Patents Examined by Matthew A. Johnson
  • Patent number: 8141452
    Abstract: A single rotational axis motion generation and positioning apparatus having a work load support connected to a housing by a pivot joint. Rotation of an axial cam supported by the housing, creates a displacement which is transmitted to the work load support by at least one axial cam follower. The axial cam follower displacement is transformed into a rotational torque on the work load support about the pivot joint, which results in rotation of the work load support about the rotational axis of the pivot joint.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2012
    Inventor: Barry Lynn Wood
  • Patent number: 8091447
    Abstract: A sequential control device having a rotatable drum and having a plurality of guide grooves and a corresponding plurality of engagement forks, each including a supporting portion on the outer surface of the drum, a drive portion to drive a corresponding synchronizing sleeve of the gearbox, and a pin engaging in a corresponding guide groove of the drum. The guide grooves are shaped to produce selective axial movement of the pins and engagement forks, upon rotation of the drum, to cause each time the engagement of a given gear. The pins are positioned on the same side of the drive portion of the engagement forks. A through groove is provided on the outer surface of the drum and extends from an end of the drum to at least the guide groove farthest from that end, to guide the pins of the engagement forks when mounted on the drum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: C.R.F. Societa' Consortile per Azioni
    Inventors: Marco Garabello, Andrea Piazza, Gianluigi Pregnolato
  • Patent number: 8001870
    Abstract: An accelerator capable of detecting a turning angle of an accelerator pedal with high accuracy includes a bearing part, an urging part, an accelerator pedal, a stopper, and a turning angle sensor. The accelerator pedal has a turning shaft supported by the bearing part and is turned forward when a depressing force is applied thereto and is turned reversely when the urging force of the urging part is applied thereto. The stopper abuts against the accelerator pedal to limit the reverse turn of the accelerator pedal and substantially simultaneously guides the accelerator pedal in a direction equivalent to that which the urging force is applied. The turning angle sensor detects the turning angle of the accelerator pedal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2011
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Takehiro Saito, Kimio Uchida, Haruhiko Suzuki, Masahiro Makino, Shigeru Hasegawa, Hiroshi Takeyama
  • Patent number: 7992461
    Abstract: A motion guide device includes a ball nut attached onto a shaft and having helical grooves for receiving ball bearing elements, a tubular member is engaged with the ball nut and includes a ball circulating pathway communicative with the helical groove of the ball nut, and includes an intermediate segment, two curved segments, and two end coupling segments each having a ball guiding channel which includes a wider inner section for guiding and circulating the flexible coupling member of a ball coupler to smoothly move through the ball guiding channel of each end coupling segment and for preventing the flexible coupling member from being twisted. The tubular member is preferably formed by two half members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2011
    Assignee: Hiwin Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Ming-Yao Lin, Chang Hsin Kuo, Zong-Sian Jiang
  • Patent number: 7980152
    Abstract: A steering apparatus includes a housing defining a chamber and an aperture extending into the chamber. A rack is disposed within the chamber and moveable along a longitudinal axis. A pinion extends into the chamber for meshing engagement with the rack. A bearing supports the rack within the chamber relative to the housing. The bearing includes a wall having a continuously varying radial thickness. An adjustment mechanism includes a shaft partially disposed within the aperture in threaded engagement with the aperture and engaging the bearing for rotating the bearing about the longitudinal axis, thereby repositioning the rack relative to the pinion. A plug is disposed within the aperture. A spring is disposed within the aperture between the plug and the shaft to bias against the shaft, thereby urging rotational threaded movement of the shaft to produce linear movement of the shaft into engagement with the bearing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Inventor: George E. Arlt
  • Patent number: 7946190
    Abstract: A shift rocker arrangement for a transmission including a two-arm bracket shift rocker that extends around a transmission element to be shifted and is supported by pivot bearings on the arms of the bracket within a transmission housing to pivot about an axis located essentially in the plane of the bracket. The shift rocker has bearing elements formed on the bracket arms and complementary bearing shells are formed on the inside wall of the closed housing. The bearing shells that support the bearing elements of the shift rocker are either formed on a bearing bar, which is supported at both ends by the housing, or they are formed directly on inside walls of the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2011
    Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Gerhard Höring
  • Patent number: 7930952
    Abstract: A toggle-type positioning platform including a first platform, a motor, a screw rod, a second platform and a linkage is provided. The motor and the screw rod are disposed on the first platform; the motor is coupled to the screw rod and suitable for driving the screw rod to rotate. The second platform is above the first platform and is suitable for moving back and forth alternately along a predetermined path, wherein an included angle exists between an extended direction of the predetermined path and the screw rod. The linkage is disposed between the first platform and the second platform, and is connected between the second platform and the screw rod. The linkage is driven by the rotation of the screw rod, to drive the second platform to move along he predetermined path. Accordingly, the positioning precision of the toggle-type positioning platform is enhanced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2011
    Assignee: Chung Yuan Christian University
    Inventors: Shih-Ming Wang, Chih-Peng Yang
  • Patent number: 7926378
    Abstract: A rack shaft is supported in an inner peripheral portion of a tubular housing of a gear housing via a rack bush. An inner peripheral portion of the rack bush is formed as a peripheral surface approximately similar to a circle in which a peripheral surface constituted by a large circular arc and a peripheral surface constituted by a small circular arc are continuously provided. The rack shaft is not in contact with the peripheral surface constituted by the large circular arc, and the peripheral surface constituted by the small circular arc is formed as a support portion of the rack shaft. The support of the rack shaft by the peripheral surface constituted by the small circular arc is not accomplished when a load applied to the rack shaft is nothing or low, but is accomplished when the load is high. Further, an engaging convex portion acting as a positioning and rotation prevention for the bush is provided in an outer peripheral portion of the rack bush.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Showa Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsuya Saito, Yukio Tajima, Yoshio Onoguchi
  • Patent number: 7926380
    Abstract: A resin gear has a plurality of teeth on an outer periphery thereof. One surface of each tooth has a tooth plane which meshes with another gear. The tooth thickness is substantially uniform from a tooth tip to a tooth root. A reinforcing rib is provided on the surface of each tooth on the opposite side from the tooth plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Murata Machinery, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masahiro Fujimaru
  • Patent number: 7891266
    Abstract: A gear position display device includes a transmission having a plurality of gear positions, a speed-changing control portion outputting a speed-changing instruction, a display portion displaying a gear position of the transmission, and a detection portion detecting a speed-changing state of a gear position based on the speed-changing instruction, wherein a gear position based on the speed-changing instruction from the speed-changing control portion is displayed after the detection portion confirms actual starting of speed-changing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2011
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Motoaki Kamimura, Yasushi Kobiki, Yoshiharu Harada, Akio Murasugi
  • Patent number: 7823476
    Abstract: A single direction coupling device, including a first transmission member (10) fitted with a first saw-like contrate toothing (13), mobile in rotation about an axis XX and axially positioned by an elastic member (11), and a second transmission member (14) fitted with a second saw-like toothing (17), mobile in rotation about an axis YY, meshed with the first transmission member (10), characterized in that the XX axis is perpendicular to the YY axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2010
    Assignee: ETA SA Manufacture Horlogère Suisse
    Inventors: Julien Chaignat, Marco Bettelini
  • Patent number: 7814808
    Abstract: Worm gear mechanism includes a driving worm, a torque delivering worm wheel meshing with the worm, and an auxiliary worm wheel superimposed on the torque delivering worm wheel. The auxiliary worm wheel has a pitch diameter greater than that of the torque delivering worm wheel. The auxiliary worm wheel is biased against the driving worm wheel via a biasing member in the form of a leaf spring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuo Shimizu, Katsuji Watanabe, Takahiro Aoki, Yasuhiro Terada, Ryoji Toyofuku
  • Patent number: 7814809
    Abstract: A plastic gear having a gear peripheral portion including a tooth portion is constituted by a plastic material, and a gear inner circumferential member with an annular shape or a disk shape is provided at the inner circumferential side of the gear peripheral portion. The gear peripheral portion includes an inner core and a surface layer member, the inner core being covered with the surface layer member and made of plastic with high elastic modulus and high strength, and the surface layer member being made of plastic with relatively low elastic modulus. The inner core is revolvably fitted around the gear inner circumferential member so as to revolve around the gear revolving axis, and an engaging portion is provided at an interface of the surface layer member and the gear inner circumferential member for preventing relative revolution around the gear revolving axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: Suzuki Motor Corporation
    Inventor: Ryutaro Shinohara
  • Patent number: 7810405
    Abstract: An angle drive with two shafts (12, 15) which are drivingly connected to one another and whose axes (A1, A2) intersect one another at an angle, wherein on each of the shafts (12, 15) there is firmly arranged at least one gearwheel (19, 20, 21) and wherein there is provided a hollow gear (17) with an axis of rotation (A3) and wherein the gearwheels (19, 20, 21) engage the hollow gear (17).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2010
    Assignee: GKN Driveline International GmbH
    Inventors: Thomas Weckerling, Hans-Peter Nett, Colin Zaers, Karl-Heinz Hülsebusch
  • Patent number: 7798028
    Abstract: A transmission system made of gears and bearings. The system improves the efficiency of force transfer between rotational motion and rectilinear motion. To accomplish this, the gears and bearings are assembled to allow maximum torque output during force input and reproduced cyclically. Bearings of the transmission system allow a crank to rotate to a position to increase the torque applied on gears to output shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2010
    Inventor: Xiang Yang Li
  • Patent number: 7793564
    Abstract: A parallel mechanism which has a holding bracket; a movable platform; and three branch joint assemblies of the same structure that are spatially arranged symmetrically about an axis disposed between the holding bracket and the movable platform. Each branch joint assembly has a connecting rod, a linear guide, a driving device and a carriage. The linear guide and the driving device both are secured on the connecting rod. One end of the connecting rod is connected with the movable platform through a hinge having three rotational degrees of freedom. The carriage and the linear guide are connected with each other by a sliding joint, and the carriage is connected with the holding bracket by a hinge having one rotational degree of freedom.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Tianjin University
    Inventors: Tian Huang, Haitao Liu
  • Patent number: 7784372
    Abstract: A driving mechanism for a massaging device includes a housing, a driven gear rotatably mounted in the housing, a driven shaft secured to a first side of the driven gear, and an adjusting shaft mounted on a second side of the driven gear. Thus, when the driven gear is rotatable in a first direction, the adjusting shaft and the driven shaft are rotated with the driven gear simultaneously, so that the two swinging members are moved in the same direction, and when the driven gear is rotatable in a second direction, the adjusting shaft and the driven shaft are rotated with the driven gear with a time lag, so that the two swinging members are moved in the opposite direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2010
    Assignee: Hsin Hao Health Materials Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Yuan-Chuen Chen
  • Patent number: 7770488
    Abstract: A tilt-and-telescope steering apparatus includes a plate bracket, an outer tube, a distance bracket, an outer block, and a fastening arrangement. The plate bracket surrounds an outer surface of an outer tube and has tilt adjustment holes formed on both sides of the plate bracket. The outer tube surrounds an inner tube and has telescopic adjustment hole formed in at least one side thereof. The distance bracket surrounds the outer surface of the outer tube and has fastening holes formed through both sides of the distance bracket. The outer block is positioned between the plate bracket and the distance bracket, and fastens the distance bracket according to the operation of a control lever. A fastener couples the plate bracket, the outer block, and the distance bracket to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2010
    Assignee: Mando Corporation
    Inventors: Hyun Kim, Woo-Seob Shin, Jae-Moon Oh
  • Patent number: 7765890
    Abstract: An industrial robot has an arm, a wrist element rotatably interconnected to the arm, a work tool mounted on a distal end of the wrist element, and a motor mounted on the wrist element. An umbilical-member connected to the work tool and a flat cable connected to the motor are disposed to run along the wrist element from the arm side to the work tool or to the motor. A pipe member extending in a direction of a rotation axis of the wrist element is provided inside the arm and the umbilical-member connected to the work tool is passed inside the pipe member. The flat cable connected to the motor is wound around outside of the pipe member, with the flat cable arranged to become slack in a rotating direction of the wrist element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2010
    Assignee: Fanuc Ltd
    Inventors: Toshihiko Inoue, Kazutaka Nakayama, Takatoshi Iwayama, Junya Fujita
  • Patent number: 7757575
    Abstract: An optical apparatus is disclosed which includes an integrally-formed rack that can be manufactured easily even when a tooth portion of the rack has a drawing angle with respect to a lead screw. The apparatus includes a holding member holding an optical member, a rack attached to the holding member, and an actuator rotating the lead screw. The rack is integrally formed and includes an attachment portion for being attached to the holding member, first and second tooth portions engaging with the lead screw so as to sandwich the lead screw therebetween, and an elastic connecting portion connecting the attachment portion and the second tooth portion. The second tooth portion is formed to have a gap from the first tooth portion such that the gap is narrowed with distance from the attachment portion. The connecting portion is provided with a protrusion protruding toward the first tooth portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2010
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Koji Sato