Abstract: Compliant standoffs are disposed on a support surface of a semiconductor or hybrid semiconductor device. The standoffs extend further from the support surface than other active or passive structures associated with the (hybrid) semiconductor device, and are spaced at least a minimum distance from such associated structures. Each compliant standoff provides a surface at which auxiliary devices, such as optical subassemblies, lightwave circuits and the like, can be attached. Since the compliant standoffs extend further from the support surface than other associated structures, such other associated structures are protected from potentially damaging contact with the auxiliary device(s) being attached to the compliant standoffs.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for acoustically monitoring a highway is disclosed which is inexpensive to maintain and install and does not require that the roadway be closed, torn-up or repaved. These results are obtained in an illustrative embodiment of the present invention which comprises a Mill's Cross acoustic array mounted proximate to a highway, spatial discrimination circuitry, frequency discrimination circuitry and interface circuitry that generates a binary signal which indicates when a motor vehicle is, or is not, within a detection zone on the roadway.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are taught which modify digital integrated circuits for partial scan testing and do so with little or no impact on the circuit's performance characteristics. Illustratively, the scan memory elements are selected from among all memory elements in a circuit based on their ability to eliminate feedback cycles in the circuit and on considerations of the potential performance degradation due to the inclusion of scan memory elements. A feedback cycle is defined as a feedback path from the output of a memory element to the input of said memory element.

Abstract: A radio receiver front end is disclosed that processes a multi-carrier signal with a large dynamic range. An illustrative embodiment of the present invention incorporates both feedforward and feedback mechanisms to suppress the amplitude of spurious carrier signals so as to prevent those signals from flooding the dynamic range of the mixer that mixes down the multi-carrier signal.

Abstract: A method to be used in a Source Routed Bridged LAN by which access points maintain location information of mobile stations, and forward packets destined for mobile stations that have moved to another access point. This method resolves the problem that correspondent stations do not (timely) update the routing information to the mobile stations.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing a virtual circuit network is disclosed that enables hand-off management. An illustrative embodiment establishes a virtual ciruit by receiving, at a radio port, a virtual circuit identifier from a wireless terminal and attaching the virtual circuit identifier to an OA&M cell. The radio port then transmits, over a pre-established unidirectional virtual ciruit, the OA&M cell to a radio port manager.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for enabling one or more packets (e.g., CDMA packets, CDPD packets etc.) to be encapsulated into a cell (e.g., an ATM cell, a B-ISDN cell) for transmission and/or reception over a broadband network (e.g., an ATM Channel). An illustrative method includes building a basic control octet for a packet of N bytes, the basic control octet including (1) an additional control bit that indicates if a supplemental control octet accompanies the basic control octet, and (2) a length indicator based on N.

Abstract: An end fed dipole antenna system comprises first and second quarter wavelength (L/4) conductive strips (12, 14) arranged end-to-end on one side of a PCB (16), and third and fourth conductive L/4 strips (22, 24) on the opposite side of the PCB; the third strip (22) overlying the first strip (12) and the fourth strip (24) having a longer arm lying parallel to the third strip (22). An RF generator (18) of wavelength L is connected to the corresponding outer ends of the overlying strips. Strip parts (14, 24) which do not overlie form an end fed dipole which operates as if it were center fed.

Abstract: A method of locating an object which has a straight edge is disclosed. An illustrative embodiment of the invention orients the object's edge so that it is at an oblique angle to the axis of the coordinate system of the sampling plane of the input device scanning the object. A subset of the pixels associated with the object's edge are identified and used to estimate the location of the object or edge.

Abstract: A DC coupled amplifier fed by an RF detector is taught which has greater dynamic range capabilities than techniques in the prior art. An illustrative embodiment of the present invention advantageously comprises a low-off set voltage, low-offset current differential amplifier fed by an RF detector having a fifth lead from the reference voltage node within the RF detector.

Abstract: A telecommunications architecture using ATM based technology is disclosed that supports wireless communications. Some embodiments of the present invention may provide a mechanism for hand-off, which has fewer costs and restrictions than other hand-off schemes the in the prior art. In one embodiment a plurality of virtual circuit identifiers is created such that each is unambiquously associated with the others. The virtual circuit identifiers are then transmitted to a wireless terminal, via a first radio port. Subsequently, the wireless terminal transmits one of the virtual circuit identifiers to second radio port.

Abstract: A frame layer communications system for packet-switched virtual circuits that provides error detection when the link layer both corrupts and discards cells. An illustrative embodiment of the invention provides two error detection mechanisms: the first for the user-data and the second for certain control information. When the frame is segmented into cells, the control information and information relating to the second error detection mechanism are segmented into a single cell.

Abstract: A multi-signal multi-coder transcoder is disclosed for communications systems that can be fabricated less expensively than embodiments in the prior art and without requiring significant changes to the signal source and destination devices. An illustrative embodiment preferably comprises an input lead, an output lead, an input switch, an output switch, a pool of N processing elements, which are configured to perform a first coding technique and a pool of M processing elements, which are configured to perform a second coding technique, or possibly both techniques. When the input lead carries a plurality of multiplexed signals, each of which is to be transcoded in accordance with one of the two coding techniques, the input switch segregates and routes the incoming signals to an appropriate processing element. While a processing element is preferably configured to perform only one coding technique, each is preferably capable of transcoding multiple signals concurrently in accordance with that technique.

Abstract: A code-division multiple-access (CDMA) net can be used for efficiently carrying various types of traffic having different requirements, such as voice traffic and ISDN traffic. When a station requests a channel, the controller determines the quality level required by that station and calculates the appropriate power level for that station on the basis of the required quality level. At the same time it recalculates the power levels for the stations already having operative channels.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention bias a field effect transistor with only a single voltage source and generally do not have the disadvantages of traditional "floated source" bias techniques. Furthermore, some embodiments of the present invention are capable of automatically compensating for the normal manufacturing variations that occur in the physical characteristics of individual FETs.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for transmitting and/or receiving packets (e.g., CDMA packets, CDPD packets, etc.) that are associated with different channels and which are multiplexed via a single channel (e.g., an ATM Channel).

Abstract: A cryptographic communication system is disclosed which permits computer users to authenticate themselves to a computer system without requiring that the computer system keep confidential the password files used to authenticate the respective user's identities. The invention is useful in that it prevents a compromised password file from being leveraged by crafty hackers to penetrate the computer system.

Abstract: A radio receiver front end having both feedforward and feedback mechanisms to suppress the amplitude of spurious signals so as to prevent those signals from flooding the dynamic range of the mixer of the front end. An illustrative embodiment of the present invention comprises splitting the input signal into a first signal and a second signal, creating a third signal based on the difference of the first signal and a difference signal, mixing down the third signal with a first oscillatory signal, isolating a feedback signal from the mixed down signal, mixing up the feedback signal with a second oscillatory signal and creating the difference signal based on the difference of the second signal and the mixed up signal.

Abstract: A passive electric power splitter/combiner comprising a first inductor (117) between an input terminal and a first output terminal, a second inductor (119) between the input terminal and a second output terminal, a first capacitor (111) between the input terminal and ground, a second capacitor (113) between the first output terminal and ground, a third capacitor (115) between the second output terminal and ground, and a resistor (121) between the first output terminal and the second output terminal. Embodiments of the present invention can be fabricated that have little loss other than the intrinsic split loss, exhibit a uniform impedance at all ports, and exhibit electrical isolation between the output ports.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the solution of sets of linear equations by microprocessors. In particular, when the process for solving a set of linear equations can be resolved into a set of tasks, each of which can be processed by a processing element in a multiprocessor computer, embodiments of the present invention determine the scheduling of the processing of respective tasks by each processing element. In an exemplary embodiment, the order in which each processing element should process those tasks distributed to it is determined by computing a cost metric indicative of the amount of time required to process the task and a completion time metric, indicative of the amount of time required to process all remaining tasks after that task is completed. Consequently, the tasks distributed to a given processing element are processed in an order based on the completion time metrics computed for the respective tasks.