7723results about How to "Lower the volume" patented technology

An improved gas deposition chamber includes a hollow gas deposition volume formed with a volume expanding top portion and a substantially constant volume cylindrical middle portion. The hollow gas deposition volume may include a volume reducing lower portion. An aerodynamically shaped substrate support chuck is disposed inside gas deposition chamber with a substrate support surface positioned in the constant volume cylindrical middle portion. The volume expanding top portion reduces gas flow velocity between gas input ports and the substrate support surface. The aerodynamic shape of the substrate support chuck reduces drag and helps to promote laminar flow over the substrate support surface. The volume reducing lower portion helps to increase gas flow velocity after the gas has past the substrate support surface. The improved gas deposition chamber is configurable to 200 mm diameter semiconductor wafers using ALD and or PALD coating cycles. An improved coating method includes expanding process gases inside the deposition chamber prior to the process gas reaching surfaces of a substrate being coated. The method further includes compressing the process gases inside the deposition chamber after the process gas has flowed past surfaces of the substrate being coated.

Apparatus and methods are described for treatment of morbid obesity using minimally invasive techniques. The apparatus includes a system of components that may be used separately or in combination for effectively reducing stomach volume, bypassing a portion of the stomach and/or small intestines, reducing nutrient absorption in the stomach and/or small intestines and/or depositing minimally or undigested food farther than normal into the intestines, thereby stimulating intestinal responses. The components described include a gastric sleeve device, an intestinal sleeve device, and a combined gastrointestinal sleeve device.

Methods and devices for use in tissue approximation and fixation are described herein. The present invention provides, in part, methods and devices for acquiring tissue folds in a circumferential configuration within a hollow body organ, e.g., a stomach, positioning the tissue folds for affixing within a fixation zone of the stomach, preferably to create a pouch or partition below the esophagus, and fastening the tissue folds such that a tissue ring, or stomas, forms excluding the pouch from the greater stomach cavity. The present invention further provides for a liner or bypass conduit which is affixed at a proximal end either to the tissue ring or through some other fastening mechanism. The distal end of the conduit is left either unanchored or anchored within the intestinal tract. This bypass conduit also includes a fluid bypass conduit which allows the stomach and a portion of the intestinal tract to communicate.

Methods and systems in which a portable electronic device can be voice activated are disclosed. The portable electronic device can be a multi-function electronic device. The voice activation can be robust and context sensitive. The voice activation can also be utilized without any preparatory user action with respect to the portable electronic device. The portable electronic device can also interact with a media system.

A system for selecting, erasing or reproducing program recordings using marking and descriptive data which is transmitted to a client location from a remote processing location. A database of identification signals specifying the characteristics of a known programming is maintained at a remote processing location. In a first embodiment, selected identification signals are downloaded from the database to the client location and are used by a processor at the client location to identify desired programming within a locally stored collection of previously received broadcast programming signals. In a second arrangement, locally stored programming signals are processed to extract identification data which is uploaded from the client location to the remote processing location for comparison to the database, and information describing the content of the matching programs is returned to the client location for use as a program guide, facilitating the selection, permanent storage, or playback of desired program records and/or the erasure of undesired programming. To conserve local storage space, identified program records may be uploaded and stored at the remote processing location, or shared program records in a central library may be made available for remote playback after an the identity of equivalent locally stored programming is confirmed.

Semiconductor processing equipment that has increased efficiency, throughput, and stability, as well as reduced operating cost, footprint, and faceprint is provided. Other than during deposition, the atmosphere of both the reaction chamber and the transfer chamber are evacuated using the transfer chamber exhaust port, which is located below the surface of the semiconductor wafer. This configuration prevents particles generated during wafer transfer or during deposition from adhering to the surface of the semiconductor wafer. Additionally, by introducing a purge gas into the transfer chamber during deposition, and by using an insulation separating plate 34, the atmospheres of the transfer and reaction chambers can be effectively isolated from each other, thereby preventing deposition on the walls and components of the transfer chamber. Finally, the configuration described herein permits a wafer buffer mechanism to be used with the semiconductor processing equipment, thereby further increasing throughput and efficiency.

A method of scanning electronic files for computer viruses comprises identifying at a first node 4 of a computer network 1, electronic files which require to be scanned for computer viruses. The first node 4 initiates a dialogue with a second node 7 of the network 1, the second node comprising a virus scanning application. During the dialogue, the second node 7 identifies to the first node 4 one or more portions of the electronic file required by the virus scanning application. The first node 4 transfers the identified portions to the second node 7 which then carries out a virus scanning operation. The result of this operation is then returned to the first node 4.

Methods and systems for performing single molecule amplification for detection, quantification and statistical analysis of nucleic acids are provided. Methods and systems are provided for determining and quantifying lengths of nucleic acids of interest.

Methods and devices for simulating a gastric bypass and reducing the volume of the stomach involve placing a tubular liner along the lesser curve of the stomach cavity. Also, methods and devices for slowing gastric emptying involve placing valves within the stomach cavity near the gastrointestinal junction and/or the pylorus. These methods and devices may prevent a patient from drinking and eating large volumes at one time and from eating slowly all day.

The present invention provides systems and methods for selectively applying electrical energy to a target location within the head and neck of a patient's body, particularly including tissue in the ear, nose and throat. In one aspect, a method is provided for reducing the volume of enlarge swollen tissue in the patient's nose, such as swollen nasal tissue, mucus membranes, turbinates, polyps, neoplasms, cartilage (e.g., the nasal septum) or the like. In particular, the turbinates are treated by positioning one or more electrode terminal(s) adjacent to the turbinates, and delivering electrically conductive fluid, such as isotonic saline, to the nasal cavity to substantially surround the electrode terminal(s) with the fluid. High frequency voltage is applied between the electrode terminal(s) and one or more return electrode(s) to remove a small tissue segment, channel or hole from the region near or in the turbinates to shrink the turbinates and prevent swelling, due to the formation of scar tissue as the wound heals. The high frequency voltage may be selected to effect a small amount of thermal damage to the walls of the channel or hole to facilitate the formation of scar tissue without extending this thermal damage beyond the immediate region of the target site.

Methods and apparatus for selectively applying electrical energy to a target location within a patient's body, particularly including tissue in the spine. In a method of the invention high frequency (RF) electrical energy is applied to one or more active electrodes on an electrosurgical probe in the presence of an electrically conductive fluid to remove, contract or otherwise modify the structure of tissue targeted for treatment. In one aspect, a dura mater and spinal cord are insulated from the electrical energy by an insulator positioned on a non-active side of the probe. In another aspect, a plasma is aggressively formed in the electrically conductive fluid by delivering a conductive fluid to a distal end portion of the probe and aspirating the fluid from a location proximal of the return electrode. In another aspect, a distal end of an electrosurgical probe having at least one electrode on a biased, curved, bent, or steerable shaft is guided or steered to a target site within an intervertebral disc having a disc defect for treatment of tissue to be treated at the target site by the selective application of electrical energy thereto.

Disclosed is a Security Indications and Warning (SI&W) Engine usable in conjunction with an audit agent. The audit agent forwards normalized audits to the SI&W Engine. The SI&W Engine groups the normalized audits into related groupings. Gauges are used to count the number of occurrences of audited events. A statistical engine provides statistical representations of the number of events per user, per session and per node. A predetermined number of criteria are defined a particular gauge or gauge pair. There may be many criteria for a particular network. When a predetermined number of criteria within a criteria set are triggered, an indicator is triggered. More complex indicators can use combinations of lower level indicators to provide further indications of potential security threads. Thus, a hierarchical system of gauges, criteria and indicators is used to measure boundary violations and breaches of different barriers. Advantageously, because there are no predefined scenarios or profiles that must be performed by a potential misuser or intruder, the SI&W Engine of the present invention is capable of indicating that a potential security threat exists in near-real time.

A practical system and method for the remote distribution of financial services (e.g., home banking and bill-paying) involves distributing portable terminals to a user base. The terminals include a multi-line display, keys “pointing to” lines on the display, and additional keys. Contact is established between the terminals and a central computer operated by a service provider, preferably over a dial-up telephone line and a packet data network. Information exchange between the central computer and the terminal solicits information from the terminal user related to requested financial services (e.g., for billpaying, the user provides payee selection and amount and his bank account PIN number). The central computer then transmits a message over a conventional ATM network debiting the user's bank account in real time, and may pay the specified payees the specified amount electronically or in other ways as appropriate. Payments and transfers may be scheduled in advance or on a periodic basis. Because the central computer interacts with the user's bank as a standard POS or ATM network node, no significant software changes are required at the banks' computers. The terminal interface is extremely user-friendly and incorporates some features of standard ATM user interfaces so as to reduce new user anxiety.

Devices and methods are described herein which are directed to the treatment of a patient's heart having, or one which is susceptible to heart failure, to improve diastolic function.

A portable multimedia and communications device can include a transducive element for receiving sound. The device also can include a base unit having a plurality of multimedia units and a processor executing a speech recognition engine for recognizing user speech. Each of the plurality of multimedia units can be selectively enabled and operated responsive to user voice commands received via the transducive element and communicated to the base unit via a communication link.

Gas permeable devices and methods are disclosed for cell culture, including cell culture devices and methods that contain medium at heights, and certain gas permeable surface area to medium volume ratios. These devices and methods allow improvements in cell culture efficiency and scale up efficiency.

Bone screw assemblies include longitudinal connecting members that provide for dynamic stabilization, some including non-uniform portions that are configured to flex, contract or expand. Composite longitudinal connecting members include longitudinal segments made from different materials having different flexibilities. Polyaxial bone screw assemblies include change-out receivers for cooperating with replacement longitudinal connecting members having a different flexibility. Bone screw shanks for cooperating with one or more open receivers include treatment or coating to provide biologically active interface with bone.