Patents by Inventor April Milarcik
April Milarcik has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 8854714Abstract: Colored conductive fluids for electrowetting or electrofluidic devices, and the devices themselves, are disclosed. The colored conductive fluid includes a polar solvent and a colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. The polar solvent has (a) a dynamic viscosity of 0.1 cP to 1000 cP at 25° C., (b) a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm to 90 dynes/cm at 25° C., and (c) an electrowetting relative response of 20% to 80%. The colored conductive fluid itself can have an electrical conductivity from 0.1 ?S/cm to 3,000 ?S/cm and can have no greater than 500 total ppm of monatomic ions with ionic radii smaller than 2.0 ? and polyatomic ions with ionic radii smaller than 1.45 ?. The colored conductive fluid should not cause electrical breakdown of a dielectric in the device in which it is employed. An agent for controlling electrical conductivity can optionally be added to the colored conductive fluid.Type: GrantFiled: August 4, 2010Date of Patent: October 7, 2014Assignee: Sun Chemical CorporationInventors: Lisa Clapp, Jason Heikenfeld, April Milarcik, Russell J. Schwartz, Stanislav G. Vilner, Manjeet Dhindsa, Stephanie Chevalliot
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Patent number: 8717663Abstract: Colored fluids for electrowetting, electro fluidic, or electrophoretic devices, and the devices themselves, are disclosed. The colored fluid can include a nonaqueous polar solvent having (a) a dynamic viscosity of 0.1 cP to 50 cP at 250 C, (b) a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm to 55 dynes/cm at 250 C, and (c) an electrowetting relative response of 40% to 80%. Such colored fluids further include a colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. In another embodiment, the colored fluid can include a non-polar solvent and an organic colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. Such colored fluids can be black in color and have a conductivity from 0 pS/cm to 5 pS/cm and a dielectric constant less than 3. The use of the colored fluids offers improvements in reliability, higher levels of chroma in the dispersed state, and the ability to achieve higher contrast ratios in display technologies.Type: GrantFiled: March 15, 2010Date of Patent: May 6, 2014Assignee: Sun Chemical CorporationInventors: Jason C. Heikenfeld, Russell Schwartz, Lisa Clapp, April Milarcik, Stanislav G. Vilner
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Publication number: 20130278993Abstract: A display pixel (10, 50). The pixel (10, 50) includes first and second substrates (12, 20, 60, 62) arranged to define a channel (16, 74). A fluid (26, 76) is located within the channel (12, 74) and includes a first colorant (36, 84) and a second colorant (38, 86). The first colorant (36, 84) has a first charge and color. The second colorant (38, 86) has a second charge that is opposite in polarity to the first change and a color that is complementary to the color of the first colorant (36, 84). A first electrode (22, 66), with a voltage source (32, 78), is operably coupled to the fluid (26, 76) and configured to moving one or both of the first and second colorants (36, 38, 84, 86) within the fluid (26, 76) and alter at least one spectral property of the pixel (10, 50).Type: ApplicationFiled: September 1, 2011Publication date: October 24, 2013Inventors: Jason Heikenfeld, Lisa Clapp, Stanislav G. Vilner, April Milarcik, Paul A. Merchak, Russell J. Schwartz
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Publication number: 20120154896Abstract: Colored conductive fluids for electrowetting or electrofluidic devices, and the devices themselves, are disclosed. The colored conductive fluid includes a polar solvent and a colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. The polar solvent has (a) a dynamic viscosity of 0.1 cP to 1000 cP at 25° C., (b) a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm to 90 dynes/cm at 25° C., and (c) an electrowetting relative response of 20% to 80%. The colored conductive fluid itself can have an electrical conductivity from 0.1 ?S/cm to 3,000 ?S/cm and can have no greater than 500 total ppm of monatomic ions with ionic radii smaller than 2.0 ? and polyatomic ions with ionic radii smaller than 1.45 ?. The colored conductive fluid should not cause electrical breakdown of a dielectric in the device in which it is employed. An agent for controlling electrical conductivity can optionally be added to the colored conductive fluid.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 4, 2010Publication date: June 21, 2012Applicant: SUN CHEMICAL CORPORATIONInventors: Lisa Clapp, Jason Heikenfeld, April Milarcik, Russell J. Schwartz, Stanislav G. Vilner, Manjeet Dhindsa, Stephanie Chevalliot
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Publication number: 20120092753Abstract: Colored fluids for electrowetting, electro fluidic, or electrophoretic devices, and the devices themselves, are disclosed. The colored fluid can include a nonaqueous polar solvent having (a) a dynamic viscosity of 0.1 cP to 50 cP at 250 C, (b) a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm to 55 dynes/cm at 250 C, and (c) an electrowetting relative response of 40% to 80%. Such colored fluids further include a colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. In another embodiment, the colored fluid can include a non-polar solvent and an organic colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. Such colored fluids can be black in color and have a conductivity from 0 pS/cm to 5 pS/cm and a dielectric constant less than 3. The use of the colored fluids offers improvements in reliability, higher levels of chroma in the dispersed state, and the ability to achieve higher contrast ratios in display technologies.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 15, 2010Publication date: April 19, 2012Applicant: SUN CHEMICAL CORPORATIONInventors: Jason C. Heikenfeld, Russell J. Schwartz, Lisa Clapp, April Milarcik, Stanislav G. Vilner
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Patent number: 8111465Abstract: Electrofluidic devices, visual displays formed from the electrofluidic devices, and methods for making and operating such electrofluidic devices Each electrofluidic device has a fluid vessel with first and second regions that contain an electrically conductive polar fluid and a non-polar fluid The polar and/or the non-polar fluids are externally visible external through a viewable area of the second region A voltage source is electrically connected to a capacitor having a hydrophobic surface that contacts the polar fluid and provides a first principal radius of curvature of the polar fluid that is convex and smaller than a second principal radius of curvature of the polar fluid in the first region The voltage source applies an electromechanical force to the polar fluid, thereby transferring the polar fluid from the first region to the second region and causing a spectral property of light transferred through the viewable area to change.Type: GrantFiled: September 12, 2008Date of Patent: February 7, 2012Assignees: University of Cincinnati, Sun Chemical CorporationInventors: Jason Heikenfeld, Bo Sun, April Milarcik, George Robertson, Russell Schwartz
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Publication number: 20100208328Abstract: Electrofluidic devices, visual displays formed from the electrofluidic devices, and methods for making and operating such electrofluidic devices Each electrofluidic device has a fluid vessel with first and second regions that contain an electrically conductive polar fluid and a non-polar fluid The polar and/or the non-polar fluids are externally visible external through a viewable area of the second region A voltage source is electrically connected to a capacitor having a hydrophobic surface that contacts the polar fluid and provides a first principal radius of curvature of the polar fluid that is convex and smaller than a second principal radius of curvature of the polar fluid in the first region The voltage source applies an electromechanical force to the polar fluid, thereby transferring the polar fluid from the first region to the second region and causing a spectral property of light transferred through the viewable area to changeType: ApplicationFiled: September 12, 2008Publication date: August 19, 2010Applicants: UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI, SUN CHEMICAL CORPORATIONInventors: Jason Heikenfeld, Bo Sun, April Milarcik, George Robertson, Russell Schwartz
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Patent number: RE46318Abstract: Colored fluids for electrowetting, electro fluidic, or electrophoretic devices, and the devices themselves, are disclosed. The colored fluid can include a nonaqueous polar solvent having (a) a dynamic viscosity of 0.1 cP to 50 cP at 250 C, (b) a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm to 55 dynes/cm at 250 C, and (c) an electrowetting relative response of 40% to 80%. Such colored fluids further include a colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. In another embodiment, the colored fluid can include a non-polar solvent and an organic colorant selected from a pigment and/or a dye. Such colored fluids can be black in color and have a conductivity from 0 pS/cm to 5 pS/cm and a dielectric constant less than 3. The use of the colored fluids offers improvements in reliability, higher levels of chroma in the dispersed state, and the ability to achieve higher contrast ratios in display technologies.Type: GrantFiled: May 16, 2014Date of Patent: February 21, 2017Assignee: Sun Chemical CorporationInventors: Jason C. Heikenfeld, Russell Schwartz, Lisa Clapp, April Milarcik, Stanislav G. Vilner