Patents by Inventor Michael Thies
Michael Thies 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).
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Patent number: 11940351Abstract: A borescope is for optically inspecting gas turbines of aircraft engines. The borescope having an electronic image capture unit as a borescope objective at an end of a shaft, which is suitable for insertion into a borescope opening and configured for accurate positioning of the borescope objective relative to the borescope opening and through which data lines and supply lines for the image capture unit are guided. The image capture unit has: two spaced apart image capture sensors, recording cones of which overlap in a specified recording plane forming a recording region, in such a way that image data of the two image capture sensors are configured to be processed into 3-D data by way of triangulation.Type: GrantFiled: January 14, 2020Date of Patent: March 26, 2024Assignee: LUFTHANSA TECHNIK AGInventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Werner Neddermeyer, Soenke Bahr
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Patent number: 11926438Abstract: A device drives a shaft of a jet engine for inspection purposes. The device has: a drive having a part co-rotating with the shaft. The co-rotating part of the unit is configured to lie against a spinner of the shaft and is secured in a non-rotatable manner to at least one fan blade arranged on the shaft using at least one strap.Type: GrantFiled: December 30, 2019Date of Patent: March 12, 2024Assignee: LUFTHANSA TECHNIK AGInventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Johann Pott
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Publication number: 20230120378Abstract: An apparatus investigates a technical device using a borescope. The apparatus has: a guide tube which is introducible through a borescope opening on the technical device to be inspected using the borescope; and a repeatedly plastically deformable carrier configured to guide a borescope head arranged at one end of the carrier. The guide tube is designed to deform the carrier during the passage of the carrier through the guide tube.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 5, 2021Publication date: April 20, 2023Inventors: Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Lukas Bath, Maik Dammann, Mattes Schumann, Tarek Mostafa, Oliver Neumann, Werner Neddermeyer, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Soenke Bahr, Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies
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Publication number: 20230121496Abstract: An apparatus is used for inspecting a technical device using a borescope. The apparatus has a repeatedly plastically deformable and elongated carrier which is guidable in a deforming unit. The deforming unit has a stationary guide configured to axially guide the carrier at an outlet end and an actuator which is designed to axially guide the carrier and can be moved in at least one direction perpendicular to the gap between the guide and the actuator in order selectively to apply a bending moment to the carrier guided by the guide and the actuator. A borescope head is arranged at that end of the carrier which protrudes from the outlet end of the deforming unit.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 9, 2021Publication date: April 20, 2023Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Thomas Schueppstuhl, Lukas Bath
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Patent number: 11619486Abstract: A borescope includes an electronic image capture unit having two image capture sensors as a borescope lens at an end of a shaft that is designed for being inserted into a borescope opening, a position and alignment of the image capture sensors in relation to one another being suitable for ascertaining three-dimension (3D) information using triangulation; and a pattern projector configured to project a pattern into a common recording region of the image capture sensors. The pattern projector includes: a fundamentally optically imaging light-guide bundle, which is made up of statistically distributed optical fibers having differing transmittances, to whose input surface a light source is coupled and whose output surface is aligned with the region captured by the image capture sensors.Type: GrantFiled: November 13, 2020Date of Patent: April 4, 2023Assignee: LUFTHANSA TECHNIK AGInventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sören Wedow, Ronald Blöcher, Oliver Neumann, Tarek Mostafa, Werner Neddermeyer, Sönke Bahr, Sven Rasche
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Publication number: 20230003516Abstract: A borescope includes an electronic image capture unit having two image capture sensors as a borescope lens at an end of a shaft that is designed for being inserted into a borescope opening, a position and alignment of the image capture sensors in relation to one another being suitable for ascertaining three-dimension (3D) information using triangulation; and a pattern projector configured to project a pattern into a common recording region of the image capture sensors. The pattern projector includes: a fundamentally optically imaging light-guide bundle, which is made up of statistically distributed optical fibers having differing transmittances, to whose input surface a light source is coupled and whose output surface is aligned with the region captured by the image capture sensors.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 13, 2020Publication date: January 5, 2023Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sören Wedow, Ronald Blöcher, Oliver Neumann, Tarek Mostafa, Werner Neddermeyer, Sönke Bahr, Sven Rasche
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Publication number: 20220404291Abstract: A borescope includes an electronic image capturing unit having at least one image capturing sensor with a receiving cone at a first end of a shaft, the shaft having a shaft axis and through which data and supply lines for the image capturing unit are led. The image capturing unit is arranged on a rotary head. The rotary head is secured to the first end so as to be rotatable about the shaft axis such that an axis of the receiving cone is not parallel to the shaft axis at the first end and so that the rotating head is arranged to capture a panoramic image.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 13, 2020Publication date: December 22, 2022Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Thomas Ruegg, Soeren Wedow, Sven Rasche, Jens-Peter Tuppatsch, Soenke Bahr, Lukas Bath, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Tarek Mostafa, Oliver Neumann
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Patent number: 11301990Abstract: A method for borescope inspection of a component uses a stereo borescope for recording the component. The method includes: generating two stereoscopic partial images by means of the stereo borescope; calculating 3D triangulation data from the two stereoscopic partial images; registering the 3D triangulation data to a 3D CAD reference model of the component captured by the stereo borescope, while determining a projection point; projecting 2D image data determined from the two stereoscopic partial images onto the 3D CAD reference model from the determined projection point; and determining damage by image analysis of the projected 2D image data and by ascertaining deviations of the registered 3D triangulation data vis-à-vis the 3D CAD reference model.Type: GrantFiled: January 14, 2020Date of Patent: April 12, 2022Assignee: LUFTHANSA TECHNIK AGInventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Werner Neddermeyer, Soenke Bahr
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Publication number: 20220084178Abstract: A method uses a flexible endoscope to inspect one or more hard-to-reach components of a gas turbine. The flexible endoscope has at least one image capture unit, which is configured to capture visual image information and associated 3D data, and which is located at a free end of the flexible endoscope. The method includes: introducing the flexible endoscope through an inspection opening; capturing the visual image information and the associated 3D data by the at least one image capture unit; comparing the captured 3D data to a 3D model of a component to be examined, and based on the comparison, ascertaining a relative pose of the at least one image capture unit in relation to the component; and texturing the 3D model with the visual image information captured by the at least one image capture unit, in accordance with the ascertained relative pose of the image capture unit.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 12, 2019Publication date: March 17, 2022Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Werner Neddermeyer, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Maik Dammann, Mattes Schumann, Jens-Peter Tuppatsch, Soenke Bahr
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Publication number: 20220082473Abstract: A borescope is for optically inspecting gas turbines of aircraft engines. The borescope having an electronic image capture unit as a borescope objective at an end of a shaft, which is suitable for insertion into a borescope opening and configured for accurate positioning of the borescope objective relative to the borescope opening and through which data lines and supply lines for the image capture unit are guided. The image capture unit has: two spaced apart image capture sensors, recording cones of which overlap in a specified recording plane forming a recording region, in such a way that image data of the two image capture sensors are configured to be processed into 3-D data by way of triangulation.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 14, 2020Publication date: March 17, 2022Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Werner Neddermeyer, Soenke Bahr
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Publication number: 20220073216Abstract: A device drives a shaft of a jet engine for inspection purposes. The device has: a drive having a part co-rotating with the shaft. The co-rotating part of the unit is configured to lie against a spinner of the shaft and is secured in a non-rotatable manner to at least one fan blade arranged on the shaft using at least one strap.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 30, 2019Publication date: March 10, 2022Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Johann Pott
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Publication number: 20220044384Abstract: A method for borescope inspection of a component uses a stereo borescope for recording the component. The method includes: generating two stereoscopic partial images by means of the stereo borescope; calculating 3D triangulation data from the two stereoscopic partial images; registering the 3D triangulation data to a 3D CAD reference model of the component captured by the stereo borescope, while determining a projection point; projecting 2D image data determined from the two stereoscopic partial images onto the 3D CAD reference model from the determined projection point; and determining damage by image analysis of the projected 2D image data and by ascertaining deviations of the registered 3D triangulation data vis-à-vis the 3D CAD reference model.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 14, 2020Publication date: February 10, 2022Inventors: Jan Oke Peters, Michael Thies, Sven Rasche, Tomas Domaschke, Thorsten Schueppstuhl, Werner Neddermeyer, Soenke Bahr
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Patent number: 9939349Abstract: The invention relates to an endoscopy system and a corresponding method for examining gas turbines, comprising an endoscope and a data processing unit, wherein the endoscope comprises an image recording unit, wherein the endoscope is configured to transmit recorded images of the image recording unit from the inside of the gas turbine to the data processing unit, wherein the endoscopy system is configured to position and align the endoscope comprising the image recording unit introduced into a gas turbine in the gas turbine in a defined manner.Type: GrantFiled: September 28, 2012Date of Patent: April 10, 2018Assignee: LUFTHANSA TECHNIK AGInventors: Wolf Mueller, Michael Thies, Carsten Hoerlyk
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Publication number: 20150168263Abstract: The invention relates to an endoscopy system and a corresponding method for examining gas turbines, comprising an endoscope and a data processing unit, wherein the endoscope comprises an image recording unit, wherein the endoscope is configured to transmit recorded images of the image recording unit from the inside of the gas turbine to the data processing unit, wherein the endoscopy system is configured to position and align the endoscope comprising the image recording unit introduced into a gas turbine in the gas turbine in a defined manner.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 28, 2012Publication date: June 18, 2015Inventors: Wolf Mueller, Michael Thies, Carsten Hoerlyk
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Publication number: 20090131641Abstract: The invention relates to a method for assembling subunits forming capsoides in a solution containing a reduction agent in order to obtain capsoides. Initially, the reduction agent is inactivated or removed from the solution, subsequently, the ionic strength in the solution is increased to such an extent by adding at least one salt to the solution, that the subunits are assembled into capsoides.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 7, 2008Publication date: May 21, 2009Inventor: Michael Thies
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Publication number: 20050176128Abstract: The invention relates to a method for assembling subunits forming capsoides in a solution containing a reduction agent in order to obtain capsoides. Initially, the reduction agent is inactivated or removed from the solution, subsequently, the ionic strength in the solution is increased to such an extent by adding at least one salt to the solution, that the subunits are assembled into capsoides.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 27, 2003Publication date: August 11, 2005Inventor: Michael Thies
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Publication number: 20050158463Abstract: A powder coating system includes a booth and one or more powder-recovery modules that are insertable into an equipment-receiving space of the booth. A color change method includes removing a first powder-recovery module from the equipment-receiving space and positioning a second powder-recovery module in the equipment-receiving space.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 15, 2005Publication date: July 21, 2005Inventors: James Browning, Timothy Buyck, James Johnson, Michael Smith, Michael Thies