Patents by Inventor Mike Kinion

Mike Kinion 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).

  • Method and apparatus for setting the operating parameters of a computer system
    Patent number: 6256731
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a configuration selector that is selectively configurable to denote one of a plurality of operating modes for the apparatus, including a configuration mode. The apparatus further comprising a programmable multiplexer, a processor, a bus, and a storage medium having stored therein a basic input/output system (BIOS) equipped to operate in any one of the plurality of operating modes, including the configuration mode wherein the BIOS facilitates user programming of a plurality of operating parameters for the apparatus. The programmable multiplexer, responsive to the configuration selector, asserts a default bus/core ratio common to a plurality of processors and buses that can be employed to form the apparatus when the configuration selector is configured to denote the configuration mode of operation. The processor, coupled to the storage medium and the programmable multiplexer, operates to execute the BIOS, in a speed consistent with the asserted bus/core ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2001
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Jerald N. Hall, Orville H. Christeson, Mike Kinion, Sean R. Babcock, Frank L. Wildgrube, Frank E. LeClerg, John Yuratovac
  • Method and apparatus for updating a basic input/output system
    Patent number: 6122733
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a storage medium having stored therein a segmented basic input/output system (BIOS) divided among a plurality of segments within the storage medium, and a processor operative to execute the segmented BIOS. In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the BIOS includes a recovery function that is mode dependent in that while the apparatus is in an update mode the recovery function executes a full reflash of all relevant segments of the segmented BIOS, whereas while the apparatus is in a normal mode the recovery function executes a partial reflash of only identified corrupted BIOS segments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2000
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Orville H. Christeson, Frank L. Wildgrube, Frank E. LeClerg, Jerald Nevin Hall, Mike Kinion, Sean R. Babcock, John Yuratovac
  • Method and apparatus for setting the operating parameters of a computer system
    Patent number: 6047373
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a configuration selector that is selectively configurable to denote one of a plurality of operating modes for the apparatus, including a configuration mode. The apparatus further comprising a programmable multiplexer, a processor, a bus, and a storage medium having stored therein a basic input/output system (BIOS) equipped to operate in any one of the plurality of operating modes, including the configuration mode wherein the BIOS facilitates user programming of a plurality of operating parameters for the apparatus. The programmable multiplexer, responsive to the configuration selector, asserts a default bus/core ratio common to a plurality of processors and buses that can be employed to form the apparatus when the configuration selector is configured to denote the configuration mode of operation. The processor, coupled to the storage medium and the programmable multiplexer, operates to execute the BIOS, in a speed consistent with the asserted bus/core ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2000
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Jerald N. Hall, Orville H. Christeson, Mike Kinion, Sean R. Babcock, Frank L. Wildgrube, Frank E. LeClerg, John Yuratovac