Abstract: A modular electronic ballast is provided for powering a fluorescent lamp. A motherboard is configured to receive an AC input signal, one or more supplemental input signals and a feedback signal from the lamp. A ballast control circuit generates an output signal for an oscillating inverter driving the lamps. A daughter card is coupled to the motherboard and selected from a plurality of daughter cards, each configured to provide a dimming control signal having predetermined characteristics and readable by the control circuit. The daughter cards are collectively configured to provide dimming control signals in response to each of a line-coupled demand response interface, one or more digitally addressable interfaces, analog dimming signals received via said supplemental communications bus, and three-wire phase control signals received via said AC line and said supplemental communications bus. The motherboard is configured to interchangeably receive any one of the daughter cards.

Abstract: Providing a remote control technique capable of realizing the achievement of constraints and the certain following of a target value even with a network in which delay, loss, distortion, or the like may occur. In a remote control system, an area setting unit of a client-side control unit sets at least two areas representative of a group of states of an target object, which changes over time by feedback control. A state-evaluation information sending unit sends, to the host-side control unit, state evaluation information obtained by evaluating the state of the target object based on the area set by the area setting unit. A target value setting unit of the host-side control unit sets a target value such that the state of the target object changes in the area set by the area setting units. Moreover, a target value updating unit updates the target value based on the state evaluation information received from the client-side control unit.

Abstract: Light-emitting intra-cavity interferometric (ICI) optical sensors based on channel waveguide structures which include an internal light emitting material and a functionalized region. In some embodiments, the waveguides are made of a sol-gel which incorporates the light emitting material. In some embodiments, the waveguide structure includes an ICI resonator backbone and the ICI sensor is a laser sensor. In some embodiments, the resonator backbone has an interferometric Y-branch shape. In some embodiments, the resonator backbone has a Mach Zehnder interferometer shape. In some embodiments, an ICI laser sensor has an interferometric arrayed waveguide grating shape. In some embodiments, an ICI sensor may be remotely optically pumped and remotely read.

Abstract: An ultrasonic measurement waveguide rod which is easy to manufacture and is capable of preventing a noise echo. An ultrasonic flaw detection waveguide rod 2 is arranged with a probe on one axial end thereof and a contact surface to be brought into contact with a test piece on the other end thereof. The cross-sectional shape of the rod 2 perpendicular to the axial direction is a polygon having sides any one (41A) of which is not parallel to any of the other sides 41B, 41C, 41D. Since at least a pair of the sides 41A, 41C opposed to each other are not parallel to each other, an ultrasonic wave P is allowed to reflect off outer surfaces making up the nonparallel sides 41A, 41C, enabling the ultrasonic wave P to be prevented from returning to the probe 3 as a noise echo. For example, the ultrasonic wave component reflected perpendicularly by one outer surface is reflected by the opposite outer surface and travels toward the outer surface having the side 41D. Hence, an echo or a noise hardly returns to the probe.

Abstract: An electronic ballast is provided for powering one or more discharge lamps independently connected in parallel. An inverter having a pair of switching elements converts a DC supply signal into AC power. A transformer has a primary winding coupled to an output terminal of the inverter. A load circuit includes independently operable discharge lamp circuits coupled in parallel with each other and across a secondary winding of the transformer. An inductance control circuit includes an inductive element coupled in series with the primary winding of the transformer and a bi-directional switch coupled in parallel across the inductive element. A switch state of the bi-directional switch is controllably adjustable between first and second switch states and in accordance with a desired duty ratio. A magnitude of a voltage across the secondary winding of the transformer and thereby across each lamp circuit is dependent on the switch state of the bi-directional switch.

Abstract: A method for preparing titania or precursor thereof with a controllable structure from micropore to mesopore is provided. The method is characterized in that the alkali metal titanate as raw material is reacted for 0.5˜72 hours in the wet atmosphere with humidity of 2˜100% at temperature of 20˜250° C., then washed with water or acid, finally performed by air roasting or solvent thermal treatment. The method has advantages that the raw material is easy to be obtained, the conditions and preparation are controllable, the pore structure may be adjusted from micropore to mesopore, crystal mixing and doping are easy, reacting time is short, preparing cost is low, and the said method is suitable for large scale production and so on. The most probable aperture of titanium oxide or precursor thereof with a controllable structure from micropore to mesopore is in the range of 1˜20 nm, the pore volume thereof is in the range of 0.05˜0.4 cm3/g, and the specific surface area thereof is more than 30 m2/g.

Abstract: It detects the relative phase of two measured signals using two reference signals. The relative phase detector 1 comprises reference signal generator 11, beat signal processor 12 and detecting element 13. As for reference signal generator 11, a frequency interval generates two reference signals which are the same as the frequency interval of the measured signal of two above. The beat signal processor 12 generates two beat signals from the reference signal of two measured signals and two above, and generation does the multiplication signal of these two beat signals. It removes constant decided by detection system from the DC component of the multiplication signal, and detecting element 13 detects the relative phase of two measured signals.

Abstract: Levels of VEGF-A, VEGF-C and PGE2 were measured in patient groups presenting with different types of pancreatic lesions. Pancreatic fluids that exhibited high levels of VEGF-A and relative low levels of VEGF-C correlated well with a diagnosis of serous cystadenoma. Pancreatic fluids collected from cysts in patients that did not have a clinical diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and that exhibited relatively low levels of VEGF-A correlated with a diagnosis of intraductal papillary mucinous neo-plasms (IPMN). Furthermore, the level of PGE2 increased with dysplastic stage. Contacting pancreatic fluid with reagents that selectively bind to VEGF-A, VEGF-C and PGE2 provide a useful diagnostic tool for identifying patients with these benign, pre-malignant or malignant lesions of the pancreas.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for analyzing characteristics of a particulate, comprising: selecting at least one particulate in a fluid; positioning said selected particulate in the vicinity of a pair of electrodes; applying a programmed voltage signal for generating a spatially inhomogeneous electric field between said pair of electrodes; detecting the movement of the particulate while applying said programmed voltage signal to create a time-series data corresponding to said movement of the particulate; and analyzing the characteristics of said particulate based on said time-series data.

Abstract: An electronic ballast circuit includes a striation reduction circuit that can create an asymmetry in a lamp power signal that powers a gas-discharge lamp. The striation reduction circuit may have first and second circuit paths to cause the asymmetry in the lamp power signal. The first circuit path transmits the AC component signal of an input signal associated with an AC voltage while the second circuit path transmits a DC component signal. A non-linear component in the second circuit path is utilized to generate a harmonic component signal. AC component signal, DC component signal, and harmonic component signal are superimposed onto one another to cause an asymmetry in the lamp power signal that powers the gas discharge lamp.

Abstract: Methods of treating a wound, an ulcer and/or a burn responsive to inhibition of xanthine oxidoreductase to thereby reduce uric acid in an animal are provided wherein the methods include topical administration of a therapeutic agent effective for treatment of the wound, the ulcer and/or the burn wherein the therapeutic agent inhibits xanthine oxidoreductase to thereby reduce uric acid in the wound, ulcer and/or burn. Also provided are methods and kits for determining the severity of a wound, a burn and/or an ulcer including the step of detecting one or more of (i) a level of uric acid; (ii) a level of one or more uric acid precursors; and (iii) a presence, or absence of or level of xanthine oxidoreductase.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the polysilicon purification technology field with physical metallurgy technology, especially to a method for removing P and B impurities in the polysilicon using electron beam melting technology. In this method, two electron guns are used for irradiating electron beam to melt polysilicon, meanwhile, P and B are removed in a dual process. P will firstly be removed, and then B will be further removed through further melting for evaporation. At last the low-B and low-P polysilicon evaporated on the deposit board is collected. In the equipment used, the vacuum cover and vacuum circular cylinder constitutes the shell of the device; the inner part of vacuum circular cylinder is the vacuum chamber, which is formed by the left and right part and divided by the separation plate. This method effectively improves the purity of the polysilicon and achieves the requirements for solar grade silicon with perfect purification effect, stable technology, and high efficiency.

Abstract: The present invention relates to low viscosity, broad range nematic media having large birefringence and moderately large dielectric anisotropy. The nematic media are useful in a variety of electrooptical devices, including electronic lenses.

Abstract: Sensing device and method for detecting presence and concentration of generic target analytes of interest. The device and method are based on detecting changes in effective dielectric induced by the target analytes of interest. Applications of the invention include, but are not restricted to, detecting and characterizing the presence of chemical and/or biological target analytes of interest as well as detecting and characterizing target analytes of interest from a separation apparatus. In one embodiment of the invention, the device comprises at least two electrodes in a rigid architecture such as a solid surface, where the electrodes have sizes and inter-electrode spacings that are on the order of sizes of target analytes of interest to improve sensitivity of the device. Changes in effective dielectric and, therefore, capacitance induced by a presence of the target analytes of interest are measured electronically.

Abstract: There is provided a character string updated degree evaluation program that enables quantitative grasping of an amount of intellectual work through editing and updating of character strings. A text subjected to comparison is divided into common part character strings each having a length greater than or equal to a threshold value, and non-common part character strings. A number of edited points from the original text and a context edit distance are calculated based on the rate of the common part character strings and the occurrence pattern thereof. A number of edited point is acquired from a number of elements contained in a common part character string set, and a context edit distance is acquired from a change in an order of occurrence of the common part character strings. Calculation of a new creation percentage and analysis by an N-gram are performed on the non-common part character string.

Abstract: A magnetic component having a magnetic core structure includes a core body with a notched region for reducing non-essential core material. The notched region has the cross-sectional shape of a trapezoid and includes two notch walls separated by a middle wall. The notch walls are each oriented at an obtuse angle relative to the middle notch wall. The core structure reduces the cost of manufacture and the size of the magnetic component by eliminating non-essential core material from regions of the core that have little or no impact on the magnetic performance of the component. The desired magnetic flux path in the component remains substantially unaffected by the removal of the non-essential core material. The body of the core may also include one or more angled shoulders positioned at the corners of the core body to further eliminate non-essential core material.

Abstract: This invention relates generally to the field of starch syrup production, specifically to a processing method and a device for the extrusion of raw materials with enzymes added for starch syrup, and a saccharogenic method of the extruded raw materials. This invention discloses the kind and amount of enzymes added, the appropriate parameters of the processing method and the device for the extrusion of raw materials with enzymes added for starch syrup, and the appropriate saccharogenic method of the extruded raw materials for starch syrup. The processing method and the device of this invention are such that the jet liquefaction process as used in the traditional double enzyme method for starch syrup production can be spared, and starch syrup with the same DE value can be obtained in a saccharification time which can be shorten 2-4 times the traditional saccharification time.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and device for determining depressive disorders or other mental disorders related to similar brain imbalances when the combination of powers of specific frequency bands in quantitative EEG has a certain positive or negative value. The present invention performs a signal-processing task to resting EEG recording, calculates the power of two specific frequency bands, finds the combination of the powers and evaluates the result. The method can be used as quick and easy noninvasive tool for diagnosing depression related problems in different patients as separate algorithm, as a part of an EEG recording and analysis device and as a separate device.

Abstract: A method of sorting particulate matter comprises creating an unconstrained monolayer feed stream of particulate matter moving with an initial first trajectory in a gaseous medium, and subjecting the monolayer feed stream while in the gaseous medium to a magnetic field of sufficient strength to influence the trajectory of at least some particles in the feed stream to cause a spread of particle trajectories from the first trajectory.

Abstract: The invention provides an emotional state determination method capable of quantitatively and accurately measuring an emotional state of a human being without requiring a special measuring environment. At least one of oxy-hemoglobin densities and deoxy-hemoglobin densities in blood of a plurality of measurement regions of a human brain cortex of a subject 1 are measured in time series, respectively, using a near-infrared spectroscopy. Then, cross-correlation coefficients of plural sets of time-variable change data are computed for each time (for each sampling period). Each of the plural sets of the time-variable change data comprises two of the time-variable change data which are selected by permutations and combinations from among at least one of the time-variable change data on the measured oxy-hemoglobin densities and the time-variable change data on the measured deoxy-hemoglobin densities.