Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm Stephen L. King
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Patent number: 6707505Abstract: A single chip system including a first input channel for receiving digital video input data, a second channel for receiving computer graphics data, means for synchronizing the two channels to one another utilizing timing signals which may be selected to provide the most accurate timing available, means for changing the rate of presentation of the computer graphics signals to match the rate of presentation of the video signals, means for adjusting the format in which the computer graphics signals are presented to the same format as the format in which the video signals are presented, and means for selectively blending the computer graphics and video signals furnished as video input data without modification for presentation on a single output display.Type: GrantFiled: March 26, 1999Date of Patent: March 16, 2004Assignee: TVIA, Inc.Inventors: Jhi-Chung Kuo, John Francis McNally, Jeff Jang-Fang Suen, Henry Choy, Paul Cheng, Lin Liang
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Patent number: 6552750Abstract: A circuit for converting a selected portion of graphics data generated for a computer display for presentation on a selected portion of a television display including a first data path for transferring graphics data from a frame buffer memory storing graphics data to a television display without changing the size of the data, a second data path for transferring graphics data from the frame buffer memory storing graphics data to the television display while selectably changing the size of the data, the second data path including circuitry for selecting a portion of the television display to present the selected data transferred by the second data path, and zooming circuitry for enlarging data transferred by the second data path to fill the selected portion of the television display, and means for selecting data stored in the frame buffer for display.Type: GrantFiled: March 21, 2000Date of Patent: April 22, 2003Assignee: TVIA, Inc.Inventors: Jeff Jang-Fang Suen, Bo Liu
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Patent number: 6429491Abstract: A MOSFET transistor (2 FIG. 4) contains functional elements that together define an electrical capacitance (20, 27, 10-13) capable of accumulating a static electrical charge transferred from an external source, when the transistor is out of or removed from a circuit. An additional semiconductor device (21, 30, 11, 13) is integrated within said transistor and bypasses electrical charge from the capacitance to prevent such static charge from attaining a level at which said voltage spanning the dielectric element of the capacitance is sufficient to destroy the dielectric element. The foregoing protects the MOSFET and associated circuitry against static electricity without adversely affecting normal operation. In one embodiment, the additional semiconductor device is a lateral bipolar transistor.Type: GrantFiled: October 20, 1999Date of Patent: August 6, 2002Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventor: William N. Schnaitter
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Patent number: 6415379Abstract: A method of maintaining translation context for instructions translated from instructions designed for a target microprocessor to run on a host microprocessor including storing translation context related to each translated host instruction, indicating a translation context for host instructions presently being executed by the host processor, comparing translation context stored for a next host instruction with the translation context for a host instruction presently being executed, executing the next host instruction if the translation context of the next host instruction and the presently executing host instruction compare, and searching for an instruction with translation context which compares to the translation context of the host instruction presently executing if the translation context of the next host instruction and the presently executing host instruction do not compare.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 1999Date of Patent: July 2, 2002Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: David Keppel, Robert Cmelik, Robert Bedichek
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Patent number: 6363336Abstract: A method for determining if writes to a memory page are directed to target instructions which have been translated to host instructions in a computer which translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set, including the steps of detecting a write to a memory page storing target instructions which have been translated to host instructions, detecting whether a sub-area of the memory page to which the write is addressed stores target instructions which have been translated, and invalidating host instructions translated from addressed target instructions.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 1999Date of Patent: March 26, 2002Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: John Banning, H. Peter Anvin, Benjamin Gribstad, David Keppel, Alex Klaiber, Paul Serris
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Patent number: 6356615Abstract: Certain events occurring throughout a microprocessor chip are monitored by a counter system (1) containing a number of digital electronic counters (3, 5, 7 & 9) consolidated at a single location on the processor chip. Those events are communicated to the counter system via electrical leads extending to those functional units in the processor responsible for signaling an event occurrence. Under program control, each counter can be selectively connected (11, 13, 15 & 17) to a selected one of the various functional event producing units. By means of selection logic (19, 21, 23 & 25) separate events originating from multiple functional units may be logically combined, whereby the event counted is a Boolean logic combination of multiple underlying events.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 1999Date of Patent: March 12, 2002Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Brett Coon, David Keppel, Charles R. Price
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Patent number: 6199152Abstract: A method of responding to an attempt to write a memory address including a target instruction which has been translated to a host instruction for execution by a host processor including the steps of marking a memory address including a target instruction which has been translated to a host instruction, detecting a memory address which has been marked when an attempt is made to write to the memory address, and responding to the detection of a memory address which has been marked by protecting a target instruction at the memory address until it has been assured that translations associated with the memory address will not be utilized before being updated.Type: GrantFiled: August 22, 1996Date of Patent: March 6, 2001Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Edmund J. Kelly, Robert F. Cmelik, Malcolm J. Wing
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Patent number: 6172925Abstract: A circuit for generating timing signals for clocking the sensing amplifiers of a SRAM memory array having a plurality of memory cells joined in rows by wordlines and in columns by bitlines including a dummy bitline, a plurality of dummy memory cells joined to the dummy bit column, means for accessing a plurality of the dummy memory cells in parallel to generate a bitline charging current significantly greater than a bitline charging current in a typical operative column of the SRAM memory array, a circuit responsive to current in the dummy bitline for generating a timing signal to sense amplifiers for generating output signals from the operative columns of the SRAM.Type: GrantFiled: June 14, 1999Date of Patent: January 9, 2001Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventor: Raymond E. Bloker
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Patent number: 6031992Abstract: A microprocessor for a host computer designed to execute target application programs for a target computer having a target instruction set including the combination of code morphing software, and morph host processing hardware designed to execute instructions of a host instruction set, the combination of the code morphing software and the morph host processing hardware comprising means to translate a set of target instructions into instructions of a host instruction set, means to optimize the instructions of the host instruction set translated from the target application program speculating upon the occurrence of a condition, means to determine under control of the code morphing software official state of the target computer which existed at the beginning of a translation of a set of target instructions during execution of the target application program by the microprocessor, means for updating state of the target computer from state of the host computer when a set of host instructions executes in accordanceType: GrantFiled: July 5, 1996Date of Patent: February 29, 2000Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Robert F. Cmelik, David R. Ditzel, Edmund J. Kelly, Colin B. Hunter, Douglas A. Laird, Malcolm John Wing, Grzegorz B. Zyner
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Patent number: 6011908Abstract: A gated store buffer including circuitry for temporarily holding apart from other memory stores all memory stores sequentially generated during a translation interval by a host processor translating a sequence of target instructions into host instructions, circuitry for transferring memory stores sequentially generated during a translation interval to memory if the translation executes without generating an exception, circuitry for indicating which memory stores to identical memory addresses are most recent in response to a memory access at the memory address, and circuitry for eliminating memory stores sequentially generated during a translation interval if the translation executes without generating an exception.Type: GrantFiled: December 23, 1996Date of Patent: January 4, 2000Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Malcolm J. Wing, Godfrey P. D'Souza
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Patent number: 5970394Abstract: A method for detecting inequality in path balance in a cellular telephone system including the steps of providing data describing measured signal strength of signals received at a mobile unit and at a cell site in the absence of interference at a plurality of points describing the entire system; providing data describing measured signal strength of signals transmitted from each cell and from the mobile unit in the cellular telephone system; accumulating and averaging the data describing measured signal strength of signals received at the mobile unit and at the cell site to eliminate path loss variances between points and the cell site; selecting data describing measured signal strength of signals received at a mobile unit with path loss variances eliminated, data describing measured signal strength of signals transmitted from the mobile unit, data describing measured signal strength of signals received at a cell with path loss variances eliminated, data describing signal strength of signals transmitted from eType: GrantFiled: October 24, 1997Date of Patent: October 19, 1999Assignee: Internet Mobility CorporationInventors: John E. Arpee, Eric H. Jensen
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Patent number: 5968148Abstract: An arrangement which utilizes the system memory to store the wave tables used in the generation of high quality sound, and a direct memory access controller to rapidly transfer the portions of the wave tables stored in memory using the system bus so that a sound card may manipulate high quality sounds from wave tables stored directly in system memory without overloading the system bus and without the need for substantial additional memory on the sound card.Type: GrantFiled: March 23, 1998Date of Patent: October 19, 1999Assignee: NVidia CorporationInventor: Curtis Priem
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Patent number: 5958061Abstract: Apparatus for use in a processing system having a host processor capable of executing a first instruction set to assist in running instructions of a different instruction set which is translated to the first instruction set by the host processor including circuitry for temporarily storing memory stores generated until a determination that a sequence of translated instructions will execute without exception or error on the host processor, circuitry for permanently storing memory stores temporarily stored when a determination is made that a sequence of translated instructions will execute without exception or error on the host processor, and circuitry for eliminating memory stores temporarily stored when a determination is made that a sequence of translated instructions will generate an exception or error on the host processor.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 1996Date of Patent: September 28, 1999Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Edmund J. Kelly, Malcolm John Wing
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Patent number: 5926762Abstract: A computer implemented process which includes furnishing data indicating the actual strengths of all signals to be transmitted by a plurality of cells each positioned at an individual physical position in a mobile communications system and to be received by a mobile unit at a plurality of points of an entire mobile communications system, relating data indicating the actual strengths of all signals to the physical positions from which the signals are to be transmitted, identifying cells transmitting signals likely to serve each point of the plurality of points, and comparing planned frequencies to be used at any position serving a point with planned frequencies to be used at other positions to identify cells transmitting signals which might interfere with signals transmitted by cells serving a point.Type: GrantFiled: May 17, 1996Date of Patent: July 20, 1999Assignee: Internet Mobility CorporationInventors: John E. Arpee, Eric H. Jensen, Eric A. Miller
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Patent number: 5926832Abstract: Apparatus and a method for storing data already stored at an often utilized memory address in registers local to a host processor and maintain the data in the registers and memory consistent so that the processor may respond more rapidly when a memory address is to be accessed.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 1996Date of Patent: July 20, 1999Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Malcolm J. Wing, Edmund J. Kelly
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Patent number: 5924126Abstract: An input circuit for an input/output device adapted for use in a computer system including a first section having a storage circuit holding physical addresses of input/output devices which are translations of selected input/output bus addresses, and a comparator circuit for testing an address in a command from application programs including both data and an address for the data with the recently accessed addresses to obtain a translation from the storage circuit; and a second section including a hash table including translations of physical addresses to be placed in the storage circuit.Type: GrantFiled: May 15, 1995Date of Patent: July 13, 1999Assignee: NVidiaInventors: David S. H. Rosenthal, Curtis Priem
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Patent number: 5918050Abstract: A computer system including a central processing unit, a system input/output bus, an input/output device, and an input/output control unit accessed at a physical input/output address for translating addresses and data in commands from applications programs to physical input/output device addresses and for changing the context of an input/output device for which an address translation is furnished.Type: GrantFiled: October 8, 1997Date of Patent: June 29, 1999Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: David S. H. Rosenthal, Curtis Priem
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Patent number: 5909595Abstract: A method of controlling the routing of input/output operations including providing a series of commands expressing connections between sources of data, processing elements, and destinations for data to carry out an input/output operation; compiling a data structure for the input/output operation from the series of commands, the data structure including context defining connections between each of the sources of data, processing elements, and destinations for data; and using the data structure to set connecting context to make connection expressed between each of the sources of data, processing elements, and destinations for data whenever the input/output operation is to be accomplished.Type: GrantFiled: August 18, 1997Date of Patent: June 1, 1999Assignee: NVidia CorporationInventors: David S. H. Rosenthal, Curtis Priem
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Patent number: 5905855Abstract: A computer implemented process for detecting errors in computer systems including the steps of executing sequences of instructions of a software program on each of a reference system and a test system, detecting and recording state of the reference system and the test system at comparable points in the execution of the program, and comparing the detected state of the reference system and the test system at selectable comparable points in the sequence of instructions including the end of the sequence of instructions. In a particular embodiment, the execution of portions of the sequence of instructions between selectable comparable points on each of the reference system and the test system is automatically replayed if a difference in compared state of the systems is detected.Type: GrantFiled: February 28, 1997Date of Patent: May 18, 1999Assignee: Transmeta CorporationInventors: Alex Klaiber, Robert Bedichek, David Keppel
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Patent number: 5887190Abstract: An input/output control unit which provides a large amount of input/output address space divisible into areas each of which is a multiple of the system memory management unit page size and thus may be allotted to only one of the individual application programs using a computer system by an input/output device driver. The control unit is able to determine from command addresses provided by the application programs both the application program which is involved in the operation and the address area which has been allotted solely to that application program. This use of these addresses in the input/output address space which have been allotted solely to one application program allows the application programs to write directly to the input/output devices while still maintaining the integrity of the system.Type: GrantFiled: September 12, 1997Date of Patent: March 23, 1999Assignee: NVidia CorporationInventors: Curtis Priem, David S. H. Rosenthal