Patents by Inventor Henry B. Wheeler
Henry B. Wheeler 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).
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Patent number: 8434100Abstract: Apparatus, methods and articles of manufacture for determining an operating mode of a recording/playing device are disclosed. An example apparatus includes an extractor to extract signatures associated with a first signal associated with a tuner that is to tune to a program signal, a second signal associated with a recording/playing device that is to at least one of record and play a program, and a third signal associated with a receiver coupled to the recording/playing device. The example apparatus also includes a recording detector to detect a recording signal generated by the recording/playing device during recording of the program to form a recorded program. Also included is a correlator to correlate the first, second, and third signals and a processor to identify the operating mode of the recording/playing device based on detection of the recording signal and correlation of two or more of the first, second, and third signals.Type: GrantFiled: April 22, 2011Date of Patent: April 30, 2013Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US) LLCInventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Publication number: 20120102518Abstract: Apparatus, methods and articles of manufacture for determining an operating mode of a recording/playing device are disclosed. An example apparatus includes an extractor to extract signatures associated with a first signal associated with a tuner that is to tune to a program signal, a second signal associated with a recording/playing device that is to at least one of record and play a program, and a third signal associated with a receiver coupled to the recording/playing device. The example apparatus also includes a recording detector to detect a recording signal generated by the recording/playing device during recording of the program to form a recorded program. Also included is a correlator to correlate the first, second, and third signals and a processor to identify the operating mode of the recording/playing device based on detection of the recording signal and correlation of two or more of the first, second, and third signals.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 22, 2011Publication date: April 26, 2012Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 7958526Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: GrantFiled: June 25, 2010Date of Patent: June 7, 2011Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLCInventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Publication number: 20100333126Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 25, 2010Publication date: December 30, 2010Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 7774807Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: GrantFiled: October 24, 2003Date of Patent: August 10, 2010Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLCInventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 7587728Abstract: Methods and apparatus to monitor reception of programs and content by broadcast receivers are disclosed. An example method disclosed herein to monitor reception of a broadcast program by a broadcast receiver located in a statistically selected site comprises retrieving an audience measurement data packet from the broadcast receiver in order to identify the broadcast program, detecting a code embedded in the broadcast program in order to identify the broadcast program, extracting a signature from the broadcast program in order to identify the broadcast program, identifying the broadcast program through use of a software agent, and selecting at least one of the audience measurement data packet, the embedded code, the extracted signature or the software agent to identify the received program.Type: GrantFiled: January 25, 2006Date of Patent: September 8, 2009Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLCInventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu, Paul C. Kempter, William A. Feininger
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Publication number: 20040088721Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 24, 2003Publication date: May 6, 2004Applicant: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 6675383Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: GrantFiled: January 22, 1997Date of Patent: January 6, 2004Assignee: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 6513161Abstract: A system determines an operating mode of a recording/playing device. The device generates a recording indicating signal during recording and operates in conjunction with a receiver. The system includes a tuning means for tuning to a program signal; four signal acquiring means for acquiring four signals; and determining means coupled to all four signal acquiring means for determining an operating mode of the device, based on the four acquired signals. The first of the four signals is acquired from an output of the device. The second signal is acquired from an output of the tuner. The third signal is acquired from an output of the receiver. The fourth signal is the recording indicating signal.Type: GrantFiled: May 17, 2001Date of Patent: January 28, 2003Assignee: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Publication number: 20020026635Abstract: A system identifies which of first and second signal sources is supplying a program signal to a monitored receiver. The first and second signal sources and the monitored receiver are located in a household. The system extracts a reference program signature representative of an output of the monitored receiver and first and second source program signatures representative of an output of the first and second signal sources. The system identifies-which of the first and second signal sources is a source of the program signal in response to the reference program signature and the first and second source program signatures.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 17, 2001Publication date: February 28, 2002Applicant: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Henry B. Wheeler, Daozheng Lu
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Patent number: 5737025Abstract: In the present invention, an ancillary code is added to a composite video signal in its active video portion. The ancillary code may be spread over several frequencies and summed at the output of a decoder to enhance the legibility of the ancillary code at the output of the decoder. Frequency-stepping may be used to add the ancillary code at ones of a plurality of selected frequencies within the bandwidth of the composite video signal. The ancillary code may be hierarchically apportioned between respective uniquely specified sequential segments corresponding to many distribution points of the composite television signal. This hierarchical ancillary code may be frequency-interleaved between harmonics of the horizontal sync frequency of the composite video signal. The ancillary code may be redundantly added above and below the roll-off frequency of a VCR.Type: GrantFiled: February 28, 1995Date of Patent: April 7, 1998Assignee: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Robert A. Dougherty, David A. Kiewit, Daozheng Lu, Henry B. Wheeler
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Patent number: 5737026Abstract: In the present invention, ancillary data is modulated onto a carrier frequency which is within a low energy density portion of a frequency band of a video signal, and the modulated carrier data is combined with the video signal so that the modulated carrier is in an overscan region of the video signal. The ancillary data may be spread over several frequencies and summed at the output of a decoder to enhance the legibility of the ancillary data at the output of the decoder. Frequency-stepping may be used to add the ancillary data at ones of a plurality of selected frequencies within the frequency band of the video signal. The ancillary data may be hierarchically apportioned between respective uniquely specified sequential segments corresponding to many distribution points of the video signal. This hierarchical ancillary data may be frequency-interleaved between harmonics of the horizontal sync frequency of the video signal.Type: GrantFiled: June 7, 1995Date of Patent: April 7, 1998Assignee: Nielsen Media Research, Inc.Inventors: Daozheng Lu, Henry B. Wheeler, Edgar W. Aust, Robert A. Dougherty