Patents Examined by Caitlin Fogarty
  • Patent number: 7666350
    Abstract: The present invention provides a low-carbon resulfurized free machining steel product excellent in machinability typified by finished surface roughness even though toxic Pb or special elements such as Bi or Te are not added, and a suitable production method thereof. A steel product has a specific composition, has contents of Mn and S satisfying the following conditions: 0.40?Mn*S?1.2 and Mn/S?3.0, and contains a ferrite-pearlite structure as the metallographic structure, in which the average width (?m) of sulfide inclusions in the steel product is 2.8*(log d) or more, wherein d (mm) is the diameter of the steel product, and pro-eutectoid ferrite in the metallographic structure has a hardness HV of 133 to 150 or a difference in deformation resistance at a strain of 0.3 between 200° C. and 25° C. is 110 MPa or more and 200 MPa or less, the deformation resistances being determined in a compression test at a deformation rate of 0.3 mm/min.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kobe Seiko Sho
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yaguchi, Koichi Sakamoto, Tomoko Sugimura, Goro Anan, Katsuhiko Ozaki
  • Patent number: 7655183
    Abstract: A durable Pd-based alloy is used for a H2-selective membrane in a hydrogen generator, as in the fuel processor of a fuel cell plant. The Pd-based alloy includes Cu as a binary element, and further includes “X”, where “X” comprises at least one metal from group “M” that is BCC and acts to stabilize the ? BCC phase for stability during operating temperatures. The metal from group “M” is selected from the group consisting of Fe, Cr, Nb, Ta, V, Mo, and W, with Nb and Ta being most preferred. “X” may further comprise at least one metal from a group “N” that is non-BCC, preferably FCC, that enhances other properties of the membrane, such as ductility. The metal from group “N” is selected from the group consisting of Ag, Au, Re, Ru, Rh, Y, Ce, Ni, Ir, Pt, Co, La and In. The at. % of Pd in the binary Pd—Cu alloy ranges from about 35 at. % to about 55 at. %, and the at. % of “X” in the higher order alloy, based on said binary alloy, is in the range of about 1 at. % to about 15 at. %.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2010
    Assignee: UTC Power Corporation
    Inventors: Raymond C. Benn, Susanne M. Opalka, Thomas Henry Vanderspurt
  • Patent number: 7637403
    Abstract: Small, high velocity liquid metal droplets are produced for applications that require the accurate and remote placement of small quantities of a metal. The magnetic pressure of current flowing through liquid metal is used to force small quantities of liquid metal through an orifice. Examples of applications are to feed metal fuel into plasma extreme ultraviolet sources, and to place solder bumps on an integrated circuit prior to the attachment of connections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 29, 2009
    Assignee: Plex LLC
    Inventor: Malcolm W. McGeoch
  • Patent number: 7615186
    Abstract: The spring steel according to the present invention is a spring steel excellent in sag resistance and fatigue property containing: C: 0.5 to 0.8% by mass (hereinafter, referred to as %), Si: 1.2 to 2.5%, Mn: 0.2 to 1.5%, Cr: 1.0 to 4.0%, V: 0.5% or less (including 0%), P: 0.02% or less (excluding 0%), S: 0.02% or less (excluding 0%), Al: 0.05% or less (excluding 0%), and Fe and inevitable impurities as the balance, wherein the Si content and the Cr content satisfy the following formula (1): 0.8×[Si]+[Cr]?2.6??(1) (wherein, [Si] and [Cr] respectively represent the Si content (%) and the Cr content (%)). The spring steel is useful in improving both sag resistance and fatigue property.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2009
    Assignee: Kobe Steel, Ltd.
    Inventors: Sumie Suda, Nobuhiko Ibaraki
  • Patent number: 7611665
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a ladle block for use in a bottom of a molten metal ladle. The ladle block reduces the amount of contaminants, particularly slag, exiting the ladle during casting operations. The ladle block includes a floor defining an outlet and sidewalls substantially orthogonal to the floor. The floor and sidewalls define a channel having dimensions of length, width and height. Channel dimensions are determined from the Froude number, which is based at least partially on the casting flow rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2009
    Assignee: Vesuvius Crucible Company
    Inventors: Johan Richaud, Lawrence J. Heaslip, James D. Dorricott
  • Patent number: 7611663
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an industrial furnace for smelting metals, in particular nonferrous metals, and the respective nozzle element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2009
    Assignee: Andritz Maerz GmbH
    Inventors: Uwe Zulehner, Hans Rinnhofer
  • Patent number: 7604679
    Abstract: An efficient process for producing fine nickel powder, capable of metallizing the powder at low temperature to prevent its sintering, and fine nickel powder produced by the process, composed of particles having a flat shape, diameter of limited variations and uniform thickness, and suitable for internal electrodes for laminate ceramic capacitors of high electric capacity. The process comprises a step for forming a nickel compound coated with gelatin by adsorbing gelatin on preformed nickel compound particles with different size and shape (Step (A)), and another step for converting said nickel compound coated with gelatin into fine particles containing metallic nickel and nickel oxide by heating the nickel compound coated with gelatin produced in Step (A) in an inert gas atmosphere (Step (B)). It may include an additional step (Step (C)), subsequent to Step (B), for completely reducing nickel oxide in said fine particles by heating at temperature lower than that for Step (B) in a reducing gas atmosphere.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 20, 2009
    Assignee: Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasumasa Hattori, Egon Matijevic
  • Patent number: 7597842
    Abstract: An Nb—Ti—Co alloy having both good hydrogen permeability and good hydrogen embrittlement resistance comprises one of Fe, Cu or Mn as a fourth element, incorporating from 1 to 14 mol %. The content of Mn, if any, is preferably from 1 to 9 mol %. The desired hydrogen permeability can be attained by the (Nb, Ti) phase and the desired hydrogen embrittlement resistance can be attained by the CoTi phase, making is possible to obtain excellent hydrogen permeability and excellent hydrogen embrittlement resistance. None of Fe, Cu or Mn can impair these properties. Fe, Cu or Mn can replace some of the Co elements. Fe, Cu or Mn enhances the workability of the alloy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2009
    Assignees: The Japan Steel Works, Ltd., National University Corporation Kitami Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Kiyoshi Aoki, Kazuhiro Ishikawa, Tsuyoshi Sasaki, Toshiki Kabutomori
  • Patent number: 7575714
    Abstract: The present invention is a silver alloy including silver as the main component and at least one rare-earth element as a first dopant element, and excellent in reflectance maintenance property. In the present invention, the first dopant element is preferably samarium, neodymium, lanthanum, cerium, ytterbium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium, europium, and gadolinium. Also, in the present invention, the silver alloy preferably includes, as a second dopant element, at least one element selected from copper, manganese, silicon, chromium, nickel, cobalt, yttrium, iron, scandium, zirconium, niobium, molybdenum, tantalum, tungsten, platinum, gold, rhodium, iridium, palladium, indium, tin, lead, aluminum, calcium, gallium, bismuth, antimony, strontium, hafnium, and germanium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2009
    Assignee: Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K.
    Inventors: Tomokazu Obata, Hiroshi Yanagihara
  • Patent number: 7566416
    Abstract: A steel pipe for an airbag inflator having a high strength of at least 900 MPa and preferably at least 1000 MPa in tensile strength along with a high toughness and exhibiting good resistance to bursting such that it has no propagation of cracks in a burst test at ?40° C. or below is manufactured by quenching a pipe of a steel comprising, in mass %, C: 0.05-0.20 %, Si: 0.1-1.0 %, P: at most 0.025 %, S: at most 0.010 %, Cr: 0.05-1.45 %, Al: at most 0.10 %, and one or both of Ti and Mn satisfying Ti?0.02% and 0.4%?Mn+40Ti?1.2% from a temperature of at least the Ac1 transformation point of the steel, tempering the pipe at a temperature lower than the Ac1 transformation point, applying cold working to it with a reduction of area of at most 65%, and subjecting it to stress relief annealing at a temperature lower than the Ac1 transformation point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2009
    Assignee: Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Takano, Yuji Arai, Kunio Kondo, Keisuke Hitoshio
  • Patent number: 7556787
    Abstract: A method for treating exhaust gases containing fluorine-containing compounds which comprises the steps of bringing an exhaust gas containing fluorine-containing compounds into contact with a metal catalyst carrying a tungsten oxide on an alumina-zirconium composite oxide and then bringing the emission into contact with a ?-alumina catalyst.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2002
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2009
    Assignee: Ebapa Corporation
    Inventor: Yoichi Mori
  • Patent number: 7550108
    Abstract: Metallurgical vessel for iron and steel making including a bottom portion, a sidewall and a lance arrangement of at least two lances for supplying oxygen containing gas to the interior of the vessel in operation. Each lance includes an end portion for emitting oxygen containing gas. The lance arrangement is configured so as to achieve in operation a substantially downwardly directed flow of post-combusted gases at the side wall of the vessel and a substantially upwardly directed flow of post-combusted gases in the center of the vessel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2009
    Assignee: Corus Technology BV
    Inventors: Mark Bernard Denys, Hendrikus Koenraad Albertus Meijer
  • Patent number: 7514036
    Abstract: A (Nb, Ti) phase in an Nb—Ti—Co alloy is composed of a granular structure. The Nb—Ti—Co alloy is preferably subjected to heat treatment at 800° C. or more so that the eutectic structure in the casted state can be changed to a granular structure. The Nb—Ti—Co alloy used there is preferably NbxTi(100-x-y)Coy, (x?70, 20?y?50 (mol %)). By properly predetermining the heating temperature and time, the resulting alloy exhibits improved hydrogen permeability in combination with a good hydrogen embrittlement resistance characteristic in the CoTi phase, making it possible to provide a practical hydrogen permeable membrane having an advantageously high performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2009
    Assignees: The Japan Steel Works, Ltd., National University Corporation Kitami Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Kiyoshi Aoki, Kazuhiro Ishikawa, Tsuyoshi Sasaki, Toshiki Kabutomori
  • Patent number: 7491257
    Abstract: A fine silver particle powder is provided that is a suitable material for interconnects used to form fine circuit patterns especially by the inkjet method, and a method of manufacturing the powder. Although the powder is fine and therefore has a large specific surface area, it has good weatherability and corrosion resistance. The powder particles have a calculated specific surface area (CS) of 50 m2/cm3 or more, an X-ray crystal grain diameter (DX) of not more than 50 nm, not more than 10.0 basicity points/nm2 and not more than 10.0 acidity points/nm2. To obtain the silver particle powder, a silver compound is reduced in an organic solvent, using as the reducing agent one, two or more selected from an alcohol or polyol. The reduction reaction proceeds in the presence of an organic protective agent and a polarity inhibition agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2009
    Assignee: Dowa Electronics Materials Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kimitaka Sato
  • Patent number: 7485192
    Abstract: A steel coil cutting apparatus that overcomes these and other problems has an automated arm having a free end. At least two cutting heads are attached to the free end of the automated arm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2009
    Assignee: Edw. C. Levy Co.
    Inventor: Julien Gofette
  • Patent number: 7479250
    Abstract: A well block for use within a circulation chamber of a molten metal furnace, comprising A first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion is positioned atop said second portion, said first and second portions defining a cavity which includes an upper cylindrical surface defining a gradually decreasing diameter, a lower cylindrical surface having a diameter less than said upper cylindrical surface and a medial surface interposed between said upper and said lower cylindrical surfaces, and an outlet positioned proximate to said lower cylindrical surface, said cavity communicating with the circulation chamber via said outlet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2009
    Inventors: Larry Areaux, Erik Grimm
  • Patent number: 7425239
    Abstract: An Fe-based amorphous alloy ribbon having a composition comprising FeaSibBcCd and inevitable impurities, wherein a is 80 to 83 atomic %, b is 0.1 to 5 atomic %, c is 14 to 18 atomic %, and d is 0.01 to 3 atomic %, the concentration distribution of C measured radially from both surfaces to the inside of said Fe-based amorphous alloy ribbon having a peak within a depth of 2 to 20 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2008
    Assignee: Hitachi Metals, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yuichi Ogawa, Masamu Naoe, Yoshihito Yoshizawa