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Microsoft has never been shy about its ambitions for Kinect’s depth sensing abilities. A pair of patent applications, however, show that its hopes and dreams are taking a more Hollywood turn. One patent has the depth camera going portable: a “mobile environment sensor” determines its trajectory through a room and generates a depth map as it goes, whether it’s using a Kinect-style infrared sensor or stereoscopic cameras. If the visual mapping isn’t enough, the would-be camera relies on a motion sensor like an accelerometer to better judge its position as it’s jostled around. Microsoft doesn’t want to suggest what kind of device (if any) might use the patent for its camera, but it’s not ruling out anything from smartphones through to traditional PCs.

The second patent filing uses the Kinect already in the house for that directorial debut you’ve always been putting off. Hand gestures control the movie editing, but the depth camera both generates a model of the environment and creates 3D props out of real objects. Motion capture, naturally, lets the humans in the scene pursue their own short-lived acting careers. We haven’t seen any immediate signs that Microsoft is planning to use this or the mobile sensor patent filing in the real world, although both are closer to reality than some of the flights of fancy that pass by the USPTO — the movie editor has all the hallmarks of a potential Dashboard update or Kinect Fun Labs project.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Gaming

Microsoft patent applications take Kinect into mobile cameras, movie-making originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 18:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google and Rovi Corporation have announced a new patent licensing deal that will help Google offer a more complete fiber TV service. Google Fiber‘s TV service was announced last week as a part of its new fiber Internet offerings, and thanks to this new deal with Rovi, Google will have access to the company’s “interactive program guide patent portfolio” for set-top boxes. The announcement says that these patents apply to mobile and online platforms as well, so that’s something to keep an eye on.

The agreement signed today is a multi-year deal, and at this point, it’s unclear which exact patents Google has licensed from Rovi’s portfolio. What is clear is the fact that Rovi holds thousands of patents related to the world of digital entertainment in one way or another (the company itself counts “approximately 5,100″), so it wouldn’t surprise us to hear that Google didn’t have any choice but to sign this licensing agreement. Still, if it helps make Google Fiber’s TV service better, then we imagine paying licensing fees will be a minor detail to the Internet giant.

Google will be offering this new fiber TV service alongside its fiber Internet service, but it’s probably going to take some time for all of this to get off the ground. As of last week’s announcement, only Kansas City, MO and Kansas City, KS are confirmed to be getting the service, and neighborhoods – “fiberhoods” as Google calls them – will need to compete for the compnay’s attention. Google will be giving neighborhoods that post strong pre-registration numbers priority when it comes to installing service, and the initial roll out is set to last well into 2013.

Despite Google Fiber’s inevitable slow start, it’s good to see Google getting licensing agreements locked down so fast. Seeing as how this is a pretty big undertaking, this probably won’t be the last we hear of Google licensing technology from other companies. Keep an ear to SlashGear for more information, and be sure to check out our story timeline below for more information on Google Fiber!

Google Fiber signs multi-year patent deal with Rovi for TV service is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
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We’ll leave labeling of InterDigital to the individual — whether you prefer patent troll or non-practicing entity, the semantics don’t concern us. What does concern us, however, is the IP firm’s ongoing legal battle with Nokia, and its recent victory over the Finnish manufacturer in the US Court of Appeals. The ruling reverses a previous decision handed down by the ITC that found Nokia did not violate InterDigital’s patents, but the trio of judges hearing the appeal disagreed. The claims in question relate to 3G radios and networks — the same patents that the firm used to target ZTE and Huawei. It doesn’t appear that there will be any immediate repercussions for Nokia, either in the form of import bans or settlement fees. The Windows Phone champion is considering its next move, which may involve appealing the appeal.

Filed under: Cellphones

InterDigital wins appeal in never-ending Nokia patent battle originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 09:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When a judge decides to dismiss evidence you feel would make your case in a patent lawsuit, you have one of two options: a) You can sit back and deal with it like a timid little tktkt or b) you can fire back and choose another public-facing channel to disseminate your information. Samsung chose the latter, opting to send its dismissed slides from its legal battle with Apple to the press, and drawing the ire of the judge overseeing the case. More »

Apple has been granted a patent for a predictive text keyboard on mobile devices that will automatically increase the size of touch targets without actually doing so visually. Although this patent, which Apple Insider dug up, is bit confusing in concept, it’s execution makes sense. In fact, the idea of implementing this idea without visual indicators actually makes this whole idea much more functional. More »