Abstract: A coaxial cable sensor device with periodic impedance discontinuities along the length of its cable. The cable comprises an inner conductor, insulating material disposed around the length of the inner conductor, and an outer conductor disposed around the insulating material. The periodic impedance discontinuities are created by physical deformations or material alterations to at least one of the inner conductor, the outer conductor, and the insulating material. The sensor device may be used to measure temperature, pressure, strain, and acoustic waves in building structures, and is well suited for down-hole or underwater applications.

Abstract: A transient blocking unit (TBU) is a transistor circuit that is normally on, but rapidly and automatically switches to a high-resistance current blocking state when a current threshold is exceeded, thereby protecting a series connected load from over-voltage or over-current conditions. Process variation of transistor threshold voltage and on-resistance can cause undesirable variation of the TBU threshold current and/or of TBU resistance. Control of TBU threshold current and/or resistance is improved by providing for trimming the TBU during its fabrication to provide a one-time adjustment of the threshold current or resistance. Such trimming can be done with a resistive trimming circuit placed in series with the on-resistance of the relevant TBU transistor. Alternatively, a segmented TBU transistor having an on-resistance that is adjustable by way of wire bonding during fabrication can be employed.

Abstract: An air bed is disclosed. The air bed includes an air pump, an inflatable body and a cabinet detachably or fixedly connected to the inflatable body. The cabinet is a rollable and foldable airbag having at least one valve for inflation and deflation and includes at least one recess for receiving an air pump and other articles.

Abstract: An air bed is disclosed. The air bed includes an air pump, an inflatable body and a cabinet detachably or fixedly connected to the inflatable body. The cabinet is a rollable and foldable airbag having at least one valve for inflation and deflation and includes at least one recess for receiving an air pump and other articles.

Abstract: The present invention is based on the identification of novel canine nucleic acid sequences and the construction of canine microarrays containing a significant portion of the canine genome. The microarrays specifically hybridize to canine nucleic acid samples and may be used in drug screening and toxicity assays.

Abstract: A piezoelectric-transformer and carrier arrangement in which the carrier is press-molded from elastic material, for example, silicon rubber and has integrated binding belt and retainers for securing the piezoelectric-transformer to the carrier body, for enabling the input and output terminal lead wires of the piezoelectric-transformer to be directly connected to an external device, for example, a circuit board.

Abstract: A novel scanning microscope is described that uses near-field evanescent electromagnetic waves to probe sample properties. The novel microscope is capable of high resolution imaging and quantitative measurements of the electrical properties of the sample. The inventive scanning evanescent wave electromagnetic microscope (SEMM) can map dielectric constant, tangent loss, conductivity, complex electrical impedance, and other electrical parameters of materials. The quantitative map corresponds to the imaged detail. The novel microscope can be used to measure electrical properties of both dielectric and electrically conducting materials.

Abstract: A microwave near field microscope has a novel microwave probe structure wherein the probing field of evanescent radiation is emitted from a sharpened metal tip instead of an aperture or gap. This sharpened tip, which is electrically and mechanically connected to a central electrode, extends through and beyond an aperture in an endwall of a microwave resonating device such as a microwave cavity resonator or a microwave stripline resonator. Since the field intensity at the tip increases as the tip sharpens, the total energy which is radiated from the tip and absorbed by the sample increases as the tip sharpens. The result is improved spatial resolution without sacrificing sensitivity.