Patents by Inventor Benjamin Martin Schweitzer

Benjamin Martin Schweitzer 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: 11143784
    Abstract: Systems for landing and facilitating power flow or data transfer between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a charging mat using a boom are described. The system includes a mat with a conductive mesh on the top and a conductive surface on the other bottom of the mat. The conductive mesh and bottom conductive surface are separated (electrically isolated) by an isolation core. The outer portion of the boom contacts part of the conductive mesh of the mat to create an electrical pathway. An inner portion of the boom penetrates through the top layer conductive mesh, through the isolating core, and contacts the bottom conductive surface of the mat to create another electrical pathway.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Carlos Guillermo Parodi, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Patent number: 10809309
    Abstract: Systems and corresponding methods for monitoring of a state of charge or a state of health of a battery are described. For example, the battery monitoring system may include strain gauges to measure dimensions or changes in dimension of cells of the battery, and may determine states of charge of the cells based on dimensional changes over time, e.g., based on data from strain gauges. The dimensional changes may also be corrected for dimensional changes due to thermal strain. In addition, states of health of individual cells of the battery may be determined by comparing the dimensional changes of each of the cells over time. Further, the data from strain gauges may be received at various frequencies, e.g., based on an expected operational duration of the battery and/or based on a current state of charge or state of health.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 20, 2020
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Chengwu Cui, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Publication number: 20190331740
    Abstract: Systems and corresponding methods for monitoring of a state of charge or a state of health of a battery are described. For example, the battery monitoring system may include strain gauges to measure dimensions or changes in dimension of cells of the battery, and may determine states of charge of the cells based on dimensional changes over time, e.g., based on data from strain gauges. The dimensional changes may also be corrected for dimensional changes due to thermal strain. In addition, states of health of individual cells of the battery may be determined by comparing the dimensional changes of each of the cells over time. Further, the data from strain gauges may be received at various frequencies, e.g., based on an expected operational duration of the battery and/or based on a current state of charge or state of health.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Publication date: October 31, 2019
    Inventors: Chengwu Cui, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Patent number: 10418830
    Abstract: Systems for landing and facilitating power flow or data transfer between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a charging mat using a boom are described. The system includes a mat with a conductive mesh on the top and a conductive surface on the other bottom of the mat. The conductive mesh and bottom conductive surface are separated (electrically isolated) by an isolation core. The outer portion of the boom contacts part of the conductive mesh of the mat to create an electrical pathway. An inner portion of the boom penetrates through the top layer conductive mesh, through the isolating core, and contacts the bottom conductive surface of the mat to create another electrical pathway.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2019
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Carlos Guillermo Parodi, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Patent number: 10393821
    Abstract: Systems and corresponding methods for optical monitoring of a state of charge or a state of health of a battery are described. For example, the battery monitoring system may include an imaging device that captures images of cells of the battery and determines states of charge of the cells based on observed dimensional changes over time, e.g., relative to reference markers. The observed dimensional changes may also be corrected for dimensional changes due to thermal strain. In addition, states of health of individual cells of the battery may be determined by comparing the dimensional changes of each of the cells over time. Further, the images may be captured at various frequencies, e.g., based on an expected operational duration of the battery and/or based on a current state of charge or state of health.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2019
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Chengwu Cui, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Patent number: 10193370
    Abstract: Methods and systems for installing an electrical power source in an electrical device can include positioning the electrical power source in a device-charging position associated with a first charge path that has a nonzero electrical resistivity, maintaining the electrical power source in the device-charging position for a nonzero time with a mechanism, and moving the electrical power source from the device-charging position to an installed position associated with a second charge path that has less resistivity than the first nonzero electrical resistivity. Devices can include a mechanism and the first and second charge paths, the mechanism configured to move a power source from a device-charging position to an installed position over a nonzero time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Benjamin Martin Schweitzer
  • Publication number: 20180284197
    Abstract: Systems and corresponding methods for optical monitoring of a state of charge or a state of health of a battery are described. For example, the battery monitoring system may include an imaging device that captures images of cells of the battery and determines states of charge of the cells based on observed dimensional changes over time, e.g., relative to reference markers. The observed dimensional changes may also be corrected for dimensional changes due to thermal strain. In addition, states of health of individual cells of the battery may be determined by comparing the dimensional changes of each of the cells over time. Further, the images may be captured at various frequencies, e.g., based on an expected operational duration of the battery and/or based on a current state of charge or state of health.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 29, 2017
    Publication date: October 4, 2018
    Inventors: Chengwu Cui, Benjamin Martin Schweitzer