ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09 s15

ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09

Homework 10: Patent Liability Analysis

Team Code Name: Digi-Brush___ Group No. 2___ Team Member Completing This Homework: Caleb Ayew-ew______E-mail Address of Team Member: __cayewew__@ purdue.edu

NOTE: This is the second in a series of four “professional component” homework assignments, each of which is to be completed by one team member. The body of the report should be 3-5 pages, not including this cover sheet, references, attachments or appendices.

Evaluation:

SCORE DESCRIPTION Excellent – among the best papers submitted for this assignment. Very few 10 corrections needed for version submitted in Final Report. Very good – all requirements aptly met. Minor additions/corrections needed for 9 version submitted in Final Report. Good – all requirements considered and addressed. Several noteworthy 8 additions/corrections needed for version submitted in Final Report. Average – all requirements basically met, but some revisions in content should 7 be made for the version submitted in the Final Report. Marginal – all requirements met at a nominal level. Significant revisions in 6 content should be made for the version submitted in the Final Report. Below the passing threshold – major revisions required to meet report * requirements at a nominal level. Revise and resubmit. * Resubmissions are due within one week of the date of return, and will be awarded a score of “6” provided all report requirements have been met at a nominal level.

Comments: Comments from the grader will be inserted here. ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09

1.0 Introduction The Digi-Brush is a digital painting set that utilizes a stylus-like input device to represent a paintbrush. The paintbrush interacts directly with the touch-screen to create brushstrokes on an LCD. There will be focus on three similar devices that have patents issued. All patents in this document may be in violation of the Doctrine of Equivalence.

2.0 Results of Patent and Product Search The first patent is for a Digital Mark-Making Method that claims it will create a 2D image on a computer that simulates an artist’s tool. It was filed by MetaCreations Corporation on December 7th, 1995. The user’s brushstroke is captured by the use of a mouse. The Digital Mark- Making Method utilizes a computer, or other hardware, to provide a digital representation of multiple-image elements to simulate various artists’ tools and smooth and continuous brush stroke without visible artifacts. The method allows for isolating a plurality of image elements, masking the image elements, creating a grid of image elements to function as an index of an array of the image elements, creating a file of such image elements for the purpose of accurately simulating brushes and other donor-receptor articulations common to natural media, and for rendering a brush stroke in multiple-images to accurately simulate digitally paint brushes and other implements. [1] The second patent is for a Method and Apparatus for Digital Painting which claims to display an image on a video display through a series of steps which include, but not limited to, receiving a series of painting strokes, recording said series as an ordered series, partitioning image into different regions, aging visible portion based on sequence iteration, updating age and image in said visible region. This patent was filed by Microsoft Corporation on November 26th, 1997. The user’s input is also captured by a “pointing device”. Once inputs are received the device records them from first to last and will update display on when a particular portion is to be displayed. The digital picture being painted is partitioned into a plurality of individual regions, and each region is assigned an age which indicates a painting step in the ordered sequence that is last applied to that region. When a region becomes visible the age of the region is checked, and all of the painting steps in the ordered sequence that are after the step indicated

-2- ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09 by the age of the region are then applied to the region so that it becomes up-to-date. The age of that region is updated accordingly. [2] The third patent is for Digital Painting. This patent was filed on April 26th, 1999 by Adobe Systems Incorporated. Digital Painting functionality, under this patent, is as follows. A user identifies an area of digital canvas. Color gradients are determined based on a corresponding area on a reference. Brush strokes are applied in the area of the digital canvas, the brush strokes having trajectories based on the color gradients. [3]

3.0 Analysis of Patent Liability The biggest similarity for all of these products is the fact that they all capture input from a pointing device to determine the location of the current area to be modified. Then that location on the image is modified based on a color. However, one major thing that separates the Digi- Brush from all of these products is the simple fact that the Digi-Brush specifically utilizes a touch-screen accompanied with a stylus-like paint brush and force resistor to capture input. Modification of the image occurs in a different way as well. The MetaCreations method updates the image based on a pre-saved image to represent artist tool. Then the image is applied in various ways along the input string to simulate a brush stroke. The Microsoft device updates only regions that they deem “visible” within their grid layout of an image. These grids can all be visible based on age and user input. The Adobe design takes the current image and modifies based on a color reference and color gradients. The Digi-Brush simply calculates a circle, whose radius depends on age of paint on brush and force applied, and writes the location of the circle’s pixels into external RAM then pulled out of Ram to be put onto the video device.

4.0 Action Recommended As outlined above there doesn’t appear to be any infringement happening based on the sheer difference of modification and input capture. If, however, there is a patent in existence similar to our design then the only course of action would be to change our software to process data in a different way. There are numerous ways to implement input capture of a device and displaying of an image on a video device. To rectify the infringement one would just need to select a different vehicle.

-3- ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09

5.0 Summary In this report three patents were discussed they came from MetaCreations, Microsoft and Adobe. The devices were similar in the fact they all processed input as a brushstroke and displayed a digitally painted image based on the brushstroke and color. However, it was determined by analyzing their patents that there was no infringement, literal or within the realm of the Doctrine of Equivalence, on their patents.

-4- ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Rev 8/09

List of References

[1] Mark Alan Zimmer, John Derry, “Digital Mark-Making Method,” U.S. Patent 5,767,680, December 7, 1995.

[2] John Bradstreet, Arthur F. Champernowne, “a Method and Apparatus for Digital Painting,” U.S. Patent 5,835,086, November 27, 1997.

[3] Michael D. Schuster, Gregg D. Wilensky, “Digital Painting,” U.S. Patent 6,870,550, April 26, 1999.