Patents Examined by Peter C Mehravari
  • Patent number: 7986217
    Abstract: In a radio frequency identification (RFID) system that requires an RFID reader to receive a response from an RFID tag and then transmit a command to the RFID tag within a certain time period, the RFID reader may place an initial part of the command transmission in the RFID reader's transmit chain before receiving the entire response from the RFID tag, and complete the command transmission after receiving the entire response.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas J. Barnes, Marc A. Loyer
  • Patent number: 7973656
    Abstract: A device for detecting a suspicious activity, efficiently performing surveillance of a person and vehicle detected by a surveillance camera. The device uses signal generation means, a sensor for receiving a signal from the signal generation means, and image data taken by the camera. The device detects mobile bodies, such as a person and a vehicle, included in an image taken by the camera and uses them as mobile body information, uses as authentication information an ID number represented by a signal received by the sensor, defines permitted activities and prohibited activities according to authorized activities corresponding to authentication information, and issues an alarm when the device detects that an activity represented by mobile body activity information is a illegal or prohibited activity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Eiki Ishidera
  • Patent number: 7969286
    Abstract: The invention is intended to be used in the technological field of communication and the update of data between electronic equipment (1, 2) capable of inter-communicating using wireless links. The invention relates more particularly to a process and a system to automatically configure and update the data saved in a radio frequency identifier (3). The process and the system enable the update of the data recorded in a radio frequency identifier of a first equipment item (1) equipped with a display screen (5) by displaying on screen a visual code (7) bearing update data of the radio frequency identifier. The visual code is then read using a second equipment item (2) provided with a visual code read device (4) having radio frequency identifier read-write interface. Then, the decoding of the visual code and the conversion and transmission of the update data to the radio frequency identifier by means of the read-write interface are performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventor: Santie V. Adelbert
  • Patent number: 7969304
    Abstract: A secure container for controlling and monitoring access to at least one secured bag locking device is disclosed. The secure container is lockable to prevent access by unauthorized parties, and may include any feature of prior art secure containers, such as shock detection or a camera to photograph access. The secure container contains a number of rails to provide power to and monitor the status of docked secured bag locking devices. In addition, the secure container includes an antenna to allow secured devices to be tethered to it via communications with an active radio frequency identification tag secured to the tethered device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Inventors: Kerry S. Berland, James Ensinger
  • Patent number: 7965179
    Abstract: An operation instruction method includes: an operation detecting step of detecting a manual operation; an operation detail displaying step of displaying the details of a manual operation detected at the operation detecting step; and an operation occurrence notifying step of, in response to detection of a manual operation at the operation detecting step, notifying the occurrence of the manual operation to another operation instruction device over the communication line. The operation instruction method further includes: a notification receiving step of receiving a notification of occurrence of a manual operation sent from another operation instruction device; and an operation occurrence display step of, when a notification of occurrence of a manual operation is received at the notification receiving step, displaying the occurrence of the manual operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventor: Masatomo Maida
  • Patent number: 7965183
    Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention includes a system for determining authenticity of substances. The system comprises a plurality of RF sensors distributed in a predefined location pattern relative to a location for placing a substance under analysis. Each of the RF sensors is configured to transmit a response to an interrogation signal with a unique identifier. The system also comprises an RF transmitter that transmits sequences of interrogation signals over different frequency bands at one or more power levels and an RF receiver that receives responses to the sequences of interrogation signals transmitted from the RF sensors. The system further comprises a response pattern analyzer that determines response patterns for the RF sensors to the interrogation sequences and transmits a difference indicator if at least one of the determined response patterns varies from as predetermined signature of an authentic substance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Northrop Grumman Space and Mission Systems Corporation
    Inventor: Vibeke Libby
  • Patent number: 7961112
    Abstract: A device and method for monitoring the condition of an electrical power transformer in an electrical power grid synchronously measures current and voltage data at both a high voltage side of the transformer and a low-voltage side of the transformer and computes from this measured data corresponding transformer impedance data. These measurements and computations are repeated continuously in real time at a rates up to 30 Hz to provide a sequence of real-time transformer impedance data. An alarm signal is generated if a mean of the sequence of real-time transformer impedance data changes significantly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2011
    Assignee: OSIsoft, Inc.
    Inventor: Charles H. Wells
  • Patent number: 7952462
    Abstract: The invention provides a remote controlled power switch including a line interface, a radiation-based receiver and a processor. The line interface is electrically connected in series to a power line. The radiation-based signal receiver functions as receiving a radiation-based signal and converting the radiation-based signal into an operative code. And, the processor controls, based on the operative code, the line interface to cut off or provide transmission of electric power transmitted through the power line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2011
    Assignee: Livinglab Development Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Jui-Kuang Fang
  • Patent number: 7944348
    Abstract: A device to accurately identify the wheel position where each tire has a radio wave transmitter installed without special means or operation during application by using a simple and compact configuration. This TPMS has sensor modules 14A, 14B, 14C, 14D on the transmission side equipped by tires 12FL, 12FR, 12RL, 12RR installed on automobile 10 and main device 16 on the receiving side loaded in automobile 10. Main device 16 is comprised of a group of two antennas 18, 20, receiver 22, and display 24. Two antennas 18, 20 are arranged appropriately to receive the radio waves transmitted by each of sensor modules 14A-14D with a phase difference between them.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2011
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Toshiaki Watasue
  • Patent number: 7924171
    Abstract: A parking assisting apparatus and method that can precisely estimate the orientation of a parking space. A parking assisting apparatus for assisting parking a vehicle includes an obstacle detecting mechanism that detects an obstacle near the vehicle and an orientation information acquiring mechanism that acquires information as to an orientation of the vehicle. The apparatus estimates an orientation of the parking space that may exist near the vehicle based on the detection result of the obstacle detecting mechanism and the orientation information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2011
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yukiko Kawabata, Yasushi Makino, Yuichi Kubota, Tomohiko Endo
  • Patent number: 7924165
    Abstract: An Electronic Shark Deterrent provides protection from, and for, sharks and other aquatic creatures. Compact low power circuitry generates high voltage periodic pulse train bursts, disturbing the electroreceptors of the aquatic Elasmobranchi subclass. A train of thirty 33 us 250 Volt (V) electric pulses lasting one second is produced every six seconds. The device is fully portable, requiring no bulky activity impeding buoys, cords, or external power supplies. Advanced circuitry is compact enough to be worn on a watch sized band or attached to garments and recreation or safety equipment. The deterrent can be used in a fixed configuration to protect fish farms and vacation resort swimming areas. It can be affixed to offshore oil rigs and research stations to protect workers. The Electronic Shark Deterrent is compact and portable enough to be used on longlines, trawls and gillnets to reduce the numbers of endangered aquatic creatures unnecessarily destroyed as bycatch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2011
    Assignee: ZTOA Innovations, LLC
    Inventors: Wilson Vinano, Jr., Calvin Maeda, Gary Maeda, Dwight Oda
  • Patent number: 7920046
    Abstract: RFID readers, reader systems, and methods are provided for processing RFID tags through interruptions for antenna change or other reasons. If the reason for the interruption is an antenna change, the reader restarts processing the tags initializing any operational parameters. If the reason is other than an antenna change, the reader determines whether the operation is to be continued or to be restarted upon power up and proceeds accordingly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2011
    Assignee: Impinj, Inc.
    Inventors: Ali Aiouaz, Paul Dietrich, Omar Khwaja
  • Patent number: 7902960
    Abstract: A door lock mechanism controller includes a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device transmits a first radio signal to a first communication terminal through a first antenna so as to receive authentication information for operating a door lock mechanism. The second communication device transmits/receives a radio signal to/from a second communication terminal so as to receive authentication information for operating the door lock mechanism. A control prevents operation of an actuator based on the authentication information received by the second antenna, when the first radio signal is transmitted by the first antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2011
    Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoki Tsuchimochi, Takashi Kimura, Yasuharu Watanabe
  • Patent number: 7868741
    Abstract: A medication managing apparatus includes a medicine package case and a main body unit removably storing the medicine package case. The medicine package case includes blocks each storing a medicine package, openings provided at walls of each block and formed at positions facing each other such that the medicine package stored in the block is sandwiched therebetween, and an openable/closable cover. The main body unit includes a sensor portion (a medicine package sensor) disposed corresponding to each opening at the opposing walls of each block, to sense a medicine package based on that the medicine package stored in the block blocks a gap between a pair of openings, and a switch lever and a micro-switch (a medicine package case sensor) sensing attachment/removal of the medicine package case to/from the main body unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2011
    Assignees: OMRON HEALTHCARE Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yutaka Imai, Tomonori Inoue, Kiichiro Miyata, Takahide Tanaka, Akihisa Narai, Bunichiro Ohe, Yukitoshi Kurata