Patents Examined by Thai Dinh
  • Patent number: 10250169
    Abstract: A robot system includes a motor, an inverter, a first control portion, and a second control portion. The motor includes stator windings for three phases. The inverter includes series-connection bodies of a high-side switch and a low-side switch for three phases. A connection point of the high-side switch and the low-side switch for each of the phases is connected with the corresponding stator winding. One of the high-side switch and the low-side switch for each of the phases works as a brake switch. The first control portion and the second control portion performs a driving control of the brake switches. Each of the first control portion and the second control portion has a function of monitoring the robot system, and turns on the brake switches for at least two phases when detecting that an abnormality occurs in the robot system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2019
    Assignee: DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED
    Inventor: Hideyuki Nishino
  • Patent number: 10250168
    Abstract: A pump jack controller is provided that can harness the waste energy generated during the operation of a pump jack when its electrical motor is in an over-speed condition, and convert that waste energy into electrical energy that can be supplied back onto an electrical power grid thus converting the pump jack into a micro electric power generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2019
    Assignee: Lifting Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Lesanko, Lorne Tilby
  • Patent number: 10243501
    Abstract: If a fault occurs in a buffer unit from which a PWM signal is outputted, an abnormal PWM signal may be outputted from the buffer unit. When a fault occurs in a first buffer unit, a fault detection unit detects a fault in the PWM signal being inputted via a second buffer unit. When the fault in the PWM signal is detected, the fault detection unit outputs a PWM fault signal to an arithmetic unit and the second buffer unit. In response to the input of the PWM fault signal, the second buffer unit sets the output thereof to high impedance and drives the inverter circuit by a protection operation PWM signal to perform protection operation of a motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Ogura, Satoru Shigeta
  • Patent number: 10236815
    Abstract: Electric motors may include one or more sensors usable to determine rotor alignment and/or speed. A method and apparatus for rotor alignment and/or speed error detection and/or correction are proposed, such as using signals from one or more sensors. A method and apparatus for controlling stator tooth activation based, at least in part, on corrections and offsets is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: ARM Ltd.
    Inventor: David Victor Pietromonaco
  • Patent number: 10236808
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a system and method to determine at least one parameter of a motor, such as an inductance. The inductance can be determined, such as based on one or more digitally sampled motor winding currents. A digital filter can be applied to the digital samples such as to determine a slope of the motor winding currents. The digital filter can include a least squares fit that can be applied to the digital samples, such as to determine a slope of the motor winding currents. The least squares fit can be determined based on a computation of central tendencies such as an average value of time, an average value of current, an average value of the square of time, and the average value of the product of time and current. The average values can be determined recursively to provide improved computational speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: Analog Devices, Inc.
    Inventors: Brendan Aengus Murray, Jens Engen Sorensen
  • Patent number: 10234849
    Abstract: A numerical controller first creates a shortest path which does not interfere with an interfering object and shortens a movement distance from a start point to a cutting start position, and then, creates one or more alternative paths having a smaller number of break points than the shortest path when determining a movement path of a tool from the start point to the cutting start position. Then, each of a movement time along the shortest path and a movement time along the alternative path is calculated, and the alternative path having the shorter movement time than the shortest path is determined as the movement path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: Fanuc Corporation
    Inventors: Zhaojia Liu, Yorikazu Fukui
  • Patent number: 10230856
    Abstract: A sheet conveyance apparatus includes a connection member to connect or separate a motor to drive a conveyance roller, where a motor rotor has a rotation phase and a motor winding includes a driving current controlled by a controller. Per control by the controller, a value of a torque current component of a detected driving current becomes a target value of the torque current component and a value of an exciting current component of the detected driving current becomes a target value of the exciting current component. The controller can cause a deviation between a rotor target phase and a determined rotation phase to decrease, cause magnetic flux passing through the winding to be weaker than a magnetic flux of the rotor, and cause the magnetic flux to be stronger than that passing through the winding in a first period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2019
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Yuta Nito
  • Patent number: 10224852
    Abstract: The control device of an induction motor includes a current command maximum value setting portion that sets an excitation current command maximum value and a torque current command maximum value. The current command maximum value setting portion changes, when the induction motor is accelerated/decelerated, the excitation current command maximum value based on which one of first and second excitation current command maximum values is lower, and changes the torque current command maximum value based on the excitation current command maximum value and an allowable maximum current value of a drive portion. The first excitation current command maximum value is based on the allowable maximum current value, and the second excitation current command maximum value is based on a power supply voltage of the drive portion, a current frequency of the drive current and an excitation inductance of the induction motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: FANUC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yuuki Morita
  • Patent number: 10224853
    Abstract: To provide an AC rotary machine controller which can improve setting accuracy of torque command correction value in a region where change of torque command correction value to change of rotational speed and torque becomes large and where nonlinearity is high, and can suppress increase in data amount of correction value setting map. In correction value setting map, one or both of a torque axis unequal interval setting that sets interval of the torque command map axis to unequal interval in each rotational speed; and a rotation axis unequal interval setting that sets interval of the rotational speed map axis to unequal interval were done.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Kotaro Nakano, Noriyuki Wada, Yasufumi Ogawa, Daiki Matsuura
  • Patent number: 10224909
    Abstract: Disclosed are an error elimination amplifier and a motor control circuit using the same. The error elimination amplifier includes an amplification circuit, a switching circuit, a comparison circuit, an output comparator and a calibration circuit. The comparison circuit includes a first comparator and a second comparator. The switching circuit and the first input end of the output comparator are electrically connected to a signal output end of the amplification circuit. A second input end of the output comparator is coupled to a reference voltage. The calibration circuit is electrically connected to the amplification circuit. An offset of the amplifier is eliminated through the amplification circuit, the switching circuit and the calibration circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: ANPEC ELECTRONICS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ming-Jung Tsai, Kun-Min Chen
  • Patent number: 10224851
    Abstract: A system and method for position sensorless control of an AC electric machine is disclosed. A drive system for driving an AC electric machine provides a primary current excitation to drive the AC electric machine, the primary current excitation comprising a current vector having a magnitude and angle. The drive system injects a carrier signal to the AC electric machine that is superimposed onto the current vector, with the carrier signal generating a carrier response signal responsive to the injected carrier signal. The drive system measures at least one magnetic alignment signature of the AC electric machine from the generated carrier response signal and controls an orientation of the current vector using the measured at least one magnetic alignment signature to operate the AC electric machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Kum-Kang Huh, Di Pan
  • Patent number: 10224837
    Abstract: A method for starting a drive motor. The drive motor includes a motor stator with stator coils and a motor rotor, and a control electronics system and a power electronics system which supply power to the stator coils with a predefined coil voltage and a predefined constant start-up rotation frequency to generate a rotating field to drive the motor rotor. The method includes supplying power to at least one stator coil with a coil voltage corresponding to a start value, increasing the coil voltage in steps, monitoring an electric current flowing through the power electronics system, and, when a specific minimum voltage drop is detected, terminating the increasing of the coil voltage in steps, and performing a safety increase of the coil voltage by increasing a start-up voltage value by a predefined safety value to a first operating voltage value where the motor rotor is drivable in an unregulated mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: PIERBURG PUMP TECHNOLOGY GMBH
    Inventors: Martin Schumachers, Mario Jansen, Joachim Mertens
  • Patent number: 10224846
    Abstract: A sheet conveying apparatus for conveying a sheet includes a conveyance roller, a motor, a phase determiner, and a controller. The phase determiner determines a rotor rotation phase of the motor that drives the conveyance roller to convey the sheet. The controller controls so that a value of a rotor torque current component becomes a target value of the torque current component and controls so that an excitation current component value becomes a target value of the excitation current component, and controls to reduce a deviation between a command phase and the determined rotation phase. The controller controls so that a magnetic flux penetrating through a winding is weaker than a magnetic flux of the rotor, and so that a magnetic flux penetrating through the winding in a second period is stronger than the magnetic flux penetrating through the winding in the first period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Yuta Nito
  • Patent number: 10224854
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided to damp oscillations in a synchronous alternating current (AC) grid. Current may be received from the synchronous AC grid through a phase of an n-phase supply line. The current received from the synchronous AC grid is supplied to a phase of the synchronous motor. A sub-harmonic oscillation may be detected in the current received from the synchronous AC grid. The sub-harmonic oscillation may be damped by: shunting a portion of the current away from the phase of the synchronous motor during a first time period in an upper-half of the sub-harmonic oscillation, and/or supplying compensation current from a partial power converter to the phase of the synchronous motor during a second time period in a lower-half of the sub-harmonic oscillation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE NORTH AMERICAN TECHNOLOGIES INC.
    Inventors: Mark Jon Blackwelder, Paul M. Rancuret
  • Patent number: 10224845
    Abstract: A method is provided for determining an operational readiness state of an electric motor, a pump motor for pumping an operating fluid, for example, an aqueous urea solution, in a vehicle. The method includes applying an electric drive voltage to the electric motor according to a prescribed drive voltage curve in order to drive a rotor of the electric motor to rotate through a prescribed angle of rotation, detecting a response behavior of the electric motor, and determining the state of the electric motor based on the results determined in step b).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Röchling Automotive SE & Co. KG
    Inventors: Luca Marini, Stefano Dalpez
  • Patent number: 10224855
    Abstract: A three-phase switched reluctance motor torque ripple three-level suppression method. A first set of torque thresholds (th1low, th1zero, th1up) is set in rotor position interval [0°, ?r/3]. A second set of torque thresholds (th2low, th2zero, th2up) is set in rotor position interval [?r/3, ?r/2]. Power is supplied to adjacent phase A and phase B for excitation. The power supplied for excitation to phase A leads the power supplied for excitation to phase B by ?r/3. At this moment, phase A is turned off, phase B is turned on and three-level suppression of torque ripple of three-phase switched reluctance motor is realized by dividing the commutation process from phase A to phase B into two sections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: CHINA UNIVERSITY OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY
    Inventors: Hao Chen, Jiaotong Shi
  • Patent number: 10224843
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a motor drive device and a phase current detecting method for a three-phase brushless motor, and more particularly to a technique of detecting each phase current through A/D conversion that is carried out once per PWM carrier cycle, by use of a current sensor for detecting a DC bus current of an inverter. The control unit of the present invention calculates a phase current for one phase, an absolute phase current value of which becomes maximum at a detection timing that is set once per PWM control cycle, from an output of the current sensor, and estimates phase currents for the remaining two phases based on a peak value of a phase current detected at each detection timing, a motor angle, and a phase shift of an actual phase current waveform relative to the motor angle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: HITACHI AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS, LTD.
    Inventor: Masaki Hano
  • Patent number: 10220729
    Abstract: An occupant support for a vehicle includes a vehicle seat and a foundation. The vehicle seat is configured to support an occupant of the vehicle above a floor of the vehicle. The foundation is configured to interconnect the vehicle seat to the floor to permit movement of the vehicle seat relative to the floor along a linear path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Faurecia Automotive Seating, LLC
    Inventors: Dale J. Frye, Jeffery T. Bonk, Victoria Urban, Brendan Laiben, Christian Teske, Jake Sternberg, John Gettermeyer
  • Patent number: 10221038
    Abstract: A control system (48) having a motor (28) is disclosed. The control system (48) may include a converter (32) operatively connected to a power source (36), an inverter (34) operatively connected to the motor (28), and a controller (50) operatively connected to the converter (32) or inverter (34). The controller (50) may be configured to receive control command signals, receive state feedback signals, and generate duty cycle signals for upper and lower arms of each phase (40) of the motor (28) based at least in part on the control command signals and state feedback signals. The duty cycle signals may minimize neutral point current in the converter (32) or inverter (34).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANY
    Inventors: Ismail Agirman, Yang Wang, Shashank Krishnamurthy
  • Patent number: 10224849
    Abstract: A voltage difference is determined between the observed voltage and a reference direct current bus voltage. A quadrature-axis (q-axis) voltage command is outputted based on a current difference derived from the voltage difference. A commanded direct-axis (d-axis) voltage is determined based on a measured d-axis current and a determined d-axis reference current derived from a mathematical relationship between d-axis residual voltage, the observed voltage and the commanded q-axis voltage, where residual voltage is proportional to a function of the observed voltage and the commanded q-axis voltage. An inverse Parks transformation module or a data processor provides one or more phase voltage command based on inverse Parks transform of the commanded voltages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: DEERE & COMPANY
    Inventors: Sumit Dutta, Lav Thyagarajan, Long Wu, Kent D. Wanner