Patents by Inventor Gary Lee Hensley

Gary Lee Hensley 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: 6198280
    Abstract: Flexible eddy current probes that allow an inspector to interrogate the blade roots or disk slots of different types of blades and disks while using a limited number of probes. The probe includes a rectangular-shaped block assembly, a rectangular-shaped loading platform having a slot therein, and stabilizing slide rods that couple the loading platform to the block assembly. The slide rods are adapted to slide through the block assembly as the block assembly is urged towards the loading platform. The probe further includes a flexible coil within a flexible membrane that produces a magnetic field during the inspection. The flexible coil extends from the block assembly and remains within the device, that is, between the loading platform and the block assembly, when not deployed. When deployed, the flexible coil passes through the slot in the loading platform to allow contact with the surface being inspected. Outriggers within the probe guide the flexible coil onto the surface during deployment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2001
    Assignee: Siemens Westinghouse Power Corporation
    Inventors: Gary Lee Hensley, David Justin Watson, Larry Stephen Price