Abstract: An electrostatic clutch is described comprising a plurality of micron-scale thickness electrodes, adjacent electrodes being separated by a thin film of dielectric material. A power source and controller apply a voltage across two electrodes, causing an electrostatic force to develop. When engaged, a force can be transferred through the clutch. A tensioning device maintains the alignment of the clutch when the electrodes are disengaged, but permits movement in at least one direction. In some embodiments, multiple clutches are connected to an output to provide variable force control and a broad range of torque input and output values. Moreover, the clutch can be used as an energy-recycling actuator that captures mechanical energy from negative work movements, and returns energy during positive work movements.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a method for efficiently and mildly reducing ovalbumin allergenicity. The present invention promotes the exposure of the ovalbumin allergenic site to the molecular surface by repeated freezing and thawing pretreatment, and combines transglycosylase and trypsinase for synergistic treatment to reduce the ovalbumin sugar chain and epitope to achieve the purpose of significantly reducing the allergenicity of ovalbumin and egg foods. Compared with other traditional methods such as high temperature and high pressure and other physical means to reduce egg allergenicity, the method significantly improves the specificity and effectiveness of egg desensitization, and minimizes the damage to the nutrition and quality of egg proteins, and is an efficient and mild egg desensitization method. The method has the prospects of being applied to the industrial development of low-allergenicity egg products.

Abstract: Provided herein are methods for treatment of a neurodegenerative disease, such as Late Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis, including administering to a subject in need of such treatment a composition comprising a therapeutically effective amount of an agent comprising a fibrate.

Abstract: A method for dynamic water feeding and hole sealing using high water-absorbent resin is applicable to sealing of a borehole on which extraction has a great impact. Two ends of a hole-sealed section of the borehole are sealed. Fine mixed high water-absorbent resin powder wrapped in a piece of cotton cloth is disposed in the hole-sealed section of the borehole, a water injection pipe and a gas extraction pipe are inserted in the borehole, and an automatic feed water valve is used to inject water into the hole-sealed section. The fine mixed high water-absorbent resin powder that fills the hole-sealed section and surrounding cracks with the water flow rapidly swells up after soaking up water to fill the hole-sealed section, and maintains at a swelling pressure. After the powder swells up and hole sealing is completed, the extraction pipe is connected to an extraction apparatus to perform gas extraction.

Abstract: A system for providing a virtual data storage medium according to an embodiment of the invention may be a system for providing a virtual data storage medium using data storage federation, where the system may include: heterogeneous data storage media including a multiple number of data storage media using different interfaces, protocols, and commands for using stored data; and a federation unit configured to generate a virtual data storage medium by federating the heterogeneous data storage media.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to wheat plants having grain with high ?-glucan content, methods for constructing said wheat plants, grain therefrom and uses thereof. Wheat lines homozygous for the HvCslF6 gene from barley having five times the fiber content and an increased ?-glucan content of TA5790, TA5792, and TA5795 are disclosed.

Abstract: Method and system for controlling a vehicle that includes using velocity vectors of obstacles in the vehicle's environment to determining boundaries of the one or more obstacles and thereby generate a velocity space that may include velocity vectors for the vehicle and which are represented as collision cones. The using an identified velocity vector in combination with the velocity vectors of the one or more obstacles to produce a maximum motion in of the vehicle towards a target location while avoiding all determined collision cones.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display is configured such that a composite layer thereof is transparent to incident light in one voltage condition (e.g., in the absence of an applied voltage) and scatters incident light out of the display in another voltage condition (e.g., when a voltage is applied). The liquid crystal display does not need polarizers or color filters.

Abstract: An intelligent and flexible steel arch protection device for rockfall and collapse of tunnels, including an arch main body system and a flexible protection system. The arch main body system includes an arched rigid high-strength steel frame and a base. The flexible protection system includes two parallel supporting rods which are oppositely arranged on the steel frame along the circular arc of the arch. Connecting rods are arranged between the two supporting rods at intervals, and the two ends of the connecting rods are fixed to the two supporting rods. The connecting rods are sleeved with guide rods and elastic devices are arranged between the guide rods and the supporting rods. A plurality of rolling shafts vertical to the axial direction of the two-way guide rods and connected with the two-way guide rods are arranged between the adjacent two-way guide rods, and the rolling shafts are sleeved with flexile rollers.

Abstract: A power supply apparatus includes a power supply configured to apply an alternating current to a magnetic field generation apparatus; and a controller configured to control the alternating current applied by the power supply. The controller controls the power supply to apply the alternating current having a waveform pattern including a plurality of current waveforms having different frequency spectrums from each other.

Abstract: Methods and systems for desalinating feedwater are disclosed. The system includes at least one feedwater source, a reverse osmosis module, an input feedwater stream fed to the reverse osmosis module, and a control module. The feedwater stream comprises water from at least one feedwater source, e.g., from two or more feedwater sources of different salinities. The control module analyzes the level of energy available to the system, and increases the salinity of the input feedwater stream proportional to an increase in available energy. Feedwater stream salinity can be adjusted to reach water demand targets and fully utilize variable power inputs from renewable sources.

Abstract: An omnidirectional multi-finger asynchronous gripper for a casting robot, includes a connecting seat, an arc-shaped support, a mounting seat, longitudinal clamping devices, transverse adjusting devices and transverse clamping devices. The omnidirectional multi-finger asynchronous gripper is mounted to a tail end of the casting robot through the connecting seat; each longitudinal clamping device can independently and longitudinally clamp a casting or a mold core, is adjustable in spacing through the transverse adjusting devices, can automatically adapt to castings or mold cores with different outlines and can realize effective fitting-type adaptive clamping of specially-shaped castings and mold cores; and the transverse clamping devices are used for transversely and independently clamping the casting or mold core and a clamping position or angle can be adjusted through a swinging angle adjuster.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a gas sensor may be provided, the method comprising the steps of: preparing a metal nanowire; manufacturing a thermoelectric composite by adding a polymer bead to the metal nanowire, and then mechanically mixing same; manufacturing a thermoelectric layer by hot-pressing the thermoelectric composite; forming a first electrode on the upper surface of the thermoelectric layer, and forming a second electrode on the lower surface of the thermoelectric layer; and disposing a heating catalyst layer on the first electrode.

Abstract: Devices and methods are disclosed for quantifying temporal changes in human anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) structural properties, such as Anterior-Posterior tibial shear force (TSF) and Anterior-Posterior tibial shear displacement (TSD) for testing ACL overuse injury during training and minimizing or preventing ACL injury.

Abstract: Provided herein are novel materials and methods for site-specific incorporation of phosphotyrosines into proteins. The novel methods of the invention encompass the use of a novel aminoacyl tRNA synthetase capable of charging compatible tRNAs with a phosphotyrosine precursor. The phosphotyrosine precursor is then incorporated, site-specifically, into a protein at sites where phosphotyrosine residues are desired. The phosphotyrosine precursors are subsequently treated to convert them into phosphotyrosine residues, yielding proteins with phosphotyrosines at selected sites. The scope of the invention encompasses novel aminoacyl tRNA synthetases, novel phosphotyrosine precursors, and methods of using these materials to create site-specific phosphorylated tyrosine residues in a protein.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide: an anti-GPC3 antibody that recognizes an epitope different from that for existing antibodies (e.g., GC33 and GC199) and can specifically bind, even in the form of single chain antibody, to GPC3 localized on a cell membrane; CAR comprising the anti-GPC3 single chain antibody; an immunocompetent cell expressing the CAR; a gene of the anti-GPC3 antibody or a gene of the CAR; a vector comprising the anti-GPC3 antibody gene or the CAR gene; a host cell in which the vector has been introduced; a method for specifically detecting GPC3; and a kit for specifically detecting GPC3. An antibody comprising particular heavy chain CDR1 to CDR3 and particular light chain CDR1 to CDR3 defined in claim 1, and specifically binding to a human-derived GPC3 polypeptide specifically binds to GPC3 localized on a cell membrane. CAR-immunocompetent cells prepared on the basis of CAR comprising such single chain antibody are useful for cancer immunotherapy.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an image encoding/decoding method and device. In an image decoding method and device according to an embodiment of the present invention, a reconstructed pixel region within an image to which a current block to be decoded belongs is selected; a motion vector of the reconstructed pixel region is derived on the basis of the reconstructed pixel region and a reference image of the current block; and the derived motion vector is selected as a motion vector of the current block.

Abstract: A system for converting digital data into a modulated optical signal, comprises an electrically controllable device having M actuating electrodes. The device provides an optical signal that is modulated in response to binary voltages applied to the actuating electrodes. The system also comprises a digital-to-digital converter that provides a mapping of input data words to binary actuation vectors of M bits and supplies the binary actuation vectors as M bits of binary actuation voltages to the M actuating electrodes, where M is larger than the number of bits in each input data word. The digital-to-digital converter is enabled to map each digital input data word to a binary actuation vector by selecting a binary actuation vector from a subset of binary actuation vectors available to represent each of the input data words.

Abstract: A system, method, and computer-readable storage medium for charging management for electric vehicles performing vehicle-to-grid regulation are presented. The system includes an aggregator that communicates with the electric vehicles according to a dispatch strategy to switch charging with electric power from the electric grid. The aggregator that aggregates and manages charging of a set of electric vehicles associated with an electric grid. A dispatch controller controls switching of at least a subset of electric vehicles of the set of electric vehicles between an ON state and an OFF state at a given time by sending binary charge commands to the subset of batteries, in a manner that change of charging rate of individual batteries is minimized while maintaining charging fairness among the respective electric vehicles.

Abstract: Provided is an antibody specific to EPHA2. A monoclonal antibody specifically binding to EPHA2, comprising a heavy chain variable region consisting of the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 20 and a light chain variable region consisting of the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 22, or a functional fragment of the monoclonal antibody specifically binding to EPHA2, and a monoclonal antibody specifically binding to EPHA2, comprising a heavy chain variable region consisting of the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 15 and a light chain variable region consisting of the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 18, or a functional fragment of the monoclonal antibody specifically binding to EPHA2.