Patents by Inventor Stephen W. Director

Stephen W. Director 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).

  • Method and system for providing constraint-based guidance to a designer in a collaborative design environment
    Patent number: 7047168
    Abstract: Method and system are provided for providing constraint-based guidance to a designer to support the application of useful constraint-based heuristics in complex collaborative design, thus reducing late conflicts and facilitating their resolution when they happen. The invention can be applied to any collaborative problem-solving task such as a collaborative engineering activity or the design of corporate strategies. In the method and system, designers receive constraint-based feedback that enables them to apply constraint-based heuristics that consider the simultaneous effect of all design constraints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2006
    Assignee: The Regents of the University of Michigan
    Inventors: Juan-Antonio Carballo, Stephen W. Director
  • Method and system for providing constraint-based guidance to a designer in a collaborative design environment
    Publication number: 20030135352
    Abstract: Method and system are provided for providing constraint-based guidance to a designer to support the application of useful constraint-based heuristics in complex collaborative design, thus reducing late conflicts and facilitating their resolution when they happen. The invention can be applied to any collaborative problem-solving task such as a collaborative engineering activity or the design of corporate strategies. In the method and system, designers receive constraint-based feedback that enables them to apply constraint-based heuristics that consider the simultaneous effect of all design constraints.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 16, 2002
    Publication date: July 17, 2003
    Applicant: The Regents of The University of Michigan
    Inventors: Juan-Antonio Carballo, Stephen W. Director