Abstract: A wavelength selective switch includes an attenuation liquid crystal cell array and a switching liquid crystal cell array, the attenuation liquid crystal cell array is configured to select a region where a light is incident on the switching liquid crystal cell array; the switching liquid crystal cell array includes a first ECB liquid crystal cell array, which is divided into a plurality of pixel units, a phase of each pixel unit is adjusted by setting different voltages so that a phase pattern formed by the pixel units exhibits a lens property, and the light passing through the switching liquid crystal cell array is deflected by changing a center of the lens formed by the phase pattern, so as to select an outgoing port.

Abstract: A method and apparatus can be configured to determine a redundancy rate. The method can also include mirroring an amount of data from a first node to a second node based upon the determined redundancy rate. The method can also include transmitting a last-data-unit index or a next-data-unit index.

Abstract: A method for treating water including phosphorus by passing the water through a bed weak base anion exchange resin to remove the phosphorous from the water, wherein the method is characterized by the resin being loaded with alumina.

Abstract: The power required to recover C3+ hydrocarbons from crude carbon dioxide comprising C1+ hydrocarbons and hydrogen sulfide may be reduced by distilling the crude carbon dioxide to produce carbon dioxide-enriched overhead vapor and C3+ hydrocarbon-enriched bottoms liquid such that the hydrogen sulfide is rejected with the overhead vapor. Power consumption reductions may be achieved by incorporating a heat pump cycle using carbon dioxide vapor as working fluid to provide at least a part of the refrigeration duty and using a side reboiler to reduce the bottom reboiler duty. Where the bottoms liquid is further processed to produce “lighter” and “heavier” hydrocarbon fractions, the process enables optimization of upgrading crude oil on the basis of API gravity, Reid Vapor pressure and/or viscosity.

Abstract: The invention discloses a method for evaluating the aerosol mass of electronic cigarettes, comprising the following steps: (1) Measurement: an electronic cigarette is smoked to measure the particle size distribution and the particle numbers in the generated aerosol, and measure the volume flow rate C of the aerosol and the testing time t; (2) Data processing: based on the particle size distribution and number, the aerosol particles are classified with classifying diameter di, and the corresponding average number concentrations n of the particles to classifying diameters di are calculated; and (3) the generated aerosol mass is calculated according to the calculation formula for the aerosol mass of the invention.

Abstract: A system for performing single Gaussian skin detection is described herein. The system includes a memory and a processor. The memory is configured to receive image data. The processor is coupled to the memory. The processor is to generate a single Gaussian skin model based on a skin dominant region associated with the image data and a single Gaussian non-skin model based on a second region associated with the image data and to classify individual pixels associated with the image data via a discriminative skin likelihood function based on the single Gaussian skin model and the single Gaussian non-skin model to generate skin label data associated with the image data.

Abstract: Skin smoothing is applied to images using a bilateral filter and aided by a skin map. In one example a method includes receiving an image having pixels at an original resolution. The image is buffered. The image is downscaled from the original resolution to a lower resolution. A bilateral filter is applied to pixels of the downscaled image. The filtered pixels of the downscaled image are blended with pixels of the image having the original resolution, and the blended image is produced.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to wavelength selective switches. In one embodiment, a wavelength selective switch may include a liquid crystal (LC)-based attenuation switching device that has an LC switching module to switch an incident beam to one of a plurality of output paths. The LC switching module may include one or more LC switching cells. The LC-based attenuation switching device further includes a mirror to reflect the beam from the LC switching module so as to output the beam through a corresponding output port, and a temperature compensation module provided on a side of the mirror opposite to the LC switching module. The temperature compensation module may be configured to alter curvature of the mirror as temperature changes so as to compensate for deformation of the LC switching cells due to the temperature change.

Abstract: Systems and techniques of voice personalization for machine reading are described herein. A message with textual content may be received. A sender of the message may be identified. A voice model that corresponds to the sender may be identified. An audio representation of the textual content may be rendered using the voice model.

Abstract: A method of operating a wire bonding machine is provided. The method includes the steps of: (a) supporting a substrate on a material handling system of the wire bonding machine; (b) changing a bend profile of the substrate; and (c) securing, after step (b), the substrate against a support structure of the wire bonding machine using a clamping element of the wire bonding machine, the support structure for supporting the substrate during a wire bonding operation, and the clamping element for securing the substrate to the support structure during the wire bonding operation.

Abstract: The present disclosure discloses an information processing method performed at a computer server that is communicatively connected to a plurality of mobile terminals. The computer server receives a sharing request sent by a first terminal, where the sharing request carries a page link used to be linked to an information presentation page and an identifier of a first user currently logging into. The computer server then generates, according to the page link and the first user identifier, a sharing link used to be linked to the information presentation page and sends the sharing link to a second terminal of a second user identifier in a user relation chain of the first user identifier. Next, the computer server allocates virtual goods to the first user identifier according to a preset policy when it is determined that the second mobile terminal displays the information presentation page according to the sharing link.

Abstract: A wavelength selective switch includes an attenuation liquid crystal cell array and a switching liquid crystal cell array, the attenuation liquid crystal cell array is configured to select a region where a light is incident on the switching liquid crystal cell array; the switching liquid crystal cell array includes a first ECB liquid crystal cell array, which is divided into a plurality of pixel units, a phase of each pixel unit is adjusted by setting different voltages so that a phase pattern formed by the pixel units exhibits a lens property, and the light passing through the switching liquid crystal cell array is deflected by changing a center of the lens formed by the phase pattern, so as to select an outgoing port.

Abstract: Disclosed is a channel detection method applied to a wireless local area network device, including: measuring a channel before data are transmitted; and determining a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) threshold according to a corresponding relation among a channel measurement result, transmitting power levels and channel access parameters, and judging whether a state of the channel is idle according to the CCA threshold. The present application further discloses a channel detection apparatus.

Abstract: A multicast exchange optical switch includes an input port device including M input ports, an output port device including N output ports, a diffractive beam splitter, an optical focusing component, and a 1×N array of reflective devices. The diffractive beam splitter diffracts each input signal beam from the input ports into at least N directions. The optical focusing component includes a first focusing lens and a second focusing lens. The first focusing lens focuses sub-beams from the respective input ports along the Y-axis direction having the same diffraction order. The second focusing lens focuses on the X-axis direction sub-beams from the same input port having different diffraction orders. The 1×N array of reflective devices is provided at the focal plane of the optical focusing component and each reflective device reflects a sub-beam from any one of the input ports to any one of the output ports.

Abstract: A cosmetic instrument capable of reading a memory card includes a first housing; a second housing, assembled with the first housing to cooperatively form a shell having a chamber; a massage head mounted on a first end of the shell, the massage head extending into the chamber; a control panel comprising a display panel, the control panel being mounted on the shell beside the massage head; a micro controller unit and a drive unit positioned in the chamber and electrically connected with each other, the micro controller unit being electrically connected to the control panel and the display panel. The first housing and the seconding housing define a card insertion hole. The micro controller unit is configured to read information of a memory card inserted into the card insertion hole and generates a result. The display panel displays the result to remind the user to operate the cosmetic instrument.

Abstract: Provided is a method for forwarding a multicast message, which includes that: a forwarding chip receives a multicast message, determines that the multicast message is a known multicast message, sends the known multicast message to a Central Processing Unit (CPU), deletes a CPU interface from an outbound interface list of a multicast forwarding table, updates the multicast forwarding table and a multicast state table according to a received multicast routing table, and determines that the multicast forwarding table is converged into a steady state according to the updated multicast state table. A device for forwarding a multicast message is provided, accordingly.

Abstract: A method to update reference verification information used for electrocardiogram (ECG) signal verification includes: identifying a first ECG signal measured from a user; verifying the first ECG signal by comparing a second ECG signal included in a reference ECG signal set with the first ECG signal; in response to the first ECG signal being successfully verified, setting the successfully verified first ECG signal to be a third ECG signal, and adding the third ECG signal to a verified ECG signal set; and updating the reference ECG signal set by setting the third ECG signal added to the verified ECG signal set to be an additional second ECG signal, based on the reference ECG signal set and the verified ECG signal set.

Abstract: The invention provides a video codec. In one embodiment, the video codec is coupled to an outer memory storing a reference frame, and comprises an interface circuit, an in-chip memory, a motion estimation circuit, and a controller. The interface circuit obtains in-chip data from the reference frame stored in the outer memory. The in-chip memory stores the in-chip data. The motion estimation circuit retrieves search window data from the in-chip data with a search window, and performs a motion estimation process on a current macroblock according to the search-window data. The controller shifts the location of the search window when the current macroblock is shifted, marks a macroblock shifted out from the search window as an empty macroblock, and controls the interface circuit to obtain an updated macroblock for replacing the empty macroblock in the in-chip memory from the reference frame stored in the outer memory.

Abstract: Providing a user interface (UI) on a web page. A toolbar section is defined on the web page. The web page includes a content section being different and separate from the toolbar section, and the content section displays additional content of the web page. One or more groups are specified to include one or more action controls associated therewith. Each of the specified groups has a group identifier associated therewith. The one or more action controls are displayed according to the specified groups in the toolbar section of the web page. Each of the one or more displayed action controls includes properties associated therewith, and the included properties define at least one of the following: a name of the action control, a link of the action control, the group identifier of the action control, and a classification identifier of the action control.

Abstract: The invention provides a video codec. In one embodiment, the video codec is coupled to an outer memory storing a reference frame, and comprises an interface circuit, an in-chip memory, a motion estimation circuit, and a controller. The interface circuit obtains in-chip data from the reference frame stored in the outer memory. The in-chip memory stores the in-chip data. The motion estimation circuit retrieves search window data from the in-chip data with a search window, and performs a motion estimation process on a current macroblock according to the search-window data. The controller shifts the location of the search window when the current macroblock is shifted, marks a macroblock shifted out from the search window as an empty macroblock, and controls the interface circuit to obtain an updated macroblock for replacing the empty macroblock in the in-chip memory from the reference frame stored in the outer memory.