Patents Examined by Melvin Jones
  • Patent number: 9784483
    Abstract: A magnetocaloric regenerator unit comprising (A) at least one magnetocaloric material unit having a higher temperature hot side and a lower temperature cold side during operation, wherein the magnetocaloric material unit contains at least one magnetocaloric material, (B) at least one magnetic unit for producing a magnetic field over the magnetocaloric material contained in the magnetocaloric material unit, (C) at least one magnetic shielding comprising at least one window wherein the at least one magnetic shielding is mounted flexible to allow movement of the magnetic shielding between at least one first position and at least one second position thereby insulating the magnetocaloric material contained in the magnetocaloric material unit from the magnetic field when the magnetic shielding is in a first position and allowing the magnetic field to act on the magnetocaloric material through the at least one window when the magnetic shielding is in a second position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2017
    Assignee: BASF SE
    Inventors: Juergen Moors, Wilfried Hermes
  • Patent number: 9784496
    Abstract: An air conditioner includes an indoor unit, an outdoor unit including an outdoor fan, a sensor unit mounted at an upper portion of the outdoor unit to sense snow piled up on the outdoor unit, and a control unit to determine whether snow is piled up or not based on an output from the sensor unit and control an operation of the outdoor fan to remove snow when snow is piled up based on the determination. The sensor unit includes a photo sensor and a temperature sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2017
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Byung Ik Choi, Tae Gyoon Noh, Jun Hoe Choi, Ji Hoon Ha, Jeong Su Han, Jong Soo Hong, Hyung Min Son
  • Patent number: 9776739
    Abstract: A system for cryocooling an optical sensor on a satellite to a temperature below 200K with minimal vibration comprising a miniature conical rotary screw compressor comprising an inner element configured to only rotate around a first stationary axis and an outer element configured to only rotate around a second stationary axis so that both elements revolve with minimal vibration; with at least one of a) a length of at least one of the inner element and the outer element is between 10 mm and 50 mm; b) a diameter of at least one of the inner element and the outer element is between 2 mm and 25 mm; c) a compression ratio of the rotary screw compressor is between 1:2 and 1:20; and d) a shaft speed of the conical rotary screw compressor is between 6001 and 20000 revolutions per minute.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: VERT ROTORS UK LIMITED
    Inventors: Oleg Dmitriev, Evgenii Tabota
  • Patent number: 9777952
    Abstract: A rotating active magnetic regenerator (AMR) device comprising two or more regenerator beds, a magnet arrangement and a valve arrangement. The valve arrangement comprises a plurality of valve elements arranged substantially immovably with respect to the regenerator beds along a rotational direction. A cam surface is arranged substantially immovably with respect to the magnet arrangement along the rotational direction, and comprises a plurality of cam elements arranged to cooperate with the valve elements in order to control opening degrees of the valve elements, in accordance with a relative position of the cam elements and the valve elements. Thereby the opening degree of each valve element is controlled in accordance with a relative angular position of the regenerator beds and the magnet arrangement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Danmarks Tekniske Universitet
    Inventors: Dan Eriksen, Kurt Engelbrecht, Christian Bahl
  • Patent number: 9763468
    Abstract: To provide a functional continuous rapid freezing apparatus with which cold air is made uniformly contact with the whole face of an article to be frozen, easily and rapidly passing the maximum ice crystal generating zone, and the central portion of the article to be frozen can reach for the predetermined temperature within a short period of time, a freezing chamber 2 in which an article Q to be frozen is stored, a heat exchanger 1 for cooling disposed on a central portion of the freezing chamber 2 as a partition to divide the freezing chamber 2 into a first freezing block 2a and a second freezing block 2b, a first blowing fan 5 disposed to face the heat exchanger 1 for cooling through the first freezing block 2a, and a second blowing fan 6 disposed to face the heat exchanger 1 for cooling through the second freezing block 2b, are provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2017
    Assignee: JAPAN SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY TRADING CO., LMITED
    Inventors: Tadayo Hata, Shinsuke Maeda, Toshiyuki Maruoka
  • Patent number: 9759440
    Abstract: An air conditioning system includes a multiple effect evaporative condenser, at least one compressor, at least one heat exchanger, an expansion valve, and at least one multiple-effect evaporative condensers. The multiple effect evaporative condenser and the heat exchanger utilize a highly efficient heat exchanging pipe for performing heat exchange between water and refrigerant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Inventor: Lee Wa Wong
  • Patent number: 9752822
    Abstract: A refrigerator includes a cabinet defining a wine storage chamber, a door for the wine storage chamber, a pantry in the wine storage chamber, a rail guide located at an inner surface of the cabinet, and a draw-out rail located at the pantry. The pantry includes a first supporter for a wine glass, a second supporter for a wine bottle, a space defined between the first and second supporters, a first outlet at a front of the space, and a second outlet at a lateral side of the space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventors: Su-Won Lee, Sung-Eun Kim, Kyung-Eun Lee
  • Patent number: 9752812
    Abstract: A device for making ice bars set within a freezer of a household refrigerator, the device comprising a carcass with a lateral face, an opposite lateral face, a neck in “V” shape, the lateral faces and a guiding throat which tops off with a semi-cylinder which is in connection with a “C” channel set over the opposite lateral face; a lever set over a runway found on the lateral face of the carcass, wherein said lever is mechanically grasped to a helicoid spring which returns it to its resting position, the lever comprising a disk and a “U” channel set over the disk and a pair of cylindrical concentric walls which form a cavity which houses the helicoid spring; a guard set over the lateral face of the carcass which contains the lever, the guard has an inner face; wherein said guard has a protruded tube in its inner face which is housed within the inner cylindrical wall of the lever; a tray which houses a series of molds for making ice bars, which on its flank sides has set on it a central axis portion and a cam
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: MABE, S.A. DE C.V.
    Inventor: Alan Federico Camacho Velazquez
  • Patent number: 9726403
    Abstract: In an air cooling mode of cooling air as a fluid to be heat-exchanged, a refrigeration cycle device is provided to perform switching to a refrigerant circuit in which a high-pressure refrigerant exchanging heat with outside air in an exterior heat exchanger and dissipating heat therefrom flows into an accumulator serving as a gas-liquid separator. In an air heating mode of heating the air, the refrigeration cycle device also performs switching to another refrigerant circuit that allows a low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by a first expansion valve to flow into the accumulator. Thus, even in any operation mode, a difference between a refrigerant temperature in the accumulator and the outside air temperature is reduced to thereby suppress the degradation of performance of the refrigeration cycle device due to the unnecessary transfer of heat between the refrigerant in the accumulator and the outside air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Etsuhisa Yamada, Yoshiaki Takano, Haruyuki Nishijima, Hiroshi Oshitani
  • Patent number: 9719710
    Abstract: An ice maker of a refrigerator includes a cooling unit for generating cold air; a case mounted in a food storage space, and defining a cooling space for receiving the cold air; an ice making assembly for making ice; a rib unit provided at one side of the ice making assembly; and a bucket arranged at one side of the ice making assembly for receiving the ice. The ice making assembly includes an ice tray arranged in the cooling space, the ice tray having an ice making recess formed in an upper surface thereof for making ice; and a cold air guiding unit arranged at a lower side of the ice tray for guiding the cold air to the lower side of the ice tray, and a rib unit including cooling ribs protruding downward from a bottom surface of the ice tray while extending in a state of being rotated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: Dongbu Daewoo Electronics Corporation
    Inventor: Sung Jin Yang
  • Patent number: 9719703
    Abstract: Vehicle air comfort systems and methods. The systems and methods may comprise: (1) a plurality of flow tunnels for passage of a heat-transfer fluid; (2) a thermoelectric cooler in thermal communication with the flow tunnels for thermally conditioning the heat-transfer fluid in the flow tunnels; (3) an air inlet for receiving unconditioned air; (4) a thermal exchange assembly for facilitating thermal exchange between the thermally conditioned heat-transfer fluid and the unconditioned air to result in conditioning of the air; and (5) an air outlet for outputting the conditioned air into the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: ThermoTek, Inc.
    Inventors: Tony Quisenberry, Sam K. McSpadden, Christopher Alan Polser, Niran Balachandran
  • Patent number: 9714769
    Abstract: An air conditioner is disclosed. The air conditioner includes an indoor unit, a first outdoor unit including a first outdoor heat exchanger and a first compressor to be driven by electricity, a second outdoor unit including a second outdoor heat exchanger and a second compressor to be driven by an engine, a cooling water line, through which cooling water to cool the engine flows, and at least one waste heat-recovering heat exchanger for exchanging heat between refrigerant to be introduced into at least one of the first outdoor heat exchanger and the second outdoor heat exchanger and the cooling water flowing through the cooling water line. By provision of the waste heat-recovering heat exchanger, which heat-exchanges hot cooling water with refrigerant flowing through the first and second outdoor heat exchangers, frost formed on the first and second outdoor units during low-temperature heating is removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventors: Song Choi, Baikyoung Chung, Hojong Jeong, Wooho Cha
  • Patent number: 9707156
    Abstract: People can damage their medicines by taking them outside in hot or cold weather. On the other hand, some people need to carry their medicines with them wherever they go (even if the weather is extremely hot or cold). Specially constructed storage systems can protect medicines from damage due to hot and cold weather without requiring bulky structures or expensive components that consume electricity to regulate temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Inventors: Sandy Wengreen, Eric John Wengreen
  • Patent number: 9702637
    Abstract: The heat exchanger includes heat exchange units. Each of the heat exchange units includes a plurality of plate fins and a plurality of flat tubes. The plate fins are arranged spaced apart from one another at intervals so as to allow air to flow therebetween. The flat tubes each have an L shape by bending and inserted through the plate fins so that a refrigerant flows therethrough in a direction in which the plate fins are arranged. The heat exchange units are combined to each other so as to form a rectangular shape. Thus, heat exchange can be efficiently performed by increasing the mounting area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Takashi Okazaki, Akira Ishibashi, Sangmu Lee, Takuya Matsuda
  • Patent number: 9702622
    Abstract: A turbo chiller and a chiller system are disclosed. The turbo chiller includes a compressor including an impeller for compressing a refrigerant and a motor for driving the impeller, a condenser configured to perform heat exchange between condensed water and the refrigerant introduced from the compressor, an evaporator configured to perform heat exchange between chilled water and the refrigerant discharged from the condenser, and an expansion valve disposed between the condenser and the evaporator. The compressor, the evaporator and the condenser are arranged to be stacked in a predetermined direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Hanyoung Park, Yoonjei Hwang, Horim Lee
  • Patent number: 9702571
    Abstract: To provide an air conditioner outdoor unit including a casing having an air inlet on a side surface and an air outlet on an upper surface, a heat exchanger that covers the air inlet and is provided inside the casing, a fan that sucks in air from the air inlet and discharges air from the air outlet, and a fan motor provided on a lower side of the fan. The fan motor is set such that an outer diameter D1 thereof is larger than an outer diameter D2 of a fan boss, and an outer periphery thereof is positioned on a center side of the fan motor than a straight line c passing an upper side of a center (for example, a predetermined position a) of the heat exchanger and a side (for example, a predetermined position b) of the fan boss.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Koji Yabe, Naohiro Oketani, Kazuhiko Baba, Hiroshi Yamanaka, Hironori Yabuuchi
  • Patent number: 9689621
    Abstract: A heat exchanger is described and which includes a heat exchanger portion defining a multiplicity of internal passageways, and wherein at least one of the passageways is defined in part by a wicking structure; and a source of ammonia refrigerant which is supplied to the internal passageways of the heat exchanger portion, and wherein substantial equal amounts of liquid refrigerant are supplied to each of the passageways defined by the heat exchanger portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Colmac Coil Manufacturing, Inc.
    Inventor: Bruce I. Nelson
  • Patent number: 9689577
    Abstract: An outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus includes a heat exchanger, at least one fan, a compressor, and a box-shaped casing that houses the foregoing elements and has an air inlet and an air outlet. The compressor is provided at a position outside an air passage in which air taken in from the air inlet flows through the heat exchanger and the fan toward the air outlet. The heat exchanger includes a plurality of heat exchanger segments. The heat exchanger segments are arranged zigzag.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Susumu Yoshimura, Hiroaki Nakamune, Syoji Yamada, Kenichi Sakoda
  • Patent number: 9683758
    Abstract: A coaxial economizer for use in a chiller system comprising an inner housing and an outer housing having a common longitudinal axis. The outer housing has an inlet for receiving a fluid from a upstream compressor stage of a multistage compressor and an outlet for conveying a fluid to a downstream compressor stage of a multistage compressor. A flow chamber forms a fluid flow path about the inner housing. A flash chamber is coterminous with the flow chamber and flashes fluid in a liquid state to a gas state. A flow passage between said flash chamber and the flow chamber for conveying a flashed gas from the flash chamber to the flow chamber; wherein the flashed gas conveyed from the flash chamber and the fluid received from the inlet of the outer housing mix along the fluid flow path toward the outlet of the outer housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: TRANE INTERNATIONAL INC.
    Inventors: Rick T. James, Paul F. Haley, Randall L. Janssen, William J. Plzak
  • Patent number: 9677799
    Abstract: A refrigeration and air-conditioning apparatus rapidly varies the pressure or the temperature inside a liquid reserve container to identify a liquid level position inside the liquid reserve container on the basis of the surface temperature of the liquid reserve container.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Yasutaka Ochiai, Makoto Saito, Fumitake Unezaki