Patents by Inventor David Howard

David Howard 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).

  • Ultra-broadband transimpedance amplifiers (tia) for optical fiber communications
    Patent number: 10243523
    Abstract: Design of ultra broadband transimpedance amplifiers (TIA) for optical fiber communications is disclosed. In one embodiment, a TIA comprises a gm-boosted dual-feedback common-base stage, a level shifter and an RC-degenerated common-emitter stage, and a first emitter-follower stage, wherein the first emitter follower stage is inductively degenerated. An output of the TIA is buffered using a second emitter-follower stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
    Inventors: Payam Heydari, Seyed Mohammad Hossein Mohammadnezhad, Alireza Karimi Bidhendi, Michael M. Green, David Howard, Edward Preisler
  • Service personalization with familiarity sensitivity
    Patent number: 10217157
    Abstract: Personalized services often utilize individual profiles, such as social network profiles, product purchase histories, or browsing histories. However, personalization may exhibit or imply a familiarity level between the service and the individual that is beyond the individual's comfort level. Presented herein are techniques for adapting personalized services to request supplemental individual information only within a current familiarity stage that has been established by the individual with the service, and only to provide a requested usage of a service. Such solicitation may inform the individual of the intended usage of the requested information. Usages that may involve more sensitive information may be predicated upon requesting and receiving individual consent from the individual to advance to a higher familiarity stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2019
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Margaret JoAnn Novotny, Blaise Aguera y Arcas, Jeffery David Howard
  • Extension arm for attachment to a resistance welding hand piece
    Patent number: 10207356
    Abstract: An extension arm for attachment to a resistance welding hand piece is disclosed. The extension arm may include an elongated main body extending between a first end and a second end. The first end of the elongated main body may be attachable to the hand piece such that the second end of the elongated main body is spaced apart from the hand piece. The extension arm also may include an electrode extending from the second end of the elongated main body. The electrode may be in electrical communication with the hand piece by way of at least one electrical pathway.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2019
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: David Howard Syck, Kurt Kramer Schleif
  • Swirl brakes for compressors with teeth-on-rotor seals
    Patent number: 10208762
    Abstract: A device and method for reducing swirl in a gas compressor is provided. The device can include a tubular or annular seal body having an abradable interior surface for use in forming a seal. The tubular body can further have a plurality of swirl teeth arranged on a high pressure side of the seal body. The swirl teeth are disposed so as to form swirl slots between the adjacent swirl teeth. The swirl teeth can have a brake chord and a brake pitch describing the length and separation of each adjacent swirl tooth. The ratio of the brake pitch to the brake chord can be optimized in order to maximize creation of free vortices between the swirl teeth as the compressor rotates for swirl reduction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2019
    Assignee: Solar Turbines Incorporated
    Inventors: Balaji Venkataraman, David Howard Moulton, Michael James Cave
  • FIXTURELESS LENSMETER SYSTEM
    Publication number: 20190049335
    Abstract: A lensmeter system may include a mobile device having a camera. The camera may capture a first image of a pattern through a lens that is separate from the camera, while the lens is in contact with a pattern. The mobile device may determine the size of the lens based on the first image and known features of the pattern. The camera may capture a second image of the pattern, while the lens is at an intermediate location between the camera and the pattern. The second image may be transformed to an ideal coordinate system, and processed determine a distortion of the pattern attributable to the lens. The mobile device may measure characteristics of the lens based on the distortion. Characteristics of the lens may include a spherical power, a cylinder power, and/or an astigmatism angle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2018
    Publication date: February 14, 2019
    Inventors: David Howard Goldberg, Joseph Carrafa
  • UTTERANCE CLASSIFIER
    Publication number: 20190035390
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media for classification using neural networks. One method includes receiving audio data corresponding to an utterance. Obtaining a transcription of the utterance. Generating a representation of the audio data. Generating a representation of the transcription of the utterance. Providing (i) the representation of the audio data and (ii) the representation of the transcription of the utterance to a classifier that, based on a given representation of the audio data and a given representation of the transcription of the utterance, is trained to output an indication of whether the utterance associated with the given representation is likely directed to an automated assistance or is likely not directed to an automated assistant.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2017
    Publication date: January 31, 2019
    Inventors: Nathan David Howard, Gabor Simko, Maria Carolina Parada San Martin, Ramkarthik Kalyanasundaram, Guru Prakash Arumugam, Srinivas Vasudevan
  • System and methods for monitoring driver distraction
    Patent number: 10160463
    Abstract: The present disclosure is related to a method that includes determining that a user of a computer-based device is interacting with a screen of the computer-based device while driving a vehicle. The screen is configured to display a user interface including one or more selectable displayed application pages. Each of the one or more selectable displayed application pages displays one or more visual elements. The method also includes displaying a timer, as a persistent overlay, on at least a portion of each of the one or more selectable displayed application pages. The timer is indicative of a time duration of the user's interaction with the screen while driving. Further, at least one of the visual elements, overlaid by the timer, remains viewable and accessible by the user of the computer-based device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: DISTRACTECH, LLC
    Inventors: David Howard Weaver, Curtis R. Cosenza
  • SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR FORMING FOIL CONTACT REAR EMITTER SOLAR CELLS WITH CARRIER SELECTIVE CONTACTS
    Publication number: 20180366597
    Abstract: A solar cell structure may provide a front surface that may include a front passivation layer and front anti-reflective layer. The solar cell structure may provide both contacts on a rear surface. In some cases, the rear surface may optionally provide passivation, doped, and/or transparent conductive oxide layers. The rear surface also provides a multilayer foil assembly (MFA). The MFA provides a first metal foil in electrical communication with doped regions of the rear surface of the substrate, such as base or emitter regions. The MFA may also provide a second metal foil that is spaced apart from the first metal foil by a dielectric layer. The metal foils and dielectric layers may include openings through the entirety of these layers, and these openings may be utilized to form contacts electrically coupled to the second metal foil, which is electrically isolated from the first metal foil.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2018
    Publication date: December 20, 2018
    Applicant: Natcore Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: David E. Carlson, David Howard Levy
  • Search result prefetching of voice queries
    Patent number: 10133821
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for receiving audio data encoding an utterance; obtaining an intermediate transcription of the utterance; before a final transcription of the utterance is obtained: i) determining that the intermediate transcription of the utterance is associated with a previously received search query, ii) obtaining one or more results that are identified as responsive to the previously received search query, and iii) storing one or more of the results; obtaining the final transcription of the utterance; determining that the final transcription of the utterance is also associated with the previously received search query; and in response to determining that the final transcription of the utterance is also associated with the previously received search query, providing the stored one or more results for output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2018
    Assignee: Google LLC
    Inventors: Christopher Bo Tandiono, Michael Buchanan, Nathan David Howard, Ishai Rabinovitz
  • FIXTURELESS LENSMETER AND METHODS OF OPERATING SAME
    Publication number: 20180306670
    Abstract: A process is provided for determining characteristics of a lens, the process including obtaining a captured image of a pattern through a corrective lens; transforming the captured image to an ideal coordinate system; processing the captured image to determine an overall distortion from a reference pattern to the pattern of the captured image; determining a distortion of the captured pattern attributable to the corrective lens; and measuring at least one characteristic of the corrective lens. In some embodiments, the overall distortion is determined by detecting, in the captured image, at least one captured pattern landmark; determining a transformation from at least one ideal pattern landmark to the at least one captured pattern landmark; and determining for the corrective lens, from the transformation, a spherical power measurement, a cylinder power measurement, and an astigmatism angle measurement.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2018
    Publication date: October 25, 2018
    Inventors: David Howard Goldberg, Joseph Carrafa
  • APPARATUS, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SEARING, FLATTENING, AND BROWNING FOOD PRODUCTS
    Publication number: 20180235261
    Abstract: An apparatus, system and method are provided for flattening and searing a food product wherein a searing and flattening roller is heated to a temperature of at least 600° F. and the heated searing and flattening roller is used to sear an upper surface of the food product and produce a flatter thickness profile of the food product by contacting and applying a pressing force to the upper surface of the food product. Alternatively, the roller can be a flattening and steam ejection roller which flattens the food product and sterilizes the upper surface of the product.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2017
    Publication date: August 23, 2018
    Inventors: Adam Thomas Cowherd, David Howard
  • METHOD FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY PERFORMING A PLURALITY OF DIFFERENT AMPLIFICATION REACTIONS
    Publication number: 20180230517
    Abstract: First and second sets of receptacles containing reagents for first and second amplification reactions, respectively, are placed in first and second receptacle holders, each associated with a thermal element. The receptacles are subjected to different first and second incubation processes resulting in the first and second amplification reactions in each of the first and second sets of receptacles that contain a first or a second target nucleic acid, respectively. The presence or absence of the first or second target nucleic acid, if any, is determined for each receptacle of the first and second sets of receptacles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2018
    Publication date: August 16, 2018
    Applicant: Gen-Probe Incorporated
    Inventors: David Buse, David Howard Combs, Norbert D. Hagen, David Opalsky, Bruce Richardson, Anita Prasad, Keith Moravick, Tyler Moore
  • Fixtureless lensmeter and methods of operating same
    Patent number: 10036685
    Abstract: A process is provided for determining characteristics of a lens, the process including obtaining a captured image of a pattern through a corrective lens; transforming the captured image to an ideal coordinate system; processing the captured image to determine an overall distortion from a reference pattern to the pattern of the captured image; determining a distortion of the captured pattern attributable to the corrective lens; and measuring at least one characteristic of the corrective lens. In some embodiments, the overall distortion is determined by detecting, in the captured image, at least one captured pattern landmark; determining a transformation from at least one ideal pattern landmark to the at least one captured pattern landmark; and determining for the corrective lens, from the transformation, a spherical power measurement, a cylinder power measurement, and an astigmatism angle measurement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2018
    Assignee: JAND, INC.
    Inventors: David Howard Goldberg, Joseph Carrafa
  • MANAGING RESOURCES FOR MULTIPLE TRIAL DISTRIBUTED PROCESSING TASKS
    Publication number: 20180121251
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method of managing resources for multiple trial distributed processing tasks is presented. The method includes estimating an expected time needed to process each of a set of mask patterns which can be independently processed. The method further includes allocating each of the set of mask patterns to a set of processing cores in accordance with the expected time, and processing the mask patterns in accordance with the allocation, when the computer in invoked to estimate, allocate, and process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2017
    Publication date: May 3, 2018
    Inventor: David Howard Ziger
  • ULTRA-BROADBAND TRANSIMPEDANCE AMPLIFIERS (TIA) FOR OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS
    Publication number: 20180102749
    Abstract: Design of ultra broadband transimpedance amplifiers (TIA) for optical fiber communications is disclosed. In one embodiment, a TIA comprises a gm-boosted dual-feedback common-base stage, a level shifter and an RC-degenerated common-emitter stage, and a first emitter-follower stage, wherein the first emitter follower stage is inductively degenerated. An output of the TIA is buffered using a second emitter-follower stage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 4, 2017
    Publication date: April 12, 2018
    Inventors: Payam Heydari, Seyed Mohammad Hossein Mohammadnezhad, Alireza Karimi Bidhendi, Michael M. Green, David Howard, Edward Preisler
  • SWIRL BRAKES FOR COMPRESSORS WITH TEETH-ON-ROTOR SEALS
    Publication number: 20180100514
    Abstract: A device and method for reducing swirl in a gas compressors is provided. The device can include a tubular or annular seal body having an abradable interior surface for use in forming a seal. The tubular body can further have a plurality of swirl teeth arranged on a high pressure side of the seal body. The swirl teeth are disposed so as to form swirl slots between the adjacent swirl teeth. The swirl teeth can have a brake chord and a brake pitch describing the length and separation of each adjacent swirl tooth. The ratio of the brake pitch to the brake chord can be optimized in order to maximize creation of free vortices between the swirl teeth as the compressor rotates to for swirl reduction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 10, 2016
    Publication date: April 12, 2018
    Applicant: Solar Turbines Incorporated
    Inventors: Balaji Venkataraman, David Howard Moulton, Michael James Cave
  • IN-BAG PROCESS FOR COOKING OR PARTIALLY COOKING WATER-ABSORBING AND OTHER FOOD PRODUCTS IN A CONTINUOUS OVEN
    Publication number: 20170367381
    Abstract: A process for cooking rice, quinoa, couscous, pasta, beans, chick peas and other products which absorb water during the cooking process. The product is placed in sealed cooking bags along with a sufficient amount of liquid for absorption. The sealed bags are then conveyed through a continuous oven in which they are contacted with a superheated vapor cooking medium.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2016
    Publication date: December 28, 2017
    Inventor: David Howard
  • Laser processed back contact heterojunction solar cells
    Patent number: 9837561
    Abstract: An interdigitated solar cell may provide a heterojunction or tunnel junction emitter and base contacts that comprise laser processed regions that electrically couple the base contact to a substrate. Methods for manufacturing such solar cells to provide interdigitated back contacts may utilize laser processing to form laser processed regions that are isolated from the emitter. Laser processing may include laser-doping, laser-firing, laser-transfer, laser-transfer doping, laser contacting, and/or gas immersion laser doping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Natcore Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: David Howard Levy, David E. Carlson
  • FIXTURELESS LENSMETER AND METHODS OF OPERATING SAME
    Publication number: 20170336284
    Abstract: A process is provided for determining characteristics of a lens, the process including obtaining a captured image of a pattern through a corrective lens; transforming the captured image to an ideal coordinate system; processing the captured image to determine an overall distortion from a reference pattern to the pattern of the captured image; determining a distortion of the captured pattern attributable to the corrective lens; and measuring at least one characteristic of the corrective lens. In some embodiments, the overall distortion is determined by detecting, in the captured image, at least one captured pattern landmark; determining a transformation from at least one ideal pattern landmark to the at least one captured pattern landmark; and determining for the corrective lens, from the transformation, a spherical power measurement, a cylinder power measurement, and an astigmatism angle measurement.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 18, 2016
    Publication date: November 23, 2017
    Inventors: David Howard Goldberg, Joseph Carrafa
  • Spiral chiller apparatus and method of chilling
    Patent number: 9791201
    Abstract: A spiral chiller and a method of chilling a food product in a spiral chiller using a cooling medium wherein (a) the food product is conveyed within the chiller by a spiral conveyor having a plurality of spiral flutes and (b) the cooling medium is discharged either upwardly and/or downwardly within, and/or laterally into, one or more vertical gaps between adjacent pairs of spiral flutes using one or more delivery duct structures which extend inside the interior of the product chilling chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: Unitherm Food Systems, LLC
    Inventor: David Howard