Patents by Inventor Shawn Robert Gettemy

Shawn Robert Gettemy 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: 10108049
    Abstract: Devices and methods related to high-contrast liquid crystal displays (LCDs) are provided. For example, such an electronic device may include an LCD with two liquid crystal alignment layers not symmetric to one another and upper and lower polarizing layers respectively above and below the alignment layers. Light transmittance through the plurality of pixels may increase monotonically with gray scale voltage. The display may operate using a gray scale level 0 voltage higher than a minimum gray scale level 0 voltage capability of the display. Additionally or alternatively, liquid crystal molecular alignment axes of the two alignment layers may be offset from one another by an angle other than a multiple of 180 degrees. Additionally or alternatively, a first polarizing axis of the upper polarizing layer or a second polarizing axis of the lower polarizing layer, or both, may be neither parallel nor perpendicular to one of the liquid crystal molecular alignment axes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2018
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: EnkhAmgalan Dorjgotov, Zhibing Ge, Ming Xu, Cheng Chen, Young Bae Park, John Z. Zhong, Wei Chen, Shawn Robert Gettemy
  • Patent number: 9940879
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to systems and techniques for calibrating displays to improve the white point uniformity between similar type devices. In one embodiment, a backlight includes multiple strings of LEDs, where each string is driven by a separate driver, or driver channel. Each string may be separately tested at a base current to determine its emitted chromaticity, and values indicative of the emitted chromaticities may be stored within the backlight as calibration values. The calibration values may then be used to determine the driving strength for each string that allows the display to produce the target white point when the light from the strings is mixed. Further, in certain embodiments, adjustments also may be made to the LCD panel based on the emitted chromaticities at the base current.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Shawn Robert Gettemy, Joshua Grey Wurzel, Jean-Pierre Simon Guillou, Ming Xu, David Andrew Doyle
  • Patent number: 9612489
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display (LCD) is provided having a discontinuous electrode. In certain embodiments, different portions (such as finger- or slit-like extensions) of the discontinuous electrode may be at different depths relative to one another and/or may be of different widths relative to one another. Similarly, in other embodiments, the different portions of the discontinuous electrode may be spaced apart in a non-uniform manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2017
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Cheng Chen, Shih Chang Chang, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Mingxia Gu
  • Patent number: 9368077
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for adjusting a white point of a liquid crystal display (LCD) using column inversion are provided. In one example, a method includes measuring white points of an electronic display that occur when the display employs different column inversion schemes. The display may be programmed to perform the column inversion scheme that produces a white point closest to a desired white point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2016
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 9245487
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for reducing the loss of transmittance caused by column inversion. To provide one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels and driver circuitry to drive the pixels using column inversion. Adjacent columns that are driven at like polarity are spaced more closely than adjacent columns driven at opposite polarities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2016
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 9084363
    Abstract: Compact sub-assemblies of flexible circuits and drivers are provided. The sub-assemblies can occupy less space in an electronic device than conventional sub-assemblies. In one or more embodiments of the present invention, the flexible circuits can be attached to or wires can be disposed on portions of the substrate that previously were unoccupied in conventional sub-assemblies. In one or more embodiments, the sub-assemblies of the present invention also can have wires disposed underneath the driver or vary the width of the wires. In one or more embodiments, the sub-assemblies of the present invention also can have composite wires that occupy less space than wires of conventional sub-assemblies, while still maintaining similar energy flux.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei Yao, Barry Corlett
  • Patent number: 9047838
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for column inversion are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel having columns of pixels and display driver circuitry. The display driver circuitry may include source amplifiers and demultiplexers. Each demultiplexer may channel data output by at least one source amplifier to one of three columns of pixels. The display driver circuitry may drive the display panel according to a 3-column inversion scheme using one source amplifier per demultiplexer per frame of image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Hopil Bae, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 9047832
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for performing column inversion using 2-column demultiplexers are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels configured to be programmed with frames of image data and display driver circuitry. The display driver circuitry may include three demultiplexers, each respectively coupled to one pixel column of a first superpixel and one pixel column of a second superpixel. Each of the three demultiplexers may receive amplified image data of a single polarity per frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Hopil Bae, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 9047826
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for performing column inversion using reordered image data are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels and driver circuitry to drive the pixels using column inversion. The driver circuitry may drive pixels of a first superpixel in a first color order and drive pixels of an adjacent second superpixel in a second color order, such that more pixels are driven sequentially at a common polarity than would have been driven sequentially at the common polarity were the pixels of the first superpixel driven at the same color order as the pixels of the second superpixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Ming Xu, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 8988334
    Abstract: Present techniques involve methods and systems of inversion patterns for pixels in a display. Inversion techniques involve driving image signals having a first polarity to data lines of a pixel matrix during a first time period and driving image signals having an opposite polarity to the data lines during a second time period. In some embodiments, the pixels may be configured to have electrodes having only two finger electrodes, thus widening the distance between electrodes and decreasing the susceptibility for crosstalk between pixels. In some embodiments, horizontal cross-talk of electromagnetic fields between pixels may be further reduced by configuring the data line driving scheme such that voltage polarity is flipped for the pixels along every two, three, or more data line columns. Furthermore, a Z inversion pattern may be employed to reduce the occurrence of undesirable display artifacts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Zhibing Ge, Yongman Lee, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Patent number: 8769811
    Abstract: An electronic circuit component is provided with shielding for electromagnetic interference (“EMI”) by covering at least part of the component with a layer of electrical insulation that conforms to the shape of the surface to which the insulation is applied. At least part of the surface of the insulation is then covered by a layer of EMI shielding that conforms to the shape of the surface of the insulation to which the shielding is applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2014
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Josh Wurzel, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Ahmad Al-Dahle, Carlin James Vieri, Wei Yao
  • Patent number: 8704743
    Abstract: A method and system is disclosed for minimizing parasitic losses associated with a liquid crystal display (LCD) of a device. A frame buffer may be used in conjunction with a driver circuitry integrated circuit. The frame buffer may store a set of display values for the LCD so that the display values corresponding to a plurality of frames may be transmitted together from a processor in a burst. Once the values are transmitted, the processor may idle or hibernate. Alternatively, only the changes to an image may be transmitted from the processor to the driver circuitry. The remaining pixel values may be drawn based on values previously stored in the frame buffer. Furthermore, the driver circuitry may be used to step up the received display rate values to a level that allows for inversion of the polarity of pixels in the LCD using frame inversion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2014
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Wei H. Yao, Shawn Robert Gettemy
  • Patent number: 8633879
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally provides for a variety of multi-domain pixel configurations that may be implemented in the unit pixels of an LCD display device, such as a fringe field switching LCD display panel. An LCD display device utilizing one or more of the presently disclosed techniques disclosed herein may exhibit improved display properties, such as viewing angle, color shift, and transmittance properties, relative to those exhibited by conventional multi-domain designs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2014
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Mingxia Gu, Ming Xu, Cheng Chen, John Z. Zhong, Shih Chang Chang, Shawn Robert Gettemy
  • Patent number: 8587758
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display (LCD) is provided having a discontinuous electrode. In certain embodiments, finger- or slit-like extensions of the discontinuous electrode may be shaped to reduce or eliminate disclinations of liquid crystals within a pixel aperture used to transmit light, where the liquid crystals are oriented in response to an electric field generated using the discontinuous electrode. Similarly, in other embodiments, the different portions of the discontinuous electrode may be lengthened to extend under an opaque mask or may not be linked at one end to reduce or eliminate the disclinations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2013
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Cheng Chen, Ming Xu, Shih Chang Chang, Mingxia Gu, Shawn Robert Gettemy
  • Patent number: 8570261
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally provides for a variety of multi-domain pixel configurations that may be implemented in the unit pixels of an LCD display device, such as a fringe field switching LCD display panel. An LCD display device utilizing one or more of the presently disclosed techniques disclosed herein may exhibit improved display properties, such as viewing angle, color shift, and transmittance properties, relative to those exhibited by conventional multi-domain designs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Mingxia Gu, Ming Xu, Cheng Chen, John Z. Zhong, Shih Chang Chang, Shawn Robert Gettemy
  • Publication number: 20130241960
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for performing column inversion using reordered image data are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels and driver circuitry to drive the pixels using column inversion. The driver circuitry may drive pixels of a first superpixel in a first color order and drive pixels of an adjacent second superpixel in a second color order, such that more pixels are driven sequentially at a common polarity than would have been driven sequentially at the common polarity were the pixels of the first superpixel driven at the same color order as the pixels of the second superpixel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Ming Xu, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Publication number: 20130241901
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for performing column inversion using 2-column demultiplexers are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels configured to be programmed with frames of image data and display driver circuitry. The display driver circuitry may include three demultiplexers, each respectively coupled to one pixel column of a first superpixel and one pixel column of a second superpixel. Each of the three demultiplexers may receive amplified image data of a single polarity per frame.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Hopil Bae, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Publication number: 20130241900
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for adjusting a white point of a liquid crystal display (LCD) using column inversion are provided. In one example, a method includes measuring white points of an electronic display that occur when the display employs different column inversion schemes. The display may be programmed to perform the column inversion scheme that produces a white point closest to a desired white point.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Publication number: 20130241959
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for reducing the loss of transmittance caused by column inversion. To provide one example, an electronic display may include a display panel with columns of pixels and driver circuitry to drive the pixels using column inversion. Adjacent columns that are driven at like polarity are spaced more closely than adjacent columns driven at opposite polarities.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Hopil Bae, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao
  • Publication number: 20130241958
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for column inversion are provided. In one example, an electronic display may include a display panel having columns of pixels and display driver circuitry. The display driver circuitry may include source amplifiers and demultiplexers. Each demultiplexer may channel data output by at least one source amplifier to one of three columns of pixels. The display driver circuitry may drive the display panel according to a 3-column inversion scheme using one source amplifier per demultiplexer per frame of image data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Hopil Bae, Zhibing Ge, Shih Chang Chang, Cheng Chen, Ming Xu, Shawn Robert Gettemy, Wei H. Yao