Patents by Inventor John William Cottrell, III

John William Cottrell, III 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).

  • Publication number: 20110132726
    Abstract: The secure baggage claim apparatus and method centers on a dynamic merge conveyor unit that feeds into a standard baggage claim unit. The dynamic merge actively measures every space and every bag. Once the merge determines sufficient spacing for an individual bag, the dynamic merge will accelerate a bag into the open space on the baggage claim unit. Such dynamic merging greatly improves the throughput and capacity of baggage drop off and delivery. The entire baggage claim unit resides within the passenger sector of baggage claim. Current configurations allow bags to freely circulate between the secure and non-secure side of the baggage claim area. With the present invention, bags are prevented from circulating back and forth from the secure side to the non-secure side, which prevents an individual on the non-secure public side from placing a bag on a baggage claim unit where it will then be circulated and unscreened into the secure side for a baggage handler to retrieve such bag.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2010
    Publication date: June 9, 2011
    Inventors: Robert M. Wiese, John William Cottrell, III