Abstract: Methods and systems are described for enabling the operation of a stereoscopic viewing device such that the viewing device provides a movable viewing window that enables the 3D rendering of 3D image data displayed by a backlit LCD device. In a particular implementation, the systems and methods disclosed herein are operable to control the operation of a pair of LCD shutter glasses.
Abstract: Disclosed herein is a microfluidic jetting device having a piezoelectric member positioned above a displaceable membrane. A voltage is applied across the piezoelectric member causing deformation of the piezoelectric member. The deformation of the piezoelectric member results in a displacement of the membrane, which is formed above a cavity. Displacement of the membrane creates pressure to jet or eject liquid from the cavity and suction liquid into the cavity through ports or apertures formed in the in membrane.
Abstract: A circuit includes a direct current (DC) gate termination impedance having an impedance for DC signals higher than a maximum impedance DC at which dendrite growth occurs in the circuit, and a radio frequency (RF) gate termination impedance having an impedance for RF signals lower than a maximum impedance at which RF stability for the circuit is maintained for an application.
Abstract: A line-powered LED driver is operable to provide primary-side regulation of output current supplied to LED circuitry. The circuit includes a feedback loop coupled to a power converter, wherein the feedback loop adds scaled input current to scaled input voltage to produce a control signal. The power converter is responsive to the control signal to adjust input current drawn by the power converter in response to changes in line voltage to provide constant input power. The power converter produces output power for supplying constant output current at the LEDs. The feedback loop may use a reference voltage derived from the LED circuitry so that the output power may be regulated to provide constant LED current for varying LED voltages. When compared to secondary-side current feedback schemes, the LED driver provides increased efficiency and reliability at a reduced cost by implementing primary-side regulation of the output current.
Abstract: An embodiment of a motor controller includes first and second supply nodes, a motor-coil node, an isolator, a motor driver, and a motor position signal generator. The isolator is coupled between the first and second supply nodes, and the motor driver is coupled to the second supply node and to the motor-coil node. The motor position signal generator is coupled to the isolator and is operable to generate, in response to the isolator, a motor-position signal that is related to a position of a motor having at least one coil coupled to the motor-coil node. By generating the motor-position signal in response to the isolator, the motor controller or another circuit may determine the at-rest or low-speed position of a motor without using an external coil-current-sense circuit.
Abstract: An embodiment of a motor controller includes a motor driver and a signal conditioner. The motor driver is operable to generate a motor-coil drive signal having a first component at a first frequency, and the signal conditioner is coupled to the motor driver and is operable to alter the first component. For example, if the first component of the motor-coil drive signal causes the motor to audibly vibrate (e.g., “whine”), then the signal conditioner may alter the amplitude or phase of the first component to reduce the vibration noise to below a threshold level.
Abstract: An integrated semiconductor heating assembly includes a semiconductor substrate, a chamber formed therein, and an exit port in fluid communication with the chamber, allowing fluid to exit the chamber in response to heating the chamber. The integrated heating assembly includes a first heating element adjacent the chamber, which can generate heat above a selected threshold and bias fluid in the chamber toward the exit port. A second heating element is positioned adjacent the exit port to generate heat above a selected threshold, facilitating movement of the fluid through the exit port away from the chamber. Addition of the second heating element reduces the amount of heat emitted per heating element and minimizes thickness of a heat absorption material toward an open end of the exit port. Since such material is expensive, this reduces the manufacturing cost and retail price of the assembly while improving efficiency and longevity thereof.
Abstract: Insulating layers can be formed over a semiconductor device region and etched in a manner that substantially reduces or prevents the amount of etching of the underlying channel region. A first insulating layer can be formed over a gate region and a semiconductor device region. A second insulating layer can be formed over the first insulating layer. A third insulating layer can be formed over the second insulating layer. A portion of the third insulating layer can be etched using a first etching process. A portion of the first and second insulating layers beneath the etched portion of the third insulating layer can be etched using at least a second etching process different from the first etching process.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
December 17, 2010
Date of Patent:
August 5, 2014
Assignee:
STMicroelectronics, Inc.
Inventors:
Nicolas Loubet, Qing Liu, Prasanna Khare
Abstract: A method for fabricating a finFET device having an insulating layer that insulates the fin from a substrate is described. The insulating layer can prevent leakage current that would otherwise flow through bulk semiconductor material in the substrate. The structure may be fabricated starting with a bulk semiconductor substrate, without the need for a semiconductor-on-insulator substrate. Fin structures may be formed by epitaxial growth, which can improve the uniformity of fin heights in the devices.
Type:
Application
Filed:
January 30, 2013
Publication date:
July 31, 2014
Applicants:
International Business Machines Corporation, STMicroelectronics, Inc.
Abstract: An apparatus for enabling feedback from a recipient of media content includes a receiver that receives a content data stream, containing media content and embedded Meta-Data, and a decoder that decodes the content data stream to extract the media content and the Meta-Data. A playback signal dependent upon the extracted content is passed to a content playback device of the content recipient. A control device interface receives a signal from a local control device operated by the content recipient and a network interface provides the desired feedback by accessing a network in accordance with the Meta-Data and the signal from the local control device of the content recipient. The Meta-Data, which may be related to the content, is embedded in the encoded media content data sequence before the sequence is transmitted or at a later stage in the transmission network.
Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed that include reading passive engine status, detecting vibration, caused by the transfer of kinetic energy from at least one machine into the engine, and inhibiting active operation of the engine.
Abstract: Methods and systems for transmitting video pixel data from a transmitter component, such as a controller, to a receiver within a monitor are described. Video data is received at a transmitter at an incoming pixel rate based on a pixel clock. The data is transmitted to the receiver at a link symbol clock rate and is drained from the receiver at the pixel clock rate, which is regenerated by the receiver using the link symbol clock frequency, an M video value, and an N video value. The M video value (Mvid) is determined by the transmitter based on the incoming pixel rate and the N video value (Nvid) may be constant. An accumulator is used within the transmitter to ensure that the transmitter and receiver create a balanced system.
Abstract: Methods and systems are described for enabling display system data transmission during use. An integrated circuit package includes input interface circuitry configured to receive an audio-video data stream having a video signal and timing information and timing extraction circuitry that can identify blanking patterns for the video signal. The package includes input processing circuitry for receiving audio-video signal and converting the audio-video data stream input into a low voltage differential signal (LVDS). The package includes a timing controller having timing extraction circuitry, a set of symbol buffers, a scheduler, and timing control circuitry. All configured to implement LVDS data transfer and in some implementation enable point to point data transfer from data buffers to associated column drivers.
Abstract: Apparatus and methods for wireless data transmission in a multimedia network are disclosed. Disclosed is a network having a source coupled to a sink using a virtual channel that includes a wireless communication channel. A source end of the system provides a packetizing data stream having a stream of payloads such that each payload is associated with its respective originating source stream. The system configured to encode the packetized data stream for wireless transport. A non-wireless source end of the system receives quality of service information from downstream. Thereby enabling adjustments to the source content and packetized data streams.
Abstract: The invention relates to systems and methods for spectrum sharing and communication among several wireless communication networks with overlapping service areas (or cells), especially to Wireless Regional Area Networks (WRANs). Particular embodiments of the invention disclose using a conference channel to communicate between base stations. Other embodiments use slotted coexistence windows within frames to transmit and receive information, including for reserving transmission times within subsequent frames.
Abstract: A protocol for resolving shared spectrum contentions in cognitive radio wireless access networks is presented. Using medium access control level messaging a request for access to a shared spectrum is conveyed to the current occupier of the spectrum. Each request is associated with a unique and random spectrum access priority number. At the end of a request window the priority numbers associated with each request are compared and a winner is declared. The winning cell, informed of its newly gained access to the shared spectrum, sends a reply to the current occupier of the shared spectrum with a proposed time of acquisition/release of the shared spectrum. The proposed time is confirmed and announced, and upon arrival of the designated time the shared spectrum is released by the current occupier of the shared spectrum and acquired by the requesting cell.
Abstract: A system securely buffers hard disk drive data using a host side eXlusive OR (XOR) encryption engine. A host communicates with an encryption interface interposed between the host and a client. Communicatively coupled to the encryption interface is an external buffer for the collection and processing of data. A host side XOR encryption engine, using a random seed, encrypts data originating from the host and places it on the external buffer. Once collected at the buffer and ready for transmittal to the client, the encrypted data is retrieved by the encryption interface and decrypted using the same random seed. The clear data is then encrypted once again using a robust encryption means such as Advance Encryption Standard (AES) encryption by a client side device for conveyance to the client.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
January 22, 2010
Date of Patent:
July 15, 2014
Assignee:
STMicroelectronics, Inc.
Inventors:
Duncan Furness, Francesco Brianti, David Tamagno
Abstract: A video processor includes a spatio-temporal noise reduction controller to determine current and previous image edge slopes and adaptively control a spatio-temporal noise reduction processor to blend current and previous images dependent on the current and previous image edge slope values.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
September 30, 2011
Date of Patent:
July 8, 2014
Assignees:
STMicroelectronics, Inc., STMicroelectronics International N.V.
Inventors:
Vatsala Gopalakrishna, Ravi Ananthapurbacche, Peter Swartz
Abstract: Metal interconnections are formed in an integrated by combining damascene processes and subtractive metal etching. A wide trench is formed in a dielectric layer. A conductive material is deposited in the wide trench. Trenches are etched in the conductive material to delineate a plurality of metal plugs each contacting a respective metal track exposed by the wide trench.
Type:
Application
Filed:
December 31, 2012
Publication date:
July 3, 2014
Applicants:
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION, STMICROELECTRONICS, INC.
Inventors:
John H. ZHANG, Lawrence A. Clevenger, Carl Radens, Yiheng XU, Walter Kleemeier, Cindy Goldberg
Abstract: This invention relates to switching power saving modes and rescheduling communication frames for various periods of a beacon interval (BI) defined under WGA Draft Specification 0.8 for the personal basic service set (PBSS) and infrastructure BSS to achieve further power savings and other advantages. Stations can be awake during a contention-based period (CBP) if it is in active state and can schedule frames during a service period (SP) to allow the assigned receiver to transmit to the assigned initiator. Stations in a group can schedule a group address frame to be sent during the CBP and group SP of a specific periodic BI. Stations in peer-to-peer connection may directly notify its peer stations of its power saving mode and wakeup schedule. Stations of an infrastructure basic service set (BSS) can also use the same power saving mechanism as stations of a PBSS noting a difference where each BI will be an access point's (AP's) awake BI.