Abstract: A vehicle splash guard includes a flexible body and at least one reinforcement member. The flexible body has a body panel attachment area that is configured to abut a vehicle body panel. The reinforcement member is fixedly connected to the flexible body. The reinforcement member has at least one bending portion. The bending portion is a portion of weakness in the reinforcement member to enable the reinforcement member to deform at the bending portion in a direction towards the vehicle body panel to reduce a space between the splash guard and the vehicle body panel when the splash guard is installed onto the vehicle body panel.

Abstract: For a plurality of hosts, observe first time-varying characteristics including network throughput, central processing unit (CPU) usage, and/or memory usage; second time-varying characteristics including software configuration; and time-invariant characteristics including hardware configuration, at a plurality of timestamps. Construct a restricted HMM configured to predict actual host states, wherein the first time-varying characteristics include observed variables. The current observed variables depend on current values of the hidden variables and prior timestamp distribution of the observed variables. The former in turn depend on prior timestamp values of the hidden variables, the time-invariant characteristics of the hosts. and current timestamp values of the second time-varying characteristics.

Abstract: Apparatus for X-ray microanalysis of a sample includes an X-ray source, which irradiates a spot having a dimension less than 500 &mgr;m on a surface of the sample. A first X-ray detector captures fluorescent X-rays emitted from the sample, responsive to the irradiation, at a high angle relative to the surface of the sample. A second X-ray detector captures X-rays from the spot at a grazing angle relative to the surface of the sample. Processing circuitry receives respective signals from the first and second X-ray detectors responsive to the X-rays captured thereby, and analyzes the signals in combination to determine a property of a surface layer of the sample within the area of the spot.

Abstract: A method for testing the deposition and/or the removal of a material within a recess on the surface of a sample. An excitation beam is directed onto a region of the sample in a vicinity of the recess, and an intensity of X-ray fluorescence, emitted from the region in a spectral range in which the material is known to fluoresce, is measured. A quantity of the material that is deposited within the recess is determined responsive to the measured intensity.