Patents Examined by Jacob T Minskey
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Patent number: 11904500Abstract: An apparatus for making and depositing bricks includes a nozzle having an inlet opening, an outlet opening, and a plurality of walls surrounding the outlet opening. At least one of the walls is configured to retract relative to the other walls. When a first brick is deposited, all of the nozzle walls are in the extended position. When subsequent bricks are deposited, one or more of the nozzle walls are retracted so that the form for the subsequent bricks is provided by the walls that are in the extended position and the sides of the already-deposited bricks. In this manner, the nozzle is configured to deposit the bricks directly adjacent to each other without any space or intervening material between them. The bricks may be deposited in a heated state and they meld together as they cool. The nozzle is particularly advantageous for paving autonomously in otherwise inaccessible locations, such as surfaces on the moon or other planets.Type: GrantFiled: January 4, 2022Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: Astroport Space Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Samuel Ximenes, Isaac Olson, Ronald Wells, John Michael Berringer
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Patent number: 11904137Abstract: A method of making a needle guard includes providing a mold having a portion defining a volume, the volume being a hollow cylinder with non-uniform walls with a pair of slots therein, the slots being open at one end and closed at the other end, the pair of slots having a major portion of constant width. The walls are thicker at the other end than at the one end. The method includes filling the volume with polymer and releasing a molded part from said mold and cooling a molded part resulting from the filling and releasing such that temperature that the widths of the pair of slots is non-uniform after cooling. The needle guard has upper and lower jaws defining a channel and coming together at a hinge. A winged needle can be inserted between the jaws, with the wings of the winged needle passing through slots between the jaws.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2022Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: NxStage Medical, Inc.Inventors: James M. Brugger, Christopher D. Pierson, Steven C. Alford
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Patent number: 11905413Abstract: The invention relates to a device assembly and methods useful for producing molded silicone rubber products from liquid silicone rubber compositions (“LSR”) via injection molding. The methods provide a flexible process to produce faster cured silicone rubber products from LSR and allow for use of low curing temperature in the molding cavities without drastically lowering cure speed of the LSR and the physical properties of the produced molded silicone rubber material, therefore allowing liquid silicone rubber overmolding on or over heat sensitive substrates. The device assembly of the invention allows a faster cycle and the use of precise dosing and mixing units thus creating a flexible process to produce cured silicone rubber products faster from liquid silicone rubber (LSR).Type: GrantFiled: July 28, 2020Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: ELKEM SILICONES USA CORP.Inventors: Ted Johnson, Nicole McMullen, Todd Lawrence, Leeanne Brown
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Patent number: 11904512Abstract: A method of making a vehicle headrest restraint and connecting first and second molds to form a mold cavity. A first material is injected with a first density into the mold cavity. A second material is injected with a second density into the mold cavity. The first and second materials are allowed to develop an integrally formed headrest.Type: GrantFiled: June 13, 2018Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLCInventor: Jeremy Sutton
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Patent number: 11897244Abstract: A nonwoven laminate having at least two nonwoven layers is made by first spinning, cooling, and stretching, first crimped multicomponent filaments to form a first nonwoven web that is deposited on a deposition device. Then second continuous continuous filaments including an elastomer based on polypropylene are spun, cooled, and stretched to form a second nonwoven web that is deposited on the first nonwoven web and thereby forming the nonwoven laminate that it then consolidated.Type: GrantFiled: March 24, 2020Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: REIFENHAEUSER GMBH & CO. KG MASCHINENFABRIKInventors: Tobias Wagner, Patrick Bohl, Detlef Frey
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Patent number: 11897184Abstract: The present invention relates to a photo-responsive shape-changing structure and a driving method thereof. The photo-responsive shape-changing structure (100) is characterized in that it includes a first body portion (200) including at least one polymer film that undergoes a bending deformation in response to light irradiation, a second body portion (300) including at least one polymer film that undergoes a bending deformation in response to light irradiation, and a connection portion (400) configured to allow the first body portion (200) and the second body portion (300) to be connected to each other, wherein adhesive support portions (500, 600) are formed at one ends of the first body portion (200) and the second body portion (300), which are in contact with the ground (20).Type: GrantFiled: June 4, 2019Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: SEOUL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY R&DB FOUNDATIONInventors: Maeng Hyo Cho, Hee Jun Sung, Hong Seok Kim, Hyun Su Kim
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Patent number: 11897644Abstract: The invention relates to a dosing apparatus for dosing bulk material into block forming elements, and for arrangement on a filling car of a filling apparatus of a block-making machine for manufacturing patterned blocks, in particular paving blocks. The filling car may be pushed forward and backward over block forming elements in a displacement direction, and a first bulk material component may be filled into the block forming elements with this car. The dosing apparatus comprises at least one filling box that has a lower outlet that may be opened and closed by means of a closure. A second bulk material component may be filled from the filling box into the block forming elements via the lower outlet.Type: GrantFiled: July 5, 2019Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: MASA GmbHInventor: Frank Reschke
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Patent number: 11897211Abstract: Disclosed herein is a method and apparatus for automatic extrudate loading and alignment. An extrudate handling system includes a head end assembly and an imaging device (which may be part of the head end assembly). The imaging device is configured to image an end face of an extrudate, and generate, during translation of the extrudate, an imaging output signal indicative of a rotational position of the end face of the extrudate. The head end assembly includes a rotational effector to rotate the extrudate during translation thereof and a fixed effector rotationally fixed relative to a track. The extrudate handling system is able to determine the rotational position of the web angle of the extrudate and precisely adjust the rotational position while linearly translating the extrudate along the track. The extrudate handling system provides greater accuracy, reduced costs, and improved results.Type: GrantFiled: February 12, 2020Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: Corning IncorporatedInventors: Colby William Audinwood, Brian Stephen Banks, Stephen Andrew Campbell, John Christian Duroe, Dustin Andrew Jochum, Anthony Nicholas Rodbourn, Gary Yaw
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Patent number: 11897156Abstract: Method of manufacturing a substrate with a cut thermal film comprises obtaining an input digital image of a design to be transferred to the substrate; storing the input image in memory; rendering design elements of the design as a single output image; based upon a bleed size value, a maximum number of negative areas, a maximum number of positive areas, and attribute values: resizing the image to include a border for bleed; filling transparent areas of the image with the substrate attribute values; creating a cutting path; creating a mask image; inverting the mask image; modifying the mask image to adjust fill areas around details, to limit negative areas to be less than the maximum number of negative areas, and to limit positive areas to be less than the maximum number of positive areas; creating cutting path data in memory as a vector path outlining the mask image.Type: GrantFiled: October 18, 2022Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: ZAZZLE INC.Inventor: Young Harvill
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Patent number: 11897176Abstract: An injection molding machine having vent mechanism includes a plastication device, an injection device, a junction, a vent-up sensor, and a controller. The vent-up sensor detects vent-up. When the vent-up is detected, the controller switches from normal conditions to vent-up suppression conditions. The vent-up suppression conditions have at least one of the followings: increasing a rotational speed of the plastication screw to be higher than that in the normal conditions; using retreat-metering when the retreat-metering is not performed in the normal conditions, wherein in the retreat-metering, in addition to a pressure of the resin material, a force in a retreat direction is applied to the injection plunger to move the injection plunger at a predetermined retreat speed in the metering; and increasing the retreat speed of the injection plunger to be higher than that in the normal conditions when the retreat-metering is performed in the normal conditions.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2021Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: Sodick Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shuji Aiba, Hiroya Mukaide, Kenzo Akiyama
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Patent number: 11897209Abstract: A composite forming apparatus includes an end effector, a forming feature that is coupled to the end effector, and a heating element that is coupled to the forming feature to heat the forming feature. The end effector moves the forming feature relative to a composite ply to form the composite ply over a forming tool or over a prior formed composite ply. The forming feature heats the composite ply via conduction.Type: GrantFiled: August 30, 2021Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: The Boeing CompanyInventors: Kurtis S. Willden, Marc R. Matsen
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Patent number: 11891758Abstract: A blade element pair (20) for a refiner (1, 2, 3) is intended for refining fibrous material. Each blade element (5, 5?, 8, 8?) of the blade element pair (20) has a refining surface (6, 9) with blade bars (16, 18) and blade grooves (17, 19) extending along the blade element (5, 5?, 8, 8?), and openings (14,15) extending through the blade element (5, 5?, 8, 8?). The openings (14, 15) in one of the blade elements (5, 5?, 8, 8?) is at different axial (A) or radial (R) positions from the openings (14,15) in the other blade element (5, 5?, 8, 8?) when the blade elements (5, 5?, 8, 8?) of the blade element pair (20) are set substantially opposite to each other.Type: GrantFiled: August 27, 2020Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: Valmet Technologies OyInventors: Juha-Pekka Huhtanen, Marko Loijas
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Patent number: 11890796Abstract: In a mold clamping apparatus, a mold clamping mechanism is provided with a half nut, and a tie bar is provided with circumferential groove configured to meshed with the teeth of the half nut. A strong-force mold opening mechanism that opens molds at an initial stage of mold opening extends across a space separating a movable platen and the mold clamping mechanism and is connected to the movable platen and the mold clamping mechanism. The strong-force mold opening mechanism is set so as to have greater axial force and shorter stroke than those of a mold opening and closing mechanism. A control unit controls opening and closing of the half nut, controls the strong-force mold opening mechanism and controls the position of the half nut in such a way that the half nut is synchronized with the circumferential groove by the strong-force mold opening mechanism.Type: GrantFiled: July 8, 2020Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Inventors: Hozumi Yoda, Atsushi Murata, Satoshi Hoshino
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Patent number: 11890788Abstract: Methods of producing polymer-metal hybrid components that are bonded by C—O-M bonds at the interface using at least one of the hot pressing, rolling, and injection molding methods to create chemical bond formation conditions at the polymer and metal interface. When the thermal cycle and compressive pressure specified herein is combinationally created at the polymer and metal interfaced, strong C—O-M bonds forms at the interface and strongly bonds the metal and polymer together through the reaction carbonyl groups (C?O) in polymer and the metal surface. For polymers lacking enough carbonyl groups, new functional groups can be in-situ generation through introducing distributed air pockets at the polymer-metal interface for forming 3-dimensional distributed C—O-M bonds at the interface.Type: GrantFiled: May 18, 2021Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGANInventors: Fengchao Liu, Pingsha Dong
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Patent number: 11894649Abstract: Electrical connectors and methods of making the connectors. The method steps include inserting one or more contacts into a temporary contact holder; removably coupling the contact holder with a connector housing, thereby creating a pour receiving cavity inside of the housing; adding a flowable curable material into the cavity to at least partially fill the cavity and surround at least part of the contacts residing in the connector housing; and removing the contact holder from the connector housing, thereby leaving mating contact ends of the one or more contacts exposed and leaving the mating contact ends set in the ready position for mating with a complementary connector.Type: GrantFiled: October 30, 2020Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: Amphenol CorporationInventor: Matthew Robert Simonds
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Patent number: 11890779Abstract: The present invention relates to a manufacturing process for a watch component (50) in composite material with a ceramic matrix comprising the following steps: depositing in a mould a succession of layers (10, 20, 30, 40) each comprising a ceramic powder (12), at least one layer (10; 10, 30; 10, 20, 30, 40) further including fibres (14) mixed with the ceramic powder (12), the fibres (14) being arranged randomly; performing a FAST/SPS sintering operation; demoulding the sintered watch component comprising the succession of layers (10, 20, 30, 40), and optionally machining the sintered component to the final dimensions of the watch component (50). The fibres (14) are visible on the surface of the watch component (50).Type: GrantFiled: April 1, 2022Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: Manufacture D'Horlogerie Audemars Piguet SAInventor: Thibaut Le Loarer
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Patent number: 11891465Abstract: A photopolymerized prepolymer manufacturing system can create material suitable for 3D printing buildings or building components. The system can include a conveyor, a prepolymerization chamber, and one or more processors. The prepolymerization chamber can have multiple prepolymerization stations arranged in sequence and can convert untreated material into photopolymerized prepolymer material as the conveyor moves the prepolymer past the prepolymerization chamber. The processor(s) can control operations of the conveyor, the prepolymerization chamber, or both, to alter operations in response to a detected system event. Each polymerization station can include a light source, such as an LED array, that irradiates material. Each light source can be in a lid of the prepolymerization station. When operation of one polymerization station is halted, such as for maintenance, then the system can increase the light source intensity of the remaining polymerization stations, slow the conveyor speed, or both.Type: GrantFiled: September 10, 2020Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: Mighty Buildings, Inc.Inventors: Denis Indyk, Aleksandr Trushin, Anna Trushina, Aleksei Dubov, Dmitry Starodubtsev, Slava Solonitsyn
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Patent number: 11885042Abstract: A spinneret assembly for spinning polymeric fibers, including: (a) a cap provided with an inlet port and a flared lower surface that flares outwardly from the inlet port in the direction of flow; (b) a spinneret having numerous spinning flow channels through its thickness; (c) a filter freely resting on the spinneret; and (d) a flow guide with a tapered geometry mounted in a cavity defined by the cap and the spinneret. The flow guide has an apex facing the inlet port, a base facing the filter, and one or more side surfaces tapering up to the apex. A diverging flow passage is defined by the tapering side surface(s) of the flow guide and the cap's flared lower surface. The base of the flow guide is spaced apart from an upper surface of the spinneret, creating a space that is in fluid communication with the divergent flow passage.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2022Date of Patent: January 30, 2024Assignee: CYTEC INDUSTRIES INC.Inventor: Thomas Baker Taylor
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Patent number: 11883981Abstract: A slip casting mold is useful for producing a ceramic die cast part. The slip casting mold includes a first mold part with a first main part and a first filtration layer and comprising at least one second mold part with a second main part and a second filtration layer. The first main part is equipped with at least one first dewatering channel with at least one dewatering channel end that opens into a second dewatering channel within the second mold part or into a dewatering channel within an additional dewatering body in a casting position.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 2017Date of Patent: January 30, 2024Assignee: DORST Technologies GmbH & Co. KGInventors: Roland Menzel, Sebastian Bauer, Max Hälterlein
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Patent number: 11884011Abstract: A method of operating a multi-nozzle extruder in an additive manufacturing system enables support structure to be formed while an object is also being formed. The method includes opening more than one nozzle in the multi-nozzle extruder, and operating an actuator with a controller to move the multi-nozzle extruder along a path to form a first group of multiple parallel ribbons of support structure simultaneously with material extruded from the more than one open nozzle.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 2018Date of Patent: January 30, 2024Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: David A Mantell, Jason O'Neil, Christopher G. Lynn, Peter J. Nystrom