Abstract: A continuous speech recognition and voice response system provides a natural sounding and effective interactive, speech-driven dialogue from a data processing system. A concatenation of words into phrases and sentences improves recognition and mimic natural language processing. The system uses speaker-independent, continuous-speech to initiate the playback of audio files. The system employs high-speed context switching to modify the active vocabulary and applies high-speed context switching to modify or activate Audio WAV voice response files. The system uses dialogue history to activate selected context, Baukus-Naur Form (BNF) grammars and WAV files and provides phrase or sentence long dialogue prompts to improve accuracy. The system also provides audio prompts to improve accuracy and provides speech-activated buttons to navigate between menus.

Abstract: An ATM communications network includes a system processor having a device driver and a memory coupled to an adapter at an interface. Frames stored in the memory are transmitted to the network using a transmit ready queue residing in the adapter and defined by transmit control registers. The frames are linked together by descriptors and pointers to received ready lists maintained by the device driver. A transmit frame complete list is established in the system memory using the transmit control registers. An interrupt is generated by the adapter indicating when frame transmission is complete. Simultaneously, cells are received from the network and stored in system memory according to a free buffer list established by the device driver. A pointer is maintained by the device driver to the last entry of the receive free buffer list. The adapter maintains a pointer to the next buffer to be used from the receive free buffer list.

Abstract: A communication adapter transfers synchronous or multimedia and asynchronous or packet data between a network which may be of a FDDI type and a host system in real time. The adapter can manage data transfer in both directions between the system and the network and automatically switches between multimedia and packet data while holding the token. The adapter includes a queue manager having a synchronous threshold register and counter and a packet data threshold register and counter. The queue manager is coupled among a host bus; a storage means; a FDDI network; and bandwidth control logic. The queue manager in conjunction with the bandwidth control logic can dynamically switch the adapter from transmitting packet or synchronous data to the FDDI without exceeding bandwidth. The queue manager is also adapted to initiate capture of the token on a FDDI and commence transmission of synchronous or packet data frames to the ring as early as possible.

Abstract: The invention includes indirect addressing which is the realtime calculation of the location of variably offset fields in a frame in a high speed medium. Data frames in a communication medium, include a presence bit which indicates the presence of a variable length field whose length is defined by a length field in the data frame. In accordance with the invention, an Event Driven Interface has its input coupled to the data communications network, to receive the data frame and to identify the presence of the presence bit. In response to this, the Event Driven Interface branches to a first logic path which ignores the plurality of bits in the variable length field corresponding to the length field. Then, the Event Driven Interface branches to a second logic path after the plurality of bits have been ignored, to locate the variably offset field being sought in the data frame. This enables the realtime location of data at variable offsets in the data frame.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for dynamically labeling touch sensitive buttons in a digitizing display. The display is partitioned into a main panel display region and a button panel display region. A touch overlay is also partitioned into a main panel touch region and a main panel display region. A button panel driver program defines button touch areas and button display areas enabling the dynamic labeling and relabeling of the touch sensitive buttons and the simultaneous touching of combinations of the buttons with either a touch input or a stylus input to the overlay.

Abstract: A method and system for a pen-based computer system allow a user to automatically cancel a gesture in progress under several different conditions and terminate the operation of the system in a gesture recognition motion. In a first condition, a gesture cancel timeout period is stored in a memory of the system. The cancel timeout period is definitive of holding the input device in a motionless condition. When the timeout period is exceeded, a software application program recognize the excessive time period, terminates the operation of the system in gesture recognition mode. In another condition, a motion area is defined in the program for the input device. When the gesture executed by the input device exceeds the pre-defined motion area, the application program recognizes the excessive motion and terminates the operation of the system in the gesture recognition mode. In another condition, each input device is identified and stored in memory.

Abstract: An apparatus for facilitating the transfer of data between computers of different types and architectures is disclosed. The Serial Channel Adapter (SCA) includes four primary functional components: 1) low-end parallel bus interface; 2) data staging buffer; 3) serial interface; and 4) adapter controller, all of which are under microprocessor control and fully programmable to achieve maximum flexibility. Two buses are provided, a Local Data Bus and Local Processor Bus, to minimize processor overhead on the data bus and maximize data throughput.

Abstract: A high speed, serial pattern detector, uses parallel finite state machines to analyze sequential bits in a serial bit stream. Single bit random access memories store the single bit of the next address to be used in detecting the sequence.

Abstract: A peripheral circuit interface adapter for a computer system is defined whose function is established programmatically rather than being designed, laid out and fabricated uniquely for each different function the interface adapter might perform. A designer can program the interface adapter function and then cause that function to be defined dynamically through downloading on the interface adapter when the system on which it resides is powered on. The interface adapter contains rudimentary bus interface elements and external interface section and a control section. The control section establishes the overall function of the adapter and is defined by a field programmable gate array that assumes specific wiring characteristics as a result of downloading from the hosting system.

Abstract: A method of switching multimedia data streams in response to requests to allocate or deallocate a user on a network receiving those data streams is herein described. The data streams are transmitted in master cycles, portions of each master cycle being allocated to each user. The relationship between the user and the portion of the master cycle is kept track of by means of a matrix method.

Abstract: Improvements in the art of sensor and display technology now make the implementation of a workpad concept feasible. While prior art touch displays are acceptable for short, casual use tasks, they may not be feasible or suited for intensive use tasks. Recent improvements in the optical qualities (brightness, contrast, viewing cone) of flat panel displays, such as LCDs, allow implementing a touch screen for use in a horizontal orientation. This greatly improves the human factors for applications involving extensive pointing, drawing, or writing.

Abstract: A realtime high speed data capture is provided in response to a trigger bit pattern detected in a serial bit stream. An Event Driven Interface is connected to a data communications network to receive a serial bit stream. A capture buffer is connected to the network to store at least a portion of the serial bit stream. The capture buffer is selectively connected to the network by means of a gate. The Event Driven Interface is programmed to recognize a trigger bit pattern in the serial bit stream and to output an enable signal to the gate. In response to this, the capture buffer will store a predetermined portion of the serial bit stream from the network.

Abstract: A queue manager manages multiple interfaces among a network, a host bus and a storage means including multiple circular FIFO's in a data communication system handling packet and multimedia data transferred, in either direction, between the host bus and the network. The queue manager includes a programmable parameter RAM interface, computation logic and status means. An efficient queue management algorithm dynamically manages storage of data in the circular multiple FIFO's as data is transferred, in either direction, between the host bus and the network. System bandwidth is allocated by the queue manager to the queues which have the most activity thereby improving the speed of transferring data while reducing the amount of bandwidth that would otherwise be required by prior systems. The programmable interface permits a user to define and dynamically configure the multiple circular FIFO storage means to include other parameters useful in the management of data transferred between the host bus and the network.

Abstract: An instantaneous context switching speech recognition system is disclosed which enables a speech recognition application to be changed without loading new pattern matching data into the system. Selectable pointer maps are included in the memory of the system which selectively change the relationship between words and phonemes between a first application context and the pattern matching logic to a second application context and the pattern matching logic.

Abstract: The realtime event classification technique is described for a data communications network, which enables the categorization of data frames based upon selection significant bit segments in the serial bit stream. A base Event Driven Interface and an extension Event Driven Interface are both coupled to the data communications network, to identify patterns in the serial bit stream. The base Event Driven Interface identifies patterns which correspond to events which are to be counted. The extension Event Driven Interface identifies patterns of bits which are selection significant for the types of categories which are desired to be monitored. A plurality of event vector counters have event inputs coupled to the base Event Driven Interface and have a selection input coupled to the extension Event Driven Interface. A selection signal output from the extension Event Driven Interface enables one of the plurality of the event vector counters to receive the event signals from the base Event Driven Interface.

Abstract: A dynamic realtime, inband routing mechanism is disclosed for a data communications network, which provides an Event Driven Interface to perform realtime, inband directed routing for load distribution and load balancing of data frames over one of a plurality of destination paths. The Event Driven Interface is programmed with control vectors to identify load balancing and load distribution bit patterns in the data frames on the data communications network. Enabling signals produced by the Event Driven Interface are applied to the control input of a multiplexer whose data input is connected to the data communications network. The multiplexer will steer the data frames from the data communications network to one of a plurality of output alternative routing paths, in response to the enabling signals it receives from the Event Driven Interface.

Abstract: A data processing system includes branch prediction apparatus for storing branch data in a branch prediction RAM after each branch has occurred. The RAM interfaces with branch logic means which tracks whether a branch is in progress and if a branch was guessed. An operational code compression means forms each instruction into a new operation code of lesser bits and embeds a guess bit into the new operational code. Control means decode the compressed operational code as an input to an instruction execution unit whereby conditional branch occurs based on the guess bit provided a branch instruction is not in progress in the system.

Abstract: A queue pointer manager contained in an integrated data controller is capable of controlling high speed data transfers between a high speed controlled data channel, a local processor bus and a dedicated local data bus. The overall design utilizes enhanced features of the Micro Channel architecture and data buffering to achieve maximum burst rates of 80 megabytes and to allow communications with 8, 16, 32 and 64 bit Micro Channel devices. Queued demands allow flexible programming of the Micro Channel master operations and reporting of completion statuses. The hardware control of command and status queuing functions increases the processing speed of control operations and reduces the need for software queuing. Extensive error checking/reporting, programming parameters, internal wrap self-test capability give the integrated data controller advanced functions as an input/output processor. The queue pointer manager also manages queue read and write pointers.

Abstract: A data entry system generates an electronically stored coded representation of a character sequence from one or more electronically stored document images. The system comprising optical character recognition logic for generating, from the document image or images, character data specifying one of a plurality of possible character values for corresponding segments of the document images. The system also has an interactive display means for generating and sequentially displaying, one or more types of composite image, each composite image comprising segments of the document image or images arranged according to the character data, and a correction mechanism responsive to a user input operation to enable the operator to correct the character data associated with displayed segments.

Abstract: A data processing system and method are disclosed for selecting which one of several character recognition programs should be used to optimize the accuracy in recognizing characters in a field in an image of a document form. Consideration is taken of the character form and field type for particular characters and an optimized selection is performed on a realtime basis among the several candidate character recognition programs which could be applied. The resulting character recognition operation has its accuracy maximized for reading a wide variety of character forms and field types in recognition of preprinted forms.