21541results about "Television systems" patented technology

A vehicle lighting system for a vehicle includes an accessory module assembly that is adapted for attachment to an interior portion of a vehicle and configured to illuminate, for example, an area inside the vehicle. The module assembly includes a single high-intensity power light emitting diode that has a luminous efficiency of at least about 1 lumen per watt when the light emitting diode is operated and is preferably operated at a forward current of at least 100 milliamps. The system also includes a voltage conversion element for converting the battery/ignition voltage of the vehicle to the forward operating voltage of the light emitting diode.

Systems and methods are disclosed for displaying data on a head's-up display screen. Multiple forms of data can be selectively displayed on a semi-transparent screen mounted in the user's normal field of view. The screen can either be mounted on the user's head, or mounted on a moveable implement and positioned in front of the user. A user interface is displayed on the screen including a moveable cursor and a menu of computer control icons. An eye-tracking system is mounted proximate the user and is employed to control movement of the cursor. By moving and focusing his or her eyes on a specific icon, the user controls the cursor to move to select the icon. When an icon is selected, a command computer is controlled to acquire and display data on the screen. The data is typically superimposed over the user's normal field of view.

An approach is provided for supporting multi-media conferencing. Textual information (e.g., text associated with a presentation) is received for display during a conference session to multiple participants. For a particular participant, configuration information corresponding to the participant specifies language assistance for the textual information. Language assistance involves augmenting the textual information according to the configuration information for comprehension of the textual information by the particular participant. In one embodiment, the augmented textual information includes language translation of the textual information. Additionally, the augmented textual information can encompass definitions of terms, including acronyms. The augmented textual information is forwarded for display to the participant during the conference session.

Priority-based content retrieval mechanisms for digital entertainment devices are provided. In various embodiments, the download prioritizations may be interrupt-based, sequence-based, or a combination of the two. In interrupt-based prioritizations, a higher priority download request will interrupt a lower-priority download that is already in progress. In sequence-based prioritizations, a plurality of file download requests may be ordered in a download queue depending on the priority of the request, with higher priority requests being positioned towards the top of the queue and lower priority requests being positioned towards the bottom of the queue.

The invention aligns a set of plural images to construct a mosaic image. At least different pairs of the images overlap partially (or fully), and typically are images captured by a camera looking at the same scene but oriented at different angles from approximately the same location or similar locations. In order to align one of the images with another one of the images, the following steps are carried out: (a) determining a difference error between the one image and the other image; (b) computing an incremental rotation of the one image relative to a 3-dimensional coordinate system through an incremental angle which tends to reduce the difference error; and (c) rotating the one image in accordance with the incremental rotation to produce an incrementally warped version of the one image. As long as the difference error remains significant, the method continues by re-performing the foregoing determining, computing and rotating steps but this time with the incrementally warped version of the one image.

A system is presented providing content to a plurality of handheld devices (including musical selections). The devices can access a server over the Internet via a Wi-Fi or other similar wireless interconnection and can download songs requested by a user from the server or from other users using, e.g., a P2P protocol. All downloads may be governed by applicable DRM rules. Content and playlists may also be pushed by a server from other sources and means including, e.g., podcasting, based on predetermined rules, favorite preferences of users, and other criteria.

A process and facility supports device-specific delivery of a multimedia object to an end user's device as a function of the device's capabilities, the transport interface to the device, and/or the viewing state and/or access privileges of the device's user with respect to the object or the user's relationship to an owner of the device and/or multimedia object.

A technique for hiding of data, including watermarks, in human-perceptible images, that is, image host data, is disclosed. In one embodiment a method comprises three steps. In the first step, data to be embedded is inputted. In the case of a watermark, this data is a unique signature, and may be a pseudo-noise (PN) code. In the case of hidden data to be embedded in the host data, this data is the hidden data itself, or the hidden data as spread against the frequency spectrum by a pseudo-noise (PN) code. In the second step, the inputted data is embedded within the host data, in accordance with a perceptual mask of the host data. The perceptual mask determines the optimal locations within the host data to insert the inputted data. In the case of images, these optimal locations are determined by reference to the human visual system. In the third step, the host data, with the embedded data, is further masked by a non-frequency mask. In the case of image data, the non-frequency mask is a spatial mask.

QoS is built into a peer network within existing Internet infrastructure itself lacking QoS, by enabling a network peer to continuously discern the network's ability to deliver to that peer a particular Content Object (distributed in groups of component Packages among neighboring VOD peers) within predetermined times. Content Objects are divided into groups of component Packages and distributed to Clusters of neighboring network peers, enhancing QoS upon subsequent retrieval. Tracking Files (lists of network peers storing Package groups) and Tracking Indexes (lists of network peers storing Tracking Files) are generated to facilitate “on demand” Content Objects retrieval. Dynamically monitoring network traffic (including VOD functionality, bandwidth and reliability) creates “distributed closed-loop feedback,” and in response, attributes of individual network peers (e.g., Trust Level and membership within a particular Cluster) are modified, and “content balancing” functions performed (e.g., redistribution of Package groups among network peers) enables maintaining high QoS.

An enforcement architecture and method for implementing digital rights management are disclosed. Digital content is distributed from a content server to a computing device of a user and received, and an attempt is made to render the digital content by way of a rendering application. The rendering application invokes a Digital Rights Management (DRM) system, and such DRM system determines whether a right to render the digital content in the manner sought exists based on any digital license stored in the computing device and corresponding to the digital content. If the right does not exist, a digital license that provides such right and that corresponds to the digital content is requested from a license server, and the license server issues the digital license to the DRM system. The computing device receives the issued digital license and stores the received digital license thereon.

The present invention relates to a helicopter having a modular airframe, with multiple layers which can be connected easily, the layers which house the electronics (autopilot and navigation systems), batteries, and payload (including camera system) of the helicopter. The helicopter has four, six, and eight rotors, which can be easily changed via removing one module of the airframe. In one embodiment, the airframe has a vertical stacked appearance, and in another embodiment, a domed shape (where several of the layers are stacked internally). In one embodiment, there is a combination landing gear and camera mount. The helicopter allows for simple flight and usage by remote control, and non-remote control, users.

An intelligent door lock system is provided with a position sensing device configured to be coupled to a drive shaft of a lock device. The position sensing device senses position of the drive shaft and assists in locking and unlocking a lock of a lock device. An engine is provided with a memory coupled to the positioning sensing device. A circuit is coupled to the engine and an energy source is coupled to the circuit. A device converts energy into mechanical energy and is coupled to the circuit, positioning sensing device and the drive shaft. The device that converts energy is coupled to the energy source to receive energy from the energy source.

Improved techniques to partially encrypt media files are disclosed. The encryption serves to cryptographically secure only a portion of the media data within a media file, while the remaining portion of the media data is not cryptographically secured. Although only partial encryption is used, the portion being encrypted serves to substantially disrupt usefulness of other parts of the media file which are not encrypted. In other words, the partial encryption renders the media file substantially unusable by unauthorized users. In one embodiment, the partial encryption is performed by a host device and thereafter the partially encrypted media file is delivered to a client device. The client device, if authorized, can subsequently decrypt the partially encrypted media file and utilize (e.g., play) the media file. However, since the media files are only partially encrypted, the decryption is likewise also only partial, which makes decryption faster and less resource intensive.

An apparatus for embedding information comprises: a blocking step for dividing data to be processed into blocks; an orthogonal transform step for obtaining coefficients by carrying out orthogonal transformation for each block; an embedding coefficient selecting step for determining coefficients in which the watermark-information will be embedded by using a random sequence which is generated by initial value; an information embedding step for sequentially embedding the watermark-information, which has arbitrary length of bits, by quantizing value of said coefficients using a predetermined value for quantization; and an inverse orthogonal transform step for carrying out inverse orthogonal transformation for modified coefficients to form block in which the watermark-information is embedded, as well as combining the divided blocks and reconstructing the original form.

An image processing apparatus comprises a receiver (201) for receiving an image signal which comprises at least an encoded image and a target display reference. The target display reference is indicative of a dynamic range of a target display for which the encoded image is encoded. A dynamic range processor (203) generates an output image by applying a dynamic range transform to the encoded image in response to the target display reference. An output (205) then outputs an output image signal comprising the output image, e.g. to a suitable display. The dynamic range transform may furthermore be performed in response to a display dynamic range indication received from a display. The invention may be used to generate an improved High Dynamic Range (HDR) image from e.g. a Low Dynamic Range (LDR) image, or vice versa.

An memory module including parallel data compression and decompression engines for improved performance. The memory module includes MemoryF/X Technology. To improve latency and reduce performance degradations normally associated with compression and decompression techniques, the MemoryF/X Technology encompasses multiple novel techniques such as: 1) parallel lossless compression/decompression; 2) selectable compression modes such as lossless, lossy or no compression; 3) priority compression mode; 4) data cache techniques; 5) variable compression block sizes; 6) compression reordering; and 7) unique address translation, attribute, and address caches. The parallel compression and decompression algorithm allows high-speed parallel compression and high-speed parallel decompression operation. The memory module-integrated data compression and decompression capabilities remove system bottlenecks and increase performance. This allows lower cost systems due to smaller data storage, reduced bandwidth requirements, reduced power and noise.

A method and computer readable medium for exploring similar users and items of a media service. In one aspect, a user can explore for similar users iteratively. In one aspect, a user interface is generated that displays a user selectable indicia representing a similar member function for allowing a user to search a media service for at least one other user which has a degree of similarity with respect to the searching user. In another aspect, a method facilitates the search of such a similar user within a media service.