Patents Examined by Larry Furdge
  • Patent number: 9995524
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure include methods, apparatuses, and systems for cooling. Embodiments include a cooling system comprising a mobile container, conveyor system, and sensor feedback system. Container includes at least a first, second, and third section. First section holds at least one pallet containing produce. Second section includes a cooling mechanism to cool the produce within the at least one pallet to an optimal temperature. Third section includes the cooling mechanism to maintain the cooled produce in the at least one pallet at the optimal temperature. Conveyor system may be used to convey the at least one pallet across the cooling system. Sensor feedback system is configured to continuously measure and track at least the weight of the at least one pallet and temperature of the produce within the at least one pallet as the at least one pallet is conveyed across the cooling system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2018
    Assignee: Fresh Chill Solutions, Inc.
    Inventors: Charles Birge Sigety, Katharine Colyer Sigety, William John Dewitt
  • Patent number: 9982928
    Abstract: A method for controlling a compressor of a refrigeration system wherein refrigerant flow through the compressor is controlled by at least one valve, whereby the valve is opened or closed in a cycle of consecutive time intervals of an identical length, so that the valve is either completely closed or completely open during a time interval, whereby a. determining a percentage capacity for the compressor-corresponding to the current refrigeration requirement of a refrigeration location, b. determining the open time percentage of the valves over a number of time intervals, c. opening the valve for the following time interval when the ratio of the percentage capacity is greater than that of the open time percentage previously determined, and d. closing the valve-for the following time interval when the ratio of the percentage capacity is smaller than that of the open time percentage of the valves previously determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2018
    Assignee: KRIWAN Industrie-Elektronik GmbH
    Inventor: Kurt Jansen
  • Patent number: 9982918
    Abstract: A heating medium supplied to an evaporator is used to heat lubricant oil in a screw compressor before the screw compressor starts up, and no additional heater for heating the lubricant oil in the screw compressor is required. When the screw compressor operates, the heating medium discharged from the evaporator after the evaporator is heated by the heating medium, is used to cool the lubricant oil. The lubricant oil heated by a lubricant oil heat exchanger is directly injected into a motor and a screw rotor so that introduction of a liquid refrigerant into a compressive chamber is reduced when the screw compressor starts up later. The lubricant oil introduced into the motor is discharged toward a lubricant oil storage portion before the screw compressor starts up so that the liquid refrigerant is prevented in advance from being introduced into the screw rotor when the screw compressor starts up.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2018
    Assignee: KOREA INSTITUTE OF ENERGY RESEARCH
    Inventors: Gil Bong Lee, Jun Hyun Cho, Young Soo Lee, Hyung Ki Shin, Young Jin Baik, Ho Sang Ra
  • Patent number: 9982904
    Abstract: An air conditioning system includes an electrically run air conditioner with a compressor, a storage battery that charges and supplies electric power, a demand receiver, an air-conditioning controller, and a charging controller controlling charging of the storage battery. The demand receiver receives a demand pertaining to a power consumption of the air conditioner during a predetermined period. The air-conditioning controller stores operation-associated information pertaining to operation of the air conditioner and controls the air conditioner. The air-conditioning controller causes the air conditioner to perform precooling and/or reduce the power consumption of the air conditioner in the predetermined period based on the demand and an amount of charge of the storage battery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2018
    Assignee: Daikin Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Ryohei Hinokuma, Hirotada Yamada, Yoshiyuki Uemura
  • Patent number: 9976764
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally provides controls, apparatus, systems and methods for controlling a ventilation mechanism to efficiently manage the relative humidity of an area. The controls, apparatus, systems and methods utilize sensed relative humidity information and one or more inputs to provide for efficient automatic and/or manual control a ventilation mechanism in response to high humidity events within the area. The controls, apparatus, systems and methods provided herein efficiently automatically activate a ventilation mechanism through the use of sensed relative humidity information and user input. The controls, apparatus, systems and methods provided herein efficiently automatically deactivate a ventilation mechanism through the use of sensed relative humidity information and user input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2018
    Assignee: Leviton Manufacturing Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Ostrovsky, Marc Gallo, Paul Soccoli, Alfred Lombardi
  • Patent number: 9964341
    Abstract: A heat pump hot-water supply device and a method for controlling a heat pump hot-water supply device are provided. The heat pump hot-water supply device may include a first refrigerant cycle, in which a first refrigerant may circulate, the first refrigerant cycle including a first compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and a first expansion device; a second refrigerant cycle, in which a second refrigerant may circulate, the second refrigerant cycle including a second compressor and a second expansion device; a water-refrigerant heat exchanger to which the first refrigerant compressed in the first compressor and the second refrigerant compressed in the second compressor may be introduced; a water introduction path coupled to a first side of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger and into which supplied water may be introduced; and a water discharge path coupled to a second side of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger and from which the water heat-exchanged in the refrigerant heat exchanger may be discharged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2018
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventor: Junhyeon Hwang
  • Patent number: 9958175
    Abstract: To provide an air-conditioning apparatus that is safer and has small conveying power for such as water at the indoor unit side can be made small. It is characterized in that a compressor 10 and a heat source side heat exchanger 12 are accommodated in a heat source apparatus 1, an intermediate heat exchanger 15 and a pump 21 in a relay unit 3, a use side heat exchanger 26 in an indoor unit 2, respectively, and when a controller 60 makes the compressor 10 stop based on the thermo-off due to decrease in the heat load in the use side heat exchanger 26 or an operation stop instruction, the controller 60 makes the pump 21 stop after the compressor 10 is stopped or almost at the same time as the stop.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2018
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koji Yamashita, Hiroyuki Morimoto, Yuji Motomura, Takeshi Hatomura
  • Patent number: 9957099
    Abstract: An insulated container system and a temperature control insert that is configured to maintain a payload chamber temperature over a minimum length of time to enable goods within the payload chamber to be shipped over distances while being maintained within a desired temperature range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2018
    Assignee: Nanopore, Inc.
    Inventors: Wendy White, Ronald Esparza, Douglas M. Smith
  • Patent number: 9951975
    Abstract: A carbon dioxide refrigerant vapor compression system and method of operating that system are provided. The refrigerant vapor compression system includes a compression device, a flash tank receiver disposed in the refrigerant circuit intermediate a refrigerant heat rejection heat exchanger and a refrigerant heat absorption heat exchanger, and a compressor unload circuit including a refrigerant line establishing refrigerant flow communication between an intermediate pressure stage of the compression device and the refrigerant circuit at a location downstream of the refrigerant heat absorption heat exchanger and upstream of a suction inlet to the compression device, and a unload circuit flow control device disposed in said unload circuit refrigerant line. In response to at least one system operating parameter sensed by at least one sensor, the controller selectively positions the unload flow control device to maintain the refrigerant vapor compression system operating below a preselected high pressure limit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2018
    Assignee: CARRIER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yu H. Chen, Suresh Duraisamy, Lucy Yi Liu, Jason Scarcella, Zvonko Asprovski, Kursten Lamendola, Biswajit Mitra
  • Patent number: 9945597
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a refrigeration system for cooling the interior of a mobile refrigerated space, for example a refrigerated container, comprising two speed-controlled compressors, which can be operated in parallel as a single stage or one after the other as two stages by one controllable bypass line per compressor and a controllable valve device between the pressure side and the suction side of each compressor. The valve devices receive signals from a controller having algorithms, into which the usage temperature and ambient temperature are fed as a target value or measured value. The most energy-efficient operating modes and the rotational speeds of the compressors result from the requirements profile of the container refrigeration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: GEA REFRIGERATION GERMANY GMBH
    Inventors: Wolfgang Sandkoetter, Dieter Mosemann
  • Patent number: 9945587
    Abstract: A system for conditioning air circulated from an interior of a building includes a refrigerant path, an air-cooled condenser in the refrigerant path, a water-cooled condenser in the refrigerant path that transfers heat from refrigerant in the refrigerant path to the building water, an evaporator in the refrigerant path, and a control system. The control system moves the system between operation of the air-cooled condenser and the water-cooled condenser based upon predetermined system conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: RHEEM MANUFACTURING COMPANY
    Inventors: Walter R. Lowrimore, Robert L. Long, Scott D. Winters, Randy W. Foster
  • Patent number: 9939165
    Abstract: A multi-mode thermostat includes a sensor of ambient temperature and control circuits coupled to the sensor, wherein the control circuits are responsive to signals from the sensor to maintain a predetermined regional temperature. First electrically actuated backup circuits are responsive to a firt sensed operational power level to alter a status signal transmission rate by the control circuits. Second electrically actuated backup circuits are responsive to a lower sensed operational power level to provide a backup, lower regional temperature electromechanically.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.
    Inventors: Eric Oh, Steven Amodeo
  • Patent number: 9925845
    Abstract: A heat exchange system for realizing an adequate heat exchange among a plural type of fluids uses a refrigerant radiator and a radiator which are combined to have one unit for enabling heat exchange between a refrigerant and a coolant, and decreases an inflow amount of the coolant flowing into the radiator when coolant temperature of the coolant flowing into the radiator is equal to or higher than a second standard temperature, which is set to be lower than a temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the refrigerant radiator, and is equal to or lower than a predetermined first standard temperature. In such manner, heat from the refrigerant is effectively transferred to an outside air by reducing an unwanted heat exchange between the refrigerant and the outside air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2018
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiki Katoh, Atsushi Inaba, Satoshi Itoh, Masahiro Shimoya
  • Patent number: 9919575
    Abstract: A device for reversing chiller airflow in an aircraft galley includes an air bypass port connected between a supply airflow duct and a return airflow duct, and an air recirculation bypass flap is movable between a closed position allowing normal airflow circulation through the supply airflow duct and an open position blocking the supply airflow duct and diverting chilled supply airflow to the return airflow duct for recirculation. The air recirculation bypass flap is electrically actuated by a solenoid responsive to a bay door position detector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2018
    Assignee: B/E Aerospace, Inc.
    Inventor: Peter John Leslie Burd
  • Patent number: 9915959
    Abstract: A thermostatic valve for a diesel fuel system includes a valve housing and a valve element movable within the housing between a position directing heated diesel fuel returning from an engine to the inlet of a fuel pump and a position dumping the fuel into a reservoir where the fuel mixes with lower temperature fuel. A temperature responsive thermostatic element moves the valve element in response to the temperature of the diesel fuel. A temperature relief valve is provided in the housing to dump the returning fuel into the reservoir if the temperature reaches a temperature indicating overheating of the fuel. The temperature relief valve is a bi-metal valve mounted in an end wall of the valve housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2018
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventors: William L Villaire, Jeffrey J Milton, Gordon G Rinke, Kristen M Demare
  • Patent number: 9914338
    Abstract: A thermal management system for a vehicle and a method for controlling the same are provided. The thermal management system comprises a first coolant circuit, a second coolant circuit, a refrigerant circuit, and a controller. The first coolant circuit includes at least a first coolant circuit heat exchanger, a Coolant Heater Control Module (CHCM), a CHCM mixing valve, and a bypass valve. The CHCM mixing valve is configured to modulate flow of a coolant between the first coolant circuit heat exchanger and the CHCM. The bypass valve is configured to link the first coolant circuit with the engine. The controller directs the thermal management system to operate in one of a high efficiency mode, a heat pump assist mode, a maximum performance mode, and a propulsion system energy improvement mode, effectuating the selected mode of operation via the actuation of the CHCM valve and the bypass valve to predetermined positions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2018
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventor: Mark D. Nemesh
  • Patent number: 9903633
    Abstract: A container for a refrigerating machine has: a storeroom storing a stored objective; a housing chamber housing an evaporator and an evaporator fan and guiding an inside air in the storeroom to flowing back to the storeroom after passing through the evaporator; a first ventilation duct connected to the housing chamber and having a first blower fan and a first heat storage body; a second ventilation duct connected to the housing chamber and having a second blower fan and a second heat storage body; and a controller controlling the first blower fan and the second blower fan. The controller controls the first blower fan and the second blower fan and switches between (i) a mode in which an outside air inflows through the first ventilation duct, and the inside air outflows through the second ventilation duct and (ii) a mode in which an outside air inflows through the second ventilation duct, and the inside air outflows through the first ventilation duct, at a specified time interval.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takehiro Kurata, Masami Taniguchi
  • Patent number: 9885485
    Abstract: A humidity control apparatus has a humidity control apparatus having a humidifying part for humidifying air and a dehumidifying part for dehumidifying to control humidity of a humidity control space. The dehumidifying part has: a main body part that is configured to encapsulate a working fluid therein and to cause a heat-pipe phenomenon. A heat-insulating part fits externally to the main body part and a heat absorption part absorbs heat from a base side part located on one side of the main body part in relation to the heat-insulating part and thereby condenses the working fluid that evaporated into gas in a front side part located on the other side of the main body part in relation to the heat-insulating part. The dehumidifying part dehumidifies the air by means of the front side part of the main body part where the working fluid in liquid form evaporates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: ESPEC CORP.
    Inventor: Shinichirou Sakami
  • Patent number: 9879796
    Abstract: An automated thermally actuated valve utilizing a thermally expansive substance to substantially close the valve at a first temperature and a spring to open the valve at a second, lower temperature. A method of utilizing an automated thermally actuated valve to balance and manage hot water supply in a piping system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: THERM-OMEGA-TECH, Inc.
    Inventors: Nicholas Tallos, Glenn Quinty
  • Patent number: 9880571
    Abstract: In a sanitary installation part (1) which, along with a functional unit (7), forms a flow volume regulator, it is proposed that a regulating element (13), which can be adjusted along an adjustment path, be coupled to a temperature-sensitive drive unit (15) such that different regulating positions of the regulating element (13) are set in dependence on the temperature of the medium flowing through the installation part (1), wherein the different regulating positions realize in each case different volume-flow dependencies (11, 12, 45, 48) and/or flow resistances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: Neoperl GmbH
    Inventors: Marc Tempel, Christoph Weis