Abstract: A telecommunication network includes first subscribers supported by a first local telecommunication switch. A first signal is received from the first switch at a second telecommunication switch disposed at a hierarchical level above the first switch. The first signal indicates to the second switch that features based on organizational affiliation of the calling party are to be provided. A second signal is received at the second switch from the first switch indicative of the identification of the calling party. A record in a database coupled to the second switch is located in response to receiving the second signal; the location of the record being based on the identification of the calling party. A group affiliation parameter stored in said record is identified; the group affiliation parameter defines one organization of which the calling party is a member. The second switch transmits a call setup message to a third switch associated with a called party.

Abstract: Applicants have discovered that films of conductively doped GaInO.sub.3 grown on substrates by pulsed laser deposition have conductivity comparable to conventional wide band-gap transparent conductors while exhibiting superior light transmission, particularly in the green and blue wavelength regions of the visible spectrum. Substrate temperatures ranged from room temperature to 350.degree. C. in an ambient containing oxygen at partial pressure in the range 0.1 mTorr to 100 mTorr. The preferred laser source was an excimer laser operating in the deep ultraviolet.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for forming a glass preform which can be directly drawn into a single or multi-mode optical fiber. Single or multi-mode fibers drawn from the preforms described herein have high quality core-clad interfaces since the core and cladding materials are not exposed to crystallization temperatures upon the addition of the core material to cladding material.

Abstract: A telephone answering machine and method of use utilizes speech recognition to identify a caller from a pre-defined list of possible callers. The list may be generated by various input techniques, including a spoken voice at the called party's location, and keyboard or graphical input techniques. If the caller is identified as being on the list, the machine allows the call to progress along a first sequence, which includes ringing the called phone. If the called phone does not answer, the first sequence may provide for responding with a customized message for the calling party. If the caller is not identified as being on the list, the machine allows the call to progress along a second sequence, which includes responding with a standard recorded message. In either case, the caller is typically allowed to record a message for the called party. Additional pre-defined lists may be provided, as for determining the context of a call.

Abstract: An improved Broadside SOG microphone assembly is realized by employing a microphone assembly having at least three ports arranged in a non-colinear fashion with the at least three ports defining and being in a "gradient" plane and with both outer adjacent differential pair of ports aligned in a direction substantially toward a prospective talker's lips. Thus, the inner port(s) is always closer to the prospective talker's lips. Each outer differential pair of ports forms a dipole which yields a high spatial gradient and, hence, higher speech sensitivity since they are pointed substantially toward the prospective talker's lips. Just as important, as the prospective talker's lip position relative to the microphone varies, this alignment of each outer differential pair of ports will result in the least change in the dipole sensitivity and, therefore, the lowest Broadside SOG microphone position sensitivity.

Abstract: A communications system for establishing radio transmission and reception between one or more base units and one or more portable units. Upon reception at a base unit of an incoming call a first callout signal is transmitted to one or more portable units by the base unit. This first call out signal does not contain any information about operating a ringing device located in each portable unit, however, when the sequence signal from the first portable unit to respond to the callout signal is received by the base unit, the base unit sends out a second callout signal. This second callout signal contains information which starts a ringing cadence off, at the beginning of the cadence, in the ringing device in the first portable unit to respond and thus there is always only a small delay between a base unit and a portable unit making contact and the portable unit beginning to ring.

Abstract: A power supply for regulating energy delivered to a power consuming apparatus operating at low current levels includes a power source comprising at least one battery for generating an output voltage greater than a desired operating level. The power supply further includes a voltage regulator circuit comprising a light emitting diode (LED). The light emitting diode, which is preferably configured as a gallium arsenide diode, operates at a substantially constant voltage within a current range of between 10 to 25 micro amps. As a result, reliable and economical voltage regulating circuits can be constructed with substantially improved performance, as compared to circuits utilizing zener diodes as the active voltage regulating component, at the very low current levels required for such applications as line powered telecommunication devices.

Abstract: A machine (46) for attaching an Insulation Displacement Connector (IDC) (10) to a cable (20) includes a fixture (76, 240) for engaging and arranging individual wires (18-18) in the cable in parallel, spaced-apart relationship. The machine also includes a press mechanism (51, 54, 101, 102)) for engaging a mandrel (12) of the IDC (10) and for pressing it against the wires (18-18) engaged by the fixture (76, 240) to seat each wire in a corresponding mandrel channel (14). The press mechanism (51, 54, 101 and 102) further functions to press the mandrel (12), with the wires (18-18) seated in the mandrel channels (14-14), against a IDC contact block (22) to engage each wire with an end (30) of a corresponding IDC contact (24) to accomplish attachment. As the wires (18-18) are pressed into the mandrel channels (14-14), a blade (106) severs the excess portion of each wire to facilitate attachment of the wires to the contacts.

Abstract: A terminal device, such as a computer, workstation or smart phone, incorporates a memory structure which simplifies and facilitates communications between a host computer and the terminal device. The host computer and the terminal device exchange application interface information via a communications protocol in which the host computer associates different types of objects with respective identifiers and then transmits an object type and its associated identifier to the terminal device. The terminal device, in turn, displays the object in a form determined solely by the terminal device but in accordance with respective predefined policies determined by the memory structure. If a user manipulates a displayed object type, then data representative of such manipulation is generated and transmitted with the associated object identifier to the host processor.

Abstract: A low-bitrate (typically 8 kbit/s or less), low-delay digital coder and decoder based on Code Excited Linear Prediction for speech and similar signals features backward adaptive adjustment for codebook gain and short-term synthesis filter parameters and forward adaptive adjustment of long-term (pitch) synthesis filter parameters. A highly efficient, low delay pitch parameter derivation and quantization permits overall delay which is a fraction of prior coding delays for equivalent speech quality at low bitrates.

Abstract: A method providing updates of feature package application processes, including changing data storage structures, in a controlled manner without losing call data. A service package application field update (SPAFU) process and a replacement feature process are started on the adjunct processor system. The SPAFU process is designed to interact with both the existing and new feature processes, and, is in communication with both. For changed data structures, a mapping is created in the SPAFU process that maps the old data to the new data. For each subscriber to the feature process, the SPAFU process waits until a subscriber is not actively using the feature, and temporarily blocks calls to that feature for the selected subscriber by refusing requests for use of that feature from the subscriber, reads the database structure associated with the subscriber, applies the mapping, and populates the database structure associated with that subscriber in the new feature process.

Abstract: Verifying that a correct program is being received and displayed on a television set of a consumer. In addition, video quality is checked to assure that transmission has not degraded the video quality. When the consumer requests a program by transmission of a message via a controller in a set top box to a system computer controlling a cable television system, the system computer sends the necessary commands to cause the requested program to be communicated to the consumer site and also transmits to the controller in the set top box a start time of the requested program and information defining the initial video content of that program. At the start time, the controller verifies that the initial video content is being received and that the consumer has the set top box correctly tuned. The controller uses a frame grabber circuit at the consumer site to grab the initial portion of the program and then to analyze the stored portion with respect to the initial video content.

Abstract: Feedback control of a process to reduce process variations is advantageously accomplished by the combination of a signal processor (26) and an artificial neural network (27). The signal processor (26) first determines which of a plurality of process outputs has the greatest deviation from a corresponding desired value for that output. Having determined which of the process outputs has the greatest deviation from its corresponding desired value, the process controller (25) then adjusts the output having the greatest deviation to yield an estimated process output vector T.sub.m.sup.n supplied to the artificial neural network (27) trained to represent an inverse model of the process. In response to the estimated process output vector T.sub.m.sup.n, the artificial neural network (27) generates a process control vector c.sub.n that controls the process in accordance with the first order variation between the actual process output and a desired value therefor to reduce process variations.

Abstract: Speaker independent recognition of small vocabularies, spoken over the long distance telephone network, is achieved using two types of models, one type for defined vocabulary words (e.g., collect, calling-card, person, third-number and operator), and one type for extraneous input which ranges from non-speech sounds to groups of non-vocabulary words (e.g. `I want to make a collect call please`). For this type of key word spotting, modifications are made to a connected word speech recognition algorithm based on state-transitional (hidden Markov) models which allow it to recognize words from a pre-defined vocabulary list spoken in an unconstrained fashion. Statistical models of both the actual vocabulary words and the extraneous speech and background noises are created. A syntax-driven connected word recognition system is then used to find the best sequence of extraneous input and vocabulary word models for matching the actual input speech.