Patents by Inventor Nebojsa Jojic

Nebojsa Jojic 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: 7750903
    Abstract: A simplified general model and an associated estimation algorithm is provided for modeling visual data such as a video sequence. Specifically, images or frames in a video sequence are represented as collections of flat moving objects that change their appearance and shape over time, and can occlude each other over time. A statistical generative model is defined for generating such visual data where parameters such as appearance bit maps and noise, shape bit-maps and variability in shape, etc., are known. Further, when unknown, these parameters are estimated from visual data without prior pre-processing by using a maximization algorithm. By parameter estimation and inference in the model, visual data is segmented into components which facilitates sophisticated applications in video or image editing, such as, for example, object removal or insertion, tracking and visual surveillance, video browsing, photo organization, video compositing, etc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Brendan J. Frey
  • Patent number: 7750904
    Abstract: A simplified general model and an associated estimation algorithm is provided for modeling visual data such as a video sequence. Specifically, images or frames in a video sequence are represented as collections of flat moving objects that change their appearance and shape over time, and can occlude each other over time. A statistical generative model is defined for generating such visual data where parameters such as appearance bit maps and noise, shape bit-maps and variability in shape, etc., are known. Further, when unknown, these parameters are estimated from visual data without prior pre-processing by using a maximization algorithm. By parameter estimation and inference in the model, visual data is segmented into components which facilitates sophisticated applications in video or image editing, such as, for example, object removal or insertion, tracking and visual surveillance, video browsing, photo organization, video compositing, etc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Brendan J. Frey
  • Patent number: 7734930
    Abstract: Methods, systems, devices and/or storage media for passwords. An exemplary method tiles an image, associates an index with each tile and optionally determines offsets for select tiles. Further, the tiling optionally relies on probability and/or entropy. An exemplary password system includes an image; a grid associated with the image, the grid composed of polygons; an index associated with each polygon; and an offset associated with each polygon wherein password identification relies on one or more indices and one or more offsets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Darko Kirovski, Nebojsa Jojic, Paul Roberts
  • Patent number: 7729999
    Abstract: In one embodiment, a computer system performs a method for verifying the validity or invalidity of a software routine by learning appropriate invariants at each program point. A computer system chooses an abstract domain that is sufficiently precise to express the appropriate invariants. The computer system associates an inconsistency measure with any two abstract elements of the abstract domain. The computer system searches for a set of local invariants configured to optimize a total inconsistency measure which includes a sum of local inconsistency measures. The computer system optimizes the total inconsistency measure for all input/output pairs of the software routine. In one embodiment, the optimization of total inconsistency is achieved by the computer system which repeatedly replaces a locally inconsistent invariant with a new invariant, randomly selected among the possible invariants which are locally less inconsistent with the current invariants at the neighboring program points.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Sumit Gulwani, Vladimir Jojic, Nebojsa Jojic
  • Patent number: 7702489
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method of constructing recognition models. Under the method, a set of probabilities is estimated for values of a hidden variable. A Fourier transform is determined for the set of probabilities and is used to determine a Fourier transform of an estimated prototype pattern. The inverse Fourier transform is then determined for the Fourier transform of the estimated prototype pattern to form an estimated prototype pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Brendan J. Frey
  • Patent number: 7692685
    Abstract: A system and method facilitating object tracking is provided. The invention includes an audio model that receives at least two audio input signals and a video model that receives a video input. The audio model and the video model employ probabilistic generative models which are combined to facilitate object tracking. Expectation maximization can be employed to modify trainable parameters of the audio model and the video model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 6, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Matthew James Beal, Nebojsa Jojic, Hagai Attias
  • Patent number: 7689413
    Abstract: A system and method facilitating speech detection and/or enhancement utilizing audio/video fusion is provided. The present invention fuses audio and video in a probabilistic generative model that implements cross-model, self-supervised learning, enabling rapid adaptation to audio visual data. The system can learn to detect and enhance speech in noise given only a short (e.g., 30 second) sequence of audio-visual data. In addition, it automatically learns to track the lips as they move around in the video.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: John R. Hershey, Trausti Thor Kristajanson, Hagai Attias, Nebojsa Jojic
  • Patent number: 7680353
    Abstract: A simplified general model and an associated estimation algorithm is provided for modeling visual data such as a video sequence. Specifically, images or frames in a video sequence are represented as collections of flat moving objects that change their appearance and shape over time, and can occlude each other over time. A statistical generative model is defined for generating such visual data where parameters such as appearance bit maps and noise, shape bit-maps and variability in shape, etc., are known. Further, when unknown, these parameters are estimated from visual data without prior pre-processing by using a maximization algorithm. By parameter estimation and inference in the model, visual data is segmented into components which facilitates sophisticated applications in video or image editing, such as, for example, object removal or insertion, tracking and visual surveillance, video browsing, photo organization, video compositing, etc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Brendan J. Frey
  • Patent number: 7657102
    Abstract: A fast variational on-line learning technique for training a transformed hidden Markov model. A simplified general model and an associated estimation algorithm is provided for modeling visual data such as a video sequence. Specifically, once the model has been initialized, an expectation-maximization (“EM”) algorithm is used to learn the one or more object class models, so that the video sequence has high marginal probability under the model. In the expectation step (the “E-Step”), the model parameters are assumed to be correct, and for an input image, probabilistic inference is used to fill in the values of the unobserved or hidden variables, e.g., the object class and appearance. In one embodiment of the invention, a Viterbi algorithm and a latent image is employed for this purpose. In the maximization step (the “M-Step”), the model parameters are adjusted using the values of the unobserved variables calculated in the previous E-step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corp.
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Nemanja Petrovic
  • Patent number: 7647285
    Abstract: A tool for providing health and/or wellness services is described herein. Not necessarily clean or unclean data about a plurality of self-selected or non-selected or unselected subjects is received. The data can be aggregated and mined at least in part by employing a statistical algorithm, a data-mining algorithm and/or a machine-learning algorithm. The data can be further employed to provide health and/or wellness services to participants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: David E. Heckerman, Craig J. Mundie, Nebojsa Jojic, Randy J. Hinrichs
  • Patent number: 7634405
    Abstract: The subject invention leverages spectral “palettes” or representations of an input sequence to provide recognition and/or synthesizing of a class of data. The class can include, but is not limited to, individual events, distributions of events, and/or environments relating to the input sequence. The representations are compressed versions of the data that utilize a substantially smaller amount of system resources to store and/or manipulate. Segments of the palettes are employed to facilitate in reconstruction of an event occurring in the input sequence. This provides an efficient means to recognize events, even when they occur in complex environments. The palettes themselves are constructed or “trained” utilizing any number of data compression techniques such as, for example, epitomes, vector quantization, and/or Huffman codes and the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2009
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Sumit Basu, Nebojsa Jojic, Ashish Kapoor
  • Patent number: 7594177
    Abstract: A “Video Browser” provides an intuitive user interface for indexing, and interactive visual browsing, of particular elements within a video recording. In general, the Video Browser operates by first generating a set of one or more mosaic images from the video recording. In one embodiment, these mosaics are further clustered using an adjustable similarity threshold. User selection of a particular video mosaic then initiates a playback of corresponding video frames. However, in contrast to conventional mosaicking schemes which simply play back the set of frames used to construct the mosaic, the Video Browser provides a playback of only those individual frames within which a particular point selected within the image mosaic was observed. Consequently, user selection of a point in one of the image mosaics serves to provide a targeted playback of only those frames of interest, rather than playing back the entire image sequence used to generate the mosaic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Sumit Basu
  • Publication number: 20090171640
    Abstract: The claimed subject matter provides systems and/or methods that facilitate generating population sequences of strain variants included in a sample. Sequencing can be based on high throughput of short reads. Further, site variants exhibited in the short reads can be linked to reconstruct multiple full strains of a targeted gene, including low concentration variants in the sample. Cues in the short read data can be utilized to perform multi-strain assembly. For example, the cues can include different strain concentrations that lead to more frequently seen strains being responsible for more frequent reads and quilting of overlapping reads to infer mutation linkage over long stretches of DNA.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2007
    Publication date: July 2, 2009
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Vladimir Jojic, Tomer Hertz
  • Patent number: 7522749
    Abstract: A technique for estimating the optical flow between images of a scene and a segmentation of the images is presented. This involves first establishing an initial segmentation of the images and an initial optical flow estimate for each segment of each images and its neighboring image or images. A refined optical flow estimate is computed for each segment of each image from the initial segmentation of that image and the initial optical flow of the segments of that image. Next, the segmentation of each image is refined from the last-computed optical flow estimates for each segment of the image. This process can continue in an iterative manner by further refining the optical flow estimates for the images using their respective last-computed segmentation, followed by further refining the segmentation of each image using their respective last-computed optical flow estimates, until a prescribed number of iterations have been completed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2009
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Charles Zitnick, III, Sing Bing Kang, Nebojsa Jojic
  • Publication number: 20090006038
    Abstract: A system and method that facilitates and effectuates accurate source segmentation of multi-dimensional signals in a computationally efficient manner. By employing Queyranne's algorithm along with a model for combining adjacent multidimensional elements of signal into locally consistent regions, significant improvement in time to identify an optimal segmentation can be achieved. Additional, by saving values computed when executing the algorithm and recalling the values when needed during subsequent iterations of the algorithm provides an additional in algorithm execution speed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2007
    Publication date: January 1, 2009
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Manuel Jesus Reyes-Gomez
  • Publication number: 20080312095
    Abstract: Systems and methodologies for efficient vaccine design are disclosed herein. A methodology for efficient vaccine design in accordance with one or more embodiments disclosed herein may be operable to receive a graph having vertices corresponding to epitope sequences present in the pathogen population, weights for respective vertices corresponding to respective frequencies with which corresponding epitope sequences appear in the pathogen population, and directed edges that connect vertices that correspond to overlapping epitope sequences. Such a methodology may also be operable to determine a candidate vaccine sequence of overlapping epitope sequences by identifying a path though the graph corresponding to a series of connected vertices and directed edges that maximizes the total weight of the vertices in the path for a desired vaccine sequence length.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2007
    Publication date: December 18, 2008
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Darko Kirovski, David E. Heckerman, Nebojsa Jojic
  • Publication number: 20080310755
    Abstract: Systems and methodologies for modeling data in accordance with one or more embodiments disclosed herein are operable to receive input data, create data patches from the input data, obtain long-range correlations between the data patches, and model the input data as a patch model based at least in part on the data patches and the long-range correlations. Various learning algorithms are additionally provided for refining the patch model created in accordance with one or more embodiments disclosed herein. Further, systems and methodologies for synthesizing a patch model created in accordance with various aspects of the present invention with a set of test data to perform a transformation represented by the patch model on the test data are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 14, 2007
    Publication date: December 18, 2008
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nebojsa Jojic, Vincent Cheung
  • Publication number: 20080294465
    Abstract: The methods/systems described herein facilitate large-scale data collection and aggregation. One exemplary system that facilitates large-scale reporting of health-related data comprises a data collection component, a database and an aggregation component. The data collection component can collect health-related data on a large-scale from a non-selected population. The database can store at least some of the health-related data. The aggregation component can facilitate automatically ascertaining at least one pattern from the health-related data at least in part by applying one or more statistical, data-mining or machine-learning techniques to the database.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 28, 2008
    Publication date: November 27, 2008
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Craig J. Mundie, David E. Heckerman, Nebojsa Jojic, Randy J. Hinrichs
  • Publication number: 20080282108
    Abstract: One embodiment is directed to synthesizing code fragments in a software routine using known inputs and corresponding expected outputs. A computer system provides a software routine with known inputs and corresponding expected outputs, infers software routine instructions based on the known inputs and corresponding expected outputs, and synthesizes a correctly functioning code fragment based on the inferred instructions. Another embodiment is directed to automatically resolving semantic errors in a software routine. A computer system provides the software routine with known inputs and corresponding expected outputs for portions of a program fragment where an error has been localized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2007
    Publication date: November 13, 2008
    Applicant: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Vladimir Jojic, Nebojsa Jojic, Sumit Gulwani
  • Patent number: 7406453
    Abstract: The methods/systems described herein facilitate large-scale data collection and aggregation. One exemplary system that facilitates large-scale reporting of health-related data comprises a data collection component, a database and an aggregation component. The data collection component can collect health-related data on a large-scale from a non-selected population. The database can store at least some of the health-related data. The aggregation component can facilitate automatically ascertaining at least one pattern from the health-related data at least in part by applying one or more statistical, data-mining or machine-learning techniques to the database.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2008
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Craig J. Mundie, David E. Heckerman, Nebojsa Jojic, Randy J. Hinrichs