Patents Represented by Attorney Driggs, Hogg, Daugherty & Del Zoppo Co., LPA
  • Patent number: 7499470
    Abstract: Packets or frames of data may be compressed, encrypted/decrypted, filtered, classified, searched or subjected to other deep-packet processing operations before being distributed through the internet. The microprocessor system and method of the present invention provide for the orderly processing of such data packets without disrupting or changing the sequence in which the data is intended to be transmitted to its destination. This is achieved by receiving frames into an input buffer for processing. Associated with this input buffer is a unit for determining the operation to be performed on each frame. An arbitrator assigns each frame to a processing core engine. An output buffer collects the processed frames, and a sequencer forwards the processed frames from the output buffer to their destination in the same order as received by the input/output buffer. Maintaining the sequence of data transmission is particularly useful in voice transmission, such as videos and movies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jean Louis Calvignac, Mohammad Pevravian, Fabrice Jean Verplanken
  • Patent number: 7490768
    Abstract: Election system enabling coercion-free remote voting wherein a remote voter transmits his/her selected vote to the election authority through a data transmission network such as the Internet network by using a host computer having a card reader, the vote being transmitted after the voter has introduced an identifying smart card into the card reader. At least one secret code is recorded into the smart card at the location of the election authority at the moment when the latter delivers the smart card, the secret code having to be input by the voter into the host computer when the voter wants to vote during an election in order for the vote to be transmitted to the election authority and validated by the election authority.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Frank Seliger, Bernard Van Acker
  • Patent number: 7490101
    Abstract: A technique is provided to delete a leaf from a Patricia tree having a direct table and a plurality of PSCB's which decode portions of the pattern of a leaf in the tree without shutting down the functioning of the tree. A leaf having a pattern is identified as a leaf to be deleted. Using the pattern, the tree is walked to identify the location of the leaf to be deleted. The leaf to be deleted is identified and deleted, and any relevant PSCB modified, if necessary. The technique also is applicable to deleting a prefix of a prefix.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Claude Basso, Jean L. Calvignac, Gordon T. Davis, Marco Heddes, Piyush C. Patel, Steven R. Perrin, Grayson W. Randall, Sonia K. Rovner
  • Patent number: 7489247
    Abstract: A wireless system that detects the presence of a child in a safety seat located in the passenger cabin of a vehicle includes a controller responsive to signals generated by sensors monitoring predefined functions of the vehicle, RFID tag device attached to the safety seat and RFID tag reader mounted in the cabin. The system generates control signals which activate an alarm, open the doors of the vehicle and roll down windows if the child is left in the safety seat of an unattended vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Joseph Kinman Lee, Daniel Ray Spach, Prasanna Srinivasan, Darren Paul Umstead
  • Patent number: 7483429
    Abstract: A network processor dataflow chip and method for flexible dataflow are provided. The dataflow chip comprises a plurality of on-chip data transmission and scheduling circuit structures. The data transmission and scheduling circuit structures are selected responsive to indicators. Data transmission circuit structures may comprise selectable frame processing and data transmission functions. Selectable frame processing may comprise cut and paste, full dispatch and store and dispatch frame processing. Scheduling functions include full internal scheduling, calendar scheduling in communication with an external scheduler, and external calendar scheduling. In another aspect of the present invention, data transmission functions may comprise low latency and normal latency external processor interfaces for selectively providing privileged access to dataflow chip resources.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jean L. Calvignac, Chih-jen Chang, Joseph F. Logan, Fabrice J. Verplanken, Daniel Wind
  • Patent number: 7484052
    Abstract: The present invention utilizes the good qualities of a single address concentrator (AC), without any extra chips or wires, and distributes the AC function among the various chips, making use of the fact that each chip in the system has a copy of the AC function therein. Using the distributed address concentrator function, each chip will handle approximately one-fourth of the command traffic and the average latency of servicing the commands will be approximately the same across each chip in the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian M. Bass, Thomas L. Jeremiah, Charles R. Johns, David J. Shippy, Thuong Q. Truong
  • Patent number: 7477685
    Abstract: Methods and systems for analyzing the quality of high-speed signals are provided, wherein a high speed signal is sampled simultaneously a plurality of times during a sampling clock period at each of a plurality of phase rotator positions to generate a plurality of partial values, wherein subset pluralities of the partial values are associated to phase rotator positions. The partial values are combined into a global value which is analyzed to determine a quality of the high speed signal. Phase rotator behavior may also be analyzed to determine signal quality. A best position to lock a phase rotator when determining signal quality may be determined from a graphic characterization of a phase rotator position distribution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Alain Blanc, Patrick Jeanniot
  • Patent number: 7478426
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and computer system device for applying a plurality of rules to data packets within a network computer system. A filter rule decision tree is updated by adding or deleting a rule. If deleting a filter rule then the decision tree is provided to a network data plane processor with an incremental delete of the filter rule. If adding a filter rule then either providing an incremental insertion of the filter rule to the decision tree or rebuilding the first decision tree into a second decision tree responsive to comparing a parameter to a threshold. In one embodiment the parameter and thresholds relate to depth values of the tree filter rule chained branches. In another the parameter and thresholds relate to a total count of rule additions since a building of the relevant tree.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: International Busines Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Everett A. Corl, Jr., Gordon T. Davis, Clark D. Jeffries
  • Patent number: 7474805
    Abstract: Methods and systems for efficient scaling in the transform domain are provided when transform coefficient data is provided as an input to a data processing system, comprising generating a first matrix from transform coefficient data; zeroing out a row or column of, or inserting a row or column of zeros into, the first matrix; generating a second matrix by applying a one-dimensional inverse transform to the first matrix with the zeroed-out at least one row, the at least one column, the inserted at least one row of zeros or the at least one column of zeros; generating a third matrix by regrouping the second matrix; generating a combined matrix by applying a forward transform to the third matrix; and the data processing system scaling the data represented by the transform coefficient data by applying the combined matrix to the transform coefficient data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Tomasz J. Nowicki, Marco Martens, Jennifer Q. Trelewicz, Timothy J. Trenary, Joan L. Mitchell, Michael T. Brady
  • Patent number: 7472293
    Abstract: A programmable state machine is incorporated into the core of a network processor (NP) to monitor the utilization of different processing elements in the NP and to control the power state of each element as a function of past and predicted utilization. The state machine can be used to control a centralized power management control unit or to control a distributed power management unit where each processing element includes its own state machine. The function of the power management state machine can be implemented in any combination of software and/or hardwired logic, depending on the system design requirements. The monitoring and control are implemented through the use of a power management state change algorithm. The determination of the power state of a processing element accommodates interdependencies between the elements. It also makes adjustments in gain factors in response to actual performance and utilization of the network processor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Charles E. Kuhlmann, Thomas A. Millard, Norman C. Strole
  • Patent number: 7472339
    Abstract: The present invention includes a method and system for persistently self-replicating multiple ranges of cells through a copy-paste operation, in a multi dimensional spreadsheet. A set of ranges of cells is defined, wherein each range of cells has the same size. Each time the content of a range of cells belonging to this set is changed, a self-replication operation is performed automatically. The self-replication operation includes the steps of copying the changed range of cells onto a buffer; determining the set of ranges of cells to which the changed range of cells belongs to; identifying the ranges of cells belonging to the set; and pasting the content of the buffer in each of identified range of cells belonging to the set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Frederic Bauchot
  • Patent number: 7467364
    Abstract: Database mining, analysis and optimization techniques in conjunction with the model-based functional coverage analysis are used to turn raw verification and coverage data into design intelligence (DI) and verification intelligence (VA). The required data and attributes are automatically extracted from verification, simulation and coverage analysis databases. Design finite state machine extraction, design functional event extraction, and automatic coverage model generation and optimization techniques are applied to the design HDL description. Coverage model tuning and optimization directives, as well as test spec tuning and optimization directives are generated based on the analysis and mining of various verification, simulation, and coverage databases. An integrated web-based interface portlet is used for access, analysis and management of the resulting databases, generated reports and verification directives.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Amir Hekmatpour
  • Patent number: 7466715
    Abstract: A communication network used to link information handling systems together utilizes a switching network to transmit data among senders and receivers. Each individual packet of data is described and controlled by an FCB. The bandwidth associated with the storing and distribution of data is optimized by chaining the data packets in different types of queues, or operating without chaining outside a queue. When a frame is in an output queue, the third word contains an RFCBA for egress of the frame to a line port, and an MCID for ingress from an output queue to a switch port. The RFCBA and the MCID have multicast capabilities. The format does not require a third word when a frame is in an input queue.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Claude Basso, Jean L. Calvignac, Chih-jen Chang, Philippe Damon, Joseph F. Logan, Fabrice J. Verplanken
  • Patent number: 7464181
    Abstract: The classification system of a network device includes a cache in which a mapping between predefined characteristics of TCP/IP packets and associated actions are stored in response to the first “Frequent Flyer” packet in of a session. Selected characteristics from subsequent received packets of that session are correlated with the predefined characteristics and the stored actions are applied to the received packets if the selected characteristics and the predefined characteristics match, thus reducing the processing required for subsequent packets. The packets selected for caching may be data packets. For mismatched characteristics, the full packet search of the classification system is used to determine the action to apply to the received packet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Everett A. Corl, Jr., Gordon T. Davis, Clark D. Jeffries, Natarajan Vaidhyanathan, Colin B. Verrilli
  • Patent number: 7461182
    Abstract: A program for a setting device for setting a memory control device which, in part, acquires memory attribute information indicating an attribute of the memory module, a data transfer rate setting value as a rate of an upper limit value of a data transfer rate relative to a maximum data transfer rate, an upper limit value of the data transfer rate being at which the memory control device accesses the memory module, and the maximum data transfer rate being at which the memory control device is able to access the memory module. The setting device can appropriately control the heating value and the upper limit temperature for each of the plurality of memory modules mutually different in type though mutually compatible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiaki Fukushima, Yohichi Matsui, Taichiroh Nomura
  • Patent number: 7460872
    Abstract: A method and system is provided for tracking mobile devices combining packet processing technology with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. A central network system comprising a packet processing subsystem receives transmitted GPS location data from a mobile device transmitting GPS location data, wherein the packet processing subsystem uses a table access scheme to process the GPS location data and produce responsive mapping data, and the central network processing system compares the mapping data to a map and identifies a corresponding map location. Embodiments may also correlate device identification data, tracking table entries, and/or billing zone charges. In some embodiments a look-up key is built responsive to the GPS location data and used to identify map locations. The table access scheme may be a key hashing scheme and, in particular, a longest prefix match type scheme.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas A. Millard, Charles J. Sannipoli, Norman C. Strole
  • Patent number: 7460602
    Abstract: A high speed serial link method is provided, using a data driver and a replica driver structure, the replica driver structure comprising a replica driver, a calibration engine and a peak level detector. The calibration engine compares a peak level detector output to a reference value and responsively performs a data driver adjustment, wherein the data driver adjustment comprises at least one of a driver biasing adjustment, a driver intermediate stage bandwidth adjustment and a driver equalization setting adjustment. In some embodiments, the calibration engine incorporates a comparator and a digital state machine; in other embodiments, it incorporates an analog operational amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Steven M. Clements, Carrie E. Cox, Hayden C. Cranford, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7457241
    Abstract: A pipeline configuration is described for use in network traffic management for the hardware scheduling of events arranged in a hierarchical linkage. The configuration reduces costs by minimizing the use of external SRAM memory devices. This results in some external memory devices being shared by different types of control blocks, such as flow queue control blocks, frame control blocks and hierarchy control blocks. Both SRAM and DRAM memory devices are used, depending on the content of the control block (Read-Modify-Write or ‘read’ only) at enqueue and dequeue, or Read-Modify-Write solely at dequeue. The scheduler utilizes time-based calendars and weighted fair queueing calendars in the egress calendar design. Control blocks that are accessed infrequently are stored in DRAM memory while those accessed frequently are stored in SRAM.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Claude Basso, Jean L. Calvignac, Chih-jen Chang, Gordon T. Davis, Fabrice J. Verplanken
  • Patent number: 7457115
    Abstract: A new type of device, useful as a fan among other applications, in which fluid flow is induced by providing within the device a chamber of constantly increasing volume and a chamber of constantly decreasing volume. Fluid moves through these chambers impelled by the rotation of a pair of members linked together for rotation about skewed axes. The members move within a chamber having a spherical surface, into which open ports for inward and outward fluid flow. The device may be used to assist in cooling components of an electronic system such as a computer system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2008
    Assignee: Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
    Inventor: Timothy Samuel Farrow
  • Patent number: 7453798
    Abstract: The present invention provides for a computer network method and system that applies “hysteresis” to an active queue management algorithm. If a queue is at a level below a certain low threshold and a burst of packets arrives at a network node, then the probability of dropping the initial packets in the burst is recalculated, but the packets are not dropped. However, if the queue level crosses beyond a hysteresis threshold, then packets are discarded pursuant to a drop probability. Also, according to the present invention, queue level may be decreased until it becomes less than the hysteresis threshold, with packets dropped per the drop probability until the queue level decreases to at least a low threshold. In one embodiment, an adaptive algorithm is also provided to adjust the transmit probability for each flow together with hysteresis to increase the packet transmit rates to absorb bursty traffic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2008
    Assignee: Internationl Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jeffrey P. Bradford, Gordon T. Davis, Dongming Hwang, Clark D. Jeffries, Srinivasan Ramani, Kartik Sudeep, Ken V. Vu