IBM Patent Applications

IBM patent applications that are pending before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20120151141
    Abstract: Provided are a computer program product, system, and method for determining server write activity levels to use to adjust write cache size. Information on server write activity to the cache is gathered. The gathered information on write activity is processed to determine a server write activity level comprising one of multiple write activity levels indicating a level of write activity. The determined server write activity level is transmitted to a storage server having a write cache, wherein the storage server uses the determined server write activity level to determine whether to adjust a size of the storage server write cache.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Robert H. Bell, JR., Michael D. Roll, Olga Yiparaki
  • Publication number: 20120150897
    Abstract: Mechanisms are provided for calculating state of cryptographic objects and generating search filters for querying cryptographic objects based on the given state or on the given combination of unique states. The mechanism to calculate a state of a cryptographic object allows an application or system to resolve the current state of any cryptographic object with the following set of state altering date values: initial date, activation date, deactivation date, compromise date, and destroy date. A processing module may retrieve the state meta-data and calculate the current state of a given cryptographic object. The current state may be, for example, one of the following: unknown, pre-active, active, deactivated, compromised, destroyed, and destroyed-compromised. The mechanism to generate a search filter may generate a search query language (SQL) search filter to query for cryptographic objects using the state altering date values stored for each object.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Mark Braksator, Bruce A. Rich
  • Publication number: 20120151418
    Abstract: A first item and a second item that are displayed in a user interface are selected via a computational device. A determination is made as to whether a linkage between the first item and the second item is a valid linkage, wherein the valid linkage indicates that inferences that relate the first item to the second item may be drawn by interpreting properties of the first item and properties of the second item. In response to determining that the linkage between the first item and the second item is a valid linkage, the properties of the first item and the properties of the second item are interpreted to infer new properties that relate the properties of the first item to the properties of the second item.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Vincent Charles Conzola, Todd Michael Eischeid, Mark E. Molander
  • Publication number: 20120147563
    Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for implementing loading and heat removal for a hub module assembly. The hub module assembly includes a hub chip and a plurality of optical modules attached by land grid array (LGA) assembly disposed on a top surface metallurgy (TSM) LGA residing on a hub ceramic substrate. The ceramic substrate is connected to a circuit board through a bottom surface metallurgy (BSM) LGA assembly. A base alignment ring includes a plurality of alignment features for engaging the circuit board and locating an LGA interposer of the BSM LGA assembly. Each of a pair of top alignment rings includes cooperating alignment features for engaging and locating a respective LGA interposer of respective LGA sites of the TSM LGA assembly. The two LGA interposers of the TSM LGA assembly align, retain, and make the electrical connection between the optical modules and the hub chip.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: John L. Colbert, Jason R. Eagle, Roger D. Hamilton, Kenneth C. Marston, Steven P. Ostrander
  • Publication number: 20120151151
    Abstract: Systems and methods for managing destage scan times in a cache are provided. One system includes a cache and a processor. The processor is configured to utilize a first thread to continually determine a desired scan time for scanning the plurality of storage tracks in the cache and utilize a second thread to continually control an actual scan time of the plurality of storage tracks in the cache based on the continually determined desired scan time. One method includes utilizing a first thread to continually determine a desired scan time for scanning the plurality of storage tracks in the cache and utilizing a second thread to continually control an actual scan time of the plurality of storage tracks in the cache based on the continually determined desired scan time. Physical computer storage mediums including a computer program product for performing the above method are also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Brent C. BEARDSLEY, Michael T. BENHASE, Lokesh M. GUPTA, Sonny E. WILLIAMS
  • Publication number: 20120151473
    Abstract: Multiple TCE entries at the same indices in multiple, same size TCE tables are mapped to facilitate data communication between a self-virtualizing IO resource and a logical partition. First and second TCE tables used by an adjunct partition that interfaces a self-virtualizing IO resource with a logical partition may be identically sized, so that whenever a DMA operation between the self-virtualizing IO resource and the logical partition is desired the same TCE entries in the first and second TCE tables may be used to perform a redirected DMA operation, and without the need to perform hashing or other mapping algorithms to map to the respective TCE entries in the respective TCE tables.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Andrew T. Koch, Kyle A. Lucke
  • Publication number: 20120147661
    Abstract: A circuit and method erase at power-up all data stored in a DRAM chip for increased data security. All the DRAM memory cells are erased by turning on the transistors for the DRAM storage cells simultaneously by driving the wordlines of all the cells to an activated state. With all the devices turned on, the data stored in the memory cells is erased as the voltage of all the cells connected to a common bitline coalesce to a single value. In a preferred embodiment, the wordlines are all turned on simultaneously during a power on reset period. Preferably a power on reset signal is used to drive each logic gate of the pre-decoder portion of the address decoder in order to assert all the wordlines.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Derick G. Behrends, Todd A. Christensen, Travis R. Hebig, Daniel M. Nelson
  • Publication number: 20120147496
    Abstract: A digital control system, and in particular a tape drive system having a track-following servomechanism with a predictor (also referred to herein as a predictor filter), is described. In certain embodiments, the servomechanism includes an actuator, a servo channel, and a predictor coupled to the servo channel. The predictor receives from the servo channel a lateral position estimate signal and determines a modified lateral position estimate signal that reduces a difference, introduced by a tape velocity-dependent delay, e.g., introduced by the servo channel, between the modified lateral position estimate signal and an actual lateral position. The modified lateral position estimate may be used to modify a control signal sent to the actuator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Giovanni Cherubini, Jens Jelitto, Kazuhiro Tsuruta
  • Publication number: 20120151095
    Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product utilizes cluster-awareness to effectively maintain and update Persistent Reserve (PR) state data and provide nodes with notification of changes to PR state data within a Virtual Input/Output (I/O) Server (VIOS) cluster. A Persistent Reserve (PR) utility identifies a database that is accessible to other VIOSes in the cluster, in which database information about the current state of the Persistent Reservation is maintained. The PR utility checks the current Persistent Reserve state in the database to verify whether an initiator of a PR command is allowed to perform the command. If the initiator is allowed to perform the command, the PR utility modifies/updates the Persistent Reserve state in the database to reflect the received Persistent Reserve command. The PR utility updates the initiator's local copy of the modified PR state data and sends a corresponding notification message to other VIOSes in the cluster.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: IBM Corporation
    Inventors: Michael P. Cyr, James A. Pafumi, Jacob J. Rosales, Morgan J. Rosas, Vasu Vallabhaneni
  • Publication number: 20120151563
    Abstract: One disclosed aspect of the present invention includes authentication and user account automation within a compute cluster for each cluster node that requires password or other credential administration. For example, a storage appliance computing system may rely on a plurality of subsystems (such as databases, storage management software, and application servers) that each have internal user accounts with associated passwords and credential keys that need to be changed at frequent intervals. Rather than requiring an administrator to manually manage all of these accounts, the presently described invention includes techniques and an authentication manager component to automatically manage, update, and refresh authentication information as required. Further, the authentication manager component may be used to perform and propagate automatic credential changes such as new sets of SSH keys or updated passwords as required within a computing system, and respond to new nodes or out-of-sync credentialing scenarios.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Christian Bolik, Neeta Garimella, Zhiguo Huang, Erick C. Kissel, Jayashree Ramanathan
  • Publication number: 20120150430
    Abstract: An enhanced navigation system allowing navigation route and destination planning according to user-specified criteria for the emotion state of persons along the route, at the destination, or both. The enhancement is accomplished by receiving a set of human emotion metrics corresponding to one or more parts of a navigation plan; determining if the human emotion metrics meet one or more user-specified criteria; responsive to not meeting the criteria, determining an alternate navigation plan until the user-specified criteria are met; and responsive to the criteria being met, presenting the navigation plan to the user for laying into a navigation system, and optionally during execution of the navigation plan updating the received human emotion metrics; repeating the determination against the user-specified criteria; and repeating the steps of determining an alternate navigation plan and presentation to a user responsive to the updated human emotion metrics not meeting the user-specified criteria.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Paul B. French, Eric Thiebaut-George, Niall Lucey, Edith Stern, Michael Truss
  • Publication number: 20120151416
    Abstract: Some embodiments of the inventive subject matter are directed to presenting a first portion of content and a second portion of content in a two-dimensional view via a graphical user interface and detecting an input associated with one or more of the first portion of the content and the second portion of the content. Some embodiments are further directed to selecting the first portion of the content in response to the detecting of the input, and changing the presenting of the first portion of the content from the two-dimensional view to a three-dimensional view in response to the selecting the first portion of the content. Some embodiments are further directed to continuing to present the second portion of the content in the two-dimensional view while changing the presenting of the first portion of the content to the three-dimensional view.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Denise A. Bell, Travis M. Grigsby, Jana H. Jenkins
  • Publication number: 20120151308
    Abstract: A method and computer program product for pre-rendering web content is described. A method may comprise receiving, via a computing device, an implicit indication of a request for web content associated with a web element. The method may further comprise pre-rendering the web content associated with the web element based upon, at least in part, the implicit indication of the request for the web content.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Matthias Falkenberg, Richard Jacob, Stephan Laertz, Sascha Sambale
  • Publication number: 20120146092
    Abstract: While embedded silicon germanium alloy and silicon carbon alloy provide many useful applications, especially for enhancing the mobility of MOSFETs through stress engineering, formation of alloyed silicide on these surfaces degrades device performance. The present invention provides structures and methods for providing unalloyed silicide on such silicon alloy surfaces placed on semiconductor substrates. This enables the formation of low resistance contacts for both mobility enhanced PFETs with embedded SiGe and mobility enhanced NFETs with embedded Si:C on the same semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, this invention provides methods for thick epitaxial silicon alloy, especially thick epitaxial Si:C alloy, above the level of the gate dielectric to increase the stress on the channel on the transistor devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 16, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yaocheng Liu, Dureseti Chidambarrao, Oleg Gluschenkov, Judson R. Holt, Renee T. Mo, Kern Rim
  • Publication number: 20120151142
    Abstract: An L2 cache, method and computer program product for transferring an inbound bus operation to a processor side handling machine. The method includes a bus operation handling machine accepting the inbound bus operation received over a system interconnect, the bus operation handling machine identifying a demand operation of the processor side handling machine that will complete the bus operation, the bus operation handling machine sending the identified demand operation to the processor side handling machine, and the processor side handling machine performing the identified demand operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jason A. Cox, Kevin CK Lin, Eric F. Robinson, Mark J. Wolski
  • Publication number: 20120151485
    Abstract: Data communications in a parallel active messaging interface (‘PAMI’) of a parallel computer, the parallel computer including a plurality of compute nodes that execute a parallel application, the PAMI composed of data communications endpoints, each endpoint including a specification of data communications parameters for a thread of execution on a compute node, including specifications of a client, a context, and a task, the compute nodes and the endpoints coupled for data communications through the PAMI and through data communications resources, including receiving in an origin endpoint of the PAMI a data communications instruction, the instruction characterized by an instruction type, the instruction specifying a transmission of transfer data from the origin endpoint to a target endpoint and transmitting, in accordance with the instruction type, the transfer data from the origin endpoint to the target endpoint.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Charles J. Archer, Michael A. Blocksome, Joseph D. Ratterman, Brian E. Smith
  • Publication number: 20120148187
    Abstract: An integrated circuit coupling device includes an integrated circuit package with N integrated circuit layers (L1-LN) arranged as a 3D stack; and a data transmission medium with n data transmission layers (l1-ln), wherein n?1 and N?2, and wherein the N integrated circuit layers are electrically connectable to the n data transmission layers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Harry Barowski, Thomas Brunschwiler, Roger F. Dangel, Hubert Harrer, Andreas Huber, Norbert M. Meier, Bruno Michel, Tim Niggemeier, Stephan Paredes, Jochen Supper, Jonas R. Weiss
  • Publication number: 20120151312
    Abstract: A user command selecting a whole or part of a discrete document of the fragmented document is received at a computing device. The fragmented document includes a group of discrete documents connected by a set of links, each link being located within one discrete document and connecting to another different discrete document. An edit command to edit the selected whole or part of the discrete document is received. Each other discrete document connected to the selected whole or part of the discrete document is accessed by a link within the selected whole or part of the discrete document. The accessed discrete documents are edited according to the edit command.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 7, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Scott J. Clee, Katherine M. Shann, Daniel E. Would, Shanna Xu
  • Publication number: 20120150910
    Abstract: A rules engine assigns a set of appropriateness rules to a particular data collection. The set of appropriateness rules describes an optimum usage for the particular data collection based on a source of the particular data collection and a type of activity that is deemed best suited to utilize the particular data collection. The set of appropriateness rules also requires that a data collection requester's role matches a data collection provider's role. In response to determining that a requesting computer is implementing an activity that matches the set of appropriateness rules, a rules engine directs a database controller to transmit the particular data collection to the requesting computer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 16, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Robert R. FRIEDLANDER, Richard HENNESSY, James R. KRAEMER
  • Publication number: 20120151488
    Abstract: A mechanism modifies a deployment descriptor of each application component including at least one producer application component or consumer application component, by adding, for each producer application component or consumer application component, an application component identifier, a producer or consumer type, and a recipient identifier of a recipient the application component uses. Responsive to determining a match exists and the given application component is of producer type, the application server virtual machine logs an identifier of a recipient containing a message sent by the given application component, a correlation identifier of the given application component, and an execution start time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Mauro Arcese, Antonio Perrone, Sandro Piccinini, Stefano Sidoti
  • Publication number: 20120150526
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method of representing a software application to be coded in a procedural language is provided. An initial UML class diagram modelizing the software application is received. Data definition classes within the initial UML class diagram are identified. Class operations within the initial UML class diagram are identified. The initial UML class diagram is modified by a processor to generate an extended UML class diagram by applying a data object stereotype to the identified data definition classes, and applying a program stereotype to the identified class operations. The data definition classes represent logical data, and the class operations represents programs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 12, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: NICOLAS DANGEVILLE, JOHAN PONIN
  • Publication number: 20120147892
    Abstract: A technique for analyzing network packets includes receiving, by a network processor, a network packet having a packet header including address and control information. A set of bytes are extracted, using the network processor, from the packet header and a set of input bits for generating a hash code are derived, using the network processor, from the set of bytes. Finally, the hash code is generated using the input bits.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Claude Basso, Jean L. Calvignac, Natarajan Vaidhyanathan, Fabrice Verplanken
  • Publication number: 20120151465
    Abstract: Hardware assist to autonomically patch code. The present invention provides hardware microcode to a new type of metadata to selectively identify instructions to be patched for specific performance optimization functions. The present invention also provides a new flag in the machine status register (MSR) to enable or disable a performance monitoring application or process to perform code-patching functions. If the code patching function is enabled, the application or process may patch code at run time by associating the metadata with the selected instructions. The metadata includes pointers pointing to the patch code block code. The program code may be patched autonomically without modifying original code.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jimmie Earl DeWitt, JR., Frank Eliot Levine, Christopher Michael Richardson, Robert John Urquhart
  • Publication number: 20120151156
    Abstract: A dedicated vector gather buffer (VGB) that stores multiple cache lines read from a memory hierarchy in one or more Logical Units (LUs) each having multiple buffer entries and performs parallel operations on vector registers. Once loaded with data, an LU is read using a single port. The VGB initiates prefetch events that keep it full in response to the demand created by ‘gather’ instructions. The VGB includes one or more write ports for receiving data from the memory hierarchy and a read port capable of reading data from the columns of the LU to be loaded into a vector register. Data is extracted from the VGB by (1) using a separate port for each item read, (2) implementing each VGB entry as a shift register and shifting an appropriate amount until all entries are aligned, or (3) enforcing a uniform offset for all items.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Daniel Citron, Dorit Nuzman
  • Publication number: 20120151007
    Abstract: Methods, apparatuses, and computer program products are provided for monitoring sensors for systems management. Embodiments include establishing, by a server, an entity identification for a component of the server; establishing, by the server, for a plurality of sensors a single virtual sensor number; establishing, by the server, for each sensor having the single virtual sensor number a unique instance identification representing the sensor; receiving, from a system management node, by the server, a request for a sensor reading, the request including the entity identification, the single virtual sensor number, and the unique instance identification; based on the entity identification, the single virtual sensor number, and the unique instance identification, retrieving, by the server, a sensor reading; and transmitting to the system management node, by the server, the sensor reading.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: TONYA D. MESCHER, CHRISTOPHER T. SCHNORR
  • Publication number: 20120151167
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and computer storage mediums for managing read-only memory are provided. A system includes a memory device including a real memory and a tracking mechanism configured to track relationships between multiple virtual memory addresses and real memory. The system further includes a processor configured to perform the below method and/or execute the below computer program product. One method includes mapping a first virtual memory address to a real memory in a memory device and mapping a second virtual memory address to the real memory. Here, the first virtual memory address is authorized to modify data in the real memory and the second virtual memory address is not authorized to modify the data in the real memory. One computer storage medium includes a computer program product for performing the above method.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Brian D. HATFIELD, Wenjeng KO, Lei LIU
  • Publication number: 20120150904
    Abstract: Improved descriptive query techniques are provided. More particularly, techniques are provided for specifying and processing descriptive queries for data providers grouped into provider kinds with hierarchical containment relationships. The query may include arbitrary boolean combinations of arbitrary tests on the values of attributes of the data providers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 21, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Norman Howard Cohen, Paul C. Castro, Archan Misra
  • Publication number: 20120146674
    Abstract: A system for measuring a test voltage level (Vx) in a location within a chip is presented. The system includes an on-chip measurement device with an on-chip comparator and an on-chip storage. The on-chip comparator is configured for comparing the test voltage (Vx) to be measured to a reference voltage (Vref), while the on-chip storage is configured for storing the result of this comparison. The system also includes external (off-chip) equipment for generating the reference voltage (Vref), for generating probe signals for probing the state of the storage and for retrieving the state of said on-chip storage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Martin Eckert, Roland Frech, Otto Torreiter, Dieter Wendel
  • Publication number: 20120146682
    Abstract: A set of first substrate and second substrate are manufactured with a built-in N-fold rotational symmetry around the center axis of each substrate, wherein N is an integer greater than 1. A set of N different interposers is provided such that an i-th interposer provides electrical connection between the first substrate and the second substrate with a rotational angle of (i?1)/N×2?. The first and second substrates are tested with each of the N different interposers therebetween. Once the rotational angle that provides the highest stacked chip yield is determined, the first and the second substrates can be bonded with an azimuthal rotation that provides the highest stacked chip yield.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 16, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Oleg Gluschenkov, Muthukumarasamy Karthikeyan, Yunsheng Song, Tso-Hui Ting, Richard P. Volant, Ping-Chuan Wang
  • Publication number: 20120151185
    Abstract: A processor and a method for privilege escalation in a processor are provided. The method may comprise fetching an instruction from a fetch address, where the instruction requires the processor to be in supervisor mode for execution, and determining whether the fetch address is within a predetermined address range. The instruction is filtered through an instruction mask and then it is determined whether the instruction, after being filtered through the mask, equals the value in an instruction value compare register. The processor privilege is raised to supervisor mode for execution of the instruction in response to the fetch address being within the predetermined address range and the filtered instruction equaling the value in the instruction value compare register, wherein the processor privilege is raised to supervisor mode without use of an interrupt. The processor privilege returns to its previous level after execution of the instruction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Anthony J. Bybell, Anup Wadia
  • Publication number: 20120151480
    Abstract: A method is provided for preserving changes to a configuration of a running virtual machine. The method includes reading an initial configuration, starting the virtual machine under application of the initial configuration, modifying the configuration of the virtual machine during runtime, storing the modified configuration of the virtual machine during shutdown, and reading the modified configuration at re-start of the virtual machine and re-starting the virtual machine under application of the modified configuration.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 16, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Thorsten DIEHL, Volker SAMESKE, Stefan WILD
  • Publication number: 20120151568
    Abstract: A rich client performs single sign-on (SSO) to access a web- or cloud-based application. According to the described SSO approach, the rich client delegates to its native application server the task of obtaining a credential, such as a SAML assertion. The native server, acting on behalf of the user, obtains an assertion from a federated identity provider (IdP) that is then returned to the rich client. The rich client provides the assertion to a cloud-based proxy, which presents the assertion to an identity manager to attempt to prove that the user is entitled to access the web- or cloud-based application using the rich client. If the assertion can be verified, it is exchanged with a signed token, such as a token designed to protect against cross-site request forgery (CSRF). The rich client then accesses the web- or cloud-based application making a REST call that includes the signed token. The application, which recognizes the request as trustworthy, responds to the call with the requested data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Olgierd Stanislaw Pieczul, Mark Alexander McGloin, Mary Ellen Zurko, David Scott Kern, Brent Allan Hepburn
  • Publication number: 20120150829
    Abstract: Mechanisms are provided for replicating transactions at a source database node on a target database node of the data processing system. A transaction message, for a transaction, is stored in a receive queue data structure of the target database node. An agent thread applies a change to data of the target database node based on a specification of the change in the transaction message. An identifier of the transaction message is stored in a done message data structure of the target database node and the identifier of the transaction message is also stored in a prune queue data structure of the target database node. A prune thread determines if a contiguous range of identifiers of transaction messages equal to or greater than a predetermined batch size is present in the prune queue data structure. If so, then a range of transaction messages is deleted from the done message data structure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Serge Bourbonnais, Somil D. Kulkarni
  • Publication number: 20120151597
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method, computer program product and system for de-identifying data, wherein a de-identification protocol is selectively mapped to a business rule at runtime via an ETL tool.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ritesh K. Gupta, Prathima Nagaraj, Sriram K. Padmanabhan
  • Publication number: 20120151201
    Abstract: A method, system and computer program product for managing multiple software images in a data processing entity. At least part of the memory blocks of each of the software images is stored into a corresponding image portion of a mass memory. A current software image stored in a current image is selected. The memory blocks stored in boot locations of the current software image are relocated to a relocation portion of the mass memory. The boot blocks of the current software image are copied into the corresponding boot location. The data processing entity is booted from the boot blocks of the current software image in the corresponding boot locations and each request to access a selected memory block of the current software image by the access function is served.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: David Clerc, Jacques Fontignie, Luis Garcés-Erice, Claudio Marinelli, John G. Rooney, Marc V. Stückelberg
  • Publication number: 20120151559
    Abstract: A mechanism is provided for resolving a detected threat. A request is received from a requester to form a received request, statistics associated with the received request are extracted to form extracted statistics, rules validation is performed for the received request using the extracted statistics, and a determination is made as to whether the request is a threat. Responsive to a determination that the request is a threat, the requester is escalated using escalation increments, where the using escalation increments further comprises increasing user identity and validation requirements through one of percolate to a next user level or direct entry to a user level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Joshua Koudys, Andres H. Voldman
  • Publication number: 20120146098
    Abstract: A method of making a semiconductor structure includes forming a trench through a shallow trench isolation (STI) structure and into a substrate, and forming a liner including an electrical insulator material on sidewalls of the trench. The method also includes forming a core including a high thermal conductivity material in the trench and on the liner, and forming a cap in the trench and on the core.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Mattias E. DAHLSTROM, Dinh DANG, Qizhi LIU, Ramana M. MALLADI
  • Publication number: 20120149159
    Abstract: While embedded silicon germanium alloy and silicon carbon alloy provide many useful applications, especially for enhancing the mobility of MOSFETs through stress engineering, formation of alloyed silicide on these surfaces degrades device performance. The present invention provides structures and methods for providing unalloyed silicide on such silicon alloy surfaces placed on semiconductor substrates. This enables the formation of low resistance contacts for both mobility enhanced PFETs with embedded SiGe and mobility enhanced NFETs with embedded Si:C on the same semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, this invention provides methods for thick epitaxial silicon alloy, especially thick epitaxial Si:C alloy, above the level of the gate dielectric to increase the stress on the channel on the transistor devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 16, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yaocheng Liu, Dureseti Chidambarrao, Oleg Gluschenkov, Judson R. Holt, Renee T. Mo, Kern Rim
  • Publication number: 20120150537
    Abstract: Confidential information included in image and voice data is filtered in an apparatus that includes an extraction unit for extracting a character string from an image frame, and a conversion unit for converting audio data to a character string. The apparatus also includes a determination unit for determining, in response to contents of a database, whether at least one of the image frame and the audio data include confidential information. The apparatus also includes a masking unit for concealing contents of the image frame by masking the image frame in response to determining that the image frame includes confidential information, and for making the audio data inaudible by masking the audio data in response to determining that the audio data includes confidential information. The playback unit included in the apparatus is for playing back the image frame and the audio data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Seiji Abe, Mitsuru Shioya, Shigeki Takeuchi, Daisuke Tomoda
  • Publication number: 20120147953
    Abstract: A method for tone-mapping a High Dynamic Range (HDR) data video stream encoded in MPEG format, the method comprising decoding the data video HDR data stream to generate decoded I-frames, auxiliary decoded data related to P-Frames, and auxiliary decoded data related to B-Frames, the method further comprising applying a tone mapping function to each decoded I-Frame to provide a tone-mapped I-Frame according to a tone mapping operator, for each P-frame depending on a reference I-frame, computing the tone-mapped P-frame from the tone-mapped I-Frame previously determined for the reference I-frame, the reference I-Frame, and the auxiliary decoding data related to the P-Frame; and, for each B-frame, computing the tone-mapped B-frame from the tone mapped I-frame previously determined for the reference I-frame, the tone mapped P-frame previously determined for the reference P-frame, and the auxiliary decoding data related to the B-Frame.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ahmed Hazem El-Mahdy, Hisham Emad Elshishiny
  • Publication number: 20120148474
    Abstract: The invention is directed to a method of positioning nanoparticles on a patterned substrate. The method comprises providing a patterned substrate with selectively positioned recesses, and applying a solution or suspension of nanoparticles to the patterned substrate to form a wetted substrate. A wiper member is dragged across the surface of the wetted substrate to remove a portion of the applied nanoparticles from the wetted substrate, and leaving a substantial number of the remaining portion of the applied nanoparticles disposed in the selectively positioned recesses of the substrate. The invention is also directed to a method of making carbon nanotubes from the positioned nanoparticles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 17, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Charles T. Black, Christopher B. Murray, Robert L. Sandstrom
  • Publication number: 20120151403
    Abstract: Provided are techniques for generating mappings between virtual desktops of a computing system to physical display devices of the computing system such that a change in the configuration of the physical monitors coupled to the computing system triggers an implementation of the corresponding mapping. Also provided are persistent storage of the mappings and the implementation of the desktop to monitor mapping, based upon the stored mappings, upon startup of the computing system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kulvir S. Bhogal, William A. Griffith, Mark W. Talbot
  • Publication number: 20120151484
    Abstract: A virtual machine supports execution of compiler-generated code and provides an execution environment for code that may correspond to any of several different event-driven or message-driven programming models (such as state machines, rules for complex event processing and event correlation, monitoring contexts, processes, and mediations). The programming models may be used in business monitoring and/or business integration environments. A programming language is defined for execution using the virtual machine, which contains a relatively small number of instructions and which is preferably generated by a compiler from a higher-level, event-driven or message-driven model.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Joachim H. Frank, Wilfred C. Jamison
  • Publication number: 20120146224
    Abstract: In a BEOL process, UV radiation is used in a curing process of ultra low-k (ULK) dielectrics. This radiation penetrates through the ULK material and reaches the cap film underneath it. The interaction between the UV light and the film leads to a change the properties of the cap film. Of particular concern is the change in the stress state of the cap from compressive to tensile stress. This leads to a weaker dielectric-cap interface and mechanical failure of the ULK film. A layer of nanoparticles is inserted between the cap and the ULK film. The nanoparticles absorb the UV light before it can damage the cap film, thus maintaining the mechanical integrity of the ULK dielectric.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Junjing Bao, Tien-Jen J. Cheng, Naftali E. Lustig
  • Publication number: 20120146186
    Abstract: A structure and method of fabricating the structure includes a semiconductor substrate having a top surface defining a horizontal direction and a plurality of interconnect levels stacked from a lowermost level proximate the top surface of the semiconductor substrate to an uppermost level furthest from the top surface. Each of the interconnect levels include vertical metal conductors physically connected to one another in a vertical direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction. The vertical conductors in the lowermost level being physically connected to the top surface of the substrate, and the vertical conductors forming a heat sink connected to the semiconductor substrate. A resistor is included in a layer immediately above the uppermost level. The vertical conductors being aligned under a downward vertical resistor footprint of the resistor, and each interconnect level further include horizontal metal conductors positioned in the horizontal direction and being connected to the vertical conductors.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Joseph M. Lukaitis, Deborah M. Massey, Timothy D. Sullivan, Ping-Chuan Wang, Kimball M. Watson
  • Publication number: 20120151067
    Abstract: An improved download capability for mobile devices, without requiring increasing of the local memory of such devices, by providing a set of multimedia devices with the capability to create a cooperative download grid where multiple instrumented devices can be aggregated together according to predefined profiles. This capability is useful in at least two different scenarios. The first is when a SIP enabled device must download a large file having a capacity that is larger than the available memory of the SIP device. The second is when a SIP enabled device must download a file but cannot be connected for a long enough time to accomplish the download. If the SIP device is in proximity to other compatible devices such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) or Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), these devices are operable to be dynamically aggregated to provide a download grid with multiprotocol support that allows optimized downloading.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Sandro Piccinini, Luigi Pichetti, Marco Secchi, Stefano Sidoti
  • Publication number: 20120150858
    Abstract: Exemplary method, system, and computer program embodiments for partitioning management of storage resources in a computing storage environment across multiple users are provided. In one embodiment, a resource group attribute is assigned to a storage resource object representing at least one of the plurality of storage resources in a system configuration of the computing storage environment. The resource group attribute includes a selectable value indicating a resource group object to which the storage resource object is associated. A resource group label is provided in the resource group object and is a string having no wildcards. A user resource scope is assigned to a user ID and a value of the user resource scope provides a mechanism to match to the resource group label. The user ID is authorized to perform one of creating, deleting, modifying, controlling, and managing storage resources with an association to a resource group.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventor: Richard A. RIPBERGER
  • Publication number: 20120146146
    Abstract: Disclosed are embodiments of a field effect transistor with a gate-to-body tunnel current region (GTBTCR) and a method. In one embodiment, a gate, having adjacent sections with different conductivity types, traverses the center portion of a semiconductor layer to create, within the center portion, a channel region and a GTBTCR below the adjacent sections having the different conductivity types, respectively. In another embodiment, a semiconductor layer has a center portion with a channel region and a GTBTCR. The GTBTCR comprises: a first implant region adjacent to and doped with a higher concentration of the same first conductivity type dopant as the channel region; a second implant region, having a second conductivity type, adjacent to the first implant region; and an enhanced generation and recombination region between the implant regions. A gate with the second conductivity type traverses the center portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brent A. Anderson, Andres Bryant, Jiale Liang, Edward J. Nowak
  • Publication number: 20120150800
    Abstract: Maintaining a generation value for each fileset that is distinct from a corresponding fileset manager preserves the independence of nodes while also allowing distributed fileset management. A fileset manager can maintain a value that reflects consistency snapshots for that node (“node generation”) separately from a value that reflects consistency snapshots for a particular fileset (“fileset generation”).
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Janet E. Adkins, Joon Chang, David J. Craft, Manoj N. Kumar, Andrew N. Solomon
  • Publication number: 20120148049
    Abstract: Techniques for secure automated dispensing of prescription medications utilize broadcast encryption to encrypt a prescription for storage on a machine-readable medium that is pre-written with a key management block (KMB). The KMB encodes a session key needed to read from or write to the medium. Each prescription-writing device and medication dispensing device is assigned a unique set of device keys, which are used to recover the session key from the medium. Only authorized devices are able to recover the session key from a medium's KMB. Thus, only authorized devices may read or validly write prescriptions from/to the machine-readable medium. In this manner, only authorized providers can write fillable prescriptions and only authorized dispensers can dispense medications to fill those prescriptions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 22, 2012
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Thomas A. Bellwood, Anh Q. Lu