Patents by Inventor Samuel Nathan Hallman

Samuel Nathan Hallman 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: 11657595
    Abstract: An imaging device may capture images of a scene, where the scene includes retroreflective materials. Where visual images and depth images are captured from a scene, and the depth images have ratios of supersaturated pixels that are less than a predetermined threshold, a location map of the scene is generated or updated based on the depth images. Where the ratios are greater than the predetermined threshold, the location map of the scene is generated or updated based on the visual images. Additionally, where each of a plurality of imaging devices detect concentrations of supersaturated pixels beyond a predetermined threshold or limit within their respective fields of view, an actor present on the scene may be determined to be wearing retroreflective material, or otherwise designated as a source of the supersaturation, and tracked with the scene based on coverage areas that are determined to have excessive ratios of supersaturated pixels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Samuel Nathan Hallman, Petko Tsonev, Michael Francis O'Malley, Jayakrishnan Eledath, Jue Wang, Tian Lan
  • Patent number: 11443516
    Abstract: Motion of actors within a scene may be detected based on imaging data, using machine learning tools operating on cameras that captured the imaging data. The machine learning tools process images to perform a number of tasks, including detecting heads of actors, and sets of pixels corresponding to the actors, before constructing line segments from the heads of the actors to floor surfaces on which the actors stand or walk. The line segments are aligned along lines extending from locations of heads within an image to a vanishing point of a camera that captured the image. Trajectories of actors and visual data are transferred from the cameras to a central server, which links trajectories captured by multiple cameras and locates detected actors throughout the scene, even when the actors are not detected within a field of view of at least one camera.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Samuel Nathan Hallman, Tian Lan, Hui Liang, Gerard Guy Medioni, Kostia Robert
  • Patent number: 11398094
    Abstract: Motion of actors within a scene may be detected based on imaging data, using machine learning tools operating on cameras that captured the imaging data. The machine learning tools process images to perform a number of tasks, including detecting heads of actors, and sets of pixels corresponding to the actors, before constructing line segments from the heads of the actors to floor surfaces on which the actors stand or walk. The line segments are aligned along lines extending from locations of heads within an image to a vanishing point of a camera that captured the image. Trajectories of actors and visual data are transferred from the cameras to a central server, which links trajectories captured by multiple cameras and locates detected actors throughout the scene, even when the actors are not detected within a field of view of at least one camera.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2022
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Samuel Nathan Hallman, Tian Lan, Hui Liang, Gerard Guy Medioni, Kostia Robert
  • Patent number: 10915783
    Abstract: An imaging device may capture images of a scene, where the scene includes retroreflective materials. Where visual images and depth images are captured from a scene, and the depth images have ratios of supersaturated pixels that are less than a predetermined threshold, a location map of the scene is generated or updated based on the depth images. Where the ratios are greater than the predetermined threshold, the location map of the scene is generated or updated based on the visual images. Additionally, where each of a plurality of imaging devices detect concentrations of supersaturated pixels beyond a predetermined threshold or limit within their respective fields of view, an actor present on the scene may be determined to be wearing retroreflective material, or otherwise designated as a source of the supersaturation, and tracked with the scene based on coverage areas that are determined to have excessive ratios of supersaturated pixels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2021
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Samuel Nathan Hallman, Petko Tsonev, Michael Francis O'Malley, Jayakrishnan Eledath, Jue Wang, Tian Lan