Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed for providing enhanced pay per view in a video server. Specifically, the present invention periodically schedules a group of non pre-emptible tasks corresponding to videos in a video server having a predetermined number of processors, wherein each task begins at predetermined periods and has a set of sub-tasks separated by predetermined intervals. To schedule the group of tasks, the present invention divides the tasks into two groups according to whether they may be scheduled on a single processor. The present invention schedules each group separately. For the group of tasks not scheduleable on a single processor, the present invention determines a number of processors required to schedule such group and schedules such tasks to start at a predetermined time. For the group of tasks scheduleable on a single processor, the present invention determines whether such tasks are scheduleable on the available processors using an array of time slots.

Abstract: Determining for each base station in a wireless telecommunication switching system whether a wireless handset should receive audio or vibration alerting for incoming calls. The wireless telecommunication switching system utilizes information specifying alerting for the base stations that is entered by a system administrator. In addition, individual users may choose to specify areas designated by the system administrator for audio alerting as vibration alerting. The information specifying the audio or vibration alerting from either the administrator or individual users is specified for different periods of time for each of the base stations. The system administrator may directly determine the alerting information for each individual base station. Also, the system administrator may determine the alerting information for different areas of the building, and as base stations are added to the wireless telecommunication system, they inherit the attributes of the area in which they are placed.

Abstract: A lead-acid battery according to the invention contains an electrode grid structure that comprises dispersoid-containing lead having relatively high strength and good corrosion resistance. The dispersoid particles exemplarily are selected from the oxides, nitrides and carbides that are substantially insoluble in lead and in sulfuric acid of concentration suitable for use in a lead-acid battery. Significantly, the dispersoid-containing lead has average grain size of at least 20 .mu.m. In consequence of the relatively large grain size, the total length of grain boundaries exposed to electrolyte is relatively small, and corrosion resistance is improved. Exemplary techniques for forming the dispersoid-containing lead are disclosed.

Abstract: A cladding-pumped fiber structure, suitable for use as a laser, provides for efficient clad-to-core energy transfer. The outside interface of the pump-clad is constructed from a rod-shaped preform by local melt-displacement using an open flame.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for computing the processing delay of a terminal running a system of one or more adaptive applications, each adaptive application consisting of a set of executable tasks sharing system resources, the set of execution tasks having execution times depending on a particular adaptation level, the method including the steps of: modelling the adaptation of each adaptive application as an adaptation process having steady-state probability distribution representing the fraction of time spent by the application in a particular adaptation level; modelling execution time variations of tasks in each application, for a particular adaptation level, by a random variable of arbitrary and known probability distribution; modeling a system-wide computation by a state process for capturing transitions of executing tasks as the tasks currently use or contend for the shared system resources, the state process being characterized as a stochastic process; calculating a stationary distribution .pi..sup.

Abstract: A bracket for mounting an antenna along with a transmitter or receiver on a pole or wall. The bracket is able to pivot in two perpendicular planes, and can be quickly and precisely aimed in a given direction, and clamped. The bracket comprises an intermediate member pivotally mounted to a base member and a support member. The bracket includes a plurality of fins forming a heat sink unitary with the bracket to dissipate heat generated by the electronics.

Abstract: An optical module that compensates for a stress induced displacement is realized by employing asymmetric ferrule and clip assemblies. In one embodiment, the optical module includes a ferrule and clip assembly having posts or vertical members joined thereto with welds positioned along the longitudinal or center axes of the posts. Importantly, however, the effective axis of rotation about which one of the welds rotates under an applied axial displacement is offset along the longitudinal axis. This offset causes the welds to rotate asymmetrically with respect to the rotational axes which are orthogonal to the stress induced displacement, and is advantageously used to compensate for any stress induced displacement of the fiber that is quadratic in nature. In another embodiment, the optical module includes an asymmetric ferrule and clip assembly wherein at least one weld is offset along from the post's longitudinal or center axis, breaking the left-right symmetry of the assembly.

Abstract: A dealer-locator service is provided to mobile telephones (40) in a mobile telecommunications system (FIG. 1). When a mobile telephone initiates a call to the dealer-locator service, a mobile telephone switching office (MTSO 41) identifies the one of a plurality of base stations (20-23) through which the call is made. A dealer-locator service apparatus (43-45) then uses this base-station identification, rather than the telephone number of the calling mobile telephone, to look up in a dealer-locator database (300-301) the one of a plurality of business locations (30-33, 50-52) of the dealer that is in the vicinity of the identified base station, and hence in the vicinity of the calling mobile telephone. The apparatus then reports the address of the one business location to the caller, and optionally also causes the MTSO to connect the call to a telephone number of the one business location.

Abstract: An article comprising a micro-machined filter advantageously comprises a micro-machined resonator, a drive circuit and a detection circuit, at least a portion of which are circuits are disposed on the resonator within a magnetic field. In operation, an input signal is delivered to the drive circuit. The resonator is excited to movement by the Lorentz force that is generated as signal current varies. Due to the resonator's movement, a voltage is induced in the detection circuit, which moves with the resonator. Using well-known micro-machining techniques, a resonator can be made that has mechanical resonance frequencies extending into the GHz regime. Under proper conditions, such resonances advantageously exhibit very high Q-values, so that the resonator shows a significant physical response (e.g., movement) over a very narrow range of excitation frequency. When the frequency of the input signal matches such a frequency (i.e., the resonant frequency), the device generates a voltage having such a frequency.

Abstract: For use with a cabinet having a door, a retractable handle and a method of operating the same. In one embodiment, the retractable handle includes: (1) a handle grip having first and second extensions projecting therefrom and passing through corresponding first and second apertures in the door and (2) a spring structure, coupling the first and second extensions to the door, that bears against the first and second extensions to urge the handle grip toward a retracted position and, when the handle grip is subjected to a pulling force, compresses to allow the handle grip to move toward an extended position.

Abstract: An optical wavelength-division multiplexed bidirectional data link (FIG. 1) is constructed using a single multi-mode fiber (130). The link comprises the optical fiber with a single-lens optical transceiver (100, 150) at each end of the fiber. Each single-lens optical transceiver comprises a transmitter in the form of a surface-emitting light-emitting diode (LED 101) that emits light at a wavelength of 0.85 .mu.m, and a receiver in the form of a large-scale optical detector (102) and a dielectric optical filter (103) that has a passband at a wavelength of 1.3 .mu.m. In the other transceiver, the wavelengths of the transmitter and the receiver are reversed. The transceiver is made as a single integrated-circuit device and is coupled to the fiber by a single-lens optical coupler (110, 160).

Abstract: A CMOS voltage generator for providing a reference voltage VDD2 that will track the low level power supply voltage VDD (approximately 3.0V-3.6V) as long as the power supply is present. When VDD is not present (defined as at "hot pluggable" condition), the voltage generator is configured to maintain a "protection" output voltage less than the relatively high voltage (approximately 5V) that may appear along a circuit signal bus. In particular, the circuit includes at least a pair of diode-connected N-channel devices disposed between the signal bus line and the output voltage terminal to provide the necessary protection.

Abstract: A double sided insulation displacement terminal strip for use in an insulation displacement type connector block that contains oppositely facing, electrically connected arrays of insulation displacement connectors (IDCs) on both sides of the connector block. The connectors may be punch down or tool-less, push cap type IDCs. The double sided insulation displacement terminal strips can incorporate a reversible test feature.

Abstract: For use with a network having server sites capable of being browsed by users based on identifiers received into the server sites and personal to the users, alternative proxy systems for providing substitute identifiers to the server sites that allow the users to browse the server sites anonymously via the proxy system. A central proxy system includes computer-executable routines that process site-specific substitute identifiers constructed from data specific to the users, that transmits the substitute identifiers to the server sites, that retransmits browsing commands received from the users to the server sites, and that removes portions of the browsing commands that would identify the users to the server sites. The foregoing functionality is performed consistently by the central proxy system during subsequent visits to a given server site as the same site specific substitute identifiers are reused.

Abstract: A light source for generating many precisely spaced wavelength channels, based on the periodic modulation of light. CW light is periodically amplitude modulated and then coupled to a non-linear fiber where it undergoes additional modulation by the process of self-phase modulation or other non-linear effects. In a general embodiment of the multi-wavelength source (MWS), an optical modulator driven by a periodic electromagnetic signal imposes periodic amplitude modulation on light from a single longitudinal mode CW laser. The light is then coupled to a non-linear medium with an intensity dependent refractive index where it generates higher order spectral sidebands by the process of self-phase modulation and/or other non-linear effects. The frequency spacing between the spectral components is equal to the repetition rate of the modulation. The shape of the spectrum (i.e.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for coating an article with a siloxane-based coating composition that results in a coating with high thermal mechanical stability, the method also allowing commercially acceptable speeds to be employed while inhibiting beading of the coating prior to cure. In one embodiment, an article is coated with a composition containing a first methylsilsequioxane oligomer having an initial viscosity of about 2000 cp or less, a second methylsilsequioxane oligomer having an initial viscosity of about 40,000 to about 90,000 cp, a viscosity-lowering additive of a lower aliphatic ketone, and a catalyst. In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for coating an article with a modified methylsilsequioxane coating suitable for higher temperature applications than an all-methyl coating.

Abstract: A protective enclosure for equipment situated out of doors. The enclosure is formed as hollow panels by a blow molding process and allows the introduction at the installation site of protective material into any desired ones of the internal cavities of the panels, thereby reducing manufacturing and transportation costs.

Abstract: A parser includes a plurality of subparsers, a main parser unit, and a selector. Each of the subparsers attempts to interpret a stream of tokens corresponding to a statement in a respectively different way. In addition, each subparser returns a speculative result and a respective confidence level. The main parser unit receives the stream of tokens, identifies that the stream of tokens make up a statement and invokes at least a few of the subparsers. The selector selects one speculative result based upon the confidence level returned by the subparsers which are invoked by the main parser unit.

Abstract: The present invention is a wireless location messaging system and method for determining the location of a mobile-telephone in a home or roaming wireless communication system, and in a multitude of call states using an audit signal and a confirmation signal that provides enhanced location accuracy. In one embodiment, the present invention wireless location messaging system is implemented in a wireless communication system comprising a base station for transmitting an audit signal, receiving a confirmation signal transmitted by a mobile-telephone in response to the audit signal and time stamping when the confirmation signal was received, and a location system for determining a location of the mobile-telephone using the receive times of the confirmation signal. The audit signal and the confirmation signal are transmitted using a communication channel that depends on the current call state of the mobile-telephone.

Abstract: Disclosed are articles that comprise an oxide layer on a GaAs-based semiconductor body, with metal layers on the oxide and the body facilitating application of an electric field across the oxide layer. The interface between the oxide and the semiconductor body is of device quality. Contrary to teachings of the prior art, the oxide is not essentially pure Ga.sub.2 O.sub.3, but instead has composition Ga.sub.x A.sub.y O.sub.z, where A is an electropositive stabilizer element adapted for stabilizing Ga in the 3+ oxidation state. Furthermore, x.gtoreq.0, z is selected to satisfy the requirement that both Ga and A is substantially fully oxidized and y/(x+y) is greater than 0.1. Stabilizer element A typically is selected from Sc, Y, the rare earth elements and the alkaline earth elements. Articles according to the invention exemplarily comprise a planar enchancement mode MOS-FET with inversion channel. A method of making articles as described above is also disclosed.