Patents Examined by Philip H. Leung
  • Patent number: 7470877
    Abstract: A modular microwave oven and ventilation hood combination system, includes a core module, having a core module housing, and a microwave cooking chamber, fitted in the core module housing. The system further includes an intake module, having an intake module housing connected to a lower side of the core module housing, and an air inlet for drawing air from an area above a range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
    Inventors: Eckart Braunisch, Andrew D. Litch, Fredrick Hallgren, Hakan Carlsson
  • Patent number: 7470874
    Abstract: A particle reduction apparatus comprises a radiation absorption zone for receiving a gaseous flow carrying particulate matter. A transparent shield surrounds at least a portion of the radiation absorption zone. A radiation source for generating radiation and for directing the radiation into the radiation absorption zone to promote reduction of the particulate matter is provided, and an insulation layer at least partially surrounds the radiation source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Bahram Keramati, Mark Woodmansee, Aaron Simon, Roy Primus
  • Patent number: 7470878
    Abstract: Thawing is achieved by applying high-frequency power to a frozen material (R) sandwiched between opposing electrodes. A thawing section of a thawing apparatus (10) includes unit electrodes (302) for a first electrode group as a former stage, unit electrodes (303) for a second electrode group as a latter stage, and unit electrodes (304) for a third electrode group as a further stage. The unit electrodes (302) for the first electrode group are set so that the area of the electrode surface is smaller than the area of the sandwiched surface of the frozen material (R). The unit electrodes (303) for the second top electrode group are larger than the area of the unit electrodes (302) for the first electrode group. The unit electrodes (304) for the third electrode group are larger than the area of the unit electrodes (303) for the second electrode group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Yamamoto Vinita Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuji Yamamoto, Toshihiro Imahori
  • Patent number: 7470876
    Abstract: Heating and drying devices including generally rectangular waveguide applicators forming exposure chambers for uniformly heating materials. Material to be heated enters and exits a microwave exposure region of the chamber through entrance and exit ports at opposite ends of the chamber. Various techniques are used to achieve uniform or preferred heating effects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Industrial Microwave Systems, L.L.C.
    Inventors: Esther Drozd, J. Michael Drozd
  • Patent number: 7468498
    Abstract: A food package kit including a plurality of trays having a bottom, a sidewall extending upwardly from the bottom and terminating at a top end, and a flange extending from the sidewall opposite the bottom, the flange includes a rim section configured to receive a sealing film, and a recessed section extending from the rim section, wherein each of the opposed longitudinal edges intersect with a lateral edge at a corner, wherein the kit also includes a sleeve adapted to contain the trays completely therein, the sleeve including a sleeve top, a first depending sleeve side, and a second depending sleeve side and a sleeve bottom, wherein the tray is completely disposed within the sleeve by frictional force between the tray and the sleeve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2008
    Assignee: General Mills Marketing, Inc.
    Inventors: George A Tuszkiewicz, Richard L Mace
  • Patent number: 7465907
    Abstract: A microwave water heater, which utilizes a triple plenum design with bi-planar cross-flow to provide uniformly heated water for both baseboard room heating and hot tap water, is adaptable to existing heating/plumbing systems and is readily expandable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Inventors: Raymond Martino, William Percy
  • Patent number: 7462804
    Abstract: In order to prevent non-sheet passing portion temperature rise occurred in a non-sheet passing area of an electromagnetic induction heating member 1, leakage of magnetic flux is reduced by setting a Curie temperature of the heating member 1 to be smaller than an acceptable upper limit temperature and setting a thickness of the heating member so that a thickness tk in a Curie temperature arrival area (P1?P2) is larger than a thickness tn in a Curie temperature non-arrival area P2 which is a conveyance area of a material to be heated having a minimum passing size.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Jiro Shirakata, Shouhei Takeda, Koki Watanabe, Shinichiro Wakahara, Koji Takematsu, Koichiro Nishimura
  • Patent number: 7459659
    Abstract: A heating circuit for heating a conductive bowl includes a voltage source; a first heating coil provided between first and second nodes and being configured to heat the conductive bowl; a second heating coil provided between the second node and a third node and being configured to heat the conductive bowl; first capacitor and first switch provided in parallel between the first node and a fourth node; and second capacitor and second switch provided in parallel between the third node and the fourth node. The first and second heating coils define a circle-like shape having a center. The first and second heating coils are configured to be aligned to each other if one of the first and second heating coils is moved with respect to a line extending through the center of the circle-like shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: IXYS Corporation
    Inventors: Kyoung Wook Seok, Kang Rim Choi
  • Patent number: 7459658
    Abstract: An internal heating system for an image transfer drum is disclosed that can include a box having a plurality of sides, an open side facing the drum and a heater element. The box can have small gaps between it and the internal drum surface to maximize thermal efficiency of the internal heating system. The heater element can include first and second support structures that are disposed on a central support structure, the first support structure having an end connector at one side away from the second support structure. The heater system can also include at least two circuits, two channels and a relay switch, with the relay switch operating to switch the circuits into a series or parallel electrical configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Andrew W. Hays, Barry Daniel Reeves, William Bruce Weaver, Scott Phillips
  • Patent number: 7456376
    Abstract: A device for the display and cooking of kernels of corn for making popcorn, includes a container with a base that can store kernels of corn and a compensating zone that can take up at least two positions, one folded and the other unfolded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2008
    Inventor: Francois Berthault
  • Patent number: 7449665
    Abstract: Apparatus for cooking food products on both sides thereof, comprising a base member associated to a bottom heating surface, a first electric heating element located between the base member and the bottom heating surface, an upper movable member associated to a top heating surface, a second electric heating element located between said upper member and said top heating surface, and one or more microwave generators housed in the base member; when said upper member is lowered, the top heating surface comes to lie opposite to the bottom heating surface so as to form a cooking cavity therebetween. Said first electric heating element is separated from the bottom heating surface by a hollow space and the microwave generator is placed in such position, with the use of appropriate wave-guide means, as to allow the microwaves issuing therefrom to propagate towards said hollow space and, eventually, towards the bottom surface of said bottom heating surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2008
    Assignee: Electrolux Professional SpA
    Inventors: Marino Fadelli, Franco Tassan Mangina, Marco Ulian, Roberto Dorigo
  • Patent number: 7449663
    Abstract: Apparatus and method for inductive heating wherein an internal inductive heating assembly is provided within a bore of a solid article. The heating assembly includes an interior coil inductively coupled to a portion of the article adjacent the bore to inductively heat the article. The heating assembly lacks an internal cooling mechanism and the coil thermally coupled to the adjacent article portion for transmission of heat from the coil to the article. A signal is provided to the coil to generate a magnetic flux for inductive heating of the adjacent article portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2008
    Assignee: iTherm Technologies, L.P.
    Inventors: Valery Kagan, Kyle B. Clark, Wayne N. Collette, Stefan von Buren
  • Patent number: 7446285
    Abstract: The present invention provides a combination weighing apparatus (1) capable of eliminating the need for memo paper for messages and reminders. A memory (22) of a control unit (20), which comprehensively controls the operation of the combination weighing apparatus (1), is provided with a memo information storage unit (22b) that stores memo information. In addition, the control unit (20) is provided with a retrieval control unit (21a) that retrieves memo information stored in the memo information storage unit (22b), and a display control unit (21b) for displaying the memo information retrieved by the retrieval control unit (21a). Furthermore, a touch screen (30), which is a memo information input means for inputting memo information, is connected, capable of sending and receiving signals, to the control unit (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2008
    Assignee: Ishida Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroe Konishi, Yukari Uchida
  • Patent number: 7446287
    Abstract: An induction heating cooker has a top plate, a heating coil, an inverter circuit, a pot type discriminator, a non-magnetic-metal buoyancy reducing plate having a high electrical conductivity, an infrared sensor, a temperature calculator, and a controller. The pot type discriminator judges whether a pot is made of a non-magnetic metal material having a high electrical conductivity, or a magnetic metal material or a non-magnetic metal lower in electrical conductivity than aluminum. The temperature calculator calculates the temperature of the pot from an output from the infrared sensor that detects infrared radiation from the pot. The controller controls an output from the inverter circuit according to a calculated temperature by the temperature calculator, and, when the pot is judged to be made of a non-magnetic metal material by the pot type discriminator, nullifies temperature detection made by the temperature calculator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2008
    Assignee: Matsushita Electrical Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Tominaga, Kenji Watanabe, Chika Mae
  • Patent number: 7442906
    Abstract: In an induction heating coil for heating a shaft member having multiple steps, annular conductors are separately disposed in the axis direction, the annular conductors having inner diameters so as to form predetermined gaps with outer peripheries of heating portions of the shaft member, the lengths of annular conductors (1, 2, and 3) are set so that the areas of the respective heating portions are approximately equal to each other, and the annular conductors are connected to each other in series, so that the respective step shaft portions of the shaft member are uniformly heated. The annular conductors described above may be formed to have shapes in conformity with the shapes of the heating portions of the shaft member and may be formed to have a step shape corresponding to steps of the shaft member having different outer diameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2008
    Assignee: Neturen Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yoshimasa Tanaka, Takeshi Endoh, Yutaka Kiyosawa, Fumiaki Ikuta, Takashi Horino, Masayuki Komatsu, Jun Fujie, Takeshi Yoshikawa
  • Patent number: 7432484
    Abstract: The invention relates to a high frequency heating apparatus and provides a tracking method of a frequency modulation in order to prevent an extension of the harmonic current component of an oscillation threshold ebm which varies from moment to moment in accordance with a change in the temperature of a magnetron. A driving signal for driving a first semiconductor switching element (3) and a second semiconductor switching element (4) is transmitted to a driving control IC unit (14), and an input reference signal Ref is used to perform an input current fixed control. In this case, a variation amount of the input current of the input reference signal Ref is understood as an accumulation information POW and a constant is optimally configured in a resistor network in an ebm-tracking bias circuit (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideaki Moriya, Haruo Suenaga, Shinichi Sakai, Nobuo Shirokawa, Manabu Kinoshita
  • Patent number: 7432479
    Abstract: Heating devices and methods which are particularly useful in vending machines for hot Foods. Foods such as beverages contained in individual containers such as cans are rapidly heated to serving temperature by induction heating for delivery to a customer. Various types of foods with food by varying the power and timing of the inductive heating. The type of food is identified by machine-readable indicia on the container which are automatically scanned prior to heating. The food containers may be agitated before, during and/or after heating to mix the contents and distribute heat evenly. The containers are heated in a vertical orientation to safely heat the food without overheating or damage to the container. A power management protocol turns off non-essential components of the vending machine while the inductive heater is energized to permit the vending machine to operate on a standard 120 VAC, 15 A electrical circuit without overload.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Assignee: Pepsico, Inc.
    Inventors: Jose G. Avendano, William W. Segiet, Leslie L. Thompson
  • Patent number: 7432482
    Abstract: A microwave energy emitter (108) is positioned in a chamber within a material holding cavity of a containment vessel (106) that is transparent to microwave energy absorption that is further surrounded by a microwave reflective component to reflect the waves back into the vessel. The vessel (106) encloses a material that absorbs microwave energy through molecular vibration of its molecules. An inlet path (116) and outlet path (112) is provided for the material to flow in and out of the vessel upon predetermined conditions. Heated material can be condensed via a condenser (124) into a collection vessel (120). A controller (126) is provided to send control signals to switching device for controlling the material flow and receiving sensing signals for decision generation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Inventor: Steven R. Sedlmayr
  • Patent number: 7429721
    Abstract: A heating apparatus using an electromagnetic wave is disclosed, by which cut-of performance of an electromagnetic wave is enhanced by increasing an electromagnetic wave absorption bandwidth having cut-off performance below ?70 dB. The present invention includes a door provided to an open front side of a body to be opened/closed and a choke filter having a panel type choke part arranged by at least one row each along an edge of the door and a filter part arranged by at least one row each along an edge of the choke part and having a plurality of slots, wherein a prescribed choke part is provided to a most inner side among rows of the choke and filter part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2008
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Eung Su Kim, Jin Yul Hu, Sung Hun Sim
  • Patent number: 7425692
    Abstract: In a system for thermally processing materials, at least one slot eductor is disposed in a wall or roof surface of the furnace chamber to provide circulation of gas within the furnace chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2008
    Assignee: BTU International, Inc.
    Inventors: Gary Orbeck, Donald A. Seccombe, Jr.