Patents by Inventor Simon Williams

Simon Williams 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: 6172279
    Abstract: Male sterility is imparted to a plant by a cascade of gene sequences which expresses a protein which disrupts the biosynthesis of viable pollen. Expression of the disrupter protein is restricted to male parts of the plant by an upstream promoter sequence which is specific to male flowers, the male specific promoter being under control of an operator sequence. The cascade also includes a gene encoding a repressor protein specific for that operator. Expression of the repressor protein is under control of a chemically inducible promoter which is inducible by the application to the plant by, spraying or like process, of an exogenous chemical. In the absence of the exogenous chemical inducer, no repressor protein is expressed, resulting in expression of the disrupter protein and, consequently, male sterility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 1995
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2001
    Assignee: Zeneca Limited
    Inventors: Ian George Bridges, Simon William Jonathan Bright, Andrew James Greenland, Wolfgang Walter Schuch
  • Patent number: 6129823
    Abstract: An electrochemical sensor electrode strip that measures analyte concentration in an aqueous sample as small as 2.5 to 2.0 .mu.L is described. Reduction in the minimum sample size is achieved by means of a dielectric coating impregnated into peripheral regions of one or more hydrophilic mesh layers, thereby reducing sample dead volume. The mesh layers are located between an electrode support and a cover layer, which cover layer includes an aperture located upstream from an electrode arrangement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2000
    Assignee: Abbott Laboratories
    Inventors: Graham John Hughes, Simon William Bayliff, Geoffrey Roger Chambers
  • Patent number: 6104778
    Abstract: After a target region for an x-ray treatment is determined by a preliminary examination, a line which indicates the position and shape of this target region is marked on the patient's body by projecting a laser beam on such a line. This is accomplished by means of a laser light source and an optical system with two mirrors which are rotatable around mutually transverse axes of rotation. Thus, the region-indicating line can be made visible without causing the brightness of the environment to be reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 1997
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2000
    Assignee: Varian Systems, Inc.
    Inventor: Simon William Murad
  • Patent number: 6066456
    Abstract: The chemically-inducible 27 kD subunit of the enzyme glutathione-S-transferase, isoform II (GST-II-27) and sequences encoding it are provided. In particular, a genomic DNA sequence encoding the gene promoter for the GST-II-27 subunit is provided. Then linked to an exogenous gene and introduced into a plant by transformation, and GST-II-27 promoter provides a means for the external regulation of expression of that exogenous gene. Transformation with DNA encoding glutathione-S-transferase polypeptides produces herbicide resistance transgenic plants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2000
    Assignee: Zeneca Limited
    Inventors: Ian George Bridges, Simon William Jonathan Bright, Andrew James Greenland, David Charles Holt, Ian Jepson, Wolfgang Walter Schuch
  • Patent number: 6010887
    Abstract: Pseudo-operator sequences may be located in (or inserted into) plant genomes and utilized to drive expression of foreign genes. These pseudo-operator sequences are nucleotide sequences which are present at a suitable location in a gene at which repressor binding will lead to inhibitation or enhancement of gene expression. The disclosed technique permits the design of altered specificity repressors, which bind the pseudo-operators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 1994
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2000
    Assignees: Imperial Chemical Industries PLC, University of Leicester
    Inventors: Ian George Bridges, Simon William Jonathan Bright, Andrew James Greenland, Wolfgang Walter Schuch, Andrew Merryweather, David Pioli
  • Patent number: 5974153
    Abstract: Monaural inputs are accepted for presentation to a pair of speakers. The output sound image from that pair of speakers is such that a listener will perceive that the sound is stereo and that certain sounds come from a non-existent center speaker and that other sounds come from locations beyond the physical boundaries of the two speakers. The system operates to preserve full tone range at both speakers and does not split the sound from a particular instrument between both speakers. The system can be used to provide sound signals to the rear speakers of a multiple speaker system when the sound input to the rear speakers is either monaural or stereo.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 26, 1999
    Assignee: QSound Labs, Inc.
    Inventors: Terry K. Cashion, Simon Williams, John Arthur, Mark Williams
  • Patent number: 5866792
    Abstract: The chemically-inducible 27 kD subunit of the enzyme glutathione-S-transferase, isoform II (GST-II-27) and sequences encoding it are provided. In particular, a genomic DNA sequence encoding the gene promoter for the GST-II-27 subunit is provided. Then linked to an exogenous gene and introduced into a plant by transformation, and GST-II-27 promoter provides a means for the external regulation of expression of that exogenous gene. Transformation with DNA encoding glutathione-S-transferase polypeptides produces herbicide resistance transgenic plants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: February 2, 1999
    Assignee: Zeneca Limited
    Inventors: Ian George Bridges, Simon William Jonathan Bright, Andrew James Greenland, David Charles Holt, Ian Jepson, Wolfgang Walter Schuch
  • Patent number: 5809149
    Abstract: An apparent location of a sound source is controlled in azimuth and range to a listener of the sound using headphones by a range control block that has variable amplitude scalers and a time delay and by an azimuth control block that also has variable amplitude scalers and time delays. An input audio signal is fed in to the range control block and the values of the scalers and the taps on the delay buffers are read out of look-up tables in a controller that is addressed by an azimuth index value corresponding to any location on a circle surrounding the headphone wearer. Several range control blocks and azimuth control blocks can be provided depending on the number of input audio signals to be located. All of the range and azimuth control is provided by the range control blocks and azimuth control blocks so that the resultant signals require only a fixed number of filters regardless of the number of input audio signals to provide the signal processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 15, 1998
    Assignee: QSound Labs, Inc.
    Inventors: Terry Cashion, Simon Williams
  • Patent number: 5808034
    Abstract: Male sterility is imparted to a plant by a cascade of gene sequences which expresses a protein which disrupts the biosynthesis of viable pollen. Expression of the disrupter protein is restricted to male parts of the plant by an upstream promoter sequence which is specific to male flowers, the male specific promoter being under control of an operator sequence. The cascade also includes a gene encoding a repressor protein specific for that operator. Expression of the repressor protein is under control of a chemically inducible promoter which is inducible by the application to the plant by, spraying or like process, of an exogenous chemical. In the absence of the exogenous chemical inducer, no repressor protein is expressed, resulting in expression of the disrupter protein and, consequently, male sterility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 1994
    Date of Patent: September 15, 1998
    Assignee: Zeneca Limited
    Inventors: Ian George Bridges, Simon William Jonathan Bright, Andrew James Greenland, Wolfgang Walter Schuch
  • Patent number: 5436975
    Abstract: A system for use with headphones provides sound imaging positioning that can accurately locate the sound image at any one of a number of points surrounding the listener and can smoothly fade the sound position from one point to the next as the apparent sound source moves relative to the listener during panning. Individual sound positioners are provided that include only scalers or delay lines are provided for each channel, so that the same sound location filters can be utilized with a number of voices or input channels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 1994
    Date of Patent: July 25, 1995
    Assignee: QSound Ltd.
    Inventors: Danny D. Lowe, Simon Williams, Terry Cashion
  • Patent number: 5371799
    Abstract: A system for processing an audio signal for playback over headphones in which the apparent sound source is located outside of the head of the listener processes the input signal as if it were made up of a direct wave portion, an early reflections portion, and a reverberations portion. The direct wave portion of the signal is processed in filters whose filter coefficients are chosen based upon the desired azimuth of the virtual sound source location. The early reflection portion is passed through a bank of filters connected in parallel whose coefficients are chosen based on each reflection azimuth. The outputs of these filters are passed through scalars to adjust the amplitude to simulate a desired range of the virtual sound source. The reverberation portion is processed without any sound source location information, using a random number generator, for example, and the output is attenuated in an exponential attenuator to be faded out.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 1993
    Date of Patent: December 6, 1994
    Assignee: QSound Labs, Inc.
    Inventors: Danny D. Lowe, Terry Cashion, Simon Williams