| Patent application number | Description | Published |
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| 20110048316 | High-Temperature Process Improvements Using Helium Under Regulated Pressure - A method for minimizing unwanted ancillary reactions in a vacuum furnace used to process a material, such as growing a crystal. The process is conducted in a furnace chamber environment in which helium is admitted to the furnace chamber at a flow rate to flush out impurities and at a predetermined pressure to achieve thermal stability in a heat zone, to minimize heat flow variations and to minimize temperature gradients in the heat zone. During cooldown helium pressure is used to reduce thermal gradients in order to increase cooldown rates. | 03-03-2011 |
| 20110146566 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CRYSTAL GROWING - To reduce the heat input to the bottom of the crucible and to control heat extraction independently of heat input, a shield can be raised between a heating element and a crucible at a controlled speed as the crystal grows. Other steps could include moving the crucible, but this process can avoid having to move the crucible. A temperature gradient is produced by shielding only a portion of the heating element; for example, the bottom portion of a cylindrical element can be shielded to cause heat transfer to be less in the bottom of the crucible than at the top, thereby causing a stabilizing temperature gradient in the crucible. | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110217225 | Method and Apparatus for Refining Metallurgical Grade Silicon to Produce Solar Grade Silicon - A method and apparatus for refining metallurgical silicon to produce solar grade silicon for use in photovoltaic cells. A crucible in a vacuum furnace receives a mixture of metallurgical silicon and a reducing agent such as calcium disilicide. The mix is melted in non-oxidizing conditions within the furnace under an argon partial pressure. After melting, the argon partial pressure is decreased to produce boiling and the process ends with directional solidification. The process reduces impurities, such as phosphorus, to a level compatible with solar-grade silicon and reduces other impurities significantly. | 09-08-2011 |
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| 20080209489 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRANSMITTING DIGITAL CONTENT USING CABLE MODEM TERMINATION SYSTEM (CMTS) BYPASS ARCHITECTURE - A method and system for transmitting digital content, such as Internet Protocol television (IPTV) content, to a downstream modulator, such as an Edge Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (EQAM) modulator, within a cable system that includes a Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS), such as a modular CMTS (M-CMTS). Content is transmitted from a content source to the EQAM, via one or more networks, such as a regional area network and a converged interconnect network (CIN), in a manner that bypasses the M-CMTS. Conventionally, downstream IPTV content travels from the content source to the CIN, to the M-CMTS, back through the CIN and to the EQAM. By tunneling IPTV content directly to the downstream modulator, fewer M-CMTS components and less CIN switching bandwidth are involved than in conventional methods and systems. The cost savings associated with bypassing expensive CMTS components allows IPTV content delivery at costs comparable to conventional content transmission methods. | 08-28-2008 |
| 20090310480 | APPARATUS, METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING SESSION ENCAPSULATION INFORMATION WITHIN AN INTERNET PROTOCOL CONTENT BYPASS ARCHITECTURE - An apparatus, method and system for delivering Internet Protocol (IP) content within a system that includes a bypass architecture, using a Session Encapsulation Information Database (SEIDB). Within an existing PacketCable Multimedia (PCMM) framework used as a control plane for IP content bypass flow setup, the SEIDB system stores session bypass encapsulation information for IP content bypass flows within the system. Within the SEIDB, each entry of bypass encapsulation information has a flow classifier component that uniquely identifies a bypass flow in a manner that allows both a cable modem termination system (CMTS) and the IP content source to uniquely identify the bypass flow at the SEIDB. Initially, the CMTS gathers bypass encapsulation information and uploads it to the SEIDB. Before the bypass flow begins, the IP content source obtains the necessary bypass encapsulation information from the SEIDB, e.g., using a flow classifier as a search filter item. | 12-17-2009 |
| 20090310596 | APPARATUS, METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING BYPASS ENCAPSULATION OF INTERNET CONTENT WITHIN A BYPASS ARCHITECTURE - An apparatus, method and system for delivering Internet content within a system that includes a bypass architecture, such as a bypass architecture that transmits content from the Internet or an Internet content source to a downstream modulator, such as an Edge Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (EQAM) modulator, in a manner that bypasses the system's Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS). Content from the Internet or an Internet source is transmitted to a last-hop router, which is configured to identify content for bypass encapsulation. The last-hop router also can be configured to perform at least a portion of the necessary bypass encapsulation for proper bypass flows of the identified content. Alternatively, the EQAM is configured to perform the bypass encapsulation, and the last-hop router transmits the identified content to the EQAM, which performs at least a portion of the necessary bypass encapsulation on the identified content. | 12-17-2009 |
| 20100083329 | APPARATUS, METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR SELECTING AND CONFIGURING INTERNET CONTENT FOR BYPASS ENCAPSULATION WITHIN A BYPASS ARCHITECTURE - An apparatus, method and system for delivering Internet content within a system that includes an encapsulation database and a last-hop router as part of a bypass architecture, such as a bypass architecture that transmits IP content from a source to a downstream modulator, such as an EQAM modulator, in a manner that bypasses the system's Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS). The encapsulation database, which typically is controlled by the MSO, but also is in operable communication with the last-hop router and CMTS, is configured to store encapsulation identification information, which is used to identify which portions of the IP content receive bypass encapsulation. The encapsulation database also can include the QoS settings for such identified portions of IP content. The encapsulation database allows the MSO to provide QoS settings for select portions of IP content, such as videos from internet video providers with whom the MSO has made special arrangements. | 04-01-2010 |
