Patents by Inventor Carlos Correa

Carlos Correa 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).

  • Patent number: 8441415
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for processing data of a picture to be displayed on a display panel with persistent luminous elements in order to reduce load effect in said display means. The method comprises the following steps: computing, for each subfield, the amount of activated luminous elements in each line of luminous elements of the display panel, called line load, calculating, for each subfield, the maximal difference of line loads of two consecutive lines of the display panel, and selecting, for each subfield, a sustain frequency in accordance with its maximal load difference in order to reduce line load effect.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2013
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa
  • Patent number: 8355441
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a new method for generating motion compensated picture by interpolating two consecutive source pictures without using motion estimator. For a given pixel to be interpolated, all displacements within a given search range between former and next frame are considered and for each displacement the displaced block difference is calculated. The pixel value is then equal to the sum of each averaged pixel pair within the search range weighted by a correlation coefficient function of the corresponding displaced block difference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2013
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa, Sébastien Weitbruch
  • Patent number: 8351512
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of estimating motion between two video frames. According to the invention, the motion estimation is done by using first one motion estimation in the horizontal direction and then one motion estimation in the vertical direction. Preferably, a plurality of motion estimations in the horizontal direction are used alternately with motion estimations in the vertical direction. It allows reducing the complexity of the estimation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cédric Thébault, Sébastien Weitbruch, Carlos Correa
  • Patent number: 8294634
    Abstract: Overheating while enabling a full flexibility in the display usage should be avoided. This object is solved by a method for avoiding the overheating of a driver circuit in a plasma display panel wherein the driver circuit receives serially display data in form of a sequence of sub-field data bits and forwards parallelly the display data in the form of data blocks each consisting of a predefined number of sub-field data bits, the method comprising the steps of counting sub-field data bits the value of which differs from that of a neighboring or preceding sub-field data bit and providing a respective counting signal indicative of heat contributions of sub-field data bits and, if said counting signal is above a pregiven threshold, taking countermeasures for reducing said temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa
  • Patent number: 8279214
    Abstract: The invention concerns a video processing for improving the picture quality of picture which are displayed on display devices like plasma display panels and all kind of display devices based on the principle of duty cycle modulation of light emission and for reducing the average power dissipation. The basic idea behind the invention is to generate only the required amount of sustain pulses that effectively produce light and to avoid generating unnecessary sustain pulses. To this end, the video range of the input video is increased in order to be equal to a nominal range, 255 in the case of a 8-bit coding, and a power level mode with a reduced number of sustain pulses is selected to keep constant the brightness of the image. The number of sustain pulses that do not produce light is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Cédric Thebault, Rainer Zwing
  • Patent number: 8254466
    Abstract: For reducing the false contour effect the gravity center coding is utilized. However, a GCC with a few number of levels introduces noise in a picture. Therefore, each picture is divided into segments and such GCC is performed only in regions, where the false contour effect is critical. This is the case for skin areas of a picture. Such areas are detected by the color analysis and texture analysis. If this analysis leads to a skin area, a specific false contour mode for data processing is used. Otherwise, a standard mode is employed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Carlos Correa, Dennis Cota
  • Patent number: 8243785
    Abstract: The gravity centered coding shall be improved with respect to false contour effect disturbances on plasma display panels for example. Therefore, there is provided a GCC code (gravity center coding) and a motion amplitude of a picture or a part of a picture. Furthermore, there is provided at least one sub-set code of the GCC code. The video data are coded with the GCC code or the at least one sub-set code depending on the motion amplitude. Thus, it is possible to reduce the number of coding levels if the motion increases. A further improvement can be obtained by using texture information for selecting the GCC code.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Carlos Correa, Cédric Thebault
  • Patent number: 8212844
    Abstract: A method and a device for encoding the video level of a pixel of a picture into a subfield code word in a display device using a PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) technology and subfields for displaying video picture. The bits of the subfield code word are computed recursively one after the other from the bit having the most significant weight to the bit having the least significant weight. In determining the state of a bit of the subfield code word, a first threshold and a second threshold is associated with the bit, the second threshold being greater than the first threshold, and the video level to be encoded by this bit and its following bits in the subfield code word are compared to the first and second thresholds. A state is allocated to the bit based on the comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cedric Thebault, Carlos Correa, Sebastien Weitbruch
  • Patent number: 8199831
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a device for coding video levels of pixels of a color component of a picture to be displayed on a display device into code words. The invention is more particularly applicable to Plasma Display Panels (PDP) to improve the picture quality (grayscale enhancement, dynamic false contour reduction). The main idea of the invention is to automatically change the floor and ceiling levels used classically for dithering each pixel value depending on the neighboring pixels of the same color component. The size of the window determining the neighboring pixels is dependent on the definition of the wanted flat field size.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Sebastien Weltbruch, Mohammed Abdallah
  • Patent number: 8125500
    Abstract: A picture quality when reducing the brightness or the contrast of the picture on a plasma panel shall be improved. For this purpose there is provided a driving apparatus including brightness/contrast control means for receiving video input data for modifying the video levels of the video input data in accordance with external adjustment data and for outputting modified video data. First power measurement means measure a power level of the modified video data and supply a first power level. Second power measurement means measure a power level of the video input data and supply a second power level. Generator means generate a third power level comprised between the first power level and the second power level or equal to the larger one to data processing means. The data processing means calculate the maximum number of sustain pulses per frame applicable to the modified video data on the basis of the third power level and control the display of the modified video data on the plasma display panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2012
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa, Sébastien Weitbruch
  • Patent number: 7986316
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for power level control of a display device and an apparatus for carrying out the method. Classically, a power level mode defining a subfield organization to be used for subfield coding is selected as a function of the average power level of the picture to be displayed for keeping constant the power consumption of the display device. According to the invention, it is proposed to select the power level mode as a function of the input frame frequency in such a way as to have as little as possible deviations from nominal peak white and full white values at the same time that an overloading of the panel power supply is prevented. More particularly, the number of sustain pulses within the video frame and selected by the power level mode is modified as a function of the input frame frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Cédric Thebault, Rainer Zwing
  • Patent number: 7982730
    Abstract: The invention relates to a new method for power level control of a display device and an apparatus for carrying out the method. Classically, the contrast/brightness control and the power management (based on an average power level control) are made independently. These two controls can be contradictory. According to the invention, the power level mode and more particularly the number of sustain pulses within the video frame is selected as a function of the average power level (APL) of the picture to be displayed and the picture control signal representing the desired contrast and/or brightness value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Cédric Thebault, Rainer Zwing
  • Publication number: 20100321582
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of estimating motion between two video frames. According to the invention, the motion estimation is done by using first one motion estimation in the horizontal direction and then one motion estimation in the vertical direction. Preferably, a plurality of motion estimations in the horizontal direction are used alternately with motion estimations in the vertical direction. It allows reducing the complexity of the estimation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 13, 2008
    Publication date: December 23, 2010
    Inventors: Cédric Thébault, Sébastien Weitbruch, Carlos Correa
  • Publication number: 20100321374
    Abstract: Method and apparatus for reducing driver energy consumption of drivers of a display device each supplied by an input codeword as e.g. for data drivers of a plasma display panel supplied by sequences of subfield data bits in form of a codeword comprising a predetermined number of bits are recommended, wherein the apparatus comprises a driver transition energy limitation circuit for toggling bits of the input codeword applied to the driver transition energy limitation circuit and providing a codeword reducing the driver energy consumption. A toggle map, which is generated from a combination of a transition map determining a bit in the input codeword if toggled reduces energy consumption and a flag map determining a number of least significant bits exceeding a cell energy limit value, is applied to an input codeword for the driver to toggle bits of said input codeword for reducing driver energy consumption without a perceivable image quality degradation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2010
    Publication date: December 23, 2010
    Inventors: Carlos CORREA, Cédric Thébault
  • Publication number: 20100265264
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and system for providing color grading or color correction for displays includes a plurality of virtual device models where each virtual device model has a virtual model specification (VMS) which controls a display feature. Each display includes a display specification including a display requirement or requirements. An apparatus of the present invention is configured to compare the display feature of at least one VMS against the display requirement of the display specification to determine a best match therebetween to select a virtual device model to control a display picture. Color correction is further provided in post production using the VMS to provide consistency across multiple display types.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2006
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Applicant: THOMSON LICENSING
    Inventors: Ingo Tobias Doser, Xueming Henry Gu, Pierre Jean Ollivier, Michael Allan Sterling, Bongsun Lee, Rainer Zwing, Carlos Correa, Jurgen Stauder
  • Publication number: 20100265395
    Abstract: Luminous elements of the three colours red, green and blue of video display devices have a different response time. Therefore, a coloured edge and trail appear at edges in direction of a moving object. In order to reduce the disturbing character of such coloured edges and trails, a horizontal spatial equalisation of the response time of luminous elements having a shorter response time by low-pass filtering a component signal of the video component signals for driving luminous elements having a shorter response time dependent on a horizontal speed of changes of the component signal is recommended to reduce phosphor lag artifacts on display devices. The arrangement for processing video component signals of different colour comprises a compensation unit which according to a preferred embodiment is realised by a FIR filter and a horizontal speed correction unit supplied with a horizontal and vertical motion estimation signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 14, 2010
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Cedric Thebault
  • Patent number: 7804509
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a device for encoding the luminance value of a pixel of a picture into a subfield code word in a display device. It can be applied to every display device using a PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) technology and subfields for displaying video picture. It can be used to compensate for any luminance problem that can be estimated. The general idea of the recursive coding is to encode one sub-field after the other in order to be able to compensate for problems occurring on one sub-field with the other sub-fields. More particularly, the bits of a subfield code word are computed recursively one after the other such that the defects (e.g. line load and/or linearity) in the light emission or luminance generated by a bit of the subfield code word can be compensated by the following bits of the subfield code word.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2010
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa, Sébastien Weitbruch
  • Patent number: 7796138
    Abstract: Response fidelity problems appear for some specific video levels at PDP borders. The reason is that some cells at the border of the PDP panel are not completely closed and pollute when switched ON neighbouring cells being OFF. Therefore, it is suggested to encode the video levels in the border area in a specific way. Especially, for critical sub-fields within the code it is forbidden to insert a binary 0 between two binary 1. Thus, the neighbourhood of critical sub-fields being ON and OFF is avoided. Preferably, the specific border coding is performed under the control of an average power management and codewords being not used are recreated by dithering.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Cédric Thebault, Carlos Correa
  • Patent number: 7773161
    Abstract: The invention deals with the large area flicker effect reduction in display devices like plasma display panels, in which the light output is controlled by small pulses over a whole frame period and the amount of small pulses determine the brightness of the light output. The invention proposes an adaptation of the known principle of sub-field grouping for large area flicker reduction for the specific sub-field coding process called incremental sub-field coding, in which only those sub-field code words are taken for display driving having the characteristic that there is never a sub-field inactivated between two activated sub-fields or never a sub-field is activated between two inactivated sub-fields. For this specific sub-field coding it is proposed to make the sub-field grouping in a simple manner, where all the odd sub-fields are grouped together in one group (G1) and all the even sub-fields are grouped together in a second group (G2).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2010
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Carlos Correa, Sébastien Weitbruch, Didier Doyen, Jonathan Kervec
  • Patent number: 7742109
    Abstract: A plasma display panel is a pure linear display and does not provide a non-linear gamma behavior like a CRT so that an artificial gamma function has to be applied to the signal in digital form. This gamma function increases the quantization steps in the dark areas whereas the quantization steps will be reduced in the luminous areas. The basic idea is to apply an adaptive noise filtering after the gammatization process. The adaptive filtering is a specific filtering which is adapted to the gammatization quantization noise. In other words, the filtering will be maximum for dark areas and its efficacy will be automatically decreased when the luminance of the area is increasing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2010
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventors: Sébastien Weitbruch, Rainer Zwing, Carlos Correa