Patents Examined by Michael Hicks
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Patent number: 9075706Abstract: An electronic device may include a memory, and a processor coupled to the memory for storing and accessing data in the memory. The processor may arrange the data in a stack data container including values extending from a stack top to a stack bottom, operate the stack data container in first and second modes of operation, and while in the first mode of operation, push and pop a respective value from the stack top of the stack data container. The processor may also while in the second mode, reverse an orientation of the stack data container and the values therein, and push and pop a respective value from the stack bottom of the reversed stack data container.Type: GrantFiled: June 13, 2014Date of Patent: July 7, 2015Inventor: Laurie Dean Perrin
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Patent number: 9069852Abstract: A search for content may be performed. A query may be received from a user who is interacting with a first device. A first collection of content that is stored on the first device may be searched to identify local content that is related to the query. A second collection of content that is stored on a second device may be searched to identify remote content that is related to the query. The second device may be different from the first device and may be accessible through a network. Results that refer to both the identified local content and the identified remote content may be displayed to the user.Type: GrantFiled: October 25, 2006Date of Patent: June 30, 2015Assignee: FACEBOOK, INC.Inventors: Surendra Goel, Thomas E. Donaldson
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Patent number: 9058381Abstract: Methods and systems provide tracking or logging requests to resolve non-existent textual identifiers and classifying the textual identifier into a predefined set of taxonomical categories to support the detection of machine generated textual identifiers. Detection includes calculating a measure of probability based on the analysis and classification of prior textual identifier requests from a set of requests for a specific textual identifier.Type: GrantFiled: August 20, 2010Date of Patent: June 16, 2015Assignee: VERISIGN, INC.Inventor: Matthew Thomas
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Patent number: 9020923Abstract: Graphical user interfaces for searching music. A computer provides a window of a first webpage providing a user interface to search music, comprising search tools including filter tools and a keyword search tool. In response to a user search request for music via the filter tools and/or the keyword search tool, the computer provides, within the window, music search results. When a search result is selected by the user, the selected search result expands within the window. The expanded search result includes one or more of: a grab button, a download button, a share button, a license button, an audio player showing an audio waveform of the selected music search result, a description of the selected music search result, artwork associated with the search result, and an explore-more button, that when selected provides additional music related to the selected music based on acoustic similarity.Type: GrantFiled: June 18, 2012Date of Patent: April 28, 2015Assignee: Score Revolution, LLCInventors: Ian Paul Hierons, Christine Russell, Seth Kaplan
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Patent number: 9015107Abstract: A temporal relational database includes a relational database framework that allows for all the capabilities of a standard relational database with the addition of the concept of time. Transactions, which can be modifications of attribute values or changes to the database schema, can be stored with temporal histories. Through the use of these temporal histories, the temporal database is able to seamlessly respond to queries for times that are in the past, present, or future. Furthermore, transactions can be entered into the temporal relational database that are not effective until some point in the future, thus allowing for seamless migration of the data and schema of a database. Applications that access data in a temporal database may retrieve a time appropriate schema from the temporal database. An exemplary use of a temporal database to manage roles and responsibilities within an organization is described.Type: GrantFiled: December 2, 2008Date of Patent: April 21, 2015Assignee: Oracle International CorporationInventor: Bryan Hughes
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Patent number: 9015111Abstract: Data transfer between storage apparatuses is reduced, and performance of data access of a storage system is improved. In a case where a processor of a first storage apparatus receives a write request from a host computer as a request for data access to a virtual volume and a cache memory of any of the storage apparatuses is not allocated to a virtual storage area in the virtual volume designated by the data access request, the processor of the first storage apparatus selects a second storage apparatus and a third storage apparatus among candidates satisfying a predetermined state condition among the storage apparatuses based on connection information indicating connection between the storage apparatuses through a communication line.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2013Date of Patent: April 21, 2015Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Hirotoshi Akaike, Kazuhisa Fujimoto, Kohei Tatara, Katsuya Tanaka, Makio Mizuno
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Patent number: 9009168Abstract: An on-disk storage arrangement increases the number of persistent consistency point images (PCPIs) that may be maintained for a volume of a storage system. The on-disk storage arrangement comprises a novel volume information (volinfo) block representing a root of the volume; the volinfo block is stored at predefined locations on disk and comprises various system wide configuration data. The volinfo block further comprises a data structure configured to provide a level of indirection that increases the number of PCPIs maintainable by a file system executing on the storage system. To that end, the data structure may be organized as an array of pointers, wherein each pointer references a block containing a snapshot root, thereby enabling efficient access to each PCPI maintained by the file system.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 2012Date of Patent: April 14, 2015Assignee: NetApp, Inc.Inventors: Emily Eng, Andy C. Kahn, John K. Edwards
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Patent number: 9002781Abstract: According to certain embodiments, a set of samples of sensor data is accessed. The set of samples records environmental measurements taken by one or more environmental sensors. A characteristic function is generated from the set of samples. The characteristic function indicates whether a given sample is a member of the set of samples. One or more samples of the set of samples that are associated with a given environmental annotation are identified according to the characteristic function.Type: GrantFiled: August 17, 2010Date of Patent: April 7, 2015Assignee: Fujitsu LimitedInventors: Stergios Stergiou, Jawahar Jain, Yasunori Kimura
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Patent number: 9002835Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus for receiving a natural language query of a user, and environmental data, identifying a media item based on the environmental data, determining an entity type based on the natural language query, selecting an entity associated with the media item that matches the entity type, selecting, from a media consumption database that identifies media items that have been indicated as consumed by the user, one or more media items that have been indicated as consumed by the user and that are associated with the selected entity, and providing a response to the query based on selecting the one or more media items that have been indicated as consumed by the user and that are associated with the selected entity.Type: GrantFiled: October 7, 2013Date of Patent: April 7, 2015Assignee: Google Inc.Inventor: Matthew Sharifi
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Patent number: 9002808Abstract: A method includes registering a web application, which is executable through a web browser, as a default file handler of a particular type of locally-stored files. A computing device provides a file manager interface that is configured to facilitate interaction, by a user, with a local filesystem of the computing device. The file manager interface receives a user selection of a file included in the local filesystem, where the file belongs to the particular type of files. Based on the user's selection, a user selectable action element is provided in the file manager interface to invoke the registered web application to handle the selected file. The file manager interface receives a user selection of the user selectable action element; and in response to the user selection of the user selectable action element the registered web application is automatically invoked to handle the selected file.Type: GrantFiled: May 9, 2012Date of Patent: April 7, 2015Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Kan Liu, Zelidrag Hornung
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Patent number: 9002895Abstract: The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for creating, via a development tool, a unit type for display on a web page in response to a keyword on the web page. A development tool may identify a unit type template for creating a unit type. The unit type may comprise a tooltip for augmenting a keyword on a web page. A user may select, via the development tool, a media block component to add to the unit type. The user may place the media block component on a layout of the unit type. The development tool may generate script code to define the layout of the unit type as a set of cells and rows within a predetermined sized container. The media block component may be placed in a cell and a row of the set of cells and rows. The script code may provide execution direction for rendering media of the media block component while displaying the unit type.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2010Date of Patent: April 7, 2015Assignee: Vibrant Media, Inc.Inventors: Toby Doig, Douglas DeMarco, Robert Hammond
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Patent number: 8990794Abstract: In an embodiment, an approach is provided that differences a source topology model associated with a source platform and a target topology model associated with a target platform. This differencing is performed by a processor and results in a topology difference. An operation in a workflow model is obtained from an asset library, the operation being associated with the topology difference. At least a portion of the asset library is stored in a persistent storage medium. The operation to deploy a portion of a solution is transmitted for deployment. The deployed portion of the solution includes a target image compatible with the target platform.Type: GrantFiled: March 8, 2012Date of Patent: March 24, 2015Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Indrajit Poddar, Yulia Gaponenko, Alexey Miroshkin, Vladislav Ponomarev, Igor Sukharev
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Patent number: 8972339Abstract: Analogies among entities may be detected by obtaining associative counts among the entities and computing similarity measures among given entities and other entities, using the associative counts. First and second entities are then identified as being analogies if the first entity has a strongest similarity measure with respect to the second entity and the second entity also has a strongest similarity measure with respect to the first entity. The similarity measures may be calculated using a normalized entropy inverted among a given entity and other entities.Type: GrantFiled: December 22, 2008Date of Patent: March 3, 2015Assignee: Saffron Technology, Inc.Inventors: Manuel Aparicio, IV, Yen-min Huang, David R. Cabana
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Patent number: 8954385Abstract: Approaches for recovering a node of a distributed transactional system. When a recovering node is being brought on-line, a copy of at least a portion of a first data store maintained by an existing node is created without ceasing to process transactions against the first data store at the existing node. The recovering node creates a second data store based on the copy of the first data store. While the recovering node creates the second data store, the recovering node stores committed transaction data received from a plurality of nodes. The committed transaction data describes transactions committed against data stores maintained by the sender of the committed transaction data. The recovering node may thereafter replay, against the second data store, any transactions identified by the committed transaction data that are associated with a global transaction number that is more recent than is a reference commit number.Type: GrantFiled: June 28, 2011Date of Patent: February 10, 2015Assignee: SanDisk Enterprise IP LLCInventors: Johann George, Darpan Dinker, Manavalan Krishnan, Brian W. O'Krafka
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Patent number: 8949295Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer programs for managing memory in a host where virtual machines (VMs) execute are presented. In one embodiment, a method includes an operation for determining which amount of heap memory has been reserved in a Java virtual machine (JVM) that is in excess of the heap memory needed by the JVM. If there is excess heap memory, a Java balloon agent reserves a Java object in the heap memory. Typically, the Java object will be the size of one or more memory pages in the host. Further, the Java balloon agent loads the Java object with a certain value, for example, by zeroing out the page of memory. When a virtual machine monitor (VMM) in the host detects that a machine physical memory page associated with the Java object has the first value, then the VMM frees the machine physical memory page to make the memory available to other VMs or to other processes executing in the host.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2010Date of Patent: February 3, 2015Assignee: VMware, Inc.Inventors: Richard McDougall, Wei Huang, Ben Corrie
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Patent number: 8930302Abstract: A method for determining the authorship of a picture, wherein the method comprises at least the following steps: —transferring the picture to be examined or parts of the picture to be examined with the aid of a digitizing means, in particular a scanner, into at least one data set, —analyzing the data set(s) and determining characteristic features or parts of characteristic features, in particular dots or lines or dot or line groups or patterns, contained in the data set in digitized form, wherein the characteristic features to be determined are stored in a database, —and wherein the database includes an additional associated data set for each of the stored characteristic features.Type: GrantFiled: May 17, 2010Date of Patent: January 6, 2015Inventor: Werner Scholzen
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Patent number: 8903827Abstract: A method and system to automatically categorize a merchant listing in an electronic marketplace are provided. The method includes parsing the category information submitted by a seller to derive a first category identifier. A first search is performed to locate the first category identifier in a first database containing a listing of category identifiers. If no match is found, the first category identifier is identified as expired or invalid. A second search is performed on a second database that includes mapping information of an expired category identifier to a new category identifier. If a match is found, the first category identifier is assigned as the new category identifier, thereby enabling the listing to be listed in the updated category automatically.Type: GrantFiled: October 29, 2004Date of Patent: December 2, 2014Assignee: eBay Inc.Inventors: Shashi Seth, Brian Johnson, Niraj Kothari, Robin Kennedy
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Patent number: 8903775Abstract: Provided are a method, system, and program for using a heartbeat signal to maintain data consistency for writes to source storage copied to target storage. A copy relationship associates a source storage and target storage pair, wherein writes received at the source storage are transferred to the target storage. A determination is made whether a signal has been received from a system within a receive signal interval. A freeze operation is initiated to cease receiving writes at the source storage from an application in response to determining that the signal has not been received within the receive signal interval. A thaw operation is initiated to continue receiving write operations at the source storage from applications after a lapse of a freeze timeout in response to the freeze operation, wherein after the thaw operation, received writes completed at the source storage are not transferred to the target storage.Type: GrantFiled: March 20, 2012Date of Patent: December 2, 2014Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Todd Benjamin Schlomer, David Randall Blea, Erroll Jay Calder, Gregory Edward McBride
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Patent number: 8880467Abstract: A method of synchronizing data is provided. An embodiment of the method includes receiving, at a server, information identifying a detected user interaction with a device, determining, at the server, a probability that a user will access a service provided by the server using the device at a time, and generating, at the server, a session signature based on the determined probability, wherein the session signature is used by the device to generate refresh requests associated with the service.Type: GrantFiled: June 14, 2010Date of Patent: November 4, 2014Assignee: Google Inc.Inventor: Muthuprasanna Muthusrinivasan
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Patent number: 8880511Abstract: Described are systems and methods relating to database query optimization and query cost estimation. The approach is described in the context of searching balanced and semi-balanced tree indexes such as B-trees, B+ trees, and R-B trees. The described approach may be used for both simple and composite queries, and the described approach may be used for relational queries, i.e., where a variable is less than or greater than a certain value and the database is being used to find the set of records that satisfy the relation. Further, the described approach may be used for generalized N-ary tree queries and cost estimations.Type: GrantFiled: November 26, 2012Date of Patent: November 4, 2014Assignee: TIBCO Software Inc.Inventors: Tom Kim, Firat Kart, Suresh Subramani