Patents by Inventor Alistair Knox

Alistair Knox has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230309549
    Abstract: Described herein is a deterrence system for deterring animals from a vicinity of an environment monitoring apparatus, the system includes: a detector system having at least one sensor configured to generate a presence signal indicative of the presence of an object within a predefined vicinity of the environment monitoring apparatus; a deterrence processing system; and a repulsion system, wherein the deterrence processing system is configured to: monitor the presence signal; determine, from the presence signal, the presence of an object within the predefined vicinity of the environment monitoring apparatus; and communicate a command for the repulsion system to perform a sequence of one or more repulsion events actions in response to determining that an object is present, and wherein the repulsion system is configured to: perform one or more repulsion events responsive to receipt of the command from the deterrence processing system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 16, 2021
    Publication date: October 5, 2023
    Inventors: Alistair Knox, Victor Depoorter Ruelle
  • Publication number: 20080025696
    Abstract: Enhancements to a video anticopying process that causes an abnormally low amplitude video signal to be recorded on an illegal copy. The enhancements in one version introduce into the overscan portion of the television picture, just prior to the horizontal or vertical sync signals but in active video, a negative going waveform that appears to the television receiver or videotape recorder to be a sync signal, thereby causing an early horizontal or vertical retrace. One version provides (in the right overscan portion of the picture), a checker pattern of alternating gray and black areas which causes the TV set on which the illegal copy is played to horizontally retrace earlier than normal in selected lines with a consequential horizontal shift of the picture information on those lines. This substantially degrades picture viewability. In another version a gray pattern at the bottom overscan portion of the picture causes vertical picture instability.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 10, 2007
    Publication date: January 31, 2008
    Inventors: Peter Wonfor, Alistair Knox, Jeremy Corcoran, John Ryan, Ronald QUAN
  • Publication number: 20070211898
    Abstract: Enhancements to a video anticopying process that causes an abnormally low amplitude video signal to be recorded on an illegal copy. The enhancements in one version introduce into the overscan portion of the television picture, just prior to the horizontal or vertical sync signals but in active video, a negative going waveform that appears to the television receiver or videotape recorder to be a sync signal, thereby causing an early horizontal or vertical retrace. One version provides (in the right overscan portion of the picture), a checker pattern of alternating gray and black areas which causes the TV set on which the illegal copy is played to horizontally retrace earlier than normal in selected lines with a consequential horizontal shift of the picture information on those lines. This substantially degrades picture viewability. In another version a gray pattern at the bottom overscan portion of the picture causes vertical picture instability.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2007
    Publication date: September 13, 2007
    Inventors: Peter Wonfor, Alistair Knox, Jeremy Corcoran, John Ryan, Ronald Quan
  • Publication number: 20070211899
    Abstract: Enhancements to a video anticopying process that causes an abnormally low amplitude video signal to be recorded on an illegal copy. The enhancements in one version introduce into the overscan portion of the television picture, just prior to the horizontal or vertical sync signals but in active video, a negative going waveform that appears to the television receiver or videotape recorder to be a sync signal, thereby causing an early horizontal or vertical retrace. One version provides (in the right overscan portion of the picture), a checker pattern of alternating gray and black areas which causes the TV set on which the illegal copy is played to horizontally retrace earlier than normal in selected lines with a consequential horizontal shift of the picture information on those lines. This substantially degrades picture viewability. In another version a gray pattern at the bottom overscan portion of the picture causes vertical picture instability.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2007
    Publication date: September 13, 2007
    Inventors: Peter Wonfor, Alistair Knox, Jeremy Corcoran, John Ryan, Ronald Quan
  • Publication number: 20070206794
    Abstract: Enhancements to a video anticopying process that causes an abnormally low amplitude video signal to be recorded on an illegal copy. In one version, positive going pulses are added to the video signal. The enhancements in one version introduce into the overscan portion of the television picture, just prior to the horizontal or vertical sync signals but in active video, a negative going waveform that appears to the television receiver or videotape recorder to be a sync signal, thereby causing an early horizontal or vertical retrace. One version provides (in the right overscan portion of the picture), a checker pattern of alternating gray and black areas which causes the TV set on which the illegal copy is played to horizontally retrace earlier than normal in selected lines with a consequential horizontal shift of the picture information on those lines. This substantially degrades picture viewability.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2007
    Publication date: September 6, 2007
    Inventors: Peter Wonfor, Alistair Knox, Jeremy Corcoran, John Ryan, Ronald Quan
  • Publication number: 20060045266
    Abstract: Enhancements to a video anticopying process that causes an abnormally low amplitude video signal to be recorded on a illegal copy. The enhancement in one version include a negative going waveform that appears to the television receiver or videotape recorder to be a sync signal, thereby causing an early horizontal or vertical retrace. In another version, selected horizontal sync pulses are narrowed, causing irregular vertical retraces. In another version, post-pseudo sync pulses that have a minimum level above the minimum level of sync pulses are added to enhance anti-copy effectiveness. The post pseudo-sync pulses may be amplitude modulated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2005
    Publication date: March 2, 2006
    Applicant: MACROVISION CORPORATION
    Inventors: Peter Wonfor, Alistair Knox, Jeremy Corcoran, John Ryan, Ronald Quan