Sony Corporation

Sony Electronics Inc

Nobukazu Sugiyama

Djung N Nguyen

Ludovic Etienne Douillet

Lobrenzo Wingo

Ted Dunn

Aran London Sadja

Andy Nguyen

James Amendolagine

Kai Liu

Jeffrey Tang

William Arthur Schupp

Jaime Chee

Bryan John Mihalov

Yasuhisa Nakajima

Ling Jun Wong

Seth Hill

Tanmay Agnihotri

Marvin DeMerchant

Eric Hsiao

Sriram Sampathkumaran

Aravind Asam

Dipendu Saha

Kenji Hamamoto

Makoto Korehisa

Utkarsh Pandya

Dongwook Kim

David Tao

Xudong Yu

Srivastava Nanduri

William Collins

Takao Ueda

A method consistent with certain implementation involves presenting a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user on a display, where the GUI presents a visual representation of a room that is adapted to be adjusted in size and shape by user manipulation of a controller; the GUI has a drop and drag menu adapted to selection of an object from a plurality of objects for placement at any selected position within the room; at least one of the objects comprising a loudspeaker; and where the GUI provides for input of data characterizing the loudspeaker. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Virtual room form maker

According to one embodiment of the invention, a method for secured execution of commands is described. Initially, a second electronic device authenticates a first electronic device and registers the first electronic device as a trusted device. Thereafter, up receipt of a message with one or more embedded commands, such commands are executed without any pre-established communication protocol if the message is from the registered first electronic device.

System and method for performing commands from a remote source

The present invention is directed toward a method and apparatus in which one or more user specific windows may be launched within a single computing session executed and displayed on the display of an interactive table. More specifically, the present invention is directed toward detecting the position of one or more users around an interactive table and generating one or more user-specific windows proximate to one or more user/s on the display of the interactive table within a single session.

Method and apparatus for establishing user-specific windows on a multi-user interactive table

The user of an Internet-enabled CE device such as a TV can select an object in a video presented on the display of the CE device by either touch sensitive screen or input device. The processor of the CE device can then determine the boundaries of the object, identify it using face/image recognition software, search for information/websites related to the object, and present those information/websites to the viewer on the display screen.

Enhanced information for viewer-selected video object

A method consistent with certain implementations involves in an audio system having an array of a plurality of loudspeakers and a stored speaker map identifying the geometric relationship between the plurality of loudspeakers and a listening position, identifying a location on the speaker map of a Source Origin of a sound; selecting a method of localizing the Source Origin from a plurality of methods of localizing the Source Origin utilizing the array of loudspeakers; and reproducing the sound emanating from the Source Origin using the selected method. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Audio speaker selection for optimization of sound origin

A wireless communication device is configured to communicate with at least one other electronic user communication device that is connected to communicate on an electronic communication network. The user's device automatically creates a communication list comprising the at least one other electronic user communication device on the network, and the user communication device sends the communication list to a remote server device. So configured, the user communication device can automatically create a communication list of devices with which the user can use instant messaging or chat-like communications, without having to separately discover, search, or otherwise locate such devices and add them as friends or buddies or approved communication devices to a communication list. Accordingly, the electronic user communication device will provide to a user a communication list without additional registration or other set-up procedures.

Enabling wireless device communication

Method and systems are provided for initiating communication with a social networking server maintaining user information corresponding to a user, the user information for the user comprising media preferences for the user, one or more connections associated with the user, and media preferences for each of the one or more connections, retrieving at least a portion of the user information for the user from the social networking server and generating a viewing recommendation for the user at least in part based on at least one of the media preferences of the user, and the media preferences of the one or more connections, the viewing recommendation comprising one or more multi-media content.

System and method for providing recommendations to a user in a viewing social network

An advertising method involves displaying a plurality of social network thumbnails as an array of thumbnails on a television display, where said plurality of social network thumbnails represent social network videos that are posted or linked to a social network post; representing an advertisement as a thumbnail representation; displaying the advertisement thumbnail representation within the array of thumbnails on the television display; and receiving an instruction selecting of one of the thumbnails to navigate to and responsive thereto displaying either one of the social network videos or the advertisement. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

TV social network advertising

A method and device is provided for platform independent device communication by detecting a request at a processor-based device to perform a function, determining an external device corresponding to the request, retrieving a tag for the external device for performing a function corresponding to the request and generating a message implemented in XMPP, having embedded therein the tag, wherein the tag is essential at the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request. Receiving the message at a device, determining whether the message comprises a device message, retrieving a tag included in the message, wherein the tag corresponds to an executable command to perform a function and executing the tag to perform the function.

Method and apparatus for enabling device communication and control using XMPP

According to one embodiment of the invention, the invention relates to an electronic device that features a display unit, a storage unit and a processor. The storage unit is adapted to store a plurality of widgets. Coupled to the storage unit, the processor is adapted to control downloading of the plurality of widgets upon gaining access as a member to a viewing room, and thereafter, to control operations of the plurality of widgets in providing interactive communications with other members of the viewing room as content is being played back on the display unit.

System and method for providing viewing room services for network based content

An item of audio and video (A/V) content is identified stored in association with a DLNA server that does not have a thumbnail image associated with it. The item of A/V content is streamed at a DLNA client device. Intra-coded frames (I-Frames) are selected from the streamed A/V content. The selected I-Frames are presented to a user of the DLNA client device. A selection is received from the user identifying one of the selected I-Frames. The identified I-Frame is stored in association with the item of A/V content. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Digital living network alliance (DLNA) client device with thumbnail creation

A system and method for detecting a user operating a first client device at an intermediary server communicatively coupled to one or more client devices including the first client device and further communicatively coupled to one or more other intermediary servers each communicatively coupled with one or more other client devices, establishing communication with at least one social networking server maintaining information corresponding to the user comprising one or more of user preferences, a plurality of user connections, and user connection preferences corresponding to each of the plurality of user connections, querying the at least one social networking server for the information, receiving the information and generating a local viewing social network for the user comprising generating a user profile according to the information, detecting one or more local connections and establishing direct communication between the user and at least one of the one or more local connections.

System and method for creating a viewing social network

A method consistent with the present invention involves displaying a window on a computer monitor; at one or more programmed processors, determining a position of the window on the computer monitor; at the one or more programmed processors, deducing a user position for a user of the window with the window based on the position of the window on the computer monitor; and steering audio signals from an application running in the window to a loudspeaker in an array of loudspeakers, where the loudspeaker is a loudspeaker in the array of loudspeakers closer to the deduced user position than another loudspeaker in the array. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Growing community of inventors

San Diego, CA, United States of America

Nobukazu Sugiyama