Patents by Inventor Zijing Zeng

Zijing Zeng 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: 20220061699
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are capacitive sensors, and methods for their operation, that determine the presence of a user by detecting input forces and/or pressures. Capacitive sensors may be in the form of a flexible capacitive sensing mat. An electronic device incorporating a flexible capacitive sensing mat may include spacer fabric disposed between conductive layers. The spacer fabric may have a first thickness and may be configured to compress to at least a second thickness when a threshold pressure is applied to the layered sensor and revert to the first thickness when the threshold pressure is no longer applied to the flexible mat. A capacitive sense circuit electrically coupled to the second conductive layer and configured to generate a presence detection signal when the spacer fabric layer compresses to the second thickness may additionally be provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 31, 2020
    Publication date: March 3, 2022
    Inventors: Daniel W. LaBove, Chin San Han, Ali M. Amin, Henry Rimminen, Riley E. Brandt, Timothy L. Weadon, Yindar Chuo, Zijing Zeng
  • Patent number: 11260213
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2022
    Assignee: TC1 LLC
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Publication number: 20220047250
    Abstract: Embodiments are directed to systems and techniques for tracking menstrual cycles, which can include receiving temperature measurements from an array of temperature sensors positioned on a bed. A use period for the array can be determined when temperature measurements from at least one temperature sensor of the one or more temperature sensors exceed a first temperature threshold. In some embodiments, for each use period in a set of two or more use periods, a temperature of the user using the set of temperatures from the respective use period can be determined. After determining the temperature of the user for each use period in the set of two or more use periods, at least one change in the temperature of the user between different use periods can be identified. An ovulation day of the user based on the at least one change in the temperature of the user can be estimated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 12, 2020
    Publication date: February 17, 2022
    Inventors: James C. Clements, Erno H. Klaassen, Habib S. Karaki, Joseph M. Schmitt, Zijing Zeng
  • Patent number: 11229786
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2022
    Assignee: TC1 LLC
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Publication number: 20220015652
    Abstract: Embodiments are directed to a blood pressure measurement device including a cuff that is operative to wrap around a limb of a user, a bladder coupled to the cuff and operative to compress the limb of the user when inflated, and a piezoelectric sensor coupled to the cuff and operative to detect blood flow through the limb of the user and output a signal indicative of the blood flow. The blood pressure measurement device can also include a processor coupled with the piezoelectric sensor that is operative to filter the signal to isolate sounds corresponding to changes in the blood flow through the limb due to inflation of the bladder, correlate the isolated sounds with a pressure inside the bladder, and determine a blood pressure of the user at least partially based on correlating the isolated sounds with the pressure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 14, 2020
    Publication date: January 20, 2022
    Inventors: Joseph R. Lee, Joseph M. Schmitt, Derek Young, Pranay Jain, Ali M. Amin, Wegene Tadele, Zijing Zeng
  • Publication number: 20210404883
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein are directed to a temperature measurement device that includes a sensor body configured to be placed on a skin of a user. The temperature measurement device can include a first section defining a first lower surface and having a first thickness, a second section defining a second lower surface and having a second thickness, and a channel separating the first lower surface from the second lower surface. The temperature measurement device can also include a first set of temperature sensors positioned across the first thickness, a second set of temperature sensors positioned across the second thickness, and a processor configured to estimate a tissue temperature of the user based on comparing temperature signals from the first set of temperature sensors with temperature signals from the second set of temperature sensors.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 30, 2020
    Publication date: December 30, 2021
    Inventors: Helia Rahmani, Anthony D. Minervini, Wanfeng Huang, James C. Clements, Jiandong Yu, Zijing Zeng, Charley T. Ogata
  • Publication number: 20210393152
    Abstract: A blood pressure cuff includes a support band that is selectively reconfigured between a flexible standby configuration and a measurement configuration. A blood pressure cuff includes an inflatable bladder, a support band, and a control unit. The support band is attached to and surrounds the inflatable bladder. The support band is reconfigurable, in response to an input from the control unit, from a standby configuration for between blood pressure measurements to a measurement configuration for constraining the inflatable bladder while the inflatable bladder is in an inflated state during a blood pressure measurement. The control unit includes a bladder pump for inflation of the inflatable bladder during a blood pressure measurement and controls the selective reconfiguration of the support band.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 23, 2019
    Publication date: December 23, 2021
    Inventors: Derek Park-Shing Young, Joseph M. Schmitt, Zijing Zeng, Erno H. Klaassen
  • Publication number: 20210321889
    Abstract: Embodiments include a blood pressure measurement device that includes a cuff for measuring blood pressure of a user. The cuff may include a bladder assembly configured to retain a fluid within an internal chamber where the bladder assembly is formed from a first cell defining a first portion of the internal chamber that is connected with a second cell defining a second portion of the internal chamber. The bladder assembly can also include a fluid passage that is in fluid communication with the first cell and the second cell and coupled with a reservoir. The bladder assembly can exchange the fluid with the reservoir and be configured to increase in length when a volume of the fluid in the internal chamber decreases, and decrease in length when the volume of the fluid in the internal chamber increases.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2021
    Publication date: October 21, 2021
    Inventors: Pranay Jain, Nicholas R. Trincia, Chia-Hsien Lin, Zijing Zeng
  • Publication number: 20210208010
    Abstract: A camera attachment for measuring a temperature of a surface, and related methods of measuring the temperature of the surface, employ a temperature reactive material that is thermally coupled with the surface and imaged to provide image data of the temperature reactive material that is analyzed to measure the temperature. A camera attachment for measuring a temperature of a surface includes a distal surface configured to be thermally coupled with the surface, a frame configured to be coupled with a camera that has a field of view, and a temperature reactive material coupled with the frame and thermally coupled with the distal surface. The frame positions the temperature reactive material within the field of view of the camera so that an image captured by the camera includes at least a portion of the temperature reactive material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 8, 2021
    Publication date: July 8, 2021
    Inventors: Joseph M. Schmitt, Pablo A. Escobar, Zijing Zeng
  • Publication number: 20210085091
    Abstract: An in-bed haptic device may include an array of actuation cells. Actuation cells of the array of actuation cells may be configured to actuate (e.g., expand, contract, or otherwise change shape) in a predetermined sequence to provide haptic outputs. The in-bed haptic device may be configured to be placed beneath a user during use, for example between a user and a mattress. The haptic outputs may be provided to help a user relax, to move and/or wake a user, to indicate outputs, alerts, or notifications at the in-bed haptic device or another electronic device, or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2020
    Publication date: March 25, 2021
    Inventors: Riley E. Brandt, Linda Benavente-Notaro, Antonio Herrera, Denis Lin, Zijing Zeng, Erno H. Klaassen, Zhipeng Zhang
  • Publication number: 20210038788
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Publication number: 20210038787
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Publication number: 20210041287
    Abstract: A sensor system includes a sensor stack, a differential amplifier, an analog-to-digital converter, and a processor. The sensor stack includes a piezoelectric material having a first side opposing a second side, a first electrode connected to the first side, and a second electrode connected to the second side. The differential amplifier is coupled to the first and second electrodes and is configured to generate a differential output indicative of vibrations sensed by the piezoelectric material. The analog-to-differential converter is configured to digitize the differential output. The processor is configured to identify a type of biological vibration included in the digitized differential output.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Henry Rimminen, Ali M. Amin, Timothy L. Weadon, Yindar Chuo, Zijing Zeng, Erno Klaassen
  • Publication number: 20210038789
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Publication number: 20210038092
    Abstract: A sleep monitor includes a layered sensor that includes at least one substrate layer that includes multiple laterally adjacent substrates. The substrate layer may be formed by interdigitating fingers of a first sheet with fingers of a second sheet. Combining multiple substrates in a single layer of a layered sensor may allow multiple materials and/or sensing mechanisms to be combined together in a single layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Ali M. Amin, Yindar Chuo, Zijing Zeng
  • Patent number: 10890494
    Abstract: A camera attachment for measuring a temperature of a surface, and related methods of measuring the temperature of the surface, employ a temperature reactive material that is thermally coupled with the surface and imaged to provide image data of the temperature reactive material that is analyzed to measure the temperature. A camera attachment for measuring a temperature of a surface includes a distal surface configured to be thermally coupled with the surface, a frame configured to be coupled with a camera that has a field of view, and a temperature reactive material coupled with the frame and thermally coupled with the distal surface. The frame positions the temperature reactive material within the field of view of the camera so that an image captured by the camera includes at least a portion of the temperature reactive material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Joseph M. Schmitt, Pablo A. Escobar, Zijing Zeng
  • Patent number: 10881307
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relate s to blood pressure monitoring. In some embodiments, methods and devices for measuring a mean arterial pressure and/or for monitoring blood pressure changes of a user are provided. Blood pressure measured by one or more pressure sensors may be adjusted using one or more correction factors. The use of the one or more correction factors disclosed herein may allow for more compact, convenient, and/or accurate wearable blood pressure measurement devices and methods. In particular, wrist-worn devices may be provided which are less bulky than current devices and may facilitate more frequent and accurate blood pressure monitoring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas J. Sullivan, Ravi K. Narasimhan, Rui Qiao, Derek Park-Shing Young, Robert K. Montgomery, II, Mohsen Mollazadeh, Zijing Zeng, Vasco D. Polyzoev, Richard C. Kimoto
  • Publication number: 20200397961
    Abstract: An impeller for a pump is disclosed herein. The impeller can include a hub having a fixed end and a free end. The impeller can also have a plurality of blades supported by the hub. Each blade can have a fixed end coupled to the hub and a free end. The impeller can have a stored configuration and a deployed configuration, the blades in the deployed configuration extending away from the hub, and the blades in the stored configuration being compressed against the hub.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2020
    Publication date: December 24, 2020
    Inventors: Zijing Zeng, Phyllis Yuen, Michael R. Butler
  • Patent number: 10849555
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relate s to blood pressure monitoring. In some embodiments, methods and devices for measuring a mean arterial pressure and/or for monitoring blood pressure changes of a user are provided. Blood pressure measured by one or more pressure sensors may be adjusted using one or more correction factors. The use of the one or more correction factors disclosed herein may allow for more compact, convenient, and/or accurate wearable blood pressure measurement devices and methods. In particular, wrist-worn devices may be provided which are less bulky than current devices and may facilitate more frequent and accurate blood pressure monitoring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2020
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas J. Sullivan, Ravi K. Narasimhan, Rui Qiao, Derek Park-Shing Young, Robert K. Montgomery, II, Mohsen Mollazadeh, Zijing Zeng, Vasco D. Polyzoev, Richard C. Kimoto
  • Publication number: 20200367767
    Abstract: A pulse transit time is measured non-invasively and used to calculate a blood pressure value. A method of determining one or more blood pressure values includes propagating an alternating drive current through a thorax of a subject via electrodes located on a wrist-worn device. Resulting voltage levels of the subject are sensed by the wrist-worn device. The voltage levels are processed to detect when a volume of blood is ejected from the left ventricle. Output from a pulse arrival sensor coupled to the wrist-worn device is processed to detect when a blood pressure pulse generated by ejection of the volume of blood from the left ventricle arrives at the wrist. A pulse transit time (PTT) for transit of the blood pressure pulse from the left ventricle to the wrist is calculated. One or more blood pressure values for the subject are determined based on the PTT.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 11, 2020
    Publication date: November 26, 2020
    Inventors: Thomas J. Sullivan, Wren Nancy Dougherty, Richard C. Kimoto, Erno Klaassen, Ravi K. Narasimhan, Stephen J. Waydo, Todd K. Whitehurst, Derek Park-Shing Young, Santiago Quijano, Zijing Zeng