Patents by Inventor Ernest Stern

Ernest Stern 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).

  • Patent number: 6879307
    Abstract: A micromechanical panel display driver is shown in which only one driver and control bus are needed for each color. Furthermore, the elements are made with uniform film thicknesses, thereby minimizing the number of steps needed to fabricate the display. Here 6 bits are provided with temporal and aperture weighting. The use of temporal weighting generally requires the activation of most pixels twice/frame, which consumes considerable power. It should also be possible to eliminate temporal weighting by redistributing the contact area into a larger number of aperture weights and by adding a row electrode. Here pixels are activated only in response to a charge in the image. This generally reduces the drive power, since many pixels in a typical image do not change from frame to frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2005
    Inventor: Ernest Stern
  • Patent number: 5771321
    Abstract: The invention provides an optical coupling switch and flat panel display including an array of such optical coupling switches. The optical coupling switch includes a light storage plate adapted to set up conditions for total internal reflection such that light injected into the plate is internally reflected. A light tap is disposed proximal to a coupling surface of the light storage plate for coupling internally reflected light out of the light storage plate and into the light tap when the light tap is brought into contact with the light storage plate coupling surface. The light tap is capable of movement in a direction perpendicular to the light storage plate in response to an applied electrostatic force. The optical coupling switch includes a scattering mechanism, such as a scattering surface or scattering medium, for scattering light in the light tap into a viewing volume.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 23, 1998
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventor: Ernest Stern
  • Patent number: 4075706
    Abstract: A continuously programmable matched filter device using a piezoelectric substrate capable of propagating acoustic wave signals on a selected surface thereof and a semiconductor substrate mounted adjacent and spaced from such surface. Means are provided for altering the conductivity pattern in the semiconductor substrate in accordance with the wave form of a reference wave signal so that a representation of the reference wave is effectively stored therein. Storage of the reference is achieved with electrostatic charge by supplying a plurality of electrons in the spatial region between the substrates or by manipulating the carriers in the semiconductor material into trapping states in order to produce such altered conductivity pattern. A second signal can thereupon be propagated along the piezoelectric substrate to interact with the stored reference conductivity pattern to provide either correlation or convolution operation depending on the direction of propagation thereof along the piezoelectric surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 1976
    Date of Patent: February 21, 1978
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Ernest Stern, Richard C. Williamson, Henry I. Smith
  • Patent number: 4066984
    Abstract: A surface acoustic wave device utilizing a piezoelectric substrate capable of propagating traveling acoustic waves along a surface thereof and a semiconductive substrate positioned adjacent such surface, the latter substrate having an array of Schottky diodes and associated islands of highly resistive material, such as polycrystalline silicon material, disposed in the surface thereof opposite the piezoelectric substrate to form an interaction region. Application of a signal uniformly over the interaction region will charge the diodes uniformly and an acoustic wave traveling along a selected surface of the piezoelectric substrate will interact with the uniformly applied signal to alter the charging pattern of the Schottky diode array in accordance therewith to produce a corresponding altered conductivity pattern stored in the semiconductor substrate and representing the interaction of the uniformly applied signal and the traveling wave signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 1976
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1978
    Inventors: Ernest Stern, Kjell A. Ingebrigtsen
  • Patent number: 4055758
    Abstract: A continuously programmable matched filter device using a piezoelectric substrate capable of propagating acoustic wave signals on a selected surface thereof and a semiconductor substrate mounted adjacent and spaced from such surface. Means are provided for altering the conductivity pattern in the semiconductor substrate in accordance with the wave form of a reference wave signal so that a representation of the reference wave is effectively stored therein. Storage of the reference is achieved with electrostatic charge by supplying a plurality of electrons in the spatial region between the substrates or by manipulating the carriers in the semiconductor material into trapping states in order to produce such altered conductivity pattern. A second signal can thereupon be propagated along the piezoelectric substrate to interact with the stored reference conductivity pattern to provide either correlation or convolution operation depending on the direction of propagation thereof along the piezoelectric surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 1976
    Date of Patent: October 25, 1977
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Ernest Stern, Richard C. Williamson, Abraham Bers, John H. Cafarella
  • Patent number: 4016412
    Abstract: A continuously programmable matched filter device using a piezoelectric substrate capable of propagating acoustic wave signals on a selected surface thereof and a semiconductor substrate mounted adjacent and spaced from such surface. Means are provided for altering the conductivity pattern in the semiconductor substrate in accordance with the wave form of a reference wave signal so that a representation of the reference wave is effectively stored therein. Storage of the reference is achieved with electrostatic charge by supplying a plurality of electrons in the spatial region between the substrates or by manipulating the carriers in the semiconductor material into trapping states in order to produce such altered conductivity pattern. A second signal can thereupon be propagated along the piezoelectric substrate to interact with the stored reference conductivity pattern to provide either correlation or convolution operation depending on the direction of propagation thereof along the piezoelectric surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 1975
    Date of Patent: April 5, 1977
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Ernest Stern, Richard C. Williamson