Patents Represented by Attorney Alleman Hall McCoy Russell & Tuttle LLP
  • Patent number: 8352164
    Abstract: A method is described for operating an engine of a vehicle, the engine having a combustion chamber. The method may include controlling a stability of the vehicle in response to a vehicle acceleration; and adjusting spark timing in the combustion chamber of the engine in response to a knock indication, and further adjusting spark timing in response to the vehicle acceleration to reduce surge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Thomas G. Leone, Ralph Wayne Cunningham, Eric Tseng, Davor David Hrovat, Mrdjan J. Jankovic, Diana Yanakiev
  • Patent number: 8352877
    Abstract: Various embodiments related to the adjustment of a displayed range of a portion of a content selection are disclosed. In one embodiment, a computing device with an interactive display is configured to display a portion of a content selection and a control associated with the content selection. The control comprises a track and an indicator that indicates a location and a range of the portion of the content selection within the content selection as a whole. A first type of input associated with the control alters the range of the portion of the content selection displayed relative to the content selection as a whole and adjusts an appearance of the indicator, while a second type of touch input associated with the control alters a portion of the content selection displayed and moves the indicator on the track.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Bryan Beatty, Bogdan Popp
  • Patent number: 8347865
    Abstract: A system for processing PCV gases is disclosed. In one example, the system includes an oil passage solely linking an oil separator to an engine crankcase. The system can provide an oil column that provides for continuous oil return from the oil separator to the engine crankcase even during conditions of higher levels of engine vacuum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Frank Acierno Valencia, Christopher K. Palazzolo, Paul T. Reinhart, Timothy Gerald Taylor
  • Patent number: 8347862
    Abstract: A method for controlling injection timing for a gaseous fuel injector is described. In one example, the fuel injector is opened with a saturating fuel injector at a predetermined crankshaft angular position. In one embodiment, the predetermined crankshaft angular position corresponds to at least one crankshaft angular position where battery voltage increases during engine cranking.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Ross Dykstra Pursifull
  • Patent number: 8352166
    Abstract: Systems and methods of operating an engine, the engine including an injector configured to directly inject fuel into an engine cylinder. One example method comprises, during an engine cold start, performing compression direct fuel injection, and retarding a timing of the compression injection as a fuel alcohol content of the fuel increases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Gopichandra Surnilla, David Karl Bidner, Peter Charles Moilanen
  • Patent number: 8347852
    Abstract: Methods are provided for controlling an engine in response to a pre-ignition event. A pre-ignition threshold and a pre-ignition mitigating action are adjusted based on a rate of change of cylinder aircharge. As a result, pre-ignition events occurring during transient engine operating conditions are detected and addressed different from pre-ignition events occurring during steady-state engine operating conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Chris Paul Glugla, Michael Mancini
  • Patent number: 8352162
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for improving fuel usage while addressing knock by adjusting the use of spark retard and direct injection of a fluid based on engine operating conditions and the composition of the injected fluid. One or more engine parameters, such as EGR, VCT, boost, throttle position, are coordinated with the direct injection to reduce torque and EGR transients.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Thomas G. Leone, Gopichandra Surnilla
  • Patent number: 8347624
    Abstract: Various systems and methods are described for controlling an engine with a turbocharger in a vehicle. One example method comprises, under selected operating conditions, generating an oxidant rich component from engine intake air, storing the oxidant rich component of the intake air, and, under subsequent cold start conditions, injecting an amount of the stored oxidant rich component to the engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Ross Dykstra Pursifull, Joseph Norman Ulrey
  • Patent number: 8341950
    Abstract: Systems and methods for converting engine heat energy to electricity using a thermoelectric conversion device are provided herein. One example system may include an engine heat source, a thermoelectric conversion device for converting heat into electricity, and a heat pipe. The heat pipe is positioned so that when the temperature of the engine exhaust is too high, the excess heat may be transferred away from the thermoelectric conversion device to the heat sink via the heat pipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: David Karl Bidner, Robert Jay Natkin, Shane Elwart, Gopichandra Surnilla
  • Patent number: 8343011
    Abstract: An engine with a fast vacuum recovery brake booster system is disclosed. In one example, an actuator is adjusted in response to a flow between the brake booster and an engine intake manifold. Operation of the engine and vehicle brakes may be improved especially when the engine is boosted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Ralph Wayne Cunningham, Ross Dykstra Pursifull, Mansour Beshay
  • Patent number: 8342158
    Abstract: In one example, a system for a vehicle travelling on a surface is described. The system includes an engine with a cylinder. The cylinder includes a fuel injector that is supplied with gaseous fuel and liquid fuel by a fuel delivery system. The fuel injector is mounted in the vehicle such that the fuel injector inlet faces at least partially toward the road surface. The orientation of the fuel injector enables a quick transition from liquid fuel to gaseous fuel because the gaseous fuel can rise to the injectors and be preferentially injected. Further, various approaches are described from transitioning operation between gaseous and liquid fuel injection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Joseph Norman Ulrey, Ross Dykstra Pursifull
  • Patent number: 8343448
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for reducing NOx emissions from a vehicle including an engine having an exhaust. In one example, the system comprises a NOx reducing system coupled to the engine exhaust including a base metal zeolite, said NOx reducing system including a first layer with a first pore size and a second layer with a second pore size, said first pore size being smaller than said second pore size.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Giovanni Cavataio, James W. Girard, Hungwen Jen, Rachel Alison Snow, Christine Kay Lambert
  • Patent number: 8341947
    Abstract: A system for filtering and oxidizing particulate matter produced by a gasoline direct injection engine is disclosed. In one embodiment, engine cylinder air-fuel is adjusted to allow soot to oxidize at an upstream particulate filter while exhaust gases are efficiently processed in a downstream catalyst.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Jeffrey Scott Hepburn, David Karl Bidner, Helmut Hans Ruhland, Moritz Klaus Springer, Thomas Lorenz, Georg Louven, Carolyn Parks Hubbard, Robert Walter McCabe, Eva Thanasiu, James Michael Kerns, Nian Xiao
  • Patent number: 8342140
    Abstract: A method for operating an engine with a fuel reformer is presented. In one embodiment a method for operating an engine by injecting a gaseous fuel and a liquid fuel to at least an engine cylinder is presented. The mixture of an engine cylinder may be diluted with EGR and a fraction of gaseous fuel may be increased relative to a fraction of liquid fuel injected to a cylinder in response to an operator tip-out.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Gopichandra Surnilla, Thomas G. Leone
  • Patent number: 8341936
    Abstract: An exhaust-gas sampler is adapted to couple into an exhaust conduit and to sample a constituent of an engine exhaust flowing therein. The sampler comprises an envelope having upstream and downstream surfaces joined by a curved side surface. The upstream and downstream surfaces are each tangent to a plane substantially normal to a central axis of the exhaust conduit. A series of inlets are formed in the upstream surface, and an outlet is formed in the curved side surface. A sensor responsive to a level of the constituent in the exhaust is coupled in the envelope, at the peripheral region of the conduit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Xiaogang Zhang
  • Patent number: 8341946
    Abstract: An exhaust-gas aftertreatment system for exhaust gases of an internal combustion engine. In one example, a portion of the engine exhaust gases goes to the particulate filter and the other portion of engine exhaust gases goes to the catalyst element. The outlet of the filter element is directed to the inlet of the catalyst element and the outlet of the catalyst element is directed to the inlet of the filter element. Thus, the engine exhaust gases are filtered and processed by a catalyst.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Jan Harmsen
  • Patent number: 8336814
    Abstract: An aircraft, comprising an internal combustion engine by whose drive power a propeller can be driven, wherein the internal combustion engine cooperates with an electric machine which in a first operating mode is operable as electric motor and in a second operating mode as electric generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Flight-Design-GmbH Flugsportgerate
    Inventor: Oliver Reinhardt
  • Patent number: 8338973
    Abstract: To provide a water flow electric power generator capable of generating electric power for a long period of time, the water flow electric power generator including: an underwater rotating body (32) configured to rotate by a water flow (11); a driving liquid pressure pump (34) configured to hold a front end (52) of the underwater rotating body (32) at a predetermined position under water; a power transmission unit (40) configured to transfer a rotational power of the underwater rotating body (32) held by the driving liquid pressure pump (34) to above a water surface (9); and an electric power generator (39) disposed above the water surface to be driven by the power transferred by the power transmission unit (40), wherein the underwater rotating body (32) includes: a body portion (51) having a streamline shape from a front end thereof to a rear end thereof; a supporting portion (33) located between a front end of the body portion (51) and the driving liquid pressure pump (34) to be able to swing in a direction i
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Nova Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kiyomi Suzuki
  • Patent number: D673115
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Marantec Antriebs- und Steuerungstechnik GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Michael Hoermann
  • Patent number: D673116
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Marantec Antriebs- und Steuerungstechnik GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Michael Hoermann