Eigen-mode encoding of signals in a data group
Granted: May 1, 2001
Patent Number:
6226330
A system and method for encoding N signals onto an N+1 conductor signal line. First, the electrical characteristics of the signal line are determined by calculating an inductance matrix for each conductor, calculating electrostatic inductance for each conductor and calculating an eigen-mode encoding matrix. The N signals are then encoded into signals enc(0) through enc(n), wherein the step of encoding comprises the step of encoding each of the N signals as a function of the…
Method for selecting optimal parameters for compiling source code
Granted: May 1, 2001
Patent Number:
6226790
In a computer system, a method for determining an optimal loop interchange, set of register tiling amount, and cache tiling size for compiling source code into object code. The method first constructs a model of the specific computer system upon which the object code is to be run. Next, the search space comprising all of the different possibilities of the loop interchanges, register tiling amounts, and cache tiling sizes is run through the model to determine estimated times of execution.…
Method for rendering silhouette and true edges of 3-D line drawings with occlusion
Granted: May 1, 2001
Patent Number:
6226003
A computer-implemented method for generating three dimensional line drawings in which only silhouette edges and true edges that are visible are displayed. The color, depth, and stencil buffers are respectively initialized to background color, farthest value, and zero. In a first pass, all polygons are rendered by filling all pixels within their boundaries. At each pixel, only its depth value is modified by selecting the nearer of either the current depth value or the new depth value.…
Method for efficient translation of memory addresses in computer systems
Granted: April 24, 2001
Patent Number:
6223270
A method and system for efficient translation of memory addresses in computer systems. The present invention enables address translations between different address spaces to be performed without using the table lookup step typically required in the prior art. Thus, the present invention provides significant improvements in both time and space efficiency over prior art implementations of address translation. In modern computer systems where direct memory access (DMA) operations are used…
Collaborative work environment supporting three-dimensional objects and multiple, remote participants
Granted: April 17, 2001
Patent Number:
6219057
A collaborative work environment supports manipulating an object defined by a three-dimensional model by multiple remote participants. A three-dimensional model of the object is able to be translated, rotated and scaled in a work area of a whiteboard associated with the collaborative work environment. Each of the remote participants is able to view, manipulate, and mark-up the three-dimensional model of the object so that the remote participants can work collaboratively together.
Method and system for decoding data encoded in a variable length code word
Granted: April 17, 2001
Patent Number:
6219457
A novel technique for decoding variable length encoded data in a bit stream such as video data compressed in accordance with JPEG, MPEG, or DV standards is disclosed. The disclosed technique preprocesses the input data to generate a pointer to a variable length code table from the encoded code word, the entry in the variable length table providing the information necessary to decode the code word. Preprocessing of the input data includes encoding leading ones or leading zeros and…
Platform independent application program interface for interactive 3D scene management
Granted: April 10, 2001
Patent Number:
6215495
A computer-readable medium having stored thereon an applications programming interface for causing a computer system to render a three-dimensional scene according to a downloaded file. A scene graph is constructed from a number of objects stored in memory. These objects have variables which can be changed by subroutine calls. Furthermore, one or more objects can contain one or more fields. A field is comprised of a data type which represents the state of an object. Engines are used to…
Memory system with switching for data isolation
Granted: April 10, 2001
Patent Number:
6215686
A memory system that includes switches for controlling data transfer that are disposed on the motherboard. The switches are selectively coupled to a controller and to connector receptacles that are adapted to receive a memory module. The memory system also includes resistors that are disposed on the motherboard for terminating data signals. In one embodiment, memory modules are accessed in pairs. That is, the data switches are used to control the flow of data signals such that data…
System and method for fast barrier synchronization
Granted: April 10, 2001
Patent Number:
6216174
Improved method and apparatus for facilitating fast barrier synchronization in a parallel-processing system. A single input signal and a single output signal, and a single bit of state (“barrier_bit”) is added to each processor to support a barrier. The input and output signal are coupled to a dedicated barrier-logic circuit that includes memory-mapped bit-vector registers to track the “participating” processors and the “joined” processors for the…
Analytic motion blur coverage in the generation of computer graphics imagery
Granted: April 3, 2001
Patent Number:
6211882
A system and method for simulating motion blur. Intersections of pixel sampling points with leading and trailing edges of moving polygons are identified. The intersection points define segments of coverage of the pixel sampling point by a polygon. A segment list is sorted to identify segments that are associated with visible polygons. The segments of visible polygons are passed to shading and texturing functions which individually determine the temporal sampling points for a single…
Method and system for efficient context switching in a computer graphics system
Granted: March 27, 2001
Patent Number:
6208361
The present invention comprises a system for implementing efficient context switching in a graphics computer system including a processor subsystem and a graphics pipeline. The system of the present invention includes a graphics pipeline configured to render 3D objects and a processor subsystem coupled to the graphics pipeline for executing a software process. A command buffer is coupled to the graphics pipeline for storing graphics commands from the software process and efficiently…
Method and apparatus for geometric model deformation using wires
Granted: March 20, 2001
Patent Number:
6204860
A system that defines a wire curve deformation primitive with a free-form parametric curve associated with the closest points to the curve on a surface of a model. The wire curve includes a radius influence defining the points on the object which will be deformed. A scale factor determines the amplitude of the scaling or point movement that is caused by the wire curve. A blending function of the wire curve defines the transition form deformed regions of the object to undeformed regions…
Adaptive bandwidth sharing
Granted: March 20, 2001
Patent Number:
6205119
A method and apparatus for the efficient management of electronic communications in a ring topology network. Each Send packet and Echo packet includes a mechanism used to request to share bandwidth. In one implementation a single bit is used, while in another the mechanism includes a traffic control field providing a hierarchy of request to share bits accompanied by priority information, thereby enabling a multi-level system. When a Send packet reaches the target node the information is…
Method and apparatus for virtual address translation
Granted: March 20, 2001
Patent Number:
6205531
A method and apparatus for efficiently translating virtual to physical addresses is provided. An embodiment of the apparatus includes a TLB descriptor table that includes a series of TLB descriptors. Each TLB descriptor includes an offset that selects a TLB segment within a translation lookaside buffer (TLB). To perform a virtual to physical address translation, a processor sends a virtual address and a descriptor ID to the memory request unit. The descriptor ID is used to select the TLB…
Method and apparatus for providing an expandable, hierarchical index in a hypertextual, client-server environment
Granted: March 6, 2001
Patent Number:
6199098
A method and apparatus are provided for navigating through electronically stored information using an expandable, hierarchical index or TOC, in a hypertextual client-server network environment such as the World Wide Web. The client-server network comprises at least one client computer coupled by network link to at least one server computer. In accordance with the invention, a publisher of the TOC provides to the server a digital specification of the TOC, defining the TOC as a plurality…
Printed circuit board carrier insertion/extraction assembly
Granted: February 27, 2001
Patent Number:
6193532
An assembly designed to increase the ease with which a printed circuit board carrier may be inserted or extracted from an enclosure. The assembly includes a movable lever mounted to the carrier and curved pin slot in the enclosure. A pin on the lever engages the curved pin slot. During insertion, the shape of the pin slot guides the carrier into its position, then the lever rotates to place the pin in a portion of the pin slot that is oriented in a substantially different direction from…
Method and apparatus for user side scheduling in a multiprocessor operating system program that implements distributive scheduling of processes
Granted: February 27, 2001
Patent Number:
6195676
An integrated software architecture for a highly parallel multiprocessor system having multiple tightly-coupled processors that share a common memory efficiently controls the interface with and execution of programs on such a multiprocessor system. The software architecture combines a symmetrically integrated multithreaded operating system and an integrated parallel user environment. The operating system distributively implements an anarchy-based scheduling model for the scheduling of…
User interface system and method for controlling playback time-based temporal digital media
Granted: February 20, 2001
Patent Number:
6191784
A system and method that maps temporal control functions into a six degree of freedom pointing device. The six degree of freedom pointing device controls both transport and view modes within a time-based media editing system and allows a user to toggle between modes without losing visual contact with graphical objects appearing on a video screen. During playback operations in the transport (temporal) mode, the system allows a cap on the six degree of freedom pointing device to be divided…
Ellipsoidal projection mapping
Granted: February 20, 2001
Patent Number:
6191795
A projective body is aligned with a surface to generate texture coordinates for the surface. The present invention includes selecting an appropriate projective body for a given surface, orienting and positioning the surface with respect to the projective body, projecting the surface onto the projective body, and then mapping the projective body onto the texture rectangle. An inertial ellipsoid is used to orient the surface and the projective body. The inertial ellipsoid can also be used…
Web survey tool builder and result compiler
Granted: February 13, 2001
Patent Number:
6189029
The present invention relates to a software tool that permits creation of electronic surveys and the automatic collection and tabulation of survey results corresponding to user responses. Using the tool, a survey is automatically created and posted at a Web site address. With a Web client, or browser, computer users access the URL and complete the survey via the Web. Survey results are collected in a relational database as each user completes the survey. Thereafter, statistical tools or…
