Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer program product for safety device management is provided. The method includes performing an action with respect to the safety device in accordance with a rule when a corresponding condition of the rule is met. The actions subject to the rule include at least one of: device inspection, device testing, device activation, device de-activation, device reset, and notification generation.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems, methods, and computer readable media for performing speech recognition. The method embodiment comprises selecting a codebook from a plurality of codebooks with a minimal acoustic distance to a received speech sample, the plurality of codebooks generated by a process of (a) computing a vocal tract length for a each of a plurality of speakers, (b) for each of the plurality of speakers, clustering speech vectors, and (c) creating a codebook for each speaker, the codebook containing entries for the respective speaker's vocal tract length, speech vectors, and an optional vector weight for each speech vector, (2) applying the respective vocal tract length associated with the selected codebook to normalize the received speech sample for use in speech recognition, and (3) recognizing the received speech sample based on the respective vocal tract length associated with the selected codebook.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems, methods, and computer-readable media for disambiguating confusable speech using a table. The method embodiment provides assigning an identifier to each of at least one portion of received speech, querying a table to determine whether at least one entry is associated with the identifier, and if multiple entries are associated in the table with the identifier, then disambiguating between the multiple entries by generating a prompt to the user. Additional features include associating table entries that are not acoustically similar as confusable, presenting the items in the prompt in a sorted order, and dynamically modifying entries in the table.

Abstract: A system and method for distributed processing in an Internet Protocol network is provided. A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an application server can have a controller element to receive a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) INVITE message from a communication device, establish a Real Time Protocol (RTP) channel between the communication device and the application server responsive to the SIP INVITE message, and submit a SIP SUBSCRIBE message to an intermediate communication node (ICN) directing the ICN to engage one or more Digital Signal Processing (DSP) resources for processing signals in the RTP channel. Additional embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A machine-readable medium and a network device are provided for speech-to-text translation. Speech packets are received at a broadband telephony interface and stored in a buffer. The speech packets are processed and textual representations thereof are displayed as words on a display device. Speech processing is activated and deactivated in response to a command from a subscriber.

Abstract: A method and system are provided for provisioning a circuit in a data network without manual intervention. A network management module receives an order for provisioning the circuit and then, based on the order, transmits a request to a legacy logical element module to configure a logical circuit in one or more network devices in the network. The network device may be a switch. The circuit may be a frame relay circuit or an ATM circuit. A method and system are also provided for maintaining a network circuit in a data network. The network circuit includes both a logical circuit and a physical circuit. A legacy physical element module sends a request for logical circuit data to a legacy logical element module through a network management module in communication with the legacy physical element module and the legacy physical element module.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for detecting inter-carrier call looping. In one embodiment, the present invention is a method that can be used to reliably detect inter-network routing loops and kill associated calls using a modified ISUP Hop Counter parameter to be sent across network boundaries. Detection of inter-network loops prevents routing loops, those involving two or more carrier networks, from generating additional signaling traffic that can aggregate to overload signaling networks.

Abstract: A passive optical arrangement for indicating the presence of a change in ownership along a fiber optic cable span uses an attenuation unit at a splice location that will severely attenuate an optical signal propagating along the span at a predetermined “marker” wavelength. Particularly well-suited in combination with determining the physical location of a fault along a fiber optic cable, the arrangement allows a technician to use an OTDR at the marker wavelength to determine both the physical location of the fault as well as the physical location of a change in ownership (if any) between the technician and the fault location, since the presence of the attenuation unit will register as a large step-wise change in signal propagation.

Abstract: A voice processing system comprises a processing device that processes and receives a stream of voice input as a user is speaking. A software program executes program steps for determining a predetermined pattern of speech and silence during processing of stream of voice input so as to play or present the predetermined backchannel response to the user. A method provides an audible backchannel response between the voice processing system and the user, while the user is speaking, in particular, recording a message. The method includes monitoring the message to determine a predetermined pattern of speech and silence based on timing between the speech and silence periods. Then, the method produces the audible backchannel response based on the predetermined pattern.

Abstract: In connection with transmitted space-time, trellis encoded, signals that pass through a transmission channel that is characterized by memory, improved performance is realized with a receiver that combines a decoder with an equalizer that selects the trellis transition, s, that minimizes the metric ? j ? ( k ) = ? r ? ( k ) - ? l = L 1 + 1 L 1 ? h ~ j ? ( l ) ? s ~ ? ( k - l ) - ? l = L 1 + 1 L + 1 ? h ~ j ? ( l ) ? s ^ ? ( k - l ) ? 2 where {tilde over (h)}j(l) is related to both the transmission channel and to the encoding structure in the transmitter, {tilde over (s)}(k) are the (trial) symbols according to a certain transition and ?(k) are the symbols that were previously decided.

Abstract: The present invention relates generally to a data communication system, a virtual interworking trunk interface within a device to form a universal virtual private network, and methods of operating a virtual private network. In a particular embodiment, the data communication system includes a first portion of a virtual private network, a second portion of the virtual private network, a virtual switch instance associated with the first portion of the virtual private network, a virtual router instance associated with the second portion of the virtual private network, and a virtual interworking trunk interface coupled to the virtual switch instance and to the virtual router instance.

Abstract: A method of providing a data file that defines a modified SONET ring network including at least one sub-tending ring is disclosed. The method comprises identifying a set of low data rate sub-tending ring candidate traffic handling elements within a SONET ring network to be modified. For a first candidate element of the set of low speed sub-tending ring candidate traffic handling elements, the method includes evaluating selected characteristics of a first parent SONET UPSR ring with respect to adding the first candidate element sub-tending SONET ring. Based on a positive evaluation of each of the selected characteristics of the parent SONET ring, the method includes creating a data model that indicates addition of the first and subsequent candidate element sub-tending SONET ring to the parent SONET ring, and providing a data file based on the data model that defines a modified SONET ring network including the parent SONET ring(s) and the sub-tending SONET rings.

Abstract: A system and method are presented in which a plurality of transport protocol objects (TPOs) are instantiated at a server. In one embodiment, each of the plurality of TPOs is adapted to provide a translation between a first IM protocol and a different IM protocol.

Abstract: A computer system, method, and computer-readable medium for presenting forms and publishing form data are provided. A software component is operative to determine if a request for a network resource containing a form has been received. If such a request has been received, the software component determines whether a previously compiled class file should be utilized to respond to the form request. If a previously compiled class file cannot be utilized, the software component compiles a class file capable of generating the fields of the requested form. When the class file is compiled, a field engine table is consulted and field names for the fields to be placed on the requested form are retrieved. A field name specified in the field engine table is associated with the correspondence fields in a form. When a submission containing response data for the fields in the form as received, the software component saves the response data in an output table having fields named identically to the fields in the form.

Abstract: A system and method for notifying salespersons of customer communications including a target item is provided. Individual customers are mapped to one or more salespersons. Target items of interest to a salesperson are defined and a salesperson is associated with a customer. For each salesperson, on-line communication channels are monitored for the occurrence of a communications involving a customer associated with the salesperson and including a target item defined by the salesperson. When such an occurrence happens, a notification is directed to the salesperson. Salesperson access to the system and customer access to the on-line communication channels requires authorization.

Abstract: The present invention enables network providers to create peering arrangements with other providers that allow them to fail over to other networks in the event of a site failure. This invention would lower the cost to provide site diversity within a provider's network by allowing cost sharing between the provider's network and other networks. For example, when an Application Server (AS) in a network fails, the network provider can send a call to a partner's network and uses an AS in the partner's network to process the call request.

Abstract: A system (100) and method (300) are disclosed for exchanging content between communication devices. A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a communication device (200) having a transceiver (202) for exchanging messages with alternate communication devices (104-112), and a controller (214) for managing operations of the transceiver. The controller is programmed to scan (302) for an alternate communication device, detect (302, 304) the alternate communication device, request (306) from the alternate communication device a log of subscribed content acquired by the alternate communication device from an alternate source, identify (312) a desirable portion of the subscribed content, transmit (316) to the alternate communication device a peer-to-peer request for the desirable portion of the subscribed content according to one or more available subscriptions, and receive (320) from the alternate communication device the desired portion of the subscribed content.

Abstract: A system that enables a telephone service subscriber to maintain his or her privacy by providing callers with a disposable telephone number. The system comprises a database that associates the disposable telephone number with subscriber information. The system also comprises a routing device that is in communication with the database. The routing device is adapted to receive calls dialing the disposable telephone number. When a call is received by the routing device, the routing device consults the database to retrieve the subscriber information. When the subscriber information comprises a true telephone number of the subscriber, the routing device forwards the call to the true telephone number.

Abstract: A system and method for notifying salespersons of customer communications including a target item is provided. Individual customers are mapped to one or more salespersons. Target items of interest to a salesperson are defined and a salesperson is associated with a customer. For each salesperson, on-line communication channels are monitored for the occurrence of a communications involving a customer associated with the salesperson and including a target item defined by the salesperson. When such an occurrence happens, a notification is directed to the salesperson. Salesperson access to the system and customer access to the on-line communication channels requires authorization.

Abstract: A telecommunications network system and method is presented incorporating a distributed feature composition (DFC) architecture, offering new technology for feature specification and composition. In the network architecture of the invention, customer calls are processed by dynamically assembled configurations of filter-like components: each component implements an applicable feature, and communicates with its neighbors by featureless internal calls that are connected by the underlying architectural substrate. Features are coherently accumulated, and the problem of feature interaction is rendered much more tractable.