Abstract: The invention performs handwriting recognition using mixtures of Bayesian networks. A mixture of Bayesian networks (MBN) consists of plural hypothesis-specific Bayesian networks (HSBNs) having possibly hidden and observed variables. A common external hidden variable is associated with the MBN, but is not included in any of the HSBNs. Each HSBN models the world under the hypothesis that the common external hidden variable is in a corresponding one of its states. The MBNs encode the probabilities of observing the sets of visual observations corresponding to a handwritten character. Each of the HSBNs encodes the probabilities of observing the sets of visual observations corresponding to a handwritten character and given a hidden common variable being in a particular state.

Abstract: A spectator experience corresponding to an occurrence of one or more games or events is generated based on each associated occurrence. The occurrence of a game or event varies in response to contributions and/or interactions of one or more participants of the game or event. The spectator experience enables users thereof to observe an augmented version of the game or event, such as by implementing enhanced viewpoint controls and/or other spectator related effects. In a particular aspect, the spectator experience can provide an indication of the spectators' presence, which is made available to the spectators and/or to the participants of the game.

Abstract: The present invention relates generally to an improved handle grip for a mobile terminal such as a personal digital assistant. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved handle grip for a mobile terminal that can be easily secured to and removed from a mobile terminal and provides improved access to the mobile terminal.

Abstract: A system and/or method are disclosed for measuring and/or controlling refractive index (n) and/or lithographic constant (k) of an immersion medium utilized in connection with immersion lithography. A known grating structure is built upon a substrate. A refractive index monitoring component facilitates measuring and/or controlling the immersion medium by utilizing detected light scattered from the known grating structure.

Abstract: Systems and methods for performing adaptive filtering are disclosed. The present invention generates probabilities that can be used in an encoder, such as an arithmetic encoder and generates those probabilities in a computationally efficient manner. Probabilities of previously encoded coefficients are employed, effectively, in generating probabilities of the coefficients without regard to directional information. Thus, a large amount of information is adaptively and efficiently used in generating the probabilities. For the coefficients, the probability is computed based at least partly on at least one probability of a previously computed probability of a neighboring coefficient. Then, the coefficients are encoded using those computed probabilities.

Abstract: Improved biological material imaging systems and related methods are provided by using an imaging system for imaging biological materials, the imaging system comprising a sensor having one or more receptors, and an image transfer medium to scale the one or more receptors to an object field of view.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a system and methodology for extending and making more appropriate the interactive decisions made by automated services by taking into consideration estimates of the time required by users for the cognitive processing of problems, visualizations, and content based on several factors, including the competency and familiarity of the user with the output and nature of the sequences of output, the complexity of the output and overall tasks being considered, and the context of the user. The methods allow automated applications to control the rate at which the applications interact with users. Portions of automated services are controlled in view of limited human processor capabilities in design/operation of such services, and/or visualizations/output from the services (e.g., amount of dwell time provided/considered before a next automated sequence is displayed/invoked).

Abstract: Frame-based streaming data flows through a graph of multiple interconnected processing modules. The modules have a set of performance parameters whose values specify the sensitivity of each module to the selection of certain resources of a system. A user specifies overall goals for an actual graph for processing a given type of data for a particular purpose. A flow manager constructs the graph as a sequence of module interconnections required for processing the data, in response to the parameter values of the individual modules in the graph in view of the goals for the overall graph as a whole, and divides it into pipes each having one or more modules and each assigned to a memory manager for handling data frames in the pipe.

Abstract: The present invention facilitates solid object reconstruction from a two-dimensional image. If an object is of known and regular shape, information about the object can be extracted from at least one view by utilizing appropriate constraints and measuring a distance between a camera and the object and/or by estimating a scale factor between a camera image and a real world image. The same device can perform both the image capture and the distance measurement or the scaling factor estimation. The following processes can be performed for object identification: parameter estimation; image enhancement; detection of line segments; aggregation of short line segments into segments; detection of proximity clusters of segments; estimation of a convex hull of at least one cluster; derivation of an object outline from the convex hull; combination of the object outline, shape constraints, and distance value.

Abstract: A network-based distributed application system is provided in accordance with the present invention for enabling services to be established locally on a client system. The system may include an application and presentation logic, at least a portion of which is interchangeably processed by a server or a client without modification to the portion. The core functionality provided by the application may be preserved between the client and the server wherein improved network performance may provided along with improved offline service capabilities.

Abstract: The present invention provides a large capacity, user defined audio content delivery system. The system delivers uninterrupted music and delivers information content (e.g., news by evaluating and encoding an input audio stream while outputting another stream. Undesirable audio content (e.g., advertisements and unwanted news) are not present in the output audio stream as only desired portions of information content are stored for playback on demand. The invention also includes a user interface that is simple enough to facilitate utilization of the audio system in an automobile and employs standard hardware available in typical computing and/or personal digital assistant equipment. Additionally, the audio system can be portable (e.g., as portable as a personal digital assistant) and can be updated in real time or off line via a personal computer.

Abstract: A software tool and method are provided for selectively installing service packs in a computer system according to dependency information and whether or not an upgrade to an application is scheduled. The method comprises prompting a user for desired setup information and installing the service pack associated with an existing application if the application requires the service pack and if the desired setup information indicates that an upgrade component corresponding to the application is not to be installed. In addition, the service pack is installed if the upgrade component is to be installed and if the service pack is required for upgrading the application.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating communications over a protocol is provided. The system includes a class factory that holds identifiers associated with determining which, if any, registered protocol object creator should be employed to create a protocol object. The protocol object implements an abstract network protocol base class. The protocol object is employed to abstract details of communicating over a protocol and to provide a byte stream interface to communications occurring over the protocol, while removing protocol specific code from an application program. The method includes creating an instance of a protocol object from a source of registered protocol handlers based on a request to communicate over a protocol and using a base class API to communicate over the protocol through the protocol object.

Abstract: A system and method is provided for monitoring, gathering and aggregating performance metrics of a plurality of members configured as an entity. Configurable performance metric settings can be set at a first computer (e.g., a first member) and dynamically propagated to all members of the entity to establish performance metric configuration settings at each of the plurality of members. In one aspect of the invention, a system and method log performance metric data periodically at a predefined time period and resolution at a plurality of members for one or more performance metrics. The performance metric data values logged at the predefined time period and resolution are aggregated to data sets of at least one larger time period and resolution. Valid performance data values of similar time periods and resolutions are then gathered from the plurality of members and aggregated over the entity to provide a unified result set for the entity.

Abstract: A system and method to facilitate pattern recognition or matching between patterns are disclosed that is substantially invariant to small transformations. A substantially smooth deformation field is applied to a derivative of a first pattern and a resulting deformation component is added to the first pattern to derive a first deformed pattern. An indication of similarity between the first pattern and a second pattern may be determined by minimizing the distance between the first deformed pattern and the second pattern with respect to deformation coefficients associated with each deformed pattern. The foregoing minimization provides a system (e.g., linear) that may be solved with standard methods.

Abstract: A scan engine is disclosed for use in a data collection device, as well as a method for producing a scan engine and an image sensor assembly. The scan engine includes a housing with an opening for receiving light from a scanned dataform, an image sensor which is located within the housing to sense light entering an aperture in the image sensor, and a prism located within the housing for receiving light from the opening along a first path and to provide at least a portion of the received light to the aperture along a second path.

Abstract: A system and method for generating a list is provided. The system includes a seed item input subsystem, an item identifying subsystem, a descriptive metadata similarity determining subsystem and a list generating subsystem that builds a list based, at least in part, on similarity processing performed on seed item descriptive metadata and user item descriptive metadata and user selected thresholds applied to such similarity processing. The method includes inexact matching between identifying metadata associated with new user items and identifying metadata stored in a reference metadata database. The method further includes subjecting candidate user items to similarity processing, where the degree to which the candidate user items are similar to the seed item is determined, and placing user items in a list of items based on user selected preferences for (dis)similarity between items in the list and the seed item.