Patents by Inventor Brian Parke Franz

Brian Parke Franz 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).

  • Instrument lander utilizing a CubeSat platform for in situ exploration of asteroids and comets
    Patent number: 10773831
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus for designing, constructing and using instrument landers for in situ exploration of small solar system bodies, such as asteroids and comets. In one aspect, a lander includes a CubeSat-style platform; instrument packaging, wherein the CubeSat-style platform and the instrument packaging are configured and arranged for an uncontrolled descent, hopping landing on a surface of a body in a solar system, where a descending trajectory for the lander is designed based on gravitational force and solar radiation, with no lander-based propulsion; and a mobility mechanism configured and arranged to self-orient the lander on the surface of the body in the solar system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: University of Southern California
    Inventors: Joseph Jiong Wang, Brian Parke Franz, Michael Gruntman
  • Instrument Lander Utilizing a CubeSat Platform for In Situ Exploration of Asteroids and Comets
    Publication number: 20170369191
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus for designing, constructing and using instrument landers for in situ exploration of small solar system bodies, such as asteroids and comets. In one aspect, a lander includes a CubeSat-style platform; instrument packaging, wherein the CubeSat-style platform and the instrument packaging are configured and arranged for an uncontrolled descent, hopping landing on a surface of a body in a solar system, where a descending trajectory for the lander is designed based on gravitational force and solar radiation, with no lander-based propulsion; and a mobility mechanism configured and arranged to self-orient the lander on the surface of the body in the solar system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2017
    Publication date: December 28, 2017
    Inventors: Joseph Jiong Wang, Brian Parke Franz, Michael Gruntman