Abstract: Microfluidic optical sensor comprising: an optical waveguide capable of propagating light from an optical input port to an optical output port, the optical waveguide comprising an optical waveguide interaction region; a fluidic channel capable of conducting a fluid from a fluid input port to a fluid output port, the fluidic channel comprising a fluidic channel region; the fluidic channel region being separated from the optical waveguide interaction region by an interposed spacing material configured to transmit an evanescent field of the light through the spacing material between the optical waveguide interaction region and the fluidic channel region. Microfluidic optical sensor comprising an optical resonator. Methods for making microfluidic optical sensors.

Abstract: Methods and systems for generating a variable spacing pulse position modulated (VSPPM) signal for transmission across an ultra-wideband communications channel. The variable pulse position modulated spread spectrum signal is created by encoding every M input data bits from an input data stream into a symbol consisting of Nc chips. Each chip is divided into 2M sub-chips and each sub-chip is further divided into Np time slots. A pulse is transmitted for each chip in the symbol. During each chip period, the pulse is placed in the sub-chip corresponding to the binary M-tuple (or symbol) value. A time hopping code sequence consisting of Nc elements with a one-to-one chip association is then applied to each symbol so that the position of each pulse is shifted to the appropriate time slot that corresponds to the time hopping code value.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed that compress an input string to an equivalent word relative to a noncommutation graph. The disclosed compression system compresses an input string in a manner that an equivalent string is produced upon decompression. The disclosed compression algorithms are based upon normal forms. First, a normal form of the interchange class is produced containing the source output string. Thereafter, a grammar-based lossless data compression scheme (or another compression scheme) is applied to the normal form. Upon decompression, the compressed string produces an equivalent string. A normal form generation process is employed to compute the lexicographic normal form or the Foata normal form of an interchange class from one of its members, using only a single pass over the data.

Abstract: A packet control unit for a radio telecommunications system such as GPRS has a radio link control/medium access control blocks scheduler which allocates a number of temporary block flow queues to a timeslot for transmission to a mobile system; a fixed allocation table is provided having allocation slots corresponding to RAC blocks, and the RAC blocks scheduler reads the table cyclically and allocates slots according to the reading. Timeslots are requested later during increased demand conditions and are released earlier during decreasing demand conditions than in currently known arrangements.

Abstract: Systems and method for selecting open shortest path first (OSPF) aggregates and aggregate weights for a particular area. In one embodiment, an aggregate selecting system includes: (1) a database for containing data pertaining to candidate OSPF aggregates and corresponding weights and (2) an aggregate selector, associated with the database, that selects at least a subset of the OSPF aggregates such that the shortest path length between the particular source and destination subnets resulting from advertisement of a set of weighted aggregates approaches the shortest path length between the particular source and destination subnets irrespective of the advertisement.

Abstract: An apparatus for an ion trap includes a semiconductor or dielectric wafer with front and back surfaces, a sequence of alternating conductive and dielectric layers formed over said front surface, and a bottom conductive layer. The sequence includes top and middle conductive layers, wherein the middle conductive layer is closer to the wafer than the top conductive layer. The middle conductive layer includes a substantially right cylindrical cavity that crosses a width of the middle conductive layer. The top and bottom conductive layers cap respective first and second ends of the cavity. The top conductive layer includes a hole that forms a first access port to the cavity. The wafer includes via through the width of the wafer. The via provides another access to the cavity via the back surface of the wafer. The wafer is substantially thicker than the sequence of layers.

Abstract: Embodiments of the method and system provide for providing a call waiting method for use in a telecommunications network in which a first caller is engaged in a current call with a second caller, and for processing an incoming call from a third caller to the first caller.

Abstract: In a time division multiple access communication system, adjacent and co-channel interference are reduced by discontinuing or shutting off modulation of carrier frequency signals during inactive time slots so that transmitted power of carrier frequency signals are reduced. Also, the time slots and carrier frequency signals are organized so that each carrier frequency signal has the least amount of time slots designated as active time slots. The time slots are designated so that the respective same time slots of adjacent carrier frequency signals are not concurrently designated as active time slots.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method to reduce contention in a networked system and to provide superior bandwidth allocation to network devices contesting for network use. The method achieves reduced contention by reducing the amount of delay a network device is required to wait before attempting to transmit data after a data collision occurred. Superior bandwidth allocation is achieved by placing devices in back-off delay immediately after they transmit successfully.

Abstract: A method of efficiently providing estimated answers to workloads of aggregate, multi-join SQL-like queries over a number of input data-streams. The method only examines each data elements once and uses a limited amount of computer memory. The method uses join graphs and atomic sketches that are essentially pseudo-random summaries formed using random binary variables. The estimated answer is the product of all the atomic sketches for all the vertices in the query join graph. A query workload is processed efficiently by identifying and sharing atomic sketches common to distinct queries, while ensuring that the join graphs remain well formed. The method may automatically minimize either the average query error or the maximum query error over the workload.

Abstract: In accordance with the invention, an optical fiber communication system is provided with a tunable linearly chirped Bragg grating in high birefringence fiber for reduction of polarization mode dispersion without increasing chromatic dispersion. A first embodiment using a single grating can be tuned for optimal PMD compensation, optimal chromatic compensation or optimal simultaneous compensation. Alternative embodiments using a plurality of gratings permit simultaneous compensation of both PMD and chromatic dispersion.

Abstract: The present invention is an improved electro-optical device comprising a substrate-supported layer of electro-optical material disposed between upper and lower electrodes. Conventional practice has been to make the electrodes thick to minimize electrical loss. Applicants, in contrast, have discovered that the performance of the device can be improved by making the electrodes thin—typically about 2 microns or less and preferably about 0.5 micron or less. While the thin electrodes take a relatively large loss penalty at low frequencies, at higher frequencies the thin electrodes provide a relatively low loss, thus producing a flattened frequency response as compared with thick electrode devices. The device can maintain a wide operating bandwidth at frequencies of interest for optical transmission while reducing the required drive voltage.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a document descriptor extraction method and system. The document descriptor extraction method and system creates a document descriptor by generalizing input sequences within a document; factoring the input sequences and generalized input sequences; and selecting a document descriptor from the input sequences, generalized sequences, and factored sequences, preferably using minimum descriptor length (MDL) principles. Novel algorithms are employed to perform the generalizing, factoring, and selecting.

Abstract: The invention is for use with a system having an interface that features plural indicators on a video screen energized according to a file of non-text display-generation data, where each indicator represents information about a parameter of a large system, such as a wireless telephony system. The invention provides technology for automatically translating a subset of the file of non-text display-generation data into text variables having values that represent characteristics of a desired one of the indicators. The technology (1) acquires a file of non-text display-generation data, (2) extracts groups of data, representative of the plurality of indicators, respectively, from the file of non-text display-generation data or a file that corresponds to it, (3) identifies one of the groups of data as corresponding to the desired indicator, and (4) converts the identified group of data into a set of text variables having values representative of the characteristics of the desired indicator.

Abstract: A radio frequency (RF) module for use in a communication device of a communication system includes integrated RF circuitry comprising at least one of a transmitter and a receiver, and an antenna element having at least one portion thereof arranged substantially adjacent to and operatively coupled to the integrated RF circuitry. For example, the antenna element may include at least first and second portions having opposing edges arranged immediately adjacent respective first and second sides of the integrated RF circuitry. A plurality of the modules can be used to implement a transceiver in a communication system base station or other communication device.

Abstract: The current comb generator periodically applies current spikes to a power supply signal in the time domain to produce a series of current spikes at different frequencies in the frequency domain.

Abstract: In one embodiment, the 16-quadrature amplitude modulation QAM modulator includes a logic operation device performing a logic operation on first-fourth bits of received data to generate first and second logic outputs. A first quadrature phase shift keying QPSK modulator receives the first and second bits of received data and generates a first QPSK signal. A second QPSK modulator receives the first and second logic outputs and generates a second QPSK signal. A combiner combines the first and second QPSK signals to generate a 16-QAM signal.

Abstract: A method that globally allocates resources of a communication system. A global fast scheduler receives global CQI information from UEs of a communication system. The global fast scheduler determines a resource allocation value and assigns a UE to any available cell site that is a member of the active set of the UE and which can service the UE in accordance with the determined resource allocation value.

Abstract: An improved method and apparatus for the measurement of the polarization of light uses nonlinear polarimetry. The higher order moments of the E field are measured and then transformed into standard polarimetry parameters yielding the polarization of the light. In a first embodiment, the light to be measured is transmitted through a rotating retarder. The retarder is optically coupled to a fixed analyzer and light is then detected by linear and nonlinear photodetectors. The spectra from the detectors is calculated and transformed, to obtain the polarization. In a second embodiment, the light to be measured is received by an optical fiber comprising a plurality of fiber birefringences to retard the light. Polarization sensitive gratings along the length of the fiber scatter the light, and photodetectors detect the scattered light. Apparatus in two preferred embodiments can perform the inventive method.

Abstract: A rapid and reconfigurable deployment of services in a CATV system is enabled by the use of dynamic passive optical networks (DPONs) in accordance with the present invention. By delivering a number of wavelengths to the PON and using various dynamically reconfigurable groupings of the wavelengths to support differing subsets of users, the maximum capabilities of a static PON architecture are greatly exceeded. In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the dynamic PON device accepts M wavelengths on a single optical fiber. The output of the dynamic PON device includes N output ports. Each of the M signals can be delivered to none, some or all of the N output ports. At its input, the DPON includes an optical amplifier for amplifying the multi-wavelength input signal to a desired power level prior to splitting. A 1:N channel power splitter couples to the output of the optical amplifier. Each of the power splitter outputs contains all M wavelength channels of the optical fiber.