Abstract: An F-connector for a coaxial cable comprises a front insulator, a back insulator, a connecting lead, and a locking ring. The connecting lead has an interior portion and an exterior portion. The interior portion is configured with a pair of side wall portions which are parallel to each other, and which together with a bottom portion form a U-shaped channel. The side wall portions each comprise a curved portion that are configured to grip the center conductor of the coaxial cable so as to withstand a certain level of withdrawal force, and such that the F-connector exhibits a desired impedance of 75 Ohms. The connecting lead engages with the front insulator and the back insulator such that the components are held in position within a connector body.

Abstract: A computer-based method for determining a set of equity-indexed crediting parameters E for a lifetime-income equity-indexed deposit product provided to a set of owners having a set of dates of birth B, a rider charge C, a lifetime income percentage scale L, a set of profitability requirements R, a principal amount P, and an account value A. The method can include the steps of: establishing the values of C, L, R, P, A and E at a time when said deposit product is purchased; generating a set of yield curve and equity index scenarios consistent with valuation parameters; setting a trial value Ei for E; calculating the observed distribution D of profitability; comparing D with R; and, computing a revised trial value Ei+1 for E, where the steps of establishing, generating, setting, calculating, comparing, and computing are performed by at least one general purpose computer.

Abstract: A computer-based method for determining a value of an index-offset deposit product, having a principal amount, a term, a specified guaranteed amount, and an index credit comprising the step of setting trial values for fixed-income-linked crediting parameters for the product implying an expected fixed-income-linked credit component at the end of the term. The method further comprises the steps of determining a cost for an option paying an index-linked credit component such that a composite index credit together with the principal is at least equal to a specified guaranteed amount.

Abstract: The invention relates to a new rapid release oral formulation of fipronil or imidacloprid for the effective control of blood-sucking insect populations. Embodiments of the invention relate to their use by incorporation into a feed-through formulation that can be administered orally to host animals such as birds, goats, dogs, and cattle for the rapid effective control of blood sucking insects. The formulation is fast acting and the residue of the chemicals present in the feces serves as a larvacide, effectively controlling newly hatched larvae.

Abstract: A method and system for cleaving a film of material utilizing thermal flux. The method includes providing a substrate having a face and an underlying cleave region including a prepared initiation region. Additionally, the method includes subjecting the initiation region to a first thermal flux to form a cleave front separating the cleave region of the substrate to a film portion and a bulk portion. The method further includes subjecting an area of the bulk portion substantially in the vicinity of the cleave front to a second thermal flux to cause a temperature difference above and below the cleave region for inducing a propagation of the cleave front expanding the film portion to the area at the expense of the bulk portion. Furthermore, the method includes determining a scan path for the second thermal flux based on the cleave front. Moreover, the method includes scanning the second thermal flux to follow the scan path to further propagate the cleave front.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to fatty acid derivatives of green tea catechins including epicatechin (EC), epicatechin gallate (ECG), epigallocatechin (EGC), epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and their epimers (e.g., catechin, catechin gallate, gallocatechin, gallocatechin gallate) or their mixtures and/or green tea extracts.

Abstract: The present invention broadly claims a method for detecting cancer in an individual. The method comprises detecting a deletion in the nucleic acid sequence between residues 10743 and 12125 in mitochondrial DNA. The method comprises obtaining a biological sample from the individual; extracting the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from the sample; quantifying the amount of mtDNA in the sample having a deletion in the nucleic acid sequence between residues 10743 and 14125 of the mtDNA genome; and comparing the amount of mtDNA in the sample having the deletion to at least one known reference sample.

Abstract: An apparatus for inspecting a pipe comprising a body adapted for passage through the bore of a pipe to be inspected, a main transducer array comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced transducers for transmitting ultrasound energy, the transducers being mounted on the body for movement between a retracted position, wherein the body can freely move through the bore of the pipe, and an extended position wherein the plurality of transducers are pressed into operative contact with the inner wall of the pipe. An actuator selectively urges the plurality of transducers to their extended positions. A control transmits ultrasound energy into the pipe to propagate a guided wave within the pipe walls in at least one longitudinal direction along the pipe when the transducers are in their operative position and receives the propagated wave and analyzes the wave to determine the presence or absence of defects in the pipe wall.

Abstract: A computer accessory tray assembly adapted for mounting to a chair. The tray assembly includes individual left and right mouse trays mounted by horizontal arms to respective arms of the chair. A keyboard tray is engageable with the left and right mouse trays to prevent lateral movement of the keyboard tray, but allows the keyboard tray to be lifted up from engagement with both mouse trays and moved out of the entry/exit position of the chair so that the user can have access to the chair. When removed from engagement from both mouse trays, the keyboard tray can be stowed by hanging it from either of the mouse trays. The mouse trays are adjustable vertically, forwards and backwards, and can be titled to provide ergonomic access to a mouse resting on either mouse tray.

Abstract: A severe duty grapple with an upper jaw and a lower jaw. A hollow tubular pivot is attached to an inner end of one of the jaws. Two lug plates are mounted on an inner end of the other jaw. Each lug plate having an eyelet. The eyelets are alignable with the open ends of the tubular pivot. A pivot pin is passed through the tubular pivot and eyelets and secured thereat.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention relate to the use of a particle accelerator beam to form thin films of material from a bulk substrate. In particular embodiments, a bulk substrate having a top surface is exposed to a beam of accelerated particles. Then, a thin film of material is separated from the bulk substrate by performing a controlled cleaving process along a cleave region formed by particles implanted from the beam. To improve uniformity of depth of implantation, channeling effects are reduced by one or more techniques. In one technique, a miscut bulk substrate is subjected to the implantation, such that the lattice of the substrate is offset at an angle relative to the impinging particle beam. According to another technique, the substrate is tilted at an angle relative to the impinging particle beam. In still another technique, the substrate is subjected to a dithering motion during the implantation. These techniques may be employed alone or in combination.

Abstract: A system for manufacturing free-standing films from work pieces. The system includes a racetrack structure being configured to transfer at least one work piece and one or more accelerator-based ion implanters coupled to the racetrack structure via an end station. Each of the accelerator-based ion implanters is configured to introduce particles having an energy of greater than 1 MeV to implant into a surface of the work piece loaded in the end station to form a cleave region in the work piece. The system includes one or more cleave modules coupled to the racetrack structure configured to perform a cleave process to release a free-standing film from the work piece along the cleave region. Additionally, the system includes an output port coupled to each cleave module to output the free standing film detached from the work piece and one or more service modules each connected to the racetrack structure.

Abstract: A hydraulic orange peel material handling grapple that is attachable to a boom stick on a material handling machine is used for recycling or material handling in grabbing odd shaped objects, unprocessed scrap and scooping up small items and shredded scrap. The grapple includes a central tower having at least four aligned upper and lower mounting ears circumferentially arranged equally distant from each other. A hydraulic cylinder with a ram is mounted to each upper ear. A set of at least four interchangeable pointed-shaped tines are provided for grabbing the odd shaped objections and unprocessed scrap. A set of four interchangeable flat-shaped tines that are used for scooping up small items and shredded scrap are also provided. Each tine has a cylinder ram mount ear on an upper portion of the tine for mounting the cylinder ram and an uppermost mount distal from the tine tip for pivotally mounting the tine to one of the lower frame mounting ears.

Abstract: A system and method implemented as a software tool for generating alpha matte sequences in real-time for the purposes of background or foreground substitution in digital images and video. The system and method is based on a set of modified Poisson equations that are derived for handling multichannel color vectors. Greater robustness is achieved by computing an initial alpha matte in color space. Real-time processing speed is achieved through optimizing the algorithm for parallel processing on the GPUs. For online video matting, a modified background cut algorithm is implemented to separate foreground and background, which guides the automatic trimap generation. Quantitative evaluation on still images shows that the alpha mattes extracted using the present invention has improved accuracy over existing state-of-the-art offline image matting techniques.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to receiving, through a user interface, a selected plurality of retailers and respective requested value amounts, where the selected retailers and value amounts represent a consumer's request for multiple gift cards, and where the gift cards provide purchasing power at the plurality of retailers in the respective value amounts; applying, through a rules engine, a set of rules to the selected retailers and value amounts, where the rules engine is capable of using the rules to determine costs associated with the requested gift cards; generating a financing request for financing for the consumer, where the financing request is based on the selected retailers, the value amounts, and the rules; obtaining, through a loan system interface, financing for the consumer based on the financing request; and using the obtained financing to request the gift cards for the consumer.

Abstract: Concepts and technologies described herein provide for securing a connector shell to a circuit board using a separate connector hat with elongated mounting posts. According to one aspect of the disclosure provided herein, a connector hat includes a one-piece body with a top surface and a pair of mounting posts. The mounting posts extend downwards from opposing side edges of the top surface. The posts are of sufficient length to extend beyond a bottom surface of a connector shell to which the connector hat is configured to attach, and through a bottom surface of an associated circuit board. The two-piece connector assembly design utilizing the connector hat with mounting posts allows the mounting posts to be manufactured at any desirable length to facilitate installation of the connector assembly to a circuit board.

Abstract: A film of material may be formed by providing a semiconductor substrate having a surface region and a cleave region located at a predetermined depth beneath the surface region. During a process of cleaving the film from the substrate, shear in the cleave region is carefully controlled to achieve controlled propagation by either KII or energy propagation control. According to certain embodiments, an in-plane shear component (KII) is maintained near zero by adiabatic heating of silicon through exposure to E-beam radiation. According to other embodiments, a surface heating source in combination with an implanted layer serves to guide fracture propagation through the cleave sequence.

Abstract: A nail care device includes a covering part, a light-emitting component, and a light-emitting control module. The covering part is configured for covering a tip of a digit of a limb. The light-emitting component is disposed in the covering part in a manner that light emitted by the light-emitting component irradiates a nail on the tip of the digit covered by the covering part. The light-emitting control module is coupled to the light-emitting component and is operable to control operation of the light-emitting component.

Abstract: A capping system and method of use for sealing injectable drugs within vials is disclosed. The system includes a closure assembly and a locking cap. The closure assembly includes a retainer member and a resilient stopper located within the retainer member. The retainer member is arranged to be disposed on the vial whereupon a gap results between the stopper and the vial. The retainer member is movable to close that gap. The locking cap is used to permanently seal the vial.

Abstract: A computer-based method for determining a set of equity-indexed crediting parameters E for a lifetime-income equity-indexed deposit product provided to a set of owners having a set of dates of birth B, a rider charge C, a lifetime income percentage scale L, a set of profitability requirements R, a principal amount P, and an account value A. The method can include the steps of: establishing the values of C, L, R, P, A and E at a time when said deposit product is purchased; generating a set of yield curve and equity index scenarios consistent with valuation parameters; setting a trial value Ei for E; calculating the observed distribution D of profitability; comparing D with R; and, computing a revised trial value Ei+1 for E, where the steps of establishing, generating, setting, calculating, comparing, and computing are performed by at least one general purpose computer.