Abstract: Methods of stapling a nasal septum using a nasal septal stapling apparatus comprising obtaining a nasal septal stapling apparatus comprising a body, at least one arm extending from the body and comprising an end distal from the body, a staple bank comprising a plurality of staples proximal to the end of the at least one arm, and a staple moving member configured to discharge a staple from the staple bank, and a trigger. The methods comprise placing the at least one arm against a nasal septum of a patient and moving the trigger, wherein moving the trigger causes the staple moving member to discharge a staple from the staple bank and through the nasal septum of the patient.

Abstract: A spatially modulated waveguide Bragg grating mirror is suspended over a substrate by plurality of fingers extending laterally away from the waveguide centerline. The positions of the fingers are coordinated with the positions of crests and valleys of amplitude or phase modulation of the Bragg grating, to avoid disturbing the Bragg grating when it is tuned by heating. When the Bragg grating is heated, the heat flows through the fingers creating a quasi-periodic refractive index variation along the Bragg grating due to quasi-periodic temperature variation created by the heat flow from the grating through the supporting fingers. Due to coordination of the positions of supporting fingers with positions of the crests and valleys of modulation, the optical phase coherence is maintained along the Bragg grating, so that the spectral lineshape or filtering property of the Bragg grating is substantially preserved.

Abstract: A septal stapling apparatus includes an instrument body having proximal and distal end portions. A handle at the distal end portion enables a user to hold and manipulate the instrument body. A pair of spaced apart arms are extending from the handle and include a staple arm and a tensioning arm. The body provides a trigger that moves between resting and firing positions. An actuator link moves between first and second positions, the actuator link being moved by the trigger, wherein the actuator link includes a staple moving member that is attached to the staple arm. The staple arm has a staple bank that includes multiple staples. The trigger, actuator link, staple bank, and staple moving member are configured to move a staple to a stapling position when the trigger is pulled. The staple arm and tensioning arm move together when the trigger is pulled.

Abstract: A laser tissue fusion device is optimized for particular surgical applications to join tissue layers. The device has two opposed arms that engage and disengage to clamp and release layers of tissue therebetween. The distal end of the first arm is disposed opposite the distal end of the second arm. A laser energy source generates therapeutic laser energy is either integrated within the device is a separate unit. An energy pathway transmits the laser energy to the distal end of the first arm to deliver the laser energy to tissue layers clamped between the distal ends of the arms. An actuator decreases the separation distance between the distal ends of the arms to clamp the tissue layers and activates the laser energy source upon engagement. The laser energy source delivers a burst of energy at a predetermined wavelength for a predetermined period of time sufficient to spot weld the tissue.

Abstract: A bias-control circuit that provides operating point control for a Mach-Zehnder modulator experiencing optical absorption at their interferometric arms. The bias control circuit generates compensation signals that are used to counter the thermally induced index shifts as a result of absorption. In addition, an operating point with desirable transmitter characteristics can also be arbitrarily chosen by over-compensating or under-compensating thermal effects.

Abstract: A septal stapling apparatus includes an instrument body having proximal and distal end portions. A handle at the distal end portion enables a user to hold and manipulate the instrument body. A pair of spaced apart arms are extending from the handle and include a staple arm and a tensioning arm. The body provides a trigger that moves between resting and firing positions. An actuator link moves between first and second positions, the actuator link being moved by the trigger, wherein the actuator link includes a staple moving member that is attached to the staple arm. The staple arm has a staple bank that includes multiple staples. The trigger, actuator link, staple bank, and staple moving member are configured to move a staple to a stapling position when the trigger is pulled. The staple arm and tensioning arm move together when the trigger is pulled.

Abstract: A septal stapling apparatus includes an instrument body having proximal and distal end portions. A handle at the distal end portion enables a user to hold and manipulate the instrument body. A pair of spaced apart arms are extending from the handle and include a staple arm and a tensioning arm. The body provides a trigger that moves between resting and firing positions. An actuator link moves between first and second positions, the actuator link being moved by the trigger, wherein the actuator link includes a staple moving member that is attached to the staple arm. The staple arm has a staple bank that includes multiple staples. The trigger, actuator link, staple bank, and staple moving member are configured to move a staple to a stapling position when the trigger is pulled. The staple arm and tensioning arm move together when the trigger is pulled.

Abstract: A bias-control circuit that provides operating point control for a Mach-Zehnder modulator experiencing optical absorption at their interferometric arms. The bias control circuit generates compensation signals that are used to counter the thermally induced index shifts as a result of absorption. In addition, an operating point with desirable transmitter characteristics can also be arbitrarily chosen by over-compensating or under-compensating thermal effects.

Abstract: Controller calibration methods for use with sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector SGDBR laser (102) is presented. An exemplary method includes conducting a two-dimensional mirror current scam of each front mirror current setting and back mirror current setting for a sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector SGBDR laser(102) to produce laser setting data corresponding to each front mirror current setting and back mirror current setting to generate a reference optical signal (114) of the SGDBR laser (102). A channel operating point is determined for each channel within the two-dimensional scan data. A fix up of the operating point to substantially minimize wavelength and power error can also be performed. A two-dimensional control surface is characterized at the channel operating point for each channel. A lookup table for controlling the SGDBR (102) laser is generated from the operating point currents, locker values and two-dimensional control surface data from each channel.

Abstract: A tunable laser is disclosed including a gain section for creating a light beam over a bandwidth, a phase section for controlling the light beam around a center frequency of the bandwidth, a waveguide for guiding and reflecting the light beam in a cavity including a relatively low energy bandgap separate-confinement-heterostructure (SCH), a front mirror bounding an end of the cavity and a back mirror bounding an opposite end of the cavity wherein gain is provided by at least one of the group comprising the phase section, the front mirror and the back mirror.

Abstract: The present invention describes methods and apparatus for reliably assuring that correct mirror currents are selected during a channel switch to achieve the desired wavelength channel, based on feedback from either internal or external means combined with a mode map obtained at a time zero calibration.

Abstract: The present invention describes methods and apparatus for reliably assuring that correct mirror currents are selected during a channel switch to achieve the desired wavelength channel, based on feedback from either internal or external means combined with a mode map obtained at a time zero calibration.

Abstract: A tunable laser is disclosed including a gain section for creating a light beam over a bandwidth, a phase section for controlling the light beam around a center frequency of the bandwidth, a waveguide for guiding and reflecting the light beam in a cavity including a relatively low energy bandgap separate-confinement-heterostructure (SCH), a front mirror bounding an end of the cavity and a back mirror bounding an opposite end of the cavity wherein gain is provided by at least one of the group comprising the phase section, the front mirror and the back mirror.

Abstract: A compact multiwavelength transmitter module for multimode fiber optic ribbon cable, which couples light from an M×N array of emitters onto N fibers, where the M wavelength may be distributed across two or more vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) chips, and combining emitters and multiplexer into a compact package that is compatible with placement on a printed circuit board. A key feature is bringing together two emitter arrays fabricated on different substrates—each array designed for a different wavelength—into close physical proximity. Another key feature is to compactly and efficiently combine the light from two or more clusters of optical emitters, each in a different wavelength band, into a fiber ribbon.

Abstract: In an active region of an optical-electronic semiconductor device, nitrogen is incorporated in a barrier adjacent a GaNAs-based (e.g., GaInNAs) quantum well to improve device performance at wavelength bands above 1.2 microns. In a specific example embodiment, a mirror or cladding layer is grown over the active region in a manner that removes nitrogen complex otherwise present with Ga—N bonds in the active region. The embodiment can be implemented as one of a number of configurations including vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL) and edge emitting lasers.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for peeling crawfish or crayfish includes a machine frame that supports a peeling mechanism, preferably in the form of a pair of rollers rotatably mounted to the frame in a position that receives crawfish one at a time from a conveyor. The conveyor transports the crawfish to be peeled, the conveyor having first and second end portions. In the preferred embodiment, the conveyor includes multiple conveyor belts, at least two of which are positioned one above the other below the crawfish for sandwiching the crawfish therebetween to support them during use. The conveyor in combination with an alignment member straightens the tail portion of the crawfish and delivers the crawfish to the peeling mechanism. The alignment member can include an inclined plate or ramp that gradually extends the tail of the crawfish as the conveyor transports the crawfish toward the peeling mechanism.