Explore the 8,100 U.S. Patent Applications published on the 18th week of 2012, including 5,585 applications that subsequently received a Patent Grant.
Adapter for powered surgical devices
An adapter assembly for selectively interconnecting a surgical end effector including at least one axially translatable drive member and a powered actuator device including at least one rotatable drive shaft is provided. The adapter assembly includes an actuation shaft configured to convert rotation of a first drive shaft of the powered actuator device into an axial translation of a first drive member of the surgical end effector. The adapter assembly further includes an elongate tube configured to convert rotation of a second drive shaft of the powered actuator device into an axial translation of a second drive member of the surgical end effector. The actuation shaft is disposed within the elongate tube, and the actuation shaft and the elongate tube translate axially independent of each other.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: Covidien LP.
Surgical tilt anvil assembly
A surgical tilt anvil assembly including a rod and a head assembly including an anvil plate having staple deforming pockets. The head assembly is pivotally secured to the rod and pivotal in relation to the rod between a first tilted position, a non-tilted position and a second different tilted position. The head assembly passes from the first tilted position, through the non-tilted position to the second tilted position.
Published: 2012-05-03
ARTICULATING LAPAROSCOPIC SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS
An articulating laparoscopic instrument including a handle body, a shaft, an end effector, an operation mechanism, and an articulation mechanism. The end effector is connected to a shaft end. The operation mechanism includes a rod and an actuator. The rod is coupled to the end effector. Movement of the actuator relative to the handle body transfers a force onto the rod in a longitudinal direction to operate the end effector. The articulation mechanism includes a deflection assembly, first and second collar assemblies, first and second cables, a linkage, and an articulation actuator. The first and second collar assemblies are slidably disposed over the rod. The cables extend between the collar assemblies and the deflection assembly. Movement of the articulation actuator drives the first and second collar assemblies in opposite directions to cause a longitudinal deflection in the deflection assembly.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: Covidien LP.
Wire spool for passing of wire through a rotational coupling
A surgical apparatus for performance of a surgical procedure on body tissue is provided and includes a housing, an elongate tubular member, a drive assembly, an electrical coupling component, and an electrical wire. The elongate tubular member is at least partially supported by the housing and defines a center lumen and a longitudinal axis. The drive assembly extends from the housing into the center lumen of the elongate tubular member. The electrical coupling component is located about the drive assembly. The electrical wire extends from within the housing into the elongate tubular member. The electrical wire is wrapped about the electrical coupling component, which allows the elongate tubular member to rotate about the longitudinal axis while allowing the electrical wire to be fixed within the housing and the elongate tubular member.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED, Tokyo Electron Limited.
Film formation apparatus
A film formation apparatus includes a gas supply mechanism for supplying an aminosilane-based gas, and a silane-based gas that does not include an amino group. Processes of forming a seed layer on a surface of the insulation film having the opening reaching the conductive substance and on a bottom surface of the opening by supplying the aminosilane-based gas into the process chamber, and forming a silicon film on the seed layer by supplying the silane-based gas that does not include the amino group into the process chamber, are sequentially performed in the process chamber.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: QUALCOMM INCORPORATED.
Force sensing touch screen
A computing device includes a touch screen display with a plurality of force sensors, each of which provides a signal in response to contact with the touch screen display. Using force signals from the plurality of force sensors, a characteristic of the contact is determined, such as the magnitude of the force, the centroid of force and the shear force. The characteristic of the contact is used to select a command which is processed to control the computing device. For example, the command may be related to manipulating data displayed on the touch screen display, e.g., by adjusting the scroll speed or the quantity of data selected in response to the magnitude of force, or related to an operation of an application on the computing device, such as selecting different focal ranges, producing an alarm, or adjusting the volume of a speaker in response to the magnitude of force.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: GOOGLE INC..
Social circles in social networks
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for transmitting contact data for displaying graphical representations of contacts for display to a user, the contacts being contacts of the user within a computer-implemented social networking service, generating a first social circle of the user, the first social circle comprising a first subset of contacts of the user within the social networking service and defining a first distribution for digital content, generating a second social circle of the user, the second social circle comprising a second subset of contacts of the user within the social networking service and defining a second distribution for digital content, and, in response to user input, providing the first social circle and the second social circle for selection by the user to define a distribution of digital content, the distribution comprising at least one of the first distribution and the second distribution.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: MITSUI CHEMICALS, INC..
MULTILAYERED MATERIAL AND METHOD OF PRODUCING THE SAME
A multilayered material is provided which includes a substrate and a silicon-containing film formed on the substrate, wherein the silicon-containing film has a nitrogen-rich area including silicon atoms and nitrogen atoms, or silicon atoms, nitrogen atoms, and an oxygen atoms and the nitrogen-rich area is formed by irradiating a polysilazane film formed on the substrate with an energy beam in an atmosphere not substantially including oxygen or water vapor and denaturing at least a part of the polysilazane film. A method of producing the multilayered material is also provided.
Published: 2012-05-03
User interface for a digital content management system
A graphical user interface and digital content processor for the management of digital data. The graphical user interface is characterized by two treeview controls capable of transforming the screen display of items under management by acting as a filtering mechanism for the category value pairs inherent in every item under management. The treeview controls folders, or nodes, transform the screen display of data under management to filter by the category values represented by the treeview controls' folders when selected.
Published: 2012-05-03 Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc..
Methods and apparatus for controlling photoresist line width roughness
The present invention provides methods and an apparatus for controlling and modifying line width roughness (LWR) of a photoresist layer. In one embodiment, an apparatus for controlling a line width roughness of a photoresist layer disposed on a substrate includes a chamber body having a top wall, side wall and a bottom wall defining an interior processing region, a microwave power generator coupled to the to the chamber body through a waveguild, and one or more coils or magnets disposed around an outer circumference of the chamber body adjacent to the waveguide, and a gas source coupled to the waveguide through a gas delivery passageway.