Patents Examined by Paul A. Bell
  • Patent number: 6646651
    Abstract: In an image displaying field where there is a tendency which will increase the data to be handled in accordance with the high integration of a display device, a CRT controller according to the present invention improves the superposed display and the responsiveness of the display and drawing operations by dividing a unit clock into a predetermined number to function with high speed and a multifunction display. When image data are to be inputted or outputted from a refresh memory corresponding to a display frame, the memory content and the display address are assigned at a ratio of 1:n to effect the processings in parallel. As a result, the time period utilized by the display cycle of the prior art can be assigned to the drawing operation so that the processing can be speeded up while making it easier than the prior art to effect the superposed display of letters, symbols and drawings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2000
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2003
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koyo Katsura, Hideo Maejima, Hiroshi Takeda
  • Patent number: 6636202
    Abstract: Apparatus for converting a visual image into a tactile image. The apparatus comprises imaging means for converting incident light from the visual image into electrical signals that are proportional to the gray scale intensity of the incident light. The apparatus also comprises a tactile display device having a two-dimensional array of variable height pixels, wherein the height of each pixel in the tactile display is dynamically variable in proportion to the electrical signals from the imaging means. Preferably, the height of each pixel is inversely proportional to the gray scale intensity of the incident light so that the maximum height of a pixel occurs when a corresponding pixel in the visual image is black.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Nizamudeen Ishmael, Jr., Kulvir Singh Bhogal, Javid Jameossanaie, Mandeep Singh Sidu
  • Patent number: 6636192
    Abstract: In order to provide an electro-optical panel in which the gap between the substrates is precise and is uniform over the entire image display region, a projection display apparatus using the electro-optical panel, and an electro-optical panel production method, a resin, which is elastically deformable even after being set, is applied to surround an image display region 37 on the surface of a TFT array substrate 2, and the resin is set, thereby forming an inner peripheral protrusion 22 and an outer peripheral protrusion 23 having circular portions 24. Subsequently, an unset sealing material 200 is applied in a rectangular area placed between the inner peripheral protrusion 22 and the outer peripheral protrusion 23. An unset conducting member 56 for continuity between the substrates is applied in areas enclosed by the circular portions 24 of the outer peripheral protrusion 23.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2003
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Hiromi Saitoh
  • Patent number: 6611244
    Abstract: A relatively small, illuminated, wearable-safety device or item that may also serve as an item of jewelry or ornamental apparel attachment item of jewelry or ornamental apparel attachment which incorporates a series of LED's packages, with each LED package being made of three individual LED's, one of blue, one of green, and one of red, whereby a continuous range of colors may be emitted by selected energizing of each individual LED of an LED package. The LED packages are capable of being flashed in various modes of operation, such as sequential, random, continuous, and the like. The LED packages are also controlled where the colors emitted by each LED package may also have various modes of operation, such as sequential, random, continuous, and the like, where the color emitted by each LED package may be altered according to a fixed or random pattern, all of which are controlled by one microprocessor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2000
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2003
    Inventor: Steven P. W. Guritz
  • Patent number: 6608610
    Abstract: A plasma display device and a method of driving a plasma display which are capable of performing suitable display control in response to the signal format of an input signal are provided. Either a television signal or a graphic signal is inputted as the input signal. A signal format identification circuit identifies whether the signal format of the input signal is the television signal or the graphic signal. A mode-by-mode control signal generating portion determines the driving sequence of a driving circuit in response to the identified signal format to perform the driving control of the driving circuit. Then, a display panel is driven in response to the signal format of the input signal to display an image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 19, 2003
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Takayoshi Nagai
  • Patent number: 6603462
    Abstract: A system for selecting functions based on a finger feature includes a finger features database storing finger feature and corresponding functions. The system further includes a finger feature sensor, an identification engine and a response engine. The sensor measures a finger feature. The identification engine matches the finger feature with stored features. The response engine then identifies a function in the table corresponding to a matched finger feature. The response engine can then forward an instruction corresponding to the identified function to a device for execution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2003
    Assignee: MultiDigit, Inc.
    Inventor: Alec Matusis
  • Patent number: 6587093
    Abstract: A pointing device some or all of whose elements are made from capacitive sensors. Such elements may include a rotary motion detector which includes a rotating member and a plurality of fixed capacitive detecting members; a rolling ball with patterned conductive surface and a plurality of fixed capacitive detecting members; capacitive touch sensors or capacitive switches to serve as mouse buttons; and a scrolling wheel, knob, or touch surface built from capacitive sensors. The pointing device further includes a capacitance measuring circuit and processor to measure variations of capacitance on the various capacitive elements and to determine the movement of and other activations of the mouse.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2000
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2003
    Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
    Inventors: Scott J. Shaw, Shawn P. Day, Raymond A. Trent, Jr., David W. Gillespie, Andrew M. Errington
  • Patent number: 6573887
    Abstract: A hand held device that functions as a writing instrument and a generator of digital copies of the written product. The device is configured like a writing instrument, having an elongated tubular body and a writing point. The device also has an internal position sensing devices, a written image detector, a microprocessor that converts movement of the instrument and the detected image into data and a transmitter to transmit the data to a digital device such as a computer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2003
    Inventor: Francis E. O'Donnell, Jr.
  • Patent number: 6567078
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a handwriting communication system, a handwriting input device and a handwriting display device used in the system, which can communicate by handwriting among a plurality of computers connected via a network. The communication system includes a handwriting input device which is provided at a transmitting side for inputting the handwriting into a transmitting side computer, and a handwriting display device which is provided at a receiving side for displaying the handwriting based on information transmitted from the transmitting side to a receiving side computer. The present system according to the invention transmits only a contiguous image around the handwritten portion, which reduces the communication volume compared to transmitting the whole image, and which makes the real time transmission and reception of handwriting trace possible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2003
    Assignee: Xiroku Inc.
    Inventor: Yasuji Ogawa
  • Patent number: 6552731
    Abstract: A system and method for generating a multi-tone representation of a digital image by applying a plurality of functions of luma to the digital image. The functions of luma comprise at least a first function and a second function, where each function has a value for each luma value in a range of luma values. Each function also has an associated display value. The digital image includes a plurality of pixels, where for each pixel, it is determined which of the first and second functions has a maximum value for a luma value of the pixel. Each pixel is represented using the display value associated with the determined function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2003
    Assignee: Avid Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Robert Gonsalves
  • Patent number: 6542141
    Abstract: A liquid crystal halftone display system including a tone generator which, for pixels having P tones of K tones (1≦P≦K), alternately outputs first N-bit tone display data and second N-bit tone display data in successive frames at one of a first phase and a second phase. Within a block of pixels, the tone generator alternately inverts the phase of the N-bit tone display data at successive first pixels having different ones of the P tones within the block of pixels beginning at a left side of the block of pixels, and alternately inverts the phase of the N-bit tone display data at successive pixels having a same one of the P tones within the block of pixels beginning at the left side of the block of pixels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2003
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Mano, Toshio Tanaka, Tsutomu Furuhashi, Masaaki Kitajima, Toshio Futami, Masaki Mega, Shigeyuki Nishitani, Naruhiko Kasai, Kohji Takahashi
  • Patent number: 6535192
    Abstract: A data driving circuit for a liquid crystal display wherein it has a simplified circuit configuration so that it may be easily integrated to a liquid crystal display panel. In the data driving circuit, a data input device receives n-bit video data. A clock generator generates 2n different clock signals. A digital-to-analog converter array generates a sampling pulse having a different phase in accordance with a magnitude of the video data from the data input means using the 2n clock signals and sampling an input ramp signal in response to the sampling pulse to apply the sampled ramp signal to each of data lines in a liquid crystal panel. Accordingly, a circuit configuration of the digital-to-analog converter is simplified, so that the data driving circuit can be easily integrated onto a narrow area thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2000
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2003
    Assignee: LG.Philips LCD Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Man Young Sung, Kyoung Moon Lim, Young Sik Kim
  • Patent number: 6535194
    Abstract: In an image display comprising a display element having a display surface with a regular array of a plurality of pixels, an image display control means for displaying different images different in successive fields on the display element, and a vibrating means for vibrating the optical axis of light emitted from the display surface in predetermined directions in synchronism to the switching of images by the image display control means, a temperature control means for the temperature of the vibrating means is provided. With the provision of the temperature of the vibrating means, it is possible to effectively improve the wobbling effect reduction due to the temperature dependency of the response characteristic of the vibrating means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2003
    Assignee: Olympus Optical Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kazunari Hanano, Naoto Shimada
  • Patent number: 6529200
    Abstract: Video processing apparatus and method, in which successive video processing operations are applied to images generate corresponding processing results in the form of images or data, for storing cached items and processing results associated with the video processing operations, and providing for deleting currently cached items to provide cache space for items to be newly cached, so that non-image processing results are retained in the cache for longer than processing results in the form of images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2003
    Assignee: Sony United Kingdon Limited
    Inventor: Antony James Gould
  • Patent number: 6529183
    Abstract: A manual interface combines continuous and discrete control and display capabilities. The manual interface can be embodied by combining a haptic interface providing continuous control and display capabilities with one or more of multiple discrete selectors (such as tagged objects) providing discrete control capabilities. The manual interface can provide finer control and a richer sensory experience than is possible with conventional tagged objects. Further, unlike a conventional haptic interface device, the manual interface can provide easily selectable, multiple interactive possibilities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2003
    Assignee: Interval Research Corp.
    Inventors: Karon E. MacLean, Golan Levin, Scott S. Snibbe, William L. Verplank
  • Patent number: 6525698
    Abstract: The invention provides a data display device and a system which display a sales amount or number of coins inserted into, for example, a game machine in a form not directly comprehensible to a person in order to prevent reading by an unauthorized person. This prevents dishonest acts or pilfering by the unauthorized person. This form, not directly comprehensible, can be a bar code. The unauthorized person can read the sales data only by a bar code reader, so he will have no way to know the sales amount to match with the actual collected amount of the coins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 1995
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2003
    Assignee: Omrom Corporation
    Inventors: Morimasa Takechi, Kazuaki Morita
  • Patent number: 6507330
    Abstract: A method of operating a liquid crystal cell includes DC-balancing by displaying an inverse image with electric fields of increased magnitude relative to the image producing electric fields. While the inverse image is displayed the image is prevented from being visible by either turning off the light source or re-directing or blocking the light from reaching the viewing area. The image producing electric fields and the inverse image producing electric fields are such that the cumulative time integral of the electric fields that are present in one direction across the liquid crystal material is substantially equal to the cumulative time integral of the electric fields that are present in the opposite direction during the given period of time during the operation of liquid crystal cell. The time duration of the inverse image portion is shorter than the time duration of the image portion by an amount proportional to the increased magnitude of the additional electric fields.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2001
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2003
    Assignee: Displaytech, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark A. Handschy, Jiuzhi Xue, Lianhua Ji
  • Patent number: 6507339
    Abstract: A coordinate inputting/detecting system includes a display apparatus having a display surface, a coordinate inputting/detecting apparatus having a coordinate inputting/detecting surface arranged at the display surface of the display apparatus so as to detect a designated position in the display surface of the display apparatus, a marking that is provided on the display surface of the display apparatus so as to define a predetermined virtual display area of the display apparatus, a marking coordinate determining device that determines a coordinate of the marking based on the detected designated position of the marker by the coordinate inputting/detecting apparatus when the marking is designated via the coordinate inputting/detecting surface of the coordinate inputting/detecting apparatus, a marking coordinate memorizing device that memorizes the marking coordinate determined by the marking coordinate determining device, and an adjusting device that adjusts a display area of the display apparatus to the virtual
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2003
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Makoto Tanaka
  • Patent number: 6501443
    Abstract: In a pair of spectacles using liquid crystal lenses, an electrical circuit, for controlling the optical transmission of the liquid crystal lenses, controls the amplitude and/or duty cycle of the voltage driving the lens so as to operate the liquid crystal lens in the transition region, between maximum and minimum optical densities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2000
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2002
    Assignee: Crystalens Limited
    Inventor: Richard Anthony McMahon
  • Patent number: 6496194
    Abstract: A halftone display method utilizes an activation sequence, having a plurality of luminance blocks predefined in each frame or field to display an image and having redundancy, that enables one gray-scale level to be expressed by any one of a plurality of combinations of subframes (luminance blocks). When determining luminance blocks for use to display gray scale of an arbitrary first pixel, the luminance blocks to be used for the first pixel are selected in accordance with a predetermined rule, based on how the luminance blocks are used for a second pixel located in close proximity to the first pixel. In this way, by actively utilizing the redundancy of the activation sequence, the occurrence of moving-image false contours (false color contours) in video can be minimized, and also a motion compensation equalizing pulse method can be effectively applied to further improve the image display quality.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 1999
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2002
    Assignees: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventors: Shigeo Mikoshiba, Tomokazu Shiga, Yiwen Zhu, Kiyoshi Igarashi, Kosaku Toda, Toshio Ueda, Kyoji Kariya, Takayuki Ooe, Kazuki Sawa