Abstract: Apparatus and methods for auctioning time and desktop space to product and service suppliers are provided. The apparatus and methods obtain bids from various product and service suppliers and determine which of the bids are the highest ranking bids. The particular product and service suppliers from which bids are obtained may be determined based on user preferences stored in a user profile, for example. Based on the ranking of the bids, commercial information from the product and/or service suppliers is presented to the user. Higher ranking bids are provided with larger display space on a user's client device display and are provided with a longer display time before cycling to the next lower ranking bid. In addition, multiple displays of commercial information may be provided at a same time with the size and duration of the displays being determined based on the ranking of the associated bid from the product/service supplier.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method, information processing system, and computer readable medium for preserving privacy of nonstationary data streams. The method includes receiving at least one nonstationary data stream with time dependent data. Calculating, for a given instant of sub-space of time, A set of first-moment statistical values is calculated, for a given instant of sub-space of time, for the data. The first moment statistical values include a principal component for the sub-space of time. The data is perturbed with noise along the principal component in proportion to the first-moment of statistical values so that at least part of a set of second-moment statistical values for the data is perturbed by the noise only within a predetermined variance.

Abstract: A method, information processing system, and computer readable medium are provided for preserving privacy of one-dimensional nonstationary data streams. The method includes receiving a one-dimensional nonstationary data stream. A set of first-moment statistical values are calculated, for a given instant of sub-space of time, for the data. The first moment statistical values include a principal component for the sub-space of time. The data is perturbed with noise along the principal component in proportion to the first-moment of statistical values so that at least part of a set of second-moment statistical values for the data is perturbed by the noise only within a predetermined variance.

Abstract: A printed circuit board unit includes a substrate and at least one connecting pad on the substrate. The connecting pad is used for electrically connecting to an electronic device by welding method. The connecting pad has at least one venting opening thereon. Therefore, the steam and gas by-produced in reflow soldering process can escape into the environment from the venting opening. Accordingly, the problem of large bubbles formed in the connecting pads is solved.

Abstract: A management system for a computer system is disclosed. The computer system operates or includes various products (e.g., software products) that can be managed in a management system or collectively by a group of management systems. Typically, the management system operates on a computer separate from the computer system being managed. The management system can make use of a knowledge base of causing symptoms for previously observed problems at other sites or computer systems. In other words, the knowledge base can built from and shared by different users across different products to leverage knowledge that is otherwise disparate. The knowledge base typically grows over time. The management system can use its ability to request information from the computer system being managed together with the knowledge base to infer a problem root cause in the computer system being managed.

Abstract: A method of continuously mounting clips to first and second rods, which are abutted and crossed with each other, includes the steps of a) providing a clip dispensing gun; b) providing clips each having a first rod clipping portion fittable with the first rod and a second rod clipping portion fittable with the second rod; c) loading clips into a clip guiding portion of the clip dispensing gun; d) pushing one of the clips by a clip feeding member of the clip dispensing gun to advance one clip to a ready-to-be-fired position, and e) ejecting the clip in the ready-to-be-fired position out of the clip dispensing gun by using a striker of the clip dispensing gun for enabling first and second rod clipping portions of the ejected clip to be fitted with the first and second rods respectively.

Abstract: A method and structure for storing information for one or more semantic objects derived from raw data. A semantic object extracted from the raw data and classified to comprise the semantic object is received, the received semantic object having one or more attributes. A summary of attributes of the semantic object by calculating one or more statistics of one or more of the one or more attributes of the received semantic object, a confidence level of the received semantic object that quantifies a degree of certainty that the received semantic object has been correctly classified and/or labeled; and a compact representation of raw data of the received semantic object are generated. Indexing information for one or more of the summary of attributes and the compact representation of the semantic object is generated.

Abstract: A method and system for storing a semantic object includes summarizing the attributes of a semantic object, indexing the summary of attributes, and storing the summary of attributes and the index of the summary of attributes.

Abstract: A fault protection method for optical networks is provided. The method includes monitoring intensity of downstream optical signals transmitted through a first route from a rear terminal of a primary optical channel, so as to determine if there occurs any fault; and activating a second route to transmit optical signals when a fault in the primary optical channel is detected, in which the second route is counter to the first route. The present invention also includes a system performing the fault protection method.

Abstract: A testboard with ZIF connectors is disclosed. The testboard comprises a test substrate, a plurality of ZIF connectors and a plurality of detachably adjustable fastening means. Each ZIF connector has a plurality of second through-holes, and pairs of electric terminals are deposed on the bottom of each ZIF connector where each pair of electric terminals has a radial shape for contacting the test substrate. Each fastening means is disposed through the first through-holes and the second through-holes through the middle of each ZIF connector for adjusting the ZIF connectors on the test substrate in better contact and for replacing each ZIF connector on the test substrate with a replacement ZIF connector where the second through-holes are arranged to one another in a spaced interval along a longitudinal direction, and each ZIF connector has a ratio of its longitudinal length to its spaced interval ranging from 3:1 to 5:1.

Abstract: An apparatus for segregating electronic components that engages and stops each of a plurality of electronic packages passing down a singulation tube is disclosed. In addition, the segregating apparatus is cable of segregating the electronic packages even though some of them had been linked together during the sealing process. The segregating apparatus includes a first swing arm to clip a electronic component, a second swing arm to clip another electronic component, and a third swing arm to depart the two electronic components, where all of components of the segregating apparatus are driven by a single driving force, reducing the size of the apparatus and the time needed for the segregating process.

Abstract: This invention discloses a probe card assembly with adjustable ZIF connectors. The probe card assembly comprises a substrate, a plurality of ZIF connectors and a plurality of adjustable fastening means for assembling and disassembling the ZIF connectors on the substrate. The substrate is a disc-like plate, having a first surface, a second surface, a plurality of concave sections disposed on the second surface and a plurality of first through holes perpendicular to the first surface. The first through holes are circularly arranged toward the substrate center. Pairs of first contacts are provided on the first surface adjacent to both sides of first through holes. A plurality of terminals are protruded from the second surface of the substrate for contacting and testing the wafer. The ZIF connectors are also circularly arranged toward the substrate center.

Abstract: A method, information processing system, and computer readable medium for generating a plurality of candidate database schemas including relational and mark-up language elements. An information model comprising a plurality of entities and at least one relationship defined there between is received. The information model has been annotated with at least one semantic characteristic, operational characteristic, and evolutional characteristic. The information model that has been annotated is analyzed. A score is associated with each entity based at least in part on attributes associated with each entity. Each entity is classified as one of a relational element and a mark-up language element. The information model that has been annotated is partitioned into a plurality of relational element mappings and a plurality of mark-up language element mappings. A plurality of database schemas associated with the information model that has been annotated is generated.

Abstract: A fault-tolerant battery set and a start-up battery module are described. The fault-tolerant battery set includes a main battery module, a battery monitoring unit, a control switch unit, and a back-up battery module. The main battery module includes a battery unit and a battery monitoring circuit. When the battery unit fails, the control switch unit conducts a power supply connection path according to a failure signal sent from the battery monitoring circuit, so as to replace the failed main battery module with a back-up power provided by the back-up battery module through the power supply connection path.

Abstract: A pick-and-place head device with a pushing mechanism for handling electronic components is disclosed in this invention. The pick-and-place head device includes a fixing base connected to a robot arm and a cylinder member disposed on the fixing base, the cylinder member has a first pressure passage, one end of the first pressure passage is connected to a suction member and another end of the first pressure passage is connected to a first pressure source, and the cylinder member is connected to a second pressure source so as to push at least one pushing tip. One of the first pressure source and the second pressure source is controllably selected by a pressure controller at a given time to have a pressure operation so as to enable the suction member to pick up an electronic component or to enable the pushing tip to push the electronic component.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for rewriting queries during a database query processing operation to include auxiliary attributes not included in the original query, thus improving processing efficiency. For example, in one aspect of the invention, a technique for rewriting a query in a query processing operation includes the following steps. First, the query is processed in accordance with at least a portion of a data set, producing query results. Second, data attributes from the query results are analyzed. Finally, at least one new predicate from at least one auxiliary data attribute is appended on the query.

Abstract: A method for deriving precise control over laser power of an optical pickup unit (OPU) includes: providing an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) within an automatic power calibration (APC) circuit to derive a path gain and/or a path offset from the APC circuit; and selectively performing compensation according to the gain and/or the path offset, in order to maintain precision of a relationship between the laser power and a target command utilized for controlling the laser power. An associated APC circuit comprising an ADC and at least one compensation module is further provided. The ADC is utilized for deriving a path gain and/or a path offset from the APC circuit. The compensation module is utilized for selectively performing compensation according to the path gain and/or the path offset, in order to control the laser power by a target command.

Abstract: A method for controlling laser power of an optical pickup unit (OPU) includes: providing a first relationship between the laser power and a driving parameter, wherein the driving parameter is utilized for driving a laser diode (LD) of the OPU, and the first relationship corresponds to a first temperature; utilizing a temperature-related model to convert the first relationship into a second relationship between the laser power and the driving parameter, wherein the second relationship corresponds to a second temperature; and storing the first relationship for being utilized at the first temperature, and storing the second relationship for being utilized at the second temperature.

Abstract: A method for searching deep web services is provided. The method in one aspect allows organizing communities, sources and schema attributes in a multi-tier containment relationship; searching representative schema attributes in one or more communities; searching representative services in one or more communities; searching for related schema attributes; and searching for related communities.

Abstract: A method for organizing deep Web services is provided. In one aspect, the method obtains a collection of sources and their associated attributes and/or input modes, for instance, using a crawling algorithm. The method uses this information to organize the sources into communities. A mining algorithm such as the hyperclique mining algorithm is used to obtain cliques of highly correlated attributes. A clustering algorithm such as the hierarchical agglomerative clustering algorithm is used to further cluster the cliques of attributes into larger cliques, which in the present disclosure is referred to as signatures. The sources that are associated with each signature form a community and a graph representation of the communities is constructed, where the vertices are communities and the edges are the shared attributes.