Patents by Inventor Mark J. DuFour

Mark J. DuFour 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).

  • Apparatus and methods for injecting filler material into a hole in a composite layer
    Patent number: 10603844
    Abstract: Apparatus and methods for injecting molten filler material into a hole. The method in accordance with one embodiment comprises: drilling a hole in a composite layer; heating filler material comprising an electrically conductive low-melting alloy to a molten state; inserting a nozzle having an internal channel system into the hole with a gap separating the nozzle and the hole; forcing molten filler material into, through and out of the internal channel system of the nozzle and into the gap; and retracting the nozzle from the hole. The nozzle may be rotary or not rotary.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2020
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Shahriar Khosravani, Blake A. Simpson, Darrin M. Hansen, Mark J. DuFour
  • Apparatus and Methods for Injecting Filler Material into a Hole in a Composite Layer
    Publication number: 20190111632
    Abstract: Apparatus and methods for injecting molten filler material into a hole. The method in accordance with one embodiment comprises: drilling a hole in a composite layer; heating filler material comprising an electrically conductive low-melting alloy to a molten state; inserting a nozzle having an internal channel system into the hole with a gap separating the nozzle and the hole; forcing molten filler material into, through and out of the internal channel system of the nozzle and into the gap; and retracting the nozzle from the hole. The nozzle may be rotary or not rotary.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2017
    Publication date: April 18, 2019
    Applicant: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Shahriar Khosravani, Blake A. Simpson, Darrin M. Hansen, Mark J. DuFour