Abstract: A system of accurately predicting birth of large-sized livestock such as cows sufficiently before the time of making delivery preparations and attending delivery is provided. Vaginal temperatures of livestock such as cows measured by temperature sensor/transmission modules 100 inserted in the vagina of the livestock are transmitted wirelessly, received by a reception module 200, and sent to a monitor center 350 from a station 310 connected to the Internet 300 via a wireless LAN or a wired LAN. The monitoring center 350 is capable of storing the transmitted vaginal temperature data of each livestock, predicting birth timings from the stored vaginal temperature data, and reporting the birth timings by email or the like to a feeder's cellular phone 320 or a cellular phone 340 of an affiliated veterinarian.

Abstract: An intermediate station and method for facilitating handover in a multi-hop communications system is disclosed. The method may include receiving a handover trigger, finding a target station to receive handover, determining whether the handover requires a timing change, wherein if it is determined that a preamble and broadcast timing change for one or more downstream stations is required, estimating when the handover will take place, instructing the one or more downstream stations to resynchronize, and performing the handover to the target station.

Abstract: A radio communication system with adaptive interleaving selects between chip interleaving and bit interleaving depending upon the number of active code signals. A transmitted RF signal includes a coded information signal part and a control signal part that indicates a number of active code signals that have been combined to form the coded information signal part. The system is especially suited for MC-CDMA systems.

Abstract: A base station (101) will instruct relay stations (102) to periodically skip transmissions of their control information when control messaging by all relay stations exceeds a predetermined threshold (e.g., 50% of radio resource capacity). The base station determines the relay stations to skip by periodically ranking the relay stations and skipping control messages for relay stations having a lowest rank.

Abstract: A radio communication system with adaptive interleaving selects between chip interleaving and bit interleaving depending upon the number of active code signals. A transmitted RF signal includes a coded information signal part and a control signal part that indicates a number of active code signals that have been combined to form the coded information signal part. The system is especially suited for MC-CDMA systems.

Abstract: A dry etching apparatus is provided with parallel electrodes confronting each other, and a high frequency voltage is impressed between the electrodes. The electrode for holding a base material has a recess in its surface and the surface of the electrode is covered with an insulating layer so that part of the structure constituted by the insulating layer and electrode is not in contact with the base material.