye display apparatus that is adapted to combine projected images provided by a light emitter with light provided by a scene observed by an observer looking through the optical combiner.

Abstract: In the present invention a new solar photovoltaic module is proposed comprising: a silicon based photovoltaic element; an intermediate layer deposited on said photovoltaic element to the incident light side; an interference filter deposited on the incident light side of said intermediate layer; a front element disposed on the incident light side of said interference filter.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method of measuring a volume of a liquid provided in at least one receptacle, including the steps of: providing a receptacle having at least one cavity for holding a liquid; providing a plenoptic camera positioned so as to be able to image the surface of the liquid; positioning the receptacle such that the liquid surface faces an objective lens of the plenoptic camera; making at least one plenoptic image of the surface of the liquid by way of the plenoptic camera; determining a surface topography of the liquid on the basis of the at least one image; calculating the volume of liquid based on the measured surface topography and at least one known dimension and/or position of the cavity.

Abstract: An optical sensor (1) for detecting a chemical species includes a substrate (3), a mesoporous matrix (5) disposed on the substrate, and a microporous matrix (7) disposed within the mesoporous matrix. The microporous matrix (7) includes an indicator dye (9) dispersed therein, the indicator dye (9) exhibiting changes in its optical properties in response to the presence of the chemical species. This arrangement significantly increases the amount of dye present, while allowing the medium to be analyzed greater access through the porous structure, thereby increasing the performance of the sensor.

Abstract: A balance of a timepiece including an adjustment face provided with at least one recess provided for receiving a projected material for an implementation of an adjustment of the rate of the timepiece notably by the modification of the inertia and of the unbalance of the balance, the recess including an opening and a back notably a solid back or a back fully or partially forming an orifice, the back being at most partially visible from a position defined above the opening notably on a central axis of the opening.

Abstract: A method dispenses and/or aspirates a predetermined volume of fluid from a chamber. The chamber includes a lower portion containing fluid and an upper portion containing gas. The method includes measuring an initial pressure in the upper portion and introducing or evacuating a known quantity of gas into or out of the upper portion. The volume of gas in the upper portion is determined based on the volume of gas introduced or evacuated from the upper portion and a measured change in pressure in the upper portion. An upper portion target pressure that will dispense or aspirate a predetermined volume of fluid is determined. A controllable valve is opened while the pressure in the upper portion of the chamber is monitored. Once the target pressure is reached, the predetermined volume of fluid has been dispensed or aspirated, and the controllable valve is then closed.

Abstract: A white light source includes an array of light emitting elements arranged to a light guide. A light in-coupling array is arranged so that each light emitting element faces a light in-coupling element to incouple in the light guide a portion of the divergent light beams so that the in-coupled angle of at least a part of the light rays of the in-coupled light beam is higher than 45°. An array of light homogenizing elements is arranged so that each light homogenizing element faces a light incoupling element and so that the deflection angle of at least a fraction of the incident part of the in-coupled light beam incident on each of said homogenizing elements is higher than 45°. The white light source provides a uniform outcoupled white light beam.

Abstract: Method of manufacturing a micromechanical component intended to cooperate with another micromechanical component, the method comprising the steps of providing a substrate, forming a mould on said substrate, said mould defining sidewalls arranged to delimit said micromechanical component, providing particles on at least said sidewalls, depositing a metal in said mould so as to form said micromechanical component, and liberating said micromechanical component from said mould and removing said particles.

Abstract: In the present invention an alkali vapor cell is proposed comprising a sealed chamber enclosing an alkali atomic gas therein and having at least one optically transparent window. The chamber and the transparent window define an optical beam path through which a light beam can pass and which interacts with the alkali atomic gas in the chamber. The alkali vapor cell comprises at least one localized condensation area of alkali atoms at a predetermined location in the sealed chamber and the predetermined location is located inside or outside the optical beam path. The localized condensation area has higher alkali metal wettability than any other surface portion of the alkali vapor cell outside said localized condensation area.

Abstract: A shock-absorber and/or vibration-absorber device is proposed, comprising at least one flexible element able to deform under the effect of a stress; said device being remarkable in that it includes at least one so-called dissipative layer made from a material having a shear modulus lower than the shear modulus of the flexible element, a shock-absorbing factor greater than the shock-absorbing factor of said flexible element, and at least partially secured to said flexible element such that a flexion of the flexible element, under the effect of a stress, provides shearing of the dissipative layer making it possible to dissipate at least part of the energy from said stress. A method for manufacturing said shock-absorber device is also disclosed.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a display module including a fixed frame and at least two substantially rigid display organs. The display organs each include a portion displaying a pattern, said display portions being complementary to one another such that it forms said pattern in at least one relative position of said display organs. Furthermore, at least one of the display organs is secured and movable relative to the frame via a deformable link at least between a first resting position, in which the display portions are separate from one another, and a display position, in which said display portions are counter-affixed to one another to form and display said pattern. Lastly, said display organ(s) movable relative to the frame cooperate with an actuating push-piece arranged to transmit a movement force of this display organ by elastic deformation around its deformable link(s) from said resting position toward said display position.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device (4) in the form of a medical prosthesis (9, 17), medical osteosynthesis device, hearing aid or hearing aid housing, essentially made of metal, wherein the device (4, 9, 17) comprises at least one optical diffractive element with a grating (6) which is directly embossed in an exposed metal surface in the form of a security and/or identification element. The invention furthermore relates to methods for making such devices and to uses of such devices.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for producing a metal stamp for embossing a nano- or microstructure on a metal device (4), comprising the following steps for producing a 3D structured embossing area (3) on the stamp: a) providing a master (30) having a structured surface (30a), and replicating said master (30a) in the surface of a soft stamp (31); b) forming an imprint (32) on the soft stamp (31a) using a cross-linkable material to form an imprint structured surface (32a), before, while or after contacting an opposite side of the imprint (32) with said surface portion of the metal stamp, and removing said soft-stamp (31) exposing said imprint structured surface (32a); c) etch-opening said surface (32a) using a first set of etching conditions; d) using a second set of etching conditions, different from the first ones, etching the surface of the metal stamp to form said embossing area (3).

Abstract: In the present invention a new atomic clock is proposed comprising: at least one light source adapted to provide an optical beam, at least one photo detector and a vapor cell comprising a first optical window, said optical beam being directed through said vapor cell for providing an optical frequency reference signal, said photo detector being adapted to detect said optical frequency reference signal and to generate at least one reference signal, wherein—said atomic clock comprises a first optical waveguide arranged to said first optical window, said first optical waveguide being arranged to incouple at least a portion of said optical beam, said first optical waveguide being sized and shaped so that said first guided light beam is expanded, a first outcoupler is arranged to outcouple at least a portion of said guided light beam to said vapor cell, —the thickness t of the atomic clock is smaller than 15 nm.

Abstract: A compensation device for compensating PVT variations of an analog and/or digital circuit. The compensation device includes a transistor having a first terminal, a second terminal, a third terminal, and a fourth terminal allowing to modify a threshold voltage of the transistor. The transistor is configured to be in saturation region. The voltage at the third terminal has a predetermined value and the difference between the voltage at the second terminal and the voltage at the third terminal has a predetermined value. A current generation module is configured to generate a current of a predetermined value. A compensation module is configured to force this current to flow between the first terminal and the third terminal by adjusting the voltage of the fourth terminal.