Patents by Inventor Michael T. Stokes

Michael T. Stokes 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: 11911039
    Abstract: A surgical stapler instrument includes a stapling head assembly that receives a plurality of staples. The staples are configured with features that allow the staples to expand after deployment so that an anastomosis created by the instrument can increase in size after forming. In some versions the staples expand automatically after deployment, and in other versions the staples expand in response to tissue forces imparted upon the staples after deployment. In some versions the staples are configured to be deployed in various patterns that promote expandability of the circular staple line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: Cilag GmbH International
    Inventors: Chad P. Boudreaux, Jeffrey L. Aldridge, Nicholas M. Morgan, Michael J. Stokes, Marissa T. Kamenir, John K. Bruce, John S. Kimsey, Yvan D. Nguetio Tchoumkeu
  • Patent number: 8291338
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer-usable medium for improved management of object properties in an integrated development environment (IDE). A cursor mode allows the underlying properties of one or more predetermined objects in a graphical editor to be dynamically viewed and modified by a user. One or more object's properties are displayed in an object properties pop-up viewer/editor window adjacent to the cursor when a user “mouses-over” target objects in a graphical editor and are editable upon explicit user gesture. The properties pop-up viewer/editor window is implementable to move with the cursor, i.e., cursor-attached, and to remain open to dynamically display, without additional user gestures, the respective properties of each predetermined object a user mouses-over.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Michael T. Stokes, David Kirk Grotjohn, Lucinio Santos
  • Publication number: 20090040240
    Abstract: A method, system and computer-usable medium are disclosed for displaying header information in a table. One or more cells of a table are selected and their associated header information is determined and replicated. Display attributes are then applied to the replicated header information resulting in the generation of a table header that overlays adjacent table cells. In one embodiment, the resulting table header is dynamically invoked through a user gesture. In another embodiment, the resulting table header is persistently displayed and comprises a viewing window that displays information contained in the selected table cells. The persistent table header moves with the cursor as it is positioned over other table cells and displays the information they contain. Display attributes such as ghosting are applied to other table cells to generate a visually distinguished table header that facilitates visual correlation between selected table cells and their corresponding header information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2007
    Publication date: February 12, 2009
    Inventors: David Kirk Grotjohn, Michael T. Stokes
  • Patent number: 7487464
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer-usable medium for displaying multiple elements in a graphical editor, wherein the multiple elements overlap and share a common space in the graphical editor; invoking a visual affordance that opens a zoom window; and displaying the visual affordance and the zoom window in an area in the graphical editor where the multiple elements overlap, wherein the zoom window displays a visual representation that is modified to show overlapping multiple elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David K. Grotjohn, Lucinio Santos-Gomez, Michael T. Stokes
  • Publication number: 20080086701
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer-usable medium for improved management of object properties in an integrated development environment (IDE). A cursor mode allows the underlying properties of one or more predetermined objects in a graphical editor to be dynamically viewed and modified by a user. One or more object's properties are displayed in an object properties pop-up viewer/editor window adjacent to the cursor when a user “mouses-over” target objects in a graphical editor and are editable upon explicit user gesture. The properties pop-up viewer/editor window is implementable to move with the cursor, i.e., cursor-attached, and to remain open to dynamically display, without additional user gestures, the respective properties of each predetermined object a user mouses-over.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 20, 2006
    Publication date: April 10, 2008
    Inventors: Michael T. Stokes, David Kirk Grotjohn, Lucinio Santos