Patents Examined by Gregory J Toatley
  • Patent number: 9733641
    Abstract: The method comprises obtaining data samples, each data sample comprising a process variable and a controller output for adjusting the process variable to reach a set-point variable; and determining if there is valve jump or stiction by calculating a jump index or a static band index; wherein calculating the jump index comprises calculating a mean of a first set of angles, each angle from the first set of angles being computed from a ratio of: a difference between a peak process variable and its preceding process variable, and, a difference between a controller output corresponding to the peak process variable and its preceding controller output; and wherein calculating the static band index comprises calculating a mean of a second set of angles, each angle of the second set of angles being computed from a difference between a controller output corresponding to a flat process variable and its preceding controller output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: YOKOGAWA ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Lakshmi Kiran Kanchi, Sankar Selvaraj
  • Patent number: 9733389
    Abstract: A downhole sampling tool is operated to obtain formation fluid from a subterranean formation, which then flows through a flowline of the downhole sampling tool. Real-time density and optical density sensors of the downhole sampling tool are co-located proximate the flowline. Contamination of the formation fluid in the flowline is then determined based, at least in part, on the real-time density and optical density measurements obtained utilizing the co-located sensors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: SCHLUMBERGER TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kai Hsu, Julian J. Pop, Kentaro Indo
  • Patent number: 9733319
    Abstract: A control device of an imaging system has a computer with communication interfaces for central control of the imaging system, and components each having a communication interface for local control of units of the imaging system. The communication interfaces of the components are respectively connected via a connection with an interface of the computer, and a transmitting component, among the components transfers data via the computer to a receiving component, among the components, for the exchange of information between the components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Swen Campagna
  • Patent number: 9731340
    Abstract: A process monitoring method for a joining operation of a joining element at a speed of at least 5 m/s, in particular placing a bolt at least 10 m/s into at least one component with the aid of a placing device which has the following features: A plunger for placing the joining element, a buffer which limits a maximum deflection of the plunger in the joining direction, and a distance measurement with which the deflection of the plunger can be detected, wherein the process monitoring comprises the following steps: Detecting the travel of the plunger during the joining operation as a function of time in the form of a distance-time curve, detecting a placement of the plunger on the buffer, evaluating the distance-time curve such that, in the presence of at least one maximum followed by at least one minimum in the distance-time curve and without the plunger contacting the buffer, a joint connection is judged to be OK.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Böllhoff Verbindungstechnik GmbH
    Inventors: Torsten Draht, Adnan Kolac
  • Patent number: 9723987
    Abstract: Techniques for remotely calibrating an implanted patient sensor with a remote networking device are described. In some embodiments, the sensor is a component of an implantable medical device (IMD). The remote networking device communicates with the IMD via a network to which the IMD and/or external programmer is connected. The IMD may transmit sensor information to the remote networking device when the IMD detects a problem with the sensor or when the patient indicates that therapy is not correctly selected for different activities. New calibration settings may be remotely generated by directly interrogating the sensor and/or communicating with the patient in order to associate sensor output with patient activities, motions, or postures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Medtronic, Inc.
    Inventor: Steven M. Goetz
  • Patent number: 9719973
    Abstract: In accordance with an example embodiment, a system is presented for collecting information about a crop to analyze the general health the crop relative to corresponding information from a previous information collection process. To ensure an optimal harvest, a field is typically treated with multiple material application steps. Starting with seed application, the system collects visual information and corresponding positioning data. With each subsequent application (e.g., fertilizer, pesticide, etc.), the information collection process is repeated. The new information is compared to corresponding information from a previous application step, such that the effectiveness of the prior application can be revealed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: DEERE & COMPANY
    Inventors: Terence D. Pickett, Timothy A. Wilcox
  • Patent number: 9719967
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a structural health monitoring system, for example a system used in the non-destructive evaluation of an aircraft structure. The present invention provides a method and apparatus for evaluating one or more anomalies within a structure using a structural health monitoring system that includes at least three transducers arranged in operative contact with the structure such that no two transducers are aligned to be parallel. A transducer excites an elastic wave that propagates through the structure, and reflections from any anomalies within the structure are collected by the three transducers. These collected signals are analyzed to identify an anomaly within the structure. Time of flight techniques are used to determine the location of the anomaly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: Grzegorz Marian Kawiecki, Rosa Maria Rodriguez, Pawel Kudela, Wieslaw Ostachowicz
  • Patent number: 9719778
    Abstract: A method for measuring verticality of a container having a base and vertical wall comprises measuring at each rotational position of the container, at least the position along a first measurement axis, of at least one first measuring point located on the base, and a second measuring point located on the base diametrically opposite to the first measuring point, the position along a third measurement axis, of at least one third measuring point located on the vertical wall at a distance from the base. An angle defined between a first segment passing through the first and second measuring points and a second segment intersecting the first segment and passing through at least the third measuring point is selected to be representative of the container verticality. For each rotational position of the container, a quantity depending on the angle is calculated. Verticality is measured from the variations of the calculated quantity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: MSC & SGCC
    Inventors: Marc Leconte, Jean-François Garin
  • Patent number: 9715077
    Abstract: A lens aligning device includes: a decentering detection mechanism for measuring a first lens decentering amount; a aligning position calculation control mechanism for calculating a target inter-lens decentering amount by using Formula (1); an adjustment mechanism for moving at least one of a first lens and a second lens so that the inter-lens decentering amount matches the target inter-lens decentering amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Norimichi Shigemitsu, Hiroyuki Hanato
  • Patent number: 9703556
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method (50) for controlling an integrated circuit (20) comprising a microprocessor, in which the integrated circuit (20) is configured to execute by default a general program, said integrated circuit being controlled by activation of a mode of operation of the integrated circuit, called “bootstrap mode”, in which said integrated circuit (20) executes a program for loading a specific program to be executed. The method (50) comprises: i) a step (51) of sending at least one bootstrap mode activation message to a test module (200) of the integrated circuit (20) via a test bus (310), ii) a step (52) of activating the bootstrap mode of the integrated circuit (20), executed by the test module (200) of the integrated circuit (20), and iii) a step (53) of loading the specific program via a communication bus (320) different from the test bus (310). The present invention also relates to an integrated circuit (20) and a computer (30) including such an integrated circuit (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignees: CONTINENTAL AUTOMOTIVE FRANCE, CONTINENTAL AUTOMOTIVE GMBH
    Inventors: Bertrand Danet, Stéphane Laborie-Fulchic
  • Patent number: 9706666
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, an electronic device includes a circuit board with an electronic component mounted thereon. The device, includes a measuring unit, a first database, a determination unit, and a presentation unit. The measuring unit measures an value of state of the electronic component. The first database stores data indicating correlation. The determination unit determines one of ways of applying a load to a junction, based on the value of state of the electronic component measured by the measuring unit, and referring to the first database. The presentation unit presents the determined way of applying the load to the junction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Tomoko Monda, Minoru Mukai
  • Patent number: 9702960
    Abstract: A method for determining a FDOA of a pulsed waveform received by two sensors includes obtaining a respective plurality of in-phase and quadrature-phase (IQ) samples indicative of a pulse envelope of the received pulsed waveform. The method includes determining a TDOA responsive to a leading edge of a pulse of the pulsed waveform and obtaining a first cross correlation of IQ samples at a delay (dc) closest to the TDOA, and respective second and third cross correlations at least one additional delay (dc+1 and dc?1) on either side of the closest delay. The method includes refining the approximation of the TDOA according to an interpolation of amplitudes of the cross-correlation and determining a respective rate of change of cross-correlation phase (??). The method includes approximating a straight line fit to the rates of change of cross-correlation phase (d??/dt), the slope of the straight line representative of the FDOA.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: John T. Broad, Lee M. Savage
  • Patent number: 9702681
    Abstract: A computing device connects with a measurement machine. The measurement machine includes a raster ruler and a measurement unit. The computing device reads environmental temperatures from a temperature sensor. Compensation coefficients of the standard workpiece and compensation coefficients of the raster ruler are calculated. The computing device calculates total compensation coefficients of the standard workpiece and the raster ruler. When the measurement machine measures an object workpiece, the computing device calculates a total error of the object workpiece according to the total compensation coefficients of the standard workpiece and the total compensation coefficients of the raster ruler. Coordinates of the object workpiece are calculated according to the total error and mechanism coordinates of each axis of the measurement machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignees: HONG FU JIN PRECISION INDUSTRY (ShenZhen) CO., LTD., HON HAI PRECISION INDUSTRY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Chih-Kuang Chang, Hua-Wei Yang
  • Patent number: 9696742
    Abstract: Two-wire transmitters are described in which the required voltage that a control room must supply to the transmitter is lower at high current than at low current, thus freeing up more voltage for other uses, and in which a constant set of operating voltages may be maintained. A corrected pressure in a vortex flow meter may be determined that reflects the mass flow rate. Thus, the mass flow rate may be determined based on the corrected pressure reading and a measured volumetric flow rate. Density may be determined from pressure and temperature using a table containing error values based on a standard density determination and a relatively simple approximation. During operation of a flow meter, the stored error values may be linearly interpolated and the approximation may be computed to determine the density from the stored error value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2017
    Assignee: Invensys Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Warren E. Cook, Joseph J. Lewicke, Peter E. Allstrom, James H. Vignos
  • Patent number: 9692309
    Abstract: Devices and methods for monitoring and determining alternating current (AC) power system parameters are provided. In some implementations, the device can include a processor; and at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions for implementing a number of components. The components include a monitor configured to: sense an AC line voltage signal and an AC current voltage signal; filter the AC line voltage signal; calculate average AC line voltage and current values based, at least, on a DC voltage and current values corresponding to the AC line voltage and current signals, respectively; determine fundamental AC line voltage and current signals based, at least, on zero crossings of the respective average AC line voltage value and the average AC line current value; and determine one or more AC power system parameters based, at least, on the fundamental AC line voltage signal and the fundamental AC line current signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventors: Sangsun Kim, Eduardo M. Lipiansky
  • Patent number: 9691191
    Abstract: A method for performing an integrated waveform analysis without the use of an external device is disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: Luigi P. Righi, Brian A. Hansen, Gregory M. Wellbrook
  • Patent number: 9689726
    Abstract: A flow meter ultrasonically measures fluid velocity in a pipe. Ultrasonic signals received by ultrasonic transducers are digitized. The difference between two ultrasonic propagation times is determined by computing a discrete cross-correlation of the digitized received signals. Computation time is reduced by computing only a few cross-correlation values near a peak cross-correlation value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Venkata Ramanan Ramamurthy, Anand Dabak
  • Patent number: 9689732
    Abstract: An analysis tool for monitoring and displaying the real time and historical hydraulic conditions in a sewer system as measured by monitors distributed throughout the sewer system and associated weather data. Data about the hydraulic conditions of the sewer system are displayed in a graphical display that incorporates a visual representation of the sewer system infrastructure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: EMNET, LLC
    Inventors: Luis A. Montestruque, Patrick M. Henthorn, Brent P. Hussung
  • Patent number: 9684034
    Abstract: Efficient production testing of integrated circuits (ICs). A first production test is implemented on a group of ICs and failures among the test group are assessed. Specifically, the results of the first test are analyzed such that ICs having a recoverable fail and ICs having a non-recoverable fail are differentiated. The ICs are integrated based on the analyzed results and a second production test is implemented. The second production test tests the ICs responsive to the segregation, such that the second production test is limited only to ICs with a recoverable fail. The next succeeding production test will then use the new test program in the second production test with the handler bin designated as having ICs not to be re-tested.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Teck Seng Eng, Michael Russell Uy Gonzales, Louie Que Hermosura
  • Patent number: 9677967
    Abstract: A pressure-sensing hose assembly and method of its use are disclosed. In an example aspect, the pressure sensing hose assembly includes a hose assembly including a hose having first and second conductive layers and a circuit electrically connected to the first and second conductive layers of the hose assembly. The circuit generates an electrical response across the first and second conductive layers of the hose assembly. The pressure-sensing hose assembly further includes a computing system configured to receive the electrical response and estimate a pressure within the hose assembly based on the electrical response.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: Eaton Corporation
    Inventors: Luis R. Pereira, Hassan Al-Atat, Mark A. Juds