Patents Examined by Gary V. Harkcom
  • Patent number: 5204944
    Abstract: A two-dimensional image is subjected to a three-dimensional effect, such as folding, twisting or rotation, and transformed or warped into a modified output image. By successive one-dimensional resampling along two coordinates and parallel channel processing of transposed input image data with rejection of distorted pixel value data, bottleneck, shear and other distortions are addressed. Complete warping systems, resampling subsystems and related methods are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 1989
    Date of Patent: April 20, 1993
    Assignee: The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York
    Inventors: George Wolberg, Terrance E. Boult
  • Patent number: 5204945
    Abstract: The display system and a thick line display method realizes a high-speed and accurate display of a thick line without any disorder even if a display range is to be processed by two or more clip frames when the thick line is to be displayed by parallel setting a reference line component and at least one additional line component which is obtained by parallel moving the reference line component in a display system such as an information processing unit that displays graphs. For this purpose, a clip frame showing a display range is expanded by a predetermined width equal to or larger than the total width of additional line components to be set at least at one side of the reference line component and the additional line component is obtained in that expanded frame, and the line component within the clip frame of the additional line component and the reference line component within the clip frame are displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 1990
    Date of Patent: April 20, 1993
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toru Sakaibara, Hideyuki Hara, Ryo Fujita
  • Patent number: 5202962
    Abstract: A graphic processor which controls reading, writing and transfer of graphic data for a display memory that stores graphic data. The processor includes a first unit which stores first address information for addressing the display memory and first pixel address information which points a pixel position in a word specified by the first address information, a second unit which stores second address information for addressing the display memory and second pixel address information which points a pixel position in a word specified by the second address information, a third unit which shifts graphic data of multiple pixels included in two consecutive words to extract continuous 1-word graphic data, and a fourth unit which implements drawing computations pixel-wise concurrently for one word depending on the number of pixels included in a word.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 1990
    Date of Patent: April 13, 1993
    Assignees: Hitachi, Ltd., Hitachi Engineering Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shigeru Matsuo, Koyo Katsura, Jun Sato, Takashi Sone, Masakatu Yokoyama
  • Patent number: 5202961
    Abstract: A sequential information controller for use in combination with a computer comprising a slider bar, integrating standard velocity and direction indicators, and a control icon. The user controls the playback velocity and direction of the sequential information, such as video information, on the display of the computer through an interactive user interface, which works in combination with the computer's system software. The interface includes an interactive slider bar and an interactive control icon which are depicted within an operating window of the display. The slider bar includes both playback direction/velocity indicators and control buttons. The playback of video information is primarily controlled by manipulating the image of the control icon with respect to the image of the slider bar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 1990
    Date of Patent: April 13, 1993
    Assignee: Apple Computer, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Mills, Jonathan Cohen, Yin Y. Wong, Ian S. Small
  • Patent number: 5201030
    Abstract: The distance between the intensity value of the base value (that is, the closest quantized intensity value less than the input intensity value) and the input intensity value is adjusted according to a mapping function between the size of the interval between the intensity values of the base value and the base value +1 (i.e., the next larger quantized intensity value) and the range of values in the dither matrix. By adjusting the distance between the base value and the input intensity value, the correct proportion of base values and base values +1 is maintained regardless of the difference in size of the interval and the range of the dither matrix, thereby insuring that the intermediate intensity values between quantized values are accurately simulated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 1992
    Date of Patent: April 6, 1993
    Assignee: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
    Inventor: Susan Carrie
  • Patent number: 5199102
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus comprises a cathode ray tube (CRT) display device including a substantially square display region, the display region having a first display area for displaying a first image at a first magnification, a second display area for displaying a second image at a second magnification different from the first magnification, and a third display area for displaying a third image at a third magnification different from the first magnification memories for sequentially storing image information of images including the first, second and third images and a central processing unit (CPU) for retrieving the image information of the first, second, and third images, stored in the storing means, and permitting these images to be displayed in the first, second, and third display areas, respectively, in the order in which information of the first, second and third images are stored in a subsidiary storing means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 30, 1993
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventor: Hiroshi Sakuragi
  • Patent number: 5197123
    Abstract: A control apparatus and method, in which a format for a particular instance of recording is designated or set, as by instructions from a host computer, or from an operator via a keyboard, and that desired format is used or not, according to whether the necessary information for that format is present in a memory (preferably non-volatile). If the necessary format information is present in the memory, the desired format is used for recording, while otherwise, a default format is used instead or the information for the desired format is supplied to the memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1993
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoshi Nagata, Masaru Igarashi
  • Patent number: 5195177
    Abstract: A clipping processor capable of setting a clipping area, which has a shape not restricted to a rectangle and is defined in the processing of transferring data on a part of a clipping area in each raster by computing data defining the clipping area by two function generation circuits or by reading the data defining the clipping area from the clipping area memory, in which data defining a part of the clipping area in each raster is preliminarily stored, every time the raster is updated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 1990
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1993
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Kamiyama, Koichi Horiuchi
  • Patent number: 5195174
    Abstract: An image data processing apparatus including a scanner for individually reading first and second image information from first and second documents, a page memory for storing the first image information into its first memory area, a display device for displaying a first image corresponding to the first image information stored in the first memory area of the page memory, a keyboard or a mouse for defining a desired range to be substituted with a second image corresponding to the second image information, in the first image displayed on the display device, a CPU for determining a magnifying ratio of the second image suited to the desired range, according to the sizes of the desired range and the second image, an enlargement/reduction circuit for magnifying the second image in response to the magnifying ratio determined by the CPU and the CPU for further processing a storage of the second image information read by the scanner into a second memory area corresponding to the desired range in the first memory area,
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 1990
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1993
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventor: Hideaki Kagawa
  • Patent number: 5195180
    Abstract: In a method for displaying an image, the image is divided into a first image area which includes characters, the border of which is overlapping a part of a color background, and a second image area which includes the other part of the background. The method includes the steps of setting data of pixels of the image using n bits in a multi-purpose area of an image memory, in a manner that, in setting data of pixels in the first image area, some of the n bits are used for color information of the background present at the border of the characters and the others are used for data of the characters. Further, in setting data for pixels in the second image area, all of the n bits are used for color information of the background, except that of the part underlying the border of the characters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 1989
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1993
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masaki Takakura, Yasukuni Yamane, Noritoshi Kako
  • Patent number: 5195179
    Abstract: A coordinate input apparatus responsive to physical movement of an operation section for moving and displaying a cursor displayed on a display screen at a corresponding coordinate position on the display screen has a unit for deciding a ratio of cursor movement which detects the operation speed of the operation section and decides the ratio of cursor movement on the display screen for a predetermined amount of the movement of the operation section based on the operation speed. A display unit moves and displays the cursor on the display screen corresponding to the amount of movement of the operation section based on the ratio of cursor movement thus decided. As a result, even if the amount of movement of the operation section is constant, when the operation section is moved at a high speed, the cursor moves a long distance; whereas, when the operation section is moved at a low speed, the cursor moves a short distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 1990
    Date of Patent: March 16, 1993
    Assignees: Hitachi, Ltd., Hitachi Keiyo Engineering Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hiroshi Tokunaga
  • Patent number: 5193148
    Abstract: A method of moving blocks of pixel data, including window-identifying data, from a source area to a destination area within a frame buffer in a computer graphics system comprises the steps of: reading a block of pixel data from the source area into a pixel cache memory; combining source tiles with destination tiles in the cache; comparing pixel window identifiers read from the frame buffer with a pixel window identifier previously stored in the memory to determine whether the pixel window identifiers read from the frame buffer match the previously stored pixel window identifier; discarding each pixel whose corresponding window identifier does not match the previously stored window identifier; and updating the frame buffer with the pixel data not discarded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1993
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Byron A. Alcorn, Robert W. Cherry, Mark D. Coleman, Brian D. Rauchfuss
  • Patent number: 5193145
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing a visually improved image on a video display in a computer controlled display system. The system and method converts a quadrilateral polygon to a pair of triangles by computing the dot product of the normal unit vectors of one set of opposing pair of vectices and computing the dot product of the normal unit vectors of the other set of opposing pair of vertices and then comparing these two dot products to determine which opposing pair of vertices produces the larger of the two dot products. The pair of opposing vertices which produces the largest dot product is used to form the common edge of the pair of triangles into which the quadrilateral is converted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1993
    Assignee: Silicon Graphics, Inc.
    Inventor: Kurt Akeley
  • Patent number: 5191645
    Abstract: A method and system for generating icon displays representing digitized film scenes and scene processing operations, and manipulating the icon displays to initiate selected processing operations (such as transfers from one storage location to another) on the scenes. The invention can be embodied in a film scanning system having circuitry for digitizing scanned film images, for digitally correcting the digitized scanned images, and for inserting video sync information into the corrected images to convert the corrected images into a video signal. The system is also capable of inserting digital data in such a video signal, such as film in and out points, and data identifying a video storage location, and then storing the resulting video signal as a video format scene. In addition to generating a scene from a sequence of digitized film frames and related digital data, the system of the invention generates an icon representing the scene by compressing a selected one of the frames in the sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1993
    Assignee: Sony Corporation of America
    Inventors: John Carlucci, Kathlynn Uenaka
  • Patent number: 5191642
    Abstract: In a real-time computer-image generation system, processing resources for manipulating polygons that define objects are generally limited. This results in a trade-off with respect to the amount of detail to be displayed in an object versus the number and type of objects to be displayed. The value of a predetermined viewing criterion is used to determine when an object can be represented by a single polygon. The single polygon is rotatable about a predetermined number of axes for maintaining a predetermined relationship with respect to a view point. Since processing resources are saved by using a single polygon, additional objects and/or more detail may be included in a display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 1990
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1993
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Lee T. Quick, William M. Bunker
  • Patent number: 5191644
    Abstract: A multiwindow control system in which, if an examination window overlaps a display area of a detecting window and has the same parent as the detecting window, the system divides the display area of the detecting window by an extension of the overlapping side of the examination window and changes the divided display areas into new detecting areas. After the portions of detecting areas which overlap with individual examination windows are successively divided, the remaining new detecting areas become areas of the original detecting window in which image information can be displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 1990
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1993
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Masaru Takeda
  • Patent number: 5189730
    Abstract: An apparatus for generating character pattern signals in response to a character code and an attribute signal, in which the character has an outline which may be divided into a plurality of regions in which each region is defined by an initial point, a terminal point and a control point includes an outline storage circuit for converting the control point into an auxiliary point having coordinates on a curve of the character and for storing the initial point, terminal point and auxiliary point as data. An outline reproducing circuit converts the data into scaled down data, standard sized data or enlarged data in response to the attribute signal and produces a conic line based upon the converted data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 1990
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1993
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Kazuhiro Kajimoto
  • Patent number: 5189732
    Abstract: A touch panel input apparatus comprises a memory storing data for correcting a key position according to the distance between a touch panel and a cathode ray tube (CRT) display and also according to the surface shape of the display screen. In response to the application of a touch input, a key code corresponding to display information is read out from the memory to display an effective key input area. The key position correction data is determined depending on an enlarged effective range of the touch key input and also depending on the parallax of the user viewing the display screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 1991
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1993
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventor: Hirotaka Kondo
  • Patent number: 5189729
    Abstract: A full field memory based stroke written vector occluder consisting of a first full field memory as the primary occlusion mechanism, and a second full field memory as a quantized error correction occlusion function. The apparatus includes a mechanism for generating the address of the second full field memory from the address of the first full field memory added to the least significant bit of the address plus or minus 1. The apparatus also includes an OR gate to provide the real occlusion function which is the result of accessing either or both of the full field memories.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 1990
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1993
    Assignee: Honeywell Inc.
    Inventor: William R. Hancock
  • Patent number: 5187775
    Abstract: A display system for use on a digital computer is specifically designed to display information about nucleotide sequences, such as DNA sequences and the protein or amino acid sequences associated with those nucleotide sequences. The system uses a specially adapted font which includes special three letter characters representing the amino acids. The letters in the special characters are kerned for compact presentation. The use of such three letter characters, created to be of a width three times that of the remaining monospace characters in the font, allows amino acid sequences to be stored and presented with the corresponding nucleotide sequences in such a fashion that they are properly aligned and also usually legible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 1990
    Date of Patent: February 16, 1993
    Assignee: Dnastar, Inc.
    Inventors: John L. Schroeder, Michael R. Slater