Abstract: A hydrocarbon control system includes a base device, a field device, and a mobile device. The base device includes a key generator configured to generate a temporary key. The field device is configured to restrict or allow access based on verification of a received key. The mobile device is configured to communicate with the base device to receive the temporary key when in proximity of the base device, communicate with the field device to provide the temporary key to the field device when in proximity of the field device, and exchange data with the field device in response to the field device verifying the temporary key.

Abstract: A lavalier microphone has improved dynamic range. The lavalier microphone incorporates a pair of microphone transducer elements into the same housing or attached housings, with one of the microphone transducer elements being more sensitive to acoustic input than the other. The voltage signals from the respective transducer elements are processed and combined, resulting in a digital output audio signal with improved signal to noise both at lower and higher input acoustic levels.

Abstract: A removable facial interface for a head-mountable device (HMD) is disclosed. In an example, an HMD includes a display; a facial interface frame at least partially surrounding the display; a removable facial interface attached to the facial interface frame; a first attachment mechanism attached to one of the facial interface frame or the removable facial interface; and a second attachment mechanism attached to the other of the facial interface frame or the removable facial interface, the removable facial interface being attached to the facial interface frame by the first attachment mechanism and the second attachment mechanism.

Abstract: Thermoelectric (TE) nanocomposite material that includes at least one component consisting of nanocrystals. A TE nanocomposite material in accordance with the present invention can include, but is not limited to, multiple nanocrystalline structures, nanocrystal networks or partial networks, or multi-component materials, with some components forming connected interpenetrating networks including nanocrystalline networks. The TE nanocomposite material can be in the form of a bulk solid having semiconductor nanocrystallites that form an electrically conductive network within the material.

Abstract: A medical instrument includes an instrument shaft with exit holes near a distal end of the shaft, a tool coupled to the distal end of the shaft, and a backend. The backend may include a mechanism that manipulates a drive element that extends through the shaft and couples to the tool, a fluid inlet, and a fluid channel assembly providing fluid communication between the fluid inlet and the proximal end of the shaft. Cleaning fluid is directed into the fluid inlet, through the fluid channel assembly, and into the shaft. A chassis or other structural piece of the backend may form part of the fluid channel assembly.

Abstract: A surgical system includes a surgical instrument that is sensitive to backlash that would adversely affect the transmission of controlled torque and position to the surgical instrument. The surgical instrument is coupled to motors in a surgical instrument manipulator assembly via a mechanical interface. The combination of the mechanical interface and surgical instrument manipulator assembly have low backlash, e.g., less than 0.7 degrees. The backlash is controlled in the surgical instrument manipulator assembly. From the drive output disk in the surgical instrument manipulator assembly to the driven disk of the surgical instrument, the mechanical interface has zero backlash for torque levels used in surgical procedures.

Abstract: Activation of an automatic driving feature in a vehicle is detected by evaluating sequential vehicle operation data against subtractive and additive heuristic rules that define a likelihood of an automatic driving feature having been engaged as a function of vehicle performance. The sequential vehicle operation data, which does not include an explicit indication of whether the automatic driving feature was engaged, is provided for time intervals of a trip made by the vehicle. Automatic driving information is generated, which provides an indication of whether the automatic driving feature was engaged during a subset of the time intervals.

Abstract: A gas turbine engine including a core having a compressor section fluidly connected to a combustor via a primary flowpath and a turbine section connected to the combustor via the core flow path. An assembly is disposed within the gas turbine engine and includes a first part connected to a second part via a radial stack joint. The first part includes a radially inward facing surface contacting a corresponding radially outward facing surface of the second part. A fastener protrudes through the first part and the second part and is configured to maintain the relative positions of the first part and the second part. A channel is disposed on at least one of the radially inward facing surfaces and is positioned between the fastener and a circumferential edge of the first part. The channel is connected to at least one cooling air source.

Abstract: A medical instrument includes a tool extender used to retain and move a tool relative to a flexible elongate device. The tool extender includes a slider that allows a user to move the tool relative to a flexible elongate device with one hand using a portion of the slider that is configured to be engaged and manipulated by the user's hand or fingers.

Abstract: An apparatus can include a display, a facial interface, and a connector between the display and the facial interface. The facial interface can at least translate or rotate relative to the display via the connector.

Abstract: A cloud service system manages a filter repository including filters for encoding and decoding media content (e.g. text, image, audio, video, etc.). The cloud service system may receive a request from a client device to provide a filter for installation on a node such as an endpoint device (e.g. pipeline node). The request includes information such as a type of bitstream to be processed by the requested filter. The request may further include other information such as hardware configuration and functionality attribute. The cloud service system may access the filter repository that stores the plurality of filters including encoder filters and decoder filters and may select a filter that is configured to process the type of bitstream identified in the request and provide the selected filter to the client device.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides compositions including method of producing H2, variable volume reactors, methods of using variable volume reactors, and the like.

Abstract: A compression system trains a machine-learned compression model that includes components for an encoder and decoder. In one embodiment, the compression model is trained to receive parameter information on how a target frame should be encoded with respect to one or more encoding parameters, and encodes the target frame according to the respective values of the encoding parameters for the target frame. In particular, the encoder of the compression model includes at least an encoding system configured to encode a target frame and generate compressed code that can be transmitted by, for example, a sender system to a receiver system. The decoder of the compression model includes a decoding system trained in conjunction with the encoding system. The decoding system is configured to receive the compressed code for the target frame and reconstruct the target frame for the receiver system.

Abstract: Curable compositions comprising 1,1-di-activated vinyl compounds are provided herein. Also provided are coatings formed from 1,1-di-activated vinyl compounds. Also provided are processes for coating substrates and articles. Curable compositions including 1,1-di-activated vinyl compounds that function as crosslinking agents are described.

Abstract: A muffler includes a housing defining a first chamber, a second chamber and a third chamber. The muffler includes at least a pair of nested protrusions in communication with an inlet. The pair of nested protrusions is coupled to a respective surface of a pair of plates disposed in the housing such that one of the pair of nested protrusions is spaced apart from and opposite another of the pair of nested protrusions to define a tortuous path that terminates at an outlet defined along an outer circumference. The first chamber is downstream from the pair of plates. The muffler includes a first tube fluidly coupled to the first chamber to direct the exhaust gases from the first chamber to the second chamber. The muffler includes a second tube fluidly coupled to the second chamber to direct the exhaust gases from the second chamber to the third chamber.

Abstract: Multi-ply paper products and methods of making such products includes providing a first furnish including a primary pulp having papermaking fibers with a weight-weighted average fiber length, a coarseness of about sixteen milligrams per one hundred meters or lower, and being at least eighty percent of the papermaking fibers of the first furnish, forming a nascent web having at least two layers, one of the layers being a surface layer of the nascent web and formed from the first furnish, dewatering the nascent web to form a dewatered web, and drying the dewatered web to form a multi-ply paper product. The multi-ply paper product includes a first ply and a second ply arranged such that an inner layer of the first ply is adjacent to an inner layer of the second ply and the inner layer of the first ply is attached to the inner layer of the second ply.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to compositions comprising and methods for chemical modification of single guide RNA (sgRNA), tracrRNA and/or crRNA used individually or in combination with one another or Cas system components. Compositions comprising modified ribonucleic acids have been designed with chemical modification for even higher efficiency as unmodified native strand of sgRNA. Administration of modified ribonucleic acids will allow decreased immune response when administered to a subject, increased stability, increased editing efficiency and facilitated in vivo delivery of sgRNA via various delivery platforms. The disclosure also relates to methods of decreasing off-target effect of CRISPR and a CRISPR complex.

Abstract: Methods and constructs for engineering circular RNA are disclosed. In some embodiments, the methods and constructs comprise a vector for making circular RNA, the vector comprising the following elements operably connected to each other and arranged in the following sequence: a.) a 5? homology arm, b.) a 3? group I intron fragment containing a 3? splice site dinucleotide, c.) optionally, a 5? spacer sequence, d.) a protein coding or noncoding region, e.) optionally, a 3? spacer sequence, f) a 5? Group I intron fragment containing a 5? splice site dinucleotide, and g.) a 3? homology arm, the vector allowing production of a circular RNA that is translatable or biologically active inside eukaryotic cells. Methods for purifying the circular RNA produced by the vector and the use of nucleoside modifications in circular RNA produced by the vector are also disclosed.

Abstract: A hybrid photovoltaic-thermal system provides co-generation of electrical energy and thermal energy. Electrical energy is efficiently generated by photovoltaic panels that are cooled by heat exchangers attached thereto, and the cooling of the photovoltaic panels improves the energy output efficiency of the photovoltaic panels. The heat exchangers flow fluid through its channels, and the fluid collects heat from the photovoltaic panels to which the heat exchangers are attached. The heated fluid is then received at and stored in a thermal battery. The thermal battery can be a fluid tank that encourages the fluid to retain the heat collected from the photovoltaic panels. The thermal battery can then supply the heated fluid to thermal loads as thermal energy.