Abstract: A method for calibrating a force measuring probe comprises providing a probe having an insertion tube with a distal tip, a joint comprising a resilient member, a joint sensor in conjunction with a processor coupled to the probe wherein the processor has a memory of an axial displacement threshold for the joint stored therein; applying force to the distal tip; measuring the displacement and deflection of the distal tip; correlating the measured displacement and deflection of the distal tip to the applied force and storing the correlation in the memory until reaching the axial displacement threshold; applying force greater than the axial displacement threshold to the distal tip to define a new force value; measuring the position of the distal tip in a plane transverse to the direction of force exerted on the distal tip; correlating the measured position of the distal tip in the plane transverse to the direction of force to the new force value and storing the correlation in the memory until reaching a pre-establ

Abstract: A method for mapping includes receiving electrical inputs measured by a probe at respective locations in a chamber of a heart of a subject. The electrical inputs are processed to identify complex fractionated electrograms. At each of the respective locations, a respective contact quality between the probe and a tissue in the chamber is measured. A map of the complex fractionated electrograms in the chamber is created using the electrical inputs and the measured contact quality.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a method of securing a puller member in a control handle for a deflectable catheter. The method comprises preforming an end of the puller member, placing the preformed end in an insert mold, filling the insert mold with thermoplastic material to form a molded member, and positioning the molded member encasing the end of the puller member in a control handle. The method may also include shaping the thermoplastic material into a screw configuration and fastening the molded member to a wall in the control handle. The method may further include joining the end of the puller member with an end of a second puller member, and placing joined ends of the puller members in the insert mold.

Abstract: An esophageal mapping catheter enables a physician to map the location of the esophagus so as to avoid damaging the esophagus during radio frequency (RF) ablation procedures. Information from the esophageal mapping catheter is communicated to a patient information unit, communications unit and/or electroanatomic mapping system. The electroanatomic mapping system uses the information from the esophageal mapping catheter to develop a three-dimensional map of the esophagus and to monitor the temperature within the esophagus in order to prevent the creation of esophageal fistula.

Abstract: A catheter for diagnosing or treating the vessels found within a body or body space includes a center strut that is bonded, preferably thermally, along its longitudinal axis with the thermoplastic tubular member within which it is housed. The tubular member preferably has three layers: an inner layer, a braided layer and an outer layer. The composite catheter is made using a process in which two half-cylinder shaped mandrels are placed on each side of the center strut while the strut is heated in order to cause the thermal bonding. The bonded center strut provides in-plane deflection and improved transfer of torque to the tip of the catheter.

Abstract: A method and system for the non-destructive analysis of medical devices uses a confocal Raman microscope and other non-destructive analytical tools to assess the spatial distribution of components of an object such as the distribution of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) within a polymer matrix. In a preferred embodiment, confocal Raman spectroscopy was used to differentiate each component found in the sirolimus-eluting coronary stent. The unique spectral features identified for each component were then used to develop three separate calibration curves to describe the solid phase distribution found on drug-polymer coated stents. The calibration curves were obtained by analyzing confocal Raman spectral depth profiles from a set of 16 unique formulations of drug-polymer coatings sprayed onto stents and planar substrates.

Abstract: The present invention provides for a method and apparatus for reducing interference associated with wireless communication in an area having sensitive electronic equipment. A wireless communications device receives, from an access point, a signal having a signal strength above a predetermined threshold. The wireless communications device determines a transmission power level maximum based on the received signal and then transmits a signal to the access point at a transmission power level at or below the transmission power level maximum. The wireless communications device disables the transmission when the signal strength falls below the predetermined threshold.

Abstract: In infrastructure-based networks devices often move from one attachment point in the network or a sub-network thereof to another attachment point. Communications sessions may be established between Mobile Hosts attached to such nodes. Communications sessions between nodes established using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), Mobile Internet Protocol with Location Registers (MIP-LR) or Mobile Internet Protocol version 6 (MIPv6) may fail if there is simultaneous mobility of two Mobile Hosts in an ongoing communication session. Stationary binding update proxies and stationary location proxies are introduced into such communications networks in order to provide a solution to the problem of simultaneous mobility of Mobile Hosts. Specific implementation for SIP, MIP-LR and MIPv6 are provided. IN SIP networks, the SIP server for the mobile hosts acts as the stationary binding update proxy and the stationary location proxy.

Abstract: A medical balloon catheter assembly includes a balloon having a permeable region and a non-permeable region. The balloon is constructed at least in part from a fluid permeable tube such that the permeable region is formed from a porous material which allows a volume of pressurized fluid to pass from within a chamber formed by the balloon and into the permeable region sufficiently such that the fluid may be ablatively coupled to tissue engaged by the permeable region. The non-permeable region is adapted to substantially block the pressurized fluid from passing from within the chamber and outwardly from the balloon. The porous material may be a porous fluoropolymer, such as porous polytetrafluoroethylene, and the pores may be created by voids that are inherently formed between an interlocking node-fibril network that makes up the fluoropolymer. Such voids may be created according to one mode by expanding the fluoropolymer.

Abstract: An automatic system for the provisioning, deployment and management of digital subscriber lines (DSL) in a telephone network uses data on loop composition, electromagnetic interference and crosstalk between lines to optimize the performance and correct problems with one or more symmetric and or asymmetric digital subscriber lines in a cable. The system optimizes DSL lines on an individual basis using measurements and data. The optimal transmit power spectral density (PSD) for each DSL can be found in an iterative manner. Starting each DSL with some predetermined starting parameter, the transmit PSD of each DSL is optimized in round-robin fashion. The crosstalk into a given DSL is calculated as the power sum of all transmissions passed through their measured crosstalk couplings. An asymmetric DSL has its transmit PSD optimized by using the “waterfilling” technique.

Abstract: A system for the prioritization of quality of service (QoS) alerts and the analysis of the impact of such alerts on service uses a service model in which services are broken into one or more service components and sub-components. Creation of a service dependency model, which is driven by different phases of a service, is key to being able to understand how alerts at the lowest level of the network components affect the overall service for which they are but a component. Alerts are assigned a “handle” and a severity level. Rules are defined to be applied to the alerts to create a Component Status Indicator for each component including a handle. As each CSI propagates up towards the top of the service model dependency graph, each CSI gets modified according to predefined rules. A service impact index is created when the CSI is propagated to the top service component.

Abstract: A virtual IP topology in an IRW network is dynamically migrated from a current topology to a new topology while minimizing end user impact by maximizing network connectivity and by minimizing impact on heavier traffic communications. The virtual IP connections that must be added and removed to migrate from the old to the new topology are first determined. Next, two connections are selected and removed from the network with the objective of maintaining network connectivity and minimizing impact on heavier traffic communications. All virtual connections that satisfy resource constraints are then selected and added to the network. Next, at most one virtual connection is selected and removed from the network, the selected connection being the least loaded connection that leaves the network in a connected state. Finally, virtual connections are continuously added and removed until the network is completely migrated to the new topology. In a second embodiment, butterfly switching is initially performed.

Abstract: In a method and system for determining the composition of a subscriber loop, the method consists of analyzing the echo responses generated by the transmittal of pulses onto the subscriber loop. In the method, discontinuities along a loop are identified sequentially by comparing the measured waveform to waveforms generated on the basis of a hypothesized topology. The best match for the waveform is identified using a maximum likelihood approach and a maximum a-posteriori probability (MAP) estimator using observed knowledge regarding the loop plant. A multiple path search is also utilized to improve results and reduce computation time. Once the generated waveform that best matched the measured data had been found and a discontinuity identified, the waveform generated is subtracted from the measured data to produce a compensated waveform, which is used to detect the location and cause of the next echo. A calibration method is implemented to further improve data acquisition.

Abstract: Crosstalk between subscriber loops used to transmit different broadband services through the same bundled telephone cable is a significant limitation to providing digital subscriber line services. A method for estimating the crosstalk, identifying the sources of the crosstalk and predicting additional sources of crosstalk are disclosed. The crosstalk sources are identified in the frequency domain by maximizing the correlation with a “basis set” of received crosstalk PSDs which consist of the cascade of a finite set of known transmit PSDs types times a representative set of crosstalk couplings. Multiple crosstalk types are identified with a technique of successive spectral subtraction. This information can be used to perform crosstalk cancellation and spectrum management for DSL systems.

Abstract: Methods and systems are disclosed for transferring service application data from a server to a subscriber device via the PSTN without establishing a call between the server and subscriber device and without the PSTN switching components having inherent knowledge as to the data content. The server defines a generic request message, which contains the service application data and data delivery instructions. This generic request message is delivered to the subscriber's terminating switch, which subsequently delivers the service application data to the subscriber based on the data delivery instructions. The terminating switch then defines a generic response message and delivers it to the server, informing the server as to status of the data delivery. Similarly, methods and systems are also taught for broadcasting data from a server to a plurality of devices via the PSTN.

Abstract: A useful method of verifying the integrity of a cryptosystem involves using erroneous outputs to obtain secret information. In certain signature schemes which use the Chinese Remainder Theorem, a correct signature of a message and an erroneous signature of the same message permit the modulus to be easily obtained. If the content of the message is known, such cryptosystems may be cracked with only an erroneous signature of the message. Certain other authorization schemes may be cracked by analyzing a number of erroneous outputs caused by a particular type of error called a “register fault.” A security expert or cryptosystem designer may intentionally induce a tamper proof device generate a faulty computation by subjecting the device, such as a smart card, to physical stress, such as certain types of radiation, atypical voltage levels, or a higher clock rate than the device was designed to accommodate. Cryptosystems should be impervious to the attacks described herein.

Abstract: Techniques for estimating distances to irregularities on a subscriber loop are described. A loop response is measured in the frequency domain. The loop response is weighted by a prolate spheroidal wave function to yield a weighted response. The weighted response is transformed to a spectral domain, and peaks in the spectral domain are identified as the distances to the irregularities.

Abstract: Crosstalk between subscriber loops used to transmit different broadband services through the same bundled telephone cable is a significant limitation to providing digital subscriber line services. A method for estimating the crosstalk, identifying the sources of the crosstalk and predicting additional sources of crosstalk are disclosed. The crosstalk sources are identified in the frequency domain by maximizing the correlation with a “basis set” of received crosstalk PSDs which consist of the cascade of a finite set of known transmit PSDs types times a representative set of crosstalk couplings. Multiple crosstalk types are identified with a technique of successive spectral subtraction. Once a type is identified the crosstalk disturber is compared against all other members of the complete set for that type. Additionally, Mutliple Regression (MR) techniques and a Matching Pursuit (MP) algorithm are used to increase the ability of the system and method to identify various crosstalk disturbers.

Abstract: The packet loss ratio for a network is measured using only end-point packet counter or byte counter data received from ingress and egress network elements, or all edge routers attached to edge network elements in a virtual private network (VPN). After preprocessing the packet count data from the end-points, the data signal is put through a low pass filter of one or more tap sizes to remove high frequency variations in the ingress and egress packet count data due to the inability to sample selected data sets simultaneously. After filtering the data may be integrated in order to increase detection of small amounts of data packet loss. In order to determine if measurable loss has been detected the standard deviation of the signal is calculated over a selected set of data points prior to the window in which the packet loss ratio is calculated.

Abstract: Methods and systems for improving network reliability in a packet-based network by applying a higher level of compression to information transmitted from an interface device in the event network congestion is detected. A network congestion level is detected for the network. If this network congestion level exceeds a selected level, the interface device is directed to apply a higher level of compression. The interface devices transmission rate is thus reduced, and accordingly, the network congestion decreased.