text:
A voice, familiar to a patient having a short-term memory loss problem, records comments, of the type that evoke responses, on a tape cassette followed by blank portions on the tape cassette to allow the patient to respond. The cassette is then played back for the patient over a personal cassette player through headphones to allow the patient to respond to the comments while the blank intervals are being played back.
1. A system for making therapeutic recordings for treating a patient with restricted short-term memory comprising,
a patient telephone at the patient location of said patient,
a remote caller telephone at the remote caller location of a remote caller having a voice familiar to said patient,
a communication device linking said remote caller telephone and said patient telephone in a live conversation between said patient and said remote caller,
a first recorder coupled to said communication device which records at least said remote caller's voice and at least said patient's voice during said live conversation,
and a second recorder coupled to said communication device which simultaneously records said remote caller's voice without recording said patient's voice to produce a recording of only said remote caller's voice during said live conversation.
2. The system of claim 1 and further comprising,
a patient camera and patient monitor at said patient location,
a remote caller camera and remote caller monitor at said remote caller location,
a video communication device linking said remote caller camera and said patient monitor and said patient camera and said remote caller monitor,
and a video recorder coupled to said remote caller camera which records an image of said remote caller during said live conversation.
3. A system in accordance with claim 2 wherein said first and second recorders and said video recorder are located at an office monitoring location remote from said remote caller location and said patient location.
4. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first and second recorders are located at an office monitoring location remote from said remote caller location and said patient location.
This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 07/845,220 filed on Mar. 3, 1992 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,356,287), which is a continuation of abandoned application Ser. No. 07/677,366 filed on Mar. 26, 1991, which is a continuation of abandoned application Ser. No. 07/094,500 filed on Sep. 9, 1987, which is a continuation-in-part of abandoned application Ser. No. 07/025,858 filed on Mar. 16, 1987.
The present invention relates in general to treating memory loss and other mental, emotional and physical deprivation states and more particularly concerns novel techniques for treating patients with restricted short-term memory and reasonable long-term memory, such as Alzheimer patients, as well as patients with other mental, emotional and physical deprivations.
People with fading memories suffer a wide variety of emotional pains and intellectual torments. Their mental and emotional states are quite variable depending upon the stage of progression of the disease and the pathologic process responsible for the Alzheimer-like recent memory loss. They often suffer depression because their recent memory loss effectively cuts them off from anything and anyone except for their immediate environment. Thus, in unfamiliar surroundings such as a nursing home, they seek those individuals remembered, often through long-term memory which is very often preserved. These individuals are often mother, father and family, all of whom may be long-dead. The inability to find these individuals, to contact them, or even to have an explanation as to why they are not with the patient (if an explanation has been offered, it is, of course, not remembered), creates a sense of rejection and may result in severe depression. Loneliness can be a desperately painful problem since the recent memory loss prevents them from recalling explanations. Thus, the isolation created by recent memory loss can result in very serious degrees of depression, anxiety, fear, frustration, agitation and the whole range of negative human emotions.
A search of subclasses 236 and 319-22 of class 434 uncovered U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,892,040, 2,921,385, 3,176,927, 3,747,069, 3,747,228, 3,805,412, 4,372,554, United Kingdom Patent No. 1,400,279, U.S.S.R. Patent Nos. 827,029 and 1,005,153 and a publication entitled "A Voice-Operated Response Unit for Use in the Psychological Assessment of Motor Impaired Subjects."
It is an important object of this invention to provide improved techniques for treating patients with faded memories and other mental, emotional and physical deprivation states.
It has been discovered that a meaningful substitute for dense recent memory loss is the construction of an acceptable present environment for the sufferer. This environment is inhabited by familiar faces and voices and subjects. Critically constructed it can markedly reduce the painful emotional consequences of the loss of recent memory.
According to one aspect of the invention, a voice familiar to the patient is recorded with gaps between recorded comments to allow the patient to respond. In a specific embodiment of the invention, a child may record comments on a tape recorder followed by an unrecorded portion, then another comment and so on. The tape recording may then be played back to the parent over headphones.
In a more specific form of the invention referred to as "Idealized Visit Therapy" or "Recent Memory Re-engagement Therapy," a recording is made of a patient visit during a visit by a significant other (S.O.), such as a child, other relative or friend, by audio or audiovisual means. Selected materials are brought up for discussion by the S.O. based on the S.O.'s knowledge of patient's interests, friends, family or other matter, i.e., significant aspects of patient's life which deal with positive emotion, concern, interest, humor. The recording of the visit is then reviewed by a monitor/evaluator with the S.O. or family. If the visit appears to have been a positive experience, the patient's voice and visual participation is then removed from the recording. Likewise, any emotionally negative aspects of the visit are erased (i e,, "Idealized Visit Therapy"). The recording may then be played back to the patient, to produce a simulated visit, who may be expected to fill the spaces in the taped visit with nearly the same responses, both verbally and emotionally, as experienced at the original visit.
Thus, this aspect of the invention features the recording of conversation between the patient and an S.0. to be followed by the editing of that recording for the sections most beneficial to the patient, elimination of the patient's part in the recording and replaying for the patient. The patient will benefit to the extent that the patient believes that it is an actual visit by someone the patient cares about; to the extent by which it reduces anxiety either by focusing the patient's attention on someone the patient cares about, or by distracting the patient from other troubling thoughts; to the extent to which the patient is entertained and pleased, even if the patient realizes it is a recording; by virtue of the fact that the patient with a recent memory deficit will not recall the tape or the content and will see it as a first, fresh experience each time it is played; to the extent that aspects of recent memory remain competent, the reinforcement of the support provided by the simulated visit may be expected to reduce anxiety, and elevate mood; to the extent that certain commands which facilitate the patient's well being can be incorporated on the tape (for example, "exercise your arms, " "brush your teeth," "go to nurse Jones") and the patient can follow these commands; and because of the reduction in mood-affecting medication necessary for treatment of the disease-state.
Benefit for the care-provider includes reduction in need for personal attention, drug therapy, group therapy; facilitation of patient care requirements as noted above (exercise, personal hygiene, etc.); and in an enhanced sense of effective care-giving.
In a second aspect of the invention, the S.O. may be people who are less related or less well-known to the patient, or a synthesizer. Tapes are made which have discussions of subjects particularly interesting to the patient. The patient is able to choose these subjects directly (by asking for them), or indirectly by showing boredom in response to another tape, repetition of key words or specifically requesting such a tape in response to a question. In preferred embodiments, the patient may prepare the tapes to be used for his or her treatment, prior to onset of the disease affecting the patient.
More specifically, this aspect of the invention features a method of treating a patient with restricted short-term memory which method includes the steps of, creating a series of comments (e.g., questions or anecdotes) on a memory signal storage means (e.g., a tape, or a synthesizer), playing a first of these comments to the patient, and playing a second of the comments to the patient. In this method, the second comment is chosen dependent upon the reaction of the patient to the first comment.
In preferred embodiments, the reaction is the use of a key word (e.g., mother, yes or no) by the patient, an extended silence of the patient, anger or frustration expressed by the patient, or by specific request of the patient.
In a third aspect, the invention features a generic voice set. This set consists of a plurality of memory signal storage fragments, each fragment comprising a signal, wherein the signal can be converted by a signal converter to an audible sound perceptible to a human. The sound is recognizable by the human as a comment, and the comment is the same in each fragment, except that the sound in each fragment differs in its character. The set is suitable for determining a sound which is beneficial to a human having restricted short-term memory. Thus, this aspect provides a set of tapes, or similar means, having a series of comments, made either as recordings or by synthetic processes, which are generic. These tapes include a series of comments, questions or other suitable phrases which are designed to discover subject matters to which a patient responds most favorably. These generic tapes also contain the same comments made by a set of various voices (including synthetic such voices), using different intonations, so that the sound most beneficial to the patient can be discovered.
In preferred embodiments, a single generic sampler tape is provided. This tape has a series of short comments each made by one of a variety of different voices. Using this tape the best-suited voice is chosen for a patient (this is the Voice to which the patient most favorably responds). A second tape is then used to discover the best-suited subject matter for a patient. This tape is chosen from a library of tapes having identical subject matter, but each made by a variety of different voices--the tape corresponding to the best-suited voice discussed above is chosen. By playing this tape, the subject matter to which the patient reacts most favorably can be discovered. Finally, a third tape is chosen from a library of such tapes, this tape is made from the most-favored voice and on the most-favored subject matter.
Thus, this invention provides means to custom-make a tape library for a particular person. This library is chosen from a master library having a wide variety of recordings on different subject matter, made by a variety of voices. This enables a patient having no available S.O. to be cared for, using specific generic tapes.
Numerous other features, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following specification when read in connection with the accompanying drawing, the single figure of which is a block diagram illustrating the logical arrangement of a system according to the invention.
A tape recorder, which may be a conventional easily transportable cassette recorder. A person, with a voice familiar to the patient, such as the patient's child, broadcasts into a microphone, with comments or questions of a type that would normally evoke a response, to record these comments on magnetic tape in the tape recorder. Each comment is followed by a silent unrecorded interval on the tape sufficiently long to allow a person to respond to the comment. The cassette is then rewound and turned to the playback mode that the patient may hear the recorded comments through headphones or see and hear the person with the familiar voice via an audio-visual means. Although not essential to the invention, headphones are advantageous since they block out extraneous noise, and can cause the user to think that he/she is involved in a telephone conversation.
It is not necessary that the tape recorder on which the recording is made be the same one used by the patient to play back the recorded information. It may be advantageous to have a personal playback cassette player only available for patient to play back the tape recording. The person may extemporaneously make the comments, or, if preferred, read the comments from a script, leaving a blank interval on the tape between each comment. As an example of a suitable recording, person might say, "Hello Mother this is Kevin. How are you?" (Blank). "It is good to see you looking so well. Did you enjoy your day?" (Blank). "What television show would you like to watch?" (Blank). The tape may then be played back to the patient, over headphones, allowing patient to respond to each comment. In an actual embodiment of the invention, the results were astonishing. The patient's eyes brightened, and she responded to the questions. The invention converted a lethargic, lack-of-interest disposition into a more animated, interested disposition. And the manifestations of depression, sadness, loneliness and boredom evident before the intervention were supplanted by an obvious joy and pleasure at onset of the "simulated visit."
According to another form of the invention, conveniently referred to as "Idealized Visit Therapy" or "Recent Memory Re-engagement Therapy," a recording is made of a patient visit during a visit by an S.O., such as a child, other relative or friend, by audio tape recorder, video tape recorder, sound movie camera, or other suitable means. The S.O. introduces selected materials for discussion by S.O. based on S.O.'s knowledge of patient's interests, friends, family or other matters; that is, significant aspects of the patient's life which deal with positive emotion, concern, interest or humor. The recording of the visit is then reviewed by a monitor/evaluator with the S.O. or family of the patient. If the visit thus recorded appears to have been a positive experience, the patient's voice and visual participation (if an audiovisual recording) is then removed from the recording along with any emotionally negative aspects the visit. The recording thus modified is then played for the patient, who may be expected to respond in a manner similar to his response during the original visit. Thus, the patient receives the same or better uplift, experienced by the patient during the live visit. Furthermore, the impact is superior to pharmacological interventions, such as tranquilizers, sedatives and other psychotropic agents.
The invention takes advantage of the limited short-range memory of the patient. The same tape may be played repeatedly and have the same beneficial effect on the patient upon each playing. The invention may be used in connection with an audio tape or a video tape. In the case of the video tape, the image of the familiar person could be reproduced for the patient. It is also within the principles of the invention to record the familiar voice digitally in a read-only memory, or a programmable read-only memory and use digital data processing techniques to leave the gaps for responses.
In order to broaden the reservoir of subject matter and individuals for the patient's benefit, with the purpose of more completely supplementing the individual's fading memory and also more fully developing an environment acceptable and desirable to the patient, a bank of subjects and individuals in addition to the S.O. is developed. In addition, a simulator is used to create voices of varying pitch or wavelength which are chosen to suit the particular patient and the need of the patient. The simulator is better able to compete with any noise the patient is making, and capture the patient's attention, since the wavelength of sound is chosen to correspond to that of the patient's own sounds. Further, the simulator is programmed to be able to change its "conversation" dependent upon key words from the patient.
The subjects to be played are selected directly by the patient, by a companion or attendant, by a spoken "key" word or subject, or by the silence which is created when the patient no longer interacts with an on-going simulated presence, thus signaling, perhaps, boredom or disinterest. An example of such an interactive conversation follows.
Simulator's voice (S.V.): "Hello, Mother! How are you today! This is Jack, your son."
Patient Response (P.R.): "I'm fine. How are you, Jack? Of course I know who you are!"
S.V.: "You're looking very well, mother. Your hair looks great! It looks like you just had a permanent!"
P.R.: "Really? Oh, yes! My mother did it for me. Just this morning."
S.V.: "And how is your mother doing?"
P.R.: "I'm not sure, okay, I guess."
S.V.: "I bet you miss your mother when she's not here."
P.R.: "Of course I miss my mother! Who wouldn't." (Annoyed) .
In this conversation "mother" has been mentioned 6 times, 4 times in the P.R. and 2 times in the S.V. At this point, a different S.V. is initiated based on the fact that a key word was used 6 times, or that the key word was used twice in the P.R.; or by selection by an attendant who asks "Would you like to talk with your mother?" (if mother is indeed alive and able to make an S.V., which is unlikely) or "Would you like to talk about your mother for a while?" Alternatively, the patient may select "mother" from the panel of subjects and designated individuals which make up her array of potential S.V.s.
A tape having a discussion of the patient's mother then starts. The tape can be made by a healthy sibling of the patient, who knew their mother well and knew the relationship and commonalties between the patient and patient's mother. An example of such a tape follows.
S.V.: (Sibling) "Helen, this is your sister Mary. Remember when we used to walk down the beach at City Point with mother? Remember how Ma's hair, that long black hair that never turned grey, would blow in the wind?"
P.R.: "Yes. I remember."
S.V.: "And she was always humming a song and sometimes we'd sing together."
S.V.: Begins slowly to sing the song, coaches the patient to sing along. After the song the "conversation" continues about mother.
S.V.: "Do you remember when we visited Ireland with mother on her 75th birthday?"
P.R.: "Of course I remember! What do you think I am?" (Losing patience and perhaps attention span).
S.V.: "I remember when we went out to Athlone and went boating on the River Shannon, all the way up through Loch Ree. It was so beautiful looking from the boat to the Irish Country side. Would you like to look at some of the pictures we took in Ireland?"
If the patient answers: "No! I don't care about pictures! And I don't care about Ireland!" then the "conversation" continues with S.V., keyed on the term "No."
If the patient answers: "Oh, yes! That would be lovely!" A voice-activated movie or slide set, of Ireland is produced.
If the patient does not answer, the tape continues.
A similar selection of voice-key, or "silence"-key, can be used to attempt to follow-up and reinforce the patient's apparently desirable associations and memories-- and also to discontinue S.V.s in which the patient has lost interest.
The repertoire of tapes for the patient is broadened further by developing a "Simulated Presence" in the absence of the significant other. For example, a series of questions and a series of brief comments and anecdotes is developed by the patient's S.O. in the absence of the patient. This consists of a bank of questions, comments and observations by the S.O. each of which is evaluated for impact on the patient. These questions, comments, and anecdotes, are then played for the patient with close attention to the patient's response so that sufficient time can be left for the patient to complete his response. This can be accomplished manually, by the person supervising the simulated conversation, or by a voice-controlled automatic mechanism. The patient's response is then graded for emotional and intellectual content and responsiveness using parameters such as: appropriateness, pleased versus displeased response, relief versus agitation. Selection of the most desirable "pieces" from the bank is made and a tape, audio or audio-visual, developed. This tape is evaluated for its "interactive" quality using a series of emotional and intellectual indices. Editing of the tapes to perfect its content continues until the desired result is obtained.
In the process of developing the "bank" of questions, and comments, by the S.O., a systematic review with the patient is carried out and recorded. Every family member, friend, hobby, activity, sport, location, and pet thought to be important to the patient will be mentioned by the S.O. or another interviewer so that a bank of the patient's most cherished experiences and associations is developed. From this exploration of the patient's memory, a further series of comments, and questions, is developed and evaluated in terms of the patient's response.
A subsequent step is to identify a limited number of key terms, names of friends or family which seem to give most pleasure or satisfaction when discussed. A special series of comments and questions are developed and taped by the S.O. until a satisfactory content is developed under each of these key terms.
When a patient has no known close relative it is possible to use "simulated presence" interactive audio and audio-visual programs in a form which are used generically, the emphasis being on the sound, character and content of the speaker's voice. The purpose of a generic tape series is to provide an alternative to, or reduction in dose of, drug therapy in those individuals for whom the therapy is effective.
Simulating (Generic) Visitor: "Hello, Sir! How are you today?" (Space for response) "May I visit with you for a while?"
If patient answers "Yes," this tape is continued; if patient answers "No " an alternative tape dealing with another subject, such as music, baseball, or fishing is used. Simulating (Generic) Visitor continues, after some additional small talk: "I understand you are very interested in baseball?" If patient answers "Yes" the baseball "visitor" tape is used as follows.
"Ted Williams, the "splendid splinter" was the greatest hitter who ever tapped his bat on home-plate, at least as far as I am concerned. What do you think, my friend?" If the patient answers "Yes" the "Ted Williams" Visit tape is continued. If the patient answers "Joe DiMaggio", the "Joe Dimaggio" tape, which is in the bank, will be played. If the patient answers "No" the tape may be changed or a "bridging" tape may be used to find a word or subject "key" which might identify the patient's preference, e.g., music, sports, or theatre.
The generic tapes have a series of different voices, styles, intonations and characters--all with the same script. Examples range from mild, soft spoken and gentle, through confident and firm to occasionally aggressive voices. Tapes utilize both males and females, young and old, in order to allow identification of some of the most appealing and effective voices for a particular patient. These varying voice personalities will engage in a series of "generic"conversations, questions, comments, stories, including a number of areas of general interest: weather, sports, history, current events, family, or business. The patient's responses to these generic therapies are evaluated as to efficacy, impact on medication requirement, and other suitable criteria.
Responses may be measured in two ways. The first is a recognized objective measurement, using psychological instruments to measure the impact of the tapes on emotion, affect, and cognitive function. Further, the requirement for psychoactive drugs may be reduced, or the need eliminated, with these tapes. Such changes are readily measured and are an accurate and useful measure of a patient's response. A second measurement entails the development of an index including affective indices, such as eye appearance, eye contact, psychological posture, attentiveness to the tape, engagement in conversation, and verbalization. Such measurement will be made by comparison with a baseline period during which the patient is not treated. A series of baselines covering a variety of moods would be desirable. Accordingly, comparison of the impact of a tape on the patient when the patient is in other moods could be made.
The use of each type of tape, whether generic, sibling or S.O., will depend upon each patient and the availability of S.O.'s . If a patient is extremely demented then generic tapes are a better starting point for treatment; if the patient is intellectually relatively intact then non-generic tapes are better. However, each tape must be evaluated for its content, the quality of patient response, the amount of conceptual engagement, and the passiveness or activeness of the response. After such evaluation the patient may operate the tapes alone. A tape may also be left with the patient without supervision once the patient response can be predicted with reasonable certainty. Prior to this the tape must be used only with proper supervision to ensure that it does not induce too much agitation.
One particularly useful type of tape is that which is made by the patient himself or herself. Some types of diseases that are treated by these tapes are inherited, Thus, a person may recognize that he is a potential patient. With guidance this person can construct tapes which are particularly relevant to him. Early use of these tapes will help to delay onset of disease, and will help delay the time at which drugs are necessary for treatment. Since the person knows himself intellectually better than any other person, such tapes can be individually designed to best benefit that patient. Further, these tapes will be useful for the patient's children, or spouse, or close relatives, should they develop the disease either before or after his death.
With reference to the drawing, there is shown a block diagram illustrating the logical arrangement of a system according to the invention for recording therapeutic recordings. A caller at caller location 20 may call a patient at patient location 30, and the call may be monitored at monitoring office 40. The caller may use caller transmitting station 22 to converse with the patient at patient transmitting station 32. The two-way conversation between caller and patient may occur over line 14 and recorded by recorder 44 at monitoring office 40. Recorder 44 may record both sides of the conversation. Another line 12 may connect the caller to recorder 42 at monitoring office 40. Line 23 may record only the caller's side of the conversation. The caller's conversation only may also be recorded by recorder 34 at patient location 30. It is not necessary that there to be two distinct lines to obtain a recording of the caller's conversation only. For example, the conversation on line 14 could be recorded and edited. Alternatively, the caller's side could be recorded by a recorder at caller location 30.
The system may also provide video recordings. Video camera 36 may image the patient and provide a video signal on line 16 allowing the caller to view the patient image on monitor 26 and be recorded by video recorder 46 at monitoring office 40. Video camera 28 may view the caller to provide a video signal on line 18 by video recorder 48 at monitoring office 40, and may also be recorded by video recorder 38 at patient location 30. The patient may view the image of the caller on monitor 37. The videotape recording may be used for additional evaluation and editing to improve therapeutic effect as described above. In addition, the videotape may be preserved for future reference or for the family member caller.
According to another feature of the invention, teleprompter 50 may broadcast on line 19 a video signal to caller monitor 26 displayed as a text furnishing guidance to the caller in partially or completely structuring the conversation with the patient.
Locations 20, 30 and 40 may be wherever convenient. For example, the caller may be calling from a location near the patient, or in monitoring office 40. It may be in a booth or portable unit at patient location 30. Communication could be with an intercom or other suitable device.
It is evident that those skilled in the art may now make numerous uses and modifications of and departures from the specific embodiments described herein without departing from the inventive concepts. Consequently, the invention is to be construed as embracing each and every novel feature and novel combination of features present in or possessed by the apparatus and techniques herein disclosed and limited solely by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Other embodiments are within the claims.
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Gallery: Washington DC's Bikeshare is So Successful That Bikes are in S...
Launched as a pilot program in August 2008, Washington DC's Capital Bikeshare has been so successful that riders are often left wondering where the bikes are. The program currently has 1,100 bikes at 114 solar-powered stations around the city. Capital Bikeshare has signed on 15,000 yearly members, clocked an amazing 800,000 rides since September (in a city of just 600,000 people), and has saved about 9 million kilograms of carbon emissions. With riders around the city finding many an empty bike rack with no two wheelers to take for a spin, or frequently arriving at their destination to a full rack with no place to drop off their rented ride, DC's planned expansion this fall is a much anticipated and welcome event.
2 Comments
skylorjane August 11, 2011 at 12:50 pm
Thank you for explaining the system properly! One serious issue with Capital Bikeshare is that people misunderstand the membership vs. usage fees – many think that the cost is $5 for the entire day!
caeman August 10, 2011 at 12:27 pm
Good for DC! 15,000 members for only 1100 bikes? Looks like they have a lot more expansion to do.
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Jill FehrenbacherAvocados are one of the wonderful fruits of summer. High in nutrition and flavor, nothing signals the start of summer like a zesty lime guacamole dip with tortilla chips. The next time you're making guacamole or slicing an avocado for a salad, try savingREAD MORE >
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J Crew
jcrew.com, £435
It won't be long now until J Crew opens its first UK store – welcome news for any fan of the label's hip take on urban fashion. As for this canvas and leather bag – the more you use it, the better it gets.
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From the ECS State Policy Database: Special Education--Finance - This policy databaseupdated weeklyis made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....Special Education in New Orleans: Juggling Flexibility, Reinvention, and Accountability in the Nation's Most Decentralized School System - New Orleans is the first city in the nation to tackle special education on fiscal, human capital, and program fronts in the context of a full-choice public education landscape. Researchers conducted a preliminary analysis of the city's efforts to make finance and enrollment policies more equitable, create citywide financial supports for high-cost students, boost special ed teachers' and leaders' capacity, foster innovation and offer grants. (Lynn Schnaiberg and Robin Lake, CRPE, January 2015)...Financing Special Education: State Funding Formulas - The goal of this study was to determine each state's current formula for providing state aid for special education and to gather related information about state fiscal support for special education. Each state responded to the survey. A complete list of state funding formulas for 2008-09 can be found in the report. (Eileen Aheam, Project Forum, National Association of State Directors of Special Education, April 2010)...
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Health & Parenting
What to Say When a Pet Dies
My child doesn't seem to be grieving. What's wrong?
Remember that grief in a child may not look the same as it does in an adult. "A child may not react in as sad a way as an adult might expect," says McNamee. She might go in and out of strong feelings - be intensely sad, then begin to play and act as if it hasn't happened."
Behavior is often the language of young children, so your child may display grief with a change in play. It's also common for a 7- to 9-year-old to ask morbid questions about the death, which are best answered directly and honestly.
Teens may have a different reaction. They may either under react or overreact, often caught in a place somewhere between childhood and adulthood. Your teen may not want to talk but may go off by himself, says McNamee.
The important thing to know, she says, is that children of all ages grieve over pet loss. They just don't do it in the same way.
When a pet dies, what can I do to help my child?
Both Cardeccia and McNamee emphasize the importance of involving your children in the grieving process by asking them directly what they'd like to do. "Children need a process of saying goodbye," says McNamee, and you can help them do this in a variety of ways. Have them draw pictures of your pet. Share funny stories. Plant a tree in the backyard in honor of the pet. Put the pet's ashes and pictures on the fireplace mantle. These kinds of tangible steps may be more helpful to your child than talking alone.
There are also many children's books that explain the death of a pet to help with the grieving process. But read them first with an eye toward whether they promote misconceptions about death, says McNamee. Some do. Look for books that communicate that others have had a similar experience and feelings, McNamee says, and that it is okay to feel sad or angry. If you're reading these to your child, you can leave out any parts you feel are inappropriate.


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HomeOur HotelsMacdonald Aviemore ResortTestimonials
Macdonald Aviemore ResortAviemoreInverness-shirePH22 1PNTel 0344 879 9152International +44 1479 815100
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These are just some of the things guests have said after staying
at Macdonald Aviemore Resort.
We all had a great time and the accommodation was very
comfortable, clean and tidy and we have already passed on
recommendations to friends and family.
I just wanted to say what a fantastic weekend we had in the
Aviemore hotel for the Santa Weekend. I can honestly say it
was faultless and very rarely can I say that. Father
Christmas was the real one!! The staff were all exceedingly
friendly and helpful without exception, particularly in the
restaurants. The elves were so friendly and in character the whole
time. Especially Basil. Please have them again. So much
to do, and special events kept the kids occupied the whole time.
New activity centre was amazing. Thanks for arranging the
As usual, your hospitality team excelled and I would like to
make particular mention of Jakub, Sylwester and Samuel who ensured
that everyone was well catered for at all times as well as ensuring
rooms were set up and serviced at the right times. This was all
done with the usual helpful and friendly attitude. The food was
excellent and we received many positive comments, particularly
after the dinner on Wednesday evening.
My wife and I celebrated our wedding anniversary at your Resort
this weekend and it was absolute bliss. We will definitely be back,
loved it.
We would like to let you know that ... we paid a visit to
your Steak Club in Aviemore.
We were met by a delightful young manager named Mr. Richard
Deaks who gave us a brilliant evening. The club was lovely
the atmosphere and the out lay was a picture. Our meal was
cooked beautifully the steak was perfect, the manager went out of
his way to make the evening special for us. He and his
staff made all the customers most welcome and I am sure they too
had a lovely time there.
It made our holiday in Aviemore, and we most definitely will
return on our next visit to Scotland.
It was amazing! Weather was great, venue fantastic and
just a perfect send off! Thanks for booking this for me.
I would highly recommend this venue for a conference...
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text:
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text:
Methods and systems for calibrating transceivers are described. Analog transceiver components create errors, such as gain and offset errors in a receiver or a transmitter portion, which are compensated by adjusting digital signal processing in the computing portion of the transceiver. Errors can be measured in a calibration procedure and determined compensating values stored in a memory device of the transceiver. These values can then be retrieved when the transceiver is initialized for usage during signal processing of signals received by and transmitted by the transceiver.
1. A radio receiver comprising:
an analog radio receiver for receiving and processing a radio signal;
an A/D converter for converting said received and processed signal from said analog radio receiver into a digital signal;
a digital computing part for processing said digital signal; and
a memory device for storing at least one fixed calibration value, said at least one fixed calibration value being predetermined by inputting at least one known test signal to said radio receiver and evaluating results therefrom, said memory device being connected to transfer data to said digital computing part, wherein said digital computing part uses said at least one calibration value to compensate for first errors introduced into said received and processed signal by said analog radio receiver wherein said A/D converter is selected to be an N-bit converter, wherein N is selected to compensate for quantization errors introduced into said digital signal by said first errors.
2. A radio transmitter comprising:
a digital computing part for processing an information signal to be transmitted;
a D/A converter for converting said information signal from said digital computing part into an analog signal;
an analog radio transmitting part for processing and transmitting said analog signal; and
a memory device for storing at least one fixed calibration value, said at least one fixed calibration value being predetermined based upon test measurements said memory device being connected to transfer data to said digital computing part, wherein said digital computing part uses said at least one calibration value to compensate for errors to be introduced into said analog signal by said analog radio transmitting part and wherein said D/A converter is selected to be an N-bit converter, wherein N is selected to compensate for quantization errors introduced into said analog signal by said compensation performed by said digital computing part.
3. A method for calibrating and compensating a transceiver comprising the steps of:
processing a digital signal in said transceiver using digital signal processing;
reading a fixed calibration value from a memory device, said fixed calibration value being predetermined based upon an evaluation of said transceiver using at least one known input;
using said fixed calibration value in said digital signal processing routine to alter a value of said signal;
outputting said altered signal;
converting said altered signal from a digital signal to an analog signal using a D/A converter, wherein said D/A converter is dimensioned so as to compensate for quantization errors introduced into said analog signal by said fixed calibration value used by said digital signal processing;
applying said analog signal to an analog transmitter portion of said transceiver; and
transmitting said analog signal over an air interface.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the steps of:
receiving an analog signal via an air interface;
processing said analog signal using an analog receiving portion of said transceiver; and
converting said processed, analog signal into said digital signal using an A/D converter, said digital signal being processed by said digital signal processing.
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of:
dimensioning said A/D converter to compensate for quantization errors introduced into said digital signal by errors associated with said analog receiving portion.
The present invention is directed generally to radiocommunication systems and, more particularly, to techniques and structures for calibrating transceivers used in radiocommunication systems.
The first cellular mobile radio systems in public use were analog systems used to convey speech or other analog information. These systems comprised multiple radio channels for transmitting analog information between base and mobile stations by transmitting analog-modulated radio signals. More recently, digital systems have been implemented due to, for example, their promise of increased system capacity premised on their greater ability to tolerate interference. For example, in a time division multiple access (TDMA) radiocommunication system, each frequency can support a plurality of time-multiplexed channels, while in code division multiple access (CDMA) signals are encoded to such a degree that a high level of self interference is tolerable. Due to large existing customer bases having analog-only terminal equipment, dual-mode systems which support both analog and digital channels are becoming increasingly popular in certain areas. In the U.S., for example, systems specified by the EIA/TIA IS-54B publication are dual-mode systems.
In an analogous manner, digital signal processing (DSP) has become more prevalent in the radiocommunication industry for a variety of reasons. For example, unlike analog circuits, the operation of digital circuits does not depend on precise values of the digital signals. That is, since binary zeros and ones can be represented by significantly different voltages, the precision at which such voltages are held need not be very great. As a result a digital circuit is much less sensitive to the tolerances of component values and is also fairly independent of temperature, aging and other external parameters. The accuracy of digital circuits is thus much more reliable.
One part of the radiocommunication industry where the prevalence of DSP is having a significant impact is the design of radio transceivers. A transceiver, which is a combined transmitter and receiver, is used for transmitting and receiving signals over an air interface, e.g., between a base station and mobile station in a cellular system. Although the signals being transmitted and received are analog signals, the modulation may be of either analog or digital type, and the information carried by the signal will be digitally processed. Thus, a transceiver that uses digital signal processing techniques in a radiocommunication system is denoted a digital transceiver in this specification, although it may still contain analog parts, such as amplifiers and filters (and sometimes synthesizers and mixers), and regardless of whether the radio signals to be processed by the transceiver use analog or digital modulation.
In FIG. 1 a conventional digital transceiver 10 is shown schematically. Therein, a receive antenna 12 is used to capture signals transmitted over the air interface from, for example, other base stations and mobile stations (not shown). The received signals are input to analog receiver 14. Analog receiver 14 can include, for example, receive filters, downconverters and amplifiers for processing the signals received via antenna 12. However, many functions associated with processing received signals may not be included in block 14 as these functions are now performed using digital signal processing as described below. Accordingly, after being processed by the analog components of receiver 14, the output signal is provided to A/D converter 16 which transforms the analog signal into a digital signal. This allows digital computing part 17 to operate on the received signal and complete the signal processing which was not performed by analog receiver 14. For example, digital computing part 17 can be used to perform demodulation and decoding of the received signal.
On the transmitter side, digital computing part 17 performs various DSP routines which are used to prepare a signal for transmission, e.g., encoding and modulation. The digital signal output from digital computing part 17 is then input to a D/A converter 18 which transforms the digital signal into an analog signal. This analog signal is then received by analog transmitter 19 which includes various analog components that complete the signal processing for transmission by, for example, filtering, frequency upconverting and amplifying the signal before it is coupled to transmitting antenna 20.
Despite the fact that the number of analog components used in digital transceiver 10 have been reduced (i.e., by the substitution of DSP routines which perform signal processing tasks previously performed by additional analog components), the remaining analog parts (i.e., those denoted by blocks 14 and 19 in FIG. 1) continue to suffer from the imperfections described above. These imperfections result in gain and offset errors being introduced into the signals which are output from blocks 14 and 19.
To exemplify how such errors are introduced and how they are compensated according to a conventional solution, a model of an analog receiver will be studied in more detail. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that signals described herein are typically mathematically complex, i.e., with real and imaginary components. Accordingly, complex mathematics (e.g., complex-conjugation) is typically used to describe operations on these signals. However, to simplify this description the complex nature of signal operations is not shown explicitly in the equations and figures presented herein.
As mentioned above, an analog receiver normally suffers from a number of imperfections. Some of these imperfections create signal errors, such as gain errors and offset errors, that can be introduced to the wanted signal. FIG. 2 models how an analog receiver introduces an offset error and a gain error to a wanted signal Sw. Therein, received signals are again captured by antenna 12. In the model of FIG. 2, ideal processing performed by receiver 14 is represented by block 22 which outputs the wanted signal Sw, i.e., block 22 represents the effects of ideal analog components which have none of the imperfections described above. Signal processing blocks 24 and 26 represent the total offset and gain errors introduced onto the wanted signal Sw by imperfections associated with the analog components of receiver 14. More specifically, block 24 represents the introduction of offset errors to the wanted signal and block 26 represents the effects of gain errors introduced by the analog components. The output signal, with introduced errors, is then represented by erroneous signal So. Thus, the erroneous signal So output by the receiver can be expressed as:
So =(1+Gaineps)(Sw +Offseteps)
Sw =Wanted signal
So =Erroneous signal
Offseteps =Amplitude of the composite offset error
Gaineps =Amplitude of the composite gain error
In a conventional receiver errors are typically compensated at the stage where they arise, using adjustment potentiometers and other adjustable analog components. FIG. 3 illustrates the principles of conventional calibration. Therein, the same reference numerals are used to denote the elements which were previously described with respect to FIG. 2. However, FIG. 3 also includes an offset compensation factor, Offsetk, and a compensating gain factor, Gaink.
By adjusting the variable analog components to have values Offsetk =Offseteps and Gaink =(1+Gaineps)-1, the equality Sout =Sw will be achieved, whereby the receiver will be calibrated. The signal Sout will then be fed through the A/D converter 16 to the digital computing part 17 for further processing.
As mentioned above, conventional calibration techniques rely upon the inclusion of adjustable components to compensate for errors introduced by analog components' imperfections. These adjustable components are used to realize the adjustments modelled by Offsetk and Gaink. A more specific example of conventional calibration which illustrates this usage of adjustable components will now be described in terms of a transmitter portion of a digital transceiver. One example of an analog modulator for modulating analog data onto a carrier is the conventional quadrature modulator illustrated in the block diagram of FIG. 4. Quadrature modulators take advantage of the quadrature phases of sine and cosine waves to modulate twice the information on the radio carrier wave. For example, the even bits in a digital information datastream can be modulated on the cosine wave, and the odd bits in the digital information datastream can be modulated onto the sine wave.
In FIG. 4, the analog quadrature modulator includes an "in-phase" or I modulator 40, a "quadrature" or Q modulator 41, and a phase-splitting network 42 for supplying cosine and sine carrier frequency signals, respectively. Ideally, the signals provided by the network 42 are cos(ωt) and sin(ωt), where ω is the carrier signal's angular frequency. Also shown in FIG. 4 are an I and Q modulation generator 43 for supplying I and Q modulation signals, a combination network 44 for adding the outputs of the I modulator 40 and the Q modulator 41, and trim potentiometers 45, 46 for carrier balance/d.c. offset adjustments for the I and Q signals, respectively. Additional trim potentiometers 47, 48 for amplitude matching the I and Q signals, respectively, are also shown in FIG. 4. The phase-splitting network 42 may also be adjustable, as indicated by the diagonal arrows through trim potentiometers 47 and 48, to achieve as nearly as possible the desired 90� phase difference between the sine and cosine carrier frequency signals.
The block diagram of FIG. 4 shows one exemplary way in which adjustable, analog components have been used to conventionally calibrate an analog device. However, these types of conventional calibration techniques rely upon the adjustment of potentiometers, capacitors and inductors during manufacturing. As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, this calibration process is both costly and unreliable. Moreover, there are certain types of errors which cannot be easily compensated for using these conventional techniques, e.g., in-band filter ripple. In-band filter ripple refers to the variation in the sensitivity of a receiver when tuning to different frequencies or channels within the transceiver's frequency range. This ripple is caused by the presence of band-limiting filters which are used in the receiver to remove strong, out-of-band signals. Unfortunately, in-band ripple can lead to a variety of difficulties, including inaccurate signal strength measurements.
These and other drawbacks and limitations of conventional methods and systems for calibrating transceivers are overcome according to the present invention. According to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, errors introduced by the analog components in the digital transceiver, i.e., in the analog receiver portion and in the analog transmitter portion, are compensated in a digital computing part. That is, during the processing of signals which are received (or are to be transmitted) by digital signal processing routines, compensating coefficients can be inserted into the calculations to offset the errors that have been or will be introduced by the analog components of the digital transceiver.
According to one aspect of the present invention, ranges of the A/D and D/A converters used in a digital transceiver are selected so that errors are properly transferred between the analog and digital sections. This allows the digital compensation to be provided accurately.
According to another aspect of the present invention, various techniques are described for determining the calibration values which will be used to adjust signal values to compensate for errors introduced by analog components. These calibration values can then be stored in a memory in the transceiver and retrieved for usage in digital signal processing routines.
The foregoing, and other, objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood upon reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram generally illustrating portions of a conventional digital transceiver;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram modelling errors introduced by an analog receiver;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram modelling conventional calibration techniques for the analog receiver of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a schematic illustrating conventional calibration of an analog transmitter using adjustable components;
FIG. 5 is a block diagram modelling calibration in a receiver according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a block diagram modelling calibration in a transmitter according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a digital signal processing function in which calibration techniques according to the present invention can be implemented;
FIG. 8(a) is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method for calibrating a transceiver according to the present invention;
FIG. 8(b) is another flowchart illustrating another exemplary method for calibrating a transceiver according to the present invention; and
FIG. 9 is a graph illustrating in-band filter ripple and techniques according to the present invention for compensating same.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the inventive concepts disclosed herein relating to compensating for errors introduced by analog radio components in a digital computing part are reciprocal in the sense that they are applicable both to the receiver portion and to the transmitter portion of a digital transceiver. Accordingly, although various portions of the text below provide different examples in the context of the receiver portion and of the transmitter portion individually, it should be understood that the teachings of each example can also be applied to the other portion not explicitly described therein.
According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, in a receiver portion of the transceiver the uncalibrated signal is fed through the A/D converter, whereupon errors introduced by the analog receiver are compensated for by the digital computing part. FIG. 5 illustrates this concept by way of a block diagram.
In FIG. 5, the notation Sout denotes the digital representation of the analog signal Sout. Like the foregoing figures, FIG. 5 includes several elements which have been described above, the description of which is not repeated here. A/D converter 50 provides an uncalibrated digital signal Sc which is provided to digital computing part 51. A/D converter 50 may differ in range from A/D converter 16 for reasons described below. In digital computing part 51, compensating factors are applied to the uncalibrated signal Sc. Specifically, a compensating gain factor, Gaink, and a compensating offset factor, Offsetk, are applied to the uncalibrated signal at blocks 52 and 54, respectively. These values can be retrieved from a memory device 55, e.g., a non-volatile, flash memory. Thus, the digital output signal Sout can be calculated from Sout =(Sw +Offseteps)(1+Gaineps)(Gaink)-Offsetk. By setting the values of Offsetk and Gaink so that Offsetk =Offseteps and Gaink =(1+Gaineps)-1, Sout =Sw will be achieved, whereby the receiver portion of the digital transceiver will be calibrated. Exemplary calibration techniques for determining, storing and retrieving appropriate values of Offsetk and Gaink which will maintain these equalities are described below.
Notice that between introduction of the errors at blocks 24, 26 and compensation of the errors at blocks 52, 54, there takes place the intermediate process of A/D conversion at block 50. A/D conversion is performed by assigning an analog signal sample to one of a plurality of quantizing levels. For example, an 8-bit A/D converter has 28 =256 different quantizing levels. Since there are an infinite number of actual analog amplitude values, this conversion process introduces an error, known as a quantizing error, which has a maximum value of �1/2 the size of a quantizing interval. This is significant in the context of the present invention because the errors added to the wanted signal Sw will affect the quantizing error inherent in signal So since compensation is performed downstream of the A/D converter. Compare this situation with that of the conventional solution of FIG. 3. In the conventional solution, the errors introduced by the analog circuitry do not affect the quantizing error introduced by conversion since the errors are compensated for at a point upstream of the A/D converter.
Accordingly, systems designed according to the present invention should determine an appropriate range for A/D converter 50 taking this factor into account. Thus, according to another aspect of the present invention, the range of the A/D converter 50 is sized using a model of the analog receiver with the imperfection errors included. For example, if the errors introduced by the analog receiver 14 are on the order of 5-25%, then the A/D converter 50 can be selected which is 1 bit larger, e.g., 9 bits instead of 8 bits, than the corresponding A/D converter 16 in a conventional system to provide a desired level of performance. Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that if the errors are significantly larger, then more bits may be needed to characterize the signal.
As mentioned above, this technique is reciprocal and can also be applied to the transmitter side of digital transceiver 10. This is illustrated by the block diagram of FIG. 6. Therein digital computing part 51 also includes a processor 61 which generates signals for transmission. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, processor 61 can be connected to, for example, a switching unit (not shown) which forwards information to be transmitted over a radio channel to a base station in which a digital transceiver according to the present invention is located. The processor 61 performs various digital signal processing routines on the data to be transmitted, e.g., encoding and modulation. Then, a gain compensation value is applied to the signal output from processor 61 at block 62 and an offset compensation value is applied to the signal at block 63. These compensation values can be retrieved from memory 55. The output of digital computing part 51 is then applied to D/A converter 64. As described previously, D/A converter 64 can be sized according to an aspect of the present invention so that the compensation values applied to the signal to be transmitted in the digital computing part 51 do not create larger quantization errors than the uncompensated signals would have created in the conventional system of FIG. 1. Then, the analog signal is applied to the analog transmitter portion 19 wherein the gain and offset errors created by the analog components (e.g., the power amplifier, filters, etc.) affect the signal to be transmitted as modeled by blocks 66 and 68. Lastly, the signals are coupled onto transmitting antenna 20 for transmission over an air interface.
Having described an overview of compensation techniques according to the present invention, an exemplary implementation will now be described with respect to FIG. 7. A block diagram of an exemplary system for performing frequency modulation of a signal by first separating the signal into its I and Q components is depicted in FIG. 7. In the figure, an incoming digital signal sample stream is provided to a node 73 which sends the samples to cosine and sine component generators 74 and 75. Cosine and sine generators 74 and 75 can, for example, be implemented as DSP routines which access look-up tables (not shown). For readers interested in more details of exemplary techniques for generating sine and cosine values, U.S. patent Ser. No. 08/562,464, entitled "Method and Apparatus for Determining Signal Components Using Digital Signal Processing" to Thomas Ostman et al. and filed on Nov. 24, 1995 can be consulted, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated here by reference. The cosine and sine component information is then provided to digital-to-analog (D/A) converters 76 and 77, respectively, for conversion of the component values into corresponding analog signals. The analog signals are then modulated onto a carrier in modulator 78, whose output is provided to a radio part 79 for transmission.
The values stored in the look-up tables can be adjusted based upon the values of Offsetk and Gaink which have been determined for the analog transmitter portion 19. This compensation is indicated by the gain/offset input arrows to cosine generator 74 and sine generator 75. In this way, compensation can be provided in digital computing part 51 as part of the DSP routine which performs signal modulation.
In a similar manner, compensation for errors introduced by analog receiver portion 14 can be achieved by adjusting sample magnitudes used to demodulate signals in a DSP routine performed by a digital computing part 51. Those skilled in the art will, however, appreciate that the compensation can also be performed by adjusting other values used in calculations performed by the digital computing part (e.g., DSP routines) of a digital transceiver.
The digital computing part 51 can be set in a calibration mode, whereupon the parameters Gaink and Offsetk can be determined using a calibration routine. A first exemplary calibration routine is described in the flowchart of FIG. 8(a). For example, suppose that the parameters are initially set such that Gaink =1 and Offsetk =0 at step 80. Then by using the equation Sout =(Sw +Offseteps)(1+Gaineps) and measuring Sout for two different signals input to the transceiver, values can be calculated for Offseteps and Gaineps at steps 81 and 82, respectively. For calibration, Sout should be set equal to Sw, which means that Offsetk and Gaink can be set equal to Offseteps and Gaineps, respectively. The calibration values thus computed are stored in memory 55 in the digital computing part 51 of the digital transceiver at step 83.
Note that the initial values of Offsetk and Gaink used in this description were chosen to simplify the explanation of an exemplary calibration routine. In an actual implementation other initial values may be chosen. For example, initial values for Offsetk and Gaink can be set to typical values associated with the type of receiver used. When the receiver is operating in a non-calibration mode, the calibrated values of Offsetk and Gaink can then be retrieved from the memory 55 to achieve equality between Sout and Sw. This retrieval can, for example, be performed at initialization of the transceiver.
The flowchart of FIG. 8(b) depicts another exemplary technique for calibrating an analog portion of a digital transceiver. In particular, offset and gain errors can be compensated by performing the steps illustrated in FIG. 8(b). First, at step 84, a signal transmitted at a particular channel frequency can be input to the receiver at each of a plurality n of different signal strengths indexed i=1 . . . n. Then, the output of the A/D converter for each of the different signal strengths can be used to determine a nominal gain value and a nominal offset value as denoted by step 85. These values can be computed using, for example, linear regression as set forth below, where a(i) denotes the converter output for each input i and d(i) denotes the signal strength of each input i. ##EQU1## The nominal gain value K and nominal offset value O can then be converted into a compensating value at step 86 according to the equation Scorrected =K*S+O. The use of regression techniques in this context is well known in the art and the interested reader is referred to "Probability and Statistics in Engineering and Management Science" authored by Hines and Montgomery, e.g., pages 359-366 and "The Electrical Engineering Handbook" edited by Richard C. Dorf at pages 2511-12, the disclosure of which is incorporated here by reference. This value can be used, for example, to adjust cosine and sine values in the look-up tables (described above) so that the I and Q components determined by the demodulation signal processing routine in digital computing part 51 are adjusted to reflect errors introduced in the analog receiver portion 14. Other techniques for using the nominal values K and O to compensate for analog imperfections will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
As mentioned above, certain errors may change in value as a function of frequency. For example, according to this embodiment, the in-band filter ripple errors described above can be separately compensated for by providing an additional offset compensation associated with a particular channel frequency at which the transceiver is operating. However, RSSI error attributable to in-band filter ripple is not measured for all channels, but only for a set of channels which will enable RSSI compensation for all in-band channels associated with a transceiver. From the measured channels, the rest of the channels can be compensated for using interpolation. The number of channels which are measured in the set should be chosen so that a sufficient accuracy is attained. In this exemplary embodiment eight channels are selected for measurement. This can be visualized by the graph illustrated in FIG. 9. Therein, it is desired to compensate for variations in measured signal strength attributable to in-band filter ripple. Absent in-band filter ripple, in-band measurements would closely follow the line RSSI1. However, as seen in the figure, the actual measured signal strengths vary both above and below this line within the in-band frequencies f1 through f2. Accordingly, eight different frequencies are measured and the difference between the measured RSSI and the ideal RSSI are determined. For example, at step 87 of the flow chart of FIG. 8(b), the output of the A/D converter can again be measured, but this time at a plurality, e.g., eight, different channel frequencies for a single signal strength. The offset is then computed for each output of the A/D converter. Specifically, this is performed using the following equation:
Then, the offset value for each channel is stored in the memory 55 at step 88. This additional offset compensating value can be used to improve the compensation described above by calculating Scorrected =Knominal *S+Onominal +Ochannel �Ochannel can be a value which is determined by either using the measured offset (channel) which is closest in frequency to the channel at which the transceiver is operating or by interpolating the two offset (channel) values between which the current channel falls.
The above-described exemplary embodiments are intended to be illustrative in all respects, rather than restrictive, of the present invention. Thus the present invention is capable of many variations in detailed implementation that can be derived from the description contained herein by a person skilled in the art. All such variations and modifications are considered to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention as defined by the following claims.
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text:
Alien - A foreign-born resident who has not been naturalized and is still a subject or citizen of a foreign country.
Day laborer - One who does short-term (even daily or hourly) work, often with undocumented immigration status.
Green Card - A permit allowing an immigrant to live and work indefinitely in the U.S.
Immigrant - A person who enters and usually becomes established in a region or country where one is not a native.
INS - Immigration and Naturalization Service, the United States government bureau charged with enforcing immigration law.
Migrant - A person who moves from one country, place or locality to another.
Refugee - One who flees to a foreign country or power to escape danger or persecution.
Sweatshop - Workplaces, usually industrial, that often operate under unsafe and illegal working conditions.
Undocumented immigrant - A person who comes to a country without the legal permission of its government. The expression "illegal alien" is considered a pejorative.
Xenophobia - (pronounced zee-no-FO-bee-ah; from the Greek: xeno: stranger; phobia: fear) Fear and hatred of strangers and foreigners.


text:
Husqvarna launches Automower Solar Hybrid
Due to be showcased at this week's CES event, Husqvarna's new Automower Solar Hybrid is a fully robotic lawn mower partly powered by the sun that uses no fuel or oil.
Combining solar power with electricity, Husqvarna says the Solar Hybrid mower has less impact on the environment and is easy to program.
Designed to handle lawns of up to a half acre, the robotic mower works on the same basis as similar models, with perimeter wires staking out the area that needs to be cut.
Programmable via a timer, and auto-charging, the Automower Solar Hybrid is available in the States for $2999.95.


text:
Our Two year old brindle Boxer is missing. Her name us Hokti. She is wearing a silver choker with a green rabies tag. Please call Jody Fly if you see her 618-925-2250 .
This up to the minute stock report brought to you by Montgomery & Hefley - Downtown Fairfield\


text:
Living Doll (The Twilight Zone)
|"Living Doll"
|The Twilight Zone episode
"Talky Tina" whose design was inspired by Chatty Cathy and was voiced by June Foray (the original voice for Chatty Cathy),
|Episode no.
|Season 5
Episode 6
|Directed by
|Richard C. Sarafian
|Written by
|Jerry Sohl
(Credited to Charles Beaumont)
|Featured music
|Original score by Bernard Herrmann
|Production code
|Original air date
|November 1, 1963
|Guest actors
Telly Savalas: Erich Streator
"Living Doll" is the 126th episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.
Opening narration[edit]
|Talky Tina, a doll that does everything, a lifelike creation of plastic and springs and painted smile. To Erich Streator, she is the most unwelcome addition to his household - but without her, he'd never enter the Twilight Zone.
|This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may only interest a specific audience. (January 2015)
Annabelle buys her young daughter, Christie, a talking doll. The doll is named "Talky Tina," and it says, "My name is Talky Tina and I love you very much." There is tension in the home—Annabelle recently remarried, and Christie's new stepfather, Erich, has been hostile to Christie; Erich is bitter because he is infertile. Annabelle bought the doll to comfort Christie. Annabelle understands that it is difficult for Erich to suddenly adapt to a child that is not his, and she pleads with Erich to be kinder to Christie.
As they return home from the store, Annabelle instructs Christie to run upstairs with her new doll and not to show it to "Daddy." They are stopped by Erich as they enter the home. Christie is eager to show off her new present, but Erich only wants to know how much it cost, insisting that Christie does not need another doll. Christie flees the room, leaving Talky Tina behind. Annabelle follows Christie, and Erich examines the doll. He winds the key on the back of the doll and hears it say "My name is Talky Tina and I don't think I like you." He winds the key again and the doll says, "My name is Talky Tina and I think I could even hate you." He throws the doll across the room. The doll says, "My name is Talky Tina, and you'll be sorry!"
Erich finds Tina a cruel reminder that he cannot give Annabelle children. Annabelle says that Tina is good for Christie, that it gives her someone to play with. Erich catches the doll winking at him while the others are distracted.
When Erich is alone with the doll, it says "My name is Talky Tina and I'm beginning to hate you." He replies, "My name is Erich Streator and I'm going to get rid of you." Tina exclaims "You wouldn't dare! Annabelle would hate you, Christie would hate you, and I would hate you." Erich holds a lit match next to Tina, and the doll gasps. Erich accuses Annabelle of placing a walkie-talkie in Tina and speaking through the doll to "get back at him." She denies it.
Erich places the doll in a trash can with a lid. When Christie seeks the doll, he tells her he does not know where it is. Later, the telephone rings. Erich answers and the voice on the other end says, "My name is Talky Tina and I'm going to kill you." He checks the trash can and finds Tina gone. He again accuses Annabelle of conspiring with Christie to frighten him. Annabelle, baffled by his irrational accusations, tries to placate him. Erich finds Tina in Christie's bed. Christie is asleep, but the doll speaks, awakening her. Erich confiscates the doll; Christie cries and Annabelle rushes in. Erich now believes that it was Christie who is playing tricks on him. Christie begs "Daddy, please!", and Erich yells "I'm not your Daddy!"
Annabelle desperately tries to reason with Erich, and he comes to the conclusion that the source of Tina's taunts may be something unexplained and frightening.
He returns to the garage to destroy the doll. He places the doll's head into a vise and tightens it, but the doll only looks at him and laughs. He tries to burn it with a blow torch, but the flame keeps going out. He attempts to decapitate it with a table saw. Annabelle walks in and tries to stop him, but he pushes her away. Erich looks at the doll's neck, finding not a scratch on it.
He puts it into a burlap sack and ties a cord around it, then throws it into the trash can. He places three heavy bricks on top of the lid, but the doll laughs at him. He returns to his bedroom to find Annabelle packing to leave, unable to tolerate his hostility and irrational behaviour any longer. She insists that Erich should see a psychiatrist. Erich maintains that the doll was talking to him, but offers to return it to Christie if Annabelle will stay. He returns to the garage and finds the doll still in the trash can. It says "My name is Talky Tina and I don't forgive you!" Erich desperately urges it to be quiet, and reluctantly returns the doll to Christie.
Later that night, Erich is awakened by muffled noises from within the house. He tells Annabelle to stay in the bedroom, and leaves to investigate. Christie is in bed, but Tina is gone. Skulking down the stairs, he trips over Tina, who is lying on one of the treads, and falls. Sustaining fatal injuries, he sees the doll watching him as he dies. Attracted by the noise, Annabelle screams and runs down the stairs. She picks up Tina, who says, "My name is Talky Tina, and you'd better be nice to me!" Annabelle drops the doll in shock.
Closing narration[edit]
|Of course, we all know dolls can't really talk, and they certainly can't commit murder. But to a child caught in the middle of turmoil and conflict, a doll can become many things: friend, defender, guardian. Especially a doll like Talky Tina, who did talk and did commit murder - in the misty region of the Twilight Zone.
Episode notes[edit]
The score composed by Bernard Herrmann consists of a solo bass clarinet, flourished by harps and celesta. This ensemble creates the sinister tone appropriate for the episode's mood.
The house in this episode was also used in another ''Twilight Zone'' episode, Ring-a-Ding Girl (1963).
The doll used to play Talky Tina was a doll named Brikette that was made by the Vogue doll company. Brikette is a non-talker, except in the Twilight Zone; however, the inspiration for Tina was Chatty Cathy, a talking doll manufactured by Mattel. Cathy and Tina were both voiced by June Foray,[citation needed] one of the most prolific voice actresses of the era.
In popular culture[edit]
This episode was parodied in a The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror segment, "Clown Without Pity" (1992), where Homer buys Bart a talking Krusty the Clown doll for his birthday that tries to kill Homer.
In the Californian and Parisian versions of the popular Disney attraction The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, what some mistakenly think to be a Talky Tina doll can be seen on a couch in the lobby as guests wait in line.
The X-Files episode "Chinga," written by Stephen King, features a murderous talking doll.
A mute telepathic in the French film Bloody Mallory (2002) is named Talky Tina.
The episode also was spoofed in an episode of Cartoon Network's animated series Johnny Bravo (1997–2004), "The Man Who Cried 'Clown!'/Johnny, Real Good/Little Talky Tabitha!", in which the character of Suzy receives a talking doll, Tabitha, that, unbeknown to all of the other characters in the series, is alive and relentlessly terrorizes Johnny.
See also[edit]
- Child's Play a 1988 horror film about a murderous talking doll
- DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. ISBN 978-1-59393-136-0
- Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9703310-9-0
- Zicree, Marc Scott: The Twilight Zone Companion. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition)
- Photo and description of replica Brikette doll
External links[edit]


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Feb. 14 (Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in Zurich. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names. Share prices are from the last close.
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