Patents Examined by Timothy S. Thorpe
  • Patent number: 7090474
    Abstract: A diaphragm pump which overcomes the problem of diaphragm failure due to overfill of the oil transfer chamber. An overfill preventive element in the form of a mechanical stop, a fully closed coil spring, or a valve system, or alternatives are provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2006
    Assignee: Wanner Engineering, Inc.
    Inventors: Kenneth Eugene Lehrke, Richard D. Hembree
  • Patent number: 7083395
    Abstract: Under one aspect of the present invention, a liquefied gas pump assembly is coupleable to a source of liquefied gas. A cooling assembly is positioned generally adjacent to a pump module. The cooling assembly has a converging pump-head-receiving aperture, a fluid inlet line and a fluid outlet line in fluid communication with the source of liquefied gas and in fluid communication with the pump-head-receiving aperture. A pump head assembly is removably retained in the pump-head-receiving aperture so that a portion of the cooling assembly is between the pump head assembly and the pump module. The pump head assembly has a converging shape and being sized to engage the cooling assembly in a wedged configuration when the pump assembly is in an installed position in the cooling assembly. The pump head assembly has a fluid inlet pathway abutting in sealable engagement with the fluid inlet line of the cooling assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2006
    Inventors: Romaine Maiefski, Jon Guy
  • Patent number: 7070399
    Abstract: A variable displacement pump has a cam ring, a rotor, a plurality of vanes, a pressure plate and a rear body. The cam ring is accommodated within a pump body. The rotor rotates within the cam ring. The plurality of vanes are inserted retractably into slits formed at regular intervals circumferentially in the rotor. The pressure plate and the rear body carry the cam ring and the rotor. A circular groove communicating to a back pressure inlet bore on a bottom portion of the slits is formed in a suction area on a face of the rear body on a side of the rotor. The groove is communicated via a communication passage to a passage between a power steering gear and a tank T to introduce a working oil after used in the power steering gear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2006
    Assignee: Unisia JKC Steering Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideo Konishi, Kazuyoshi Uchino, Haruo Okamoto
  • Patent number: 7066722
    Abstract: A compressor assembly including a compressor mechanism, a compression chamber and a discharge chamber. A discharge port provides fluid communication between the compression chamber and the discharge chamber. A valve seat circumscribes the discharge port. A discharge valve member having a valve head, a biasing section and a valve support is provided and may be formed out of a single integral part. The valve head is engageable with the valve seat. A non-threaded coupling member may mount the valve support to the cylinder block of the compressor mechanism. A guide member engageable with the biasing section of the valve member may also be provided. The valve head may include a second concave surface positioned opposite the surface engageable with the valve seat and have an effective area larger than the discharge port area. The valve head and valve seat may each be partially spherical surfaces having a common radius.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2006
    Assignee: Tecumseh Products Company
    Inventors: Nelik I Dreiman, Rick L Bunch
  • Patent number: 7059839
    Abstract: A substantially horizontal compressor including a housing having a main body portion with an open end. An end cap is secured to the main body portion with the end cap being provided with a plurality of apertures. The hermetic terminal body of the compressor is sealably fitted into one of the plurality of apertures located in the end cap. One of the apertures is sealably fitted with a heater well in which a substantially cylindrical heater element is removably received. A third aperture may be provided in the end cap in which a sight glass is sealably secured for checking the oil level in the oil sump. An indentation is formed in the end cap to increase the rigidity of the end cap. The proximity of the terminal assembly and heater well allows the wiring therefor to be part of the same wiring harness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2006
    Assignee: Tecumseh Products Company
    Inventors: David K. Haller, Robin G. Skinner
  • Patent number: 7059840
    Abstract: An apparatus for pumping fluid through tubing comprising a stop platen is disclosed. The stop platen is operatively arranged to depress a wall of the tubing along a section of a longitudinal axis of the tubing. The stop platen is narrower than the tubing along a transverse axis of the tubing. The invention further comprises a cabinet containing the stop platen, a door rotatably fixed to the cabinet, and locking means for preventing rotation of the door. The locking means are operatively arranged to be unlocked by a tubing occluder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2006
    Assignee: SIGMA International
    Inventors: Kenneth J. Corwin, Roger L. Hungerford, Yuriy Shvetsov, Michael H. Wollowitz
  • Patent number: 7056104
    Abstract: A compressor unit has a compressor main body, an electrical circuit device and a connector. The electrical circuit device is electrically connected to the compressor main body through a cable. The cable has a proximal end and a distal end. One of the compressor main body and the electrical circuit device is integrally connected to the cable at the proximal end of the cable, and the other has a terminal thereon. The connector is provided at the distal end of the cable and is detachably connected to the terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2006
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toyota Jidoshokki
    Inventors: Kazuya Kimura, Kazuhiro Kuroki, Hiroyuki Gennami, Ken Suitou
  • Patent number: 7052242
    Abstract: A multi-fan assembly includes: a down rod assembly having a first end for fixing to a ceiling wall and having a second end provided with a canopy, a rotary assembly being fixed to a lower end of the down rod assembly and covered by the canopy. At both sides of the rotary assembly is provided with a fixed arm for connecting with a member fan respectively, a pair of vertical oscillating means are disposed between the fixed arm and the member fan, and a speed control device is mounted on the rotary assembly and then covered by the canopy of the down rod assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2006
    Inventor: Chia-Teh Chen
  • Patent number: 7052255
    Abstract: An apparatus for changing capacity of scroll compressor comprises: a seal member movably installed on one of facing surfaces of a fixed scroll so as to seal a compression space made by the fixed scroll and orbiting scroll; a back pressure passage formed to be communicated from a point, where the seal member is contacted, to an outer circumferential surface of fixed scroll; an exhaust pipe installed on outer circumferential surface of the fixed scroll to be communicated with back pressure passage; and an exhaust pipe opening/closing valve installed on center part of exhaust pipe to open/close the exhaust pipe selectively, and thereby, sealability can be improved and low capacity can be outputted without decelerating orbiting scroll in low capacity operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2006
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Sog Kie Hong, Hong Hee Park
  • Patent number: 7048517
    Abstract: The invention is a device and method in a high-pressure chromatography system, such as a supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) system, that uses a pump as a pressure source for precision pumping of a compressible fluid. The preferred exemplary embodiment comprises a pressure regulation assembly installed downstream from a compressible fluid pump but prior to combining the compressible flow with a relatively incompressible modifier flow stream. The present invention allows the replacement of an high-grade SFC pump in the compressible fluid flow stream with an inexpensive and imprecise pump. The imprecise pump becomes capable of moving the compressible fluid flow stream in a precise flow rate and pattern. The assembly dampens the damaging effects of an imprecise pump, such as large pressure oscillations caused by flow ripples and noisy pressure signals that do not meet precise SFC pumping requirements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2006
    Assignee: Mettler-Toledo AutoChem, Inc.
    Inventors: Terry A. Berger, Kimber D. Fogelman, Kenneth Klein, L. Thompson Staats, III, Mark Nickerson, Paul F. Bente, III
  • Patent number: 7037089
    Abstract: A cooling fan with dual blade sets has an impeller formed by a rotatable hub, a stator assembly, and a shell. A plurality of mini blades and a plurality of guide blades are respectively formed on a bottom surface and an external surface of the rotatable hub. The impeller has a plurality of holes defined on the bottom surface being arranged in a circle adjacent to the mini blades. Therefore when the impeller rotates, the mini blades are able to drive out the heat in an inner space between the impeller and the shell through the holes to outside.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2006
    Inventor: Hsin-Mao Hsieh
  • Patent number: 7037082
    Abstract: The present invention provides a pump for generating an Electroosmotic Flow (EOF) in a solution in a canal, guide, pipe or equivalent. Electroosmotic flow is generated by application of an electric field through a solution in a canal defined by insulating walls. The phenomenon depends on ionisation of sites on the surface so that for electroneutrality there is an excess mobile charge in the solution. The electric field acts on the excess charge in the solution causing the fluid to flow. The quantity and distribution of excess charge in the solution depends on the solution and the surface materials and is related to a parameter, the zeta (z) potential characterising material/solution combinations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2006
    Assignee: Sophion Bioscience A/S
    Inventors: Rafael Taboryski, Jonatan Kutchinsky, Morten Bech
  • Patent number: 7033149
    Abstract: A medium pump for a motor includes a pump case with a pump cylinder and a pump piston positioned displacaebly in the pump cylinder in the direction of a pump axle. The pump piston rotates about the pump axle by running off an oblique control surface and realizes axial pump movements against the pressure of a first spring. A pump lift adjusting device is removably positioned in a guide placed transversely to the pump axle and fixedly connected with the pump case.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2006
    Assignee: Dolmar GmbH
    Inventors: Johannes Lügger, Carsten Ziegs
  • Patent number: 7029245
    Abstract: A unit for pumping fluid, particularly blood, is provided with an enclosure that has two half-shells and an elastic membrane fixed perimetrically to the enclosure in order to divide its space into two parts. One of the half-shells is provided with valves that are located at the opening of two connecting ducts for the intake and delivery of the fluid, and the other half-shell is connected to a line of working fluid that is alternately pressurized and depressurized. The first valve is a disk-shaped sheet made of elastic material. The first valve is in a central position with a support that is fixed to the opening of the first duct for connection to the outside and is suitable to rest at its peripheral region on the support. A second valve is a sheet of elastic material located at the peripheral region of the disk at the opening of the second duct for connection to the outside which lies at the peripheral region of the opening of the first duct.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2006
    Assignee: Sorin Group Italia S.r.l.
    Inventors: Edgardo Costa Maianti, Nicola Ghelli, Ivo Panzani
  • Patent number: 7029241
    Abstract: A rotary piston machine includes a first spheroidal element including pistons and/or cylinders and a second spheroidal element including pistons and/or cylinders, wherein the first element can move relative to the second element. The machine can be used as part of a pump, compressor, or engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2006
    Inventor: Patrick Wade Rousset
  • Patent number: 7025574
    Abstract: An electric fuel pump includes a pump proper (1) having a pump body (2) that includes an induction orifice (3), a delivery orifice (4), and electrical terminals (5,6). A cage (7) is arranged around said pump body. A filtering element (15) is connected to the cage and communicates with the induction orifice. A tubular vibration damping element (16) is arranged about the cage. A pump casing (17) is assembled about the vibration damping element so that the vibration damping element is disposed between the pump casing and the cage to prevent contact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2006
    Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Hugues Cremer, Christian Gerard Hillard
  • Patent number: 7023167
    Abstract: Apparatus for driving a three-phase compressor assembly from a single-phase electrical power supply having first and second power lines, said three-phase compressor assembly comprising a compressor having a rotatable shaft, an electrical motor having a rotatable shaft coupled to the rotatable shaft of the compressor, the electrical motor having at least first, second and third motor windings and having at least first, second and third terminals connected to the first, second and third windings, means adapted to connect the first and second power lines of the single-phase power supply to the first and second terminals and a torque augmentation circuit for injecting current into the third terminal and including a capacitor and an electrical component in series with the capacitor, said electrical component having resistive characteristics and having means for essentially interrupting the current being injected into the third terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2006
    Inventor: Otto J. M. Smith
  • Patent number: 7014432
    Abstract: A fuel pump includes a housing, a pump section, a motor section including a commutator, a cover disposed at one end of the housing, a pair of brushes disposed in a pair of brush holes formed in the cover to be in contact with the commutator; and a pair of brush springs, disposed in a pair of spring holes formed in the cover, and an engaging member for restricting the brushes to move toward the motor section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2006
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventor: Eiji Iwanari
  • Patent number: 7003838
    Abstract: This invention relates to a hydraulic pig advance system comprising a control volume chamber containing hydraulic fluid and a force transmitting member. The system further comprises two directional control valves which can be selectively repositioned to cause hydraulic fluid to cycle the force transmitting member back and force such that in each cycle, a metered amount of hydraulic is transmitted into a pig housing where it causes a pig to move a predetermined distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2006
    Assignee: Oceaneering International, Inc.
    Inventor: Michael Cunningham
  • Patent number: 7004732
    Abstract: The fan shroud assembly includes: a rectangular-shaped plenum having a first plenum portion of a larger side and a second plenum portion of a smaller side, which are mounted eccentrically; a fan shroud formed on an air discharge side of the plenum and having a airflow guide portion, in which a fan having a blade and a band for connecting the outer end of the blade, is positioned; and a motor for driving the fan, wherein a connection point between the first plenum portion and the airflow guide portion is located within a height (BH) of the band, and wherein a height (H1) from the bottom of the plenum to connection point between the first plenum portion and the airflow guide portion is higher than a height (H2) from the bottom of the plenum to connection point between the second plenum portion and the airflow guide portion satisfying H1>H2.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2006
    Assignee: Halla Climate Control Corporation
    Inventors: Kyungseok Cho, Seyoung Park, Changho Park