Patents Examined by Rexford N. Barnie
  • Patent number: 12047010
    Abstract: An electrical system can include a first bidirectional AC-DC converter having an input couplable to a grid connection and an output couplable to a battery and a second bidirectional AC-DC converter having an input couplable to the grid connection or a convenience outlet and an output couplable to the battery. The electrical system can further include a controller that controls the first and second converters to operate in a plurality of modes including a two-stage charging mode in which the first and second converters operate in a forward direction to charge the battery, a single-stage charging mode in which the first converter operates in a forward direction to charge the battery and the second converter operates in a reverse direction to power the convenience outlet, and a non-charging mode in which the first converter is idle and the second converter operates in a reverse direction to power the convenience outlet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Ashish K. Sahoo, Jie Lu, Brandon Pierquet, Anish Prasai
  • Patent number: 12046947
    Abstract: An electrical system operable to supply power from at least one of a primary power source or a standby power source to one or more electrical loads. The electrical system is configured to be provided between an electricity meter and a meter socket. The electrical system includes a housing, a plurality of contacts configured to be coupled with the meter, the meter socket, and a transfer switch. The transfer switch includes a first switch configured to selectively connect the primary power source to the one or more electrical loads, a second switch configured to selectively connect the standby power source to the one or more electrical loads, and an electrical control logic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Briggs & Stratton, LLC
    Inventors: Michael Miller, Kyle Perea
  • Patent number: 12043124
    Abstract: A vehicle power system includes at least one main switch to electrically connect a traction battery and electric machine, at least one DC charge switch to electrically connect the traction battery and a DC charge port when the at least one main switch is closed, and a controller to, while the DC charge port is disconnected from a DC power source, sequentially close the at least one DC charge switch and then the at least one main switch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Graham Lynn Briggs, Yuan Zhang, Jonathan Andrew Butcher, Wai Hwa Fong
  • Patent number: 12043191
    Abstract: A vehicle starting power supply is provided, which includes a control module; a charging and discharging circuit, an input of which is connected with an output of the control module, the charging and discharging circuit being configured for charging and discharging a lithium battery; a battery voltage detection circuit, an input of which is connected with an automobile battery, an output of the battery voltage detection circuit being connected with an input of the control module; a battery reverse connection detection circuit, an input of which is connected with the automobile battery, an output of the battery reverse connection detection circuit being connected with the input of the control module; an alarm response circuit, an input of which is connected with the output of the control module; and a relay driving circuit being configured for connecting or disconnecting a discharge circuit between the lithium battery and the automobile battery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Zhejiang Safemate Automotive Safety & Emergency Technology Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Zhonghua Wu, Naixing Wang
  • Patent number: 12046897
    Abstract: A method for operating a fuel cell system includes drawing a base level DC electric energy from a first fuel cell of a first type to a combined DC bus, measuring a DC voltage at the combined DC bus, determining whether the DC voltage at the combined DC bus falls short of a DC voltage threshold, and drawing a variable DC electric energy from a second fuel cell of a second type different from the first type in response to determining that the DC voltage at the combined DC bus falls short of the DC voltage threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: BLOOM ENERGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Prasad Pmsvvsv, Jayakumar Krishnadass
  • Patent number: 12047197
    Abstract: A low-voltage distribution board and a direct current fast charging (DCFC) system including the low-voltage distribution board are provided. The DCFC system includes a power supply and a plurality of loads connected by a serial bus. The low-voltage distribution board includes a first input connector configured to receive power from the first power supply, and a first plurality of output connectors configured to be connected to the first plurality of loads. The low-voltage distribution board further includes a first current distribution circuit configured to provide, through the first plurality of output connectors, the received power from the first power supply to the first plurality of loads, and an identification (ID) assignment circuit configured to provide, through the first plurality of output connectors, different ID values to each of the first plurality of loads.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Rivian IP Holdings, LLC
    Inventors: Ming Li, Steven Schulz, Yang Liu, Tyler Erikson
  • Patent number: 12040709
    Abstract: A switching power supply device includes a first switch with a first terminal connectable to an application terminal for the input voltage and a second terminal connectable to the first terminal of an inductor; a second switch with a first terminal connectable to the first terminal of the inductor and a second terminal connectable to an application terminal for a voltage lower than the input voltage; a third switch with a first terminal connectable to the first terminal of the inductor and a second terminal connectable to the second terminal of the inductor; a detector; and a controller. The controller produces, after occurrence or a sign of occurrence of an overshoot in the output voltage is detected by the detector until settlement of the overshoot in the output voltage, a control state in which to keep the first and second switches off and the third switch on.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kosuke Sato, Tetsuo Tateishi, Shingo Hashiguchi, Isao Takobe, Yuhei Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 12040631
    Abstract: Systems, methods, computer readable media and vehicles that leverage multipath wireless transmissions operations within multipath signaling environment. A transceiver according to the present technology includes at least one antenna. The transceiver also includes a controller coupled to the at least one antenna. The controller identifies one or more least lossy paths over which a wireless signal was received via the at least one antenna. The controller also determines a time offset or a phase offset for the at least one antenna for transmission of a responsive wireless signal to the wireless device over the one or more least lossy paths using the at least one antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Assignee: Ossia Inc.
    Inventors: Hatem Ibrahim Zeine, Siamak Ebadi
  • Patent number: 12040612
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing one or more loads powered by an alternating current power source in order to prevent and mitigate overloads and other abnormal conditions of the power source. The management includes monitoring the amount of power supplied to one or more or all loads by the power source and selectively connecting, disconnecting, limiting and controlling various loads which are powered thereby. The method and apparatus include conveying information by use of AC frequency to controllable loads and load control devices, the frequency relating to the amount of power being supplied by the power source, overloading and other power source conditions. The amount of power consumed by the loads is controllable by the loads and load control devices in response to the frequency of the AC power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Inventor: J. Carl Cooper
  • Patent number: 12040657
    Abstract: An uninterruptible power supply, UPS, arrangement for subsea applications, including a container arranged and configured for subsea operation, and the following main modules arranged inside the container: at least one battery module of a predetermined battery capacity; at least one UPS module governing the battery module, the UPS module having a predetermined UPS capacity; at least one control module configured for interfacing and managing the battery module and the UPS module. The UPS arrangement is arranged and configured to vary its overall capacity based on at least the number of battery and UPS modules, wherein the at least one battery module and the at least one UPS module are internally arranged such that the heat losses from the UPS module are used to heat the battery module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Assignee: ABB Schweiz AG
    Inventors: Paul Midtun, John Pretlove, Nicola Notari, Silvio Colombi, Helge Kolstad, Paolo Catapane
  • Patent number: 12040632
    Abstract: Object detection in wireless power systems and related system, methods, and devices are disclosed. A controller for a wireless power transmitter includes a measurement voltage potential input terminal and a processing core. The processing core is to determine an average of peak to peak amplitude differences present in sampled measurement voltage potentials for each of the plurality of transmit coils, determine a lowest average of the peak to peak amplitude differences, and select a transmit coil corresponding to the lowest average of the peak to peak amplitude differences to transmit wireless power to a receive coil of a wireless power receiver. A wireless power system includes a tank circuit selectively including any one of a plurality of transmit coils.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Assignee: Microchip Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: Santosh Bhandarkar, Alex Dumais
  • Patent number: 12040610
    Abstract: A power control device for use in an AC power grid for regulating an electrical power a load that is supplied by the AC power grid consumes. The power control device has a frequency sensing functional block for detecting a deviation of the grid frequency from a nominal grid frequency and a logic functional block for performing a load adjustment process during which the power the load consumption is reduced. The load adjustment process is based at least in part on the variation of the frequency of the AC power grid. The load adjustment process is design such that for a plurality of power control devices the individual response produce a grid-wide effect that compensates imbalance between power generation and load in fashion that may reduce unwanted distortion in the AC power grid, such as flicker.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2024
    Inventors: Sylvain Soulieres, Simon Jasmin, Francois Laurencelle, Alain Moreau, Claude Villemure, Stephane Boyer
  • Patent number: 12034324
    Abstract: An electrified vehicle may include a plurality of electric drive units, a plurality of battery packs, a plurality of charge ports and a plurality of controllable switches. The switches may be controlled to flexibly configure power transfer into and out of the vehicle through one or more charge ports affecting one or more battery packs in parallel or individually passively or actively through inverter integrated converter charge transfer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2024
    Assignee: GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
    Inventors: Chandra S. Namuduri, Rashmi Prasad, Minh-Khai Nguyen
  • Patent number: 12034300
    Abstract: Cloud based energy systems and methods for managing the cloud based energy systems are disclosed. A cloud based energy system (may be referred to simply as “energy cloud”) in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure may be configured to share its energy resources and data to various energy-producing, energy-consuming, and/or energy-storage devices connected to the energy cloud. Such a configuration may enable ubiquitous, on-demand access to a shared pool of configurable energy resources, providing users with various capabilities to store and to retrieve energy as needed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2024
    Inventors: Song Ci, Marvin Ci
  • Patent number: 12024101
    Abstract: A power distribution unit for a vehicle including an enclosure and power distributing means for distributing electrical power between a battery and a load application, the enclosure including an external casing and an internal casing having a faceplate and a mounting plate, the mounting plate having upper dielectric partitions protruding upward from a top face of the mounting plate, and the power distributing means being mounted on the mounting plate, wherein the upper dielectric partitions are configured to both maintain a separation between different voltage groups and define an insulating barrier between components of the power distributing means, the internal cartridge is configured to be inserted into the external casing, and the enclosure is configured to be sealed from an external environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Assignee: SAFT AMERICA
    Inventors: Ali Zenati, Theodore Brown, James A. Markert
  • Patent number: 12027862
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is described for conveying the amount of loading of a power source to a load control device by controlling the frequency of the AC power output from that power source in a manner that controlled frequency represents the loading. At a different location in the power system, the frequency is measured and the corresponding loading of the power source is used to prevent or alleviate a power source overload.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Inventor: J. Carl Cooper
  • Patent number: 12027914
    Abstract: A method for operation of UPS modules connected in parallel is provided. The method includes: in a case that a UPS system is constructed based on multiple UPS modules connected in parallel, sleeping, based on a system load rate, a predetermined number of UPS modules to control the UPS system to operate at a predetermined efficiency level; controlling UPS modules not being slept in the UPS system to enter into a main-inverter power supply mode or a main-bypass common mode to perform reactive power and harmonic compensation; and waking up the slept UPS modules when the system load rate drops by a predetermined value due to a sudden addition of a load. The UPS modules can be slept or waked up intelligently based on the system load rate in the dynamic online mode, ensuring that the UPS system operates around highest efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Assignee: Vertiv Corporation
    Inventors: Dong Zhang, Chao Wang, Longyun Zhang
  • Patent number: 12027986
    Abstract: A power system includes a traction battery, an auxiliary battery, and a 3-phrase resonant DC/DC converter that permits charge and discharge of the traction battery, and includes a 3-phase transformer, 3-phase matching capacitors, and 3-phase resonant inductors. The vehicle also includes auxiliary circuitry that permits charge of the auxiliary battery with power from the traction battery, and is magnetically coupled with the 3-phase transformer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Mohamed Elshaer, Chingchi Chen
  • Patent number: 12027870
    Abstract: Systems and methods for power and data distribution on an aircraft. One embodiment provides an aircraft comprising a plurality of nodes, a power system controller, and an aircraft controller. Each node is connected to a plurality of LRUs, and each node includes a node controller. The power system controller is configured to control power distribution to each node. The aircraft controller is configured to transmit data to each node and to receive data from each node. The node controller includes an electronic processor and a memory. The node controller is configured to control power to the plurality of LRUs, receive first data from at least one LRU of the plurality of LRUs, and provide the first data to the aircraft controller. The node controller is further configured to receive second data from the aircraft controller and provide the second data to at least one LRU of the plurality of LRUs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation
    Inventors: Robert F. Longley, John Chellgren, Christopher Patrick Sullivan
  • Patent number: 12027871
    Abstract: An electric power supply system for an aircraft includes: a first electric source and a second electric source coupled together to supply electric power to a set of electrical loads, and a controller configured to acquire a piece of information on the current electric consumption consumed by the set of electrical loads; acquire a piece of information corresponding to a target ratio of the distribution, between the first and second electric sources, of the current electric consumption consumed by the set of electrical loads; perform frequency filtering of the current electric consumption to determine a transient consumption portion of the current electric consumption; determine control setpoints for the first electric source and for the second electric source in accordance with the target distribution ratio and with the transient consumption portion; and apply the control setpoints to the first and second electric sources.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2024
    Assignee: Airbus Operations SAS
    Inventors: Matthieu Bradier, Ludovic Lam Shang Leen