| Document | Document Title |
|---|---|
| US08176732B2 |
Exhaust aftertreatment system
An apparatus for treating engine exhaust gas includes comprising an exhaust conduit for leading exhaust gases from an engine to an outlet, a particulate filter connected in the exhaust conduit to receive exhaust gas, a heat source connected in the exhaust conduit upstream of the particulate filter, and, a heat exchanger connected to receive exhaust gas exiting the particulate filter and arranged to heat a portion of the exhaust conduit upstream of the heat source and particulate filter. Heating the exhaust gases prior to entry into the particulate filter helps ensure oxidation of the trapped particulate matter. |
| US08176731B2 |
Exhaust gas aftertreatment system
Exhaust gas aftertreatment system for internal combustion engines operated with a lean mixture, wherein nitrogen oxides are reduced by an SCR catalyst, and particulates are removed by a particle separator or filter. A thermolysis catalyst is located near the engine in the exhaust gas split stream downstream of the supply point of the reducing agent. At temperatures above 135° C., this thermolysis catalyst vaporizes the water component of the aqueous urea solution. It contains a catalyst material that is thermally stable at exhaust gas temperatures occurring near the engine and preferentially reacts with the urea to form isocyanic acid. A hydrolysis catalyst is located in the exhaust gas stream downstream of the return of the split stream into the main stream of exhaust gas. The hydrolysis catalyst converts the isocyanic acid formed during thermolysis to ammonia and carbon dioxide using water vapor formed in the thermolysis catalyst. |
| US08176726B2 |
Method for introducing a reagent medium into an exhaust gas conduit of an internal combustion engine, and apparatus for carrying out the method
A method for introducing a reagent medium into an exhaust gas conduit of an internal combustion engine, and an apparatus for carrying out the method. Provision is made for a diagnosis of the pressure sensor. In at least one first time interval in which a steady pressure state is expected, a check is made as to whether the pressure signal at least approximately corresponds to the steady-state pressure. In at least one second time interval in which a pressure change occurs, a check is made as to whether the pressure signal at least approximately corresponds to a predetermined test pressure and/or at least approximately exhibits a predetermined change with respect to the steady-state pressure. A fault signal is supplied if at least one of the conditions is not met. |
| US08176724B2 |
Hybrid Brayton cycle with solid fuel firing
This invention provides a method of converting heat energy to a more usable form using an externally-heated Brayton cycle. Atmospheric air is used with water injection in a thermodynamic cycle that includes compression (1), evaporative cooling (34), recuperative heating (8), evaporative cooling (36), external heating (9) and expansion through a turbine (2). Power capacity and overall efficiency are maximized by decreasing the temperature of working fluid entering recuperator (8) and heater (9) while increasing the mass flow through turbine (2). Overall efficiency during turndown is maximized using a portion of low-pressure working fluid from the turbine in a three-chamber combustor wherein volume flow into the first chamber containing solid fuel determines the system energy, volume flow into the second chamber combines with partially combusted gases from the first chamber to achieve the optimum combustion temperature and volume flow into the third chamber blends with combustion gases from the second chamber to limit the hot gas to the maximum temperature allowed by the system equipment. |
| US08176723B2 |
Apparatus for starting a steam turbine against rated pressure
An external steam turbine main steam startup control valve bypass loop is provided to facilitate a full pressure combined cycle rapid response/fast start powerplant. The main steam startup bypass control loop particularly includes a main steam startup bypass control valve, which allows for the implementation of high efficiency, low pressure drop main steam control valve that otherwise would not be able to handle the severe throttling duty during a full pressure steam turbine startup and enhances the controllability of the steam turbine allowing for the high fidelity controls necessary to minimize steam turbine rotor stresses. |
| US08176716B2 |
Flexible reel for an agricultural harvesting head
A flexible reel (100) for an agricultural harvesting head (115) includes a plurality of reel sections (102, 104, 106) coupled together with flexible joints (210), wherein bats (206, 218) mounted on one reel section (102, 104, 106) overlap and interleave with the bats (206, 218) of an adjacent reel section (102, 104, 106). |
| US08176715B2 |
Packing method using air evacuative binding type air packing bag
In an air evacuative binding type air packing bag and a packing method using the same, an air cylinder is bended to form a first cushioning wall and a second cushioning wall, two sides of the first cushioning wall and the second cushioning wall are adhered to each other to form an accepting space. Next, an article is placed in the accepting space, and air in the accepting space is then evacuated to allow the first cushioning wall and the second cushioning wall to bind the article up to retain the article in the accepting space and not to be shaken with the air packing bag. |
| US08176710B2 |
Frame member extender and method for forming the same
A frame extender for attachment to a stud is formed as an L-shaped body having two orthogonal legs, a short leg and a long leg. The short leg serves as a mounting surface to which a wall surfacing material can be attached, while the long leg is fastened to the stud. The long leg terminates in an outer edge which preferably has a toothed profile. An indexing mark is provided on the long leg, extending parallel to the short leg and spaced apart therefrom, and substantially traversing the long leg. The indexing mark is preferably provided by a discontinuity in the surface of the long leg that is placed against the stud. A preferred method for fabricating the frame extenders uses stock that can be pressed or extruded, and which is cut along a serpentine path to form a pair of frame extenders. |
| US08176709B2 |
Composite profile for window, door or facade element
A composite profile for a window, door or façade element includes first and second outer profile parts and at least one insulating strip connecting the first and second outer profile parts with an intermediate space defined between them for thermal separation. At least one outer profile part connecting element is disposed in the intermediate space so that it is normally not in contact with the first and second outer profile parts. An actuating element is disposed so that, upon being activated by heat, it moves the outer profile part connecting element into engagement with the first and second outer profile parts, so that the outer profile part connecting element connects the first and second outer profile parts. |
| US08176706B2 |
Column assembly for a building framework
A building framework includes plural column assemblies interconnected by plural full-length beam assemblies, with the union of the column assemblies and beam assemblies forming beam-to-column joint assemblies according to this invention. The column assemblies include pairs of side plates spanning the column members of the column assemblies and projecting toward another column assembly of the plurality of such column assemblies. The full-length beam assemblies include beam members for being received between column assemblies to be interconnected and defining an end gap with respect to each column member. Additionally, the full-length beam assemblies include at each opposite end portion thereof a pair of cover plates, including an upper cover plate and a lower cover plate, which cover plates are sized and configured to be united with the side plates of a column assembly, as by welding applied at a construction site. The full-length beam assemblies may also include provisions for drawing together the side plates of a column assembly preparatory to welding, which side plates are sufficiently spaced apart to provide a “rattle” space allowing entry of an end portion of a full-length beam assembly between the side plates as a step in the erection process for the framework. |
| US08176703B2 |
Shelter structure, in particular for electrical equipments
The object of the present invention is a shelter structure, in particular for electrical equipment, totally modular, simple and inexpensive to make, and extremely quick to assemble, also on the place of use. Such structure comprises angular connecting joints (11), horizontal bars (13) and vertical uprights (14) that connect to said joints, and a series of panels (16, 17) of suitable materials suitable for forming the walls, the roof and the floor of the structure. |
| US08176700B2 |
Clip-on extruded moldings for ceiling grid
A molding system conceals gridwork in suspended ceilings. A main or cross piece molding comprises two opposed clip assemblies for attaching to inverted T-bars. The clip assemblies comprise a vertical portion. Upper and lower fingers protrude horizontally from the vertical portion and towards the opposed clip assembly. Upward projecting arms extend from upper edges of the vertical portions and have upward edges. Horizontal arms extend from the upward edges and extend away from the clip assemblies. A decorative portion spans between distal ends of the horizontal arms. A perimeter molding for attaching to L-bars comprises a first horizontal arm configured to abut a lower portion of a horizontal surface and a second horizontal arm that is parallel to the first horizontal arm. First and second legs connect to the second horizontal arm. The second leg abuts an upper, distal portion of the horizontal surface near a hem. |
| US08176698B2 |
Panel
The invention is directed to a panel, in particular floor panel, having a core made of a woodbased material and having a decoration applied to a visible side, the visible side being provided, on at least one side edge (I, II), with a chamfer running at an angle thereto, and the chamfer likewise being provided with a decoration, characterized in that a relief is stamped into the surface of the chamfer. |
| US08176695B2 |
Wall panel frame arrangement
A wall panel frame arrangement is provided having vertical and horizontal frame rails for having a common cross-sectional profile which facilitates joining thereof at the corners of the frame. Additionally, an improved light block arrangement is provided as a rail which extends horizontally across the frame, which rail is also adaptable for use with respect to a support assembly for supporting power and data communication circuit components thereon. The bottom of the frame further includes connector arrangements which facilitate mounting of either a base raceway cover or a vertically-enlarged cover tile at the same base location of the panel frame. |
| US08176692B2 |
In-ground storm shelter
In areas with propensity for tornados, for example in the central part of the country, the plain states, the mid-west, and also in Florida, it is customary to have some form of storm shelter in which the occupants of commercial and residential buildings can seek refuge in the event of a tornado. The safest type of storm shelter is a so-called in-ground storm shelter. The embodiments of the In-Ground Storm Shelter are comprised of a bottom, a left side and a right side. The In-Ground Storm Shelter is further comprised of a front side and a back side, and a top side. The top side is further comprised of a removable back door, a sliding door, a top left shoulder and a top right shoulder. |
| US08176690B2 |
High-strength structure
A high strength, lightweight building structure comprising a high-strength connection to a foundation, high-strength eaves, and high-strength structural panels. The fiber reinforced, high-strength structural panels form the walls, ceiling, roof, soffit, and eave of the structure. The panels comprise a rigid foam core having outer membrane layer, panel spacers, and sheeting. The high-strength foundation connection comprises a continuous seam plate with bonding agents, mechanical fasteners, and a metal bearing cap having continuously spaced, angle-shaped anchor studs welded to the metal bearing cap. The high-strength eave structure, comprise of a soffit panel connected to an inclined eave panel, a connection bracket and a rigid wedge continuously bonded between the ceiling panel and roof panel, thus forming a sealed, non-vented attic space. |
| US08176689B1 |
Retrofit hurricane-earthquake clips
Retrofit hurricane and earthquake clips for connecting a roof to a wall. The connectors include a plate web and rafter web, connected by a modified right-angle bend. For added strength in the right angle bend, wavy edges add material into the bend. Multiple bends add strength and material to the right angle bends, and place the rafter web perpendicular to the plate web. A ledge allows the connector to clear frieze boards. The wide plate webs attach to the outside wall sheathing and underlying top plate to prevent bowing out of the wall and lateral movement. The rafter webs attach to the side of a rafter to prevent uplift, outward thrusting, and twisting. The material added to the connection between the rafter web and plate web strengthens a building against strong winds and seismic events. |
| US08176686B2 |
Stage and roof system
Disclosed is a structure that is a stage and roof system. The present invention is a system that allows a stage and roof system to be moved and folded up into a compact area in a very short period of time to be placed at an event location to broadcast talent directly on or near a terrain. |
| US08176683B2 |
Vehicle door
A vehicle door comprising a first outer layer (70) and second outer layer (80), a foam portion (90) disposed between the first outer layer and the second outer layer, a compartment comprising a first outer member (10) and a second outer member (20) in parallel spaced relation, the first outer member and the second outer member joined by at least one intermediate member (30) having a flexible crease (32), a receiving cavity (A) disposed outwardly of the compartment for engaging the foam portion, the first outer member and the second outer member each disposed substantially flush with a foam portion outer surface (91,92), and the foam portion and the compartment disposed between the first outer layer and the second outer layer. |
| US08176680B2 |
Sliding door assembly
The frame and the sash of the sliding door assembly are each made of plastic. The frame extrusion profile utilizes an opposing open-leg or C-channel construction that creates an interior accessory slot that is utilized throughout the overall construction to create a carrier that can accept a wide variety of snap-in accessory extrusions or components. Similarly, the sash extrusion profile allows for the use of snap-in accessories. |
| US08176679B2 |
Gear mechanism part for a cable-controlled window lifter and drive unit for a cable-controlled window lifter
A gear mechanism part for a cable-controlled window lifter is provided that includes a gear wheel and a cable drum that can be driven by the gear wheel. The gear wheel and cable drum are disposed on a common axis. The gear wheel and the cable drum are coupled by a positive fit to an outside gearing disposed on an outside circumference projection. In the cable drum, a fitting chamber for cable end fastening is provided. The fitting chamber is disposed inside the outer circumference projection on a cross-sectional plane projected perpendicular to the axis. In this way, a more compact design of the cable drum and transmission of higher driving torque are achieved. |
| US08176677B1 |
Automated guide rail apparatus
An automated guide rail apparatus includes a fixed wall that includes a pair of vertical supports attached to and extending upwardly from a floor surface and a horizontal support attached to the vertical supports. The fixed wall is positioned adjacent to a hazardous area. A movable wall is attached to the fixed wall and is movable laterally toward or extended away from the fixed wall to increase or decrease a combined length of the fixed and movable walls. The movable wall prevents access to the hazardous area when the movable wall is extended away from the fixed wall. A drive assembly is mounted on the fixed wall and moves the movable wall outwardly from the fixed wall when the drive assembly is actuated. An actuating assembly is in communication with the drive assembly to actuate the drive assembly when a hazardous condition is determined by the actuating assembly. |
| US08176676B2 |
Method and apparatus for solar-greenhouse production and harvesting of micro-algae
A micro-algae growing method employs a greenhouse having a transparent, double-pane roof structure and containing an open-top receptacle for a bed of aqueous micro-algae medium, which roof structure and receptacle are substantially coextensive and rectangular. A series of remotely controllable nozzles, capable of producing thin, sheet-like discharges, withdraw the aqueous liquid medium from subsurface regions along the length of the bed and discharge it into the overlying space, thus optimally exposing the medium to solar radiation passing through the roof structure and thereby promoting micro-algae growth. Ambient air, heated during passage through channels in the transparent roof structure, is used in a second greenhouse for lofting small droplets that comprise sprays of the concentrated micro-algae medium received from the first greenhouse, thus promoting evaporation of free water and cooperating in harvesting of micro-algae product. |
| US08176674B2 |
Roller assembly for fishing rod roller guide
A roller assembly for a fishing rod roller guide includes a roller having two receiving portions each receiving a bearing. A side cover is mounted to each of two ends of the roller and includes an inner side having a lip received in a first annular groove in the end of the roller. Each lip includes a second annular groove aligned with a peripheral flange on one of the ends of the roller. A ring made of soft material is partially received in each second annular groove. A gap is formed between each ring and a peripheral flange on one of the ends of the roller. A spacing portion is formed between the inner side of each side cover and one of the ends of the roller. Grease is received in the gaps and seals a portion of each bearing aligned with an end edge of one of the receiving portions. |
| US08176671B2 |
Weapon barrel and damping device
A weapon barrel of an automatic firearm is subject to bending oscillations during firing. A damping device is provided for damping the bending oscillations and to at least largely dissipate the kinetic energy of the bending oscillations by friction processes which are initiated by the bending oscillations, between two respective successive shots in the firing sequence. |
| US08176662B2 |
Digging system and method
A digging system includes a machine having a machine frame, and an implement assembly mounted to the machine frame. The implement assembly includes an elongate boom and a trenching mechanism having a plurality of drawing cutters coupled with an endless drive chain movable about a drive system mounted to an elongate boom. The implement assembly further includes an undercutting mechanism having first and second rotating cutters projecting in opposite axial directions from the distal boom end. The implement assembly defines a compound projection profile in a plane which includes first and second axes of rotation of a drive wheel and guide wheel of the drive system. The compound projection profile includes a relatively narrow proximal stem segment corresponding to the trenching mechanism and a relatively broad distal footing segment corresponding to the undercutting mechanism. Actuating the trenching mechanism and undercutting mechanism enables simultaneously digging a stem segment and footing segment of a compound trench for a foundation system. |
| US08176661B2 |
Plow device and method
A plow device is disclosed. The plow device comprises a blade and a plurality of struts attached to the blade. Each strut comprises an arm comprising a first end and a second end. Each arm is attached to the blade at its first end. Each strut further comprising a tire wedge disposed at the second end of the arm. |
| US08176656B2 |
Laundry dryer
The present invention relates to a laundry dryer having an improved structure, which can remove wrinkles of laundry during a drying cycle after washing. A dryer includes a cabinet in which various parts are installed; a drum rotatably mounted in the cabinet, the drum holding laundry therein; a heater that heats air to supply hot air to the drum; a steam generator that generates steam to supply the steam to the drum; a water container that has an outlet to supply water to the steam generator; a water supply path provided between the steam generator and the water container; and a contact prevention part that prevents the remaining water of the water container or the water supply path from contacting with the various parts provided in the cabinet, wherein the remaining water is the water remaining in the water container or the water supply path when the water container is detached from the water supply path. |
| US08176655B2 |
Vapor atmosphere spray dryer
A vapor atmosphere spray dryer can include a closed-loop circuit having a dryer, a bag house filter system, a fan, and a heater system which are fluidly connected together for circulating a mass of superheated vapor therethrough. A centrifugal atomizer is disposed within the dryer. A feed system delivers a supply of feed slurry to the centrifugal atomizer which discharges a supply of atomized feed slurry in the dryer for combination with the circulated mass of superheated vapor within the dryer. The closed loop circuit is constructed such that the circulated mass of superheated vapor has an operating pressure of at least 1 psi which is generated by the evaporation of the fluid in the atomized feed slurry in the dryer resulting from the combination of the supply of atomized feed slurry and the circulated mass of superheated vapor. |
| US08176654B2 |
Method and device for preventing corrosion of a gas inlet nozzle during nitric acid condensation
By a method and a device for preventing corrosion on and in the region of a gas inlet nozzle during nitric acid condensation, contact of the condensing gas with the nozzle and with the surroundings of the nozzle are supposed to be minimized. This is achieved in that the gas inlet nozzle has a sleeve on the inside in the transition region to the interior of the condenser, by which sleeve a gas inlet orifice in the form of an annular gap is formed, whereby the annular space is provided with at least one feed opening for secondary air, so that an enveloping flow of secondary air is produced around the entering NO gas. |
| US08176652B2 |
Method and apparatus for removing water from hide of cattle
An apparatus and method for a water removing roller device for removing excess water from the hide of a cattle, which uses pliable urethane roller stacks that can be attached by an arm structure. The roller structure can be mounted on a hinge to an arm thereby allowing the structure to swivel. The arm can be attached to a stationery device with a hinge, which is also allowed to swivel. A tension device, for example, a spring or a hydraulic cylinder can be attached to the back of the arm and connected to the stationery device to provide enough tension on the structure to keep the rollers in contact with the cattle hide, thereby pressing out the water allowing it to run off prior the blood plasma saving section. |
| US08176648B2 |
Construction bracket
A construction bracket to aid in framing steel stud walls. |
| US08176646B2 |
Articulating measuring arm with laser scanner
A coordinate measurement device comprises an articulated arm having a first end, a second end, and a plurality of jointed arm segments therebetween. Each arm segment defines at least one axis of rotation. A laser scanner assembly is coupled to the second end of the arm and is rotatable about a last axis of rotation of the articulated arm. The laser scanner assembly comprises a laser and an image sensor. The laser is positioned on an opposite side of the last axis of rotation from the image sensor. |
| US08176645B2 |
Spacer for placing retroreflectors of varying sizes on a standard drill adapter
The invention relates to an adapter top for adapting a drilling with 3D-coordinate measurement technology, which may be placed on drilling adapter with a first housing for a first retroreflector with a first diameter, and the adapter top comprises a second housing for a second retroreflector with a second diameter, wherein the second diameter is greater than the first diameter. The invention further relates to a positioning element for adapting a drilling with 3D-coordinate measurement technology by adjusting the relative position of a first standard drilling adapter with a first housing for a first retroreflector with a first diameter and an adapter fitting which is designed such that by combination of the first standard drilling adapter with the positioning element and the adapter fitting a standard drilling adapter with a second housing for a second retroreflector with second diameter can be emulated. |
| US08176643B2 |
Brake system of chain saw and chain saw
According to a chain saw braking system, engagement between a front end portion of a belt and a main body by an engagement member is released at the time of application of an impact. When a front end portion is pulled by the spring force of a compression coil spring, an elongate hole for protrusion is engaged with a protrusion to restrict a rear end portion from being moved in the same direction as the front end portion. Thus, it is possible to strongly tighten a drum by the belt to thereby reliably stop the movement of a chain. With this arrangement, the chain can be prevented from being damaged when a chain saw is accidentally dropped onto the ground due to an impact applied thereto. |
| US08176642B1 |
Firewood cutting gauge chain saw attachment
A linear gauging device when attached to a chain saw bar will facilitate in the accurate measurement and swift successive cutting of a log into pre-determined uniform lengths of firewood. A chainsaw attachment consisting of an elongated resilient rod having one end fitted with a stabilizing cup and a locking stud, when extended through a single bore in the chainsaw bar, allows the effortless attachment to any chain saw bar. The locking stud fitted with a bore to receive a modified cotter pin thus performing a failsafe means of attachment. The rod is extended perpendicular to the cutting plane and lengthwise to the log. The opposing end of the rod is fitted with a large disc, when firmly locked against the end of the log, will position the chain saw cutting bar in the exact location of the measured length of cut. In contrast to the fixed measured length of the gauging rod, a variable length rod can be manufactured consisting of two rods, a hollowed outer rod and a telescoping inter rod. The outer rod having one bore perpendicular to the rod and extending through both sides of the hollowed rod. The inter rod having several perpendicular bores at two inch increments. This arrangement thus allows the gauging rod to be set at several different lengths by aligning desired inter rod bore with outer rod bore and inserting a modified cotter pin through the bores firmly locking the measured length adjustment in place. |
| US08176640B2 |
Media cutting device
The present invention pertains to a device for cutting media, such as paper, cardboard, and metal foils. The device has a body that includes a sidewall extending from the body. The device has means for cutting the media disposed in the body. The means for cutting the media has a cutting edge having a leading edge and a trailing edge. The sidewall shrouds at least a portion of the cutting edge. The sidewall has a media contact point that is disposed away from the trailing edge in the direction of the leading edge. |
| US08176638B2 |
Ergonomic scissors
Ergonomic scissors are adjustable with respect to thumb offset, thumb ring rotation, and thumb/finger ring diameter, so as to enable effective control, in conjunction with unstrained wrist movements, of scissor roll, yaw and pitch. A set of interchangeable thumb rings of various inner diameters accommodate a range of anatomical thumb sizes. Each of the interchangeable thumb rings is rotatably attachable to the lower shank through multiple discrete placement openings in the bottom face of the lower shank. |
| US08176636B2 |
High pressure, hydraulic hand tool for cutting hooves on horses or other applications
A structurally integrated high pressure, hydraulic hand-held tool for cutting the hooves on horses. The tool includes a handle, with a hydraulic flow line provided centrally therethrough, a chamber integrated into the upper end of the handle, the chamber comprising a piston, so that as hydraulic fluid is exerted into the handle chamber, it forces the piston upwardly and out of the handle chamber, and at the upper end of the tool are a pair of mounts, that pivotally connect a pair of opposing jaws, each jaw having a cutting blade, and including links and a clevis that pivotally move the jaws and their cutting blades into a cutting action upon the horse hooves. |
| US08176632B2 |
Regenerated elastic roller manufacturing process, regenerated elastic roller, electrophotographic process cartridge, and electrophotographic image forming apparatus
A regenerated elastic rollers manufacturing process is provided. The process includes the step of removing an agglutinated stain of toner adhered to the surface of an elastic roller including a mandrel and an elastic layer. The step further includes the steps of: (1) pressing a pressing roller against the surface of the elastic roller so as to crack the agglutinated stain on the surface of the elastic roller; and (2) removing the agglutinated stain cracked in the step (1) from the surface of the elastic roller by means of an adhesive roller. |
| US08176631B2 |
Method for making positioning structures of a bicycle hub
A method for making positioning structures of a bicycle hub comprises the steps of: A. bicycle hub clamping step; B. bicycle hub press forming step; and C. bicycle hub loading step. By such arrangements, the positioning structures of the bicycle hub can be obtained by the quick press forming without affecting the structure strength. |
| US08176630B2 |
Method of producing liquid droplet ejection head
A liquid droplet ejection head includes: a nozzle plate that has a plurality of nozzles ejecting a liquid droplet; a flow path member that includes: pressure generating chambers that communicate with the nozzles; and liquid supply paths through which liquid is supplied to the pressure generating chambers; and a damper portion that is disposed in at least one part of a region, the region being on the nozzle plate, corresponding to the liquid supply paths, the damper portion reducing a fluctuation of an ejection amount of the liquid droplets to enable stable ejection. |
| US08176628B1 |
Protruding post substrate package structure and method
In accordance with one embodiment, a method of forming a protruding post substrate package includes applying a dielectric layer to a carrier. Via apertures are formed in the dielectric layer. Carrier cavities are formed in the carrier using the dielectric layer as a mask. The carrier cavities are lined with a first metal, the first metal being selectively etchable compared to the carrier. After encapsulation of an electronic component with an encapsulant, the carrier is removed such that protruding posts including the first metal protrude outward from a first surface of the dielectric layer. |
| US08176625B2 |
Electrical connector assembly tool
An electrical connector tool assembly is disclosed. The tool assembly includes a conductor tool and a connector tool connected to and cooperable with the conductor tool. The tool assembly can be used in connecting a first conductor to a second conductor with an electrical connector. The tool assembly is adjustably arranged and disposed to receive and removably retain a first conductive member of an electrical connector in the connector tool and is further arranged and disposed to both to hold the second conductor in place relative to a second conductive member of the electrical connector and to prevent rotation of the second conductive member with respect to the first conductive member. |
| US08176619B2 |
Method of manufacturing molded commutator
A method of manufacturing a molded commutator for a vacuum cleaner motor, includes providing a cylindrical molding ring; arranging commutator segments in a circle along an inner periphery of the cylindrical molding ring such that grooves are formed between adjacent pairs of the commutator segments and the grooves are extended orthogonal to the rotating direction; press-fitting cylindrical varistors between the commutator segments, with a press-fitting load for each of the varistors ranging from 2 kN to 5 kN; and resin-molding the commutator segments and the varistors together with a molding material so as to maintain integral engagement of the commutator segments and the varistors; wherein the commutator segments are of copper alloy containing silver, and the varistors are of zinc oxide compounds; wherein side surfaces of the varistors contact with the adjacent pairs of commutator segments; and flexible metal is printed on the contacting side surfaces of the varistors. |
| US08176616B2 |
Method for error-proofing a reconfigurable clamp
A method for error-proofing clamping operation performed with a reconfigurable clamp having a body, a locking member, a plurality of moveable pins for contacting an object, and a plunger is provided. The method includes applying a force to the plunger and sensing whether the plunger achieves a fully-depressed position, and releasing the force to the plunger and sensing whether the plunger achieves a fully-extended position. The method may additionally include applying the force to the plunger, contacting the object with the plurality of pins and sensing whether the clamp body achieves a predetermined position relative to a clamping device. |
| US08176612B2 |
Method of energizing a connector
A method of energizing a high pressure tube connector for a well comprising a tube; a first connector assembly comprising: a female profile disposed over the tube and a first ferrule disposed over the tube adjacent the female profile; a second connector assembly comprising: an inverted jam nut disposed over the tube and a second ferrule disposed over the tube adjacent the inverted jam nut, wherein the second ferrule extends along the tube in a direction opposite the first ferrule; a nipple comprising a test port, wherein the nipple is disposed over the tube between the first ferrule and the second ferrule; a primary seal formed by compressing the first ferrule into the female profile using a pressure from the test port; and a secondary seal formed by compressing the second ferrule into the inverted jam nut using the pressure from the test port. |
| US08176611B1 |
Pin changing device and method
A pin removal assembly for use with an upper block of a crane includes a sheave support and a pin support. The upper block includes a frame, a plurality of sheaves, and a removable sheave pin that defines and axis of rotation for the sheaves and supports the sheaves within the frame. The pin removal assembly includes a sheave support mountable to the frame of the upper block and a pin support mountable to the frame of the upper block. The pin support is configured to support the sheave pin when the sheave pin is removed from the upper block. |
| US08176610B1 |
Device and method for accurate location and placement of holes in, and attachment of components to, varied workpieces
Disclosed is an apparatus, system, and method for precisely placing holes or attaching sub-components to vertical mullions or other workpieces of various shapes and material compositions. The apparatus, in its basic mode of operation, can accurately locate the positions of holes or groupings of holes to be drilled in the workpiece by means of the calibrated positioning, along the workpiece, of a plurality of fixtures affixed to specially-designed drill guide plates. When used in its advanced mode of operation, the fixtures of the apparatus are re-configured and loaded with a plurality of shear blocks or other connectors, and thereupon an operator, by calibrated placement of the fixtures, may simultaneously pinpoint the required fastening location of the shear blocks and sequentially attach specified fasteners through each shear block, directly onto the workpiece. |
| US08176609B2 |
Magnetic cylinder head washer removal tool
A removal tool for removing washers located on each cylinder head stud when performing a valve job on an automobile engine. The removal tool includes a cylindrical body having a handle portion and a washer removal end opposite the handle. The cylindrical body includes a central bore that extends the axial length of the body. The removal end includes an end surface having at least one embedded magnet member and defines a pickup surface for use in attracting and securing the easy removal of automotive cylinder head stud washers and automotive cylinder head valve spring spacers valve from the cylinder head. |
| US08176608B2 |
Method of manufacturing slow acting pocketed spring core
A method of manufacturing spring cushions (10) having slow-acting pocketed spring cores (12) characterized by the individual springs of the cores (12) being sealingly pocketed within semi-impermeable fabric material. |
| US08176598B2 |
Locking spacer assembly for a circumferential dovetail rotor blade attachment system
A dual-component locking spacer assembly for insertion in a circumferential dovetail slot includes a stationary member having a platform configured to fit into a space between the adjacent rotor blade platforms. A first leg extends transversely from an underside of the platform. A longitudinally extending groove is defined in the platform. A slide member is movably engaged with the stationary member along the groove, and includes an upper plate and a second leg connected to the upper plate. The slide member is movable along the groove between a first unlocked position wherein the first and second legs are spaced apart a first distance so as to be insertable into the dovetail slot, and a second locked position wherein the first and second legs are spaced apart an extended second distance so as to engage against opposite walls of the dovetail slot and lock the stationary member in position in the dovetail slot. |
| US08176595B2 |
Saddle bracket for wiper adapter
A saddle bracket for wiper adapter comprises a bracket chassis and a linking saddle to be extensively compatible in coupling with various types of articulation adapter in vast range. Wherein, the bracket chassis is a prerequisite component and the linking saddle is an optional component so that the bracket chassis can either be used alone or be docked by the linking saddle as an integral entity. Through such versatile structure with comprehensive compatibility, the kind and quantity of the saddle bracket can be reduced. Besides, the accumulative quantity of the defective wipers from annual replaced windshield wiper due to obsolete or aged malfunction can also be indirectly decreased. Thus, not only the vendors and the consumers of the viper can be benefited by the decreasing in manufacturing cost and selling price but also the environmental protection can be benefited by the decreasing in annual replacement quantity. |
| US08176589B2 |
Pocket spring mattress, a method and a device for the manufacturing thereof
A spring mattress is disclosed including a plurality of strings interconnected side by side, each string including a plurality of continuous casings and each casing including a coil spring. Further, in at least one embodiment, at least one of the casings in at least one of the strings includes a plurality of stretch openings into the interior of the casing, wherein at least some of said stretch openings are displaced in relation to each other in a lengthwise direction of the spring. At least one embodiment of the present invention also relates to a method and a device for manufacturing of such a mattress, as well as to a bed adapted for such a mattress. |
| US08176582B2 |
Mattress retainer buckle
A mattress buckle for securing the position of a mattress (22) on the base (16) of an adjustable bed (10). The mattress comprises one of a pair of male and female elements of the buckle (12) secured to an upper surface of the bed base (16) and the other of the pair of male and female elements of the buckle (12) secured to the underside of the mattress (22). When these elements of the buckle are interlocked in snap-fit engagement, the mattress is constrained against movement on the base as the adjustable panels of the bed base are articulated relative to one another through various positions of adjustment. |
| US08176581B2 |
Compact foundation unit kit and method of making same
A compact foundation unit kit and a method of making a foundation unit from the kit. The kit comprises at least three elongated, generally flat truss rails, four generally flat end caps and a plurality of generally flat cross slats, with the truss rails, end caps and cross slats oriented together with their longitudinal dimensions aligned in a generally parallel orientation and with their flat sides in contact. A binding maintains the truss rails, end caps and cross slats in that orientation. The method includes providing the kit, opening the kit and orienting the truss rails in a parallel, spaced position, then affixing one of the end caps to each end of the truss rails, inverting the partially formed foundation, and affixing the last two end caps to opposite ends of the truss rails, then finally affixing the cross slats to the truss rails in a spaced, parallel orientation. The foundation can then be finished in a conventional fashion. |
| US08176580B2 |
Diverter spout
A diverter spout for alternatively supplying water to a bathtub or diverting water to a shower is provided with a rolling gate valve. The gate valve uses the force of flowing water to facilitate sealing, and there is a return spring to reset the gate valve. |
| US08176579B2 |
Modular shower pan
A modular shower pan includes at least four polygon panels adapted to interlock in side by side relation to form a body. Each panel has a planar bottom surface and a top surface that is sloped based upon a pre-selected drain position on the body. |
| US08176578B2 |
Bath with interchangeable fitting
A bath includes in or associated with an upper wall or rim section of the bath at least one water connection, a neck water outlet fitting 2 interchangeably connectable to the water connection to when connected direct a flow of water generally centrally on to the neck and/or upper back of a bather reclining against the adjacent bath wall, and a shoulders water outlet fitting or fittings 15 interchangeably connectable to the water connection to when connected direct a flow of water on to the shoulders or front shoulder regions of a bather reclining against the adjacent bath wall. |
| US08176577B2 |
Flush toilet with improved flow pattern
A flush toilet includes a bowl assembly defining a bowl. The bowl assembly has a discharge outlet at a lower end and a ledge circumferentially extending about a substantial portion of the bowl. The bowl has a rear surface that is generally flat and vertical. The rear surface transitions to the ledge as the bowl continues clockwise and counter clockwise from the rear surface. A horizontal dimension of the ledge increases as the ledge continues from the rear surface to a front of the bowl. An angle of the ledge increases as the ledge continues from the rear surface to the front. A maximum slope of the ledge is located proximate the front. A nozzle is mounted to the bowl assembly for pressurizing a source of flush water and delivering the source of flush water to the bowl for rinsing and flushing of the bowl. The nozzle is positioned at a rear portion of the bowl and produces a first flow of water in a first circumferential direction about the bowl and a second flow of water in a second circumferential direction about the bowl. The second circumferential direction is opposite to the first circumferential direction. The ledge cascades the first and second flows of flush water down the bowl as the first and second flows of water move in the first and second circumferential directions, respectively. |
| US08176575B2 |
Shield for helmet, and helmet including such shield
In a shield for a helmet according to this invention, an air introducing mechanism portion disposed at a region including a lower end portion of a shield main body portion and its vicinity includes a large number of vent holes extending substantially in a vertical direction so that a traveling wind can flow substantially upward from substantially below substantially along the inner surface of the shield main body portion. This invention can provide a shield for a helmet which, despite that raindrops and the like will enter inside the shield main body portion at a low possibility, can introduce the traveling wind inside the shield main body portion well, and in which the shield main body portion can be worked comparatively well and the strength of the shield main body portion is not particularly impaired. |
| US08176572B2 |
Method of forming a laminated fabric panty
Feminine undergarments, particularly brassieres and other body shaping garments that are fabricated using a multi-layered fabric laminate that is formed by gluing multiple fabric layers together, preferably to permit body shaping garments to be substantially fabricated from a single main piece of material or blank cut from the multi-layered fabric laminate and which has finished edges which do not require separate binding or narrow edge finishing, together with a method of making such garments, both on an individual, batch basis, as well as an automated process for making the fabric laminate and multiple garments on a continuous basis, are disclosed. Multi-layer composite fabric laminate materials wherein different portions of at least one fabric layer thereof are made of different fabrics, and a method for making them, are also disclosed. |
| US08176571B2 |
Pair of pants with the L pocket
The cotton pants 1 as a pair of pants with the L pocket is that the front and the reverse edge 3Ab of the storing part 3A is perpendicular against the length direction of the belt part 3, therefore all the sewing process can be done by sewing machine and the mass productivity can be kept. Also because the upper edge of the raw fabric which does not have the rectangle expansion and contraction inside the elongating part 3B is sewn on and the lower edge of the raw fabric which does not have expansion and contraction is sewn on the lower edge of the belt part 3, one part of the raw fabric 6 which does not have expansion and contraction can be seen even if the one who wears it turns over the lower edge of the elongating part 3B by curiosity and the inner structure of the stretch stopper material 11 etc. can not be seen, therefore the situation that the one who wears it pulls out the inner structure and destroys the structure which is capable of expansion and contraction can definitely be prevented. |
| US08176570B2 |
Sports garment for covering protective equipment
A garment having a substantially tubular body configured to cover at least one of an upper and a lower torso of a wearer, and at least one pair of tubular portions extending from the body and configured for surrounding corresponding limbs of the wearer, each tubular portion including a tubular insert having a length increasing around a perimeter thereof from a minimum length to a maximum length, the tubular insert providing excess material in the tubular portion along the maximum length to locally increase a width of the tubular portion. The garment can be for example pants or a jersey. |
| US08181267B2 |
Scanning-type probe microscope
To provide a scanning probe microscope wherein the scanning means is not damaged by fluids, the scanning probe microscope 30 comprises a cantilever support part 2 for supporting a cantilever 1; displacement measurement parts 3, 4, 5 and 6 for measuring the displacement of the cantilever 1; a specimen container 11 comprising sidewalls 19 and bottom surface 18 and containing a fluid 10 and a specimen S; a carrying stage 40 on which the specimen container 11 is placed; and a scanning means 7 for moving and scanning the carrying stage 40. While the cantilever 1 is immersed in the fluid 10 that is contained in the specimen container 11, the carrying stage 40 is moved, and the displacement of the cantilever 1 is measured. The scanning probe microscope 30 further comprises a ring-shaped protective mat 50 that is capable of absorbing the fluid 10. A mounting mechanism 43 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the carrying stage 40 for removably attaching the protective mat 50 by its inner peripheral area. |
| US08181265B2 |
Secure machine counting
A method and computer-readable medium for deterring software piracy in a volume license environment. An activation bypass message is generated and sent. Information contained in the activation bypass message is compared to a list of machine identifiers. A binding service message contains a count of the machine identifiers in the list. Once the count reaches a predetermined threshold, software activation bypass may occur. |
| US08181263B2 |
Data communication system controlling available addressees for data based on preselected security level of user and addressee location
An LDAP server stores security levels individually assigned to a plurality of destinations and a plurality of users in advance. When a user is authenticated successfully by the LDAP server, a control section of a multi-functional machine obtains the security level of the authenticated user from the LDAP server via a communication section, and then restricts/relaxes display contents necessary in transmission processing, in accordance with the high/low of the security level. Further, when the security level is not lower than a predetermined threshold value, the control section obtains from the LDAP server a destination in which the user is adopted as the addressee. |
| US08181256B2 |
Data transmission apparatus, control method therefor, and image input/output apparatus
According to the present invention, a data transmission apparatus capable of transmitting data by using a plurality of transmission media, comprises an authority storage unit, adapted to store authority information representing use authority to use each transmission medium by each user; and a transmission control unit, adapted to, in transmitting data, restrict data transmission to a destination corresponding to a transmission medium for which a current user does not have the use authority. |
| US08181253B1 |
System and method for reducing security risk in computer network
Disclosed are systems, methods and computer program products for reducing security risk in a computer network. The system includes an administration server that collects system usage, user profile and security incidents information from a plurality of computers in the network. The server determines values of one or more risk factors for each computer using the collected information. The server then calculates security rating of each computer user as a function of the risk factors and adjusts the calculated security rating of a given computer user based on the security ratings of other computer users with whom the given computer users communicates. The server then selects, based on the adjusted security rating, security settings for the computer of the given user in order to reduce user's security risk to the computer network and applies the selected security settings to the computer of the given user. |
| US08181249B2 |
Malware detection system and method
Methods and systems are presented for detection of malware such as worms in which a network switch entices the malware into sending scan packets by allocating one or more ports as bait addresses, sending outgoing bait packets, and identifying compromised hosts that send unexpected incoming packets to a bait address. |
| US08181248B2 |
System and method of detecting anomaly malicious code by using process behavior prediction technique
Provided are a pattern analyzing/detecting method and a system using the same that are capable of detecting and effectively preventing an unknown malicious code attack. To detect such an attack, the method monitors the system to combine all behaviors exhibited within the system due to corresponding malicious codes, reprocess and learn the behaviors, analyze existing malicious behavior feature values (prediction patterns), and compare them with a behavior pattern exhibited by an execution code. |
| US08181246B2 |
System and method for preventing web frauds committed using client-scripting attacks
A method for detecting and blocking Javascript hijacking attacks, comprising checking if an incoming request belongs to a valid session established between a client and a trusted server. When said incoming request does belong to a valid session, it is checked if a Referer header of said incoming request includes a valid domain name. The incoming request is marked as suspicious, when said incoming request does not include a valid domain name. It is checked if a respective response of said suspicious incoming request includes a script code. A preventive action responsive to a user input is taken when said respective response includes a script code. |
| US08181245B2 |
Proxy-based malware scan
A system that employs out-of-process (‘out-of-proc’) architectures with respect to malware scanning related to network services applications is provided. The ‘out-of-proc’ malware (e.g., virus) scanning is employed in connection with a web conferencing server. This architecture enables more versatile options related to scanning, for example, selective bypass in a crisis situation. |
| US08181243B2 |
Computer readable medium for resolving permission for role activation operators
A computer-readable storage medium storing instructions executable by a processor for resolving permissions using role activation operators to evaluate permissions assigned to a user in a role context inheritance hierarchy. The stored instructions comprise several steps: a step of retrieving a plurality of activated roles within a role context that match roles assigned to a user, wherein one or more permissions in the role context inherit from one or more permissions in a parent role context in a role context permission inheritance hierarchy; a step of determining an aggregate permission for each of the plurality of activated roles, wherein a role activation operator determines how an activated role is evaluated; a step of processing the aggregate permissions for the plurality of activated roles; and a step of resolving a final permission for the user. |
| US08181240B2 |
Method and apparatus for preventing DOS attacks on trunk interfaces
A method of protecting a data network from denial of service (DOS) attacks is described. The method may use various network tools to selectively block or disable portions of a data trunk experiencing a DOS attack, thereby preventing the DOS attack from reaching at least some resources on the network. In one embodiment, a network switch identifies a virtual LAN (VLAN) carrying suspect data on a data trunk. The network switch then adjusts a spanning tree for the network so that one or more ports on the compromised VLAN are blocked or disabled, while non-compromised VLANs are allowed to continue carrying data. Other approaches are also presented for avoiding the loss of valid data when a network blocks one or more VLANs or other portions of a network in response to a DOS attack or other intrusion. |
| US08181239B2 |
Distributed network security system and a hardware processor therefor
An architecture provides capabilities to transport and process Internet Protocol (IP) packets from Layer 2 through transport protocol layer and may also provide packet inspection through Layer 7. A set of engines may perform pass-through packet classification, policy processing and/or security processing enabling packet streaming through the architecture at nearly the full line rate. A scheduler schedules packets to packet processors for processing. An internal memory or local session database cache stores a session information database. The session information that is not in the internal memory is stored and retrieved to/from an additional memory. An application running on an initiator or target can a region of memory, which is made available to its peer for access without substantial host intervention through RDMA data transfer. A security system is also disclosed that enables a new way of implementing security capabilities inside enterprise networks in a distributed manner. |
| US08181237B2 |
Method for improving security of computer networks
A method of preventing unauthorized user access to a computer network has been developed. The method includes receiving a domain name server resolution request at the computer network from a requesting user. Next a reply to the requesting user is generated with a domain name server resolution and internet protocol address of a target device within the computer network. The reply is inspected with a network security device, where the network security device does not have an assigned internet protocol address so that it remains undetected by the requesting user. The network security device then monitors data traffic to the computer network to detect a reply from the requesting user. Once detected, the reply to the internet protocol address is intercepted with the network security device. Finally, the network security device verifies that the requesting user is authorized to access the computer network with the network security device. |
| US08181235B2 |
Authentication device, server system, and method of authenticating server between a plurality of cells and authentication program thereof
Intended is to realize, in a server system operating on at least one BMC board mounted on each of a plurality of cell boxes, single sign-on with respect to an access from system management software or a client terminal. An authentication device of a server system 1 formed of at least one Web server 112 operable on baseboard management controllers 110 and 120 mounted on a cell box 10, which device includes a storage unit 70 in which authentication information is held, and an authentication management unit 140 which holds an authentication result of a client to be authenticated or an account to be authenticated in the storage unit 70 and synchronizes the authentication information between the Web servers to skip the authentication in a hyperlink access between the Web servers. |
| US08181218B2 |
Advanced set top terminal having a video call feature
A set top terminal equipped with a camera and microphone includes the capability to send and receive video calls through a cable television delivery system or other communications networks. In response to detection of the occurrence of a video call event or triggering event, a video program is automatically paused. In response to an incoming video phone call, message, web page, or other video communications information, the system pauses the video program and displays an indication of the occurrence of the communications event. The system also buffers the video program while paused, permitting a user to replay missed portions of it. Alternatively, the system waits for a triggering event, which includes the user's access to the communications event, in order to pause the video program. The set top terminal also includes features for caller identification of video calls and dual display of video programs and video calls, such as picture in picture. A hardware upgrade for adding video call functionality to a set top terminal is also disclosed. |
| US08181215B2 |
System and method for providing video program information or video program content to a user
In a system for broadcasting video programs to a user including a display, a system and method for providing program information or a copy of at least a portion of a program to the user. In one embodiment, a controller receives an input signal representing a request for summary information concerning a program, the program having a beginning and the input signal generated at a time during the broadcast. The controller provides via the display a summary of the program from the program beginning to the input signal time in response to the input signal. A controller may alternatively monitor a period of time during which the display is tuned to a broadcast of a program, the period starting during the broadcast. The controller is used to provide via the display a copy of at least a portion of the program when the period exceeds a predetermined threshold time. |
| US08181214B2 |
Recording system and recording substitution system
A recording center station includes functions for receiving a broadcast wave and saving or recording received data. In response to a request from each receiving station, the recording center station substitutionally records a specified broadcast program and provides a recorded content. There may be the case where the receiving station cannot record a reserved program independently due to insufficient free space remaining in a recording medium or a recording apparatus failure. In this case, the receiving station can automatically issue a recording substitution request to the recording center station for substitution of the program recording. |
| US08181211B2 |
Total bandwidth conditioning device
An apparatus can include a modem and a conditioning device can be provided and coupled at a signal transmission line of a CATV system at a premise of a user according to embodiments of the application. The apparatus can provide selected information (e.g., Table 1) upstream for use that can improve operations or increase capabilities at one or more users. |
| US08181210B2 |
Method for delivery of deadline-driven content flows over a flow transport system that interfaces with a flow delivery system via a selected gateway
The present invention relates to a system and method that delivers content from one or more content sources to a plurality of subscriber units via a flow transport subsystem that transports content flows originated from the one or more content sources over a wide area network in response to one or more requests for deadline-driven content flows. E.g., live or interactive flows. One or more gateways interface with the flow transport subsystem for receiving the deadline-driven content flows. Each of the one or more gateways is associated with one or more subscriber units and is selected based on one or more requests for deadline-driven content flows. A content processor converts the deadline-driven content flows to modulated content flows, and a flow delivery subsystem delivers the modulated content flows to one or more subscriber units associated with a selected gateway over an allocated frequency bandwidth of one or more transmission mediums. The flow delivery subsystem delivers the modulated content flows only to those one or more subscriber units that generate one or more content requests which initiate the one or more requests for deadline-driven content flows. |
| US08181209B2 |
Methods and apparatus for providing video on demand and network PVR functions using IP streaming
Methods and apparatus for supporting on-demand content services, using conventional non-IP based VOD servers are described. The methods and apparatus of the present invention, through the use of a protocol converter and/or a content redirector, can be used to enable a conventional VOD server to supply content to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device which supports IP based content delivery and/or RSTP control of content delivery. The protocol converter of the invention can be implemented as an RTSP-ISA PROXY. The RTSP Proxy converts messages between RTSP (Real-Time Streaming Protocol) to the appropriate ISA protocol signal or another protocol format. The proxy module handles the conversion between these formats and converts a received signal, e.g. message, into the format required by the device which responds by implementing the operation requested by the signal. |
| US08181208B1 |
Media server and network for coaxial cable supporting legacy set top boxes
A media server located in the home has video processing and storage capability. The media server receives video programming and control data from the cable plant head-end and receives status and control data from set top boxes (STBs). The media server can also receive locally generated video programming. The media server transmits signals that implement head-end functions to set top boxes within the home, including video programming and control data. The media server receives status data from the STBs. A point of entry distribution device provides signal coupling and blocking to allow signals to propagate within the home and to the head-end but block certain signals from leaving the home to maintain isolation. The server communicates to legacy STBs and to new STBs and devices that do not use the legacy waveform. Legacy STBs can communicate with the server or with the cable head-end. New devices can communicate with the server and with each other over the in-home coaxial cable wiring. A network is formed using the in-home coaxial cable wiring. |
| US08181207B2 |
Digital broadcasting system and method of processing data thereof
A digital broadcasting system and data processing method are disclosed, which are highly resistant to channel changes and noise. The present invention includes receiving a broadcast signal having mobile service data and main service data multiplexed with each other from at least one parade, demodulating the broadcast signal, acquiring program table information describing at least one service included in at least one ensemble from the demodulated broadcast signal and decoding the mobile service data associated with a first service using a program table information transport unit in the acquired program table information. |
| US08181206B2 |
Personal content server apparatus and methods
Personal content server apparatus and associated methods that allow a user (e.g., cable or satellite network subscriber) to access content, such as a video program, from a location outside the subscriber's network. In one embodiment, a personal content server streams the content to the subscriber over a network connection from the local e.g., (subscription) network to a remote network upon authorization by a content manager process. Various access, business or operational rules are applied depending on the content and delivery mode; e.g., to live video broadcast, video-on-demand (VOD), or archived content from the subscriber's digital video recorder (DVR) or networked PVR. In another variant, reservation information (for example program or asset ID information) is cached at a headend or hub server, thereby obviating the subscriber (or the network) having to access the subscriber's premises device. In yet another variant, a “virtual” CPE experience is provided for the remote user. |
| US08181205B2 |
PVR channel and PVR IPG information
A system that maps media content information to an interactive program guide displayed on a screen includes, among other things, a memory with logic, and a processor configured with the logic to display at least one personal video recording display channel in the interactive program guide. The processor is further preferably configured with the logic to display media content instance listings in the personal video recording display channel for corresponding media content instance recordings. |
| US08181203B2 |
Distributed, interactive television program guide; system and method
In an interactive network-based personal video recording system, a user interface is provided that allows viewers to search a database of program guide information according to program title, indexed program attributes such as actor and director, and key word. Viewer interaction is by way of a remote control unit. |
| US08181201B2 |
Enhanced electronic program guides
A method and system for rating programs, the method including, receiving a sample of viewing logs from a plurality of set top boxes (STBs), determining, from the sample of viewing logs, at least groups of viewers sharing similar interests, and groups of programs sharing similar audience, computing time dynamics of rating distribution for the groups of viewers and the groups of programs, and incorporating at least one of the following into broadcast metadata the time dynamics of rating distributions of the groups of viewers for each of the groups of programs, rating distributions of the groups of viewers for each of the groups of programs marginalized by time, rating distributions of the groups of viewers for each program marginalized by time, relative sizes of each group of viewers, and a mapping of each program to groups of programs, thereby making the broadcast metadata available to the plurality of STBs for use in computing ratings. Related systems and methods are described. |
| US08181197B2 |
System and method for voting on popular video intervals
A system and method is provided for identifying popular intervals in online hosted videos. To determine popular intervals associated with a video, a plurality of votes for one or more intervals of the video are collected and organized into a plurality of groups. Each group includes votes for intervals of the video that are similar to each other. A group having the highest number of votes is identified, and a most popular clip of the video is formed based upon the intervals in the group with the highest number of votes. This process can be carried out to determine the groups having the second and third highest number of votes in a single video to form the second and third most popular clips in that video, as well as across numerous videos to identify the most popular clips within different videos. |
| US08181194B2 |
Cooperative system for measuring electronic media
A media measurement system uses media handlers to obtain information from presented media for collection by research data collection agents and dispatch to a controller. The controller registers media for measurement. One or more research data collection agents are assigned to measure each panel member's exposure to and interactions with media. A research data collection agent tracks a panel member and collects transmissions from the cooperative media handlers. The research data collection agent creates log entry objects from transmissions received from the cooperative media handlers, places the log entry objects into an unfiltered media queue, confirms the integrity of the messages, filters out unnecessary log entry objects from the unfiltered media queue to create a filtered media queue, creates dispatch objects using objects from the filtered media queue, places dispatch objects into a dispatch queue, and transmits dispatch objects from the dispatch queue to the controller. |
| US08181193B2 |
Disk chucking device for alignment of the rotational center of a disk with the center of the disk chucking device
A disk chucking device is disclosed. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the disk chucking device coupling a disk to a rotor of a motor such that the disk can be mounted and demounted can include a boss, which is coupled with the rotor, a first elastic body, which includes an inner circumference surrounding the boss and in which the first elastic body has elasticity in a radial direction from a center of the boss, a plurality of second elastic bodies, which are radially disposed from the first elastic body and in which the plurality of second elastic bodies are elastically supported by the first elastic body, and a plurality of chuck pins, which press the disk and in which each of the plurality of chuck pins is elastically supported by each of the plurality of second elastic bodies. |
| US08181188B2 |
Version resiliency for a host application and managed code
A method and architecture for increasing version resiliency between a host application that is unmanaged code and managed code is provided. A version resiliency technique specifies that the host application and the managed code communicate via an adapter that implements a protocol to access an object exposed by the host application. The version resiliency technique specifies that when a new version of the host application that impacts an interface exposed by the object of the host application is released, a new version of the adapter that executes within the application domain of the custom code is released. A version of managed code that adheres to the protocol will correctly interact with new versions of the host application that include a new version of the object because a new implementation of the adapter is also provided. |
| US08181186B1 |
Hardware independent imaging method
A new and useful method is provided, of organizing and automating a hardware independent disk imaging deployment process, e.g. for Windows PC and other Server operating systems, that uses a server that both has a database of computer PC hardware data that can be electronically analyzed. a. electronically analyzing the database of computers, and grouping the computers into Compatibility Classes, each compatibility class having like model systems that also have been analyzed to have exactly and only the same hardware in common, thus accounting for hardware variance within model groups, b. electronically identifying candidate computers that will serve as collection targets for gathering (remote collection performed over the network) of device drivers for each compatibility class group, c. electronically extracting device drivers and other hardware related data from a selected candidate computer, and d. electronically configuring deployment jobs that will first perform a disk image of the computer. |
| US08181181B2 |
Task-optimizing calendar system
A calendar system schedules tasks and meetings or other appointments for a user. The system retrieves a work capacity, which is information regarding the working hours for the user. The system further retrieves a plurality of enhanced tasks for the user. The system then optimizes a schedule for the user based on the work capacity and the enhanced tasks. |
| US08181175B1 |
Accounting for resource usage time by a virtual machine
A technique for accounting for resource usage time by virtual machines is provided according to which a virtual machine observes a non-virtual timer to determine an elapsed non-virtual time interval during which the virtual machine performed a computation while using a shared processing resource. The virtual machine infers the amount of time it used the shared processing resource based on the observation. |
| US08181174B2 |
Virtual machine configuration system
A computing device configures virtual machines using configuration commands. Each of the virtual machines may boot from a corresponding virtual machine image file. As a virtual machine boots or executes, the virtual machine may read from or write to application and operating system files included in the corresponding virtual machine image file. Prior to the virtual machine booting, the computing device may get or set configuration properties of the operating system and applications to be booted in a respective virtual machine by reading from or writing to the application and operating system files included in the corresponding virtual machine image file. The computing device may execute configuration commands to get or set the configuration properties of the operating system and the applications. |
| US08181173B2 |
Determining priority for installing a patch into multiple patch recipients of a network
A method, computer program product, and system are disclosed for installing a patch on at least some of the servers of a network having multiple servers. A plurality of servers of the network are identified that requires installation of the patch. Two or more priority values are assigned to each of the identified servers. The priority values for a given identified server are each associated with a different criterion in a set of criteria. The assigned priority values are selectively processed for respective identified servers, in order to determine an initial priority, comprising a first sort order, for installing the patch on each identified server. The first sort order is revised in accordance with information pertaining to prior use of respective identified servers, to provide a second sort order. The patch is installed on each of the identified servers, in an order determined by the second sort order. |
| US08181165B2 |
Using annotations to reuse variable declarations to generate different service functions
Provided are a method, system, and article of manufacture for using annotations to reuse variable declarations to generate different service functions. A declaration file has variable declarations in a first programming language environment for use by application functions. The declaration file includes a plurality of sets of annotations for a plurality of service functions. Each of the sets of annotations identifies variables in the declaration file to use with one of the service functions. The declaration file is processed to generate one of the service functions. The set of annotations in the declaration file for the service function to generate is determined. The determined set of annotations is processed to determine variables to include with the service function to generate. The determined variables from the declaration file are used to generate the service function. |
| US08181164B1 |
Method and apparatus for extensibility of user interface binding definitions
Embodiments of the present invention create a binding specifications file that is compatible with a user interface application from a grammar rich XML file. The grammar rich XML file uses a complex DTD for transformation. The complex DTD may be prone to error if created by the user, therefore, the complex DTD file is automatically created from a schema definition provided by the user or user's agent. The user or user's agent defines a schema for the desired grammar level. Through a series of XSL transformations, the complex DTD file is created. Also, a stylesheet used for transforming the grammar rich XML file is automatically created. The grammar rich XML file provided by the user conforms to the automatically created complex DTD file. Thus, the grammar used in defining bindings of a user interface application is extensible without any requirement to enrich and recompile the application anytime an extension of the language is desired. |
| US08181161B2 |
System for automatically collecting trace detail and history data
A tracing mechanism operates at a low level of detail during normal program execution and automatically provides an increased level of detail during exception situations. The tracing mechanism also discloses history information prior to the exception situation. Program activity trace data is used to control action of the configurable trace facility allowing history data of a program's activity to be combined with current trace data into a persistent log. The trace facility may also be configured to recognize specified trigger values from either hardware or software means. |
| US08181160B2 |
System and method for performance monitoring
A system for monitoring a computer software system includes a first user actuated tuning knob for allocating space in memory for performance monitoring; a second user actuated tuning knob for a specifying time out value for in-flight units of work; and a transaction monitor responsive to the first and second user actuated tuning knobs for accumulating in synonym chain cells in the allocated space timing statistics for a plurality of in-flight units of work. |
| US08181159B2 |
Test automation using virtual machines
Techniques are described that perform software testing using virtual machines on dedicated or underutilized available computing devices. One or more virtual machines are identified as being sufficient to perform a test and availability of the one or more virtual machines is determined. The test is then executed on the one or more virtual machines when resources are available, thereby reducing the time and risks involved in using non-dedicated devices for testing. |
| US08181157B2 |
Custom language support for project documentation and editing
A software documentation system is provided. This includes a documentation object to store documentation data of an application. One or more custom language components are stored with the documentation objects to provide language display options for the application. The custom language components can be applied as a tag to indicate that tagged data items are to remain in a designated form such as a string name that is to remain in the designated language of the documentation designer. The custom language components can also be specified as differing forms of a similar language. |
| US08181155B2 |
Unified expression and location framework
Allowing a continuation based runtime to resolve different types of location expressions, value expressions, and/or locations. This may be accomplished using a different class for each particular type. The location expression classes may each have a common method used for all of the location expression classes. The value expression classes may each have a common method, and the locations may also each have a common method. This allows the resolution of such location and value expressions to be treated in a unified fashion regardless of the type of location expression, or the type of value expression. Also, the location may be treated in a unified manner regardless of the type of location. |
| US08181146B1 |
Equivalence checker
A method for performing equivalency checking between circuit designs is provided. The method includes partitioning the circuit designs into logic cones. The method includes comparing corresponding logic cones for equivalency. The comparing includes identifying constant registers feeding nonequivalent logic cones, and propagating a constant value associated with the constant register. The method includes repeating the comparing with the propagated constant values inserted in one of the corresponding logic cones. The method also includes detecting duplicate registers feeding nonequivalent logic cones in embodiments where no constant registers feeding nonequivalent logic cones are found. |
| US08181139B1 |
Multi-priority placement for configuring programmable logic devices
In one embodiment of the invention, a computer-implemented method of configuring a programmable logic device (PLD) includes placing logical functions within logical resources of the PLD to implement a desired netlist; swapping the logical function of at least one logical resource with the logical function of at least one other logical resource within the PLD; and evaluating whether to accept or reject the swap using a simulated annealing process that calculates at least three cost function values based upon routing priority groups, timing priority groups, and a timing critical group. |
| US08181137B2 |
Layout versus schematic error system and method
According to various embodiments of the invention, systems and methods for presenting Layout Versus Schematic (LVS) errors within a layout using a visual circuit representation of the design and highlighting is provided. One embodiment includes overlaying the layout circuit representation on the schematic circuit representation with highlighting that indicates the LVS errors. The method of such an embodiment compares a layout netlist against a schematic netlist in order to identify the layout-versus-schematic errors, generates a graphical representation of the layout netlist and a graphical representation of the schematic netlist, displays an overlay of the graphical representation of the layout netlist with the graphical representation of the schematic netlist and then, highlights the identified layout-versus-schematic errors that are present. |
| US08181134B2 |
Techniques for performing conditional sequential equivalence checking of an integrated circuit logic design
A technique for conditional sequential equivalence checking of logic designs embodied in netlists includes creating an equivalence-checking netlist over a first netlist and a second netlist. The conditional sequential equivalence checking includes conditions under which equivalences of the first and second netlists are checked. The technique derives a set of candidate conditional equivalence invariants for each correlated gate in a correlated gate pair set and attempts to prove that each candidate conditional equivalence invariant in the set of candidate conditional equivalence invariants is accurate. The candidate conditional equivalence invariants that cannot be proven accurate are removed from the set of candidate conditional equivalence invariants. The candidate conditional equivalence invariants that have been proven accurate are recorded as a set of conditional equivalence invariants. Finally, the conditional sequential equivalence checking of the equivalence-checking netlist is completed using the set of conditional equivalence invariants that are recorded. |
| US08181131B2 |
Enhanced analysis of array-based netlists via reparameterization
A mechanism is provided for increasing the scalability of formal verification solutions through enabling the use of input reparameterization on logic models that include memory arrays. A pre-processing mechanism enables the selection of a cut-based design partition which enables optimal reductions though input reparameterization given a netlist with constraints. A post-processing mechanism next prevents input reparameterization from creating topologically inconsistent models in the presence of arrays. Additionally, this technique may be used to rectify inconsistent topologies that may arise when reparameterizing even netlists without arrays, namely false sequential dependencies across initialization constructs. Furthermore, a mechanism is provided to undo the effects of memory array based input reparameterization on verification results. |
| US08181129B2 |
Acyclic modeling of combinational loops
Aspects of the present invention are directed to converting non-oscillatory combinational loops into acyclic circuits. Combinational loops may be modeled as state-holding elements where non-oscillatory loops are broken using edge-sensitive latches. In addition to providing a way to model combinational loops originally consisting only of gates (i.e., without originally including any state-holding elements), loops that have paths through user latches may also be converted. The presented methodology may be used with both small and large loops. |
| US08181128B2 |
Method and apparatus for determining a photolithography process model which models the influence of topography variations
One embodiment provides a system for determining a process model for a photolithography process. The photolithography process can use multiple exposure-and-development steps to create features on a wafer. When the photolithography process exposes the wafer to a layout, the wafer can include topography variations which were caused by previous exposure-and-development steps. The process model can be used to predict patterns that are created on the wafer when the wafer is exposed to a second layout, wherein the wafer includes topography variations that were caused by resist features that were created when the wafer was exposed to a first layout. The process model can include a first term and a second term, wherein the first term is convolved with a sum of the first layout and the second layout, and wherein the second term is convolved with the second layout. |
| US08181125B2 |
System and method for providing compliant mapping between chip bond locations and package bond locations for an integrated circuit
A system and method for providing compliant mapping between chip bond locations of an IC and corresponding package bond locations is disclosed. Package design information including package bond location information relating to the IC package and IC mask data including chip bond location information relating to the IC chip are integrated such that an internal physical design verification tool is operable to verify compliance between package bond locations and chip bond locations. |
| US08181120B2 |
TV widget animation
An example television Widget movement method involves receiving a dedicated command from a remote controller that activates the plurality of Widget programs, wherein the Widget programs, when in Display mode, display Widget representations on a display; receiving a command from the remote controller that establishes one of the plurality of displayed Widget programs as being in focus; and receiving a command from the remote controller that places the Widget program that is currently in focus in a Move Mode, where the Widget representation can be moved about the display while in Move Mode, wherein when the Widget is in Move Mode, the Widget representation is responsive to navigation commands from the remote controller to move about the display, and wherein such movement is animated using a 3 dimensional graphics engine. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract. |
| US08181117B2 |
Display of predicted storage state of target computing device during media file synchronization
A system and method for synchronizing media files stored on a plurality of computing devices. The system includes a source computing device configured to execute a synchronization engine configured to synchronize media files on the source computing device with copies of the media files on a target computing device. The synchronization engine may be configured to display a file synchronization interface including a synchronization control having a plurality of media file selectors configured to receive user input of a selected set of the media files for synchronization. The system further may include a prediction module configured to compute a predicted storage state of the target computing device based on an available storage capacity of the target computing device and an estimated destination file size of each of the selected set of media files, and display the predicted storage state on a graphical predicted storage state gauge. |
| US08181116B1 |
Method and apparatus for hyperlink list navigation
The present invention provides a method and/or system for extracting or scraping links, which may be in the form of uniform resource locators (URLs), from an information source such as a Web page displayed on a Web browser, based on a rule set or a template, or based on a selection of links, and adding the extracted or scraped links to another interface in order to facilitate navigating the extracted links. The extracted or scraped links are selectable by a user of the interface to cause the Web browser to display information corresponding to the selected links listed in the interface. Controls associated with the interface may allow the user to move forward and backward through the links listed in the interface. |
| US08181115B2 |
System and method for performing video collaboration
Provided are systems and methods of video collaboration. End-users may participate in collaboration sessions in which inter-personal barriers are rapidly dissolved through the completing of collaborative tasks. The end-users may be grouped into teams to perform these collaborative tasks, and may be scored and/or ranked based not only on performance of the task but on the interactions between team members. In some examples a coach or moderator is provided to assist with task completion and/or to facilitate social interaction between participants. According to various examples, system architectures are described for facilitating video collaboration. In one example, the architecture includes a multi-gateway architecture that segregates functions associated with presentation of an integrated video display from functions associated with transmission of display streams to devices associated with end-users. |
| US08181114B2 |
Transferring files from one machine to another using adjacent desktop displays in a virtual network
An apparatus and method for transferring files between a plurality of computers in a virtual network is disclosed. The present invention allows the selective transference of files between designated computers in a virtual network. The computers contain a VNRS program that allows a computer to display another computer's desktop next to its own. Although the two computers are not physically connected, the present invention allows files to be transferred from the first computer to the second computer and vice versa by merely dragging and dropping icons from one desktop to another. |
| US08181112B2 |
Independent portlet rendering
The rendering of portal pages on can be sped up by allowing individual portlets to be displayed while other portlets of the page are still waiting to finish rendering. Temporary messages can be displayed for the portlets that are still rendering. This temporary content can be replaced by the finished portal rendering for the slow rendering portlets. Additionally, a timeout feature for the portlets can be used. The timeout feature allows the rendering of the portlet to be stopped after a certain period of time. |
| US08181110B2 |
DOM based media viewer
A system by which a computer user can view or listen to selected media objects, such as videos or podcasts or Internet radio, located in the Document Object Model (“DOM”) of a web page. The system is able to isolate the media objects selected by a user or the media objects stipulated in a database containing a description of the location of the objects. The system has the ability to display the specified media objects in a toolbar or console. The system is able to play multiple media objects concurrently and to independently control the sound produced by multiple media objects and also has the capability of performing a pre-recorded set of instructions to cause an object in the DOM to execute, such as playing a video or opening a file. |
| US08181107B2 |
Content adaptation
A system includes a mobile device and an optimization server. The mobile device is capable of transmitting request data that includes a requested webpage and identification data. The optimization server is configured to receive response data that corresponds to the request data from a content server, to adapt the response data based on the identification data, and to transmit the adapted response data to the mobile device. |
| US08181106B2 |
Use of overriding templates associated with customizable elements when editing a web page
A method is presented for editing and saving a web page at a client based web-page editor. A rendered web page is received from a server computer and displayed at a web-page editor on the client computer. The client computer identifies one or more customizable web parts on the web page and also identifies one or more shared templates that are associated with the customizable web parts. Each identified shared template is copied as an overriding template. A data view of one or more web parts is edited, causing one or more of the overriding templates associated with the web part to be modified. When the edited changes are saved, the client computer sends a message to the server computer. The message includes the portions of the overriding templates that are modified as a result of the edited changes to the web page. |
| US08181104B1 |
Automatic creation of cascading style sheets
A system and method are described for automatically generating style sheet formatting for stylistic edits to a Web page in a Web development environment. The Web development environment detects the user's selection of particular content of the Web page and captures any stylistic changes that the user makes to the content. Using the stylistic changes, the Web development environment searches a style data structure to determine whether any style rules already exist that correspond to the user's stylistic changes. If the Web development environment does not find a pre-existing style rule, it automatically generates one or more style rules for the stylistic edits and associates those rules with the selected content. If a pre-existing style rule exists within the style data structure, the Web development environment assigns the pre-existing style rule to the selected content. |
| US08181103B2 |
Annotation detection and anchoring on ink notes
Systems and methods for detecting annotation digital ink strokes and further associating annotation digital ink strokes with word digital ink strokes are presented. Ink strokes are captured on a writing surface and then classified as words or annotations. Annotations are then anchored to corresponding words. When words are relocated or edited on the writing surface, the anchored annotations are also relocated and may even be reshaped according to the changes in the anchored words. |
| US08181102B2 |
Creating bookmark symlinks
A bookmark editor in an Internet web browser application allows a user to create symbolic links between bookmarks and bookmark folders. The bookmark editor may also detect when a bookmark already exists for a document and prompt the user to create a link rather than a new bookmark for the same document. The user may then keep a folder, subfolder, or bookmark and link to it via a symbolic link. When a bookmark is added to a folder or subfolder, the user does not need to duplicate that bookmark for a linked folder or subfolder. |
| US08181100B1 |
Memory fault injection
Techniques, apparatus, and systems for injecting a memory fault can include obtaining first data and second data different from the first data, generating first error detection information based on the first data, writing the second data to a memory unit using a specified address, and using the first error detection information as error detection information for the second data to create a memory fault condition. |
| US08181099B2 |
Transmission device
Disclosed is a transmission device in a communication system in which a systematic code obtained by systematic encoding of information bits into which dummy bits are inserted and by deleting the dummy bits from the results of the systematic encoding is transmitted and, on the receiving side, the dummy bits which had been deleted on the transmitting side are inserted into the received systematic code, and then decoding is performed. In this transmission device, a dummy bit insertion portion decides the size of the dummy bits to be inserted into the information bits based on a specified code rate or based on the physical channel transmission rate, and uniformly inserts dummy bits of this size into the information bits; a systematic code generation portion performs systematic encoding of the information bits into which the dummy bits are inserted, and deletes the dummy bits from the results of the systematic encoding to generate a systematic code, which is transmitted. |
| US08181098B2 |
Error correcting Viterbi decoder
Methods and corresponding systems in a Viterbi decoder include computing a maximum likelihood (ML) path in a Viterbi trellis in response to executing a first Viterbi algorithm. Thereafter, one or more merge points are selected on the ML path in a second Viterbi algorithm, wherein the merge points each have a path metric difference, which is a difference between an ML path metric at the merge point and a non-surviving path metric at the merge point. Merge points are selected based upon relative path metric differences associated with nodes on the ML path. Next, alternate paths in the Viterbi trellis are computed based on the ML path with alternate paths substituted at corresponding merge points. A passing decoded bit sequence is output in response to passing an error check, wherein the passing decoded bit sequence is associated with one of the one or more alternate paths. |
| US08181097B2 |
Apparatus and method for decoding signal in a communication system
A method and apparatus for decoding a signal in a communication system. The method and apparatus includes receiving a punctured codeword including information bit nodes and unpunctured parity bit nodes; analyzing the unpunctured parity bit nodes, and detecting at least one first block including the unpunctured parity bit nodes among a plurality of blocks each including parity bit nodes having the same importance among all parity bit nodes; and recovering said all parity bit nodes by serial-decoding parity bit nodes included in the first block according to decoding priorities of parity bit nodes, determined by reflecting the first block in a predetermined decoding priority determining algorithm. |
| US08181095B2 |
System and method for improving signaling channel robustness
A system and method for improving signaling channel robustness. Additional error correction is provided for (L1) dynamic signaling that is carried in P2 symbols in such way that high time diversity can be provided. In other embodiments, transmitted services are scheduled such that services will rotate or “move” between frames, thereby ensuring that a first slot for a service is not always transmitted in the same frequency. |
| US08181094B2 |
System to improve error correction using variable latency and associated methods
A system to improve error correction includes a fast decoder to process data packets until the fast decoder finds an uncorrectable error in a data packet at which point a request for at least two data packets is generated. The system also includes a slow decoder to correct the uncorrectable error in a data packet based upon the at least two data packets. |
| US08181093B2 |
Method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving multimedia broadcast multicast services via a dedicated downlink carrier
A method and apparatus for wireless communication of multimedia broadcast multicast services (MBMS) data and unicast data using separate downlink carriers and are disclosed. A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) having a single receiver that is switchable to receive either carrier is provided. A network station, such as a Node-B, preferably encodes K MBMS data packets to N MBMS encoded packets using erasure correction coding where N is preferably significantly greater than (K+ν) which is a determined number of MBMS encoded packets sufficient to recover the K MBMS data packets. The Node-B preferably generates a superframe for carrying the N MBMS encoded packets for each MBMS and transmits the superframe via an MBMS carrier. The Node-B preferably schedules a unicast transmission such that the WTRU is provided with sufficient time to switch to the MBMS carrier to receive at least (K+ν) MBMS encoded packets per superframe. |
| US08181092B2 |
Dynamic synchronization of data capture on an optical or other high speed communications link
A method and system that dynamically adjusts link control parameters of a communications network. The communications network includes a transmitter coupled through a first data link to a receiver. The transmitter and receiver each have at least one associated link control parameter that affects the operation of that component. According to one method, data signals are transmitted over the first data link and the transmitted data signals are captured. The values of the captured data signals are compared to expected values for those signals, and the values of the link control parameters are adjusted to successfully capture the transmitted digital signals. |
| US08181090B1 |
Triple parity technique for enabling efficient recovery from triple failures in a storage array
A triple parity (TP) technique reduces overhead of computing diagonal and anti-diagonal parity for a storage array adapted to enable efficient recovery from the concurrent failure of three storage devices in the array. The diagonal parity is computed along diagonal parity sets that collectively span all data disks and a row parity disk of the array. The parity for all of the diagonal parity sets except one is stored on the diagonal parity disk. Similarly, the anti-diagonal parity is computed along anti-diagonal parity sets that collectively span all data disks and a row parity disk of the array. The parity for all of the anti-diagonal parity sets except one is stored on the anti-diagonal parity disk. The TP technique provides a uniform stripe depth and an optimal amount of parity information. |
| US08181086B2 |
Memory array error correction apparatus, systems, and methods
Various embodiments include apparatus, methods, and systems that operate to extend the processes of reading, modifying, and writing data stored in or being provided to a memory array without interrupting a continual stream of data to be written into the memory array. Embodiments may include an apparatus comprising a memory array, and an error code module coupled to the memory array with a data buffer having a plurality of data burst registers operable to receive a plurality of data bursts to be written to the memory array on a corresponding plurality of consecutive clock cycles. The error code module is operable to perform a read/modify/write process on each of the plurality of data bursts within a time period no longer than a period of two consecutive cycles of the plurality of consecutive clock cycles. |
| US08181082B2 |
Wireless receiver system and method with automatic gain control
A wireless receiver system with automatic gain control, which includes a receiving path, an analog to digital converter, an automatic gain control (AGC) device and a controller. The controller has an adjacent channel interference off mode, an adjacent channel interference acquisition mode and an adjacent channel interference tracking mode to accordingly set the AGC device for adjusting the gains of a plurality of modules of the receiving path. Namely, the strengths of different adjacent channel interferences are appropriately adjusted to thereby obtain the best received signal quality. |
| US08181080B2 |
Adaptive HARQ control for EDCH
The present invention relates to a method for transmitting of data frames from user equipment to a base station in a wireless telecommunication network. The method comprises an error control step adapted to retransmit the data frame from the user equipment to the base station, if the received data frame contains errors or if no acknowledge message is received by the user equipment within a predetermined amount of time. The method further comprises a transmission power control step adapted to control a transmission power of the data frames in such a way that the number of retransmissions corresponds to a predetermined number of target retransmission. The number of target retransmission is adapted depending on the traffic load and/or the number of users connected to the base station. |
| US08181078B2 |
Methods and system for simplified SAS error recovery
Methods and systems for simplified error recovery in a SAS device. A SAS device (e.g., a SAS/SSP target device such as a storage device) enhanced in accordance with features and aspects hereof NAKs a received frame that has an error and then NAKS all subsequently received frames, regardless of whether received with or without error, until the connection is closed. The second SAS device (e.g., a SAS/SSP initiator) then performs required error recovery by re-establishing a connection and re-transmitting all previously NAKed frames. The enhanced SAS thereby simplifies logic for error recovery. |
| US08181076B2 |
Method for retransmitting a data sequence according to channel condition in a wireless communications network
Retransmitting a data sequence over a wireless network according to channel conditions proceeds by transmitting a first transmitting signal representing the data using a first set of beamforming weighting vectors generated according to a first channel condition. A request for re-transmitting the data sequence is received when the first transmitting signal suffers from unrecoverable errors. A re-transmission function is computed according to a second channel condition, and a second transmitting signal is transmitted as generated by using the re-transmission function that is created according to the second channel condition. The data sequence is demodulated and decoded using the first transmitting and the second transmitting signals. |
| US08181074B2 |
Soft error recoverable storage element and soft error protection technique
A soft error recoverable storage element suitable for use in latches, flip-flops, static ram memory cells and microprocessor pipeline stages. The storage element employs a redundant copy of the stored data value and a feedback loop. One embodiment employs an interlocking four inverter loop with gating devices that blocks the propagation of a soft error induced change of state and causes the storage element to recover its original stored data state. |
| US08181072B2 |
Memory testing using multiple processor unit, DMA, and SIMD instruction
To provide a method and the like for testing a main memory in a multi processor system, which is capable of reducing a test execution time and accordingly a start-up time as compared with the case where a single processor is used for the test. The present invention provides a method for testing a main memory (MM) in a multi processor system (MPS) including a main processor (MP) and multiple sub processors (SP) each having a DMA transfer mechanism and a local store (LS). The method and the like including: MP allocating a partial memory region (PMA) in MM to each SP; MP requesting each SP to test the allocated PMA; each SP filling LS thereof with initial data in response to receiving the request; each SP transferring the data stored in LS thereof to PMA by using a DMA transfer; each SP transferring the data stored in PMA to LS thereof by a DMA transfer; and SP testing the data in LS; and MP judging a test result on MM by putting together the tests results in response to the completion of all the tests by respective SP. |
| US08181066B2 |
Service diagnostic engine and method and service management system employing the same
A service management system and a method of performing service diagnostics. In one embodiment, the service management system includes: (1) a service description repository configured to contain service descriptions that define services in terms of end points that assume roles based on at least one of the capabilities and attributes thereof, (2) a diagnostic rule definition repository configured to contain diagnostic rules pertaining to problem areas regarding the services and (3) a diagnostic engine coupled to the service description repository and the diagnostic rule definition repository and configured to retrieve at least one diagnostic rule based on a subscriber, a service and a problem area, evaluate at least one diagnostic rule to produce at least one solution, retrieve data regarding end points associated with the service and return a possible solution. |
| US08181062B2 |
Method to establish high level of redundancy, fault tolerance and performance in a raid system without using parity and mirroring
An apparatus comprising a logically contiguous group of at least two drives, a loop and a compression/decompression circuit. Each of the drives comprises (i) a first region configured to store compressed data of a previous drive and (ii) a second region configured to store uncompressed data of the drive. The loop may be connected to the next drive in the logically contiguous group. The compression/decompression circuit may be configured to compress and decompress the data stored on each of the drives. |
| US08181059B2 |
Inter-processor communication channel including power-down functionality
Apparatuses and methods are disclosed for implementing an inter-processor communication channel including power-down functionality. In one embodiment, the apparatus may comprise a first integrated circuit (IC), a second IC coupled to the first IC via a communication interface, wherein the first IC is in one or more low power states and unable to monitor the communication interface. The apparatus may further comprise an inter-processor communication (IPC) channel coupled between the first and second ICs, wherein the IPC channel is separate from the communication interface and wherein the second IC generates at least one advisory signal to the first IC via the IPC channel. |
| US08181057B2 |
Time synchronization in units at different locations
To synchronize units of a formation evaluation/drilling operation evaluation system, a time delay associated with a communications link between a master unit and a slave unit of the formation evaluation/drilling operation evaluation system is determined. The master unit has a master time clock that provides universal time. The time delay associated with the communications link is used to enable synchronization of time provided by a slave time clock in the slave unit to the universal time. |
| US08181051B2 |
Electronic apparatus and method of conserving energy
An electronic apparatus and a method of conserving energy comprises providing an energy-conservation module to control use of one or more energy-saving mechanism by a hardware element. The energy-conservation module comprises a performance estimation module that estimates a performance level requirement of the hardware element and a slack time. A cost-benefit qualifier module is provided that uses one or more generic algorithm and at least one separate record that characterizes power use and performance by the hardware element in relation to a Performance Power state of the selected energy-saving mechanism in order to determine an existence of an energy saving. The cost-benefit qualifier module sets the hardware element to use the Performance Power state of the selected energy-saving mechanism if the energy-saving exists. |
| US08181049B2 |
Method for controlling a frequency of a clock signal to control power consumption and a device having power consumption capabilities
A method for controlling power consumption of a processor, the method includes: receiving an indicator that indicates that the processor is expected to change its activity; determining, in response to the indicator and to a current power consumption of the processor, whether to change a frequency of a clock signal that is provided to the processor; and changing, if determining to change the frequency of the clock signal, the frequency of the clock signal by a reduction of the frequency of the clock signal that is followed by an increment of the frequency of the clock signal; wherein the changing of the frequency of the clock signal is responsive to an expected change of a supply voltage that is supplied to the processor as a result of a possible change in a power consumption of the processor due to an expected change of activity of the processor. |
| US08181048B2 |
Performing power management operations
A memory circuit power management system and method are provided. An interface circuit is in communication with a plurality of memory circuits and a system. In use, the interface circuit is operable to perform a power management operation in association with only a portion of the memory circuits. |
| US08181044B2 |
Apparatus and method for determining operation mode of node in ad hoc network
Provided is a method of determining an operation mode of a node in an ad hoc network. The method includes: monitoring a measured amount of residual energy of the node and comparing the measured amount of residual energy of the node with an amount of residual energy theoretically calculated for the node; identifying an amount of information in a queue included in the node; calculating a relay probability of the node by reflecting the identified amount of information in the queue and the result of comparing the measured amount of residual energy of the node with the theoretically calculated amount of residual energy for the node; and determining the operation mode of the node to be one of a relay mode and a transmission mode, based on the calculated relay probability of the node. The method enables nodes to exchange information about their respective amounts of residual energy and analyze the information without using additional resources and processes. |
| US08181042B2 |
Low power mode data preservation in secure ICs
Methods, apparatus and computer program products are provided for reducing power consumption in a device. One method includes identifying a plurality of addressable areas for storing data in a volatile memory element of a device and, responsive to a detection of a power condition in the device, enabling power to a first portion of the addressable areas and disabling power to a second portion. |
| US08181040B2 |
Program execution device
A program execution device capable of protecting a program against unauthorized analysis and alteration is provided. The program execution device includes an execution unit, a first protection unit, and a second protection unit. The execution unit executes a first program and a second program, and is connected with an external device that is capable of controlling the execution. The first protection unit disconnects the execution unit from the external device while the execution unit is executing the first program. The second protection unit protects the first program while the execution unit is executing the second program. |
| US08181035B1 |
Methods, apparatus and systems to improve security in computer systems
According to some implementations methods, apparatus and systems are provided involving the use of processors having at least one core with a security component, the security component adapted to read and verify data within data blocks stored in a L1 instruction cache memory and to allow the execution of data block instructions in the core only upon the instructions being verified by the use of a cryptographic algorithm. |
| US08181033B1 |
Data leakage prevention system, method, and computer program product for preventing a predefined type of operation on predetermined data
A data leakage prevention system, method, and computer program product are provided for preventing a predefined type of operation on predetermined data. In use, an attempt to perform an operation on predetermined data that is protected using a data leakage prevention system is identified. Additionally, it is determined whether a type of the operation attempted includes a predefined type of operation. Furthermore, the operation on the predetermined data is conditionally prevented based on the determination to prevent circumvention of the protection of the data leakage prevention system. |
| US08181032B2 |
Method and apparatus with chipset-based protection for local and remote authentication of booting from peripheral devices
Method and apparatus enabling a computing system to deter or thwart unauthorized boot-up from peripheral devices are disclosed herein. In various embodiments, a monitoring module and a managing module are employed cooperating with each other to authorize users in booting up the computing system from peripheral devices. |
| US08181026B2 |
Method and apparatus for input of coded image data
An image input device which includes a means for inputting image data, a memory for storing a secret information and an operator for carrying out an operation by using the image data and the secret information. |
| US08181025B2 |
Method and apparatus for registering agents onto a virtual machine monitor
A method for managing an agent includes verifying an integrity of the agent in response to a registration request. Memory protection is provided for the agent during integrity verification. An indication is generated when registration of the agent has been completed. According to one aspect of the present invention, providing memory protection includes having a virtual machine monitor limit access to the agent. Other embodiments are described and claimed. |
| US08181021B2 |
Systems and methods for secure transaction management and electronic rights protection
The present invention provides systems and methods for electronic commerce including secure transaction management and electronic rights protection. Electronic appliances such as computers employed in accordance with the present invention help to ensure that information is accessed and used only in authorized ways, and maintain the integrity, availability, and/or confidentiality of the information. Secure subsystems used with such electronic appliances provide a distributed virtual distribution environment (VDE) that may enforce a secure chain of handling and control, for example, to control and/or meter or otherwise monitor use of electronically stored or disseminated information. Such a virtual distribution environment may be used to protect rights of various participants in electronic commerce and other electronic or electronic-facilitated transactions. Secure distributed and other operating system environments and architectures, employing, for example, secure semiconductor processing arrangements that may establish secure, protected environments at each node. These techniques may be used to support an end-to-end electronic information distribution capability that may be used, for example, utilizing the “electronic highway.” |
| US08181016B1 |
Applications access re-certification system
An applications access re-certification system is disclosed. The system is used for approving and re-certifying a user's access rights to applications stored or existing in an institution's computer system based on reviewing in a configurable timeframe the user's functional roles by designated reviewers. The system is used to ensure security of the applications by means of a reviewing process. The system is used to automate the re-certification process by means of a computer-controlled re-certification system which automatically operates in a defined methodology under control of re-certification administrators. The system could perform a management summary of access rights to the applications, and a automated scorecard to monitor the re-certification progress. The system could carry out a control process to ensure the changes to existing permissions are effectively managed at source destinations. The system has a capability of initiating multiple approvers for re-certifying a user's access rights. |
| US08181014B2 |
Method and apparatus for protecting the routing of data packets
A method and apparatus for protecting the routing of data packets in a packet data network. When a first end-host sends an address query to a DNS server system regarding a second end-host, the DNS server system responds by providing a destination parameter containing an encrypted destination address associated with the second end-host. Thereby, the first end-host is able to get across data packets to the second end-host by attaching the destination parameter to each transmitted data packet. A router in the packet data network admits a received packet if a destination parameter is attached to the packet including a valid destination address encrypted by a key dependent on a distributed master encryption key. Otherwise, the router discards the packet if no such valid destination address can be derived from the packet by applying decryption to the destination parameter. |
| US08181013B2 |
Method, media gateway and system for transmitting content in call established via media gateway control protocol
A method for transmitting content in a call established via media gateway control protocol includes: encrypting an RFC, Request for Comment, 2833 message with a first key; and sending out the encrypted RFC2833 message. The key used for encryption and decryption may be configured in advance on a calling and a called media gateways, or be sent from a soft switch device once and for all, or be sent from the soft switch device every time when a call is initiated. The key sent from the soft switch device may be in clear text or be encrypted. The technical scheme of the present invention greatly improves the security of the content in the RFC2833 protocol transmission. |
| US08181011B1 |
iSCSI name forwarding technique
An iSCSI name forwarding technique allows a security appliance to assume iSCSI names of one or more clients and one or more storage systems in a network. The security appliance is coupled between each client and storage system, and is configured to intercept a data access request issued by the client that is destined for the storage system. Each iSCSI name of the storage system is an iSCSI target name associated with secure storage, i.e., a cryptainer, served by the storage system, whereas the iSCSI name of the client is an iSCSI initiator name of the network entity, i.e., the client, which initiates the data access request to access data stored on the cryptainer. |
| US08181008B2 |
Secure system-on-chip
The aim of the present invention is to provide a secure system-on-chip for processing data, this system-on-chip having at least a central processing unit, an input and an output channel, an encryption/decryption engine and a memory. The system-on-chip having real-time working conditions while receiving and sending data, having an autonomous supervision module which is preprogrammed with normal working conditions definitions of at least the input and/or output data flow to enable or disable the input/output channel according to the comparison on the real-time working conditions and the normal working conditions definitions. |
| US08181007B2 |
Electronic device and method for secure operating system update in embedded system
An electronic device and method for secure embedded operating system update within embedded system. The embedded system includes a random-access memory, a non-volatile storage unit and a processing unit. The non-volatile storage unit defines a boot sector, a first sector and a second sector and contains a boot loader in the boot sector, an initialization variable in the boot sector and an embedded operating system in the first sector. The second sector is provided for storing another embedded operating system. The processing unit is coupled to the random-access memory and the non-volatile storage unit and is capable of executing the boot loader in order to copy one of the embedded operating systems from either the first sector or the second sector of the non-volatile storage unit into the random-access memory according to the current value of the initialization variable and then executing the loaded embedded operating system. |
| US08181006B2 |
Method and device for securely configuring a terminal by means of a startup external data storage device
Method of configuring a terminal (10a) by means of a device external to said terminal (50a) able to communicate with said terminal and comprising data storage means, the initialization of said terminal triggering at least: a step for executing a boot program of an operating system of said terminal, said boot program being stored in a first memory area of said storage means, a step for verifying, by the boot program, a first digital signature of a first file stored in a second memory area of said storage means, said first file comprising a kernel of an operating system of said terminal, a step for starting up said kernel, said startup step being intended to be triggered only if said digital signature is valid. |
| US08181005B2 |
Hybrid branch prediction device with sparse and dense prediction caches
A system and method for branch prediction in a microprocessor. A hybrid device stores branch prediction information in a sparse cache for no more than a common smaller number of branches within each entry of the instruction cache. For the less common case wherein an i-cache line comprises additional branches, the device stores the corresponding branch prediction information in a dense cache. Each entry of the sparse cache stores a bit vector indicating whether or not a corresponding instruction cache line includes additional branch instructions. This indication may also be used to select an entry in the dense cache for storage. A second sparse cache stores entire evicted entries from the first sparse cache. |
| US08181002B1 |
Merging checkpoints in an execute-ahead processor
One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that merges checkpoints on a processor. The system starts by executing instructions speculatively during a speculative-execution episode. The system then generates a first checkpoint and a second checkpoint during the speculative-execution episode. Next, the system merges the first checkpoint with the second checkpoint during the speculative-execution episode, wherein merging the first and second checkpoints conserves processor resources. |
| US08180999B1 |
Vertically tiered horizontally expandable micro grid system with bridge docking bay contoured by radial arms extending from central hub for coupling processor or power hubs
A micro grid apparatus and associated method of formation. At least one tier in a printed circuit board is formed. Each tier includes complex shapes interconnected by bridge modules. Each complex shape includes a central area and at least three radial arms external to and integral with the central area. Each radial arm extends radially outward from the central area. Each pair of adjacent radial arms defines a docking bay. Each complex shape is either a power hub whose central area includes rechargeable batteries or a processor hub whose central area includes processors. A bridge unit of a bridge module is latched in at least one docking bay of each complex shape. Each docking bay not latching a bridge unit of any bridge module latches an irregular shaped module. An irregular shaped module is latched in at least one docking bay in at least two complex shapes. |
| US08180998B1 |
System of lanes of processing units receiving instructions via shared memory units for data-parallel or task-parallel operations
A system for performing data-parallel operations and task-parallel operations. A first switch fabric node (SFN) includes first and second lane processing engines (LPEs). The first LPE includes a first set of lane processing units (LPUs) configured to perform data-parallel operations, where each LPU performs a set of operations, and each LPU uses a different set of data for the set of operations, and each LPU within the first set of LPUs uses a different set of data for the set of operations. The second LPE includes a second set of LPUs configured to perform task-parallel operations, where each LPU performs a different set of operations. A processing control engine (PCE) is configured to distribute instructions and data to the first LPE and the second LPE. Advantageously, data parallel operations and task parallel operations are able to be performed on the same processor simultaneously. |
| US08180997B2 |
Dynamically composing processor cores to form logical processors
A method, system and computer program product for dynamically composing processor cores to form logical processors. Processor cores are composable in that the processor cores are dynamically allocated to form a logical processor to handle a change in the operating status. Once a change in the operating status is detected, a mechanism may be triggered to recompose one or more processor cores into a logical processor to handle the change in the operating status. An analysis may be performed as to how one or more processor cores should be recomposed to handle the change in the operating status. After the analysis, the one or more processor cores are recomposed into the logical processor to handle the change in the operating status. By dynamically allocating the processor cores to handle the change in the operating status, performance and power efficiency is improved. |
| US08180993B2 |
Information processing apparatus and control method thereof
An information processing apparatus includes a CPU-A which starts a first OS stored in a DRAM-A, a CPU-B which starts a second OS stored in a non-volatile memory, and an HDD which stores a first program executed on the first OS and a second program executed on the second OS, in which CPU-A loads the second program from the HDD into DRAM-A when starting the first OS, and CPU-B makes the second OS execute the second program loaded in DRAM-A, once the first OS is started. |
| US08180991B2 |
Adaptive memory allocation
In one embodiment, a memory manager may identify allocators as either transient in nature or static in nature based on a length of time each one of the allocators held, holds, or both, onto requested memory blocks. The memory manager may also allocate memory blocks requested by allocators identified as transient in nature from one memory pool and allocate memory blocks requested by allocators identified as static in nature from another memory pool. In one example, the memory manager may also use a deferred splitting strategy to optimize allocation of free memory next to memory blocks reserved by the most transient allocators by not splitting such free memory if the free bytes are less than a maximum block size threshold. |
| US08180990B2 |
Integrated circuit including a plurality of master circuits transmitting access requests to an external device and integrated circuit system including first and second interated circuits each including a plurality of master circuits transmitting access requests
A main LSI includes a plurality of master circuits transmitting access requests to a SDRAM, and includes an input interface receiving an access request from a master circuit in a sub LSI. Further, the main LSI includes an arbitration circuit receiving the access requests from the internal master circuits and from the input interface, sequentially selecting, in accordance with a predetermined arbitration rule, a master circuit to be allowed to access the SDRAM, and determining output timings for addresses pertaining to the data transfers from the sequentially selected master circuits. The main LSI also includes an access signal generation circuit causing the sequentially selected master circuits to access the SDRAM in accordance with the corresponding output timings. |
| US08180984B1 |
System and method for consolidation of backups
A system for consolidation of backups. Each backup includes data and a map with offsets or addresses that point to data of current and/or previous backups. Backup are selected for consolidation. The offsets in the maps of the selected backups are combined into a single set of offsets; consolidating the selected backups to a new backup that contains the latest data from the selected backups, determined based on the offsets in the single set. The offsets in the single set are updated to point to the data in the new backup. The updated offsets are stored in the new backup as part of a backup map of the new backup. The selected backups comprise one initial full backup and at least one backup. Offsets from the maps of first backup of the selected sequence of backups up to the last created backup are checked. |
| US08180981B2 |
Cache coherent support for flash in a memory hierarchy
System and method for using flash memory in a memory hierarchy. A computer system includes a processor coupled to a memory hierarchy via a memory controller. The memory hierarchy includes a cache memory, a first memory region of random access memory coupled to the memory controller via a first buffer, and an auxiliary memory region of flash memory coupled to the memory controller via a flash controller. The first buffer and the flash controller are coupled to the memory controller via a single interface. The memory controller receives a request to access a particular page in the first memory region. The processor detects a page fault corresponding to the request and in response, invalidates cache lines in the cache memory that correspond to the particular page, flushes the invalid cache lines, and swaps a page from the auxiliary memory region to the first memory region. |
| US08180979B2 |
Storage system and operation method of storage system
The present invention is able to improve the processing performance of a storage system by respectively virtualizing the external volumes and enabling the shared use of such external volumes by a plurality of available virtualization storage devices. By virtualizing and incorporating the external volume of an external storage device, a first virtualization storage device is able to provide the volume to a host as though it is an internal volume. When the load of the first virtualization storage device increases, a second virtualization storage device 2 is newly introduced, and connected to the storage system. When a transfer direction is issued from a management terminal, the external volume relating to the selected logical volume is transferred from the first virtualization storage device to the second virtualization storage device. |
| US08180977B2 |
Transactional memory in out-of-order processors
Methods and apparatus to provide transactional memory execution in out-of-order processors are described. In one embodiment, a stored value corresponds to the number of transactional memory access requests that are uncommitted. The stored value may be used to provide nested recovery in case of an error, fault, etc. in accordance with a described embodiment. |
| US08180968B2 |
Reduction of cache flush time using a dirty line limiter
The invention relates to a method for reducing cache flush time of a cache in a computer system. The method includes populating at least one of a plurality of directory entries of a dirty line directory based on modification of the cache to form at least one populated directory entry, and de-populating a pre-determined number of the plurality of directory entries according to a dirty line limiter protocol causing a write-back from the cache to a main memory, where the dirty line limiter protocol is based on a number of the at least one populated directory entry exceeding a pre-defined limit. |
| US08180962B2 |
Performance managed computer, program and method for a storage system
Since the threshold excess is judged by a value of high-workload IO of backup that is designed on the assumption that the workload of storage is high, whether the performance limit has been reached remains uncertain. Furthermore, although an optimistic prediction trend with low workload trend and a pessimistic prediction trend with high pessimistic workload trend are presented, LUs that require improvement remain uncertain. Moreover, the time to improve the configuration and the effect of the improvement remain uncertain. To improve the configuration, configuration information, performance information, and operation information are acquired from storage, a performance limit excess time is predicted based on the performance information excluding LUs exceeding the performance trend, and an optimal improved configuration is determined from the performance limit after improvement and the time required for the improvement. |
| US08180960B2 |
Storage system control method, storage system, information processing system, managing computer and program
When shifting the condition of a pair of a main volume and a sub-volume from a split condition to a pair condition according to a request from a user, an information processing unit which can access the sub-volume is inquired whether it mounts the sub-volume or not. As a result, if a managing computer receives a notice from the information processing unit that it mounts the sub-volume, the managing computer displays a warning on its display. Thereby, data on the sub-volume can be prevented from being erased by an operation mistake of the user. |
| US08180958B2 |
Key selection device and process for content-addressable memory
A method and a computer readable medium having executable instructions are provided. The method and instructions when executed generates a first look-up key from a group of look-up key units stored in a data storage, generation of the first look up key being completed prior to the completion of a key generation processing cycle. A next look-up key unit from the group of look-up key units stored in the data storage may be skipped over when the next look up key corresponds to a second look-up key that has a key length equal to or smaller than a predetermined key length. A third look-up key unit may be selected from the group of look-up key units, the third look-up key unit associated with a third look-up key having a key length greater than a second predetermined key length, the second predetermined key length being greater than the first predetermined key length. The first look-up key and a portion of the third look-up key sequentially may be output during the same output processing cycle. |
| US08180953B2 |
Data accessing method for flash memory, and storage system and controller system thereof
A data accessing method for accessing data in a plurality of physical page addresses of a plurality of physical blocks in a flash memory chip is provided. The data accessing method includes proving a plurality of logical page addresses for a host system, creating a logical page to physical page mapping table and a physical page to logical page mapping table to record the mapping between the logical page addresses and the physical page addresses. The data accessing method also includes writing data into the physical page addresses, and updating the logical page to physical page mapping table and the physical page to logical page mapping table. The data accessing method further includes determining whether the physical page addresses are valid or invalid based on the logical page to physical page mapping table and the physical page to logical page mapping table. |
| US08180947B2 |
USB on-the-go controller
A USB (Universal Serial Bus) controller technique for implementing OTG (On-The-Go) functionality is provided. The device may have an EHCI (Enhanced Host Controller Interface) compliant host control unit, and an OTG control unit to implement an OTG state machine partly in hardware and partly in software. The OTG control unit may have an OTG control register and an OTG status register which are accessible by software. Further, the USB controller device may have a device control unit to implement device functionality and a port multiplexer to assign a physical port to either the host or the device control unit. The OTG control unit may be comprised in the port multiplexer. Further, a software driver may read the OTG status register in response to receiving an interrupt from the USB controller device, and write to the OTG control register to force the USB controller device to change its OTG state. |
| US08180946B1 |
Long latency interface protocol
An interface configured to support a signaling protocol between a first hardware component and a second hardware component. The interface comprises a first pin, a second pin, and a third pin. The first pin is configured to provide a write clock signal sourced from the first hardware component to the second hardware component during a write operation. The second pin is configured to receive a read clock signal sourced from the second hardware component during a read operation. The third pin is configured to transfer serial control information from the first hardware component to the second hardware component during both the read operation and the write operation. Only the third pin is used to transfer the serial control information. The serial control information includes control information for both the read operation and the write operation. |
| US08180942B2 |
Arbitration device and method
An arbitration device receives a plurality of requests from a plurality of circuits, and grants access to one of the plurality of circuits. The arbitration device includes a sorter and an arbitrator. The sorter receives position information of an image signal including a plurality of image layers, and determines an access priority including a first group and a second group according to the position information. The arbitrator receives the access priority and at least one of the plurality of requests, and grants the access to one of the plurality of circuits according to the access priority and the at least one of the plurality of requests. In addition, each of the plurality of circuits generates data for each of the image layers correspondingly. |
| US08180940B2 |
Method and system for transmission of cyclic and acyclic data over a transmission channel that takes into account real-time capability
A method is disclosed for the transmission of cyclic and acyclic data by means of a transmission channel between at least two user devices connected to the transmission channel, with a protocol-specific cyclic data transmission being carried out at least between one user device functioning as a master and at least one user device functioning as a slave. During an impending transmission cycle, data to be transmitted is checked against corresponding data of a preceding cycle with regard to redundancy and currency. Upon detection of an impending transmission cycle for which redundant data without new information content is provided, acyclic data is inserted in lieu of said data in the data field provided for said data. The transmission channel effectively counteracts disadvantages previously resulting from a ring structure and a linear structure, and combines advantages of the one topology group with advantages of the other topology group. |
| US08180937B2 |
System method for I/O pads in mobile multimedia processor (MMP) that has bypass mode wherein data is passed through without being processed by MMP
Methods and systems for a low noise amplifier with tolerance to large inputs are disclosed and may include generating at least one control signal that controls a plurality of directional modes of at least one contact pad on a mobile multimedia processor (MMP) in an integrated circuit. Selectable modes may include: bidirectional, input, and an output mode. Each of the modes includes a bypass mode and a processing mode that may be controlled by the generated control signal. Received data may be processed by circuitry in the MMP when the processing mode may be enabled. Received data may be passed through the MMP without being processed by the MMP when the bypass mode may be enabled. An additional signal may be generated to dynamically pull-down a potential of the at least one contact pad and/or to pull-up a potential of said at least one contact pad. |
| US08180936B2 |
DRM interoperable system
A DRM interoperable system is provided. The DRM interoperable system includes: a domain manager which manages a domain; first and second devices which are authenticated by the domain manager and registered in the domain; and a control unit which gathers information on entities that are to participate in transmission of data when the first device requests the second device to transmit the data, controls at least two entities so that a chain including the at least two entities is constructed by using the gathered information on the entities, and controls the at least two entities so that a plurality of data is transmitted to the second device through the chain. Accordingly, it is possible to provide a DRM interoperable environment in which data can be effectively transmitted. |
| US08180933B2 |
Dynamic call handling from multiple attached devices wherein devices advertize its capabililes before facilitating call through appropriate device
Multiple peripheral devices are used for various modes of communication in a unified communication application. Employing standard or custom protocols, connected peripheral devices can be configured automatically and different modes of communication such as audio, video, data, and text, are routed to available or selected peripheral devices. Incoming communication requests can be extended to multiple peripheral devices synchronously and users enabled to switch between peripheral devices seamlessly during a communication session. |
| US08180929B2 |
Method for managing logical address and device thereof
An address management method and a device thereof are provided. The address management method includes checking by a device whether logical addresses are currently being used by external devices; and setting by the device a non-use logical address as a logical address of the device regardless of the type of the device, if the device determines that the non-use logical address exists. Therefore, a device may use all logical addresses regardless of its device type, and may also have a logical address even though all logical addresses corresponding to its device type are currently being used. |
| US08180928B2 |
Method and system for supporting read operations with CRC for iSCSI and iSCSI chimney
Certain embodiments of the invention may be found in a method and system for performing SCSI read operations with a CRC via a TCP offload engine. Aspects of the method may comprise receiving an iSCSI read command from an initiator. Data may be fetched from a buffer based on the received iSCSI read command. The fetched data may be zero copied from the buffer to the initiator and a TCP sequence may be retransmitted to the initiator. A digest value may be calculated, which may be communicated to the initiator. An accumulated digest value stored in a temporary buffer may be utilized to calculate a final digest value, if the buffer is posted. The retransmitted TCP sequence may be processed and the fetched data may be zero copied into an iSCSI buffer, if the buffer is posted. The calculated final digest value may be communicated to the initiator. |
| US08180917B1 |
Packet threshold-mix batching dispatcher to counter traffic analysis
An antivirus agent located on a user computer, local area network or standalone hardware device includes a statistical module, a control unit, a timeslot generator and a dispatcher. The statistical module calculates statistics for incoming request packets including the burstiness degree H. A number of normal distributions are predefined. A number of probability sequences are predefined. An input statistic is used to select one of the probability sequences. This probability sequence is used to select a timer value from the distributions. Packets are loaded into a variable-length buffer in the dispatcher to form the timer expires or when the buffer is full. The rate of the output traffic from the dispatcher depends upon a selected distribution value by the timeslot generator and not by any manufactured timing by an attacker. Output traffic frequency is shaped by the dispatcher; packets may go out faster or slower, thus thwarting an attacker who relies upon their own inserted packet timing. |
| US08180909B2 |
Managed services platform
A managed services platform. An applications management server is provided for managing relationships with application service providers and others over a wide area network such as the Internet. The applications management server interfaces with a master database server and the servers of one or more application service providers, or other entities, to facilitate selection and deselection of applications, services, and capabilities that may be available for use by the information technology network of a company. |
| US08180908B2 |
Platform for standardizing vehicle communications with third-party applications
A business-to-vehicle platform functions as an information technology (IT) integration platform to support secure communication between a vehicle's onboard IT system and any offboard third-party IT system. In one embodiment, the a vehicle's communication hub is decoupled from all voice and data traffic to/from third-party service providers, such that the vehicles will “look and feel” like standard business IT devices to the third-party service providers. In certain embodiments, this decoupling enables the use of standardized business IT services in vehicles, rather than the traditional approach of requiring vehicle-specific embedded services. |
| US08180903B2 |
Method, system, and storage medium for validating users of communications services and messages transmitted
Exemplary embodiments of the invention relate to a method, system, and storage medium for validating users of communications services. The method includes generating records for communications service users by at least one service provider. The records store information relating to the communications service users including legal liability information, an originator type code, and a validation code assigned to selected originator type codes. The validation code facilitates validation of the communications service users. The method also includes storing the records in a subscriber classification database. The originator type code classifies the communications service users according to nature of use, communications type, business type, geography, and age. |
| US08180898B2 |
Method for distribution of data upon request and corresponding data network
In one aspect, a data network is provided. The data network includes a first user and a second user, a central device, data and a spontaneous communication connection. The first and second users are each ad hoc capable. The central device provides a distribution of data such that data is transmitted from the central device to the first user. The spontaneous communication connection is established between the first and second users and the data is transmitted directly from the first user to the second user via the spontaneous communication connection. |
| US08180893B1 |
Component-level sandboxing
Component-level sandboxing is implemented in the example context of an enterprise rights management system. A policy enforcement module monitors an application executing on a client to detect and evaluate data access requests in view of a rights policy. The policy enforcement module determines how to handle the request based on the whether the policy permits the request. If the request is permitted, the policy enforcement module allows the requests and sandboxes it using virtualization. The sandbox virtualizes the thread making the request and/or a data access component involved in the request. Other aspects of the application that do not implicate the rights policy are not sandboxed. In this way, sandboxing is used to enforce the rights policy in a manner that is transparent to the user and consumes relatively few resources of the client. |
| US08180892B2 |
Apparatus and method for multi-user NAT session identification and tracking
A method and apparatus are provided for identifying and tracking multiple computer user sessions associated with a network address translation (NAT) device coupled to a computer network. Data packets originating from the NAT device containing a request to a destination server coupled to the computer network are received. A client source address associated with the data packets is determined where the source address associated with the NAT device. One or more session entries associated with the client source address can then be determined, wherein the session entries are stored in system state information. A session signature can then be determined based one or more characteristics defined by the data packet header information and/or request header information in the one or more data packets, the session signature uniquely identifying one of the multiple computer user sessions coupled to the NAT device. |
| US08180890B2 |
Hypothesis based solicitation of data indicating at least one subjective user state
A computationally implemented method includes, but is not limited to: soliciting, based at least in part on a hypothesis that links one or more objective occurrences with one or more subjective user states and in response at least in part to an incidence of at least one objective occurrence, subjective user state data including data indicating incidence of at least one subjective user state associated with a user; and acquiring the subjective user state data including the data indicating incidence of at least one subjective user state associated with the user. In addition to the foregoing, other method aspects are described in the claims, drawings, and text forming a part of the present disclosure. |
| US08180889B2 |
Supporting apparatus for analyzing computer operation status
Processing time required from transmission of a request packet including a processing request from a client, until return of a reply packet in which internal information including an operation status of a plurality of servers is added to an execution result of processing corresponding to the processing request, obtained by the servers in cooperation with each other, is calculated by a function incorporated beforehand in the respective servers. Moreover, the internal information added to the reply packet is extracted and stored in an internal information DB in association with the calculated required time of the processing. Furthermore predetermined statistical processing is performed with respect to the internal information and the required time associated with the internal information stored in the internal information DB to analyze the operation status of the plurality of servers. |
| US08180876B2 |
Device manager and device management program
A device manager and a computer readable medium storing a device management program are provided. The device manager includes a transmission unit that transmits, to devices connected to a network, a broadcast command which requests management information that is stored in and unique to each device for use in communication using a first communication protocol that enables communication using authenticated and encrypted data; a determination unit that determines whether the devices are devices to be managed, on the basis of the management information received in response to the broadcast command; and an information acquisition unit that transmits, using the first communication protocol, to the devices determined by the determination unit to be devices to be managed among the plurality of devices, read data for reading information about the device in order to acquire information about the device. |
| US08180873B2 |
Detecting fraudulent activity
Described are computer-based methods and apparatuses, including computer program products, for subscribing to data feeds on a network. An user utilizes a transmitting device to transmit data packets that are split between a plurality of data centers for processing. The data packets are captured at the data centers. The data packets are recombined. The recombined data can be analyzed for fraud detection, marketing analysis, network intrusion detection, customer service analysis, and/or performance analysis. If fraudulent activity is detected, then the user can be interdicted to prevent further fraudulent activity. |
| US08180872B1 |
Common data model for heterogeneous SAN components
System and method for providing a common data model for SAN discovery and/or SAN monitoring information collected from heterogeneous SAN components. In one embodiment, a SAN management server may execute on a host computer and may translate data in one or more vendor-specific languages obtained from a heterogeneous vendor population into canonical data in a uniform language. In one embodiment, the SAN management server may execute a set of rules to convert heterogeneous SAN data obtained from heterogeneous interfaces into canonical data conforming to the common data model. In one embodiment, the canonical data may be stored in a persistent store, which may be queried for information that may be provided to the requestor in the canonical form of the common data model. |
| US08180868B2 |
Adaptive resource management
A resource management method and a corresponding system implementing an adaptive model are proposed. The method allows an authority to define a desired target state of several kinds of resources, which are directly controlled by different subjects. The authority publishes a series of rules in a shared repository; each rule indicates the target state of a resource for a corresponding category of the subjects. Each subject retrieves the rules corresponding to its category from the shared repository. The rules are then applied by the subject directly. In this way, the subjects self-adapt to the rules, without requiring any direct interaction with the authority. |
| US08180862B2 |
Arrangements for auto-merging processing components
In some embodiments, a method for auto-configuring a network is disclosed. The method can include communicating with at least one node in a processing complex, receiving node connection data from the at least one node querying a node to verify at least a portion of the node connection data, and auto-configuring system partitioning in response to the node connection data. In some embodiments, the method can also include verifying the node connection data by transmitting a request for a universally unique identifier and a node identifier. The node identifier can be associated with the universally unique identifier. The node identifier can be utilized in data transmitted between nodes. |
| US08180860B2 |
Wireless device configuration management
A method for providing wireless device management. The method comprises receiving a first request for wireless devices comprising specified software. The specified software is loaded on each of the wireless devices in response to the first request. The wireless devices comprising the specified software are delivered. The wireless devices are connected to a wireless network. Wireless configuration management is provided the wireless network for each of the delivered wireless devices for a specified amount of time. |
| US08180858B2 |
Method and system for presenting data over a network based on network user choices and collecting real-time data related to said choices
A character having a plurality of attributes is created by a network user while within a character-enabled network site. Each attribute is defined by at least one of either audio data and/or visual image data and is selected by the user from a plurality of attributes presented to the user through a user interface. The combination of attributes defines a persona for the character. At least one of either an audio presentation and/or a visual image presentation is provided to the user interface. The presentations presented are selected from a plurality of presentations based on the character's persona. Data related to character attributes are stored in a database. One or more of the presentations presented to the user may be interactive, in that it allows for the user to make choices. In response to a user's interaction with the interactive presentation, additional audio presentation and/or a visual image presentation is provided to the user interface. Data indicative of user interaction with the interactive presentations is also stored in a database. |
| US08180855B2 |
Coordinated shared storage architecture
The present invention provides a novel coordinated shared storage architecture that permits the amortization of cost of the spares over any number of the storage systems and enables improvements to a number of storage system operations. The coordinated shared storage architecture comprises a plurality of storage systems disk shelves via a plurality of intermediate network devices, such as hubs. Each storage system includes a storage operating system having a target device driver module. The target device driver module permits the storage system to function as a SCSI target and thereby receive and process commands directed to it from other storage systems. |
| US08180853B2 |
Method and apparatus for transmitting data in a peer-to-peer network
An apparatus for transmitting data which includes a management unit that manages network-topology information of clients participating in the P2P service, and an interface unit that provides to a first client a peer list including information of a client having the minimum network distance to the first client, based on the network topology information, when receiving a request for content from the first client. |
| US08180848B2 |
Apparatus and method for distributing video image to a plurality of live communication interfaces simultaneously
An apparatus and a method for distributing video image are provided. The apparatus stores a video image captured by a video unit through a monitor module. When a plurality of communication interfaces are activated simultaneously, the video image previously stored in the monitor module is directly loaded into each communication interface through the monitor module, respectively. Therefore, the purpose of providing a plurality of communication interfaces with the video image simultaneously is achieved. |
| US08180834B2 |
System, method, and computer program product for filtering messages and training a classification module
The present invention provides systems, methods, computer program products, and combinations and subcombinations thereof for filtering received messages. The invention includes a client system having filtering logic, a statistical classifier module, and a classifier database. The classifier module is automatically trained, without manual intervention, when the score generated by the classifier for a received message is inconsistent with a user-defined authoritative status indication. In addition, the classifier module is initialized using user-identified messages in a ratio representative of the ratio of non-spam to spam messages received by the user. |
| US08180831B2 |
Ad-hoc media delivery system
Disclosed is an apparatus, method, and program product for performing ad hoc media delivery. Enhanced handheld devices are used in combination with the other components to route media and control its presentation. Enhanced media presentation stations detect the presence of one or more of the handheld devices. Information regarding the presence of a handheld device is then communicated from the media presentation stations to an enhanced server. The server uses this information to maintain a record of the location of each handheld device. The recorded location information is used to route the media to the media presentation station that is closest to the location of the handheld device. Control information, such as media selection and fidelity control (when appropriate), is forwarded from the handheld device to the server, so that the server can take appropriate action relative to transmission of the media to the media presentation station at issue. If a phone call is received, an enhanced phone interacts with the server to suspend presentation of the media until the phone call has ended. |
| US08180827B2 |
Method and apparatus for associating graphic icon in internet virtual world with user's experience in real world
A method and apparatus to associate a graphic icon representing a user in an Internet virtual world with the user's experience in the real world, the method including: logging data of an event occurring to the user in the real world; transmitting the logged data to a server; and updating the graphic icon in the virtual world according to the transmitted data. Accordingly, by associating the contents of the user's experience with a database (DB) and expressing the contents in the graphic icon, the user's experiences in the real world can be more realistically expressed in a virtual world. |
| US08180826B2 |
Media sharing and authoring on the web
Exemplary media browsing, searching and authoring tools allow for media interaction over a web. An exemplary method includes acquiring digital video data, coding the digital video data using scalable video coding to generate scalable coded digital video data, analyzing the scalable coded digital video data using one or more video filters to generate information pertaining to the scalable coded digital video data and providing web access to the information. Various other exemplary technologies are disclosed. |
| US08180824B2 |
Log collection data harvester for use in a building automation system
A building automation system (BAS) comprising a plurality of end devices, at least one communication network, and a server engine comprising a data harvester. The end devices are each associated with at least one of a space, a system, or a subsystem for at least a portion of a building or a campus. The communication network communicatively couples to at least a portion of the plurality of end devices to the server engine. In one embodiment, the server engine is adapted to dynamically implement the data harvesting capability to periodically establish communications with, to receive and store data about, end devices and to selectively control the utilization of the communication network in order to prevent overrun or data loss. Methods of handling log collection from end devices in a building automation system (BAS) based upon a distributed schedule provided by a user or a priority scheme are also disclosed. |
| US08180823B2 |
Method of routing messages to multiple consumers
A method of routing messages to multiple consumers comprises determining a probability function defining message classification probabilities for each of a plurality of consumer sets, receiving a plurality of messages, classifying each message, storing each message in a queue, receiving notification of a consumer available to process a message, ascertaining the consumer set to which the available consumer belongs, accessing the probabilities for the ascertained consumer set, selecting a message classification according to the accessed probabilities, and transmitting a message, of the selected classification, to the available consumer. |
| US08180821B2 |
Method and apparatus for performing computations using residue arithmetic
The subject invention pertains to a method and apparatus for performing computations using residue arithmetic. The subject method and apparatus can utilize logic gates for performing calculations such as multiplication by a constant, computing a number theoretic logarithm of a residue for a given base αi and modulus pi and computing the product of two residues, modulo Pi- The use of logic gates can offer advantages when compared with the use of ROMs for table look-up functions in integrated RNS digital signal processor implementations. |
| US08180811B2 |
Identifying unreferenced file system components
A list of data structures (e.g., inodes) can be accessed, and the data structures in the list can be examined. If a data structure is examined, a counter value associated with the data structure is changed to a generation number that is associated with the examination. Subsequently, the counter values can be used to identify unreferenced data structures. More specifically, the counter value for an unreferenced data structure will be different from the generation number for the most recently performed examination. |
| US08180810B2 |
Interactive generation of integrated schemas
Methods, systems and computer program products for interactive generation of integrated schemas. Exemplary embodiments include a method for schema integration, the method including recasting a first source schema into a first graph of concepts with HasA relationships, recasting a second source schema into a second graph of concepts with HasA relationships, identifying matching concepts in the first graph and the second graph based on correspondences between attributes of the concepts of the first and second graphs, producing an integrated schema, based on a fixed specification of matching concepts to merge, and generating a mapping from the first source schema to the integrated schema and from the second source schema to the integrated schema. |
| US08180808B2 |
Spend data clustering engine with outlier detection
Disclosed herein is a computer implemented method and system for grouping spend items in a list of said spend items, and for detecting outliers. The spend items entered into the spend database are phonetically sorted and grouped into second level clusters by the spend data clustering engine. In the first level of clustering, first level clusters are created by matching the spend items using generated word tokens and sorted sound codes. The unique spend items, in the list generated after first level clustering, are further matched to create second level clusters. The first level clusters are updated based on the second level of clustering. In order to determine discrepancies in clustering and spend, statistically deviating outliers are detected in each second level cluster. This engine provides clustering at configurable levels of accuracy. The engine's specific combination of word token and sound code matching provides accurate results for spend items. |
| US08180805B2 |
Systems and methods for assigning hosts in response to a data query
Systems and methods consistent with the invention may include selecting a plurality of hosts to store data structures by defining a color incidence process used to model a host assignment process, determining, by the color incidence process, a color allocation, and assigning the data structures to one of the plurality of hosts based on the color allocation determined by the color incidence process. |
| US08180803B2 |
Deterministic finite automata (DFA) graph compression
An apparatus, and corresponding method, for generating a graph used in performing a search for a match of at least one expression in an input stream is presented. The graph includes a number of interconnected nodes connected solely by valid arcs. A valid arc of a current node represents a character match in an expression of a character associated with the current node. Arcs which are not valid may be pruned. Non-valid arcs may include arcs which point back to a designated node(s), or arcs that point to the same next node as the designated node(s) for the same character. Typically, the majority of arcs associated with a node are non-valid. Therefore, pruning the non-valid arcs may greatly reduce graph storage requirements. |
| US08180802B2 |
Extensible decimal identification system for ordered nodes
An extensible identification system for nodes in a hierarchy is described wherein each node is assigned a concatenation of decimal based values. The values assigned uniquely identify the node, provides an order for the node, and identifies its parent, child, and sibling relationships with other nodes Furthermore, the IDs assigned can be encoded to be byte comparable. Furthermore, the ID's assigned to nodes need not be modified when changes (adding/deleting a child node or a subtree of nodes) are made in the hierarchy. Additionally, in the event of such a change, the order and relationships between the parent, child, and sibling nodes are retained. |
| US08180800B2 |
Shopping context engine
A system receives context data associated with a context and a user. The system then associates the context data to a user identifier and retrieves data associated with the context. The system then filters the data according to the context data to create result data. In another embodiment, the system also receives context data from a plurality of users, where the context data pertains to one or more attributes of a context. The system then using the context data ranks the one or more attributes of the context to create ranked data and generates a user interface based on the ranked data. In yet another embodiment, the system communicates context data associated with a context and a user to a server, and receives result data created by the server filtering data retrieved based on the context data. The system then generates a user interface based on the result data. |
| US08180797B2 |
Image forming apparatus and control method thereof
An image forming apparatus includes a first storage medium to store a storage target file, without storing storage management information of the storage target filed. The image forming apparatus may also have a controller to control storing the storage management information of the storage target file separately from the storage target file. Therefore, without the storage management information that is indispensable for accessing the storage target file the file is secure regardless of detaching the first storage medium from the image forming apparatus. |
| US08180796B1 |
Supplier integration with services business language
The present invention describes a method comprising of a services business language (SBL) providing a common interface for communication with one or more multiple providers in one or more vertical segments. In one embodiment, the vertical segments comprise one or more of package shipping, courier services, flights, hotels, rental cars, and dry cleaners. In another embodiment, the SBL documents of the SBL are defined by Universal Business Language (UBL). In one embodiment, the SBL document includes multiple namespaces that are used in documents as element types and attribute types. |
| US08180791B2 |
Combining streaming and navigation for evaluating XML queries
A query is rewritten to combine streaming evaluation and XML index evaluation. The query is rewritten to include a streaming operator (e.g. function) that, when executed, uses streaming evaluation. Further, the query is rewritten so that XML index evaluation of a path expression also produces location information that identifies the location of a node within an XML document. The streaming operator is able to exploit the location information to begin and end scanning rather than scanning the entire XML document. |
| US08180789B1 |
Techniques for query generation, population, and management
Techniques are presented for query generation, population, and management. Queries are generically defined with metadata. The metadata identifies specific queries and specific parameters associated with a given query. When a query instance is desired, parameter values are dynamically acquired and used to populate portions of the metadata associated with a desired query. The query instance may then be executed as desired. |
| US08180784B2 |
Method and system for improving performance of counting hits in a search
One embodiment of the present invention includes a method for automatically enabling a search system or application to quickly and accurately count hits corresponding to a search expression. For example, a search expression is received or retrieved that may include redundant and/or overlapping search expression components. Each narrow search expression component is removed from the search expression if joined by an “OR” operator to a broader or equivalent search expression component. Additionally, each broad search expression component is removed from the search expression if joined by an “AND” operator to a narrower or equivalent search expression component. By modifying the received search expression in this fashion, a performance gain is typically achieved for calculating the hit count while maintaining its accuracy. |
| US08180782B2 |
Online ranking metric
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program products, for ranking resources. One or more signals reporting one or more actions by the plurality of users related to a respective resource are received, where a reported action is a presentation of the respective resource, an addition of the respective resource, or a deletion of the respective resource. The reported actions include one or more short deletions of the respective resource. A respective long-addition click-through rate (LACTR) is determined for the respective resource based on a number of reported presentations of the respective resource and a difference between a number of reported additions of the respective resource and a number of short deletions of the respective resource. The plurality of resources are ranked based on the respective LACTRs for the plurality of resources. The ranking of the plurality of resources are provided. |
| US08180780B2 |
Collaborative program development method and system
A method, apparatus and program product facilitate the collaborative development of an algorithm by, in part, displaying an algorithm associated with a performance attribute, and receiving user input relating to the algorithm from a plurality of networked users. The performance attribute of the algorithm may be automatically modified based on the user input. The modified performance attribute may be displayed to the plurality of networked users. A query may be received from a user interested in the algorithm. In response to the user query, the algorithm may be located from among a plurality of algorithms. For instance, the algorithm may be located from among the plurality of algorithms by matching the performance attribute to a criterion of the user query. Alternatively or additionally, the algorithm may be located by matching the performance attribute to a profile of the user submitting the user query. Also in response to the user query, a second algorithm and/or performance attribute related to the algorithm, or another, may be displayed. |
| US08180775B2 |
Computer-implemented method for clustering data and computer-readable medium encoded with computer program to execute thereof
Inferences acquired by applying clustering analysis cannot be reliably assessed before data-originated errors are quantified, an exacting task that is often not performed. This invention presents a clustering method suited for this purpose. Designed for systems with normally distributed error, a common trait to many data systems, and built on a framework of agglomerative hierarchical clustering, this invention treats each observation as a Gaussian distribution function, uses an exact mathematical relation to track error, and gives results from which quantitative statistics are easily extracted. |
| US08180772B2 |
Electronic data retrieving apparatus
An electronic data retrieving apparatus is provided that increases the retrieval accuracy without deteriorating the retrieval efficiency by reflecting differences between the numbers of word appearances due to genres of electronic data in the setting of the retrieval words. The electronic data retrieving apparatus according to the present invention sets the retrieval words of the electronic data not only as a word appearing on a retrieval word setting table of the recorded electronic data for a predetermined number of times (e.g., three times) or more but also a word appearing on the retrieval word setting table and appearing on a retrieval word setting reference table for a predetermined number of times (e.g., three times) or more. |
| US08180763B2 |
Cache-friendly B-tree accelerator
A system and method for accelerating searches of B-trees. An auxiliary index that is optimized for use with a cache is used in conjunction with a B-tree. A hash type of auxiliary index maintains pointers to key entries in the B-tree leaf nodes. The hash type of index may be searched, and a resulting pointer is used to locate records of the B-tree, bypassing a search of the B-tree. A top level type of auxiliary index maintains pointers to leaf nodes or internal nodes of the B-tree. A top level index may be searched, and a search of the B-tree is performed beginning with the node found by using the top level index. A monitoring mechanism may automatically start, change, or discard the auxiliary index based on an amount of cache memory, types of searches, or other factors. The auxiliary index may be optimized for high performance in read only searches, while the B-tree provides transaction durability. |
| US08180762B2 |
Database tuning methods
A method for tuning a database system is disclosed. A tuning strategy is received comprising a first procedure to determine a suggested tuning action, and a second procedure to measure performance of the database system. The suggested tuning action is determined and pre-action performance measured according to the respective procedures. Undo information that indicates how to undo the database system state change of the suggested tuning action is recorded in a database system state history. After executing the suggested tuning action, post-action database system performance is measured according to the second procedure. When the post-action performance is lower than the pre-action performance, the database system state change is undone using the undo information. Embodiments enabling to create new tuning strategies, downloading existing tuning strategies, sharing own tuning strategies and changing existing tuning strategies are disclosed as well. |
| US08180758B1 |
Data management system utilizing predicate logic
A predicate logic corpus can be generated from any number of data sources or data stores. The creation of a predicate logic corpus for information such as metadata allows ascendancy, descendancy, relationship, hierarchical, contextual, and knowledge information to be stored for predicate logic facts generated from information in the data sources. The predicate logic corpus allows for queries to be executed against corpus logic facts in the corpus and in results sets of the corpus, allowing for iterative and complex natural language queries to be submitted and executed without a substantial drain on resources. |
| US08180752B2 |
Apparatus and methods for managing a social media universe
Methods and apparatus include features for managing social media universes. In one embodiment, media content and community members that have been associated with a new concept for creating a new universe are searched on a plurality of media content servers. For each found new concept, an association is retained between the new universe for the new concept and any found media content and community members. When a requesting user requests to view the new universe, a representation of the media content and the community members that are associated with the new universe is displayed for the requesting user. |
| US08180750B2 |
Support model integration system and method
A real time health management analytical system and method that enables a plurality of plug-in tools and extension tools to be interfaced with a central database, and for enabling information to be published to the database from each of the client tools, as well as data to be read from the database by each of the client tools. The system makes use of an engineering model views module that provides a syntactic and semantic interface between the client tools and the central database so that health management data communicated to the client tools is presented in accordance with a specific view required by each specific client tool. An integrated support information model (ISIM) module is interposed between the data base and the engineering model views module, and forms a specification (e.g., an ontology) for all health domain information available for use by the client tools. |
| US08180749B1 |
Systems and methods for presenting information
The present invention provides systems and methods for presenting a quantity of information in a single tool. Such a tool includes a map of various objects, the objects having themes relating to a given overall concept, wherein at least one object contains information relating to other objects that have a relationship with that object. |
| US08180744B2 |
Managing storage of data in a data structure
A particular data value is represented as a group of segments stored in corresponding entries of a data structure. Additional data values represented by corresponding groups of segments are written into the data structure. A probability of overwriting segments representing the particular data value increases as a number of the additional data values increase. A correct version of the particular data value is retrieved even though one or more segments representing the particular data value has been overwritten. |
| US08180728B2 |
Area-specific reload of database
A hierarchical database stores data for the database in a plurality of areas. A disclosed technique allows reorganization of one or more areas of the database without stopping the entire database. The areas to be reorganized are first stopped, then the areas are unloaded, reorganized, and reloaded, before restarting the reorganized areas. In-memory control blocks for the areas are updated to indicate to the database software that the areas have been reorganized, without stopping the entire database. |
| US08180723B2 |
Root cause analysis in a system having a plurality of inter-related elements
A method of performing root cause analysis for use in a system comprising a plurality of inter-related elements, wherein at least some of the elements experience one or more abnormal conditions, comprising defining one or more conditions for more than one element symptomatic of abnormal operation of the element; defining one or more causal relationships between the conditions and results on one or more related elements; compiling the conditions and causal relationships of each element for which conditions and relationships have been defined, as at least one continuation in a continuation passing style (CPS); receiving one or more observed events symptomatic of abnormal operation of at least one element of the system; processing the received events using the conditions and the continuations; concluding at least one root cause of the received events consistent with the received events; and outputting the root cause. |
| US08180721B2 |
Cascading definition and support of EDI rules
Electronic data interchange (EDI) documents are validated by creating an inventory of all rules, dynamically adjusting the inventory based upon entity specific rules derived from a plurality of companion guides, determining a profile containing pointers to select rules in the inventory for each companion guide and storing the profile for each companion guide in a storage. A runtime checker can then be used to check a received EDI document with a corresponding rule set, forward the EDI document if the EDI document matches its current rule set and return the EDI document if the EDI document does not match its current rule set. EDI rules may be enforced, for example, by determining entity-specific rules from corresponding companion guides, by expressing each rule in a neutral and machine readable format, by classifying the rules and/or by creating an inventory of rules and pointers to entity-specific rules. |
| US08180719B2 |
Printer
A printer includes a use status computation section which collects statistics of a use status of an analyzed print job and computes a use frequency and an execution interval of a language translation program based on a result of the statistics, and a resident mode switching section which causes a language translation program with a highest use frequency to initially stay resident in a memory and further causing a language translation program with a high use frequency and a long execution interval to stay resident next to the language translation program with the highest use frequency in the memory. |
| US08180717B2 |
System for estimating a distribution of message content categories in source data
A method of computerized content analysis that gives “approximately unbiased and statistically consistent estimates” of a distribution of elements of structured, unstructured, and partially structured source data among a set of categories. In one embodiment, this is done by analyzing a distribution of small set of individually-classified elements in a plurality of categories and then using the information determined from the analysis to extrapolate a distribution in a larger population set. This extrapolation is performed without constraining the distribution of the unlabeled elements to be equal to the distribution of labeled elements, nor constraining a content distribution of content of elements in the labeled set (e.g., a distribution of words used by elements in the labeled set) to be equal to a content distribution of elements in the unlabeled set. Not being constrained in these ways allows the estimation techniques described herein to provide distinct advantages over conventional aggregation techniques. |
| US08180707B2 |
Construction payment management system and method with actionable notification features
A system and method for managing a construction payment process. One method embodying the invention can include automatically generating an electronic notification in response to an event, the electronic notification including an action item selectable by a participant to perform an action in response to the event, and making the electronic notification available to at least one participant in a construction project. |
| US08180705B2 |
Method and apparatus for initiating a funds transfer using a mobile device
The invention is directed to a method and apparatus for initiating an electronic funds transfer. The system includes a first mobile device, a payment engine, and a payment repository. The first mobile device includes functionality to display a notification of a sales transaction, obtain an authorization from the consumer to the electronic funds transfer based on the notification, instantiate a transfer entry form to obtain a transfer entry package, where the transfer entry package comprises the notification, a verification of the authorization, and consumer financial account information. The payment engine is operatively connected to the first mobile device and includes functionality to transmit the notification to the consumer of a sales transaction, generate the transfer entry form based on the authorization, and transmit the transfer entry package to a depository financial institution. The payment repository is operatively connected to the payment engine and includes functionality to store a record of the transfer entry package and the authorization. |
| US08180701B1 |
Secure bidding method and system
Secure image bidding system process for financial transactions, including structured investment products, escrows and interest rate swaps. Some embodiments provide a secure image bidding system and process for image-based bid transmissions where each of a plurality of bids received by the system is encrypted and held in a digital “Vault” until the specified end of the bid period, at which time a package containing the encrypted bids, a log of server activity, and a digital checksum of the original bid file is sent via electronic mail to the bid broker and other participants. A second electronic mail message is sent to the bid broker and other participants containing the decryption key. During the bid process, no party has access to the bid information and there is no human interaction in the receipt, conversion to image, encryption, storage or conveyance of compiled information. |
| US08180700B1 |
Transaction system for employee stock options and other compensation programs
Systems and methods of selling employee stock options (ESOs) and other compensation instruments. The method may comprise receiving a sale order for the employee stock options from a seller. The method may also comprise the step of determining a winning bidder based on bids submitted by at least two bidders that specify a price for the employee stock options. The method may further comprise suspending the auction until there are qualifying bids from at least two bidders. The method may also comprise transferring a derivative in place of the employee stock options to the winning bidder, wherein the derivative entities the holder thereof to buy a quantity of securities of an issuer at the price. |
| US08180697B2 |
Method of trading in real estate derivatives
A method of computing a real estate derivative index value includes: selecting asking rent data; selecting lease rent data; and combining the selected asking rent data and the selected lease rent data to form the index value. The method may further include further combining the combined data with a value representative of general market conditions; forming a composite index of data from plural markets; or computing the index at the end of a time period as: ΔFKI or as ΔRP+ΔCPI+ΔFKI. The method may further include trading based on the index by deriving a trade value from the index value, and executing a trade based on the derived trade value. The method may be carried as instructions on a machine-readable medium and may be carried out using a computer for part or all of the method. |
| US08180691B2 |
System and method for generating optimal bill/payment schedule
A method and system for generating bill payment schedule utilizes a composite pricing module to generate payment schedule over a predetermined period of time. In one aspect, a fraction of each pricing model attributing to the composite pricing model is determined. A charge fee associated with said each pricing model based on said fraction and said total price to charge is determined. Price to charge during each time unit of the time period is allocated, based on budget over the time period, discount rate, target profit margin and risk affordance. Bill schedule is generated using the allocated price. |
| US08180690B2 |
System and method for interacting with item catalogs
The present invention comprises a system and method for presenting large numbers of items on a display screen. According to one aspect of the present invention, information is harvested from a plurality of sites and over a plurality of times and aggregated into a single item set. According to another aspect of the present invention, this information is supplemented by data derived from sorting and classification tasks performed by humans. According to another aspect of present invention, this information is used to derive similarities between items and to derive a hierarchical classification of items into a hierarchical set of categories. According to another aspect of the present invention, one or more series of catalog displays are created which display these items arranged by different criteria and at different scales. |
| US08180685B2 |
Methods and systems for electronic commerce facility client-based presentation offer management
A method, system and computer readable medium for facilitating interactive electronic commerce transactions over an electronic commerce network between a plurality of sellers and a plurality of buyers via an independent service provider. A request is received from a seller over the electronic commerce network to generate an auction program process associated with the seller. The auction program process associated with the seller is generated by an electronic commerce computer of the independent service provider. A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) hyperlink associated with the auction program process is generated by the electronic commerce computer. The URL hyperlink is communicated to the seller for insertion into a web page hosted on a website other than the independent service provider's website, wherein the web page displays information about an item for sale. The auction program process generated by the electronic commerce computer of the independent service provider is activated when a buyer clicks on the inserted hyperlink on the hosting website. |
| US08180680B2 |
Method and system for recommending a product over a computer network
A product is recommended over a computer network by initiating a recommendation network by creating an active advertisement object of a product on an electronic medium. A recommendation request is received from a user viewing the electronic medium to recommend the product to at least one more viewer. The viewer may be a recommended user. The user and the recommended user or users form a recommendation network. The active advertisement object is recreated on another electronic medium. The recommendation request and the recreation may be repeated, and a recommendation chain is determinable. |
| US08180677B2 |
System and method for compensating users for advertising data in a community of end users
A computer readable medium is disclosed, containing instructions useful in performing a method for sending advertising data, the method comprising measuring user-to-user connectivity between users within a community of users; determining a plurality of highly connected users (HCUs) based on the user-to-user connectivity; and sending advertising data to selected HCUs based on a zone of influence (ZOI) for each HCU. A system useful in performing the method is disclosed. |
| US08180674B2 |
Targeting of advertisements based on mutual information sharing between devices over a network
A system and method to facilitate targeting of advertisements based on mutual information sharing between devices over a network are described. Users access an entity over a network and further initiate various events, which are subsequently captured by selective processing servers within the network-based entity. Each of such events or actions initiated by the user is associated with one or more categories and is further stored within the entity along the respective categories. Subsequently, if the user connects to one or more media devices, and the media devices are coupled to the entity via the network, then the entity selects advertisements to be displayed within the viewing area of the media device, such that each advertisement is related to the stored events or actions and their respective categories. Alternatively, a user connects to one or more media devices and further performs specific actions. The actions are then transmitted to the entity via the network and are stored within the entity along with respective categories associated with each user action. Subsequently, if the user connects to the entity through a client machine and through the network, the entity selects advertisements to be displayed within the display area of the client machine along with content information requested by the user, such that each selected advertisement is related to the previously stored events or actions and their respective categories. |
| US08180664B2 |
Methods and systems for forecasting with model-based PDF estimates
Disclosed herein are systems and methods for forecasting with model-based PDF (probability density function) estimates. Some method embodiments may comprise: estimating model parameters for a time series, calculating a PDF for the time series, and generating a forecast from the PDF. The model parameters may comprise a variance for a hidden noise source, and the PDF for the time series may be based at least in part on an estimated variance for the hidden noise source. |
| US08180663B2 |
Facilitating automated meeting scheduling
A computer-implemented method for assisting in the scheduling of a meeting. A user who desires to schedule a meeting simply inputs the relevant meeting parameters. In response, the computer evaluates a number of possible meeting times by comparing the input constraints against a predetermined set of suitability criteria. Based on this evaluation, the system identifies suggested meeting time(s), and also may identify rooms suitable for each meeting time. The system also calculates an estimated desirability for each suggested meeting time based on its compliance with the suitability criteria. The suggested meeting time(s) and a visual indicator of desirability for each time are then displayed. In addition, the raw free-busy data for each attendee may still be displayed. When the user selects a suggested meeting time, an electronic meeting request is automatically populated with the meeting time and a suitable place associated with the suggested meeting time. |
| US08180662B2 |
Rapid deployment of training for company representatives in contact handling systems
Several of the embodiments disclosed herein relate to accessing and tracking real-time data concerning company representative performance, proficiency, training, scheduling, current work flow, and estimated work flow. Moreover, many of the improvements in contact handling systems disclosed herein automatically provide training, work, and incentives to company representatives to improve performance, proficiency, efficiency, effectiveness, automate scheduling, and automated work flow. More specifically, this application discloses a method for delivering training to company representatives. Also disclosed is an automated customer service and training management system. As a result of the teachings disclosed herein, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and revenue may be improved in the contact handling industry. |
| US08180656B2 |
Hybrid life insurance product with an improved total return
Disclosed is a novel life insurance product that provides an improved return to a purchaser. The life insurance product contains a benefit payment, and has a fixed benefit amount and a variable benefit amount. A policy protection benefit prevents a purchaser's life insurance product from lapsing, and a minimum death benefit ensures that the purchaser receives the greater of the face value of the product and a predetermined percentage of the account value. |
| US08180653B2 |
Pharmacy network computer system and printer
The invention provides a network computer system and novel pharmacy printers and their methods of use wherein the local CS includes a pharmacy printer for printing pharmacy orders including prescriptions, and the pharmacy printer includes a pharmacy printer database storing drug information and association of a drug identifier with information about a corresponding drug, and additional information, and obtains and uses instructions for printing the additional information in association with printing of a prescription label from characters contained in a prescription label print file for the prescription label. |
| US08180652B2 |
Remote healthcare method for measuring physiological parameter and reporting self-perceived health status
A remote healthcare method is applied to a healthcare server and includes the steps of receiving detected information from a physiological parameter detecting instrument, reading a patient identification code and a physiological parameter from the detected information, reading an identification datum and a medical history datum matched with the patient identification code from a history database according to the identification code, reading a disease matched with the disease classification code and a corresponding pathological symptom from the disease database according to at least one disease classification code in the medical history data, screening a corresponding matched pathological symptom from the pathological symptoms according to the read physiological parameter to create a self-perceived list, transmitting the self-perceived list to the physiological parameter detecting instrument, and waiting for a receipt of the selected option of the pathological symptom for determining an appropriate medical dosage or medical tool. |
| US08180650B2 |
Use of location awareness to request assistance for a medical event occurring in a healthcare environment
A method of requesting assistance for a medical event occurring in a hospital. The method comprises receiving data regarding a location of the medical event; receiving data regarding a type of the medical event; receiving data regarding at least one wirelessly detectable tag, each one of the at least one wirelessly detectable tag being associated with a respective one of at least one clinician; determining a location of each clinician within the hospital based at least in part on the data regarding the at least one wirelessly detectable tag; identifying at least one particular clinician as being eligible to provide assistance, based at least in part on the location of the medical event, the type of the medical event, and the respective location of each clinician; and performing an action to cause requesting of assistance for the medical event from each particular clinician. |
| US08180648B2 |
Method and system for dual mode subband acoustic echo canceller with integrated noise suppression
Certain aspects of a method and system for a dual mode subband acoustic echo canceller with integrated noise suppression may include splitting an input signal into a lowband component and a highband component. The subbands of each of the lowband component and the highband component may be processed in order to reduce an echo associated with the input signal and to suppress the noise associated with the input signal. |
| US08180644B2 |
Method and apparatus for scrolling text display of voice call or message during video display session
A method and communication device disclosed includes displaying a video on a display, converting voice audio data to textual data by applying voice-to-text conversion, and displaying the textual data as scrolling text displayed along with the video on the display and either above, below or across the video. The method may further include receiving a voice call indication from a network, providing the voice call indication to a user interface where the voice call indication corresponds to an incoming voice call; and receiving a user input for receiving the voice call and displaying the voice call as scrolling text. In another embodiment, a method includes displaying application related data on a display; converting voice audio data to textual data by applying voice-to-text conversion; converting the textual data to a video format; and displaying the textual data as scrolling text over the application related data on said display. |
| US08180638B2 |
Method for emotion recognition based on minimum classification error
Disclosed herein is a method for emotion recognition based on a minimum classification error. In the method, a speaker's neutral emotion is extracted using a Gaussian mixture model (GMM), other emotions except the neutral emotion are classified using the Gaussian Mixture Model to which a discriminative weight for minimizing the loss function of a classification error for the feature vector for emotion recognition is applied. In the emotion recognition, the emotion recognition is performed by applying a discriminative weight evaluated using the Gaussian Mixture Model based on minimum classification error to feature vectors of the emotion classified with difficult, thereby enhancing the performance of emotion recognition. |
| US08180637B2 |
High performance HMM adaptation with joint compensation of additive and convolutive distortions
A method of compensating for additive and convolutive distortions applied to a signal indicative of an utterance is discussed. The method includes receiving a signal and initializing noise mean and channel mean vectors. Gaussian dependent matrix and Hidden Markov Model (HMM) parameters are calculated or updated to account for additive noise from the noise mean vector or convolutive distortion from the channel mean vector. The HMM parameters are adapted by decoding the utterance using the previously calculated HMM parameters and adjusting the Gaussian dependent matrix and the HMM parameters based upon data received during the decoding. The adapted HMM parameters are applied to decode the input utterance and provide a transcription of the utterance. |
| US08180636B2 |
Pitch model for noise estimation
Pitch is tracked for individual samples, which are taken much more frequently than an analysis frame. Speech is identified based on the tracked pitch and the speech components of the signal are removed with a time-varying filter, leaving only an estimate of a time-varying speech signal. This estimate is then used to generate a time-varying noise model which, in turn, can be used to enhance speech related systems. |
| US08180630B2 |
Systems and methods for an automated personalized dictionary generator for portable devices
A system and method for automated dictionary population is provided to facilitate the entry of textual material in dictionaries for enhancing word prediction. The automated dictionary population system is useful in association with a mobile device including at least one dictionary which includes entries. The device receives a communication which is parsed and textual data extracted. The text is compared to the entries of the dictionaries to identify new words. Statistical information for the parsed words, including word usage frequency, recency, or likelihood of use, is generated. Profanities may be processed by identifying profanities, modifying the profanities, and asking the user to provide feedback. Phrases are identified by phrase markers. Lastly, the new words are stored in a supplementary word list as single words or by linking the words of the identified phrases to preserve any phrase relationships. Likewise, the statistical information may be stored. |
| US08180619B2 |
System and method for digital effects analysis
An analysis tool analyzes a model to determine the digital effect of the model in a modeling or programming environment. With the analysis tool, a user can determine minimum hardware functionality needed to execute the software generated from the model. The hardware functionality may include the word size of the microprocessor that executes the software appropriately. The hardware functionality may also include the execution speed of the microprocessor executing the software. The hardware functionality may further include the functionality of other hardware elements, such as the word length of an Analog to Digital converter. The analysis tool enables a user to produce a system at a low cost while achieving necessary performance criteria. |
| US08180617B1 |
Computer-based computational tools for use in electrophysiology
Computer-based computational tools for use in determining spatial charge distributions for biological systems that include one or more biological membranes are provided. At least one of the biological membrane includes at least two regions having different electrical properties, e.g., the biological membrane can include a pore having a higher conductivity than the surrounding bulk membrane. In other cases, the membrane can include non-active and active regions, with conservative fields acting at the non-active regions and a combination of conservative and non-conservative fields acting at the active regions. The non-conservative fields can, for example, originate from differences in ionic concentrations of the type which generate Nernst potential differences across membranes. Using the computer-based computational tools, charge distributions not previously known to exist have been discovered, e.g., ring-shaped charge distributions in the vicinity of an active pore. |
| US08180612B2 |
Electromagnetic field simulator and electromagnetic field simulating program product
An electromagnetic field simulator for repeatedly calculating a space distribution of an electromagnetic field at a next point in time using a distribution of an electromagnetic field in a 3-dimensional space includes: a unit for calculating a distribution of an electric field and a distribution of an magnetic field on the entire 3-dimensional space; a unit for calculating a distribution of an electric field and a distribution of an magnetic field on a 2-dimensional space on a cut plane obtained by cutting the 3-dimensional space by a plane; a unit for setting an excitation condition of generating an electromagnetic wave by using a calculation result of the 2-dimensional electromagnetic field calculating unit; and a unit for generating an electromagnetic wave by forcibly vibrating a part of the electric field and the magnetic field in the 3-dimensional space on a basis of the excitation condition set. |
| US08180611B2 |
System and method for determining resource allocation among simulation models
A system and method for viewing models and model variables within a sophisticated modeling environment is disclosed. The system provides varying levels of insight into a modeling infrastructure to help the user understand model and model variable dependencies, usage, distribution, and/or the like. The method includes storing model and model variable data within a relational database system, receiving a request from a user interfacing with the system via a web interface, extracting search criteria and presentation preferences from the request, formulating and executing one or more queries on the database to retrieve the required data, formatting the data in accordance with the request, and retuning the data to the requesting user in the form of a web page. |
| US08180602B2 |
Method for mechanical and capillary seal analysis of a hydrocarbon trap
Method for making a probabilistic determination of total seal capacity for a hydrocarbon trap, simultaneously considering both capillary entry pressure and mechanical seal capacity, and where capillary entry pressure is estimated by relating it directly to the buoyancy pressure applied by the hydrocarbon column to the top seal. The method thus considers the substantial uncertainty associated with input parameters, which uncertainty limits the utility of such analyses for robust hydrocarbon column height and fluid contact predictions. The method disclosed for estimating seal capillary entry pressure, the requisite input parameter for capillary seal capacity analysis, by inverting trap parameters avoids the need for direct measurement by mercury injection capillary capacity tests on small pieces of rock, which test results often are not available for all desired locations nor are they necessarily representative of adjacent rocks in the seal. |
| US08180601B2 |
Systems and methods for determining volume of activation for deep brain stimulation
This document discusses, among other things, systems and methods for determining volume of activation for deep brain stimulation (“DBS”) using a finite element model (FEM) circuit to determine a FEM of an implanted electrode and a tissue medium in which the electrode is implanted, a Fourier FEM solver circuit to calculate a potential distribution in the tissue medium using information from the FEM circuit and a capacitive component of at least one of the implanted electrode and the tissue medium, and a volume of activation (VOA) circuit to predict a VOA using the potential distribution and a neuron model. |
| US08180600B2 |
Input/output buffer information specification (IBIS) model generation for multi-chip modules (MCM) and similar devices
In one embodiment, the invention is a method for modeling electrical behavior of a packaged module having multiple integrated circuits (ICs), such as a multi-chip module (MCM). The method includes: (a) identifying one or more pin groups in the module, wherein a pin group comprises two or more buffers connected together and to a package-external pin, and (b) generating one or more corresponding unified behavioral models for the one or more pin groups based on the characteristics of the buffers of the one or more pin groups. The behavioral models are part of an integrated behavioral model file in accordance with the I/O buffer information specification (IBIS) standard. |
| US08180594B2 |
System and method for automated customizable error diagnostics
A system and method of automated customizable error diagnostics is provided for use with industrial apparatus, such as semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. An external device, such as a robot, is provided with its own low level controller and a high level controller is provided to send instructions to the low level controller. The high level controller is programmed to perform automated customizable error diagnostics to diagnose errors in the external device. The high level controller monitors the occurrence of error conditions in the external device and executes a list of diagnostic commands based upon a detected error condition. Data concerning the error condition is automatically gathered to diagnose the cause of the error, before the external device executes its own error handling routines. In some embodiments, an editor is provided to edit and customize the diagnostic commands and a viewer is provided to allow diagnostic data to be viewed. |
| US08180593B2 |
Determination and control of wellbore fluid level, output flow, and desired pump operating speed, using a control system for a centrifugal pump disposed within the wellbore
A method and apparatus for determining a fluid level and/or output flow during operation of a centrifugal pump, are provided, which may be used for production of gas and/or oil from a well, and include a vector feedback model to derive values of torque and speed from signals indicative of instantaneous current and voltage drawn by the pump motor, a pump model which derives values of the fluid flow rate and the head pressure for the pump from torque and speed inputs, a pumping system model that derives, from the estimated values of the pump operating parameters, an estimated value of fluid level and other pumping system parameters. Controllers responsive to the estimated values of the pumping system parameters control the pump to maintain fluid level at the pump input, near an optimum level, or within a safe operating range and/or output flow from the pump. |
| US08180588B2 |
Compensation method for structural deformation occurring during construction of super tall building
The present invention relates to a compensation method for structural deformation occurring during construction of a super tall building, which includes the steps of: selecting horizontal and vertical members predicted to require compensation for horizontal and vertical deformation amounts; calculating deformation amounts based on the casting time of structural concrete for the selected horizontal or vertical members; determining compensation amounts based on the casting time of structural concrete for the selected horizontal or vertical members; calculating deformation amounts of the selected horizontal or vertical members up to and subsequent to the non-structural construction processes; determining compensation amounts by process of the selected horizontal or vertical members; and constructing the selected horizontal or vertical members by floors. |
| US08180585B2 |
Magnetic crash sensor
A magnetic field is generated by at least one coil in magnetic communication with at least a portion of a vehicle responsive to a first time-varying signal operatively coupled to the at least one coil in series with a sense resistor. A second signal is generated responsive to a voltage across the sense resistor and is response to a magnetic condition of the at least one coil, which is response to the magnetic communication of the at least one coil with the portion of the vehicle. |
| US08180578B2 |
Multi-component multi-phase fluid analysis using flash method
A method of analyzing phase transitions of fluid in an oilfield operation of an oilfield. The method includes determining phase boundaries of a multi-component multi-phase system based on geophysical parameters associated with the oilfield, predicting an amount of at least one fluid component in a liquid fluid phase of the multi-component multi-phase system by solving a set of flash equations based on phase boundaries, and performing the oilfield operation based on the predicted amount. |
| US08180577B2 |
Techniques for determining the effects on a system of a component that has four states
Techniques for determining effects on a biological system include determining rate constants for a particular time interval starting at an initial time. Each rate constant indicates a rate of transition from one of four states to a different one of the four states for a component of a biological system in presence of an external factor. A temporal change in a probability that the component is in a particular state after the initial time is determined without numerical iteration over multiple time steps. This includes determining three relaxation time constants that describe exponential changes based on the rate constants. The effect of the external factor on the biological system is determined based on the temporal change in the probability that the component is in the particular state. The probability at an arbitrary time is determined based on the rate constants and initial probabilities. |
| US08180574B2 |
Simplified peritoneal equilibration test for peritoneal dialysis
A simplified peritoneal equilibration test (S-PET) is disclosed. Instead of a lengthy peritoneal equilibration test (PET), the simplified procedure requires no blood sample and may use data from as few as two or three samples to classify a peritoneal membrane of a user. Typically, a peritoneal membrane or peritoneum of a dialysis patient, or other person, is classed as a high transport membrane, high-average transport membrane, a low-average transport membrane or a low transporter membrane. The S-PET may be performed at home by a user without the need to submit a blood sample. Kits for analyzing the samples may be furnished for home use. The kits may use disposable strips, microfluidic analyzers or chemical reagents, or may alternatively include reusable analysis equipment, such as optical or conductivity analysis equipment. |
| US08180572B2 |
High-resolution melting analysis
The present invention relates to methods and systems for the analysis of the dissociation behavior of nucleic acids and the identification of nucleic acids. In one aspect, methods and systems are disclosed for resolving a denaturation curve of a sample containing a first and second nucleic acid into a resolved denaturation curve for the first nucleic acid and a resolved denuration curve for the second nucleic acid. |
| US08180571B2 |
Wellbore surveying
This invention relates to surveying wellbores. In particular this invention provides methods of correcting magnetic surveys for the effects introduced by magnetic mud. The method of the present invention comprises, in broad terms, measuring gravitational and magnetic fields at least one position in the wellbore; comparing the measured fields with theoretical values, and introducing scale factors to adapt the measured values to equal the theoretical values thus making it possible to cope with the effects of magnetic mud. |
| US08180570B2 |
Navigation apparatuses, methods, and programs
Navigation apparatuses, methods, and programs having conducted a search for an original driving route that goes through a plurality of destinations in a designated order and provided route guidance based on the original driving route, receive an input of a new destination. Upon receipt of the new destination, the apparatuses, methods, and programs designate an ordinal position of the new destination in terms of the designated order and receive an input of a destination change request. When the destination change request is received, the apparatuses, methods, and programs automatically delete one or more of the destinations in ordinal positions within the designated order that are before the ordinal position of the new destination, conduct a new search for a new driving route based on the new destination, and output the new driving route. When an added destination request is received, the apparatuses, methods, and programs conduct a search for the new driving route including the new destination, without deleting destinations in ordinal positions within the designated order that are before the ordinal position of the new destination. |
| US08180566B2 |
Apparatus and program for finding vehicle position
A navigation apparatus calculates a current position candidate of a vehicle based on absolute position information, and calculates a travelable area based on road width data and the like, and further calculates a center locus of the travelable area and an estimated position of the vehicle. The estimated position of the vehicle is then evaluated based on a distance between the estimated position and the center locus to yield a position candidate evaluation for displaying a current position mark on a displayed map. |
| US08180565B2 |
Method for exchanging messages in a navigation system using visible light communications
Method and device for exchanging messages in a VLC navigation system is provided, in which a map server generates a provision message in the form of visible light signals through all lamps in an area, using a PLC network, where a navigation service is provided, a terminal that wants to implement the navigation service among terminals that have received the provision message transmits a registration request message to the map server, the map server transmits a registration response message for the registration request message to the terminal, the terminal transmits a map request message including information about a destination to the map server, the map server transmits a map response message including information about a path to the destination to the terminal, and the terminal displays map information and the path. |
| US08180564B2 |
Data processing apparatus
With respect to a non-road region route, which is in a region other than roads registered in map data, a navigation apparatus in a vehicle specifies three check items: travel times the vehicle traveled; a shortened distance reduced by traveling the non-road region route compared with a route registered in the map data; and presence or absence of a predetermined facility in the vicinity of the non-road region route. The navigation apparatus determines an accuracy degree as to whether the non-road region route is existent based on the specified check items, thereby determining whether the non-road region route is existent. A route guidance process is executed based on the non-road region route, which is determined to be existent. |
| US08180560B2 |
Apparatus and method for controlling a material flow using a simulated vehicle speed
A method includes identifying a number of actuators used to release a material, where the identified number of actuators is less than a total number of actuators. The method also includes identifying a simulated speed of a vehicle based on the identified number of actuators. The method further includes controlling an amount of material provided to the actuators based on the simulated speed of the vehicle. The method could also include identifying an extent to which the identified number of actuators are opened. Here, identifying the simulated speed of the vehicle could include identifying the simulated speed of the vehicle based on the extent to which the identified number of actuators are opened. |
| US08180559B2 |
System and methods for geoboundary based traffic monitoring using quick tear down boundaries
A location based service and method configured to provide a mechanism for delivering traffic information to a subscribing user. The method is implemented on a computing infrastructure and includes setting up geo-boundaries at one or more predefined intervals. The method further includes receiving a signal from an active mobile device as it passes at least two of the geo-boundaries at the one or more predefined intervals, and determining a traffic incident from the received signal. |
| US08180554B2 |
Method and devices to reduce the difference between normalized air-fuel ratio of the various cylinders in an internal combustion engine and a predetermined value
The invention relates to the field of methods and devices for reducing the difference between normalized air-fuel ratio of the various cylinders compared with a predetermined value between 0.7 and 1.1, of the normalized air-fuel ratio in an internal combustion engine. The method and devices utilize the signal of the ionization current produced by a suitable device, modifying the quantity of fuel on the basis of the signal determined by means of the method in question in the invention. |
| US08180553B2 |
Controlling cylinder mixture and turbocharger operation
A method for controlling differences in exhaust gas residual amount for a two cylinder bank engine having at least one turbocharger is presented. In one example, the description includes a method for adjusting valve timing to reduce cylinder exhaust gas residual variation. |
| US08180547B2 |
Telematics system and method for traction reporting and control in a vehicle
In one embodiment, a system and method are provided for detecting a slip condition between a vehicle tire and a road surface, processing contemporaneous vehicle data, such as torque or brake pressure applied, to determine a force of friction, and calculating a coefficient of friction. The coefficient of friction and location of the slip are broadcast to other vehicles driving in the proximity of the slip. The broadcasts may be utilized to notify drivers of slippery driving conditions at or ahead of the vehicle, and/or to limit torque and braking pressure applied to vehicle wheels to enhance traction and avoid slip. |
| US08180542B2 |
Vehicle speed control system
A vehicle speed control system starts an automatic decelerating operation with a maximum permissible decelerating physical amount “Gmax”, when an electronic control unit determines that a necessary decelerating physical amount for decreasing a vehicle speed “v” to a target vehicle speed “vt” at a curve starting point becomes larger than the maximum permissible decelerating physical amount “Gmax”. The vehicle speed control system terminates the automatic decelerating operation, when required decelerating physical amount by a braking operation during the automatic decelerating operation becomes larger than an actual control decelerating physical amount for the automatic decelerating operation. The electronic control unit calculates the necessary decelerating physical amount “Gref” based on a distance “d” to the curve starting point and the vehicle speed “v”, in order to re-start an automatic decelerating operation with the decelerating physical amount “Gref”, when the required decelerating physical amount becomes lower than the decelerating physical amount “Gref”. |
| US08180537B2 |
Engine control apparatus
An engine control apparatus controls an engine rotational speed to a target rotational speed by using a detected input side transmission rotational speed of a manual transmission as the target rotational speed upon detecting a clutch pedal depression amount during shifting being equal to or larger than a first prescribed depression amount, which is equal to or larger than a depression amount corresponding to a clutch disconnect position. The engine rotational speed is controlled to the target rotational speed by using the smaller of a computed transmission rotational speed (based on vehicle speed and gear ratio using a shift position) and the detected input side transmission rotational speed, upon detecting the clutch pedal depression amount during shifting being smaller than the first prescribed depression amount and larger than a second prescribed depression amount, which is smaller than the depression amount corresponding to the clutch disconnect position. |
| US08180535B2 |
Method for controlling gear change during shifting rule or variogram switching
The inventive method for controlling the gear change of an automatic gearbox provided with distinct shifting rules or variograms used according to a vehicle operating conditions consists in detecting and carrying out gear shifting requests sequential to the shifting rule or variogram switching, subject to the application of specific conditions only. |
| US08180534B2 |
Multiple harvester unloading system
A grain moving system providing for single point unloading of harvesters to a grain cart. There are a plurality of harvesting machines including a first harvesting machine and a second harvesting machine. The first harvesting machine being configured to deliver grain to the grain cart. The first harvesting machine receiving grain from the second harvesting machine. The first harvesting machine being configured for the coordination of grain transfer. |
| US08180533B2 |
Device and method for reducing tire wear on an agricultural vehicle
An agricultural work machine having a chassis with an operating direction and a transport system coupled to the chassis. The transport system includes a plurality of wheels including a first wheel and a wheel repositioning system. The wheel repositioning system is operatively connected to the first wheel. The wheel repositioning system is configured to adjust a position of the first wheel in a direction substantially normal to the operating direction while the chassis is moving in the operating direction. |
| US08180532B2 |
Vector controlled leveling system for a forestry machine
The present invention provides a leveling control system for a forestry machine (10) employing position sensors that relay information about the orientation of the carriage (12) in relation to the swing-house assembly (14) in order to control roll and pitch in a manner that maximizes the operating envelop of the leveling mechanism (38). The angles of pitch and roll of the swing-house assembly (14) in relation to the carriage (12) are measured and/or calculated and a controller (24) limits operation of the leveling mechanism (38) to an operating envelop that may be described in terms of pitch and droll. The cylinders (54, 56) are decelerated gradually as the operating envelop is approached. The controller (24) can include an automatic leveling mode. The controller (24) can change the function of the fore, aft, left and right operator controls so that they are true from the operator's frame of reference regardless of the rotary position of the cab relative to the carriage (12). |
| US08180529B2 |
Electric power steering apparatus
A microcomputer 17 (signal generating section 24) includes an attenuating section 31, which attenuates a specific frequency component included in an input signal. The attenuating section 31 receives a d-axis current value Id and a q-axis current value Iq, which are actual currents supplied to a motor 12. The attenuating section 31 receives a rotational angular velocity ωe of the motor 12. The attenuating section 31 changes the specific frequency component to be attenuated based on the input rotational angular velocity ωe. Then, the microcomputer 17 executes current feedback control for feeding power to the motor 12 based on the d-axis current value Id′ and the q-axis current value Iq′ that have been attenuated. |
| US08180518B2 |
System and method for determining microenvironment conditions external to a vehicle
A system and a method for generating a microenvironment condition report. The microenvironment condition report is generated from information related to a plurality of vehicle conditions. The vehicle condition information is gathered from a plurality of in-vehicle technologies such as a stability control system, ABS, and navigation system. The vehicle condition information is sent to a remote terminal that organizes the information with respect to a set of microareas. The information for each microarea is analyzed and used to generate the microenvironment condition report. |
| US08180514B2 |
Autonomous agriculture platform guidance system
A guidance system for an agriculture platform that is capable of making decisions concerning the platforms direction and velocity regarding the pathway the platform is moving along as well as obstacles in the path of the platform, is provided. The autonomous agricultural platform guidance system and method will make it possible for small scale farming to take up automated mechanical farming practices which are currently only practical for large scale farming thus improving land utilization efficiency while lowering manpower costs dramatically. |
| US08180507B2 |
Manoeuvre and safety system for a vehicle or an installation
A system for a vehicle is provided for allowing a user of the vehicle or installation to obtain advanced and up-to-date information about the surroundings of the vehicle or installation and the vehicle or installation itself. The system may be located on a marine vessel and it integrates information from a number of different information sources, located both on and off the vessel, en including information from advanced radar and sonar subsystems on the ship, information from conventional instruments and sensors and information from onshore and offshore installations and EO satellites accessed via a control center onshore. The system may communicate with the control center via a communication satellite and/or wireless Internet, if available. A data processing apparatus for processing and presenting the data is also provided. The data is received, processed and presented in three dimensions in space and updated in real time or near real time such that time provides a fourth dimension to the data. A graphical user interface for presenting the data is also provided. The graphical user interface provides functionality for reporting an error in the system if the end user's own observations do not match the presented data. Additionally, a system for collecting data comprising more than one ship, the control center and means for the ships and the control center to communicate is provided. The system comprises a catalogue and storage network for storing collected data. All data is stored with an associated quality measure of the data. |
| US08180502B2 |
Apparatus and program for navigation
A navigation apparatus defines a detection area for detecting a weather phenomenon as a predetermined range around a travel route that is designated as an area setting object. By referring to weather information acquired from external sources through communication, whether or not a weather warning exists in the detection area is determined. If the determination is affirmative, the weather phenomenon is considered as influential in the detection area, and the detection result is provided for a user. More practically, the travel route, the detection area and an affecting area of the weather warning are displayed on a display unit. |
| US08180500B2 |
Temperature sensing system and related temperature sensing method
A temperature sensing system, which comprises: a temperature analyzing circuit, for sensing temperature and generating an analyzing result in response to the sensed temperature; and a control unit, for controlling a temperature sensing time interval; wherein the control unit continuously changes the temperature sensing time interval according to a predetermined temperature range in response to the sensed temperature. |
| US08180497B2 |
Selective harvesting of a land parcel by a fruit harvesting machine
Selective harvesting of a parcel of land by a harvesting machine including a motorised support structure on which are mounted a harvesting assembly adapted to deliver a harvested stream, at least two receptacles (1) for storage of the stream and a system for respectively feeding a receptacle (1) with the stream as a function of the location of the machine in the parcel. The parcel is divided into distinct geographical areas and each receptacle is dedicated to an area. The machine comprises upper conveyor means (3) for feeding the receptacles (1) along respective feed paths, a lower conveyor (6) and a device for guiding the harvested stream by opening and closing the feed paths and varying the conveying direction of the lower conveyor, as a function of the receptacle to be fed with the harvested stream. |
| US08180495B1 |
Air handling control system for a data center
Described herein is an integrated data center that provides for efficient cooling, as well as efficient wire routing, and in particular a control system for controlling the temperature and pressure within the data center. |
| US08180491B2 |
Systems and methods for solar affected environmental control
One embodiment of the present invention relates to a solar affected environmental control system. The system includes a set of input devices, a priority device, an output device, and a control module. The input devices measure environmental values such as temperature, light, environmentally generated water heat, and environmentally generated electricity. The priority device interfaces with a user to define a goal that corresponds to a hierarchy of environmental objectives. The output device is an adjustable solar module that has an affect on the environmental values. The control module is an electrical device that includes a mathematical algorithm configured to correlate the environmental values and the user-defined goal so as to generate a set of output device settings. The control module is electrically coupled to the output device to facilitate adjustment according to the output device settings, so as to affect the environmental values in a manner consistent with the goal. |
| US08180489B2 |
Communication system for a water softener system
A communication system for a water softener system that includes a controller configured for communicating with the water softener assembly and a remote display configured for sending and receiving at least one signal to and from the controller to a remote location. |
| US08180482B2 |
Method for producing a rotationally symmetric lens from a ceramic green body and moulding tool for performing the method
The method for producing at least one rotationally symmetrical lens consisting of an opto-ceramic includes the step of moulding a ceramic green body for the lens, wherein the mould has a shaping surface, which is described by the following equation B: y 1 = cz 2 1 + 1 - ( k + 1 ) c 2 z 2 + a 1 z 2 + a 2 z 4 + a 3 z 6 + a 4 z 8 + … , ( B ) y1 gives a position on an optical axis; x designates a perpendicular distance from the optical axis to the surface; k, c, and a1, a2, a3, a4, . . . are constants describing a surface of the lens to be moulded and z=|x|+b, wherein b is a constant with a value greater than 0 and less than 0.3 mm, which is a measure of a deviation of the shaping surface from the surface of the lens. |
| US08180476B2 |
Machining state checking method and machining state checking apparatus
The present invention provides a machining state checking apparatus and method for checking whether a workpiece mounted on a machine tool and a workpiece fixture are shifted. A machining state checking apparatus has an actual CCD camera for imaging a workpiece fixed on a machine tool and a workpiece fixture and generating actual two-dimensional image data thereof, a virtual image generating section for generating virtual two-dimensional image data of the workpiece and workpiece fixture based on data on three-dimensional models of the workpiece and workpiece fixture, a comparing section for comparing the actual two-dimensional image data and virtual two-dimensional image data generated by the actual CCD camera and the virtual image generating section, respectively, and determining whether they match each other by comparing the portions corresponding to the workpiece and workpiece fixture in the actual two-dimensional image and the virtual two-dimensional images of the workpiece and workpiece fixture. |
| US08180462B2 |
Heat dissipation for a lead assembly
A method, system, and apparatus are provided for using an electrode for delivering an electrical signal to a first tissue of a patient's body. An electrode system comprises a lead and an electrode coupled to the lead. The electrode includes a stimulation portion that couples to the first tissue to deliver an electrical signal to the first tissue. The electrode also includes a dissipation portion that does not interface with the first tissue. The dissipation portion is adapted to dissipate thermal energy from the electrode. |
| US08180455B2 |
Optimizing pitch allocation in a cochlear implant
Errors in pitch allocation within a cochlear implant are corrected in order to provide a significant and profound improvement in the quality of sound perceived by the cochlear implant user. The disclosure provides a tool for determining the implant fitting curve for cochlear implant system to correct pitch warping. The method presents familiar musical tunes to determine the implant fitting slope (relative alignment). In addition, in one embodiment, speech sounds may be used to determine the offset of the fitting line (absolute alignment). The use of music and speech to determine the implant fitting curve (line) and the slope is facilitated by using techniques to implement virtual electrodes to more precisely direct stimuli to the location or “place” on the cochlea. |
| US08180454B2 |
Fitting a neural prosthesis using impedance and electrode height
The invention is a method of automatically adjusting an electrode array to the neural characteristics of an individual subject. The response to electrical neural stimulation varies from subject to subject. Measure of impedance may be used to predict the electrode height from the neural tissue and, thereby, predict the threshold of perception. Alternatively, electrode height may be measured directly to predict the threshold of perception. Also, impedance measurement may be used to quickly identify defective electrodes and proper electrode placement. |
| US08180451B2 |
System and method for programming an implantable pulse generator
In one embodiment, a method of programming an IPG comprises providing one or several GUI screens on the programmer device, the GUI screens comprising a master amplitude GUI control for controlling amplitudes for stimsets of a stimulation program and one or several balancing GUI controls for controlling amplitudes of each stimset of the stimulation program; communicating one or several commands from the programmer device to the IPG to change the amplitude of all stimsets of the stimulation program in response to manipulation of the master amplitude GUI control, wherein the amplitude of each stimulation set is automatically calculated by a level selected through the master amplitude GUI control and one or several calibration parameters for the respective stimulation set; and automatically recalculating the one or several calibration parameters for a respective stimulation set in response to manipulation of one of the balancing GUI controls and storing the recalculated calibration parameters. |
| US08180450B2 |
Multi-chamber ventricular automatic capture method and apparatus for minimizing true and blanking period induced ventricular undersensing
An implantable cardiac stimulation device and associated method perform a true or blanking period ventricular undersensing detection algorithm in response to ventricular loss of capture not associated with fusion or a change in capture threshold. The test identifies an originating cause of loss of capture, which may be ventricular undersensing of intrinsic R-waves or premature ventricular contractions occurring during a ventricular blanking period or atrial undersensing of P-waves resulting in blanking period ventricular undersensing. A corrective action is taken to reduce the likelihood of blanking period ventricular undersensing by automatically adjusting device operating parameters. The corrective action may include automatic adjustment of atrial sensitivity, shortening of the ventricular blanking period, or adjustment of the base stimulation rate. Minimizing the blanking period ventricular undersensing improves device performance by avoiding back-up stimulation and minimizing the risk of pacemaker competition-induced arrhythmias. |
| US08180447B2 |
Method for reversible chemical modulation of neural activity
Methods and related systems for modulating neural activity by repetitively blocking conduction in peripheral neural structures with chemical blocking agents are disclosed. Methods and systems for reversing effects of chemical blocking agents and/or for producing substantially permanent conduction block are also disclosed. |
| US08180445B1 |
Use of interphase to incrementally adjust the volume of activated tissue
A neurostimulation system comprises one or more electrical contacts, output stimulation circuitry capable of outputting a multiphasic waveform (e.g., a biphasic waveform) to the electrical contact(s), and control circuitry capable of varying an interphase of the multiphasic stimulation waveform. The control circuitry may also be capable of varying an amplitude of the multiphasic waveform. In this case, the control circuitry may be capable of discretely varying the amplitude of the multiphasic stimulation energy in a plurality of low-resolution steps, and may further be capable of varying the interphase of the multiphasic stimulation energy between the low-resolution steps; for example, by discretely varying the interphase in a plurality of high-resolution steps between each adjacent pair of low-resolution steps. |
| US08180441B2 |
System and method for distinguishing among cardiac ischemia, hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia using an implantable medical device
Techniques are described for detecting ischemia, hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia based on intracardiac electrogram (IEGM) signals. Ischemia is detected based on a shortening of the interval between the QRS complex and the end of a T-wave (QTmax), alone or in combination with a change in ST segment elevation. Alternatively, ischemia is detected based on a change in ST segment elevation combined with minimal change in the interval between the QRS complex and the end of the T-wave (QTend). Hypoglycemia is detected based on a change in ST segment elevation along with a lengthening of either QTmax or QTend. Hyperglycemia is detected based on a change in ST segment elevation along with minimal change in QTmax and in QTend. By exploiting QTmax and QTend in combination with ST segment elevation, changes in ST segment elevation caused by hypo/hyperglycemia can be properly distinguished from changes caused by ischemia. |
| US08180438B2 |
Minimally invasive physiologic parameter recorder and introducer system
An implantable monitoring device includes a flexible lead body that includes at least one sensing element. The device also includes a rigid main body connected to the flexible lead body at an attachment point. The rigid main body is generally centered about a longitudinal axis defined by the flexible lead body when the lead body is unflexed. The device further includes a measurement circuit, which is housed within the rigid main body and electrically coupled to the at least one sensing element of the flexible lead body and at least another sensing element on an outside surface of the rigid main body. The measurement circuit is configured to measure a potential difference between the at least one sensing element of the flexible lead body and the at least another sensing element of the main body. |
| US08180435B2 |
Method and apparatus for determining target depth, brightness and size within a body region
A method of investigating the location and size of a light-emitting source in a subject is disclosed. In practicing the method, one first obtains a light intensity profile by measuring, from a first perspective with a photodetector device, photons which (i) originate from the light-emitting source, (ii) travel through turbid biological tissue of the subject, and (iii) are emitted from a first surface region of interest of the subject. The light-intensity profile is matched against with a parameter-based biophotonic function, to estimate function parameters such as depth and size. The parameters so determined are refined using data other than the first measured light intensity profile, to obtain an approximate depth and size of the source in the subject. Also disclosed is an apparatus for carrying out the method. |
| US08180433B2 |
Microwave system calibration apparatus, system and method of use
A microwave system calibration apparatus including an antenna portion configured to deliver microwave energy to tissue, a transmission line portion configured to receive a microwave energy signal from a microwave source and to selectively deliver the microwave energy signal to the antenna portion and a switching mechanism connected between the antenna portion and the transmission line portion. The transmission line includes an inner conductor having a length, an outer conductor concentrically surrounding the inner conductor along the length and a dielectric material separating the inner and outer conductors. The inner conductor or the outer conductor of the transmission line portion is electrically connected to the antenna. The switching mechanism is configured to electrically disconnect the transmission line portion from the antenna portion in a first condition and further configured to connect the inner conductor to the outer conductor in a second condition. |
| US08180432B2 |
Correlation model selection for internal target movement
A method and apparatus to select a correlation model from a plurality of correlation models to track target movement based on movement of an external marker. |
| US08180429B2 |
Instrumentation and method for mounting a surgical navigation reference device to a patient
Instrumentation and methods are provided for mounting a surgical navigation reference frame to a patient. In one embodiment, a trocar is positioned within a cannula to form an insertion device adapted for percutaneous introduction into the patient. A bone anchor having a bone engaging portion is inserted through the cannula for anchoring to bone. The bone anchor cooperates with the cannula to form a mounting device adapted for coupling with the surgical navigation reference frame. In a further embodiment, an image-guided surgical procedure is performed at a location remote from the anchoring location. In a specific embodiment, a minimally invasive surgical procedure is performed adjacent the spinal column, with a reference frame anchored to the pelvic bone, and more specifically to the iliac region of the pelvic bone. In another specific embodiment, a minimally invasive surgical procedure is performed adjacent the hip joint, with a first reference frame anchored to the pelvic bone, and more specifically to the iliac region of the pelvic bone, and with a second reference frame anchored to the femur. |
| US08180428B2 |
Methods and systems for use in selecting cardiac pacing sites
A method and system for use in selecting a cardiac pacing site includes sensors for tracking wall motion (e.g., sensors coupled to the right and left ventricular heart wall). The wall motion of one or more non-paced cardiac cycles is compared to the wall motion of one or more paced cardiac cycles to determine the effectiveness of one or more pacing sites. For example, image data may be generated to notify the user as to the effectiveness of the one or more pacing sites. |
| US08180427B2 |
Apparatus and method for non-invasively sensing pulse rate and blood flow anomalies
The present invention provides an apparatus and method for non-invasively sensing pulse rate and blood flow anomalies using a localized, uni-directional, and constant magnetic field. The apparatus comprises a magnetic source for producing the magnetic field, a signal acquisition module with a magnetic sensor for detecting the modulations of the magnetic field caused by the blood flow; and a signal processing module for processing the acquired signals so as to produce data of pulse rate and blood flow anomalies. The method senses pulse rate and blood flow anomalies by providing a localized, uni-directional, and constant magnetic field in proximity to a blood vessel; detecting the variations of the magnetic field caused by the flow of pulsatile blood within the blood vessel; and processing the signals of the detected variations so as to monitor the blood flow. |
| US08180424B2 |
Catheter having a force sensing distal tip
A mapping and ablation catheter with contact force sensing capabilities at a distal end, includes a catheter body, a deflectable section, and a tip distal section which has a tip electrode and a contact force sensor for sensing a 3D contact force vector applied to the tip electrode. In contact with the tip electrode, the contact force sensor has a body and has at least one sensor with an electrical characteristic that is responsive to deformation of the body resulting from force vector. The sensor is adapted to receive an electrical current and to output an electrical signal indicative of a change in the electrical characteristic. In one embodiment, the sensor is a strain gage responsive to tension and compression of at least a portion of the body of the force sensor and the electrical characteristic of the strain gage that is monitored is electrical resistivity. In another embodiment, the sensor is responsive to strain and stress of at least a portion of the body, and the electrical characteristic being monitored is inductance or hysteresis loss. |
| US08180422B2 |
Non-invasive system and method for measuring an analyte in the body
A system for determining an analyte concentration in a fluid sample (e.g., glucose) comprises a light source, a detector, and a central processing unit. The detector is adapted to receive spectral information corresponding to light returned from the fluid sample being analyzed and to convert the received spectral information into an electrical signal indicative of the received spectral information. The central processing unit is adapted to compare the electrical signal to an algorithm built upon correlation with the analyte in body fluid. The algorithm is adapted to convert the received spectral information into the analyte concentration in body fluid. Spectral information is delivered from the central processing unit to the light source and used to vary the intensity and timing of the light to improve the accuracy of conversion into analyte concentration. |
| US08180415B2 |
Water-shielding type mobile terminal apparatus
The mobile terminal apparatus of the present invention includes a housing having an opening section in which an accommodated object is fitted; a lid covering the opening section, the lid having a protrusion which surrounds the opening section and shields the accommodated object from water, on a surface facing the accommodated object; and a cover covering the lid, the cover being attached to the housing to press the lid onto the housing. When the cover is attached to the housing, the protrusion of the lid surrounds the opening section and is pressed onto the housing by the cover, so that the accommodated object can be reliably shielded from water. |
| US08180414B2 |
Portable radio device
There is adopted an enclosure dipole antenna structure including antenna elements respectively provided in a lower enclosure and an upper enclosure. There is also adopted a structure in which the lower structure and the upper structure are rotatably joined together along two axes of hinges. The enclosures thereby become openable and closable in two directions including a vertical direction and a horizontal direction. There can be implemented high antenna performance without use of an external antenna even regardless of whether the enclosures are opened in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. A feeding section and a connection section are separated from each other by a distance of 1/20 or more of a wavelength corresponding to an operating frequency. Power can well be fed to the antenna elements. |
| US08180406B2 |
Systems and methods of synchronizing ring tone cycles and delivery of DTMF tones
Mobile devices use a PBX and application servers associated with the PBX to access voice services. Some mobile devices can support simultaneous data and voice channels, with the PBX and application server respectively. Where a data channel is unavailable, a control and status updating mechanism is needed. One approach is to signal over the voice channel with DTMF tones. DTMF tones should be timed to cause the tones to arrive at the mobile device during a pause period of a ring cycle. However, it also is desirable to avoid unnaturally long silence periods or other pauses during system usage. Aspects relate to enhancing a user experience in these situations and successful transmission/reception of control and status information over a voice channel using DTMF tones. |
| US08180401B2 |
Method and apparatus for providing a card application toolkit command for reporting terminal environmental information
An apparatus for providing a card application toolkit command for reporting terminal environmental information may include at least one processor and at least one memory storing computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus or another apparatus to perform at least providing a command associated with a card application toolkit, from a user identity module of a mobile terminal, to direct the mobile terminal to provide environmental condition information to the user identity module, receiving the environmental condition information via a response to the command, and performing a function with respect to the environmental condition information. |
| US08180397B2 |
Mobile communications device accessory identification system, an improved accessory for use with a mobile communications device, and a method of identifying same
An identification system includes a mobile communications device and an accessory having a connection plug with a conical tip. An insulating ring extends about the conical tip portion to define a tip detection contact. The device includes a tip detection pin positioned adjacent to an interior end portion of a connection socket on the device. The tip detection pin engages the tip detection contact to enable identification of the accessory by the mobile communications device. An improved accessory is for use with a mobile communications device. A method identifies an accessory which has its connection plug inserted into a socket on a mobile communications device. |
| US08180394B2 |
Wireless terminal having an extending layer body
A wireless terminal in a wireless communication field is provided, which not only includes a top layer body and a bottom layer body, but also includes at least one extending layer body to provide an extending function. The extending layer body is connected in a stacked way to the top layer body or the bottom layer body. The extending function of the wireless terminal is realized through the extending layer body, so that the wireless terminal has powerful capabilities of extending and combining the functions. |
| US08180393B2 |
Method and system for location-based restriction on application of cellular-PBX integration service
A method and system for using location of a cellular wireless communication device (WCD) as a basis to restrict application of a cellular-PBX integration service. In one embodiment, a radio access network (RAN) serving the WCD receives a call request for the WCD, and, based on the WCD's location, a determination is made as to whether the call should be set up to an IP PBX server that serves the WCD, to allow the IP PBX server to handle the call. In another embodiment, an IP PBX server serving a WCD receives a call request and responsively signals to a call session control function (CSCF), and the CSCF or a policy server decides based on the WCD's location whether the call should be set up to the RAN that serves the WCD, to allow the RAN to handle the call. |
| US08180392B2 |
Wireless communication device and signal detection circuit
A wireless communication device that includes a wireless communication unit that performs a wireless communication in a first mode using a first frequency band serving as a first communication channel, and performs the wireless communication in a second mode using a second frequency band including the first communication channel and a second communication channel that is adjacent to the first communication channel. Also included is a detection unit that monitors each of the first frequency band and the second frequency band, outputs a first detection signal when an interference signal is detected in the first frequency band and outputs a second detection signal when the interference signal is detected in the second frequency band. Further included is a determination unit that determines whether the interference signal is in the first communication channel or in the second communication channel based on the first and second detection signals. |
| US08180390B2 |
Mobile communication terminal, mobile communication managing apparatus, mobile communication system, computer readable medium for mobile communication and mobile communication method
It is an object of the invention to realize effective communication by a mobile communication terminal having a plurality of communication interfaces.When transmitting data, a mobile communication terminal (100) selects a communication interface (102). The mobile communication terminal (100) transmits the data via a communication network (108) corresponding to the selected communication interface (102) to a mobile communication managing apparatus (200). The mobile communication managing apparatus (200) transfers the data to a communication apparatus (500). The mobile communication terminal (100) assigns a terminal identification address for uniquely identifying the mobile communication terminal (100) and a communication interface identification address for identifying the communication interface (102) that is valid in the communication network (108) to the transmission data. |
| US08180385B2 |
Intelligent adaptive re-coding for improved communications resource utilization
System(s) and method(s) that, periodically or when dynamically triggered, adapt data rates associated with user equipment (UE) in a network are presented. When the UE uses an application or a service, data traffic associated with the UE is inspected to obtain information relating to the application or service, which is used to determine an application/service margin. Current and historical information relating to communication conditions associated with the UE and an associated user is obtained to facilitate determining expected values of Quality-of-Service factors and communication condition metrics associated with the UE and thereby a volatility margin. For each adaptation time interval, the data rate can be adapted by determining a preliminary data rate and adjusting the preliminary data rate using the application/service margin and volatility margin to obtain the adapted data rate to be used for data communications between a node and the UE in the network. |
| US08180377B2 |
Method for capturing real-time video and audio data at specific location
A method for capturing real-time video and audio data at a specific location is provided. A real-time video and audio data of people, objects and landscapes at a specific location may be obtained at any time and place. A user needing real-time video and audio data of objects, people and landscapes at a specific location access a specific website and then inputs his/her requests. By the website, these requests are transmitted to a mainframe platform of the telecommunication companies which have signed an agreement with a company of the website and telecommunication companies select and match video mobile phone users for providing the services to users. |
| US08180370B2 |
Mobile terminal and method of display position on map thereof
A method of controlling a mobile terminal, and which includes displaying contents in a first region of a display on the mobile terminal, deriving position information from the contents displayed in the first region, and displaying a map including a position corresponding to the derived position information in a second region of the display on the mobile terminal. |
| US08180368B2 |
Femto-cell location by direct methods
Illustrative embodiments of the inventive subject matter described herein include, but are not limited to, the following: a femto-cell device, methods for use by a wireless location system (WLS) in locating a femto-cell device, and a wireless location system having certain features relating to the location of femto-cell devices. A femto-cell device used in a wireless communications system (WCS) includes a location subsystem configured to acquire information identifying the geographic location of the femto-cell device. The device also includes an antenna subsystem, a radio frequency (RF) block coupled to the antenna subsystem, a baseband block coupled to the RF block, and a communications block coupled to the baseband block. In addition, the device is configured to communicate with the WCS, including communicating at least some of the location information to the WCS. |
| US08180367B2 |
Cluster-based fingerprinting algorithms
Methods and apparatus to provide cluster-based fingerprinting algorithms are described. In one embodiment, m closest fingerprints from k fingerprints are determined. The k fingerprints may be determined as closest fingerprints to a scan s in a signal strength domain, where the scan s is of an environment surrounding a wireless device. The center of mass of the m fingerprints may be used to determine a location estimation for the wireless device. Other embodiments are also described. |
| US08180365B2 |
Method and apparatus for identifying a geographic area having undesirable wireless service
A method and apparatus for identifying a geographic area having undesirable wireless service is described. The method includes, collecting Radio frequency (RF) environment information of the wireless service. The method further includes, determining locations of a plurality of subscriber units based on the RF environment information. Further, the method includes, processing the RF environment information and the locations of the plurality of subscriber units to identify the geographic area having the undesirable wireless service. |
| US08180364B2 |
Mobile valet
Enhanced delivery of services are provided through a wireless mobile device and one or more location service channels, preferably at the direction of the user of the mobile device requesting the desired service through common context-based user interfaces. The mobile device communicates with local and remote service providers. The context is determined by accessing information in the user profile, by sensors on the mobile device identifying items of interest, or by identifying the location of the mobile device. An aggregator server maintains a registry of location service channels and manages the access to the channels by the mobile device users and the service providers. |
| US08180363B2 |
Communication apparatus preventing communication interference
A game apparatus according to a preferred embodiment includes a first wireless communication module and a second wireless communication module. The first wireless communication module performs communication utilizing Bluetooth protocols, whereas the second wireless communication module performs communication utilizing IEEE protocols. The first radio communication module and the second radio module have a common reference communication cycle, and each communicates in communication cycles of an integral multiple of the reference communication cycle. A control unit sets offset time between the start time of a communication by the first wireless communication module until the start time of a communication by the second wireless communication module. In so doing, the control unit monitors the communication load of the first wireless communication module and sets the offset time based on a monitored result. |
| US08180360B2 |
Downlink traffic channel resource allocation method and data transmission method for multi-carrier HSDPA
The present invention discloses a method of allocating downlink traffic channel resources for multi-carrier HSDPA, and the method includes: first of all, selecting a carrier with the optimum channel condition; determining whether the carrier meets the resource allocation demand of a downlink traffic channel, if yes, allocating resources that meet the downlink traffic channel on the carrier; otherwise, allocating the available resources of the carrier to the downlink traffic channel, and selecting a carrier with the optimum channel condition from the remaining carriers for resource allocation according to the remaining resource allocation demand of the downlink traffic channel. The present invention provides, according to the transmission characteristic of the existing HSDPA multi-carrier, a method for allocating downlink traffic channel resources, which method is applicable for packet data transmission of the multi-carrier HSDPA. |
| US08180359B2 |
Data transmission method, system, base station and subscriber station, a data processing unit, computer program product, computer program distribution medium and baseband module
A data transmission method in a communication system including transmitting at least one capacity request message from a subscriber station, granting capacity subscriber station-specific by a base station, transmitting at least one capacity grant message from the base station, allocating granted capacity connection-specific by the subscriber station, transmitting from the subscriber station at least one message, which includes information on previous capacity requests, transmitting data from the subscriber station according to capacity allocation, monitoring by the base station request messages, capacity grant messages and received transmissions. |
| US08180358B2 |
Joining a session in a communication network supporting multimedia group calls
An apparatus and method for establishing a session in a communication network supporting multimedia group calls. A first step (202) includes determining streams for a multimedia group call by the service entity. A next step (204) includes providing an indicator of the resources required for at least one stream of the group call by the service entity. A next step (206) includes paging the subscriber unit with the indicator for the at least one stream of the group call by the service entity. A next step (208) includes ascertaining the capabilities and resources of the subscriber unit. A next step (210) includes establishing a channel for only those streams of the group call for which the capabilities and resources of the subscriber unit are sufficient with respect to the indicator for those streams. |
| US08180357B2 |
Frequency band class control for a wireless communication device
A wireless access node provides a wireless communication service to a plurality of wireless communication devices over a first frequency band class, where a set of the wireless communication devices are currently in idle mode. A node control system detects a condition for the first frequency band class, and in response, transitions a subset of the wireless communication devices that are currently in idle mode to a second frequency band class. The wireless access node then provides the wireless communication service to the subset of the wireless communication devices over the second frequency band class. |
| US08180353B2 |
Routing method and system for mobile ad-hoc network
A routing method and system for a mobile ad-hoc network is provided for efficiently routing a packet by quickly updating topology information shared by nodes adaptively to variation of the network topology while minimizing generation of redundant traffic. The routing method includes setting, at each current node, a self-potential value to a destination node upon receiving a route recovery request; and transmitting, when a transmission packet is destined to the destination node, the packet through a route established with at least one node in a descending order of potential value. The present invention reduces the redundant traffic dramatically, thereby improving the entire network throughput. |
| US08180352B2 |
Topology controlled discovery for next hop determination
In a particular embodiment of the present invention, a particular node in an ad hoc network is configured with a desirable number of neighbor nodes and equipped with a transmission power level hierarchy. The particular node may adjust a transmission power level to a different level in the transmission power level hierarchy, based on a number of responses received from neighbor nodes after the particular node broadcasts a request at current transmission power level. This adjustment process is repeated until the particular node acquires a desirable number of neighbor nodes. |
| US08180350B2 |
System and method of controlling code division multiple access registration on a multi-technology handset
Embodiments of the present invention are directed to controlling CDMA registration on a multi-technology handset. By controlling CDMA registration on a multi-technology handset, efficient handoffs between different technologies can occur. In one embodiment, the multi-technology handset operates using CDMA and at least one second technology. The second technology can be wireless fidelity (WiFi) or worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), for example. The multi-technology handset includes at least a dual mode controller (DMC), a CDMA controller, a second technology controller, as well as radios for the CDMA and the second technology. |
| US08180347B2 |
Domain transferring method for single radio voice call continuity
A domain transferring method for the single radio voice call continuity, a UE accesses via an LTE/SAE network, and sets up an IMS session anchored at a VCC AS with a remote node; when an S-IWF receives a handover request used to transfer the session to make the session access from a CS domain, the method comprises: the LTE/SAE network sends a handover command to the UE, the UE sends a handover complete message to a target access device after receiving the handover command; after the UE sends the handover complete message, or after the S-IWF receives the handover complete message, a release session notification message is sent to a VCC AS; after receiving the session release notification message, the VCC AS releases the session resources of the session. |
| US08180339B2 |
Method and apparatus for transferring network management information to wireless nodes
Methods, apparatuses and systems directed to providing network management information to wireless access points in a wireless network. In one implementation, a wireless client interrogates a wireless access point for its MAC address, for service set identifier (SSID) information, and/or for authentication-related information. If the wireless client determines that the wireless access point is the correct wireless access point, the wireless client polls sensors for physical environment and parameter (PEP) data, which the wireless client then transmits to the wireless access point. |
| US08180337B2 |
Method of activating a device
A method of activating a device involves establishing communication between the device and another device and receiving, at the other device, a message including activation information from a third party facility. The activation information includes a header and a mobile dialing number. The method further includes using the header to identify the message as an activation message for the device and, via the device, retrieving the identified message from the other device. The mobile dialing number is stored in a memory associated with the device, where the mobile dialing number enables the third party facility to initiate communication with the device. |
| US08180335B2 |
System information modification notification and detection in wireless communications
Systems and methodologies are described that facilitate notifying and detecting system information block (SIB) modification in subsequent modification periods. Access points can advertise information in a current SIB indicating a subsequent modification period in which the SIB will be modified. Devices can receive the SIB and process the information to determine whether the SIB will be modified and in which modification period. This mitigates undesirable affects of utilizing paging to indicate SIB modification since devices read the SIB upon entering a cell, switching from active to idle mode, etc. |
| US08180332B2 |
System for targeting advertising content to a plurality of mobile communication facilities
A system for targeting advertising content includes the steps of: (a) receiving respective requests for advertising content corresponding to a plurality of mobile communication facilities operated by a group of users, wherein the plurality includes first and second types of mobile communication facilities with different rendering capabilities; (b) receiving a datum corresponding to the group; (c) selecting from a first and second sponsor respective content based on a relevancy to the datum, wherein each content includes a first and second item requiring respective rendering capabilities; (d) receiving bids from the first and second sponsors; (e) attributing a priority to the content of the first sponsor based upon a determination that a yield associated with the first sponsor is greater than a yield associated with the second sponsor; and (f) transmitting the first and second items of the first sponsor to the first and second types of mobile communication facilities respectively. |
| US08180331B2 |
System and method for in-band modem to modem communication
Systems, methods and programmed instructions are disclosed useful for transmitting signals representing data messages to and from a wireless handheld telephony device along a first call leg of a communication session previously established between the wireless handheld telephony device and at least one second telephony device, the communication session being controlled by a call control server. |
| US08180329B2 |
Method and system for determining popularity of an enterprise and associating a ranking factor based on popularity with contact information for the enterprise stored locally on a communication device
Electronic interaction with an enterprise is tracked and used to determine the popularity of the enterprise. A ranking factor is determined for each enterprise from the popularity and associated with contact information for the enterprise. The ranking factor is transmitted to a communication device containing the contact information wherein the ranking factor is associated with the contact information. The ranking factor may be used to sort the enterprises having contact information stored on the communication device in response to a user-initiated search query. |
| US08180325B2 |
Terminal unit, device unit, illicit use prevention system, method and program
To provide the safety of preventing the illicit use of others by using a state as to whether or not the essential function of the device is not in use in locking the terminal to prohibit the use. A user terminal 10 makes a determination whether or not a device unit 20 is in a use state, the terminal unit 10 is locked after a predetermined second time from a last operation signal from the device unit 20, if the device unit 20 is not in use, irrespective of the network connection. |
| US08180321B2 |
Recovery of lost revenue in prepaid calls
A method and system for processing a prepaid call in a mobile telecommunications network wherein charges can be recovered for the call after the SCP and Prepaid Platform lose contact with the MSC or GMSC handling the call. A Trigger Detection Point known as “O-Disconnect” or “T-Disconnect” can be armed in a prepaid subscriber's HLR and can be triggered when the MSC/GMSC loses contact with the SCP. The MSC/GMSC can record the time that the TDP was triggered in memory. The MSC/GMSC can then monitor for call disconnect and record the disconnection time in memory. When the call is disconnected the MSC/GMSC can renew contact with the SCP. MSC/GMSC can identify the call using a unique call identifier and advise the SCP of the times at which contact was lost and the call was disconnected. The SCP can use this information to calculate a charge for the portion of the call that occurred after contact with the MSC/GMSC was lost so that the entire call can be charged in near real-time. |
| US08180319B2 |
Remotely activatable locator system and method
A method for locating an entity attached to a locator device. The method comprises of receiving, at the locator device, a message over a cellular network; and responsive to receiving the message, automatically initiating a call over the cellular network to enable a party answering the call to determine a location of the locator device. |
| US08180317B2 |
Portable telephone
A technique to notify an emergency center of the position of a caller making an emergency call using a portable terminal equipped with a position information acquiring function is provided such that reliable and accurate notification of position information is performed in cases of emergency. Upon entry of an emergency call instruction on the portable terminal, a detailed positioning/notifying operation is initiated separately from an outgoing call operation. Even after the call is completed, the positioning operation is prohibited from interruption or termination until the positioning/notifying operation is completed. According to additional features of the invention, if the detailed positioning/notifying operation determines that the current area is not GPS-enabled, a charge wave is outputted and a notification of position information provided by an IC tag is given. Furthermore, if the portable terminal gets out of communication range before completion of the positioning/notifying operation, the positioning/notifying operation is maintained. |
| US08180308B1 |
Apparatus and methods for detection of interface in radio-frequency devices
A communication apparatus includes a radio frequency (RF) apparatus. The RF apparatus includes an amplifier, and a signal detection circuit. The amplifier receives RF signals and amplifies those signals. The amplifier has an adjustable gain value. The signal detection circuit detects whether a received signal is an out-of-band radar signal depending on the gain value of the amplifier and a characteristic of the received signal. |
| US08180306B2 |
VSWR compensation circuits for RF transmit chain
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for compensating the output of a transmitter stage (50) of a communications system. A communications apparatus has a transmitter stage (50) providing a variable control voltage which varies the power of the transmitter stage. The impedance at the output of the transmitter stage. (50) varies as the power varies. A control generation circuit compares a reference voltage to the variable control voltage to produce a control signal (VvswrC). A compensated load (40) coupled to the output of the transmitter stage (50) has active component (s) whose' impedance varies in response to the control signal (VvsweC) so as to compensate for the impedance at the output of the transmitter stage (50). |
| US08180305B2 |
Communication apparatus, communication system, and communication method
There is provided a communication apparatus including a reference electrode; a signal electrode which electrostatically couples to a communication medium; a measurement unit for measuring an impedance of a circuit system including between the reference electrode and the signal electrode; and a transmission processing unit for creating a potential difference between the signal electrode and the reference electrode based on a transmission power corresponding to the impedance of the circuit system measured by the measurement unit, and transmitting a signal to another communication apparatus electrostatically coupled to the communication medium. |
| US08180302B2 |
Polar modulator with signed amplitude reducing phase transitions
A polar modulator including a signal converter configured to provide a phase signal and an amplitude signal based on at least one received signal is disclosed. A digital-to-analog converter is coupled to the signal converter, the digital-to-analog converter configured to receive an augmented signal, wherein a polarity of the augmented signal is selected to minimize an absolute phase change for sequential signals. A signal mixer is coupled to the digital-to-analog converter to receive an analog signal generated from the augmented signal. |
| US08180301B2 |
System and method for encoding and decoding information signals using a priori information
A system and method for coding and decoding an information signal sent through a communication system. The system includes: an encoder for encoding the information signal without adding additional information and for sending an encoded information signal; and a soft bit decoder including a-priori information related to the communication system for receiving the encoded information signal and decoding the encoded information signal using the a-priori information. |
| US08180295B2 |
Bluetooth enabled computing system and associated methods
A host device is provided to include a processor, a memory, and a peripheral device communication port. The processor and the memory are defined to collectively execute a computer application. The host device is defined to establish a communication channel for a datastream associated with the computer application as transmitted through the peripheral device communication port. A bluetooth host chip is connected within the host device to enable bluetooth communication with a bluetooth client chip in an external device outside the host device. The host device is further defined to enable connection of the bluetooth client chip to the communication channel for the datastream, such that the datastream can be monitored by the external device. |
| US08180294B2 |
Dynamic networking modes method and apparatus
A portable electronic device is disclosed. The portable electronic device includes a wireless transceiver, a processor coupled to the wireless transceiver, a memory coupled to the processor and a program stored in the memory and running on the processor. The program provides automatic transitioning between a wireless infrastructure communication mode to an ad-hoc communication mode. The infrastructure mode is used when a request from a mobile device is received to access a communications network. The ad-hoc mode is used when a request from the mobile device is received to access resources on the portable electronic device. |
| US08180292B2 |
Mobile communication device
A mobile communication device for communicating a radio communication device associated with a radio transmitter. The mobile communication device includes a short-range radio communication unit configured to transmit a requirement signal for short-range radio communication connection to the radio communication device, and configured to receive a signal from the radio communication device for short-range radio communication connection. The mobile communication device includes a memory configured to store a data, the data needed to transmit the requirement signal. The mobile communication device includes a controller coupled to the short-range radio communication unit and the memory, and configured to wait for the signal from the radio communication device if the short-range radio communication unit tries to transmit the requirement signal to the radio communication device, and if a connection between the mobile communication device and the radio communication device has failed. |
| US08180291B2 |
Power-scavenging receiver to generate a signal to be used to control operational state
Methods and apparatuses for selectively powering an electronic device based on signals from a power-scavenging receiver circuit. |
| US08180290B2 |
Wireless communication method for preventing communication interference and cut-off in one-to-multi wireless communication
A wireless communication method capable of preventing communication interference and cut-off in one-to-multi wireless communication. The wireless communication method has the steps of: determining as to whether communication parameters satisfy a precondition for communication before a master device communicates with a slave device in a corresponding mode, the communication parameters being required for the slave devices to communicate with the master device, the precondition being that the slave devices should communicate with the master device without overlapping of communication time thereof; controlling the communication of the slave devices according to the corresponding mode by differently setting operation information of the slave devices according to the corresponding mode, when determining that the communication parameters satisfy the precondition for communication; and maintaining a connection between the slave device and the master device until the communication completes, when the time of operation of the slave devices ends due to the corresponding mode shift when the communication is not completed between the master device and the slave device. Accordingly, the interference and cut-off of communication with the slave devices of different communication times and cycles in corresponding mode can be prevented. |
| US08180286B2 |
Wireless power and communication system
The present invention provides a wireless communication apparatus including: a communication processing unit that transmits and receives a radio signal; a wireless power transmitting unit that supplies power wirelessly to an apparatus located within a power supplyable range; a location data obtaining unit that obtains location data of a power receiver apparatus; and a control unit that controls a power supply to the power receiver apparatus based on the location data of the power receiver apparatus obtained by the location data obtaining unit. |
| US08180285B2 |
Millimeter wave near field communication device
A device includes a processing module, a millimeter wave (MMW) oscillation module, a MMW beamforming module, and a plurality of amplifiers. The processing module determines activation of the device and thereafter modulates data to produce modulated data, determines a beamforming setting, and establishes a transmit power setting. The MMW oscillation module generates a modulated MMW signal based on the modulated data. The MMW beamforming module converts the modulated MMW signal into a plurality of MMW beamformed signals based on the beamforming setting. The plurality of amplifiers amplifies the plurality of MMW beamformed signals in accordance with the transmit power setting to produce a MMW near field transmission. |
| US08180282B2 |
System and method for controlling power in a communication system
A method and system for controlling power in a communication system are provided, in which an relay station calculates the capacity of a first channel between a base station and the relay station, an mobile station calculates the capacity of a second channel between the relay station and the mobile station, the mobile station notifies the relay station of the capacity of the second channel, and the relay station calculates a power control value according to the capacity of the first channel and the capacity of the second channel. |
| US08180280B2 |
Techniques for tracking destinations on a mobile computing device
Systems and techniques for tracking destinations on a mobile computing device are described. A mobile computing device may comprise or implement hardware or software configured to determine arrival at a destination and what is situated at the destination. A vehicle based communication device may communicate with the mobile computing device by way of a short range wireless communication system. The mobile computing device or the vehicle based communication device may establish a location-based service (LBS) communications session and store a description of a location associated with the destination when the mobile computing device and the vehicle based communication device reach the destination. |
| US08180279B2 |
Wireless hotspot arrangement
A hot spot system for permitting wireless communication for a wide variety of various manufacturers different wireless personal communication devices in an rf restricted environment, wherein the different wireless personal communication devices each have a radiative antenna, and wherein the hot spot system is arranged to permit wireless, controlled communication between a wide variety of various manufacturers of different personal communication devices located within the rf restricted environment and other communication devices located outside of the rf restricted environment. |
| US08180277B2 |
Smartphone for interactive radio
A mobile device (31) capable of processing radio broadcast signals (36) is described. Broadcast radio signals (36) are received by said mobile device (31) and converted to desired digital audio content format (52) and then combined with output of software applications (54) running at said mobile device (31) to create a combined radio broadcast signal (55) that can be received by a automobile broadcast radio receiver (83). Said radio broadcast signal (55) is transmitted to a automobile broadcast radio receiver (83) to enable a user to interact with audio content using software applications (54) of said mobile device (31). Transmission of combined radio broadcast signal (56) is done on a different radio broadcast frequency with low power signal. |
| US08180272B2 |
Movable trail edge sensor for duplex registration
A print device for registering a printable medium during a duplex printing process. The print device includes a controller, at least one leading edge sensor operably connected to the controller, the at least one leading edge sensor configured to detect a leading edge of a printable medium having a first and a second side when the first side is facing away from the at least one leading edge sensor, a coarse registration sensor operably connected to the controller, the coarse registration sensor configured to detect a leading edge of the printable medium when the second side of the printable medium is facing away from the at least one leading edge sensor, and at least one trail edge sensor operably connected to the controller, the at least one trail edge sensor configured to detect a trailing edge of the printable medium. |
| US08180270B2 |
Image forming apparatus for controlling glossiness of an image
An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit and a re-heating unit. The fixing unit fixes a toner image on a recording medium by applying heat to the toner image with a first glossiness level. The re-heating unit re-heats the toner image, fixed on the recording medium by the fixing unit, to set a second glossiness level lower than the first glossiness level. |
| US08180265B2 |
Image forming apparatus
An image forming apparatus includes a belt member, a toner image forming device, a stretching member for stretching the belt member, and a transfer member for transferring a toner image onto a recording material. The image forming apparatus also includes a fur brush for electrostatically cleaning the transfer member, a controller for controlling an electric field formed between the transfer member and the stretching member, and an executing portion for executing an ejecting operation for forming a second toner image in the form of a band which is not transferred onto the recording material. When the executing portion executes the ejecting operation, and the second toner image passes through the transfer portion, the controller forms an electric field having an absolute value which is smaller than an electric field for transferring the first toner image onto the recording material, and the fur brush electrostatically cleans said transfer member. |
| US08180262B2 |
Process cartridge, developer supply cartridge and electrophotographic image forming apparatus
A process cartridge comprises an electrophotographic photosensitive drum and a developing roller for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive drum with developer. The cartridge further comprises a receiving side developer accommodating portion, a developer receiving opening, a receiving side shutter portion, a receiving side rotatable portion, and a regulating member. When the regulating member takes a regulating position and a first receiving side operating portion takes an operating position, the regulating member engages with the first receiving side operating portion. When the regulating member takes the regulating position and a second receiving side operating portion takes the operating position, the regulating member engages with the second receiving side operating portion. |
| US08180255B2 |
Rotation member unit and image forming apparatus
A rotation member unit detachable from a casing includes a rotation member for rotating when driven, and plural drive introduction members arranged at both ends of the rotation member in a rotation axial direction of the rotation member, respectively. The drive introduction member engages with a drive transmission member rotated by a motor. |
| US08180253B2 |
Image forming apparatus collecting and distributing untransferred developer
An electrophotographic image forming apparatus has an electrostatic latent image bearing members, developing devices each including developer and capable of developing corresponding electrostatic latent images on the electrostatic latent image bearing members into visualized developer images, a transfer device capable of transferring the developer images to a sheet, first collecting devices each capable of collecting untransferred developer from the electrostatic latent image bearing members, developer supply devices each capable of supplying the developer to the corresponding developing devices, accommodating sections each combined with the corresponding developer supply devices and capable of accommodating the untransferred developer, a collecting and distributing device capable of collecting the untransferred developer collected by the first collecting devices and distributing the collected untransferred developer to the accommodating sections, and a housing capable of retaining the developer supply devices so that each of the developer supply devices is releasable together with the corresponding accommodating section from the housing. |
| US08180247B2 |
Image forming apparatus for transferring transfer residual toner onto image bearing member
There is a charge member which charges secondary transfer remaining toner on an intermediate transfer member to a polarity opposite to a normal charge polarity. The transfer remaining toner charged by the charge member is moved in the direction opposite to that of normal toner by a transfer bias and moved from the intermediate transfer member onto an image bearing member. A BK station is arranged on the downstream of other stations. In a continuous BK monochromatic mode, by applying a reverse bias to transfer portions of the other stations and applying the transfer bias only to the BK station, waste toner can be collected into the BK station (simultaneously with the transfer). In a full-color mode, since each transfer bias is applied to all stations, the waste toner is collected into the station on the uppermost stream. Thus, the image bearing member for collecting the transfer remaining toner on the intermediate transfer member is made different according to the mode, thereby suppressing that the collection of the waste toner is concentrated on one image bearing member. |
| US08180235B2 |
Image forming apparatus
An image forming apparatus has a control unit that outputs the state of a belt member on the basis of the result of detection by a toner image detecting unit, of a toner image formed by a developing unit in a charged region of an image bearing member charged by applying a voltage to a transfer unit without charging the image bearing member using a charging unit. |
| US08180234B2 |
Image forming apparatus with control causing issuance of predetermined information based on sheet information
An image forming apparatus has an informing portion that issues information; a storing portion that stores sheets; a sheet detecting portion that detects presence or absence of the sheets in the storing portion; a determination portion that determines a type of the sheets stored in the storing portion; and a control portion that causes the informing portion to issue a predetermined information in a case where the absence of the sheets is undetected by the sheet detecting portion and a change of the type of the sheets is determined by the determination portion. |
| US08180233B2 |
Cooling device for cooling the inside of an image forming apparatus by a fan and image forming apparatus having the cooling device
A cooling device that cools the inside of an image forming apparatus provided with a developer carrier that carries an image developed with a developer while being rotated. The cooling device includes: a counting unit that counts an accumulative number of rotation of the developer carrier; and a fan that cools the inside of the image forming apparatus. The cooling device further includes: a calculating unit that calculates an abrasion amount of the developer carrier in which the accumulative number of rotation counted by the counting unit is used as at least one variable; and a controlling unit that actuates the fan with cooling efficiency according to the abrasion amount calculated by the calculating unit. |
| US08180231B1 |
Testing transfer nips of printing devices using transfer field uniformity maps
A method and apparatus can, while operating a printing device in a test mode, supply a changed transfer field to a marking material transfer device. The changed transfer field is less than or more than the standard transfer field. The method and apparatus disable operations of other marking material transfer devices of the printing device to isolate the marking material transfer device. Further, the method and apparatus compare the actual amount and/or spatial distribution of marking material transferred to a recipient surface (to which the first marking material transfer device transfers the marking material) against a predetermined standard. Then, if the actual amount of marking material transferred to the recipient surface is different than the predetermined standard, the method and apparatus can identify the first marking material transfer device as being a potential source of printing defects. |
| US08180222B2 |
Point-to-multipoint high data rate delivery from optical node in HFC systems over existing and advanced coaxial networks
Transmitting and receiving data includes a process of transferring data over a coaxial network between an optical node and a plurality of cable modems of a hybrid fiber-coaxial cable network. A data transfer system which sends and receives data over a coaxial network located at an optical node of a hybrid fiber-coaxial cable network. |
| US08180217B2 |
Method for coordinating measurements and calibrations in a passive optical network
Method for coordinating measurements and calibrations in a passive optical network, PON, in particular in a Gigabit PON, the method comprising: generating, in an optical line termination (3), OLT, a downstream frame (25), transmitting the downstream frame (25) from the OLT to a plurality of optical network terminations (6.1 to 6.n), ONTs, the downstream frame (25) comprising at least one allocation structure (10) for allocating to at least one targeted ONT (6.1 to 6.n) a time slot for transmitting upstream data, the allocation structure (10) indicating that the type of upstream data to be transmitted during the allocated time slot is measurement data (26) or calibration data. |
| US08180215B2 |
Vibrating device and image equipment having the same
A vibrating device includes a drive unit configured to drive a vibrating member to produce vibration Z (x, y) at a dust-screening member, the vibration being expressed as follows: Z(x,y)=Wmn(x,y)·cos(γ)+Wnm(x,y)·sin(γ) where Z (x, y) is vibration at a given point P (x, y) on the dust-screening member, m and n are positive integers including 0, indicating the order of natural vibration corresponding to a vibrational mode, W mn ( x , y ) = sin ( n π · x + π 2 ) · sin ( m π · y + π 2 ) , W n m ( x , y ) = sin ( m π · x + π 2 ) · sin ( n π · y + π 2 ) , and γ is +π/4 or ranges from −π/8 to −π/4. A ratio between a first bending rigidity along the X-axis of at least the dust-screening member and vibrating member in the section orthogonal to the X-axis at the intersection of the X- and Y-axes, to a second bending rigidity along the Y-axis of at least the dust-screening member and vibrating member in the section orthogonal to the Y-axis at the intersection is 0.4 or more, but less than 1.0. |
| US08180211B2 |
Drop detection using lens position sensing of camera module
Systems and methods to achieve an auto-focus camera with a movable lens barrel having a mechanic shock detection capability combined with a re-initialization of the camera module have been disclosed. This re-initialization may comprise moving the lens barrel displaced by the shock to a home position. In a preferred embodiment of the invention a motor with integrated position detection has been used. In a normal operation the position detection feature senses the actual position of the lens, e.g. during auto-focusing of the lens barrel, and provides this position information to a control unit which is controlling the movement of the lens barrel to a target position. In case of a mechanic shock, e.g. if the camera module drops to ground, the control unit detects an extreme rapid displacement of the lens barrel and initiates a re-initialization of the camera module. |
| US08180209B2 |
Determining camera activity from a steadiness signal
A method of identifying the activity of a camera used for capturing an image or video, such activity not being related to the activity of subjects of the scene being captured includes determining a steadiness signal related to movement of the camera while capturing an image or video, wherein the steadiness signal identifies the motion of the camera in at least two dimensions as a function of time; and using a processor for determining a camera activity classification for the camera based on an analysis of the steadiness signal, wherein the camera activity classification includes categories of the camera being stationary, the camera being located in a moving vehicle, the camera being held by hand, or the camera being held by a jogging or walking user. |
| US08180206B2 |
High flow rate infusion with extraction assist
An infusion unit includes a heating unit with opposed heating plates. A heat exchanger has a fluid flow path receivable between the heating plates to which heat is conducted by contact with the heating plates. Infusate flowing under pressure through the fluid flow path is heated by conduction from the heating plates through the fluid container. When the flow of infusate is stopped or interrupted, infusate trapped in the heat exchanger is displaced to a reservoir in the heat exchanger. Displacement of the trapped infusate reduces friction between the fluid container and the heating plates, which assists in extraction of the heat exchanger from the heating unit. |
| US08180201B2 |
Storage medium storing interactive graphics stream activated in response to user's command, and reproducing apparatus for reproducing from the same
A storage medium storing: video data; and graphics data for displaying a menu. The graphics data includes first graphics data displayed on the screen when an activation command is generated by a user and may also include second graphics data displayed on the screen at a designated time. |
| US08180197B2 |
Method and apparatus for recording/reproducing digital video signal or audio signal, and optical disk apparatus
A disk-like recording medium recording/reproducing method or apparatus for performing a data recording operation and a data reproducing operation to the disk-like recording medium alternately. The recording operation is performed at a constant linear velocity, and whether a recording area at an ending point of an n-th recording operation on the medium is continuous to a recording area at a starting point of an (n+1) the recording operation is identified. When a discontinuation of the recording area is identified, the rotational speed at the starting point of the (n+1)th recording operation is changed, during a reproducing operation between the n-th recording operation and the (n+1)th recording operation. When a continuation of the recording area is identified, the rotational speed of the disk-like recording medium at the ending point of the n-th recording operation is held, during a reproducing operation between the n-th recording operation and the (n+1)th recording operation. |
| US08180195B2 |
Memory structures and methods for video codec
A memory device for storing a plurality of macroblocks may include a plurality of memory banks. Each macroblock may include m*n pixel data, wherein m is a positive integer, and wherein n also is a positive integer. The plurality of memory banks is adapted to store the pixel data, and wherein each memory bank is sized to store rows of m pixel data. An image processing system may include: a memory adapted to store a plurality of macroblocks; and a video codec. The memory may include a plurality of memory banks. Each memory bank may be sized to store rows of m pixel data. The video codec may be adapted to encode pixel data read from the memory. The video codec also may be adapted to decode the pixel data read from the memory. |
| US08180190B2 |
Optical fiber assemblies having a powder or powder blend at least partially mechanically attached
Disclosed are fiber optic assemblies having at least one optical fiber disposed within a tube and/or cavity along with a powder or powder blend that is at least partially mechanically attached thereto. In one embodiment, the powder or powder blend includes a water-swellable component that is mechanically attached to about 30 percent or less of the surface area of the tube wall while still effectively blocking the migration of water along the tube. Other embodiments may have the powder or power blend mechanically attached to the tube, cavity, or the like at relatively high percentage levels of the total powder or powder blend within the assembly, thereby inhibiting unintentional migration along the tube, cavity, or the like. Other embodiments may use powder or powder blends that may or may not include a water-swellable powder to provide other desired characteristics. |
| US08180189B2 |
Optical module and optical waveguide
An optical module includes an optical waveguide including a plurality of waveguide cores through which light propagates, a clad configured to trap the light in the waveguide cores, a plurality of fiber guide grooves in which optical fibers are inserted, the fiber guide grooves being arranged in parallel, and an adhesive spread groove configured to connect the fiber guide grooves and provided at leading ends of the fiber guide grooves with which the optical fibers contact; and a fixing member fixed to the optical waveguide with an adhesive while covering the fiber guide grooves. The fiber guide grooves have side walls including support projections configured to support, align, and optical couple the optical fibers to the waveguide cores, and adhesive recesses configured to define gaps between outer peripheral surfaces of the optical fibers and the fiber guide grooves so that the adhesive spreads in the gaps. |
| US08180187B2 |
Systems and methods for gimbal mounted optical communication device
Optical communication systems and methods are operable to communicate optical signals across a gimbal system. An exemplary embodiment has a first optical rotary joint with a rotor and a stator, a second optical rotary joint with a rotor and a stator, and an optical connector coupled to the stators of the first and the second optical rotary joints. The stator of the first optical rotary joint is affixed to a first rotational member of the gimbal system. The stator of the second optical rotary joint is affixed to a second rotational member of the gimbal system. A first optical connection coupled to the rotor of the first optical rotary joint and a second optical connection coupled to the rotor of the second optical rotary joint remain substantially stationary as the gimbal system orients an optical communication device in a desired position. |
| US08180186B2 |
Optical switches and logic gates employing same
An optical switch including a light passageway having a changeable cross-sectional area, an activation light responsive piezoelectric element associated with the light passageway, the activation light responsive piezoelectric element being operative to change its shape in response to activation light impinging thereon and a conductive element operatively associated with the piezoelectric element for enhancing activation light responsiveness thereof, the activation light responsive piezoelectric element being associated with the light passageway and being operative such that changes in the shape of the piezoelectric element cause changes in the changeable cross-sectional area of the light passageway sufficient to govern the passage of light along the light passageway. Logic gates and logic functionality employing an optical switch are also described. |
| US08180182B2 |
Processing device for processing plurality of polygon meshes, the device including plurality of processors for performing coordinate transformation and gradient calculations and an allocation unit to allocate each polygon to a respective processor
A processing device performs a geometry process as preprocessing for rendering a three-dimensional object on a display by modeling the three-dimensional object using a polygon mesh. The geometry process includes a vertex process that is performed for each of the vertices of the polygon mesh by a different one of a plurality of processors, and processed vertex data obtained by the vertex process is notified among the processors so that a polygon process can be performed in each of the processors. Because each processor can continuously perform the polygon process immediately after the vertex process, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the unbalance of timing in performing the vertex process and the polygon process, thereby efficiently performing computation while minimizing the wasteful idle time of the processors. |
| US08180181B2 |
Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and image processing program
A software architecture based on a concept called “pipes and filters” is applied to an image processing apparatus, thereby simplifying the customization, expansion, etc., of functions. In addition, filters are combined together using a description table in which the combination of the filters is described so as to construct a job, thereby further simplifying the customization, expansion, etc., of functions. |
| US08180178B2 |
Autocropping and autolayout method for digital images
The present invention is a method for manipulating acquired digital images in a computer system, comprising creating a crop cost array for each of a set of input images with a set of associated aspect ratios, wherein the cost crop array operates and is stored on the computer system and wherein each element of the array holds a lowest crop cost of an input image for a predetermined aspect ratio, generating plural possible candidate combinations of aspect ratios for the images, wherein one aspect ratio is generated for each image, creating an arrangement of the images for each candidate combination in which each image is cropped to its associated aspect ratio in the candidate combination, evaluating each possible arrangement using a combination of a crop cost of each of the images at their selected aspect ratio and a measure of an aesthetic quality of the layout arrangement, selecting a layout combination with a lowest combined crop cost and layout evaluation score, cropping each image according to a respective aspect ratio in the selected layout combination and arranging the cropped digital images in the selected layout to produce an automatically formatted output layout page. |
| US08180177B1 |
Seam-based reduction and expansion of images using parallel processing of retargeting matrix strips
Systems, methods, and computer-readable storage media for resizing images using seam carving techniques may access a pre-computed retargeting matrix for an input image that associates each pixel of the input image with a cost order of a horizontal and/or vertical seam of which the pixel is a part. The retargeting matrix may be divided into sub-matrices corresponding to horizontal or vertical strips of the image, in the direction of a desired seam carving operation, for parallel processing on multiple processors or threads thereof. The retargeting matrix and/or sub-matrices may be usable in performing one or more reduction or expansion operations on the input image without re-computation of the matrices between retargeting iterations. The methods may include pre-computing the retargeting matrix and/or sub-matrices. The methods may be implemented as stand-alone applications or as program instructions implementing components of a graphics application, executable by a CPU and/or GPU configured for parallel processing. |
| US08180175B2 |
Reshaping a camera image
Apparatuses, computer media, and methods for altering a camera image, in which the source image may be angularly displaced from a camera image. A plurality of points on the camera image is located and a mesh is generated. Compensation information based on the displacement is determined, and a reshaped image is rendered from the mesh, the compensation information, and the camera image. The camera image is reshaped by relocating a proper subset of the points on the camera image. Deformation vectors are applied to corresponding points on the mesh using the compensation information. A correction factor is obtained from an angular displacement and a translation displacement of the source image from the camera image. The deformation factor is multiplied by the compensation factor to form a deformation vector to compensate for angular and translational displacements of the source image from the camera image. |
| US08180171B2 |
Noise cancellation device for an image signal processing system
A noise cancellation device for an image signal processing system includes a receiving end for receiving image signals, a 3D filtering unit for adjusting a filtering parameter according to a motion estimation value, and filtering the image signals and a former filtering result for generating a current filtering result, a motion detection unit for comparing the former filtering result and the image signals, so as to generate a current motion factor and the motion estimation value according to a former motion factor, a memory unit for receiving and storing the current filter result and the current motion factor as the former filtering result and the former motion factor, and an output end for outputting the current filtering result provided by the 3D filtering unit. |
| US08180169B2 |
System and method for multi-scale sigma filtering using quadrature mirror filters
A first sigma filtering circuit sigma filters an image to produce a filtered image. An analysis circuit processes the sigma filtered image to produce an approximation part and a detail part. A second sigma filter circuit filters the approximation part to produce a sigma filtered approximation part. Another analysis circuit process the sigma filtered approximation part to produce a second approximation part and a second detail part. A third sigma filter circuit sigma filters the second approximation part to produce a sigma filtered second filtered approximation part. A first synthesizer synthesizes the sigma filtered second filtered approximation part and the second detailed part to produce a first reconstructed image, and a second synthesizer synthesizes the first reconstructed image and the first detail part to produce a final filtered image. |
| US08180163B2 |
Encoder and decoder and methods of encoding and decoding sequence information with inserted monitor flags
The present disclosure describes encoding sequence information into a sequence of display frames for display on a display device. An example of encoding sequence information includes generating the sequence of display frames, inserting monitor flags within each display frame, each monitor flag being capable of moving between a first state and a second state, setting the state of monitor flags within each display frame to a predetermined configuration, and encoding sequence information in the sequence of display frames such that neighboring display frames in the sequence have different predetermined configurations. |
| US08180162B2 |
Similar image retrieving device
A similar image retrieving device (1) comprises: an image database (21) for storage of sets of image data, and sets of keywords each associated with a corresponding image data; a cluster classification section (11) to read the sets of image data, provide a respective one of the sets of image data with a compatibility value as an index representative of a set of compatibilities of a corresponding one of the sets of keywords, and classify the sets of image data into clusters thereof in accordance with the compatibility value; an optimum cluster extracting section (12) to provide the set of query image data with a compatibility value, and select one of clusters to which the query image data is to belong to minimize an error caused in a Projection onto Convex Sets using the clusters; and a similar image extracting section (13) to output, as a similar image, a set of image data provided a close compatibility value, among the sets of image data belonging to the cluster selected by the optimum cluster extractor. |
| US08180159B2 |
Image processing apparatus, image forming apparatus, image processing system, and image processing method
There are provided: a pattern detection process section for extracting a partial image made of pixels including a target pixel from input image data; a displaced image generation section for generating a self-displaced image by displacing at least a part of the partial image through a predetermined method; and a matching test determination section for determining whether an image pattern included in the partial image matches an image pattern included in the self-displaced image or not. When the matching test determination section determines that the matching exists, a target pixel in the partial image or a block made of pixels including the target pixel is regarded as a feature point. Consequently, even when image data is subjected to a process such as enlarging and reducing, it is possible to extract a feature point that properly specifies the image data regardless of the enlarging/reducing process. |
| US08180152B1 |
System, method, and computer program product for determining whether text within an image includes unwanted data, utilizing a matrix
A system, method, and computer program product are provided for determining whether text within an image includes unwanted data, utilizing a matrix. In operation, a matrix corresponding to an image is generated. Additionally, text within the image is identified utilizing the matrix. Furthermore, it is determined whether the text includes unwanted data. |
| US08180147B2 |
Robust pattern recognition system and method using Socratic agents
A computer-implemented pattern recognition method, system and program product, the method comprising in one embodiment: creating electronically a linkage between a plurality of models within a classifier module within a pattern recognition system such that any one of said plurality of models may be selected as an active model in a recognition process; creating electronically a null hypothesis between at least one model of said plurality of linked models and at least a second model among said plurality of linked models; accumulating electronically evidence to accept or reject said null hypothesis until sufficient evidence is accumulated to reject said null hypothesis in favor of one of said plurality of linked models or until a stopping criterion is met; and transmitting at least a portion of the electronically accumulated evidence or a summary thereof to accept or reject said null hypothesis to a pattern classifier module. |
| US08180134B2 |
In vivo structural and flow imaging
Embodiments of the present invention include but are not limited to methods and systems for optical coherence imaging. A method for optical coherence imaging may comprise scanning a sample with an incident beam from a light source; detecting one or more spectral interference signals from the sample; modulating the one or more spectral interference signals by a linear translation of a reference mirror while scanning the sample in a cross-sectional direction; and obtaining at least one image of the sample from the modulated one or more spectral interference signals, the at least one image including a selected one of a full range structural image of the sample and a separated structure/flow image of the sample. |
| US08180132B2 |
Method to correct the registration of radiography images
A system and method for correcting the registration of a 3D image and a 2D image acquired with medical imaging systems is disclosed. The system and method determines acquisition geometry of the imaging system by calculating an initial projection matrix associated with the 2D image. The system performs a projection of the 3D image using the initial projection matrix resulting in a 2D projection of the 3D image. The system registers the 2D projection of the 3D image and the 2D image. A new projection matrix is determined based on the registration of the 2D image and the 2D projection of the 3D image. The 3D image is then registered with the 2D image using the new projection matrix. An associated medical imaging system is disclosed. Method embodiments use previously acquired 3D images or images acquired using imaging modalities different than the one used to acquire the 2D image. |
| US08180129B2 |
Electrode-to-lead association using post-implant imaging
In general, the disclosure is related to electrode-to-lead association using post-implant imaging. An image analysis unit may calculate distances between representations of electrodes in an electronic image and identify groups based on the calculated distances. Each identified group may include a plurality of electrode representations. The distance between a first electrode representation and a second electrode representation may be substantially a same distance between the second electrode representation and a third electrode representation. A characterization unit may determine one or more lead types based on the identified groups. |
| US08180128B2 |
Method for recording measured data of a patient while taking account of movement operations, and an associated medical device
A method is disclosed for recording measured data of a patient while taking account of movement operations by way of a medical device that is designed both for recording movement-related measured data, in particular measured data of high temporal resolution and/or measured data that can be interpolated with regard to movement operations, with the aid of an imaging method and/or by means of at least one sensor element, and also for recording nuclear medicine measured data, in particular of lower temporal resolution. In at least one embodiment, the method includes recording nuclear medicine measured data with the aid of the medical device; simultaneously recording movement-related measured data with the aid of the medical device; determining at least one item of movement information relating to at least one movement operation of the patient and/or in the body of the patient by evaluating at least a portion of the recorded measured data of high temporal resolution on the part of a computing device of the medical device; and adapting at least one item of attenuation correction information available for the computing device and serving for reconstructing the nuclear medicine measured data, doing so as a function of the at least one determined item of movement information. |
| US08180127B2 |
Method and image evaluation system for preparation of medical 2D or 3 D data
In a method and system to prepare medical 2D or 3D data, in particular 2D or 3D image data acquired by means of computed tomography, a data set composed of medical 2D or 3D data is segmented with predeterminable first segmentation parameters, so a first data set with segmented data and a second data set with data complementary to the first data set are generated and stored. Predeterminable color or grey value tables (known as presets) are provided that respectively associate colors or grey values with individual data value ranges. Respective presets are automatically associated with the first data set and the second data set. At an output unit, at least one slice or volume image of the first and/or second data set is presented as a resulting image/resulting images in colors/grey scales according to the associated presets. |
| US08180123B2 |
Similar case search apparatus and method, and recording medium storing program therefor
More accurate search for similar cases can be carried out in the case where images by different imaging methods exist. An imaging information analysis unit obtains imaging information of search target images obtained by different imaging methods in the same examination from accompanying information of the images, and a similar case database storing similar case information sets each including examination ID, imaging information, a characteristic quantity, and image interpretation/diagnosis support information is searched in processing by a first similar case information search unit, a second similar case information search unit, and a judgment unit. A corresponding portion of the similar case information sets satisfying three conditions comprising agreement of the imaging information with the search target images, agreement of examination between the portion of the similar case information sets, and similarity of a content-based characteristic to the search target images is obtained. |
| US08180121B2 |
Fingerprint representation using localized texture feature
A system and method for processing fingerprints includes representing each minutiae in a fingerprint by determining quantized Gabor coefficients to represent texture content of the minutiae. A distance is computed between represented minutiae and stored minutiae. The minutiae matches are ranked based on the distance to identify the fingerprint. |
| US08180115B2 |
Two stage detection for photographic eye artifacts
A digital image acquisition device is for acquiring digital images including one or more preview images. A face detector analyzes the one or more preview images to ascertain information relating to candidate face regions therein. A speed-optimized filter produces a first set of candidate red-eye regions based on the candidate face region information provided by the face detector. |
| US08180113B2 |
Stain determination apparatus, sheet processing apparatus and stain determination method
In a stain determination apparatus or sheet processing apparatus, an input processing unit inputs image information containing an inherent variation that is not related to a stain, a feature extracting unit extracts a plurality of feature information items from the image information input by the input processing unit, a separating unit separates a set of the plurality of feature information items extracted by the feature extracting unit into a inherent variation component and another residual component, a determining unit extracts a main component of stain variation indicating a stain degree in the image information input by the input processing unit from the residual component separated by the separating unit and determines a stain degree in the image information based on the magnitude of the extracted stain variation main component. |
| US08180111B2 |
Compound eye type imaging apparatus with distance measuring capability
Multiple imaging areas (101a, 101b) are disposed in a one-to-one relationship with multiple optical lenses (100a, 100b) disposed in a substantially coplanar alignment. A baffle wall (110) interposed between the multiple imaging areas is provided with means for diffusively reflecting incident light rays. Low frequency components are removed from the spatial frequencies of multiple images captured in the multiple imaging areas, whereupon the multiple images are compared to determine the amount of parallax and measure the distance to the object. This allows for preventing degradation in the accuracy of distance measurement when light rays emanating from a high-intensity object located outside of the field angle are reflected from the baffle wall and impinge on the imaging area. |
| US08180108B2 |
Method for determining the distance of visibility for a driver of a vehicle
A method for determining the distance of visibility for a driver of a vehicle in the presence of an element disrupting the visibility of the driver, the method comprising the following steps: determining the luminosity of the pixels of a region of an image taken in the field of vision of the driver, resulting in a luminosity curve, determining a first tangent to the curve of luminosity, determining a second tangent to the curve of luminosity, determining a sweep-line according to the first tangent and second tangent, the sweep-line being representative of the distance of visibility. |
| US08180107B2 |
Active coordinated tracking for multi-camera systems
A method and system for coordinated tracking of objects is disclosed. A plurality of images is received from a plurality of nodes, each node comprising at least one image capturing device. At least one target in the plurality of images is identified to produce at least one local track corresponding to each of the plurality of nodes having the at least one target in its field of view. The at least one local track corresponding to each of the plurality of nodes is fused according to a multi-hypothesis tracking method to produce at least one fused track corresponding to the at least one target. At least one of the plurality of nodes is assigned to track the at least one target based on minimizing at least one cost function comprising a cost matrix using the k-best algorithm for tracking at least one target for each of the plurality of nodes. The at least one fused track is sent to the at least one of the plurality of nodes assigned to track the at least one target based on the at least one fused track. |
| US08180105B2 |
Classifier anomalies for observed behaviors in a video surveillance system
Techniques are disclosed for a video surveillance system to learn to recognize complex behaviors by analyzing pixel data using alternating layers of clustering and sequencing. A combination of a self organizing map (SOM) and an adaptive resonance theory (ART) network may be used to identify a variety of different anomalous inputs at each cluster layer. As progressively higher layers of the cortex model component represent progressively higher levels of abstraction, anomalies occurring in the higher levels of the cortex model represent observations of behavioral anomalies corresponding to progressively complex patterns of behavior. |
| US08180102B2 |
Image processing device, image processing method, program, and recording medium
An image processing device including an area generation unit configured to generate a supplemental data-embedded area in image data having content data separate from an area occupied by the content data, and a data embedding unit configured to embed supplemental data in the supplemental data-embedded area. |
| US08180090B2 |
Headset with exchangeable speaker
An earpiece speaker system including an earpiece body through which an audio signal is provided, the earpiece body having a speaker mount surface, and a plurality of speaker modules mountable to the body. Each of the speaker modules includes a mount surface for mating with the earpiece body speaker mount surface for securing the speaker module thereto in order to reproduce the audio signal. |
| US08180084B2 |
Integrated battery door and switch
The present subject matter includes a switch and an operator to interface with the switch, the operator in a battery door of a hearing assistance device. One embodiment includes a housing, hearing assistance electronics disposed in the housing, a hinge electrically connected to the hearing assistance electronics, and a battery door coupled to the hinge, the battery door includes a switch comprising an operator and at least one contact connected to the hinge. |
| US08180082B2 |
Microphone unit, close-talking voice input device, information processing system, and method of manufacturing microphone unit
A microphone unit includes: a housing which has an inner space; a partition member which is provided in the housing and divides the inner space into a first space and a second space, the partition member being at least partially formed of a diaphragm; and an electrical signal output circuit which outputs an electrical signal based on vibrations of the diaphragm. In the housing, a first through-hole through which the first space communicates with an outer space of the housing and a second through-hole through which the second space communicates with the outer space are formed. |
| US08180077B1 |
Medical grade stereo system
A medical grade stereo system is disclosed. The stereo system may include a housing with faceplates where a user interface and connectors mounted to the faceplates form fully sealed interfaces sealing the housing interior from the environment. A shielding enclosure and shielded components provide a system that may limit radio frequency emissions. A power supply supplying power to the system may limit current leakage to less than 300 microamperes. A hospital grade A/C power cord and electrical plug connect the system to a room's electrical line. Additionally, the system may include an internally formed interface for a satellite tuner adaptor cable connection connecting a satellite tuner to a stereo receiver hub entirely within the housing and enclosure. |
| US08180067B2 |
System for selectively extracting components of an audio input signal
An apparatus for selectively extracting components of an input signal comprises a plurality of microphones for detecting an audio signal in a plurality of spaced locations. A plurality of signal samplers sample each spaced version of the audio signal. A microphone pattern processor derives a reference signal, a null signal and a core signal from the sampled signals. An adjustment frequency spectrum generator coupled to the null and reference signals generates an adjustment frequency spectrum signal that is applied to the core signal. An audio signal regenerator provides an output audio signal from the adjusted core signal. The apparatus can be used in a wireless device to pick up a speaker's voice in a noisy environment. |
| US08180065B2 |
Acoustical window assembly for vehicle
A window assembly for a vehicle includes a window panel (14), an actuating assembly (24) and a seal (22). The frame portion (16) partially surrounds a perimeter of the window panel and leaves a free perimeter portion (14c) of the window panel (14) at least partially free. The actuating assembly (24) is positioned at or near the free perimeter portion (14c) of the window panel (14) and is operated to vibrate the window panel. The seal (22) is disposed along the free perimeter portion to substantially seal the window panel relative to the vehicle panel while allowing movement of the window panel in response to the actuating assembly. |
| US08180063B2 |
Audio signal processing system for live music performance
A method for generating and/or performing music in real time includes receiving one or more audio signals, receiving one or more virtual instrument trigger signals, and selecting one or more plug-ins and/or one or more virtual instruments. A processing scheme is selected from a set of operations. The received audio signals and instrument trigger signals are processed in real time as a function of the selected plug-ins, virtual instruments and processing scheme, and outputted in real time as music signals. The set of operations from which the processing scheme can be selected includes: (1) manipulating the received audio signals as a function of the selected sound effects plug-ins to produce manipulated audio signals, and/or (2) generating virtual instrument sound signals as a function of the received trigger signals and the selected virtual instruments, and/or (3) manipulating the virtual instrument sound signals as a function of the selected sound effect plug-ins to produce manipulated virtual instrument signals, and/or (4) combining the received audio signals and/or the manipulated audio signals and/or the virtual instrument sound signals and/or the manipulated virtual instrument signals to produce combined signals, and/or (5) manipulating any or all of the combined signals to produce manipulated combined signals, and/or (6) repeating operations (4) and/or (5) with any or all of the combined signals and/or with any or all of the manipulated combined signals to produce iteratively processed signals. |
| US08180061B2 |
Concept for bridging the gap between parametric multi-channel audio coding and matrixed-surround multi-channel coding
The purpose of the invention is to bridge the gap between parametric multi-channel audio coding and matrixed-surround multi-channel coding by gradually improving the sound of an up-mix signal while raising the bit-rate consumed by the side-information starting from 0 up to the bit-rates of the parametric methods. More specifically, it provides a method of flexibly choosing an “operating point” somewhere between matrixed-surround (no side-information, limited audio quality) and fully parametric reconstruction (full side-information rate required, good quality). This operating point can be chosen dynamically (i.e. varying over time) and in response to the permissible side-information rate, as it is dictated by the individual application. |
| US08180059B2 |
Management apparatus, terminal apparatus, and copyright protection system
A management apparatus reduces the number of pieces of unique information each not generated from another piece of unique information, among unique information being bases of keys assigned to managed apparatuses.The management apparatus calculates, for nodes in layers other than tree structure leaves, subsets of apparatus identifiers subordinate to the nodes, searches for a subset wholly containing another subset in the lowermost layer other than a leaf layer from an immediately-upper layer and mutually associates these subsets, searches for another subset wholly containing the containing subset from a same or an immediately-upper layer and mutually associates these subsets, controls this processing to repeat up to the uppermost layer, controls these processings to repeat on all subsets in the lowermost layer, makes unique information correspond to subsets in the lowermost layer, and makes information derivatively obtained from the unique information correspond to subsets connected due to the associating. |
| US08180056B2 |
Methods and systems for communicating over a quantum channel
Alice generates a sequence of key bits forming an initial cryptographic key. Alice then uses the sequence of key bits and a sequence of cipher bits to control respective control parameters of a quantum encoding process applied to a sequence of quantum pulses, where the sequence of cipher bits used is known to Bob. Alice then releases the encoded pulses towards Bob over a quantum channel. Bob uses the previously agreed-upon sequence of cipher bits to control a control parameter, such as the quantum basis, of a quantum detection process applied to the pulses received from Alice, thus producing a detection outcome for each received pulse. Bob then derives a final cryptographic key from the detection outcomes. Because the cipher bits used to select the quantum bases used by both Alice and Bob are known by both parties, the method allows the final cryptographic key to be distributed with full basis alignment compared to 50% for BB84, thus allowing efficient quantum key distribution over multiple hops. |
| US08180054B2 |
Authenticating system, authenticating method, and authenticating program
An authenticating system is provided including a client and a receiver. The client creates a first hash value using a first hash algorithm, and creates a second hash value from the first hash value. The receiver receives a first hash algorithm identifier from a server, transmits the second hash value, and receives an authentication result. The server stores a third hash value created using a second hash algorithm identifier, transmits the first hash algorithm identifier to a PC, receives the second hash value, determines if the second hash algorithm identifier coincides with the first hash algorithm identifier, creates a fourth hash value from the third hash value using the first hash algorithm where it coincides, determines whether the second hash value coincides with the fourth hash value, transmits that the authentication is successful where it coincides, and transmits that the authentication is unsuccessful where it does not coincide. |
| US08180052B2 |
Data communication apparatus
A data communication apparatus wherein stealthiness is enhanced by significantly increasing the time required for a wiretapper to decrypt an encrypted text. The data communication apparatus is constituted by connecting a data transmitting apparatus and a data receiving apparatus via a transmission path. The data transmitting apparatus receives a first predetermined initial value (key information) and information data, generates a multi-valued signal, the level of which varies substantially in a random number manner, and converts the multi-valued signal to a modulated signal of a predetermined modulation format for transmission. The data receiving apparatus demodulates the modulated signal to output the multi-valued signal, and then reproduces the information data from the multi-valued signal and a received second predetermined initial value (key information). |
| US08180051B1 |
Methods and apparatus for securing communications of a user operated device
A system provides secure communications between a user operated device and a computerized device. The user operated device transfers an enable security message to the computerized device, and in response, the computerized device sends a first communications enablement message to the user operated device and displays a second communications enablement message on a display of the computerized device for viewing by a user operating the user operated device. The user operated device receives the first communications enablement message from the computerized device and receives the second communications enablement message from the user and establishes a secure communications session between the user operated device and the computerized device using the first communications enablement message and the second communications enablement message. The communications enablement messages can contain key material that enable encryption between the user operated device and the computerized device. |
| US08180046B2 |
Method for making secure an electronic entity with encrypted access
A method for protecting an electronic entity with encrypted access, against DFA (Differential Fault Analysis) attacks which includes: storing the result of a selected step (Rm, Kn) of an iterative process forming part of the cryptographic algorithm and in performing once more at least part of the steps of the iterative process up to a new computation of a result corresponding to the one which has been stored, comparing the two results and denying distribution of an encrypted message (MC) if they are different. |
| US08180042B2 |
Agent communications tool for coordinated distribution, review, and validation of call center data
The Agent Communication Toolbox (ACT) eliminates the burdens to call center managers of manually distributing desk drops and following up with call center agents to determine whether the agents have accessed the desk drops and completed related training. ACT provides distributed communications to the desktop of a call center agent. ACT records access, testing and training by call center agents and produces reports that indicate the understanding and content comprehension of call center agents. ACT provides real-time coaching to call center agents to improve call center agent knowledge, increase first call resolution and the quality of responses provided by the call center agent. ACT also intelligently routes communications based on the location and skills of the call center agent, reducing the volume of communications and network bandwidth requirements. |
| US08180041B2 |
One number, intelligent call processing system
A one number, multi-application, intelligent call processing system provides service benefits to a caller, a servicing location and/or a vanity number advertiser during a call, parallel to the call and/or post call in an integrated common architecture. The system utilizes VRU technology in conjunction with the national telecommunications network connected via Computer Telephone Integration (CTI) to a virtual telephone number database containing a nationwide master list of telephone numbers with attribute data items associated by Spatial Key linkage to each telephone number. The process of the invention is initiated by a caller dialing a selected telephone number to request information and/or services. Based on the number dialed, a caller or network provided ten-digit telephone number and VRU prompted for and received caller input, the system retrieves the application requested data from the virtual telephone number database and provides it to the network. |
| US08180039B2 |
Methods, systems, and computer program products for routing calls based on the originating network
A method of routing calls in a communication system. A call is received from an originating network in the communication system. The identity of the originating network is determined, and the call is routed in the communication system based on the identity of the originating network. |
| US08180032B2 |
Methods and systems for protecting a telecommunication service from Denial of Service (DoS) attack
A client of a telephone number mapping (ENUM) server is used to protect the ENUM server from a Denial of Service (DoS) attack. The DoS attack may comprise a plurality of attempts to place exception calls from one or more end user devices that are unregistered. The one or more end user devices may originate from a service provider network. |
| US08180028B1 |
System and method for called party controlled message delivery
Disclosed are systems and methods which allow a calling party to store messages for a called party even if the called party does not already have message storage facilities, provided the calling party and/or called party meet certain parameters. Delivery of the message is controlled by the called party and may require the called party to agree to pay for the message delivery service. In a further embodiment, a call processing system is operable to screen outgoing calls from various callers according to a first set of criteria and if a call is not completed to a called party a second set of criteria is used to determine if a message can be stored awaiting retrieval by the called party. If desired, a return message from a called party to a calling party can be stored. |
| US08180025B2 |
Methods and apparatus for enforcing caller listening behavior on interactive voice response applications
An interactive voice response (IVR) system which allows a caller to barge-in on all prompts, yet still allows the caller to receive important information contained in the prompts. When a caller barges-in on a prompt that contains important information, the IVR system interrupts the prompt to play a short announcement with the goal of re-enforcing the importance of listening to the entire prompt. The IVR system then resumes playback of the prompt, from the beginning or of a modified version. |
| US08180023B2 |
Method and apparatus for replacement connection verification during migration from an analog network element to a next generation network element
Method, corresponding apparatus and system are provided for transparently testing replacement functionality and optionally migrating subscribers on analog phone lines, served, for example, by PSTN Class 5 elements, to Next Generation Network (NGN) elements when copper co-termination is leveraged. According to an exemplary method, a telephone line for a telephone number is accessed through a metallic test access circuit of an analog network element and it is determined if the telephone line is available to test. If the telephone line is available to test, a port of a Next Generation Network element corresponding to the telephone number is activated, and it is determined whether a copper connection to the port of the Next Generation Network element is operating properly based on a voltage level received through the analog network element. |
| US08180022B2 |
Linear X-ray detector using fiber optic face plate to alter optical path
An X-ray line-scan camera utilizes an image transferring means to alter the optical path and thus eliminates the X-ray radiation damage on the electrical components of the camera system. The camera comprises a layer of scintillating material, a fiber optic face plate (FOFP) block, and an array of image sensors. One face of the FOFP block is bonded to the surface of the image sensors. The layer of scintillating material is placed on other face of the FOFP block and used to convert an impinging X-ray beam into visible light. The FOFP block is used to transfer the visible light from the scintillating layer onto the image sensor array, which in turn converts the visible light into electrical video signals. The FOFP block has a rotation angle of 32 to 40 degree relative to the impinging X-ray beam to prevent direct impingement of the X-ray beam onto the image sensors. |
| US08180017B2 |
Stereo tube attenuation filter
A computed tomography apparatus (10) includes spaced radiation sources (82, 84), such as anodes, which each propagate a cone-beam of radiation (40, 50) into an examination region (14). A detector (22) detects radiation which has passed through the examination region. An attenuation system (55) interposed between the radiation sources and the examination region for cone-angle dependent filtering of the cone beams. The attenuation system allows rays which contribute little to a reconstructed image to be attenuated more than rays which contribute more. |
| US08180016B2 |
X-ray CT apparatus and method thereof
In an X-ray CT apparatus 1 and an X-ray CT method, the thickness of an object to be inspected is computed on the basis of the number of transmitted X-rays in a specific energy range set above and below the K-absorption edge of an X-ray contrast medium serving as the object to be inspected, and a CT image is reconstructed on the basis of the computed thickness of the object to be inspected. Such X-ray CT apparatus 1 and X-ray CT method can generate an X-ray CT image stably and independently of the size of the object to be inspected and of X-ray tube voltage (X-ray energy distribution). |
| US08180013B2 |
Absolute nuclear material assay
A method of absolute nuclear material assay of an unknown source comprising counting neutrons from the unknown source and providing an absolute nuclear material assay utilizing a model to optimally compare to the measured count distributions. In one embodiment, the step of providing an absolute nuclear material assay comprises utilizing a random sampling of analytically computed fission chain distributions to generate a continuous time-evolving sequence of event-counts by spreading the fission chain distribution in time. |
| US08180002B2 |
Digital signal processing device, digital signal processing method, and digital signal processing program
The present invention provides a digital signal processing device that considerably reduces a return noise generated in a processing result signal in specific signal processing without wastefully increasing the processing load. There is provided a digital signal processing device that executes specific signal processing under which a return noise is generated in a processing result signal which includes an up-sampling processing unit that performs the up-sampling processing for a digital signal with a predetermined up-sampling rate to generate an up-sampling signal, a specific signal processing unit that performs the specific signal processing for the up-sampling signal generated by the up-sampling processing unit to generate the processing result signal, and a down-sampling processing unit that performs the down-sampling processing for the processing result signal generated by the specific signal processing unit with a predetermined down-sampling rate to generate a down-sampling signal. |
| US08179993B2 |
Digital branch calibrator for an RF transmitter
The present invention provides a digital (computational) branch calibrator which uses a feedback signal sensed from an RF transmit signal path following the combining stage of LINC circuitry of a transmitter to compensate for gain and phase imbalances occurring between branch fragment signals leading to the combiner. The calibrator feeds a quiet (zero) base band signal through the transmit path during the calibration sequence (i.e. a period when data is not transmitted) and adjusts the phase and gain of the phasor fragment signals input thereto by driving the sensed output power to zero. The calibration is performed by alternating phase and gain adjustments with predetermined (programmable) and multiple update parameters stages (speeds). A baseband modulation is preferably used to distinguish false leakage (e.g. due to local oscillator, LO, feed through and DC offset in the base band Tx) from imbalance leakage. |
| US08179992B2 |
Communication apparatus and communication method
A communication apparatus calculates a residual component by noting one of a given plurality of transmitted signals and by canceling a component corresponding to a candidate/candidates for the other/others of the plurality of transmitted signals from a signal corresponding to one of a plurality of received signals. The communication apparatus determines a candidate for the given transmitted signal by selecting a value closest to the residual component from among the values that the given transmitted signal can take, and obtains a plurality of candidate groups by changing that given transmitted signal, each candidate group being constructed as a collection of candidate sets each comprising a candidate for that given transmitted signal and a candidate/candidates for that other transmitted signal/signals. Then, the communication apparatus selects transmitted signal candidate sets that are common to the plurality of candidate groups and estimates the plurality of transmitted signals using the selected candidate sets. |
| US08179986B2 |
Multicarrier modulation scheme as well as transmission apparatus and reception apparatus using the scheme
In order is to generate a pilot signal for estimating a transmission characteristic of a transmission channel suitable for OFDM/OQAM multicarrier modulation, a phase reference pilot symbol of which a modulation amplitude is suppressed to zero, and an amplitude reference pilot signal obtained through modulation performed by using an amplitude known to a reception end are transmitted from a transmission end. Further, the transmission characteristic of the transmission channel is estimated and compensated using the phase reference pilot signal and the amplitude reference pilot signal at the reception end. Accordingly, it is possible to simplify a frame generation process performed at the transmission end, and reduce transmission power for the phase reference pilot signal. |
| US08179978B2 |
MPEG field data-driven display
A system and method that support display of video fields using related data encoded in data structures. Each data structure is associated with one video field and contains all the information associated with the display of the video field. The data structure is encoded with the video field that is displayed exactly one field prior to the field associated with the data structure. In an embodiment of the present invention, the data structure contains all the information associated with the display of a video field, regardless of whether certain data changes from one field to the next. |
| US08179973B2 |
Image coding apparatus and method
An image coding apparatus includes: a division unit configured to divide a coding target picture included in an input video signal into a plurality of slices each including one or more data blocks; a coding unit configured to code the video signal in a unit of the slice divided by the division unit; and a setting unit configured to set at least one of a division position of the slice and a number of divisions of the slice, to the division unit. In the image coding apparatus, the setting unit sets at least one of the division position of the slice and the number of divisions of the slice so that slice boundaries differ from each other between adjacent pictures. |
| US08179971B1 |
Method and apparatus for video data compression
A method for diagonal processing of video data includes separating diagonally arranged data from rectilinearly arranged data in a video stream, rotating the diagonally arranged data to a rectilinear position; and compressing the rotated diagonally arranged data by a rectilinear compression algorithm. Alternatively stated, the method includes recognizing diagonally arranged data in a video stream, processing the diagonally arranged data into rectilinear data, and compressing the rectilinear data by a rectilinear compression algorithm. An apparatus for diagonal processing of video data includes a demultiplexer receptive to a video stream and developing a plurality of separated color planes, at least one of which is a rectilinear color plane and at least one of which is a rotated color plane, a number of address generators associated with the plurality of color planes, wherein an address generator associated with the rotated color plane is operative to rotate the rotated color plane to a rectilinear position; and a data compressor receptive to the address generators and operative to compress the plurality of color planes with a rectilinear compression algorithm. |
| US08179965B2 |
Moving picture coding method
A moving picture coding method includes: determining a luminance change by determining whether it is possible that a luminance change equal to or greater than a predetermined amount has occurred between the reference coded picture and a current picture; determining a flat region by determining whether a degree of non-uniformity in pixel values in a current block is smaller than a predetermined threshold; and determining a quantization width wherein, when it has been determined that it is possible that the luminance change equal to or greater than the predetermined amount has occurred and that the degree of non-uniformity is smaller than the predetermined threshold, a quantization width is determined to be smaller than a quantization width when it has not been determined to be possible that the luminance change equal to or greater than the predetermined amount has occurred or that the non-uniformity degree is smaller than the predetermined threshold. |
| US08179962B2 |
Motion image encoding method and motion image decoding method
The present invention provides a video coding method and a video decoding method which allow enhancement of coding efficiency and improvement in video quality. A video coding apparatus includes: a mode determination unit which determines a notification method for notifying a transform block size to be used in orthogonal transform of a current block to be either the implicit mode or the explicit mode, and outputs the ABT mode indicating the determined notification method; an orthogonal transformation unit which transforms the difference values between the input image and predicted image into frequency coefficients based on the transform block size determined in accordance with the determined notification method; a quantization unit which quantizes the frequency coefficients and output the quantized values; and a variable length coding unit which performs variable length coding on the quantized values, the ABT mode, and the like, so as to output a coded stream. |
| US08179960B2 |
Method and apparatus for performing video coding and decoding with use of virtual reference data
A video codec is provided in which virtual reference data (e.g., virtual reference blocks) are advantageously employed by a video coder and decoder to significantly improve coding efficiency as compared to prior art codecs. Specifically, a “virtual reference,” as used herein, is defined as a group of pixels (e.g., a block) that is used as reference material for encoding portions of the video signal (e.g., a motion-compensated inter-predicted block), but that does not comprise or represent any portion of the actual video sequence to be displayed. For example, it may advantageously be determined that portions of the video sequence may be efficiently represented as a motion-compensated block of pixel values which are generated by the video coder based on the blocks being predicted but not based on any actual blocks in any of the actual video frames or slices. |
| US08179959B2 |
Picture control device and method of the same
A picture control device configured to convert and output a bit-rate of an input picture data stream having an input bit-rate, includes: a first decoder configured to decode the input picture data stream; an encoder configured to encode the output of the first decoder with a plurality of converted bit-rates; an output unit configured to output the picture data encoded with a first bit-rate by the encoder, for recording; a second decoder configured to decode the same picture data encoded at a second bit-rate by the encoder; and a control unit configured to determine the second bit-rate based on the first bit-rate. |
| US08179958B2 |
Device switching system, and sender and distribution destination device
When a switching target device receives a media output indication from a sender device, a switch connects with contact B, which causes all image data stored in an extended media buffer to be inputted in a decoder, starting from the first frame (which is an I-frame) of the image data. The decoder decodes the image data, starting from the I-frame, and stores a reconstructed image in a reconstructed-image buffer. A reconstructed image required for decoding video picture data outputted from a media buffer is held in the reconstructed-image buffer. Thus, when device switching occurs, the decoder can immediately start decoding regardless of whether video picture data inputted from the media buffer is an intraframe. |
| US08179953B2 |
Mobile station apparatus and transmission channel estimation method
A disclosed mobile station apparatus, which receives a downlink signal including pilots, includes a first estimation unit configured to estimate a delay spread of a transmission channel and a Doppler frequency based on the downlink signal; a determination unit configured to determine, based on the delay spread and the Doppler frequency, an interpolation method to be applied to the pilots; and a second estimation unit configured to perform interpolation using the interpolation method to estimate the transmission channel. |
| US08179952B2 |
Programmable duty cycle distortion generation circuit
An integrated circuit is provided comprising: a serial transmitter, a serial receiver and a serial connection providing communication between the serial transmitter and the serial receiver. The integrated circuit further comprises a duty cycle distortion circuit so that the integrated circuit can be stress tested by distorting the duty cycle of a signal within the integrated circuit. |
| US08179951B2 |
Transmission output control apparatus, multicarrier transmission system, transmission output control method and transmission output control program in computer-readable storage medium
It is an object of the present invention to provide a multicarrier transmission system for enabling degradation of a transmission speed in an adjacent line adjacent to a communication line, to be avoided. For this purpose, a multicarrier transmission system in the present invention is a multicarrier transmission system configured so that a first communication device and a second communication device are connected via a communication line, wherein the first communication device controls a transmission output of a signal to be outputted to the above described communication line, based on a difference between a transmission distance of the above described communication line and a transmission distance of an adjacent line adjacent to the above described communication line. |
| US08179949B2 |
Correlation method and signal processing method of CDMA receiver using mapping
A correlation method of a code division multiple access receiver using mapping. Digital data with each signal composed of two bits are packed by a predetermined packing unit; blocking the packed data into data blocks according to a size corresponding to the repetition period of a C/A code. The packed data are recognized as an index in a correlation value mapping table having ICV and QCV mapped with each of different indexes and the ICV and the QCV are called from the correlation value mapping table. The called ICV and QCV are integrated according to the data blocks; and calculating a phase error of a carrier wave and a phase error of the C/A code using the ICV and the QCV according to the data blocks. A signal processing method is performed using the correlation method to correct phase errors. |
| US08179941B2 |
Laser diode and method of manufacturing the same
A laser diode which realizes NFP with a stable and uniform shape. The laser diode includes, on a semiconductor substrate, an active layer, one or a plurality of strip-shaped current confinement structures confining a current which is injected into the active layer, and a stacked structure including one or a plurality of strip-shaped convex portions extending in an extending direction of the current confinement structure. |
| US08179939B2 |
Light emitting and lasing semiconductor devices and methods
A two terminal semiconductor device for producing light emission in response to electrical signals, includes: a terminal-less semiconductor base region disposed between a semiconductor emitter region and a semiconductor collector region having a tunnel junction adjacent the base region; the base region having a region therein exhibiting quantum size effects; an emitter terminal and a collector terminal respectively coupled with the emitter region and the collector region; whereby application of the electrical signals with respect to the emitter and collector terminals, causes light emission from the base region. Application of the electrical signals is operative to reverse bias the tunnel junction. Holes generated at the tunnel junction recombine in the base region with electrons flowing into the base region, resulting in the light emission. The region exhibiting quantum size effects is operative to aid recombination. |
| US08179938B2 |
Light-emitting element capable of increasing amount of light emitted, light-emitting device including the same, and method of manufacturing light-emitting element and light-emitting device
A light-emitting element capable of increasing the amount of light emitted, a light-emitting device including the same, and a method of manufacturing the light-emitting element and the light-emitting device include a buffer layer having an uneven pattern formed thereon; a light-emitting structure including a first conductive pattern of a first conductivity type that is conformally formed along the buffer layer having the uneven pattern formed thereon, a light-emitting pattern that is conformally formed along the first conductive pattern, and a second conductive pattern of a second conductivity type that is formed on the light-emitting pattern; a first electrode electrically connected to the first conductive pattern; and a second electrode electrically connected to the second conductive pattern. |
| US08179933B1 |
Systems and methods for visible light source evaluation
Particular embodiments of the present disclosure relate systems and methods for evaluating visible light sources. According to one embodiment, a method of evaluating a visible light source including a semiconductor laser having a gain section, a wavelength selective section, and a phase section includes applying a gain drive signal to the gain section of the semiconductor laser at a gain modulation frequency, and applying a triangular wave drive signal to the wavelength selective section of the semiconductor laser at a wavelength selective modulation frequency that is greater than the gain modulation frequency. The light source emits a plurality of optical output pulses. Output power values of the optical output pulses at a selected wavelength are detected. The output power value of one or more selected output pulses is compared with an output power threshold value to generate an indication of whether the visible light source satisfies an output power specification. |
| US08179930B2 |
Phase control by active thermal adjustments in an external cavity laser
A wavelength tuneable external-cavity laser module comprises a gain medium in thermal contact with a thermally stabilized substrate; an end mirror, and a phase element for controlling the phase of the optical beam and being positioned within the external cavity between the gain medium and the end mirror, wherein said phase element comprises a material having a refractive index that varies in response to changes in temperature and has a transmissivity substantially independent of wavelength across said predetermined wavelength range. The thermally-controllable phase element is configured so as to induce a phase variation that compensates the drop in the output power due to ageing or to external temperature variation. A heating element is placed in thermal contact to the phase element. By thermally controlling an intra-cavity phase element it is possible to vary continuously the output power as a function of the injection current. |
| US08179924B2 |
Timer with network synchronized time base
A system and method are provided for synchronizing a programmable timer time base and an external time signal. The method either accepts or supplies an external time signal (e.g., IEEE 1588) at an external interface, links a synchronized time base to the external time signal, and clocks a channel time base with the synchronized time base. Then, a timer channel can be used to perform programmable timer functions in response to the channel time base. Some programmable timer functions include input capture, output compare, quadrature decoding, pulse measurement, frequency measurement, and pulse width modulation (PWM) functions. In one aspect, accepting the external time signal at the external interface includes detecting a packet with a time value. In another aspect, the method uses the channel to detect an event at a channel external interface, and compares the channel time base counter value with an expected value to modify the synchronized time base. |
| US08179922B2 |
Method and system for monitoring the health of wireless telecommunication networks
A method and system for monitoring the health of a wireless telecommunication network. Network health is monitored without placing an administrative burden on the carrier network itself, instead, this burden is placed on components that lie outside the carrier network and pass communications through it. The data service provider infrastructure sends a request to a mobile device, asking that it return data regarding its location. The carrier networks handling the request insert location information into the packet that is sent to the mobile device, but this information is not sent to the data service provider infrastructure itself. The mobile device harvests this location information from the packets it receives and inserts it in a response packet that finds its way back to the data service provider infrastructure. The data service provider infrastructure is able to collate this location data and to analyze it, determining the carrier network's health. |
| US08179916B2 |
Properly playing in-band tones before call establishment when performing protocol interworking
In one embodiment, interworking procedures between H.323 and SIP ensure that in-band tones and announcements, along with local and remote ringback, are properly played or generated. |
| US08179913B2 |
Method and apparatus of handling variable of RLC reset procedure during receiver-side-only re-establishment in wireless communications system
A method of handling a variable of a Radio Link Control reset procedure during receiver-side-only re-establishment in a wireless communications system includes resetting a reset state variable, used for counting the number of times a RESET protocol data unit is scheduled to be transmitted, during receiver-side-only re-establishment. |
| US08179912B2 |
System and method for providing timer affinity through engine polling within a session-based server deployment
The session-based server deployment is comprised of an engine tier that is designed for high throughput processing of communications and a state tier that maintains state information for access by the engine tier. The engine tier includes a plurality of engine nodes that process incoming messages. The state nodes contain call state, including various timers. When processing a call, an engine sets various timers in the state tier. The engine then periodically polls the state tier for any timers that have expired. Upon expiration of a timer, the timer is assigned to the corresponding engine node which handled previous communications for the call. This affinity between the timer and its respective engine provides numerous benefits, including reduced latency and more localized data access. |
| US08179911B2 |
Extended call handling functionality using multi-network simulcasting
A system for handling calls using simulcasting of multimedia information via a gateway device communicatively coupled to a wide area network, the system including at least one processor for use in an access device, the at least one processor arranged to communicate to the wide area network using at least one wireless interface of the access device, the at least one processor operable to, at least associate the access device with the gateway device; communicate multimedia and call information with the wideband network using the at least one wireless interface; send, to the gateway device via the wide area network, a request to record the call information communicated during a call over the wide area network; and receive, from the gateway device via the broadband network, acceptance of the request to record the call information, if resources needed for recording the call information communicated during the call are available. |
| US08179910B2 |
Method and system for an asymmetric PHY operation for ethernet A/V bridging and ethernet A/V bridging extensions
A network device comprising asymmetric, multi-rate, Ethernet MAC and asymmetric, multi-rate, Ethernet PHY communicates signals via a network utilizing A/V bridging services. Higher bandwidth A/V signals are communicated and lower bandwidth signals are received or vice versa. Signals are communicated based on a plurality of different Ethernet protocols and/or data rates. Signals may be communicated based on 10GBASE-T in a first direction and based on a lower rate Ethernet protocol in a second direction. Extended range mode may be utilized. PDUs comprise time stamps, traffic class designations and/or destination addresses. Data rate requests, resource reservation messages and/or registration for delivery of PDUs may be communicated. Time stamps enable end to end transport within a specified latency target. Video signals may be compressed, uncompressed, encrypted, unencrypted and/or formatted for a video display interface. |
| US08179907B2 |
Routing data packets in a communication network
Routing data packets includes receiving data packets from a network element at a routing gateway. The data packets are determined to be destined for a mobile node. A location of the mobile node is obtained. The data packets are forwarded to the mobile node according to the location on behalf of the network element. |
| US08179898B2 |
Packet processing using braided tries
Packets are processed (e.g., routed or classified) in accordance with a braided trie, which represents the combination of two or more different original tries (e.g., representing different forwarding/classification tables). The different tries are combined by twisting the mappings for specific trie nodes to make the shapes of the different tries more similar. Each node in the braided trie contains a braiding bit for at least one original trie indicating the mapping for that trie's node. Trie braiding can significantly reduce the number of nodes used to represent the different original tries, thereby reducing memory usage and improving scalability. Braided tries can be used for such applications as virtual routers and packet classification in which different forwarding/classification tables are represented by a single braided trie stored in shared memory. |
| US08179897B2 |
Generation and use of CRC in communications network
The CRC for the CPS Header of an ATM AAL2 cell is generated by a CRC generator which uses the 8 bits of the CID field to generate partial 5 bits CRCs which are loaded in a first table. The 6 bits LI field and 5 bits UUI field are added to the partial 5 bits CRC to form 16 bits. The CRC generator uses the 2.sup.16 bits to generate a second CRC table. The CRC for a particular CPS header is generated by correlating bits in the CID field, LI field and UUI field with the two tables. |
| US08179893B2 |
Method of formatting signal in mobile communication system
A method for formatting a signal in a mobile communication system by appending a plurality of medium access control headers to a plurality of medium access control-service data units for data transfer between a mobile station and network in the mobile communication system. If the service data units have the same characteristics, a medium access control-protocol data unit is formed by successively coupling the service data units to any one of the medium access control headers. If the service data units have different characteristics, the protocol data unit is formed by sequentially coupling each of the service data units and each of the medium access control headers. The formed protocol data unit is then transformed into a transport block with a predetermined size. A medium access control sublayer formats medium access control-protocol data units according to transport channel characteristics in peer-to-peer communication in such a manner that the protocol data units can have different formats with respect to different transport channels. This makes it possible to provide more efficient functions. |
| US08179890B2 |
Mobile IP over VPN communication protocol
The present invention supports a communication protocol for transmission of information packets between a mobile node and a virtual private network. Information packets are encapsulated and decapsulated along the route as the information packet is forwarded among the various networks on its path to the destination address; either the mobile node on a foreign network or a correspondence node on a virtual private network. A home agent on the virtual private network supports transmitting the information packets, and the information packets are transmitted from the virtual private network from the home agent or a virtual private network gateway. |
| US08179887B1 |
Method and apparatus for improving performance of TDM sequencing for packet processing engines using a delay line
A network system, having an array of processing engines (“PEs”) and a delay line, improves packet processing performance for time division multiplexing (“TDM”) sequencing of PEs. The system includes an ingress circuit, a delay line, a demultiplexer, a tag memory, and a multiplexer. After the ingress circuit receives a packet from an input port, the delay line stores the packet together with a unique tag value. The delay line, in one embodiment, provides a predefined time delay for the packet. Once the demultiplexer forwards the packet to an array of PEs for packet processing, a tag memory stores the tag value indexed by PE number. The PE number identifies a PE in the array, which was assigned to process the packet. The multiplexer is capable of multiplex packets from PE array and replacing the packet with the processed packet in the delay line in response to the tag value. |
| US08179885B2 |
Methods, systems, and computer program products for organizing, managing, and selectively distributing routing information in a signaling message routing node
Methods, systems, and computer program products for managing and selectively distributing routing information in a routing node are disclosed. In one implementation, a method for selectively distributing routing information in a routing node includes organizing internal signaling resources are organized so as to facilitate the efficient mapping of signaling system 7 (SS7) message transfer part (MTP) signaling protocol attributes to Internet protocol (IP)-based signaling resources. A routing status information sharing hierarchy is defined, which enables routing status information to be efficiently shared among members of a signaling mateset group. Members of a signaling mateset replicate and distribute SS7 MTP network management information across non-MTP signaling connections, such as IP connections. |
| US08179883B2 |
Apparatus, method and system for managing session encapsulation information within an internet protocol content bypass architecture
An apparatus, method and system for delivering Internet Protocol (IP) content within a system that includes a bypass architecture, using a Session Encapsulation Information Database (SEIDB). Within an existing PacketCable Multimedia (PCMM) framework used as a control plane for IP content bypass flow setup, the SEIDB system stores session bypass encapsulation information for IP content bypass flows within the system. Within the SEIDB, each entry of bypass encapsulation information has a flow classifier component that uniquely identifies a bypass flow in a manner that allows both a cable modem termination system (CMTS) and the IP content source to uniquely identify the bypass flow at the SEIDB. Initially, the CMTS gathers bypass encapsulation information and uploads it to the SEIDB. Before the bypass flow begins, the IP content source obtains the necessary bypass encapsulation information from the SEIDB, e.g., using a flow classifier as a search filter item. |
| US08179882B1 |
Voice over internet call center integration
An internet telephony system (ITS) comprising a browser display having a hyperlink, communicating with a server, retrieving a user's preferences, and initiating a voice communication with the user, through a communications channel defined by the user preferences. An ITS comprising a client system having an Internet browser, and a server hosting a Web site, wherein a message is transmitted from the server to the client system based on the user's status with respect to Web site, the user seeking to establish a voice communication session. A telephony server, comprising an application program communicating directly with telephony hardware, and an application programming interface, wherein the application program includes a call function to an external program. An ITS, comprising a browser display having a hyperlink, the hyperlink communicating with a server, retrieving a user-related data, and initiating a voice communication with the user, wherein the user is charged for the communication. |
| US08179876B2 |
Multiple modulation technique for use in a communication system
A method for receiving an indication to apply a first modulation scheme to modulate one or more segments of a first portion includes determining a first segment set, having at least one segment of the first portion for applying the first modulation scheme. The method further includes modulating the first segment set of the first portion using the first modulation scheme. In addition, the method includes modulating one or more segments of the second portion using a second scheme, different from first modulation scheme. |
| US08179872B2 |
Wireless router system and method
A wireless router employing a technique to couple a plurality of host services or host systems and a plurality of wireless networks. A method to route data items between a plurality of mobile devices and a plurality of host systems through a common wireless router. A point-to-point communication connection is preferably established between a first host system and a common wireless router, a mobile network message at a mobile device is generated, the mobile network is transmitted via a wireless network to the common wireless router which in turn routes a data item component of the mobile network message to the appropriate host service. |
| US08179870B2 |
Method and apparatus for securing devices in a network
An access point receives a notification (or advertisement) from a device, which lacks a service. The access point adds the service to the notification, and forwards the notification to other devices on the network. Upon receiving from a control point a request to use the added service, the access point provides the service on behalf of the device. |
| US08179868B2 |
Site diversity operating method and program
In a site diversity operating method in which a channel is divided into a plurality of slots by time division multiple access, and voice and data are transmitted between controlling stations and controlled stations via a plurality of sites through the slots whereby controlled stations are controlled based on instructions from controlling stations, a site change message indicating that the controlled station has changed the site is transmitted from the controlled station to the controlling station, and based on the transmitted information, a step of searching for the current site is performed on the controlling station side. |
| US08179867B2 |
Apparatus and method for transmission opportunity in mesh network
An apparatus and method of transmission opportunity in a mesh network is disclosed. A beacon timing from a receiver MP is received. The beacon timing includes a beacon reception timing of a received beacon frame that is received by the receiver MP from a neighboring MP of the receiver MP. A transmission opportunity is determined in order not to be extended across the beacon reception timing. |
| US08179856B2 |
System and method for managing transmissions between communication devices using compression techniques
There is provided a communication device including a first communication unit and a second communication unit that use a band causing a conflict between them, the communication device changing a compressibility of communication data to be transmitted by the second communication unit based on a communication status of the first communication unit. |
| US08179855B2 |
Method, and associated apparatus, for communicating data at reduced transmission latency in radio communication system having slotted interface
A method, and associated apparatus, facilitates the communication of data of a radio block by a sending station to a receiving station, within a single time frame. Communication resources are allocated within a single time frame across a plurality of radio carriers. And, the data corresponding to a radio block is scheduled for communication, and is communicated, within the single time frame. Reduced levels of latency relative to conventional operations is provided. |
| US08179854B2 |
Allocating base stations to location areas in cellular telecommunications networks
A method is provided of allocating a location area identifier to a cellular base station for wireless communications. The method comprises the following steps. Information is received of geographic location of a base station. For each of a plurality of location areas, each having a location area center, a function is calculated that is dependent upon distance of the base station from location area centers. The location area giving the lowest function value is selected as the location area for the base station. |