Patents by Inventor Robert Keith John Withey
Robert Keith John Withey 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).
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Patent number: 11759712Abstract: A method of data storage includes associating delta colour compression DCC metadata with one or more tiles of graphics data, selecting one or more such tiles that are uniform in colour and hence can be accurately represented by the DCC metadata for that tile, and replacing some or all of the graphics data in one or more selected tiles with different data.Type: GrantFiled: January 21, 2021Date of Patent: September 19, 2023Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Robert Keith John Withey, Patrick John Connor
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Patent number: 11611729Abstract: A display system for use in a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes a light emissive display, a sensor operable to detect the position of an attachment member of a cone, relative to the light emissive display, and a positioning processor operable to position images, which have been distorted by an inverse of the distortion caused by the reflection of the cone, responsive to the detected position of the cone relative to the light emissive display.Type: GrantFiled: January 17, 2020Date of Patent: March 21, 2023Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Fabio Cappello, Robert Keith John Withey, Nicola Penny Ann Cavalla, Hsinpei Yang
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Patent number: 11449071Abstract: A system includes: a receiving unit configured to wirelessly receive a modulated electromagnetic signal leaked by a mains power line, the mains power line carrying a modulated alternating current signal, a demodulator configured to demodulate the modulated electromagnetic signal and extract one or more data signals from the demodulated electromagnetic signal, a processor configured to generate control data based on the one or more data signals, a control unit configured to control one or more actuators based on the control data, a processor configured to generate control data for controlling one or more actuators, and a modulator configured to modulate an alternating current signal of a mains power line using the generated control data to create a modulated alternating current signal, thereby causing the mains power line to leak a modulated electromagnetic signal comprising the control data that is wirelessly detectable.Type: GrantFiled: April 24, 2019Date of Patent: September 20, 2022Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Robert Keith John Withey
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Patent number: 11335220Abstract: A cone for use in a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes a conical wall of semi-reflective material, and an attachment member for removably attaching the cone to the surface of a light emissive display, and a method of displaying a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes positioning a cone of semi-reflective material onto a light emissive display; and displaying on the light emissive display an image that has been distorted by an inverse of a distortion caused by a reflection of the cone.Type: GrantFiled: January 17, 2020Date of Patent: May 17, 2022Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Fabio Cappello, Robert Keith John Withey, Nicola Penny Ann Cavalla, Hsinpei Yang
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Patent number: 11114894Abstract: A charging apparatus for wireless charging of one or more robotic devices includes a power transmitting unit having a plurality of conducting wires each configured to carry a respective alternating current signal and to generate a time-varying magnetic flux when the conducting wire carries the alternating current signal, a processor configured to detect a presence or an absence of an induction coil of a robotic device within a predetermined distance of a conducting wire and to generate control data based on the result of the detection, and a control unit configured to control at least one of an amplitude and a frequency of each respective alternating current signal supplied to each of the conducting wires based on the control data, where the control unit is configured to increase at least one of an amplitude and a frequency of an alternating current signal supplied to a conducting wire in response to control data indicating the presence of the induction coil within the predetermined distance of the conductingType: GrantFiled: May 21, 2019Date of Patent: September 7, 2021Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Oliver George Hume, Robert Keith John Withey, Michael Eder
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Publication number: 20210236938Abstract: A method of data storage includes associating delta colour compression DCC metadata with one or more tiles of graphics data, selecting one or more such tiles that are uniform in colour and hence can be accurately represented by the DCC metadata for that tile, and replacing some or all of the graphics data in one or more selected tiles with different data.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 21, 2021Publication date: August 5, 2021Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Robert Keith John Withey, Patrick John Connor
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Patent number: 10974459Abstract: A flood-fill method for parallel implementation includes the steps of receiving an image including first elements having a flood fill source colour to be replaced with a flood fill target colour, and second elements not having the flood fill source colour; dividing the image according to a hierarchical space-partitioning scheme to form cells at a plurality of levels in the hierarchy; detecting the occupancy of each cell by second elements; for any cell having no occupancy by second elements, set a depth elevation value for child cells of that cell to be one greater than the value for that cell, indicating that the flood fill shall navigate levels towards a root cell by the depth elevation amount of a cell whilst only occupying nodes without any second elements, thereby reaching the largest parent cell which can be flood-filled; and filling the flood fill source colour of cells having no occupancy by second elements with the flood fill target colour, thereby modifying the received image.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 2019Date of Patent: April 13, 2021Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Robert Keith John Withey, Andrew James Bigos
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Publication number: 20200236330Abstract: A display system for use in a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes a light emissive display, a sensor operable to detect the position of an attachment member of a cone, relative to the light emissive display, and a positioning processor operable to position images, which have been distorted by an inverse of the distortion caused by the reflection of the cone, responsive to the detected position of the cone relative to the light emissive display.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 17, 2020Publication date: July 23, 2020Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Fabio Cappello, Robert Keith John Withey, Nicola Penny Ann Cavalla, Hsinpei Yang
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Publication number: 20200234618Abstract: A cone for use in a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes a conical wall of semi-reflective material, and an attachment member for removably attaching the cone to the surface of a light emissive display, and a method of displaying a Pepper's Ghost illusion includes positioning a cone of semi-reflective material onto a light emissive display; and displaying on the light emissive display an image that has been distorted by an inverse of a distortion caused by a reflection of the cone.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 17, 2020Publication date: July 23, 2020Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Fabio Cappello, Robert Keith John Withey, Nicola Penny Ann Cavalla, Hsinpei Yang
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Publication number: 20200031058Abstract: A flood-fill method for parallel implementation includes the steps of receiving an image including first elements having a flood fill source colour to be replaced with a flood fill target colour, and second elements not having the flood fill source colour; dividing the image according to a hierarchical space-partitioning scheme to form cells at a plurality of levels in the hierarchy; detecting the occupancy of each cell by second elements; for any cell having no occupancy by second elements, set a depth elevation value for child cells of that cell to be one greater than the value for that cell, indicating that the flood fill shall navigate levels towards a root cell by the depth elevation amount of a cell whilst only occupying nodes without any second elements, thereby reaching the largest parent cell which can be flood-filled; and filling the flood fill source colour of cells having no occupancy by second elements with the flood fill target colour, thereby modifying the received image.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 24, 2019Publication date: January 30, 2020Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Robert Keith John WITHEY, Andrew James BIGOS
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Publication number: 20190363578Abstract: A charging apparatus for wireless charging of one or more robotic devices includes a power transmitting unit having a plurality of conducting wires each configured to carry a respective alternating current signal and to generate a time-varying magnetic flux when the conducting wire carries the alternating current signal, a processor configured to detect a presence or an absence of an induction coil of a robotic device within a predetermined distance of a conducting wire and to generate control data based on the result of the detection, and a control unit configured to control at least one of an amplitude and a frequency of each respective alternating current signal supplied to each of the conducting wires based on the control data, where the control unit is configured to increase at least one of an amplitude and a frequency of an alternating current signal supplied to a conducting wire in response to control data indicating the presence of the induction coil within the predetermined distance of the conductingType: ApplicationFiled: May 21, 2019Publication date: November 28, 2019Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Oliver George Hume, Robert Keith John Withey, Michael Eder
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Publication number: 20190332122Abstract: A system for controlling a robotic device in an indoor environment includes: a receiving unit of a robotic device configured to wirelessly receive, from at least a portion of a mains power line, a modulated electromagnetic signal leaked by the mains power line, the mains power line carrying a modulated alternating current signal, a demodulator of the robotic device configured to demodulate the modulated electromagnetic signal and extract one or more data signals from the demodulated electromagnetic signal, a processor configured to generate control data based on the one or more data signals, and a control unit configured to control one or more actuators of a robotic device based on the control data; and a system includes: a processor configured to generate control data for controlling one or more actuators of a robotic device, and a modulator configured to modulate an alternating current signal of a mains power line using the generated control data to create a modulated alternating current signal, thereby cauType: ApplicationFiled: April 24, 2019Publication date: October 31, 2019Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.Inventors: Michael Eder, Robert Keith John Withey
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Patent number: 6671800Abstract: A computer application product 16 is produced by writing instructions which call functions and data from a tool kit product 4 and functions and data from a plug-in 22, 32. In order to enable object instances to be created with attributes other than those defined by the tool kit developer, each function from the tool kit 4 for creating an object instance has associated therewith an extension record 8-1 which can be amended to store data from which further instructions from a plug-in 22, 32 for creating an additional attribute for the object instance can be determined. When the application product is run, an object instance is created using instructions from the tool kit 4, and the extension record is checked to see if any additional attributes are to be created for the object instance and, if they are, the additional attribute(s) are created using instructions from the plug-in 22, 32.Type: GrantFiled: February 23, 2000Date of Patent: December 30, 2003Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Thomas Callan McInally, Robert Keith John Withey, Simon David Meldrum
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Patent number: 6580426Abstract: A computer graphics apparatus comprises a modelling package and a rendering package. The modelling package outputs data representative of the definition of a scene to be represented graphically. The rendering package receives data representative of the scene to be represented graphically, and converts that data into rasterised image data. Preprocessing apparatus is provided to arrange the data defining the scene in a manner which can be more easily processed by the rendering package. The preprocessing apparatus partitions the scene by means of partition planes in directions selected from three mutually perpendicular directions. The planes are positioned so as to eliminate as much empty space as possible, to cause as little division of geometry of the scene as possible, and to deliver sections of the scene which contain no more than a particular level of detail.Type: GrantFiled: February 24, 2000Date of Patent: June 17, 2003Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Jonathan Andrew Stanley Small, Adam Michael Billyard, Damian Justin Scallan, Robert Keith John Withey