Patents Examined by Bridget Avery
  • Patent number: 8371407
    Abstract: A front-end module for vehicles which comprises a mounting member with a plurality of sections extending in different directions to accommodate vehicle components wherein a component provided as a cooling module is by means of fixing elements secured to said mounting member in a central area thereof and wherein an air guide unit is disposed adjacent to said mounting member which unit comprises at least one air guide element made of a foamed material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignees: HBPO GmbH, Behr GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Klaus Hassdenteufel, Markus Hoeglinger, Guido Opperbeck, Ralf Schoening
  • Patent number: 8371605
    Abstract: A snowboard binding for coupling a snowboard boot to a snowboard. The binding includes a highback that extends upwardly from a midfoot or heel region of the binding to provide rear support for the boot. In one embodiment, the highback is formed of a plurality of modular components that each can be manufactured of a separate material to collectively provide desired structural characteristics to the highback. The attachment of the highback, its supporting elements and one or more straps to retain the boot within the binding are arranged such that certain attachment points are fixedly connected to each other and thus made to move synchronously when the position of the highback with respect to the binding's base is adjusted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: Flow Sports, Inc.
    Inventors: Roger Neiley, Anthony Scaturro
  • Patent number: 8371408
    Abstract: A bonnet structure including a bonnet flange extending inward from an inner peripheral surface of a bonnet is positioned farther toward a first direction, which is opposite in a vehicle longitudinal direction to a rotary shaft for the bonnet, than shroud flanges extending outward from side surfaces of a shroud main body when the bonnet is located at a closed position. A first elastic sealing member mounted to the bonnet flange is brought from the first direction into contact with anteroposterior contact surfaces of the shroud flanges that face to the first direction when the bonnet is rotated about the rotary shaft from the opened position to the closed position. It is possible to effectively prevent an excessive abrasion and a detachment of elastic sealing members for sealing a gap between the bonnet and the shroud.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: Yanmar Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shinya Kawashiri, Yutaka Matsui
  • Patent number: 8366139
    Abstract: A stroller comprises a foldable stroller frame including two handle tubes, two front leg tubes connected respectively to lower ends of the handle tubes, and two rear leg tubes connected respectively and pivotally to the front leg tubes. Each of the handle tubes has upper and lower handle tube sections interconnected pivotally by a first joint. Each of the front leg tubes has upper and lower front leg tube sections interconnected pivotally by a second joint. Each of the lower handle tube sections is connected pivotally to the upper front leg tube section of the corresponding front leg tube and the corresponding rear leg tube by a third joint. Upon folding the stroller frame, an assembly of the handle tubes and the front leg tubes is folded in a Z-shaped manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignee: Wonderland Nurserygoods Company Limited
    Inventor: Schantal Kane
  • Patent number: 8366124
    Abstract: Utility carts and hand trucks which are easily assembled, low cost, and usable as durable convertible beach carts adaptable for a wide variety of uses including as beach furniture. A preferred embodiment includes a convertible hand truck with three main components: a hand truck body with dual use as a table, a load platform with dual use as an extended surface of the table, and a rack with dual use as support legs for the table.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Inventor: Richard Caldwell
  • Patent number: 8366141
    Abstract: A transporter for an infant comprising first and second means to receive an infant in the transporter, the means moveable between a first, closed orientation unsuitable for receiving an infant, and a second, open orientation for receiving an infant. The transporter further comprises first and second wheels disposed respectively at first and second ends of the transporter, the second wheel movable between a first operative position providing for a first wheel base and a second operative position providing for a second wheel base, wherein the first wheelbase is different from said second wheelbase, and wherein the second means is movable between the first and second orientations responsive to movement of the second wheel between the first and second operative positions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignee: Micralite Limited
    Inventor: David J. Crisp
  • Patent number: 8360188
    Abstract: An electric motorcycle is provided such that even if a power drive unit is mounted to a swing arm, it is difficult for a load to be applied to wiring connected to the power drive unit. In an electric motorcycle in which a PDU and a running-purpose power-generating motor are attached to a swing arm turning around a pivot shaft, and electricity from batteries is supplied via a contactor box to the PDU, from which the electricity is supplied to a power-generating motor, torsional portions extending generally parallel to the pivot shaft are provided at a portion of output lines connecting the contactor box with the PDU so as to allow torsion to absorb swinging movement of the swing arm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2013
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Yonehana, Hiroyuki Kikuchi
  • Patent number: 8356682
    Abstract: A solid oxide fuel cell system including electric resistance elements for heating of space and components within the “hot zone” enclosure of the system, preferably in combination with means for using “waste” heat from other sources, to assist in warm-up from a cold start and/or to maintain a stand-by temperature of reformer and fuel cell elements within the system and/or to maintain optimum operating temperatures within the system during periods of very low electrical demand on the system. A method is included for using off-peak grid electricity, battery-stored onboard electricity, or vehicle-generated electricity to energize the resistance heaters, as well as utilizing gaseous waste heat sources such as vehicle exhaust gas to complement the resistance heating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 22, 2013
    Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Malcolm James Grieve
  • Patent number: 8348300
    Abstract: The tips are upwardly curved and the board's/ski's underside (the sole) is provided with first and second surfaces, straight in cross section, extending in the board's/ski's longitudinal direction, which are arranged at an angle to each other and usually interconnected via a third surface. The sole's first and second sole surfaces (2) at the lateral edge, which normally consists of a steel edge, have a varying height over a third sole surface (1), where this height typically both increases and decreases as one advances from the middle of the snowboard/ski towards the transition to the tip (A-A). At the same time the first and second sole surfaces (2) at the lateral edge substantially have a greater height over the third surface (1) in a 10 cm long area from the transition (A-A) and backwards than in the area forming the central half of the snowboard/ski.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: HiTurn AS
    Inventor: Jørgen Karlsen
  • Patent number: 8342283
    Abstract: A pneumatic vehicle is provided with a chassis, wheels, a compressed air tank, a heat exchanger to heat the compressed air, and an air motor driven by the heated air and connected to at least one wheel. A pneumatic vehicle is provided with a chassis, wheels, a compressed air tank, and an air motor driven by the compressed air and connected to a wheel. The vehicle also has a ventilation system for the passenger compartment, a heat exchanger, and a restrictive solenoid valve for directing ventilation system air to the heat exchanger. A pneumatic vehicle is provided with a chassis, wheels, an aluminum compressed air tank, a carbon filament reinforced plastic layer over the tank, a fiberglass and aramid-fiber layer over the carbon filament reinforced plastic layer, and an air motor driven by the compressed air and connected to at least one wheel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Deakin University
    Inventors: Bernard Frank Rolfe, Timothy Ian De Souza, Gregory Ryan Pitts, Stuart James McFarlane Hanafin, Steven Lewis Anthony Agius, Benjamin Paul Adamson, Michael Pio Gordon Pereira, Timothy John Black, Christopher James Hurren, Noel Egan Miller
  • Patent number: 8336894
    Abstract: A three wheeled scooter comprises a chassis having forward and aft ends with a front wheel non-pivotally mounted to the forward end and a pair of rear wheels coaxially mounted to the aft end. The chassis defines a longitudinal axis and includes a support assembly and a handle assembly extending upwardly from the support assembly. The rear wheels are configured to be angularly yawable relative to the longitudinal axis between a neutral position and a yawed position. Steering of the scooter is thereby effectuated by angular yawing of the rear wheels relative to the longitudinal axis such as by asymmetric loading of one of opposing sides of the support assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: B.E.W. Squared, LLC
    Inventor: Bradley E. Wernli
  • Patent number: 8317652
    Abstract: An internal combustion engine drives, via a belt drive, a first and a second auxiliary unit embodied respectively as a water pump and an air-conditioning compressor and drives a starter-generator operating as a starter and as a generator depending on the operating mode. The belt drive is connected through a clutch element, which has a freewheel, to the internal combustion engine such that, when the internal combustion engine is at standstill, only the two auxiliary units, but not at the same time the internal combustion engine, are driven by the starter-generator. The clutch element which has a freewheel allows a stepless transition of the drive mode from the internal combustion engine to the starter-generator. In order to start the internal combustion engine, the clutch element is engaged only for a short time, so that the drive power of the starter-generator is transmitted to the internal combustion engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2012
    Assignee: Volkswagen AG
    Inventors: Marc Hladun, Marcel Zirwes, Kai Bohnstedt, Ekkehard Pott, Georg Kruse
  • Patent number: 8317225
    Abstract: A semi-trailer landing gear, in particular to support trailers, with a support element which includes an outer sleeve and an inner sleeve and which can be displaced in a telescopic manner in relation to the height. The outer sleeve includes a securing flange which can be applied to a vehicle. The aim of the invention is to develop a semi-trailer landing gear which is economical to produce and can also withstand high loads. The aim is achieved by virtue of the fact that the outer sleeve and the securing flange are made of a single piece of flat steel by edge rolling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2012
    Assignee: Jost-Werke GmbH
    Inventors: Gerald Müller, Günter Seidel, José Algüera
  • Patent number: 8317204
    Abstract: A dolly according includes a deck and a plurality of casters extending downward below the deck. A connector is pivotably connected to the deck and is selectively pivotable between a retracted position and a connecting position. The deck also includes a receiver for receiving the connector of a similar dolly adjacent thereto to connect the dolly to the similar dolly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2012
    Assignee: Rehrig Pacific Company
    Inventors: Ryan C. Meers, Kyle L. Baltz
  • Patent number: 8317229
    Abstract: The invention relates to an adjustable ski pole basket that can adjust the basket area from a position useful in low-buoyancy-need conditions, such as packed powder, to a position useful in high-buoyancy-need conditions, such as powder. The basket has a fixed based and a movable petal. The petal moves from a compact position useful in low-buoyancy-need conditions to an expanded position useful in high-buoyancy-need conditions, and back. In certain embodiments, the petal is biased toward the expanded position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2012
    Inventor: Thomas C. Virostek
  • Patent number: 8312950
    Abstract: A modular vehicle front end comprising a frame, a cooling unit mounted to the frame, a conduit running through the cooling unit, and a bracket for securing the conduit to the frame. The bracket can comprise an attachment portion configured for attachment to the frame and a retainer overmolded on the conduit. The bracket can further comprise at least one flexible clamp portion configured to receive and retain a second conduit. A vehicle comprising an engine and the modular front end taught herein is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2012
    Assignee: Nissan North America, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark Contardi, Dave VanLooy
  • Patent number: 8297640
    Abstract: Snow-ski board, especially a ski, having at least one trimming mechanism with at least one trimming rod with its axis oriented in the longitudinal direction of the snow-ski board, including at least one damping element and at least one adjusting or tensioning mechanism for supporting the trimming rod on both ends by adjustable mechanical tension.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: Marker Volkl International GmbH
    Inventor: Andreas Ametsbichler
  • Patent number: 8297628
    Abstract: A bucket comprises generally vertical sidewalls and a bottom portion, defining together a bucket interior. The bucket further comprises a back face, constituting one of the sidewalls, which extends substantially above the height of the bucket interior. The bucket still further comprises at least two wheels mounted to the bucket at the back face about an axis at a bottom area thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: Keter Plastic Ltd.
    Inventor: Zvi Zak
  • Patent number: 8292009
    Abstract: When request power required of a power supply device by a driving force generation unit is close to zero, a converter ECU controls first and second converters to prohibit respective amounts of current passage in the first and second converters from simultaneously becoming close to zero. That is, when the request power is close to zero, the converter ECU performs voltage control of the first converter and sets an electric power control value for the second converter subjected to current control (electric power control) to a nonzero value, such that electric power is supplied and received between the first and second converters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kenji Yamada, Hideto Hanada, Satoru Katoh, Hideaki Saida
  • Patent number: 8276693
    Abstract: Electric vehicle powertrains, highway vehicles, and methods of manufacturing vehicles have dual belts driving wheels from two electric motors. Embodiments have a centrally-located transmission housing containing two belts and pulleys, and motors are mounted outside of the housing. A battery may power the motors and an internal combustion engine may power wheels on the other end of the vehicle through a separate transmission. Each belt may have a tensioner and drive shafts may have universal joints and decouplers. The transmission may have a central wall or supports which may support the pulleys and adjacent pulleys may have a common centerline and be supported by a common pin through the central wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2012
    Assignee: American Challenge Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Joseph N. Scarbo, Derk Hartland, Russel L. Wicks, Neil E. Hannemann