Patents by Inventor Nora Tocci
Nora Tocci 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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Publication number: 20250008233Abstract: The invention is relates to systems and methods for high dynamic range (HDR) image capture and video processing in mobile devices. Aspects of the invention include a mobile device, such as a smartphone or digital mobile camera, including at least two image sensors fixed in a co-planar arrangement to a substrate and an optical splitting system configured to reflect at least about 90% of incident light received through an aperture of the mobile device onto the co-planar image sensors, to thereby capture a HDR image. In some embodiments, greater than about 95% of the incident light received through the aperture of the device is reflected onto the image sensors.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 12, 2024Publication date: January 2, 2025Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20240388323Abstract: The invention provides methods and devices for communication and tracking of multiple devices.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 19, 2024Publication date: November 21, 2024Inventors: Willie Chris Kiser, Nora Tocci, Jason Hoy, Mike Tocci
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Patent number: 12096139Abstract: The invention is relates to systems and methods for high dynamic range (HDR) image capture and video processing in mobile devices. Aspects of the invention include a mobile device, such as a smartphone or digital mobile camera, including at least two image sensors fixed in a co-planar arrangement to a substrate and an optical splitting system configured to reflect at least about 90% of incident light received through an aperture of the mobile device onto the co-planar image sensors, to thereby capture a HDR image. In some embodiments, greater than about 95% of the incident light received through the aperture of the device is reflected onto the image sensors.Type: GrantFiled: April 21, 2023Date of Patent: September 17, 2024Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20240187741Abstract: The invention provides an autonomous vehicle with a video camera that merges images taken a different light levels by replacing saturated parts of an image with corresponding parts of a lower-light image to stream a video with a dynamic range that extends to include very low-light and very intensely lit parts of a scene. The high dynamic range (HDR) camera streams the HDR video to a HDR system in real time—as the vehicle operates. As pixel values are provided by the camera's image sensors, those values are streamed directly through a pipeline processing operation and on to the HDR system without any requirement to wait and collect entire images, or frames, before using the video information.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 16, 2024Publication date: June 6, 2024Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Patent number: 11985316Abstract: Methods for the real-time, reversible compression of high dynamic range videos, allowing high dynamic range videos to be broadcast through standard dynamic range channels. The methods include streaming pixel values from at least one image sensor through a pipeline on a processor. The pipeline includes an HDR function that combines the streaming pixel values in real-time into an HDR stream and a transfer function that converts the HDR stream to an SDR video stream. The method further includes transmitting the SDR video stream to a receiver in real time for display as a video.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2021Date of Patent: May 14, 2024Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Michael D. Tocci, Nora Tocci
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Patent number: 11910099Abstract: The invention provides an autonomous vehicle with a video camera that merges images taken a different light levels by replacing saturated parts of an image with corresponding parts of a lower-light image to stream a video with a dynamic range that extends to include very low-light and very intensely lit parts of a scene. The high dynamic range (HDR) camera streams the HDR video to a HDR system in real time—as the vehicle operates. As pixel values are provided by the camera's image sensors, those values are streamed directly through a pipeline processing operation and on to the HDR system without any requirement to wait and collect entire images, or frames, before using the video information.Type: GrantFiled: June 14, 2022Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20240031509Abstract: Systems and methods of the invention merge information from multiple image sensors to provide a high dynamic range (HDR) video. The present invention provides for real-time HDR video production using multiple sensors and pipeline processing techniques. According to the invention, multiple sensors with different exposures each produces an ordered stream of frame-independent pixel values. The pixel values are streamed through a pipeline on a processing device. The pipeline includes a kernel operation that identifies saturated ones of the pixel values. The streams of pixel values are merged to produce an HDR video.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 29, 2023Publication date: January 25, 2024Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20230396726Abstract: The invention provides methods for broadcasting video in a dual HDR/LDR format such that the video can be displayed in real time by both LDR and HDR display devices. Methods and devices of the invention process streams of pixels from multiple sensors in a frame-independent manner to produce an HDR video signal in real time. That HDR video signal is then tone-mapped to produce an LDR video signal, the LDR signal is subtracted from the HDR signal to calculate a residual signal, and the LDR signal and the residual signal are merged into a combined signal that is broadcast via a communications network.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 16, 2023Publication date: December 7, 2023Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Patent number: 11805218Abstract: Systems and methods of the invention merge information from multiple image sensors to provide a high dynamic range (HDR) video. The present invention provides for real-time HDR video production using multiple sensors and pipeline processing techniques. According to the invention, multiple sensors with different exposures each produces an ordered stream of frame-independent pixel values. The pixel values are streamed through a pipeline on a processing device. The pipeline includes a kernel operation that identifies saturated ones of the pixel values. The streams of pixel values are merged to produce an HDR video.Type: GrantFiled: October 3, 2022Date of Patent: October 31, 2023Assignee: Contrast, IncInventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Patent number: 11785170Abstract: The invention provides methods for broadcasting video in a dual HDR/LDR format such that the video can be displayed in real time by both LDR and HDR display devices. Methods and devices of the invention process streams of pixels from multiple sensors in a frame-independent manner to produce an HDR video signal in real time. That HDR video signal is then tone-mapped to produce an LDR video signal, the LDR signal is subtracted from the HDR signal to calculate a residual signal, and the LDR signal and the residual signal are merged into a combined signal that is broadcast via a communications network.Type: GrantFiled: June 16, 2022Date of Patent: October 10, 2023Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20230298538Abstract: The invention provides an augmented reality system including a wearable device in the form of a headset for providing a person wearing the headset with an augmented view of a real-world environment. The headset includes a display unit positioned to be within a field of view of a person wearing the headset. The headset further includes a processing subsystem built into the headset and operable to receive a wireless signal comprising compressed augmented reality content from a remote server system and to further display the augmented reality content on the display unit.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 20, 2023Publication date: September 21, 2023Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Michael D. Tocci, Nora Tocci
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Publication number: 20230262352Abstract: The invention is relates to systems and methods for high dynamic range (HDR) image capture and video processing in mobile devices. Aspects of the invention include a mobile device, such as a smartphone or digital mobile camera, including at least two image sensors fixed in a co-planar arrangement to a substrate and an optical splitting system configured to reflect at least about 90% of incident light received through an aperture of the mobile device onto the co-planar image sensors, to thereby capture a HDR image. In some embodiments, greater than about 95% of the incident light received through the aperture of the device is reflected onto the image sensors.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 21, 2023Publication date: August 17, 2023Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Patent number: 11637974Abstract: The invention is relates to systems and methods for high dynamic range (HDR) image capture and video processing in mobile devices. Aspects of the invention include a mobile device, such as a smartphone or digital mobile camera, including at least two image sensors fixed in a co-planar arrangement to a substrate and an optical splitting system configured to reflect at least about 90% of incident light received through an aperture of the mobile device onto the co-planar image sensors, to thereby capture a HDR image. In some embodiments, greater than about 95% of the incident light received through the aperture of the device is reflected onto the image sensors.Type: GrantFiled: October 22, 2020Date of Patent: April 25, 2023Assignee: CONTRAST, INC.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20230079875Abstract: Systems and methods of the invention merge information from multiple image sensors to provide a high dynamic range (HDR) video. The present invention provides for real-time HDR video production using multiple sensors and pipeline processing techniques. According to the invention, multiple sensors with different exposures each produces an ordered stream of frame-independent pixel values. The pixel values are streamed through a pipeline on a processing device. The pipeline includes a kernel operation that identifies saturated ones of the pixel values. The streams of pixel values are merged to produce an HDR video.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 3, 2022Publication date: March 16, 2023Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Patent number: 11463605Abstract: Systems and methods of the invention merge information from multiple image sensors to provide a high dynamic range (HDR) video. The present invention provides for real-time HDR video production using multiple sensors and pipeline processing techniques. According to the invention, multiple sensors with different exposures each produces an ordered stream of frame-independent pixel values. The pixel values are streamed through a pipeline on a processing device. The pipeline includes a kernel operation that identifies saturated ones of the pixel values. The streams of pixel values are merged to produce an HDR video.Type: GrantFiled: August 10, 2020Date of Patent: October 4, 2022Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20220311926Abstract: The invention provides an autonomous vehicle with a video camera that merges images taken a different light levels by replacing saturated parts of an image with corresponding parts of a lower-light image to stream a video with a dynamic range that extends to include very low-light and very intensely lit parts of a scene. The high dynamic range (HDR) camera streams the HDR video to a HDR system in real time—as the vehicle operates. As pixel values are provided by the camera's image sensors, those values are streamed directly through a pipeline processing operation and on to the HDR system without any requirement to wait and collect entire images, or frames, before using the video information.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 14, 2022Publication date: September 29, 2022Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20220309622Abstract: Noise reduction in images is provided by performing a noise reduction step on blocks of pixels within a video-processing pipeline. The noise reduction step consists of applying a discrete cosine transform (DCT) to the block of pixels, quantizing the resulting DCT coefficients, and performing an inverse of the DCT to the quantized coefficients. The output of that noise reduction step is a block of image pixels similar to the input pixels, but with significantly less image noise. Because the noise reduction step can be performed quickly on small blocks of pixels, the noise reduction can be performed in real-time in a video processing pipeline.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 16, 2022Publication date: September 29, 2022Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Michael D. Tocci, Nora Tocci
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Publication number: 20220311907Abstract: The invention provides methods for broadcasting video in a dual HDR/LDR format such that the video can be displayed in real time by both LDR and HDR display devices. Methods and devices of the invention process streams of pixels from multiple sensors in a frame-independent manner to produce an HDR video signal in real time. That HDR video signal is then tone-mapped to produce an LDR video signal, the LDR signal is subtracted from the HDR signal to calculate a residual signal, and the LDR signal and the residual signal are merged into a combined signal that is broadcast via a communications network.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 16, 2022Publication date: September 29, 2022Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Nora Tocci, Michael D. Tocci
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Publication number: 20220272384Abstract: The invention provides methods that improve image compression and/or quality within the JPEG process by using a low-pass filter to remove high frequency components from image data, which removes blocking artifacts. Preferred embodiments apply the low-pass filter to the Chroma components after decompression prior to conversion into RGB color space.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 11, 2022Publication date: August 25, 2022Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Michael D. Tocci, Nora Tocci
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Patent number: 11423514Abstract: Noise reduction in images is provided by performing a noise reduction step on blocks of pixels within a video-processing pipeline. The noise reduction step consists of applying a discrete cosine transform (DCT) to the block of pixels, quantizing the resulting DCT coefficients, and performing an inverse of the DCT to the quantized coefficients. The output of that noise reduction step is a block of image pixels similar to the input pixels, but with significantly less image noise. Because the noise reduction step can be performed quickly on small blocks of pixels, the noise reduction can be performed in real-time in a video processing pipeline.Type: GrantFiled: August 13, 2019Date of Patent: August 23, 2022Assignee: Contrast, Inc.Inventors: Willie C. Kiser, Michael D. Tocci, Nora Tocci