Patents Examined by Thomas C Diaz
  • Patent number: 11428045
    Abstract: A blind control for a window covering having a narrow profile; and particularly relates to a control module for a window shade where the location of the drive mechanism is selected to minimize the gap between the end of the window shade and inside edge of a window opening; locating the drive mechanism in a shell disposed in a housing to rigidify a reduced thickness of the drive so as to minimize the gap; and use a single rod depending from the control module to activate the drive mechanism in a safe and secure manner. The invention also includes a housing with an end wall adjacent one end of the shade; a clutch projecting from said end wall and rotatable about a clutch axis, a drive gear engageable at one end of the clutch for rotatably driving said clutch and shade, said drive gear disposed in said housing adjacent said end wall; and a wand for driving said drive gear. The invention provides for a wand to raise and lower the window shade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: MAXXMAR INC.
    Inventor: Norbert Marocco
  • Patent number: 11416020
    Abstract: An integrated driving control device configured to integrally control acceleration, deceleration, shifting and steering of a vehicle, may include a knob unit, a rotating unit engaged to the knob unit and configured to control steering of a vehicle in a response to rotation of the knob unit, and a sliding unit engaged to the rotating unit and configured to control acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle in a response to sliding movement of the knob unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors Corporation, SL Corporation
    Inventors: Jee Hyuck Choi, Gi Man Park, Hong Jun Cha
  • Patent number: 11413718
    Abstract: The present invention provides a rotation indexing device where a shaft of a rotary joint is configured so that an outlet of a supply path opens to a lower surface of a flange part, a jig plate is formed to have a through-hole in which the flange part of the shaft is arranged and a flow path formed so that an inlet opens to a lower surface of the jig plate, and the jig plate is directly attached to a main shaft. Also, the rotation indexing device includes an adapter that is provided in contact with the flange part of the shaft and the jig plate and has a communication path for communicating the outlet of the supply path in the shaft and the inlet of the flow path in the jig plate each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: TSUDAKOMA KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Masao Kiriki
  • Patent number: 11414058
    Abstract: A parking brake device includes a toggle mechanism including a base member, a connecting member, a brake lever, a junction member that connects an intermediate position of the brake lever with the connecting member. The junction member includes two junction parts that are connected to each other and are rotatable relative to each other. During a process of an operation of the braking lever from a non-operating state of the parking brake device to an operating state of the parking brake device, the two junction parts integrally rotate when an operation angle of the brake lever is equal to or less than a predetermined angle, and one of the two junction parts connected to the intermediate position of the brake lever is rotatable about a connecting portion where the two junction parts are connected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOYOTA JIDOSHOKKI
    Inventors: Kenichi Wada, Satoru Masuda, Tomoya Sugiyama, Koichi Kuboniwa
  • Patent number: 11407441
    Abstract: A steering gear for a steering system of a motor vehicle includes a housing, a gearwheel, a pinion meshing with the gearwheel, and a pinion shaft with the pinion. The pinion shaft is mounted on one side of the pinion in a floating bearing that includes a rotary bearing that receives the pinion shaft. The rotary bearing is connected to a stop element, which is simultaneously arranged displaceably and non-rotatably within a receiving space. The pivoting mobility of the pinion shaft guided by a fixed bearing, on the other side of the pinion, is limited by a stop between the stop element and a wall of the receiving space. The stop element and the receiving space are configured such that, only in the event of such a stop, pivoting mobility of the pinion shaft is blocked about an axis oriented perpendicular to the pivot axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Jens-Uwe Hafermalz, Dennis Fuechsel
  • Patent number: 11396976
    Abstract: An axle assembly that includes a housing assembly and a dipstick assembly. The housing assembly may at least partially define a cavity that receives a lubricant. At least a portion of the dipstick assembly may be removably mountable to the housing assembly and may include a fitting and a dipstick.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2022
    Assignee: ArvinMeritor Technology, LLC
    Inventors: Andrew Bodary, Mailys Eichsteadt, Ginger St. Cyr, Florin Patrascu
  • Patent number: 11391362
    Abstract: A gearbox system for a rotorcraft includes a gearbox housing, an oil pump receiving bore formed into the gearbox housing and having formed therein a first opening having a first diameter and a second opening, and an oil pump positioned within the oil pump receiving bore. The second opening is bounded by a lip that extends radially into the second opening, the second opening having a second diameter that is smaller than the first diameter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: Textron Innovations Inc.
    Inventors: Amanda Christine Savage, Charles Hubert Speller
  • Patent number: 11390353
    Abstract: An operating device for a human-powered vehicle comprises a base member and an operating member. The base member extends in a longitudinal direction. The base member includes a first end portion and a second end portion. The second end portion includes a cover portion provided on a reverse side of the first end portion in the longitudinal direction. The operating member includes an outer surface configured to face away from the first end portion in a rest state where the operating member is in a rest position. The cover portion is configured to be arranged on a pivotal movement track of the operating member so as to at least partly overlap with the outer surface of the operating member in the rest state as viewed in the longitudinal direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: SHIMANO INC.
    Inventors: Yuichiro Hidaka, Takuma Sakai, Yasuyuki Komada, Shun Kakehashi
  • Patent number: 11391346
    Abstract: A bearing adjustment assembly is provided. The assembly includes a worm engaged with a worm gear. The assembly also includes a worm bearing located proximate an end of the worm. The assembly further includes a spring disposed in a spring bore defined by the housing. The assembly yet further includes a compensation mechanism engaging the worm bearing and the spring, the compensation mechanism being adjustable to bias the worm bearing to maintain or adjust a gear mesh load between the worm gear and the worm, wherein compression of the spring adjusts the compensation mechanism biasing of the worm bearing. The assembly also includes a spring retainer comprising a pin retainer portion disposed within an interior of the spring, the pin retainer portion extending from a main body portion of the spring retainer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: Steering Solutions IP Holding Corporation
    Inventor: Daniel J. Diffin
  • Patent number: 11391349
    Abstract: A compact angular actuator allows for angular displacement between a first section and a second section. The first section comprises a cam that is circular in cross section and has a wedge-shaped face. The second section comprises two or more constraint components that are in contact with the face of the cam. A hinge joins the first section and the second section in proximity with one another. As the cam is rotated about an axis that is perpendicular to and extends through a center of the circular cross section, the position on the face that the constraint components are in contact with changes. As a result, a force is imparted between the first section and the second section, changing the angular displacement between the two. The actuator fits within a compact volume and allows for precise controlled angular displacement, while allowing that displacement to be maintained without power consumption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: AMAZON TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    Inventors: Chih-Wu Jen, John Edwin Johnston
  • Patent number: 11384816
    Abstract: Some embodiments of a gearbox for an irrigation system can comprise a housing, a worm gear within the housing, a bull gear within the housing and configured to be engaged with the worm gear, a diaphragm, and a vent. The diaphragm can define a chamber configured for expansion and contraction and configured to be positioned inside the housing to relieve pressure build-up within the housing. The vent can be configured to allow air to flow between the atmosphere and the chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2022
    Assignee: UNIVERSAL MOTION COMPONENTS CO., INC.
    Inventors: William F. Smith, Raymond Lee Call, II
  • Patent number: 11378062
    Abstract: A method of replacing components of a gearbox and a gearbox of the wind power plant for a wind turbine includes a gearbox with a sun gear couplable to a rotor of a wind power plant. The sun gear is arranged rotatably about a rotor axis. The gearbox has a plurality of satellite units and a plurality of generators. Each satellite unit has two gear shafts and one output shaft. The two gear shafts are respectively in engagement with the sun gear and the output shaft. Each generator is associated with one of the plurality of satellite units. The plurality of satellite units are arranged and distributed over a periphery of the sun gear and are operatively connected with the sun gear. The plurality of satellite units have a modular configuration design and are releasably arranged at the sun gear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: Universität Kassel
    Inventors: Christian Skaley, Marcel Lerner, Adrian Rienäcker, Alexander Dedekind, Sascha Umbach, Gerald Ochse
  • Patent number: 11377819
    Abstract: A cruise control system for work machines. The system comprises one or more levers for controlling the velocity of the work machine and one or more magnet assemblies. The magnet assemblies comprise means of overcoming the neutral bias of a control lever so that the velocity of the work machine may be maintained without manual input from the operator. The magnets may act directly upon a control lever or a surface adjacent a control lever. Additional controls may be employed to set a maximum cruising speed for the work machine when cruise control is engaged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: The Charles Machine Works, Inc.
    Inventors: Brant D. Kukuk, Christopher Trimble
  • Patent number: 11371599
    Abstract: The system and methods described herein provide a fan belt guard housing configured to contain a fan belt of a heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning (HVAC) unit. The fan belt guard housing includes a frame having a first lateral strut, a first flange extending from the first lateral strut, and a second flange extending from the first lateral strut, where the first flange is offset from the second flange to define a gap therebetween. The fan belt guard housing also includes an access panel configured to removably couple to the frame, where the access panel includes a cutout formed in an outer edge of the access panel, and the cutout is configured to align with the second flange of the frame such that the access panel can then slide along the first flange to position the outer edge of the access panel within the gap and capture the access panel between the first flange and the second flange in an installed configuration of the access panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2022
    Assignee: Johnson Controls Tyco IP Holdings LLP
    Inventors: Nitin C. Dabade, Vishal S. Jagtap, Ravindra B. Salunkhe, Vijay A. Ramakrishna Rao, Pavankumar R. Toraskar
  • Patent number: 11371282
    Abstract: A slat angle adjusting mechanism for a window blind includes a shell, a worm gear rotatably disposed in the shell, and a rotationally driving unit rotatably disposed in the shell and including combinable first and second rotationally driving shafts. The first rotationally driving shaft is located in the shell and has a worm portion engaged with the worm gear, a cone-shaped abutting portion and an embedding portion with non-circular cross-section, which are connected with the worm portion in order. A top end of the second rotationally driving shaft is located in the shell and has an axial hole with non-circular cross-section and two opposite fastening portions each formed at a terminal end thereof with a hooking claw. As a result, the first and second rotationally driving shafts are combinable by the consumer, preventing themselves and the slats from damage during packaging and transportation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2022
    Assignee: SHEEN WORLD TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Po-Yu Chen
  • Patent number: 11371600
    Abstract: A front axle assembly with an axle housing that has first and second housing halves that each include a main housing portion, a tubular portion and a steering yoke. The main housing portion defines a cavity that houses at least a portion of a speed differentiation mechanism. The tubular portions are fixedly coupled to an associated one of the main housing portions and extend between the main housing portion and an associated one of the steering yokes. Each steering yoke is fixedly coupled to an associated tubular portion. An annular joint structure is formed where the first and second first housing halves are coupled to one another. The annular joint structure is formed about the rotary axis such that one of the first and second housing halves is inserted into the other one of the first and second housing halves along an insertion axis that is coincident with the rotary axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2022
    Assignee: American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc.
    Inventors: Gregory A. Marsh, Jonathan P. Prichard, Frederick E. Zink, James P. Downs, Joseph M. Endreszl
  • Patent number: 11365796
    Abstract: A motion control apparatus in the form of a sealed rotary table (10) includes a first annular seal (54) located between a bearing cap (48) of a case and an inner diameter of a cylindrical flange (60), and a second annular seal (56) located between a seal ledge (22) of an annular wall (18) of the case and the outer diameter of the cylindrical flange (60). An enclosure (24), the annular wall (18) and a planar annular disc (16) are integrally formed as a single piece part of homogenous material. A drive station (12) includes a rotor (110) rotatably mounted inside an annular sleeve (118) by a bearing (140) inside an annular end cap (136) at an axial extent less than that of the annular sleeve (118). An encoder (150) is located within the annular end cap (136) and within the axial extent of the annular sleeve (118).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2022
    Assignee: NEXEN GROUP, INC.
    Inventors: Isaac Kenneth Klaehn, Anthony Will Kliber
  • Patent number: 11346437
    Abstract: A transmission assembly has a transmission housing, a hinged support and a transfer case which form separate structural units. The transmission housing includes at least one common connection point by which the hinged support and the transfer case are jointly coupled to the transmission housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Stefan Schoenberger
  • Patent number: 11338670
    Abstract: A transmission may include a housing and also a power electronics module, the power electronics module including a carrier element with at least one power switching element with a cooling surface and also a cooling body, which may be connected in a thermally conductive manner to the cooling surface of the at least one power switching element. The housing may have an oil space for at least partially accommodating transmission components. The power electronics module may be at least partially arranged inside the oil space of the transmission.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Thomas Maier, Hermann Josef Robin
  • Patent number: 11320038
    Abstract: A threaded fastener actuator that includes a worm-gear used to transfer rotational power to an impeller gear. The impeller gear includes a polygonal channel for receiving an actuator feature included in a threaded fastener. As the worm-gear is rotated, the impeller gear rotates about a vertical movement axis, which causes the threaded fastener contained in polygonal channel to also rotate and engage with a corresponding threaded coupler.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Inventor: Peter Baruch Mueller