Abstract: A device comprising a substrate having a surface that comprises a conductive base layer. The device also comprises fluid-support-structures on the conductive base layer. Each of the fluid-support-structures has at least one dimension of about 1 millimeter or less. Each of the fluid-support-structures is coated with an electrical insulator. The device is configured to oscillate a fluid locatable between tops of the fluid-support-structures and the conductive base layer when a voltage is applied between the conductive base layer and the fluid.

Abstract: Temporal phase shifts induced by cross-phase modulation in an optical fiber are directly characterized with a spectral equivalent of the Foucault technique used to spatially resolve wavefronts. The temporal phase induced by a high power pulsed pump on a monochromatic probe via cross-phase modulation is converted in a temporal intensity modulation via spectral filtering. A measurement of the modulated instantaneous power of the filtered signal allows to directly determine the time-resolved nonlinear phase shift. Additionally, an equivalent of the transport-of-intensity equation, which links the evolution of the instantaneous power of the electric field in a dispersive medium to the instantaneous values of the power and phase of the field. This derivation permits the measurement of temporal phase shifts using only intensity information in a direct, non-interferometric manner.

Abstract: An apparatus comprising a substrate having a surface configured to accommodate a fluid thereover. A plurality of fluid-support-structures are on the surface. Each of the fluid-support-structures has at least one dimension of less than one millimeter. A well in the substrate has an opening on the surface. A medium is locatable between the plurality of fluid-support-structures and in the well. The medium located between the fluid-support-structures is in communication with the medium in the well.

Abstract: Techniques for multilevel coding of a stream of information bits in a communication system. The stream of information bits is separated into portions, and each of the portions is associated with a different level of the multilevel coding. At least one code is applied to the portion of the information bits of each level in a designated subset of the full set of levels, such that the portions of the information bits for levels in the designated subset are coded while the portions of the information bits for levels not in the designated subset are uncoded. Both the coded portions of the information bits and the uncoded portions of the information bits are used to select modulation symbols for transmission in the system. Advantageously, the invention provides improved coding gain relative to conventional techniques, and can be configured to provide unequal error protection as well as time diversity for transmissions in the system.

Abstract: Mobile phones now transmit video signals at relatively slow bit rates. The signals transmitted are compressed using inter-frame prediction where sufficient similarity exists between successive picture frames. The receiver includes a decoder which reconstitutes the compressed signals received using signals stored on a buffer representing a previous picture frame. A mode decision circuit compares the signal at the output of the decoder with the previous signal stored and using the same decision criterion as used for the original compression generates a signal which indicates that either the signal is suitable for inter-frame prediction or not. This signal is then compared with the signal from the encoder indicating whether or not the current signal was inter-frame predicted or not. If equality is not detected, then an error may have taken place. Then, error concealment techniques are used.

Abstract: A wavelength exerciser is used for evaluating connections in an agile network. The exerciser operates at some or all switching nodes of the network, by first detecting the paths available between the respective node and all remaining nodes. For each available path, the exerciser selects some or all wavelengths that can carry the traffic all the way along the path. It can operate both during SLAT and/or during network normal operation. When the network carries live traffic, the wavelengths used on the test connections are wavelengths that are not used at the respective moment by the user traffic. The exerciser verifies the switch architecture and the access architecture, and also collects information about the performance of all paths, so as to speed-up the path-connection matching process and to increase the chances of successfully establishing the connection along the selected path.

Abstract: An organic field effect transistor (FET) is described with an active dielectric layer comprising a low-temperature cured dielectric film of a liquid-deposited silsesquioxane precursor. The dielectric film comprises a silsesquioxane having a dielectric constant of greater than 2. The silsesquioxane dielectric film is advantageously prepared by curing oligomers having alkyl(methyl) and/or alkyl(methyl) pendant groups. The invention also embraces a process for making an organic FET comprising providing a substrate suitable for an organic FET; applying a liquid-phase solution of silsesquioxane precursors over the surface of the substrate; and curing the solution to form a silsesquioxane active dielectric layer. The organic FET thus produced has a high-dielectric, silsesquioxane film with a dielectric constant of greater than about 2, and advantageously, the substrate comprises an indium-tin oxide coated plastic substrate.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus of data transmission having increased reliability in control information transmission without increased overhead and frame transmission delays. This method and apparatus of data transmission involves transmitting a data packet over a plurality of time slots of a data channel and associated control information over a plurality of time slots of a parallel control channel, wherein the control information in each time slot indicates to a receiver a manner of decoding the data packet or a portion of the data packet which was transmitted in a corresponding time slot of the data channel.

Abstract: Distributing packets from an input link to multiple output links involves categorizing each incoming packet, selecting a mapping algorithm based on the packet category, and using the selected mapping algorithm for each packet to determine an output link for the respective packet. If packets are from a category that requires the order of the packets to be maintained, then the selected mapping algorithm causes packets from the same set of packets to be distributed to the same output link. If packets are from a category that does not require the order of the packets to be maintained, then the selected mapping algorithm can cause packets to be distributed more evenly among the multiple output links. Hashing can be used to distribute in-order packets from the same set to the same output link. Load balancing and round-robin distribution can be used to distribute out-of-order packets more evenly across the output links.

Abstract: The invention relates to packet transmission scheduling and specifically to UMTS packet transmission scheduling. It is an object of the invention to provide an improved method for packet transmission scheduling, especially on downlink shared channels and an improved packet transmission scheduling system, both the improved method and the system especially adapted to be used for UMTS systems. The invention proposes a quality of service scheduling of multiple data flows in a CDMA system, wherein a priority order of protocol data units (PDU) of multiple data flows with regard to predefined flow's quality of service requirements is determined and a serving of the protocol data units (PDU) is performed by dynamically creating transport block sets (TBS) to be transmitted to the physical layer (PHY-layer) with regard to the defined priority order and in dependence of allocated radio resource constraints.

Abstract: A method and apparatus that permits base stations to adaptively set initial power levels in forward link traffic channels (i.e., base station to mobile unit) based on an interference measure, where the interference measure is the difference between the base station transmitted pilot EC/IO and the mobile unit received pilot EC/IO. The interference measure indicates how much interference is present from other base stations in the mobile unit's locale, mobile receiver noise and other similar sources. Call quality and system capacity are optimized since the initial power level is set in accordance with the interference environment. The method of the invention implements the adaptive setting by extracting the mobile unit received pilot EC/IO from the access message transmitted by the mobile unit. The interference measure is then determined and used by the base station to set the initial power level in the forward link traffic channel.

Abstract: In a communication system, channel operating parameter carrier frequencies are located in the vicinity of data nulls in a data spectrum. The operating parameter carriers are summed with the data signal. At the receiver, the operating parameter carrier frequencies are recovered by demodulation techniques, and the operating parameters are recovered and processed.

Abstract: The present invention provides an organic field effect transistor and a method of fabricating the transistor. The transistor includes a semiconductive film comprising organic molecules. Probe molecules capable of binding to target molecules are coupled to an outer surface of the semiconductive film such that the interior of the film being substantially free of the probe molecules.

Abstract: An error convergence measurement circuit for providing convergence of a filter includes a terminating component configured to terminate filter convergence independent of an operating environment of the filter. Selectable termination threshold levels are provided.

Abstract: Apparatus comprising: a first compound semiconductor composition layer doped to have a first charge carrier polarity; a second compound semiconductor composition layer doped to have a second charge carrier polarity and located on the first layer; a third compound semiconductor composition layer doped to have the first charge carrier polarity and located on the second layer; a base electrode on the second layer; and a spacer ring interposed between and defining a charge carrier access path distance between the base electrode and the third layer, the path distance being within a range of between about 200 ? and about 1000 ?. Techniques for making apparatus. Apparatus is useful as a heterobipolar transistor, particularly for high frequency applications.

Abstract: A network relay, a transmitter and methods of operating a network relay and transmitter. In one embodiment, the method of operating the network relay includes: (1) at a relay, receiving one or more symbols transmitted by a source in each of a first sequence of fundamental intervals, (2) from the relay, transmitting data extracted from the received ones of the symbols to a destination in each of a second sequence of fundamental intervals, the fundamental intervals of the first and second sequences interleaving to make a continuous period of time and (3) for each particular one of the fundamental intervals, selecting between performing the receiving and performing the transmitting based on one or more of the symbols received in an associated recent one of the fundamental intervals.

Abstract: An adaptive pulse position modulated CDMA scheme for use in UWB communications systems is disclosed. A stream of input bits is encoded with spreading code sequence. The spreading code sequence consists of a number of code elements that may have one of two values. Each bit is encoded into a symbol consisting of a predefined number of chips, which are transmitted during a symbol period. Next, at least one code element is associated with each chip in the symbol. Then, an encoded pulse is generated in each chip. Each encoded pulse has a value determined by multiplying the data bit with the code value associated with the particular chip. The encoded pulse is then pulse position modulated by shifting the position of the pulse to a first position or a second position within the chip depending upon the encoded value of the pulse.

Abstract: A stepped etalon having a top surface and two bottom surfaces that are parallel to the top surface and are each positioned at different distances from the top surface. Each bottom surface has an edge, wherein the edges face one another and a sloping step is positioned between the two edges so that rays from a beam of light projected onto the top surface of the etalon strike the step at the Brewster angle and pass through the etalon without any light being reflected back therein.

Abstract: A method for access assurance in a wireless communication system, e.g., a mobile phone network, involves allocating communication resources for transactions between the network and various wireless access terminals (each having a unique identifier) based on priority classes assigned to the access terminals. The access terminals are divided into different priority classes based on public policy and similar considerations. Each access terminal's priority class is associated with its identifier in a database. Upon communicating with an access terminal, the network determines the access terminal's priority class based upon its identifier as received by the network, e.g., the identifier is correlated to the priority class in the database. Transaction priority levels are then calculated based on each access terminal's priority class. Air interface resources are allocated according to the computed transaction priority levels and one or more pre-determined allocation precedence rules governing priority.

Abstract: A device comprising an analytical sample substrate having at least one region that comprises a plurality of sample-support-structures. Each of the sample-support-structures have at least one dimension of about 1 millimeter or less. A sum of areas of contact surfaces of the sample-support-structures is substantially less than a total area of the region. The contact surfaces define a prescribed sample path to an analytical depot located on the analytical sample substrate.