Patents Assigned to International Business and Machines Corporation
  • Patent number: 7661137
    Abstract: An apparatus, program product and method initiate the execution of distractive computational units along with the execution of other computational units on an untrusted computer to inhibit the reconstitution of a computation by an untrusted party. In particular, along with partitioning a particular computation into a plurality of computational units, one or more distractive computational units are generated and supplied to one or more resource providers for execution along with those of the partitioned computation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Scott N. Gerard
  • Patent number: 7661080
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the present invention is a method and apparatus for net-aware critical area extraction. One embodiment of the inventive method for determining the critical area of an integrated circuit includes modeling a net corresponding to the integrated circuit as a graph, where the net is made up of a plurality of interconnected shapes spanning one or more layers of the integrated circuit. All generators for opens are then defined and identified. The Voronoi diagram of the identified generators is computed, and the critical area is computed in accordance with the Voronoi diagram.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Evanthia Papadopoulou, Sarah Braasch, Mervyn Y. Tan
  • Patent number: 7660940
    Abstract: A carrier having at least one self timed memory chip in a daisy chain of memory chips. A first carrier has at least a portion of a daisy chain of memory chips attached to the first carrier. An address/command bus input on the first carrier carries an address/command word to a first memory chip in the daisy chain of memory chips. If the first memory chip determines that the address/command word is not directed to the first memory chip, the first memory chip re-drives the address/command word to a second memory chip in the daisy chain of memory chips using a point to point address/command bus link. If there are no more memory chips on the first carrier, the address/command word is re-driven to an address/command bus off-carrier connector. An array on a memory chip has an access time dynamically determined by how fast the array can be accessed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Gerald Keith Bartley, Darryl John Becker, Paul Eric Dahlen, Philip Raymond Germann, Andrew Benson Maki, Mark Owen Maxson
  • Patent number: 7660723
    Abstract: A ranking method and system. The method includes receiving by a computing system from a first user, a selection for a first candidate skill. The first user is presented with a first group of predetermined criteria. The first group is associated with the first candidate skill. The first user assigns ranking percentage data associated with the first group. A list including portions of the assigned ranking percentage data assigned to each predetermined criteria of the first group is transmitted to a second user. The computing system receiving from the second user a list of candidates and responses to each predetermined criteria of the first group. The computing system receives from the first user, evaluation data related to the responses. The computing system ranks the candidates of the list based on the assigned ranking percentage data and the evaluation data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Susan Bumgardner Cirulli, Andrew Coleman, Gautam Majumdar, So Ying Tse
  • Patent number: 7660399
    Abstract: A voice processing complex has a plurality of host machines, each host machine supporting one or more voice applications, at least one host in the complex including telephony hardware for providing access to a plurality of telephone lines. Such a host provides telephony functions to the complex. This is achieved by maintaining a mapping of voice applications to telephone lines, and creating a call object in response to an incoming call on one of the lines. It is then determined which voice application to associate with the incoming call on the basis of this mapping, and an identifier to the call object is then passed to the determined voice application. Thereafter the call object is responsive to requests from this voice application for providing telephony functions for the call. This includes receiving a media object from the voice processing application which represents desired output over a telephone line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Samuel David Borman, David Seager Renshaw, Yuk-Lun Wong
  • Patent number: 7659171
    Abstract: A method for forming a borderless contact for a semiconductor FET (Field Effect Transistor) device, the method comprising, forming a gate conductor stack on a substrate, forming spacers on the substrate, such that the spacers and the gate conductor stack partially define a volume above the gate conductor stack, wherein the spacers are sized to define the volume such that a stress liner layer deposited on the gate conductor stack substantially fills the volume, depositing a liner layer on the substrate, the spacers, and the gate conductor stack, depositing a dielectric layer on the liner layer, etching to form a contact hole in the dielectric layer, etching to form the contact hole in the liner layer, such that a portion of a source/drain diffusion area formed in the substrate is exposed and depositing contact metal in the contact hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Toshiharu Furukawa, Steven J Holmes, David V Horak, Charles W. Koburger, III
  • Patent number: 7660872
    Abstract: A user designated as a group leader of a group of users manages location information for the group of users using a base device. In particular, a client device is identified for each user in the group of users and an area within which each user in the group of users is to remain is defined. Subsequently, the base device can obtain location information for the client device(s) and process the location information for use by the group leader. For example, the base device can display the current location of one or more users, display the relative location of one or more users with respect to the group leader, and/or determine if one or more users are outside of the area. The group leader can then coordinate the group by communicating with one or more users in the group. In this manner, the group leader can make more informed decisions about the status of each group member and more efficiently coordinate the re-grouping and/or movement of the group of users.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Wayne M. Delia, Edward E. Kelley
  • Patent number: 7660886
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for displaying system management command execution status in real-time are provided. The apparatus and method display a window that is divided into a plurality of sub-windows. One sub-window is used to display all the computers on which the system command has not yet started to execute. Another sub-window is used to display all computer systems on which the execution of the command has started. One sub-window is used to display all computer systems that have not successfully completed the command and another sub-window is used to display all computer systems that have successfully executed the command. When a computer system, displayed in the window displaying all computer systems that have started execution of the command, is highlighted or selected, the real-time progress of the execution of the command is displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Sanaa F. Abdelhadi, Jack Allen Alford, Jr., Sandip A. Amin, David Glenn Grost, James Lee Lentz
  • Patent number: 7659153
    Abstract: A field effect device is disclosed which has a body formed of a crystalline semiconductor material and has at least one vertically oriented section and at least one horizontally oriented section. The device is produced in SOI technology by fabricating first a formation of the device in masking insulators, and then transferring this formation through several etching steps into the SOI layer. The segmented field effect device combines FinFET, or fully depleted silicon-on-insulator FETs, type devices with fully depleted planar devices. This combination allows device width control with FinFET type devices. The segmented field effect device gives high current drive for a given layout area. The segmented field effect devices allow for the fabrication of high performance processors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Ying Zhang, Bruce B. Doris, Thomas Safron Kanarsky, Meikei Ieong, Jakub Tadeusz Kedzierski
  • Patent number: 7661115
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and program storage device for preserving locked pages in memory when in user mode. A user command daemon is provided for executing a command string received from a user application. A socket interface is disposed between the user command daemon and the application for routing signals between the user application and the user command daemon. The user command daemon provides a returned value to application for loading into memory without causing latencies to the running of the application.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Chiahong Chen, Radha K. Ramachandran
  • Patent number: 7660072
    Abstract: A magnetic head includes a substrate having a first tape bearing surface and a second (outrigger) tape bearing surface, preferably with a slot therebetween. A plurality of elements (readers and/or writers) are coupled to the substrate and positioned towards the first tape bearing surface. The first and second tape bearing surfaces lie along planes, the planes being offset from one another spatially and/or angularly. The second tape bearing surface, like typical flat profile heads, induces a small spacing between a tape passing thereover and its tape bearing surface. The second tape bearing surface is positioned below the plane of the first tape bearing surface, thereby creating the proper wrap angle of the tape relative to the first tape bearing surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Robert Glenn Biskeborn, Jason Liang, Calvin Shyhjong Lo
  • Patent number: 7660971
    Abstract: A method for dependency tracking and flush recovery for an out-of-order processor includes recording, in a last definition (DEF) data structure, an identifier of a first instruction as the most recent instruction in an instruction sequence that defines contents of the particular logical register and recording, in a next DEF data structure, the identifier of the first instruction in association with an identifier of a previous second instruction also indicating an update to the particular logical register. In addition, a recovery array is updated to indicate which of the instructions in the instruction sequence updates each of the plurality of logical registers. In response to misspeculation during execution of the instruction sequence, the processor performs a recovery operation to place the identifier of the second instruction in the last DEF data structure by reference to the next DEF data structure and the recovery array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Vikas Agarwal, William E. Burky, Krishnan Kailas, Balaram Sinharoy
  • Patent number: 7660964
    Abstract: A buffer of block addresses for use by a client for read and write operations in a client-server system is maintained. Block addresses are maintained in the buffer and are streamed to the client in response to a request for the addresses to support a read or write operation. The quantity of addresses maintained in the buffer may be dynamically adjusted in response consumption of addresses for read and write operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Craig F. Everhart, Venkateswarara Jujjuri, Malahal R. Naineni, Rohit K. Prasad, Senthil Rajaram
  • Patent number: 7660121
    Abstract: A cooling system and method are provided for cooling air exiting one or more electronics racks of a data center. The cooling system includes at least one cooling station separate and freestanding from at least one respective electronics rack of the data center, and configured for disposition of an air outlet side of electronics rack adjacent thereto for cooling egressing air from the electronics rack. The cooling station includes a frame structure separate and freestanding from the respective electronics rack, and an air-to-liquid heat exchange assembly supported by the frame structure. The heat exchange assembly includes an inlet and an outlet configured to respectively couple to coolant supply and coolant return lines for facilitating passage of coolant therethrough. The air-to-liquid heat exchange assembly is sized to cool egressing air from the air outlet side of the respective electronics rack before being expelled into the data center.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Levi A. Campbell, Richard C. Chu, Michael J. Ellsworth, Jr., Madhusudan K. Iyengar, Roger R. Schmidt, Robert E. Simons
  • Patent number: 7661035
    Abstract: A method, system, apparatus, and computer program product is presented for tracing operations. A set of related methodologies can be used within instruction tracing software, such as a tracing program, to reduce its tendency to generate interrupts that cause unwanted effects in the system that is being captured. A first methodology allows access to protected memory blocks so that instructions may be read from those memory blocks. A second methodology provides for the trace output buffer to be accessed using physical addressing. A third methodology traces only instruction addresses, which are resolved later during a post-processing phase of operation. A fourth methodology comprises multiple different methods for obtaining copies of instructions that have already executed rather than obtaining them before they are executed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jimmie Earl DeWitt, Jr., Riaz Y. Hussain, Frank Eliot Levine, Robert John Urquhart
  • Patent number: 7659598
    Abstract: A ground shield is disclosed that includes a ‘cheesed’ metal positioned within a dielectric layer and a metal region positioned within a first metal level over the cheesed metal. The ground shield can have different forms depending on the metal used, and provisions are made to prevent diffusion of copper (Cu) when that is used as the metal in the cheese metal of the ground shield. The ground shield provides a low resistance, very thick metal at a first metal (M1) level for passive RF elements in conjunction with the standard back-end-of-line (BEOL) integration. The invention also includes a method of forming the ground shield.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Mete Erturk, Alvin J. Joseph, Anthony K. Stamper
  • Patent number: 7660893
    Abstract: A method and an associated system for monitoring and instantly identifying faults in a data communication cable are disclosed. A fault monitoring program learns a reference data traffic pattern communicated through the data communication cable by reading inputs from a sensor. The reference data traffic pattern is stored and is used for determining normalcy of data traffic through the data communication cable. The fault monitoring program monitors for a fault in a data traffic, and, if a fault is detected, activates a fault indicator sending out fault signals to notify users of the fault. If the fault is not recovered within a predefined recovery period, the fault monitoring program deactivates the fault indicator and shuts down a power source for later use of the data communication cable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David Clark Brillhart, Christopher James Dawson, Michael David Kendzierski
  • Patent number: 7660641
    Abstract: Under the present invention, a GUI is provided that allows an assembly line to be both graphically and dynamically configured. In general, the GUI allows a designer or the like to “graphically” configure: a hierarchy of categories representing the assembly line; the process points along the assembly line; the different events that can be triggered at the process points; the actions that are taken in response to the events; the processes (sequences of actions) for the events; and the input parameters for the events and the actions. In a typical embodiment, the GUI is maintained on a system that is separate from the central computer controlling the assembly line. This not only allows the assembly line to be configured remotely, but also without ceasing operation of the line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Redha M. Bournas, Shunichi Asaka, Tateo Kawamura, David G. Noller, Jr., Paul D. Peters, David J. Salkeld, John L. Ward, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7661008
    Abstract: Under the present invention a real time clock circuit, within a set-top box, is provided with an internal clock generator for generating multiple clock signals. Once generated, a first clock signal is divided into an initial set of values representing time and optionally day/date intervals, and then communicated to a set of clock registers. The initial set of values can then be communicated (directly or via a set of DCR registers) to a display component within the set-top box. Updated clock signals are received by the set of DCR registers from an external source such as a satellite or the like thus making the clock very accurate, and are communicated to the display component. Similar to the initial set of values, the updated set of values could be communicated to the display component directly from the set of DCR registers, or via the set of clock registers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Eric E. Retter, John M. Sutton
  • Patent number: 7658865
    Abstract: Conducting liquid crystal polymer matrix comprising carbon nanotubes aligned in the matrix is provided, along with use thereof and method of fabrication.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Minhua Lu