1. A magnetoelastic torque sensor for providing an output signal indicative of the torque applied to a member, comprising:
a first magnetoelastically active region in said member, said region being ferromagnetic and magnetostrictive, magnetically polarized in a single circumferential direction and possessing sufficient magnetic anisotropy to return the magnetization in said region to said single circumferential direction when the applied torque is reduced to zero, whereby said magnetoelastically active region produces a magnetic field varying with said torque;
magnetic field sensor means mounted proximate to said ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region for sensing a characteristic of the magnetic field at said sensor means which is indicative of said applied torque and providing said output signal in response thereto;
whereby the field arising from said magnetoelastically active region does not magnetize regions of said member proximate to said magnetoelastically active region to give rise to parasitic magnetic fields which are of sufficient strength to destroy the usefulness, for torque sensing purposes, of the net magnetic field seen by said magnetic field sensor means.
2. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, including at least one additional axially distinct, circumferential magnetoelastically active region which is magnetically contiguous with said first region, each additional region being ferromagnetic and magnetostrictive, polarized in a circumferential direction opposite to the polarization direction of magnetically contiguous magnetoelastically active regions and possessing sufficient magnetic anisotropy to return the magnetization in said additional region to its single circumferential direction when the applied torque is reduced to zero.
3. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said member is formed of a polycrystalline material having cubic symmetry.
4. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 3, wherein said member is formed of a material selected from the group consisting of martensitic stainless steels, precipitation hardening stainless steels containing chromium and nickel, quenched and tempered alloy steels, tool steels, high nickel content maraging steels, ductile permanent magnet materials, magnet steels, Permendur, Alfer, Kovar, Hard Drawn Nickel and Hard Drawn Permalloy.
5. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said magnetic anisotropy is primarily microcrystalline anisotropy.
6. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said member is an elongated shaft having an axially extending enlarged diameter portion intermediate its ends and said magnetoelastically active region is formed on said enlarged diameter portion.
7. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said member is an elongated shaft having an axially extending reduced diameter portion intermediate its end portions and said magnetically active region is formed on said reduced diameter portion.
8. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 7, wherein said reduced diameter portion is a separate shaft which is rigidly attached to the larger diameter end portions.
9. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coercivity of said member is greater than 15 Oe.
10. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coercivity of said member is greater than 20 Oe.
11. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coercivity of said member is greater than 35 Oe.
12. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said magnetic field sensor means comprises a solid state sensor.
13. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said magnetic field sensor means comprises a flux gate magnetometer.
14. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said magnetic field sensor means is mounted and oriented with respect to said ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region to sense the magnitude and polarity of said magnetic field.
15. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 14, wherein said sensor means is positioned proximate an end of said region.
16. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 14, wherein said sensor means comprises at least two sensors, at least one sensor being positioned proximate each end of said region.
17. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said maagnetoelastically active region has, in the absence of torque applied to said member, a circumferential magnetic orientation having no net magnetization component in the axial direction.
18. A magnetoelastic torque sensor, as claimed in claim 17, wherein said magnetoelastically active region has, when torque is applied to said member, a helical magnetic orientation having both circumferential and axial components, said magnetic field sensor means being positioned and oriented for sensing the magnetic field arising from said axial components of magnetization.
19. A method of sensing a torque applied to a torqued member extending in an axial direction, comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a first magnetoelastically active region in said member, said region being ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive, magnetically polarized in a single circumferential direction and possessing sufficient magnetic anisotropy to return the magnetization in said region to said single cirumferential direction when the applied torque is reduced to zero, whereby the field arising from said ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region does not magnetize regions of said member proximate to said magnetoelastically active region to give rise to parasitic magnetic fields which are of sufficient strength to destroy the usefulness, for torque sensing purposes, of the net magnetic field seen by said magnetic field sensing means;
(b) producing a magnetic field as a consequence of the application of torque to said member; and
(c) sensing a characteristic of the magnetic field at a position proximate to said magnetoelastically active region which is indicative of the torque applied to said member.
20. A method, as claimed in claim 19, wherein the application of torque to said member causes said magnetoelastically active region to have a helical magnetic orientation with both circumferential and axial magnetization components and said sensing step comprises sensing the magnetic field arising from said axial components of said magnetization.
21. A method, as claimed in claim 19, including the step of providing at least one additional axially distinct, circumferential magnetoelastically active region which is magnetically contiguous with said first region, each additional region being ferromagnetic and magnetostrictive, polarized in a circumferential direction which is opposite from the polarization direction of magnetically contiguous magnetoelastically active regions and possessing sufficient magnetic anisotropy to return the magnetization in said additional region to its single circumferential direction when the applied torque is reduced to zero.
22. A method, as claimed in claim 19, wherein said member is formed of a polycrystalline material having cubic symmetry.
23. A method, as claimed in claim 19, wherein the coercivity of said member is greater than 15.
24. A method of producing a magnetoelastic torque transducer from a member to which an axial torque is applied for producing a magnetic field varying with said torque, the magnitude of said magnetic field being sensed by magnetic field sensors for providing an output signal indicative of the applied torque, comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive member having a first ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region in said member; and
(b) polarizing a finite axial extent of said region in a magnetizing field in a single circumferential direction, said region possessing sufficient magnetic anisotropy to return the magnetization in said region to said single circumferential direction when the applied torque is reduced to zero;
(c) whereby the field arising from said first ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region does not magnetize regions of said member proximate to said ferromagnetic, magnetostrictive region to give rise to parasitic magnetic fields which are of sufficient strength to destroy the usefulness, for torque sensing purposes, of the net magnetic field seen by said magnetic field sensors.
25. A method, as claimed in claim 24, wherein said member has a longitudinal axis and said magnetic polarization is achieved by rotating said transducer thereabout while being subjected to the magnetizing field near two opposite magnetic poles.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. A method for managing telephone services provided through a HFC network platform having at least a video display device and a telephone device, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) detecting an off-hook state of a telephone device at a network element located at or substantially near a subscriber’s residence;
(b) receiving at said network element a set of digits from the telephone device;
(c) determining a service requested by the subscriber based on the received set of digits; and
(d) controlling the display on the video display device in association with the information associated with the requested service.
2. The method described in claim 1 further comprising the step of:
(e) muting the audio of the video display device during an off-hook state.
3. The method described in claim 1 wherein the requested service is a telephone call.
4. The method described in claim 1 wherein the requested service is a retrieval of call logs.
5. The method described in claim 1 wherein the requested service is a directory service.
6. The method described in claim 1 wherein the information displayed on the video display device is a telephone listing.
7. The method described in claim 1 wherein the information displayed on the video display device is a call progress status.
8. The method described in claim 1 wherein the information displayed on the video display device is a call state.
9. The method described in claim 1 wherein the information displayed on the video display device is a list of callers.
10. The method of claim 1 wherein the network element is a communication gateway.
11. The method of claim 1 wherein the network element is a set-top box.
12. A method for synchronizing the delivery of video and telephone services through an HFC platform having a video display device and a telephone device, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) receiving a control signal indicating an incoming telephone call to a subscriber at a network element located substantially near the subscriber’s residence and at a time when a video program is being delivered to said subscriber’s residence through the video display device; and
(b) selectively interrupting the delivery of the video program to the video display device when the telephone call in answered.
13. The method of claim 12 further comprising the step of:
(c) resuming the delivery of the video program when the telephone call ends.
14. The method of claim 12 wherein the interruption of step (b) is performed by recording the video program into a video recording device.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein the video recording device stores the video program in a segmented buffer.
16. The method of claim 12 wherein the interruption of step (b) is performed by pausing the video program.
17. A method for synchronizing the delivery of video and telephone services through an HFC telephony service platform having a video display device and a telephone device, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) receiving a control signal indicating an incoming telephone call to a subscriber at a network element located at or substantially near the subscriber’s residence and at a time when a video program is being delivered to said subscriber’s residence through the video display device; and
(b) displaying on the video display device a menu option providing an opportunity for the subscriber to synchronize the simultaneous reception of the video program and the telephone call.
18. The method of claim 17 wherein the synchronization of step (b) is performed by recording the video program into a video recording device while the telephone call is in progress.
19. The method of claim 18 wherein the video recording device stores the video program into a segmented buffer.
20. The method of claim 17 wherein the synchronization of step (b) is performed by pausing the video program when the telephone call is answered.
21. The method of claim 17 wherein the synchronization of step (b) is performed by muting the audio of the video program when the telephone call is answered.
22. A system for managing video and telephone services through an HFC platform having a telephone device and video display device, the system comprising service manager coupled to said telephone device and said video display device whereby the service manager
(i) detects an off-hook state of the telephone device;
(ii) receives digits from the telephone device;
(iii) determines the requested service by a subscriber based on said digits; and
(iv) controls the display on the video display device of information associated with the requested service.
23. The system of claim 22 wherein the service manager is part of a set-top box.
24. The system of claim 22 wherein the service manager is part of a communication gateway.
25. A system for synchronizing the delivery of video and telephone services through an HFC telephony service platform having a telephone device and a video display device, the system comprising:
(a) a service synchronization module coupled to both the video display device and the video display device for temporarily interrupting a delivery of a video program to said video display device when a telephone call is answered.
26. The system of claim 25 wherein the service synchronization module further resumes the delivery of the video program after the telephone call is terminated.
27. The system of claim 25 wherein the service synchronization module is part of a set-top box.
28. The system of claim 25 wherein the service synchronization module is part of a communications gateway.
29. The system of claim 25 wherein the service synchronization module interrupts the video program delivery by recording the video program into a video recording device.
30. The system of claim 29 wherein the video recording device stores the video program in a segmented buffer.
31. The system of claim 25 wherein the service synchronization module interrupts the video program delivery by pausing the video program.