Abstract: An implantable medical device having a concave ceramic housing component; a concave metal housing component attached to the ceramic housing component to form a hermetically sealed enclosure; and an electronic trans-housing magnetic flux component disposed within the enclosure. Another aspect of the invention provides an implantable medical device having a ceramic housing component; a metal housing component; a circumferential sealing member attached to a periphery of the ceramic housing component and to a periphery of the metal housing component to form a hermetically sealed enclosure; and an electronic trans-housing magnetic flux component disposed within the enclosure.

Abstract: A method of filtering fraudulent responses from survey data including responses to survey questions received from survey takers and a response time for each response. For each question, any responses to the question having a response time less than a minimum time required to provide a thoughtful response are filtered from the survey data. Optionally, for each survey taker, a number of responses filtered from the survey data is determined. If this number exceeds a threshold, all responses provided by the survey taker are filtered from the survey data. The method may determine whether responses provided by each survey taker to attributes of a matrix question include a pattern. If a survey taker's responses include the pattern and were provided in less than the minimum time required to provide a thoughtful response to the matrix question, all responses provided by the survey taker are filtered from the survey data.

Abstract: An interlock system for measuring the sobriety of a potential motorized apparatus operator is coupled to the starting mechanism of said motorized apparatus. The interlock system includes a microprocessor controlled handset, base unit and photographic device. The photographic device facilitates the identification process of the person taking the test by taking at least two consecutive pictures, one before and one during the test, which makes circumvention of the test a recordable event for later viewing by a monitoring person or facility. Further, rolling re-tests are used in the event the motorized apparatus was allowed to engage and operate and to once again verify the blood alcohol content of the person operating said apparatus and verify their identity during said test with said photographic device.

Abstract: A method and tool for managing network infrastructure is presented. The tool provides information related to infrastructure of international networks, including facilities and equipment, and enables the display of such information. The information can be displayed in both geographic and tabular form. The equipment includes international as well as proprietary equipment, and information describes the relationship between the two.

Abstract: An accurate method of reporting “minutes of outage” for a SONET facility applies a set of business rules and hierarchical definitions to delete certain minutes that would otherwise be counted as “outages”. In particular, any outage minutes reported for a network element taken out of service for “planned maintenance” activities are removed prior to performing the final count. Additionally, outage minutes for a “lower level” element (such as, for example an OC1 element) that overlap in time with outage minutes reported for a “high level” element are likewise removed before the count is performed. The elimination of these non-service impacting outage minutes thus results in a more accurate reporting of the actual service impact of the counted outage minutes.

Abstract: A system and method that includes receiving data representative of a change in volume of network content related to a ticker from a reference volume; and displaying in a user interface a visual element associated with the ticker, wherein the appearance of the visual element depends upon the change in volume.

Abstract: The present invention provides for a system and method for evaluating changes to internet content wherein content is harvested from Internet sources and the harvested content includes changed content. The harvested content is filtered and analyzed using one or more keyword analyses based on a predetermined list of one or more keywords. A quality score is determined based on the relative occurrence of the one or more keywords within or associated with the harvested content.

Abstract: An accurate method of reporting “minutes of outage” for a SONET facility applies a set of business rules and hierarchical definitions to delete certain minutes that would otherwise be counted as “outages”. In particular, any outage minutes reported for a network element taken out of service for “planned maintenance” activities are removed prior to performing the final count. Additionally, outage minutes for a “lower level” element (such as, for example an OC1 element) that overlap in time with outage minutes reported for a “high level” element are likewise removed before the count is performed. The elimination of these non-service impacting outage minutes thus results in a more accurate reporting of the actual service impact of the counted outage minutes.

Abstract: A method of coating a substrate such as a heat sensitive engineered wood substrate which involves sequential powder coating where at least one and preferably both powder coating steps involves the use of fixed infrared heat sources (optionally pulsing themselves) passed which the developing product (the substrate and its coatings) moves thereby to provide a heat relaxation between maximum exposure to each (optionally pulsing) infrared source. Preferably the first coating is green cured only prior to the application of the second powder coating. Preferably similar pulsing heat sources are used for the initial heating of the substrate so as to enable powder coating.

Abstract: In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, a method is presented for viewing information acquired from an integrated network. A plurality of modules (client/server methods) is used by an end user to access information in the integrated network. The information is accessed from databases distributed across the network. A client/server method (i.e., module) utilizes a key to search for information across distributed databases. The information is then returned to the client for viewing in a window based on the mode selected for viewing. For example, the information may be viewed as text in information mode, as images in photo mode, as images in CAD mode, or as a video in video mode.

Abstract: An interlock system for measuring the sobriety of a potential motorized apparatus operator is coupled to the starting mechanism of said motorized apparatus. The interlock system includes a microprocessor controlled handset, base unit and photographic device. The photographic device facilitates the identification process of the person taking the test by taking at least two consecutive pictures, one before and one during the test, which makes circumvention of the test a recordable event for later viewing by a monitoring person or facility. Further, rolling re-tests are used in the event the motorized apparatus was allowed to engage and operate and to once again verify the blood alcohol content of the person operating said apparatus and verify their identity during said test with said photographic device.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and system for providing facility-based aerial displays to field personnel in support of repairing outside network facilities. The invention relates to a method and system for displaying a series of selected frames to generate a display of surroundings within the vicinity of a cable break. Frames are selected and manipulated in accordance with a significance level which accepts or rejects the frame and in accordance with a set of display parameters selected by a dispatcher. The aerial display is compiled and displayed to support the assessment of the surroundings to be encountered by a repair crew.

Abstract: The disclosure provides methods of propagating skeletal muscle cell (SkMC) cultures enriched in differentiation-competent myoblasts that express normal levels of CD56 and reduced levels of desmin. The methods comprise culturing SkMCs in a mitogen-rich cell culture medium supplemented with TGF-?. The disclosure also provides therapeutic methods utilizing SkMCs propagated in TGF-?, e.g., methods of treating myocardial infarction by transplantation of autologous or allogeneic SkMCs.

Abstract: An interlock device for measuring the sobriety of a potential vehicle operator is coupled to the starting mechanism of the vehicle. The interlock device includes a microprocessor controlled handset and base unit. The base unit encloses relays to preclude the starting mechanism from engaging if a predetermined acceptable threshold level of blood alcohol content has been exceeded. The relays receive a signal, through the base unit microprocessor, from the handset microprocessor which has calculated the blood alcohol content of a breath sample introduced into the handset by the vehicle operator. A breath sampling housing is enclosed within the handset in axial alignment with an intake port of the handset. A water filter and valve are positioned upstream from an electrochemical fuel cell. The fuel cell is coupled to the microprocessor. A pressure transducer measures the pressure of the breath sample.

Abstract: An electro hydraulic actuator with built-in fail safes is provided. Multiple accumulators are integrated into the actuator to improve reliability and redundancy. One or more accumulators can fail and the remaining accumulators provide sufficient energy to move the actuator to its fail-safe condition.

Abstract: An apparatus for improving the procedure for quantifying the volume of liquid dispensed by a liquid-dispensing mechanism of an analytical instrument. The apparatus of this invention comprises (a) at least one weigh cup; (b) at least one standard mass; (c) at least one transducer assembly to convert a value of weight to an electrical response; and (d) at least one electronic circuit for converting the electrical response to a measurement of volume. This invention provides a method for calibrating readings of the volume of liquid dispensed by a liquid-dispensing mechanism of an analytical instruments so that absolute measurements of the volume of liquid dispensed can be obtained.

Abstract: A system for providing property information about a property over a wireless network to an interested party having a mobile device, comprising: (a) an advertisement associated with the property, the advertisement having a shortcode and a keyword, and (b) a networked computer system having a property database containing property information for the property; the property information being retrievable from the property database based on the shortcode and the keyword. In operation, the interested party requests the property information about the property by sending a message with the shortcode and the keyword over the wireless network using the mobile device and, in response, the networked computer system retrieves the property information about the property associated with the shortcode and the keyword from the property database and transmits the property information to the mobile device of the interested party.

Abstract: Modeled data (12) regarding a plurality of consumer retail outlets is provided (11) and used (15) to identify at least one unleveraged marketing opportunity with respect to increasing sales of at least one consumer commodity via at least one of the plurality of consumer retail outlets. In a preferred approach, these consumer retail outlets correspond to one or more specific limited geographic areas (21) that serve, in general, to further facilitate a granular understanding and application of the provided data.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for automatically generating charts, preferably in Microsoft® Excel format, for the users to be able to better analyze the network data. All the functions needed to generate are performed at the network server without installing any additional components on user's server, thereby independent of any third party software. Furthermore, minimal user input is required using any kind of application without modifications.

Abstract: In a method for effecting rights transfer from a first entity to a second entity, a financial instrument is issued to the first entity in exchange for a right granted from the first entity. The financial instrument has a component that includes a cumulative royalty account representative of a cumulative royalty amount. A royalty amount to be credited the cumulative royalty account is calculated periodically and is based on a predetermined royalty schedule. On a conversion event, an average price per value unit for the second entity is determined. The financial instrument is converted into value units by dividing the cumulative royalty amount in the cumulative royalty account by the average price per value unit. The converted value units are issued to the first entity.