Patents Examined by Jermaine L Jenkins
  • Patent number: 11731466
    Abstract: A tire wear detection apparatus for a vehicle includes a tire side apparatus and a vehicle body side system. In response to a wet road surface being detected, from a vibration waveform of a tire indicated by a detection signal according to a magnitude of a vibration of the tire, the tire side apparatus is configured to (i) acquire a peak level value of a vibration level at a stepping time at which an apparatus corresponding position in the tire corresponding to an arranged position of the tire side apparatus starts to contact the road surface, and/or (ii) calculate a level value of the vibration level in a post-kicking range after the apparatus corresponding position kicks to separate from the road surface, so as to generate a wear data indicating a wear state of the tire.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoichiro Suzuki, Takatoshi Sekizawa
  • Patent number: 11733122
    Abstract: A system that monitors toilets for leaks using in-toilet monitors with pressure sensors that are placed underwater in toilet tanks. Monitors can be dropped into tanks without additional wiring or installation; they may be battery powered and may transmit data wirelessly. Data may be analyzed by a server that detects leaks or other malfunctions. Pressure data may be filtered to remove the effect of barometric pressure, to measure the height of water in the tank. The system may learn the flush pressure change pattern for each toilet; pressure changes that do not match this pattern may indicate problems such as leaks. Data may indicate the type of leak, such as an open flapper or a leaking valve. Toilet monitors may measure temperature, and the system may generate alerts when freezing appears imminent. The system may keep flush counts for each toilet to support maintenance and water consumption measurement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2023
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: ANACOVE, LLC
    Inventors: Ian Amihay Lerner, Alistair Ian Chatwin, Roswell Reid Roberts, III, Carlos Shteremberg
  • Patent number: 11725995
    Abstract: Various embodiments of a pressure sensor assembly and an implantable medical device that includes such assembly are disclosed. The assembly includes a substrate having a via that extends through the substrate along a via axis between a first major surface and a second major surface of the substrate, a membrane disposed on the first major surface of the substrate and over the via, and a patterned metal layer disposed on a first major surface of the membrane, a portion of such layer including a first capacitor plate. The assembly further includes an integrated circuit disposed adjacent to the first major surface of the membrane and electrically connected to the metal layer. The integrated circuit includes a second capacitor plate disposed on or within a substrate of the integrated circuit. The first capacitor plate and the second capacitor plate form a variable capacitor disposed along the via axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Medtronic, Inc.
    Inventors: Andreas Fenner, David A. Ruben, Andrew J. Ries, Chetan Patel
  • Patent number: 11709109
    Abstract: The PCB wind tunnel test device includes: a flow-stabilizing structure, which includes: a box used to provide flow channels for air entering the flow-stabilizing structure; flow-stabilizing plates, which are inserted into the cavities of the box in a layered manner; a wind source, arranged at an air inlet of the flow-stabilizing structure; a test device, arranged at the outlet of the flow-stabilizing structure. When the flow-stabilizing structure receives the wind energy provided by the wind source, the state of the air flow is adjusted by flow stabilization, so that the test device tests the air passing through the flow-stabilizing structure. The present invention solves the problem that conventional wind tunnels cannot test at low air volumes and enables PCB testing at different ambient temperatures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2023
    Assignees: Inventec (Pudong) Technology Corporation, INVENTEC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hangyu Duan, Lianfei Zhang
  • Patent number: 11703408
    Abstract: Pressure sensors are configured for accurate, non-position sensitive pressure measurement. They can offer microprocessor-based features for optimized measurement, control, and signaling using precision-calibrated silicon piezoresistive microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensors provisioned within a durable, versatilely mountable housing. Such sensors can be mounted readily in alternate locations, configurations, and/or positions. They can also offer real-time temperature compensation, enable selectable analog outputs (such as 2-wire mA, 3-wire mA, or 3-wire V signals), enable adjustable range or subrange selection, support uni- or bi-directional settings, and allow local (pushbutton) or remote (via dry contacts) zeroing for accuracy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2023
    Assignee: Senva, Inc.
    Inventors: Scott E. Leonard, Kent Jeffrey Holce
  • Patent number: 11698319
    Abstract: A pressure transmitter is mounted to the sampling output of a sampling meter resetter. The pressure transmitter and the sampling meter resetter are mounted in a subterranean meter box. In embodiments, the pressure transmitter is removably mounted to a spring-loaded sampling valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2023
    Assignee: Kupferle, LLC
    Inventors: Kyle J. Wilde, Daniel C. Lorentz
  • Patent number: 11691465
    Abstract: Embodiments included herein are directed towards a method for estimating tire load. Embodiments may include determining a tire pressure associated with a tire and determining a tire angular velocity associated with the tire. Embodiments may further include obtaining one or more tire stiffness coefficients and determining a tire radial deformation based upon, at least in part, a length of a tire ground contact patch or a contact patch angle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: SENSATA TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    Inventors: Ian S. Elliott, William D. Stewart
  • Patent number: 11686637
    Abstract: A silicon carbide-based micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) combined temperature-pressure sensor chip and a preparation thereof. The chip includes a peripheric pressure-measuring unit and a center temperature-measuring unit. The pressure-measuring unit includes a silicon carbide substrate with a raised island and a pressure sensitive diaphragm formed by etching the back of the substrate. The raised island and the pressure-sensitive diaphragm constitute a membrane-island structure. Four piezoresistive strips are arranged symmetrically along a circumferential direction of a root of the pressure-sensitive diaphragm and between the raised island and the pressure-sensitive diaphragm. The temperature-measuring unit includes the raised island and a thin-film thermocouple arranged thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: XI'AN JIAOTONG UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Xudong Fang, Ziyan Fang, Chen Wu, Hao Sun, Libo Zhao, Bian Tian, Zhuangde Jiang, Wubin Deng, Bonan Gao, Junxia Wu, Songli Wang, Nan Zhu
  • Patent number: 11686638
    Abstract: A piezoelectric sensor includes a substrate, a meta-membrane adhered to the substrate, and a piezoelectric element adhered to the meta-membrane. The substrate includes a support frame which laterally surrounds and partly defines a recess and a cover film which overlies and partly defines the recess. The support frame supports the cover film along an entire periphery of the cover film. The meta-membrane is adhered to the cover film of the substrate. In accordance with one embodiment, the meta-membrane has an auxetic bi-axial kirigami honeycomb structure. In accordance with another embodiment, the meta-membrane has an auxetic hexagonal honeycomb structure. The meta-membrane is adhered to the substrate and to the piezoelectric element using elastic glue. In one proposed implementation, the substrate and meta-membrane are made of polycarbonate and the piezoelectric element comprises a piezoelectric substrate made of polyvinylidene fluoride.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Saman Farhangdoust, Gary E. Georgeson
  • Patent number: 11680861
    Abstract: Provided is a tire information acquisition device. A sensor unit substrate on which a sensor for acquiring tire information and a power supply unit for supplying electric power to the sensor are disposed is provided, and a heat-insulating material is disposed at at least a periphery of the power supply unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2023
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Daisuke Kanenari
  • Patent number: 11679632
    Abstract: The present invention discloses a tire pressure sensor identification method, a related apparatus and system. A tire pressure sensor identification apparatus in the present invention includes a storage module configured to store identity information of a tire pressure sensor, a communications module configured to communicate with an electronic control unit (ECU) of a vehicle, a processing module and a radio frequency transmission module configured to output identity information. The tire pressure sensor identification apparatus may output the stored identity information to a corresponding vehicle, so that the vehicle can still identify the tire pressure sensor even if the tire pressure sensor is not in an activated state. It is convenient for a user to perform a uniform identification operation after uniformly collecting the identity information, thereby improving identification efficiency of the tire pressure sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2023
    Assignees: AUTEL HECHUANG SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT CO., LTD., AUTEL INTELLIGENT TECHNOLOGY CORP., LTD.
    Inventor: Yong Wu
  • Patent number: 11673797
    Abstract: A microstructure and a method for manufacturing the same includes: disposing a liquid film on a surface of a substrate, wherein a solid-liquid interface is formed where the liquid film is in contact with the substrate; and irradiating the substrate with a laser of a predetermined waveband to etch the substrate at the solid-liquid interface, wherein the position where the laser is irradiated on the solid-liquid interface moves at least along a direction parallel to the surface of the substrate, and the absorption rate of the liquid film for the laser is greater than the absorption rate of the substrate for the laser.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: SHANGHAI INDUSTRIAL UTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH INSTITUTE
    Inventor: Shinan Wang
  • Patent number: 11668617
    Abstract: A diaphragm seal for transmitting the pressure of a process medium includes a main body having a surface and a separating membrane secured to the surface, thereby forming between the separating membrane and the surface a pressure chamber which communicates, via an opening in the surface, with a hydraulic path. The separating membrane can be exposed to the process medium on a first side, and the separating membrane has a central middle region. The diaphragm seal further includes a temperature transducer for determining a temperature measurement variable of the process medium, which is secured in the middle region on a second side of the separating membrane, and the main body is joined to the separating membrane such that a transmitting fluid, which fills the pressure chamber and the hydraulic path, does not come into contact with the temperature transducer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: Endress+Hauser SE+Co. KG
    Inventor: Patrick Doria
  • Patent number: 11662438
    Abstract: An apparatus in the field of optics technology, can include a reflector, a reflector substrate, and an extinction component. The reflector can be mounted on the reflector substrate. The extinction component can be arranged on a front surface of the reflector substrate. The reflector can be configured to reflect incident light signals. The extinction component can be configured to reduce the scattered light produced by the incident light signal on the reflector substrate. An optical scanning device (for example, lidar) having such features may greatly reduce the scattered light inside the lidar, reduce the detection blind area caused by the stray light, and greatly improve the receiving and detecting capabilities of the lidar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Inventors: Ji Wang, Bin Tan, Wei Wei
  • Patent number: 11656144
    Abstract: This application relates to a tire monitoring system. In one aspect, the system includes a sensor module installed in a tire provided in a vehicle to obtain tire data and a communication module. The communication module may include a transceiver configured to transmit and receive the tire data, and an output unit configured to output one of a caution signal and a warning signal. The communication module may also include a controller configured to determine whether a state of the tire is abnormal based on the tire data and control the output unit to output one of the caution signal and the warning signal based on the determination result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: KUMHO TIRE CO., INC.
    Inventors: Hyoungseok Kim, Hyounjung Kim
  • Patent number: 11639077
    Abstract: A tire includes a pair of sidewalls extending from a respective bead area to a tread. The tread is formed with a plurality of tread elements and a radially outer surface. A sensor unit is mounted to the tire and includes a pair of electrical contacts. The tread wear sensor plug includes a cylindrical projection extending through an opening formed in one of the tread elements, a flange, and a wire including proximal ends disposed in the flange and a distal end near a radially outer surface of the projection. An electrical circuit is formed by each proximal end of the wire electrically contacting a respective one of the sensor unit electrical contacts. When the tread element and the cylindrical projection wear down to the distal end of the wire, the wire and the circuit break. A notice is transmitted by the sensor unit when the circuit breaks.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2023
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Jin-Shy Steve Gau, James Earl Koerner, Peter Jung-Min Suh, Junling Zhao, Jeffrey McKay West, Andrew Peter Killmeyer, Frank George Licari, Michael William Kestner, Arun Kumar Byatarayanapura Gopala
  • Patent number: 11635315
    Abstract: A passive microscopic flow sensor includes a three-dimensional microscopic optical structure formed on a cleaved tip of an optical fiber. The three-dimensional microscopic optical structure includes a post attached off-center to and extending longitudinally from the cleaved tip of the optical fiber. A rotor of the three-dimensional microscopic optical structure is received for rotation on the post. The rotor has more than one blade. Each blade has a reflective undersurface that reflects a light signal back through the optical fiber when center aligned with the optical fiber, the blades of the rotor shaped to rotate at a rate related to a flow rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force
    Inventors: Jeremiah C Williams, Hengky Chandrahalim
  • Patent number: 11630017
    Abstract: To provide a pressure sensor housing that is less likely to cause temperature distribution inside a pressure sensor when the pressure sensor is disposed inside a heater block, a pressure sensor housing includes a hollow cylindrical member extending along a predetermined axis core. A pressure sensor element that detects the pressure of a fluid is accommodated inside the cylindrical member. The entire circumference of a side surface thereof is surrounded by an air layer in the first posture in which an axis core of a space is aligned with the predetermined axis core with the hollow member disposed in the space. The side surface is in contact with a wall surface defining the space at a plurality of points at the same time in a second posture, which is at least one of postures in which the predetermined axis core is eccentric with the axis core of the space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2023
    Assignee: AZBIL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takayoshi Kawazu, Raita Mori
  • Patent number: 11629047
    Abstract: A method for detecting contamination of a microelectromechanical sensor element. The method includes the following steps: outputting heating control signals for controlling a heating device in order to heat the sensor element, receiving measuring signals that represent a physical variable that is measured with the aid of the heated sensor element, ascertaining, based on the measured physical variable, whether the sensor element has contamination or is free of contamination, outputting result signals that represent a result indicating whether the sensor element has contamination or is free of contamination. Moreover, a device is described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2023
    Assignee: ROBERT BOSCH GMBH
    Inventors: Robert Kuells, Felix Springer, Martin Kittel
  • Patent number: 11623401
    Abstract: An additive manufactured structure and methods for making and using same. The structure includes a plurality of layers stacked in a stacking direction. The structure further includes at least one reinforcement structure affixed to the layers and extending at least partially in the stacking direction. The reinforcement structure can hold the layers together to stiffen and strengthen the structure. Mechanical strength of the structure in the stacking direction can advantageously be improved. Shape and spatial distribution of the reinforcement structure can be customized and adapted to the geometry of the layers to enhance strengthening effect. The reinforcement structure can be tension free or have a compressive stress induced by a preload applied during manufacturing. The compressive stress can be adjusted dynamically via a sensor. The structure and methods provide, among other things, novelty for addressing the inherent weaknesses in parts created by large-scale extrusion deposition processes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignee: RapidFlight Holdings, LLC
    Inventors: Alexis Fiechter, Kyle Rowe, Charles C. Hill, Robert Bedsole, David Riha