Patents Examined by Erick D Glass
  • Patent number: 11966202
    Abstract: Motorized window treatment systems are disclosed. A motorized window treatment system may include a covering material, a sensor circuit, and a control circuit. The sensor circuit may be configured to generate sensor signals indicative of a position of the covering material. The control circuit may be configured to determine a present sensor state of the sensor circuit, determine a predicted sensor state for the sensor circuit based at least in part on a power-down position recorded at a first time and a final position recorded at a second time, compare the predicted sensor state with the present sensor state, and determine a present position of the covering material based on the comparison of the predicted sensor state and the present sensor state. Methods of adjusting a position of a covering material of a motorized window treatment also are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
    Inventors: Thomas F. Rebbert, Robert J. Thompson
  • Patent number: 11962254
    Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to reduce power consumption in a drive circuit that drives a capacitive load. A drive circuit includes: a positive-side circuit; and a negative-side circuit. The positive-side circuit causes current supplied from a power source to a predetermined node to flow to a positive-side terminal of a capacitive load in a first drive mode and causes current from the capacitive load to flow from the positive-side terminal to the predetermined node in a second drive mode. The negative-side circuit causes current from a negative-side terminal of the capacitive load to flow to the predetermined node in the first drive mode and causes current supplied from the power supply to the predetermined node to flow to the negative-side terminal in the second drive mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Masahiro Sato
  • Patent number: 11955907
    Abstract: A rotating electrical machine control system (100) whose control target is an alternating-current rotating electrical machine (80) including M coil sets (8) includes M inverters (50) each including a plurality of switching elements (5) and connected to a direct-current power supply (41) and one of the coil sets (8) to convert electric power between a direct current and alternating currents of N phases; M current sensors (6) each provided for each coil set (8) to detect an alternating current of each phase flowing through the coil set (8); and an inverter control device (30) that generates switching control signals (S) for controlling the plurality of switching elements (5). The inverter control device (30) performs current feedback control of the rotating electrical machine (80) using all detection values for each of N phases obtained by the M current sensors (6), to generate the switching control signals (S) common to the M inverters (50).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2024
    Assignee: AISIN CORPORATION
    Inventors: Subrata Saha, Shoji Nagata
  • Patent number: 11949352
    Abstract: Provided is a method for controlling, by means of field-oriented closed-loop control, an active rectifier which is electrically connected to a stator of a generator of a wind turbine. The generator has a rotor which is mounted so as to be rotatable about the stator and comprises the steps of determining a mechanical position of the rotor with respect to the stator, predefining DC components of rotor-fixed d and q coordinates for at least one 3-phase stator current, determining an AC component for the q coordinate at least as a function of the mechanical position of the rotor, modulating the determined AC component of the q coordinate onto the predefined DC component of the q coordinate, so that a modulated q coordinate is produced which has a DC component and an AC component, and controlling the active rectifier at least as a function of the modulated q coordinate and preferably as a function of the d coordinate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: Wobben Properties GmbH
    Inventors: Stefan Gertjegerdes, Jair Cassoli
  • Patent number: 11949358
    Abstract: A control circuit receives a command from outside and causes an arithmetic unit to perform arithmetic operation M times (M is an integer of 2 or more) by using input data from outside and calculated data held in a memory, thereby making the arithmetic unit and the memory function as an IIR filter. The IIR filter is a filter capable of determining output data by arithmetic operation of K times out of the M times (K<M). The control circuit receives the command from outside and then causes the arithmetic unit to perform the arithmetic operation K times in advance, thereby determining the output data and outputting the output data to outside at that time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: RENESAS ELECTRONICS CORPORATION
    Inventor: Takeshi Nitta
  • Patent number: 11949360
    Abstract: A control device is configured to control an operation of a control target. The control device is configured to monitor an abnormality. The control device is configured to store abnormality information according to an abnormality monitor result. When the abnormality of a monitor target is detected, an abnormality treatment confirmation determination related to a transition determination to an abnormality treatment due to an occurrence of the abnormality is different from an abnormality storage confirmation determination that causes the control device to store, as the abnormality information, the abnormality of the monitor target.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kouichi Nakamura, Nobuyori Nakazima
  • Patent number: 11945096
    Abstract: A product conveyance robot includes: a travel portion configured to travel on a road surface; a holding portion provided above the travel portion and configured to hold a product, the holding portion being provided rotatably around a lateral turn axis extending in the height direction of the holding portion; and a controller configured to control driving of the travel portion and a rotation angle of the holding portion around the lateral turn axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Zixun Mei, Satoshi Okamoto, Takuya Watabe, Shinya Sakurai
  • Patent number: 11936313
    Abstract: Described is a method of aligning a rotor of a polyphase synchronous motor having a permanent magnet rotor to a predetermined, selected, or specified rotor angle. The method comprises sensing or measuring the stator winding voltages/currents during synchronous operation of the motor. Based on the sensed or measured stator winding voltages/currents, a synchronously rotating reference frame vector voltage (Vq) in the q-axis is determined as a product of stator winding resistance (Rs) and stator winding current (iq) in the q-axis. Corresponding polyphase drive voltages for the synchronous motor for the predetermined, selected, or specified rotor angle (?) are determined from the synchronously rotating reference frame vector voltage (Vq). The polyphase drive voltages are applied to align the rotor on stopping at said predetermined, selected, or specified rotor angle (?). The polyphase drive voltages are applied by suitable PWM drive signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: Kinetic Technologies International Holdings LP
    Inventor: Feng Zhu
  • Patent number: 11936314
    Abstract: A motor drive device is proposed. The motor drive device is configured to drive a motor having a plurality of windings respectively corresponding to a plurality of phases, and includes: a first inverter including a plurality of first switching elements, and connected to a first end of each of the plurality of windings; a second inverter including a plurality of second switching elements, and connected to a second end of each of the plurality of windings; and a controller configured to generate phase voltage commands of the first inverter and phase voltage commands of the second inverter based on preset voltage commands of the motor so that the phase voltage commands of the first inverter and the phase voltage commands of the second inverter are respectively represented as vectors of different angles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yong Jae Lee, Jung Hwi Kim, Jun Mo An
  • Patent number: 11936255
    Abstract: An electric machine includes a stator and a rotor energizable by magnetic fields produced by the stator when receiving a stator current to produce relative motion between the rotor and the stator. A controller is configured to send the stator current through the stator at a current angle measured from the closest one of a pole of the rotor, determine a desired operational output of the electric machine, and determine a desired rotor motion corresponding to the desired operational output of the electric machine. The controller is further configured to calculate a vector control modulation applied to the stator that elicits the desired rotor motion, and adjust the current angle of the stator current based on the vector control modulation to cause the rotor to perform the desired rotor motion and achieve the desired operational output of the electric machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: Tau Motors, Inc.
    Inventors: Walter Wesley Pennington, III, Matthew J. Rubin, Gregory Gordon Stevenson, Michael Parker Owen, Ethan Bagget Swint, Matthias Preindl
  • Patent number: 11932116
    Abstract: A control system configured to control a rotating electrical machine of a battery electric vehicle (BEV), having one or more microprocessors that execute a low-efficiency mode of operation for the BEV, such that the low-efficiency mode of operation includes determining a high-efficiency mode current command corresponding to operation at a determined physical rotor angular velocity of a rotor of the rotating electrical machine at a commanded torque value, and increasing current supplied to the rotating electrical machine to a level corresponding to operation at an angular velocity higher than the determined physical angular velocity of the rotor at the commanded torque value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: BORGWARNER INC.
    Inventors: Caleb Wayne Secrest, Siddharth Ballal, Vignesh Namasivayam
  • Patent number: 11936325
    Abstract: A motor control system and method for a brushed direct current (BDC) motor using a compensated and corrected ripple count. Motor control circuitry, for example implemented in digital logic such as a microcontroller, receives a coil current signal and a motor voltage signal. Discontinuities in the coil current signal, are counted to generate a ripple count. An observer function derives an angular frequency model estimate using a computational model for the motor applying motor parameters estimated in an initial estimation interval following startup of the motor. A corrected ripple count is generated based on a comparison of a commutation angle of the motor with an angular position based on the angular frequency model estimate. Compensation for cumulative error over the initial estimation interval is derived from a behavioral motor model applying the estimated motor parameters. A motor drive signal is adjusted based on the compensated corrected ripple count.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Kaushik Alwala, Venkata Naresh Kotikelapudi
  • Patent number: 11929697
    Abstract: A system and method for reliable control of a high rotor pole switched reluctance machine (HRSRM) utilizing a sensorless reliable control system. The method comprising: energizing at least one of the plurality of stator phases; measuring a first current value and time taken by the first current value to reach a first peak value or preset threshold value of current; determining a self-inductance value; measuring a second current value and time taken by an adjacent un-energized stator phase to reach a second peak value of current; determining a mutual inductance value; and estimating a rotor position utilizing the self-inductance and mutual inductance values; and controlling the HRSRM based on the estimated rotor position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: Turntide Technologies Inc.
    Inventors: Mahesh Krishnamurthy, Trevor Creary
  • Patent number: 11916504
    Abstract: An energy conversion device is provided. The energy conversion device includes a reversible pulse-width modulation (PWM) rectifier (102) and a motor coil (103). The motor coil (103) includes L sets of winding units, and each set of winding unit is connected with the reversible PWM rectifier (102), where L?2 and is a positive integer. At least two sets of heating circuits of a to-be-heated device are formed by an external power supply (100), the reversible PWM rectifier (102), and the winding units in the motor coil (103). The energy conversion device controls the reversible PWM rectifier (102) according to a control signal, so that a current outputted from the external power supply (100) flows through at least two sets of winding units in the motor coil (103) to generate heat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: BYD COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Heping Ling, Jicheng Li, Changjiu Liu, Feiyue Xie, Yuxin Zhang
  • Patent number: 11916496
    Abstract: A motor controller is operable to control a motor. The motor has a first terminal and the motor controller includes an angular velocity transmission path having an input and an output. A current generator includes a velocity-torque input, an angular position input, and a motor drive output. The velocity-torque input is coupled to the output of the angular velocity transmission path. An angular velocity feedback path is coupled between a first terminal and a first location on the angular velocity transmission path. The first location is between the input and the output of the angular velocity transmission path. A current feedback path is coupled between the first terminal and a second location on the angular velocity transmission path. The second location is disposed between the first location on the angular velocity transmission path and the velocity-torque input of the current generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Prasad Kulkarni, Venkata Pavan Mahankali
  • Patent number: 11901847
    Abstract: A controller in a motor control device includes an integral operation unit 606A (608A) that performs an arithmetic operation for a d(q)-axis integrated value Id** (Iq**) through integral control performed on a d(q)-axis current deviation ?Id (?Iq) and is configured to perform an arithmetic operation for a d(q)-axis voltage command value for controlling an output voltage of an inverter of a three-phase brushless motor. The controller further includes a limit value arithmetic operation unit 606C (608C) that performs an arithmetic operation for d(q)-axis integration upper and lower limit values Idmax (Iqmax) and Idmin (Iqmin) on the basis of a power source voltage of the inverter and the like and an integration limiting unit 606D (608E) that limits Id** (Iq**) within a predetermined range defined by the d(q)-axis integration upper and lower limit values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroto Saotome, Masaki Hano
  • Patent number: 11901849
    Abstract: A wiper device including: a power supplying circuit including plural switching elements, the power supplying circuit supplying, to a wiper motor, voltage that has been converted in accordance with switching control of the plural switching elements; a temperature detecting section detecting a temperature relating to a temperature of at least one of the switching elements among the plural switching elements; a current detecting section detecting current flowing to any of the switching elements among the plural switching elements; and a control section that, in a case in which the current detected by the current detecting section exceeds a limit current at the temperature detected by the temperature detecting section, carries out switching control of the switching elements such that the voltage supplied to the wiper motor decreases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yohei Natsume
  • Patent number: 11897130
    Abstract: A planar drive device having a first platform and having a second platform, which platforms are movable in an X-Y plane on a work bench, wherein the first platform has a frame, a transmission and a working platform for the arrangement of a work tool, wherein the transmission permits an adjustment of the distance of the working platform with respect to the X-Y plane, wherein the second platform has a frame and a drive member which is coupled in terms of movement at least indirectly to the working platform such that the distance of the working platform from the X-Y plane is adjustable by changing a distance between the two platforms within the X-Y plane. The work tool can be transferred into at least two different working states by relative movement of the platforms in the X-Y plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: Syntegon Technology GmbH
    Inventors: Sebastian Schwarz, Marcus Kleinert
  • Patent number: 11881799
    Abstract: A motor unit having a motor having a stator and an armature, the armature being arranged for relative driven motion with respect to the stator. A motor control unit has a supply circuit for providing a supply voltage at the motor to provide a set power level to the motor for driving the armature into motion. A measurement circuit is measuring a value of a physical variable indicative of a current flow through the motor, The motor control unit is arranged to interrupt the provision of the supply voltage by the supply circuit and to dynamically brake the motor during a braking time interval and further to measure the value of the physical variable during the braking time interval.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: Braun GmbH
    Inventors: Andre Thunot, Torsten Klemm
  • Patent number: 11878604
    Abstract: A propulsion system for an electric vehicle comprising a high voltage battery unit having a first high voltage battery connected in series with a second high voltage battery, which may also be referred to as a first and second battery bank, and one or more power inverters arranged to connect the battery banks to one or more electric machines. The one or more power inverters and the one or more electric machines are configured to form a first and a second three-phase system. The described architecture incorporating dual battery banks, and dual and/or multiphase inverters and electric machines can provide enhanced redundancy and limp home functionality in cases where a fault or error occurs in the inverter and/or in the electric machine so that a faulty three-phase system can be operated in a safe-state mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: Volvo Car Corporation
    Inventors: Robert Eriksson, Nikitas Sidiropoulos