Patents by Inventor Donald Franks

Donald Franks 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: 20240151502
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a shooting target system comprised of a target body with at least one recording area and at least one target. The target may be a plurality of target styles for practice shooting, competition shooting, firearm zeroing, etc. The body may also have at least one recording area that allows a user to record relevant information related to the environment, firearm, bullet, and optic factors while shooting the target. The system may also include a method of zeroing a firearm shooting the system and a method of target shooting with the system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2023
    Publication date: May 9, 2024
    Inventor: Donald Frank Holmes, SR.
  • Publication number: 20230405456
    Abstract: A computing system described herein is configured to obtain a video of a video game being played by a video game player, where an esports competition includes play of the video game by the video game player. The computing system is additionally configured to identify, in the video and through use of machine vision technologies, occurrence of an event in the video game depicted in the video, where the machine vision technologies have been trained to detect occurrences of the event in videos, and further where an outcome of the esports competition is based upon the occurrence of the event in the video game. The computing system is additionally configured to output a value that is indicative of the occurrence of the event in the video game depicted in the video, where a score for the video game player is updated in the esports competition based upon the value that is indicative of the occurrence of the event in the video game depicted in the video.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 2, 2023
    Publication date: December 21, 2023
    Inventors: Willie OWENS, Nathan WELCH, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Patent number: 11752427
    Abstract: A computing system obtains a video of a video game being played, where an esports competition includes play of the video game by a video game player. The computing system identifies, in the video and through use of machine vision technologies, occurrence of an event in the video game depicted in the video, where the machine vision technologies have been trained to detect occurrences of the event in videos, and further where an outcome of the esports competition is based upon the occurrence of the event in the video game. The computing system also outputs a value that is indicative of the occurrence of the event in the video game depicted in the video, where a score for the video game player is updated in the esports competition based upon the value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Willie Owens, Nathan Welch, Donald Frank Brinkman, Jr.
  • Publication number: 20220379203
    Abstract: A computing system described herein is configured to obtain a video of a video game being played by a video game player, where an esports competition includes play of the video game by the video game player. The computing system is additionally configured to identify, in the video and through use of machine vision technologies, occurrence of an event in the video game depicted in the video, where the machine vision technologies have been trained to detect occurrences of the event in videos, and further where an outcome of the esports competition is based upon the occurrence of the event in the video game. The computing system is additionally configured to output a value that is indicative of the occurrence of the event in the video game depicted in the video, where a score for the video game player is updated in the esports competition based upon the value that is indicative of the occurrence of the event in the video game depicted in the video.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2021
    Publication date: December 1, 2022
    Inventors: Willie OWENS, Nathan WELCH, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Publication number: 20220355212
    Abstract: A computing system is described herein, where the computing system is configured to perform a search over a computer-readable index based upon a query for a user. The computer-readable index includes an identifier for a livestream video that is currently being livestreamed by way of a livestreaming service and values for respective attributes of the livestream video. The values for the respective attributes are updated as content of the livestream video alters over time. The livestream video is identified from amongst several livestream videos based upon the search, where the video is identified due to a set of values specified in the query corresponding to the values for the respective attributes in the computer-readable index. Upon the livestream video being identified, an identifier of the livestream video is transmitted to a client computing device of the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 10, 2021
    Publication date: November 10, 2022
    Inventors: Brandon James LOUDEN, Mansi VERMA, Abebe Tadesse BIRU, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Patent number: 11458405
    Abstract: A method, at a server computer, for verifying the results of an electronic game includes obtaining a unique identifier from a client device running a game application. The server computer then receives, from the client device, video information in a real-time video stream. The video information is evaluated at the server computer using a machine learning model to identify a virtual object in a first frame of the video information and identify the virtual object in a second frame of the video information. The method also includes determining a change in the virtual object between the first frame and the second frame and comparing the change to one or more rules of a ruleset. The method includes determining a legality of the change in the virtual object based at least partially on the ruleset. If an illegal event is identified, the change is presented to a moderator for review.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Nathan Henry Welch, Donald Frank Brinkman
  • Patent number: 11443512
    Abstract: A method of presenting video information to a user includes, at a server computer, obtaining video information including a plurality of frame from a real-time video stream of an electronic game and obtaining ML model data. The method includes determining a presence of at least one event in the video information using a ML model and the ML model data to identify the at least one event. Upon receiving a query from a user for the presence of the at least on event in the video information, the method includes denoting a presence of the at least one event in the video information associated with at least one frame of the plurality of frames of the video information and presenting to the user a visual representation of the at least one frame of the plurality of frames of the video information associated with the at least one event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Yash Vesikar, Varun Varshney, Donald Frank Brinkman
  • Publication number: 20220171819
    Abstract: A method of selectively providing different types of search engine results to different searchers is provided. A browsing history for each of a plurality of unique identities is logged. A unique identity is associated with a rich segment experience responsive to the browsing history for the unique identity satisfying correlation criteria of the rich segment experience. The rich segment experience is configured to present curated segment-specific information with other search results on a search result web page. Responsive to receiving a search query from the unique identity previously associated with the rich segment experience, the rich segment experience is presented with other search results on the search result web page. Responsive to receiving the search query from a different unique identity not previously associated with the rich segment experience, other search results are presented without the rich segment experience on the search result web page.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2022
    Publication date: June 2, 2022
    Inventors: Aman SINGHAL, Marcelo Medeiros DE BARROS, Prithvishankar SRINIVASAN, Max ARTEMOV, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Patent number: 11281733
    Abstract: A method of selectively providing different types of search engine results to different searchers is provided. A browsing history for each of a plurality of unique identities is logged. A unique identity is associated with a rich segment experience responsive to the browsing history for the unique identity satisfying correlation criteria of the rich segment experience. The rich segment experience is configured to present curated segment-specific information with other search results on a search result web page. Responsive to receiving a search query from the unique identity previously associated with the rich segment experience, the rich segment experience is presented with other search results on the search result web page. Responsive to receiving the search query from a different unique identity not previously associated with the rich segment experience, other search results are presented without the rich segment experience on the search result web page.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2022
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Aman Singhal, Marcelo Medeiros De Barros, Prithvishankar Srinivasan, Max Artemov, Donald Frank Brinkman, Jr.
  • Publication number: 20220015849
    Abstract: A surgical system includes a dynamic preload tension feature for a tensioning element that actuates a distal end component of a surgical instrument. The surgical instrument includes a chassis at a proximal end of the surgical instrument, drive components mounted in the chassis, a distal end component at a distal end of the surgical instrument, a flexible tensioning element coupled between a first of the drive components and the distal end component, and a dynamic preload tensioner mounted in the chassis and coupled to a second of the drive components. The flexible tensioning element extends along a path. The dynamic preload tensioner is configured to be driven by the second of the drive components to be moved relative to the chassis and is positioned to change the path of the flexible tensioning element as the dynamic preload tensioner moves relative to the chassis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2021
    Publication date: January 20, 2022
    Inventors: Matthew Aaron Wixey, William Burbank, Thomas Grosvenor Cooper, Patrick Flanagan, Nicholas H. Ragosta, Donald Frank Wilson, Jr.
  • Patent number: 11170819
    Abstract: Described herein is a mechanism for creating a dynamic video highlight from a plurality of video segments. A metadata collection agent collects metadata comprising attributes about a video, segments within the video where one or more events occur, attributes about the creator of the video and so forth. The metadata is collected and used to create highlight video definitions comprising a set of metadata attribute-value pairs. The highlight video definitions can be created in an interactive fashion by presenting a user interface allowing selection of a combination of attribute-value pairs to include/exclude segments from the definition and/or manual selection of custom segments. The highlight video definitions can be stored and/or shared among users. The video highlight definitions are utilized to instantiate one or more video players to play the video segments in an identified order without assembling the video segments into a separate video.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Donald Frank Brinkman, Jr., Suvamsh Shivaprasad, Max Artemov, Lenin Ravindranath Sivalingam, Matthai Philipose, Peter Bodik
  • Patent number: 11160625
    Abstract: A surgical system includes a dynamic preload tension feature for a tensioning element that actuates a distal end component of a surgical instrument. The surgical instrument includes a chassis at a proximal end of the surgical instrument, drive components mounted in the chassis, a distal end component at a distal end of the surgical instrument, a flexible tensioning element coupled between a first of the drive components and the distal end component, and a dynamic preload tensioner mounted in the chassis and coupled to a second of the drive components. The flexible tensioning element extends along a path. The dynamic preload tensioner is configured to be driven by the second of the drive components to be moved relative to the chassis and is positioned to change the path of the flexible tensioning element as the dynamic preload tensioner moves relative to the chassis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2021
    Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.
    Inventors: Matthew Aaron Wixey, William Burbank, Thomas Grosvenor Cooper, Patrick Flanagan, Nicholas H. Ragosta, Donald Frank Wilson, Jr.
  • Patent number: 10918387
    Abstract: A surgical instrument having an elongated shaft having a shaft distal end and a shaft proximal end. An end effector is coupled to the shaft distal end and includes opposed jaws. A housing is included in one of the jaws, the housing having a housing proximal end, a housing distal end, an upper surface, a distal garage having lateral surfaces that extend above the upper surface, and a plurality of staple openings extending through the upper surface. A knife member is supported within the housing for movement distally. The knife member is moveable into a predetermined parked position such that a first portion of the cutting blade displaces below the upper surface and a second portion remains displaced above the upper surface. There is enough lateral clearance in the predetermined parked position between the lateral faces and the second portion to accommodate a dislodged staple.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2021
    Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.
    Inventors: Grant Duque, Thomas N. McNamara, Jeffrey A. Smith, Bennie Thompson, Ashley Wellman, Donald Frank Wilson, Jr.
  • Publication number: 20210004131
    Abstract: Described herein is a user interface and method for playback of a highlight video comprising a plurality of video segments. The user interface has one or more of: 1) an area for displaying playback of video; 2) a plurality of segment sections each representing a corresponding video segment that can be viewed by a user, each segment section being visually separated from other video segments so that a user can visually discern where one segment section ends, and another segment section begins; 3) caption information that describes a currently selected video segment; 4) icons that represent events in a video segment displayed in proximity to the corresponding segment section; and 5) controls that are tailored to allow a user to interact with playback of a video segment, toggle between playback of the entire video containing the segment and the segment itself.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 1, 2019
    Publication date: January 7, 2021
    Inventors: Varun VARSHNEY, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Publication number: 20200365188
    Abstract: Described herein is a mechanism for creating a dynamic video highlight from a plurality of video segments. A metadata collection agent collects metadata comprising attributes about a video, segments within the video where one or more events occur, attributes about the creator of the video and so forth. The metadata is collected and used to create highlight video definitions comprising a set of metadata attribute-value pairs. The highlight video definitions can be created in an interactive fashion by presenting a user interface allowing selection of a combination of attribute-value pairs to include/exclude segments from the definition and/or manual selection of custom segments. The highlight video definitions can be stored and/or shared among users. The video highlight definitions are utilized to instantiate one or more video players to play the video segments in an identified order without assembling the video segments into a separate video.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 14, 2019
    Publication date: November 19, 2020
    Inventors: Donald Frank Brinkman, JR., Suvamsh Shivaprasad, Max Artemov, Lenin Ravindranath Sivalingam, Matthai Philipose, Peter Bodik
  • Publication number: 20200293586
    Abstract: A method of selectively providing different types of search engine results to different searchers is provided. A browsing history for each of a plurality of unique identities is logged. A unique identity is associated with a rich segment experience responsive to the browsing history for the unique identity satisfying correlation criteria of the rich segment experience. The rich segment experience is configured to present curated segment-specific information with other search results on a search result web page. Responsive to receiving a search query from the unique identity previously associated with the rich segment experience, the rich segment experience is presented with other search results on the search result web page. Responsive to receiving the search query from a different unique identity not previously associated with the rich segment experience, other search results are presented without the rich segment experience on the search result web page.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2019
    Publication date: September 17, 2020
    Applicant: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Aman SINGHAL, Marcelo Medeiros DE BARROS, Prithvishankar SRINIVASAN, Max ARTEMOV, Donald Frank BRINKMAN, JR.
  • Patent number: 10644338
    Abstract: A highly efficient combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) system is capable of providing 100% utilization of an energy generator used by the system by distributing thermal and electrical outputs of the energy generator to loads and/or other storage apparatuses. The CCHP system includes an energy generator, which can be a fuel cell and a waste heat recovery unit that assists in recovering thermal energy from the energy generator and returning it to the energy generator, and/or providing it to a thermal load, or a storage as needed or desired.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Assignee: Combined Energies LLC
    Inventors: Rhonda Lee Staudt, Donald Frank Rohr, John Anthony Vogel
  • Publication number: 20200082017
    Abstract: Systems and methods for programmatic representation of natural language patterns are disclosed. A method includes accessing, via an electronic transmission, a text in a natural language. The method includes identifying, based on a plurality of stored natural language patterns residing in a data repository, one or more word groups within the text, each word group corresponding to at least one stored natural language pattern, each stored natural language pattern corresponding to a grammatical part of speech or a word-phrase type in the natural language. The method includes providing an output representing the identified one or more word groups and the at least one stored natural language pattern corresponding to each of the identified one or more word groups.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 12, 2018
    Publication date: March 12, 2020
    Inventors: Daniel Isaiah Vann, Donald Frank Brinkman, JR., Kenneth Max Brooks, Johnathan Gilbert Cocks, Jessica Eleanor Eggerth, Alex Entrikin, Chelsea A. Fesik, Hannah Victoria Trepte, Spencer Alan Wilkerson
  • Patent number: D921131
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: Wellness Integration Tools Co.
    Inventors: Joel Donald Frank, Kristin Jamieson
  • Patent number: D924340
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Wellness Integration Tools Co.
    Inventors: Joel Donald Frank, Kristin Jamieson