Patents by Inventor Nico Littooij

Nico Littooij 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: 7515755
    Abstract: Semifinished products, especially strand sections that are cut off from continuous cast strands, are marked in steel mills and rolling mills so that individual pieces can be tracked. The marks applied or attached to the pieces have to be machine-readable in a sorting station. Marking and reading devices are expensive and produce undesired reading errors. The aim of the invention is therefore to create a method and a device that avoid the aforementioned disadvantages and that allow for a reliable and cost-efficient identification of semifinished products. For this purpose, a first camera is used in an identification station to obtain digitized images of optically visible separating section-specific and strand section-specific surface features on an identification surface and the images are stored in a database.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2009
    Assignee: Concast AG
    Inventors: Nico Littooij, Paul Mueller
  • Patent number: 7421876
    Abstract: The invention relates to a marking machine for metallurgical products, more particularly continuous cast products, comprising at least one marking stamp and a striking device for striking the marking stamp into the product to be marked. The striking device is provided with a striking bolt and a striker spring driving said bolt. The striking bolt strikes the marking stamp that is placed in striking position by actuating the striker spring with an actuation element that is driven by an electric motor, thereby hammering the marking stamp into the product to be marked. Every time the marking stamp is subjected to the action of the spring, the stamp receives an evenly high kinetic energy thereby causing an evenly high striking depth of the marking. The spring in association with the electric motor drive enables fast, precise and easily controllable execution of the individual working steps of the machine. The ensures a high marking repetition rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2008
    Assignee: Concast AG
    Inventors: Nico Littooij, Daniel Groetzinger
  • Publication number: 20060204108
    Abstract: Semifinished products, especially strand sections that are cut off from continuous cast strands, are marked in steel mills and rolling mills so that individual pieces can be tracked. The marks applied or attached to the pieces have to be machine-readable in a sorting station. Marking and reading devices are expensive and produce undesired reading errors. The aim of the invention is therefore to create a method and a device that avoid the aforementioned disadvantages and that allow for a reliable and cost-efficient identification of semifinished products. For this purpose, a first camera is used in an identification station to obtain digitized images of optically visible separating section-specific and strand section-specific surface features on an identification surface and the images are stored in a database.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 14, 2006
    Publication date: September 14, 2006
    Applicant: CONCAST AG
    Inventors: Nico Littooij, Paul Mueller
  • Publication number: 20050061053
    Abstract: The invention relates to a marking machine for metallurgical products, more particularly continuous cast products, comprising at least one marking stamp and a striking device for striking the marking stamp into the product to be marked. The striking device is provided with a striking bolt and a striker spring driving said bolt. The striking bolt strikes the marking stamp that is placed in striking position by actuating the striker spring with an actuation element that is driven by an electric motor, thereby hammering the marking stamp into the product to be marked. Every time the marking stamp is subjected to the action of the spring, the stamp receives an evenly high kinetic energy thereby causing an evenly high striking depth of the marking. The spring in association with the electric motor drive enables fast, precise and easily controllable execution of the individual working steps of the machine. The ensures a high marking repetition rate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2003
    Publication date: March 24, 2005
    Inventors: Nico Littooij, Daniel Groetzinger