At a remote site, a satellite route is installed to augment the capacity of a terrestrial route. A specialized forwarding unit is introduced at both ends of these parallel satellite and terrestrial routes. The forwarding unit identifies what type of traffic needs a higher performance forward, and forwards the traffic accordingly. For example, latency-sensitive traffic can be forwarded over the terrestrial route and the latency insensitive traffic can be forwarded over the satellite route.

Many rural areas are characterized by small population centers, which are served via a terrestrial infrastructure with limited capacity, typically copper lines or Digital Microwave Radio (DMR). Although it is possible to substitute or augment the terrestrial capacity through adding a satellite route, the communicating applications have no knowledge or ability to control their forwarding through the different links. Therefore latency sensitive traffic such as Voice over IP may be carried on the high-latency satellite route resulting in poor performance, and latency insensitive file downloads may be carried over the terrestrial route, which is a waste of 'premium bandwidth'.
Even where a broadband access multiplexer using DSL is available that is appropriately scaled to the size of the potential market, the cost of backhaul from the rural site to and from the network core may be prohibitive. For example, augmenting the terrestrial route could cost millions of dollars, which the potential new revenue cannot possibly justify. The ability to cost effectively augment limited terrestrial networks with satellite would therefore makes it economically practical to extend broadband services to many areas that would not otherwise receive service.
A satellite is a sophisticated electronic communications relay station orbiting the Earth. Earth stations transmit signals to a satellite in orbit over an uplink. Satellites receive this signal, amplify it, shift it to a different (usually lower) frequency and then feed the outgoing signal into an on-board satellite antenna, where the signal is focused into a beam and sent back to Earth along a downlink. Each satellite downlink has a series or set of "beams" (or sectors) illuminating a footprint on the surface of the Earth. A typical satellite might use sixteen such beams. Sometimes multiple beams at different frequencies are used to illuminate the same given area in a single "beam" pattern, with each being referred to as a "sub-beam." The reception of the satellite signals can either be through a large parabolic antenna at a satellite earth station (e.g. with a 12 meter dish) or received directly at the end customer using a small VSAT (Very Small Aperture 'Terminal' dish (eg. typically less than a meter in diameter). It is also possible for the end customer to transmit back to the satellite, although this generally involves larger dishes than for 'receive only', and different regulatory conditions such as the need for a certified installation may exist.
In general, satellite-based networks offer certain advantages over terrestrial wireless networks in that they can provide rapid deployment of communication services over a wide geographical area, including remote, rural, urban, and inaccessible areas. They are especially well suited to broadcast transmission of latency insensitive traffic such as broadcast television signals. As an interactive data example, satellite data terminals provide credit and debit card transaction network communications from retail stores, gas stations, and banks at hundreds of thousands of locations around the globe. New locations can be provisioned and decommissioned quickly and at a low cost, compared to the time and cost of connecting locations by other methods. As another example, mobile voice networking via satellites enables individuals to utilize portable computers or handheld satellite phones to connect from remote, low-density population rural areas. Satellite-based networks offer more flexibility in allocating capacity to different sites because the common satellite capacity is shared over what is usually a continental area.
For reception of broadband TV signals at a cable network head-end, parabolic dishes at the earth access station point to each satellite to receive the analog and digital feeds from various content providers utilizing the satellite. The access stations receive, demodulate, decrypt, and decode individual programs; the demodulated (baseband) signals are then remodulated according to a TV standard (NTSC, PAL, SECAM) governing the respective region onto a cable TV frequency plan and combined with local off-air signals and cable modem data to form the broadband service that is amplified and relayed along a coaxial cable plant or hybrid fiber optic and coaxial cable infrastructure to the home subscriber.
The growth in IP traffic and the technical advances in packet technologies have made it possible to support what was once a distinct set of parallel networks (voice, video, wireless), on one integrated data network. This has started a move towards a common packet based network with sharing of common network infrastructure to provide services and interoperability of these services. In addition, there is a trend to enable packet based networks with a new set of feature-rich multimedia communication services, such as integrated messaging, multimedia conversations, on-demand multi-point conference, enhanced security & authentication, various classes of media transport services, numerous automations in electronic Internet commerce activities (banking, shopping, customer care, education, etc.).
Systems have been proposed which make use of satellite communications to access the Internet. For example, Direct TV provides high speed Internet access through a plurality of Direct Broadcast System (DBS) satellites, originally constructed to provide satellite television service. Unfortunately, the Direct TV system does not provide a communication link for the user to send information back to the Internet via the satellite. Accordingly, a computer user must utilize a separate terrestrial telephone line through the PSTN system or the like to provide communications to an Internet provider. Though the transmission rate from the computer user through the PSTN system to an Internet provider is substantially slower than the downlink from the DBS satellite, this system is generally usable where no other form of broadband access is available, as the end users of a DBS system are using internet applications such as web browsing and file transfer that generally receive (download) much greater amounts of data from the Internet than they transmit. Accordingly, it is generally acceptable for the computer user's uplink (transmission) rate to be substantially less than the computer user's download rate.
However, the Direct TV system suffers from several disadvantages as a user must have both a satellite receiver and a connection to telephone service and the performance of the system is fundamentally limited by the speed of the dial-up PSTN link, and more seriously by the latency (delay) in the satellite route. The maximum buffer size in standard TCP/IP implementations of 64 kilobytes combined with a typical satellite delay of 560 ms give a maximum throughput of 936 kbits/sec regardless of what higher speeds the satellite route may theoretically support. The standard Windows receive buffer size is just 8760 bytes, which gives an effective end to end rate of 128 kbit/s or less.
All satellite based communication links have a fundamental latency issue in their performance. The communication satellites to which we refer (excluding Low Earth Orbit) sit in Geostationary orbit about 23,000 miles above the equator, and the delay for a signal to reach the satellite and then return to earth is approximately 500 milliseconds. If the system in question also uses a satellite for the return path from the customer, than the delay exists in both directions (approx. 1 second delay total).
Most Internet Protocol traffic occurs over a TCP layer which assures the integrity of the communication session; it makes the underlying IP transport reliable. TCP uses extensive 'handshaking' between the two communicating sites, which unfortunately makes it highly exposed to latency as each of the interactions between the sites must traverse the network.
In downloading a typical web page composed of many individually retrieved elements a unidirectional satellite route nominally described as providing 400 kbit/s downstream throughput may actually load the page slower than a 56 kbit/s dial-up link because the latency in the satellite route causes a delay as each element in the web page is requested, sent, and acknowledged. TCP throughput is fundamentally limited by latency combined with the TCP window size. The TCP/IP protocol incorporates several features which make it work poorly over high latency links, in particular the high number of acknowledgements to verify correct reception of packets, and the 'slow start' feature of TCP where the sending rate is gradually increased over time. Most satellite equipment manufacturers have introduced both standard and proprietary modifications to the standard TCP/IP protocol suite in order to minimize these effects, for example by generating using the Internet Engineering Task Force RFC2018 TCP Selective ACK to avoid communications waiting for acknowledgements to traverse the high latency satellite route. Some of the other standardized mechanisms include RFC2488 "Enhancing TCP over Satellite Channels using Standard Mechanisms", RFC1191 "Path MTU", and RFC1323 "Large Windows". Some of these modifications such as TCP protocol spoofing will not work with certain applications; for example IPsec VPN sessions that encrypt the TCP and IP headers. These modifications also have no effect for UDP traffic, which is the basis for most Voice over IP sessions, a key latency sensitive application.
Satellite routes are also generally prone to higher bit error rates than terrestrial routes. The TCP protocol assumes that lost packets are due to congestion in the network, even if bit errors across a satellite route were the real reason. When satellite bit errors occur, TCP will therefore throttle back senders and reduce throughput which degrades service performance and yet has no positive impact on the packet loss rate. TCP will therefore perform better over terrestrial routes for reasons of congestion control mechanisms as well as for latency reasons.
Latency is a critical issue for some but not all applications. Latency is critical for many applications, including Voice, Video-telephony, most online-gaming, Citrix and other thin client applications, Terminal emulators without local echo (e.g. Telnet), PC remote control applications, and online chat. Moderately latency sensitive applications include web browsing and video streaming between a user and their multicast distribution point (due to the need for prompt channel change times). Latency insensitive applications include ftp file transfers, smtp email updates, nntp news updates/Usenet traffic, peer-to-peer file sharing applications, refresh traffic for distributed web caches, broadcast video, and most unicast streaming video.
Voice for example starts degrading substantially in quality when the round trip delay exceeds 200 ms, and special echo cancellation techniques are required. When the voice signal is digitized and transported over Internet Protocol, then latency is even more critical because the encoding and decoding process itself introduces delay.
Many computer systems operating within companies have been programmed with the assumption that the network interconnecting different processing nodes has a known fixed delay, as in fact was true with pre-packet time division multiplexed data networks or in local area terrestrial networks. When the link between two processing nodes in this internal corporate network exceeds the expected latency, it will typically assume that either the network or the remote node has failed and take drastic corrective action such as terminating the session and restarting the associated processing tasks.
General Internet Protocol routers do not examine traffic characteristics to determine which traffic is latency sensitive and do not consider physical link performance characteristics when making forwarding decisions.
The inability of the network to distinguish between the applications it carries is made particularly vivid by recent experience of service providers with peer-to-peer applications such as Kazaa, Morpheus, and Napster. In some parts of the network these applications now constitute over 50% of total traffic volume. They are unusually likely to cause network congestion because they are as likely to be uploading traffic as downloading. Although they are insensitive to latency themselves, they may cause congestion which damages latency and loss sensitive applications.
Current systems deal with latency requirements of the access network by selecting terrestrial or satellite routes according to latency requirements, as for example described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,084: "Satellite based data transfer and delivery system" (Chuprun et al.) and related U.S. published Patent application 20030203717: "Satellite based data transfer and delivery system" describe a system for wireless access that has satellite and optionally terrestrial network links. A satellite or terrestrial route is selected based on automatic user node affiliation or user profiles, which may include service cost limitations and allowable delay limitations. As a result, the switching/forwarding decisions are static being based on user profiles and node affiliations and not on real-time inspection of the actual traffic flow. There is a need to provide a system that is more adaptive to changes in traffic patterns and content, for obtaining a more efficient utilization of the satellite and terrestrial network links.
Other prior art solutions that have only satellite network links to access systems for addressing specific requirements. For example, U.S. Patent Application 20030109220: "Communication satellite adaptable links with a ground-based wideband network" (Chuprun et al.) describes basically a land-based network with hub nodes that have satellite routes to remote end-user systems. A communication manager determines the communications requirements between the satellite and the network, and can identify multiple hub nodes for communication with the network if the capacity of a given hub is insufficient to meet the requirements. However, the forwarding of the communication manager is not based on the latency sensitivity of the traffic, and the architecture presents only satellite routes to the end-user systems and not terrestrial ones.
U.S. Patent Application 20030032391: "Low latency handling of transmission control protocol messages in a broadband satellite communications system" (Schweinhart et al.) addresses latency sensitivity of traffic transmitted over satellite communications by queueing and scheduling the traffic for transmission according to its latency limitations. Again, this architecture presents only satellite routes to the end-user systems and not terrestrial ones, so that these systems can not provide any guidance on using alternative types of links, e.g. high-speed terrestrial routes, to reduce latency.
The prior art satellite based access system is a system to give priority to certain users. The invention described is a system to give priority to certain traffic types or applications.
Therefore, viewing the prior art as a whole, an access system for selectively forwarding traffic on satellite and terrestrial routes according to real-time requirements of the traffic and its type is neither disclosed nor suggested. The present invention is directed to such a system.

Rural broadband hybrid satellite/terrestrial solution


An electrostatic precipitator comprising a corona discharging section for charging dust particles as they pass through and a dust collecting section which has at least two sets of negative plate electrodes for collecting the positively charged dust particles and auxiliary plate electrodes to accelerate the dust particles to the collecting plate electrodes. The collecting and auxiliary plate electrodes in each set are so alternately arranged that the arrangement of the collecting and auxiliary plate electrodes in one set is opposite to that in the adjacent sets whereby the positively charged dust particles passing through the dust collecting section can be effectively collected to the collecting plate electrodes to improve collecting efficiency and energy efficiency with mimized noise.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved collecting plate electrode arrangement for use in a houshold electrostatic precipitator.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The conventional electrostatic precipitator includes, as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, an electrode assembly 10 comprising a plurality of latticed collecting plate electrodes 1 and 2 arranged upright facing in the direction of air flow as indicated by the arrows. In this prior art, high noise levels were created and the energy efficiency was low because of the lattice structure of collecting plate electrodes obstructing the air flow in the electrode assembly.
Some improvements in reducing the noise and enhancing the energy efficiency have been achieved by an electrostatic precipitator of the sort disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,056,372 and 4,381,927. Such an electrostatic precipitator has a dust collecting section that comprises a pack of parallel and equally spaced plates suspended so they are parallel to the direction of air flow through the dust collecting section. However, collecting efficiency remained a distinct problem.


A chip removal method and apparatus for a sign engraving machine. The method involves engraving a sign blank in such a manner that chips fall from a cutting region on the sign blank into an enclosure, and swirling the chips in the enclosure so that the chips exhaust through an opening in the periphery of the enclosure and eventually pass through a chute into a receptacle. The apparatus is a guide member located parallel to an outer envelope of the volume that can be occupied by a rotating cutting head of the engraver. The guide member has a surface for contacting the sign blank. The contact surface has an access opening at its center to allow chips to enter the guide member from a cutting region on the sign blank. The guide member tapers away from the cutting region and has an exhaust opening and chute for exhausting the chips. The guide member is used with a rotating cutting head that propels chips circumferentially and allows them to be exhausted through the chute.

Mechanical sign engravers typically engrave with engraving or cutting tips attached to a cutting head or chuck rotating at very high speeds--about 10,000 RPM. Engraving begins by plunging the rotating cutting tips into a surface of a sign blank. After the cutting tips have been plunged into the surface of the sign blank, the rotating tips are moved along the surface of the sign blank to engrave a design (i.e. letters, numbers, symbols, or the like). To engrave a design that is not continuous with the previous engraved design, the cutting head is typically retracted to remove the cutting tips from the sign blank, moved to a next location, and unretracted to plunge the cutting tips into the sign blank at the next location.
Chips are generated as the cutting tips rotate and engrave or chip away the desired design in the sign blank. The very high rotational speed of the engravers creates a need for engravers to have effective chip removal systems so that the workplace can remain clean, and so that the engravers may operate without interruptions for clearing chips.
Sign blanks can be made out of various materials including metal, plastic, and wood. A chip removal system should be able to accommodate these various materials. A chip removal system should also be able to accommodate variations in chip size and chip weight because chip size and weight can vary with the type of cutting tip, the engraving depth, and the material of the sign blank.
Prior art chip or debris removal systems have used air flows or vacuums to blow or suck chips away from the cutting region and through a chute or hose into a collection receptacle, such as a cannister. These systems use mechanical fans or vacuums and are expensive and bulky. Typically, these kinds of chip removal systems (such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,550, which is for a printed circuit board drill rather than an engraver) have a glider (or pressure foot) surrounding a rotating cutting tool. The glider has an opening through which the cutting tool extends into the workpiece and through which chips, dust, or other debris are blown or drawn by vacuum into the glider. The debris is then blown or sucked out of the glider through a chute leading to a hose and eventually to a collection receptacle. In such systems, the hose is usually long to allow debris to be sufficiently removed from the cutting region so debris does not interfere with the cutting of the workpiece (i.e. sign blank). The long hoses tend to clog easily.
As noted above, chips generated during sign engraving can vary from small, light plastic chips to larger, heavier metal chips. Present chip or debris removal systems are not especially well-suited for mechanical sign engraving because the very large air flows needed to move the large, heavy chips away from the cutting region into a glider, and out of the glider through a hose into the collection receptacle, require expensive fans or vacuums. Such fans and vacuums add significantly to the cost of sign engravers. The cost of fans or vacuums is especially excessive when only small, light chips need to be moved.
It can therefore be appreciated that an improved chip removal system which does not depend upon expensive fans or vacuums to move chips is desirable.

Automatic chip removal system for sign engraving machine


A method for providing an indication of a communication includes facilitating communications between a plurality of endpoints within each of a plurality of virtual talk groups. The method also includes monitoring the communications between the plurality of endpoints within each of the plurality of virtual talk groups. The method further includes, upon detecting a first communication within a first virtual talk group of the plurality of virtual talk groups, activating a first indicator. The first indicator indicates the detection of the first communication. The method also includes, upon the occurrence of a first deactivating event, deactivating the first indicator.

Many public and private groups, such as security and safety personnel (e.g., police, fire fighters and ambulance drivers) use various different communication devices operating on various different communication networks. For example, many public service organizations, such as police, fire and EMT, utilize land mobile radios communicating through push-to-talk technologies. Each organization may have its own communication network and/or its own communications channel. However, communications among different endpoints of different networks such as endpoints of different police, fire or other security networks may present a challenge. Collaboration between the different agencies and networks tends to be ad hoc and inefficient. When achieved, it often involves laborious manual intervention. Organizations working towards interoperability solutions include Raytheon JPS Communications, IP Blue, Twisted Pair, M/A-COM, Motorola, EADS, and Cisco Systems.
Once interoperability has been achieved it may allow a user to monitor several different groups using a single device. These groups may be arranged into virtual talk groups. The virtual talk groups may be comprised of endpoints communicating with one another using a common or a differing communication technology and/or channel. The communication technology that allows the user to monitor several different virtual talk groups may also be used to provide interoperable communication between different communication devices using different technology (e.g., cell phone or push to talk devices) and/or different channels (e.g., different frequencies).
Some of the monitored virtual talk groups may include high priority communications, while others may include more mundane communications. In large working environments (e.g., a cross-discipline emergency situation or a shipping yard) the user monitoring the virtual talk groups may not be able to readily identify a speaker by their voice or several communications may come in a single burst making it difficult to distinguish individual communications. In a situation in which the communication is a high priority communication, time spent checking each monitored virtual talk group to determine where a high priority communication came from can be costly. Furthermore, there may be instances in which the user monitoring the virtual talk groups needs to direct their attention to an alternate task. Then, when the user returns their attention to monitoring the virtual talk groups they may not be aware that a communication has occurred.
Many devices such as citizen band radios include an indicator light indicating when the radio is presently transmitting or receiving a signal on the currently tuned frequency. Some radios also provide alerts when a severe weather warning is issued on a channel other than the channel to which the radio is currently tuned. Other devices, such as power meters or local area network (LAN) activity LEDs, may include peak level indicators that may display the peak signal level detected for a certain amount of time.

Method and system for providing an indication of a communication


A forceps includes a housing including a shaft. The shaft includes an end effector assembly having a pair of curved jaw members. The jaw members include an electrically conductive surface and a curved blade channel having opposing sidewalls. A cutting blade is configured for translation within the blade channel. Proximal portions of a first sidewall include incident angles of less than five degrees that engage the cutting blade and direct the blade towards a specific point of contact on the opposing sidewall of the curved blade channel.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus and method of controlling cutting blade travel in a surgical instrument. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to an apparatus and method of controlling cutting blade travel through the use of etched features using photolithography.
2. Background of Related Art
Electrosurgical apparatuses (e.g., electrosurgical forceps) are well known in the medical arts and typically include a handle, a shaft and an end effector assembly operatively coupled to a distal end of the shaft that is configured to manipulate tissue (e.g., grasp and seal tissue). Electrosurgical forceps utilize both mechanical clamping action and electrical energy to effect hemostasis by heating the tissue and blood vessels to coagulate, cauterize, fuse, seal, cut, desiccate, and/or fulgurate tissue.
As an alternative to open electrosurgical forceps for use with open surgical procedures, many modern surgeons use endoscopes and endoscopic electrosurgical apparatuses (e.g., endoscopic or laparoscopic forceps) for remotely accessing organs through smaller, puncture-like incisions. As a direct result thereof, patients tend to benefit from less scarring, less pain, and reduced healing time. Typically, the endoscopic forceps is inserted into the patient through one or more various types of cannulas or access ports (typically having an opening that ranges from about five millimeters to about fifteen millimeters) that has been made with a trocar; as can be appreciated, smaller cannulas are usually preferred.
An endoscopic forceps that is configured for use with small cannulas (e.g., cannulas less than five millimeters) may present design challenges for a manufacturer of endoscopic instruments.

Apparatus and method of controlling cutting blade travel through the use of etched features


Methods and apparatuses are provided for an air inlet duct of an internal combustion engine. The air inlet duct includes a tubular housing. An inner wall has a plurality of perforations. The inner wall is disposed within the tubular housing such that the tubular housing includes at least two flow passages. A valve set is associated with a first flow passage of the at least two flow passages. The valve set selectively controls airflow through the first flow passage such that the first flow passage functions in a least one of a pass-through mode and a tuning mode.

Internal combustion engines combust an air and fuel mixture to produce drive torque. Air is supplied to the engine through an air induction system. As a consequence of the combustion within the engine, noise is generated. The air induction system likewise generates noise. Such noises may be undesirable to a vehicle occupant.
Air intake noise varies in amplitude across a wide frequency spectrum depending upon the operational characteristics of the particular internal combustion engine. In some cases, air induction noise can be reduced by employing a small diameter air inlet port within the air induction system. While this arrangement works well at low engine speeds (i.e., low revolutions per minute (RPM)), the engine may not be supplied with sufficient air at high engine speeds (i.e., high RPM). Conversely, a large diameter air inlet will provide sufficient air at both high and low engine speeds; however, such an arrangement leads to increased air intake noise.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an air induction system that that can accommodate engine load demands while still minimizing the undesirable noise generated. It is further desirable to provide such an air induction system in a way that minimizes the overall packaging. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.


The present disclosure relates to a drop terminal mounting system for use in a fiber optic network. The drop terminal mounting system includes a drop terminal having a drop terminal housing to which a plurality of fiber optic adapters are mounted. The fiber optic adapters have exterior ports that are accessible from an exterior of the drop terminal housing. The drop terminal mounting system also includes a bracket having a cradle for receiving the drop terminal. The bracket has features that facilitate mounting the bracket to different types of structures such as poles, strands, or to hand-holes.

Passive optical networks are becoming prevalent in part because service providers want to deliver high bandwidth communication capabilities to customers. Passive optical networks are a desirable choice for delivering high-speed communication data because they may not employ active electronic devices, such as amplifiers and repeaters, between a central office and a subscriber termination. The absence of active electronic devices may decrease network complexity and/or cost and may increase network reliability.
FIG. 1 illustrates a network 100 deploying passive fiber optic lines. As shown in FIG. 1, the network 100 may include a central office 110 that connects a number of end subscribers 115 (also called end users 115 herein) in a network. The central office 110 may additionally connect to a larger network such as the Internet (not shown) and a public switched telephone network (PSTN). The network 100 may also include fiber distribution hubs (FDHs) 130 having one or more optical splitters (e.g., 1-to-8 splitters, 1-to-16 splitters, or 1-to-32 splitters) that generate a number of individual fibers that may lead to the premises of an end user 115. The various lines of the network can be aerial or housed within underground conduits (e.g., see conduit 105).
The portion of network 100 that is closest to central office 110 is generally referred to as the F1 region, where F1 is the "feeder fiber" from the central office. The F1 portion of the network may include a distribution cable having on the order of 12 to 48 fibers; however, alternative implementations may include fewer or more fibers. The portion of network 100 that includes an FDH 130 and a number of end users 115 may be referred to as an F2 portion of network 100. Splitters used in an FDH 130 may accept a feeder cable having a number of fibers and may split those incoming fibers into, for example, 216 to 432 individual distribution fibers that may be associated with a like number of end user locations.
Referring to FIG. 1, the network 100 includes a plurality of breakout locations 125 at which branch cables (e.g., drop cables, stub cables, etc.) are separated out from main cables (e.g., distribution cables). Breakout locations can also be referred to as tap locations or branch locations and branch cables can also be referred to as breakout cables. At a breakout location, fibers of the branch cables are typically spliced to selected fibers of the main cable. However, for certain applications, the interface between the fibers of the main cable and the fibers of the branch cables can be connectorized.
Stub cables are typically branch cables that are routed from breakout locations to intermediate access locations such as a pedestals, drop terminals or hubs. Intermediate access locations can provide connector interfaces located between breakout locations and subscriber locations. A drop cable is a cable that typically forms the last leg to a subscriber location. For example, drop cables are routed from intermediate access locations to subscriber locations. Drop cables can also be routed directly from breakout locations to subscriber locations hereby bypassing any intermediate access locations
FIG. 1 shows several branch cables routed to drop terminals 104. Drop terminals can be mounted on a variety of different structures. For example, a typical drop terminal may be mounted to a pole, a strand (e.g., a fiber optic cable or a copper cable) or inside a hand hole. A typical practice in the field for installation of a drop terminal involves mounting the terminal to a mounting structure using fasteners that extend through-holes integrally formed in the housing of the drop terminal. This practice may involve the use of tools such as hammers that can damage the drop terminal. For example, the drop terminal may be cracked thereby providing a location for water intrusion. Also, fiber optics mounted to the terminal may be damaged thereby rendering the terminal inoperative.
It is also common for an installer to use a bracket to mount a drop terminal to a given structure. Typically, separate, specialized brackets are used for each mounting application. For example, a first type of bracket may be used for a pole mount configuration, a second bracket may be used for a strand mount configuration, and multiple other brackets may be used for a hand hole mount. The use of multiple brackets for different mounting configurations is expensive and requires an installer to maintain a relatively large stock of brackets in his or her truck.

Universal bracket for mounting a drop terminal


A conductor in a laminar structure, such as a printed circuit board or thin-film stack, is closely flanked by at least one open trench filled with an ambient medium (e.g., air, another gas, vacuum) of a lower dielectric loss than the conductor's surrounding dielectric. The trench may be made by any suitably precise method such as laser scribing, chemical etching or mechanical displacement. A thin layer of dielectric may be left on the sides of the conductor to prevent oxidation or other reactions that may reduce conductivity. When the conductor carries a signal, part of an electric and/or magnetic field that would ordinarily travel through the surrounding dielectric encounters the low-loss ambient medium (e.g. air) in the trench. The effective dielectric loss surrounding the conductor is lowered, reducing signal attenuation and crosstalk, particularly at high frequencies.

Circuits fabricated as laminates (either printed circuit boards or thin-film stacks on semiconductor substrates) often include connective conductors formed from one or more patterned conductive layers. The conductors may carry signals, provide power, or act as ground or other reference lines. (In this document, "ground" will serve as a generic shorthand for any reference conductor). Conductors with different functions may be fabricated on different layers; the "signal plane," the "power plane," and the "ground plane" may sometimes be separate from each other. Alternatively, combinations of signal lines, power lines, and ground lines may be coplanar or formed in the same layer. Signal-carrying conductors may be single lines, differential pairs such as microstrip, or single or paired lines with coplanar parallel ground lines such as coplanar waveguides. Ground planes may be unpatterned conductive layers as in some printed circuit boards (PCBs).
Two ongoing trends in electronics manufacturing are (1) higher data rate, e.g., fabric or Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) applications and (2) higher component density, which entails a corresponding increase in the density of signal lines and other interconnects. As data rates increase, the signaling performance degrades due to the frequency dependent loss of the presently used copper conductors and surrounding dielectrics. Thus, it becomes more and more important to control and reduce the dielectric loss in high speed digital system designs. This is particularly critical for longer routing lengths in PCB or package. The dielectric loss becomes a dominant factor in high speed signaling since it dominates the total loss for frequency in GHz range. Through producing air-filled trenches along the conductor traces, the dielectric loss can be significantly reduced. Because air is lossless (dielectric constant=1, loss tangent=0), the total dielectric loss caused by the mixed medium (dielectric+air) surrounding the trace is reduced. Other approaches have included, without limitation, using a thicker layer of copper for the signal plane to reduce the conductor loss; using special low-loss dielectric as the substrate or as the fill layer around the signal conductors; or adding another conductive plane. All these add significant extra production cost, and/or are not effective in reducing the total PCB channel loss. For example, when there are only a few (e.g., the longest and thinnest) signal traces that do not easily meet the loss target, using a more expensive material or design throughout the entire package may not be cost-effective.
A need exists for a cost-effective solution to overcome the difficulty of meeting link loss targets and to improve the signal integrity performance of PCB microstrips. The present disclosure addresses these needs.

Printed circuit board having a signal conductor disposed adjacent one or more trenches filled with a low-loss ambient medium


A system has a reduced sensitivity to Single Event Upset and/or Single Event Transient(s) compared to traditional logic devices. In a particular embodiment, the system includes an input, a logic block, a bias stage, a state machine, and an output. The logic block is coupled to the input. The logic block is for implementing a logic function, receiving a data set via the input, and generating a result f by applying the data set to the logic function. The bias stage is coupled to the logic block. The bias stage is for receiving the result from the logic block and presenting it to the state machine. The state machine is coupled to the bias stage. The state machine is for receiving, via the bias stage, the result generated by the logic block. The state machine is configured to retain a state value for the system. The state value is typically based on the result generated by the logic block. The output is coupled to the state machine. The output is for providing the value stored by the state machine. Some embodiments of the invention produce dual rail outputs Q and Q′. The logic block typically contains combinational logic and is similar, in size and transistor configuration, to a conventional CMOS combinational logic design. However, only a very small portion of the circuits of these embodiments, is sensitive to Single Event Upset and/or Single Event Transients.

Effects of Radiation upon Electronics
As is known in the art, the outer space environment contains a number of high energy protons, electrons, and heavy ions. Some of these protons, electrons, and particles are trapped in the Van Allen belt that surrounds the Earth. Similarly, high energy particles are known to be located near objects in outer and deep space, such as planets, stars, moons, and other naturally occurring satellites. As high energy particles from these various sources strike materials, the high energy particles cause direct ionization of the struck material. Unfortunately, the struck material includes man-made orbiting satellites, deep space probes, space stations, shuttles, other space craft and the like, collectively referred to herein as simply "satellites." These satellites are further known to contain a multitude of electronic devices, circuits, and on board computer and/or telecommunications equipment.
A source of incident radiation in terrestrial environments is high-energy particles generated from the interaction of cosmic rays with the atmosphere. These particles are not always generated by direct ionization but are typically indirectly generated as by-products of the high energy particles mentioned above. Also known in the art, the high energy particles can further have silicon ionizing effects. Moreover, decay of radioactive impurities in silicon and alpha particles generated from packaging are yet more sources of silicon ionization.
Accordingly, the semiconductor components of electronic circuitry are often exposed to ionized or charged particles. As mentioned above, the energy level of some charged particles is high. If the energy level of a charged particle is high enough, the particle can penetrate through to the packaging and shielding of a typical electronic circuit, to strike the components of the circuit, and/or to cause direct ionization of the semiconductor components of the circuit. This phenomenon is known in the literature as a Single Event Upset (SEU) of the electronic circuit. Single Event Upset has been studied by the research community. For example, see T. Ma and P. Dressendorfer, IONIZING RADIATION EFFECTS IN MOS DEVICES & CIRCUITS CH. 9, New York, N.Y., John Wiley & Sons, 1989. See also, J. Gambles and G. Maki, Radiation Effects and Hardening Techniques for Spacecraft System Microelectronics, IAF World Space Congress, Reference IAC-02-I.05.08. October 2002, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Further, if a high energy charged particle passes through a semiconductor diffusion region of an electronic device, such as a transistor, particularly at a susceptible node within the electronic circuit, then the particle can undesirably alter the contents of data stored within the electronic circuit. A particularly susceptible node within electronic circuits is a logic cell. The logic cell includes, for example, a metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) logic cell. Logic cells use data in the form of binary logic (as a 1 or a 0).

Radiation tolerant combinational logic cell


Some demonstrative embodiments include devices, systems and/or methods of wireless communication over a combined channel. For example, a wireless communication unit may transmit a wireless communication transmission over a combined channel including a primary channel and at least one secondary channel, wherein the wireless communication unit is to begin the transmission over the combined channel if a detected state of use of the secondary channel is idle for at least a predefined silence period preceding an expiration of a back-off period corresponding to the primary channel, wherein the silence period is longer than a priority interframe space (PIFS) interval. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

An increased throughput, e.g., above 1 Gigabit-per-second (Gbps) per wireless communication client, may be required in order, for example, to satisfy a demand for transferring increased amounts of data within wireless communication networks, such as, for example, wireless local area networks (WLAN) and/or wireless personal area networks (WPAN). The increased throughput may be achieved, for example, by using a communication link having a wide bandwidth. For example, a bandwidth of more than 80 Mega-Hertz (MHz) may be required in order to provide a throughput greater than 1 Gbps, e.g., in a network operating over a frequency band of 5 Giga-Hertz (GHz) in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 standards. However, a likelihood of allocating a channel having a wide bandwidth may be relatively low due, for example, to interference, overlapping networks, regulatory limitations, and the like.
A plurality of wireless communication channels may be required in order to achieve the high bandwidth. For example, more than four 20 MHz channels may be required, e.g., according to the IEEE 802.11 standards, in order to achieve a bandwidth of more than 80 MHz
In order to perform a transmission over a combined channel formed by a plurality of channels, a transmitter may be required not to interfere with potential overlapping communication networks, which may also be using one or more of the plurality of channels included in the combined channel. However, following the physical and virtual carrier sense rules in each of the channels of the combined channel may result in reduced transmission efficiency.

Device, system and method of wireless communication over a combined channel


A rotary valve that includes three sealing blades and four sealing rings. Two on each end. The valve assembly rotates at one half of crank speed, for a (single cylinder four-cycle engine.) This aligns timing of the port in the valve with the port of the cylinder head. This enables intake/exhaust functions. Within the open end of the valve are stationary impeller fins, (rotating at the same speed) provides improved fuel/air mixture and flow characteristics with less polution.

This invention relates to a cylinder head for an internal combustion engine, having a rotary intake valve and a rotary exhaust valve.
The twin rotary impeller fin valves provide an improved intake and exhaust valve system for an internal combustion engine. Each of the rotary valves include three sealing blades and four sealing rings. Impeller fins are fixed to each of the rotary valves, improving efficiency, and, in the case of the intake valve, enhance fuel atomization of the fuel/air mixture.

Twin rotary valves for a four stroke internal combustion engine


A transistor structure having source/drain regions arranged in a horizontal plane along an x axis has a recess structure, which separates the two source/drain regions from one another and increases the effective channel length Leff of the transistor structure. A vertical gate electrode with respect to the horizontal plane extends along the x axis and in this case encloses an active zone of the transistor structure from two sides or completely. The effective channel width Weff is dependent on the depth to which the gate electrode is formed. A memory cell having a selection transistor in accordance with the transistor structure has both a low leakage current and a good switching behavior. By a suitable integration concept, the transistor structure is integrated into a memory cell array of a DRAM having hole trench capacitors or stacked capacitors.

Memory cells of dynamic random access memories (DRAMs) are usually provided with a respective storage capacitor for storing electrical charge and a selection transistor for addressing the storage capacitor. In this case, a lower limit results for a channel length of the selection transistor, below which lower limit the insulation properties of the selection transistor are inadequate in the turned-off, non-addressed state of the memory cell. The lower limit for an effective channel length Leff limits the scalability of conventional planar transistor cells (PTCs) with a selection transistor oriented horizontally with respect to a substrate surface of a semiconductor substrate.
The functionality of a memory cell is furthermore determined by the resistance of the selection transistor in the turned-on state given addressing of the memory cell. With advancing miniaturization of the structures, an effective channel width Weff of the selection transistor is being increasingly reduced and the charging/discharging current Ion of the memory cell is disadvantageously limited.
Therefore, fin field-effect transistors (FinFETs) are known, as are described for example in "Fabrication of Body-Tied FinFETs (omega MOSFETs) using Bulk Si Wafers," Park et al.; in "2003 Symposium on VLSI Technology Digest of Technical Papers." Between two source/drain regions of a transistor cell that are arranged in planar fashion, a semiconductor substrate is etched back by a recess step and a fin formed by the semiconductor substrate is shaped between the two source/drain regions in the process. A gate electrode structure envelops the fin from at least two sides. The effective channel length Leff is determined by the length of the fin in accordance with a minimum feature size F governed by the production technology. The effective channel width Weff is determined from the height of the fin, or the depth to which the recess step is carried out.
The effective channel length Leff is linked to the minimum feature size F and limits the scaling potential of the finFET with regard to the leakage current or the insulator properties in the off state. The switching threshold of the finFET depends greatly on production parameters. The fabrication of a fin field-effect transistor as selection transistor of a memory cell with a hole trench capacitor proves to be complex.
Arrangements with vertical transistor cells (VTCs) are known for memory cells with a hole trench capacitor. The source/drain regions of the selection transistor are essentially arranged vertically one above the other in the semiconductor substrate. A channel controlled by a gate electrode of the selection transistor is formed perpendicular to the cell array plane or substrate surface of the semiconductor substrate. The minimum channel width Weff results in accordance with the minimum feature size F. The channel length Leff is dependent on the depth at which the lower source/drain region or a lower edge of the gate electrode is formed.
Disadvantages of the vertical transistor cell are the difficult integration in memory cells having stacked capacitors, the increase in the aspect ratio of a hole trench for forming the memory cell in the case of integration in memory cells having hole trench capacitors, the restricted switch-on/switch-off current Ion and also the parasitic action of the gate electrode of a selection transistor on adjacent memory cells.
A vertical memory cell with a vertical transistor structure in which the gate electrode completely encloses a body region arranged between the two source/drain regions is described in "Fully Depleted Surrounding Gate Transistor (SGT) for 70 nm DRAM and Beyond"; Goebel et al. A fin is formed by etching back a semiconductor substrate. A first source/drain region is formed by outdiffusion from an adjacent structure in the base region of the fin. A second source/drain region is provided at the upper edge of the fin. The gate electrode is arranged along the four sidewalls of the fin. The effective channel length Leff results from the depth of etching back for the fin. The effective channel width Weff corresponds to the contour of the fin, at least one side length resulting in a manner dependent on the minimum feature size F. The total effective channel width correspondingly amounts to 2F to 3F. Like the vertical transistor cell, the transistor cell with a surrounding gate electrode, too, can only be integrated in a complex manner in memory cells having stacked capacitors. The high aspect ratios established in the course of processing and the resultant restrictions in the processing and with regard to the storage capacitor are furthermore disadvantageous.
A field-effect transistor with a curved channel is described in "The Breakthrough in Data Retention time of DRAM using Recess-Channel-Array Transistor (RCAT) for 88 nm Feature Size and Beyond"; Kim et al.; in "2003 Symposium on VLSI Technology Digest of Technical Papers." The two source/drain regions of the field-effect transistor are arranged in a horizontal plane. The gate electrode is arranged in a recess trench introduced into the semiconductor substrate between the two source/drain regions of the transistor. The effective channel length Leff results from the distance between the two source/drain regions and also the depth to which the recess trench provided between the two source/drain regions is introduced into the semiconductor substrate. The effective channel width Weff corresponds to the minimum feature size F.
The continuing restriction of the effective channel width disadvantageously limits the switch-on/switch-off current.
In the case of integration of recess channel FETs in memory cells with a high packing density, the alignment of the gate electrodes with respect to the recess trenches proves to be complex, for instance if both are respectively patterned in the course of a photolithographic method. In contrast to finFET or SGT transistor cells, the active zone is not shielded from the adjacent memory cells by the gate electrode. A parasitic punchthrough of the potential of a gate electrode to the adjacent transistor cells occurs.
An arrangement for memory cells having hole trench capacitors and selection transistors having a gate electrode grooved into the semiconductor substrate (grooved gate) is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,707 (Bronner et al.) and is explained below with reference to FIG. 1.
In accordance with FIG. 1, storage capacitors 6 are formed as hole trench capacitors 8 in a semiconductor substrate 1 below a substrate surface 10. A hole trench capacitor 8 comprises a storage electrode 61 arranged in the interior of a hole trench and a counterelectrode 63 formed as a doped zone in a section of the semiconductor substrate 1 that surrounds a lower section of the storage electrode 61. A capacitor dielectric 62 is provided between the storage electrode 61 and the counterelectrode 63. In an upper section of the hole trench capacitor 6, the storage electrode 61 is insulated from the semiconductor substrate 1 by a collar insulator structure 81.
An active zone 11 with two selection transistors 9, 9′ is formed by the semiconductor substrate 1 between in each case two adjacent capacitor structures 6. The source/drain regions 12, 13 of the selection transistors 9, 9′ are in each case doped sections of the active zone 11. A respective first source/drain region 12 adjoins the storage electrode 61 of a storage capacitor 6 in the region of a contact window 82. The second source/drain region 13 is connected via a bit contact 31 to a-data line 33 arranged above the substrate surface 10. The gate electrode 2 comprises a highly conductive section 2a. The gate electrodes of selection transistors that are adjacent in the direction perpendicular to the cross-sectional plane are connected to one another and form addressing lines. The addressing lines are enclosed by a gate stack insulator structure 95 and insulated from the data line 33 formed thereabove by an interlayer dielectric 41.
Between the two source/drain regions 12, 13 of the selection transistors 9, 9′, a recess trench 18 is introduced in each case from the substrate surface 10. The recess trench 18 is filled with the material of the gate electrode 2. A channel region 15 of the selection transistor 9, 9′ extends in the semiconductor substrate 1 along the sidewalls and the bottom of the recess trench 18. A gate dielectric 16 is provided between the gate electrode 2 and the semiconductor substrate 1. The recess trench 18 lengthens the effective channel length Leff with regard to a cell current 96 compared with a conventional planar transistor structure.
The patterning of the addressing lines is carried out in a manner aligned with the recess trenches 18 introduced beforehand and the patterning of the recess trenches 18 is carried out in a manner aligned with the hole trenches of the hole trench capacitors 8. The effective channel width Weff is disadvantageously predefined, in the direction perpendicular to the cross-sectional plane, by the distance with respect to the memory cells that are adjacent in this direction.

Transistor structure with a curved channel, memory cell and memory cell array for DRAMs, and methods for fabricating a DRAM


To address the need for a receiver that provides good performance during poor channel conditions yet reduces the computational complexity of existing ML receivers, a method and apparatus for MIMO joint detection and decoding is provided herein. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a low-complexity linear filter method is first utilized by the receiver. However, a higher-complexity non-linear method is utilized when the performance of the linear method is not adequate, for example, during poor channel conditions. In order to reduce the complexity of the non-linear decoding method, the distances to a much smaller set of candidate constellation points are computed than with prior-art decoding methods. This is made possible by the fact that some bits decoded with higher confidence utilizing the output of a linear filter method can help the decoding of the other bits.

The present invention relates generally to decoding information within communication systems and in particular, to a method for Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) detection and decoding within such communication systems.
Since wireless spectrum has become such a precious shared resource, higher spectral efficiency than state-of-the-art systems will likely be mandatory in future systems that are required to deliver higher data rates. It is well recognized that the Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) technique has the potential of greatly increasing spectral efficiency, but the gain comes at the price of more processing power at the receiver due to the task of separating signals that are simultaneously transmitted from multiple antennas. This fact is especially true for the optimal maximum likelihood (ML) receiver (which has the best performance among all receive methods) in that it has an exponential computational complexity of QMT for a modulation symbol constellation size of Q and MT transmit antennas. The optimal ML receiver needs to compute QMT distances between the actual received signal vector (formed from the received signals on all the receive antennas) and each of the QMT noise-free signal vectors that correspond to the QMT possible hypotheses for the transmitted symbol vector (i.e., a vector of constellation points). It is critical to reduce the complexity before an ML receiver can be used in systems using large Q and/or large MT.
Existing MIMO receive algorithms include non-linear ones like the above-mentioned ML receiver, and linear ones such as Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) and Zero Forcing (ZF) filters. While an ML receiver tries to jointly detect all MT transmitted symbols at once at the cost of QMT distance computations, a linear receiver first separates out the MT transmitted symbols and provides MT symbol estimates, based on which only QMT distance computations are needed. While linear techniques often require much less processing power than non-linear techniques, these techniques may not perform very well in some cases, such as when the noise power is high or when the channel matrix is not so well-conditioned (i.e., under poor channel conditions). On the other hand, while the ML receiver is generally more robust than linear receivers, the computational complexity of ML receivers may prohibit their implementation. Therefore, a need exists for a receiver that provides good performance in poor channel conditions yet has significantly less computational complexity than existing ML receivers.

Coding-assisted MIMO joint detection and decoding


A wide area communication network includes at least two hub sites which are interconnected by a communication backbone Each hub site provides millimeter microwave wireless coverage in at least one sector. At least two remote sites reside in each sector and are coupled to a corresponding hub site via a point to multi point broadband millimeter microwave wireless system. The network preferably includes at least one service node which is accessible to the remote sites via the hub sites and backbone.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a metropolitan wide area network for telecommunication systems. In particular, this invention relates to the integration of a wireless point to multi point system operating in the millimeter microwave radio range with an intelligent metropolitan area broadband backbone network to enable a variety of enhanced voice, broadband data and multimedia telecommunication services.
2. Description of Related Art
In the art, point-to-point narrow band, point to multi point narrow band and point to point broadband fixed wireless systems are generally known. Point to multi point radio technology is also a known technology which has been generally used for narrowband communications, such as voice. Narrow band systems are typically systems that are capable of generating at or below 1.544 megabits per second of data in a single circuit or channel, whereas broadband systems are capable of generating data rates above 1.544 megabits per seconds per circuit or channel. While narrowband xe2x80x9cpoint to multi pointxe2x80x9d systems have been used for voice communications, point to multi point systems have not been generally applied to broadband telecommunications networks.
Today""s narrowband point to multi point systems can aggregate a group of up to twenty four 64 kilobits per second channels together in what is called a xe2x80x9cT1 line.xe2x80x9d However, this T1 line is still considered a narrowband facility when it is used to support multiple voice channels. Narrowband point to multi point systems have also been in use in Europe for voice telephone networks for several years.
Point-to-point broadband technology is also well known. Above 18 Gigahertz (millimeter microwave frequencies), and especially in the 37 Gigahertz or xe2x80x9cGHzxe2x80x9d to 40 GHz range (typically referred to as xe2x80x9c38 GHzxe2x80x9d), point-to-point broadband wireless systems are in use. When such broadband wireless links are engineered properly, their performance is functionally equivalent to that of fiber optic telecommunications.
Fixed wireless technology at frequencies of 18 GHz and above is gaining popularity as means for transmission of telecommunication services because of its low cost, rapid installation and ease of operation. Connecting two sites with point-to-point wireless service largely consists of installing roof top antennas on the top of two buildings, with the accompanying indoor equipment. Physical wires do not have to be connected between the buildings, representing a significant advantage over copper or fiber technology. Bringing fiber or copper to buildings entails tremendous labor and other costs associated with digging up streets, obtaining permits, etc. Because the deployment of broadband fixed wireless systems does not require civil construction in most instances, it is thus faster and more economical to install than traditional methods of xe2x80x9clast milexe2x80x9d interconnection in metropolitan area telecommunications networks.
Current fixed wireless technology operating at frequencies of 18 GHZ and above (millimeter microwave wave) has a number of characteristics that make it an attractive commercial telecommunications transport medium. Fixed millimeter microwave wireless technology provides a high bandwidth path for voice, data, multimedia and video. Current technology permits link distances of up to five miles. Since all millimeter microwave propagation is subject to rainfall degradation, actual distance is a function of geographical location or xe2x80x9crain region.xe2x80x9d In climates where heavy rainfall is common, shorter link distances may be required to achieve performance and availability equivalent to that of fiber.
Millimeter microwave radio propagation generally requires unobstructed line-of-sight transmission. In practice, small diameter antennas are mounted on office building rooftops, and in some cases in office building windows. The size of the antennas vary according to the selected frequency band, but typically range from 12 to 24 inches in diameter. Manufacturers indicate mean time between failure (MTBF) statistics in excess of 10 years for the radio and modem components, indicating that the hardware is highly reliable. Current fixed wireless millimeter microwave technology is therefore ideally suited for high availability broadband point-to-point commercial voice and data applications ranging from 1.544 Megabits per second (T1) to 45 Megabits per second (DS3) capacities.
One example of a typical wireless point-to-point broadband commercial application is the interconnection of multiple servers in a campus local area network (LAN). Another such application is metropolitan wide area networking. Here multiple campus LANs within the same city are interconnected via wireless facilities operations at millimeter wave frequencies. Dedicated access to inter-exchange carriers (IXCs), Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and other alternate access arrangements are common point-to-point business applications for millimeter wave wireless links. For example, cellular and personal communication services (PCS) operators may deploy high availability wireless facilities in a millimeter microwave range in their backbone networks to support back haul between antenna sites, base stations and mobile telephone switching offices (MTSO""s). Wireless point-to-point millimeter microwave technology is also being used to provide mission critical protection channels and other point-to-point alternate routing where extension is required from a fiber network to a location that is not served by fiber. Finally, interconnection with the public switched telephone network (PSTN) for the provision of local dial tone by competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) utilizing point-to-point millimeter microwave wireless technology is becoming increasingly popular.
FIG. 2 illustrates a basic point-to-point wireless facility providing customer interconnection to services. This connection will support broadband (data, video etc.) and narrowband (voice) applications. A customer building is shown as 200 and may contain multiple tenants. It is connected to another building 202 that houses a telecommunications network switch 203. These buildings are connected by a wireless link between two roof top antennas: one antenna 204 at the customer building, the other antenna 205 at the building housing the switch 203. The bandwidth of this connection could be up to 28 T1 circuits, or DS3 (45 Megabits per second). The switch 203 connects to the PSTN 206, or public switched telephone network for local service, and to long distance networks 207 for long distance service. The switch 203 is also able to provide dial up access to the Internet 208.
FIG. 3 is a representation of an exemplary system defined channelized spectrum allocation plan suitable for use in millimeter microwave frequencies. For example, the FCC spectrum allocation plan for an exemplary millimeter microwave band at about 38 GHz consists of 14 total channels. Each channel is 100 MegaHertz (MHZ) in bandwidth. Each 100 MHZ channel consist of two 50 MHZ sub channels, one sub channel to transmit and the other sub channel to receive. These two 50 MHZ sub channels are separated by 700 MHZ of spectrum. As shown in FIG. 3, sub channel 1A is 50 MHZ wide and it is a transmitting channel, whereas sub channel 1B is 50 MHZ wide and it is a receiving channel. Sub channel 1A is separated from sub channel 1B by 700 MHz. This band plan yields 14 channels (1400 MHZ or 1.4 GHz) of spectrum in the FCC allocated 38 to 40 GHz range. Similar frequency channel allocations can be established (and planned) in other millimeter microwave frequencies as well, including 24, 28 and 40 GHz in the United States and 23 and 26 GHz in Europe. For example, in the 28 GHz LMDS band (in the United States) spectrum is largely allocated in a single 850 MHZ wide spectral block. However, such a block spectrum allocation can be subdivided into system defined channels, to achieve the same result to that shown in FIG. 3.
Referring to FIG. 4, a basic spectrum management problem associated with the use of point-to-point wireless systems in a metropolitan area using a channelized spectrum allocation as illustrated in FIG. 3 is shown. Because buildings are close to each other in a metropolitan area, the broadcast of information over wireless links may overlap, making the use of the same channel (1A/1B) in contiguous systems impossible. In this figure, one antenna from one building is transmitting its signal to the antenna of the intended receiver, but a portion of the signal is also being received by the antenna on the adjacent building. Such signal corruption is termed xe2x80x9cco-channel interference.xe2x80x9d
In FIG. 4, a host building 401 containing a switch 402 is connected via four rooftop antennas 403A, 403B, 403C and 403D respectively to remote buildings 404A, 404B, 404C and 404D, each with its own corresponding rooftop antenna. Shown between these buildings is a conceptual representation of the spectrum being utilized by each of these point-to-point wireless systems. As buildings get close together, transmission signals between buildings begin to overlap. To prevent the co-channel interference described in the preceding paragraph, different channels must be used to connect buildings that are in close proximity. For instance, channel 1A/1B is used for building 404D and channel 2A/2B is used for building 404C. Even though channel 1A/1B partially overlaps the transmission of 2A/2B, the use of different frequencies (channels) by the two systems provides protection from co-channel interference. Thus the antenna of one building may be transmitting a portion of its signal to the wrong receiving antenna, but each system is xe2x80x9ctunedxe2x80x9d to a different frequency and transmission from neighboring systems using other frequencies is ignored.
The frequency management technique shown in FIG. 4 avoids co-channel interference in wireless networks deployed in dense urban areas, however the use of additional channels to avoid co-channel interference does not maximize the information transport capacity of the licensed spectrum and is therefore inefficient. A solution to this problem is needed.
FIG. 5 illustrates an additional spectrum management problem associated with point-to-point systems. Building 501 connects to Building 502 through channel 1. Building 503 connects to building 504 through channel 2. The solid connection lines 505, 506 represent the wireless transmission that is intended. However, because the xe2x80x9ctransmit beamxe2x80x9d is about 2 degrees at the source, signals can be received by other systems that are not planned but happen to be in the range of the transmit beam of the originating system. The dotted line 507 represents such a case, where the system in building 4 incorrectly receives the transmission of the system in building 1. If two distinct frequencies were used, there would be no co-channel interference. Once again, frequency management in point-to-point wireless networks requires the use of multiple channels to avoid interference rather than allowing the spectrum to be used to drive incremental bandwidth.
Rooftop space is expensive and in many cases there are restrictions on the number, size and position of antennas deployed on a roof. Because point-to-point systems use separate antennas for each wireless connection, space becomes a limiting factor on building rooftops. As the number of point-to-point systems located on a building increases, not only do spectrum management considerations limit the number of systems which can be deployed, but the physical space available for each antenna on the roof also constrains the number of systems. Thus, a solution is required which permits the expansion of wireless network capacity, and thus the number of users, without a corresponding increase in the number of antennas rooftops.
Point-to-point systems provide users with what is called a full period connection. Full period connections are xe2x80x9calways onxe2x80x9d (connected and active), awaiting the transport of information. Full period wireless connections utilize dedicated spectrum which, once assigned, is unavailable to other users. Point-to-point wireless systems are therefore appropriate for applications involving continuous or lengthy transmissions. Point-to-point systems do not efficiently support variable bit rate or xe2x80x9cburstyxe2x80x9d data services where the requirement for bandwidth is not constant but rather variable. Bandwidth utilized by point-to-point systems for variable bit rate applications is wasted, as each system utilizes the allocated channel on a full time xe2x80x9calways onxe2x80x9d basis regardless of the amount of information or the duration of transmissions on the link. A solution is required to more efficiently utilize spectrum for xe2x80x9cburstyxe2x80x9d data services like LAN to LAN data transmission.
It is an object to create a xe2x80x9cfull featuredxe2x80x9d local metropolitan area broadband telecommunications network infrastructure capable of supporting advanced voice and data services.
It is another object to use fixed wireless telecommunications technology as a key enabler of broadband local access to a metropolitan area telecommunications network offering advanced voice and data services.
It is an object to maximize the utilization of allocated spectrum available in local metropolitan area broadband telecommunications networks.
It is an object to overcome the spectrum management limitations associated with the use of point-to-point fixed wireless telecommunications systems.
It is an object to allow the utilization of multiple channels to drive additional network capacity in local metropolitan area broadband telecommunications networks.
It is an object to minimize the number of wireless telecommunication systems required on rooftops to provide access to local metropolitan area broadband telecommunications networks.
In accordance with one form of the present network, a wide area communication network includes at least two hub sites which are interconnected by a communication backbone Each hub site provides wireless coverage in at least one sector. At least two remote sites reside in each sectors and are coupled to a corresponding hub site via a point to multi point broadband wireless system. The network preferably includes at least one service node which is accessible to the remote sites via the hub sites and backbone.
In accordance with another form of the present network, a broadband local metropolitan area telecommunication network provides fixed broadband wireless local loop access to a plurality of subscribers. The subscribers include a subscriber radio unit operating on a millimeter microwave band frequency corresponding to a cell sector in which said subscriber resides. At least one of the subscribers has a plurality of associated customer premise equipment and includes means for performing statistical multiplexing among the plurality of customer premise equipment the subscriber radio unit. The network includes a plurality hub sites which are interconnected by a Sonet based back bone. The hub sites include a plurality of hub site radio units which operate on a selectable frequency with at least one radio unit corresponding to a cell sector. The hub sites further include means for dynamically allocating communication bandwidth among a plurality of subscribers within each said cell sector. The network preferably includes a plurality of value added service nodes which are coupled to the backbone and are accessible to subscribers through the hub sites and backbone. The network further includes a central operations node which is connected to each of said hub sites by a control network and provides remote access and control of the hub sites as well as remote control subscriber access to the value added service nodes.


An inverted cup follower is fitted in a bore of the cylinder head of an internal combustion engine in line with the upright stem of an intake or exhaust valve. Such follower has a threaded central bore receiving a complementally threaded plug. The plug has a rectangular socket receiving the rectangular tongue of a cap member which is turnable so as to advance the plug toward or away from the valve stem and thereby adjust the valve clearance. To maintain a desired adjustment, a spring-loaded locking pin normally is received in any one of several closely spaced peripheral notches of the cap member so as to prevent rotation of the cap member relative to the inverted cup follower. The pin can be moved to an unlocked position to permit rotating adjustment of the cap member and the central plug.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved tappet assembly interposed between an overhead cam shaft and the stem of a standard poppet valve of an internal combustion engine. The effective thickness of such tappet assembly is adjustable to eliminate valve lash without requiring disassembly of the engine.
2. Prior Art
In a conventional overhead cam internal combustion engine, a composite tappet assembly commonly includes an inverted cup follower fitted in a cylindrical bore of the cylinder head in line with the upward-projecting stem of each intake and exhaust valve. Shims can be used to achieve a desired clearance between the top of the valve stem and the follower. The top of the follower is engaged by a lobe of the cam shaft. Ideally, the clearance is set and periodically adjusted so that valve lash is eliminated, i.e., the clearance is zero when the engine reaches its normal operating temperature. It can be timeconsuming, painstaking work to set or adjust the clearance by use of shims.
The construction shown in my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 3,675,631, issued July 11, 1972, is representative of prior attempts to provide adjustable tappet assemblies that eliminate the need for separate shims. In the construction shown in that patent, the inverted cup follower has a threaded central bore receiving a complementally threaded plug for engaging against the top of the valve stem. The top of the plug has a square socket receiving a square tongue of a cap member. Turning the cap member rotates the plug to advance it toward the valve stem or to retract it away from the valve stem.
In my previous construction, the cup follower has a series of "locking holes" concentric with its central bore, and the cap member has a downward-projecting pin normally received in one of such holes so as to prevent rotation of the cap and the plug relative to the cup. In order to adjust the valve clearance, the cap must be wedged upward to free its downward-projecting pin from the locking hole, whereupon the cap can be turned to rotate the plug. When the desired position has been achieved, the cap is lowered for reception of the downward-projecting locking pin into one of the locking holes.
Other known constructions which use relatively rotatable threaded members for adjusting the valve clearance are shown in the following U.S. patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 1,496,497, issued June 3, 1924 (Swarthout et al.);
U.S. Pat. No. 3,002,508, issued Oct. 3, 1961 (Barker et al.);
U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,239, issued Jan. 31, 1967 (Thauer);
U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,964, issued Dec. 3, 1968 (Pask);
U.S. Pat. No. 3,941,102, issued Mar. 2, 1976 (Barham);
U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,894, issued Mar. 30, 1982 (Black).


A longitudinal joint forms a surface usable as a passage between first and second passage surfaces (2,3) adjacent to one another, usable as walking user passage, the distance between both in the longitudinal direction being variable. The longitudinal joint (1) has transverse slats (4) attached to one another, with a substantially planar upper surface (5), each being attached to the contiguous slats by a pivot point (6) with respect to which they can rotate preserving the continuity of the surface of the longitudinal joint (1). The slats (4) rest on a series of support surfaces (8,9,12), a certain number of slats being hidden under the first passage surface (2), below the level of the upper surface (5), by the relative rotation to one another with respect to the pivot point (6), depending on the distance between first and second passage surfaces (2,3).

There are many inventions which attempt to technically solve the need for having movable surfaces applied to various fields of the art. Some of these inventions are based on the blind concept such that they use a series of slats or elements attached to one another arranged according to a mainly planar surface but which can be wound around a drum such that by means of the rotation of the drum said slats take up a circumferential position around it, the length of the horizontal surface being modified.
An example of application can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 2,958,083A, where this concept is used for covering a swimming pool. Other patents such as WO9708408A try to solve the mechanism which allows covering or removing covers using this concept or covers of other types.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,253A uses an equivalent system for covering a vehicle service pit, and U.S. Pat. No. 1,707,287A uses a similar concept for forming a vertical door serving as protection against fire. U.S. Pat. No. 2,173,900A applies a cover formed by slats for protecting an escalator, said cover not forming part of the machine itself.
There are also inventions describing different solutions for opening walkway and escalator pit covers. For example, patent JP8188365A describes various solutions of systems for opening maintenance pit covers for reducing the effort needed.
In summary, it can be said that there are inventions describing systems for opening pit covers in escalators and also various cover systems by means of blind slats as well as mechanisms for actuating them.
The present invention seeks to apply the blind concept to form a longitudinal joint between two fixed pit covers the relative distance of which will vary due to different reasons and without applying any manually or mechanically operated mechanism and forming a treadable continuous surface for the users of escalators or moving walkways.
In some escalator or moving walkway inventions, a fixed relative position between the overturn position of the steps or pallets and the combs is used, whether it is through the traditional step or pallet chain or when in its place the steps or pallets themselves are attached to one another forming a continuous band. When this occurs in the upper head no special action is required, but given that said step or pallet chain or the band formed by them requires being tensed, its position is modified with respect to the fixed part, therefore if the position of the combs is maintained with respect to the band of steps or pallets it is necessary to have a surface which allows varying the length between said adjacent surfaces.

Thyssenkrupp Elevator Innovation Center, S.A.


[Problem] The purpose of the present invention is to provide: a plasma melting method for performing, on a material to be processed such as incineration ash and general waste or industrial waste, a processing in which plasma is generated at a low voltage in the upper part of a furnace and the material to be processed is efficiently subjected to a melt-processing; and a plasma melting furnace used for the plasma melting method.

Incineration ashes produced when general wastes and industrial wastes are incinerated below 900° C. contain toxic substances such as PCB, dioxins, lead and cadmium. Among other means to process such toxic substances, incinerators that operate using common fuels are incapable of processing these toxic substances.
As a means to process incineration ashes, a technique using an electric resistance furnace for melt-processing has been proposed. In particular, JP 2002-254052A discloses one such technique for melt-processing incineration ash. In this technique, a gas drawn out from within a hermetic electric resistance melting furnace is subjected to a dust collection process. The processed gas is circulated back into the melting furnace. While the dust collection process of the furnace gas is repeated, incineration ashes are charged into the melting furnace where they are melted. The resulting exhaust gas discharged from the melting furnace is then introduced into an exhaust gas-processing unit.
Thermal plasma is used as a means to process general industrial wastes, such as melt-processing of incineration ashes. Use of thermal plasma can insolubilize incineration ashes discharged from garbage incinerators and heavy metals present in the incineration ashes and can decompose dioxins to make them harmless. In 1994, an experimental furnace was installed in Matsuyama in a plant for melt-processing incineration ashes using thermal plasma.

Plasma melting method for processing material to be processed, and plasma melting furnace used therefor

Abstract: [Solution] This invention is characterized in that: a coke layer is first laid on the furnace bottom of a plasma electric melting furnace in which a metal layer is placed on the furnace bottom and in which a plurality of electrodes can be moved vertically by an electrode raising/lowering device, and some of a material to be processed that is at least one among general waste, industrial waste, and incineration ash is charged onto the coke layer; the lower ends of the electrodes are positioned near the furnace bottom and the passage of current is commenced at a low voltage; the lower ends of the electrodes are raised while the passage of current is stable; the material to be processed is subjected to an additional charge; plasma is generated at the lower part of the electrodes at an operation voltage obtained by raising the voltage to a high voltage from the low voltage applied during the stable passage of current; and the material to be processed is subjected to a melt-processing.


Human anti-human folate receptor beta antibodies and antigen-binding fragments thereof are described, as well as methods of using such antibodies and fragments to treat inflammatory disorders or cancers expressing cell surface FRβ.

Folic acid is a vitamin required for the synthesis of nucleotide bases and is essential for the proliferation of all cells. Folates also are required for production of S-adenosylmethionine, the common substrate used in methylation of DNA, histones, G proteins, and many metabolic building blocks (see Kim, J Nutr 135:2703-2709 (2005); Loenen, Biochem Soc Trans 34:330-333 (2006)). Almost all cells take in folic acid via the reduced folate carrier or proton coupled folate transporter (see Matherly and Goldman, Vitam Horm 66:403-456 (2003)). Some cells, however, also express a folate receptor (FR) that binds folic acid 100,000 times tighter than the aforementioned transporters, and carries bound folates into cells by receptor-mediated endocytosis (see Nakashima-Matsushita et al., Arth Rheum 42:1609-1616 (1999); Turk et al., Arthritis Rheumatoid 46:1947-1955 (2002)). There are four members of the FR family: FRα, FRβ, FRγ and FRδ (see Elnakat and Ratnam, Adv Drug Deliv Rev 56:1067-1084 (2004)). Different isoforms of the FR are used by certain cancer cells, activated macrophages, and the proximal tubule cells of the kidney to capture folates from their environment (see e.g., Nakashima-Matsushita et al. 1999, supra; and Turk et al. 2002, supra). A need exists for reagents and methods for differential targeting of the folate receptors for treatment of disease.

Anti-human folate receptor beta antibodies and methods of use

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA DEPEARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


An adapter for a medical receptacle having a skirt with an outside diameter and a threaded inside diameter, and a tapered post within the skirt, the adapter includes a proximal end portion having a threaded surface including at least one thread configured to threadingly engage the threaded inside diameter of the skirt, a distal end portion having a surface portion and a cylindrical recess, a conduit positioned between the tapered recess and the cylindrical recess such that the conduit is in fluid communication with both the tapered recess and the cylindrical recess; and a longitudinal axis. The proximal end portion includes a tapered recess defined by a wall, a chamfer, and a seat and the surface portion includes a means for gripping, which in one embodiment may be at least two wings.

One well known receptacle used to connect and establish fluid communication between different medical components is known as a luer lock. Luer receptacles are widely used to connect syringes to medical instruments, such as needles, and to connect medical conduits to one another. In addition, luer lock receptacles have a standard configuration that allows different sizes and types of instruments to be connected to the same receptacle.
A conventional luer connection assembly typically includes a male luer tip component or fitting having a frustoconical shape which is inserted into a female luer component or fitting having a frustoconical shaped receiving cavity. Opposing conical surfaces come into contact with each other to form a sealed friction fit.
There are two general types of luer connection assemblies. One type is generally referred to as the luer slip, where the connection is maintained by the friction fit between the male luer tip and female luer component. The other type is generally referred to as a luer lock connection, whereby the male luer tip is encircled by an annular locking skirt having a threaded internal surface. The female component includes a corresponding single thread formed about the outer surface. Engaging the threaded skirt to the threaded outside surface establishes the connection between the male luer tip and female component while preventing accidental disconnects.
This conventional luer lock receptacle is used effectively throughout the world, but still has several disadvantages. One disadvantage is that the receptacle is prone to crack and break, particularly at the intersection of the skirt with the syringe barrel and at the intersection of the tapered post with the syringe barrel. This cracking and breaking compromises the strength of the mechanical connection between the receptacle and the adapter, and compromises the fluid tight seals between the receptacle and the adapter. Fluids leaking from the syringe are a particular problem as they can adversely affect a medical procedure, and also present a biological hazard to patients and medical personnel.
This situation may be compounded by medical devices or other instruments connected to a syringe receptacle, which may be relatively long or require aggressive manipulation by medical personnel. For example, harvesting of tissue and cells from different organs of the body, may require a relatively long cannula and aggressive manipulation by physicians, which may damage the receptacle. As there is only one point of contact between the thread on the female adapter and the threaded internal surface of the skirt, aggressive manipulation may cause the thread on the female component to crack or to completely shear off of the component, compromising the integrity of the luer connection.
In addition, the twisting motion required to lock the adapter to the receptacle, can cause the skirt to expand outwardly during engagement of the male threads on the adapter with the female threads on the receptacle. This expansion can also cause cracking and breaking to occur, or can cause micro cracks that lead to cracking and breaking.
In some instances, one receptacle may be used during more than one medical procedure. As each procedure requires the old adapter to be removed from the receptacle and a new adapter to be affixed thereto, there are multiple opportunities for an adapter to be over-torqued. Over-torqueing may result when the individual connecting the adapter to the syringe receptacle continues to twist the adapter after the opposing conical surfaces come into contact with each other to form a sealed friction fit. This over-torqueing may cause the tip of the tapered post to deform at the location where the tip interfaces with the adapter. Such deformation may cause the tip of the tapered post to become occluded, thereby reducing the amount of fluid that may flow through luer connection, thereby rendering the syringe receptacle effectively useless. In extreme instances, over-torqueing may cause the tapered post to fracture at the interface with the syringe receptacle. Over-torqueing may also result in damage at the intersection of the skirt with the syringe barrel and at the intersection of the tapered post with the syringe barrel.
Additionally, luer connections may be used to connect medical devices which are exposed to high pressure, such as injection of contrast media during angiographic procedures. During such procedures, the connection may exposed to pressures that may reach approximately 1200 pounds per square inch. As the rate of fluid injection is monitored and controlled during such angiographic procedures, any occlusion which decreases the amount of fluid being injected will adversely impact the administration of the procedure and result in inaccurate or wholly unusable test results.
Thus, there is a need in the art for an adapter for use in a luer lock connection which may permit users to securely tighten the adapter to the receptacle while preventing the user from over-torqueing the adapter. There is also a need in the art for an adapter which may reduce damage to the adapter and the receptacle from forces exerted perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the adapter.


The present invention relates to a foam pad containing far-infrared and/or ion generating particles and method for producing such foam material. The method for producing the foam pad consists of mixing fine particles of a far-infrared and/or ion emitting stone into the base material prior to further processing such as forming, molding or extruding the material. Alternatively, the fine particles of far-infrared and/or ion generating stone may be mixed with an adhesive and used as a coating on the foam pad. The stone generating far-infrared radiation and/or ions is preferably from the group consisting of tourmaline, granite porphyry, quartz porphyry, zeolite, perlite, serpentine, or mixture thereof.

The present invention relates to a novel foam pad for use as a yoga mat, exercise mat, mattress pad, seat cushion, pillow, body pad or body wrap. By adding or mixing a finely pulverized powder of far-infrared and/or ion generating stone into a base material prior to processing such material, the resulting finished product provides for unique health promoting benefits.
Other inventions, mainly out of Japan, have incorporated the use of far-infrared producing materials by mixing these powders with synthetic fibers to form a special yarn for creation of clothing, adding these powders to hard plastics to create discs for odor neutralization or EMF reduction or adding the powders to coatings to spray on walls or other construction material. Additionally, these powders have been used in mattress pads by either sandwiching a layer of stone powder between layers of other material or by applying plastic discs incorporating tourmaline onto the surface of the pad.
There is a significant body of literature indicating that far-infrared and/or ion generating materials provide for anti-bacterial and deodorizing effects and provides for an overall invigorating and regenerative effect. Additionally, research in Japan has shown far-infrared stone powder helps improve circulation, aid in stress relief, speed recovery from fatigue and injury and increase mental alertness. The inventor believes these effects are specifically useful when the body is in close contact with the material and/or when a greater sense of relaxation or wellness is desired. For this reason, these effects are very well suited to the products stated in the claims, such as a yoga mat, massage table pad or meditation cushion.
The inventor is not aware of any application were the stone powder of far-infrared and/or ion generating material is actually mixed into a base material of a foam prior to the forming or further processing so that the powder becomes integral to the foam material. The inventor believes there are many advantages to mixing or blending said stone powder directly into the base material or resin prior to processing or forming of the pad. These advantages include but are not limited to ease of processing, improved wear over coatings, ability to maintain flexibility and even consistency of foam, no shifting or movement of stone material, even distribution of powder throughout the material, and improved performance through exposing more surface area of the finely powdered stone. Alternatively, an outer coating may be desirable in the case where expected wear is minimal and/or where the process of adding powder to the base material is undesirable from a cost, manufacturing or performance standpoint.

Foam pad with far-infrared and/or ion generating properties and method for producing it