Abstract: An inflatable structure includes a top end cap, a bottom end cap, a bladder attached to the top and bottom end caps and configured to hold pressurized air, a plurality of tethers disposed within the bladder, the inflatable structure moveable between a stowed profile and a final support profile, wherein the bladder is pressurized and expanded axially and the plurality of tethers are fully extended and restrict further movement of the top end cap and the bottom end cap away from one another and limit axial expansion of the bladder, a pulley assembly mounted within the bottom end cap, wherein in the stowed support profile, the plurality of tethers are wound onto the pulley assembly, the pulley assembly adapted to allow selective extension of the tethers allowing axial expansion of the bladder, wherein, the inflatable structure is adapted to provide multiple intermediary support profiles capable of supporting compressive loading.

Abstract: A communications system may include a transmitting device for transmitting a modulated signal therefrom based upon first and second input data. The transmitting device may include a baseband injected pilot carrier (BPIC) generator for selectively generating BPIC data corresponding to the first input data, an interleaver for interleaving BPIC data with the second input data, and a modulator for modulating the interleaved BPIC data based upon a first modulation type and modulating the second input data based upon a second modulation type to provide a modulated signal. The communications system may further include a receiving device for receiving the modulated signal from the transmitting device. The receiving device may include a BPIC detector and a demodulator cooperating with the BPIC detector for demodulating the modulated signal from the transmitting device based upon the BPIC data to generate the first and second input data.

Abstract: A communications system may include a transmitting device for transmitting a modulated signal therefrom based upon input data, and a receiving device for receiving the modulated signal from the transmitting device. The transmitting device may include a modulator, a baseband injected pilot carrier (BPIC) generator for generating BPIC data, and a framer for interleaving BPIC data with the input data to define data frames input to the modulator. The receiving device may include a demodulator, a frame recoverer, and a BPIC detector cooperating with the demodulator for demodulating the modulated signal from the transmitting device based upon the BPIC data and cooperating with the frame recoverer for recovering the data frames also based upon the BPIC data.