Patents by Inventor John Robson

John Robson 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: 20120042135
    Abstract: Architectures and methods for viewing data in multiple formats within a register file. Various disclosed embodiments allow a plurality of consecutive registers within one register file to appear to be temporarily transposed by one instruction, such that each transposed register contains one byte or word from multiple consecutive registers. A program can arbitrarily reorganize the bytes within a register by swapping the value stored in any byte within the register with the value stored in any other byte within the same register. Indirect register access is also provided, without additional scoreboarding hardware, as an apparent move from one register to another. The functionality of a hardware data FIFO at the I/O is also provided, without the power consumption of register-to-register transfers. However, the size of the FIFO can be changed under program control.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2010
    Publication date: February 16, 2012
    Applicant: 3DLabs Inc. Ltd.
    Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, John Robson, Nick Murphy
  • Publication number: 20080082799
    Abstract: An architecture for microprocessors and the like in which instructions include a type identifier, which selects one of several interpretation registers. The interpretation registers hold information for interpreting the opcode of each instruction, so that a stream of compressed instructions (with type identifiers) can be translated into a stream of expanded instructions. Preferably the type identifiers also distinguish sequencer instructions from processing-element instructions, and can even distinguish among different types of sequencer instructions (as well as among different types of processing-element instructions).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2006
    Publication date: April 3, 2008
    Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, John Robson, Nick Murphy
  • Publication number: 20080082798
    Abstract: Architectures and methods for viewing data in multiple formats within a register file. Various disclosed embodiments allow a plurality of consecutive registers within one register file to appear to be temporarily transposed by one instruction, such that each transposed register contains one byte or word from multiple consecutive registers. A program can arbitrarily reorganize the bytes within a register by swapping the value stored in any byte within the register with the value stored in any other byte within the same register. Indirect register access is also provided, without additional scoreboarding hardware, as an apparent move from one register to another. The functionality of a hardware data FIFO at the I/O is also provided, without the power consumption of register-to-register transfers. However, the size of the FIFO can be changed under program control.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2006
    Publication date: April 3, 2008
    Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, John Robson, Nick Murphy
  • Publication number: 20070257492
    Abstract: A self-supporting, submersible generating plant for producing electricity from ocean currents, consisting of two counter-rotating, rear-facing turbines with a plurality of rotor blades extending radially outward from two separate horizontal axis that convey the kinetic energy from the two side-by-side, counter-rotating turbine rotors through separate gearboxes to separate generators that are housed in two watertight nacelles that are located sufficiently far apart to provide clearance for the turbine rotors. The two generators and their gearboxes serve as ballast and are located far below a streamlined buoyancy tank that extends fore and aft above and between them. A combination of a leverage system and a pressure-controlled system adjusts the hydrodynamic lifting forces to maintain constant depths. There are systems to purge the ballast water to facilitate the recovery of both individual submersible power plants and a group of many submersible power plants.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2006
    Publication date: November 8, 2007
    Inventor: John Robson
  • Patent number: 6008819
    Abstract: An information retrieval device displays portions of a dynamically modifiable document requested by a user. The information retrieval device has a controller connected to a display screen, input selector switches, such as buttons, and memory, such as non-volatile flash memory. One or more documents, such as a newspaper or magazine, is stored in the memory. A receiver, such as a pager, modem, or FM radio receiver, is connected to and dynamically updates the memory. When the device is turned on, a first portion of a document is displayed on a display screen. When the user wants to see a different portion of the document, or a different document altogether, she presses one of the buttons. Upon detection that a button was enabled, an action is performed that changes the display on the display screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 28, 1999
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Christopher John Robson, Gregory John May
  • Patent number: 5560093
    Abstract: Apparatus for posting notices comprises a sleeve member which is attached around a conventional utility pole such as a lamp standard. The sleeve member has a cross section, general polygonal, to closely surround the outside surface of the post at a position spaced from the ground for reading of notices posted on the sleeve member by the public. The sleeve member is attached by a pair of clamping bands at the top and bottom and has projecting rings at the top, center and bottom supporting the inside surface of the sleeve member away from the outside surface of the post to allow staples to pass through the paper notice, through the plastics material of the sleeve member and into the space between the metal post and the sleeve member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 1995
    Date of Patent: October 1, 1996
    Inventors: Stanley C. Hutton, Edward Setek, John A. Robson
  • Patent number: 4771707
    Abstract: A fume incineration system for an industrial process site such as a paint-drying oven (10) producing a combustible effluent. A first duct system (34, 38, 42) conveys effluent to the incinerator (14). A second duct system (44, 48) conveys incinerated effluent back to the site. A third duct system (52, 56) conveys part of the incinerated effluent to an atmospheric vent (57). Control dampers (50, 74) in the duct systems operate sequentially to handle temperature changes, and control damper (84) controls system air flow balance. All ducts and thermal devices except the incinerator are located in an insulated housing (12). A thermal incinerator (14) having an internal preheater comprising an annular tube bundle is disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 1984
    Date of Patent: September 20, 1988
    Assignee: Haden Schweitzer Corporation
    Inventors: John Robson, Maximilian K. Carthew
  • Patent number: 4460331
    Abstract: A fume incineration system for an industrial process site such as a paint-drying oven (10) producing a combustible effluent. A first duct system (34, 38, 42) conveys effluent to the incinerator (14). A second duct system (44, 48) conveys incinerated effluent back to the site. A third duct system (52, 56) conveys part of the incinerated effluent to an atmospheric vent (57). Control dampers (50, 74) in the duct systems operate sequentially to handle temperature changes, and control damper (84) controls system air flow balance. All ducts and thermal devices except the incinerator are located in an insulated housing (12). A thermal incinerator (14) having an internal preheater comprising an annular tube bundle is disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 1983
    Date of Patent: July 17, 1984
    Assignee: Haden Schweitzer Corporation
    Inventors: John Robson, Maximilian K. Carthew
  • Patent number: 4021972
    Abstract: An air supported multi-wall insulated structure formed of a flexible impermeable, impervious or imperforate wall and a permeable, pervious or perforate wall defining juxtaposed cavities or compartments between the walls, filled with insulating material such as particulate expanded polystyrene material and the process of inflating the envelope and then filling the compartments with the insulating material by blowing the same into place. In certain embodiments, the perforate wall forms the inner wall. In another embodiment it forms the outer wall. In still another embodiment the impermeable wall is the central wall and perforate walls are on both sides of the impermeable wall. In still another embodiment the central and outer walls are impermeable, forming the air space and the inner wall is perforate and contains the insulating material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 1975
    Date of Patent: May 10, 1977
    Inventors: James Edwin Choate, John Robson Hall