Patents Assigned to 3DLABS
-
Patent number: 9589375Abstract: An apparatus and method for rendering a smooth circular point using polygons on a computer graphics display. The circular point is approximated by a polygon and the selection of the polygon depends on the diameter of the point. The polygon is enclosed in a bounding area that is divided into a plurality of tiles. The tiles are classified into different sections depending on their location relative to the center of the point. The tiles in each section are processed according to an algorithm to generate a mask that is used to render the circular point.Type: GrantFiled: February 12, 2014Date of Patent: March 7, 2017Assignee: 3DLABS INC., LTD.Inventor: James L. Deming
-
Publication number: 20140354646Abstract: An instruction cache and data cache used to virtualize the storage of global data and instructions used by graphics shaders. Present day hardware design stores the global data and instructions used by the shaders in a fixed amount of registers or writable control store (WCS). However, this traditional approach limits the size and the complexity of the shaders that can be supported. By virtualizing the storage of the global data and instructions, the amount of global or state memory available to the shader and the length of the shading programs are no longer constrained by the physical on-chip memory.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 4, 2014Publication date: December 4, 2014Applicant: 3DLABS INC., LTD.Inventor: David R. BALDWIN
-
Patent number: 8886957Abstract: The write-access control line for an RTC is combined with a clear line for an RTC signature register, so that changes to the RTC will cause subsequent reads to return an invalidity flag.Type: GrantFiled: November 9, 2010Date of Patent: November 11, 2014Assignee: 3DLabs Inc. Ltd.Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, Nicholas Murphy
-
Publication number: 20140160133Abstract: An apparatus and method for rendering a smooth circular point using polygons on a computer graphics display. The circular point is approximated by a polygon and the selection of the polygon depends on the diameter of the point. The polygon is enclosed in a bounding area that is divided into a plurality of tiles. The tiles are classified into different sections depending on their location relative to the center of the point. The tiles in each section are processed according to an algorithm to generate a mask that is used to render the circular point.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 12, 2014Publication date: June 12, 2014Applicant: 3DLABS INC., LTD.Inventor: James L. Deming
-
Publication number: 20140052964Abstract: An architecture for microprocessors and the like in which instructions include a type identifier, which selects one of several interpretation registers. The interpretation registers hold information for interpreting the opcode of each instruction, so that a stream of compressed instructions (with type identifiers) can be translated into a stream of expanded instructions. Preferably the type identifiers also distinguish sequencer instructions from processing-element instructions, and can even distinguish among different types of sequencer instructions (as well as among different types of processing-element instructions).Type: ApplicationFiled: October 27, 2013Publication date: February 20, 2014Applicant: 3Dlabs Inc., Ltd.Inventors: Jonathan BLOOMFIELD, John ROBSON, Nick Murphy
-
Patent number: 8654129Abstract: An apparatus and method for rendering a smooth circular point using polygons on a computer graphics display. The circular point is approximated by a polygon and the selection of the polygon depends on the diameter of the point. The polygon is enclosed in a bounding area that is divided into a plurality of tiles. The tiles are classified into different sections depending on their location relative to the center of the point. The tiles in each section are processed according to an algorithm to generate a mask that is used to render the circular point.Type: GrantFiled: May 19, 2010Date of Patent: February 18, 2014Assignee: 3Dlabs Inc., Ltd.Inventor: James L Deming
-
Patent number: 8643659Abstract: An instruction cache and data cache used to virtualize the storage of global data and instructions used by graphics shaders. Present day hardware design stores the global data and instructions used by the shaders in a fixed amount of registers or writable control store (WCS). However, this traditional approach limits the size and the complexity of the shaders that can be supported. By virtualizing the storage of the global data and instructions, the amount of global or state memory available to the shader and the length of the shading programs are no longer constrained by the physical on-chip memory.Type: GrantFiled: October 5, 2004Date of Patent: February 4, 2014Assignee: 3DLabs Inc., Ltd.Inventor: David R. Baldwin
-
Patent number: 8572354Abstract: An architecture for microprocessors, in which instructions include a type identifier, selects one of several interpretation registers. The interpretation registers hold information for interpreting the opcode of each instruction, so that a stream of compressed instructions (with type identifiers) can be translated into a stream of expanded instructions. Preferably the type identifiers also distinguish sequencer instructions from processing-element instructions, and can even distinguish among different types of sequencer instructions (as well as among different types of processing-element instructions).Type: GrantFiled: September 28, 2006Date of Patent: October 29, 2013Assignee: 3DLabs Inc., Ltd.Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, John Robson, Nick Murphy
-
Publication number: 20130145131Abstract: Architectures and methods for viewing data in multiple formats within a register file. Various disclosed embodiments allow a plurality of consecutive registers within one register file to appear to be temporarily transposed by one instruction, such that each transposed register contains one byte or word from multiple consecutive registers. A program can arbitrarily reorganize the bytes within a register by swapping the value stored in any byte within the register with the value stored in any other byte within the same register. Indirect register access is also provided, without additional scoreboarding hardware, as an apparent move from one register to another. The functionality of a hardware data FIFO at the I/O is also provided, without the power consumption of register-to-register transfers. However, the size of the FIFO can be changed under program control.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 17, 2012Publication date: June 6, 2013Applicant: 3Dlabs Inc., Ltd.Inventor: 3Dlabs Inc., Ltd.
-
Publication number: 20120042135Abstract: Architectures and methods for viewing data in multiple formats within a register file. Various disclosed embodiments allow a plurality of consecutive registers within one register file to appear to be temporarily transposed by one instruction, such that each transposed register contains one byte or word from multiple consecutive registers. A program can arbitrarily reorganize the bytes within a register by swapping the value stored in any byte within the register with the value stored in any other byte within the same register. Indirect register access is also provided, without additional scoreboarding hardware, as an apparent move from one register to another. The functionality of a hardware data FIFO at the I/O is also provided, without the power consumption of register-to-register transfers. However, the size of the FIFO can be changed under program control.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 29, 2010Publication date: February 16, 2012Applicant: 3DLabs Inc. Ltd.Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, John Robson, Nick Murphy
-
Publication number: 20110173480Abstract: The write-access control line for an RTC is combined with a clear line for an RTC signature register, so that changes to the RTC will cause subsequent reads to return an invalidity flag.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 9, 2010Publication date: July 14, 2011Applicant: 3DLABS INC. LTD.Inventors: Jonathan Bloomfield, Nicholas Murphy
-
Publication number: 20100306657Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention pertain to, but are not limited to, browsing a displayed listing of stored audio content such as music in a music player, PC, or portable electronic device, including MP3 players and mobile phones. Various embodiments of the present invention recognize that to improve the user's browsing experience, the user's selections from the listing should be accompanied by audio effects specifically configured to facilitate the corresponding content navigation. For example, the effects could be that as the currently selected item in the listing changes, an excerpt of the music track (or of a member of the group of music tracks) in the new item (i.e., “new currently-selected” item) in the listing is played with 3D audio effects such that the position from which the music track appears to be playing is in symphony with the new item's movement on the user interface.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 1, 2009Publication date: December 2, 2010Applicant: 3DLabs Inc., Ltd.Inventors: Arran Derbyshire, Ben Leslie
-
Publication number: 20100225652Abstract: An apparatus and method for rendering a smooth circular point using polygons on a computer graphics display. The circular point is approximated by a polygon and the selection of the polygon depends on the diameter of the point. The polygon is enclosed in a bounding area that is divided into a plurality of tiles. The tiles are classified into different sections depending on their location relative to the center of the point. The tiles in each section are processed according to an algorithm to generate a mask that is used to render the circular point.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 19, 2010Publication date: September 9, 2010Applicant: 3DLABS INC., LTDInventor: James L. DEMING
-
Publication number: 20100201696Abstract: An image display system with one or more client computers in selective communication with a visual server having image processing capabilities. The client computer generates image modifying data corresponding to a generated image, and transmits the data to the visual server. The visual server receives the image-modifying data, generates a modified image based upon the image-modifying data, and transmits the modified image as compressed data to the client. The client decompresses the modified image data and displays the modified image. In the system, the visual server and client can provide a sequential display of modified frames on client to support animation with complex 3-dimensional graphics.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 10, 2009Publication date: August 12, 2010Applicant: 3DLABS INC., LTD.Inventors: Osman Kent, David R. Baldwin, Nicholas J.N. Murphy
-
Patent number: 7710425Abstract: A computer system in which a graphics accelerator unit manages page faulting of texture data invisibly to the host processor.Type: GrantFiled: June 9, 2000Date of Patent: May 4, 2010Assignee: 3Dlabs Inc. Ltd.Inventor: David Robert Baldwin
-
Publication number: 20090295830Abstract: A method of displaying images on the display screen of a portable electronic device includes presenting the overall image according to a first magnification level and a selected region in accordance with a second magnification level. The second region is superimposed over the overall image and is activated by a user input.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 10, 2009Publication date: December 3, 2009Applicant: 3DLabs Inc., Ltd.Inventors: Oleg MURAVEYNYK, Jon EWINS, Peter Daniel COLLINS, Nicholas J.N. MURPHY
-
Patent number: 7616200Abstract: An apparatus and method of displaying a first image on a display device with a plurality of pixels assigns one of a plurality of sample patterns to each pixel on the display device. Each pixel is assigned the one of a plurality of patterns based upon its unique location on the display device. Each sample pattern has at least one sample location. It then is determined if the first image intersects any of the sample locations on each pixel. Pixels determined to have at least one sample location that intersect the first image thus are illuminated.Type: GrantFiled: June 10, 1999Date of Patent: November 10, 2009Assignee: 3Dlabs Inc. Ltd.Inventors: Steven J. Heinrich, Mark A. Mosley, Clifford A. Whitmore, James L. Deming, Stewart G. Carlton, Matt E. Buckelew, Dale L. Kirkland, Timothy S. Johnson
-
Patent number: 7587520Abstract: An image display system with one or more client computers in selective communication with a visual server having image processing capabilities. The client computer generates image modifying data corresponding to a generated image, and transmits the data to the visual server. The visual server receives the image-modifying data, generates a modified image based upon the image-modifying data, and transmits the modified image as compressed data to the client. The client decompresses the modified image data and displays the modified image. In the system, the visual server and client can provide a sequential display of modified frames on client to support animation with complex 3-dimensional graphics.Type: GrantFiled: January 4, 2002Date of Patent: September 8, 2009Assignee: 3DLabs Inc. Ltd.Inventors: Osman Kent, David R. Baldwin, Nicholas J. N. Murphy
-
Publication number: 20090187842Abstract: A system and methods for a novel user interface of a touch sensitive screen for pocket device. The user interface contains display items and action tabs. Display items are configured to be draggable if being dragged at substantially horizontal direction; display items are configured to be scrollable if being dragged at substantially vertical direction. Dragging and releasing a draggable item to an action tab causes a specified action or a sequence of actions being applied to the item.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 6, 2008Publication date: July 23, 2009Applicant: 3DLabs Inc., Ltd.Inventors: Peter Daniel Collins, Nicholas J.N. Murphy
-
Patent number: 7518616Abstract: A graphics accelerator for processing a graphical image includes a texture buffer for storing texture maps and data relating to the texture maps stored in the texture buffer, and a texture processor that performs texturing operations on the graphical image. The texture processor includes a fetching engine that retrieves texture packets, where each texture packet is stored in the texture buffer and associated with a texture map. Each texture packet includes data relating to the location of its associated texture map in the texture buffer.Type: GrantFiled: July 15, 1999Date of Patent: April 14, 2009Assignee: 3DLabs, Inc. Ltd.Inventor: Stephen W. Edwards