Abstract: A dynamic visual presentation animates how classes or objects send messages and relate to each other in an object-oriented program during the program's execution. The presentation depicts classes or objects as graphical nodes on a computer display. The relative proximity of these nodes varies to reflect a specific relationship between classes or objects: either communication, creation frequency, or aggregation. Communication between objects is also dynamically depicted as a set of one or more line segments each passing through two or more of the nodes that have classes of methods on a call stack. Mapping these conceptual relationships into dynamic, spatial relationships makes them explicit and observable, allowing a user to better understand, debug, and tune the object-oriented program.

Abstract: This method non sequentially compares a reference sequence of tokens to an original sequence of tokens to determine subsequences of tokens which exactly or similarly match. The method has a novel approach for creating a large number of indexes by partitioning strings of tokens into substrings, appending non contiguous substrings together to form tuples, and creating indexes from the tuples. Indexes are created in this manner for both the original and reference strings. Techniques are also provided to approximately or exactly locate the substrings which where used to create the tuples and indexes from the original sequence of tokens. Original and reference indexes are compared and matches are tracked. Higher numbers of matches result in higher scores (votes) in a table and indicate a stronger similarity between the sequences on the the original and reference strings. Using this method, the degree of similarity can also be determined.

Abstract: The behavior of entities with common characteristics is profiled using fuzzy logic. First, behavior characteristics, or indicators of a target behavior, are determined. Norms and fuzzy sets are established for each behavior characteristic and then fuzzy logic is used to develop a series of scores. A behavior profile is developed from a collection of scores, and is organized either linearly or in a hierarchy, that can be used to compare the degree to which an entity within a peer group is, or is not, associated with a set of behavior characteristics relative to others in the same peer group. The number and organization of the behavior characteristics in the profile is expandable and the importance of characteristics can be weighted.

Abstract: The present invention is a system and method for resolving closely spaced frequencies in frequency patterns used to tag objects. The system comprises a base station transceiver and one or more objects that send the base station a unique frequency pattern that identifies the respective object and/or provides information about the object. The base station performs a method by which an estimate of a received signal from an object is compared to one or more known frequency patterns in a frequency pattern set stored at the base station. One test frequency pattern at a time is selected and a distance is determined between the estimated received frequency pattern and the selected test frequency pattern. Iterative modifications are done to the test frequency pattern to minimize the distance.

Abstract: The present method and apparatus use image processing to determine information about the position of a designated object. The invention is particularly useful in applications where the object is difficult to view or locate. In particular, the invention is used in endoscopic surgery to determined positional information about an anatomical feature within a patient's body. The positional information is then used to position or reposition an instrument (surgical instrument) in relation to the designated object (anatomical feature). The invention comprises an instrument which is placed in relation to the designated object and which is capable of sending information about the object to a computer. Image processing methods are used to generated images of the object and determine positional information about it. This information can be used as input to robotic devices or can be rendered, in various ways (video graphics, speech synthesis), to a human user.

Abstract: The present system and method uses information about digital information (objects) to determine whether or not changes to the objects were caused by a normal system operation or by a malicious program. The invention uses a reference separation algorithm to separate, at a reference time, one or more digital objects into a plurality of reference subsets of information that describe the object contents. A plurality of these reference subsets are then selected by a selection algorithm and information associated with each selected reference subset is stored. At some later time, called the test time, a test separation algorithm is used to separate the digital signatures of the object into a plurality of test subsets of information that describe the object contents at test time. A plurality of these test subsets are then selected by the test selection algorithm. A test information algorithm that is associated with each selected test subset then develops test subset information about the respective a test subset.

Abstract: The present invention uses a novel adaptation of a tree splitting algorithm applied to Radio Frequency (RF) tagging technology to identify many tags in the RF field of a base station.The invention uses the tree splitting algorithm to identify a single tag in a field of a plurality of radio frequency tags. Once the single tag is identified, the identified tag is placed in a Data.sub.-- Exchange state where the base station can access data from the tag memory by using information that identifies the tag.

Abstract: A method and apparatus designed to expose the power of manipulating data transfer and ownership to the compiler has been given. The key ideas behind the XDP methodology are its separation of data transfer from local computation, its non-blocking semantics to allow overlapping of communication with computation, and its unified treatment of data and ownership transfer. In addition, XDP offers the compiler a convenient platform for doing optimizations involving data movement by providing mechanisms for delayed communication binding and generating generalized compute rules. Compile-time data and data ownership transfers are accomplished independent of the target machine architecture. The run-time symbol table given here to support XDP is implementable as an extension to most high-level compiler intermediate languages. The applicability of XDP is quite general, and is not restricted to the optimization of communication for distributed memory machines.

Abstract: The present system and apparatus uses image processing to recognize objects within a scene. The system includes an illumination source for illuminating the scene. By controlling the illumination source, an image processing system can take a first digitize image of the scene with the object illuminated a higher level and a second digitized image with the object illuminated at a lower level. Using an algorithm, the object(s) image is segmented from a background image of the scene by a comparison of the two digitized images taken. A processed image (that can be used to characterize features) of the object(s) is then compared to stored reference images. The object is recognized when a match occurs. The system can recognize objects independent of size and number and can be trained to recognize objects that is was not originally programmed to recognize.

Abstract: The present apparatus, control system, and method for navigating is used to navigate a mobile machine accurately along a traced path so that the machine avoids collisions with obstacles. Intermediate control outputs are generated not only in accordance with a signal indicative of a distance and angle from a path to be traced according to a navigation procedure for path tracing, but also in response to a signal related to the obstacle-free space ahead of the machine according to a navigation procedure for obstacle avoidance. Weighting coefficients respective for the two procedures are generated by fuzzy inference based on signals indicating the distance and angle from the predetermined path and signals related to the obstacle-free space ahead of the machine. Final control outputs are computed in accordance with the two intermediate outputs and the two weighting coefficients.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for improving the precision of interprocedural alias analysis by efficiently qualifying (naming) dynamically allocated storage locations with call path information and identifying as identical qualified name pairs, one of which is a prefix substring of another. The invention also provides a compact method for representing alias information which improves the efficiency and in some cases, the precision, of alias analysis, by eliminating alias relations that involve more than one level of dereferencing and by eliminating all alias relations that do not contain at least one dereferenced object.

Abstract: A novel thin and flexible radio frequency (RF) tag has a semiconductor circuit with logic, memory, and a radio frequency circuits, connected to an antenna with all interconnections placed on a single plane of wiring without crossovers. The elements of the package (substrate, antenna, and laminated covers) are flexible. The elements of the package are all thin. The tag is thin and flexible, enabling a unique range of applications including: RF ID tagging of credit cards, passports, admission tickets, and postage stamps.

Abstract: The present invention smooths piece-wise linear shapes by defining neighborhoods of vertices around vertices of the shape. One or more vectors is defined between the vertex and each of its neighbors. Vector sums are alternately multiplied by one of two scale factors. The scale factors are opposite in sign with the negative scale factor of larger magnitude. The vertices of the shape are displaced by the multiplied vector sums to attain new positions. The process is repeated with the vertices moving back and forth approximately through their final position until the shape is smoothed without shrinkage.

Abstract: In a mobile cellular communication system, a base station is wired to a Local Area Network (LAN), and has wireless communication with a plurality of mobile stations. Multipath fading is substantially reduced in the system by utilizing antenna diversity techniques at the base station and each of the plurality of mobile stations. The combination of the independent operation of antenna selection diversity at both a base station and a mobile station results in the selection of the best propagation path between the two stations.

Abstract: An apparatus and method is disclosed for efficiently clustering program objects on a unit of storage in a secondary memory, e.g., a page of memory on a disc. The objects are clustered so that a set of queries (query set) can access the stored objects with a minimum number of page transfers from secondary storage to main memory. To determine how the objects are clustered together on each memory page, queries in the query set and the objects that they access are identified. The queries are ranked by a number of factors including the query weight, the memory space required to store objects accessed by a query, and the number of objects a query has in common with other queries. The objects accessed by the query set are clustered on secondary memory pages according to the query ranking. Partially packed memory pages can be combined to minimize the cost of the query set accessing the stored objects.

Abstract: In order to access several pieces of information concurrently, computers can make use of multi-port access memories. This invention introduces a circuit for a memory system that can be used in such applications. Dual-ported memory access is achieved without duplication of the memory arrays or of the word and bit lines used in the circuit. The circuit allows concurrent read and/or write operations by controlling access to independently controlled sections of the word lines in a memory array and is useful for dual ported data caches. In instruction cache memory applications, the circuitry can be used to allow concurrent access to a number of multiple words. The total number of words accessed concurrently is equal to the total cache width and is independent of the address of the lowest word being accessed.

Abstract: Portions showing greater specular reflection of an object to be displayed are displayed with pixels whose opacity, .alpha..sub.1, is emphasized according to the specular reflected component of a shading model, in which case the specular reflected component thus calculated for shading is also utilized for arithmetic operation of emphasized opacity, .alpha..sub.1, and high-speed processing is sought through tabulating various variables such as .alpha..sub.s (an additional opacity introduced for emphasis by a specular reflected component), .alpha..sub.n (a primary opacity), and G (a gradient vector).

Abstract: Information is retrieved from a database using natural language (NL) queries and graphical interfaces and displays. A query is separated into tokens which are parsed into elements. The parsed elements are matched to a list of database names. If all the parsed elements can be uniquely matched to database names, a database query is constructed and used to query the database to retrieve information and to present to a user. However, when an ambiguous query is encountered, i.e. all of whose elements cannot be uniquely matched with database names, the understood components of the ambiguous query, i.e., those elements matching database names, are presented the user along with relationships of the elements to other names in the database so that the user can use an interface to explore the database by accessing and displaying this database information and these relationships. The interface can take the form of views on a graphical interface.

Abstract: A content addressable memory (CAM) implementation using random access memory (RAM) and a method for operating the implementation are described, wherein the RAM is divided into smaller, individually addressable units, which are addressed by a subword of the applied keyword, and the outputs of which are bitwise ANDed. The result of the bitwise AND operation is used to activate the matching lines of the CAM implementation. The new implementation allows the use of conventional circuit design.

Abstract: A method and system for generating a rules-based computer program employs an interactive workstation to display input data format screens. These screens are edited on the workstation to define the formats of all permissible items of input data to the program and the formats are stored. The workstation then displays rule entry screens in decision table format on which the program designer defines the rules relating to the processing of associated input data items. The completed decision tables are stored and together with the stored input data formats are compiled to produce computer program code for run-time execution or interpretation.