Patents Examined by Joe Logsdon
  • Patent number: 6459705
    Abstract: A network interface is provided for a host computer system that includes a host computer connected to an external computer network via an external network interface. The external network interface includes a host computer physical layer that provides a connection to the external computer network, a host computer media access control layer connected to the host computer through a media independent interface, and an isolation block connected to the media independent interface between the host computer physical layer and the host computer media access control layer. The isolation block is activated when the host computer enters a sleep state such that the host computer media access control layer is disconnected from the host computer physical layer and the network interface is activated. The network interface comprises a network interface media access control layer that is connected to the media independent interface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2002
    Assignee: National Semiconductor Corporation
    Inventor: Shelley Cheng
  • Patent number: 6459707
    Abstract: A relay multiplexing system which provides improved safety from hazardous voltage conditions. The relay multiplexing system comprises a relay multiplexer module and a terminal block which connects to the relay multiplexer module. The relay multiplexer module and corresponding terminal block incorporate a design according to the present invention whereby power can only be provided to the respective relays when the corresponding terminal block is connected to the respective relay multiplexer module. The terminal block is required to form an electrical path between the power supply in the relay multiplexer module and the relays. Thus, when the terminal block is removed from the corresponding relay multiplexer module, power is unable to be provided to the relays, thereby ensuring safety from hazardous voltages which could otherwise appear on exposed pins of the connector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 1998
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2002
    Assignee: National Instruments Corporation
    Inventor: Alvin G. Becker
  • Patent number: 6452920
    Abstract: In accordance with embodiments of the invention, Mobile IP binding information is used to deliver mobile terminating packets using layer-2 tunneling. When terminating packets destined for a mobile node are received by a home network for the mobile node, the Mobile IP binding is used to obtain the address of a foreign network to which the mobile node is attached. A Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol tunnel is created between the home network and the foreign network, and an outgoing L2TP call is made from the home network to the foreign network. A call is made from the foreign network to the mobile node, and a PPP session is established between the home network and the mobile node, via the Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol tunnel between the home network and the foreign network. After the PPP session is established the home network can optionally assign the mobile node a private IP address, and translate the home IP address labeling the terminating packets to the private IP address.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2002
    Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
    Inventor: David R. Comstock
  • Patent number: 6452952
    Abstract: A digital information processing system ensures illegal-copy protection of video and audio signals without changing the structure or format of a stream of multiplexed video, audio and data packets. A packet demultiplexer selects packets from a packet stream according to the packet identifiers (PID) of the packets. The packet demultiplexer has a first output port electrically connected to video and audio signal decoders, and a second output port for digital processing such as storage. When a selected packet is a video or audio packet, the packet demultiplexer outputs the selected packet through the first output port. When the selected packet is a data packet, and packet demultiplexer outputs the selected packet through the second output port.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2002
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Okuhara
  • Patent number: 6449276
    Abstract: A method of switching partial minicells in an AAL2 switching network without the need for re-assembly of the partial minicells at intermediate nodes. Identification of each remainder partial minicell (432) is accomplished using an 8-bit channel identifier (450), a double octet identifier (950) or a triple octet identifier (1050) depending on traffic requirements. Each partial minicell is immediately transmitted based upon the identification code attached to each partial minicell.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2002
    Assignee: Nokia Telecommunications Oy
    Inventors: Baranitharan Subbiah, Sudhir Dixit
  • Patent number: 6445717
    Abstract: Data which is transmitted over the internet or other transmission networks is first divided up into individual information packets, transmitted and then reassembled into useful data after reception. Parity packets are included in with the information packets in the transmission of data in order to enable the regeneration of any information packets which were lost or damaged during transmission. The grouping of information packets and parity packets derived therefrom is termed a chunk. Chunk arrangements to recover from all cases of single and double lost packets are disclosed. Bursts of lost packets are recovered by interleaving the transmission of packets from different chunks. If the recovery is not successful then retransmission occurs in a manner similar to TCP.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2002
    Assignee: Niwot Networks, Inc.
    Inventors: William A. Gibson, George E. Noble, Chris J. Stearns
  • Patent number: 6442178
    Abstract: A parallel-to-serial-to-parallel circuit are disclosed, the circuit interfacing with a data bus, preferably with a processor for byte alignment and other operations. The parallel-to-serial-to-parallel circuit includes an input bit shift register having a predetermined number of register positions and an output bit shift register with the same number of register positions. The output of the input bit shift register is fed into the output bit shift register through a multiplexer. The input bit shift register may receive a bit write from a bit bus, a partial parallel write from a data bus with corresponding data validity data received on a shadow bus, and full parallel write from the data bus. The output bit shift register may transmit a bit read to the bit bus or a full parallel read to the data bus. Data received is shifted to the output bit shift register and compiled into full parallel data or read out as single bits. Offset bits may be introduced in the data stream for data alignment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2002
    Assignee: GlobespanVirata Inc.
    Inventors: Laszlo Arato, Emile G. Massaad
  • Patent number: 6434143
    Abstract: A method for signaling an Integrated Messaging System (IMS) on an Internet Protocol (IP) based network to deposit a message, including the steps of sending a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) SIP INVITE request to the IMS indicating a message deposit action; receiving a corresponding SIP message from the IMS agreeing to participate in the message deposit action; and sending an SIP acknowledge message to the IMS confirming receipt of the corresponding SIP message; and depositing the message in a destination mailbox. A method of signaling an IMS on an IP based network to retrieve a deposited message, the method including the steps of sending a SIP INVITE request to the IMS indicating a message retrieval action; receiving a corresponding SIP message from the IMS agreeing to participate in the message retrieval action; sending an SIP acknowledge message to the IMS confirming receipt of the corresponding SIP message; and retrieving the deposited message from a mailbox corresponding to known account information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2002
    Assignee: MCI WorldCom, Inc.
    Inventor: Steven R. Donovan
  • Patent number: 6430176
    Abstract: A method and apparatus establishes through the public switch telephone network, a multimedia communications session between first and second telecommunications infrastructure. Each infrastructure is located on a separate private data network and comprises logic to automatically establish an integrated voice and data session initiated by a single telephone call from one infrastructure to the other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2002
    Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited
    Inventor: Samuel Henry Christie, IV
  • Patent number: 6424658
    Abstract: A store-and-forward network switch uses an embedded dynamic-random-access memory (DRAM) packet memory. An input port controller receiving a packet writes the packet to the embedded packet memory. The input port controller then sends a message to the output port over an internal token bus. The message includes the row address in the embedded packet memory where the packet was written and its length. The output port reads the message and reads the packet from the embedded memory at the row address before transmitting the packet to external media. Packets are stored at row boundaries so that DRAM page-mode cycles predominate. Only one packet is written to each DRAM row or page. Thus the column address is not sent between ports with the message sent over the token bus. A routing table can also be included in the embedded DRAM.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2002
    Assignee: NeoMagic Corp.
    Inventor: Harish N. Mathur
  • Patent number: 6421334
    Abstract: The present invention relates to communication systems and in particular relates to the time alignment of uplink CDMA signals. A simple approach for improving the performance of received CDMA signals is discussed. This consists of aligning the timings of users' signals such that the maximum output power from a single rake finger for each user occurs simultaneously. This allows the timing to be adjusted for each user's signal independently of the others and has the effect of minimizing any interference between users. The invention provides a time alignment mechanism which employs a minimum of signalling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 1998
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2002
    Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited
    Inventor: Steven John Baines
  • Patent number: 6414946
    Abstract: A transmission power control device is provided for controlling transmission power of a transmission signal, so that interference between transmission signals to a plurality of mobile stations is reduced. The transmission power control device of the present invention comprises a total transmission power monitoring section 1 for monitoring total transmission power being transmitted to a plurality of mobile stations by a base station and outputting a monitor signal, a target total transmission power setting section 2 for calculating a total transmission power value applicable to a base station and outputting a setting signal, an adder 3, a multiplier 4, an adder 5, a delay circuit 6, a limiter 7, a desired SIR setting section 8 and an adder 9.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1998
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2002
    Assignee: OKI Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shinichi Satou, Masahiro Nishino
  • Patent number: 6388989
    Abstract: Provided is a method for preventing memory overrun in a data transmission system. The data transmission system includes a CPU, an HDLC controller having a receive buffer, and a memory shared between the CPU and the HDLC controller. The method includes initializing the HDLC controller by writing to the shared memory. The CPU terminates data reception at the HDLC controller by sending a data reception termination instruction to the controller. The CPU receives an acknowledgement instruction from the HDLC controller responsive to sending the data reception termination instruction. The CPU creates an empty buffer in the shared memory responsive to receiving the acknowledgement instruction from the controller. Thereafter, the CPU makes receive descriptors included in the shared memory point to the empty buffer. The HDLC controller subsequently transfers the data contained in its receive buffer to the empty buffer in shared memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2002
    Assignee: Cisco Technology
    Inventor: Pankaj Malhotra
  • Patent number: 6389030
    Abstract: A telecommunications network is provided. The network uses a ring of ring switches to provide a transport mechanism for data packets that is transparent to the data and protocols contained in the data packets. This transport mechanism is simple and low cost to implement. Such networks can carry, for example, data to and from the Internet to a subscriber with a cable modem hook-up to a cable network or a DSL modem connection to a copper wire DSL enabled telephone network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2002
    Assignee: ADC Telecommunications, Inc.
    Inventor: Michael H. Coden
  • Patent number: 6377572
    Abstract: A system includes a first virtual end point processor (332) operably coupled to a plurality of channel elements (304) and a second virtual end point processor (340) operably coupled to a plurality of frame selectors (314). The system also includes at least one signaling manager (318, 334) that is arranged and constructed to establish a communication path that terminates at the first virtual end point processor (332) and the second virtual end point processor (340) prior to receiving a request for resources for a data call, such that set-up time for the data call through a wireless network is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2002
    Assignee: Lucent Technologies Inc.
    Inventors: Michael F. Dolan, Chung-Zin Liu, Harvey Rubin, Kenneth Wayne Strom
  • Patent number: 6373836
    Abstract: An Internet Protocol Network Telephony call center system has a plurality of call centers managed by a central controller. The central controller accepts IPNT calls and routes the calls to the plurality of call centers to be distributed to agents based on status of the call centers maintained in a stat-server coupled to the central controller. The call centers periodically report call center status to the stat-server at the central controller via dedicated data links. In the event of failure of a data link between a call center and the central controller, the central controller continues to route calls by retrieving historical data previously reported for the disconnected call center, estimating the current status of the call center based on the historical data, and using the estimates with current status of other call centers in making routing decisions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2002
    Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc.
    Inventors: Vladimir N. Deryugin, Dmitry A. Torba, Igor Neyman
  • Patent number: 6366577
    Abstract: The present invention discloses a method whereby the separate protocols: session initiation protocol SIP, resource reservation protocol RSVP, common open policy service COPS, and open settlement protocol OSP are used together to setup, maintain, and teardown Internet communications having an acceptable QoS. This process is accomplished by dynamically establishing RSVP policy based on SIP telephony requests to provide IP communications with QoS across the Internet. The QoS policy is installed in network elements at the request of the network elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2002
    Assignee: MCI WorldCom, Inc.
    Inventor: Steven R. Donovan
  • Patent number: 6359897
    Abstract: A system and method for controlling the output of multi bit digital signals from a field configurable radio frequency communications system having a first register adapted to receive multi bit digital signals from a variety of sources, wherein the register includes a tag section for providing tag bits to the signal bit to identify the source of the signal. A second register is provided for using the tag bits for storing the multi bit signals according to the source of the signal. The multi bit signals and tag bits can be outputted directly from the first register, or from the second register, depending on the mode of operation selected by the output signal receiving circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2002
    Assignee: Harris Corporation
    Inventors: Clifford Hessel, Michael E. Kreeger, Christopher D. Mackey, John E. Gorton
  • Patent number: 6347091
    Abstract: In a mobile communications system that provides packet data services, a packet data connection is established between a mobile station and a radio access network. The state of the connection is used to specify one of plural different types of radio channels bearing the connection over the radio interface. The connection state preferably also may specify other parameters including, for example, one of plural different mobility management schemes tailored to the selected channel type or channel bit rate(s). The connection is dynamically adapted to an optimal state based on one or more conditions relating to the connection. For example, one or more traffic parameters are determined for the connection and may be used to predict a future value of that parameter. Based on the predicted parameter value or values, an optimal connection state is determined and implemented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 1998
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2002
    Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
    Inventors: Bo S. P. Wallentin, Leif P. Lindskog, Thomas Rimhagen, Per O. G. Bark, Ulf A. Hansson, Harri Vilander
  • Patent number: 6317418
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for transmitting packet switched data in a mobile communications system using an ARQ protocol. In the method the receiver requests, if necessary, retrasnmissions of the originally sent transmission unit, until the quality of the combined transmission unit formed of the originally sent transmission unit and its retransmitted copies corresponds to the predetermined quality level. The signal is not detected until after this. If the packet is interleaved and encoded and it is found out that the packet is not faultless, retransmissions of the transmission units of the packet that are of the poorer quality are requested. The invention also relates to a mobile communications system implementing the method of the invention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 1998
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2001
    Assignee: Nokia Mobile Phones Limited
    Inventors: Mika Raitola, Hannu Häkkinen, Mikko J. Rinne, Kalle Ahmavaara, Oscar Salonaho