Abstract: The present method enables an RFID repeater to be used in conjunction with an RFID tag to allow data in the RFID tag to be read using wireless packet switched technologies. For example, the present method enables an RFID repeater to be coupled with an RFID tag. The RFID repeater reads and records the data from the RFID tag and then transmits the retrieved data from the RFID tag over a wireless packet network.

Abstract: The present invention enables users of a network service to register with the network as valued shoppers, thereby allowing them to receive specialized treatment when calling registered retailers. The present invention enables retailers to register with the network, thereby allowing them to set preferred service logic for handling valued customer calls by the network.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for responding to an inquiry from a client via a network. The method and apparatus receive the inquiry from a client via a network. Based on the inquiry, question-answer pairs retrieved from the network are analyzed to determine a response to the inquiry. The QA pairs are not predefined. As a result, the QA pairs have to be analyzed in order to determine whether they are responsive to a particular inquiry. Questions of the QA pairs may be repetitive and, without more, will not be useful in determining whether their corresponding answer responds to an inquiry.

Abstract: A wireless data access system is provided to ameliorate bursty traffic occurring in a radio communications link such as a WiFi, WiMAX, 3G or cellular telephone link to a wireless network access device. A data traffic event is detected relating to traffic in the link. The traffic event may be a traffic burst exceeding a predetermined threshold. Based on detecting the data traffic event, a free-space optical communications link is established to the network access device to handle the traffic burst. The established radio link may be used to set-up and coordinate the free-space optical link.

Abstract: Network resources for a call between a calling party and a called party are allocated. The network resources for the call are reserved based on a reservation request. The network resources are reserved before any one network resource from the reserved network resources is committed. The reserved network resources for the call are committed when a called party indicates acceptance for the call.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is presented for enabling an agent to assume the identity or persona of a called party and process calls directed to the called party. In one embodiment, methods, which enable an agent to assume the identity or persona of a called party, and process calls directed to the called party are considered a call center functions and may be implemented in a call center. A call is initiated to a called party. Initiating the call generates called party information. Using the called party information a server retrieves information associated with the called party and then forward the information associated with the called party to an agent. The call is then forwarded to the agent. As a result, the agent may use the information associated with the called party to assume the identity or persona of the called party when responding to the call.

Abstract: A new type of data transport service which uses a frame relay layer 2 data link connection identifier (DLCI) to select among various service types, feature sets, and/or closed user groups (CUGs). A layer 3 address may be extracted from a layer 2 frame, and the layer 3 address information may be used to route a data packet over a packet-switched network according to the service classes, feature sets, and/or CUGs selected. At the destination, the layer 3 data packet may again be enclosed in a layer 2 frame with a DLCI indicating the service classes, features sets, and/or CUGs. Because the use of conventional permanent virtual circuits (PVCs) is not required in aspects of the invention, new methods of measuring and managing network traffic are presented.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for transferring a user data profile from a user's home terminal to a visiting terminal is disclosed. User or network configuration settings are transferred from a home telephony adapter to a visiting telephony adapter. In accordance with one embodiment, a computer readable medium, such as a flash drive is inserted into the home telephony adapter and, either with or without authentication, user or network configuration settings are transferred from the home telephony adapter to the medium. In another embodiment, the medium is then inserted into the visiting telephony adapter.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for the repair of IP multicast sessions. A repair server polls multiple transmit servers to accumulate as many of the packets missing from the multicast session as possible. A network includes a source of multicast packets in a multicast session and a plurality of multicast recipients in that session. A repair server in the network provides the packets it receives to the recipients. The repair server includes a missing packet detector. There is a plurality of retransmit servers in the network buffering portions of the packets they respectively receive during the session. The repair server maintains an ordered list of the retransmit servers that are most likely to have buffered copies of packets missing from the session. When the repair server detects that there are packets missing from the session it has received, it uses the ordered list to sequentially request the missing packets from respective ones of the plurality of retransmit servers.

Abstract: Quality of Service (QoS) support is provided by means of a Tiered Contention Multiple Access (TCMA) distributed medium access protocol that schedules transmission of different types of traffic based on their service quality specifications. In one embodiment, a wireless station is supplied with data from a source having a lower QoS priority QoS(A), such as file transfer data. Another wireless station is supplied with data from a source having a higher QoS priority QoS(B), such as voice and video data. Each wireless station can determine the urgency class of its pending packets according to a scheduling algorithm. For example file transfer data is assigned lower urgency class and voice and video data is assigned higher urgency class. There are several urgency classes which indicate the desired ordering. Pending packets in a given urgency class are transmitted before transmitting packets of a lower urgency class.

Abstract: The burden of designing multiple training sequences for systems having multiple transmit antennas, is drastically reduced by employing a single sequence from which the necessary multiple sequences are developed. The single sequence is selected to create sequences that have an impulse-like autocorrelation function and zero cross correlations. A sequence of any desired length Nt can be realized for an arbitrary number of channel taps, L. The created sequences can be restricted to a standard constellation (that is used in transmitting information symbols) so that a common constellation mapper is used for both the information signals and the training sequence. In some applications a training sequence may be selected so that it is encoded with the same encoder that is used for encoding information symbols. Both block and trellis coding is possible in embodiments that employ this approach.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed that improve automatic speech recognition in a spoken dialog system. The method comprises partitioning speech recognizer output into self-contained clauses, identifying a dialog act in each of the self-contained clauses, qualifying dialog acts by identifying a current domain object and/or a current domain action, and determining whether further qualification is possible for the current domain object and/or current domain action. If further qualification is possible, then the method comprises identifying another domain action and/or another domain object associated with the current domain object and/or current domain action, reassigning the another domain action and/or another domain object as the current domain action and/or current domain object and then recursively qualifying the new current domain action and/or current object. This process continues until nothing is left to qualify.

Abstract: A method, system, and machine-readable medium for classifying an image element as one of a plurality of categories, including assigning the image element based on a ratio between an unoccluded perimeter of the image element and an occluded perimeter of the image element and coding the image element according to a coding scheme associated with the category to which the image element is classified. Exemplary applications include image compression, where categories include image foreground and background layers.

Abstract: A dialog manager and spoken dialog service having a dialog manager generated according to a method comprising selecting a top level flow controller based on application type, selecting available reusable subdialogs for each application part, developing a subdialog for each application part not having an available subdialog and testing and deploying the spoken dialog service using the selected top level flow controller, selected reusable subdialogs and developed subdialogs. The dialog manager capable of handling context shifts in a spoken dialog with a user. Application dependencies are established in the top level flow controller thus enabling the subdialogs to be reusable and to be capable of managing context shifts and mixed initiative dialogs.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and system for automatically identifying video content within source video and transmitting the video content to an electronic mail client. The transmitted video content can be streaming video, video files, and/or other medium derived from the source video. An enhanced electronic mail client is also disclosed.

Abstract: Disclosed is a web server that includes a headlines module for automatically generating headlines based on data retrieved from a network (e.g., World Wide Web). The web server also includes an interactive agent for generating responses to inquiries relating to the headlines based on the data.

Abstract: A method, apparatus and system for minimally intrusive fiber identification includes imparting a time-varying modulation onto an optical signal propagating in an optical fiber and subsequently detecting the presence of the time-varying modulation in the optical signal transmitting through the fiber to identify the fiber. In a specific embodiment of the invention, a time-varying curvature is imposed on the fiber to be identified and the presence of the resultant time variation in the transmitted power of a propagating optical signal is subsequently detected for identification of the manipulated fiber.

Abstract: A method includes receiving a beacon message at a wireless network device. The beacon message is followed by a beacon time interval. The method further includes receiving a thin beacon message during the beacon time interval. The thin beacon message is followed by a thin beacon time interval that is shorter than the beacon time interval. The thin beacon time interval includes a contention-free period, a contention period, or a combination thereof.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for enabling a call originated in the VoIP network to be routed from the egress of the VoIP network to the terminating PSTN network using an egress route, such as an appropriate egress access trunk, that is in the same Local Calling Area (LCA) of the called party number are disclosed. This allows the call to be completed to the called party without paying access charge. For example, the method assigns a Billing Telephone Number (BTN) or a Charge Number (CgN) to an egress route between a communication network and a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) network. The method then routes a call originating from the communication network and terminating to the PSTN network using the egress route without incurring an access charge.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for providing a private broadcast channel service, e.g., a virtual closed circuit television service, on packet networks such as Service over Internet Protocol (SoIP) networks are disclosed. For example, a customer subscribes to the private broadcast channel service for a group having a plurality of confirmed members who have confirmed their desire to participate. The network service provider enables one or more of the group members to upload media content to the service provider's network. The service provider then broadcasts the uploaded media content to all the confirmed members such that each confirmed member may view the media content by simply tuning to the appropriate channel assigned for the private broadcast channel service.