International Business Machines Corporation

Perwaiz Nihal

Robert Alan Flavin

Norbert George Vogl

Geoffrey Hale Purdy

Edward Payson Clarke, Jr

Scott L Jacobs

Burhan Ozmat

Henri D Schnurmann

Arthur R Zingher

Ronald Perez

Gene J Gaudenzi

John M Aitken

Sean William Smith

Billy L Crowder

Maurice T McMahon

Thompson B Vesecky

Shahzad Akbar

Luis Rodriguez-Cortes

Asif Iqbal

The invention is a broadband network monitoring system and method. The system has one or more RF carrier generators that generate one or more generator signals, called a reference signal, each of the generator signals having a generator signal frequency. One or more RF transient detectors sense a line signal on one or more broadband lines in the broadband network. Each line signal has one or more test signals applied by a remote RF carrier generator. Each test signal has a frequency equal to one of the reference signals. Each RF transient detector senses and compares the test signal and the reference signal in various ways to produce a transient indicator when the test signal and reference/generator signal are not the same. The transient indicator indicates that there may be a perturbation or some other problem in the respective broadband line. A controller is connected to each of the RF transient detectors and controls an RF switch and an analyzer. The RF switch has two or more inputs connected to each respective RF detector and one output connected to the analyzer. When the controller receives a transient indicator, it controls the switch to connect the broadband line producing the transient indicator to the analyzer and, in a preferred embodiment, starts the analyzer. In this way, all of the broadband lines can be monitored and analyzed for perturbations using a single analyzer.

Selecting and monitoring signal lines with spurious transients in broadband network

A computer watchdog system monitors and controls distribution content sent form producers, through distributors, to subscribers. The computer watchdog system acting to ensure the just execution of agreements between a producer of content and a distributor of content. The computer watchdog system serving as an agent trusted by both producers and distributors. The computer watchdog system may be equipped with tamper protection for resisting exogenous attempts to gain unauthorized access to the system. The computer watchdog system may be installed entirely within distributor's sites. Alternatively, the computer watchdog system may reside partially within distributor's sites and partially within subscriber's sites. The computer watchdog system logs and reports on information relating to the distribution of content. Further, the computer watchdog system may selectively transform content provided by a producer, customizing the content for distributors and subscribers.

Watchdog for trusted electronic content distributions

This invention is a broadband matrix switch system and method of operation. The broadband matrix switch has N number of broadband inputs, each of the broadband inputs having one or more broadband signals. The matrix switch has M number of broadband outputs. There are N number of splitters. Each of the splitters has a splitter input connected to one of the broadband inputs. Each of the splitters has M number of splitter outputs that produce the splitter output signal. There are N times M number of node switches. Each node switch is uniquely connected to one of the splitter outputs. The node switches have a control input that allows the node switch to pass the respective splitter output signal upon receiving a close command at the control input and to terminate the respective splitter output signal with an input impedance upon receiving an open command at the control input. There are M number of combiners. Each combiner has a combiner output connected to one of the broadband outputs. Each combiner further having N number of combiner inputs. Each of the combiner inputs are connected to one and only one of the inputs through the respective splitter and node switch. The node switches terminate the combiner input with an output impedance upon receiving an open command. The matrix switch further has a controller that sends one or more open commands to selected node switches to connect one or more of the broadband inputs to one or more of the broadband outputs. The matrix switch has many uses in switching and monitoring and analyzing broadband networks, for example, cable TV networks.

Broadband any point to any point switch matrix

One or more novel switch controllers are used in a network of network devices to connect and disconnect to one another. The switch can be any general purpose computer that has one or more communication links that connect one or more outputs of the computer to one or more of the network devices. In the computer, the network is represented by a directed graph that has two or more nodes and one or more directional edges connecting one or more pairs of the nodes. Each node in the pair represents a device that is connected/disconnected (represented by the edge of the directed graph.) One or more commands are associated with each edge that is used to connect the network devices represented by the nodes that the edge connects. When connecting the connected source to the connected sink, the computer executes a routing process that searches the directed graph to find the nodes associated with both the connected source and the connected sink and a path between the connected source and the connected sink through the directed graph (network). The computer executes a connection process that traverses the path and performs each command associated with each of the edges along the path so that the network devices operate to form a connection between the connected source and the connected sink along the path.

System and method for dynamic video routing

One or more servers and/or control functions that are connected to a network. One or more service providers provide information having content to the servers. The server/control function executes a process which parses the information content sent from the service provider onto two or more channels and then broadcasts those channels over the network to a plurality of client computers. The server process examines the information packets sent from the service provider to determine zero or more of the categories that describe a content of the information packet and labels the information packets with the channel identifier associated with the respective categories prior to sending the information packets over the network. The server can also run processes and broadcast commands to the clients that associate/disassociate channel identifiers with categories.

System for parsing multimedia data into separate channels by network

A filter adaptor connects a computer to a network through a network connection. The network has a large plurality of broadcast type messages having a given protocol. Each of the broadcast messages has a destination field and a source field. The adaptor has a preference list of one or more fixed channels that the computer is capable of receiving. Each fixed channel has a channel identifier that is also listed in the preference list. Further, the filter adapter has a filtering process that monitors the source field and discards any message that does not have a source identifier in the source field that matches one of the channel identifiers on the preference list.

System for filtering broadcast digital information in accordance with

The present invention is a switching system for a broadband network operating above five megahertz. The system connects to a first and second network through appropriate network connections. There are four components in the switching network. A first component with a first common connection, a first A branch, and a first B branch, the first common connection is connected to the first network terminal. A second component has a second common connector and a second A and B branch. The second common connector is connected to the second network terminal. The third component has a third A and B branch and one third common connector. The third A branch is connected to the first A branch. The third B branch is connected to the second B branch. The third common connector is connected to a first device terminal of a device. The fourth component has a fourth A and B branch and a fourth common connector. The fourth B branch is connected to the second B branch. The fourth common connector is connected to a second device terminal of the device. The fourth A branch is connected to the first A branch. One or more of the first, second, third and fourth components is chosen to be a switch or splitter and configured to change the flow of electromagnetic power through the first and second terminals of the device and the first and second network terminals.

Controlling the direction of broadband energy flow through components in

A method of fabricating a micro-coaxial wiring structure comprises forming a first insulation layer and patterning a trench therein. A first conductive layer is formed on the first insulation layer and having a shape conforming to the insulation layer and lining the trench. A second insulation layer is formed on the first conductive layer within the trench and having a shape conforming to the first conductive layer lining the trench. A conductive signal line having a predetermined aspect ratio for providing a desired value of resistance per unit length is formed on the second insulation layer within the trench. A third insulation layer is then formed. Lastly, a conductive shielding line is formed upon the third insulation layer, the conductive shielding line being aligned with the conductive signal line.

Method of Fabricating a micro-coaxial wiring structure

A low cost Surface Mount Carrier (SMC) for carrying integrated circuit chips mounted thereon. The carrier, or interposer, is a thin-small single layer or, a multi-layer deck of printed circuit board (FR-4) material with at least one direct chip attach (DCA) site for mounting a semiconductor chip. The DCA site has chip bonding pads wherein the integrated circuit chip's pads are wire bonded to or soldered to the carrier. The bonding pads are connected to wiring pads through interlevel vias and wiring lands or traces which may be on one of several wiring planes. The carrier is connected to the next level of packaging through the wiring pads.

Direct chip attach module (DCAM)

An integrated circuit chip packaging structure, preferably having a semiconductor base substrate, i.e., silicon or gallium arsenide, alternating insulation and conductive layers on the base structure, at least two conductive layers being patterned into thin film wiring (i.e., thin film copper of approximately 5 microns), semiconductor integrated circuit chips connected to the upper-most patterned conductive layer, and means to connected the packaging structure to the next level of packaging (i.e., board or card). The thin film wiring layers typically each having coplanar ground, power and signal lines, with at least one power or ground line existing between coplanar signal lines to minimize cross talk. To facilitate efficient power distribution, lines of specific power levels of the patterned planes are connected to lines of the same power level on other patterned planes to form three dimensional power planes. To reduce package capacitance and keep the RC constant low, a personalized reference plane is incorporated. The personalized plane has insulating regions extending at least partially through the plane at predetermined locations that coincide with long signal lines on the wiring layers. The combined package provides a packaging alternative that has excellent electrical performance (i.e., speed, low RC constant, efficient power distribution), high density and thermal expansion matching between the underlying semiconductor structure and semiconductor chips mounted on the package. A high yield process for manufacturing the package is also disclosed.

Module for packaging semiconductor integrated circuit chips on a base

A self-contained method and structure for partitioning, testing and diagnosing a multi-chip packaging structure. The method comprises the steps of electronically inhibiting all chips in the multi-chip package except for the chip or chips under test, creating a signature of the chip or chips under test by generating and applying random patterns to the chip or chips under test (referred to as the unit under test) and comparing the signature obtained to a 'good machine' simulation signature. The structure comprises means for accomplishing the above method steps. A preferred structure comprises an semiconductor substrate having redundant self test circuitry built in and chips having ECIPT circuitry mounted on the semiconductor substrate. Either all or a portion of the self test circuitry, including the required multiplexers, etc., may be incorporated into the semiconductor substrate. ECIPT circuitry may also be built into the substrate below each chip site. The combination of partitioning along chip boundaries, simple and inexpensive testing without external testers or mainframe computers, and enhanced diagnostics are made possible by the present invention.

Method of partitioning, testing and diagnosing a VLSI multichip package

A high speed, high performance integrated circuit packaging structure that may be used for emulating wafer scale integration structures. The preferred embodiment comprises an interposer having a base substrate having alternating insulation and conductive layers thereon, wherein a plurality of the conductive layers are wiring means which are adapted for maintaining an extremely low noise level in the package. The low noise level and low resistance and capacitance of the wiring means allows a plurality of discrete semiconductor segments to be mounted on and interconnected by the integrated circuit package with a significantly reduced number of drivers and receivers than required by Rent's Rule. Each integrated circuit structure of the present invention emulates a large chip or wafer scale integration structure in performance without having to yield the large chip or wafer, and without redundancy schemes. A plurality of these integrated circuit packaging structures are combined by decals to form a central processing unit of a computer or a portion thereof. In an alternate preferred embodiment, the base substrate of the interposer is made of silicon and any required drivers are formed therein, thus substantially eliminating the need for any drivers on each of the discrete semiconductor segments.

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Fishkill, NY, United States of America

Perwaiz Nihal