1. An implantable sensor assembly, comprising:
a first sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the first surface having an electric circuit and the second surface having at least one electrode;
a second sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the first surface having an electric circuit and the second surface having at least one electrode, the first surface of the second sensor being aligned with and directly opposing the first surface of the first sensor such that the second surfaces of the first and second sensors face out from the sensor assembly.
2. The implantable sensor assembly recited in claim 1, wherein the electrodes convert a sensed parameter to a detectable signal.
3. The sensor assembly recited in claim 2, wherein the electric circuits comprises circuits for processing the detectable signal.
4. The implantable sensor assembly recited in claim 1, wherein current flowing through the electrodes electrochemically reacts with at least one substance in proximity to exposed surface areas of the electrodes.
5. The implantable sensor assembly recited in claim 4, wherein the at least one substance is oxygen.
6. The sensor assembly recited in claim 1, wherein the electrodes apply an electrical pulse to a substance in contact with the electrodes.
7. The sensor assembly recited in claim 6, wherein the substance is living tissue.
8. The sensor assembly recited in claim 1, wherein the electric circuit of the first sensor is connected to the at least one electrode of the first sensor through the first sensor, and the electric circuit of the second sensor is connect to the at least one electrode of the second sensor through the second sensor.
9. The sensor assembly recited in claim 1, further comprising an outer casing enclosing the first and second sensors, the outer casing having at least one window pocket formed therein in proximity to an exposed surface area of the second surface of the first sensor.
10. A sensor assembly, comprising:
a first substrate sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the second surface having at least one electrode for converting a sensed parameter to a detectable signal, and the first surface having an electric circuit for processing said detectable signal;
a second substrate sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the second surface having at least one electrode for converting a sensed parameter to a detectable signal, and the first surface having an electric circuit for processing said detectable signal; and,
at least a portion of the first surface of the second substrate sensor being directly opposed to at least a portion of the first surface of the first substrate sensor such that the second surfaces of the first and second substrate sensors face out from the sensor assembly in substantially opposite directions.
11. The sensor assembly recited in claim 10, wherein current flowing through the electrodes electrochemically reacts with at least one substance in proximity to the electrodes.
12. The sensor assembly recited in claim 11, wherein the at least one substance is oxygen.
13. The sensor assembly recited in claim 10, wherein the first substrate sensor is fixed stationary relative to the second substrate sensor.
14. The sensor assembly recited in claim 10, further comprising an outer casing enclosing the first and second substrate sensors, the outer casing having at least one window pocket formed therein in proximity to an exposed surface area of the electrode surface of the first substrate sensor.
15. A sensor assembly, comprising:
a first substrate sensor having an electrode surface and a circuit surface facing in different directions, said circuit surface comprising an electric circuit on a semiconductor substrate;
a second substrate sensor having an electrode surface and a circuit surface facing in different directions, said circuit surface comprising an electric circuit on a semiconductor substrate; and,
at least a portion of the circuit surface of the second substrate sensor facing at least a portion of the circuit surface of the first substrate sensor such that the electrode surfaces of the first and second substrate sensors face out from the sensor assembly in substantially opposite directions.
16. The sensor assembly recited in claim 15, wherein the electrode surfaces include electrodes for converting a sensed parameter to a detectable signal.
17. The sensor assembly recited in claim 15, wherein current flowing through the electrodes electrochemically reacts with at least one substance in proximity to the electrodes.
18. The sensor assembly recited in claim 17, wherein the at least one substance is oxygen.
19. The sensor assembly recited in claim 15, wherein the electrodes apply an electrical pulse to a substance in contact with the electrodes.
20. The sensor assembly recited in claim 19, wherein the substance is living tissue.
21. The sensor assembly recited in claim 15, further including an outer casing enclosing the first and second substrate sensors, the outer casing having at least one window pocket formed therein in proximity to an exposed surface area of the electrode surface of the first substrate sensor.
22. The sensor assembly recited in claim 21, further including at least one additional window pocket formed in the outer casing in proximity to an exposed surface area of the electrode surface of the second substrate sensor.
23. The sensor assembly of claim 21, wherein the outer casing is a membrane.
24. An implantable sensor lead comprising:
a proximal end connected to a controller;
a distal end; and
at least one sensor assembly within the sensor lead controlled by the controller, the at least one sensor assembly including:
a first substrate sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the first surface having an electric circuit and the second surface having at least one electrode;
a second substrate sensor having a first surface and a second surface facing different directions, the first surface having an electric circuit and the second surface having at least one electrode; and,
at least a portion of the first surface of the second substrate sensor being opposed to at least a portion of the first surface of the first substrate sensor such that the second surfaces of the first and second substrate sensors face out from the sensor assembly in substantially opposite directions.
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 transmitting a data frame, comprising:
detecting whether or not a collision of a plurality of received data frames occurs;
determining a priority of thedata frames colliding with each other;
calculating a backoff time according to the priority; and
transmitting the data frames colliding with each other, the data frames being transmitted based on the calculated backoff time.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating the backoff time includes calculating the backoff time based on at least one priority of the data frame and a number of collisions of the data frame.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the backoff time is given by an expression:
Backoff timer512 (bit number),
wherein r is determined by the number of collisions and the priority of the data frame.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein
r is a priority number of the data frame, the priority number increasing as the priority decreases, if the number of collisions of the data frame is 1.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein thecolliding data frames each have a different priority number.
6. The method of claim 3, wherein r has a random value, if the number of collisions of the data frame equals 2.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the data frames colliding with each other have the same priority number.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein r is greater than or equal to 0, and less than or equal to 4.
9. The method of claim 3, wherein, if the number of collisions of the data frame is equal to or exceeds 3,
r is in a range from 0 to 2k,
k is equal to 3 if the priority number of the data frame is less than or equal to 3,
k equals the priority number of the data frame if the priority number of the data frame is greater than or equal to 4 and less than or equal to 9,
k equals 10 if the priority number of the data frame is greater than 9, and
a priority number of 1 represents a highest priority of the data frame, the priority number increasing as the priority of the data frame decreases.
10. An apparatus for transmitting a data frame, comprising:
means for detecting whether or not a collision of a plurality of received data frames has occurred;
means for determining a priority of the data frames colliding with each other;
means for calculating backoff time according to the priority for each data frame; and
means for transmitting the colliding data frames based on the calculated backoff time.
11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the means for calculating a backoff time calculates the backoff time based on at least one priority of the data frame and a number of collisions of the data frame.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the backoff time is given by an expression:
Backoff timer512(bit number),
wherein r is determined based on the number of collisions and the priority of the data frame.
13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein r is a priority number of the data frame and the priority number increases as the priority of the data frame decreases, if the number of collisions is 1.
14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein r has a random value if the number of collisions equals 2.
15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein r is greater than or equal to 0, and is less than or equal to 4.
16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein, if the number of collisions of the data frame is equal to or exceeds 3,
r is in a range from 0 to 2k,
k is equal to 3 if the priority number of the data frame is less than or equal to 3,
k equals the priority number of the data frame if the priority number of the data frame is greater than or equal to 4 and less than or equal to 9,
k equals 10 if the priority number of the data frame is greater than 9, and
a priority number of 1 represents a highest priority of the data frame,
the priority number increasing as the priority of the data frame decreases.
17. A method for transmitting data frames, comprising:
calculating for each of a plurality of colliding data frames, a backoff time that is based on a relative priority of a given data frame as compared to the other colliding data frames; and
transmitting each of the colliding data frames based on the calculated backoff time.
18. An apparatus for transmitting data frames, comprising:
at least one controller for calculating, for each of a plurality of colliding data frames, a backoff time that that is based on a relative priority of a given data frame as compared to the other colliding data frames; and
at least one port for transmitting each of the colliding data frames based on the calculated backoff time.
19. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer program logic stored thereon for enabling a processor to transmit one or more data frames, the computer program logic causing the processor to perform the functions of:
detecting whether or not a collision of a plurality of received data frames occurs;
determining a priority for data frames colliding with each other;
calculating a backoff time according to the priority; and
transmitting the data frames colliding with each other, the data frames being transmitted based on the calculated backoff time.
20. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer program logic stored thereon for enabling a processor to transmit one or more data frames, the computer program logic causing the processor to perform the functions of:
calculating, for each of a plurality of colliding data frames, a backoff time that is based on a relative priority of a given data frame as compared to the other colliding data frames; and
transmitting each of the colliding data frames based on the calculated backoff time.
21. A program, adapted to cause a computer to execute the method of claim 1.
22. A program, adapted to cause a computer to execute the method of claim 17.
23. A computer-readable storage medium, on which is recorded a program adapted to cause a computer to execute the method of claim 1.
24. A computer-readable storage medium, on which is recorded a program adapted to cause a computer to execute the method of claim 17.
25. A computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave, the computer data signal comprising
a first code segment for detecting whether or not a collision of a plurality of received data frames occurrs;
a second code segment for determining a priority for data frames colliding with each other;
a third code segment for calculating a backoff time according to the priority; and
a fourth code segment for transmitting the data frames colliding with each other to a receiving entity, the data frames being transmitted based on the calculated backoff time.
26. A computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave, comprising
instructions for calculating, for each of a plurality of colliding data frames, a backoff time that is based on a relative priority of a given data frame as compared to the other colliding data frames; and
instructions for transmitting each of the colliding data frames to a receiving entity based on the calculated backoff time.
27. An apparatus for transmitting data frames in accordance with the method of claim 1.
28. An apparatus for transmitting data frames in accordance with the method of claim 17.