Patents Examined by Rodney T. Frank
  • Patent number: 11536735
    Abstract: A sample processing apparatus includes a pipette configured to dispense a sample or a reagent and an arm supporting the pipette. A camera is configured to capture an image of a tip end of the pipette and a container to which the sample or the reagent is dispensed. A controller is programmed to determine, based on the image, an adjustment value for the arm such that the pipette is inserted into the container without collision.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2022
    Assignee: SYSMEX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Junzo Yamamoto, Shigeo Kanamori, Fumio Inoue, Ikuya Takenaka, Osamu Hirota
  • Patent number: 11530967
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a transducer comprising a tube, a converter unit, an electromechanical exciter arrangement for stimulating and sustaining forced mechanical vibrations of the converter unit, and a sensor arrangement for detecting mechanical vibrations of the converter unit and for generating a vibration signal representing mechanical vibrations of the converter unit. The converter unit includes two connection elements connected to a displacer element and is inserted into the tube and connected thereto. The converter unit is configured as to be contacted by a fluid flowing through the tube and enabled to vibrate such that the connection elements and the displacer elements are proportionately elastically deformed. The transducer can be a constituent of a measuring system adapted to measure and/or monitor a flow parameter of the flowing fluid and further includes an electronic measuring and operating system coupled to the exciter arrangement and the sensor arrangement of the transducer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: Endress+Hauser Flowtec AG
    Inventors: Ennio Bitto, Alfred Rieder, Yaoying Lin, Martin Josef Anklin
  • Patent number: 11525808
    Abstract: Pressure-inducing devices and pressure transducers can be used to detect and quantify liquid pools in hydrocarbon fluid pipelines. Pressure fluctuations can be detected by a pressure transducer, where the pressure fluctuations are the response of a pressure-inducing device outputting a pressure signal in a pipe carrying hydrocarbons. Variation in a pipe diameter caused by pooling or deposition can be estimated using an inverse model. The pooling or depositions can be classified by applying a machine-learning model to the pressure fluctuations. The variation in pipe diameter can be converted to an equivalent liquid volume for pooling locations. A pooling or deposition location and volume can be output and used for determining an action on the pipe to remove the pooling or deposition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Pranab Narayan Jha, Srinivasan Jagannathan, Ratheen Chaturvedi
  • Patent number: 11506640
    Abstract: Obtaining sufficient suppression effect of channel diffusion and stably transferring solution are made possible even in a piping having an extremely small inner diameter used for an analysis apparatus such as an HPLC. A piping device for an analysis apparatus includes a piping equipped with a folded shape that suppresses inner channel diffusion, and a member directly or indirectly in contact with the piping from at least one side to support the piping to suppress deformation of the folded shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: SHIMADZU CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kengo Aoki, Masahide Gunji
  • Patent number: 11504648
    Abstract: Techniques for monitoring a well clean-up process are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method includes routing a multiphase fluid having oil and water to a separator of a well testing apparatus, separating the multiphase fluid into separate fluids via the separator, and routing the separated fluids away from the separator. The method also includes measuring flow rates of oil and water leaving the separator and determining individual flow rates of oil and water entering the separator as part of the multiphase fluid based on the measured flow rates of oil and water leaving the separator. Additional systems, methods, and devices are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: Schlumberger Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Francis Allouche, Elena Borisova
  • Patent number: 11499947
    Abstract: A sample introduction device 10 includes a tube holding section 21 and a sample removing mechanism 40. The sample removing mechanism 40 removes a sample 6 in a sample tube 2 held by the tube holding section 21. Thus, in the sample introduction device 10, the sample 6 in the sample tube 2 held by the tube holding section 21 can be automatically removed. As a result, the operator no longer needs to perform an operation of taking out the sample 6 from the sample tube 2. Thus, a work load on the operator can be reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: SHIMADZU CORPORATION
    Inventors: Isao Sawamura, Akira Aono
  • Patent number: 11492894
    Abstract: A support arm can be positioned in an inner area of a tubular body. The support arm can extend from the inner surface of the tubular body to retain a sensor in flow from a wellbore blowout passing through the tubular body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Arash Haghshenas, Andrew John Cuthbert
  • Patent number: 11486691
    Abstract: A method, system, and computer-readable medium related to control of mud motors in drilling systems, of which the method includes measuring an eccentricity of rotation of a rotor in a stator of a mud motor using a rotor-position sensor, determining a torque of the mud motor based in part on the eccentricity, and selecting a fluid flow rate, a pressure, or both of fluid delivered downhole, through the mud motor, based in part on the determined torque.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: SCHLUMBERGER TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Samba Ba, Maxim Pushkarev, Anton Kolyshkin
  • Patent number: 11480053
    Abstract: A method for analyzing a drilling fluid receiving a drilling fluid sample from a flow of the drilling fluid at a surface of a borehole being drilled in a subterranean formation and extracting, using a gas extraction and sampling system, a dissolved gas from the drilling fluid sample. The method includes determining, using a gas chromatograph, a concentration over time of at least one chemical species of a dissolved gas from the drilling fluid sample and generating an area per concentration curve based on the concentration over time. The method includes determining, using a gas extraction and sampling system, at least one concentration value of the at least one chemical species of the dissolved gas from the drilling fluid sample and correcting bias caused by the gas extraction and sampling system, wherein correcting the bias comprises modifying the at least one concentration value based on the area per concentration curve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventor: Mathew Dennis Rowe
  • Patent number: 11473960
    Abstract: A fluid sensor assembly is provided. The fluid sensor assembly includes a base and a cap. The base is configured to receive a fluid sensor, the base forming a plurality of receiving apertures positioned about a perimeter of the base. The cap is configured to fit on the base and form a fluid-tight seal between the cap and the base, the cap including a plurality of articulating levers, each articulating lever of the plurality of articulating levers being configured to rotate about a central axis and including a latching feature configured to be inserted into a receiving aperture of the plurality of receiving apertures when the cap is fitted on the base and to lock the cap to the base upon rotation of the articulating levers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: Scully Signal Company
    Inventors: Katrina Scully Ohl, Alex Kolnick, Daniel Airey, Daniel Maguire
  • Patent number: 11460455
    Abstract: Method for determining the influence of least a first and a second experimental parameter on a liquid chromatography protocol for purifying one or more target molecules from a sample, comprising the steps: —performing chromatography purifications of the sample at a plurality of different experimental conditions where at least the first and the second experimental parameter each are varied over a predetermined range, each purification being registered as a chromatogram by monitoring an output parameter indicative of the purification result during the purification; and—displaying in a graphical user interface at least a subset of the registered chromatograms as chromatogram-miniatures in an evaluation diagram wherein the position of each displayed chromatogram-miniature is determined by the experimental parameters for the corresponding purification, thereby allowing a user to visually determine trends and the influence of the experimental parameters on the liquid chromatography protocol.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Cytiva Sweden AB
    Inventors: Lena Nyholm, Johan Arthursson, Eva Olsson, Ulrika Ohman
  • Patent number: 11428100
    Abstract: A downhole fluid analysis device includes a piezoelectric helm resonator, a spectroscopy sensor positioned symmetrically with respect to the piezoelectric helm resonator in at least one direction, and a circuit comprising a first terminal and a second terminal electrically coupled to a power supply. The piezoelectric helm resonator and the spectroscopy sensor are electrically coupled in parallel between the first and second terminals. The power supply drives the piezoelectric helm resonator with a voltage of a first polarity and the spectroscopy sensor with a voltage of a second polarity. The circuit includes at least one current flow control device in the circuit configured to prevent both the piezoelectric helm resonator and the spectroscopy sensor from being powered simultaneously.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations LLC
    Inventors: Dwight Swett, Daniel Vaughn Price, Otto Fanini
  • Patent number: 11428554
    Abstract: An ultrasonic transducer employing a meta slab includes a piezoelectric body configured to generate elastic waves; a meta slab connected to the piezoelectric body and configured to induce elastic wave mode conversion resonance with respect to the elastic waves incident on the meta slab; and a wedge connected to the meta slab, attached to an external surface of a pipe, and configured to transmit the elastic waves having passed through the meta slab to the pipe. The meta slab includes an anisotropic medium and a thickness of the meta slab satisfies the equation as follows: d=m·nFS·?FS/4, d=m·nSS·?SS/4, nSS/2?nFS/2=odd. Thus, highly-efficient flow velocity measurement is possible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignees: SEOUL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY R&DB FOUNDATION, CENTER FOR ADVANCED META-MATERIALS
    Inventors: Yoon Young Kim, Min Woo Kweun, Xiong Wei Yang, Chun Guang Piao
  • Patent number: 11414763
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method of manufacturing a gas sensor. The method includes the following operations: a substrate is received; a conductor layer is formed over the substrate; the conductor layer is patterned to form a conductor with a plurality of openings by an etching operation, the openings being arranged in a repeating pattern, a minimal dimension of the opening being about 4 micrometers; and a gas-sensing film is formed over the conductor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY LTD.
    Inventors: Ming-Ta Lei, Chia-Hua Chu, Hsin-Chih Chiang, Tung-Tsun Chen, Chun-Wen Cheng
  • Patent number: 11401804
    Abstract: Systems and methods for extracting and analyzing formation fluids from solids circulated out of a subterranean formation are provided. In one embodiment, the methods comprise: providing a sample of formation solids that have been separated from a fluid circulated in at least a portion of a well bore penetrating a portion of a subterranean formation at a well site; performing a solvent extraction on the sample of formation solids using one or more solvents at an elevated pressure at the well site, wherein at least a portion of one or more formation fluids residing in the formation solids is extracted into the one or more solvents to produce an extracted fluid; and analyzing the extracted fluid at the well site to determine the composition of the extracted fluid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2022
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher Michael Jones, Ian D. C. Mitchell
  • Patent number: 11406035
    Abstract: Provided is a method, system, and sensor device for identifying and detecting presence of a leak in a fluid conduit. The sensor device freely flows with a fluid within the fluid conduit. The sensor device includes an outer capsule that is free flowing within the fluid and provides fluid-tight containment to an interior compartment, at least one acoustic sensor mounted within the interior compartment, wherein the at least one acoustic sensor senses acoustic properties of the fluid to detect the presence of the leak, and a conductor for activating the at least one acoustic sensor to sense the acoustic properties of the fluid and the fluid conduit, wherein the conductor passes from the interior compartment and through to the outer capsule.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2022
    Assignee: INGU Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Johannes Hubertus Gerardus van Pol, Anouk van Pol, Huibert Aren Bogerman
  • Patent number: 11391606
    Abstract: Fixtures for releasably holding a sensor having a first sensor portion and a second sensor portion, methods for making such fixtures, and methods for installing a sensor harness, are provided. In one example, a fixture includes a clip portion that is configured to hold a first sensor portion of a sensor. A support portion is coupled to and extends away from the clip portion. An arm portion is coupled to and extends away from the support portion. The arm portion is configured to hold a second sensor portion of the sensor. The fixture has a frangible seam formed therein that ruptures in response to an applied force for removing the fixture from the sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation
    Inventors: Anthony Herchenroder, Doug Paul
  • Patent number: 11378508
    Abstract: The measuring device for viscometric analysis on a biological fluid, comprises a base frame and a support element associated with the base frame, having an elongated shape and with: a first ending part associable with motor means to set in rotation the support element around an axis of rotation (A); a second ending part opposite to the first ending pan and positionable in contact with a fluid to be analyzed contained in a collecting vessel; sensor means adapted to measure the viscosity values of the fluid; wherein the sensor means comprise a first sensor element and a second sensor element associated with the support element and operable in rotation around the axis of rotation (A) at a predefined rotational speed, and operatively connected to optical means adapted to detect a speed change between the sensor means depending on said viscosity values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: Viscop S.r.l.
    Inventors: Marco Ranucci, Francesco Napolitano, Franco Scorziello
  • Patent number: 11360060
    Abstract: A method and system for injecting an unconcentrated sample into a receiving LC/MS/MS system that is configured to determine a concentration of one or more PFAS analytes within the unconcentrated sample, wherein the LC/MS/MS includes ESI. The unconcentrated sample is subjected to the following ESI conditions: i) a probe gas temperature of approximately 120° C. to approximately 180° C.; ii) a sheath gas heater setting of approximately 250° C. to approximately 400° C.; and iii) a sheath gas flow of approximately 8 L/min to approximately 12 L/min. The unconcentrated sample's concentration and/or an injected amount of the one or more PFAS analytes is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2022
    Assignee: Suffolk County Water Authority
    Inventor: Amanda Comando
  • Patent number: 11353388
    Abstract: A TDR matrix suction sensor measures the matrix suction exhibited by a porous medium surrounding the sensor. The sensor is constructed from a TDR matrix suction sensor probe, which includes two or more elongated conductors and a jacket that encases the conductors. The jacket is made of a hydrophilic, non-conductive, porous (HN-CP) material. In operation, a pulse delay time is computed for an electrical pulse injected into the proximal end of the conductors and reflected when reaching their distal ends. The pulse delay time and a delay-to-matrix suction profile of the HN-CP jacket material are used to compute the matrix suction exhibited by the probe jackets. An indicator of the current value of the matrix suction exhibited by the porous medium is then established based on the matrix suction computed for the HN-CP jackets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 7, 2022
    Inventor: Whitney Skaling