Microsoft Patents Granted

Patents granted to Microsoft by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11966573
    Abstract: Technologies are disclosed for temporarily hiding user interface (“UI”) elements, such as application windows or tabs. A request can be received to hide a UI element for a specified period of time. When such a request is received, the UI element is hidden and an identifier corresponding to the UI element is moved from a first area of a taskbar to a second area of the taskbar. The application presenting the UI element can be configured for reduced consumption of computing resources while the UI element is hidden. Additionally, notifications associated with the UI element can be disabled while the UI element is hidden. When the specified period of time to hide the UI element has elapsed, the UI element is once again displayed. Additionally, the identifier corresponding to the UI element is moved from the second area of the taskbar back to the first area of the taskbar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Jan-Kristian Markiewicz, Jerome Stephen Healy, Tiffany Jamie Chen
  • Patent number: 11966448
    Abstract: Implementations of the disclosed technologies pre-fetch search results. Implementations receive first input from a search session of a user device, where the first input includes at least a portion of a search term but does not initiate a search. Implementations determine context data associated with the first input, determine that a combination of the first input and the context data satisfies a pre-fetch threshold, determine intent data based on at least a portion of the context data, generate a search query based on the first input and the intent data, and pre-fetch a first subset of search results based on the search query. In response to a second input received subsequent to the first input, where the second input contains an initiate search signal, implementations initiate rendering of the pre-fetched first subset of search results in the search session at the user device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Santhosh Sachindran, Raghavan Muthuregunathan, Vivek Katarya, Yuankun Xue, Ali Hooshmand, Xu Zhang, Poome Thavornvanit, Jiayu Li
  • Patent number: 11966276
    Abstract: Methodologies for testing resiliency of server computer environments with greater security are disclosed. Access is provided to a subset of server computer resources to a client user within a distributed server computer platform to form the server computer environment. An ephemeral fault injector program is instantiated to implement a resiliency experiment within server computer environment. The ephemeral fault injector program is configured to self-terminate within the server computer environment upon completion of the resiliency experiment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventor: Sushant Sood
  • Patent number: 11966385
    Abstract: In various examples, there is provided a computer-implemented method for writing transaction log entries to a transaction log for a database system. At least part of the database system is configured to be executed within a trusted execution environment. The transaction log is stored outside of the trusted execution environment. The method maintains a first secure count representing a number of transaction log entries which have been written to the transaction log for transactions which have been committed to the database and writes a transaction log entry to the transaction log. In other examples, there is also provided is a computer-implemented method for restoring a database system using transaction log entries received from the transaction log and a current value of the first secure count.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.
    Inventors: Christian Priebe, Kapil Vaswani, Manuel Silverio da Silva Costa
  • Patent number: 11966753
    Abstract: A storage device for booting a host computing device includes a first storage memory region having a first storage memory controller, a second storage memory region having a second storage memory controller, and a resilient boot controller. The resilient boot controller is configured to store boot code in the first storage memory region, prevent write access by the host computing device through the first storage memory controller to the first storage memory region, detect a reset of the host computing device through the input/output interface, copy at least a portion of the boot code from the first storage memory region to the second storage memory region, responsive to detection of the reset of the host computing device, and enable read access of the copied boot code by the host computing device through the second storage memory controller of the second storage memory region, responsive to the copy operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Stefan Thom, Paul England, Robert Karl Spiger, Brian Telfer, Sangho Lee, Marcus Peinado
  • Patent number: 11968236
    Abstract: Technologies for providing event-level data privacy for streaming post analytics data include, in some embodiments, receiving a data stream that includes instances of count data collected over a time interval, computing a true count breakdown that includes a set of sub-counts of non-public user interface interactions on the post, creating a noisy count breakdown by applying at least one differential privacy mechanism to the set of sub-counts, and streaming the noisy count breakdown instead of the true count breakdown to a computing device. At least one of the sub-counts is a count that is associated with a particular value of an attribute that has different possible values. The attribute is associated with the non-public user interface interactions on the post.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Ryan M. Rogers, Subbu Subramaniam, Mark B. Cesar, Adrian Rivera Cardoso, Yu Chen, Jefferson Lai, Vinyas Maddi, Lin Xu, Gavin Castro Uathavikul, Neha Jain, Shraddha Sahay, Parvez Ahammad, Rahul Tandra
  • Patent number: 11966769
    Abstract: Computing system enhancements make container instantiation faster, reduce layer content storage demands, and make more container image formats available. A container instantiation location sends a container image pull request to a container registry, receives an image manifest, sends a layer mount request to the registry instead of a layer content download request, receives a layer mount, optionally repeats for additional layers, creates a union file system spanning the layers, and launches a container process based on the union file system without first downloading all the layer content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Eric Ray Hotinger, Bin Du, Sajay Antony, Steven M. Lasker, Siva Garudayagari, Dongjiang You, Yu Wang, Samarth Shah, Brian Timothy Goff, Shiwei Zhang
  • Patent number: 11966381
    Abstract: Embodiments maintain a data pool that includes heterogeneous data sets, and receiving a first data batch of a data set from a data source into the data pool. Embodiments determine a current state of the data set based on a data set state diagram including a plurality of data set states, and identify a condition of the first data batch. Embodiments further set a data batch state for the first data batch, based on a data batch state diagram, and update the data batch state of a prior data batch received before the first data batch, based on the condition of the first data batch. Embodiments additionally transition the data set state diagram, based on the condition of the first data batch, to an updated data set state. Embodiments maintain a data state repository storing the data set state for each of the plurality of heterogeneous data sets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Liangzhao Zeng, Ting Yu Cliff Leung, Yat On Lau, Jimmy Hong, Chuang Yao, Yen-Ting Liu, Ting-Kuan Wu
  • Patent number: 11966533
    Abstract: A device for use with a touch surface digitizer, the device comprising: a sensor configured to receive uplink signals emitted by a grid of antennas in the digitizer; and a controller configured to detect the uplink signals via the sensor; wherein the controller is further configured to determine a speed of the device based on a detected sequence of the uplink signals as received at the sensor from one or more junctions of the antenna grid relative to a predetermined spatial pattern of the uplink signals as emitted across the grid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.
    Inventors: Assaf Bar-Ness, Shoham Dekel
  • Patent number: 11965539
    Abstract: An integrated fastener includes a threaded portion, a fastener head, and one or more spring fingers integrated into the fastener head, wherein the spring fingers are configured to apply a compressive load when the fastener is inserted and secured to a receiving assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventor: Navid Poulad
  • Patent number: 11968732
    Abstract: A method of managing a wireless communication between a plurality of accessory devices and a host device includes, at the host device, establishing a data connection with a plurality of accessory devices, obtaining a radio ID for each accessory device of the plurality of accessory devices, grouping the plurality of accessory devices into at least one OFDMA device and at least one non-OFDMA device based at least partially on the radio IDs, sending a trigger signal to the at least one OFDMA device; and after receiving a first response signal from the at least one OFDMA device in response to the trigger signal, receiving a second response signal from the at least one non-OFDMA device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Perry Victor Lea, Krishna Kant Chintalapudi, Steven William Ranta, Gopala Srihari Narlanka, Stanley William Adermann
  • Patent number: 11966690
    Abstract: An enhanced integration of spreadsheet environments and external environments is disclosed herein that allows users to enter non-native statements directly into the cells of a worksheet so that external resources can be applied with respect to their values. In addition, a security model is disclosed whereby external functions referenced in the cells of a worksheet are executed in the context of a runtime environment that is secured apart from the spreadsheet application that hosts the worksheet. Various enhancements to the user experience are also disclosed that allow users to enter non-native statements in line with respect to the functional syntax that forms the basis of spreadsheet formulas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Keyur Rahul Patel, James Squires Masson, Joseph John McDaid, Arturo Goicochea Hoefken
  • Patent number: 11966796
    Abstract: An enhanced integration of spreadsheet environments and external environments is disclosed herein that allows users to enter non-native statements directly into the cells of a worksheet so that external resources can be applied with respect to their values. In addition, a security model is disclosed whereby external functions referenced in the cells of a worksheet are executed in the context of a runtime environment that is secured apart from the spreadsheet application that hosts the worksheet. Various enhancements to the user experience are also disclosed that allow users to enter non-native statements in line with respect to the functional syntax that forms the basis of spreadsheet formulas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Keyur Rahul Patel, James Squires Masson, Joseph John McDaid, Arturo Goicochea Hoefken
  • Patent number: 11966700
    Abstract: Embodiments of the described technologies are capable of reading a text sequence that include at least one word; extracting model input data from the text sequence, where the model input data includes, for each word of the text sequence, segment data and non-segment data; using a first machine learning model and at least one second machine learning model, generating, for each word of the text sequence, a multi-level feature set; outputting, by a third machine learning model, in response to input to the third machine learning model of the multi-level feature set, a tagged version of the text sequence; executing a search based at least in part on the tagged version of the text sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Yuwei Qiu, Gonzalo Aniano Porcile, Yu Gan, Qin Iris Wang, Haichao Wei, Huiji Gao
  • Patent number: 11967041
    Abstract: A computer implemented method includes obtaining data for raw image frames captured by a moving camera. The raw image frames are indexed geographically, and a graph is created from the multiple raw image frames. The graph includes image frames as vertices and edges that represent image frames having overlapping image information. The method further includes skipping frames based on the amount of overlap, determining a frame having an interesting feature, using the graph to find additional raw image frames that have the interesting feature, combining multiple raw image frames to form a unique image frame, and transmitting the unique image frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Anirudh Badam, Ranveer Chandra
  • Patent number: 11966725
    Abstract: The techniques disclosed herein enable systems to reduce the time required to terminate a set of microservices for an application while ensuring high availability and preventing request failures. This is accomplished through a termination manager which retrieves request queues for the microservices to analyze outstanding requests that require processing prior to termination. Based on the outstanding requests, the termination manager constructs call graphs for each request. The call graphs capture the operational flow of the associated request by defining a sequence of microservices whose functionality is invoked by the request. From an initial analysis, the termination manager can determine that some of the microservices do not appear in the call graphs, indicating that the microservices are not needed to process the outstanding requests. Accordingly, the unneeded microservices are terminated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Ali Kanso, Karthik Maharajan Sankara Subramanian
  • Patent number: 11968085
    Abstract: According to examples, a host device may be instructed to pre-spawn a number of first host processes and a number of second host processes, in which the number of first host processes and the number of second host processes are defined in a first scaling constraint and are each greater than or equal to one. The host device may pre-spawn the second host processes in one or more computing nodes through identification of a host process of the first host processes that is unbound from a client session, termination of the identified host process, and pre-spawning of a second host process that provides a second version of the service based on the termination. The host device may also decrease the number of first host processes and increase the number of second host processes in the one or more computing nodes as defined in a second scaling constraint.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Romit Chattopadhyay, Mariyan D. Fransazov
  • Patent number: 11966428
    Abstract: A training system produces a resource-efficient machine-trained model via a training architecture that employs plural processing paths. Some of the processing paths incorporate the use of auxiliary information that imparts external knowledge about source items being processed. The training architecture also employs contrastive learning that operates at different respective levels within the training architecture. For instance, the training architecture uses encoder-level contrastive learning to compare output information generated by different encoders within the training architecture. The training architecture uses decoder-level contrastive learning to compare output information produced by different decoders within the training architecture. An inference-stage system performs an application task using the model produced by the training system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Jian Jiao, Yeyun Gong, Nan Duan, Ruofei Zhang
  • Patent number: 11967394
    Abstract: Memory arrays employing flying bit lines to increase effective bit line length for supporting higher performance, increased memory density, and related methods. To increase memory density, the memory array has a first memory sub-bank and one or more second memory sub-banks. The first memory sub-bank includes a first bit line(s) for each of its memory column circuits. To avoid the need to extend the length of the first bit lines to be coupled to the second memory bit cells in the second memory sub-bank, each memory sub-bank has its own dedicated first and second bit lines coupling their respective memory bit cells to access circuitry. The second bit lines effectively “fly” independent of the first bit lines of the first memory sub-bank. The first bit lines of the first memory sub-bank do not have to be extended in length to provide bit lines for the second memory sub-bank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Pramod Kolar, Robert A. Sweitzer
  • Patent number: 11968160
    Abstract: Disclosed in some examples are methods, systems, devices, and machine-readable mediums which provide for sidebar communication threads forked from, or related to, a principal thread. Messages in the sidebar communication thread may include a history of the principal thread, including one or more messages from the principal thread, and may include a proposed principal thread message that is the subject of the sidebar thread discussion. The sidebar thread may also include sidebar thread messages that carries the conversation of the sidebar thread participants. Once a termination condition is reached for the sidebar thread, the sidebar thread terminates and either the proposed principal thread message (as potentially modified by participants of the sidebar thread) becomes an accepted principal thread message and it is posted to the principal thread as if it was sent by the sidebar initiator or no message is posted (e.g., the proposed principal thread message is rejected).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Amer Aref Hassan, Wei-Chen Chen
  • Patent number: 11968475
    Abstract: Examples are disclosed that relate to computing devices, head-mounted display devices and methods for remote collaborations. In one example a computing device receives a first spatial mapping of a first environment and a second spatial mapping of a second environment. The computing device determines that a first volumetric space in the first environment and a second volumetric space in the second environment each satisfy at least one collaboration criterion. Based on this determination, an indication of the first volumetric space is displayed by a first display device in the first environment, and an indication of the second volumetric space is displayed by a second display device in the second environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Todd Michael Lyon, Jacob A. Bomgardner, Scott David Petill
  • Patent number: 11968303
    Abstract: Techniques of keyless authentication of computing services in distributed computing systems are disclosed herein. One example technique includes upon receiving a command to instantiate a computing service, transmitting a request to an authentication service for an identity assertion token corresponding to an application execution of which instantiates the computing service. The example technique can also include upon receiving the requested identity assertion token, storing the received identity assertion token in the container and modifying an entry of a configuration file in the container that allows the instantiated computing service to access the stored identity assertion token and authenticate to the authentication service using the identity assertion token.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Paranthaman Saravanan, Marc Andrew Power, Yang Zhang, Matthias Adam Leibmann, Grigory V. Kaplin, Yi Zeng
  • Patent number: 11968185
    Abstract: Technologies for on-device experimentation include embodiments that receive a request to provide digital content for display in a slot of a user interface display screen of a first device. By a secure execution environment, an identifier received with the request is anonymized. The request is determined to be associated with a content distribution test. The anonymized identifier is assigned to a test group associated with the content distribution test. The secure execution environment receives user interface event data generated by the first device in response to the content distribution test. The received user interface event data is attributed to the test group. An association of the user interface event data with the test group and the content distribution test is provided by the secure execution environment to a second device different than the first device while the identifier and the anonymized identifier are not provided to the second device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Kirill S. Lebedev, Elise Georis, Xiaoxu Wu, Alex S. Kaufman, Jialiang Mao, Wanjun Liu
  • Patent number: 11968165
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer programs are presented for selecting notifications based on an affinity score between a content generator and a viewer of the content. One method includes capturing interactions of content generators with notifications, received by the content generators, associated with viewer responses to creator-generated content items. The method further includes training a machine-learning model based on the interactions, and detecting a first set of notifications, for a first content generator, associated with interactions of a set of viewers to first-content generator content. The ML model calculates an affinity score between the first content generator and each viewer, and the set of first notifications are ranked based on the affinity scores of the first content generator and the viewer associated with each notification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Ivan Lopez Moreno, Xuexin Ren, Ying Han, Shaunak Chatterjee, Ajith Muralidharan
  • Patent number: 11968114
    Abstract: This disclosure describes techniques for addressing and/or accounting for path failures (e.g., congestion, link failures, disconnections, or other types of failures) within a network environment. In one example, this disclosure describes a method that includes receiving, by a node connected to a plurality of interconnected nodes, a network packet to be forwarded to a destination node; identifying, by a forwarding plane within the node, a first link along a path to the destination node; determining, by the forwarding plane, that the first link is inoperable; storing, by the node and within the network packet, data identifying the node as having been visited; identifying, by the forwarding plane and from among the plurality of egress links from the node, a second link that is operable and is along an alternative path to the destination node; and transmitting the network packet over the second link.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventor: Deepak Goel
  • Patent number: 11960342
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to sustainability-aware computing device behavior management. In examples, a sustainability platform obtains sustainability information associated with an energy grid, as may be provided by a data provider. The sustainability platform may provide a sustainability forecast, which may be received and cached by a computing device. The computing device may use the sustainability forecast to manage various device functionality, such that functionality may be performed during one or more times that are identified to have a comparatively lower environmental impact, thereby deferring device energy consumption during a time forecasted to have a higher environmental impact. The sustainability forecast cached by the computing device may be updated on a periodic basis or in response to determining that the location of the computing device (and, potentially, the associated energy grid) has changed, among other examples.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Scott Thomas Chamberlin, Malav Mukeshbhai Shah, Devin Nathaniel Roberts, Scott Rosoff
  • Patent number: 11961509
    Abstract: Methods and systems are disclosed for improving dialog management for task-oriented dialog systems. The disclosed dialog builder leverages machine teaching processing to improve development of dialog managers. In this way, the dialog builder combines the strengths of both rule-based and machine-learned approaches to allow dialog authors to: (1) import a dialog graph developed using popular dialog composers, (2) convert the dialog graph to text-based training dialogs, (3) continuously improve the trained dialogs based on log dialogs, and (4) generate a corrected dialog for retraining the machine learning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Swadheen Kumar Shukla, Lars Hasso Liden, Thomas Park, Matthew David Mazzola, Shahin Shayandeh, Jianfeng Gao, Eslam Kamal Abdelreheem
  • Patent number: 11961192
    Abstract: Improved techniques for re-localizing Internet-of-Things (IOT) devices are disclosed herein. Sensor data digitally representing one or more condition(s) monitored by an IOT device is received. In response, a sensor readings map is accessed, where this map is associated with the IOT device. The map also digitally represents the IOT device's environment and includes data representative of a location of the IOT device within the environment. The map also includes data representative of the conditions monitored by the IOT device. Additionally, the map is updated by attaching the sensor data to the map. In some cases, a coverage map can also be computed. Both the sensors readings map and the coverage map can be automatically updated in response to the IOT device being re-localized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Michael Bleyer, Yuri Pekelny, Raymond Kirk Price
  • Patent number: 11960772
    Abstract: An apparatus includes an output bus configured to store data, a match table, one or more storage devices, and logic. The match table is configured to store a plurality of entries, each entry including a key value, wherein the match table specifies a matching entry in response to being queried by the query data. The one or more storage devices are configured to store operation information for each of the plurality of entries stored in the match table. The operation information specifies one or more instructions associated with each respective entry in the plurality of entries stored in the match table. The logic is configured to receive one or more operands from the output bus, identify one or more instructions from the one or more storage devices, and generate, based on the one or more instructions and the one or more operands, processed data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Hariharan Lakshminarayanan Thantry, Srihari Raju Vegesna, Sureshkumar Nedunchezhian, Stimit Kishor Oak
  • Patent number: 11961334
    Abstract: The disclosure herein describes systems and methods for object data storage. In some examples, the method includes generating a profile for an object in a directory, the profile including a first feature vector corresponding to the object and a global unique identifier (GUID) corresponding to the first feature vector in the profile; generating a search scope, the search scope including at least the GUID corresponding to the profile; generating a second feature vector from a live image scan; matching the generated second feature vector from the live image scan to the first feature vector using the generated search scope; identifying the GUID corresponding to the first feature vector that matches the second feature vector; and outputting information corresponding to the object of the profile identified by the GUID corresponding to the first feature vector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.
    Inventors: William Louis Thomas, Jinyu Li, Yang Chen, Youyou Han Oppenlander, Steven John Bowles, Qingfen Lin
  • Patent number: 11961261
    Abstract: A scheme for modifying an image is disclosed, which includes receiving a source image having a first image configuration; determining a second image configuration for a target image; providing the received source image to an AI engine trained to identify, based on a set of rules related to visual features, candidate regions from the source image; generating proposal images based on the candidate regions, respectively; determining, based on prior aesthetical evaluation data, an aesthetical value of each regional proposal image; and selecting, based on the determined aesthetical value of each regional proposal image, one of the regional proposal images as the target image; extracting, from the AI engine, the target image; and causing the target image to be displayed via a display of a user device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Ji Li, Xiao Sun, Qi Dai, Han Hu
  • Patent number: 11960907
    Abstract: The devices, systems, and methods described herein enable automatically configuring an electronic device using artificial intelligence (AI). The devices, systems, and methods enable accessing telemetry data representing device usage data, inputting the accessed telemetry data into machine learning models that are matched to device metadata, and determining notifications to publish to components of the electronic device. The notifications represent events predicted to occur on the electronic device. The notifications are published to the components of the electronic device such that the electronic device is configured according to the published notifications. The determined notifications enable the identification of optimal settings for the electronic device based on the usage pattern of the device and enable components of the electronic device to preemptively take action on events which are predicted to occur in the future.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Chen Liang, Bryston M. Nitta, Shayak Lahiri, Adrian Francisco Teran Guajardo
  • Patent number: 11962512
    Abstract: Techniques are described herein that are capable of dynamically re-allocating computing resources while maintaining network connection(s). Applications of users are run in a computing unit. Computing resources are allocated among the applications based at least in part on dynamic demands of the applications for the computing resources and resource limits associated with the respective customers. In a first example, the computing resources are dynamically re-allocated among the applications, as a result of changing the resource limit of at least one customer, while maintaining at least one network connection between a client device of each customer and at least one respective application. In a second example, the computing resources are dynamically re-allocated among the applications, as a result of changing the resource limit of at least one customer, while maintaining at least one network connection between an interface and a client device of each customer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Ken Chen, Chenyang Liu, Dayang Shen, Liangying Wei, Zhenghui Yan, David M. Fowler
  • Patent number: 11960882
    Abstract: Methods, computer systems, computer-storage media, and graphical user interfaces are provided for providing contextual profile data related to code. In embodiments, a contextual indicator indicating at least a portion of code accessed at a user device and/or a developer associated with the at least the portion of code is obtained. Based on the contextual indicator, contextual profile data related to the code and/or the developer is determined by communicating, via a network, with a remote server having a global repository including the at least the portion of code. Thereafter, the contextual profile data is provided for display in a profile card associated with the developer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Bjarte Sjursen, Dino Ilic, Kennedy Kahiri, Timothy Mwirabua
  • Patent number: 11962661
    Abstract: A technique uses a graph neural network (GNN) to determine whether a particular entity under consideration is engaging in abusive network-related activity over a computing network in collaboration with other entities. In some applications, the particular entity is part of a bot attack aimed at fraudulently engaging with advertisements. The technique trains the GNN by performing machine learning on a training set that includes a plurality of nodes, edges, and node labels. In forming the training set, the technique associates a feature set with each node in the training set that describes the network activity exhibited by that node's entity. The technique then connects each pair of nodes in the training set with an edge if the feature sets of the pair satisfy a prescribed test for similarity. The technique assigns labels to at least some nodes to convey whether the nodes are associated abusive network-related activity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Rajvardhan Virendra Oak, Karan Khanna, Vacha Rajendra Dave
  • Patent number: 11962460
    Abstract: An end-to-end service delivery system provides customers representing mobile network and enterprise operators with an online repository for services that are created from virtual network functions, and which are available from multiple service creators and operable across infrastructure underlying the customer's software-defined networking-based mobile network including diverse private, public, and hybrid cloud platforms. The network functions delivery system provides a user interface (UI) exposing a catalog of differentiated services of varying types. When the customer selects a service from the catalog, the service delivery system uses an installation engine to deploy the selected service on the customer's mobile network. The system provides a lifecycle management and orchestration engine that orchestrates the deployed service on an end-to-end basis across domains and network platforms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Sagiv Draznin, Pankaj Goyal, Karthik Ananthakrishnan
  • Patent number: 11960338
    Abstract: An activity smoothener circuit is provided to control rates of change in processing activity to limit di/dt in activity areas of an IC to mitigate voltage droops or overshoots. Controlling the rate of change of activity prevents or reduces instances of a di/dt exceeding a programmed maximum that is based on physical limits of the IC and/or a package. In examples, the activity smoothener circuit includes a hierarchy of smoothening circuits controlling activity in areas down to individual circuit blocks (tiles) including execution circuits. An indication of a desired level of activity is provided to a parent smoothening circuit and the parent smoothening circuit responds with indications of actual activity allowed to occur. At each level of hierarchy, the activity smoothener circuit may use algorithms to generate indications of actual activity based on indications of desired activity and di/dt limits. Di/dt limits and current minimums and maximums are controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Smitha L. Rapaka, Derek E. Gladding, Xiaoling Xu
  • Patent number: 11962549
    Abstract: A method, computer program product, and computer system for placing, by a computing device, a user into a first queue on a first communication channel to converse with a second user. A trigger may be identified for the first communication channel. The user may be sent a self-service option based upon, at least in part, identifying the trigger for the first communication channel, wherein the self-service option is sent on an alternate communication channel while the user is in the first queue.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventor: Eduardo Olvera
  • Patent number: 11960864
    Abstract: The disclosure herein describes generating an application from input content. Input content of a content type is obtained, such as an image file, digital document file, or the like. A content data extractor is selected from a set of content data extractors based on the content type. A set of content entities is extracted from the obtained input content using the selected content data extractor, such as text labels, text boxes, buttons, or the like. The set of content entities are normalized according to a standard interface schema and an application template is generated using the normalized set of content entities, whereby an application can be developed using the generated application template. The disclosure enables application interfaces to be designed using a variety of methods and for those different types of designs to be efficiently converted to a functional application.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.
    Inventors: PalaniRaj Kaliyaperumal, Lily Xinchen Liu, Kuralmani Elango, Kunal Mukerjee
  • Patent number: 11960436
    Abstract: A method of synchronizing system state data is provided. The method includes executing a first processor based on initial state data during an update cycle, wherein the initial state data represents a state of the system prior to initiation of the update cycle, detecting changes in state of the system by the first processor using sensors, the changes in state being added to a record of modified state data until a predefined progress position within the update cycle, designating the modified state data as next state data, based on reaching the predefined progress position within the update cycle, and transitioning from execution of the first processor based on the initial state data to execution of the first processor based on the next state data, based on completion of the update cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Nadav Shlomo Ben-Amram, Netanel Hadad, Liran Biber
  • Patent number: 11961504
    Abstract: A method, computer program product, and computing system for receiving feature-based voice data associated with a first acoustic domain. One or more rate-based augmentations may be performed on at least a portion of the feature-based voice data, thus defining rate-based augmented feature-based voice data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Dushyant Sharma, Patrick A. Naylor
  • Patent number: 11962669
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to utilizing a content service system to improve selecting data sources that are used to retrieve digital content items in response to content requests. For example, in response to receiving a content request, the content service system determines to retrieve content items by either calling a lower-quality data source with lower computing costs based on the request having lower service quality metrics or by calling a higher-quality data source with higher computing-costs based on the request having superior service quality metrics. In many instances, the service quality metric is based on the user characteristics of a user identifier associated with the requesting device. By dynamically determining to utilize different data sources having different computing costs based on service quality metrics, the content service system significantly reduces the total amount of computing costs for retrieving and providing digital content, without hurting the user experience.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: José Carlos Almeida Dos Santos, Naseer Ud Din Ahmed Batt, Prateek Tiwari
  • Patent number: 11962427
    Abstract: Traditionally, meetings are widely utilized in business and personal communications, whether in-person and/or virtual. Organizing such meetings typically involves multiple exchanges of content and messages between users before, during, and after the meeting. In some cases, meetings may occur impromptu and may result in inefficient and unproductive collaboration. A collaboration object configured to enable users to dynamically collaborate before, during, and after a meeting is provided. In aspects, the collaboration object links content generated before, during, and after the meeting in a single location and provides functionality for concurrent multi-user interaction and synchronization of the content across applications. The collaboration object may be available from a variety of application platforms, enabling and persisting real-time editing and collaboration before, during and after the meeting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Shiraz J. Cupala, Eric Hull, Kevin Daniel Morrison, Julia Foran, James Paul Kardos, Jr., Szymon Madejczyk
  • Patent number: 11962908
    Abstract: In one example, a plurality of image frames captured by a digital camera unit are received. Received image frames may be still images or frames of a video sequence. Received image frames are automatically analyzed for detecting a possibility to process a plurality of image frames.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.
    Inventors: Gustaf Pettersson, Johan Windmark
  • Patent number: 11962922
    Abstract: A system for dark current compensation in SPAD imagery is configurable to capture an image frame with the SPAD array and generate a temporally filtered image by performing a temporal filtering operation using the image frame and at least one preceding image frame. The at least one preceding image frame is captured by the SPAD array at a timepoint that temporally precedes a timepoint associated with the image frame. The system is also configurable to obtain a dark current image frame. The dark current image frame includes data indicating one or more SPAD pixels of the plurality of SPAD pixels that detect an avalanche event without detecting a corresponding photon. The system is also configurable to generate a dark current compensated image by performing a subtraction operation on the temporally filtered image or the image frame based on the dark current image frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Raymond Kirk Price, Michael Bleyer, Christopher Douglas Edmonds
  • Patent number: 11960406
    Abstract: Reducing overheads of recording a replayable execution trace of a program's execution at a computer processor by omitting logging of accesses to memory addresses whose values can be reconstructed or predicted. A computer system determines that memory values corresponding to a range of memory addresses within a memory space for a process can be obtained separately from the process' execution, and configures a data structure for instructing a processor to omit logging of memory accesses when the processor accesses an address within this range while executing the process. Correspondingly, upon detecting a memory access while executing the process, the processor determines if it has been instructed to omit logging of the access by checking the data structure. When the data structure instructs the processor to omit logging of the access, the processor omits logging the memory access while it uses a cache to process the memory access.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventor: Jordi Mola
  • Patent number: 11962546
    Abstract: Systems and methods for using a generative artificial intelligence (AI) model to generate a suggested draft reply to a selected message. A message generation system and method are described that use inferred context to improve the suggested draft reply message for the user. Various message data and additional context are obtained and included in a prompt provided to the AI model to improve suggested content. In some examples, the message data and additional context include a message thread history and previously sent messages, profile information of the sender and recipient(s) of the selected message, known relationship information between the sender and the user, etc. For instance, the user's preferred communication style and talking points can be inferred based on the profile data, relationship data, and the user's past communications with similar participants and used to tailor the suggested draft reply to the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Poonam Ganesh Hattangady, Susan Marie Grimshaw, Michael Ivan Borysenko
  • Patent number: 11962456
    Abstract: Example aspects include techniques for employing cross-service diagnostics for cloud service providers. These techniques may include dynamically generating a workflow of one or more diagnostic modules based on relationship information between an origin service experiencing an incident and one or more related services that the origin service depends on, and executing the workflow of one or more diagnostic modules to determine a root cause of the incident, each of the one or more diagnostic modules implemented by an individual service of the one or more related services in accordance with a schema. In addition, the techniques may include determining a diagnostic action based on the root cause, and transmitting, based on the diagnostic action, an engagement notification to a responsible entity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Zhangwei Xu, Xiaofeng Gao, Cary L. Mitchell, Steve J. Lunsman, Tony V. Perez, Arvind Narasimhan
  • Patent number: 11962556
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to an animated notification indicator, which may be used to provide an indication of a notification. The animated notification indicator may be less distracting than displaying the notification itself, while, compared to a static indicator, the animated notification indicator may have a higher likelihood of catching the user's attention. The indicator may be animated for a predetermined amount of time, after which it may transition to a static indicator. Interaction with the indicator may display an associated notification, perform an associated action, or present a notification preview and/or set of quick actions, among other examples. In some instances, a context associated with the user's computing device may be processed by a notification platform, and the notification may thus be determined remotely. As a result, the animated notification indicator may be presented at the user's computing device as a result of such a remote determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Taylor Alexis Guerra, Kyle Matthew Miller, Hariharan Ragunathan
  • Patent number: D1022989
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Timothy G. Escolin, Jazmine Ama Hoyle, Byungkwan Min, Ralf Groene, Panos Costa Panay, Young Soo Kim