Abstract: Techniques for presence detection are described. In an example, system receives, from a first device connected with a computer network that is associated with a location, a first value of a first parameter associated with a link between the first device and a second device. The system determines, using a first prediction model and the first value, a first likelihood of presence at the location. The first prediction model is configured based at least in part on outputs of a second prediction model that uses a second parameter associated with the computer network. The system determines whether the presence is detected at the location based at least in part on the first likelihood.

Abstract: Selective frequency dissipation is implemented that enables cooling of energy gap protected qubits such that excited energy states resulting from heating or other undesired processes are returned to a lower excited energy state or a ground state manifold, thus reducing the probability of errors. Also, the selective frequency dissipation inhibits leakage from the energy gap protected qubits when in the ground state.

Abstract: A device capable of autonomous motion may move in an environment and may receive audio data from a microphone. If the device receives a command represented in the audio data that is absent from a set of known commands, the device may prompt the user to explain how to perform the command. The device may save a command template corresponding to the command, which may be used to perform future commands.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for client-directed placement of remotely configured service instances are described. One or more placement target options are selected for a client of a network-accessible service based on criteria such as service characteristics of the placement targets. The selected options, including a particular placement target that includes instance hosts configurable from remote control servers, are indicated programmatically to the client. A determination is made that a service instance is to be configured at the particular placement target on behalf of the client. A remote control server is configured to issue administrative commands to an instance host at the particular placement target to configure the service instance.

Abstract: Techniques for continuous lock-minimal checkpointing and recovery with a distributed log-based datastore are described. A continuous, fault-tolerant checkpoint process is run on a node in a cluster in a compute-optimized or memory-optimized manner, thereby checkpointing the in-memory replica state of the node to a durable checkpoint datastore. A node can partially restore its replica state by obtaining checkpoint data, which includes an identifier of a low-water mark in a journal shard. The node can attach to the journal shard using the low-mater mark as the point of attachment, enabling the node to finalize the restoration of the replica state to be current.

Abstract: This disclosure describes a system for automatically transitioning items from a materials handling facility without delaying a user as they exit the materials handling facility. For example, while a user is located in a materials handling facility, the user may pick one or more items. The items are identified and automatically associated with the user at or near the time of the item pick. When the users enters and/or passes through a transition area, the picked items are automatically transitioned to the user without affirmative input from or delay to the user.

Abstract: A system is provided for determining which user inputs correspond to eligible actions for a particular device type. The system determines a device type identifier corresponding to the device that receives the user input and an action to be performed in response to the user input. The system determines that the performed action corresponds to an eligible action type for the device type identifier, and performs further processing using data related to the corresponding user input. Different device type identifiers may be associated with different eligible action types. The system may evaluate multiple user inputs from different users and different devices.

Abstract: The present document describes a communication session resumption mechanism. A client computer system establishes a communication session to a server computer that is a member of a set of related server computers. As a result of establishing the communication session, the server computer identifies the set of related server computers to the client computer system. The set of related server computers share communication session information with each other, allowing the client computer system to resume the communication session with another server computer belonging to the set of related server computers. The communication session may be specified to the other server computer by the client computer system by providing a session identifier or a session ticket.

Abstract: Machine learning translation models may be selectively tuned to provide custom machine translations. A request to translate input text from an input language to a target language may be received. A tuning data set for translating the input text to the target language may be identified and searched to select pairs of texts in the tuning data according to comparisons with the input text. A machine learning model used to translate into the target language may be tuned using only second texts in the target language in the selected pairs of texts. The tuned machine learning model may then be used to translate the input text into the target language.

Abstract: Disclosed techniques generate a data structure including data representing a configuration of a data storage system. A parameter can be obtained that is usable to configure the data storage system. Data representing the configuration of the data storage system can be modified based on the parameter. The data storage system can be configured, using the parameter, based on the modified data representing the configuration of the data storage system and predetermined configuration data for the data storage system.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems and methods to deliver media files at a highest perceived presented quality. Rather than measure quality as a difference between an encoded version of the media file and the original version of the media file, in accordance with the disclosed implementations, quality is based on a presented quality of each fragment of a media file when presented by a device to a user. The disclosed implementations determine a presented quality score for each fragment of a media file, the presented quality score indicative of a predicted quality of the fragment as perceived by a user when the fragment is presented. The presented quality score may be determined based on one or more of a bitrate used to encode the media segment, a device type of a device used to present the media segment, the content of the segment itself, etc.

Abstract: Techniques for performing automatic speech recognition (ASR) are described. In some embodiments, an ASR component integrates contextual information from user profile data into audio encoding data to predict a token(s) corresponding to a spoken input. The user profile data may include personalized words, such as, contact names, device names, etc. The ASR component determines word embedding data using the personalized words. The ASR component is configured to apply attention to audio frames that are relevant to the personalized words based on processing the audio encoding data and the word embedding data.

Abstract: A speech-processing system may provide access to one or more virtual assistants via a voice-controlled device. The system may be activated by detecting a wakeword in speech received by a microphone of the device. The system may process the speech and provide a response in the form of synthetic speech. When a speaker of the device synthetic emits the speech, the microphone may detect some or all of the speech. If the synthetic speech includes a wakeword or words or phrases similar to the wakeword, a wakeword detection component of the device may detect the wakeword and activate an assistant, resulting in a self-wake or cross-wake. Self- or cross-wake may interrupt an action or response currently in progress, which may frustrate the user and result in a poor user experience. This disclosure thus proposes systems and methods for preventing cross-wake and self-wake in a voice-controlled device.

Abstract: A system configured to create a flexible home theater group using a variety of different devices. To enable synchronized audio output, the system performs device localization to generate map data representing locations of the devices. The system may generate the map data based on a listening position and/or location of a television, such that the map data is centered on the listening position with the television along a vertical axis. To generate the map data, the system processes measurement data representing relative directions between the devices and timing information that can be used to determine relative distances between the devices. Using the relative distances, the system determines relative positions of the devices (e.g., optimal arrangement). Knowing the relative directions and the relative positions, the system can determine an orientation of an individual device and use the orientation to determine the listening position and/or the location of the television.

Abstract: A machine learning model, such as a neural network, is partially encrypted with a homomorphic encryption scheme. Application of the machine learning model to data includes performing operations on plaintext and encrypting results of operations for input to other operations that are performed over cyphertext. Ciphertext output of such operations can be provided to a service that is able to decrypt the ciphertext output.

Abstract: Techniques are described for generating transaction data for a transaction, the transaction data generated with varying fidelity levels based on various constraints. In response to a transaction request from a client, a contract engine may perform service call(s) that instruct network service(s) to generate transaction data. The service call(s) may include constraint(s) on the generation of the transaction data, such as a time limit or a requested fidelity. The network service(s) may generate the transaction data at a particular fidelity based on the time limit, requested fidelity, or other criteria such as current load on the network service(s). The transaction data may be communicated to the contract engine with a fidelity indicator. Lower fidelity transaction data may be sent to the client to enable a low latency user experience. The lower fidelity transaction data may subsequently be replaced with higher fidelity transaction data generated with higher latency.

Abstract: Techniques are described for managing communications between multiple intercommunicating computing nodes, such as multiple virtual machine nodes hosted on one or more physical computing machines or systems. In some situations, users may specify groups of computing nodes and optionally associated access policies for use in the managing of the communications for those groups, such as by specifying which source nodes are allowed to transmit data to particular destinations nodes. In addition, determinations of whether initiated data transmissions from source nodes to destination nodes are authorized may be dynamically negotiated for and recorded for later use in automatically authorizing future such data transmissions without negotiation. This abstract is provided to comply with rules requiring an abstract, and it is submitted with the intention that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.

Abstract: An inventory management system can include a fleet of mobile drive units. The mobile drive units can detect, using a sensor, calibration data associated with a calibration fixture. The calibration of the sensors can be updated based on the calibration data. The calibration data for the fleet of mobile drive units can be used determine a correction factor. The correction factor can be applied to the fleet of mobile drive units to further update the calibration of the sensors.

Abstract: Techniques are provided to maintain data coherency for data transfers among data processing devices in a distributed computing environment. A data buffer in each data processing device can be mapped to an address range that is assigned to transactions that allow out-of-order completions, and a message buffer in each data processing device can be mapped to an address range that is assigned to transactions that follow transaction ordering. Thus, a transaction to store a set of data into the data buffer is completed before a transaction to write a synchronization message in the message buffer indicating that the set of data is stored in the data buffer based on the mapping irrespective of the transaction ordering indicated by each transaction.

Abstract: Techniques are described for providing virtual networking functionality for managed computer networks. In some situations, a user may configure or otherwise specify a logical network topology for a managed computer network with multiple computing nodes that includes one or more virtual networking devices each associated with a specified group of the multiple computing nodes. Corresponding networking functionality may be provided for communications between the multiple computing nodes by emulating functionality that would be provided by the networking devices if they were physically present and configured to support the specified network topology. In some situations, the managed computer network is a virtual computer network overlaid on a substrate network, and the networking device functionality emulating includes receiving routing communications directed to the networking devices and using included routing information to update the specified network topology for the managed computer network.