Patents Examined by Brian Healy
  • Patent number: 8471997
    Abstract: An LCD apparatus comprising an LCD screen, backlight arrangements for providing back illumination to the LCD screen, video processing circuitry and air moving devices, characterized in that the air moving devices are arranged to move air to condition the image displaying surface of the LCD screen. An LCD image displaying apparatus according to the present invention could operate at a brightness level of above 1000 nits, and even 3000 nits, which provides an astounding visual effect in the outdoor environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2013
    Assignee: Shenzhen New Super-Bright LCD Display Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yanming Yang, Nanfang Xie, Cai Kang
  • Patent number: 8469609
    Abstract: A heat transferring mechanism of an optical transceiver is disclosed. The optical transceiver includes a metal cover, a OSA that generate heat, and a heat conductor. The OSA has the heat transferring surface extending to a direction intersecting, or substantially in perpendicular, to the longitudinal direction of the optical transceiver. The heat conductor, which is formed only by cutting and bending of metal plate, includes a contact plate and the transfer plate in thermally contact to a heat transferring surface of the OSA and an inner surface of the metal cover to form an effective heat transferring path from the OSA to the cover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2013
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kuniyuki Ishii, Hiromi Kurashima
  • Patent number: 8467633
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion structure includes a light guide formed of a light-transmissive member having a laser light incident port that allows the laser light to be introduced and a phosphor-containing layer that covers at least part of the surface of the light guide. The light guide has a light diffusing structure having asperities and a light reflecting film. The asperities are formed over the surface of the light guide except a laser light incident surface having the laser light incident port. The light reflecting film is formed over the surface of the light guide along the asperities except the laser light incident port and the portion covered with the phosphor-containing layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2013
    Assignee: Stanley Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Ji-Hao Liang, Teruo Koike
  • Patent number: 8467636
    Abstract: A vital sign measurement device includes a sensor fixation device, a sensor frame, an optical sensing system, and an output unit. The sensor fixation device is adapted to be placed against an anatomical location of a subject. The optical sensing system includes an optical waveguide, an optical source device to supply optical energy to the optical waveguide, and an optical detector to detect an amount of optical energy exiting the optical waveguide. The optical sensing system is adapted to sense an arterial pulse from the compression or flexing of at least a portion of the optical waveguide resulting in reduction of the amount of light exiting the optical waveguide. The output unit is configured to receive a signal indicative of the amount of light exiting the optical waveguide and to generate a measure of the vital sign based at least in part on the received signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2013
    Assignee: Tarilian Laser Technologies, Limited
    Inventors: John A. Borgos, Thomas A. Borgos, Troy Pongratz
  • Patent number: 8463090
    Abstract: An optical fuse or energy-switching-off device includes an optical waveguide having an input section and an output section, the two sections forming a pair of opposed surfaces extending transversely through the axes of the waveguide sections. A substantially transparent material is disposed between the opposed surfaces and comprises an electrically conductive nanotube web immersed in dielectric material, where the nanotubes are not in electrical contact with each other. The substantially transparent material forms a plasma when exposed to optical signals propagating within the optical waveguide with an optical power level above a predetermined threshold, and the plasma damages the opposed surfaces sufficiently to render the surfaces substantially opaque to light propagating within the input section of the optical waveguide so as to prevent the transmission of such light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: KiloLambda Technologies Ltd.
    Inventors: Ariela Donval, Doron Nevo, Moshe Oron, Tali Fisher Masliah
  • Patent number: 8459877
    Abstract: An optical fiber handler for optical connector termination systems and other devices are disclosed herein. The optical fiber handler attaches to the optical fiber or cable and cooperates with other components for preparing the optical fiber and/or making the optical connection, thereby providing a simple, reliable, and easy termination for the optical fiber. For instance, the handler may cooperate with one or more of the following a strip tool, strip/clean tool, cleave tool for preparing the end of the optical fiber(s), and/or a mechanical splice connector for making the optical connection. Additionally, after the optical fiber handler is attached to the mechanical splice connector it may be easily removed by the craft if necessary to reposition and reterminated the mechanical splice.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Corning Cable Systems LLC
    Inventors: Brandon A. Barnes, Kevin C. Beach, Ashley W. Jones, Greg J. Scherer
  • Patent number: 8462286
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing, with high mass productivity, liquid crystal display devices having highly reliable thin film transistors with excellent electric characteristics is provided. In a liquid crystal display device having an inverted staggered thin film transistor, the inverted staggered thin film transistor is formed as follows: a gate insulating film is formed over a gate electrode; a microcrystalline semiconductor film which functions as a channel formation region is formed over the gate insulating film; a buffer layer is formed over the microcrystalline semiconductor film; a pair of source and drain regions are formed over the buffer layer; and a pair of source and drain electrodes are formed in contact with the source and drain regions so as to expose a part of the source and drain regions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Yukie Suzuki, Hideaki Kuwabara, Hajime Kimura
  • Patent number: 8463092
    Abstract: A photovoltaic (PV) system includes a fiber optical waveguide comprising an active core that hosts material configured to absorb and emit light, a cladding layer surrounding the active core, the cladding layer being configured to allow ambient light to pass through the cladding layer, and an exit port located proximate an end of the waveguide. The PV system further comprises one or more solar cells disposed at the exit port of the waveguide. The waveguide is configured to guide light to the one or more solar cells. Another photovoltaic (PV) system includes a waveguide comprising an active cladding layer hosting material configured to absorb and emit light, and a core layer configured to confine light emitted by the active cladding layer. The PV system further includes one or more solar cells disposed proximate the waveguide. The core layer is configured to guide light to the one or more solar cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
    Inventor: Faramarz Farahi
  • Patent number: 8459880
    Abstract: Disclosed are fiber optic connectors including a holder for attaching a fiber optic cable to a fiber optic connector along with cable assemblies and methods for making the same. In one embodiment, the holder includes a first and a second cantilevered arm that are squeezed together when a sleeve is placed over the holder. Further, one or more of the cantilevered arm may include a plurality of teeth for “biting” into the cable jacket and providing a suitable fiber optic cable retention force. The fiber optic connectors, cable assemblies and methods disclosed herein are advantageous since they allow the craft to quickly, reliably, and easily attach a robust fiber optic cable to a connector, thereby providing a rugged solution for the craft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Corning Cable Systems LLC
    Inventors: Guy J. Castonguay, Howard C. Schwartz, JiWei Sun, Chanh C. Vo
  • Patent number: 8463091
    Abstract: This invention discloses methods to reconfigure highly scalable and modular automated optical cross connect switch devices comprised of large numbers of densely packed fiber strands suspended within a common volume. In particular, methods enabling programmable interconnection of large numbers of optical fibers (100's-1000's) are provided, whereby a two-dimensional input array of fiber optic connections is mapped in an ordered and rule-based fashion into a one-dimensional array. A particular algorithmic implementation for a system reconfigured by a three-axis robotic gripper as well as lateral translation of each row in the input port array is disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Telescent Inc.
    Inventor: Anthony Stephen Kewitsch
  • Patent number: 8463086
    Abstract: An optical semiconductor device in which light having a wavelength of 1.25 ?m or greater is waveguided, includes: a first waveguide of embedded type that includes a semiconductor and is lattice-matched with InP, the first waveguide having a region having a first constant width equal to or greater than 1.50 ?m and a first region narrower than the region; and a second waveguide of embedded type that includes another semiconductor having a refractive index different from that of the first waveguide, the second waveguide having a region having a second constant width smaller than 1.50 ?m and a second region wider than said region. The first waveguide and the second waveguide are joined at an intermediate waveguide portion. The intermediate waveguide portion includes the first region and the second region and a joining plane on which the first region and the second region are joined. The joining plane has a width equal to or smaller than 1.35 ?m.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Device Innovations, Inc.
    Inventors: Daisei Shoji, Takuya Fujii
  • Patent number: 8463096
    Abstract: Described are track-resistant all dielectric self-supporting (TR-ADSS) cables with improved cable jackets. A typical TR-ADSS optical fiber cable comprises an optical fiber sub-assembly, and a cable jacket system. The cable jacket system comprises an inner jacket, an aramid strength layer and an outer jacket. The improvement in the cable jacket system results from the addition of a friction layer between the aramid strength layer and the outer jacket. The friction layer prevents unwanted slippage of the outer jacket with respect to the inner portions of the cable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: OFS Fitel, LLC
    Inventors: Peter A. Weimann, Robert Arthur Williams
  • Patent number: 8456607
    Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to suppress light leakage in a dark state which is generated by rubbing treatment. A liquid crystal material containing an ultraviolet curable liquid crystalline monomer at a concentration of more than 0 wt % and not more than 1.0 wt % is used for a liquid crystal layer, and the liquid crystal layer is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. By applying such a liquid crystal layer to a liquid crystal display device, light leakage in a dark state can be suppressed, and the black display can be improved. Therefore, a liquid crystal display device with an excellent contrast and high display quality can be obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Daisuke Kubota, Takeshi Nishi, Tetsuji Ishitani
  • Patent number: 8456604
    Abstract: A liquid crystal device includes a pair of substrates, a liquid crystal disposed between the pair of substrates, and a seal member disposed around the liquid crystal, wherein a liquid crystal storage portion is disposed in the inner circumference of the seal member by forming a concave portion on the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Shuhei Yamada, Shohei Yoshida, Takeshi Seto
  • Patent number: 8457454
    Abstract: An optical multi-chip module (MCM) is provided. A printed circuit board (PCB) overlies a package bottom and has die contact regions, each having at least one electrical interface. A first die contact region is formed in a PCB top surface recess, and an optical component die has a bottom surface with an area about matching the PCB top surface recess. The optical component die has an optical port with microlens. An electrical component die has a bottom surface with at least one electrical interface connected to the second die electrical interface, which is connected to the first die electrical interface via a PCB trace. A wire bond is connected between the electrical component die and a package interconnection lead. A cover assembly connector has an optical port with a microlens, configured to communicate with the optical component die optical port, and a fiber port to accept an optical fiber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignees: Applied Micro Circuits Corporation, Volex PLC
    Inventors: Subhash Roy, Igor Zhovnirovsky
  • Patent number: 8457458
    Abstract: The invention pertains to an optical interface employing optics (e.g., lenses) that image the beams rather than collimate the beams. More specifically, each connector at an interface includes optics, e.g., a lens, adapted to receive a diverging beam emanating from field point and image the beam to an image point at a predetermined distance from the imaging lens. A connector employing such optics may, for instance, be effectively mated to either a similar connector with the same optics or to a connector having no lens. Specifically, it may effectively be mated to a second connector having no lens via a second connector structure that places the receiving optical component at the image point of the focusing optics of the first connector. Alternately, such a connector may be effectively mated to a second connector having an identical lens to the first connector provided that the first and second connector structures are adapted to mate such that the image points of the two lenses are coincident.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Tyco Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Michael Aaron Kadar-Kallen, David William Cormanv
  • Patent number: 8457464
    Abstract: A door catch arrangement for cable enclosures incorporates magnetic catch components on the door and on an adjacent open-ended, flared, radius-limiting cable guide installed in at least one open-ended cable port of the enclosure. The cable guide itself covers the rim of the cable port and has two spaced legs, each leg having an end face disposed at the open end of the cable port. A recess in one of the end faces holds a magnet. In its closed position, the door blocks the end of the cable port and a ferromagnetic catch portion on the door opposes the magnet, which keeps the door closed. The positions of the magnet and the ferromagnetic catch portion can be reversed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Hubbell Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas P. O'Connor
  • Patent number: 8457453
    Abstract: Apparatus and methods that compensate for the thermally-induced drift of the resonance frequency of a closed-loop resonator include, in an exemplary embodiment, a waveguide-based Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) and an overcoupled, waveguide-based microring resonator. The temperature-induced red-shifting ring resonance can be balanced by a spectral blueshift with temperature of the MZI. To stabilize the resonance of the ring at a given wavelength, the change in optical path lengths with temperature of the ring and the MZI should be equal and opposite. The interplay of nonlinear change in phase of ring resonator with temperature and linear change in phase of MZI with temperature, along with matching the period of this phase change, gives rise to perfect oscillation in the combined system resonance with temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Cornell University
    Inventors: Michal Lipson, Biswajeet Guha
  • Patent number: 8452150
    Abstract: An optical fiber holder assembly for holding an optical fiber having any one of several different fiber constructions comprises a base and a fiber clamping mechanism. The clamping mechanism includes a clamping portion configured to clamp the optical fiber, the clamping portion including a first clamping plate hingedly coupled to a portion of the base. A first fiber entrance guide is formed in an entrance end of the fiber clamping mechanism to receive and guide the optical fiber to a first fiber channel formed in the base. A second fiber entrance guide is formed in the entrance end of the fiber clamping mechanism to receive and guide the optical fiber to a second fiber channel formed in the base. The first clamping portion includes first and second compliant gripping pads, the first gripping pad disposed on the base and the second gripping pad disposed in the first clamping plate such that the gripping pads overlap each other when the first clamping plate is placed in a closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Paul N. Winberg, Donald K. Larson
  • Patent number: 8449202
    Abstract: A connector comprises a housing, a lever and a lock portion. The housing receives terminals. The lever, rotatably attached to the housing, is configured to be rotatable between a first position, where an initial stage of fitting to a counterpart connector is established, and a second position, where the fitting thereof is completed. The lock portion, capable of locking the lever at the second position, is slidably attached to a body portion of the lever, and configured to be slid between a lock position and a lock release position. The lever is provided with a positioning latch-portion configured to latch the lock portion. The positioning latch-portion is provided with a concave latch-portion and a convex latch-portion configured to be elastically displaced to be engaged in or disengaged from the concave latch-portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: Molex Incorporated
    Inventors: Akihiro Shimotsu, Masayuki Arai