Patents by Inventor Alan Hoffman

Alan Hoffman has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9086074
    Abstract: An apparatus that is used to tilt a ceiling fan such that the air flow of the ceiling fan is redirected. The apparatus mainly consists of a first mounting piece, a second mounting piece, and an adjustment bolt. The first mounting piece and the second mounting piece surround the down tube extending downward from a ceiling fan canopy bracket. The first mounting piece and the second mounting piece are attached together with a pair of patterned bolts. When in use, a user pushes the ceiling fan in a desired direction and tightens the adjustment bolt such that it makes contact with the ceiling fan canopy bracket. In another version, the apparatus can be controlled remotely. In doing so, servos or any other comparable means can be incorporated to control the adjustment bolt. The servos can be controlled by a smart phone or similar means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Inventor: Alan Hoffman
  • Publication number: 20150017017
    Abstract: An apparatus that is used to tilt a ceiling fan such that the air flow of the ceiling fan is redirected. The apparatus mainly consists of a first mounting piece, a second mounting piece, and an adjustment bolt. The first mounting piece and the second mounting piece surround the down tube extending downward from a ceiling fan canopy bracket. The first mounting piece and the second mounting piece are attached together with a pair of patterned bolts. When in use, a user pushes the ceiling fan in a desired direction and tightens the adjustment bolt such that it makes contact with the ceiling fan canopy bracket. In another version, the apparatus can be controlled remotely. In doing so, servos or any other comparable means can be incorporated to control the adjustment bolt. The servos can be controlled by a smart phone or similar means.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2014
    Publication date: January 15, 2015
    Inventor: Alan Hoffman
  • Publication number: 20080093554
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus (10) are disclosed for handling pallets (S) to be inspected and sorted. The method can include tipping a substantially vertically oriented pallet (L) in a forward rotational direction to expose and allow inspection of a trailing major (17) surface of the pallet. A lower portion of the pallet then can be moved to cause the pallet to tip in a rearward rotational direction and land in a substantially horizontal position. The apparatus can include a pallet restraining device (16) for blocking the motion of an upper portion of the pallet as it tips in the forward rotational direction and a conveyor (30) for moving the lower portion of the pallet to cause the pallet to tip in the rearward rotational direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 24, 2006
    Publication date: April 24, 2008
    Inventors: Alan Hoffman, Michael Ray, Richard Bornfreund
  • Publication number: 20050097207
    Abstract: A diagnostic system in which, at every point in time, a forecast is made of the future response times of each EPP (End-to-end Probe Platform) probe in a battery of probes. Thresholds are established in terms of the distribution of future EPP values. The theory of Generalized Additive Models is used to build a predictive model based on a combination of a) data normally generated by network nodes, b) results of a battery of probes and c) profile curves reflecting expected response times (i.e. based on recent history) corresponding to this battery for various times of day, days of week, month of year, etc. The model is pre-computed, and does not have to be dynamically adjusted. The model produces, at regular intervals, forecasts for outcomes of various EPP probes for various horizons of interest; also, it produces thresholds for the respective forecasts based on a number of factors, including acceptable rate of false alarms, forecast variance and EPP values that are expected based on the recorded history.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2003
    Publication date: May 5, 2005
    Inventors: Ilya Gluhovsky, Alan Hoffman, Herbert Lee, Emmanuel Yashchin