ai STRAIN GAUGE POLYMER COMPRISING PHOTOCHROMIC COLORANT By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A composite manufacture includes an extrudable thermoplastic matrix and a photochromic colorant, the photochromic colorant conferring to the composite a reversible strain-induced color change property. Methods include adding photochromic colorant to an extrudable thermoplastic polymer matrix to form a mixture, heating the mixture to form a composite, the photochromic colorant conferring to the composite a reversible strain-induced color change property. The composite manufactures can be used in cable coatings permitting visual detection of mechanical stresses in a wire based on the reversible strain-induced color change property. Full Article
ai Concentric vertical pipe heat exchanger for drain water heat recovery By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 15 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An outer plastic tube has water connections through the wall into an annular space defined by an O-ring spacer-gasket positioned between the wall and the perimeter margin of an inner cylinder rolled from a single-layer of sheet metal. A metal drainpipe with a removable bullet-shape at one end is forced through the cylinder to expand it and to thereby compress the gasket sealing the annular space. Thermal contact conductance is increased by the compressive force of water pressure. Water flow through the heat exchanger is both annular and turbulent to optimize heat transfer. Full Article
ai AIR-CONDITIONING DEVICE FOR VEHICLE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT Provided is an air-conditioning device for a vehicle, including: a cooling device configured to cool air passing through a duct; a heater core, which is arranged in the duct on a downstream side of airflow with respect to the cooling device, and is configured to use an engine coolant as a heat source to heat the air; a water valve provided in a coolant circulation system on an upstream side of the heater core; and a controller configured to control those components, in which the controller is configured to decrease an opening amount of the water valve in a predetermined cooling mode. The control is configured to, when the opening amount of the water valve is decreased, decrease a rotational speed of a compressor of the cooling device, and increase a target evaporator temperature of an evaporator of the cooling device, thereby decreasing cooling performance of the cooling device. Full Article
ai WALL-MOUNTED AIR CONDITIONER INDOOR UNIT By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A wall-mounted air conditioner indoor unit includes a housing having a front housing and a rear housing, main air intake portions formed on the housing, a mixed air outlet formed on a lower portion of the front housing, a non-hot exchange air inlet formed on the rear housing, and an air delivery apparatus disposed inside the housing. The hot exchange air passage has an upper portion with a size greater than that of its lower portion. A volute and a centrifugal fan located inside the volute are disposed inside the housing and above the air delivery apparatus. An air output portion of the volute faces the hot exchange air passage, and includes a surrounding portion extending to the air delivery apparatus and surrounding the hot exchange air passages, and air mixed cavities are formed between the surrounding portion and the hot exchange air passages. Full Article
ai SUPPLY AIR SYSTEM By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An apparatus and a method for controlling the same for conditioning an air flow for an industrial installation, the apparatus having a cooling medium circuit, a cooler incorporated into the cooling medium circuit and having a cooling medium inlet and a cooling medium outlet, at least one consumer incorporated into the cooling medium circuit and having a cooling medium inlet and a cooling medium outlet, a supply air device for conditioning air for the industrial installation, wherein the supply air device has an air/cooling medium heat exchanger, an air inlet for feeding air outside the industrial installation to the air/cooling medium heat exchanger, an air outlet for feeding air from the air/cooling medium heat exchanger to the industrial installation, a cooling medium inlet and a cooling medium outlet. Full Article
ai VEHICLE AIR CONDITIONER By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT There is disclosed a vehicle air conditioner which is capable of enlarging an effective range of a dehumidifying and heating mode to environmental conditions and smoothly dehumidifying and heating a vehicle interior. A vehicle air conditioner 1 executes a dehumidifying and heating mode in which a controller lets a refrigerant discharged from a compressor 2 radiate heat in a radiator 4, and decompresses the refrigerant by which heat has been radiated and then lets the refrigerant absorb heat in a heat absorber 9 and an outdoor heat exchanger 7, the controller decreases an outdoor blower voltage FANVout of an outdoor blower 15 and decreases an air volume into the outdoor blower 15 in a case where a temperature Te of the heat absorber 9 is high even when the controller adjusts a valve position of an outdoor expansion valve 6 into a lower limit of controlling in a situation in which a temperature TCI of the radiator 4 is satisfactory. Full Article
ai LIQUID-ASSISTED BOTTOM AIR COOLING OF ELECTRONIC RACKS IN DATA CENTERS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT An electronic rack includes a housing to contain one or more IT components arranged in a stack, a first rack aisle formed on a first side of the one or more IT components to direct cooler air received from the cooling unit upwardly, and a second rack aisle formed on a second side of the one or more IT components to direct warmer air to the cooling unit downwardly. The electronic rack further includes a cooling unit having one or more cooling units disposed underneath the IT components to receive first liquid from an external chiller system, to exchange heat carried by the warmer air using the first liquid to generate the cooler air, to transform the first liquid into a second liquid with a higher temperature, and to transmit the second liquid carrying the exchanged heat back to the external chiller system. Full Article
ai RACK AIRFLOW MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A rack airflow monitoring system is configured to measure airflow through an equipment rack having a housing and a perforated front door to enable air to flow into an interior of the housing. The system includes a control module, and a plurality of airflow sensors secured to the front door of the equipment rack and coupled to the control module. Each airflow sensor is configured to detect a parameter used to measure airflow and communicate detected parameters to the control module. The control module is configured to obtain temperature, airflow velocity, and airflow directionality from the plurality of airflow sensors at the front door of the equipment rack. Full Article
ai SPLIT GAIN SHAPE VECTOR CODING By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 25 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT The invention relates to an encoder and a decoder and methods therein for supporting split gain shape vector encoding and decoding. The method performed by an encoder, where the encoding of each vector segment is subjected to a constraint related to a maximum number of bits, BMAX, allowed for encoding a vector segment. The method comprises, determining an initial number, Np—init, of segments for a target vector x; and further determining an average number of bits per segment, BAVG, based on a vector bit budget and Np—init. The method further comprises determining a final number of segments to be used, for the vector x, in the gain shape vector encoding, based on energies of the Np—init segments and a difference between BMAX and BAVG. The performing of the method enables an efficient allocation of the bits of the bit budget over the target vector. Full Article
ai FREQUENCY-DOMAIN ADC FLASH CALIBRATION By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A flash analog-to-digital converter (ADC) includes comparators that convert an analog input signal to a digital output signal. Offsets of these comparators introduce noise and can hurt the performance of the ADC. Thus, these comparators are calibrated using calibration codes. Conventional calibration methods determine these calibration codes by removing the ADC from an input signal. Otherwise, it is difficult to distinguish the noise from the signal in the calibration measurement. In contrast, an embodiment can determine the calibration codes while the ADC converts the input signal to a digital signal. Such an embodiment can be achieved by a frequency-domain technique. In an embodiment employing a frequency-domain power meter, an input signal can be removed from the power measurement. This removal enables accurate measurement of in-band noise without having the measurement be corrupted by input signal power. Full Article
ai Method for preparing uranium concentrates by fluidized bed precipitation, and preparation of UO3 and U3O8 by drying/calcining said concentrates By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 14 Jan 2014 08:00:00 EST Method for producing a uranium concentrate in the form of solid particles, by precipitation from a uranium-containing solution using a precipitating agent, in a vertical reactor comprising a base, a top, a central part, an upper part, and a lower part, the solid particles of the uranium concentrate forming a fluidized bed under the action of a rising liquid current which circulates from the base towards the top of the reactor successively passing through the lower part, the central part and the upper part of the reactor, and which is created by introducing a liquid recycling current (flow) at the base of the reactor, said liquid recycling current being tapped at a first determined level (A) in the upper part of the reactor and sent back without settling to the base of the reactor, excess liquid being also evacuated via an overflow located at a second determined level (B) in the upper part of the reactor; a method in which the upper limit (C) of the fluidized bed of solid particles is controlled so that it is positioned at a level below the first and second determined levels. Full Article
ai Method for producing a coarse-grained ammonium sulfate product via crystallization and installation for operating the method By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 25 Feb 2014 08:00:00 EST Method for the production of a coarse-grained ammonium sulphate product by crystallization and installation for carrying out the method from an ammonium sulphate solution in a DTB type crystallizer having an internal suspension circuit and a clarifying zone, from which a clarified partial flow of solution is constantly drawn off into an external circuit, is heated in a heat exchanger to dissolve the solids contained therein and is guided back as a clear solution into the lower region of the crystallizer. A fine crystal suspension flow is drawn off from the clarifying zone as a further partial flow and guided back into the internal circuit of the crystallization stage without any previous dissolution of the solid proportion contained therein. Full Article
ai Process for producing nitrogen-containing composition By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 08:00:00 EST The invention provides a process comprising: a crystallization step of concentrating and crystallizing the ammonium salt of sulfuric acid from an aqueous solution that contains the ammonium salt of sulfuric acid; a solid-liquid separation step of solid-liquid separating the ammonium salt of sulfuric acid obtained in the crystallization step, and a crystallization mother liquid recycling step of recycling a crystallization mother liquid obtained in the solid-liquid separation step to at least one step selected from the crystallization step and one or more steps that precede the crystallization step, in which not all of the crystallization mother liquid is recycled. Full Article
ai Process for obtaining potassium chloride By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 22 Jul 2014 08:00:00 EDT Aspects of the present invention relate to a process to obtain potassium chloride that includes submitting brine to concentration, separating brine after concentration, resulting in a first solid content and a first liquid content, cooling the first liquid content, separating the first liquid content after cooling, thus resulting in a second solid content and a second liquid content, enriching the second solid content, and separating the second solid content after enrichment, thus resulting in a third solid content and a third liquid content. Aspects of this process are environmentally safe, as the process includes stages using solvents and equipment which does not harm the environment. Moreover, aspects of this process present a significant energy consumption reduction. Full Article
ai Process for the combined regeneration of soluble salts contained in a residue of an industrial process By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 09 Dec 2014 08:00:00 EST Process for the combined regeneration of at least two soluble salts contained in a residue of an industrial process comprising heavy metals, comprising: adding an amount of reactive aqueous solution needed to completely dissolve the salts which are desired to be regenerated to the residue; subjecting the resulting aqueous suspension to a separation to obtain an aqueous production solution on the one hand and insoluble impurities on the other hand, which are removed; successively subjected the aqueous production solution to at least two selective crystallization steps intended to crystallize, separately, the at least two soluble salts which are desired to be regenerated, which are washed, dried and regenerated separately; and adjusting the concentration of at least one of the soluble salts to be regenerated in the aqueous production solution, at the moment when such solution is subjected to the step of crystallization of this salt, to give rise to the selective crystallization of this salt, by addition of a controlled amount of this salt to the aqueous production solution upstream of the crystallization step. Full Article
ai FDA Cracks Down on CBD COVID Claims By www.eastbayexpress.com Published On :: Wed, 22 Apr 2020 01:00:00 -0700 Small, little-known companies are selling CBD as a cure-all. While the Trump Administration has deregulated right and left — for instance, allowing polluters to go hog wild — the Food and Drug Administration isn't effing around when it comes to cracking down on companies selling supposed cures for the COVID-19 virus. Several of those targeted companies make CBD.… Full Article Chronic Town
ai Axial Air Gap Rotating Electric Machine and Rotating Electric Machine Bobbin By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention ensures reliability while reducing the size of an axial air gap rotating electric machine. An axial air gap rotating electric machine has: a stator comprising a plurality of core members arranged in a ring shape, said core members each having an iron core, a coil wound in an iron core outer periphery direction, and a bobbin disposed between the iron core and the coil; and a rotor plane-facing an end surface of the iron core via an air gap in a rotating shaft radial direction. The bobbin has: a tubular portion facing the outer peripheral side surface of the iron core and shorter than the length of the iron core; flange portions extending in the vicinity of both ends of the tubular portion from the outer periphery of the tubular portion toward the vertical direction outside by a predetermined length; and a projection portion being on the outside surface of at least one of the flange portions and near the inner edge of the tubular portion, having an inner peripheral surface facing the end outer peripheral side surface of the inserted iron core, and further projecting in an extending direction of the tubular portion. Full Article
ai MOTOR DRIVE DEVICE WHICH COOLS HEAT SINK BY OUTSIDE AIR By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A motor drive device is fixed to a wall part of a housing and comprises a duct having an inflow port and an outflow port of air. A main body part of the duct functions as a heat-sink unit which releases heat into the duct. The duct is arranged inside the housing. The inflow port and the outflow port are formed so that outside air can flow through openings formed in the wall part. Full Article
ai Activewear with waistband pocket By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 05 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT Provided is activewear with hidden pockets. More particularly, athletic garments such as pants comprising one or more waistband pocket, preferably concealable, are included. In embodiments, athletic garments with an interior concealed pocket in the fold-over portion of a fold down waistband are provided. The waistband pocket enables the wearer to store items such as car keys, hotel room keys and/or smart phones relatively inconspicuously and securely in the waistband of the garment. A purpose of the concealment includes minimizing attention from the items stored within the pocket and allowing the wearer to participate in a variety of athletic sports or events while carrying personal items in a secure manner. Preferred embodiments include athletic pants comprising (i) a fold down waistband, (ii) an annular storage pocket capable of retaining items without any additional material added to the pant, and (iii) one or more slits for the opening for the pocket. Full Article
ai Air-cushioned shorts for cycling By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 05 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT Cycling shorts for protecting a rider from harmful effects occasioned by the design of the substantially unpadded seat of a racing-type cycle. Fabric shorts of conventional or elongated design include a interior protective pad. The pad includes adjoined seat and crotch sections and is symmetrical with respect to an axis of symmetry. It includes an interior chamber for receiving pressurized air. A pump for delivering selectively pressurized air communicates with the interior chamber by means of a conduit. The chamber includes internally honeycombed sections for minimizing air flow so that the cushioning effect of the pad is preserved despite the force exerted by the weight of a wearer on the hard and relatively-inflexible seat. Full Article
ai Personal protection device and garment incorporating said device By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 12 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A personal protection device for protecting a user is described. The personal protection device can have an inflatable member having an internal chamber that can be inflated or deflated according to predetermined conditions. Full Article
ai Welding helmet positive air pressuring system and method By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A method and system for controlling ventilation in a welding helmet is provided. The invention may be adapted to a wide variety of system types, and may reduce or eliminate the need for a shroud or barrier around the head and neck of the welder, of the type used in PAPR systems. The airflow system includes forward and rearward air streams, directed onto the face of the welder, onto the top of the head of the welder, and toward the back of the head of the welder. The air streams help to cool the welder, provide a fresh source of air for breathing, and create a positive pressure system that reduces or excludes entrainment of contaminated external air into the forwardly directed air flow. Certain embodiments may include streams that are filtered, split or redirected via deflectors and conduits to achieve the aforementioned goals. Full Article
ai Waistband system, method and apparatus By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 08 Mar 2016 08:00:00 EST Embodiments provide a waistband system including a flap of material coupled to a pair of pants at or near a waistband of the pants. The flap may be rotated (e.g., folded) between an extended position in which at least a portion of the flap rises above a waistline (i.e., top edge) of the pants, and a folded down position in which the flap is substantially or completely disposed in an interior portion of the pants below the waistline. When the flap is in the extended (folded up) position, the flap may provide a user of the pants protection from snow, rain, liquids, and/or debris, above the waistline of the pants. On the other hand, the folded down position may provide more comfort and/or aesthetic appeal. Full Article
ai DRUM PEDAL WITH FEATURES FOR ADJUSTMENT OF CHAIN OR SIMILAR DEVICE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 04 May 2017 08:00:00 EDT Drum pedal assemblies are disclosed which can include one or more adjustment features. Adjustment features which can be included in embodiments of the invention can include spring tension adjustment features, pedal incline adjustment features, lever length adjustment features, beater stem angle adjustment features, chain path adjustment features, operable chain length adjustment features, and chain connection point position adjustment features. Full Article
ai Downspout for a gutter system with an integrated rainwater holding chamber By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A gutter downspout is provided and includes an integrated rainwater holding chamber for collecting and holding rainwater and also includes a bypass chamber. Rainwater collected by the gutter system is directed into the gutter downspout where at least a portion of the rainwater is directed into the rainwater holding chamber where it accumulates over time. When the rainwater holding chamber is filled, the additional rainwater directed into the gutter downspout is directed into a bypass chamber disposed adjacent the rainwater holding chamber. Rainwater flows through the bypass chamber and out the bottom of the gutter downspout. Full Article
ai Paint mixing room By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT The invention relates to a paint mixing room (1) comprising a base portion (2), four walls (3), a top portion (4) and at least one door (5) located in one the walls (3); at least one shelf (6), particularly for water-borne products, solvent-borne products and/or color tools; at least one workbench (7); a color station (8) comprising e.g. a personal computer, a spectrophotometer, and a barcode reader; a connector for an electrical power supply; and a ventilation system (11); wherein the paint mixing room (1) is portable. Full Article
ai Field paver connector and restraining system By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT An elevated building surface assembly including a plurality of surface tiles, a plurality of support pedestals disposed in spaced-apart relation on a fixed surface and having a support plate with a top surface operatively supporting the surface tiles in horizontally spaced-apart relation, and a plurality of elongate restraining members configured to restrict movement of the surface tile(s) in directions away from first and second adjacent support pedestals and/or relative to one or more adjacent surface tiles to advantageously limit movement or displacement of the surface tile(s) that may otherwise occur due to uplift forces (e.g., generated by winds and/or the like). Full Article
ai Structure following roof mounted photovoltaic system By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT An adjustable photovoltaic panel mounting system that allows for variations in roofs and roof elements, while still maintaining a rigid and secure assembly. The specific location for supporting feet and structural elements of the mounting system may be varied to allow for variations in roof features and different panel configurations. The mounting mechanisms are adjustable in both a North/South and a East/West direction to provide for maximum layout flexibility. Full Article
ai Segmental retaining wall corner block and wall corner comprised of corner blocks By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A corner block has spaced-apart front and rear sections interconnected by two spaced-apart side sections that jointly define an internal cavity. Upper protrusions are provided on the top face of the block, and inner protrusions are provided inside the cavity at the bottom of the block. The upper and inner protrusions are configured and arranged relative to one another so that when two corner blocks are stacked one atop another with one block rotated 90° relative to the other, the upper protrusions of the lower block interlock with the inner protrusions of the upper block to interlock the two blocks. The corner blocks are constructed in two variants, a corner block A and a corner block B, which are mirror images of each other. The corner blocks A and B are alternately stacked upon one another to construct a 90° corner of a segmental wall structure. Full Article
ai Keder rail attachment for a fabric/panel building By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT An extrudable keder rail and a clamping anchor for the keder rail are cooperative to secure keder fabric to a building support beam. The clamping anchor allows the keder rail to be securely attached to a standard beam without drilling holes or strapping about the beam. A temporary clamp and movable tensioning device allow the keder rails and keder fabric to be applied to the building support beams after the support beams have been assembled and installed. Full Article
ai One-piece dovetail veneer tie and wall anchoring system with in-cavity thermal breaks By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A dovetail anchoring system for cavity walls is disclosed and includes a sheetmetal dovetail anchor and one-piece sheetmetal dovetail veneer tie. The anchoring system is used in conjunction with building structures that have a masonry outer wythe anchored to a poured masonry inner wythe. A thermally-isolating coating is optionally applied to the high-strength veneer tie, which is interconnected with the wall anchor. The thermally-isolating coating is selected from a distinct grouping of materials, that are applied using a specific variety of methods, in one or more layers and cured and cross-linked to provide high-strength adhesion. The thermally-coated veneer ties provide an in-cavity thermal break that severs the thermal threads running throughout the cavity wall structure, reducing the U- and K-values of the anchoring system by thermally-isolating the metal components. Full Article
ai Systems and methods for repairing utility poles By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A pole splint, generally for use with a broken wooden utility pole, which can provide for a strong repair at a pole breakpoint and which uses relatively little manpower and equipment to install, even under difficult conditions. The splint generally comprises two panels which are designed to be interconnected with elongated connectors. The connectors will generally interact with one of the panels through the use of a nut and washer, and may connect with the other panel through a nut and washer or via a chain formed of chain links. Full Article
ai Aircraft thermal insulation By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT The invention provides an arrangement and methods for thermally insulating aircraft, particularly but not exclusively for when the aircraft is operating in extremely hot or cold conditions, and describes an aircraft skin construction including a foam-stiffened CFC sandwich panel forming part of the aircraft outer skin mounted to an underlying load bearing aircraft structure, wherein the panel at the mounting to the structure includes two outer layers of CFC material with an inner layer of foam material sandwiched therebetween. Full Article
ai SMART ORONASAL MASK FOR POSITIVE-AIRWAY-PRESSURE DEVICE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A smart oronasal mask for a positive-airway-pressure device includes a mask body and a temperature sensor. The mask body has an air inlet and an air outlet. The temperature sensor is deposited in the mask body and located between the air inlet and the air outlet for sensing a temperature of a mixture formed by gas entering the mask body through the air inlet of the mask body and gas entering the mask body through the air outlet of the mask body. Then the positive airway pressure device adjusts air feed according to the temperature sensed by the temperature sensor in a real-time manner, so as to help keep a patient's respiratory tract clear. Full Article
ai METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR OBTAINING DESIRED OXYGEN CONCENTRATIONS AND AIR FLOWS DURING RESPIRATORY THERAPY By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT Methods, systems, and apparatuses are described that indicate an amount at which various gas flow rates should be manually adjusted in order to achieve targeted total flow rates and concentration levels. Full Article
ai Crude Oil Storage Tank With Electrostatic Internals To Dehydrate Crude Oil Within A Process Train Of A Floating Production Storage And Offloading Installation By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A process train for a floating production storage and offloading installation includes a crude oil storage tank that is equipped with at least one set of electrostatic internals arranged to provide a treatment flow path isolated from a surrounding volume of the electrostatic separator section of the tank. An oil-and-water stream or mixture entering the set of electrostatic internals travels along the treatment flow path and is subjected to an electric field. The treatment flow path is in an upwardly direction toward the oil outlet section and in a downwardly opposite direction toward the water outlet section of the tank. Employing electrostatic internals within the tank permits an allowable inlet water content into the tank of up to 80%, significantly reducing the required topside processing equipment. Full Article
ai DEVICES AND METHODS FOR CONTAINING MOLECULES By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention generally relates to devices and methods for containing molecules. In some embodiments, the device comprises a nanopore, a pore, and a cavity capable of entropically containing (e.g., trapping) a molecule (e.g., a biomolecule), e.g., for minutes, hours, or days. In certain embodiments, the method comprises urging a molecule into a cavity of a device by application of an electric field, and/or by deposition of fluids having different ionic strengths. The molecule may comprise, in some cases, nucleic acids (e.g., DNA). The molecule, when present in the cavity and/or the nanopore, may be capable of being analyzed, determined, or chemically modified. In some instances, a second molecule (e.g., a second molecule which interacts the first molecule) may also be urged into the cavity. In some embodiments, the interaction of the second molecule with the first molecule (e.g., the second molecule binding to or chemically modifying the first molecule) may be determined by, for example, a change in voltage measured across the device. Full Article
ai THERAPY PREDICTION AND OPTIMIZATION FOR RENAL FAILURE BLOOD THERAPY, ESPECIALLY HOME HEMODIALYSIS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A renal failure blood therapy system includes a renal failure blood therapy machine, concentration levels for each of a plurality of solutes removed from a patient's blood at each of the multiple times, a display device configured to display for selection at least one removed blood solute from the plurality of removed blood solutes, and a device programmed to (i) estimate at least one renal failure blood therapy patient parameter using the determined concentration levels for the at least one selected removed blood solute, (ii) determine a plurality of acceptable renal failure blood therapy treatments that meet a predetermined removed blood solute clearance for the at least one selected removed blood solute using the at least one renal failure blood therapy patient parameter, and (iii) enable selection of at least one of the plurality of acceptable renal failure blood therapy treatments for operation at the renal failure blood therapy machine. Full Article
ai METHOD FOR PREPARING AN OBJECT TO BE TESTED AND METHOD FOR IMPROVING THE UNIFORMITY AND INTENSITY OF AN ELECTRIC FIELD INDUCED IN SAID OBJECT ILLUMINATED BY AN INCIDENT ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A method for preparing an object to be tested, having a given relative permittivity, intended to be illuminated by an incident electromagnetic wave. The method includes: providing a part including a cavity for housing the object and at least one extension element made from a material having a relative permittivity that is preferably equal to that of the object, the extension element at least partially delimiting the cavity and extending to either side of the cavity in a passage direction of the cavity, over a length at least equal, on either side of the cavity, to one third of the length of the cavity in the passage direction, and placing the object in the cavity, such that the object is in contact with the extension element in the passage direction. Full Article
ai RECONSTRUCTING IMPULSIVE SOURCE SEISMIC DATA FROM TIME DISTRIBUTED FIRING AIRGUN ARRAY DATA By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT Acquiring seismic data using time-distributed sources and converting the acquired data into impulsive data using a multiple-frequency approach. The methods are performed in frequency-source location domain, frequency-wavenumber domain, or frequency-slowness domain. The methods are applicable to single source acquisition or simultaneous source acquisition. Full Article
ai Valve Unit With Purge Air Pump By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present disclosure relates to internal combustion engines in general. Some embodiments of the teaching may include valve units for use in a fuel tank system of an internal combustion engine having a fuel tank and a storage element for temporary storage of hydrocarbons, wherein the fuel tank and the storage element are connected together such that the hydrocarbons which gasify out of a fuel in the fuel tank are stored in the storage element. They may include a purge air pump connected to the storage element and conveying fresh air to the storage element, thereby releasing the stored hydrocarbons and supplying them to a combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine and a movable adjustment element with at least two positions. The first position may connect a pressure side of the purge air pump to a first line and a suction side of the purge air pump to a second line. The second position may connect the pressure side to the second line and the suction side to the first line. Full Article
ai PLANET GEAR TRAIN BASED TORQUE DETECTOR By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A planet gear train based torque detector is provided with idler gears between an input shaft and an output shaft wherein a rotation of the input shaft rotates the idler gears which rotate the output shaft, and a force is applied to a tangent line between each idler gear and the input shaft; peripheral resilient members, each having a fixed first end and a second end for receiving force applied thereon by the revolution of idler gears; and at least one strain gauge, each attached on one resilient member for measuring a deformation at the resilient member due to the revolution of the idler gears. A torque between the input shaft and the output shaft is obtained by calculating the deformation. The resilient members parallel the input shaft. Full Article
ai Maintaining a Measurement Gap in a Rheometer By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT A rheometer includes a drive shaft, a drag cup motor for rotating the drive shaft, a first measuring object supported by the drive shaft, a second measuring object, a linear position sensor, and processing and control electronics. The linear position sensor includes a target (e.g., an aluminum target) mounted to the drive shaft, and a pair of coils. The linear position sensor is configured to measure thermal expansion of the drive shaft based on a change in impedance of the coils resulting from a displacement of the target relative to the coils. The processing and control electronics are in communication with the coils and are configured to adjust a position of one of the measuring objects relative to the other based on a change in impedance of the coils resulting from a displacement of the target relative to the coils, thereby to maintain a substantially constant measurement gap therebetween. Full Article
ai MAIL DETECTION DEVICE AND METHOD By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT The present invention discloses a mail detection device and method. The device comprises a broad-band terahertz generator, a collimator, a beam splitter, a fixed reflector, a movable reflector, a wave buncher, a matrix detector, an acquisition card and an information processing module; wherein the information processing module is used for generating a terahertz image of a mail to be detected according to the electric signals sent by the acquisition card when the movable reflector is motionless; and when finding suspicious articles according to the terahertz image of a mail to be detected, the information processing module controls the movable reflector to move, and generates spectral information of the suspicious articles according to an electric signal sequence sent by the acquisition card during the movement of the movable reflector. Full Article
ai Alkoxylated quaternary ammonium salts and fuels containing them By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 31 Mar 2015 08:00:00 EDT A fuel additive and its preparation for a engine, a fuel containing the additive, a fuel additive concentrate, a method for improving performance of fuel injectors and a method for cleaning fuel injectors for an engine. The fuel additive includes a quaternary ammonium salt derived from a reaction of a hydrocarbyl substituted anhydride, a tertiary amine and a hydroxyl-containing epoxide, wherein the tertiary amine is devoid of primary and secondary amino groups. Full Article
ai Process to obtain diesel from vegetable and animal oils through a hydrotreatment with short residence time and byproducts obtained from it By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 31 Mar 2015 08:00:00 EDT A method for obtaining diesel fuel from vegetable or animal oils through the addition of hydrogen in the presence of catalysts under suitable temperature and pressure conditions is described. The method is different from other similar methods in that it involves the use of space velocities of between 5.1 h-1 and 9 h-1, thereby enabling a reduction in the size of the reactor and in hydrogen consumption, as well as lowering construction and operating costs. The invention also relates to the products obtained using said method, which have demonstrated that in additions, even below 10%, they improve the performance of diesel engines, thereby lowering fuel consumption. Full Article
ai Fuel composition containing a hydrocarbyl-substituted succinimide By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 21 Apr 2015 08:00:00 EDT The present disclosure is directed to a middle distillate fuel composition comprising a friction modifying effective amount of a hydrocarbyl-substituted succinimide derived from maleic anhydride, polyisobutylene and ammonia; and a middle distillate fuel. A method for modifying friction in a compression engine comprising providing to the engine the disclosed fuel composition is also disclosed. Moreover, there is disclosed a method for improving fuel mileage. Full Article
ai Conversion of triacylglycerides-containing oils By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 05 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A process for converting triacylglycerides-containing oils into crude oil precursors and/or distillate hydrocarbon fuels is disclosed. The process may include reacting a triacylglycerides-containing oil-carbon dioxide mixture at a temperature in the range from about 250° C. to about 525° C. and a pressure greater than about 75 bar to convert at least a portion of the triacylglycerides to a hydrocarbon or mixture of hydrocarbons comprising one or more of isoolefins, isoparaffins, cycloolefins, cycloparaffins, and aromatics. Full Article
ai Methods for producing and using densified biomass products containing pretreated biomass fibers By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Tue, 26 May 2015 08:00:00 EDT A process is provided comprising subjecting a quantity of plant biomass fibers to a pretreatment to cause at least a portion of lignin contained within each fiber to move to an outer surface of said fiber, wherein a quantity of pretreated tacky plant biomass fibers is produced; and densifying the quantity of pretreated tacky plant biomass fibers to produce one or more densified biomass particulates, wherein said biomass fibers are densified without using added binder. Full Article
ai DISINFECTION OF WATER MAINS USING ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT AND OXIDIZING AGENTS By www.freepatentsonline.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Jun 2017 08:00:00 EDT Methods and systems are provided for disinfecting water mains using ultraviolet (UV) light and advanced oxidation processes. One or more UV light sources are provided and secured to a movable device that moves axially in a pipe. The frequency and intensity of the UV light is determined based on characteristics of the pipe, such as its material and size. The rate at which the movable device moves through the pipe is also determined so that the interior surface of the pipe is properly disinfected. The movable device is remotely caused to move through the pipe. An oxidant supply component having a dispensing portion dispenses an oxidizing agent into the pipe. A portion of the emitted UV light may convert the dispensed oxidizing agent into additional oxidizing agents that further disinfect the pipe. Full Article