Patents by Inventor Randy McCharles

Randy McCharles 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: 7184030
    Abstract: A camera-based touch system includes at least one pair of cameras having overlapping fields of view and a touch surface encompassed within the overlapping fields of view across which a pointer is moved. The cameras of the at least one pair acquire images at intervals asynchronously. In order to estimate the position of the pointer relative to the touch surface from image data acquired by the at least one pair of cameras, the images are synthetically synchronized. During this process, for each camera in the pair, each acquired image is processed to determine the position of the pointer therein and the position of the pointer is recorded together with a timestamp representing the time elapsed between a reference point common to the cameras and the time the image was acquired.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2007
    Assignee: Smart Technologies Inc.
    Inventors: Randy McCharles, Gerald Morrison, Steve Worthington, Trevor Akitt
  • Patent number: 6947032
    Abstract: A system and method for determining pointer contacts on a touch surface includes a touch surface to be contacted by a pointer. At least one imaging device having a field of view looks generally along the touch surface. At least one processor communicates with the at least one imaging device and analyzes images acquired by the at least one imaging device to detect the relative positions of a pointer and a reflection of the pointer therein and thereby determine if a pointer contact with the touch surface has been made.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2005
    Assignee: Smart Technologies Inc.
    Inventors: Gerald D. Morrison, Randy McCharles, Scott Yu Tseng Su, Manvinder Singh
  • Publication number: 20040178993
    Abstract: A system and method for determining pointer contacts on a touch surface includes a touch surface to be contacted by a pointer. At least one imaging device having a field of view looks generally along the touch surface. At least one processor communicates with the at least one imaging device and analyzes images acquired by the at least one imaging device to detect the relative positions of a pointer and a reflection of the pointer therein and thereby determine if a pointer contact with the touch surface has been made.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 11, 2003
    Publication date: September 16, 2004
    Inventors: Gerald D. Morrison, Randy McCharles, Scott Yu Tseng Su, Manvinder Singh
  • Publication number: 20040108996
    Abstract: A camera-based touch system includes at least one pair of cameras having overlapping fields of view and a touch surface encompassed within the overlapping fields of view across which a pointer is moved. The cameras of the at least one pair acquire images at intervals asynchronously. In order to estimate the position of the pointer relative to the touch surface from image data acquired by the at least one pair of cameras, the images are synthetically synchronized. During this process, for each camera in the pair, each acquired image is processed to determine the position of the pointer therein and the position of the pointer is recorded together with a timestamp representing the time elapsed between a reference point common to the cameras and the time the image was acquired.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 2, 2003
    Publication date: June 10, 2004
    Inventors: Randy McCharles, Gerald Morrison, Steve Worthington, Trevor Akitt
  • Publication number: 20040001144
    Abstract: A camera-based touch system includes at least one pair of cameras having overlapping fields of view and a touch surface encompassed within the overlapping fields of view across which a pointer is moved. The cameras of the at least one pair acquire images at intervals asynchronously. In order to estimate the position of the pointer relative to the touch surface from image data acquired by the at least one pair of cameras, the images are synthetically synchronized. During this process, for each camera in the pair, each acquired image is processed to determine the position of the pointer therein and the position of the pointer is recorded together with a timestamp representing the time elapsed between a reference point common to the cameras and the time the image was acquired.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2002
    Publication date: January 1, 2004
    Inventors: Randy McCharles, Gerald Morrison, Radek Kristof, Steve Worthington, Trevor Akitt