Patents Examined by Joni Hsu
  • Patent number: 8259117
    Abstract: In a multi-participant modeled virtual reality environment, avatars are modeled beings that include moveable eyes creating the impression of an apparent gaze direction. Control of eye movement may be performed autonomously using software to select and prioritize targets in a visual field. Sequence and duration of apparent gaze may then be controlled using automatically determined priorities. Optionally, user preferences for object characteristics may be factored into determining priority of apparent gaze. Resulting modeled avatars are rendered on client displays to provide more lifelike and interesting avatar depictions with shifting gaze directions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2012
    Inventors: Brian Mark Shuster, Gary Stephen Shuster
  • Patent number: 8253750
    Abstract: Circuits, methods, and apparatus that provide highly integrated digital media processors for digital consumer electronics applications. These digital media processors are capable of performing the parallel processing of multiple format audio, video, and graphics signals. In one embodiment, audio and video signals may be received from a variety of input devices or appliances, such as antennas, VCRs, DVDs, and networked devices such as camcorders and modems, while output audio and video signals may be provided to output devices such as televisions, monitors, and networked devices such as printers and networked video recorders. Another embodiment of the present invention interfaces with a variety of devices such as navigation, entertainment, safety, memory, and networking devices. This embodiment can also be configured for use in a digital TV, set-top box, or home server. In this configuration, video and audio streams may be received from a number of cable, satellite, Internet, and consumer devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
    Inventors: Jen-Hsun Huang, Gerrit A. Slavenburg, Stephen D. Lew, John C. Schafer, Thomas F. Fox, Taner E. Ozcelik
  • Patent number: 8248422
    Abstract: A circuit arrangement and method perform concurrent texture processing of groups of pixels with a single instruction multiple data (SIMD) execution unit to improve the utilization of the SIMD execution unit when performing scalar operations associated with a texture processing algorithm. In addition, when utilized in connection with a multi-threaded SIMD execution unit, groups of pixels may be concurrently processed in different threads executed by the SIMD execution unit to further maximize the utilization of the SIMD execution unit by reducing the adverse effects of dependencies in scalar and/or vector operations incorporated into a texture processing algorithm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 21, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Oliver Mejdrich, Paul Emery Schardt, Robert Allen Shearer
  • Patent number: 8243069
    Abstract: The current invention involves new systems and methods for computing per-sample post-z test coverage when the memory is organized in multiple partitions that may not match the number of shaders. Shaded pixels output by the shaders can be processed by one of several z raster operations units. The shading processing capability can be configured independent of the number of memory partitions and number of z raster operations units. The current invention also involves new systems and method for using different z test modes with multiple render targets with a single or multiple memory partitions. Rendering performance may be improved by using an early z testing mode is used to eliminate non-visible samples prior to shading.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
    Inventors: Mark J. French, Phillip Keslin, Steven E Molnar, Adam Clark Weitkemper
  • Patent number: 8244014
    Abstract: For certain medical images, it is important and/or required that a user view all of a medical image at full resolution so that minute, but important, indicia in the medical image are not missed. A computing systems monitor the portions of the medical image that are displayed on the display device, notates those portions that have been displayed at full resolution (or other user-defined display parameters), and provides the user with information indicating portions that have not been viewed at full resolution and/or provides information indicating for which images of a multiple image examination full pixel display has been accomplished. The process reduces the possibility of missing an abnormality in a medical image due to the viewer not viewing a portion of the image at full resolution or using other user-defined display parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: DR Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Murray A. Reicher, Evan K. Fram
  • Patent number: 8237742
    Abstract: A simulation method and system. A computing system receives a first audio and/or video data stream. The first audio and/or video data stream includes data associated with a first person. The computing system monitors the first audio and/or video data stream. The computing system identifies emotional attributes comprised by the first audio and/or video data stream. The computing system generates a second audio and/or video data stream associated with the first audio and/or video data stream. The second audio and/or video data stream includes the data without the emotional attributes. The computing system stores the second audio and/or video data stream.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Sara H. Basson, Dimitri Kanevsky, Edward Emile Kelley, Bhuvana Ramabhadran
  • Patent number: 8237724
    Abstract: A method for storing a first frame into a system, wherein the system includes i) a first chip, ii) a display controller, and iii) a copy device, and wherein the first chip includes a first memory. The method includes: reading, using the display controller, a first frame from a second memory, wherein the second memory is external to the first chip; and while the first frame is being read from the second memory by the display controller, using the copy device to copy the first frame from the second memory to the first memory. Subsequent to the copy device copying the first frame from the second memory to the first memory, the first frame is stored in both the first memory and the second memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: Marvell International Ltd.
    Inventor: Lawrence Booth, Jr.
  • Patent number: 8237726
    Abstract: Message sends may be implemented in a graphics pipeline using biased graph coloring. Registers may be allocated by shaders for message sends using biased graph coloring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Wei-Yu Chen, Guei-Yuan Lueh
  • Patent number: 8228339
    Abstract: A graphics animation and compositing operations framework has a layer tree for interfacing with the application and a render tree for interfacing with a render engine. Layers in the layer tree can be content, windows, views, video, images, text, media, or other types of objects for an application's user interface. The application commits state changes to the layers of the layer tree. The application does not need to include explicit code for animating the changes to the layers. Instead, an animation is determined for animating the change in state by the framework which can define a set of predetermined animations based on motion, visibility, and transition. The determined animation is explicitly applied to the affected layers in the render tree. A render engine renders from the render tree into a frame buffer. Portions of the render tree changing relative to prior versions can be tracked to improve resource management.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2012
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Ralph Brunner, John Harper, Peter N. Graffagnino
  • Patent number: 8228347
    Abstract: A user interface for a sonographic device is disclosed that displays a sonographic image and at least one reference object corresponding to a catheter size. The reference object may be scaled in proportion to the sonographic image. In addition, the user interface may further display a plurality of vertical lines and a plurality of horizontal lines arranged in a grid-like pattern and placed over the sonographic image. The size of both the sonographic image and the at least one reference object may change in proportion to a chosen insertion depth. A display device, a sonographic device and corresponding methods are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2012
    Assignee: C. R. Bard, Inc.
    Inventors: Jimmy C. Beasley, Eddie K. Burnside, Rodney Scruggs
  • Patent number: 8228328
    Abstract: The current invention involves new systems and methods for computing per-sample post-z test coverage when the memory is organized in multiple partitions that may not match the number of shaders. Shaded pixels output by the shaders can be processed by one of several z raster operations units. The shading processing capability can be configured independent of the number of memory partitions and number of z raster operations units. The current invention also involves new systems and method for using different z test modes with multiple render targets with a single or multiple memory partitions. Rendering performance may be improved by using an early z testing mode is used to eliminate non-visible samples prior to shading.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2012
    Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
    Inventors: Mark J. French, Phillip Keslin, Steven E Molnar, Adam Clark Weitkemper
  • Patent number: 8223171
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a storage unit storing the OSD image data corresponding to plural subframes; a load storage unit loading and storing the OSD image data corresponding to the plural subframes; a reading unit reading out plural subframes of the OSD image data in parallel; and a controlling unit controlling to load in parallel the plural sunframes of the OSD image data into the load storage unit and to read out in parallel from the load storage unit and transmits the OSD image data to a combining unit to combine the OSD image data with the corresponding image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kenji Namie, Kenji Kameyama, Toshiharu Murai, Masaki Ninomiya
  • Patent number: 8225199
    Abstract: In a medical-image observation apparatus, an image display-area display-control unit causes a display unit to display a main examination area for displaying a thumbnail of a medical image to be read, and an observation-image preparation area for displaying a thumbnail of a medical image selected as a medical image to be used for comparative image reading. After a reading-subject image display-control unit causes the display unit to display a thumbnail of a medical image to be read in the main examination area, upon receiving an operation of moving the medical image of which thumbnail is displayed in the main examination area into the observation-image preparation area, a comparison-subject image display-control unit specifies a medical image to be a comparison subject based on attribution information about the moved medical image, and causes the display unit to display a thumbnail of the specified medical image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignees: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation
    Inventors: Yosuke Okubo, Hiroyuki Yamasaki
  • Patent number: 8217966
    Abstract: A method of automatically tracking the portions of a 3D medical imaging volume, such as the voxels, that have already been displayed according to use-defined display parameters, notating those portions, and providing the user with information indicating what portions of the imaging volume have been displayed at full resolution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2012
    Assignee: DR Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Evan K. Fram, Murray A. Reicher
  • Patent number: 8214484
    Abstract: To predict edges in a non-cumulative graph, based on a sequence of non-cumulative previous occurrences of the graph, the sequence of non-cumulative previous occurrences of the graph is obtained, and topological properties of each of the previous occurrences of the graph are extracted. Topological similarities between each of the previous occurrences of the graph are computed based on the topological properties. The edges of the graph are predicted by computing a score for each possible edge of the graph, based upon the topological similarities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Pankaj Arora, Sameep Mehta, Laurent S. Mignet
  • Patent number: 8207974
    Abstract: Methods and apparatuses are disclosed for improving switching between graphics processing units (GPUs). Some embodiments may include a display system, including a plurality of GPUs, a multiplexer coupled to the plurality of GPUs, a timing controller coupled to the multiplexer, where the timing controller may provide an indication signal to the multiplexer indicative of a period when a first GPU is experiencing a first blanking interval.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 26, 2012
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Kapil V. Sakariya
  • Patent number: 8208705
    Abstract: For certain medical images, it is important and/or required that a user view all of a medical image at full resolution so that minute, but important, indicia in the medical image are not missed. A computing systems monitor the portions of the medical image that are displayed on the display device, notates those portions that have been displayed at full resolution (or other user-defined display parameters), and provides the user with information indicating portions that have not been viewed at full resolution and/or provides information indicating for which images of a multiple image examination full pixel display has been accomplished. The process reduces the possibility of missing an abnormality in a medical image due to the viewer not viewing a portion of the image at full resolution or using other user-defined display parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 26, 2012
    Assignee: DR Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Murray A. Reicher, Evan K. Fram
  • Patent number: 8203566
    Abstract: Systems, methods and computer readable media are disclosed for sending a client graphics data across a remote session for an application, where the application makes fixed function pipeline API calls and the client and server support shader pipeline API calls for the remote session. fixed function pipeline graphics calls from sent from the application are intercepted, wrapped, converted into their fixed function pipeline equivalent graphics call or calls and then sent across the communications network to the client according to a protocol of the remote session.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 19, 2012
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nadim Y. Abdo, Max Alan McMullen
  • Patent number: 8203564
    Abstract: Techniques for supporting both 2-D and 3-D graphics are described. A graphics processing unit (GPU) may perform 3-D graphics processing in accordance with a 3-D graphics pipeline to render 3-D images and may also perform 2-D graphics processing in accordance with a 2-D graphics pipeline to render 2-D images. Each stage of the 2-D graphics pipeline may be mapped to at least one stage of the 3-D graphics pipeline. For example, a clipping, masking and scissoring stage in 2-D graphics may be mapped to a depth test stage in 3-D graphics. Coverage values for pixels within paths in 2-D graphics may be determined using rasterization and depth test stages in 3-D graphics. A paint generation stage and an image interpolation stage in 2-D graphics may be mapped to a fragment shader stage in 3-D graphics. A blending stage in 2-D graphics may be mapped to a blending stage in 3-D graphics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 19, 2012
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Guofang Jiao, Angus M. Dorbie, Yun Du, Chun Yu, Jay C. Yun
  • Patent number: RE43565
    Abstract: A graphics system stores graphics data in a dynamic-random-access memory (DRAM) and in a faster static random-access memory (SRAM). A refresh controller reads pixel data from a frame buffer that is usually in the faster SRAM, while one or more video overlay engines read graphics objects from the DRAM. However, large frame buffers may be partially stored in the DRAM. Some of the graphics data read by the video overlay engine may reside in the SRAM. A dual-layer arbiter receives requests from the refresh controller and the overlay engines for access to the SRAM and DRAM. When two requestors request the same memory device, the dual-layer arbiter arbitrates access. However, often the requests are to different memory devices and the dual-layer arbiter can pass the requests through without delay, since separate buses to the DRAM and SRAM can be used simultaneously.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: Intellectual Ventures I LLC
    Inventor: Hin Kwai Lee