186results about How to "Reduce responsibility" patented technology

A method and method that builds accurate operational profiles for COTS software. The systems and methods disclosed allow software vendors to detect misused and unused features; identify common machine configurations for a given piece of software or software component; monitor changing user habits as new software version are released; derive more accurate testing methods for in-house testing purposes; and create user manuals which focus on those features most frequently used, or misused, by users. The disclosed system and method provides the tools enabling a software certification laboratory (SCL) to gather detailed usage data and failure data for a software application as it is used in the field. With this data the SCL can confidently issue certificates of reliability for software products.

A substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention comprises a plurality of processing chambers, discharge systems each provided in conjunction with one of the processing chambers and a common discharge system connected with the discharge systems of at least two processing chambers among the discharge systems provided in conjunction with the individual processing chambers. The common discharge allows a switch-over between a scrubbing common discharge system that discharges discharge gas from each processing chamber after scrubbing the discharge gas at a scrubbing means and a non-scrubbing common discharge system that directly discharges the discharge gas from the discharge system of the processing chamber without scrubbing at the scrubbing means. In this substrate processing apparatus, switch-over control is executed to select either the scrubbing common discharge system of the non-scrubbing common discharge system in correspondence to the type of processing executed in the processing chamber.

A process for facilitating payment card transactions from an underlying virtual account that exists as a data entity within a trust account, wherein cardholders are able to purchase goods and services from a merchant. The cardholder may execute a transaction at any venue which presently accepts a debit card for payment. The funds of the trust account need not be linked to a checking account or credit account, wherein the liability of the cardholder, card issuer, and merchant can be reduced. Preferably, the virtual account is initially established when the card is issued and activated, and can be depleted through one or more transactions for which the card is used as the means of payment, or monetary transfer, and may be recharged from time-to-time by depositing additional funds into the virtual cardholder account or crediting the balance of the virtual account as the result of a merchant refund, adjustment, or transfer from another cardholder.

The invention describes a new method for treating sludge, which can result in the production of high nitrogen organically-augmented inorganic fertilizer that incorporates municipal sludges or biosolids or organic sludges that can compete with traditional fertilizers such as ammonium phosphate, ammonium sulfate and urea on the commodity fertilizer marketplace. The method takes advantage of the thixotropic property of dewatered biosolids or organic sludge to create a pumpable paste-like material from the biosolids or organic sludge that is then treated with an oxidizer to reduce odorant effects and an acid. This mix is then interacted with concentrated sulfuric and or phosphoric acids and an ammonia source or alternatively a hot or molten melt or salt of ammonium sulfate/phosphate to form a fertilizer mix. The present invention controls the heat, atmospheric pressure and retention time of the fertilizer mix in the reaction vessel. When a fertilizer melt is formed ammoniation is subsequently completed by the specific use of vaporized ammonia. The invention can also be an add-on to commercial production of ammonium salts. The fertilizer produced by the present invention contains more than 8 wt. % nitrogen and preferably 15 wt. % nitrogen. The invention is oriented to be tailored to the biosolids production for individual municipal waste treatment plants in order to keep the fertilizer manufacturing plants of the present invention small with a minimization of logistics and liability.

Methods, systems and program products for providing real-time sales recommendations. A user selects a sales offering, and then batch or real-time data feeds of currently available sales offering pricing, availability, performance and data-mined analytics information are transmitted to a real-time data interface. The real-time data interface generates real-time sales recommendations based on the selected sales offering and data feeds. These real-time sales recommendations are determined by defining four distinct sell spaces that include an up-sell space, a down-sell space, and first and second alternative-sell spaces, whereby the real-time sales recommendations include up-sell, down-sell and alternative-sell recommendations. Business rules are used to determine which of the four distinct sell spaces these real-time sales recommendations will occupy. The real-time sales recommendations are continually refreshed and updated, and as such, may be tailored to a user's wants and needs.

The present invention is a system and method of creating insurance with a switching device that limits the liability of the insurer.

A method for assembling and dynamically maintaining a group of professionals having relatively low probability of being charged with professional malpractice using a standardized customer satisfaction survey by monitoring customer satisfaction for such candidate member of the group over a period of time to evaluate and document the predominant satisfaction that the candidate group member is achieving with patients, categorizing the predominant satisfaction for such candidate group member over time as high or low, and if the candidate has a high predominant customer satisfaction over the time period, admitting the candidate to the group and thereafter periodically repeatedly monitoring customer satisfaction for such candidate and maintaining the candidate in the group so long as the candidate evaluates as having high predominate satisfaction.

A small cell may include a base station that may be co-located with an edge computing device. The edge computing device may be integrated within a small cell base station or be a physically separate module communicatively coupled to and in close proximity with the small cell base station that provides edge computing resources at the small cell. The processing responsibilities associated with received data may be split or divided between the edge computing device and a target mobile device. For example, a portion of data processing may be performed by the edge computing device and the remaining portion of data processing may be performed by the target mobile device. The distribution of processing responsibilities may be based on radio link conditions or conditions (e.g., power state or processing capabilities) associated with the target mobile device.

Integrated Combustion Reactors (ICRS) and methods of making ICRs are described in which combustion chambers (or channels) are in direct thermal contact to reaction chambers for an endothermic reaction. Particular reactor designs are also described. Processes of conducting reactions in integrated combustion reactors are described and results presented. Some of these processes are characterized by unexpected and superior results, and/or results that can not be achieved with any prior art devices.

A node controller for a data storage system having at least one node provides access to a data storage facility. The node controller is distinct from a computer-memory complex of the node. The node controller provides overall control for transferring data through the node.

The present invention is a system and method of creating insurance with a switching device that limits the liability of the insurer.

A method of chemically extracting radium-228, rare earth metals, thorium, the decay products of thorium, and phosphates from thorium-containing ores. The method involves breaking thorium-containing ore into fragments, wetting the fragments with a concentrated strong acid to make a slurry, heating the slurry, passing the heated solution through a first anion exchange column, retaining metals and radium-228 captured on the resin, allowing the radium-228 ions to decay to actinium-228, purifying the actinium-228 fraction, sending the actinium-228 fraction through a capture column, eluting the captured thorium-228 with acid, removing radium from the solution, retaining the radium-228 fraction for isomer in-growth, retaining decay products from the radium-228, separating the REEs from the process stream; and eluting and retaining the REEs.

The present invention teaches a method and device for return of lost articles, comprising a label affixed on the article/item, an instant registration of the user, and a central registry identified upon the label having contact information associated with the user. Lost and found locations will be made aware of the device and system of the present invention and will offer it to consumers upon purchase of a product, rental of an item or service, hotel/rental counter check-in or rental counter. The labels of the invention contain a centralized database telephone number or web address, and an anonymous owner number. The centralized database and return center then communicates with the owner informing them of their found item.

A method and system include screening and routing telephone calls, generating calling data reports and discounting billing for a customer's wide area centrex/PBX network, which includes an abbreviated dialing plan. A service control point (SCP) determines whether to block an outgoing call based on stored blocking tables and a privilege class of the calling station. The SCP determines whether to route the call through a private trunk group from a host switch to a private facility, and through an alternative trunk group when the private trunk group is unavailable. The SCP determines whether the call is eligible for discounted billing and generates a billing record, which is modified by a service switching point to indicate the discount. The SCP also samples calling data from service switching points and transmits the sampled data to a front end processor for formatting into station message detail recording (SMDR) data.

A remote site filtering and monitoring system and method is described in which the Internet accesses of a remote device are monitored and categorized by a remote server in real-time. The system also provides for offline access logging and subsequent uploading, adjustable filtering sensitivities and particular HTTP port filtering.

A cumulative thermal exposure monitor (10) having a housing (11) with a fluid sealed interior cavity (16) and a thermally-responsive member (20) therein formed of a shape memory material which moves an indicator (21), wherein the thermal properties of the housing, cavity, and shape memory material transition temperature range are calibrated relative to one another to function in mutual cooperation such that the thermally-responsive member gradually changes from a first shape to a second shape upon absorption of heat energy over time to closely match a thermal deterioration profile of a perishable product, and to indicate the cumulative amount of heat energy absorbed and whether, at any time, the temperature has been above a preferred storage temperature range for a period of time sufficient to cause any degree of deterioration based on a known time and temperature thermal deterioration profile of the perishable product.

A method for communicating in a loadbalancing environment is provided that in a particular embodiment includes receiving a request packet from a network access server (NAS) to initiate a communication session. The request packet is then communicated to a tunneling protocol network server (TPNS) and a response packet is received in response to the request packet. The response packet establishes a tunnel that facilitates the communication session and that includes an identification element associated with the TPNS such that a data transfer associated with the communication session is executed between the NAS and the TPNS.

A method and system for producing and storing information related to medical health of at least one patient comprising:

• • 1) capturing data gleaned by audio and video recording of an interview with the patient conducted by a health-care professional,
  • 2) electronically digitizing the data, and
  • 3) storing the digitized data in an electronic format in a computer having an operating system capable of accessing, editing, analyzing, and searching the stored digitized data.

A method for cycle counting warehouse inventory using a drone system with a drone carrying a scanning device and a computer with an RF session receiving cycle count tasks. The drone system is placed within a flight range of the drone to a cycle count location and flown to the cycle count location of the cycle count task. The drone acquires the inventory location data and sends it to a warehouse management system through the RF session. Then the drone acquires the inventory data and sends it to a warehouse management system through the RF session. If prompted by the warehouse management system, further data are acquiring such as SKU data, LPN attribute information, and/or quantity information.

Cumulative thermal exposures monitors and remote indicating cumulative thermal exposure monitors and system for reading the same are disclosed. The monitors have a thermally insulative housing with a cavity and a thermally-responsive member therein formed of shape memory material, which may be provided with a coating or sheath of insulative or shape memory polymer material, that gradually changes from a first shape to a second shape over a prescribed temperature range wherein the thermal capacity and insulative properties of the housing, cavity, and shape memory material transition temperature range are correlated relative to one another and calibrated to closely match a thermal decay profile (time-temperature profile) of the product being monitored. In remote indicating embodiments, the data can be retrieved remotely via RF transponder technology without directly viewing the monitor device.

An exhaust gas purifying system for a diesel engine has an ECU, a passage of exhaust gas, a unit having SCR catalyst, a NOx sensor placed at a downstream side of the unit, and a urea water adding valve placed at an upstream side of the unit. The SCR catalyst in the unit selectively adsorbs ammonia, and selectively purifies NOx contained in an exhaust gas emitted from the diesel engine by the adsorbed ammonia. The ECU changes the urea water adding amount, and performs abnormality diagnosis based on the detection result of the NOx sensor while changing an adding amount of the urea water. The ECU uses a first condition to indicate the presence of an excess NOx amount in the exhaust gas, and a second condition to indicate there is no error cause by the ammonia adsorption on the SCR catalyst.

The invention disclosed provides an apparatus and method to monitor and track the security of bulk cargo from a dispatch point to a receipt point. The apparatus includes a plurality of RFID antennas at a dispatch location and at a receipt location, networked software modules in communication with the RFID antennas, and disposable RFID tags used as security seals affixed to a carrier at multiple locations. The software modules include a Cargo Registration Module, a Dispatch Scanning Module, and a Receipt Scanning Module. The apparatus and method reduce cargo inspection time and labor at the points of departure and receipt. The automation of the dispatch and receipt process eliminates the human element thereby increasing the efficiency of the process. An additional embodiment includes a “single-use” disposable RFID tagged seal adapted to be attached to a transport portal unable to be removed without damaging an RFID transmitter contained within.