Abstract: The present invention describes a system of multiple devices and multiple users, wherein the identity and location of each device and user may be known to the system. A method is described for establishing media connections between at least a first user and a second user based on the context of the system and the environment of the particular device, computing devices, or users. The system receives a media connection request from the first user, including information indicating the first user preferences for media, and identifies the intended recipient user or users. The location and media devices in proximity to each of the users is determined, and the preset profiles and policies of the users involved are determined. Each user may specify acceptable media connections and contextual attributes. When the contextual attributes and acceptable media connections for each user are consistent, media device communications paths are established.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for superimposing general usage interface characteristics upon a computing device configured with specialized interface characteristics to enable the particular computing device to control general purpose computing functions. The user may also establish control of a portion of the display of a particular computing device. The computing system may include multiple computing devices, users, and subsystems that may be controlled by control devices. A first event signals a request for a change of the particular computing device from specialized interface characteristics to general interface characteristics unrelated to the specialized interface, and the particular computing device is reconfigured to general interface characteristics. Control of the device may also be based on the context of the system and the environment of the particular device.

Abstract: A system and method for unsupervised clustering of audio data segments in an audio data recording containing speech from multiple speakers including the steps of: 1) providing a portion of the audio data containing speech from all of the speakers; 2) forming initial clusters by dividing the portion of the audio data into segments, each of which includes an ordered data set; 3) computing the pairwise distance between each pair of clusters using a likelihood ration independent of the order of data within the segments; and 4) combining into a new cluster the two clusters with a minimum pairwise distance. These steps are repeated until a number of clusters equal to the number of speakers is obtained.

Abstract: A method for segmenting audio data, comprising speech from a plurality of individual speakers, according to speaker is provided. The method comprises providing individual HMMs for each individual speaker, each individual HMM including at least one state, and constructing a speaker network HMM by connecting the individual HMMs in parallel. The audio data is then divided into segments by determining a most likely sequence of states through the speaker network HMM, each of the segments being associated with one of the individual HMMs. Afterward, the speaker of each of the segments is identified. The segmented data may be used to form an index into the audio data according to speaker.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for superimposing prespecified locational, environmental, and contextual controls on user interactions, including interactions of mobile users, with computational resources. A system is described for electronically monitoring contextual information concerning users and machines, including state and locational information including proximity. Interaction policies, including user specified interaction policies, may be registered on an identifiable address path. Methods are described for detecting, selecting and controlling computercontrolled devices, based on the proximity of the device to the user, the current context of the user, the location of other nearby users and devices, and the current state of the devices. Temporary transfer of control, including exclusive control, of particular computers and computer controlled devices to individual users based on the context and environment in proximity to those computing devices is also described.

Abstract: A processor controlled system for correlating an electronic index according to speaker for audio data being recorded in real time. The system includes a source of training data for each of the plurality of individual speakers and audio input system for providing real time audio data including speech for the individual speakers. The audio data is converted into spectral feature data by an audio processor, and is simultaneously recorded on a storage medium by a recording device. A system processor accepts the training data to create individual speaker models, which are combined in parallel to form a speaker network. The system processor then accepts the spectral feature data of the audio data and, using the speaker network, determines segments in the audio data corresponding to each speaker.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for superimposing prespecified locational, environmental, and contextual controls on user interactions, including interactions of mobile users, with computational resources. A system is described for electronically monitoring contextual information concerning users and machines, including state and locational information including proximity. Interaction policies, including user specified interaction policies, may be registered on an identifiable address path. Methods are described for detecting, selecting and controlling computercontrolled devices, based on the proximity of the device to the user, the current context of the user, the location of other nearby users and devices, and the current state of the devices. Temporary transfer of control, including exclusive control, of particular computers and computer controlled devices to individual users based on the context and environment in proximity to those computing devices is also described.

Abstract: A method for clustering speaker data from a plurality of unknown speakers. The method includes steps of providing a portion of audio data containing speech from at least all the speakers in the audio data and dividing the portion into data clusters. A pairwise distance between each pair of clusters is computed, the pairwise distance being based on a likelihood that two clusters were created by the same speaker, the likelihood measurement being biased by the prior probability of speaker changes. The two clusters with a minimum pairwise distance are combined into a new cluster and speakers models are trained for each of the remaining clusters including the new cluster. The likelihood that two clusters were created by the same speaker may be biased by a Markov duration model based on speaker changes over the length of the initial data clusters.

Abstract: A user-interactive method for use in a processor-controlled machine provides a user with the capability to establish associations among image segments in a data structure that indicate visually-displayed but otherwise not recognized or interpreted information, for the purpose of retrieving the unrecognized data from the data structure without performing a recognition operation. A user selects and designates a visually recognizable, but computationally unrecognized, displayed image segment as a coherent display object, called a key object, to function as an indexing mechanism. The user then associates the key object with data objects, which may also be computationally unrecognized, that are stored in a target data structure. The key object can be used as an access mechanism to retrieve the target data without recognition of either the key object or the target data.

Abstract: A device for registering component image tiles in a scanning system for transcribing, into electronic form, markings on a two-dimensional surface such as a whiteboard. A registration light pattern is projected onto the surface to be imaged. The pattern projected can be chosen to best suite the specific properties of the camera and imaging environment. The pattern markings are processed using perspective transformations to determine the overlap properties of the image tiles and distortion of each tile image, and the resulting data is used to combine the tiles to produce an undistorted composite image of the whiteboard.

Abstract: In a system of multiple computers connected by a network means, a method for using multiple input styli, each connected to an individual computer, to indicate input information on the display screen of any computer in the system. In a system in which there are many computers, a user of one computer may wish to indicate an input action on a second computer. In the present invention, all pens in a system are able to determine which computer they are writing on and an input position relative to that input computer, regardless of whether they belong to that computer, by determining an identifying "signature" of the computer based on the peak signal strength of a plurality of distinguishable signals in a complex signal produced on the computer display screen and sensed by the stylus. Each stylus is able to communicate with the software entity which can correctly interpret the measurement by using a computer network.

Abstract: A user-interactive method for use in a processor controlled machine provides a user with the capability to retrieve and manipulate associations previously established among image segments in a single or in multiple data structures, where the image segments are stored as image data and not as recognized or interpreted information. The use of certain designated image segments, called key objects, for association with one or more other stored image segments in effect imposes a user-defined categorization structure on the image segments with which key objects are associated, producing groups of image segments associated with respective key object. The categorized information for a particular key object is retrievable and displayable with the key object image, also without performing a recognition operation, providing an indexing mechanism into the image data.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for superimposing prespecified locational, environmental, and contextual controls on user interactions, including interactions of mobile users, with computational resources. A system is described for electronically monitoring contextual information concerning users and machines, including state and locational information including proximity. Interaction policies, including user specified interaction policies, may be registered on an identifiable address path. Methods are described for detecting, selecting and controlling computercontrolled devices, based on the proximity of the device to the user, the current context of the user, the location of other nearby users and devices, and the current state of the devices. Temporary transfer of control, including exclusive control, of particular computers and computer controlled devices to individual users based on the context and environment in proximity to those computing devices is also described.

Abstract: A method is shown to enable the conversion of binary image data originally generated at a first resolution into representative binary image data of an integer-value magnified resolution. Included within the resolution conversion method are methods which tend to smooth transitional edges, compensate for the conversion of an image optimized for write-black printing system to a write-white printing system, and improve the rendition of graphics images and reverse printing.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for superimposing prespecified locational, environmental, and contextual controls on user interactions, including interactions of mobile users, with computational resources. A system is described for electronically monitoring contextual information concerning users and machines, including state and locational information including proximity. Interaction policies, including user specified interaction policies, may be registered on an identifiable address path. Methods are described for detecting, selecting and controlling computercontrolled devices, based on the proximity of the device to the user, the current context of the user, the location of other nearby users and devices, and the current state of the devices. Temporary transfer of control, including exclusive control, of particular computers and computer controlled devices to individual users based on the context and environment in proximity to those computing devices is also described.

Abstract: A device for transcribing, into electronic form, markings drawn on a whiteboard or blackboard. An electronic camera such as an ordinary video camera is mounted on a computer-controlled pan/tilt head in the ceiling or to the side of the board. Images are captured by directing the camera successively at small regions of the board, then processing these snapshots electronically, leading to a complete, undistorted, high-resolution image of the entire board.

Abstract: Collaborative work on an interactive system is facilitated by accurately capturing and displaying information on an interactive system, wherein multiple persons may work together for supplying and receiving information with a single large area display. A large area electronic writing system is provided which employs a large area display screen, an image projection system, and an image receiving system including a light emitting pen. The display screen is designed with the imaging surface in front of the substrate, with a thin abrasion resistant layer protecting the imaging surface from the pen tip. The screen is held together with dowel pins pressed through the layers, and is curved to provide pressure for holding the layers together and mechanical rigidity against flexure during writing. The imaging surface disperses light from both the projection system and the light pen.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for selectively delivering electronic messages to an identified user or users in a system of mobile and fixed devices, including multiple display devices and multiple users, based on the context of the system and the environment of the identified user. Electronic messages intended for an identified user or users may be given a level of privacy and a level priority, and contextual attributes for its delivery may be specified. The system perceives contextual attributes for the recipient user or users, including display devices in close proximity to the identified users, and determines a display property for said electronic message based on the contextual attributes, the user profile properties of each user, and the level of privacy and level of priority of the electronic message.

Abstract: An image compensation system which provides dilation or erosion of image features using halfbitting or fullbitting in the rendition of bitmap images, especially on a write-white printer. A region of pixels of an image is isolated which includes two or more correctable pixel locations. A set of state determination rules, based on the formation of pixels in the isolated region, is used to determine a corrected binary pixel state for each of the correctable pixels. Corrections for one correctable pixel may be considered in the state determination rules for adjacent correctable pixels. A single enhanced output pixel is provided for each image input pixel, thereby preserving the original image resolution. Performing enhancements on multiple input pixels simultaneously increases the system throughput.

Abstract: A method for enhancing the contour fidelity of printed images of two or more colors is described, which includes obtaining a digital representation of the color image and finding color separations of each color. Each color separation is enhanced by a single set of inverse symmetrical templates, the set including templates in which the second template is always the inverse of the first, and the third and fourth templates are 180 degree rotations of the first two. The resulting smoothed color separations are recombined into an enhanced image without separation error.