An acoustic wave sensor utilizes one or more acoustic waves trapped in an acoustic wave cavity to detect the presence of one or more substances on a surface of the acoustic wave cavity. To detect the presence of ice, a trapped torsional acoustic wave is used. To detect water, an acoustic wave with flexural or compressional components is used. The sensor includes a number of transducers adjacent the acoustic wave cavity where a controller drives different sets of the transducers to generate diffe...

Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken ...

Ice detection assembly (100) designed for installation on an aircraft, comprising a vibrating finger (110) and a mast (120), the vibrating finger (110) extending into the air from the mast (120) and capable of being vibrated by vibration means at a resonant frequency that is sensitive to an ice deposit on its surface, characterised in that it comprises a cooling system capable of cooling at least part of the detection assembly (100).

The present invention relates to a math manipulative educational learning game in which a plurality of rods are provided for use in various manipulative games designed to teach rudimentary arithmetic skills. In the preferred embodiment, the rods are of various lengths and/or volumes, with the shortest length comprising a unit length, and other rods being formed in integral multiples of the unit length. Various games are disclosed in which a child is encouraged to manipulate the rods in various w...

The invention is directed to a shaving foil for a shaving system of a shaving apparatus, in which the shaving foil cooperates with an undercutter adapted to be driven relative to the shaving foil. The shaving foil includes a perforate region comprised of a plurality of hair-receiving apertures, wherein said apertures form a quasi-periodic pattern executed in accordance with a Penrose parquet.

Apparatus for protecting a door and rear sill of a trailer comprises a U-shaped body formed of resilient, rubbery material having a web from which two arms extend, the arms being spaced apart a distance sufficient to straddle a sidewall of the trailer. The arms of the body also may embrace not only a sidewall of the trailer but also an adjacent door which occupies a position alongside and parallel such trailer sidewall. The protective body also has a depending lip which projects downwardly from ...

The invention creates a method for adjusting a ringing signal current in a subscriber line (106), a ringing signal generator (114) which generates the ringing signal being connected with one end of the subscriber line (106) and at least one subscriber (102) being connected to another end of the subscriber line (106), comprising the steps of detecting a ringing signal current of the ringing signal; of comparing the detected ringing signal current with a predetermined current value; and when the d...

The invention includes a device for and a method of weighing. A device according to the invention is a hand truck having weight sensors in each toe-portion. A method according to the invention uses such a hand truck to provide a weight signal corresponding to the weight of an object on the hand truck.

Regenerative surfing is utilizing a controllable regenerative braking system to regulate speed while surfing. A vertical sculling hydrofoil boat, utilizes the regenerative braking system and includes a vertical sculling drive system for both propulsion and regenerative braking. The regenerative surfing boat also may include ballast tanks to tune the speed at which the maximum lift to drag ratio appears. The regenerative surfing boat may use an automated surfing control system to control the boat...

A method for encoding an audio signal, including providing a masking function, representative of psychoacoustic masking; setting a quality value for data of the encoded signal, adjusting the masking function dependent upon the quality value; and allocating bits for quantization of the encoded signal based on the incremental masking function.