Abstract: Process for producing conductive and/or piezoresistive traces in a non-conductive polymeric substrate through laser irradiation, characterised in that said substrate is a composite polymeric material, comprising the matrix of a polymer not susceptible to carbonisation through laser irradiation and a dispersed phase comprising carbon nano fibres and/or nanotubes.

Abstract: A system for evaluating performance of a network providing communication services by means of a generalized processor sharing packet scheduling discipline. The services may include classes of services having real time and non real time (i.e. “elastic”) requirements, respectively, and the classes of services have relative priorities. The system includes a performance evaluation module configured for evaluating performance of a given class of services as a function of the load produced by other classes of services having a priority higher than or equal to the given class as well as of perturbation effect exerted on the given class by other classes having priority higher than the given class, and a computation module configured for determining the load and the perturbation effect as weighed sums of the contributions of each of the other classes to the load and the perturbation effect.

Abstract: A system for evaluating performance of a network providing communication services by means of a generalized processor sharing packet scheduling discipline. The services may include classes of services having real time and non real time (i.e. “elastic”) requirements, respectively, and the classes of services have relative priorities. The system includes a performance evaluation module configured for evaluating performance of a given class of services as a function of the load produced by other classes of services having a priority higher than or equal to the given class as well as of perturbation effect exerted on the given class by other classes having priority higher than the given class, and a computation module configured for determining the load and the perturbation effect as weighed sums of the contributions of each of the other classes to the load and the perturbation effect.

Abstract: A water distributor for an automatic laundry or dishwashing machine, comprises a water inlet that is controllable by a programming device of the machine and a movable element controllable by said programming device which serves for supplying water to a predetermined detergent dispenser for carrying a selected detergent towards the washing tub according to the washing program of the machine. The movable element is driven through a shape memory alloy wire electrically connected to a drive circuit that is part of the programming device.

Abstract: A water distributor for an automatic laundry or dishwashing machine, comprises a water inlet that is controllable by a programming device of the machine and a movable element controllable by said programming device which serves for supplying water to a predetermined detergent dispenser for carrying a selected detergent towards the washing tub according to the washing program of the machine. The movable element is driven through a shape memory alloy wire electrically connected to a drive circuit that is part of the programming device.