Abstract: An improved feeding bowl for household pets having a central portion for placement of food or water surrounded by a first annular wall upwardly disposed joining a second annular wall downwardly disposed, wherein the first and second annular walls meet at an angle, ?2, ranging from about 5 to about 120 degrees to facilitate stacking of multiple bowls, wherein said second downwardly disposed annular wall engages a peripheral portion of the bowl, or apron, having a radial extent, L1, sufficient to cause the household pet to stand on the apron in order to feed wherein said apron engages the surface upon which the bowl is disposed at an angle, ?1, ranging from 0 to about 30 degrees.

Abstract: A transponder for facilitating financial transaction communications is provided. The transponder includes a detector, a processing module, and a magnetic field source. The detector detects a first time varying magnetic field generated by a mobile electronic device. The first time varying magnetic field is encoded with financial account information. The processing module decodes the detected time varying magnetic field to recover the financial account information. The magnetic field source generates a second time varying magnetic field for detection by a magnetic read head of a point-of-sale terminal. The second time varying magnetic field is modulated with the recovered financial account information according to a sequence that corresponds to a standardized format for encoding a magnetic strip of a credit card readable by the magnetic read head of the point-of-sale terminal.

Abstract: A system for determining a location of an object on a planar surface includes a time-of-flight sensor having sensing elements that provide a field of view for the time-of-flight sensor. The system also includes a mirror attached to the shaft of a motor for reflecting the field of view of the time-of-flight sensor across the planar surface. The system also includes electrical circuitry configured to receive range images from the time-of-flight sensor as the field of view is swept across the planar surface and process the range images to identify the object in at least one of the range images. The electrical circuitry is also configured to calculate a location of the object on the planar surface relative to the motor based on an angle of the shaft associated with the at least one range image and based on a distance of the object from time-of-flight sensor.

Abstract: Systems and methods for determining a location of a stylus on a planar surface are provided. In one example, a system includes a first optical source, a second optical source, a stylus, and electrical circuitry. The optical sources are at source locations and configured to rotationally sweep optical beams along the planar surface. The optical beams include encoded data sequences that vary with time. The stylus contains at least one optical receiver and is configured to receive the optical beams. The stylus is also configured to detect the data sequences from the optical beams. The electrical circuitry is configured to determine angular relationships between the stylus and the source locations based on the detected encoded data sequences. The electrical circuitry is also configured to calculate coordinates of the stylus on the planar surface based on the angular relationships and the source locations.

Abstract: A peripheral device for an electronic device includes a memory configured to store at least an active firmware image and another firmware image, and circuitry configured to execute instructions provided in the firmware image. The circuitry receives, from a software application of the electronic device, commands and a firmware image included in the software application. The circuitry verifies the received firmware image file and writes the portions to a memory block different from a memory block at which the active firmware image is located. A command from the software application causes the peripheral device to specify the newly written firmware image as an active firmware image and to execute the newly active firmware image.

Abstract: An electronic device executes a software application that includes instructions for updating firmware of a peripheral device and one or more firmware images. The electronic executes the firmware update instructions to initiate the firmware update of the peripheral device and transfers a firmware image from the software application to the peripheral device according to a response from the peripheral device. The software application sends information to the peripheral device for verifying the transferred firmware image and causes the peripheral device to use the transferred firmware image upon successful verification.

Abstract: A method of power management for an electronic device that is coupled to a protective case for the electronic device is provided. The method includes receiving data including a charge level of a battery of the protective case, identifying a charge level of a battery of the electronic device, and generating a graphical representation. The graphical representation includes an indication of the charge level of the protective case battery and an indication of a charge level of the electronic device battery. The method further includes displaying the graphical representation on a display of the electronic device.

Abstract: A protective enclosure for an electronic device is provided. The protective enclosure includes a hard shell that includes a front shell formed to a rigid shape of a front portion of the electronic device and a back shell formed to a rigid shape of a rear portion of the electronic device. The protective enclosure also includes a stretchable cushion layer over the hard shell that has a sufficient elasticity to conform to the hard shell and provide cushioning to the protective enclosure. The protective enclosure also includes a battery and electrical circuitry configured to receive electronic communications from the electronic device and distribute electrical current received from an external power source among the battery and the electronic device based on the received electronic communications.

Abstract: A case for an electronic device is provided. The case includes a battery and electrical circuitry. The electrical circuitry is configured to receive electrical power from a power source connected to the case, supply the electrical power to the electronic device, and monitor an amount of current of the electrical power used by the electronic device. The electrical circuitry is also configured to charge the battery using a remaining amount of current of the electrical power where the sum of the amount of current used by the electronic device and the remaining amount of current do not exceed a current limit for the power source.

Abstract: A case for an electronic device is provided. The case can include a front shell attachable to a back shell, a flexible insert disposed between the front shell and the back shell and configured to at least partially surround an electronic device when installed in the case, a payment device reader attached to the case and configured to be electrically connected to the electronic device, a product information input device attached to the case and configured to be electrically connected to the electronic device, and a battery configured to be electrically connected to the electronic device. The case can also include a rotatable mount that is removably attachable to an outer surface of the case and a hand strap attached to the rotatable mount.

Abstract: A case for an electronic device is provided. The case includes a battery, an interface to receive electrical current from an external power source, and a computer processor. The computer processor is configured to execute computer-readable instructions to receive a communication from the electronic device, limit the received electrical current to a current limit, and allocate the electrical current among the battery and the electronic device based on the received communication.

Abstract: A compact disk drive controller to control the access of information from an optical compact disk (CD) digital data storage device by a host computer using an integrated drive electronics (IDE) data bus or an industry standard architecture (ISA) data bus is disclosed. A digital signal processor (DSP) interface to the drive electronics of the CD drive, a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) controller, an error correction code (ECC) data corrector, an error detection and correction (EDC) device employing cyclical redundancy checking techniques (EDC/CRC), and a host computer interface are described.

Abstract: A software plug-in module extends the functionality of a standard printer driver. For example, the plug-in facilities the ability to provide a customizable user interface. The plug-in also facilitates the use of multiple forms of color management and half-tone screening. Further, the plug-in provides a system and method for determining the status of a printing device.

Abstract: Method and system for optimally estimating the location of each of a sequence of two or more synchronization patterns in a digital signal bit stream. A first reference location for a sync pattern is determined. A Boolean product or other product of the sync pattern (of length S) with S consecutive bit values of the digital stream is formed, for each of a selected consecutive sequence of candidates for a second reference location of the sync pattern within a window of selected length. A candidate reference location that yields the largest (or smallest) product value within the window is estimated to be a second or “next” reference location of the sync pattern, if the product value is at least equal to (or, alternatively, is no greater than) a selected threshold value. The sync pattern used for testing the digital stream can be varied from one location to another. The number of bit matches or the number of bit non-matches can be used to determine an optimal reference location for the sync pattern.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of adaptively enhancing a digital image based on image content. An accurate determination of image type permits implementation of an image enhancement technique that is matched to the image type. The method is advantageous when the image type of the received images can vary. In one embodiment the method distinguishes between line art images and continuous tone images. The method includes application of a window to a pixels in a source array. The number of colors in each of the resulting windowed arrays is determined. Each color can optionally be defined as a range of colors. A color range total is calculated from the sum of the number of windowed arrays in one or more subsets of the plurality of possible numbers of colors. Image type is determined in response to the color range total and an enhancement process matched to the image type is applied to the digital image data.

Abstract: A timing circuit used in reading disc media or other dada includes multiple sync detection circuits. In the event that an active sync detection circuit fails to detect sync signals within predefined parameters, a different one of the sync detection circuits searches for a sync pattern. Uniquely definable sequences of sync patterns are used to determine a position of sync patterns within a sector of data.

Abstract: The illustrated embodiment processes scanned image data with a resolution of 600 dpi or higher. Image detection algorithms are used to detect the probable presence of halftone image data, large text image data, small text image data and photographic image data. The image detection algorithms are designed specifically for the amount of data contained in an image with a resolution of 600 dpi or greater. Once an image has been analyzed, the illustrated embodiment provides the correspondingly appropriate image process to the scanned image.

Abstract: Method and system for indicating that at least one row or column of a DVD data block has an uncorrectable number of errors, by marking or flagging the corrupted codewords of a codeword with defect detect signals. When a column (or row) of the data block is found to contain more than a thereshold number of errors, a selected number w of distinguishable codeword values (DSVs) “x” is associated with at least one column (or with at least one row) of the block. When the block is further processed and the presence of more than a threshold number of DSVs is sensed, the system interprets this occurrence as indicating that an uncorrectable group of errors has occurred in a column and/or row of the block.

Abstract: Methods and devices for compressing and uncompressing three color component graphics and/or digital video data for storage to and retrieval from a reduced memory space, while allocating memory space for pixel data special attribute, such as a transparency attribute. 24 bit video data, for example, may be compressed and stored along with 2 bits of transparency data in a 16-bit memory space, without undue loss of fidelity relative to the original graphics and/or video data. The stored and compressed video data may be uncompressed and a correction factor may be selectively applied to each of the three component pixel data. The resulting uncompressed pixel data matches or closely resembles the video data prior to compression and storage. The correction factor may vary depending upon the color space of the graphics and/or video pixel data.

Abstract: A signal conversion system parses a multi-dimensional input signal into most-significant and least-significant portions. The most-significant portions are used as an index to a look-up-table. Stored in each entry of the look-up-table is a base value and multi-dimensional differential values. The system generates an output representation of the signal by combining the corresponding base value with interpolated differences determined by interpolation performed using the differential values and the least-significant portions. Interpolation error is decreased by storing intermediate differential values. Output processing is used for linearization.