Patents Examined by Mahmoud Gimie
  • Patent number: 12128758
    Abstract: A tank assembly for a motor vehicle includes an axially extending compressed gas tank having a middle portion and axially terminal end portions, and a tank support configured to fasten the compressed gas tank to a vehicle body. The tank assembly has a guard device that catches the compressed gas tank in the event the tank and/or support become partially or fully detached from the vehicle. A guard support is configured to secure the guard device to the vehicle body. A retaining element forms an axial stop for a first end portion, and at least one pliable tension element, which extends axially and connects the retaining element to the guard support in a tension-transmitting manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2024
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Rainer Kiehn, Hans Guenter Grosch, Krystian Dylong
  • Patent number: 12128757
    Abstract: In a lid assembly structure 1 which includes a base member 2, a lid 3, and an opening/closing mechanism 5 and in which the opening/closing mechanism 5 includes a biasing member 8, during assembling of the base member 2 and the opening/closing mechanism 5, the biasing member 8 is guided by a guide portion 90 which is a part of the opening/closing mechanism 5, and a state of the biasing member 8 is changed from a temporary assembled state where a second engagement end 82 of the biasing member 8 and a temporary engagement portion 93 engage with each other to a main assembled state where the second engagement end 82 and a main engagement portion 91 of a mating member engage with each other, thereby accumulating at least a part of a biasing force in the biasing member 8.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2024
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kenichiro Kaneko, Kohei Shirota, Kazuki Fujisawa, Yuki Terazawa
  • Patent number: 12128756
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a fuel filler apparatus/charging port apparatus/hidden handle apparatus for a vehicle. The fuel filler apparatus/charging port apparatus has a fuel filler lid/charging port lid, and the hidden handle apparatus has a hidden door handle. The fuel filler apparatus/charging port apparatus/hidden handle apparatus includes actuation apparatus and actuation apparatus control unit. The actuation apparatus includes motor, where the motor has an open position, a closed position, and an intermediate position between the open position and the closed position, and the motor is configured to drive an actuation component to move between the open position and the closed position. The actuation apparatus control unit receives an opening signal and a closing signal from a body control module, the opening signal causes the actuation component to move to the open position, and the closing signal causes the actuation component to move to the closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2024
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventor: Minhu Yao
  • Patent number: 12109877
    Abstract: A vehicle lid opening/closing device includes: a base portion mounted on a vehicle body; an opening exposing a supply port for supplying energy to a vehicle; a lid closing the opening; and a link mechanism opening/closing the lid between predetermined closed and opened positions. The link mechanism includes first and second arms each rotatably supported at one end portion thereof by the base portion and at another end portion thereof by the lid. The second arm rotates in synchronization with rotation of the first arm and is positionable in a rotation trajectory of the first arm when seen in a thrust direction. The first and second arms respectively have overlap portions overlapping each other in the thrust direction at the lid opened position, and stopper portions coming into contact with each other in a rotation direction at the lid opened position to restrict further opening of the lid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2024
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Kenichiro Kaneko
  • Patent number: 12110729
    Abstract: A mechanical adaptation to a vehicle power window controls is provided that require less hand/finger coordination and less force to actuate, therefore becoming useful for persons with limited control of their hands (e.g., arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and spinal cord injury, among others). A power window control includes four levers, one on each control switch. Two of the levers are long and the other two are shorter. The long levers are provided on the two switches further away from the user (which control the front and rear left side windows). The short levers are attached to the two switches closer to the user (which control the front and rear right side windows).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2024
    Assignee: University of Puerto Rico
    Inventors: Mauricio A. Lizama, David Serrano, Santiago Duque
  • Patent number: 12110853
    Abstract: An engine is an engine provided with a first cylinder row and a second cylinder row. The engine includes: a controller that is placed in an intra-bank area positioned between the first cylinder row and the second cylinder row; and a fuel pipe that is placed below the controller in the intra-bank area and included in a passage of a fuel. Ina plan view from an up and down direction, a joint portion possessed by the fuel pipe is displaced from the controller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2024
    Assignee: YANMAR HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yu Hirao, Yuki Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 12103532
    Abstract: A method for controlling a powertrain of a vehicle, the powertrain comprising: an engine comprising mutually independently operable valves, the engine being configured to be operated in a four-stroke operation mode, and a drivetrain comprising a transmission, the method comprising: while operating the engine in the four-stroke operation mode, identifying that a critical situation applies or is expected to apply, in which a fast downshift of the transmission is required, initiating a downshift process in response to the identification of the critical situation, during at least a part of the downshift process, increasing an engine speed by controlling at least the mutually independently operable valves of the engine such that the engine is temporarily operated in a two-stroke operation mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2024
    Assignee: VOLVO TRUCK CORPORATION
    Inventors: Anders Eriksson, Claes Kuylenstierna
  • Patent number: 12104564
    Abstract: A lubricated high pressure fuel pump assembly is provided, comprising a fuel pump, a sealed enclosure and a pump lubrication circuit. The fuel pump includes a pump drive shaft via which the fuel pump is configured to be mechanically driven. The sealed enclosure is configured to surround a first portion of the pump drive shaft, wherein the first portion is exterior to the fuel pump. The pump lubrication circuit comprises a lubricant reservoir and a lubricant pump configured to pump lubricant from the lubricant reservoir to the pump drive shaft. The sealed enclosure is configured to prevent fluid leakage from the fuel pump via the first portion of the pump drive shaft and the lubricant reservoir is configured to collect the lubricant from the pump drive shaft, such that the lubricant is retained within the lubricated high pressure fuel pump assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2024
    Assignee: Caterpillar Motoren GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Robert Graumüller
  • Patent number: 12098695
    Abstract: An example system includes a common electric starter controller configured to control electric starters of a plurality of gas-turbine engines that are configured to propel an aircraft, wherein the common electric starter comprises: a driver configured to generate, using electrical energy sourced from a battery of the aircraft, power signals that control the electric starters; and a plurality of bus bars configured to directly connect the common electric starter controller to the battery and transport the electrical energy from the battery to the common electric starter controller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2023
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2024
    Assignee: Rolls-Royce Corporation
    Inventors: Peter Schenk, Erik A. Munevar
  • Patent number: 12092015
    Abstract: The invention relates to an engine having prechamber ignition, in particular a gas engine, that comprises a main combustion space in a cylinder of the engine for combusting an air-fuel mixture and a prechamber having an ignition device arranged therein and a fuel injector arranged therein, wherein the prechamber has at least one transfer port that fluidically connects the prechamber to the main combustion space. The engine is characterized in that the fuel injector arranged in the prechamber is the only fuel injector via which fuel can be introduced into the associated main combustion space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2023
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2024
    Assignee: Liebherr Machines Bulle SA
    Inventors: Bouzid Seba, Ulrich Weiss, Bakir Puran, Roberto Andreutti
  • Patent number: 12085009
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an internal combustion engine, comprising: at least one cylinder; two charge-exchange ports per cylinder, a first charge-exchange port being an inlet port, and a second charge-exchange port being an outlet port; and one spark plug and one prechamber spark plug per each cylinder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2024
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Alexander Eichhorn, Alexander Hettinger
  • Patent number: 12074503
    Abstract: A generator includes an internal combustion engine including an engine block including a cylinder including a piston, a crankshaft configured to rotate about a crankshaft axis in response to movement by the piston, and a spark plug configured to periodically generate a spark to ignite fuel in the cylinder to control the movement of the piston. The generator further includes an alternator including a rotor and a stator, the rotor configured to rotate with the rotation of the crankshaft to generate alternating current electrical power, a controller configured to control a rate of fuel supply to the internal combustion engine, and a switch configured to selectively enable the flow of a first type of fuel into the cylinder and disable the flow of a second type of fuel, wherein the controller is configured to receive an indication of a fuel type based on a position of the switch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2023
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2024
    Assignee: Briggs & Stratton, LLC
    Inventors: Joshua Thurnbauer Cirillo, Philip Helwig, Sie Teong Lim, Mark Thomas Molinski, Kenny Jalmas Stair, Robert Townsend, Jeffrey H. Whitmore, Svetlana Byaliy
  • Patent number: 12063883
    Abstract: A grounds maintenance vehicle having a vehicle frame is disclosed. An implement is coupled to the vehicle frame and has a first implement end and a second implement end. A height selection tool is configured to select one vertical position of a plurality of selectable vertical positions, where each vertical position limits a distance between the implement and the vehicle frame. An implement angle selection tool has a manually engageable mechanism configured to change the elevation of one of the first implement end or the second implement end relative to the other of the first implement end or the second implement end. The implement angle selection tool is configured to fix the elevation of the first implement end relative the second implement end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2024
    Assignee: EXMARK MANUFACTURING COMPANY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Michael Shane Fredenburg, Justin Leigh Pryor, Frederick Aubrey Fugett, Kenneth Lloyd McConnell
  • Patent number: 12065033
    Abstract: A device for fastening a tank to a vehicle is provided. The tank is substantially in the form of a cylinder with an axis arranged substantially horizontally. The device comprises at least two substantially identical, substantially flat frames, substantially perpendicular to the axis, comprising an opening presenting a shape substantially identical to a section perpendicular to the axis of the tank so as to be able to enclose, at least partially, the tank. The device further includes a fastening interface to the vehicle and an impact energy dissipation feature that dissipates impact energy transmitted to the tank according to a substantially horizontal direction substantially perpendicular to the axis. The impact energy dissipation features is arranged between the opening and the fastening interface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2024
    Assignee: FAURECIA SYSTEMES D'ECHAPPEMENT
    Inventors: Jean-Philippe Koehl, Damien Fleche
  • Patent number: 12054084
    Abstract: A vehicle includes a dashboard having an underside that extends over a foot well, a floor having a base portion and an inclined portion that at least partially defines the foot well and extends vehicle-upward and vehicle-forward from the base portion beneath the dashboard, a seating assembly that corresponds with the foot well and includes a seat base and a seatback, and a foot rest positioned vehicle-upward of the inclined portion of the floor and having an upper support surface configured to support the feet of an occupant of the seating assembly. The foot rest is at least one of positioned within the foot well and at least partially defining the foot well.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2024
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Michael John Harmon, Ryan Wayne Warner, Jesse Rene Diephuis, Andrew Brand, Andrew Smith
  • Patent number: 12055092
    Abstract: The hydrogen supply device includes a liquid hydrogen pump that boosts the pressure of liquid hydrogen stored in a liquid hydrogen tank, a vaporizer that converts the liquid hydrogen discharged from the liquid hydrogen pump into hydrogen gas, a pressure chamber that a hydrogen gas that flows out from the vaporizer is filled with and that supplies the filled hydrogen gas to a hydrogen engine, and a pump control unit. The pump control unit controls the discharge flow rate of the liquid hydrogen pump so that the actual pressure in the pressure chamber becomes a target pressure based on the hydrogen flow rate supplied to the hydrogen engine, the actual pressure in the pressure chamber, and the rotation speed of the hydrogen engine. At the same time, the target pressure of the pressure chamber is changed according to the rotation speed of the hydrogen engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2023
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryosuke Yamamoto, Tomohiro Nakano, Hiroya Nagata, Yoshifumi Kawakami
  • Patent number: 12048268
    Abstract: A method and system for fostering controlled growth of a turfgrass in a target area, includes: providing an autobot capable of automatically applying a UVC light treatment to the target grass area, wherein the target grass area comprises C4 turfgrass. The method and system includes coupling a UVC light subsystem to the autobot such that the UVC light subsystem is suspended above the C4 turfgrass within the target grass within a first predetermined range. Next, UVC light is generated by the UVC light subsystem with a wavelength within a second predetermined range. Subsequently, the UVC light is emitted from the UVC light subsystem to the C4 turfgrass at an intensity within a third predetermined range. And the UVC light is moved across the C4 turfgrass within the target grass area using the autobot at night at a speed within a fourth predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2024
    Assignee: SS Turf Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Benjamin Copeland, Jr., Nicholas Sagnella
  • Patent number: 12050596
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided to update a location stored at a server for an electric charger. A determination is made that an electric vehicle is being charged at an electric charger, and a location of the electric charger may be retrieved from a server storing a plurality of locations of electric chargers. A determination of a location of the electric charger may be made based on a positioning system of the electric vehicle. The location of the electric charger retrieved from the server may be compared to the location of the electric charger determined based on the positioning system of the electric vehicle. Based on the comparison, the location stored at the server for the electric charger, the location stored at a server for an electric charger may be updated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2024
    Assignee: Rivian IP Holdings, LLC
    Inventor: Kristoffer Gronowski
  • Patent number: 12044160
    Abstract: A pre-chamber component for an internal combustion engine includes a chamber for accommodating an air-fuel-mixture to be ignited, wherein the pre-chamber component includes a first opening into the chamber for arranging an ignition device, in particular a spark plug, and a second opening for introducing the air-fuel-mixture in the form of a mixture flow into the chamber. The pre-chamber component includes a mixture flow guiding device, which is shaped such that the mixture flow of the air-fuel-mixture in the chamber is oriented substantially transversely with respect to a longitudinal axis from the second opening of the chamber to at least a part of the chamber adjacent to the first opening and/or in the form of a turbulent flow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Innio Jenbacher GmbH & Co OG
    Inventors: Matthias Raibel, Jochen Fuchs, Robert Boewing, Andreas Birgel
  • Patent number: 12044195
    Abstract: A fuel heating apparatus including a heat exchanger body having a first removable end plate, a main body, and a second removable end plate opposite the first removable end plate. The first and second removable end plates are secured to opposing sides of the heat exchanger main body by a plurality of threaded fasteners. The first removable end plate includes a fuel inlet line and a thermal fluid inlet line, and the second removable end plate includes a fuel outlet line and a thermal fluid outlet line. The main body includes a plurality of interior first fluid pathways and a plurality of interior thermal fluid pathways defined therein, the interior first fluid pathways being responsible for connecting the fuel inlet line to the fuel outlet line and the interior thermal fluid pathways being responsible for connecting the thermal fluid inlet line to the thermal fluid outlet line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: CT Energy Holdings, LLC
    Inventors: Todd E. Smith, Calvin Whitaker