Patents Examined by Travis Ruby
  • Patent number: 11598550
    Abstract: A heat pipe system including a heat pipe having a first end and a second end for transferring working fluid from the first to the second end, a first reservoir in fluid communication with the first end for holding working fluid in liquid form, a first heat exchanger for transmitting thermal energy from a heat source to working fluid in the first reservoir to vaporize the fluid, a second heat exchanger for transmitting thermal energy from vaporized working fluid to a heat sink thereby condensing the fluid, a return conduit and a pump for pumping the condensed working fluid along the return conduit, where the heat pipe, the return conduit and the first reservoir form a hermetically sealed circuit. A method of transferring thermal energy using a heat pipe system is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignee: Brunel University London
    Inventor: Hussam Jouhara
  • Patent number: 11598584
    Abstract: A dual heat transfer structure, comprising: at least a heat pipe and at least a vapor chamber; the heat pipe having a first end, an extension portion, and a second end, the first and second ends disposed at the two ends of the extension portion; the vapor chamber being concavely bent with its two ends being joined together and selectively compasses, encircles, encloses, or surrounds one of the first and second ends and extension portion. The dual heat transfer structure of the present invention is a complex structure that can both transfer heat with a large area and to the distal end of the structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignee: ASIA VITAL COMPONENTS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Sheng-Huang Lin
  • Patent number: 11592240
    Abstract: A loop-type heat pipe includes an evaporator configured to vaporize an operating fluid, a condenser configured to condense the operating fluid, a liquid pipe configured to connect the evaporator and the condenser, a vapor pipe configured to connect the evaporator and the condenser, a porous body provided in the liquid pipe, and a vapor moving path provided at a part in the liquid pipe separately from the porous body and extending from the evaporator along a longitudinal direction of the liquid pipe, the operating fluid vaporized in the evaporator moving in the vapor moving path. The vapor moving path has a flow path in which the operating fluid vaporized in the evaporator flows and a wall part surrounding the flow path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Assignee: SHINKO ELECTRIC INDUSTRIES CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Machida, Nobuyuki Kurashima
  • Patent number: 11592238
    Abstract: A heat exchanger comprises a stack of sets of fins and tubes attached to or encompassed by embossed plates comprising a void. In some embodiments, the fins overlap the void having a peripheral margin of the fin attached to the peripheral margin around the void. In some embodiments, the fins comprise through fluid apertures allowing lateral fluid flow. In some embodiments, the plates comprise lateral peripheral protrusions enabling selective sealing of gaps between adjacent stacked plates by unselective application of heat or adhesive to a face of the heat exchanger. In some embodiments, the plates comprise uniformizing protrusions in a fluid inlet and/or outlet zone that reduce the amount of non-uniform fluid mass flow between different channel protrusions of heat exchanging zones of the set. Also disclosed are methods for assembly and selective sealing of the heat exchanger and an apparatus comprising the same.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Assignee: WATERGEN LTD.
    Inventors: Sharon Dulberg, Arye Kohavi
  • Patent number: 11592189
    Abstract: A building envelope, in particular a wall, a floor, or a roof of a building with at least two shells spaced some distance apart from one another, which encloses an intermediate space, said space being essentially empty with the exception of weight-bearing and/or construction-engineering elements or being filled at least in sections with porous, open-celled material and sealed from the interior and exterior of the building, wherein controllable sealing means are provided for sealing the intermediate space from the interior and exterior and optionally separated building envelope sections from one other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2023
    Assignee: IIS INSTITUTE FOR INDEPENDENT STUDIES ZÜRICH GMBH
    Inventor: Julian Berchtold
  • Patent number: 11578795
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for regulating the temperature of rear axle lubrication oil. In one example, a rear axle coolant system may include a coolant loop with a plurality of valves and sensors, regulating the coolant flow in heat exchange relationship with an exhaust gas heat recovery and storage system to deliver warm coolant to a rear axle heat exchanger to warm the rear axle lubrication oil. The method may regulate the components of the rear axle coolant system through a controller, receiving sensor input from the components of the coolant system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Cary Cole, Sunil Katragadda, Phillip Bonkoski, David Karl Bidner, Michael Levin, Colby Jason Buckman, Danrich Henry Demitroff, Amey Y. Karnik, Furqan Shaikh
  • Patent number: 11573011
    Abstract: A building envelope, in particular a wall, a floor, or a roof of a building with at least two shells spaced some distance apart from one another, which encloses an intermediate space, said space being essentially empty with the exception of weight-bearing and/or construction-engineering elements or being filled at least in sections with porous, open-celled material and sealed from the interior and exterior of the building, wherein controllable sealing means are provided for sealing the intermediate space from the interior and exterior and optionally separated building envelope sections from one other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2023
    Assignee: IIS INSTITUTE FOR INDEPENDENT STUDIES ZÜRICH GMBH
    Inventor: Julian Berchtold
  • Patent number: 11566845
    Abstract: A stacked panel tube bundle for an air cooled steam condenser having two sets of condensing tubes, one set arranged above the other, the first (lower) set of tubes in direct fluid communication with a combined steam delivery/condensate collection manifold at a bottom end and in indirect fluid communication with a non-condensable collection manifold via an L-shaped extension member; the second (upper) set of tubes in direct fluid communication with the non-condensable collection manifold at the top, and in indirect fluid communication with the combined steam delivery/condensate collection manifold via an L-shaped extension member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: Evapco, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark Huber, Jean-Pierre Libert
  • Patent number: 11561053
    Abstract: A heat exchanger including a temperature control assembly and a heat exchange assembly is disclosed. A heat exchange channel is formed within the heat exchange assembly. A branch channel arranged in parallel with the heat exchange channel is provided within the heat exchanger. The heat exchanger has a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet. The temperature control assembly includes a valve body. A valve cavity in communication with the liquid inlet is provided in the valve body. A gap and a second valve port are provided at a peripheral wall of the valve body. An annular protrusion is provided on an inner wall of the valve cavity. The valve body is provided with a valve core and a drive component therein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2023
    Assignee: Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Haoming Qiu, Xiaojun Qian
  • Patent number: 11541721
    Abstract: A vehicular heat management system includes a refrigerant circulation line configured to cool or heat a passenger compartment by generating a hot air or a cold air depending on a flow direction of a refrigerant, a cooling water circulation line configured to heat the passenger compartment with waste heat of an engine by allowing cooling water of the engine to circulate through a heater core, a refrigerant-cooling water heat exchanger disposed in the cooling water circulation line to allow the refrigerant and the cooling water to exchange heat, and an engine cooling water independent circulation unit configured to allow the cooling water passed through the engine to bypass the heater core and the refrigerant-cooling water heat exchanger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: Hanon Systems
    Inventors: Doo Hoon Kim, Hyeon Gyu Kim, Kyung Ju An, Joong Man Han
  • Patent number: 11530877
    Abstract: A heat exchange device comprising phase change material-impregnated heat conductive foam disposed between fluid stream channels in a heat exchanger element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation
    Inventors: Eugene Charles Jansen, Cathleen Needham, Scott Morris Maurer
  • Patent number: 11525636
    Abstract: A loop heat pipe includes a reservoir, an evaporator adjacent to the reservoir, and a condenser including a condenser inlet and a condenser outlet. The loop heat pipe further includes a vapor transport line connecting the evaporator to the condenser inlet, a liquid transport line connecting the condenser outlet to the evaporator, and a vapor bypass joining the vapor transport line near the condenser inlet and joining the liquid transport line near the condenser outlet. The vapor bypass includes a vapor bypass housing. The vapor bypass housing includes a temperature. The loop heat pipe also includes a thermally-controlled connection between the vapor bypass housing and the condenser, and a thermal controller connected to the thermally-controlled connection and regulating the temperature of the vapor bypass housing via the thermally-controlled connection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: The Government of the United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Timothy Holman, Dmitry K Khrustalev, Kwok Cheung
  • Patent number: 11519680
    Abstract: A temperature sensor for a first fluid senses a temperature of the first fluid downstream of a heat exchanger. A supply for a second fluid changes a temperature of the first fluid. The supply for the second fluid passes through the heat exchanger. A valve is positioned upstream of the said heat exchanger on the supply for the second fluid, and controls a flow rate of the second fluid diverted into a bypass line compared to a flow rate of the second fluid directed through the heat exchanger, with the three-way valve controlled by a control in response to feedback from said temperature sensor. The valve changes the respective flow rates delivered into the bypass line and through the said heat exchanger in a non-linear manner with a change in valve position. A manned spaceship is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation
    Inventors: Catherine G. Pratt, Caroline R. Hearn, Diego S. Mugurusa
  • Patent number: 11499785
    Abstract: The invention provides a method for storing heat and continuously generating electricity, the method comprising a phase change material; first fluid conduit in thermal communication with the phase change material wherein the first conduit is adapted to receive a first fluid; a second fluid conduit in thermal communication with the phase change material, wherein the second conduit is adapted to receive a second fluid; and a turbine in thermal communication with the second fluid. Also provided is a method for continuously charging the energy power block portion of a combined thermal energy storage and heat exchanger unit with heated fluid generated by concentrated solar power, the method comprising intermittently storing heat in a phase change material; and continually directing the heat from the phase change material to a turbine such that the phase change material buffers the turbine against inconsistent solar heat inputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: UCHICAGO ARGONNE, LLC
    Inventors: David M. France, Dileep Singh, Wenhua Yu
  • Patent number: 11493220
    Abstract: A HVAC controller includes a housing and one or more heat-generating components contained within the housing. The heat-generating components cause a temperature inside the housing to exceed a temperature outside the housing. The controller includes a temperature sensor configured to measure the temperature inside the housing and a controller event detector configured to detect, for at least one of the heat-generating components, a controller event that generates heat inside the housing. The controller further includes a temperature compensation module configured to identify a steady-state temperature gain associated with the detected controller event, to calculate a temperature offset using a summation of the steady-state temperature gain, to determine the temperature of the building zone outside the housing by subtracting the temperature offset from the temperature measured inside the housing, and to store the temperature offset.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company
    Inventors: Michael J. Ajax, Justin J. Seifi
  • Patent number: 11493238
    Abstract: Trench-confirmable geothermal reservoirs with flexible reservoir bodies that can snugly abut trench walls (that may be of virgin, compacted earth) for facilitating heat exchange and flow liquid from one lower end to an opposing top end, and vice versa, depending on desired heat exchange. The direction can be reversed for summer and winter heat/cooling configurations. A series of the reservoirs may be used for appropriate heat transfer. The water volume of the reservoirs is relatively large and slow moving for good earth heat conduction. The reservoirs include first and second ports, one of which has an elongate internal tube that has a bottom that resides adjacent a bottom of the reservoir body and a series of apertures on only a lower portion of the internal tube to intake or output liquid depending on flow direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Inventor: Gary Scott Peele
  • Patent number: 11493227
    Abstract: A switching flow source system includes a switching flow apparatus and a source loop and a production loop that are in fluid communication with the switching flow apparatus. In a cooling mode a first heat exchanger, acting as a condenser, is fluidly connected to the source loop and a second heat exchanger, acting as an evaporator, is fluidly connected to the production loop. The switching flow source system can be switched to a heating mode by operating valves within the switching flow apparatus. In the heating mode the first heat exchanger is switched to being fluidly connected to the production loop while the second heat exchanger is switched to being fluidly connected to the source loop.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Inventor: Robert W. Jacobi
  • Patent number: 11486649
    Abstract: A heat exchanger for heat exchange between at least two fluids includes a plurality of heat exchange elements each having at least one fluid-guiding path for conducting at least one of the fluids through. The heat exchanger has a cylindrical shape or substantially cylindrical shape with a cylinder axis around which the heat exchange elements are adjacently arranged. At lease a region of each of the heat exchange elements forms an outline structure at least substantially like one of a triangular cylinder, a trapezoidal cylinder, a circle-sector cylinder, and an annulus-sector cylinder. As a result of adjacent arrangement of the heat exchange elements, the heat exchanger or at least a region of the heat exchanger has an outline structure at least substantially like one of a polygonal cylinder, a polygonal hollow cylinder, a circular cylinder, and annular cylinder. The cylindrical shape of the heat exchanger may alternatively be a cone frustum. The heat exchanger may be incorporated into an air device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: MAICO ELEKTROAPPARATE-FABRIK GMBH
    Inventors: Ole Pawelzik, Alfred Bolli
  • Patent number: 11473857
    Abstract: A modular exhaust configured for exhausting a flue flow of a heat exchanger, the modular exhaust including a cross tube including an inlet end, an exit end and a central axis, wherein the cross tube configured for receiving the flue flow at the inlet end and channeling the flue flow to the exit end; a condensate drainage exit aperture disposed on a bottom portion of the cross tube, the condensate drainage exit aperture configured for draining condensate from the first heat exchanger; and a vertical tube including a central axis, a top end and a bottom end, the cross tube configured to be connected at the exit end of the cross tube to a portion of the vertical tube disposed between the top end and the bottom end, the central axis of the cross tube is not disposed perpendicularly with respect to the central axis of the vertical tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: Intellihot, Inc.
    Inventors: Sridhar Deivasigamani, Sivaprasad Akasam
  • Patent number: 11460256
    Abstract: A header for a heat exchanger includes a first and a second cylindrical fluid manifold extending in parallel. Each of the first and second manifolds have tube slots that extend through an arcuate wall section of the manifold. A thickened wall section of the header having a generally triangular wall section is bounded by the first and second fluid manifolds and by a planar outer surface of the header. An aperture extends through the thickened wall section to provide a fluid communication pathway between the first and second cylindrical fluid manifolds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Modine Manufacturing Company
    Inventors: Simon Zielinski, Matthew Hernigle, James Prochniak, John Kis, Peter Kottal, Vivek Shetty, David Caucutt