Patents Examined by Jason T Newton
  • Patent number: 9441485
    Abstract: A piston assembly is disclosed. In one aspect, the piston assembly includes a rotary piston, wherein the rotary piston comprises a first axis of rotation, a central bore having bore axis and at least two curved first constraint surfaces, and wherein the bore axis substantially corresponds to the first axis of rotation. The piston assembly also includes a substantially hollow-cylindrical bearing ring configured to be at least partially inserted in the central bore. The piston assembly further includes at least one fuse body configured to connect the rotary piston and the bearing ring, and to transmit, at least temporarily, a force in the two opposite axial directions relating to the first axis of rotation between the rotary piston and bearing ring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: AVL List GmbH
    Inventors: Andreas Krobath, Michael Steinbauer
  • Patent number: 9441535
    Abstract: This invention is to provide a rotary internal combustion engine, which comprises a stationary cylinder connected with a shell, a plurality of piston claw clamps being movably provided on said stationary cylinder, a rotatable power output shaft pivotally provided on said shell, and an are plate being fixed on said power output shaft within said shell, and a plurality of piston claw clamps being movably provided on a movable cylinder; wherein three pistons are rotating circumferentially in said movable cylinder and are clamped and released in turn cyclically by said piston claw clamps upon running, respectively, so as to switch working modes sequentially; and a plurality of spring cups are provided outside of said movable cylinder and each has a spring with a push rod provided therein such that said piston claw clamps can be controlled by said arc plate through said spring cups and said push rods.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Inventor: Qin Hao Zhu
  • Patent number: 9435227
    Abstract: Systems and methods for the design of a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) or similar system that is designed to extract heat from hot gases flowing through a duct which utilizes an external liquid-to-liquid heat exchanger for preheating feedwater. The systems and methods allow for multiple water flow patterns to adjust the temperature of the feedwater into the gas duct.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: Nooter/Eriksen, Inc.
    Inventor: Yuri Rechtman
  • Patent number: 9435253
    Abstract: An exhaust gas turbocharger module and internal combustion engine outfitted therewith are disclosed. The exhaust gas turbocharger modules have an individual turbocharging assembly with a low-pressure exhaust gas turbocharger with a low-pressure turbine and a low-pressure compressor which have a common first turbocharger axis. A high-pressure exhaust gas turbocharger is provided with a high-pressure turbine and a high-pressure compressor which have a common second turbocharger axis extending perpendicular to the first turbocharger axis. The low-pressure turbine is connected downstream of the high-pressure turbine via an exhaust gas connection line, and the high-pressure compressor is connected downstream of the low-pressure compressor via a charge air connection line. A housing receives the low-pressure turbine, the high-pressure turbine and the exhaust gas connection line. The low-pressure compressor, the high-pressure compressor, and the charge air connection line are arranged outside of the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: MAN Diesel & Turbo SE
    Inventors: Eva Lührmann, Max Eder, Ulrich Deisenhofer, Stefan Rehle, Florian Würr, Franz Koch, Marco Konle, Matthias Söngen
  • Patent number: 9416793
    Abstract: A centrifugal fan includes a housing and a fan body. The housing includes an upper cover and a lower cover. The fan body is disposed in the housing and includes a hub and at least a blade. The hub is pivotally connected to the lower cover. The blade includes an air intake portion and an air exhaust portion. The air intake portion is connected to the peripheral edge of the hub. The air exhaust portion is connected to the air intake portion and is disposed between the upper cover and the lower cover. The width of the air exhaust portion is gradually reduced along a direction away from the air intake portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2016
    Assignee: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
    Inventor: Ing-Jer Chiou
  • Patent number: 9404392
    Abstract: An improved heat engine is disclosed. The heat engine comprises at least one heat pipe containing a working fluid flowing in a thermal cycle between vapor phase at an evaporator end and liquid phase at a condenser end. Heat pipe configurations for high-efficiency/high-performance heat engines are disclosed. The heat pipe may have an improved capillary structure configuration with characteristic pore sizes between 1? and 1 nm (e.g. formed through nano- or micro-fabrication techniques) and a continuous or stepwise gradient in pore size along the capillary flow direction. The heat engine may have an improved generator assembly configuration that comprises an expander (e.g. rotary/turbine or reciprocating piston machine) and generator along with magnetic bearings, magnetic couplings and/or magnetic gearing. The expander-generator may be wholly or partially sealed within the heat pipe. A heat engine system (e.g.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2016
    Assignee: Elwha LLC
    Inventors: Jordin T. Kare, Nathan P. Myhrvold, Robert C. Petroski, Lowell L. Wood, Jr.
  • Patent number: 9404491
    Abstract: A scroll pump has a metallic bellows that angularly synchronizes the stationary and orbiting scroll blades of the pump, and a hack-up system for the bellows. The back-up system consists of pins integral with and fixed relative to one of the stationary and orbital parts of the scroll pump, and a guide part that is integral with and fixed relative to the other of the stationary and orbital parts. The back-up system may be a non-contacting hack-up system in which there is no contact between the pins and guide part during normal operation of the pump. Therefore, no particles are created by a wearing away of such parts which would otherwise have the potential to contaminate the fluid being worked by the pump and reduce the useful life of the pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2016
    Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Ronald J. Forni
  • Patent number: 9399947
    Abstract: An internal combustion engine with at least two rotatable bodies each defining at least one combustion chamber of variable volume and, for each rotatable body: a pilot subchamber, a pilot fuel injector having a tip in communication with the pilot subchamber, an ignition element positioned to ignite fuel within the pilot subchamber, and a main fuel injector spaced apart from the pilot fuel injector. The engine includes a common first fuel conduit in fluid communication with each main fuel injector, and a common second fuel conduit in fluid communication with each pilot fuel injector. First and second pressure regulating mechanisms which are settable at different pressure values from one another respectively regulate a fuel pressure in the first and second conduits. A method of combusting fuel in an internal combustion engine is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2016
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Edwin Schulz, Jean Thomassin
  • Patent number: 9388731
    Abstract: A noise suppression system for an air-cooled internal combustion engine is disclosed. The system may include an acoustically designed shroud forming a cavity and configured for attenuating noise produced by a cooling air fan associated with the engine. In one system, the shroud is mountable on a housing of the air fan. A pair of air inlet passages may be provided which are operable to draw ambient cooling air into the shroud to the fan. The air inlet passages are acoustically configured and tuned to attenuate noise generated by the fan. In one system, the air inlet passages may each be formed in a rear quadrant of the shroud. Various configurations of the shroud may include quarter wave resonators and/or micro-perforated panels to further attenuate fan noise.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2016
    Inventors: Tyler W. Le Roy, Jonathan T. Bykowski, Roger W. Albert
  • Patent number: 9388791
    Abstract: A mounting arrangement for a load compensating device is provided. The mounting arrangement includes a cover sheet connected to a housing via a plurality of protrusions. The cover sheet may form a portion of a surface of an airfoil rotor blade. The housing may include a plurality of clamps extending outward from the housing and configured to contact an inner surface of the airfoil rotor blade. By tightening the clamps onto the interior surface, the device is mounted to the blade and the cover sheet may deform to correspond to the airfoil geometry of the airfoil rotor blade. The mounting arrangement may further include a mounting plate configured to permit the housing to float within the aperture formed in the airfoil rotor blade, and a tab arranged on one end of the mounting plate to distribute centrifugal force to the surface of the airfoil rotor blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2016
    Assignee: Frontier Wind, LLC
    Inventors: Peter Everett Brooks, Nathan John Burgess, Myron Floyd Miller
  • Patent number: 9382800
    Abstract: A pump assembly comprising a stator and a rotor having vanes of opposite handed thread arrangements is described. A radial gap is located between the stator vanes and the rotor vanes such that rotation of the rotor causes the stator and rotor to co-operate to provide a system for moving fluid longitudinally between them. The operation of the pump results in a fluid seal being is formed across the radial gap. The described apparatus can also be operated as a motor assembly when a fluid is directed to move longitudinally between the stator and rotor. The presence of the fluid seal results in no deterioration of the pump or motor efficiency, even when the radial gap is significantly greater than normal working clearance values. Furthermore, the presence of the radial gap makes the pump/motor assembly ideal for deployment with high viscosity and/or multiphase fluids.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2016
    Assignee: HIVIS PUMPS AS
    Inventor: Alastair Simpson
  • Patent number: 9377005
    Abstract: In one aspect, a rotor blade for a wind turbine is disclosed. The rotor blade may include a body extending between a blade root and a blade tip. The body may define a pressure side and a suction side extending between a leading edge and a trailing edge. In addition, the body may define a chord line extending between the leading and trailing edges. The rotor blade may also include an airfoil modifier coupled to at least one of the pressure side or the suction side of the body. The airfoil modifier may define an end surface disposed adjacent to the trailing edge. At least a portion of the end surface may extend at a non-perpendicular angle relative to the chord.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2016
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Aaron A. Yarbrough, Stefan Herr, Christian A. Carroll
  • Patent number: 9371775
    Abstract: One-stroke internal combustion engines may comprise reciprocating pistons which are either straight or rotary. Three principles are required to make one-stroke engines work: create four dedicated chambers, assign the chambers with coordinated functions, and make pistons move in unison. The functions will be assigned only to a single stroke but an Otto cycle produces a repeating four stroke cycle. Since four functions are performed simultaneously during one stroke, every stroke becomes a power stroke. In reality, 1-stroke engines are physically rearranged 4-stroke engines. Both straight and rotary 1-stroke engines can be modified to comprise opposed piston opposed cylinder (OPOC) engines. The reciprocating piston output of 1-stroke pistons may be converted to continuously rotating output by using crankshafts with split bushings or newly developed Crankgears with conventional bearings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2016
    Assignee: Differential Dynamics Corporation
    Inventor: Kyung Soo Han
  • Patent number: 9366200
    Abstract: The invention relates to seal assembly for a rotary piston internal combustion engine comprising a rotating block (11) of a rotational shape with radially situated cylinders (12) with pistons (13) and an outer stationary case (10) with at least one intake port (14) and/or exhaust port (15). The outer surface (16) of the rotating block (11) is a rotational surface with a straight line or curved profile curve, on which transverse and/or side sealing parts, which are placed in the stationary case (10), sit. In circular side grooves (2) there is a side seal consisting of circular side sealing segments (1) that are always placed between neighboring transverse sealing strips (3), which are placed in transverse grooves (4). Those sealing strips (3) go through the side grooves (2) across. In the place, where the side sealing segments (1) and transverse sealing strips (3) meet, there are joints (5) with notches (7) for inserting the side sealing segments (1) and transverse sealing strips (3).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2016
    Assignee: KNOB ENGINES S.R.O.
    Inventor: Václav Knob
  • Patent number: 9360012
    Abstract: A differential pressure regulating valve is disposed in a fluid passage. The differential pressure regulating valve includes a valve chamber, a valve hole, a valve body, a support member and an urging member. The valve chamber is formed in the fluid passage and having a cylindrical shape. The valve hole is formed in the fluid passage as an opening which communicates with the valve chamber. The valve body is disposed in the valve chamber and adapted to open and close the valve hole. The support member is fixedly mounted to the valve chamber and extending across flowing direction of the fluid in the valve chamber. The support member has a communication passage for fluid communication between a first valve chamber and a second valve chamber. The urging member is disposed between the support member and the valve body for urging the valve body toward the valve hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 7, 2016
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOYOTA JIDOSHOKKI
    Inventors: Takuro Yamashita, Shinji Tsubai, Kazuhiro Kuroki, Hiroyuki Gennami, Kenji Yokoi, Tomoyoshi Inagaki
  • Patent number: 9359975
    Abstract: Internal combustion engine system includes an electric supercharger which supercharges sucked air; a throttle valve which adjusts the flow amount of intake air of supercharged air into a cylinder; an EGR path in which a part of exhaust gas exhausted from the exhaust manifold side is recirculated to the intake manifold side; an EGR valve which adjusts the amount of exhaust gas passing through the EGR path; and an internal combustion engine control unit which controls the throttle valve, the EGR valve, and the electric supercharger. This enables to satisfy both performance of the supercharger and fuel consumption of the internal combustion engine without complicating the structure of EGR.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 7, 2016
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Hideyuki Tanaka, Yohei Akashi
  • Patent number: 9353677
    Abstract: A control apparatus calculates an upstream side pressure and temperature on an upstream side of a turbine impeller and a turbine flow rate, and calculates an upper limit threshold value of an opening degree level of a variable nozzle of a turbo supercharger such that a turbine pressure ratio is equal to or less than a predetermined ratio on a basis of the turbine flow rate and a pressure ratio•turbine flow rate characteristic. The pressure ratio•turbine flow rate characteristic is pre-stored information indicating a relationship between the turbine pressure ratio, the turbine flow rate, and the opening degree level of the variable nozzle. The control apparatus controls an opening degree of the variable nozzle so as to be an opening degree equal to or less than the upper limit threshold value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2016
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOYOTA JIDOSHOKKI
    Inventors: Hideki Aoki, Haruki Masuyama
  • Patent number: 9353680
    Abstract: A rotary engine with an outer body having an insert located in the peripheral offset from the rotor cavity such that a portion of the peripheral wall extends between the insert and the cavity. The insert has a pilot subchamber defined therein and the portion of the peripheral wall has at least one opening defined therethrough in communication with the at least one outlet opening of the insert and with the cavity. A method of combusting fuel into a rotary engine is also discussed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2016
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Bruno Villeneuve, Jean-Gabriel Gauvreau, David Gagnon-Martin, André Julien, Jean Thomassin
  • Patent number: 9347370
    Abstract: A rotatory internal combustion engine is provided. The engine includes a power module, wherein all moving parts of the engine are positioned within the power module, a housing including an intake and an exhaust, wherein the housing is configured to retain the power module, and a sleeve configured to couple in the housing, the sleeve including a sleeve intake and a sleeve exhaust.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2016
    Assignee: GoTek Energy, Inc.
    Inventors: Steven Lee Herbruck, Bradley Scott Farrenkopf
  • Patent number: 9341067
    Abstract: A blade arrangement with a rotor and a plurality of blades which are distributed in a ring along the circumference of the rotor is provided. Two immediately adjacent blades of the ring form a blade pair, between the blades of which a damping element is arranged, and wherein the respective damping element comes into contact with the two blades of the blade pair assigned to them during a rotation of the rotor about a rotor axis as a result of a centrifugal force which acts in the radial direction. In order to bring about frequency detuning of the oscillation properties of blades, as a result of which machining of the turbine blade becomes unnecessary, it is proposed that the blade ring has at least two blade pairs with different damping elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
    Inventor: Andreas Kayser