Patents by Inventor Colin Leonard Bird

Colin Leonard Bird 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: 8874583
    Abstract: Tags on documents are clustered using tag weightings of the tags on the documents. Each cluster includes an identified subject. The identified subjects are compared to identify relationships between the identified subjects. A taxonomy of subjects is built using the identified relationships between the identified subjects programmatically without user intervention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Patent number: 8700617
    Abstract: A system, method and computer program for managing resources within an integrated development environment for multiple users. The resources include both content resources and people resources. The method comprises: managing a plurality of nodes representing resources, the nodes including content nodes and person nodes, wherein the node contains a resource reference for referencing the resource; managing one or more links representing one or more relationships between the resources, the links including links between content nodes, between person nodes and between content and person nodes, each link comprising node references to identify the nodes in the relationships and an importance value to identify the importance of the relationship; providing an interface for selecting one of the plurality of content nodes or person nodes; adapting, in response to the user selected node, one or more importance values of certain links.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Andrew Connick, Nicholas James Hill, Mark James Hiscock, Sebastian Stein, Stephen Woolley
  • Patent number: 8620922
    Abstract: A method and system for generating a taxonomy for documents from tag data are provided. The method includes obtaining tag data in the form of tags on documents with tag weightings for a document and clustering the tags using the tag weightings for documents, wherein each cluster is an identified subject. The documents are associated with each identified subject and the subjects are compared to identifying relationships between subjects to build a taxonomy of subjects. A tag weighting for a document is the number of times the tag is applied to the document with a user rating of the relevance of the tag to the document. The steps are carried out automatically without user intervention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Publication number: 20130013608
    Abstract: Tags on documents are clustered using tag weightings of the tags on the documents. Each cluster includes an identified subject. The identified subjects are compared to identify relationships between the identified subjects. A taxonomy of subjects is built using the identified relationships between the identified subjects programmatically without user intervention.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2012
    Publication date: January 10, 2013
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Patent number: 8346776
    Abstract: A method and system for generating a taxonomy for documents from tag data are provided. The method includes obtaining tag data in the form of tags on documents with tag weightings for a document and clustering the tags using the tag weightings for documents, wherein each cluster is an identified subject. The documents are associated with each identified subject and the subjects are compared to identifying relationships between subjects to build a taxonomy of subjects. A tag weighting for a document is the number of times the tag is applied to the document with a user rating of the relevance of the tag to the document. The steps are carried out automatically without user intervention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Publication number: 20120191718
    Abstract: A method and system for generating a taxonomy for documents from tag data are provided. The method includes obtaining tag data in the form of tags on documents with tag weightings for a document and clustering the tags using the tag weightings for documents, wherein each cluster is an identified subject. The documents are associated with each identified subject and the subjects are compared to identifying relationships between subjects to build a taxonomy of subjects. A tag weighting for a document is the number of times the tag is applied to the document with a user rating of the relevance of the tag to the document. The steps are carried out automatically without user intervention.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Publication date: July 26, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Publication number: 20110282878
    Abstract: A method and system for generating a taxonomy for documents from tag data are provided. The method includes obtaining tag data in the form of tags on documents with tag weightings for a document and clustering the tags using the tag weightings for documents, wherein each cluster is an identified subject. The documents are associated with each identified subject and the subjects are compared to identifying relationships between subjects to build a taxonomy of subjects. A tag weighting for a document is the number of times the tag is applied to the document with a user rating of the relevance of the tag to the document. The steps are carried out automatically without user intervention.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2010
    Publication date: November 17, 2011
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Timothy David Catt, Thomas Alan Clabon, David John Gordon Robert Rankine, James Edwin Jerome Thompson, Cerys Willoughby
  • Patent number: 7953697
    Abstract: A system and associated method for collaboratively developing information. An information delivery system for information regarding rapidly evolving software products builds an initial information set and a vocabulary. The initial information set is released for annotations on the information set by contributing users. The vocabulary defines a group of terms and respectively associated confidence level that can be used in describing annotations. An access control list may be employed in authenticating contributing users in accessing the information delivery system to assure reliability of annotations. A reliable annotation having a confidence level satisfying a threshold confidence level is integrated with the information set according to an approval by a content owner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2011
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, John Bryan Ibbotson
  • Patent number: 7877391
    Abstract: A method is provided for managing resources within an integrated development environment for multiple users. The resources include both content resources and people resources. The method comprises managing a plurality of nodes representing resources. The nodes include content nodes and person nodes. The node contains a resource reference for referencing the resource. The method comprises managing one or more links representing one or more relationships between the resources. Each link comprises node references to identify the nodes in the relationships and an importance value to identify the importance of the relationship. The method further comprises providing an interface for selecting one of the plurality of content nodes or person nodes and estimating, in response to a selected nodes, a node having a likelihood of subsequent selection based on the importance value of its link to the selected nodes. The method comprises providing an interface for selecting said estimated node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2011
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Andrew Connick, Nicholas James Hill, Mark James Hiscock, Sebastian Stein, Stephen Woolley
  • Publication number: 20090271430
    Abstract: A system and associated method for collaboratively developing information. An information delivery system for information regarding rapidly evolving software products builds an initial information set and a vocabulary. The initial information set is released for annotations on the information set by contributing users. The vocabulary defines a group of terms and respectively associated confidence level that can be used in describing annotations. An access control list may be employed in authenticating contributing users in accessing the information delivery system to assure reliability of annotations. A reliable annotation having a confidence level satisfying a threshold confidence level is integrated with the information set according to an approval by a content owner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2008
    Publication date: October 29, 2009
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, John Bryan Ibbotson
  • Patent number: 6323884
    Abstract: Provided are a method and a software-implemented mechanism for assisting a user of a graphical user interface (GUI) with the task of positioning an input device pointer (or otherwise indicating a position selection) when selecting a GUI element such as a button or other icon. The software identifies those GUI elements which are valid selections for the current application state and so are potentially the next element that the user will interact with. Then a predefined set of characteristics for the identified GUI elements are compared to predict which of these GUI elements will be the next GUI element that the user will interact with. The result of this prediction is indicated by moving the pointer to the position within the GUI of the predicted GUI element or by adding emphasis to the predicted GUI element. The user then decides whether this GUI element is required.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 1999
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2001
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Sydney George Chapman
  • Patent number: 6223281
    Abstract: An inherently serial program is processed in parallel, thus leading to higher processing speeds, while maintaining a close approximation to the specific result obtained through a serial running of the program. This goal has been attained based on the fact that the desired degree of closeness between a parallel result and the serial result depends on the particular inherently serial program being run and the type of analysis being performed. That is, some inherently serial processes require a “fine-tuned” result while for others a “coarser” result is acceptable. The frequency at which the parallel branches consolidate their respective results is changed accordingly to alter the degree of closeness between the parallel processed result and the serially processed result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 1997
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2001
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Christoph Lingenfelder, Robert William Phippen, Graham Derek Wallis
  • Patent number: 6049861
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for reproducible sampling of data items of a dataset which is shared across a plurality of nodes of a parallel data processing system.In data mining of large databases, segmentation of the database is often necessary either to obtain a summary of the database or prior to an operation such as link analysis. A sample of data records are taken to create an initial segmentation model. The records of this sample and the initial model created from them can be critical to the results of the data mining process, and the initial model may not be reproducible unless the same sampling of data records is repeatable. Reproducible sampling is enabled without polling of all nodes to locate particular records. Parametric control information with a small number of control parameters is generated which describes the particular partitioning of the dataset. The parametric control information enables computing of the location of a data record.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 1997
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2000
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Graham Derek Wallis
  • Patent number: 5905904
    Abstract: A parallel processing system having a number of processing nodes (S1 . . . Sn) each of which is provided with a message handling kernel (13 . . . n3) and an associated procedure register (14 . . . n4), the procedure registers being loadable by loading means (4) under the control of an application (3) and the nodes being able to exchange messages over a message interface (2) and to process messages to determine the message handling procedures to be invoked by the associated node in accordance with the contents of the associated procedure register.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 18, 1999
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Colin Leonard Bird, Graham Derek Wallis
  • Patent number: 4092637
    Abstract: An electrochromic display device having first and second electrodes, and a plurality of display electrodes, all immersed in a liquid electrolyte. Drive means act to first generate a potential difference between said first and second electrodes to cause a color species to be deposited on said first electrode and, thereafter, act to generate a potential difference between said first electrode and selected ones of said plurality of display electrodes to cause the color species to be transferred to the selected ones of said plurality of display electrodes. Heptyl viologen dibromide is suggested as one possible electrolyte.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 1976
    Date of Patent: May 30, 1978
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Donald John Barclay, Colin Leonard Bird, Michael Henry Hallett, David Horrobin Kirkman, John Francis Minshull, Charles Edward Owen