Patents by Inventor William Thomas Weatherford

William Thomas Weatherford 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: 8964292
    Abstract: An anisotropic projection screen accepts light projected at non-normal angles and redirects the light as high quality images along a viewing path that is near normal to the screen. This allows side projection of images in a manner that avoids the potential viewer obstruction of the projection path. The images may be projected onto the screen from any angle (e.g., sides, top, bottom, etc.) relative to the screen surface, and then redirected to the viewer who is viewing the screen essentially normal to the screen surface. The screen has arrays of passive elements that are oriented to collect and redirect light from one direction, while rejecting or absorbing light received from another direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: Rawles LLC
    Inventors: Eric Gifford Marason, William Thomas Weatherford
  • Patent number: 8933974
    Abstract: Apparatuses, methods, and computer-readable media for determining a distance and an angle of a display medium with respect to a projector are described herein. Based at least on the determined angle of the display medium, the angle of at least a component of the projector is adjusted. The projector then projects light onto the display medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Rawles LLC
    Inventors: Eric G. Marason, William Thomas Weatherford, Miguel Virgen
  • Patent number: 8797439
    Abstract: Two or more imagers having associated frame rates are each configured with a global shutter having an exposure interval less than a frame interval. The exposure interval for a first imager is offset from the exposure interval of a second imager such that the first imager is exposed while the second imager is not exposed. When interleaved, an effective frame rate exceeds the individual frame rates provided by the individual imagers. This interleaved imaging system may be used to recover, at high frame rates, images that are projected from spatial light modulators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2014
    Assignee: Rawles LLC
    Inventors: Christopher Coley, William Thomas Weatherford, Robert A. Yuan, Eric G. Marason
  • Patent number: 7468831
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to spatial light modulator devices, and more particularly to a display system and method of using one or more fast response light source, such as solid state light sources, and one or more spatial light modulator devices to improve the contrast ratio of the display system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2008
    Assignee: Miradia, Inc.
    Inventor: William Thomas Weatherford
  • Publication number: 20080217509
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a display system and method of using one or more fast response light sources and one or more spatial light modulator devices to modulate light. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention relates to a display system and method of using one or more fast response light sources and one or more spatial light modulator devices to provide for improved light intensity resolution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2007
    Publication date: September 11, 2008
    Inventor: William Thomas WEATHERFORD
  • Publication number: 20080198442
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to spatial light modulator devices, and more particularly to a display system and method of using one or more fast response light source, such as solid state light sources, and one or more spatial light modulator devices to improve the contrast ratio of the display system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2007
    Publication date: August 21, 2008
    Inventor: William Thomas WEATHERFORD
  • Patent number: 6151011
    Abstract: A system and method for reducing the phase difference between adjacent gray scale values employ compound data words. The compound data words include a first group of data bits and a second group of data bits. A display driver circuit is configured to provide display control signals causing each bit of the first group of data bits to be asserted on the display pixel for a coequal time period, and causing each bit of the second group of data bits to be asserted on the display pixel for a time period dependent on an associated significance of each bit. Optionally, the display driver circuit further includes a compound data generator configured to provide the compound data words. A method for asserting a compound data word on a display pixel includes the steps of asserting each bit of the first group of bits on the display pixel for a coequal time period, and asserting each bit of the second group of bits on the display pixel for a time period dependent on an associated significance of each bit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 1998
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2000
    Assignee: Aurora Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: W. Spencer Worley, III, Edwin Lyle Hudson, William Thomas Weatherford, Wing Hong Chow
  • Patent number: 6144356
    Abstract: A system and method for planarizing n-bit display data into m-bit data. The system includes a plurality of input terminals, a plurality of output terminals, and a first storage bank having a bit-depth less than m. In one embodiment, the first storage bank is a bi-directional shift register including a clock input terminal, for receiving a data shift signal, and a direction terminal for receiving a direction control signal. In a particular embodiment, the bi-directional shift register includes a plurality of flip-flops and a plurality of multiplexers, both arranged in a rectangular array of columns and rows. Optionally, the system includes a second storage bank, and data is shifted into one storage bank while data is being shifted out of the other storage bank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 1997
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2000
    Assignee: Aurora Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: William Thomas Weatherford, W. Spencer Worley, III, Wing Hong Chow