Patents Examined by Adrien J Bernard
  • Patent number: 11622563
    Abstract: A device for kneading dough, in particular a kneading drum, has a rotationally driven inner kneading drum and a rotationally driven outer kneading drum. The inner kneading drum is arranged within the hollow outer kneading drum, in particular in a concentric. The device includes a kneading drive, by means of which the inner kneading drum can be driven or adjusted in an oscillating manner in the direction of the inner kneading drum axis relative to the outer kneading drum and/or so as to carry out a defined deflection at an angle about the axis of the inner kneading drum relative to the outer kneading. The outer kneading drum has a number of kneading recesses which are distributed over the circumference and/or along the length of the outer kneading drum in a uniform manner in.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Inventor: Eduard Rauch
  • Patent number: 11618188
    Abstract: An automated manufacturing method and system and in-mold coated plastic article produced thereby are provided. The system includes a compression mold and a plurality of program-controlled manipulators. An automatic sprayer supported on a first manipulator sprays at least a portion of a mold surface with an in-mold coating composition. An end effector supported on a second manipulator picks up a heated blank of moldable plastic sheet material from an oven and places the heated blank between upper and lower mold halves of the mold. An inner portion of the heated blank is forced into an article-defining cavity of the mold and into contact with at least a portion of the in-mold coating composition. The in-mold coating composition and the inner portion of the heated blank cure and bond to one another so as to form the coated plastic article.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: Global IP Holdings, LLC
    Inventors: Christopher A. Heikkila, Steven A. Mitchell
  • Patent number: 11602895
    Abstract: In one embodiment, an additive manufacturing system includes a dispensing nozzle configured to dispense material to be used to manufacture a component, a barrel to which the nozzle is mounted, the barrel being configured to deliver the material to the dispensing nozzle, a barrel heater that surrounds the barrel, the barrel heater including a heating element configured to heat the barrel heater, the nozzle, and the material contained within the nozzle before it is dispensed from the nozzle, and a supplemental heater configured to heat previously deposited material so as to increase bonding and merging of the material that is being dispensed with the previously deposited material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2023
    Assignee: BOARD OF REGENTS, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SYSTEM
    Inventors: Ankur Jain, Hardikkumar Prajapati, Darshan Ravoori
  • Patent number: 11598367
    Abstract: An element comprising a non-stick surface for substantially cleanly removing a product which is arranged against said non-stick surface. The element comprises a first layer of an pervious material, which is configured to allow a fluid to flow there through. An outer surface of said first layer provides the non-stick surface. The element comprises a second layer of an impervious material, which is configured to substantially block a flow of fluid there through. The second layer is arranged at a side of said first layer opposite to the outer surface. The element comprises ducts or chambers which are arranged in said first layer or in between said first and second layer. Said ducts or chambers are arranged in fluid connection with said pervious material and are configured for feeding a pressurized fluid to the pervious material. At least the first layer is formed using a three-dimensional printing tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignee: SPACE-XYZ IP B.V.
    Inventors: Lodewijk Stephanus Margaretha Joseph Van Der Borg, Jan Jacob Bulsink, Franciscus Quirinus Fredrik Verouden
  • Patent number: 11584044
    Abstract: A method is provided for forming a near-net thermoplastic composite component includes co-spraying a mixture comprising a thermoplastic polymer material and a chopped reinforcing material deposited onto at least one region associated with a tool having a first temperature and defining a near-net component shape. The mixture and adjacent tool is heated to a second temperature while the mixture is on the tool. The first temperature is below the solidification temperature of the thermoplastic polymer material and the second temperature is above the solidification temperature. Then, the mixture is exposed to a negative pressure to promote removal of gases from the mixture and put under compressive force to densify the mixture. The thermoplastic polymer material melts and flows. The tool is cooled to the first temperature and removing the mixture to form the near-net thermoplastic composite component having randomly oriented chopped reinforcement material distributed within a thermoplastic polymer matrix.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
    Inventors: Bhavesh Shah, William R. Rodgers, Mark A. Voss, Terrence Wathen
  • Patent number: 11584051
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a device for producing a particle foam part. The device comprises a molding tool (3) which delimits a molding chamber (14), wherein at least two capacitor plates (15, 16) are arranged adjacently to the molding chamber, said plates be connected to an RF radiation source. The RF radiation source is designed to dispense RF radiation, and the molding tool (3) has means for controlling the temperature of the molding tool in the region of an inner delimiting surface (19) delimiting the molding chamber (14) and/or for supplying a heating medium to the molding tool region lying against the inner delimiting surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: Kurtz GmbH
    Inventor: Victor Romanov
  • Patent number: 11577318
    Abstract: In some examples, an additive manufacturing process may be operated by a method that includes depositing a plurality of preliminary layers of build material over a build surface and applying thermal energy governed by closed-loop control to heat the preliminary layers. The method includes analyzing a temperature distribution across a layer of the preliminary layers to map the locations of any hot spots relative to the build surface. The method includes selecting a spray pattern to apply a cooling agent to the mapped locations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Arthur H. Barnes, Wesley R. Schalk
  • Patent number: 11565325
    Abstract: A powder discharge unit for equipping and/or upgrading a device for generatively manufacturing a three-dimensional object by a selective layer-by-layer solidification of building material in powder form includes a powder container for receiving building material in powder form and a filling chamber for filling in building material in powder form into the powder container. The powder discharge unit is configured to fluidise the building material in powder form in the powder container and the building material in powder form in the filling chamber independently of one another.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: EOS GmbH Electro Optical Systems
    Inventors: Stefan Paternoster, Stefan Grünberger
  • Patent number: 11548249
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire that is vulcanized using a bladder provided with a coating layer comprising a release agent, the noise absorber being fixed to the inner surface of the tread portion along the tire circumferential direction via the adhesive layer, and the amount of silicon in the release agent detected by X-ray fluorescence analysis is 0.1 wt. % to 10.0 wt. % at least in the fixation region for the noise absorber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2023
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventors: Masahiro Naruse, Takashi Hoshiba
  • Patent number: 11534950
    Abstract: A rubber extrusion device comprises a control plate having an adjustment flow path communicating with an extrusion flow path formed in a head and an extrusion port formed in a die is interposed between the head and the die; the control plate is slid along and between the head and the die to change a position of a communication region of the extrusion flow path with respect to the adjustment flow path at a leading end opening of the extrusion flow path to set the control plate at a desired position; and unvulcanized rubber, obtained by mixing and kneading rubber material while extruding the rubber material forward with a screw, passes through the extrusion flow path and the adjustment flow path to be extruded from the extrusion port.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2022
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventors: Yuki Furubayashi, Satoru Nishio
  • Patent number: 11518085
    Abstract: A direct-to-object printer is configured to adjust a pixel density of a portion of contone image data for an image to be printed on a surface of a tapered object. The controller of the printer also filters the contone image data with a stochastic halftone filer to produce binary image data for the image to be printed on the tapered object. The adjustment in the pixel density for the portion of the image to be printed on the portion of the object having a circumference that is different than another portion of the surface at the uppermost portion of the image produces a more uniform appearance in the resulting printed image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: Martin L. Frachioni
  • Patent number: 11517794
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a seamless inflatable ball contains: 1) inflating air into a preformed body so as to form a spherical body and covering a medium layer on the spherical body so as to form a semi-finished part; 2) forming a fluidic surface material on the medium layer of the semi-finished part in a predetermined thickness so as to produce a spherical portion with a covering layer; 3) placing the spherical portion into two ball molds; and 4) partially discharging air out of the spherical body and inflating the air into the spherical body repeatedly. In the step 3), the spherical portion is clamped in the two ball molds, and after the fluidic surface material is dried or is solidified to form a solid layer on the spherical portion, the spherical portion is removed from the two ball molds, thus forming a sphere.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Inventor: Jui-Yu Hu
  • Patent number: 11513080
    Abstract: An inspection system for an additive manufacturing machine can include a housing configured to be mounted to an internal construction of the additive manufacturing machine, wherein the housing defines a laser inlet configured to allow a laser beam from a laser of the additive manufacturing machine to enter into the housing, wherein the housing defines a laser outlet configured to allow the laser beam to exit from the housing and to allow reflected light to enter into the housing. One or more detectors is disposed within the housing and configured to receive the reflected light. The system includes one or more optical elements configured to allow the laser beam to pass through the housing from the laser inlet to the laser outlet toward a build area of the additive manufacturing machine and to direct reflected light from the laser outlet to the one or more detectors within the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation
    Inventor: Eric Karlen
  • Patent number: 11511571
    Abstract: Tyre (1) for heavy load vehicle wheels, having a tread band (8) comprising: —a plurality of circumferential grooves (3, 4, 5, 6); —a plurality of transverse grooves (15) extending between two axially consecutive circumferential grooves (3, 4, 5, 6), thus defining a plurality of blocks (21); —each block (21) comprising a radially outer top surface (7) and having a height (M) measured between said top surface and a bottom surface of a respective transverse groove (15); —said transverse grooves (15) comprising a first segment (16) having a width L1 and a second segment (17) having a width L2, where L2<L1; —said first segment (16) being at least partially delimited by walls of two circumferentially consecutive blocks (20, 21); —at least one filling element (18) contained within said first segment (16); —said at least one filling element (18) having a radially outer top surface (19), located radially inwardly relative to said top surface (7) of the block at a radial distance (D) between 5% and 50% of the height
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 4, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: PIRELLI TYRE S.p.A.
    Inventors: Tommaso Pizzorno, Claudio Minoli, Daniele Lorenzetti
  • Patent number: 11511471
    Abstract: An injection molding system includes: an injection molding machine configured to operate in accordance with a command generated using a first language, and inject a molten material into a mold to mold a molded object; a robot configured to operate in accordance with a command generated using a second language, and convey the molded object; and a control device configured to control the injection molding machine and the robot. When determining that an error occurs in at least one of the injection molding machine and the robot, the control device transmits, to the injection molding machine, a command generated using the first language and for causing the injection molding machine to execute a return operation, and transmits, to the robot, a command interpretable by the second language and for causing the robot to execute a return operation, so as to cause the injection molding machine and the robot to execute the return operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroki Takano, Kakeru Sasagawa, Kei Yokota, Kenta Anegawa, Seiichiro Yamashita, Riona Hayashi, Yuji Shinbaru
  • Patent number: 11506973
    Abstract: An imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate using a mold having a pattern formation area. The imprint apparatus includes a mold measurement unit configured to measure a position of the pattern formation area of the mold, a light modulation element configured to control an intensity distribution of irradiation light applied to the substrate, an irradiation light measurement unit configured to measure a position of the irradiation light, and a control unit configured to control the position of the irradiation light with respect to the position of the pattern formation area based on a measurement result of the position of the pattern formation area by the mold measurement unit and a measurement result of the position of the irradiation light by the irradiation light measurement unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Kenji Yoshida
  • Patent number: 11472087
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to systems and methods relating to the application of composite radius filler materials. An example material feed system includes a material container configured to contain a composite material and a material feed actuator. The material feed system also includes a nozzle coupled to the material container and a workpiece sensor configured to provide information about a workpiece. The material feed system also includes a controller. The controller is configured to receive, from the workpiece sensor, workpiece information. The workpiece information is indicative of at least one surface of the workpiece. The controller is also configured to, based on the workpiece information, cause the material feed actuator to apply a force to the composite material contained in the material container so as to extrude at least a portion of the composite material out of the nozzle and onto a surface of the workpiece.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Fei Cai, Weidong Song
  • Patent number: 11472105
    Abstract: Embodiments for 3D printing an object by a processor are described. An object is selected to be printed by a 3D printer. The 3D printer includes a structure. The structure is modified based on the selected object. The selected object is 3D printed by the 3D printer. At least a portion of the selected object is supported by the modified structure while the selected object is being 3D printed by the 3D printer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Christopher J. Hardee, Sarbajit K. Rakshit
  • Patent number: 11465376
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a tire, the method comprising the steps of providing a cured tire subassembly, the subassembly including a first bead and a second bead, a cured carcass layer extending from the first bead to the second bead, and an optional cured innerliner disposed on the carcass layer; and applying an air barrier composition to the cured carcass layer, or to the cured innerliner if present, to form an air barrier layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC
    Inventors: Amy M. Randall, Craig R. Balnis, David J. Zemla
  • Patent number: 11458656
    Abstract: A method of forming aligned patterns on a mat contains steps of: (1). providing a main die configured to mold a body on a substrate; (2). forming multiple patterns on the body so as to produce a decoration portion; (3). forming a toothed cutting line on the body by ways of the alignment mark line so as to form multiple connection units on which multiple patterns are formed respectively, thus producing the mat; and (4). aligning the multiple patterns on the mat so as to provide or design the decoration portion on the multiple patterns, wherein the mat is disassembled to multiple coupling parts, and the multiple coupling parts of the mat are connected with another mat, thus producing an expandable mat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Gum Tech Co., Ltd
    Inventor: Ko-Hung Lee