Abstract: A slot antenna has an array of slot pairs where the E-plane beamwidth of the transmitted energy can be controlled. The antenna includes at least one pair of slots which are fed by a microstrip, and electric field barriers positioned between and parallel to the slots. The electric field barriers extend between the front and rear panels of the slot antenna. The distance between the electric field barriers is used to adjust or tune the antenna to a particular transmit or receive frequency, and the distance between the slots is used to control the E-plane beamwidth of the transmitted energy. When the slots are placed closer together, the beamwidth becomes wider, and when the slots are moved further apart, the beamwidth becomes narrower. In one embodiment, the electric field barrier is a series of closely spaced conductors, and in another embodiment, the electric field barrier is a conductive strip.

Abstract: A network interface device is attachable to an intermediate field of a building entrance protector unit. The network interface device includes a jack section having a jack which is designed to receive the plug of a standard telephone. The jack includes wire leads which are connected to the telephone network terminals on the intermediate field. The jack section is mountable into a base module which is in turn attachable to the intermediate field by wedging a portion of the base module between adjacent terminals on the intermediate field. A plug section includes a plug having a pair of conductive blades therein which are connected to a pair of wire leads, which terminate in screw terminals for connection to the customer side equipment. The network interface device performs a connecting function when the plug is positioned within the jack, and an electrical connection is established between the wire leads connected to the telephone company network and the wire leads connected to the customer equipment.

Abstract: A process for determining at least one dynamic of a vehicle, particularly slip angle, during travel. The process involves optically monitoring, in real time and from the vehicle itself, the movement in one or more camera images of surface features as the vehicle passes over the surface. The direction in which the surface features are moving at any given time indicates the actual direction of vehicle movement with respect to the orientation of the optical monitoring equipment. From this actual direction of movement, in combination with the known orientation of the optical monitoring equipment and the direction in which the vehicle is being steered, it is possible to calculate the slip angle in real time.

Abstract: A multiple tone detector includes n tone detectors, each detecting one of n distinct tones, where n.gtoreq.2, and a background detector which generates a measure of accumulative background energy E.sub.avg in a frequency band or bands which do not include at least a subset of the n tones. The output of the background detector is applied to a smoothing filter, which generates the accumulative background energy measure E.sub.avg for a current frame as a weighted sum of the background detector output for the current frame and the background energy measure E.sub.avg from a previous frame. A parameter controlling response time of the smoothing filter is varied depending upon whether or not speech is determined to be present in the background portion of the input signal. A processor uses the energy measures from the n tone detectors and the background detector to compute n ratios, where a given ratio is the ratio of the energy measure of the ith tone to the accumulative background energy measure E.sub.avg.

Abstract: The invention is a beamsplitter and an optical module including a beamsplitter where the beamsplitter comprising a body having two major surfaces. At least one major surface of the body is coated so that the said major surface reflects incident light of a desired wavelength which is primarily a first polarization. The other major surface reflects incident light of the desired wavelength which is primarily an orthogonal polarization without the element substantially changing the polarization of the light as it passes through the element.

Abstract: A process for producing sodium gold sulfite in solution is described. The sodium gold sulfite solution is useful in gold electroplating baths, and can be used in applications which require pure, soft gold deposits. A process is also described whereby the sodium gold sulfite solution can be solidified by a freeze-drying process.

Abstract: A cordless telephone arranged for operation in a frequency hopping system includes an arrangement which allows multiple cordless telephone portable units to operate in close reception proximity to each other and without interference while either responding to a service request from a cordless telephone base unit or in generating a service request to the base unit, also in the system. Contention between portable units in the system in responding to a service request from the telephone base is resolved through use of a polling process wherein the base unit polls each one of the portable units as part of this polling process. Each portable unit is assigned a number of acquisition channels distributed across the frequency hopping channels used for normal communications between the base unit and the portable units. These channels are different from and do not conflict with other acquisition channels respectively assigned to other portable units, also in the system.

Abstract: A resistor circuit having its impedance controlled by a DC voltage is provided. The resistor circuit includes a first resistor with an expected impedance. The circuit also includes a second resistor connected in series with a DC voltage controlled transistor. The first resistor is placed in parallel with the series connection of the second resistor and the transistor. Adjustments to the impedance of the circuit occur by adding or removing the impedances of the second resistor and transistor by varying the DC voltage applied to the transistor. In doing so, the impedance of the resistor circuit will be controlled to match a desired impedance regardless of the variations caused by the manufacturing process, operating temperature or operating power supply voltage.

Abstract: Acoustic component sub-assemblies for direct mounting on a telephone handset inner substrate comprise a tubular housing containing a component having terminal pins electrically connected within the tubular housing to coil springs extending outwardly through an open end of the tubular housing. The coil springs serve as component terminals for spring biased contact with conductive lands on the substrate. The tubular housing is press fitted within a seat on the substrate and contacted by the handset outer housing for being tightly clamped within the substrate seat.

Abstract: A nested feed forward distortion reduction system, which reduces the distortion from a main amplifier on a main signal path, uses a nested feed forward arrangement for the correction amplifier to reduce the distortion produced from the correction amplifier. In reducing the distortion from the correction amplifier(s) and using progressively higher quality correction amplifier(s), the nested feed forward arrangement produces an improved, more stable representation of the distortion from the main amplifier, thereby alleviating the need for variable gain and/or phase control in producing amplified signal with reduced distortion.

Abstract: The invention discloses digitally tunable optical grating device using force between switchable and nonswitchable magnets to reconfigure the mechanical strain, preferably a tensile strain, or gratings so that a pulse or short-duration current can induce a latchable change in grating periodicity. Preferred embodiments include fiber gratings with magnet gaps dimensioned for limiting the maximum strain applied to the grating and guides for providing strain without rotation or twisting. The magnets provide an accurately predetermined amount of strain and hence provide a latchable wavelength shift in the grating with a minimal amount of electrical power. The device is especially useful in WDM communication systems, particularly for adding or dropping channels and for dynamically equalizing amplifier gain.

Abstract: A current driver for supplying write current to an inductive write head of a disk drive includes an H-switch and first and second damping circuits connected across the inductive head. Each damping circuit includes a first controlled resistor (such as a MOS transistor) connected across the head. A delay circuit is connected between a load terminal at one side of the head and the control terminal of the MOS transistor, and is responsive to a transient voltage at the load terminal to delay the transient voltage to the control terminal of the MOS transistor for a predetermined delay period. The MOS transistor is responsive to the delayed transient voltage to provide a predetermined electrical resistance across the head to dampen undershoot and ringing in the driver. The MOS transistor turns off when the voltage at the load terminals stabilizes, thereby removing the damping resistance from the circuit.

Abstract: A compact high resolution omnidirectional or panoramic viewer has several cameras with a common virtual optical center. The field of view of each of the cameras is arranged to form a continuous 360 degree view of an area when taken as a whole. The cameras are positioned so that they each views a different reflective surface of a polyhedron such as a pyramid. This results in each camera having a virtual optical center positioned within the pyramid. The cameras may be positioned so that their virtual optical centers are offset from each other. The offsets produce narrow blind regions that remove image distortions received from the edges of the pyramid's reflective surfaces. The reflective pyramids may be stacked base to base or nested within each other to produce a more compact panoramic viewer. Using two or more reflective pyramids in such close proximity permits using many cameras with the same virtual optical center.

Abstract: A method of treating the surface of a semiconductor wafer is disclosed for making the wafer resistant to particle adhesion, the method involving the application of a uniform corona charge to the wafer surface. The corona charge is deposited on the wafer using commercially available tools, and if necessary, it may be later removed by immersing the wafer in deionized water or by depositing a compensating corona charge over the wafer of opposite polarity relative to the originally-applied charge.

Abstract: A clock pulse generator which has a signal controlled oscillator for producing output clock pulses at a repetition rate determined by the value of a control signal. Control means is operative in a calibration cycle to set the control signal to a low or high value and record the clock pulses counted in a period of predetermined duration, to set the control signal to a high or low value and record the clock pulses counted in a period of said predetermined duration, and to calculate rate of change data representing the rate of change of recorded clock pulses with reference to change in the value of the control signal.

Abstract: The present invention provides a heat sink for use with a heat-generating electrical component. The heat sink comprises a heat-conducting body having first and second opposing edges, and a clamping arm. The heat sink is configured to at least partially support the electrical, heat-generating component. The heat-conducting body further includes a receiving catch coupled to the first edge. The clamping arm has a first end hinged to the heat-conducting body at the second edge and a second end configured to cooperatively engage the receiving catch and maintain the clamping arm in a locked position.

Abstract: A network interface device is connectable to the terminals of an intermediate field of a building entrance protector unit. The network interface device includes a jack which is design to receive the plug of a standard telephone. The jack has a connector portion having a plurality of spring clips which are insertable onto the terminals of the intermediate field. A plug section is pivotally connected to the jack by a living hinge. The plug section includes a plug having a pair of conductive blades therein. The network interface device performs a connecting function when the plug is pivoted to a position within the jack, and the conductive blades establish an electrical connection between the telephone company network and the customer equipment. When there is a need to disconnect the customer from the telephone company network or to test the system, the plug can simply be pivoted out of the jack, and a standard working telephone can be plugged into the jack for line testing purposes.

Abstract: A system and method for processing electronic data and voice audio calls providing an interLATA (Local Access Transport Area) fast connect routing scheme that bypasses an interexchange carrier. An interLATA communication circuit is established between a first switch in a first LATA and a second switch in a second LATA. The step of routing a call from the first switch to the second switch is performed. The call is routed to an interexchange carrier if the interexchange carrier is not a subscriber to a fast connect service. The step of bypassing the interexchange carrier is performed if the interexchange carrier is a subscriber to the fast connect service. Upon determining that the interexchange carrier is a subscriber to the fast connect service, the call is directly routed from the first switch located in the first LATA to the second switch located in the second LATA without utilizing interexchange carrier trunks or switches.

Abstract: A mounting bracket for attaching a cellular phone base station to a fixed object includes adjustment devices so that the base station may be accurately directed, or aimed, after installation. The bracket is C-shaped and provides a rigidifying skeletal frame for an electrical box housing the base station. By this arrangement, the box can be constructed relatively smaller and lighter than previously known boxes for such base stations. The bracket also includes structural features which cooperate with the box to enable the box to be installed by a single service technician.

Abstract: Disclosed is a semiconductor package which permits coupling of semiconductor bond pads to I/O leads where a high density of connections is needed. Conductive fingers backed by an insulating tape are bonded to the ends of the ringers on a lead frame. The tape fingers are electrically coupled to the bond pads on one major surface of the semiconductor chip by wire bonding. In one embodiment, the opposite major surface of the chip is bonded to a paddle on the lead frame through an aperture in the tape for maximum heat dissipation.