Patents by Inventor Eric R. Gardiner

Eric R. Gardiner 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: 9703740
    Abstract: A host system may couple to a PCIe subsystem. During setup of the PCIe subsystem, the BIOS in the host system may first be informed that the devices to be coupled are not PCIe devices, and certain amount of memory is required for these devices. The BIOS may therefore not attempt to configure the devices, and may instead allocate the required memory space. When the operating system boots up, it may not attempt to configure the devices, loading a custom driver instead of an existing PCI driver to configure the bus. Once loaded, the custom driver may configure the devices, then inform the OS that there are PCIe devices in the system at the specified addresses, which may cause the OS to load and execute existing PCIe device drivers to operate/use the devices. The proprietary driver may also be used to handle traffic between the PCIe drivers and the OS.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Jonathan W. Hearn, Craig S. Jones, Jason D. Tongen
  • Publication number: 20160188518
    Abstract: A host system may couple to a PCIe subsystem. During setup of the PCIe subsystem, the BIOS in the host system may first be informed that the devices to be coupled are not PCIe devices, and certain amount of memory is required for these devices. The BIOS may therefore not attempt to configure the devices, and may instead allocate the required memory space. When the operating system boots up, it may not attempt to configure the devices, loading a custom driver instead of an existing PCI driver to configure the bus. Once loaded, the custom driver may configure the devices, then inform the OS that there are PCIe devices in the system at the specified addresses, which may cause the OS to load and execute existing PCIe device drivers to operate/use the devices. The proprietary driver may also be used to handle traffic between the PCIe drivers and the OS.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 8, 2016
    Publication date: June 30, 2016
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Jonathan W. Hearn, Craig S. Jones, Jason D. Tongen
  • Patent number: 9286258
    Abstract: A host system may couple to a PCIe subsystem. During setup of the PCIe subsystem, the BIOS in the host system may first be informed that the devices to be coupled are not PCIe devices, and certain amount of memory is required for these devices. The BIOS may therefore not attempt to configure the devices, and may instead allocate the required memory space. When the operating system boots up, it may not attempt to configure the devices, loading a custom driver instead of an existing PCI driver to configure the bus. Once loaded, the custom driver may configure the devices, then inform the OS that there are PCIe devices in the system at the specified addresses, which may cause the OS to load and execute existing PCIe device drivers to operate/use the devices. The proprietary driver may also be used to handle traffic between the PCIe drivers and the OS.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2016
    Assignee: National Instruments Corporation
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Jonathan W. Hearn, Craig S. Jones, Jason D. Tongen
  • Publication number: 20140372741
    Abstract: A host system may couple to a PCIe subsystem. During setup of the PCIe subsystem, the BIOS in the host system may first be informed that the devices to be coupled are not PCIe devices, and certain amount of memory is required for these devices. The BIOS may therefore not attempt to configure the devices, and may instead allocate the required memory space. When the operating system boots up, it may not attempt to configure the devices, loading a custom driver instead of an existing PCI driver to configure the bus. Once loaded, the custom driver may configure the devices, then inform the OS that there are PCIe devices in the system at the specified addresses, which may cause the OS to load and execute existing PCIe device drivers to operate/use the devices. The proprietary driver may also be used to handle traffic between the PCIe drivers and the OS.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 14, 2013
    Publication date: December 18, 2014
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Jonathan W. Hearn, Craig S. Jones, Jason D. Tongen
  • Patent number: 8122171
    Abstract: Enumerating an expanded bus system in a system. The expanded bus system may include a first bus, a bridge coupled to the first bus, and a second bus coupled to the bridge, where the second bus includes one or more downstream bus ports. One or more of the downstream bus ports may initially be masked. An initial bus enumeration may be performed during system boot, which may not include enumerating the masked bus ports. After the initial bus enumeration, the masked bus ports may be unmasked. An operating system may re-enumerate the bus system, which may include enumerating the no-longer-masked bus ports.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2012
    Assignee: National Instruments Corporation
    Inventors: Mark R. Wetzel, Robert D. Ross, Eric R. Gardiner, Richard C. Thrapp
  • Publication number: 20100241781
    Abstract: Enumerating an expanded bus system in a system. The expanded bus system may include a first bus, a bridge coupled to the first bus, and a second bus coupled to the bridge, where the second bus includes one or more downstream bus ports. One or more of the downstream bus ports may initially be masked. An initial bus enumeration may be performed during system boot, which may not include enumerating the masked bus ports. After the initial bus enumeration, the masked bus ports may be unmasked. An operating system may re-enumerate the bus system, which may include enumerating the no-longer-masked bus ports.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2009
    Publication date: September 23, 2010
    Inventors: Mark R. Wetzel, Robert D. Ross, Eric R. Gardiner, Richard C. Thrapp
  • Patent number: 6968464
    Abstract: System and method for configuring a second system in a split bridge distributed environment. A host computer system (host) includes a memory operable to store host driver software (drivers) and a CPU operable to execute the drivers. A serial bus couples the host to the second system. The host saves configuration information for the second system. The second system receives user input requesting a power down condition. The drivers enters a quiescent state, generating an indication of a power down condition. The user powers down and reconfigures the second system. The host detects a link down condition between the host and the second system, and monitors a link status between the host and second system. The user powers up the second system. The host detects a link up condition, restores second system configuration, and performs a discovery process on the second system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2005
    Assignee: National Instruments Corporation
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Craig M. Conway, Christopher A. Clark, Scott B. Kovner, William Pitts
  • Publication number: 20030131227
    Abstract: System and method for configuring a second system in a split bridge distributed environment. A host computer system (host) includes a memory operable to store host driver software (drivers) and a CPU operable to execute the drivers. A serial bus couples the host to the second system. The host saves configuration information for the second system. The second system receives user input requesting a power down condition. The drivers enters a quiescent state, generating an indication of a power down condition. The user powers down and reconfigures the second system. The host detects a link down condition between the host and the second system, and monitors a link status between the host and second system. The user powers up the second system. The host detects a link up condition, restores second system configuration, and performs a discovery process on the second system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 10, 2002
    Publication date: July 10, 2003
    Inventors: Eric R. Gardiner, Craig M. Conway, Christopher A. Clark, Scott B. Kovner, William Pitts