All The Claims

1. An apparatus for capturing one or more images, comprising:
a body that can be freely tilted relative to a predetermined reference axis through the effect of a rotation about a certain axis of rotation, said axis of rotation being fixed with respect to the apparatus;
an optical sensor device capable of capturing luminous radiation incident thereon and of converting it so that it can be stored into a physical medium in the form of a captured image, wherein said optical sensor device is mechanically coupled to the body of said apparatus in a manner such that it can be made capable of controllably rotating about said axis of rotation;
an inclination sensor adapted to detect the angular offset of said optical sensor device with respect to said predetermined reference axis;
a motor adapted to rotate said optical sensor device about said axis of rotation when it is made capable of controllably rotating about said axis of rotation by said motor;
processing and control unit associated with said inclination sensor and with said motor and adapted to change the inclination of said optical sensor device through said motor depending on the angular offset detected by said inclination sensor with respect to said predetermined reference axis.
2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processing and control unit is adapted to determine a variation in the inclination of said optical sensor device so as to substantially cancel said angular offset detected by said inclination sensor with respect to said predetermined reference axis.
3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:
said processing and control unit cause said variation in the inclination of said optical sensor device following the actuation of an actuator element which starts the image capture by the optical sensor device;
the optical sensor device is mechanically and rigidly coupled to said body of the apparatus prior to said actuation, and can rotate relative to said axis of rotation following said actuation;
the image is only captured when said optical sensor device has reached the inclination variation caused by said processing and control unit.
4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processing and control unit is adapted to control the optical sensor device in a manner such that, at the end of said inclination variation step, the optical sensor device resumes the inclination it had relative to said predetermined reference axis prior to said variation step.
5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a mechanical coupler associated with the processing and control unit is adapted to rigidly or rotatably couple the optical sensor device mechanically to the body of the capturing apparatus under the control of said processing and control unit.
6. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said processing and control unit is adapted to control said mechanical coupler in a manner such that the optical sensor device is rigidly coupled to the body of the apparatus at the end of said inclination variation step.
7. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processing and control unit is adapted to control the motor in a manner such that, at the end of said inclination variation step, the optical sensor device resumes the inclination it had prior to said inclination variation step.
8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said inclination that the optical sensor device had prior to said inclination variation step corresponds to the direction of said predetermined reference axis.
9. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor device has a substantially rectangular cross-section relative to said axis of rotation, and at least a portion of at least one of the edges of the cross-section relative to said axis of rotation of the outer casing of said capturing apparatus is substantially parallel to at least one side of said substantially rectangular cross-section of said optical sensor device when said step of changing the inclination of said optical sensor device is not being carried out.
10. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said axis of rotation coincides with the axis of incidence of said luminous radiation on said optical sensor device, and said optical sensor device is positioned substantially perpendicular to said axis of rotation.
11. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined reference axis has at least one of the following characteristics:
a) it is predetermined when manufacturing the apparatus;
b) it can be defined or re-defined by the user of the apparatus;
c) it corresponds to the direction of the conjunction line joining the centre of gravity of the optical sensor device with the centre of the earth;
d) it corresponds to the direction perpendicular to that defined in c).
12. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an additional sensor is provided for detecting the direction of the predetermined reference axis, and wherein said processing and control unit monitor the direction detected by said additional sensor, with which they are associated at least during said step of changing the inclination of the optical sensor device.
13. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing and control unit causes a graphic element, which indicates the direction of said predetermined reference axis, to be displayed on a display device adapted to display, at least partially, the image that can be captured by the optical sensor device.
14. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said graphic element can be re-positioned by the user through rotation andor translation operations by actuating suitable input elements provided on the apparatus.
15. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the predetermined reference axis can be defined or re-defined by the user of the apparatus by rotating the graphic element displayed on the display device.
16. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said detection of the angular offset of the body of the apparatus and said imposition of a variation in the inclination of said optical sensor device by the processing and control unit occur continuously at regular intervals following the acquisition of a suitable command for capturing a video image sequence.
17. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said imposition of a variation in the inclination of the optical sensor device effected by the processing and control unit is deactivated through said motor.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. An accelerated interactive voice response (IVR) system, comprising:
a computerized IVR dialer residing on a user device configured to perform a transaction in one of an automated or semi-automated state by executing a first IVR dialer script on the user device that is remote from a computerized IVR system; and
the computerized IVR system remote from the computerized IVR dialer configured to process transactions from users over a communication link by executing a first IVR system script, wherein the first IVR system script operates at human-accessible speeds,
wherein prior to execution completion of the first IVR dialer script, the computerized IVR dialer signals the computerized IVR system a request to perform the transaction using a second IVR system script that executes at a higher speed than the first IVR system script wherein the second IVR system script has been optimized for enabling automatic exchange of transaction data between the computerized IVR dialer and the computerized IVR system, and in response to the computerized IVR system accepting the request and changing from the first IVR system script to the second IVR system script, the computerized IVR dialer changes from the first IVR dialer script to a second IVR dialer script, wherein the second IVR dialer script has been optimized for automatic exchange of transaction data between the computerized IVR dialer and the computerized IVR system.
2. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR system declines the computerized IVR dialer’s request to use the second IVR system script and the computerized IVR dialer completes the transaction on the computerized IVR using the first IVR system script and the first IVR dialer script.
3. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR dialer resides in a mobile device and the computerized IVR dialer and the computerized IVR system communicate over a wireless telephony communication link.
4. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR dialer resides in a computer having a softphone application and the computerized IVR dialer using the softphone application and the computerized IVR system communicate over a telephony communication link.
5. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR dialer accesses a secure data repository holding personal data of an end user associated with the computerized IVR dialer.
6. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR system accepts the computerized IVR dialer request and changes from the first IVR system script to the second IVR system script, wherein the second IVR script has a streamlined menu structure in comparison with the first IVR system script.
7. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR system provides updates to the first IVR dialer script to the computerized IVR dialer.
8. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR dialer prepares a transaction summary and provides the transaction summary to an end user associated with the computerized IVR dialer.
9. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the first IVR dialer script requires end user input and the computerized IVR dialer sends a message to the end user requesting the end user to join the transaction with the computerized IVR system.
10. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein data used to complete the transaction is sent to the computerized IVR system by the IVR dialer using DTMF tones, and wherein the computerized IVR system further comprises a DTMF analyzer.
11. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR system notes a manufacturer type of the IVR dialer and retains a record of the noted manufacturer type.
12. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the computerized IVR system notes a type for the transaction requested by the computerized IVR dialer and retains a record of the noted transaction type.
13. An accelerated interactive voice response (IVR) method, comprising:
performing a transaction in one of an automated or semi-automated state using a computerized IVR dialer residing on a user device that executes a first IVR dialer script on the user device that is remote from a computerized IVR system;
processing transactions from users on the computerized IVR system remote from the computerized IVR dialer that executes a first IVR system script and is configured to communicate over a communication link wherein the first IVR system script operates at human-accessible speeds;
signaling by the computerized IVR dialer to the computerized IVR system, prior to execution completion of the first IVR dialer script, a request to perform the transaction using a second IVR system script that executes at a higher speed than the first IVR system script and wherein the second IVR system script has been optimized for automatic exchange of transaction data between the computerized IVR dialer and the computerized IVR system;
accepting by the computerized IVR system the computerized IVR dialer request to perform the transaction using the second IVR system script; and
changing by the computerized IVR system from the first IVR system script to the second IVR system script and changing, in response to accepting the computerized IVR dialer request, the computerized IVR dialer from the first IVR dialer script to a second IVR dialer script wherein the second IVR dialer script has been optimized for automatic exchange of transaction data between the computerized IVR dialer and the computerized IVR system.
14. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
declining by the computerized IVR system the computerized IVR dialer’s request to use the second IVR system script; and
completing the transaction on the computerized IVR using the first IVR system script and the first IVR dialer script.
15. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13 wherein the computerized IVR dialer resides in a mobile device and the computerized IVR dialer, the method further comprising:
communicating by the computerized IVR system over a wireless telephony communication link with the computerized IVR dialer in the mobile device.
16. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13 wherein the computerized IVR dialer resides in a computer having a softphone application, the method further comprising:
communicating with the computerized IVR system by the computerized IVR dialer using the computerized IVR system.
17. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, the method further comprising:
accessing by the computerized IVR dialer a secure data repository holding personal data of an end user associated with the computerized IVR dialer.
18. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, the method further comprising:
accessing by the computerized IVR system a secure data repository holding personal data of an end user associated with the computerized IVR dialer.
19. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
sending updates to the first IVR dialer script by the computerized IVR system.
20. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
preparing a transaction summary by the computerized IVR dialer; and
providing the transaction summary to an end user associated with the computerized IVR dialer by the computerized IVR dialer.
21. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13 wherein the first IVR dialer script requires end user input, the method further comprising:
sending a message to the end user by the computerized IVR dialer requesting the end user to join the transaction with the computerized IVR system.
22. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
sending data used to complete the transaction to the computerized IVR system by the IVR dialer using DTMF tones, wherein the computerized IVR system further comprises a DTMF analyzer.
23. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
noting by the computerized IVR system a manufacturer type of the IVR dialer; and
retaining a record of the noted manufacturer type by the computerized IVR system.
24. The accelerated IVR method of claim 13, further comprising:
noting by the computerized IVR system a type for the transaction requested by the computerized IVR dialer; and
retaining by the computerized IVR system a record of the noted transaction type.
25. The accelerated IVR system of claim 9 wherein the end user provides the required input using one of a voice response or a text response.
26. The accelerated IVR method of claim 21, further comprising:
receiving the required end user input by the IVR dialer from one of a voice response or a text response.
27. The accelerated IVR system of claim 1 wherein the second IVR system script contains no pauses needed in a human-operated IVR transaction.
28. The accelerated IVR system of claim 13 wherein the second IVR system script contains no pauses needed in a human-operated IVR transaction.

1. A method for optimizing a distribution of resources of a scanning sensor over a number of areas, where each area can have a demand for the sensor resources, said demands being expressed as a dwell time and a revisit time, the method comprising:
assigning to each of said number of areas a priority;
compiling a total demand for the resources;
comparing the total demand with total sensor resources; and
when the total demand and the total sensor resources do not match, distributing the total sensor resources according to said priority.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the demand for sensor resources in an area is calculated as a ratio between dwell time and revisit time.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein when the total sensor resources exceed the total demand, surplus resources are distributed according to an equation:
\u0394Rn=(Pn*Rn\u03a3(Pn*Rn))*\u0394Rtot

where:
\u0394Rn is an amount of additional sensor resources that will be allocated to an area n,
Pn is the priority for the area n,
Rn is the desired amount of resources for the area n,
\u03a3Pn*Rn is taken over all areas n, and
\u0394Rtot is the total surplus of sensor resources.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein when the total demand exceed the total sensor resources, allocated sensor resources for the areas are decreased by an amount \u0394R compared to the demands according to an equation:
\u0394Rn=((Ptot\u2212Pn)*Rn\u03a3((Ptot\u2212Pn)*Rn))*\u0394Rtot

where:
\u0394Rn is a decrease in allocated resources for an area n,
Ptot is a sum of the priorities of all of the areas,
Pn is the priority for area n,
Rn is the desired amount of resources for area n,
\u03a3Pn*Rn is taken over all areas n, and
\u0394Rtot is a total reduction of sensor resources demanded.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein when the total sensor resources exceed the total demand, only surplus resources are distributed according to the priorities of the areas.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein when the total demand exceed the total sensor resources, allocated sensor resources for each area are decreased based on a proportion of the demand associated with the area and only a total of the decreased sensor resources are distributed according to the priorities of the areas.
7. A method for optimizing the distribution of a scanning sensor resource over plural areas, the method comprising:
determining sensor priority associated with each of the plural areas;
determining a total demand for the scanning sensor resource based on individual demands of the plural areas, wherein each area demands a portion of the scanning sensor resource;
comparing the total resource demand with a total resource available; and
determining whether the total resource available is greater than the total resource demand based on the comparison;
wherein when it is determined that there is total resource available is greater than the total resource demand, the method further comprising:
providing to each area the portion of the scanning sensor resource demanded by the area; and
distributing a surplus resource available based on the corresponding sensor priority of each area.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein in the step of distributing the surplus resource available, the distribution is performed according to an equation:
\u0394Rn=(Pn*Rn\u03a3(Pn*Rn))*\u0394Rtot,

where:
\u0394Rn is an amount of additional sensor resources allocated to an area n,
Pn is the sensor priority for the area n,
Rn is the portion of scanning sensor resource originally demanded by the area n,
\u03a3Pn*Rn is taken over all areas n, and
\u0394Rtot is the surplus resource available.
9. A method for optimizing the distribution of a scanning sensor resource over plural areas, the method comprising:
determining sensor priority associated with each of the plural areas;
determining a total demand for the scanning sensor resource based on individual demands of the plural areas, wherein each area demands a portion of the scanning sensor resource;
comparing the total resource demand with a total resource available; and
determining whether the total resource available is less than the total resource demand based on the comparison;
wherein when it is determined that there is total resource available is less than the total resource demand, the method further comprising:
decreasing, for each area, an amount of the scanning sensor resource provided to the area such that a total amount of reduction provided to the plural areas aligns the total resource available to the total resource provided to the plural area;
distributing a total amount of reduction based on the corresponding sensor priority of each area.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein in the step of distributing the total amount of reduction, the distribution is performed according to an equation:
\u0394Rn=((Ptot\u2212Pn)*Rn\u03a3((Ptot\u2212Pn)*Rn))*\u0394Rtot,

where
\u0394Ris an amount of reduction in the resource for an area n,
Ptot is a sum of the priorities of all of the areas,
Pn is the sensor priority for area n,
Rn is the portion of scanning sensor resource originally demanded by the area n,
\u03a3Pn*Rn is taken over all areas n, and
\u0394Rtot is a total amount of reduction of demand.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A curable composition comprising:
a) at least one silanol-terminated diorganopolysiloxane;
b) at least one alkylsilicate crosslinker having the formula:
(R14O)(R15O)(R16O)(R17O)Si
where R14, R15, R16 and R17 are chosen independently from monovalent C1 to C60 hydrocarbon radicals;
c) at least one catalyst for the crosslinking reaction;
d) at least one orcianic nanoclay; and, optionally; and
e) at least one solid polymer having a permeability to gas that is less than the permeability of the crosslinked diorganopolysiloxane(s).
2. The composition of claim 1 wherein catalyst (c) is a tin catalyst.
3. The composition of claim 2 wherein the tin catalyst is selected from the group consisting of dibutyltindilaurate, dibutyltindiacetate, dibutyltindimethoxide, tinoctoate, isobutyltintriceroate, dibutyltinoxide, dibutyltin bis-diisooctylphthalate, bis-tripropoxysilyl dioctyltin, dibutyltin bis-acetylacetone, silylated dibutyltin dioxide, carbomethoxyphenyl tin tris-uberate, isobutyltin triceroate, dimethyltin dibutyrate, dimethyltin di-neodecanoate, triethyltin tartarate, dibutyltin dibenzoate, tin oleate, tin naphthenate, butyltintri-2-ethylhexylhexoate, tinbutyrate, diorganotin bis \u03b2-diketonates and mixtures thereof.
4. The composition of claim 1 wherein the nanoclay portion of organic nanoclay (d) is selected from the group consisting of montmorillonite, sodium montmorillonite, calcium montmorillonite, magnesium montmorillonite, nontronite, beidellite, volkonskoite, laponite, hectorite, saponite, sauconite, magadite, kenyaite, sobockite, svindordite, stevensite, vermiculite, halloysite, aluminate oxides, hydrotalcite, illite, rectorite, tarosovite, ledikite, kaolinite and, mixtures thereof.
5. The composition of claim 1 wherein the organic portion of organic nanoclay (d) is at least one tertiary amine compound R3R4R5N andor quarternary ammonium compound R6R7R8N+X\u2212 wherein R3, R4, R5, R6, R7 and R8 each independently is an alkyl, alkenyl or alkoxy silane group of up to 60 carbon atoms and X is an anion.
6. The composition of claim 4 wherein the nanoclay portion of organic nanoclay (d) is modified with ammonium, primary alkylammonium, secondary alkylammonium, tertiary alkylammonium quaternary alkylammonium, phosphonium derivatives of aliphatic, aromatic or arylaliphatic amines, phosphines or sulfides or sulfonium derivatives of aliphatic, aromatic or arylaliphatic amines, phosphines or sulfides.
7. The composition of claim 1 wherein solid polymer (e) is selected from the group consisting of low density polyethylene, very low density polyethylene, linear low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, polypropylene, polyisobutylene, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl alcohol, polystyrene, polycarbonate, polyester, such as, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyethylene napthalate, glycol-modified polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinylchloride, polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinylidene fluoride, thermoplastic polyurethane, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polymethylmethacrylate, polyvinyl fluoride, polyamides, polymethylpentene, polyimide, polyetherimide, polether ether ketone, polysulfone , polyether sulfone, ethylene chlorotrifluoroethylene, polytetrafluoroethylene, cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate butyrate, plasticized polyvinyl chloride, ionomers, polyphenylene sulfide, styrene-maleic anhydride, modified polyphenylene oxide, ethylene-propylene rubber, polybutadiene, polychloroprene, polyisoprene, polyurethane, styrene-butadiene-styrene, styrene-ethylene-butadiene-styrene, polymethylphenyl siloxane and mixtures thereof.
8. The composition of claim 1 which further comprises at least one optional component selected from the group consisting of adhesion promoter, surfactant, colorant, pigment, plasticizer, filler other than organic nanoclay, antioxidant, UV stabilizer, and biocide.
9. The composition of claim 8 wherein the adhesion promoter is selected from the group consisting of n-2-aminoethyl-3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, 1,3,5-tris(trimethoxysilylpropyl)isocyanurate, \u03b3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane, \u03b3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, bis-\u03b3-trimethoxysilypropyl)amine, N-Phenyl-\u03b3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, triaminofunctionaltrimethoxysilane, \u03b3-aminopropylmethyldiethoxysilane, \u03b3-aminopropylmethyldiethoxysilane, methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, methylaminopropyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b3-glycidoxypropylethyldimethoxysilane, \u03b3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b3-glycidoxyethyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b2-(3,4-epoxycyclohexyl)propyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b2(3,4-epoxycyclohexyl) ethylmethyldimethoxysilane, isocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane, isocyanatopropylmethyldimethoxysilane, \u03b2-cyanoethyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b3-acryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, \u03b3-methacryloxypropylmethyldimethoxysilane, 4-amino-3,3,-dimethylbutyltrimethoxysilane, n-ethyl-3-trimethoxysilyl-2-methylpropanamine, and mixtures thereof.
10. The composition of claim 8 wherein the surfactant is a nonionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of polyethylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, ethoxylated castor oil, oleic acid ethoxylate, alkylphenol ethoxylates, copolymers of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide and copolymers of silicones and polyethers, copolymers of silicones and copolymers of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide and mixtures thereof.
11. The composition of claim 10 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is selected from the group consisting of copolymers of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide, copolymers of silicones and polyethers, copolymers of silicones and copolymers of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide and mixtures thereof.
12. The composition of claim 8 wherein the filler other than the organic nanoclay is selected from the group consisting of calcium carbonate, precipitated calcium carbonate, colloidal calcium carbonate, calcium carbonate treated with compounds stearate or stearic acid, fumed silica, precipitated silica, silica gels, hydrophobized silicas, hydrophilic silica gels, crushed quartz, ground quartz, alumina, aluminum hydroxide, titanium hydroxide, clay, kaolin, bentonite montmorillonite, diatomaceous earth, iron oxide, carbon black and graphite, mica, talc, and mixtures thereof.
13. The cured composition of claim 1.
14. The cured composition of claim 7.
15. The cured composition of claim 8.
16. The composition of claim 13 exhibiting an argon permeability coefficient of not greater than about 900 barrers.
17. The composition of claim 14 exhibiting an argon permeability coefficient of not greater than about 900 barrers.
18. The composition of claim 15 exhibiting an argon permeability coefficient of not greater than about 900 barrers.
19. The composition of claim 1 wherein the composition is a curable sealant.
20. The composition of claim 1 wherein the composition is a cured sealant.
21. The composition of claim 13 wherein the composition is a curable sealant.
22. The composition of claim 13 wherein the composition is a cured sealant.
23. The composition of claim 9 wherein the composition is a cured adhesive.
24. The composition of claim 13 wherein the composition is a curable adhesive.
25. The composition of claim 13 wherein the composition is a cured adhesive.