Patents Examined by Ninh V Le
  • Patent number: 8163217
    Abstract: This invention relates to a method of making a heat-resistant transparent container which involves the steps of: a primary stretching and heat-setting process wherein an amorphous polyethylene terephthalate sheet is heated, primarily stretched and then primarily heat-set and a secondary stretching and heat-setting process wherein the sheet treated in the primary stretching and heat-setting process is molded with heating in a mold of a thermoforming machine while secondary stretching is performed, followed by secondary heat-setting in the same mold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2012
    Assignee: Nakamoto Packs Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shigeru Takaoka, Hiroshi Shibano, Jun Kawata
  • Patent number: 8029716
    Abstract: Amorphous inorganic nitrides are used as release layers on templates for nanoimprint lithography. Such a layer facilitates the release of a template from a cured, hardened composition into which the template has transferred a pattern, by reducing the adhesion energy between the release layer and the cured, hardened composition. The release layer may include one or more metallic or semiconductor elements such as Al, Mn, B, Co, Ti, Ta, W and Ge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2011
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Frances A Houle, Christopher V. Jahnes, Simone Raoux, Stephen M Rossnagel
  • Patent number: 7927522
    Abstract: An eyeglass lens is made of layers which include an outer, convex hard coating, a layer of hard epoxy, a PVA film, a layer of soft epoxy, a layer of adhesive, a base material, and an inner, concave hard coating. The major steps in producing the lens are to 1: prepare a clean, soft PVA film; 2: form the PVA film into the desired curved shape using a convex mold; 3: add hard epoxy to the outer, convex side of the PVA film; 4: add soft epoxy to the inner, concave side; 5: add the base material to the inner, concave side; and 6: harden and package the lens.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Inventor: Wen-Yi Hsu
  • Patent number: 7897096
    Abstract: Provided is a production process for an insert decorated molding provided with two or more kinds of pictures, in which a color of a resin is not seen from a boundary part between pictures and which has a high design property. The production process includes a vacuum molding step in which two or more kinds of decorative sheets are vacuum-molded and an injection step in which at least two kinds of the vacuum-molded decorative sheets are disposed in line in a female metal die and in which a molding resin is injected onto the decorative sheets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2011
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kazuhiro Suga
  • Patent number: 7887725
    Abstract: Dope is discharged onto the peripheral surface of a rotating casting drum to form a casting bead. A decompression chamber decompresses an upstream side from the casting bead in a moving direction of the casting drum. The decompression chamber includes a sensor unit for detecting a width of the casting bead. A control section shifts outer side seal plates in the width direction based on the width data, such that the outer side seal plates are located in an upstream side from side ends of the casting bead. Upon formation of a casting bead having a new width, the control section shifts the outer side seal plates based on the new width such that the outer side seal plates are located in the upstream side from the side ends of the casting bead having the new width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2011
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Akinori Ochiai
  • Patent number: 7857610
    Abstract: A thermoforming process capable of coining and flowing material is provided, such as for making a thermoformed energy absorber for self-attachment to a vehicle bumper beam. The energy absorber includes a thermoplastic sheet with first thickness shaped by a thermoforming process to include a base and lobes configured to absorb energy. The sheet further has integrally formed attachments with solid heads formed from material flowed from adjacent areas into the attachment during the thermoforming process. Many other structures can be formed, such as ringed ridges, thinned regions, snap-attachments, hooks, living hinges, bosses, and the like. The present invention further includes an apparatus and a method for accomplishing the above, such as a heater for heating the sheet, and a die for stretching and shaping the sheet, where heated material is flowed by opposing coining die components to form selectively-shaped 3D structures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 28, 2010
    Assignee: SafetyNet Energy Management, LLC
    Inventors: Michael A. Rossi, Joel M. Cormier, Donald S. Smith, Matthew M. Gerwolls
  • Patent number: 7842210
    Abstract: A grommet for sealing the wires extending through the wall of a fuel tank is formed by first removing a portion of the covering exposing the strands of wires within. A liquid sealing agent is applied to the strands and the strands are compressed to displace the strands. A hardener is then applied and then the strands are encapsulated in the body of the grommet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2010
    Inventor: Jack Chen
  • Patent number: 7766637
    Abstract: An apparatus for a continuous encapsulation process is provided. The apparatus is a vibrating tubing used alone, in series, or in combination with an encapsulation apparatus, which is used alone or in series. The vibrating tubing is a flat coil, a standing spiral, or a flume. The encapsulation apparatus includes a winding having coils disposed in an aqueous gelling solution. The winding is rotatable about its longitudinal center axis. The winding has adjacently spaced coils forming a plurality of chambers. Objects to be encapsulated are added to the apparatus such that when the winding is rotated, the chambers transport a volume of objects through the length winding in the aqueous gelling solution in a predetermined time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2010
    Assignee: FMC Corporation
    Inventors: Peder Oscar Andersen, Robert Kopesky, Christian Klein Larsen, Olav Gaserod, David Harvey, Sanhuang Tung
  • Patent number: 7749416
    Abstract: The method of manufacturing a substrate, includes the steps of: preparing first and second members, the first member having a non-side face which is a top or bottom face of the first member, and side faces which intersect with the non-side face and have recess parts, the recess parts having first openings on the side faces and second openings on the non-side face, the second member having flat surfaces; in a state where the flat surfaces of the second member are in contact with the side faces of the first member so that the first openings are closed with the flat surfaces while the second openings are open, filling conductive paste into the recess parts from the second openings; curing the conductive paste filled in the recess parts; and separating the second member from the first member on which conducting parts are formed from the cured conductive paste.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2010
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroshi Ota
  • Patent number: 7731888
    Abstract: A locking mechanism for an enclosure is provided. The enclosure comprises a base including a locking groove formed therein, and a lid pivotally coupled with the base having a lock bore formed therein. The lock mechanism is mounted in the lock bore and includes a pin that is selectively positioned within the locking groove to secure the lid to the base. Also provided is a molding device and method for forming the lock bore. The mold device includes a base member with a pair of arms having a mold protrusion and a lower cam surface. The molding device also includes a housing having a pair of mold protrusion openings. The mold protrusions selectively extend outwardly through mold protrusion openings when a wedge engages the lower cam surfaces on the arms, wherein the arms spread apart from one another to form a pair of snap grooves in the lock bore.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2010
    Assignee: John D. Brush & Co., Inc.
    Inventors: David A. Nowicky, Christine M. Keane, James W. Hall, Douglas E. Shaffer, Philip B. Race, David P. Fisher
  • Patent number: 7731889
    Abstract: A nanoimprinting configuration includes a UV light diffuser that randomizes a collimated UV light beam so as to diffuse the shadowing effect from any defect object that resides in the UV optical path. In addition, a combination center circular pad and outer ring-shaped pad form a donut-shaped “non-contact” area between the two pad pieces. The size and shape of the two pad combination are designed to avoid direct gel pad contact above the patterned imprint zone on the disk substrate. The purpose of the gel pad, non-contact configuration is to eliminate any possible surface deformation incurred along the loading column and thereby avoid the elastic propagation of any deformations to the stamper resist surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2010
    Assignee: Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.
    Inventors: Zvonimir Z. Bandic, Tsai-Wei Wu
  • Patent number: 7727456
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a composite molded member, which includes the steps of: setting the main body inside an injection mold; closing the injection mold to fix the main body inside the injection mold; and forming the cushion members on the edges of the main body through heat and pressure of the injected elastic polymer material. The elastic polymer material is injected from an injection gate into one of the first and second edges at the back surface side of the main body of the molding cavities to flow the elastic polymer material into one of the molding cavities. The elastic polymer material flows into the other of the molding cavities through the connecting flow path, and fills the molding cavities with the elastic polymer material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2010
    Assignee: Tokai Kogyo Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Katsuyuki Amano, Naoko Amano, legal representative, Akihiro Suzuki, Yukiko Tsuya, Tatsuya Tamura
  • Patent number: 7727433
    Abstract: A hearing device including a foam, a foam insertable portion, a component, and a foam handle portion, and a method of forming the same. The component is nestable with and bondable with the foam such that the component is at least partially within the foam insertable portion and the foam handle portion. The hearing protective device includes earplugs attached to a flexible cord, under-the-chin element, or headband. A method of making a hearing protective device including disposing a component into a mold, introducing a foam or foamable mixture into the mold, causing the foam to rise such that the component is nested within and bonded with the foam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2010
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Richard Knauer, Alan R. Seville, Robert N. Falco, James Hall, Lori S. Hall, legal representative
  • Patent number: 7708932
    Abstract: A chilled air pressure box is provided for thermoforming a plastic sheet. The chilled air pressure box comprises a box, a box perimeter, an inlet valve, a compressed air source and a chilled air source. The box has an interior space within the box and defines an inlet opening. The box perimeter is for sealingly interfacing with a vacuum mold. The inlet valve is substantially disposed within the interior space, adjacent and aligned with the inlet opening such that when the inlet valve is closed the inlet opening is substantially sealed and when the inlet valve is opened the inlet opening is not sealed. The compressed air source is capable of pressurizing the interior space with compressed air and interfaces with the box. The chilled air source communicates with the inlet opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2010
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Richard Wykoff, Stanley Staniszewski, Kedzie Fernholz, Joshua Bosworth
  • Patent number: 7708547
    Abstract: A method of the type in which a strip of rubber is moved continuously from a rubber-supplier device to a consumer device. During the continuous movement and prior to reaching the consumer device, a portion, referred to as the residue, is taken continuously from the strip of rubber. The residue is taken by continuously cutting the strip of rubber. For example, the supplier device includes upstream storage means for storing the strip of rubber from which the strip is moved toward the extruder, and downstream storage means in which the residue is stored. After the strip of rubber on the upstream storage means has been used up, the upstream and downstream storage means are swapped with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2010
    Assignee: Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventors: Serge Nicolas, Gérard Crosnier, Daniel Goy