Abstract: A power supply cover that snaps into place inside a computer or workstation electronic assembly, secured to the outer walls of the electronic assembly, covering and securing a power supply board in place. The power supply cover provides safety from dangerous power supply voltages. The power supply cover includes a baffled, external speaker pocket that houses a speaker for the computer or workstation electronic assembly. The power supply cover also houses an internal fan that securely snaps in under the power supply cover. The position of the fan and the power supply cover's perforated walls direct the correct amount of air flow over the power supply board, the system board and the disk drives to permit proper heat dissipation of electronics. The power supply cover also provides structural support for heavy equipment that may be stacked on the electronic assembly, such as a monitor.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for automating and controlling execution of tools in a computer system that includes a number of software application tools. The method and apparatus of the present invention enables a user without knowledge of the event connector, the message server or of software programming to create customized tool interactions from the different application tools present to match the user's needs. The method and apparatus of the present invention gives the user control of software tool integration without having to write any code or changing the implementations of the individual software tools. The tool integration is based on user-defined, event-driven interactions between the functions of the different tools of the system.

Abstract: An improved terminal block for permitting the connection of inputs and outputs of an electronics mainframe module, such as a VXI mainframe module, to external devices, such as devices under test. The improved terminal block includes insertion and ejection levers to ease the connection and disconnection of the terminal block to the module. A ledge of the insertion and ejection lever engages an insertion beating surface on a front panel of the module during the insertion process and is then rotated in the appropriate direction until the terminal block is securely connected to the module. The ledge of the insertion and ejection lever engages an ejection beating surface on the front panel of the module during the ejection process and is then rotated in the appropriate direction until the terminal block is disengaged from the module. The levers can also be shaped in such a manner to permit top and bottom cable routing apertures, as well as a back side cable routing aperture.

Abstract: A wafer scale multi-chip semiconductor module used to interconnect and house a plurality of integrated circuit chips. The wafer scale multi-chip semiconductor module has an interconnect network extending between the integrated circuit chips along the substrate of the semiconductor wafer module, which allows electrical access to the integrated circuit chips by means of electrically conductive bridge connections. The integrated circuit chips are placed in openings in the semiconductor wafer module, allowing for excellent planarity.

Abstract: The present invention is an improved printed circuit board test system in which test probes are positioned to electronically engage a selected device or printed circuit board section on a printed circuit board for testing the printed circuit board for manufacturing defects. The printed circuit board test system uses a bed-of-nails test fixture to ground and excite predetermined sites on a first side of the printed circuit board and a robot to mechanically position test probe(s) at selected test sites on a second side of the printed circuit board. A controller is used to control the movement of the robotic tester and the selection of spring probes in the bed-of-nails fixture to be exited, grounded or measured.

Abstract: This invention pertains to a lateral bipolar transistor comprising an emitter, a base and a collector. The transistor exhibits improved function and overall size reduction, due to the base and emitter structure. An island forms both the base and emitter regions in the transistor structure with the base region being above the collector region, below the emitter region, and surrounded by a dielectric region. The emitter is surrounded by emitter isolation walls, which are formed approximately 0.2 microns above the plane of the dielectric region, such that any manufacturing variances will not cause the emitter isolation walls to contact the dielectric region and pinch-off the base region from the base junction region. This structure also allows the size of the base-emitter junction to be decreased without increasing the parasitic characteristics of the transistor.

Abstract: A miniature rotary actuator optical head assembly incorporating data and servo detecting elements mounted inside a source/detector module, which is located on the rotary actuator arm adjacent to the pivot point of the rotary actuator arm. The miniature rotary actuator optical head also includes a miniature focus motor which supports a fold mirror and an objective lens and repositions the fold mirror and objective lens simultaneously whenever a focus error is received. The focus motor can be actuated by a magnetic bias field that originates external to the rotary actuator arm, particularly the magnetic bias field generated for magneto-optical recordation. The optical assembly may also include two stage tracking by mounting the light source on a pair of lateral movement flexures and supplying a fine tracking error signal to actuate the movement of the light source.

Abstract: An optical assembly for detecting a light beam returning from an optical storage media and generating a signal representative of the information stored on the storage media wherein the optical assembly includes a first photodetector that is positioned in the path of the returning light beam at a predetermined angle, so that p polarized light contained in the light beam will be absorbed by the first photodetector and s polarized light will be reflected and redirected toward a second photodetector, which is positioned in the path of the redirected s polarized light and perpendicular to the path of the s polarized light, such that substantially all of the s polarized light is absorbed by the second photodetector and the photocurrents produced by the two photodetectors are differenced to produce a signal representative of the information stored on the storage disk.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an intelligent direct memory access (DMA) controller which interprets user commands from a host system, translates virtual addresses from the user applications program to physical addresses, and retrieves blocks of data from the main system memory at the request of the user's code, rather than at the request of the kernel code of the host system. This is accomplished by representing the data processing commands of the user and the data associated therewith as respective command/pointer packets comprised of data processing commands and virtual pointers to the associated data in virtual memory space of the user's host system. The virtual pointers of the command/pointer packets may then be translated to physical pointers for purposes of identifying physical addresses within the main memory at which the associated data is located. The associated data may then be read from the physical address in the main memory without interrupting the host processor.