Patents Examined by Chris Q Liu
  • Patent number: 11794279
    Abstract: A laser welding apparatus (1) includes a laser welding head (5) configured to irradiate a workpiece (10) with laser light, a welding filler feeding mechanism (6) configured to supply a welding material to a position on which laser welding is performed, and a hollow structural moving mechanism (100) configured to move a welding unit (50) including the laser welding head and the welding filler feeding mechanism. The hollow structural moving mechanism has an insertion portion (3a) through which an optical cable (41) of the laser welding head and a wire material (62) of the welding filler feeding mechanism are inserted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: NSK LTD.
    Inventors: Shingo Matsuo, Hiroaki Fujishiro, Etsuo Koike, Hironori Okado
  • Patent number: 11785678
    Abstract: A rotating magnet heater for metal products, such as aluminum strip, can include permanent magnet rotors arranged above and below a moving metal strip to induce moving or time varying magnetic fields through the metal strip. The changing magnetic fields can create currents (e.g., eddy currents) within the metal strip, thus heating the metal strip. A magnetic rotor set can include a pair of matched magnetic rotors on opposite sides of a metal strip that rotate at the same speed. Each magnetic rotor of a set can be positioned equidistance from the metal strip to avoid pulling the metal strip away from the passline. A downstream magnetic rotor set can be used in close proximity to an upstream magnetic rotor set to offset tension induced by the upstream magnetic rotor set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2023
    Assignee: NOVELIS INC.
    Inventors: Antoine Jean Willy Pralong, Peter Knelsen, David Anthony Gaensbauer, Rodger Brown, Michael Kosmicki, David Michael Custers, Natasha Iyer, Robert Bruce Wagstaff, Alp Manavbasi, ChangOok Son, Duane E. Bendzinski, Rajeev G. Kamat, David Skingley Wright, Andrew James Hobbis, Christophe Besson
  • Patent number: 11772193
    Abstract: An annular hollow offset-focus laser cladding device, including a housing, a conical reflector arranged in the housing, an annular off-axis parabolic focusing mirror opposite to and arranged coaxially with the conical reflector, a nozzle installed below the conical reflector and a powder-spraying tube connected to a lower end of the nozzle. A top of the housing is provided with a light entrance; the conical reflector faces the light entrance; The powder-spraying tube is coaxial with the annular hollow offset-focusing light reflected by the annular off-axis parabolic focusing mirror; a collimating protective gas jacket is arranged on a periphery of the powder-spraying tube, and the collimating protective gas jacket is located between the annular hollow offset-focused light and the powder-spraying tube; the annular off-axis parabolic focusing mirror is configured to create a horizontally offset of parent parabola focus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: SOOCHOW UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Tuo Shi, Rongwei Zhang, Geyan Fu, Shihong Shi
  • Patent number: 11778699
    Abstract: A heater (1a) includes a support (10) made of an organic polymer and having a sheet shape, a heating element (20), and at least one pair of power supply electrodes (30) in contact with the heating element (20). The heating element (20) is a transparent conductive film made of a polycrystalline material containing indium oxide as a main component. In the heater (1a), the heating element (20) has a specific resistance of 1.4×10?4 ?·cm to 3×10?4 ?·cm. The heating element (20) has a thickness of more than 20 nm and not more than 100 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: NITTO DENKO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toshihiro Tsurusawa, Takeshi Tanaka, Yosuke Nakanishi, Kyotaro Yamada, Hironobu Machinaga
  • Patent number: 11759887
    Abstract: A laser engraving machine with a three-point suspension system and an inverted X-Y axis support system wherein the X-axis beam is to and mounted below the Y-axis beams and the Y-axis beams are mounted inwardly of the outer ends of the X-axis beam and are structurally integrated with the machine housing. In addition, a counterweight in the form of a second, independently activatable laser is added to the drive belt to reduce or eliminate vibration during rapid reciprocal movement of the tool during an engraving process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Inventor: Tong Li
  • Patent number: 11759889
    Abstract: A method of welding a first metal plate and a second metal plate that is thicker than the first plate, by a laser beam. The first plate and the second plate are disposed to overlap one another in a thickness direction. In a first laser irradiation step, the laser beam is emitted at the first plate, to form an initial nugget including a front-side nugget portion in the first plate, a back-side nugget portion in the second plate and having a diameter smaller than a diameter of the front-side nugget portion, and an annular flat surface portion existing between the front-side nugget portion and the back-side nugget portion. In a subsequent laser irradiation step, the laser beam is emitted again at the initial nugget after the initial nugget is solidified, thereby increasing the diameter of the back-side nugget portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: NHK SPRING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Naoki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 11758620
    Abstract: An arrangement, comprising a heat-emitting resistor, a control device for switching the resistor and a component that is at a potential without direct reference to a drive voltage. The resistor is arranged in spatial proximity to the component, and has a first and a second partial resistor connected in series. The control device includes at least one switching device for switching the heat-emitting resistor. The first partial resistor, the switching device and the second partial resistor are connected in series in the stated order and form a series connection. The first partial resistor and the component form a first partial capacitance and the second resistor and the component form a second partial capacitance. The partial capacitances are formed in such a way that upon the switching of the resistor a current flowing in the first partial capacitance is at least partly taken up by the second partial capacitance, or vice versa.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: WEBASTO SE
    Inventors: Alexander Henne, Norbert Botzenmayer, Hans Rechberger
  • Patent number: 11731216
    Abstract: The invention relates to a device (2) for working a surface (4) of a workpiece (6) by means of a laser beam (8), comprising a laser system (12) for providing the laser beam (8) and a plasma nozzle (14), which is designed to produce an atmospheric plasma jet (16), wherein the plasma nozzle (14) has a nozzle opening (24, 24?), from which a plasma jet (8) produced in the plasma nozzle (24, 24?) exits during operation, wherein the laser system (12) and the plasma nozzle (14) are arranged in relation to each other and designed in such a way that, during operation, the laser beam (8) exits from the nozzle opening (24, 24?) of the plasma nozzle (14) together with the plasma jet (16). The invention further relates to an assembly (100) having such a device and to a method for operating said device (2).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: Plasmatreat GmbH
    Inventor: Christian Buske
  • Patent number: 11724336
    Abstract: A laser welding system for welding a component and reducing defects in the weld by ensuring uniform, laminar gas flow over a process area of the system. The laser welding system comprises a laser for welding the component, a platform for supporting the component, an enclosure surrounding the platform, a first actuatable barrier, a second actuatable barrier, an actuator, and a controller. The enclosure includes a plurality of walls, one of the walls having an inlet and another wall having an outlet. The inlet and outlet each having an opening having a cross-sectional area for letting gas flow through. The first and second barriers are configured to modify the cross-sectional areas of the openings when actuated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: HONEYWELL FEDERAL MANUFACTURINGS TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Bryan Sartin, Michael McNary
  • Patent number: 11712879
    Abstract: In a method of manufacturing an electrothermal heater mat, a heater element is deposited on a first one of the dielectric layers of the heater mat by using a laser blown powder process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2023
    Assignee: GKN Aerospace Services Limited
    Inventor: Nolan Richmond
  • Patent number: 11707805
    Abstract: A laser hole drilling system. The system includes a laser source that generates a laser beam along an optical axis, a cylindrical lens along the optical axis downstream of the laser source, and a spherical lens downstream of the cylindrical lens, the spherical lens offset from the optical axis to provide an anamorphic optical train to generate an asymmetric teardrop shaped energy distribution at a focal plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2023
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Michael Winter
  • Patent number: 11703928
    Abstract: Provided is an apparatus and method for a digital power supply that can provide independent power control for two or more electrical loads. Some disclosed embodiments provide continuous, variable power and other disclosed embodiments provide discrete power levels. Disclosed embodiments may reduce the magnitude of harmonic currents and/or flicker introduced into a power system. Embodiments include a microprocessor that delivers power to electric loads using phase-controlled AC current. In some embodiments, the microprocessor may calculate a power array corresponding to a requested power for each electric load. Logic is provided for populating the power array in a pattern that reduces the magnitude of harmonic currents and flicker. Portions of the disclosure include a band controller for delivering power to achieve and maintain a desired target temperature, and a wireless controller for controlling temperature from a remote device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2023
    Assignee: Weber-Stephen Products LLC
    Inventors: Eric Knappenberger, Julio C. Zuleta, Matthew Lerch, Jeffery C. Emmerich
  • Patent number: 11684213
    Abstract: A cooking unit includes a cooktop, a hood assembly, a duct assembly, and a fan. The cooktop defines a slot at least partially extending along a peripheral edge of the cooktop. The hood assembly includes a hood support extending upward from the cooktop and a hood coupled to the hood support. The hood support defines a conduit. The hood defines an intake and a hood chamber connecting the intake to the conduit of the hood support. The duct assembly includes ducting extending beneath the cooktop. The ducting connects the conduit to the slot. The fan is positioned to drive air into the intake, through the hood chamber, through the conduit, through the ducting, and out of the slot. At least a portion of the air exiting the slot returns to the intake such that an air curtain is generated between the slot and the intake.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: Hatco Corporation
    Inventors: Michael Majchrzak, Jim Virgin, Kevin Veeser, William Novotny, Matthew Thomas, Nicholas Bassill
  • Patent number: 11673209
    Abstract: A manufacturing method and a manufacturing apparatus for a separator layer-coated electrode are provided capable of shortening the time required to cut out a separator layer-coated electrode with a laser beam. In a cutting process, a laser beam is irradiated to a laser irradiation target portion of a strip-shaped separator layer-coated electrode from a front-side separator layer side to cut a strip-shaped separator layer-coated electrode. Prior to the cutting process, a preheating process is conducted to preheat the front-side separator layer in the laser irradiation target portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masakazu Umehara, Takahiro Kuhara, Shingo Komura
  • Patent number: 11623300
    Abstract: There is provided a method of determining whether or not a result of a processing process of a laser processing apparatus is acceptable including a laser processing step of applying a laser beam to predetermined processing regions of a workpiece held on a chuck table, thereby performing a piercing process on the workpiece, an image capturing step of capturing images of all the processing regions while moving the image capturing unit and the workpiece relatively to each other, a detecting step of detecting regions where light is not transmitted through the workpiece among the processing regions in the image captured in the image capturing step, and a determining step of determining that the laser processing apparatus needs to be readjusted if the regions where light is not transmitted through the workpiece is equal to or more than the predetermined quantity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignee: DISCO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroki Takeuchi, Masanobu Takenaka, Yukito Akutagawa
  • Patent number: 11612961
    Abstract: A processing device to form a pattern on a surface of an object to be processed using diffraction of a laser beam emitted from a laser source, the device including: a main body providing a space to process the object using the laser beam emitted from the laser source; a laser transmission unit formed at a first portion of the main body, and configured to diffract the laser beam so that a diffracted laser beam is emitted toward the object; an actuator formed at a second portion of the main body, and connected to the laser transmission unit so as to change an emission pattern of the diffracted laser beam while rotating the laser transmission unit vertically/horizontally or in a set radius; and a controller provided at a third portion of the main body, and connected to the actuator to control an operation of the actuator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Inventor: Chan Sam Kim
  • Patent number: 11607077
    Abstract: A cooking apparatus includes a base, a cover with a hot air system, an inner pot, an upper temperature sensor located in the lid, and a lower temperature sensor located in the base. A processor is configured to operate in one of multiple cooking modes, and for each of the cooking modes the processor is configured to measure an upper and a lower temperature using the upper and the lower temperature sensor, respectively; compare the upper and the lower temperature to an upper and a lower temperature sensor setting, respectively; when the upper temperature differs from the upper temperature sensor setting, adjust power to the hot air heating element such that the upper temperature approaches the upper temperature sensor setting; and when the lower temperature differs from the lower temperature sensor setting, adjust power to the heating plate such that the lower temperature approaches the lower temperature sensor setting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2023
    Assignee: D & J IMPORT-EXPORT LTD.
    Inventors: Zhenxiong Huang, Yun Yang, Jun Zhang, Feng Deng
  • Patent number: 11590598
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and apparatus to preheat weld wire are disclosed. An example contact tip includes: an inner bore configured to conduct current to a consumable welding electrode; screw threads on an exterior of the contact tip; and a head opposite the screw threads on an exterior of the contact tip to enable threading and dethreading of the contact tip.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventor: Dennis Roland Sigl
  • Patent number: 11577339
    Abstract: An optical axis adjusting method includes a position detecting step of emitting a laser beam from a laser oscillator, applying the laser beam to a processing point, and detecting the position of the laser beam by using a position detecting unit set at the processing point, a storing step of storing the position of the laser beam as detected in the position detecting step as a reference position, and an adjusting step of operating an adjusting mechanism of each optical component holder in the case that the position of the laser beam is deviated from the reference position after performing maintenance of each optical component, thereby adjusting the position of the laser beam so that the position of the laser beam is shifted back to the reference position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: DISCO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoshi Kumazawa, Masatoshi Nayuki
  • Patent number: 11576526
    Abstract: A griddle apparatus, includes a lower cooking plate and an upper cooking plate, where the upper cooking plate is mounted for movement relative to the lower cooking plate between a lower cooking position and an upper access position by a biasing arrangement that provides an upward force sufficient to move the upper cooking plate up to the upper access position once the upper cooking plate has been manually moved to a set raised location between the lower cooking position and the upper access position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS INC.
    Inventors: Kacy W. Denning, Jairad M. Sloyer