Patents Examined by Jeff Natalini
  • Patent number: 10249161
    Abstract: A magnetic field sensor comprises a power source, an indicator and a microprocessor. The power source supplies current to the indicator. The indicator turns on when a magnetic field is sensed and the indicator turns off when a magnetic field is not sensed. The microprocessor renders the indicator inoperable a predetermined period of time after the magnetic field sensor is powered up.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2019
    Assignee: 1010210 B.C. Ltd.
    Inventor: Julian Carlson
  • Patent number: 10241160
    Abstract: A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus includes a gantry including a bore, and an image output screen configured to rotate around the bore and output visual information to an object placed in the bore.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Dae Ho Lee
  • Patent number: 10197616
    Abstract: In an insulation inspection apparatus configured to perform insulation inspection of a wiring pattern, when a voltage for performing the insulation inspection is applied between inspection objects, a current control unit controls a first current to be greater than a second current, the first current being supplied until the potential difference between the first inspection part and the second inspection part reaches the predetermine potential difference, the second current being supplied when the predetermined potential difference is reached.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2019
    Assignee: NIDEC-READ CORPORATION
    Inventor: Jun Kasai
  • Patent number: 10190890
    Abstract: A capacitance-to-voltage conversion circuit including a variable capacitance element, an integration circuit, and first and second sample and hold circuits. Capacitance value of the variable capacitance element varies depending on a physical quantity. The integration circuit outputs a voltage as a result of integration. The first sample and hold circuit samples and holds the voltage. The second sample and hold circuit samples and holds the sampled voltage and performs a simultaneous sampling operation in synchronism with the first sample and hold circuit at the same period as at least an initial sampling period. The second sample and hold circuit performs a sampling operation at a rear-end period in a sampling period of the first sample and hold circuit other than the sampling period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignee: MURATA MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tsuyoshi Okami
  • Patent number: 10191176
    Abstract: An MRI room door assembly for use in protecting an entrance to a room containing an MRI scanner system. The assembly comprising a doorframe that is suitable to be fixed in position within or around an opening to the room, a door that is fixed to the doorframe, and an sealing arrangement that seals the door to the frame when it is at rest in the closed position and which is released as a user initiates an opening of the door. At least one or more of the door and the doorframe include a built in safety system which provides a function relating to preventing ferrous objects being brought unintentionally close to the MRI scanner system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignee: Metrasens Limited
    Inventors: Mark Nicholas Keene, Simon Wray Goodyear
  • Patent number: 10191123
    Abstract: A magnetic field measurement device capable of accurate measurement of a magnetic field even after a sensitivity of an MI sensor varies is provided. A magnetic field measurement device (1) includes an MI sensor (2) and a sensitivity calculation means (3). The MI sensor (2) includes a magneto-sensitive body (20), a detection coil (21) and a magnetic field generation coil (22) that generates a magnetic field upon energization. The sensitivity calculation means (3) varies a current flowing in the magnetic field generation coil (22) in a state where an outside-sensor magnetic field HO acting on the magneto-sensitive body (20) from outside the MI sensor (2) is constant. Consequently, the magnetic field acting on the magneto-sensitive body (20) is varied to calculate a sensitivity a by dividing a variation in an output voltage of the detection coil (21) by a variation in the magnetic field acting on the magneto-sensitive body (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignee: AICHI STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tomohiko Nagao, Michiharu Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 10176736
    Abstract: A system determines the efficiency degradation of organic light emitting devices (OLEDs) in multiple array-based semiconductor devices having arrays of pixels that include OLEDs. The system determines the relationship between changes in an electrical operating parameter of the OLEDs and the efficiency degradation of the OLEDs in each of the array-based semiconductor devices, uses the determined relationship for a selected one of the array-based semiconductor devices to determine the efficiency degradation of the OLEDs, and compensates for the efficiency degradation. The relationship between changes in an electrical operating parameter of the OLEDs and the efficiency degradation of the OLEDs in the array-based semiconductor devices may be determined by the use of a test OLED associated with each of the devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2019
    Assignee: Ignis Innovation Inc.
    Inventor: Gholamreza Chaji
  • Patent number: 10171718
    Abstract: An electronic apparatus includes a first detection electrode group, a second detection electrode group, a third detection electrode group, a rotating member for moving among positions in which the rotating member faces the first to third detection electrode groups, a detection unit for detecting electrostatic capacitances of the first to third detection electrode groups, a determination unit for determining a rotation direction, a rotation amount, or a rotation angle of the rotating member in accordance with the electrostatic capacitances of the first to third detection electrode groups and threshold values for the first to third detection electrode groups, and an updating unit for updating a reference value of one of the first to third detection electrode groups corresponding to a selected smallest electrostatic capacitance using the selected smallest electrostatic capacitance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2019
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Kento Inai
  • Patent number: 10139468
    Abstract: A low cost planar transmission line sensor and simple calibration method for measuring the complex permittivity of materials with minimal sample preparation over a wide band of radio- and microwave frequencies. The sensor is also used for measuring anisotropic dielectric properties of materials with a defined grain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2018
    Assignee: The United States of America, as Represented by the Secretary of Agriculture
    Inventors: Jochem T. Roelvink, Samir Trabelsi
  • Patent number: 10132841
    Abstract: A clamp meter is revealed. The clamp includes a pair of jaws disposed on a main body. The main body is arranged with a display panel and a plurality of buttons. The pair of jaws can be opened or closed by manual operation to get data of an object that users intend to measure. The data is transferred to the main body and shown on the display panel. Users can switch to the electrical parameter that they need by pressing the buttons. The clamp meter features on a plurality of indicator lights disposed on the pair of jaws. Users can obtain current data directly by observing the indicator lights.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2018
    Assignee: PEACEFUL THRIVING ENTERPRISE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shih-Hsiang Chien
  • Patent number: 10132952
    Abstract: An electromagnetic sensing system operates either in land environments or in marine environments on the floor of a body of water to measure electromagnetic fields. The sensing system has electrodes that provide capacitive coupling to the local environment where measurements are being made. A new method of deployment in water provides considerable size and weight reductions. The size and weight reductions also facilitate deployment and rapid repositioning on land. The system is particularly beneficial for surveying sites adjacent to bodies of water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2018
    Assignees: Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Groundmetrics, Inc.
    Inventors: Alberto F. Marsala, Andrew Dennis Hibbs
  • Patent number: 10126345
    Abstract: A device and method is for insulation monitoring in a power supply system composed of a main system including a neutral point that is high-resistance grounded via a neutral-point resistance and, optionally, of at least one subsystem, wherein the main system and the subsystem each have a differential current measuring device for registering a differential current. The invention is based on feeding a measuring signal into the optionally branched HRG system via an active measuring method and registering the fault current driven by the measuring signal in the outgoing power feeds to be monitored by means of a differential current measurement and using the registered fault current in an evaluating device to determine the total insulation resistance of the power supply system and to determine the partial insulation resistances of the main system and potentially present subsystems. Furthermore, the insulation monitoring device can be employed for insulation fault location.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2018
    Assignee: BENDER GMBH & CO. KG
    Inventors: Dieter Hackl, Eckhard Broeckmann, Burkhard Macht
  • Patent number: 10126333
    Abstract: A measuring circuit for a multisensory detector is provided, including a plurality of detection branches mounted in parallel, with each detection branch of said plurality of detection branches including at least two dipoles mounted in series, and at least one reference branch, including a polarizing source and another at least two dipoles mounted in series, with the reference branch being connected in parallel to at least two detection branches among the plurality of detection branches, so as to form a Wheatstone bridge with each one of the detection branches among the plurality of detection branches.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2018
    Assignee: COMMISSARIAT A L'ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES
    Inventors: Guillaume Jourdan, Bernard Diem, Patrice Rey, Philippe Robert
  • Patent number: 10126342
    Abstract: A method and system provides current, from an electrical hub, to a device. The method and system further receives, at the electrical hub, an indication that the device is in a first configuration state of a plurality of configuration states. An example includes detecting, at the electrical hub, a detected current value of the current sent to the device. Processes include determining, at the electrical hub, whether to generate an error indication based on a comparison of the detected current value and a first reference value or range of values associated with the first configuration state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2018
    Assignee: BOSE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Douglas C. Moore, Anthony John Marino, Neil Gelfond
  • Patent number: 10120056
    Abstract: A method of calibrating an impedance-matching current sensor (IMCS) is provided. The IMCS has an equivalent sensing impedance and is connected in parallel to an object under test. The method includes steps of: using an alternating-current (AC) current source to provide a first AC current flowing through the object under test and provide a second AC current flowing through the IMCS; designing the equivalent sensing impedance to make the first AC current much greater than the second AC current; proportionally converting the second AC current into a sense voltage; and adjusting a magnitude of the sense voltage to be proportional to a magnitude of the first AC current. Accordingly, it is to significantly overcome problems of unreliability and instability of the DC-to-DC conversion system caused by temperature, aging, DC bias variation, or parasitic effect, thus maintaining correct sensed results of the current sensor in transient response optimization.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2018
    Assignee: NATIONAL CHENG KUNG UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Kuan-Yu Fang, Szu-Yu Huang, Tai-Haur Kuo
  • Patent number: 10119840
    Abstract: A measuring system and drive system with a measuring system, a magnet, a transmitter, and a magnetic field sensor. The magnetic field sensor is arranged between the magnet and the transmitter. The transmitter has a number of segments made of a magnetically conductive material, each segment having a wing shape with a web edge that is radially directed outwards, each web edge being diagonally designed towards the rotational direction, and that each web edge is distanced from the magnetic field sensor by an air gap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2018
    Assignee: TDK-Micronas GmbH
    Inventors: Yan Bondar, Stefan Albrecht
  • Patent number: 10119839
    Abstract: A sensor circuit and method. The circuit includes a first subcircuit that includes a first sense capacitor, a first integration capacitor, and a first clock input for receiving a first digital clock signal for initiating discharge of the first integration capacitor at time T. The circuit includes a second subcircuit that includes a second sense capacitor, a second integration capacitor, and a second clock input for receiving a second digital clock signal for initiating discharge of the second integration capacitor at time T+Td. A rate of discharge of the first and second integration capacitors is at least partly determined by a capacitance of the first and second sense capacitor, respectively. At time Teval, after initiation of discharge of the first and second sense capacitors, the extent to which the first and second integration capacitors have discharged is compared. A digital signal indicating the result of the comparison is outputted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2018
    Assignee: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Rameswor Shrestha, Franciscus Widdershoven
  • Patent number: 10107646
    Abstract: An orientation sensor includes a sensor housing, a sensor actuator, and a motion sensor. The sensor housing has a cavity disposed therein. The sensor actuator is disposed within the housing and is configured for movement within the cavity in a direction that is influenced by a magnetic field between the sensor actuator and an electronic device external to the orientation sensor. The motion sensor is disposed within the housing and configured to detect the direction of movement of the sensor actuator within the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2018
    Assignee: NANOPORT TECHNOLOGY INC.
    Inventor: Timothy Jing Yin Szeto
  • Patent number: 10101492
    Abstract: The disclosure concerns an electromagnetic logging tool for recording the electromagnetic properties of a subterranean rock formation. One version of the disclosure includes an electromagnetic transmitter that transmits an electromagnetic signal into a downhole formation, an electromagnetic receiver that receives the electromagnetic signal formation; and a cavity antenna in which the interior of the cavity contains a metamaterial made up of a plurality of unit cells that include split ring resonators or other devices such as electric-LC resonators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Ahmed E. Fouda, Burkay Donderici
  • Patent number: 10101491
    Abstract: The disclosure concerns a device for obtaining electromagnetic measurements in a wellbore. In one implementation, the device includes an electromagnetic source carried by the device and a metamaterial arranged to cover a portion of the device in order to divert electromagnetic waves from the source around the covered portion of the device. In one version, the electromagnetic radiation from the source impinging on the portion of the device covered by the metamaterial, and on the electronics carried by the devices that are covered by the metamaterial is reduced. Depending on the implementation, the electromagnetic source may be an antenna, such as a coil antenna. Also, the antenna coil may be wrapped circumferentially around the tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Ahmed E. Fouda, Burkay Donderici