Patents Represented by Attorney Vazken Alexanian
  • Patent number: 8279665
    Abstract: In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, a memory cell (1) or select element is provided. The element includes an ion conductor element (3) formed of a ion conductor material with mobile metal ions, a first electrically conducing electrode (4) in electrical contact with the ion conductor element, and a second electrically conducting electrode (6) in electrical contact with the ion conductor element, so that the memory cell or select element is programmable by applying an electrical voltage between the first electrode and the second electrode that causes the metal ions to be influenced so that an electrical resistance across the ion conductor element is caused to vary, for example because a metallic protrusion (7) is caused to grow or decompose. In contrast to prior art approaches, the ion conductor element has a shape that is asymmetrical with respect to an exchange of the first electrode (4) and the second electrode (6) for each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Siegfried Friedrich Karg, Gerhard Ingmar Meijer
  • Patent number: 8275784
    Abstract: A computer-implemented system and method for translating a SPARQL query. The system includes: a parser/lexer for parsing the SPARQL query; a hidden negative pattern detector for detecting a hidden negative pattern in the parsed SPARQL query; a hidden negative pattern translator for translating the detected hidden negative pattern into an explicit negative pattern; a separator for separating the explicit negative pattern from a positive pattern in the parsed SPARQL query; a negative pattern translator for translating the explicit negative pattern into a negative portion of an SQL statement; a positive pattern translator for translating the positive pattern into a positive portion of the SQL statement; and an SQL statement combiner for combining the negative portion of the SQL statement with the positive portion of the SQL statement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Feng Cao, Gang Hu, Li Ma, Yue Pan, Xing Zhi Sun
  • Patent number: 8275614
    Abstract: A support device, program and support method for supporting generation of text from speech data. The support device includes a confirmed rate calculator, a candidate obtaining unit and a selector. The confirmed rate calculator calculates a confirmed utterance rate which is an utterance rate of a confirmed part having already-confirmed text in the speech data. The candidate obtaining unit obtains multiple candidate character strings resulting from a speech recognition of an unconfirmed part having unconfirmed text in the speech data. The selector preferentially selects, from among the plurality of candidate character strings, a candidate character string whose utterance time consumed in uttering the candidate character string at the confirmed utterance rate is closest to an utterance time of the unconfirmed part of the speech data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kohtaroh Miyamoto, Takashi Saitoh
  • Patent number: 8271587
    Abstract: An object movement control system, an object movement control method, a server, and a computer program that can update the positional information of an object in a virtual space at high speed by appropriately distributing processing loads. Client control units obtain information about the position of a first object in a virtual space and information about movement of the first object and detect other objects that exist in a virtual region that contains the first object, which has been moved. The distances between objects that exist in a virtual region are calculated, and only when the number of objects the distances to which are shorter than a predetermined threshold exceeds a predetermined number, information about the objects is sent to a server. The server assigns a collision determination client that performs collision determination to each pair of objects selected from the objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuaki Ishizaki, Shuichi Shimizu
  • Patent number: 8271739
    Abstract: A memory control apparatus which controls access to a shared memory for each transaction. The apparatus includes a management unit that stores versions of data stored in the shared memory, a log storage unit that stores an update entry including a version of data subjected to an update operation in response to execution of an update operation on the shared memory in processing each transaction, and a control unit that writes a result of processing corresponding to execution of a relevant update operation to the shared memory when a request to commit a transaction has been given, and a relevant update entry version matches a corresponding version stored in the management unit, or re-executes the update operation and writes a result of re-execution to the shared memory when the update entry version does not match the corresponding version in the management unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Takuya Nakaike, Rei Odaira, Takeshi Ogasawara
  • Patent number: 8271994
    Abstract: Data transfer during processor context switching is reduced, particularly in relation to a time-sharing microtasking programming model. Prior to switching context of a processor having local memory from a first to a second process, a portion of the local memory that does not require transfer to system memory for proper saving of data associated with the first process is determined. The context of the processor is then switched from the first to the second process, including transferring all of the local memory as the data associated with the first process, to system memory—except for the portion of the local memory that has been determined as not requiring saving to the system memory for proper saving of the data associated with the first process. Therefore, switching the context from the first to the second process results in a reduction of data transferred from the local memory to the system memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroshi Inoue, Moriyoshi Ohara, Takao Moriyama, Yukihiko Sohda, Hideaki Komatsu
  • Patent number: 8266603
    Abstract: The present invention relates to allocating registers to variables in order to compile a program. In an embodiment of the present invention a compiler apparatus stores interference information indicating an interference relationship between variables, selects a register and allocates the register to each variables in accordance with a predetermined procedure, without allocating the same register to a set of variables having interference relationships. The compiler further replaces multiple variables having the same register allocated thereto with a new variable and generates an interference relationship by merging the interference relationships each concerning one of multiple variables.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsushi Inagaki, Hideaki Komatsu, Takuya Nakaike, Rei Odaira
  • Patent number: 8266458
    Abstract: Embodiments of the invention disclose a system and a method for estimating the power consumption of virtual servers that operate in various hardware configurations and making a charge. The system consists of a resource utilization measurement unit that measures utilization of a hardware resource by an operation of a virtual server. The system also includes a conversion unit that converts the utilization of the hardware resource measured by the resource utilization measurement unit to utilization of a hardware resource in a case where the operation of the virtual server is performed in a reference server including a preset hardware configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroshi Inoue
  • Patent number: 8265027
    Abstract: A method for selecting a channel for an access point (AP) in a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). The method includes the AP receiving network conditions of APs within the sensing range of a terminal sent by the terminal, and the AP selecting a channel based on the received network conditions. By forwarding the network conditions of other APs which can be detected by the terminal, the method of the present invention enables an AP to select a channel from the view of a terminal to avoid conflicts at the terminal, thereby improving the available bandwidth of the terminal, and giving a better experience to users.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Lin Chen, He Yuan Huang, Qian Ma, Yin Ben Xia, Yan Feng Zhu
  • Patent number: 8266627
    Abstract: Data transfer during processor context switching is reduced, particularly in relation to a time-sharing microtasking programming model. Prior to switching context of a processor having local memory from a first to a second process, a portion of the local memory that does not require transfer to system memory for proper saving of data associated with the first process is determined. The context of the processor is then switched from the first to the second process, including transferring all of the local memory as the data associated with the first process, to system memory—except for the portion of the local memory that has been determined as not requiring saving to the system memory for proper saving of the data associated with the first process. Therefore, switching the context from the first to the second process results in a reduction of data transferred from the local memory to the system memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroshi Inoue, Moriyoshi Ohara, Takao Moriyama, Yukihiko Sohda, Hideaki Komatsu
  • Patent number: 8255201
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method of recognizing a process in a full-system Instruction Set Architecture (ISA) emulator, comprising the steps of: recognizing a process based on a base address of a page table thereof, recognizing the switch between the processes when said base address of the page table has changed, recognizing the termination of a recorded process when the base address of the page table of the process which tries to modify the page table is not equal to the base address of the page table of the recorded process in the page table. With the recognized process, the binary translation results indexed based on content can be saved into a corresponding process repository, thereby achieving the permanent saving of the translation results and the reuse of translation and optimization on the basis of a previously executed program. Consequently, the overall performance of the full-system Industry Standard Architecture emulator is enhanced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Hua Yong Wang, Kun Wang, Honesty Young
  • Patent number: 8255251
    Abstract: The reliability of a composite service having service components is determined, where the composite service can fail only where underlying resources fail. The composite service is represented as a plurality of continuous-time Markov chains (CTMC's). Each CTMC corresponds to a resource. A product of the CTMC's is constructed. The product encompasses composite service states. Steady-state probabilities for the product are determined. Each steady-state probability corresponds to a likelihood that a corresponding state will be a steady state. For each state of the composite service, a reward structure is determined. The reward structure corresponds to a likelihood that the state will successfully use the resources without failure. The reward structure is determined for a given state based on the given state's steady-state probability and based on discrete-time Markov chains (DTMC's) corresponding to the service components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Naoto Sato, Hiroaki Nakamura
  • Patent number: 8244734
    Abstract: Apparatus and method for transmitting file and apparatus and method for receiving file. The apparatus for receiving a file includes: a receiving device configured for receiving a file and at least one tag path associated with the file; a path selection device configured for selecting from candidate paths at least one path where a similarity between the tag vector of the lowest node and the tag vector of the highest node in each of the tag path exceeds a predetermined threshold, as a storage path; and a storage device configured for storing the file under the storage path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Hong Wei Ding, Jin Dong, Shi Xia Liu, Min Min Qiu
  • Patent number: 8243507
    Abstract: Programmable via devices and methods for the fabrication thereof are provided. In one aspect, a programmable via device is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kuan-Neng Chen, Lia Krusin-Elbaum, Dennis M. Newns, Sampath Purushothaman
  • Patent number: 8234506
    Abstract: Unsecure system software and secure system software on the same computer system is switched between. A computer system includes one or more processors, which may not have any built-in security features, memory, and firmware. The memory stores secure system software and unsecure system software. In response to receiving a user signal, the firmware switches from the unsecure system software running on the processors to the secure system software running on the processors (and back again). While the unsecure system software is running, the secure system software is protected from tampering by the unsecure system software.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Hassan Hajji, Seiichi Kawano, Takao Moriyama
  • Patent number: 8230045
    Abstract: A server computer connected to a plurality of client computers through a network and controls objects in a Metaverse accessed by the client computers. The server computer includes: a storage unit for storing an object ID specifying a Metaverse object and authenticity information; a communication unit for communicating with each of the client computers; and an enquiry unit for causing the communication unit to transmit the authenticity information of the object ID to the communication unit. A method of controlling objects in a Metaverse accessed by client computers is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kiyokuni Kawachiya, Michiaki Tatsubori
  • Patent number: 8222796
    Abstract: A micro-electro-mechanical device including a substrate with a main surface, a piezoelectric actuator with a first side mechanically coupled to the substrate, an elastic member with a first end mechanically coupled to the substrate, and a transfer member mechanically coupling a second side of the piezoelectric actuator to the elastic member. The piezoelectric actuator is positioned lateral to an unfixed region of the elastic member. The method includes applying a voltage to a piezoelectric actuator altering the piezoelectric actuator's dimension vertical to the main surface of the substrate; and mechanically transferring the alteration to a coupling point of an elastic member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Harish Bhaskaran, Michel Despont
  • Patent number: 8213724
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for labeling a video, an apparatus and method for modifying a video, a video searching method and an advertising method. The method for labeling a video includes labeling at least one object with its properties. The method for modifying a video includes replacing at least one object labeled as “can be replaced” with another object and modifying at least one object if the object has been labeled as “can be modified.” The video searching method includes labeling at least one object in at least one video with its properties and searching the video for an object of interest using the properties labeled on at least one object. The advertising method includes creating a video having an object labeled by an author's name, modifying the video by replacing the labeled object with an advertising object or modifying the labeled object as an advertising object by the advertiser, and distributing the video so that end user can watch the modified video.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Rong Yao Fu, Quan Yuan, Xia Tian Zhang, Shi Wan Zhao
  • Patent number: 8212322
    Abstract: Techniques for combining transistors having different threshold voltage requirements from one another are provided. In one aspect, a semiconductor device comprises a substrate having a first and a second nFET region, and a first and a second pFET region; a logic nFET on the substrate over the first nFET region; a logic pFET on the substrate over the first pFET region; a SRAM nFET on the substrate over the second nFET region; and a SRAM pFET on the substrate over the second pFET region, each comprising a gate stack having a metal layer over a high-K layer. The logic nFET gate stack further comprises a capping layer separating the metal layer from the high-K layer, wherein the capping layer is further configured to shift a threshold voltage of the logic nFET relative to a threshold voltage of one or more of the logic pFET, SRAM nFET and SRAM pFET.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Martin M. Frank, Arvind Kumar, Vijay Narayanan, Vamsi K. Paruchuri, Jeffrey Sleight
  • Patent number: 8211735
    Abstract: Techniques for fabricating nanowire/microwire-based solar cells are provided. In one, a method for fabricating a solar cell is provided. The method includes the following steps. A doped substrate is provided. A monolayer of spheres is deposited onto the substrate. The spheres include nanospheres, microspheres or a combination thereof The spheres are trimmed to introduce space between individual spheres in the monolayer. The trimmed spheres are used as a mask to pattern wires in the substrate. The wires include nanowires, microwires or a combination thereof A doped emitter layer is formed on the patterned wires. A top contact electrode is deposited over the emitter layer. A bottom contact electrode is deposited on a side of the substrate opposite the wires.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: William Graham, Supratik Guha, Oki Gunawan, George S. Tulevski, Kejia Wang, Ying Zhang