A method and system for monitoring the condition of livestock comprises a plurality of sensors (115, 103, 113, 111, 107, 105) for sensing a plurality of different behavioural parameters of an animal. The sensed data is transmitted by a unit (115), wirelessly, t a central processor (119) and a plurality of status conditions of the animal is determined on the basis of the transmitted, sensed data such as the onset of parturition, fertility status and other health status conditions. The unit (115) may be permanently worn by the animal and may keep an electronic record of the status conditions of the animal.
A dual braided catheter shaft includes an inner helicalbraid and outer helicalbraid than encapsulate an axially extending steering wire there between. In one embodiment, the shaft includes an inner polymer jacket, an inner braid formed on the inner jacket, a steering wire disposed along an outside surface of the inner braid, an outer braid formed over the inner braid and steering wireassembly and an outer jacket formed on the outer braid. The braiding parameters of the inner and outer braids can be varied along the length of the catheter to provide varying mechanical properties.
A push on doghouse retainer arrangement used for providing a connection between the B-pillar of an automobile, and an appliqué having a high-gloss surface, or “show surface.” The a push on doghouse includes a formed low profile spring steel base and a slightly raised low profile doghouse portion, which includes a slot for receiving a base of a clip portion. The base also includes at least one attachment aperture. The attachment aperture includes an effective amount of serrations for holding of the doghouse onto a low profile rib molded into the part. The present invention simplifies mold design, minimizes potential for a read condition, and provides a robust engagement for a winged clip type fastener in limited space.
A method and system for monitoring the condition of livestock comprises a plurality of sensors (115, 103, 113, 111, 107, 105) for sensing a plurality of different behavioural parameters of an animal. The sensed data is transmitted by a unit (115), wirelessly, to a central processor (119) and a plurality of status conditions of the animal is determined on the basis of the transmitted, sensed data such as the onset of parturition, fertility status and other health status conditions. The unit (115) may be permanently worn by the animal and may keep an electronic record of the status conditions of the animal.
A small diameterspark plug configuration is provided, the configuration has been found to provide additional volume for the insulator member. That is, by limiting the overall number of threads on the intermediate portion along with a limit of the overall diameter of the spark plug, additional volume of insulator material may be achieved in an interior cavity of a metal shell of the spark plug. This additional volume enables a portion of the insulator member to have a larger diameter and hence greater material thickness. The larger diameter of the insulator provides enhanced dielectric properties and protects internal components of the spark plug from high combustion chamber temperatures while simultaneously providing a robust attachment of the spark plug with an engine head.
A laser apparatus, comprising a layer fabricated of a lasing medium, the layer having a top surface and a bottom surface, and a first substrate layer fabricated of a laser-inactive material, the first substrate being diffusion-bonded to the layer of lasing medium, wherein the lasing medium comprises a crystalline, polycrystalline or glass material doped with ions. The lasing medium selected for fabrication of the laser apparatus of this invention comprises neodymium-doped yttriumvanadate material and laser-inactive material of the substrate comprises an yttrium-aluminate or yttriumvanadate material. The layers of material are oriented so that the thermal expansion coefficients along the crystallographic axes of the materials match or nearly match.
The present invention refers to hybridanode disk structures for use in X-ray tubes of the rotary anode type and is concerned more particularly with a novel light weight anode disk structure (RA) which comprises an adhesion promoting protective siliconcarbide (SiC) interlayer (SCI) deposited onto a rotary X-ray tube's anode target (AT), wherein the latter may e.g. be made of a carbon-carbon composite substrate (SUB′). Moreover, a manufacturing method for robustly attaching a coating layer (CL) consisting of a high-Z material (e.g. a layer made of a tungsten-rheniumalloy) on the surface of said anode target is provided, whereupon according to said method it may be foreseen to apply a refractorymetal overcoating layer (RML), such as given e.g. by a tantalum (Ta), hafnium (Hf), vanadium (V) or rhenium (Re) layer, to the siliconcarbide interlayer (SCI) prior to the deposition of the tungsten-rheniumalloy. The invention thus leverages the tendency for cracking of the siliconcarbide coated carbon composite substrate (SUB′) during thermal cycling and enhances adhesion of the silicon carbide / refractorymetal interlayers to the carbon-carbon composite substrate (SUB′) and focal track coating layer (CL) by an interlocking mechanism. Key aspects of the proposed invention are: a) controlled formation of coating cracks (SC) in the silicon carbide layer (SCI) and b) conformal filling of SiC crack openings with a refractorymetal.
An aircraft leading edgeice protection system. The system includes: a thermoelectric heater mat (10) attachable to a leading edge component of an aircraft, the heater mat comprising: an electrically resistive heater element (12, 22) embedded in a thermoplastic layer (16, 26, 28), the thermoplastic layer having a first surface; and a first adhesive (20) receiving layer (18) located on a surface of the thermoplastic layer. A method of making an aircraft leading edgeice protection system, the method comprising: making a thermoelectric heater mat by embedding an electrically resistive heater element in a thermoplastic layer, the thermoplastic layer having a first surface; and locating a first adhesive receiving layer on a surface of the thermoplastic layer.
An aircraft leading edgeice protection system. The system includes: a thermoelectric heater mat (10) attachable to a leading edge component of an aircraft, the heater mat comprising: an electrically resistive heater element (12, 22) embedded in a thermoplastic layer (16, 26, 28), the thermoplastic layer having a first surface; and a first adhesive (20) receiving layer (18) located on a surface of the thermoplastic layer. A method of making an aircraft leading edgeice protection system, the method comprising: making a thermoelectric heater mat by embedding an electrically resistive heater element in a thermoplastic layer, the thermoplastic layer having a first surface; and locating a first adhesive receiving layer on a surface of the thermoplastic layer.
A retainer for limited space attachment of a vehicle part with a class A surface to a vehicle. The retainer has a low profile portion and also an attachment base operable for being connected to heat stake ribs of the vehicle part. The attachment base includes at least one attachment aperture to provide attachment with the heat stake ribs. There is provided desired degrees of clip float and / or two-way limited clip float providing desired free movement of the clip when desired.
A clamping assembly has a first component and a second component, which has an essentially cylindrical outer jacket, which is attachable to the first component. The clamping assembly has a support surface supported against the first component, which is able to be clamped against the first component via a clamping sleeve that is slid onto the outer jacket and may be screwed onto the first component, and via a snap ring that comes to rest against a first clamping shoulder formed on the inner wall of the clamping sleeve and against a second clamping shoulder formed on the outer jacket of the second component. The snap ring is configured as a detent that deflects elastically in a radial direction and the outer jacket of the second component is provided with an undercut behind the second clamping shoulder, when viewed in the axial direction, into which the elastically deflecting snap ring is able to be deformed radially inwardly so that the clamping sleeve may be guided over the snap ring when slid onto the outer jacket of the second component and the snap ring is able to be brought into engagement in an annular groove on the inner wall that is configured as an opposing detent.
A radar level gauge system comprising: pulse generating circuitry for generating an electromagnetic transmit signal in the form of a first pulse train formed by a time-sequence of substantially identical transmit pulses, each exhibiting a full period waveform; and an electromagnetic reference signal in the form of a second pulse train formed by a time-sequence of substantially identical reference pulses, each exhibiting a half period waveform; a propagation device arranged to propagate the transmit signal towards a product in a tank, and to return a surface reflection signal resulting from reflection of the transmit signal at a surface of the product; measurement circuitry for forming a measurement signal based on a time-correlation between the surface reflection signal and the reference signal; and processing circuitry connected to the measurement circuitry for determining the filling level based on the measurement signal.
A vehicle occupant sensing system adapted for detecting a condition of a vehicle seat assembly including at least one emitter and at least one sensor disposed spaced relative to the emitter. The sensor is operable to detect relative distance between the emitter and the sensor to thereby detect the condition of the vehicle seat assembly. The vehicle occupant sensing system also includes at least one sensor assembly having a base and an upper slide member moveable toward and away from the base. The upper slide member includes at least one interference member that generates an interference fit between the emitter and the interference member to thereby securely mount the emitter to the upper slide member. The vehicle occupant sensing system may be employed in a vehicle seat to detect a condition of the vehicle seat.
A dual braided catheter shaft includes an inner helicalbraid and outer helicalbraid than encapsulate an axially extending steering wire there between. In one embodiment, the shaft includes an inner polymer jacket, an inner braid formed on the inner jacket, a steering wire disposed along an outside surface of the inner braid, an outer braid formed over the inner braid and steering wireassembly and an outer jacket formed on the outer braid. The braiding parameters of the inner and outer braids can be varied along the length of the catheter to provide varying mechanical properties.
A retainer for limited space attachment of a vehicle part with a class A surface to a vehicle. The retainer has a low profile portion and also an attachment base operable for being connected to heat stake ribs of the vehicle part. The attachment base includes at least one attachment aperture to provide attachment with the heat stake ribs. There is provided desired degrees of clip float and / or two-way limited clip float providing desired free movement of the clip when desired.
Spring assembly as part of a vibrator for a bone anchored hearing aid, wherein the spring assembly comprises a suspension spring having a first end immovably connected to a mass of the vibrator and a second end immovably connected to a coupling attachable to a user's skull bone and comprised by the vibrator, wherein the spring assembly comprises an adjusting means adapted to adjust a spring rate of the suspension spring between a first spring rate and a second spring rate, the first rate being higher than the second rate, so as to move a resonance peak of the vibrator.
A dual braided catheter shaft includes an inner helicalbraid and outer helicalbraid than encapsulate an axially extending steering wire there between. In one embodiment, the shaft includes an inner polymer jacket, an inner braid formed on the inner jacket, a steering wire disposed along an outside surface of the inner braid, an outer braid formed over the inner braid and steering wireassembly and an outer jacket formed on the outer braid. The braiding parameters of the inner and outer braids can be varied along the length of the catheter to provide varying mechanical properties.
A method using optical coherence tomography to capture the microvascular network of the superficial layer of the finger skin for the purpose of fingerprintauthentication and liveness detection. At the dermal papilla region, the vascular pattern follows the same pattern of the fingerprint and this vascular pattern forms a live vascular fingerprint. This live vascular fingerprint provides for ultrahigh security and a unique way for fingerprint-based personal verification. Because the system is based on blood flow, which only exists in a living person, the technique is robust against spoof attaching. After performing non-contact in-vivo imaging of a human fingertip, a three dimensional vasculature image is reconstructed from a plurality of vasculature tomography images and at least one vasculature fingerprint image which corresponds to the fingertip is extracted from the three dimensional vasculature image. This extracted image may then be compared to known fingerprint database for authentication or for liveness detection.
A push on doghouse retainer arrangement used for providing a connection between the B-pillar of an automobile, and an appliqué having a high-gloss surface, or “show surface.” The a push on doghouse includes a formed low profile spring steel base and a slightly raised low profile doghouse portion, which includes a slot for receiving a base of a clip portion. The base also includes at least one attachment aperture. The attachment aperture includes an effective amount of serrations for holding of the doghouse onto a low profile rib molded into the part. The present invention simplifies mold design, minimizes potential for a read condition, and provides a robust engagement for a winged clip type fastener in limited space.