Patents Assigned to NVidia
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Patent number: 9954984Abstract: A receiver, transmitter and method for enabling a replay using a packetized link protocol are provided. In one embodiment, the method includes: (1) transmitting a stream of packets including an untagged packet and (2) using synchronized counters to determine a sequence ID of the untagged packet, which is a corrupt/lost packet that needs to be retransmitted.Type: GrantFiled: October 14, 2015Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: Nvidia CorporationInventors: Dennis Ma, Michael Osborn, Eric Tyson, Stephen D. Glaser, Marvin Denman, Jonathan Owen, Mark Hummel
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Patent number: 9954527Abstract: A balanced, charge-recycling repeater link is disclosed. The link includes a first set of segments operating in a first voltage domain and a second set of segments operating in a second voltage domain. The link is configured to transmit a first signal over at least one segment in the first set of segments and at least one other segment in the second set of segments. Each segment of the link includes at least one active circuit element configured to charge or discharge one or more corresponding interconnects within the link and a level shifter configured to shift the level of a signal on a last interconnect of the segment from the first voltage domain to the second voltage domain or the second voltage domain to the first voltage domain.Type: GrantFiled: September 29, 2015Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: John Michael Wilson, John W. Poulton, Matthew Rudolph Fojtik, Carl Thomas Gray
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Patent number: 9952868Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a graphics processing system. The graphics processing system includes a screen-space pipeline and a tiling unit. The screen-space pipeline is configured to perform visibility testing and fragment shading. The tiling unit is configured to determine that a first set of primitives overlaps a first cache tile. The tiling unit is also configured to first transmit the first set of primitives to the screen-space pipeline with a command configured to cause the screen-space pipeline to process the first set of primitives in a z-only mode, and then transmit the first set of primitives to the screen-space pipeline with a command configured to cause the screen-space pipeline to process the first set of primitives in a normal mode. In the z-only mode, at least some fragment shading operations are disabled in the screen-space pipeline. In the normal mode, fragment shading operations are enabled.Type: GrantFiled: October 1, 2013Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Ziyad S. Hakura, Jerome F. Duluk, Jr.
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Patent number: 9952977Abstract: A method for managing a parallel cache hierarchy in a processing unit. The method including receiving an instruction that includes a cache operations modifier that identifies a level of the parallel cache hierarchy in which to cache data associated with the instruction; and implementing a cache replacement policy based on the cache operations modifier.Type: GrantFiled: September 24, 2010Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: Steven James Heinrich, Alexander L. Minkin, Brett W. Coon, Rajeshwaran Selvanesan, Robert Steven Glanville, Charles McCarver, Anjana Rajendran, Stewart Glenn Carlton, John R. Nickolls, Brian Fahs
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Patent number: 9952281Abstract: Disclosed are a method, system, and/or apparatus to perform clock jitter and power supply noise analysis. In one embodiment, a method may include receiving a first signal, which may be a clock signal, then generating a second signal based on the first signal. The method may further include delaying the second signal by a base delay and/or a series of fine delays. The method may also include taking measurements of the delayed second signal and comparing those measurements to theoretical measurements of the second signal that would occur if the first signal were noise-free. The method may further include determining, based on the measurements and the comparison thereof, whether noise is present, whether the noise is high frequency or low frequency noise, and whether the noise is due to clock jitter and/or power supply deviations.Type: GrantFiled: July 4, 2013Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Varghese George, Rubil Ahmadi, Jesse Guss
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Patent number: 9953455Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for storing post-z coverage data in a render target. A color raster operations (CROP) unit receives a coverage mask associated with a portion of a graphics primitive, where the graphics primitive intersects a pixel that includes a multiple samples, and the portion covers at least one sample. The CROP unit stores the coverage mask in a data field in the render target at a location associated with the pixel. One advantage of the disclosed techniques is that the GPU computes color and other pixel information only for visible fragments as determined by post-z coverage data. The GPU does not compute color and other pixel information for obscured fragments, thereby reducing overall power consumption and improving overall render performance.Type: GrantFiled: March 13, 2013Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Eric B. Lum, Rui Bastos, Jerome F. Duluk, Jr., Henry Packard Moreton, Yury Y. Uralsky
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Patent number: 9953457Abstract: A system, method, and computer program product are provided for performing path space filtering. In use, a set of light transport paths associated with a scene is sampled. Additionally, a plurality of vertices associated with the sampled set of light transport paths is selected, where each selected vertex has an associated throughput and light contribution. Further, an averaged light contribution of each of the selected plurality of vertices is determined, utilizing one or more weights. Further still, the averaged light contribution of each of the selected plurality of vertices is combined after multiplying the averaged light contribution of each of the selected vertices by the associated throughput of the vertex.Type: GrantFiled: January 28, 2014Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Alexander Keller, Ken Patrik Dahm, Nikolaus Binder
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Patent number: 9952843Abstract: A solution is proposed for implementing staging in computer programs and code specialization at runtime. Even when values are not known at compile time, many of the values used as parameters for a code section or a function are constant, and are known prior to starting the computation of the algorithm. Embodiments of the claimed subject matter propagate these values just before execution in the same way a compiler would if they were compile time constant, resulting in improved control flow and significant simplification in the computation involved.Type: GrantFiled: May 15, 2015Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: Vinod Grover, Thibaut Lutz
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Patent number: 9946658Abstract: An improved memory interface design is provided. In some implementations, an integrated circuit includes a first cache memory unit, a second cache memory unit located in parallel with the first cache memory unit, and a floorsweeping module configured to be able to select between the first cache memory unit and the second cache memory unit for cache requests, wherein the selection is based at least partially on the presence or absence of one or more manufacturing defects in the first cache memory unit or the second cache memory unit.Type: GrantFiled: November 22, 2013Date of Patent: April 17, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Michael Asbury Woodmansee, J. Arjun Prabhu
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Patent number: 9946666Abstract: A system, method, and computer program product are provided for coalescing memory access requests. A plurality of memory access requests is received in a thread execution order and a portion of the memory access requests are coalesced into memory order, where memory access requests included in the portion are generated by threads in a thread block. A memory operation is generated that is transmitted to a memory system, where the memory operation represents the coalesced portion of memory access requests.Type: GrantFiled: August 6, 2013Date of Patent: April 17, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Steven James Heinrich, Ramesh Jandhyala, Bengt-Olaf Schneider
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Patent number: 9947132Abstract: A material representation data structure and a method of representing a material for digital image synthesis. The data structure may be embodied in a graphics processing subsystem, including: (1) a memory configured to store a material representation data structure according to which a material is declaratively represented by a property indicative of an interaction between the material and light, and (2) a processor operable to gain access to the memory and employ the property in a rendering procedure defined independent of the material representation data structure and designed to effect the interaction.Type: GrantFiled: March 15, 2013Date of Patent: April 17, 2018Assignee: Nvidia CorporationInventors: Lutz Kettner, Hakan Andersson, Michael Beck, Robert Hoedicke, Jan Jordan, Andy Kopra, Steven Parker, Matthias Raab, Daniel Seibert, Rajko Yasui-Schoeffel
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Patent number: 9947084Abstract: A technique for multiresolution consistent rasterization in which a setup unit calculates universal edge equations for a universal resolution. A rasterizer evaluates coverage data for two different resolutions based on the edge equations. The rasterizer evaluates coverage data for different effective pixel sizes—a large pixel size and a small pixel size. Optionally, the rasterizer may determine a first set of coverage data by performing conservative rasterization to determine coverage data for large pixels. Optionally, the rasterizer may then determine a second set of coverage data by performing standard rasterization for small pixels. Optionally, for the second set of coverage data, the rasterizer may evaluate only the small pixels that are within large pixels in the first set of coverage data that evaluate as covered.Type: GrantFiled: March 8, 2013Date of Patent: April 17, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Eric B. Lum, John S. Montrym, Walter R. Steiner, Justin Cobb, Henry Packard Moreton
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Patent number: 9940898Abstract: A method for displaying video. The method includes executing an application at a processor. As instructed by the processor when executing the application, the method includes rendering a plurality of image frames at a plurality of graphics processing units (GPUs). The method includes determining information related to relative timing between renderings of the plurality of image frames. The method includes encoding the plurality of image frames into a video file. The method includes encoding the information into the video file.Type: GrantFiled: February 25, 2016Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: David Cook, Lu Liu
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Patent number: 9939883Abstract: One embodiment provides a method for reducing leakage current in device logic having an operational supply-voltage threshold, a nonzero data-retention supply-voltage threshold, and two or more on-die transistor switches to switchably connect a voltage source to the device logic. After the logic enters an idle period, one or more of the switches are opened to lower a supply voltage of the logic below the operational supply-voltage threshold but above the data-retention supply-voltage threshold. When the logic exits the idle period, one or more of the switches are closed to raise the supply voltage of the logic above the operational supply-voltage threshold.Type: GrantFiled: December 27, 2012Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: Madhu Swarna, Tezaswi Raja
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Patent number: 9940286Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for tracking memory page accesses in a unified virtual memory system. An access tracking unit detects a memory page access generated by a first processor for accessing a memory page in a memory system of a second processor. The access tracking unit determines whether a cache memory includes an entry for the memory page. If so, then the access tracking unit increments an associated access counter. Otherwise, the access tracking unit attempts to find an unused entry in the cache memory that is available for allocation. If so, then the access tracking unit associates the second entry with the memory page, and sets an access counter associated with the second entry to an initial value. Otherwise, the access tracking unit selects a valid entry in the cache memory; clears an associated valid bit; associates the entry with the memory page; and initializes an associated access counter.Type: GrantFiled: December 9, 2013Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Jerome F. Duluk, Jr., Cameron Buschardt, James Leroy Deming, Brian Fahs, Mark Hairgrove, John Mashey
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Patent number: 9940689Abstract: A Central Processing Unit (CPU), system and method of performing a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) simulation of a fluid-like object in a grid-based simulation space are provided. In one embodiment, the method includes: (1) determining, by a CPU, a list of bricks in the simulation space that the fluid-like object would occupy in a future frame based on simulation data of a current frame and (2) updating, based on the list, a virtual table that maps portions of a GPU memory to tiled resources corresponding to the bricks before a simulation of said future frame.Type: GrantFiled: November 2, 2015Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: Nvidia CorporationInventor: Alex Dunn
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Patent number: 9940901Abstract: Systems and methods for performing optical image processing via a transparent display are disclosed. In one example approach, a method comprises determining a position of incident light on a see-through display device, determining a direction of the incident light relative to the see-through display device, and modulating, with the see-through display device, a transmission of the incident light through the see-through display device based on the determined position and determined direction of the incident light.Type: GrantFiled: August 16, 2013Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: David Patrick Luebke, Douglas Lanman
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Patent number: 9935584Abstract: A self-biased gyrator-based input receiver amplifies and equalizes single-ended signals. The input receiver implements inductive impedance useful for high-frequency peaking circuits using an active gyrator-C circuit comprising only resistive, capacitive, and transistor elements, which are easily and efficiently fabricated on a conventional integrated circuit. Transistors comprising the input receiver, along with resistive elements and capacitive elements may be implemented as digitally adjustable circuit elements, providing for adjustment of at least peak frequency, low-frequency gain, and termination impedance.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2017Date of Patent: April 3, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Walker Joseph Turner, John W. Poulton, Wenxu Zhao
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Patent number: 9934714Abstract: System and method of displaying images in temporal superresolution by multiplicative superposition of cascaded display layers integrated in a display device. Using an original video with a target temporal resolution as a priori, a factorization process is performed to derive respective image data for presentation on each display layer. The multiple layers are refreshed in staggered intervals to synthesize a video with an effective refresh rate exceeding that of each individual display layer, e.g., by a factor equal to the number of layers. Further optically averaging neighboring pixels can minimize artifacts.Type: GrantFiled: March 17, 2015Date of Patent: April 3, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CORPORATIONInventors: Felix Heide, Douglas Lanman, Dikpal Reddy, Jan Kautz, Kari Pulli, David Luebke
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Patent number: 9934153Abstract: A patch memory system for accessing patches from a memory is disclosed. A patch is an abstraction that refers to a contiguous, array of data that is a subset of an N-dimensional array of data. The patch memory system includes a tile cache, and is configured to fetch data associated with a patch by determining one or more tiles associated with an N-dimensional array of data corresponding to the patch, and loading data for the one or more tiles from the memory into the tile cache. The N-dimensional array of data may be a two-dimensional (2D) digital image comprising a plurality of pixels. A patch of the 2D digital image may refer to a 2D subset of the image.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2015Date of Patent: April 3, 2018Assignee: NVIDIA CorporationInventors: Jason Lavar Clemons, Chih-Chi Cheng, Daniel Robert Johnson, Stephen William Keckler, Iuri Frosio, Yun-Ta Tsai