Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm William J. Burke
  • Patent number: 6914379
    Abstract: A display having improved thermal management and a method for producing the display are disclosed. The display includes a pixel structure adjacent a front panel with thermo-mechanical elements extending between a back panel and the pixel structure to dissipate heat generated by the pixel structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventor: Ponnusamy Palanisamy
  • Patent number: 6912251
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for effecting a seamless, frame accurate splicing of MPEG-like transport streams by constructing a transition stream or clip with portions from each stream proximate respective splice points.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 1999
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Christopher Ward, Clifford Pecota, Xiaobing Lee, Gary Hughes
  • Patent number: 6909149
    Abstract: A silicon-on-insulator (SOI) electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection device that can protect very sensitive thin gate oxides by limiting the power dissipation during the ESD event, which is best achieved by reducing the voltage drop across the active (protection) device during an ESD event. In one embodiment, the invention provides very low triggering and holding voltages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2005
    Assignees: Sarnoff Corporation, Sarnoff Europe BVBA
    Inventors: Cornelius Christian Russ, Phillip Czeslaw Jozwiak, Markus Paul Josef Mergens, John Armer, Cong-Son Trinh, Russell Mohn, Koen Gerard Maria Verhaege
  • Patent number: 6909743
    Abstract: A method for generating a transition stream and processing video, audio or other data within the transition stream using, respectively, pixel domain processing, audio domain processing or other data domain processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 1999
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Christopher Ward, Robert Norman Hurst
  • Patent number: 6907073
    Abstract: A scaleable video encoder has one or more encoding modes in which at least some, and possibly all, of the motion information used during motion-based predictive encoding of a video stream is excluded from the resulting encoded video bitstream, where a corresponding video decoder is capable of performing its own motion computation to generate its own version of the motion information used to perform motion-based predictive decoding in order to decode the bitstream to generate a decoded video stream. All motion computation, whether at the encoder or the decoder, is preferably performed on decoded data. For example, frames may be encoded as either H, L, or B frames, where H frames are intra-coded at full resolution and L frames are intra-coded at low resolution. The motion information is generated by applying motion computation to decoded L and H frames and used to generate synthesized L frames.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Harpreet Singh Sawhney, Rakesh Kumar, Keith Hanna, Peter Burt, Norman Winarsky
  • Patent number: 6897855
    Abstract: A tiled display device is formed from display tiles having picture element (pixel) positions defined up to the edge of the tiles. Each pixel position has an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) active area which occupies approximately 25 percent of the pixel area. Each tile includes a memory which stores display data, and pixel driving circuitry which controls the scanning and illumination of the pixels on the tile. The pixel driving circuitry is located on the back side of the tile and connections to pixel electrodes on the front side of the tile are made by vias which pass through portions of selected ones of the pixel areas which are not occupied by the active pixel material. The tiles are to formed in two parts, an electronics section and a display section. Each of these parts includes connecting pads which cover several pixel positions. Each connecting pad makes an electrical connection to only one row electrode or column electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 1999
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Dennis Lee Matthies, Roger Green Stewart, James Harold Atherton, Dennis J. Bechis, Heinz H. Busta, Zilan Shen
  • Patent number: 6898062
    Abstract: An ESD protection circuit for a semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) having protected circuitry, includes an SCR having at least one finger. Each finger includes a PNP transistor and an NPN transistor, where an emitter of the PNP and NPN transistors is respectively coupled between an I/O pad of the IC and ground, a base of the PNP transistor being coupled to a collector of the NPN transistor, and a base of the NPN transistor being coupled to a collector of the PNP transistor. The NPN transistor of each finger further includes a first gate for triggering said finger. A PMOS transistor includes a source and a drain respectively coupled to the I/O pad of the IC and the first gate of the NPN transistor. Further, a gate of the PMOS transistor is coupled to a supply voltage of the IC.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Cornelius Christian Russ, John Armer, Markus Paul Josef Mergens, Phillip Czeslaw Jozwiak
  • Patent number: 6898612
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is disclosed for performing blind source separation using convolutive signal decorrelation. For a first embodiment, the method accumulates a length of input signal (mixed signal) that includes a plurality of independent signals from independent signal sources. The invention then divides the length of input signal into a plurality of T-length periods (windows) and performs a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) on the, signal within each T-length period. Thereafter, estimated cross-correlation values are computed using a plurality of the averaged DFT values. A total number of K cross-correlation values are computed, where each of the K values is averaged over N of the T-length periods. Using the cross-correlation values, a gradient descent process computes the coefficients of a finite impulse response (FIR) filter that will effectively separate the source signals within the input signal. A second embodiment of the invention is directed to on-line processing of the input signal—i.e.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Lucas Cristobal Parra, Clay Douglas Spence
  • Patent number: 6890593
    Abstract: A method for coating moisture sensitive inorganic particles, such as phosphors, comprising mixing the inorganic particles having a particle size of about 1 to 100 micrometers with nanometer-sized coating particles, and firing the mixture to soften or melt the nanometer-sized particles about the inorganic particles, forming a moisture impervious coating. The coated particles are washed to remove excess particles, and dried. Coated moisture sensitive phosphor particles are impervious to moisture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventor: Yongchi Tian
  • Patent number: 6891565
    Abstract: A method of testing a decoder of a coded bitstream utilizes a test bitstream, containing in part embedded reference data, that is applied to a decoder being tested to produce a test result image that evidences whether or not the decoder correctly or incorrectly decodes the test bitstream. In an MPEG or an MPEG-like coding, for example, the test bitstream comprises a sequence of pictures representing at least one reference image portion, wherein at least one picture of the sequence of pictures typically is an intra-coded representation of the reference image portion and subsequent pictures of the sequence of pictures include an intra-coded representation of the reference image portion and a predictively coded representation of the reference image portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventor: Charles Benjamin Dieterich
  • Patent number: 6888984
    Abstract: A photonic device suitable for being optically coupled to at least one optical fiber having a first spot-size, the device including: at least one photonic component; and, a graded index lens optically coupled between the at least one photonic component and the at least one optical fiber; wherein, the graded index lens is adapted to convert optical transmissions from the at least one photonic component to the first spot size.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Joseph H. Abeles, Nagendranath Maley, Ralph Doud Whaley, Jr., Liyou Yang
  • Patent number: 6885757
    Abstract: A low-frequency, temporally asymmetric watermark carrier decreases in luminance in a substantially monotonic manner more slowly than it increases in luminance in a substantially monotonic manner. This allows the carrier to be embedded, e.g., in a video work, in a manner that renders the resultant watermark virtually invisible to the human eye. Moreover, the resultant watermark is substantially resistant to common pirating techniques in which high-frequency visual content (e.g., including watermark data) tends to be filtered out by piracy processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Jeffrey Adam Bloom, John Scott Nafziger
  • Patent number: 6885716
    Abstract: A decoder that receives a Manchester encoded signal including a start of frame sequence followed by coded data values followed by an end of frame sequence. The decoder also includes a detector that detects the start of frame sequence and the end of frame sequence to determine a beginning and end of the coded data values in the Manchester encoded frame. The decoder includes an integrator with hysteresis that includes an up-down counter and provides an output signal responsive to upper and lower threshold values. The output signal is applied to a discriminator that includes a counter which counts up in response to one value of the output signal of the integrator and is reset in response to the other value of the output signal of the integrator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Peter F. Zalud, Robert M. Evans
  • Patent number: 6879610
    Abstract: A light emitting device outputs amplified spontaneous emissions confined to a single spatial mode, where the spectral emission is shaped. In one aspect, an absorption layer is provided having a cutoff wavelength shorter than the quantum wavelength of the light emitting device. In another aspect, an interference filter at the front facet provides spectral shaping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Gerard Alphonse, Winston Chan
  • Patent number: 6879705
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for tracking multiple objects in a video sequence. The method defines a group of objects as a configuration, selects a configuration for a current video frame, predicts a configuration using a two-level process and computes the likelihood of the configuration. Using this method in an iterative manner on a sequence of frames, tracks the object group through the sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Hai Tao, Rakesh Kumar, Harpreet Singh Sawhney
  • Patent number: 6873460
    Abstract: A retractable screen system suitable for portable, hand held computing and communication units joins a number of optical sheets to form a rollable, extendible and retractable projection sheet. The resulting folded optical system provides a lightweight, portable unit. Telescoping arms allow the screen to be extended and stowed quickly and easily. High screen resolution is afforded by multiple mechanisms that scan concurrently. Beam indexing of the screen permits the precise alignment via feedback, and an embodiment fit for military, command and control applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2000
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Herschel Clement Burstyn, Perry Niel Yocom, Leon Shapiro
  • Patent number: 6870331
    Abstract: In a cathode ray tube, plural electron beams are directed towards a faceplate biased at screen potential and are magnetically scanned by a non-self-converging deflection yoke across the faceplate to impinge upon phosphors thereon to produce light depicting an image. The plural electron beams are substantially converged near two opposing edges of the faceplate. A processor changes the raster of the image from a first raster corresponding to position of the image to a second raster corresponding to the position of the plural electron beams on the faceplate. One or more electrodes between the tube neck and the faceplate are biased above and/or below screen potential to deflect electrons landing near the periphery of the faceplate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2005
    Assignees: Sarnoff Corporation, Orion Electric Company, LTD
    Inventors: Dennis J. Bechis, David A. New, Joseph M. Carpinelli, Charles M. Wine, Michael A. Isnardi
  • Patent number: 6850564
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for dynamically varying the frame rate of an image sequence is disclosed. In one embodiment, the image sequence is encoded and stored at different frame rates (e.g., 30, 25, 20 fps and so on). Alternatively, only the motion information, e.g., motion vectors, for the other frame rates are stored.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 1998
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Sassan Pejhan, Ya-Qin Zhang, Tihao Chiang
  • Patent number: 6851121
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for adjusting an embedded portion of a television signal. The embedded portion is adjusted such that a downstream receiver effects no change on a displayed video upon decoding the adjusted embedded portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2005
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Robert William Shideleff, Charles Benjamin Dieterich, Michael Allen Plotnick, Charles Weaver Christine, Elizabeth Annella Martina Seip, Charles August Asmuth, Kent Charles Koping, Patrick Michael Sheehan
  • Patent number: 6850397
    Abstract: An electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection device, for protecting power lines of an integrated circuit. In one embodiment, the ESD protection device includes a first silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) coupled between a first power line and a second power line, and a second SCR coupled anti-parallel to the first SCR between the first and second power lines. A first trigger device is coupled to the first power line and a first trigger gate of the first SCR, and a second trigger device coupled to the second power line and a first trigger gate of the second SCR. The trigger devices and the SCRs provide power-down-mode-compatible operation of the power lines, as well as ESD protection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2005
    Assignees: Sarnoff Corporation, Sarnoff Europe
    Inventors: Cornelius Christian Russ, Markus Paul Josef Mergens, John Armer, Koen Gerard Maria Verhaege