Patents Examined by Henry Yuen
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Patent number: 8707862Abstract: Methods and apparatuses for cooking food are provided. In particular, food is placed in a bowl held at an angle to horizontal. With the food in the bowl, the bowl is simultaneously heated and rotated. A scraper assembly is disposed within the bowl, to lift the food from the side and bottom surfaces of the bowl as the bowl rotates. A temperature sensor can be provided to provide a signal to discontinue rotation of the bowl and the application of heat to the bowl when the food has reached a desired temperature. A tilt mechanism can also be provided to maintain the food within a desired distance from the top edge of the bowl.Type: GrantFiled: January 7, 2011Date of Patent: April 29, 2014Assignee: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.Inventors: William H. Oliver, Randall W. Nichols
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Patent number: 8704131Abstract: A method and system for pulse welding provides an output pulse waveform. The waveform has at least a frequency from a range of available frequencies not limited to harmonic frequencies. The waveform provides power suitable for welding, and has a plurality of background portions alternating with a plurality of peak portions. A transition down occurs from the peak portion to the background portion with a first acceleration and a transition up occurs from the background portion to the peak portion with a second acceleration. At least one of the first and second accelerations are non-zero over at least most of the transition. The waveform is preferably created by switching an inverter. Both accelerations may be non-zero, and each transition may have two accelerations, one negative closer to the peak, and one positive closer to the background. The accelerations may be constant with opposite polarity. Preferably the process is current controlled during the transitions. The process frequency may be fixed or varying.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2006Date of Patent: April 22, 2014Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.Inventors: Robert R. Davidson, David G. Almy, Richard J. Schuh
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Patent number: 8704120Abstract: A welding device for powder welding is described, which comprises a welding head for transportation of at least one welding electrode to a welding area, and a powder transportation device for transportation of powder from a container to the welding area. The powder transportation device comprises at least a first pipe which at a first end has an opening which is arranged to be placed in the container in order to transport fluxing agent from the container. The powder transportation device comprises at least a first ejector which is connected to the second end of the first pipe and which is arranged to transport powder from the container via the first pipe using pressurized gas.Type: GrantFiled: June 11, 2009Date of Patent: April 22, 2014Assignee: ESAB ABInventors: Rolf Gösta Larsson, Björn Johansson
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Patent number: 8704135Abstract: A welding system is disclosed for performing a short arc welding process between an advancing wire electrode and a workpiece. The system comprises a power source with a controller for creating a current pulse introducing energy into the electrode to melt the end of the electrode and a low current quiescent metal transfer section following the end of the melting pulse during which the melted electrode short circuits against the workpiece; a timer to measure the actual time between the end of the pulse and the short circuit; a device for setting a desired time from the pulse to the short circuit; a circuit to create a corrective signal based upon the difference between the actual time and the desired time; and, a circuit responsive to the corrective signal to control a given parameter of the current pulse. Also disclosed is a strategy for arc welding utilizing a cored electrode that produces welds with low levels of contaminants and which are strong, tough, and durable.Type: GrantFiled: January 20, 2006Date of Patent: April 22, 2014Assignee: Lincoln Global, Inc.Inventors: Badri K. Narayanan, Russell K. Myers, Patrick T. Soltis
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Patent number: 8704125Abstract: A laser processing machine has an expanded operating space so that larger workpieces can be processed and/or the spatial requirement for the laser processing machine is reduced.Type: GrantFiled: November 5, 2010Date of Patent: April 22, 2014Assignee: TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen GmbH + Co. KGInventor: Andreas Kettner-Reich
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Patent number: 8695489Abstract: A cooked food staging device and method are provided. The device and method are particularly suited for storing breaded, battered or bread food items for extended periods of time without becoming soggy. A heated compartment having a slot has a flexible member covering at least a portion of the slot to restrict airflow and to permit access to the food items contained therein, which may be contained on trays, without the necessity of removing the tray to view and remove selected food items therefrom.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 2006Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Restaurant Technology, Inc.Inventors: Henry T. Ewald, Glenn Schackmuth, Paul G. Simmons, Robert C. Fortmann
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Patent number: 8698043Abstract: A grip member with an electric heater, in which the surface of a core body when a heater is installed is flat. A metal conductive plate, such as a SUS plate with a thickness of about 30 ?m formed in a belt-like shape, is spirally embedded along a flat groove section provided in a core body, the surface of the core body is made flat, and the metal conductive plate is fixed at both ends to the core body. An electric current is passed through the metal conductive plate to cause it to generate heat.Type: GrantFiled: September 5, 2005Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Mitsubishi Cable Industries, Ltd.Inventors: Yuichi Fukuda, Michiyasu Watanabe, Kouzo Sasaki, Satoru Fujiwara
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Patent number: 8695490Abstract: A drive unit that is movable between an unfired and a fired position. The drive unit comprises a handle member, a first drive gear having a first axis of rotation, and a second drive gear, engaged to the first drive gear at a mesh point, and having a second axis of rotation. The mesh point moves with respect to the axes of rotation as the handle member moves from the unfired position to the fired position. The drive unit drives an implement only when it is moved from the unfired position to the fired position.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2011Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Columbia Insurance CompanyInventors: E. Mark Harris, Markus Klotz
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Patent number: 8695486Abstract: The invention discloses a plunger-filter beverage-making machine with a lid which can be closed by a valve. The beverage-making machine has a vessel (2), a lid (3) and a filter piston (4) which can be vertically displaced in the vessel and has a piston rod (41). The lid (3) contains a pouring opening (37) which can be closed by means of an elongate lever (33) which extends transverse to the piston rod. To this end, the lever is mounted on the lid such that it can pivot about a horizontal axis. The lever has, in the region of its front end, a closure body (36) in order to close the pouring opening and, in the region of its rear end, an operating region (331) in order to pivot the lever by virtue of pressure exerted by a finger of a user.Type: GrantFiled: May 8, 2009Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Pi-Design AGInventor: Jørgen Bodum
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Patent number: 8698040Abstract: A laser energy delivery system includes a relay imaging system. Input optics arranged to receive the laser energy, a transmitting mirror having adjustable angle of incidence relative to the input optics, and a robot mounted optical assembly are configured to direct laser energy toward the movable target image plane. The laser energy follows an optical path including an essentially straight segment from the transmitting mirror to the receiving mirror, having a variable length and a variable angle relative to the input optics through air. Diagnostics on the processing head facilitate operation.Type: GrantFiled: May 14, 2010Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Metal Improvement Company LLCInventors: C. Brent Dane, Fritz B. Harris, Joseph T. Taranowski, Steven L Honett, Stewart B. Brown
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Patent number: 8695488Abstract: A multi-function induction cooker comprises: a left body with a left upper cover and a corresponding lower left cover, a left supporting board for supporting the heating plate disposed on the left upper cover, a left electromagnetic induction component disposed inside the chamber between the left upper and left lower cover; a right body connected on the right side of the left body, and the right body can be returned on the upper surface of the left body to a folded status, or an unfolded status; wherein a status switching device for switching the folded and unfolded status is disposed on the left or right body, and said status switching device can switch the power proportion between the two bodies in folded or unfolded status. With the multi-function induction cooker: the food can be heated from the top and the bottom, and pans can be heated on both surfaces simultaneously.Type: GrantFiled: December 28, 2011Date of Patent: April 15, 2014Assignee: Tsann Kuen (Zhangzhou) Enterprise Co., Ltd.Inventor: Sen-Chuan Liu
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Patent number: 8692156Abstract: A robot cell comprises a support having a top surface within a plane and configured to rotate about a central axis substantially normal to the plane and a plurality of welding tables including a first welding table and a second welding table. The first welding table is operably connected to the support and configured to rotate about a first axis substantially parallel to the plane and about a second axis substantially normal to the plane. The first welding table is configured such that the second axis remains substantially normal to the plane while the first welding table rotates about the first axis. The second welding table is operably connected to the support and configured to rotate about a third axis substantially parallel to the plane and about a fourth axis substantially normal to the plane. The second welding table is configured such that the fourth axis remains substantially' normal to the plane while the second welding table rotates about the third axis.Type: GrantFiled: September 18, 2009Date of Patent: April 8, 2014Assignee: Lincoln Global, Inc.Inventor: David E. Osicki
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Patent number: 8693518Abstract: A high temperature industrial furnace roof system having first and second spaced apart hanger brick rows with a filler row disposed therebetween and a cable system including a plurality of electrical cables. The filler row includes a plurality of filler elements having at least one removable heating module with a heat source. The cable system operatively connects the heat source with a power source and permits the removable heating module to be removed from the respective filler element while the respective heat source remains operatively connected with the power source.Type: GrantFiled: September 9, 2009Date of Patent: April 8, 2014Assignee: Merkle International Inc.Inventors: Fred Lindeman, Stephen Coates, William R. Materna, Timothy Park
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Patent number: 8692157Abstract: Welding systems and sequence controllers therefor are presented for controlling components of a welding system during a welding operation. The sequence controller receives system inputs and provides control outputs to the system components, and includes a processing component, an executable sequence control program, and a state table file. The sequence control state table file includes a number of entries corresponding to welding operation states, where the individual entries comprise one or more instruction identifiers, instruction parameters, exit condition identifiers and corresponding next state identifiers. The sequence control program is executed according to the sequence controller inputs and according to the state table file to provide the sequence controller outputs, where the state table file can be easily modified or new state table files can be created and downloaded to the sequence controller to facilitate easy reconfiguration of a welding system.Type: GrantFiled: September 15, 2005Date of Patent: April 8, 2014Assignee: Lincoln Global, Inc.Inventors: Joseph Allen Daniel, Steven R. Peters
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Patent number: 8693519Abstract: A sensor system for monitoring and controlling the performance of the bottom electrode and the deflection of an electric arc in an electric steel making furnace includes an organized matrix of anode pins interspersed with refractory material and extending toward an electrically conductive plate secured to distal ends of the anode pins. A sensing device includes two temperature sensors at spaced apart locations along each of a distributed select group of anode pins for providing corresponding electrical signals and a current sensor responsive to electrical current flowing through the anode pins of the distributed select group of anode pins for providing a corresponding electrical signal. A controller responsive to the electrical signals derived at the anode pins of the select group operates the power supply and a display for monitoring the electrical performance of the elongated anode pins for heating by the electric arc in the furnace.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 2008Date of Patent: April 8, 2014Inventor: Michael J. Kaltenbach
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Patent number: 8686319Abstract: A heatable transparency comprises a substrate and an electrically conductive coating formed over at least a portion of the substrate. A power supply is in contact with the conductive coating. The power supply is configured to provide alternating current (AC) to the conductive coating.Type: GrantFiled: May 9, 2007Date of Patent: April 1, 2014Assignee: PPG Industries Ohio, Inc.Inventor: James P. Thiel
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Patent number: 8686316Abstract: The present invention concerns an automatic welding device of MIG/MAG type consisting of at least one carriage holding at least one welding head comprising at least one torch (1) guiding a consumable electrode wire along a parting plane (P) between the pipes to be welded, which brings the current to the end of the electrode wire in order to generate an electric arc and ensure melting of the filler metal, The invention consists of the fact that the welding head therefore presents a welding torch (1) intended to be centered in relation to the parting plane (P) to ensure the penetration pass and also bears at least two other so-called tracking welding torches (2, 3), respectively positioned one after the other following the first so-called central welding torch (1) and offset respectively on both sides of the so-called central torch (1) in order to make lateral passes. Application to the welding of metal pipes in order to form pipelines.Type: GrantFiled: December 7, 2006Date of Patent: April 1, 2014Assignee: SerimaxInventor: Denis Destouches
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Patent number: 8680428Abstract: Disclosed is a slit width adjusting device comprising: a pair of slit members parallel to each other, which is moved to approach each other or to be separated from each other to adjust a slit width; a driving section to move the pair of slit members; an absolute position original point detection section to detect an arbitrary absolute position of the slit members as an original point; and an adjustment section to adjust the slit width, wherein the adjustment section comprises: a storage unit to store a slit width table in which a displacement amount of the slit width from the original point, and a drive instruction value corresponding to the displacement amount, are corresponding to each other; and a drive control unit to extract the drive instruction value corresponding to a specified slit width, to drive the driving section according to the extracted drive instruction value.Type: GrantFiled: May 27, 2009Date of Patent: March 25, 2014Assignee: Mitutoyo CorporationInventors: Hidemitsu Asano, Makoto Uwada, Makoto Kaieda
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Patent number: 8680444Abstract: A soldering apparatus for connecting solar cells includes an induction heat source to connect cell conducting tracks, provided with soldering medium, with electric conductors. The heat source has a high-frequency generator and an inductor loop in which the flow of a high-frequency current causes a high-frequency magnetic field to induce in the conducting track and in the electric conductor arranged along the conducting track eddy currents that generate the heat that is necessary for the soldering operation. The U-shaped inductor loop has narrowings and widenings that serve to optimize the heat development in the soldering zone and thus also save energy. Each widening affords access to the soldering point for a magnetic-field-neutral pressure foot that presses the conductor onto the conducting track. The inductor loop extends the entire length of the conducting track of the cell upper and lower sides to solder to the conductor in one soldering operation.Type: GrantFiled: March 20, 2009Date of Patent: March 25, 2014Assignee: Komax Holding AGInventors: Brad M. Dingle, Brian S. Micciche, Shawn M. Sidelinger, Thomas R. Correll, Kenneth A. Neidert
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Patent number: 8680432Abstract: The present invention includes a welding system that has at least two metal inert gas (MIG) welders configured to perform a cooperative pulsed MIG welding process. The welding system also includes at least one communications link connecting the at least two MIG welders to deliver at least one of subordination commands and superiority commands to either of the at least two MIG welders to synchronize the cooperative pulsed MIG welding process.Type: GrantFiled: April 20, 2005Date of Patent: March 25, 2014Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.Inventors: James L. Uecker, Todd E. Holverson, Jeremy D. Overesch