Patents Examined by Thien T. Mai
  • Patent number: 10051726
    Abstract: A user interface arrangement may include a printed circuit board having a first surface and a second surface, and a light emitting unit. The printed circuit board may include a first non-conductive layer provided with at least one aperture. The light emitting unit may be arranged to emit light through the at least one aperture of the first non-conductive layer in a direction from the second surface to the first surface of the printed circuit board to thereby define an image visible at the first surface of the printed circuit board. Embodiments of an electric apparatus comprising a user interface arrangement, a use of a printed circuit board to provide a user interface arrangement, and a method for visualizing an image on a user interface arrangement are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2018
    Assignee: ELECTROLUX APPLIANCES AKTIEBOLAG
    Inventor: Agne Gustafsson
  • Patent number: 10037496
    Abstract: A numbered ticket information issuing system according to an embodiment includes a numbered ticket information issuing server. The numbered ticket information issuing server includes a numbered ticket information issuing unit and a numbered ticket information transmitting unit. The numbered ticket information issuing unit issues, when receiving, from a wireless terminal, a numbered ticket issue request containing information on a wireless device installed in a shop or a facility that provides a product or a service, numbered ticket information on the shop or the facility corresponding to the numbered ticket issue request. The numbered ticket information transmitting unit transmits the numbered ticket information issued by the numbered ticket information issuing unit to the wireless terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2018
    Assignee: YAHOO JAPAN CORPORATION
    Inventors: Daishi Nakajima, Yuichi Shiga, Naoko Hiraya, Keita Imaeda
  • Patent number: 10024513
    Abstract: Provided is a vehicle lamp unit which includes an optical system configured to form a light distribution pattern ahead of a vehicle; and a rotary light shielding member configured to block at least a part of light of a light source. The rotary light shielding member includes a spiral light shielding portion formed to change a blocked quantity of light of the light source as the rotary light shielding member rotates around a rotating axis. The light shielding portion is configured to form a plurality of light distribution patterns such that a position of a cutoff line extending in a direction crossing a horizontal direction changes in the horizontal direction. Further, the light shielding portion is configured such that a change of a position of an edge portion projected as a cutoff line becomes nonlinear in relation to a change of a rotational position of the rotary light shielding member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2018
    Assignee: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Teruaki Yamamoto, Akinori Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 10027017
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an RF tag comprising a magnetic antenna for transmitting and receiving information using an electromagnetic induction method, and an IC mounted to the magnetic antenna, wherein the magnetic antenna comprises a magnetic core and a plurality of coils formed on the magnetic core; the coils each have an inductance L1 satisfying the specific relational formula, and are connected in parallel to each other in an electric circuit and disposed in series on the magnetic core; and a combined inductance L0 of the magnetic antenna satisfies the specific relational formula. The RF tag of the present invention is used as a magnetic antenna for information communication using a magnetic field component which is capable of satisfying both reduction in size and improvement in communication sensitivity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2018
    Assignee: TODA KOGYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jun Koujima, Satoshi Ohmae, Tetsuya Kimura, Yoshiro Sato
  • Patent number: 9996781
    Abstract: The invention relates to a data carrier comprising a storage layer forming a plurality of first surface elements (6). The storage layer (2) has at least one optical characteristic, which is optically anisotropic and which varies spatially between the first surface elements (6). A cover layer (3) over the storage layer (2) forms a plurality of second surface elements (10), each acting as a polarization filter for a predetermined polarization direction. The predetermined polarization direction varies between the second surface elements (10). The storage layer can contain in particular bacteriorhodopsin in the form of a purple membrane. The invention also relates to a method for the production and reading of a data carrier of this type.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2018
    Assignee: ACTILOR INTELLECTUAL ASSET AG
    Inventors: Ulrich Ritter, Samuel Schindler, Geza Murvai
  • Patent number: 9995442
    Abstract: A multi-function portable lighting apparatus is provided, including a lighting device, a carrier unit and a support unit. The carrier unit has two ends, with one end disposed with lighting device and the other coupled with support unit. The support unit includes a battery set, supplying power to lighting device. The carrier unit includes a clamping assembly, and the clamping assembly has a clamping opening, with direction perpendicular to light projection axis of lighting device. The clamping assembly includes a clamping base, a clamping element and a rotation element. The rotation element matches the clamping element in a means of screw. When the rotation element rotates, the clamping element moves in clamping base linearly to open or close clamping opening. The apparatus can be used as a flashlight or clamping onto a smart phone to provide lighting when the ambient light is insufficient for photography.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2018
    Inventor: Eagle Fan
  • Patent number: 9978058
    Abstract: A dynamic transaction card that includes a number of layers, each of which may be interconnected to one another. For example, a dynamic transaction card may include an outer layer, a potting layer, a sensor layer, a display layer (including, for example, LEDs, a dot matrix display, and the like), a microcontroller/microprocessor storing firmware, Java applets, Java applet integration, and the like, an EMV processor, an energy storage component, one or more antenna (e.g., Bluetooth antenna, NFC antenna, and the like), a power management component, a flexible printed circuit board (PCB), a chassis, and/or a card backing layer. A display layer may include enhanced features such as the use of display components as a barcode generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2018
    Assignee: Capital One Services, LLC
    Inventors: David Wurmfeld, Tyler Locke
  • Patent number: 9946967
    Abstract: A temporary carrier of a removable memory card (2) is in the shape of a flat card (1), where the removable memory card (2) forms an element to be released from the flat card body (1). The removable memory card (2) has at least five additional contacts (4) for temporary usage before the removable memory card is removed from the flat card (1) body. The additional contacts (4) take up a smaller surface as a contact field (5) of a standardized flat card (1). The removable memory card (2) is located within the flat card (1) in such a way that the position of additional contacts (4) corresponds to the position of a standardized flat card (1) contact field (5). The suitable sixth additional switch contact (8) can be used to switch secure elements. The temporary carrier is inserted into a standard burning device, which operates with it in the same way as it would with a common card with a contact field (5).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: SMK Corporation
    Inventors: Miroslav Florek, Michal Masaryk, Pavel Travnicek
  • Patent number: 9916487
    Abstract: Methods and system for encoded information processing are described. In one embodiment, an encoded pattern may be optically detected from source media. Gaming data and associated synchronization data may be decoded from the encoded pattern. The gaming data may be synchronized for use during gaming based on the synchronization data. Additional methods and systems are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2018
    Assignee: KOPLAR INTERACTIVE SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
    Inventor: Edward J. Koplar
  • Patent number: 9911076
    Abstract: A rectification circuit has a first terminal to which an alternating-current voltage is input from an antenna, a second terminal to which a direct-current voltage is input from the antenna, a first rectification element, a second rectification element, and a voltage rectification circuit. The first rectification element is connected between the first terminal and the second terminal, causes a current to flow in a first direction from the first terminal to the second terminal, and cuts off a current in a second direction from the second terminal to the first terminal. The second rectification element is connected between the first terminal and the second terminal, causes a current to flow in the second direction, and cuts off a current in the first direction. The voltage rectification circuit outputs a rectified voltage obtained by rectifying a voltage that is input between the first terminal and the second terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2018
    Assignee: FUJITSU SEMICONDUCTOR LIMITED
    Inventor: Koji Nozoe
  • Patent number: 9886660
    Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate having an upper first main face and first and second recess areas formed in the upper first main face, a battery arranged at the first recess area and one or more of a shock sensor and an acceleration sensor arranged at the second recess area. The shock sensor or the acceleration sensor includes a movable mass, a cantilever connected to the moveable mass, a piezoelectric layer applied to the cantilever, and a wiring connected to the piezoelectric layer. The wiring has first and second terminals. The moveable mass and part of the cantilever are arranged above the second recess area, so that the shock sensor or the acceleration sensor delivers a voltage between the first and second terminals, a strength of the voltage being dependent on a strength of a shock or acceleration exerted on the semiconductor device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
    Inventors: Dirk Hammerschmidt, Bernhard Goller, Gerald Holweg, Thomas Herndl
  • Patent number: 9875481
    Abstract: A computer extracts traffic data from one or more traffic servers and stores the traffic data in a database. The computer also extracts and stores customer wait time, resource management, and point of sale (POS) data from one or more retail store servers in the database, and each of the retail store servers can correspond to a retail store. Extract and store subroutines may be executed in parallel using multithreading. Upon achieving synchronization of the parallel subroutines, the computer transforms the traffic, customer wait time, resource management, and POS data from the database by determining one or more metrics for each of the retail stores. Next, the computer loads the one or more determined metrics into the database. Finally, the computer aggregates the one or more determined metrics on at least one of a district level, region level, area level, and nation level to determine one or more aggregated metrics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2018
    Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.
    Inventors: Jeetendra Pradhan, Alexander Lawrence Lamb, Gleice Beloff, Nirmala Amanthi Chandraratna, Shankar Anantrao Kulkarni, Ashima Hosalkar
  • Patent number: 9858603
    Abstract: A card reader is provided with a read head with a slot and is configured to be coupled to a mobile device and has a slot for swiping a magnetic stripe of a card. The read head reads data on the magnetic stripe and produces a raw magnetic signal indicative of data stored on the magnetic stripe. A power supply is coupled to wake-up electronics and a microcontroller. An output jack is adapted to be inserted in a port of the mobile device and deliver an output jack signal to the mobile device. The wake-up electronics is powered by a microphone bias of a mobile device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: Square, Inc.
    Inventors: Kartik Lamba, Amish Babu, Michael Shyh-yen Ho, Adam David Peter Rothschild, Gerald Thomas Ryle, Jack Dorsey, James M. McKelvey
  • Patent number: 9835498
    Abstract: A device is presented for use in controlling the quality of a perishable object, while progressing on its supply line, by monitoring the condition of a time-temperature indicator (TTI) associated with the object. The device comprises a sensing assembly for detecting a response of the TTI to a predetermined stimulus and generating measured data representative thereof, said measured data being indicative of the condition of the TTI, thereby enabling the determination of the remaining shelf life of the TTI and thereby any perishable good to which it is attached and calibrated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: FRESHPOINT QUALITY ASSURANCE LTD.
    Inventors: Dietrich Haarer, Yoav Lévy
  • Patent number: 9830598
    Abstract: A thin-client access card has a card body with partial or fully emissive magnetic data tracks. An emissive element is disposed in the card body under the location of the legacy magnetic data tracks. An electronic signal conditioner converts audio signals from a mobile device into magnetic data applied to the emissive element. A swipe sensor detects when the thin-client access card is being swiped by a legacy card reader, and triggers an output of magnetic data from the emissive element while proximal to the POS reader head. A cable attaches the thin-client access card as a peripheral to the mobile device with an audio output jack.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: Fitbit, Inc.
    Inventor: Kerry D. Brown
  • Patent number: 9734445
    Abstract: In various embodiments, a circuit arrangement is provided, including a first antenna tuned to a first frequency range, a second antenna tuned to a second frequency range being different from the first frequency range, a controller coupled to the first antenna and the second antenna, wherein the controller is configured to receive its operational power via at least one of the first antenna and the second antenna, and a deactivating structure configured to deactivate the communication of the controller via the second antenna upon reception of electromagnetic waves with the first frequency range via the first antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG
    Inventors: Walther Pachler, Matthias Emsenhuber, Josef Haid
  • Patent number: 9727769
    Abstract: A hand mount for a mobile scanner includes an elongated body having an upper surface, a lower surface opposite the upper surface, a scanner receiving cradle disposed on the upper surface that removably receives a mobile scanner, a scanning end, and an opposite securing end; a hook extends outward from the lower surface of the body, adjacent the scanning end, and bends towards the securing end; and a conformable wrist wrap is positioned adjacent the securing end of the body, with the body being positionable on a back area of a wearer's hand whereby the hook is received between a thumb and index finger of the hand and the conformable wrist wrap is wrapped around a wrist area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Hand Held Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark Lee Oberpriller, Stephen J. Colavito, Kevin Saber, Gregory M. Rueblinger, Timothy R. Fitch, Chandler Dickinson
  • Patent number: 9715647
    Abstract: A method of disseminating a message is disclosed. The message is encoding in a barcode. A selected region of the barcode is damaged so as to hinder decoding of the message at a scanning device. The damaged region of the barcode may be occluded from the scanning device in order to enable the scanning device to read the barcode and the message therein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Chandrasekhar Narayanaswami, Umut Topkara
  • Patent number: 9710684
    Abstract: An imaging system includes a camera having a field of view, a set of axially spaced moveable mirrors supported on a rotor to rotate the mirrors within the field of view of the camera, and a set of stationary mirrors supported to redirect the fields of view from the set of moveable mirrors to provide multiple fields of view at different angles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: NCR Corporation
    Inventor: Paul Detwiler
  • Patent number: 9697555
    Abstract: One form of the present invention contemplates a unique system for creating a customized bank card by a consumer/user based on instructions from a remote terminal. Other forms of the present invention contemplate unique apparatuses, systems, devices, hardware, software, methods, and combinations of these for creating customized bank cards.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2017
    Assignee: CPI Card Group—Colorado, Inc.
    Inventors: William Lynch, Brian Christopher Beck