Patents by Inventor Brian Alexander Knott

Brian Alexander Knott has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20220343794
    Abstract: A method comprises inputting an audio signal into a machine learning circuit to compress the audio signal into a sequence of actuator signals. The machine learning circuit being trained by: receiving a training set of acoustic signals and pre-processing the training set of acoustic signals into pre-processed audio data. The pre-processed audio data including at least a spectrogram. The training further includes training the machine learning circuit using the pre-processed audio data. The neural network has a cost function based on a reconstruction error and a plurality of constraints. The machine learning circuit generates a sequence of haptic cues corresponding to the audio input. The sequence of haptic cues is transmitted to a plurality of cutaneous actuators to generate a sequence of haptic outputs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2022
    Publication date: October 27, 2022
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Robert Turcott, Ali Israr
  • Patent number: 11355033
    Abstract: A method comprises inputting an audio signal into a machine learning circuit to compress the audio signal into a sequence of actuator signals. The machine learning circuit being trained by: receiving a training set of acoustic signals and pre-processing the training set of acoustic signals into pre-processed audio data. The pre-processed audio data including at least a spectrogram. The training further includes training the machine learning circuit using the pre-processed audio data. The neural network has a cost function based on a reconstruction error and a plurality of constraints. The machine learning circuit generates a sequence of haptic cues corresponding to the audio input. The sequence of haptic cues is transmitted to a plurality of cutaneous actuators to generate a sequence of haptic outputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 7, 2022
    Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Venkatasiva Prasad Chakkabala
  • Patent number: 10943503
    Abstract: A haptic communication device includes a speech signal generator configured to receive speech sounds or a textual message and generate speech signals corresponding to the speech sounds or the textual message. An envelope encoder is operably coupled to the speech signal generator to extract a temporal envelope from the speech signals. The temporal envelope represents changes in amplitude of the speech signals. Carrier signals having a periodic waveform are generated. Actuator signals are generated by encoding the changes in the amplitude of the speech signals from the temporal envelope into the carrier signals. One or more cutaneous actuators are operably coupled to the envelope encoder to generate haptic vibrations representing the speech sounds or the textual message using the actuator signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2021
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert Turcott, Ali Israr, Brian Alexander Knott, Freddy Abnousi
  • Patent number: 10748448
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to enhancing haptic communication by using two or more cutaneous actuators to create constructive or destructive interference patterns on the receiving user's skin. The actuator signals for the two or more cutaneous actuators are shaped and generated so that the two or more cutaneous actuators cause vibrations on the receiving user's patch of skin to increase or decrease. In this way, various enhancement to haptic communication can be achieved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2020
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Robert Turcott, Ali Israr
  • Patent number: 10591996
    Abstract: A haptic device comprises a signal generator that is configured to receive an input word that is a unit of a language written using consonant-vowel pairs. The signal generator converts the input word into one or more consonant-vowel pairs of the input word. The signal generator further converts the one or more consonant-vowel pairs into a sequence of actuator signals. The sequence of actuator signals is formed from a concatenation of sub-sequences of actuator signals. Each phoneme corresponding to a unique sub-sequence of actuator signals. The haptic device further comprises a two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators configured to receive the sequence of actuator signals from the signal generator, each of the actuator signals mapped to a cutaneous actuator of the two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Venkatasiva Prasad Chakkabala
  • Patent number: 10222864
    Abstract: A haptic device comprises a signal generator that is configured to receive an input word that is a unit of a language written using consonant-vowel pairs. The signal generator converts the input word into one or more consonant-vowel pairs of the input word. The signal generator further converts the one or more consonant-vowel pairs into a sequence of actuator signals. The sequence of actuator signals is formed from a concatenation of sub-sequences of actuator signals. Each phoneme corresponding to a unique sub-sequence of actuator signals. The haptic device further comprises a two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators configured to receive the sequence of actuator signals from the signal generator, each of the actuator signals mapped to a cutaneous actuator of the two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Venkatasiva Prasad Chakkabala
  • Publication number: 20180300651
    Abstract: A method comprises inputting an audio signal into a machine learning circuit to compress the audio signal into a sequence of actuator signals. The machine learning circuit being trained by: receiving a training set of acoustic signals and pre-processing the training set of acoustic signals into pre-processed audio data. The pre-processed audio data including at least a spectrogram. The training further includes training the machine learning circuit using the pre-processed audio data. The neural network has a cost function based on a reconstruction error and a plurality of constraints. The machine learning circuit generates a sequence of haptic cues corresponding to the audio input. The sequence of haptic cues is transmitted to a plurality of cutaneous actuators to generate a sequence of haptic outputs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Venkatasiva Prasad Chakkabala
  • Publication number: 20180301001
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to enhancing haptic communication by using two or more cutaneous actuators to create constructive or destructive interference patterns on the receiving user's skin. The actuator signals for the two or more cutaneous actuators are shaped and generated so that the two or more cutaneous actuators cause vibrations on the receiving user's patch of skin to increase or decrease. In this way, various enhancement to haptic communication can be achieved.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Robert Turcott, Ali Israr
  • Publication number: 20180301140
    Abstract: A haptic communication device includes a speech signal generator configured to receive speech sounds or a textual message and generate speech signals corresponding to the speech sounds or the textual message. An envelope encoder is operably coupled to the speech signal generator to extract a temporal envelope from the speech signals. The temporal envelope represents changes in amplitude of the speech signals. Carrier signals having a periodic waveform are generated. Actuator signals are generated by encoding the changes in the amplitude of the speech signals from the temporal envelope into the carrier signals. One or more cutaneous actuators are operably coupled to the envelope encoder to generate haptic vibrations representing the speech sounds or the textual message using the actuator signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Inventors: Robert Turcott, Ali Israr, Brian Alexander Knott, Freddy Abnousi
  • Publication number: 20180299960
    Abstract: A haptic device comprises a signal generator that is configured to receive an input word that is a unit of a language written using consonant-vowel pairs. The signal generator converts the input word into one or more consonant-vowel pairs of the input word. The signal generator further converts the one or more consonant-vowel pairs into a sequence of actuator signals. The sequence of actuator signals is formed from a concatenation of sub-sequences of actuator signals. Each phoneme corresponding to a unique sub-sequence of actuator signals. The haptic device further comprises a two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators configured to receive the sequence of actuator signals from the signal generator, each of the actuator signals mapped to a cutaneous actuator of the two dimensional array of cutaneous actuators.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Inventors: Brian Alexander Knott, Venkatasiva Prasad Chakkabala