Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a solar cell. The solar cell includes a Si base layer, a passivation layer situated above the Si base layer, a layer of heavily doped amorphous Si (a-Si) situated above the passivation layer, a first transparent-conducting-oxide (TCO) layer situated above the heavily doped a-Si layer, a back-side electrode situated below the Si base layer, and a front-side electrode situated above the first TCO layer. The first TCO layer comprises at least one of: GaInO, GaInSnO, ZnInO, and ZnInSnO.

Abstract: Computer system and methods for optimally controlling the behavior of an industrial process, in accordance with plant operating goals, without requiring a complicated trial and error process. The system and methods enable configuring optimization preference and optimization priority for key manipulated variables (MVs) of the industrial process. The system and methods translate the configured optimization preference and optimization priority for each key MV into prioritized economic objective functions. The system and methods calculate a set of normalized cost factors for use in a given prioritized economic functions based on a model gain matrix of manipulated variables and controlled variables of the industrial process.

Abstract: Compounds that have agonist activity at one or more of the S1P receptors are provided. The compounds are sphingosine analogs that, after phosphorylation, can behave as agonists at S1P receptors.

Abstract: In certain embodiments, a method may include receiving one or more equalized samples of an input signal. The method may further include mitigating one or more excursions in the one or more equalized samples based on one or more current decisions of an iterative decoding process to generate compensated equalized samples. In addition, the method may include performing iterative decoding operations based on the compensated equalized samples, updating the current decisions of the iterative decoding process and outputting the current decisions as a converged result when the iterative decoding operations have converged for the compensated equalized samples.

Abstract: A video transmission method is disclosed herein. A target video segmentation is transmitted to a piece of user equipment relatively quickly, so that caching efficiency of a caching device can be improved, and a processing burden of the caching device can be reduced. The method includes: receiving, by a gateway device, a target URL sent by a second user equipment, and determining, from a caching device, a second video corresponding to the target URL; determining a segmentation part of the target URL according to the segmentation part extraction model; and determining a target video segmentation from the second video according to the segmentation part of the target URL, and sending the target video segmentation to the second user equipment.

Abstract: An adaptive valley mode switching power converter is provided that switches on a power switch within valley periods of a resonant voltage oscillation for the power switch. Each valley period is determined with regard to a valley threshold voltage.

Abstract: Methods of producing a glass sheet each comprise the step of creating a vacuum to force the entire lateral portion of the glass ribbon to engage an anvil portion of a breaking device in the elastic zone. The vacuum is provided by a plurality of pressure zones that are operated independent from one another, wherein each pressure zone is provided with a set of suction cups. In further examples, glass ribbon breaking devices each include a plurality of pressure zones that are configured to be operated independent from one another with each pressure zone being provided with set of suction cups.

Abstract: A method for updating a descriptor engine for a network interface card (NIC) may include quiescing a transmit stream to the NIC. The method may further include stopping a descriptor engine from providing new receive descriptors to the NIC. The method may further include creating a copy in a memory of any receive descriptors already available to the NIC prior to the stopping the descriptor engine. The method may further include setting a controller to redirect inbound traffic to the memory. The method may further include restoring a transmit configuration and a transmit state of the descriptor engine subsequent to updating the descriptor engine.

Abstract: Transitioning of a command user interface (UI) between a toolbar UI and a full menu UI based on a use context is provided. An application such as a messaging application detects a request to interact with a message. A presentation mode is identified based on the use context associated with the request. The use context includes a reading mode or an authoring mode. A command UI is generated based on the presentation mode. The command UI includes a toolbar UI for the reading mode or a full menu UI for the authoring mode. The command UI is displayed in proximity to the message within a messaging UI.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a solar cell. The solar cell includes a substrate, a first heavily doped crystalline-Si (c-Si) layer situated above the substrate, a lightly doped c-Si layer situated above the first heavily doped crystalline-Si layer, a second heavily doped c-Si layer situated above the lightly doped c-Si layer, a front side electrode grid situated above the second heavily doped c-Si layer, and a backside electrode grid situated on the backside of the substrate.

Abstract: A method for network synchronization of a first network element is provided, comprising: receiving, from each of at least two synchronization candidate network elements, a first synchronization accuracy value; determining, for each of the at least two synchronization candidate network elements, a signal quality indicator; determining for each synchronization candidate network element a second synchronization accuracy value based on the signal quality indicator and the first synchronization accuracy value related to the synchronization candidate network element, and selecting a synchronizing network element, for synchronizing the first network element to, from the at least two synchronization candidate network elements, based on the determined second synchronization accuracy values. The present disclosure enhances the performance of RIB network synchronization by indicating an estimate of an accumulated synchronization error magnitude.

Abstract: A high efficiency LED module includes a circuit board having a plurality of LEDs spaced apart from each other and arranged in a cluster on the circuit board so that a first LED and a second LED are located along a single plane and a third LED is located outside of the single plane. Further included is a lens assembly fixed to the circuit board and having a single, continuous body with a cluster of lenses arranged so as to correspond with the arrangement of LEDs. Each lens includes an upper dome surface having a centrally located dimple, a substantially planar bottom surface in alignment with the other bottom surfaces of the lenses and an indention that is recessed from the bottom surface of the lens so that the indention surrounds one of the LEDs on the circuit board.

Abstract: An input mechanism is disclosed. The input mechanism includes a dome support structure defining an opening that extends through the dome support structure, a collapsible dome positioned in the opening and engaged with the dome support structure, and a cover member coupled to the dome support structure and covering the collapsible dome, thereby retaining the collapsible dome within the opening of the dome support structure.

Abstract: The present invention discloses an LCC and MMC series-connected HVDC system with DC fault ride-through capacity, comprising rectifier and inverter linked by DC transmission line; Both the positive pole and the negative pole of the rectifier and the inverter consist of line-commutated converter and modular converter in series-connection; the modular converter adopts one MMC or several parallel-connected MMCs. The present invention has the advantage of low cost, low power loss and high reliability of the LCC, as well as flexible control, low harmonics and AC voltage support of the MMC. Further, the present invention is able to deal with DC fault by itself, hence additional DC fault clearing equipment is not needed. As a result, the present invention is suitable for the field of long-distance large-capacity power transmission and has broad development potential.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a smart home control system including at least one LED lighting device and at least one smart terminal. The LED lighting device includes an LED light-emitting module, a power supply module, a video acquisition module, a processing module and a communication module. The video acquisition module may be configured to collect video data within a camera detection range, and send the video data to the processing module. The processing module parses and recognizes the video data to detect behavioral information, generates control instructions according to the behavioral information, and controls the communication module to send the control instructions to the smart terminal. The system consistent with the present disclosure enables timely detection and prevention of illegal activities and/or unsafe behaviors, as well as recognition and execution of specified user instructions.

Abstract: A system and method for maintaining consistency across a decentralized database cluster is presented. A database cluster can contain a plurality of database servers, each hosting a copy of the same database. In a system without a centralized coordinating server, a message queue can be used to simultaneously provide updates to each database server in the database cluster. A When a database server receives an index update message, it adds message to a queue indicating it has received the message and watches an index update node. Once every server in the cluster has added a message to the queue, it is known that every database server has received the message. The update can be performed for each server and the changes committed simultaneously. In such a manner, all database servers in the cluster perform an update at approximately the same time. Other embodiments also are disclosed.

Abstract: An input mechanism is disclosed. The input mechanism includes a dome support structure defining an opening that extends through the dome support structure, a collapsible dome positioned in the opening and engaged with the dome support structure, and a cover member coupled to the dome support structure and covering the collapsible dome, thereby retaining the collapsible dome within the opening of the dome support structure.

Abstract: A method for reducing a computational load in high efficiency video coding includes generating a full rate distortion calculation list of selected intra coding modes where the intra coding modes including intra prediction modes and depth modeling modes. A rate distortion cost is determined, with a segment-wise depth coding mode being disabled, for each intra prediction mode in the full rate distortion calculation list and a smallest rate distortion cost intra prediction mode is selected. A rate distortion cost for a particular intra prediction mode is calculated with the segment-wise depth coding mode enabled. After comparison, one of the particular intra prediction mode and the smallest rate distortion cost intra prediction mode having the smallest rate distortion cost is applied to a prediction unit.