Abstract: A method compensates for drift in macroblocks of a partially decoded input bitstream. The macroblocks include intra-mode and inter-mode macroblocks, and each macroblock includes DCT coefficients, and at least one motion vector. An estimate of drift is measured in the partially decoded input bitstream. The estimated drift is translated into an intra refresh rate. The modes of inter-mode macroblock are mapped to intra-mode macroblock according to the refresh rate. The DCT coefficients and the motion vector for each changed macroblock are modified in accordance with the mapping for each changed macroblock.

Abstract: A wireless mobile communication network allows mobile, nodes, such as cellular telephone, and other types of mobile transceivers, to communicate with a fixed base station and directly with one another. This mobile to mobile communication capability is exploited through the formation of a local link where nodes with excess processing and bandwidth capacity forward messages at the request of the base station. The formation of the local link is adaptive and does not require a central controller. The wireless mobile network includes a base station and mobile nodes. Nodes are configured as a major nodes when they communicate information directly with the base station via a network link. Nodes are configured as minor nodes when they communicate the information indirectly with the base station via a direct local link with one of the major nodes to form a locally linked mobile network within the wireless mobile communications network.

Abstract: A personal identification device for use with a mobile telephone in a wireless communications network includes an connector mated to a connector of the mobile telephone normally used for a hands-free kit or a data port. In a typical application, a user of the mobile telephone calls a server. The server sends a first telephone signal to the personal identification device. The device responds with a second telephone signal, designed to simulate voice or data activity, depending on the type of connector that is used. The simulated voice activity is structured in such a way as to cause the radio signal transmitted by the mobile telephone to go on and off in response to the simulated voice activity. A nearby receiver can detect the on/off pattern. The on/off pattern is designed to convey a unique identification code.

Abstract: A digital video format converter and method therefor includes a first and second converter. The first converter receives a digital video signal and converts, in the frequency domain, inter-coded pictures in the digital video signal into intra-coded pictures. The first converter performs motion compensation in the frequency domain on the inter-coded pictures in the digital video signal to convert the inter-coded pictures into intra-coded pictures. The second converter down converts output of the first converter. Further signal processing then completes placing the digital video signal output by the second converter in a format acceptable to standard lower definition digital decoders.

Abstract: A personal identification device for use with a mobile telephone in a wireless communications network includes an connector mated to a connector of the mobile telephone normally used for a hands-free kit or a data port. In a typical application, a user of the mobile telephone calls a server. The server sends a first telephone signal to the personal identification device. The device responds with a second telephone signal, designed to simulate voice or data activity, depending on the type of connector that is used. The simulated voice activity is structured in such a way as to cause the radio signal transmitted by the mobile telephone to go on and off in response to the simulated voice activity. A nearby receiver can detect the on/off pattern. The on/off pattern is designed to convey a unique identification code.

Abstract: A method transcodes groups of macroblocks of a partially decoded input bitstream. The groups of macroblocks include intra-mode and inter-mode macroblocks. Each macroblock includes DCT coefficients, and at least one motion vector. The modes of each group of macroblocks are mapped to be identical only if there is an inter-mode block and an intra-mode macroblock in the group. If any of the macroblocks in the group are mapped, then the DCT coefficients and the motion vector for such mapped macroblocks are modified in accordance with the mapping to generate reduced-resolution macroblock for an output compressed bitstream to compensate for drift.

Abstract: A signal having one of a plurality of modulation formats is formed by encoding first data in accordance with a particular one of the modulation formats. The encoded first data is then combined with second data identifying the particular modulation format of the encoded first data to form the signal.

Abstract: An apparatus receives and demodulates digital signals encoded in multiple formats. The apparatus includes multiple processor units and a memory embedded with the processor units, and a cache connected to each of the processor units. The cache for communicating between the plurality of processors. The embedded memory can include data and instruction memory. The processor units and memory are configured as a multi-mode receiver demodulator front-end capable of receiving digitally modulated signals in multiple formats, and demodulating the signals in real-time in response any one of the multiple formats.

Abstract: In a receiver, an adaptive decision feedback equalizer receives broadcast signals having multipath interference. The equalizer includes a feed-forward, a feedback, and a partial feedback forward filter. The equalizer also includes a slicer and two accumulators. An output from the slicer is processed by the feedback filter and the partial feedback filter. The output from the feedback filter is subtracted from output of the feed-forward filter to form the input to the slicer, and the output of the partial feedback filter is subtracted from the received signal to form the input for the feed-forward filter to reduce the multipath interference.

Abstract: A method transcodes groups of macroblocks of a partially decoded input bitstream. The groups of macroblocks include intra-mode and inter-mode macroblocks. Each macroblock includes DCT coefficients, and at least one motion vector. The modes of each group of macroblocks are mapped to be identical only if there is an inter-mode block and an intra-mode macroblock in the group. If any of the macroblocks in the group are mapped, then the DCT coefficients and the motion vector for such mapped macroblocks are modified in accordance with the mapping to generate reduced-resolution macroblock for an output compressed bitstream to compensate for drift.

Abstract: A method compensates for drift in macroblocks of a partially decoded input bitstream. The macroblocks include intra-mode and inter-mode macroblocks, and each macroblock includes DCT coefficients, and at least one motion vector. An estimate of drift is measured in the partially decoded input bitstream. The estimated drift is translated into an intra refresh rate. The modes of inter-mode macroblock are mapped to inter-mode macroblock according to the refresh rate. The DCT coefficients and the motion vector for each changed macroblock are modified in accordance with the mapping for each changed macroblock.

Abstract: A method performs a commercial transaction via a network. A commercial transaction is specified by a particular user in a personal access module connected to the network. The commercial transaction is received in a personal access link configured to operate according to a profile associated with the user. The commercial transaction is forwarded to a financial institution system depending on the profile of the user, and the financial system forwards the commercial transaction to a selected merchant system depending on the profile associated with the user and the commercial transaction.

Abstract: This invention relates to methods of abrupt scene change detection and fade detection for indexing of MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 compressed video sequences. Abrupt scene change and fade-detection techniques applied to signals in compressed form have reasonable accuracy and the advantage of high simplicity since they are based on entropy decoding and do not require computationally expensive inverse Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT).

Abstract: A method locates scene changes in a sequence of images or frames that have been compressed without first decompressing the sequence. The sequence includes subsequences of P-frames between I-frames. DC residual coefficients including sign information are extracted from the sub-sequences of P-frames. If the number of residual coefficients in the P-frames exceed a predetermined threshold, then a scene change is indicated. Positive coefficients indicate fade-ins, and negative coefficients indicate fade-outs.

Abstract: A universal modem has a software-configurable modulator/demodulator which accommodates different modulation formats such as those associated with terrestrial, cable, phone line, satellite and wireless communications to be transmitted and received through a single device in which the modem has reconfigurable logic to accommodate the format of the signals being received or transmitted. In one embodiment, the system tracks channel noise and changes modulation format at both the transmit and receive sides of the system through the use of a controller that controls both sides.

Abstract: A digital video decoder and method therefor receives a digital video signal and performs motion compensation on the digital video signal in the frequency domain. The motion compensation is performed by forming, for each inter-coded picture in the digital video signal, a composite picture in the frequency domain representing a reference picture corresponding to the inter-coded picture, and then adding the composite picture to the corresponding inter-coded picture. Each macro block of the composite picture is formed based on corresponding macro blocks of at least one anchor picture stored in memory. The anchor pictures are stored as compressed bits via quantization and variable length coding of frequency domain blocks to reduce required memory capacity. The synthesis technique employed by the compositor to form the composite macro blocks accounts for both field and frame motion compensation with half-pel accuracy.

Abstract: An adaptable, variable rate symbol timing recovery system for a digital sal receiver comprises an analog to digital (A-D) signal converter having analog signal input and digital data signal output terminals. A source of selectable, substantially fixed rate, data sampling clock signals is coupled to the A-D signal converter for sampling a signal received at the input at a predetermined, substantially fixed clock rate, depending on data rate and modulation of the received signal. A digital signal processing loop is coupled to the digital data signal output terminal for adjustably producing interdependent signals in synchronism with the data signals at the output terminal which are asynchronous with respect to the fixed rate clock signals. A Controller is provided for selectively configuring the data sampling clock signal source and the digital signal processing loop according to the data rate and modulation characteristics of the received signal.

Abstract: A universal modem has a software-configurable modulator/demodulator which commodates different modulation formats such as those associated with terrestrial, cable, phone line, satellite and wireless communications to be transmitted and received through a single device in which the modem has reconfigurable logic to accommodate the format of the signals being received or transmitted. Note that the modulator or demodulator can be used separately or the two units can be combined and used for transceivers, with either the same software configuring both the modulator and demodulator, or with different software used for the two units. In the receive mode, the universal modem detects the modulation format of the incoming signal and reconfigures the logic of its software-configurable demodulator to output demodulated digital data for further processing.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for down-converting a digital video signal includes a synthesizer and a converter. The synthesizer receives a digital video signal including at least first and second DCT blocks of DCT coefficients, and synthesizes the first and second DCT blocks into a single synthesized DCT block having dimensions equal to the first and second DCT blocks. The converter converts the synthesized DCT block from the DCT domain to the spatial domain to produce an output digital video signal.