ed SECURE SHORT-DISTANCE-BASED COMMUNICATION AND VALIDATION SYSTEM FOR ZONE-BASED VALIDATION By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A secure short-distance-based communication and validation system validates users in a validation area. The system may include multiple zones in the validation area and beacons in each zone. A run-time mobile device identifier and keys that may be location-specific, device-specific and time-specific are generated and utilized for secure communication between mobile devices and a zone computer in a zone. The validation area may be in a vehicle, and validation may include deducting a fare. Full Article
ed WIRELESS ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM INCLUDING CLOSED DOOR POSITION AND INTERIOR AREA REMOTE ACCESS WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE BASED LOCK SWITCHING AND RELATED METHODS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A wireless access control system may include a remote access wireless communications device and a lock assembly to be mounted on a door. The lock assembly may include a lock, a door position sensor, interior and exterior directional antennas, lock wireless communications circuitry, a touch sensor, and a lock controller. The lock controller may be configured to unlock the lock based upon the touch sensor, determine when the door is closed after being opened based upon the door position sensor, determine whether the remote access wireless device is in an interior or an exterior based upon the directional antennas, switch the lock to the locked position when the door is closed and when the remote access wireless device is in the interior, and not switch the lock to the locked position when the door is closed and when the remote access wireless device is in the exterior. Full Article
ed WIRELESS ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM INCLUDING CLOSED DOOR POSITION AND EXTERIOR AREA REMOTE ACCESS WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE BASED LOCK SWITCHING AND RELATED METHODS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A wireless access control system may include a remote access wireless communications device and a lock assembly to be mounted on a door. The lock assembly may include a lock, a door position sensor, interior and exterior directional antennas, lock wireless communications circuitry, and a lock controller. The lock controller determine whether the lock is manually unlocked, determine when the door is closed after being opened based upon the door position sensor, and determine whether the remote access wireless device is in an interior or an exterior based upon the directional antennas. The lock controller may also switch the lock to the locked position when the door is closed and when the remote access wireless device is in the exterior, and not switch the lock to the locked position when the door is closed and when the remote access wireless device is in the interior. Full Article
ed SYSTEMS AND METHODS TO GENERATE HAPTIC FEEDBACK FOR SKIN-MEDIATED INTERACTIONS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A system includes a sensor configured to sense an input at a skin surface, a processor configured to receive an output signal from the sensor and generate a haptic control signal based on the output signal, and a haptic output device configured to generate a haptic effect based on the haptic control signal. Full Article
ed MULTI SPECTRAL DETECTION DEVICE INCLUDING AN ACOUSTIC ARRAY, A PROTECTION SYSTEM, AND RELATED METHODS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A multi-spectral detection device is provided that includes a housing, a bezel spacer, a microphone, an end cap and electro-optical sensors mounted to the end cap. The housing has an inner chamber that holds sensor components. The bezel spacer has a first end and an opposed, second end. The first end of the bezel spacer extends from a first end of the housing. The bezel spacer has a central bezel passage leading to the inner chamber of the housing. The bezel spacer further has at least four side walls. Each side wall is positioned 90 degrees away from an adjacent side wall. A microphone is coupled to each side wall of the bezel spacer in such a manner that each microphone is faced 90 degrees with respect to an adjacent microphone to form a compact acoustic array. The end cap is coupled to the second end of the bezel spacer and the electro-optical sensors are mounted to the end cap. Full Article
ed METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING SENSOR DATA OF DETECTED OBJECTS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A system that incorporates teachings of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a method for detecting, by a system including at least one processor, a presence of an object from sensor data generated by a sensor device, retrieving, by the system, from a memory device a plurality of profiles biometrically descriptive of approved objects, asserting, by the system, an alarm responsive to determining from the sensor data that the detected object is not biometrically correlated to any of the plurality of profiles, classifying, by the system, the detected object as an authorized object responsive to determining from the sensor data that the detected object is biometrically correlated to at least one of the plurality of profiles, and notifying, by the system, at least one neighboring device responsive to asserting the alarm or responsive to classifying the detected object as the authorized object. Other embodiments are disclosed. Full Article
ed REGISTER SYSTEM THAT DEACTIVATES A SECURITY TAG ATTACHED TO A PRODUCT By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A register system includes a handheld unit including a code scanner and a security tag signal reception unit and a processor. The processor is configured to determine whether or not a security tag on a product is deactivated based on whether or not the security tag signal reception unit receives a security tag signal from the product during scanning of a product code on the product, and register the product code for a transaction when the security tag is determined to be deactivated. Full Article
ed Security Prejudgment based on Characteristic Information By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An example method of security prejudgment based on characteristic information include receiving characteristic information of a monitored party from the monitored party, calculating security status information of the monitored party based on a probability of danger that has been stored and corresponds to the characteristic information of the monitored party, determining that the security status information is greater than a first threshold, performing an appropriate operation based on the determination. Accordingly, the technical solution of the present disclosure solves a problem that presetting of monitoring conditions cannot cover potential surrounding risks that result in a safety hazard. Further, the technical solution can monitor risks that are not reflected by spatial information. After identifying and warning based on the characteristic information, potential risks may be avoided before occurring without wasting data traffic. Full Article
ed MAGNITUDE BASED ALARM FLAP DETECTION By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A flap detector can detect significant flapping with magnitudes of state deltas (i.e., differences between values representing events or states). The flap detector aggregates monotonic state deltas. Aggregating monotonic state deltas yields a magnitude of monotonic state deltas. A magnitude of a series of same direction state deltas can be considered the magnitude of flap because the end of the series corresponds to a beginning of a state delta series in a different direction. When directional transition occurs (i.e., flapping occurs), the flap detector generates multiple monotonic state delta magnitudes. The determined magnitudes can be used to filter out insignificant flapping that could be considered noise. Full Article
ed BATTERY-POWERED WIRELESS LONG LIFE TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY SENSOR MODULE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An adaptive algorithm based battery-powered long distance wireless temperature and humidity sensor module. The sensor module uses an adaptive algorithm to transmit data on an event basis and/or a reduced basis to extend battery life to more than 10 years. It also uses a low power wireless transmitter which has frequency of sub-1 GHz and an effective transfer distance of up to 250 meters, a low power temperature and humidity sensor, and a long lasting lithium battery which has shelf life of 20 years. Full Article
ed Integrated fuel dispensing and accounting system By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An interface system extends a prior-art fuel delivery pump and reservoir so that authorization to activate the fuel delivery pump can be obtained from a remote authorization service over a long-range wireless communication link such as a cellular telephone connection or a satellite connection; and delivered to the interface system over a different, short-range wireless communication link such as a Bluetooth® connection or a WiFi connection. The system is structured so that different data link devices can serve in one part of the communication chain. Other features and characteristics of the system are described and claimed. Full Article
ed METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DISPLAYING A POSITION OF A VEHICLE AT A REMOTELY LOCATED DEVICE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A system and method for displaying a vehicle location on a user device includes an in-vehicle infotainment system and the user device coupled to the in-vehicle infotainment system of a vehicle. A global positioning system generates a vehicle position signal at the vehicle. The in-vehicle infotainment system communicates the vehicle position signal to a user device. The user device generates a display comprising the current vehicle position. Full Article
ed PROCESSES FOR REDUCING THE ENERGY CONSUMPTION OF A CATALYTIC CRACKING PROCESS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 06 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Processes and apparatuses for co-processing pyrolysis effluent and a hydrocarbon stream in which a char produced by the catalytic cracking of the pyrolysis effluent is recovered and utilized to provide energy, such as heat to the catalytic cracking zone. The char can be burned in various combustion zones associated with the catalytic cracking zone. The char is produced from a renewable resource. Full Article
ed DEVICE AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING FUEL EFFICIENT CANDLES CONFIGURED WITH HELICAL WICKS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 06 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Helical wick candle and method of manufacturing this candle. The candle typically comprises a candle with meltable fuel such as wax, and at least one helical wick with a helical radius of at least ¼″ or greater. This helical wick is configured so that as the candle burns, the burning tip of the wick doesn't remain stationary, but rather circles the axis of the wick so as to burn more of the wax than would otherwise be possible with a prior art straight wick candle, at least when the diameter of the candle is larger than the pool of melted wax surrounding the wick. This results in higher fuel burning efficiency, often 1.5× or higher, as well as various interesting artistic shapes as the wick burns. Various wick sheath methods to improve the rigidity and burn resistance of the wick during the burning process are also discussed. Full Article
ed Automated Candle Blower By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 06 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention relates to a candle blower. More specifically, the present invention is an automated candle blower programmable to direct a flow of air to the general position of a flame on a burning candle. Full Article
ed Outdoor gas fired patio heater By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention comprises an assy PH base at the bottom, a gas combination valve, a reducing bushing unit, a PH perforated cylinder, a tubing unit along with the pilot assembly, PH pan head, a gas combination control assembly, a gas liter unit, a burner assembly and an assy PH emitter grid assembly. A reflector is mounted at the top of the assy PH emitter grid assembly. The present invention provides an automatic ignition system along with ON/OFF switch and the device also has an inbuilt transformer which provides the safety to the user(s). Hence, the present invention is very easy to operate and user friendly. Full Article
ed GAS FIRED RADIANT EMITTER By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 20 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Gas fired radiant emitter having a premixing chamber for preparing a premix of gas and air; a perforated ceramic plate acting as burner deck; and a pilot burner having a premix gas supply flow tube and two electrodes. The premix gas supply flow tube of the pilot burner extends from the side of the perforated ceramic plate where the premixing chamber is located, into a through hole in the perforated ceramic plate. The premix gas supply flow tube has a gas exit in the through hole in the perforated ceramic plate or at the combustion side of the perforated ceramic plate. The gas fired radiant emitter has features so that in an area of the perforated ceramic plate around where the premix gas supply flow tube extends into a through hole in the perforated ceramic plate, no premix gas flows through the perforated ceramic plate. Full Article
ed DEVICE AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING FUEL EFFICIENT CANDLES CONFIGURED WITH HELICAL WICKS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 27 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Helical wick candle and method of manufacturing this candle. The candle typically comprises a candle with meltable fuel such as wax, and at least one helical wick with a helical radius of at least ¼″ or greater. This helical wick is configured so that as the candle burns, the burning tip of the wick doesn't remain stationary, but rather circles the axis of the wick so as to burn more of the wax than would otherwise be possible with a prior art straight wick candle, at least when the diameter of the candle is larger than the pool of melted wax surrounding the wick. This results in higher fuel burning efficiency, often 1.5× or higher, as well as various interesting artistic shapes as the wick burns. Various wick sheath methods to improve the rigidity and burn resistance of the wick during the burning process are also discussed. Full Article
ed DUCTED FUEL INJECTION By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 27 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Various technologies presented herein relate to enhancing mixing inside a combustion chamber to form one or more locally premixed mixtures comprising fuel and charge-gas to enable minimal, or no, generation of soot and/or other undesired emissions during ignition and subsequent combustion of the locally premixed mixtures. To enable sufficient mixing of the fuel and charge-gas, a jet of fuel can be directed to pass through a bore of a duct causing charge-gas to be drawn into the bore creating turbulence to mix the fuel and the drawn charge-gas. The duct can be located proximate to an opening in a tip of a fuel injector. The various technologies presented herein can be utilized in a number of combustion systems, such as compression-ignition (CI) reciprocating engines, spark-ignition (SI) reciprocating engines, gas-turbine (GT) engines, burners and boilers, wellhead/refinery flaring, etc. Full Article
ed METHOD AND BURNER USING THE CURIE EFFECT FOR CONTROLLING REACTANT VELOCITY FOR OPERATION IN PRE-HEATED AND NON-PRE-HEATED MODES By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 27 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT Methods, burner, apparatuses, and systems are provided for controlling a velocity of a jet of gas exiting a burner when the gas is heated or not and at a corresponding second higher temperature or lower first temperature. Through the use of a temperature-sensitive magnetic valve, the flow of a gas can be redirected to maintain velocity of the gas as delivered to a combustion chamber based on the temperature of the gas. The temperature-sensitive magnetic valve can redirect flow of the gas based on the magnetic state of a ferromagnetic material. The state of the temperature-sensitive magnetic valve changes based on the temperature of the gas to maintain the velocity of the gas delivered through an outlet of the burner to the combustion chamber. Thus, heated gases and standard temperature gases can be delivered at approximately equal velocities thus maintaining flame size and shape. Full Article
ed METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR STARTING AN INTERMITTENT FLAME-POWERED PILOT COMBUSTION SYSTEM By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 27 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT A flame powered intermittent pilot combustion controller may include a first power source and a second power source separate from the first power source, a thermal electric and/or photoelectric device, an igniter and a controller. The thermal electric and/or photoelectric device may charge the first power source when exposed to a flame. The controller and the igniter may receive power from the first power source when the first power source has sufficient available power, and may receive power from the second power source when the first power source does not have sufficient available power. Full Article
ed A MONITOR FOR A NATURAL GAS-FIRED APPLIANCE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 27 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT A monitor for a natural gas-fired appliance is provided. The monitor comprises: a natural gas cycle-monitor interface configured to receive cycling signals from one or more of: the appliance; and a monitoring device located in the appliance and/or proximal to the appliance; a processor, in communication with the interface, configured to monitor cycles of the appliance based on the cycling signals; one or more indicators, in communication with the processor, configured to provide an alarm when the processor determines that the cycles of the appliance meets a threshold value; a first reset device configured to temporarily reset the one or more indicators to turn off the alarm when actuated, the one or more indicators again providing the alarm after a given time period following a temporary reset; and, a second reset device configured to reset monitoring of the cycles at the processor when actuated. Full Article
ed Modified burner module By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 04 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT The invention provides a burner module for use in combusting an air/fluid fuel flow wherein the burner module comprises a burner face comprising catalytic material for combusting the air/fluid fuel flow and a perforated screen having a plurality of micro-perforations wherein the perforated screen is positioned upline to the burner face to increase combustion; an integrated gas burner for connection to a pressurised fluid fuel flow wherein the integrated gas burner comprises a burner module and a gas train wherein the burner module comprises a burner face comprising catalytic material for combusting the air/fluid fuel flow and a perforated screen having a plurality of micro-perforations wherein the perforated screen is positioned upline to the burner face to increase combustion; and the gas train comprises: (a) an ejector for entraining air with the fluid fuel flow; and(b) a diffusor for converting the air/fluid fuel flow kinetic energy into pressure and for performing flow expansion; and an appliance comprising the integrated burner. Full Article
ed THERMALLY-PROTECTIVE MATERIAL AND COOL-TOUCH CANDLE ASSEMBLIES PREPARED THEREWITH By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 25 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention relates to materials and systems useful for increasing the safety profile of a candle. In particular, the present invention provides a thermally-protective material that is useful to prepare labels or wraps to encircle or surround a candle. The present invention further provides a cool-touch thermally-protected candle assembly. Full Article
ed BURNER SYSTEM INCLUDING A MOVEABLE PERFORATED FLAME HOLDER By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 25 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT A burner includes a perforated flame holder configured to be disposed at a plurality of locations relative to a fuel and air source. Full Article
ed LOW INERTIA POWER SUPPLY FOR APPLYING VOLTAGE TO AN ELECTRODE COUPLED TO A FLAME By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 25 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT A system and method for electrically charging a combustion flame with a power supply. Full Article
ed PATTERNED CANDLE WICK By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 08 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A substantially planar wick is formed with a two- or three-dimensional pattern. The contours of this pattern are determined by the desired flame characteristics or the desired visual aesthetics of the pattern itself. Full Article
ed Flammable Gas Concentration Reducer and Inert Gas Generator By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 08 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A remediation method and device for combustible gas in a room is disclosed. An inlet and outlet opening between ambient room air and the interior of a device are used with a sensor. Flame arrestor quench screens are used to control a fire within a chamber having an impeller causing air flow. A pilot flame situated within the combustion chamber burns combustible gas while temperature, pressure, and oxygen sensor devices are used to modify air flow as necessary for optimum combustion within the device. Full Article
ed CANDLE WITH EMBEDDED ITEM AND METHODS FOR MANUFACTURING AND SELLING SAME By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 15 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A candle with an embedded item and methods for manufacturing same are disclosed. A method for manufacturing a candle having an embedded item can include providing a first set of items of a first value and a second set of items of a second value different from the first value, combining the two sets to create a third set, and distributing the items of the third set among a set of candles, one item per candle, where the presence, nature, or value of the item within the candle is obscured. The method can further include selling the candles for a first price, wherein, the presence of the embedded item, the nature of the embedded item, the value of the embedded item, or the value of the embedded item relative to the first price is not known to the purchaser. The embedded item can comprise an object redeemable for a prize. Full Article
ed CANDLE ASSEMBLY AND METHOD FOR MAKING PERSONALIZED CANDLES By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A candle assembly for making a personalized scented candle including a candle body comprises a coring device that is configured to remove a core from the candle body, the coring device including (i) a leading edge that selectively extends into the candle body; and (ii) a plurality of measurement markers that measure a depth of the leading edge within the candle body. The coring device can be configured to remove the core from the candle body to form a cavity in the candle body. Additionally, the measurement markers can be utilized to determine a depth of the cavity formed in the candle body by the coring device. Full Article
ed DOUBLE-SEALED HIGH-TEMPERATURE RESISTANT DC IGNITOR FOR USE WITH WOOD PELLET BURNER ASSEMBLIES By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT Embodiments of the inventive concept provide a double-sealed high-temperature resistant DC ignitor for use with a wood pellet burner assembly. The DC ignitor includes a non-heating element portion. The non-heating element portion is connected to at least one of a battery or an AC to DC electrical transformer attached to the wood pellet burner assembly. A heating element is connected to the non-heating element portion, and extends by at least one inch into a combustion region of the wood pellet burner assembly. The heating element portion is configured to be heated by power received from the battery or the AC to DC electrical transformer. The DC ignitor provides safe, reliable, and fast combustion of wood pellets that congregate in a combustion region of the wood pellet burner assembly. Full Article
ed RADIANT WALL BURNER INCLUDING PERFORATED FLAME HOLDERS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A cracking furnace includes a combustion volume defined in part by a burner wall having a refractory lining. A plurality of perforated flame holders is arranged in an array that is spaced away from the wall, with fuel input faces facing the wall. Each of a plurality of fuel nozzles is positioned and configured to emit a fuel stream toward the input face of a respective one of the plurality of perforated flame holders. Combustion reactions, supported by the fuel streams emitted by the fuel nozzles, and held by the flame holders, release heat, which is emitted by the flame holders as thermal (blackbody) radiation, a portion of which impinges upon, and heats the inner face of the refractory lining. Thermal radiation from the flame holders and the wall impinges upon a load positioned in the approximate center of the combustion volume, between burner walls. Full Article
ed HEAT-RECOVERING TEMPERATURE-GRADIENT BASED OVEN SYSTEM By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A heat-recovering oven system based on temperature gradient comprises: multiple chambers arranged in a sequence, the chambers configured for operating at various temperatures according to a temperature gradient arrangement that spans the sequence; a conveyor configured for transporting product through the multiple chambers in the sequence for heat treatment according to the temperature gradient arrangement; and multiple temperature-segregated heat exchanger systems, each heat exchanger system including a heat exchanger, a conduit to at least one of the chambers based on its temperature in the temperature gradient arrangement, and a return conduit from the at least one chamber to the heat exchanger. Full Article
ed Wedge apparatus for a stirrup to alleviate knee pain in horseback riders By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 14 Aug 2012 08:00:00 EDT A wedge apparatus for a stirrup for reducing alleviating pain on a horseback rider's knees and ankles, the stirrup comprising a pair of opposing side bars, a hangar bar portion and a footrest bar, the wedge apparatus comprising (a) a wedge associated with the footrest bar, the wedge having a lateral portion and a medial portion, the lateral portion being thicker than and tapering toward the medial portion; (b) an impact-absorbing material; and, (c) an attachment mechanism for attaching the wedge and the impact-absorbing material to the footrest bar. Full Article
ed Deformable seating piece for saddletree, saddletree adapted to receive such a piece and saddle including such a combination By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 23 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EDT The invention is directed to a piece (2) for a saddletree (1) of mat-like general shape conformed to have both a first overall concavity in a first direction of a longitudinal plane of symmetry and a second overall concavity in a second direction of a transverse plane, delimited by an exterior free edge (14) including a pommel portion, a cantle portion and two longitudinal portions, the exterior free edge being adapted to cooperate with a complementary interior free edge of the saddletree, the mat including a plurality of individual portions at least partly separate, placed in the vicinity of each other so that each individual portion can absorb forces and be deformed in bending or in torsion at least partly independently of the other individual portions, the piece being provided with elements for associating it with the saddletree. Full Article
ed Dog harness equipped with a covering cover By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 14 Jan 2014 08:00:00 EST The invention relates to a dog harness equipped with a covering cover comprising a blanketing saddle part covered by a covering cover, within that a middle portion hollow on one side and domed on the other side, and two side portions, on which side portions a chest strap is attached to trace straps, connecting the two side portions at the height of the trace straps, furthermore a back strap crossing the trace straps is attached directly to the covering cover in the continuation of a belly strap, wherein the covering cover (8) consists of at least two pieces, covering sheet-A (9) and covering sheet-B (10), connected to each other in a connection strip portion (11), furthermore at least two through openings (14) are made in the covering cover (8). Full Article
ed Reduced weight equine orthotic pad and method By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 25 Feb 2014 08:00:00 EST There is disclosed an improved shock absorbing, light-weight, thermally insulative orthotic pad designed for use in a pad and boot assembly for hoofed livestock. The pad is comprised of a mixture of flexible spheroids and elastomeric materials. In a preferred embodiment, elastomeric material generally is more concentrated at the top portion of the pad, and spheroids dispersed in a matrix of elastomeric material concentrated at the bottom section of the pad. The spheroids have a lower density than the elastomeric materials and possess better thermally insulative properties, and in a particularly preferred embodiment, at least some of the spheroids are comprised of closed-cell polypropylene foam. A method of making the light weight pad is also disclosed. Full Article
ed NEAR-FIELD TRANSDUCER WITH TAPERED PEG By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 02 Feb 2017 08:00:00 EST An apparatus includes a waveguide that delivers energy from an energy source, a write pole located proximate the waveguide at a media-facing surface, and a near-field transducer located proximate the write pole in a down track direction. The near-field transducer includes an enlarged portion and a peg extending from the enlarged portion towards the media-facing surface. The peg comprises a taper facing away from the write pole, and the taper causes a reduced down track dimension of the peg near the media-facing surface. Full Article
ed INFORMATION RECORDING METHOD, INFORMATION RECORDING DEVICE, AND INFORMATION RECORDING MEDIUM By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 09 Feb 2017 08:00:00 EST An information recording method of the present disclosure is an information recording method for recording information on a write-once information recording medium, including one or more recording layers, each of the recording layers being spiral-shaped on which a land track and a groove track are alternately repeated as recording tracks, each of the recording tracks being divided into blocks, each of the blocks being a minimum unit in which recording is performed. The information recording method includes: recording the information on the information recording medium in a unit of each of the blocks; and controlling recording on the information recording medium. In the control step, switching is performed whether to perform recording in a block to be recorded in which the information is to be recorded next among the blocks based on recording conditions of the recording tracks adjacent on both sides of the block to be recorded. Full Article
ed THERMALLY-ASSISTED MAGNETIC RECORDING HEAD INCLUDING A MAIN POLE AND A PLASMON GENERATOR By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 16 Feb 2017 08:00:00 EST A main pole has a front end face including a first end face portion and a second end face portion. A plasmon generator has a near-field light generating surface. A surrounding layer has a first surrounding layer end face and a second surrounding layer end face located on opposite sides of the first end face portion in the track width direction. A gap film has a first gap film end face and a second gap film end face located on opposite sides of the near-field light generating surface in the track width direction. Each of the first and second gap film end faces includes a portion located between the first and second surrounding layer end faces, but does not include any portion interposed between the first surrounding layer end face and the first end face portion or between the second surrounding layer end face and the first end face portion. Full Article
ed NEAR-FIELD TRANSDUCER FOR HEAT ASSISTED MAGNETIC RECORDING WITH TRAILING EDGE TAPER AND SIDE TAPER By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 16 Feb 2017 08:00:00 EST Embodiments disclosed herein generally relate to a HAMR head. The HAMR head includes a main pole, a waveguide and a NFT disposed between the main pole and the waveguide. The NFT includes an antenna, and a portion of the antenna is disposed at a media facing surface. By increasing the volume of the antenna extending from the MFS, the temperature of the NFT during operation is reduced. Full Article
ed METHOD OF PERFORMING READ/WRITE PROCESS ON RECORDING MEDIUM, PARAMETER ADJUSTMENT METHOD, STORAGE DEVICE, COMPUTER SYSTEM, AND STORAGE MEDIUM EMPLOYING THE METHODS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 16 Feb 2017 08:00:00 EST Methods, apparatuses and systems for detecting defective sectors on a recording medium, the method including calculating a servo gain for each servo sector of a track of a recording medium of a storage device; determining whether the servo gain of each servo sector exceeds a threshold value; and upon determining that the servo gain of a servo sector exceeds the threshold value, determining data sectors included in the servo sector to be defective sectors. Full Article
ed OPTICAL INFORMATION RECORDING MEDIUM AND REPRODUCTION METHOD By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 23 Mar 2017 08:00:00 EDT In a case where (i) a reflectance calculated from a reflected light amount obtained from a longest pit (P1max) or a longest space (S1max) in a first pit row is defined as a first reflectance and (ii) a reflectance calculated from a reflected light amount obtained from a longest pit (P2max) or a longest space (S2max) in the second pit row is defined as a second reflectance, the first pit row is formed such that the first reflectance becomes substantially identical with the second reflectance. Full Article
ed FREE-STANDING REFLECTOR USABLE IN HEAT ASSISTED MAGNETIC RECORDING TECHNOLOGY By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 08:00:00 EDT A heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus is described. The HAMR write apparatus is coupled with a laser that provides energy. The HAMR writer has a media-facing surface (MFS) and a laser-facing surface. The HAMR write apparatus includes a free-standing reflector and at least one waveguide. The free-standing reflector resides on the laser-facing surface and has a concave reflective surface oriented to receive the energy from the laser. The waveguide(s) are optically coupled with the free-standing reflector and direct energy from the laser toward the MFS. Full Article
ed LASER ADJUSTMENT DURING FIELD OPERATION OF A HEAT-ASSISTED MAGNETIC RECORDING DATA STORAGE DEVICE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 08:00:00 EDT During field operation of a heat-assisted magnetic recording data storage device, a laser adjustment procedure is performed. The laser adjustment procedure involves writing on a recording medium at least three tracks. If a bit error rate of a middle tracks has increased, the laser current is swept while recording test tracks to determine a new laser current that results in a minimum bit error rate. The new laser current is used for subsequent write operations. Full Article
ed METHOD FOR DISPLAYING STATUS ASSOCIATED WITH A STORAGE DEVICE, COMPUTER SYSTEM AND STATUS-MONITORING DEVICE THEREOF By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 08:00:00 EDT A method implemented by a status-monitoring device connected between a storage device and a corresponding output unit includes: a) determining presence of a storage device according to a first packet from the storage device; b) when it is determined that the storage device is present, generating a pulse signal according to a second packet from the storage device; c) generating a driving signal indicating a status associated with the storage device according to at least a logic level of the pulse signal; and d) sending the driving signal to the output unit for driving the output unit to output an output signal indicating the status. Full Article
ed RECORDING CONTROL APPARATUS AND METHOD, DRIVE CONTROLLING CONTROLLER AND METHOD, RECORDING MEDIUM, AND PROGRAM By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present technology relates to a recording control apparatus, a recording control method, a drive controlling controller, a drive controlling method, a recording medium, and a program capable of reading information more reliably. A manager generates DMSs as management information for managing user data areas and spare areas of an optical disc. Further, the manager records the generated DMS in a DMA area of DS0 of the optical disc, and, in addition, records the generated DMS in a DMA mirror area of the DS1 surface of the optical disc. As described above, since DMSs as management information are recorded in the different areas of the optical disc, even if DMS cannot be read from one area, DMS can be read from the other area. The present technology is applicable to a recording and reproducing apparatus. Full Article
ed OPTICAL DISK, OPTICAL DISK RECORDING METHOD, OPTICAL DISK RECORDING DEVICE, AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT There are provided an optical disk and an optical disk recording method which are capable of stable data reading in a case where a recording linear density is increased. According to an optical disk of the present disclosure, a run-in pattern recorded in a groove track and a run-in pattern recorded in a land track are made different patterns so that no great change is caused in the amplitude of an acquired signal due to interference between adjacent recording patterns, and thus, data may be stably read. Full Article
ed CHANGING CHARACTERISTICS OF SIGNAL PATTERNS TO REDUCE ADJACENT TRACK INTERFERENCE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT First and second signal patterns are used to write corresponding portions of first and second adjacent tracks to a magnetic storage medium. A characteristic of the first signal pattern is changed based on the second signal pattern, the changing of the characteristic reducing an adjacent track interference affecting the second track. Full Article
ed PREDICTION OF COMPONENT MAINTENANCE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 08:00:00 EDT One or more processors determine wear for a robotic device. The one or more processors divide a direction of travel of a robotic device into zones. Each zone has an associated counter that counts how many times the robotic device has entered a given zone. The one or more processors update a count for a zone in response to the robotic device entering that zone. The one or more processors determine a level of wear for a component associated with the robotic device. The level of wear is based, at least in part, on a total of counts for the zones. Full Article