Abstract: A vehicle is provided with an axle suspended from a main frame of the vehicle by right- and left-hand pairs of connecting rods. As viewed from the top, one of each of the right- and left-hand pairs of connecting rods crosses the other of the pair of rods, and, as viewed from the side, the right- and left-hand pairs of rods are disposed parallel to each other. This arrangement of the connecting rods results in the axle moving substantially vertically up and down during operation of vehicle over uneven terrain.

Abstract: The present invention is a filter that includes a length of filter media and a continuous, substantially nonlinear adhesive strand. The filter media has a front face and a rear face. The filter media has a plurality of pleats defined by a plurality of fold lines, each fold line being intermediate oppositely sloping first and second wall surfaces. The plurality of fold lines comprise a first plurality of pleat tips and a second plurality of pleat valleys. The adhesive strand is provided on the front face of the filter media in discontinuous contact with the filter media. The adhesive strand contacts the filter media at a pleat tip and contacts the filter media at a portion of a first wall surface and contacts the filter media at a portion of a second wall surface.

Abstract: One embodiment is a method that builds a standardized web form that includes information extracted from multiple web forms retrieved over a web from different service providers. The standardized web form is used to retrieve price quotes from the different service providers.

Abstract: One embodiment is a method that receives a list of service providers offering services at web sites and extracts content from the web sites to identify the services offered by the service providers. The method then populates service registries with the content.

Abstract: One embodiment is a method that receives a description of services desired by a service requestor and then crawls web sites to extract information on services offered by service providers. The extracted information is used to transform the description of services desired by the service requestor into an improved description of services.

Abstract: Candidate service providers for a desired service are ranked. Terms describing service requirements for a desired service are determined. Service capability documents describing the services of the candidate service providers are determined using the terms describing the service requirements. Using singular value decomposition (SVD) and a metric, similarities between the terms describing the service requirements and the service capability documents are determined. The candidate service providers are ranked based on the similarities.

Abstract: Terms are extracted from service description documents describing desired services, and the terms are used to search for candidate service providers operable to provide the desired services. A matrix of terms and documents are determined from the service description documents. Singular value decomposition (SVD) is used to decompose the matrix. Eigen vectors from the SVD decomposition are weighted by top k singular values in a diagonal matrix S of singular values also generated from the decomposition. The weighted eigen vectors are used to rank terms from the matrix X based on relevance of the terms to the requirements for desired services described in the service description documents.

Abstract: An exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a method of identifying providers. The method includes obtaining a results document from a search, wherein the results document comprises references to documents that contain a keyword. analyzing the results document to identify a plurality of the references. The method includes accessing each of the documents using the identified references and analyzing each of the accessed documents to determine a probabilistic value that the accessed document is associated with a provide.

Abstract: A system for managing resources automatically among nodes includes a node controller configured to dynamically manage allocation of node resources to individual workloads, where each of the nodes is contained in one of a plurality of pods. The system also includes a pod controller configured to manage live migration of workloads between nodes within one of the plurality of pods, where the plurality of pods are contained in a pod set. The system further includes a pod set controller configured to manage capacity planning for the pods contained in the pod set. The node controller, the pod controller and the pod set controller are interfaced with each other to enable the controllers to meet common service policies in an automated manner. The node controller, the pod controller and the pod set controller are also interfaced with a common user interface to receive service policy information.

Abstract: A vehicle is provided with an axle suspended from a main frame of the vehicle by right- and left-hand pairs of connecting rods. As viewed from the top, one of each of the right- and left-hand pairs of connecting rods crosses the other of the pair of rods, and, as viewed from the side, the right- and left-hand pairs of rods are disposed parallel to each other. This arrangement of the connecting rods results in the axle moving substantially vertically up and down during operation of vehicle over uneven terrain.

Abstract: The method of forming pleated filter media includes providing a generally planar web of filter material, folding the web to form a pleated web having a plurality of fold lines, arranging the plurality of pleats in a first spaced configuration defined by a first distance between adjacent pleat tips, applying a continuous strand of adhesive to the web, and adjusting the arrangement of the plurality of pleats into a second spaced configuration defined by a second distance between adjacent pleat tips. The web has a front face and a rear face. Each fold line is intermediate oppositely sloping first and second wall surfaces. The plurality of fold lines form a plurality of pleats having a first plurality of pleat tips and a second plurality of pleat valleys. The second distance is different from the first distance.

Abstract: A system and method that pertains to a provisioning system that may receive information pertaining to a specified service, automatically determine whether resources are available to implement the specified service, acquire the resources, and provision resources to implement the specified service. In accordance with other embodiments, the system and method may monitor the resources against a service level to determine if a malfunction occurs and automatically replace a malfunctioned resource with a new resource. The system and method may align and correlate business processes to services to elements that make up the system and then to related events. The system may allow acquiring additional resources or releasing resources to a pool of available resources as necessary. The structure and method may be used to build a system to perform a desired function and as a tool to evaluate and visualize systems and components that performs those functions.

Abstract: A method of making a microfibrous sorbent article is provided. The method includes the steps of a) extruding molten thermoplastic fiber forming polymer from multiple orifices in a fiber-forming die, said orifices being aligned along the face of the die; b) attenuating the fibers in a stream of hot air to form a fiber stream of microfibers; and c) collecting said microfibers on a collector having a forming surface, said surface being aligned with said die and substantially parallel to and equidistant from said die such that the fibers form a spirally wound microfibrous sorbent article which is supported on its exterior surface by said forming surface and which is drawn across said forming surface substantially parallel to said die. Also provided is a microfibrous sorbent article prepared according to the method.

Abstract: A shipping or secondary container, which can safely transport a plurality of breakable primary containers of a variety of sizes and shapes, has a pair of rigid shells that mate. A batt of sorptive material fills each shell, and a normally tacky, discontinuous adhesive layer covers the exposed face of at least one batt. The shells can be vacuum formed from a sheet of thermoplastic resin that is 0.25 to 0.5 mm in thickness. The two shells preferably are identical to each other. To permit them to interlock, each shell has an upstanding wall that is formed with both tongues and grooves which telescopically mate with the tongues and grooves of the other shell.

Abstract: A cutting tool is provided which permits renewable cutting edges containing teeth to be readily formed in field service.