Abstract: A vehicle or another object is grasped by a robotic arm of a handling system and caused to undergo one or more movements or manipulations resulting in a change of position, orientation, velocity or acceleration of the vehicle. Sensors provided in the robotic arm capture data representative of forces or torques imparted upon the robotic arm by the vehicle during or after the movement, or power or energy levels of vibration resulting from the movement. A signature representative of an inertial or vibratory response of the vehicle to the movement is derived based on the data. The signature may be compared to a baseline signature similarly derived for a vehicle that is known to be structurally and aerodynamically sound. If the signature is sufficiently similar to the baseline signature, the vehicle may also be determined to be structurally and aerodynamically sound.

Abstract: A puller spacer has a cylindrical and elongated body. The puller spacer has a slot formed in a side of the body. The slot extends from a center bore of the puller spacer to an exterior of the puller spacer. Wires that extend out of a steering column are routed through a bottom of the puller spacer and into a center bore of the puller spacer, with an end of each of the wires extending out of the slot formed in a side of the puller spacer. The puller spacer is positioned between a distal end of a center threaded member of a steering wheel puller and the top of the steering column. The steering wheel puller engages the steering wheel and the center threaded member of the steering wheel puller is advanced to pull the steering wheel away from the steering column.

Abstract: A method of cooling a vane of a turbine is provided. The turbine includes an airfoil, a shroud disposed at an end of the airfoil, the end being a radial end along a radial direction of the turbine, the shroud comprising a shroud main body and a shroud edge disposed on a circumference of the shroud main body to surround the shroud main body, the shroud edge comprising a shroud edge passage therein. A cooling air is caused to flow inside the shroud edge passage to cool the shroud edge, and after cooling the shroud edge, the shroud main body is cooled by using the cooling air which has flowed inside the shroud edge passage.

Abstract: A system for recovering gel-mass from a gel-mass-containing waste material. The system includes mangle rolls, a heated accumulator for receiving and melting the gel-mass-containing waste material to provide an oil phase and a non-oil phase; a pumping system; an optional mixer; and a control system.

Abstract: A vehicle includes a body that defines an aperture. A closure panel is coupled to the body and is movable between an open position and a closed position. The closure panel covers the aperture when the closure panel is in the closed position. A support member has a first end and a second end. The first end is coupled to the body. The second end is coupled to the closure panel. The support member is operable between a compressed position and an extended position. The extended position of the support member corresponds with the open position of the closure panel. A collapsible member is coupled to the body and the support member. The collapsible member is movable between a stowed position and a deployed position. The collapsible member includes a first section and a second section. The collapsible member also includes a fluid drainage system.

Abstract: Systems and methods for providing policy-controlled communication over the Internet are provided. A system may include a client endpoint function configured to execute on a client device while coupled to a first VPN tunnel, a service endpoint function that operates a remote service of a plurality of remote services, and a mid-link server coupled to the first VPN tunnel and a second VPN tunnel. The mid-link server may include an inspection component that analyzes network packet traffic in accordance with a plurality of policies. The inspection component may inspect the network packet traffic for specific content and provide instructions to a router component and/or a mediation component of the mid-link server. The instructions may be a function of at least one policy that applies to the specific content.

Abstract: A conical mirror concentrator is disclosed which is configured for use as a laser-cooled cooled atom source. According to embodiments, the conical mirror concentrator may comprise a body; a reflective inner conical surface formed on the body tapering from a large diameter at a first side of body inward to a smaller dimeter in an interior space of the body, wherein the inner conical surface focuses light to an axis within the interior space of the body; a hole extending from the interior space of the body near a pinnacle of the inner conical surface to a second, opposite side of body; and a structure configured to mount the concentrator to an ultra-high vacuum chamber, such as a CF (or Conflat) flange or an anodicly bonded glass plate.

Abstract: Video compression and decompression techniques are disclosed that provide improved bandwidth control for video compression and decompression systems. In particular, video coding and decoding techniques quantize input video in multiple dimensions. According to these techniques, pixel residuals may be generated from a comparison of an array of input data to an array of prediction data. The pixel residuals may be quantized in a first dimension. After the quantization, the quantized pixel residuals may be transformed to an array of transform coefficients. The transform coefficients may be quantized in a second dimension and entropy coded. Decoding techniques invert these processes. In still other embodiments, multiple quantizers may be provided upstream of the transform stage, either in parallel or in cascade, which provide greater flexibility to video coders to quantize data in different dimensions in an effort to balance the competing interest in compression efficiency and quality of reconstructed video.

Abstract: Systems and methods for generating a video including a plurality of graphic objects provided in a shared environment is described. The method includes acquiring, at a first computing device, a shared session identifier from a shared session manager, the shared session identifier being associated with a first user identifier, receiving a selection of a second user identifier, causing the shared session identifier and the first user identifier to be provided to a second computing device associated with the second user identifier, receiving as input, a first graphic object for rendering to a display associated with the first computing device, the first graphic object being associated with the first user identifier, receiving from a data synchronizer, a second graphic object associated with the second user identifier and the shared session identifier for rendering to the display associated with the second computing device, and generating a video including graphic objects.

Abstract: A technique facilitates actuation of a downhole device, e.g. a flow control valve. The downhole device is shifted between positions by an actuator piston, which is movable in a first direction via hydraulic actuating fluid supplied by a first control line and in a second direction via hydraulic actuating fluid supplied by a second control line. A hydraulic circuit is coupled between the first control line and the second control line to enable a complete stroke of the actuator piston in one direction, e.g. the second direction, while limiting movement of the actuator piston to incremental movements in the other direction, e.g. the first direction. The hydraulic circuit employs a hydraulic enabled regulator having a plurality of pistons arranged to control the supply of hydraulic actuating fluid to achieve the desired incremental movements of the actuator piston.

Abstract: Devices, systems, and methods for operating a building management system using a lighting control interface are described herein. One device includes an occupancy sensing component, a lighting control interface configured to connect the occupancy sensing device to a lighting control channel of a building, and a building management system (BMS) interface configured to connect the occupancy sensing device to a BMS channel of the building.

Abstract: The present disclosure includes compositions and methods for filtering a liquid, e.g., water. The compositions herein may include a filter aid comprising a filter medium and packaging having at least one water-soluble portion. When the filter aid is introduced into the liquid to be filtered, the water-soluble portion(s) may dissolve or otherwise degrade in order to expose the filter medium to the liquid.

Abstract: Systems and methods for contact erosion mitigation are provided. To perform contact erosion mitigation, an order of opening/closing poles and/or contact relays of particular poles is altered, resulting in a sharing of potential arcing conditions amongst the poles/contact relays of these poles.

Abstract: A dynamic control valve assembly for use in filling a liquid carbon dioxide storage and gas delivery system is provided, the assembly comprising: a valve body; an end nut with an inlet port for receiving liquid carbon dioxide; a chamber; an inlet cavity; a liquid port; a gas port; and a dynamic compound valve stem assembly for blocking the gas port while liquid carbon dioxide is delivered through the inlet port and allowing the liquid carbon dioxide to flow through the liquid port for storage in a liquid cylinder, and open the gas port and block the inlet port in order to allow carbon dioxide gasses from boiling liquid carbon dioxide within the liquid cylinder to pass through the gas port for storage in a gas cylinder until system pressure and temperature equilibrium is reached. The dynamic compound valve stem assembly comprises: a stem body having an inlet port poppet and a gas port poppet; an inlet cavity collar; and in some embodiments a collar biasing spring.

Abstract: Systems and methods for a controlling a shared virtual environment are provided. The systems and methods includes a public display connects to a reflector via a network. A shared virtual environment is replicated on the public display. A QR code is displayed on the public display for scanning by a mobile device. The QR code includes instructions to download a controller interface and location of the reflector. The mobile device provides inputs, via the reflector, to the shared virtual environment. This causes mirroring of computations on each of the plurality of objects across the shared virtual environment deterministically. Further, a new message from the reflector with an appended timestamp is transmitted to advance time within the public display. Inputs from the mobile device may include a touchscreen input corresponding to rendered joysticks and buttons, and/or an accelerometer input after position of the mobile device has been calibrated related to the public display.

Abstract: A floor mat for placement on a vehicle floor, where the floor mat includes a body having a bottom wall, an upper surface, and a bottom surface, and a front wall extending from the bottom wall. The upper surface and the bottom surface extending along the bottom wall and the front wall. A first portion of the bottom surface of the bottom wall having a support structure provided with a variable height such that the shape of the support structure complements the irregularities in the vehicle floor, where the support structure extends from the bottom surface of the bottom wall, and a second portion of the bottom surface of the bottom wall has a flat surface, where upon the vehicle floor mat being placed on the vehicle floor, the support structure engages the irregularities in the vehicle floor so that the upper surface of the bottom wall is generally level.

Abstract: Solutions for physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) allocation, for example on a 5G network, include receiving, at a base station (BS) on a network, a session request message from a user equipment (UE) requesting a network session; based on at least receiving the session request message, determining a channel quality of a channel between the UE and the BS; based on at least the channel quality, selecting a first PUCCH format; and transmitting a message, from the BS, to the UE, instructing the UE to configure the PUCCH according to the first selected PUCCH format. Some examples further include: monitoring for a format change trigger; based on at least detecting the format change trigger, selecting a second PUCCH format different than the first PUCCH format; and transmitting a message, from the BS, to the UE, instructing the UE to configure the PUCCH according to the second selected PUCCH format.

Abstract: A device having an implantable body associated with at least two filaments or sutures and configured for use in soft tissue reconstructions is provided. One exemplary embodiment includes an implantable body, an adjustable filament loop for holding ligament grafts that is coupled to the body, and a shuttle suture removably coupled to the implantable body and configured for shuttling the body through at least a portion of a bone tunnel. The loop can be defined by a self-locking knot, and one or more loop-adjusting limbs can extend from the knot, with a portion of the limb(s) also extending into a hollow portion of the shuttle suture. In some embodiments having two adjustable limbs, an intermediate portion of each limb can be the portions disposed in respective hollow portions of the shuttle suture. Other configurations of devices and systems, as well as methods for performing ACL repairs, are also provided.

Abstract: This disclosure describes an apparatus and method of an embodiment of an invention that is a conferencing device that includes a microphone array that further comprises a plurality of microphones; a processor configured to execute the following steps: performing a beamforming operation to combine the plurality of microphones into a plurality of combined signals that is greater in number than one and less in number than the plurality of microphone signals, each of the plurality of combined signals corresponding to a different fixed beam; wherein performing the beamforming operation includes applying beamforming weights to the signals from each microphone to achieve a desired pickup pattern that includes a main lobe and sidelobes together with nulls for each fixed beam; performing an acoustic echo cancellation operation generate a plurality of combined echo cancelled signals; and selecting one or more of the combined echo cancelled signals for transmission to the far end.

Abstract: The present invention relates to novel liquid pharmaceutical compositions of adalimumab, which include adalimumab or a biosimilar thereof, EDTA, and a small polyol stabiliser such as glycerol. Such a combination of components furnishes formulations having a stability (e.g. on storage and when exposed to stress) which is comparable to or an improvement upon those known in the art, and with fewer ingredients. Such advances will help adalimumab treatments to become more widely available at lower cost, and prolong the viability of pre-loaded delivery devices (e.g. pre-filled syringes) to reduce unnecessary waste of the drug.