Patents by Inventor Melville Douglas Ball
Melville Douglas Ball 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).
-
Patent number: 7624609Abstract: A cold rolling process for impressing a pattern on a surface of a sheet metal article involves passing the sheet article through a pair of rolls and engaging a patterning feature with isolated areas of a surface of the sheet article, at a localized pressure to plastically deform at least the surface of the sheet article. A rolling pressure is maintained on other areas of the sheet article that is less than the bulk elastic yield strength of the metal. A cold rolling apparatus is also described having a pair of rolls, each with partially cylindrical outer surfaces. The rolls have a gap between the cylindrical parts. One of the rolls has a localized surface region that is displaced relative to the surface of the roll. When the localized region is brought near the other roll, a spacing exists that is narrower than the gap. One of the rolls has a localized patterning feature that aligns with the localized surface region to impress a pattern into the sheet article.Type: GrantFiled: November 2, 2007Date of Patent: December 1, 2009Assignee: Novelis Inc.Inventors: Melville Douglas Ball, John Anthony Hunter, Gary J. Smith
-
Patent number: 7353681Abstract: A cold rolling process for impressing a pattern on a surface of a sheet metal article involves passing the sheet article through a pair of rolls and engaging a patterning feature with isolated areas of a surface of the sheet article, at a localized pressure to plastically deform at least the surface of the sheet article. A rolling pressure is maintained on other areas of the sheet article that is less than the bulk elastic yield strength of the metal. A cold rolling apparatus is also described having a pair of rolls, each with partially cylindrical outer surfaces. The rolls have a gap between the cylindrical parts. One of the rolls has a localized surface region that is displaced relative to the surface of the roll. When the localized region is brought near the other roll, a spacing exists that is narrower than the gap. One of the rolls has a localized patterning feature that aligns with the localized surface region to impress a pattern into the sheet article.Type: GrantFiled: December 1, 2005Date of Patent: April 8, 2008Assignee: Novelis Inc.Inventors: Melville Douglas Ball, John Anthony Hunter, Gary J. Smith
-
Patent number: 6790387Abstract: A process of producing an article having a surface provided with an optical diffraction grating such that the surface generates visible color when illuminated with diffuse white light. The process involves deforming a starting material to produce the article having the surface and, during the deforming step, impressing a diffraction relief pattern on the surface by a tool provided with a bearing surface having a corresponding surface relief pattern of parallel lines that contacts the surface of the article under pressure. While the diffraction relief patter is being impressed, the surface is caused to slide in a direction of movement relative to the bearing surface of the tool. The invention also relates to the article.Type: GrantFiled: May 10, 2002Date of Patent: September 14, 2004Assignee: Alcan International LimitedInventors: Melville Douglas Ball, Matthew James Fairlie, Harry Sang
-
Publication number: 20040076721Abstract: A metal can for holding a carbonated or otherwise pressurized beverage or the like, having a rigid metal lid formed with an aperture, and a flexible closure member extending over the aperture and peelably bonded to the lid, the closure member including a portion that undergoes an irreversible change in appearance upon bending and is disposed to be bent by peeling of the closure.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 18, 2002Publication date: April 22, 2004Inventors: Aron M. Rosenfeld, Melville Douglas Ball, Edmund T. Gillest, Gary J. Smith
-
Publication number: 20030113416Abstract: A container such as a can of carbonated beverage, including an upwardly open metal body having a sidewall with an annular upper portion having a reduced-diameter neck formed therein, and a metal top structure such as a lid having an annular portion secured to the annular upper portion of the sidewall along an annular seam extending outwardly and substantially horizontally or downwardly, from the sidewall. The sidewall edge portion is formed into an outwardly projecting annular flange immediately above the neck, the annular lid portion overlies the annular flange, and the seam includes a metal member holding the annular peripheral lid portion and the annular flange together. The lid may be upwardly domed by internal pressure. A method of producing the container by filling it, adhesively bonding the lid to the flange, and forming the metal seam member.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 14, 2001Publication date: June 19, 2003Inventors: Paul Anthony Wycliffe, Melville Douglas Ball, Lloyd Wilson
-
Publication number: 20030062370Abstract: A metal can for holding a carbonated or otherwise pressurized beverage or the like, having a rigid metal lid formed with an eccentrically disposed, upwardly projecting annular flange defining an aperture of average diameter between about 0.625 inch and about 1 inch, and a flexible metal foil closure extending over the aperture and peelably bonded by a heat seal to the sloping outer surface of the flange.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 17, 2002Publication date: April 3, 2003Inventors: Melville Douglas Ball, Tom E. Scott, Robin C. Furneaux, James D. Moulton, Christopher Robert Smith, Peter Hamstra
-
Patent number: 6495196Abstract: A process and apparatus, including a separate coating head, for coating a strip article with a coating material. The process involves coating a strip article with a film of coating material by passing the strip article through a coating apparatus having at least one floating coating head provided with a coating face facing and extending laterally across a surface of the strip article to be coated. The coating head exudes a coating material and floats on the coating material as it meters the coating to a film of the desired thickness. The coating face of the coating head has a preferred coating profile between its opposite ends, and wherein distortions of the preferred coating profile during coating of said strip article are substantially prevented by modifying heat flux to or from selected parts of the coating head to compensate for distortions caused by differences of temperature within the coating head. The apparatus provides means of modifying heat flux to prevent such distortions of the coating profile.Type: GrantFiled: February 8, 2000Date of Patent: December 17, 2002Assignee: Alcan International LimitedInventors: Robert Arthur Innes, Melville Douglas Ball
-
Publication number: 20020050493Abstract: A metal can for holding a carbonated or otherwise pressurized beverage or the like, having a rigid metal lid formed with an eccentrically disposed, upwardly projecting frustoconical annular flange defining an aperture of average diameter between about 0.625 inch and about 1 inch, and a flexible metal foil closure extending over the aperture and peelably bonded by a heat seal to the sloping outer surface of the flange.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 13, 2001Publication date: May 2, 2002Inventors: Melville Douglas Ball, Tom E. Scott, Robin C. Furneaux, James D. Moulton, Christopher Robert Smith, Peter Hamstra
-
Patent number: 6376012Abstract: A process of producing an elongated coated strip article having a layer of coating material on each opposite surface of the strip article, in which the ratio of layer thicknesses on opposite sides of the strip article may be set or varied. The process comprises simultaneously applying layers of solidifiable liquid coating materials on the opposite sides of the strip article by advancing the strip article in a direction along a path between opposed coating heads, at least one of which is a floating coating head, having material delivery slots and metering lands for delivery and metering of the liquid coating materials to the opposite surface to form the layers. The ratio of the layer thicknesses may be adjusted when required by varying the path of strip article advance between the floating coating heads to cause changes in angles formed between the strip surfaces and adjacent metering lands on opposite sides of the strip article. The invention also provides apparatus for carrying out the process.Type: GrantFiled: April 12, 2000Date of Patent: April 23, 2002Assignee: Alcan International LimitedInventors: Robert Arthur Innes, Melville Douglas Ball
-
Patent number: 6106900Abstract: A method of applying a multi-layer coating to a surface of an elongated strip article (10) of variable thickness or surface height. The method involves applying at least two layers (12a, 12b,) of different coating materials in the form of solidifiable fluids directly onto the surface (10a, 47, 48) of the elongated metal strip article and reducing the layers to a desired thickness by causing the applied coating materials to encounter at least one coating surface (27) that is movable substantially perpendicularly relative to the strip article and is urged towards the strip article in opposition to hydrodynamic force generated by the coating materials on the at least one coating surface. Differences of thickness or surface height of the strip article are therefore accommodated unduly varying the coating thickness.Type: GrantFiled: January 20, 1999Date of Patent: August 22, 2000Assignee: Alcan International LimitedInventors: Robert Arthur Innes, Neil Louis Brockman, Melville Douglas Ball, Carl Arlen Wollam