Abstract: The described aspects and implementations support sound-based emergency vehicle detection, localization, and tracking for autonomous vehicle and driver-assist systems. The techniques include obtaining, using one or more audio detectors of a vehicle, a sound recording that includes a sound emitted by an emergency vehicle (EV). The techniques further include applying a sound localization (SL) model to the sound recording to obtain a SL output, which includes a first map of possible locations of the EV in a driving environment of the vehicle and can further include a second map of possible velocities of the EV. The techniques further include simulating, using the SL output, trajectories of simulated EV(s) in the driving environment of the vehicle, and causing, responsive to proximity of the simulated trajectories to a driving path of the vehicle, modification of the driving path of the vehicle.

Abstract: The described aspects and implementations enable privacy-respecting detection, separation, and localization of sounds in vehicle environments. The techniques include obtaining, using audio detector(s) of a vehicle, a sound recording that includes a plurality of elemental sounds (ESs) in a driving environment of the vehicle, and processing, using a sound separation model, the sound recording to separate individual ESs of the plurality of ESs. The techniques further include identifying a content of individual ESs and causing a driving path of the vehicle to be modified in view of the identified content of the individual ESs. Further techniques include rendering speech imperceptibly by redacting temporal portions of the speech, using sound recognition models to identify and discard recordings of speech, and driving at speeds that exceed threshold speeds at which speech becomes imperceptible from noise masking.

Abstract: The object collecting heads for object collecting systems includes several embodiments of object collecting heads including light and heavy-duty object collecting heads. The object collecting heads are used to grasp and convey differently sized and randomly shaped objects from a surface to an object holding bin of the object collecting system and are attached to the object holding bin using an adjustable support assembly. Both object collecting heads have three blocks including an upper block, a lower left block, and a lower right block. The lower blocks are connected to each other and the adjustable support assembly by an angled lower block bracket. The upper block is attached to the lower blocks by spring-loaded hinges, such that the upper block is urged toward the lower blocks to grasp an object therebetween. The light-duty object collecting head is a chain-based head, while the heavy-duty object collecting head is a roller-based head.

Abstract: The elevating lift with a stabilized movable base includes a base with extendable legs that provide minimum to maximum adjustable stability during use and transport. A lift system is mounted on the base, and a platform assembly is mounted on top of the lift system for selective raising or lowering. Each extendable leg supports a caster, rendering the base movable, and selective extension and retraction of the legs adjusts the stability of the lift. The plurality of legs can be further driven to simultaneously rotate about the vertical axis to steer the lift. The stabilized movable base is further alternatively used in combination with a stool, providing minimum to maximum stability during use and transport of seating, and multiple to elevating lifts may be used to support linked platform assemblies in various configurations.

Abstract: An embodiment of a computing system is configured to process data using a multithreaded SIMD architecture that includes heterogeneous processing engines to execute a program. The program is constructed of various program instructions. A first type of the program instructions can only be executed by a first type of processing engine and a third type of program instructions can only be executed by a second type of processing engine. A second type of program instructions can be executed by the first and the second type of processing engines. An assignment unit may be configured to dynamically determine which of the two processing engines executes any program instructions of the second type in order to balance the workload between the heterogeneous processing engines.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for multiplexing multiple Ethernet-based data streams in an optical network reduce the number of optical transceivers required by the optical network. Multiple data streams are multiplexed into a combined data stream, transmitted from a node in the optical network as the combined data stream, and demultiplexed at the receiving node. Data streams are multiplexed and demultiplexed at the bit level, and packets from each data stream are routed based on a VLAN tag that is contained in the header of each packet. By transmitting the information contained in multiple data streams as a single multiplexed data stream, the number of optical transceivers required for the optical network may be reduced by more than half. An optical supervisory channel may also be bundled with one of the data streams to eliminate the need for a dedicated transceiver for the optical supervisory channel.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for simulating a multi-ported memory using lower port count memories as banks. A collector units gather source operands from the banks as needed to process program instructions. The collector units also gather constants that are used as operands. When all of the source operands needed to process a program instruction have been gathered, a collector unit outputs the source operands to an execution unit while avoiding writeback conflicts to registers specified by the program instruction that may be accessed by other execution units.

Abstract: The present invention provides a switch assembly for use with a single-port OPM to realize a multi-port OPM having improved reliability. In one embodiment, an N×1 optical switch assembly, wherein N is an integer greater than one, is provided. The optical switch assembly includes N optical input ports, N micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) variable optical attenuators (VOAs), where each MEMS VOA is optically coupled to a respective optical input port and is operable between an on position and an off position, and an N×1 optical combiner optically coupled to the N MEMS VOAs. Each MEMS VOA is configured to transmit an optical signal from a respective one of the optical input ports to the N×1 optical combiner in the on position and to not transmit the optical signal in the off position.

Abstract: A shared memory is usable by concurrent threads in a multithreaded processor, with any addressable storage location in the shared memory being readable and writeable by any of the threads. Processing engines that execute the threads are coupled to the shared memory via an interconnect that transfers data in only one direction (e.g., from the shared memory to the processing engines); the same interconnect supports both read and write operations. The interconnect advantageously supports multiple parallel read or write operations.

Abstract: An Ethernet switch is used to dynamically reconfigure an optical network having a fixed optical layer. The Ethernet switch is incorporated into a transmission node of the optical network to selectively route data streams received through its input channels to one of the output channels. The data streams at the output channels are multiplexed into multiple wavelength channels of a multiplexed optical signal, and the wavelength channels are selectively dropped at local nodes of the optical network. In addition, the Ethernet switch can be used to reroute data from a single data stream to multiple wavelength channels, and thereby perform sub-wavelength multiplexing.

Abstract: Packet loss in an optical network transporting Ethernet-based data traffic is reduced using a switch in a transmitting node. When the transmitting node of the optical network detects a fault in an optical link, the switch buffers incoming data traffic until the optical link is reestablished. The switch may be an Ethernet switch that re-routes data traffic along one or more additional optical fibers that are connected in parallel with a defunct optical fiber to reestablish the optical link between two nodes. The switch may also be an optical switch that is configured to re-route optical data traffic from a defunct optical fiber to a redundant optical fiber.

Abstract: A supervisory signal is superimposed onto a high-speed data stream so that the number of optical transceivers needed by an optical network is reduced. The supervisory signal is superimposed onto the high-speed data stream as an in-band modulation of the data stream. To improve signal-to-noise ratio of the in-band supervisory signal, the supervisory signal is first modulated to a higher frequency before it is superimposed onto the high-speed data stream.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for multiplexing multiple Ethernet-based data streams in an optical network reduce the number of optical transceivers required by the optical network. Multiple data streams are multiplexed into a combined data stream, transmitted from a node in the optical network as the combined data stream, and demultiplexed at the receiving node. Data streams are multiplexed and demultiplexed at the bit level, and packets from each data stream are routed based on a VLAN tag that is contained in the header of each packet. By transmitting the information contained in multiple data streams as a single multiplexed data stream, the number of optical transceivers required for the optical network may be reduced by more than half. An optical supervisory channel may also be bundled with one of the data streams to eliminate the need for a dedicated transceiver for the optical supervisory channel.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for simulating a multi-ported memory using lower port count memories as banks. A collector units gather source operands from the banks as needed to process program instructions. The collector units also gather constants that are used as operands. When all of the source operands needed to process a program instruction have been gathered, a collector unit outputs the source operands to an execution unit while avoiding writeback conflicts to registers specified by the program instruction that may be accessed by other execution units.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for simulating a multiported memory using lower port count memories as banks. A portion of memory is allocated for storing data associated with a thread. The portion of memory allocated to a thread may be stored in a single bank or in multiple banks. A collector unit coupled to each bank gathers source operands needed to process a program instruction as the source operands output from one or more banks. The collector unit outputs the source operands to an execution unit when all of the source operands needed to process the program instruction have been gathered.

Abstract: The present invention provides a switch assembly for use with a single-port OPM to realize a multi-port OPM having improved reliability. In one embodiment, an N×1 optical switch assembly, wherein N is an integer greater than one, is provided. The optical switch assembly includes N optical input ports, N micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) variable optical attenuators (VOAs), where each MEMS VOA is optically coupled to a respective optical input port and is operable between an on position and an off position, and an N×1 optical combiner optically coupled to the N MEMS VOAs. Each MEMS VOA is configured to transmit an optical signal from a respective one of the optical input ports to the N×1 optical combiner in the on position and to not transmit the optical signal in the off position.

Abstract: An improved plasma arc waste processing system has a crucible formed in a horizontally elongated shape with a low-ceiling-height plenum space above a melt pool and a waste input feed arranged sideways into the crucible. The plenum space conducts the off-gases through a channel into a horizontally adjacent, thermal resonant chamber. The combined volume of the plenum space and thermal resonant chamber provides a high ratio of plenum volume to surface area of melt pool for efficient pyrolization of waste at high throughput rates. The crucible and other system components can be arranged in standard sized cargo containers, to be modularly transported and assembled in populated areas or transported to and from remote areas, such as in medical crisis zones, military deployments, and war zones. As a further improvement, a water injector is used to inject water into the plasma field to remove excess carbon and form useful gas byrpoducts.

Abstract: A method and system is disclosed to optically transport data at a data rate of about 5 Gbps without chromatic dispersion compensation. After receiving a first data stream at a data rate of about 2.5 Gbps and a second data stream at a data rate of about 2.5 Gbps, the first and second data streams are combined into a third data stream at a data rate of about 5 Gbps by interleaving the first data stream and the second data stream, wherein the third data stream is modulated for optically transporting the same from a transmission end.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for simulating a multiported memory using lower port count memories as banks. A portion of memory is allocated for storing data associated with a thread. The portion of memory allocated to a thread may be stored in a single bank or in multiple banks. A collector unit coupled to each bank gathers source operands needed to process a program instruction as the source operands output from one or more banks. The collector unit outputs the source operands to an execution unit when all of the source operands needed to process the program instruction have been gathered.

Abstract: Disclosed is an integrated and streamlined system and method for collecting, containing and processing different types of wastes which provides an economically efficient solution of treating wastes and utilizing the collected data in an operationally useful manner either or both of the waste generator and processor. The present system and method include waste containment in compliance of the laws and governmental regulations, and processing of the wastes. In one embodiment, the system and method also includes compilation and utilization of data relating to the collected and processed wastes.