Abstract: A system and method for permitting gold or other commodities to circulate as currency requires a network of system users that participate in financial transactions where payment is made in units of gold. The gold is kept in secure storage at a deposit site for the benefit of the users. The payments in gold are effected through a computer system having data storage and transaction processing programs that credit or debit the units of account of gold held for the account of each system user.

Abstract: A phase-comparison bit synchronizing circuit for establishing bit phase synchronization of signals transmitted by way of TDMA can reproduce data properly even in the presence of disturbance. A plurality of phase shifting units shift the phase of a given burst signal in a received frame, and a bit phase synchronizing unit synchronizes the bit phases of output signals from the phase shifting units. A determining unit determines an optimum one of the phase shifting units, and a first selecting/outputting unit selects and outputs a signal which is produced when the given burst signal is shifted in phase by the optimum phase shifting unit. A memory unit stores the identification code of the phase shifting unit which is determined by the determining unit.

Abstract: Disclosed is a digital video encoder processor for discrete cosine transform encoding. The discrete cosine transform encoding includes the encoding steps of (1) determining the discrete cosine transform field or frame type, (2) addressing individual pixels as either (i) vertically adjacent pixels on consecutive Odd and Even field lines, or (ii) vertically adjacent pixels on consecutive Odd field lines, then consecutive Even field lines; or (iii) vertically adjacent pixels on consecutive Even field lines, then consecutive Odd field lines. These subtractions may be performed between (i) consecutive lines, (ii) odd lines, or (iii) even lines. The next step is finding the smallest variance of the above subtractions to determine the discrete cosine transform coding type. The subtractions are carried out in a dynamically partitionable processor having a plurality of datapaths.

Abstract: In a local network connected to other networks which employ an Internet Protocol, and wherein the local network includes nodes which cannot monitor all other nodes in the local network, an Internet Protocol address of a target node in the local network is translated at a gateway node in the local network to a network-specific local address of the target node without the use of broadcasting. The network specific local address of the target node is the address which is usable within the local network for forwarding a packet to the target node.

Abstract: A system and method for communicating between local subscriber units and a local base station repeater cell in a two-way communication interactive data broadcast network. In one embodiment, a store and forward repeater receives data signals transmitted by a local base station repeater cell and forwards the signals to local subscriber units. Responses from the local subscriber units are then transmitted from the local subscriber units back to the local base station repeater cell means via a local remote receiver. In so doing, two-way communication is achieved between a local base station repeater cell and local subscriber units.

Abstract: Automatic provisioning of dedicated circuits (40, 44, 48, 49, 55, 56, 64, 68, 72, and 74) within a network (10) to obtain connectivity of a prescribed bandwidth between an origin (12) and an end point (16) is accomplished by first identifying circuits having a prescribed bandwidth and suitable location from a map of such circuits maintained in a data base (80). Once the circuits having the prescribed bandwidth and suitable location are identified, then a group of circuits is selected, based on one or more predetermined criteria. Thereafter, provisioning commands are generated for receipt by Digital Access Cross-Connect Devices (42, 46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66 and 73) that interconnect the circuits to provide the desired conductivity between the origin and the end point.

Abstract: In advanced digital networks for providing selective point-to-point communications between subscribers terminals and broadband server equipment operated by a plurality of independent information service providers, routing through the network is controlled by functionality identified as a Level 1 Gateway. In an enhanced video dial tone network additionally providing an array of broadcast services from multiple providers, the Level 1 Gateway also provides high level control over at least some of the broadcast services. The Level 1 Gateway will perform a variety of functions including communications port management of transmissions of information between subscribers and servers, processing of billing information and session management. The Level 1 Gateway generates menus of providers and broadcast services, either as a function of providers and services available through a particular portion of the network or in a customized fashion specified by individual subscribers.

Abstract: A means of power control on the reverse link of a CDMA network is disclosed. Specifically, the forward link from the base station to the subscriber unit is used to direct the subscriber unit to modify the output power radiated. The forward link consists of the forward packet data channel and the forward channel control channel. The forward packet data channel carriers the informational data to the subscriber unit, and the forward packet control channel includes carries of a power control setting. The forward channel is bi-phase modulated with the forward packet data channel transmitted in-phase and the forward packet control channel transmitted in quadrature.

Abstract: A method and apparatus 200 for transferring analog voice telephone signals and digital data service signals simultaneously from a telephone company location to a customer premises over a single twisted pair telephone line 205. The present apparatus 200 includes an easily installed voice plus digital data service remote terminal 203 and voice plus digital data service central office terminal 201. The present apparatus can provide a 3-to-1 pair gain by multiplexing signals representing the analog voice telephone signals and 4-wire digital data service signals.

Abstract: A shared buffer memory switch for an ATM switching system and its broadcasting control method are provided which can guarantee the cell transfer quality defined for each connection by maintaining the sequence order of arrival for each cell even if ordinary and broadcasting cells are mixed. When an input cell is a broadcasting cell, bit map data showing a broadcasting destination information is read from a broadcast registration table 6 based on the routing information derived from a header information of the cell, and an address for storing the cell in the shared buffer memory 3 is written in all the address pointer queues of FIFOs 9- corresponding to all output ports shown in the broadcasting destination information, and the cell is stored in the shared buffer memory 3 with the broadcasting destination information.

Abstract: A system and method for equalization for forward and reverse channels of communicating highway network system having a branching tree topology. The system and method cause the forward channel to be adjusted first for equalization, then the reverse channel is adjusted for equalization. A reference node periodically transmits a frequency-rich signal on the network to the head end, which broadcasts this signal to each of a number of system nodes. Each system node compares the frequency-rich signal with an expected signal, and adjusts its receiver based on this comparison. Next, each system node transmits another frequency-rich signal to the head end, receives a return echo, compares the echo with the transmitted signal, and adjusts its transmitter based on the comparison.

Abstract: The caller personal station of the present invention includes the following units: a channel search unit for scanning the plurality of communication channels to search for an unoccupied channel and regarding the unoccupied channel as a multicast channel; and a simultaneous call unit for repeatedly transmitting a simultaneous call frame on the multicast channel for a first predetermined time period, the simultaneous call frame indicating a simultaneous call to the other personal stations; a multicast unit for transmitting multicast frames on the multicast channel when a second predetermined time period has passed, the multicast frames containing data to be multicast. On receiving the simultaneous call frame by sequentially sensing the plurality of communication channels, the other personal stations enter a receiving state of multicast frames on the multicast channel.

Abstract: A method and system for providing a reliable means to perform handoff from a code division multiple access (CDMA) system using a pilot signal to an alternative access communication technique system. Simple pilot box circuitry is added to a set of border base stations. The border base stations are base stations which operate only in the alternative access communication technique and which have coverage areas which are contiguous with coverage areas of CDMA operation base stations. The mobile unit monitors for the pilot signal from the border base stations in the same manner as it monitors for pilot signals from the CDMA operation base stations. When the mobile unit detects the pilot signal corresponding to a border base station, it notifies a system controller in accordance with standard operation. The system controller is aware that the pilot signal corresponds to a border base station and thus triggers a hard handoff process to the alternative access communication technique system in response thereto.

Abstract: An internetworking node for providing internetworking services for mobile wireless nodes is disclosed. Each mobile wireless node is associated with at the most one internetworking node. Each mobile wireless node selects which internetworking node it will associate with. The internetworking node will then act for all wireless nodes associated to it in relaying messages between wireless nodes or between a wired lane and the wireless nodes. A tracking mechanism for such a system which maintains a table of all the internetworking nodes the wireless node has recently heard and deleting all such internetworking nodes which have not been heard recently is disclosed.

Abstract: Mobile radio receivers in a broadcasting system having more than one transmission channel sending the same programs use time diversity to prevent service outages during periods when none of the channels can be received.

Abstract: A communications protocol having a plurality of signals, wherein the plurality of signals includes data packets, control packets, checksum packets and sync symbols. One of the control packets is transmitted after a sync symbol is transmitted. One of the sync symbols, data packets or checksum packets is transmitted after the control packet is transmitted. One of the sync symbols is transmitted after one of said checksum packets is transmitted and one of the sync symbols or another of the data packets is transmitted after one of the data packets is transmitted.

Abstract: An apparatus for reordering frames of data within an interface device of a receiving device. The present invention can switch context to allow frames associated with more than one sequence to be handled concurrently. A "Missing Frame Window" is generated and associated with each sequence. Each Missing Frame Window maintains a record of frames of a particular sequence received out of order. When a frame associated with a particular sequence is received out of order, a bit within the Missing Frame Window representing the "missing" frame is asserted to represent receipt of the out of order frame. The out of order frame is then stored to be transferred to a host in order upon receipt of those frames which must be transferred before transfer of the out of order frame.

Abstract: In advanced digital networks for providing selective point-to-point communications between subscriber's terminals and broadband server's equipment operated by a plurality of independent information service providers, routing through the network is controlled by functionality identified as a Level 1 Gateway. In an enhanced video dial tone network additionally providing an array of broadcast services from multiple providers, the Level 1 Gateway also provides high level control over at least some of the broadcast services. The Level 1 Gateway will perform a variety of functions including communications port management of transmissions of information between subscribers and servers, processing of billing information and session management. The Level 1 Gateway generates menus of providers and broadcast services, either as a function of providers and services available through a particular portion of the network or in a customized fashion specified by individual subscribers.

Abstract: A connection admission control method for allocating many calls to a transmission line while guaranteeing the quality of service such as the cell loss ratio, where an average cell rate/peak cell rate comparator judges that a call requesting admission has a variable-speed traffic property when the average cell rate Ra and the peak cell rate Rp which are declared by the user are different. A traffic class judging portion determines the traffic class to which the call belongs on the basis of the peak cell rate. A required bandwidth calculator obtains the required bandwidth for guaranteeing the quality on the basis of the sum of the average cell rate of the call requesting admission and the average cell rates of all the calls that belong to the traffic class and that are already allocated to a transmission line, and outputs the calculated bandwidth as the estimated bandwidth.

Abstract: In a TDM wireless communication system (100), a central controller (104) monitors the transfer of a message (108) in order to determine a system grade of service. Based on the system grade of service, the central controller dynamically allocates a lesser or greater number of wireless communication resources (105). Alternatively, a communication unit (101) can directly request additional wireless communication resources.