Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090005775 | EXPANDABLE CATHETER HAVING TWO SETS OF ELECTRODES - A catheter includes a first plurality of expandable leads and a second plurality of expandable leads separate and longitudinally spaced-apart from the first plurality to deliver energy to a hollow anatomical structure, such as vein, fallopian tube, hemorrhoid, esophageal varix, to effectively ligate that structure. Each of the leads includes an electrode located at the distal end of the respective electrode lead. Polarizations of the leads may be selected to achieve the power distribution desired. Each electrode lead includes an outward bend such that when a movable sheath is moved out of contact with the leads, they expand outwardly into apposition with an inner wall of the structure to be ligated. High frequency energy can be applied from the leads to create a heating effect in the surrounding tissue of the anatomical structure. The diameter of the hollow anatomical structure is reduced by the heating effect, and the electrodes are freely moved inward by the shrinking structure while still maintaining apposition with the inner wall of the shrinking structure. | 01-01-2009 |
20090054884 | METHOD OF LIGATING HOLLOW ANATOMICAL STRUCTURES - A catheter includes a plurality of expandable primary leads to deliver energy to a fallopian tube, a vein such as a hemorrhoid or an esophageal varix, or another hollow anatomical structure requiring ligation or occlusion. Each of the primary leads includes an electrode located at the working end of the catheter. Separation is maintained between the primary leads such that the leads can receive power of selected polarity. The primary leads are constructed to expand outwardly to place the electrodes into apposition with a hollow anatomical structure. High frequency energy can be applied from the leads to create a heating effect in the surrounding tissue of the anatomical structure. The diameter of the hollow anatomical structure is reduced by the heating effect, and the electrodes of the primary leads are moved closer to one another. | 02-26-2009 |
20090137998 | EXPANDABLE VEIN LIGATOR CATHETER HAVING MULTIPLE ELECTRODE LEADS, AND METHOD - A catheter includes a plurality of primary leads to deliver energy for ligating a hollow anatomical structure. Each of the primary leads includes an electrode located at the working end of the catheter. Separation is maintained between the primary leads such that each primary lead can individually receive power of selected polarity. The primary leads are constructed to expand outwardly to place the electrodes into apposition with an anatomical structure. High frequency energy can be applied from the leads to create a heating effect in the surrounding tissue of the anatomical structure. The diameter of the hollow anatomical structure is reduced by the heating effect, and the electrodes of the primary leads are moved closer to one another. Where the hollow anatomical structure is a vein, energy is applied until the diameter of the vein is reduced to the point where the vein is occluded. In one embodiment, a secondary lead is surrounded by the primary leads, and extends beyond the primary leads. The secondary lead includes an electrode at the working end of the catheter. The secondary lead can have a polarity opposite to the polarity of the primary leads in a bipolar configuration. The polarity of the leads can be switched and the catheter can be moved during treatment to ligate an extended length of the vein. The catheter can include a lumen to accommodate a guide wire or to allow fluid delivery. | 05-28-2009 |
20100106156 | APPARATUS FOR TREATING VENOUS INSUFFICIENCY - A catheter delivers an electrode within a vein for a minimally invasive treatment of varicose veins and venous insufficiency using RF energy. The catheter is introduced into a patient and positioned within the section of the vein to be treated. The electrode radiates high frequency energy towards the vein, and the surrounding venous tissue becomes heated and begins to shrink. The catheter includes a controllable member for limiting the amount of shrinkage of the vein to the diameter of the member. The electrode remains active until there has been sufficient shrinkage of the vein. The extent of shrinkage of the vein may be detected by fluoroscopy. After treating one section of the vein, the catheter and the electrode can be repositioned intraluminally within the vein to treat different sections of the vein until all desired venous sections and valves are repaired and rendered functionally competent. | 04-29-2010 |
20110160813 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR POSITIONING A CATHETER RELATIVE TO AN ANATOMICAL JUNCTION - An electrode catheter is introduced into a vein or other hollow anatomical structure, and is positioned at a treatment: site within the structure. The end of the catheter is positioned near a junction formed in the structure. This junction can be the sapheno-femoral junction. The position of the catheter near the junction is determined based on a signal from a device associated with the catheter within the structure. A fiber optic filament which emits light is used with the catheter or a guide wire over which the catheter is advanced. The light is visible externally from the patient. The light dims and may no longer externally visible at the sapheno-femoral junction where the catheter moves past the deep fascia and toward the deep venous system. The position of the catheter can be determined based on this external observation. The position of the catheter can also be determined based on measured parameters such as temperature or flow rate within the structure, and the measured changes in one or more of these parameters as the catheter nears the junction. The hollow anatomical structure can be compressed for this procedure. The position of the catheter can also be determined mechanically by including a hook-shaped tip on the catheter or guide wire which would physically engage the junction. | 06-30-2011 |
20110202047 | Apparatus for Treating Venous Insufficiency Using Directionally Applied Energy - A catheter introduces electrodes in a vein for a minimally invasive treatment of venous insufficiency by the application of energy to cause selective heating of the vein. The catheter is positioned within the vein to be treated, and the electrodes on the catheter are moved toward one side of the vein. RF energy is applied in a directional manner from the electrodes at the working end of the catheter to cause localized heating and corresponding shrinkage of the adjacent venous tissue, which may include commissures, leaflets and ostia. Fluoroscopy or ultrasound may be used to detect shrinkage of the vein. After treating one section of the vein, the catheter can be repositioned to place the electrodes to treat different sections of the vein until all desired venous valves are repaired and rendered functionally competent. | 08-18-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110061167 | PILLOWS WITH LARGE DIAMETER CLEAVING FOR ENHANCED LATERAL SOFTNESS - A pillow including a main body having a top support surface, a bottom support surface and rounded ends joining the top and bottom support surfaces about a rounded profile. The rounded profile of the pillow has no recessed areas where a thickness of the main body decreases progressively towards an edge of the main body. The main body is made of a cellular material. The pillow includes a plurality of holes defined to extend through the main body and include openings on the top and bottom support surfaces. The holes have a constant circular cross section having a diameter of ⅝ inch or greater. | 03-17-2011 |
20110061168 | SLEEP SUPPORT SURFACE THAT INCLUDES A LAYER WITH LARGE DIAMETER CLEAVING - A layered mattress including a first layer having a first support surface facing substantially externally and a second support surface opposite the first support surface; a specialized layer having a top support surface adjacent the second support surface of the first layer, a bottom support surface, and a plurality of holes defined to extend through the specialized layer; a second layer having a third support surface adjacent the bottom support surface of the specialized layer and a fourth support surface opposite the third support surface; and a pad having a fifth support surface adjacent the fourth support surface of the second layer and a sixth support surface opposite the fifth support surface. | 03-17-2011 |
20110061170 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SECURING FLEXIBLE FOAM MATTRESS COVERS FROM MISALIGNMENT - A mattress covering system and associated method including a flexible foam mattress core having a top surface, a bottom surface and side walls connecting the top and bottom surfaces, a mattress cover made of a flexible and stretchable material, and a fabric connector mounted to the flexible foam core and coupled to at least a portion of the mattress cover to alleviate the possibility of misalignment during compression packing or extended use of the flexible foam mattress core. | 03-17-2011 |
20110062181 | DISPENSER BOX WITH TILTED TOP SURFACE AND TIPPING CORNER - A dispenser box that includes a tilted or inclined top surface that defines a plurality of object wells that are configured to receive objects and secure them for shipping as well as display. The object wells are configured to secure each object on display as the objects are removed from the dispenser box, such that the last remaining object may continue to stand secure and in place. | 03-17-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20120031511 | Transverse Mounted In-Line Shower Filter - A shower filter/diverter assembly is provided for selectively outputting filtered water to one of a plurality of output ports. The assembly comprises a shower filter/diverter body having an input port for receiving unfiltered water, a plurality of output ports for outputting filtered water, a first end for receiving a shower filter and a second end for communicating the filtered water to one of the plurality of body output ports. A diverter control assembly is engageable to the filter/diverter body second end and translatable to selectively direct filtered water to one of the plurality of body output ports. | 02-09-2012 |
20150076254 | FILTERED SHOWER WAND WITH TWIST-LOCK CONNECTOR - A hand held, filtered shower wand including a spray head, and a handle, the handle defining a handle body with input and output ports, and having a filter media canister. The handle body output port including a first twist-lock connector, and the spray head defining a second twist-lock connector. The first and second twist-lock connectors are engageable to form a seal between the connectors. An O-ring between the connectors provides a watertight seal. The filter media canister may be accessed and replaced by a simple twist of the connectors. The wand spray head provides a plurality of spray settings, using filtered water. | 03-19-2015 |
20150298143 | OFFSET FILTERED SHOWERHEAD - A multi-mode showerhead has a housing with a front and a back and an offset integrated water filter system incorporated into the showerhead so that the showerhead with the integrated water filter system may be easily mounted to a normal shower arm without the need of special tools. A water filter cartridge is easily added to or removed from a hollow filter chamber formed in the showerhead by the removal of a front facing filter chamber cap. A multi-mode switch thats electively changes the spray pattern is mounted on the front between the water filter system and a plurality of nozzles. The entire showerhead and integrated offset water filter system is mounted on a shower arm by means of a swivel joint forming an inlet on the back of the housing and fluidly connected to the hollow filter chamber. | 10-22-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090213879 | Automated Laser Tuning - In exemplary embodiments, an ultra short pulse system comprises a laser platform which includes an optical source configured to generate an optical pulse, an optical amplifier configured to amplify the optical pulse, and a compressor configured to temporally compress the amplified optical pulse. The ultra short pulse system further comprises monitor circuitry configured to monitor one or more performance aspects of the laser platform. Additionally, the ultra short pulse system may comprise logic configured to control the one or more performance aspects of the laser platform in response to at least the monitored one or more performance aspects. | 08-27-2009 |
20090216494 | Network Laser System with Remote Diagnostics - In exemplary embodiments, a network laser system comprises a laser platform including an optical source configured to generate an optical pulse, an optical amplifier configured to amplify the optical pulse, and a compressor configured to temporally compress the amplified optical pulse. The network laser system may also comprise monitor circuitry (e.g., sensors) configured to monitor one or more performance aspects of the laser platform. The network laser system may further comprise logic configured to transmit data to a remote computing device over a network. The network laser system may be configured to perform a diagnostic test and/or maintenance in response to instructions received from the remote computing device. | 08-27-2009 |
20090323740 | Systems And Methods For Control Of Ultra Short Pulse Amplification - A method of controlling an ultra-short pulse system is described comprising controlling an optical power within the ultra-short pulse system and control-system controlling a width of an optical pulse. In some embodiments, the method also comprises tuning a compressor by controlling a number of passes of the optical pulse through a Bragg grating to control the width of the optical pulse output from the compressor. In other embodiments, the method may comprise tuning a multi-pass stretcher by controlling a number of passes of the optical pulse through a loop of the multi-pass stretcher to control the width of the optical pulse output from the multi-pass stretcher. A method of controlling an ultra-short pulse system may also comprise accessing a control system from a remotely located command station, communicating status information from the control system to the command station, and communicating information from the command station to the control system. | 12-31-2009 |
20100111539 | TRANSCEIVER MODULE AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT WITH DUAL EYE OPENERS - A transceiver module having integrated eye diagram opening functionality for reducing jitter is described. The transceiver module may include a transmitter eye opener and a receiver eye opener integrated in a single circuit. The transceiver module may also include serial control and various other integrated components. Other functionalities that may be integrated on the transceiver module include loopback modes, bypass features, bit error rate testing, and power down modes. | 05-06-2010 |
20110293285 | TRANSCEIVER MODULE AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT WITH DUAL EYE OPENERS - A transceiver module having integrated eye diagram opening functionality for reducing jitter is described. The transceiver module may include a transmitter eye opener and a receiver eye opener integrated in a single circuit. The transceiver module may also include serial control and various other integrated components. Other functionalities that may be integrated on the transceiver module include loopback modes, bypass features, bit error rate testing, and power down modes. | 12-01-2011 |
20120280578 | INTELLIGENT LASER INTERLOCK SYSTEM - Systems and methods are disclosed for shutting down a laser system in an intelligent and flexible manner. An intelligent laser interlock system includes both hardwired components, and intelligent components configured to execute computing instructions. The hardwired components and the intelligent components are configured to shutdown the laser system to one or more alternative shutdown states in response to one or more interlock signals. | 11-08-2012 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20160120697 | VITRECTOMY PROBE WITH A COUNTERBALANCED ELECTROMAGNETIC DRIVE - According to one example, an ophthalmic surgical probe for treating an eye of a patient includes a body arranged for grasping by a surgeon and a cutting element extending distally from the body. The cutting element includes a sleeve member and an inner member disposed within the sleeve member, the inner member being movable axially with respect to the sleeve member. The probe also includes an actuating element configured to reciprocally move the inner member relative to the sleeve member. The actuating element includes a first coil secured within the body, a first magnet operatively secured to the inner member, and a second magnet that is not secured to the inner member, the second magnet being positioned and arranged to move in an opposite direction of the first magnet upon application of a voltage to the first coil. | 05-05-2016 |
20160120699 | VITRECTOMY PROBE WITH AN OPTICAL FIBER SCANNER - A vitrectomy probe for treating an eye of a patient, the probe including a body arranged for grasping by a surgeon, and a photodisruption element extending from the body. The photodisruption element includes a needle having a main lumen extending from the body, the needle comprising a port at an end, a fiber cannula within the main lumen, the fiber cannula having a fiber lumen, and an optical fiber within the fiber lumen, the optical fiber being mechanically agitatable within the fiber lumen. | 05-05-2016 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20100166113 | RECEIVER STATE ESTIMATION IN A DUTY CYCLED RADIO - A method for receiver state estimation includes communicating, from a first communications device to a second communications device, a first plurality of wake-up frames; receiving, at the first communications device from the second communications device, an indication of a received wake-up frame of the communicated first plurality of wake-up frames; determining, by the first communications device, a time at which the second communications device is in a ready state based on the received indication; subsequently communicating, from the first communications device to the second communications device, a second plurality of wake-up frames. The first plurality is greater than the second plurality, the reduction in number from the first plurality to the second plurality being based on the determined time at which the second communications device is in a ready state. | 07-01-2010 |
20130070657 | RECEIVER STATE ESTIMATION IN A DUTY CYCLED RADIO - A method for receiver state estimation includes communicating, from a first communications device to a second communications device, a first plurality of wake-up frames; receiving, at the first communications device from the second communications device, an indication of a received wake-up frame of the communicated first plurality of wake-up frames; determining, by the first communications device, a time at which the second communications device is in a ready state based on the received indication; subsequently communicating, from the first communications device to the second communications device, a second plurality of wake-up frames. The first plurality is greater than the second plurality, the reduction in number from the first plurality to the second plurality being based on the determined time at which the second communications device is in a ready state. | 03-21-2013 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20160105764 | SELECTION OF LOCATION INFORMATION BASED ON DETECTED MOVEMENT - A tracking device can securely communicate with a secondary device by generating a hash value based on the identity of the tracking device. If the secondary device cannot resolve the hash value, the hash value can be provided to a tracking server, such as a cloud server, for resolving the hash value. Upon resolving the hash value, the tracking server can store a location of the tracking device in association with the identity of the tracking device. To preserve power, the secondary device can activate location-detection functionality (such as a GPS receive) only in response to the detection of movement of the tracking device, can obtain location information, and can de-activate the location-detection functionality upon providing the location information to the tracking server. The tracking server can associate one or both of a previous location and the current location information based on movement of the tracking device. | 04-14-2016 |
20160105765 | Power Preservation Through Motion-Activated Location Reporting - A tracking device can securely communicate with a secondary device by generating a hash value based on the identity of the tracking device. If the secondary device cannot resolve the hash value, the hash value can be provided to a tracking server, such as a cloud server, for resolving the hash value. Upon resolving the hash value, the tracking server can store a location of the tracking device in association with the identity of the tracking device. To preserve power, the secondary device can activate location-detection functionality (such as a GPS receive) only in response to the detection of movement of the tracking device, can obtain location information, and can de-activate the location-detection functionality upon providing the location information to the tracking server. The tracking server can associate one or both of a previous location and the current location information based on movement of the tracking device. | 04-14-2016 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110207440 | MOBILE DEVICE PROFILE AGGREGATION - Systems, methods, devices, and computer program products are described for generating an aggregated group profile of access terminal users in an identified geographic region (e.g., at an entertainment venue). A group profile request may be received for a set of mobile access terminal users in the identified geographic region. User profile information may be requested for each of the users. User profiles may be aggregated to generate an aggregated group profile. The aggregated group profile may be distributed (e.g., for use in selecting advertisements at an entertainment venue to reflect the users currently in attendance). | 08-25-2011 |
20120013475 | LOCATION DETERMINATION USING RADIO WAVE MEASUREMENTS AND PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS - A method and apparatus for determining a location of a wireless device using radio waves and pressure measurements is disclosed. In one embodiment, a plurality of Radio Signal Strength (RSS) measurements are used to trilaterate an approximate location of the wireless device. The wireless device also takes pressure measurements that are compared with a second pressure measurement made by at least one other pressure sensor at a known elevation and in a local area near the wireless device. This comparison is used to generate an accurate estimate of the elevation of the wireless device. The accurate estimate of elevation may be combined with the RSS measurements to yield an accurate estimate of the location of the wireless device. | 01-19-2012 |
20120015665 | SENSOR NODE POSITIONING FOR LOCATION DETERMINATION - Systems, methods, and devices are described for determining a physical location of a wireless device. A receiver may be configured to receive associations between anchor locations and sensor nodes, wherein each sensor node uses near field communications to identify an anchor location. The receiver may also receive signal strength measurements from the wireless device measuring the signal strength of wireless sensor nodes. Arrangements may also be configured to determine physical locations of the sensor nodes based on physical locations of anchor locations and utilize received signal strength measurements with the determined physical locations of the sensor nodes to determine the physical location of the wireless device. | 01-19-2012 |
20130070636 | TRACKING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A collaborative method for a node includes forming a local network with at least one other node using a lower power subsystem; selecting a master node from among the local network based on a first set of criteria; and communicating with a back end server over a wireless wide area network (WWAN) using a higher power subsystem. An apparatus may include a first subsystem for communicating with a local network; and a second subsystem having an active mode and an inactive mode, the second subsystem for communicating with a wireless wide area network (WWAN) when in the active mode, the apparatus selecting the active mode or inactive mode based on a set of criteria. | 03-21-2013 |
20130214989 | MULTI-PLANAR ANTENNA INSERT - Techniques for designing a sensor module that may be inserted into a container, for example, a box, for tracking RFID-labeled items enclosed in the container. In an exemplary embodiment, at least two planar surfaces are adjoined along a linear interface. Each of the planar surfaces supports a planar antenna whose radiation pattern may cover the volume of the container. A battery-powered tracking unit is attached to at least one of the planar surfaces to drive the planar antennas. In an exemplary embodiment, the planar antennas may be driven in succession to avoid collisions between the RFID communication signals, and for better RFID coverage of the items enclosed in the container. | 08-22-2013 |
20130265229 | CONTROL OF REMOTE DEVICE BASED ON GESTURES - Embodiments of the present invention are directed toward controlling electronic devices based on hand gestures detected by detecting the topography of a portion of a user's body. For example, pressure data indicative of a user's bone and tissue position corresponding to a certain movement, position, and/or pose of a user's hand may be detected. An electromyographic (EMG) sensor coupled to the user's skin can also be used to determine gestures made by the user. These sensors can be coupled to a camera that can be used to capture images, based on recognized gestures, of a device. The device can then be identified and controlled. | 10-10-2013 |
20140018111 | LOCALIZATION METHOD EMPLOYING RADIO SIGNAL STRENGTH MEASUREMENTS OF ELECTRIC AND GAS METERS - Systems, methods, and devices for determining the geospatial position/location of a mobile device by using transmissions from surrounding wireless utility meters and prior knowledge of the locations of the surrounding meters. A mobile device may receive transmissions from a plurality of wireless utility meters, and determine signal strengths and meter identifiers of each of the plurality of wireless utility meters from the received transmissions. The signal strengths and meter identifiers may be compared to data records stored in a wireless utility meter signal signature database to identify a best match data record, which may include geographic coordinates that may be used by the mobile device to determine its current geospatial position and/or location. | 01-16-2014 |
20140020081 | Portable Token Device - Disclosed is a portable token device that may be used to assist a user in generating a PIN at one device and to then pass the PIN to another device such that the two devices can securely communicate with one another. The portable token device may include: an interface; and a processor. The processor may execute operations including: determining if a close proximity coupling through the interface to a first device has occurred; transmitting a PIN request to the first device; and obtaining a PIN. Further, the processor may determine if a close proximity coupling through the interface to a second device has occurred. If so, the processor may command transmitting the PIN to the second device. The second device may perform device registration with the first device based upon the received PIN. | 01-16-2014 |
20140154649 | ASSOCIATING USER EMOTION WITH ELECTRONIC MEDIA - Systems, methods, devices, and apparatuses for associating a user emotion with electronic media are described. Contact between a user of a device and a biopotential electrode array that is integrated with the device is detected. Electrodermal data of the user is acquired via the biopotential electrode array. The user emotion is derived based at least in part on the acquired electrodermal data. The user emotion is then associated with the electronic media. | 06-05-2014 |
20140317722 | GRIP FORCE SENSOR ARRAY FOR ONE-HANDED AND MULTIMODAL INTERACTION ON HANDHELD DEVICES AND METHODS - Aspects of the disclosure relate to a handheld device equipped with arrays of force sensors located along both sides of the device that can provide a novel user interface for operating the device. The sensors can be configured to recognize various grip patterns, gestures, and biometric information of a user operating the device. Using the arrays of force sensors in addition to a touchscreen, a new paradigm for operating a handheld device is provided. | 10-23-2014 |
20150319687 | TRACKING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A collaborative method for a node includes forming a local network with at least one other node using a lower power subsystem; selecting a master node from among the local network based on a first set of criteria; and communicating with a back end server over a wireless wide area network (WWAN) using a higher power subsystem. An apparatus may include a first subsystem for communicating with a local network; and a second subsystem having an active mode and an inactive mode, the second subsystem for communicating with a wireless wide area network (WWAN) when in the active mode, the apparatus selecting the active mode or inactive mode based on a set of criteria. | 11-05-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20150213245 | DYNAMIC KEYBOARD AND TOUCHSCREEN BIOMETRICS - Embodiments of the present invention are directed toward providing ongoing authentication using biometric data. Fingerprints and/or other biometric data can be captured during the normal use of an electronic device, such as typing on a keyboard, and compared with associated reference biometrics to provide ongoing authentication to an application while the electronic device is being used. Comparison results may further be combined with additional physiological or behavioral biometrics to determine a level of authentication encompassing multiple biometric inputs and/or types. | 07-30-2015 |
20150245291 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR POWER EFFICIENT DOWNSTREAM COMMUNICATION IN SENSOR NETWORKS - Methods and apparatuses are described for asynchronous communications in a sensor network. An indication of a receiving opportunity can be transmitted by a sensor device. The sensor device can then provide the receiving opportunity based at least in part on transmitting the indication, and disable communication resources at the sensor device for a duration of a sleep time following the receiving opportunity. An upstream node can generate information for communicating to a sensor device, receive the indication of the receiving opportunity from the sensor device, and transmit the information to the sensor device during the receiving opportunity based at least in part on receiving the indication. | 08-27-2015 |
20150312113 | AllJoyn Messaging Anonymous Targets Based on Association - Various embodiments provide methods implemented by a requesting device and a responding device for collectively identifying one or more clusters of nearby computing devices by collaborating and sharing information. In various embodiments, the requesting device may send a distance threshold to responding devices, along with a request for grouping information about computing devices that are within the distance threshold of the responding devices. In response to receiving the request and distance threshold, each responding device may identify a number of other computing devices that are within the distance threshold and may send such information to the requesting device. The requesting device may identify one or more clusters of computing devices based on the received grouping information. By configuring responding devices to detect other computing devices within a modifiable distance threshold, the requesting device may dynamically adjust the size of identified clusters of computing devices. | 10-29-2015 |
20160127460 | MULTI-HOP WIRELESS PEER-TO-PEER DISCOVERY PROTOCOL - A method is disclosed for discovering communication devices. The method includes broadcasting, with a first communication device, a message that can be detected by one-hop neighbors. The first communication device listens for data indicating that it has at least one two-hop neighbor, and constructs and stores a list of its one-hop and two-hop neighbors. In addition, the method may also include selecting a subset of the set of one-hop neighbors such that all of the two-hop neighbors of the first communication device can be reached by the first communication device through the subset of one-hop neighbors. Then the selected subset is stored on a list on the first communication device. Next, the first communication device broadcasts to one-hop neighbors in the selected subset, the data indicating that a one-hop neighbor is part of the selected subset. The method also allows the discovery of multi-hop neighbors by utilizing the selected subset. | 05-05-2016 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20100008503 | Secure Terminal Data Loader Apparatus and Method for a Mobile Platform - A terminal data loading device on a mobile platform includes a media unit for receiving a transportable media element containing media data and outputting a media signal to a control processor unit. The control processor unit outputs an information signal to a wireline communication unit. The wireline communication unit outputs a wireline signal to a network on the mobile platform. | 01-14-2010 |
20100138581 | Universal Docking System - A docking system is presented for an ecosystem where multiple media players provide functionality according to the location of corresponding docking stations. The docking stations have locally encoded media player persona information that depends on the location where the docking station is installed. Once a media player is docked with the docking station, the media player obtains the persona information and configures itself to provide the functionality required for the location. The media player can restrict content as necessary based on the obtained persona information. Other features also can be incorporated within the docking station and media player assemblies to provide for proper airflow, isolation from vibration, or installation by unskilled individuals. A preferred ecosystem employing the disclosed techniques includes an aircraft in-flight entertainment system. | 06-03-2010 |
20100138582 | ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM WITH LOOPED DAISY-CHAINED NETWORK OF DOCKING STATIONS - An entertainment system comprising a media server networked with a plurality of docking stations is presented. The media server and docking stations can be networked together into a looped daisy-chained network to provide for content distribution to docked media players. The looped daisy-chained network retains connectivity or continuity when media players are undocked or when a connection is broken. In preferred embodiments, the entertainment system can be deployed within an aircraft as an in-flight entertainment system. | 06-03-2010 |
20100138879 | Entertainment Systems Utilizing Field Replaceable Storage Units - Vehicular entertainment systems where devices in the systems can each utilize a common type of storage units are presented. A vehicular entertainment system can include a media server head unit in communication over a network with a plurality of media players that are installed about the cabin of a vehicle. Media content can be stored on a plurality of field replaceable storage units where each of the storage units can be installed in any one of the players or the server. Each of the storage units can store a substantially identical content set including passenger content, player content, server content, crew content, or other types of content. The server or players can be restricted from accessing content to which they lack rights, possibly based on a location identifier that indicates roles or responsibilities of the players at their installed location. | 06-03-2010 |
20120116615 | Secure Terminal Data Loader Apparatus and Method for a Mobile Platform - A terminal data loading device on a mobile platform includes a media unit for receiving a transportable media element containing media data and outputting a media signal to a control processor unit. The control processor unit outputs an information signal to a wireline communication unit. The wireline communication unit outputs a wireline signal to a network on the mobile platform. | 05-10-2012 |
20120167148 | Shared Content Storage - Entertainment systems for aircraft and other vehicles are described having a plurality of media players. The media players collectively store a full content set, with each media player storing only a fraction of the full content set. Each of the media players can be configured to index the full content set, such that media players can obtain missing content from other media players. | 06-28-2012 |
20130318272 | Entertainment System with Network of Docking Stations - An entertainment system comprising a media server networked with a plurality of docking stations is presented. The media server and docking stations can be networked together into a looped daisy-chained network to provide for content distribution to docked media players. The looped daisy-chained network retains connectivity or continuity when media players are undocked or when a connection is broken. In preferred embodiments, the entertainment system can be deployed within an aircraft as an in-flight entertainment system. | 11-28-2013 |
20140059184 | Entertainment Systems Utilizing Field Replaceable Storage Units - Vehicular entertainment systems where devices in the systems can each utilize a common type of storage units are presented. A vehicular entertainment system can include a media server head unit in communication over a network with a plurality of media players that are installed about the cabin of a vehicle. Media content can be stored on a plurality of field replaceable storage units where each of the storage units can be installed in any one of the players or the server. Each of the storage units can store a substantially identical content set including passenger content, player content, server content, crew content, or other types of content. The server or players can be restricted from accessing content to which they lack rights, possibly based on a location identifier that indicates roles or responsibilities of the players at their installed location. | 02-27-2014 |
20160088318 | Shared Content Storage - Entertainment systems for aircraft and other vehicles are described having a plurality of media players. The media players collectively store a full content set, with each media player storing only a fraction of the full content set. Each of the media players can be configured to index the full content set, such that media players can obtain missing content | 03-24-2016 |