Abstract: A method of surgically accessing and making an incision in a selected part of a body includes inserting a needle into part of the body and withdrawing fluid from the body through the needle to determine if the needle is located in the selected part of the body. Once properly located, a blade is moved along the length of the needle, making an adjacent incision. A depth of the blade relative to the end of the needle is indicated to the user. A surgical apparatus includes a hollow needle, having a needle point and a needle wall that defines a needle tube. A blade having a cutting edge and a blade base adjacent to the cutting edge is located adjacent to the needle wall. A platform slidably engages the needle for sliding along the length of the needle and holding the blade base adjacent to the needle.

Abstract: A method of attaching supplemental hair to natural human hair begins with selecting a plurality of strands of human hair growing from a scalp. A supplemental hair bundle includes a plurality of supplemental hair strands previously glued to one another at a glued portion by thermoplastic glue. A joint is formed between the glued portion of the supplemental hair bundle and the selected plurality of strands of human hair. The glued portion is fused using a heating element of an applicator. The heating element may be a heated jaw having a heating channel shaped to receive the glued portion of the bundle. A kneading jaw in opposing relationship to the heating jaw may be used to clamp the human hair and the supplemental hair bundle to mix the fused glue into the strands of human hair.

Abstract: A system and process for sealing exterior windows and doors of a building. For sealing a window, four slots are formed in the building wall spaced from the window. Four panels of material are obtained each having an elongated planar portion with two spaced apart edges and two flanges extending in opposite direction from the two edges respectively. One of each of the flanges of the panels are located in the four slots respectively and each of the other flanges are located next to the window. The lower ends of the two side panels overlap the laterally extending ends of the two side panels, and the upper panel overlaps the upper extending ends of the two side panels. The invention also is applicable to door frames in which case the lower panel will not be employed.

Abstract: The present invention is for shaping a packet time out threshold in a wireless telecommunications network including a TCP session. First, a TCP communications session (18) is identified during which first and second communications nodes (12, 14) communicate with one another by transmitting and receiving data packets across first and second channels (22, 24) of a wireless network (16). Next, a processor (26) located either in one of the communications nodes (12, 14) or in a network base station subsystem (20) determines delay characteristics of each of first and second channels (22, 24) of the communications session. Once the delay characteristics are determined, the processor (20) causes a delay packet to be transmitted on a slower of the first and second channels (22, 24) at predetermined intervals to increase an average time delay associated with both the first and second channels (22, 24). Consequently, the number of unnecessary packet time outs on the first and second channels (22, 24) is minimized.

Abstract: There is provided a light for net type games, whether they be court type games, such as volleyball, or table games, such as ping pong. The light is positioned adjacent to the end of the net and may be mounted to the net supporting structure or pole or mounted directly to the table in the case of a ping pong table. The light is positioned laterally of the playing field at a level that is above the net so that light is directed onto the playing surface and onto the net.

Abstract: A teaching aid includes a cover for substantially covering a support stand, wherein the cover has an outer surface and an inner surface, and the inner surface is adapted to conform to the support stand. The support stand may be an ordinary safety cone. The cover may be made of heavy fabric. Manipulative teaching devices are connected to the outer surface for learning and developing manipulative skills. The manipulative teaching devices may be implemented with clothing fasteners, such as zippers, buttons, laces, snaps, hooks and eyes, and hook-and-loop fasteners.

Abstract: A transmultiplexer (202) is provided for transmultiplexing digitized signal samples (244) produced by a converter. The transmultiplexer (202) comprises a first Fourier transformer bank (304) configured to transform the digital signal samples (244) produced by the digitizer into frequency domain input signals (320). The transmultiplexer (202) also comprises a frequency domain shifter bank (306) configured to circularly shift the frequency domain input signals (320) to produce shifted signals (324). A frequency domain pre-filter bank (308) is configured to perform a first fast convolution with the shifted signals (324) and a first discrete Fourier transform of a first filtering function to produce filtered input signals (330), and a combining Fourier transformer (310) is configured to transform the filtered input signals (330) to produce output signals (348) containing a sample corresponding to a down-converted channel.

Abstract: Eyeglasses for the treatment of low-vision and macular degeneration include a frame for supporting lenses on an occipital dexter side and an occipital sinister side. An occipital dexter lens has a near portion and a distance portion. The near portion has a dioptric power for near vision in a right eye, and the distance portion has a dioptric power for distance vision in the right eye. The optical center of the near portion of the occipital dexter lens is below and on the temporal side of the optical center of the distance portion. An occipital sinister lens similarly has a near portion and a distance portion. The near portion has a dioptric power for near vision in a left eye, and the distance portion has a dioptric power for distance vision in the left eye. The optical center of the near portion of the occipital sinister lens is below and on the temporal side of the optical center of the distance portion.

Abstract: In an apparatus and method for actuating arms used on a borehole data-logging tool to deploy measuring instruments against a borehole wall, a mandrel is provided. At least one arm carried by the mandrel is mounted to the mandrel to move between an expanded position, in which a part of the arm projects from the mandrel, and a retracted position. A resilient biassing compression spring provides a resilient biassing force on each arm for biassing the arm towards its expanded position. A hydraulic piston and cylinder assembly associated with each arm restrains the arm against movement towards its expanded position. A drive piston and cylinder assembly acts upon the resilient biassing compression springs for adjusting the resilient biassing force acting upon each arm.

Abstract: In a data transmitter having a data encoder, an encoder mode is detected. Thereafter, an excluded codeword output by the encoder operating in the encoder mode is identified. Next, a selected bit in the excluded codeword caused to have a predetermined value to produce a non-excluded codeword. Finally, the excluded codeword is substituted with the non-excluded codeword, wherein the non-excluded codeword is selected to mitigate effects of a decoding error in a receiver associated with the excluded codeword.

Abstract: Eyeglasses for the treatment of low-vision and macular degeneration include a frame for supporting lenses on an occipital dexter side and an occipital sinister side. An occipital dexter lens has a near portion and a distance portion. The near portion has a dioptric power for near vision in a right eye, and the distance portion has a dioptric power for distance vision in the right eye. The optical center of the near portion of the occipital dexter lens is below and on the temporal side of the optical center of the distance portion. An occipital sinister lens similarly has a near portion and a distance portion. The near portion has a dioptric power for near vision in a left eye, and the distance portion has a dioptric power for distance vision in the left eye. The optical center of the near portion of the occipital sinister lens is below and on the temporal side of the optical center of the distance portion.

Abstract: A system (FIG. 2) and method for billing in a radio telecommunications network, comprising: means (HLR) for storing billing class identifier information associated with a predetermined subscriber or subscriber services; and charging gateway means for receiving call information together with the relevant billing class identifier information and for passing the call information to a relevant billing system.

Abstract: A transmitter uses adaptive array weights to modify a gain and a phase of a communication signal to produce a plurality of element communication signals coupled to antenna elements in an adaptive array antenna. The communication signal is transmitted along with an element pilot signal that is coupled to one of the elements in the adaptive array antenna. In a receiver, the communication signal is received, and the element pilot signal is received. Thereafter, the adaptive array weights used at the transmitter are estimated in response to comparing characteristics of the received element pilot signal to characteristics of the received communication signal.

Abstract: A method and system for retransmitting data packets in a communication system having variable data rates is disclosed. In a preferred embodiment, data packets are packetized to an atomic packet size equal to that of a lowest rate packet. If a data packet requires retransmission at a rate different than that at which the data packet was initially transmitted, the rate is dynamically changed based upon a multiple of the atomic packet size.

Abstract: In a method in a transceiver for selecting a communication parameter for communicating with a concentrated subscriber unit, wherein the concentrated subscriber unit includes a plurality of subscriber terminals, a subscriber terminal identification number of one of the subscriber terminals is determined. Next, N number of selected digits in the subscriber terminal identification number are set equal to predetermined values to produce a modified subscriber terminal identification number. the modified subscriber terminal identification number is then hashed using a hashing function to produce a communication parameter indicator. Finally the communication parameter is selected in response to the communication parameter indicator, wherein groups of subscriber terminal identification numbers having non-selected digits with the same value are hashed to produce the same communication parameter indicator. The communication parameter selected may be a carrier frequency used by the communications system.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for backhauling data in a communication system (100). A plurality of quality metrics are received at a centralized controller (105) from a plurality of base stations (101-104). The quality metrics are related to a data frame transmitted to the base stations (101-104) from a remote unit (113). A preferred data frame is determined from among the data frames. The centralized controller (105) then signals the base station associated with the preferred data frame to send the preferred data frame to the centralized controller.

Abstract: In a wireless communications system using orthogonal transmit diversity, wherein the orthogonal transmit diversity signal is produced by a transmitter having first and second radio frequency diversity signals for transmitting from first and second transmit diversity antennas, a radio frequency sample signal that represents the sum of the first and second radio frequency diversity signals is produced. The radio frequency sample signal is then down-converted to produce a down-converted signal having first and second components corresponding to the first and second radio frequency diversity signals, respectively. Thereafter, a first time reference of the first radio frequency diversity signal is recovered from the first component. Finally, a characteristic of the second component that is indicative of a difference in delay between the first and second radio frequency diversity signals is measured using the first time reference.

Abstract: In a method for wireless data communication between a base station and a subscriber unit in a wireless communication system, groups of symbols of an input data stream are commutated to produce a plurality of commutated data streams. The plurality of commutated data streams are then transformed to produce a plurality of transformed data streams. Next, each transformed data stream is spread with a selected one of a plurality of spreading codes to produce a plurality of antenna signals. Finally, each of the plurality of antenna signals is transmitted using a selected one of a plurality of spaced apart antennas, wherein the plurality of spaced apart antennas are spaced apart to provide transmit diversity. In one embodiment, the transform is a space-time transform.

Abstract: A method for determining failure modes of a transceiver (100) includes applying a control signal (121) to a transmitter (130) of transceiver (100). The power level of a transmit signal (131) is proportional to a predetermined voltage level of control signal (121), and is detected by a detector (132) which correspondingly produces a transmit power level indicator (133). A portion of transmit signal (131) is coupled to produce a coupled transmit signal (111) which is received by a receiver (110) of transceiver (100). Receiver (111) produces a receive signal strength indicator (112) corresponding to the power level of coupled transmit signal (111). Voltage levels of received signal strength indicator (112), transmit power level indicator (133) and predetermined voltage level of control signal (121) are stored in a memory means 125, and compared in a controller 126 to determine failure modes of receiver (110) and transmitter (130).