Patents by Inventor Howard H. Cheng
Howard H. Cheng 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: 6867781Abstract: A graphics system including a custom graphics and audio processor produces exciting 2D and 3D graphics and surround sound. The system includes a graphics and audio processor including a 3D graphics pipeline and an audio digital signal processor. The graphics pipeline processes graphics commands at different rates depending upon the type of operation being performed. This makes it difficult to synchronize pipeline operations with external operations (e.g., a graphics processor with a main processor). To solve this problem, a synchronization token including a programmable data message is inserted into a graphics command stream sent to a graphics pipeline. At a predetermined point near the bottom of the pipeline, the token is captured and a signal is generated indicated the token has arrived. The graphics command producer can look at the captured token to determine which of multiple possible tokens has been captured, and can use the information to synchronize a task with the graphics pipeline.Type: GrantFiled: November 28, 2000Date of Patent: March 15, 2005Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Farhad Fouladi, Robert Moore, Howard H. Cheng
-
Patent number: 6717577Abstract: In a 3D interactive computer graphics system such as a video game display system, polygon vertex data is fed to a 3D graphics processor/display engine via a vertex cache used to cache and organize indexed primitive vertex data streams. The vertex cache may be a small, low-latency cache memory local to the display engine hardware. Polygons can be represented as indexed arrays, e.g., indexed linear lists of data components representing some feature of a vertex (for example, positions, colors, surface normals, or texture coordinates). The vertex cache can fetch the relevant blocks of indexed vertex attribute data on an as-needed basis to make it available to the display processor—providing spatial locality for display processing without requiring the vertex data to be prestored in display order.Type: GrantFiled: December 17, 1999Date of Patent: April 6, 2004Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventors: Howard H. Cheng, Robert Moore, Farhad Fouladi, Timothy J. Van Hook
-
Patent number: 6643744Abstract: An audio system includes a memory storing audio data and an audio signal processor for processing the audio data. Addressing circuitry addresses the memory and a pre-fetch storage area stores data for a current address and for one or more following addresses to hide memory access latency during address changes of the addressing circuitry.Type: GrantFiled: August 23, 2000Date of Patent: November 4, 2003Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventor: Howard H. Cheng
-
Patent number: 6606689Abstract: A video game system includes an audio digital signal processor, a main memory and an audio memory separate from the main memory and storing audio-related data for processing by the audio digital signal processor. Memory access circuitry reads non-audio-related data stored on a mass storage device and writes the non-audio-related data to the audio memory. The non-audio-related data is later read from the audio memory and written to the main memory.Type: GrantFiled: November 28, 2000Date of Patent: August 12, 2003Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventors: Howard H. Cheng, Dan Shimizu, Genyo Takeda
-
Patent number: 6593929Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system is disclosed that can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation) on the screen of a color television set. The richly featured high performance low cost system is intended to give consumers the change to interact in real time right inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: March 27, 2002Date of Patent: July 15, 2003Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Publication number: 20030080963Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system is disclosed that can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation) on the screen of a color television set.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 27, 2002Publication date: May 1, 2003Applicant: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Patent number: 6556197Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system is disclosed that can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation) on the screen of a color television set. The richly featured high performance low cost system is intended to give consumers the chance to interact in real time right inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: September 18, 2000Date of Patent: April 29, 2003Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics, Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Patent number: 6342892Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation for example) on the screen of a color television set. The richly featured high performance low cost system gives consumers the chance to interact in real time inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: November 5, 1998Date of Patent: January 29, 2002Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics, Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Patent number: 6331856Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation for example) on the screen of a color television set. The richly featured high performance low cost system gives consumers the chance to interact in real time inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: November 22, 1995Date of Patent: December 18, 2001Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics, Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Patent number: 6239810Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation) on the screen of a color television set. The richly featured high performance low cost system gives consumers the chance to interact in real time right inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: February 17, 1999Date of Patent: May 29, 2001Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics, Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato
-
Patent number: 6166748Abstract: A low cost high performance three dimensional (3D) graphics system is disclosed that can model a world in three dimensions and project the model onto a two dimensional viewing plane selected based on a changeable viewpoint. The viewpoint can be changed on an interactive, real time basis by operating user input controls such as game controllers. The system rapidly produces a corresponding changing image (which can include animated cartoon characters or other animation) on the screen of a color television set.The richly featured high performance low cost system is intended to give consumers the chance to interact in real time right inside magnificent virtual 3D worlds to provide a high degree of image realism, excitement and flexibility. An optimum feature set/architecture (including a custom designed graphics/audio coprocessor) provides high quality fast moving 3D images and digital stereo sound for video game play and other graphics applications.Type: GrantFiled: December 12, 1997Date of Patent: December 26, 2000Assignees: Nintendo Co., Ltd., Silicon Graphics Inc.Inventors: Timothy J. Van Hook, Howard H. Cheng, Anthony P. DeLaurier, Carroll P. Gossett, Robert J. Moore, Stephen J. Shepard, Harold S. Anderson, John Princen, Jeffrey C. Doughty, Nathan F. Pooley, Byron Sheppard, Genyo Takeda, Shuhei Kato