Abstract: An array antenna includes radiating antenna elements arranged to form an antenna aperture, the radiating antenna elements including a first group and a second group of radiating antenna elements; a corporate feed network configured to feed the radiating antenna elements, wherein the corporate feed network includes a 4-port device including a sum port, a difference port, a first signal port and a second signal port, with the first signal port coupled via the corporate feed network to the first group of radiating elements and the second signal port coupled via the corporate feed network to the second group; a first phase shift element proximal to the antenna aperture to introduce a first predetermined phase shift to the first group of radiating antenna elements; and a second phase shift element proximal to the second signal port to introduce a second predetermined phase shift to the second group of radiating antenna elements.

Abstract: This invention is related to the use of polyurethane-based polymer as a drug delivery device to deliver biologically active octreotide at a constant rate for an extended period of time and methods of manufactures thereof. The device is very bio-compatible and biostable, and is useful as an implant in patients (humans and animals) for the delivery of octreotide to tissues or organs.

Abstract: A system and process for the removal of divalent ions from a MEG-water stream are presented. The system includes a chemical treatment tank that receives the MEG-water stream, means for precipitating the calcium, magnesium, and hydroxide ions that are contained in the MEG-water stream, means for discharging the MEG-water stream from the chemical treatment tank, and means for recycling the discharged MEG-water stream back to the chemical treatment tank or routing it to a solids removal system. The means for precipitating the calcium, magnesium, and sulfate ions may be employed simultaneously or sequentially.

Abstract: Provided is an image forming apparatus that performs appropriately changing to the power-saving mode according to environment (luminosity) of a place that user exists, without increasing in a cost. When there is access from a portable terminal, communication circuit requests to the portable terminal for transmission of illuminance information detected by an illuminance sensor in a side of the portable terminal. Then, based on the illuminance information, mode switching circuit changes to the power-saving mode.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention include systems and methods that enable the association and aggregation of consumer data gathered from online and offline sources. In particular, several embodiments are directed to linking consumer data in a data source controlled by an entity (e.g., such as a company's CRM (customer relationship management) database) to offline data sources such as demographic data, and/or online data sources such as online interaction data. The linking may be based on several identifiers (IDs) associated with the data sources. The systems and methods disclosed herein thus facilitate the association of these disparate data sources and enable various entities to better tailor interactions with the consumers. In other embodiments, a shared cookie data management system and method is disclosed. The shared cookie serves as a vehicle through which entities can selectively share consumer information with other entities in a system with uniform format and technical infrastructure.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an operation panel, a printing device, a storage device, a job management unit, a power-saving mode setting unit, and an operation mode control unit. The power-saving mode setting unit that: (a) specifies the job log where the start time point of the job execution belongs to an identical time slot in a past for a predetermined time slot; and (b1) sets the power-saving mode for the predetermined time slot to the first power-saving mode when a proportion of the number of the executing jobs where the job types of the specified job log belong to the first job type group to the number of the executing jobs where the job types of the specified job log belong to the first job type group or the second job type group exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

Abstract: A toner consumption amount identifying unit identifies a toner consumption amount of toner consumed in a printing process from the print data. A toner residual amount identifying unit identifies a toner residual amount in a toner container from the toner consumption amount. A toner residual amount data managing unit stores order-timing toner residual amount data into a non volatile memory device at a timing when an ordering process of the toner container succeeds, and deletes the order-timing toner residual amount data in the non volatile memory device if the value of the toner residual amount is larger than a value of the order-timing toner residual amount data. An order processing unit performs the ordering process if the order-timing toner residual amount data is not stored in the non volatile memory device and the value of the toner residual amount is either equal to or less than a predetermined value.

Abstract: In an image processing apparatus, regarding plural character areas in the character image of each color, an image compressing unit 6 includes one of the character areas from which a distance to another one of the character areas is either equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold value into a character image other than the character image in which the other one of the character areas is included, and compresses image data of the other one of the character areas separately from other image data.

Abstract: A method for printing a coded document includes receiving a print job, generating a document-file identifier, storing a document-file table entry into a document-file table, and printing a coded document. The document-file table entry includes the document-file identifier and the original document-file path. The coded document includes the received document-file data and the generated document-file identifier. A method for scanning a coded document includes receiving scan-document data indicative of a coded document, extracting the document-file identifier from the scan-document data, and searching a plurality of document-file table entries for the scanned document-file identifier. Each of the plurality of document-file table entries includes an entry document-file identifier and an entry document-file path, and may also include a table entry lifetime and/or a plurality of document-file variations. A pull-copy system includes an image forming apparatus, a storage unit, and a processor.

Abstract: A touch sensitive display includes: an upper substrate, a lower substrate, an organic light-emitting component, and a touch sensing component. The lower substrate is disposed below the upper substrate and the organic light-emitting component is disposed above the lower substrate. The touch sensing component designed by a single layer structure is disposed under or above the upper substrate. Therefore, the present invention can achieve the purpose of lightening the touch sensitive display and simplifying manufacturing process of the touch sensitive display.

Abstract: A toner transportation device according to the present disclosure includes a transportation screw that has a rotational shaft and a transportation fin formed on an outer circumferential surface of the rotational shaft and a toner transportation pipe that has a circular shape in cross section. The transportation screw is rotatably positioned in the toner transportation pipe. A support member is attached to the rotational shaft that has a bearing portion having an annular shape and rotatably fitted onto the rotational shaft and that has a plurality of leg portions radially protruding outward from an outer circumferential surface of the bearing portion. A distance between an axis of the rotational shaft and a tip of each leg portion is greater than a radius of the transportation fin and equal to or less than a radius of an inner circumferential surface of the toner transportation pipe.

Abstract: An edge image generating unit generates an edge image formed by edges in an original image. A connection pixel extracting unit extracts connection pixel sets in the edge image. A binary image generating unit classifies the connection pixel sets by colors and generates respective character images of the colors. A background image generating unit generates a background image of the original image. An image compressing unit compresses image data of the character images and the background image using different compressing methods. The binary image generating unit identifies which of a density reversed character, an ordinary character and non character each one of the connection pixel sets is, on the basis of luminance values of the original image on pixels at four corners of a rectangle circumscribed to the connection pixel set, and generates the character images of the density reversed character and the ordinary character.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus, a page data generation unit is configured to generate page data of a job list screen that includes a link to the page data of a detailed information screen on an uncompleted job. The detailed information screen is a screen that displays the status of one job determined by a job status management unit. The page data generation is further configured to (A) generate the page data of a job request screen, and (B) if the job receipt unit receives a job that is requested based on the page data of the job request screen, generate the page data of a receipt-confirmation screen that includes a link to the page data of the detailed information screen on the received job.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided to electrically protect a circuit for USB protection against excessive voltage and/or current such as ground loop damage. A circuit is connected between electrical components where at least one of the connections is a USB connection. There is a possibility for the ground points of the electrical components to be at different voltage potentials and can create a ground loop. The apparatus can include a voltage limiting circuit connected to circuit lines which connect to the USB connection, and circuit breakers or resistors can be connected to the circuit lines between the USB connection and the connection to the other electrical component. In some aspects, the connections at either end of the circuit can all be USB connections. The components of the apparatus protect the connected electrical components from receiving more power than they can tolerate, and protect a user of the electrical components from injury caused by excess power.

Abstract: In an inkjet recording apparatus, when one set of image data is divided in the sub scanning direction into A bands, and nozzles are divided in the main scanning direction into groups each comprising A nozzles, a selector associates, within each of the group, the nozzles in the first to Ath columns with the first to Ath bands with no overlap, and, for a nozzle that is to discharge ink for one pixel or less within one set of image data, makes the nozzle perform preparatory discharge in the band associated with the nozzle by selecting, out of different ink discharge drive waveforms, a first drive waveform (1) corresponding to the minimum gradation.

Abstract: A display input device includes a display portion and a touch panel portion. The display portion displays a screen on which objects are provided. The touch panel portion is provided on the display portion and detects a plurality of touched positions being touched by a user. After a multipoint touching operation of touching a plurality of points on the touch panel portion at the same time, when an operation of moving objects that are movement targets among the objects being displayed is performed on the touch panel portion, if the distance between two points among the plurality of points touched by the multipoint touching operation is equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold distance, the display portion collectively moves all the objects that are the movement targets.

Abstract: Provided is an image processing apparatus including: a grouping preference unit configured to register user preference information on a storage device based on a user operation, the user preference information indicating how objects within an image are to be classified into groups; an image analysis unit configured to detect the objects within the image; and a grouping unit configured to read the user preference information from the storage device and classify the objects detected within the image into the groups indicated in the read user preference information.

Abstract: A numerical value inputting device includes a touch panel and a digit number changing part. The touch panel includes a display face to display a numerical value display area and detects simultaneously two pressed positions onto the display face. The digit number changing part changes the number of digits of a numerical value displayed on the numerical value display area in accordance with separation or approach of the two pressed positions.

Abstract: RAID storage systems and methods adapted to enable the use of NAND flash-based solid-state drives. The RAID storage system includes an array of solid-state drives and a controller operating to combine the solid-state drives into a logical unit. The controller utilizes data striping to form data stripe sets comprising data (stripe) blocks that are written to individual drives of the array, utilizes distributed parity to write parity data of the data stripe sets to individual drives of the array, and writes the data blocks and the parity data to different individual drives of the array. The RAID storage system detects the number of data blocks of at least one of the data stripe sets and then, depending on the number of data blocks detected, may invert bit values of the parity data or add a dummy data value of “1” to the parity value.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit, a temperature sensor, a storage unit, a drive-frequency initial setting unit, a power measuring unit, and a drive-frequency adjusting unit. The fixing unit is configured to perform induction heating using a coil unit. The drive-frequency initial setting unit is configured to establish an initial-setting value for a drive frequency of the coil unit based on the temperature-frequency relationship information stored in the storage unit and on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor immediately before a power activation of the fixing unit. The power measuring unit is configured to measure power consumption of the fixing unit at the drive frequency established by the drive-frequency initial setting unit. The drive-frequency adjusting unit is configured to adjust the drive frequency of the coil unit based on the power consumption measured by the power measuring unit.