Patents by Inventor Milton A. Northrup

Milton A. Northrup 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: 5783130
    Abstract: A miniature plastic gripper actuated by inflation of a miniature balloon and method of fabricating same. The gripper is constructed of either heat-shrinkable or heat-expandable plastic tubing and is formed around a mandrel, then cut to form gripper prongs or jaws and the mandrel removed. The gripper is connected at one end with a catheter or tube having an actuating balloon at its tip, whereby the gripper is opened or dosed by inflation or deflation of the balloon. The gripper is designed to removably retain a member to which is connected a quantity or medicine, plugs, or micro-components. The miniature plastic gripper is inexpensive to fabricate and can be used for various applications, such as gripping, sorting, or placing of micron-scale particles for analysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 21, 1998
    Assignee: Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: William J. Benett, Peter A. Krulevitch, Abraham P. Lee, Milton A. Northrup, James A. Folta
  • Patent number: 5645564
    Abstract: Electromechanical microstructures (microgrippers), either integrated circuit (IC) silicon-based or precision machined, to extend and improve the application of catheter-based interventional therapies for the repair of aneurysms in the brain or other interventional clinical therapies. These micromechanisms can be specifically applied to release platinum coils or other materials into bulging portions of the blood vessels also known as aneurysms. The "micro" size of the release mechanism is necessary since the brain vessels are the smallest in the body. Through a catheter more than one meter long, the micromechanism located at one end of the catheter can be manipulated from the other end thereof. The microgripper (micromechanism) of the invention will also find applications in non-medical areas where a remotely actuated microgripper or similar actuator would be useful or where micro-assembling is needed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 1995
    Date of Patent: July 8, 1997
    Assignee: Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: Milton A. Northrup, Dino R. Ciarlo, Abraham P. Lee, Peter A. Krulevitch
  • Patent number: 5609608
    Abstract: A miniature plastic gripper actuated by inflation of a miniature balloon and method of fabricating same. The gripper is constructed of either heat-shrinkable or heat-expandable plastic tubing and is formed around a mandrel, then cut to form gripper prongs or jaws and the mandrel removed. The gripper is connected at one end with a catheter or tube having an actuating balloon at its tip, whereby the gripper is opened or closed by inflation or deflation of the balloon. The gripper is designed to removably retain a member to which is connected a quantity or medicine, plugs, or micro-components. The miniature plastic gripper is inexpensive to fabricate and can be used for various applications, such as gripping, sorting, or placing of micron-scale particles for analysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 11, 1997
    Assignee: Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: William J. Benett, Peter A. Krulevitch, Abraham P. Lee, Milton A. Northrup, James A. Folta