Patents Examined by Christina Johnson
  • Patent number: 9688032
    Abstract: Thermoplastic components may experience local damage, including cracks and decohesion of fiber reinforcements, among others. Such thermoplastics may be repaired by heating them to a suitable softening/melting temperature under pressure and maintaining them under pressure and at elevated temperature until the damage is healed. This may be done in-place using custom-fabricated, suitably-shaped die portions maintained under pressure by magnetic attraction. Various heating methods and die portion fabrication methods are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
    Inventors: Hamid G. Kia, Xiaosong Huang
  • Patent number: 9682510
    Abstract: The present invention provides an imprint apparatus which performs an imprint process in which a resin on a substrate is cured while a mold having a pattern formed thereon is pressed against the resin to transfer the pattern onto the substrate, the apparatus comprising a changing unit which includes a contact member having a contact surface that comes into contact with a side surface of the mold, and is configured to apply a force to the side surface of the mold through the contact member to change a shape of the pattern formed on the mold, and an adjusting unit configured to change at least one of an angle and a position of the contact member to adjust a contact state between the contact surface and the side surface of the mold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hirotoshi Torii, Yusuke Tanaka
  • Patent number: 9676123
    Abstract: The present invention provides a flexible nanoimprint mold which can fabricate sub-15 nm ultra fine structures on either planar or curved substrates. The mold comprises a top ultra-thin rigid layer of imprint patterning features and a bottom thick flexible layer of polymer elastomer. The two distinct layers are preferably integrated via chemically bonding. The top layer of the mold enables a sub-15 nm resolution of pattern fabrication and the bottom layer affords a conformal contact to planar or curved surface of substrates. The methods for fabricating the same are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: NANJING UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Yanfeng Chen, Haixiong Ge, Zhiwei Li, Changsheng Yuan, Minghui Lu
  • Patent number: 9669424
    Abstract: A method of decorating an element. This method includes the following steps: taking the element (1, 11, 21, 31), the element including anchoring for improving the securing of the decoration (5) to the element; making a mask (4) of the desired thickness of the decorations (5), and having at least one opening (4?); placing the at least one opening in the mask (4) against the place to be decorated so as to form at least one mould (4?, 6, 6?, 6?,100); filling the at least one mould with an at least partially amorphous material via hot forming; and removing the mask (4).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2017
    Assignee: The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd
    Inventors: Yves Winkler, Stewes Bourban, Pascal Grossenbacher
  • Patent number: 9662843
    Abstract: A tool comprising a support section, a plurality of tool sections beatable around the core section to define one or more tool surfaces on which structure material is beatable to be molded to form a composite structure, the support section and enclosure means being sealingly engagable to enclose the tool sections and structure material therebetween, thus allowing air to be withdrawn from between the enclosure means and the support section as part of the cure process of the structure material. Sealing the enclosure means directly against the support section obviates the need for the tool sections to be sealingly interconnected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: CYTEC INDUSTRIAL MATERIALS (DERBY) LIMITED
    Inventor: Clive Bennett
  • Patent number: 9651860
    Abstract: Provided is an imprinting method that is capable of strictly performing the interpolation of the application distribution of an uncured resin material to be applied to a substrate for each shot as well as efficiently performing the reinterpolation of the application distribution of the uncured resin material for each shot while reducing the workload in a generation step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Sentaro Aihara
  • Patent number: 9642730
    Abstract: Methods for making scaffolds for delivery via a balloon catheter are described. The scaffold, after being deployed by the balloon, provides a crush recovery of about 90% after the diameter of the scaffold has been pinched or crushed by 50%. The scaffold structure has patterns that include an asymmetric or symmetric closed cell, and links connecting such closed cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: ABBOTT CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEMS INC.
    Inventors: Michael H. Ngo, Mikael Trollsas, John E. Papp, Hung T. Nguyen, Dudley Jayasinghe, Ron Farnbach, Gregory C. Orr, Joshua Smith, Yongjin Xie, Yu-Chun Ku
  • Patent number: 9616609
    Abstract: An apparatus for the shaping of plastics material pre-forms into plastics material containers, with a plurality of shaping stations which are arranged on a movable carrier, wherein the shaping stations have blow molds which are used for receiving the plastic pre-forms and inside which the plastic pre-forms are shaped into the plastic containers, and wherein the shaping stations have stressing devices which are movable relative to the plastic pre-forms and which act upon the pre-forms arranged in the blow molds with a sterile flowable medium to expand them, with a clean room, inside which the shaping stations are conveyed, wherein this clean room is arranged or demarcated from the environment by means of at least one wall. At least one supply device is provided for supplying a flowable control medium to at least one shaping station), wherein this supply device (60) is sealed off from the clean room.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Klaus Voth, Juergen Soellner
  • Patent number: 9610726
    Abstract: A thermoforming in-lay technique is discussed that uses retractable pins to hold an in-lay piece securely in place in a primary mold. The in-lay piece is fabricated prior to the primary molding process and creates multiple pin receivers in the in-lay that are retractably engaged by the retractable pins when placed into the primary mold. When the primary substrate is formed into the primary mold, the retractable pins prevent the in-lay piece from moving out of position. Once the primary substrate has cooled sufficiently, the pins are retracted allowing the finished primary carrier art to be removed from the primary mold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2017
    Assignee: Specialty Manufacturing Inc.
    Inventors: Jeff Upton, Haydn Forward, Frank Ames, Jr.
  • Patent number: 9604409
    Abstract: Method for manufacturing an object, includes: a) depositing a first layer of powder onto a work area constituted by a plate; b) compacting the first layer; c) solidifying a first area of the layer compacted in step b) using a laser beam, the area corresponding to a section of the bottom of the finished object; and d) repeating steps a) through c) until the object is obtained. An additional step e) before step c) includes producing, by solidifying a powder using the laser beam, a member for absorbing deformations to be arranged between the work area and an area to be part of an area corresponding to a portion of a bottom of the finished object. The absorption member produced includes a deformable substrate including a plurality of blades capable of connecting a surface of the plate to the first area constituting a surface of a bottom of the object.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: PHENIX SYSTEMS
    Inventor: Patrick Teulet
  • Patent number: 9607808
    Abstract: A method of electron-beam lithography by direct writing solves the reliability of design of etched components through rounding of the corners of contiguous patterns, notably in patterns to be etched of critical dimension of the order of 35 nm. The method determines critical patterns, and correction patterns by subtracting patterns of corrections of dimensions and of locations as a function of rounding of external or internal corners to be corrected and etching of the corrected design. The corrections may be by a correction model taking account of the parameters of the critical patterns. A correction of the proximity effects specific to these methods is also performed, by resizing of edges of blocks to be etched in combination optimized by the energy latitude with a modulation of the radiated doses. A rescaling and negation functions and eRIF functions may be used to optimize the parameters and the realization of the extrusion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: Commissariat A L'Energie Atomique ET AUX Energies Alternatives
    Inventor: Serdar Manakli
  • Patent number: 9597821
    Abstract: Frame assemblies, molds, and methods for forming rotor blades are provided. A frame assembly for a rotor blade mold includes a plurality of frames, at least one of the plurality of frames movable relative to the others of the plurality of frames, and a bed supported by the plurality of frames. Movement of the at least one of the plurality of frames causes a modification of the bed along a width-wise axis. A mold for forming a rotor blade includes a frame assembly and a mold material disposed in the bed of the frame assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Canan Uslu Hardwicke, Wendy Wen-Ling Lin, Arvind Rangarajan
  • Patent number: 9580345
    Abstract: A closed loop blank mold temperature control system and method for use in the operation of an I.S. machine is disclosed for automatically adjusting machine timing to maintain desired blank mold temperature/heat extraction. The closed loop blank mold temperature control system uses measured blank mold temperatures to automatically control the supply of coolant air to the blank molds, which may be done independently to each blank mold half as well as independently to the plunger for each blank mold. The closed loop blank mold temperature control system can provide temperature setpoint commands, balance left and right parison temperatures, and maintain parison temperatures as a setpoint, all of which contribute to enhanced final glass container quality.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: Emhart Glass S.A.
    Inventor: Jonathan S. Simon
  • Patent number: 9573301
    Abstract: Ply wrinkling during hot drape forming of a composite laminate is reduced at corner radii. A tensioning material placed over an uncured composite laminate charge maintains a compressive force on the laminate charge as the charge is formed over a tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Assignee: The BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: William Thomas Kline, Christopher Gary Harris
  • Patent number: 9561607
    Abstract: A mold for producing a vehicle bumper fascia and methods for releasing the bumper fascia are provided. The mold includes a core mold half having a primary mold core. A first movable mold core is slidingly engaged to the primary mold core. A second movable mold core is slidingly engaged to the first movable mold core. A third movable mold core is slidingly engaged to the second movable mold core. Portions of the primary mold core and the movable mold cores together define cavities for forming the mounting rib, a wing portion, and a wheel well flange of the bumper fascia. Methods of releasing the bumper fascia include the steps of providing the mold, disengaging the movable mold cores from each other and from the primary mold core.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kazuhisa Fujiwara, Rikiya Suwa, Chad Wojniak, Takashi Abe, Youhei Mizukami
  • Patent number: 9561604
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to a method for potting an electrical module. In one embodiment, the method includes placing the electrical component in a potting mold, wherein the potting mold comprises an interior topology that matches a topology of one or more components of the electrical module, filling the potting mold with a potting compound and curing the potting compound over the electrical module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: Dialight Corporation
    Inventors: Kenneth Jenkins, Kevin A. Hebborn, William S. Leib, III, David Weimer
  • Patent number: 9533910
    Abstract: A method for cutting a glass article from a strengthened glass substrate having a surface compression layer and a tensile layer includes forming an edge defect in the surface compression layer on a first edge of the strengthened glass substrate. The method further includes propagating a through vent through the surface compression and tensile layers at the edge defect. The through vent precedes a region of separation along a cut line between the glass article and the strengthened glass substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Xinghua Li, Lisa Anne Moore
  • Patent number: 9535321
    Abstract: The imprint apparatus of the present invention molds an uncured resin on a substrate using a mold to form a resin pattern on the substrate. The apparatus includes a measuring device configured to project a light onto the mold, to receive a light scattered by the mold, and to measure the scattered light; and a controller. The controller is configured to store a reference signal, to cause the measuring device to measure the mold to obtain a measurement signal, and to obtain an index indicating a discrepancy between the measurement signal and the reference signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Hironori Maeda
  • Patent number: 9533456
    Abstract: A method of shaping plastics material pre-forms into plastics material containers with the steps: introducing a plastics material pre-form into a blow mold; conveying the blow mold with the plastics material pre-form along a pre-set conveying path; acting upon the plastics material pre-form with a gaseous medium during a pre-set period of time for the expansion thereof, wherein the supply of the gaseous medium is carried out in a controlled manner; and releasing the container from pressure at a pre-set point in time. According to the invention the pre-set point in time (t2) is variable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Helmut Asbrand
  • Patent number: 9522050
    Abstract: In one aspect the present disclosure relates to a process for producing a dental article comprising at least two parts, Part A (e.g. coping) and Part B (e.g. veneer), Part A and Part B each having a 3-dim. structure and an outer and an inner surface, the outer surface of Part A having a shape which essentially corresponds to the shape of the inner surface of Part B, Part B comprising a material with a porous section and being produced with the aid of a rapid-prototyping technique, the process comprising a first heating step, wherein Part A is serving as support structure for Part B during said heating step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2016
    Assignee: 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY
    Inventors: Helmar Mayr, Malte Korten