Abstract: A tissue microfracture apparatus including a housing having a proximal end and a distal end that includes an aperture. The apparatus also includes an elongated member having proximal and distal ends with at least one tissue microfracture spike protruding from the distal end. The member operates cooperatively with the housing to expose a portion of the spike through the aperture. The apparatus also includes a disposing facility between the elongated member and the housing to dispose the spike in a home position within the housing. The disposing facility may be a spring element positioned at either the proximal or distal end of the housing. The elongated member may include a force receiving surface on the proximal end for receiving a force that facilitates exposing the portion of the spike. An exposure limiting facility limits the exposed portion of the spike.

Abstract: Rotational atherectomy devices and systems can remove or reduce stenotic lesions in blood vessels by rotating one or more abrasive elements within the vessel. The abrasive elements are attached to a distal portion of an elongate flexible drive shaft that extends from a handle assembly that includes a driver for rotating the drive shaft. In particular implementations, the handle assembly encapsulates an electric motor assembly, a pump assembly, and a controller assembly.

Abstract: Systems and methods for removal of thrombus from a blood vessel in a body of a patient are disclosed herein. The method can include: providing a thrombus extraction device including a proximal self-expanding member formed of a fenestrated structure, a substantially cylindrical portion formed of a net-like filament mesh structure having a proximal end coupled to a distal end of the fenestrated structure; advancing a catheter constraining the thrombus extraction device through a vascular thrombus, deploying the thrombus extraction device by stacking a portion of the net-like filament mesh structure outside of the catheter by distally advancing the self-expanding member until the self-expanding member is beyond a distal end of the catheter; retracting the self-expanding member to unstack the portion of the net-like filament mesh structure and to capture the portion of the thrombus; and withdrawing the thrombus extraction device from the body.

Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods relate to generation of augmented images using virtual content that is part of an augmented reality presentation and images of a scene captured via an image sensor. A wearable heads-up display (WHUD) may present an augmented reality presentation with virtual content projected into a field of view of a scene, while an image sensor captures images of the scene. The image sensor may be part of the WHUD or part of a separate device, for instance part of a smartphone. A wearer may view a scene via the WHUD and capture an image of all or a portion of the scene, for instance via a camera of either the WHUD or a separate device. An application monitors the virtual content and can generate an augmented image, which can be transmitted/printed, replicating the augmented reality experience and/or adding customized messages to the resulting augmented image.

Abstract: A graphics processing unit configured to process graphics data using a rendering space which is sub-divided into a plurality of tiles, the graphics processing unit comprising: a plurality of processing cores configured to render graphics data; cost indication logic configured to obtain a cost indication for each of a plurality of sets of one or more tiles of the rendering space, wherein the cost indication for a set of one or more tiles is suggestive of a cost of processing the set of one or more tiles; similarity indication logic configured to obtain similarity indications between sets of one or more tiles of the rendering space, wherein the similarity indication between two sets of one or more tiles is indicative of a level of similarity between the two sets of tiles according to at least one processing metric; and scheduling logic configured to assign the sets of one or more tiles to the processing cores for rendering in dependence on the cost indications and the similarity indications.

Abstract: An image processing system includes a computing platform having processing hardware, a display, and a system memory storing a software code. The processing hardware is configured to execute the software code to receive a three-dimensional (3D) digital model, surround the 3D digital model with multiple virtual cameras oriented toward the 3D digital model, and generate, using the virtual cameras, a multiple renders of the 3D digital model. The processing hardware is further configured to execute the software code to generate a UV texture coordinate space for a surface projection of the 3D digital model, and to transfer, using the multiple renders, lighting color values for each of multiple surface portions of the 3D digital model to the UV texture coordinate space.

Abstract: A method includes percutaneously advancing an implant to a native heart valve of a subject, the implant being housed in a compressed state within a delivery tool. Next, the method includes unhousing a longitudinally-intermediate portion of the implant, the longitudinally-intermediate portion being longitudinally between a longitudinally-proximal portion of the implant and a longitudinally distal portion of the implant. Subsequently, the longitudinally-proximal portion of the implant is unhoused. Subsequently, the longitudinally-distal portion of the implant is unhoused. By unhousing flanges of the implant, the flanges automatically expand. Upon the flanges expanding, a proximal end of each flange extends radially outward from a central longitudinal axis of the implant and longitudinally in a proximal direction. Other applications are also described.

Abstract: A graphics processing engine has a geometry shading stage having two modes of operation. In the first mode of operation, each primitive output by the geometry shading stage is independent, whereas in the second mode of operation, connectivity between input primitives is maintained by the geometry shading stage. The mode of operation of the geometry shading stage can be determined based on the value of control state data which may be generated at compile-time for a geometry shader based on analysis of that geometry shader.

Abstract: Prosthetic heart valves and methods of use of prosthetic heart valves may be provided. In one implementation, a prosthetic heart valve may include an annular valve body and atrial anchors and ventricular anchors extending from the valve body. An atrial anchor may include a pivoting portion configured to extend in an upstream direction when the prosthetic heart valve is in a delivery configuration and in a downstream direction when the prosthetic heart valve is in a deployed-anchor configuration. A portion of a ventricular anchor may be configured to abut the annular valve body when the prosthetic heart valve is arranged in the delivery configuration.

Abstract: A memory device includes a memory cell array and a memory controller. The memory cell array includes a plurality of memory blocks. Each of the memory blocks includes a plurality of word lines. A plurality of memory chunks is coupled to at least one of the word lines. The memory controller is configured to program data to a particular memory chunk of the plurality of memory chunks by performing a chunk operation that includes selecting a particular word line from the plurality of word lines, selecting a particular memory chunk from the plurality of memory chunks that are coupled to the particular word line, and applying a program voltage to a particular memory block corresponding to the particular memory chunk to program data to the particular memory chunk.

Abstract: A catheter for use in a subject's vasculature includes a rotating and axially movable instrument. The instrument includes a rounded element at its distal end connected to a body having a spiral shape. The instrument is at least partially disposed in a lumen of the catheter and is configured for axial and rotational motion within the lumen between a proximal-most position and a distal-most position, where the body includes at least one edge configured to promote removal of a target substance from the body passageway upon contact with the target substance.

Abstract: Prosthetic valves and methods of use of prosthetic valves may be provided. In one implementation, a prosthetic valve may include an annular outer frame formed of struts intersecting at outer frame junctions, an inner frame situated within the outer frame and formed of struts intersecting at inner frame junctions, and a plurality of tissue anchors extending from the outer frame. The junctions along a downstream end of the outer frame may be spaced apart circumferentially from the junctions along a downstream end of the inner frame. The outer frame may include an anchor support strut extending between a downstream junction of the outer frame and a point of connection between one of the tissue anchors and the outer frame. The anchor support strut may be configured for placement parallel to a longitudinal axis of the prosthetic valve.

Abstract: A catheter system includes a catheter that includes an outer shaft and a rotatable inner shaft having a drill tip. The catheter can be configured to bend laterally when the inner shaft is rotating within the other shaft for maneuvering within a blood vessel, for example, as the drill tip crosses an occlusion. Catheter bending can be activated by translating the inner shaft relative to the outer shaft in a distal direction, proximal direction, or both. The outer shaft may include a locking feature to rotatably lock the inner shaft with the outer shaft and allowing bidirectional lateral bending of the catheter. The inner shaft can include one or more imaging sensors for collecting images outside of the catheter. The inner shaft may be removable from the outer shaft, for example after an occlusion is crossed, to allow insertion of a guidewire or other device within the outer shaft.

Abstract: A three-dimensional (3D) density volume of an object is constructed from tomography images (e.g., x-ray images) of the object. The tomography images are projection images that capture all structures of an object (e.g., human body) between a beam source and imaging sensor. The beam effectively integrates along a path through the object producing a tomography image at the imaging sensor, where each pixel represents attenuation. A 3D reconstruction pipeline includes a first neural network model, a fixed function backprojection unit, and a second neural network model. Given information for the capture environment, the tomography images are processed by the reconstruction pipeline to produce a reconstructed 3D density volume of the object. In contrast with a set of 2D slices, the entire 3D density volume is reconstructed, so two-dimensional (2D) density images may be produced by slicing through any portion of the 3D density volume at any angle.

Abstract: The technology disclosed herein involves tracking contention and using the tracked contention to reduce latency of exclusive memory operations. The technology enables a processor to track which locations in main memory are contentious and to modify the order exclusive memory operations are processed based on the contentiousness. A thread can include multiple exclusive operations for the same memory location (e.g., exclusive load and a complementary exclusive store). The multiple exclusive memory operations can be added to a queue and include one or more intervening operations between them in the queue. The processor may process the operations in the queue based on the order they were added and may use the tracked contention to perform out-of-order processing for some of the exclusive operations. For example, the processor can execute the exclusive load operation and because the corresponding location is contentious can process the complementary exclusive store operation before the intervening operations.

Abstract: An apparatus comprises receivers (201, 203) receiving texture maps and meshes representing a scene from a first and second view point. An image generator (205) determines a light intensity image for a third view point based on the received data. A first view transformer (207) determines first image positions and depth values in the image for vertices of the first mesh and a second view transformer (209) determines second image positions and depth values for vertices of the second mesh. A first shader (211) determines a first light intensity value and a first depth value based on the first image positions and depth value, and a second shader (213) determines a second light intensity value and a second depth value from the second image positions depth values. A combiner (215) generates an output value as a weighted combination of the first and second light intensity values where the weighting of a light intensity value increases for an increasing depth value.

Abstract: A contaminant detection system includes a light source configured to emit excitation light on an object to be inspected; a detector configured to detect fluorescence emitted from a contaminant adhering to the object to be inspected; and a processor. The fluorescence is caused by emission of the excitation light from the light source onto the object to be inspected. The processor is configured to perform a determination of a location of the contaminant and a type of the contaminant, based on the fluorescence emitted from the contaminant; and output a result of the determination.

Abstract: Methods and medical apparatus for deployment within an anatomical blood vessel. The medical apparatuses comprising: a first tubular wall, a second tubular wall, within the first tubular wall, and a constricting element configured to constrict a circumference of a portion of the second tubular wall; the combination of the first tubular wall, the second tubular wall and the constricting element forms a diametrical reducer.

Abstract: A method of extracting a thrombus from a thrombus site in a cerebral artery of a patient by advancing a first catheter into an internal carotid artery of the patient; advancing a funnel catheter within the first catheter; moving the funnel catheter and the first catheter with respect to each other to place the funnel outside of the first catheter; expanding the funnel into contact with an inner wall of the internal carotid artery at or proximal to a distal end of a carotid siphon, thereby reducing blood flow past the funnel; advancing a clot-mobilizer distally through the first catheter toward the thrombus and beyond the carotid siphon; engaging thrombus material from the thrombus with the clot-mobilizer; moving the clot-mobilizer and thrombus material proximally at least partially into the funnel; applying suction to aspirate thrombus material; and moving the funnel, the clot-mobilizer and the thrombus material proximally within the vasculature.

Abstract: An endoscopic tool for facilitating injection of fluid into a submucosal layer of tissue includes a first cannula, a second cannula, and means for attaching the first cannula to a mucosal layer of tissue. The first cannula has a distal end and a proximal end opposite the distal end. The second cannula is adapted to be coupled to a source of fluid and carries a needle at a distal end thereof. The means for attaching the first cannula to the mucosal layer draws the mucosal layer, which enlarges the submucosal layer. Fluid is then injected into the enlarged portion of the submucosal layer via the needle, thereby creating a raised portion of tissue around the injection site.