3670 results about "Operant conditioning" patented technology

The invention relates to a vehicle computer system. The vehicle computer system gathers data from a safety sensor to determine whether the proper safety conditions are present for the vehicle operator to interact with the vehicle computer system. A safety controller receives safety condition data gathered from the safety sensor and instructs the display manager to disable the display of information to the vehicle operator during unsafe operating conditions. The vehicle computer system advantageously employs a transparent display screen to provide greater field of vision of the vehicle operator than could be provided by a traditional display screen.

A tissue closure treatment system and method are provided with an external patient interface. A first fluid transfer component FTC.1 comprises a strip of porous material, such as rayon, with liquid wicking properties. FTC.1 can be placed directly on a suture line for transferring fluid exuded therethrough. An underdrape is placed over FTC.1 and includes a slot exposing a portion of same. FTC.2 comprises a suitable hydrophobic foam material, such as polyurethane ether, and is placed over the underdrape slot in communication with FTC.1. Negative pressure is applied to FTC.2 through a connecting fluid transfer component FTC.3. A negative pressure source can comprises a manual device or a power-operated suction device. The tissue closure method includes a manual operating mode using a manual suction device with an automatic shut off for discontinuing suction when a predetermined volume of fluid has been drained. An automatic operating mode utilizes a microprocessor, which can be preprogrammed to respond to various patient and operating conditions. The method proceeds through several phases with different components in place and different patient interface functions occurring in each.

Systems and methods are provided for performing focus detection, referential ambiguity resolution and mood classification in accordance with multi-modal input data, in varying operating conditions, in order to provide an effective conversational computing environment for one or more users.

In some aspects, each cell in the communications system can be designed to operate in accordance with a set of back-off factors that identify the reductions in peak transmit power levels for the channels associated with the back-off factors. The back-off factors are defined to provide the required power to a large percentage of the users while reducing the amount of interference. In some other aspects, the cells operate using an adaptive reuse scheme that allows the cells to efficiently allocate and reallocate the system resources to reflect changes in the system. A reuse scheme is initially defined and resources are allocated to the cells. During operation, changes in the operating conditions of the system are detected and the reuse scheme is redefined as necessary based on the detected changes. For example, the loading conditions of the cells can be detected, and the resources can be reallocated and / or the reuse scheme can be redefined. In yet other aspects, techniques are provided to efficiency schedule data transmissions and to assign channels to users. Data transmissions can be scheduled based on user priorities, some fairness criteria, system requirements, and other factors. Users are assigned to available channels based on a number of channel assignment schemes. Channel metrics are also provided, which can be used to prioritize users and for channel assignments.

A method and apparatus is disclosed for operating a medical device with a screen having an improved graphical user interface, which selectively reallocates screen display for both single and multi-channel pumps. Channel indicators associate operation information with a specific delivery channel. Patient or drug order verification is facilitated with a rendering of the patient or the entire drug order / label on the screen. Decimal numbers are presented in vertically offset decimal format. A dual function button cancels the current operation and, after a delay, clears entered parameters. An area sensitive scrollbar cycles through information at various speeds. Screen brightness is adjusted based on an ambient light detector. A screen saver mode activates based on several operating conditions. The screen is incorporated in a removable user interface.

A system for hazard mitigation in a structure including a subsystem coupled to a circuit of an electrical distribution system and set of nodes. The nodes monitor operating conditions of the circuit and generate data in response. A data processing system is operable to process the data generated by the set of nodes and in response identify a trigger representing a condition requiring that an action be taken. The data processing system processes the trigger in accordance with a predetermined policy to initiate an action by the subsystem.

Method and system for real-time in-situ interactive supervision of a step performed in a tool during semiconductor wafer fabrication process. The system includes a tool and the computer attached thereto, an end point detection controller, a database and a supervisor to supervise the whole wafer processing for that step. The controller is used to monitor a key process parameter of the step and is adapted to perform in-situ measurements. The database contains the evolution of said process parameter in normal operating conditions and in all the identified deviations. It further contains the history of the wafer until this step and a reference to the batch and process names for this step and the wafer identification number. At the end of the step, the important process parameters and any alert code are stored in the database to up-date the wafer history. This technique allows a total clusterized wafer fabrication process and prevents wafer rejection.

The present invention relates to a system and method for diagnosing and isolating problems and for monitoring operting conditions on an automobile. The system includes a hand held unit and a master station which can operate alone or in unison to accomplish functions such as logging and displaying data on a real-time basis, logging data remotely and displaying the data at a later time, diagnosing fault conditions, monitoring operating parameters, reprogramming on-board vehicle controllers, displaying service manual and service bulletin pages and ordering parts on-line.

A method of distributing charging power among a plurality of charge ports of a battery charging station is provided, where the battery charging station includes a plurality of power stages where each power stage includes an AC to DC converter and provides a portion of the charging station's maximum available charging power, the method comprising the steps of (i) monitoring battery charging station conditions and operating conditions for each charging port; (ii) determining current battery charging station conditions, including current operating conditions for each charging port; (iii) determining power distribution for the battery charging station and the charging ports in response to the current battery charging conditions and in accordance with a predefined set of power distribution rules; and (iv) coupling the power stages to the charging ports in accordance with the power distribution.

The system described in this invention can be used for monitoring and analyzing real time visual and non-visual information pertaining to the occupant, vehicle, and surroundings prior to, during and post eccentric operating conditions for a given period of time. The system stores vehicle and occupant data from sensors throughout the vehicle and also makes use of existing vehicle sensors that may already be present in the vehicle. The invention also includes a video recording module that makes use of a fish-eye camera to capture video from the inside and the outside of the vehicle. Real-time data analysis is performed to detect and to recognize vehicle occupants, and recognize impending eccentric events. Vehicle, occupant, and video data are stored in circular buffers. When an eccentric event, a collision for example, has been detected, the device continues to record data and video for a fixed period of time. Once this time has elapsed, the data is transferred from volatile to non-volatile memory for later retrieval. A computer may be used to retrieve and display the vehicle and occupant data in a synchronization with the video data for the purposes of accident recreation, driver or vehicle monitoring.

In some aspects, each cell in the communications system can be designed to operate in accordance with a set of back-off factors that identify the reductions in peak transmit power levels for the channels associated with the back-off factors. The back-off factors are defined to provide the required power to a large percentage of the users while reducing the amount of interference. In some other aspects, the cells operate using an adaptive reuse scheme that allows the cells to efficiently allocate and reallocate the system resources to reflect changes in the system. A reuse scheme is initially defined and resources are allocated to the cells. During operation, changes in the operating conditions of the system are detected and the reuse scheme is redefined as necessary based on the detected changes. In yet other aspects, techniques are provided to efficiency schedule data transmissions and to assign channels to users.

It is intended to achieve an arrangement wherein, when file information of shared disks which are distributed in a plurality of computers connected to a network are used, operating conditions at the time of accessing shared disks can be defined, thus enabling users to easily share files without being bothered by setting-up, or operations of computers located on the other side when they are to perform file sharing.In order to achieve the above-stated arrangement, a storage management integrated server 100 is provided in a network, and respective computers register conditions, an accessibility states and use types pertaining to shared volume to be offered to the server. Thereafter, when a certain computer is to make a file accessing to a shared volume, the computer makes an inquiry to the storage management integrated server for an adequate access destination, determines, on the basis of a response from the server, computers which are suitable to the access source, and makes direct accesses to such computers.

The invention describes devices for performing thermodynamic work on a fluid, such as pumps, compressors and fans. The thermodynamic work may be used to provide a driving force for moving the fluid. Work performed on the fluid may be transmitted to other devices, such as a piston in a hydraulic actuation device. The devices may include one or more electroactive polymer transducers with an electroactive polymer that deflects in response to an application of an electric field. The electroactive polymer may be in contact with a fluid where the deflection of the electroactive polymer may be used to perform thermodynamic work on the fluid. The devices may be designed to efficiently operate at a plurality of operating conditions, such as operating conditions that produce an acoustic signal above or below the human hearing range. The devices may be used in thermal control systems, such as refrigeration system, cooling systems and heating systems.

A vessel monitoring and control system. Data indicative of operational conditions for vessel systems is transmitted from the vessel to one or more remote sites and commands are received from the one or more remote sites for controlling the vessel systems. Multiple transmitting and receiving components are available on the vessel for communicating with a variety of different communications systems at the remote sites.

Systems and methods for performing module-based diagnostics are described. In an exemplary embodiment, sensor values from an actual engine plant are input to an engine component quality estimator which generates performance estimates of major rotating components. Estimated performance differences are generating by comparing the generated performance estimates to a nominal quality engine. The estimated performance differences, which are indicative of component quality, are continuously updated and input to a real-time model of the engine. The model receives operating conditional data and the quality estimates are used to adjust the nominal values in the model to more closely match the model values to the actual plant. Outputs from the engine model are virtual parameters, such as stall margins, specific fuel consumption, and fan / compressor / turbine efficiencies. The virtual parameters are combined with the sensor values from the actual engine plant in a fault detection and isolation classifier to identify abnormal conditions and / or specific fault classes, and output a diagnosis.

A vehicle safety system is disclosed that monitors vehicle surroundings, operational conditions, etc., in order to identify potential safety concerns or hazardous operational conditions. In doing so, the vehicle safety system collects data from one or more sources, such as sources that generate data from the vehicle itself (e.g., internal sensors), sources that generate data from the surroundings of the vehicle (e.g., external sensors), and sources that receive data from local or remote locations with respect to the host vehicle (e.g., a satellite, telematics, cellular, short or long range RF, etc., data acquisition unit). In response to data collected by components of the system, the system may use a hierarchical system to address the potential hazardous conditions or safety concerns.

There is provided a control scheme for restarting an internal combustion engine of a hybrid powertrain during ongoing vehicle operation. The method comprises generating a torque output from an electrical machine to rotate the engine, and determining an engine crank torque. The torque output from the electrical machine is selectively controlled based upon the engine crank torque. The engine is fired when rotational speed of the engine exceeds a threshold. An engine torque simulation model accurately determines engine compression pressures in real-time to accommodate changes in engine operating conditions, based upon present engine operating conditions.

A system and method of monitoring a plurality of electrical assets comprise an electricity distribution infrastructure, including a plurality of electrical asset sensors coupled to the electrical assets for monitoring an operating condition of the electrical assets as well as any fault conditions. The sensors may include a current transformer for obtaining a current waveform, a GPS receiver for applying a synchronized time-stamp to the waveform data, and a mesh network radio for transmitting the time-stamped waveform data. Data from the plurality of sensors may be encrypted and transmitted over a mesh network to one or more gateways that are in communication with a central command processor. In response to an abnormal operating condition of any electrical asset, the central command processor may determine a probable fault location, a probable fault type, and a fault response.

A method for self-determining a root cause of a system fault in a heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) system includes receiving a fault message indicative of a fault condition in an operating characteristic of the HVAC system; determining a causal relationship between the fault condition and a predetermined list of root causes associated with the fault condition; receiving information indicative of operating conditions of the HVAC system; and eliminating at least one root cause that is unrelated to the fault condition in response to the receiving of the information.

A computer system used in monitoring another computer system provides both textual resolution information describing a likely solution for a problem encountered in the monitored computer system as well as component information that relates to the particular problem. The component information includes the various hardware, software and operating conditions found in the monitored computer system. The monitoring computer system determines if a condition of a predetermined severity exists in the monitored computer system according to diagnostic information provided from the monitored computer system. The diagnostic information is represented in the monitoring computer system as a hierarchical representation of the monitored computer system. The hierarchical representation provides present state information indicating the state of hardware and software components and operating conditions of the monitored computer system. The resolution information relating to the condition is retrieved from a resolution database and relevant component information is retrieved from the hierarchical representation of the computer system and presented to a support engineer to assist them in diagnosing the problem in the monitored computer system.

Control systems and methodologies are disclosed for controlling a process having one or more motorized pumps and an associated motor drives, which comprise selecting a desired operating point within an allowable range of operation about a process setpoint according to performance characteristics associated with a plurality of components in the process, and controlling the system according to the desired operating point. The control system comprises a motor drive providing electrical power to a motor in a controlled fashion according to a control signal, and a controller providing the control signal to the motor drive according to a desired operating point within an allowable range of operation about a process setpoint. The controller selects the desired operating point according to one or more performance characteristics or criteria associated with a plurality of components in the process, such as cost, throughput, lifetime, or the like. Also disclosed are methods and systems for diagnosing operating conditions in a pump or other motorized device.

Sounds, alarms or other indications of conditions of potential interest that are produced by appliances and other household devices are detected by one or more sensors to trigger a notification signal that is sent to a remotely located user. The signals produced by the sensors are advantageously compared with a database of signals representing conditions of potential interest produced by known appliances and devices, producing the appropriate notification signal when a match is found. Notifications may be relayed to one or more selected users only when predetermined conditions are satisfied.

Described herein is a system for generating electric power, comprising: an electric-power source (1) having a preferential point of operation; a double-stage inverter (3A, 3B), which transfers the energy from said source to an external a.c.-voltage electrical network (9); a block (5) for identification of the preferential point of operation, which supplies a reference signal according to the conditions of operation of the electric-power source and to the preferential point of operation of said source; a corrector block (10), provided for setting the parameter for control of the boost converter (3A) of the double-stage inverter (3A, 3B) as a function of the reference signal and of a signal of actual operation of said electric-power source, and for maintaining the source in the proximity of the preferential point of operation.

A method is disclosed for controlling operation of an engine coupled to an exhaust treatment catalyst. Under predetermined conditions, the method operates an engine with a first group of cylinders combusting a lean air / fuel mixture and a second group of cylinders pumping air only (i.e., without fuel injection). In addition, the engine control method also provides the following features in combination with the above-described split air / lean mode: idle speed control, sensor diagnostics, air / fuel ratio control, adaptive learning, fuel vapor purging, catalyst temperature estimation, default operation, and exhaust gas and emission control device temperature control. In addition, the engine control method also changes to combusting in all cylinders under preselected operating conditions such as fuel vapor purging, manifold vacuum control, and purging of stored oxidants in an emission control device.