Abstract: A computerized payment system by which a consumer may instruct a service provider by telephone, computer terminal, or other telecommunications means to pay various bills without the consumer having to write a check for each bill. The system operates without restriction as to where the consumer banks and what bills are to be paid. The service provider collects consumers' information, financial institutions' information and merchant information and arranges payment based on a financial risk analysis to the merchants according to the consumers' instructions.

Abstract: A computerized payment system by which a consumer may instruct a service provider by telephone, computer terminal, or other telecommunications means to pay various bills without the consumer having to write a check for each bill. The system operates without restriction as to where the consumer banks and what bills are to be paid. The service provider collects consumers' information, financial institutions' information and merchant information and arranges payment based on a financial risk analysis to the merchants according to the consumers' instructions.

Abstract: A monitor device for monitoring the activity of an individual to provide an alarm for anomalous by the individual. The device includes a triaxial accelerometer adapted to measure simultaneously measure acceleration in three orthogonal, linear axes and generate a voltage output identifying the amplitude and frequency of detected motion by the individual in each axis. Also included is interface electronics for receiving the voltage outputs and buffering the voltage outputs to generate a first reference voltage for each axis of the accelerometer. Amplifier electronics amplifies each voltage output and compares each voltage output to the first reference voltage to produce a digital signal. A microcontroller receives the digital signal to compare it to an adjustable second reference voltage.

Abstract: The present invention provides a shelf assembly for a cooking apparatus such as a barbeque grill, and method of using same. The shelf assembly has a shelf component which can rotate about a generally horizontal axis of rotation located generally at a first end of the shelf component, from a lowered position to a raised position. The cooking apparatus or an associated apparatus has a frame member which supports the first end of the shelf component about the axis of rotation. The shelf assembly also has a support extending downwardly in relation to the shelf component when the shelf component is in the raised position. The support is capable of rotating about the axis of rotation with the shelf component. The shelf assembly further has a stationary coupler located generally below the axis of rotation in the vicinity of where the support is capable of rotating about the axis of rotation with the shelf component.

Abstract: The present invention is a barbecue grill assembly having a frame with a work surface secured by a sliding mechanism, such as a sliding track assembly. The present invention alternatively provides a work surface being a slidable burner cover assembly for an auxiliary burner of a barbecue gas grill. The assembly includes a burner cover having a body portion disposed over the auxiliary burner in a closed position and a slide mechanism attached to the grill and the cover to allow the cover to be slidably moved from the closed position to a second position wherein the auxiliary burner is exposed from underneath the body portion of the burner cover. The slide mechanism also provides extended cantilever support for the work surface in the second position.

Abstract: A method for generating a numeric or alpha-numeric identifier representative of a chemical structure having at least two atoms connected by a bond includes the step of assigning a numerical value to each atom and a numerical bond value to each bond. The method updates the numerical values for each atom based on the current values assigned to each atom and the numerical bond value. After the numerical values for each atom have been updated the method calculates a numeric or alpha-numeric identifier for the chemical structure.

Abstract: The present invention provides methods and systems for an interactive toy which synthesizes sound in real time in response to changing events. At least one sensor provides continuous motion information, including at least information related to the angular position and the velocity of at least one toy portion's motion relative to a second toy portion. Each toy portion resembles portions of a vehicle. A memory is used to store data relating to a plurality of play scenarios as well as to store information related to a user's play pattern. A processor is coupled to the memory and the at least one sensor. The processor is configured to select one of the play scenarios based on at least the continuous motion information and to produce synthesized sounds resembling sounds made by real versions of at least one of the two toy portions in response to at least the continuous motion information, the play pattern information, and the selected play scenario.

Abstract: The present invention provides methods and systems for an interactive toy which synthesizes sound in real time in response to changing events. At least one sensor provides continuous motion information, including at least information related to the angular position and the velocity of at least one toy portion's motion relative to a second toy portion. Each toy portion resembles portions of a vehicle. A memory is used to store data relating to a plurality of play scenarios as well as to store information related to a user's play pattern. A processor is coupled to the memory and the at least one sensor. The processor is configured to select one of the play scenarios based on at least the continuous motion information and to produce synthesized sounds resembling sounds made by real versions of at least one of the two toy portions in response to at least the continuous motion information, the play pattern information, and the selected play scenario.

Abstract: An end bar for a barbeque grill cart is disclosed. The end bar is attached to a barbeque grill cart having a frame formed of a plurality of frame members, each of the frame members having a frame member wall defining an interior space with an interior dimension and having an open end, one open end of one of the frame members being in spaced adjacent relation to the open end of at least another of the frame members. The end cap has a bridging member and at least two projecting members, each with an outer dimension adapted to be received within the interior space of at least two of the frame members. The end bar optionally includes a pivot port for a pivot pin such that a folding shelf may be mounted. Alternatively, the end bar may include utensil mounting projections for hanging cooking utensils.

Abstract: A computerized payment system by which a consumer may instruct a service provider by telephone, computer terminal, or other telecommunications means to pay various bills without the consumer having to write a check for each bill. The system operates without restriction as to where the consumer banks and what bills are to be paid. The service provider collects consumers' information, financial institutions' information and merchant information and arranges payment based on a financial risk analysis to the merchants according to the consumers' instructions.

Abstract: The present invention is a barbecue grill assembly having a frame with a work surface secured by a sliding mechanism, such as a sliding track assembly. The present invention alternatively provides a work surface being a slidable burner cover assembly for an auxiliary burner of a barbecue gas grill. The assembly includes a burner cover having a body portion disposed over the auxiliary burner in a closed position and a slide mechanism attached to the grill and the cover to allow the cover to be slidably moved from the closed position to a second position wherein the auxiliary burner is exposed from underneath the body portion of the burner cover. The slide mechanism also provides extended cantilever support for the work surface in the second position.

Abstract: Data in a write cache is coalesced together prior to each destage operation. This results in higher performance by destaging a large quantity of data from the cache with each destage operation. A root item of data is located, and then a working set of data is collected by identifying additional data in the cache that will be destaged to locations in the storage device adjacent to the root item of data. The root item of data may be identified by starting at the location of the least recently accessed data in the cache, and then selecting a root item of data at a lower storage device address than the least recently accessed data, or may be chosen from a larger than average group of data items that were stored together into the cache. To speed execution, data items are added to a working set by, where possible, scanning an queue of data items kept in access order to locate data items at adjacent storage locations.

Abstract: A descriptor controlled transmit and receive scatter/gather Direct Memory Access Controller efficiently moves data frames comprised of scattered blocks of data from within memory to a destination interface via a multibyte-wide buffer. The transfer of frames into a transmit buffer and out of a receive buffer is optimized regardless of the total length of the component data blocks and regardless of whether the data blocks include an odd or even number of bytes, whether the data blocks begin at an odd or even address, or whether the data blocks are misaligned with regard to memory width boundaries. A DMAC in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention stores information provided by a descriptor before frame processing takes place. This information in conjunction with steering logic and accumulator registers is used to control the steering and storing of the frame data as it passes through the DMAC to the transmit buffer or from the receive buffer.

Abstract: A method and arrangement passes data between two busses without needing conventional bridge-interface protocols. Consistent with one method embodiment of the present invention, data is passed between a first bus on a reference chip and an external bus using a two-way buffer arrangement between the external bus and the first bus. The method includes coupling a two-way buffer arrangement between the external bus and the first bus, determining which of the busses is the initiating bus, and in response to this determination, controlling the two-way buffer arrangement to asynchronously copy data through the two-way buffer arrangement from the initiating bus to the other bus, wherein data is passed automatically in response to its presence at the buffer arrangement without any clock cycle delays. An example application is directed to interfacing with a bus used for a rapid silicon processing chip.

Abstract: An instrument for monitoring the characteristics of a liquid comprises a source of radiation (6) which is transmissible through the liquid and a detector (2) for detecting radiation emerging from the liquid. The detector (2) is responsive to components of the emerging radiation which are affected by variations in the characteristics of the liquid. The source (6) and detector (2) are arranged such that the radiation is transmitted through at least one free surface of the liquid (5) which is supported at least in part by surface tension of the liquid.

Abstract: For error recovery purposes, a backup copy of only a portion of the cache directory is maintained in non-volatile storage. Because only a portion of the cache directory is backup copied, a savings in storage space is realized. The partial copy includes an indication of the storage locations on a storage device for which data is in the cache, and an indication of the state of the data, i.e., whether the data is in process of being read from the cache by the processor, is in process of being written to the cache by the processor, is in the process of being destaged from the cache to the storage device, or none of the above. Only certain changes to the state of the cache cause a backup copy of a portion of the cache directory to be saved; other changes to the state of the cache do not cause the portion of the cache directory to be saved in non-volatile storage. This saves processing time by limiting the number of times that data is copied to the cache.