Patents by Inventor Steven Rotundo

Steven Rotundo 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: 20240190278
    Abstract: Battery powered quadrotors or drones have a limited operation time. To extend operation time, a powered tether can be used. This tether provides power to the drone allowing it to stay up indefinitely. Most tethered drones are captured to the base station. The tether can reel in and out as the drone moves, but the drone can't go higher or further than the maximum length of the tether. If the tether can be automatically disconnected, the drone could fly off for some remote mission, assuming the drone had an onboard power source such as rechargeable batteries. The present invention relates to a self-powered drone tether that comprises a rechargeable drone in flight which is referred to as the rechargeable drone, a drone that carries a powered tether which is referred to as the tether drone, a coupling mechanism between the rechargeable drone and the tether drone, and a base station with a powered tether and tether deployment system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2023
    Publication date: June 13, 2024
    Inventors: Alberto Daniel Lacaze, Karl Nicholas Murphy, William Becker, Steven Rotundo
  • Patent number: 11999206
    Abstract: The invention relates to a system (400) comprising a vehicle (402), an arm assembly (408), first and second cable portions (410a, 410b), at least one cable actuator (406), and an air supply line. The vehicle has a pneumatic source of pressurized air. The arm assembly has an end effector releasably coupled to an end of an axially-extendable arm coupled to the vehicle. The end effector has a gladhand coupling portion. The air supply line can be coupled to the end effector and can deliver pressurized air from the pneumatic source to a braking system of the trailer when the gladhand coupling portion is coupled to the gladhand receptacle of a trailer. After coupling to the gladhand receptacle, the end effector can be disconnected from the arm assembly to allow the remainder of the arm assembly to be stowed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2023
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2024
    Assignee: Robotic Research OpCo, LLC
    Inventors: Alberto Lacaze, Karl Murphy, Steven Rotundo, Gedaliah Knizhnik
  • Publication number: 20240075778
    Abstract: The invention relates to a system (400) comprising a vehicle (402), an arm assembly (408), first and second cable portions (410a, 410b), at least one cable actuator (406), and an air supply line. The vehicle has a pneumatic source of pressurized air. The arm assembly has an end effector releasably coupled to an end of an axially-extendable arm coupled to the vehicle. The end effector has a gladhand coupling portion. The air supply line can be coupled to the end effector and can deliver pressurized air from the pneumatic source to a braking system of the trailer when the gladhand coupling portion is coupled to the gladhand receptacle of a trailer. After coupling to the gladhand receptacle, the end effector can be disconnected from the arm assembly to allow the remainder of the arm assembly to be stowed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2023
    Publication date: March 7, 2024
    Inventors: Alberto LACAZE, Karl MURPHY, Steven ROTUNDO, Gedaliah KNIZHNIK
  • Patent number: 11912406
    Abstract: Current foot-launched 2-stroke commercial PPG offerings can meet the specified threshold (and in some cases, objective) requirements for flight ceiling, payload capacity and range with little to no modification. We will discuss those in the next section. The APES system enhances the effectiveness and lethality of the PPG-equipped unit by reducing weight of the PPG, increasing reliability and redundancy, reducing pilot workload, and seamlessly integrating with UAV's and UGV's. System improvements in the following areas is assessed: Series hybrid-electric powertrain, Coaxial propellers. Localization, autopilot, and formations, Auto landing and other advanced features, Integration with unmanned systems, and Launch Considerations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: Robotic Research OpCo, LLC
    Inventors: Alberto Daniel Lacaze, Karl Nicholas Murphy, William Becker, Steven Rotundo
  • Patent number: 11884175
    Abstract: Battery powered quadrotors or drones have a limited operation time. To extend operation time, a powered tether can be used. This tether provides power to the drone allowing it to stay up indefinitely. Most tethered drones are captured to the base station. The tether can reel in and out as the drone moves, but the drone can't go higher or further than the maximum length of the tether. If the tether can be automatically disconnected, the drone could fly off for some remote mission, assuming the drone had an onboard power source such as rechargeable batteries. The present invention relates to a self-powered drone tether that comprises a rechargeable drone in flight which is referred to as the rechargeable drone, a drone that carries a powered tether which is referred to as the tether drone, a coupling mechanism between the rechargeable drone and the tether drone, and a base station with a powered tether and tether deployment system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Robotic Research OpCo, LLC
    Inventors: Alberto Daniel Lacaze, Karl Nicholas Murphy, William Becker, Steven Rotundo
  • Publication number: 20210363715
    Abstract: Systems and methods for autonomous, modular, and/or multi-segment vehicle barriers, such as portable vehicle barriers that may be automatically anchored to the ground in response to threat detection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2021
    Publication date: November 25, 2021
    Inventors: William Becker, Karl Nicholas Murphy, Steven Rotundo, Alberto Daniel Lacaze