Abstract: An apparatus and a method are provided for an air box with an integrated air filter to communicate air flow from an exterior of the air filter to an air intake of an automobile engine. The air filter comprises a filter material that surrounds at least a portion of an interior cavity of the air filter. An end cap is affixed to a distal end of the filter material, and a wire support extends along at least a portion of the exterior surface of the filter material. The air box comprises a housing portion and a mount portion. The housing portion is configured to direct air drawn through the filter material into the interior cavity of the air filter and then into the air intake of the automobile engine. The mount portion is configured to support the air box and the air filter once installed within an automobile engine bay.

Abstract: Timely quality improvement of an inventory of elements is provided. An event submission that includes at least one element of the inventory of elements is received at about the same time as the event is encountered. The event submission is prioritized based on factors related to the submitter, the event, historical information, or combinations thereof. A risk level or rating is assigned to the event submission and others are invited to comment on the event submission. Based on the comments, real-time information is presented so that the event submission may be tracked during the process. The submitter of the event submission is assigned a credibility rating and is given an incentive for providing the event submission.

Abstract: To enable future video transmission of a large range of HDR videos, and render them on displays of variable dynamic range or peak brightness capability, we describe an encoder (301) for encoding an input high dynamic range video set of images (Im_5000), having pixel colors with luminances lower than a first maximum luminance (L_max_M), into an encoded high dynamic range video (Im_2000), being a high dynamic range image, i.e.

Abstract: The present invention provides a training garment (1) for persons suffering from upper limb dysfunction. According to one aspect of the invention, the training garment (1) comprises a shoulder garment (10), which comprises a shoulder portion (11) adapted to be worn across a person's shoulder and a first main body portion (12) adapted to be worn around the trunk of the person. Both ends of the shoulder portion (11) are attached to the first main body portion (12), and the shoulder portion (11) has an area (101) for receiving a shoulder marker. The proposed training garment (1), due to its special design of the shoulder portion (11) and the first main body portion (12), can prevent displacement of the shoulder marker while the person is performing active rehabilitation exercises, such as raising up his arm, and therefore, it can improve the recognition accuracy of the movement tracking system for the rehabilitation training.

Abstract: Systems and methods for biometric authentication with liveness detection are disclosed. A method of biometric authentication may be performed in an information processing apparatus including at least a memory, a communication interface, at least one computer processor, a display, and an image capture device. The method may include (1) receiving a streaming images of a user's face captured by the image capture device; (2) graphically presenting, on the display, the streaming images, a target and a moveable object; (3) detecting a movement of a feature of the user's face in the streaming images; (4) graphically presenting the movement of the feature of the user's face on the display by moving the object in a direction of the movement of the feature of the user's face; and (5) determining whether the user is live based on the movement.

Abstract: An alignment system configured to be substantially insensitive to thermal variations in its system during alignment measurements. The alignment system includes a sensor system, a support structure, a sensing element, a position measurement system, and an athermal interface between the sensing element and the support structure. The sensor system is configured to determine a in position of an alignment mark on a substrate and the support structure is configured to support the sensor system. The sensing element is configured to detect an unintentional displacement of the support structure and the position measurement system is configured to measure the unintentional displacement relative to a reference element based on the detected unintentional displacement. The athermal interface is configured to prevent detection of temperature induced displacement of the support structure by the sensing element.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for distinguishing mutations, single nucleotide polymorphisms or other variants in a target nucleic acid sequence from the wild-type sequence in a sample. The method comprises the steps of surface binding magnetic beads via a sandwich hybridization in which a bead-bound probe hybridizes with one end of a target nucleic acid, and a surface-bound probe hybridizes with the other end of the same target nucleic acid, applying stringency on the hybridization by magnetic force and/or temperature, determining the amount of magnetic beads remaining attached to the surface, and correlating the amount of magnetic beads remaining attached to the surface with the presence and/or absence of mutations, SNP variants or other variants in the target nucleic acid.

Abstract: A new and distinct cultivar of Phalaenopsis plant named ‘MI00901’, characterized by its relatively compact and upright plant habit; moderately vigorous to vigorous growth habit; strong flowering stems; freely flowering habit with typically two racemes per plant, each inflorescence with numerous flowers; and concave white-colored flowers.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for washing sheets of plastic material originating from industrial and agricultural waste, for subsequent reuse thereof as a raw material. The sheets of plastic material, precut into soiled pieces of large dimensions, and a water flow are supplied to a washing tank containing a water bath; a screw stirrer generates intense stirring of the water bath and recirculation, inside the tank, of the soiled plastic pieces that causes the contaminating material to be detached and separated by sedimentation from the plastic pieces. The cleaned pieces of plastic material of large dimensions, devoid of contaminant, which float in the water bath are removed by dragging, in a floating condition, along a discharging channel by the combined action of a dragging device and of a water flow that exits the washing tank; the dragging device, consisting of an endless belt, extends from one side of the washing tank along the discharging channel, supported in a freely tiltable manner.

Abstract: A new and distinct cultivar of Helleborus plant named ‘JHE00202’, characterized by its compact, upright and mounding plant habit; moderately vigorous growth habit and moderate growth rate; dark green-colored leaves; early and freely flowering habit; single light yellow green-colored flowers; and good garden performance.

Abstract: A new and distinct cultivar of Phalaenopsis plant named ‘MI00708’, characterized by its upright plant habit; moderately vigorous growth habit; strong flowering stems; and freely flowering habit with typically three racemes per plant with each inflorescence with numerous yellow-colored flowers.

Abstract: A new and distinct cultivar of Helleborus plant named ‘JHE00203’, characterized by its very compact, upright and mounding plant habit; moderately vigorous growth habit and low to moderate growth rate; dark green-colored leaves; early and freely flowering habit; single light yellow green-colored flowers; and good garden performance.

Abstract: Disclosed is a laminate (100) comprising an abrasion resisting layer (101) disposed on a surface (102) of an optically transmissive substrate (103), wherein the layer comprises a pattern of spatially separated protrusions (104) of a material extending away from the surface, and silica (105) interposed between the protrusions, wherein the material has a Knoop hardness measured according to ASTM E384 Knoop Hardness Standard which is greater than that of the silica. Further disclosed is a device comprising an optically transmissive component comprising the laminate, and a method of manufacturing the laminate.

Abstract: A new and distinct cultivar of Phalaenopsis plant named ‘MI00690’, characterized by its relatively compact and upright plant habit; moderately vigorous growth habit; strong flowering stems; freely flowering habit with typically three racemes per plant, each inflorescence with numerous flowers; and showy purple-colored flowers densely covered with large red purple-colored spots.

Abstract: Airway impedance of a subject using a respiratory treatment device can be measured, in accordance with one or more embodiments. A conduit is configured to communicate a flow of inhaled gas and a flow of exhaled gas to and from an airway of the subject using the respiratory treatment device. A first valve is disposed within the conduit and configured to affect the flow of exhaled gas. One or more sensors are disposed within the conduit and are configured to provide a signal conveying information associated with one or more characteristics of gas exhaled by the subject while the flow of exhaled gas is affected or unaffected by the first valve. An airway impedance monitoring module can be executed by a processor to determine an impedance metric of the airway of the subject based on the information conveyed by the signal provided by the one or more sensors.

Abstract: A device for extracting physiological information indicative of at least one vital sign of a subject from detected electromagnetic radiation transmitted through or reflected from a subject comprises an input interface for receiving a data stream of detection data derived from detected electromagnetic radiation transmitted through or reflected from a skin region of a subject. The detection data comprises wavelength-dependent reflection or transmission information in at least two signal channels representative of respective wavelength portions. A signal mixer dynamically mixes the at least two signal channels into at least one mixed signal. A processor derives physiological information indicative of at least one vital sign from the at least one mixed signal, and a controller controls the signal mixer to limit the relative contributions of the at least two signal channels mixed into at least one mixed signal and/or the rate-of-change at which said relative contributions are allowed to dynamically change.

Abstract: A sampler for taking samples from a molten metal bath, particularly a molten steel bath, includes a sample chamber assembly having a cover plate and a housing. The housing has an immersion end provided with an inflow conduit and including a sample cavity including a distribution zone, an analysis zone, and a ventilation zone. The sample cavity is dimensioned into four contiguous segments each of which has a respective length and depth. The four contiguous segments satisfy the formula: (L1/D1)+(L2/D2)+(L3/D3)+(L4/D4)>25.

Abstract: A shape sensing enabled instrument includes a flexible longitudinal body (300) including a plurality of longitudinal members (310) held together to form a lumen (205). The longitudinal members have frictional contact therebetween and are configured to engage neighboring longitudinal members during bending, twisting or external pressure to maintain dimensions of the lumen. A shape sensing optical fiber (302) is disposed within the lumen.

Abstract: A method and device are provided for determining an optimized scale factor to be applied to an excitation signal or a filter during a process for frequency band extension of an audio frequency signal. The band extension process includes decoding or extracting, in a first frequency band, an excitation signal and parameters of the first frequency band including coefficients of a linear prediction filter, generating an excitation signal extending over at least one second frequency band, filtering using a linear prediction filter for the second frequency band. The determination method includes determining an additional linear prediction filter, of a lower order than that of the linear prediction filter of the first frequency band, the coefficients of the additional filter being obtained from the parameters decoded or extracted from the first frequency and calculating the optimized scale factor as a function of at least the coefficients of the additional filter.