Patents Examined by Michael Kreiner
  • Patent number: 9162758
    Abstract: The present invention provides methods and apparatus for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with improved reliability. According to one aspect of the invention, interference experienced by onboard sensors from onboard electrical components is reduced. According to another aspect of the invention, user-configuration or assembly of electrical components is minimized to reduce user errors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 20, 2015
    Assignee: SZ DJI TECHNOLOGY, CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tao Wang, Tao Zhao, Shaojie Chen, Zhigang Ou
  • Patent number: 9156539
    Abstract: An aircraft window member includes film made of acrylic resin, a conductive mesh, which is formed on the film and in which a conductive material, is formed in a mesh shape so as to have optical transparency for ensuring visibility and to have electromagnetic-wave shielding properties, and a window main body, which is made of acrylic resin, and to which the film on which the conductive mesh is formed is attached.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2015
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kazuyuki Oguri, Katsuto Okada
  • Patent number: 9157260
    Abstract: A storage system comprises a storage compartment having a compartment door, a plurality of latches for latching the door, a plurality of slave cylinders coupled to the latches, and a master cylinder in fluid communication with the slave cylinders for causing the slave cylinders to simultaneously unlatch the latches.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Lowell Bruce Campbell, Richard Leroy Rankin
  • Patent number: 9139301
    Abstract: A curtain divider for an aircraft interior containing pivot stow bins includes a first fabric curtain, having an outboard end and an inboard end, which is attachable to the aircraft interior only at the outboard and inboard ends. The first fabric curtain includes a vertical portion, and a horizontal portion. The vertical portion has a substantially straight bottom edge, and an arcuate top edge defining a space sufficient for opening the pivot stow bins. The horizontal portion is flexibly attached to the vertical portion along the top edge and extends from the outboard end to the inboard end, having a substantially continuous curvature. The horizontal portion is adapted to impart forward and aft stability to the curtain support member at the top edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2015
    Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: Kenneth M Slyter, Paul W Morcom
  • Patent number: 9139281
    Abstract: An air vehicle, particularly a helicopter, includes a slip protecting and gas sealing composite floor inside a fuselage. The slip protecting and gas sealing composite floor is built up of a profiled elastomer layer provided at its bottom side with a cross-linking agent, n-layers of a further component or a variety of different components and partially thermosetting resin covered by a profiled elastomer layer, a honey comb layer and lower n-layers of the further component or variety of different components and partially thermosetting resin, the honey comb layer being sandwiched between the n-layers and the lower n-layers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2015
    Assignee: Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH
    Inventors: Michael Hebensperger, Wolfgang Kreitmair-Steck
  • Patent number: 9120583
    Abstract: A large area, deployable flexible blanket photovoltaic solar array architecture for high power applications is disclosed. The structure is a modularized and scalable solar array system that provides high power level scalability. The structure is comprised of repeating, similar modular deployable roll-out solar array wings mounted in an opposing manner and along the length of a rigid, strong and efficiently packaged deployable backbone structure. The deployable roll-out solar array building block modular “winglet” elements can be comprised of either a rolled or z-folded flexible photovoltaic blanket configuration, and their structural deployment is motivated by the elastic strain energy of longitudinal roll-out booms. The backbone structure is comprised of a stiff deployable beam structure articulated that is deployed perpendicular with respect to the spacecraft sidewall and latched out.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2015
    Assignee: Deployable Space Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian R Spence, Steven F White, Peter Sorenson
  • Patent number: 9114871
    Abstract: An aircraft for unmanned aviation is described. The aircraft includes an airframe, a pair of fins attached to a rear portion of the airframe, a pair of dihedral braces attached to a bottom portion of the airframe, a first thrust-vectoring (“T/V”) module and a second T/V module, and an electronics module. The electronics module provides commands to the two T/V modules. The two T/V modules are configured to provide lateral and longitudinal control to the aircraft by directly controlling a thrust vector for each of the pitch, the roll, and the yaw of the aircraft. The use of directly articulated electrical motors as T/V modules enables the aircraft to execute tight-radius turns over a wide range of airspeeds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2015
    Assignee: Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation
    Inventors: Adam John Woodworth, James Peverill, Greg Vulikh, Jeremy Scott Hollman
  • Patent number: 9114866
    Abstract: A balloon with a generally tubular shaped balloon envelope. The tubular shaped balloon envelope may comprise a number of gores, where each gore is shaped with two elongated edges and two vertices. The vertices of each gore may be located at the top and bottom of the balloon envelope. The gore edges may be sealed together at adjacent edges to seal the balloon such that it is airtight.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2015
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventor: Kevin Roach
  • Patent number: 9108730
    Abstract: A method to load stores on an aircraft, the method may be controlled by one or more controller and may include one or more acts of loading stores onto corresponding lift portions; determining a relative position of the aircraft; positioning the stores relative to the determined position of the aircraft; and securing the stores to corresponding hardpoints (HPs) of the aircraft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Inventor: Victor A. Grossman
  • Patent number: 9108716
    Abstract: An aircraft cabin has been reconfigured with a rear fuselage galley and a modified aft pressure bulkhead that enables the galley to be moved rearwardly to provide additional floor space in the aircraft cabin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Kelly L. Boren, Lowell B. Campbell, Alan K. Prichard
  • Patent number: 9108724
    Abstract: An adjustment system of an aeroplane, having: at least one adjustable flap on each of the wing of an aeroplane, adjustable with an adjustment device, a drive device for purposes of driving the adjustment devices, and a load sensor for purposes of recording the load occurring in the load path between the actuator and the adjustable flap of the respective adjustment device. The load sensor is embodied as a sensor for purposes of measuring the longitudinal force occurring in a drive rod along its longitudinal direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH
    Inventors: Martin Rechsiek, Wilfried Ellmers, Christoph Winkelmann
  • Patent number: 9108734
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a divider utilized to provide part of a visual separation between sections of a passenger cabin of a commercial aircraft, the divider comprising several components. One component is a support arm fixedly connected to the frame of an aircraft above a passenger seat. Another component may be a curtain attached to a lower edge of the support arm and projecting vertically below the support arm. Yet another component may be a rigid view block adjacent the face of the luggage stowage compartment and configured to move therewith such that the view block is adjacent the face of the luggage stowage compartment while the luggage stowage compartment is in a closed position, and repositions with the face of the luggage stowage compartment when the compartment is opened.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: Heath Tecna Inc
    Inventor: Glenn Casey Chandler
  • Patent number: 9090348
    Abstract: A control system for portable control of a rotary-wing aircraft includes a portable, hand-held, control device executing a control application, the control device operating in a loaded mode when a load is attached to the rotary-wing aircraft and an unloaded mode when no load is attached to the rotary-wing aircraft, the control device presenting command icons in response to being in loaded mode and unloaded mode; a vehicle management system in the rotary-wing aircraft; a sensor package on the rotary-wing aircraft; and a communication system providing communications between the control device and the rotary-wing aircraft, vehicle management system and sensor package; wherein the control device communicates commands to the vehicle management system to implement loading and unloading of the rotary-wing aircraft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2015
    Assignee: SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jesse J. Lesperance, Thomas Zygmant
  • Patent number: 9073647
    Abstract: A launch system comprises a nose section comprising a nose coupling surface, a tail section comprising a tail coupling surface facing the nose coupling surface and a mast coupling the nose and tail sections. The mast is configured to expand and retract to displace the nose and tail sections within a range of distances from one another. In a retracted state, the nose and tail sections are either structurally coupled to one another at the nose and tail coupling surfaces or structurally coupled to at least one integrated module located between the nose and the tail sections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2015
    Assignee: Biosphere Aerospace LLC
    Inventor: Elie Helou, Jr.
  • Patent number: 9061763
    Abstract: A radio controlled model rotorcraft implemented with features improving ease of flight and flight performance by increasing structural stability, increasing rotorcraft visibility and orientation awareness through the use of multifunctioning, configurable, and aesthetically pleasing components, while also increasing resistance to damage from crashes through use of impact and vibration absorbing components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2015
    Assignee: TRAXXAS LP
    Inventors: Casey Christen Jens Christensen, Otto Karl Allmendinger, Richard Douglas Hohnholt, Kent Poteet, Scott Rollin Michael Schmitz, Thomas Blackwell
  • Patent number: 9051052
    Abstract: An aircraft cabin has a lavatory that is accessible from a cross-aisle of the aircraft and in which the toilet is moved from the typical outboard location to an inboard location where increased head room enables the toilet to be positioned in tight proximity to a back wall of the lavatory directly behind the toilet and thereby increases an open area of floor surface in front of the toilet for wheelchair access to the lavatory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventor: Kelly L. Boren
  • Patent number: 9044109
    Abstract: A container, in which a quantity of water can be accommodated, includes a base, a peripheral wall that is upright with respect to the base, a water barrier provided within the peripheral wall and extending towards the base, an insertion opening in which the stem or stems of plant products, such as flowers, can be accommodated in such a way that these have access to the quantity of water, as well as retaining member for retaining the stems. The retaining member is designed for holding the stems pressed down in the direction of the base under preloading.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: Pagter & Partners International B.V.
    Inventors: Janus Adriaan Willem De Pagter, Simon Eduard Niekolaas, Jeroen Johan Bruijns
  • Patent number: 9040886
    Abstract: A projectile control system includes a plurality of fins, a drive mechanism coupled to each of the plurality of fins to enable the plurality of fins to be independently retracted or deployed, and a control mechanism in communication with the drive mechanisms to independently control the deployment or retraction of the plurality of fins. A projectile having the projectile control system and a method of operating a projectile are also described herein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Bradley M. Hopping, Craig R. DeMeester
  • Patent number: 9033276
    Abstract: A telescoping landing leg system includes an aerial vehicle capable of vertical takeoff and landing; and a plurality of legs. Each leg has at least two nested sections. A first section is fixed to the aerial vehicle and a second section slidably retained within the first section. The second section extends out of the first section by telescoping therefrom to engage the ground when the aerial vehicle is landing. A central processing unit may be used to control extension of any leg independently of any other leg in the plurality of legs. Sensors may be used to provide data to the central processing unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: TLL Associates
    Inventor: S. Mill Calvert
  • Patent number: 9033279
    Abstract: Baggage compartment 1 for an aircraft, wherein the baggage compartment 1 comprises a housing 2 and a baggage holder 3, wherein the baggage holder 3 is swivel-mounted about a swivel axis A in the housing 2, wherein, the swivel axis A intersects, in its longitudinal extent, a holder side wall 32 of the baggage holder 3 and/or a housing side wall 21 of the housing 2, wherein the baggage holder 3 can be moved from a closed position G into an open position Ö with a first swivel movement S1 and the baggage compartment 1 is opened and wherein the baggage holder 3 can be moved from the open position Ö into the closed position G with a second swivel movement S2 and the baggage compartment 1 is closed, wherein the baggage compartment 1 comprises a drive device 6 having at least one drive motor 9, wherein the drive device 6 is designed to drive the baggage holder 3 during the first and/or second swivel movement S1; S2 and to open or close the baggage compartment 1, wherein the drive device 6 is connected to the holder s
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: DIEHL AIRCABIN GMBH
    Inventors: Oleg Graf, Max Failenschmid, Ulrich Evers, Annica Dieterich, Simon Merz, Michael Zinke