By Meter Patents (Class 455/155.1)
  • Patent number: 9692502
    Abstract: A microwave antenna terminal for two-way, in-motion communication systems using geostationary or other orbit satellites, and capable of supporting two-way communication in two different frequency ranges, for example Ku and Ka frequency ranges, is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd.
    Inventors: Borislav Petkov Marinov, Ivan Tsonev Ivanov, Ivaylo Georgiev Slavkov, Ilian Kirilov Stoyanov, Daniel Mitkov Nikolov
  • Patent number: 8831588
    Abstract: An data transmission adjustment system that comprises a server and a plurality of data transmission devices within a sensing region. The server adapts to receive a sensed data from at least one data transmission device, define a timeline, divide the timeline into a plurality of monitoring periods, calculate a ratio of the number of the monitoring periods that have received the sensing data from the data transmission device within the sensing region or not to the number of all the monitoring periods, and broadcast at least one message to the data transmission devices within the sensing region according to said ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2014
    Assignee: National Taiwan University
    Inventors: Ting-Yu Wang, Phone Lin, Huai-Lei Fu
  • Patent number: 8594599
    Abstract: Radio messages may be transmitted by endpoints delivering utility consumption data. A portable unit may traverse a route among the endpoints and obtain the consumption data. If the endpoints are sufficiently grouped, communication between the portable unit and a plurality of endpoints may be possible in a same power cycle to a radio of the portable unit while the portable unit is at a single location. In a two-way communication environment, the portable unit may send commands to a plurality of endpoints during a single power cycle, which may result in responses from the plurality of endpoints during the same power cycle. Such communications may be performed with endpoints that are ahead of a current endpoint on the route being traversed, and may constitute read-ahead data. Read-ahead data reduces power cycles to the radio, because when the portable unit reaches an endpoint on the route whose data has previously been read, a power cycle is not required.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2013
    Inventors: Mark K. Cornwall, Bret Holmdahl
  • Patent number: 8503991
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus to monitor mobile devices are disclosed. A disclosed example method involves operating first and second wireless telephone device terminals. In the example method, the first wireless telephone device terminal includes a first media decoder configured to decode a first media encoding format and the second wireless telephone device terminal includes a second media decoder configured to decode a second media encoding format. The example method also involves receiving a first media presentation via the first wireless telephone device terminal and a second media presentation via the second wireless telephone device terminal. The first media presentation is encoded using the first media encoding format and the second media presentation is encoded using the second media encoding format. The first and second media presentations include substantially similar media content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2013
    Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
    Inventors: Roderick D. Swift, Gregory R. Simon, Manjirnath Chatterjee
  • Patent number: 8098140
    Abstract: A remote control is configured by a user specifying a type and brand of a consumer electronic device. A plurality of function code sets that have been identified as being candidates for commanding operations of the specified type and brand of consumer electronic device are selected and at least a subset of each of the plurality of selected function code sets is made available such that a user may determine by experimentation which one of the plurality of function code sets is appropriate for commanding operations of the specified type and brand of consumer electronic device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2012
    Assignee: Universal Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Marcus Escobosa, Patrick H. Hayes, James N. Conway, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7916050
    Abstract: Previously, when designing receivers for radio frequency (RF) or wireless communications, designers chose between time-interleaved (TI) analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) for intermediate frequency architectures and dual channel ADCs for direct conversion architectures. Here, similarities between TI ADCs and dual channel ADC were recognized, and an ADC that has the capability of operating as a TI ADCs and dual channel ADC is provided. This allows designer to have greatly increased flexibility during the design process which can greatly reduce design costs, while also allowing the manufacturer of the ADC to realize a reduction in its operating costs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2011
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Fernando A. Mujica, Charles K. Sestok, Zigang Yang
  • Patent number: 7793171
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a protocol tester for performing a protocol test, said protocol tester exhibiting an input for the feeding in of data, a protocol decoding device for the decoding of data, and an output for providing the decoded data, the protocol tester also comprising a device for measuring the bit error rate. A corresponding method for performing a protocol test is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2010
    Assignee: Tektronix, Inc.
    Inventor: Juergen Forsbach
  • Patent number: 7376118
    Abstract: A method for communicating with automatic meter reading (AMR) endpoints in adjacent cells, when the endpoints are arranged in a cell pattern similar to a cellular telephone system, is disclosed that substantially reduces the likelihood of signal interference. A Frame ID is identified as corresponding to a particular receive frequency that a system reader (receiver/collector) uses when listening for endpoint responses. In this example embodiment of the AMR network model, all endpoints in the network listen on the same control frequency to receive commands sent out from the readers. To allow for a relatively fast network read cycle, cells that are spaced far enough away from each other as to not interfere with each other are allowed to transmit at the same time. Cells with the same Frame ID are configured to be spaced a safe distance from each other so as not to interfere with each other's endpoint population.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2008
    Assignee: Itron, Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher L. Osterloh, Neil R. Hovelsrud