Patents by Inventor Joseph Mark Williams
Joseph Mark Williams 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: 10750284Abstract: Improved techniques for presenting sound effects at a portable media device are disclosed. The sound effects can be output as audio sounds to an internal speaker, an external speaker, or both. In addition, the audio sounds for the sound effects can be output together with other audio sounds pertaining to media assets (e.g., audio tracks being played). In one embodiment, the sound effects can serve to provide auditory feedback to a user of the portable media device. A user interface can facilitate a user's selection of sound effect usages, types or characteristics.Type: GrantFiled: February 15, 2017Date of Patent: August 18, 2020Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Muthya K Girish
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Publication number: 20170251306Abstract: Improved techniques for presenting sound effects at a portable media device are disclosed. The sound effects can be output as audio sounds to an internal speaker, an external speaker, or both. In addition, the audio sounds for the sound effects can be output together with other audio sounds pertaining to media assets (e.g., audio tracks being played). In one embodiment, the sound effects can serve to provide auditory feedback to a user of the portable media device. A user interface can facilitate a user's selection of sound effect usages, types or characteristics.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 15, 2017Publication date: August 31, 2017Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Muthya K. Girish
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Patent number: 9602929Abstract: Improved techniques for presenting sound effects at a portable media device are disclosed. The sound effects can be output as audio sounds to an internal speaker, an external speaker, or both. In addition, the audio sounds for the sound effects can be output together with other audio sounds pertaining to media assets (e.g., audio tracks being played). In one embodiment, the sound effects can serve to provide auditory feedback to a user of the portable media device. A user interface can facilitate a user's selection of sound effect usages, types or characteristics.Type: GrantFiled: October 25, 2012Date of Patent: March 21, 2017Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Muthya K. Girish
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Patent number: 8670851Abstract: Improved techniques for modifying a playback rate of an audio item (e.g., an audio stream) are disclosed. As a result, the audio item can be played back faster or slower than normal. The improved techniques are resource efficient and well suited for audio items containing speech. The resource efficiency of the improved techniques make them well suited for use with portable media devices, such as portable media players.Type: GrantFiled: December 24, 2009Date of Patent: March 11, 2014Assignee: Apple IncInventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Patent number: 8649531Abstract: Improved approaches to flexibly implementing graphic equalizers on media players are disclosed. These approaches provide dynamic order reduction of a multi-band graphic equalizer so that equalizer effects can be timely performed with only limited computational resources. In one embodiment, a media player receives a media item and associated equalizer settings for a multi-band graphic equalizer. The media player can then automatically (i.e., without user action) approximate the multi-band graphic equalizer with the equalizer settings for the media item using a fewer number of filters. Fewer filters means order reduction, and thus reduction in computational requirements. After the multi-band graphic equalizer is approximated, the media player can present the media item to its user in accordance with the reduced complexity, approximated equalizer.Type: GrantFiled: March 12, 2010Date of Patent: February 11, 2014Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Patent number: 8300841Abstract: Improved techniques for presenting sound effects at a portable media device are disclosed. The sound effects can be output as audio sounds to an internal speaker, an external speaker, or both. In addition, the audio sounds for the sound effects can be output together with other audio sounds pertaining to media assets (e.g., audio tracks being played). In one embodiment, the sound effects can serve to provide auditory feedback to a user of the portable media device. A user interface can facilitate a user's selection of sound effect usages, types or characteristics.Type: GrantFiled: June 3, 2005Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Muthya K. Girish
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Patent number: 8036766Abstract: In operation of an electronics device, audio based on asynchronous events, such as game playing, is intelligently combined with audio output nominally generated in a predictive manner, such as resulting from media playback. For example, an overall audio output signal for the electronic device may be generated such that, for at least one of audio channels corresponding to predictive manner processing, the generated audio output for that channel included into the overall audio output signal is based at least in part on configuration information associated with a processed audio output signal for at least one of the audio channels corresponding to asynchronous events based processing. Thus, for example, the game audio processing may control how audio effects from the game are combined with audio effects from media playback.Type: GrantFiled: September 11, 2006Date of Patent: October 11, 2011Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Frank Zening Li
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Publication number: 20100202630Abstract: Improved approaches to flexibly implementing graphic equalizers on media players are disclosed. These approaches provide dynamic order reduction of a multi-band graphic equalizer so that equalizer effects can be timely performed with only limited computational resources. In one embodiment, a media player receives a media item and associated equalizer settings for a multi-band graphic equalizer. The media player can then automatically (i.e., without user action) approximate the multi-band graphic equalizer with the equalizer settings for the media item using a fewer number of filters. Fewer filters means order reduction, and thus reduction in computational requirements. After the multi-band graphic equalizer is approximated, the media player can present the media item to its user in accordance with the reduced complexity, approximated equalizer.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 12, 2010Publication date: August 12, 2010Applicant: APPLE INC.Inventors: Aram LINDAHL, Joseph Mark WILLIAMS
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Patent number: 7711129Abstract: Improved approaches to flexibly implementing graphic equalizers on media players are disclosed. These approaches provide dynamic order reduction of a multi-band graphic equalizer so that equalizer effects can be timely performed with only limited computational resources. In one embodiment, a media player receives a media item and associated equalizer settings for a multi-band graphic equalizer. The media player can then automatically (i.e., without user action) approximate the multi-band graphic equalizer with the equalizer settings for the media item using a fewer number of filters. Fewer filters means order reduction, and thus reduction in computational requirements. After the multi-band graphic equalizer is approximated, the media player can present the media item to its user in accordance with the reduced complexity, approximated equalizer.Type: GrantFiled: March 11, 2004Date of Patent: May 4, 2010Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Publication number: 20100100212Abstract: Improved techniques for modifying a playback rate of an audio item (e.g., an audio stream) are disclosed. As a result, the audio item can be played back faster or slower than normal. The improved techniques are resource efficient and well suited for audio items containing speech. The resource efficiency of the improved techniques make them well suited for use with portable media devices, such as portable media players.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 24, 2009Publication date: April 22, 2010Applicant: APPLE INC.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Patent number: 7673238Abstract: Improved techniques for performing accelerated video presentation on a media device are disclosed. The improved techniques enable smooth, uniform accelerated video presentation by displaying key frames from a video file in a periodic fashion. The rate and direction of accelerated video presentation can be controlled. The improved techniques are well suited for use with portable media devices.Type: GrantFiled: January 5, 2006Date of Patent: March 2, 2010Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Muthya K. Girish, Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Patent number: 7664558Abstract: Improved techniques for modifying a playback rate of an audio item (e.g., an audio stream) are disclosed. As a result, the audio item can be played back faster or slower than normal. The improved techniques are resource efficient and well suited for audio items containing speech. The resource efficiency of the improved techniques make them well suited for use with portable media devices, such as portable media players.Type: GrantFiled: April 1, 2005Date of Patent: February 16, 2010Assignee: Apple Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams
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Publication number: 20080075296Abstract: In operation of an electronics device, audio based on asynchronous events, such as game playing, is intelligently combined with audio output nominally generated in a predictive manner, such as resulting from media playback. For example, an overall audio output signal for the electronic device may be generated such that, for at least one of audio channels corresponding to predictive manner processing, the generated audio output for that channel included into the overall audio output signal is based at least in part on configuration information associated with a processed audio output signal for at least one of the audio channels corresponding to asynchronous events based processing. Thus, for example, the game audio processing may control how audio effects from the game are combined with audio effects from media playback.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 11, 2006Publication date: March 27, 2008Applicant: Apple Computer, Inc.Inventors: Aram Lindahl, Joseph Mark Williams, Frank Zening Li