Patents Examined by Steven Holton
  • Patent number: 8576153
    Abstract: There is disclosed a liquid crystal display device and driving method are provided. The liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal display panel where pixels are defined by gate lines and data lines that are arranged in a matrix shape. A gate driver is operable to supply a gate voltage to the liquid crystal display panel. A data driver is operable to supply a data voltage to the liquid crystal display panel. The pixels are each independently operable to be driven by drive voltages, which have different polarities from each other, and include first and second liquid crystal cells which realize the same gray level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: LG Display Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Ki Bok Park, Sang Ho Choi
  • Patent number: 8564518
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device includes a plurality of pixels each including a liquid crystal element of VA mode and a drive section. The drive section space-divisionally or time-divisionally performs a display drive operation so that the operation includes first and second divisional-drive operation groups. The drive section performs an operation in the first or second divisional-drive operation group, or both thereof. In the former, the output voltage exceeds the input voltage in the intermediate luminance range, whereas in a highlight luminance range, exceeds the input voltage but shows a tendency to be lower compared to in the intermediate luminance range. In the latter, the output voltage is lower than the input voltage in the intermediate luminance range, whereas in a lowermost luminance range, equal to or lower than the input voltage but shows a tendency to be higher compared to in the intermediate luminance range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yuji Nakahata, Tsuyoshi Kamada
  • Patent number: 8564554
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for controlling a touch surface control device, including at least one step comprising the generation of sensory feedback corresponding to the detection of a pressure applied by a user on the touch surface, said sensory feedback comprising haptic feedback and acoustic feedback. The invention is characterized in that the generation of the acoustic feedback is initiated after the generation of the haptic feedback once a characteristic value of the haptic feedback has exceeded a pre-defined threshold. The invention also relates to an electric control device having a touch surface, characterized in that it includes means for implementing said method (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: DAV
    Inventors: Patrice Laurent, Aymeric Dunoyer, Bruno Cottarel, Philippe Barathon
  • Patent number: 8558857
    Abstract: A color Liquid Crystal display (LCD) device for displaying a color image using at least four different primary colors, the device including an array of Liquid Crystal (LC) elements, driving circuitry adapted to receive an input corresponding to the color image and to selectively activate the LC elements of the LC array to produce an attenuation pattern corresponding to a gray-level representation of the color image, and an array of color sub-pixel filter elements juxtaposed and in registry with the array of LC elements such that each color sub-pixel filter element is in registry with one of the LC elements, wherein the array of color sub-pixel filter elements comprises at least four types of color sub-pixel filter elements, which transmit light of the at least four primary colors, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2013
    Assignee: Genoa Color Technologies Ltd.
    Inventors: Ilan Ben-David, Shmuel Roth, Moshe Ben-Chorin
  • Patent number: 8552952
    Abstract: No flicker is displayed on the display screen during display of moving pictures and power consumption can be reduced by adding a high quality moving picture display function. Moreover, the number of times of transfer of moving pictures by comprising a still-picture•text•system•I/O bus•interface and a moving picture interface (external display interface), providing a display operation change register (DM) and a RAM access change register (RM) which are changed selectively depending on display content (display mode) displayed on a display device and displaying the display data on the display device via a picture memory even in the moving picture display mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Goro Sakamaki, Takashi Ohyama, Shigeru Ohta, Kei Tanabe
  • Patent number: 8542217
    Abstract: An apparatus is controlled to detect a location of an object on a touch surface of a panel. An input scanner arrangement introduces at least two beams of radiation into the panel for propagation by internal reflection, and sweeps the beams inside the panel across a sensing area. An output scanner arrangement is synchronized with the input scanner arrangement so as to receive the beams from the input scanner arrangement while they are swept across the sensing area and to direct the beams onto at least one radiation detector. Thereby, each beam is introduced and received on opposite ends of the sensing area. A data processor is connected to the radiation detector and operated to identify the location based on an attenuation of the beams caused by the object touching the touch surface within the sensing area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Assignee: FlatFrog Laboratories AB
    Inventors: Ola Wassvik, Kennet Vilhelmsson
  • Patent number: 8531398
    Abstract: An apparatus includes first and second accelerometers, a display device implemented in a vehicle, and a controller. The display device displays, to a user, a cursor relative to one or more objects. The first accelerometer generates a first signal representing an acceleration of the vehicle due to motion of the vehicle. The second accelerometer is worn by the user and generates a second signal representing both an acceleration of the user within the vehicle and the acceleration of the vehicle due to the motion of the vehicle. The controller isolates, based on the first signal, i) the acceleration of the user within the vehicle represented in the second signal from ii) the acceleration of the vehicle represented in the second signal. The controller moves the cursor relative to the objects based on the acceleration of the user within the vehicle as isolated from the acceleration of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignee: Marvell International Ltd.
    Inventors: Paramesh Gopi, Alarabi Omar Hassen
  • Patent number: 8531421
    Abstract: A method of detecting and interpreting a path of designated positions is disclosed. The method concurrently detects a plurality of designated positions on a touch panel, again detects the plurality of designated positions subsequent to a travel of the designated positions, determines the distances between each of the current designated positions and the respective immediately preceding designated positions, treats an immediately preceding designated position, closest to the current designated position of interest, as the immediately preceding designated position of the current designated position of interest, and acquires the path of each designated position, thereby recognizing the paths of the plurality of designated positions that move concurrently. A combination of the paths of the plurality of designated positions is interpreted to identify a designation input by a user, and an operation thus designated is executed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masanori Wakai, Satomi Kayano
  • Patent number: 8525783
    Abstract: An object has a plurality of joints 51 to 55 which are connected to each other. A game apparatus calculates, when one of the plurality of joints having a fixed position with respect to the object is set as a reference joint, an orientation of an adjacent joint connected to the reference joint with respect to the reference joint (an orientation of an adjacent bone) based on input data. Then, the game apparatus moves a position of the adjacent joint connected to the reference joint based on the calculated orientation, and further moves the joints other than the reference joint and the adjacent joint in accordance with the adjacent joint being moved. Furthermore, the game apparatus causes a display device to display the object in which a shape thereof is determined based on positions of the aforementioned joints which have been moved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kenta Sato
  • Patent number: 8514151
    Abstract: A pixel is provided in which normal display of an image is possible even if a sustain period is shorter than an address period in a driving method combining digital gray scales and time gray scales, and in which operation can be compensated by changing the electric potential of a signal line even for a case in which the EL driver transistor becomes normally on due to deterioration. One of a source region and a drain region of an erasure TFT is connected to an electric current supply line, and the remaining one of the source region and the drain region is connected to a gate signal line. It is possible to change the voltage between a gate and a source of an EL driver TFT by changing the electric potential of the gate signal line so that the EL driver TFT is placed in a non-conducting state with certainty with this structure, even for cases in which the EL driver TFT becomes normally on due to a shift in the value of its threshold voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2013
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hajime Kimura
  • Patent number: 8502750
    Abstract: The picture quality on a plasma display panel shall be improved when the contrast and/or the brightness are reduced. This is achieved by estimating the reduction of the dynamic occurring in the front-end of the data processing of the plasma display device and by compensating it in the back-end. Specifically, the gain and/or offset of the video input data are adjusted and the power level of the adjusted video data is measured. The resulting power level information is updated on the basis of an attenuation information. The updated power level is used for the power management and the level of the video data being reduced in the front-end is increased on the basis of the attenuation information. Thus, the dynamic of the video and, as a result, the picture quality are improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2013
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa, Sébastien Weitbruch
  • Patent number: 8502783
    Abstract: A handheld electronic device includes a reduced QWERTY keyboard and is enabled with disambiguation software. The device provides output in the form of a default output and a number of variants. The output is based largely upon the frequency, i.e., the likelihood that a user intended a particular output, but various features of the device provide additional variants that are not based solely on frequency and rather are provided by various logic structures resident on the device. The device enables editing during text entry and also provides a learning function that allows the disambiguation function to adapt to provide a customized experience for the user. The disambiguation function can be selectively disabled and an alternate keystroke interpretation system provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2013
    Assignee: Research In Motion Limited
    Inventors: Vadim Fux, Michael G. Elizarov, Sergey V. Kolomiets
  • Patent number: 8497823
    Abstract: Display irregularities in light emitting devices, which develop due to dispersions per pixel in the threshold value of TFTs for supplying electric current to light emitting elements, are obstacles to increasing the image quality of the light emitting devices. An electric potential in which the threshold voltage of a TFT (105) is either added to or subtracted from the electric potential of a reset signal line (110) is stored in capacitor means (108). A voltage, in which the corresponding threshold voltage is added to an image signal, is applied to a gate electrode of a TFT (106). TFTs within a pixel are disposed adjacently, and dispersion in the characteristics of the TFTs does not easily develop. The threshold value of the TFT (105) is thus cancelled, even if the threshold values of the TFTs (106) differ per pixel, and a predetermined drain current can be supplied to an EL element (109).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2013
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hajime Kimura, Yoshifumi Tanada
  • Patent number: 8493320
    Abstract: A display control device includes a retrieval image generation unit that generates images used in a retrieval operation which include retrieval condition images and item images arranged on a plane by arranging the retrieval condition images indicating a plurality of retrieval conditions for the plurality of pieces of content data in a first direction on a plane, and by arranging, in a second direction, the item images indicating pieces of content data or folders including pieces of content data categorized based on the retrieval conditions arranged in the first direction, and a retrieval image display control unit that displays the generated images used in a retrieval operation on the display unit, that detects an operation input, and that moves an indicator indicating a selected one of the retrieval condition images and the item images, in a vertical direction or a horizontal direction in accordance with the detected operation input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Arito Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 8456439
    Abstract: A portable device includes a touch screen that includes a display screen and that generates touch screen data in response to a user's interaction with the touch screen. A processor executes a security application for authenticating the user to the portable device that provides first display data to the touch screen for displaying a security prompt on the display screen. Touch screen data is received from the touch screen in response to the user's interaction with the touch screen and is processed to determine when an authentication shape is recognized as being indicated by the touch screen data. The user is authenticated to the portable device when the authentication shape is recognized as being indicated by the touch screen data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Broadcom Corporation
    Inventor: Ahmadreza (Reza) Rofougaran
  • Patent number: 8436836
    Abstract: Method and apparatus (16) for projecting infrared or near infrared or low intensity visible light from a pen, pointer or other guiding object in the form of a coded pattern image, detectable by a camera and recognition system but invisible, or hardly visible to the user and audience, thus controlling and interacting with a computer (19) during a presentation, computer supported work and/or other interactive use of a computer, including pointing, selecting, drawing and writing, both distantly (11) and closely (10) to the front or rear projection screen or possible other type of display screen, without any distracting visual patterns or spots, while the possible visual feedback to the user and audience can be generated by the computer and display system onto the display screen in a controlled and context-sensitive way.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2013
    Assignee: Epson Norway Research and Development AS
    Inventors: Tormod Njølstad, Mikael Lindgren, Øystein Damhaug, Sedsel Fretheim Thomassen
  • Patent number: 8421727
    Abstract: A transmitter circuit includes a driver circuit including a non-inverting output terminal and an inverting output terminal for outputting a signal current, which has a loop direction that changes based upon an input signal, to the non-inverting output terminal and the inverting output terminal and an output-waveform control circuit for detecting a waveform edge of the input signal and responding by increasing the signal current temporarily. The output-waveform control circuit includes a first inverter circuit receiving a non-inverted input signal, a first capacitor including one end connected to an output terminal of the first inverter circuit and another end connected to the inverting output terminal, a second inverter circuit receiving an inverted input signal, and a second capacitor including one end connected to an output terminal of the second inverter circuit and another end connected to the non-inverting output terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2013
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Hosokawa, Kouichi Nishimura
  • Patent number: 8416210
    Abstract: An image display including a touch-sensitive display, that creates tactile sensation and movement of an object (3-2) along its surface is provided. Actuators including conductive rods (4-111, 4-112) attached together may be used, such that each rod of the actuator (4-11) may increase or decrease in size when current is applied to that rod to cause the actuator to bend toward a specified direction. Also, an image display that includes ball bearings (1-10) whose rotation is controlled by driving magnets (1-21, 1-22) to cause an object to move is provided. Further, air holes (3-11) tilted in various directions to control object movement by air pressure may be provided. Moreover, rods (3-10) may be moved up or down as activated by driving magnets (2-20). The actuators, rods, ball bearing assemblies, or holes may provide touch sensitivity for the image display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics, N.V.
    Inventors: Nicolas De Jong, Elmo Marcus Attila Diederiks, Murray Fulton Gillies, Jurgen Jean Louis Hoppenbrouwers, Johannes Henricus Maria Korst, Thomas Casper Kraan, Rogier Winters
  • Patent number: 8411010
    Abstract: A cholesteric liquid crystal display device in which a first step for applying a high voltage pulse to initialize a pixel and a second step for applying a low voltage pulse to increase a coexistence ratio of a focal conic state to the planar state in the initialized pixel are performed and a gradation value is determined by a cumulative time during which the low voltage pulse is applied, the device includes: a voltage generation circuit; and a driver circuit, wherein: the voltage generation circuit includes: a step-up part that generates a step-up voltage from a power source voltage; a voltage switching part; and a voltage stabilization part that generates the predetermined voltage in accordance with the voltage control signal from the step-up voltage, wherein the voltage stabilization part suppresses variations in output voltage; and the step-up part switches step-up ratios between the first step and the second step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2013
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventor: Tomohisa Shingai
  • Patent number: 8390566
    Abstract: Methods, apparatuses, and machine readable media relating to background images are described herein. An apparatus, in one embodiment, includes a processor for causing a display to display a main image and a memory for storing a plurality of background images. The processor is arranged to cause the display to display a background image at the same time as or in preference to the main image. A different background image may be automatically selected for display each time a predetermined event occurs. Methods, media, and other apparatuses are also described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Jean-Marie Hullot