Patents by Inventor Frank Thoma

Frank Thoma 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: 8886472
    Abstract: A method for determining a condition indicator of an apparatus includes providing an apparatus configured to measure at least two different technical parameters. A respective parameter value is determined for each of the at least two different technical parameters of the apparatus using at least one sensor configured to determine a respective parameter value for each of the at least two different technical parameters. A respective deviation value is determined for each of the parameter values with respect to an associated respective parameter reference value for each of the technical parameters. A respective deviation relevance value is determined from each of the deviation values using a respective parameter-specific deviation relevance function for each of the parameter values, the parameter-specific deviation relevance functions being different from each other. Using an indicator function, a condition indicator is calculated from the determined deviation relevance values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: Hach Lange GmbH
    Inventors: Toon Streppel, Torsten Seehaus, Ulrich Schmitz, Manfred Battefeld, Frank Thomas, Michael Kussmann, Michael Haeck
  • Publication number: 20140250590
    Abstract: A plumbing fixture at least having a first housing section and a second housing section which are arranged movable to one another, whereby the first housing section together with the second housing section forms an electrical sensor. In particular, an electrically conductive and simultaneously sealing coupling component is provided between the housing sections, whereby further an electrically conductive coupling component is provided between the first housing section and the second housing section and the coupling component comprises an electrically conductive plastic.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 7, 2014
    Publication date: September 11, 2014
    Applicant: Grohe AG
    Inventors: Hans Dieter KEITER, Achim MIELKE, Frank-Thomas LUIG, Gunter GAEBEL
  • Publication number: 20140239060
    Abstract: A maintenance arrangement for an analysis device for maintaining an environment analysis device includes an environment analysis device, a radio station and a mobile service device. The environment analysis device comprises a manual input, a monitor, and a barcode generator configured to generate a barcode comprising a virtual target address for display on the monitor from an input information item. The service device comprises a digital camera configured to read the barcode, a barcode reading module configured to extract the virtual target address from the barcode read by the digital camera, and a radio module configured to establish a radio link to the radio station and to transmit the virtual target address to the radio station. The radio station is configured to connect the service device to a target device comprising a target address.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 4, 2011
    Publication date: August 28, 2014
    Applicant: HACH LANGE GMBH
    Inventor: Frank Thomas
  • Publication number: 20140190010
    Abstract: In a process for producing a piston for an internal combustion engine, a groove is worked into a cast piston blank proceeding from a combustion chamber cavity (20) in a largely radial direction and then closed to form a cooling duct. A cast piston for an internal combustion engine has a closure which is fitted after the casting and the machining between the cooling duct and a combustion chamber cavity (20).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 27, 2012
    Publication date: July 10, 2014
    Inventors: Arnd Baberg, Frank Thomas Hugo Dörnenburg, Klaus Lades
  • Publication number: 20140152078
    Abstract: A deep-lip wheel cover apparatus that attaches with a steel wheel includes a wheel cover, a center cap, and a hub ring. The hub ring is centrally connected with the steel wheel so that the wheel cover and the center cap can be attached to the hub ring. The wheel cover also attaches with the steel wheel through a plurality of fastening systems, where the plurality of fastening system provide additional connection points in between the wheel cover and the steel wheel. When the wheel cover and the center cap are installed within the steel wheel, the wheel cover and the center cap completely cover the steel wheel creating a deep-lip appearance within the steel wheel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2014
    Publication date: June 5, 2014
    Inventor: Frank Thomas Noriega
  • Publication number: 20140109547
    Abstract: A method for operating a recirculating waste heat steam generator is provided, in which in a pressure stage of the recirculating waste heat steam generator, the feed water mass flow is guided on the basis of a specified desired value in order to control the water level in a drum. The method should give a recirculating waste heat steam generator a particularly high degree of efficiency and simultaneously a particularly high level of operational flexibility. For this purpose the thermal input introduced into an evaporator of the pressure stage is used as input variable in the determination of the desired value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 23, 2012
    Publication date: April 24, 2014
    Applicant: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Jan Bruckner, Martin Effert, Frank Thomas
  • Patent number: 8701602
    Abstract: A waste heat steam generator including evaporator tubes is provided. The evaporator tubes are connected in parallel on the flow medium side, a plurality of overheating tubes are mounted downstream of the evaporator tubes using a water separation system. The water separation system includes water separation elements, each water separation element being respectively mounted downstream of the plurality of evaporator tubes and/or upstream of a plurality of overheating tubes. Each water separating element includes an inlet pipe which is respectively connected upstream to the evaporator tubes, the inlet pipe extending into a water evacuation pipe when seen in the longitudinal direction. A plurality of outflow pipes branch off in the transitional area, the pipes being connected to an inlet collector of the overheating tubes which are respectively connected downstream. A distribution element is arranged on the steam side between the respective water separating element and the inlet collector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2014
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Jan Brückner, Joachim Franke, Holger Schmidt, Frank Thomas
  • Patent number: 8646291
    Abstract: An apparatus for forming laminated sheet glass and a method for forming laminated sheet glass or articles using the glass laminating apparatus, the apparatus including: a lower fusion pipe providing a first liquid stream that forms the core of the laminate; a first upper fusion pipe having a pair of adjustable baffles situated between the bottom of the upper fusion pipe and the top of the lower fusion pipe, the first upper fusion pipe provides a second liquid glass stream onto the first liquid glass stream that forms the clad of the laminate on the core of the laminate, the adjustable baffles being separated from the lower fusion pipe by a gap, and the adjustable baffles control the landing angle (?) and drop point of the second liquid glass stream onto the first liquid glass stream.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2014
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Frank Thomas Coppola, Michael Ryan Harshberger, Monica Jo Mashewske
  • Publication number: 20140034044
    Abstract: A method for operating a directly heated, solar-thermal steam generator is provided. As per the method, a nominal value Ms for the supply water mass flow M is conducted to an apparatus for adjusting the supply water mass flow M wherein, at the adjustment of the nominal value Ms for the supply water mass flow M, account is taken of a correction value KT, by which the thermal effects of storage or withdrawal of thermal energy in an evaporator are corrected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 3, 2012
    Publication date: February 6, 2014
    Inventors: Jürgen Birnbaum, Joachim Brodesser, Jan Brückner, Martin Effert, Joachim Franke, Gerhard Schlund, Tobias Schulze, Frank Thomas, Gerhard Zimmermann
  • Publication number: 20130340781
    Abstract: This invention relates to an oil absorbing comb and methods for its use. The novel comb of this invention is capable of absorbing significant amounts of oil from mammalian hair or other substrates and methods of using said comb.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2012
    Publication date: December 26, 2013
    Inventors: Frank Thomas Liebel, Anne Young
  • Publication number: 20130327043
    Abstract: A method is provided for regulating a brief increase in power of a steam turbine that has an upstream fossil-fired once-through steam generator having a plurality of economizer, evaporator and superheater heating surfaces which form a flow path and through which a flow medium flows. The flow of the flow medium through the fossil-fired once-through steam generator is increased in order to achieve the brief increase in power of the steam turbine. The method involves using desired enthalpy value at the outlet of an evaporator heating surface as a control variable for determining a desired value for the flow of the flow medium through the fossil-fired once-through steam generator. The desired enthalpy value is reduced in order to achieve the brief increase in power of the steam turbine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2012
    Publication date: December 12, 2013
    Inventors: Jan Brückner, Martin Effert, Frank Thomas
  • Publication number: 20130327853
    Abstract: A faucet having a pull-out sprayer that is attached to a spray hose. The faucet also has a housing with an end region to receive the sprayer and a feedthrough for passage of the sprayer hose through the housing, and at least one first guide for spacing the sprayer hose from an inner wall surface of the feedthrough, the guide being provided at least in an end region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2013
    Publication date: December 12, 2013
    Inventors: Dieter KEITER, Frank-Thomas LUIG, Matthias SCHLUETER
  • Publication number: 20130319403
    Abstract: A method for operating an indirectly heated, solar-thermal steam generator and to an indirectly heated, solar-thermal steam generator are provided. A heat transfer medium is used in the solar-thermal steam generator. The supply water mass flow M is predictively controlled by a device for adjusting the supply water mass flow M. To this end, a nominal value Ms is fed to the device. A correction value KT, by which thermal storage effects of stored or withdrawn thermal energy are corrected is taken into account by the nominal value Ms.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 6, 2012
    Publication date: December 5, 2013
    Inventors: Jan Brückner, Frank Thomas
  • Publication number: 20130316218
    Abstract: A glass-based material is disclosed, which is suitable for the production of a separator for an electrochemical energy accumulator, in particular for a lithium ion accumulator, wherein the glass-based material comprises at least the following constituents (in wt.-% based on oxide): SiO2+F+P2O5 20-95; Al2O3 0.5-30, wherein the density is less than 3.7 g/cm3.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2011
    Publication date: November 28, 2013
    Applicant: Schott AG
    Inventors: Ulf Dahlmann, Andreas Roters, Dieter Goedeke, Frank-Thomas Lentes, Joern Besinger, Olaf Claussen, Christian Kunert, Ulrich Peuchert, Wolfgang Schmidbauer, Wolfram Beier, Sabine Pichler-Wilhelm
  • Publication number: 20130312459
    Abstract: An apparatus for forming laminated sheet glass, including: a lower pipe providing a first liquid stream that forms the core of the laminate; an first upper pipe having a pair of adjustable baffles situated between the bottom of the upper pipe and the top of the lower pipe, the first upper pipe provides a second liquid glass stream onto the first liquid glass stream that forms the clad of the laminate on the core of the laminate, the adjustable baffles being separated from the lower pipe by a gap, and the adjustable baffles control the landing angle (?) and drop point of the second liquid glass stream onto the first liquid glass stream. Also disclosed is a method for forming laminated sheet glass or articles thereof using the aforementioned glass laminating apparatus, as defined herein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Publication date: November 28, 2013
    Inventors: Frank Thomas Coppola, Michael Ryan Harshberger, Monica Jo Mashewske
  • Publication number: 20130299435
    Abstract: Described herein are refuse collection systems for removing, collecting and extracting refuse from water run-off.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2011
    Publication date: November 14, 2013
    Inventors: Jeffrey Coffman, James Coffman, Frank Thomas, Joseph Glembocki, Lucas Corsbie
  • Publication number: 20130282303
    Abstract: A method for determining a condition indicator of an apparatus includes providing an apparatus configured to measure at least two different technical parameters. A respective parameter value is determined for each of the at least two different technical parameters of the apparatus using at least one sensor configured to determine a respective parameter value for each of the at least two different technical parameters. A respective deviation value is determined for each of the parameter values with respect to an associated respective parameter reference value for each of the technical parameters. A respective deviation relevance value is determined from each of the deviation values using a respective parameter-specific deviation relevance function for each of the parameter values, the parameter-specific deviation relevance functions being different from each other. Using an indicator function, a condition indicator is calculated from the determined deviation relevance values.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2013
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: HACH LANGE GMBH
    Inventors: TOON STREPPEL, Torsten Seehaus, Ulrich Schmitz, Manfred Battefeld, Frank Thomas, Michael Kussmann, Michael Haeck
  • Publication number: 20130265478
    Abstract: A lens system having an infrared filter for a compact camera module is provided. The lens system is an achromatic lens system and has two lenses. The first lens has a positive focal length, and the second lens has a negative focal length. The first lens is made of copper ion containing glass which absorbs infrared light and functions as an infrared filter. The second lens has an Abbe number that is smaller than that of the first lens with a difference between the Abbe numbers of the first lens and the second lens being at least 15.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2013
    Publication date: October 10, 2013
    Applicant: Schott AG
    Inventors: Steffen REICHEL, Frank-Thomas LENTES, Karl MENNEMANN
  • Patent number: 8541743
    Abstract: A method for identifying and quantifying one or more analytes included in a sample comprising a background solvent is disclosed. The present invention locates a sample fluid at a sample region by virtue of a sample holder that comprises work-hardened silver halide. The sample fluid at the sample region is then spectrally characterized via a mid-infrared spectrometer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Assignee: ROC8SCI Co.
    Inventor: Frank Thomas Hartley
  • Patent number: D715641
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2014
    Inventor: Frank Thomas Spinos