Patents Assigned to SMART Technologies ULC
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Patent number: 11829560Abstract: An interactive input system with bezel light around an input area provided by optical fiber is described. Two or more cameras have a field of view of at least a portion of the bezel. The optical fiber provides continuous backlight illumination to at least one input object. The optical fiber has at least one nanostructure therein for diffusing light. At least one light source provides a directional light to an end of the optical fiber.Type: GrantFiled: January 28, 2020Date of Patent: November 28, 2023Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventor: Sergiy Dets
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Patent number: 11188173Abstract: An interactive input system, a tool and a method for detecting the tool's identity in the interactive input system are provided, in which a touch location of the tool is detected. The system comprises a plurality of antennas. A set of selected antennas associated with the touch location are activated to generate electromagnetic field, thereby activating the tool to send out a unique identifier associated with an attribute of the pen tool. The unique identifier is received and detected by the interactive input system to determine the attribute of the pen tool. The pen tool comprise at least one coil, and at least one NFC transponder, wherein the at least one coil is activated by electromagnetic field to power the NFC transponder for transmitting the unique identifier.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2019Date of Patent: November 30, 2021Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Rola Baki, Trevor Wellington, Colin Gowen
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Patent number: 10540070Abstract: A method is described for manipulating a view displayed on one or more follower participants' devices to track a view displayed on a lead participant's device. A request to manipulate the view displayed on the one or more follower participant devices is received. The lead participant is identified. The follower participants are identified. A lead view of the lead participant is determined. The lead view is communicated to the follower participants computing devices for display. A computing device and a non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions configured to implement the method are also described.Type: GrantFiled: March 15, 2016Date of Patent: January 21, 2020Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Min Xin, Michael Boyle, Kathryn Rounding
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Patent number: 10313885Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and system for managing profiles for use with touch systems. A user logs into a communal device using a pointer paired with a mobile device. The communal device is authenticated and retrieves the user's profile. The user profile is used to setup a workspace on the communal device. The workspace is granted access to the user's content on a content server. When the communal device has multiple users, each workspace may be shared or not depending on the user's requirements. Each pointer is individually identified to a particular user and workspace.Type: GrantFiled: November 30, 2017Date of Patent: June 4, 2019Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Michael Boyle, Lynel Barrow, Brent Adam, Roberto Sirotich
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Patent number: 10235121Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods are provided for wirelessly communicating configuration data from mobile devices for use by interactive display devices. In some aspects, a processing device can identify two or more mobile devices participating in a session for utilizing an interactive display device. The processing device can receive configuration data from each of the mobile devices via a wireless transceiver. The processing device can configure an interactive display device to present outputs during the session using attributes that the processing device identifies from the received configuration data. In additional or alternative aspects, a processing device can identify at least one mobile device participating in a session for utilizing an interactive display device. The processing device can associate outputs presented by the interactive display device with an entity that is identifiable from configuration data that is received from the mobile device.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 2016Date of Patent: March 19, 2019Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Grant McGibney, Angela Thomas, Leonardo Miguel Araneta, Phillip Warren Benson
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Patent number: 10228771Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and system for determining an optical property of a pointer used in an interactive touch system. The interactive device having a touch area; a plurality of emitters on the periphery of the touch area; the emitters emitting an intensity of light into the touch area; a plurality of pointers having a distinct optical property responsive to the light; at least one detector having a field of view of the touch area. The processing structure, in communication with the emitters and the at least one detector, executes instructions from a memory to: transmit an emitter signal to at least one of the emitters initiating emission of light at the first frequency; receive at least one detector signal from the at least one detector; and determine the distinct optical property from the at least one detector signal.Type: GrantFiled: September 22, 2016Date of Patent: March 12, 2019Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Gerald Morrison, David Holmgren, Clinton Lam
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Publication number: 20180246617Abstract: The present invention relates to an interactive touch system on a transparent medium and more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and system for improving the contrast of writing on an interactive touch system on a transparent medium. The interactive device has an interactive surface having an interior side and an exterior side. The interior side is observed by at least one emitter and at least one detector. The interactive surface has a privacy layer; the privacy layer transforming between a transparent and a non-transparent state. A processing structure executing instructions detects a pointer contacting the interior side of the interactive surface; and applies a signal to the privacy layer to transform the privacy layer into the non-transparent state.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 31, 2016Publication date: August 30, 2018Applicant: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Gerald Morrison, Edward Tse, Sergiy Dets, Greg Hartman, Joe Wright, Michael Boyle
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Patent number: 10013631Abstract: A method for producing digital ink in a collaboration session between a first computing device and a second computing device that presents a digital canvas. In some embodiments, the method includes capturing a raster image of content using a camera operably coupled to the first computing device, deriving first image vectors and second image vectors based on first and second portions, respectively, of the raster image, sending the first image vectors to the second computing device for displaying a first digital ink object based on the first image vectors, and sending the second image vectors to the second computing device for displaying a second digital ink object based on the second image vectors after the displaying of the second digital ink object.Type: GrantFiled: August 26, 2016Date of Patent: July 3, 2018Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventor: Jeff Sklaroff
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Patent number: 9872178Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and system for managing profiles for use with touch systems. A user logs into a communal device using a pointer paired with a mobile device. The communal device is authenticated and retrieves the user's profile. The user profile is used to setup a workspace on the communal device. The workspace is granted access to the user's content on a content server. When the communal device has multiple users, each workspace may be shared or not depending on the user's requirements. Each pointer is individually identified to a particular user and workspace.Type: GrantFiled: August 25, 2014Date of Patent: January 16, 2018Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Michael Boyle, Lynel Barrow, Brent Adam, Roberto Sirotich
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Patent number: 9787731Abstract: A method is described for dynamically determining session boundary coordinates within a canvas. As described, an initial explored area of the canvas is defined. The initial explored area is expanded. When the size of the expanded explored area of the canvas reaches a predefined maximum size, the explored area coordinates are set as the session boundary coordinates. A computing device and a non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions configured to implement the method are also described.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2015Date of Patent: October 10, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Colin Dere, Elmar Manarang, Erica Arnoldin, Kathryn Rounding
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Patent number: 9781176Abstract: Certain aspects involve managing permissions in collaborative workspaces using visual representations of clients. For example, a graphical interface can be displayed that represents a collaborative workspace and that includes visual representations of different clients accessing the workspace. A workspace application executed by a processor can determine that visual representations for at least two clients are positioned in a common region of the graphical interface. The workspace application can authorize the clients to collaboratively modify electronic content that is accessible via the graphical interface based on the visual representations being positioned in the common region. Subsequently, the workspace application can determine that the visual representations are positioned outside the common region and restrict access to the collaboratively modified content accordingly.Type: GrantFiled: February 12, 2015Date of Patent: October 3, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Min Xin, Erik Daniel Huizing, Eliezer Mar Yumol Manarang, Keith Matthew Allen, Allen Brooks, Sandra Chow
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Patent number: 9736137Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and system for managing multi-user tools for a workspace on a touch screen. Workspaces are generated for use with the touch screen and one or more of identifiable pointers are associated with them. A global tool element having a plurality of controls is generated and displayed on the touch screen. When more than one pointer is associated with one of the workspaces, redundant controls are removed from the global tool element and a local tool element is created for each associated pointer. The local tool elements comprise at least the redundant controls.Type: GrantFiled: December 18, 2014Date of Patent: August 15, 2017Assignee: SMART Technologies ULCInventors: Sean Thompson, Wendy Jean Segelken
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Patent number: 9665258Abstract: An interactive input system includes a touch panel; and processing structure displaying on the touch panel at least one graphic object depicting a book having one or more page stacks. The processing structure displays each page stack of the book graphic object with a respective width that is based on a number of pages in the page stack. A method for manipulating a book object, and computer program embodied by a computer readable medium are also disclosed.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2011Date of Patent: May 30, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Edward Tse, Jamie Duncalf, Erik Benner, Min Xin
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Patent number: 9658702Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and system of improved pointer recognition. A camera-based interactive system has two cameras with fields of view observing an interactive surface. A processor receives a plurality of video frames from the cameras and recognizes a pointer within the video frames. Motion blur of the pointer is compensated to determine the pointer type from the compensated frames using a model-based approach.Type: GrantFiled: August 12, 2015Date of Patent: May 23, 2017Assignee: SMART Technologies ULCInventors: David E Holmgren, Daniel McReynolds
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Patent number: 9641626Abstract: A computer implement method for creating a user group is provided. In accordance with the method, a temporary session identifier is generated for a first session associated with the user group. The temporary session identifier is communicated to a display for presentation. Requests to join the first session are received from a plurality of users. The requests include the temporary session identifier. User identifiers of the plurality of users are correlated with the temporary session identifier. The user group is created, comprising the user identifiers of the plurality of users and a name for said user group. The user group is stored in memory. A computing device and a non-transitory computer readable medium configured to implement the method are also described.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2015Date of Patent: May 2, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Patrick Wilson, Kathryn Rounding, Matt Mastracci, Erica Arnoldin, Eric Jansson, Benjamin Schuiling
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Patent number: 9619104Abstract: Computerized methods and interactive input systems for manipulation of 3D objects are disclosed. An image of 3D object is displayed on a 2D interactive surface, and input is received and is interpreted for manipulating the 3D object. When the 3D object is selected, rotation control handles indicating available rotation directions are displayed. In one embodiment, the method comprises capturing images of a 3D input space, recognizing at least one object in the images, and comparing the recognized objects in the images to determine a difference therebetween based on a difference threshold. Depending on the outcome of the comparison, the recognized objects are emerged and associated with digital content, or only one of the recognized objects is maintained and associated with digital content.Type: GrantFiled: October 3, 2011Date of Patent: April 11, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Min Xin, Viktor Antonyuk, Edward Tse, Henry Lai, Mark Cameron Loken, Zhaohui Xing, Erik Benner, Danny Ma, Roberto Arturo Diaz-Marino, Shymmon Banerjee, Esteban Ginez, Luqing Wang
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Patent number: 9600101Abstract: An interactive board comprises an interactive surface; at least one user selectable element; and processing structure in communication with at least one imaging device and configured to process data received from said at least one imaging device to locate at least one pointer positioned in proximity with said interactive surface and update digital ink according to pointer location, said processing structure being further configured to send said digital ink to one or more devices in communication with the interactive board in response to selection of said at least one user selectable element.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2014Date of Patent: March 21, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Michael Trenholm-Boyle, Roberto Sirotich, Joe Wright, Daniel P. McReynolds, Tim Schanne, Stanley Tarng, Evan Ross, Warren Barkley, Neil Gaydon
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Patent number: 9600100Abstract: An interactive input system comprises at least one imaging device configured to capture image frames of a region of interest comprising a background and at least one background feature. Processing structure is configured to compare the image frames to determine if the location of the at least one background feature has changed signifying system displacement.Type: GrantFiled: January 11, 2013Date of Patent: March 21, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Cameron Taylor, Clinton Lam
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Patent number: 9588951Abstract: A conferencing system comprises a plurality of computing devices communicating over at least one network during a conference session, at least one of the computing devices being configured to share content displayed thereby with other computing devices, the other computing devices displaying the shared content, at least one of the computing devices also being configured to accept input annotations made on the displayed shared content and to share input annotations with other computing devices over a channel independent of the shared content.Type: GrantFiled: December 6, 2011Date of Patent: March 7, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Douglas Blair Hill, Bradley James Bax, Alexander Garin, Jeffrey Adam Mahovsky
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Patent number: 9588673Abstract: A method comprises receiving an input event generated when at least one contact is made on an interactive surface at a location corresponding to a graphical object; determining the number of contacts associated with the input event; tracking movement of the at least one contact on the interactive surface; identifying a graphical object manipulation based on the number of contacts, the movement of the at least one contact, and the graphical object type; and performing the graphical object manipulation.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2012Date of Patent: March 7, 2017Assignee: SMART TECHNOLOGIES ULCInventors: Taco Van Ieperen, Douglas Blair Hill