Patents by Inventor William Shane

William Shane 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).

  • Publication number: 20240106874
    Abstract: Among other things, embodiments of the present disclosure improve the functionality of electronic messaging systems by enabling users in an electronic chat conversation to run applications together. In some embodiments, when one user in a chat launches an application, an icon or other visual representation of the application appears in a portion of the chat window (e.g., in a “chat dock”) for other users in the chat to access.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 4, 2023
    Publication date: March 28, 2024
    Inventors: Dylan Shane Eirinberg, Aaron Daniel Son, William Wu
  • Patent number: 11906971
    Abstract: Spatiotemporal robotic navigation may include providing a set of robots non-conflicting access to the same shared resources at different times so that the robots may operate without continually accounting for the locations of the other robots and workers operating in the particular site, without continually planning or updating paths after determining an initial path, and without continuously adjusting movements as the robots near one another. The spatiotemporal robotic navigation involves generating spatiotemporal plans. Each plan has a set of objectives that a robot is to execute by different time intervals. Each plan is generated so as to not conflict with the resources being accessed by other robots at time intervals set in the plans of other robots.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2024
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: William Shane Simpson Grant, Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Publication number: 20230325768
    Abstract: Disclosed is a system and associated methods for optimizing order fulfillment. The system determines the containers in a site with items for a set of received orders, and reserves different slot types of an item cache for each container based on the properties of the contained items or container. The system transfers a set of containers to the item cache by placing each of the set of containers into a slot that is associated with a slot type that matches a slot type reserved for that container. The system replaces a first container from the set of containers upon delivering a second container to the item cache and other containers from the set of containers in the slot type reserved for the second container having items for unfulfilled orders and the first container not having items for unfulfilled orders once the second container is brought to the item cache.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 24, 2023
    Publication date: October 12, 2023
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Kaveh Kamgar, Lior Elazary, Randolph Charles Voorhies, William Shane Simpson Grant, Sagar Pandya, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 11559895
    Abstract: Provided are systems and methods by which robots predictively detect objects that may obstruct robotic tasks prior to the robots performing those tasks. For instance, a robot may receive a task, and may obtain dimensions of a task object based on a first identifier obtained with the task or with a sensor of the robot. The robot may determine a first boundary for moving the task object based on the task object dimensions and an added buffer of space that accounts for imprecise robotic operation. The robot may detect a second identifier of a neighboring object, and may obtain dimensions of the neighboring object using the second identifier. The robot may compute a second boundary of the neighboring object based on the dimensions of the neighboring object and a position of the second identifier, and may detect an obstruction based on the second boundary crossing into the first boundary.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2023
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Brandon Pennington, William Shane Simpson Grant, Joseph Traverso, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 11507071
    Abstract: Increased robotic sophistication and more efficient autonomous operation is implemented by providing separate physical autonomous robots shared and remote access to the sensory array and information from the sensory array of one another. Each robot can access a sensor of any other robot, or scans or other information obtained from the sensor of any other robot. The robots leverage the shared sensory access in order to perform batch order fulfillment, dynamic rearrangement of item or tote locations, and opportunistic charging. These coordinated robotic operations based on the shared sensory access increase the efficiency and productivity of the robots without adding resources or hardware to the robots, increasing the speed of the robots, or increasing the number of deployed robots.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, Sagar Pandya, William Shane Simpson Grant
  • Patent number: 11500010
    Abstract: An integrated circuit with a switched signal path and circuitry configured to determine an anticipated specification current through the signal path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: William Shane Rowling, Paul R. Clark
  • Publication number: 20220147385
    Abstract: Provided is a parallelized and modular planning system that controls multiple actors in performing different tasks simultaneously without conflict based on plans that are modularly created and/or updated. The system may update different parts of different plans at the same time without redefining those plans anew. The system may include a first subsystem that generates a first plan based on an assignment of a first task to a first actor, while a second subsystem provides a path for a second plan assigned to a second actor, while a third subsystem determines access ordering by which a third actor accesses a first resource from a path of a third plan, and while a fourth subsystem controls operation of a fourth actor in accessing a second resource from a path of a fourth plan based on an access ordering determined for the second resource by the third subsystem.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2020
    Publication date: May 12, 2022
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: William Shane Simpson Grant, Joseph Traverso, Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary
  • Publication number: 20220024036
    Abstract: Provided are systems and methods by which robots predictively detect objects that may obstruct robotic tasks prior to the robots performing those tasks. For instance, a robot may receive a task, and may obtain dimensions of a task object based on a first identifier obtained with the task or with a sensor of the robot. The robot may determine a first boundary for moving the task object based on the task object dimensions and an added buffer of space that accounts for imprecise robotic operation. The robot may detect a second identifier of a neighboring object, and may obtain dimensions of the neighboring object using the second identifier. The robot may compute a second boundary of the neighboring object based on the dimensions of the neighboring object and a position of the second identifier, and may detect an obstruction based on the second boundary crossing into the first boundary.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 8, 2021
    Publication date: January 27, 2022
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Brandon Pennington, William Shane Simpson Grant, Joseph Traverso, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Publication number: 20210382493
    Abstract: Spatiotemporal robotic navigation may include providing a set of robots non-conflicting access to the same shared resources at different times so that the robots may operate without continually accounting for the locations of the other robots and workers operating in the particular site, without continually planning or updating paths after determining an initial path, and without continuously adjusting movements as the robots near one another. The spatiotemporal robotic navigation involves generating spatiotemporal plans. Each plan has a set of objectives that a robot is to execute by different time intervals. Each plan is generated so as to not conflict with the resources being accessed by other robots at time intervals set in the plans of other robots.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2021
    Publication date: December 9, 2021
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: William Shane Simpson Grant, Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 11192248
    Abstract: Provided are systems and methods by which robots predictively detect objects that may obstruct robotic tasks prior to the robots performing those tasks. For instance, a robot may receive a task, and may obtain dimensions of a task object based on a first identifier obtained with the task or with a sensor of the robot. The robot may determine a first boundary for moving the task object based on the task object dimensions and an added buffer of space that accounts for imprecise robotic operation. The robot may detect a second identifier of a neighboring object, and may obtain dimensions of the neighboring object using the second identifier. The robot may compute a second boundary of the neighboring object based on the dimensions of the neighboring object and a position of the second identifier, and may detect an obstruction based on the second boundary crossing into the first boundary.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Brandon Pennington, William Shane Simpson Grant, Joseph Traverso, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 11099576
    Abstract: Spatiotemporal robotic navigation may include providing a set of robots non-conflicting access to the same shared resources at different times so that the robots may operate without continually accounting for the locations of the other robots and workers operating in the particular site, without continually planning or updating paths after determining an initial path, and without continuously adjusting movements as the robots near one another. The spatiotemporal robotic navigation involves generating spatiotemporal plans. Each plan has a set of objectives that a robot is to execute by different time intervals. Each plan is generated so as to not conflict with the resources being accessed by other robots at time intervals set in the plans of other robots.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2021
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: William Shane Simpson Grant, Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 11092973
    Abstract: Coordinated operation of two or more autonomous robots is based on a clustered partitioning of a collective set of operations and/or tasks that the robots perform simultaneously. The clustered partitioning may include generating a set of clusters with each cluster of the set of clusters allocating a different subset of the collective set of operations and/or tasks to a different robot such that the set of clusters results in a least amount of cumulative distance that the robots traverse in performing each operation and/or task of the collective set, and a maximum amount of distance separating the robots when performing each operation and/or task. Each cluster may be assigned to a different robot with the collective set of assigned clusters causing the robots to operate and move in a coordinated efficient and nonconflicting manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, William Shane Simpson Grant
  • Publication number: 20210223306
    Abstract: An integrated circuit with a switched signal path and circuitry configured to determine an anticipated specification current through the signal path.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 15, 2021
    Publication date: July 22, 2021
    Inventors: William Shane Rowling, Paul R. Clark
  • Publication number: 20210008721
    Abstract: Provided are systems and methods by which robots predictively detect objects that may obstruct robotic tasks prior to the robots performing those tasks. For instance, a robot may receive a task, and may obtain dimensions of a task object based on a first identifier obtained with the task or with a sensor of the robot. The robot may determine a first boundary for moving the task object based on the task object dimensions and an added buffer of space that accounts for imprecise robotic operation. The robot may detect a second identifier of a neighboring object, and may obtain dimensions of the neighboring object using the second identifier. The robot may compute a second boundary of the neighboring object based on the dimensions of the neighboring object and a position of the second identifier, and may detect an obstruction based on the second boundary crossing into the first boundary.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Publication date: January 14, 2021
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Brandon Pennington, William Shane Simpson Grant, Joseph Traverso, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Publication number: 20200278667
    Abstract: Increased robotic sophistication and more efficient autonomous operation is implemented by providing separate physical autonomous robots shared and remote access to the sensory array and information from the sensory array of one another. Each robot can access a sensor of any other robot, or scans or other information obtained from the sensor of any other robot. The robots leverage the shared sensory access in order to perform batch order fulfillment, dynamic rearrangement of item or tote locations, and opportunistic charging. These coordinated robotic operations based on the shared sensory access increase the efficiency and productivity of the robots without adding resources or hardware to the robots, increasing the speed of the robots, or increasing the number of deployed robots.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2020
    Publication date: September 3, 2020
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, Sagar Pandya, William Shane Simpson Grant
  • Patent number: 10678228
    Abstract: Increased robotic sophistication and more efficient autonomous operation is implemented by providing separate physical autonomous robots shared and remote access to the sensory array and information from the sensory array of one another. Each robot can access a sensor of any other robot, or scans or other information obtained from the sensor of any other robot. The robots leverage the shared sensory access in order to perform batch order fulfillment, dynamic rearrangement of item or tote locations, and opportunistic charging. These coordinated robotic operations based on the shared sensory access increase the efficiency and productivity of the robots without adding resources or hardware to the robots, increasing the speed of the robots, or increasing the number of deployed robots.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, Sagar Pandya, William Shane Simpson Grant
  • Publication number: 20200103921
    Abstract: Coordinated operation of two or more autonomous robots is based on a clustered partitioning of a collective set of operations and/or tasks that the robots perform simultaneously. The clustered partitioning may include generating a set of clusters with each cluster of the set of clusters allocating a different subset of the collective set of operations and/or tasks to a different robot such that the set of clusters results in a least amount of cumulative distance that the robots traverse in performing each operation and/or task of the collective set, and a maximum amount of distance separating the robots when performing each operation and/or task. Each cluster may be assigned to a different robot with the collective set of assigned clusters causing the robots to operate and move in a coordinated efficient and nonconflicting manner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Publication date: April 2, 2020
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, William Shane Simpson Grant
  • Publication number: 20200033867
    Abstract: Spatiotemporal robotic navigation may include providing a set of robots non-conflicting access to the same shared resources at different times so that the robots may operate without continually accounting for the locations of the other robots and workers operating in the particular site, without continually planning or updating paths after determining an initial path, and without continuously adjusting movements as the robots near one another. The spatiotemporal robotic navigation involves generating spatiotemporal plans. Each plan has a set of objectives that a robot is to execute by different time intervals. Each plan is generated so as to not conflict with the resources being accessed by other robots at time intervals set in the plans of other robots.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 24, 2018
    Publication date: January 30, 2020
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: William Shane Simpson Grant, Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II
  • Patent number: 10525420
    Abstract: The present invention includes a treatment system and methods for removing waste or other agents from a fluid stream, the system comprising: an inlet flow path for receiving a fluid stream from a source outside the treatment system; a vessel for containing the fluid stream, the vessel comprising a permeable filter configured for biological and physical treatment of the fluid stream, the filter comprising one or more nano-thin film or polymer composite layers of carbon materials assembled in sp2 hybridized structures comprising carbon-carbon bonds, wherein the waste or agent is removed as it flows through pores in the film composite; and a drain fluidly connected to the vessel for discharging treated fluid stream from the vessel from which the waste or agents have been removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2020
    Assignee: THE BOARD OF REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SYSTEM
    Inventors: Eva M. Deemer, William Shane Walker, Tallen A. Capt
  • Publication number: 20190310655
    Abstract: Increased robotic sophistication and more efficient autonomous operation is implemented by providing separate physical autonomous robots shared and remote access to the sensory array and information from the sensory array of one another. Each robot can access a sensor of any other robot, or scans or other information obtained from the sensor of any other robot. The robots leverage the shared sensory access in order to perform batch order fulfillment, dynamic rearrangement of item or tote locations, and opportunistic charging. These coordinated robotic operations based on the shared sensory access increase the efficiency and productivity of the robots without adding resources or hardware to the robots, increasing the speed of the robots, or increasing the number of deployed robots.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 4, 2018
    Publication date: October 10, 2019
    Applicant: inVia Robotics, Inc.
    Inventors: Randolph Charles Voorhies, Lior Elazary, Daniel Frank Parks, II, Sagar Pandya, William Shane Simpson Grant