Patents by Inventor Brendan A. Niemira

Brendan A. Niemira 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).

  • Method for Extending the Shelf-Life of Crops Such as Roots, Tubers, or Bulbs
    Publication number: 20170043889
    Abstract: Methods for extending the shelf-life of crops (e.g., roots, tubers, bulbs, corms, rhizomes and similar commodities), involving washing the crops (e.g., ginseng roots) in an aqueous solution containing about 50 ppm to about 500 ppm sodium hypochlorite and subsequently coating the crops with an aqueous solution containing chitosan and at least one organic acid (e.g., lactic acid, levulinic acid, acetic acid), and placing the crops in modified atmospheric packaging. The shelf-life of crops can be extended by up to about 38 weeks.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 12, 2015
    Publication date: February 16, 2017
    Inventors: Zhonglin T. Jin, Brendan A. Niemira
  • Alkali metal formononetin and method of mycorrhizal stimulation
    Patent number: 5691275
    Abstract: Compositions of an alkali metal formononetinate, particularly potassium and sodium, for stimulating the growth of mycorrhizal fungi which colonize the plant and in turn stimulate growth of the plant. The results are improved over formononetin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 1996
    Date of Patent: November 25, 1997
    Assignee: Board of Trustees operating Michigan State University
    Inventors: Muraleedharan G. Nair, Gene R. Safir, Robert E. Schutzki, Brendan A. Niemira