Abstract: Methods of administering wagering games may involve accepting a base game wager from a player to participate in a base game. The base game may involve presenting one or more lammers in response to an occurrence of one or more chance events, acceptance of one or more player instructions affecting game play of the base game, or the occurrence of the one or more chance events and the acceptance of the one or more player instructions affecting the game play of the base game in response to the occurrence of the one or more chance events. A side wager may be accepted from the player before any qualifying lammers can be presented. The side wager may be resolved by determining whether any qualifying lammers have been presented. A payout on the side wager may be paid to the player in response to a presence of at least one qualifying lammer.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a dispersible nonwoven fabric comprising pulp and solvent spun cellulosic fibers, characterized in that the solvent spun cellulosic fibers are fibrillated. Furthermore the invention concerns the use of the fabric in dry wipes and wet wipes.

Abstract: Methods and systems for producing jet-range hydrocarbons are disclosed herein. In an exemplary embodiment, a method for producing jet-range hydrocarbons includes the steps of combining a first stream including C4 olefinic hydrocarbons and a second stream including C5-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a third stream including C4-C8 hydrocarbons, oligomerizing the third stream including C4-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a fourth stream including C4-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons, and separating C5-C8 hydrocarbons from the fourth stream including C4-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce the second stream including C5-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons and a fifth stream including C9-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons. The method further includes the step of hydrogenating the fifth stream including C9-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a sixth stream including C9-C20 paraffinic jet-range hydrocarbons.

Abstract: There are provided systems and methods for a smart harbor device for intelligent updating and selection for use of transaction processing terminal devices. A smart harbor device may be used to provide updating, servicing, and other maintenance of transaction processing terminal devices, such as EMV terminals used in retail transaction processing. The smart harbor device may include a port where the transaction processing terminal devices may be places, and the smart harbor device may connect to each of the transaction processing terminal devices. Once connected, the smart harbor device may run diagnostics to determine the statuses and conditions for each of the transaction processing terminal devices and maintenance the transaction processing terminal devices. The maintenance may be performed at times where the transaction processing terminal devices are not required for use. Additionally, the smart harbor device may intelligently select one based on statuses and device capabilities.

Abstract: The present invention provides an audio-visual dialogue system that allows a user to create an ‘avatar’ which may be customised to look and sound a particular way. The avatar may be created to resemble, for example, a person, animal or mythical creature, and generated to have a variable voice which may be female or male. The system then employs a real-time voice conversion in order to transform any audio input, for example, spoken word, into a target voice that is selected and customised by the user. The system is arranged to facially animate the avatar using a real-time lip-synching algorithm such that the generated avatar and the target voice are synchronised.

Abstract: The present invention is drawn to compositions and methods to enhance an immune response in order to prevent or treat infections or hyperproliferative diseases such as cancer. More particularly, the composition is an immunostimulatory intracellular signaling peptide fused directly or indirectly to a peptide that leads to multimerization into complexes of three or more units, where the intracellular signaling peptide must be present in a complex of three or more units in order to stimulate an immune response. Inserting this fusion construct into viruses like HIV-1 or introducing it into dendritic cells or tumor cells is predicted to lead to a positive therapeutic effect in humans, non-human mammals, birds, and fish.

Abstract: Elongate, steerable devices for insertion into a subject's body, including very narrow (small diameter) devices that may be configured as steerable catheters and guidewires for use in interventional cardiology and neuroradiology. Also described are methods of making and using these devices, and controllers for controlling these steerable devices. These steerable devices may have a bendable distal region, a plurality of tendons each attached to the distal bendable region and extending from the distal bendable region to a proximal handle region with a plurality of axial translation regions. The axial translation regions may be arranged along an outer surface of the proximal handle region and each axial translation region may be coupled to a tendon for bending the distal region. The axial translation regions may be elastically connected to each other, and configured to translate the tendon and thereby steer the distal bendable region.

Abstract: A tyre inflation system for an agricultural seeding machine is disclosed. The agricultural machine includes a jump arm supporting at least one press wheel. The tyre inflation system comprises an air delivery path arranged to be in air flow communication with a cavity of a tyre of a press wheel, and an air flow controller operable to cause a delivery of air through the air delivery path to adjust an inflation pressure of the tyre in situ during use of the agricultural machine. A planter assembly including a tyre inflation system and a tyre for use with the tyre inflation system are also disclosed.

Abstract: A process for coating inside a container includes rotating the container about its imaginary vertical axis while simultaneously lowering airless spray nozzles along the vertical axis of the container into the cavity through the opening end and moving the nozzles back up and out of the container. Spray nozzles are used to apply a liquid coating at a spray pressure of about 100 to about 800 psi (6.89 to 55.16 bar) and at an angle of about 0 to about 120 degrees relative to the vertical axis, simultaneously with nozzle movement, to at least a portion of the inner surface while the container is rotating and the nozzles are moving along the vertical axis. The container is thereby coated on its inner surface to form an internally coated container.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a dispersible nonwoven fabric comprising pulp and solvent spun cellulosic fibers, characterized in that the solvent spun cellulosic fibers are fibrillated. Furthermore the invention concerns the use of the fabric in dry wipes and wet wipes.

Abstract: A jet-range hydrocarbon product includes a mixture of paraffins. The mixture exhibits a freeze point of less than or equal to about ?70° C., a 95% distillation point of greater than or equal to about 275° C., and a smooth boiling point curve that is characterized as having no intervals of the boiling point curve having a slope that is steeper than 4° C./mass % as defined by ASTM standard D2887 between mass recovered ranges of about 20% to about 80%. The steepness of the boiling point curve slope is calculated over any 10 mass % increments within the specified mass % ranges.

Abstract: A method of producing coil plate on a hot strip mill is disclosed. The method includes coiling hot rolled coil plate strip at a temperature that is selected (a) to minimize precipitation of Cr/Mo carbides or (b) so that any Cr/Mo carbides that form are sufficiently fine that they go into solution in any subsequent heat treatment of coil plate made from the strip.

Abstract: The present invention provides an audio-visual dialogue system that allows a user to create an ‘avatar’ which may be customised to look and sound a particular way. The avatar may be created to resemble, for example, a person, animal or mythical creature, and generated to have a variable voice which may be female or male. The system then employs a real-time voice conversion in order to transform any audio input, for example, spoken word, into a target voice that is selected and customised by the user. The system is arranged to facially animate the avatar using a real-time lip-synching algorithm such that the generated avatar and the target voice are synchronised.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for producing jet-range hydrocarbons from biorenewable sources, such as oligomerizing C3-C8 biorenewable olefins, for example, derived from C3-C8 alkanol products of fermentation of biomass. Production of jet-range hydrocarbons is increased by employing an additional oligomerization zone for oligomerizing naphtha separated from the effluent of a primary oligomerization zone wherein the C3-C8 biorenewable olefins were first subjected to oligomerization.

Abstract: A process for coating inside a container includes rotating the container about its imaginary vertical axis while simultaneously lowering airless spray nozzles along the vertical axis of the container into the cavity through the opening end and moving the nozzles back up and out of the container. Spray nozzles are used to apply a liquid coating at a spray pressure of about 100 to about 800 psi (6.89 to 55.16 bar) and at an angle of about 0 to about 120 degrees relative to the vertical axis, simultaneously with nozzle movement, to at least a portion of the inner surface while the container is rotating and the nozzles are moving along the vertical axis. The container is thereby coated on its inner surface to form an internally coated container.

Abstract: Methods are provided for producing normal paraffins. A method includes contacting a feedstock with a deoxygenation catalyst to produce a paraffin stream, where the feedstock includes a natural oil, and where the deoxygenation catalyst is sulfided. The reactions conditions are controlled when the feedstock contacts the deoxygenation catalyst to control a C11 to C12 normal paraffin ratio, by weight to within about 0.4 to about 1.7.

Abstract: A method for administering a card game includes providing a modified deck of 52 playing cards having 28 non-face cards and 24 face cards; receiving from a player an ante wager, a Faces wager, and optionally, a Picture Perfect wager; dealing cards to a dealer hand and a player hand; and receiving from the player an option to fold or to play. Upon election of the fold option, the player may forfeit the ante and Faces wagers. Upon election of the play option, the player may place a play wager. The wagers are resolved by comparing the dealer hand with the player hand and/or by the number and rank of face cards in the player hand. The deck of cards may include two face cards of each rank (K, Q, and J) and suit, and one non-face card of each rank (10 through 4) and suit.

Abstract: A method to implement a blackjack variation includes that, when the dealer is resolving the dealer's hand, if the dealer's point total is a preset total, then the dealer would automatically burn a card in the dealer's hand (such as the last card dealt to the dealer). The preset total can be twenty-one, so that, whenever the dealer's point total (after the dealer is done resolving the dealer's hand) is twenty-one, the dealer would burn a card in the dealer's hand. Thus, the dealer would typically have to draw another card, which could result in a better outcome for the player. (E.g., the dealer could bust or end up with a point total less than twenty-one).

Abstract: Methods and systems for producing jet-range hydrocarbons are disclosed herein. In an exemplary embodiment, a method for producing jet-range hydrocarbons includes the steps of combining a first stream including C4 olefinic hydrocarbons and a second stream including C5-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a third stream including C4-C8 hydrocarbons, oligomerizing the third stream including C4-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a fourth stream including C4-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons, and separating C5-C8 hydrocarbons from the fourth stream including C4-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce the second stream including C5-C8 olefinic hydrocarbons and a fifth stream including C9-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons. The method further includes the step of hydrogenating the fifth stream including C9-C20 olefinic hydrocarbons to produce a sixth stream including C9-C20 paraffinic jet-range hydrocarbons.

Abstract: Apparatuses and methods for producing linear alkylbenzene products from renewable oils are provided. An exemplary method includes deoxygenating the renewable oil in a deoxygenation zone to form paraffins. The method fractionates the paraffins to form first and second fractions. The method processes the first fraction of paraffins in a reforming zone to form a reformate stream and recovers a first hydrogen stream from the reforming zone. The method includes forming a LAB stream in a LAB production zone from the second fraction of paraffins and a portion of the reformate stream. Further, the method includes recovering a second hydrogen stream in the LAB production zone and recycling the first hydrogen stream from the reforming zone and the second hydrogen stream from the LAB production zone, wherein substantially all hydrogen recovered from the reforming zone and the LAB production zone is recycled.